Dec
13
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Saturday, 13 December 2008 |
Sayyid Ahmad Shah is the original modern Mujahidin leader.(1)
Born Ahmad Brelwi in the tumble-down village of Bareli, he was, in teenage years, a follower of the notorious War Lord Amir Khan.
When Amir Khan's forces broke up after the war, Ahmad adopted the title 'Sayyid' which means he is descended from the Muslim prophet Mohammed.
The newly identified Sayyid Ahmad Brelwi's fervent religious beliefs, piety and charisma gained him a following. He denounced many supposedly corrupt forms of worship in Islam and urged a return to the Quran.
Sayyid Ahmad then went on the pligrimage to Mecca, the Haj, and spent four years studying at the Hejaz where his thoughts were reinforced by the Arabian Wahibi school of thought.
He returned after his sojourn and called upon the faithful to wage war against kufars--the non-muslims.
He visited his old War Lord leader, then journeyed through Khandahar, Ghalji and eventually found his largest body of loyal followers in the Yusufzai and Khatak.
The Yusufzai and Khataks, ablaze with tribal pride that demands the expulsion of foreigners and a large dose of religious zeal, followed their new leader who took the name Sayyid Ahmad Shah.
This was the first modern Mujahidin movement. The foreigners were not Americans, or NATO troops, or the Soviets or even the British.
The foreign unbelivers to be expelled and exterminated were Sihks of the Kingdom of Ranjit Singh. The year was 1828.
One hundred and eighty years ago, in what are now known as the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas of Pakistan, the banner of Jihad, the Mujahidin, was raised.
I was reminded of Sayyid Ahmad Shah by the semi-coherent ramblings of the 'New Thought Movement' guru Deepak Chopra and his son Gotham Chopra as they sought to explain the root causes of Islamic terrorism.
Gotham cannot see past the CIA's involvement in the Soviet/Afghan war of the 1980's. Deepak cannot go past the partition of India and creation of Pakistan in 1947.
This rather shallow view of history is convinient for many as it allows them to ignore the fact that violence under the banner of Islam is nothing new and not caused by anything Western.
For more than 1400 years, Muslim warriors have been offering the same bargain orginally made to the Persians and Romans by Khalid bin al Wahid:
"Now then, embrace Islam so that you may be safe, or else make a treaty of protection for yourself and your people and agree to pay the jizyah. Otherwise, do not blame anyone but yourself, for I have brought you a people who love death as you love life." (2)
Khalid was not waging war through Mesopotamia and the Levant in response to poverty and lack of educational opportunities in Dar al Islam.
Sayyid Ahmad Shah was not waging a battle against Western Imperialism. His service under the War Lord Amir Khan was as a mercenary paid for by the British.
Sayyid Ahmad, as a Mujahidin, rallied the faithful "against the tyrant [Ranjit Singh] who was represented as an unbelieving idolator." (1)
The only difference between the Taliban and Sayyid Ahmad's 'Hindustan Fanatics' and Khalid's armies and Al Qaida is weaponry. The AK-47 has replaced the matchlock and the bomb has replaced the sword.
The root cause of Islamic violence is and always has been Islam.
(1) Caroe, Sir Olaf 'The Pathans'
(2) al-Tabari 'The History of al-Tabari Volume XI: Challenge to the Empires'
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Oct
28
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Tuesday, 28 October 2008 |
Look at this man.
All the picture will tell you is that he is an Arab.
But the man, Firas, is much more.
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Read more...
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Oct
17
2008
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Written by David Chavarria
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Friday, 17 October 2008 |
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Good news from Fallujah , part of JD's old stomping grounds while filming the previous documentaries. (H/T Hotair )
JD emailed me last night and let me know he's left early for a short overseas trip. We weren't expecting him to leave until next week.
Look for updates soon in the blog.
If you've signed up for the newsletter please do so again , we had a technical glitch and didn't get everyone. We just need a name and email. Sorry for the inconvenience.
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Oct
13
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Monday, 13 October 2008 |
Once again, Michael Yon proves that some of the best reporting is coming from the independents.
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Sep
20
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Saturday, 20 September 2008 |
I've gotten a few comments along the lines of, "Hey, JD, you really don't do very many exercises."
Correct. I do not do very many exercises, but I take each set to absolute failure, to the point where I can't even move the weight anymore.
And each week, I either increase the weight I'm lifting or the number of reps.
The key is not the number of exercises, or type of exercises or number of reps.
