Raw Mass with Calisthenics- Second Edition

A long time ago I wrote a post in which I spoke about how you can get big and strong using just your bodyweight. I still stand by that statement but my approach has entirely changed. In this post I am going to flesh out some of the fundamental considerations while trying to get big using bodyweight exercises only.

I am assuming here that the reader is familiar with basic bodyweight exercises and their progressions. If you are not, just see the posts marked bodyweight exercises first.

Basic Concepts

1. Progressive Overload must be maintained. Over time you have to increase the resistance of the exercise you are performing. In bodyweight work this is done by doing one of 4 things-
a. Changing the leverage
b. Putting more weight on one limb
c. Increasing the range of motion
d. Tightening up the form

Just go through the archives of this blog to find progressions for everything.

2. You must incorporate all the basic movements. Don't just do pull ups and dips. You have legs, use them. In addition the added leg size will increase the resistance for your upper body, enabling you to build a larger upper body in the long run.
The basic movements are-
1. Pushups of all sorts
2. Pull Ups of all sorts
3. Squats
4. Leg raises and sit up variations
5. Bridges and hip extensions
6. Inversions
7. Loaded carries of all sorts

3. You have to train in a variety of repetition ranges to get truly big. You have to utilize movements that let you to do very few repetitions to build raw strength. However, the majority of your training must be done in the 6-20/set range. A few higher repetition sets here and there will build the tendons as well. Using maximum effort isometric exercises like front levers, flags and L sits will develop absolute strength as well.

4. For the majority of your bodyweight work think like a sculptor. Build the beauty of the body by targeting your weakest areas. Have an idea of exactly how you want to look. Then use tons of volume to target those areas. Use variations that throw more work on the under developed parts. Don't underestimate single joint movements like sissy squats, ham glute curls, bodyweight tricep extensions and front lever pulls. They are still fairly compound  and will transfer well to other bodyweight work.

5. To build the muscles of the torso use bilateral exercises. To build the muscles of the limbs use unilateral exercises.

6. Do some crazy explosive work to help develop your maximum strength. Jumps, clapping push ups and pull ups must be performed. You have to do some throwing as well. All this will help keep your strength ahead of your training intensity, giving you space to grow.

I want explain this concept a little more here. Basically the biggest thing that stops people from continually getting big from bodyweight work is the fact that they get good at doing repetition work, because of which they are either training too close to their maximums all the time, or too far away from it. To counter this, increasing your maximum strength will ensure you have a good margin within which you can train productively.

Biggest Mistakes People make

The really important thing to remember while designing a training program for getting big with bodyweight work is to cover all your bases. This is the biggest reason people fail to get big with calisthenics. They will forget to train the lower body, or do heavy loaded carries or isometric holds or jumps and sprints and then wonder why they cant get bigger. Because the body is a unit, and you have to stress the whole body to get the stimulus for growth. You can only get so far just trying to pump up your arms with chin ups.

The second reason people fail to make progress is that they have not learned how to juice exercises for all their worth. They will do push ups in sloppy form and do a set of 30 and think its time to move to diamond push ups. In reality you have to squeeze every little size increase you can get from an exercise before going to harder variations. Learn to contract the glutes and abs to make the push up super tight. Hold your breath during the repetition and use power breathing to make it stricter. Screw you hands into the ground and maximally tense your triceps and shoulders while doing the pushup. Really enjoy the pause at the bottom and squeeze the chest to come up. You really have to learn how to make a movement literally perfect. Only then move to something more advanced.

The other mistakes are training too often, training too hard too early, moving to harder variations too soon, not keeping a training journal, not moving to harder variations ever and wanting to destroy the body every training session. But this is not really specific to bodyweight training. People in gyms everywhere make the same mistakes. Don't make them.

Also not eating enough. You have to eat to grow, specially around workouts. This is as true of bodyweight work as it is of powerlifting or bodybuilding. But be mindful of fat gain, as unlike powerlifting or bodybuilding, it will immediately hamper your progress with bodyweight work. Stay below 15% bodyfat and eat a lot of proteins and carbs around workouts. If you feel you are getting fat, just cut the calories for a few days or add conditioning work.  Keep it simple and don't get so fat in the first place that you need to do something dramatic or complicated. If you are over 15% bodyfat, deal with that first and gaining mass later. You will never go beyond rudimentary bodyweight movements being fat.

Program Checklist

1. Any productive mass gaining routine utilizes limited exercises and decent volume and intensity. Aim and program for a balanced physique.

2. Have decent mix of extremely difficult, quality repetition work, ultra high repetition work, heavy isometric and explosive training.

3. Stress the whole body with loaded carries and reap the anabolic benefits.

4. Build the torso muscles first and then the extremities.

5. Build your weaknesses.

6. Use intelligent repetition, set and frequency schemes. Don't exercise for no real reason and avoid junk exercises and sets.

7. Eat well but in moderation.

Sample Routines 

Any of these routines can be used with just minimal modification. You will have to see what exercises suit you and what does not, but don't mess around with the basic scheme.

Raw Beginner

Do this workout on three non consecutive days a week after a general warm up.

Chin Up Isometric holds- Hold the top position for as long as possible, After 2 mins do the same for the mid position.
Pushups-
2 sets of 20 wall pushups or high incline pushups as warm up
3 sets of 3-5 reps of a hard push up variation such as full push ups, diamond push ups, feet elevated pushups while the hands are on bricks to get a full range of motion, pushups while wearing a back pack with weight in it and push ups while wearing a backpack in front with weight in it, while the feet, hand and feet are elevated on stools or bricks so that the bag can drop low and a full repetition can be done.
2 sets of 6-30 repetitions of incline or kneeling push ups, depending upon training level. Start with a conservative number or reps (like 8) and add a rep each workout until you hit the end of the range. Then move to a harder variation and repeat.
Bodyweight Rows- 3 sets of 6-20 of high, low or very low rows.
Jack knife Pull Ups- 1 set of 6-15.
Assisted Squats or full Squats- 3 sets of 10-35
Reverse plank hold- 2 sets of 30-120s
Short Bridges- 1 set of 20-50 reps
Knee tucks, lying leg raises or hanging knee raises- 3 sets of 8-20
Jumps onto bench or box- 3 sets of 6
Throwing rock or shot for distance- 3 sets of 6 per arm
Sled Dragging, rock carrying, car pushing, rock dragging or walking lunges with a rock/log/pole held at the chest- 5 sets of 20-40m with 60s rest.

Follow this program until you can do 5 chin ups, 10 push ups, 3 sets of 30 full squats, 10 hanging knee raises and have mastered reverse planks. It should take about 8-12 weeks depending upon your starting point.

Basic Size Routine

In this routine we are trying to build the muscles of the torso. For this we will primarily use bilateral movements. A backpack and some kind of weight (like bricks) can be used to add weight to movements as well. A sled will be indispensable. Just buy an old car tire and fill it up with cement and tie a rope to it. If it becomes too light just tie another cement filled tire to the first. Alternatively you can push your car around. Just make sure someone is in the driver's seat. If nothing else is there find a big rock and lift and carry it.

You will train in the following pattern-
Workout A
Workout B
Off
repeat

When you are feeling beat up, just take an extra day off.

Workout A-

Dips with weight in back pack- 5 sets of 3-5 reps
or Push ups with back pack in the front and the feet and hands on stools, bricks or benches.

Chin Ups with weight in back pack- 5 sets of 2-3 reps

Dips- 30 reps in as few sets as possible
Chin ups- 30 reps in as few sets as possible
Push Ups- 50 reps in as few sets as possible
Bodyweight Rows- 50 reps in as few sets as possible

In any of these when you can complete all the required reps in 3 sets or less, simply add weight using the back pack. We want to get to the stage where you are using 10-15kgs in the bag for all your reps

Workout B

Box Jumps with back pack or weight held in hands- 3 sets of 6
Heavy sled dragging/ car pushing/ Hugging a rock and walking- 3 sets of 10m
Close Squats (with or without back pack)- 2 sets of 10-30
Standard Squats with back pack- 2 sets of 50
Squat jumps with weight in the hands- 3 sets of 6
Hopping with weight in the hands- 3 sets of 10m
Stool/ Head/ Full Bridges- 3 sets of 6-20
Hanging Leg/knee/frog raises- 3 sets of 6-20
Throwing 5-10kg rocks- 3 sets of 6 per arm
Sit ups- Total 100 reps in less than 3 sets

Follow this system for about 12 weeks until you can do 12-15 chin ups, 20-30 weighted pushups with 10kgs, 30 dips in 1 set and can do 30 close squats with 10kgs.

Primary Bulk Routine

This routine should be used for a long time (a year plus) and follows the traditional progressive approach to bodyweight exercises detailed in the earlier bodyweight posts on this blog.

You will have balanced training of the extremities and torso muscles.

You will follow the following workout pattern every week-

Workout A1
Workout B1
Off
Workout A2
Workout B2
Off
Off

Workout A1-
Weighted Dips- 5 sets of 3-5
Front Lever Holds- (tuck, flat, straddle, half or full)- 5 sets of 10-15 seconds
Chin Up Progression- 3 sets of 5-15 depending upon the variation
Handstand Push Up Progression- 3 sets of 5-20 depending upon variation
Dips- 2 sets of as many reps as possible. Use weight if you can do more than 30 after all the previous work.
Diamond Push Ups- 2 sets of as many reps as possible.

Workout B1-
Squat Jumps with weight- 3 sets of 6
Pistol Squats progression- 3 sets of 6-30 depending upon variation
Bridges Progression- Full or a unilateral variety- 3 sets of 6-20
Ham Glute Curls- Try for total 15 reps. Once you can do it in 2 sets, try for 25
Hanging Leg Raises Progression- 3 sets of 7-20
Roman Chair Sit Ups on parallel bars- 2 sets of as many reps as possible
Heavy Sled Dragging- 5 sets of 10-15m

Workout A2
Throwing Weights- 3 sets of 6 per arm
Weighted Pull ups- 5 sets of 3-5
Planche Holds- 5 sets of 10-15s
Push Up Progression- 3 sets of 6-20
Pull ups- total 50 reps
Bodyweight Rows- 3 sets of as many reps as possible.

Workout B2
Box jumps with weight- 3 sets of 6
Weighted Pistol Squats- 5 sets of 3-5
Sissy Squats- Total 30 reps
Ham glute curls- Total 15-25
Bridges Progression- 3 sets of 7-20
Hanging Leg Raises- 2 sets or as many reps as possible
Roman Chair Sit ups with weight behind the head- 3 sets of 10
Hugging Rock and walkinging-  sets of 10-15m

When you feel you have had enough of this routine, you can start playing around with other advanced movements like sternum chin ups, maltese cross push ups, full ROM handstand push ups, weighted one arm bodyweight rows, pistol squat jumps, one leg wall squats, front lever pulls, back lever pull ups, dragon flag, human flags and planche push ups.

