The 3 Biggest Lies You've Ever Been Told

What is holding you back in your life? Perhaps it is one of these lies that has been ingrained in your brain as truth. Check out this article by Martin Rooney for more.

The 3 Biggest Lies You've Ever Been Told by Martin Rooney

Get big or die tryin'.

Blood and Chalk Voulume 11

It was asked, and Jim Wendler answered. Check out this article to hear him rap on plyometrics, chains and bands, safety squat bars, false grips, and accessory failure.

Blood and Chalk Volume 11 by Jim Wendler

Get big or die tryin'.

Organizing Training Based On Transfer

How one goes about structuring their training session is often a question I am presented with. Specifically, I am often asked which should be done first, conditioning or strength training. I guess conditioning really isn't a fair word here. What they are referring to is a type of conditioning, but the goal from that work may be of more of a technical nature. For example, there is a difference between running wind sprints for conditioning and running 10-meter sprints in order to work on acceleration out of the blocks. I'm not sure if I'm conveying this difference clearly or not, so if not, drop a comment to let me know and I'll attempt to clear it up in a future post.

Anyways, the same distinctions can be made with strength training, too. Are you squatting to work the technical aspect of the squat and become a better squatter or are you using the squat as a tool to develop another skill. There, that's a better way of thinking about it. Are you training the movement because it is a primary movement of your sport and mastering it will allow you master your sport, or is training the movement a means to helping other movements progress? In other words, how great of a transfer is there between what you are doing and what you are trying to accomplish?

The higher the transfer, the greater the precedence the movement should receive when you are structuring your training. For example, a powerlifter should work the technical aspects of his squat before performing any aerobic conditioning. Likewise, a sprinter should squat after the technical aspects of her sprint are trained for the day. The reason for this is because when performing movements that require absolute precision in order for you to have the highest probability of success at achieving what it is you desire to achieve, you want the neuromuscular system to be at it's most rested state. If you try to learn or perfect movements while in a fatigued state, there is a much lower chance that you will ingrain that movement into your CNS in the way you want it performed and may, in fact, teach your body how to perform that movement in a less-than-optimal manner.

If you are not a competitive athlete and are just trying to lift and do conditioning for health reasons, then what you do first depends on what you would rather get through while feeling fatigued. Will you still do conditioning if you lift first? Will you still lift after if your conditioning gasses you? One recommendation I will give, however, is that if you are going to perform any type of explosive or plyometrics-based movement, I would strongly suggest performing these movements before you do your strength training. My reasoning is that if you fatigue yourself with squats, for example, and then do a bunch of jumps after, if the squats were too much for some of your muscles to handle and subsequently those muscles are no longer contracting as they should, when you land from the jump there will be greater eccentric forces placed on your system than there will be during a squat. If what isn't contracting is placed under the greater stress, then you will be at a much higher risk for injury.

When structuring your training for the day, take into consideration your goals from the training and give precedence to certain exercises based on their ability to help you reach your goals. The exercises which have the highest transfer to helping your reach your goals should be performed near the beginning of your training session.

Get big or die tryin’.

Charlie Cates, CSCS

Self Made®, Owner

Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP's. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.

This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.

How Will You Leave Your Mark?

Martin Rooney brings it with every article, and this one is no exception.

How Will You Leave Your Mark? by Martin Rooney

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Maximal Strenght, Minimal Equipment

Louie Simmons definitely knows his strength training, but his articles can be a little tough to read at times. If you are looking for a Westside-esque training program without all of the fancy equipment and in more layman terms, check out this article by Joe Gaglione. Or you could always try out SMS.

Maximal Strength, Minimal Equipment by Joe Gaglione

Get big or die tryin'.

How to Add External Resistance to Box Jumps

In my last post in this series I described the appropriate amount of external resistance that should be applied to box jumps, if external resistance is to be applied at all. But, seeing as there are numerous possible ways to go about adding this extra resistance, we need to differentiate which methods of external resistance are most effective. Dumbbells, elastic bands, and weighted vests will all be discussed.

Dumbbells are commonly seen being held while an athlete performs box jumps. The problem with dumbbells is that they affect the athlete's ability to use their arms efficiently while performing the jump. The altered movement pattern this produces is most noticeable at the beginning of the movement, but can also be equally detrimental to the athlete's landing mechanics. Because the external resistance is attached to a moving limb and inhibits that limb's ability to produce force, dumbbells are not the way to go if you are wanting to load a box jump.

