Home Posts tagged "Powerlifting" (Page 7)

Maximum Strength: The Personal Trainer’s Perspective

Here's a "Guest Blog" of sorts from Personal Trainer Kaiser Serajuddin, who recently read Maximum Strength: "Writing a testimonial for Maximum Strength is a great way to get your name on a blog read by thousands of people, but I wanted to give my views on the book to deliver the personal trainer’s point of view. I know a lot of other trainers besides me follow Eric’s work for principles and ideas to apply to our clients. And beyond that, I’m an athlete myself constantly looking to improve my performance. In both areas, I found this book valuable. "What we have here is a no-nonsense plan to get straight-up results. Most people today are looking for the appearance of outstanding fitness and health without the reality; for ripped abs or bulging shoulders, and every book is written for this sometimes gullible audience. That’s traditional bodybuilding, which won’t necessarily work for everyone. Here we have a different point of view, where the iron is our measure of success. Incidentally, it’s probably a much more sound system to gaining mass than what most others are following. "I have to count myself in the boat of disillusioned weightlifters. It’s something Eric talks about in the book, which describes me and I’m sure a lot of other people: guys endlessly yo-yoing between bulking and cutting, and ending up right back where they started. That’s why it’s time to implement a different plan. "Talk about the right information at the right time! In the past few months I switched over to a lower volume powerlifting model, and have been achieving excellent results. Now, enter Maximum Strength to help me focus it. If you read that new-age stuff, this is the “law of attraction” at work. If you’re experiencing some of the same frustrations – for example, your strength, size, or performance hasn’t improved in a while – it’s probably time for you to open up to something new too. "Like all of Eric’s writing, this book is based around sound science and principles proven to work in Eric’s practice, not just gym rhetoric. This is especially important from a trainer’s perspective. First off we have an ethical responsibility to deliver proven systems to achieve results with our clients; and for those of your clients to whom it applies, Maximum Strength is such a plan. A solid method to follow and tracking system with principles to back it up is important. You’ll get that here. "Another thing to keep in mind for a trainer is a comprehensive approach. Beyond just strength, Eric keeps an eye on flexibility and joint health here. The description of soft-tissue work prior to exercise with the use of a foam roller is one area I found valuable. I already knew about the importance of pre-competitive soft-tissue preparation, but it took this book for it to sink in. "It’s true that Maximum Strength isn’t as sexy as some of the other books out there. Eric chose not to hire a fitness model and instead demonstrated all the exercises himself. And he inexplicably decided to keep his shirt on, and didn’t tan, shave, or oil up for the photo shoot. We’ve all read all of those books. What you have here is a way to achieve measurable results, which is what I’m sure most people are going for. "It’s also very readable, and not overly detailed. Knowing Eric’s work, there’s a lot of reasoning behind the progressions and choice of exercises he’s laid out, but he chose to save us all eye-strain and kept the plan simple. "You’re not used to getting info of this quality in the general fitness section of the bookstore (maybe it was misplaced?). However, it’s an excellent book that, as an athlete, I’ll be using for performance; and, as a trainer, I’ll be using the principles and exercises with my clients. Thanks, Eric." You can pick up Maximum Strength HERE.
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Feedback on Maximum Strength

"Hi Eric, I just wanted to let you know that your new strength manual is amazing. I am doing the program with two other guys. Before the program, one of them could not even back squat because his shoulders would be in too much pain holding the bar. After two weeks of foam rolling and the mobility work, he was amazed to see that he could back squat with zero pain. Also, I had shoulder pain from benching before starting the workout, and ever since then the pain is gone and we are all improving quite nicely on all our lifts. Just wanted to thank your for the great book. I recommend it to everyone; the dynamic warm-up alone is worth the price. THANKS!" Daniel Pfohl West Seneca, NY To find out for yourself, check out Maximum Strength.
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You Know You’re a Powerlifter When…

...you can't even put your energy drink down long enough to warm up!
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Who Needs Training Percentages?

Q: Eric - I bought your e-book on deloading. Thanks for it! I'm 57 and compete in WABDL. I'm going to do the high-medium-very high-low programming set-up you outlined prior to the 8 week precontest cycle you mention. What percentages do you use in those eight weeks? My next meet is June 14th, so including this week, I'm 12 weeks out. Thanks! A: I rarely use percentages. Think about it this way... If you test your squat and it's 500 at the beginning of a 16-week cycle, and then put 50 pounds on it over the course of that period, the percentages based on that 500 number aren't very accurate by the time week 11, 12, 13, etc. roll around, are they? The secret is to build tests into your training program. Within the high, medium, very high, low set-up, it's best to test them right at the end of the medium and low phases. Or, if you're a more experienced lifter, you can rotate exercises on a weekly basis - and test maxes on lifts almost weekly as long as they're changing. So, an 8-week set-up for bringing up a back squat using this approach might look like: Week 1, High: Front Box Squat, work up to a heavy single, then 5 singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 2: Medium: Trap Bar Deadlift, 1RM, then two singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 3, Very High: Back Squat, 5 sets of 3 Week 4, Low: Sumo Deadlifts, 3x3 easy Week 5, High: Box Squat, 1RM, then 5 more singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 6, Medium: Front Squat, 4x4 Week 7, Very High: Back Squats, 1RM, then 8 more singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 8, Low: 3x5 nice and light back squats (maintain familiarity) Week 9: Retest Back Squat 1RM as part of Week 1 of next phase Week 0: 1RM Back Squat Test
The Art of the Deload
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Enhance your Pressing Days

