AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH MAGAZINE

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ISSUE 87 - 1/11/2006

1. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"This is the essence of reality. The world does not owe you a living or a happy life, and the more that you think it does, the harder you make it for yourself to get these things. Reality just is, independent of what you demand or insist upon, or how you are otherwise immobilized by your judgments about the way it ought to be."
- Dr. Wayne Dyer

People that are offended easily or even worse enjoy being offended are people that are always miserable. Truth be told, people that are offended easily definitely get pleasure in being offended. No debate needed on that. They just cannot wait to find something to be offended about and make a big fuss over something trivial to feel worthy and important. I am sure that their ultimate goal is to get everyone to be as miserable as they are. If they do not like a show on TV, they rally to get it banned instead of doing what any adult with half a brain does and change the channel or better yet, just get rid of the TV. If they do not like the show, no one else should be able to enjoy it either. Who cares about freedom of speech or the obvious fact that there are a variety of people in this world with different personalities and interests. If they do not like it, others should not like it either. Self righteous people always have to be right even if it means they are miserable and make everyone else around them miserable.

I remember back in college a couple of guys I know in my dormitory were bored and decided to have some harmless fun. They got in their boxers and invited some of their female friends from the top floor to come down for a few drinks. The ladies came down and to their surprise saw the men in boxers hanging out (no pun intended). They thought that it was pretty damn funny and ran back up stairs to get some water guns and buckets of water and returned for the attack. Everyone was having a good time as the ladies chased the men down the hall blasting them with water guns and buckets of water. Yes, it was pretty silly, but this was college and people like to be wild and have fun.

The next day, two young ladies who aspire to be professional offendees (yes I realize this is not a word, but it fits), heard about the spectacle and were of course deeply offended. Probably because they were not invited, but that is another story. No they decided that the men involved were being blatantly sexist and that they should be held accountable. They went to the school administration and raised hell. They demanded that the men involved get kicked out of school for their heinous act. Make no mistake about it, these women were on a mission to expel the world of pranksters and make the school a safer haven for boredom. At most colleges, they would probably tell the ladies to get lost, but this happened at a liberal arts college where the thought of people having a good time is not acceptable. The offendees wanted blood and knew that they had power on campus. The resident assistants at the dormitory decided to call for a mandatory dorm meeting in which the men involved would have to sit on a panel, while they received the wrath of the offendees and anyone else that wanted to jump in. Only one other guy jumped in. A guy that was dating a hardcore feminist that had him by his manhood (or lack their off). The offendees went on to state that what the men did was terribly wrong and even went as far as to say that it was one step away from rape. The funny thing is that the women who were actually involved in the spectacle thought the whole thing was harmless and that some guys acting like jackasses is no reason to have a fit. In other words, the women that were directly involved were not offended. To make a long story short, the men almost got expelled and the offendees received a major surge of power and importance for putting the men through the ringer. They congratulated themselves on achieving their first step in making sure that men and women never get together and have fun that is not politically correct (translation=boring).

Another incident happened at a conference that I attended a few years ago. One of the speakers complimented some actresses that were sitting in the front row. He said something to the equivalent of that having them there made the view much better, etc. No less than five minutes after his speech was done, a group of men and women walked up on stage holding hands. I thought that they were going to do something lame like start singing "We are the world." Unfortunately, it was even worse than that. The leader of the pack stated that they were offended with the previous speaker's sexist comments and that he should apologize to the ladies that he complimented. Once again the ladies that were involved were not offended. Why should they be? They were both successful, confident, and physically attractive women that probably get compliments every day. Big deal. It is no secret that most men like to look at attractive women. That is not going to change anytime soon. Once again, did these offendees really think that their ostentatious stunt would make the world a better place? I am sure they did, but reality is much different. Also, why make a public spectacle of the incident. Why not just talk to the speaker in private? Because, you do not get any attention doing that and that is precisely what they were after. Make no mistake about that. Doing it in front of a room full of five hundred people is far more of an energy surge than doing it privately and respectfully.

How about doing something that will really benefit society such as going after some child molesters or sex offenders. Now that is a cause worth going after. There is a great organization called "perverted justice" that does just that and is responsible for getting dozens of child molesters locked up every year. Now that is a cause worth fighting for and an organization worth supporting (Check them out at: Perverted-Justice.com)

Fortunately I am not someone that gets offended easily which is probably one of the main reasons why I actually enjoy life. I like to joke around with people and have a good laugh even if it is at my expense which it often is. As many of you know, half of my lower right face and neck does not have any pigmentation. Just about everyday that I walk out the door people stare at me and do double takes (Yes, I realize that 90% of this is because I am so good looking and well built ;-). I could easily get offended and confront each person and tell them that they are being rude and that they should be ashamed of themselves for doing double takes. The truth is that it is natural for people to do a double take when they see something that is out of the norm. No big deal and I rather cut people some slack and go on with my day, then try to get a law passed that no one is allowed to look at anyone that has a disfigurement and that failure to apologize immediately after doing so will result in serious penalties. Give me a break! Talk about a battle that is not worth fighting.

