DennisRogers.net

You see it all the time with fighters. They put the work in, but then all they do is question if they are ready. They show doubt. And it is not just fighters, but power-lifters, strongmen and top athletes in other sports as well. If you are one of these people that often fall into one of these black holes then here are some suggestions that may help get you back out.

 

            1. You must keep a positive attitude at all times. If you put the time in to train properly then all you have to do is go out and perform. You will either do well or you wont, that’s just life.

 

            2. Avoid all negative thoughts and negative people. This negativity will only bring you down and can totally destroy all you have worked for.

 

            3. Place motivational phrases, pictures, and things that inspire you around your bedroom and training area. This will be a constant reminder of positive things to help keep your mind on getting to where you want to be.

 

            4. Music: Get your favorite tunes and CRANK them up. It’s been proven that listening to music that motivates you will help push you further in training.

 

            5. Look to people who have overcome great odds to succeed in their own lives, such as Kyle Maynard, Zack Gowan, Matt Hamil, Stevie Wonder and Greg Rando. Kyle Maynard is a quadriplegic, yet was a very successful amateur wrestler. Zack Gowan is missing one leg but made his dream of becoming a professional wrestler for the WWE. Matt Hamil is deaf and one of the up and coming top MMA fighters and Greg Rando is a blind pro bodybuilder.

 

Look at what these people did. Look at how the odds were stacked against them, yet they accomplished great things. So get out there and work hard and you too can accomplish your goals. But only if you put ADVERSITY into SUBMISSION!

 

KEEP THE FAITH – The Machine

 

 

Last week I had the opportunity to go to Virginia with Dennis.  What an amazing time it was. Anytime you get the chance to see the master do his thing live and be a part of it is something to be cherished. You can learn so much form proper stage presence to how to use showmanship. It is very important that we pay homage to those that have been there and done that before us, along with coming up with our own feats that are unique to us... what makes us ourselves.

 

We then got to hang out with one of the greatest submission wrestlers [in my opinion] Mark Fleming. He did 20+ tours of Japan and was one of the top dogs for some time. I even had the pleasure of getting on the floor with Mark and getting stretched out as you can see by the pic! Mark is humble and genuine, very kind. Further more he is a class act and a real WRESTLER through and through.

 

Any time you get the chance to be around someone in a field that you respect, jump at the chance and cherish it.

 

The Machine

Here is a quick combo drill that will have you dead on the floor not wanting to get back up-

 

What you do is a wrestlers sprawl for as many reps as you can in say 20 seconds, or just go for a certain amount of reps , say 20 - 30. Immediately go right over to the squat rack or power cage and have your barbell already set up. Now begin to barbell shrug for your desired amount of reps. There is no set limit to what you can do. Try high reps of 20 or even 30 if you’re a super stud!!!! Or go real heavy for 3s , 5s, and singles. I prefer high reps with this combo because I feel it corresponds real well with the sprawls. I suggest you aim for 10 sets of sprawls and 10 sets of shrugs.

 

This is a killer, and when I say go for high reps I am not talking using pansy weights here!!!! I am telling you to use as heavy a weight as you can for the desired amount of reps. My own personal routine looks like this: 

 

20-25 sprawls in 60 seconds

500 lbs shrugs for 20- 25 reps.

 

I try and maintain this for all 10 sets with as little rest as possible. Some days are better than others but I never decrease the weight. I just can’t always maintain 25 rep sprawls, but I make sure to always get 20 reps- NO MATTER WHAT! Of course I try to take as little rest as possible, but again, this varies. 

 

Get out there and give it a go!

 

Keep the faith,

Mike the “Machine” Bruce 

Note: As you can see by the pic, Mike Bruce is “lean and mean.” Watch for his self defense DVD coming out soon. -Dennis

 

Dear friends,

I really broke the norm today for training. I actually did my arms by themselves as a workout. I am always asked what I do for my arms and I constantly have to tell people that I don’t do arms. I credit my arm development to all my heavy rows, pulls and chins. So I figured I would do an arm workout just to see how I felt.

 

pushdowns 3x10

straight bar cable curls 3x10

 

goose hammer curls 3x10

overhead rope ext 3x10

 

2 arm triceps ext with a dumbbell 3x max reps

concentration curls 3x10

 

wrist curls 4x12

reverse curls 4x12

 

I super-setted them, and let me tell you I was horrible at this kind of workout. I am so used to doing crazy heavy weights with a lot of body momentum that doing this style of training, nice and strict, kicked my butt.

 

However my arms BLEW UP!!!! I WAS SO JACKED UP THAT I COULDNT TOUCH THE SIDE OF MY HJEAD. I kind of figured this must be what it is like to walk around

as one of those muscle comic characters we call bodybuilders these days. 

 

Try it out, Mike

10 minutes of sprawls

10 minutes of box jumps, step ups, or jump rope

1/2 mile roadwork

More jumping movements: bottom ups, squats, bunny hops.

