Take a look at the following video of me ‘practicing’ for the Yoke Walk;
A Christmas Message of Good Cheer
So it is the Christmas period? Ask yourself what you should be doing. You should be lifting weights, because you don’t get stronger by not lifting weights. Lifting weights is like eating, or sleeping… its something you have to do regularly.
Bench Press
I’ve being doing bench presses in an attempt to improve my abysmal bench press. It is fun doing them, probably because its not one of those lifts that sucks the life out of the nervous system, yet it looks like a decent weight is bobbing up and down. I use 10 kg plates to make it look like there is more weight than there is.
The technique on this lift is to shrug the shoulders back into the bench this puts the shoulders into a stronger more stable position. A side effect of this is a big chest with a better pulling angle for the chest and lats, additionally arching the spine puts these muscles into a more favourable pressing line;
90 kg × 2 reps, 91 kg × 3 reps
92 kg × 2, 2 reps, 93 kg × 2, 2 reps + bridge benches 103 kg × 1, 1
reps
95 kg × 2 reps + bridge bench 105 kg, 90 kg × 3 reps + 95 kg × 2
reps
96 kg, 107½ kg bridged
An Excellent Waiter
Carrying a bunch of plates is a simple exercise… but can be quite knackering
A lifter trained in only the 3 powerlifts may be surprised to discover that carrying a mere 100 kg of weights can reduce one to a dribbling imbecile. At the strongman competition I entered last year a couple of competitors were flattened by carrying a 105 kg beer barrel for 20 metres.
This is because the powerlifts typically last around 5 seconds whereas carrying a barrel in strongman usually takes around 30 seconds. The energy pathways look something like this (see here);
| Duration | Classification | Energy Supplied By |
| 1 to 4 seconds | Anaerobic | ATP (in muscles) |
| 4 to 10 seconds | Anaerobic | ATP + CP |
| 10 to 45 seconds | Anaerobic | ATP + CP + Muscle glycogen |
| 45 to 120 seconds | Anaerobic, Lactic | Muscle glycogen |
| 120 to 240 seconds | Aerobic + Anaerobic | Muscle glycogen + lactic acid |
| 240 to 600 seconds | Aerobic | Muscle glycogen + fatty acids |
What this means is that the powerlifter uses energy that is already in the muscles. This energy is in the form of ATP or adenosine triphosphate. ATP is the only energy which the body can actually use. Once ATP runs out then body needs to make more ATP. After a couple of seconds ATP runs out and so is regenerated from stored creatine phosphate (CP).
After a few seconds more CP runs out, so glucose from the blood must be used to regenerate CP and ATP. It should be understood that the end result of using fats, glucose or whatever to generate energy is always ATP and that this ATP is actually being produced all the time – thus whilst the amount of ATP at any one time in the muscles is small the total amount produced can be great. If something blocks ATP production then you will die horribly.
In the video I carry the plates for 28.6 metres in 28.6 seconds… which is 1 metre per second. The first 7 metres don’t feel like much, at the half way point of 14 metres I am beginning to feel the effects. 7 metres from the end it really starts kicking in… and at the end I’m gasping for breath. Not only does the event last a ‘long’ time but the plates are an awkward shape whose centre of gravity is a long way from the body’s centre of gravity, additionally the plates press against the stomach making it difficult to breath similar to that with barrel. To hold the plates it is necessary to lean back so that the weight is supported by the hips and the weight is more over the feet, this means the quads burn out quicker, because it is like waking in a sissy squat position.
I recover in 5-10 minutes. I prepare for this event by doing activities of about 30-90 seconds – thus as well as simply carrying the plates I will, for example, do skipping of about 60-90 seconds. Doing activities longer than the event is similar to doing activities heavier than the event in that it gets the body used to going heavier or longer than the event. So as well as skipping, various forms of deadlifts which are much heavier than 120 kg are also done.
Recoil
184 kg × 8 reps wrist straps monolift, 184 kg hook grip monolift deadstop, 184 kg alternate grip right, 190 kg sumo alternate grip left
Before the strongman competition detailed here I had a go at a regular style deadlift… I couldn’t lift 153 kg. This didn’t particularly bother me as none of the events needed that kind of strength, but I figured that my regular style deadlift needed some work particularly as Magnús Ver Magnússon says I need at least an 800 lb deadlift to be any good at strongman.
