It’s GREAT to be Strong.

It’s GREAT to be Conditioned…..

But it’s BEST when you have BOTH Strength AND Conditioning.

If I can pit one example of this I’ll use my friend, Jim Wendler, shown in videos below. He keeps everything simple.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Jim’s strength work is centered around his 5 3 1 program.

Jim’s conditioning is centered around hill sprints and prowler sprints. He punishes himself on these 2 conditioning methods.

I’ve found that when you’re in shape, you get stronger much easier and vice versa.

If you pay NO attention to conditioning and only attend to strength you will:

- increase chances of injury

- carry around excess body fat

- your intense strength workouts will fatigue you too quickly, not allowing you to get the most bang for your buck, tiring yourself out before it’s time to crank your assistance work

If you pay NO attention to strength & only focus on met-cons and conditioning work you will:

- Feel like sh*t when a heavy bar is thrown on your back or in your hands

- Heavy lifting will fatigue you too quickly and likely increase chances of injury under heavy lifting as your tendons / ligaments have not been prepped for heavy loads & straining

Click here to view the embedded video.

Note: Jim doesn’t drop the 150 lb dumbbells. Why are people unable to do this with only 50 lb dumbbells, let alone the 150s!?

Here are 3 Ways to Blend Strength AND Conditioning:

1) Start with 1 strength lift in a 5 x 5 or 5 3 1 format, followed by a circuit of your assistance work.

Example:

1) Zercher Squats 5 3 1 Style

2A) Glute Ham Raise 4 x 10 – 15 reps

2B) Double Kettlebell Cleans 4 x 6 reps

2C) Lunge Jumps 4 x 6 / 6

3) Ab Circuit x 4 exercises x 15 reps each

2) Perform your normal workout & finish with 10 minutes of sprint intervals

Example:

Perform your upper, lower or full body workout

Set the clock for 10 minutes and perform as many short sprints as possible in that 10 minute time period. You can time them for 15/15 or 30/30 if this time of work:rest is feasible. If not, perform a hard sprint, then rest 30 seconds and repeat until 10 minutes is over and done with

3) Lift one day, condition the next……

Example:

- Train upper body one day, hit sprints via run, bike or swim the next day

- Train lower body the following day, condition the next day.

After 3 -4 days of training in a row take a day off.

If you’re like me and have exercise ADD then condition through a variety of methods. I like being outside so being in the ocean, mtn biking, running with my dog, battling ropes, runs, etc ALL give me lots of joy.

The key is this, and, “this” was inspired to me by Warrior Man’s video below. NEVER allow yourself to fall “out of shape”. If you’re not sure and you’re asking yourself if you’re “in shape”, then you’re out of shape. Period.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I am on a mission to push my conditioning to greater levels.I’m NOT satisfied. I love feeling like I got my ass kicked after a workout but I also HATE it because I want to be BETTER.

Drop a comment below and tell Underground Strength Nation what YOUR mission is.

Peace

–Z–

PS: TWO Underground seminars around the corner:

- USC Cert in Austin, TX

- Combat Seminar with Jason C Brown & I – Training for GOLD

Click here to view the embedded video.

There are a few things that will help YOUR deadlift. Notice I put the CAPS on. What works for me may not work for you and vice versa. YOU must find the things that help and then dial them in. Here’s a few tips that you should test drive.

• Work 1 arm rows with heavy weights AND high reps. Whenever I slack on these my lats don’t have the strength to help me deadlift heavier AND faster.

Click here to view the embedded video.

• Don’t max out too often. For me, I will test a heavy single, but NOT a max single, every 6 weeks or so.

• Use submax efforts on the deadlift. Focus on moderately heavy weights and always leave a rep or 2 in the tank

• Squat. Yep, use squats to increase lower body and low back strength to up your deadlift. Too much focus on the deadlift will leave you with an injury in no time.

• Use a double overhand grip until you reach your heavy sets.

• Attack your posterior with glute ham raises, weighted back extensions, swings, heavy kettlebell cleans and good mornings.

