Hail to the Dinosaurs!
One of the most telling things you see on internet discussion boards or on Facebook goes something like this:
1. Someone posts: “Has anyone tried A and also tried B? What were your experiences with the two? Which worked better for you?”
I actually saw this on Facebook yesterday with A being the Paleo Diet and B being a pure vegan diet – which are about as North and South as you can get.
2. Ten people will post: “A would never work. It is scientifically impossible. So and so (learned expert) says so.”
3. Ten other people will post: “B would never work. It is scientifically impossible. So and so (a different learned expert) says so.”
4. The flame war will begin, and all the people who think that A would never work say terrible things about the people who think that B would never work – and vice versa. It’s a real Pier 6 brawl.
5. ONE person will say, “I tried A, and this is what happened. I got the following results: list results. I also tried B, and this is what happened. I got the following results: list results.”
Now, of everyone who posted a response, only ONE person is qualified to answer the question – the one who actually tried both approaches, and can truly say, “One worked better for me.”
Everyone else is just making noise. They’re not answering the question, and they’re not helping the discussion.
You see this all the time in the “free weights” vs. machines stuff that’s all over the discussion boards and has been from day one. In my opinion, the only person who is truly qualified to address this issue is someone who has trained with both. THAT person has the benefit of experience – and can aid the discussion by sharing his or her experiences. Not his or her opinions. His or her experiences.
One of the really wonderful things about the early days of strength training was that it was all pretty new – so people tried all sorts of different things – and reported the results.
So the old-time magazines were filled with letters to the editor or short articles from readers that detailed their training experiments, and outlined what worked and what didn’t work.
That was how the breathing squat came into prominence back in the 30’s. It was the result of readers who gave it a try and then sent in a letter with their results.
Nowadays, the muscle media focuses on “how the champs” train – and so you get an endless series of look-alike, read-alike articles that never say anything new. It was infinitely better when the magazines printed reports and feedback from the average lifter training “out in the Iron Mines.”
In any event, when you read something about training, examine it carefully. Is it a mere opinion – or is it based on real world, hands on experience?
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one – and add to that store of real world, hands on experience that all true Dinos possess.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. It’s the Holiday Season, and orders are coming in fast and furious. It looks like everyone is doing their Holiday shopping here at Dino Central:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
Bosco's Last Sketch
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
They say that truth is stranger than fiction.
I think they’re right.
On September 24, 1957, Harry Paschall sat at his desk in the Strength and Health offices. John Grimek sat across from him, answering letters from trainees around the world. The two men shared an office.
While Grimek hammered away on the typewriter, Harry doodled.
Harry was the Managing Editor of Strength and Health, as well as a feature writer for the magazine. He included a full page “Bosco” cartoon with each of his articles. Harry’s articles were probably the most popular articles in the magazine – and everyone loved Harry’s cartoons!
Harry sat at his desk, his fingers moving rapidly as he worked on sketches for his next Bosco cartoon. Bosco was a gigantic old-time strongman modeled after Arthur Saxon, complete with handlebar mustache, a thick German accent, a roundhouse right, a keen sense of right and wrong, and the strength of a dozen full-grown gorillas. His exploits were legendary. Harry had been thrilling lifting fans with Bosco cartoons for close to 20 years.
Over time, the two merged into one being – and many began to refer to Harry Paschall as “Bosco.” Heck, Harry even did it himself.
Harry glanced at the clock on the wall. It was time to go.
He laid his sketch down on his desk, picked up the galleys for the next issue of Strength and Health, and headed to the door.
“Where you going?” growled Grimek in his thick Jersey accent.
“Taking the galleys to the printer. We’re on a really tight schedule.”
Grimek grunted and nodded. Magazines are always on a tight schedule. He’d been fighting to meet deadlines since the day he began working for Strength and Health. They all had.
“See ya later,” said Grimek.
“Yup -- later,” said Harry.
He put his hat on his head and stepped out the door.
They got the news later in the day.
Harry had suffered a massive heart attack while driving to the printer’s office. It killed him.
Later, after he heard the news, John Grimek walked over to Harry’s desk and picked up Harry’s last sketch. He tucked it away in a special drawer in his own desk.
Now here’s the part that gets a little strange.
Harry’s very last sketch – the one he did on the day he died – shows a big statue of Bosco, flexing his arms in history’s most impressive double-biceps pose.
It might very well be a memorial statue.
The sketch also shows a group of kids staring up at the statue and fading away into the distance – or perhaps, into the future. Which is what you would expect with a memorial statue.
As you probably know, I’ve set up a special fund to collect donations to buy a marker for Harry’s grave. The details are right here:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
The marker is going to feature Bosco’s world famous double biceps pose – the very same pose that Harry drew in his last sketch.
I think that’s the way Harry would have wanted it.
We’ve had a tremendous response to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund – so great that we’re going to close it after today. If you’d like to contribute, please do it today. Small amounts are fine – it’s the thought that counts more than anything.
As always, thanks for reading – and a great big THANK YOU to everyone who has stepped up and made a donation to help our old buddy, Bosco.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here's the link to make a donation to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
They say that truth is stranger than fiction.
I think they’re right.
On September 24, 1957, Harry Paschall sat at his desk in the Strength and Health offices. John Grimek sat across from him, answering letters from trainees around the world. The two men shared an office.
While Grimek hammered away on the typewriter, Harry doodled.
Harry was the Managing Editor of Strength and Health, as well as a feature writer for the magazine. He included a full page “Bosco” cartoon with each of his articles. Harry’s articles were probably the most popular articles in the magazine – and everyone loved Harry’s cartoons!
Harry sat at his desk, his fingers moving rapidly as he worked on sketches for his next Bosco cartoon. Bosco was a gigantic old-time strongman modeled after Arthur Saxon, complete with handlebar mustache, a thick German accent, a roundhouse right, a keen sense of right and wrong, and the strength of a dozen full-grown gorillas. His exploits were legendary. Harry had been thrilling lifting fans with Bosco cartoons for close to 20 years.
Over time, the two merged into one being – and many began to refer to Harry Paschall as “Bosco.” Heck, Harry even did it himself.
Harry glanced at the clock on the wall. It was time to go.
He laid his sketch down on his desk, picked up the galleys for the next issue of Strength and Health, and headed to the door.
“Where you going?” growled Grimek in his thick Jersey accent.
“Taking the galleys to the printer. We’re on a really tight schedule.”
Grimek grunted and nodded. Magazines are always on a tight schedule. He’d been fighting to meet deadlines since the day he began working for Strength and Health. They all had.
“See ya later,” said Grimek.
“Yup -- later,” said Harry.
He put his hat on his head and stepped out the door.
They got the news later in the day.
Harry had suffered a massive heart attack while driving to the printer’s office. It killed him.
Later, after he heard the news, John Grimek walked over to Harry’s desk and picked up Harry’s last sketch. He tucked it away in a special drawer in his own desk.
Now here’s the part that gets a little strange.
Harry’s very last sketch – the one he did on the day he died – shows a big statue of Bosco, flexing his arms in history’s most impressive double-biceps pose.
It might very well be a memorial statue.
The sketch also shows a group of kids staring up at the statue and fading away into the distance – or perhaps, into the future. Which is what you would expect with a memorial statue.
As you probably know, I’ve set up a special fund to collect donations to buy a marker for Harry’s grave. The details are right here:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
The marker is going to feature Bosco’s world famous double biceps pose – the very same pose that Harry drew in his last sketch.
I think that’s the way Harry would have wanted it.
We’ve had a tremendous response to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund – so great that we’re going to close it after today. If you’d like to contribute, please do it today. Small amounts are fine – it’s the thought that counts more than anything.
As always, thanks for reading – and a great big THANK YOU to everyone who has stepped up and made a donation to help our old buddy, Bosco.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here's the link to make a donation to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
Happy Birthday to Bosco!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Today is a red-letter day in the history of the Iron Game!
Today is Harry Paschall’s birthday.
Harry was born on November 27, 1897.
It’s funny that we’re celebrating Harry Paschall’s birthday today, because we’ve all been working toward giving him a very special birthday present.
Last week, I drove up to an old country cemetery in north-central Ohio. My mission was to find Harry Paschall’s grave. And I did.
Harry is buried close to his mother and his father, and right next to his brother.
But there’s a big problem.
Harry Paschall is buried in an unmarked grave.
I don’t know how or why that happened. But it did.
So a couple of days ago, I started the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund. The purpose of the fund is to collect enough money to buy a nice marker for Harry.
And I’m glad to say that we’ve done enormously well. We’re going to be able to purchase a very nice marker, as well as flowers when the marker is set in place – and we’ll probably end up with enough to have flowers placed on the grave at regular intervals into the future.
And so, working together, the Dinos have made it a pretty good birthday for our old friend Bosco.
I’ll keep the Memorial Fund open for another day or two, and then we’ll close it down. So if you’d like to make a small donation, please do so now.
After the marker is set in place, I’m going to take a color photo of it, and send an 8 x 10 copy of the photo to everyone who made a contribution to the marker.
It will be a nice little piece of Iron Game history – and it will be good to see what can happen when we work together for a common cause.
And so, from Dino headquarters, and from all the Dinos all around the world:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HARRY!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here’s the link to contribute to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
Today is a red-letter day in the history of the Iron Game!
Today is Harry Paschall’s birthday.
Harry was born on November 27, 1897.
It’s funny that we’re celebrating Harry Paschall’s birthday today, because we’ve all been working toward giving him a very special birthday present.
Last week, I drove up to an old country cemetery in north-central Ohio. My mission was to find Harry Paschall’s grave. And I did.
Harry is buried close to his mother and his father, and right next to his brother.
But there’s a big problem.
Harry Paschall is buried in an unmarked grave.
I don’t know how or why that happened. But it did.
So a couple of days ago, I started the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund. The purpose of the fund is to collect enough money to buy a nice marker for Harry.
And I’m glad to say that we’ve done enormously well. We’re going to be able to purchase a very nice marker, as well as flowers when the marker is set in place – and we’ll probably end up with enough to have flowers placed on the grave at regular intervals into the future.
And so, working together, the Dinos have made it a pretty good birthday for our old friend Bosco.
I’ll keep the Memorial Fund open for another day or two, and then we’ll close it down. So if you’d like to make a small donation, please do so now.
After the marker is set in place, I’m going to take a color photo of it, and send an 8 x 10 copy of the photo to everyone who made a contribution to the marker.
It will be a nice little piece of Iron Game history – and it will be good to see what can happen when we work together for a common cause.
And so, from Dino headquarters, and from all the Dinos all around the world:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HARRY!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here’s the link to contribute to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
The Secret of the Old Gardening Shed
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
The big man peeled off a couple of bills and handed them to the smaller man.
“There it is!” he said.
The small man counted the bills and nodded.
“Yep! That’s it,” he said. “She’s all yours.”
The big man nodded and flexed his fingers.
“Where is she?” he asked.
“Same place as before – out in the shed.”
They went to the back door, stepped outside and walked through the year to the old gardening shed.
The door was unlocked.
The little man pushed the door open, and they peered inside.
In the far corner, hidden among the bags of seeds, the gardening tools, the spades and shovels, lay an old wooden box with faded lettering.
“He carried it around in a wooden box,” said the little man. “Made it easier.”
The big man nodded. It made sense.
“What do I owe you for the box?” he asked.
“For the box – nothing! Nothing at all – it goes with dumbbell.”
“Well, that’s fair.”
“I mean – they’ve been together for so many years now – it wouldn’t do to split them up, eh?”
“That’s true.”
The little man stepped to the side.
“If you can shift the box out of the corner, we can lift it into the wheelbarrow,” he suggested. “And we’ll just roll it out to your car.”
The big man looked at the old wooden box. Once again, his fingers clenched. He felt a challenge coming.
“Let me see what I can do,” he said, softly.
The big stepped through the door and into the shed, stooping slightly, and walked to the old box.
He took off the lid.
Inside, lay an enormous black iron dumbbell – with a handle just under 2 ½ inches thick.
It weighed 172 pounds.
It had been owned by a legendary strongman named Thomas Inch – who was for many years the only man in the world who ever lifted the dumbbell.
It even had a name:
THE UNLIFTABLE DUMBBELL
The little man was Bertie Lightfoot. He had purchased the Unliftable Dumbbell from Reg Park, who had purchased it after Thomas Inch died. Park had tried to lift the dumbbell – but strong as he was, he had not been able to do so.
The big man was David Prowse, the British Champion in Olympic Weightlifting – an enormously powerful competitor in the Highland Games – one of the very few men in history to lift the world-famous Dinnie stones -- and one of the very strongest men in the world.
Prowse wrapped his massive right hand around the dumbbell – and pulled as hard as he could.
The dumbbell shot up like a rocket – still in the old wooden box – and sailed up so high that if Prowse had dipped he would have cleaned it.
Prowse shook his head in amazement.
Bertie’s eyes popped out of head.
“I don’t think you’ll be needing that wheelbarrow after all,” he said.
Now, that was a golden moment in Iron Game history – and I’m sharing it with you because my friend Bill Hinbern has just put out something new and exciting.
No, it’s not the Unliftable Dumbbell – it’s a modern reprint edition of an extremely rare old book authored by Thomas Inch. The title is “Scientific Weightlifting.”
It will make a great addition to your collection -- you can find it right here:
http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/thomas_inch.html
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. We’re still taking donations to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund. If you missed the announcement, please read about it here – and watch the video of my visit to Harry Paschall’s grave:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
The big man peeled off a couple of bills and handed them to the smaller man.
“There it is!” he said.
The small man counted the bills and nodded.
“Yep! That’s it,” he said. “She’s all yours.”
The big man nodded and flexed his fingers.
“Where is she?” he asked.
“Same place as before – out in the shed.”
They went to the back door, stepped outside and walked through the year to the old gardening shed.
The door was unlocked.
The little man pushed the door open, and they peered inside.
In the far corner, hidden among the bags of seeds, the gardening tools, the spades and shovels, lay an old wooden box with faded lettering.
“He carried it around in a wooden box,” said the little man. “Made it easier.”
The big man nodded. It made sense.
“What do I owe you for the box?” he asked.
“For the box – nothing! Nothing at all – it goes with dumbbell.”
“Well, that’s fair.”
“I mean – they’ve been together for so many years now – it wouldn’t do to split them up, eh?”
“That’s true.”
The little man stepped to the side.
“If you can shift the box out of the corner, we can lift it into the wheelbarrow,” he suggested. “And we’ll just roll it out to your car.”
The big man looked at the old wooden box. Once again, his fingers clenched. He felt a challenge coming.
“Let me see what I can do,” he said, softly.
The big stepped through the door and into the shed, stooping slightly, and walked to the old box.
He took off the lid.
Inside, lay an enormous black iron dumbbell – with a handle just under 2 ½ inches thick.
It weighed 172 pounds.
It had been owned by a legendary strongman named Thomas Inch – who was for many years the only man in the world who ever lifted the dumbbell.
It even had a name:
THE UNLIFTABLE DUMBBELL
The little man was Bertie Lightfoot. He had purchased the Unliftable Dumbbell from Reg Park, who had purchased it after Thomas Inch died. Park had tried to lift the dumbbell – but strong as he was, he had not been able to do so.
The big man was David Prowse, the British Champion in Olympic Weightlifting – an enormously powerful competitor in the Highland Games – one of the very few men in history to lift the world-famous Dinnie stones -- and one of the very strongest men in the world.
Prowse wrapped his massive right hand around the dumbbell – and pulled as hard as he could.
The dumbbell shot up like a rocket – still in the old wooden box – and sailed up so high that if Prowse had dipped he would have cleaned it.
Prowse shook his head in amazement.
Bertie’s eyes popped out of head.
“I don’t think you’ll be needing that wheelbarrow after all,” he said.
Now, that was a golden moment in Iron Game history – and I’m sharing it with you because my friend Bill Hinbern has just put out something new and exciting.
No, it’s not the Unliftable Dumbbell – it’s a modern reprint edition of an extremely rare old book authored by Thomas Inch. The title is “Scientific Weightlifting.”
It will make a great addition to your collection -- you can find it right here:
http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/thomas_inch.html
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. We’re still taking donations to the Harry Paschall Memorial Fund. If you missed the announcement, please read about it here – and watch the video of my visit to Harry Paschall’s grave:
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
The Harry Paschall Memorial Fund
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
I know that many of you are huge fans of Harry Paschall.
That probably goes double for those of you who are purchasing vintage copies of Strength and Health from John Wood and reading Harry’s marvelous articles in them.
It probably goes triple for those of you who have grabbed Bill Hinbern’s modern reprint editions of Harry’s books and training courses.
And it probably goes double triple for those of you who are following the Legacy of Iron series, where Harry is one of the main characters.
So here’s a very special message for Harry Paschall fans:
Last Sunday, I visited Harry Paschall’s grave – to pay my respects – and this is what I found . . . .
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
I know that many of you are huge fans of Harry Paschall.
That probably goes double for those of you who are purchasing vintage copies of Strength and Health from John Wood and reading Harry’s marvelous articles in them.
It probably goes triple for those of you who have grabbed Bill Hinbern’s modern reprint editions of Harry’s books and training courses.
And it probably goes double triple for those of you who are following the Legacy of Iron series, where Harry is one of the main characters.
So here’s a very special message for Harry Paschall fans:
Last Sunday, I visited Harry Paschall’s grave – to pay my respects – and this is what I found . . . .
http://brookskubik.com/paschall_memorial.html
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
Heavy Singles -- What Works Best?
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Newsflash: My buddy John Wood has something new and exciting for Strength and Health fans and fans of old-school strength training:
http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/1945_strengthandhealth.html
Meanwhile, one of our readers from Italy sent in a training question – one that I get quite often:
“How many singles are enough?”
Let me answer it this way.
