RossTraining.com Blog

I posted a new article today. 

http://www.rosstraining.com/articles/juggleyourway.html

Enjoy!

Ross

Those interested in cleaning up their diet without breaking the bank may benefit from the article below:

Eating Healthy and Organic on $7 a Day

Enjoy,

Ross

In the past, I’ve written about the importance of hand/grip training.

Training The Hands 

As a young fighter, I suffered through countless hand injuries, including (but not limited to) three fractured hands, a broken arm, and ligament damage to my right wrist.  I was young and ignorant to the importance of hand training. 

If it were not for my injuries, I would probably still be fighting.  There is a good chance that I would have never started my strength and conditioning business.  Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise, as I truly do love my job.  At the time however, it was very difficult to swallow.  I would not wish my past injuries on any aspiring fighter.  There is nothing worse than wanting to fight, but being forced out of action by chronic injury. 

For those reading this entry, please learn from my mistakes.  Take the time to train your hands.  Don’t react to injuries, stay ahead of the game with a proactive approach to training.

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For a detailed site dedicated to hand training, check out the link below.  I recently came across this site and it is loaded with useful ideas.

Be sure to browse through the various links contained within the top toolbar:

http://www.gripfaq.com

Ross

The next time you question the human body’s potential, please read the article below first.

3 ultra-athletes endure sand, heat to run across Sahara Desert

As quoted within:

“Three ultra-endurance athletes have just done something most would consider insane: They ran the equivalent of two marathons a day for 111 days to become the first modern runners to cross the Sahara Desert’s grueling 4,000 miles.”

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Make no mistake about it, marathon running is not for me. I have no interest in marathon running, but I certainly tip my hat to anyone who can demonstrate such amazing physical and mental endurance.

Can you imagine running TWO marathons a day for 111 days? During such runs, can you imagine temperatures scorching past 100 degrees!

The next time your mind is asking you to stop (no matter what you are doing in your training session), take a second to think about the accomplishments of these ultra-endurance athletes.

Here was an average day:

“Typically, the three began each day with a 4 a.m. wake-up call. About an hour later, they started running. Around noon, they took a lunch break at a makeshift camp, devouring pasta, tuna and vegetables. A short nap on thin mattresses in a yellow-domed tent usually followed before they headed out on the second leg of their day’s run.

Finally, around 9:30 p.m., they called it quits each day, returning to camp for a protein and carbohydrate-packed dinner before passing out for the night.”

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These athletes battled physical and mental stress throughout. Ultimately however, they refused to stop until the challenge was finished. Quitting was never an option. We can all learn from their example.

Too many people in this world complain about “being too busy” to accomplish anything. I’m guessing that the individuals who make these comments are not starting the day at 4AM with a 50+ mile run.

News flash… we are all busy, but it’s no excuse to give up on your dreams.

Ross

I feel compelled to write today’s blog entry, as this question is asked on a weekly basis.  Will sex hurt my performance as a fighter?  Does it really weaken the legs before a fight? 

Anyone with any experience in a combat sport has likely been advised by a trainer to stay away from sex when training to fight.  As a young boxer, this advice was always floating around the gym.  We’d always hear words of wisdom such as, “Women will weaken your legs.”

Most fighters assume this information is fact, and never question the validity of such statements. 

Is there truth to this age old myth?  The report below suggests otherwise:

Sex, Does It Really Affect Athletic Performance

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So, does this give fighters a free pass to seek out as much sex as possible before the fight?

I suggest otherwise.  Regardless of the physical impact, you should not be focused on hopping into the sack before a major fight.  Your focus should be on kicking someone’s ass.  A fighter needs to stay focused on the task at hand (don’t take this too literally).  You will be putting your health on the line as a fighter.  Focus on fighting.  Stay away from “extra-curricular” activities for at least a week before fighting.

As one of my old trainers told me,

“I want you to enter the ring agitated and angry.  Take your frustration out on your opponent.  He’s the reason that you’ve been to hell and back in training camp.  Make him pay for it.  You can celebrate afterwards!”

Regardless of what the study above suggests, I recommend the advice from my old trainer. 

Ross

Below is an interesting article regarding the deception in food labeling.

Don’t be fooled by food labels!

As you will see within the article, forget about food labels.  If a food product must tell you that it is healthy, it probably is NOT!  Don’t waste your time reading the label (and more importantly, don’t waste your health eating the crap contained inside the label).

Real food doesn’t need a label.  You won’t find a fancy advertisement on a fresh piece of meat from the butcher.  You won’t find a fancy advertisement on a freshly picked vegetable.

Here’s to real food! 

Ross

Following yesterday’s entry, let’s continue with one more wrestling vid.  The video below is brief, but certainly gets the blood flowing!

Enjoy!

Ross

A friend emailed me the article below.  It’s a nice read regarding the Brandon (FL) wrestling team. 

A typical workout shows why Brandon’s wrestling team doesn’t lose

I particularly liked the emphasis on rope climbing.  As quoted within:

A 45-pound weight hangs from a belt around their waists. Their hands grab 40-foot ropes. Up, up to the rafters. Down. Up again…

Both rope climbing and rope pull-ups are excellent additions to any strength workout.  If rope climbing is new to you, check out the article below (also lists a few suppliers):

Rope Climbing

And while sharing the wrestling article above, you may also enjoy the wrestling video below.  I linked to this video in my old blog, and had a request come through for it again.

Enjoy,

Ross

It looks like sledgehammer training is catching on with the masses.  In the article below, you can read how Major League Baseball player Nick Swisher has enjoyed success with an old-school training protocol.

Bunyan-esque winter might pay handsomely for Swisher

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Even celebrities are swinging sledgehammers.  In the link below, you can read how Michael Clarke Duncan used a sledgehammer to help shed 90 pounds:

Michael Clarke Duncan Lost Weight With Unique Workout

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Boxers have long used the sledgehammer to develop power.  Legendary puncher Ernie Shavers was a firm believer in swinging a sledgehammer.  As quoted in this article, Shavers stated the following:

“Archie Moore showed all his old tricks to me when he trained me.  He got me chopping trees to improve my explosive power in my legs, back, shoulders and arms which are all places where punching power comes from. And when we trained where there were no trees to chop he brought in huge truck tires and got me hitting them with a sledge-hammer over and over.

I chopped trees or hit the tires before every single fight. Archie was the hardest hitting light heavyweight who ever lived and so he knew exactly what he was talking about.”
 

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For more info regarding sledgehammer training, please refer to the link below:

Sledgehammer Training

You can also refer to the video below for an example of Tabata intervals with a sledgehammer. 

Train hard!

Ross

Do you want to tear a phonebook in half?  What about a deck of cards?  What about lifting someone overhead with one hand? 

Check out the old school course below for tips regarding these tricks and more.

How To Perform Strongman Stunts

Train hard!

Ross