That’s it, a short n’ sweet list to help you up the deadlift, one of the “Manliest” exercises anyone can do.

If you’ve got tips to add, please drop a comment.

If you enjoy this post, please share on facebook and twitter

Peace!

–Z–

Sign Up for The USC Cert in Austin, Details HERE

Test Drive Underground Strength Nation for 30 Days & Get 7 FREE Gifts, HERE

You’re NEVER too old to learn new things. NEVER too old to become better. It’s OK to change.

Many people take pride in the fact that they will never change. Change means you’re evolving. If you evolve, you are growing from within and that is of utmost importance.

Without growth, You die.

I’m going to challenge you to do some things that you may not be doing….. perhaps you’ve NEVER done these “things”…. perhaps it’s been a long time ago…. I’ll ALWAYS be here to challenge you. I do the same to my athletes and I do the same to anyone I connect with on a coaching level, and by reading this blog, I see myself as your Coach.

Many think I’m too hard on them or too hard on others. Too harsh, tough and not forgiving enough. I simply see it as tough love and if I don’t tell you the truth I am cheating YOU and lying to myself. I lay the law down with my athletes and I truly see no other way.

These athletes MUST realize the opportunity they have and how the world CAN be their if they WANT it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I tell the parents outright how pissed I am at them when they allow their child to quit a sports team because practice was too hard. I tell them how pissed I am when they allow their child to blame the coach for not starting. Whatever happened to responsibility? Why do we enable how soft people are getting…. America is SOFT. That is #TRUTH and it pisses me off.

Excuses SUCK and so do the people who use them…. got excuses?

YOU suck. Period.

Why are so many athletes quitting in sports…. quitting in life…. and why is it ALL allowed & accepted!?!?

A BIG reason I left teaching was because parents would blame teachers and attack teachers when their child wasn’t getting straight A’s.

I HATED how this “system” was contributing to The Pussification of America.

I refused to partake in the lies, excuses and bull shit so I left it ALL….. built my own world…. Underground Strength Nation.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Do I have excuses for things? Absolutely. I am NOT perfect but I RAGE against it when I allow Mr. Resistance to get the best of me and I fight back, tooth and nail, blood, sweat and tears.

When I catch those excuses I slap myself in the face and kick my own ass and do a complete 180. NO quitting, just brutal honesty with myself, you need to do the same for yourself if you want success.

When I saw 4 comments on THIS Kick Ass Blog I told Underground Strength Nation to check their pulse because that video was so f**ing inspiring that it fired me up how no one had words to evoke after such a video!

How are you NOT fired the HELL UP by intense videos!?!? Come on, Undergrounders…. Lead WITH me or get the Hell outta the way!!!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Some NEW things I am learning:

- Saying “sorry” more often and accepting my mistakes….

- Saying “I love you” more often to those who put up with my craziness and love me unconditionally. I am NOT an easy person to deal with and I imagine it’s tough being on the other side of the relationship with me….

- Nutrition consulting with my friend, Jason Ferruggia. My health has taken a priority like never before since late last winter after experiencing so much pain in my body due to abuse in training and average nutrition. I am pushing more and more for better nutrition and health from the inside out.

- Reaching out to people I’ve lost touch with through the years….

- Refocusing my business to the select few things that I can deliver best in. These areas of my business allow me to bring my best foot forward, giving you the best I’ve got makes YOU better. What makes YOU stronger makes US stronger. That is what Underground Strength Nation is ALL about.

Make NO mistake about it….. These changes have NOTHING to do with a new year or a resolution. They are driven by passion and what is important to my family and Underground Strength Nation. Period.

When I want something I F**King DO it, I don’t wait for dumb ass new year resolutions or any other shit like that. NOW is when I do everything I want. NOW…. not tomorrow or later, NOW.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I suggest you do the same. If you have demons, face them now. If you’ve been putting shit off, do it NOW. You MUST be honest with yourself, dig deep, look yourself in the mirror and look those you love in the eyes and tell them the TRUTH.

