Physical Culture Radio with Brooks Kubik and Carl Lanore

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Here's a link to last week's show on Physical
Culture Radio.

It was a really good show, and we covered some
very important training topics.  It all started with
the question, "Did Reg Park do cardio?"

I think you'll enjoy it.

http://superhumanradio.com/shr-1801-physical-culture-radio-reg-park-cardio-early-life-exercise-alters-gut-microbes.html

Also, we're always looking for ideas for new
shows, so if you'd like us to cover a particular
topic, shoot me an email and let me know.

I'm at info@brookskubik.com

Thanks, and have a great day!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

The Top 10 Signs You're In a Really Bad Gym!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Let's try something a little bit different
today. Shoot me an email and let me
know how you like it.

I thought you might enjoy reading
some of our most popular posts at the
Dinosaur Training Blog.

Follow the links to check them out!

1. The Top 10 Signs You're in a Bad Gym

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-top-10-signs-youre-in-bad-gym.html

2. Do You Do the Basic Six for Strength and Muscle Building?

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2015/10/do-you-do-basic-six-for-strength-and.html

3. Answers to Your Training Questions!

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2015/10/answers-to-your-training-questions.html

That ought to give you some good reading
for awhile!

As I said, this is new, so let me know how
you like it. If you'd like to see more emails
like this, we can do it more often.

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. Here's two of our best sellers this month:

Dinosaur Bodyweight Training

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html

Dinosaur Dumbbell Training

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dumbbelltraining.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "We don't know who
invented the wheel, and we don't know who invented
the barbell, but they both did a real good job." -- Brooks
Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Seven Training Tips from Bradley J. Steiner!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

For the last couple of days, we've
been talking about ways to increase
the conditioning value of your regular
weight training workouts, and it has
reminded me of some good tips from
Bradley J. Steiner.

Steiner used to write for Peary Rader's
old Iron Man magazine when I was a
kid. He was my favorite Iron Game
author by far -- and ranks as one of
the most popular and most influential
Iron Game authors of all time.

Steiner taught self-defence, and used
his strength training workouts to help
his martial arts training and enhance
his self-defense skills. So he always
focused on ways to make you strong,
fit, and rugged -- and ready for anything
that might happen!

Steiner liked to integrate some basic
conditioning work into his barbell and
dumbbell workouts.

Here are some of the things he did to
maximize the conditioning value of his
strength training workouts:

1. Steiner liked to begin and end his
workouts with two or three "rounds" of
double-unders with the jump-rope. This
is a staple of training for boxers, and it's
an excellent conditioner. It also doubles
as a warm-up and a warm-down.

Use a high-quality leather jump rope --
the kind that boxers use.

Each "round" should last two or three
minutes. Start at 30 seconds and work
up.

2. Steiner liked to include some sort of
all-out exercise, such as power cleans,
power snatches, or the clean and press.
Doing 5 x 5 in the clean and press is
a great conditioner -- as well as a terrific
strength and power builder. You can use
a barbell or two dumbbells. Do one clean
and one press on every rep.

This was taken from the old York Training
courses -- in particular, the "repetition
weightlifting exercises" of course no. 3.

3. Steiner always included leg work, i.e.,
squats or front squats, which have plenty
of conditioning value.

We always think of 20 rep squats when
we think of conditioning workouts, but
any number of reps will have some degree
of conditioning value.

4. Steiner always followed the squat with
the breathing pull-over to help expand the
rib-cage and get your breathing back to
normal.

In essence, this was a deep breathing
exercise.

Note that you use LIGHT dumbbells for
pullovers. It's not a muscle builder or a
strength movement -- it's a breathing
exercise.

5. Steiner included stiff-legged deadlifts
in most of his workouts. Like the squat,
the stiff-legged deadlift has plenty of
conditioning value.

6. Steiner urged trainees to train at a
fairly fast pace, and to keep their rest
times to a minimum. You didn't rush
things or race the clock, but you
worked at a steady pace and didn't
waste any time.

7. To maximize point no. 6, Steiner
suggested that you try to cut 10 or 15
minutes off your total training time --
while performing the same exercises,
sets and reps.

Doing a 60 minute workout in 50 minutes
means that you're resting much less, and
ensures that you maximize the conditioning
value of your workout.

So there you have it -- seven training tips
from Bradley J. Steiner -- and seven ways
to maximize the conditioning value of your
strength training workouts.

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. See Gray Hair and Black Iron for more
ideas on how to combine strength training
and conditioning in a single workout:

http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Simple changes
can have profound benefits." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

The Man Who Sprinted Up the Rocky Mountains

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Many years ago, a man who lived in
Alliance, Nebraska went on vacation
way out in the rugged Colorado Rockies.
His name was Peary Rader. He was the
founder, editor and publisher of the old
Iron Man magazine.

Back home in Nebraska, there were few
opportunities to climb mountains -- and
certainly no opportunity to climb anything
remotely like the Rocky Mountains.

But to his surprise, Peary found that he
was as fast and nimble as a mountain
goat.

He literally ran up the side of some of the
steep slopes, leaving his friends far behind
him as they trudged slowly and doggedly
up the trail.

He also discovered that he had tremendous
endurance.

He could climb mountains all day without
feeling tired -- and when he woke up the
next morning, he was ready for more!

Now, you might ask if he did a lot of running
back home to get ready for the trip.

Surprisingly, he did none at all.

You might wonder if he did some sort of
intense cardio training -- perhaps riding
a bicycle?

Again, he did none at all.

Or long walks?

Nope.

Or you might think he was on some kind
of special, six-day a week, high volume
training program to build maximum work
capacity.

Again, the answer is no.

Peary trained just twice a week, using a
simple program and a small number of
basic exercises.

His primary exercise was the squat.
He did one set of 20 reps with all the
weight he could handle.

He did breathing squats -- meaning that
he took several huge, enormous breaths
in-between every rep. He breathed so hard
the plates rattled on the bar.

He used the breathing squat program as
a way of gaining muscular bodyweight
and strength. It worked great. In his first
two years on the program, he gained
close to 100 pounds of muscle -- and went
on to be a regional weightlifting champion
for several years.

But the squats also gave him tremendous
endurance. The trip to the Rocky Mountains
proved it.

It's another example of what we talked about
yesterday -- using your weight training to
build a superb combination of strength,
power and endurance.

Yes, you can get a great conditioning workout
and build tremendous stamina and endurance
with your barbell workouts.

Peary Rader proved it.

For details about specialized leg and back
programs to build strength, muscle and
outstanding condition, grab a copy of
Chalk and Sweat. It has 50 terrific
workouts, and they'll get you into
great shape faster than you can say
"mountain goat!":

http://www.brookskubik.com/chalk_and_sweat.html

And for special instruction on how to ease
into your squatting program and make
steady progress with old-fashioned "slow
cooking", grab Dinosaur Training Secrets,
Vol. 3. It's available in hard-copy, Kindle
or PDF with immediate electronic delivery:

Hard-copy edition

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets_03.html

Kindle edition

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets3_kindle.html

PDF with electronic delivery

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaursecrets_vol3_digital.html

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. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 2. Thought for the Day: "Strong is good,
but strong and well-conditioned is better."
-- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Did Reg Park Do Cardio?

Reg Park

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

If you're a regular reader, you know
about Reg Park.

Famous old-school bodybuilder from
England. Three time Mr. Universe.
Two hundred and thirty-five pounds
of massive muscle. Played Hercules
in the movies -- and looked more like
Hercules than Hercules did.

