The Competition Is Finally Here 

After months of hard training your competition is finally here.  Competition week, outside of the actual event, can be pretty overwhelming.  Weigh-ins, meals, traveling, and strategy can weigh on an athlete's mind and easily distract even a seasoned athlete.  Here are a few tips to keep in mind as the weekend approaches.

Leading Up:

Leading up to Saturday be sure to run a thorough check for equipment and supportive gear.  This may include belt, shoes, knee sleeves, elbow sleeves, wrist wraps, straps, soft belt, chalk, tacky, tape, shorts, or grip shirt.  Bring whatever you need to warm up.  This may include a foam roller, a lax ball, bands, a light kettlebell, or a message gun.    Competitions can be all-day events so have meals and hydration packed and planned ahead of time.  A quick stop at the grocery store for water, sports drinks, pedialyte, power bars, bananas, granola bars, baby food (don’t knock it unless you’ve tried it), and a game day breakfast is a must.  Other miscellaneous things to consider bringing include sunscreen, a cooler, a chair, or a tent. Lastly make sure you are on schedule to make weight for weigh ins.  Be sure to have a well thought-out plan ahead of time, don’t just wing it.  Do your best to relax and have a low stress week.

Night Before:

Adequate sleep is directly related to an increase in strength, power, and performance.  Shoot for 8 hours the night before and factor in some restlessness if this is a big competition or if you’re new to competing.  Sleep hygiene will be crucial for quality sleep.  Turn off your screens an hour before bed, avoid alcohol (hope you’re not drinking the night before), avoid caffeine after 12pm, and avoid late night exercise.  Use some positive mental imagery to run through the events and their technique in your mind.  

Morning:

Be sure to get plenty of calories in the night before and morning of because you may not have an appetite to consume calories once the competition starts.  The game day meal should be high in complex carbohydrates, similar to what you ordinarily eat on training days.  If you get an upset stomach because you are nervous, stick with some simple carbs such as a sport drink or fruit instead.  It’s a good idea to move around upon waking up.  A short walk, light mobility work such as foam rolling, and a quick dynamic warm up will help get your body right.  Give yourself plenty of time to get to the venue, arrive early, and expect the unexpected (traffic, diarrhea, trouble finding a parking spot, etc.).  Caffeine is a great performance enhancer, but be cautious about caffeine intake the day of a competition.  The last thing you need is extra anxiety.  Consume your caffeine 30 minutes before your first event and pick a moderate dose to start.  You can always take more later in the day. Scaling back intake the days leading up will lower your tolerance, enhance the effects, and in turn boost performance.

Competition:

The most important aspect of a successful competition will be your mindset.  The goal of competition is to step outside your comfort zone and test yourself.  Many athletes check out once their chance of podiuming is slipping away, don’t be that athlete.  You must be able to bounce back when things don't go your way.  Keep in mind every event is equally as important, therefor if you underperform on the first event, you still have four more events to make up for it.  Conversely if you perform great in the first three events, don’t get too comfortable because you still have two more to go and things can fall apart if you're not careful. Remember not to get carried away cheering, checking scores, or yelling for friends.  Strongman is a very supportive community and sportsmanship is always encouraged.  However don’t expend all your energy on distractions, instead conserve your energy and focus on the next event.  Try to avoid complete isolation so you don't get inside your own head.  The competition is 5+ hours long, get some fast digesting carbs and fluids in right after each event to refuel.  You don’t want to get to the last event and fall apart because you ate and drank nothing all day.

Competition rarely goes exactly as planned.  You may underperform in one event, but are just as likely to over perform in another.  You may have to use an implement you are not familiar with or didn’t train with.  Do not get caught up comparing yourself to other people and trust your training.  The athlete that just wrecked the keg press may zero the deadlift event.  Focus on your effort and your performance and hit PRs.  Understand this is a learning experience, which can be applied to competitions down the road.  Most importantly have fun!  Don’t get so caught up in the outcome that you forget to enjoy the process. 

Selecting the Right Training Load

You head to the gym on a Monday night and your program calls for 5x5.  What weight do you use?  How much do you add from last week?  What happens if you can’t do more than last week? Why am I doing 5x5 anyway?  In order to develop strength, training must incorporate a progressive overload.  This means weight lifted in training must increase over time.  This is a very simple concept, but the practical application can get a little tricky. The point of this blog is to briefly explain the different tools that can be utilized to best select training load and in turn maximize gains. 

