Unconventional Athletes Issue 3
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www.unconventionalathletes.com<br />
WORK YOUR CARDIO AND CORE WITH AXE TRAININg<br />
Chopping firewood is probably one of the most masculine activities you can think<br />
of, outdoors chopping wood with a powerful swing of your axe. Unfortunately, this<br />
masculine physical exertion has become less prominent because of other heating<br />
sources such as gas fireplaces and compressed logs for the fireplace. Many people<br />
think that you mainly use your arm muscles when chopping wood, but this is not<br />
entirely true. With chopping wood you burn a lot of calories and it’s much more of<br />
a cardio and core training exercise.<br />
METHOD<br />
1. Grip the Axe with both hands at the bottom of the shaft and stand a bit<br />
back from the chopping block.<br />
2. Centre yourself and bring the axe directly overhead, then explosively you<br />
strike the axe down with two hands, through the midline of your body, and<br />
split the firewood with a powerful slam, in half.<br />
3. Do this exercise for ten minutes.<br />
THE lOg-BEll<br />
POWER-SNATCH.<br />
HOMEMADE EqUIPMENT<br />
The two log-bells were made by<br />
myself; I would saw from one trunk<br />
into two equal parts, so that the<br />
weight and thickness are the same.<br />
They are half a metre long and have<br />
a circumference of one metre. With<br />
a long wood drill, I drilled holes<br />
through the location where the<br />
handles should be. The handles are<br />
made of thick rope; I put the rope<br />
into the holes and placed a knot at<br />
the end. (In the centre I placed a<br />
piece of PVC pipe).<br />
For a concise guide on building these<br />
log bells please refer to my article in<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 1 of <strong>Unconventional</strong><strong>Athletes</strong>.com<br />
Method<br />
1. Grab the log-bell with both<br />
hands on the PVC pipe in the<br />
centre of the rope handle.<br />
2. Place your feet wide enough<br />
so that the log-bell fits<br />
between your legs.<br />
3. In an explosive move, pull<br />
the log-bell over your head to<br />
the back of your shoulders.<br />
4. From the movement<br />
mentioned above explosively<br />
pull the log overhead back, and<br />
swing it through your legs.<br />
5. Keep your back flat as you<br />
slow down the log and repeat<br />
the movement ten times.<br />
6. You can do this exercise in<br />
four sets of ten reps.<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 03 - Volume 1 Page 39
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