Wasn’t sure what category to put this post under…
The past 2 years I have been using Steel mace/Steel clubs /kettlebells more and more.
I find that my body has responded well to this.
I know that mace and clubs is still a fringe training modality but more and more high profile people have been seen using them.
MMA fighters use them
I’m a firefighter and for me the rotational/ athletic movements have been exactly what my training needs.
Who’s using mace/clubs?
How do you train with them? What’s the carryover to your firefighting abilities?
Mace and club work help with firefighting
Because the movent patterns really engage a ton of core… i have more muscle endurance
And better grip. My shoulders and back feel really good because before I started training with mace my back was always tight and tired from wearing a 50lb air tank… my joints feel really durable and resilient.
Mace and clubs have their weight at one end. Mace are longer than clubs. Alot of The movement patterns are rotational… think baseball, golf,tennis etc…
If you are familiar with kettlebells then you can already imagine some of the movements especially if you know what kettlebell flow is.
In Steel mace you can use a really light Mace like a 7 or 10 lb and do a flow which looks and feels like martial arts.
Then there are more athletic movements.
Then you have traditional style which is basically swinging it behind your back and pulling it over. There are humans who are using weights at like 80 to 100 lbs!!
The thing about swings is you have the weight at the end and then you have the length of the handle… leverage. The longer the handle the more tourqe and the more strength you need to complete the 360 degree swing.
Right now I am using 40 lbs for my heaviest swing and its tough.
One of the best things about heavy ass swings is the demand on your grip! These swings will give your hands a workout!
As we all know grip strength is very important for our primary compound lifts. Usually its the grip that fails first so thats why we use straps to lift heavy…
I started a workout log on here and I think I will post vids of some stuff so you guys can see.
Thanks for your service brother.
Only used a ‘shoulder rock’ type thing as a mobility/warm up tool, never for full workouts
Got a few buddies who use them and enjoy them, different type of strength to your general ‘weight training’
Something I’d like to explore in the future when I’ve nailed my current goals
Yeah the Shoulder Rok by Kabuki is a nice mace… adjustable. It has some really sick knurling on the handle you better have some tough hands!
There is another adjustable mace out there to try… Adexclub they make mace and clubs that are adjustable.
The bar has no knurling on it, its totally smooth. So when you swing a little weight it really gets tough to hold cause it slips if you don’t maintain a monster grip.
So I see that Steel mace & club training is slowly catching on around the world. You see more pro athletes using them . There is alot of different ways to train with mace & clubs.
There is flow style … like kettlebell or animal flow or yoga flow.
There is also the traditional style which is mostly just doing swings (360s or 10&2 or Gama Casts and mills)
Or you have a more basic full body movement that is more ballistic or athletic style.
Some people just train with mace only! I don’t. I prefer to incorporate it in to my routine.
I have never used them myself but am interested in adding them to my repertoire. I would have to learn some basic exercises to do with them. I know they have been around in training for ages.