Percentages

One of the most common methods for load selection in training is percentage based lifting.  The percentage chart can be used to predict a 1 rep max or to roughly estimate repetition maxes (see the chart below).  This can serve as a nice resource to “ball-park” your training load, but they are just predictions.  The chart is not exercise specific, sex specific, and the slope of the data is not that linear in real life (+5% = extra 5 reps).  For example if the workout program calls for 3 x 8 at 70%, for one athlete it may be way too hard, for another it may be way too easy, and for another it may be spot on.  To make it more accurate you can track your info or set up a profile to measure how many reps you can get at 90%, 80%, 70%, 60% of your max and individualize it you.   Percentages are best used for beginners and should be used conservatively.   The biggest drawback as a stand-alone for load selection is the lack of feedback to make adjustments in real time. 

Reps Weight Percent

1 315 100%

2 300 95%

3 290 93%

4 285 90%

5 275 87%

6 265 85%

7 255 83%

8 250 80%

9 240 77%

10 235 75%

Example:

Week 1: 3x5@75%

Week 2: 3x5@80%

Week 3: 3x5@85%

Autoregulation

Autoregulation measures an individual’s readiness to train on a given day.  The ability to perform in the weight room day to day will be affected by training, sleep, hydration status, nutrition, and stress.  All of these factors can create an accumulation of systemic fatigue (feeling run down, lethargic) and will mask the ability to truly express strength output on a given day.  By using autoregulation you are able to get regular feedback on your ability to train and make real time adjustments to your prescribed training program.  This will allow you to more effectively stimulate a training overload by better managing fatigue and selecting the right loads.  

Autoregulating Progressive Resistance Exercise

APRE blends percentage based lifting with autoregulation.  The protocol calls for taking a set to failure using a predetermined load as an assessment to dictate the load on the subsequent set or for the following week of training.  For example an athlete performs a set to failure on bench press with an estimated 6 rep max.  If the athlete gets under 5 reps, the weight is reduced.  If the athlete gets 5-7 reps, weight is kept the same.  If the athlete can get 8+ reps, the load is increased.  5/3/1 is a popular program that uses these protocols.  APRE is a good choice for beginner or intermediate lifters, however there are some draw backs.  Training to failure for less experienced lifters can result in form breakdown, which should be avoided.  Generally it is incorporated into lower volume programs, which may or may not be optimal depending on training goals.  Stronger athletes who are using substantially heavier loads will not be able to recover from this style of training on a regular basis; therefore it is not an ideal training strategy for them.

Example:

Week 1: 1x6@75%

1x6@80%

1x6+@85%

- Last set taken to failure 

-Based on results, adjust the load for next week

1-4 reps: -5-10lbs

5-7 reps: leave same

8-12 reps: +5-10

Rating of Perceived Exertion

Mike Tuchscherer came up with the modified rating of perceived exertion (RPE) scale for strength training.  The scale grades out how taxing each set is in order to get feedback, make adjustments, and keep training flexible.  Reps in reserve (RIR) measures how many reps away from failure each set is taken to.  Both go hand in hand and often used interchangeably (see charts below).  RPE 10/RIR 0 means that the set was taken to failure and no more reps could have been performed.  Programming can provide an RPE range for an exercise during a training session as a guide to picking the optimal daily training load.  Having real time feedback from set to set within a workout, without having to actually take a set to failure (like APRE) is a great resource.  However there are some shortcomings to using RPE.  The heavier the load, the easier it will be to estimate proximity to failure and the lighter the load, the harder it is to predict reps from failure (sets of 3s easier to predict vs sets of 10).  More experienced lifters who have a much longer training history can predict RPE better than less experienced lifters.

RPE: Description RIR:

RPE 10 Going to failure RIR 0

RPE 9 1 rep in reserve RIR 1

RPE 8 2 reps in reserve RIR 2

RPE 7 3 reps in reserve RIR 3

RPE 6 4 reps in reserve RIR 4

RPE 5-1 Warm up weight RIR 5+

Example:

Week 1: 3x8 RPE 6-7 

Week 2: 3x8 RPE 7-8

Week 3: 3x8 RPE 8-9

Velocity Based Training

Velocity based training (VBT) utilizes technology to measure peak velocity, mean velocity, bar path, and range of motion on each rep.  VBT is by far the most objective method and provides measurable data for more precise data collection.  You have to create a velocity profile for each individual athlete and exercises for the most accurate readings because different individuals lift different velocities at different loads.  Velocity cut offs can be used for autoregulation within a set.  For instance a drop in bar velocity from the initial first repetition to reps later in the set can predict proximity to failure, similar to RPE.  The most beneficial aspect of this equipment is training for power and strength.  Moving the bar with maximal intent (as explosive as possible through the entire ROM) is crucial for increasing rate of force development and is recommended for every rep.   VBT allows for more high quality work by providing precise data to show when fatigue is setting in.  VBT equipment is relatively expensive and requires some additional homework compared to more traditional methods.  For advanced strength athletes it may be a wise investment.