You can also slowly start dropping all the weighted bilateral work and move towards more unilateral movements. You can train both limbs together with upper body gymnastic holds and sled pushing.

I hope this gives you some ideas on how to organize a bodyweight routine for size. I would like to close with the point that this is all for maximum bulk and mass, not bodyweight exercise for the sake of getting good at bodyweight work itself. For that you are better off following the progressions more closely.

Creating Training Programs Part IV

In this post I will cover adjusting training for females, older athletes and injured lifters. I will cover structural and functional adaptations. I will also talk about the basic principles of strength training athletes for other sports as a part of their GPP. Finally I will also talk about specific problems that are faced by the intermediate-advanced level lifter.

Adjusting Training For Females-

In its essence strength training for men and women is similar, in the sense you must use fundamental compound movements to get strong and progressively add weight over time. It should go without saying that all the usual principles we have discussed in the first post in this series applies for women as well. However there are 5 main things you must look at when training a female vis a vis a male:

1. Women have a greater proportion of slow twitch muscle fibers than men of comparable training standard. Due to this, women will be able to do more repetitions with weights in any percentage of their max. For example if a man can do 3 reps with 90% a woman of comparable training can probably do 5 or even 6 or 7 reps with her 90%.

This means that woman can also tolerate a higher total volume at any given percentage than men can. But on the flipside, women seem to hit their max rather suddenly as they may look fine and strong with say 100kgs but may be completely unable to hit 102kgs. So it is important to be Conservative in estimating maxes for women as well as the increments that have to be made to the lifts. It would be useful to invest in half and quarter kg plates so that smaller increments can be made.

Also it is important to have a decent amount of explosive movements in a female's training as it helps improve the activation of the fast twitch muscle fibers.

2. Women have a lesser number of muscle fibers then men in the same muscle groups. For example if a man has 40,000 muscle fibers in his bicep a woman of comparable training may have 20,000. This leads to an important understanding- it is harder for women to get stronger by neural adaptations, as the scope of increased recruitment is limited.

It does not mean that it does not happen, on the contrary it happens even at the most elite levels. But in order for this to happen a woman requires a greater amount of practice with the technique than a man would, as the adaptation is slower. Conversely it also means that extremely heavy loads will lead to quicker stagnation (over 95%). So a lot of heavy practice must be done, but you must generally stay away from 95% plus if you can help it. This is true for men too but the hole of CNS fatigue digs deeper and faster in women.

3. Due to hormonal reasons women in general have lesser muscle than men and have a harder time gaining muscle. This hormonal environment also puts them at greater risk for weakening of the joint structures and of the bones.

4. Women have poor leverages and lesser natural strength in the upper body than men. The difference in squatting and leg based movements in not as much. Back strength depends upon the individual.

5. Menstrual cycles have to be accounted for in training. A woman will be strongest during and immediately after ovulation. Her strength will drop during the PMS phase. Rather than forcing hard training at this stage, it is better to program a drop in intensity for a week or so every four weeks. This is a practice that is useful even for men, but with woman can be a lifesaver. A lot of general activity should be undertaken during this phase and you can just do your usual workouts with lesser weight and reps per set. This will slowly develop tolerance in the body to working during menstruation and over time the difference in strength will become minimal. Also do not forget to take advantage of the post ovulation strength spike, by programming your hardest training weeks around ovulation. Work with the flow of the body not against it.

The primary take away points are-
- Women can do a lot more volume at higher percentages then men can.
- Women need to make smaller increments in weights and generally be wary while moving up. Also avoid moving past 95% or so if you can help it. A good rule of thumb is to always use weights that can be tripled. Work from 3-6RM numbers in regular training.
- Women need to do a lot more volume and hypertrophy work as muscle size is the biggest weak link.
-. Women can and should perform more practice work with decently heavy weight to maximize strength.
- Women need more explosive training to maintain fast twitch mass.
- Women need to do a lot more upper body work then men.
- Women tend to respond better to lesser sets and more reps in their hypertrophy work and a generally greater variety of exercises then men, due to their physiology and tendency to burnout in any one movement if over done. In terms of assistance work think like a bodybuilder.
- The hardest weeks should be around ovulation and the easiest around menstruation.

As a side note of advice, while I am not sure of the greatness of the westside template for people at large, I know that it works incredibly well with female athletes, more than it has for my male athletes. The only other program that has given comparable returns to my female trainees has been the 5-3-1 system, which is also awesome. I make the women on 5-3-1 do 4-5 singles with their training max (Joker sets) after their PR sets every workout though. Please note that I never cross the training max.

Adjusting Training For Older Athletes-

The basic training is the same for younger and older lifters. A few things to keep in mind are-

1. Older lifter have a lowered testosterone and growth hormone production. Therefor they need a higher volume with decent weights to spike growth. Generally more lactic acid work will help and classic programs like the 20rep Squat should be used to stimulate the endocrine system. In general older trainees need to do more hypertrophy work.

Special emphasis should be given to diet and supplementation. Vit E, Fish Oil and Gokshura should be used liberally. It is also advisable to eat smaller meals by the same token as the metabolism is not as high, and smaller meals will spike growth hormone levels over time. However make sure that an adequate number of calories are being consumed and the diet has plenty of mineral content.

2. Bone and joint health must be maintained. Supramaximal lifts like heavy partials should be done to build the skeleton and ultra high repetition light movements like band tricep pressdowns and lat pulldowns must be done to build the tendons and keep the joints supple. I generally like to work 1 movement every day for 2 sets of 50 reps after the main workout as a way to both cool down and help the joints.

3. Build mobility, flexibility and tissue quality. Very simply ease of movement and pain management is the key. Make the effort to add a lot of stretching movements and take the effort to foam roll thoroughly every single day. If possible get a weekly full body massage and do other things to relax the muscles like steam baths and salt baths. Go swimming to open up the joints, walk outside and move on the ground to develop mobility. A lot of outdoor groundwork drills must be present. Taking up basic yoga like surya namaskar etc is not a bad idea. Take the joints through a full range of motion.

4. Simplify the heavy lifting but keep it intact and progressive. Gaining strength and staying strong is the most important thing for an older lifter. However adaptation is a little slower so you may want to use a sensible frequency. I have also found that basic old fashioned liner periodization over 8-10 week cycles and double progression training works best for older lifters.

5. Emphasize exercises that promote stability in the joints and prevent burnout. Try to make more and more of your assistance work based on dumbbells and bodyweight exercises.

6. Building a base of cardiovascular fitness is important. I suggest slow cardio once a week, intervals once a week and serious HIIT once a week, combined with daily walks outside.

7. Avoid impact work. Try to avoid hard landings and joint stress if you can help it. For example sled work can replace sprinting, box jumps can replace regular jumps, cycling can replace jogging etc.

8. Work extra hard on the hamstrings and mid section as the knees and back are the main problem areas as you get older.

9. Do not let the trainee get fat. Just do not. It is too difficult to lose fat when you are older and very simply the real solution is to not get fat in the first place. If your trainee is anything over 18% bodyfat, get him down to 15% as soon as you can. For women 23% is the number.

Injured Lifters

1. The first thing you must do is identify if you are hurt or just in pain. Every serious trainee will experience pain, even debilitating pain in their training. This is no reason to stop training. You have to figure out what you can do for that area with minimal pain, and do it. Figure out what the problem is and fix it. When in doubt go to a doctor and find out if you are actually injured.

2. Do not stop training the rest of the body. Figure out the compound movements you can do for the rest of the body and focus more there. Vigorous exercise will accelerate healing as long as it does not compound the injury. For example if you have injured your shoulder, you can do hyper extensions, hip belt squats, leg press, ham glute raises, 1 leg squats, decline sit ups, one arm push ups, one arm military presses, sled dragging with belt etc etc. Be imaginative.

In case of a limb injury do not discount unilateral work. It will make sure you get back quicker when the injury is healed. Think of this as an opportunity to specialize elsewhere. In case of torso injuries, like spinal injuries, cable work, isometrics and resistance bands will enable you to continue training most of the major muscle groups.

3. Focus on restoring mobility to the injured area. Go to a physio if you don't know how to. Generally pick a compound movement and see how much ROM you can handle. Then do ridiculously high rep work with light weights, gradually increasing the ROM every 20 reps or so.

For example in a shoulder injury let us say you cant get your arms over head. Do a one arm arnold press with 10 pounds and just get the weight till your forehead. Do this for 20 reps. Then slowly try to go one inch higher for 20 more reps. Maybe another inch and call it a day. Then next workout start with pressing the dumbbell one inch above your forehead. Do these kind of light drills for the injured area every 3-4 days. This of course assumes that surgical intervention is not required. If it is, just get it done and go to a physio for a while before doing any of this.

4. Build the supportive structures around the injured area. Do tons of short ROM single joint exercises to build all the muscles around the joint. Focus on balanced muscular development and do extra work for the smaller stabilizer muscles. This will also build the tendons. Do movements that do not restrict the joint path. Therefore dumbells and D handle cable work is awesome for this.

For example, if the shoulder is injured, do lateral raises, front raises, bicep curls, tennis backhand cable extensions, french presses, elbow out rows, elbow in rows, one arm lat pulldowns, quarter military presses with dumbells, external and internal rotation with cables etc

5. Once you are confident of getting back into your primary movements start light and progress slow. Build volume first then intensity. Try to use as many closed chain kinetic movements as possible for the first couple of months and maintain the supportive work for the stabilizer muscles and small stuff.

For example in the case of a shoulder injury, let us say you have started military pressing and bench pressing once a week each. You could do 3 sets of 5 with 50% of your old max in each, followed by pushups and rotator cuff work, rows and pull downs. Every workout increase the reps by 2 until you are doing 3 sets of 13 with 50%. Then add 5 pounds each workout and reduce reps whenever it gets too hard until you end up doing something like 3 reps with your old max. This first linear cycle will be long, longer than you are accustomed to, 20-24 weeks is how I plan it. After that you can resume your normal training.

6. Eat a lot, make sure you are getting plenty of minerals and build a base of cardiovascular fitness. A good cardiovascular system will greatly accelerate healing.

Functional And Structural Adaptation-

Strength training of any kind leads to adaptations in the body in order to make the body stronger. These adaptations are of two types- functional and structural.