The world has enough liars, con-artists, bull shit artists, blame artists, excuse makers and enablers of the weak and lazy.

NOT in THIS House. Undergrounders are a RARE Breed. I know it and so do YOU.

Drop a comment and tell us how you’re going to change for the better. We’re an Army of Bad Mother F**kers, Be PROUD and stand TALL.

Underground 4 Life

-Z-

PS: If you think my Blog is loaded with passion, wait till we connect at the next USC Cert. Austin, Texas it IS.

I LOVE The #ATX, don’t hesitate and say “I’ll go to the next one….”. WHAT “next one”. To Kick Ass & Take Names the time is NOW.

Sign Up HERE, it’s time to change your life.

Mindset is THE KEY to kickin’ ass & takin’ names…. I can talk, talk, talk ALL about this, BUT, let me show you a few videos that will tell you EXACTLY what it takes to kick ass in LIFE…..

Special thanks to Chael Sonnen for speaking from the heart…

2012 is gonna reveal some SIC shit to Underground Strength Nation. Enjoy these videos and by ALL means, DO something with the info in these videos, it would be a crime NOT to….

Dan Gable speaks on training like Rocky, training old school and NOT allowing yourself to get comfortable….

Check the highlight below with some footage from Underground Trained, Anthony Ashnault…. Inspiring whether you wrestle or NOT!

Drop a comment with your thoughts on these “videos of the mind”…. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Live The Code, Underground 4 Life

Peace

–Z–

Yo, Homies! Psyched to crank this blog post, as ALWAYS!

Energy is sky high lately, I’ve been fasting often and experimenting with my nutrition and it’s feeling GREAT. On a mission to get to 205, lean and mean…. agile, mobile and hostile! I haven’t had a scale of my own since about 10 years ago so I’m gonna start tracking everything & dialing that shiz IN!

LOTS of my training lately has been split into training at The Underground HQ in Edison NJ along with my Underground Home Gym in my cold garage. I set up my entire garage with Rogue Equipment, everything arrived in less than 5 days! Although small and in a tight space, it’s a BadAss lil’ training compound, aka The Underground Home Gym (Full Video Soon)!

Training in the cold has a unique effect on the body AND mind. It REALLY pushes you into a different zone and I am exploring it a LOT lately, not for the physical effects, but because I NEED to keep challenging my mind, pushing my mental toughness up a notch. I’m tough on myself, never truly satisfied with my mental toughness.

I’ve also been mountain biking on the cold NJ weekends lately and last Sunday was a legit ride. The temps read 17 degrees with a wind chill of 2 degrees. I had no one to ride with and that NEVER bothers me. Doing things on my own is what I have been trained to do since I began wrestling.

The cold weather was a test. My fingers were cold as hell, riding alone through the woods I got lost, as I always do when I ride solo but it’s been a while since riding solo. Getting lost in the summer time when the weather is warm and cozy is not a problem and getting lost when the weather is upper 90s doesn’t bother me either.

When those fingers are freezing numb and your entire body is cold, you begin to LEARN to Do shit on Your OWN:

- Where was the sun when I rode into the woods? To my left or right?

- Listen carefully…. do you hear cars off the road or do you hear dead silence?

- Look at the trails… are there leaves covering the trail signifying little or no action or do you see frozen tire tracks?

- Check your surroundings…. these rocks look familiar, so does that downed tree…. do I go right or left now?

The mind becomes MUCH more alert and the body has NO choice but to push onward and upward.

I have NO problems training alone, working alone, running a business alone, motivating myself from within….. It sounds crazy and often times offends people but this is me, it’s been me since I started high school and was introduced to wrestling and I think YOU should get used to the same.

YOU should be able to motivate yourself and NOT rely on others for ANYTHING, learn to NOT give a shit what others think of you and learn to stop waiting for permission, help, support, etc from any outside resource, be it a person or thing. Do it on your OWN.

