If you’re a kid with some athletic potential but is knocked over by a slight breeze, you need to start training and eating properly. Here’s how!

How different can programming be for swimmers? Let’s take a deeper dive into how the Tier System fits perfectly into portions of the swim event and the number of days we train (no pun intended).

It is no secret that I have always used dynamic training and that I have my clients do it as well. My standpoint is that everyone can get something out of dynamic training, but the dose of it may vary.

The primary drivers of aging can be narrowly reduced to inflammation, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial function. Here’s how to manage them.

Here’s an excellent example of how to place extra workouts in a weekly off-season football training schedule along with what an extra workout accomplishes (or should).

Get your ass out there and start dragging some sleds! It’s not as much of a drag as you think it is. With 22 variations to get you started, the possibilities are truly endless.

Yes, sandbags. Nothing new for many coaches but always used as a tool when “better” training implements weren’t available.

Believe it or not, it took less than $20,000 to get my gym, THIRST, up and running. It’s a little over a year old now, and it’s still going strong. Point is, you don’t have to be a millionaire to start up your own gym. Here’s how I did it with THIRST.

No idea what to do now that your meet is over? Here is an easy guide to help you make the most out of your “off-season.”

The Train Your @ss Off with Dave Tate event was not only a life-changing experience; it was also truly something I will remember forever. It has made me a better coach, a better training partner, and a better overall human because it helped me figure out what is truly important in my life.

If you’ve dreamed of training the same way Dave Tate’s athletes do, today’s your lucky day… well, not exactly. Maybe you can’t train like them, but you can sure warm up like them!

What do Dave Tate, Nick Showman, Louie Simmons, and high school athletes have in common? A love-hate relationship with the trap bar… and a few other movements.

As with training any new client, there is a trial and error process to see what is effective and what isn’t. In this case, the training system I have put in place for my swimmers has supported them in breaking multiple national records in various events.

Most college programs that I’ve seen basically run three sets on all accessories. I didn’t want to be most college programs. I had to find a way to do a ton of work and build work capacity but also not run the kids into the ground. That’s where waving volume came into play.

If you’re not sure where to start training a 12-year-old who’s a complete novice in the weight room, this program might just be the place.

I found that I was even able to take something away from the women’s only seminar, and these takeaways helped me in my coaching abilities and some made me ponder more on the female experience and perspective in a male-dominated area. I also got to interview three NCAA female student-athletes.

Here, in this article, you will find the answer to why accomplished coaches and athletes I’ve been fortunate enough to know gravitate toward the iron and have made it a core element of their life.

Fun fact: the farmer’s walk is one of Brian Alsruhe’s favorite exercises of all time. It works your grip, back, traps, biceps, core, and calves… what’s not to love?

A couple of years ago, I was fixated on all the wrong things. The big picture was out of scope. I urge you to take the time to slow down on accomplishing tasks and enjoy the process. Build relationships and make memories — you’ll regret it if you don’t.

Believe it or not, sometimes max effort work is not the best option. Here are a few scenarios where that may be the case as well as what you can do to fill in the gaps where the max effort method would be.

Not every athlete can feel their spine twist into a pretzel, so how do you teach them not to do that? This article will give you a model for how to manipulate the sense of touch to create an altered feedback environment for your athlete. Work your way up from simple movements, such as the prone stick hold, to something more complex, like the overhead press.

I never cease to be amazed at how messed up new collegiate athletes are when they start lifting in the weight room. Year in and year out, this keeps happening without any sign of improvement. Why does this keep happening?

Brian Alsruhe’s training style is going to be different than what you’d usually see at the elitefts S5 Compound, but that certainly didn’t stop him or Team elitefts athletes from exchanging ideas and having a good time.

In my last article, I went over 2 of the 5 dysfunctions of a team. Here, I’ll cover the remaining 3 and how to bring the team closer together.

Want to smoke your old PRs? Try applying daily undulating periodization, or DUP, to your programming. Rather than changing sets, reps, and intensity every 6 to 12 weeks, DUP changes those variables on a daily basis.

Parents are understandably worried about their children starting strength training. Ease their minds by selecting appropriate exercises for their kids.

A strong neck is critical to preventing concussions in athletes participating in contact sports — but what are the best ways to strengthen necks?

My first experience with elitefts equipment was from the days I was a Division I strength coach at the University of New York at Buffalo. Let’s just say the price was not the only factor in why I decided we should go with elitefts equipment.

I read about the loss of bodybuilding legend, powerlifter, and two-time Mr. Olympia, Dr. Franco Columbu. I hardly need to go into the impact he had on bodybuilding. His life was a life well-lived, one with a deeply personal and meaningful purpose.

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.

I used the book The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team to help bring my athletes closer together, especially when there was a major shift in the team. These exercises helped bring us closer together and improved performance and morale.

If your lifts are stagnating, it’s time to think and look outside of the box.

