I remember growing up in the 80s, everyone's Dad was a worker. Dads were STRONG and Capable. You'd see them all doing yard work, working on cars, lifting weights in the basement, going to the park and running. These were all common activities amongst men. Today, things have changed drastically. The lack of strength in adult men is negatively impacting the younger generation as well. Strength Training is foreign territory to most men in their 40s. Gone are the Mom and Pop gyms where … [Read more...]
The Minimalist Training Program
There will be times in your life when you're super busy. It happens. That is what we call LIFE. It happened to me in my early 20s when life was crazy hectic. I was teaching full time. I was coaching middle school wrestling. I was in my final year of grad school. Life was hectic AND stressful! I was stressed because I was no longer able to follow my normal training split which was 2 days on, 1 day off, totaling 5 sessions per week. Something had to give. I had to find a … [Read more...]
Busy Man Strength Training – A Minimalist Approach
There will be times in your life when you're super busy. It happens. That is what we call LIFE. It happened to me in my early 20s when life was crazy hectic. I was teaching full time. I was coaching middle school wrestling. I was in my final year of grad school. Life was hectic AND stressful! I was stressed because I was no longer able to follow my normal training split which was 2 days on, 1 day off, totaling 5 sessions per week. Something had to give. I had to find a … [Read more...]
Training for When SHTF aka Training for Life
Training for sport is one thing. Training for Life takes on a whole new meaning. The "rules" of training don't apply as much. You look around and see that you can train with anything, anywhere. You realize that "training" must go beyond the gym walls. Beyond the weights. You realize that the ease and convenience of everything is holding you back. You soon realize that being strong is offensive to many. You will be taxed and penalized for eating meat. "They" want you eating more soy. … [Read more...]
5 Tips for Training Athletes for Strength AND Toughness
There's a lot of chatter going on regarding training athletes for speed and strength. Some coaches feel we're not doing enough speed / sprint work. Others realize that MANY athletes are too weak to sprint properly. And, have we forgotten? We need athletes to be TOUGH. Give kids an opportunity to train on their own in a weight room today and you'll see some benching and lots of "chest work" and of course, lots of curls. NO back training. NO DEEP Squats. Farmer … [Read more...]
STRONG Life Insider Ep. 33 | Gym Strong VS Life STRONG
Here we GO! STRONG Life Insider Ep. 33. In this episode, I was inspired as I thought WAY back 30+ years ago to my days of getting my lunch stolen. The days of being afraid of others, where guys would bump me in the hallway on purpose. The days of getting my bike stolen and not being able to do a thing about it. The days of being afraid of the guys in the same grade who were bigger and stronger. Well, those days came to an end because eventually, you gotta get pissed off for GREATNESS. You … [Read more...]
The UPenn Crew: NOTHING Worth Having Is Comfortable
Episode 110 of The STRONG Life Podcast is with Jim Steel (Head Strength & Conditioning Coach at UPenn) along with his assistants, Cristi Bartlett and Tracy Zimmer. Check out some of their training videos below (BIG Numbers + BIG Reps) as well as everything we spoke about from training to nutrition, mindset to dogs, injuries and more. Enjoy and help spread the word, invite 1 friend to listen to The STRONG Life Podcast! Thank you in advance! … [Read more...]
Age Doesn’t Matter: STRONGER, Faster, Tougher STRENGTH Tips
In a world filled with entitlement, excuses and complainers, NOW more than ever is the time to spread the word on being STRONGER both in and out of the gym. Every time I hear someone complaining about something trivial, something that has ZERO effect on their own life, I feel like I need to drag them to the gym for some Squats and Deadlifts. Or they need to carry groceries home for a few miles rather than driving in their air conditioned car. Too Much Comfort = Too Many Complainers. Manual … [Read more...]
3 Ways to Get STRONGER in The Gym AND In Life for 2017
It's not even 2017 and you're being bombarded with special workout programs and top 17 things to do to achieve your goals in 2017...... bla bla bla Here's where it all starts: If you're waiting for the new year to make a change, you're already screwing up. As Tony Robbins always says, "How about NOW would be a great time to start." If you want to be successful in the gym and in your life, you don't need a long list of things to do. Those long lists are set up to frustrate you, sell you fads … [Read more...]
Iron Roots Podcast Ep. 1 | 5 X 5 Strength Training + The Power of Push Ups
Here's your Underground Strength Challenge for this month along with Iron Roots Podcast episode 1 where I dive into the History behind the 5 x 5 strength training program! It's ALL about the basics in this one, post your comments, weights used, etc in the comments section. I also added The Iron Roots Podcast episode on where The 5 x 5 Strength Training system originated with Reg Park as well as the way Bill Starr implemented 5 x 5 in his book, The Strongest Shall Survive! … [Read more...]