Forget about trivial matters and focus on something that has a real impact on the world. Instead of getting offended and uptight, go help some people out in a measurable way. There are so many positive things that you can get into that genuinely benefit the lives of others. My advice is to avoid people that are easily offended and if you do have to interact with them, then tell them to get over themselves and find some real causes to further. I will end with a quote from one of my favorite actors Anthony Hopkins, "I hate political correctness with deep passion. It is nothing but hypocrisy.” Changing semantics does not change the world. It is a sugar coat solution. It is like saying that you are financially challenged instead of broke when your bank account is empty. The reality is that you have no money and need to do something about it. Changing the wording is not going to change the situation. Political correctness sucks! Whew, glad to get that off of my hairy chest ;-)

Live Life Aggressively!

Mike Mahler

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2. HELP THE KATRINA VICTIMS

My friend and top body worker Dianna Linden recently sent me a list of non-profit organizations for helping out the Katrina Victims. Here is the list:

• Operation USA http://www.opusa.org
• Mercy Corps http://www.mercycorps.org
• Oxfam America http://www.oxfamamerica.org
• America's Second Harvest http://www.secondharvest.org

I encourage you to take a look at the above organizations and make a donation to the one that sits well with you. Also if you want to help out animals, make a donation to http://www.bestfriends.org.

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3. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH TRAINING ARTICLE

The Hang Snatch Cardio Routine

While reading the most recent issue of Jeff Everson's "Athlete Magazine" (Which by the way is a great magazine) I came across a great article by my friend Marc Lobliner. Marc is the Senior Marketing Manager for Forza Nutrition and is a personal trainer that has been in the game for many years. His company makes some great supplements that you can check out at http://www.scivation.com. Marc's article in the issue is on hang cleans with a barbell for cardio. Marc goes over several killer programs that engage your fast twitch muscles to ensure that you preserve muscle while you burn fat rather than losing fat and muscle with low intensity cardio that is done for long periods and as we all know is painfully boring. One of the programs that Marc covered that caught my eye was the "Descending sets routine." Here is how it works, pick a weight on the barbell hang clean that you can do twenty times with solid form. Do one warm up set and then do the following:

• 2 sets of 15 reps
• 2 sets of 12 reps
• 2 sets of 10 reps
• 2 sets of 8 reps
• 2 sets of 6 reps
• 2 sets of 5 reps
• 2 sets of 4 reps

Start with one-minute breaks between each set and work on decreasing the breaks over time. Increase the weight when the workout becomes too easy. This program looks like a killer and I am going to give it a shot with the one-arm kettlebell hang snatch later this week. Don't know how to do a One-arm Kettlebell Hang snatch? Do not worry as I cover the exercise in detail on my upcoming 90 minute DVD, "Kettlebell Solutions For Speed And Explosive Strength" which will be out later this month. Here is the description from the free DVD user guide that will accompany the DVD:

One-arm Hang Snatch

The kettlebell snatch is a great exercise for developing full body explosive power with particular emphasis on the hamstrings. With the hang snatch, we are going to reduce the involvement of the hamstrings and focus on developing explosive traps.

Performance

Deadlift one kettlebell and hold it between your feet. Sit back a few inches and quickly reverse the direction exploding through with the hamstrings and traps to develop the power to drive the kettlebells overhead in one move. Wrap your hand around the kettlebell as it flips over and punch through. Breathe in as you drive the weight overhead and breathe out as you take it back to the starting position.

Now once the "Descending sets routine" gets easy with One-arm Kettlebell Hang Snatches, you can take it up a notch with the Double Kettlebell Hang Snatch:

Double Hang Snatch

Time to take the benefits of the one-arm hang snatch up a big notch. The double hang snatch requires more explosive power and coordination. Make sure you master the one-arm hang snatch before moving up to the Double Hang Snatch.

Performance

Deadlift two kettlebells and stand up. Sit back a few inches and quickly reverse the direction driving through with the hamstrings and hips. Drive the kettlebells overhead and squat under the bells to get them to lock out. Stand up with the bells to complete the rep. Breathe in to get the bells overhead and breathe out to return them to the starting position.

