More Spartan than Ever!

The outdoor lifting area at Dino Headquarters is as Spartan as it comes - but it's a great place to train!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

A quick heads-up and then we'll talk
training.

The Dinosaur Files should be coming
out later today or tonight. I'll send an
email when it's ready.

We're running a bit late, so this will be
a combined May-June issue - an extra
big issue, with some killer workouts -
including a special challenge workout
that I know you're going to want to
try.

It comes from far away and long ago,
and you do it with - well, heck, I won't
spoil it for you.

But you're gonna love it!

On the training front . . .

I started out training at home, with a
basic barbell and dumbbell set.

I trained in my bedroom.

As you can imagine, it was pretty
Spartan.

Over the years, I've trained in many
different places - but I've spent the
most time (by far) in a basement or
garage gym.

They were all similar - nothing fancy -
pretty Spartan - basic but functional.

But last night's workout was in a gym
that was about as Spartan as they
come.

It was the outside training area here at
Dino Headquarters.

I set up two 4 x 4 squares of 1/4" rubber
matting on the concrete drive in back of
our garage, rolled out the dumbbells, and
I was ready to go - in the most Spartan
gym you ever saw.

But Spartan was all I needed.

I stretched, loosened my shoulders,
chalked my hands and got going.

It was 90 degrees with high humidity,
and there's no AC when you train out-
side, so it was hot.

Darn hot.

I trained pretty much non-stop for 90
minutes, and probably lost about 4 or
5 pounds during the workout.

And that was with drinking plenty of
water - as in, going through my stain-
less steel water bottle not once but
twice - for a total of 34 ounces of
clear, cold, and much needed water.

I did swings, cleans, presses, squats,
rowing, and a ton of other things.

By the time I finished, my shirt was
completely soaked, my hair was matted,
my glasses were covered in sweat so bad
I could hardly see, and I looked like I had
been training outside in a rain storm.

But I felt great.

I put the mats and the dumbbells away,
closed and locked the garage door, and
headed upstairs for a long, cold shower
followed by dinner and plenty of water.

Trudi looked up as I walked inside.

"Looks like you had a good one,"
she said.

And she was right.

Spartan workouts are always good.

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. We're down to the very last box of
Strength, Muscle and Power - and I'm
not going to reprint it any time soon -
perhaps not ever - so if you want a
copy, grab it now:

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

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

Hard-copy and PDF

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

Kindle

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

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day:

"It's not what you have or where you
train - it's HOW you train that counts!"

-- Brooks Kubik

BEFORE YOU LEAVE . . .

We have more than 25 Dinosaur Training books and courses in the Kindle bookstore - here are several of them - head on over and take a look at the others:

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

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

How to Train in a Blast Furnace!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Like many of you, we've been baking
under a massive heat wave. We had some
relief last night when it rained for an
hour. But overall, it's been brutally
hot -- up to 104 degrees.

I train in the garage, and there's no
air conditioning, so it's like an oven
(no, make that -- "like a blast furnace")
by the time I train in the early evening. 

So I've switched things up, and I'm doing
something I haven't done for a very long
time. I'm training in the morning.

It actually works pretty well. I set the
alarm for 6:30, roll out of bed, throw on
my lifting clothes, feed the cats, turn on
the coffee and head out to the garage.

The trick to early morning workouts is to
do plenty of warming up. I usually spend
10 or 15 minutes on warm-ups, loosening up
and general mobility work. Today, I did
20 minutes.

After the warm-ups, it was time for snatches.
I've been hitting split style snatches lately.
They're fast and fun, and in addition to
building strength and power, they're great
for speed, balance, coordination, timing and
athleticism.

I've been doing a lot of reading lately about
the mind-muscle link, and about using your
training to help keep your nervous system
working at peak levels as you grow older.
Exercises like snatches, cleans, the clean
and press, the clean and push press, and the
clean and jerk are good for that. (Pat O'Shea
covers this topic in Quantum Fitness II --
an excellent book.)

My next early morning workout will focus on
the clean and jerk -- and the one after that
will focus on front squats. Nothing exotic,
but it keeps me young. And for an older lifter
staying young (or at least, feeling young) is
pretty darn good.

After the workout, it was definitely time for
breakfast. Trudi made a big plate of chopped
greens from the garden -- about three cups of
chopped kale, lettuces, arugula, parsley,
basil, chard, Asian greens and mustard
greens -- and topped it off with four fried
eggs (free range eggs from one of the local
farmer's markets), and crumbled bacon
(grass fed pork from the same farmer's
market). The workout, the breakfast and a
cup of coffee got the day off to a great
start.