Does this mean I never train with others? NO. Here and again I try to get in a workout with friends if my schedule allows.

Here is some footage from a recent workout, including my typical warm up using Indian Clubs, a popular training tool for combat athletes as well as from the days of physical culture. You’ll also see me using complex training, where you perform 2 – 4 movements explosively using the same motion, i.e. ALL lower body, ALL upper body push, ALL upper body pull, etc….

This training develops mental toughness, strength & power endurance as well as being a GREAT way to add functional muscle mass. There is a BIG difference in hypertrophy from bodybuilding and the hypertrophy that comes from weightlifting, powerlifting…..

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

If I have a quiet time at The Underground Strength Gym I will train WITH a small group. Last night, one of my wrestlers showed up late, unannounced, after a LONG weekend of wrestling in Va and cutting 15 lbs (NOT my choice, his Coach’s enforce this) he showed up and crushed a workout… on his OWN.

Other wrestlers made excuses for being too sore, too tired, too busy, “I forgot” or the good ol’ No show AND No call from the truly non-dedicated…. NOT this kid, he is a RARE Breed and he INSPIRES ME!

He put together his OWN workout without me even telling him what to do, training 3 x as much as ANY other wrestler who walked through the doors yesterday. I didn’t even tell him what to do, he just fucking grabbed life by the balls and did it.

Do me a favor, give him a shout on Twitter, this kid is a motivation to me and NOT many things motivate me.

I trained along side him, he did HIS workout and I did Mine. I cranked heavy squats on the giant cambered bar, lateral bench jumps, high rep kettlebell swings and cleans.

The special I POD was cranking with new tunes (old in age), some special tunes to inspire, check the newly added tunes below…..

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Once again…. training happens best when you do what allows you to “lose yourself and find yourself”…..

Stay tuned for another kick ass blog post, I’ve got LOTS to share with you and you do NOT wanna miss it!

Drop a comment with your thoughts.

Live The Code

Underground 4 Life

–Z–

PS: 1 spot left for USC Cert in NJ. Click HERE to sign up and change your life, I am PSYCHED to see you!

Many wonder what we do behind the walls of The Underground Strength Gym.

To explain inside a blog post is damn near impossible…. It’s the experience that goes on, not so much what we do, the exercises we use…. I’ll include a few of our recent videos along with some older videos to try and give you a taste of what goes on.

I’ll tell you this much, though…. My views haven’t changed much with regards to the TYPE of person we train: hard working, committed, honest, mentally tough and well mannered athletes. I’ve come across some lazy ass kids, dishonest kids and same goes for parents… just when you think you’ve seen it all, ha ha, you haven’t.

For those who have dreams of being a Strength Coach, I will tell you, it is TOUGH finding kids who fit this criteria, America has gotten soft without a doubt…. and along with that, we want hard working athletes to have supportive parents as opposed to having parents who enable and allow excuses and the type of behavior that contributes to The Pussification of America…. This is also pretty damn rare.

But, once you get a small handful of the “right kids” the flow begins. The right athletes find their way to you as do the right people in general. I consider ALL who walk through these doors to be athletes and we will train them as such. Athleticism is the blend of strength, conditioning, speed / power and flexibility / mobility.

We attack ALL areas, but most of all, we attack your weak areas.

It ain’t easy running a gym, as there is TONS more going on than just the training of athletes…. but damn, I can’t see myself doing anything else, working with any other type of person. I LOVE athletes who have the eye of the tiger! I am grateful for the athletes we train and when I see them tasting success it fires me up and makes me proud.

I KNOW that what they are learning at The Underground Strength Gym has more to do with learning how to kick ass in life than anything else. They will NEVER forget these moments, these challenges…. these tough times will shape them for their future, so when they are done competing on the athletic field, they will move onward and upward when competing in the game of life, kicking ass and taking names as they go.

Just recently, we began opening up a few time slots for adults. NEVER did I think I would do this but the e mails were coming in day after day…. the regular voice mails rang a different tune and told me it was HIGH time.