Hey Eric. I just wanted to see if I could get some quick suggestions from you. I have been powerlifting for a little over a year now and absolutely love the sport. I had been training hard since 2001, but eventually training just to train lost its luster. So I turned to the strength sports. I compete raw in the 181 class and typically weigh 175-178 at any given time. My Squat and deadlift have made steady progress over the past year...I have primarily been using the basic westside template the entire time. Right now I am squatting around 425-435 and deadlifting consistently in the low 500s. My bench press is where I have absolutely made no progress at all...I have actually regressed. In my meet this past weekend I only managed 275 and struggled with 286 as if it were 350. The most I have ever done in competition is 290. I have followed your writing as well as many of the coaches on T-Nation and elitefts. I have read stuff from Bill Hartman about determining whether or not you are elastic dominant or muscle dominant. Right now I think I may need some more muscular based work...going from that dead stop after the pause in competition is very difficult for me...my sticking point seems to be basically right on my chest. If you could throw some suggestions my way on things I can do on my pressing days to improve things I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks for all that you contribute and keep up the good work! A few thoughts on this front: First, it would definitely be to your advantage to get your body weight up a bit during the off-season; bench and squat gains tend to come along quicker when you are less cognizant of weight and more in tune with eating what it takes to support performance. When the time is right, gradually take the weight off and work to maintain the strength you've built. Second, work on strengthening your upper back and really emphasize both speed and heavy work off the chest with a pause. Good luck! Eric Cressey
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Changing Parameters: Volume and Intensity

Q: It's almost the off season and I can't wait to start hitting the weights hard again. Just need your wisdom on a few things. I don't fully understand the volume and intensity weeks. If I perform, for example, 4 sets of 4 for deadlifts on week 1, and the next week calls for 6 singles, how am I supposed to progress since the parameters have been changed so much? I hope that makes sense, thanks for your time EC. A: Work up to a PR in good form for the day in week 2 - and then work backward from that. Let's say you work up to 400 and it's the best you can do in good form - and on the way up, you took 365 as your last warm-up. 360 is 90% of 400, so you've got two singles over 90% at that point. Then, take four more singles between 360 and 400, and you're done. www.EricCressey.com
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Rotten Resolutions

By Eric Cressey

At the dawn of the New Year, billions of people will engage in conversations about how 2005 will be the year that they'll turn over new leaves with profound New Year's resolutions. I'm all for motivation, but quite frankly, I'd rather be a stowaway on one of Richard Simmons' "It's Okay for Tubby Bitches to Dance" cruises than be present for another one of these life-changing affirmations.

