Real Strength Real Muscle-

Ebook version v1.0 10/05/2020

A disclaimer by the compiler

John Christy died young, unexpectedly and left behind a wealth of knowledge in books and
training articles. Unfortunately, over the years most of his work was lost. Floating around
the internet were some compilations of his work from the excellent “Hard-gainer”
magazine, but his book 'Real strength real muscle' became very rare and impossible to
find.

With Coach Christy's death, the book went out of print and was lost on the bookshelves
forever. Thankfully with the help of somebody who owned the book, the books owner was
able to photograph the articles that did not make it into the hard-gainer compilations found
online, so I could finally read the rest of Coach Christy's work.

Some of the photographs were easily transcribed using OCR software, other articles did
not and were hand typed up over a period of several years in my spare time and first
posted on David Gentle's website : [Link]
f=17&t=1138

With over 20,000 views as of today and many many reposts on other forums, the calls to
compile this into an e-book were constant.

So, here it is. Bear in mind many pages were typed up by hand and any spelling
mistakes or slight differences will be present but 99% of the message will be there.

Also I am aware John Christy changed some of his articles from the Hardgainer magazine
originals. The articles were edited before publication in hardgainer, so minor differences
will be present between the published book and this ebook. Hardgainer articles are clearly
marked at the top of the pages.

It was a labour of love over a few years whilst having a busy family.

Enjoy what was once lost and now is found.

THIS EBOOK IS FREE OF CHARGE UNDER FAIR USE

Please make sure if you have any other “rare” Physical culture writings that need to be
preserved to get in touch with websites such as [Link] where
willing participants will gladly preserve such information.

(Please note David Gentle did not approve or have any part of this compilation)

All credit to John Christy, so I will remain anonymous.

RIP John Christy

Contents

1 Strength and Conditioning Principles

Designing your training Program

Complete Training Part 1
Complete Training Part 2
Enhancing your technique
The Basic keys to Success Part 1
The Basic keys to Success Part 2
Warm-up sets aren't supposed to 'Warm you up'
The 'Curl Challenge' Series
The Principle of Variety
The Long Cycle
Appropriate Volume
'Rebel' Thinking: Calf and Ab training
Rep Speed
Over and over again
My way to train
Bad shoulders and Benching, Warm-ups, and aerobics
Biomechanics- Part 1 The upper back
Biomechanics- Part 2 The lower back
Tension and Fatigue: How to manipulate these variables to get big and/or strong
Squatting style and 'Machismo'
The training cycle: A scientific look at why it works
Addressing your questions

2 Profiles: Strength and conditioning principles at work

One mans journey

52 weeks of training
Evening the Genetic score
Abbreviated training for the genetically gifted
The only way
Mr Consistency
The basics work again
No excuses
A common path
A case study- Lessons to be learned part 1
A case study- Lessons to be learned part 2
Learning to be patient
Strength weekend 1999
Craig Rasmussen- Updated
Craigs vision quest
Jon Anderson- Updated
In their own words