My mission of building an Underground Strength Nation REALLY hit home. I told myself to STOP excluding adults just because they weren’t competing in sport. If someone wanted to build strength and health, inside AND out, my doors would be open for them.

Adults wanted IN, so we started training adults and didn’t bend one bit with our expectations…

We expected hard working, gut busting efforts on the regular.

NO excuses…. Yes, I know, life is busy as an adult, balancing family, work and everything else in between ain’t easy, but we’re NOT about going EASY at The Underground, we’re about kicking ass & taking names. Our training mirrors life… win at The Underground and you WILL WIN in life.

You will be accustomed to living our motto….. “Get Comfortable Being UN-comfortable.

Tired, Hungry, Stressed from Work, Over-Worked…. Didn’t Eat Right Today…. The list goes on. Regardless, I tell them ALL, “Life happens….”, we STILL gotta get after it. Remember, as you get older, Mr. Resistance will be knocking on your door more and more, it is up to YOU to smash him and rise above.

Because I understood the need and importance of training the mind, I NEVER allowed the imperfections we faced stand in our way….

We’ve trained in the dead of winter in my backyard and countless playgrounds….. We’ve trained during heat waves in the thick of summer when normal people feared stepping outside of their homes…. I can’t imagine our short 45-60 minute workouts are anything but a walk in the park and a warm up for Navy SEALs.

Here’s a mixed playlist of videos below, both past and present….

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Our training is NOT simply a design of brutal workouts…. nope, sorry, hate to burst your bubble, we blend science and good ol’ fashioned common sense, aka, auto-regulation.

You feel like shit? Let’s back off and deload.

You’re feel energetic and “kill mode”, then let’s get after it and break some damn records.

Accountability & Responsibility is critical, especially when training athletes. They need to count their own reps, now how much weight they used last time in an effort to break a record this time around.

As the years go by, faster and faster, I see myself reverting a bit in mindset. With a likelihood of opening another Underground Strength Gym closer to where I live, I will STILL start small, I will be selective, very likely, MORE selective than ever before.

You can change MANY things about yourself, but no matter how hard I dare try, I could NEVER let go of the fact that I ONLY want to be around hard working athletes who are willing to bust their ass each and every time they walk through the doors of The Underground.

Click here to view the embedded video.

It’s something I learned from wrestling…. My Coaches instilled this work ethic into me… watching countless Dan Gable videos also drilled this intensity into my mind. And the ONE thing I learned from wrestling was just how PAINFUL it is to lose.

When I hear about my wrestlers losing matches or being in a mental rut, their parents call me, and ask me to call them, ask me to give him “THE talk”…. that “talk” goes on inside The Underground…. during workouts, after workouts…..

Like I said, we’re NOT just training to win in sport, we’re training to win in LIFE.

Period.

Thank YOU for Making Underground Strength Nation what it is.

Join Us in building a Nation of One Million Strong & Healthy… as it should be.

Underground 4 Life

–Z–

Yo, Bruthas & Ladies of Underground Strength Nation….

I just got a new I Pod for my garage workouts, this is my 3rd I POD, along with my I Phone.

Check this Video….. I am PSYCHED to read your comments!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Drop a comment below, share your most kick ass workout / training songs. Try and limit them to 10 songs that if you could only have 10 songs to train to, these would be YOUR Underground Play List!!

Underground 4 Life!

Peace

–Z–

Whether you are a business owner or not is NOT relevant to this post.

Watch this video and let me know your thoughts, and, as a preface, if you’re pissed off at this video, it’s VERY likely I am talking about YOU.

Click here to view the embedded video.

This is about work ethic, a requisite if you want to be successful in your life, your health and anything that you partake in.

I’ve held down jobs since as long as I can remember….

As far back as 2nd grade, I recall when Winter came and it snowed, my older bro woke me up at the butt crack of dawn to shovel driveways with him to earn money.

