The Strongest Arms of All Time!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Doug Hepburn may have had the strongest
arms and shoulders of all time.

Consider the following feats:

1. Right hand military press with
DB 175 lbs.

2. Two hands military press off
rack 440 lbs.

3. Two hands military press with
two DB's 350 lbs. (2 x 175 lb. DB's)

4. Press behind neck 350 lbs.

5. Two hands strict curl 260 lbs.

6. Two hands strict curl for reps
(get this!) 235 lbs x 5 reps

7. Two hands strict curl with 135 lbs.
35 reps

That's what I was thinking about when I wrote
DINOSAUR ARM TRAINING.

I wasn't thinking about the muscle pumpers,
the guys with the "big guns", the Mr. This
or That winners, or the guys with the
(alleged) 24 inch upper arms, the "triple
horse-shoe triceps" or the "quadruple peaked
baseball biceps."

I was thinking about Doug Hepburn -- lifting
some very heavy iron back in the 1950's --
and building what may very well have been the
strongest arms and shoulders of all time.

If you're wondering what you'll find in DINOSAUR
ARM TRAINING, here's the answer -- you might find
something very similar to the way Doug Hepburn
trained.

Or the way John Grimek trained -- or the way
Reg Park trained -- or the way Bruno Sammartino
trained -- or the way John Davis trained.

Arm training is way more than muscle pumping --
and it's way more than bombing, blasting and
blitzing -- and it's way more than posing all
day in front of a mirror.

If you don't believe me, just ask Doug Hepburn.

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. We're in the middle of a huge pre-publication
special for DINOSAUR ARM TRAINING -- and you can
reserve your copy right here:

http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_armtraining.html

P.S. 2. For more information about Doug Hepburn
and how he trained, grab my Doug Hepburn Training
Course:

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

P.S. 3. You can find my other books and courses right
here at Dinosaur Headquarters:

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

Dinosaur Arm Training!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I have some very BIG NEWS for Dinos!

I've just finished a new Dino-style
training course -- and I think you're
really going to like it.

The title is DINOSAUR ARM TRAINING.

And as you might guess, it teaches you
how to build BIG, STRONG and RUGGED arms.

Arms that are big, thick, muscular and
powerful looking -- and every bit as
strong as they look.

It's going to be a BIG course --
8 1/2 x 11, minimum of 32 pages
(perhaps more) -- with photos of old
timers from my personal collection.

You can reserve your copy of the little
monster right here:

http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_armtraining.html

IMPORTANT NOTE:

This is a pre-publication special.

DINOSAUR ARM TRAINING will be printed and
ready to ship on or before 9/30 (hopefully
sooner, but you know how how printers can
be). I'll fill all orders in the order in
which I receive them -- and all if you take
advantage of the pre-publication special,
I'll include a special bonus when I fill
your order -- a great looking 8 1/2 x 11
mini-poster featuring one of my favorite
Golden Age photos. It will look great
on your wall -- or on the wall of your gym.

ALSO -- if you want me to autograph your
copy of DINOSAUR ARM TRAINING, include a
note in the SPECIAL COMMENTS box of the
on-line order form. I'm always happy to do
that for you, but you need to ask!

So that's the BIG NEWS -- and now you know
how to step up, jump to the head of the
line and reserve your copy of DINOSAUR ARM
TRAINING.

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 the link for DINOSAUR ARM
TRAINING:

http://brookskubik.com/dinosaur_armtraining.html

P.S. 2 -- To order my other Dinosaur Training
books and courses, go here:

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

An Important Question for the Dino Nation!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

One quick correction, and a very important
question for you:

1. Correction

The link to Ben Bergman's Power and Might
Blog was broken in yesterday's email.

Try this instead:

http://powerandmight.blogspot.com/2011/08/my-review-of-legacy-of-iron-series.html

If that doesn't work, go to his home page and
look for his blog post on the Legacy of Iron
series:

http://powerandmight.blogspot.com/

Sorry for the problem with yesterday's link! As
a Dino, I am a T-Rex, not a Tek-o-saurus.