Anyhow, the heat is hitting us all, and we
all need to figure out ways to work around
it. Keep drinking lots of water, and stay
super hydrated. You may want to reduce your
intensity, your weights and your volume. A
short, lighter workout may work a lot better
when we're up over 100 degrees. And a lighter
workout is a heck of a lot better than no
workout at all.

And now it's time to get to work. I'm working
on a new book covering Dinosaur Dumbbell
Training, and it's looking pretty darn good.
Stay tuned for further developments on that
front!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. The summer is a great time to work in
some bodyweight training -- and Dinosaur
Bodyweight Training is the way to go. It's
not your ordinary bodyweight stuff -- it's
high impact, high intensity strength training
and muscle building with Dino-style bodyweight
exercises -- and it works great! You can grab
a copy right here:

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

P.S. 2. Older trainees should read Gray hair and
Black iron.It's the first book ever written about
serious strength training for older lifters. You can
find it right here at Dinosaur headquarters:

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

P.S. 3. My other books and courses are at the
usual place:

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

P.S. 4. Thought for the Day: "Drink water, train,
drink more water. The most important advice for
summer training  is to drink lots of water." --
Brooks Kubik

Dinosaur Training Q and A -- More Hot Weather Training Tips!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Quick reminder, and then some Q and A.
My buddy John Wood still has some complete
12 issue sets of the 1943 run of Strength
and Health mag -- but they're going fast.
No wonder, either, because these are GREAT
vintage mags, and the whole 12 issue set
runs a mere 40 clams:

http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/strengthandhealth1943.html

And now -- some training Q and A.

Lee Anderton sent in the following question,
which may be of interest to many readers. It
presents a very common question:

"I have a quick question about very bad
performance in a single exercise in what was
generally a good workout.

I have recently come back to training after a 15
year lay-off. My goal is to get back to where I
was previously and then push on from there. I am
38 years old but still with the mental energy of
a 20 year old if you know what I mean. My question
is this.

I have been performing really well with what I
consider good solid progress in bench, bent over
row, deadlifts, curls, standing press, and high
pulls. However, my squatting is really suffering
and if anything it feels like it is getting worse.

I am resting 3 - 4 days between workouts and make
progress on every exercise in every workout apart
from squats. I recently performed 6 reps with 120
kg (265 lbs.), but 5 days later could only get 2
reps with the same weight. However, all the other
exercises were stronger than the previous session.

I was on my feet all day and it was extremely humid
so I was sweating most of the day and may not have
had enough fluids. Could it simply be that I was
dehydrated and it was just the big whole body
lift of squats that suffered because my legs were
tired? Do I just put this down to a bad day and
suck it up and push on?

Lee"

Hi Lee -- Thanks for your email, and good job on
getting back to the iron. At age 38, you have many
years of great lifting ahead of you -- and you can
look ahead to being stronger than ever when you hit
the big 4-0!

As for your question, I think you answered it -- it
is very hard to squat heavy if you've been on your
feet all day, and that goes double or triple in
extremely hot weather.

Do this:

1. Drink lots of fluids (water) and get hydrated to
the max.

2. Eat lots of fresh green veggies, carrots, potatoes
sweet potatoes, bananas, oranges and other fruits for
the mineral content. Be sure your calcium intake is
high as well (dairy products). Remember, when you sweat,
you lose both water and minerals. So you need to be
sure to replace both of them.

3. If you drink coffee or tea -- or beer or wine -- you
are actually dehydrating yourself, so for every glass
of same have an extra glass of water.

4. For your squats, I want you to back off a bit and
build back up. Get your groove and your confidence back.

Use this simple progression:

a. 100 kilos (220 lbs.) for 1 x 5

b. 100 kilos (220 lbs.) for 2 x 5

c. 100 kilos (220 lbs. for 3 x 5

d. 102.5 kilos (225 lbs.) for 1 x 5

e. 102.5 kilos (225 lbs.) for 2 x 5

f. 102.5 kilos (225 lbs.) for 3 x 5

g. 105 kilos (231 lbs.) for 1 x 5

And so on from there, following the above pattern. This
gives you three workouts at each weight level, adding one
5 rep set per session. It helps build your confidence, and
assures that you are always eager to go out and hit it
hard.

As for those long days on your feet -- if it happens
again, skip a workout or divide it into upper and lower
body and save the squats for another day.