Strong, too. Park squatted 600 pounds
back when the top heavyweight lifters
didn't handle much more than that --
used 300 pounds in the press behind
neck (some say for reps!) -- set a
British record in the two dumbbell
clean and press -- and was the second
man in history (behind Doug Hepburn)
to bench press 500 pounds.

So I ask the question:

Did Reg Park do cardio?

And like many things in life, the answer
is "Yes!" -- and -- "No!"

If you're talking about endless hours on
a treadmill, jogging 20 or 30 miles a week,
daily spinning classes, power aerobics,
jazzercize, jumpercize or cardio theater,
the answer is "No, he did not!"

In fact, none of the champions from
Park's era did any kind of what we now
call "cardio."

But if you count hard, heavy workouts
where you train fast and furious with
heavy weights, then the answer is,
"Yes, he did!"

A gym owner named Ray Beck watched
Park train back in the 1950's. He wrote
about it in Peary Rader's old Iron Man
magazine. He said, "Nobody, but nobody,
works out as fast and furiously  . . . as
Reg Park."

Of course, that does NOT mean that Park
trained fast and sloppy or that he never
rested -- or that he handled light wights
in his workouts.

He trained on the basics, using low and
medium reps, and piled on the iron. He
trained with intense concentration and
ferocious determination. He performed
all of his reps in perfect form. He was a
stickler for details, and he squeezed
everything possible out of every set.

But he also trained fast -- meaning
that he kept his rest between sets to
a minimum, and he didn't waste any
time.

In other words, he was not "racing the
clock" -- but he was working as fast as
he could, while still paying full justice to
each and every set.

And when you're training hard and heavy
on the basic exercises, that kind of fast
and furious pace will give your heart and
lungs a terrific workout. It also will kick
your metabolism into high gear and help
you stay lean, hard and muscular.

You do NOT need to do conventional
"cardio" to be strong, muscular and well
conditioned. You can do it with the iron.

You just need to train the right way. You
need to train like Reg Park: hard, heavy,
fast and furious.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. I cover strength training and muscle
building workouts that double as great
conditioning workouts in many of my
books and courses, including:

a. Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength
and Development

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_training.html

b. Chalk and Sweat

http://www.brookskubik.com/chalk_and_sweat.html

c. Dinosaur Dumbbell Training

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dumbbelltraining.html

d. Dinosaur Bodyweight Training

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html

e. Gray Hair and Black Iron

http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html

f. Strength, Muscle and Power

http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html

P.S. 2. Thought for the Day: "Squats are
cardio for guys and gals who like to move
heavy iron." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

If It's Working, Keep on Doing It!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Two quick notes, and then we'll talk iron.

1. Great Reading for Snow-Bound Dinos

If you're stuck inside because of the snow,
or if you're just looking for something great
to read, we have more than 20 books and
courses available on Kindle or in PDF format
with immediate electronic delivery.

Here's the complete list and all the links:

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2016/01/great-reading-for-snow-bound-dinos.html

Of course, we also carry hard-copy editions
of our books and courses. We've started to
make Kindle and PDF editions available
because we know that some of you prefer
those formats. And, remember, they save
overseas Dinos a ton on shipping charges.

2. The February Dinosaur Files

I'm finishing up the February issue of
the Dinosaur Files and it's going to be
a good one. There's plenty of great training
advice in this issue. Be looking for it soon!

If you missed the December and January
issues, grab them here:

December (cover photo of Sig Klein)

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

January (cover photo of Eugene Sandow)

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

3. If It's Working, Keep on Doing It!

At least once a week I get an email from a
reader who's doing something that's working
well for him -- meaning that he's making good
gains in strength and muscle, recovering from
his workouts and enjoying his training -- but
then he sees something on the Interwebs
and it makes him think he should change
his program and do something different.

It's usually one of two things:

1. Something new and different that might
be better than what he's doing now -- often
being the workout of a current champion.

2. A blog post, article or forum discussion
telling him that what he's doing "doesn't
work."

Most of the time it's number two -- which
is surprising, because the immediate
response should be, "It may not work
for YOU, but it works for ME!"

But written words are powerful, and
they often make us second-guess
ourselves.

So our trainee -- the one who is making
good gains and having lots of fun in his
workouts -- starts to second-guess
himself.

And he sends me an email and asks what
he should do.

As I said, this happens at least once a
week. Luckily, as questions go, it's an
easy one.

The answer is always the same:

"If it's working, keep on doing it. If your
gains slow down or stop, then and only
then try something different."

And here's a related point. When you do
try something different, it should probably
be something similar, not a radical change
in approach. In other words, if 5 x 5 has
worked well for you, you might try 5 x 6,
6 x 6, or 5 x 5 followed by 1 x 3 and 1 x 1.
But don't change from 5 x 5 to 10 x 10
or 50 rep death sets or a three hour
pumping program.

Also, the best way to change things up is
often to use a new exercise, while keeping
the sets and reps the same. For example,
switch from back squats to front squats,
or from straight bar deadlifts to Trap Bar
deadlifts.

And remember this -- when you switch to
a new exercise or a new program, start
light and easy, and gradually add weight
to the bar. Make it progressive. Don't try
to max out and set new PR's the first day
in the saddle. See Dinosaur Training Secrets,
Vol. 3, for detailed advice on how to use old-
school progression systems for steady gains
without going stale or burning out.

Anyhow, that's the answer to a very common
question -- one that's become all the more
common because of the often overwhelming
amount and diversity of information on the
Interwebs.

Remember, if it's working for you, keep on
doing it -- and if it ain't broke, don't try to
fix it.

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 mentioned Dinosaur Training Secrets,
Vol. 3. Go here to grab the little monster in
your choice of three formats:

Hard-copy edition

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets_03.html

Kindle edition

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets3_kindle.html

PDF with electronic delivery

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaursecrets_vol3_digital.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are
right here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Train with
confidence. Avoid doubters and nay-sayers.
Be resolute, and do what you need to do."
-- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Great reading for Snow-Bound Dinos!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

We're right in the middle of Snowmageddon
2016, and I know that many of you are
buried in the white stuff -- in some cases,
with more on the way.

So I thought I'd share some ideas on great
reading material for snow-bound Dinos. Of
course, they're also great if you happen to
be sitting on the beach somewhere, out in
the sun, soaking up the rays!

Dinosaur Training Secrets, Vol. 1, 2 and 3

These are available in hard copy, Kindle,
and PDF with immediate electronic
delivery. Kindle and PDF will get them
to you right away, no matter what the
weather.

Go here for the links (and a killer photo
of old-time powerhouse Louis Abele):

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2015/12/have-you-seen-these.html

Special Mini Course for Older Dinos

This is available in PDF with immediate
electronic delivery:

http://www.brookskubik.com/minicourse_01.html

The Dinosaur Files

The December and January issues of the
Dinosaur Files newsletter (really, it's a
small magazine) are available in PDF
with immediate electronic delivery:

December (cover photo of Sig Klein)

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

January (cover photo of Eugene Sandow)

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

Dinosaur books and courses on Kindle

We have 15 books and courses on Kindle.
Go here for the complete list -- with links
to all of them -- and some of my favorite
photos of old-time champions:

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2015/10/dinosaur-training-e-books-complete-list.html

The other thing to do if you're snowbound
(or beach-bound) is to shoot me an email
and give me some feedback on the December
and January issues of The Dinosaur Files!
I love to hear from you -- and your feedback
is very valuable and important.

As always, thanks for reading and have a
great day. If you train today, make it a
good one!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Are You a Squatter or a Deadlifter?

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

One of the most popular questions
on the Internet is the ever popular
"which is better" question.

