The Naked Warrior

218 Pages·2003·3.32 MB·English

by  Pavel Tsatsouline

Copyright ©2003 Advanced Fitness Solutions, Inc.
All rights under International and Pan-American Copyright conventions.
Published in the United States by:
Dragon Door Publications, Inc
P.O. Box 4381, St. Paul, MN 55104
Tel: [phone] • Fax: [phone]
Credit card orders: 1-800-899-5111
Email: [email protected] • Website: www.dragondoor.com
ISBN: 0-938045-55-5
This edition first published in January 2004
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of
the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
Printed in the United States of America
Book design, Illustrations and cover by Derek Brigham
Website http//www.dbrigham.com
Tel/Fax: [phone] • Email: [email protected]
Photographs by Don Pitlik: [phone]
DISCLAIMER
The author and publisher of this material are not responsible in any manner whatsoever for any injury that
may occur through following the instructions contained in this material. The activities, physical and otherwise,
described herein for informational purposes only, may be too strenuous or dangerous for some people and
the reader(s) should consult a physician before engaging in them.
D
ED IC A TE D
T P ,
O TH E AR T Y
T D D .
HE RA G O N OO R COM
S F
TR E N G T H ORU M

F
ORE WO RD
“I ’ ’
T AI N T NU T H I N
I .”
TI L L CA L L IT
Even if you’re not a baseball fan, chances are that you’ve heard this quote
by umpire Bill Klem. After reading The Naked War rior those words took on
new meaning for me. How many times have we seen someone perfo r m a skill
that appears to be magical? How many people do we know, or know of, who
seem to be able to naturally do things that we can’t do? The temptation is to
sh r ug our shoulders and acknowledge their natural abilities, talents, and other
in b o r n gifts. That is, until someone calls it. Until that someone can observe it,
br eak it down, and describe it to the rest of us in a way that makes it possible
for us to rep r oduce the “magic”. That someone is Pavel. In his book, Th e
Naked War ri o r , Pavel presents us with a clear system for building a stron g
body that can perfo r m acts of useful strength, the kind of strength that men
have always needed to win when winning meant living another day.
I have spent my entire career instructing others, as a teacher, a coach and a
trainer of bodies. One of things I do best is to shuffle my mental deck of
ex e r cise and technique cards and deal out new workouts. I am always adding
to this deck because I have learned to be open to all sources of informa t i o n
and ideas. I take what I have read, heard or seen and sift it through the filters
of more than three decades of education and experience. Then I try the res u l t
out on whoever is either unobservant enough to miss the “I’ve got something
new” look in my eye, or brave enough not to care or slow enough not to
escape in time. If it works, it goes in the deck.
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TH E NA K E D WA R R IOR
Pavel has been one of my most
abundant sources of concepts and
techniques that get into that deck. I
sought him out after reading about
Russian Kettlebell training, not
realizing at the time what a broa d
contribution his work would be to my
own. One of the biggest things that we
sh a r e is a fundamental view of the vital
connection that physical training has to
pe r fo r mance in life, as well as sports .
We are not so far removed as we think
fr om strength and conditioning levels
being essential for survival. One of the
other things that we share is the
outlook that superior strength and
conditioning does not re q u i re
sophisticated equipment, or a
fashionable wardr obe, just some basic
knowledge and a willingness to do the
work.
I almost began this forew o r d with the
quote “If you want to know why the
racehorse runs fast, don’t ask the
horse.” But I chose not use that
p a rticular quote because it doesn’t
apply to Pavel. Pavel is a racehorse
who cannot only tell you exactly why a
racehorse runs fast, but how you too
can run like the racehorse. Pavel is a
racehorse who can “call it”. And he
calls it in The Naked War ri o r .
