As Seen in The Best Gyms in America!

GROUP EXERCISE

CIRCULAR STRENGTH TRAINING

2009

CST GX: THE HEALTH-FIRST

FITNESS SESNSATION ATHOME OR AT THE CLUB!

WITH HALL OF FAME

CELEBRITY FLOW COACH
SCOTT SONNON

FOR FURTHER INFO:

RMAX INTERNATIONAL
TEL: 1.678.867.7629
WWW.RMAXINTERNATIONAL.COM

ANCIENT DISCIPLINE
MODERN SCIENCE
Circular Strength Training - Because Life is 3D!

EVOLVING BEYOND FLAT WORLD FITNESS...

Enduring an array of childhood disabilities that made conventional exercise impossible, Scott
Sonnon traveled the world learning the ancient disciplines of physical culture,
catapulting him to stardom as a hall of fame martial arts champion,
acclaimed yoga guru, pioneer of joint mobility, and industry leader in
the optimal human experience known only as flow.
Welcome to CSTGx!
I feel proud to call you one of my students and look forward to you
becoming one of the frontline commanders in my campaign of waging
flow upon the stagnant waters of robotic, two-dimensional movement.
With CSTGx, you engage more than merely your optimal physical expression.
You tap into the limitless energy within you, the melding of mind, body and
spirit, where all things happen effortlessly and perfectly. This psychophysiological event can only be described as flow-state - what is often called
the zone in athletics.
When you create flow opportunities for others, you instantly foster abundant
wellness into their lives, as well as your own. You cannot keep this to
yourself. Its impossible. Flow demands out-pouring. Flow finds a way. And I
cannot tell you how excited I am that youve become a way for others to find
flow through CSTGx!
Flow Thyself,

[2]

Carved from
the Ancient Martial
Arts of India, Persia and
Russia, Resurrected by
International Hall of
Fame Champion
Scott Sonnon

How Clubbell Fitness Evolved...

As the USA Police Team Coach of the most
brutal form of martial art created in the former
Soviet Union - SAMBO, I took our national team
to Lithuania for World Championships, and there
we met the team from Tajikistan. Their wrestlers
were incredibly well conditioned, and literally
throwing their opponents off the mats.
Knowing that there was more than meets
the eye, I investigated. They shared with me
their strength training methods transliterated as
zurhkane or zoorkhane - which means The
House of Power.
One of the methods of this millennia old
tradition originating in ancient Persia was club
swinging. This confirmed research I had been
conducting since the beginning of the 1990s
into alternative conditioning methods of Russia,
India and turn of the century North America.

But before I tell you more, lets

wind back the clock a few years to
when the need for the ultimate
combat fitness tool first appeared...
In 1993, I was in the fight of my life against
my Russian counter-part in the final match at the
Olympics for University athletes, the
Universiade, also known as World University
Games, held in Montreal, Quebec.
Unfortunately, my opponent was the better
athlete that day, and landed me in an arm-bar. I
refused to tap out, since submitting would have
cost the USA Sambo Team more team points. In
his grip, my arm shattered under the precision
force of his technique, as I squelched my pain
since making any noise while in a joint lock
means that you submit. [That rule was for
obvious reasons: with so many different
languages, they had to make a rule that would
allow the referees to know if a fighter was truly
submitting. Even a grunt equals forfeit.]
I managed to fight the final minutes hiding
my broken limb from the referees to avoid injury
disqualification; since if your opponent breaks
your limb during a legitimate technique, you
lose.
That silver medal was the most important
victory of my career, because it reminded me of
the value of connective tissue strength. I was no
stranger to these type of injuries, being born
with a disease called osteochondrosis, Ive had
many more broken bones, dislocations and
tears as a child than I care to remember.
But in this case, my concealment of the
injury led to avascular necrosis - or bone
death - a condition that locked my hand in
vice-like pain unable to hold anything. When
your sport involves being able to grip a man and

throw him to the ground, the inability to hold

anything is career ending.
I had no intention of quitting martial art. In
fact, I won Grand National Championships the
very next year, and the international
championships of the Americas on the following.
And to prove my methods, 12 years later, I
came out of retirement and won the International
Chinese Kickboxing Championships - called
Sanshou - at the age of 36, with only 6 weeks to
prepare for a fighting sport I had never
competed in.

