Of course it was a compliment.
That post was awesome A, per usual.
Can I get that on a bumper sticker?
“I thank God that I am not basic.”
Just a Wayne lyrics that your post reminded me of.
“-I hate half-assing things-If I choose to do something I will give it 100% of myself. If I can’t guarantee that, I simply will not do it.”
yep!
Oh, hey there 
Hey Alpha, just wanted to let you know Ive been following for a long time even though I havent posted much. Youre a giant influence in my training and your philosophies have really helped me break down a lot of my own limiting factors. Ive been clicking on the ads to say thanks haha.
P.S. I`m headed to South Korea next week, any tips for stayin safe? lol
"Hard, hard work, clean food, and stay tough mentally and you will get where you want to go. Personally, I wouldn’t try to over complicate this stuff. On the previous page i posted a rant that pretty much lays out exactly what i think a person needs to do to get somewhere in the game. Check it out. You will see that most of it is about overcoming mental barriers and being consistent. "
Spot on. I am a big believer in keeping it basic
Alpha, you have honestly been a great motivator for me and my workout partners. I am a Strength and Conditioning Coach for a HS football team and have been able to motivate them with your posts and videos as well. I printed out a lot of your rants and quotes, have them posted on the wall for the boys. I was sent your log 5 months ago from one of my workout buddies and looked over it for a minute but did not really read it.
The past few weeks i have gone through your whole log. I never have made an account here. but to post on your log i have, to say thank you. I will keep you in my prayers and wish the best for you and your girl. You have the respect of everyone on this site, and I am sure everyone you meet.
nlmain: Thanks so much for the sweet words! and I’m glad you like the avi! i am still waiting for some black screen pics!
Chi-Town: Thanks man, steal away!
nikki: Well than thank you! oh and the bumper sticker is still in production…I think I would shorten it to “Suck less.”
MIM: Hey girlie! Great to see you are back!
Mackk: Thanks so much for the kind words man, it really does mean a lot! Ok and in Korea, just make sure you bring Eric Roberts with you. Yes, that was a Best of the Best reference…Give me a break, i just saw it on TV last week!
Timmyo: Me too brother! i have been hit in the head waaaayyyyy too many time to try and complicate things!
TVSCoach: man, that is one of the coolest compliments I have ever heard man. thank you so much for that!
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“In this life we get only those things for which we hunt, for which we strive, and for which we are willing to sacrifice.”
- George Matthew Adams
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29November2010: Training
Put your bodyweight on the bar 225lbs
10 Rounds
1a. 225lb Bent over Barbell Row: 10 Reps for 10 sets
1b. 225lb Flat bench: 10 Reps for 10 Sets
1c. 12 Knees to Elbows: 10 Sets
1d. 50 Meter Hill sprint.
Then
Continually switch between each exercise at failure until you complete
150 Dips
200 Sit-ups
300 Push-ups
Notes:
-My chest was fried by the end of this…push-ups and dips were darn near impossible. 100 reps of both rows and bench should be hurting me by tomorrow. this is all pennance for 4 thanksgiving dinners…ahhhhhh i love stuffing…stupid stuffing…
Thanks for reading! I hope all of you are getting back on track today!
4 Thanksgiving dinners? Damn dude, I thought 1 breakfast and 2 dinners was rough…
Training looks brutal as alway Alpha, keep doing your thing man, you’re always an inspiration 'round here.
Ink: Yeah man, when i do something I do it right! Thanks for the kind words brother!
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“Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the dangers of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of ‘crackpot’ than the stigma of conformity. And on issues that seem important to you, stand up and be counted at any cost.”
- Thomas J. Watson
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30 November2010: Training
One big circuit. Complete it as it is written.
7 Rounds as fast as possible:
(12) 95lb Sumo Deadlift high Pulls with a spraw.
