Nuggets

by Brooks D. Kubik

The following is a collection of random "Strength Training Notes" from my all-time favorite Iron Game
author.

1. Triceps...Nov-99
Heavy benches, especially when performed with a shoulder width grip, will build enormous triceps--and
tremendous power. Ditto for standing presses. The isolation exercises will NOT build significant levels of
strength and power and OFTEN injure the elbow joint.

2. ...on Back Strength...Nov-99

Lats are fine, but it's far more important to build the spinal erectors and the traps. The best back programs
are built around heavy pulling movements: power cleans, power snatches, high pulls, dumbbell cleans,
one arm dumbbell swings, squat cleans (if you know how to do them), squat snatches (if you know how to
do them), and deadlifts. Add some barbell bent over rows and you don't need anything else. The cleans
and similar moves work the entire back, including the lats, VERY hard.

3. Hey Brooks--What does your routine look like now?--Nov-99

Train three times per week. Many heavy singles in the squat, power clean and press or push press,
power snatch and one hand snatch...heavy curls (sets of 5 reps), grip work, weighted leg raises, neck
work...and some other goodies that I am working on in order to feature them in a "how to" tape in the
future. Training has been a bit limited over the past few months due to a heavy workload and lots of
business travel.

4. Ab workouts--Oct 99
Steiner advises the high rep ab workouts for guys who really need to lose weight and inches from the
middle. He also is careful to note that it is VERY HARD or IMPOSSIBLE to specialize on waist reduction
and strength train at the same time...so the waist reduction program is a short term project. For everyone
else, he recommends one or two hard sets of heavy resistance gut work (situps, leg raises or side
bends). The [high rep ab workouts]program will work if you combine it with a reasonable diet, especially if
you add some road work to the mix...but don't do it as a regular thing on top of heavy weight training.

5. Thick Bar Work...Oct-99

The people who say to avoid thick bar work until you are an advanced guy are usually typical arm chair
experts who have no clue what they are talking about. If you use thick bar work from day one, your hands
will grow and thicken enormously over the years. If you wait five or six years until you are "advanced," all
you have done is lose that many years worth of grip training. Remember, there are lots of people out
there who write things that are intended to discouarage people from doing dinosaur style exercises simply
because dinosaur training doesn't "fit" their preconceived (usually wimpy) concept of what constitutes
proper training...Ignore them

6. "Dinosaur wants to incorporate O-lifts...any suggestions?"...Sept--99

Here's some gneral guidelines
1. Train three times per week
2. Do your Squats and your Olympic Lifting moves and nothing else
3. Do many, many reps to get the form down...not high rep sets, but many sets of singles, doubles or
triples.
4. Study books and tapes on Olympic Lifting
5. Work hard on your flexibility
6. Form and technique are more important than poundage at the beginning.

7. Bent Pressing...Sep--99
The bent press was a one arm overhead lift that involved shouldering the bar with one or two hands, then
leaning forward and to the side away from the bar, very slowly, and gradually going into a full squat with
the weight overhead...then standing erect (with the weight overhead) to complete the lfit. It was really
more of a support...the lfiter did not "lift" the bar, but rather, lowered his body beneath it very slowly...To
learn how to do the bent press, order either of Arthur Saxon's books from Bill Hinbern, along with "Weight-
Lifting Made Easy and Interesting" by Bill Pullum. These have detailed photos and a good explanation of
the finer points of the lift. A very few men could do 300 pounds or more...very impressive. The lift build
tremendous lower back, side, wist and hip strength. The great waist development of the old-timers was
largely the result of this lift.

8. Bulking...July--99
The real key to adding muscle is to train HARDER and HEAVIER than ever during a "bulking" phase. Lots
and lots of heavy leg and lower back work, heavy presses, heavy rows, etc...If you work hard to build
strength, the added weight WILL be muscle.

9. Sample Beginner's Workout...July--99

Three Times per week, for six weeks, then a one week layoff, then repeat the program, at least one more
time before moving on

Monday/Wednesday/Friday

1. Light Power Clean and Press (warmup)...1 x 10-12

2. Standing Press...5 x 5 (use a light weight on first set, add more weight for a medium heavy set, then do
3 sets of 5 reps with your "working weight").
3. Parallel or Full Squats...5 x 5
4. Barbell Bent-Over Rowing...5 x 5
5. Stiff-legged Deadlifts...5 x 5
6. Situps or Leg Raises...one set until tired

10. Back Exercises...Aug--99

The most important part of the back is the lower back. Stiff-legged deadlifts work great, but in my book,
Olympic lifting moves are the very best: power cleans, high pulls, power snatches, etc...Dumbbell cleans
and one-hand swings are also great. You need to learn how to do them, of course...post on the
discussion board if you hvae questions and we can direct you to good resources (Hinbern, IronMind, my
dino videos, various sites on the web, etc.). And you can learn a LOT, just by hanging around [the Old
School Board] and catching technique tips from guys like Dan John and Gary Valentine. For the upper
back, bent over rowing is very effective. Usa a barbell--not dumbbells. Drop the chins; barbell movements
where you stand on your feet and PULL are the key to back development

11. Overhead Lifting...Aug--99

In my experience you can train the overhead stuff HARD three time per week. I think you'll find it less
taxing on your joints than overhead presses once per week and benches on an other day. Back in the
pre-steroid days when the press was included in the Olympic lifts, guys trained overhead presses 3 to 5
times per week, plus the clean and jerk once or twice a week--and they did fine.

12. Lower Back Again--Aug 99

TRAIN YOUR LOWER BACK!!! Train it hard...make it bullet-proof...bomb proof...The lower back is the
most critical part of the body. Most guys ignore the lower back because they can't flex it in the mirror...BIG
MISTAKE. TRAIN THE LOWER BACK--HARD! (End of Sermon)

13. Assistance Exercises...A TRUE STORY...Aug--99

Rookie lifter sees Norb Schemansky at York Barbell Company Picnic. Spends a half hour workign up the
courage to go up and talk to Skee. Finally does so...

Ask Skee what to do to increase his press.

Skee turns to the Rookie in astonishment.

"PRESS, YOU IDIOT!!!" he shouts.

Well, he didn't really say "idiot"...it was somehting a little stronger...actually, a lot stronger...

Rookie lifter runs off in terror and hides behind the cartons of Hi Proteen Powder.

Moral of the story: Don't waste time on assistance exercises. To become a better presser, press. To
become a better puller, pull. To become a better squatter, squat.
By the way, I heard this story from the rookie lifter in question...Some of you guys might even know him,
but that's beside the point.

14. More Finishers...Aug--99

Here are four more possibilities:
1. Barbell or dumbbell clean adn press for HIGH reps...20 to 30 reps
2. Barbell Squat for 30 to 50 reps followed by barbell or dumbbell deadlift or stiff-legged deadlifts for 30 to
50 reps
3. Carry large stone as far as possible
4. Clean and press large rock for high reps...20 to 30 reps

15. Captains of Crush--Aug--99

Here's one. Smart alec young yuppie lawyer in my firm sees the IronMind catalog on my desk...thumbs
through it...decides to order COC, Trainer Model. Gets it, starts showing off how storng he is by closing it.
Keeps it on his desk, closes it while on the phone. Says to his petite 105 pound secretary, "Here's
420.00...it's yours if you can close this with one hand." She of course can't do it.

"Watch this!" he says, (puffind his chest and flexing his lats). And he closes it. "You need to work on your
grip," he tells her.

Obviously something had to be done...

I brought in my COC No. 2, cleaned it up so it looked brand new, and early in the morning swapped it for
his Trainer.

Of course he didn't notice the difference...and couldn't budge the thing...Doubtless wondered what had
happened to his "superhuman grip strength."

After an hour or two, his secretary (who ws in on the joke) went in and asked him if he was ill.

"You look kinda green and puny" she siad.

"Yeah, I have been feeling sort of weak..."

An hour later he went home to go to bed for the rest of the day, convinced he was coiming down with the
flu.

16. What is happening?--Aug-99

It is ridiculous how much information we are LOSING...in another 20 years, NO ONE will know how to do
a power clean, standing press, squat, etc...Look at what happened to the bent press...no on eknows what
it is anymore, let alone how to do it. Will the same be true of virtually all barbell exercises in a fiarly short
period of time?

17. The 5 x 5 system...July-99

The 5 x 5 system is detailed more thoroughly in Dinosaur Training, along with the reasons for the sytem.
You do NOT to five sets with the same weight. You do two progressively heavier warmup sets, then three
sets of five reps with your working weight. When you can get five reps on each set with the working
weight, add more weight in the next session. The system is time tested and effective; it has a good track
record and it works very well. It is an ideal way for a guy who has been doing one set of medium reps to
start to get used to handling heavy weights for multiple sets. The warmup sets and the total number of
reps help build form and technique. The "stabilizing principle"--not adding weight until you can do three
sets of five reps--assures that you do not add weight too quickly, and those of you who are interested in
starting to explore lower rep strength training should give it a try. The system is not new, it is not trendy,
and it runs counter to what many do or advocate...but it works...Give it a try.

18. My Olympic Lifting Basics Tape...Aug-99

The OL tape is designed for someone who needs to see the BASICS...someone who has never seen a
power clean, power snatch, high pull, push press or push jerk. It does not cover the competitive Olympic
lifts, nor was it done for that purpose. I think it is an excellent training tape for a martial artist who has not
been exposed to OL work; the OL moves shown on the tape will be a terrific way to expand your current
program. Plus, the heavy lifting sequences in the tape will get you all fired up for some hard
training...AND...you see Sam and Spencer on the tape
19. Olympic Lifts and Muscular Development...Aug-99
There is a terrific article on the genral topic of OL training and physique development: "The Greatest
Physique Sotry." by Joe Berg, originally published in June, 1953, Strength and Health, and reprinted with
the permission of the York Barbell Company in the February, 199 Dinosaur Files. It details the extensive
use of heavy weight lifting by none other than John Grimek...In the article Berg notes that from 1932 to
1940, Grimek did no bodybuilding, but rather concentrated on Olympic lifting...cleans, presses,
snatches...He became enormously strong, and of course, was tremendously well built...probably the best
developed man in the history of the world if we exclude the later generations of steroid users.