How did I go from a geneticallyinferior, broken child to

international champion in two
different forms of martial arts?
Well, all of the conventional training
approaches failed.
Cardio, bodybuilding, powerlifting, and
cross-training each were created within the past
100 years. None of these conventional methods
are appropriate for combat sports - which are
the ultimate test of physical fitness. As the USA
National Coach, I sought out forging a
conditioning program that was specifically
designed to increase the safety, performance,
health and career longevity of myself and my
athletes.
With my academic background in physical
education, I infused modern sport science into
this montage of scattered ancient physical
disciplines to create a systematic proprietary
system to combative preparation.
And based upon what I had been exposed
to in the House of Power and what I had
studied from the origins of yogic science,
Clubbell training evolved. The Clubbell
resurrects the centuries proven tradition of
swinging weight in three dimensions rather than
lifting it in only one or two.
Starting in 1996, I was exposed to
kettlebells in the 6 years of training that I did
back and forth throughout Russia with the
national and Olympic coaches of various
combat sports such as Sambo, Boxing,
Kickboxing and Bayonet Fencing. Kettlebells
were a middle ground between conventional
training and Circular Strength Training. The
kettlebell displaces its center of mass, but not to
the extent of the Clubbell. They complement
each other beautifully, if you like multiple
modalities.
But for simplicity and economy, the
superiorly displaced center of mass of the
Clubbell creates an extreme leverage
challenge unrivaled by any other. This leverage
challenge produces enormous neurological

[3]

force without injury to connective tissue caused

by conventional weights. When you lift weights,
to increase force production you must add
weight. And the greater the actual weight lifted,
the more damaging compression to soft,
connective tissue. This is the reason that
conventional weightlifters are riddled with soft
tissue, joint and spinal injuries.
The displaced center of mass of the
Clubbell (and to a lesser extent, the kettlebell)
allows less actual weight while eliciting superior
force production; thus allowing greater heights
of strength conditioning, but without the
problematic injuries associated with
conventional weight-training.

I had done them all, and nothing

made me so strong, so quickly and
so injury free as the Clubbell!
The kettlebell has a conventional handle
which rests on the skeletal structure (pulls
against the fingers like a dumbbell or barbell),
unlike the Clubbell which distracts (pulls
through the grip like a rope swung around one's
head, so it must be held with muscular strength
alone). The more the actual weight rests on the
skeletal structure, and the greater that actual
weight is, the more that soft connective tissue
(such as around the joints and the spine itself)
accumulates trauma. Therefore, since the
unique club-like handle pulls through the grip,
only muscular contraction can hold the
Clubbell, and thus eliminates the injuries so
rampant in conventional weight-lifting.
Unlike conventional weight-lifting, where
you must increase the weight lifted, the
Clubbell is swung. Swinging weight increases
torque. Increasing torque increases force
production. Conventional weight lifting is
restricted to linear increases of force by adding
weight. Clubbell training increases force
exponentially: swinging them twice as fast
produces four times the
torque. Superior force
production means
superior strength
conditioning in a fraction of the
time and without the litany of
injuries associated with
conventional weight training.
Traction pulls apart the joints,
rather than compressing them,
which is why youre put in traction
in order to mend: it increases
connective tissue strength.