The key is to force a greater load on the muscle every week.
For example, I'm going to put some of my workouts side by side.
Friday Chest Workout
9-12-08 9-19-08
Dumbbell Bench Dumbbell Bench
110 Lbs. x 10 110 Lbs. x 11
x 3 x 5
x 2 x 2
Machine Incline Machine Incline
225 Lbs. x 15 240 Lbs. x 8
x 10 x 3
x 3 x 2
Incline DB Flys Incline DB Flys
30 Lbs. x 15 35 Lbs. x 8
x 6 x 3
x 4 x 2
Saturday Arms Workout
9-13-08 9-20-08
Rope Trice Extensions Rope Tricep Extensions
100 Lbs. x 6 100 Lbs. x 8
x 3 x 3
x 1 x2
Wide Grip Skull Crushers Wide Grip Skull Crushers
110 Lbs. x 5 110 Lbs. x 7
x 2 x 3
x 2 x 2
Dumbbell Preacher Curl Dumbbell Preacher Curl
Right Arm Left Arm Left Arm Right Arm
50Lbs.x 5 5 50Lbs. x 6 6
x 3 3 x 4 4
x 2 2 x 1 1
Dumbbell Arm Curls Dumbell Arm Curls
60 Lbs. x 7 60 Lbs. x 8
x 4 x 4
x 3 x 3
As you see, I increased the weight or the number of reps. The overload on the muscle increases every week. When you consistently increase the load, your body will respond each week by building a little bit more muscle. Which makes you just a little bit stronger, which means you need to lift just a little bit more.
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Sep
17
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Wednesday, 17 September 2008 |
My eating was all screwed up today. We got on a roll and I didn't have enough food in the cooler so when I hit the gym I was low on gas.
But, I did my level best.
Bodyweight: 199.8 Lbs.
Dumbbell Rows
Right Arm Left Arm
130 Lbs. x 9 9
x 4 4
x 3 3
Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns
210 Lbs. x 9
x 2
x 1+ Flails
Dumbbell Rear Delts
35 Lbs. x 5 Thumbs Down
x 4 Thumbs Up
Shrugs
95 Lbs. x 12 Bent over
x 9 Straight
Tomorrow just sprints in the morning.
A note on the cardio.
Why do I do sprints? Because distance running lowers your metabolic rate which reduces the amount of calories you burn, and releases cortisol which inhibits fat loss and running distance chews up muscle fibre.
When I do looped 50s I'm actually covering 120 yards each repetition.
I did 12 repetitions in 8 minutes on Tuesday.
That is 4,320 feet or 4/5 of a mile.
In a few weeks I'll be up to 30 repetitions in 15 minutes. That is 10,800 feet which is more than two miles.
So I'll be doing the equivalent of running two, 7-minute-miles but without the side effects of distance running.
But more importantly, sprints are more common in combat and if you can sprint like that, you are fit enough for distance work.
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Sep
16
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Wednesday, 17 September 2008 |
Leg day. I don't do a whole heck of lot for my legs as they are the are naturally big and filled with fast-twitch fibres.
And with all the sprints, plyometrics and agility drills, they get plenty of work.
AM Sprints: Looped 50s, 12 repetitions in 8 minutes. Time to increase duration to 9 minutes.
PM Weights:
Leg Extension
180 Lbs. x 25 Straight
x 11 Toes In
x 8 Toes Out
Standing Single Leg Curls
Left Right
80 x 11 10
x 3 3
x 3 3
Single Leg Toe Risers
Left Right
Bodyweight x 26 26
16 16
I think next week I'll change up all my leg exercises. I've quit making progress on the standing leg curls and the leg extensions are getting out of whack--even for something that is intentionally high-rep.
Tomorrow: Lats and Traps
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Sep
16
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Tuesday, 16 September 2008 |
Got the delay call yesterday morning. It happens and is always annoying. The line is usally, "there is not enough room, but we can get you in 4 weeks later."
I always get a kick out of the "not enough room" line.
I've been there, there is plenty of room.
Now, if I was with a TV network, or one of the cable networks, the military would gladly bend over forward--and do mean bend over forward.
But I am just the Director of a few small documentaries. Never mind that I've out-grossed more than 90% of Hollywood's Iraq documentaries and am 68% of the way to straight up beating Brian DePalma. So, it looks like I may have to wait in line or sneak in or make alternative arranges--all of which I have done before.