3 Ideas to give you an edge and keep you on track

How to eat to get big

How to eat to lose body fat
The white moment
Dedication
Mid- Year checkup
The art of concentration: Part 1
The art of concentration: Part 2
Do you really understand 'The message'
New year check-list
The hardgainer tag: a good thing gone bad
Training reality
Making you think
Partingwords
Designing Your Own Training Program
From Hardgainer #52 - January/February 1998
If you have been a reader of HARDGAINER for a while, and have studied the material, you should
have no problem designing your own training program. I average five calls per week from readers
wanting me to take them on as consultation trainees. Some of these people can benefit from my
personal instruction, but many don't need it. If you want my instruction – or any other author's –
instruction just study the magazine.
In this article I am going to cover all the considerations of designing an effective training program.
Keep in mind that these recommendations are based on 23 years of lifting experience, and 11 years of
professional strength coaching. There are, however, very good coaches who may have different but
effective approaches.
KEEP THINGS SIMPLE
An effective training program doesn't have to be, and shouldn't be complicated. So don't try to find or
develop some super-secret program that is more effective than anything ever used before. As a matter
of fact, let me let you in on the biggest secret in all of weight training – there are no secret programs.
THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT FACTORS
The most important design considerations of any program are that it can be performed consistently
and progressively. If you don't train consistently, your body won't get the stimulation it needs to get
stronger and hence bigger. If you don't train progressively, your body won't get the stimulation it needs
to get stronger and bigger. So, for any program to be effective, it has to allow you to train as
consistently as possible, and add weight to the bar on a planned basis.
The frequency, volume and intensity of a training program are determined based on maintaining
consistency and progression. You need to be able to recover from workouts so that you don't overtrain
and end up getting hurt, or sick. If either of these occur, you will miss workouts.
If your workouts are too frequent, your joints will take a beating and you'll likely end up with some
form of long-term joint inflammation, and you'll miss workouts. If your workouts are too frequent, your
immune system won't be able to recover and you'll end up getting sick all the time and, once again,
you'll miss workouts. And if you are not training consistently, you can't add weight to the bar, so then
you're not being progressive.
I hope you're getting the point. You can't afford to miss workouts, period!
FREQUENCY
The frequency of workouts has to be based on several factors, the most important being the ability to
recover between workouts. Your ability to recover between workouts is influenced by a number of
factors, including the type of job you have (or don't have if you're young enough, or rich enough),
family responsibilities, how much rest you get every night, how well you eat, and if you're involved in
any strenuous sports.
For someone who has a job and family, I have found that two workouts per week works great.
Although I've had others who handle three per week and make progress, these workouts have to be
specially limited in the number of exercises.
For the trainee who is in high school or college, three workouts per week works well, although two
may still be more effective over the long haul. The two weight-training workouts per week also allow
for 2-3 bouts of aerobic work and/or sports activities each week.
It still amazes me that HARDGAINER readers can't believe that I (at 5-10 (178 cm) and my current
weight of 235 lbs (106 kg)) only train two times per week. This allows me to do aerobics two times per
week as well as wind sprints and baseball skill work (I still play semi-professional baseball during the
summer). I also should mention that I don't believe in training someone to become just big and strong.
I believe people should become big and strong athletes. What I mean by this is that they should be
able to run and jump and move in different direction. In essence I believe that your strength and size
should be functional.
Weight training two times per week will allow you the physical time, as well as the recovery time, to
do aerobic work. It also gives you the flexibility to move a workout if you have to miss for family or
work, or if you simply haven't recovered from the previous workout. For instance, if you usually work
out on Tuesday and Friday, and you can't make Friday's workout, you can easily move it to Saturday
and stay on track. This way you get Sunday and Monday to rest, and can still be recovered by
Tuesday's workout.
41
The goal of training is not to see how much torture the body can withstand, but to stimulate the
body and then let it recover. So why tolerate training three times per week and make gains, just