Structural changes are changes in the actual structures of the body. This includes muscular hypertrophy (growth in muscle size), thickening of tendons and ligaments, increase in the bursa capacity in the joints, increase in the ATP capacity of the mitochondria, hypertrophy of the heart, vascularization, increase in lung capacity, vascular hypertrophy, increase in bone density, changes in body fat levels and changes in blood content.

Functional changes are adaptations that happen in the nervous system. This includes increase in muscle fiber recruitment, motor unit firing rate, inter-muscular coordination, intra-muscular coordination, development of sport skills, development of motor skills and relaxation in the inhibitory and protective mechanisms of the body.

Functional changes are the primary reason for increase in strength in the first couple of years of training. They are the primary results of dynamic effort, explosive and maximal effort training.

Structural changes are primarily the result of repetition effort training. They are also caused to a lesser degree by maximal effort training.

Training At the Intermediate Stage

An intermediate trainee is a person who has basically reached the point of minimal returns with traditional strength training. They can no longer add weight regularly or add repetitions. This is because the greater share of functional adaptations that can happen with the current body of the trainee have already happened.

This does not mean the more gains at the same muscle size and bodyweight cannot happen, but it will become increasingly harder and harder to get stronger with the same body structure. Thus an intermediate trainee needs to focus on simply causing structural adaptation. The priority list in my opinion is tendons, ligaments, joints, bones and muscles. But this really depends upon your weaknesses and previous training.

Normally it is said if strength is built, shape and size will follow. Well, now we have reached the stage where shape and size needs to be built, for more strength to come. The good news is, if you have trained right up until this point building shape and size will be much easier than it would have been if you started with it.

An intermediate trainee needs to sit down for the long haul and wait for the adaptation to come, not force it. The structure must be built first and only once the structure has been built will great amounts of functional adaptations happen to make you significantly stronger. A combination of repetition training and maximal training will build the body up for greater strength. The basic checklist for a intermediate trainee is-

1. Focus more on repetition effort training. Get in more volume for all your body parts and build the base of muscle and tendon strength.

2. Consistently perform Maximal effort work. Do not force PRs, wait for the repetition effort work to do its thing, and then the PRs will come rolling.

3. Use big basic compound movements to build size and strength. Just tailor them to focus more on working the muscle, rather than moving weight. For example start squatting deeper, start doing more RDLs, bench with a close grip and with a lesser arch, start pausing in the bottom of movements etc.
Understand why you are doing an exercise- to move weight or to build muscle? This way you will know exactly how to do it.

4. Eat to win. You are trying to gain muscle.

5. Work on your weaknesses. Don't be completely anti isolation movements. They can help force work onto a weak muscle group so that they work harder during main exercises.

6. Set and target a variety of rep records in a variety of exercises. Go for 5-10 RM and keep breaking them. Objectify your muscle building goals into repetition records. For example if you want big quads and you want to weigh 200 pounds eventually, a good eventual goal could be squatting 405 pounds for one set of 20 reps. Set balanced  goals, for example:
-Squat 405pounds for 20 reps
-Bench Press 250 pounds for 20 reps
-T Bar Rows 185 pounds for 20 reps
-Military Press 165 pounds for 20 reps
-Chin Ups with 25 pounds for 20 reps
-40 50m hill sprints in under 30mins
-45 degree decline sit ups with 45 pounds held behind the head for 20 reps

7. Make recovery a number one priority. Sleep, stretch, foam roll and optimize your frequency.

8. Learn to get more out of less.

9. Start light and progress slow. Take your time to build muscle and might. Think power building not muscle building.

Here is an example of a good training system for intermediate trainees that I frequently use-

Train 3 times a week. It is a 4 workout cycle. You will repeat the cycle 3 times in four weeks.

Workout A1
Work up to a Max triple in the back Squat (Keep breaking PRs)
Bench Press 5X5 (2 warm up sets and 3 work sets, add weight whenever you can do all three sets for 5 reps)
Chins and Dips- total 50 reps each. If you can do it in less than 4 sets each, add weight.
Push ups- 2-3 sets
Dumbbell Curls- 3 sets
Kroc Rows
Squats- 5 sets of 10 with 60-70%
Sit ups

Workout B1
Work up to Max Triple in the Military Press
Deadlift 5X5
Good Mornings- 3 sets of 6
Reverse hypers 2 sets
Dumbbell Side Bends- 2 sets
Hanging Leg Raises- 2 sets
Bridges- 2 sets
Military Press- 5 sets of 10 with 60-70%
Lat Pull Downs- 5 sets of 12

Workout A2
Work up to Max Triple in the bench Press
Squat 5X5
Leg Press- 3 sets of 15
Ab rollouts- 5 sets
ham glute curls- 3 sets
Dumbell/barbell bench Press- 5 Sets of 10
T Bar Rows- 5 sets of 12

Workout B2
Work up to Max Triple in the Deadlift
Military Press- 5X5
Dumbell Press- 3 sets
Lateral Raises- 3 sets
Tricep Extensions- 3 sets
Chin Ups- 5 sets
Lat Pull Downs- 2 sets
Good Mornings- 5 Sets of 10
Leg Raises- 3 sets

Strength Training Athletes as a Part of their General Physical Preparation (GPP)

The most important thing that you must remember while training athletes is that for them strength training is a part of their general preparation and therefore secondary to actual sports practice. Now in certain stages strength training may become more important but in general athletes cannot devote a very great part of their time and energy to strength training.

The purpose of strength training for athletes is three fold-

1. To increase their maximum strength to a level that strength is no longer the limiting factor in athletic performance. Both in my experience and in training literature when the athlete's maximum force production is 4 times that of the amount expected during athletic performance, strength is no longer the factor that limits performance.

For example an elite shot putter generates somewhere around 700-800 newtons of force while throwing, That means the athlete has to be capable of producing around 3200 newtons of force in the various movements related to the shot put in a maximum attempt for one repetition. This works out to roughly a 500 pound bench press and a 600 pound squat, which is pretty much the strength level of elite shot putters.

Now there may or may not be benefits to getting stronger than this depending upon the weight of the implement used, the carryover that the athlete experiences from strength training etc. This is why shot putters typically do very well while increasing their strength, since the implement is heavy and shot putters are generally bigger and taller. In contrast the discus throw does not respond nearly as well to strength training, as both the implement is lighter and the athletes smaller. But the basic point remains that you have to increase your strength such that  the required force is 25% or below of your max.

Now keep in mind these have to be in exercises that have a high carryover to the sport. And these may or may not be the classic barbell lifts, though more often than not they are. In any case it is better to start a beginner with a classic squat, bench, deadlift, front squat, military press, power clean and chin up program.  Then over time you can figure out what exercises are working and what are not.

Here are a list of exercises I find work very well for the sports I am involved in coaching people in-

- Sprinting- Squat, RDL, Reverse Hypers, Chin Ups, Heavy Wheel Barrow Walks, Sled Dragging, Pistol Squats, Barbell Lunges, Chin Ups, Push ups, Hanging Leg raises and Dumbell Overhead press.

- Kettlebell Lifters- Deadlift from 8 inches off the ground, Full Squat, barbell Military Press, Kroc Rows, Chin Ups, farmer's walks, one arm carrys, waiter walks, turkish get ups, ab rollouts.

- Jumpers- Back Squat, hip belt squat, front squat, good mornings, kettlebell swings, weighted jumps of various sorts with a kettlebell held in the hands, hopping drills with a weighted vest, jump squats with a weighted vest on, power cleans, hanging leg raises, decline sit ups, chin ups and dips.

- Throwers- Back Squat, Bench Press, Incline Bench Press, military Press, Chin Ups, Dumbell Rows, T Bar Rows, Front Squat, Side Bends, Turkish Get Ups, Ab Rollouts.

- Cricketers (batters and bowlers)- back Squat, Bench Press, Military Press, Deadlift, power clean, turkish get up, pallof press, chin ups, t bar rows, weighted jumps, wheel barrow walking.

- Football players (Soccer)- Front Squat, Deadlift, Power Clean, Pistol Squats, Ab Rollouts, hanging leg raises, Bench press, T bar rows, reverse and forward sled dragging.

Another thing you want to ensure is that the gains in strength are coming from primarily structural changes. This is very simply because functional gains in strength training may or may not transfer well to the sport, but generally structural changes caused using relevant movements carry over really Well. Ultimately as an athlete advances his gains will become more and more specific to the strength training exercise. Which is why you must focus on increasing both the maximal and repetition strength of athletes. I think 3-6RMs work well for athletes, plus a lot of repetition and dynamic effort work.

Secondly, perform movements in a fashion to maximize sport performance, not the weight used in the movement itself. Remember there are no points for the actual bench press you have if your actual strength for the shot put is lacking. Therefore arching your way to a bigger bench or using more leg drive is sub optimal for a shot putter.

Thirdly, you have to program differently for athletes. Ultimately if you have the time and the ability to train in season, (like with high school athletes) use undulating or linear models. Keep it basic and try to keep the frequency low. Remember athletes have a great workload and therefore recovery must be optimized. If you don't have more than 16 weeks I think conjugate training is the best way to go about things. It will cause sizable increases in strength and will maintain other qualities.

2. To prevent Injuries. All athletes endure a lot of stress and shock to the joints. As a result tendon and ligament injuries, muscle tears are all very common. This is another reason to build strong and thick ligaments and tendons as well as build quality muscle.

In addition to this it is important to maintain muscle balance in the athlete. Most athletes will have certain movements that they will repeat over and over again. Over time these will cause muscular imbalances and tightness in certain muscles. It is important to counteract this with mobility work and foam rolling as well as developing the antagonists and the smaller structures supporting the working joints.

3. To achieve the correct body type the athlete needs for his/her frame and sport by adding muscle where required.

For example a 6 foot tall discus thrower should probably weigh around 80-90kgs and have a hugely muscled torso. A 6 foot tall shot putter should weigh around 100-120kgs with a lot of shoulder and torso size, and huge legs. A 6 foot powerlifter should be around 120-130kgs and needs to be developed pretty much everywhere. Your training needs to reflect this.

Here is a sample routine I use with beginner sprinters, mostly 16-18 years old with 2-3 months of training experience-

3 workouts a week. I typically run this routine for 6-9 months depending upon how the sprinter responds. Don't switch the routine if the athlete is still responding.