The new crew I'm partnered with is gonna be great in-country.
Until then, I keep training.
Bodyweight: 201.4 Lbs.
Sprints: Looped 50s, 11 repetitions in 8 minutes. Got really close to 12 repetitions.
Weights:
Cable Lateral Raises*
Right Arm Left Arm
90x 4 4
1 1
1 1
Cable Upright Row
190 x 13 Wide Grip
x 8 Narrow Grip
x 3 Wide
x 2 Narrow
Dumbbell Incline Bench
95 x 12
x 3
x 2
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
60 x 8
x 3
x 2
*2:1 Pulley system so it was more like 45 actual pounds.
Monday was kinda off. I had studio sessions in the morning and afternoon to clean up some stuff for the newest documentary.
During the long break between sessions I went to my tailor to get a few things modified on the carrier of my kevlar vest and took my friend Theresa through my workout system.
(Theresa is one of my beta testers. Really, beta testers. I have a group of people doing my rather old-fashioned system.)
I didn't get to train until the evening and the gym was packed with fitness "tourists"--people who sign up on the gym's latest promotional campaign, workout for a few weeks then quit.
I'm down in weight because I didn't go crazy over the weekend. Normally on Saturday I binge out. This saturday I just had an extra bowl of oatmeal and a huge salad--I think it had arugula, but I'm not sure.
One of these days I'll detail the eating plan.
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Sep
13
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Saturday, 13 September 2008 |
Today was biceps and triceps and sprints in the morning.
It was raining when I ran my sprints, but still did pretty decent.
Sprints
Looped 50s, 8 minutes, 11 repetitions completed
Weight Lifting
Rope Tricep Extension (1:1)
100 Lbs. x 6
x 3
x 1
Wide Grip Skull Crushers
110 Lbs. x 5
x 2
x 2
Dumbbell Preacher Curl
Right Arm Left Arm
50 Lbs. x 5 5
3 3
2 2
Dumbbell Curls
60 Lbs. x 7
x 4
x 3
An easy mistake to make with the tricep extensions is using 1:1 machine one week and then another week using a 2:1 machine.
What is a 2:1 machine? It is a machine with a 2:1 pulley system where you are actually lifting half the weight. The pulleys give you a mechanical advantage.
On a 2:1 machine I would probably move 200 pounds. Which is always good for the ego, but the muscles don't care.
Tomorrow is a day off from working out.
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Sep
12
2008
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Written by JD Johannes
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Saturday, 13 September 2008 |
Got the call last weekend. Luckily I'm always in pre-deployment training mode. Always hitting the weights, always running my sprints.
After this silly post a few people asked what I do in terms of diet and exercise.
My training is geared for functionality--to be in as good if not better shape than the Paratroopers and Marines I'm embedded with.
As at TV/Video guy I have to be right there in the thick of it or I don't have much to make documentary with and I have to hold shots for seconds or minutes--hours worth of seconds and minutes.
So, leading up to my next adventure I'm going to post my workouts.
A lot of what I do was influenced by my great friend IFBB Professional Fitness Athlete Nita Marquez .
What can a former Marine turned combat filmmaker learn from a 4'9" 102 pound woman about training for combat? As it turns out...a lot. Her training as for fitness competitions builds power, speed, stamina and packs it all into lean muscular package.
But lets get to today's workout.
Bodyweight: 202 Pounds
Morning: Sprints, Looped 50s, 7 minutes, completed 9 repetitions
Evening: Weight Lifting
Chest Workout
Dumbell Bench Press
110 Lbs. x 11 Repetitions
x 4
x 3
x 3 Forced Reps
Incline Machine Press
225 Lbs. x 15 Repetitions
x 11
x 7
Incline Dumbell Flys
30 Lbs. x 16 Repetitions
x 8
x 6
Stability Ball Pushups
Bodyweight x 18
x 11
My time between sets is 12 breaths, or about 40 seconds. Which is just enough time to write the results of set in my notebook and stand there for a little bit counting my breaths.
Breath control is important when trying to shoot video while being shot at.
I take a bit more time between sets when doing dumbbell bench press because 110 pounds in each hand is hard to maneuver into position. Just getting into position is a deadlift then a weird seated power clean.
I take every set to failure, to a point where I cannot move the weight, if I flail or cheat the rep, it is not counted in my notebook. That also explains why I am doing fewer reps on each successive set.
Tomorrow: Biceps & Triceps
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