weight is not the most important means of progressing

Lot of thoughts recently about this. At the end of the day, increasing the weight of whatever you are using as a means of progression absolutely matters. The callback is that increasing weight should not be your primary metric for progress unless your sport depends on it. Do you really think that an all out set of 20 of (fucking whatever) will not illicit a growth response or a strength response? You bet your ass it will and does. 

It is easier to build strength in higher rep ranges, so why not start there and slowly taper the weight up until you can't. And when you can't, either back off and ramp up or choose a similar movement to work on.

Your 5/3/1 top set with a goal of 3 ended up being a set of 12? GREAT! Don't change a thing. Try to get 12 again on the next cycle with a heavier weight. If you get 13, even better. If you get 10, also good.

is it science or marketing?

Beware the ads that use the word science or athelete to justify their existence.

'all natural athelete'

Athelete of what exactly?

'science breakthroughs discovered that'

How many studies are being conducted on getting jacked? Who are the subjects? What is the quality of this research?

Take it from someone who has spent untold thousands on supplements. They are overrated. Do not fall prey to marketing that is mascarading as science.

mace swings and mobility: match made in heaven

One of the hardest things to manage is sets of mace swings. I'm sure there's a way to program them, but it isn't something I've gotten ahold of yet. In general, higher rep sets feel better. I actually feel my lats and shoulders loosening up on longer sets. My grip and abs likewise get the biggest boost if im fighting longer time under tension.

The problem is usually rest between sets. How do you ensure each set is high effort without doing lower intensity sets as 'feeders' or taking long breaks with your dick in your hands?

Answer: super set hip and knee mobility with sets of mace swings. Also on the menu is small body parts bodybuilding (calves, neck) but choose your journey. Instead of a rest period or a sub par future set, you get in some productive work you were going to try and skip anyways. 

Example

Set a timer for 30min

Mace swings: goal 100 reps

Hip mobility / isometrics (both sides)

Mace swings: goal 100 reps

Neck curls front/back

Mace swings: goal 100 reps

Hip mobility / isometrics 

Mace swings: goal 100 reps

Neck curls sides

If time remaining, repeat

Isometrics and mobility prioritize quality over rep count

Small body parts done to failure

piecing together a 2x/weekly 5/3/1 program

This a very upper body heavy program out of necessity. Typically the 'row' item below would be a squat, but that's not the times we live in. Choose your journey accordingly.

Build Your Deck

Hinge: pick 1

Row: pick 1

Press: pick 2 

Calisthenics press: pick 2 

Calisthenics pull: pick 2 

Biceps accessory: pick 2  

Triceps accessory: pick 2  

Shoulders accessory: pick 2 

Choose movements you can push relatively hard. If you are at constant risk of injury with even light poundage, you are better off choosing a movement (or range of motion) where this is not the case. Simultaneously work on fixing your shit via mobility so you are not land locked into your choice forever.

Stick with movements as long as possible. Start cycles lighter than you need to.

Program

2x/week full body. You will cycle through all movements and rep ranges over a 2 week period.

   5/3/1 6 week cycle. Does not include a deload when cycles are completed due to low frequency.

   + means 50 rep goal in 4 sets.

   ++ means 1 all out set. Use rest pause, drop sets, whatever. Weight does not increase for 6 week cycles.

2-3x/week conditioning. 

For me, this involves swinging maces (again, all upper body). For you, this could mean kettlebells, bodyweight movement, long walks, whatever. The goal is to move well and get in shape.

2-3x/week mobility.

Mobility <> stretching. Think of this as expressing strength in increasing ranges of motion. There are a ton of tracks to choose here (even yoga is a good option) but don't get paralyzed by options. Choose something and do it often.

Think about kids - 20 somethings. They aren't worried about mobility. Why not? Because they're always fuckin moving in different ranges of motion. Ever look at someone with their knees on the ground and think dag yo that would be nice? Ya, mobility. 

Example program - 2 week cycle: This is literally what I'm doing.

Week1

Sumo Deadlift 5/3/1 super set Archer Pushup+

Reverse Grip Floor Press+ super set chinup+

Giant set++

- Cossack squat

- pelican curl

- tricep extension

- rear delt raise

Floor Press 5/3/1 super set Ring Pullup+

Sandbag high pull + super set Pseudo Planche Pushup+

Giant set++

- landmine hack squat

- one arm ring curl

- kettlebell pjr pullover

- plate raise 

Week2

Reverse Grip Floor Press 5/3/1 super set Bodyweight Row+

Sumo Deadlift+ super set Archer Pushup+

Giant set: asst 

TBar Row 5/3/1 super set Pseudo Planche Pushup+

Floor Press+ super set Ring Pullup+

Giant set: asst

5/3/1 Explanation

Week 1-2: 65%x5, 75%x5, 85%xas many as possible

Week 3-4: 70%x3, 80%x3, 90%xas many as possible

Week 5-6: 75%x5, 85%x3, 95%xas many as possible

If you've got the energy/powuh for it, follow the top set by a backup set of 'as many as possible' using the lightest weight for that day.

After each 6 week period increase the max working weight:

- Upper: 5lbs.

- Lower: 10lbs.

5/3/1 sandbags

Been having a gas with a 5/3/1 variation. Jim Wendler's fingerprints are here but he didn't write the actual program. The roots of this method are in 5/3/1 forever - 2 day a week training + first set last.

Two week cycles

Six week program

+ 50 rep goal in 4 sets

++ 60 rep goal in 4 sets

Week 1

Sandbag squat 5/3/1 ss calisthenics press+

Reverse grip floor press+ ss calisthenics pull+

Biceps, lats, hams, triceps, shoulders++

Floor press 5/3/1 ss calisthenics pull+

Sandbag deadlift x 4 ss calisthenics press+

Biceps, lats, hams, triceps, shoulders++

Week 2

Reverse grip floor press 5/3/1 ss calisthenics pull+

Sandbag squat x 4 ss calisthenics press+

Biceps, lats, hams, triceps, shoulders++

Sandbag deadlift 5/3/1 ss calisthenics press+

Floor press+ ss calisthenics pull+

Biceps, lats, hams, triceps, shoulders++

Sandbag movements progress range of motion then weight.

- 6 weeks: two block

- 6 weeks: one block

- 6 weeks: floor

- 6 weeks: two blocks new weight

5/3/1 sandbags days have two carries until failure:

- top set

- last set

+ Sandbag days use one carry until failure on the last set.

Off days:

- mace, club

- mobility 

ROM, weight, and volume: what is actually important?

After my neck injury in 2021, I found myself completely unable to pull with my left arm. Given I was never able to do a 1 arm Pullup, my pulling power slowly degraded to the point where I had less strength than before I started training. Brutal.

The years passed and the nerve damage slowly unraveled (note: it's still there yo, just muted most days) I found myself able to do a ring Pullup again. Ring. As in singular. My internal monologue soared! LOOKS LIKE LATS ARE BACK ON THE MENU BOYS. Except they weren't. Training ring pullups didn't seem to make anything grow because I couldn't put in the volume and intensity needed to force any meaningful adaptation. 

What I could do were ring rack chinups for comparitively higher reps. I saw these as a stepping stone to doing the actual important work (actual ring pullups + weight) and completely missed the lesson I inadvertently learned.

"Working movements in a range of motion and weight that allows gains in intensity and volume is more important than full range of motion + more weight if the latter two cannot be expressed with intensity or volume".

I.e.

Your sets of 1-3 basic bitch moves aren't helping as much as you think they are if you lack the foundationation strength. 

Again, I accidentally learned this years ago while running the hepburn method. What was comfortable to me were multiple sets of 2-3. The afterthought were the back off sets of 6-8. But that's where the magic happens! I was never at risk of failing a set of 2-3. Sets of 6-8 were fucking scary with big movements and pushed my body to places I hadn't seen before. 

There's nothing wrong with my original desire to get back to full range of motion ring pullups. BUT, there is an infinite amount of steps I can take in between now and then and STILL make excellent progress with strength and physique.

the generalist and systems, not goals

I'm not training for a specific goal. I have no much lose X pounds or lift Y weight, but I still want to improve my healthy size and strength. The most specific I will ever get is: I should be above average at most things I never train for. Meaning my body will never be the limitation on what I try. My skills on the other hand? You can exhibit athletic qualities without being an athlete. 

Without a specific goal in mind, training and diet work better within the realm of a system of approach. Said system differs from a program as there is no intended results or outputs - very similar to Dan Johns park bench versus bus bench type of programs (note: this being a firm park bench). Your system will look different than mine. 

System params

Lift

- 1x every 3 days.

- linear progression. Swap movements when progress stalls.

- multiple small meals.

Non lifting

- one meal a day.

- highlight odd objects - sandbags, kettlebell, maces, etc.

There are no parameters tied to specific reps, weight, movements, or sets. Effort and consistency trumps a plan. I will never win a competition with this system, nor do I intend to or care. I will on the other hand, make progress on all metrics I give a crap about without needing to get specific. That's good enough. And good enough is pretty good.

prehab and rehab per fuckup

Prerequisite I'm not a doctor. This is not advice. Everything in this post has worked for me when I've been hurt or trying to prevent being hurt for different body parts. Take as you will.

Lower back

Injury history

- 2011: L5/S1 herniation. Could barely move.

- 2018: L5/S1 and other (forget which) herniation. Way fuckin worse than 2011.