2. Question for Dinos

As I mentioned, my birthday is coming up soon --
as on September 9. And I wanted to do some things
to celebrate -- things that involve doing stuff
for the Dino community.

So let me know if any of these ideas interest you
(and pls respond even if the answer is "sorry, not
interested" -- there are many things I can do, and
I'd like to do something that MANY of you want to
see or read):

a. A special b'day training DVD showing the old
guy (that would be me) hitting the iron out in the
garage on his 54th b'day.

I could film an actual current workout from start
to finish, and explain what I am doing and why.

And if you'd like I could include some step by
step instruction on the lifts I'm doing at present
(old-school split cleans and split jerks, and old-
school split snatches). So it would be a two for
one DVD -- the b'day workout PLUS some instruction
on old-school lifting.

b. A short book or course consisting of answers to
your training questions.

Here's how it would work -- I'll put up a special
page to pre-order the book.course -- and then you
would place a pre-publication order, and include ONE
brief training question with your order. It could be
anything from "can you give me a good program for
gaining muscle" to "how can I increase my press?"
to "What do you know about [name of famous old-time
lifter]" to "Who is your favorite old-time lifter
and why?" to "What is the greatest feat of strength
of all time?" to -- well, pretty much anything.

I'd take the first 100 orders and the questions that
are asked, and work at warm-speed (that's a Tek term)
to get them into a book or course. And then we'd get
the little monster formatted and laid out, add some
photos, work up a cover, get it printed, and shoot it
out the door to you.

This would NOT be limited to 100 purchasers -- the
first 10 purchasers are the ones who get their questions
answered, but I won't limit the number of copies to 100.
Everyone will get a chance to grab the little monster.

If you like the book, I could do a second volume with
questions that didn't make it into the first one.

I like the idea because I see that so many readers have
the same or similar questions, and that means that even
if YOUR question wasn't answered, you'd find answers to
tons of other questions that have been bothering you.

And often, what seems like a very difficult or even
impossible question becomes easy when you get some
advice from a guy who's been doing this stuff for as
long as I have (45 years now).

So I think 100 DINOSAUR TRAINING QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
would be a fun and very valuable project.

But as I said, I want to know what YOU think -- so pls
shoot me an email and let me know if you like it.

c. Option 3 is that we have a big birthday bash, everyone
comes over, we all lift heavy stuff, and afterward we
gorge ourselves on grilled steak and fresh salad greens.

I like that option the best, but I think the neighbors
would complain if 10,000 Dinos crammed themselves into
the garage and back yard and started to lift heavy iron.

Heck, it might even cause the next big earthquake --
and I don't want to be responsible for triggering a
tectonic plate shift that splits North America in two.

Anyhow, thanks for reading, and please let me know what
sounds good for a Birthday Special -- and if you have
any other ideas, feel free to shoot them in!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. My books and courses are ready to ship -- and I might
mention that BLACK IRON: THE JOHN DAVIS STORY would be a
heck of a nice treat for any serious Iron Slinger and fan
of old-school lifting. And if you want an autographed copy,
just let me know!

Black Iron: The John Davis Story

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

For other Dinosaur Training books, courses, t-shirts,
the Dino Files newsletter and the Legacy of Iron books,
go here:

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

P.S. 2 Save some wampum on s&h by ordering two or more
books, courses or other items at one time. There's no
reason to pay the post office 2x!

More Questions and Answers for Dinos!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I received a ton of questions in response to
yesterday's email about balanced training
programs. I'll cover some of the more common
questions in my daily emails. I always figure
that if ten people send me the same or similar
question, many more of you have the same
question.

And please note -- this question is one I have
rec'd from many older lifters -- and the younger
readers should note, the answer is NOT to "Shut
up, be tough, and just do it!" Older lifters
need to train differently than younger lifters,
and sometimes means they need to do different
exercises.

Q. "I'm 52 and I can't do back squats any more.
They're just too hard on my back. Would front
squats be a good alternative?"

A. Absolutely! I've been using front squats as my
primary leg exercise for the past couple of
years and they work great. I really like them.