A New Year's Note

Before I get to the meat and potatoes, I need to define the scope of this article. I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that if you're reading this magazine, you're reasonably devoted to your health, appearance, and performance (or at least the first one). With that in mind, if your resolutions consist of "general health" things like "eat nutritious foods" or "get more sleep," I'd encourage you to take the power cord to your computer and beat yourself senseless with it. Your number one responsibility on this planet should be the one to yourself. If you can't handle the responsibility of taking care of yourself, how can you possibly expect to be good at taking care of others? We accept all kinds of responsibilities – jobs, children, mortgages, pets, you name it – but often ignore our responsibility to ourselves all the while. Being healthy is something that you should reaffirm with every action you take in every minute of your life; you don't need to resolve to "try harder" in 2005. You need to quit talking and start acting. That said, the resolutions to which I'm referring relate specifically to pushing the bar (pun somewhat intended) with your specific training and nutrition goals. Examples include improving lifts, speed, and agility; getting to a certain percentage body fat; and achieving a desired body weight through skeletal muscle hypertrophy. What's this guy's problem? Good question; I knew you'd ask (although I kind of hoped that you wouldn't, as it would have saved me a lot of typing). Remember the first time you ever lifted? I sure do; my big brother brought me – a porky little seventh-grader with curly hair and rosy cheeks – to the high school weight room for the first time. Of course, egos predominated, so nobody was squatting or deadlifting; there was no chance that I'd be able to salvage my pride by using the reasonably conditioned legs I had from years of soccer. Instead, they plopped me right on the bench. I proceeded to get pinned under the just the bar (after a good fifteen second fight in which I almost got it past the sticking point, mind you). Now, let's assume that I had actually known enough to keep lifting then. Chances are that I could have benched the big wheels within a year or so of training; it would seemingly have been a logical New Year's resolution for me to set. However, when you consider that I probably wasn't even strong enough to lift the 45-pound plates to load the bar for an attempt at the big wheels, then I'd be setting myself up for a world of failure – not exactly what a kid who already shopped in the "husky" section of Filenes with his mom really needed. On the other hand, if I had broken the "road to junior high bench press glory" down into a bunch of achievable mini-goals, then I would have been much better off. Now, I know what you're thinking. Newbies are different; experienced lifters can come up with appropriate goals. Oh, really? In light of the following year-end assessments of 2004 resolutions from a thread on our forum, you might want to have humble pie instead of pecan pie this holiday season. Lifter 1 2004 Resolutions: Squat 700, bench 500, and deadlift 600. Year-End Self-Assessment: "No, no, and no. I had to straighten out issues with my squat. The good news is that I think I'm getting there. 600 [squat] was a joke at the last meet, and 625 felt very light as well. I'm not being a bitch here, but if I had a legitimate shirt, I would have hit 500 on the bench. I paused 495 in training a couple of months before my last meet and wound up barely hitting 480 at the meet. So I was 20lbs shy. I may or may not have had the deadlift in me, but I wound up with 570. I had more at that meet, but I'll have to save that for next time. Bombing out of the September meet kind of screwed things in general." My Take: Aren't the holidays supposed to be a happy time? Resolutions are even more troublesome for powerlifters, as nobody really competes on December 31. I true year-end lift total isn't a reality, so it's a lot more appropriate to go meet by meet and plan in weekly/monthly time frames. Lifter 2 2004 Resolutions: Snatch grip deadlift 405, front squat 275, and power clean 315. "I think these are achievable. The clean may be pushing it. The others are an increase of maybe 50 pounds, but I have not focused my training on bringing them up before. I plan to focus on back for the rest of 03, which will assist each of those lifts." Year-End Self-Assessment: "No for everything. I *might* be able to put up 275 on the front squat right now, but I haven't tried yet. The deadlift is not close; I'd be doing good to pull 345 snatch grip right now. The power clean was stupid, anyway. Boy, I suck." My Take: I don't want to kick him while he's down, but talk about setting yourself up for failure. Hell, he didn't even test most of the lifts. It's never a good sign when one of your goals is "stupid" by the end of the year. Ouch. Lifter 3 2004 Resolutions: 300 bench, 350 Squat (ass to grass), 400+ parallel squat, and 500 deadlift. "All in all, I want to get stronger while staying lean. I'm currently just trying to get over 200 (at 195 right now). Ideally, I would love to be 210-220 by beginning of summer, lean out back to single digits BF, and then just focus on putting on the mass again." Year-End Self-Assessment: "Bench was close; I got 295 up last March. Squat: I think I was repping with 265 for 5x3 at one point. Deadlift -YEP! Body weight: got up to 210. I would have easily achieved all my goals if I hadn't gotten injured." My Take: Injuries threw a wrench in his resolutions; just imagine how much easier goal-setting would have been if he'd done it month-by-month. More importantly, he wouldn't be frustrated now at year's end. I'd much rather be frustrated about a less than optimal month than I would be for an entire year of shortcomings. Lifter 4 2004 Resolutions: "Get my weight to 250; currently 225 at 6-4. 350 bench; currently 310 raw. 500 deadlift; currently 415 w/ straps (6mos ago). 400 squat; currently 335 on box squat slightly below parallel." Year-End Self-Assessment: "Body weight - Currently 255 but was as high as 272. Bench - Did 340 raw in early spring and haven't tested since. But all my bench numbers have improved. Deadlift – 530. Squat - Box Squatted 475x1. All in all, a good year. Learned a lot about myself and what I can do if I get my mind right. I'm looking forward to '05. My Take: As you can see, this guy blew his goals away – probably by the end of August. It almost makes you wonder how this rapid achievement will impact his future goal-setting experience. It goes without saying that shorter-term goals are easier to approximate, so you won't over- or undershoot your true capabilities. Plus, gains don't come linearly; you might see a 30-lb. jump on a particular lift over the course of a session or two just by correcting your form, or a lift might be stalled while you focus on other areas. Monthly goal-setting allows you to accommodate these hills and valleys without getting too "up" or too "down" as you view your long-term goals. I should also note that there were five posts by people on this thread who have since dropped off the face of the Earth; I can't imagine that doing so was conducive to fulfilling their resolutions. All this is just the tip of the iceberg; there were dozens more regulars who didn't report how things turned out for them. Got a better idea, you schmuck? Sure I do; I'd never offer constructive criticism without including solution recommendations. Figure out your long-term goal (or estimate it). Where do you want your life to go personally, academically, and professionally? Don't resolve to do anything with this long-term goal; just hide it in the back of the refrigerator next to that moldy tub of cottage cheese that you keep forgetting to throw out. You'll consider it every day, but it won't be a tie that binds you; it can stay in the fridge, get tossed in the garbage, or revised as needed. One year doesn't mean a damn thing in the grand scheme of things; you need to be thinking longer-term (your big goal) or shorter-term (what you can do right now to get closer to that goal). Let's say that you're hunched over your computer screen reading this and you decide that you want to get rid of your nagging shoulder injury. Are you going to wait until January 1 to get started, or are you going to fix your posture now so that your shoulders aren't rounded and your upper back doesn't look like that of a 90 year-old osteoporotic woman? If you're a beanpole and need to pack on some size, are you going to wait until January 1 to start pushing the calories, or are you going to grab your fork and get to work on a steak while you're reading the rest of this article? If that's not enough of a foot in the ass, hopefully this appetizing reminder will help:

Now, let's talk training. Do you really think that you can plan specifically for the entire year in one sitting? If you try to do so, you'll be ignoring the value of cybernetic periodization, which involved modifying volume and intensity based on how you feel at different points in time. You'll also be underestimating the value of the knowledge you'll gain over the course of the year; this knowledge may impact your programming. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, you'll be failing to take into account potential roadblocks such as injuries, personal obligations, and cases of volatile and unpredictable diarrhea (sorry for mentioning that last one, folks; I just needed an intense kicker to top off the paragraph).

What I'd like you to do for the next year is have twelve resolutions – one for each month of training. Your strengths and weaknesses are sure to change over this time period, so it makes more sense to hone in on what you can do in four-week cycles to get closer to your long-term goal. With one week left in each month, I want you to sit down and write out all your glaring weaknesses. They'll be your priority as you plan for the next month - none of this two-months-in-advance planning. Don't just say what you want; make several resolutions that relate how you'll achieve your goals. I'll use myself as an example. My long-term training goal is to be an Elite powerlifter; I'll have to make a Master's class total first (hopefully at my next full meet - April 2005). I know where I need to be as well as where I stand now, having done a push-pull on December 18th. This competition helped me to better realize where my weaknesses exist, and in combination with what I already knew, I can now plan for the month of January. As I planned in late November, the remaining days in December will be used as a bridge between active recovery and introducing the already-calculated higher volume of my January program. For January, I resolve to:

1. Squat against a crapload of band tension in weeks 1, 2, and 4. 2. Utilize the safety squat bar for all good mornings to keep my shoulders healthy in spite of using this band tension.  Continue to hammer on my lockout on the bench. 3. Do more horizontal pulling . 4. Get into my new bench shirt twice (second and fourth full ROM bench sessions). 5. Continue with my shoulder and scapular stability prehabilitation (related to #3). 6. Devote more work to top-end deadlifting. 7. Do neck harness work once per week.

