(Note: Before we continue with part
3, many readers have asked what a
rainbow and a double rainbow are.
A rainbow refers to colored bumper
plates used for Olympic weightlifting.
One plate of each color on each side
of the bar is a rainbow. Red is 25
kilos (55 pounds), blue is 20 kilos
(44 pounds), yellow is 15 kilos (33
pounds) and green is 10 kilos (22
pounds). That makes 70 kilos (154
pounds) on each side of the bar, or
140 kilos total (308 pounds) plus
the weight of the bar (20 kilos, or
44 pounds).
A double rainbow is two plates of
each color on each side of the bar.
Total weight (with bar) 660 pounds.
That was a world record back in the
1950's when Doug Hepburn squatted it.)
After that, it was easy. I wrote up a
basic Dino Training program for the
kid. A beginner's program. Three total
body workouts per week. Three sets of
each exercise. I had him start light,
add weight on the second set and add
a bit more on the third set. He did
5 reps on the upper body exercises
10 reps on squats, deadlifts and
gut work.
I had him buy weightlifting shoes
and do full squats (donkey to floor).
If you're young and new to the iron,
they're the way to go. Much better
than the parallel squats we were
taught when we were kids. Of course,
you do them in good form -- no drop
and bounce -- and like I said, you
wear Olympic lifting shoes when you
do them.
The shoes weren't as cool as roller
skates, but they worked a lot better
for him.
He trained hard, never missed a workout
(well, almost never), and gradually added
weight to the bar. As he grew stronger,
he progressed to more advanced programs,
i.e., fewer exercises, more sets of each
exercise, and more weight on the bar.
It wasn't rocket science, but it worked.
Today, three years later, you wouldn't
recognize him. He's packing 50 or 60
pounds of new muscle, and he's handling
some big weights in all of his exercises.
A couple of days ago, he was loading the
squat bar at the gym, and heard some newbies
arguing about leg training.
They couldn't figure out what to do, so
they finally broke down and asked him.
"Squats," he said.
"What else?" they asked.
"Heavier squats," he said.
It was good advice. I hope they follow it.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Doug Hepburn built some serious
strength and power with basic, old-school
exercises. Learn his training secrets in
this exciting course:
http://www.brookskubik.com/doug_hepburn.html
P.S. 2. My other books and courses are
right here:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "The secret is
to keep adding weight to the bar." -- Brooks
Kubik