I once performed the following workout in bottom position squats in the power rack:
135 x 1
225 x 1
315 x 1
405 x 1
450 x 1
500 x 1
When I finished the workout I was covered with chalk, dripping with sweat, and breathing like a locomotive. It was a heck of a workout. And it worked. I was big and thick and strong and I probably could have beaten a grizzly bear 2 out of 3 in arm-wrestling.
On another occasion, I performed the following workout in bottom position squats in the power rack:
135 x 1
225 x 1
315 x 1
405 x 1
420 x 20 singles
When I finished the workout I was covered with chalk, dripping with sweat, and breathing like a locomotive. It was a heck of a workout. And it worked. I was big and thick and strong and I probably could have beaten a grizzly bear 2 out of 3 in arm-wrestling.
On still another occasion, I performed the following workout in bottom position squats in the power rack:
135 x 1
225 x 1
315 x 100 singles, resting 30 seconds to one minute between lifts
When I finished the workout I was covered with chalk, dripping with sweat, and breathing like a locomotive. It was a heck of a workout. And it worked. I was big and thick and strong and I probably could have beaten a grizzly bear 2 out of 3 in arm-wrestling.
Which was best?
They all were! Each workout was hard, heavy and challenging. Each workout stimulated muscular growth. Each workout made me bigger and stronger.
Now, I will note this – doing 100 singles – what I call “The 100 rep Challenge” (an idea I got from from Kim Wood, who got it from an old Iron Man with an article by George Irving Nathanson, a training partner of Joe Hise) – is really tough, really grueling, and takes a long time to do. It also takes a long time to recover from your workout. It’s hard to do on a regular basis. It usually works better as a once in a while thing or as part of a one exercise specialization program.
20 singles is much more manageable. Ten is also good. So is five.
But working up to ONE heavy single works pretty well. And it has the benefit of being quick and fast and being something that you can recover from pretty easily.
And please remember that there’s nothing at all wrong with varying the number of singles you do and how heavy you go. You can do one heavy single, two heavy singles, three heavy singles, five heavy singles or seven heavy singles or ten heavy singles.
Each way of using singles is a little bit different – but each way is very effective.
So – how many heavy singles should you do? How heavy should they be? What percentage of your one rep max should you use?
The answer is – there are many different ways to do it. Your job is to experiment and find what works the best for you. But when you do, please remember this -- it may very well be the case that less is more.
One or two heavy singles with 90 or 95 percent of your one rep max may work wonders as part of an abbreviated training program – and doing each of your exercises once per week may be a big key to getting the most out of your single rep workouts.
But, please note that heavy singles are big medicine. They’re not for beginners. Save them for when you are an intermediate or advanced lifter. And be sure to break into them by doing low rep training for a few months before you try singles. If you’ve been doing high reps and you suddenly try singles, you are asking for trouble.
And if you do try heavy singles – warm up well – work up in progressive poundage jumps – and use perfect form! And for safety’s sake – do them in a power rack just in case you miss.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I cover heavy singles in detail in Strength, Muscle and Power – along with many other old-school training methods that will add some massive mojo to your training:
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
Newsflash: My buddy John Wood has something new and exciting for Strength and Health fans and fans of old-school strength training:
http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/1945_strengthandhealth.html
Meanwhile, one of our readers from Italy sent in a training question – one that I get quite often:
“How many singles are enough?”
Let me answer it this way.
I once performed the following workout in bottom position squats in the power rack:
135 x 1
225 x 1
315 x 1
405 x 1
450 x 1
500 x 1
When I finished the workout I was covered with chalk, dripping with sweat, and breathing like a locomotive. It was a heck of a workout. And it worked. I was big and thick and strong and I probably could have beaten a grizzly bear 2 out of 3 in arm-wrestling.
On another occasion, I performed the following workout in bottom position squats in the power rack:
135 x 1
225 x 1
315 x 1
405 x 1
420 x 20 singles
When I finished the workout I was covered with chalk, dripping with sweat, and breathing like a locomotive. It was a heck of a workout. And it worked. I was big and thick and strong and I probably could have beaten a grizzly bear 2 out of 3 in arm-wrestling.
On still another occasion, I performed the following workout in bottom position squats in the power rack:
135 x 1
225 x 1
315 x 100 singles, resting 30 seconds to one minute between lifts
When I finished the workout I was covered with chalk, dripping with sweat, and breathing like a locomotive. It was a heck of a workout. And it worked. I was big and thick and strong and I probably could have beaten a grizzly bear 2 out of 3 in arm-wrestling.
Which was best?
They all were! Each workout was hard, heavy and challenging. Each workout stimulated muscular growth. Each workout made me bigger and stronger.
Now, I will note this – doing 100 singles – what I call “The 100 rep Challenge” (an idea I got from from Kim Wood, who got it from an old Iron Man with an article by George Irving Nathanson, a training partner of Joe Hise) – is really tough, really grueling, and takes a long time to do. It also takes a long time to recover from your workout. It’s hard to do on a regular basis. It usually works better as a once in a while thing or as part of a one exercise specialization program.
20 singles is much more manageable. Ten is also good. So is five.
But working up to ONE heavy single works pretty well. And it has the benefit of being quick and fast and being something that you can recover from pretty easily.
And please remember that there’s nothing at all wrong with varying the number of singles you do and how heavy you go. You can do one heavy single, two heavy singles, three heavy singles, five heavy singles or seven heavy singles or ten heavy singles.
Each way of using singles is a little bit different – but each way is very effective.
So – how many heavy singles should you do? How heavy should they be? What percentage of your one rep max should you use?
The answer is – there are many different ways to do it. Your job is to experiment and find what works the best for you. But when you do, please remember this -- it may very well be the case that less is more.
One or two heavy singles with 90 or 95 percent of your one rep max may work wonders as part of an abbreviated training program – and doing each of your exercises once per week may be a big key to getting the most out of your single rep workouts.
But, please note that heavy singles are big medicine. They’re not for beginners. Save them for when you are an intermediate or advanced lifter. And be sure to break into them by doing low rep training for a few months before you try singles. If you’ve been doing high reps and you suddenly try singles, you are asking for trouble.
And if you do try heavy singles – warm up well – work up in progressive poundage jumps – and use perfect form! And for safety’s sake – do them in a power rack just in case you miss.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I cover heavy singles in detail in Strength, Muscle and Power – along with many other old-school training methods that will add some massive mojo to your training:
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
The Guess the Title of My New Book Contest -- Day Two
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
We’re in the middle of a contest to guess the title of my new strength-training book – which is currently at the printer and should be ready to ship to you very, very soon.
Don’t run over to the Dinosaur Training site and look for an information page about the book.
I haven’t put one up yet.
Instead, we’re going to see if anyone can guess the title. The first reader with the right answer gets a free copy of the book.
So far, we have had hundreds of guesses – and no one has come close.
Here are yesterday’s clues:
1. There are THREE words in the title.
2. I use all three words in my emails on a regular basis.
3. None of the three words in the title begin with the same letter.
And please note -- the new book has a subtitle as well – but this contest only applies to the main title.
Almost everyone looked at clue no. 3 and guessed “Yours in Strength.”
That was a good guess – but it was wrong.
Several other readers guessed “Legacy of Iron.” That’s wrong, too. I just launched a new Legacy of Iron book last week -- volume 4 in the series – and the new book is not part of the series. It’s a training book. It tells you how to get bigger and stronger – how to train for maximum results – and how to develop maximum levels of muscle mass, strength and power.
Others guessed “Dinosaur Strength Training” or “Dinosaur Olympic Lifting” – again, good guesses, but not correct.
So here are some more clues for the cryptologists and word-sleuths in Dino-Land:
1. All of the words in the title are one-syllable words.
2. One letter of the alphabet appears in all 3 words.
3. No other letter of the alphabet appears in more than one of the three words.
Think about it, play with a pencil and paper and see what you can do – and in the meantime, I’ll drop back later on and cover a training topic. Be looking for it.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. The Dinosaur Store is open for business – and Dinos around the world are doing their Holiday shopping early, right here at Dino Central. Step inside and join them:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
We’re in the middle of a contest to guess the title of my new strength-training book – which is currently at the printer and should be ready to ship to you very, very soon.
Don’t run over to the Dinosaur Training site and look for an information page about the book.
I haven’t put one up yet.
Instead, we’re going to see if anyone can guess the title. The first reader with the right answer gets a free copy of the book.
So far, we have had hundreds of guesses – and no one has come close.
Here are yesterday’s clues:
1. There are THREE words in the title.
2. I use all three words in my emails on a regular basis.
3. None of the three words in the title begin with the same letter.
And please note -- the new book has a subtitle as well – but this contest only applies to the main title.
Almost everyone looked at clue no. 3 and guessed “Yours in Strength.”
That was a good guess – but it was wrong.
Several other readers guessed “Legacy of Iron.” That’s wrong, too. I just launched a new Legacy of Iron book last week -- volume 4 in the series – and the new book is not part of the series. It’s a training book. It tells you how to get bigger and stronger – how to train for maximum results – and how to develop maximum levels of muscle mass, strength and power.
Others guessed “Dinosaur Strength Training” or “Dinosaur Olympic Lifting” – again, good guesses, but not correct.
So here are some more clues for the cryptologists and word-sleuths in Dino-Land:
1. All of the words in the title are one-syllable words.
2. One letter of the alphabet appears in all 3 words.
3. No other letter of the alphabet appears in more than one of the three words.
Think about it, play with a pencil and paper and see what you can do – and in the meantime, I’ll drop back later on and cover a training topic. Be looking for it.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. The Dinosaur Store is open for business – and Dinos around the world are doing their Holiday shopping early, right here at Dino Central. Step inside and join them:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
Can You Guess the Title of My New Book?
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
There’s a great new strength-training book coming to you from Dinosaur Headquarters.
Normally, I’d go ahead and tell you the title – and show you the cover – and let you go ahead and place an order for the little monster.
But not this time.
This time, we’re going to have a little contest.
So here’s the deal.
The first reader to guess the title of the new book gets a free copy!
And I’ll give you three clues:
1. There are THREE words in the title.
2. I use all three words in my emails on a regular basis.
3. None of the three words in the title begin with the same letter.
Now, for the sake of clarity, I’ll mention that the book has a subtitle as well – but this contest only applies to the main title.
Standard rules apply.
1. One guess per reader.
2. Email your guess to me at Dinosaur Headquarters.
3. Don’t bother asking Bill Hinbern, John Wood or anyone else – because they won’t tell you.
4. Do not email Trudi and ask her to tell you – she won’t tell you, either.
5. My layout and design team knows – and so does my printer – but once again, don’t bother. They’re sworn to secrecy, too.
So there you have it – and remember, the first correct guess wins!
As always, thanks for reading – and good luck to everyone!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. In the meantime, we’re filling orders for other products like crazy – and this little monster was the number one seller last week:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
There’s a great new strength-training book coming to you from Dinosaur Headquarters.
Normally, I’d go ahead and tell you the title – and show you the cover – and let you go ahead and place an order for the little monster.
But not this time.
This time, we’re going to have a little contest.
So here’s the deal.
The first reader to guess the title of the new book gets a free copy!
And I’ll give you three clues:
1. There are THREE words in the title.
2. I use all three words in my emails on a regular basis.
3. None of the three words in the title begin with the same letter.
Now, for the sake of clarity, I’ll mention that the book has a subtitle as well – but this contest only applies to the main title.
Standard rules apply.
1. One guess per reader.
2. Email your guess to me at Dinosaur Headquarters.
3. Don’t bother asking Bill Hinbern, John Wood or anyone else – because they won’t tell you.
4. Do not email Trudi and ask her to tell you – she won’t tell you, either.
5. My layout and design team knows – and so does my printer – but once again, don’t bother. They’re sworn to secrecy, too.
So there you have it – and remember, the first correct guess wins!
As always, thanks for reading – and good luck to everyone!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. In the meantime, we’re filling orders for other products like crazy – and this little monster was the number one seller last week:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
The "Will It Work?" Question
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Every day I receive dozens of emails with “Will it work?” or “Can I do it?” or “What do you think about this?” training questions.
In most cases, the answer is “Try it and see.”
One of the really great things about strength training is that there’s no magic formula for getting bigger and stronger. There’s no absolutely certain “this will work for everyone” way to train. There’s no scientific research that says, “This is the correct number of sets, the correct number of reps and the correct exercises for maximum gains.”
And there never will be.
Successful strength training depends upon a wide variety of factors unique to YOU as an individual. That means that what works best for YOU may or may not be what works best for someone else.
These individual factors include:
1. Your age
2. Your training experience
3. Your training goals
4. What interests you, and what you enjoy doing
5. What you find to be challenging and rewarding
6. Any limitations from past injuries, age-related ginkiness or health problems of any kind
7. Your bone structure
8. Whether you are a hard gainer, an easier gainer or an average-speed gainer
9. What equipment is available to you
10. What sort of job you have, and how much time and energy your job and other obligations require
11. How fast you recover from a workout
12. How often you can train, and how long you can train
There are many others, but those are some of the big ones, and they serve to make the point.
There ARE, of course, some general guidelines. There are some things that work pretty well for almost everyone – and some things that don’t work very well for most people.
For example:
1. Heavy leg and back training builds strength and muscle for anyone.
2. Hard work and heavy weight works better for most people than light weights and pumping.
3. Abbreviated training works better for most trainees (especially older trainees) than longer, more frequent workouts.
4. As a general rule, most trainees do too much rather than too little.
5. As a general rule, most trainees don’t train hard enough for big gains.
6. As a general rule, most trainees do better with LESS training rather than MORE training.
7. Training with laser focus and pinpoint concentration improves your training – and your results – dramatically.
8. It’s better and cheaper to clean up your diet than to try to fix a bad diet by buying supplements.
9. No matter what anyone says, drugs are not necessary – and they’re not worth it.
10. One of the most critical parts of successful training is to stay positive, enthusiastic, motivated and happy.
11. Instead of jumping from program to program, stick to one program for a while and squeeze every last drop of benefit from it.
12. Strive to make each workout better than the one before it.
And again, I could go on and on – but those are some of the biggies.
So when you ask me, “Will it work?” or “Can I do it?” or “What do you think about this?” – this email is the answer to your question.
As always, thanks for reading, and if you train today, grab the bar, squeeze it, shake it, and make it scream for mercy!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I file these books and courses under the “Yes, they work” category:
1. Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength and Development
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html
2. Gray Hair and Black Iron
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
3. Strength, Muscle and Power
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
4. Each and every issue of The Dinosaur Files newsletter
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html
5. History’s Strongest Men and How They Trained: No. 1 – Doug Hepburn
http://www.brookskubik.com/doug_hepburn.html
Every day I receive dozens of emails with “Will it work?” or “Can I do it?” or “What do you think about this?” training questions.
In most cases, the answer is “Try it and see.”
One of the really great things about strength training is that there’s no magic formula for getting bigger and stronger. There’s no absolutely certain “this will work for everyone” way to train. There’s no scientific research that says, “This is the correct number of sets, the correct number of reps and the correct exercises for maximum gains.”
And there never will be.
Successful strength training depends upon a wide variety of factors unique to YOU as an individual. That means that what works best for YOU may or may not be what works best for someone else.
These individual factors include:
1. Your age
2. Your training experience
3. Your training goals
4. What interests you, and what you enjoy doing
5. What you find to be challenging and rewarding
6. Any limitations from past injuries, age-related ginkiness or health problems of any kind
7. Your bone structure
8. Whether you are a hard gainer, an easier gainer or an average-speed gainer
9. What equipment is available to you
10. What sort of job you have, and how much time and energy your job and other obligations require
11. How fast you recover from a workout
12. How often you can train, and how long you can train
There are many others, but those are some of the big ones, and they serve to make the point.
There ARE, of course, some general guidelines. There are some things that work pretty well for almost everyone – and some things that don’t work very well for most people.
For example:
1. Heavy leg and back training builds strength and muscle for anyone.
2. Hard work and heavy weight works better for most people than light weights and pumping.
3. Abbreviated training works better for most trainees (especially older trainees) than longer, more frequent workouts.
4. As a general rule, most trainees do too much rather than too little.
5. As a general rule, most trainees don’t train hard enough for big gains.
6. As a general rule, most trainees do better with LESS training rather than MORE training.
7. Training with laser focus and pinpoint concentration improves your training – and your results – dramatically.
8. It’s better and cheaper to clean up your diet than to try to fix a bad diet by buying supplements.
9. No matter what anyone says, drugs are not necessary – and they’re not worth it.
10. One of the most critical parts of successful training is to stay positive, enthusiastic, motivated and happy.
11. Instead of jumping from program to program, stick to one program for a while and squeeze every last drop of benefit from it.
12. Strive to make each workout better than the one before it.
And again, I could go on and on – but those are some of the biggies.
So when you ask me, “Will it work?” or “Can I do it?” or “What do you think about this?” – this email is the answer to your question.
As always, thanks for reading, and if you train today, grab the bar, squeeze it, shake it, and make it scream for mercy!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I file these books and courses under the “Yes, they work” category:
1. Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength and Development
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html
2. Gray Hair and Black Iron
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
3. Strength, Muscle and Power
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
4. Each and every issue of The Dinosaur Files newsletter
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html
5. History’s Strongest Men and How They Trained: No. 1 – Doug Hepburn
http://www.brookskubik.com/doug_hepburn.html
Let's Look at the Dinosaur Training Mail-Bag!
Hail to the dinosaurs!
Let’s start the day with a quick look inside the Dinosaur Training Mail-Bag!