Healing tactics - Charlie what do now

- daily walks. Frequency is way more important than length (3x 10min > 1x 30min).

- abdominal work. Whatever is possible - planks, side plans, ab wheel, mace/club swings.

- Romanian deadlifts/good mornings. Bodyweight (i.e. unloaded) if need be. Wait until traumatic injury pains are dulled or gone before embarking. The goal is to move through a long range of motion and get copious amounts of blood flow.

Training while injured - Charlie what do

Calisthenics are your friend. If an angle or range of motion hurts or makes your pain/sciatica worse, don't do it. Crazy right?

Good example with me. Pullup and dip variations feel great. Pushup and row variations felt awful because of massive pressure I felt on my back. If it hurts, don't do it!

Prevention tactics - Charlie how not do again 

- repeat of daily walks and abdominal work from healing tactics.

- strengthen and stretch hip flexors and hamstrings.

Neck

Injury history 

- 2021: Multiple disc bulges. My entire left arm went numb for an extended period of time (note: as of 2024, some residual nerve damage is still present). I lost the ability to pull with my left arm entirely.

Healing tactics

- repeat of daily walks from lower back section

 You really just should be walking a lot bruh. 

- stretch chest and neck as possible. Mobility through large slow arm swings and neck rotations. Only work in pain free ranges of motion or ranges that do not increase your numbness.

Training while injured

Not gonna lie, this fucking sucks. Your options are very limited unless you want to prolong your injury timeline.

What worked for me was all lower body focused where load was not a main factor. Specifically:

- bodyweight squat variations.

- sled drags.

Prevention tactics

- repeat of healing tactics.

- avoid blatantly dangerous exercise variations (note: for me, this is barbell overhead press) until your shit is fixed.

- mace swings are greatly assisting with mobility of my chest, shoulders, and lats. This has been $$$$. Notably, mace swings when I was healing was the exact opposite of what I needed. I would have been better off doing pendulum swings (which I do for warmups now) to open up my last and shoulders).

Knees

Injury history

2019: decided to do multiple weeks 20 rep front squats with bodyweight. Lol ok. Nothing diagnosed other than it fucking hurt.

2021: hurt my neck and knee at the same time. Again no diagnosis.

2023: weird ass nerve damage due to a swelling of the patella tendon.

Healing and prevention

I don't know man. I'm still working this out, but I'm making progress. I've been to multiple rounds of physical therapy, and they were great to help me move from barely functional to absolute shit but could walk ok, but the move back to athletic is ongoing.

Finding one arm.weighted walks feel VERY good

What has helped:

- knees over toes 'zero' protocol. Exactly as written.

- engaging my entire foot when lifting and spreading my toes. 

- sled work sparingly. Knees over toes touts this a ton, but backwards sled especially tightens me up.

- slow introduction back into leg training has been helpful. Ripped directly from Julien hard:

1. Add frequency before volume and fatigue

2. Add volume and fatigue before full range of motion

3. Add full range of motion before adding load/tension

4. Add load/tension before adding speed

5. Add speed before impact

Add one variable at a time. 

lady bulk

My dog, Lady, has the best eating discipline. No, it doesn't make sense. Yes, I get jealous every time I see her eat. 

What does she do that I envy? She refuses to eat any meal unless she's been walked, has played, or sprinted. What does she eat (granted, she doesn't have a choice here)? High ass protein and fat. The result is a jacked pitbull mix.

The lesson here is earning your calories then choosing the right fuel. Is there any real reason you need to eat before you've exercised? This isn't a nod to say if you don't exercise then you don't need to eat period, but a one meal a day format works great to compliment that situation. 

Food should support your activity level. 

power calisthenics: Downs variation

No idea if this is a forever idea or not. Weighted carries are possible, but it's prolonging my knee healing time. It makes more sense to lean into what I can attack now and rehab what I can't.

AM

(1)

Weighted push/pull, downs

(Same movement) Bodyweight push/pull, downs 

(2)

Gut work, downs

Choose: tib, calf, hip flex downs

Straight arm holds

PM

(1)

Bodyweight downs

(2) 

Sled

Don't go to failure. You should get close anyways over the course of down workouts. 

Increase weight when you can hit an 8 down.

Switch movements liberally and often. We don't want no overuse.

power calisthenics: rehash

AM

(1) Dips + rows + swings 

(2) Mobility + abs 

(3) Pushups + pullups + swings 

(4) Mobility + abs

Tenants 

Do weighted variations every 3rd session

Progressive calisthenics imported when the top set variations become too easy (15+ reps)

Regularly go to failure

End each upper day with isolation movements

PM - options not necessities 

Carries - Farmers, keg 

Sandbag - squats, carries, throws 

Sled - pull through, rope drag

Other - pullover, cable pulldowns 

Diet

Mythical strength chaos is the plan. 

I.e. meat, eggs, and vegetables when hungry 

I don't generally audit myself when having dinner with my wife except with dessert

I really like Rob MclHenny's take on the meek. As in the meek shall inherit the earth. I always heard this as an excuse to be weak or the passed over are truly the chosen, but that's not the case in Rob's version or the biblical version. I like the version where the meek are people who have the capacity for violence and strength but choose to be peaceful. In Vinland saga, this is the core tenant of a warrior - I have no enemies. But you cannot choose to be peaceful if you are forced to be peaceful by the fact that you are indeed weak and an easy target. 

In an application to training, it is your responsibility to be strong and powerful. This doesn't translate to a 1 rep max. This translates to being a generalist with medium to high attributes accross the board. Your hybrid athletes or red mages. Extreme capabilities are fucking cool but come at a cost. Be extreme compared to the normal human.

easy strength as a base

Easy strength was built for athletes to train a single quality, strength, then spend the majority of their time on their sport. It's a minimalist program by design that can exist in isolation. As a non athelete I'm finding it's value in other ways.

Easy strength value points

- time efficient: even days that are fucked at work mean nothing. I already got my workout in. I'm low key prepping for become a father when I know I'll have even less time.

- scratches the itch for working from home. Days off when I work from home are unbearable. I need something to feel sane and easy strength provides an outlet to lift daily without excess stress 

- increases walking around strength. When you respect 'only increase weight when it feels too easy' the poundages creep up without a ton of effort.

I'm a little more than halfway into a round of easy strength and can confirm there is HIGH value with never pushing sets close to failure or even struggle. As Dan says, this feels like you are 'not doing anything'. I promise you, it is. 

So far, easy strength has NOT been something I would use to peak strength. It's been great for slowly raising the floor of what I consider light weight. A weight that was a hard single a few weeks ago (I e. Before the institution of don't struggle fuck me standing) is an easy double. I fully expect to add another 10lbs to what is 'easy' on this lift before this 40day cycle is over.

The fun surprise is that I've been slowly growing. Not a ton, but a little. For a program that is not hypertrophy focused this has been pretty damn cool. When you think about it, it makes sense. None of my reps are grinders, but they are definitely within the threshold for hypertrophy (within 5ish of failure if the science doesn't change in the next 10min). Compound that by 6-10 effective reps per day every day and you can see how you can get a little meat with your strength.

Fun surprise 2 is my mental state. If I'm pushing reps close to failure I tend to get down in the dumps and lethargic. Meticulously avoiding failure has been a great workaround.

All in all, I'm very much enjoying this round of easy strength. It's sustainable long term and opens the door for so much more. 

The everlasting schedule 

- easy strength as a base

- carries, kettlebells, and sprints to stay bouncy

- extra grease the groove upper pulls for fun

- small body parts for work breaka

Mini Workouts: high frequency and low time

I accidentally had two great workouts yesterday. In both instances, I was low on time and had a specific goal. In both instances I walked away feeling better than I started. In other news, I had the best night sleep I've had in weeks. IM SURE ITS UNRELATED.

Striking while the iron is hot on this concept. I've been gravitating away from longer (60+min) workouts for a while now. Partly because I've got things to do with my wife, friends, and job. But mostly because I just don't have the patience anymore. What can I do in 60min that I can't do in 20min? When I keep my workouts shorter but more frequent, I can scratch the conditioning itch I have multiple times a day without burying myself in fatigue. Some ideas below.

The only consistent variable (with a notable exception) is working to failure. It's ravenholm, and we don't go to ravenholm. Your notable go to ravenholm exception is for small body parts (neck, calves, tib, forearms). Go nuts on that shit.

Strength 

(1)easy strength workout. This is the base.

(2)one movement. Work up to a rep max (5-10). 

Bodyweight, kettlebells, sandbags 

(1)Juarez valley method.

(2)Dan John ladders (1,2,3 / 2,3,5 / 2,3,5,10).

(3)Downs.

(4)Straight set circuits.

Notes: 

- bodyweight only: Progress the movement if you can bang out too many reps.

- choose 2 movements from one or multiple implements, set a timer for 10-20min and go to town.

- all method top sets are NOT using your max possible reps. You should avoid hitting a set you can't complete or need multiple attempts.

- movement VARIETY is your friend. This is not a programmed section, this is candy land. If you keep rolling the dice you will get to what you want regardless of the stops on the way.

Carry implements: farmers, swing straps, leg

(1)distance and weight vary 

Small body parts

1-2 sets to failure. Use drop sets, rest pause, whatever. Think outside of the box! There are tons of angles you can use for forearms and the neck. Calves and ribs are a little more streamlined.

