Fitness By The Animaniacs

            Most kids today never heard of the show but if you're a fan of cartoons and like a good laugh here you go. If you remember the cartoon “kids” show back in the early-mid 90’s then you know how crazy and funny it was. It was practically a twisted version of the Looney Toons the most popular skits were of the Warner Brothers and their sister Dot, call her Dottie and you die and Pinky & The Brain. Sometimes you just need a good laugh to blow off steam and plus laughter helps you lose weight and stimulate growth hormone. Think of it as a mini episode.

            It’s time for another Good Idea Bad Idea:

Good Idea- Doing Bear Crawls up a hill.

Bad Idea- Doing Bear Crawls up a hill while being chased by an actual Bear.

The End….

            Dot’s Poetry Corner:

Little Miss Muffet sat on her Tuffet and what a Tuffet it was, she realized she needed to do squats to tighten that thing up so she did Hindu Squats and lifted weights and weeks later it came out nice and firm. Thank you.

            It’s that time again:

Dot: To see Jarell Lindsey with his shirt off?  (Hello Nurse)

Wakko: To lift Odd Objects and eat everything in sight later?

Yakko: No it’s time to learn the day’s lesson, and to find out what it is we turn to the Wheel Of Morality…Wheel Of Morality turn, turn, turn, tell us the lesson that we should learn…Moral number 8: And the Moral of today’s story is…Never make Bruce Lee mad or he’ll Wakka kick you in the chops.

            Pinky & The Brain:

Pinky- Gee Brain what do you want to do tonight?

Brain- Same thing we do every night Pinky, try to take over the Gym.

They’re Pinky & The Brain, one is a genius, the other’s insane, they do their mousy work, they try to overthrow the gym, they’re Pinky they’re Pinky & The Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain.

            It’s Time For Another Good Idea Bad Idea:

Good Idea- Doing a great workout with Lifeline USA Cables

Bad Idea- Doing a workout with Lifeline USA Cables set on fire.

The End.

            Hope you guys had a good laugh and although a good portion didn’t make much sense (let’s face it when did that show ever really make sense) it’s still a good visual for those who remember the show and adding in a fitness element to it. Have a great day everyone and Be Awesome.

Test Your Mettle With This Workout

          I’m always looking to try new things, keep things fresh, fun and interesting. A lot of people do workouts that they end up hating, ones that feel more like a chore than an adventure and even ones where they jump right into so advanced they end up hurting themselves and quitting after that. Progression is a key but also there’s testing to see how you push yourself productively and safely without injuring or severely hurting themselves.

            This workout that I have picked out was on a whim and it requires only a couple pieces of equipment which is: A long rope (25-100ft) and it can be as thick as you can handle and a Lifeline Power Push-up Plus. It is cardio at it’s finest in my opinion and the objective is to move from one exercise to the other taking as little rest as possible. The two biggest factors is form and breathing. Speed is important to but nothing like form and the breathing.  This workout should be done preferably outdoors where there’s fresh air and getting Vitamin D to help boost the hormone levels. The exercises for the Power Push-up Plus are at 10/8/6 reps. Here’s how it’s broken down:

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

10 Deadlifts

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

8 Deadlifts

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

6 Deadlifts

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

10 Push-ups

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

8 Push-ups

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

6 Push-ups

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

10 Chest Pulls

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

8 Chest Pulls

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

6 Chest Pulls

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

20 One Arm Rows (10 each side)

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

16 One Arm Rows (8 each side)

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

12 One Arm Rows (6 each side)

30 Second Battling Rope Exercise

Total: 6 min. 30 seconds of Battling Ropes & 120 Reps of the Power Push-up Plus

            If it’s too much for you, break it down in half or whatever you’re comfortable with to start. The key thing is to keep going from one exercise to the other; it’s tough, simple and effective. You’ll be breathing hard, sweating and testing your will. If you don’t have these, I suggest you get them or if you have a dumbbell or kettlebell for the rows and deadlifts and do regular push-ups, use a towel for isometric chest pulls for 10/8/6 seconds. It’s a great workout that requires little equipment and can be done indoors or outdoors. Try it out, see how it goes and let me know what you think.

Be Awesome guys and always strive to find the adventure in training.

Build Shoulder & Upper Body Power & Strength With The Chest Expander

100 or more so years ago back in Europe they had a strength contest to see who can pull the strongest of cables in a variety of directions. These cables had springs that can be stretches as long as 18 inches (1ft 6inches) and whoever won the conest was considered the strongest puller in the world kind of like the World's Strongest Man contests today. This was called Strand Pulling.