Chances are that the tasks at hand will be somewhat similar for February, but I won't put anything in stone until the last week in January. The important thing is that I'm not just saying what I want to achieve; I'm delineating how I plan to going about getting the job done. Closing thoughts Summarily, I'm just encouraging you to break your long-term goals into smaller tasks and omit the classic one-year resolution altogether. If you can't even accomplish short-term tasks specific to your goal, then how can you resolve to get things done over the course of an entire year? If you're saving up for a vacation, do you expect to "earn" the money in lump sums off of 4-5 winning scratch tickets, or do you bust your butt day-in and day-out at work, accumulating a few bucks with every paycheck to get your closer to your goal? Why go for the whole shebang when you can't even get part of it right? Have your long-term goals, and then recognize what you can do right now to get to them; stay away from the half-ass in between stuff, leaving New Year's resolutions to those who won't even be going to the gym anymore by the end of February.
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Rookie Reminders

Compiled by Eric Cressey

So you've finally made the decision to give up the "all show and no go" bodybuilder's mentality in favor of powerlifting, huh? Glad to have you aboard; please leave your posing trunks, tanning oil, and pink dumbbell triceps kickbacks at the door. It goes without saying that one's first powerlifting meet is an exciting, yet confusing -- and potentially disastrous -- event. Admittedly, I'm a powerlifter without much true competition experience under his belt, so it wouldn't be fair for me alone to put something together on this topic. With that in mind, I met up with four experienced lifters -- Jay Floyd, Ross Bowshers, Dr. Tom Deebel, and Steve Coppola -- to discuss first meet madness, and collaborate on a piece on how to avoid bombing out and looking like an ass in your first meet. EC: Welcome, fellas. Before we get started, let's clue the Rugged audience in on your lifting backgrounds so that they know we're talking to some pretty strong and smart lifters. JF: I'm 25, and am about to complete my M.Ed. in Health and Physical Education. I have a job awaiting me teaching health and PE and coaching football and strength and conditioning at a high school in Georgia. I got into powerlifting after an athletic career that included football, baseball, basketball, track, and even competitive collegiate cheerleading. Lifting was also a big priority throughout; and graduated high school with a raw 500 squat and 335 power clean. My last year of cheerleading was terrible and I really wanted to be competitive in something, so powerlifting seemed like a great fit. When I first started training for powerlifting with the Westside principles, my box squat was 365, deadlift was 495, and my bench was less than 300. After seven months (approximately six weeks of which was compromised due to two-a-day cheerleading practices and a shoulder injury), at my first meet, I squatted 575, benched 335, and deadlifted 535 at a body weight of 238. At my last meet, which was 356 days after my first meet, I squatted 771, benched 402, and deadlifted 633 at 265. This was all drug free. I'm tempted to make a run at Strongman training in the near future.

RB: I am 22 and played college baseball for three years: two at the Vincensses Junior College, and one at Division 1 University of Tennessee-Martin. I had to have stomach surgery during my junior season, at which point I decided to go back home to Indianapolis. I needed some thing to keep my competitive demeanor satisfied, so I checked out an Elite Fitness seminar and got totally hooked. I did some small local meets and then had to have stomach surgery again, which set me back 6 months with no training. I have been training very serious for the last year and a half but haven't been able to get to a meet recently because of my job and a recent injury. At a body weight of approximately 280-285 pounds, my best gym lifts are a 735x2 box squat, 505 bench press and 595 deadlift. Currently I am employed by the Franklin Boys and Girls Club and coach the Indianapolis Grizzlies College baseball team and go to school at IUPUI.

TD: I started powerlifting at the 1982 Pennsylvania Teenage State Championships, and competed approximately 12 times over six years ending in 1988. I started at 132, but after two years I moved up to 148 where I competed for 5 more years. My best ranking in the ADFPA/USAPL was Class 1. After chiropractic college, I continued lifting, but various injuries kept me from competing. In 1998, I began to learn ART, which helped to fix my injuries, and started training with Westside methods, which brought the excitement for lifting back. Last year, I did a deadlift meet and a push/pull. As of right now, I hope to be healthy enough to make a Class 1 or Master's classification later this year. My son, Tommy, Jr., is getting into the action, too, as you can see!

SC: I’m 22 years old, and compete in the 242 weight class as an “amateur” lifter. My best meet numbers are a 725 squat, 450 bench, 620 deadlift, and a 1795 total done in IPA meets. I’ve been a competitive athlete in various sports since age 8, but have only been competing in powerlifting meets since 2003 when my college baseball days came to an end. I’m lucky enough to train with a great group of lifters in Buffalo, NY; this group includes Paul Childress and Joe Dougherty, two of the top lifters in the world in their respective weight classes. We train using a conjugate system that is similar to Westside Barbell.

