Double-Blind Strength Studies?

There are no double-blind research studies to prove that John Grimek's training programs really work - or that any other old-school programs work - or that Dinosaur Training works -  and there never will be. Here's why.

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Here's something to think about when
you look for research studies on strength
training and muscle building - or if you
wonder "Where are the research studies
to back up Brooks' claim that old-school,
Dino-style strength training works so
well?"

The gold-standard for diet and nutrition
studies - or drug studies - is the so-called
"double blind study."

In a double-blind study, you break your
test subjects into two different groups.

One of them takes whatever you are
testing, be it a vitamin, an amino acid,
an omega 3 capsule or a particular drug.

The other group takes a placebo - a pill
that looks just like the real thing you're
testing, but doesn't contain any active
ingredients.

In other words, a sugar pill.

The key to a double-blind study is to
control things so that neither the test
subjects nor the researchers know who
is getting the real thing and who is
getting the sugar pill.

That removes any kind of bias on the
part of the researcher - and it removes
any kind of placebo effect on the part
of the test subject.

In other words, the test subject can't
report a particular result that the pill
being tested is supposed to give.

"Wow, I feel great - have tons of energy -
that new energy pill must be working!"

Or: "My stomach feels fine - that new
antacid must be doing the job!"

The thing is, you can't do a double-
blind study of many important things.

For example, you can't do a double-
blind study comparing a pure vegan
diet to a diet that includes large
amounts of meat and eggs - because
everyone knows the difference
between a plate of broccoli and a
steak.

Nor can you do a double-blind study
comparing Olympic lifting to power-
lifting - or 5 x 5 to 1 set of 10 reps -
because both the test subjects and
the researchers would know who
was doing what.

That's not to say that strength studies
are worthless - but it does suggest that
you need to look at them very carefully.

Are they testing how well a particular
training method works - or are they
testing how much the researcher (or
the test subject) BELIEVES it will
work?

And what if something that has worked
very well for many trainees over the
years is tested by the research honchos
and doesn't work as well in the lab?

Is it the program - or the test subject's
understanding of the program and his
or her belief in how well it will work (to
say nothing of his or her burning desire
to achieve a particular result)?

Which leads to this thought:

Wouldn't it be interesting to compare
a 5 x 5 program on 100 test subjects
who have never heard of 5 x 5 and
have no idea whether it would work
and what it will do -

and then compare THAT group -

to a group of test subjects who have
been taught the history of 5 x 5, and
how well it works, and how many great
results it has produced over the years?

In other words, a group of subjects
who were given a great big dose of
BELIEF in what they were doing and
how well it would work?

And, of course, you could do similar
tests with many other old-school,
Dino-style training methods.

We might very well find that self-
confidence and the unwavering belief
that your training program WILL work
is the most important factor of all.

And wouldn't that be a game-
changer?

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. If you want to do your own one-
person experiment to see what really
works when it comes to building
strength and muscle, start with
this little monster:

Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of
Strength and Development

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

"You can if you BELIEVE you can!"

- 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

The 17 Wrist Watches Workout

That's the great John Grimek - with a leather brace on his right wrist - not a wrist watch. I don't know if Grimek ever trained with a wrist watch on, but he sure as heck never did the 17 Wrist Watch Workout - and neither should you!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Two quick notes, and then we'll talk
training - as in, the insanely popular
17 Wrist Watches Workout.

1. The Dinosaur Files

If you don't have the April issue of
The Dinosaur Files monthly newsletter,
you're missing a good one - so go here
to grab it:

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaurfiles-april2018.html

Also - if you missed the Oct, Nov, Dec,
Jan, Feb or March issues. you can grab
them here:

Oct, Nov, Dec and Jan issues

http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_files.html

Feb issue

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur-files-february2018pdf.html

March issue

http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur-files-march2018pdf.html

The Dinosaur Files comes in a down-
loadable PDF with immediate electronic
delivery. Once you have it, you can save
it on your PC or print it out (or do both).

If you don't have a printer and you need
a hard-copy, shoot me an email - we'll see
what we can do.

Also - if it's easier for you to purchase a
one year, 12-issue subscription, shoot me
an email - we can make that happen, as
well.

2. The Best Poster Ever

John Wood has released a killer poster
featuring an awesome photo of the great
old-time champion, Charles Rigoulet,
lifting an enormous globe barbell.

I really like it - and I think you will, too.

Go here to check it out:

https://www.retrostrength.com/product/charles-rigolot-1924-miroir-des-sports-poster/

3. The 17 Wrist Watches Workout

Bradley J. Steiner often noted that
there's a big difference between the
right amount of exercise and TOO
MUCH exercise.

A one-hour workout three times a
week might be just the thing for you -
it might leave you feeling great after
every workout - and it might build all
the strength and muscle you want -
along with superb good health.

But more than that - two hours per
workout or more than three workouts
per week - might be too much.

It might tear you down, wear you out,
and bring your gains to a sudden and
screeching halt.

It might also nullify the health-building
benefits of your training - or worse,
make you so run-down and tired that
your training is actually BAD for your
health.

Steiner offered a memorable analogy.


You can get an expensive, high-quality,
deluxe wrist watch - and it looks great
when you wear it.

Or you can try wearing six or seven top
quality wrist-watches - all at the same
time.

And that looks ridiculous - on anyone -
even a famous movie star or other
celebrity.

Because too much of anything is - well,
it's too much. It just doesn't work.

But nowadays, we have trainees who
want to do it all.