It's better to do them holding the bar at the
shoulders, as if you were doing a squat clean --
but if that's impossible for you, then use the
"crossed hands" or "bodybuilder style" of front
squats. They both work.

If you can, do full squats. All the way down.

BUT NOTE: you need to maintain an upright torso
when you do front squats. You cannot lean forward
on these.

That means, you'll need to wear shoes with a
built up heel -- as in, hiking boots with a heel,
construction boots with a heel, or Olympic lifting
shoes.

I wear the Power Perfect II weightlifting shoe.
They run 119 clams. There are more expensive OL
shoes, but I actually like these better. I got
them from Bud Charniga at the below link:

http://www.dynamic-eleiko.com/

IMPORTANT: If you are an older lifter and you
want to try front squats because back squats hurt
your shoulders or your back, your flexibility is
not going to be what it was when you were younger.
That's why you need the shoes!

I'm a good case in point. I can do front squats
perfectly well in my OL shoes -- but in regular
gym shoes, I have trouble doing them with an
empty bar.

In my case, my ankles and Achilles tendons are a
little tight. And for guys over the age of 40,
that's not at all uncommon. And that's why I wear
OL shoes.

If your knees hurt, wear rubber knee bands. Tommy
Kono invented these, and he sells good ones:

http://www.tommykono.com/

For sets and reps, always remember that less is
more -- especially for an older lifter. And
remember that you need to get those warm-up sets
in. As I've said before, if you don't have time
to do your warm-ups, you don't have time to
train.

Start very light and work up with progressive
poundages. You want your knees, ankles, hips and
lower back to be well warmed up by the time you
tackle your work sets.

For older lifters, low reps are often best. Not low
reps with weights that crush you, but low reps with
weights that are challenging, but weights that you
can control.

Do NOT drop and bounce. Control the weight all the
way up and all the way down. Your knees don't like
drop and bounce lifting.

Five reps per set is your max number. Triples and
doubles are probably better. I like doubles. I usually
do doubles on my warm-up sets, and work up to my
top weight for the day, where I do 5 sets of 2 reps.

Do them once or twice a week. I like once per week.

And yes, you can wear a belt if you prefer to do that.
But if you do front squats without a belt, you get a
bonus -- you train your midsection (isometric style)
at the same time you work your legs!

For more info on effective training for older lifters,
including sets and reps (and over 50 training programs
for older lifters of different ages and different levels
of experience), grab a copy of Gray Hair and Black Iron:

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

That's a long answer to a short question, but there
was plenty to cover. The devil is always in the
details.

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. A special note for beginners of all ages -- be sure
to grab CHALK AND SWEAT. One reason I wrote the book was
to give beginners some detailed instruction on how to get
started in the Iron Game -- so 10 of the 50 training
programs in the book are for beginners. (The other
programs are for intermediates, advanced lifters and
guys who are interested in building maximum strength
and muscle as fast as possible.) You can grab it here:

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

Abbreviated Does Not Mean Unbalanced!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I get lots of questions from readers asking
me to give them feedback on their Dino-style
abbreviated workout.

Let me summarize some of my responses, and see
if you notice a pattern:

1. "Why no squats?"

2. "Do you deadlifts?"

3. What do you do for your upper back?"

4. "Do you do any pressing movements?

5. "Do you do any sort of overhead pressing?"

6. "Do you do any sort of cardio work?"

7. "Are you doing gut, grip and neck work?"

I bet you see the pattern!

Too many guys interpret abbreviated training as
meaning you only do two or three exercises that
you happen to enjoy -- or that you happen to be
good at.

Thus, the guy who deadlifts a ton but has a lousy
squat will do deadlifts but no squats.

The guy with the good squat and the lousy deadlift
will skip his deadlift.

The guy with the bad pressing leverages will
"forget" to include presses.

And so on.

But there's a big difference between abbreviated
training and unbalanced training.

The way to keep everything in balance is simple.

Use the squat, pull, push formula.

