Hey T-Nation,
Long-time lurker here, finally posting something. I’m just a regular 36-year-old guy (89 kg / 196 lbs) who’s been training inconsistently for years. I had some decent numbers once (80 kg standing military, +50 kg dips, +25 kg chins), but after repeated plateaus, life breaks, and getting stuck in the same routines, I pretty much stalled out. Training stopped being enjoyable, and nothing seemed to move the needle anymore.
I’m a quiet fan of the old strongmen – the bronze and silver era guys like Saxon, Hepburn, Cadine, Rigoulot – the way they built real, functional strength through movement rather than endless isolation. I was hoping to find a simple, sustainable program that could give me a fresh start without burning me out again.
I couldn’t find anything that quite fit what I was looking for, so – probably naively – I tried putting together my own little hybrid.
I named it Kerberos – not randomly, but because of the three-headed dog from mythology that guards the gates and lets nothing slip by. For me, it represents the three main pillars I’m trying to balance: Olympic-style lifting, calisthenics foundations, and “guardian” work for the neglected stuff (neck, grip, core). The three training days (heavy/medium/light rotation) kind of tie into that too.
Very basic idea:
Loosely inspired by the old-school strongmen, with those three rough pillars: some strict Olympic-style lifts (no body contact cheating), basic weighted bodyweight work (pull-ups/dips, full-ROM HSPU/pike variations), and a bit of guardian armor for stability and longevity.
3 days a week, trying to use some simple periodization ideas (waves, density cycles) to keep progress slow but steady. No seated or lying isolation – just trying to stay moving.
I’m only 2 weeks in, and it’s probably too early to say anything definitive, but so far I feel a bit fresher than expected (the light Friday seems to help recovery), and the motivation is creeping back.
I’m no coach or expert – far from it – this is just my amateur attempt at something sustainable. I’d really appreciate any honest thoughts from you guys who know way more than I do:
Does this kind of old-school inspired approach even make sense these days?
What would you change, add, or scrap entirely?
Am I missing something obvious?
Full details and a simple spreadsheet later if it doesn’t completely fall apart. For now, feel free to tear it apart – constructive criticism welcome!
Thanks for reading,
Tomáš