If you’re after Gobstoppers, Reese cups, Jolly Ranchers, Snickers, or Candy Corn this October, knock on your neighbor’s door. If in fact, you’re after exercises to strengthen your spinal erectors, a conjugate triphasic program, an injury equation, intramuscular pressure, and alternatives to the Olympic lifts, click here. And of course, you’ll find the most popular content from September in here too. Nobody by the name of Freddy is here. I promise.

Strength training for runners is the chassis that underpins the abilities of speed and endurance to help these withstand practice and compete at a higher level — no meathead approach here! Plus, all you need for this program is a buddy and a band. Easy peasy.

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.

I love and hate programming. When I’m doing research and reading stuff, my brain goes a million miles per hour. Of course, everything I read seems like the greatest idea ever, so I have to dial it down, but I’ve gotten better at it over the years, and it shows.

Eating the same foods too often can lead to a wide range of significant problems, such as difficulty breathing, an upset stomach, bloating, joint pain, low energy, skin rashes, lack of motivation, inability to focus, mucous build-up, and more.

I’m no wizard when it comes to baseball, but I’m about to blow your mind: My team lifts heavy, keeps volume down on max effort work, does a lot of speed work, and I don’t condition the strength out of them.

In the strength industry, we’re putting too much emphasis on the side dishes. We’re combining the main course and the dessert. When’s the last time you smeared your cupcake frosting over your fat juicy steak and mushrooms?!

As with all great articles and ideas, this one was inspired… by a controversial tweet. Rather than rail against the idea that newbies shouldn’t use the French Contrast Method, I argue that this training method actually may be suitable for beginners in some situations.

How many of these things do you think about when you’re training? What could you be doing to make yourself and your training partners better?

Quick fixes: They’re usually bandages on a leaky pipe. But in some cases, a quick fix might be more like the duct tape that fixed the Apollo 13 module. These 3 technique fixes are like duct tape for your deadlift, so wrap up and strengthen that lift.

As we begin to swing into autumn, take a quick fall into the piles of content we have stored away for this month: more Table Talk episodes, exercise variance, conjugate, strength training equipment (for injured rugby players and small budgets), food allergies, internship opportunities, and more!

You know, we hear coaches complain about their athletes’ excuses… but let me tell you, coaches can be just as bad. Case in point: The excuses coaches make for not making their kids do box squats.

I am currently working as a consultant for a pro rugby team, and I was asked about the type of player I would require moving into a pro team. Fair warning: What I wrote here may be considered heretical in the strength and conditioning world…

The cue “push into your belt” has lifters focusing on the front of their bodies. But this operates under the assumption that the torso will expand in 360 degrees, not just out toward the front. In order to have the best brace, we need to rework our understanding of doing so in the first place.

Enough with the “back in my day, kids did this…” crap. Today is today. Things haven’t changed that much, and if you can’t adapt to what has changed, maybe you shouldn’t be a strength coach.

I’m here to remind everyone that we all have a part to play in making our field better and safer for our athletes. It’s on us to ensure our athletes, schools, and overall profession are all the best they can be. Start by implementing these 5 simple steps in your program.

Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again to get a different result. That pretty much sums up the strength and conditioning industry, doesn’t it?

Before you go find yourself a hill to sprint up via Google maps (steep hills, such as those in landfills, are ideal), don’t forget to warm up and stay hydrated. It’s a sprint, so go all out!

The content calendar for August is packed with special content from Justin Harris, Vincent Dizenzo, JM Blakely, and Jordan Shallow that’ll bring you gains in muscle, strength, and knowledge. For a sneak peek at what’s to come, read on ahead!

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.

Someone once told me when it came to programming, their objective was to be able to get as much bang for your buck as possible. That stuck with me, so I ensure my programs are of good quality and don’t last more than 45 minutes.

Powerlifting is so much more than physical strength. Yeah, that’s part of it, but only a fraction of the big picture. Are you strong mentally? Are you strong intellectually? Are you strong emotionally? Let’s find out.

A bad program can tarnish more than reputation; it could end a young athlete’s future. These kids are in the most important developmental years of their lives, so it’s up to us to give them the tools to be the best they can be, and these key components are a good place to start.

Universal Pro Gym’s clientele might mostly be made up of bodybuilders, but that doesn’t stop owner Bob Caron from ensuring that all people who walk through the doors get a personalized experience and a variety of services — including an on-site barbershop.

In January 2017, Marc Keys and I embarked upon a labor of love to develop a questionnaire investigating what the various groups of people who make up the rugby industry think are the key elements of the physical preparation of the rugby player. Here are the results.

Alwyn Cosgrove made quite the splash at the SSTSS 2019 event, so it’s only natural we’d have him sit down with Dave… plus, we have a couple of other guests joining Dave and Alwyn. Any guesses? Their last name starts with ant and ends in O…