Hail to the Dinosaurs!
Three quick notes, and then we'll talk training.
1. Big News Coming!
We have something new and exciting coming
soon -- be watching for the big announcement!
2. The Quarterly Dinosaur Files, Issue No. 2
Is also coming soon -- so if you missed issue
no. 1, grab it now:
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_quarterly.html
Also, if you have feedback on the first issue,
please send me an email. I'm always looking
for feedback from Dinos!
3. Dinosaur Training DVD's
Not sure why, but there's been a big surge in
orders for my Dinosaur Training DVD's. (Yes, we
have DVD's in addition to books and courses.)
You can find them right here:
http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dvds.html
http://brookskubik.com/goingstrong.html
On the training front, let's talk about how to get
past a bad workout.
I received an email from one of our older Dinos
(age 68), who had to drop the bench press
because of bone spurs. So the military press
is his primary upper body pushing movement.
He trains twice a week and starts his workout
with presses. Last year he was doing 3 x 5 for
his work sets with 150 pounds.
This year, he is using a 10/10/8/6/4/2/1
pyramid up to 160 -- which he sometimes
makes and sometimes misses.
He's been having trouble with his pressing
groove in his last couple of workouts -- and
because he starts his workouts with presses,
when his presses aren't clicking, it throws off
his entire workout.
So he asked about how to get past a bad workout
or two -- and also, whether he should change
his sets ands reps in the press.
And frankly, I think he's answered his own
question.
Or rather, the answer to the second question is
YES -- by all means change your sets and reps --
and that's also one of the best things to do to
get past a sticking point or a series of bad
workouts.
He was doing better last year when he was using
3 x 5 working sets with 150 pounds.
My advice is to go back to a 5 x 5 or 6 x 5 program,
and work up to 135 x 3 x 5 -- which will be easy --
and then gradually build back up from there.
The change in sets and reps will work better from
a purely physical point of view -- but more importantly,
it will work better from a mental perspective.
Rather than beating his head against the wall on
his current sets and reps, he should change and
start on something fresh -- and start to rebuild and
reenforce the Success Habit.
It's a form of strength training ju-jitsu. You don't
always have to smash through a barrier. Sometimes
it's better to slide around it.
You can accomplish the same thing by changing
exercises -- for example, switching from barbell
presses to dumbbell presses. But since our Dino
needs to work on his pressing groove, he should
stick to presses and change the sets and reps.
Our trainee also should work on shoulder and
upper back flexibility. That's often what causes
your press to fall out of the groove. Some easy
stretches every day would be good. Working
with Indian clubs or light resistance cables
also would be good.
We'll cover other strategies in later emails.
There are plenty of tricks to use to get past
a sticking point or a couple of bad workouts.
In the meantime, and 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. They call Dinosaur Training "the Bible of
strength training" -- and it is. If you don't
have a copy, you're missing out on something
very special:
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html
P.S. 2. Save clams on shipping and handling by
ordering two or more books or courses -- or
DVD's -- or the Dinosaur Files quarterly -- so
we can ship them in one package. Go here
to see all of our different products:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Step over, smash
through, or slide past an obstacle -- but get past
it." -- Brooks Kubik
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