Ideas Sought

Hanley

Hey all,

I'm in the process of putting together some strength training articles and I would like to know if anyone has any specific questions about getting strong/strength training that they'd like me to try and answer. I don't pretend to be the messiah of strength training, but I've done quite well for myself recently in training and it looks like I'll have the opportunity to share some of the things that have worked for me.

I'll probably outline some of the different styles of training (conjugate periodization, liner/western periodization, Sheiko etc etc...), go into what has and has not worked for me, and things I would do differently now if I could.

I think that having actual questions from actual people about actual training problems would be a great idea too, it'd give the artilce(s) a more grounded approach and one that may be more applicable to most trainees.

As alot of you know, I don't buy into the science-y bullsh1t that most authors seems to be using to differentiate themselves. I plan on just writing it in straight forward simple English since I'm not trying to sell anything, impress people (or wear out Mr. Google...).

Anyway, if anyone has any questions about anything strength related then feel free to throw em up and I'll tackle as many as I can and see what I can come up with. Depending on how things go, I may PM the answers to the specific questions back to the posters who asked, and then tie the rest of the questions together in an article for everyone.

I'm looking forward to see what everyone comes up with...

Regards,
Hanley

BraziliaNZ

Hanley wrote: »

I don't pretend to be the messiah of strength training

lol

amazingemmet

It would be nice if instead of just outlining the different types, you went more into how it worked for you. More personal etc

Dealing with calluses. A chunk of skin tears off every time I deadlift, even when I use chalk. It's the major factor limiting my deadlifts at the moment. I'm becoming scared that I'll build up scar tissue.

tribulus

File them down.

Perhaps you should talk a bit about form in exercises. It's often overlooked (I'm talking about the big 3 here obviously) and subtle changes can make a difference etc.

brianthebard

+1 on the form idea. An article on how not to fuck up your back (or alternatively how to rehab after fcuking it up) would be handy for me atm, not sure if anyone else would read it.

sobriquet

amazingemmet wrote: »

It would be nice if instead of just outlining the different types, you went more into how it worked for you. More personal etc

+1. I started running more or less on my own and went through many months where I was afraid to push harder because of pains and niggles that turned out to be nothing but my unfitness showing itself. Having something to say that no, that's to be expected would have been great.

I'm planning in the near future for getting into strength training, it'd be great to read about the ups and downs of getting started and progressing as far as you have.

Best of luck with it.

gabgab

FORM!!!!

With video's,

Hanley

amazingemmet wrote: »

It would be nice if instead of just outlining the different types, you went more into how it worked for you. More personal etc

Aye... tis a good idea. I was planning on running with something similar to that actually. Like what Sheiko did, what WS is going, what progressive overload has done. Why and when I use them too.

Deleted User wrote: »

Dealing with calluses. A chunk of skin tears off every time I deadlift, even when I use chalk. It's the major factor limiting my deadlifts at the moment. I'm becoming scared that I'll build up scar tissue.

Ouch... I haven't had a serious tear on any of my callouses before luckily enough. Is the bar you're using quite smooth? When I deadlift in TF my hands are always MUCH worse than when I use one of the good sharp bars in Hercs.

sobriquet wrote: »

+1. I started running more or less on my own and went through many months where I was afraid to push harder because of pains and niggles that turned out to be nothing but my unfitness showing itself. Having something to say that no, that's to be expected would have been great.

I'm planning in the near future for getting into strength training, it'd be great to read about the ups and downs of getting started and progressing as far as you have.

Best of luck with it.

That's a good idea, thanks!!

gabgab wrote: »

FORM!!!!

With video's,

Lol... I broke my frickin' camera. There's loads of videos around that I'm sure I could use tho.

Dragan

What about an article detailing what it would be like for someone doing their first PL comp? The things they need to watch out for, realistic expectations and how to choose the right time to compete?

With your experience you could write a very good article on it.

