Tag Archives: cabal fang

Three Realizations and Your WOD

Posted on October 21, 2015 | Leave a comment

It’s funny how, if you don’t give up, your spiritual and intellectual vision gets ever more acute and insightful.  I think that’s what they call wisdom?  Anyway, I’ve had several significant realizations lately, all of which coalesced after reading the Alan Watts book and the D. W. Hauck book.

And those realizations, in no particular order, are:

  1. What I actually study should properly be called “the ageless wisdom” or “the perennial philosophy.”  “Occult” is a stupid choice of words that’s really off-putting to 99% of the population.  The word “occult” is damaged goods, now suitable only for horror films.  Kind of like Tsuguharu Foujita’s mustache immediately reminds everyone of a certain genocidal maniac.  I’ve talked about poor word and symbol choice before.  How could I be so dumb?
  2. Cabal Fang, the martial art I founded in 2008, isn’t really a Western martial art as much as it is a world martial art.  East and West are increasingly meaningless distinctions.  Just because it was born in the Western hemisphere doesn’t mean it’s Western, necessarily.
  3. I’ve been setting my sights too low.  Why do I always allow myself to be hammered flat onto the anvil of mediocrity?  I do not want to write books that a few people enjoy or that make a few bucks.  I want to write books that change the world, and I will not write another book unless I think it is going to be the best of it’s kind that has ever been written. 

wpid-20151021_070131.jpgAnd now for your WOD, which is a “mega-Tabata” that will take you 24 minutes.

  • Part 1 — Dumbbells.  Select dumbbells each no less than 10% of your body weight.  Set timer for 24 x :20/:10 and cycle through Squat/Press, Shrugs, and Goblet Squats 8 times.  Each round complete as many as you can during the :20 and rest for the :10.
  • Part 2 — Static Slow Kicks.  Set timer for 24 x :20/:10 and cycle through Lead Leg Roundhouse, Lead Leg Side Kick, and Lead Leg Push Kick.  Change stance and do it again.   Repeat 3 more times.  Execute kicks very slowly and with perfect form (no more than 5 or 6 kicks per :20 round).

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Striking Accuracy Drill

Posted on October 14, 2015 | Leave a comment

wpid-20151014_074134.jpgCan you still punch accurately when your arms are gassed?  Use today’s Cabal Fang WOD to answer that question.

  1. Dumbbells:  Complete 4 x 10 of Military Press, Squats, Pump Curls, Squat/Curl/Press with 1 min. rest between sets.  Start first set with 25% of your SSM, then 50%, 75%, and finally 100%.  This should take about 12 mins.
  2. Rest 1 minute.
  3. Punching Accuracy Drill: Set timer for 3 x 3:00/1:00.  For each 3 min leg, hit your double-end ball with solid combos while executing clean shoulder pops to dodge the returns.  During each 1 min break, practice your tennis ball grabs, alternating hands.
  4. Total elapsed workout time: 25 mins.

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Unplugging for a Vacation

Posted on August 28, 2015 | 1 comment
This rainbow popped up after a storm last week. I sat at the stop sign, rolled down the window, and snapped this shot.

This rainbow popped up after a storm last week. I sat at a stop sign, rolled down the window, and snapped this shot.

Next week there will be no posts.  I’m going on vacation, and I’m unplugging from all electronic devices for the full seven days.  If you aren’t doing this at least once a year, I highly recommend giving it a try.  I have the most amazing insights and creative ideas whenever I unplug.

Sure, unplugging for just a day or two is cool, but it takes a couple of days for your brain to settle into a different rhythm.  Do it for a whole week or more to get the maximum benefit.

Same goes for working out.  Twice a year minimum, please do yourself a favor and take a full week of rest.  Don’t workout at all and eat whatever you want for a whole week.  If you aren’t taking at least two weeks off each year you are over-training.

Now for the Cabal Fang WOD.

Dumbbell HIIT: Set timer for rounds of :40/:10 and select two dumbbells of appropriate weight (I used #10 and I weigh in at #138).  Complete 6 sets of the following exercises , completing as many as you can for :40 and resting for :10. Pump Curls, Squats, Plank Rows, Lunges, and Squat Presses (that’s 30 rounds, a total of 20 minutes).

Be back in a week!

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Crafts: Scroll box and Incense Burner

Posted on August 24, 2015 | Leave a comment

<<If you came for the Cabal Fang workout of the day, it’s at the bottom!>>

Lately I’ve been inspired by Mr. Watt to get back into making stuff.  Since I’m a creature of habit, I’ve been setting aside Sunday afternoons.  When the yard work is done I do a little crafting.

Yesterday I had three things on the list, but I only go to two of them.  The first one was to put latches and a handle on the old box we use to hold the membership scroll at my martial arts club.  We used to just hold it shut with a leather strap.