To make things easier, I’ve broken the mail into categories for you:
1. FEEDBACK ON LEGACY OF IRON 4
Brooks, came home from work from hospital [midnight], opened package that came in mail earlier in the day, started Legacy of Iron 4 at 12:30 a.m., read non-stop until I had finished it. Your writing is addictive, you don't want to put the book down and don't want it to end. Great Book. -- Joe Tarach
Joe – Good thing you read 800 words per minute. If I could type that fast, I’d have the entire series finished by now! - Brooks
I am halfway through Legacy of Iron No. 4, can't put it down! The series is getting better and better! – Ben Mitcham
Ben – The action really picks up in the second part of the book, so grab food and your favorite beverage, sit down somewhere nice and quiet, close the door, take the phone off the hook, and keep on reading. You won’t be able to stop. – Brooks
I am reading it now (yours is the only fiction I read); just got to Harry trying to figure out whose baby it is and Jack not filling him in. Excellent read as always. – Lou DeMarco
Lou – Thanks for the feedback. It was hard to write that chapter because I was laughing too much to hit the right keys on the computer! -- Brooks
NOTE: You can find Legacy of Iron 4 right here:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
2. BILL HINBERN’S REPRINT EDITIONS OF THE YORK TRAINING COURSES AND WALL CHARTS
It's a landmark day when I get to order the York Courses and Legacy of Iron Vol. 4 in the same day! – Rick Helley
Rick – There are just a few of us who support, respect and promote the old-time bodybuilding and lifting champions and teach the old-school way of strength training. Bill Hinbern has been doing precisely that for a very long time. Thanks to everyone out there who understands, appreciates and supports what Bill and I (and John Wood and others) are doing.
Woo hoo! I got the originals off eBay but I gotta have this! Good tip, Brooks! -- Mike Patrick
Mike – I figured that many of my Dinos would want to know about this. I’m glad you appreciated the tip! – Brooks
NOTE: You can find Bill Hinbern’s reprint editions of the York Barbell Training Courses and Wall Charts right here:
http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/bob_hoffman.html
3. IDEAS FOR NEW DINO BOOKS AND COURSES
A book on training Olympic lifts "Dino style" would be great. – Oliver Sofer
Oliver – I agree! -- Brooks
Count it as one who would like to see something basic on Olympic lifting. A section on Gray Hair Olympic Lifting would be especially nice. – Richard Smith
Richard – See my response to Oliver. This WILL happen – and soon!
4. MORE BOOK IDEAS – AND DINO GARDENING!
I would certainly like to see a dvd of basic Olympic lifting instruction. However, I'm actually quite curious about your gardening. Could you recommend any resources for getting started with the sort of thing you're doing? (Actually, THAT would be an interesting course! Dinosaur Gardening for Strength and Health! I'd buy it!) – Nigel Zamora
Nigel – Thanks for your feedback. You will be seeing more about Olympic weightlifting Dino-style and more about Dino-gardening in 2011. For now, check out Eliot Coleman’s books on four season gardening. He grows fresh veggies all year round up in Maine – sometimes with two feet of snow on the ground – using unheated, simply built, low cost greenhouses and covers. Very good stuff.
There are other good gardening books out there, but Eliot Coleman's books are far and away my favorites. They really got us going on simple, effective, low-cost winter gardening. -- Brooks
5. AUTOGRAPHING YOUR BOOKS AND COURSES
Just read your email re: autographing books. I just ordered Legacy of Iron 4 and was wondering if you could sign it for me please. Really looking forward to this installment, as they just keep getting better! – Robert Muir
Robert – I am always honored to autograph any book or course that someone orders. Just include a request for an autograph in the Special Comments section of the on-line order form. -- Brooks
6. OUR WOUNDED DINOSAUR
Wonderful news about Jeff. Can't keep a dinosaur down. Obviously, the type of training he has done over the years has forged a strong healing mechanism. Plus of course an iron will that will not know defeat. I really believe acupuncture would help with the pain and healing of his hand. If he is interested you can give him my email and I could probably find someone in his area. -- Peter Yates
Peter – I will do that. Thank you! And I agree with you 100 percent. Jeff is making a terrific comeback – in part because he was in really good condition when he had his accident. -- Brooks
I make and sell trauma liniment, and I want to send some to our Wounded Dino. I will also include some for you to try out. Chinese herbs in a liniment for sprains, strains, aches, pains and what not. Thank you again for all that you do! Train hard, heal quickly. Dale Dugas
Dale – That’s very good of you – thank you! The Dinos have been terrific in their support of Jeff. It will be interesting to see how the herbal liniment helps. Did you know that one of the top bodybuilders of the 1940’s was in a bad accident as a kid – and the doctors were going to amputate his leg – and his mother said “No” – and then she bought some herbal salves and powders, and treated his leg, and if cured the infection and the operation was not necessary? It’s a true story – I read about it when doing the research for (get this) Legacy of Iron 5. -- Brooks
7. KUDOS FOR TRUDI
Give that lovely lady a hug for me, thanks for the signed books. If you and Trudi are in the area, the door's open, the weight room ready and Sandie is a hecka of a baker -- Joe Tarach
Joe – Thanks for the email and consider it done (the hug for Trudi, I mean). As all regular readers know, she fills your orders and gives ten thousand and ten percent to keep the Dino business moving forward. So, on the count of three, everyone join me and say, “THANK YOU, TRUDI!”
And that wraps things up for now. As always, thanks for reading – and thanks for supporting what we do here at Dino Headquarters. Have a great weekend, and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Take a look at our products page and see what you need to complete your collection of Dinosaur training goodies – and remember, it saves postage for you (and is easier on our shipping department) if you order multiple goodies:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
Let’s start the day with a quick look inside the Dinosaur Training Mail-Bag!
To make things easier, I’ve broken the mail into categories for you:
1. FEEDBACK ON LEGACY OF IRON 4
Brooks, came home from work from hospital [midnight], opened package that came in mail earlier in the day, started Legacy of Iron 4 at 12:30 a.m., read non-stop until I had finished it. Your writing is addictive, you don't want to put the book down and don't want it to end. Great Book. -- Joe Tarach
Joe – Good thing you read 800 words per minute. If I could type that fast, I’d have the entire series finished by now! - Brooks
I am halfway through Legacy of Iron No. 4, can't put it down! The series is getting better and better! – Ben Mitcham
Ben – The action really picks up in the second part of the book, so grab food and your favorite beverage, sit down somewhere nice and quiet, close the door, take the phone off the hook, and keep on reading. You won’t be able to stop. – Brooks
I am reading it now (yours is the only fiction I read); just got to Harry trying to figure out whose baby it is and Jack not filling him in. Excellent read as always. – Lou DeMarco
Lou – Thanks for the feedback. It was hard to write that chapter because I was laughing too much to hit the right keys on the computer! -- Brooks
NOTE: You can find Legacy of Iron 4 right here:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
2. BILL HINBERN’S REPRINT EDITIONS OF THE YORK TRAINING COURSES AND WALL CHARTS
It's a landmark day when I get to order the York Courses and Legacy of Iron Vol. 4 in the same day! – Rick Helley
Rick – There are just a few of us who support, respect and promote the old-time bodybuilding and lifting champions and teach the old-school way of strength training. Bill Hinbern has been doing precisely that for a very long time. Thanks to everyone out there who understands, appreciates and supports what Bill and I (and John Wood and others) are doing.
Woo hoo! I got the originals off eBay but I gotta have this! Good tip, Brooks! -- Mike Patrick
Mike – I figured that many of my Dinos would want to know about this. I’m glad you appreciated the tip! – Brooks
NOTE: You can find Bill Hinbern’s reprint editions of the York Barbell Training Courses and Wall Charts right here:
http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/bob_hoffman.html
3. IDEAS FOR NEW DINO BOOKS AND COURSES
A book on training Olympic lifts "Dino style" would be great. – Oliver Sofer
Oliver – I agree! -- Brooks
Count it as one who would like to see something basic on Olympic lifting. A section on Gray Hair Olympic Lifting would be especially nice. – Richard Smith
Richard – See my response to Oliver. This WILL happen – and soon!
4. MORE BOOK IDEAS – AND DINO GARDENING!
I would certainly like to see a dvd of basic Olympic lifting instruction. However, I'm actually quite curious about your gardening. Could you recommend any resources for getting started with the sort of thing you're doing? (Actually, THAT would be an interesting course! Dinosaur Gardening for Strength and Health! I'd buy it!) – Nigel Zamora
Nigel – Thanks for your feedback. You will be seeing more about Olympic weightlifting Dino-style and more about Dino-gardening in 2011. For now, check out Eliot Coleman’s books on four season gardening. He grows fresh veggies all year round up in Maine – sometimes with two feet of snow on the ground – using unheated, simply built, low cost greenhouses and covers. Very good stuff.
There are other good gardening books out there, but Eliot Coleman's books are far and away my favorites. They really got us going on simple, effective, low-cost winter gardening. -- Brooks
5. AUTOGRAPHING YOUR BOOKS AND COURSES
Just read your email re: autographing books. I just ordered Legacy of Iron 4 and was wondering if you could sign it for me please. Really looking forward to this installment, as they just keep getting better! – Robert Muir
Robert – I am always honored to autograph any book or course that someone orders. Just include a request for an autograph in the Special Comments section of the on-line order form. -- Brooks
6. OUR WOUNDED DINOSAUR
Wonderful news about Jeff. Can't keep a dinosaur down. Obviously, the type of training he has done over the years has forged a strong healing mechanism. Plus of course an iron will that will not know defeat. I really believe acupuncture would help with the pain and healing of his hand. If he is interested you can give him my email and I could probably find someone in his area. -- Peter Yates
Peter – I will do that. Thank you! And I agree with you 100 percent. Jeff is making a terrific comeback – in part because he was in really good condition when he had his accident. -- Brooks
I make and sell trauma liniment, and I want to send some to our Wounded Dino. I will also include some for you to try out. Chinese herbs in a liniment for sprains, strains, aches, pains and what not. Thank you again for all that you do! Train hard, heal quickly. Dale Dugas
Dale – That’s very good of you – thank you! The Dinos have been terrific in their support of Jeff. It will be interesting to see how the herbal liniment helps. Did you know that one of the top bodybuilders of the 1940’s was in a bad accident as a kid – and the doctors were going to amputate his leg – and his mother said “No” – and then she bought some herbal salves and powders, and treated his leg, and if cured the infection and the operation was not necessary? It’s a true story – I read about it when doing the research for (get this) Legacy of Iron 5. -- Brooks
7. KUDOS FOR TRUDI
Give that lovely lady a hug for me, thanks for the signed books. If you and Trudi are in the area, the door's open, the weight room ready and Sandie is a hecka of a baker -- Joe Tarach
Joe – Thanks for the email and consider it done (the hug for Trudi, I mean). As all regular readers know, she fills your orders and gives ten thousand and ten percent to keep the Dino business moving forward. So, on the count of three, everyone join me and say, “THANK YOU, TRUDI!”
And that wraps things up for now. As always, thanks for reading – and thanks for supporting what we do here at Dino Headquarters. Have a great weekend, and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Take a look at our products page and see what you need to complete your collection of Dinosaur training goodies – and remember, it saves postage for you (and is easier on our shipping department) if you order multiple goodies:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
They're Back! -- The York Barbell Courses!
BIG BREAKING NEWS -- Look what my buddy Bill Hinbern has just brought back! Wow!
http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/bob_hoffman.html
http://www.superstrengthtraining.com/bob_hoffman.html
How to Get Great Results at Any Age!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
They say that getting older is not for sissies, and I certainly think it’s true.
If you’re an older lifter, you know exactly what I’m talking about. You fight a constant battle against gravity – and with every passing year, it gets harder and harder to out-wrestle Father Time.
BUT – if you train the right way – and if you keep on training no matter what happens – and if you watch your diet and keep your midsection under control – then you can be pretty darn strong, pretty darn muscular, and in pretty darn good condition.
The best way to do it is with the right kind of weight training – the kind that will keep you strong, muscular, and superbly conditioned at any age. It’s the kind I teach in Gray Hair and Black Iron – the first book ever written about serious strength training for older lifters.
Gray Hair and Black iron came out just one year ago, and since then, I’ve been getting rave reviews from lifters around the world. Here’s an example – I found it in the in-box this morning:
“I want to tell you how Gray Hair and Black Iron has helped me. I'm 47 years old and I don't think I've been in this good of condition in a very long time. The methods and techniques you talk about in your book are second to none. It's changed my whole way of working out. It's also proven invaluable to my 14-year old son who started weight training a few months ago, and we incorporate much of your training ideas into his workouts. He's started wrestling for his junior high school team a few weeks ago. Watching him so easily overpower kids that have sometimes 20 pounds on him is pretty cool.
So, here it is: THANK YOU. Keep up the good work!
Stef Hiltz”
Now, that’s pretty interesting – the same book that helped 47-year old Stef Hiltz to get back into terrific condition is ALSO helping his 14-year old son destroy his opponent on the wrestling mat. That ought to tell you something.
And that leads me to a thought – I’ve been urging everyone over the age of 35 to read gray Hair and Black Iron – but maybe I should open things up a little, and urge ALL of you to read it!
We might start seeing a whole new fitness phenomenon – fathers and sons training side by side, shoulder to shoulder, and hitting it hard and heavy – and getting great results at any age.
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. You can grab your copy of Gray Hair and Black Iron right here at Dinosaur Training Headquarters:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
They say that getting older is not for sissies, and I certainly think it’s true.
If you’re an older lifter, you know exactly what I’m talking about. You fight a constant battle against gravity – and with every passing year, it gets harder and harder to out-wrestle Father Time.
BUT – if you train the right way – and if you keep on training no matter what happens – and if you watch your diet and keep your midsection under control – then you can be pretty darn strong, pretty darn muscular, and in pretty darn good condition.
The best way to do it is with the right kind of weight training – the kind that will keep you strong, muscular, and superbly conditioned at any age. It’s the kind I teach in Gray Hair and Black Iron – the first book ever written about serious strength training for older lifters.
Gray Hair and Black iron came out just one year ago, and since then, I’ve been getting rave reviews from lifters around the world. Here’s an example – I found it in the in-box this morning:
“I want to tell you how Gray Hair and Black Iron has helped me. I'm 47 years old and I don't think I've been in this good of condition in a very long time. The methods and techniques you talk about in your book are second to none. It's changed my whole way of working out. It's also proven invaluable to my 14-year old son who started weight training a few months ago, and we incorporate much of your training ideas into his workouts. He's started wrestling for his junior high school team a few weeks ago. Watching him so easily overpower kids that have sometimes 20 pounds on him is pretty cool.
So, here it is: THANK YOU. Keep up the good work!
Stef Hiltz”
Now, that’s pretty interesting – the same book that helped 47-year old Stef Hiltz to get back into terrific condition is ALSO helping his 14-year old son destroy his opponent on the wrestling mat. That ought to tell you something.
And that leads me to a thought – I’ve been urging everyone over the age of 35 to read gray Hair and Black Iron – but maybe I should open things up a little, and urge ALL of you to read it!
We might start seeing a whole new fitness phenomenon – fathers and sons training side by side, shoulder to shoulder, and hitting it hard and heavy – and getting great results at any age.
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. You can grab your copy of Gray Hair and Black Iron right here at Dinosaur Training Headquarters:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
Dinosaur Training Updates (Including an Update on Our Wounded Dino)
Couple of quick updates:
1. Autographed copies of books.
I’m always happy to autograph any book or course your order – but you need to ask! If you order using the on-line system, there’s a box for Special Instructions – so include a request for an autograph there.
2. Feedback on books and courses
We’re always looking for feedback from readers – so send an email and let us know how you like our books and courses!
3. Our Wounded Dino
Jeff, our wounded Dino, is doing great – and it’s no wonder after all the cards, letters, and care packages he received from his fellow Dinos! (Note for the newbies – Jeff is a longtime Dino who was in a bad motorcycle crash earlier in the year and had multiple broken bones and severe internal injuries that landed him in the hospital for several months.)
Here’s his latest report:
Oh man Brooks! I've been so busy -- it's actually wonderful. I've begun walking with absolutely no aid whatsoever. No walker, no cane, nothing! I'm even able to take stairs without a cane or handrail. My left hand hurts all the time. I'm not sure how bad it really is or when it will be back to normal.
I started back to work and feel great. Muscle memory -- that's what it has to be! People cannot believe how well I move. I started doing some very light rows along with some seated presses. I'm hoping to get my rack back up so I can do some chins and dips.
I think I’ll be doing squats next summer. I received a couple more boxes yesterday but have not got a chance to open them yet. It seems like now there are not enough hours in the day. I can't seem to find time to complete anything!
I'm very sorry I have not kept you updated as well as I used to. I added you on facebook today --hopefully it will be easier now.
I will open my fossils here shortly yet tonight and see what new dino friends I have made. Also, ill get a new round of pics for you!
What injury,
Jeff”
Note: If you want to send a card or letter (or a book or magazine or anything else to read) to Jeff, shoot it to me at the following address:
Brooks Kubik Enterprises, Inc.
P.O. Box 4426
Louisville, Ky 40204
I’ll forward them on to him.
4. We’re on Facebook!
We’re on Facebook now, and you can follow us at:
facebook.com/dinosaur.training
5. December Dino Files!
I’m working on the December issue of The Dinosaur Files newsletter today – and I need photos and feedback from Dinos – so please send them on in!
6. Cold Weather Training
It’s wet and cold and and gray and gloomy here in Louisville – so when I train today, I’m going to bundle up in layers and top things off with a Gray Hair and Black Iron sweatshirt. You can grab one right here – they work pretty well for those cold weather workouts:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhairblackiron_sweatshirt.html
7. My Winter Garden
I put everything under mini-greenhouses made out of conduit pipe and heavy plastic – and so far, the veggies are holding up well. I go out in the morning, flip back the plastic covers, and harvest fresh spinach and salad greens. It makes a heck of an addition to the daily diet – nothing beats fresh, homegrown veggies for vitamins, minerals and nutrition – as well as taste.
8. Holiday Orders
We usually end up filling orders right up until the very last minute. Last year, we sent out so many late orders that we overloaded Santa’s sleigh and Rudolph, Donner and Blixen got hung up on the telephone wire across from the house. So get those orders in as soon as possible this year!