Elastic bands that attach from the floor to the person's waist, as can be seen on someone using a Vertimax trainer, are another means by which vertical jumping, but not necessarily box jumps, is loaded. The problem with this, as I'm sure you can tell, is that the heaviest resistance from the bands occurs once the person has left the ground and is at the peak of their jump height in the air. The bands, therefore, have their greatest influence in the eccentric aspect, causing someone to land faster than they normally would without the bands as the bands recoil and resume their original length. Considering the amount of pounding that occurs to the joints during the course of any sports season, I do not feel it is the best interest of the athlete to use elastic bands in order to improve jumping performance as the bands will only cause greater impact to occur when the athlete lands at the higher speed. Also, because the bands are connected to fixed points on the floor, it is highly likely that the fluctuating lines of force from the bands to the hip will alter the mechanics of the movement. These oblique lines of force contradict the natural line of force of gravity, straight down, causing the athlete to have to fight against an anterior or posterior pull, as well.

In my opinion, the best way to add external resistance to box jumps is by having the athlete wear a weighted vest. As I have discussed already, the weight of the vest should be limited to 10% of the athlete's body weight. The reason I believe the weighted vest to be superior to dumbbells and elastic bands is because the vest does not alter the mechanics of the movement so long as the weight is appropriate for the individual. Because the increased load will slow the speed of the movement, this tool needs to be properly and thoughtfully implemented into a training routine if it is used at all. Also, just as the weight of the body does not change as someone goes through the jumping motion, the weight of the vest will not change, either, unlike elastic bands.

Skipping back to elastic bands real quick, there is something to be said about them if you are wondering why they would be appropriate to add to a back squat or bench press but not to jumping. I will go into more depth on this at a later time, but as a brief overview, bands are implemented to improve the speed with which the bar is moved. While it may seem like this same principle can be applied to jumping, most of the bands used for jumping do not increase tension enough over the short range of motion they have available to be truly effective here. What I mean is, the range of motion used during a standing vertical jump as compared to a back squat is significantly less, so much so that Soviet athletes would train their half squat more than their back squat because of the higher transfer to jumping. The bands are implemented with lifts so once can feel the dramatic difference in tension between the top and the bottom, forcing the athlete to move the bar as fast as possible at the bottom in order to use momentum from that initial push to get to the top. With jumping, though, the tension in the bands between the top and the bottom of the movement is not significant enough to illicit an explosive push from the bottom of the movement due to the limited range of motion used during jumping relative to squatting.

Okay, so maybe that wasn't so quick, but I hope that is somewhat clear. If I were to add bands to my jump training, though, I would try to set them up such that the bands are going straight down between my legs, much like how the weight hangs during a belt squat. This would allow that line of force to be much closer to the line of force of gravity, limiting any anterior/posterior pull. I would still have to consider the faster landings, so I guess that will be something to experiment with in the future.

Get big or die tryin'.

Charlie Cates, CSCS

Self Made®, Owner

Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP’s. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.

This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.

Is Sports Practice Rationally Constructed?

Good question; better thought process. Check out this article by Jimmy "The Thinker" Smith for a look into what is versus what could be.

Is Sports Practice Rationally Constructed? by Jimmy "The Thinker" Smith

Get big or die tryin'.

Some Things Never Change

I can dig what this kid is saying as I have preached most of it already. Ignore the part about foam rolling and stretching, though. Ha!

Some Things Never Change by Andrew Choi

Get big or die tryin'.

Can You Pass This Test?

Are you giving yourself the best opportunity to succeed at whatever you choose? Check out this test by Martin Rooney to find out.

Can You Pass This Test? by Martin Rooney

Get big or die tryin'.

The Price of Greatness

Two summers ago I had an incredible opportunity to work with some of the elite NFL football players, including Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, and LaDainian Tomlinson. What impressed me the most was not their sheer athleticism or the drills they were doing, but their attention to every detail during those drills. Drew Brees really stood out to me in this area, especially during the fieldwork. Even when he was only working with one receiver, I could see him checking other routes that would normally be run and defenders that would normally be there before he threw the ball. I could see him taking into consideration each element of a game with every rep that summer. Not surprisingly, Drew had an incredible season following that summer. He played so well, in fact, that the Saints won the Super Bowl and he was named the Super Bowl MVP. The following season, Aaron Rodgers went out and did the same thing, winning the Super Bowl and collecting MVP honors.

Every time I think about these events, it all comes back to the attention to detail. Without question, these men have been blessed with incredible physical characteristics that have allowed them to be very good at what they do. But what separates the very good from the great? What separates those who play from those who win?

