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I first learned about Gotch's Bible from Matt Furey's book, Combat Conditioning. Karl Gotch was considered the God of Professional Wrestling and was known (and in great demand) to get his wrestlers in top form. Gotch's approach was simple: no one learned any wrestling techniques until they were in shape. One of the many methods that Gotch used was a deck of cards.

This approach is easy in that there are usually only two exercises used throughout the workout. But that simplicity is deceptive because -if you can finsih the deck of cards- you will have completed over one hundred repetitions of each of the chosen exercises.

One version of Gotch's Bible is that each color is given a specific task (red cards are deep knee bends and black cards are push ups), each number dictates the repetitions for each exercise, face cards equal 10 repetitions, and jokers equal thirty seconds of rest. The workout would go like this: if you draw an eight of diamonds you will perform eight deep knee bends; if you draw a six of clubs, you will perform six push ups, etc. Keep a steady pace until the entire deck of cards has been used. Easy, right?

Some Suggestions

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• Always check with your doctor first! This workout, or any other form of exercise, may not be suited for everybody.
• Get to know the exercises. Deep knee bends, body weight squats, and Hindu squats can all be found somewhere on the internet. Make sure you understand the safest way to perform the moves.
• Start off conservatively. Use half of the deck first so that you get the feel of how the session should flow. You can add a card each session or add a few extra cards a week until you can get through the full deck.
• Have fun with it. Keep track of your progress and do your best to keep getting better.
• Three times a week is sufficient. Make sure that you are good-to-go before each and every session. If you're still sore from last week, back off, and give yourself a break.
  
• Let me hear from you. I'd love to hear about other variations of Gotch's Bible and I'd love to hear about your progress. Please contact me via email and share you story.

All the best,

Brian