I also agree with Emmet. Training articles are a dime a dozen, while adding in your own experiences with your own real world examples will make a massive difference to it's appeal.

celestial

Dragan wrote: »

What about an article detailing what it would be like for someone doing their first PL comp? The things they need to watch out for, realistic expectations and how to choose the right time to compete?

With your experience you could write a very good article on it.

I also agree with Emmet. Training articles are a dime a dozen, while adding in your own experiences with your own real world examples will make a massive difference to it's appeal.

From a pure readership perspective, I'm not sure how many people would be interested in the PL comp prep side of things - you could do a sub-section on it or something though.

+1 on the 'personal' side though - people love that sort of stuff - seeing how 'a real person' went about something as opposed to just the theory of 'this is how it's done'.

The top questions that I think a novice lifter for example would have at the forefront of their mind would be:

-How do I get big without getting too big. Oh it was painful just writing that!!:D So - how you can build strength without building huge mass and how it is relatively hard to build significant mass anyway. Something about how the body is naturally resistant to adding extra unnecessary (as the body naturally sees it) mass in most people anyway.

-What do I do when my progress stalls? (can't add another 5-10kg to my bench, etc)

-Form and injury prevention - dos and donts. Stressing the importance of this.

-Objective and goal setting

-Rep ranges, set ranges etc (figure this'll come under your styles of training)

-Maybe something on fat loss strategies? (for those seeking 'definition')

justdoit

Would you include details on diet/ nutrition at various stages of training i.e. getting ready for competition, maintaining certain weight etc, or would that beyond what you're trying to get across?

Degsy

Should i arch my back when doing a flat bench press??

Hanley

justdoit wrote: »

Would you include details on diet/ nutrition at various stages of training i.e. getting ready for competition, maintaining certain weight etc, or would that beyond what you're trying to get across?

The whole idea of diet/weight control is being covered elsewhere afaik, so it's probably outside of the scope of what I want to write about.

That being said, make sure you look at my log during the second or third week of July. I'll be going on a pretty aggressive water cut to try and make weight for my next comp (probably shoot to lose 8kg over the course of 24-48 hours)

Degsy wrote: »

Should i arch my back when doing a flat bench press??

That's a good one actually. Sneak preview:

pin your shoulders, put your a55 down and the "proper"/right arch will take care of itself.

AlphaMale 3OO

Dragan wrote: »

What about an article detailing what it would be like for someone doing their first PL comp? The things they need to watch out for, realistic expectations and how to choose the right time to compete?

With your experience you could write a very good article on it.

I also agree with Emmet. Training articles are a dime a dozen, while adding in your own experiences with your own real world examples will make a massive difference to it's appeal.

From a purely selfish point of view, I think this would be a great way to do it, as I'm thinking of getting into it myself and am not 100% sure how to go about it but obviously that might not suit everybody.

Hanley

forbesii wrote: »

From a purely selfish point of view, I think this would be a great way to do it, as I'm thinking of getting into it myself and am not 100% sure how to go about it but obviously that might not suit everybody.

If you're serious about it after giving it some thought, PM me and I'll give you a hand.

sharkDawg

How about the importance of rest and giving your body the sufficient time it needs to recover and grow? The difference between actual Overtraining and all the other complaints that people assume are overtraining.

Hanley

sharkDawg wrote: »

How about the importance of rest and giving your body the sufficient time it needs to recover and grow? The difference between actual Overtraining and all the other complaints that people assume are overtraining.

The importance of rest... somehow I don't think I'm the right person to be talking about that one :D

I'd train every day if I could...

AlphaMale 3OO

Hanley wrote: »

If you're serious about it after giving it some thought, PM me and I'll give you a hand.

I will, much appreciated.

Brian?

One thing I'd like to hear more about is specific goal setting.

eg. I'm lifting X now, training with A.N. strength program, how soon can I reasonably expect to improve to lifting Y.

I am not sure at all what goals to set myself, dunno how others feel.