Remember -- drink water. Stay super-hydrated!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. At age 38, Lee is ready for Gray Hair and Black Iron --
and so are many of the rest of you. It lays out EXACTLY what
works for an older lifter, and details over 50 different
workouts for Dinos age 35 and up. If you don't have a copy
grab one now:

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

P.S. 2 Younger readers should grab Dinosaur Training, Chalk
and Sweat and Strength, Muscle and Power -- 3 killer books
with killer training programs for strength and muscle. You
can find them here:

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


P.S. I keep saying it, because it's important. Keep drinking
lots of water!

Hot Weather Training Tips for Dinosaurs!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Like much of the USA, we're in the middle
of a terrific heat wave -- and since
I train out in the garage -- with no air
conditioning -- it's been extra-fun.

Since many of you are in the same boat,
let's cover some hot weather training tops.

1. Dress for the heat.

This one is or should be obvious. Lightweight
clothing. Shorts or cut-off sweats and a t-shirt.

Do NOT dress in heavy sweats to "sweat off the
pounds." You'll simply sweat yourself into a
state of heat exhaustion.

2. One and off again.

I like to sweat a sweat-shirt for squats and front
squats no matter what the weather. The last thing
i want is for the bar to start rolling on my sweaty
upper back and shoulders.

So I bring a special shirt with the sleeves cut half
way off -- and put it on before each set of squats --
and then take it off in-between sets.

Colors are optional, but I like grey. It's a good
guy color.

By the way, I wear it inside out so the rough side
contacts the knurling on the bar. It helps.

3. Wear shoes.

Not things. Not flip-flops. Not sandals. Not bare
feet. Shoes.

4. Bring a Towel.

If you're training hard and heavy in the heat, you'll
be sweating buckets. bring a towel to wipe your face and
hands.

4a. Bonus tip for married guys.

Do NOT steal one of her her favorite bath towels.

5. Water, water, everywhere . . .

I hope by now everyone knows that it's very important
to drink lots and lots of water -- especially when it's
HOT!

Drink a minimum of 8 8 oz. glasses throughout the day --
including 8 to 20 oz an hour before training -- and drink
another 8 to 24 oz. (or more during your workout).

6. Water is water.

When I say water, I mean water -- not energy drinks, not
protein shakes, not chocolate milk, not beer. Water.

7. Don't skip the warm-ups.

I know it's tempting in hot weather -- but DON'T SKIP YOUR
WARM-UPS!

And don't cut them short.

If you're gonna be serious about your training, you need
to be serious about your warm-ups, as well -- and that means
even if it's super hot.

8. Chalk.

Hot weather workouts and sweaty hands mean you need to use
chalk.

9. Abbreviated Training.

It's the best way to go any time of the year, but it's extra
important in hot weather. 90 to 100 degree heat is no time
for a marathon training program.

10. Pick your time carefully.

If it's really hot, consider getting up early to train when
it's cooler -- or train a bit later in the evening.

Whatever you do, don't do it in the heat of the day.

11. Lower your reps.

High reps really take it out of you in hot weather. It's
definitely not the time for 20 rep squats.

I like singles, doubles and triples when it's blistering
hot.

12. Check your ego.

Super hot weather is no time for PR's, limit lifts, or
mega-intensity training. Hold something in back. Keep
something in reserve. The important thing is to train,
not to make it the best workout of all time.

The same is true of cardio training. If you go out for
a walk -- or a run -- or whatever -- and it's killer hot,
feel free to ease back on the throttle.

Last night I trained in the garage for over an hour. I did
split style snatches and front squats. I did lots of heavy
singles. Not maximum singles, but heavy singles.

This morning I got up early and worked in the garden for
an hour -- then went for a long walk at a good pace (for
about an hour and 15 mins) -- and then spent another 30
to 45 minutes in the garden.

None of it was maximum effort stuff, and none of it was
work yourself into the ground stuff. But it was all good
exercise.

And let me ask this -- how many 54 year old guys (other than
Dinos) are doing anything remotely similar?

Louisville is a city of over 1 million, and as far as I know,
I'm the only 54 year old guy who does Dino-style lifting out
in the garage on 90 degree days.

And that's the way to think about it -- and the way to keep
your hot weather training in proper perspective.

As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. If you
train today -- well, you know what to do!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. For more information about sensible, productive training
for older lifters, grab a copy of GRAY HAIR AND BLACK IRON:

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

P.S. 2 My other books and courses -- including my big new
biography of lifting champion John Davis, are right here:

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

P.S. 3 Don't forget -- drink your water!