The Sledgehammer Workout is As Epic As It Sounds

Pummeling a tire with a sledgehammer is more than a great way to smash out pent-up frustration or channel your inner Thor. The sledgehammer workout is a highly efficient way to step up your workout game, targeting everything from your glutes to your wrists.The process is simple. Smash a tire with a sledgehammer to work out your arms, core, glutes, hips, forearms, back, and wrists. With enough reps, your muscles will cry for mercy after minutes (or even seconds). You can get a faster strength training workout than if you targeted each of those muscle areas at the gym. Plus what could honestly be more satisfying than coupling your brute force with a classic workman's tool to destroy a tire?

Your Workout Gear

For this workout, you only need two items: a sledgehammer and a tire. You can find a sledgehammer at most hardware stores. Beginners should start out low, aiming for an 8-pound sledgehammer. You should buy a heavier one, like a 16 pounder, only if you are already in stellar shape.For the tire, the ideal choice is a truck tire since it is more sturdy. But these can be more expensive or harder to find. A regular car tire will suit your purposes just fine. You can search Craiglist for an old tire or even try your luck hitting up an automotive store. Sometimes they have tires they are just going to throw away anyway, so you may be able to get one for free.

The Types of Sledgehammer Swings

There are two basic swings you can do with the sledgehammer: a diagonal swing and an overhead swing. For a diagonal swing, you will be raising the sledgehammer up to one shoulder before smashing it down across your body. Start off with a stance placing your left foot closer to the tire. Place your left hand at the bottom of the handle with your right hand up towards the top (as you swing downwards, your right hand will slide down the handle to meet your left hand). Swing the sledgehammer fast and hard in a diagonal motion and hit against the tire. Do this repeatedly until you cannot do another rep with proper form. Take a twenty-second breather and then switch sides.If you want to add in more of an aerobic workout, you can implement a jumping jack after you smash the sledgehammer down. Watch this video below to see the proper form (the individual uses a specially designed sledgehammer that does not require a tire, but the form is the same).https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJbJOJK9gCMThe second basic swing is the overhead swing. Here you will want to stand with your feet centered. Bring the sledgehammer directly up over your head. Then swing it as hard as you can directly down onto the tire. Do this until you cannot do another rep while maintaining proper form.It probably goes without saying, but do not ever do this workout indoors. You could have a bad swing and miss the tire completely and damage your floor instead. Plus, if someone lives below you, you will be quickly hated as the sound of you pounding a tire on top of their ceiling cannot be easily ignored. Keep your workout outside as a precaution (plus you can really let those manly grunts with each swing fly without worrying about your family judging you).