|
I lost 112-80 in fantasy football this week to this guy.
No, I'm not joking. Doesn't it boggle the mind that he can even turn on and operate a computer to manage a fantasy football team?
The truth is, I let Pete win because Monday was his birthday (he turned 12). Actually, it was Derek Anderson and Jamal Lewis - also known as the captains of the Cleveland Browns JV team - who let him win on Sunday night when they combined for a whopping nine points for me.
That's ten points less than my backup kicker (Ryan Longwell) scored with a five field goal performance as he was resting on my bench - but still an impressive nine points more than my tight end (Anthony Fasano) managed with his goose egg. I was hoping that the statisticians would at least throw Fasano a sympathy points for a good block or signing a few autographs on the way out of the stadium. No such luck, though.
So, happy birthday and congratulations, Pete. Bring on the Magic Man for week 3; Kurt Warner's going to lead me to the promised land.
EDIT: The only thing that got beaten worse this week than my fantasy football team was my retirement account. Ouch. |
| Read more |
|
| 1. Hopefully you all can take at least a few minutes out of your schedule to remember those who were lost in 2001 and their families. (and we’re all sending good vibes your way, Steph)
2. I'll start off with a bang; high-heels for babies and children is the single-most moronic thing I've ever seen. If a grown woman wants to absolutely destroy her lower extremities by wearing heels, that's her choice. However, putting a baby in a pair of high heels as she's learning to walk is certifiable. Be careful watching the interview with these people, folks; you will actually get dumber.
Oh, and Britta Bacon? That’s seriously your name? Are you a water filter or a pork product?
3. I finally got around to checking out Alwyn Cosgrove and Mike Roussell’s Warpspeed Fat Loss e-book. This thing is fantastic; I’m annoyed with myself for waiting this long to open it up after they sent it my way a while ago.
I’ll actually be doing an interview with Mike on this very topic next week in my newsletter, so stay tuned – or check out Warpspeed Fat Loss yourself in the meantime.
4. Maybe if we didn’t give out drugs so easily, they wouldn’t be contaminating our drinking water. I never heard of teaching people to eat right and exercise leading to pollution...
5. Great quote from an email exchange I had with pitching specialist Ron Wolforth the other day: “I have truly been blessed in having peers who are truly cutting edge and who are more interested in getting it right than being thought of as right.”
6. Speaking of Ron, I just confirmed this past week that I’ll be presenting two one-hour lectures and a hands-on portion at his Ultimate Pitching Coaches Bootcamp in Houston on December 12-14. If you’re a baseball coach or you train baseball guys, definitely check this event out; there is going to be a lot of great information and thinking outside the box.
7. Just a quick heads-up: if you have questions about the Maximum Strength program (or any of my products, for that matter), please post them HERE instead of emailing me. I figured a comprehensive thread over at T-Nation would be a good way to get everything in one place. And, for those of you who have purchased Maximum Strength, don't forget to check out the online FAQ page to which we allude in the book.
Have a good weekend! I'll be dominating Pete in Fantasy Football this Sunday/Monday. |
| Read more |
|
| Q: A trainer at my gym was telling me that the best way for a bodybuilding competitor to perform lateral raises was to execute them in or slightly behind the frontal plane and in the "empty-can" hand position (he said this is good for long-term shoulder health since he claimed it would strengthen the supraspinatus) while leaning slightly forward.
Do you think this recommendation is conducive to long-term shoulder health, or would it lead to excessive wear and tear and potentially create impingement problems? Or is it a case of this being perfectly acceptable for some populations and a nightmare for others? If it is the latter, who can perform them this way and who should avoid them?
A: I disagree wholeheartedly. The empty can is a provocative test; it's what we do when we want to see just how angry an injured supraspinatus is.
If you want to keep the supraspinatus healthy, you don't need to make a dedicated effort to strengthen it. You need to strengthen the muscles that position the scapula so that there is more clearance through which that tendon can pass under the acromion process. These would include lower trapezius and serratus anterior. Strengthening the muscles of the rotator cuff will help to depress the humeral head as well.
There is also a definite role for thoracic spine mobility (as I wrote about in a previous newsletter) in this situation, as it helps dictate the positioning of the scapulae.
Sign-up Today for our FREE Baseball Newsletter and Receive a Copy of the Exact Stretches
used by Cressey Performance Pitchers after they Throw!
|
| Read more |
|
Over a year ago, I wrote an article called Are You Doing Stupid Stuff in the Gym? In that article, I made a somewhat bold statement that seemed to ruffle some feathers:
"I've said it before and I'll say it again: any healthy male under the age of 50 can deadlift 400 within two years of proper training — and most can do it even faster than that."
Several people took issue with it, but as they say, opinions are like a**holes; everyone has got one. We proved that two years was a conservative estimate for a lot of folks when my business partner Pete pulled 400 after just 364 days of lifting.
Anyway, it's been a while since this statement of mine received any attention, but I just got this email the other day:
A while back you wrote an article on T-nation, and in it you wrote your belief that anyone could achieve a 400-pound deadlift in two years of training. Anyway, here's another point of data to support that.