EC: What are the biggest mistakes you see novice lifters making before their first meets? JF: The biggest mistake I think beginners make is not knowing the rules and the ways of a meet. By this I mean how the warm-ups go, the technical rules, what equipment is legal, etc. I cant tell you how many times I have gone to a meet and some person during the rules briefing asks the dumbest question ever. Watch videos of lifters in the same federation that you will be competing in; doing so will allow you to see the calls and signals that are made in real competition. The best thing you can do is listen, especially during the rules briefing. Read the rules before you go. Know all the technical things so you can concentrate on your lifting. You can find articles at Elite Fitness on what to do at a meet; these helped me out tremendously. I would also recommend getting easy-to-use equipment at the beginning. Any single ply suit and bench shirt should do in the beginning. Get it early and get used to it. RB: The most common problems have to do with equipment. For example, one of my training partners was getting ready for APF teen and junior nationals, and after a great training cycle that took his bench almost up 100 pounds and his squat close to 150 in about 20 weeks, UPS lost his squat suit, and it took him six extra weeks to get it. He got it three weeks out from the meet and the legs were too long (needed to be tailored) and it was super tight; he couldn't even reach a parallel box with 635 pounds and had problem getting it up two weeks out! A $500 trip to Omaha was not too wise for him to go out there and bomb on the squat, so his dropped out. Get your equipment early and train in it! Other than that, powerlifting is just like any other sporting event; keep your nerves in check and don't sweat the small stuff and everything will be fine... TD: The biggest mistake novice lifters make is being unprepared for meet day. It's a great idea to see exactly how things run. You have to be familiar with the time it takes to warm-up, get on equipment, get ready for your attempt, and know how to perform the lift according to the rules. A beginner should really go see a meet first. The second mistake is not bringing enough stuff. You need meet-day food that you can tolerate, drinks, aspirin/Advil, your equipment, and any other comfort items. There can be long delays, so a book, Walkman, or Gameboy might take your mind off delays. EC: I put you last, Steve, because I know you've got a ton of these. Hit what the others haven't covered; the floor is yours! SC: In no particular order…

1. Not going into the meet fresh, and rested enough. Too many people overestimate their recuperative abilities, and don’t realize what it truly takes for supercompensation to take place, so they essentially wind up being overtrained leading into a meet. In my experience, this tends to occur moreso on the squat and deadlift than the bench. In my gym, we recommend lifters take their last heavy squat/bench/dead at least 2-3 weeks prior to meet day, minimum. Sometimes we will push this minimum to 3-4 weeks out from meet day for the deadlift depending on the lifter.