9. What Would You Like to See?
Let us know what you’d like to see us cover in 2011 – in books, courses or DVD’s. It always helps to hear from you. For example, several readers have expressed interest in something on basic Olympic lifting. How many of you would like to see that?
10. Dumbbell Training
This morning’s post talked about heavy dumbbell presses. That reminds me, I covered HEAVY dumbbell training in this little monster – it’s an oldie, but a goodie!
http://www.brookskubik.com/dumbbell_training_dvd.html
That wraps things up. Remember, if you want an autograph on something you order, just let me know!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
1. Autographed copies of books.
I’m always happy to autograph any book or course your order – but you need to ask! If you order using the on-line system, there’s a box for Special Instructions – so include a request for an autograph there.
2. Feedback on books and courses
We’re always looking for feedback from readers – so send an email and let us know how you like our books and courses!
3. Our Wounded Dino
Jeff, our wounded Dino, is doing great – and it’s no wonder after all the cards, letters, and care packages he received from his fellow Dinos! (Note for the newbies – Jeff is a longtime Dino who was in a bad motorcycle crash earlier in the year and had multiple broken bones and severe internal injuries that landed him in the hospital for several months.)
Here’s his latest report:
Oh man Brooks! I've been so busy -- it's actually wonderful. I've begun walking with absolutely no aid whatsoever. No walker, no cane, nothing! I'm even able to take stairs without a cane or handrail. My left hand hurts all the time. I'm not sure how bad it really is or when it will be back to normal.
I started back to work and feel great. Muscle memory -- that's what it has to be! People cannot believe how well I move. I started doing some very light rows along with some seated presses. I'm hoping to get my rack back up so I can do some chins and dips.
I think I’ll be doing squats next summer. I received a couple more boxes yesterday but have not got a chance to open them yet. It seems like now there are not enough hours in the day. I can't seem to find time to complete anything!
I'm very sorry I have not kept you updated as well as I used to. I added you on facebook today --hopefully it will be easier now.
I will open my fossils here shortly yet tonight and see what new dino friends I have made. Also, ill get a new round of pics for you!
What injury,
Jeff”
Note: If you want to send a card or letter (or a book or magazine or anything else to read) to Jeff, shoot it to me at the following address:
Brooks Kubik Enterprises, Inc.
P.O. Box 4426
Louisville, Ky 40204
I’ll forward them on to him.
4. We’re on Facebook!
We’re on Facebook now, and you can follow us at:
facebook.com/dinosaur.training
5. December Dino Files!
I’m working on the December issue of The Dinosaur Files newsletter today – and I need photos and feedback from Dinos – so please send them on in!
6. Cold Weather Training
It’s wet and cold and and gray and gloomy here in Louisville – so when I train today, I’m going to bundle up in layers and top things off with a Gray Hair and Black Iron sweatshirt. You can grab one right here – they work pretty well for those cold weather workouts:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhairblackiron_sweatshirt.html
7. My Winter Garden
I put everything under mini-greenhouses made out of conduit pipe and heavy plastic – and so far, the veggies are holding up well. I go out in the morning, flip back the plastic covers, and harvest fresh spinach and salad greens. It makes a heck of an addition to the daily diet – nothing beats fresh, homegrown veggies for vitamins, minerals and nutrition – as well as taste.
8. Holiday Orders
We usually end up filling orders right up until the very last minute. Last year, we sent out so many late orders that we overloaded Santa’s sleigh and Rudolph, Donner and Blixen got hung up on the telephone wire across from the house. So get those orders in as soon as possible this year!
9. What Would You Like to See?
Let us know what you’d like to see us cover in 2011 – in books, courses or DVD’s. It always helps to hear from you. For example, several readers have expressed interest in something on basic Olympic lifting. How many of you would like to see that?
10. Dumbbell Training
This morning’s post talked about heavy dumbbell presses. That reminds me, I covered HEAVY dumbbell training in this little monster – it’s an oldie, but a goodie!
http://www.brookskubik.com/dumbbell_training_dvd.html
That wraps things up. Remember, if you want an autograph on something you order, just let me know!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
The First Feedback on Legacy of Iron 4!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
The first feedback on “Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War!” comes from none other than Jim Schmitz, the man who made the Sports palace a weightlifting legend, and the Coach of the U.S. Olympic Weightlifting Team Coach in 1980, 1988 and 1992. He’s also the author of the “Olympic-style Weightlifting for Beginner & Intermediate Weightlifters” Manual and DVD, which you can order from IronMind – and which are well-worth reading and watching.
Jim is an old-school guy who got started back in 1960 – and who remembers the DAY that he began lifting (which is pretty cool) – and remembers lines from old books, training courses and magazines that he read when he was getting started (which reminds me of me) – and he’s been a big fan of the Legacy of Iron books from day one.
Jim also ends his emails with one of the greatest closing lines in history:
“I will not rest while gravity threatens my people!”
Here’s what Jim Schmitz had to say – and please note that it includes the tip of the day for building strong and massive shoulders:
“Brooks,
Today I received your latest book, "York Goes To War!” Thank you. I just started reading "Horatius" last night. I look forward to reading it and your latest in the Legacy of Iron series. I really liked your cover with 1942 Mr. America Frank Leight on the cover.
When I began weightlifting on June 27th 1960 I was following the Joe Bonomo Professional Muscle Building Power - Plus - System and Frank Leight was one of the ten instructors.
I once read a statement by Frank, I think in Strength and health, but I can't remember exactly. Anyway, Frank was extolling the benefits of "Alternate Dumbbell Presses" and he said they were the best-ever shoulder exercise.
As I remember it, he said: " Alternate Dumbbell Presses are so Good That They Can Put Deltoids on a Pencil" and I have been doing them ever since and recommending and teaching them ever since 1968.
By the way Frank had the proverbial "Canon Ball" delts that we all wanted, as well as probably the broadest shoulders of the 40's, 50's, and 60's and maybe of all-time!
Anyway, thanks for the two books. I'm off to bed to get back to Horatius. I'll give you my comments after I finish them.
"I will not rest while gravity threatens my people!"
Jim”
Jim – Thanks for your feedback, and do let me know how you like Horatius and Legacy of Iron 4.
Your line about building big deltoids on a pencil made me smile. Bradley J. Steiner used the same line in an article I read back around 1970, and it has stuck in my mind ever since. I think I even used it once or twice in my own writing.
Frank Leight trained at Sig Klein’s gym, and Klein was a huge fan of heavy dumbbell pressing. It looks like it rubbed off on Frank.
To everyone else – thanks for reading, and if you train today, make it a good one!
P.S. In between writing about the iron game, I managed to write a short novel set in ancient Rome – a novel that tells the true story of one of history’s greatest warriors and one of the most incredible battles of all time. It’s not about strength training, per se – but it’s definitely about strength. Strength of body, strength of heart and strength of will. It’s a fast-moving, fun read – and I think you’ll like it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/horatius.html
P.S. 2. Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War! is flying off the shelves. You can order your copy right here:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
The first feedback on “Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War!” comes from none other than Jim Schmitz, the man who made the Sports palace a weightlifting legend, and the Coach of the U.S. Olympic Weightlifting Team Coach in 1980, 1988 and 1992. He’s also the author of the “Olympic-style Weightlifting for Beginner & Intermediate Weightlifters” Manual and DVD, which you can order from IronMind – and which are well-worth reading and watching.
Jim is an old-school guy who got started back in 1960 – and who remembers the DAY that he began lifting (which is pretty cool) – and remembers lines from old books, training courses and magazines that he read when he was getting started (which reminds me of me) – and he’s been a big fan of the Legacy of Iron books from day one.
Jim also ends his emails with one of the greatest closing lines in history:
“I will not rest while gravity threatens my people!”
Here’s what Jim Schmitz had to say – and please note that it includes the tip of the day for building strong and massive shoulders:
“Brooks,
Today I received your latest book, "York Goes To War!” Thank you. I just started reading "Horatius" last night. I look forward to reading it and your latest in the Legacy of Iron series. I really liked your cover with 1942 Mr. America Frank Leight on the cover.
When I began weightlifting on June 27th 1960 I was following the Joe Bonomo Professional Muscle Building Power - Plus - System and Frank Leight was one of the ten instructors.
I once read a statement by Frank, I think in Strength and health, but I can't remember exactly. Anyway, Frank was extolling the benefits of "Alternate Dumbbell Presses" and he said they were the best-ever shoulder exercise.
As I remember it, he said: " Alternate Dumbbell Presses are so Good That They Can Put Deltoids on a Pencil" and I have been doing them ever since and recommending and teaching them ever since 1968.
By the way Frank had the proverbial "Canon Ball" delts that we all wanted, as well as probably the broadest shoulders of the 40's, 50's, and 60's and maybe of all-time!
Anyway, thanks for the two books. I'm off to bed to get back to Horatius. I'll give you my comments after I finish them.
"I will not rest while gravity threatens my people!"
Jim”
Jim – Thanks for your feedback, and do let me know how you like Horatius and Legacy of Iron 4.
Your line about building big deltoids on a pencil made me smile. Bradley J. Steiner used the same line in an article I read back around 1970, and it has stuck in my mind ever since. I think I even used it once or twice in my own writing.
Frank Leight trained at Sig Klein’s gym, and Klein was a huge fan of heavy dumbbell pressing. It looks like it rubbed off on Frank.
To everyone else – thanks for reading, and if you train today, make it a good one!
P.S. In between writing about the iron game, I managed to write a short novel set in ancient Rome – a novel that tells the true story of one of history’s greatest warriors and one of the most incredible battles of all time. It’s not about strength training, per se – but it’s definitely about strength. Strength of body, strength of heart and strength of will. It’s a fast-moving, fun read – and I think you’ll like it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/horatius.html
P.S. 2. Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War! is flying off the shelves. You can order your copy right here:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
How to Get an Autographed Copy of Any Book from Dinosaur Training Headquarters!
Hail to the dinosaurs!
When I published the first edition of Dinosaur Training back in March 1996, I printed 3,000 copies of the little monster – and as a special bonus for readers, I signed and numbered every single volume. All 3,000 of them.
If you’re lucky enough to have one of those, you own something very special. They sell in book stores and eBay now for bajillions of smackers – which is crazy, because you can get a new edition – signed even – from me – right here and right now – at far less than the book store folks and eBay honchos are charging.
I mean, seriously -- I've seen them selling for $100 -- $150 or even $200.
Since that time, I’ve not been brave enough to offer to autograph 3,000 books – it’s hard on the fingers after the first couple of hundred – but I still autograph any book or course if I am asked to do so. I'll do it for Dinosaur training, and I'll do it for anything else you order. I do it as a courtesy to you, my reader, and there’s no charge for the autograph.
Trudi fills the orders, and she loves to see a request for an autograph – and sets the book aside on the downstairs table and lays a pen next to it, and makes sure I sign the book.
If it’s suppertime, I don’t get to eat until I sign the books. If I’m going out, I don’t get to leave the house until I sign them.
Last night was my workout night, and before I could go out to the garage I had to sign five different books.
So you can see, Trudi takes this book signing business very seriously.
It’s the Holiday shopping season now, and we’re getting many orders from wives and girl friends – and we always try to email back and ask if those orders should be signed, and if so, to who.
So if your sweetie orders something for you from Dinosaur Headquarters, ask her to ask us to have it signed for you – and it will happen.
Over the years, I’ve developed several phrases I use with the different books I sign – which is something that Bob Hoffman did, and which must have been quite a challenge for him, because he wrote something like 100 of them.
For example, I have a signed copy of “How to Be Strong, Healthy and Happy” – and Bob wrote:
“Sincerely wishing you life long strength, health and happiness. Bob Hoffman.”
And that’s a pretty good way to sign a book.
There’s one phrase I like to use for Dinosaur Training – another for Strength, Muscle and Power – a different one for Gray Hair and Black Iron – and others for the Doug Hepburn training course, Horatius, and the Legacy of Iron books.
I won’t tell you what they are, so if you order a book and ask that it be signed, you’ll be surprised.
But in a related vein, I’ll note this. I receive tons of emails, and when I respond to them, I often end my response with:
“Keep me posted on your training and your progress.”
Now, there’s a reason why I say that.
Or more accurately, there are several reasons.
1. I want you to stay in touch and let me know how things are going with your training. One of the things we do here at Dinosaur Headquarters is to serve as a clearinghouse for different approaches to sane, sensible, productive and effective strength training. We’re interested in the stuff they don’t write about in the muscle comics. And we want to hear from YOU – our Dinosaurs – and to learn what works for YOU! And then we can pass that along to other Dinosaurs.
This is one of the things that Peary Rader did with Iron Man magazine for the 50 years in which he owned, operated, published and edited the magazine – and it’s a very important function.
2. I want to know about YOUR training. Not someone else’s training – not something you read about somewhere – but what YOU are actually doing.
Working out is not a spectator sport. To make it meaningful, effective and productive, you have to focus on doing it. YOU. You are the most important person in your training g universe. No one else. Never forget that.
3. I want to know about your TRAINING. If you get your training working right, everything else falls into place. In physical culture, it all starts with your training. That’s what counts – and that’s what I want you to focus on.
4. I want to know about your progress – and please note that I am NOT saying “good luck” in your training. I am absolutely certain – I know for a fact – that if you keep on training, you WILL make progress.
5. I want to end by focusing on the idea of PROGRESS. That’s how you measure the success of your training. Are you making progress? If you are, then you’re doing the right things. If not, you need to rework your program and make the necessary changes and adjustments that will get you back on the progress track.
And remember – as I noted in yesterday’s message – if you make every workout better than the one before it, your training becomes fun, dynamic and exciting.
And that’s why I say: “Keep me posted on your training and your progress.”
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. And if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Take a quick look at everything we have at the Dinosaur Training store – and see what would make you smile (especially if it comes with a personal autograph!) – and go ahead and place an order and ask for an autograph (or ask your sweetie to do it). Signing books for you is an honor and a privilege – and we love to do it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
When I published the first edition of Dinosaur Training back in March 1996, I printed 3,000 copies of the little monster – and as a special bonus for readers, I signed and numbered every single volume. All 3,000 of them.
If you’re lucky enough to have one of those, you own something very special. They sell in book stores and eBay now for bajillions of smackers – which is crazy, because you can get a new edition – signed even – from me – right here and right now – at far less than the book store folks and eBay honchos are charging.
I mean, seriously -- I've seen them selling for $100 -- $150 or even $200.
Since that time, I’ve not been brave enough to offer to autograph 3,000 books – it’s hard on the fingers after the first couple of hundred – but I still autograph any book or course if I am asked to do so. I'll do it for Dinosaur training, and I'll do it for anything else you order. I do it as a courtesy to you, my reader, and there’s no charge for the autograph.
Trudi fills the orders, and she loves to see a request for an autograph – and sets the book aside on the downstairs table and lays a pen next to it, and makes sure I sign the book.
If it’s suppertime, I don’t get to eat until I sign the books. If I’m going out, I don’t get to leave the house until I sign them.
Last night was my workout night, and before I could go out to the garage I had to sign five different books.
So you can see, Trudi takes this book signing business very seriously.
It’s the Holiday shopping season now, and we’re getting many orders from wives and girl friends – and we always try to email back and ask if those orders should be signed, and if so, to who.
So if your sweetie orders something for you from Dinosaur Headquarters, ask her to ask us to have it signed for you – and it will happen.
Over the years, I’ve developed several phrases I use with the different books I sign – which is something that Bob Hoffman did, and which must have been quite a challenge for him, because he wrote something like 100 of them.
For example, I have a signed copy of “How to Be Strong, Healthy and Happy” – and Bob wrote:
“Sincerely wishing you life long strength, health and happiness. Bob Hoffman.”
And that’s a pretty good way to sign a book.
There’s one phrase I like to use for Dinosaur Training – another for Strength, Muscle and Power – a different one for Gray Hair and Black Iron – and others for the Doug Hepburn training course, Horatius, and the Legacy of Iron books.
I won’t tell you what they are, so if you order a book and ask that it be signed, you’ll be surprised.
But in a related vein, I’ll note this. I receive tons of emails, and when I respond to them, I often end my response with:
“Keep me posted on your training and your progress.”
Now, there’s a reason why I say that.
Or more accurately, there are several reasons.
1. I want you to stay in touch and let me know how things are going with your training. One of the things we do here at Dinosaur Headquarters is to serve as a clearinghouse for different approaches to sane, sensible, productive and effective strength training. We’re interested in the stuff they don’t write about in the muscle comics. And we want to hear from YOU – our Dinosaurs – and to learn what works for YOU! And then we can pass that along to other Dinosaurs.
This is one of the things that Peary Rader did with Iron Man magazine for the 50 years in which he owned, operated, published and edited the magazine – and it’s a very important function.
2. I want to know about YOUR training. Not someone else’s training – not something you read about somewhere – but what YOU are actually doing.
Working out is not a spectator sport. To make it meaningful, effective and productive, you have to focus on doing it. YOU. You are the most important person in your training g universe. No one else. Never forget that.
3. I want to know about your TRAINING. If you get your training working right, everything else falls into place. In physical culture, it all starts with your training. That’s what counts – and that’s what I want you to focus on.
4. I want to know about your progress – and please note that I am NOT saying “good luck” in your training. I am absolutely certain – I know for a fact – that if you keep on training, you WILL make progress.
5. I want to end by focusing on the idea of PROGRESS. That’s how you measure the success of your training. Are you making progress? If you are, then you’re doing the right things. If not, you need to rework your program and make the necessary changes and adjustments that will get you back on the progress track.
And remember – as I noted in yesterday’s message – if you make every workout better than the one before it, your training becomes fun, dynamic and exciting.
And that’s why I say: “Keep me posted on your training and your progress.”
