Block Periodization is not a one-size-fits-all training system. It is not a matter of sets x reps, exact exercises, and personal beliefs.
Everything you need to know to enter the world of powerlifting is right here.
Here are my suggestions if you are training in your garage, thinking about competing in a powerlifting meet, and are intrigued about the conjugate method of training.
This 6-week cycle is for the beginner and intermediate lifter who has reached a plateau. You’ll rely on core, plyometrics, and squats to achieve a new max.
Coming from someone who didn’t listen to these tips the first time and learned the hard way…
This 8-week program is perfect for those who are just getting into strongman, or for those who have been doing bodyweight and band workouts for the last few months.
Too many people focus on hitting the big 1RM and forget the little stuff that gets them there.
Sometimes life gets busy and it cuts into your training time. However, that doesn’t mean you still can’t get a good workout in and make progress.
You don’t need to hire the Stephen Hawking of all trainers, but you’ll still want a knowledgeable, safe, efficient, and successful trainer.
I’m going to share a program with you that someone asked for my advice and input on. I know very little about this lifter. I got a little bit of information from them through Instagram, but other than that, what I’m writing are my initial thoughts and an improved program based on this information.
You don’t have to be an expert lifter to make your training partners better. You just have to always be actively watching and engaged in training. Here is how you can be an asset to your group — even as a newer lifter.
Keep in mind the training frequencies listed here can still vary a lot depending on the person. These are just numbers to keep in mind as you figure out the best frequency for you!
Wrapping someone else’s knees might seem easy, but when it comes to being a self-wrapper, that’s another story. Luckily Joe Sullivan’s familiar with being a self-wrapper, so he’ll show you the ropes — and how to better wrap your training partner’s knees.
My hope for any of you lifters, young or old, novice or elite, would be that you can take a more educated approach to your next training program, and managing your training schedule and economies is a great place to start.
The goal with this series is to get to you to think about how you can manipulate the max effort, dynamic effort, and repeated efforts to fir your needs and to understand that conjugate is a fluid system that requires experimenting.
It’s great you can point out each origin and insertion of every muscle, but your client doesn’t care. Your end goal is to get your client results and to make them feel better about themselves — not getting them to the point where they’re limping out of your gym.
In conjugate, accessory work plays a huge role, even if it isn’t one that gets the attention. Accessory work is going to help fill your gaps and prevent you from developing new ones.
As I said in Part 1, conjugate is one of, if not, the most effective training systems when it is executed properly. Moving a light weight fast isn’t enough to make the dynamic effort method work. Moving a light weight fast with intention is.
In my opinion, conjugate is one of, if not, the best training systems — when employed properly. If it isn’t working, don’t disregard the system; instead, check your application.
Learn the secret that we’ve kept under wraps until now: How to properly wrap your wrists for the Big Three: bench, squat, and deadlift.
As with anything in training, the answer always is “it depends.” With the max effort method, I can do one of these things for two hours just on advanced principles that deal with the max effort method, or I can do one very that’s simple. I choose simple.
Doing more gen pop or accessible workouts doesn’t make someone any less strong. Just ask elitefts athlete Yessica Martinez. Or, better yet, read her training logs to see how doing yoga or some gen pop exercise could lead to some bigger numbers in the squat.
Newer lifters seem to think that they can squat 1,200 pounds in less than a year of training. I hate to burst your bubbles, but that’s not going to happen. It’s a long game, and you need to understand that if you’re going to survive in this sport.
Move over college football, college powerlifting is coming for you! OK, fine, powerlifting might not be as popular as college football, but it does provide prospective students with another way to knock down the full price of college tuition: scholarships.
“If I train strength and conditioning at the same time, will both suffer?” Unless you are taxing your recovery or training in completely disparate ways, you can train both domains. Here are a few ways you can do that.
If you understand the science of physics and how to apply it, you’ll have a better understanding of sports and performance enhancement. You owe it to your athletes to understand the fundamentals. Let’s get started.
To this day, I still have new members of my gym argue with me on nutrition and training, only to regret not listening later on. Follow these tips and you will not only continue to get stronger for years to come, but you will also stay injury-free.
No, that white powder I sniff before lifting is not cocaine — it’s smelling salts! If you’re curious about smelling salts, you’re in the right place because back in my day, we would’ve never wasted the greatness of smelling salts…
Try out this very effective program for hypertrophy that’s ideal for beginners and intermediates alike. All you’ve got to do is train four days per week using this three-day split: push, pull, and legs.