2. Not being familiar enough with one's equipment. It seems so obvious, yet so many people have no idea how to use their equipment come meet time. This could apply to getting it on and off in a timely manner, as well as how to perform in it. The bottom line is that you need to be confident in how to use your equipment with plenty of time to spare (weeks!) before the meet. 3. Not bringing an experienced handler - or any handler at all - to the meet with them. Although an experienced handler is preferable for obvious reasons, any handler will work to help get equipment on and off, give attempts to the scorers table, go grab food or water, tell the lifter how far out they are from being up, etc. Lack of any type of handler usually spells disaster (unless your name is Jay Floyd and you’re too cool for handlers and can wrap your own knees!) for the poor-planning lifter, and will also cause fellow lifters to get pissed off when the poor-planning lifter constantly asks them what’s going on. 4. Not bringing back-up equipment, shoelaces, etc. Anything you will use in any way on meet day, bring a back-up. Sometimes things go wrong, so you have to be ready. Speaking of readiness, be sure to pack plenty of food and drinks, as Tom mentioned. 5. Not being realistic with attempts. The novice lifter should aim to make as many lifts as possible in his or her first meet. This allows more PRs to be set, builds more confidence, and allows for steadier progression in subsequent meets. The novice lifter, in my opinion, should be hitting numbers on first and second attempts that have been done confidently in the gym (as judged by someone who has some meet experience, if possible), and should be aiming to set a PR on the third attempt. Technically, every attempt made will be a “meet PR” anyway. Failure to go into a meet with this mindset has resulted in many a novice bombing out or missing too many attempts; this not only hurts confidence, but also leaves too much doubt about what kind of numbers the lifter is really capable of hitting. 6. Not taking bands and chains off of the bar leading into meet week. Most novices probably aren’t doing advanced band/chain cycles anyway, but in the event that they are, they would be well-served to use straight bar weight on most of their exercises for a week or two before the meet. There a few reasons for this practice…most of them have to do with recovery, and the fact that the body needs to re-adjust to straight bar weight from a nervous system standpoint. Bands, especially, have a grounding effect; once taken off the bar, the lack of this grounding effect can lead to some instability in the lifter if sufficient time (a couple squatting/benching sessions) is not allowed for a regaining of balance. 7. Not knowing the rules of the federation. Jay already touched on this, but it warrants reiteration. The lifter should know the rules of his or her federation of choice prior to meet day. Different feds have different rules about each lift, and how they are performed. This might seem obvious, but I missed two benches in my first ever meet because I kept forgetting the fed I was competing in that day (USPF) had a “start” command on the bench at the time. 8. Not knowing the monolift rack height in a meet with a monolift before taking first attempts. Get under the damn bar before the meet starts and figure out your rack height, and tell the judges and scorer's table. This can be costly if not done, as it can be a bitch to basically squat a max attempt twice if your rack height is way too low or slightly too high. 9. Not timing warm-ups properly in the warm-up room. Don’t rush warm-ups and don’t take too much time. This comes with experience, but a good idea is to try and take a warm-up every 5-10 minutes depending on how many people are competing in the meet (if there are a lot of people, as in twenty or more in your flight, ten minutes between warm-up attempts is probably not too long). Have an idea of where you fall on the opening attempts list so that you can time things a bit better. EC: Awesome stuff, Steve. Knock back a post-training drink to replenish what that dissertation took out of you while I talk with the other guys. Before I move on, though, I'd like to add a little bit to Steve's third recommendation. Make sure that your handler knows where the meet is, how to get there, what time it begins, and how long he/she should plan for travel to the event. I learned this hard way in my first meet; fortunately, somebody else was able to help me out. Anyway, moving on…how important do you think it is to go and watch a powerlifting meet before you compete for yourself? Did you do so before your first meet? JF: Going to a meet before you compete is a good idea. At the first meet I went to, the meet organizer offered to let me sit next to a judge during the competition so I could see how things worked and he could explain things to me. I declined because I had been to a competition a few years before and had watched a million videos online. RB: Not that important...When I decided to get into powerlifting, I basically started calling people in my area who were the best. I had been training for about three weeks and went to train with Ron Palmer and Rocky Tilson's crew; they talked my training partner and I into a SLP meet that next weekend we went and did the meet never having seen one in person. In fact, my training partner, Justin Fricke, set the SLP Indiana teenage state bench press record at that meet! The people in powerlifting are great; Justin actually borrowed a shirt from Mike Coe, a WPO competitor, because his ripped. Here was a champion helping a young kid in a pinch even though he'd only known him for a week; you just don't see that kind of mutual respect and kindness in other sports. We have found all people in powerlifting to be great and helpful, especially Jim Wendler, who has by far been the most helpful for me personally. TD: It's a great idea to watch a meet and a better idea to help a friend first to see the flow of meet days. I highly recommend it. SC: I think this is very important. If possible, the novice lifter should be accompanied by an experienced lifter (whose brain can be picked by the novice as they watch the goings-on of the meet) if at all possible. I actually did not do this before my first meet, and it showed. I basically screwed up just about everything I could have on meet day. Things would have been a lot less stressful had I taken this logical step in meet preparation. EC: What would be your recommendations for picking attempts in a first meet? JF: It depends on how you train. If you train with a Westside-influenced program, you will probably have no idea what your 3RM is, so the idea of "picking something you can do for reps" isn't very applicable. At my first meet, I opened at 525 even though I had never even had that much on my back before. Every meet since then I have opened with my best from my last meet. I don't recommend that, though! I would say take something that you know you could do on a bad day. This is where working up for some heavy singles on dynamic day can help. I knew I could box squat at least 450 before my first meet, so I figured 525 wouldn't be a problem. Since then, I have just opened high enough to be able to take medium jumps so I could get my goal. I opened at 705 at my last meet because I wanted a shot at 804 if given the opportunity. I did 705 at my last meet for a PR, but knew I had a lot left in me. RB: Just make sure that it's a weight you have lifted a ton of times in training; be very confident with the lift. The best way to do this is to pick a max effort weight that is usually your 90% lift - the lift you know you're going to get easy before you head to your max attempts. A good example for me is around 440 on the bench. When I am training, I know no matter how terrible I feel I can always hit 440, and after that, it's really time to focus. If i can hit it in the gym feeling average, I can certainly nail it in a meet with the adrenaline and ephedrine flowing and focus at an all-time high. Plus, it's not far off my best, and screw up my total too bad... TD: Your opener should be 100% I can make it with the flu and explosive diarrhea. Your second should be very close to a max, but you're very confident with it. The third is for placing, PRs, or goals (e.g. 500 deadlift). Remember to be honest with your self. Don't attempt hopes. You've trained and should therefore know what's possible. SC: I talked about this in my laundry list of novice mistakes. The first attempt should be extremely easy: something the lifter has tripled in the gym. The second lift should be something the lifter can confidently single in the gym. The third attempt should be something slightly greater than what the lifter has done in the gym. Equipment problems, strict judging, nerves, etc. can make an easy triple turn into a grueling single. EC: Good stuff, gentlemen. A lot of federations will give newbie lifters fourth attempts if they make their first three. This is also the case with going for records, but most newbies aren't shooting for records in their first meets. Nonetheless, if you you’re your first three and feel like you have more left in the tank, ask for a fourth. It won't count toward your total, but it'll be nice to go home knowing that you didn't leave a ton of weight on the platform. Now, let's talk planning; how far in advance should squat and bench cycles be planned? JF: For beginners, I don't think it matters much. Once you get a little more advanced, it should be a little more structured. For my last two meets I have done three weeks of chains, three weeks of blue bands, deload, four weeks of circa max, and then a deload week before the meet. This has worked very well for me. For my dynamic bench, I just alternate bands and chains every three weeks ending with either chains or straight weight. For my other days, I just rotate my max effort exercises. For beginners, I would just use an undulating wave every three weeks ending with a deload week before the meet. After you get more advanced, you will have to decide when you want to add in circa max phases and things of that nature. RB: Twelve weeks is great. One thing that I need to take into account is the bar; even though I have a Texas squat bar, it still beats up my shoulders really bad, so I want to spend as little time under it as I can. If you have 16-24 weeks before a meet, use the safety squat bar or a cambered squat bar for 12 weeks or so. What I like to do is alternate the bars each week for dynamic squats for 8-12 weeks after a training cycle; both these bars really bring up weakness, so after these cycles you will be a lot stronger with a regular bar. The first time I did this last fall, I got about a 60-pound increase from one six-week cycle with each bar. You will, however, need about 12-14 weeks with a regular bar to get your groove back. During this time, get under some band tension and work on your specific weakness such as strength-speed and speed-strength. The best specific meet dynamic squat cycle I have used is Jim Wendler's Squat Training: A Different Perspective. TD: Eight weeks would be sufficient. If you're farther out, just do two cycles. SC: At my gym, most guys shoot for a solid 12-15 week training cycle leading into a meet. This number comes from years of experience combined with how most of our squat cycles are structured (5 week mini-cycles). It allows for a week or two of adjustment if things get screwed up, too. Basically, it’s enough time to get done what we’d like to get done, and if that can’t happen, there’s enough time to get done what HAS to be done. EC: How do you structure your training in the week after a meet? I found that I was able to get back to work sooner with my bench work, but the posterior chain took considerably longer to recover. I hit my first bench session three days after the meet for a repetition day, and got back to a light dynamic squatting session five days after the competition. The days in between were reserved for some GPP, extra work for my upper back, swimming, hot tub, and even some EMS. JF: If you did things right, you just put in at least 12 weeks of very intensive training with a meet at the end. Take some time off! You more than likely won't have a meet for at least another 12 weeks, so who cares what you do? I see guys saying that they are going to do this or that when in reality not going to the gym at all may be the best thing for them to do. I usually take at least until Wednesday off. After my last meet, I went to the gym and did some sets of five on reverse band presses…that was all I did! On Friday, I would do my dynamic squat with straight weight going really light. I might only use 345 or so…something easy. Then, on Sunday (dynamic bench day) I would get things back to normal. RB: Eat and sleep. I have found swimming to be great for recovery; treading water is great GPP and helps me recover TD: The week after a meet I either go light or don't train at all. I recommend doing other active things to get away from lifting. It also gives you a little reflection time for your accomplishments or mistakes. SC: In my case, post-meet training, at least for a week, usually consists of light recovery work. I normally begin speed work in the second week after a meet, and won’t do a true max effort single until the end of that second week, or the beginning of the third week after the meet. EC: Can newbies compete too often? Is there a time to just can competing for a bit and focus on training? I couldn't wait to get back under the bar after my first meet in spite of the fact that I knew my body needed to recover; I felt like I had learned too much about what I needed to do to be more successful to be sitting around! JF: I think beginners should compete at least every 12 weeks or so. Obviously it is going to be limited by what is around you. You might have to travel. For my last two meets, I have traveled a total of 22 hours. I think the training that you do the weeks before a meet are much better than "normal" weeks of just training. Motivation is higher and you are more likely to put in that extra effort. A beginner's level is so low, that they are not likely to get burned out by competing more often. I competed five times last year and my total went up over 300lbs. I don't think it hurt me any. I don't feel that you should consider limiting your competitions until you hit Elite status. RB: Money and time are the limiting factors. I live in Indiana and only do APF and IPA meets, but there aren't any meets in this state for those federations. So, for me to go to a APF or IPA meet, we're talking about a $300-500 or so weekend. I got to school full-time and work part-time, so money isn't falling off trees for me. I had an injury this year that prevented me from doing my most recent planned meet, but it's proven valuable in that it's an opportunity to continue to train and get stronger over the next few months before I compete again. The PR goals will still be reached regardless of whether I do four meets this year or one. So, for me it's really financial; if I am going to spend the money, I want to be 100%. TD: For a new guy, I'd think up to four times a year. Many lifters of all abilities do up to that many competitions. A newbie does have to get out there to learn the ropes, so they may need to do a meet or two more each year than a more advanced guy. SC: Yes, and yes. If there are technical problems and/or injuries occurring in a lifter, time should be taken to remedy these issues before serious meet training takes place. If the lifter is anything like me, the entire preparation, and completion of a meet can be very taxing from a mental standpoint from about 10 weeks out from the meet until it’s over. If this is the case, mental recovery is also something a lifter - newbie or not - needs to consider. Although newbies normally can, and probably should, compete a bit more often than a seasoned pro, they should take the time necessary between meets to recover, evaluate, and properly prepare for another meet. A decent number to shoot for is probably around 3-5 meets a year for most lifters new to the sport. EC: That's some excellent information, guys; thanks for helping out with this. I'm sure that a lot of newbies out there will benefit from it. Just as importantly, they won't annoy the more experienced lifters with silly questions at their first meets! Then again, when it comes to the pre-meet time period, the only stupid question is the one that isn't asked.
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It Looked Good on Paper