How Can Swinging Weight Increase

Joint Strength?
Finally, and most importantly, conventional
weight training can only be moved in one or two
dimensions. This limited range of motion
attempts to isolate particular muscles. Isolation,
however, is a myth long since debunked. The
body is composed of an interconnected web: a
double-bag system. The "inner bag" contains
bone and cartilage, and where it 'cling wraps'
the bone it's called "periosteum," and over the
joints, it's called "joint capsule." The "outer bag"
contains an electric jelly we refer to as "muscle"
and covering it we call it "fascia" (and other
names, but let's keep this simple). Where that
outer bag is tacked down to the inner bag, we
call those "muscle attachments" or "insertion
points." You see, our bones and joints 'float' in a
sea of continuous tension, and our bones act as
compressive struts pushing outwards while this
web pulls inward in a unique balance which Dr.
Steven Levin named Biotensegrity.

"Coach Sonnon, youve done a

wonderful job of applying
biotensegrity in a very practical way.
My focus has been as a basic scientist
as I did not want to limit biotensegrity
to the narrow field of what I know as
a clinician. I have always hoped that
someone like you would take the ball
and run with it, and with Circular
Strength Training System, youve
done that. Thank you!"
- Dr. Steven Levin, MD
www.biotensegrity.com

one or two dimensional movements in

conventional weight-lifting.

Three Planes of Movement

1.

2.

3.

Coronal plane: The coronal plane

divides the body into front and rear
sections.
Sagittal plane: The sagittal plane
divides the body into right and left
sections.
Axial, or transverse plane: The
transverse plane divides the body into
upper and lower sections.

Three Axes of Rotation

1.

2.

3.

Medial axis: The medial axis runs

horizontally from back to front (e.g.,
cartwheels and turntables).
Longitudinal axis: The longitudinal
axis extends vertically from head to
toe (e.g., twisting our torso as in a
pirouette).
Transverse axis: The transverse axis
runs horizontally across our body from
one side of the waist to the other (e.g.,
somersaults and flips).

Triplanar movements develop rotary and

angular/diagonal strength to assist the prime
movers. More important, prime movers can act
with rotary and angular/diagonal strength,
though most people fail to develop this capacity!

Developing multiplanar strength of the prime

movers increases stability, enhances injury
prevention, multiplies force production abilities,
and, most important, stimulates the
neuromuscular patterns required of athletes.
CSTGx, by its movement through the six
mechanical degrees of freedom, targets the
rotary and angular/diagonal strength to develop
these motor recruitment patterns so that we
become simultaneously strong and functional.
Without this, our performance suffers greatly
and likelihood of injury significantly increases.
The term six degrees of freedom refers to
motion in three-dimensional space, namely the
ability to move forward/backward, up/down, left/
right (translation: in three perpendicular axes),
combined with rotation about three
perpendicular axes (yaw, pitch, roll). Because
the motion within these three axes combines
with the rotation about the three axes,
movement gains infinite degrees of freedom.
There is no limit to the variations. The motion
indeed has six degrees of freedom.

Six Degrees of Freedom

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Swaying: Moving left and right; x-axis

translation
Heaving: Moving up and down; y-axis
translation
Surging: Moving forward and back; zaxis translation
Pitching: Tilting up and down; x-axis
rotation
Yawing: Turning left and right; y-axis
rotation
Rolling: Tilting side to side; z-axis

Clubbells: More than Tri-Planar

Movement = 6 Degrees of Freedom!
Soft tissue elasticity diminishes as we age
and is primarily responsible for most injuries for
athletes and the aging: which is why these
apparently disparate groups are the Clubbell's
largest advocates. Moving in three dimension
washing the joint capsules with nutrition and
lubrication, breaks up adhesions, smoothes off
boney profiles (abating osteoarthritis), and
distracts the bones (abating osteoporosis).
Conventional weight-lifting equipment cannot do
this. But the Clubbell, with its protective outer
coating and smooth profile, was specifically
designed for swinging around the body.