In the early 20th century the old-time strongmen and bodybuilders of the time were using strand pulling to build strength and power in the shoulders, back, abs and arms. Men like Eugene Sandow, Thomas Inch, Joesph Greenstein AKA the Mighty Atom and even Former Mr. Universe Reg Park all used strand-pulling in their training and even Charles Atlas did it at one time before he made a killing in his course Dynamic Tension. What these men did was train the body from angles that weights and bodyweight exercises couldn't reach because the pulling from different angles built different strength in various muscles that can help other exercises be easier and more efficiant.

Now the springs back then had one flaw and thats they would either snap or they scratched the body and can really hurt you. Today the springs are gone and are replaced with Rubber Cables and with careful practice you won't get scratched if at all. Jon Hinds has created whats now called The Chest Expander. Its a modern day version of the stran pulling from years past.

If you want to gain an advantage in your training the chest expander will do just that, now like I said you will hit muscles from angles that weights and/or bodyweight exercises dont hit but you won't be isolating those muscles, you are still hitting major muscle groups and plus with cables unlike barbells and dumbbells you won't be using gravity to lift, the cable is going to try to bring you down  while trying to pull the cable up so you're building much more strength and need more strength to bring the cable up.

Build your upper body with strength that is just animalistic and mighty powerful. With cables they are also very reliable on being able to travel with. You can literally have a gym in your very own bag. In a hotel instead of going to the gym or just wanting to do it outside the cables are very resourceful. I myself have a few cables and I practice them when I need those extra angles to work on. Remember use caution and work with a cable thats right for you and not use one where you'll hit yourself in the face trust me I've done it too many times to tell you its not fun. Bring out that power in you and give those shoulders and your upper body the strength it needs to get through everyday life. Also I forgot to mention they will help your flexibility for certain stretches or yoga type exercises that you may practice. For me I love bridging and the gymnastic bridge (Wheel Pose) is a great one for me and cables have helped the flexibility in my shoulders to be able to hold the pose for quite a period of time, my longest was around 5 min. at one time.

Get the Chest Expander today and build strength for powerful presses, curls, cleans and some major pulling for the latissimus dorsi (upper back).

Arm Wrestling Training For A Super Grip

 Testing one’s strength has been a quest for as long as mankind has been around; fighting for survival or just sport, strength has been the test of wills through physical, spiritual, emotional and mental endeavors. One of the biggest tests for man’s ego or even to prove himself is through Arm Wrestling.

  Back in the day when internet didn’t exist and phone lines were the talk of the town plus the only entertainment you can really find was in a vaudeville theater or watching a silent movie on the big screen for a nickel a pop, people needed to do something to keep themselves interested. Men worked on the farms or in offices in the city or sometimes they became entertainers and put on acts to entertain the crowd. Kids played ball in the streets and some even took up what was called Wrist Wrestling where they gripped their hands as hard as they can and do their best to slam the other’s wrist to the table and jump for victory.

 Arm Wrestling isn’t just a full on test of grip and people will only say that if they haven’t actually done it. I’ve had my fair share of losses and very few wins to tell you it’s a hard and demanding sport where you have your whole body engaged in a tight spot and it takes just as much power to keep from getting slammed as the one doing the slamming. It makes up a powerful grip once you get the basics down and learn from a few masters here and there.

 There are many guys in the world of Physical Culture who have at one point done some Arm Wrestling and were fierce at it. One man whom I consider the Great Gama of Arm Wrestling is the heavyweight powerhouse Ian “Mac” Batchelor, no one can match the level of strength this man had in his time and his unorthodox style of training is just as hardcore as his unprecedented wins over countless opponents. Another legend in the sport is a man that just defies logic in the realm of strength and for a man his size it just seems so impossible until you actually learn what he does and that’s Dennis Rogers. He became a strongman first by becoming an Arm Wrestling champion and winning countless awards and recognition, because of that, he dove into finding things that he can destroy and tear up that no one in the world can do. The way he does things is just surreal and if you want to learn about his specialty feats check out Legendary Strength and find out his secrets to incredible grip strength.

