Gada Mace Ladder Style Workout
This video is based on a Gada (Mace) ladder-style workout incorporating Indian Clubs, Persian Meels and Tabarzin Axes.
Drumbeats
I am using a drumbeat in the background which is recorded at 60 beats per minute, and the idea is to keep up with the drumbeat regardless of equipment be it Gada (mace), Indian Clubs, Tabarzin Axes or Persian Meels. I find that this keeping time makes you work very hard as fatigue starts creeping in.
Cadence
60 beats a minute always seems quite easy at the beginning of a set, but as time progresses, keeping time with the beat becomes more challenging where you have to apply mind over matter to keep up with the cadence.
Counting Reps
Counting repetitions is not a personal favourite pastime, to get an idea of repetitions I will swing and count for one minute, and then multiply the reps by the number of minutes I trained. My main focus is on good form which I check in a mirror that hangs behind the cameras.
The Length of Each Set is 2 to 3 Minutes
Seven Sets
- Indian Clubs, Kehoe replicas 2.5lbs each and 20” long. Warming up swinging the basic outward heart-shaped swing with a few turns thrown in for good measure. Lots of elevation and deep breathing.
- Gada 7kg, 10-2’s swung both one and two-handed.
- Persian Meels 6kg (3kg each) starting with a right turn two-count alternating inward swing (the classic). Followed by alternating parallels to the right, alternating outward and finishing with alternating parallels to the left. Repeat the whole sequence turning left. Then the classic inward swing with a parallel swing through.
- Gada 10kg, two-handed 10-2’s with the odd turn, and 360’s to finish.
- Tabarzin Axes, 2.5lbs each, 24” long. Alternating inward frontal plane, alternating sagittal plane left, alternating outward frontal plane, alternating sagittal plane right.
- Gada 14kg, 10-2’s, hands left over right and right over left, nearly messed up on the hand change.
- Indian Clubs, Kehoe replicas 2.5lbs each and 20” long. Practising non-stop direction changes from synchronous to asynchronous. Outward, parallel right, inward and parallel left.
Bit of a Mix
As you can see the Gada (Mace) ladder-style workout is a bit of a mix. I love the variety of the four disciplines and the challenge of the drumbeats, the push and pull factor of the Gada (mace), the handling variations of the Persian Meels, even more handling variety with the Indian Clubs achieving the full range of motion of the shoulder girdle, and finally swinging the Tabarzin Axes where the difficulty lies in keeping the blades aligned on the frontal plane.
Gada Mace make your own in the TRADITIONAL WAY
These are instructions for making a Gada (Mace) in the ancient and traditional way used by Indian Akharas (wrestlers gyms). The process is very simple and easy to follow and can be made cheaply by anyone wanting to train with one of the oldest pieces of training equipment around.