x-axis translation

y-axis translation

z-axis translation

x-axis rotation

y-axis rotation

z-axis rotation

Clubbell training is more than merely triplanar movement through the sagittal, coronal
and frontal planes. By moving the through the
biomechanical 6 Degrees of Freedom, Clubbells
strengthen the fascial chains across the web in
their full range of motion. This increases soft
tissue elasticity rather than traumatizing it like

[4]

CIRCULAR STRENGTH TRAINING

GROUP EXERCISE

CSTGX

Circular versus Linear Strength:

Most programs focus on improving fitness through exercises such
as squats, lunges, presses. These linear exercises execute in
only 1-2 planes. But in the real world, every physical activity
demands movement in 3 dimensions.
Circular Strength Training not only includes the linear, but
also develops the crucial real world rotary and angular/
diagonal strength to bolster the prime movers. Developing Scott
Sonnons signature 3D Fitness increases stability, enhances
injury prevention, multiplies force production and most
importantly, stimulates the neuromuscular patterns required for
fast, fluid, fitness forever.
The Clubbell was specifically researched and engineered to
target the rotary and angular/diagonal strength: the next
evolution in functional strength training!

What Makes Scott Sonnons Clubbell so Uniquely Effective?

Three-Dimensional: Conventional equipment can

This design allows you to never overtrain due to too great of a leap, but

only be lifted in one or two planes. The special

always challenge yourself and gain constant progress!

Synergistic: The special Clubbell movements combine to create

design of the Clubbell permits it to

tap into your maximum

what is called the complex training effect - the sum total training effect

movement potential as a three

you gain is greater than if you performed the individual components for

dimensional being in the real-

the same volume of repetitions. Less training time but greater cumulative

world, not just in the gym!

results!

Traction: The unique exercise

Shock Absorption: Unlike the overly simplistic movements of

selection combined with the profile

conventional equipment, Clubbells dynamic movements allow you to

of the Clubbell creates a tractional - or

develop the ability to absorb and retranslate force, which prevents injuries

pulling away - effect which stimulates long, lean

and develops fluid, powerful grace!

Selective Tension: Conventional equipment focuses on heavy

muscles as well as connective tissue and bone health!

Torque: Unlike conventional equipment, the Clubbell was designed

weight in one or two planes to develop overall bodily tension. CSTGx

to not only be lifted but swung. Where with conventional equipment you

takes your body through 3 dimensions, training your nervous system to a

must add weight to increase challenge, the faster you swing the Clubbell,

much more efficient frequency, which allows you to become

the exponentially greater the results you produce!

simultaneously greater in strength AND flow!

Micro-Loadable: The special design of the Clubbell handle allows

minor increases in resistance even if only millimeters from your prior class.

WHAT CAN CLUBBELL FITNESS DO?

BURN FAT

BUILD MUSCLE

PREVENT INJURY

GAIN FLOW

Faster than
anything else
due to the
entire body
being used
like a furnace
to melt fat!

Stronger than
anything else
since it takes
you through
the greatest
range of
motion!

Creates a
safety valve
for when
movements
deviate from
the expected,
as it happens!

Opens every
degree of
freedom to
reclaim your
innate
movement grace
and poise!

[5]

CLUBBELL ANATOMY
Muzzle

Clubbell Basic
Positions
Floor Park:
Muzzles on
the floor,
Clubbell
standing
upward.

Shoulder Park:
Necks in hand,
Barrels
resting
on soft
tissue of the
shoulders.

CLUBBELL GRIPS
Full Choke: grip nearest
cone on neck
Zero Choke: grip nearest
knob on neck
Left Grip: like a lefthanded baseball grip right
hand next to the knob
Right Grip: like a right
handed baseball grip left
hand next to the knob
Split Grip: hands spaced
apart on the neck
Alternating Left Grip:
overhand right hand next
to the knob
Alternating Right Grip:
overhand left hand next to
the knob
Hammer Grip: gripping like
holding a hammer with
thumb and index finger
next to knob
Split Finger Grip: knob
held between the fingers.