because you think more is better? If you can train two times per week and continually get as strong (or
stronger) as you would training three times per week, with less chance of injury, and hence
maintaining consistency over the long haul, what benefit does three-times-per-week weight training
offer?
VOLUME
How much training should you do? Well, this is based on the number of exercises you do, the number
of sets, and the rest interval between sets.
You should be keeping a good pace throughout the workout, and even though you are resting 4-5
minutes between live (work) sets, you should be able to complete a workout in about one hour, or
inside 90 minutes without question. This time does not include initial warmup time or stretching. The
clock starts at the beginning of your first exercise and stops at the conclusion of your last live set.
When I say a good pace, I mean that you're not sitting around shooting the breeze between exercises.
But you need to take the proper rest interval between sets.
When a trainee is at the point where he or she is training hard, I don't feel any more than 2 live sets
of any exercise is necessary to stimulate growth.
As far as the number and type of exercises is concerned, I feel that a compound leg movement
(squat, deadlift, leg press), a compound upper-body pressing movement (bench press, overhead
press, dip), a pulling movement (row, pulldown, high pull), a crunch (for the abs), and some grip work
should cover it. You also need to include calf work and some direct biceps work, once a week. That
does it. Designing a program is not hard, but maintaining the effort and consistency is! I think what
happens is that many of you are under the illusion that you will find a better way. Well let me tell you –
there isn't one!
INTENSITY
How hard should you train? This subject has been battered around for eons. So, I'm going to give you
my opinion. I've had tremendous success with putting this opinion into practice. My definition of
training hard is training to the point where there is possibly one more rep left in you. In other words, I
feel you should train right up to the edge of momentary muscular failure, but not over the edge. The
goal of weight training is to lift progressively more weight each training session, not to go to failure.
After 23 years of training (reaching a maximum weight of 252 lbs (114 kg) at 5-10 (178 cm))
combined with 11 years of training over 600 people, I know for an absolute fact that you can get
progressively stronger and hence bigger without going to complete failure. But, you have to get to the
point where the last rep in a set threatens to make you fail.
Another way to say this is that you need to challenge yourself to make your prescribed reps and
beat failure. And then the real challenge is to train at this level for many months by adding a small
dose of iron to the bar every workout.
STARTING WEIGHTS AND RATE OF PROGRESSION
At the start of a program you should use a weight that allows you to complete 5 reps more than the
goal of the set. For instance, if you want to perform 2 live sets of an exercise at 5 reps each, you want
to start with a weight that allows you to do 10 reps if you went to failure, but stop at just 5 reps. Then
over the next 6-8 weeks you need to build up the weight slowly until you could complete about 6 or 7
reps if you went to failure, but stop at 5. At this point you should slow the rate of progression to what I
feel is the maximum that the body can compensate for on all of your exercises. These are 2.5 lbs (1
kg) on squats, deadlifts and leg presses, and 1 lb (0,5 kg) on benches, dips, presses, chins, rows,
pulldowns, curls and crunches. The curls will eventually have to go down to half a pound (0,25 kg) per
workout. By the sixteenth week you should be at the point where there is only one more rep left in you
after you have made your fifth rep.
There are instances that I have seen where someone who is eating and recovering to their utmost
ability will be at the sixteenth week and still have 2 or 3 reps left in them beyond their goal number.
This is fantastic and shows that their body is recovering from this rate of progression. At this time I
would suggest a bigger load increase over the next several workouts so that they are training with just
one rep left in them beyond their goal number for the set. Then I would have them go back to adding
the small doses of iron to the bar.
You don't have to use 5 reps as your goal number for a set. Use any rep count that you think will
bring results for you, or that you enjoy. Just start out with reserve reps left in you and slowly build to
the point that you are training with just one rep left in you. Then, settle in for a long and very
productive training period.
42
But don't start looking for other ways to train, look for ways to recover between workouts, so that
you can stay consistent. Look for ways to concentrate during your workouts so that you can train
harder and with better form.
You would be surprised at the number of trainees that surpass all their previous training records
simply by following what I have outlined in this paragraph.
THE TEMPLATE