As in, "Which is better, squats or
deadlifts?"

It's a great way to drive traffic to
a forum or discussion board because
you get about a zillion answers.

Half of them are from guys who say
that squats are better -- and half of
them are from guys who say that
deadlifts are better.

And for some reason, people get all
worked up about this question. I've
actually seen people get mad at each
other because they disagree about it.

It's probably caused more flame
wars than the dragons on Game
of Thrones, and that's saying
a lot.

Anyhow, here's my answer to the
aforementioned Riddle of the Ages.

And I'll probably make everyone
mad by saying it. So bear with me
and read the answer AND the
explanation.

The answer:

"It depends on whether you're a
squatter or a deadlifter."

Whoa! Stop! Put back the knives.

Listen to me for a second. Remember
what I said about reading the
explanation.

The explanation:

People are built differently, and
that can make a big difference
in the exercises that work best
for them. What works best for
me may or may not work best
for you.

Some people are built for squatting.
The exercise feels natural to them,
and they're strong and powerful in
it. They lift with great confidence
when they do squats, they like the
feel of the movement, and it doesn't
cause any kind of problem for them.

In contrast, deadlifts may be a
much more difficult exercise for
them -- and may even be painful
or may cause nagging aches and
pains over time.

For these people -- people who are
squatters -- the squat is the better
exercise.

Many famous Iron Game champions
have been squatters -- and these men
used the squat much more than they
used the deadlift. Examples include
such legends as:

1. Reg Park

2. John Grimek (although he liked
doing stiff legged deadlifts)

3. Paul Anderson

4. Doug Hepburn

5. Peary Rader

Other people are built differently. The
squat doesn't seem as comfortable for
them. It's not a natural movement.
They don't enjoy it. It may even cause
knee, hip, back or shoulder pain.

In contrast, deadlifts feel like the
most comfortable thing in the world.
They LOVE deadlifting -- and they
feel confident and strong when they
do deadlifts -- and deadlifts don't
cause them any kind of pain.

These people are deadlifters -- and for
them, the deadlift is the better of the
two movements.

Bob Peoples is a great example of a
natural deadlifter. He pulled over 700
pounds back in the 1940s -- at a weight
of about 180 pounds.

John Terry, the York champion of the
1930's and early 1940's, was a deadlifter.
He pulled 600 pounds at a weight of 132
pounds.

Now, this is NOT to say that squatters
should not do deadlifts -- or that dead-
lifters should not do squats.

It just means that some people do better
on one of the two movements than on
the other -- and that's something you
need to take into account when you
ask the infamous "which is better"
question.

Of course, some people are extremely
strong in both exercises.

John Davis was a natural squatter, but he
could deadlift 700 pounds without any
training on the exercise.

Joe Hise and William Boone were famous for
their heavy, high rep squatting -- but each
man also deadlifted 700 pounds back in the
1940's.

So instead of asking, "Which is better?" ask
yourself, "Which am I -- a squatter or a
deadlifter?"

After all, what matters is the most is what
works best for YOU!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. Whichever category you fall into, heavy
leg and back work is the Royal Road to Muscle
and Might. For some great strength and mass
workouts featuring leg and back work, grab
a copy of Chalk and Sweat:

http://www.brookskubik.com/chalk_and_sweat.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Hard work and
heavy iron is more than hard to beat -- it's
pretty much impossible to beat." -- Brooks
Kubik

***********************************************************************************

The Snow Shoveling Workout

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

It snowed here in Louisville the other
day, so my workout was four or five
hours of snow shoveling.

We live on a hill and park by the back
alley, so the only way to get to the
street is to shovel the alley all the
from our house to the street.

We live five or six houses away from
the street, so that's a lot of shoveling.
Trudi came out and filmed the end of
it. Go here to take a look:

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2016/01/hail-to-dinosaurs-i-had-fun-little.html

Now, you may ask what exercises are
good for snow shoveling.

Believe it or not, I've found that the
basics work pretty well. Lots of leg
and back work will do the trick.

Squats, front squats, deadlifts, Trap
Bar deadlifts, cleans, snatches and
high pulls. The usual suspects.

It's funny -- they seem to work
pretty for everything -- even snow
shoveling!

We're expecting more snow tomorrow,
so I may be doing more Dino style
snow shoveling.

But that's okay.

It's a good workout!

By the way, if you have a big snow shoveling
job:

1. Wear layers.

2. Keep your head, hands and feet
warm.

3. Warm-up before you get started!

4. Drink lots of water.

5. Use good body mechanics and work
both sides of the body to even out the
load.

In other news, someone asked me if
the workouts in Strength, Muscle and
Power will work for an older Dino.

They definitely will -- you just need to
ease up on the gas pedal if you're an
older Dino. In other words, dial back
the volume and the intensity.

Older Dinos can train hard and heavy,
and have enormous fun in their training.
They also can use their training to stay
ten times stronger, healthier and more
active than their non-training peers.

You just have to train smarter and
more efficiently.

Personally, I'm having far more fun in
my current workouts (at age 59) than
I had when I was younger -- and I
wouldn't trade my training time for
anything else in the world.

They call them "the golden years" but
they should call them "the iron years."

The iron is what keeps you going --
and what keeps making things fun.

Even snow shoveling.
Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. Go here to grab Strength, Muscle
and Power:

http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html

2. For more details on effective training
for older Dinos, grab these:

a. Gray Hair and Black Iron

The best book ever written about effective
strength training for those in the age 35 and
up category. Contains over 50 different
workouts:

http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html

b. Special Mini Course for Older Trainees
This is a great course for older Dinos -- with
an excellent, all-new workout -- and it's
available in PDF with immediate electronic
delivery:

http://www.brookskubik.com/minicourse_01.html

3. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters -- along with
links to all of my Kindle books:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

***********************************************************************************

Dinosaur Snow Shoveling

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I had a fun little workout yesterday.  It snowed here in Louisville, and I shoveled the snow from our house down the alley where we park the car all the way to the street -- and then cleared out the entrance to the alley, which always gets jammed up with snow and ice pushed over by the snow plows and salt trucks.

We're five or six lots away from the entrance to the alley, so it's a lot of shoveling.  Truth be told, it took four or five hours.  Trudi came out and filmed the last part of it, so here's what it looked like near the end of the project.


We're supposed to get more snow tomorrow, so there may be more shoveling to come.  But that's okay -- it's a good workout!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. In between snow shoveling, I've been working on the February issue of The Dinosaur Files newsletter.  It's looking good, and I think we're going to have another great issue. If you missed the December and January issues, go here to grab them:

January

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

December

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

***********************************************************************************

Powerlifting Programs for Dinosaurs

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I'll keep this short and send a second email
later in the day.

Three things:

1. Physical Culture Radio.

I'll be on Physical Culture Radio with Carl
Lanore at 12:00 noon today (Eastern Time).

Catch the live show or listen to the down-
load at your convenience. Find us at:

http://superhumanradio.com/

2. My Daily Emails.

Several readers have dropped off our email
list -- and we don't know why or how. I send
emails Mon - Sat, so if you miss them, you've
fallen off the list.

If that ever happens, go back to my website
and sign back up -- and pls send an email to
let me know what happened.

You can find any missed emails at The Dinosaur
Training Blog. I always post my emails at the
Blog. For example, here' s the email from
yesterday:

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2016/01/train-for-strength-eat-for-health.html

You can access the Blog from my website.
The link is in the drop-down bar.

We're also on Facebook, Instagram and
Twitter. Follow us on those. It's another
good way to keep up, and you'll see some
fun photos and videos that don't make it
into the daily emails.

