September 30, 2024
Etc Edition
On Starting Strength
-
Gym Safety –
Rip discusses gym safety, the importance of using common sense, and what to avoid. He also talks about the most common sources of injury and how to prevent them. -
Mongo and Randy by Jim Steel –
“I’m tired of being weak and looking like shit,” Mongo said to Randy as they sat on the outside serving deck of the Bearded Clam Bar and Grill in Bayville, Maryland, having lunch and a few beers… -
“Look Up To Go Up” –
Rip explains why eye gaze is important in all barbell lifts. Each lift – from squats to deadlifts to presses – has a prescribed direction for your gaze, which helps with balance, form, and proprioception. -
Lift Silently by Mia Inman –
When lifting heavy weights, you should take in a breath and hold it against a closed glottis. This is known as the Valsalva maneuver, which creates intra-abdominal pressure that supports the spine… -
Choosing the Path Less Traveled by Bill Starr –
I believe that the change in attitude towards hard and heavy training began in the early seventies. There wasn’t any single factor that accounted for the shift, but rather a couple of events… - Weekend Archives:
Reflections In Iron by Colin Webster –
I’ve been asked from time to time about the training methods of my father, Mike Webster of the Pittsburgh Steelers. This is recollection will, of course, be colored by the lens of youth… - Weekend Archives:
Hitching the Deadlift by Mark Rippetoe –
If your heavy deadlifts move up your thighs in a series of “jumps,” you are performing what is called “hitching the bar.” Hitches are illegal in powerlifting competition, but they are also a bad idea…
In the Trenches
At Starting Strength Atlanta, Will Abbott (affectionately known as “Young Will”) locks out a PR press of 135, a plate milestone he says he never fathomed he could reach. [photo courtesy of Brent Duckett]
Deb sets a deadlift PR single of 170 lb at 70 years old after 3 years of training at Starting Strength Boston. [photo courtesy of Stephen Babbitt]
Gayle gets after it Friday morning with an easy 100 pound deadlift for five at Starting Strength Denver – Centennial. [photo courtesy of Tommy Pudil]
Sharon pulls 235 lb for a set of five at Testify Strength & Conditioning in Omaha, NE, as gym dog Milo looks on in approval. In addition to being a strong grandma, Sharon is also preparing to compete in Testify’s upcoming Fall Classic and Barbell Blizzard events in October and December, respectively. [photo courtesy of Phil Meggers]
Get Involved
Best of the Week
Training for Explosiveness
Scott.P
Recently I was chatting with a colleague about training & the subject of training for explosiveness came up. They claimed that to train for explosiveness one must push a given weight harder. The training example that was given was Bench press at a weight of 315, essentially bouncing the bar off the chest to be “explosive”. I could not fathom how this method of training could be productive and explained my point of view that I believed the most effective way to be explosive/”train for explosiveness is to train up to 405 (or something higher than 315). Logically if you can move 405 as a maximal load the speed at which 315 moves would be higher than it previously was with 315 being your max. Even letting say 405 was your max bench trying to push 315 “explosively” would to me seem to have even less use.
Another day the conversation was around “functional” training. I had said it was of no use either. Example throwing a medicine ball at a wall over your head. I said your time would be better spent doing shoulder press for upper body development instead of some bullshit ball toss cardio program disguised as weight training, the response was “depends on what your goals are I guess” Which is the response I get from most people when discussing starting strength methods. However most seem to do cardio disguised as weight training.
Through running a NLP I have seen far greater strength gains than I could have imagined. I recommend barbell lifts, & 5 lbs. a workout to anyone who will listen.
Am I correct in my above understanding of training?
Mark Rippetoe
What is the data showing an improvement in any explosiveness parameter using this type of training?
Best of the Forum
Transitioning from pure strength training
Brookfine
During the last month I wasn’t able to run so I took my squat up to 385. Now that I’m sprinting again I want to figure out how to program things. I’ve just been adding 5 pounds a session and doing the 3×5 but I don’t think I’ll be able to recover if I just put the sprint on top of regular starting strength.
Will I still increase my strength if I do something like: Workout A, rest, Sprint, rest, Workout B, rest, Sprint, rest, Workout A …
Is that too long of a gap?
Brookfine
Rad, if I’m taking it that direction would it make sense to swap over to Texas Method and just put the sprints into the light day and push squats up 10lbs a week? Also, dumb question, but would I benefit from putting some extra volume work (e.g. 3 x 10 x 60%) at the end of the Monday workout to provide a longer stimulus or nah?
