Archive for Powerlifting
More than any other training protocol, technique or exercise, Elite Fitness Systems’ Dave Tate credits accommodating resistance with having “the greatest impact on our training at Westside Barbell in the past five years.” Whether you, like Dave, squat 900+ or if you’re just shaking the drops off your ears, fresh off completing your Starting Strength progression, accommodating resistance is a great tool for intermediate and advanced trainees who want to get bigger, stronger and faster while adding some fun into your training.
Accommodating resistance is actually a loading protocol that uses several tools to accomplish great things. It’s also a polysyllabic mouthful that basically means the weight/tension in the lift is adjusted to challenge your stronger ROM more than the weaker parts. For example, we can load chains on the end of a barbell so that when lowered in a bench press or squat, weight that was supported at the top of the lift is now on the floor, making the bar effectively weigh less at the bottom. Read More→
The BEST Beginner Training Program
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The best training method for new trainees is Mark Rippetoe’s Starting Strength. This simple template will pack on muscle and make new lifters stronger than any other program I’ve witnessed. I wasted plenty of time doing silly routines copied from bodybuilding magazines, only to learn the hard way that those bodypart split systems only work well for dudes with, ah, let’s just say they’re getting a little extra help from the needle. The amazing thing about SS is that even after all that silly training, I still gained size and strength from using its simplified outline.
Despite being an internet legend, or perhaps because of its wiki-fied viral spread, SS is widely misunderstood and misused. Some versions only use the five major barbell exercises Coach Rip devoted a couple hundred pages to describing in his signature witty style. Other ‘versions’ of SS float around the internet. A change here, a change there; soon enough, you’ve got guys doing ‘Ripetows’ that miss many of the key points from the irreproachable original. I’m going to discuss what I feel is the ideal program for new trainers. Those familiar with his work will understand why I’m giving much thanks and a lot of credit to Rip, but you can still learn a thing or two about how to properly utilize SS: Read More→
Movement Mastery – How to Power Clean
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Image: CrossFit Atlanta
I’ll give you $20 bucks if you can name an exercise that is as widely misunderstood and commonly executed as poorly as the power clean. It’s a staple of high school football weight training routines, yet for some reason, many coaches never bother to teach their kids correct form. It’s just like the quarter squats these seemingly well-meaning ‘mentors’ espouse: poor form to boost the numbers. If you’ve been reading our other articles, you notice that we preach the gospel of good form because it both puts you in the strongest position and helps you avoid injury. We’re going to dramatically simplify the power clean here today so that you can learn how to do it, possibly in one session: Read More→
Movement Mastery – How to Deadlift
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Chances are, you know someone with chronic back pain. Americans spent a staggering $86 billion (eighty-six billion dollars!) on spinal treatments in 2005. The interesting thing is that this increase in spending seems to have had no positive impact, and researchers concluded that spinal problems actually *increased* during the decade that witnessed a 65% hike in back remedy spending. Having worked with plenty of friends and clients and discussed the topic with peers, it seems clear that this Madoff of a wasted investment could have been solved by one simple word: deadlift.
Movement Mastery – How to Bench Press
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Hey, brah, how much do ya bench? Good luck overestimating how many times this question and its variants have been posed over the last century. Just as bulging biceps have come to symbolize strength and power, the bench press has somewhat erroneously become the default measure for raw strength. Those in the know (like you, now that you’re here 
understand the value of a balanced strength training program and realize that deadlifts and squats are better for total-body strength, but that takes nothing away from the bench press as one of the most efficient builders of upper body strength. To ensure that you don’t become just another washed up meathead benching 225 week after week with no progress and plenty of nagging shoulder injuries, we’re going to emphasize proper form as the key to maximum gains and pain free progress: Read More→