 People have this distinct notion that if you want to be strong, you have to use a gym, hate to burst your bubble pal but most gyms can’t handle the levels of strength being presented. You can build grip without ever leaving your house or you can take it on the road with you. If there’s anyone out there today other myself, Dennis Rogers, Logan Christopher, Ryan Pitts or Bud Jeffries for that matter who can teach you the value of grip strength it’s up incoming strongman of unlimited potential is my boy Matti Marzel. He has the distinct power of having some of the toughest hands in the world, bending and snapping steel, tearing decks of cards from very odd angles and tearing up phonebooks in several pieces like tearing a piece of paper. His fingers are so strong he regularly holds himself up on his fingertips and is working on being an elite rock and rope climber and is ripped to shreds and is one of the closest to having that Bruce Lee type physique. You do not want him on his bad side and he’s no pushover in Arm Wrestling, he has on occasion taken down guys twice his size and puts them to shame with his iron cord like arms and wrists. 

 One of my secret weapons for building strength in Arm Wrestling is using my Chest Expander which you can get at LifelineUSA.com. I take this apparatus and I use fairly medium to heavy cables and use one of the handles on my door and start simulating an arm wrestling technique or match and work up to 50 repetitions as best as possible. I also work on the wrist and do curls and rows to get that edge for that specific grip and work in high repetitions so I can focus on tendon strength. This is a great device because unlike weights that uses gravity, the rubber cables is fighting back from having you extend the cables out almost similar as if you’re in a match and your opponent is keeping you from moving him.

 Another great an inspiring thing about sports or just wrestling in general is that many little guys (under 200 lbs) are extremely strong when they have the right tools to just make your jaw drop. You wouldn’t expect a small guy tearing up guys twice their size and making it look easy as pie. Never underestimate the little guy because he can hurt you and have a big smile on his face doing. Dennis Rogers has made that believable and so has guys like Maxick, Farmer Burns, Matti Marzel, Bruce Lee and others that can just give you hell.

 Working the tendons is one of the most crucial keys to your success in developing your grip and one of the best methods is doing Isometrics. Being able to hold a certain position and make it as hard as possible without ever moving teaches you how to build strength from many angles. Arm Wrestling Isometrics is one of the most fun ways to build that level of strength that just raw and powerful. Get strong and find cool ways to develop your grip to a superhuman level.

The Ultimate Unicycle For Superior Strength & Conditioning

What if you could use one piece of eqipment that will rid fat a day in just minutes a day? That wold be awesome huh? Well there is that one piece of equipment that does what most people have trouble getting and thats powerful, strong and enduring abs.

The mighty Power Wheel develops the abs and body unlike any other device and will get you strong in a far shorter period of time then you will getting to the gym and training. This device has 2 ways to use unlike any of the wheels you've seen the infomercials. This wheel can be used for the hands and the feet as you can use the handles to run and do rollouts and use a velcro strap for your feet with a rubber cable to hold your feet in. This alone can give you workouts that are only limited by your imagination.

One workout that will take your upper body to levels of strength that will go through the roof. Strap your feet into the peddles and start walking on your hands and see how far you can go. Its said that our legs are 3x or more stronger then our arms so imagine the strength you will build from walking on your hands.

Another great thing that will build a powerful body is the way you need to stabilize certain positions in the exercises you perform so being loose is no longer an option. Like an animal in the wild you need to be able to move in various ways in order to work as many muscles at the same time and the Power Wheel helps with just that. You need to flex the abdominals and flex the muscles needed to stabilize your movements and if you don't you will be wobbly and you will fall.

Whether you're a beginner or in the advanced stages thats all covered in the DVD with your purchase of the Power Wheel so you will be trained the right way to get powerful and strong body not just the abs. Get the abs you want and save the time going to the gym and after spending a few minutes on this thing, you can have more time to the people you care about and if you have children even better. Get your kids to workout with you as this helps form bonds and builds character for you and your child. For example, once you are done with an exercise let your child grab onto the handle and walk with it or chase you for a few seconds. This is one way of many to get you into awesome shape.

The PowR Walk Pro From Lifeline USA

Walking is one of the best exercises you can do, it helps you think, you can do it anywhere and its one of if not the best exercise for your overall health. I love to walk around places whether at a park, the mall or hell around the harbor from where I use to live. You build a sense of awareness and you find things about yourself from walking that you normally don't find from other exercises. Now what if we took walking to a whole new level and it not only would it help you get in shape but to give you the workout of a lifetime.