Steve Maxwell with the morning’s military press
—Steve Maxwell, MS, RKC Sr.,
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion,
Ma x e r ci s e . c o m
2
T
AB L E OF
C
ONT E N T S
Chapter 1 7
The Naked War rior Rules of Engagement
“The Naked War rior”, or why strength train with bodyweight?…
St r ength. Pure stren g t h …the definition of stren g t h … s t r ength class-
ifications …examples of the three types of strength…the focus of The
Naked War ri o r … The Naked War rior rules of engagement…the only way
to build strength…high resistance and mental focus on contraction
…tension generation skill…the importance of “practice” over
“workout”…a powerful instant-strength mix…The Naked War ri o r
Pr i n c i p l e s …the six keys to greater stren g t h … How do lifters rea l l y
tr a i n ? …“best practice” secrets of powerlifters and Olympic weight
l i f t e r s …How do gymnasts get a good workout with the same
w e i g h t ?…five strategies for making 5-rep exercises hard e r … h o w
gymnasts achieve super strength…how to customize the res i s t a n c e
without changing the weight.
Chapter 2 21
The Naked War rior Wor k o u t
“G r ease the groove,” or how to get superstrong without a rou t i n e …t h e
se c r et success formu l a … Some GTG testimonials from the dragondoor
.com forum …how does the GTG system work?…turning your nerves into
su p e r conductors…avoiding muscle failure… s t r ength as a skill—the magic
fo r mu l a . . . “The Pistol”: the Russian Spec Ops’ leg strengthener of
ch o i c e …rate yourself against the Russian hard guys…how to do it—the
basics…doing fewer exercises better…The one-arm/one-leg pushup: “an
e x e rcise in total body tension”…what gymnastics has to teach
us…another advantage of the one-arm pushup…GTG, the ultimate
specialization prog r a m .
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TH E NA K E D WA R R IOR
Chapter 3 35
Hi g h - T ension Techniques for Instant Strength
Tension. What force is made of…the relationship between tension and
fo r ce…high-tension techniques…“Raw strength” versus “technique”
…the power of mental focus…Low gear for brute force …speed and
tension …putting explosiveness in context…‘‘Doesn't dynamic tension act
like a brake?’’…a dirty little secret of bodybuilding…the dangers of
mindless lifting…The power of a fist…the principle of irra d i a t i o n
…Accidental discharge of strength: a tip from firea r ms instruc t o r s
…interlimb response and your muscle software… Power abs = a power
bo d y …the relationship between abs tension and body strength…why flat
abs are strong abs and sucked in waists are weak…the “back-pres s u r e
cr un c h ” … Put your “rea r -wheel drive” in high gear…the source of rea l
striking power…the handgrip test…A gymnast instantly gains 40 pounds
of strength on his iron cross with the three techniques you have just
le a r ned…The “static stomp”: using ground pres s u r e to maximize
po w e r … T ense your lats and keep your shoulders down: a secret of top
karatekas and bench pres s e r s …how the secret of armpit power translates
into paydirt for one-arm pushups, punches, and bench pres s e s … “T h e
co r k s c r ew”: Another secret of the karate punch…the power of rot a t i o n
and spiral…the invisible force … Bracing: boost your strength up to 20%
with an armw r estling tactic…when to brace…the advantage of dead-start
ex e r ci s e s … “ Body hardening”—tough love for teaching tension…t h e
quick and hard way to greater tension control … Beyond bracing: “zipping
up ” …taking your pretensing skills to a new level…Wind up for
po w e r …the art of storing elastic energy for greater power…the rev e r s e
sq u a t .
Chapter 4 73
Power Breathing: The Martial Arts Masters’
Se c r et for Superstren g t h
B ruce Lee called it “breath stre n g t h ”…cranking up your bre a t h
st r ength…your body as a first-class sound system—how to make it
happen…definition of true power brea t h i n g … Power inhalation…t h e
my s t e r y breathing muscle that’s vital to your strength…amping up the
co m p r ession…when and why to hold your brea t h … Reverse power
br eathing: evolution of the Iron Shirt technique…the pelvic diaphragm
4
CON T E N T S
lock…to crucial rules for maximal power brea t h i n g … Power up from the
co r e, or the “pneumatics of Chi”…two important principles of power
generation…how to avoid a power leakage…the “balloon” technique for
gr eater power.