(12) Dumbbell Step ups
(12) Dumbbell Swings
(12) Pull-ups
(12) Burpees
(12) Handstand push-ups
(12) Box jumps (Stacked bumper plates)
Run 400 Meters
Repeat 6 morre times…
Strength:
Strength: Giant Sets
1a. Lat pull down (leaning far back): 4 sets of 10 with some heaviness…
1b. obliques 4 sets of 10 each side
2a. Seated Rows: 4 sets of 10 with more heaviness
2b. Obliques: 4 sets of 10 each side
2c. Standing DB Curls: 4 sets of 8 each side with (Who cares about lbs? they are curls!)
Notes:
-heck of a workout, the first part was hard as all get out!
-I have still be doing my 20-30 minutes of incline walking in the mornings everyday…just wavent logged it down too much. at this point it is juts kind of an extra NEPA thing at this point.
-Also i am going to go fight tonight as well…three a days are rough, but should be some good clean fun.
i hope all is going well out there!
30November2010: Fuel
Meal 1: 1 scoop Metabolic Drive, 1 Scoop ON 100% Whey, 2 BCAA’s, 1 Flameout, Milk
**Morning energy systems work
Meal 2: 1 scoop Metabolic Drive, 1 Scoop ON 100% Whey, 2 BCAA’s, 1 Flameout, water
**The above workout was here:
Meal 3: 1 scoop ON 100% whey, 1 Scoop Metabolic Drive, 5 BCAA’s
Meal 4: Steak, peppers, onions, Pilaf, banana, 1 Flameout
Meal 5: 1 scoop Metabolic Drive, 1 Scoop ON 100% Whey, 2 BCAA’s
Meal 6: Steak, peppers, onions, 2 BCAA’s
**Fight class for 2 hours
Meal 7: 1 scoop Metabolic Drive, 1 Scoop ON 100% Whey, 2 BCAA’s, 1 Flameout, Milk
Thanks for reading! This thing is almost all filled up!
Hey Alpha, I was reading one of your pieces from 5100block and you mentioned you’re done with 5/3/1 for a while and switching back to your old routine. I was wondering how you compare the progress you’ve made on 5/3/1 with your original process? Hows the progress coming? Well I hope! Thanks man.
Mackk: You know, i really don’t think I ever gave 5/3/1 enough of a chance. i never really followed it exactly as Wendler laid it out and didn’t do it for any more than like 3 months at a time. with that said, i like the gains I get with my programs better and I get less bored with them. but again that is me. I think 5/3/1 is great for so many people and i truly think it is an excellent program. maybe one day i will do it for real. Thanks for checking in brother!
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“Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”
-Muhammad Ali
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01December2010: Training
20 Squat Jumps
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Push-ups
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Jumping lunges
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 sit-ups
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Burpees
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 (4 count) Flutter kicks
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 (4 count) Mountain climbers
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Squat Jumps
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Push-ups
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Jumping lunges
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 sit-ups
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Burpees
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 (4 count) Flutter kicks
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 (4 count) Mountain climbers
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Squat Jumps
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Push-ups
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Jumping lunges
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 sit-ups
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 Burpees
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 (4 count) Flutter kicks
2 min Shadow Boxing
20 (4 count) Mountain climbers
2 min Shadow Boxing
Then:
Strength: Giant Set
1a. Standing Barbell Behind the neck press: 135x10, 135x8, 135x8, 135x8
1b. Standing Dumbbell Arnold Presses: 40x8, 40x8, 40x8, 40x8
1c. Dumbbell Lateral Raises: 30x10, 30x10, 30x10, 30x10
1c. Ab Roll-outs: Some x some
Notes:
-man i woke up hurting today between fighting last night and the workouts from the previous days. i jumped on the tread mill for 20 minutes and did some stretching then did the above workout with one of the sqauds i was working with this morning. it felt good, then i knocked out the strength stuff.
-I feel good right now and am definitely still leaning out.
Hope all is good out there!
I think we would all like to know, how did the fight go? I’d hate to be on the other side of the ring!
Hey man I haven’t been able to check out what you’re doing the the past weeks.
How was the fight ? Did the other guy survive ?
