Indian Club Benefits

Posted on Wednesday, June 11th, 2014 by John Wood

Indian Club Training at West PointIndian Club

… besides the great recommendation of simplicity, the Indian Club practice possesses the essential practice of expanding the chest and exercising every muscle in the body concurrently.”

~ Indian Club Exercises, by Edward B. Warman (1921)

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The effect of these exercises, when performed with light clubs, is chiefly a neural one, hence they are primary factors in the development of grace, coordination and rhythm. As they tend to supple the muscles and articulation of the shoulders and to the upper and fore arms and wrist, they are indicated in cases where there is a tendency toward what is ordinarily known as “muscle bound.”

~ The United States Army Manual of Physical Training (1914)

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[Indian Clubs] cultivate patience and endurance, and operate most happily upon the longitudinal muscle of the back and shoulders, thus tending to correct the habit of stooping.”

~ The New Gymnastics for Men, Women and Children by Dio Lewis (1867)

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“The club exercise will do much to develop the proper outlines of the shoulders back and waist. The man who uses the clubs diligently will never need to have his coats “built out” on the shoulder or padded on the front and rear.”

~ Indian Clubs by C.R. Treat (1869)

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“Indian club exercises have of late years become one of the most universal methods of developing the muscular anatomy of the human body. Schools, colleges and even theological seminaries have adopted their use in their respective institutions with the most beneficial results. For keeping the body in a healthy and vigorous condition there has as yet been nothing invented, which for its simplicity and gracefulness can be favorably compared with the Indian Club exercise.

~ Indian Clubs and Other Exercises by Morris Bornstein (1889)

Spalding’s Athletic Library: Indian Club Exercises by Edward B. Warman

Posted on Wednesday, January 1st, 2014 by John Wood

A look at a vintage Indian Club training course, put out by Spalding about a hundred years ago. The Spalding Company put out dozens of similar booklets highlighting tips and techniques for the many types of equipment they featured in their catalog – Indian Clubs obviously being among them.
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Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.