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. And if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Take a quick look at everything we have at the Dinosaur Training store – and see what would make you smile (especially if it comes with a personal autograph!) – and go ahead and place an order and ask for an autograph (or ask your sweetie to do it). Signing books for you is an honor and a privilege – and we love to do it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
The Program Hopper
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
When I checked my email, this one was waiting for me in the old in-box. The subject line was “Program Hopper.”
“Hi Brooks,
Having read Brawn, Dinosaur Training and Strength, Muscle and Power I feel I have a good foundation on what a sound program is. My problem is after finding and starting a good strength training program I get bored after 4 weeks and I want to change things up. So even though I'm jumping from effective program to effective program I never stay on one long enough to make any progress.
I need help how to stop this cycle. Any ideas?
Thanks
Matt”
“Any ideas?”
Frankly – yes.
There are a lot of things I could suggest. There are a lot of things I could talk about.
But this is one of those situations where I think our fellow lifter already knows the answer to his question.
So here’s my answer – sit down and write a detailed response to your email. Pretend it’s from me. Pretend it says everything I would say to anyone who has problems sticking to his training.
Especially if the problem is – “I get bored.”
In your response, be sure to address the following questions:
1. How much would I add to my squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, bent-over rowing (or pull-ups) and barbell curls if I trained them hard and heavy on a regular, consistent basis for the next three or four months?
2. How much bigger and stronger would I be if I stuck to my schedule and added 20 to 50 pounds to all of my exercise poundages over the next three or four months?
3. How would I look if I stuck to my schedule and added 10 or 20 pounds of muscle over the next three or four months?
4. How could training possibly be boring if I was always fighting to add weight to the bar – and if it was working – and if I was getting bigger and stronger from workout to workout?
5. If other guys can stick to their training program and make great gains – why can’t I do the very same thing?
6. Do I want to use single progression or double progression in my training – and why does Brooks keep talking about “progression” all the time?
7a. Does making measurable progress make strength training more interesting and more exciting?
7. If I go back through Brawn and Dinosaur Training and Strength, Muscle and Power, can I find a single example of someone who made great progress by flitting from program to program the way a butterfly flits from flower to flower?
8. Am I following an abbreviated training program based on basic, compound exercises – and am I seriously committed to adding weight to my exercises – and do I relish the sense of accomplishment that comes when I do so?
9. Am I jumping from program to program because of something I read on the internet or something I saw in a muscle comic or something some guy at the gym said to do – and if so, why am I letting other people influence me to stop following a productive program?
10. How do older lifters keep on training after 30, 40 or 50 years of lifting – and why do they look forward to their workouts so much – and why do they always look forward to their workouts?
There are other important points to cover, but start with those. They’ll give you plenty of ammunition.
Meanwhile, I’m going to sit down and outline my workout for tonight. It will be easy to do. I’ve been following the same basic workout for a long, long time.
And guess what? I’m really looking forward to tonight’s workout. Why? Because I’m going to make it the best one ever.
Not different.
Better.
And it’s going to fun – and exciting – and a challenge.
That’s what every workout is when you try to make each one better than the one before. It’s fun – it’s exciting – and it’s a challenge. And that’s the whole secret to making big gains.
Thanks for reading – and remember, if today’s your training day, make it the best one ever.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. One of the great ways to stay motivated and committed to your training is to get regular, monthly feedback from Dinosaur Training Headquarters and from your fellow Dinosaurs around the world – by subscribing to The Dinosaur Files newsletter. Grab your subscription today, and I’ll start you off as of May 2010 and send all of the back issues from May 2010 to November 2010 to get you started – and that way, you won’t miss an issue!
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html
When I checked my email, this one was waiting for me in the old in-box. The subject line was “Program Hopper.”
“Hi Brooks,
Having read Brawn, Dinosaur Training and Strength, Muscle and Power I feel I have a good foundation on what a sound program is. My problem is after finding and starting a good strength training program I get bored after 4 weeks and I want to change things up. So even though I'm jumping from effective program to effective program I never stay on one long enough to make any progress.
I need help how to stop this cycle. Any ideas?
Thanks
Matt”
“Any ideas?”
Frankly – yes.
There are a lot of things I could suggest. There are a lot of things I could talk about.
But this is one of those situations where I think our fellow lifter already knows the answer to his question.
So here’s my answer – sit down and write a detailed response to your email. Pretend it’s from me. Pretend it says everything I would say to anyone who has problems sticking to his training.
Especially if the problem is – “I get bored.”
In your response, be sure to address the following questions:
1. How much would I add to my squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, bent-over rowing (or pull-ups) and barbell curls if I trained them hard and heavy on a regular, consistent basis for the next three or four months?
2. How much bigger and stronger would I be if I stuck to my schedule and added 20 to 50 pounds to all of my exercise poundages over the next three or four months?
3. How would I look if I stuck to my schedule and added 10 or 20 pounds of muscle over the next three or four months?
4. How could training possibly be boring if I was always fighting to add weight to the bar – and if it was working – and if I was getting bigger and stronger from workout to workout?
5. If other guys can stick to their training program and make great gains – why can’t I do the very same thing?
6. Do I want to use single progression or double progression in my training – and why does Brooks keep talking about “progression” all the time?
7a. Does making measurable progress make strength training more interesting and more exciting?
7. If I go back through Brawn and Dinosaur Training and Strength, Muscle and Power, can I find a single example of someone who made great progress by flitting from program to program the way a butterfly flits from flower to flower?
8. Am I following an abbreviated training program based on basic, compound exercises – and am I seriously committed to adding weight to my exercises – and do I relish the sense of accomplishment that comes when I do so?
9. Am I jumping from program to program because of something I read on the internet or something I saw in a muscle comic or something some guy at the gym said to do – and if so, why am I letting other people influence me to stop following a productive program?
10. How do older lifters keep on training after 30, 40 or 50 years of lifting – and why do they look forward to their workouts so much – and why do they always look forward to their workouts?
There are other important points to cover, but start with those. They’ll give you plenty of ammunition.
Meanwhile, I’m going to sit down and outline my workout for tonight. It will be easy to do. I’ve been following the same basic workout for a long, long time.
And guess what? I’m really looking forward to tonight’s workout. Why? Because I’m going to make it the best one ever.
Not different.
Better.
And it’s going to fun – and exciting – and a challenge.
That’s what every workout is when you try to make each one better than the one before. It’s fun – it’s exciting – and it’s a challenge. And that’s the whole secret to making big gains.
Thanks for reading – and remember, if today’s your training day, make it the best one ever.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. One of the great ways to stay motivated and committed to your training is to get regular, monthly feedback from Dinosaur Training Headquarters and from your fellow Dinosaurs around the world – by subscribing to The Dinosaur Files newsletter. Grab your subscription today, and I’ll start you off as of May 2010 and send all of the back issues from May 2010 to November 2010 to get you started – and that way, you won’t miss an issue!
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html
A Dino-Sized Thank You!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
I want to begin the day by sending a great big THANK YOU to everyone who stepped up and grabbed a copy of Legacy of Iron 4: York Goes to War!
This is the fourth volume in the Legacy of Iron series, and it takes us into the War years – an era of great men, great heroism, and great lifting. Did you know that there were American, Canadian and British soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen across the globe who carried barbells and other training equipment – and lifting magazines – everywhere they went?
It’s true. There were York barbells on Guadalcanal – on other islands in the Pacific Campaign – and in North Africa. You can see photos of some of them in old issues of Strength and Health – and read about them in the “Letters to the Editor” column, in Steve Stanko’s “Success Stories” column, and in Tony Terlazzo’s monthly column about “Barbell Men in the Service.”
Bob Hoffman once wrote about a tall, skinny kid in the Marines who landed on an island in the Pacific – and discovered a box of back issues of Strength and Health magazine AND, later, a York barbell – apparently left behind or jettisoned by another Marine.
The kid read the magazines, and started to fool around with the barbell – and the rest, as the say, is history.
Ten years later, and more than 100 pounds of muscle heavier, the kid was setting American and World records in the hammer throw. His name was Bob Backus.
That’s the sort of spirit I capture in the Legacy of Iron series – and the sort of spirit that powered the pioneers of the Iron Game onward and forward – even in the middle of a World War.
In any case, we were filling orders like crazy all day long – but we got all of them out the door. So if you placed an order yesterday before dinnertime, “the book’s in the mail.”
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. You can grab your copy of Legacy of Iron 4 right here at Dinosaur Training Headquarters:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
And please note – if you need all four of the books in the series, you can grab them all of them right now at a special low price. See the bottom of the information page for Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War!
I want to begin the day by sending a great big THANK YOU to everyone who stepped up and grabbed a copy of Legacy of Iron 4: York Goes to War!
This is the fourth volume in the Legacy of Iron series, and it takes us into the War years – an era of great men, great heroism, and great lifting. Did you know that there were American, Canadian and British soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen across the globe who carried barbells and other training equipment – and lifting magazines – everywhere they went?
It’s true. There were York barbells on Guadalcanal – on other islands in the Pacific Campaign – and in North Africa. You can see photos of some of them in old issues of Strength and Health – and read about them in the “Letters to the Editor” column, in Steve Stanko’s “Success Stories” column, and in Tony Terlazzo’s monthly column about “Barbell Men in the Service.”
Bob Hoffman once wrote about a tall, skinny kid in the Marines who landed on an island in the Pacific – and discovered a box of back issues of Strength and Health magazine AND, later, a York barbell – apparently left behind or jettisoned by another Marine.
The kid read the magazines, and started to fool around with the barbell – and the rest, as the say, is history.
Ten years later, and more than 100 pounds of muscle heavier, the kid was setting American and World records in the hammer throw. His name was Bob Backus.
That’s the sort of spirit I capture in the Legacy of Iron series – and the sort of spirit that powered the pioneers of the Iron Game onward and forward – even in the middle of a World War.
In any case, we were filling orders like crazy all day long – but we got all of them out the door. So if you placed an order yesterday before dinnertime, “the book’s in the mail.”
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. You can grab your copy of Legacy of Iron 4 right here at Dinosaur Training Headquarters:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
And please note – if you need all four of the books in the series, you can grab them all of them right now at a special low price. See the bottom of the information page for Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War!
The York Single and Double Progressive Training Systems
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Let me begin with a quick but important update. I have a new book out for you. It’s volume 4 in the Legacy of Iron series. You can find it right here:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War! Is in stock and ready for immediate shipment. As you might expect, we’re flooded in orders from Legacy of Iron fans around the world, and we’re working at warp speed to get all orders filled ASAP double pronto.
Legacy of Iron 4 opens on a secluded beach in Hawaii early in the morning – on December 7, 1941 – the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
If you’ve been following the Legacy of Iron series, as so many of you have, then you’ll see a number of loose threads that get tied together in volume 4 – and you’ll probably end up agreeing that it’s the most exciting and action-packed book in the series – and in it’s own way, perhaps the most surprising.
'
In any case, as I mentioned – it’s here, it’s in stock, and it's ready to ship.
On the training front, I wanted to cover a question from Joseph Perkins, who asked about the York single and double progressive training systems – as in, what are they, and should they be used by beginners, intermediates or advanced men?
That’s a very good question – and here’s the answer, quoting Bob Hoffman’s own words.
1. The York Single Progressive System
“This method of training has served well for nearly a century. In using this system, the body builder usually begins with 6 repetitions of a weight which he can correctly handle, rest the next day, then increase the repetitions to 7, rest a day, then 8, rest a day, then 9, etc., until the desired number of repetitions is attained – 10 to 15 [depending upon] the particular exercise and your training desires.
When the maximum number of repetitions is reached, usually 12 to 15, add 5 pounds for upper body movements, 10 pounds for lower body movements, reduce the repetitions to 6, and start the single progressive system again. This type of training can be carried on for a considerable period.”
2. The York Double Progressive System
“This is an original York principle and differs from the single progressive in the fact that it requires twice as long to progress with it and gives the body more time to become accustomed to the added work asked of it, more time for the important internal changes in organic and glandular action, which in time will result in the acquisition of a great deal more strength, muscle, super health and physical ability.
Start with 6 movements as in the single progressive system, rest a day, then practice 6 movements again, rest a day, then 7, rest a day, 7 again, and continue in this manner until the desired maximum repetitions are attained, usually 12 to 15, add to the weight, reduce the counts to 6 and continue with the double progressive method.
3. Which System to Use?
“For those who are easy gainers, the Single Progressive System will at first suffice, and when it becomes harder to gain, the Double Progressive System can be employed.
The Double Progressive System will serve best for those who are weaker than usual to begin, who are long out of training, who have been ill, or who for any other reason are unable to gain as fast as demanded with the Single Progressive System.”
So there you have it – the York Single Progressive System and the York Double Progressive System, as detailed by Bob Hoffman! Both are excellent ways to train, and both will bring you excellent results.
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Be sure to grab your copy of Legacy of Iron 4 – and if you don’t have the other books in the Legacy of Iron series, note that you can order all four of them at a special price – see the bottom of the information page for details:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
Let me begin with a quick but important update. I have a new book out for you. It’s volume 4 in the Legacy of Iron series. You can find it right here:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
Legacy of Iron 4 – York Goes to War! Is in stock and ready for immediate shipment. As you might expect, we’re flooded in orders from Legacy of Iron fans around the world, and we’re working at warp speed to get all orders filled ASAP double pronto.
Legacy of Iron 4 opens on a secluded beach in Hawaii early in the morning – on December 7, 1941 – the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
If you’ve been following the Legacy of Iron series, as so many of you have, then you’ll see a number of loose threads that get tied together in volume 4 – and you’ll probably end up agreeing that it’s the most exciting and action-packed book in the series – and in it’s own way, perhaps the most surprising.
'
In any case, as I mentioned – it’s here, it’s in stock, and it's ready to ship.
On the training front, I wanted to cover a question from Joseph Perkins, who asked about the York single and double progressive training systems – as in, what are they, and should they be used by beginners, intermediates or advanced men?
That’s a very good question – and here’s the answer, quoting Bob Hoffman’s own words.
1. The York Single Progressive System
“This method of training has served well for nearly a century. In using this system, the body builder usually begins with 6 repetitions of a weight which he can correctly handle, rest the next day, then increase the repetitions to 7, rest a day, then 8, rest a day, then 9, etc., until the desired number of repetitions is attained – 10 to 15 [depending upon] the particular exercise and your training desires.
When the maximum number of repetitions is reached, usually 12 to 15, add 5 pounds for upper body movements, 10 pounds for lower body movements, reduce the repetitions to 6, and start the single progressive system again. This type of training can be carried on for a considerable period.”
2. The York Double Progressive System
“This is an original York principle and differs from the single progressive in the fact that it requires twice as long to progress with it and gives the body more time to become accustomed to the added work asked of it, more time for the important internal changes in organic and glandular action, which in time will result in the acquisition of a great deal more strength, muscle, super health and physical ability.
Start with 6 movements as in the single progressive system, rest a day, then practice 6 movements again, rest a day, then 7, rest a day, 7 again, and continue in this manner until the desired maximum repetitions are attained, usually 12 to 15, add to the weight, reduce the counts to 6 and continue with the double progressive method.
3. Which System to Use?
“For those who are easy gainers, the Single Progressive System will at first suffice, and when it becomes harder to gain, the Double Progressive System can be employed.
The Double Progressive System will serve best for those who are weaker than usual to begin, who are long out of training, who have been ill, or who for any other reason are unable to gain as fast as demanded with the Single Progressive System.”
So there you have it – the York Single Progressive System and the York Double Progressive System, as detailed by Bob Hoffman! Both are excellent ways to train, and both will bring you excellent results.
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Be sure to grab your copy of Legacy of Iron 4 – and if you don’t have the other books in the Legacy of Iron series, note that you can order all four of them at a special price – see the bottom of the information page for details:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
There's Something New for Dinosaurs!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
We have something new and exciting for you at the Dinosaur Training bookstore – and here it is:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
We have something new and exciting for you at the Dinosaur Training bookstore – and here it is:
http://brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron4.html
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
Keep Breathing Defiance!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
QUICK NOTE: We have something new coming out on Monday morning – and it’s in stock and will be ready for immediate shipment. Be looking for it!
Meanwhile, the Dinos continue to roar – here’s more feedback on the last couple of messages from Dinosaur Training Headquarters! Read them all – including the last one – and you’ll understand why I chose the title for today’s message.
“Thank you, Brooks. I live near Cleveland Ohio and train in an unheated garage and have for years. It is encouraging to know many others to the same. Informative and useful information regarding the tips.
Nick Courtwright
“I definitely fall into the "old and banged up" category. I bought a bunch of heavy-duty cables from Lifeline and use these for standard barbell exercises. They are much more joint friendly than barbells.
I do squats (and my knees are shot) deadlifts, press, clean pulls, and almost anything you can use a barbell for. The resistance is the least at the start of each movement and gets harder as range of motion is completed. I think this makes it less stressful on my back and knees. Not quite as emotionally satisfying as weights but I rarely injure myself. I also use dumbbells and the power wheel.
Wish I was Olympic lifting but this keeps me training.
Keith Sandell”
“Totally agree with your premise.
As an older lifter, age 54, when I work out with younger guys they always question my technique since I rarely do full range of motion anymore. They are too hung up on what I would call traditional lifting.
I can't do a heavy deadlift from the floor anymore, but I'm still strong enough to do a partial with six plates on each side and that blows them away.
Same with overhead presses. I only do partial range, either top 1/3 or bottom 1/3 but with more weight than I ever used with full range, even as a youngster.
So my conclusion is: if I can do things around the house or help a friend move or carry my unconscious family member out of a burning house, who cares HOW I work out, as long as I do! (BTW, I never have carried anyone out of a burning building, that's just the motive I use to keep going. You never know!)
Rich Farawell”
“Hi Brooks, I liked today’s message. My friend Bob Hornick and I have the expression "Keep breathing defiance" that is kind of in tune with this.
