I was watching some old MMA fights on TV before and it was interesting to see the different physiques each fighter had as well as their level of conditioning: strength endurance, power endurance and overall conditioning.
The bodybuilder type fighters had very, very poor levels of conditioning. They started with a bang and gassed out quickly.
Some of them even got knocked out quickly.
Then there were those who looked rugged, lean and mean. I had seen some of their training and knew that it would deliver in results.
They may not have looked like the guys on the cover of muscle & fitness but man could these guys move with serious speed and they had levels of strength that seemed to never quit.
I used to be a bodybuilder so I remember the feeling of looking like a stud but not delivering on the performance end.
Too many people are missing the boat here and it’s time to change that.
Do you want to make that change?
In Strength,
–Zach–
P.S.- There are a few spots left for The Gladiator Strength Seminar. This will be a very small seminar, where you can expect the utmost undivided attention.
==> http://combatgrappler.com/seminars.html
P.P.S. – Or, you can “spend” your dinero on a seminar filled with scientific, fancy jargon that confuses you and does little for delivering on training that works BIG time in the real world. Fancy talk from book smart gurus who do little in the way of training others with awesome levels of success, let alone training themselves.
It’s time you learned from those who walk the walk and talk the talk.
Filed under Announcements, Articles by on Jul 1st, 2008. Comment. 
He walked through waist high water for over an hour, lifting his legs out of the water on each step to develop work capacity.
He would snatch throw a 220 lb. barbell for 100 reps backwards over his head as a warm up to his olympic lifting workouts.
He trained in solitude.
He trained in training hall or his backyard.
There were times he would train with a barbell in the water as well, diving under and emerging seconds later with the barbell ripped through the water into a power clean.
He did not follow the rules, very much like underground strength training.
One of our athletes, Kurt, who I have written about before, as a modern day Laird Hamilton, surfs on a regular basis.
When he is done surfing, he takes a long swim in the ocean and often times treads water in one spot for 10, 15 and even 20 minutes. He finds a spot 10′ deep, and throughout his treading water he sporadically jumps out of the water. Kurt goes through our most intense workouts probably faster than anyone else.
His work capacity is extremely high. On other days, he performs short workouts in his garage, the local park, playground or takes a bike ride.
Kurt doesn’t follow the rules written in the popular magazines and books. He follows the code of Underground Strength Training: There are NO rules!
Isn’t it time you started breaking the rules?
In Strength,
–Zach–
P.S. - There are some BIG changes happening at The Underground very shortly, you don’t wanna miss out on them. Become a member to become a part of this ass kicking strength training movement and start experiencing the best results of your life.
P.P.S. - If you want to see exactly how I run The Underground, and you want to start doing what you love, immediately, bypassing all the mistakes, then see our Apprentice Video and e mail me. Serious inquiries only please.
Filed under Announcements, Articles, Success, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 1st, 2008. Comment.
Check it out, in the thick of things at The Underground Strength Coach Certification, held at The Underground Strength Gym in Edison, NJ.
What a crew this first group was! The next one sold out asap….not sure when the next one will be, for now, the next way to get in on my ass kicking methods is through the apprentice program.
Damn, that was a FUN, FUN, FUN weekend!
I must say, doing what I love, spending my time with others who are doing what they love, ya can’t go wrong 
I also do a 1 month follow up with all our Underground Strength Coaches and we have been sharing success stories and this crew is killin’ it! Starting boot camps, opening up gyms, traveling to foreign countries to coach sport teams….bottom line, they are taking massive action with speed and following their dreams!
My two take away points for you:
1) Don’t climb the ladder of success, JUMP to the top…with SPEED!
2) Screw the “I’ll do it tomorrow” saying, do it and do it NOW!
One more….
Go BIG or Go Home!
Dedicated to your success,
–Zach–
Filed under Announcements, Calendar, Success, Videos by on Jul 1st, 2008. Comment.
Sometimes, we all need a lil’ kick in the ass….
If you want a SERIOUS, BIG kick in the ass, and you want to learn some serious shit in the world of strength, conditioning, monility, strongman training, underground strength training and more, then join me and Steve Maxwell at The Gladiator Seminar, space is almost full and time is almost near.
Not for the faint of heart.
ALL participants will receive 1 year FREE membership to The Underground.
In Strength,
–Z–
Filed under Announcements, Calendar, Success, Videos by on Jul 2nd, 2008. Comment.