I'm on Facebook at "Brooks Kubik" and on
Instagram at #brookskubik and (of course)
at #dinosaurtraining. I'm at "Brooks Kubik"
on Twitter.

Any questions, send me an email!

3. Dinosaur Powerlifting.

Several readers have asked for Dinosaur style
powerlifting programs. You can find plenty of
powerlifting workouts in Strength, Muscle and
Power -- including a detailed review of how I
trained when I was competing in powerlifting
and bench press comps:

http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html

There's also a terrific all-new power rack
training program for powerlifters in The
Dinosaur Strength Training Archive,
Vol. 1.

Why a power rack training program?

Because that's far and away the best way for
powerlifters to train. It's how I built my bench
press to the point where I was able to win five
National championships in the bench press,
and also win a number of state and regional
championships in powerlifting.

Go here to grab the little monster:

Hard copy

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurtraining_archive.html

Kindle edition

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurtrainingarchive_kindle01.html

4. More to follow!

That turned out to be longer than I thought
it would be. But that's okay -- I'll still send
another email later today. Be looking for it!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Train for Strength, Eat for Health!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Did you know that the first 18 winners of
the AAU Mr. America title were some of
the healthiest men who ever lived?

Yes, I said healthiest.

Not just strongest, best developed, and
most muscular.

Healthiest.

And their longevity proves it.

The first 18 winners of the Mr. America
contest included 8 men who lived into
their 80's.

The average age at death for all 18 men
was 82.6 years.

And by all accounts, these men were strong,
active, vigorous and fit even at an advanced
age. And that didn't happen by accident. It
was the direct result of how they lived. These
men always took good care of themselves.

They exercised, watched what they ate,
and kept their weight under control.

They followed what Bob Hoffman called the
"Strength and Health Lifestyle."

They didn't smoke.

They either didn't drink, or didn't drink to
excess.

They exercised -- primarily or exclusively
with weight training workouts.

They followed a simple, healthy diet based on
plenty of home-cooked meals featuring foods
that were high in protein, vitamins and
minerals.

Their daily diet included meat, fish, eggs,
butter, milk or cheese if desired, fresh
vegetables, and fresh fruit.

They didn't eat sweets.

They didn't guzzle milk like it was going out
of style, didn't drink foul-tasting blender
bombers and protein shakes, and didn't
follow fad diets, crash diets, or the 20,000
calorie a day thing that so many people do
nowadays.

Some of them never used any protein powder
or other supplements during their competitive
years -- and some of them never used the
stuff or used it only rarely. They certainly
never tried to live on supplements, as so
many trainees do today.

They ate simple foods, simply prepared, and
they always enjoyed their meals.

They trained for strength and ate for health --
and it worked!

When they were younger men, people called
them "health nuts."

When they were older, people called them
"good examples."

We can learn much from them.

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 healthy eating, diet and nutrition
in Knife, Fork, Muscle. Go here to grab it:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_nutrition.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Heavy iron and
healthy eating is hard to beat." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Training Tips from the World's Strongest Man!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Dr. Ken Leistner has a great line that
goes something like this:

"The strongest man in the world trains
in a garage gym in Cleveland and no
one knows who he is."

That's not an exact quote, but it's
pretty close.

Now, you can argue that the strongest
man in the world is this year's top super-
heavyweight champion in weightlifting,
powerlifting or strongman comps -- or
the man who holds the all-time world
records in weightlifting, powerlifting or
strongman comps -- and therefore, "We
all know who he is and he doesn't live in
Cleveland."

But that's missing the point.

I think Dr. Ken is telling us that there are
MANY really strong men (and women) all
around the world, who train very hard with
very heavy weights, and who may or may
not compete -- and we may very well not
have any idea who they are.

We also may have no idea how they train.

Consider this. There may be someone who
really does train in a garage in Cleveland,
and he may be pushing and pulling some
really heavy iron -- and he may be doing
something that's way different than what
the rest of us do -- and it might be his
secret to world class strength and power.

Personally, if someone is doing something
that's different and effective, I want to know
about it. And I assume that's true for everyone
who's reading this.

That's one of the reasons why I always
encourage feedback from Dinosaurs
around the world. Dinosaurs tend to be
pretty darn strong -- and many of them
do things in their workouts that are
MUCH different and MUCH more
effective than what most people
do. And those things are well-worth
sharing.

I publish the monthly Dinosaur Files 
newsletter (really, it's a small magazine)
for the same reason. It gives me the
opportunity to share real world training
advice and workout reports from Dinos
around the world.

So don't be shy. Send me an email and
let me know what you're doing. Tell me
what's been working for you -- and, just
as importantly, what has NOT worked for
you. This kind of information is solid gold
for your fellow Dinosaurs.

And that goes double if you train in a
garage in Cleveland and you're moving
some world class iron. We need to tell
Dr. Ken he was right!

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. Go here to grab the December and
January issues of the new monthly
Dinosaur Files:

January

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

December

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Never stop
learning, never stop lifting, never stop
growing." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Cold Weather training Tips for Dinosaurs!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

It's a cold day here at Dino Headquarters.
Winter is here, and it's here for real. Last
night was a three layer workout in the
garage -- meaning I wore three layers
of sweat clothes to stay warm.

If it's cold where you are, do the same.
Bundle up and stay warm!

And that brings me to a cold weather
training tip.

I usually do the following exercises in
the following sequence:

1. Snatches or clean and jerks

2. High pulls

3. Squats or front squats

But when it's unusually cold, I often reverse
the order and start with squats.

Why?

Because it's hard to get warmed up for
snatches and cleans when it's really cold,
and doing the squats first helps assure
that my knees, hips and lower back are
warmed up and ready to go before I
do my snatches or cleans.

And if it's ice-box cold, I sometimes skip
the snatches and cleans entirely, and just
do squats, high pulls and push presses.
These movements don't require nearly
as much flexibility and mobility to
perform, so if it's hard to warm-up
and get loose, they work a lot better.

They're also easier to perform when
you're wearing extra layers to stay
warm. Snatches are hard to do when
it's a three layer workout.

I also don't try to handle maximum
weights when the weather is really
cold. It's much easier to pull a muscle
or tweak an old injury or sore spot
when it's cold, so why take chances?

You can apply a similar approach to
any type of training program, workouts
or equipment. The idea is to adjust what
you do (and perhaps change the order
of your exercises) based on how cold it
is and how difficult it is to get warmed
up.

For example, you might do something
as simple as including extra warm-up
sets when it's cold.

Or you might start things out with some
cardio training just to get warmed up.

Or you might do sets of five instead of
heavy singles.

Or skip the heavy stuff entirely and do
bodyweight training.

I could give many more examples, but
you get the idea.

Your training program has to be flexible.
Give yourself the freedom to make cold
weather adjustments. It can make all
the difference in the world.

Of course, if you train at a commercial
gym that's the same temperature all
year round, the outside temperature
doesn't matter as much.

But for garage gorillas, it makes a very
big difference. And that goes double for
older Dinos.

What about you?

Do you have any cold weather training
tips to share with your fellow Dinos?

If you do, shoot me an email and let me
know how you deal with three-layer
workouts.

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. Have you seen the December and
January issues of the new monthly Dinosaur
Files? Go here to grab them:

January

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

December

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "When the weather
is cold, bundle up and do squats!" -- Brooks
Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Attn Dinos -- What Would You Like to See?

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I'm finishing up several new projects, and
working on the February issue of The Dinosaur
Files newsletter, and I have a question for you.

What would you like to see in the next issue of
The Dinosaur Files -- or in my next Dinosaur
Training course?