Workout 1
Deadlift-
5 reps with 75%
4 reps with 80%
3 reps with 85%
2 reps with 90%
1 rep with 95%
I add 2 kgs to each set every week. This goes on until this can be done really. When the trainee is unable to complete any of the sets, we estimate the new max and start over the next week. A trainee typically adds 10-15 kgs every cycle.
Squat-
2 sets of 6 with 60%
3 sets of 6 with 75%
Again I add 2 kgs every week. When the trainee is unable to complete the sets with a certain weight, we stay at that weight until he or she can.
Reverse hypers- 3 sets of 15
Barbell Lunges- 3 sets of 8
Hanging Leg Raises- 3 sets
Ab rollouts 1 set
Chin Ups- Laadders
Push Ups- Ladders

Workout 2 (Done Outdoors) 
Heavy Wheelbarrow walk- 5 sets of 10m add weight whenever possible
Forward Sled Draggng- 3 sets of 50m
Reverse Sled Dragging- 3 sets of 50m
Sideways Dragging- 2 sets of 30m each side
Dragging Forward with rope held between and through the legs- 3 sets of 50m
Jumps Holding a kettlebell- 3 sets of 6
Squat Jumps with a Kettlebell- 3 sets of 6
backwards Throw with a kettlebell- 3 sets of 6
Broad Jump With Kettlebell- 3 sets of 6
Hopping on both feet with kettlebell- 3 sets of 10m
KB Swings- 3 sets of 12
Turkish Get ups- 3 sets of 6 per side

Workout 3
Squat-
5 reps with 75%
4 reps with 80%
3 reps with 85%
2 reps with 90%
1 rep with 95%
Deadlift
2 sets of 6 with 60%
3 sets of 6 with 75%
Again I add 2 kgs every week. When the trainee is unable to complete the sets with a certain weight, we stay at that weight until he or she can.
Weighted Hypers- 3sets
Pistol Squats- 3 sets
Hanging Leg Raises- 3 sets
Ab Rollouts- 1 set
Weighted Push ups- 3 sets of 10
Weighted Chin Ups- 3 sets of 10

Expectations of Strength

The last couple of days I have been doing the blog over, as I plan to start increasing the frequency of posts here. While doing so I ended up reading a few of my old posts. I came across my very first post that I put up right after the accident.

http://extendingmyspine.blogspot.in/2012/12/this-blog-has-been-created-to-record-my.html

In it I mention that I thought that before the injury, I was "pretty strong". And then I went on to note my numbers-

"I could squat 330lbs, deadlift 400lbs and bench 250lbs, all at a bodyweight of 160lbs."

Today looking back on this I realize just how far I have come. I don't think any numbers I will ever be at will be strong enough. I am today stronger than I ever dreamed of back then, and back then I would have been happy to match my old strength again. This is where I think the accident was a boon in disguise, because it taught me to open my eyes and understand just what the human system is capable of.

I now realize strength is not as simple as an X amount of weight you can lift or your 100m time. Strength is the ability to believe and know that there is something more than what you can currently do, in every thing. It is the desire for constant and never ending self improvement. Read more books, train more, meet more people, learn new things, there is no end to what can be done to improve ourselves. The real point here is not what can be achieved or what you imagine could be possible.

The real lesson I have learnt from all this is that you have to enjoy the process of improvement. You are not doing it for the end result, but rather to do every thing that you can to make yourself better and to gain wisdom about yourself and to cherish that understanding. If you keep worrying about the outcome, you may just never get there. But as every serious lifter and athlete knows, if you focus on the little goals and enjoy the journey, you may just land up somewhere you never thought possible.

If you are interested you can see what I can currently do in the stats page. And here is what I think would be "pretty strong" at this stage. These are all 3 year goals for me now. I am sure it will change if I ever get there-

Deadlift- 230kgs for 20 reps
Squat- 230kgs for 20 reps
Bench Press- 140kgs for 20 reps
Military Press- 140kgs for 1 rep
One arm Chin up- 5 reps per arm
Vertical Jump- 30 inches
100m- 10.6s
4min mile

A simple Strength program for a full time athlete

Recently one of my friends, who is a internationally ranked kettlebell lifter asked me for a strength training program to increase his deadlift and squat. He is a CMS and wants to excel at the long cycle. He felt that he needs to get stronger to increase his numbers, instead of just performing repetitions with various kettlebells. This program is very efficient on overall effort as he trains kettlebell lifting 3 times per week. Also most of the assistance work is targeted towards the smaller muscles of the torso and core and a lot of lat work, as I feel this is his primary weakness.

He also wants a decent bench as he wants to compete at some point in the coming year. We decided to train and compete using a shoulder and tricep dominant technique as the pec size could negatively effect his kettlebell lifting. The training for bench also has to be minimal as you can see.

The overall routine, especially the primary strength work is quite suitable for any intermediate to advanced athlete who needs to spend considerable time practicing his sport, but could do with getting stronger.

The variations of the lifts used and the assistance work given here are of course specific to his needs, and will have to be adapted according your strengths and weaknesses. Just avoid the tendency to keep adding sets for no reason as that fatigue can quickly spiral out of control along with sport practice.

The system is heavily based around 5-3-1 by Jim Wendler, though it is a complete bastardization of it as well.

Here is what I wrote for him-

This is a simple template that will increase you max squat, deadlift and bench press in just a few months.

For this system you have to judge what is the absolute best weight you can do for each of these. Then take 90% of that and use it as your training maximum. All percentages are based on your training maximum. (for example if your best deadlift is 160kgs your training max will be 144kgs.)

You will train 2 times per week.

Day 1-
Rest 120s between sets
Primary Strength Work
Deadlifting- Deficit Deadlift (stand on a 20kg plate)
50%x5, 60%X5, 75%x1, 85%x1, 95%X1, 100%X 2 sets of 1
Squatting- Ordinary Full Squat
50%x5, 60%x5, 65%x5, 75%x5, 85%x Personal record- In this set you will try to do as many reps as possible. Every time you do 85% for maximum reps, you will try to break your previous record. (Each percentage will be repeated once in 4 weeks)
Reduce Rest to 90 seconds
Close Grip Bench Press with full arch- 5 sets of 7 with 70%
Assistance Work
Reduce Rest to 45seconds- Switch Between Exercises Whenever possible to save time
Dumbbell Military Press (Shoulders)- 3 sets of 8-12 repetitions
Pull Ups (Lats)- Try to total 30 reps in 5mins.
One Arm Lat Pull Downs on Cable Machine (Lats and scapula)- 2 sets of 12-15 per arm
Face pulls on cable machine (Rhombozoid)- 2 sets of 15
Pallof Press on Cable machine (Internal Obliques)- 2 sets of 12 per side
Dumbell Side Bends (External Obliques)- 2 sets of 10 per side
hanging Leg raises (hip flexors and abs)- 2 sets of 10-15
Ab wheel (Abs)- 2 sets of 8-12
Barbell Good Mornings (Hamstrings and lower back)- 3 sets of 6 (use heavy weight)
Cable External Rotations (Rotator cuff)- 2 sets of 20 per arm.

Day 2
Primary Strength Work
Squatting- Paused Squat (2-3 seconds in the bottom)
50%x5, 60%x5, 75% x1, 85%x1, 95%x1, 100% x2sets of 1
Deadlifting- Conventional Deadlift
50%x5, 60%x5, 65%x5, 75%x5, 85%x Personal record
Close Grip Bench Press- 5X6 with 75%
Assistance Work
Dips- 30 total reps in 5 mins. If you can do this easily add weight
Kroc Rows- 1 set to failure DB rows per arm with heavy weight. Try 10-25reps
V handle seated cable rows- 5 sets of 10
Weighted Sit ups- 3 sets of 6-10
Weighted Hypers- 3 sets of 8-12

In week 2 and 3 the format of the workouts will as such remain the same. All assistance work will remain the same. The primary strength work will progress as follows-

Week 2 Day 1
Deadlift- Snatch Grip off slight elevation (2-4 inches)
50%x5, 60%x5, 75%x1, 85%x1, 95%x1, 100%x 3 sets of 1
Squat- Full Squat-
50%x5, 60%x5, 70%x3, 80%x3, 90%x Personal record
Close Grip Bench Press with full arch- 5 sets of 5 with 80%

Week 2 Day 2
Squatting- Paused Squat (2-3 seconds in the bottom)
50%x5, 60%x5, 75% x1, 85%x1, 95%x1, 100% x3sets of 1
Deadlifting- Conventional Deadlift
50%x5, 60%x5, 70%x3, 80%x3, 90%x Personal record
Close Grip Bench Press- 5X4 with 85%

Week 3 Day 1
Deadlift- Sumo Deadlift
50%x5, 60%x5, 75%x1, 85%x1, 95%x1, 100%x 5 sets of 1
Squat- Full Squat-
50%x5, 60%x5, 75%x5, 85%x3, 95%x Personal record
Close Grip Bench Press with full arch- 5 sets of 3 with 90%

Week 3 Day 2
Squatting- Barefoot Squat (2-3 seconds in the bottom)
50%x5, 60%x5, 75% x1, 85%x1, 95%x1, 100% x5sets of 1
Deadlifting- Conventional Deadlift
50%x5, 60%x5, 75%x5, 85%x3, 95%x Personal record
Close Grip Bench Press- 5X2 with 95%

Week 4 is off strength training.

In the next week you will repeat the whole 3 week cycle from week 1, except you will increase your training maximum for the squat by 4kgs, the deadlift by 5kgs and the bench press by 3kgs.

When you can no longer perform 5 reps with 85% in the personal record set in week 1 in either the squat or deadlift, the next workout instead of performing single repetitions with your training max in the same lift, test your maximum. Take 90% of this new maximum as your new training max. Treat the deadlift and squat cycle as seperate, just because you are stalling on one does not mean you need to adjust both. Just retest your max in the stalled lift and resume the cycle from where you left off using the new training max.

Incase it becomes impossibly hard to perform the bench press workouts as described, you may test your maximum before the deadlift and squat and take 90% of that number as your new training max and resume the normal cycle after your deadlifts and squat in the same workout. When in doubt or you do not want to test any one lift, just reduce the training max by 3-5kgs and continue the cycle.

As such if you did not over estimate your maxes when you first started the program, you should not have any of these problems for atleast 9-10 months. If it is happening quicker then you did not take the correct training max when you started. In this case it is better to be safe than sorry.  

Creating Training Programs Part III

In this part of the series we are going to cover how to make training programs for people who have crossed the first few months of preparatory training (see part I).

Now beginners who have worked up to the stage that they can do 1.5 times body weight in the deadlift for 2 sets of 5 using the methods given in part 1, or who have good experience in general sports training should do this. If you are not already in some kind of semblance of fitness please go back to the routines in pat 1.

What beginners need is a lot of volume in the big lifts, whatever these may be. They need to push the weights and try to make linear progress. It is only when you can no longer make linear progress on a consistent basis that you are an intermediate. Here are a few routines for various purposes-

Every single routine here is one that I have tried on my athletes.