20. Waist size and overall body...Aug 99

Back to Grimek again...the man was tremendously strong...and had an incredibly powerful waist. He once
trained to beat the world record in the weighted sit-up, and actually did so in training, but Hoffman did not
let him break the record officially for fear it woult affect his amateur status. He did VERY HEAVY bent
presses and side presses, and once tried a 400 pound bent press--just getting under the weight and not
trying to stand up with it--just to "see how it felt." So his abs and obliques were enormously strong, but in
physique shows he had a temendous differential between his waist and chest/shoulders. Food for thought

21. Overall comment on Olympic Lifting...Aug 99

If you train power cleans, power snatches, front squats, back squats, high pulls, standing presses, and
push presses hard and heavy you will develop a massive, thickly muscled physiuqe that will both LOOK
strong and BE strong

22. Best Exercises for Traps...July-99

Let me put it this way. I did heavy basic exercise for powerlifting for many years...pushed my strenth to
the level where I won five national championships in the bench prss (submaster's division, drug free
comps)...and then I started to do power cleans, etc...with barbells and dumbbells. THAT was what made
my back grow so THICK that I had to get all custom made dress shirts and suits to wear to work. For my
money, the Olympic style pulling movements and the heavy dumbbell cleans are about 20 zillion times
more effective than shrugs. Try them and see for yourself.

23. Cycling...July--99
I used to think cycling was ok because it at least got guys focused on adding weight to the bar. But then I
saw that guys abused cycling by taking way too many light workouts and not nearly enough hard ones.
The bottom line is this: Train HARD. Train HEAVY. If work, school, or other responsibilities make you
miss a workout or two, drop back a bit and ease back into things for a session or two, then go after it hard
and heavy. If you have a "down" day, when you know that you are not at 100%, drop some weight and
coast a little. But just do that once in a while. That's really all anyone needs to know about "cycling."

24. More on Olympic Lifting...July 99

You can train much like an Olympic lifter and build greath strength, power and muscular size, without
bumper plates or special coaching. All you need is a barbell and squat stands. Do squtas, power cleans,
power pulls, power snatches, presses and push presses...low reps or singles...multiple sets. Add some
situps/leg raises/side bends and you've got a very complete program. Brad Steiner mentions this kind of
approach in an upcoming issue of The Dinosaur Files; look for it.

25. Why am I weaker?--July--99

Note by Andy...A poster at the Old School Board had increased his clean and presses by 50 lbs in a short
period. He was disappointed when he tried the Trap Bar Deadlift and could not do his previous best of
300 .--

You increase your strength by nearly 50 pounds in the clean and press and call it a strength loss?!
C'mon, get real. YOU ARE STRONGER! Now convert the strength to a BIGGER TRAP BAR DEADLIFT.
Your mistake was in trying to jump right back to the weight you were using 2 months ago. Build back up
to it. In your next owkrout, do the clena and press as before, but afterwards, do trap bar deads up to 225.
The following workout, ditto, but trap bar up to 235. Next workout, 245. Then drop to adding 5 pounds
each workout. When you get to 270 or 275 start doing multiple singles in the trap bar deadlift and drop the
clean and press--or start alternating the two moves in different sessions. You should easily keep going
until you hit 300 on the trap bar. All that is going on is that you need to re-learn the groove. Also

,did you train your legs whil you were doing the clean dn press? If not, you need to let the leg strength
come back to match the increase in back strength...remember, trap bar deads are a leg lift more than a
back lift for most guys.

26. Squatting for Beginners...July 99

One set of squats, once per week will not train your body to squat. Beginners and intermediates need
more sets, more often. ADVANCED men are different...but for beinners and intermediates, 2 times or 3
times per week squatting is the way to go

27. 100 singles in the squat...Nov 99

These are BRUTAL. On 100 singles in the squat, I have done them bottom position style to avoid the time
and energy associated with racking on each rep. My best on these was 300 for 100 singles, and walking
was "an experience" for several days after...but hey, doing crazy stuff once in a while is good for you

28. My current training...Nov 99

Just about every session now is devoted to one exercise, for many, many singles...15 to 35...starting light
and working up in weight. Sticking to clean and press or clean and push press, snatch and squats are the
key movments. This is a very interesting way to train.

29. Hill Sprints Alternative?...Aug 99

1. Sprint 20-40 yards with weights in your hands...five to ten times...
2. Push cars or trucks.
3. Use a blocking sled for heavy pushing.

30. Best Exercises for Strength and Size?..Oct-99

Squats, deadlifts, bench presses, standing presses and push presses, power cleans, power pulls, power
snatches, the clean and press (or push press or jerk), barbell bent-over rowing, sandbag carries, the
farmer's walk, car pulling or pushing, sled pulling or dragging and hill sprints. The stuff the bunny crowd
never even DREAMS of doing

31. Squat Explosiveness...Attention New Squatters!

You just started to clean up your squat form, and you are going deeper and with greater control and
better balance. That's great. You are also adding weight on a regular basis. That's great, too. Keep it
going, slowly and steadily, and g-r-a-d-u-a-l-l-y work on incrreasing explosiveness from the bottom. It will
come to you over time. If you try a quick fix such as pause squats, box squats or (my personal favoirte)
bottom poition squats at this stage of the game you probably will hurt yourself. (This is in no way
disrespectful of those who do or advocate these exercises--heck, you guys KNOW I love the bottom
position squat. It's just a matter of building the foundation. You are still building the foundation.) Also, one
quick note...explosiveness is MENTAL...as you train, work on your powers of concentration. Reread the
chapters in Dinosaur Training on the mental aspects, especially, the chapter on concentration. Work very
hard to develop your powers of concentration. As you learn to focus and channel, you will atuomatically
become more explosive. If you have one of my videos, go back and watch the tapea t a point where I do
a heavy lift and you will see how the mental focus results in a fast, explosive life. Also, buy one of the
IronMind training hall tapes and watch how those guys squat...that's the speed and tempo you want to
emulate eventually. Good Luck!

32. One-arm Barbell Presses...Oct 99

I used to play with these and a year ago hit 125 or 135, I forget which, perhaps with a bit of knee drive. I
like them with a one hand clean, bar resting on chest and across the shoulder of the non-lifting arm,
which is raised and held out to the side for balance. This is the way Saxon did this lift. It is a tough lift, but
very rewarding. By the way, I believe I saw a photo once of Goerner pressing two 135 pound Olympic
bars, one in each hand, bars facing parallel to each other like a pair of big dumbbells

33. A Tip on Two Dumbbell Cleaning---Nov-99

You need to finish with a really hard and fast elbow hip...end the lift with the elbows high, pointing to the
10:00 position (left elbow) and 2:00 position (right elbow.)

34. Training for the Power Rack Video--Oct-99

1. I specialized on the Push Press for the tape, doing them three times per week, in each training session.
After the push press, I would do either squats or high pulls, alternating squats and high pulls from session
to session.

2. If I do push presses, I do not do overhead presses

3. My current squedule is mostly Olympic lifting moves and squats, so all I do is overhead work, pulling
work, and squats. Often only one lift per session for many, many heavy singles. Usually no more than two
liftes, e.g., clean and push press and squat...or power snatch and squat...or power snatch and power
clean and press...3 times per week unless work and travel make that impossible. I have not trained heavy
awkward objects for a while and will work those back in just for fun, along with farmer's wallk or other
heavy grip work...and in the winter, will get back to some partials in the rack...The trick is to do a limited
number of moves at any one time, and after a few months, change to other moves...This keeps you
motivated and "hungry" without overdoing things.

35. On Hise Shrugs...July-99

Talked to Kim Wood the other night and he mentioned how much he like this...uses a Magic Circle to do
it...really believes in this exercise for bulking the traps and upper back

36...On Ab work...Aug 99
Save the Gut work for the very last thing you do

37. John Lemm--Sep-99

There's a photo of Lemm and his massive thighs in The Wrestling Physical Conditioning Encyclopedia
(which is a GREAT book for strength trainers...VERY well done, with lots of photos of old time strongemn
and wrestlers).

Lemm was born in 1883. He came to be known as THE SWISS HERCULES. Won a major International
Wrestling Tournament in London termed "The Battle of the Giants." Defeated many great wrestlers of the
day, including the famous French Strongman, Appollon, who stood 6'1 1/2" and weighed 276 pounds--
and has ben rated by some experts as one of the very strongest men who ever lived and as having the
strongest hands and arms in history. (Yeah, this is the guy who had the railroad wheels--the Appollon
Axle...) Lemm stood 5'8" and weighed only 216 at the time.

Lemm wrestled Frank Gotch to a draw, which is further testament of his wrestling ability. He set a world
record in the squat by placing 517 pounds on his shoulders unassisted and then performing a squat with
it. The record stood for over 20 years...I believe Milo Steinborn is the man who broke it.

To shoulder the bar, Lemm would stand it on end, then very slowly and steadily get under the bar and
allow it to rock up and off the round, as he dropped into a deep, full squat. (Don't try this at home, boys
and girls!)

Supposedly, Lemm was a mountain guide in the Alps and built his tremendous leg and hip power by
going up the mountains all day long.

38. Going from 20-reps to 5 x 5--Jan-2000

Any time you make a dramatic change in reps (from low to high or vice-versa) you should use a careful
break-in period. Same applies when trying a new exercise. In most cases, I would suggest a one-week
lay-off, followed by a 6-8 week "break-in period" on the 5 x 5 work. Some of the younger guys may think
this is overly cautious, but you need to make haste slowly once you are over a certain age (30-40 for
most guys, and for anyone over 50)

39. "The Fact of the Matter is This: "--Feb 2000

1. The best thing in the world to do is OL type stuff with a barbell...plus

heavy db stuff as on my dumbbell tape...plus finishers...Train for strength. Do
low reps with heavy wts. Use abbreviated programs. Train hard. Be
consistent. Be confident. When you train, train HARD...attack the wts.

2. Train at home...

3. Train by yourself; you'll never find someone who is into it the way you
are...

4. Screw the drug users and everything about them.

5. Diet = eat plenty of good food.

That's about the whole message.

Nuggets 2:
1. Nov 13—2000 Setting Goals

My own training has always been about going after a particular poundage related goal. When I started
training as an 11 year old kid, my goal was to bench press 65 pounds—a 15 pound bar and collars and a
pair of (then seemingly huge) 25 pound “monsters” on each side of the bar. I worked and worked and
worked and finally made it. The next goal was 100 pounds...because it was a “magic number”...then 135
pounds (Olympic bar and a 45 on each side)...then 220 pounds on one of the old Universal Gym bench
press stations that we all knew and loved 30 years ago (magic number, entire weight stack)...then 270 on
the UG machine (220 pound stack plus a 50 pound plate on top of it—very magic and a surefire way—
NOT—to impress the chicks)...then back to the barbell, 200 pounds on the barbell (magic number
again)...225 (O bar and two 45s on each side)...then 300 pounds (magic number)...then 315 (3 45’s on
each side)...then 350 (magic number)...then 365 (double bodyweight)...then 396 (NASA submaster’s
american record at 19 ...then 400 (big magic number)...then 405 (submaster’s american and world record
in another drug free lifting organization)...then 407 (to beat my 405 competition best)...and finally on up to
a thick bar 420 starting from the bottom position in the rack, no bench shirt, in my basement (magic
number—much more magic than 415 would have been, for example). And that little lifting sequence
spanned about 25 or 26 years of pretty continuous lifting, with many goals and many challenges met and
mastered over the years.