Chapter 5 91
Driving GTG Home
Driving GTG home: focused…skill-building—why “fewer is better”
…the law of the jungle…Driving GTG home: flawless…how to achieve
pe r fection—the real key…the five conditions for generating high
tension…the significance of low rep work…Driving GTG home:
fr eq u e n t …the one great secret of press success…Driving GTG home:
f re s h…the many aspects of staying fresh for optimal stre n g t h
gains…staying away from failure…the balancing act between freq u e n c y
and fres h n e s s … Driving GTG home: fluctuating…how to avoid training
p l a t e a u s … “same yet diff e re n t” strategies…“waviness of load”
…countering fatigue…training guidelines for a PR…backing off and
ov e r tr a i n i n g … Summing up GTG…S umming up GTG even more…
co m p r essing GTG in ten words or less.
Chapter 6 10 3
Field-Stripping the Pistol
Box Pistol…how to go from zero to hero…the box squat—a champions’
favorite for multi-muscle strength gains…making a quantum leap in your
squats…various options from easier to eviler…the rocking pistol…how
to rec r uit your hip flexors…how to avoid cramping…One-Legged Squat,
Paul Anderson style…Airborne Lunge…Pistol Classic…mastering the
real deal…Ne g a t i v e - F r ee Pistol…the three advantages of concentric-only
tr a i n i n g … Renegade Pistol…Fi r e-in-the-Hole Pistol…Cossack Pistol…
Dynamic Isometric Pistol…combining dynamic exercise with high-
tension stops…multiple stops for greater pain…taking advantage of your
sticking points…easier variations…three reasons why adding isos to
dynamic lifting can increase effectiveness by up to 15%…prot e c t i n g
yourself against injury …Isometric Pistol…holding tension over
time…the art of “powered-down” high-tension techniques…Wei g h t e d
Pi s t o l …working the spinal erec t o r s .
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TH E NA K E D WA R R IOR
Chapter 7 15 1
Field-Stripping the One-Arm Pushup
The One-Arm Pushup, floor and elevated…how to shine at high-intensity
ex e r tion…change-ups for easy and difficult…the authorized technique
…developing a controlled descent…Isometric One-Arm Pushup…Th e
On e - A r m Dive Bomber Pushup…The One-Arm Pump…The One-Arm
Half Bomber Pushup…Four more drills to work up to the One-Arm Dive
Bo m b e r …The One-Arm/One-Leg Pushup…the Tsar of the one-arm
pu s h u p s .
Chapter 8 17 3
Naked War rior Q&A
Ar e bodyweight exercises superior to exercises with weights?…t h e
advantage of cals…what cals enforce…the biggest disadvantage of
bodyweight exercising…the advantage of barbells…the advantages and
disadvantages of dumbbells…the advantages of kettlebells…Why is there
such an intense argument in the martial arts community as to whether
bodyweight exercises are superior to exercises with weights?…c o n f u s i o n s
explained…what a fighter needs…Can I get very strong using only
bodyweight exerci s e s ? …Should I mix diffe r ent strength-training tools in
my training?…How can I incorporate bodyweight exercises with
kettlebell and barbell training?…Can the high-tension techniques and
GTG system be applied to weights?… Can the high-tension techniques
and GTG system be applied to strength endurance training?…I can’t help
ov e r training. What should I do?…Can I follow the Naked War ri o r
pr ogram on an ongoing basis?…Can I add more exercises to the Naked
War rior prog r a m ? …Will my development be unbalanced from doing
only two exerci s e s ? …Is there a way to work the lats with a pulling
ex e r cise when no weights or pullup bars are accessible?…door pullups
…door row s …Wh e r e can I learn more about bodyweight-only stren g t h
tr a i n i n g ? …Low reps and no failure? This training is too easy!…Will I
fo r get all the strength techniques in some sort of emerge n c y ? …Is n ’ t
dedicating most of the book to technique too much?…why technique is
cr ucial…moving from ordi n a r y to extraordi n a r y… Pa r ting shot…there
ar e no excuses!
6