Month: January 2019

Why Train?

Why train?

I train to rise above the mediocre.
While not ideal I hear the sounds of the television, canned laughter, and cackling from the “living room” as I prepare mentally for another night’s pushups.

Often mentally a slog, hence nightly not morning pushups, it’s ritual I’ll likely always do. It’s been over 10 of almost 25 years thus far. I don’t know that I could make myself stop.

I once received an anonymous letter saying to me “why go to the gym, when you have nothing going for you, why care about the body”
What the likely sedentary individual sending me possible hate mail didn’t get was the question answers itself.

I went to the gym then, and I continue to train, PT, now as always, as it’s a variable I can ALWAYS control.

The homeless bodybuilding post I wrote near the site’s beginning while somewhat over the top, crude even, holds a point deeply ingrained in my psyche that I was trying to convey : You can always train.

While the bastards try to beat you down with compounding minutiae day after day…you can always train.

In the most confined and/or poorest of circumstances you will have your bodyweight at a minimum…always.

Strapped to a bed in a looney bin or super max prison you can flex, and do your isometrics against the restraints.

You can always train.

They can’t take that from you.
EVER.

You can be forced to move away from a solid gym, you can get priced out, even kicked out of gyms.
You can be the only one around that cares to maintain physical condition… but in the end the drive to train is on you, ample tools are always there. You can still train.

I train so as to have something. I train so as to have something to teach to progeny, and to those who have need. I train as a matter of pride. I train…

Motivation will wax and wane. Equipment and the access to it will come and go. You may find yourself doing pushups on concrete and eating ramen for dinner.

There’s so much more to it than how you look, the social aspect of a gym, or the feeling like a beast that comes with steaks and heavy weights.

It’s far deeper than just getting in habitual calisthenics. So much more.

You have control, and you decide.
To what end they ask…

I leave you this ; why train?

Persistence & Tenacity

On Rep Range Carryover Specificity

I like doing 10 sets of presses.

While 225 is the nearest 1rm goal I don’t care to specifically train for it or peak/pyramid up to it. (I likely could do this already from the 6-8×185 I’m at now.)

I’m going about it in a more round about manner.

I know 10×5 at 155-165 and 10×3 at 185 = accidentally hitting 3×205.

10×10 at 135 was easily reached, but just as difficult as the lower rep sets. It may even equal a stronger 1rm.

I figure taking a weight to 10×10 then upping the weight 10 or 20lbs and resetting at ~10×5 is a way to do it, will build a great base of hypertrophy and strength, and will have me accidentally hitting those 1rm goal #s (225, bodyweight, 275) as more of an afterthought, and likely for reps.

Realistically one session a week from today (1/27/18) for 3-4 months would get me to 10×10 at 185 where I’d guess 245 or so as a 1rm would be a given.

(Calculators say 285. Assuming 10×10 weight = ~65% 1rm per calculator. For me I’m assuming a big drop from 3rm to 1rm, and factoring in the skew I have towards strength endurance and power endurance so mid 200s is a possibility accurate, though conservative leaning estimate. I’d think peaking is required for the calculator estimate to be accurate.)

As per enthusiasm I’d assume faster progress than all that in the real world.

Low rep strength doesn’t have to be specifically trained for. Challenging volume will build it some, and allow it to peak higher…a lesson learned observing the gym, where the bodybuilders are stronger than the powerlifters overall across all rep ranges, and often at the powerlifts themselves in the powerlifting 1 rep manner.

Of course I could always just pretend I’m Bulgarian and press every day until whenever. Wait! I already said enthusiasm could make it all happen far more quickly.

I like the clean & press.

Persistence & Tenacity

“The York Combo”

Bill Starr mentions this in his York exhibition articles :

Clean & jerk, then drop the bar into a 10 rep set of back squats, then obviously back over the head, and lowered nicely.

This obviously necessitates good control and lifting within your means.

It doesn’t need a squat rack.

It’d be pretty badass hitting this with good #s (better yet with a power clean and power jerk, that’s my style).

I do have access to 500lbs. How high can I go?

The power clean and behind the neck jerk under fatigue would be my limiting factors.

Go be awesome.

Persistence & Tenacity

P.S. (Cold Air Barbell Club – Fall 2022) I’m now doing this as a power clean and press into back squats

Military Press & Pushups

Nightly pushups are made higher quality by a good military press session earlier in the day.