What follows is a twice-a-week weight training template. I know for a fact that I can get anyone strong
and big with this program. So, if you have the guts to follow the rules that I have outlined in this article,
and do not get distracted by the garbage information that is out there, you can get yourself very big
and strong with this program.
Only live sets are listed. Do 2 or 3 progressive warmup sets prior to each of the big exercises, and
just one for each of the smaller exercises. For multiple warmup sets for an exercise, take 2-3 minutes
rest between them. But always take the full 4-5 minutes rest prior to the first live set.
Day one
1. Crunch: 1 x 15
2. Squat: 2 x 6
3. Stiff-legged deadlift: 1 x 10
4. Bench press: 2 x 6
5. Pulldown: 2 x 6
6. Static grip: 1 x 60 seconds
Day two
1. Side bend: 1 x 15
2. Deadlift: 2 x 6
3. Military press: 2 x 6
4. Curl: 2 x 6
5. Calf raise: 1 x 10
I've never had a trainee experience any problem recovering from stiff-legged deadlifts on day one,
and (bent-legged) deadlifts on day two, along with squats on day one. But the critical proviso is that
the total number of sets per exercise must be limited. For instance, on day one, two live sets of squats
are performed and only one live set of stiff-legged deadlifts. On day two, only one or two live sets of
deadlifts are performed. Keep the total volume of work for the lower back very limited, to avoid
overtraining that area.
EXERCISE TECHNIQUE
You must perform all of your exercise with good technique. To do this subject justice I would have to
write a whole book. There is not enough space in an article to do a good job. I strongly suggest you
buy Stuart McRobert's book on technique, and study it. It contains all you need to know on the subject.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Being consistent and putting out the effort necessary for many workouts over a long period of time is a
hard part of weight-training success. Getting the proper amount of rest and food consistently is a hard
part. Staying focused on every set you do so that you can concentrate on combining all the effort that
you can muster while maintaining perfect form is a hard part. Being patient, because you know that
getting strong and big take time, is a hard part. Having blind faith in what I am saying (until it proves
itself to you) so that you are not constantly jumping from one program to another, is a hard part. But
designing a training program is the easy part.
You can do this yourself. You don't need any help. All you need is knowledge. The magazine that
you hold in your hands will provide that. Now get to work – not on designing your program but on
putting out the effort to stay consistent and train progressively.
"The strongest of all warriors are these two: Time and Patience."
– Leo Tolstoy
Complete Training, Part 1
From Hardgainer #63 – November/December 1999
Any of you who have read my material for a while know that I feel weight training in and of itself is not
enough to make a "complete" training program. Everyone should do aerobic work regardless of
training goals. But there's additional training you can do to make your body more responsive to your
weight training, as well as more resistant to injury. Now don't start questioning, "If I do more training
won't I overtrain?" The answer is a resounding "No!" If you follow what I'm going to lay out for you, not
only will you not overtrain, but it will actually help with your recovery from your weight workouts.
Overtraining is something all trainees must consider, but you should not get so concerned about it
that you hit the weights then run home to eat and lay motionless on the couch. You should not get to
the point that you feel any activity beyond your weight training will cause you to overtrain.
I've talked to trainees who actually quit participating in sports they enjoy because they didn't want
to "sacrifice" their workouts. They were afraid that an outside activity would cause them to overtrain. In
particular, one trainee I worked with stopped playing in a recreational basketball league on Saturdays
because he was "so tired" he couldn't finish a game. This trainee blamed it on overtraining. He felt that
his two-times-per-week workouts were draining all his energy, resulting in the exhaustion he felt while
playing. This was far from the truth. What happened was that he was simply out of shape! It had
nothing to do with overtraining! I started this trainee on a aerobic program to be done two times per
week, and told him to start playing basketball. He was to stop when he started to feel too tired to
continue. After about six weeks of aerobic work and playing on Saturday, he could complete an entire
game with no problem. And what about his workouts? They improved! He said he recovered faster
between sets, and felt more flexible and limber. Now get this: He also said that the workouts didn't
make him as fatigued as they used to. Overtraining – no. Out of shape – yes!
This leads me to another point. HARDGAINER magazine has done the world of weight training a
great service in making the training public aware of the harm of training to the point where the body