Example:

Week 1: 3x@.56-.6m/s stop at 20% cut off

Week 2: 3x@.52-.56m/s stop at 25% cut off

Week 3: 3x@.48-.52m/s Stop at 30% cut off

Velocity Zone m/s Estimated Load %

.48-.60 m/s 67-80%

Hopefully this blog provides some direction to load selection and can elicit some critical thinking in regards to training.  Rather than blindly adding more weight to the bar, these protocols and tools can serve as a compass to ensure there is an overload and fatigue is being managed.  By doing this progress is inevitable.  For beginners percentage based lifting is a useful guide.  APRE expands upon this concept with the use of some performance based feedback to make adjustments. Learning RPE as an intermediate lifter is a great skill to develop.  For advanced athletes investing in VBT equipment may be worthwhile if strength and power development is a priority.  The main takeaway is that all of these methods work, some more optimally for certain individuals than others.  If you’re still confused, hire a coach and they walk you through it. 

Baechle, T. R. (2016). Essentials of strength training and conditioning. Human Kinetics.

Bompa, T. O., &; Buzzichelli, C. (2014). Periodization of strength training for sports (3rd ed.). Human Kinetics.

Velocity based training. Science for Sport. (2021, January 6). Retrieved December 13, 2021, from https://www.scienceforsport.com/velocity-based-training/.

Mann JB, Thyfault JP, Ivey PA, Sayers SP. The effect of autoregulatory progressive resistance exercise vs. linear periodization on strength improvement in college athletes. The Journal of strength & conditioning research. 2010 Jul 1;24(7):1718-23.

Zourdos MC, Klemp A, Dolan C, Quiles JM, Schau KA, Jo E, Helms E, Esgro B, Duncan S, Merino SG, Blanco R. Novel resistance training–specific rating of perceived exertion scale measuring repetitions in reserve. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research. 2016 Jan 1;30(1):267-75.

Helms ER, Cronin J, Storey A, Zourdos MC. Application of the repetitions in reserve-based rating of perceived exertion scale for resistance training. Strength and conditioning journal. 2016 Aug;38(4):42.

Top 5 Coaching Lessons

Most respectable fitness coaches are educated in exercise physiology, biomechanics, sports nutrition, and program design.  What happens when they are non compliant?  What happens when they have a set back?  How do you get the most out of people that have vastly different skill sets and goals?  The truth is, coaching requires a lot more than just telling clients what to do.  Here are a few lessons that I have learned over the years coaching, that I wish I knew when I was first starting out.

Build Relationships

Often times if an athlete or client is moody, disengaged, or noncompliant it has little to do with you as a coach personally and a lot to do with their own personal life.  By asking the right questions and reading body language you will be able to pick up if something is off that day.  Rather than being reactive and lecturing them on what they need to do better, how to be more disciplined, or how they need to work harder, ask open ended questions.  Chances are they need a word of encouragement, someone to vent to, or connect with.  Common examples of personal life issues include:

Relationship problems

Family issues

School or work trouble

Feeling sick/mental health issues

Lost their job/financial struggles

Example:

My first year on the job as a high school strength coach, I came into school early and saw a kid who had been skipping offseason training.  I jokingly gave him a hard time.  As he held back tears he explained his parents are getting a divorce and he’s having a tough time getting to lifts.  I felt terrible.  Lesson learned.  You never know what is going on behind the scenes.  Being able to identify when a client is off, or acting differently is valuable skill to develop.  In order to do this you have to get to know them in the first place on a personal level.

Communicate Effectively

Real coaching involves getting the most out of an individual.  It will require a different approach and coaching depending on the person.  This is not the same thing as being a push over and having low standards or expectations.  Being able to listen to the client’s goals, problems, and challenges will allow you to get the job done effectively. 

Communication tips include:

Give them autonomy 

Understand they may know nothing

Character assassinations are the easy route

Your job is to coach them, don’t be mad they need coaching

Listen to them, ask questions

You may need to do a better job explaining

Don’t get defensive (“how dare you question my program!”)

