Warrior 1 Pose – Yoga – Steps

Posted on June 28, 2021 by Drew

Warrior 1 is often described as a “beginner level standing post” and a “hip opener”.

The posture is described as “internal rotated femur” – this is the same as warrior 3

DISCLAIMER – consult a doctor if you have any injuries or illnesses that could impact your ability to perform yoga poses

A gentle warm up of half squats and arm circles is also a good idea

be careful not to over-arch your back

There are various ways or steps of getting into the pose, but we will outline the most common

Warrior 1 Yoga Pose

Step 1

Stand at the top of the mat with your feet together
Step back with the left foot
Keep the toes of the right foot pointing forwards
Rotate the toes of the left foot pointing 45 degrees to the left of the mat

Make sure that the back foot/left foot is firmly pressed into the floor – heel should be firmly pressed downwards into the mat – if you heel or outer edge of the foot is lifted up, shorten the gap between your feet
Ensure the Pelvis is neutral – NOT tilted forwards or backwards

If necessary draw your belly button in to help ‘tuck your tailbone’ under the rest of your spine
The Front foot/right foot – should have the knee vertically inline with the ankle
The front foot – the knee should be inline (horizontally) with your second toe

Lift the arms up by rotating both arms together from the shoulder joint
Lift the hands upwards and point the fingers
Do not hunch your shoulders – stay relaxed around the neck and shoulders

I am currently doing the Siddhi Yoga online teacher training course which I highly recommend.

You can find the course here

Posted in bjj, MMA | Tagged mma, yoga | Leave a comment

How to do Hot Yoga at Home (With Pictures)

Posted on May 6, 2021 by Drew

With the help of a bath, you can do hot yoga at home. You don’t need a heater for hot yoga, or a tent. Although I am a fan of the infrared sauna blankets to get heat ‘deep’ into the muscles.

Instead of using a heater, or sauna, you can run the bath, and wear lots of layers or a sauna suit, and do yoga next to the bath, on the floor. The humidity and the layers will create lots of body heat.

My bathroom is tiny however. At your own risk, you can do some yoga actually in the bath.

disclaimer- you can slip, you can also get dehydrated doing hot yoga at home, so always have a drink handy

Hot Yoga at Home – Workout

hold each pose for 30 breaths, try to prolong the exhale so you relax into it.

I don’t know the names of all the poses unfortunately, but these pics show my routine:

hot yoga at home — Hamstring stretch – be careful with lower back

hot yoga at home - shoulder stretch — Shoulder stretch – Squat down – place right hand inside right thigh, next to your body. Point right elbow forwards (be careful with shoulder joint)

Cobra pose – Lie on front, gently push your upper body up and keep your hips flat on the floor – be careful with lower back, stay on elbows to start with

I also stretch my glutes, but the photo looked really weird, even worse than the above ones, it should be done like in the photo below:

image from Runners World – https://www.runnersworld.com/training/a28708481/glute-stretches/

do the pose on each side, or each arm or leg.

research suggests that 3 sets of 30 secs per stretch is best for mobility, but I’ve found 1 set effective. I will do more sets if I am stiff in a particular area.

Blocked out my face as I don’t want to end up on some weird website or anything! Feel free to add the images to your gay yoga website, as long as you link back 😊😀

Exercise in the heat is generally thought to be a great way to increase growth hormone levels, after exercise and during sleep the following evening.

Consuming the amino acid arginine can also help to optimise growth hormone levels – around 3-8g is required. For further information on arginine – please see this study

I’ll sometimes put hot chilli rub on after the bath and workout, either with yoga, or weights.

benefits of hot yoga

increased levels of growth hormone
Reduced risk if pulling a muscle
Increased flexibility

KEEP HYDRATED

BE CAREFUL NOT TO SLIP IF YOU DO ANY STANDING STRETCHES

you can do the exercises on the bathroom floor in a sauna suit, instead of in the bath

just be careful if you use hot chilli rub!

Hot chilli rub gets hotter when you sweat!

I use the AQF sauna suit and it is still going strong after 2 years. The hit chilli rub is off amazon and pictured below:

If you would like to support my ad-free content, please see my patreon account:

https://www.patreon.com/Nicemma

Posted in bjj, Fitness | Tagged Fitness, Hot yoga, Hot yoga at home, yoga | Leave a comment

Andrew Huberman Podcast Notes -Episode 12 – Motivation & Drive

Posted on April 18, 2021 by Drew

Notes taken mainly from memory, please listen to the podcast to confirm

Andrew Huberman Podcast Episode 12 Notes how to increase motivation and drive

Dopamine is released in anticipation
Dopamine makes u take action, usually towards some kind of goal

novelty is key in motivation, and novelty e.g. the concept of a new task or a new reward will release more dopamine
Dopamine is a substrate for adrenaline
Nicotine increases dopamine by 150%

Dopamine is a double-edged-sword

There’s a crash associated with dopamine. Like the proverbial pleasure and pain hypothesis. There’s a release of prolactin after a dopamine increase
Prolactin makes us search for whats next.

