Welcome To Myshack

Due to the Westminster Dog Show, "Welcome To Myshack" has been pre-empted...kidding. You should be so lucky. I have had personal commitments and obligations aplenty recently, and have not been able to bang out a fresh column for the 2nd week in a row. Please accept an "I apologize" for those of you who have missed me or "You're welcome" to those of you who did not. Today I am taking you back a few years to a time when 'Diamond' Dallas Page released his 2nd book, 'Yoga For Regular Guys', or 'YRG' for short. Next week, I plan to review a book I just finished reading yesterday, an offering by Larry Zbyszko entitled, 'Adventures In Larry-Land'. Until then, thank you for reading and 'Good Wrestling' everybody!

Welcome To YRG

Recently I received as a gift (A big thank you to my in-laws!) an autographed copy of Diamond Dallas Page's book, 'Yoga for Regular Guys'. My in-laws know that I've studied martial arts for years and stretch nightly to stay flexible and fit, and they also know that I dig pro wrestling. It was an extremely thoughtful and practical gift, and I very much appreciate it. It just so happens that not long ago I attended a local wrestling show that had DDP on the card, and he looked absolutely fantastic. He looked extremely lean. Bordering on 'shredded'. He looks WAY better now than he does in his book, which is a pretty strong testament to the benefits of his workout regime. So this book really intrigued me when I received it. Allow me to share with you my thoughts regarding the book that illustrates the workout that DDP swears by, 'Yoga for Regular Guys' or 'YRG'.

The book begins with an interesting foreword by rocker Rob Zombie. Zombie explains how he became hooked on YRG after one single workout session. Nifty.

The book then begins in earnest, as DDP explains how anybody and everybody can squeeze in some YRG in just a 20 minute dose every day, although he also has a 30 and 45 minute workout for those who are extra ambitious, or simply have more free time. One can't really argue with him on that point: 20 minutes is usually pretty darn easy to free up, no matter who you may be, or what your station in life is.

DDP has a 'yoga doctor' (he actually has a whole 'Yoga Crew' on hand in this book, consisting of a nutritionist and a personal trainer, among others) writing right along with him, explaining the physical benefits of YRG and giving nutritional advice. The book shares with the reader a plethora of health facts and ideas. The health benefits are explained in great detail, and among other things, they teach one how to monitor their heart rate, while also teaching one how to then optimize their heart rate as they use the YRG workout. Very cool and enormously interesting. They go on to explain the subtle differences between Yoga and simply stretching. Again, very interesting.

There are pictures throughout the book that pretty clearly illustrate the proper way to do things. One slight complaint--one of the early photo illustrations they use to explain a certain movement contradicts itself. It tells you to bend your knees only if you have to, yet the photograph shows the person clearly bending their knees very deeply while they are doing the required motion. Nitpicking, I know. With all of the photos and dialogue, this regime is in fact very easy to follow.

As with everything that DDP is a part of, there is positive ju-ju and motivational goodness all over the place. There is no shortage of things to help fire up a cold engine in this book, physically and emotionally. An entire chapter is dedicated to �inspiration, motivation, and congratulations', but it is sprinkled generously throughout the entire book as well.

There is also a section called 'Hammers and Duct Tape', which has a plethora of ways to help one learn how to get a 'quick fix' for stress relief and an assortment of physical ailments. Good stuff.

My final thoughts on the book? Thumbs up? Thumbs down? Most certainly, a big thumbs up. Reason one is basically that the proof is in the pudding--DDP looks very healthy and if he says this is a big reason why, who am I to say otherwise? Reason two is the fact that the YRG workout is easily and clearly explained through the written word and with illustrative photos, there is no way to misinterpret the information given in this book. A major plus, for I am not particularly bright. He truly has the 'regular guy' in mind with this workout. My only other nitpick is that occasionally, DDP goes into 'Jerry Lawler Mode', meaning he occasionally speaks like a prepubescent boy who has never seen a naked lady in his entire life. He constantly tries to entice the reader to workout, with veiled promises of a (thanks to YRG!) no longer elusive 'yoga babe' appearing somewhere in their life. The 'yoga babe' is supposed to be the 'dangling carrot' to all of us mules. Yoga babe, yoga babe, yoga babe. We are supposed to be inspired by the ‘yoga babe'. Yoga babe, yoga babe, yoga babe. Are you sick of hearing 'yoga babe' yet? If so, this book may not be for you...or your 'yoga babe'. Truthfully, he probably missed the boat on a ton of sales by not naming his book 'Yoga For Regular Guys And Gals'. That's a big audience that he could have benefited from. The 'yoga babe' talk just gets old after awhile, that's all. Again, nitpicking.

All in all, a very nice book, a very cool gift, and a very easy to follow workout program, what could be better? I will tell you this though: While YRG can be a simple 20 minute workout, it is still a lifestyle change to a certain degree. Be ready to commit yourself to it if you want to see some good results. Me? I'm already all muscle, all body, all sinewy limbs, much like my hero Frank Drebin, but I'm going to try YRG for awhile and share with you the results all the same, so stay tuned. I stretch every night already so what do I have to lose? If, in fact, I can remain as flexible as I am now or improve my flexibility and strength via YRG, I may be able to actually SAVE time by using one of the 20, 30, or 45 minute workouts prescribed in YRG, since I stretch roughly an hour or so per day minimum as it is. Even I can do the math on this one. I'll keep you posted on my progress, or lack thereof. Any of you good folks who have already tried the YRG workout, please feel free to drop me a line at Myshack33@aol.com, I'd love to hear about your results.

Until next week my friends, 'Good Wrestling!'