I have another great post from my friend Dave Tate today. Either you get it or you don’t.
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I will not be as “others”
Came into work today the same as I have any other day over the past month, to much to do and not enough time. I do however get the most important shit done and that’s all that matters.
I made my way into Jim’s office and he stated “Not training again today”. Maybe he noticed I was wearing my “good” t-shirt and sweat pants and took this as a clue. It took me about 2 seconds to tell him “nope, just not my thing right now.”
He then told me that this “was” my thing. I had to think for a minute then got what he was saying. This is the thing when you speak to someone with a zillon.5 IQ. You need to stop and think sometimes because much it meant when little is said.
What he was saying is that I do not know how to “workout” and may have never “worked out” in my life. What I do is “train” and there is a difference.
I am writing this because… …continue reading.
If you are from my home state, you will enjoy this site. If not, you still might…
Be sure to take the quiz, half way down the home page.
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of welcoming my good friends Dave Tate, Alwyn Cosgrove and Jim Wendler to my summer house at the Jersey shore for the weekend. On Friday afternoon, while we waited for Alwyn to arrive from LA, Jim and I sat down over a few (pitchers, not glasses) vodka lemonades and discussed training, music, tattoos, girls, family and everything in between. During this time Dave was in the ocean trying to master the art of going under the waves and not over them. Unfortunately he never quite caught on and ended up on his back covered in sand in seashells much to my amusement. By the time Cosgrove arrived we were pretty well intoxicated and decided to end our conversation and head down the street to the bar. After Alwyn fed us vodka all night we headed home and passed out (supposedly I did a lot more than that but I am denying all such accusations). The next day Joe DeFranco stopped by and we all talked training and business for several hours. After the sixth or seventh hour of nonstop business talk, Jim and I decided that our brains were starting to melt… …continue reading.
The following is a small excerpt from TAP OUT about in season training for combat athletes:
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During the competitive high school or college wrestling season it is impossible for most athletes to train and recover from more than two days per week. During this time, the goal of training should be only to maintain what has been gained during the off season. Trying to gain size, speed or strength during the season is a fruitless effort and actually will do you more harm than good.
During the season I use a few different options. One is to have one day be a strength day and the other day a hypertrophy day. One speed exercise such as a jump or Olympic lift can be included as the first exercise on either day. Again, remember that we are only trying to maintain these qualities here.
Another option is to combine the two qualities on two different full body days, again with speed probably only being included on one day. Finally, the third option is for those who athletes who are forced by their coaches to do an inordinate amount of running and calisthenics in practice every day. With this option… …continue reading.
I checked my voicemail one day last week and had a message from a good friend of mine saying, “Dude, I almost fell out of my chair when I was reading an online training forum the other day and saw your name on there right in the mix with all the pencil necks. What kind of loser are you turning into? Actually, what kind of loser am I turning into even being on those training forums?”
Both, good questions. And I plead guilty as charged. I got sucked in once or twice in my life. My friend still won’t return my calls though. So I guess his embarassment is even eclipsing mine.
Online training forums are filled with 146 pound guys who carry a protactor, compass, metronome and a copy of the pythagorean theorem with them to the gym. They need to be sure that everything is at exactly the proper angle, that they are facing the right direction (based on time of day) and that their 4683 tempo is perfect. That is if they ever actually make it to the gym, of course. Most of them are too busy arguing training principles on the internet with some 17 year… …continue reading.
By Tom Venuto
The secret to getting super lean – I’m talking about being RIPPED, not just “average body fat” – is all about mastering the art of “peaking.” Most people do not have a clue about what it takes to reach the type of low body fat levels that reveal ripped six-pack abs, muscle striations, vascularity and extreme muscular definition, so they go about it completely the wrong way.
Here’s a case in point: One of my newsletter subscribers recently sent me this question:
Tom, on your www.burnthefat.com website, you wrote:
‘Who better to model than bodybuilders and fitness competitors? No athletes in the world get as lean as quickly as bodybuilders and fitness competitors. The transformations they undergo in 12 weeks prior to competition would boggle your mind! Only ultra-endurance athletes come close in terms of low body fat levels, but endurance athletes like triathaletes and marathoners often get lean at the expense of chewing up all their muscle. Some of them are nothing but skin and bone.’
“There seems to be a contradiction unless I’m missing something. Why do bodybuilders and fitness competitors have to go through a 12 week ‘transformation’ prior to every event instead… …continue reading.
Today we have part one of a new interview with my friend and colleague, the Underground Strength Coach, Zach Even-Esh.
Zach, tell us how you learned about “Underground” training?
ZE – Well, without a doubt, my very first days of training at a gym always leave me with the recollection of George, a jacked dude who was built like he was carved from stone. This guy was solid muscle! He never did what the rest of us did. He trained his own way, his own style and he never cared what others said to him.
I still remember to this day watching him spend over 30 or 45 minutes on one movement! I would be finishing a workout and he was still training one movement! I remember watching him do endless sets of weighted dips, or flat benching or weighted pull ups. Back then I never saw anyone perform weighted bodyweight exercises except George. But, his arms were busting through his sleeves and his traps were stretching his shirts out big time!
My memories reminded me after many years of training by the rules, that to get seriously strong and jacked, there truly are NO rules!… …continue reading.
Jason: What is any strength coach’s most important responsibility to his or her athletes?
Jim: To prepare the athlete for their given sport. Some may say injury prevention, but it’s hard to get injured sitting on the bench. Remember that a strength and conditioning coach is only one piece of the puzzle, but still an important piece. The key is have the athletes ready to play at their highest possible level for their game/match, etc. This could mean a ton of different things, but the bottom line is if the athletes are ready for their competition, and are as physically and mentally ready as possible, then you have done your job.
Jason: What does it take to be a good strength coach or trainer?
Jim: I’m going to first say that I have been out of the strength coach/trainer game for quite some time. So I’m not an expert by any means. But looking back, and talking with coaches on a regular basis, I think the most overlooked thing is NOT education but communication. I know a lot of people that can tell you everything and write a book or article on it, but what happens when 30 swimmers show… …continue reading.
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