Dopamine and food- dopamine is released but we want more and more because of prolactin

Intermittent positive reinforcement is related to dopamine relase and is what makes social media and gambling addictive. A psychologist did some interesting experiments with pigeons back in the day and these principles are still used today to keep people addicted to certain behaviours.
If you want to keep yourself or your team motivated, interimmitently reward success with some kind of celebration. For example, randomly, one in three times your team gets a scientific paper published, reward them – don’t reward them each time and don’t reward in any kind of a patten.

serotonin makes us feel content, we need dopamine to find and try new things

you can support Andrew Huberman by subscribing to his youtube channel

https://www.patreon.com/andrewhuberman

below is a video about skinner’s pigeon experiments

Just to emphasise, my Andrew Huberman podcast notes shown above are paraphrased and you should watch or listen to the show yourself for 100% accuracy.

Posted in MMA, Nutrition, Psychology | Tagged Andrew Huberman, podcasts, Psychology | Leave a comment

Wellbeing and Business Podcast episode 3 – Depression Hacks + Content Marketing Basics

Posted on April 6, 2021 by Drew

I finally got round to making a third episode of my “Wellbeing & Business” podcast, in the car, on the way to Bala with the family (I wasn’t driving).

Sorry for the sound quality – it’s pretty poor at the start of the podcast.

Supplements & Hacks for depression

Fish oil – EPA 1000mg a day

EPA is part of mega 3, cheap fish oil and algae oil are low in EPA – study on EPA here

Acetyl l carnitine- 300mg

ALCAR also makes men and women more fertile. Great for energy, but can make u fart a lot – study on Acertyl L carnitine here

PEA or Phenylethylamine

PEA has also been shown to be effective, but start with a very low dose as can cause anxiety

Green Exercise

Exercising outdoors is also great for depression, especially in or near water

Other interventions for depression include – saunas (heat shock proteins are great), fermented foods, curcumin and wild swimming. Basically, anything that enhances gut function and/or reduces inflammation is great for depression.

Content Marketing

Do not write 100 blog posts about your product and why people should buy it.

Identify your target audience, find where they hang out online – Reddit, Forums, Facebook groups etc.

Identify their issues, problems and wishes/desires. E.g. small business owners talk a lot about social media marketing on Reddit
Write great content, with unique research which addresses their issues. Create regular content and offer a blog subscription by email or a newsletter sign up
Subtlety sell your product within some of the posts – do not be over the top with sales or you will lose your audience and subscribers
Content marketing is a medium to long term, brand building strategy – offer value and build your brand and reputation

This is a great video about content marketing:

Create content specific to each platform – create Facebook content for Facebook – do not just post links on there from your blog. Linkedin has great organic reach at the moment, upload videos directly to the platform, create relevant memes and quotes and use it like a micro-blogging platform.

Be interesting, educational and/or entertaining – do NOT just push your product or service constantly.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged depression and anxiety, mental health | Leave a comment

Neurodegenerative Diseases – Reducing the Risk

Posted on March 27, 2021 by Drew

First thing to know is that genetics play a massive role. There is a polymorphism known as epoE4 which increases the chances of someone developing a neurodegenerative condition.

Phospholipid Omega 3 – found in krill oil and salmon roe. Phospholipid forms of omega 3, can reach the brain or pass the blood brain barrier with DHA, more readily than normal forms of omega 3, in people who are genetically predisposed to neurogenerative diseases. More information on this here.

Water – as pure as possible, or from a natural form. In the UK, many old properties still have lead pipes. Dehydration is said to be a major cause of cognitive issues in old age.

BDNF – some supplements like lions mane mushroom, increase levels of BDNF which in turn can help ‘neurogenesis’ in some parts of the brain. Cardiovascular exercise can also help do the same.

Avoid Anti Histamines – some research suggests that anti-histamines might cause cognitive problems in the long run.

Creatine – research suggests that creatine has neuroprotective properties. Some suggest it can damage the kidneys but I’m unaware of the research behind this.

