Steel Mace
Officially Steel Mace (Gada)
STRENGTH + MOBILITY tool descended from ancient PERSIAN + INDIAN MACE weapon (GADA) — a WEIGHTED SPHERE on a LONG HANDLE (~1 m). Modern steel maces range 5-35 lbs. Signature move: 360-DEGREE + 10-TO-2 SWINGS overhead + around body. Popularized by BJ 'GADA' KLAVER + JAKE SHANNON + Onnit Academy 2010s. Traditional Indian PEHLWANI wrestlers used HEAVY GADAS (30+ kg) — legendary strongman Great Gama swung a 100kg gada. Modern competitive Mace Sport events at Onnit + ISSA cert exams.
Quick facts
Category
Strength Sports
Type
Individual
Players
1–1
Duration
~20 min
Where played
both
Country of origin
🇮🇷 Iran
Estimated origin
Ancient Persian + Indian mace (gada) documented since Vedic era (~1500 BCE); used by Hindu deity Hanuman; standard training tool in Indian pehlwani kushti wrestling (heavy gadas 15-60 kg); modern steel mace popularized 2010s via Onnit Academy (Aubrey Marcus + Joe Rogan) + BJ 'Gada' Klaver + ISSA certification.
Olympic
No
Popularity
niche
How it works
Objective
Strengthen SHOULDERS, GRIP, and ROTATIONAL CORE via off-center weight swings around body.
Rules
Basic rules
GRIP MACE at end of handle (max leverage) with BOTH HANDS or SINGLE HAND
Signature end-of-handle grip.
SIGNATURE 360-SWING: mace arcs overhead + BEHIND SHOULDERS + returns to front — challenges shoulder mobility + posterior chain
Signature 360 overhead swing.
10-TO-2 SWING: mace pendulum motion in front — safer beginner variant
Signature 10-to-2 pendulum.
SQUAT + PRESS + ROW + LUNGE variations incorporate mace as OFF-CENTER LOAD
Signature functional-strength drills.
OSCILLATORY (Gada Swinging): heavy gada swings for high-rep + distance
Signature traditional gada swings.
SAFETY: mace CAN CAUSE serious shoulder + spinal injury if too heavy too fast — recommend BUILD UP GRADUALLY (start with 5-10 lb)
Standard safety guidance.
COMPETITIVE (informal at Onnit workshops): DISTANCE gada swing (traditional Indian metric — how far you can hurl), REPS at set weight, WEIGHTED 360 challenges
Signature informal competitive formats.
Scoring
Informal — reps at weight or distance-swing measurements at gada throws; no formal championship series.
Win condition · Personal-best records; workshop demonstrations.
Equipment
STEEL MACE: WEIGHTED SPHERE (~15-30 cm diameter) on LONG STEEL HANDLE (~1 m), 5-35 LBS (~2-16 kg)
Signature steel mace.
TRADITIONAL INDIAN GADA: WOODEN or STONE MACE, 10-30+ KG, heavy wooden handle
Signature traditional gada.
COMFORTABLE ATHLETIC APPAREL + GRIP TAPE
Standard training attire.
OUTDOOR OPEN SPACE recommended (360-swing requires clearance)
Standard training space.
Terminology
- Gada
- Sanskrit/Hindi for mace; traditional wooden/stone Indian weapon-training tool.
- Macebell
- Modern branded name for steel mace.
- 360 swing
- Signature swing — mace arcs overhead + behind shoulders.
- 10-to-2 swing
- Pendulum swing in front, safer variant.
- Pehlwan
- Traditional Indian wrestler using kushti + gada.
- Great Gama
- Legendary undefeated Indian wrestler (1878-1960) famous for gada strength.
Major competitions
Onnit Steel Mace Certification + Workshop competitions
annual (regional) · USA + global (workshop-based) · since 2015
Traditional Indian kushti + gada demonstrations at Bharat Kesari + regional dangals
annual (regional) · India · since 1900
Where it is played
Governing bodies
Onnit Academy (education + certification)
Founded 2010 · Austin, TX, USA
ISSA (International Sports Sciences Association) — mace certification
Founded 1988 · USA
Famous names & records
Famous athletes
- Great Gama (Ghulam Muhammad, IN 1878-1960, legendary pehlwan who swung 100kg gada)
- BJ 'Gada' Klaver (US, mace guru, Onnit master coach)
- Karim Elassal (EG, gada + mace training)
- Aubrey Marcus (US, Onnit founder)
- Joe Rogan (US, popularized via podcast)
Sources & provenance
- Wikipedia — Gada (mace)— Wikipedia
- Onnit Steel Mace Training— Onnit