I love lifting. I love the idea of setting a challenge for myself and working slowly and steadily to achieve it.
I use the same approach I used on the bench press in every lift I do. I’m always aiming at a new goal—a
new personal best. It may be based on a magic number, on a certain size or number of plates, on a
percentage of bodyweight, on an old chart of lifts or records, on a particular lift done by one of the old
timers, on current results in master’s competition, on something a friend has done, on something
someone has posted about, on old competition results—it doesn’t matter. What matters is setting a goal
for yourself and then GOING AFTER IT! This is the whole essence of our activity, and what it teaches you
about yourself is one of the greatest benefits of the Iron Game.

Learn to set goals. And when you set them, nail yourself to them. Attack them. Be aggressive. Never set
a goal and later walk away from it. Make it a point of pride to meet and master every goal you set for
yourself. When you do, you will have achieved one of the most important things you can achieve through
strength training. You will have developed an IRON WILL. You will have learned the power of
persistence. You will have discovered that you do indeed have the stuff that champions are made of.
Good luck...and as Dan John says, “Never let go.”

2. Nov 10, 2000 Low Rep Training

Personally, I favor low reps for my training, but I also adhere to the principle of “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”
In other words, if you are doing well on your current program (and it sounds like you are), perhaps now is
not the time for a change. It might be better to keep training as you are doing, and then, if and when the
gains slow down, give lower reps a try.

As for how to implement lower reps, most guys use too much weight at first when they drop reps. That
often leads to injuries. I’d suggest this: use the same weight you use for your current high rep program,
but do two sets of five reps for two or three workouts. For the next two or three workouts, do three sets of
five reps with that weight. NOW add weight—five or ten pounds only—and do three sets of five reps for
the next two or three sessions. Assuming you can do three sets of five reps in every session, add more
weight—five or ten pounds tops—and again shoot for several training sessions where you do three sets
of five reps.

Eventually, you’ll be hitting a weight where you cannot get three sets of five reps. At that point, keep at
the same weight until you get three times five for two consecutive training sessions, then add a little more
weight and build back up to three sets of five reps...and continue to add weight whenever you can do
three sets of five reps in two consecutive training sessions.
This is more of a “slow cooking” approach, but in the long run, it would work best for you, I believe. Also,
please note that many old timers build good size and muscularity on low reps. Reg Park is the classic
example—a HUGE 3x Mr. Universe winner in the 50’s and 60’s, who trained 5 x 5 almost exclusively. He
was the biggest and most muscular bodybuilder of his era. So pay no attention to anyone who says that
low reps will not build size and muscle.
Good luck!

3. Nov 11, 2000

Park suggested adding weight whenever you could do 3 x 5. He called it “the stabilization principle” and
really emphasized it. He wanted lifters to add weight ONLY after they had mastered the weight. I am
taking this one step further by suggesting that you hold back until you can do 3 x 5 with a given weight for
two sessions in a row—just to make sure that you really have mastered the weight. Too many guys will hit
3 x 5 one day when they are at peak energy, feeling really good (and perhaps “cheating” just a bit to get
the reps on each set)...and then they add weight and can only do three reps and crash and burn. Slow
and steady is the way to go. (File this under the category of “things I wish I had heard AND LISTENED
TO 30 years ago...)

4. October 1, 2000 York Courses

You can follow one course 3x per week, or do one course one day and the other course the next time you
train (alternating them)...or do course no. 1 on Tues, course no. 2 on Thurs and BOTH courses on Sat.
Hoffman liked to do this sort of thing on the weekend; sometimes he’d even do course no. 3, the
repetition weightlifting course and the HARDEST of the courses, THAN do course no. 1 and THEN do
course no. 2...all in one day. You mentioned that course no. 1 “wiped you out” so you can imagine how
tough it must have been for Hoffman to do all three courses in one session

5. October 8, 2000 Personal Results with York Courses

I followed York Course No. 3 in May, June, July and early August, 3x per week, with an occasional
session where I did nothing but heavy clean and press or power snatch or rack squats. Had very good
results. Started at a low bodyweight of 210, due to a very busy Spring, much work related travel, missed
workouts, little sleep and missed meals...the York program took my weight up to 225 very quickly as a
result of all the puffing and panting, increased heart and metabolic activity, from all of the repetition
weightlifting movements. I was very impressed with this aspect of the program, and would recommend
the schedule to anyone. Be warned, though—it is a ball buster of a program.

6. October 5, 2000 Singles Training

Many of my workouts consist of multiple singles in a good, all around movement: squat, front squat,
bottom position rack squat, power clean and press or push press, power snatch, power clean/front
squat/push press...followed by neck bridges and either situps, leg raises or side bends. You get a terrific
workout in well under an hour, and feel great afterwards. I usually start light and work up in small jumps to
a max weight or close to max, but sometimes I use “waves”—it all depends on what I am doing and how I
feel.
These workouts build plenty of strength, power and size, so don’t let their simplicity and brevity fool you
7. October 15, 2000 York 3

This course is amazingly, amazingly hard...It’s too bad more people don’t give it a try to see just how
KILLER a workout can be with just a barbell and a set of squat stands.
In many issues of The Dinosaur Files I run old success stories from Strength & Health from the 30’s, 40’s
and 50’s. You will note that the guys who reported in back then were making huge gains using the York
courses exactly as they were written, including lots of work on courses 3 and 4. The puffing, panting and
perspiring is the key. It’s another way of getting a very similar training effect to doing heavy, high rep
squats.

8. October 16, 2000 Were York Courses used for Lifters AND Bodybuilders?

Back then, there was not nearly as big a gap between lifters and bodybuilders. The courses were
intended to mold beginning trainees into powerful, well proportioned athletes who both looked strong and
were strong. Remember, Hoffman was trying to overcome a public perception of weightlifters as huge,
muscle-bound mastadons (Louis Cyr, etc.), so even though he favored lifting and was keenly interested in
developing good lifters, he always emphasized shape and proportion. This is a primary reason why he
disliked Joe Hise and disfavored limited exercise breathing squat programs.

I ran a reprint of an old article in The Dinosaur Files that talked about how Grimek’s weightlifting training
(including long periods when he did nothing at all but snatch and clean and press) made him the greatest
bodybuilder in history. That article was not written by Hoffman, but it distilled Hoffman’s approach to
things. The idea was that the same basic courses were best for laying the foundation for lifters,
bodybuilders and athletes.
9. November 11, 2000 The Old Breed

They don’t make lifters like they used to. Take the case of former World Olympic Weightlifting Champion
Stan Stanczyk. Not only was he an incredibly gifted lifter, he was one of the most honest men who ever
stepped onto the platform.
At the 1948 Olympic Games in London, Stan won the light-heavyweight class with a 259 pound military
press, a 280 snatch and a 352 ˝ clean and jerk.
On his third attempt in the snatch, Stan attempted a world record of 292 pounds, using his “greased
lightning” split style.

Picture the lift. Stan approaches the bar...sets himself...gives a mighty pull...and explodes under the bar
faster than the eye can follow.

The three judges pass the lift unanimously. It’s a new world and Olympic record!

The audience goes wild!

But wait!

Stan is shaking his head.

He turns to the head official.

“The lift was no good,” he says. “My knee touched the platform.”

10. November 10, 2000: GRIMEK ON ARMS: HOW HE DID IT, IN HIS OWN WORDS

Someone asked how Grimek trained arms. Here is the answer, in his own words, from the October, 1940
Strength & Health:

Those who wish to specialize in arm development only should follow a program somewhat like this:
Choose three exercises with apparatus [i.e., barbells, dumbbells, etc.] for the biceps and two without
apparatus; also four different exercises for the triceps with barbells and dumbbells; and three with lighter
apparatus, such as crusher grip, cables, iron shoe and one or two without any apparatus at all. Practice
these every other day and then, if possible, have someone massage the entire arms and shoulders.
Follow this program for two weeks. Then rest two or three days and again resume training. But this time
exercise five days in succession and then rest for two days, and then repeat for another week, returning
back to the former schedule. This program supplies plenty of exercise and rest periods. Some of you may
find that resting a day or two more won’t hurt but proves best for you. In that case, allow more rest in your
laying off period, giving the muscles sufficient time to recuperate....
If these principles are adhered to over a period of several months, the results will astound you...This is
the method I followed in building for myself the arms that have been judged “The Best Developed in
America.”...

11. November 10, 2000 Willoughby on Handstand Pushups

In SUPER ATHLETES, David Willoughby lists some all time records in handstand pushups:

1. Eddie Harrison, 148 pounds, did 15 consecutive handstand pushups on the edge of a table, touching
his chest on each rep.
2. Sig Klein, 148 pounds, did 19 consecutive handstand pushups on a bench, touching his chest on each
rep...even at age 67 he could do 12 or 13 of these!

3. Joe Nordquest, 168 pounds, did 28 handstand pushups on the floor.

4. Ed Theriault, 132 pounds, did 18 of them between chairs.

5. John Davis, at a bodyweight of 200 pounds, age 18, did 10 of them on a set of high parallel bars.

6. Maxick, 145 pounds, was estimated by Willoughby to be able to do 22 of them on the high parallel bars
or 34 on the floor.

7. First Sgt. Burko, USMC, bodyweight unknown, 27 on the floor.

8. Jack LaLanne, 178 pounds, 15 on pedestals, 40 on the floor.

Willoughby said that a handstand pushup on the floor was the equivalent of doing a two hand MILITARY
press with a bb weighing 79% of the lifter’s bodyweight...ditto on low parallel bars was the equivalent of a
2HMP with 90% bodyweight...high parallel bars, 96%.

In DEVELOPMENT OF STRENGTH, Harry B. Paschall said that if you can do 10 consecutive handstand
presses on low parallel bars you “were strong,” and if you could do 20, you were “super-strong.”

