If you lift hard and you lift consistently, you have undoubtedly dealt with injury at some point. It is as inevitable as a surplus of hair gel at a nightclub.
I started lifting weights in my early teens, using the York concrete-filled plates down in my parent’s basement. This was only the start.
Before performing this cycle, you’ll need to take a few weeks to prepare. Don’t try to jump in unless you’re all ready well trained.
On day one in November of 2005, I completely committed myself to making sure that everything, every day was going to be as productive as possible to enhance my strength.
So, you’ve just spent a day’s pay on a great piece of powerlifting apparel, whether it’s a squat/deadlift suit or a bench shirt.
If you did hit that 3000-pound total, what would the breakdown look like for each lift?
MB: Mr. Roberts, give me some background. Take us from the time that you were a little mate until now.
I won’t change much. I plan on running a 12-week cycle of higher volume once I’m cleared to go full speed. I want to gain about 40lbs for November. I’ll need the extra volume to gain some muscle and size.
I just wanted to devote a few paragraphs of my log to the sweet hell I’ve been enduring since my decision – or the forced hand because of my injury – to get lean.
I have a pet peeve that I need to get off my chest. I can’t stand how every hardcore lifter pisses and moans when they’re forced to train in a commercial gym. Now, hear me out before you say, “Paul Leonard isn’t ‘hardcore.’”
This article is geared toward those athletes who need to balance a job, family, and competing at a high level. What I mean by balance is time management.
Humans alone are granted the gift or capability of pondering their existence and the meaning of life. Weightlifters sometimes contemplate why they lift in a quest to uncover underlying factors or reasons that may shed light on their lifelong pursuit of power.
I have a ton of theories about life, lifting, weight loss, and other things. None of them are based on any scientifically proven truth. All of them are based on my observations of the world and people in general.
“Carryover” is a word often used to describe how equipment improves lifts. What kind of carryover has powerlifting had in other aspects of your life?
Big Jim Hoskinson is a top level 308-lb lifter. He has a huge 1100-lb squat and 2500-pound total.
I just always had this desire to be big and strong. I remember at a very early age being impressed with size and strength and having a strong hunger to get that way myself.
As a chick, I must admit it was somewhat intimidating to pull into the parking area of Ocean State Gym alone.
Your height might be making a difference on your deadlift.
I know I’m not the only one guilty of this, but far too often, individuals like myself go online and search for workout routines, help, or guidance
Basically, success is a simple formula. The difficult part is the hard work and dedication that is required.
Do you understand the purpose and usefulness of the powerlifting movements?
The reality of competing in powerlifting is that at some point in time we all have to make weight. Making weight can make or break your lifting performance.
The Lexen Xtreme 2008 IPA Columbus Pro-Am was both a positive experience and, most likely, the last time I’ll drop to 148 lbs.
Size and strength doesn’t have to mean injury.
You can’t choose your potential. But you can choose to fulfill the potential you do have.
On February 17, 2001, Dave Tate opened up the Q&A section on the EFS server to find the following inquiry…
This has been one year I wish I could totally wipe off the resume. I guess it could’ve gone otherwise, but what lessons would I have learned? I
The Kaz press is performed in the Smith machine. It’s similar to a JM press, except there is no rocking back or to a skull crusher – and it’s over the clavicle. Start in the Smith machine lying on a flat bench. Have the arms straight up at shoulder width or a little wider.
Congratulations on your choice to enter the world of strength sports. You’re in for a treat. The training is fun, the results are priceless, and the people are second to none.
There aren’t many among us out there who make a living from their three lift totals.
I haven’t made it back to Texas yet, but I have come up with some more questions for Mark Rippetoe after reading some new material and reviewing some of his previous writings.
When talking about champions, everyone has an opinion just like the BCS College Football Standings. Are champions built or are they born? Are they a product of their environment or are they loners hungry for a piece of the pie?
Technology is a beautiful thing. I used to work part-time as a DJ, and I remember hauling around hundreds of records and thousands of CDs. Transporting all the equipment and the music felt like powerlifting.