can't recover, i.e., overtraining. It has published many great articles on how to set up programs to
avoid overtraining. But I feel some readers have taken the concept of overtraining too far. I've read
about trainees that lift only two times per month because they are so wiped out after training. To me
this is ridiculous. The reason they're so wiped out is because they're so out of shape, and I don't mean
only aerobic shape; I mean "lifting shape." They lift so infrequently that their bodies don't develop the
necessary biochemicals to handle, and recover from, a workout. This is why they feel so drained after
a workout.
Even if you're on a properly constructed program, when you're training hard you'll be tired after a
workout and possibly sore the next day or two – period! This doesn't mean that you need to wait 10-15
days to train again, or that you should remain motionless on the couch till your next workout. If you're
eating and getting adequate rest, and have built up your weights at a rate your body can handle, you'll
be ready to go in 72 hours without question!
The Karvonen Formula
220 - age = Maximum Predicted Heart Rate
Maximum Predicted Heart Rate - Resting Heart Rate = Heart Rate Reserve
(Heart Rate Reserve x 0.50) + Resting Heart Rate = your 50% training heart rate in beats/minute
The 0.50 computation produces the bottom end of the training zone, i.e., your 50% training heart rate.
Now, you need to do this again except multiply by 0.65 (instead of 0.50) to
determine your 65% training heart rate. After doing this you'll now have your 50-65% training zone
based not only on your age but also your conditioning level.
As an example, suppose you're age 40 with a resting heart rate of 76...
220 - 40 = 180
180 - 76 = Heart Rate Reserve of 104
(104 x 0.50) + 76 = 128 (This is the 50% bottom end of the training zone.)
(104 x 0.65) + 76 = 144
The 65% level of the training zone is therefore 144 beats per minute.
77
I'm going to outline some outside-the-weight-room activities that will get you in shape, make you
more mobile, more athletic (thus allowing you to participate in sports), prevent injuries, and help you to
recover between workouts. There's much to say, so I'm going to spread the information over more
than one issue.
ACITIVITY #1: Aerobic conditioning
You've heard me say this before: Everyone, I mean everyone, should perform aerobic work. The
minimum I recommend is twice a week for 20 minutes each time. Now this is the absolute minimum. I
would strongly urge someone to try to slowly (there's that word again) build up to 45 minutes twice a
week. This will not cause you to overtrain.
Now what about timing of weight-training sessions and aerobic sessions? If you weight train on
Tuesdays and Fridays, for example, good days to do aerobics would be Thursday and Sunday. Two
days after the weight-training sessions, for aerobic work, has worked great for the trainees I've worked
with. (Actually, another less demanding aerobic training day can be performed on Monday – reduce
the training time by 30%, for the "extra" day, relative to the two other aerobic days each week.)
Aerobic training can be performed on weight-training days if enough time between the two types of
exercise is allowed -- e.g., if you do aerobics at 8 am, you can hit the weights at 6 pm. Putting both
types of training on the same day wouldn't be my first recommendation though. But it can be done if
someone is in good cardiorespiratory condition and is eating correctly.
If you haven't been doing any aerobic work, then start with just 10 minutes at 50-65% of your
age/conditioning level – Your adjusted maximum heart rate. Let me explain the calculations here. You
need to use what's known as the Karvonen Formula – see the box above. (Don't get concerned, it's a
simple formula that's easily applied.)
First, find your resting heart rate. Do this by either taking your heart rate the moment you wake in
the morning while still lying in bed, or take it after lying down for at least five minutes. Now you're
ready. Plug your resting heart rate number, and age, into the formula.
Working with all the trainees I have over the past 14 years, I know almost anyone can handle
starting this way. Every workout, add just one minute to your aerobic training time. You're probably
thinking that you could add more than one minute easily – and you know I think you could too – but
don't! Remember that you 're trying to incorporate a new stressor into your program and you want to
do this so that it helps your training instead of hampering it. So, be disciplined! Just add the one
minute per workout!
In five weeks (ten aerobic workouts) you'll be up to 20 minutes, you'll feel great, and you'll start to
notice a difference in your workouts. I promise you that if you go any faster than I recommend, you
may compromise your weight-training workouts.
The changes you'll notice in your workouts are that it'll be much easier to warm up, you'll feel more
limber, and you won't feel as tired between workout days. Mentally you won't feel as stagnant,
because instead of your body (and your brain) experiencing an increase in circulation only twice in one
