Reprinted form The Submissionfighting Strength and Conditioning forum.
Subject: Homemade Workout Stuff #1 From: grandpab Date: 21-Aug-00 | 04:44 PM Homemade Workout Stuff This is going to be a fairly long thread so I am going to post it in sections as I get a chance to write it or to pull it out of old notes that I have written before. Some of this homemade equipment I have used for a long time, other stuff is fairly recent. I don�t use all of it all of the time. I constantly vary my workouts, and mostly do bodyweight type circuit training, because I get tired of doing the same old exercise program all the time. I mostly workout in a little workshop behind my house that has a concrete floor and doesn�t have to look nice so I can do whatever I want in it. Sometimes though I travel and will occasionally give information about how to rig homemade equipment in a hotel/motel room without getting in trouble with the management. First of all I would like to recommend some websites that have a wealth of good training information: SCRAPPERS WORKOUTS at www.webfects.com/hea/routine.htm, U.S.NAVY SEALS PREPARATION WORKOUT www.sealchallenge.navy.mil/WARN10.HTM, that may be WARN01 and the "0" is a zero, Combat Conditioning by Matt Furey at www.mattfurey.com, PULLUPS at http://www.testosterone.net/html/100back.html. STRETCHING First of all I highly recommend Pavel Tsatouline�s book "Beyond Stretching: Russian Flexibility Breakthroughs. Some of his recommendations require some equipment so I would like to recommend the following. 1. This is for use with Stretch #48, page 125, Spine Extension. He looks to be doing the stretch on some kind of device developed for ab or low back training. I duplicate this exercise and also do hyperextensions for my back on the following setup. I use a small, household, 3 step ladder of the type that most folks keep handy for changing light bulbs and getting stuff down from high shelves. I also use a concrete block and a closed cell foam sleeping pad sold at WalMart for about $7. Tie the pad in a fairly loose roll, and put it on the top step of the ladder, place the ladder about 30 inches from the concrete block, put your feet in the two holes in the concrete block, now use your hands to support yourself as you lean back on the ladder more or less placing the small of your back on the foam pad and then continue to lean back across the ladder/pad arching your back and getting one heck of a stretch. The concrete block is to keep your feet from flying off the floor as you lean back. If you are a big guy you may need weight on the concrete block. 2. Same setup but reverse yourself and place your abdomen on the pad and your feet against the wall, door, etc. and lower your torso and then raise it up again. Makes a good apparatus for doing hyperextensions. More to come. Grandpab -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: INFO From: grandpab Date: 21-Aug-00 | 04:47 PM I hope you don't mind but I decided to start a new thread entitled Homemade Workout Stuff. I will keep posting entries on it until I have covered all the stuff I have made up and used in the past, hopefully other folks will chime in and add some of their own ideas. Gra -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: Homemade Workout Stuff #2 From: grandpab Date: 21-Aug-00 | 05:34 PM STRETCHING (CONTINUED) Again from Pavel�s book on stretching. He shows doing the Squats, #22, Page 91 and 92, and Stair calf Stretch #23, page 93 as being assisted stretches. Since there is no one to assist me in doing them I use the following apparatus as an assistance. Take a piece of webbing about 1" X 15� , fold it in half and put a pencil in the fold, put the pencil on the opposite side of a door and shut the door. Now you have two 7.5� straps hanging out of the top of a door. Use them for support as you do the squat and stair calf stretch. I also use them for the Lunge, #29, page 101. For static leg stretching that most martial artists do with an apparatus, I use a pencil and a piece of cord, rigged much like the foregoing except that in the piece of cord I also place a welded ring about 2" in diameter. With the pencil on one side of the door and the ring on the other I run the webbing through the ring and tie a loop in one (or both) ends of it and put a foot in the loop, grab the other end and pull up until I am stretching that leg for either a front or side kick. Neither kick would I try to use in a brawl. I am not much in favor of high kicks in combat, there are those who can use them but I am not one of those gifted individuals. ABDOMINALS I also like to use the Abdominal wheel that Pavel recommends in his book on abdominals. When it is not available some good substitutes are to use a towel on a fairly smooth floor or a furniture dolly. For a while I used one of those things that used to come with old refrigerators so you could roll them out and clean behind them. I have also used ZipLock bags on my hands on a carpet � your hands will get hot but not uncomfortably so. Other ab tricks are to (1) Use a wrist roller clipped into an eyebolt about 2� off the floor, hook your legs over it so the roller handle is on the lower part of your calves and do Janda Crunches. (2) Use a chair to do crunches by placing your calves on the seat and your thighs perpendicular to the floor. (3) Buy lengths of bungee cord at the hardware store, form two loops, each about 3� long with a snap swivel on one end of the loop and a handle made of closed cell foam and duct tape on the other. Clip them into eyebolts in the wall about door width apart and elbow high or use the pencil and cord method mentioned in the section on stretching. (this is a bit awkward as you have to hang one pencil on the center hinge and then hold the other in place as you shut the door). Now face away