Are there any famous strongmen, weightlifters
or bodybuilders of the past that you'd like me
to cover?

Is there something training-related that you've
been wondering about?

A particular training method?

A particular tool or piece of equipment?

Are you looking for something on diet
and nutrition?

Would you like to know what the old-time
champions ate?

Do you want to see something for older
Dinos -- or for younger Dinos?

For beginners -- intermediates -- or advanced
trainees?

What about specilaization programs?

Gaining weight -- losing weight -- building
strength -- increasing a given lift -- or just
building some serious muscle mass?

Are you interested in something that's
related to health and longevity?

Or does some Dinosaur mindpower sound
good to you?

I have some ideas on things to cover, but I
always like to hear from the Dinos. So if there's
something you'd like to see, shoot me an email
and let me know.

I'm also looking for training reports and similar
updates to run in the Mesozlc Mail and Jurassic
Jottings sections of the February Dinosaur Files.
So don't be shy -- send in a report and let your
fellow Dinos know what you're doing!

I'm also interested in how you like the format
for the new monthly Dinosaur Files, and the
digital delivery feature. Let me know how it's
working for you!

Otherwise, have a great day -- and if it's a
training day, make it a good one!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. Go here to grab the December and January
issues of The Dinosaur Files:

December

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

January

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here at Dino Headsquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Every hour of your
life has 60 priceless minutes of opportunity."
-- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

My Favorite Dumbbell Training Workout

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

We've been getting a ton of questions
about dumbbell training and dumbbell
workouts, so I thought I'd share my
all-time favorite dumbbell workout
with you.

I used this 20 years ago, when I was
preparing to film The Lost Art of
Dumbbell Training.

It worked pretty well. I got up to doing
the two dumbbell clean and press with
a pair of 126 pound dumbbells, a one
hand clean and push press with a 151
pound dumbbell, a one hand swing with
a 151 pound dumbbell, and a two hand
clean and push press with a pair of 131
pound thick handled dumbbells.   Those
were done at a bodyweight of 225 or
so, and I was 40 or 41 years old.

I trained three times per week, alternating
between two workouts. Workout A was
nothing but squats. I did bottom position
squats in the power rack, and either worked
up to a top single, or worked up to 5, 10 or
20 singles with a little less weight.

That was all I did in Workout A. Nothing
but squats.

Workout B was the dumbbell program. On
the one arm exercises, I would do one set
with each arm at each weight. On the two
dumbbell exercises, I would do one set at
each weight.

I trained all singles. I started light, and
worked up in 10 pound jumps to my top
weight in each exercise. Of course, the
program would work fine with doubles,
triples, fives or any other number of
low to medium reps. Or you could
start with sets of five and work up
to singles. There are many ways to
do the job.

To keep from having to spend the whole
workout changing weights, I would do one
set of all the exercises for each weight, and
then add weight and repeat the process.

As the weight increased and I maxed out
on different exercises, I would drop them
out of the rotation. Thus, at the end, with
the very heaviest weights, I would do only
the one hand swing and the one hand clean.

I did the following exercises:

1. Two hand dumbbell clean and press
(with two dumbbells)

2. One hand dumbbell clean and press

3. One hand dumbbell swing

4. Two hand dumbbell clean and push
press (with two dumbbells)

5. One hand dumbbell clean and push
press

6. One hand dumbbell clean (optional)

And that was it. Five or six big exercises.
Fast, fun and furious -- and very effective.

I cover more dumbbell workouts in
Dinosaur Dumbbell Training -- in fact,
there's a total of 50 of them, along with
detailed instruction on how to perform
each exercise:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dumbbelltraining.html

Also, we still carry my Dumbbell Training
DVD -- so you can see the entire workout,
including some of my all-time best lifts. It's
not exactly Hollywood quality, but it's a lot
of fun -- and it's got some great training
information:

http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dvds.html

Anyhow, if you're looking for somehting fun
and effective, give this workout a try. It
worked great for me.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. My other books and courses -- and the
all new MONTHLY Dinosaur Files newsletter
with immediate digital delivery -- are right
here:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 2. Thought for the Day: "Old school
dumbbell training builds serious strength
and power. Try it and see!" -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Hard Work, Intelligently Applied

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Yesterday's email ended with some good
advice from John Grimek.

Someone asked Grimek the secret of his
success.

"Hard work," said Grimek.

That's a very good answer, and an important
message -- especially for anyone who might
be looking for an "easy" way to build strength
and muscle.

But hard work alone is not the answer.
It has to be "hard work, intelligently
applied."

In other words, you need to train hard but
smart.

The secret of smart training is to follow a
sensible and realistic progression system.
You start relatively light and easy, and
gradually increase the difficulty of your
workouts. The initial workouts help you
lay the foundation for harder and heavier
workouts later on -- and for the gains
that those workouts will bring. But you
can't just jump into the hard and heavy
stuff. You have to build up to it.

This basic principle applies to any kind of
training, and any kind of equipment.

When you put it that way, it sounds self
evident -- and some of you may be
thinking, "I already KNOW that!"
or "Why are we talking about this?"

That's a fair question. Here's the answer.

We're talking about it because most
people are too stubborn to do it. Rather
than start light and easy, and lay the
foundation for big gains down the
road, they jump into a super-demanding
and ultra-intense training program
because they think they can make
super-fast gains that way.

But the gains don't come.

Instead, the over-zealous trainee does
the "Crash and Burn." He over-trains,
goes stale, burns out -- and often injures
himself.

And I'm not just talking about beginners. 
This is a mistake that experienced trainees
often make  when they come back from a
lay-off, or when they start doing a new
exercise or a new program, or when they
decide to go on some sort of special
program.

I've done it -- you've done it -- and John
Grimek did it. Everyone does it.

But you don't have to keep on doing it.

You can start training smarter -- and the
way to do it is to use old-school progression
methods with "slow cooking." Don't try for
overnight results, instant this, big arms in
21 days, 20 pounds of muscle in six weeks,
or adding 100 pounds to your PR in four
short weeks. Take it slow. Slow and steady
is always better.

Remember, there's no such thing as
overnight results in the Iron Game. It
takes time to build serious strength and
muscle mass. That's where the "train
smart" rule comes into play.

In short, make haste slowly. It takes
time, but slow and steady helps you
travel much further -- and people only
remember what you end up doing, NOT
what you did at the start of the journey.

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 old-school progression in this
course -- and I think it's one of the best
and most useful courses I've ever done.
It's available in hard-copy, Kindle or PDF
with immediate digital download:

Hard-copy

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets_03.html

Kindle e-book

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets3_kindle.html

PDF with electronic delivery

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaursecrets_vol3_digital.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are
right here:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. "It takes time and effort. Don't try to
short-circuit or speed up the process. Give
Mother Nature the time she needs to do her
job." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Grimek vs. The Dumbbells (Part 2)

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Note: This is part 2 of a true story that I
began in yesterday's email. If you missed
part 1, here it is at The Dinosaur Training
Blog:

http://dinosaurtraining.blogspot.com/2016/01/grimek-vs-dumbbells-part-1.html

I post all of my daily emails at the Blog, so
if you ever miss an email, go to the Blog to
read it.

Also, be aware that readers sometimes drop
off the email list for one cybergremlin reason
or another. I send emails every day but Sunday,
so if you don't get them for a few days you have
dropped off the list. If that happens, go to my
website and sign back up for the emails.

And now -- here's the rest of the story.

Grimek vs. The Dumbbells (Part 2)

Klein's words sting the young powerhouse.

He tries again -- and this time he manages
to clean the two dumbbells and push them
over his head in a single wobbly press.