week, it gets it four times with the inclusion of the twice-a-week aerobic work. If you keep the intensity
of the aerobic work at the 50--65% range, there's no way it will hamper your recovery ability, because
at this level it doesn't stress your body systemically like lifting does. In other words, your nervous
system and endocrine system don't take a hit. This is especially the case if you build it up slowly, as I
recommend.
Later on, you can take your aerobic conditioning further, if you desire, without it taking anything
away from your weight workouts. In fact, this increased conditioning will help your weight workouts! All
it requires is patience and discipline. Once you've maintained the low-level (50-65%) aerobics at 45
minutes, twice a week, for at least two months, then you can slowly increase intensity to the mid-level
range (70-80%). Why would you want to do this?
Low-level aerobics derive almost all of their required energy from your body's fat stores (which is
perfect for losing fat, or minimizing fat gain) and also give your cardiorespiratory system a mild
workout (which is perfect for someone who has done no aerobic work). If you want to get in great
cardiorespiratory "shape" – and benefit your weight training even more – you should slowly transition
to mid-level aerobics. Here's how you do it: During one of your low-level sessions, perform the first five
minutes at the 70-80% range. Then add 1-2 minutes (don 't add more than two!) to that session every
week. It will take you anywhere from 20-40 weeks to attain this goal. This is a perfect rate that your
body can adapt to, and, once again, will only help your weight training.
Keep one of the aerobic sessions at the low-level while you build the other to the 45 minutes at the
mid-level range. Once that's accomplished, you can build the remaining session up to the mid-level
range, but you must consume a large number of calories to accomplish this without taking anything
away from the weights. Mid-level aerobic work taxes the glycogen stores and this may compromise
the weight-training sessions if the period of adaptation to two mid-level sessions each week isn't long
enough and progressive enough. The low-level aerobics don't tax the glycogen stores nearly as much.
78
If you want to build up to 45 minutes of mid-level aerobics, and have done no aerobic conditioning
at all, or not for along time, you need to plan on the process taking about one year. If you currently
have already been performing aerobic work, then of course it will take much less time. As far as what
type of aerobic exercise to do, it really doesn't matter as long as it's safe for your joints, and you follow
the heart rate and time guidelines stated above.
ACTIVITY #2: Sports participation/ physical recreation
If you enjoy participating in a sport, you don't have to give it up because you're afraid it might interfere
with your weight-training goals. Let me offer an example. A couple of years ago I was training a 37-
year-old former professional baseball player, to build maximum mass for bodybuilding, but he still
wanted to participate in a summer semi-pro baseball league. His team played 45 games in 75 days.
Not only did he enjoy a productive season (15 home runs and a 0.380+ batting average) against much
younger competition – average age of 26 – but when we tested his strength at the end of the season,
his maximum bench went from 315 pounds to 335, and he was just as muscular as when the season
started. This is only one example. I could give you many. If you want to participate in a sport, by all
means do so. Also, don't stay away from a physical activity you enjoy doing because you think it'll take
away from your workouts. If your buddies want to take a two-hour hike and you would like to go along
– go! Just pack enough food to keep up your energy stores. If something like this wipes you out for
your workout the next day, take an extra day's rest – and work on getting in better shape so this
doesn't happen again!
My point is that, with a few adjustments, you don't have to give up everything to reach your weighttraining
goals. The key is to regulate weight-training volume. This is accomplished by performing a
minimum number of basic compound exercises. A good "in-season" routine is as follows:
Workout A
1. Crunch: 1 x 5
2. Squat: 1 x 5
3. Row or pulldown: 1 x 5
Workout B
1. Side bend: 1 x 5
2. Deadlift (sumo, conventional or stiff-legged): 1 x 5
3. Bench press or dip: 1 x 5
4. Calf raise: 1 x 5
All you need is one "live" set to keep the gains coming. Of course, perform adequate warm up sets.
If you want some variety, alternate between doing five-rep sets one week and ten-rep sets the next.
You may have to fluctuate your workout days depending on what days your competition/activity falls.
This is okay; just try to get in the two workouts in no more than a ten-day period. If, for example, your
competition falls on the same day every week, you've the opportunity to weight train on the same days
every week.
The wrap up
I want to impress upon you that your body is capable of adapting to a variety of stimuli and, if executed