Take an interest in their life (school, family, aspirations)

Example:

How important is calculating the exact macronutrient breakdown if your client is emotionally eating and not tracking those calories?  How important is the auto-regulation protocol you’re implementing if they are not event lifting with proper form?  Does the training split matter if your client is skipping sessions once a week?  Consistently knowing where a client is at and what they are capable of is crucial for program adherence and continued progress.  You may think the best results come from a secret detailed well thought out program.  It is true sound programming is really important, but if there isn’t much consistency it doesn’t really matter.  

Develop Systems

True lasting results come from lifestyle changes, developing habits, and a scheduled routine.  Education will allow clients to become self-sufficient at making decisions on their own.  Habits save time in the long run and automate productive behavior.  Identifying triggers will prevent people from taking actions out of alignment with their goals.  Understanding that the training process is a learning experience provides clients with the ability to be more resilient after setbacks and encourages them to be more proactive on their own. 

Example:

I gained weight

-why?

I over consumed on calories

-why?

I didn’t grocery shop and didn’t have healthy food in the house

-why?

I was hung-over on Sunday and procrastinated

-why?

I got wasted because I’m super stressed and kind of depressed

-what can we do to better manage stress?

-do you see what triggers led to this behavior?

-are those behaviors in line with your goals?

-how do we better manage this in the future?

Remain a Student

Looking the part, having a big social media presence, earning an advanced degree, and competing at a high level can help you land a job or clients.  However you’re really paid to get results, after a certain point no one really cares about you or your resume.  What people care about is how you can help them.  You don’t have all the answers.  You can always learn, and get better.  It is easy to get defensive and say look what I’ve accomplished, listen to what I say.  That’s the easy route and that is your ego talking.  Stop talking about yourself and work on what you’re not good at.  Maybe you need to improve soft skills like empathy, communication, and listening.  At first I thought that stuff was soft and lame.  Turns out it’s actually really useful.  Maybe you need to learn more about other areas of training.  You’re human, which means you have areas of weakness.  Search for critical feedback and keep learning, it will pay off.

Example:

You might be a high level athlete, but lack communication and social skills

You may have a high level of education, but lack under the bar experience

You may have a great personality, but lack education, practical application skills

Be Positive

Brainwash your clients and athletes with positivity and a winning mindset.  As a strength coach, you have an opportunity to influence others (I don’t mean posting shirtless selfies and lying to people).  The lessons they learn in the weight room do carry over to life, like hard work, consistency, patience, a willingness to learn, accountability, and overcoming adversity.  Make sure you’re someone people actually want to be around.  If you don’t like yourself, constantly complain, or are miserable, people won’t want to be around you.  Use your role to build people up, not tear them down.  Don’t be scared to tell a kid or client you’re proud of them either, it won’t make you soft.  It will actually mean a lot to them.  Avoid coming up with alibis to explain away your clients failures and your failures as a coach.

Alibis include:

“If only they listened to me”

“If only they worked harder”

“If only they had more discipline”

“If only they followed their diet”

“If only I had more time to work with them”

"If only..."

Stop complaining and start finding solutions to these problems instead.  Opportunities are often disguised as problems and challenges.  If you can come up with solutions to problems, your value will skyrocket as a coach or professional.   Your value is directly proportional to the difficulty of problems that you can solve.

Training for a Max Event

One of the most common feats of strength tested in strongman competitions is a 1 rep max.  Max events usually include overhead presses, deadlifts, or loading events.  Moving the heaviest weight from point A to point B is the truest test of strength.  In order to be successful in these events a few things must be considered outside of just being strong such as rules, warm ups, attempts, and peaking correctly.

Rules

Rules are posted on the entry form and there is a meeting right before the competition to review the guidelines on the day of your show.  Topics covered include what supportive equipment is allowed, what implements are being used, and what technique is required in order for the rep to count.  Most competitions have no limitations on a standard belt, elbow/knee sleeves, wrist wraps, or lifting straps for most events.  However deadlift suits, grip shirts, tacky, figure 8 straps are allowed in some shows and not allowed in others.  Pay attention to these nuances.  Find out what implements and dimensions of the equipment are being used.  There is a big difference between a 12 inch log or 10 inch, a deadlift bar or an axle, atlas stone or a stone of steel.  Having this information will allow you to prepare optimally in the months of training leading up.  Be sure to train with the proper technique that will be required for the lift to count in competition.  For overhead lifts both feet need to be parallel, elbows locked out, and you must wait for the down command from your judge for a good rep.  For the deadlift a conventional stance must be used, both knees and hips must be lockout out, you must wait for the down command, and the bar must be lowered under control without dropping.  For loading events the implement must clear the bar or platform and hands can’t be used to pull on the bar to chest bump the implement over.  Generally if you drop the implement carelessly or disrespect the equipment the judge will award you with zero points, so keep that in the back of your mind.