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I used a rusty spike and some leather scraps for the handle and added some brass chest latches (our martial art has an Early American, Enlightenment era, ancient lodge sort of aesthetic).  While I was at it, I hot-glued some tan corduroy to the inside for padding and decoration.  At some point I’m going to go back and put dots of epoxy over the screw heads and paint them so that they look more rustic.†

My next project was to turn a wine bottle into an incense burner.  I’ve been wanting to try this for a long time.  Finally did some research and got it done.  Quite simple really.  All you do is drill a couple of 7 mm/.25″ holes in the side of the bottle about 6 cm/2.5″ up from the base.  Yeah right — did you ever try to drill a hole in a glass bottle?

I used this bit and this method.‡  It was so easy that I made another one for my daughter.  I burned some incense in mine during this morning’s contemplation session and it worked great.

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Now for the Cabal Fang WOD.

Calisthenics: 6 x 15 of Wide Push-ups, Front Lunges, Steam Engines, Knuckle Push-ups, Side Lunges.  If you can get it done faster than 19:54 with good form, well you got me beat.

†When I was a kid I fantasized about being a movie prop master.  I used to make all kinds of stuff — replicas of objects, weapons and spacecraft from my favorite sci-fi tv shows, scale models of rockets and planes, “ancient” books, and so forth.  I still play around a little.  Like when I made these Firefly ammo boxes and storage crates.

‡ The fellow in the video uses a yellow rubber guide.  I made one from a scrap of rigid leather.  I just drilled a hole in it the same diameter as the glass bit.  Worked like a charm.

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High Clouds, Low Kicks

Posted on August 20, 2015 | Leave a comment

wpid-20150819_170226.jpgDriving home from work last night, the sky was amazing.  I felt as though I could roll down the window, unclip my seatbelt, slide out the window, and soar like a blue jay into swirling clouds illuminated by the sun.

Are birds not angels?  If a bird were to come and light upon our hand and allow us to caress its wing, could we smell the dew of the heavenly clouds or taste the electricity of coming storms?  What unknowable, mysterious and majestic secrets must the songbird know?

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wpid-20150820_072426.jpgThis morning’s Cabal Fang Workout of the Day:

Dumbbells: 4 x 15 of Military Press, Two-handed Squat Press, Two-handed Triceps Extension, Front Lunge, Swing-throughs.

350 Low Kicks (with full power and good form):  75 Lead Roundhouse, 75 Rear Roundhouse, 50 Lead Sidekick, 50 Rear Sidekick, 50 Lead Chassé Frontal, 50 Rear Chassé Frontal.   I strapped a heavy bag to my forging post with hand wraps and Karate belts.  The lower of the two red hand wraps marks the sweet spot just over knee height.

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Super Cool News: Pentagons, Coffee, Islam, Bernie, and a WOD

Posted on August 19, 2015 | Leave a comment

First a magnificent miscellany of super cool news:

Now for your Cabal Fang workout of the day, one that’s a little more of a slow burn than the usual all-out ball-buster (I told you I was going to dial down the intensity a little).

PTDICE Half Pyramid‡ to 9 of: Steam Engines, Fist Push-ups, Back Crunches, Zombie Squats, Staggered Push-ups, Twisters, Regular Squats (this should take about 19 minutes).

Heavy Bag Half Pyramids: 5 x 3:00/1:00: Each round complete as many sequences as you can of 1 punch, 2 punches, 3,4,5, etc. up to 9 followed immediately by 1 kick, 2 kicks, 3,4,5, etc. up to 9 (dis-including the last 1: 00 break, this will take 19 minutes also).

wpid-20150819_071034.jpg

See the training DVD in the background?  I had the chance to train with Mssr. Dubreuil a few years back and it was a real treat. He’s a wizard with a stick and a true gentleman.

A Half Pyramid is 1 of each, 2 of each, 3 of each, etc. up to the max count. A Half Pyramid to 9 is a total of 45 exercises. Where p = the peak, the formula is p(p+1)/2.  In this case, that would be 9(9+1)/2 = 45.  Math is super cool.

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Disengaging Ruach, Engaging Neshamah

Posted on August 14, 2015 | Leave a comment
wpid-20150814_071215.jpg

A morning glory on my patio this morning. Don’t forget to stop and smell the roses. Or morning glory. Any flower will do.

I greeted the morning by reading a lovely post by Moma Fauna that reminded me that I need to breathe a little and generally chill out.  That’s one of the things I love about her blog.  It seems like every post is written just for me, like one of those pictures where the eyes seem to follow you no matter where you are in the room (only not creepy).

I think it’s time to engage my Neshamah and disengage my Ruach.  So I shifted my morning workout down a couple of gears and took a moment to walk around my yard and enjoy the flowers.

What’s a Ruach and a Neshamah?  Well, in Qabalah  there are four parts of the soul:

  1. Chiah – the life force, or unified cosmic soul
  2. Neshamah – the higher instincts, such as love, holiness, kindness, and so on
  3. Ruach – the logical, discerning, common sense soul
  4. Nefesh – the animal drives, hunger, thirst, sex drive, etc.

This is a useful way of looking at your spiritual self.  If you want to be physically fit, you work out your whole body.  If you want to be spiritually fit, you should work out all parts of your soul.  Every day isn’t Upper Body Day, and every day shouldn’t be Ruach day.

