Hail to the Dinosaurs!
(Here's Part 3 in "Strength Training Secrets."
This is turning into a free mini-book on real-world,
no-nonsense strength training. Hope you enjoy and
benefit from it!)
I stepped up to the barbell and began to unload
it.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Taking it down to 135."
"Why? I always use 350."
"You need to do warm-ups."
"I never do warm-ups. They're a waste of time."
"You need to do them," I said. "Everyone needs to
do them."
"But I'm busy! I don't have time for warm-ups!"
I stopped and looked at him sternly.
"If you don't have time for warm-ups, you don't
have time to train," I said.
"But -- but -- they don't build any muscle. The
weights are too light. What's the point?"
The bar was loaded to 135. I briefly considered
dropping it on him and leaving. Or better yet,
wrapping it around his neck and leaving.
It took an effort of self-control, but I managed
to stay calm and simply answer his question.
"Okay, here's the deal on warm-ups," I said.
"Number one -- warm-ups are an important part
of your workout. No, they don't trigger gains in
strength. muscle and power. It's your working sets
that do that."
"But if you skip the warm-ups, or if you don't do
them the right way, you reduce your ability to go all
out on your work sets. And that reduces your results."
"A cold muscle can generate a certain amount of
strength and power. When the same muscle is warmed up,
it can generate MORE strength and power. And when
you're lifting weights, more strength and more power
is always a good thing."
"If you don't believe me, look at any athlete in
any sport. The athlete spends plenty of time doing
focused warm-ups before going into competition."
"Olympic weightlifting champions will often begin
by warming up with a BROOMSTICK. Then they move on
up to AN EMPTY BAR. And these are incredibly strong
and powerful athletes."
I paused and looked at him.
"Does that make sense?" I asked.
He nodded slowly.
"I never thought about it that way," he said.
"Well, that's the way to start thinking about it."
He nodded slowly.
"Number two -- warm-ups help you avoid injuries.
That's simple common sense. And it's especially
true as you get older."
"I guess that makes sense," he said.
"How old are you?" I asked.
"32."
"Well, give it a few more years, and it will make
a heck of a lot more sense."
He nodded. Maybe I was starting to get through to
get through to him.
"I know a lot of guys think it's cool to run out and
grab the bar and start slamming it up and down to show
how strong they are -- but that's dumb. Those are the
very same guys who end up hurting themselves and
dropping out. Don't copy them."
He nodded again.
"Number three is really important," I said. "It involves
the mind-muscle connection."
"What's that?" he asked.
"The mind-muscle connection is what links your mind --
meaning your brain and your nervous system -- with your
muscles. the stronger the link, the more muscle fibers
you activate. "
"People who don't lift weights usually think it's all
about muscle power. It's not. It's really more about mind
power than anything else."
"To get the most out of your training, you need to get
your mind involved in your workout. You need to FOCUS.
You need to CONCENTRATE. You need to eliminate all
distractions."
"When you train, your mind should be operating at top
efficiency. You should have greater mental focus than
when you do anything else."
"That sounds zen," he said.
I nodded.
"It is, grasshopper."
He was too young to catch the allusion. I sighed, and kept
going.
"When you start training, you need to gradually warm-up
your body so it is ready for peak performance. But you
also need to do the same with your mind. You need to
clear out the fog and the cobwebs of daily life. You
need to tighten your focus and narrow your concentration.
You do that step by step, becoming more and more focused,
as you do your warm-up sets."
He looked stunned.
"Wow, I never knew warm-ups were so important," he said.
"Well, now you know."
I pointed to the bar.
"That's 135 pounds. I want five reps in perfect form, with
good, tight, focus and deep, powerful concentration."
He nodded, chalked his hands and stepped to the bar.
TO BE CONTINUED . . .
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. My books, courses, DVD's and Iron Game novels are
available right here:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
P.S. 2 The best-seller of the week is my new book, Black
Iron: The John Davis Story:
http://www.brookskubik.com/blackiron_johndavis.html