Stretching and Mobility

Didn't think this would be here eh? Well fuck you Elmo this is the coda to this story. There are a billion outlets to get you started. Do what you can and do it consistently.

I fully allocate my good nights sleep to stretching before bed. I did not go to bed tight and in pain and WEIRD I slept better.

Accepting injury. Sticking to the plan.

It's important I log mental paradigm shifts. I've written about doing what you can in the midst of injury multiple times. What I have not talked about is becoming numb to setbacks.

The gift of injury

Last week my knees were feeling great for the first time in a long time. I decided to take a light sandbag (50lbs) and take it for a walk. By that evening both of my knees were on fire. It didn't hurt necessarily, but everything was screaming DONT DO THAT STUPID. I lay in bed with my wife and vocalized my frustration. Phrases like 'I didn't deserve this' and 'I set myself back weeks' poured out of my brain. As always she was empathetic to my frustration. We passed out and that was that.

Days later, my knees still feel like shit. I've done nothing physically with my lower body other than go on long walks. I'm objectively in worse shape than when I first complained a week ago, but my mental state is MILES ahead. 

This is the gift I received from a set-back:

• Realizing I'd been shirking the mobility courses I purchased. My body will not heal unless I give it a reason to heal.
• Remembering my catastrophic neck injury in 2021. What used to be the inability to feel or pull with my left arm is now barely a numb buzz. Through persistence and strength training, I will recover.
• Refocus my goal on brutalizing my upper body. There is a mountain of progress I can make that is unrelated to my knees.  

2024 Goals: Ring Muscle Up, Shoulder a 150lb Sandbag, Snatch a 24kg KB for 20

First day back at work for 2024. Fresh in my brain are the physical goals I have for 2024. 

GOALS:

• One(1) Ring Muscle Up.
• Shoulder a 150lb Sandbag.
• Snatch a 24kg KB for 20.

Given my current strength levels and progress in my program, these are extremely achievable. I'm actively working towards a ring muscle up daily, and I'm laying the bricks that will allow my body to safetly murder the other two(2).

The why behind each goal is easy. I've always thought I was too heavy for muscle ups. The change was a mindset shift on bodyweight training. A heavier starting point means each rep has more muscle building potential. If I build my upper body back up while simultaneously practicing the skills tied to muscle ups, this 

Shouldering a 150lb bag is likely doable now, but not without aggravating my knee. I want to be able to throw this bag around pain free. Then do it again and again and again.

Snatching a 24kg KB is weirdly the biggest reach goal. A full KB snatch scares me even with 16kg, and 24kg is generally considered the minimum 'working weight' most men should be using before you can see much in the way of results from KBs. This is entirely arbitrary of course, but I want to throw around a weight that scares me a little now.

ring muscle up before I'm 40

Game fucking on y'all. My.nerve damage has diminished to the point where I can train my upper body safety again. In the same way I hit a 500 dead after herniating multiple discs (immediate thought after was oh nooooo I'll never be strong again) I'm going to hit the target I thought was lost to me the moment I injured my neck.

Context. In a single day in 2021:

- I hurt my neck doing handstand pushups (d'oh).

- Hurt it more trying to do a muscle up with no training (why).

- Then made the problem 10x worse by doing farmers walks later in the day (I thought it would stretch me out!).

What resulted was my neck hurting so badly I couldn't move without assistance, my entire left arm going numb, and my body losing all ability to pull (the nerves literally didn't connect). Am I 100% better? Nah. My strength isn't what it was, and there is always some residual numbness. But I'm smarter now. Maybe. Active daily mobility and actually training my neck is mah friend. You probably can't compete at the highest levels of (fill in something) with nerve damage. But a muscle up? Bitch please. This is doable.

The system

Full body every other day. 

- heavy focus on upper body.

- lower body is super light via rehab and acclimation.

Daily practice with false grip. That shit hurts.

Off days.

- neck and foot strength.

- mobility.

The only thing that will change once my lower body is cleared is extra conditioning sessions. I want a larger engine, not necessarily to directly strength train my lower. This means kettlebells and sandbags. Together at last.

shower thought biceps on biceps

The pelican curl is the Nordic hamstring curl for the arms. Extremely high tension and high difficulty ceiling. 

Training elements are mostly the same. Slow negatives, full range of motion with bands 

calisthenics progression (still vetting)

Every once in a while a fun idea comes across your brain. It's too good to ignore sonit gets put into immediate action.

Concept 

Prioritizing calisthenics via both weights and leverage progressions 

What it looks like

Shoot for a rep goal

Add weight when the rep goal is achieved 

Repeat until stale

Deload movement

Replace movement with a more difficult variation.

Example

Pushups 3x15, increase weight

+2.5lbs Pushups 3x12

+2.5lbs Pushups 3x15, increase weight

+5lbs Pushups 3x10

...weeks later

+25lbs Pushups 3x6, my shit hurts.

Pushups 3x5

Pushups 3x10, switch to new movement.

Archer Pushups 3x7

Archer Pushers 3x9

Etc

staggered rest versus supersets

I read something in Overcoming Gravity (gymnastics training for gen pop, excellent read and reference) that resonated with me and I've since implemented in my own training. 

Concept

Staggering rest periods instead of super setting exercises. 

Example super setting followed by rest

Set of ring pullups

Set of ring dips

Rest 3-5min

Example of staggering rest periods

Set of ring pullups 

Rest 1.5-2.5min

Set of ring dips

Rest 1.5-2.5min

Benefits

- fatigue from the leading exercise does not limit the second exercise.

- grip strength is not a limiting factor.

- rest periods can be used to stretch antagonist muscles, warm up the lower body, or sit and chill.

- overall cycle time of the workout is not extended.

Overall performance will still be better if you chose neither of the options above (pullups, rest 5min, pullups, etc), but the tradeoff is a longer workout. If your goal is to improve conditioning, then this method is not for you. The rest periods in line are geared towards strength development.

I was able to use the stagger method to complete the sets below in 45min. 

Ring pullups X3 stagger bar dips X3

Pelican curls X3 stagger pushups X3

V sit x3 stagger Romanian deadlift X3

Ring wrist curls x1 

rehab work: don't be dainty

I'm in a bad position and I hate it. My knee has been a problem for years and I'm finally in physical therapy dealing with it. Because that wasn't enough, my neck is flaring up in a major way that promises to hand me another couple of years of pain and discomfort. As with all setbacks, this is a blessing in disguise. 

Over the past few years I haven't been able to give what I would consider high effort to any sets. My body and strength 100% reflect this. The main mission is clear: fix my shit. Strength and conditioning can take a back seat for a few months so long term progress can actually happen.

The plan

- actually purchase and follow someone else mobility plan. The slot machine approach I'm taking is too random to be useful.

- spend 3 months building mobility and joint integrity.

- reintroduce strength training. The mobility train doesn't stop, it just takes a supporting role.

Where dainty matters

My knee physical therapy can be done in my sleep. If the goal is to build up the muscle and tissues that are atrophied, dainty isn't the way to go.

Why not train these movements with intensity? Why not train as if they were main movements? They're all I can do right now! I'm bored because I'm treating them like a chore instead of a goal. I can tell ya, 2x10 of single leg calf raises slaps very different then hitting single leg calf raises to failure, then assisted failure, then double leg calf raises with extended range of motion to failure and assisted failure. 

One of these methods sets off hypertrophic processes. The other isn't garbage, but I'm way less incentivised to follow it. 

daily training: the importance of light days

Training daily will build your capacity to do work no doubt, but you are not an infinite machine. Sooner or later the fatigue from heavy days will manifest in feeling tired, irritable, or overly sore in key areas (lower back) limiting your overall outputs.

The easiest way to mitigate long term stress is to implement active recovery days. The overall stress should be low while still providing a stimulus.

Ideas

- long brisk walks

- push or pull sled

- kettlebell carries (multiple levels)

- band movements for high reps

action after injuries!

The worst advice I ever got during physical therapy and chiro post injury was essentially the same: stop doing everything. Cool story bro. I stopped. The pain got worse, not better. I lost muscle and gained fat. Basically all the worst parts of the Bible.

Workaround.

Youre hurt, not broken. There is always something you can do. Injuries are opportunities in disguise to get fucking creative and progress by spamming movements you still have the ability to do. Experiment. If it causes pain or makes the injury worse. STOP! 

Your job is to heal. 

Your affected body part may or may do it on its own. Barring the need for surgery, your job is do everything in your power to recover. This might mean constant walks, light strengthing and mobility of surrounding joints and muscles. You know, boring shit. Embrace it. You can either be back to where you were 4 months from now or just starting to figure it out years later. Don't be the second guy.

Per body part I've injured:

Back

- heal: brisk walks, suitcase carries

- workaround: pullups, dips, single arm presses, chest supported rows, bw Bulgarian split squats 

Neck

- heal: chest stretches (door jam, barbell rollouts), neck and back massage

- workaround: walks, sled pulls (weight around waist)

Knee

- heal: will tell ya when I know. Right now,.weighted carries feel great.

- workaround: upper upper body is in 

if I had to rebuild from scratch

'What would I do if I could start over' is a fun thought experiment I like to mosey down periodically. This takes into account injury history, current strength and size levels given where I'm at now, and the time investment I've spent driving to and from gyms. Much like my great possession purge of 2019, this experiment forces me to reevaluate the choices I've made and what equipment I really need.