12. November 7, 2000 Grimek Workout

I reprinted a terrific article on Grimek’s training in an early issue of the Dinosaur Files. The author was Joe
Berg, and the article was titled, I believe, “The Greatest Physique Story Ever Told.” It originally ran in S&H
in the early 50’s. The premise of the article was as follows:

(1) Grimek had a unique look that other bodybuilders and lifters did not have: athletic, well balanced, well
proportioned, and with excellent posture.

(2) Grimek not only looked strong, he was strong.

(3) Grimek looked the way he did in part because of the wide variety of basic, stand on your feet barbell
exercises he did as a young man, including OL work, continental presses, one hand snatches, presses in
the bridge position, squats, straddle lifts, side presses, one hand swings and bent presses...all exercises
that hit the low back, hips and spine very, very hard. The old Mark Berry books and courses are illustrated
by Grimek and you can see in them the incredible development that these exercises produced. (Bill
Hinbern sells reprints, guys...hint, hint...)

(3a) Note that Joe Hise also commented on Grimek’s carriage and posture. This led Hise to suggest
programs that contributed to erect carriage and posture as part of a basic foundation for aspiring lifters. In
turn, this led him to the Hise shrug.

(3b) Harry Paschall always noted that Grimek never did flat bench presses, and that doing so would have
marred his physique.

(4) During the 30’s, Grimek had long periods of time where he just did OL work...and never looked better.

(5) The isolation style bodybuilding methods that came into vogue in the 50’s (and that continue to be in
vogue today) did not and cannot build a body like Grimek’s.

As a further note, Hoffman reported that Grimek’s favorite exercise was the continental press. He
regularly handled 300 plus pounds in this exercise.

12. November 8, 2000 More on Grimek

According to Hoffman and Paschall, Grimek did incline dumbbell presses and incline dumbbell flies.
When he was editor of MD later in his life, Grimek said he did lots of decline presses and that he
preferred them to incline presses. I have never heard or read about Grimek doing dips, although he did
lots of gymnastics and hand balancing.

Really, what Grimek did for his chest is not important. What matters is how he built his foundation: heavy
barbell exercises, including lots of squats, cleans, snatches, military presses, continental presses, side
presses, bent presses, presses while in a high neck bridge, stiff legged deadlifts, straddle lifts, heavy db
presses, one hand swings and one hand snatches. That sort of training was the key to the Grimek
physique. Don’t ask “What did JCG do for arms?” or “what did JCG do for chest?” What matters is what
he did to build his foundation.
As a further note, Grimek once wrote an article in S&H (late 50’s or early 60’s) in which he labeled the
clean and press as the best single exercise a man can do.
13. November 8, 2000 Hinbern’s Lifting Tape w/ Grimek
It’s a great tape. One of JCG’s interesting stunts is to press a heavy barbell—I’m going by memory, but I
think it was 200 pounds plus—and then casually toss it up and let it fall—and catch it EASILY in the crook
of the elbows, right below the biceps. He laughs and smiles as he does this.

Grimek was just incredible. He was fearless when it came to heavy lifting. He once put a 400 pound bar
on his shoulder and tried to bent press it, just to see what it felt like. He said he actually pressed it, arm
fully extended, as he dropped into a squatting position, but could not stand up to complete the lift. Think
of that. “Gosh, I wonder what it feels like to bent press 400 pounds. Think I’ll give it a try.” Good Lord!

14. November 8, 2000 Barbell Rows

Overhand grip...back flat, legs bent. The exact position varies from lifter to lifter depending on body
structure. Grip width also varies from lifter to lifter. The real key, though, is to pull the bar up right along
the legs and into the lower belly, not the chest. It’s like a power clean—keep the bar close to the legs, not
out in front of you.

15. November 8, 2000 More on Rows

I reprinted an old article by Peary Rader on the bb row in the Dino Files; check the back issue list that
Andy put up and order it if you are interested. Greg Pickett also did an excellent article on the bb row in
an early issue of the Files.
Peary’s advice on the row is very similar to my own. He did NOT suggest one grip or another...he said
that different grips work the muscles differently. In “The Rader Master Bodybuilding and weight Gaining
System” and in “Ironman Barbell Course No. 1,” Peary does not even reference the width of the hands—
because it is not very important. The critical point, which Peary always referenced, was to “pull the bar to
the lower belly, NOT to the chest.”

Also, be sure to train your lower back hard before you start doing the bb row and while you are training
them. Too many modern guys don’t do heavy lower back work, and then they try to do bb rowing, and
they get hurt because their lower backs are too weak to do the exercise. Such injuries are NOT the result
of the bb row, they are the result of not training the lower back. If, for example, you have been doing
seated presses instead of standing presses...leg press, Tru-Squat, ball squat, hack squat, leg extensions
or Smith Machine squats instead of regular squats...and no low back work or poor quality low back
work....then you are not ready for bb rowing.

16. October 23, 2000 Charles Atlas: Only Bodyweight Exercise?

Here are Atlas’ own words, quoted from an article in the April-May, 1955 Iron Man—you decide if you
believe him. With reference to the 150 pound one hand overhead lift, note that Atlas weighed 180 in his
prime:

“At no time in my career did I use barbells or iron dumbbells to increase my development. On several
occasions I have accepted a challenge to lift a weight, as a test, and once pushed up 150 pounds with
one hand from the shoulder. People who witnessed these rare attempts have made much of the fact that
they saw Atlas ‘lifting.’ No one, however, can truthfully state that they have known me to exercise with
weights of any kind.”

In the same article, it is stated that Atlas did lots of handstand press-ups, which are more or less a
weightlifting exercise in any event...bent lots of strap iron and spikes...did lots of running in the sand...tore
decks of cards and phone directories...wrestled...did hand balancing with a partner (presumably as the
bottom man)...did loads of ocean swimming...did tons of hand balancing...and would do a pullover and
press with a 200 pound man while in the wrestler’s bridge position. So even while claiming not to lift
“weights”, Atlas admittedly did far more than “dynamic tension.”

17. November 20, 2000 Building Pressing Power

The May, 1947 issue of an old British magazine, VIGOUR, has a long article by Bob Hoffman about
pressing power and how to build it. (This is probably a reprint of an S&H article.) Anyhow, Hoffman
summarized the philosophy of the day as folows:

“THE SECRET OF SUCCESS IN TWO-HANDS PRESSING IS

PERSISTENT PRACTICE, PRES, PRESS, PRESS. Pressing
is one exercise you can do a lot of....Five times a
week and several times each training day is not too
much for the press. The best pressers, the really
ambitious fellows, practice some pressing every
time they get near a barbell.”

It’s interesting to compare the old Hoffman method of very frequent heavy pressing to some of the
modern systems where many of us train a lift only once a week or even less frequently. Has anyone tried
a program where they press three, four or five times a week, and if so, how did it work for you?

18. November 13, 2000 Long Term Expectations

Take the case of John Davis. At age 18, he clean and jerked 300 pounds at 181 at the 1939 National
Championships, hit 330 at the next year’s nationals and hit 370 at the 1940 nationals (as a heavyweight).
It then took him over 10 years to add a measly 32 pounds and break the 400 pound barrier. Many guys
make really good gains at first, but then have to keep hammering away for many, many years to add that
extra 10% or so to their top lifts. That’s where perseverance, tenacity and good old fashioned “guts” come
into play.

19. November 25, 2000 Training of John Davis

: In the May, 1952 S&H, Davis said he did the following four days per week (M/T/W/F):

Warmup press 135 x 2 sets of 6 reps

press 185 x 3
press 205 x 3
press 255 x two sets of 3 reps
press 280 x 1
press 300 x 8 sets of 2 reps
supine press 330 for 5 sets of 3
squat 450 5 x 5

At this period of his career I believe Davis would train each lift for a two week period of specialization, so
he’d do two weeks of the foregoing, then two weeks where he specialized on clean and jerk or snatch.

20. November 14, 2000 More on Grimek’s Arms

The conventional pre-steroid wisdom always linked upper arm size to wrist size. For example, in Muscle
Molding, Harry B. Paschall (a personal friend of JCG), referenced JCG’s 18 ˝” upper arms, 14” forearms,
27” thighs, 10 ˝” ankles and 8” wrists. Harry wrote:

“Are you willing to accept the Grimek standard? Personally, I am more than satisfied, but I should like to
call your attention to a couple of important Grimek girths before you sue me for not making you an exact
duplicate of John. Cast your optics on those wrists and ankles. Big bones, hey, kid? If you are like me,
with 7 inch wrists and 9 inch ankles, you’re gonna have a tough time getting those 18 inch biceps and 27
inch thighs. ... “

Nowadays, steroids and muscle pumping have changed things around, and you see lots of huge upper
arms tapering down to non-existent wrists, but if you look back to the guys who did it with heavy exercise
and NO DRUGS—such as Grimek—Harry’s observation seems to hold up pretty well. And if you consider
that most guys with thick wrists are going to be able to build thick forearms, you pretty much have to
agree with Joe.

Also, for the record, Grimek had STRONG forearms and wrists and a STRONG grip. He was able to
clean the famous, thick handled Cyr Dumbbell with one hand—and then bent press it—whereas most
lifters cannot one hand deadlift the bell. (In fact, Grimek got so good at handling this dumbbell that he
decided to make it heavier—so he took the lead plates that had been typeset with Jowett’s The Key to
Might and Muscle, the rights to which York had acquired from the Milo Barbell Co., chopped them up and
used them to load the bell to a heavier weight. That’s why the book remained out of print for so long!) And
Grimek still holds the world record in the weaver stick lift, a classic test of wrist strength.

BTW...re JCG’s arms...his favorite triceps exercise was a close grip military press (close meaning
perhaps shoulder width or just a bt closer), beginning the lift with a SLOW start. After a certain point in his
career he developed elbow problems and stopped doing curls; thereafter, he trained his biceps
exclusively with close grip supinated pulldowns to the chest. Before that, though, he was a heck of a
curler—Oscar Heidenstam reports seeing him knock out reps with 190 pounds in the warmup room at the
Mr. Universe contest. His favorite forearm exercise was the good old fashioned wrist roller exercise. He
would do these with 25 pounds, holding the wrist roller at arm’s length in front of him (the hard way to do
them). Paschall ran a photo of JCG in his little booklet, Muscular Arms and Shoulders, where Grimek is
doing this exercise and laughing as he does it.
For anyone not familiar with the Grimek physique, his best photo ever is reproduced on the cover of
Muscletown USA...there are lots of photos of him in Paschall’s books (available thru Bill Hinbern)...and
there are some great photos of a young and incredibly muscular Grimek demonstrating lots of different
exercises in the old Mark Berry courses that Bill Hinbern reprinted last year. (See the link to Hinbern’s
materials on this website.)