from the door, hold a handle in each hand and basically throw hooks to the body of an imaginary opponent and you get a gut twisting type of workout. More to come. Grandpab -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: INFO From: grandpab Date: 21-Aug-00 | 07:09 PM I edited out a repeat of the above section. Grandpab -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: INFO From: grandpab Date: 21-Aug-00 | 11:48 PM WEIGHTS Take 2 - 1" dowels about 12" long and slip a 6" section of 2 1/2" PVC pipe over it add weight plates on each end and slip on a couple of those little spring clips that you can get from most sporting goods stores for holding weights on the bar. These make good thick grip dumbells for doing the farmers walk and even for doing curls and etc. The wood will hold a surprising amount of weight because of its short length and it being supported by the PVC. You can do the same thing with a longer dowel and a 5� length of PVC for a fairly good thick grip barbell. If you already have a barbell you can cut a piece of 2 1/2" PVC to fit inside the handle section and use it as a thick grip barbell. I have also used 2 1/2" galvanized pipe to put inside the barbell handle section but I wrap the outside of the pipe with duct tape because I am apprehensive of galvanic poisoning. Weight plates are hard to duplicate but I once had a good bit of scrap steel plate available aboard ship So another sailor and myself used a cutting torch to turn the scrap iron into weight plates. I use a cheap basketball that I got at WalMart to do the woodchopper and shelf stacker exercises. Cut an opening in the basketball, fill it up with gravel (or whatever is available) tape the flap of the opening shut and then use canvas or naugahyde or whatever scrap is available to reinforce the hole. Tape that in place and then tape the whole ball up with a couple of layers of duct tape. Mine weighs 23 pounds. Stand erect and then raise it first up over one shoulder, lower it and then raise it up over the other in a sort of chopping motion. This is the woodchopper. Do the Shelf Stacker by holding in front of you in the dead hang position, then curl it, press it above your head, lower it behind your head, french curl the thing, then lower it to chest level, and finally lower it to dead hang. This can also be done by starting off with the ball on the floor and squatting to pick it up, do the shelf stacker, and set it back down on the floor. Be sure to keep your back straight. PULLUP BAR Get some shelf support brackets from the hardware store and screw them to the wall SECURELY, and use hose clamps to fasten a length of 1" pipe to the brackets. I use this one almost daily. Use shelf support brackets and fasten the pipe between two trees, this time the pipe is aligned with the brackets instead of perpendicular to them. Use a hole saw to bore 1" holes in adjoining rafters and slip a piece of pipe through the holes to make a pullup bar. Be careful in aligning the holes and be careful not to bang your head when doing pull ups because you don�t have as much room with this one. Use a towel, webbing, rope, a gi belt, etc. to throw over any available pipe, tree limb, or eye bolt and use them to do pullups. I have also done them on piping, "I" beams, and all kinds of playground equipment. Put a broom handle between the backs of two chairs and do a sort of supine rowing motion that is a fairly good substitute. More to come. Grandpab -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: INFO From: Ali Date: 22-Aug-00 | 12:02 AM This is an *awesome* thread, Grandpab. One of the most practical for *everyone* I remember ever reading on the forum. Sorry to interrupt, LOL... please do go on! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: Page 4 From: grandpab Date: 22-Aug-00 | 06:33 PM WEIGHT BENCH. Any board that is narrow enough, and long enough to support your body will work well. Support it with stacks of books so that it is high enough to draw the bar to your chest and your elbows don�t touch the floor. Rest the bar on two more stacks of books and you can bench press starting in the negative position which is safer and probably just as effective as starting in the up position. FOLDING CHAIRS. Although other chairs work well, my favorite is the folding chair. In addition to using it to do abdominals and the supine pullup mentioned above I also use it to do: STEPUPS: Simply step up onto the chair with one foot and then the other, then step down. Alternate the foot you step up with. I often do this wearing a backpack full of magazines or newspaper. This gives a heck of a good, low impact, aerobic workout. DIPS: Use two chairs, Pad the top of the backs a bit, place them back to back a few feet apart and do dips while holding your feet up. You can also do a sort of a dip by placing the chair seat at your back and your feet on the floor and then grabbing the seat with your hands behind you and then lowering and raising yourself. I have also done dips between bunks on board ship. CHAIRS CONTINUED: Chairs make a heck of an expedient weapon. Never fail to get in some practice when you can, it builds your grip, arms shoulders and abs as well as being a good aerobic exercise. My Kenpo instructor often pulls stunts out of the hat to make us to use our brain. When he told me to make up a Kata on the spot using a folding chair, he just about croaked when I cut loose doing what I had been practicing at home. ROCKS, Concrete Blocks, Suitcases (full), Pieces of log, stacks of lumber or pipe, bags of sand (always use playground sand, some of the other types have too much mica and are bad for your lungs), dirt, etc. all make good expedient weight training equipment. A mark in their favor is that they make you stick to exercises that use more auxiliary muscles instead of