Every week, you should include one squatting
exercise, one pushing (pressing) exercise, and
one pulling exercise.

If you wish, you can train 2x per week and squat,
pull and push in each workout. (Note: this works
better for guys who do Olympic style -- high bar --
squats and front squats, and Olympic style pulling
movements, e.g., high pulls, power cleans, power
snatches or classic snatches and cleans in split
or squat style. Powerlifting style (low bar) squats
and deadlifts are hard to do 2x per week if you go
heavy in each workout.)

Or you can train two primary exercises per session,
such as squat and bench or deadlift and overhead
press, and mix things up from workout to workout.
That would allow you to train 2x or 3x per week,
as you prefer.

Simple formula -- but it works. It helps keep your
training in balance.

But remember -- you also want to do some sort of
gut, grip and neck work -- and you want to do some
sort of cardio work. Remember, your heart and lungs
are as just important as any other muscle group --
and perhaps more important than any of them.

And a final note. I often write about ultra-
abbreviated training, where you may do only one
exercise per workout.

How do you balance your program?

It's easy -- you do several different workouts,
with a different exercise in each -- or you
specialize on one exercise for 6 to 8 weeks, and
then specialize on something else -- and over time,
you build balance into your program.

William Boone did that back in the 30's and 40's,
and over time built world class strength and power
in the squat, the deadlift, the bent press and the
jerk from stands -- an amazing example of all-around
development resulting from (get this) one exercise
workouts!

As always, thanks for reading, and have a great
day. If you train today, have a great (and well
balanced) workout!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. For more information on balanced training
programs, grab CHALK AND SWEAT or STRENGTH, MUSCLE
AND POWER -- or order both books and save on s&H:

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

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

P.S. 2. For more information on cardio training for
strength athletes -- a very important and often
neglected topic -- grab a copy of Gray Hair and Black
Iron -- it has a ton of ideas on how a "heavy iron"
guy can work his heart and lungs without doing cardio
theater, "stepping" himself to death or training like
a 120 pound marathon runner:

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

P.S. 3 My other books and courses are right here:

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

Enough Is Enough!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Yesterday, we covered one of the more
common training questions from reader --
the one about "the latest and greatest
super program."

Now, some of you may think I'm being
silly by even talking about the super
programs -- and some of you may wonder
why I bother -- and some of you may even
be angry at me for suggesting that (secret
of secrets) the super programs don't work.

Well, here's why I talk about them -- and
why I urge folks to avoid them.

I covered the whole super program thing in
a recent interview on SuperHuman Radio. And
after yesterday's email message, I received
an email from a lifter who had listened to
the show. Here's what he said:

"It was great to hear you address Bulgarian
daily max training on the SuperHuman Radio
show.

As I write this, I am slowly healing a
bulging disk in my back thanks to the
Bulgarian program.

I fell in love with Olympic lifting, but
instead of following a 3 day a week plan
I tried to fast track things with a daily
max program.

Now I haven't been able to lift at all in
a month and who knows when I will be better.

I found out the hard way that these programs
are for the pros who devote all their time to
lifting and probably use "supplements" as well.

When I heal up, I will be back to listening to
you and training three days a week. You were
right."

And that's the most recent email from someone
who hurt himself following one of the super
programs -- but it's not the only one I've
ever received.

If the super programs were simply misguided and
ineffective -- a waste of time -- that would be
one thing. But when they hurt people, that's when
you have to stand up and say "Enough is enough."

That's what I'm doing. And I hope you'll join me
in the battle.

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're looking for a good program for a
beginner or intermediate, grab Chalk and Sweat.
(It also has programs for advanced men and sensible
programs for gaining maximum muscle mass.)

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

P.S. 2. If you're over the age of 35, be sure to read
Gray Hair and Black Iron:

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

P.S. 3. If you want to learn about power rack training,
rest pause training and oodles of other good stuff,
grab Dinosaur Training and Strength, Muscle and Power:

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

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

P.S. 4. If you want to learn how the strongest men
in the world trained "back in the day" -- without
drugs and without super programs -- then grab the
Doug Hepburn Training Course and Black Iron: The John
Davis Story:

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

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

P.S. 5 -- We'll cover this in more detail in another post,
but did you note one of the big mistakes made by the reader
who hurt his back?