Turmeric – maybe – turmeric has been shown to reduce amyloid plaque formation, but recent studies suggest much of the turmeric you can buy, is high in lead. Curcumin might be a better idea, use a small amount daily.

A growing body of evidence indicates that oxidative stress, free radicals, beta amyloid, cerebral deregulation caused by bio-metal toxicity and abnormal inflammatory reactions contribute to the key event in Alzheimer’s disease pathology. Due to various effects of curcumin, such as decreased Beta-amyloid plaques, delayed degradation of neurons, metal-chelation, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and decreased microglia formation, the overall memory in patients with AD (Alzheimer’s disease) has improved
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2781139/

Posted in Nutrition | Leave a comment

Quick Bodybuilding Routine – at home (no equipment)

Posted on March 26, 2021 by Drew

Get hench in 5

There is some research (study here) suggesting that 1 set per body part is as effective for strength gains, as 3 sets.

Make sure that you warm up – get a sweat on

Do each set with perfect technique – fail between 6 and 12 reps. If you can do 12 reps easily, you need to increase resistance

The Griffiths Quick Bodybuilding Protocol

Warm up – 30 bodyweight squats, 30 arm circles, 2 warm up sets with light weight

Shoulder Bodybuilding Workout

Equipment – resistance bands, wrist weight

1 set – standard shoulder press x max reps

1 set – negative reps x max reps

1 set – explosive squats and press x 12 reps

Chest Bodybuilding Workout

Warm up

1 set of press ups x max reps (use Hindu press ups when you can do 25 normal press ups easily)

1 set of plyometric clap press ups x 6 reps

Back Bodybuilding workout

1 set of chin ups x max reps

1 set of negative chin ups x 8 reps

1 set of explosive chin ups x 8 reps

Quick Leg Workout

Warm up – 20 bodyweight squats

1 set – Single Leg Squats (use a support such as a putting your hand on a table to begin)

1 set – explosive jumping lunges

Be very careful with single leg squats, if you lose balance you can injure yourself easily. Try Split squats or just bodyweight squats if you want to minimise the risk of injury

Posted in Bodybuilding | Tagged Fitness, home fitness, workout | Leave a comment

Boxing Tips for Beginners (from home)

Posted on March 15, 2021 by Drew

made a video about with some pointers when drilling and practising shadow boxing at home, during covid.

Throw Boxing-Feints

Don’t pass out, instead twitch your shoulders as if you’re about to throw a punch. Practice shadow boxing, and ‘pretending’ to throw punches, to keep your opponent guessing.

Sometimes you just want to twitch your shoulder as if you are about to throw a punch, other times you want to extend one of your arms a little bit.

One of my favourite things to do, is throw a feint jab, and then immediately after the feint, throw my real jab. L

Don’t Set Yourself Before Throwing a Punch

Don’t pause or set yourself, before throwing a punch.

Practice throwing when you are slightly off balance, when you’re still moving or stepping. Throw from different angles and change up the pace at which you move, throw feints and actually throw a punch.

Jab With Your Head Off Centre Line

Taller guys can get away with keeping their head dead-centre all of the time, but generally speaking, if you are stepping in with a jab, put your head down to the side – or you’ll walk onto a counter

randy couture jab — Randy (Red shorts) Moves his head to the side when punching

Keep Shoulders Relaxed When Throwing Punches

Keep relaxed and throw the punches from the foot, hips, shoulder and finally the hand.

I like to think of driving first from the foot, and then driving again from the elbow upon impact

Name Combinations

Give your boxing combinations names. For example, a jab-cross combination, could be called “2” and Jab, Cross, Hook combination could be called “3”.

When you are throwing combinations, merge the punches into one movement. So instead of thinking “jab”, then “cross”, then “hook” – just think “3”.

Also, don’t wait for one punch to finish, before throwing the next punch. As soon as you have started to throw the jab, then the punch should follow as soon as the jab has begun, and then the hook should be throw as soon as the cross has started.

Merge the punches of a 3 punch combination into one movement, instead of 3 separate punches.

Posted in boxing, Fitness, MMA | Tagged boxing, Fitness, home fitness, mma | Leave a comment

Grappling Power Program Pdf (2021)

Posted on March 4, 2021 by Drew

Explosive power is really important for successful grappling, especially in no gi. You can literally power out (or into) most positions and submissions if you have explosive hips and legs.

Get explosive hips for superior grappling performance – scroll down to the bottom for the pdf and a nice table-version of the program. By the way, it’s spelt “programme” in the UK! Good to know if you’re a trainer

Grappling Power Program

Olympic lifts are great, this program assumes you don’t have access to an Olympic lifting coach.