Al_Fernz

What about an article on the priorities of a weightlifter for the different development stages? I see people getting these mixed up an awful lot - i.e. getting overly pedantic about diets and training routines before they've even learned how to squat/DL properly.

You could do from like beginner to advanced and in between. I think you could also tie this into Emmet's idea of basing it on personal experiences and what has worked for you.

Another article you could write could be detailing your experiences rehabing your Hamstring after a strain - i.e. how you chopped and changed your training to facilitate recovery and keep strength levels up. I seem to recall you recovering freakishly quickly from a strain (correct me if I'm wrong). Its a very common injury and I think a lot of people could learn from it.

AhJaysus

Only really started reading here, but I would ask you to go back to the very start, when you first became interested in Power Lifting and tell us how you started, what you began lifting, how quickly you progressed, how much work you put in, etc etc,

Essentially give beginners or people with a view to starting a grounded, realistic view of whats needed and how its done?

No matter what you do anyway Im sure it will be very informative man, looking forward to it.

celestial

AhJaysus wrote: »

Only really started reading here, but I would ask you to go back to the very start, when you first became interested in Power Lifting and tell us how you started, what you began lifting, how quickly you progressed, how much work you put in, etc etc,

Yeah, that'd be really good to hear about too Hanley.

Mikel

Form form and more form.
How to appraise your own technique against the optimal technique and make improvements.
How aggressive to be with the loads and how hard to push yourself.
Overtraining or "Overtraining"

Hanley

Hanley wrote: »

Ouch... I haven't had a serious tear on any of my callouses before luckily enough. Is the bar you're using quite smooth? When I deadlift in TF my hands are always MUCH worse than when I use one of the good sharp bars in Hercs.

They seem pretty coarse but I have no way to compare them to bars outside the gym I guess.

Hanley

Right guys, it's all been taken on board. Thanks for the ideas. I'll get working on it and see what I can knock together.

amazingemmet

Deleted User wrote: »

They seem pretty coarse but I have no way to compare them to bars outside the gym I guess.

Get yourself a punice stone and keep your calluses file down so they don't get too big, you want that part of your hand like soft leather not all rough.

Roper

Deleted User wrote: »

They seem pretty coarse but I have no way to compare them to bars outside the gym I guess.

Are they the ones in Baldoyle? They're okay, not the roughest knurling but grand.

Petrolium Hat

Hanley wrote: »

I'll probably outline some of the different styles of training (conjugate periodization, liner/western periodization, Sheiko etc etc...), go into what has and has not worked for me, and things I would do differently now if I could.

If ye could explain some of terms in idiot proof everyday language id be grateful. Sometimes I start reading articles and it ends up being more like a thesis, you have to start looking up all sorts of references. I'm not saying dum it down, just if something isn't understood by 99 per cent of the population it might be worth sticking in a note for a brief summary, and then say if you need to know more look up such and such.

Also multiple examples of excersises if possible, i "do weights" 6 days a week, but only got to the gym maybe once or twice. I only have dumbells at home and sometimes improvising with them can be limiting.

That's what I'd like anyway!

puntosporting

Im suffering with a poor grip when im deadlifting even modest weight?
Whats the best way to improve your grip without the use of straps?

Hanley

puntosporting wrote: »

Im suffering with a poor grip when im deadlifting even modest weight?
Whats the best way to improve your grip without the use of straps?

Mixed grip;

Roper

Roper wrote: »

Are they the ones in Baldoyle? They're okay, not the roughest knurling but grand.

No, gym in trinity. I'll look at the bars in baldoyle tonight, didnt consider comparing them.

Roper

Deleted User wrote: »

No, gym in trinity. I'll look at the bars in baldoyle tonight, didnt consider comparing them.

Ha I just remembered that I had my worst ever calous tear lifting with Andy one day on those bars! Nothing to do with the bar though, just my baby soft hands.

LegacyUser

Hanley good idea...I'd think it would be great if you gave your take on isolated v compound exercises and also your take on crossfit etc...