When doing repetition deadlifts I use eccentric strength, isometric strength, stretch reflex, IAP pressure, IAP recoil and the elastic recoil of the muscles – this exposes the muscles to more force per rep and this effect is maximised by lifting out of the monolift.
Deadlifts are typically started from the floor, so after doing the repetitions shown in the video above, I then do a deadstop rep out of the monolift – in other words I lower the weight, pause at the bottom take a breath then lift it up. Some of the elastic recoil and stretch reflex is dissipated from the pause and also from taking a breath, but I maintain my position to use the remaining recoil.
After that I then do a regular style rep where I simulate the monolift deadlift by lowering with some tension in the muscles and taking my breath prior to reaching the bar. I grab quickly and immediately pull to utilise the recoil of the unweighted lowering.
After that I repeat it but in close stance sumo style with 190 kg – note my alternate grip is the other way round to the regular dead.
By transitioning from the monolift to the regular style I maintain the recoil and reflex which I can feel from monolifting for repetitions.
One can use the lower and grab method like me (some do it really fast like my fellow P&Ber Craig);
Or one can use the pump method which is better for grip like Mitch which is kind of what Andy Bolton does but there’s not as much recoil and reflex as with the lower and grab method;
Or if one is a freak one can use the no spring at all method;
“Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels”
An excellent exercise to cure unattractiveness is the deadlift. It will give you a tremendous butt, hamstrings and back, just like me or Madonna. The politically correct would say that it is a dangerous exercise that should, if it must, be done only under expert supervision. The politically correct are very unattractive people.
Last post I talked about the goal of 10 reps with 183 kg in the regular deadlift – so this is where I am at currently…
My previous max for 10 reps was 163 kg, my previous max for 5 reps was 173 kg;
For this particular cycle I started at 143 kg and the next week did 153 kg for 12 reps, then the following week I did 165½ kg for 12 reps;
Then the following week (last week) I did 175½ kg for 10 reps, which is a 12½ kg gain on my previous max, then this week I did 183 kg for 6 reps which is 1 rep and 10 kg more than my previous;
My actual plan this week was to get 183 kg for 10 reps, but I could feel that on the warm-up weight of 163 kg I wasn’t explosive like the previous week, the 163 kg felt underloaded last week whereas this week it was sluggish.
I had difficulty getting on my belt… and from the video I can see why, the towel must have got caught and so got squint. The towel pinched at my right hip and my torso didn’t feel pressurised.
I could feel from the first 3 reps with 183 kg that it wasn’t going to be 10 reps, so I stopped at 6. I could have got 1 or 2 more but didn’t want to bust my back doing so. Thus you can see I pause for a while on completing the last rep as I decided to save the effort for next week.
I was a bit unfocussed for the following lifts getting the breathing not quite right with the hook grip, then not grabbing quickly with the regular pull (I was thinking of how to do the grip as I bent down, I should have thought beforehand).
Still… I’m about 12½ kg ahead of my previousl PBs for 10 and 6 reps. I definitely felt I had the potential for 10 reps, just not on that day – I wasn’t puffing at all afterwards.
The Magical Deadlift
Mitch does, 245 kg and 250 kg at a recent competition – he failed the 250 kg because the bar was not in continuous motion from floor to lockout. All true men wish to be built like Mitch because he is built out of a block of muscle and has huge arms.
In Spreading the Buttocks I noted that one need not do more than a few reps perhaps 4-6 max when squatting which is why in this article I am doing 12 reps when deadlifting.
In the past I have done 183 kg × 10, 195 kg × 8, 203 kg × 4 reps in the close stance sumo lift;
My first time doing +400 lbs for 10 reps in the deadlift
I use this stance because I can use the quads and so engage more muscle in the lift yet the range of motion is only slightly less than a regular deadlift and so regular deadlifters cannot really complain and call this a short range move. However if I were to just go for weight I would use a wider stance.
However, some stupid people seem to think that a sumo isn’t a proper deadlift, so I am working on getting 183 kg × 10 reps in the regular style lift.