Warm-ups 

Assert yourself in the warm up area.  Don’t be rude, but make sure you get your hands on the equipment.  Do not be the guy timidly lurking around the bar hoping someone gives them a special invite to warm up.  You’ll end up not getting to warm up.  Be aware of the order in which the max event takes place in the competition.  You will want to factor in fatigue from other events when it comes to how much and what kind of a warm up you will need to do.  Have planned sets and reps for your warm up routine, but be prepared to make adjustments on the fly because time and equipment may be limited.  If it the first event you will likely have time for a dynamic warm up and ample time with the competition implements.  If it is in the middle of a show warm up time may be limited so plan on using your body weight or bring some bands and get creative.  Try to mimic the same routine you use to prepare in training if possible.  Below are two examples of what your warm up may look like:

Attempts

The most common rules for max events at amateur strongman competitions use Wessel’s rules.  These guidelines have fixed weight increases, allow three attempts, jump in at whatever, if a rep is missed athlete is done, and the tie breaker goes to the heaviest opener head to head.  A good rule of thumb is to open at approximately 90% of your 1rm or a weight you can hit for 3 reps on a good day.  Opening attempts should be conservative enough to guarantee a rep and ensure you don’t zero the event. It is a smart choice if it is the first event of a show, you get really nervous, or if you didn’t get to adequate warm up in.  However opening too light may cost you in the form of a wasted attempt or in a tie breaker (see below for example).  Depending on how easy each attempt is completed make calculated adjustments for the following attempt.  Because the weight jumps for attempts are often fixed and set by the promoter, planning attempts is pretty straight forward.  Take a weight that you know you can hit and then take the next two weights after.  If this is the case find out the weight jumps ahead of time.  See below for examples of common weight jumps for different events.   Not all competitions have fixed weight jumps in which case an easy opener calls for a larger increase on your next attempt, while a challenging rep on your opener calls for a more modest increase on the next attempt.    Some competitions require you to take every attempt until you miss and are out.  In this instance you may end up taking more than 3 attempts if you are in contention to win the event, so train accordingly.  In some instances you will want to factor in the current standings and what you need to hit in order to place or win.

Sample Weight Jumps

Circus Dumbbell (+10lbs)

150, 160, 170, 180, 190, 200…

Log or Axle Clean and Press (+20lbs)

220, 240, 260, 280, 300….

Deadlift (+40-50lbs)

495, 545, 585, 635, 675…

Stones

280, 310, 330, 360, 380, 400…

Tie Breaker

Athlete 1: 1st attempt 260, 2nd attempt 280, 3rd attempt 300

Athlete 2: 1st attempt 280, 2nd attempt 300

*Athlete 2 opened higher and wins the event

Peaking

Don’t be the guy that hits a personal record on social media a week out and then underperforms when it counts the day of competition.  Be sure to peak and taper properly and avoid limping into competition.   The point of a peak is to hone in technique, drop systemic fatigue, and maximize fitness in the specific event being tested for that day.  Increase the intensity without missing any reps and reduce the volume leading up to the show.  Without a proper taper you won’t to be able to fully express your true strength on that day.  Specificity and fatigue management is the key to a successful peak.  If it is a 1 rep max for axle clean and press, that should be the training priority.  Rather than focusing on high volume bench presses and supplemental work, which may be useful earlier in your prep, focus on the competition lift itself the last few weeks leading up.

Have a short memory good or bad.  Max lifts are the most popular and well known, but they count just as much as any other event.  You may get a little extra respect for winning the max deadlift, but it doesn’t count for extra points.  The guy that wins the overhead press and deadlift may fall apart in the medley or sandbag toss, where conditioning and technique play a bigger role.  The strongest guy doesn’t always win, the strongman that is the most-well rounded and has the fewest weaknesses does.  If you do well don’t let it go to your head, if you do poorly have a short memory and move on to the next event.  Focus more on your effort and performance and less on how other athletes perform because you can’t control what you can’t control.

Don't Think You're Ready to Compete?

The sport of strongman has really blown up in popularity over the last few years.  High level strongmen have their own YouTube channels, major competitions are broadcast on TV, and training videos flood Instagram.   Seeing who can lift the heaviest rock, press the heaviest implement overhead, pick the heaviest object up off the ground, or pull a truck is fascinating.  The sport is cool.  I meet people all of the time that are interested in strongman, but for whatever reason have reservations about signing up for a competition.