Yet another compilation of old tips and tricks from Brooks---

Nuggets Part III…

1. Training the Press Nov. 14 2000

Personally, I train the press 3x per week and it has been working well. In the past, I trained the lift once
per week and that worked well also, as did twice a week. I’ve never done 5x per week, but know of others
who have had good success with such a schedule. I think Hoffman’s point is worth thinking about, at least
if it convinces a guy who presses once per week or once every ten days to try 2x or 3x per week. Also,
note that Hoffman is talking only about THE PRESS...not about other lifts. And remember, Hoffman
always said you can train on your nerve (his term for a max workout) no more often than once per
week...so when he says press 5x per week, he is referring to a mixture of light and medium days, with
one heavy day, not five heavy days.

2. Hermann Goerner’s 727 lbs. One hand Deadlift Nov. 14, 2000

This was a full one hand dead lift, with the bar in front of the lifter (as in a regular dead lift), NOT
“straddle” style, with an overhand hook grip. According to his biographer, Edgar Mueller, in Goerner The
Mighty (yet another great book available in reprint form from Bill Hinbern—and folks, I don’t get one red
cent from plugging Bill’s books), “The bar was lifted correctly from the floor to the full erect position of the
body.” Mueller also wrote: “Hermann practiced all his Dead Lifts on straight bars with regular plates, using
mostly the Berg-type and sometimes the Scwedler-type revolving barbell. At no time was the bar higher
from the floor than 8.25 inches (21 cms). When he trained the lift, Goerner did 529, 551 ˝, 617.25, and
then 661.25 pounds.

3. “Optimum ROM” November 18, 2000

I will say this: the older you get, the more you understand the importance of full range exercise when you
are young. The kids out there who are hammering away at partial movements—power style squats,
bench presses, and sumo dead lifts—are setting themselves up for problems as they get older. It took me
a LONG time to figure it out, but the truly full range movements are enormously better. (This means
Olympic style squats, full front squats, full overhead squats, and anything where you lift the bar from the
floor to overhead.)
4. Bad Advice November 18, 2000

Here’s my list of mistakes:

1. Training on exercise machines.

2. Not doing enough Olympic Lift work when younger.

3. Using food supplements when younger.

4. Doing power-lifting style squats rather than OL squats.

5. Training the low back with dead lifts. (OL moves and heavy dumbbell moves work much better for me.)

6. Not doing enough heavy grip work as a young man.

7. Not doing enough bridging once I stopped wrestling after I graduated from high school.

8. Doing seated overhead presses instead of standing presses.

9. Too much bench pressing.

10. Training (when younger) at commercial gyms.

11. Reading the glossies (when I was younger).

12. Not using the old York courses to build an overall foundation.

5. Bob Peoples November 18-00

Peoples was an amazing man. Lived in the middle of the mountain country along the Tennessee-North
Carolina border. Lived on a farm, worked at a rayon plant and then came home and worked on the farm.
Still found time not only to train, but to develop world record power (set a world record in the deadlift at
181 that stood for something like 20 years until a 300 pounder finally beat the record). Trained in a root
cellar—something like 10 x 10 or 15 x 15...high dirt walls...a rough wooden floor...used lots of home-made
equipment, including home-made power racks and barbells made of two 55 gallon drums filled with rocks
and scrap metal, with a thick wooden bar (did Ľ squats and leg presses with this). Sometimes trained
heavy deads five days per week. Discovered “negatives” all by himself. Did lots of heavy singles. Was
introduced to Paul Anderson when PA was a very young man and helped get PA off on the right foot. Had
incredible lower back development—one of the photos in the Hinbern book shows him completing a
heavy deadlift from the back, no shirt, and you see a huge Xmas tree effect from the low back muscles as
they knot and bulge. Designed many home-made exercise machines, including special machines for
negative resistance. All in all, a remarkable man.

6. Overhead press. November 18, 2000

The overhead press has more carryover to sports or other activities, works your torso and lower back in
ways that the bench cannot approach, and does not wear down your shoulders. Over time, the bench
press causes rotator cuff problems. I don’t bench any more and I don’t miss it at all. For the chest, do 45
degree dumbbell inclines.

7. Low Back Specialization November 21, 2000

Try this. Note that 5/4/3/2/1 can be EITHER one set of five reps, add weight, one set of four reps,
etc...OR it can be five quick singles (30-60 seconds between lifts), add weight, do four quick singles, etc.
It’s your choice.

MON

1. Power snatch 5/4/3/2/1

2. Power clean and press or push press 5/4/3/2/1

3. One arm db swings 5/4/3/2/1 OR DB clean and press 5/4/3/2/1 OR one hand snatch 5/4/3/2/1

4. Leg raise or bent legged situps 2 x 12-20

WED

1. Front squats 5/4/3/2/1

2. Overhead squats 5/4/3/2/1

3. Side presses 5/4/3/2/1

4. Barbell bent over rowing 4 x 5 (add wt each set)

5. Side bends 2 x 12-20

FRI or SAT

REPEAT MON PROGRAM; add one finisher if time and energy permit.

Good luck!

8. Lying Leg Raises Nov 21, 2000

Lying leg raise:

Lie on back (on floor or bench). If on bench, let the legs hang over the edge of the bench. With legs
straight or slightly bent, raise both legs until legs are at a 90 degree angle to the floor, lower until heels
touch floor, then repeat.

You also can do these while hanging from a chinning bar.

As you get stronger, use iron boots or chains wrapped around ankles to add weight. PDA carries a little
harness to hook your feet into, with a plate attached, and that would be well worth trying.

9. General Advice Nov. 21, 2000

1. Use a barbell.

2. Do cleans, snatches, overhead work, etc.

3. Do one arm overhead lifts.

4. Train for health as well as strength

5. The older you get, the more important and more enjoyable this stuff really is.

6. This stuff is incredibly simple.

7. The real rewards from training are mental, not physical.

8. The old York courses are solid gold.

9. Train your lower back, legs, shoulders and midsection HARD and everything else will be fine.

10. Bridging is an incredibly under-rated and misunderstood exercise.

11. Single reps are incredibly productive.

12. One of the most important things is to just keep training. Be persistent.

13. As Dan said, just show up.

14. To learn how to train for real, study the great pre-steroid lifters from the past.

10. Training Olympic Lifts w/Exercise Bar

November 22, 2000

I usually train all of my OL stuff on a regular exercise bar because the ceiling in my basement is too low
for the OL bar and plates. It works fine. As JV noted, be sure to give the plates a little bit of room to “roll”
... if you make everything too tight, it’s like lifting an old-fashioned solid barbell.
Also, remember that in the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s thousands of guys got great results training w/ exercise
barbells purchased through the mail from York...and most of them did lots of OL work and similar moves.

In addition to Clyde Emrich, John Davis did most of his training w/ an exercise bar, and he did ok.
11. The “Ideal Man” November 22, 2000

The Alan Calvert “ideal” (which Bob Hoffman adopted in great part as the York “ideal”) was built by
training programs similar to those most of us on this board advocate and follow. Ditto for the Harry
Paschall “ideal”—just look at the courses outlined in his books. Calvert, Hoffman and Paschall all
advocated schedules that involve lots of heavy lifting for 45 to 60 minutes per session, which is exactly
the same as most of us follow. I don’t see any inconsistency here. Also, the majority of those who post
here are middle-aged guys with families and full-time, demanding jobs. One hour per workout, 2x or 3x
per week, is about all that our schedules allow—and we get great results from these programs.

12. No Room for Standing Presses November 19, 2000

I’m not real tall (5’9”) but I have the same problem when I use an Olympic bar and the 45’s in my
basement. Solution: I use a regular exercise bar and 25 pound plates for all of my overhead work.
Alternative solution: Train overhead stuff outside or in the garage. Kneeling presses are not a good idea,
and seated presses just won’t do for you what standing presses will do. Oh, I almost forgot—there’s a
very good third possible solution: JV’s cable Bar system, where the weights hang down below the bar and
therefore you don’t have to worry about the plates hitting the ceiling. As long as you have enough room to
stand on your feet and extend your arms overhead, this would work great.

13. What is an Ideal Man? November 15, 2000

In Muscle Molding, Harry Paschall detailed the standards for “the ideal man” given by Alan Calvert in
1914:

height 5’ 8”
weight 175 pounds
Neck 16 ˝
Chest 44
waist 32
hips 39
thigh 24
calf 15
ankle 9
biceps 16
forearm 13
wrist 7

According to Harry, “this was actually about the average achieved by Alan Calvert’s dozen star pupils of
the era” and it was only “slightly under the Eugene sandow proportions.” (Harry noted that Sandow has
biceps of 16.9 inches but that otherwise his measurements were within ˝ inch of the “ideal man”
measurements that Calvert suggested.
Anyhow, we look at Calvert’s vision of the ideal man, and we may or may not be very impressed. Many of
us, I would suspect, would tend to sneer at a lifter with a measly 16 inch upper arm and 44 inch chest.
Ah, but wait—there’s more to the formula.
Harry continued:

“Now let us go further into the qualifications of the perfect man. Certainly if he is going to have so much
muscle, he is going to be strong. But how fit is he, ah, that depends on you! We like to go back to an early
prospectus of Calvert’s for the ideal man of strength. He said he should weigh so much, and measure so
much, as we have indicated above; but then he went on and pictured such a man as we all would like to
be. His finished pupil, he said, must be able to lift 150 pounds overhead with one hand; leap a five-foot
fence at a bound; walk, run or swim for miles without effort or fatigue, and excel any strong laborer in any
feat of lifting or strength to which the workman was accustomed. His ideal man must not only look strong,
but be strong. He must be an athlete PLUS. This conception of my early teacher I accept as gospel. We
must so train that we build organic strength and fitness as well as the visible muscles.” So I ask you: what
is the ideal man? A huge, ripped modern day monster seemingly twice the size of the 1914 athlete ... or a
muscular, but much smaller man, packaged more along the Calvert lines, who can perform all of the feats
that Calvert desired of his finished pupils?
And for those of you who opt for the Calvert standard, how would you go about achieving it?
Is there a different standard that you would propose? What is it? Why? Who would you describe as an
“ideal man”? How did he train to attain his strength and muscles? What lessons does he offer for the rest
of us?