1 jumping jack, 1sprawl, 1pushup= SELF DESTRUCTION (do 20reps)

Ab work: all kinds

Neck work: very high reps as well as heavy workload

Throws, penetration steps, lifts, escapes, focus on wrist control

Wrestle on 1 leg, don't let the other leg touch the ground

Practice pinning, spinning drills on medicine ball or partner

Wrestle blindfolded to get submission on partner

Finish with lots of stretching

 

Get at it.............Mike

Here is a nice flow that you can use for combat training or any other kind of combat [Mixed martial arts, wrestling, boxing, etc.]

 

 

On #s 7-10 you can go for time or sets and reps, it is your choice.

Train smart but hard and reap the rewards,

 

Mike, the “Machine” Bruce

This is probably my all time favorite exercise to do. Not only is it in my opinion one of the best exercises to gain mass, but to me it is a lot of fun. Just knowing that eventually I might actually gain enough strength to pick up the back of a good sized car has always intrigued me. 

 

Get 2- 6 inch solid concrete blocks or a 100 pound plate, if your gym still has them.

 

Now perform your dead-lifts standing on the 2 plates or blocks. Do them 3 x per week. This may seem like a lot and it will put a lot of strain on your back, but it will adapt to the workload fairly quickly.

 

Try and do 3 working sets of 3-5 reps. Do 1-2 good warm ups. The reason for this is that by standing on the plates at a higher distance than you would usually pull from gives you many benefits. Pulling from a higher distance will make you pull through a farther stretch thus giving you more pull from the floor when the bar is at regular height. When you do go back to pulling from the floor the bar will seem so much higher up your legs. Then your mind will think that you have already got half the pull done.  

 

When you pull off the blocks or plates it gives you such a power edge that you will be blowing weight up off the floor in no time. Do this style of dead-lifting for about a month, try and increase your pounds every week by 5-10- but only if you can pull for the 3-5 reps.  

 

Some days you will not feel as strong as others, especially while doing deads 3 x per

week. So gauge how you feel and if you have to do some light work, then by all means go for it. This will only help you. On this light day do some high volume work (high reps). But, remember the main thing is to pull as much weight and as often as possible.

 

In the mean time EAT BIG!!!!!!!! Get plenty of rest and don’t worry about other exercises. If you want to do some assistance work on your off days then go for it. But, I’m usually so dead from all the effort I put in to my deads that I just don’t have it. START PULLING- IM SURE YOU WILL REAP THE REWARDS.

 

KEEP THE FAITH, MIKE

Are you looking to have a super V? Below is my high volume width routine to accomplish just that. This is especially great for everyone out there who is always doing heavy insane amounts of weight with rows and pulls. I even incorporated some machine work in here so that your lats will really be screaming.

 

wide grip chins 2x10

narrow grip chins 2x10

close grip chins 2x10

underhand pull ups 2x10

seated long cable pulls wide 2x8

t-bar rows 1x20

seated close grip overhead pulldowns 2x8

wide grip pulldowns 2x15-20

medium grip pulldowns 2x15-20

 

Do this as fast as you can with as little rest as possible. Your lats will explode and feel as if you have wings. When you are doing the machine work really try and pull with your lats first, then your arms, meaning- focus on the muscle working here. Don’t worry so much about power and body momentum.

 

Add some spice to your training. Give this a go 2x a month, or you can strictly do this workout for a month and focus on the width of your back. 

 

COME GET SOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

KEEP THE FAITH, MIKE

 

PS: You may want to check this out as well.

 

 

Hello everyone. I hope all is well. I saw something today that really made me think about how fortunate I am. It made me think that when things start to go bad for me to step back and really look at the situation and realize that things could be worse.

I was inspired by a young man in junior high school who is missing most of each of his arms and legs, yet he is an amateur wrestler. He weighs 103 pounds and trains his tail off like a rabid wolverine. When asked what he wanted from life he stated that he would like to go to a small college, maybe wrestle at a division 2/3 school, have a family, have some money and spread the word of God. Never once did he say anything about wanting his legs and arms back. And to top that statement off, which knocked me down even more notches, he said and I quote, "IT COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE." He then went on to say how a person could be blind or bed ridden and all he wanted was to be looked at like everyone else. “If you take it easy on me, then you will be in for a big surprise on that mat” he said.

It made me think of how lucky I am and how at times I take so many things for granted. Sometimes we complain about the smallest things, yet here is a young man that is missing large portions of each limb, yet he still feels things could be worse. WOW … if that doesn’t teach you about attitude and determination, then I don't know what will. He has helped me look at my way of thinking on a whole different level and doesn’t even know it.
 
KEEP THE FAITH.............THE MACHINE

That’s right, no typo in the title! If you are on a low carb diet and you are really being strict with your meals then eventually you may feel a little drained and your lifts may start to decrease. Want to know what I do? I go out and have a little junk. It’s true. If  I start to feel this way I will generally go out and get myself a Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream, or some granola and whole milk, maybe a peanut butter sandwich, whatever it is that I want at the time. After all, I am not a bodybuilder. This little cheat generally shocks my body and the next day at the gym I feel fantastic, and usually have some great PR'S.

 

Remember that you need to consume fat in your diet! Work hard to achieve your goals but don’t deprive your body of things it needs. If you are craving something then the body could be telling you it needs it. If you train hard enough and are not a slob, meaning you have the discipline to not go overboard, then this little “cheat” won’t hurt you at all.

 

KEEP THE FAITH ............................. THE MACHINE