Before each session, make sure that you warm up with 10 mins of steady state cardio, e.g. rowing, and perform dynamic stretches and 2 to 3 warm up sets with light weights and limited explosivenes

Wait 2 to 4 minutes between sets for best results regarding pure power. Reduce rest interval for power-endurance

Grappling Power Program DAY 1

Sumo Deadlifts x 2 sets x 8 reps – light weight to warm whole body up
Power Jump Shrugs* x 4 sets x 6 reps
Plyometric rotational jumps x 2 sets x 10 reps
Medicine Chest Pass x 3 sets of 8 reps
Depth Jumps x 3 sets of 5 reps

Medicine Ball Chest Pass

Rotational Jumps

Jump Shrugs

Grappling Power Program Day 3

Day 2 is a rest day

Bodyweight squats × 20 reps
Bodyweight press ups x 20 reps
Barbell Push Press x 4 sets x 6 reps
Kettlebell clean and press x 2 sets x 10 reps (2 sets each side)
explosive 1 arm row* on stability ball x 2 sets x 6 reps
Burpees x 2 sets 30 reps

*take 3 seconds to lower the weight and then lift it up as quickly as possible, pause for 1 second at the top and lower back down

Grappling Power Program DAY 5

Bodyweight squats x 20 reps
Front squats – explosive x 3 sets x 8 reps
Explosive chin ups* x 3 sets x 5 reps
Kettlebell swings x 3 sets x 8 reps
Plyometric vertical jumps x 3 sets x 6 reps

*any explosive back exercise is fine if chin ups are too difficult. Using a rope to pull a sled or a cable to lower down the weight then pull explosively are good options

Periodisation

Training programs should be periodized when possible. For more information on Bompas periodization see our mma strength and conditioning post.

Olympic Lifts

Ideally, power programs should include some kind of Olympic lifts too. Always evaluate the risk of injury though. Snatches for example, have a relatively high rate of injury compared to high pulls or power shrugs

Functional Strength – Move Bodies

Make hip thrusts more specific to grappling, by having a partner lie across your hips. Practise and drill an explosive ‘back door escape 6 times per set.

You can do similar drills from mount. Use the “hip hop” mount escape for reps, or bridge side to side with a partner repeatedly jumping back into mount.

Download the Grappling Power Program

Download below as a Word Doc:

grapplingpowerprogram Download

Download below as a pdf:

grapplingpowerprogram Download

Grappling Power Program (in Nice Tables)

Always warm up before each session with 10 minutes of steady state cardio and 5 minutes of dynamic stretching.

It is also recommended to do 2 warm up sets with a light weight before doing any working sets

DAY 1

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Sumo deadlift	2	8
Jump shrugs	4	6
Rotational plyometric jumps	2	10
Med ball chest pass	3	8
Depth jumps	3	6

DAY 3

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Push Press	4	6
Kettlebell clean and press	2 each arm	12
Explosive 1 arm row	3	10
Burpees	2	30

DAY 5

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Explosive chins	3	6
Kettlebell swings	3	10
Plyometric vertical jumps	3	6
Barbell hip thrusts	3	8

Conclusion

Warm up – a lot, power based exercises are great but also carry a high injury risk. I would advice getting a real sweat on and drinking lots of water throughout.

Explosive hips, are built using hip extension exercises such as explosive jumps, explosive hip thrusts and Olympic Lifts.

It should be noted that grip strength is also important for grappling strength and conditioning. Always stretch your wrists and strengthen wrist extensors as well as flexors or you’ll get golfer’s elbow pretty quickly.

Posted in bjj, Fitness, MMA | Tagged bjj, Fitness, grapling, graplling, grappling, judo, mma, ufc | Leave a comment

Best Free Standing Punch Bags for Adults – 6ft (Amazon)

Posted on February 27, 2021 by Drew

Thought I’d do some research on Freestanding punchbags for adults and wack the results together into some tables.

All statistics correct at the time of writing.

