I polled the Renegade Nation on my Facebook and Twitter pages asking for your favorite rock songs. I wanted strictly rock, not metal. So Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Social Distortion and that kind of stuff. Some of the answers we got could definitely be considered metal and what category do you put Rage Against the Machine in? Anyway, here’s a compilation that will hopefully give you some good ideas to your workout play mixes. Please do me a favor and post your top 3-10 favorite rock training songs that AREN’T already listed here. continue reading.

What food you put in your body is probably the single most important decision you make every day. A lot of us have that down and always make very healthy choices. Or so we think… Unfortunately, what’s a healthy choice for me may not be a healthy choice for you. Everyone reacts differently to certain foods. For the most part you can’t go wrong with lean protein, vegetables and berries. Those foods seem to be tolerated very well by the majority of people. Once you veer off that list it gets a little bit more complicated. Foods like grains, eggs,… continue reading.

Yesterday, the magical streak of Tim Tebow came to an end and there were a lot of happy people. That’s because people hate Tim Tebow. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots put a temporary end to Tebow-mania as Brady showed the youngster how the position of quarterback is meant to be played. As a result there were a lot of unhappy people. That’s because people love Tim Tebow. He’s a polarizing figure who, over the last few months, has become one of the biggest sports stories of the year. Like him or hate him I think there’s a lesson… continue reading.

Even if you’re training Renegade style, on the best programs in the world, you can always make your workouts a little better. Most Renegade workouts are written with public gym goers in mind or those with limited amounts of stuff in their basement or garage gym. But if you have access to other stuff the training can be greatly enhanced. With access to unlimited tools I would write many programs differently. Here are some very important notes regarding my programs and changes you can feel free to make: 1) Sub in Trap Bar Deads for the Straight… continue reading.

“Everybody’s doing something. We’ll do nothing!” If I told you that I’ve got a secret that will help you stay healthier and make far better strength gains this year than any year ever before would you be interested? Yes? Okay, here it is… Do nothing. Don’t lift weights. Don’t do bodyweight stuff. Don’t run sprints. Just do nothing. For a month. Now before you all get to thinking I’ve lost my mind (which happened many moons ago) let me explain. First of all, what I’m going to tell you doesn’t apply unless you’ve been training properly for at least three… continue reading.

There are thousands of people who read this site every day who will never make it to Jersey to train at Renegade. So I debated even posting this since it won’t really apply to most of you. But then I realized that no, that’s wrong. It will apply to anyone who trains hard, takes this stuff very seriously and expects the same of all around them. I’ve mentioned my close friend, Mark Crook plenty of times before. He would be a great addition to any serious gym or group of training partners anywhere in the world. He brings it each… continue reading.

“Before I studied the art, a punch was just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. After I studied the art, a punch is no longer a punch, a kick is no longer a kick. Now that I understand the art, a punch is just like a punch, a kick is just like a kick.” — Bruce Lee The difference between a good, highly experienced strength coach and a C-level, inexperienced one is that they can make complex subjects seem simple. They know enough not to overwhelm beginners with too much information and not to shout out… continue reading.

My company’s logo depicts a recreation of a picture of Arthur Saxon taken in 1906. That’s because I’ve been obsessed with “old school” strength training methods for over 23 years. Whether we’re talking music, sneakers or training I’m old school through and through. From Hackenshmidt to Paul Anderson to Mentzer to Kaz, they’ve all been a huge influence along the way in shaping the Renegade Method and how I design training programs today. Vince Gironda was another big influence who was light years ahead of his time. Like me, Vince was a renegade; a rebel who never… continue reading.

Use these tips and you’ll get jacked. End of story… 1) Make Farmers Walks a Staple They build your traps, core and grip while developing tremendous total body strength and stability. And nothing is more functional than picking up something heavy and walking with it. Do them once a week for 3-4 sets of 30-60 seconds each. 2) Start Wearing Knee Sleeves Before You Need Them By the time you realize that you should probably start wearing knee sleeves it may be too late. The damage may already be done. There is no one who couldn’t benefit from wearing knee… continue reading.

The straight bar chin up with your palms facing you places too much stress on the wrists, elbows and shoulders and should be eliminated from your program. Even if you haven’t experienced it yet chances are good that a steady diet of supinated (palms facing you) straight bar chin ups may come back to bite you in the ass… or elbow, eventually. Pull ups (palms facing away from you) on a straight bar are a bit safer but could also be eliminated if you want to be ultra conservative or you have any shoulder problems. The simple solution is to… continue reading.

The Iron Guru, Vince Gironda was legend in the world of Physical Culture. Here are seven of his best tips. 1)    Get sufficient sleep each night. Growth can only take place after recuperation. Get plenty of rest. 2)    Build up enthusiasm for each workout. Going through the motions of training will not produce results. You would be better off not training. 3)    Cycle your training. Never do today what you can’t supersede tomorrow. Don’t perform more exercises or more intensity than necessary to maintain an upward growth pattern. 4)    Never continue your workout so you run out of steam before… continue reading.

Most of you know by now how much I love the old school pioneers of the Iron Game. One of those legends I always pay my respects to is “The Iron Guru” Vince Gironda. Today I’m gonna give you an awesome way to combine the  Renegade Method with Vince’s training principles. First, start your workout with some type of explosive power exercise like a jump, throw or Olympic lift. This is pretty much a Renegade staple. Three to five sets of 1-5 reps will be sufficient for most people. After that move on to your maximal strength exercise. That will… continue reading.

“I never sleep, cuz sleep is the cousin of death.” Nas- New York State of Mind I was supposed to be Eminem. At least that’s the way I saw it back in ’88. It was my freshman year of high school and the Beastie Boys were yet to be taken seriously, so I figured I could be the first great white rapper. I practiced my rhymes all the time and just knew that within a few years I’d be on tour opening for Public Enemy. Then 3rd Bass came along and crushed my dreams. But I could at least… continue reading.

Instead of discussing how little you can get away with to get in decent shape, let’s talk about how many days a week you should work out for maximal muscle growth and fat loss. Because if you’re reading this site you want to be built like a modern day warrior or Greek God. You’re not the average couch potato looking to just “tighten up a little.” Everybody wants the easy way out. Ten minute arms. Eight minute glutes. Six minute abs. Ya know what nobody wants? The truth. That building muscle and transforming your body takes HARD WORK. How many… continue reading.

I started training people when I was nineteen years old and still in school. After working in the college weight room I got out on my own. At first I was working with adults in a one on one setting for twenty bucks an hour. Eventually I worked that up to fifty and had a pretty good base of clients. They were all the average fat loss personal training client, however, and that was really the last thing I wanted to spend the rest of my career doing. I wanted to work with athletes and I wanted to train guys… continue reading.