500 Rep Deck Of Cards Workout With Dopamineo Bands

 Working on your conditioning is one of the best things a person can do for their health. The ability to last as long as needed whether for sports or for daily life is a gift as well as a necessity. There are a variety of ways to make it happen, while some methods can seem boring, others can be very interesting especially if you use specific things that can target various muscle groups in the blink of an eye. Dopamineo Bands are one of those things.

Some of the best wrestlers in the world train with these bands to keep their skills up and enhance their cardio to last in as many matches as they can. There's a reason why several wrestlers in the UFC like Khabib didn't know the word tired. The man was a machine and outlasted many opponents. These bands provide a level of resistance that takes stamina and long lasting strength into space where it may seem endless. It doesn't take a ton of time to train with these so no need to go as long as a marathon. 

Since September of 2023, off and on, I've used this band to amplify my own cardio and keep me in shape for whatever lies ahead of me. Done many workouts from circuits to HIIT to just a quick and simple session. Every time I put my hands on it, I feel like I'm learning from the most conditioned athletes in history and trying out various exercises at different speeds and technique. 

I took an idea from my own workouts using a deck of cards and wanted to see what it would be like to do it with the Band. Consists of 5 Exercises (Push, Pull, Squat, Jump & The Propeller Exercise) and do 500 Total Reps going through the deck. It's intense and simple. It's not easy and sure AF isn't for the weak at heart. It can be done as warm up for athletes, a post-practice cool down or it can be on its own and focusing on targeting areas you want to be better conditioned in. Here is how it goes.....

Hearts: Push Exercise (e.g Chest Press)

Diamonds: Pull Exercise (e.g Chest Pull Waves)

Spades: Squats (e.g Uppercut To Squat)

Clubs: Jump Exercise (e.g Ski Jumps)

2-10 As Is

K/Q/J Is 10 Reps

Aces Are 16 Reps

Jokers Are 50 Propellers

This particular workout hits many muscle groups that keep you on your toes. Focus on technique, let the speed come naturally (you're not trying to break world records here) and pay attention to your breathing. You can start with a few cards and work your way up over time or you can go through the whole deck and take breaks periodically and each workout you reduce rest time until you can get through with very little rest other than flipping a card and adjusting the exercise. If you ever wanted to experience what a wrestler or fighter may feel during intense training and not be a competitive athlete, this is pretty damn close. This is also a way to get fit without all the hassles of gym training and getting a good session in 15-30 minutes depending on how long it takes you to finish. 

Have fun with this one and let me know how it goes for you, love to hear your feedback from this workout. Be amazingly awesome and keep killing it in 2025. Save a few bucks using my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF. 

500 Step Ups A Day

As you know, Step Ups are a main form of my leg training and for good reason. I've kept a solid level of hitting at least 500 reps in sets of 25 per leg. Sometimes I'll do up to 600 and every now and then go for 1000 but most days I keep it around 500. What have been the benefits of doing this? I don't get sore, my legs are looking more athletic, maintaining or losing a bit of weight here and there and it keeps my stamina up.

That's just part of why I do them. I mainly do them cause for one they're enjoyable and two, it helps mix in my training with the Dopa Band I work with. Some days, I start out with Step Ups and do a Dopa Workout later, others I'll do a Dopa Workout in the day and then do Step Ups at night and one time I started a workout with 500 Step Ups as a "warm up" and then went into a Dopa Workout so the entire session was around 45 minutes or so. That's the beauty of them, they can be incorporated to whatever you want to do.

I keep my timing of 500 between 20-25 minutes. I don't try to go for a speed record because no matter how fast I try to make it, eventually will hit a wall and the faster you go, the more chances of making a mistake that could result in an injury. It's not a sprint, its a conditioning exercise to be done at a solid pace that keeps you going without going Speedy Gonzales on it. It's meant for cardio that also has a strength element to it by having strong, athletic and conditioned legs. Bob Backlund would do thousands upon thousands in his workouts and he was one of the most conditioned men of his time. You don't have to go that route because all you're doing is just adding more reps to a long ass workout that takes up a ton of time and not everyone is able to workout on exercises like that for 2 hours or more. 

It's an idea, that's all it really is and can be a part of your leg training on squats if you want to do that. Some athletes will do 500 or more squats to keep their conditioning up, that's awesome, it's not for me, not anymore. I like to mix the two exercises together when I'm in the mood and do 500 Step Ups & 250 Squats within about 35 minutes or a couple times doubled those numbers and finished within 80 minutes. 500 Step Ups is still beneficial for developing awesome endurance and building strength because the muscles used are primarily in the thighs and hamstrings. If you can't do 500 yet, that's ok. Build up to that little by little by doing sets of 10 per leg and climbing the ladder so to speak progressively. If you want to do no more than 50 per leg to get to 500 that's awesome too, you're still working hard. Be mindful and don't let ego get the best of you. Train effectively and with intent. 

Step Up and do what's possible. Train for health, not to break world records all the time.