When I was in elementary school I held TWO paper routes at one time, one in the morning before school and another after school. I remember having $26 in my pocket EVERY WEEK after “collecting”.

America has problems…. I have TOO MANY people crying for a refund of $12.95 or $19.95, telling me they don’t have the money or they need to wait until summer until they get a job. WTF!!??

How is $19.95 a challenge for someone? I am safely assuming that these people have NO jobs. I bet this is pissing off many, or, perhaps you question why I am ranting here?

GREAT question you have. I am fired up because I HATE seeing people down in the dumps, BUT, I hate it more when these people aren’t doing jack shit to get OUT of the dumps. I can’t help you if you don’t wanna help yourself. I’ve been in the dumps and it sucks…. BAD.

I remember crying myself to sleep as quietly as possible so my wife wouldn’t hear me, with my back turned to my wife, as I wondered how the hell I would find a way to pay the mortgage.I had nightmares of our house getting taken away from us and I feared the embarrassment of failure beyond what my words can describe.

But, I did it. I found a way to succeed. I went after it, chargin’ hard to make it happen. I did what others would NOT do. I did what others feared. I woke up early, stayed up late, worked through my lunches and prep time while teaching and used my sick days to attend business seminars.

I don’t respect the cry babies…. I DO Respect the people who dig deep and GO for it, Brass Balls ALL the way. I’ve had MANY aspiring Strength Coaches fly to NJ (often times from overseas) and scrape together money to make it happen, so they could learn the skills via my Underground Strength Coach Cert.

These dudes had the eye of the tiger, they didn’t say things like…. “I don’t have the money…..” Instead, they found a way to MAKE IT HAPPEN.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Think about that…. what type of person are you?

- The guy who Makes it happen….

Or…..

- The guy who says I don’t have _______ (fill in the blank with ANY word)?

You can choose to be a victim of circumstance OR you can volunteer to CONTROL your circumstances. The choice is yours.

Get off your ass….

Let me know your thoughts, drop a comment.

Peace

–Z–

Let me leave you with these 2 videos today…. especially with the new year upon us and all those Bull Shit “resolutions”.

Here’s THE TRUTH: You want something?

Why wait for January 1st?!?! F**K that, DO it NOW.

Check these videos…..

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Please take a few seconds and share this out via twitter and facebook.

And, if we’re not connected yet, let’s fix that!

Connect with me on FaceBook HERE

Connect with me on Twitter HERE

Looking forward to seeing your comments

Peace

Live the Code

–Z–

Underground Strength Nation – FINAL chance before price triples, Ass Kicker Go HERE

USC Cert has a few spots left, Action Takers Go HERE

MANY years ago Pavel wrote a book called Power to The People, aka P2P. You can find details about it HERE.

The book was simply based on optimal training, minimal volume and frequent practice of basics such as deadlifts, military presses and a few other key exercises.

The more I grow in the iron game the more I realize that the name of the game is ALL about optimal workouts, NOT maximal. Certainly, when I was younger, I couldn’t tame my mind to change….. I HAD to go in and KILL myself every single time I trained, it was my wrestler mentality which to this day I still have inner battles against.

Do you ever feel that way? ha ha. I bet you DO!

I am much more in tune with what I now need so my BIG lifts are BIG time focused on optimal work, because anytime I push for MAXimal work I get injured and feel like shit.

As a father and business man, injuries are what can KILL my success so I stray far from them.

Check this P2P inspired workout in the videos below, note the low reps and optimal efforts.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I leave you with this final note / reminder: Although maximal workouts appease your mind and make you feel proud that you kicked your ass, they WILL eventually hurt you. Focus on OPTIMAL WORKOUTS.

Drop a line with your thoughts and comments! Psyched to see what your experience is with optimal VS maximal workouts and the results you’re getting.

Live the Code

–Z–

PS: Don’t forget…. Underground Strength Nation TRIPLES in price come January 2nd. This is DIRT Cheap for a Lifetime Membership. Click HERE for More Info