The black Warrior t-shirts are now fully stocked in all sizes.  The shirts are heavyweight cotton (6.1 oz).  The design can be seen below:

Front

Back

The text on the back of the shirt reads:

RossTraining.com

Bridging The Gap Between

Ordinary and Extraordinary

The price for each shirt is $11.95. For more information, please refer to the link below:

RossTraining Warrior T-shirts

In addition, I’ve received several questions regarding some of the currently sold out styles.   It is unfortunately difficult to stock more than one or two styles at once, so I may need to discontinue some of these styles (at least temporarily).  If and when additional shirts are stocked, I will post updates to the blog.  I’m sorry for the inconvenience, as I know many have been waiting for some of the older styles to be back in stock.  I hope to work something out with the vendor in the near future.

As always, if you have any questions, do not hesitate to email me.

Thank you,

Ross

Throughout this blog’s history, I’ve highlighted several inspirational stories.  Inspiration has come from different faces and different places.  There are those who have overcome adversity, others who defied the odds, and others who have performed at the highest level.  We all find inspiration from different sources (and for different reasons).  What is inspiring to one may not light the fire for another.  I therefore strive for variety within this section.

Today’s story is one that is quite unique.  The individual performance of Mark Covert at any given time may not be record setting, but the cumulative total certainly is.  Mark Covert has run a mile or more every day for over 40 years.   Assuming he continues, he will soon close in on 15,000 consecutive days.

He has run every day of my life.  Talk about consistency!  Can you imagine running for 15,000 consecutive days?  I’m fairly certain we’ve all had bad days.  I’m sure Mark has had his share, yet nothing has stopped him from getting up and heading out the door.

As stated within this article from 2007:

He’s run hours after hemorrhoid surgery and aboard a cruise ship while a tropical storm hit. Then there was the day 20 years ago when he broke his left foot. Although he managed to get home and to the hospital, his foot “was so swollen they couldn’t even put a cast on it,” Covert recalls. “So the next day I wrapped it in an Ace bandage, put on a makeshift boot, and hobbled through. I wasn’t going to miss my run.”

ABC news recently covered Mark’s journey.  The full video can be seen below:

And despite the impressiveness of Mark’s streak, he is not alone in his “streaker” quest.  There’s actually a United States Running Streak Association that was founded in 2000.  Within the association’s web site, a list is maintained for active streakers.  There is a long list of runners who have run every day for 30 years or more.  The full list can be found below:

Official USA Active Running Streak List

Notice within the list that you’ll find people from all walks of life.  It isn’t as if these are aimless runners who don’t have anything to do but run.  The great majority of those included are professionals with full time jobs, just like the rest of us. An abbreviated list of included professions includes the following…

Software developer, dentist, attorney, professor, real estate agent, doctor, finance manager, accountant, banker, systems analyst, operations manager, school principal, financial planner, landscaper, etc.

These real life examples have essentially crushed the “I’m too busy” excuse.  As I’ve mentioned before, the busiest people in the world are still dealing with a 24 hour day.   No one has the ability to stop time.  The clock is always ticking.  We are all busy.  Get over it…

It’s also nice to see individuals who have defied conventional wisdom.  Who would have thought it was possible to run every day for 40 years?  What about all the warnings uttered about overtraining, overuse, injury, and soreness?  How have so many ordinary folks gone against the grain?

Could it be that we as humans are in fact more capable than most realize?  Could it be that YOU are actually capable of doing things that you don’t currently believe?

At the end of the day, no one can tell you what you can do.  Everyone is welcome to an opinion, but opinions are not written in stone.  As Dirty Harry (Clint Eastwood) once said in a movie, “Opinions are like assholes, everyone has got one.”

I myself regularly receive emails from keyboard jocks who tell me I shouldn’t be doing this or that.  I love it when a teenager writes in and tells me that what I’m doing is dangerous, and will lead to injury.   I honestly can’t remember any significant injury that I’ve ever endured in the gym.  The only injuries I ever had were hand problems as a young fighter.  I’m now a father of two in my 30′s. I work 6 (often 7) days a week.  I sleep less than most and train harder than most.  I don’t do it for any other reason than the simple fact that I enjoy it.  I wouldn’t be waking up at the crack of dawn to train by myself in an old garage-converted-gym if it wasn’t fun.

And no, I’m not suggesting that you wake up today and run for the rest of your life.  The point to this entry is that we as humans are extremely capable, particularly when we become consistent with our efforts.  I myself prefer to target my efforts in different, regularly changing directions.  I may not run 40 years in a row, but recognizing that it is possible does benefit me in other ways (specific to my own interests and needs).

There is much to be drawn from Mark Covert’s example.  As Bruce Lee once said, “Absorb what is useful, discard what is not, add what is uniquely your own.”

In the past few weeks, I’ve made several references to homemade exercise equipment.  I’ve also linked to this page from the forum (where instructions for several tools are listed).

Another popular page from the Training Equipment forum is the Let’s See Your Home Gym thread.  There are hundreds of posts under this single thread, many of which include pictures of home gyms from around the world (from members of the forum).

One such member recently put some of these pictures together into a brief Youtube video.

I realize that most of us have unique goals, interests, and living arrangements, but you can likely find some useful ideas within the forum and video.  It is useful to see how others make the most of their space if or when you plan to do the same.

Thanks to Lenny for the video (along with all of his help on the forum and blog).

