When it comes to my training, I don’t just show up and happen to be able to perform. No one does that. I prepare for each mile marker target ahead of time. I eat enough. I sleep enough. I hydrate. The night before, the morning of; I run my mental game.
More recently, as a result of various social media platforms, some things seem to have gained popularity because one or two highly esteemed lifters or coaches with powerful spheres of influence begin to do them.
With this training-while-traveling program, keep in mind I’ve been in 6 cities in 5 different states in the last 5 weekends and on the road for 20 of the last 35 days. My needs and resources in terms of time, help, equipment, recovery, and a host of other factors may vary from yours.
Try to keep an open mind when trying a new, proactive approach to anything, even if it doesn’t quite feel right at first — whether it be your job, social media, or a new program. Just because it doesn’t feel good right away doesn’t mean it won’t later on.
Whenever I ask for topics people want to learn about in my column, “how to stay motivated” is always at the top of the list. Motivation is in high demand: you see it all over Instagram in memes, pictures, and captions. Despite the high demand, it sure seems like it’s in short supply….
For some, training is just a hobby; but for others, training is much more than that. It’s what keeps me going, and it’s very close to the top of my list of priorities. But sometimes, we need to remember those other priorities, too. Here’s a reminder of what they are.
Now that I had the trip paid for thanks to a seminar event, I could focus on helping my lifters at the US Kern Open: the reason I’d flown all the way from the East Coast to begin with.
It is crucial to delineate these training and competition as separate but mutually impactful things. I’d wager that the majority of lifters who had a bad meet were doing a whole bunch of competition in training, leading up to the actual competition.
Coming back after a layoff can be a chance to address imbalances, but it also presents the opportunity for new imbalances to develop. Common sense suggests that testing strength after a layoff isn’t the best idea. But if you are going to do it, keep these things in mind.
For those of you who’ve never done a meet, save this, and read it again before your first. And for those of you who just can’t finesse attempt selection, here’s a formula I developed to make attempt selection as close to fool-proof as it’ll get.
Live and learn from your failures and mistakes. Be willing to learn, and maybe more importantly, be willing to be wrong. Now go and pass that along.
What’s wrong with powerlifting? Not online coaching. Not Crossfitters doing meets. Not other lifters secretly being deep cover Nazi operatives. Not anything about other lifters, or coaches, at all. All that’s really wrong, from my perspective, is this…
I’m almost scared to type this, but both my hip and spine are functioning at…
In this installment, I will talk a little bit about what I learned from my tour of the Extract Labs facility, from my research of the available scientific data and my thoughts on “why,” “when” and “how” for Cannabidiol, as I understand it.
Committed to doing a few full-power meets before I retire in 2020, I’m searching for some alternative means to deal with the pain related to inflammation. Enter Cannabidiol (CBD).
Having the right crew or partner to rely on, and to train with, can make or break a lifter. It’s one of the most sought-after and difficult-to-find things for competitors and hobby lifters alike.
Everyone can benefit from technical cues, with the contingency that they are employed properly, consistently, and under the correct circumstances — which is more rare than you might expect.
When Kendall Alston and his crew approached me with the idea of filming a documentary about what a normal day in my life looks like—and not simply my lifting or my coaching—it hit my like a breath of fresh air. This video is the result.
After the inaugural 5th Set Black Meet on Saturday, I drove all night to Cincinnati for the Women’s Pro Am. My motivation for a weekend short on rest and long on PRs can be summed up in a single sentence: I love powerlifting.
Trying to understand programming without knowing the terminology is similar to navigating a country without knowing the language: you can do it, but it won’t be easy.
Are you thinking about adding a second AMRAP to the program? What about extending the Very High Rep Protocol to squats and deadlifts? If you’re thinking of it, I’ve probably already thought of it.
It’s story time. So travel with me, if you will, dear reader, back to turn of the century— in the winter of the year two thousand, and meet a very different Swede than the man writing this today.
There is no reason in the world you can’t give up sucking at bench press. No one gets joy from incompetence in the greatest lift ever. No one. That’s something I can help you with.
I realize powerlifters are all lions, beasts, and savages, but let’s not lose sight of the big picture.
How and when should you perform assistance exercises? What protocols are used for assistance work? Should exercises be changed or rotated? What about bands, chains, and specialty bars?
Staying in my own lane and keeping a laser focus on pursuing excellence in the sport of powerlifting is what has allowed me to rise to the top of my field as a coach; specializing, not generalizing.
I posted on Facebook last week asking for input on what topics I should write about for my column. The clear champion was the issue of sex within close proximity to competition and how it should be handled. Let’s start at the beginning.
Despite many similarities and differences between bodybuilding and powerlifting, there’s one key aspect of bodybuilding that powerlifters need most.
Even the strongest lifters in the world can’t figure everything out themselves.
Learning proper lifting technique may be a challenge, but being able to recreate it rep after rep is even more difficult.
Use these tools to hold yourself accountable. My hope is that you can use these ideas to take the helm of your own affairs in training, business, and your personal life.
Would it be wise to follow the same percentage for a given workout for both the main lift and the assistance work? Or should the assistance work be planned differently?
Have you ever wondered what makes powerlifting so hard? Look no further — these guys have the answer.
A lot of lifters think you have to train over 90% week after week to get stronger. Adjusting to a program like 5thSet may challenge you mentally to trust the process, but it won’t be long before you experience the benefits.
What has changed about 5thSet over the course of its rise to popularity? And what is it like being an elite lifter that hands his training over to someone else?
Training in commercial gyms has its pros and cons. This is a call to arms for those who need to hear it.
This weekend would be more of that testing, coaching twenty-one lifters over the course of a single day. People say I am crazy for working with the number of lifters I do.
At least, not at this point. As it stands, we are left with adding up our heaviest successful attempt for each of the three lifts and the sum of those is how a powerlifting total is born.
Rather than explain, in great detail, when and how I think it would make sense for you to do this, I’m simply going to recount how I did it while coming back from a pec injury.
Is it a bad decision to stop performing lifts that cause an axial load on the spine when the back is injured?
If you show up on day one of your wrapped training and start off in the strongest wraps on the market, things are probably not going to go as well as they could.
Every lifter should learn to “fill low” and generate pressure in the proper area of their lower abdomen.
Day 1: Constant, crippling pain. Day 10: Pain free. This is the new game plan for lower back nerve pain.
This protocol seems to be at least as effective (if not more effective) than training in traditional rep ranges, while at the same time remaining far less expensive in terms of recoverability.
The whole point of the US Open was to show Tarra and instill some confidence in what I already knew: that she would still be able to perform well at a lighter bodyweight.
I was unwilling, to my core, to be corrected. I would rather get hurt than admit I was wrong. And I did, many times. Once that character defect changed, so did everything else.
You can be the best in the world or a complete beginner — you’re going to deal with many of the same challenges either way.
For most powerlifters, exercise begins and ends with the barbell. What if I told you there were ways to get better without it?
There are a whole shitload of really good reasons you should get as jacked as you possibly can.
Another year of RUM, another weekend of 5thSet lifters kicking ass on the platform. Thank God no one I work with broke a world record, right?
There are benefits to having a crew and there are benefits to relying on only yourself. Which are most important for you?
For correcting weaknesses in a given portion of a lift, you need to use what I call Mechanically Similar Movements.