isolating the "show" muscles. I have even used fire extinguishers, pry bars, pumps, large valves, automobile parts and just about anything heavy to work out with. It is a good idea to invest in steel toed boots if you go in for this sort of stuff. GRAPPLING DUMMY: I made mine out of stacks of newspaper with a cylinder of newspaper for the neck and part of the chest and a soccer ball for the head. The Head to neck attachment is reinforced with a large strip of canvas because I kept knocking the head off of "Henry" when I only used duct tape. The whole thing is wrapped in duct tape and has survived months of having the snot beat out of it every morning. It is also a good "Odd object" for training with, doing squats, presses, stepups, deadlifts, fireman�s carry, etc. Mine only weighs 65 pounds but it can wear me out in minutes i -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: Page 5 From: grandpab Date: 22-Aug-00 | 07:14 PM SLEDGE HAMMER: For building your grip and wrists use a sledge hammer do slow motion blows on a tire or perhaps a piece of padding on top of the little ladder already mentioned. Be sure to alternate from side to side. For another good aerobic and upper body workout just beat the daylights out of a stump with the sledgehammer. GRIP TOYS In addition to the slow motion sledgehammer try some of these: Grab the fork of a branch on a living tree and use it like a spring gripper. Use I 1" dowel surrounded by 91/2" dowels all held together with a rubber band. Wring this thing in your hands and you will get a whale of a good grip/forearm workout. Cut the top and bottom out of a 1 lb. Coffee can. Tape the end of a shirt sleeve closed and put that end in the can so very little sticks out. Fill up the can/sleeve with playground sand and then pull a little of it out the other end of the can and tape it so it maintains its shape. Keep doing this until the whole sleeve is full and taped to about the size of the coffee can. Tape the other end shut and then put a couple of layers of tpe on the whole thing. Now you have a sleeve full of sand that is fairly firmly packed. This is good for throwing in the air and catching and for holding onto as you knee and punch the bag to simulate holding your opponents arm while you beat the daylights out of him. Get a 30" length of chain and a cheap carabiner to hold the weight plates for the following devices: PINCH GRIPPER: Screw an eyebolt into a short section of 2X4. Put weights on the chain and clip it to the eyebolt. Pinch grip the 2X4 and lift it off the floor. If you can hold it up for 10 seconds add more weight. If you can�t hold it up for 5 seconds you have too much weight. HUB GRIPPER: This simulates picking up Olympic plates by the hub. Cut a 3 1/2" circle out of 3/4" wood, cut a 5" circle out of any size wood, Put an eyebolt through the center of both to hold them together and give you a place to clip the chain and weights. Use it like the Pinch Gripper. WRIST ROLLER: Get a short length of 2 1/2" PVC or wood or steel of similar size. Bore a hole through it and put a length of cord through the hole. Tie a knot in one end so the cord won�t slip out and tie a loop in the other end so you can hook in the weight and chain. Grip this baby with both hands and twist it to roll up the weight first in one direction and then in the other. Good hard work shoveling, chopping, hammering, etc. are darn good grip exercises and work the whole body as well. I strongly recommend the Captain Crush Grippers from Ironmind. Contact them at [email protected]. More to come. Grandpab -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: Page 6 From: grandpab Date: 22-Aug-00 | 08:23 PM Striking Training In addition to the normal sparring, Heavy bag, speed bag, double end bag, punch mitts etc. you might want to try some of these. THE FOOT: Screw a shoe into the floor under your punching bag and practice stepping on it when you are punching. Momentarily pinning a guys foot to the floor interrupts their rhythm and may give you the opening you need. MAIZE BALL: Suspend from a rafter or other lofty perch a small bag that can hold anything from a couple of old socks to 5 lbs. of sand. Keep it swinging as you shadow box and practice slipping the Maize Ball as you would a punch. STRING: Tie a string across the room at about shoulder level and shadow box as you advance and retreat all the while ducking and weaving under the string. DISTANCE DUMMY: I often use this for shadow boxing and get distance training as well. Rig bungee cords in a doorway so they form an inverted "Y" , the joint of the "Y" chould be at about crotch level. Put a small amount of foam padding at head chest and groin level and duct tape it in place. I rigged mine by using eye screws at the top of the door and at the bottom on each side. Now you can punch away and make virtually no noise, and no shock to your hands, It is sort of like shadow boxing and distance training at the same time. WEAPONS TRAINING: While dowels (cut to length) can be substituted for more expensive training knives, escrima sticks, etc. Another good thing to do in addition to the chair training mentioned above is to pick up all kinds of things around the house, workplace, or yard and experiment with how you would use them as a weapon. After years of inspecting fire fighting equipment I just automatically look for fire extinguishers any time I go in a restaurant, movie, store or motel. A good burst of any extinguishing agent to the face will momentarily disorient someone and allow you to use the body of the extinguisher as one heck of a bludgeon. Weapons at hand such as a ball point pen, keys, your belt, or hat are much more likely to be used and won�t get you in trouble for going armed like nunchukas, a sai, or tonfa will. This is the last page. I hope you enjoyed it.