Ask any powerlifter what his most important joint is, and he’ll promptly answer “the hips.” The hips provide strength and stability in all three lifts. If you’re weak at the hips, you’re not going to do much on the platform. The same goes for all other athletes. The posterior chain is crucial for athletic success.
I guess that I should explain why the subject of hardcore means so much to me. This is a very strong word in the world of powerlifting. Most lifters want to be considered hardcore to the point that they will train like maniacs so that people think they are hardcore.
I’ve been training with weights for 25 years and have spent the last 25 competing in both bodybuilding shows and powerlifting meets. Although I’ve done fairly well in the sport, it seems my Internet persona has overtaken anything I’ve done lifting.
The great philosophers pontificate about man’s existence preceding his essence.
I believe that goal setting and mental attitude or sport psychology are often the most overlooked elements of any athlete’s preparation. Without a proper plan, what can really be accomplished? Without the right attitude, what can get done? The answer to both questions is not much.
This the first week I’ve been to my gym since the meet. It hasn’t been the greatest month of my life—or year for that matter—but other people got it much worse so I ain’t bitchin’ too much.
I happened to be scanning though some of the powerlifting forums, and I read an interesting post.
Make sure you, the handler, knows where to meet your lifter and when. Make sure to be on time. The lifter doesn’t need to worry about whether his help is going to show or not, he has too many other things on his mind.
Being pregnant has changed many things—my workouts, clothes, eating habits, you name it! However, on a long car ride to Indiana to visit family, I realized that I’m not unlike a large, super heavy powerlifter.
Recently, it has come to my attention that I and team “Disciples of Strength” may have possibly developed an addiction to ammonia caps. I don’t really agree with this, but it may be possible.
Mike Stuchiner is a paragon of tenacity. In 1991, the native of Long Island, New York entered his first powerlifting meet. On August 18, 2007, he earned his first elite total at the Cincinnati Pro Am with a 775-lb squat, a 555-lb bench press, and a 620-lb deadlift in the 275-lb weight class.
It was the afternoon before the meet, a Friday. I weighed in at 240 lbs. Weigh-ins were scheduled for 9:00 am Saturday morning. In preparation for the four and a half hour drive down to the meet site, I started my cutting process by putting on four layers of sweat clothes.
While sitting in the warm-up room at the WPC World Championships in Lake George, New York, I reflected on the three squat attempts that I had just completed in bewilderment.
If strength and powerlifting are the topics, then I want to hear from those who are in the trenches day in and day out
He has elite totals at a body weight of 275 lbs and 308 lbs and totaled 2204 lbs in single ply gear. After that, Hoss tried to make a jump to double ply gear but only added 18 pounds to his total.
If you needed an expert on Russian writer, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, you might contact Daniel Mahoney, a professor at Assumption College. For an expert on squatting, there’s Fred “Dr. Squat” Hatfield of the International Sports Sciences Association.
I first experienced The Visitor shortly after move to Columbus and began training at Westside Barbell. Over the years I have seen hundreds of visitors to the club
It’s similar to when your favorite song comes blasting through the speakers at the gym and you get that little extra charge of power for the movement that you’re performing.
The question of how deep you should go in the squat is constantly debated.
In May of this year, I competed in two bodybuilding shows: The NPC New York Metropolitan Championships and the NPC New England Championships. I
This is kind of a queer way to begin an article, but I still remember the first time I met him like it was yesterday. It was the fall of 2002, and we were sitting on opposite ends of the room in our public communication class as freshmen at Ithaca College.
Lately, it seems as though I’ve been invaded by little kids. I have them around me all the time. Now, this is actually a gift from the gods because they amuse me and put me in a good mood.
With James Smith, Mark McLaughlin, Tom Deebel, Jim Wendler, Travis Mash, Julia Ladewski, C. J. Murphy, Matt Brand, Nick Zostautas, Kevin Deweese, and Tim Kontos