Dean 'The Renagade' using Shadowboxer VRT on a Heavy Bag

We've been really busy at Shadow Boxer UK and so apologies for not posting for a while. Here's a great little clip of Dean 'The Renegade' Amasinger using the Shadowboxer VRT on the heavy bag. The VRT is designed so that you don't have to hit things and risk damaging your hands but if you want the best of both worlds...

Look out for us in the upcoming issue of Fighters Only Magazine. Keep training.

Warning: Do not attempt this unless you are used to hitting a heavy bag, BARE KNUCKLE.

MORE than just a PUNCH -- Reverse Crunch

Recently, we met George Hillyard, a light middle weight boxer who uses the Shadowboxer VRT. Apart from being a throughly nice chap, it became apparent that after a short discussion that he wasn't aware that the VRT could be used for a wide variety of exercises aside from punching. So we decided to give him a quick run down and he was very impressed after our short session. So it is with this in mind that I have included the following exercise.

THE REVERSE CRUNCH
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1. Loop the Shadowboxer VRT over your feet as shown on the image.
2. The start position is to lay with your back flat against the floor with your legs vertically pointing up to the ceiling. Your feet should flat, do this by pulling your toes back. Your hips is on the ground at this point and you will need to pull the handles back to your waist to they are taught. (hold the handles however feels most comfortable for you, personally I hold the handles in a gun like position by the orange plastic body)
   
3. Now as you breath out lift your hip in a controlled manner (i.e. don't throw the hips) 1-2 inches off the ground, keeping the legs in a vertical position.
   
4. Slowly lower them back to the floor, in a controlled way, breathing in.
5. Repeat 15 reps, 3 times.

This exercise targets the lower part of your abs, which many people struggle with. It is a very tough exercise and so an easier version is to do this laying on your back with your knees bent and the VRT over your shins, so there is less tension on the cables.

These muscles are very important for posture and weaknesses here are the root cause of a lot of lower back pain due to bad hip position. If you exercise this area not only will you look considerably slimmer but your posture will improve. If a beer belly is your probem a few weeks of this and you'll be shocked by the difference.

George and the numerous MMA fighters we work with loved this exercise and that's why we're sharing it...Enjoy.

Warning: if you feel back pain when attempting this exercise, stop immediately and seek the advice of a doctor or professional gym instructor.

Is the VRT strong enough?

We have just been asked the question about the Shadowboxer VRT and we think it is a good one. We wanted to share the answer with people considering buying a VRT or two.

Question
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I am quite strong and this looks like a great piece of kit. My worry is that it will not be of any real use, is it strong enough?

Answer
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We performed a series of durability tests on a sample batch of the Shadowboxer VRT products (conducted by SGS a Product Testing Company) and we found that the breaking force required was around 40-45Kgs at an extension of 1520mm or 6 stone 4lbs at 5ft extension in old money (per arm!). So someone would have to have a 6 stone punch AND 5ft reach! In other words they would have to punch pretty bloody hard and have arms longer than a fully grown Orangutan!

We have also had a number of 'high mileage units' in corners at a number of boxing gyms. These get used everyday by virtually everyone that steps into the ring. We continually check up on these units to see if all is well...we've had no problems. So we are confident that the product is durable.

Finally, the bald guy in the photos used to be a body builder and regular uses it and coaches people with it. He's fairly strong and we tested him, attaching it around his legs (just above his knees) and got him to do some military presses (pictures as per blog and web site) he was shocked at how difficult it was and struggled to hold the pose for the photo. By the way this is regularly how we get people to try the VRT out for themselves. As soon as they try it out their wide eyes & shock is worth a thousand words and usually are a good indication that it's much harder than it looks...

We have been selling these for a while in Australia (well over a year and supply Rebel Sports, the equivalent of JJB in the UK) and for the VRT2's we have had no reported breakages. In the UK we have not had one VRT2 unit returned and we've sold getting on for 1000 units (we're fairly new in the UK).

We don't just run the business we're users of the product some of us use it as part of our martial arts & fitness workouts, some as part of a weights set, some for boxing (just so you know we're not a bunch of guy's in suits)

I hope this information has been helpful, if you do have any further questions please do not hesitate to email us.

Media Appearance #2

The Shadowboxer VRT has recently featured in Ultra Fit Magazine in the 'Hot Products' section. Ultra Fit is a magazine for people serious about fitness. and we are proud that they have chosen to feature us in the Hot Products section.