He lowers the heavy dumbbells and tells
Klein that he'll be back in two weeks to
lift them properly.

Klein doesn't buy it.

"Fine," he says. "The dumbbells will be here
any time you want to try them."

Grimek goes home and starts doing dumbbell
presses like a madman.

Two weeks later he walks back into Klein's
gym, grabs the dumbbells, pulls them to his
shoulders, and starts pressing them so hard
and fast that it makes Klein's head spin.

After 15 reps, the joke's on Klein.

"That's enough!" he cries. "That's enough!"

Grimek lowers the dumbbells, and Klein walks
over to congratulate him.

"Now you see what a little practice and
persistence can do," Klein tells him.

Grimek nods.

It was true -- and it was a lesson well learned.

It's also an example of how Grimek approached
any challenge. He believed that he could do
anything if only he worked hard at it.

Many years later, someone asked Grimek the
secret of his success.

"Hard work," he answered.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. That entire story appears in chapter 28 of
my book, Legacy of Iron. The  book brings you
dozens of true, riveting stories of the old time
champions -- teaching you how they trained,
what they ate, and what made them great.
Go here to grab the little monster -- and if
you already have it, be sure to grab the
other books in the series:

http://www.brookskubik.com/legacy_of_iron.html

P.S. 2. My other books, courses and DVDs --
and the all new MONTHLY Dinosaur Files
newsletter -- are right here at Dino
Headquarters:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Chalk your
hands, grab the bar, and build your own
legacy." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Grimek vs. The Dumbbells (Part 1)

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Two quick notes, and then we'll talk
about Grimek and the dumbbells --
which is one my favorite Iron Game
stories.

1. The Dinosaur Files

Believe it or not, I'm actually working
on the February issue of the Dinosaur
Files. If you missed the December and
January issues, go here to grab them:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

And be sure to send me some feedback
on the new monthly Dinosaur Files and
what we can do to make it even better!

2. Hard Copy, Kindle and E-Books

We offer books and courses in a variety
of formats, because we know that some of
you prefer hard copy, some prefer Kindle,
and some prefer e-books. See our products
page for new sections with links to all 15
of our Kindle books and links to our e-books
that come in PDF format with immediate
digital delivery:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

The PDF format with digital delivery is
new for us, but it's been working great --
readers love it, and they love the immediate
delivery and not having to pay postage.

If you've been sitting on the fence about
our PDF products, jump off now and give
them a try. I think you'll be very pleasantly
surprised.

3. Grimek vs. The Dumbbells (Part 1)

Way back in the early 1930s, a young man
from the wilds of New Jersey took the weight
training world by storm as a stunning series
of magnificent photos began to appear in the
magazines.

Everyone was talking about the young man's
amazing development.

Before you knew it, his name was known
around the world: "John Grimek".

One day, the young Grimek journeyed to
New York City, and made his way to Sig
Klein's legendary gymnasium.

He went in and introduced himself. Klein
had seen it all, seen all the great athletes
and strongmen of the era, and he was
mighty hard to impress.

But Grimek impressed him.

Still, he wanted to test the young man.

He pointed to a pair of old-fashioned globe
dumbbells. One weighed 100 pounds and
the other weighed a little bit more. The
heavier bell had a long, thin handle,
which made it very difficult to lift.

Klein asked Grimek to clean and press the
two dumbbells.

Grimek had been doing nothing but
barbell work for a long time, but he
had no doubt that he could handle the
two dumbbells.

He grabbed them and tried to clean them --
and missed.

He tried again.

Same result.

And again.

He stood there, red-faced, sputtering, and
embarrassed.

And he told Klein the dumbbells were too
awkward and unbalanced to lift.

Klein looked him right in the eye and
said:

"A good strongman never makes excuses.
He takes anything that can be lifted, and
if he can't lift it at that time, he trains on it
until he does succeed."

Ouch!

That must have hurt.

But it's not the end of the story. It's just the
beginning.

(To be continued.)

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. For more about John Grimek's life and
his training methods, grab my John Grimek
training course:

Hard-copy

http://www.brookskubik.com/johngrimek_course.html

Kindle edition

http://www.brookskubik.com/grimektraining_kindle.html

P.S. 2. For the best in old-school Dumbbell Training,
grab this little monster:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dumbbelltraining.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Never make
excuses. Just get stronger." -- Brooks Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Sig Klein's Dumbbell Challenge!

Bosco demonstrates heavy dumbbell presses -- one of the secret weapons of the oldtime strongmen!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Two quick notes, and then we'll talk training.

1. Our Daily Emails

I send emails every day, with the occasional
exception of Sundays. If you don't get an
email from me, you may have dropped off
out email list. People drop off from time to
time, and we don't know why or how. But
it does happen.

If you think you have dropped off the email
list, go back to the Dinosaur Training website
and sign back up.

I post all of my emails at the Dinosaur Training
Blog, so you can go there and read any that
you may have missed. Access the Blog from
the drop-down menu at the website.

2. The New MONTHLY Dinosaur Files

The Dinosaur Files newsletter is now a
monthly, with immediate digital delivery.

Go here to grab the December and January
issues:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_december2015.html

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles_januaryr2016.html

3. Sig Klein's Dumbbell Challenge

The legendary Sig Klein had one of the best
gyms in the entire world, featuring a stunning
collection of old-time barbells, dumbbells and
kettlebells.

Klein used all of these tools in his own training,
along with some serious bodyweight work (he
was a master of herculean hand-balancing and
was great at strict-style handstand push-ups
and tiger bends). But dumbbells may have been
Klein's favorite tool.

Klein wrote a number of articles about old-school
dumbbell training. He believed that one particular
dumbbell exercise was the secret of the super
strength and remarkable lifting ability of the
old-time European weightlifting champions.

What was the exercise?

It was the two dumbbell clean and press --
performed for reps. One clean and one press
on every rep. The first clean from the floor,
and the the rest of them from the hang.

In one of his earliest articles, way back in
the 1930s, Klein issued a challenge to all
weightlifters and bodybuilders in the USA.

The challenge was to perform 12 continuous
reps in the two dumbbell clean and press with
a pair of 75-pound dumbbells.

Klein was able to do this himself -- at a weight
of about 150 to 155 pounds -- so in his case,
he was using a pair of dumbbells equal to his
own bodyweight -- for TWELVE non-stop reps.

That's a remarkable performance -- but Sig
Klein was a remarkable strongman.

Even today, almost 100 years later, Klein's
challenge is hard to meet -- and his own
performance, on a pound for pound basis,
is almost impossible to match.

Of course, if you rolled out the dumbbells
and started to work toward Klein's challenge,
some very good things would happen:

1. You'd get really strong.

2. You'd build tremendous conditioning.

3. You'd add some serious muscle to your
entire upper body -- especially your upper
back, shoulder girdle and arms.

4. You'd become a pressing machine.

5. You'd be able to toy with dumbbells that
most trainees can't even lift off the floor.

Hey, I sound like I just issued a challenge
for 2016!

If I did, it's a good one. Just ask Sig Klein!

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. Dinosaur Dumbbell Training and my Lost
Art of Dumbbell Training DVD will give you
everything you need to master old-school
dumbbell training:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dumbbelltraining.html

http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_dvds.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses -- and
links to my Kindle e-books and the monthly
Dinosaur Files newsletter -- are right here:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "If you want a
real challenge, try heavy dumbbells!" -- Brooks
Kubik

***********************************************************************************

Questions and Answers About the "Essential Exercises"

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Before we get into today's email, let me
again say THANK YOU for all of your kind
words and support following the loss of
our beloved Marcel. Trudi and I appreciate
it more than we can ever say.