Q: Eric – I read your article, “It Looked Good on Paper,” where you recommended the following for an experienced lifter who is too weak for his cross-sectional area: Week 1: 8 singles over 90% Week 2: 6 singles over 90% Week 3: 10 singles over 90% Week 4: 2 singles over 90%, or 2x3 easy (5RM load) My questions are: 1. Do you test out each week? 2. How many times do you do this protocol per week for an exercise - once I am assuming or am I incorrect. 3. When you hit failure just after PR , how do you approach the next set. Drop down slightly and try stay at the highest possible load or back off fully to the drop off threshold and try work back up again (does it matter)? A: This would only be performed once a week on a lower and/or upper body day. There are essentially tests built in to each session. For the singles over 90% stuff, how you get those numbers will depend on your best for the day. Here's what it might look like on a bench for you: 45x10 135x5 185x3 205x1 225x1 230x1 (PR for the day) - 90% of 230 is 207, so only the 225x1 would count toward your total (you've got two over 90% by this point) So, to get five more singles, you'd take between 210 and 220 for your remaining sets. If you MISS a rep, count it as two singles over 90%. The idea is to NOT miss reps, though. Remember that you aren't going to be using the same exercise each week; you'll want to rotate more frequently than that.
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Product Review: Ultimate Sales Kit for Fitness Professionals

EC on the Fitcast

On Sunday night, I had the pleasure of being a guest host on the Fitcast with Kevin Larrabee and Dr. John Williams.  We covered a lot of ground; definitely check it out.  Here are the download instructions directly from Kevin:

To Get the episodes of the FitCast:

1) If you do not have iTunes, I highly encourage you do do so here (it's free): http://www.apple.com/itunes 2) If you do have iTunes (or, once you've downloaded it for free above), click this link below and your iTunes player will be launched, showing you all The FitCast episodes: http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=151651969&s=143441 3) Once you click the link above and iTunes has launched, hit subscribe (this is also free).  This will make sure that you're notified each time there's a new episode of The FitCast 4) At this point you can either listen to The FitCast on your computer or you can download it to your mp3 player for listening in the car or whenever you like. 5) Also, as a quick heads up, if at any point in time you lose these links, you can search for The FitCast in the iTunes store (www.itunes.com).  Just make sure you choose "The FitCast" with Kevin Larrabee and Dr. John Williams. 6) Finally, The FitCast has a web site with links to all the stories and websites that are discussed in the show.  Here's that link: www.thefitcast.com.

Product Review: Jim Labadie’s Ultimate Sales Kit for Fitness Professionals

As you can imagine, as we open up our own facility, everyone in the Excel crew has been reading a lot more business books of late.  I’ve been fortunate to have several mentors point me in the right direction on this front, and a guy whose products kept getting recommended is Jim Labadie.  I’d seen some of the stuff he’d done with Ryan Lee, so I had a good idea of the high-quality he had to offer.