The pressing gets the triceps fatigued/activated (the two can be one and the same) causing you to feel the triceps firing during every pushup rep, you simply need have done enough pressing volume. I find 10 sets generally gets this feeling regardless of rep range as long as the whole amount was challenging to complete, 10×3, 10×5, 10×10 it’s all worked to this effect…different weights, same effort.

(This can even carry over to following days.)

In a way the pushups add some more stimuli, a bit more volume to the system, and due to the activation a bit more strength building.

When your muscles are in that state you ARE building strength.

The military press and the pushup complement each other nicely, combined they’re all the pressing you need.

And golly gosh golly neither involves sitting on your ass.

How To Use The Neck Harness

Firstly to use a neck harness you must have one. I suggest a leather one, mine is branded Harbinger, and thus far it has done well over 8 or 9 years of usage. I bought nice unintentionally going with the old school style, and likely will never need to buy twice.

(The Spud Inc neck harness is often lauded online, I don’t like it. Spud straps? They’re the bomb. Spud neck harness? Go get an old school leather one instead.)

Now starting weight :

If you have never used a neck harness or worse you’ve never trained your neck (anyone who’s ever wrestled would be disgusted at you for being a pencil neck geek) I suggest starting with a 2½lb plate for 1 set of 25.

Build that up to 4×25 at a minimum, 4×50-100 being cool too, and then add weight.

When you’re strong enough to nod 20-25lbs x 50+ at all times I’d suggest just starting at a set of 50 and progressing until you’ve got a set of 100+ at that weight.

(I’ve done sets into the 300+ reps before.)

I’ll do the counted reps in the normal nodding manner, then let the weight swing front to back (like a kettlebell swing, but using the neck harness as the point of contact), and end with a static hold spine straight, and parallel to the ground as “extra credit”.

To keep from getting too stiff from the harness work :

1. If starting out gradually build into it.
2. Always do range of motion work after. I like using the front bridge from the knees going front to back, side to side, and “around the world”

Also, frequency is best for the neck. Train it daily or near so. However I’ll allow a rank stack of dimes sad excuse of a neck beginner to start 3x weekly or every other day as long as they build up the frequency as they become more developed of neck.

Persistence & Tenacity

Hot Sauce Consumption Does Good Things

Hot sauce does amazing things when consumed regularly.

•Higher Testosterone
•Faster Metabolism/Fat Burning
•Increased Feeling Of Happiness

All the meat I’ve eaten the last few weeks has been consumed with “Rooster” sauce.

Spicing the hell out of my foods may very well be what’s causing the impressive changes to my body right now.

Spicy food, it’s good for the body.

Persistence & Tenacity

Cardio Calisthenics & A Side Of The Jump Rope

Often I feel that the biggest benefit of calisthenics is the cardio effect.

You get the “runner’s high” like euphoria in a way that’s building you up physically.

(I’ve been liking this aspect of my pushups and squats lately.)

Running wouldn’t have the muscular benefits of the calisthenics, and lifting doesn’t allow you to do the necessary density of work in as short a period to really get the cardio effect going. Calisthenics being strength-endurance combine the two nicely.

Calisthenics pushed (and better yet superset) becomes an enjoyable strength building cardio.

Don’t have a gym? If you work you’ll be surprised just how far the calisthenics will take you. Add in jump roping, and isometrics, then it’s “oh boy” where you’ll end up.

A note : at ~215lbs I could run well, play full court basketball without issue off of…10×100 pushup and jump rope supersets. Pumping short range of motion pushups, and making sure I got 100 revolutions in a row, always ending with a crossover and double under. Those sessions often ended up at ~1500 skips due to that perfection requirement and fatigue.

That’s the style of training best for losing weight :

Cardio Calisthenics

Persistence & Tenacity


(The link was either going to be this or “our song”.)

Healing Via Wrist & Ankle Work

Blood flow to an area speeds recovery. Blood flow to an extremity causes blood to flow through points higher up the chain.

If something hurts or is injured higher up the chain working the extremity past it will speed up the healing process.

Wrist and/or ankle work speeds up your recovery, it improves your ability to heal.

This is a generally unknown reason to train your forearms and calves… healing pumps.

However take note that training the muscles and the joints are not exactly the same thing. The mobility and stability of those extremity joints are also important.

Keeping them healthy will allow you to keep the rest of you healthy as well.