It was surprisingly hard to find many standing punchbags on Amazon.com

These are the best punchbags for under £250 or $250 based on reviews:

The tables look a bit crap, you should be able to scroll right and left to see more columns —>

Amazon.co.uk – UK Free Standing Punch Bags —> (table scrolls)

Name	Manufact.	Height	Material	Weight	Av Review	Num of Reviews	Notes	Price	Link (NOT affiliate)
RDX Free Standing Punch Bag with Gloves	RDX	6ft	Maya Hide Leather		4.5	108	Comes in 2 shipments- Fill the base with sand or water. Suction cups on base for extra stability	£144.99
Dripex Adult Free Standing Boxing Punch Bag	Dripex	5ft 9	2mm thickened PU leather striking surface	182lbs	4.5	3118	Base and bag shipped seperately.	£129.99	https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07N177XVP/ref=redir_mobile_desktop
Gallant 6ft Max Strike 360	Gallant	6ft	Faux Leather		4.6	475	Suction cups on base. Numbered targets on bag	£199.99	https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gallant-Free-Standing-Boxing-Punching/
Senshi Japan 6ft – Torso bag					4.4	53		£249.99 – currently on sale £199.99 at time of writing	https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0781FVPXH/
X sport pro freestanding punchbag	Xsport	5ft 9	PU		No reviews at time of writing			£119.99 on sale for 99.99 at time of writing g
Xn8 6ft Free Standing Punch Bag	Xn8	6ft	Lamina hide leather		4.4	116		£159.99

Amazon.com – USA Punch Bags

Name	Manufacturer	Height	Material	Weight	Notes	Av Review	Num of Reviews	Price	Link
Century Original Wavemaster Freestanding Heavy Punching Bag	Century	5ft 8	vinyl	10kg – approx 250lbs when filled		4.6	3672	Ranges from $179.99 to $229.94	https://www.amazon.com/Century-Original-Wavemaster-Training-Black/dp/B00022KJ16/
Tech Tools Freestanding Punch Bag	Tech Tools	5ft 3	PU			4.3	4019	$149.95	https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XBNW5PK/
Newtend Reflex standing boxing ball	Newtend	5ft 1	PU			4.7	19	$99.99	https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SLMGYRC/

Century WaveMaster Standing Punch Bag

Dripex Punch Bag Video

Gallant 6ft Standing Punchbag

Gallant Free Standing Punch Bag

Xn8 Free standing Punch Bag

The tables aren’t too clear above, so you can download them as a pdf here:

punchbags Download

Best Standing Punch bags

Here are the punchbag tables as images

My friend actually bought the 5ft 9, Dripex punch bag. Its plenty tall enough for me, I’m 5ft 10. I guess, when you’re punching a 6ft opponent, their chin is probably only about 5ft 6 from the ground.

Posted in boxing, Fitness, MMA | Tagged boxing, Fitness, home workout, martial arts, mma, weightloss | Leave a comment

How to Use BPC 157 and TB500

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Drew

BPC 157 is a chain of amino acids. I believe its found in gastric juice. Lovely.

It is used for any problems related to inflammation and can help repair tendons and ligaments. It’s popular in the mma and crossfit communities. It is often combined with another peptide called tb500.

Its touted by Ben Greenfield, Joe Rogan and Dr Mark Gordon as a highly effective supplement for treating and basically curing injuries, including chronic ones such as golfers elbow.

I bought my bpc 157 from uk peptides.

you can buy tablets of bpc 157 but they are much more expensive and I’ve not read many reviews about them.

In the UK, you can get bpc 157 from uk peptides

https://www.uk-peptides.com/bpc-157-5mg

You’ll also need the mixing water and and some syringes from zedmed:

https://www.zedmed.co.uk/store/Tuberculin-Syringe-T135295.html

BPC 157 is living up to the hype from Peptides

How to Use BPC 157 for Leaky Gut

I was really struggling with joint pain, muscle pain, headaches, and stomach issues such as belching.

I started to use collagen powder, glutamine and BPC 157.

I bought the vials and mixing water and mixed the powder, and just drink small amounts each day.

Thankfully I am now much better. I can’t isolate BPC 157 as the one thing that cured me however, but it’s worth a go if you are in state like I was.

I also cut out dairy and gluten and took a few natural anti-inflammatories including high EPA fish oil and tart cherry tablets.

How to Use BPC 157 for Injuries

According to Dr Mark Gordon, you should inject the BPC 157 close to the site of injury. Other people say to just use it sub-cutaneously.

If you have gut problems, you’re probably going to have mental health problems. This is due to inflammation and the vagus nerve.

How long Does it take for BPC 157 to Work?

Usually around 5 days but it depends on what injury is being treated and whether the bpc 157 is taken orally or injected. Normally, to treat an injury, youd expect to run a course for 6 to 12 weeks.

Golfers elbow for example, would normally be treated with a 6 to 12 week course.

Some relief may be felt within a few days however.

Posted in bjj, Bodybuilding, Fitness, MMA | Tagged Bpc 157, crossfit, Fitness, mma, Peptides | Leave a comment