If some random stranger ever sees this, please don't take this as dogma. I only got to where I was by trying a lot of shit and fucking up a million times along the way. Your journey and goals may be very different than mine. All of the words below are powered on the wings of hindsight.

1. Invest in a home gym.

Between 2020 and 2023, I've dropped about $3000 on equipment I will own forever. Some of that equipment (armor fitness sled, the strap) was both not usable and a large chunk of this budget. Even so, my gym memberships from 2009-2019 ran about $30/month.

30*12months*10yrs = $3600.

Surface level this is almost the same amount of money, but it's not even close. Every gym I've ever been to created a fight for equipment, parking spots, and included a lengthy drive for stuff I did not and would never own.

In the next couple of bullets I'll dilute the $3000 I spent event further. A home gym is a long term cheaper alternative for equipment that is free 24/7.

2. Don't buy protein powder.

I'd like to say 'dont but supplements period' but that would be a bit disingenuous. Food should be the primary driver of your protein. It's too easy to fall into the trap of using whey to replace a good meal. 

Supplements I do like and take daily:

- magnesium glycinate 

- zinc (no isotope preference)

- creatine 

3. But Olympic rings first.

This runs under the assumption that you have places to hang them. Alternatively an initial investment of a sturdy Pullup bar followed by rings works as well.

If all you cared about was a build upper body, you can stop here. Even without adding weight, the amount of variation you can add to basic movements means you will never run out of progressions or skills to try for. 

Ring cost: $30/set.

Suggested investment: 1 pair if you are not lazy. 3 pairs of you are lazy (note: I am a lazy fuck and like my rings preset for pullups, dips, and pushups without having to reset them. This is not necessary but I've got the disposable cash to manage).

4. But sandbags second.

This one was a surprise to me. I'm a recent shill for sandbags so a lot of this energy is newbie joy. 

Sandbags check a ton of boxes. They build real world stable strength, can double as a non dangerous squatting tool, are great for carries, and also are great for safe dynamic pulls. Due to their lack of stability, they are not optimal if you're looking to build max strength or size. For my goals, they are absolutely perfect. I'd rather be the guy who can any day throw a 200lb sandbag on his shoulders half a dozen times than the dude who can deadlift 400lbs for reps.

The sandbags themselves aren't cheap (if you buy the nicer strongman bags), but the sand inside them is literally cheap as dirt. Quick side by side given the market today on iron weights versus sand.

Iron 100lbs * $2/lb = $200.

Sand 100lbs * $0.10/lb = $10.

A barbell might only be $150 but getting the weights for what you need will still carry a hefty investment. The major downside to sandbags is also my favorite upside. Unlike barbells, changing weight is a pain in the ass. The shill is talking loudly here, but one of the coolest things about old time strongmen is they did not have access to adjustable barbells like we have today. All of their barbells and implements were fixed weight. It's all they had to work with. What happens when you get so strong with the same weight that it's stupid? You find creative ways to bring the intensity back up and the reps back down until you get better at that variation as well. Sandbags aren't necessarily in the same league because at the end of the day you CAN still adjust them within their carry limit. However, my favorite use of them is to use a weight until it'l feels too light to be challenging anymore.

Sandbag cost: $100-$200 per bag for cerebus bags. You can also build your own for cheap using old bags and bag liners. 

Sand cost: $5/50lbs.

5. Buy kettlebells third.

This can be a single bell, a single adjustable bell, or multiple bells. Unless you plan on being a pure kettlebell lifter, don't stress too much on what to get. 

I definitely stressed over cast iron versus competition. Then adjustable versus regular. In the end, they're all good for different things. If the bell is too light, lift it more or find different ways to lift it that make it more difficult. See my fixed weight ramble in the sandbag section.

Price is wildly different depending on what you want. If I could redo this, I would find the cheapest 16kg, 20kg, and 24kg bells on sale and call it a day.

6. Buy a Nordic stick fourth.

Nordic hamstring curls are the fucking bomb. There are a crap ton of items on the market that range from 300-1000 to assist with glute ham raises or Nordic curls, but I've found the Nordic stick to work just fine for cheap.

Nordic curls are great for hamstring strength and size wrapped in a bodyweight movement. I'm wrapping in bands to this sale as you will almost certainly need them to make the movement easier when first starting.

Nordic stick coat: $30

Bands (rogue - 2 blue, 2 orange): $50

7. Buy a barbell and weights last.

This route obviously won't work if your goal is max strength or size. So again, take with grains of salt.

For me, barbells serve very limited usage. They still reign king for most people, but this isn't a list for most people. 

I mainly use barbells for the following:

- pin squats 

- pendlay rows, one arm rows

- shoulder rollouts (stretch)

I love what I have, but if I could go back in time, a barbell (and rack) would have been the last on my list. Another reason for this placement is I had it stuck in my head for YEARS that I would be unable to make any type of progress without both a bar and a rack. When I finally got both I told my wife it was fucking game time. Little did I know I would end up barely using said rack in lieu for everything else on this list.

Another big driver away from racks and barbells is I work from home. When you are home all day everyday you get stir crazy as fuck. For my mental health, I need daily exercise outside in the sun. Working out in my rack does not support that need.

more ramblings on a carry based program

To review, my program consists of a few things:

- daily easy strength: dips and chinups.

- daily stretching and mobility.

- 3x week sandbag carries, squats, cleans, and throws.

- 1x week Nordic curls (bb rep ranges), keg carries.

I don't want to undersell how much I love this format. Program ADD is handled by the fact that the main movements have no defined weight. For kegs and sandbags it's just: move it a few times if it's heavy and a lot of times if it's light. Move as fast as possible during carries and never carry the same way twice. My back feels GREAT in a way that kind of surprised me. I'm not expecting to get huge off of this type of training in most body parts (looking at you shoulders, legs, and arms) but my erectors are going to be fuckin columns of steel. Very batman results. 

I'm feeling almost 0 overall fatigue and I can feel my conditioning get better week by week. Hell man, last week post cleans my entire back and traps felt like someone had smashed them with tiny hammers. This week I went harder and my back barely noticed. 

The absolute best part of this is getting 'used' to a weight while still making progress. I can sum up progressive overload like:

- go for more sets in the same amount of time

- add more reps between carries.

- consciously move faster during carries. You should be trying to move at a dead run.

- every 2-4 weeks add a little water (keg) and sand (bags).

ez strength: step loading weighted calisthenics

Weighted calisthenics is a great AM option for easy strength. This goes double considering the lions share of my actual training is conditioning with sandbags which contains absolutely 0 pressing.

The area where I'm going outside of easy strength is in the daily rep ranges. I start inside the params and end slightly out. The overall daily volume is still EXTREMELY small, and none of the sets build any type of fatigue. Recovery day to day has been a non issue.

Step Loading Easy Strength (3-5min daily) 

Calisthenics press 2-5x2-3

(Super set) Calisthenics pull 2-5x2-3

Rest 1min between super sets 

This works great regardless of whether you need regressed, bodyweight, or weighted versions of a movement.

Every day, add a rep to the daily load. Once you max out the 3's, add a set and regress to sets of 2 again. NEVER STRUGGLE.

Example (each row is a day)

2,2,2

3,2,2

3,3,3

2,2,2,2

3,2,2,2

...

3,3,3,3,3

Increase weight or progress variation

2,2,2

Weight increments should be the smallest possible increment (2.5-5lbs). The goal is to be able.to.comtinually gain strength as long as possible without changing movements or deloading.

sandbag based training program

Tldr if I could rebuild my gym, I would keep the rings, the sandbags, the sled, and a kettlebell. If I move I might leave the power rack behind.

This shit is money. All main movements are based around squatting, throwing, and carrying sandbags. Assistance is a mix of barbell, kettlebell, and calisthenics. There are four(4) mesocycles in a year long macrocycle. 

Each mesocycle is based around three(3) concepts:

• A calisthenics movement or curl performed daily. 
• Set sandbag weight(s). 2-4x a week.
• Kettlebell or barbell assistance. 2-4x a week after sandbag training. The movement patterns should be the opposite of the daily movement.

At the end of every mesocycle:

• Change your daily movement.
• Increase sandbag weights.

The goal is to use each three(3) month mesocycle to own the crap out of a given sandbag weight. Your bags should feel like toys when you are done. Progression with sandbags can take the form of adding more reps/rounds, performing more rounds, adding more exercises to each round.

Schedule

AM - Daily

Mobility

10 sets of the daily movement: Dips, Pullups, Pushups, DB Curls. 1min rest between sets.

Stretch

PM - 2-4x a week.

30min sandbag training. Combine different permutations of squats, carries, and throws. 

Assistance:

• Counter daily movement 3x8. 1min rest between sets.
• 1x BW reverse lunges to failure.
• Stretch.

PM - non-lifting days.

Sled, KB Swings, Suitcase Carries. 

Sandbag Parking Lot

Squat: Bear hug squat (1 or 2 arm), shoulder squat, box squat, jump squat.

Carry: Bear hug (1 or 2 arm), overhead, shoulder.

Throw: Over shoulder, slam, push forward. 

high frequency barbell, kettlebell, and calisthenics

Nothing new to say here. It's important I record when I'm doing something I love so when I inevitably forget I have a clear record of the past.

