You‘re under no obligation to be the same person you were 5 minutes ago.
-Alan Watts
I’m going to keep this short, sweet, and to the point. Human beings are constantly changing. Constantly. You will never be the same person you were even thirty seconds ago. New cells have formed, old cells have died, neurons have shifted slightly, and some new bit of information has entered your senses (even if it’s just sudden self awareness of all of this happening.) This is awesome, however. Accepting that you are in a state of constant change means that you are constantly in a position to change yourself for the better.
Regardless of your circumstances, regardless of your surroundings, and regardless of what’s gone before this one moment in time, you can always, always, always make a decision to consciously guide this change. In reality, that’s all you can do, that’s all any of us can do. Work towards a mindset of guiding the changes. Because, let’s be honest, change is the only real constant in life. It’s going to happen, no matter what you do.
This is not a bad thing. It’s easier to change the trajectory of an object in motion, as long as you’re not trying to stop its motion. So many people focus on the stopping of the changes. They want to slow things down, take control, stop certain things. There’s no getting off this train, though, and the more you fight it, the harder things become. Accept that change is a constant, and that it is actually to your benefit, not your detriment. Rather than try and stop the momentum of life, redirect it in a different direction.
You’re already a different person than you were five minutes ago, if ever-so-slightly. You will be a different person five minutes from now. Realizing and accepting this means that every five minutes, hell, every thirty seconds, is an opportunity to improve yourself somehow. To make some sort of change for the better.
Be excellent to yourself, and accept the power to be constantly changing yourself (and the world around you) for the better.
Live boldly, change the world, and continue to be awesome.
Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace
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So! Here’s something we’ve NEVER talked about on the blog before – tempo! Specifically, tempo when performing resistance training! This frequently refers to lifting free weights, but it can also refer to bodyweight strength exercises like pull ups and push ups. Tempo is, quite descriptively, the speed and rhythm at which you perform a given exercise. Exercise temp is referred to in a three-digit notation, which can look like any of the following…
Or even just…
Personally, I prefer the 4/2/1 style. Basically, each number signifies a “count,” usually a bit less than a second. The exact timing of the count is less important than making sure that the rhythm stays constant for each number. The numbers themselves represent different phases of an exercise.
The first number (in our example, 4,) is the eccentric portion of an exercise. This is where you are “loading” the weight, setting up to do the main movement of the exercise itself. For a squat, for instance, the eccentric movement is when you bend your knees and lower yourself down – the beginning of the exercise. This can get a little tricky for some exercises, though. For instance, for a pull up, the eccentric portion is actually what you usually do last, that is, lower yourself back down after you’ve pulled yourself up. Same goes for a deadlift, the eccentric portion is where you’re lowering the barbell back to the ground. Nevertheless, even in these cases the first number still refers to that portion of the movement, even if you technically perform is “last.” So, in our example, if you’re performing a squat at a 4/2/1 tempo, you would lower yourself down with a count of 4.
The second number (in our example, 2) is the isometric portion of an exercise. This is the “hold” section of the movement. In a squat or a push up, it’s when you’re holding your weight at the bottom of the movement, with either your legs or arms in a stationary bend. For a pull up or deadlift, as another example, the isometric portion is where you’re holding the weight (either the barbell or your own body weight) at the top of the lift. In our example here, we would hold that position for a count of “2.” Remember, this needs to be at the same rhythm/pace as our four count during the eccentric phase!
The final number (in our example, 1) is the concentric portion of an exercise. This is typically what you think of when you think of performing an exercise. In squats, it’s standing up. Pull ups, it’s the act of pulling yourself up. Deadlifts, it’s the act of raising the bar off the floor. In our example, you’d be performing that action for a count of “1.”
Why?
I’ll go into a bit more detail for three different common lifting tempos, but tempo has to do with two major body muscular functions, time under tension, and power generation. Basically, by slowing down your tempo, you put your muscle fibers under tension for a longer period of time. This is great for muscular endurance (being able to move a weight for a long time/high number of reps,) and hypertrophy (muscle size generation,) not not as great for raw strength (ability to lift a heavy weight) or power (ability to lift a heavy weight quickly.) Conversely, by shortening your time under tension by moving more quickly, but also moving more weight, you’re going to build more strength, but not as much endurance or mass. Now, with that said, here’s three basic tempos to try in your next workout.
(Note: Tempos can be kind of controversial and/or debated within the fitness community. Everyone agrees tempo matters, but not everyone agrees with what the right tempo is, and in fact the proper tempo may vary depending upon where a person is at in their regimen, and what their body is conditioned for already.)
4/2/1 – For Endurance and Size
This is a great tempo for building muscular endurance and muscular hypertrophy. For hypertrophy in particular, you want to really focus on the muscles you’re trying to enhance when performing both the eccentric and concentric phases. The eccentric four count gives you a lot of time to focus on isolating that muscle or muscle group. During the isometric phase, you can really focus on engaging those muscles as well, before exploding back into the concentric phase with a short “1” count.