Routine 1- Recreational lifter wanting to Just get big and Strong

Workout 1-
Bench press- Work up to 1X5 fairly heavy set (think 80%). Every week you will try to beat this number by no more than 2 kgs. Warm up in small increments to the working weight. When you are unable to set a PR just reduce the weight by 8-10kgs and continue.

Bench Press- 5X10 with a light weight (think 50%) add weight here whenever you can as well

Chin Ups- 2 sets of as many reps as possible
Dumbell Rows- 5 sets of 10.

Workout 2-
Squat- Work up to 1X5, same as bench press.

Squat- 5X10

Bridges + Leg raises 3 sets each

Workout 3-
Military Press- Work up to 1X5

Dumbell Overhead Press- 5X10

Bodyweight Rows+ Lat Pull Downs- 5 Sets each

Workout 4-
Deadlift- Work up to 1X5

Snatch Grip Deadlift From the Blocks- 5X10

Ab rollouts + KB swings- 3 sets each

This can be done 4 times a week or 3 times a week, each workout being repeated twice in 3 weeks.

Here is another routine for the same purpose but done 2 times a week.

Routine 2- General guy wanting to get big and strong

Workout-1 Week 1
Squat- Work Up to Max set of 5
Do one back off set of heel elevated squats with 80% of the weight used in the max set of 5.
Try for 1X20
Deadlift Conventional- 6X6 with a reasonably challenging weight. Add weight whenever possible.
Hanging Leg Raises + Walking Body weight/barbell Lunges 3 hard sets each.

Workout 2 Week 1
Bench Press- Max set of 5
Mild Incline Press- Back of set with 75% of max set. Try for 1X20
Military Press- 5X10
Dumbell Rows- 5X10
Chin Ups- 2 sets as many as possible
Band Pull Aparts

Workout 1 Week 2
Deadlift- Work Up to max 5
Back off set of Con Deads with 80% of max set. Try 1X20

Squats- 5X10
Hanging Leg Raises + Walking Lunges

Workout 2 Week 2
Military Press- Max set of 5
Mild Incline Press- Back of set with 75% of max set. Try for 1X20
Bench Press- 5X10
Dumbell Rows- 5X10
Chin Ups- 2 sets as many as possible
Band Pull Aparts

Routine 3- For someone wanting to build a big bench, squat and deadlift

Workout 1-
Bench Press- Work up to a heavy single. (think 85%) Add a little weight every week. It is imperative you never add more than 2 kgs at a time. You are just getting the feel for heavy weights and progressively adding weight. Don't sabotage yourself by testing yourself.
3X6 with 75% of the weight used for the single.
Dumbell Overhead press- 5X10
Chins- 5 sets of as many as possible
Kroc Rows- 1 set per arm.

Workout 2-
Squat- Work up to a heavy single. Same as bench press except the limit is 3kgs.
Deadlift- Work up to a heavy single. Same as bench press except limit is 4kgs.
Squats- 3X6 with 75% of single weight.
Deadlift- 4X5 with 75% of single weight.
Ab work

Workout 3-
Bench press- 5X10 with 65% of weight used for single.
Squat- 5X10 with 65% of weight used for single.
Hypers- 5X15. add half kg at a time.
Ab work
Dumbell rows- 5X12

Routine 4- Big Bench, Squat and deadlift in a twice a week routine.

Workout 1-
Bench Press- 5X12 with 60s rest. Start really light, like 50%.
Squat- 3X12 with 90s rest.
Deadlift- 3X12 with 90s rest
Dumbell Rows- 5X12
Ab work

Workout 2-
Bench Press- 5X5 with 90s rest. 80%ish
Squat- 3X5. 90s rest
Deadlift- 3X5. 90s rest
Chins- 5 sets of amrap
Ab work

Workout 3-
Military press- 5X10 with 60s rest
Heel Elevated Squat- 3X15 with 90s rest
Hypers- 5 X15 with 60s rest
Lat Pull Downs- 5X12 with 60s rest
Abs, biceps and triceps- 3 sets each

Workout 4-
Bench Press- 5X3 with 120s rest. 85%ish
Squat- 3X3 with 120s
Deadlift- 3X3 with 120s
Chins- 5 sets of AMRAP
Ab work

Repeat the 2 weeks with increased weights.

Routine 5- Athlete needing to improve his jump/ General Athletic Strength
3 days per week

Workout 1-
Squat- 5X10 with 90s rest. Start really light, like 50%.
3 sets of AMRAP Chins
3 sets of 8-12 Military Press
Hanging Leg Raises, Pallof Presses- 3 Sets Each

Workout 2-
Squat- 10X Workout 1 Weight (call it W), 8X W+4kgs, 6X W+8kgs, 4X W+14kgs, 2X W+22kgs. 120s rest
The weights increases given here are only suggestions. You can increase more or less, depending on how heavy a weight you plan to hit in the last set. The first 2 sets should be pretty easy and the 4th and 5th set should feel heavy but not very difficult. Think 86%ish.
Chins Weighted- 3X6-8
3 sets of 6-8 Military Press
Ab Rollouts and one arm Carries- 3 sets each

Workout 3-
Squat- 5X3 with the top set of workout 2. 150s rest.
Weighted Chins- Work up to a Max set of 4 reps
Military press- Work up to a Max Set of 5 reps.
Hypers- 5X15

Repeat all three workouts in the second week with 2kgs more in very set. In week 3 do workout 1 with 5X5 reps with the same weight used in the second week. Workout 2 stays the same and weight increases as usual. Workout 3 become 5sets of 1 with the top weight of workout 2.
In week 4 just add 2 kgs to week 2 and continue.
In workout 3, just alternate between Max set of 4 and 3 for chins, and Max set of 5 and 4 for military press. Everything else stays the same.

Routine 6- Thrower trying to improve his strength for throwing
2-3 times a week. Just follow the linear cycle.
Estimate a 1 R.M

Workout1- Bench Press- 60%X5X7, Squat- 60%X6X6, Abs, Hypers, Rows
Workout2- Bench Press- 65%X6X6, Squat-65%X5X6, Abs, Hypers, Chins
Workout3- Military Press- 5X10, Lat Pull Downs- 5X10, Close Grip Incline Press-5X10, Dumbell Rows- 5X10, Leg Press/Hack Squat-5X10
Workout4- Bench Press- 70%X5X6, Squat- 70%X6X5, Abs, Hypers, Rows
Workout5- Bench Press- 75%X6X5, Squat-75%X5X5, Abs, Hypers, Chins
Workout6-Military Press- 5X10, Lat Pull Downs- 5X10, Close Grip Incline Press-5X10, Dumbell Rows- 5X10, Leg Press/Hack Squat-5X10
Workout7- Bench Press-80%X5X5, Squat-80%6X4, Abs, Hypers, Rows
Workout8- Bench Press-85%X5X4, Squat-85%5X4, Abs, Hypers, Chins
Workout9- Military Press- 5X10, Lat Pull Downs- 5X10, Close Grip Incline Press-5X10, Dumbell Rows- 5X10, Leg Press/Hack Squat-5X10
Workout10- Bench Press-90%X5X3, Squat-90%X5X3, Abs, Hypers, Rows
Workout11- bench Press- 95%X5X2, Squat- 95%X5X2, Abs, Hypers, Chins
Workout 12- Military Press- 5X10, Lat Pull Downs- 5X10, Close Grip Incline Press-5X10, Dumbell Rows- 5X10, Leg Press/Hack Squat-5X10
Workout 13- Bench Press- 100%X 4X2, Squat, 100%X4X2, Abs, Hypers, Rows
Workout 14- Bench Press and Squat- 100%+2kgs X3X2 no assistance
Workout 15- Bench Press and Squat- 100% +4kgs X2X2

Just take the weight used in the last workout and multiply it by 1.0666 and you will have you new max. Run the whole thing again with the new figure. Each cycle can last anywhere from 5-8weeks.

Sleeping Posture, Massaging your Tendons, preventing injuries and stuff

So in this post I want to talk about some miscellaneous stuff that I think is important to consider, which no one thinks about and which fits in no real category.

Okay we all make a big deal about how our posture throughout the day effects our joint alignment and muscle tonus and how improper posture can lead to pain and restricted mobility. But no one seems to consider that we spend a huge part of every day sleeping and in virtually the same posture, and this probably effects us even more than our conscious posture.

I became aware of this when a while ago I suffered a bad shoulder pull. at least it felt like it. Later I realized that it was actually a trap pull that was making pain radiate from the shoulder. A few easy sets of shoulder rotations, dislocates, and a lot of neck stretches fixed it in no time. But along the way I realized that my neck flexibility was heavily unbalanced, favoring the uninjured side. That is when I realized that I sleep on my front tilting my head to the uninjured side. This stretched that side but contracted the other. As a result something very similar to what happens to the hip flexors while sitting happened to my neck- one side was chronically tight and immobile. I started sleeping flat on my back and I have never had a problem since and my flexibility has balanced itself.

Constant stretching can only fix so much and fixing your sleeping posture will go a long way to solve the root of the problem. You can't change your work schedule, you can't change your classes in school and the desks they give you, but you can change the way you sleep and that corrects a whooping 6-9 hours of bad posture everyday. Much more than you would while trying to consciously fix your posture throughout the day.

Now basically after you fall asleep your body will revert to whatever sleeping posture it is easiest to keep falling asleep in, so that your sleep will be as uninterrupted as possible. This could be anything depending on various psychological reasons (before anyone asks I have no idea what they are). In my case I could not have a sound sleep without sleeping on my face. everyone has a position that makes them feel all comfy and sleepy. But the problem is most of these postures are based on the way your mattress is and human bodies have not evolved to sleep on such soft surfaces. Remember the modern mattress was a uncommon luxury until very recently in human history. Because of this you end up getting comfortable in all sorts of ridiculous positions.

Try sleeping for a night on the bare floor on your face. I dare you. In about an hour your body will figure out the most comfortable way to sleep on the floor is to either lie supine and straight or be in the fetal position on either side. These are also the best positions to sleep in for the joints as well.

So how do you fix this problem? You could do what I did and sleep on the floor for a couple of nights until your habit changes and then try to stick with it on the mattress by falling asleep in that position every night until the body gets used to it. Or you could get a super hard mattress and solve the problem once and for all. also if you can help it, don't use a pillow. If you do use a thin hard one.

Lets talk about tendon massage.

