Started back at it Friday night after work and a nap. Squat day is going to remain a Saturday for me, but I was headed home early, because I had my boys this weekend.

Jumprope
100 Jumps

Foam Roller
Hips, IT Bands, Quads, Back

Static Stretching

Close stance below parallel box squat to
bar x10
150×5
240×5
330×5
420×5
510×5 Stance on these was shoulder width.

Leg Press
580x2x30
Done with a hip width stance

Lunges
3×12 each leg

Calf Raise
3 plates x50

Pulldown Abs
3×15

Started training with Brian again. This will work well for me for two reasons. The first being that I got strong as hell last time I did, the second being that I realized that with being a full time student and working full time, I cant give my own programming the focus that I need to. Brian is really good at the programming side, and we talk enough that he is aware of what I need to improve on. Before we get into the meet training, were really going to focus on improving my leg size and strength, as well as pushing my bodyweight up over 300. We’ve got some time, and a very good plan. Im looking forward to seeing how it comes out.

If I was in the WWF, this is the song I would use for my entrance music. BRUTAL AND AWESOME. Like me.

Here is a video I did for you guys about weightlifting belts. Covers the basics about the different types of belts, my thoughts, and how to wear them for maximum performance in the gym.

Hey guys, just doing a sponsored review of this book. Hopefully, for some of you who may be on the fence about it, it gives you an idea of whats in the book. For those of you unaware of whats going on with it, hopefully you pick up a copy and get some great training knowledge from it.

I was fortunate enough to receive a copy of the new Special Strength Training Practical Manual for Coaches by Dr. Verkhoshansky recently. Yosef, the guy behind Ultimate Athlete Concepts, sent me a copy, and asked me to check it out. Ive got to say, I am impressed with the book. It is only 222 pages long, but contains a TON of good, RELEVANT training information. You can check out the table of contents with this link, just to get an idea of what the book covers.

http://www.verkhoshansky.com/Portals/0/Book/Special_Strength_Training.pdf

It also has a few appendices that coaches will find relevant. I was particularly interested in the one covering the Russian Throwers programs, as well as the one one warming up. Even covers some bodybuilding stuff.

As for some of the improvements in this volume versus the original? Dr. Verkhoshansky says it best in the introduction I linked above. Some others have mentioned a bit better translation from Russian to English, but I think I was mostly oblivious to it until someone pointed it out to me.

Should also note that like his, and many other Russian Coaches books and manuals, this is based in theory, and if you get it looking for something laid out for you set by set and rep by rep, you may not like it. it DOES include loading examples, but as an idea to supplement the training, not as a direct implementation of it.

This is definitely a good read, and has some very valuable training knowledge in it. I would highly recommend picking it up, and if you’re on the fence, well, you’re missing out if you don’t get it.

First time in the gym in a week, as I had a very busy week. I had both of my boys for 4 days over the holiday. Was a very busy four days. We went to the pool, went to the zoo, and did a ton of other stuff. Aside from those trips, highlights would include watching fireworks, hitting lightning bugs with baseball bats, and Corban setting my beard on fire. Got a huge dose of Karma in my favor so my court date was pushed back a month too. All in all, an awesome week, but very busy. Had some time to come up with a new training plan for myself as well. Took a while to get worked out, but I think it will set me up well for the Highland Games in August, as well as The Lexen Meet in August. I’m going to make another post about it, but here is how it started yesterday.

Standard Warmup Stuff

Squat
315×5
360×5
410×5

Deadlift
390×5
440×3
495×1

Barbell Row
210×3
240×3
270×3

Chins
40 reps total

GHR
3×10

Decline Situps
3×15 with a 25 on my face

Thanks very much to my good friend Jim Wendler, and his 5/3/1 Program, the Standing Military Press has come back into vogue among the strength training community. While personal trainers and “fitness enthusiasts” have always used it, it seemed like before his book came out, Standing barbell military presses had fallen by the wayside, and guys had resorted to using all sorts of lateral raises, or bought into the “bench builds front delts, back work builds rear delts” trap to strengthen and build their shoulders. Some guy I know, myself included, were using military presses, but most the strength training guys I knew, and read about did them more as one time circus lifts on an off day, or just “messing around” in the gym. There weren’t many guys doing them. And now they’re back, hopefully for good.