slowly enough, a surprising amount of volume. Don't misinterpret what I'm saying and think you can
start a twice-a-day, six-days-a-week weight-training routine. That would certainly overtrain you.
Overtraining your body can happen. But if you train correctly, give your body time to adapt to a new
stimulus, and get in good cardiorespiratory condition, you 'll be able to enjoy many activities or sports
and still make good progress in the weight room.
Next issue I'll address flexibility training and medicine ball/plyometric training. I know I just
mentioned the dreaded "P" word. Don't worry, the program I'll outline is tried and true. It will not injure
you. It will add to your conditioning level and improve your performance in the weight room.
Complete Training, Part 2
From Hardgainer #64 – March/April 2000
In issue #63 I had the first installment of this two-part series. In it I noted, "I'm going to outline some
outside-the-weight-room activities that will get you in shape, make you more mobile, more athletic
(thus allowing you to participate in sports), prevent injuries, and help you to recover between
workouts." In that article, along with an introduction, I covered aerobic conditioning and sports
participation/physical recreation.
ACTIVITY #3: Flexibility training
To me this is a "no brainer." It has been proven over and over again that developing and maintaining a
normal range of motion around all major joints absolutely prevents, and helps rehabilitate, injuries. I
know you've probably heard the stretching "nay-sayers" give the scenario that if we were all sitting in a
room and someone yelled "Fire!" we would sprint as fast as we could to exit and no one would pull a
muscle. That may or may not be true. In my experience, the lack of stretching doesn't cause acute
injuries as often as it causes the type of injury that comes on slowly and can become debilitating for a
long period of time. So, if the people that are "sprinting away from the fire" do it over and over again
for many years (like weight training), I know that not only could they "pull" muscles, but I'm sure that
they will develop some form of tendonitis.
I can tell you from my own experience over the last fourteen years in working with many different
types of trainees – and many different types of injuries – that stretching has to be part of everyone's
training program, period.
About sixteen years ago I tried an experiment on myself using the Bulgarian theory that stretching
disrupts the "stretch reflex." In simple terms, the stretch reflex is supposed to help you lift heavier
weights. Well, I stopped stretching, and in about six weeks I had tendonitis in both patella tendons and
both elbows. I actually looked liked a walking ice bag since I had to ice four joints. Did the lack of
stretching help the stretch reflex and help me get stronger? Who knows, and who cares! The
tendonitis was so bad I couldn't train for four weeks! Stretch reflex or not, you can't get strong unless
you're able to lift!
Now, in developing your own stretching program you don't need to go overboard and try and turn
yourself into a human pretzel. Our basic stretching program consists of just eleven stretches. We
perform this program before and after every workout and it takes about 7-10 minutes. The key is not to
try to do every stretch imaginable, or to expect to gain good flexibility in one session (you can't
anyway). Instead, do a few basic stretches, and do them consistently. This is what produces results
over the long haul. I don't have the space to try and explain how to do our stretching program in this
article. I recommend what's in Stuart's book on weight-training technique with the option of a few
stretches that I've included as follows.
I recommend a three-position neck stretch (pictures 1a, 1b and 1c). Never neglect stretching your
neck muscles! If you do, you'll end up eventually having problems in the cervical area. As you can see
in the pictures, we apply manual assistance when performing this stretch. Do not pull too hard or you'll
hurt yourself.
Photos 1a, 1b, 1c
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The next stretch I would add is the side bend (pictures 2a and 2b ). This is important for stretching
out the internal and external obliques as well as the quadratus lumborurn. If you perform the side bend
exercise, you need to perform this stretch.
The stretch I recommend for the lats and upper back muscles is in picture 3. Hold onto a pole and
"hang back." Performed correctly you should feel that if you let go of the pole you would fall on your
butt.
Photos 2a, 2b, 3
In picture 4 is my recommended pec stretch. I like to perform this
stretch one arm at a time (verses both at once), as there's usually a
difference in the amount of flexibility in the shoulders in almost all trainees
that I've worked with. By performing it this way you can give each shoulder
joint individual attention without one shoulder possibly hindering the other.
Stretch before and after every weight workout and every aerobic
session. Hold each stretch for 30 seconds, only one "set" per stretch
unless some special case or limitation dictates otherwise. You should feel