I see guys and girls all over the place foam rolling to no end to prevent and relive pain and stiffness, putting themselves in ridiculous positions to roll hard to get areas like the lats and the shoulders, not to mention the adductors. Why people never use the good old way of massaging themselves with their hands in their free time, I will never understand. Don't waste hours in the gym with this. Granted certain parts of the body you can't reach, like the shoulder baldes and the spine. And certain muscles like the glutes, hamstrings and quads are easier to cover with the foam roller. But beyond these, most of the stuff can be done with your hands at home. More importantly massaging yourself with your hands is more effective for 2 reasons-

1. The pressure area is smaller so you can dig deeper into the tissue. That is way tennis balls are more effective than foam rollers. Fingers are just the next step.
2. You can feel out every part of the muscle and actually get to know your anatomy and find your tendons and focus on the problem areas, instead of wasting time all over.

The first is self explanatory, so lets talk about the second. Fall all the amount of time we spend exercising and keeping notes, very few of us are actually familiar enough with our bodies to know every single thing that is unique to us, our peculiarities, our sore spots, our vulnerable areas etc. You know the difference between a masseuse and a guy with an anatomy book? He actually spent time finding all the muscles and tendons on an actual body. Once you can do that, thee is so much information about anatomy out there that you can massage yourself, and more effectively because you get time to get familiar with your body. And if your body is that important to you to exercise hard on a regular basis, you should be familiar with it as well.

This brings me to being aware of more than just muscles. You need to be aware of your tendons, joints and ligaments, because 90% of the time these are the things that really need constant massage, not the muscles. A decent rub down once a month for the muscles will get rid of most scar tissue build up in the muscles, plus the muscles recover fast. They get a lot of blood flow and the tissues are more dynamic chemically. Its the tendons, joints and ligaments that lack sufficient blood flow and are slow to recover. You know why big benchers spend time doing band pressdowns? To flush the area with blood and synovial fluid in order to help recovery. What if you just rub down your tendons with 2 fingers once a day, your ligaments with 4 fingers once in 2 days, and your joint capsules once in 3 days any way you want? The recovery rate will be much faster and pain will never linger, without fatiguing yourself with high rep movements.

Don't get me wrong, you still need to do high rep movements once in a while to mobilize the joints. But it should not become a necessity. If it does learn to find your tendons and rub them. I see several traditional forms of massage used in yoga and ayurveda that are based entirely on treating the tendons. In fact most tradition massage is based on ligament and tendon massage rather than rubbing the muscles. This is because earlier people did not use balls and foam rollers to massage themselves. Instead they used their hands and found the ligaments and tendons.

And yeah, you need a decent aerobic capacity. I don't care how big you are or how you do it but you can't be completely out of shape and expect to recover form injuries or even your training. Do something to condition yourself and you will feel much better in the long run, have lesser injuries and recover fast every time. Just one thing, don't do so much that it becomes a new source of injury, that is all. 

A Simple and Effective Deadlift Cycle

This is a deadlift training program that will put on 20-50kgs (44 to 100lbs) on your deadlift in 7 weeks. Make no mistake it is brutal and is only for people who have a solid 2 years of training under their belt and have a very good base of posterior chain strength and are unable to increase their deadlift for some time. A double bodyweight deadlift is a minimum except for unique cases where the raw squat is well over double bodyweight but the deadlift is not. If you are making progress in whatever system you are following, don't abandon it for this. Knowing these things read on.

There is a rebound cycle given as well which will also add another 10kgs or so. This cycle has been designed for he conventional deadlift. I have not tried it on anyone who uses the sumo style though you are free to try it out. I won't guarantee results though. All deadlifts in both cycles are done without belt or gear except during the singles week and the test day.

First some results-
1. Kratu Goel- added 58kgs or 125lbs to deadlift from 165kgs to 223kgs (365lbs to 490lbs). B.W 75kgs.
2. Prateek Verma- added 40kgs or 88lbs to the deadlift from 151kgs to 191. B.W 86kgs.
3. Abdul Najeeb- added 35kgs to the deadlift from 135kgs to 170kgs. B.W- 61kgs or 135lbs
4. Tejas Jaishankar- added 30kgs to the deadlift from 235kgs to 273kgs (517lbs to 600lbs). I went to 295 kgs (649lbs) on the rebound cycle. B.W 88kgs or 195lbs.

The cycle is divided into 3 parts-

Hypertrophy cycle-

The objective of this phase is to gain as much mass in the supportive muscles used. You will have to pick 2 big exercises for the deadlift, one which builds the bottom position and one that builds the top. Options I recommend are-
Bottom
1. RDLs while standing on a 20kg plate.
2. Snatch Grip deadlift from the floor.
3. Deadlifts standing on a 20kg plate.
4. RDLs from the ground.
5. Deadlift upto knees and pause for a second at the knees.
6. Behind the back deadlift

Top
1. Rack deadlifts from below the knee.
2. Snatch grip deadlifts off boxes from below the knee
3. Stutter deadlift (see previous post)
4. Zercher deadlifts from below the knee.

You will also need one squatting variation you know helps your deadlift. Options include-
1. Box Squat below Parallel
2. Zercher Squats
3. Full Squats with high bar placement.
4. Front Squats

You need to pick one unilateral leg exercise, one lower back exercise, one hamstring and glute exercise, two abdominal exercises and a loaded carry you think helps your deadlift. I recommend the farmer's walk, the goblet walk or the one arm carry.

You need to pick one overhead exercise, one bench pressing variation, and one asistance exercise for each.

You need to pick one free weight row and one machine based row. You need to pick a variation of pull ups you like for weighted pulls and a variation you like for unweighted pull ups. You need one exercise for the posterior delts and two exercises for the grip.

Your schedule for week 1, 2 and 3 will be as follows-
Day 1- Deadlift
Day 2- Upper body Pressing
Day 3- Off
Day 4- Deadlift
Day 5. Upper Body Pulling
Day 6 and 7- Off

In all exercises in which percentages are not defined you have to strive to use the most weight/ hardest variation you can use for the given rep range and you have to attempt to improve upon it the next workout. You have to push the intensity while sticking to the rep ranges given.

All numbers are sets X reps.

Deadlift Day 1-

I am showing the exercises I used in my cycle. You can choose whatever exercise you want from the options given previously. The sets reps and ramping method are not up for debate however. 90s rest for all sets and exercises.

1. RDLs while standing on a 20kg plate (no belt or gear)
Week 1-Work up to max set of 6 reps (it was 165kgs in my cycle)
Week 2- Perform 2X6 with last time's best weight.
Week 3- Perform 3X6 with the same weight.

Start from 100 lbs and add 10 lbs at a time (if your deadlift max is under 350) or 20 lbs at a time (if it is over 350 lbs), performing 6 repetitions ever single set. Keep increasing the weight until you know that you cannot perform 6 reps in the next weight jump. Its okay for your form to breakdown within reasonable measure.

2. Sumo Deadlift- 3X6 with 65% of Max (exercise cannot be changed)

3. Full Squat with knee wraps but no belt- 65% of max- 5X6

4. Hanging Leg raises- 3 sets of 10-15

5. Ham- Glute Curls- 5 sets of 4-6

6. 45 degree hypers- 5 sets of 12-15

7. Pistol Squats- 5 sets of 12-15

8. Roman Chair Sit Ups- 5 sets of 8-10

9. One arm carries- 5 sets of 20m

Upper Body Pressing-

1. Mild Incline Bench Press-
Week 1- 5 sets of 6 with 75% of Max.
Week 2- 5 sets of 5 with 80% of Max.
Week 3- 5 sets of 4 with 83% of Max.

2. Military Press-
Week 1- 5 sets of 5 with 72% of Max
Week 2- 6 sets of 4 with 75% of Max
Week 3- 7 sets of 3 with 80% of Max

3. Weighted Push Up- 5 Sets of 8-10

4. Dumbell Military Press- 5 sets of 10-12

Deadlift Day 4-

1. Snatch Grip Deadlifts from below the knee (no belt or gear)
Week 1-Work up to max set of 6 reps (it was 215kgs in my cycle)
Week 2- Perform 2X6 with last time's best weight.
Week 3- Perform 3X6 with the same weight.

2. Ham- Glute Curls- 5 sets of 4-63.

3. Hanging Leg raises- 3 sets of 10-15

4. Pistol Squats- 5 sets of 12-15

5. 45 degree hypers- 5 sets of 12-15

6. Roman Chair Sit Ups- 5 sets of 8-10

7. Full Squat with knee wraps but no belt- 60% of max- 5X6

8. One arm carries- 5 sets of 20m

Upper Body Pulling Day 5-

1. Weighted Close grip Chin Ups
Week 1-Work up to max set of 6 reps (it was 44kgs in my cycle)
Week 2- Perform 2X6 with last time's best weight.
Week 3- Perform 3X6 with the same weight.

2. One arm Dumbell Rows- 5 sets of 8-12

3. T bar Rows- 7 sets of 10-12

4. Medium Overhand grip pull ups- 3 sets of as many reps as possible.

5. Posterior delt fly with dumbells- 5 X 12-15

6. Pinch Grip Walking with 20kg plates- 5 sets of as much distance as possible

7. One arm deadhang from a chinning bar for time- 5 sets of as much time as possible.

Basic Strength Cycle

In this phase you will perform the convention deadlift only.

You will pick one bench press variation, one overhead press variation, one row variation, one chin up variation, two abdominal exercises and a bodyweight squat variation.

You schedule for weeks 4, 5 and 6 will be-
Day 1- Deadlift + Bench Press Variation+ Abdominal Variation
Day 2- Deadlift + Row Variation
Day 3- Deadlift + Military press Variation + Second Abdominal Variation
Day 4- Deadlift + Chin Up Variation
Day 5- Deadlift + Bodyweight Squat variation

You Deadlifting schedule for the 3 weeks will be as follows. I have given the weights I ended up using as well.

For the figure of the max you should just use the best weight weight you have hit in the recent past before doing the program. It should be a weight you know you can do. To be Conservative you can use a slightly lower figure (about 10kgs lesser) for calculating the weights for the cycle. I used 235kgs.

The Deadlift cycle is-
Week 1 (4 in the full cycle)
Day 1- 60% X 4X6 (141kgs)
Day 2- 65% X 4X5 (153kgs)
Day 3- 70% X 5X4 (165kgs)
Day 4- 75% X 6X3 (177kgs)
Day 5- 80% X 7X2 (189kgs)
Week 2 (5 in the full cycle)
Day 1- 65% X 2X6, 2X5 (153kgs)
Day 2- 70% X 2X5, 2X4 (165kgs)
Day 3- 75% X 3X4, 2X3 (177kgs)
Day 4- 80% X 4X3, 2X2 (189kgs)
Day 5- 85% X 6X2 (201kgs)
Week 3 (6 in the full cycle)
Day 1- 70% X 4X5 (165kgs)
Day 2- 75% X 4X4 (177kgs)
Day 3- 80% X 5X3 (189kgs)
Day 4- 85% X 6X2 (201kgs)
Day 5- 90% X 5X2 (213kgs)

For the pressing exercises simply do 5X5 with 70% on week 1, 4X6 with 70% on week 2, and 5X6 with 70% on week 3. For rows do 5 sets of 8-10 and chins 3 sets of as many reps as possible. For abdominal work do 5 sets of 10-15. For squats do 3X6 with 70% on week 1, 4X5 with 70% week 2, and 5X4 with 70% on week 3. Dont push yourself too hard on any of these exercises. Just get the work done and keep the groove in those exercises.

