Monday, February 08, 2010
Indian Club SwingingSwinging the light clubs is a training methods that has been practiced for thousands of years in other cultures but has only been going on in the U.S. relatively recently. Traditionally this method has been used to build upper body strength and promote shoulder stability -- and they work just as well today. This sequence is from The Encyclopedia of Indian Physical Culture.
Labels: Encyclopedia of Indian Physical Culture, Indian Club Training, Indian Clubs, Light Clubs, Shoulder Stability, Shoulder Strength, Traditional Exercise, Traditional Physical Training
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, December 12, 2009
REAL Russian KettlebellsRussian Kettlebells have become all the rage in the last few years. It doesn't get more Russian than this gentleman, who lives in a small village in the shadow of the Caucasus Mountains.
Labels: Kettlebell Press, Mother Russia, Russian Kettlebell Training, Russian Kettlebells, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Eagle Claw!One very interesting exercises for building grip strength is to grasp the opening of a large clay jar with each hand. As you get stronger, simply fill the jar with additional sand or rocks to increase weight to make the movement more difficult. This method is simple, but very effective, and martial artists have been using it for centuries.
This type of training had many names, for example, in Okionawan Karate, they are referred to as Nigiri Game, or gripping jars. The fellow above is from 1906, and seems to have things pretty well taken care of in the grip department from using this exercise.
Labels: Eagle Claw, Finger Strength, Grip Strength, Gripping Jars, Martial Arts Training, Nigiri Game, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Indian Physical CultureIndian Wrestlers have been swinging heavy clubs for centuries in order to build upper body strength and endurance. This picture was taken in 1973 -- and I sure wouldn't want to step in the ring with this guy.
Labels: Heavy Indian Club Swinging, Indian Physical Culture, Indian Wrestlers, Traditional Exercise, Wrestling Training
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Unspunnen StoneMany cultures have a long tradition of Stone Lifting. Another great example of this is the Unspunnen Stone of Switzerland. The stone is so named for the Unspunnenfest, a cultural festival held near the ruins of the old Unspunnen Castle near Interlaken, Switzerland.
This festival, which began officially in 1805, features a celebration of Swiss culture with competitions in yodeling, wrestling, and, of course, stone throwing. Unspunnenfest takes place roughly every 10 years or so, with the most recent event occurring in 2006.
As for the the Unspunnen Stone itself, it weighs 184 lbs., and the object of the Steinstossen event is to hurl it as far as possible. Pictured above is Markus Maire, a 35-year old Swiss carpenter who won the 2006 event with an overhead throw of 3.89 meters (12.76 feet).
Labels: Famous Stones, Markus Maire, Stone Lifting, Stone Lifting in Switzerland, Stone Throwing, The Unspunnen Stone, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, June 08, 2009
Mustafa ToosiThe great Iranian champion Mustafa Toosi holding a pair of heavy Meels. Each of these Meels are about 4 feet long and weigh around 60 pounds (27 kg). It's impressive just to be able to hold them in this position, let alone swing them.
Labels: Heavy Clubs, Iranian Wrestler, Meel Swinging, Meels, Mustafa Toosi, Traditional Exercise, Traditional Physical Training
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, June 06, 2009
Basque Stone LiftingYou can find Stone Lifting in many different cultures but none are more famous -- or stronger - than the Basque people of Northern Spain where stone lifting is their ethnic sport known as Harrijasotzaileak.
The Basques compete in stone lifting in several ways, either the heaviest possible stone for a single repetition or a lighter stone lifted for maximum repetitions in a short amount of time. In either case, a completed 'lift' is from the ground to the shoulder or upper chest. They also lift several different standardized shapes of stones, each with their own unique challenge. I will cover those at a later date.
By the way, the current record for shouldering the heaviest possible stone is 329 kg by Mikeltxo Saralegui. - That's 724 pounds!
Labels: Basque Stone Lifting, Basque Stones, Harrijasotzaileak, Mikeltxo Saralegui, Odd Object Lifting, Stone Lifting, Traditional Exercise, Unusual Strength, Unusual Training Equipment
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Shield LiftingOne very interesting training technique in Traditional Iranian Martial Arts is known as Sang Gereftan or Shield Lifting. Large rectangular pieces of hard wood are affixed with handles and then alternately raised and lowered by an athlete laying on his back.
The shields are used as a training technique by themselves to build upper body strength but there are and have been tournaments held in their use. A very good score would be 72 repetitions in seven minutes although some athletes have been able to do as many as 120.
Labels: Iranian Martial Arts, Sang, Sang Gereftan, Shield Lifting, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Traditional Indian Club TrainingDespite the lure of more 'modern' gyms, at places like the Shri Kashi Vyayamshala physical culture school in Varanasi, India, traditional training techniques are still being taught to younger generations. Here a group of students is learning to swing the light Indian clubs. Also note the Mallakhamb, or Wrestler's Pillar in the background.
Labels: Indian Club Swinging, Indian Clubs, Indian Physical Culture, Indian Wrestling, Mallakhamb, The Physical Body DVD, Traditional Exercise, Wrestler's Pillar
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Chinese Stone Padlocks in ActionThe Shaolin Monks referred to traditional stone lock training as Shi-Suo and have been using them for centuries. These stone weights are lifted, pressed, thrown and caught in a variety of ways in order to build upper body strength and stamina. Based on how they are used, stone locks are obviously a distant relative of the kettlebell.
Labels: Chinese Stone Lock, Equipment, Kettlebell, Martial Arts, Martial Arts Training, Shaolin Monks, Shi-Suo, Stone Lock, Stone Weight, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Traditional Athletics:Indian ClubsMany countries represent their traditional sporting events on their stamps. Here's one from Afghanistan showing an athlete swinging large indian clubs (also called Meels).
Labels: Heavy Indian Club Swinging, Heavy Indian Clubs, Indian Clubs, Meels, Stamp, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Sunday, April 13, 2008
| One of the unusual pieces of training equipment in traditional Indian Physical Culture is the "Gar Nal" or stone wheel. As pictured, Indian Wrestlers would wear the stone ring around their neck to add resistance while they performed their squats and other leg exercises. |  The Stone Wheel |
Labels: Gar Nal, Indian Physical Culture, Indian Wrestler, Stone Ring, Traditional Exercise, Unusual Training Equipment
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, January 31, 2008
 Heavy Indian Clubs | Swinging heavy Indian Clubs (or Meels) is a training exercise that goes back thousands of years. It has always been popular with wrestlers and other combat athletes since it builds upper-body strength as well as stamina, especially when done for high repetitions which is the traditional way to swing clubs. This rare photo dates to the late 1890's. That sure doesn't look like the kind of guy you would want to mess with. |
Labels: Heavy Clubs, Indian Club Swinging, Iranian Martial Arts, Meels, Traditional Exercise
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, January 03, 2008
| This unique piece of equipment, know as Sang, is from Traditional Iranian Martial Arts and is quite literally a "Shield" - just like the ancient warriors used to take into battle, albeit adapted into a training exercise in the "modern" age. Each of these shields are made of hardwood and weigh between 20-40 kilograms. The method for training with these impliments is for an athlete to lie on his back and alternate twisting and turning them in the air for maximum repetitions without letting them hit the ground. A respectable score in youth and adult tournaments is 72 times in 7 minutes. |  Unusual Training Equipment: Sang (The Shield) |
Labels: Back Exercise, Equipment, Iran, Iranian Martial Arts, Sang, Traditional Exercise
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
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