Try doing the descending sets program two to three times per week depending on what your goals are. You could do the routine with double swings one day and then hang snatches the next. Start with one-minute breaks and when you can do all of the sets with one-minute breaks, go down to forty-five second breaks. Keep working until you get down to thirty second breaks. At that point, pick a heavier kettlebell or a harder exercise. Feel free to use dumbbells or sandbags as well if you do not have kettlebells.

You can reach Marc at mlobliner@comcast.net if you have any questions and make sure to check out his websites:

scivation.com and primaforce.com

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4. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH BONUS TIP

This week's bonus tip is from newsletter reader Brian Lattimer. Brian is a chiropractor based in Buckhannon, West Virginia. Email Brian for more info at: lattimer1@verizon.net

I was reading Mike’s newsletter on successful people versus unsuccessful people. It reminded me of some successful quotes (tips), I have learned on my road to success. The first two quotes are the following: “successful people do the things that unsuccessful people don’t do and if you want to double your business double the people you know.” I can’t tell you how many times I just wanted to go home after work and watch TV, then I would just say those two quotes. Instead of watching TV, I would go to Chamber of Commerce lunches, banquets and United Way dinners. I was even a judge at an antique car show, the only thing I know about cars is how to pump gas. I just kept thinking what an unsuccessful person wouldn’t do and I would do it. The third is whatever you want out of life find someone who has it and learn how they got it. If you want to be a millionaire find a millionaire and ask them how to do it. Perfect example, when I first picked up a kettlebell, my goal was to press double 70's. I found someone who was doing it, Mike Mahler, bought his dvd’s, attended his workshops, now I am working on pressing double 88's. If you are successful now find someone who is more successful and learn from them and just keep going. The last is a great quote from Dr. Dyer “the masses must see first then believe, the masters believe then see.” Every action is preceded by a thought, what you focus on is what you get. Most people focus on the things they don’t want instead of focusing on the things they do want. Write down all of you goals and dreams, believe in them, then you will see them. Thoughts determine our actions, our actions determine character, and our character determines our success. A friend asked me a long time ago “Brian what is it that you want out of life.” At that time in my life I was working for someone else and struggling financially. My answer was I want to own my own business and become a millionaire. He then asked “would you do what ever it takes with in your values to become a millionaire.” I immediately said “yes." I will never forget his final question “what have you done today to become a millionaire.” I said “nothing”. It wasn’t long after that I started my own business and I now earn in one day what used to take me a month. Ask yourself everyday what have you done today to reach you goal.

Sincerely, Brian Lattimer

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5. GET THE AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH DVD COMBO PACK TODAY

"Kettlebell Solutions for Speed and Explosive Strength is incredible! All of the exercises are explained and displayed perfectly and leave you with no questions. There is absolutely no filler and it gives so many options to add to your arsenal. Watching it gets me so amped up to train! One of the best things is the Free DVD User guide to set you on the right track. I love all of the exercises and together with Tke Kettlebell Solution For Size and Strength, I will never get bored of training!"
- Chris Pontius of MTV's Wildboyz and Jackass

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6. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH PERSONALIZED PROGRAM DESIGN SERVICES

"Lost 10 lbs and went down from a size 12 to a size 8 in jeans – that was something I expected not to happen for another 10-15 more lbs! So thanks for your guidelines – they really have helped a lot."
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Tired of trial and error? Want a training program that actually works? Click here for more info!

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7. NEW AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH PRODUCT RECOMMENDATIONS

I have just added some great new products to my website including: medicine balls, the ultimate portable gym, and some pull-up straps that allow you to do a pull-ups anywhere! Click here.

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8. THE AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH SOLUTION FOR THE ROAD WARRIOR

Tired of terrible hotel gyms and getting out of shape on the road? Tired of doing bodyweight only routines in your hotel room because there are no other options? You need Lifeline's resistance cable products. Not only are they light and portable but they provide enough resistance to humble the strongest athletes around. Click here for more info

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9. KETTLEBELL TRAINING INFORMATION PAGE (NEW)

http://www.mikemahler.com/kettlebell_info.html

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10. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH MAGAZINE ARCHIVES

http://www.mikemahler.com/newsletter

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11. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH ARTICLES

http://www.mikemahler.com/articles.html

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12. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH TRAINING JOURNAL

http://www.mikemahler.com/journal.html

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13. RECOMMENDED READING LIST

http://www.mikemahler.com/reading.html

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Until next time.

Live Life Aggressively!

Feel free to email me with your comments and feedback at mahler25@yahoo.com

Mike Mahler

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