Finding alternatives when you have a physical problem is a way to keep breathing defiance. I find using dumbbells gives us a way to vary grip, and positions for less discomfort in the exercises. I have been enjoying the Dino files and your e-mails. Keep up the good work, and keep breathing defiance.
74 year old Dino Carl Linich”
To everyone – Thanks for your feedback, and keep on sending it in. We love to hear from you!
Have a great weekend, everyone – and if you train today, well, you know the drill. Make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here’s the book to read if you want to keep on breathing defiance!
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
And here’s a great heavy-duty sweatshirt to go with it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhairblackiron_sweatshirt.html
QUICK NOTE: We have something new coming out on Monday morning – and it’s in stock and will be ready for immediate shipment. Be looking for it!
Meanwhile, the Dinos continue to roar – here’s more feedback on the last couple of messages from Dinosaur Training Headquarters! Read them all – including the last one – and you’ll understand why I chose the title for today’s message.
“Thank you, Brooks. I live near Cleveland Ohio and train in an unheated garage and have for years. It is encouraging to know many others to the same. Informative and useful information regarding the tips.
Nick Courtwright
“I definitely fall into the "old and banged up" category. I bought a bunch of heavy-duty cables from Lifeline and use these for standard barbell exercises. They are much more joint friendly than barbells.
I do squats (and my knees are shot) deadlifts, press, clean pulls, and almost anything you can use a barbell for. The resistance is the least at the start of each movement and gets harder as range of motion is completed. I think this makes it less stressful on my back and knees. Not quite as emotionally satisfying as weights but I rarely injure myself. I also use dumbbells and the power wheel.
Wish I was Olympic lifting but this keeps me training.
Keith Sandell”
“Totally agree with your premise.
As an older lifter, age 54, when I work out with younger guys they always question my technique since I rarely do full range of motion anymore. They are too hung up on what I would call traditional lifting.
I can't do a heavy deadlift from the floor anymore, but I'm still strong enough to do a partial with six plates on each side and that blows them away.
Same with overhead presses. I only do partial range, either top 1/3 or bottom 1/3 but with more weight than I ever used with full range, even as a youngster.
So my conclusion is: if I can do things around the house or help a friend move or carry my unconscious family member out of a burning house, who cares HOW I work out, as long as I do! (BTW, I never have carried anyone out of a burning building, that's just the motive I use to keep going. You never know!)
Rich Farawell”
“Hi Brooks, I liked today’s message. My friend Bob Hornick and I have the expression "Keep breathing defiance" that is kind of in tune with this.
Finding alternatives when you have a physical problem is a way to keep breathing defiance. I find using dumbbells gives us a way to vary grip, and positions for less discomfort in the exercises. I have been enjoying the Dino files and your e-mails. Keep up the good work, and keep breathing defiance.
74 year old Dino Carl Linich”
To everyone – Thanks for your feedback, and keep on sending it in. We love to hear from you!
Have a great weekend, everyone – and if you train today, well, you know the drill. Make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Here’s the book to read if you want to keep on breathing defiance!
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
And here’s a great heavy-duty sweatshirt to go with it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhairblackiron_sweatshirt.html
Something New -- on Monday Morning!
BREAKING NEWS!
We're going to have something new on the Dinosaur Training site on Monday morning -- so be looking for it!
And the best part is -- it's in stock and ready for immediate shipment!
We're going to have something new on the Dinosaur Training site on Monday morning -- so be looking for it!
And the best part is -- it's in stock and ready for immediate shipment!
How to Keep on Training!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
For some reason, I’ve received several emails this week from readers who have gotten banged up (in non-lifting accidents) and are now limited in the exercises they can do. And I’m getting the same sort of question from older lifters who have not suffered an actual injury but are just banged up with the dings and dents we accumulate as we grow older.
For example, one reader has had two knee (meniscus) tears, and now he can’t squat below parallel. We covered that one the other day.
Several other guys have sore knees and have to limit their squatting or be careful not to over do it.
And some guys have back issues that make deadlifting a challenge.
Another reader has hurt his shoulder. He writes:
“I know that you are very busy, so I will be brief. The ball/socket and rotator cuff in my left shoulder are dislocated and torn. Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Lawrence Lemak, in Birmingham, AL have concluded that they cannot repair me so that I can resume weightlifting exercises (all of the overhead lifts). I have changed to Hi-Pulls, and hopefully, the push press and inc/dec presses. Does this sound like a sound solution? Thank you.
Ben”
Hi Ben – I’m sorry to hear about your shoulder. That doesn’t sound like much fun.
But your approach to the problem is exactly right.
If you get hurt and your training options are limited, the most important thing to do is to keep on training. You may not be able to do all of the things you did before, but the important thing is to do something!
If you cannot do full squats, do partial squats.
If you cannot reach back and hold the bar for back squats, try front squats. Or try the safety Squat Bar – or Dave Draper’s Top Squat device.
Or do dumbbell squats – or kettlebell squats – or sandbag squats.
If you cannot do squats at all, do deadlifts or Trap Bar deadlifts – or leg presses, if you have access to a decent leg press machine.
Or try pushing a car or truck to work your legs.
If you cannot do overhead presses, do incline and/or decline presses.
If barbell presses or barbell bench presses hurt, try dumbbell variations. Dumbbells are much more forgiving on sore, stiff, aching or injured joints.
Trap Bar deadlifts and partial Trap Bar deadlifts may be just the thing for an older lifter’s aching back.
A Log Bar with parallel handles may allow you to press or bench press without pain.
Barbell curls with a straight bar may be murder on your inner elbows or wrists – but dumbbell curls or hammer curls (or Log Bar hammer curls) may work fine)
Powerlifting may tear you up – but Olympic lifting might work great – or vice versa.
At some point, heavy training may no longer be a good idea – but bodyweight exercises might be perfect.
Or – for some of you – heavy partials might be the way to go. It varies from person to person – and for many of us, it changes over time. The things we should be doing NOW may very well be different than the things we were doing 10, 20 or 30 years ago. In fact, that’s probably the case for all of us – although we don’t like to admit it.
Anyhow, I think you get the point of today’s message.
Remember, there’s always a way to keep on training – and that’s always the most important thing to do!
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. These two are neck and neck for the Dinosaur Training Best Seller of the Week – and they give you lots of ideas about working around injuries and dings and dents – and about how to keep on training when it’s a challenge:
1. Strength, Muscle and Power
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
2. Gray Hair and Black Iron
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
For some reason, I’ve received several emails this week from readers who have gotten banged up (in non-lifting accidents) and are now limited in the exercises they can do. And I’m getting the same sort of question from older lifters who have not suffered an actual injury but are just banged up with the dings and dents we accumulate as we grow older.
For example, one reader has had two knee (meniscus) tears, and now he can’t squat below parallel. We covered that one the other day.
Several other guys have sore knees and have to limit their squatting or be careful not to over do it.
And some guys have back issues that make deadlifting a challenge.
Another reader has hurt his shoulder. He writes:
“I know that you are very busy, so I will be brief. The ball/socket and rotator cuff in my left shoulder are dislocated and torn. Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Lawrence Lemak, in Birmingham, AL have concluded that they cannot repair me so that I can resume weightlifting exercises (all of the overhead lifts). I have changed to Hi-Pulls, and hopefully, the push press and inc/dec presses. Does this sound like a sound solution? Thank you.
Ben”
Hi Ben – I’m sorry to hear about your shoulder. That doesn’t sound like much fun.
But your approach to the problem is exactly right.
If you get hurt and your training options are limited, the most important thing to do is to keep on training. You may not be able to do all of the things you did before, but the important thing is to do something!
If you cannot do full squats, do partial squats.
If you cannot reach back and hold the bar for back squats, try front squats. Or try the safety Squat Bar – or Dave Draper’s Top Squat device.
Or do dumbbell squats – or kettlebell squats – or sandbag squats.
If you cannot do squats at all, do deadlifts or Trap Bar deadlifts – or leg presses, if you have access to a decent leg press machine.
Or try pushing a car or truck to work your legs.
If you cannot do overhead presses, do incline and/or decline presses.
If barbell presses or barbell bench presses hurt, try dumbbell variations. Dumbbells are much more forgiving on sore, stiff, aching or injured joints.
Trap Bar deadlifts and partial Trap Bar deadlifts may be just the thing for an older lifter’s aching back.
A Log Bar with parallel handles may allow you to press or bench press without pain.
Barbell curls with a straight bar may be murder on your inner elbows or wrists – but dumbbell curls or hammer curls (or Log Bar hammer curls) may work fine)
Powerlifting may tear you up – but Olympic lifting might work great – or vice versa.
At some point, heavy training may no longer be a good idea – but bodyweight exercises might be perfect.
Or – for some of you – heavy partials might be the way to go. It varies from person to person – and for many of us, it changes over time. The things we should be doing NOW may very well be different than the things we were doing 10, 20 or 30 years ago. In fact, that’s probably the case for all of us – although we don’t like to admit it.
Anyhow, I think you get the point of today’s message.
Remember, there’s always a way to keep on training – and that’s always the most important thing to do!
As always, thanks for reading – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. These two are neck and neck for the Dinosaur Training Best Seller of the Week – and they give you lots of ideas about working around injuries and dings and dents – and about how to keep on training when it’s a challenge:
1. Strength, Muscle and Power
http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html
2. Gray Hair and Black Iron
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
More Feedback from the Dinosaurs!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Let me begin with a great big shout out to everyone who served, or is serving in the Armed Forces. Happy Veteran’s Day – and THANK YOU!
And now – as promised – more feedback from Dinos -- with my responses.
1. More Praise for Bob Hoffman and Strength and Health!
“Agreed! His magazines inspired my own interest in weight lifting. Many people colloquially refer all who work out as "weight lifters" when this sport involves the overhead lifts and a kind of focus few could attain. I will dedicate tomorrow's workout to Mr. Bob Hoffman!
Stephen Amodt”
Hi Stephen – People tend to forget that “back in the day” it was Strength and Health that got so many young guys started on their training. And remember, that was back when you could find the magazine on a newsstand – think of the great public exposure that serious lifting had back then!
2. Good Advice for Older Lifters
Definitely enjoy all the great info you share via the E Mails. I'm 59 years old, and do a lot of training myself, either out on the patio or in the garage.
Workouts are a mix of powerlifting, bodybuilding, and some Olympic lifting as well. I'm making steady progress slow but sure and my 59 years isn't a cross rather a real plus. I think the secret for those over fifty is to not try to surpass what we've done but rather shoot to improve on what we're doing now. I'm not what I was years ago but I am what I am now and patience, as well as enjoying the training is a real secret I would share.
I really enjoyed your advice about training during cold weather, can say it gets kind of cold here in Florida, but also make my best gains in these times. What amazes the most is how much each exercise I do influences another thru out each training cycle.
I strive to keep training under an hour to avoid doing too much. Training is fun now like it never has been, I only use myself as a slide rule of how training goes, believe me this is so much better (for me anyways). I still have my heroes just admire their achievements and never build expectations of what others have done just continue to strive to outdo what I have done.
Clarence”
Clarence – Thanks for your email. You bring up some excellent points – using yourself as a measuring stick of your progress, enjoying your training, making it fun, and not kicking yourself as you get older. The important thing is to make it fun, keep on doing it, and enjoy your life and your training.
3. More About Cold Weather Training
Brooks, great advice on cold weather training. Once you get warmed up it is a great feeling challenging the elements. When I am done, I love going in and sitting by the fire and stretching to finish off. The Tommy Kono knee band advice is imperative for older lifters. I am on my second set and at my age I would not be able to do squats and deadlifts without them. They literally saved my training. Keep up the good work. We don't get this kind of info any place else.
Chuck Brown"
Chuck – Thanks for the feedback. I have forwarded your email to Tommy Kono – it will make his day. And I agree with you – those Tommy Kono knee bands are mandatory for older lifters.
4. Squats and Bad Knees
“Last year I ripped the cartilage in my knee and had surgery on it. I slowly got into squats and could comfortably squat 220 lbs. I don't think that is enough for me at 6.2 and 220 but I didn't want to push it too far too soon. A few weeks ago I injured my knee again (same injury, same way) and since then I haven't done any squats. I was advised by a physio not to do any squats with knees bent more than 90 degrees. Are squats done this way as effective in building strength or should I just forget about squats?
Vas Karpouzis”
Vas – Sorry hear about your knee injury. You should follow your physio’s advice on this one. Squats to 90 degrees can be very effective, especially in combination with deadlifts and Trap Bar deadlifts (full range movements and partials). Be sure to get the green light from your physio on any new exercises you try. And also, as noted above, use the Tommy Kono knee bands to keep your knees warm.
5. Admiral Peary’s Barbell
"Even though it doesn't get as cold here in Louisiana as it does where you live thanks for the tips on how to stay warm while working out. I also have a question: Where can I find a copy of the photo of Admiral Peary lifting his barbell?
Joseph Perkins"
Joseph -- I can’t recall where I saw it. I believe it was in an old issue of Strength and health. I have googled for it, but cannot find it. I did find a statue of Admiral Peary dressed in his Eskimo clothes, and the muscles bulge out from under his fur clothes – which lends support to his being a barbell man. You can google and find that one.
6. Questions from a Legacy of Iron Fan
“Am finishing "Clouds of War". A great read! Like the first one, Legacy of Iron, it is difficult to put down. Was Harry Paschall really that wise, cool and all-knowing?
Could you provide a sneak preview of no. 4 in the series? (The check's in the mail).
Thanks and keep them coming!
Matt Stewart”
Matt – Glad you are enjoying the Legacy of Iron series. Harry’s character in the series is based on his actual writing. He wrote tons, and I’ve read and studied all of it. Many of Harry’s lines in the books come right out of his articles. He was the Senior Man and with age comes wisdom.
Book no. 4 in the series is coming out very, very soon – and it’s very fast-paced. Non-stop action. It opens on a secluded beach in Hawaii, early on the morning on December 7, 1941 – so you can imagine what happens. The book covers the response of America’s strongest athletes to the attack on Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into the War. Our men and women do us proud in this book.
To everyone – thanks for reading, and have a great day – and if you train today, knock it out of the ball park!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. A year ago I released my new book about productive strength training for older lifters, and it's been a huge hit with readers age 35 and up. But many younger guys are reading it, as well -- and really enjoying the little monster. Check it out at the Dinosaur Training website:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
Let me begin with a great big shout out to everyone who served, or is serving in the Armed Forces. Happy Veteran’s Day – and THANK YOU!
And now – as promised – more feedback from Dinos -- with my responses.
1. More Praise for Bob Hoffman and Strength and Health!
“Agreed! His magazines inspired my own interest in weight lifting. Many people colloquially refer all who work out as "weight lifters" when this sport involves the overhead lifts and a kind of focus few could attain. I will dedicate tomorrow's workout to Mr. Bob Hoffman!
Stephen Amodt”
Hi Stephen – People tend to forget that “back in the day” it was Strength and Health that got so many young guys started on their training. And remember, that was back when you could find the magazine on a newsstand – think of the great public exposure that serious lifting had back then!
2. Good Advice for Older Lifters
Definitely enjoy all the great info you share via the E Mails. I'm 59 years old, and do a lot of training myself, either out on the patio or in the garage.
Workouts are a mix of powerlifting, bodybuilding, and some Olympic lifting as well. I'm making steady progress slow but sure and my 59 years isn't a cross rather a real plus. I think the secret for those over fifty is to not try to surpass what we've done but rather shoot to improve on what we're doing now. I'm not what I was years ago but I am what I am now and patience, as well as enjoying the training is a real secret I would share.
I really enjoyed your advice about training during cold weather, can say it gets kind of cold here in Florida, but also make my best gains in these times. What amazes the most is how much each exercise I do influences another thru out each training cycle.
I strive to keep training under an hour to avoid doing too much. Training is fun now like it never has been, I only use myself as a slide rule of how training goes, believe me this is so much better (for me anyways). I still have my heroes just admire their achievements and never build expectations of what others have done just continue to strive to outdo what I have done.
Clarence”
Clarence – Thanks for your email. You bring up some excellent points – using yourself as a measuring stick of your progress, enjoying your training, making it fun, and not kicking yourself as you get older. The important thing is to make it fun, keep on doing it, and enjoy your life and your training.
3. More About Cold Weather Training
Brooks, great advice on cold weather training. Once you get warmed up it is a great feeling challenging the elements. When I am done, I love going in and sitting by the fire and stretching to finish off. The Tommy Kono knee band advice is imperative for older lifters. I am on my second set and at my age I would not be able to do squats and deadlifts without them. They literally saved my training. Keep up the good work. We don't get this kind of info any place else.
Chuck Brown"
Chuck – Thanks for the feedback. I have forwarded your email to Tommy Kono – it will make his day. And I agree with you – those Tommy Kono knee bands are mandatory for older lifters.
4. Squats and Bad Knees
“Last year I ripped the cartilage in my knee and had surgery on it. I slowly got into squats and could comfortably squat 220 lbs. I don't think that is enough for me at 6.2 and 220 but I didn't want to push it too far too soon. A few weeks ago I injured my knee again (same injury, same way) and since then I haven't done any squats. I was advised by a physio not to do any squats with knees bent more than 90 degrees. Are squats done this way as effective in building strength or should I just forget about squats?
Vas Karpouzis”
Vas – Sorry hear about your knee injury. You should follow your physio’s advice on this one. Squats to 90 degrees can be very effective, especially in combination with deadlifts and Trap Bar deadlifts (full range movements and partials). Be sure to get the green light from your physio on any new exercises you try. And also, as noted above, use the Tommy Kono knee bands to keep your knees warm.
5. Admiral Peary’s Barbell
"Even though it doesn't get as cold here in Louisiana as it does where you live thanks for the tips on how to stay warm while working out. I also have a question: Where can I find a copy of the photo of Admiral Peary lifting his barbell?
