An Ideal Look At How To Strengthen Your Structure

 Let's set aside the typical muscle building stuff for a moment and look at the idea of strengthening the body that's unorthodox, old school and forgotten in today's world where you build real strength in your bones, tendons & ligaments. The true masters of this concept aren't your run of the mill personal trainers and gym-goers that go by textbooks more than real experience. The true masters were the Old-Time Strongmen of yesteryear that made strength not only a priority, but a product of health and longevity. 

Believe me it is possible to achieve a level of strength that would make just about any bodybuilder or "influencer" run home and hide under their beds and be able to do so without the use of steroids or PED's. Most of us weren't born with genetic gifts, even me. I was sick when I was little if you've ever heard or read my story and it took me a long time to achieve the strength I've attained but I did it and don't underestimate the fucking fact that you can too.

You see, I tried the dumb bodybuilding workouts and had some decent strength but nowhere near the level I wanted and should've had stupid strength and vitality by the time I was 18-20; I didn't. I didn't understand the real old school ways of Strength Training until I had my accident and started researching everything on how to heal myself. I learned some bad ass stuff from the strongest people on the planet and I got to perform some crazy feats of strength along with building a level of knowledge that is almost lost if not forgotten in today's Gen Z society. Strengthen Your Structure is a product of what the Old-Timers used to build strength that would fathom even strongmen today. 

Just about most training ideals focus more on the muscles than anything else and damn it me and several others have an issue with that. The muscles may grow in size, but does size also equal strength? Muscles and even Strength are just parts of a puzzle that goes beyond what many trainers do today. A major set of keys is to build Bone Strength, the Tendons & the Ligaments as well. It's the structure that holds everything together. Think about the most common injuries; torn ACLs, ripped Cartilage, fractured ankles and hips. With SYS, you can work on training these areas to reduce injuries as much as possible. Although it's not a complete program or meant to be, it can still aid in building a powerful body beyond just good looking muscles.

It builds connective tissue but did you also know it helps aid in boosting your hormones? Think about it, the amount of Testosterone and HGH you can achieve with some of the exercises in this course is incredible and do a better job than what the classic Squat will do. Add in the intensity to "Structure Training", holy shit talk about jacked stimulation. This is partly based on doing Partials as you can use more weight than a full range of motion. 

Back to injury proofing...Because of the great loads you can utilize more than a full lift, this has the high potential if not certain to actually thicken the bone structure. This can aid in avoiding Osteoporosis as we age. These exercises also put you in awkward positions under the load. If you do this consistently in a safe manner of course, you'll be in far more condition and ready to tackle things when you are in those positions. 

If there was a question of how powerful the old-time strongmen really were, this was part of the puzzle in their journey. I've done some exercises where I did a partial press of 405 overhead, partial deadlift of nearly 500 lbs and even rowing a 130 lb dumbbell for multiple reps. They can be brutal. Because of these along with the other things I've done, I've bent spikes, torn phonebooks, slammed tires with a 75 lb sledgehammer and deadlifted a thick handled 125 lb Dumbbell. 

Power up learning from this bad boy and get strength that would make the old timers proud and show what these "influencers" today are missing out on. Keep being amazingly awesome everyone. 

Stronger Bones & Sexual Health Using Powerful Herbs

Getting older can suck but it doesn't have to be. We can still manage if not produce awesome levels of testosterone and power up our bones with the right things. We wouldn't think these two ideals could co-exist with each other or even have a relation to one another even though some of the same hormones affect them. From a Chinese perspective, the two are not just interlinked intimately because of the relationship with Jing but also when you consider that Jing covers both bone and reproductive health. 

Tongkat Ali has been a hell of a pick when it comes to these two and studies have shown what TA's affects on testosterone but also the relation to Bone Health. The positive results were astounding. Another bad ass herb is the Horny Goat Weed.

More studies shown around specifically for Bone Loss, one could take a look at the "active" constituent icariin (it's a mouthful when you read it LOL). There's also been studies done for Post-Menopausal Women where it's common to develop Osteoporosis. It gave the fact that Horny Goat Weed has phytoestrogens and a high potential to help with Bone Growth.

Should us guys run from something like that? Hell no. Both testosterone and estrogen are part of the hormone balancing in both men and women. For women it's finding the balance of utilizing more estrogen yet it's the other way around for us men who need a balance of testosterone that consists of a higher percentage than estrogen. Both sexes need both in some format, hate to break it to you. We need that balance to maintain or develop greater Bone Health & Sexual Health. 

There's also the mighty Cistanche; the herb known as the "stalk enlarger" that shows evidence of Bone Strengthening. Oddly enough, although you can take these herbs one at a time, they're also 3 of the 5 incredible ingredients in the combined herbal product Thor's Hammer. Sure it's used more to help with sex but it could be a great thing for Bone Health as well. You could also look into Pearl Powder and check out the benefits of this. 

