Archive: Jul 2011

Yesterday morning I woke up with the intention of going to Six Man in Manhattan Beach. It’s an annual volleyball tournament that attracts around nineteen hundred billion people and is known as the beach party of the summer. However, I had stayed out late the night before with some friends and really wasn’t feeling it. I didn’t have a sip of alcohol but I felt like I drank a dozen vodkas. That’s the funny thing about staying up late. I end up feeling exactly the same whether I drink or not, even if I get the same amount of sleep… continue reading.

Anyone who reads this site regularly knows how much I hate 99% of all public gyms. It’s just not really my scene. Plus they never have the stuff I want and always have too much of the stuff I don’t want. I found this piece by Stuart McRobert which echoes my sentiments (and probably yours) and thought it was awesome so I’m sharing it here: “This gym is all appearance and no substance. It is only because we have a lot of fancy-looking equipment that we impress everyone who knows little or nothing about training. Because we have spent a… continue reading.

How long should your workout last if you want to build muscle and gain strength at the fastest rate possible? When it comes to workout duration less is more. To increase muscle hypertrophy and get stronger you want to get to the gym, hit it hard, stimulate size and strength gains, then get out. That means no more than sixty minutes total, including warm up time. When you start training your body will naturally boost testosterone levels significantly higher than normal. This increased output peaks somewhere around a half hour into your workout. By taking blood… continue reading.

I have a great article for you today by my colleague, Brad Pilon. Brad is a super smart dude who knows more about nutrition than most people have forgotten. He’s also one of the few guys I rely on for dietary advice. Check it out… How Much Protein Should You Eat Per Day? By Brad Pilon You’d think by now we’d have a clear-cut answer to this question, but to tell you the truth, ‘how much protein’ is a question we’ve been trying to answer for over 200 years. In fact, protein has played a central role in nutrition… continue reading.

Bodyweight exercises need to be part of your program if you want to get build muscle, burn fat and improve your overall athleticism. Not everyone needs to or should lift a barbell, but bodyweight exercises are essential. I’ve used them to rapidly transform the bodies of professional athletes, models and entertainers. One of the many things I love about them is they can be done anywhere at any time. But I’m not just talking basic pushups, sit ups, air squats and high rep calisthenics. That’s beginner stuff that won’t really build muscle beyond your first few months of training. We’re… continue reading.

Die Hard Pearl Jam Fans- As I’ve mentioned numerous times before I’m a huge Pearl Jam fan. So naturally I went to see Eddie Vedder a few times on his recent tour. One thing that always irks me is when the hardcore fans who are standing during Rival sit down during Porch. They sit because they’re cooler than everyone else who only know the words to the radio hits. I get it. But the fact is that those are the songs that got you into the band in the first place. So get up off your ass and sing along… continue reading.

People often ask me, “Are trap bar deadlifts safer than straight bar deadlifts?” In the past I might have been inclined to say yes. But that was before I witnessed a lot of average guys sustain some really odd injuries while trap bar deadlifting over the last three years. You see, when you get used to working with a higher level, more athletic clientele it can skew your viewpoint on things a bit. I’ve found that to be the case with a few concepts that I once believed to be true. After being able to test them on a wider… continue reading.

Arthur Saxon was a big influence on me, as obvious by the Renegade logo at the top of this site. I’m obsessed with old time strongmen and old school methods of training. One of the things I like about the early days of Physical Culture is that everyone did everything. Meaning that bodybuilders lifted heavy weights and competed in contests where they had to do more than pose. Lifters possessed impressive physiques and usually didn’t gain unnecessary fat to simply improve their leverages on an exercise and lift more weight. Olympic lifts were not practiced only by Olympic lifters but… continue reading.