For as good of friends as Jim and I are, and for as our similar approaches, principles and theories on training are, we do have our differences. Jim isn’t a huge proponent of technique, whereas I am. Not that Jim is haphazard in the gym, but his technique is very solid from years of training, and his advice on form work is usually very simple. I on the other hand, think that small technique fixes are easier than getting stronger. I should clarify that; it is easier to put 50 pounds on a lift by fixing technique flaws than it is to put 50 pounds on using the same technique.

Why do I mention Jim when the title says what it does? Because of all the lifts out there, the military press is probably where we have the biggest disagreement on technique. Jim, as you can see in the video below, keeps his upper body mostly upright and his head back throughout the entire repetition. His head may come forward some, but it is usually at the very top of the range of motion. This is more a balancing and stabilizing action than a technique aspect.

The head position Jim uses, and the one that I personally teach and recommend, is where the difference comes in. While the basics are the same, I teach my lifters slightly differently. My big point of emphasis with head position is driving your head forcefully forward once the bar clears the top of the head. This has helped many lifters avoid the sticking point often found at the middle of the lift. Driving your head forward, under the bar, allows the traps to engage fully and assist you to the top of the movement, and will instantly improve your pressing poundage. If you have ever seen an Olympic lifter doing the clean and jerk, you will notice that they force their head through as soon as possible, and the weights they use are BIG.

A few things to emphasize and remember when you add this trick to your technique: When I say to “drive your head through” I do NOT mean to extend your neck. This is a great way to injure yourself. Your neck should remain in a neutral position, with your eyes focused in front of and above you. What will actually happen, and you can see it in the clean and jerk video above, is that your upper body will move slightly forward, from behind the bar, to UNDER the bar. This is the move we are going for. Get your body under the bar, and let your traps help drive the weight up and lock it out. It will take some practice to perfect and come without thinking about it, but, honestly, when doesn’t it?

Give this a shot the next time you do military presses in the gym. Not only will it more than likely feel natural, you will more than likely set a PR; and everyone likes those.

Have you given this a shot on your military press? Did it work out for you? Let me know how it went for you in the comments below!

Hey guys, back again. This is another supplement review, and some of you may recognize the article, as it was published on EliteFTS.com on July 9, 2009. It is reprinted here with permission. I think that, as I talk to people, and see what they’re doing with their own training and life, sharing this here was important. I am noticing more and more that guys are using energy drinks as a part of their pre-workout supplementation, and using a vast number of different energy drinks. I also have to include this: DISCLAIMER: I am sponsored by Biotest, and receive the Spike Shooters for Free. That being said, I love them, and would use them if I wasn’t. This is also the first product of theirs that I have reviewed on this site.

The different flavors of Spike Shooters

The first Biotest product that I’m going to review is the Biotest Spike Shooter drink. I’ve been considering some different formats for this review such as a scale from one to ten but decided that would be too much of a pain in the ass.

Because I don’t really have any way of quantifying my ratings on a scale anyway other than saying that “it’s good” or “it sucks,” I’m just going to write down my thoughts and you can run with it from there. Not only does it make it easier for me to do, it kind of negates the “pimping” factor that something like this usually involves. To be completely honest, it is pimping but not the standard full fledged whoring that you’re used to seeing from Dave. Ha ha! Hopefully, he doesn’t read that…

Moving on…the Spike Shooters were actually the first Biotest product that I tried. Big points for me on this are the fact that there are no calories in it, and the caffeine content is tolerable. It has 300 mg of caffeine, which isn’t bad. For some reason, high amounts of caffeine make me crash. It’s kind of weird for me. I don’t crash after eating ephedrine, but caffeine takes it out of me.

I used the Biotest Spike Shooter for the first time about two weeks ago on a Sunday. I tried the ‘Quila Lime flavor. I’m not going to lie—it was pretty good. Your experiences may be slightly different, as I’m completely used to sugar-free soda and things of that nature. Artificial sweeteners actually taste good now and not all chemical like, as they do when you first switch to eating no sugar. Honestly, if they sold something this flavor out of a fountain machine, I’d buy it over any of the other diet stuff anyone sells. It’s pretty good. I think I said that once already but whatever. It tastes good.

