Odd Object Training Written by Owen Johnston http://www.johnstonkarate.

com/ Odd object training generally - involves exercise sing heavy !"o nd objects! or implements that yo can modi"y "or strength training. #any odd objects s ch as $tlas stones have been traditionally sed as part o" strongman training. %his type o" exercise is nothing new& b t it has been coming back into "avor recently. $n odd object is a non-rigid implement with a center o" mass that is not "ixed. 'n conventional strength training& the pattern o" movement is "ixed& whereas the load given by odd objects will ca se adj stments d ring the movement. (ome label this style o" training !real world training!& and odd objects certainly have bene"its& incl ding versatility& portability& and simplicity. %he only limit is yo r own creativity& as well) Odd object training sed to be done beca se there were no other options people either had no access to special e* ipment& or it simply had not been invented yet. #any old school strongmen also became very well known "or sing rather heavy odd or awkward objects. ( ch objects incl de kegs& anvils& $tlas stones& medicine balls& and sandbags. 'n this modern era& with all o" the scienti"ically designed e* ipment and training ro tines that we can get access to& we can still bene"it "rom odd object training. $n increasingly pop lar philosophy o" training +inosa r %raining promotes ret rning to the exercises and training o" strongmen. ' have personally "o nd that working with odd objects and the exercises ' have discovered "or them have helped with coordination& wrist and "orearm strength& and more. ' ended p getting into this kind o" training as a res lt o" reading abo t the old school strongmen in the ,onvict ,onditioning books written by -a l !,oach! Wade& as well as reading abo t the ancient training methods o" Okinawan karate in the book !%he $rt o" .ojo /ndo: -ower %raining "or %raditional 0arate! by #ichael ,larke. %he book Overcoming 1ravity written by (teven 2ow - "oc ses on basic gymnastics progressions "or b ilding strength. #any old school strongmen were capable o" great "eats o" not only strength& b t skill and balance. 2et!s remember that it takes strength to hold many o" the positions in gymnastics. $s s ch& ' recommend these books very highly. 2ike with odd object training& the types o" training these books describe help a lot with ne rom sc lar strength and e""iciency& m sc loskeletal strength& coordination& and more. On the next page& ' recommend some odd objects and other implements that ' pre"er to se& as well as alternative methodologies. ' reali3e that this is "ar "rom a comprehensive treatment on the s bject. $s s ch& ' do list my primary re"erences at the end o" the doc ment and highly recommend that yo visit them "or plenty more exercises and ideas on constr cting yo r own ro tines. $lso& check o t my blog regarding odd object training - http://oddobjecttraining.blogspot.com/ - "or links to 4o % be playlists abo t this kind o" training and hojo ndo. $n $ma3on store is also available& which recommends vario s implements and books - http://astore.ama3on.com/oddobjecttraining-56 ' highly recommend picking p !%he $rt o" .ojo /ndo!& as it describes in detail how to constr ct yo r own implements. %he book is available in print and "or 0indle. '" yo wo ld like to read my own mini-review o" the book& simply visit the home page at www.johnstonkarate.com and click on !#artial $rts and 7itness ( pplies! at the top. %he page also incl des a 4o % be video playlist. ' also recommend the ,onvict ,onditioning books "or its body weight training progressions. %he books also recommend alternative exercises and creative ways to se vario s objects to train. $s s ch& the books are great additions to any strength athlete!s arsenal. -review or p rchase them here http://astore.ama3on.com/convictconditioning-56 2astly& don!t "orget to at least consider p rchasing Overcoming 1ravity http://astore.ama3on.com/overcoming-gravity-56