Here’s the tail end of some of the crew tearing it up at The Underground Strength Gymnasium, in good ol’ Edison, NJ.
Here’s the workout these beasts endured…
After our Underground warm up, a powerful blend of mobility, calisthenics, bands, movement prep and stability work, they attacked the following:
1A) zercher squats 5 x 4 – 6 reps
1B) mixed push ups for active recovery 5 x 15 reps
2A) 1 arm dumbbell clean & press 3 x 6
2B) weighted pull ups w/mixed grips 3 x max reps
3) jump rope x 5 minutes
ya gotta move, and this is why if you ever saw our warm up, it could kick the crap out of the majority of people who walk through our doors.
We build our athletes up to this training and push hard for strength endurance, power endurance and overall work capacity and mental toughness.
The jump rope at the end is awesome! Jumping rope develops foot speed, leg power, ankle stability and improves wind, BIG time!
Listen to the music blasting, the guys having a blast while training, the atmosphere and another great day in “the office.”
Kick ass and stay strong, more is coming
–Z–
P.S. – Wanna learn my methods for developing kick ass training programs for athletes, doing what you love and bypassing all my mistakes? Watch our apprentice video and e mail me if you’re serious about getting in the door. SERIOUS inquiries only, as always
P.P.S. – Grill me and see how I do things at the July 12th Gladiator Seminar with Steve Maxwell. We’re gonna spill the beans and blow the lid off your current training knowledge. Get in before we shut the doors and space is filled! Click HERE now.
Filed under Announcements, Calendar, Success, Videos, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 3rd, 2008. 1 Comment.
Wanna get bigger? Wanna look rugged, lean and mean?
Then you better plan on getting stronger, period.
Heavy weights, low to moderate reps, some high rep sets here and there, lots of quality food, quality rest, basics, basics, basics.
So many people wonder why they aren’t getting the results they want, and I always laugh because even though I tell them how, they still have excuses.
They look at one of our freaks at The Underground Strength Gymnasium, Curls, and they think he has special genetics and some sort of secret weapon.
Let me tell you this….
I have known Curls since he was in 4th grade. He was a chubby kid with the LEAST athletic potential. In tag games he was usually tagged first. He couldn’t do 1 good push up.
In middle school, he bagn thinning out, getting taller and performing lots of calisthenics on his own as well as playing various sports: Football, Basketball, Soccer and Track and Field.
He hit the weights HARD in high school. Harder than everyone else.
He joined The Underground when we were in the garage and field, and when he wasn’t training at The Underground, he was training at the high school, running stairs, doing pull ups on soccer goal posts or tree branches in the park. At night he did push ups.
He never skipped breakfast, or any meal for that matter. He brought protein bars to school to eat in between classes.
Today, Curls trains with the furey of a mad man. He can move BIG weight AND move at a VERY fast pace. A pace that makes others run to the designated “puke spot” around the corner of our gym.
That’s one story of a guy who had the least potential and is now the strongest guy in our gym and on his team (and that was as a Freshman in college!).
If you have excuses, then you’ll never build strength or muscle the way you want to.
Less talk, a lot more action = building a lot of strength and a lot of muscle.
You choose.
In Strength,
–Zach–
P.S. – See how we build freaky strength and muscle with our Underground Methods. We don’t mess around.
Filed under Articles, Success, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 4th, 2008. 1 Comment.
Physical culture goes back many, many decades, well over a century. These were times of true strength and athleticism.
Times when men were strong, mobile and agile and… drug free.
Training was a variety of bodybuilding movements and methods, powerlifting movements, strongman drills, gymnastics drills and more.
The physiques developed were nothing shy of incredible, and, ironically, this was the simplest form of training ever. No complications or fancy ying yang methods, yet the results from way back when, are what the strength fanatics of today only wish they could achieve.
The influx of never ending training has confused many, resulting in slow and agonizing progress.
Some of us influenced by Physical Culture tend to lean one way more so than the other. And, this may very well be the case between myself and Steve Maxwell, who I’ll be co hosting the Gladiator Seminar with Steve Maxwell, Saturday, July 12th.
Steve utilizes bodyweight drills, gymnastics movements, kettlebells, indian clubs and the like.
I tend to gravitate towards the methods of the strongman from this iron age: stones, sandbags, barbells, dumbbells and gymnastics based drills.
The end result, regardless of which direction you choose, is phenomenal.
If you are a Coach, this seminar is for you.