That's the one side of the coin for building Bone Health, another side would be doing exercises in Partials such as weight training. Partial Lifting is a hell of an idea on developing stronger bones, not to mention the level of testosterone you can build up. Guys like Bud Jeffries, Paul Anderson and other incredibly powerful strongmen used Partial Training to not only increase their actual lifts but also strengthen the tissue to make those lifts go with limited chances of injury. Check out Bud Jeffries' book on Partial Training and you'll see what I mean. The hormonal effects on this method are astounding. 

Last thing that builds incredible Bone Health & Sexual Health is the simple use of Vitamin D that also consists of hormonal signals as well. Go out and get some sun, get in the habit of spending quality time outside in nature and let the rays hit you (not too much though). Doing all these things should give you an amazingly awesome foundation.    

Grip Your Way To Power

            You are one powerful human being; we all are in one form or another. We have certain strengths, weaknesses and we find some way to use a talent we posses. A lot of what we do physically contains within our hands. Our hands are the very essence of what we create. Grip Strength is one of the most important foundations a man or woman should posses. Being able to handle groceries, carry your kid, defend your family or if you’re a sports athlete, your hands are the very foundation of your talent; can’t shoot a basketball, throw a football, swing a bat or coordinate a hockey stick without having good solid hands. You can have very powerful hands not just in crushing strength but many other ways.

            One of the best ways to develop superhuman grip strength is increasing the strength in your tendons and ligaments. How many injuries can you count where an athlete or the average person had to wear a brace on their wrist because of a tendon pull or break? A form of training called Partials where you only lift a short distance is one of the most fun and brutal ways to increase your tendon power. Think of lifting a weight you could never imagine hitting at full range; you can almost have twice as much strength to lift at short range. This not only builds dense muscle but take your tendons into the stratosphere.

            In combat/contact sports, you must find a way to take down an opponent whether you’re a football player or even a MMA athlete, your grip can change the very facet of the match and it either make your or break within less than a few seconds. You’re on the defensive line in football and a running back or a receiver has got his hands on the ball, if you have strong hands, you can take him down and squeeze the very life out of him and he’ll think twice of getting in your path. You’re in a fight against a great Mixed Martial Artist or Wrestler, he’s fast, he’s agile and knows how to slip out of holds, but you have some mighty mitts and you end up one way or another getting him in a lock or have a good hold on him for a takedown. You have him in your grasp, you put your heart into this fight and you even put in the time to train your grip to the core, you get a hold on him, he has no choice but to tap out, he can’t fathom how strong and supple your hands are on him. Want strong hands, you’re going to have to build them.

            You are one strong person my friend but it’s important to continue getting stronger. Like lifting weights, use fat gripz for your upper body movements like pulls, presses, curls, cleans, snatches anything that you can put your hands on, even pull-ups, these will make your hands super strong. One type of implement that will take your grip to a new level is sledgehammers, think of the old-time laborers and how powerful their hands were doing hours of taking out rock and stone with a heavy hammer, think of being Thor and tackling the frost giants with thunderous power and superhuman strength. Build your eagle claws by doing exercises on your fingertips like push-ups, pull-ups and even Animal Exercises; think about that, being able to walk in the steps of a big and powerful bear or the super strong gorilla on your fingertips, that will build tendon strength like an extreme few can ever be done.

            How would you feel if you had the grip power to knock home runs, bend steel, tear decks of cards in half and destroy your competition on the gridiron taking down fast runners and receivers and even taking out the quarterback? Your grip will be a major factor whether you realize it or not and the stronger you make your grip, chances are the stronger your entire body will be. Our hands are not just these little bitty muscles and tendons; they are one of the most powerful energy sources in the human body. Create energy in your hands and you’ll see how powerful you can be. Stay hungry my friends and be strong and smart.

Going Rogue

            We all want to find the best ways to get results in the fitness world. Some use equipment, some don't and the rest just make shit up. You don't to have equipment to get the best but yet you can find what’s useful to you and make it worth your time to go at it hard. I love using certain things because they give a sense of purpose and meaning when I want to create something exciting and having the tools provide that.

            When it comes to equipment in a gym, there are two types of gyms that have a complete different type of world, the health spa and the underground gyms you see in various parts of the country including one of the craziest in New Jersey. The difference between the two is that a health spa consists of “beautiful” people with chrome and fern machines, state of the art treadmills, most weights in the dumbbell rack go up to about 50 lbs. and you see plenty of people wanting to look like Tarzan or Arnold yet have the strength of Jane. The Underground guys are bad to the bone (yes even the women), some are tough as nails hitting iron, flipping tires, lifting, dragging, carrying, pulling, pushing and even a few becoming a machine instead of focusing on one. This is the type of gym that turns little boys into tough hardcore men with strength to go with their look like the old school strongmen of legends past.

            If you want to use equipment to get results, you want ones that are productive, basic and simple to use because in the end, the basics give you the most out of everything else. The true weapons of Mass Destruction are your Barbells & Dumbbells which you only need to consist of a few things, Presses, Pulls, Squats and the occasional Grip Work which you can add with to your training by going to Stronger Grip to give you that extra edge. To supplement, you can use medicine balls, Kettlebells, Jump Ropes ect. It doesn't need to be complicated with all the crappy machines like a Lat Pulldown or a leg extension.