Odd Object Training, page 2 8* ipment 2ist +on!t "orget to check o t the video playlists linked at the top o" this blog& "or t torials http://oddobjecttraining.blogspot.com/ Old car tires .ave a partner hold the tire so that yo can practice body blows on it. #ake s re to wear ##$ or boxing gloves 9or similar hand protection:. 4o can also practice "ront kicks and ro ndho se kicks. 4o can also modi"y a martial arts striking d mmy or makiwara board by adding a car tire to it. !%he $rt o" .ojo /ndo! ill strates a "ew ideas. $lternative idea i" yo can ac* ire a sed tr ck / tractor tire and a sledgehammer& there are many drills yo can se. ,inder blocks , rls& presses& plank variations& wide s* ats& cal" raises& l nges& shr gs& single arm rows& swings& "armer!s walk& step- ps& and more) 7or s* ats& yo can also practice assisted one leg s* ats step ; in the s* at progression o" ,onvict ,onditioning. 'nstead o" sing a basketball or similar object& yo will se the cinder block "or s pport as yo s* at down and !"ind! the block with yo r hand. 7or cal" raises& yo can practice them standing on the cinder block. 4o will stand with on the balls o" the "eet on the edge o" the block and lower yo r heels slowly& with control. #ake s re yo have a st rdy chair or other piece o" " rnit re& a training partner& or a wall nearby to maintain a sa"e level o" balance. ,heck o t the second ,onvict ,onditioning book "or the cal" raise progression. Where to "ind sed tires and cinder blocks< #any times& a to repair shops will have plenty o" old tires lying aro nd they are happy to get rid o". '" yo !re looking "or cinder blocks& try the 7reecycle =etwork - http://www."reecycle.org/ - or ask "riends or local b sinesses. $bandoned b ildings will o"ten have old materials lying aro nd& b t investigating s ch b ildings can involve legal and sa"ety iss es& so exercise discretion. >ice ? cket %here are wrist strengthening exercises that yo can work sing a b cket " ll o" rice. ( ch exercises are common in baseball and physical therapy. .eavy ?ag $ny boxing& ##$& or similar heavy bag& or a heavy bag o" yo r own constr ction. 4o can se di""erent materials to both make the bag and "ill it to yo r desired weight. 0eep in mind that i" yo want yo r own constr cted bag to be se" l "or martial arts practice& that the contents o" the bag are not so hard that they do not allow any !give! or c shion when yo strike it. $ heavy bag can be s spended by rope or chains. ' wo ld recommend visiting a sporting goods store or asking a local boxing& karate or similar instr ctor "or advice on how to hang p bags. %he book !%he $rt o" .ojo /ndo! has a section titled !Other %ools and #ethods!& which lists small heavy bag. %he se that the book lists is as "ollows !(winging a bag or ball "illed with cement and allowing it to land on vario s parts o" the body& conditions the mind and body to the e""ects o" impact.! %here are many exercises yo can practice with heavy bags. %hese incl de& b t are not limited to& slams& s* ats& and "ireman!s carry.

Odd Object Training, page 3 >ope ,limbing and %owels "or .ang 1rip Work %hese make great additions to any grip or p ll p training. >ope climbing is common in military style worko ts. 2ike many odd object training methods& rope climbing and towel hangs b ild strength in the hands& wrists& "orearms& tendons& and ligaments. Overcoming 1ravity& a book ' recommended earlier& recommends the se o" a towel in its one arm p ll p training progression. $lso& the second ,onvict ,onditioning book has a progression "or hang grip work that incl des the se o" towels. %he two progressions s pplement one another very well. (andbag training (andbags can normally be p rchased at a hardware store "or a "ew dollars each& and commonly weight @6 to @A po nds making them very cheap li"ting implements) 4o can do almost any type o" li"t with them& and the "act that the sand shi"ts aro nd "orces yo to stabili3e the bags& giving yo a harder worko t. (andbag training is very se" l "or "ire"ighters and combat athletes& s ch as cage "ighters and wrestlers. ' have personally p t sandbags into a d ""el bag& which yo can normally pick p "or BCA or so at an army s rpl s. ' have p t together my own blog post abo t sandbag training here http://owenjohnstonkarate.com/56CD/6;/C5/sandbag-training/ #y approach to sandbag training is based on the in"ormation on the s bject in +inosa r %raining. ' highly recommend the book "or br tally to gh& and very e""ective& strength training) http://www.brooksk bik.com/dinosa rEtraining.html 7or "ree ideas on how to constr ct yo r own sandbags "or training& as well as the reasoning behind Fodd object trainingG& check o t the below article http://www.dieselcrew.com/how-to-odd-object-training (ome other ideas "or strength training witho t special e* ipment ,ar p shing& chopping wood& sing monkey bars or ra"ters "or p ll ps and vario s gymnastics exercises& sing chairs or picnic tables "or !chair dips! and decline p sh ps. %his page has a list o" strongman exercises http://www.m scleand"itness.com/training/ro tines/li"t-strongman See next page for Hojo Undo / martial arts tools