14. Overhead Press or Bench? November 18, 2000

Do the overhead press. The overhead press has more carryover to sports or other activities, works your
torso and lower back in ways that the bench cannot approach, and does not wear down your shoulders.
Over time, the bench press causes rotator cuff problems. I don’t bench any more and I don’t miss it at all.
For the chest, do 45 degree dumbbell inclines. BTW, if you sub to the Files, I cover this issue in detail in
my article for the current issue (November). If you don’t sub, email me with your mailing address and I’ll
send a free copy of that issue.

15. Bob Peoples November 18, 2000

Peoples was an amazing man. Lived in the middle of the mountain country along the Tennessee-North
Carolina border. Lived on a farm, worked at a rayon plant and then came home and worked on the farm.
Still found time not only to train, but to develop world record power (set a world record in the deadlift at
181 that stood for something like 20 years until a 300 pounder finally beat the record). Trained in a root
cellar—something like 10 x 10 or 15 x 15...high dirt walls...a rough wooden floor...used lots of home-made
equipment, including home-made power racks and barbells made of two 55 gallon drum filled with rocks
and scrap metal, with a thick wooden bar (did Ľ squats and leg presses with this). Sometimes trained
heavy deads five days per week. Discovered “negatives” all by himself. Did lots of heavy singles. Was
introduced to Paul Anderson when PA was a very young man and helped get PA off on the right foot. Had
incredible lower back development—one of the photos in the Hinbern book shows him completing a
heavy deadlift from the back, no shirt, and you see a huge Xmas tree effect from the low back muscles as
they knot and bulge. Designed many home-made exercise machines, including special machines for
negative resistance. All in all, a remarkable man.

16. Power Supersets November 29, 2000

Another option is what I refer to as power supersets: two heavy compound lifts for singles, doubles, or
triples, performed back to back. For example, clean and press, followed by squat...squat followed by
deadlift, trap bar deadlift or stiff legged deadlift...squat or front squat followed by high pulls with snatch or
clean grip...the possibilities are endless. Three to ten of these “supersets” will knock you on your butt.

I use a similar program on heavy dumbbell work: right hand swing, left hand swing, two dumbbell clean
and press, right hand dumbbell clean and press, left hand dumbbell clean and press, all for one
series...then add weight and repeat the series. After five or six of these “compound” sets, you are really
huffing and puffing. Sometimes I’ll add squat or front squat as part of the series—and that makes it a
killer.
BTW, Bob Hoffman always favored compound exercises of this nature, such as squat and press behind
neck. This is the whole basis of Hoffman’s “Simplified System of barbell Training.” It was good stuff then,
and it is good stuff now.

17. Wrestler’s Bridge and Press December 8, 2000

I do a sort of “bench press” in the high bridge position. I start in the bridge position and pull the barbell
over the face to my chest (like doing a bent arm pullover), then do a bench press type motion while
holding the bridge. I’ve worked up to 202 pounds for 12 reps. IMO, this is a terrific back and neck
exercise. BUT YOU NEED TO WORK UP TO THIS VERY, VERY CAREFULLY! For 99.99% of those
reading this, the best place to start is the NON-WEIGHTED neck bridge, as detailed in Matt Furey’s book,
Combat Conditioning.
If you do judo or wrestling or football and do NOT exercise your neck hard and heavy, you are asking for
trouble. If you don’t bridge, you need to do heavy work with a head strap. Iron Mind sells an excellent
one.

18. Yep, It Works! December 8, 2000

I seem to recall reading somewhere recently (as in, the November, 2000 issue of The Dinosaur Files) that
Bud Jeffries does “dinosaur training” and also, that he recently won a lifetime drug free world
championship in powerlifting. I also seem to recall that the guy who wrote Dinosaur Training did ok in
drug-free lifting—winning something like five national championships in the bench press (submaster’s
division) and a dozen or more national, American or world records in the submaster’s division.

Also, I’ve received many letters and e-mail messages over the years from lifters who have increased their
powerlifting ability enormously by using the various ideas in Dinosaur Training.
BTW, when you ask this question, what is your definition of “dinosaur training”? In the book, and in the
newsletter, there are many different training ideas and suggestions. It’s sort of hard to ask “does dinosaur
training work?” if you don’t define what you mean by dinosaur training. Did Doug Hepburn do “dinosaur
training”? Yeah, and he was the first man in history to bench press 500 pounds. Did Reg Park do
“dinosaur training”? Yeah, and he was the second man in history to bench press 500 pounds. Do Dr.
Ken’s lifters (past and present) do “dinosaur training”? Yeah—and they’ve done great over the years.
Dinosaur training is just plain, old fashioned hard work with heavy iron. And hard work with heavy iron is
gonna make anyone a better lifter.
Remember, too, that “dinosaur training” is a state of mind. There is a BIG emphasis on the mental
aspects of training. I doubt that any reasonably accomplished lifter would argue that the mental aspects of
training don’t matter. They do. Enormously. So if you are asking, does “dinosaur training” work for
powerlifters, one answer is, “absolutely, because dinosaur training focuses on the mental aspects of
training, and the mental aspects of training and competing are critical to the success of any lifter.”

19. Strength Training and Wrestling December 8, 2000

During the season, at least, you need to devote virtually all of your time and energy to wrestling practice.
There will be very little left for “extra” strength training on your own. So until the end of the season, it’s not
realistic to expect to focus on strength training. Besides, over the course of the season, you cannot
increase your strength enough to really make a difference in your wrestling...but you CAN increase your
wind and endurance (both cardiovascular and muscular endurance) enormously (by wrestling!), AND you
can increase your skill, knowledge and speed on the mat enormously (by wrestling). In other words,
wrestle hard and often and you will become a better wrestler. The wrestling is what will pay off for you
right now, not the strength work.
Also, I assume your coach has you guys on some sort of lifting program, or at least, doing calisthenics
and other exercises in practice. So you need to factor that into what you are doing. Like it or not, you
have to do what the coach says to do...even if you don’t like his strength training program or think you
could get a better workout on your own. That’s just the way it is when you are in high school. Perhaps in
the off season you will have more of a chance to train on your own.
Finally, if you are training on your own (and it sounds like you are), you need to be sure you know how to
do the various exercises. For example, you need to learn how to do power cleans from someone who
really KNOWS...or else you will receive minimal benefit and probably hurt yourself. In that regard, the
guys on the board can steer you to some good resources for learning OL moves and for hooking up with
someone who knows how to do them.
Final note—on bridging—please do them bodyweight only until you have truly mastered them. No weight
resistance at all until you can hold a high, full bridge for three sets of three minutes each!

20. Combining Powerlifting with Olympic Style Lifting December 7, 2000

If you are interested in an OL program, a good all around OL program would be better than a combination
program. Otherwise, you’re just dabbling with the OL stuff. Jim Schmitz has an excellent book (sold by
Iron Mind) on Olympic Lifting for beginners and intermediates. The programs are very carefully designed
to help you develop flexibility and proper movement patterns, both of which are critical to OL training. For
example, you do the front squat and the over-head squat not merely to train the legs for strength and
power, but also, to learn the correct positions for the snatch and the squat clean and to develop flexibility
in the shoulders, wrists, ankles and hips. So, without debating the merits of “HIT vs. OL”, I think you
should go 100% OL style IF that is what interests you....and you should do so using a good guide such as
Schmitz’ book....and you should not try to keep doing HIT or powerlifting or bodybuilding or anything else
while you are using the OL schedules. Just focus on the OL and see what happens.

In this regard, think for a minute about the squat, an exercise that is a very important part of both OL
programs and HIT programs. To do OL stuff, you need to do full, Olympic style back and front squats.
Parallel squats will make you too stiff and tight to do the OL stuff. BUT, how do you safely train full front or
back squats to failure? The answer is, you can’t do it! Watch the Iron Mind Training Hall tapes; you’ll see
top OL guys doing heavy back and front squats with no rack, no safety catch bars and no spotters. Is this
because they are suicidal? No, it’s because they are in full control of every rep and because they do not
train to failure. So if you combine HIT and OL work, you’d have to do OL style squatting AND HIT style
squatting....and I think anyone, whether from the OL side or the HIT side, would say, “wait a minute, that’s
not gonna work very well.”

1. More on Weighted Bridging December 7, 2000

The press in the wrestler’s bridge position was one of the exercises in York Barbell Course No. 2. Bob
Hoffman wrote, “Start with a weight that you can comfortably handle and work up to twelve
[reps]....Advanced pupils use more than 200 pounds in this exercise.”
My personal best on this one is 202 pounds for 12 reps. I’ve seen pictures of old-timers handling BIG
weights on this. An old issue of Strength and Health shows a 150-160 pounder doing what I believe is a
305 pound lift. This was claimed as a world record, I believe. I think the lifter’s name was Jack Kent, but I
am going by memory on this.
In Super Athletes, Willoughby credits George Hackenschmidt with 311 pounds for one pullover and two
presses at a bodyweight of 195 pounds...Frank Dennis with 279 pounds for one pullover and press at a
bodyweight of 151 pounds...Louis Chiarelli (152 pounds) with a lift of 309 pounds (but he had the weight
handed to him)...and Willoughby also mentions a 315 pound lift by 215 pound Charles Davis (but we don’t
know if Davis had the wt handed to him or did a pullover followed by a press). Also, John Grimek is
reported to have handled 220 or so in the wrestler’s bridge press as a young man.
The wrestler’s bridge is a tremendous exercise, but start out slowly and carefully, and work up very slowly
and gradually in adding weight. Even a big, strong, experienced lifter should stick to bodyweight bridging
at first. Add weight only when you have mastered the basic bodyweight version of the exercise.

2. Weighted Bridges AGAIN…when to add weight December 7, 2000

(1)When you can do three sets of three minutes each in the full, high bridge, try adding a little bit of
weight. (2) The wrestler’s bridge and press is better than the “bridging up” motion. Most guys won’t go all
the way into a full, high bridge if they do the “bridging up” motion with weight, and it’s the full, high position
that is important.