Equipment

Strongman equipment is far more available today than it was even just a few years ago.  There are countless manufacturers that sell equipment now.  More hardcore gyms have strongman equipment and even commercial gyms may have a pair of farmer’s handles or tires.  Competitors get carried away with needing the exact equipment for every single event.  Details matter and having the right tools will put you at a competitive advantage.  Having said that it should never be a reason to not sign up for a show you’re interested in.  When I first started out I didn’t have access to all of the implements.  When I couldn’t get my hands on atlas stones, I did a lot of front squats, RDLs, and barbell rows as an alternative.  When practicing the circus dumbbell I duct taped plates and a fat grip around the heaviest dumbbell I could find.  Instead of using a keg for the loading medley, I used the one sandbag I had access to.  Do not let the lack of resources be an alibi for why you haven’t signed up yet.  Get creative and do the best with what you’ve got.

Support

You can learn in four months what some people learn in five years training on their own by hiring a qualified coach or joining a legit training crew.  Training for strongman is tough because it requires hard work, dedication, and some sacrifice.  How much you are willing to commit depends a lot on your level of interest.  It’s much harder to stay committed when you are not surrounded by likeminded people.  Find a positive setting that will push you, help you grow, and support you.  If you are having fun training and preparing, you are more likely to stick with it long term.  Setting up and breaking down equipment for strongman events alone is a ton of work.  Having another set of eyes to troubleshoot and give you constructive feedback helps exponentially.  Having someone to hold you accountable to follow your program and push yourself may be necessary if you struggle with discipline.  Don’t be afraid to look stupid because you don’t know how to do something, find the right setting, open your mind, and learn. 

Strength

It is imperative to have a base level of strength to be successful competing in strongman.  Unfortunately most people think the threshold for being “strong enough to compete” is way higher than it actually is.  There are plenty of competitions, weight classes, and divisions for less experienced athletes now.  The thought of competing against a field of other athletes can be overwhelming, but the truth is your real competition is yourself.  Many strongmen put way too much emphasis on their overall placing at competitions, rather than reviewing the results of their training cycle and the specific numbers that were hit in competition.  If you came in last place, but hit personal records in every lift can you really be that disappointed?  Conversely, if you won a contest where the field was made up of only three athletes and you underperform in all of the events, is it really that impressive?  A trophy is cool, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you are improving.  Focus on getting stronger in standard events such as deadlifting, overhead pressing, loading events, and moving events.  Use competition as an opportunity to gain experience, have fun, and push yourself.  Over time the results will take care of themselves.  Always try to win, but understand the big picture and think long term.

Ego

The same reason you haven’t found the right setting, may be the same reason you haven’t committed to that competition you’ve been eyeing.  Many people never compete because they don’t want to risk failing or looking bad.  They don’t want their ego to take a hit.  It’s easy to say “If I really wanted to, I could do that”.   It’s easy to stick with exercises you’re good at and post highlights on Instagram, rather than finding out you have some holes in your game.  Maybe you’re not as big of a badass as you think you are.  When you compete you are being tested, you can’t fake it and are being held accountable.  The guy next to you is trying to beat you.  Losing, failing, and making mistakes are all opportunities to seek feedback and get better.   If you approach it with the right mindset, this could be an incredible asset.  If you work on your areas of weakness you’ll be even stronger, and in turn a better athlete.  Remember it is always better to be in the show and finish near the bottom than to be standing on the sidelines watching.

There’s a chance you are never going to feel ready.  You just have to jump into the deep end and go for it.  A lot of people try it and get hooked.  Buy equipment, join a strongman gym, or cross-train for events (what people used to do).  Hire a coach or learn from coaches and athletes online.  Do whatever you need to in order to be prepared, but don’t keep putting it off.  The sooner you get started the sooner you can start making progress.

The 12 Training Mistakes I Made, So You Don’t Have To

Most people want immediate results in fitness.  They’ll look at what the most jacked fit people are doing and assume that’s what is best for them.  Most of the time it is not. You need to remember it has taken them a decade to make that progress.   You are starting from a different place.   The list includes 12 things less experienced lifters should take into account when training for strength.

Warm up

Most people don’t like warming up.  A thorough warm up takes your body from a rested state to being primed for hard physical activity.  A proper warm up will keep you healthy, allow you to lift more, and make training more enjoyable.  Lazily externally rotating a 2.5lb plate before bench day or bending over and reaching for your toes for 10 seconds before squats is not a warm up.  If you don’t feel ready to train after your warm up, get a new warm up.    