I'm talking about the PowR Walk Pro from Lifeline USA. Its a cable attachment that comes with a handle and a foot strap that will get you off and running or should I say off and walking LOL. This device may look easy and you may think its no big deal, well my friend that's where you need to rethink what you're doing here. Its far beyond what you think it is. This thing alone can cut your walking in half like a knife to butter. There are 2 levels of resistance and when you get it you will start at level 1 which is the Gray cables. They may not seem much but once you start walking with these puppies you will feel it immediately. The second Level of resistance is the Gold cables. This ups the ante and works your tendons and ligaments like you wouldn't believe.

This can help you burn off calories and get fit like never before. Now with regular walking you're mostly just working the legs but with the PowR Walk Pro, you will be working your entire body from your neck to your toes. Some people who walk take up to 10 pound dumbbells with them to get some resistance going but this thing is far better and more convenient as you can put them into a little bag when you order the product. To me its one of the best things I've ever used and I've been doing exercise for over 14 years. This will work the upper body like crazy and at a good clip you can burn up to 3X the amount the calories as oppose to regular walking. You don't need to more then a couple miles maximum but how far you can go is up to you.

I normally do 20-30 min. of walking with this thing and after that I'm spent. The first few minutes I'll just walk and do the standard cross-country skiing walk and after a few of those I would do a set of curls or lateral raises and at certain points during the walk I would hold the cables at chest level and see how long I last carrying them in an isometric fashion. There are many ways to use this thing and when you see Bobby Hinds or the other members of Lifeline USA on the DVD that comes with it, you will see first hand that you don't need long term cardio and you can either use it on a walk or use it at home anyway you choose its going to suit you the way you want. Its fun, its portable and its one of the best products to help you get a fitter you and a stronger individual.

Cables For Building Strength For Strongman

In the last century throughout Physical Culture we've seen many strongmen perform great feats of strength such as bending nails, driving nails through boards, rip phonebooks in half, lever sledgehammers, bend and break odd objects, lift ridiculious amount of weight and in some cases do some crazy hand balancing. Yet with all of these things what did some of theses men used to build those levels of strength that would seem impossible to the average person? Well for starters most of them just practiced the feats just themselves and doing tons of isometrics for those feats but believe it or not some of the most famous names used Cable Training to enhance their strength.

The type of Cable Training I'm speaking of is not the pully machines that were in gymnasiums at the time but something more closer to home and thats what we call today the Chest Expander. Back then it had metal springs and would stretch as far as 12-16 inches compared to the rubber cables that can reach up to 18 inches or more. Men like Charles Atlas, The Mighty Atom, Thomas Inch, Eugene Sandow, John Grimek and Earl Liederman all at one point used cables to strengthen their bodies from various angles that weights and bodyweight exercises didn't hit and what happened when they used this device? Well saying they were damn strong would be an understatement.

The beauty with Cable Training is that you can hit angles in the shoulders, arms, chest, abs, back and the legs that many other systems can't and at times you need that type of strength and flexibility in order to keep yourself healthy and strong. Today Cable Training is more popular then ever with Lifeline USA and other companies using cables for just about every gym in the country. You can use them for just about anything, strength training, sports training, rehab injuries and even for endurance training.

Now there is some controversy in the fitness world and saying you can can't build strength and endurance in the same workout. Well I have friends that defied those odds and have done it myself and yes it is true that you can do this but with the right type of training. One way in this case is to do presses with a light cable and once you hit a high number you switch to a heavier cable and do low reps and you can do all sorts of exercises with this but with proper training you can create Strength & Endurance in the same workout.

One of my personal favorites of this type of training is mimicking certain feats of strength such as ripping a phonebook or bending nails or if you're a weightlifter mimick the one-arm clean & jerk/press. As a strongman I have to be in top condition for consistant strength in my feats so I use cables to help strengthen the muscles and tendons I need for the feats I want to perform.

Whether you're a Strongman, Athlete, Housewife, Hard Laborer, Businessman or just the average joe, cables can give you a really great workout in a much shorter time it takes getting the gym. You can have your gym right in your own bag. All you need to do is make a little effort and make a small commitment to becoming stronger, healthier and more durable with vitality and a powerful body.

