What follows are techniques for moving mountains and embracing the righteous: NO NEGATIVITY One of the biggest problems facing people when they step into the gym or get out of bed is themselves. A negative mindset is an abomination to life, to the the task at hand, and those looking to get the most out […]
Paper Wolves
Over the last few years I’ve given my life to both my own “tribal” organization, the Wolves, and the ongoing concept called Operation Werewolf. The latter could never have existed without the foundation of the former, and it was off the back of the successful proving ground of the Wolves that Operation Werewolf was formed- […]
In Death, I Become
by Paul Waggener I heard a joke the other week while sitting on the mats after jiu jitsu practice. “Blue belts are the black belts of quitting.” For those who don’t practice the so-called “gentle art,” (a misnomer if I’ve ever heard one), I’ll explain. It takes between 6 months and a couple years for […]
The Camel, the Lion and the Child
by Paul Waggener Nietzsche said once, “he who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” I have always loved these words, and they have inspired me to keep the steel in my spine, the frost in my blood, or just “hold it together” at various low points in my own “how.” By […]
The Eternal Return
This piece was originally spoken by me to my tribe, the Wolves, celebrating our Summer Solstice ritual in 2008. I believe it is more true than ever, and that the words are equally applicable to the strong men and women of Operation Werewolf around the world. -PW https://soundcloud.com/user-794330030/the-eternal-return Baldr’s dreams are foreboding ones. They see […]
Minimalist Training
I received many questions last week from young guys who wanted to know how they should be training to achieve their fitness goals. Mostly they had a lot of questions on programs, diets, methods, and so on, and used a lot of fancy words or phrases that I was largely unfamiliar with. Here is my […]
Aesthetic.
by Paul Waggener “I don’t want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.” These words open the film “The Departed,” one of my favorite Scorsese movies, spoken by the character Frank Costello, an Irish mob boss. The words resonated with me strongly when I first […]
Endure.
You can now listen to this as an audio file read by Paul Waggener: Woke up this morning hurting. A physical pain, sure- sprained fingers from 7 hours of jiu-jitsu in the last two days. The inside of my mouth torn up from my crooked and chipped teeth gouging tender areas as I got choked […]
From White to Blue.
I’ve never written about jiu jitsu before. Mainly, this is because I didn’t want to be the brand new guy running his mouth about stuff. Some white belt pontificating about jiu jitsu is about as valuable as a guy who can’t put up two plates telling you how to bench. I didn’t know when […]
Artha, Pt. I.
By Paul Waggener I took my first job at 15, working on a roofing crew in Northern California, one of the only guys at the time on my job-site without a criminal record. I remember 105 degree days on wood shingles, getting burnt by the sun and bit by fire ants. I also remember the […]