He was a BEGINNER at Olympic weightlifting. And instead
of using a beginner-level program, he tried a program
based on what World and Olympic class lifters are doing.

ALWAYS follow a program that is appropriate for your
current level of strength and development. If you are
not a champion, you're not ready for the champion's
program!

That's so important that it should be a BLACK BOX
WARNING on the front cover of every muscle mag in
existence -- and on every internet site, forum,
or blog that covers weight training, weightlifting,
powerlifting and bodybuilding.

The "Have Your Heard About?" Question

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

I'm not sure why, but over the past 10 days
I've been getting a ton of questions from
readers about training programs. I thought
I'd share some of the common questions, and
my responses to them. Let's begin with this
one:

1. What do you think about such and so?

"Such and so" is code for any super program you
see on the internet or in the muscle mags. You
know, the high volume, supposed super program
that is guaranteed to add 20 or 30 or 40 pounds
of muscle to your frame in six short weeks --
or add 100 pounds to your favorite lift (or
to each of your lifts) in six short weeks --
or make you look EXACTLY like Joe Superstar in
six short weeks. ("Joe Superstar" being code for
whoever is the star of the month in the muscle
mags and internet forums.)

And here's my answer:

DON'T DO IT.

The super programs are always way too high in
volume for the average lifter. They don't build
you up. They tear you down.

The super programs are ultra-advanced specialization
programs. Most of them are programs designed not to
build you up, but to burn calories so you get "cut"
or "ripped" or (if you really get into it) "shredded."

You build up -- as in, you build strength and muscle --
on 3x per week programs. Beginners should do total
body workouts and ONE set of each of 8 to 12 different
exercises.

Intermediates can do 2 or even 3 sets -- and may find
that they gain best on abbreviated training and divided
workouts.

Advanced men do best on abbreviated training and divided
workouts.

The super programs came into prominence in the 50's and
60's, when bodybuilding started to become more popular
than lifting.

The bodybuilders would train on short, heavy "mass
building" programs for much of the year -- and then
switch to a special pre-contest program for the last
6 or 8 weeks before a contest.

The purpose of the pre-contest program was NOT to
build muscle. Instead, the programs were designed for
deliberate over-training to burn as much body-fat as
possible in order to create maximum definition on
the day of the contest.

That was fine as far as it went -- but the problem was,
the writers would ask the bodybuilders to give their
training program after the contest -- and instead of
saying, "Well, I train 3x a week and do the usual stuff:
squats, presses, rowing, etc." -- the bodybuilder would
give his special pre-contest super program.

And the writer would go back home and do an article about
how Mr. Whatever built huge muscular size by training for
four hours a day six days a week.

And then the kids would read the muscle magazines, and
they'd all run out and start training four hours a day
six days a week because that's how the "champs" did it.

And of course, they never built an ounce of muscle on
the super programs. How could they? The super programs
didn't even build muscle for the champions. All they
did was burn fat. The biggest problems the champions
had was MAINTAINING muscle size when they were on the
pre-contest super program.

So how in the world could poor little Johnny use the
champs pre-contest DEFINITION program to build his
11 inch upper arms into the BIG GUNS he so desperately
wanted?

And that's how people got hooked on the idea of super
programs.

So when someone asks, "Have you heard about Such and So?"
the answer is always the same.

Yeah, I hard about it. Don't do it. It's a waste of time.

Train the right way. Hard. heavy. Abbreviated. Concentrated.
Focused. Compound exercises. Progressive poundages. The stuff
I cover in all of my books and courses, and in each issue of
the Dinosaur Files newsletter. If you want to build strength
and muscle, it's the only way to go.

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. For more information about serious, productive, effective
training to build strength, power and muscle mass, grab any of
my books and courses. You can find them right here -- and if
you're not sure which one to order first, send me an email and
we'll sort it out for you:

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