Good to see your training is even more awesome bro.
Chi town and Delta: Ha thanks guys, but it was just some training in fight class. That went really well though! and I really appreciate the votes of confidence!
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I originally posted this on my first log, but with this one coming to a close I figured i would post it for others to read. It is a long one but makes a good point in my opinion…
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Let me begin this soapbox session with two statements.
Number one: This rant is on a topic that has been haunting me lately, so please understand that I am preaching to myself here more than to anyone else.
That said…please don’t take this as a personal attack on you.
Well, unless what I say describes you…in that case - take this as a direct personal attack on yourself…
And Number two: Before I get 50 angry PM’s about how much of an idiot I am…I have ABSOUTELY nothing against knowledge.
In fact if it weren’t for knowledgeable websites like this one, I would not be where I am today. Not only in my training, but also not in my life.\
However, I fear that we are at a point in our history where we are now so overwhelmed with what we should or should not do, that we end up simply doing NOTHING AT ALL.
In some ways the knowledge we have gained about our passion has paralyzed us from getting out there and pushing our limits in order to gain the experience that is needed for us to get to where we want to be. And the training world, whenever there are more words than actions, - a change needs to take place.
At times in my own life I have gotten so tangled and turned upside down by rep schemes, rep tempos, and time under tension, that I have forgotten that there are plenty of people out there who are a lot bigger, stronger, and faster than me, and none of them became that way by sitting around and thinking or reading about it!
It is these same revolutionaries that paved the way for all of the studies we have today, with their own blood, sweat, and puke. I would go so far as to say that the training world as we know it, is as complex as it is, simply because over the years, a few hard-headed individuals chose not to believe in the limits people tried to put on the human body, said “Screw the science” and made their gains through EXPERIENCE and hard work. It was not accomplished trying to perform every rep with an exact 3.762 second eccentric phase!
These individuals knew what they wanted, and although they may not have had the best road map of how to get there, they were all more than willing to do the leg work involved.
That’s a whole lot more than what I can say about lifters today.
What in the hell happened to us?
I would like to stand by calmly and say that none of this is our fault. I would love to say that it is society that has made us soft; that convenience and technology has brought us to a place where we had no choice but to adapt along with everyone else, and in doing so, we were sculpted into the weakened individuals that make up our society today…
But I can’t.
Or rather, I won’t.
You see, we are “PART” of a hedonistic culture. We have the innate tendency to run away from pain and move toward pleasure. This is why most people choose to do bench presses and curls instead of squats and deads. It’s why people would rather watch reality TV instead of actually getting out there and really taste the bitterness and sweetness of life. And unfortunately, it is also why so many people are weak, fat, and dying and not willing to do anything to actively change their situation…
As so many revolutionaries before us have proven, choosing the correct path, or even better, making your OWN path, requires Hard Work. And, in this culture, most people will avoid Hard Work like the HIV! They would rather choose to take the easier, already paved, road most traveled…
These people that choose the easy way out have a tendency to get really excited by “ShamWow” type marketing and often get distracted by shiny objects. In the ecstasy of reading a new article or seeing an infomercial, they ditch time tested basic barbell exercises for the latest greatest training techniques, or have collected an army of bow flexing, ab lounging clothes hangers covered with dust in their basements.
Weak-minded individuals like these also have often built up a veritable cornucopia of training knowledge, but have been plateaued in their training forever because they are avoiding the hard things that they hate doing the most, because Muscle & Fiction has them believing that working out should be easy and everyone can look like the guy on the cover.
To put it bluntly, these people suck at life…They acquired everything they needed to reach their goals, and yet, knowledge, equipment, and an electronic ab stimulizer wasn’t enough…The one thing missing was the most important…
The mindset to get up off their asses and put in the time and effort.
If we want to be honest and take a good hard look at ourselves, ALL of us have no choice but to admit that we have been given everything we need to attain our goals on a silver platter…If we are not where we want to be - We have no one to blame but ourselves…
99.9999% of people will never reach their goals and attain their true potential, not because they do not know how, but because 99.9999% of people are NOT willing put in the TIME and HARD WORK required to achieve these things.