As such, I threw my hat in the ring and picked up some of his stuff; it’s absolutely fantastic.  If you’re a fitness professional looking to be successful and learn how to work smarter instead of just longer, you need to pick up Jim’s Ultimate Sales Kit.  This collection of nine audio CDs offers a wealth of information about the sales process, publicity, establishing systems, and a whole lot more.  I wish I had known about it several years ago; it would have saved me a lot of time, frustration, and money.  I can tell already that it’ll be worth every penny, as stuff like this pays itself off 100-fold.  Check it out for yourself:

An Interview with AJ Roberts

I figured that you were probably getting sick of hearing from me, so this week, we’ve got a new interview for you.  If you haven’t heard of AJ Roberts yet, consider this interview your introduction to one of the future stars of the strength and conditioning world.  I’ve interacted with AJ via email for several months now, and we finally had the chance to meet up and talk some shop at APF Seniors in Las Vegas last weekend.  To say that I was impressed with his knowledge, passion, and enthusiasm for lifting and coaching would be an understatement; this guy is wise beyond his years.  Watch out for him in the years to come.

EC: Thanks for being with us today, AJ.  You’ve really opened some eyes in the powerlifting community over the past two years.  Could you please fill our readers in a bit on your background?

AR: I am 21 years of age and am currently attending the University of Idaho, where I’m seeking a bachelor's degree in Sports Science.  I have always been involved in athletics. From an early age, I played various sports and in high school I was a three-sport athlete with football, basketball, and track and field.  In my senior year, I was ruled ineligible, and this is when I began my powerlifting career.

In February of 2004, I began training with (now University of Washington strength coach) Matt Ludwig and (world squat record holder) Brent Mikesell.  Under their guidance I have set state, national and world records in multiple federations and have accumulated a 950-lb. squat, 661-lb. bench press, and a 700-lb. deadlift, with my best total being 2300.

EC:  You just got back from the APF Senior Nationals, could you tell us how that went?

AR: I competed in the 308-lb. class despite only weighing in at 284 lbs.  I'm not a big fan of cutting weight, so I just lift in whatever weight class into which I fall.  I had high expectations going into the meet and knew that it was going to take a 2400+ total to win.  Unfortunately, I only managed to get my opener in the squat (935) and after seeing so many people bomb out, I lifted conservatively to make sure I finished the meet.  I did manage to get an 11-lb. personal record in the bench (661) and finished with a 2295-lb. total, which was good enough for second place.  Hopefully, I can put it all together at the World Championships in November.

EC: Big numbers – especially at age 21!  You’re also involved in coaching at the collegiate ranks right now; please tell us a bit about that.  What are you doing?  How do you like it?  What are you learning from the experience?

AR: I have been a volunteer/intern in the Vandal Athletic Center at the University of Idaho now for almost two years.  In this time, I have been lucky enough to work alongside several different strength coaches, assisting with football, basketball, swimming, and soccer.  I really enjoy the hands on experience of getting to run drills, coach, and watch the athletes develop over the years.  The biggest thing that I will take away from my experience is that is not what you do, but the way you do it that is important.

EC: You’ve said that you’ve got the world’s best squat coach in Brent Mikesell.  What is it that makes Brent such a tremendous squatter and coach?  What insights can you pass along to our readers that will take their squats – and the rest of their lifts – to all new levels?

AR: There aren't too many people in this sport that love it and are as dedicated to it, or the lifters involved, as Brent is.  He works harder in the gym than anyone else I know, and even when he is hurt or sick, he will be there to help spot and load.  There are so many little things that I have learned from him it would be impossible to summarize it all here.

EC: How has being a competitive powerlifter impacted you as a coach?

AR: The biggest trait that I have carried over into coaching is the emphasis on perfect form.  I'm constantly working with the athletes to make sure they are not sacrificing form for strength, which is common due to the competitive atmosphere that is often created in a varsity weight room.

EC: I have to say that when we were talking at Seniors, you reminded me a lot of, well, me!  You’ve got that way about you; you’re always thinking that there is a better way to do things.  And, more importantly, you’re thinking about what that better way is.  With that said, randomly throw some idea out there that will really make our readers say “Oh, shit, that really makes sense!”

AR:

  • You must always seek knowledge from those who are more knowledgeable than you and who know what it takes to be strong!
  • Speed is more important than your ego!
  • Full range of motion work is the most important part of training; lifting big weights to a high box or a 3-board in the gym is not going to help you hit the numbers you want in a meet!
  • Your upper back is just as important as you lower back!
  • Being strong and being technical are just as important as one another!
  • Simple is still best!
  • Nothing beats hard work!

EC: I know I’ve been sending a ton of resource recommendations your way, so fill me in on the ones that have impacted you the most and think that our readers would benefit from.

AR: I would say the following are must buys for anyone who is serious about strength and conditioning

1. Professional Fitness Coach Program Design Bible by Alan Cosgrove

2. Supertraining by Mel Siff

3. Essentials of Weightlifting and Strength Training by Mohamed F. El-Hewie

4. The Sport Training Profits Program by Ryan Lee

5. Magnificent Mobility DVD by Eric Cressey and Mike Robertson

EC: Ha!  You already got the interview, AJ; you didn’t have to butter me up with that last one!  Anyway, fast-forward five years; where is AJ Roberts going to be?

AR: Hopefully, I have established myself as one of the best strength coaches in the nation and will have opened up my own sports training facility.

EC: I’d put money on it.  Hell, just from chatting with you, I’d hire you just to keep you from becoming one of my competitors!  Thanks for taking the time, AJ.

That’ll do it for this week’s newsletter.  Be sure to check back next week for some more exclusive content.

All the Best,

EC

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