Ad Santel: A Catch Wrestling Juggernaut Who Crushed Japan's Judo Masters And Secured An Unbreakable Legacy of Mat Domination

How's it going everyone? Hopefully you're out there killing it this week, sweat dripping, muscles screaming, and that unbreakable fire burning within. Yesterday I wrapped up one of my go-to Dopa Band Circuits, 20 Rounds but added in explosive sprints as a finisher that left me high as a kite yet feeling like I had been through a war zone. It slammed me right back into that old school mentality like those nasty catch wrestlers from the past. These legends didn’t train for show. They trained to survive, to dominate, and to prove their style could humble anyone. That’s exactly what Ad Santel did. This German-American beast didn’t just wrestle, he took on Japan’s elite judoka and jiu-jitsu black belts in straight-up shoot fights and left them battered, tapping, or flat on the mat. If you’re chasing that raw, functional power in your own training, Santel’s story is pure fuel in and of itself. Catch-as-catch-can isn’t ancient history. It’s the blueprint for understanding what it takes to build the kind of body and mind that refuses to break.

Born Adolph Ernst on April 7, 1887, in Dresden, Germany, Santel crossed the ocean and exploded onto the American wrestling scene. At 5’9” and a rock-solid 185 pounds, he wasn’t some towering giant. He was compact fury – quick, explosive, and loaded with leverage that turned bigger men into ragdolls. He debuted in 1907 under ring names like Al Santel or Mysterious Carpenter, but by the 1910s he was the fucking man to beat. He claimed the World Light Heavyweight Championship in catch wrestling and defended that strap for years against the best the era had to offer. This wasn’t scripted entertainment. These were legit challenges – no rounds, no bullshit, just two men locked up until one submitted or couldn’t continue. Santel held his own against heavy hitters like Joe Stecher, Gus Sonnenberg, John Pesek, and even went the distance with Ed “Strangler” Lewis later on. But his real legendary status? That came from crossing oceans and styles.

I want you to paint a picture in your mind's eye: it’s the 1910s, and Japanese judo and jiu-jitsu are being hyped as unbeatable arts. Black belts from the Kodokan were rolling through America, challenging anyone who dared. Santel said “bring it” and stepped into the fire. On November 1915, he took out Senryuken Noguchi in San Francisco. Then came the big one on February 5, 1916 – Tokugoro Ito, a legit 5th-degree black belt judoka. Under judo rules, Santel slammed the man so viciously Ito couldn’t stand back up. Santel stood tall and declared himself World Judo Champion on the spot. The rematch in June? Ito caught him in a choke and got the win. But that first victory? It sent shockwaves. Newspapers described Ito tossing Santel around like a sack of flour early on, only for Santel’s catch transitions and raw power to flip the script. DDDAAAMMMNNN son, that’s the kind of grit that turns doubters into believers.

He kept rolling. Taro Miyake, another Japanese star, got handled in Seattle. First a draw, then Santel hit him with a half-nelson slam that left Miyake dizzy and out for half an hour. Daisuke Sakai, yet another 5th dan. Santel submitted him twice with a nasty biceps slicer that had the crowd gasping. These weren’t flukes. Santel’s catch wrestling, that blend of hooks, rides, and bone-crushing control – exposed the holes in pure judo when everything was on the table.

Fast forward to 1921 and this is where it gets good: Santel assembles a crew, Henry Weber and Matty Matsuda head straight to Japan. They hit Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine in front of 10,000 screaming fans. Neutral rules: judogi jackets on, but all catch holds allowed. March 5 against Reijiro Nagata? Headlock Submission. The next day versus Hikoo Shoji, they draw, but Shoji’s face is swollen and busted – Santel even helped the guy off the mat like a true warrior respecting the battle. Then in Nagoya he avenges a teammate’s loss by smashing Hitoshi Shimizu. These matches weren’t exhibitions. They were wars that forced the Kodokan to rethink everything. Some Japanese fighters got expelled just for training with him. One man from Dresden changed the global grappling game forever.

Santel’s toolkit was like a swiss army knife. Slamming takedowns that used every ounce of leverage to plant opponents on their backs. The half-nelson slam? A finisher that could rattle brains. Biceps slicers for those brutal submissions. Neckscissors and headlocks that squeezed the fight right out of you. No flashy spins or showboat moves – just efficient, vicious reality that worked when the sweat was flying and the crowd was roaring. He wasn’t the biggest or the strongest on paper, but his conditioning let him go for hours and still come out on top. That’s the catch wrestling edge: control the mat, chain your holds, and outlasting your opponent.

