I have been competitively powerlifting for over 20 years. Within that time I have competed raw, single ply and multi ply. I hold the highest all time total of 1930 at 148, the third highest total of 2045 at 165 and have broken over 35 world records, over 25 of which I still hold. Through the years in this sport I have learned a great deal from various training methods, met and formed long lasting friends, as well as learned the importance of balancing life, work, and training.
Elitefts accepted me as a team member over ten years ago and I am currently the longest standing still competing powerlifter on the site. I appreciate Dave Tate and Elitefts for giving me the opportunity to learn from and teach others through the Q&A and my training log.
In 2005 I opened Orlando Barbell – a 24 hour powerlifting friendly gym. As well as running Orlando Barbell I designed and sell the Home GHR and Doorway Home Gym, wrote the 12 Weeks to a Bigger Bench EBook, and produced the 12Weeks to a Bigger Bench DVD.
My latest contribution was writing the M2 Method EBook, designed to be the quintessential Raw Powerlifting training manual for beginners to advanced lifters looking to get stronger and prevent injury while incorporating the powerlifts.
I'm currently in off season training and plan to compete in the single ply division in the APF Gulf Coast Winter Bash on December 5th.
As I previously mentioned in my “I’ll never live to see 40” post: (I’ll Never Live to see 40.). I realize that I need to start focusing more on improving the efficiency of my heart and improving my mobility. I also realize that I’m not a big fan of either one of these, so I need to find a way to put myself in a situation where I have no choice but to do them.
A few years ago I went to American Top Team to train MMA which is something I had wanted to do for a while. Although I enjoyed it and did well it destroyed my strength and made me drop weight quickly. My plan now was to find a martial art that would meet my needs to increase my mobility and improve my cardio without inhibiting my strength.
I searched for local martial arts locations and found a non-commercialized studio that teaches Oom Yung Doe, which is a combination of 8 different martial arts. The location is on my way home, they have a class at 12:30 which is ideal (I work a split shift from 9 to noon and 4 to 8) and they don’t have contracts. It’s also basically a combination of Tai Chi with some self defense thrown in so it’s enough to get my heart rate up and incorporates a lot of mobility work. They also include weapons training, which is completely impractical but fun and also great for mobility. I wanted to make sure that it was something that I’d stick with before I decided to start posting about it. Now that I’ve been going twice a week for a few weeks and feel noticeably better, I’m confident that I won’t be stopping anytime soon. I have to admit that I often don’t feel like going, but always feel much better after I do.
It’s serving the purpose I was seeking perfectly. Who would want to be a hired assassin when you can have the honor and integrity of the Samurai?
My plan is to keep training the M2 Method (the way I've trained for many, many years) 3 times a week while incorporating the Oom Yung Doe twice a week for an hour. I’ll keep you updated.
The M2 Method Raw Training Ebook
The Affordable and Effective Floor Based Home GHR
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