Odd Object Training, page 4 .ojo /ndo / martial arts tools %his is hardly a comprehensive list o" implements that martial artists se. ' simply want to recommend a "ew that ' personally se when ' teach. '" yo want more ideas on the old school .ojo /ndo methods& have a look at the below Wikipedia article on the s bject http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.ojoE ndo =ow& ' will list and shortly describe the .ojo /ndo implements that ' personally teach and work with. '" yo wo ld like to view a 4o % be playlist that demonstrates this style o" training& visit the "ollowing blog and click on !.ojo /ndo Hideos! - http://oddobjecttraining.blogspot.com/ 2i"ting %ools o" .ojo /ndo that ' personally se. ,hi ishi weighted levers or !strength stones!. $ !chi ishi! is basically a wooden pole with a concrete weights attached. #akiage kig wrist roller. %raditionally& a wooden handle is sed& with a weight hanging "rom it via a length o" rope. ' personally p rchased a modern wrist roller& b t the se is the same. %an it is like a modern barbell& and made "rom a wood post that has concrete weights on each end. ' se a steel barbell "or the exercises recommended in !%he $rt o" .ojo /ndo.! 't is also a good idea to train boj ts 9sta"" techni* e: movements with a barbell that is light eno gh "or yo to se. 'mpact %ools o" .ojo /ndo that ' personally se. Jari ?ako - $ bowl or b cket "illed with sand& smooth stones& marbles& or even rice or beans. 't is sed by striking yo r "ingers into it& in order to condition yo r "ingers and "ingertips. #akiwara - a padded striking post traditionally sed in some karate styles. ' have written p an article abo t training with the makiwara. 't is located here http://www.scribd.com/doc/C56IIC5IJ/#akiwara-?oard-%raining-"or-0arate !%apping sticks! almost any piece o" wood can be held and sed to tap vario s parts o" yo r body to b ild a "amiliarity with getting hit. %he point is not to hit yo rsel" as hard as possible& b t to slowly b ild p a tolerance to light striking. ' personally se a shinai a bamboo practice sword sed "or kendo practice. %his kind o" tool can be sa"ely sed to strike yo rsel" or yo r training partner moderately hard to the m scles o" the legs& arms& and core& b t proper ca tions m st be sed. $lternatives - there are striking bags available "or sale that can be "illed with dried beans or shot& which can help condition yo r striking tools. Wall p nch pads can also be made or p rchased. 4o can also se thick phone books wrapped p with d ct tape as an alternative to makiwara boards. $lso& there are plenty o" ! de tanren!& or methods o" "orearm conditioning. %his generally consists o" partner blocking drills that can be sed to to ghen p the arms as well as help with re"lexes.

Odd Object Training, page 5 #y -rimary >e"erences "or this $rticle ?e s re to read these "or lots more ideas on odd object training) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/+inosa rE%raining http://www.dieselcrew.com/how-to-odd-object-training http://arto"manliness.com/56C6/6D/CJ/odd-object-training-basics/ $lso be s re to check o t these two pages to look at training e* ipment that yo can order http://www.atomicathletic.com/store/category.aspx<category'+KCCD http://astore.ama3on.com/oddobjecttraining-56 '" yo !d like to get a head start on body weight training "or high levels o" " nctional strength& b t aren!t s re where to start& be s re to check o t my g ide to "itness and strength. 't incl des an article on -rogressive ,alisthenics "or (trength. ' have also written an article that has ideas "or integrating the gymnastics progressions o" Overcoming 1ravity with other body weight training methods. 4o will "ind both at my website www.johnstonkarate.com simply click on !7ree 0arate -+7 ?ooks! near the top o" the site. 4o will "ind all o" my articles and books posted "or "ree on this page.