Below is an excellent article that was recently sent to me.   Within the entry, you will find an interesting discussion regarding the history of dumbell (or dumbbell) training.

The article was written by Gord Venables in 1942.

The Ancient Trained With Dumbells

Within the article, you’ll find interesting discussions on ancient training from several unique cultures.  As expected, much of what was done several hundred years ago has been confused by many in today’s era to be new and modern.

For example, there is reference to the training of those from the French Renaissance in the late 1400′s and early 1500′s.

As quoted within:

He practices (referring to the training of the youth of the time) wrestling, running, broad and high jumping, swimming, rowing and sailing a boat, climbing ropes, masts, trees and walls, throwing stones, hurling spears, shooting with bow and with firearms, hanging and traveling sideways on a pole fixed in two trees, and putting up leaded dumbells.

Similar ideas regarding the integration of dumbbells and sport training can be seen within the Thomas Inch entry below:

Thomas Inch

Also noted within the ancient dumbbell article was reference to what many today call the Farmer’s Walk (an exercise that many believe to be new).

In the 1700’s interest in physical training with weights in various forms rapidly forged ahead. A common form of exercise for men was to walk with weights held either overhead or at sides, gauging their gains in strength by the exact time when the limbs began to pain them due to fatigue.

Another interesting line from the article suggests something I’ve often said within this blog:

We moderns frequently look down upon these people of two and three hundred years ago, but the many books they have left for us show that they knew physical training, methods of progressive weight training, and their favorable effects better than most of our physical educators and medical men today.

Lastly, as a long time proponent of dumbbell training, I enjoyed reading the following references below:

All the great strong men were habitual users of dumbells…

And…

Most of Louis Cyr’s (generally believed to be the strongest man who ever lived) training was with dumbells.

And lastly…

There were literally hundreds of other famous strong men of the same and a later period who trained almost exclusively with dumbells…

Those interested in more information regarding past strongman Louis Cyr can download George Jowett’s book (The Strongest Man That Ever Lived) at the link below:

Louis Cyr Info Page (Sandowplus.co.uk)

I also highly recommend reading through the blog referenced at the top of this entry:

http://ditillo2.blogspot.com/

Between Sandowplus and the site above, you’ll have a treasure chest worth of old time strength related literature.

Below is a homemade equipment video that was recently posted to the forum.   Within the video, you’ll find information regarding a homemade dip station, power wheel, Bulgarian training bag (more info here), and macebell.

As always, I encourage you to email me with any other homemade equipment ideas.  A regularly updated directory can be found at the link below:

Homemade Exercise Equipment

In the past week, I’ve had several age related stories sent to me via email. The four videos below highlight men in their 70′s who remain both active and extremely capable.

I enjoy these age related stories for several reasons. Perhaps most importantly, these stories highlight the potential of the human body. It’s great to be reminded of the benefits of an active lifestyle. I find it amazing to see what the human body is capable of at an age that is twice my own. To see someone in their 70′s with the ability to outperform many who are half their age is truly incredible.

It is also nice to be reminded about the importance of hard work and consistency. These attributes tend to outweigh those other details which are often debated among exercise enthusiasts (ex. programming, periodization, exercise choice, etc.).

If you stay busy and are diligent with your efforts, you will improve regardless of the exercise style that you choose. There isn’t a right (or single) way to exercise. What truly matters is that you get up and move.

It is often more useful to encourage people to move, rather than worrying so much about how they move. Of all the age related stories that I’ve posted here in the past, I doubt you’ll find any two people who train identically. There have been stories of elderly bodybuilders, powerlifters, bodyweight exercise enthusiasts, endurance athletes, and more. Each story is unique. The common link isn’t how they train, but rather their willingness to continually get up and go.

So much can be drawn from this simple observation…

Below is a link to Earle Liederman’s Secrets of Strength book, first published in 1925.

Secrets of Strength

Throughout the book, you’ll find interesting discussions on topics such as natural vs. acquired strength, the importance of the nervous system, the significance of the hands and wrists for strength, and more.

In Liederman’s words,

“Nearly anyone who earnestly desires to do so can make himself strong; not just ordinarily strong, but very much stronger than the average man, little or big. And to become strong – to add size and strength to your body, or in other words, to develop it – takes much less time than to cultivate the mind.