Now I am not negating the fact that we all NEED a plan, a lot of knowledge, and the help of great coaches to take us to the higher echelons of our training…
But whatever happened to that anxiety before a workout where you can’t wait to get through the doors even though you know all that awaits you there is pain?
When, while training, you forget about women, work, and life, because the next set of power cleans in front of you is the only thing that matters at that moment?
These days are not foreign to us, most of us have visited that place inside of us before…
It was probably during one of those sessions where you considered calling a friend to drive you home because your squat weary legs were less dependable than a French guy in a fist fight, and the Spaghettios you ate for lunch are left on the locker room floor for some poor high school employee to clean up…
We’ve all had them — One of those days you left the gym “Better” than when you entered…
Now it is just one guys opinion here, but I am willing to bet that if we had more of those days and less “But my program tells me to stop at 4 reps” days – all of us would look and feel a lot different than we do right now.
There was probably a time in your life when you lifted weights and yet you didn’t know where your gastrocnemius was, or where a granny smith apple fell on the glycemic index…So you do understand that it is possible…
For most of us, it was probably when we first got into the iron game. And most likely, it was some hard-nosed coach or friend who told us that they would “gladly” help us get started.
Whoever it was… May not have been the sharpest tool in the shed, training wise, but instead of talking to us about “the crepitus and pain in their supraspinatus”, they chose to call us parts of the female reproductive system, threw more weight onto the bar and made fun of us until we “willed” that thing off of our concaved chests.
It was at this time that you lifted like an animal, didnÃ?¢??t get your “required” 1.58467 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight, had no idea what a sternocleidomastoid was, and yet still made the best gains of your life.
You didn’t know exactly what you were doing, but it didn’t matter… You pushed yourself and good things happened…
Chalk it up to you being a beginner, or chalk it up to having balls…either way, most of us have fallen well below that level of intensity for fear of one thing or another.
You can fill in here with whatever scientific BS you want, but more likely than not, we lost that intensity and ability to make some of those gains because training like that was HARD, HARD work…and now we find that hiding behind excuses like recovery time, lack of sleep, and not enough nutrition are a whole lot easier for our weak little minds to rationalize that saying, “Screw the science” and getting it done anyway…Then again maybe I am way off base…
I cannot say that I know how hard you are training; But one thing I can say is that most of us have no idea what our bodies are capable of, and ALL of us could step it up a notch.
And if we are going to be completely honest with ourselves, most of us spend more time on the internet reading about the “perfect” program, exercise or rep range, and less time getting to the gym and picking up heavy things over and over again.
Sadly, in the last year, I think my fingers have developed more than my hamstrings…
for me, it is time for a change.
Like I said at the beginning, I am trying to not be hypocritical, and this has been written as my own wake-up call – But to any of you who can relate and feel a little bit convicted like I do, realize this:
The time is now! For the love of Megan Fox! Stop typing! Get out there and TRY it for yourself! You have legs and a heart; try using them instead of your fingers for once! Try using your body as a lab! run tests, take different supplements, give these things enough time to see if they work before you jump on one the boards screaming, “DC training sucks because I haven’t gained 20-lbs in two weeks!”
Try caring enough about your training to keep a log for the gym as well as your food. Then in a month you can look back at your lack luster results and see that you weren’t even sticking to your plan in the first place…The police call that a clue!
I am not requesting that anyone stop asking questions or reading articles! We can all learn a lot from each other.
But if your ratio of TALK/POSTS exceeds your ratio of time spent TRAINING, I am pretty sure you have a couple of things confused…
If like me, you can see parts of your behavior in this rant, please stop immediately! And for everyone’s sanity, rectify said behavior before we have to ask your skeevy Uncle Herman to explain this, and other mysteries of life, to you with a zucchini, a fruit roll-up, and a minimal amount of Vaseline…
In conclusion, Read your articles, ask your questions, do your research –
But if you find yourself getting too tied up in your brain with all these studies and statistics, put the computer down, go to your gym and get reacquainted with how people got bigger, stronger, and faster before they knew “How they were Supposed to”.