The regular style lift places no effort on the quads because the knees are always behind the bar, in other words the effort is entirely on the hip extensors and the back. There is only a bit of quad effort at the bottom of the lift when the knees are forward over the bar and a slight amount of effort at the top when the bar is close to the legs – however there is never any quad burning and quads are never a limiting factor in regular deadlifting, you could have thin girl quads and a massive regular dead.
Cycle
This particular regular deadlift cycle was inspired by Mitch’s preparations and eventual competing for a local deadlift competition (the video at the beginning of this post).
For this particular cycle I started at 143 kg and the next week did 153 kg and the week after did 165½ kg, all 12 reps each out of the monolift;
Deadlifting for reps out of the monolift, then for a single deadstop out of the monolift, then conventional, then close sumo – note the changing grips
I start the deadlift out of the monolift and do repetitions. Monolifting and repetitioning help with getting the right set-up for deadlifts. They help me get pressurised in the torso and long in the arms and upright. Thus it works like this;
- Work my stance
- Strap in
- Take a breath
- Lift off
- Take another breath
- Lower
- Recoil
- Stand up, keeping arms long
- Breathe out and take another breath
- Repeat from 6
After the repetitions I then do a deadstop rep out of the monolift, this consists of lowering the weight, resting the weight at the bottom, taking a breath and then pulling up – a hook grip is used. The next lift after this is a proper ’start from the bottom lift’, I use the left palm forward which gives me longer arms than right palm forward (though it feels more natural for me to assume the left palm forward when gripping initially). The last lift is the close stance sumo with right palm forward, which is a bit short in the arms and tight on the right bicep – I’m stronger using the left palm forward.
After some experimentation I have found that taking a big breath as I lower and holding it whilst I grab the bar and then quickly pulling produces a quicker and easier ascent of the weight. I find this better than grabbing the bar then taking a breath.
When I squat I have found that taking a big breath and holding it then shouldering the bar out of the monolift then squatting is strongest. However with deadlifting out of the monolift I find that taking a breath, lifting off and then taking another breath is best.
Regular V Sumo
Really… if you are asking this question you need your head examined. A powerlifter should use whichever lift he lifts heavier with. The conventional puller who complains about sumos is often weak at the sumo, which means his hips are weak and he is inflexible – doing sumos may well alleviate that condition and benefit his conventional pull. Similarly a sumo puller may get a stronger back from pulling conventional.
Also in regular everyday heavy lifting the sumo/straddle pull is far more likely to be used, so it pays to have the skills and strength to do it. Take picking up engines or the end of a big log or a lump of concrete or a variety of strongman tasks. It is far better in these situations to straddle or sumo the weight. The conventional puller is often left somewhat non-plussed that he is unable to lift such weights because he hasn’t got the notion of standing over the weight.
Athletic training is all about transfer and strength training is all about transferring strength from different lifts and choosing the optimal methods of doing this. In other words specificity isn’t a case of 100% transfer or no transfer at all… if this were the case then there would be no point in doing any athletic training as one could never get stronger without some form of transfer.
Goal
So remember 183 kg × 10 reps is my goal for the regular deadlift.
Scientific Training for Muscle Mass
Some of you may know that I am a very scientific person. However sometimes I am not too scientific when it comes to training myself… mainly because I just get caught up with trying to lift as heavy a weight as I can.
I have for example not paid much attention to adding muscular bodyweight. My bodyweight has gone up over the years from 65 kg to 79.5 kg more as a consequence of lifting heavier than a consequence of bigness training.
However for the month of October I corrected this and so I present the scientific training plan I used, for you to peruse. You will know it is scientific because it has numbers.
The Science of Training for Muscle Mass
Everyone knows that to lift more weight one must lift more weight, i.e. lift heavier to get stronger. Its a scientific fact and very logical.
Similarly to gain muscle one must do more volume, i.e. volume of muscle is proportional to volume of training. Thus one gets stronger so as to lift more weight so as to do more work. It is a scientific fact and inarguable.