Master the Basics

If you want a stronger lower body prioritizes compound movements like squat and deadlift variations, over leg extensions and leg curls.  If you want a stronger upper body, focus on bench presses, rows, military presses, and chin ups instead of cable pec flies and triceps pushdowns.  Don’t major in the minor by emphasizing isolation work, supplement it instead.  Movement patterns like pushes (presses), squats, hip hinges (deadlifts), and pulls (rows) build the foundation for successful training in less experienced lifters.      

Don’t Be Afraid of “High” Reps 

Frankly there a lot of advanced methods and practical applications for rep ranges.   As a beginner I would advise spending a large amount of time in the 5-10 rep range at first.  Less experienced lifters need to build muscle mass, and this is the optimal rep range to do that.  After spending a few months in a higher rep range, cycle down to some lower reps 3-6s for strength and you will be blown away by how much stronger you have gotten.  The easiest way to get stronger is by actually adding muscle mass to your frame.  People often forget this, which leads to my next point.

Maxing out too much

New lifters constantly want to max out and test their strength.  If you are constantly testing your strength, when do you actually build it?  The longer you hold off on testing, the more time you spend putting in work, and when you do test those numbers will go up substantially.  Make sure you are training with the right load (weigh on the bar).  Pushing yourself is important, but missing reps and lifting with bad form won’t get to the gains you want.  Training too heavy may result in over reaching, over-training, injury, or stalled progress.  On the flip side of things, not training hard enough (5+ reps away from failure) on sets won’t be stimulating enough in most cases and in turn won’t result in desirable adaptations. 

Master your technique

Proper form will add longevity to your training career and will allow you to lift more weight by optimizing leverages.  Once technique is mastered, the weight will come with time.  Risking an injury for a little personal record that you will blow past down the road is silly. Injuries can result in months of missed training and lots of lost progress.  Be smart.

Avoid the “Bro Split” 

Many people are familiar with the typical bodybuilder/bro split (chest and tris, back and bis, shoulders and traps, legs).  Most new lifters can handle training the same muscle groups or lifts more than 1x per week, which is why a bro split may not be ideal.  If you are training 3x’s a week, then train full body each session (with a rest day in-between).  If you are training 4x’s a week, alternate upper and lower training sessions, with a rest day in-between.  If you are training 5-6x’s a week, follow a push (press emphasis), pull (pull emphasis), lower (squat, deadlift, etc.) split.  The key is to allow for your body to recover from the previous session before hitting the same muscles or exercises. 

Understand Nutrition

People who get the best results have great training paired with a great nutrition strategy.  You need adequate protein to build muscle, it doesn’t matter how hard you train, without enough protein consumption it’s not happening.  Carbs are not the enemy.  Carbs are used for fuel during training and spares muscle tissue breakdown.  If you want to get big and strong increase your serving size and add extra meals (not junk).  If you want to lean out, limit empty calories and reduce portion sizes.    

Learn the Training Process

The work performed in a training session is a stimulus to the body.  When we eat, sleep, and rest our body recover from that training.  When we recover an adaptation takes place, such as muscle growth or an increase in strength.  We repeat this process over and over again in order to improve results.  If we do not, we will regress and lose previous gains.  Therefor if your training effort and program aren’t right, you won’t get an adequate stimulus.  If you aren’t eating, sleeping, and resting enough between sessions, you won’t recover.  If this process isn’t strategically repeated you won’t progress and you aren’t really training.  Understanding each aspect of training prevents areas being overlooked and missed opportunities for progress.

Training is Hard

Pushing yourself is challenging, but necessary.  Not skipping workouts is hard.  Training legs after a long work day is hard.  Eating when you’re not hungry is hard.  Not eating when you are hungry and dieting is hard.  Making up a missed workout is hard.  Staying in instead of partying is hard.  Just like life, anything worthwhile will require hard work. 

Work on Weaknesses

It is too common for people to gravitate towards what they like (often times are good at), rather than what they should be doing (what they need).  However you are only as strong as your weakest link.  Find muscles, movement patterns, exercises that are weaknesses for you.  Improve them and see an enormous carry over to other lifts and overall performance. 

Track Your Workouts 

Follow a program.   No one remembers what they did for every set, rep, exercise every week, or every session.  You need to make sure you are adding weight or reps over time (a progressive overload) in order to get results.  Going in and lifting the same thing every week won’t get you stronger, it’s just maintenance.  No one who “trains by feel” decides to grind out 405lb squats for 10 reps.  The only way that happens is by seeing that the previous week you did 385x10 and realize you need to go heavier the next week to progress.  Writing your weights down will force you to train hard, and work on areas of weakness.  The best part is that it is data collection.  If you don’t make progress, you can review what you did and make adjustments for future plans.