By the way, Marcel used to lie on my desk,
next to my keyboard, when I was doing my
writing - so he played a major role in helping
me write all of my books, courses and blog
posts. So if I ever wrote something that you
particularly liked, Marcel probably deserves
at least some of the credit.

On the training front, let's answer some
questions from readers.

We've been talking about the "Essential Exercises"
this week, and I've been getting lots of feedback
from the Dino Nation. So let's cover some of the
more common questions.

Q. Why didn't Bradley J. Steiner include deadlifts
as one of the Essential Exercises?

A. Steiner preferred stiff legged deadlifts. Personally,
I prefer deadlifts. I think stiff legged deadlifts are
best done with a LIGHT weight, more for stretching
and flexibility than heavy strength training. Some
men (Dr. Ken) for example, thrive on heavy stiff
legged deadlifts. I guess it depends on your body
structure as much as anything else.

Q. Why didn't Steiner include Trap Bar Deadlifts on
his list of Essential Exercises?

A. Because the Trap Bar hadn't been invented then.
If it had been available, he might well have suggested
that readers try it. Personally, I'm a huge fan of the
Trap Bar. For more info on Trap Bar training, or to
order the original Gerard Trap Bar:

http://www.trapbartraining.com/

Q. What about dips? Don't you think they should
be on the list?

A. I know some of you are going to hate this answer,
but Steiner preferred the bench press and the
dumbbell incline press.

So do I. Dips are a great movement for young guys,
and many do them and use added weight and really
enjoy them -- but they are very hard on the shoulder
joint. I have rec'd many letters and emails over the
years from guys who hurt their shoulders doing dips.
If you simply MUST do them, do them slow and strict,
with no bouncing, and do NOT go for a deep stretch
at the bottom. And if you're an older and heavier
Dinosaur, you may want to skip them entirely.

If you don't like bench presses or dumbbell incline
presses, try the push-up variations in Dinosaur
Bodyweight Training:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_bodyweight.html

Steiner, by the way, liked push-ups quite a bit.
He thought they were better than bench presses
for martial artists.

Q. Steiner's list of Essential Exercises is pretty
old-school.

A. Right -- that's why I like it, and why I shared it
with you.

Q. What about Nautilus machines? I know those were
really big back in the 70's when Steiner compiled his
list.

A. They were indeed. Steiner actually thought they
were pretty good (he liked Arthur Jones' one set to
failure ideas), but he also noted (as did Jones) that
you could get great results with nothing other than
a barbell and a set of squat stands.

Steiner was at heart a home gym guy. He trained at
home, and he always wrote training programs that
worked for a home gym trainee. Cellar dwellers and
garage gorillas usually have barbells, dumbbells,
benches, and squats stands or a power rack --
but they don't have the space or the cash for
a set of a dozen expensive Nautilus machines.
So Steiner wasn't about to call them "essential"
even though he did like them.

Those are some of the more common questions
about the essential exercises. I'll cover some others
next week.

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. 1. For the best exercises for older trainees,
see Gray Hair and Black Iron:

http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are
right here at Dino headquarters -- including
links to my Kindle e-books and the all-new
monthly Dinosaur Files with immediate
digital delivery:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Exercises are
tools. Use the best you can find." -- Brooks
Kubik

************************************************************************************

All Out Exercises for Strength and Power!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Before we talk about sets and reps, I want
to thank everyone for all of the kind words
and emails about Marcel. Trudi and I
appreciate it enormously.

Carl Lanore let me dedicate yesterday's
episode of Physical Culture Radio to Marcel.

It turned out to be a great memorial for a
truly wonderful and amazing cat. If you
missed it, you can listen to it here:

http://superhumanradio.com/shr-1787-physical-culture-radio-living-life-like-marcel-almonds-10-grams-a-day-helps-keep-the-doctor-away.html

On the training front, let's talk a bit more
about Bradley J. Steiner's "Essential Exercises."
I covered this in an email on Monday.

If you missed it, go to the Dinosaur Training
Blog and read it there. By the way, I post all
of my emails on the Blog, so if you ever miss
an email, you can always find it at the Blog.
You can access the Blog from the drop down
bar at my website.

Anyhow, one of Steiner's essential exercises for
the back was the power clean.

I agree that the power clean belongs on the list,
but I'd go a bit further and add a number of
other weightlifting movements to the program.

Some people call these "All Out" exercises. That's
an excellent term for them.

And I'll tell you something else. I very much wish
that someone had taught me to focus on these
exercises when I was a kid. It would have been
the best thing ever for my wrestling. I was a
very good wrestler in high school -- I won a
state championship in Greco-Roman wrestling --
but I would have been twice as good if I had
trained with All Out exercises.

So here are some exercises that I consider to
be "Essential Exercises" for athletes -- and for
anyone who wants to increase their strength
and power enormously:

1. Power cleans

2. Clean grip high pulls

3. Power Snatches

4. Snatch grip high pulls

5. The power clean and press

6. The power clean and push press

7. The power clean and jerk

8. Push presses

9. Jerks

10. Snatch grip deadlifts

11. Clean grip deadlifts

12. Snatch grip or clean grip deadlifts
with a shrug at the top of the movement

All of the exercises listed above provide a triple
benefit. They simultaneously:

1. Build your strength and explosive power.

2. Improve your speed, balance, coordination,
timing and athleticism.

3. Train the heck out of your legs, back, hips
and shoulder girdle (which are the true keys
to Herculean super strength).

4. Build strong, thick bones.

5. Strengthen your nervous system, and help
maintain a strong mind-muscle link and
athletic movement patterns -- which makes
them very important for healthy aging.

For details on how to work these movements
into your training programs, see:

1. Chalk and Sweat (50 workouts from beginners
to advanced men, with many workouts featuring
weightlifting exercises):

http://www.brookskubik.com/chalk_and_sweat.html

2. Strength, Muscle and Power (29 chapters covering
a huge variety of topics, including how to add Olympic
lifting to your programs):

http://www.brookskubik.com/strength_muscle_power.html

3. Black Iron: The John Davis Story (reveals World
and Olympic champion John Davis' actual training
programs):

http://www.brookskubik.com/blackiron_johndavis.html

4. The Doug Hepburn Training Course (how the 1953
World Weightlifting champion trained):

http://www.brookskubik.com/doug_hepburn.html
5. Gray Hair and Black Iron (how older lifters can
train safely and effectively with Olympic lifting
movements):

http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html

6. Dinosaur Training Secrets, Vol. 1 (covers many
different training approaches for cellar dwellers and
garage gorillas, including ssome excellent weightlifting
workouts):

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_secrets_01.html

If you need help on how to perform the movements,
see my Going Strong at 54 DVD:

http://brookskubik.com/goingstrong.html

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. Again, thanks for the kind words about Marcel.
Trudi and I miss him terribly, but we are hanging in
there. Our other cat, Louie, misses Marcel, too. He
sits on the back porch, waiting for his friend to
come home. So we're being extra good to Louie.
It's a tough time for him. He and Marcel have been
together ever since Marcel joined us 10 years ago.

P.S. 2. You'd be surprised how many Dinosaurs are
big animal lovers. It seems to be a part of our Dino
DNA.

***********************************************************************************

Lessons from Marcel

Our beloved Marcel.  The best cat ever.  Everyone who knew him loved him.

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I missed my daily email yesterday,
but I have a good excuse.

We had a death in the family.

Yesterday we lost our beloved Marcel,
a wonderful, active, adventurous, gray
cat who had been with us for ten
glorious, fun-filled years.

