The Gada: Part II
by Thom Van Vleck
Overall view of my loadable Gada
In Part I you learned what the Gada was and a little history behind it. Next up will be my own design of the ultimate “Gada” training tool. You may have seen this before as I have used it for weaver stick style training and sledge hammer training a la’ Slim “the Hammerman” Farman. The typical Gada is a set weight and size. I wanted it to be loadable so I could use it with progressive resistance without having a whole collection of them. The first one I made was very heavy and ranged from 12 to 28lbs depending on the load. This one ranges from 6lbs to 18lbs.
A close up of the 1lb insert weights. These are 3 inches and fit perfectly into the hammer case.
I had seen similar “maces”, “gada’s, and hammers where you simply loaded barbell plates on the end of a rod. I wanted mine to have the weights internal. It looks slicker and also you don’t have to change your movement to compensate for the larger size. It’s the same size no matter how much it weighs. You will also note I have the handle marked with inches so that you can know where you are holding the handle. Sometimes the tendency might be to choke up as you get tired and this helps keep you honest whether doing traditional Gada exercises, leverage exercises for the forearms, or whatever creative way you may come up to use this tool.
The Gada open and ready to be loaded.
My first effort has 1.5lb standard plates that can be loaded on a mini bar and inserted in a 4 inch “hammer” case which is really an iron pipe with threaded caps. My second prototype has 1lb weights that a solid cores. Even if they are loose they don’t bang around as much as you might think but it’s simple matter to put something in the hammer to buffer the plates from moving around.
Next: Gada Part III How to train with the Gada Dalton Jackson Style.