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Other/Mixed Is there anything better than sledgehammer swinging?

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)
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JW513

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I've been exercising faithfully for 10 years, The one thing i always wanted was to be a swinger... Well earlier this year I finally made it happen. Being in construction and a hobby blacksmith, I already pretty good.. But i remember at first my hands would kill, so i started easy, now i'm doing 16lbs swings with one arm, an 8 pounder in each arm... I love the 20 pounder. If i'm tired after work, its a light session, if not i go to town. I do my main workouts in the morning and if i miss a swing session after work i don't care.

But i really recommend it to everyone, I want to get set up to do some horizontal swings too.
 
Kettlebell swings and sledgehammer swings are a match made Valhalla. Swing and be one with the Gods.
 
As a side note, sometimes in the summer I'd switch out kettlebell for sledgehammer for the swing portion of s&s. 10x10. Alternating left and right
 
Chopping trees with a good axe.
You know, our friend is an arborist and he cut down a bunch of trees for my brother, he left a huge pile of logs.. I bought a maul and splitting axe and chop a few every time i go up... My brother is too lazy, i tell him he doesn't know how lucky he is to have all that wood to chop.

Don't know why but its so relaxing and rewarding.
 
You know, our friend is an arborist and he cut down a bunch of trees for my brother, he left a huge pile of logs.. I bought a maul and splitting axe and chop a few every time i go up... My brother is too lazy, i tell him he doesn't know how lucky he is to have all that wood to chop.

Don't know why but its so relaxing and rewarding.

Very lucky. The benefits of chopping wood is huge. Rotational work which is great for lower back health and striking power too. Throwers have ab ABSURD amount of rotational strength, arguably the most in the world. Look how much total power they demonstrate.

I could go on for ages regarding the benefits of cutting wood. Be it a still standing tree or splitting.

Definitely great GPP to be rotated into your program.
 
You know, our friend is an arborist and he cut down a bunch of trees for my brother, he left a huge pile of logs.. I bought a maul and splitting axe and chop a few every time i go up... My brother is too lazy, i tell him he doesn't know how lucky he is to have all that wood to chop.

Don't know why but its so relaxing and rewarding.

Swinging an axe is only part of the chopping wood chore. There is carrying the heavy rounds to the block, collecting, wheeling and stacking split wood, dealing with the occasional stubborn log with a HIIT gusto, and in my case, felling and bucking trees and hauling logs as I manage my property. You could lose two or three hours having fun before you suddenly realize you're totally spent.

It's also a great way of involving the kids in such outdoor "fun." I even had a second chopping block and axe so my wife could detox her stressed mind. She always reached for the maul to leverage gravity.
 
I read something about twenty years ago about overhead swings and tossing, think axes,sledge hammers.medicine balls ,slam balls, and the like, performed in an aggressive nature, would release a nice dose of serotonin, good for anger management and chilling a person out. I was running the personal training dept. at a holistic medical facility at the time. The physical therapy dept. had this adjustable trampoline, about 5 foot square. You could adjust the angle and it came with 5-6 blue, gel filled balls of various weight. Biggest ball was basketball size and about 12-15 lbs. I'd angle the tramp about 45 degrees and have clients pick a ball up from the ground to overhead and toss with gusto at the tramp deck, which would shoot the ball back at them at pretty good speed. I kid you not, people were going crazy, screaming ,yelling, making all kinds of noise. We had to move the tramp out of the physical therapy dept. and into the regular gym. To a person , they were all very relaxed afterward. Maybe that is where the name Medicine Ball came from.
 
My grandfather was old, clapped out and riddled with emphysema but boy could he chop wood. There would be a huge pile of unsplit logs but he would start at sun up and with breaks for cups of tea, meals and cigarettes, including a few beer stops after lunch, plus intermittent periods of coughing, by dinnertime it would all be chopped
 
My grandfather was old, clapped out and riddled with emphysema but boy could he chop wood. There would be a huge pile of unsplit logs but he would start at sun up and with breaks for cups of tea, meals and cigarettes, including a few beer stops after lunch, plus intermittent periods of coughing, by dinnertime it would all be chopped
I don't know how those old timers did it.. Both my grandpas where pretty tough but my Dads dad, he drank a ton and smoked ton. He was a brick mason, and he still had a physique on him in his 60's that would make most men jealous. Both of them had emphysema too.

You all should try blacksmithing too. Trust me, while its not as full body as swinging a sledgehammer (unless you're swinging a sledgehammer to forge something), you feel awesome after. Great for the forearms and shoulders.
 
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