Pretty much how I was taught when I was younger… we would add in some pump stuff towards the end.
2 Likes
Exactly, 100% this. And I say this as a guy who was previously coached by him just under a year ago, and received MANY emails from him stressing the importance of “basics,” although he seems to think differently now.
Basics for beginners and then it changes. It’s just easier.
New to lifting? Awesome, go build yourself up to do the most weight possible on the big, compound movements.
Come back 10 years later with good all around strength but probably some aches, pains, and injuries. That’s when the ballgame changes. Now you have to train smart. That’s why you see such a drastic difference.
I can preach one thing for you or others all day, but I might not follow the same training. It’s not because I’m a hypocrite; it’s that I believe certain basics are a good starting point and I’ve learned over the years that I’m not built for some of that stuff. You have to learn for yourself as you go.
1 Like
This is not what he said when he was asked lately. He specifically said that basics aren’t necessarily the best for beginners either and that they have to find the right movements etc. He did use to say that about the basics, though.
Look, I’m not trying to attack him, but I can’t help but notice that there is some inconsistency going on between what he used to preach and what he preaches now. There are just as many inconsistencies with what he preaches now in his old articles and even in the stuff that he used to say on Instagram lives.
It wouldn’t be intellectually honest for me to defend him no matter what just because I used to pay for his service.
2 Likes
Ouch
1 Like
I wouldn’t mind having some of the playground tricks those calisthenics guys can pull off + aesthetics - even though they aren’t insanely strong (low body fat + enough strength to move your body around).
Unfortunately, I have the coordination of a giraffe so the concept of progressing from basic to advanced movements falls on its ass. I once tried to learn the planche (I think?) which starts with the frog stance, I was still constantly falling on my face a month later 
its not like your talking about Jesus … your good.
4 Likes
I actually had a long and hard road finding where I lie on this question.
Ultimately performance is my #1. I want to be able to move weight. If I’m sitting in the mid 20’s bodyfat wise to do it, so be it.
However, I personally have 0 interest in the “fat powerlifter” style. Luckily I’m 6’4, so getting fat takes some serious food, but the young, dragonball z watching, carpenter dad having, ex fat kid me, wants to look stronk. I’ll never fully get past that.
2 Likes
IMO, unless you’re competing as a PLer, no one, and I mean NO ONE walking down the street is going to care about how much you can lift. To the average person telling them you can bench 200 lbs is just as impressive as 500 lbs, because they have no concept of what either really means.
However, walking down the street and LOOKING like you can bench press whatever # any individual considers impressive is one hell of a good feeling. Think about how many people saw what Arnold looked like and said, Damn, I’m gonna start working out with no clue how much he could lift. To be honest, despite being one strong dude, you wont’ find many stories about how Arnold was one of the strongest dudes ever, despite his many Olympia wins.
I will agree that no one achieves an impressive physique while being weak, it’s not possible, but, being “strong for a bodybuilder” isn’t the same thing as being on competitive powerlifter levels. I trained with plenty of PLers, and while they were all impressed with my strength levels, I knew full well that if I were to step on a lifting platform I’d get blown away.
Obviously this is my own opinion, but similarly, it’s my opinion that way too many people (authors, “coaches”) like to imply that they were top level at both despite historical evidence to the contrary. 
It’s all about your audience I suppose.
S
2 Likes
Not so fast, Stu! The average person is going to take whatever number you give them and triple it in the following way:
Oh, 200, huh? I used to bench 600 back in junior high but I quit lifting to pursue ballet.
16 Likes
The older we get, the better we were. Back in my heyday, we used to squat 3x bodyweight as a warmup, and drink Sierra Nevada as a pre-workout (post-workout, too). I would do three sets, but not rest between them or even put the bar down. I would wrap barbed wire around the barbell, and lift without gloves to both improve grip strength and improve blood flow to my hands.
3 Likes
I have a friend I grew up with, who played baseball, and then rugby as an adult. Never close to professionally with either sport, but he was ok at both. But he really, really thought he was great, and thought he had a shot at the big leagues for a long time.
Anyway, he kinda looked like an athlete, kinda didn’t. If I didn’t know he lifted weights, I wouldn’t have assumed it, he could have just as easily had the look he did from just playing sports. Kinda like a lot of baseball players look, tbh.
So a few years ago, I was talking to him online, and at the time, I had recently hit 400 on squat for the first time, and I was pretty stoked about it. I told him. He proceeded to tell me that the heaviest he ever went was 700, and that he never went above that because he didn’t want to do sets of less than 10.
He’s about 6’2, 200 lbs. I repeat, doesn’t look like he lifts, and never has.
I had no response, other than ‘great! well, see ya around!’
9 Likes
I imgaine this is that weird phenomenon where people think the leg press is a squat.
3 Likes
I actually found the conversation on my phone. some things that were said:
‘I was doing box jumps at 58", 6.7 60 yard dash, all at 198 lbs, 4% bodyfat’
then, about the squat number:
‘I did it once, was afraid to get past power position in depth at that weight, and never put it on again when I didn’t get hurt’.
“I woulda ran faster, but I kept tripping over my 12” penis"
7 Likes
Would you rather squat 405x20 or 600x3. Different strokes for different folks.
Guarantee both people going to have some big legs and core lol.
1 Like
Literally laughing out loud to myself! 
I saw this.
Plus this.
And immediately thought of this.
At my school we did two or three hole squats in our baseball program. We set the safety bars that many holes below the racked bar and squatted that far. That’s it. We had guys doing 405x20 with ease but no one could understand why we had so many back injuries.
1 Like
I’m not the man I never was.
LMAO Don’t forget anyone who is writing articles or pushing programs! Every single fitness author was at some point a champion bodybuilder and powerlifter, or if not competitive was so good that Pros constantly told them that they’d destroy everyone else if they ever stepped up.
S
5 Likes