Marcel had the best life of any cat who
ever lived -- and it was an adventurous
life. He was an indoor and outdoor cat,
living in a house on a hill with a big
yard, a maze of garden boxes, a
mulberry tree to climb, and endless
birds, squirrels, and small critters to
chase.

The squirrels loved him. When he lay on
the railing on the back porch, the squirrels
would lie on the fence posts and mimic the
way he lay there, face down, with his four
legs dangling down.

It happened so often that we called him
"The Squirrel God."

When he was a small kitten, our daughter
kept him on a long leash when he went out.
He made a beeline for the magnolia tree,
and climbed up as high as he could. He
loved climbing. But climbing with a leash
around your neck can be dangerous, so
we let him off his leash.

Five minutes later I saw a tiny kitten
sitting on top of the neighbor's garage,
surveying what was to become his un-
disputed domain for the next 10 years.

Not long after, our daughter went off to
college, and Trudi and I became Marcel's
new parents. He wasn't sure we would do
a good job for him, so he ran away.

We searched everywhere, put up signs,
made calls, and paid the kids in the
neighborhood to try to find him.

Several days passed -- and there was no
sign of Marcel.

And then, while little Marcel was still out
there -- somewhere -- Louisville was hit
by a terrible storm with hurricane force
winds -- the remnants of a hurricane that
roared out of the Gulf of Mexico and into
Texas.

Trees were toppling everywhere -- branches
and wires were coming down -- and everyone
stayed in their basement, huddling in the
dark with their loved ones.

After the storm, Trudi got a call on her cell
phone.

A family several blocks away had found
Marcel. We raced over to get him -- passing
a dozen or more downed trees along the way.

When we got there, they told us the story.
When the storm hit, the little kitten did what
he thought was the safest thing.

He climbed a tree in their back yard.

And there he was for the entire storm, holding
on for dear life, 30 feet above the ground -- in
a hurricane. The family saw him, but there was
nothing they could do to help him. He had to
do it on his own. And he did.

After the storm had passed, the little kitten
climbed down the tree and stepped with
waery, wobbly legs onto the wet, green
grass.

Trudi wrapped him in an old sweater and
carried him home, holding him close. And
as you can guess, Marcel got a very big
dinner that night.

That was our Marcel. He was fearless. He
was an adventurer. He always loved
to climb as high as he could climb -- and
to spend long hours sitting with the sun and
wind on his face, watching what happened
below.

His favorite spot in the entire world was
the deck outside a third story apartment
in a house on the hill above us.

He would climb up the wooden steps and
sit and see for miles.

I learned many things from Marcel. You
always learn important things from a
special pet.

This is what Marcel taught me:

"Live every day to the fullest. Make time to
sit in the sun and the wind. Always look for
the high ground.  Enjoy the far horizon,
and make everything you see your
own special kingdom."

And there was another important lesson:

"If you're caught in a tall tree in a
hurricane, hold on tight -- and enjoy
the adventure!"

Marcel is gone, but he's enjoying a new
adventure. He can fly now -- and I know
it's something he always wanted to do.
His spirit is free and unfettered.

Goodbye, Marcel. Thank you for the years of
love and laughter -- for the memories -- and
for the lessons you shared with us.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. Of course, my next workout will be extra
hard and heavy to honor Marcel. Please join me
and do the same. He'll appreciate it.

P.S. 2. Carl Lanore graciously agreed to let
me share Marcel's story on yesterday's
episode of Physical Culture Radio. Here's
the libnk to the download:

http://superhumanradio.com/shr-1787-physical-culture-radio-living-life-like-marcel-almonds-10-grams-a-day-helps-keep-the-doctor-away.html

***********************************************************************************

Build a Gorilla Grip with these Great Exercises!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Yesterday we talked about Bradley J. Steiner's
list of "the Essential exercises."

It was a pretty good list, but there are plenty
of other good exercises. So I'll go over some
other possible movements today and later in
the week.

In other words, we'll make this "The Week of
Good Exercises."

Today, let's cover forearm and grip exercises.

I often end a training program by saying:
"gut, grip and neck work." Readers often
ask what  they should do to train their
grip. Here's the answer.

Forearms and grip

1.Thick bar deadlifts with a double overhand
grip and timed holds with the thick bar (also
using a double overhand grip)

a. Okay, that's two exercises -- but they're
good ones. And you can always combine
them by finishing any set of thick bar
deadlifts with a timed hold.

b. Do these at the end of your workout, as
a grip exercise. If you do deadlifts to build
all-around body strength, then train them
earlier, with a regular bar.

c. See Strength, Muscle and Power and
Dinosaur Training for more about thick bar
training. They're the books that put it on
the map!

2. Thick bar pull-ups

a. Yes, you can do timed holds on a thick
handled pull-up bar.

b. See Dinosaur Bodyweight Training for
some killer pull-up variations and grip
blasters.

3. The one-arm deadlift

a. Use a regular bar or a thick bar.

b. Use a dumbbell if you prefer.

c. See Strength, Muscle and Power for a
complete chapter on this terrific exercise
and how to use it.

4. The Farmer's Walk

a. These are one of the best all-around
exercises. They build strength, muscle
mass, conditioning, and a MONSTER
grip.

b. As in a "Frankenstein Meets the
Wolfman Meets King Kong Meets
Godzilla Grip."

5. Hand-grippers (Captains of Crush, etc.)

a. These are one of the best grip movements
you can do.

b. Get your grippers from John Wood at
Functional Hand Strength:

http://www.functionalhandstrength.com/captains_of_crush_grippers.html

6. Rope climbing

 a. This is one of the best upper body
exercises there is -- and it's a terrific
grip developer.

b. If you don't have room for a climbing
rope, use two short ropes for pull-ups, as
detailed in Dinosaur Bodyweight Training.

c. Grab your ropes here:

http://www.functionalhandstrength.com/climbing_ropes.html

7. Hammer curls (esp w/ thick handled dumbbells)

a. These work even better with thick handled
dumbbells.

8. The vertical bar lift

a. This is a very good, and greatly under-
rated movement.

9. Lever bar lifting

a. A classic old-time exercise.

b. Fun to do with sledge hammers.

10. Pinch grip lifting

a. Use plates, blobs, blocks with an attached
chain for extra weight -- they're all good.

11. Finger-tip pushups (with or without extra
weight)

a.  A favorite of many old-time boxers
and wrestlers.

12. Two finger deadlifts

a.  Use a regular bar for this.

b. You can use a reverse grip or a doublle
overhand grip.

c. Go light at first to build up the tendons
and ligaments.

So there you have it -- 12 great grip exercises.

Of course,  you're not going to use them all at
the same time or in the same training program.
The best thing to do is to pick two or three
different exercises, and train ONE of them at
the end of each workout. Rotate the exercises
from workout to workout.

For example, let's say you train 3x per week on
M/W/F.

For your grip work, do this:

M - Thick bar deadlifts

W - Pinch grip lifting

F - The vertical bar lift

After 6 to 8 weeks, pick three new movements and
train them for awhile. Over time, you'll get plenty of
variety, without ever overdoing things.

And who knows -- after a few years of serious, Dino-
style grip training, you may be able to make it into
the Gorilla Grip Hall of Fame!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S.  You can find Dinosaur Training, Strength, Muscle
and Power, Dinosaur Dumbbell Training and Dinosaur
Bodyweight Training right here at Dino Headquarters.
They all have more great tips for building a Gorilla
Grip:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 2. Thought for the Day: "A strong grip is the
mark of a strong man." -- Brooks Kubik

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