Hollister Strength and Conditioning Personal Trainer Hollister CA

Break The Rules

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Hunter

In lifting, in life, break the rules.

Last week I posted Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 6 secrets of success video on the facebook page.

If you haven’t watched it, I encourage you to check it out.

His first and second tip resonate with me the most. I spent some time thinking about them because thinking and reflecting about a certain value or belief is the best way to ensure that you begin to practice it and embody it. Otherwise it’s just useful information for the next guy to embody and practice.

The first two ‘secrets’, or ‘tips’ Arnold describes are actually just two ways of describing the same thing.

Number 1 is ‘Trust Yourself’.

Number 2 is ‘Break the Rules.’

To feel confident enough to break the rules you must trust your own decisions and course of action. If you can’t trust yourself, you usually won’t (and probably shouldn’t) break the rules.

We need to apply this to training. There are certain rules to training that we can become enslaved to even when it becomes detrimental to our progress.

I used to follow certain rules for training until I dug a little deeper and learned the truth behind the people who set them.

Here are a few:

Eat one hour before you train.

Eating before you train usually works well for people who don’t train very hard. I used to follow this rule until I was forced into a situation where I couldn’t eat before training because of other obligations. I plowed through my entire workout with more intensity than ever. I felt like I could even do a second finisher at the end. To this day I rarely train within a few hours of eating (usually in the morning, in a fasted state) and watch other guys get sluggish after 45 minutes because their bodies rather digest than train.

Keep your workouts no longer than 45 to 60 minutes.

In theory, this rule makes some sense. If your sessions are consistently lasting over 90 minutes, you may be doing some things that are unproductive. But I always wonder what kind of weights these strength coaches are using. In a typical squat session, if your athletes are working with four or five hundred pounds (which they all should be eventually), by the time they warm up and work up to those weights, usually 30 minutes has gone by. I’m convinced that these advocates of the extra short session are not lifting heavy enough.

Here’s a better rule to follow – finish your workout when it is done.

Deload every 4 weeks.

This rule is great. If you are a competitive athlete or lifter, hope that your competition follows this rule. I will concede that more advanced, older, banged up lifters definitely need some back off days and weeks. But good luck with those newbie gains if you’re new to training and you spend every fourth week deloading.

Breaking the Rules in Life

This same concept can be applied to your life outside the gym as well.

This means making yourself and others uncomfortable sometimes.

This means ignoring your doctor sometimes.

This means doing whatever it takes to achieve your goals.

The masses are typically wrong, so whatever they’re recommending (like buy a home, go to college, don’t eat red meat) don’t be afraid to do the opposite if their recommendations are not in sync with your core values.

Choose your core values (your code). Base them upon sound principles (Natural Law), and then live accordingly to the best of your ability. Regardless of whose rules get broken.

Ozzy Osborne has probably never lifted a weight in his life. But he’s still someone I admire for inspiring lyrics, carving his own path and breaking some rules along the way. Like Arnold, I do not agree with everything Ozzy has done in his life, but when it comes to singing rock and roll and following his dreams, there’s not many who compare.

Posted in Conquer Life, For Athletes, Weight Training | Leave a comment

Are You Finishing?

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Hunter

Over the last 18 years of training I’ve experimented with a lot of different types of finishers. I want to compile a list of a few that I believe are the most effective.

What makes a finisher effective?

If it gets your heart pumping really hard and fast, you are breathing through your mouth ( even when you’re not a mouth breather), you get light headed, even nauseous, and on occasion you even wonder if this could be the one that takes you out, then the finisher is effective.

Finishers can get you in great shape but don’t kid yourself, they’re not that good for your body.

They are for toughness and mental strength. And that’s it.

They’re about finishing.

Let me be clear about one thing. I don’t like weight room finishers. The weight room is to get strong. So cut out the 50 rep clean and press followed by 60 kettlebell swings, etc. etc. Save your creative energy for something else.

A kick ass finisher really isn’t that hard to design.

Try some of these:

Hill Sprint

The classic hill sprint. So simple and so grueling. We have a hill in the back of the gym that runs about 70 yards. Running up it 3 times hurts most of us pretty bad. But they are great because nothing spells finish more than standing at the top of a mountain you just charged up.

If straight hill sprints get boring , shoulder a sandbag when you run up, or attach a sled to your waist. Or lift an atlas stone a couple of times at the bottom before you run. But don’t run up the hill with the atlas stone. That would look really stupid.

