Do you remember as a kid playing with a stick and pretending its a gun, a baseball bat, a lever, a sword, a paton, an oar or whatever your imagination conjured up? Was it fun, exciting and full of creative ways to play or practice an art? What if you could do that again but add in fitness to it, better yet, Isometrics?
Being creative is part of the fun when exercising. I'm talking about the kind of creativity that keeps you interested, makes you fit with long term abilities and strengthen the body without ever moving. Since we're in quarantine, might as well make the best of it right? What if you could strengthen not just the muscles, but your tendons and ligaments just by doing Isometrics with a stick by creating exercises based on only your imagination. Be able to strengthen the swing of a bat, be faster with a sword, quicker reflexes with a hockey stick or if you're a sadist, have crazy strength in your submission game in MMA/Catch Wrestling.
Yesterday, I made up a video of doing Isometrics with a stick from various angles where you're pushing, pulling, gripping, squatting and even squeezing using leverage. From sword play to a submission hold to pulling, bending, angling, holding the squat and more in less than than a couple minutes. Just an idea of developing world class strength without moving a damn muscle. One Isometric that I loved doing in this video was practicing the Catch Wrestling submission, the Double Wrist Lock or the Kimura for BJJ guys. This isometric can make your forearms feel like crazy strong pipes when you apply the hold; the hardening of the bones will make an opponent want to scream bloody murder. I learned this Isometric from Don Powers' book Catch Wrestling For Cops. Just this exercise alone can possibly tear an opponent's arm and put them in the hospital.
Isometrics go beyond just exercise and getting stronger. It's putting in work that can enhance your physical abilities and possibly reduce osteoporosis and reduce injury. A lot of injuries tend to be more on the tendons and ligaments, muscles heal much faster than a torn ligament. Old school Karate and Kung Fu masters did similar Isometric exercises to hardened the bones of their elbows, shins, wrists, fists and ankles. Although small, these guys were freakishly strong and deadly (Bruce Lee anybody?) and if they hit you, it could be fatal. In MMA or in other sports, not only Isometrics reduce injury but create an insane amount of durability and longevity that can aid a team or in a fight and if you happen to get into one on the streets, it can come in handy.
Muscles can only do so much and since so many people focus on the muscles, they forget that an overload wears down the tendons and ligaments so you're having a greater chance of tearing something and having to rehab for a fucking insane amount of time. After my accident, I was determined to be the strongest I can be without always resorting to or relying on the weights, so when I started practicing Isometrics along with the bodyweight exercises, my injury rate as opposed to when I was in high school and going to the gym went down incredibly and only got injured maybe once or twice but never anything severe.
A stick to some people is just a stick, to me and others with an incredible imagination, it's lifesaving and makes us stupid strong for the things we do in our lives. Get a hold of a stick and see what Isometrics you can come up with.
1 comment:
Another excellent post and video Ben. I used to do these type of exercises a lot with a brush when I worked on highway maintance a few years ago.
PARKERSTAR AKA PARKERSHIT 💩/PORKERSHIT 💩 from the Asshole Mongo Men forum was allegedly found with a stick when the police stopped him. He tried to say it was for isometrics, but the fact he had his letters from Ted Bundy in his pocket and he was on a female college campus at the time made them seriously doubt his story!
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