Official Strength Debates

Non Essentials of S&C and Fitness | All opinions, ideas, questions welcomed | DM us a poll you’d like to see

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

I cannot tell you how many times someone has come to me after they tried the “just add 5 pounds a week” programming all with the same complaints

They say it’s boring, it does work, they are frustrated.

As a coach I was sold on this idea, I tried it with many ages and types of people and I finally came to my own conclusion, and that is there are much better ways to program

For me as a coach I want increased exposure not avoidance. When learning any skill, the more exposure to that specific skill the faster it will be learned.

If strength is the goal, you cannot avoid strength and just do sets of 5. Do you know the absolute easiest way to “add 5 pounds” ?? Do less reps. That’s what zone 1 is for.

You also, especially a beginner, don’t want to miss those sets of 8-12. These rep ranges offer a different stimulus and they are great for greasing the grove and learning the technique.

Don’t let them scare you with fear. Heavy is relative. You are able to lift heavy and prioritize form and positions.

That’s what’s great about this system, you don’t have to learn an entire new system after your first 12 weeks. You just continue to gain experience and exposure in other areas. Exercise selection, work loads, intensity etc

Link to start a free week below 👇🏼

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@1dustyguy1 All respect 🫡

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

The phrase “Time Under Tension” should be eliminated

Quite possibly the most damaging idea for hypertrophy that takes years to get past, if you’re lucky

Most people stagnate their progress on this false grail

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

Checking in 🫡

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@beSi_277 Generally a 2 min rest. Some earlier sets less than 1 min, some later sets up to 3 min

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

Not for everyone, but if you’re looking for the extreme for muscle mass…

It’s too dangerous?? I’ve only heard this from people who’ve not ever even tried the low rep approach, and I’m confident they didn’t try it my way and here is why

One of the very first things I noticed when I made the change to low reps sets, I stopped having shoulder impingement. No more elbow tendonitis and other chronic injuries from overuse

We can thank Wollf’s Law and Davis’s Law

Wolff’s Law states that bone tissue remodels and strengthens itself in response to the mechanical stresses and loads placed upon it.

Davis’s Law states that soft tissues (like ligaments, tendons, and fascia) adapt by lengthening or shortening based on the sustained stresses or positions they are held in over time.

The fitness industry is full of examples of crab mentality.

Crab mentality is the attitude where people in a group try to pull down or sabotage anyone who is trying to improve or escape or problem solve, like crabs in a bucket pulling each other back down.

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@adnaandikko Sets x Reps correct

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@coach_billups1 Very true

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

Extreme Hot take

I think rules and norms inside of fitness and training are guideline for average physiques and general fitness

If you aspire for more, I think you should learn to break and get outside the norms being set on training

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@RobDouglas 🫡🫡🫡

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

Many people only do one variation of the Single Arm DB Row. In fact I see a lot of people arguing which one is best. To me that’s a false choice, the best option is to use them all.

I like to use variations of exercises with more or less stability. You probably see people arguing about this, more stability is better for building muscle, but less stability is better for strength blah blah blah

If you use them all that argument is a complete waste of time. I use 3-6 variations I’ll list them below

My default is the 3 point stance. That’s what you see in this video. 3 point stance means you have 3 points of contact. Two feet on the ground and 1 hand on the bench. This is the second most stable variation. You can do this with and without a deadstop. The video shows the deadstop version.

Then you have the 2 point row. This eliminates the hand on the bench. You lose a point of stability, but what this adds is more full body engagement. You have to create the stability and often time you’re allowed some rotation with this variation. It can be much more aggressive, a little less strict. You can do these with and without a deadstop.

Finally you have the 1 Arm DB Row. This variation has a knee on the bench with the same side hand on the bench and the DB offset of the side of the bench. This is often the most strict version and offers the most stability. You can do these with and without a deadstop.

If you only do one, you’ll miss the benefits of the others. Best practice is to use them all. Either use one for 3 weeks and switch or alternate week to week.

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@PatriotJack76 I’m 6’2” and my thighs are 29 inches

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

You can trick your body to lift more than you normally can

Because of this, I do it every session on my personal training, which I’ve shared through my Super Set program.

It’s called Post Action Potentiation (PAP) and it’s a temporary state where your muscles and nervous system are activated and operated in a heightened state

It’s all about ramping up to reach this state and I use 3 steps to get there.

Stage 1: bodybuilding exercises, low effort and longer durations. Think bicep curls, reverse flys sets of 12-20. Perfect for the first exercise/set scheme of the day. But it’s not enough to get to that true state of potentiation. We need more.

Stage 2: You’ve got some blood flowing, you’re warm up and starting your primary exercise of the day like bench press. Your warm up sets are ramping up with low to moderate weight paired with high effort. This starts really recruiting those bigger stronger type II motor units. Remember you don’t need the reps near failure to recruit type II motor units, you just need effort. Stage 2 is great but we can go even deeper

Stage 3: These are the working sets. You are pairing heavier weight with high effort. The magic is doing it without taking on fatigue. My programming and coaching notes guide you. Each set sets you up for the next, allowing you to end on a max set of some kind. Then every exercise and set after that you’re able to lift more than normal. You’ve reached this state of potentiation and you ride the wave down

Super Sets uses 2 more secondary strength exercises followed by single joint bodybuilding exercises. We squeeze the juice completely

The training split for Super Sets is one muscle group per day, you can run it 4-7 times per week.

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

Start your free week here 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼

https://t.co/hGyzNevh5h

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

👀👀👀

[Matthew @RealMBB]

CB1 Travis Hunter. He understood the offseason assignment. #Jaguars

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@SeverianoNessus lol Mike is shredded, I’m overweight. If I’m on them they ain’t working

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

When you drill down, it comes down to HOW you chose to create mechanical tension and HOW you chose to recruit more motor units.

Depending on which you choose, will dictate how much muscle you can build IMO

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@SeverianoNessus I don’t use any thanks tho

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@grantdewilde Absolutely

You bring up a good point too, if anyone is having issues on the barbell with the shoulder, this can be a great pain free option

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

The exercise that most people have never even seen that can build your chest and pressing power the most

It’s an exercise that has no home, no faction has made it famous. Allow me to share the benefits

First, you actually already use this concept on other exercises. You barbell row, and you single arm row. Why wouldn’t you also barbell bench, and single arm bench?

Second, most people would agree they have a stronger side. Usually the dominant arm is stronger. This exercise is great for ensuring you don’t have a large strength discrepancy on your arms, and if you do, this exercise can fix that for you.

Single arm pressing is also going to train the core. A lot of people new to this exercise will actually report a lot of abdominal soreness, and you get this from bracing and stabilizing the load on one side and no load on the other. The weight creates a “sling” effect for the core. This is what makes single arm bench much different than just alternating bench.

Lastly I think the triceps are trained much more directly than 2 arm variations which helps transfer to not only bench but overhead press as well

[Official Strength Debates @StrengthDebates]

@RobDouglas Great to have a team to help you along with your journey 💪🏻