Goals 6/19/23

General 

- improve condition, work capacity, and mobility

- get outside daily

- introduce movement (sprints, bounds, crawls) into the mix for the thought of moving doesn't feel alien

Specific

- half snatch 28kg x 12

- goblet squat 32kg x 12

- floor press 200lb x 12

Schedule

M-F AM: modified easy strength 

M-F PM: alternate upper calisthenics and kb

Sat AM: barbell upper bodybuilding

Modified easy strength: 15min

Jump rope

Ab wheel

Lower barbell movement <= 10 reps

Light kb swing

Stretch and mobility

Upper calisthenics

Strength: weighted or advanced patterns

Afternoon suntan: outside volume, crawls, downs, etc

Kb

Sprint 

Dynamic movement - snatch, swing, jumps, etc

Squat

Deadlift

Leg curls 

Bodybuilding

Press 50 in 5 ss pull 50 in 5

Lats 60 in 4

abbreviated training + conditioning

I need to stop myself every time I build a program with 4+ days of lifting a week. It's not like that doesn't work. It totally does. But I also walk around feeling like absolute tired shit all the time. I thought this was a bad thing for years and years but really it's a god damn blessing to have 'bad recovery.' I get more out of less work bwahhhhhh. Lifting 2x a week is money when you go hard in the paint on every set then recover.

This is not saying that I'm a couch potato the remaining 5 days of the week. Far from it. Every day has something physical whether it's kettlebell conditioning, sled drags, stretching, and calisthenics. The idea is that the non lifting days do not eat further into recovery.

Example

Monday

Squat or Press 1-5 sets. 50 rep goal.

Nordic hamstring curl 1xbeyond failure 

Carry 10min

Tuesday 

Calisthenics. One push or pull.

Kettlebell conditioning 20-30min

Wednesday

Sled, stretching, or off

Thursday

Deadlift 1-5 sets. 50 rep goal.

Sissy squat. 1xbeyond failure

Carry 10min

Friday 

Same as Tuesday 

Sat

Same as Wednesday 

Sun

Off

Lifting cycle and movement replacement

The same movement variations repeat in a 2 week rotation. Meaning you will only practice a movement one time every 2 weeks. If you fail to increase reps towards the 50 rep goal 2 weeks in a row, swap it out for a different lift.

Squats: Zercher, safety, front, landmine, viking, sandbag

Presses: floor press, landmine, viking, calisthenics presses, one arm javelin, kettlebell 

Deads: snatch rack pull, sumo, hang clean, hang snatch high pull, one arm deadlift 

For squats and deads, work up to a very low max before hitting volume towards your rep goal. Use straps for deadlift volume. Grip should not be the limiting factor on reps but it should on strength.

Increase weight 5-10 pounds at a time. If things are going well, you should not be replacing more.than 1 movement at a time.

$$$ conditioning tool: sled and kb combo

30min on the clock

Equipment needed:

- drag sled.

- single kettlebell. The weight doesn't matter.

Alternate until time is up

Sled drag

Snatch (left)

Sled drag

Snatch (right)

Sled drag

Swing (left)

Sled drag

Swing (right)

Progression by adding a small amount of reps over time to kb movements. Increase weight of the sled by 2.5-5lbs and the kb by 2-4kg once kb reps reach the stratosphere.

The goal is restoration and conditioning. Avoid failure and fatigue like the plague.

The fast motion of a kb followed by the slow motion of a sled drag makes my butt feel feelings. 

3 months of kettlebelling : lessons learned

Oh boy here I go brain dropping again.

Fixed weight implements are the fucking bomb. I missed out on 2020 when I 'only' had a 20kg kettlebell and thought I couldn't do anything useful with it. Today, it's the most common implement I use. Times change.

If your back hurts after ballistics, you likely aren't hinging well or hinging at the mid back instead of the hips. Film yourself with a light bell to see where your weakness lies.

Dan John's easy strength program pairs VERY well with kb strength, conditioning, and bodybuilding.

Current program:

M-F morning is easy strength.

M-Sat afternoon is kettlebell work. Two of those days use 5/3/1 progression for overload movements followed by lighter assistance (high volume and movement variety).

Arms are thrown in whenever cause arms.

This may be shit technique, but with one handed movements I've found I like to favor the blastoff force on the opposite glute and hamstring.

Variety is rewarded over specificity. There's nothing wrong with training a specific movement pattern, but where kettlebells shine is just how many ways you can swing, press, squat, whatever them.

If you are using your free arm for balance when using a single bell, you are robbing your obliques of a crazy training effect. Keep your arm out when you need assistance or when you are exploring new weights. For volume or ladder training, let your abs provide your balance. 

If you don't know how kettlebells work your abs, try snatches with a heavier weight. Those fuckers are trying to yank you over unless you provide the counter force in your own body.

Swings are both under and overrated. I can't see them being a great long term minimalism training movement, but they shine for me with the following:

- light swings to prime the pump for heavier work

- heavy swings used to overload the muscles used for snatches and cleans. It's weird AF to relegate a movement as assistance then work it harder than the main movements but here we are.

Kettlebells are a cult of personality for a reason. Im able to work out outside and get some sun everyday without a huge time investment. It cannot be understated how important this is 

You don't have to 'just' do kettlebells. You may end up in that lane, but don't trade one dogma for another.

Kettlebells build muscle like any other tool. Pay attention to the people that are getting jacked with bells. There is no one method that works for everyone, but the through line is consistency and a focus on progression like any other implement. Weight progression will come slower with bells but it still needs to be a part of your plan.

You can bodybuild with kettlebells, but kettlebells will never make you into a competitive bodybuilder. For general strength training, it's just peachy.

benefits to kettlebell training: a beginners lense

Don't listen to me. For real man. If you came here looking for sage advice or to feel justified in making a decision on doing X you're in the wrong place. These brain droppings are so I can remember what I like and what works for me when I inevitably veer away from productivity.

I'm a complete kettlebell novice, but not a lifting novice. Back and neck injuries have kept me on the bench for the past few years and I'm grateful to have the chance to build myself back up. With 0 incentive to revisit lifts or numbers I used to produce without an accompany revisit to physical therapy I've chosen kettlebells as my medium.

Schedule

Squat / press

Off: calisthenics 

Dead / pull

Off: calisthenics 

Weights

Oscillate between medium, heavy, and light pairs of days. Increase the weight when it's too easy. There is no rush to increase weight EVER. The focus is on improving control, coordination, power, and cardio.

Kettlebells will always be submaxinal weight, so make them feel heavy. This means:

- slow negative 

- explosive concentric 

- pause every rep

- squeeze the side that is not being directly worked 

Movements

Choose chaos via python script. It should be rare that the same workout occurs twice, but the same patterns will always repeat. 

Patterns 

- lower / lower alt

- upper

- combination lower and upper

- ab focus 

Nuances

45min on the clock.

As many sets as possible under control.

Rep quality > rep quantity. When in doubt do less but do it better.

1 set is the same sequence repeated on both sides (assuming most patterns are unilateral with 1 bell).

Bilateral movements are repeated on both halves of the set.

Lower / lower alt refers to an alternative movement every other set. Example:

- set 1: rack split squats

- set 2: Cossack squats

Body improvement goals

No measurements, just markers.

This is not an aesthetic physique goal. I essentially want to become a cube. Thin waist be damned.

Shoulders and abs should chunk up. 

Lats should get thicker. 

Spinal erectors should get thick as fuck.

Arms will benefit most from the off day dips/pullups. I don't expect kettlebells to do much in that regard.

Calisthenics: why and how

Dip variation is the name of the game here. I may add in pullups down the road, but my back is getting plenty of work on the reg. Likewise, my shoulders will benefit greatly from all things overhead. That leaves chest and triceps. Even if I'm going hard in the paint on dips, it's unlikely my chest and triceps will ever be a limiting factor for kettlebell work.

On the how, I'm stealing directly from swole at every heights method for implementing high ass frequency on 'off' days.

Build base volume

Week 1: 1 exercise x 1x10

Week 2: 1 exercise x 2x10

...

Week 4: 1 exercise x 4x10

Week 5: 2 exercises x 1x10

...

Week 12: 3 exercises x 4x10

Then add in chaos. Never repeat the same variations in the same order. If this gets too easy in any context, add reps or change the variation. Slow reps and pauses are a first line of adding control.

linear gains : chaotic approach

I've been learning python. Fucking, finally. I've always wanted to be able to program, but I've damn near failed every class I ever took. Good news! The reason isnt that my brain is a dud, it's because taking classes on some things is mind numbingly boring. Unless I can make a connection between an actual problem I'm having and what im learning, it ain't gonna stick. Case and point, sql. Nothing stuck in college, but I'm now considered one of the heavies at my company. 

I've got bigger plans for python, but I started on building a workout generator for sword and shield. With the press of a button, I can get weeks of randomized workouts and weights. There is NOTHING wrong with this approach, but I'm finding my neck still isn't up for dynamic movements. And I'll be damned if kettlebells aren't mostly dynamic.

This means I'm sticking with slower exercises for now, even if the goal is to move the bar as fast as possible. I've always been more comfortable with doing a shitton of times sets instead a few sets to failure to drive progress. This is what I came up with.

General

Linear progression push/pull

6 week mesocycles

Pull current: rdl, sdl, snatch rack pull

Pull reserve: rolling thunder dl, Jefferson dl

Push current: floor press close grip

Push reserve: dips, ring dips, pushups, ring pushups

Schedule 

AM (all days) mobility, sled, or suitcase carry 

Pull: 30min EMOM alternating

- pull current 

- kettlebell clean and press 

- (finisher post EMOM) 3x10-20 cable row

Push: 30min EMOM alternating

- push current 

- ring curl variation or ring row variation 

Off - mobility

Off - hill sprints 

Linear progression

The python randomizer pulls a value out of pull current for ever pull workout. Every time that same movement comes out of the bag, add 10lbs.