Consistency is Key

If you are following a 4 day split, that means you have to train 4 days a week, otherwise the program you are following doesn’t make sense.  The volume (set x reps), frequency (how often), intensity (weight on the bar), exercise selection are all designed specifically to be done within those parameters.  If you are not consistent, the program doesn’t work, and your results suffer.

It takes many people a long time to figure these things out for themselves.  If you can apply this knowledge to your training, you’ll save yourself a lot of stalled progress.  Most people give up when they stop hitting personal records and progressing.  Don’t be like most people! Keep learning and getting better!

How to Set Goals If You Actually Want to Reach Them

Have you ever set a goal and not followed through on it?  Anyone can set a goal, but delivering on that goal is another story.  When designing goals most people focus on the end result, but they don't have the plan of action in order to bring that goal into fruition.  After you reach a goal is, what's the next step?  Setting the right goals provides a vision for the future and can serve as motivation from day to day.  The following examples will describe different types of goals and how to prioritize optimal behavior.

Process Goals vs Outcome Goals

Outcome goals are focused on achieving a specific task, resulting in a distinct end result.  A process goal is consistent practice or action performed in order to get to a desired outcome.  The problem with outcome goals is that there are many external factors that can interfere with your goal, as well as a lack of direction to getting there.  If you focus on what you can control (behavior), there is a high likely of reaching your outcome goal and possibly surpassing it.  If you do not reach your set outcome goal, you have now developed new positive behavior, habits, and practices that will still lead to enhanced outcomes down the road.  Process goals provide specific means to achieving something, while outcome goals have a specific target (which is still useful).  

 Example 1:

Outcome goal: I want to squat 405lbs

Process goal: I will never skip a leg day

 Example 2:

Outcome goal: I want to gain 10lbs of muscle

Process goal: I will eat breakfast daily

Example 3:

Outcome goal: I want abs for the summer

Process goal: I will track what I eat, plan meals, eat more vegetables

Mastery Goals vs Performance Goals

Performance goals are like outcome goals but focus on external validation, something that will be cool to post on social media.  Performance goals are often short term goals, are motivated by other’s praise and glory.  These goals focus on winning a competition, or hitting a personal record.  Like outcome goals, outside factors often affect your performance goals too.  Constantly using praise, validation, and a pat on the back for motivation is a recipe for disaster if you are unable to meet your intended performance goal.  Rather than focusing on what others think, focus on developing your passion and inner drive.  You do this by forming mastery goals.  This is the long term process of learning, refining, and developing skills in order to achieve excellence in a given task.  Mastering your craft will take care of the performance in the short term (as long as things align) and will usually result in much bigger and better accomplishments years down the road if you stick with it.

 Example 1:

Performance Goal: Making 1st Team all-conference quarterback

Mastery Goal:  Being a leader, knowing where everyone should be on the field, spending extra time watching film, not turning the ball over, making the right reads, 100% effort 100% of the time

Achieving mastery goals can result in earning a scholarship, playing at the next level, post season accolades, and winning a lot of games regardless of making all conference or not.

  Example 2:

Performance Goal: Lose 15 lbs

Mastery Goal: Learning about calorie balance, finding forms of physical activity that you enjoy, understanding the health benefits of exercise

Achieving mastery goals may not result in an immediate 15lb weight loss.  It will lead to long term sustained weight loss, a healthier relationship with diet and exercise, and new tools to address unwanted weight gain down the road in a healthy way.

 Example 3:

Performance Goal: Hit a personal record time in a half marathon

Mastery Goal: Adjusting and improving your training program race to race, making up missed workouts, honing in running mechanics, finding the right race day meal

Mastery goal will result in a much better race pace 5 years from now, if  a personal record is hit in the next race or not.

In order to properly develop process goals and mastery goals, it is best to approach goal setting with the right mindset.  A growth mindset is the idea that skills and talent can be developed and learned over time.  Other aspects include seeing challenges as an opportunity to get better, overcoming set-backs, understanding most talent is earned through hard work, seeing feedback as an opportunity to work on your weaknesses, and using other’s success as a blueprint for your own success.   Failure is part of life and your ability to learn from it and push forward, rather than cower in the face of rejection is the key to reaching your goals.  Performance and outcome goals may be useful, but behavior and mastery goals are the key to sustained long-term success.

Berardi, John. Hange Maker: Turn Your Passion for Health and Fitness into a Powerful Purpose and a Wildly Successful Career. 2019.Dweck, Carol S. Mindset: the New Psychology of Success. Ballantine Books, 2006.