Every year at the NFL Combine you hear stories about men performing record-setting feats and others who completely flop. What these athletes are being tested on year after year does not change, minus a few rule changes here and there. Coaches are well aware of the best techniques for performing the tests and giving their athletes the best possible chance to perform at their highest level. Yes, some guys are just flat-out more physically gifted than the rest of the field and will get drafted reasonably high even with a sub-par showing. For most, though, screwing up at the Combine or on your Pro Day could mean screwing yourself out of millions of dollars.

The 40-yard dash is the biggest "make or break" test at the Combine.

With that much weight put on those tests, how is anybody able to function well? The answer is that those who succeed have done the drills over and over and over again and have them completely mastered by the time the Combine comes around. There’s no thinking; their body just responds. Why? Because they had extreme attention to detail in their training, which allowed them to become great at performing these tests.

Being an economics major, I’ve learned that there is a cost to every action, namely an opportunity cost. If I am spending my time doing one thing, it means I lose the opportunity to do something else with that time. The opportunity cost of such extreme attention to detail that you are able to achieve greatness at some level is that, instead of screwing around or going through the motions when it is time to work, you cut the crap and put your best foot forward to create great actions. Then you repeat those actions until they become great habits. Then you repeat those habits until it is completely automatic, becoming part of who you are.

Let me ask you this: In what area of your life are you striving to achieve greatness, and what is driving you to achieve greatness? We are all meant to be great at something, but that something is rarely a sport and isn’t necessarily an occupation, either. In fact, most of us shouldn’t be striving for greatness in those fields right away, anyways. Instead, we should be striving for greatness in our relationships with others because, I tell you what, if there were more great moms and dads in this world raising more great children who turn into great adults, the world would be a far better place. But most people who strive for greatness in other fields fall drastically short of being a great human being. Once you become a great human being and those everyday actions become automatic and part of who you are, you can begin focusing on other endeavors in which to achieve greatness. But it starts with your attention to detail in providing a consistent effort to improve the experiences of others on a daily basis as well as a consistent effort to improve your own well being.

In the game of life, how is your attention to detail? Are you practicing empathy, finding happiness and peace of mind, and bettering the lives of those around you just by being yourself? Are you just playing the game, or are you winning?

Here’s to faith, strength, and passion.

Get big or die tryin’.

Charlie Cates

Self Made®, Owner

Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP's. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.

This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.

Why Monster Trucks Shouldn't Be Driven in the Express Lane

This article could be re-titled, "One Reason of Many Why Cross-Fit Sucks For Your Body", but alas, the chose the higher road. Check out this article by Coach Joe to find out why.

Why Monster Trucks Shouldn't Be Driven in the Express Lane by Coach Joe

Get big or die tryin'.

Hardgainers: The Big Three for Recovery

I used to believe in foam rolling and stretching for recovery, but now those modalities take the back seat. Instead, here are my Big Three for Big Gains when it comes to recovery.

1. Get Your Sleep Right

Anywhere between 7 and 9 hours of sleep both the night before and the night after a training session are a must. You cannot out-exercise a bad diet, and you cannot out-eat bad sleep. Prioritize this as #1 and see the massive results you have been wanting.

2. Pinpoint Nutrition

I gave guidelines in my earlier article, "Recovery 101: Nutrition". You can follow these if you like, but what I am really talking about here is following a pre- and post-training diet that is designed exactly to what your body needs and can use. If you can't metabolize carbohydrates, carbo loading before or after will only make you sick and bloated.

3. PMA

Positive Mental Attitude. Exercise is a stress on the body, and the body is unable to differentiate between physical and emotional stress. Because all stress is cumulative on the body, you need to make sure you keep a positive mental attitude in and outside of the gym. Minimizing unnecessary stress will allow your body the greatest opportunity to be in an anabolic state with greater testosterone and growth hormone production, allowing y0u the results you desire.

While what you do in the gym is vital to reaching your goals, everything you do outside of it trumps all that is done within. If you can't make the commitment to positively changing your lifestyle outside of the gym, don't expect positive changes to happen to your training and physique.

Get big or die tryin'.

Charlie Cates, CSCS

Self Made®, Owner

Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP’s. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.

This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.

Training Speed to Get Strong

I've been posting some articles about speed work and accommodating resistance lately, but how do they all fit together? Check out this article by Eric Cressey for a great overview into speed work.

Training Speed to Get Strong by Eric Cressey

Get big or die tryin'.

Are You An Addict?

I know I am. Check out what I have an addiction to in this article by Martin Rooney.

Are You An Addict? by Martin Rooney

Get big or die tryin'.