Example

Workout 1, rdl, 100lbs

Workout 2, snatch rack pull, 135lbs

Workout 3, rdl, 110lbs

...and so on

The weights start deliberately low and can climb deceptively high in a single cycle should their die roll hit several times in a row. 

Number of reps per set

Unimportant. The goal is to get quality work done without introducing a large amount of fatigue (Dan John's ladders anyone?). Leaving 2-3 reps in reserve is a good baseline. Another way to signal a stop is when speed noticably drops.

Swapping stale movements 

Ideally, movements should be swapped out as needed. This can happen at any point of a 6 week cycle, and serves as a mini deload as the new movement is introduced at it's starting weight. 

Progressive overload

Every full mesocycle completed with a movement increases the floor weight by 2.5-10lbs.

sword and shield variation oct 2022

Ripped this right from bells and bodybuilding. I'm a big fan of a loose program that strives for size and conditioning. As the progenitor puts it - there are bodybuilders who cant move and kettlebellers who look like they don't lift. Why not zoidberg (six: do both).

This program doesn't have scheduled rest days, so intensity and volume have to be pretty heavily monitored and managed. Going too hard on one day could mean sandbagging the next week.

The basics (my variant)

Day1: upper bodybuilding

Press variation 50 reps in 5 sets

Super set

Suspension rows and curls (no goal, just get blood in the body, utilize assisted negatives)

Press variation sets of 8 with 10-30s rest (1/2 main working weight)

Curl 1x100

Neck manual and band resistance x 1 

Day2: AM restore, PM condition 20-60min

Restore - 10min of sled drags or suitcase carries

Condition - alternate movements and loads each session

Explosive hinge : one and two arm swings

Clean and press variations : vary load

Day3: AM restore, PM condition 20-60min

Restore (same as 2)

Condition - (same as 2)

Windmills

Lower : squats, dead variations 

Nuances

I've tried peppering in heavier body building and conditioning days (see: kegs, farmers). I kind of wish I hadn't. These days are definitely possible but they dig a hole you have to eat and sleep out of.

Upper body building days are used both for hypertrophy and for an overall 'rest' for the rest of the body. Specifically, using movements that give your lower back a rest and pose minor danger to your shoulders due to the higher rep ranges.

Overall impression

I don't think I've ever felt better on a program both in terms of how I feel mentally and how well move. It's too soon to evaluate this methodology for strength and size, but I expect time and effort to pack on the meat.

conditioning 10/15

30min circuits

One arm kb swings (20kg x 15)

Windmill 12kg x 5

Keg carry

muscle up promise and peas and carrots

Muscle up promise

I will not watch YouTube or look at reddit until I can do a muscle up. That time is likely months away due to my neck injury and that is a ok with me.

Peas and carrots

The word is in from physical therapy. No more upper body until she clears me to do so. Until I get cleared, this means my days are filled with:

- bw bss (jumping and normal)

- bw one leg rdls

- sled drags from the waist

- nordics

- walking lunges 

- belt squats 

what is serving you

Belt squats yesterday were eye opening. It wasn't that I did an insane amount of reps pain free that was the cool part. No, the cool part was I actually felt squats in my legs. Wild, I know. 

I've been a huge front squats guy for the past decade or so. When my front squat goes up everything goes up. Around 2018 I noticed a sharp turn in how much I felt them in my quads. Soon after this turn, I hurt my knee and it took years to feel my legs working again.

Right now my legs are so sore I can barely walk. All the while I'm not really fatigued other than locally (i.e. I ain't touching squats for another 4 days). I know I'm actually getting growth and strength out of a movement instead of going through old motions that don't work.

Tldr

If you don't feel a intended muscle working it probably isn't.

brain droppings

Strive to be meek

The weak have no agency in expressing violence

The meek could ruin your day if they wanted to

Build an awful power and choose to be peaceful

kettlebell conditioning : one move. simple

1 bell

Dead stop clean and press 100 reps per arm

Or

Dead stop snatch 100 reps per arm

This should take less than 12min and is a fucking beast. Light weight works as well as heavier weight (taper the reps down if reps are less than 10/arm/round).

kettlebell conditioning : complex

Complex : 1 bell

1 rep of

Row

Deadlift

Dead stop clean and press

Snatch

(Switch hands)

Continue for 10min

Death

mentally batching reps for higher rep sets

Tldr 

Change your mindset with higher rep sets.

This is not a 'i discovered this thing. Noone else has ever done this before hisssssssss.' Nah brah. This is a I discovered this thing for myself that helped me slog through the nightmare that is higher rep squats.

Early on in my lifting life, I almost exclusively did sets of 3, 2, and 1. This wasn't entirely a bad thing either. I got close to the peaks of my strength with this strategy, but I ultimately got stronger (raised my strength floor) by way of medium rep back off sets. At my strongest, I was striving for new PRs in the 10rm range. Could I hit a better 1RM when I specialized in higher reps? Hell no, but I wasn't trying to. The entire idea was to get stronger via slowly increasing strength in medium to higher rep ranges. Not surprisingly, I mistook trying Bulgarian light as a method for moving my top end strength. Foolish. All that was happening was I peaked the strength I had spent years building. But I digress.

Higher reps suck. And they are awful. And they suck. There is a special hell with higher rep squatting because you can technically rest your legs (at the expense of your back stamina) and pump out more reps. The super squats program relies entirely on this fact with the use of breathing squats. What I found is a way to make higher rep squats suck slightly less without cheating the goal.

My rep goal right meow is 15. That looks a lot like 5 triples to me! Triples are easy and I love them. Instead of saying I'm on rep 13 Jesus please save me everything is awful, I can say I'm ony last triple. I can do a triple no problem. 

working from home | a unique avenue for powerbuilding

Ten years ago I said something stupid to my girlfriend on the way to a cruise. 

I'm gonna live like an Olympic athlete the entire time we're here. I'm gonna lift a stupid amount of times, then eat and sleep my fill to recover and it's gonna be awesome. 

As with all times when I talked about lifting (and my wife does now), she smiled and nodded and gave 0 shits but wanted to show how supportive she was of my brain droppings.

Weird enough, I'm in a better situation now that I could have possibly ever imagined in my 20s. I work from home, live in a future that has grocery delivery, and I have a home gym with weights I have to work up to lifting again. And dude, it's not getting better than this.

What makes more sense in my situation? Trying to shove a bunch of intense/volume work early before I work, or taking small breaks throughout the day to get in my sets? I accidentally experimented with this about a year ago through intermittent sets to failure of bodyweight pulls. And all it ever accomplished was the most impressive my upper body ever looked.

If you work from home:

• Your food probably lives with you. Prep ahead of time (my choice is slow cooked stews).
• Get a home gym. If you can't afford it or don't have the room, you have a multitude of options to move the needle without a barbell (kettlebells, rings, and homemade kettlebells for swings...I'm a looking at you baby).  

$$$ conditioning idea: booty gauntlet

What you need

1-3 kettlebells of different weights

The skinny

EMOM different variations of pushups. No set rep ranges.

Hit kettlebell movements in the EMOM rest period post pushups.

The fine print on kettlebells

In order, hit sets of the following. Once you fail to hit a complete set, drop down to the next difficulty tier. Once you hit swings, do 1 all out set per weight per round.

Note that you don't rest unless you have to. The snatchesx5 tier means you do that pet arm until it's time for more pushups or you run out of gas.

Example of difficulty tiers (reps per arm)

20kg snatchesx5 

20kg snatchesx3 

20kg cleansx5

20kg cleansx3

16kg snatchesx5

...

16kg cleansx3

20kg two handed swings 1xamap

16kg two handed swings 1xamap

more conditioning ideas

This entire endurance thing is new for me. Each implement tends to have its own benefit and place in my life. 

Kettlebells so far have been a fun comprimise between strength, hypertrophy, and cardio. Noticable changes to my back and shoulders started cropping up after a few weeks of continued use. 

Dragging sleds don't feel like they have a huge cardio impact, but literally every old injury feels better once I'm done. There's a side benefit of making my butt gigantic.

Kegs are fantastic but a little goes a long way. I've enjoyed both longer timed carries (20min) and shorter carries (5min) post workout, but the fact for me remains that 1x weekly is plenty.

Chaotic ideas that have worked for me

1. (Kb) Xmin non-stop

So many opportunities here. 

Single moves (half snatch, clean and press) work great for the sake of being able to 'rest' in the rack or extended position - switching arms when needed. 

Monster sets work even better from a cardio perspective. It's as simple as adding in reverse lunges or squats between switching hands.

Carries before switching hands is easier on cardio, but great for back health. My obliques have thickened up to meet the demands of this route.

2. (Kb) descending rep ladders

Same dealeo as #1 in terms of how many movements you want to employ. The major difference is work is split into individual sets complete with resting after a ladder is completed.

Increase the top rung number of reps to ramp up the difficulty without increasing weight.

Example single movement

Left hand half snatch 5 reps

Right hand half snatch 5 reps

Left hand half snatch 4 reps

...