3. One Arm Side Press December 7, 2000

The one arm side press is very similar to a bent press, except you keep your legs straight throughout the
entire movement. It is NOT simply a press where you lean a bit to one side as the weight goes up. The
old timers would lean way, way over, so that their torsos were parallel to the ground at the completion of
the lift. The exercise was a back and waist strengthener, NOT an arm and shoulder exercise. There are
good photos of the exercise in Pullum’s book, Weightlifting Made Easy and Interesting, which Bill Hinbern
sells.
Olympic Style Lifting without Bumpers December 10, 2000
I usually train with an exercise bar and iron plates, and I do almost nothing but OL stuff and squats, so
yes, you can do it. And you can get darn strong training at home with an exercise bar, as JV noted. John
Davis and Clyde Emrich are two examples of GREAT lifters who trained with exercise bars.
The trick is, always lower the bar in stages...first to the shoulders, bending the legs and going into a Ľ
squat to absorb the shock of the bar...then to the thighs, bending the legs again as the bar hits them...and
then to the floor. It sounds much harder than it is. DO NOT TRY TO DO A NEGATIVE RESISTANCE
“REVERSE CURL.” It won’t work.
Also, you can and should use a 3’ length of 2” x 8” wood positioned so the plates start and land on the
boards. This helps avoid destroying the floor. It also will position the bar at the right height to start the lift
(otherwise, with 25 pound exercise plates, you’ll be way too low at the start, with a rounded back). Use a
folded towel or some old carpet or rubber matting on top of the boards to keep the bar from rolling.
And I second what Mike said. Be sure your porch is solid enough to handle your weight and the weight of
the bar. Good luck!

4. Dumbbell Swing and Reps December 24, 2000

It is very hard to do reps in the dumbbell swing, and impossible to do them correctly if you don’t put the
bell on the floor between reps. Remember, the starting position has the bell not only on the ground but
back between the legs—not simply lying below the lifter. You can’t really lower the bell to that “down and
back” position, you have to put it on the floor, step back, then step forward. If you don’t do this, you start
making the lift an incomplete movement where the bell starts on the ground in front of the lifter (or from
the hang in front of the lifter). Also, if you do reps, you lower the bell with one hand instead of two (wrong
again) and you tend to start the lift with a bent arm, shoulder not properly positioned and back not flat.
This makes the reps inefficient, teaches bad habits and could lead to an injury. This is why I suggest
using singles in the one hand swing. However, if you work fast, it is just the same as doing reps. If you
train one hand, other hand, back and forth, you work the heck out of your back, while starting each rep
from the floor in a perfect position.

5. More on the Dumbbell Swing “The Little Things” December 24, 2000

It’s the little things that count in lifting. In the dumbbell swing, it’s stuff like padding the forearm, using the
right size plates, pushing off the thigh with the non-lifting hand, holding the dumbbell as close to the
plates as possible, starting with the dumbbell all the way back and properly positioned, back-loading the
dumbbell, etc. As the old lifts are “re-discovered” more people try to do them (which is GREAT), but they
often forget the little things. That’s why the dumbbell tape is helpful, and why Hinbern’s reprints are so
valuable. I mean, face it—how many of us go to gyms where we regularly see other lifters doing the one
hand swing?
Anyhow, good luck and good lifting!

6. “Long, Long Ago:” 20 Rep Squats and Weight Loss December 24, 2000

In one of the very first “muscle mags” I ever saw—a 1969 issue of Muscular Development (edited by John
Grimek), there was an article by a guy who had exactly the same idea, gave it a try and did great losing
weight a 20 rep squat program and a low cal diet. BTW, he did front squats for more ab work! (An Old
School idea back in 1969...)

7. Pressing and the Three “P’s” December 23, 2000

A brief note with regard to getting your press to go up. I’ve found that any kind of overhead pressing has
carry-over to anything else in the way of overhead work, but strict pressing seems to have the most carry-
over for me. Hopefully, it will have good results for you as well.
In training the press (push press, military press or log press), remember the three P’s:
(1) patience
(2) poundage
(3) persistence.
Patience and persistence are critical because what seems to happen is that you stay at a certain weight
for awhile, seemingly not getting anywhere, and then all of a sudden out of the blue you make a big jump.
Poundage is critical because you need to train heavy enough to work all of the supporting muscles and
any “weak links” so they hold up to a heavy overhead lift.
Good luck!

8. Dinosaur Strength Training and Combat Conditioning December 23, 2000

There are several options:

1. Do dinosaur training on Monday, Combat Conditioning on Wednesday, dinosaur training on Friday, and
so on, alternating back and forth.
2. Do dinosaur training on Monday, Combat Conditioning on Wednesday or Thursday and BOTH on Sat
(more time to train AND to recover on the weekend).
3. Do workouts of ˝ dinosaur training and ˝ Combat Conditioning
4. Train dinosaur 2x per week and Combat Conditioning 2x per week.
5. Do dinosaur training for 6 weeks and then do Combat Conditioning for 6 weeks.
The one thing that does not work for most guys is to do TOO MUCH! You can’t do dinosaur training 3x
per week and Combat Conditioning 3x per week as well. Nor can you do Combat Conditioning five or six
times per week and dinosaur training 2 or 3 times per week, as some have tried. Plan out a schedule that
combines both training styles, but use your head. For example, if you have a heavy squatting workout,
you don’t need to do Hindu squats in the same session or the next day. Also, remember that some
exercises require more recuperation time than others. In my own case, heavy power lifting and rack work
requires more recovery time than Olympic lifting, and I bet the same is true for many guys. The farmer’s
walk or any other finisher requires more recovery time for most guys. Going to failure on heavy compound
moves requires more recovery time than other training methods. So when you combine weights with
Combat Conditioning, be aware of the type of weight work you do and how much recovery you need, then
work the Combat Conditioning in accordingly.

9. A One Exercise Session December 23, 2000

Try This:
A one-exercise session, focusing on one hand clean and press or clean and push press.

Start with ˝ of your top single (or 50 pounds) if you can do 100 or more and that’s all the wt you have. Do
five singles with each hand, alternating hands. For example, clean the bell with the left hand, press it,
lower it (with two hands), pause, catch your breath (15-30 seconds should do it), then repeat with the right
hand. Do a total of five with each hand.
Add ten pounds...repeat.
Keep adding weight until you hit your top weight or 100 pounds.
If you do a total of 25-30 singles with each arm, you’ll have a heck of a workout.
NOTE: On the one hand clean with thick dumbbell, be sure to start with the bell between the feet, so you
straddle it...you are looking straight ahead, we’ll call that 12:00. The bell is positioned so that the front
plates point toward 12:00 and the rear plates point toward 6:00.
BE CAREFUL OF YOUR FEET! Don’t do reps. Do singles so you can lower the bell with two hands. You
cannot hold onto a heavy thick handled dumbbell when lowering it with one hand from shoulder to floor.
Do NOT try. You’ll drop it on your foot and break your foot. Lift with one hand, but lower with two.
Have fun!

10. York 3 Note December 23, 2000

Any program where you do lots of cleaning and pressing (barbell, two dumbbells, one dumbbell, etc.) will
build size and strength throughout the body, especially the back and shoulders. Due to all of the huffing
and puffing, you have the same sort of effect you get from heavy squatting, and if you eat lots of good
feed, you may gain a few pounds of muscle over the next 30-60 days. But the biggest benefit will be
increased strength throughout the entire body.
As for number of days, try 3x per week. If that’s too much, do 2x per week.
You also have the option of doing the sort of multi exercise program one day, and the next time you train,
do the one exercise program that I described. You could train 3x per week and go back and forth between
the two different schedules. It would be a good combination.
11. Old Time Lifting Instruction December 22, 2000

The most detailed instruction on how to perform the old time lifts is in Weightlifting Made Easy and
Interesting. It has step by step instruction (with photos) on how to perform all of the old lifts, including the
bent press. The author, W. A. Pullum, held literally hundreds of lifting records in the old days, and was a
world champion, so he knew his stuff and was well qualified to write a book on lifting technique.
Pullum wrote another, shorter book, titled How to Use a Barbell, that has lots of info on old time training
programs.
Arthur Saxon’s two books both have good material on the bent press, as well as info on how Saxon
trained. Remember, he was the greatest bent presser in history.
Super Strength, The Key to Might and Muscle and Physical Training Simplified all have info on the bent
press. Super Strength has a chapter titled “The Secret of the Bent Press” which should help you a lot.
Physical Training Simplified also has a chapter on the bent press.
Milo Course No. 3 has good info on the bent press.

12. Note on One Hand Snatches December 21, 2000

Do the one hand snatch with a BARBELL!!! If you use a dumbbell, the plates (or bells) on the dumbbell
will line up directly on top of your feet at the beginning of the lift. This means that you have to start the lift
with the dumbbell positioned too far in front for maximum efficiency (not good)...OR you have to start the
lift with the dumbbell resting on the feet (also not good)...or you have to start the lift from the hang, with
the dumbbell directly over the feet (extremely not good, especially if you do reps—what happens when
the bell slips?).
I’m not sure why we have so much interest right now in the one hand DUMBBELL snatch, but whoever
started it is going to get someone hurt. It’s a BARBELL lift, NOT a dumbbell lift.

13. Variations on the 5 x 5 System December 21, 2000

There are three ways to do the 5 x 5 system.

1. The original method, as used by Reg Park in the 50’s, is to do two progressively heavier warmup sets
and three “working” sets with the same weight. This is good because it allows slow but steady progress
over time. You avoid the trap of having a good day, then adding weight and getting sloppy or missing the
reps the next time you train. If you can do three sets of five reps with your working weight, you have
MASTERED the weight...and earned the right to do more the next time you train. Reg Park called this
“the stabilizing principle.”
2. The second way is to do three warmup sets and two sets with your top weight. This is a good way to go
for guys who need more warmup sets.
3. The third way is to do four warm up sets and only one top set. This is a more advanced program. The
benefit is that you can handle more weight for that final set. The downside is that you lose the benefit of
the stabilizing principle.

14. Progression on Warmup Sets in the 5 x 5 format December 21, 2000

You can either increase the weights on the warmup sets OR take bigger jumps. It doesn’t really matter
that much. Eventually, you may need to spread the warmups over three sets, so you would be doing 6 x 5
(three progressively heavier warmup sets and three working sets).

15. Starting Weight for 20 Rep Squats December 21, 2000

Start with a LIGHT weight! Doing 20 reps with your typical 10 rep poundage is foolish and unnecessary.
You eventually may work up to 20 reps with a weight you once used for only 10 reps, but work up to it. I’d
start with 50% of the 10 rep weight and add 5 or 10 pounds to the bar every squat session until I was up
to the 10 rep weight. Peary Rader started these with 45 pounds and got up to 350 for 20.

16. The Cheating Principle December 20, 2000

Cheating” is more of a bodybuilding concept than anything else. I’d forget about “cheating” movements
and train with total body movements such as squats, snatches, clean and press, clean and jerk, etc.