            In the Military, our forces need the proper training to stay in the best possible condition for battle, stealth tactics, running towards enemy fire and the ability to fight in self-defense so why not give them the best deal there is and help them fight for our country so they can come home safe and sound. Not all Military personnel lifts weights but if we showed them a foundation of Monstrous proportions, they’re be able to handle the rough and tough terrain of lifting, carrying and throwing with ease that can save their life and those of their troop or squadron.

            One of the most fun types of training in lifting is being able to lift a heavy ass weight. My good friend Bud Jeffries knows what it’s like to lift some super heavy weights and not always in a full range of motion but in a Partial. Partial Lifting is moving a weight from a specific range of motion which you can lift heavier and heavier weights than usual. Some people think Partials don’t do anything, some think they're the best to help their range of motion for a full lift, I personally feel if you're going to lift some crazy weights, you ought to progress the lift to the point where your best lift is at full range. Say your best bench is probably 400 at full range, you can lift far heavier if it was at lockout or quarter lift say for instance like as high as 600 at a lockout or 525 at a quarter and work your way down, it may be less weight at the longer range of motion but you're still building crazy strength in order to reach that point. My best deadlift is around 400, not a great amount of weight to right home about but yet I rarely ever lift weights, so far my best quarter DL is at 475 for 4-6 reps which I'm proud of considering I never moved weight in that type of lift in any other part of my life but anyway you catch my drift. In order to do partials you're most likely going to need a good solid Power Rack which you can adjust the range of motion to any lift you want.

            Have fun with these things and get as strong as you can. Whether you lift weights or not, it’s best to create what you want to get the best possible results and study the best in the best people who are drug-free and have great knowledge in how real strength and physique can be obtained through sheer hard work, balanced eating and rest. The simpler the better.

Building Strong Tendons

Unlike muscle building, if you want to increase the strength in your tendons you need specific type training. Wrist curls and things of that sort will not cut it unless you have a thick bar but not too many commercial gyms have them so what do you do? Well for a weightlifter you might want to consider Training With Partials. The reason why I say this is because with partial lifts you’re hitting the body from a certain angle and the tendons actually go into play more then muscles do plus with partials you can lift heavier and heavier weight then you can with full range.

Now we all heard that building a great body means you need to build/tone muscles but nobody really talks about the tendons and if they did, most of the time the exercises to build them aren’t really good for you (trust me I’ve been there). One thing I learned from York Barbell Hall Of Famer Slim The Hammerman Farman in his DVD was that exercising the tendons are a key to developing great strength. Muscle building is great in many ways but building muscles may not be quite enough. Slim’s mentor The Mighty Atom was an avid explorer in building tendon strength and for good reason. He was and still is the World’s Strongest Little Man.

If you want to build great tendon strength, there are many ways to do them and a favorite of mine is through isometrics. Even though I love doing that I still need specific type work on them and I want to feed the energy in my hands in order to accomplish my training. When you can do that and build a solid foundation your tendons will be supple, strong and healthy all at the same time. However you do not want to do exercises that can damage your hands. There are exercises out there that do more harm then good in your hands because of the way angles are made and how many repetitions and all that crap. You want to have vital strength and vibrant health in your tendons because the more you develop it the healthier your hands will be and it can even save your life.

One such guy I know has been building his tendons since he was a little boy and now is one of the best pianists the world has ever seen. His name is Garin Bader and seeing him up-close I can tell you first hand he is one of the strongest dudes I’ve ever met. At his size of 6’ over 200 lbs. he can do 2 finger superman push-ups and that’s just an appetizer of what he can do. Because of that he has developed a system that not only works but has kept him from getting injured because some of the stunts he does are extremely dangerous and he has no safety net if he fell doing certain things. That’s where Finger Gymnastics come into play. It’s a simple system that can help you turn your tendons from jello to solid steel with a touch of flexibility. We all have suffered carpal tunnel in our lives at sometime.

Its no fun wearing those casts on your wrists and not being able to move your hands without them hurting. I’ve been there a time or 2 and I’m younger then most people who have/had it. With this system you don’t have to go through complicated exercises or do this or that to get results, the results come from working what you can and making a little fun out of it. You learn to use energy and relaxed strength to build a solid program of building the strongest tendons possible. I may look big at 242 lbs. but I don’t rely on my muscle building training to get where I want to be, I rely on my tendons and when I have built them up to a degree, my muscles will come in automagically (sorry had to go biz Markey on ya). The same can happen for you and it costs far less then a doctor’s visit. Have Garin share his story and how you can develop strong and supple wrists and lower to the degree where if you’re a martial artist, your grip will go through the roof, if you’re a musician your playing will become much greater and if you’re a strongman (like yours truly) you will be doing things far better then you ever thought before. Get yourself some powerful tendons my friend.