Right hand half snatch 1 rep

Rest. Repeat 1-3x

Example monster sets

Left hand clean and press 5 reps

Left rack squat 5 reps

Right hand clean and press 5 reps

Etc

3. (Kb) escalating density 

Similar to #1. You set a clock for 15 to 20min. The difference is each set is not 'as many as possible.' 

Each set is 5 reps per arm. Do as many sets as possible in the time block. Rest as needed. Let reps drop as needed.

4. (Sled) EMOM

EMOM = every minute on the minute

Pick a predetermined path and drag the sled one way at the top of every minute. Try to time the distance and load so your rest works out to 20-30 seconds.

5. (Sled) Xmin until death

This is reserved either for: everything hurts or I have no motivation. Keep the load light, set a clock, and drag until you can't. The speed should be slightly slower than walking, and the pump in your legs will be unreal. 

all things hamstrings

Hamstrings are my favorite muscle to train. A good portion of this is I feel my age when Im not giving them the love they deserve. That being said there is no magic bullet for hamstring training that gives me everything I'm looking for. Different moves for different reasons. I'll incorporate everything on this list in any given week.

Best for hypertrophy

Nordic hamstring curls

My wife has made repeated comments at the size of my legs and ass at a time when I hadn't been squatting in over 3 years. I credit nordics for the lions share of that booty.

Best for bulletproofing

Monkey feet leg curls

Fit any leg curl in here. At a time when my back was completely fucked, the method I used to ease some of the pain was daily band leg curls. 

Best for feeling athletic

Power cleans, single leg supported rdl

Power cleans are my classic favorite. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention them, but they aren't something that are in my rotation (replaced with kettlebell cleans which are not remotely the same). Single leg rdls tap into a deep stretch for very little cost up front. Supporting yourself with one hand (power rack, pole, whatever) allows you to lean into the stretch without balance being the limiting factor. This can be easily loaded by holding a dumbbell in your free hand.

Bonus: bodyweight leg curls

An old Ben Bruno move. This is a great alternative to nordics, and can be loaded much quicker. Extra bonus is they are incredibly safe to perform, and single leg eccentric work can be emphasized almost immediately.

get fucked : kettlebell (snatch, press, clean) + carry

I'm sitting in the airport wondering why my lats are telling me to get fucked. Oh. Oh ya. That thing I did that I loved that kept my back under constant tension for 15min.

General template

One arm movement 1-10 reps

One arm suitcase carry

Switch arms

Repeat until time runs out (10-20min)

For me this looked like

5 reps snatch left arm

Walk my lawn suitcase carry

Switch arms

5 reps snatch right arm

Walk my lawn suitcase carry

Switch arms

Repeat for 15min

If it's too easy, add reps, distance, time, or weight. This satisfies exactly what I want out of kettlebell training. My back feels amazing (as it usually does after any sort of abdominal challenge), my cardio was challenged, and I feel like I can still do it again in a day despite my lats anger.

instant recovery : suitcase carry after pressing

Post dips, pressing, whatever, I want to make sure my shoulders are taken care of. Static stretching definitely helps, but I've found suitcase carries to be a more useful option.

I discovered this on accident a few years ago when my left shoulder was giving me issues. All of the tightness I felt immediately dropped away after a light set of cleans. Because I'm a dumbass, I didn't give this two thoughts other than thanking the gods for my sudden great fortune. Suitcase carries are an easier touch method of getting to the same result.as a bonus, they add some basic GPP and promote back health (via building up obliques). 

5-10min post workout is plenty. Walk preset distances and switch hands, or just switch hands when your grip tires out. Weight doesn't matter as much as you would think, but 35+ pounds is a good minimum to start with. If harder conditioning/strength/hypertrophy is the goal instead of recovery, feel free to jack up the weight.

advantages and disadvantages to high frequency

Reflections from the last few months. I've taken exactly 0 rest days for physical activity.

Advantages

- anything 'counts.' physical activity doesn't always mean resistance training.

- hard training can happen less often. The systematic stress is pretty heavy, and It's rare I'm not sore. You can hit muscles with difficult training 2-3x a week and know you're still more than covered.

- smaller warning signs can be heeded immediately. If you need to cut a training session short, who gives a shit. You'll be back at it tomorrow. Nothing is lost.

Disadvantages

- as previously mentioned, constant soreness is a given. Get used to it.

- a high emphasis needs to be placed on recovery. This isn't a bad thing (you should pay attents regardless of whether you're lifting daily), but not having your sleep and diet dialed in will be brutal.

Example schedule: this shifts as needed

Monday: AM full body, heavy. PM Neck

Tuesday: AM sled drags. PM leaded carries

Wednesday: AM kettlebell swings and cleans

Thursday: repeat Monday

Friday: repeat Tuesday

Saturday: heavy conditioning. Sandbag clean and presses, kegs, kettlebells, whatever.

Sunday: walk, sled, whatever.

Within all of these days, I try to get a few fast paced walks during the day or in the evening with my wife. The most obvious change I've noticed is my sleep and axiety has been superb. 

working from home | no excuses to succeed

The fun and not as fun reality of working from home is there is literally no way to hide from the fact that the variables overlording your physical and mental health are mostly under your control. That's a lot to take in. When I couldn't get in shape in the past, I could convince myself it was because I couldn't stop to eat, sleep, or train as often as I wanted. There was always something that filled the gap of 'well if only X I'd be a monster.' Granted these statements were bullshit before I worked from home, let's take a peek at some common variables.

Sleep: I've got no time to sleep!

False. You have no commute. This means you can sleep more at the beginning and end of your day. The wildcard for mid day naps also exists. Who is gonna stop you?

Cardio: I've got no time for cardio!

Falssssse. Multiple short walks a day or hard cardio via conditioning can and should be sprinkled throughout the day. Need to find time? How many times do you dick around on your phone or streaming services? There's time.

Diet; it's too hard to plan meals!

This is stupid false. We live in the future, and the future has Instacart and slow cookers. You literally can have people shop and machines cook for little to no time investment. You have complete control over everything that enters your house and your mouth.

Training: I don't have time to train!

False. Do I even need to do this? I've trained every day for the past few months. Multiple times a day when I have the energy 

The fact is, if you work from home, you are the closest thing to being able to live the life of an elite athelete without being an elite athelete. Add on a few cheap home gym items (pull-up bar, rings, single kettlebell) and you're set for life. 

The cold truth of working from home is this: if you can't get lean and jacked with every advantage in front of you, it was never going to happen. And that's a hard pill to swallow 

conditioning | grit

Over hulaween, I asked my buddy what his secret talent was. Grit. He said,.without hesitation.

I fucking love that. So much so, that I've stopped calling conditioning conditioning or hard cardio. I'm training grit. Resilience. The ability to push through a shitty situation when I want to stop. I've been in a daily training habit for 2 months now (love it), and the majority of my training surrounds grit workouts. 

Why?

- they're good for your heart.

- there is no guess work. I allow chaos to dictate implements, sets, reps, whatever. The only variable I pay attention to and set ahead is time.

- it's an amazing way to start a day or even break up a day.

- they make the workouts that drive strength and hypertrophy easier and possible (see: via rehab and injury prevention).

If we are being honest, I'm fanboying because I've ignored grit my entire training life. All of the programs that said do your conditioning? Ya I didn't. And I regret it a ton.

Today's grit

16min EMOM 

- odd minute 25 kb swings

- even minute 5 kb cleans

8.5min suitcase carry for distance (also kb)

Red Deck - Lifting for Destruction

Rehashing an old favorite from earlier this year. 

WEEK 1-3

1. Dips and rows

AM - Strength

• R Dip 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)
• R row 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)

 PM - Hypertrophy

• BW Dip, BW Row (ladders or downs)
• Tri ext, curls, delts

2. Condition 

3. OFF

4. Pushups and pullups 

AM - Strength

• R pushup 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)
• R chinup 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)

 PM - Hypertrophy

• BW pushup, BW chinup (ladders or downs)
• Tri ext, curls, delts

5. Condition

6. OFF

WEEK 4 - Deload

Straight sets 6x3 50% week 3 weight

DAILY

BSS - add 1-5 reps/leg per day

Ab wheel, as needed

Injury, Attitude, and Repeating Mistakes

I want to reflect for a bit. I had an article queued up about differences in training between my 20s and my 30s, but then I got hurt. I got hurt doing something I would have specifically called out as fucking stupid in the article I didn't finish writing. I'm really trying to figure out what I'm frustrated about with this entire debacle, because getting hurt is unfortunately part of the game. It doesn't matter if you exert yourself physically or otherwise. Injury can find you.

For a quick preamble before the bulleted list, I fucked up my neck and my right knee. My left arm has been completely numb for days (although that is almost completely turned around) and I feel a sharp pull in my right knee when it bends under weight. 

My thoughts from this last shitty week:

• My immediate thought was I'm fucked and it's not going to get better. This is a loser mentality. A 'war story bro' mentality. So what if my most of my body is out of commission, my left leg is fine. What's to stop me from racking up obscene amounts of volume with my left leg while the rest of me heals? Absolutely nothing. I'm not an invalid. I'm just acting like one.
• I've been seeing a neck injury coming for weeks. Instead of, I don't know, actively working on making it stronger for once, I kept hammering in on compound moves that I know are tough on my neck and traps.
• Once the initial neck injury happened, I doubled down and did farmers walks to stretch out the area. This no doubt both made the initial problem worse as well as incited the knee fun I'm experiencing.
• For the longest time, I have no programming. I'm lost at sea.