Singles Week- Week 7

In this week you will use a belt and knee wraps. If you are an equipped powerlifter you will use your full equipment. No exercise other than deadlifts will be done this week. I used a belt and knee warps only.

Day 1- 87% X 8X1 (205kgs)
Day 2- 95% X 6X1 (225kgs)
Day 3- 100% X 5X1 (235kgs)
Day 4- 95% X 4X1 (225kgs)
Day 5- 105% X 3X1 (245kgs)

You will take day 6 and 7 off and test on day 8 or compete in a meet on this day. You will have to arrange the starting date of the schedule accordingly if you wish to do so. Go for a deadlift only meet.

Test day- Attempt 1 105% (245kgs)
Attempt 2 110% (255kgs)
Attempt 3 anything you feel you can do. I did 265kgs.

Take the rest of the week off.

Rebound Cycle

This will last 16 weeks. Start this the week after the test week. The purpose here is to consolidate your gains and ensure you can fall back into the groove of regular training without losing your strength. You will deadlift once a week. Arrange the rest of the schedule and assistance exercises as you wish. You will hit a new PR here as well. All percentages are based on the new Max minus 10kgs. I used 255kgs. You will go back to no equipment.

You should use this phase to bring up your bench and military press and your squat. Focus more on small exercises like dumbell work and bodyweight work at this time. Do a  lot of small exercises that help your deadlift like hypers, ham glute raises, ab rollouts and walking lunges.

Week 1- 5X6 with 65%. (166kgs for me)
Week 2- 5X4 with 75% (192 for me)
Week 3- 6X5 with 70%. (179)
Week 4- 6X3 with 80% (204)
Week 5- 5X4 with 75% (192)
Week 6- 6X2 with 85% (217)
Week 7- 6X3 with 80% (204)
Week 8- 6X2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 1 with 90% (231kgs)
Week 9- 5X2 with 90% (231kgs)
Week 10- 5X2 with 90% + 4kgs (235kgs)
Week 11- 5X2 with 90% + 8kgs (239kgs)
Week 12- 5X2 with 90% + 12kgs (243kgs)
Week 13- 5X3 with 90% (235kgs)
Week 14- 4X2 with 90%+ 16kgs (247kgs)
Week 15- 5X3 with 90% (235kgs)
Week 16- 3X2 with 100% (255kgs)

The Corrective Deadlift

I recently managed my first 650 pound deadlift, which was a huge achievement for me. One of my long term goals is to deadlift 800 lbs at whatever body weight it takes and getting to 650 is one hell of a step closer. It has taken me 2 years to go from 500 lbs to 650, which I suppose is not bad, but a lot of it came in the last 5 months, after I started using this deadlift variation I invented.

Basically I found I had 2 problems in my deadlift-
1. The bar was drifting away from me around the knees.
2. My upper back would round at the same point. While I maintain a somewhat rounded upper back, this much rounding just does not feel natural to me and I cant pull well this way.

I tried all the rows in the world, right from dumbell rows to T bar rows. Finally I decided maybe the best way to solve this issue would be to use the deadlift itself. So I started doing partial deadlifts from below the knee. While I found this made the weights seem lighter it did not do much for my full deadlift.

That is when I started experimenting with the snatch grip deadlift from below the knees and I started making gains again. Just 1 set of as many reps as possible, going as high as 30, once a week. Deadlifts from below the knee with a collar to collar grip. My record was 175kgs for 18 reps. But soon my gains slowed down here as well. But for anyone having a general tendency to shoot the hips up or have a weak upper back this variation will do wonders.

This is when I invented the corrective deadlift. I reasoned that the reason why the normal deadlift from below the knee did not originally work for me was that my position when deadlifting from here did not resemble what my position would have been if I had lifted it off the ground.

Thus the corrective deadlift was created. Actually I need a better name so if anyone has any ideas please tell me. It is performed as follows-

1. Set up with the bar on the floor just like a conventional deadlift. No belts or gear of any kind. Chalk is a must.
2. Deadlift the bar to just below the kneecaps and pause for 1 full second. Lower it back to the ground.
3. Immediately deadlift the bar again and pause exactly at the kneecaps for 1 full second. Resume pulling and lockout the hips.
4. Push the hips back and lower the bar 1 full inch below your kneecaps. Pause for 1 second. Lockout the hips again.
5. Lower the bar to the ground and immediately deadlift the bar again doing 1 full normal deadlift.

This whole sequence constitutes 1 repetition. There is no point doing more than 3 reps a set with this method. I can guarantee that this variation will do wonders for your conventional deadlift though I cannot say the same for the sumo deadlift.

The reason it works is because you hold the hardest part of the deadlift (leverage wise) both while coming up and down, and you overcome inertia at that point and continue moving up. The partial at the bottom with the pause teaches you to get the bar to the correct position, the partial at the top overcoming inertia while in the correct position teaches you to push your hips through. The deadlift at the end recaps it all.

This variation builds the groove and strength required to deadlift well. It is specially awesome for upper spine and lat strength. You will really feel your wings expanding with this one.

I deadlifted once a week. I simply worked to the heaviest weight I could handle for 3 reps in week 1 of my cycle, then the best double I could do in week 2 and a max single in week 3. Week 4 I take as a deload week. Next cycle I tried to break my records. I also did a lot of ham glute raises, bridges and heavy kettlebell swings to develop the musculature of the posterior chain. I squatted heavy once a week and did plenty of pistol squats and leg raises as well. I worked weighted chin ups 2 times a week and did a lot of grip work. I also did 1 arm deadlifts for a best set of 5 twice a month. My best in this lift so far has been 151kgs for 5 reps per hand.

I did zercher squats as well, once a month. My best was 161kgs for 4 reps. I performed them as if I was deadlifting.

Perhaps this exercise can be valuable for you. In any case I am making all my guys do it to clean up their technique.

This deadlift was done in a strongman contest not in a powerlifting meet for those who are curious about it.

And just for novelty sake (and the fact that I want to write this down somewhere where I can keep looking at it) here are my record- old, current and targets.
1. Deadlift- Old (2 years ago) 500lbs, current 650, target 800.
2. Bench Press- Old 275, current 315, target 400.
3. Military press- Old- 195, current 240, target 315.
4. Weighted Chin up- Old- 65kgs, current 71kgs, target 86kgs. Also get my first triple in the one arm chin.
5. Squat- Old- 315, Current 475, target 600. Also a set of 50 pistols per leg.
6. 100m dash- Old- 11.3, Current 11.06, target 10.6

Creating Training Programs Part 2

First of all I would like to apologize for the extreme gap between this and the last post. I have been shifting to a new gym and have had several projects on the line. I will put up a separate post about all that.

Now if you have read part 1 of this series, you will understand the various kinds of plans, how to make a basic plan and training principles, components of a training program and how to balance things. You will have also seen the raw beginner program I gave.

Today, we will talk about exercise tools, exercise selection, the principle of specificity and the principle of accommodation. We will talk about the two factor model of training. We will also cover a basic beginner training model.

Two Factor Model
Now in training we get some benefits from each workout. These benefits are adaptations which last for a certain duration of time and they go away if the adaptations are not worked on within a certain amount of time, which depends upon the stress created by the workout and your adaptive ability etc.

Now from the same workouts you get certain fatigue. This is cost of the workout. This fatigue also lasts a certain amount of time dependent on various factors. On a very simple and logical level the gains your acquire from any workout is simply:

Benefits (adaptations) - Costs (Fatigue)

Therefore the less the fatigue caused by a certain workout for the same adaptations, the better the gains.

However there is a second point to consider. The duration of adaptations and fatigue. You have to repeat the stimuli before the previous adaptation fizzles out, but you also have to recover between workouts. You have to prevent fatigue from compounding. What does this mean?

Lets say the adaptations from a workout last 72 hours and your fatigue only lasts 24 hours. You workout every 48 hours. This is good as the adaptations compound but the fatigue does not. However let us say the fatigue lasts 48 hours. This means not only do your adaptations compound, but so does your fatigue. and remember that workouts are not your only source of fatigue- your daily life is as well. So fatigue will tend to compound more than adaptations.

Therefore this brings into play the principles of

1. Energy Conservation- Switching between antagonist movements, taking active rests between sets, performing breathing exercises before and after the workout. resting more in general and engaging in relaxing activities and avoiding stress.
2. Training Economy- You have to use the least amount of volume and exercises possible to get the adaptations you want. You have to learn how to make efficient training programs and learn how to get more from less.
3. Optimum training frequency, volume, intensity and tonnage- You have to figure out the combinations you respond to, because this will determine how you adapt (or don't). For example- high frequency low volume medium intensity training works. Low frequency high volume medium Intensity works. But high frequency and high volume medium intensity does not work.

Principle of Specificity
Many of the factors controlling the increases in strength are neural in nature. Because of this gains in strength are highly specific. Specific to the movement performed that is. What this means is if you get good at one variety of squatting, it will probably help your other squats in some way, but how much and how is very dependent on the circumstances, but leg pressing will not help your squatting. As an example of this, close stance raw squats will help your geared squats by giving you strength in the bottom but this improvement is probably negligible. On the other hand box squats will really help your geared squats. But leg pressing won't do squat for your squat.

Now admittedly there are ways around this and a lot of it is dependent upon performance. For example many lifters find their deadlift goes up by leg  pressing. This makes little sense since the movements are so different, but upon closer inspection the guys who find this carry over leg press the weight exctly how they push with the legs during the start of the deadlift. In fact if you ask them they probably think of the same cues like push through the floor/plate, back arched etc. To sum up this line of thought Louie Simmons once said (I dont remember where) that it is not enough to do good mornings but one must see a deadlift in his head for it to be of any use to the deadlift.

There is also a "coordinate your strength" school of though which features people like Paul Anderson and Valentine Dikul. Basically if you train the assistance lift and the primary lift in close proximity, the strength from one will carry over better to the other.