Joseph Perkins"
Joseph -- I can’t recall where I saw it. I believe it was in an old issue of Strength and health. I have googled for it, but cannot find it. I did find a statue of Admiral Peary dressed in his Eskimo clothes, and the muscles bulge out from under his fur clothes – which lends support to his being a barbell man. You can google and find that one.
6. Questions from a Legacy of Iron Fan
“Am finishing "Clouds of War". A great read! Like the first one, Legacy of Iron, it is difficult to put down. Was Harry Paschall really that wise, cool and all-knowing?
Could you provide a sneak preview of no. 4 in the series? (The check's in the mail).
Thanks and keep them coming!
Matt Stewart”
Matt – Glad you are enjoying the Legacy of Iron series. Harry’s character in the series is based on his actual writing. He wrote tons, and I’ve read and studied all of it. Many of Harry’s lines in the books come right out of his articles. He was the Senior Man and with age comes wisdom.
Book no. 4 in the series is coming out very, very soon – and it’s very fast-paced. Non-stop action. It opens on a secluded beach in Hawaii, early on the morning on December 7, 1941 – so you can imagine what happens. The book covers the response of America’s strongest athletes to the attack on Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into the War. Our men and women do us proud in this book.
To everyone – thanks for reading, and have a great day – and if you train today, knock it out of the ball park!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. A year ago I released my new book about productive strength training for older lifters, and it's been a huge hit with readers age 35 and up. But many younger guys are reading it, as well -- and really enjoying the little monster. Check it out at the Dinosaur Training website:
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
The Dinosaurs Roar!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Let’s start the day with some emails from fellow dinosaurs – and my responses:
1. Another November 9 Birthday!
“I am just reading your email about Bob Hoffman now and see that I share a birthday with him. You will be happy to know that I kicked off my birthday with an early morning workout in my garage -- planks, 5 x 5 squats, 5 x 5 bent over rows. I am feeling great for my 46 years, thanks in no small part to the great info and guidance you have provided online and in your books and the Dino Files. I really appreciate what you do.
Daniel Stid”
Daniel – Happy birthday from Dino Headquarters! It sounds like you got the day off to a great start with that 5 x 5 workout. Good stuff – and as you noted, it will keep you young!
2. Dino Training Helps a New York City Policeman!
“I'm a 34-year old Dino subscriber and I wanted to send you my current routine. I'm a Police Officer with a rotating schedule. I lift for resilience, strength and power not looks. Just compound movements and at 6' 2” and 275 lbs. I thank you for your straightforward information because it works!
Workout A
Squat 5 x 5
Bench 5 x 5
Dip 5 x 10
Chin 5 x 5
Workout B
Dead lift 5 x 5
Military Press 5 x 5
Bent Row 5 x 6
Barbell Curl 5 x 10 with fat grips
At the end sit-ups, forearm, and neck work with a harness.
That's it sometimes I go 5 x 3 or 10 x 3 and with the rotating shift work I will follow a workout day followed by a cardio day, which includes some running, sand bag lifting and jump rope. Then a full day off and on to
Workout B. Thank you!
Bill”
Bill – Thanks for your feedback, and for sharing your current training g program. That’s an excellent workout, and it obviously has worked well for you. This is one that other readers might want to follow.
3. More Praise for Bob Hoffman!
“I can't think of anyone in the history of the iron game who has done more for the average exerciser than Bob Hoffman. I would even suggest that the lessening influence of York in the 70's allowed for the influx of the useless gimmicks we have had to endure since then.
Chris Young”
Chris – That’s an interesting observation. It has been true that we’ve seen a massive rise in useless training gimmicks and useless training methods since the 1970’s. It’s a shame that so many more people are training now – but not very effectively!
4. Dinosaur T-Shirts?
Hi Brooks. First, I just wanted to say I think your books are great! Found Dinosuar Training great fun to read, and esp liked your power rack training dvd. Aiming to beat your 200 kg bottom position squat soon!
Also, do you have any Dinosaur Training t-shirts? Would love to wear one when I smash the 200 kg bottom squat!
Martin Przybylak”
Martin – Thanks for the feedback, and I’m glad to hear you enjoyed Dinosaur Training and the Power Rack DVD. We do indeed have Dinosaur Training t-shirts – with sweatshirts and hoodies coming, as well. They’ll help you hit some new personal records!
To everyone – that’s enough for now. I’ll share more emails from readers later today.
In the meantime – thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
Let’s start the day with some emails from fellow dinosaurs – and my responses:
1. Another November 9 Birthday!
“I am just reading your email about Bob Hoffman now and see that I share a birthday with him. You will be happy to know that I kicked off my birthday with an early morning workout in my garage -- planks, 5 x 5 squats, 5 x 5 bent over rows. I am feeling great for my 46 years, thanks in no small part to the great info and guidance you have provided online and in your books and the Dino Files. I really appreciate what you do.
Daniel Stid”
Daniel – Happy birthday from Dino Headquarters! It sounds like you got the day off to a great start with that 5 x 5 workout. Good stuff – and as you noted, it will keep you young!
2. Dino Training Helps a New York City Policeman!
“I'm a 34-year old Dino subscriber and I wanted to send you my current routine. I'm a Police Officer with a rotating schedule. I lift for resilience, strength and power not looks. Just compound movements and at 6' 2” and 275 lbs. I thank you for your straightforward information because it works!
Workout A
Squat 5 x 5
Bench 5 x 5
Dip 5 x 10
Chin 5 x 5
Workout B
Dead lift 5 x 5
Military Press 5 x 5
Bent Row 5 x 6
Barbell Curl 5 x 10 with fat grips
At the end sit-ups, forearm, and neck work with a harness.
That's it sometimes I go 5 x 3 or 10 x 3 and with the rotating shift work I will follow a workout day followed by a cardio day, which includes some running, sand bag lifting and jump rope. Then a full day off and on to
Workout B. Thank you!
Bill”
Bill – Thanks for your feedback, and for sharing your current training g program. That’s an excellent workout, and it obviously has worked well for you. This is one that other readers might want to follow.
3. More Praise for Bob Hoffman!
“I can't think of anyone in the history of the iron game who has done more for the average exerciser than Bob Hoffman. I would even suggest that the lessening influence of York in the 70's allowed for the influx of the useless gimmicks we have had to endure since then.
Chris Young”
Chris – That’s an interesting observation. It has been true that we’ve seen a massive rise in useless training gimmicks and useless training methods since the 1970’s. It’s a shame that so many more people are training now – but not very effectively!
4. Dinosaur T-Shirts?
Hi Brooks. First, I just wanted to say I think your books are great! Found Dinosuar Training great fun to read, and esp liked your power rack training dvd. Aiming to beat your 200 kg bottom position squat soon!
Also, do you have any Dinosaur Training t-shirts? Would love to wear one when I smash the 200 kg bottom squat!
Martin Przybylak”
Martin – Thanks for the feedback, and I’m glad to hear you enjoyed Dinosaur Training and the Power Rack DVD. We do indeed have Dinosaur Training t-shirts – with sweatshirts and hoodies coming, as well. They’ll help you hit some new personal records!
To everyone – that’s enough for now. I’ll share more emails from readers later today.
In the meantime – thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
Happy Birthday to Bob Hoffman!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Today’s a very important day in Iron Game history.
It’s Bob Hoffman’s birthday. He was born on November 9, 1898.
Now, younger readers may not know what that means – but older readers will know immediately that this is a day to say a silent prayer of thanks in honor of the man who did more than anyone else to promote weight training, weightlifting, bodybuilding and the Iron Game in the United States – and indeed, throughout the world.
Let me share with you the passion, the enthusiasm and the zeal that Bob demonstrated when speaking of his believed Iron Game. This is from the forward to Bob’s 1939 book, Weight Lifting – and it’s one of my favorite passages in all the physical culture books I’ve ever read:
“I am a weight lifter. I like weight lifting and weight lifters. Training with and the lifting of weights, which to me was at first a pleasurable form of exercise, an outlet for the competitive instinct all real men possess, a means of keeping fit in the shortest possible time, has become my life’s work.”
Bob Hoffman’s success in promoting weight training and weight lifting is impossible to measure. During the half century in which he owned and operated The York Barbell Company, coached the York Barbell Club, and edited and published Strength and Health magazine, Bob Hoffman brought barbell training to hundreds of thousands of men, women, boys and girls around the world.
To give you an idea of exactly what Bob Hoffman meant to the Iron Game, consider this.
Way back in the 1940’s and 1950’s, you could send a letter or post card addressed simply “Bob Hoffman, York, Pa.” or “Bob Hoffman, York Barbell Club,” or even “Bob Hoffman, Muscletown” – and mail it from anywhere in the world – and it would be delivered to Bob Hoffman at the York Barbell Company in York, Pa.
You didn’t need a street address – you didn’t need a P.O. Box – you didn’t need a zip code – you just addressed your card or letter to Bob Hoffman, mentioned “York” or “Muscletown,” – and BANG – it got delivered.
I lifted hard and heavy last night, out in the garage. I dedicated the workout to Bob Hoffman. If you train today or tomorrow, do the same.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I’m also doing something else to honor the memory of Bob Hoffman and the other champions of the Golden Age of Might and Muscle. I’m writing a series of novels that cover the York champions from the 1930’s through the 1950’s. The first three books in the Legacy of Iron series are already available – and no. 4 is coming very, very soon!
1. The first book in the series is titled Legacy of Iron:
2. Book two in the Legacy of Iron series is titled Clouds of War:
3. Book three in the Legacy of iron series is titled The 1,000 Pound Total
4. NOTE: You can order the first three books in the Legacy of Iron series for a special price – for more information, see the bottom of the information page for The 1,000 Pound Total.
5. You can find all three of the Legacy of Iron books at the Dinosaur Training website!
6. And remember -- be looking for no. 5 in the Legacy of Iron series -- because it's coming to you very, very soon!
Today’s a very important day in Iron Game history.
It’s Bob Hoffman’s birthday. He was born on November 9, 1898.
Now, younger readers may not know what that means – but older readers will know immediately that this is a day to say a silent prayer of thanks in honor of the man who did more than anyone else to promote weight training, weightlifting, bodybuilding and the Iron Game in the United States – and indeed, throughout the world.
Let me share with you the passion, the enthusiasm and the zeal that Bob demonstrated when speaking of his believed Iron Game. This is from the forward to Bob’s 1939 book, Weight Lifting – and it’s one of my favorite passages in all the physical culture books I’ve ever read:
“I am a weight lifter. I like weight lifting and weight lifters. Training with and the lifting of weights, which to me was at first a pleasurable form of exercise, an outlet for the competitive instinct all real men possess, a means of keeping fit in the shortest possible time, has become my life’s work.”
Bob Hoffman’s success in promoting weight training and weight lifting is impossible to measure. During the half century in which he owned and operated The York Barbell Company, coached the York Barbell Club, and edited and published Strength and Health magazine, Bob Hoffman brought barbell training to hundreds of thousands of men, women, boys and girls around the world.
To give you an idea of exactly what Bob Hoffman meant to the Iron Game, consider this.
Way back in the 1940’s and 1950’s, you could send a letter or post card addressed simply “Bob Hoffman, York, Pa.” or “Bob Hoffman, York Barbell Club,” or even “Bob Hoffman, Muscletown” – and mail it from anywhere in the world – and it would be delivered to Bob Hoffman at the York Barbell Company in York, Pa.
You didn’t need a street address – you didn’t need a P.O. Box – you didn’t need a zip code – you just addressed your card or letter to Bob Hoffman, mentioned “York” or “Muscletown,” – and BANG – it got delivered.
I lifted hard and heavy last night, out in the garage. I dedicated the workout to Bob Hoffman. If you train today or tomorrow, do the same.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I’m also doing something else to honor the memory of Bob Hoffman and the other champions of the Golden Age of Might and Muscle. I’m writing a series of novels that cover the York champions from the 1930’s through the 1950’s. The first three books in the Legacy of Iron series are already available – and no. 4 is coming very, very soon!
1. The first book in the series is titled Legacy of Iron:
2. Book two in the Legacy of Iron series is titled Clouds of War:
3. Book three in the Legacy of iron series is titled The 1,000 Pound Total
4. NOTE: You can order the first three books in the Legacy of Iron series for a special price – for more information, see the bottom of the information page for The 1,000 Pound Total.
5. You can find all three of the Legacy of Iron books at the Dinosaur Training website!
6. And remember -- be looking for no. 5 in the Legacy of Iron series -- because it's coming to you very, very soon!
Dino Special Orders
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
It’s that time of year again—the Holidays are approaching, and they’ll be here before we know it.
And that means that the special person in your life is going to be looking for something special to get you for the Holidays.
Since 99 percent of our readers are men, for most of you, this means that the lady in your life is going to be looking for something to get for you.
And usually, if you want something from Dino Headquarters, she’s going to have all kinds of questions for us.
The woman in MY life – Trudi – has seen this happen enough times that she’s decided to do something about it.
So here’s the deal.
Trudi has created a special email address that your sweetie can use if she’s trying to get you something from Dino HQ for the Holiday season. (Or for birthdays, anniversaries or other special occasions.)
So if you want to make Holiday shopping a breeze for your lady, do this:
1. Give her a copy of this email message.
2. Give her a list of what you already have from Dino HQ.
3. Give her a wish list.
4. Ask her to contact Trudi before placing her order.
5. She can reach Trudi at:
dinospecialorders@gmail.com
Trudi will take things from there.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
It’s that time of year again—the Holidays are approaching, and they’ll be here before we know it.
And that means that the special person in your life is going to be looking for something special to get you for the Holidays.
Since 99 percent of our readers are men, for most of you, this means that the lady in your life is going to be looking for something to get for you.
And usually, if you want something from Dino Headquarters, she’s going to have all kinds of questions for us.
The woman in MY life – Trudi – has seen this happen enough times that she’s decided to do something about it.
So here’s the deal.
Trudi has created a special email address that your sweetie can use if she’s trying to get you something from Dino HQ for the Holiday season. (Or for birthdays, anniversaries or other special occasions.)
So if you want to make Holiday shopping a breeze for your lady, do this:
1. Give her a copy of this email message.
2. Give her a list of what you already have from Dino HQ.
3. Give her a wish list.
4. Ask her to contact Trudi before placing her order.
5. She can reach Trudi at:
dinospecialorders@gmail.com
Trudi will take things from there.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
The Answer to 271 Training Questions!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
I received 271 emails last week from people who had diet or training questions.
They fell into the following broad categories:
1. "HELP! I can’t gain any size. What should I do?"
2. "Please HELP! I can’t get stronger. Give me a program."
3. "My diet is lousy. What should I do?"
4. "I can’t get motivated to train, Pleas help me."
5. "My coach tells me I should do such and so – what do you think?"
6. "Help! I don’t know what to do."
7. "I’m training to get bigger and stronger as fast as possible. I have a mixed martial arts match next week against an 800 pound gorilla. Yes, it’s a real gorilla. I am doing this to help the zoo raise money, so it’s a charity fight. Don’t worry, I love animals, and I won’t hurt the gorilla.
I am doing a powerlifting contest the next day and I want to set a world record. I also want to have a 28- inch waist, with 1 percent body-fat, although I would settle for 2 percent if I had to. However, I need 24-inch upper arms with double-peaked baseball biceps.
Plus, I am running a marathon next week and want to try to break into the top ten this year in world marathon races, although I have not done much running lately.
I also have sugar cravings, and was wondering if the chocolate milk diet would be good for me.
Can you give me a good program?
Also – what supplements do you recommend, and how often should I take them, and what is the best exercise for the upper inner head of the triceps, and how often should I train my legs if I want to win the Mr. Everything title this year, and what is the best color of sun-glasses to wear for building maximum muscle density, and is it better to eat when you are hungry or when you are not, and is water good for you, and what is the best way to train when the Sun is in Capricorn and the Moon is in Virgo, and what do you think about breathing?"
Actually, no. 7 was unique – it was the only one in the “I’m fighting a gorilla” category – but it had so many questions that it deserved a category of its own.
Anyhow, my answer to each of the questions was exactly the same:
“Send me your current workout, with all exercises, all sets, all reps and the weights you use in each set.”
That’s pretty much my answer to everything now.
I answer the question with a question of my own: "What does your training look like?"
"What are you doing? What exercises? What sets? What reps? What kind of weight are you using? How many days a week do you train?"
The solution to virtually every training question under the sun is to start training the RIGHT WAY. Not the way they teach you in the muscle comics – not the way they talk about in the internet forums – and not the way that everyone else trains – but the RIGHT WAY.
Once you sort out your training --- once you start doing it RIGHT – everything else is easy.
I’ll give you a very simple example:
Guy wants to know what kind of protein supplement to use. he's in agony about it, because there are so many different brands, and every time he makes up his mind he sees another product -- and the internet forums go back and forth on it -- and all of his lifting buddies and Facebook friends give him different advice -- and he's afraid that if he doesn't make the right decision RIGHT NOW he'll go into CATABOLIC SHOCK!
So you answer the question with a question.
"What does your workout look like?"
And you learn -- guess what -- that the guy doesn’t train his legs or back.
So the answer is simple. The guy needs to start doing squats and deadlifts and bent-over rowing and shrugs and power cleans.
When the guy starts to do squats and deadlifts and bent-over rowing and shrugs and power cleans, he'll get bigger and stronger very fast – and it doesn’t matter what kind of protein supplement he uses, or even whether he uses one.
Anyhow, I had 271 emails with training questions last week. And the answer to each one was the same.
The answer is always the same.
It’s all about how you train.
Thanks for reading, and have a great day – and if you train today – make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. If you can’t find the answer in one of these books, then you’re not even trying – because each and every one is a gold mine of real world, no-nonsense training advice:
1. Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength and Development
2. Strength, Muscle and Power
3. Gray Hair and Black Iron
4. History’s Strongest Men and How They Trained: No.1 – Doug Hepburn
http://www.brookskubik.com/doug_hepburn.html
I received 271 emails last week from people who had diet or training questions.