I started working out July 06. I attempted my first DL that October and didn't start deadlifting regularly until February 07. I used a measly 215 lbs then. I made tremendous progress initially, hitting 385 in August 07. Then I stalled for a long time. In February 08 I made a slight gain to 390 then went cold again. I took a long break from DLing then started on the Coan DL program 7 weeks ago. Finally, 3 weeks ago I pulled 400 for a double, and this week I got 405 for a single.
That's been a goal of mine and I'm pumped to have finally achieved it.
Truth be told, I have absolutely no idea what kind of program this guy used to get to where he is, but it only took him 18 months from when he first started deadlifting regularly. Again, I'm not saying that your deadlift is the absolute measure of your progress or efforts, but I'd say that it's a reasonable consideration for those who are healthy and training regularly.
Get your deadlift up with Maximum Strength.
 |
| Read more |
|
Q: I'm about to start Phase 2 of Maximum Strength and I'm wondering if there's a recommended substitute for the bar rollout. The plates at my gym aren't completely round. Should I suck it up and buy an ab wheel or is there something simple I can do instead? I appreciate your time!
A: You've got a few options. The first, as you noted, is to buy an ab wheel. They're awesome and we use them a ton at Cressey Performance - and they're very affordable at Perform Better.
Another option is to simply set up exactly the same as you would with a bar rollout, but instead, just do an isometric hold at end-range for 10-30s, depending on your fitness level.
If you can't quite do it at end-range, just bring the hands in toward the knees a bit and gradually work your way out as your stability improves.
Get Maximum Strength! |
| Read more |
|
| It's a busy day at CP and I've got a big fantasy football draft tonight, but fortunately for me, Kevin Cox, age 36, of Denver, CO provided some good blog material for all of you:
Eric,
Maximum Strength quickly become one of my favorite purchases. Personally, I felt you did a great job of detailing the why's and how's of your program. I found it refreshing to see a book that focused on performance and promised "hard work" rather than promise results in only minutes a day.
I was more than happy with my results after 16 weeks.
Body Weight: Pre 220lbs, Post 210lbs
Broad Jump : Pre 84", Post 97"
Bench Press: Pre 230lbs, Post 265lbs
Squat: Pre 300lbs, Post 345lbs
3-rep Max Chin-up: Pre 250lbs, Post 265bs
Deadlift: Pre 340lbs, Post 405lbs
The mobility work and active recovery circuits were awesome. Toward the end of my 16 weeks there were times when I was feeling run down and I really believe staying on track with the circuits, mobility and flexibility work is what kept me in the game.
Pick up Maximum Strength for yourself.
|
| Read more |
|
| Two Words: Bench Off!
(Narrated by Tony Gentilcore) |
| Read more |
|
| Chances are you're lunging with a short stride or bad foot placement, squatting with only your knees instead of your knees and hips, and messing up a whole bunch of movements in general. Eric's here to save the day.
Continue Reading...
Sign up for our FREE Newsletter today and and receive this deadlift technique video!
|
| Read more |
|
| On the radio this morning, they were talking all about this 9-year-old in Connecticut who was banned from his little league for being too good. Yes, folks, you read that correctly; we're discouraging achievement and instead rewarding and encouraging mediocrity.
To illustrate my point...
When I was in elementary school, I played the trumpet. I use the word "play" very loosely because I was absolutely terrible - the last trumpet in the band, in fact. I was so bad that I used to fake playing a good 75% of the time. When concert time came around, I'd pretend to huff and puff and blow into that sucker - and while I looked like I was making sweet music, the truth was that my cheeks were just getting redder and redder - and I wasn't making a sound. This great "front" was even better because I was pudgy, and let's be honest: there really isn't anything funnier than a pudgy kid with red cheeks pretending to play the trumpet.
You know what, though? Nobody ever told the first trumpet guy to skip the concert. He deserved his success. For all I know, he might still be playing the trumpet today. Hell, I didn't even practice; I was too busy focusing on what I enjoyed more (which coincided with what I was good at: sports).
What if this 9-year-old really does have what it takes to do something special in the world of baseball? Are we really going to risk his development - both physically and psychologically - so that we can make future lawyers, astronauts, and proctologists feel good about themselves? If that's the case, we better start telling the smart kids in school to stop studying.
The truth is that just as success is great for teaching us what we enjoy and what our place in this world is, humility teaches us countless valuable lessons. Take it from the fat trumpet faker who wore sweatpants to school straight up through sixth grade. I turned out okay. |
| Read more |
|
| Q: My question concerns the combination of your Maximum Strength program and HIIT workouts. Comments I have read by you indicate that HIIT training is detrimental to progress in your program. Could you explain why? Thanks for all that you do.
A: Give this article a read; it should answer your questions:
Of course, some things change if you are a guy who is more focused on getting lean, maintaining/improving cardiovascular fitness, or conditioning for a particular sport that warrants a lot of interval training. It's the give and take between maximal strength and performance in some other discipline.
There are a lot of elite strength and power athletes who couldn't run a mile in under 12 minutes - or even finish a mile at all! These are the folks who either a) have to keep body fat levels in check with diet, lifting, and very low intensity supplemental activity or b) not worry about body fat levels much at all, as strength and power are the name of the game.
For more information, check out Maximum Strength. |
| Read more |
|
LEARN
HOW TO
DEADLIFT
- Avoid the most common deadlifting mistakes
- 9 - minute instructional video
- 3 part follow up series
|