2/0/2 – For Strength
The 2/0/2 tempo is a more even pace, designed to engage your muscles equally in both the eccentric and concentric phases. Because you’re not in the eccentric phase for so long, you typically have more “gas” to pour into your concentric phase, so you can focus on moving more weight. You’re also not concerned with an isometric hold sapping your strength either, since you’re not focused on contracting certain muscles in particular for hypertrophy, or taxing your overall system for muscular endurance.
X/X/X – For Power
The X/X/X tempo is strictly a movement for generating raw power. X/X/X just means perform every phase of the exercise as quickly as you can while still remaining in complete control of the weight. Even when moving as quickly as you are able, you really don’t want to risk injury by losing control of the exercise. Also make sure that even though you’re performing the eccentric portion quickly, you still move smoothly and practice good form.
That’s it for our (probably first) discussion on resistance tempos. Please note, this is really just a primer, you can go a lot deeper on this subject, and we may in the future. At the same time, try not to over think it too much. Tempo is good to think about, yes, but let’s face it, if you’re squatting 400 pounds with good form, you’re going to build strength, mass, endurance, and power, regardless of how fussy you get about tempo.
If you have any further questions or want to discuss this further, I heartily recommend you join us over in RPGFitGroup on Facebook!
Live boldly, change the world, and continue to be awesome!
Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace
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So, back when I first covered Commander Shepard’s workout, I provided guidelines that a hypothetical human spectre might shoot for, compiled from a number of US military standards, and then provided some tools to potentially achieve those standards. However, I didn’t provide a full workout plan, especially not in a format that can be easily plugged into the RPG Fitness Leveling sheet.
Recently, Vivian, one of our awesome members in RPGFitGroup, asked me if I could help her with a write-up to assist her in her goal of becoming FemShep! And I thought, hey, that’s an awesome idea!
And so, here we are!
Style: Station – Perform all sets of a prescribed exercise, resting one minute between each set, before moving on to the next exercise.
Push Up Pyramid Level 15 (Do 1 push up, rest 30 seconds, do 2 push ups, rest 30 second, repeat adding a push up each time, until you do 15 push ups, then work your way back down again 14, 13, 12, etc.)
Push Up Pyramid Level 25 (Do 1 push up, rest 30 seconds, do 2 push ups, rest 30 second, repeat adding a push up each time, until you do 25 push ups, then work your way back down again 24, 23, 22, etc.)
Alternate Workout (Can be used at any level of workout, do not attempt more than twice a month): Push Ups to Failure Pull Ups to Failure Bodyweight Squats to Failure
Crunches to Failure
Strength Notes: We’re training to hit (and surpass) an amalgamation of military standards borrowed from different branches of the US military. These tests tend to focus on high repetitions in a short amount of time, so in addition to hitting the recommended repetitions, you should also be attempting to do them as quickly as possible.
Cardio
Level 1: 20-30 Minute Run/Walk
Level 2: 30 Minute Jog
Level 3: 30 Minute Jog
5-10 Wind Sprints (Run as fast as you can for ten seconds, rest a minute, then go again. Repeat 5-10 times)
Level 4: 30 Minute Run for Time (Should be running a minimum of 3.5 miles, a 7MPH pace)
Alternative Cardio (Can be used at any level of workout, do not attempt more than twice a month): Jog for two minutes, sprint as fast as you can for thirty seconds. Repeat as many times as you can (no rest between sets)
Cardio Notes:
We’re keeping things super simple here. Our goal is to hit a seven minute mile for at least three miles (an 8.5 mile an hour pace, or so) so we’re doing a combination of speed work and standard running. Remember to keep pushing yourself for pacing, even on the 30 minute jogs.
Schedule:
Day 1: Strength Day 2: Cardio Day 3: Strength Day 4: Rest Day 5: Strength Day 6: Cardio Day 7: Rest
Schedule Notes:
When you’re first starting out, feel free to take an extra rest day on Day 3. On the other hand, if you’re feeling pretty advanced and want to give yourself a bit more of a challenge, add an extra cardio day on Day 4!
That’s it for now! This is just one instance of a bunch of awesome stuff going on over in RPGFitGroup! You really should come join us!
Live boldly, change the world, and continue to be awesome!
Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace
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Wonder Woman stands apart from her Justice League counterparts in a number of ways, not the least of which being that she is, quite literally, royalty.. Her origins, her upbringing, and her attitude towards others all make her stand out among the other superheroes of the DC universe. Let’s take a look at what makes Wonder Woman so unique, and how we can learn from and incorporate these traits in our own lives.