The Grace Card

I wasn’t planning on writing this article. I had another article planned for this month; another “rah-rah-rah-quit-doing-the-stupid-things-in-your-life-and-then-maybe-you’ll-actually-get-results” article. I was about half way done writing that article last night, and then I had to stop so I could get ready for church. I normally don’t go to church on Saturday evening, but I had been invited to stay after for a film viewing that was being held. The sermon was okay, they’ve definitely preached better, but the two-and-a-half hours I spent there after the service are what changed this month’s feature article. The film shown was The Grace Card, a movie about two cops in Memphis and how they teach each other about the meaning of love, life, and forgiveness during their time as patrol partners. It is a powerful film that I highly recommend, and one that really got me thinking.

There is so much negative energy in this world today, it is no wonder society is chronically ill. People walk around mad and scared day after day and allow feelings of anger, hatred, and sorrow to feast on their soul for years upon end. You flip on the news and all that is seen are either horror stories or tales of superficial happiness. True, consistent happiness is such a rarity that when others around us are able to find it for a moment, we often times bring them back down to our level with our words and actions. All of these thoughts and emotions fester within us and we are unable to grant each other forgiveness, much less grant ourselves forgiveness.

One of my favorite lines from the film last night was, “I promise to pray for you every day, to ask for forgiveness, grant you the same, and to be your friend forever.” What a powerful concept this is. Imagine the impact that could be made in the world if this were applied to our daily lives. We have all made mistakes. We have all wronged others. We have all done awful, stupid, terrible things that make us nauseous to think about. But, what if we were forgiven? More importantly, what if we forgave those who had done the same to us? What if we forgave ourselves for our bonehead mistakes and all of the negative self-talk?

A negative mindset and a heavy heart create a negative energy emitted from your body. Without going too far out into left field with this idea, consider this: you know when you read a text message from somebody and they’re pissed off. It’s kind of like those screaming envelopes in Harry Potter; you just get a pissed-off vibe when you read the message. All of this negative energy affects everything around us, from the food we eat to the plants and animals; every single thing that has a life force is impacted by these thoughts. And as our habitats rot around us, our souls rot from within.

Every day we live our lives holding grudges against some and trying to be in the good graces of others. On top of that, we judge ourselves so critically that it can paralyze any action of self-improvement that we attempt. Enough is enough. It is time we start forgiving each other, start forgiving ourselves, and start asking others for forgiveness for what has been done.

There is science out there that says five minutes of negative thoughts leads to over two hours of hormonal imbalances. This type of stress is slowly killing all of us, undoubtedly leading to chronic disease and illness. I have heard before that you cannot get health from a sick animal. By the same token, we as individuals cannot become healthy if our environment and those around us are sick. We must stop this outflow of negative energy at the source, ourselves, by doing what we have refused to do up to this point—forgive.

I promise to pray for you every day, to ask for forgiveness, grant you the same, and to be your friend forever. Here’s to faith, strength, and passion.

Get big or die tryin’.

Charlie Cates, CSCS

Self Made®, Owner

Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP's. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.

This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.

Why All Muscle Was Not Created Equal

Why are some dudes able to be big and lift bigger while others are big but weak as a kitten? Joe D. explains.

Why All Muscle Was Not Created Equal by Joe DeFranco

Get big or die tryin'.

Feeling vs. Function

Over the past few months I have written posts about my change of beliefs regarding foam rolling and stretching as both means to increase range of motion and speed recovery time. I have received a lot of comments from people about these new beliefs as people try to rationalize why they may have changed in the first place. I want to stress the fact that just because something feels good, doesn't mean it's good for you in the way you were hoping it to be. When it comes to having greater range of motion, allowing your body to function better, and allowing the muscles to function better, the only way you can know if there is an improvement is if you test it. You need a system of checks and balances to ensure what your are doing isn't detrimental both immediately and in the short- and long-term.

Having said this, showing that you can sit down deeper when you squat or proving that you are now able to touch your toes after stretching and/or rolling out are not valid tests because joint mobility is ALWAYS trumped by joint stability. If you have range of motion at a joint that you cannot actively control, it does you no good to have that range from a performance and training standpoint. So unless you are muscle testing yourself after you stretch or roll out to prove that you are strong and stable at those joints and your muscles are firing properly around those joints, do not tell me how great these things are for you without expecting to be corrected. You are putting yourself at great risk of injury and limiting your training progress, and I can no longer endorse this behavior.

Get big or die tryin'.

Charlie Cates, CSCS

Self Made®, Owner

Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP's. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.

This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.

The Iron Evolution: Phase 4

"Westside Barbell, The Mental Aspect" Dave Tate reflects on his time training at Westside Barbell.

The Iron Evolution: Phase 4 by Dave Tate

Get big or die tryin'.