Recently I was at a commercial gym and about to head out after my training session until 1 of the guys introduced himself to me and asked me if I was a cop. He had seen me training as I went back and forth in superset style fashion. He thought I was in training for something but that fast paced training is common for me. It's funny because I used to get that question quite often back when I buzzed my head, people thought I was in the Military or Law Enforcement. Anyway, we got chatting when … [Read more...]
STRONG Life Insider: The Development of Muscular Bulk & Power
From Anthony Ditillo's Book, The Development of Muscular Bulk and Power There is something about bulk and power training that invades your very soul. It is extremely hard to put into words. The exercise movements themselves are quite simple to perform. The routines one must utilize in order to gain rapidly that much sought after strength are not especially interesting or dynamic in appearance. All in all, powerlifting and bulk training is a rather mechanical robot like procedure, which is … [Read more...]
Should You NOT Squat, Bench & Deadlift?
I was chatting with a friend over the weekend over dinner and I train his son for the past 2 years. He told me how another Dad was worried about training at The Underground Strength Gym because his son was 14 and he was afraid he would squat, deadlift, bench, etc. First off - These 3 exercises are NOT bad. Context matters here. Let me explain why...... … [Read more...]
The Benefits of High Rep Bodyweight Training
After going through my Bodyweight Bodybuilding course for some edits, reviews and updates, I changed up some programming for the athletes at The Underground Strength Gym. 1 of those updates was organizing their extra days with more volume of bodyweight squats. Yes, the simple bodyweight squat! I will post a photo below with that sample "extra day" along with some video footage. So make sure you read the entire article.... Now, almost 20 years ago I recall studying Indian Wrestling … [Read more...]
Getting Back to the Bells’ & Bodyweight Training + Donnie Thompson (SuperD) Inspiration
Here and there I catch myself getting away from training that is more Physical Culture based and end up chasing numbers. Now, there is NOTHING wrong with being Strong. But something was missing for me. I wanted to feel the toughness and challenge of working with circuits / complexes of Kettlebells, Fat Bell, Center Mass Bells. With my shoulder injury some years ago, I limit the overhead work but testing Donnie Thompson's Bow Tie made everything feel fine! … [Read more...]
Do These 3 Bodyweight Only Exercises
There are 3 crucial bodyweight exercises that everyone should be able to do AND, that everyone should put a lot of energy into. 1) Push Ups - we learned these as kids and surprisingly, I don't see too many people doing basic push ups anymore. If you're shoulders are banged up from heavy benching and squats with a straight bar, then get busy on push ups and give the barbell a break. Focus on doing high reps and of course, perfect technique. Imagine your body is a 2 x 4 or a ruler, … [Read more...]
OPEX Podcast: Training Athletes, Thoughts on the Strength Coach Profession, Books, Movies & More
I had a GREAT time on The OPEX Podcast with my friend, Robbie Bourke, 1 of the most passionate Coaches & students of Strength & Conditioning I have ever met. This podcast gets deep as Robbie asks GREAT questions (as always). I don't think I've ever gotten this deep into my thoughts on the strength & conditioning profession as well as the details of how I train athletes today vs 10-15 years ago. Below is a timeline of everything we discussed on The OPEX Podcast. … [Read more...]
“Different Training” for Strength, Size & Toughness
Yesterday I was so fired up from reading a newspaper article about Karate Legend, Gary Alexander training harder than most people half his age at age 81, so of course, I HAD to try it myself. Gary Alexander was a Karate instructor where I grew up in Edison, NJ in the 70s, 80s and early 90s. Today, he is in his 80s, STILL training like a madman. Here's his current regime: With scuba fins on his feet, Alexander does 100 laps, mostly on his back, alternating with freestyle strokes. The … [Read more...]
4 Tips on How to Build Strength Endurance aka “Performance Muscles”
Strength Endurance or as my friend, Marty Gallagher calls it, Sustained Strength. STRENGTH ENDURANCE - This is simply strength that keeps on keeping on. Strength that ENDURES. Not just physically, but also Mentally. This is a crucial "special strength" that is beneficial to many athletes and adults as well. Just a few sports & careers: - Lacrosse - Football - Wrestling - BJJ - MMA - Military - Law Enforcement - Hunting Tip # 1: To acquire Strength … [Read more...]
Iron Roots Ep. 12 | Dinosaur Training
It was the mid 90s and bodybuilding was starting to go from 220 lb competitors to 275 lb competitors. On the other end of the spectrum, Fitness magazines began to get popular along with body pump and spin classes inside gyms. The hardcore gyms began closing or tried to change to appeal to the masses. There was not much opportunity for those who wanted to lift heavy and hard and feel part of a community. IF you were lucky, you came across THE book that took a stand against ALL the fads … [Read more...]
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