17. One-Hand Lifts December 20, 2000

There have been a number of posts recently about the hand swing and the one hand snatch, and I have
gotten a number of email messages with questions about the two lifts. Guys, these are two different
exercises. The swing is performed with a dumbbell; the one hand snatch with a barbell—NOT a dumbbell.
(You cannot do a credible one hand snatch with a dumbbell because the globes of the bell would hit your
feet—that’s why you use a barbell for this movement.) These are good exercises, but you have to know
how to do them—and you can’t learn that from a discussion board. The best resource for BOTH lifts (and
many others, such as the bent press and side press) is Pullum’s book, Weightlifting Made Easy and
Interesting. Bill Hinbern sells this classic text (written by an honest to goodness old time lifting champion
and world record holder) in an inexpensive modern reprint edition. You can get order info from the link on
this board. If you are seriously interested in the old time lifts, PAY $20.00 AND ORDER PULLUM’S
BOOK...and learn how the lifts are really done! And no, I don’t sell the book, I don’t get royalties on it, and
I’m not getting a penny for posting this. I just want you guys to learn how to do the lifts the RIGHT way.

18. Powerlifting Training and Olympic Lift Training. “Can I use the Joe Mills Big 21 Program for Power
Lifts?” December 15, 2000

In my own training, I’ve found that I can (and should) train OL stuff much differently than powerlifting
moves or other non-OL moves (greater frequency and greater volume, also faster pace). The Big 21(Joe
Mills) is an OL program. I think you’d do best if you stuck to OL moves for the program.
19. Throwing December 14, 2000
I think there are several different things to do with heavy objects:
(1) Lift ‘em, which we all know and love
(2) Lug ‘em, as in the farmer’s walk or carrying a sandbag or stone in a bear-hug
(3) Load ‘em, as in, stacking a boulder on top of a big barrel
(4) Throw ‘em. All of these basic movement patterns have different feels to them, and all help to develop
the body. On my “Bags, Barrels and Beyond” tape there is a fun segment of throwing a 130 pound beer
keg for height and for distance. But be sure to do this outside!

20. My Favorite Authors December 16, 2000

Peary Rader, Bradley J. Steiner, Dr. Ken Leistner, John McCallum, and Harry B. Paschall. Why do I
particularly like those writers? It’s because they all are teachers, mentors and motivators in areas beyond
pure physical training. And it’s because they are writing out of a sincere desire to help their readers. It’s
because their love for the Iron Game and their respect for serious lifters shines through in all their writing.
Also, it’s because each in his own way encourages—or rather, compels—the reader to exceed his
expectations.

21. Sticking Point Work December 15, 2000

The idea of having someone watch you do a heavy lift to determine your sticking point is good. Many
guys who use heavy partials in the rack get less than maximum benefit because they don’t really work
their weak point.

22. What’s a Bent Press? December 15, 2000

The bent press is a very technical one hand lift. You start with the bar at the shoulder and lean far, far to
the side, pushing up as hard as possible, and end up squatting under the weight while holding it overhead
with one hand. Then you stand up to complete the lift. Bent press experts could lift more with one hand
than they could handle in the two hand press, or even the two hand clean and jerk. To learn the lift, order
Hinbern’s reprint of the Arthur Saxon and Bill Pullum books. Pullum’s “Weightlifting Made Easy and
Interesting” is the best when it comes to explaining the old lifts. There also is a whole chapter on the lift in
Calvert’s Super Strength. And I believe there are drawings of the lift at the Iowa Strongest Man site; these
drawings are taken from old courses by George Jowett.

23. Nothing Fancy December 13, 2000

I eat four good, solid meals a day. Nothing exotic. Just plenty of good, old fashioned food. I take a multi-
vitamin mineral tablet (Theragam M) daily. That’s it. Oh, yeah. I lift heavy weights 3x per week. That
seems to be the part they forget about in “Chrome and Fern Land,” aka “Let’s Take Sissy Workouts, Buy
Lots of Food Supplements and Pretend We Are Doing Something Productive Land.”
Seriously, your lifting is far and away the most important thing. If you train right, you will get bigger and
stronger on almost any sort of good, healthy diet. Food supps are NOT necessary, and in many cases,
are counter-productive.

24. Diet Notes December 14, 2000

I don’t count calories, grams of protein or anything else, although I have a rough idea of where these are
on a daily basis. I eat more or less the same thing everyday, in the same amounts, so there is no need for
counting or weighing. Exactly what I eat would mean nothing to anyone else, however, unless it was
someone my age, my weight, with my exact lifestyle, who did exactly the same sort of training that I do,
who likes the same sort of food that I like.
I do not advocate force feeding. In my experience, if you train HARD (squats, deadlifts, standing presses,
push presses, OL work, heavy dumbbell work, the farmer’s walk, bent rowing, rack work, etc.) with
HEAVY weights (as heavy as you can handle in good form) on a CONSISTENT basis, then you naturally
will have a pretty health appetite.
I will note that protein is very important if you train heavy. Many guys do not eat enough protein because
they are counting calories, and then they try to make up for it with supplements. Protein is critical. You
won’t grow without it, and over time, you will wear your body down if you try to train hard without eating
lots of protein. (Personally, I probably eat 150 to 175 grams of protein a day, at a bodyweight of 225--as I
said, I don’t count the grams, but I have a rough idea.)
In this regard, let me note quickly that a vegetarian diet makes it very, very difficult to build strength,
power and muscular size.
Dr. Ken did a very good article in the November issue of The Dinosaur Files about diet and nutrition. His
approach is very similar to mine, and I would suggest you review the article for more detail on diet.
25. Clean and Jerk Program December 13, 2000

You will surprise yourself at what a 6-10 week clean and jerk only program will do for you. You will NOT
lose squatting strength or strength in any other lifts. You’ll get bigger and stronger all over. I mean, if you
add 25-40 pounds on the clean and jerk, you will be MUCH stronger all over. Give it a try! Make that
move your focus while you are hitting those singles. Good luck.

26. Must I Lock Out My Presses? December 13, 2000

YES!
(1) Under established lifting rules, it is not a complete press if you do not lock out. So if you don’t lock out,
you are not doing the lift correctly and have no basis to compare your performance to those who use the
correct method. It’s like doing a cheat curl and then comparing your lift to someone else’s strict curl.
(2) Locking out requires you to balance and support two heavy, unwieldy objects, one in each hand. This
builds strength and power throughout the stabilizers of the back, hips and torso. Remember, you are not
doing dumbbell presses to “pump the delts” like a boobybuilder. You are doing them to develop total body
power. The lock out is a necessary part of the movement for maximum results. Anyone who has seen my
dumbbell training tape and the heavy lifts on the tape can attest to the fact that the end of the lift—the
lockout and pause—just about kills me. The lift is much easier, and its value much more diminished if you
don’t lock and hold at the end of the lift.

27. Barbell Pressing versus Dumbbell Pressing December 13, 2000

They BOTH work great! Heavy barbell pressing is a great exercise. So is heavy dumbbell pressing. It’s
impossible to say that either is “better.” Both are very productive. You can increase your dumbbell
pressing by doing barbell pressing and vice-versa. Ditto for barbell and dumbbell cleans and similar
movements

28. Apples and Oranges December 13, 2000

You can’t compare apples and oranges. Similarly, you can’t compare dumbbell lifts to barbell lifts.
Dumbbells are the most fundamental kind of heavy awkward object. They are harder to balance and
control than is a barbell. Hence, if you press 200 pounds you cannot press 2 100 dumbbells. The benefit
to the dumbbells lies in exactly that—they are hard to balance and hard to control. The benefit of the bb is
that you can handle more weight. That’s why it is best to use both of these tools.

29. Some Basic Info on John Davis’s Training December 11, 2000
John Davis trained with Olympic lifts and basic OL assistance moves, including squats. He also did
benches near the end of his career. He favored the “swedish” (dead hang) snatch and the straight arm
snatch to develop pulling power. There is detailed info on Davis in back issues of the Dinosaur Files.

30. The German Goose Step? December 11, 2000

The German Goose Step is a calf exercise. You hold a barbell on the shoulders and “march” in an
exaggerated military style, with the weight on the toes. In my opinion, skip it and do calf raises.

31. Will Olympic Lifting improve my Powerlifts? December 10, 2000

Back in the late 60’s or early 70’s, Bill Starr wrote some fine articles on how to use OL training to increase
the power lifts. He had a Deadlift program consisting of power cleans, high pulls, shrugs and good
mornings, which he himself used to set a national record of (I believe) 666 at 198 in the deadlift. For the
bench press, he suggested an OL style pressing program, with lots of rack presses at different heights.
Back then, it was much more common for guys to do both OL and PL, and the training for OL always
seemed to have a good effect on the PL comps.

32. Powerlift Training Note December 10, 2000

When I was competing I trained squats, deads and benches exclusively with heavy singles. My primary
assistance exercise for bench press was the 70-80 degree incline press. I trained that for singles as well.
I trained a couple of other auxiliary exercises with sets of five reps.
33. Simple Workouts October 5, 2000.
Many of my workouts consist of multiple singles in a good, all around movement: squat, front squat,
bottom position rack squat, power clean and press or push press, power snatch, power clean/front
squat/push press...followed by neck bridges and either situps, leg raises or side bends. You get a terrific
workout in well under an hour, and feel great afterwards. I usually start light and work up in small jumps to
a max weight or close to max, but sometimes I use "waves"--it all depends on what I am doing and how I
feel.
These workouts build plenty of strength, power and size, so don't let their simplicity and brevity fool you.

34. York Program Design October 1, 2000

You can follow one course 3x per week, or do one course one day and the other course the next time you
train (alternating them)...or do course no. 1 on Tues, course no. 2 on Thurs and BOTH courses on Sat.
Hoffman liked to do this sort of thing on the weekend; sometimes he'd even do course no. 3, the repetition
weightlifting course and the HARDEST of the courses, THAN do course no. 1 and THEN do course no.
2...all in one day. You mentioned that course no. 1 "wiped you out" so you can imagine how tough it must
have been for Hoffman to do all three courses in one session.

35. Personal Results with York Course #3 October 8, 2000

I followed York Course No. 3 in May, June, July and early August, 3x per week, with an occasional
session where I did nothing but heavy clean and press or power snatch or rack squats. Had very good
results. Started at a low bodyweight of 210, due to a very busy Spring, much work related travel, missed
workouts, little sleep and missed meals...the York program took my weight up to 225 very quickly as a
result of all the puffing and panting, increased heart and metabolic activity, from all of the repetition
weightlifting movements. I was very impressed with this aspect of the program, and would recomend the
schedule to anyone. Be warned, though--it is a ball buster of a program