Princess
Diana is the daughter of Queen Hippolyta, formed from the very earth of Themyscira. She is a princess, but not just by birthright. The Amazon culture places strong value in earning one’s place in society, and Diana demonstrates her abilities again and again. While the incredible abilities she was granted at birth (more on that in a bit) certainly aid her in this, it’s her decision making, leadership, and strength of character that truly define her as a leader.
Many people want to be a leader in life, but in striving to lead others they tend to lose sight of the values that make a great leader. Humility. Sacrifice. Respect towards others. The second a leader starts thinking they’re “somethin’ somethin’” and begin throwing their weight around is when they cease to be a great leader, and settle into just a mediocre one (or worse, not a leader at all.)
In leading the Amazons, Wonder Woman leads by example. She puts everything she has into everything she does. She tries to remain objective in conflict, humble in her dealings with her peers, and is authoritative only when she needs to be. If you want to lead others, look to her example. Respect your peers. Lead from the front. Use your authority only when absolutely necessary, and make sure that that authority is always earned.
Warrior
Wonder Woman is frequently both the most compassionate member of the Justice League, and the most ruthless. While that may seem a bit of a contradiction, here’s an example for you: She has shown, on more than one occasion, shock at the abuse that Batman sometimes puts perpetrators through (especially when trying to obtain information.) However, at the same time, unlike most other members of the Justice League, she doesn’t shy away from lethal force when a foe presents a truly lethal threat.
Wonder Woman is an Amazon Warrior. She’s not a detective, or a benevolent alien. She was born in the fires of combat (something the Greek pantheon is quite familiar with,) and she isn’t afraid to resort to war when she thinks it’s necessary. She will do everything she can to avoid it initially, but when it’s time to go, Wonder Woman does not hesitate. Sometimes this can be unsettling to her teammates (particularly Superman.)
You should strive to be compassionate towards others in your day-to-day life. Handing out abuse and creating negativity doesn’t help anyone, and it generally just sours the life of the one doling it out. However, there is nothing wrong with recognizing toxic, irreparable threats in your environment and dealing with them decisively. Of course, your response should always be proportional to the level of threat presented (don’t go punching a co-worker in the mouth because they’ve got a negative attitude most of the time,) but don’t be afraid to make it decisive (consider asking not to be scheduled with that co-worked, bring it to the attention of your superiors, and, in extreme cases, consider finding a new job.)
Wonder Woman is a warrior, and she’s not afraid to bring war upon her enemies.
Demi-God
Diana is the daughter of Hippolyta and the earth of Themyscira itself. Born of the earth, and granted great physical and mental gifts by the gods and goddesses of the Greek pantheon, she is far and above one of the strongest, most capable beings on earth. Many don’t know that her gifts go beyond just strength, flight, super-healing, and super-reflexes. Diana also has super-human empathy, charisma, senses, and the ability to calm and command animals.
Now, you probably weren’t born with all of those gifts (and if you were, I am super jealous.) However, we are all born with our own strengths and weaknesses. I usually try not to give too much credence to talent, but the fact is, some people have strengths in one area, while some have strengths in another. How much of this is inborn and how much is learned is a much larger debate than we have room for here, but the fact is that you’ve got ’em. So, use ’em!
Way too many people spend way too much time worrying about their weaknesses, or trying to make up for them. Stop that. Knock it off. It’s only dragging you down. Instead, focus on and play to your own, personal strengths. Recognize the things that you do well, the things that you are drawn to, and the things that you are passionate about. Let them become your “true north” of your internal compass. Feed your strengths and abilities, not your weaknesses and fear, and you’ll be amazed at how far you can go, as long as you’re willing to be patient, and keep working at them!
You have a little bit of demi-god in you, too. We all do. We just need to draw it out.
That’s it for our time with wonder woman! I’ll see you again on Thursday with a new blog post! Until then, as always, remember to live boldly, change the world, and continue to be awesome!
Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace
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So we’re going to go at this skills post from three different directions. One is obviously the comic lore of Wonder Woman herself. The next is mythological stories of the Amazons. Finally, we’re also going to look at actual Grecian history and skills to tie it all together. As usual, we’re going to start with a look at how to…
Fight Like Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is an incredibly skilled combatant across a variety of martial disciplines. Batman ranks her as the most skilled melee combatant the world. Unfortunately, there is no Amazon martial art system to pull from, but there is an Ancient Greek style!
Pankration
Pankration was an event in the original Olympic games. It was, essentially, the earliest record of Western mixed martial arts. It featured boxing and wrestling together in a large, battle royale format. Competitors, stark naked, would battle until one man remained standing. People were sometimes greviously injured, or even killed, in the pankration battle. Eventually rules were modified, limiting it to one on one combat, with referees to help ensure no one was killed.
Pankration kept going for quite a while, even into Roman culture, before eventually falling by the wayside and disappearing into history. It was, however, revived in the 1970s, being reconstructed from ancient manuals, as well as modern kickboxing and Greco-Roman wrestling.