So where do we go from here? I'm in a weird spot where it's not a great age to take large risks or to ignore nagging pains. I had the right idea with one of my workout ideas (which I promptly abandoned after a week) where I could alternate heavy and light blocks of movements. 

Light (4 week blocks)

• Calisthenics.
• High volume.
• High frequency (2x / day). 

Heavy (4 week blocks)

• Weighted calisthenics, barbell squats, and barbell deads.
• Medium volume.
• Medium frequency.

The keys I'm missing are consistency and training for longevity. If I want a chance in hell in being in good shape when I'm a father, I need to abandon my chaotic approach to programming. There's a time and a place for chaos, and that's for conditioning. I can engage with the plan above and not exclude sandbags, farmers, kegs, whatever. I just need to be smarter with them. When I'm introducing chaos to my routine every week, I'm not correspondingly listening to what my body is saying. And bubbee, it was screaming before I got hurt. 

bodyweight leg curl (rings): underratted assistance movement

Digging up a gem from Ben Bruno to splurge a little bit. Back when i was on a steady diet of calisthenics + carries something weird happened. My legs and rear got bigger. Way bigger. All the while without me putting on fat.

The problem with having a routine with a ton of variety is you have no idea what was poison versus what worked. I didnt use weights. So what the fuck was it? Was it bulgarian split squat jumps? Was it farmers walks? Was it nordic hamstring curls?

Ive had a few months to try these things out in isolation. The verdict is bss jumps dont make my legs bigger, farmers walks are good for everything but tend to be a multipler stimulus for other movements (i.e. an rpg support class), and nordics dont do shit.

The other party member i had was an old friend - bodyweight leg curls suspended from rings (holding rings with my hands). They are supremely underrated and here is why:

- lower back friendly. Unlike RDL's (great movement, but erectors tend to be the weak link) your hamstrings and ass are the limiting factors.

- loadable: add a weighted vest. use one leg. Elevate your legs higher. Hold the top contraction longer.

- great 'feeler' movement. I get immediate feedback that this is making my backside bigger and stronger.

- mother fuckin hyyyypertrophy. There were many variables tied to my size increases, but they were most pronounced with high volume leg curls.

work capacity maximum

Edit: The day after

Everything is sore. I'm full on tired. I did not eat enough to support this level of volume.

I still love this concept.

Edit: a week after. Everything is stronger because of this session. I think the right way to play this is to come back to bw only 10 to 20yrs down the line if my joints require the break. 

This idea: I guess i want my heart to explode. Seriously, my blood is pumping and i didnt even do the entire thing in a single bound.

The course correct back to pure calisthenics for upper body is:

- it's enjoyable af. 

- it's easy on the joints.

- everything else is not agreeing with my body right now no matter how light. For real, a 35lb dumbbell press damn near injured my neck.

- this fits in nice and easy with a fasting schedule.

Lower body? You keep doin what you were doing baby. With the exception of nordic curls, all of the bodyweight leg stuff was doing fuckall for me except making my hips angry.

Tu/Th/Sat

(Opt) Breathing squat 1x20

Circuit 3-8x

Lower - kb swing or nordic 

Upper - switch push and pull in a giant mechanical dropset

Mon/wed/fri: fast, sled work

Example circuit:

Nordic x amap or kb swing x10

Ring dips, rest 20s

Ring pullups, rest 20s

Ring pike pu, rest 20s

Ring pullups band assist, rest 20s

Ring pu, rest 20s

Close ring pullups band assist, rest 20s

Bar dips, rest 20s

Bar parallel pullups, rest 20s

Close bar dips, rest 20s

Bar parallel pullups band assist, rest 20s

Pushups, rest 20s

Ring rows, rest 20s

Tri ext, rest 20s

Bicep focus partial pullups

Rest 3-4min

So ya, lots of work and long fucking sets. I didn't plan this out, and no two circuits were exactly alike. In general, i moved from harder moves to easier moves. That's it.

kratos dominoose: high frequency, alpha destiny inspired

Schedule

Sunday: Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Heavy

Wednesday: Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

Thursday: Rest

Friday: Light

Saturday: Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

Heavy/Light Days

- 3 movements, 15min block per exercise

- Movement 1 is dynamic: power clean, snatch HP, DB snatch, push press, BTNPP

- Movement 2 is a squat: BSS jump, FS, ZS

- Movement 3 is a pull: RDL, seated row

- Heavy days: Sets of 1-3

- Light days: Sets of 6-12

Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

- If doing quick and the dead swings, do them first for power.

- Calisthenics can be ladders or countdowns. Get in a fuckton of volume on basic movements. 

- Randomize calisthenics movements and conditioning. Figuring it out on the actual lift day is great.

Example calisthenics

Ladder ring pullups 1,2,...,10 super set bar dips 2,4,...,20. Try to eliminate all rest.

Countdown bar dips 20,19,...,1. 60s rest between sets.

Example conditioning

Sled drag, run back to start, keg carry. Rest 30-60 seconds.

Sandbag highpull x4, sandbag zercher carry. Rest 30-60 seconds.

Any of Chandler Marchman's kettlebell conditioning. Post with growing list.

olad: linear progression (all muscle groups)

Writing this shit down as it comes. Too often I find myself grasping for a concept i fleshed out and poo poo'd. Ive been grateful for the few times ive actually catalogued my training because it's been great to look back on and analyze.

AM: Conditioning

- not optional.

- Chandler Marchmans kettlebell routines work great here, but anything made up on the spot works period. The more alien the better.

- do not repeat workouts close to each other.

- avoid excessive lower back strain (heavy farmers carries are a no go).

PM: OLAD

- optional. Skip days when absolutely wrecked or feeling low/depressed from overreaching.

- stop sets before you hit grinders.

- (until top set = 5 reps) top setxamap,  volume sets, 1xpump set.

- (when top set <= 5 reps) 10x3 or 12x2 straight weight.

- (when 10x3 or 12x2 fails) switch movements

Example week

Mon: ring chinup

Tues: rdl

Wed: ring dip

Thurs: jump squat

Fri: rope climb

Sat: db clean and press 

Note: weekend dates are great for farmers because of added recovery. Likewise, hybrid explosive speed strength moves (snatches, clean and presses, high pulls) go well here.

kettlebell conditioning : chandler marchman collection

Creating a data dump for all kettlebell conditioning ideas I've liked and used from Chandler Marchmans YouTube channel. These fit in great as post workout finishers, or a post power workout finisher.

Unless otherwise stated, every exercise is completed in a series with 5 reps. Each series is completed 2-5 times with 2-3 min rest.

Shoulders builder, 6/18/21

Link

Offset z press, each arm

Clean and press, each arm

Lateral pushups

Pushups on kettlebell

Goblet walk (50ft)

Two handed swing

Deadlift

Legs 11/20/20

Pause goblet squat ss reverse lunge x10

Two handed swing x10

Dead x10

Link

Note: do not underestimate this one. A 45lb kettlebell whipped my ass. I took at least one break per set. The last set felt like a max effort every rep. This works great right now in lieu of a quad focused day 

Legs 7/4/21

Goblet squat, deadlift
3x5 goblet
3x5 dead
3x3 goblet
3x3 dead
3x1 goblet
3x1 dead
Rest and repeat 2 more times
Each intra set uses a different weight
Ex: 3x5 goblet means
1x5 weight 1, 1x5 weight 2, 1x5 weight 3

Link

morning conditioning 6/28/21

10min

3 box jumps

10 step ups (per side)

10 pushups

This was great. Woke me up without grinding me down into paste.

olad : pulls and squats only

I've never liked pressing. For me, it's the last kid picked for a frisbee game. Fuck, ive got to place Carl on a team. He's gonna slow down whatever team he's on but i cant just leave him on the sidelines playing Pokemon. 

It's not even the movements that irk me necessarily. Explosive presses in particular are fun af and i see a direct transfer to my shoulders when i put in the effort. The nagging feeling is i feel like they are taking away from the things i really want to do. If i could run cleans and snatches until the end of time i totally would (disclaimer: and still have nasty shoulders and triceps). 

Here's the test. Im not saying Carl can't play, but he's not exactly on the team. Ive toyed around with one lift a day (olad) in the past and absolutely adored it. The limiting factor always becomes my ability to recover. A lot of this stems from heavy pressing and utilizing rest pause a little too much to drive volume.

New test: 

- olad with upper body pulls and squats 

- alternate lower upper

- avoid failure most of the time

- swap movements when one stalls

Carl still gets hit daily after olad: 

- different press variation and ab wheel.

- Grease the groove method in play. Stop well before failure every set.

Sample week

Mon: 

- glute ham raises

- hspu

Tues:

- ring chinups

- pushups

Wed: 

- bss (left leg)

- rear delt raise (left)

Thurs:

- ring rows

- db press (left)

Fri:

- bss (right leg)

- rear delt raise (right)

Sat:

- rope climbs

- db press (right)

Sun: rest

Sets and rep schems will not be found here. Generally, start with a higher weight set, get in some medium weight volume, and end with lower weight higher volume. If you want to add 1 set of extremely light minor accessory (see: curls) this wont break the bank.

10min conditioning can and should be added daily where possible.

In terms of progression, it doesn't matter too much. Add weight every few weeks or strive for more reps. Swap a move when it gets boring or stuck. Ez.