I'm making a real effort to discipline myself and use the Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) properly. Due mostly to being mentally lazy, I tend to take every set to a 9 or maybe even a 9.5 RPE. I don't think I'm being too hard on myself when I say it's laziness because when you're …
Everyone is Miserable
One of those ubiquitous Facebook memes rolled by as I scrolled and it got me to thinking. The meme features a woman calling 911 to report that she thinks someone is breaking into her home. The 911 operator asks her if she has a gun, to which the frightened woman replies, "No, I'm afraid of …
Primarily Supplementing Assistance
I have learned many concepts since embarking upon the strength training path a decade ago, and one on which I devoted entirely too much energy is something commonly called assistance work or accessory work. The idea being to use a wide range of exercises designed to build strength in the muscles that do the lifting …
UL 83
I have devised a resistance training program designed to improve health, strength, muscle size, connective tissue health and encourage skeletal integrity and stability. I provide it for free to all my faithful readers. While the name may seem like something you see stamped on a generic pharmaceutical, it perfectly represents the basic ideology behind the …
Facing Facts
Facts are stubborn things. Regardless of one's aspirations, wishes and desires, they remain resolutely in place like gravity. Reality isn't malleable, especially under the bar. You pit your body against a fixed weight in time and space and you either move it or you don't. Powerlifting is a test of strength in three specific lifts, …
1 Rep Max Testing
Day one of Project Momentum is complete. I must have jinxed myself writing about the fear of injury training at 100% of my max, for on the very last lift of a very long morning, I got a familiar popping feeling in my left hip/glute/low back area. 10 hours later, it hurts, but it is …
Pro Mo
Today is the day. My flexor muscles haven't made their presence known in a few days, my training has been easy as my body has recovered and I feel ready to rumble. I will head to the gym shortly to do a mock Powerlifting Meet and hit a max in all three power lifts. I've …
Overcoming Adversity
Tweaks, sprains, strains and injuries are part of life, especially if one's life involves lifting heavy weights up and down repeatedly. I've had my share, with fortunately only once having to go under the knife to repair a fully ruptured bicep tendon from a 415-lb deadlift. Learn to Hook Grip kids if you love your …
Winding Up
I'm starting to feel the recovery that just a few days ago, I thought would evade me. Â I took some extra days completely off, I am still in the deload phase I discussed recently, but I can tell both by my subjective assessments of my body's aches and pains, and my desire to lift starting …
A Proclamation!
This is a truly astounding document, but what makes it so is that it isn't irony or satire. The President of the United States has proclaimed that the date of his inauguration as the 45th man to lead the nation is a day of patriotic devotion. Par for the course, to use a metaphor near …
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