I feel as though pankration fits Wonder Woman’s style of unarmed combat perfectly, especially in her more recent comics and movies where she’s shown to use grappling, throws, and joint locks while fighting (especially against stronger opponents like Kryptonians.)
Sword and Shield
Wonder Woman, especially in her more warlike moods, is often depicted wielding the Sword of Athena and her signature indestructible shield. Unfortunately, there’s very little surviving historical record of Greek sword fighting techniques. Though the Greeks often carried swords as a “sidearm” of sorts, their dominant weapons was, far an away, the spear (which was infinitely more useful in a Hoplite phalanx battle formation.) So, if we want to fight with sword and shield like Wonder Woman does, we’re going to have to look to other inspirations.
So, we go, as we often do, to HEMA (historic European martial arts) styles. Even here, however, surviving combat manuals featuring sword and shield combat are sparse, at best. Your best bet is probably just to find a local HEMA school and see if they play around with swords and shields at all, as most sword/shield stuff is improvisational and/or curriculum created by the instructor.
Here’s an informative video featuring some sword and shield stuff. Some talking, some combat.
This is a great video just featuring some straight sword and shield sparring!
The Bow
In Greek myth, Amazons are supposed to be incredibly skilled archers. The same goes for the Amazons in DC comics, with Artemis, Diana, and all the other Amazons being incredibly skilled archers. Learning how to shoot a bow is tons of fun, and I highly recommend it to anyone.
For starters, I’d recommend heading over to archery360.com Their Archery 101 article is a fantastic starting point. Barring that, you can also take a trip down to your local sporting good store. Chances are, they’ll know of somewhere in the area where you can go and practice or take lessons, plus they’ll be able to equip you as well!
The Lasso of Truth
Now, unfortunately I don’t know of anywhere you can get an artifact that will force someone to speak the truth. However, learning how to rope (the technical term for using a lasso) is well within the realm of possibility, and it’s plenty of fun on its own! Roping is, believe it or not, its own full-fledged, bona fide sport, often practiced by those of the farming, ranching, and rodeo persuasion. It’s awesome, and takes a lot of skill!
To get started, check out Learn How to Rope This Weekend from EarnYourSpurs.com
Battlefield Tactics
Wonder Woman is more than just a strong fighter as well, she’s also a master of battlefield tactics. Now, if you’re not a history buff, you may want to skip this section, but if you enjoy learning about ancient battlefield tactics and military progression, stay tuned!
Greek Warfare – From the Ancient History Encyclopedia is a great place to start for a primer on Greek military history and battlefield tactics.
Amazon – Another article from the Ancient History Encyclopedia gives an overview of the history of the (most likely mythological) Amazon tribe, and their exploits.
Ancient Greek Battles – Finally, after the two above primers, you can really delve into the meet of ancient Greek wars, their tactics, and their outcomes.
It may seem a little superfluous, but it’s important to remember that Wonder Woman is rooted in ancient Greek culture and mythology. As an Amazon, the daughters of Ares, understanding the Grecian war mindset is part of understanding Wonder Woman herself. There is Wonder Woman, the superhero, and there is also Diana of Themyscira, Goddess of War. You need to understand both to truly become her.
Hand to Hand Mastery
The fact is, Wonder Woman’s skills don’t come easily, or quickly. She was trained, from birth, by elite, superhuman, immortal warriors, and then beat all of them. Seriously, that takes hard work, talent, and time. It may be a bit too late to be trained from birth yourself, but you can still seek to improve yourself.
We talked about mastery just a couple weeks ago with Samurai Jack, in our article, How to Master Anything. The same principles apply to hand-to-hand combat as they do to everything else. So, take a look at that article, and then approach the methods contained within while keeping these recommendations in mind:
Spar. A lot. Martial arts are nothing without live practice. If you’re in a school that only practices forms and kata, without ever having live combat of any kind (even if it isn’t full contact,) consider finding a new place to learn.
Fight a variety of styles. Originally I said experience a variety of styles, here, but I try not to encourage switching styles a lot. Best to focus on and master one (or maybe two, like a striking art and a grappling art,) then move on to another. However, while working on a single style, sparring with other styles can be incredibly beneficial. You’ll learn a lot about the strengths and weaknesses of your own learning, and what you need to shore up to continue to improve.
Don’t neglect your fitness. Technique matters. Conditioning matters, too. Diana might not be quite as strong as some of the other heavy hitters in the DC Universe, but she still has enough strength. I posted The Wonder Woman Workout on Monday. Make sure you stick with that while you’re training!
Well, that’s it for The Skills of the Amazons! I’ll see you again on Monday with Demi-God Warrior Princess! Until then, as always, remember to live boldly, change the world, and continue to be awesome!
Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace
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