I am constantly asked about my favorite books or what I'm reading right now. My library is constantly growing, evolving, adding books on training, business, lifestyle, mindset and inspirational autobiographies. If you use the search bar on my blog you can find some OLD videos of me showing you the library from my previous home. Type in phrases such as "strength books", "business books", "strength & conditioning books", etc. Those older videos were certainly from some years ago but I … [Read more...]
Minimalist Workout For MAX Muscle Gains
"In any war, you put your back to mine, I put my back to yours, and let's do what we gotta do." - Ray Lewis Here's a lil' inside look at how we roll at The Underground Strength Gym with our adult training crew. YES, we train adults just like we train our athletes. We are ALL athletes. Don't ever forget that! Underground Strength Tip Of The Day: Do ONLY what is needed to pack on strength & muscle and NO more. Pick 2 or 3 exercises, work up to 1 or 2 heavy sets and then move … [Read more...]
How To Train When In Doubt
"Science and experience have taught us that any athlete, even in ultra-endurance sports, who has not built a foundation of strength will fail to reach his or her potential." ~ Pavel, Author of Easy Strength As I work on my book and dig deeper on my philosophy on training, in between text messages with Jason Ferruggia discussing life and lifting, I keep coming back to what got me where I am today, as well as every other strong mofo out there. And that "thing" is the fact that those strong … [Read more...]
The Mark Of A STRONG Man, Lessons Inspired from Andy Bolton
"Weak Legs & Weak Back = A WEAK Man" When I heard about Andy Bolton breaking the 1,000 lb Deadlift Barrier I knew this was not only a strong man, but most importantly, a SMART man. World records are never set because someone got lucky. It takes some serious experience and a blend of brains and brawn. As a Coach and a student of life and the iron game, I never feel that I am "good enough". Good enough is the devil. I knew that if I could learn at least 1 thing from Andy Bolton I could … [Read more...]
Top 3 Lessons Learned From Powerlifters
When I began training athletes, specifically wrestlers, I was lucky enough to learn about many of my training methods from Louie Simmons and Pavel. I would speak with Louie on a weekly basis, calling him during my lunch when I was a teacher and we would chat about training wrestlers, MMA fighters and overall building athletes into Bad Mother F**ers. My first set of Kettlebells was a pair of 53s and a pair of 70s. I read all of Pavel's books and training courses and began blending his strength … [Read more...]
Grease The Groove (GTG) For Greater Strength [Training for Life]
![Grease The Groove (GTG) For Greater Strength [Training for Life]](https://zacheven-esh.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Grease-The-Groove-PullUps-300x224.jpg)
Grease The Groove is a technique I learned many years ago when reading a book from Pavel, Power To The People. Essentially, you perform an exercise of choice several times a day, several times a week (4-7 x week), each and every set performed when you are fresh without going to muscular fatigue. Usually, this works best when performing the practice exercise for anywhere from 2 - 4 weeks. There are several ways to apply Grease The groove (GTG) for maximum effect. … [Read more...]
Minimalist Training Tips for Full Body Strength
The more I utilize simple dumbbell & bodyweight workouts for myself, the more I realize less is more. Less variety and more focus = greater results in strength and size. I've been around too long and I want to challenge and question what REALLY works. I've seen the results of some of the most popular "programs" out there...... I wanted to see, do these athletes demonstrate greater strength? Greater speed? Greater physicality and more muscle? Well, the program looks impressive on … [Read more...]
7 Tips For Improving Your Deadlift – A MUST Read For ALL Men
There are a few critical things you want to do that will help strengthen YOUR Deadlift. Notice I put the CAPS on. Some of these tips will need to be tweaked for YOU. That happens when YOU get in there and LIFT. Less Reading, MORE Lifting. Every MAN should have a Strong Deadlift. EVERY MAN..... A 2 x bodyweight deadlift should be the minimum goal. Let's get after it.... … [Read more...]
Power to The People
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 … [Read more...]
Dan John Talks Life & Lifting, Part II
In case you missed Part I of my chat with Dan John, Please Click HERE For Dan's latest book that kicks ass, click HERE Here's how we can keep this video interview series with Dan John rolling: - Drop a question for Dan regarding training and we'll set up another Underground QnA for you guys. Just leave your question in the comments section, I'll collect and compile the questions and when we get enough questions we'll get more gold from Dan John. I SERIOUSLY wish this type of access was … [Read more...]