The Failure of Yogic Breathing

There are many different systems of breath work out there that focus on relaxed breathing and stress reduction that also talk about how to increase breath control and expand the practitioner’s lung capacity.  Unfortunately the majority of these systems fall short due to the fact that they tend to focus the bulk (or all) of their work on…

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Gyokko Ryu’s Internal Power Training

There is no doubt in my mind that Hatsumi Sensei possesses unusual power in his budo.  Anyone who has trained with him can tell you that!  But what is it and where does it come from?  More importantly, how can YOU develop it as well? Soke’s martial movement displays many of the characteristics associated with Internal…

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Logan Christopher’s The Indestructible Body Review

I have a confession to make… I’m extremely jealous of Logan Christopher’s latest release, The Indestructible Body.  Considering my personal emphasis on mobility, flexibility, strength training, and injury-proofing for myself and my students (clients), this is the kind of program I would have love to have written!  The good news is that Logan has already done…

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Warriorship in the Modern World

These days it seems like everyone fancies themselves a warrior.  The word has become so overused in our society that the essence of it has become lost.  It seems that anyone engaged in any type of struggle, be it physical or not, has co-opted the word for their own personal bandwagon. Originally, the word had…

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This Simple Practice RESETS Your Body

Let’s face it.  Some days we just need to hit the RESET button.  Whether due to stress, an accumulation of injuries, fatigue, or illness we need to find a way to RESET the body in order to allow its own natural healing function to take over. Luckily, there is a very simple process whereby we…

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We Were Once Warriors…

We Were Once Warriors… For centuries the warrior has been the archetypical model of physical fitness and power.  This is due to the extreme nature of their training and overwhelming odds that they must have had to go through waging war in the ancient world. The multifaceted development of skills required for the warrior’s brand…

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Nothing in Isolation!

Funny story.. Yesterday at the gym where I work we got in a brand new triceps machine.  The latest concept is that it has 3 different settings in order to better target (isolate) the 3 individual heads of the triceps muscle.  I shuddered at the the very thought as I looked upon the foul machine…

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Why You Must Train Your Grip Strength

I have very few specific memories of my Great Grandfather, who was in his 90’s when he passed away.  One of those memories is how strong and crushing his grip was for such an old man. I remember shaking his hand and being brought to my knees with a bone-crushing grip as he smiled at…

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How Far Can You Go?

Mediocrity ain’t in my vocabulary.  It should not be in yours either.  Average is for the weak.  Normal?  Bleh – no thanks.  This ride called life we are all on has but one go around.  No more tickets – you only get 1.  So why not push for outstanding?  Why dare to fulfill all your…

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Resolving the Tension Paradox for Martial Artists

In order to truly begin our quest for Integrated Strength, we must first resolve the tension paradox between conventional strength training and internal power… “Don’t use muscle!” “No power!” “Relax!” “Move naturally!”

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