Science shows that for every 100 kg.m of work, 10 grams of muscle is gained, i.e. if I lift 100 kg one vertical metre (ignoring bodyweight lifted for the moment) I will stimulate 10 grams of muscle growth. Thus;
100 kg × 1 metre × 0.1 = 10 grams
thus;
work done × constant = muscle gained
So if I lift 100 kg one vertical metre for 100 reps and I do this in a week I will gain 1 kilogram of muscle. However this 100 kg must be 60% or greater than 1 rep max (RM).
I’ll be gaining bodyweight like crazy, then!! No because then there is retention. If I gain new muscle it will be lost unless I do something to maintain it. The longer I can maintain it the more permanent it becomes. The retention of muscle mass I gain is greater with higher percentages of 1 RM and greater with the absolute poundage I lift.
A superheavy partial of 102% of 1 RM results in an almost permanent gain of muscle mass but of a very small amount of muscle. Thus a 500 kg partial lifted 50 mm results in a 2.5 gram gain of muscle. The retention of this muscle is 100% per week, i.e. only minimal training of 60% is required to retain this muscle.
Whereas a 60% of 1 RM weight of 100 kg lifted 500 mm for 10 reps of 10 sets results in 500 grams of muscle but this muscle is retained at 0% per week, i.e. after a week 0% of 500 grams of muscle gain remains.
Muscle mass peaks at 3½ days after the stimulus and and then follows the aforementioned losses. So if the correct stimulus is applied at 3½ days the gained muscle can be retained at 7 days. If nothing is done ’til 7 days the training on the 7th day can quickly regain the lost muscle back to its 3½ day peak.
To retain the muscle would require either similar training or heavier training (higher % of 1 RM) but this must be balanced by not overtraining and so accelerating the muscle loss. Doing the wrong training before one is fully recovered can lead to a loss where the equation becomes;
100 kg × 1 metre × 0.1 = 10 grams
thus;
work done × constant = muscle lost
So you can see that gaining muscle is a very finely balanced scientific equation. One can lose muscle as quickly as it is gained if one is not too smart.
One must also take into account that athletes will have to do other training to develop skill, power, speed, etc, which will retard muscle growth. Nutrition must also be optimal to make the best of stimulated muscle gains.
Squats
Everyone knows that Squats are a mass maker;
Sunday 11 Oct 09 09:53 90 MIN 79.5 KG >=60%
LIFT WID DEP
SKIPPING mixed × 508′ SQUAT mono 800 765
103 kg × 2 reps, 123 kg, 143 kg × 5, 5 reps, 163 kg, 173 kg
TN/RP 139.7ARMWRESTLING RL mitch
About 10 per arm
TN/RP 30.0REP %MAX TON WORK IMP
35 88.7 2695.0 1812.9 19642.3
TN/RP 77.0
You will see that I do 1812.9 kg.m of work which equates to;
1812.9 kg.m × 0.1 = 181.29 grams of muscle gained
Deadlifts
Deadlifts also rank high on the mass gaining market, though not as high as squats;
Friday 30 Oct 09 13:50 35MIN 80.5KG >=60%
LIFT WID DEP
SKIPPING forward × 120 reps8′ DEADLIFT mono 500 255
103 kg × 2 reps, 133 kg × 2 reps, 153 kg × 12 reps
TN/RP 144.38′ DEADLIFT 500 255
3 × 153 kg
TN/RP 153.08′ SUMO 500 255
2 × 153 kg
TN/RP 153.0REP %MAX TON WORK IMP
21 80.8 3073.0 1481.2 15200.5
TN/RP 146.3
You will see that I do 1481.2 kg.m of work which equates to;
1481.2 kg.m × 0.1 = 148.12 grams of muscle gained
Over the month of October I did 14566 kg.m of work and so stimulated 1.4566 kg of muscle. Note in the above real life calculations that work includes the percentage of bodyweight lifted in each exercise for greater accuracy.
The scales show I actually went from 79.5 kg to my current 81 kg, i.e. the scale correlates very closely to the scientifically calculated gains.
For that month I managed to make sure I hung onto that muscle so that all the gains were retained.
I think Fred would be proud of me!
Reference
Smith, J.Z., 2009, Scientific Training the Statistical Way, Scientific Times, v. 252, p. 50-57