Guard Position: Standing with

two hands on one Clubbell,
muzzle
upward,
held next to
one
shoulder.
Flag Position:
Like Order
Position, but with
elbow locked
straight, arm parallel to the
ground.

Side Flag
Position: Like
Order, but with
arm held out to
the side,
Arm Stop: One Clubbell neck parallel with the
in hand with the barrel
torso.
cradled in the opposite
elbow.
Torch Position:
Order Position:
Standing in neutral position,
Standing in
elbow locked, shoulder
neutral
packed overhead, neck in
position,
hand, muzzle upward.
elbow at
side,
forearm
Back Position:
parallel to
Standing in
the ground
neutral
and
position,
perpendicular to
Clubbell over
the torso, neck in hand,
the shoulder
muzzle upward.
and behind the
back, neck in
Side Order Position: Like
Order, but with the forearm hand, muzzle downward,
elbow upward and tucked
held outward to the side,
to the ears.
parallel with the torso.

[6]

CLUBBELL DIRECTION

THE 7 KEY COMPONENTS OF CLUBBELL TRAINING

Vertical Up:
Clubbells
vertical with
barrels up

Vertical Down:
Clubbells vertical
with barrels down

Horizontal
Out:
Clubbells
horizontal with
barrels out

Horizontal In:
Clubbells
horizontal with
barrels in

Horizontal
Forward:
Clubbells
horizontal
with barrels
forward

Horizontal
Backward:
Clubbells
horizontal
with barrels
backward

1. Grip Confirmation
2. Arm Lock
3. Shoulder Pack
4. Crown to Coccyx Alignment
5. Core activation
6. Hip Recruitment
7. Leg Drive

[7]

CIRCULAR STRENGTH TRAINING GROUP EXERCISE

Intelligent Design Creates the Powerful Health-First Fitness Effect
The 3 Rings of the
Circular Strength
Training System

Ring III: Prasara BodyFlow Yoga

Release and rejuvenate the

Clubbell Fitness directly applies

muscular system utilizing

the Three Rings of Circular

Prasara Yoga. With the imposed

Strength Training into a

demands of Clubbell training as

systematic and progressive

with other forms the muscular

program designed to safely and

system needs to release the

effectively mobilize, strengthen,

byproducts of the act of

and rejuvenate the entire body.

training. Prasara Yoga

Each section of exercises have

systematically rejuvenates the

been careful selected to target

muscular system by unloading

all three of the CST Rings.

The goal of this section is to activate or

awaken the core of body (central hub)

Ring I: Intu-Flow Longevity

System

providing the foundation upon which

movement and strengthening can happen.

Mobilize and decompress joint structures

Unlike traditional types of resistance

utilizing the CST Intu-Flow program. This

training equipment, the Clubbells unique

section is the critical first step to allowing

shape and weight displacement impose

your joints to move smoothly through their

demands not only of strength but

fullest ranges of motion prior to placing a

coordination and balance. They offer the

load demand upon them.

user the ability to move through multiple

planes, strengthening in ranges of motion

Ring II: Clubbell Training

few other modalities can duplicate.

Activate and strengthen musco-skeletal

and replenishing the system

with the goal of recovering not just for the
next training session but for the next one
after that and the next one after that.

I.
Intu-Flow:
Mobilization and
Decompression
II.

Clubbells: Activation and

Strengthening

III. Prasara Body-Flow Yoga:

Release and Rejuvination

system utilizing CST Clubbell training.

Continuing Certification

Level II CST Certification:

For Further Information See:

Scott Sonnons trademarked Circular

Full Circular Strength Training Instructor

RMAX INTERNATIONAL

Strength Training System conducts

continuing educational development in the

Level III CST Certification:

complete curriculum.

Circular Strength Training Coach

Level I CST Certification:

CST Group Ex Instructor

Level IV CST Certification:

Circular Strength Training Head Coach

[8]

www.rmaxinternational.com
tel.: 1.678.867.7629