Sledge swings (to a tire)

Sledge swings are the best finisher for an upper body session. They’re great for power endurance as well. Grab a sledge (and it doesn’t have to be that heavy, it’s a finisher) and swing it as hard and as fast as you can against a large tractor tire. Don’t be a limp wrist and get really aggressive with these.

Like this:

Farmers Walks

Next workout, instead of hitting your shrugs at the end, just pick up those heavy dumbells and walk as far as you can with them. There’s really nothing more to it. Your traps and forearms will quickly show their appreciation.

Prowler sprints

If you don’t have access to a prowler, you are really missing out on the single greatest conditioning tool ever made. And the greatest thing about the prowler is it doesn’t sap your strength or make your joints ache like many other finishers do.

The prowler is so evil because its so deceiving.

I tell a new member to run the prowler back and forth along the length of the building three times and they always ask, “just 3 times? That’s it?” And the rest of the gym looks at the guy and thinks, ‘this poor clueless bastard.’ A few moments later the trainee is either vomiting or wishing he could vomit.

One member even admitted to never imagining something could be so hard.

But even when you’re not just seeking pain, the prowler can be used to just get you in great shape.

ESD (Epic Sled Drag)

Load a sled with some plates. Go heavy because you don’t want to be able to run with it but rather walk fast. Pull it in one direction for as long a distance as you can go, take a few breaths, then turn around and pull it back.

The ESD is the best stand by finisher if you’re feeling a bit lazy that day and don’t trust yourself to push through your finisher. You can always cut your prowler sprints or hill runs down as you start feeling tired and lazy. But the sled forces you to commit because you just pulled it so damn far away from the gym and now you have to take it back. The trip back is usually the epic portion of the drag.

Shoulder a Barrel Full of Sand or Dirt and Run Through a Freshly Disked Orchard.

I had to include this one even though I haven’t done it in years.

This is the hardest finisher there is. Period.

It started one summer when my cousin Ryan and I were training out at The Shack. The Shack was surrounded by Ryan’s Grandfather’s apricot orchard. We had been training out there for years when one day he got the idea to take an old oil barrel that had been sitting outside and shovel dirt into it.

He filled it to the brim.

Just shouldering it almost killed us.

Then we charged with it full speed over a hundred yards through the orchard. To this day, the barrel run is the most painful thing Ive ever done in my life. As I would run the thing would slide on my shoulder, constantly pounding into the side of my head. But we always made ourselves do it again.

Pussing out was simply never an option. No matter what you had to do the rest of the day.

Our bodies would tremble for an hour after and I still feel the same fear writing about it today.

Do you have to do a finisher every session? My answer is no. Some of them can beat you up pretty bad and begin to negatively affect your lifts. I’d love to be able to say that you need to toughen up and do one every day but that would be dishonest.

However, never let yourself go more than 2 sessions without hitting a brutal finisher.

Remember, training serves as a metaphor for life, and no one wants to be a man who doesn’t finish.

There are currently four spots left for the As Strong As You Look Program in May. Enrollments by May 1st save $30.oo on their monthly membership.

To inquire, call 831-801-2908 or email hunter.sbs@gmail.com

Strength Beyond Strength is not the Walmart of strength and conditioning. So if you are someone who refuses to spend a dime to invest in yourself while spending hundreds of dollars a month on The Red Zone Package or any other feature on the idiot box, this is not the gym nor program for you.

Posted in Baseball Training, Football Training, For Athletes, Strongman Training, Uncategorized, Wrestling/Combat Training | Leave a comment

The Pull Up – A Test of Manliness

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Hunter

It has been said that a man who can’t do pullups is either:
A) Too fat
B) Too weak
C) Too fat and too weak

It has also been said that a man who can’t do pull ups is a woman.

Ouch…brutal, I know. But I didn’t make it up. However, I will admit to agreeing with it.

Pullups are hands down my favorite upperbody assistance exercise. And next to the press, they may be my favorite upper body exercise, period.

I haven’t always felt this way.

It started back in 2008. I had just completed a successful powerlifting meet. It was the first time I had ever squatted and deadlifted over 600 pounds in competition, so I was very happy. I was big and I could move some weight. But I was also pretty banged up. So I decided to give the joints a little break and started incorporating more bodyweight movements into my routine.

I walked into the gym, jumped up on the pullup bar, and WTF?!? EIGHT?! You gotta be kidding me.

Now, I realize that many would be happy to complete 8 strict pullups upon beginning a strength program. It’s a great base to build upon. But I give my whole life to training. I was benching over 400 pounds and I could walk up to a squat rack, unrack over 600 pounds, go down, and come back up with it.