They fell into the following broad categories:
1. "HELP! I can’t gain any size. What should I do?"
2. "Please HELP! I can’t get stronger. Give me a program."
3. "My diet is lousy. What should I do?"
4. "I can’t get motivated to train, Pleas help me."
5. "My coach tells me I should do such and so – what do you think?"
6. "Help! I don’t know what to do."
7. "I’m training to get bigger and stronger as fast as possible. I have a mixed martial arts match next week against an 800 pound gorilla. Yes, it’s a real gorilla. I am doing this to help the zoo raise money, so it’s a charity fight. Don’t worry, I love animals, and I won’t hurt the gorilla.
I am doing a powerlifting contest the next day and I want to set a world record. I also want to have a 28- inch waist, with 1 percent body-fat, although I would settle for 2 percent if I had to. However, I need 24-inch upper arms with double-peaked baseball biceps.
Plus, I am running a marathon next week and want to try to break into the top ten this year in world marathon races, although I have not done much running lately.
I also have sugar cravings, and was wondering if the chocolate milk diet would be good for me.
Can you give me a good program?
Also – what supplements do you recommend, and how often should I take them, and what is the best exercise for the upper inner head of the triceps, and how often should I train my legs if I want to win the Mr. Everything title this year, and what is the best color of sun-glasses to wear for building maximum muscle density, and is it better to eat when you are hungry or when you are not, and is water good for you, and what is the best way to train when the Sun is in Capricorn and the Moon is in Virgo, and what do you think about breathing?"
Actually, no. 7 was unique – it was the only one in the “I’m fighting a gorilla” category – but it had so many questions that it deserved a category of its own.
Anyhow, my answer to each of the questions was exactly the same:
“Send me your current workout, with all exercises, all sets, all reps and the weights you use in each set.”
That’s pretty much my answer to everything now.
I answer the question with a question of my own: "What does your training look like?"
"What are you doing? What exercises? What sets? What reps? What kind of weight are you using? How many days a week do you train?"
The solution to virtually every training question under the sun is to start training the RIGHT WAY. Not the way they teach you in the muscle comics – not the way they talk about in the internet forums – and not the way that everyone else trains – but the RIGHT WAY.
Once you sort out your training --- once you start doing it RIGHT – everything else is easy.
I’ll give you a very simple example:
Guy wants to know what kind of protein supplement to use. he's in agony about it, because there are so many different brands, and every time he makes up his mind he sees another product -- and the internet forums go back and forth on it -- and all of his lifting buddies and Facebook friends give him different advice -- and he's afraid that if he doesn't make the right decision RIGHT NOW he'll go into CATABOLIC SHOCK!
So you answer the question with a question.
"What does your workout look like?"
And you learn -- guess what -- that the guy doesn’t train his legs or back.
So the answer is simple. The guy needs to start doing squats and deadlifts and bent-over rowing and shrugs and power cleans.
When the guy starts to do squats and deadlifts and bent-over rowing and shrugs and power cleans, he'll get bigger and stronger very fast – and it doesn’t matter what kind of protein supplement he uses, or even whether he uses one.
Anyhow, I had 271 emails with training questions last week. And the answer to each one was the same.
The answer is always the same.
It’s all about how you train.
Thanks for reading, and have a great day – and if you train today – make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. If you can’t find the answer in one of these books, then you’re not even trying – because each and every one is a gold mine of real world, no-nonsense training advice:
1. Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength and Development
2. Strength, Muscle and Power
3. Gray Hair and Black Iron
4. History’s Strongest Men and How They Trained: No.1 – Doug Hepburn
http://www.brookskubik.com/doug_hepburn.html
What If the Old Time Strongman Had Tweeted?
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
If tweets and tweeting had been around in the old days, who knows what might have happened?
With that in mind, here are my nominations for the Top 10 Tweets from the Golden Age of Might and Muscle:
10. Training today – need another 2,000 pounds of pig iron for the backlift. – Louis Cyr
9. Bent press day – Eugene Sandow afraid to lift w/ me. – Arthur Saxon
8. Too busy making million clams posing to lift with Saxon. – Eugene Sandow
7. That darn John Grimek ate 12 pork chops and didn’t leave any for anyone else. – Harry Paschall
6. Yeah, but they were small pork-chops! – John Grimek
5. Training to break 1,000 pounds in total – gotta push it. –Steve Stanko
4. Steve Stanko clean and jerked 370 for 10 singles today. Told him he was training too heavy. He says “But, Bob – 370 is a LIGHT weight!” – Bob Hoffman
3. Swung 4 56-pound ring weights with one hand today. The crowd loved it. Need to do this more often. – Apollon
2. Feeling tired today. Only squatted with 1200 pounds. – Paul Anderson
1. Good news! Just invented the barbell! – A great man whose name we do not know
Thanks for reading – and as always, have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
If tweets and tweeting had been around in the old days, who knows what might have happened?
With that in mind, here are my nominations for the Top 10 Tweets from the Golden Age of Might and Muscle:
10. Training today – need another 2,000 pounds of pig iron for the backlift. – Louis Cyr
9. Bent press day – Eugene Sandow afraid to lift w/ me. – Arthur Saxon
8. Too busy making million clams posing to lift with Saxon. – Eugene Sandow
7. That darn John Grimek ate 12 pork chops and didn’t leave any for anyone else. – Harry Paschall
6. Yeah, but they were small pork-chops! – John Grimek
5. Training to break 1,000 pounds in total – gotta push it. –Steve Stanko
4. Steve Stanko clean and jerked 370 for 10 singles today. Told him he was training too heavy. He says “But, Bob – 370 is a LIGHT weight!” – Bob Hoffman
3. Swung 4 56-pound ring weights with one hand today. The crowd loved it. Need to do this more often. – Apollon
2. Feeling tired today. Only squatted with 1200 pounds. – Paul Anderson
1. Good news! Just invented the barbell! – A great man whose name we do not know
Thanks for reading – and as always, have a great day. If you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
More Training Tips for Dinosaurs!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Two quick notes, and then let’s talk training.
The November Dino Files were mailed on Tuesday – so if you subscribe, you’ll be getting your issue soon. Please shoot me an email when it arrives, and another one after you’ve had a chance to read it. It always helps to get your thoughts and feedback.
Second, my interview on Super Human Radio is getting off the chart ratings. Currently, there are 125 ratings, which is a huge number – and we’re getting a solid 5 stars (the top rating). If you’ve not had a chance to listen to the interview, you can find it on the Super Human Radio site:
www.superhumanradio.com
Now, to get to training.
A number of you follow divided workout schedules, where you use several different workouts and alternate between them. For example:
Mon – Squats and bench press
Wed – Standing press and bent-over row
Fri – Deadlifts, curls and close grip bench press
I’ve been talking about Irregular Training and about hitting one heavy day per week, and training lighter on your other days. So the question arises, how do you do this if you use a divided workout schedule?
There are several different ways to do it.
1. Alternate your heavy workout from week to week. For example, your Monday workout would be your heavy workout in week one, your Wednesday workout would be your heavy workout in week two, and your Friday workout would be your heavy workout in week three.
2. Train one exercise heavy in each workout, and rotate them. For example, in week one, you might train squats heavy on Monday and bench press light or medium heavy. You would reverse that the following week. Your other training days would follow the same pattern.
3. Alternate light, medium and heavy weeks. In other words, train everything light in week one, medium in week two, and heavy in week three. Then start over again.
Now, I KNOW that what I’ve just described doesn’t exactly fit the classic version of Irregular Training – but that’s because Irregular Training as originally conceived by Bob Hoffman was designed for total body workouts. If you use divided workouts, you need to change things a bit.
The IMPORTANT thing is to grasp the fundamental principle of Irregular Training – which is simply to train heavy some days, medium heavy on other days and light on other days. As I’ve said before, it’s not rocket science.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Broooks Kubik
P.S. We have back issues of The Dinosaur Files newsletter from May 2010 forward – so if you subscribe now, we’ll start your subscription as of May 2010 and send all of the back issues to get you started. That way, you’ll have the entire collection. You can subscribe to the Dinosaur Files at the Dinosaur Training website at www.brookskubik.com
Two quick notes, and then let’s talk training.
The November Dino Files were mailed on Tuesday – so if you subscribe, you’ll be getting your issue soon. Please shoot me an email when it arrives, and another one after you’ve had a chance to read it. It always helps to get your thoughts and feedback.
Second, my interview on Super Human Radio is getting off the chart ratings. Currently, there are 125 ratings, which is a huge number – and we’re getting a solid 5 stars (the top rating). If you’ve not had a chance to listen to the interview, you can find it on the Super Human Radio site:
www.superhumanradio.com
Now, to get to training.
A number of you follow divided workout schedules, where you use several different workouts and alternate between them. For example:
Mon – Squats and bench press
Wed – Standing press and bent-over row
Fri – Deadlifts, curls and close grip bench press
I’ve been talking about Irregular Training and about hitting one heavy day per week, and training lighter on your other days. So the question arises, how do you do this if you use a divided workout schedule?
There are several different ways to do it.
1. Alternate your heavy workout from week to week. For example, your Monday workout would be your heavy workout in week one, your Wednesday workout would be your heavy workout in week two, and your Friday workout would be your heavy workout in week three.
2. Train one exercise heavy in each workout, and rotate them. For example, in week one, you might train squats heavy on Monday and bench press light or medium heavy. You would reverse that the following week. Your other training days would follow the same pattern.
3. Alternate light, medium and heavy weeks. In other words, train everything light in week one, medium in week two, and heavy in week three. Then start over again.
Now, I KNOW that what I’ve just described doesn’t exactly fit the classic version of Irregular Training – but that’s because Irregular Training as originally conceived by Bob Hoffman was designed for total body workouts. If you use divided workouts, you need to change things a bit.
The IMPORTANT thing is to grasp the fundamental principle of Irregular Training – which is simply to train heavy some days, medium heavy on other days and light on other days. As I’ve said before, it’s not rocket science.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day – and if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Broooks Kubik
P.S. We have back issues of The Dinosaur Files newsletter from May 2010 forward – so if you subscribe now, we’ll start your subscription as of May 2010 and send all of the back issues to get you started. That way, you’ll have the entire collection. You can subscribe to the Dinosaur Files at the Dinosaur Training website at www.brookskubik.com
The Question of the Day -- And An Answer!
Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Yesterday I covered Bob Hoffman’s Irregular Training as detailed in the old York Barbell Company courses.
If you missed it, it’s pretty simple. Train HEAVY one day per week – which we will call your LIMIT DAY.
Train two other days per week, but don’t train as heavy.
This later evolved into the York “Light, Medium and Heavy” Schedule – where you train light one day, medium another day, and heavy on the other day.
Now, that led to a ton of emails, including many from readers who said, “Why bother with the light and medium days – why not just train heavy once per week and not do anything else?”
Which is kind of surprising, given that I covered once per week workouts a few weeks ago, and got a ton of emails saying, “Impossible – it won’t work!”
Anyhow, here are some thoughts about training heavy once per week and doing nothing else during the week vs. training heavy once per week and doing some not so heavy training on other days.
1. First of all – everyone is different, and if training heavy one day per week works best for you, then do it.
1a. Ditto for training heavy once every six days – or every five days – or every four days.
1b. Related point. If what you are doing is working, then keep on doing it. If it’s not working, then make some sensible changes and see what happens. (Of course, whatever you do should be based on abbreviated training, compound exercises, heavy weights, etc. – in other words, don’t switch to a 20 set per bodypart muscle pumping routine and expect to see any progress).
2. If you do Olympic lifting, it is important to train more often than once a week in order to promote muscle and joint mobility, flexibility, and timing. Olympic weightlifting is an athletic skill, and must be treated as such.
2a. If you are an Olympic lifter, use your light and medium days to perfect your lifting technique.
2b. Note that two-time Olympic Gold Medal winner, Tommy Kono, has weighed in on this topic and has said that training 3x per week, using a Light, Medium, Heavy system, is BEST. You can’t argue with a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist.
3. Bob Hoffman always suggested that you include light days and medium days to help prepare you for the heavy work on your limit day. In Hoffman’s words, “They will tone the muscles and prepare them for the harder days ahead.”
3a. On light days and medium days, you can use letter perfect form and complete all of your reps on all of your sets. This gives you self-confidence, which carries over into better performances on your heavy day.
3b. Note that it is easier to learn important skills such as concentration and visualization if you are train I g with lighter weights. This means that light and heavy days are days when you can focus on developing the mental skills necessary for top level lifting.
4. Related to point no. 3 – some trainees will get really stiff and sore by going heavy one day a week and not doing anything else during the week. These trainees will do better by training on the Light, Medium and Heavy System.
5. Exercise is a great way to work off tension and stress – which is something we all encounter in the modern world. For older trainees, this may be one of the most important health benefits of physical training. And that’s a very good reason to train three times per week (Light, Medium and Heavy) rather than one time per week.
6. Consider “mixing it up” options if you do cardio work, kettlebells, martial arts, or a sport. In other words, do one heavy barbell workout per week and do cardio work or kettlebells or martial arts training or sports training on your medium and light days.
7. Note that older trainees may do better if their heavy day is not a maximum effort day. Many older trainees do best if they carefully limit the frequency of their limit workouts. Once a month as opposed to once every week may make all the difference in the world for an older lifter.
8. Beginners will do better with more frequent training because they need to learn the exercises. It’s much easier to develop good form in your exercises if you practice them 3x per week as a beginner rather than doing them only once per week.
9. As a general rule, if you’re trying to gain strength and muscle you can train less often than if you are trying to lose flab.
10. In the final analysis, it boils down to what works best for YOU – but just remember to follow and apply the basic principles of productive strength training as outlined in Dinosaur Training, Gray Hair and Black Iron, Strength, Muscle and Power, and each issue of the Dinosaur Files newsletter.
As always, thanks for reading, and heave a great day – and if you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. For more about effective strength training and productive workout programs, grab Dinosaur Training – Strength, Muscle and Power – Gray Hair and Black Iron – my new Doug Hepburn Training Course -- or The Dinosaur Files newsletter.
Yesterday I covered Bob Hoffman’s Irregular Training as detailed in the old York Barbell Company courses.
If you missed it, it’s pretty simple. Train HEAVY one day per week – which we will call your LIMIT DAY.
Train two other days per week, but don’t train as heavy.
This later evolved into the York “Light, Medium and Heavy” Schedule – where you train light one day, medium another day, and heavy on the other day.
Now, that led to a ton of emails, including many from readers who said, “Why bother with the light and medium days – why not just train heavy once per week and not do anything else?”
Which is kind of surprising, given that I covered once per week workouts a few weeks ago, and got a ton of emails saying, “Impossible – it won’t work!”
Anyhow, here are some thoughts about training heavy once per week and doing nothing else during the week vs. training heavy once per week and doing some not so heavy training on other days.
1. First of all – everyone is different, and if training heavy one day per week works best for you, then do it.
1a. Ditto for training heavy once every six days – or every five days – or every four days.
1b. Related point. If what you are doing is working, then keep on doing it. If it’s not working, then make some sensible changes and see what happens. (Of course, whatever you do should be based on abbreviated training, compound exercises, heavy weights, etc. – in other words, don’t switch to a 20 set per bodypart muscle pumping routine and expect to see any progress).
2. If you do Olympic lifting, it is important to train more often than once a week in order to promote muscle and joint mobility, flexibility, and timing. Olympic weightlifting is an athletic skill, and must be treated as such.
2a. If you are an Olympic lifter, use your light and medium days to perfect your lifting technique.
2b. Note that two-time Olympic Gold Medal winner, Tommy Kono, has weighed in on this topic and has said that training 3x per week, using a Light, Medium, Heavy system, is BEST. You can’t argue with a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist.
3. Bob Hoffman always suggested that you include light days and medium days to help prepare you for the heavy work on your limit day. In Hoffman’s words, “They will tone the muscles and prepare them for the harder days ahead.”
3a. On light days and medium days, you can use letter perfect form and complete all of your reps on all of your sets. This gives you self-confidence, which carries over into better performances on your heavy day.
3b. Note that it is easier to learn important skills such as concentration and visualization if you are train I g with lighter weights. This means that light and heavy days are days when you can focus on developing the mental skills necessary for top level lifting.
4. Related to point no. 3 – some trainees will get really stiff and sore by going heavy one day a week and not doing anything else during the week. These trainees will do better by training on the Light, Medium and Heavy System.
5. Exercise is a great way to work off tension and stress – which is something we all encounter in the modern world. For older trainees, this may be one of the most important health benefits of physical training. And that’s a very good reason to train three times per week (Light, Medium and Heavy) rather than one time per week.
6. Consider “mixing it up” options if you do cardio work, kettlebells, martial arts, or a sport. In other words, do one heavy barbell workout per week and do cardio work or kettlebells or martial arts training or sports training on your medium and light days.
7. Note that older trainees may do better if their heavy day is not a maximum effort day. Many older trainees do best if they carefully limit the frequency of their limit workouts. Once a month as opposed to once every week may make all the difference in the world for an older lifter.
8. Beginners will do better with more frequent training because they need to learn the exercises. It’s much easier to develop good form in your exercises if you practice them 3x per week as a beginner rather than doing them only once per week.
9. As a general rule, if you’re trying to gain strength and muscle you can train less often than if you are trying to lose flab.
10. In the final analysis, it boils down to what works best for YOU – but just remember to follow and apply the basic principles of productive strength training as outlined in Dinosaur Training, Gray Hair and Black Iron, Strength, Muscle and Power, and each issue of the Dinosaur Files newsletter.
As always, thanks for reading, and heave a great day – and if you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. For more about effective strength training and productive workout programs, grab Dinosaur Training – Strength, Muscle and Power – Gray Hair and Black Iron – my new Doug Hepburn Training Course -- or The Dinosaur Files newsletter.
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