As you read through his book, you may at times forget that Liederman was born in 1886.  Many of his theories have been falsely touted as modern discoveries in today’s world of strength training.  As you will see, the development of strength is everything but new.  Men from yesteryear performed tremendous strength feats long before the arrival of our modern supplement industry.

As is often the case, there is plenty to be learned from those strength athletes who came before us.

Enjoy,

Ross

PS – Additional Liederman books can be downloaded at the link below (ex. Muscle Building and The Science of Wrestling and The Art of Jiu-Jitsu).

Earle Liederman Main Page

Below are two new updates for the Homemade Equipment Sticky.

The first shows a homemade lifting log that has been suited with handles and weight loading pins.

You can find instructions and several photos at the link below:

DIY Strongman Log

Next, you will find instructions on how to build inexpensive thick handles for dumbbells or barbells. Thick handles have been discussed here in the past (with other ideas presented), but PVC is certainly a common and inexpensive option.

You can find complete instructions at the link below:

PVC Thick Handles

++++++

If you have other homemade equipment ideas that you’d like to share, shoot me an email and I’ll add it to the forum’s directory:

Homemade Equipment

More often than not, we can learn from those who have come before us.   The video below offers a prime example.  Within the clip, you will see 92 year old Terry Robinson discuss many thoughts regarding life and physical prosperity.

Terry has lived an amazing life and continues to thrive in his early 90′s.  I highly recommend taking a few minutes out of your day to listen to his advice.

Those interested in reading more about him may enjoy the links below.

The Strongman Who Quoted Emily Dickinson

And then…

The Legend Behind The Man Behind The Legend

Age is just a number.  We can either start living or start dying.  I don’t know about you, but I much prefer living.

Enjoy,

Ross

PS – Thanks to Jeff for passing along these links

Following the recent training camp (see prior two entries), I flew to Sacramento, California to work with cruiserweight Matt Godfrey, who won a 10 round decision Saturday night.  It was an exciting fight for the fans and we came away with a solid victory.  It was also nice to meet some of you who follow the site.

I am now back in Connecticut and will begin catching up with my forum and all of the emails that have come in over the past 7 days.  If you are still awaiting a reply, you can expect a response within the next day or two.

I’ll also begin updating the blog again early this week.

Thanks again for your support,

Ross Enamait

As mentioned in a previous entry (see Part I for more pictures), I have been away at training camp in Deer Lake, Pennsylvania at the old Muhammad Ali gym.  I am back in Connecticut and have begun catching up with all of the emails that came through in the past few weeks.  I will get back to everyone as soon as I can.

As requested, I did snap a few more pictures while in our final week of training camp.

Below is a picture that does not do justice to the steepness and continuous nature of the hills that are located in the area.  This picture shows the beginning of one of our runs.  This was one of the exact courses that Ali used to run when preparing to fight.

Here is the cabin where Ali used to sleep while away at camp.

Here is an outdoor sitting area behind the kitchen.  Ali was said to sit around and tell stories by the fire after training.  All of his training sessions were open to the public and large crowds were known to attend.  It is unfortunate that more athletes today are not so accessible and open to public interaction.

Here is the kitchen where Ali and his sparring partners would eat.  We were fortunate to have access to the full kitchen which made meal preparation quite convenient.

Here is some footage from the last day of sparring.  Matt and Travis sparred 13 rounds on that day.  We had planned for 12 but lost count during the process.  One of the onlookers counted 13, which was a surprise to us all.  I was there working with Matt while Marshall Kauffman (closest in picture, and highly regarded trainer) is there working with his son Travis.

Another…

And another…

Here are the four of us after a great back and forth sparring session.

And lastly, here are more of the rocks that Ali’s father painted.  As mentioned in the earlier entry, the rocks contained names of fighters (and trainer) who Ali respected and admired.

It was a great experience to be training at what is truly a historical boxing site.  The history of these training grounds is truly incredible.  I hope this is the first of many training camps in Deer Lake.  It is impossible not to elevate yourself when you think of the legends who have trained here before.