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And now for your 2-part Cabal Fang WOD (workout of the day).  Part 1 comes by way of the irrepressible Coach Mark Hatmaker.  It was in this morning’s LEGENDS Newsletter email.  If you want to get Legends in your email box, sign up here.

  • Get everything ready so you can run through each part without breaks.
  • Part 1: Select two dumbbells (#15/#20/#25 depending on your size).
  • Set timer for :30 intervals.  Do as many Push Presses as you can for :30, then “rest” for :30 with your arms locked overhead in the up position.  Cycle through twice more.
  • Complete 3 x 3:00/1:00 on the Heavy bag, all out.
  • Part 2: Get on your bike and ride for 30 minutes (if you don’t have a bike, do something else aerobic like jumping rope or jogging).  For the duration, keep your pace at “I can sort of talk but I definitely can’t sing.”

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Shocked and Flattered (and a 30-Minute MMA Tabata)

Posted on August 12, 2015 | 2 comments

DSC_0156I’m incredibly shocked and flattered this morning.

First, by the dozens of people who shared the story of my CBG and by the hundreds of people around the world who came to see.  I had no idea that making your own musical instrument would be compelling for so many people!

Second, by the kind words, smiles and appreciations of the three new folks who came out the martial arts club last night.  Martial arts aren’t easy, especially when you’re a newbie and you’re outdoors in the humid Virginia heat.  And yet they had fun and had nice things to say.  I’m thundersmacked.

Buoyed by all this positive feedback, this morning I decided to burn down the workout room with this heinous MMA Tabata workout.  Enjoy!

30-Minute MMA Tabata

Set timer for repeating rounds of :20/:10.  You are going to work for :20 and rest for :10 for a total of 60 sets or 30 minutes.

Complete 7 sets of the following:†

  • Persian Push-ups (as you go down, cock one leg out the side, knee bent 90 degrees, and don’t allow it to touch the floor)
  • Crab Walks (walking on all fours, belly up)
  • Sit-ups (feet anchored under a solid object)
  • Touchdown Squats (back straight, eyes up, arms straight up by your ears throughout)

Rest for two rounds.

Now pick one or two punch/kick combos and complete 30 rounds against the heavy bag, using only the combo(s) you selected.

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†If this is too easy, add a weighted vest.  I used a #10.

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Today’s WOD, and What About Yesterday?

Posted on August 7, 2015 | Leave a comment
How do you put a million random workouts in the palm of your hand? You buy these little beauties from PTDICE.com.

How do you put a million random workouts in the palm of your hand? You buy these little beauties from PTDICE.com.

I’m flummoxed as to why there hasn’t been one single read on yesterday’s post, which was pretty darned cool.   Seriously?  Go get some!

And now for today’s workout.  Pardon me, but I’m on kind of a kick right now.  A kick kick.  Enjoy.

Kicks: 7 x 3:00/1:00 of two-kick combos vs. heavy bag with perfect form. Here are some suggestions (make sure you add appropriate punches to keep your body mechanics honest, and keep your hands up):

  1. Lead leg mid-section Side Kick, lead leg high-section Stamping Kick
  2. Rear leg low Roundhouse, sidestep, lead leg low Roundhouse
  3. Lead leg low Stamp Kick, rear leg high-section Stamping Kick
  4. Lead leg mid-section Side Kick, rear leg spinning Wheel Kick
  5. Lead leg low Roundhouse, lead leg high Crescent Kick
  6. Lead leg high Roundhouse, rear leg Back Kick
  7. Rear leg high Roundhouse, step out, lead leg high Hook Kick

Physical Training (I used PTDICE to create this one): Full pyramid to 9 of Diamond Push-ups, Pikes, and Side Lunges.

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The 8-8-8 Workout (and a video)

Posted on August 3, 2015 | Leave a comment

Today’s workout is the “8-8-8” and it goes as follows:

The 8-8-8 Workout

Set timer to beep every 8 minutes.  Get your equipment ready so that you can transition smoothly and quickly from each segment to the next.  Take as few 12 second breaks as you need to finish.

  • Segment #1: Place a heavy sandbag on the floor (I used a #45 which is just shy of 1/3 my body weight).  Squat down, pick up bag, stand straight and press bag overhead; hug bag and squat ass-to-grass; squat again and place bag on floor.  Stand straight and reset.  Repeat as many times as you can before the your 8 mins are up (I made 35 reps).
  • Segment #2: Double-end Ball (or shadowbox if you don’t have one) as fast you can for 8 mins.
  • Segment #3:  Run or bike as fast as you can for 8 mins.

If your heart rate isn’t pretty close to max for the majority of this workout, well you’re in better shape than yours truly.

And now for a short video of me working my forging post.  This is 4″ diameter cedar fence post anchored to floor and ceiling.  WARNING: If you decide to try this at home, please be very careful and start slow.  Don’t push your speed until you are accurate enough to avoid cracking your wrist or shattering an elbow point.  It is very easy to injure yourself when hitting unpadded hardwood!

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