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.

Media Appearances #4

We always believed the product was good, now it's officially The Nuts. Nigel (our model) is popping up everywhere...! We featured in Nuts magazine under the gadgets section so word is spreading. Where is he gonna pop up next?

Paul 'Semtex' Daley Vs Bojan Kosednar

Our newly sponsored MMA fighter Paul Daley fought this weekend and had a decisive victory. The following fight report is provided courtesy of Fighters Only Magazine and pictures courtesy of MMAweekly:

Fight Report

Welterweight star Paul Daley made an emphatic return to action after a self-imposed exile of six months with a stunning first round knock out over tough Slovenian fighter Bojan Kosednar.

Daley dropped his opponent three times in the first round, with the third and final knockdown a perfect left hook that left Kosednar face down on the canvas. In what was touted as a tough test for Daley, Kosednar was made to look less than average, such was Daley’s skill in handling the European.

Cementing his position as the UK’s top pound for pound fighter, Daley’s status as the UK’s top welterweight is difficult to dispute.
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Paul already has recognised explosive punching power and he now incorporates Shadowboxer VRT into his training regime and believes this will improve his power, speed and core fitness. His opponents should beware...!

Paul 'Semtex' Daley joins the Shadowboxer club

We are proud to sponsor the Cage Rage World Welter Weight Champion, Paul 'Semtex' Daley. We visited the Bushido MMA Academy that Paul trains at in Nottingham to see him going through his paces before his next fight against Bojan 'Zelva' Kosendar at The Rough House 7. Paul is headlining and we wish him luck, not that he needs it. Paul already has explosive power and an impressive (T)KO record with 12 (70.59%) of his opponents Knocked Out. So what did this lean fighting fit athlete have to say about using the Shadowboxer VRT? Paul said "Shadoxer is a great piece of equipment, it's very versatile, as a mixed martial artist our training covers a lot of different aspects of combat and this fits in with all of it. It increases power also, I've got a good knock out record as it is and this can only benefit it". Bojan watch out.

Feedback from a customer

Tonight I did 7 sets of 100 on the pads and put the heavyweight resistance cords on to take the sting out of my punches as my fiancee was holding the pads for me and she is only 7.5 stones. Lets just say it worked, she had no problem holding the pads for me and within 15 mins I was completely burnt out and had a better pump on my shoulders than any weights session that I could have done. I am truly impressed at how much effort the shadow boxer takes and think it is a definite fast track method to improving speed and strength.

P.S. I've been wearing it backwards so even with hands in guard position I am under tension which can only help to train those hands to stay up at all times in the future, also I can agree with you that it will help correct punching technique as concentration is required to throw a straight punch as the cord is pulling down on the fist at the full extension of my reach especially when tired at the end of a good sesh.

If someone is holding the pads for you when using shadowboxer then the pads should be positioned at the end of your reach so that you have to fully extend the arm to hit the pad this helps for a better workout and also helps if the person holding the pads for you is a lot smaller like my fiancee 7.5 stone vs me 13.2 stone just to make sure that there is less chance of jarring or damaging the shoulders of the pad partner.

Once again thanks for a great product and your interest in my feedback 10/10

Carl

[note: Just to put the feedback in context Carl used to train for 30+ hours a week in Thai Boxing]

Russian Twists -- Lose those 'love handles'!

The Shadowboxer VRT is not just for "super-charing your punches" as one customer put it. There are a variety of exercises that you can use it for. So here's an exercise for not only strengthening your core but it also tones up that common problem area...your obliques AKA 'love handles'. If you're interested in combat, strong punching power comes from a powerful hip rotation so having good abs and obliques is essential.

1. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and your knees slightly bent
2. Attach the Shadowboxer VRT just above the knees allowing for some space between the legs. Ensure the velcro is firmly in place you can test this by trying to pull your knees apart. The velcro shouldn't budge.
   
3. Place you hands at chest level so there is a right angle between your forearm and upper arm...this is your starting position
4. Now twist to the left and forcefully swing your arms in a circular motion, maintaining the distance between your chest and hands
5. Return to the starting position and repeat on the other side
6. Repeat 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Points to watch

• Don't let the hip rotate forward. Try and maintain a neutral tilt in the hip or even slightly up turned if you can. The buttocks will be held firm if you do this correctly.
  
• Hold a firm stomach as this will engage the abdominal muscles. Tilting the hip as above will help with this also.
  

The beauty of this is no need for bulky multi-gym equipment or humongous crossover machines. You certainly can't take those outside with you to exercise in the little sun shine that we might get in good ole' blighty!

Stretching - Figure of '8' Shoulder Rotation

Now if you're anything like me when you get your Shadowboxer VRT you just want to get it on and start punching...BUT WAIT. As I'm sure most of you know but only a few of us do we should stretch before and after an exercise routine. The most commonly agreed upon way to prevent injuries is to stretch. For those of you that do stretch the question is 'do you stretch both major and minor muscles (the muscles that are responsible for keeping the joint aligned)? These minor muscles are often the cause of many injuries, just ask any physio. The best way to stretch them is to roll the joint in a circular motion. This loosens up the minor muscles.

So here's one stretch that is particularly good before using your Shadowboxer VRT.

• Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and 'soft' knees (slightly bent) and your arms by your side
• Starting with the left look down at your left hand and (slowly) swing the arm backwards in a large circular motion keeping your eyes on your hand as you go. Also try to go to full range.
• The arm should now swing forward diagonally across the front of your body continuing downwards toward the right hip.
• The arms now completes the second part of the figure of '8' movement circling upward to the right shoulder.
• Finally from the right shoulder the arm continues downwards to the left hip and the original starting position.
• Remembering to keep movements smooth and let the hand position move naturally, don't force anything, but do try and swing to full range.
• Repeat 15-20 times on each arm and also reverse directions of the swing.

Note: Following the swing with your eyes and going to full extension will give you a full stretch without putting too much strain on the neck vertebrae or stress on a part of the shoulder that might have a low grade rotator cuff injury.

This stretch comes courtesy of Bruce Miller 7th Dan Quan Li K'an. I attended one of his courses on Acupuncture and Stretching recently. Bruce is a Physician Assistant and Internal Medicine Practitioner also. However, there's no hocas pocas with Bruce as he surprisingly applies Pragmatic Scientific principles to what he teaches and his knowledge of anatomy is deep as it is wide. We hope to get contributions from Bruce in the Future. Click here for his web site.