If you are not a Coach, and you want to experience a day to blow the lid off your current rate of success and progress, this seminar is for you.
We have a few spots left, and registration is closing in a few days.
Take action now or miss out forever. This seminar will likely never happen again.
In Strength,
–Zach–
The Gladiator Seminar…shutting the doors in 72 hrs. Take action HERE.
Filed under Announcements, Calendar, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 4th, 2008. Comment.
If you’re not a member of The Underground Strength Gym, feel free to take a peek at some of the pics HERE to get a behind the scenes look at what our athletes do on a regular basis.
The Underground Strength Gym is certainly a unique and rare place, if you’re an athlete in the NJ / NY area, this might be the place for you.
Or, you can take advantage of our Underground Seminars, the Underground Strength Coach Apprentice Program or the Underground Strength Coach Certification.
But, this is a special invite, for members of the Gym Only
In Strength,
–Z–
P.S. - I’m making calls for applicants for the Underground Strength Coach Apprentice Program. Rest up during the holiday weekend, I’m calling next week
P.P.S. – Not a member of my gym but you wanna learn about what we do and how it delivers ass kicking results? Then ditch the coffee and check this out.
Filed under Announcements, Calendar, Success, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 5th, 2008. Comment.
This morning I was drinking my morning shake, which I have 2 – 3 mornings out of the week, other days, I go with “real” food.
My wife asked me if I was going to work out today, I told her I would, after cranking out some computer work, I planned on hitting the backyard for some kettlebell training, and then she asked if the gym was open.
Indeed it was, but only for select few who were invited to train on Saturdays in preparation for Joe DeFranco’s strongman contest. Joe never invited outsiders into his competition except for our athletes, which was last year.
My wife encouraged me to meet up with the crew to train with them, little did she know what we were actually doing, and when I arrived today, I was ready for battle.
As the Coach, I am expected to lead from the front, I expect this from myself and my athletes expect this as well.
I know that my athletes have been trained in ways I wish I knew of, and now, many of them are stronger than me, bigger than me, leaner and meaner than me. Regardless, I will be ready for battle, with little sleep and no perfect anythings, it was “Go time.”
Our plans to train outside were quickly shuffled as the rain began to pour down with no let down in sight.
I quickly adapted and adjusted and set up our workout as such:
1) farmer walk dead lifts: 1 x 5, 1 x 3
2) 600 lb tire flip: x 3 reps (flip, run to other side, repeat, etc.)
3) log bar clean and press: 1 x 5, 1 x 30 seconds, 1 x 5 heaviest weight
4) double Kettlebell cleans w/88′s: 1 x 5 reps – my psyche shot me to 10 easy reps!
5) glute ham raise 1 x 12
6) 45 degree back XT w/60 lbs 1 x 12
I finished with some heavy arm work for biceps and triceps. Getting the guns stronger is more important than many people care to admit or understand.
Strong triceps will push up your log bar military press, the biceps endure a lot of strain when performing farmer walks and when wrestling with a tractor tire. All angles must be covered.
Heavy abdominal training will be included during the week.
Note the low number of sets. Less can be more, when less is enough. More is not always better. We aim to train with the minimal amount of volume giving the maximum return. Some thrive on more volume and they are given free reign to do so. Psychologically, some of these Gladiators need the extra volume.
This workout reminded me of the battles I encountered every workout when I was competing as a bodybuilder. My training partner was a wrestler, I was natural, he was not. Mentally, I refused to back down. I knew this would make up for my lack of physical advantages, and, although natural, my intensity would often times nauseate my training partner and others who trained with me.
As you can see, the mind will be your most powerful weapon.
Don’t ever lose your edge, engage yourself in activities that keep you leading from the front.
In Strength,
–Z–
P.S. – A style of training too much for others, this may be just what you need, and just what you’re looking for. Check it out at http://undergroundstrengthmanual.com
Filed under Announcements, Articles, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 5th, 2008. Comment.
No fancy chair for me, no pretty desk to hide behind, only the challenge to lead from the front.
Is it really a challenge, or, is it a choice?
ONLY You decide!
In Strength,
–Z–
P.S. - This style of training is not for everyone. The psyche certainly pushed everyone harder, as we competed against one another. Technique loosened up a bit and insanity certainly jumped up more than a few nothces.
It’s time you began taking part in the Underground movement. Do it here: The Underground Strength Course
Filed under Articles, Success, Videos, Zach's Workouts by on Jul 5th, 2008. 1 Comment.
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