Chest Expander Can Create Super Strength

Back in the early days at the height of the industrial revolution there were a few physical culturists who gained fame by writing course after course on physical fitness and health. Some of these were doctors, gym owners, gymnasts, wrestlers and strongmen. During that time period cable training was relatively new at the time when machines weren't big yet and some of these cables you can use just about anywhere. Within them were steel springs that that the cables were attached to and you can stretch them as long as 18 inches. Some of the biggest names in Physical Culture at the time used them such as Eugene Sandow, Earl Liederman, Charles Atlas, Joseph Greenstein a.k.a The Mighty Atom and Grip Extrodinare Thomas Inch.

As time went on throughout America the cables sometimes were the stable of a person's fitness program and for good reason. Two Strongmen from two different eras held courses on this type of training. They were Joe Bonomo and Reg Park. Bonomo a legendary strongman was also in films as an actor and stuntman and performed feats of strength. Reg Park was and still is today considered one of the greatest bodybuilders of his generation winning major titles such as a multiple time Mr. Universe. He was one of the first bodybuilders to bench press 500 lbs. and one of the remaining few at that time that concentrated on physique as well as strength.

Nowadays the steel spring cables are replaced by one of the biggest manufacturing fitness companies in the world at Lifeline USA ran by Father and Son Bobby & Jon Hinds. They have invented some of the best peices of fitness equipment that some people have replaced weights with in using rubber cables. The new and improved Chest Expnder is one of the focal points on upper body strength and conditioning. With enough colored cables to replace an entire rack of dumbbells you can build strength and progression within seconds. I have played around with it every now and then and it always gives me a great workout and why? Because the chest expander hits your upper body from a variety of angles that nor weights or bodyweight exercises can touch.

With the thousands of dollars on a weight rack you can get these bad boys for a fraction of the price and they last a long time. You save money from going to the gym, you can pack them up in a breifcase and travel anywhere in the world and get a workout in. Believe me when I tell you this it can make your life a whole lot easier and convient for your workouts so you don't have to waste time waiting to get to a machine or which dumbbell or barbell to use. You can work out on the lake, in the sand, at home, in a hotel room, in your office hell you can even workout in the damn woods if you chose to do so there are endless possibilities for you to train in. Also it doesn't take much time either. 10 minutes with the Chest Expander would be all you need to get a brutal workout where you'll be breathing hard and gaining flexibility while putting on strength and functional muscle. If thats not enough for you then check out my friend Bud Jeffries and his course Alternative Conditioning Series where he teaches a simpler and convient way to train using clubs, hammers, maces, an Iso Ring, the Portable Power Jumper and even a more indepth look into the (drum roll please.....) chest expander.

Go and take a look. You will see that the chest expander will do wonders for you and your body. Learn as many as 20+ exercises with this one peice of equipment. You can have a whole gym in just this one bad boy. Go ahead take a peak.

Creating Your Own Style Of Training

Its difficult to realize that you can in-fact become your own personal trainer. The first thing to do this is to learn as much exercise as possible. The more you learn and observe your own physiology; you will find your own routine. Another goal to keep in mind is keep track of your workouts and a journal is the perfect tool for this. Whether you want to workout 3X a week or 7X a week keep track of what you do.

Anybody can learn to be their own trainer. It took me a few years to finally understand it but now I can create any workout I want with the amount of exercises I know. Now you don’t need to build years to understand it. Having a personal trainer isn’t a bad thing but the problem is a lot of people get discouraged and many trainers don’t teach the value of your own experience and train for you. Very few can and I happen to know some. The easy part is exercising the hard part is learning on your own. Observe yourself and learn the movement of an exercise you want to master. Really you don’t need to do 20 exercises in one workout just do no more then 8-10. I train 7 days a week up to 3 times a day because that’s what I’m comfortable with and it makes me happy. For you once a day 3 times a week is doable.

Nothing in fitness is more enjoyable in knowing your own style of exercise and my best advice is to learn everything you can. Do what you can learn what you want to learn. Becoming your own trainer can bring you a lot of benefits in your life. You don’t need to pay for a gym/trainer, you save money which you can use for other things that are important in your life like your family. I have learned well over 500 exercises in my lifetime maybe even more but do I need to do all the time? Hell no I don’t even like some of them. That’s another beauty about being your own trainer you pick the exercises you want to accomplish a goal. If you don’t know where to go to learn then you’re in luck because these are the best that I know of that will take you to great heights and they all give you something you want to accomplish. Go click on the links below and find what interests you.

Legendary Strength

Stronger Man

Lifeline USA

Lost Art Of Hand Balancing

Dragon Door

Stronger Grip

CoreForce Energy

Bodyweight Exercises For Women