I took the Spike Shooter at about 4:00 p.m. and then proceeded to mow my yard. I don’t have a huge yard, but after I get all seven billion of the kids’ toys picked up, move the four tons of rocks they’ve dug out of the flower beds and thrown all over the yard, and use the weed whacker, it takes me about an hour to mow. I made sure to take the Spike Shooter on a mostly empty stomach so as to fully realize the effects, if there were to be any. I’m a huge fan of crack pills, so I didn’t really know if the Shooter would do much if anything.

I fired up the mower and was pushing away. After about ten minutes, it hit me. Hard. I was very surprised by this. I noticed more of a nootropic effect than a cracked out feeling, kind of like my mind was switched on. If you’ve ever taken high dose piracetam or any of the other ‘racetams, you will know what I mean. I also noticed that I was moving a lot faster with the mower. I wasn’t necessarily running with it, but my pace picked up quite a bit. My wife actually noticed it, too. I was sweating a lot as well, but it was also hot as balls outside. Who knows? Maybe it was the drink, maybe not. I can say that it was after 2:00 a.m. that night before I was able to fall asleep, and this pissed me off to no end. It took a fair amount of ZMA, Vicodin, and some melatonin to get me to sleep. Usually, I don’t have much trouble falling asleep, but it was definitely noticeable.

The thing I liked most about the drink was that while it did have a stimulant buzz, it wasn’t a shaky type buzz. It was just like I was switched on. Pretty impressive. I know that Jo Jordan said it gave him the shakes like a bitch though, so take it for what it’s worth. I’m not sure how he handles crack pills either.

I’ve taken the drink before a workout. It seemed to help me focus more while squatting, and the boost from the stimulants is always nice. However, use caution if you’re going to push the Prowler afterward. My damn heart was pounding. It wasn’t like a “my heart is about to explode” feeling, but it was noticeably increased.

Overall, I think the shooter is pretty impressive for an energy drink. I think it tastes better than both Red Bull and Monster. I definitely suggest giving this a try. You’ll find that it’s definitely cheaper than paying three bucks a can for a Red Bull.

Have you tried the Spike Shooters? Have an energy drink you love? Let me know in the comments below!

As Ive been looking around at various strength training forums as of late, I’ve noticed a trend. It’s not something necessarily derogatory to any of the strength sports out there, or to the every day run of the mill gym rat. Its kind of perplexing to me, as it is really such a non issue. Shoes. What shoes are best, what shoes are good, and what shoes suck, and so on and so forth. I have said it time and again, IT DOESN’T MATTER. It is literally such a small deal overall that ALL this topic does when it comes up is waste older guys time trying to explain, and confuse guys who are newer to the strength training.

Over the years, I have weight trained in all sorts of different shoes. From Nike Shox to Government issued desert boots, and everything in between. Hell, one time I wore my Dads old work boots to lift for football because I thought the heel would magically make my legs huge and strong like the dudes in FLEX Magazine. In my defense, it was a mistake I made only once. The running was more brutal than I care to admit. I think it took a week for my spine to refuse!

I took some pictures of the shoes that I train in. I DO have a few pairs of shoes that I use, and aside from the flip flops, are, to me, completely interchangeable. To help emphasize this point, I wore my Vibram Five Fingers to squat in, and worked up to a completely manageable 820 in the squat with no slipping or sliding issues. That may not mean much to some of you, as some of you too squat in your VFFs, but remember this. Dumping 800+ pounds is extremely dangerous not only to me, but to those spotting and those in the general area. If you have any common sense, you’re not going to do anything to endanger yourself or those who are helping to make sure that doesn’t happen. DON’T BE THAT GUY.

My normal shoe, for squatting and pulling in is one made by Metal Sport and Wear in Finland. These are BY FAR the best shoe that I have ever worn in the gym. This makes me happy because they’re not cheap. I think that with the exchange rate and shipping from Finland, they were about 145 bucks. They’re made of leather, and will seemingly last forever. I don’t do much else in them, so that in my feeble little mind they last longer. Also, if you look closely at the picture at the beginning of the post, you can see that I don’t tie them to train in, because it doesn’t matter. Also, if you watch this video you can see me squat 1000 pounds in them. Untied. It seriously doesn’t matter.