They want to do:

heavy weight training

high-rep bodybuilding

heavy singles

triples

5 x 5

20-rep breathing squats

death sets

powerlifting

kettlebells

Olympic lifting

Bone Strength training

pre-exhaustion training

bent presses

yoga

sled dragging

tire flipping

sprints

hill sprints

long distance running

strongman training

thick bars

sandbags

tire flips

grippers

extra grip work

bodyweight training

isometrics

nail bending

time under tension

negative reps

30 minutes of pre-hab before
every workout

30 minutes of post-hab after every
workout

weighted carries

flexibility work

interval training

martial arts

box jumps

power walking

And anything else they can think of - or that
they read about on the Web - or that they see
on social media.

And they want to do it all at the same time - if
not in the same workout, then in the same
program.

In other words, they very literally want to
do it all.

It's far worse than wearing six or seven wrist-
watches, as Steiner cautioned against nearly
50 years ago.

It's more like trying to wear 17 wrist watches
at the same time.

And that just doesn't work.

Not for me, not for you, and not for anyone
else.

Now, there's nothing wrong with any of the
things I mentioned. You can do any of them,
some of them, or all of them. But you can't
do them all at the same time.

Pick and choose.

Find something that appeals to you - and
that will help you achieve your training
goals, whatever they may be - and that
you can do with whatever equipment is
available to you.

And be sure it fits your current strength and
fitness level - and your energy level and your
recovery ability - and your available time,
whatever that may be.

Set up a good progressive training program
where you focus on a couple of things -
not everything, but a couple of good things.

Then knuckle down and train on them hard
enough and long enough to get some good
results.

Later on, you can try other things.

But for now, put together a sensible workout,
and train it hard and smart - and exclusively.

In other words, wear one wristwatch at a
time.

It works a lot better that way.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. I have some great workouts in Chalk and
Sweat - 50 of them, in fact - and I know that
if you look there, you'll find something that is
perfect for you:

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

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: 

"Training is like anything else in
life. It works best when you focus
on one thing at a time."

-- 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 Stop Your Progress Dead in Its Tracks!

 

Like all great champions, Mr. Universe Reg Park used many different programs over the years - but he didn't bounce randomly from program to program. He always stuck with any particular program long enough to let it work - and later, when his gains began to slow down, he switched to a new program. That's intelligent training - and it gave Park great results!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Let's take a minute and talk about the number
one progress buster.

This derails more trainees than almost anything
else.

It happens to beginners and intermediates all
the time - but it even happens to experienced
trainees.

I'm going to cover it NOW, so it doesn't ever
happen to YOU!

Recently, I discussed the importance of concentration
when you train -- and I noted that distraction was a
physical culturist's greatest enemy.

I was talking about distraction during your workouts.

But there's another kind of distraction -- and it's a
huge problem -- and one that's getting bigger all the
time.

It's information overload -- and it's the result of all the
different people with all the different whiz-bang training
programs, workouts, exercises, and ideas.

Now, there's nothing wrong with training information
per se -- or with reading about training or with being
on the lookout for new ideas. In fact, the availability
of good information and the free-flow of ideas is a
good thing.

But it becomes a BAD thing when it leads a trainee to
start to second-guess what he's doing -- or to change
what he's doing before he's had a chance to make any
real progress from it.

Remember, it takes a while for a training program to
work.

For most people, it goes something like this.

You start light and easy and gradually add weight and
build up the intensity of your workouts. This may last
anywhere from two to six weeks.

Eventually, you hit a point where the workouts are hard,
heavy and demanding. This is where the program will
prove its worth. It's the hard part of the training cycle
where you make your gains.

Finally, you reach a point where your gains slow down or
come to a stop.

At that point, you switch to another workout -- once again
starting light and easy, and working up to some serious
iron and some serious effort.

Over time, this approach gives you plenty of variety,
and builds a ton of strength, muscle and power.

But you have to stick with each program long enough
to make progress.

If you change your program every time you see some-
thing new and different, you usually don't do very well.

In short, information is good -- but you need to know
how to use it -- and when to use it.

And you need to stick to a given program long enough
to get some real results.

Make a plan -- and follow through.

That's the key to success.

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. If you need help finding the right program for
your current level of experience, strength and
development, grab this:

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

P.S. 2. My other books and courses -
and links to all of my e-books on Kindle
- 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:

"A good program always works, but it
doesn't work overnight. You have to
give it time."

-- 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

Lost in the Woods

 

Like all champions, Reg Park knew the importance of setting goals and working relentlessly to achieve them. Park learned what worked, and stuck to it through thick and thin. 

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

A guy decided to go hiking, so
he packed up his knapsack and
headed out.

He ended up far, far into the
woods.

It was very quiet - and very
beautiful.

He was all alone.

He walked along a clearly
marked path.

Someone had blazed it many
years earlier - and many
people had followed it
over the years.

It was easy to see - easy to
follow - and it led straight
to a cabin with fresh water,
food and plenty of wood.

"I wonder if I should cut
through the underbrush,"
he thought. "That might be
quicker."

So he turned to the side,
left the clearly marked path,
and plunged into the heavy
brush.

In no time at all he was
utterly and completely lost.

He went up steep hills.

He scrambled through thick,
foul-smelling mud.

He hurt his feet on sharp
stones.

He got stuck in a brier patch
(and it hurt!).

He was hungry and thirsty and
tired.

He went round and round in
circles for several hours.

Finally, after many tries, he
found the path again.

He headed rapidly toward the
cabin.

Things went well for several
miles.

Than he had an idea.

"I wonder if I should cut
through the underbrush,"
he thought. "That might be
quicker."

MORAL OF THE STORY

Find what works - and keep on
doing it.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. Dinosaur Training has been
teaching the path to might and
muscle for over 20 years. If you
don't have a copy, grab it now:

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

The little blue book that's been helping people build strength and muscle for more than 20 years. If you don't have a copy, grab it now.

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:
"Why go in circles when you
can go straight to your goal?"
Brooks Kubik

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

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