The ultimate take away point from all this is- if you want to get good at something you have to train that specifically and for a long period of time.

Principle of Accommodation

When you do the same thing over and over again, the nervous system gets "bored" and stops responding to it. Adaptations stop and a plateau is reached unless something is done about it.

Balancing the principles of accommodation and specificity is probably the greatest problem of all training. Change too much and you will not gain anything useful, don't change anything and you will get stuck.

Ultimately you have to do things that are similar to what you are currently doing, but different enough to prevent accommodation. This is the art of strength training.

Accommodation can be prevented by varying the reps, sets, rest intervals, frequency of training, loads used and exercises.

In this context I have attached a copy of preplin's table- which is a summation of soviet research on the optimum sets and reps at various intensity levels. You can use it to vary sets, reps and loads with proven results. Please bear in mind that it was made for the clean and jerk, snatch, squats and press so you will have to adjust it a bit for other exercises.

Exercise Tools

There are various tools that have been used through history to develop strength. Right from things like anvils and logs to rocks and carts have been productively used in the quest for strength. It is important that the correct tools be used for the correct purposes in order to get best results. Of course a large consideration is the availability and logistical convenience of the tools as well. Due to this I have covered only those exercise tools which can be used by most people.

1. Barbells
This are the most basic piece of equipment available in any gym in the planet. The greatest advantage of the barbell is that you can load enormous amounts of weight on it and make increments of whatever degree you want. Due to this the systemic effect that the barbell causes on the entire body is incredible.  In my opinion the barbell is the greatest maximal effort training tool known to man, bar none. It is versatile, can be used to produce all the useful compound movements and can be programmed very easily due to easy adjustments in load.

I however think the barbell is a terrible repetition effort tool, for the same reasons it is a great maximal effort tool- it causes too much systemic strain. In repetition effort work you want to target certain movements and practice it. Using a barbell for this will invariably beat you up, as not only is the load placed on the working muscles and joints, but on the spine as well. Plus many motions are open chain kinetic motions. While this is a good thing for heavy lifting I find that it is too strenuous to do this for repetitions. Only the genetically gifted can barbell squat, deadlift and bench press with high frequency, volume and intensity and get away with it. That is why periodization exists- you cannot train all out all the time with the barbell.

On the other hand no one got truly huge without significant volume on the basic barbell lifts, so you will have to consider how to use your barbell volume efficiently. You have to learn how to use the most basic exercises and get the most out of them with barbell training rather than doing mindless sets and reps and beating your body up for no particular reason.

If you want my advice if you pick up a barbell never cross 7 reps, I find volume is the issue with barbell training, not intensity.  Load away as long you know how to program things. If you keep the volume per session low, you can train very heavy with fair frequency. If you really need more volume add sets not reps- preplin's table is a good guide of this. But be aware that the more volume you do on these lifts, the more back off and light sessions you will need.

I think the barbell is a great Dynamic tool as well, as loads can be regulated and it forces you to catch as well as throw during explosive movements.

2. Bodyweight
I think bodyweight is the greatest repetition tool known to man. You can do a great amount of volume with bodyweight work and really drive the body parts you are working into the ground without much systemic fatigue. This is because all bodyweight movements are closed chain kinetic motions and there is no spinal loading. I am not saying that is is impossible to overtrain using bodyweight, but it is certainly a lot harder. Imagine the kind of volumes gymnasts or military personall will regularly do with bodyweight movements and try to think what such routines would do to a man doing the same with a barbell. 100 pull ups a day for 15 days straight? The armstrong pull up routine? The 100 pistol squats a day 3 days a week program? The closest thing to this in the barbell world is the Smolov Squat program and this will leave most people crying for mercy in 3 weeks. Yet these programs are used as long term training routines by many bodyweight athletes without 50% of the side effects of the smolov. Again I am not saying this is a good way to train but the point is bodyweight work is a good way to perform higher volume training.

Anyone who has read this blog knows how bodyweight exercises can be made more progressive.

Bodyweight work is an absolutely terrible way to perform maximal Effort training for the same reasons it is a great repetition tool- closed chain kinetic movements and no spinal loading. Also you cant make jumps in small increments. For proper maximal effort training your body needs to feel the weight, your nervous system has to be extremely excited. You need to handle as much load as possible and use tools and exercises that allow you to do this. That is why if you keep doing good mornings and bulgarian split squats but no squats or deadlifts, no matter how much you train the split squat, your max strength in hip extension in general will not improve the way your weightlifting buddy's does. With a little practice a 500lb squatter will always split squat more than the 300lb squatter, but it does not work the other way.

Bodyweight is the best and the most basic dynamic effort tool in my opinion. It is what speed training means, to move yourself fast, and if you are not doing dynamic speed work you are leaving a lot on the table. Nothing too fancy just basic jumps and sprints will be enough to make a huge difference for most people.

3. Dumbells

I think dumbells are like bodyweight in the sense that they are great repetition tools but bad maximal effort ones. Also they are different from bodyweight work because they put more stress on the larger muscles, whereas in bodyweight work the load shifts to the extremities as you progress to harder variations. Because of this I feel dumbell and bodyweight work complement each other very nicely as repetition tools. Almost all my athletes use dumbells and bodyweight for repetition work, specially the ones involved in sports where extra size could be a disadvantage.

Dynamic work with dumbells is just stupid when kettlebells exist. If I have to justify this you have not been training very long.

4. Kettlebells

I think kettlebells are the best way to train for dynamic endurance, strength endurance, cardiovascular endurance and strength flexibility. If you have heavy enough kettlebells or something like the hungarian core blaster, it is an excellent dynamic effort training method as well, beating barbells.

5. Cable Machines

Great precision training tools. While I don't like isolation exercises, if you want to do them use cables. They give you a good constant resistance, don't beat up the joint and deliver a pump in record time. You can change the angle and setting to target exact areas of the muscle you want to feel. useful for the advanced bodybuilder, or someone who wants to look good and has paid his dues with the barbell, the chin up bar and dumbells.

6. Resistance Bands and chains

Useful for an advanced person trying to increase acceleration. Also very useful for rehabbing the joints and working out mobility issues, but people who say that you can get stronger just with resistance bands are lying (and I meet 5 of these idiots every day). Not something you cannot do without.

7. Sandbags, Logs, barrels, farmer's implements and other awkward objects

I truly believe that systematic awkward object lifting and carrying is the greatest secret to strength that we are not using. Logistically a great hassle but well worth it. They will build the skeletal strength of the body and forge ligaments of steel.

In my gym we perform loaded carries twice a week and use awkward objects for it. We have a heavy barrel that goes up to 500lbs, farmer's implements, 2 sandbags weighing 50 and 70kgs and a big rock weighing 150kgs.

8. Other Isolation Machines

I honestly think that most of them are redundant if you have an adjustable cable stack and dumbells.

9. Specialty Machines and equipment

These are just stuff I think is useful- 45 degree and 90 degree hyper extensions, reverse hyper extensions, t-bar units, leg press, hack squat, ham glute raise, roman chair, incline sit up boards, hip belt squat and of course the all powerful power rack.

Exercise Selection

First of all lets talk about the stuff you have to find exercises for-
1. hip hinge- both maximal effort and repetition
2. Squat- Ditto
3. Pressing- Ditto
4. Pulling- Repetition though some heavy training wont hurt
5. Loaded Carries
6. Full body explosive extension
7. Abdominal and lower back work

If you are missing out on any one of those things, you are leaving a lot on the table. You may or may not select more exercises.

While selecting exercises the basic things you have to keep in your mind are-
1. Can I perform it safely and conveniently, either as it is or by modifying it?
2. Can I change the exercise repeatedly over time to prevent accommodation and overuse injuries?
3. Is my exercise selection balanced or does it fix my weaknesses?
4. Is my selection efficient and not repeating the same thing for no reason?

Basic Beginner Training Model

This is for someone who has completed the raw beginner training template in the previous post. The primary objective of this template is to get seriously strong- that is all. It should be used for not more than 16 weeks.

Three days per week. Each Cycle is 2 weeks long or 6 workouts.

Actual maxes do not need to be used, an estimate is sufficent. After each cycle is over, add 4kgs to the max of the deadlift and squat and 2-3kgs to the max of the bench press.

At this stage you may squat first and deadlift later or deadlift first and squat later. Just make sure the bench press is between them and base your max for the second lift on what you think you can do after being quite fatigued. Don't over estimate your maxes, it will be a painful mistake. As a rule do something much easier than what you think you can confidently do.

For example a particular trainee of mine started this program after 4 months of raw beginner training with an estimated deadlift max of 120kgs. The percentages used were all based off a training max of only 100kgs. At the end of 16 weeks when we tested his max single he performed a deadlift with 185kgs. At this time the training max we had used for the last cycle was only 156. While I did jump the training max by more than how much I ought to have, it was still a lot lesser than what he was capable of.

For the repetition ranges, just start with a weight you can do the bottom reps with for all sets. Keep adding reps till you get all 3 sets with the higher end. Increase the weight and repeat.

Day 1-

Warm up

Deadlift- 4X6 (setsXreps) with 65%
Bench Press- 5X6 with 65%
Squat- 4X6 with 65%

Weighted hyper Extensions- 3 sets of 10-15
Pull ups- ladders
Weighted Sit ups- 2 Sets of 10-15

Day 2

Deadlift- 3X4 with 85%
Bench Press- 4X4 with 85%
Squat- 3X4 with 85%

Dumbell Military Press- 3 sets of 10-15
Pull ups- 5 sets of as many reps as possible
Weighted Sit ups- 2 sets of 10-15

Day 3

Deadlift- 4X5 with 70%
Bench press- 4X6 with 70%
Squat- 4X5 with 70%

One legged squat progression- 3 sets
Pull ups- 2 sets of 7-10 with added weight
Weighted Situps- 2 sets of 10-15

Day 4

Deadlift- 4X2 (setsXreps) with 90%
Bench Press- 4X3 with 90%
Squat- 4X2 with 90%

Weighted hyper Extensions- 3 sets of 10-15
Pull ups- ladders
Weighted Sit ups- 2 Sets of 10-15

Day 5

Deadlift- 4X4 with 75%
Bench Press- 5X5 with 75%
Squat- 4X4 with 75%

Dumbell Military Press- 3 sets of 10-15
Pull ups- 5 sets of as many reps as possible
Weighted Sit ups- 2 sets of 10-15

Day 6

Deadlift- 4X1 with 95%
Bench press- 3X2 with 95%
Squat- 4X1 with 95%

One legged squat progression- 3 sets
Pull ups- 2 sets of 7-10 with added weight
Weighted Situps- 2 sets of 10-15