If you’ve ever met someone who believes they are too old for exercise, consider passing along the following video:

Aside from the obvious impressiveness, I enjoy this video for the simple fact that the man seen throughout does what many from today’s era would consider too much.  So often we are told what NOT to do as it will lead to overtraining, pain, soreness, etc.

We are unfortunately taught to baby the body, rather than use it.  Limitations are imposed by people who have no idea what the body can or cannot do.  Reading a book will not tell you what you can do with your body.  A large part of the discovery process must occur in the gym.

Lono Tyson is a prime (real life) example of the body’s potential.  I hope to be as active as him when I hit 80!

There are some recent updates available at sandowplus.co.uk (great site for those who are new around here).  Updates are regularly posted at the link below:

http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/whatsnew.htm

For example, Bob Hoffman’s 285 page Functional Isometric Contraction book is now available in its entirety.  It can either be read online, or downloaded as a PDF.  Scroll to the bottom of his archive page to find relevant links:

Bob Hoffman Archives

I’ve also updated the isometric link seen below with links to Hoffman’s book.

Homemade Isometric Tool

Recently, I was fortunate to take take my son to the famous Rocky steps in Philadelphia.  I felt like a kid as we climbed the stairs together.  It brought me back to my childhood when I first watched the original Rocky movie.

I’m sure that I wasn’t the only kid who watched the original movie and was immediately inspired by the story.  I still enjoy watching the original film.

How can anyone not enjoy watching some classic Rocky footage?   Or what about training to the old Rocky soundtracks?   My wife and I were even introduced at our wedding reception to Gonna Fly Now!

There are several Rocky compilations available at Youtube.  Below is one that contains footage from several of the movies.

It may be just a movie, but it is a movie that got plenty of youngsters involved in the sport of boxing.  It certainly piqued an interest in me that is still as strong as ever.

Considering this blog’s recent emphasis on homemade equipment, it only makes sense to pay tribute to one of the true pioneers of homemade equipment (for strength development).  Paul Anderson is a legend in the world of strength.  Many of his feats from 50+ years ago are still mind boggling today.

And as you’ll see in the video below, he thrived on homemade equipment.

Paul Anderson is perhaps the best example of low-tech/high-effect training.   Not only did he build much of his own equipment, but he also went on to say the following:

“I NEVER had a coach in weightlifting…  If I had someone instructing me, I would have never decided that the top priority for a weightlifter was to be strong.  This is why I first took up the power lifts and then drifted into the three Olympic lifts.”

Recommended Reading

For more information regarding Anderson’s training, please refer to the following links (all excellent):

Paul Anderson Interview and Routines

One-arm Pressing

Power Training Routine

Below are three videos that were emailed to me last week. Each shows an example of homemade equipment.

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Tire Punching Bag

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Homemade Bulgarian Training Bag

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Homemade Medicine Ball

Each of these videos have been added to the homemade equipment sticky within the forum.

As always, if you have more ideas, please pass them along.

Ross

Below is an interesting article about the modern supplement industry:

What you don’t know might kill you

Many will be surprised about what really goes on behind the scenes of this $20 billion dollar industry (which is largely unregulated). For example, one 2007 study of 58 supplements found that 25% of them contained steroids or stimulants banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

The article above goes into much more detail regarding several related topics.  It’s definitely worth a look…

Despite the fact that it’s a professionally produced commercial, the video below delivers a powerful message.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen similar situations play out in the real world.  This evil voice has deceived many.   Even accomplished athletes are susceptible to the deceit.

Just last week I had an athlete overcome his inner voice on a brutal mountain road.  As we neared the end of the run, I sensed the evil voice whispering in his ear.   It had already been a strenuous day in the gym, and the mountain served as a finisher (and mental test).

The steep conclusion to the road gave his inner voice an opportunity to appear.  It sensed the struggle, and jumped at the chance to break him.  I was getting ready to chime in when out of nowhere, a woman who saw us from her yard blurted out, “Don’t stop now, you are almost there.  You can’t stop now!”

She caught us both by surprise.  Neither of us saw her.  The woman probably thought she was speaking to a casual jogger.  She was actually talking to a top ranked pro fighter.  Yet oddly enough, it was her words that silenced his inner voice.  He finished the last quarter mile with an effort that took me by surprise.

Deceit

The inner voice tries desperately to block everything but its annoying tone.  It will say anything to fool you into quitting. In our case, it was beginning to control the situation until a third party spoke up.  Her unexpected words snapped him back to reality.  He shook off the kryptonite and regained the strength that had existed all along.

Success came from the mind.  Clearly, the body was capable of completing the run.   The fact that he finished is all the proof that we need.  The inner voice was trying to stop him however.  It wanted to fool him.

The significance of this situation is monumental. So often I see arguments over workout systems, rep schemes, periodization models, and supplement usage. I can only imagine how many gigabytes of bandwidth have been wasted on such message board debates.  What many fail to realize is that our ability to block the inner voice is often more important than any other variable. If you lack the ability to dig down and fight through difficult obstacles, it won’t matter what pills you pop or what routine you follow.  When the going gets tough, you will break.  Learning to block this voice and tap into your hidden resources is perhaps the single most important discovery an athlete can make.  A determined athlete who refuses to quit will succeed with almost any routine.  Determination can turn nothing into something.

Don’t overlook the importance of these individual factors.  More often than not, you have much more potential than you’ll ever realize.