After retiring in 1933, Santel passed the torch. He helped train Lou Thesz for a period in California, drilling that catch foundation that helped make Lou a household name. Thesz later called it “an incredible gift.” Santel lived until 1966, passing at 79 in Alameda, but his impact never faded. In 2024 he got inducted into the International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. And yeah, there’s that old rumor about him getting paid to rough up Georg Hackenschmidt before the Gotch rematch – unproven, but it fits the era’s gritty backstage drama. Bottom line: This crazy bastard bridged worlds. He showed catch wrestling could humble the “unbeatable” and planted seeds that still grow in modern submission grappling and MMA.

Here’s the part that should light a fire under your ass today. The man's dominance wasn’t magic – it was conditioning forged in the trenches. Long matches, global travel, facing elite opposition night after night. That demands a gas tank that doesn't have the word tired in the Dictionary. High-rep circuits, grip endurance that never quits, and the mental steel to push when every fiber wants to quit. You don’t get that from pretty gym routines. You grind it out in the backyard, garage, the beach or even in a hotel room just like the old-timers.

That’s why Dopa Bands are the perfect modern weapon for anyone chasing catch-inspired power. Variable resistance on pulls, squats, rows, and explosive drills mimics the dynamic strength you need for slams, scrambles, and marathon rolls. No gym membership. No excuses. Just pure functional might you can take anywhere. Whether you’re drilling guard work or building that never-quit endurance for your next open mat session, these bands let you train exactly like Santel lived: raw, relentless, and results-driven. These 500-1000 Rep Workouts I've been doing since January, have made the difference in how I proceed to be in the best shape possible. Like Ad, I'm not the strongest, the fastest or look like a bodybuilder but I sure as hell want to be in the best condition as possible and haven't felt like I peaked yet.

Look, the old-school catch wrestlers didn’t chase fame or trends. They chased who they can beat. Ad Santel embodied that spirit – a compact German-American juggernaut who stared down entire martial arts systems and came out victorious. He didn’t just win matches. He proved that heart, technique, and savage conditioning will always beat hype.

So what are you waiting for, bro? Throw in some band circuits today. Drill those transitions until they flow on instinct. Push through the burn until your body adapts and your mind gets unbreakable. Respect the history, value the lessons and live with Power and fucking Might every single day.

Head over to dopamineo.com right now and grab a set – or two – of Dopa Bands. Use code POWERANDMIGHT and get yourself hooked up. Then get after it. Train like the old timers. Dominate your competition. Because catch wrestling didn’t die in 1933. It lives in every rep you grind out today.

Keep killing it, everyone. Stay strong, be amazingly awesome and I’ll catch you in the next one. Shoot me a comment and let's hear from you. 

The Anatomy of Online Obsession: When Someone Can’t Let Go

There’s a particular kind of online fixation that goes beyond simple disagreement or criticism. It becomes a full-time occupation. One person fixates on another who has stopped engaging with them, never responds and has blocked every possible channel of contact. Yet the fixation continues — emails under fake names, public blog posts, YouTube videos, and crude personal attacks that grow more repetitive and unhinged over time.

This pattern is disturbingly common in several corners of the internet, and it reveals a lot about the psychology of the person doing it. The behavior usually starts with public criticism. Then it escalates. The obsessed individual begins monitoring the target’s every post, every update, every training session. They read it, twist it, and turn it into fresh material for their own content. The target becomes the central character in the obsessed person’s narrative — a villain, a clown, a “court jester,” or whatever role fits the script. Even when the target stays completely silent, the posts keep coming. The rants get cruder, the insults more personal, and the fixation more obvious.

In this case, the harasser has used multiple aliases (Mike Watson, Lola, Habib Sir, and others) to send degrading emails filled with homophobic slurs, sexual mockery, and dominance fantasies. He has posted dozens upon dozens of blog entries and videos that directly reference the target, often within hours of the target publishing something new. He has used the target’s images and training content in fetish-related contexts without consent. He has made claims about installing tracking software, having “moles” spying, and other diabolical "threats". When comments and contact forms are reopened, he immediately floods them with short, juvenile insults.

None of this is normal criticism. It is compulsive and disturbing.

The Psychological Pattern

What we’re seeing is a classic case of Obsessive Fixation combined with One-Sided Delusional Relating. The harasser has constructed an imaginary ongoing relationship in his head. He refers to “our discussions,” predicts the target’s future actions, and scripts entire conversations that have never happened or spoken. In his mind, the target is obsessed with him, raging about him at night, simping to him, or secretly admiring him. Reality — complete silence and total non-engagement — is rewritten to fit the harasser's fantasy.

This is reinforced by Narcissistic Traits and a deep need for control. Every new post from the target becomes a threat to his superiority, so he must immediately tear it down. The more the target moves forward calmly and practically, the more it highlights the contrast: one person is building, the other is stuck reacting. That contrast appears to fuel rage and jealousy, which then gets expressed as crude sexual degradation and dominance fantasies (“Emperor Sir,” “Master,” “slaves,” etc.).

