Remember the scene in “Conan The Barbarian” when a young Conan, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, was forced to push this giant wheel all day long to build up his body in preparation for his future as a deadly warrior?

Well, although they didn’t have “steroid cocktails” to aid them back then, ancient warriors like the Vikings, Spartans, and Romans actually DID train in these ways…and with a PURPOSE!

Men of these days whose job it was to protect the clan…defeat enemies…or take new lands by force…were “career warriors” and their sole job was to FIGHT.

But not just to “fight”…they had to be BETTER at fighting than the men they traded blows with or they wouldn’t live to fight the next day.

For victory, they had to be in peak physical condition that required their muscles to be both STRONG and also operate for peak ENDURANCE in order to wear heavy armor, walk for long distances to the battlefield, and STILL be able to wield a heavy weapon over and over again to take on the advancing hordes of enemy combatants.

In a modern age where “endurance” and “muscle” are considered laughable if used in the same sentence, it isn’t easy to find information on how to accomplish both, eh?

So how DID they train? (more…)