What is Gada FlowTM?
If you’re looking to change up and complement your fitness workout routine and try something new, you may wish to try something that is actually an ancient practice. Originally developed thousands of years ago, the Gada, a steel mace also known as a mace bell, is a weighted club once used as a weapon and training tool by elite warriors and athletes.
You aren’t likely to find it as standard equipment in most gyms, but the mace bell is becoming more popular today as an excellent tool for full body conditioning and strengthening, cardiovascular training, as well as for triggering an elevated mental focus, known as the flow state.
How does Gada FlowTM / Steel Mace work?
The Gada FlowTM practice developed at INVIVO Wellness essentially offers a different kind of resistance training, based on rotational or twisting movements. These movements encourage your body to act as a single integrated unit across multiple planes of movement (sagittal plane – bicep curls and lunges, frontal plane – lateral raises, and transverse plane – twisting wood chop or hay balers). Throughout the movement, your body must stay balanced while using the unbalanced resistance of the mace bell.
With its uneven distribution of weight, the long, narrow rod serves two purposes – many grip variations and core conditioning. With variable grip options, you can change the level of difficulty of each movement by simply moving your hands farther away from the rod’s weighted ball. Swinging, twisting, and pressing exercises performed with core engagement and control make this a functional movement practice.
The rhythmic movements made with the offset weight of the steel mace effectively help to improve your dynamic core stability, increase your range of motion and rotation, and enhance your coordination and endurance.
Another key benefit of this functional exercise practice is the strengthening of the shoulder joints and muscles—a primary power center— which can help you to prevent activity-limiting shoulder injuries, by increasing shoulder mobility and flexibility.
In addition, working out like a warrior with a mace bell helps to increase your grip strength, which is fundamental to so many activities both at the gym and in life, yet can be overlooked in many training programs.
How will practicing Gada FlowTM / Steel Mace relate to my everyday life?
Working out with a mace bell carries over its benefits into other activities of your daily life.
- Feel more confident lifting, carrying and holding – kids (grandkids), pets, groceries, and laundry.
- Improve your swing and grip for golf, tennis, volleyball, and mini-golf too!
- Improve your twisting (rotational range of motion) for driving (no need for backup cameras), swimming, and yard work.
- Improve your grip and strength for gardening: digging, raking, planting, and pulling weeds.
- Improve your core stability and balance by learning how to safely perform squats and lunges.
- Improve your heart health and cardio capacity when actively practicing energizing flowing movements and sequences.
Is Gada FlowTM / Steel Mace training right for me?
One beautiful thing about Gada FlowTM practice is that it requires only a basic level of movement and conditioning. Even with a lower-weight mace bell, the ease or difficulty of movements can be easily adjusted simply by changing your grip on the mace bell with guidance from an expert instructor. This built-in versatility means that people at differing levels of fitness can all enjoy the benefits of working out like a warrior.
Robert McDonial, INVIVO Wellness Certified Personal Trainer, leads Gada Flow Workshops and Classes.
Check the schedule for upcoming events.
Check out all of the fitness classes, yoga classes, and memberships offered at INVIVO Wellness in Downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