Another pair of shoes that I wear when doing my strength training is the lowly flip-flop. Yes, flip flops. Are you starting to see a trend here? i think the ones I have now I bought at a WalMart 2 years or so ago. I will wear these a lot of times to deadlift in, and do my accessory work. I thought I had video of my doing some stuff in them, but can’t seem to locate it. Sorry.

Hopefully this gives you a better grasp of the fact that the shoes you decide to wear, or not wear, really have such a small amount of influence on your training they’re not important. Go in, pick up something heavy, work hard at it, and get better. THAT is what’s important. You guys have any comments? I’d love to hear them! Leave ‘em below and let me know what you think, and what you wear in the gym!

This video is from The Swole Patrol. For those of you unaware of who these two miscreants are, they run a gym in Tampa, GoEliteSC. im still trying to figure out if its Chandler “Mandler” Marchman, or Julius “The Jew” Tobin that is the ringleader for this South Florida band of deviants, but either way, two things become immediately apparent: One, these dudes have definitely touched tips before, and two, they’re pretty damn funny. Anyway, check out the video, have some laughs, and see what you missed out on this past weekend.

Also, for all of you haters and closet PETA people out there, Calling Julius “The Jew” isn’t me being an Anti-Semite. Its ENDEARING. You cant call him Julie, you know?

The UGSS was this weekend, and all of the fatheads were out, bloated, purple, and totally out of shape. I was anyway, I don’t really know if I can speak for anyone else. Except Jo Jordan. The man looked pregnant. For those of you who don’t know what the UGSS is, it is an acronym for Underground Strength Session. Basically, Dave Tate brings in guys from the team to train, eat, learn from, and hang out with each other. It’s like a musclehead Mastermind group. Tons of ideas and the most fun training I have over the course of the year. The insults and good times are thick! The numbers are big too. Lots of strong dudes out squatting and pulling this Saturday. As for me, I managed to show up fashionably late, but earlier than I should have, at 930. I should have waited, as Team Wenning and his crew Mike, 2 dudes I didn’t know. and everyone’s favorite BeetleJuice impersonator, the one and only Krischain Mellow were squatting with approximately 7 million pounds of band tension. As for Mello, Dude must be part dragon, because he was breathing FIRE on people. He managed to squat something pretty respectable too, can’t remember the weight though. Approximately 7 hours after I got there, Wenning squatted 755 a blue, green and purple, and took his shit down so the 42 guys waiting to squat could do so. He is strong as hell. Also, part to show my ass, and part for effect, I did all of this stuff in my Vibram Five Fingers. Simply to prove the point that your shoes don’t fucking matter. See the pic…I’m the good looking dude that isn’t Al Caslow.

Here is what I did:

SQUAT
Barx5
260×5
350×5
420×3
480×3
540×3 (added belt after)
640×1 (added briefs after)
730×1
820×1 This is the most weight I had had on my back since late June/early July, when my hip exploded. It showed, as it felt like 1400. Still went down and up. I called it a day, as I had been on the mono for an hour or so at this point. While everyone else was squatting, I went next door, snuck some food, and watched guys hit some big squats. Carroll went 1050 or so, Driggers hit 910 pretty well. Jo squatted 850? Caslow hit low 8 something, I believe. There was a lot going on, and, well, to be honest, my memory sucks something awful sometimes. Lots of strong dudes getting after it. Jon Taylor squatted too.

I had planned to deadlift, but grew tired of waiting to eat after squatting. I went ahead and did some SSB Good mornings. 5×10 with 135. My hamstrings and lower back hate me.

Then I did the same thing for my upper back. I am going to call them upper back good mornings, because every person I asked had no idea what the hell they were called. Sample size was 2, by the way. 135 for 4 sets of 10.

At this point I was finished, and relegated myself to bitching about how tired I was, and heckling everyone else who was doing stuff way better than I was. Pretty standard Saturday for me I guess.

Had a really good time with it though, aside from being tired and kicking my own ass. Got to meet a lot of good people for the first time, and hang out with some of the guys Ive become friends with. Tons of strong people doing cool shit, and Andy Deck doing some dumb shit with a 50000 pound sandbag. NUTS.

Want to take a second and say thanks to Dave for having me out. There was a shit load of food, drinks, and tons of other stuff available all day for us, and it definitely didn’t go unnoticed or unappreciated. Except for your jeans. Send those things back to 1986 after you’re done with them.