No Need for the ComplicationBy Zach Even-EshFor www.EliteFTS.comJim Wendler and I have discussed this on a regular basis. Some people just “get it” while others complicate things unnecessarily. With a website like EliteFTS.com, there’s so much information, all of which is top notch. It can be easy to get confused. However, one noticeable thing about the training logs—they’re all filled with the basics. Everyone is different, and everyone does what works for them. The point here is don’t copy what these men and women do because you’ve taken a liking to their personalities. I’ve done that before, especially in my younger days. If you want to get down to the nitty gritty and if your goal is to get stronger and faster and add muscle, look at what Joe DeFranco has done with his athletes. He has a very straightforward template that has never failed to produce great results.
His template works. When you feel your results starting to slow down, switch things up and try a different style of training or add more variety to your program. Dave Tate has been doing a lot of dog crap training lately. However, once he becomes physically and mentally used to that style of training, he’ll switch to something else or add some modifications to the program. Here’s a sample weekly template using simple tools and a very easy to follow program. If you eat plenty of quality food—clean food—and use a simple approach coupled with a simple and intense training regime, you’ll be on the fast track toward results. Fast means consistent, not huge gains every week. Dave said this at the last seminar and Jim Wendler emphasizes this point regularly. Many of us have been training for 15–20 years or longer. I started training at age 13, and I’m 31 now. I’ve taken a few days off here and there, maybe a week here and there. After I finished my undergrad, I took three weeks off. Ever since then, I’ve never been away from some form of working out for more than four or five days. I’m still learning from everyone, especially myself. However, in the end, the basics were what always worked for me. I’ve found this to be the case for others 99% of the time. Here’s a sample three day program that many of our athletes follow and I do as well. It’s very similar to Joe DeFranco’s Westside for Skinny Bastards program with some modifications.
Day 1, lower body* Warm up with calisthenics for the lower and upper body. Do some mobility work and maybe one light set of prowler or sled work. 1) Box squat or deadlift variation: Build up to two heavy sets of 3–5 reps each. 2A) Split squat or lunge variations: Do 3 X 8–10 each leg. 2B) Double kettlebell cleans: Do 3 X 8–12 reps. 3) Do some prowler and/or sled work for approximately four sets total at approximately 200 feet per trip. *We may start lower body day with some tire flipping for approximately 6–10 total reps. If we don’t perform tire flips, we may add some weighted back extensions on either the glute ham raise or 45-degree bench for 2–3 sets of 12–15 reps. Notice that there’s nothing fancy here. My last personal leg workout included safety squat bar box squats and one long set of walking lunges. The workout before that was tire flips for a total of 15 reps and then prowler sprints for six trips. I only performed two movements, but they were intense and that’s all I needed that workout.
Day 2, upper body** Warm up with calisthenics, bands, and mobility work for the entire body. Begin the workout with 5–10 reps of heavy tire flipping. 1A) Thick bar floor press: Build up to two heavy sets of 2–5 reps. 1B) Bent over barbell rows: Do all sets in the 6–12 rep range. 2A) Incline dumbbell bench: Do 2–3 X 5–12 reps. 2B) Pull-up variations: Do 2–3 X max reps. 3A) One arm dumbbell rows: Do 2 X 10–20 reps. 3B) Push-up variations: Do 2 X max reps. **Depending on your energy level, either finish the workout or add some band work for face pulls, triceps, and some dumbbell or barbell curls. Try doing lying dumbbell extensions instead of band work. Make sure you do only two or three fast circuits here depending on your energy level.
Day 3, full body Being in New Jersey, this day depends much on the weather. During the winter, our training for this day is indoors and will be a full body workout using higher reps. For example, a typical day (winter time/indoors) with higher reps looks like this: 1) Barbell Olympic squats: Do 3 X 15–25 reps. 2A) Dumbbell benching or push-up variations: Do 2 X 15–25 on dumbbells or max reps on push-ups. 2B) Do a pull-up variation for two max reps or free weight rowing movement for 2 X 20–30 reps. 3) Clean and press variation: Do 2 X 15–20 reps. 4) Finish with a circuit of arm work and abs for two or three rounds. As an alternative to the free weights used on this day, try doing a full day of calisthenics and bands for high reps. Calisthenics only/high rep day 1A) Squats: Do 3 X 50 reps. 1B) Push-ups: Do 3 X 50 reps. 1C) Pull-ups: Do 3 X max reps. 2A) Band pull apart: Do 2 X 25–30 reps. 2B) Band push-downs: Do 2 X 25–30 reps. 2C) Ab wheel roll outs: Do 2 X 15–20 reps. After discussing calisthenics with other athletes and coaches, I’ve found that they’re way underrated. Coach Ethan Reeve was onto something when he wrestled and always performed tons of push-ups and pull-ups. These carried over into his philosophy for training athletes today, which involves performing much work in short periods of time.
For our weak athletes, we have them perform tons of calisthenics and animal walks to improve their general physical preparedness.
This style of training is great because it develops a foundation and continues to keep work capacity high for those athletes who are of a higher physical preparation level. If it’s warm outside, this third training day is often times a full blown Strongman day or we do two Strongman movements followed by high reps of squats, push-ups, and pull-ups. Strongman workout, example one*** 1. Farmer’s walk X 3 sets: Do one warm up, one moderately heavy set, and one VERY heavy set. The trips are approximately 150 feet. 2. Tire flip for approximately 10 total reps: Do some sample set–rep combos such as 3 X 3 reps, 2 X 5 reps, 3 X 3, 3, 4 reps, or give the athlete a time limit like five minutes and get one flip every 30 seconds or max flips in five minutes! 3. Sled and/or prowler work: Do two rounds each of 150 feet. ***Sometimes we make the last movement a medley like the following: 1A) Backward sled drag with 20-inch thick rope for 75 feet 1B) Hand over hand sled pull X 20 feet 1C) Sandbag carry X 75 feet 1D) Sprint back If we want to remove this movement (medley # 3), we simply head back into the gym and hit two good rounds of high rep calisthenics of squats, push-ups, and pull-ups.
Strongman training is amazing for adding strength, power, and muscle mass. If you want to find something to do on the days that you aren’t training all out, perform some extra work that keeps you moving. Some options are:
See how simple everything is? Begin with a heavy basic lift and follow up with more basic lifts with moderate to high reps. On the “off” days, perform some extra work to improve work capacity and add muscle. Every 2–4 weeks, change the program. For beginners and intermediate level, perform the program above for 3–4 weeks straight. Week 1, introductory to movement/submax effort Week 2, push harder and try to move good weights Week 3, try to break records from week two Week 4, deload with the same program or perform a full week of bands and calisthenics to deload There’s no need to get super-detailed with high reps of 10, 15 or 30. Training heavy might be two reps or it might be five reps. The results come from consistency in training, eating, and resting appropriately. Nothing fancy.
Why do so many top lifters come out of garages and basements containing only a power rack, a barbell, some dumbbells, and a sled? They come out of these simple garages and basements because they have no choice to go fancy. They only have the basics. Now you have a choice. The direction you take is up to you. Zach Even–Esh is a performance coach in New Jersey. For more information on Zach’s methods, visit http://UndergroundStrengthCoach.com and http://CombatGrappler.com.
Questions for Zach? Address them to him via the Elite Q&A.
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