Change is coming.
1 Like
I resent the “French Guy” comment
seriously, a good read as always. Probably because it hits home for me. I go to the gym and lift hard and heavy for 1.5 hours and go home. I know I want to improve my big 3 and focus around those. Some would say I lack structure from not following a program but just killing it when I can and pushing myself on the weaker days while trying to learn the proper form for lifts has yeilded a lot of dividens.
you need to write something truly controversial man! just teazin.
Just read “Winners never Cheat, even in Difficult Times” by Huntsman…thought it was pretty good and it was full of quotes…might be something you’d like.
I’m joining the “continue the log” group–you’re always an inspiration
nlmain: what kind of topics did you have in mind? I am always trying to come up with new things to write about so if you have ideas let me know!
beastin: Thanks man, I’ll check it out! and as far as the log…we will see, I am honestly still split right down the middle on this one.
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“What distinguishes the majority of men from the few is their inability to act according to their beliefs.”
-John stuart mill
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02December2010: Training
5 Rounds as fast as possible:
8 95lb Curtis P’s
8 MMA Get-ups
8 Pull-ups
Then
strength: Giant set
1a. weighted Pull-ups: 90x5, 115x5, 115x5, 115x5, 115x5
1b. Stiff Leg Deads (rehab): 225x8, 255x8, 255x8, 255x8, 255x8
1c. Plate around the worlds: 45lb plate 5 sets of 8 reps each side
Notes:
-Pretty light day considering, but I needed it. I started the day with 25 minutes of walking on an incline, then did some PT with a squad, then did this…and am on my way to fight class here is a few hours…That’s a lot of energy spent in a day!
-Curtis P’s are when you take a BB and clean it from the floor, then do a left lung, then right lunge then a military press…then put the bar back on the ground…that is 1 rep…40 of them were no fun at all. If you have never tried these, go for it, but don’t be mad at me afterwards!
-The strength stuff was more rehab than anything…as is most of my lifting anymore. i will be healthy soon and can definitely tell that i am slowly getting better…
Thanks for reading and go do something away from the computer you slacker!
you want controversial? Then what’s your take on the athletes on the home page? Of course you might have already voiced your opinin on these. You can trampoline this to a more general issue.
you asked for it
I love that post, I’m happy that I can relate. In the good way; with the not thinking of anything but the bar, using my body as a lab rat, a guinea pig, experimenting versus just reading, being absolutely terrified of my workout that’s quickly approaching.
To be honest, a while ago I’ll socialize with hawt guys more than train. Sure I still did okay, but I do better now that I don’t see anything but my next set. I don’t care about the weird max effort faces I make, or grunting, or trying to look cute.
Of course that’ll change if you worked out at my gym ;D
As for your strong fingers, don’t let them get weak by not starting a new log. Yeah I said it.
I’m definetely liking those Curtis Ps.
Awesome conditioning trainings and re-read rant. One should spent first few minutes of every day to read stuff like that and then go and be a better man/woman for the rest of the day.
Couple of question for you:
- Have you read or perhaps tried myo-reps by Blade (web username)? Logig behind it seems good and they will keep workouts also little shorter. It’s a short of rest-pause, but not going to failure.
- what’s the MMA get-up? Is this the proper name for the sort of power sit-up, where you sit-up from bridge position so fast that you end up in squat’s bottom position and then just stand up or jump? If it is, we’ve discussed about this before (about mixing it up with chins or pull-ups). I like doing it so, that I alternate burpee-chin and this every other rep. You get front and back sides done equally and you have to concentrate more. If MMA get-up is something else, would you please describe it. Always looking for some new ball busters.
PS. in case this happens to be the last post, you must continue your log here to answer my question!