a mild stretch. Do not try to stretch so hard that you feel as if you're going
to rip the tendon off the bone! Stretching has to be done at a moderate
intensity. If you try to stretch too hard, the body retaliates by contracting
the muscle, which is exactly the opposite of what you're trying to achieve.
The stretches should be held in a static manner – no bouncing. I always
recommend a warm up prior to stretching, of at least 5 minutes of light
aerobic work. Personally, I do 10-12 minutes before workouts to get a
good sweat. But don't tire yourself out – it needs to be light, but enough to
get a little sweat going. So start a basic stretching program immediately. I
guarantee you that you'll feel the results in a couple of months, and there's
nothing like feeling that something is working.
ACTIVITY #4: Medicine ball training/ plyometrics
I bet that last word made some of you run. The dreaded "P" word. Guys, doing plyometric training,
when abused, can hurt you (just like anything else). But if you follow my instructions, it will only help.
By the way, my application of "plyos" is different than what most advise. Also, I'm limiting my scope of
application to adjunct work (which will not affect you systemically) verses using plyos to increase
speed and explosiveness.
Medicine ball training is great for increasing functional range of motion. It will also help you recover
from workouts, help you to gain functional strength through different planes of motion (which helps to
prevent injuries), and it's fun to do. There are hundreds of different medicine ball/plyometric exercises,
which are usually variations of throws and jumps (hops). Many of these movements are inherently
dangerous. So, what I've done is included my "basic four." These movements are safe for most
trainees if you work into them slowly. If they cause you any pain, don't do them – period. All the med
ball work is done throwing the ball into a wall or with a partner retrieving the throw on the other side.
The first movement is the "abdominal throw" (pictures 5a and 5b). Plant your feet a little wider than
shoulder width. Take the medicine ball and slowly reach behind your head as far as is comfortable on
the shoulders, low back, and abdominals – this is extremely important so that you don't get hurt. Dan
Foy (the model in the pictures) has very good shoulder, low back, and abdominal flexibility and can
reach pretty far back. He's also been doing these for years. At first I would recommend to go no further
than the top of your head. From this position try to throw the ball with your whole body, concentrating
particularly on generating the force with your abdominals. Done properly this exercise will make your
Photo 4
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abdominals sore. Once again I want to
reiterate that you do not need to take the ball
far behind the head to gain the benefits of the
movement.
The second movement is the "side throw"
(pictures 6a and 6b ). Once again, get a good
solid stance. Slowly rotate your torso to one
side. Go as far as it's comfortable. If you go
too far at first, you'll get hurt! Concentrating on
generating force from the opposing side of the
body. Rotate the other direction and throw the
ball using your torso – not your arms! Do not
try to throw the ball too hard at first; instead,
try to get the feel of the movement.
The third movement is the "chest throw"
(pictures 7a and 7b ). Start the ball at the
chest with your elbows flared, and try to "pop"
the ball out. If flaring the elbows out causes
shoulder pain, try it with the elbows at your
sides.
The fourth movement (pictures 8a and 8b)
is the "box hop." This is real simple. Start
behind a three to four inch stable platform
(Dan is using a four-inch, 44-pound "bumper
plate"), and jump up and down off of the
platform. Once you master the movement you
should try to perform it as quickly as possible;
but you must start slowly. If this causes any
knee pain whatsoever, don't do it.
Now the rules. If you follow the rules you'll
not overtrain or get hurt, so stay with me and
finish the article. Do your med ball/plyo
training either on one of your aerobic days
(before the aerobics), or on a separate day.
Now, don't freak out with the overtraining
thinking. Yes I can do the math. Two days of
weight training, two days of aerobic work, and
one day of med ball/plyos, that's training five
days a week – but only two of which are taxing
the body systemically. The others do no more
than help you get in better shape (known as
General Physical Preparedness) and recover
from workouts, but only as long as you break
into them slowly. Trust me. If you follow the
program as I say, it will only help you.
As far as the med ball goes, start with a
six-pound ball. After a minimum of three
months you can move up to a nine-pounder if
you desire; if not, just stay with the six
pounder. With the plyos, keep the jumps to no more than four inches off the ground for at least three
months, till your tendons and ligaments get used to it. If you want to move on, add height by no more
than two inches at a time. By all means, if you've any knee problems or are susceptible to them