If you’re new to powerlifting, you don’t need gear. Seriously. Start training raw and see where it takes you. Oh, and if you’re an athlete, I’d better not see you putting on lifting gear.
This is a series of videos Dave Tate asked us to republish due to the number of times he sends them out each week on his Instagram AMA and DMs.
In a week, my girlfriend and I went from the APF Women’s Pro-Am in Cincinnati to taking our dog an Intro to Herding Class in Nova, Ohio. I didn’t know what I was getting into, but I learned a lot about dogs, sports, and life in general.
Consider this me throwing you a lifesaver in the vast sea of information. This will help you figure out how to improve yourself by seeking out the best information possible… and how to best find that information.
If you’re new to strength sports, don’t be afraid to go into a gym and try to figure shit out. You don’t need to hire a coach immediately — in fact, Dave Tate and Hypertrophy Coach Joe Bennett recommend going into the gym with a friend and have some fun.
My son sent a text last week — just a video of him deadlifting in our garage gyms. We discussed one of the mistakes we discovered he was making at the start of the pull. It was our discussion that influenced this article.
Plan, execute, evaluate, readjust, and repeat. Those are the steps I take when developing a program for a client — and coincidentally, the same ones I cover in this article.
Packing the basics is just half the battle. Meet sites can be cold, uncomfortable, and might be far from easy access to good food. All variables need to be taken into consideration while packing for meet day… and these 44 items will help you cover your bases.
It’s a system, not a program. It can be tailored to suit whatever your goals are: powerlifting, athletics, CrossFit, marathon running… You name it, and this system can’t be beaten. This article is meant to show beginner powerlifters how to set up their own conjugate-based program.
Don’t be the newbie lifter who falls into the tiger pit traps during your training cycle. That’ll only hurt you in the long run — or at least in those first competitions. Don’t be afraid to start training too light and save your attempts for the platform. Not enough advice? I’ve got six other tips, so read on…
Many people will say, “Don’t do it with beginners” and it’s a good thing I’m somewhat anti-establishment because DEM has been a great tool in the development of a lot of beginner-athletes. The simple answer is: just do it.
There are times when new lifters have the determination to improve, but they don’t have a coach in their corner to help them stay focused and make the necessary adjustments to their technique.
These seven mistakes are by far the most prevalent I see for powerlifters in their first meet. They’re also very easy to avoid if you know how.
The garage gym is getting a lot of use as of late, I am happy to say. It is frequently rumbling with young athletes who remind me of an important fact of the early training years.
Your future in this sport deserves to be worked on not only at the gym and with your physical strength and power, but outside of the weight room as well, with your mental focus and contemplation.
You can build a powerful looking body without ever entering a power rack. But you’ll never really be strong. Stronger than the average guy, sure, but not the type of strong you dreamed of when you first set foot in a gym. For that kind of strength, you need a heavy bar on your back.
Without question, the number one reason most lifters don’t lift the weights that they are able to is…
While putting together a training presentation for a local high school, I gave some thought to the things I wish someone would have told me in high school. I probably wouldn’t have listened anyway, but here they are.
I’m going to give you what I wish I always had: a damn good guide for beginning coaches for their first meet. If you don’t have a mentor or somebody to help guide you, this is perfect for you.
Dave has responded to this question many times but, like the sport of powerlifting, the answer evolves. Based on the sport today, here are guidelines for expectations, performance, and how to design a program.
With five years in the sport of powerlifting, my best total before I came to Westside Barbell was 1685. After training at Westside for a little over three years, my best total is 1950. Here are the big issues to avoid if you want similar progress.
Here are several reasons free weight training coupled with a real gym can be a superior alternative for a female trainee.
Let me introduce you to a young gentleman from my gym. Like a lot of inexperienced lifters, he didn’t understand what it really means to keep your nose to the grindstone.
What’s the difference between a teenager who is an absolute beginner and an older lifter coming back from a decade-long layoff?
These exercises will provide you with a great deal of return on investment. They will not only make you stronger but also healthier and more stable in the squat, bench press, and deadlift.
I’m going to share four key components to packing on more muscle and getting stronger by actually backing off the weight.
Through articles two and three we have now shared the first fourteen, of many, perspectives for the beginner and intermediate powerlifter to consider. Let’s dig into the next five.
Through my years in the gym I have learned a lot about training, about life, and about myself. From my personal account, these are the most valuable lessons the iron has taught me.
I have some grown up advice for your training: start training like an adult and quit worrying about whether or not it’s fun. This program actually produces results, and in my book, results are a hell of a lot more fun than feel-good training.