The behavior is also self-reinforcing. Each rant gives him a temporary emotional hit or fix (Like A Drug) — superiority, validation, a sense of power. But because the target never responds, the hit or fix fades quickly, so he has to create the next one. Over time, the content becomes more repetitive and unhinged because he is no longer creating for an audience — he is performing for himself and exposes his own pettiness and insecurities.

Why This Is Disturbing

This kind of obsession is disturbing for several reasons:

- It shows a complete disregard for consent and boundaries. The target has said “no” in every possible way — blocks, silence, deleted comments — yet the harasser continues to attempt to insert himself into the target’s life.

- It sexualizes and degrades the target in public, often in ways designed to humiliate and shame.

- It reveals a mind that has trouble separating fantasy from reality. The harasser talks as if real conversations and relationships exist when they do not.

- It wastes the harasser’s own life. Months or longer of energy that could have gone into real work, real relationships, or real growth are instead poured into attacking someone who isn’t even paying attention.

For the target, the experience is exhausting. Even when direct contact is cut off, the public rants and the knowledge that someone is obsessively watching can create hypervigilance and stress. The person starts to wonder, “Is he still reading this? Is he going to twist it again?” That mental load is real, even when that person never responds.

The Takeaway

If you ever encounter this kind of fixation — someone who won’t stop watching, won’t stop posting, and won’t respect your silence — remember this: their behavior is about them, not you. It is not a reflection of your worth or your work. It is evidence of their own emptiness and inability to let go.

The strongest response is almost always the same: document everything, set ironclad boundaries, and refuse to feed the cycle. Do not reply. Do not check their content. Do not give them the reaction they crave. Starve the obsession of oxygen.

Real strength is protecting your peace and continuing to move forward while someone else chooses to stay stuck in bitterness and fantasy.

The person doing this is not winning. They are trapped and it will be their undoing if they don't change.

Stay focused. Stay strong. Keep building and be amazingly awesome.

Feel free to message me if you've ever experienced this and would like help or even a little guidance. You are not alone.  

The Brutal Dopa Band Deck Of Cards Workout On Easter

Hope you all had a great Easter and had plenty of food and love to go around. For me, it was mainly just kicking back and reflecting on things but needed a small recharge. That was until I decided to get my ass to the park in the late afternoon and devour a deck of cards workout with the Chosen Higher Dopa Band. A part of me didn't want to do it and was feeling a bit worn down mentally but I knew if I got into it, things would shift.

This past week was a whirlwind of emotions and mental rollercoasters. Had to take care of something going on with family and needed to keep an eye on things for a couple days and check in with them on Saturday. Still got my training in and killing it with my conditioning, isometrics and the Hindu Squats. So for my Easter workout, went to the park, set up my band, laid out the deck and proceeded to kill 800 reps of the Deck. 5 Exercises (Chest Pulleys, Wave Pulls, Skis, Uppercut To Squat & The Propellers). Black cards were doubled the amount of reps and the Jokers were 100 Reps (25 Chest Pulleys, 25 Wave Pulls & 50 Propellers). 

Doing workouts like this isn't for the weak or even normal minded. I never considered myself normal in the first place but when it comes to training, I like taking things to a different level. I didn't go at the pace I normally with this particular method but I wasn't resting much either and it was becoming meditative after a few cards. The movements, the pacing and flow all were coming together, plus getting in the fresh air in a semi sunny setting wasn't too bad either. Barefoot on the grass, feeling the earth and letting my instincts of the exercises take over. Sweating like it was a waterfall in the Rainforest, focused as if I was on a mission and adjusting the band at times because the knots do slide and becomes a bit uneven but that takes seconds really.

I'm not setting world records, nor am I making a statement that Dopa Bands are the best thing since the invention of the Wheel, I just wanted to train, have fun and get some of that emotional stress out of my system. Feel that natural dopamine high and have a productive session. It's freedom, it's learning what I can do when I'm not always in the right head space but it's also my ability to push through things and do what I know I'm capable of. I love this shit and it has put me on a path that is a continuation of my journey. 

Have a great Monday everyone. Be safe, train well and hard to burn off some of that Easter Feast. Be amazingly awesome and keep killing it in your endeavors. Hit me up in the comments or shoot me a message using the Contact Form. Would love to read your progress. Be sure to go to Dopamineo.com and grab a band or 2. Use my code POWERANDMIGHT. 

Last thing before heading out here, go and check out Lost Empire Herbs' Newest Addition from an old formula.....Hercules Pre-Workout Formula now comes in Capsule form so you don't have to chug and get the bitter taste from the powder. 90 Capsules per Bottle. Let that fire burn from within and get ready for some awesome workouts without the crash later.