Strong like Lincoln!

Abe Lincoln gained much of his formidable strength from chopping wood.  Photo from thenervousbreakdown.com

I've probably mentioned to you before that Abraham Lincoln was a wrestler of considerable reputation.  What I may not have mentioned to you was his incredible strength.  Despite his scrawny appearance, Honest Abe was a legend on the prarie and his feats of strength did not go unnoticed.  In addition to wrestling anyone willing to take him on, "Lincoln's father worked him like a dog when he was chopping wood, so he emerged from his teen years really strong. (http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/tnbnonfiction/2012/12/lincoln-the-tnb-interview-with-author-historian-stephen-mansfield/)"

Last Sunday I wound up chopping some wood in my girlfriend Bernadette's backyard with her father and one of her brothers.  I had only chopped wood on one occasion prior (over three years ago), and, for reasons I won't mention right here, I only had one contact in my eyes, so it goes without saying that my performance was pretty abysmal.  But with the stubborn perserverance that I have, I kept on hacking away.  I didn't get much better as the afternoon went on, but I really enjoyed the work and told her father that I wanted to do some more of it this fall.

As I was doing this I recalled a set of brothers from Akron Wrestling Club who became recognizably bigger and stronger this off-season; rumor has it that their father makes them chop wood often.  Chopping wood, as Bernadette's brother reiterated to me, is a fantastic workout for your core and upper body, especially your ever-important grip strength.  So have some fun chopping wood this fall, enjoy the fires, and get stronger for this coming wrestling season!

Chop wood,
Jeff

P.S.  Abe Lincoln supposedly got his strength from his mother - she was known as the toughest wrestler in Kentucky back in her day!

P.S.S.  Read about the time when Abe outwrestled the town bully!  http://rogerjnorton.com/Lincoln48.html