None of that mattered anymore.

I was pathetic.

I was pissed.

And I set out on a mission to conquer pullups. But not just 10 because I knew all I would have to do is not eat for a day and be able to hit one or two more. I wanted 20.

I learned a lot about myself and the pullup over the next year. Here’s what I learned:

Pull ups are the best scale
Throw away your scale. The best way to gauge your bodyweight is by the pullup bar. If you can’t do 15 strict dead hang pullups, you are either too fat or too weak. A simple look in the mirror will answer this question for you. If you look like a fat person and can’t hit 15 chins- too fat. If you look like a skinny bastard- too weak. The solution for either situation is the same. Do more pullups. But the fat guy needs to eat less and the skinny bastard needs to eat more. If you can do multiple sets of 30, then you probably need to gain some weight.

Just like any other movement, volume is key
Doing pullups frequently is the best way to get better. Not band assisted, not partner assisted, not lat pulldowns. You need to do pullups. If you can’t do one pullup, do negatives, hangs, and flex hangs. And never let yourself get to that weak of a state again.
Start doing pullups all the time. Not the squirming up to the bar, kicking your feet kind, but good quality, full range of motion kind. Stay away from sets to failure. Trust me on this one. Frequent sets to failure will destroy your tendons. I know from experience.
A good practice, and one my guys use as part of the As Strong As You Look Program, is to throw in a few chins between sets of pushing movements. For example, say you can do 8 pullups. In between your squats or bench, hit a set of 3 pullups. This will grease the groove and keep your shoulders healthy too. It’s also an easy way to add more volume. If you’ve done 5 sets of squats, you also got an extra 15 quality chins in as well.

You need to increase the volume logically
Start with your pull up max and times it by two. That is the total number of pullups you want to perform the first day. If four is your max, then do eight. Don’t do an all out set of four to failure, but rather, do 4 sets of 2 to get to your eight for the session. The next session, aim for 10 total. Then 15, and so on. Get to the point where you can hit 50 per session. Multiple sets with lower reps keeps the quality better. For example, 5 sets of 6 is superior to 3 sets of 10.

Pull ups give you an awesome look
I know we don’t care about looks, right? We are 100% performance based. Well, it just so happens that getting stronger at pullups will give you a great look. The first thing you’ll notice is that without even dropping a pound of bodyweight, you will look slimmer in the waist. This is called the flared lat illusion.It’s that V- look you drool over in the magazines. Just a bonus.

Pull ups make you awesome
Banging out pullups is one of the most manly exercises you can do. It’s definitely in the top 3. I know this because I witness that same baffled reaction I myself had a few years ago every time a new member comes into the gym and jumps on the pullup bar. They get so angry and upset. No one gets that angry when they realize their squat or bench press is so weak. We take for granted that we won’t be able to lift much if we haven’t been training because barbell lifts are a test of muscle and strength. But even as deconditioned as we may get, we can never accept failure when it comes to the pullup. That is because it is a test beyond strength. The pull up is a test of manliness. Moving one’s own body through space is manly and not being able to is unmanly. Ask your significant other who she’d rather have protecting her. A man who can bench press a lot of weight one time, or, a man who can knock out 20 pullups? The best would be to do both, but the pullups probably say more about you.

Since setting out on my mission to hit 20 pullups, now, on an average day, I can bang out 25.

My message here is the same as it always is:

1. Lifting a heavy weight one time does not make you strong. It is an expression of strength, and a highly respectable one, but it is not the end all, be all of strength.

2. If you suck at something, go after it. Nothing is worse than ignoring your weaknesses. That’s called cowardice. Get after your weak areas in the gym and this will help you in all areas of your life.

Here’s a video of Garret and Gonzo hitting good quality pull ups as a part of their in season baseball strength program.

To get better at pullups and become more of a man, call 831-801-2908, or email hunter.sbs@gmail.com and set up a free trial and assessment to join the only Real gym in San Benito County

Posted in Baseball Training, Football Training, For Athletes, Pullups, Uncategorized, Videos, Wrestling/Combat Training | Leave a comment

Become a Machine

Posted on March 23, 2012 by Hunter

Are you ready for the transformation?

If so, contact hunter.sbs@gmail.com or call 831-801-2908.

Space is limited. Serious inquiries only please.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Movements, Not Muscles

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Hunter

Unless you’re a professional bodybuilder or you enjoy being weaker than you look, then there is never a reason to train a body part split routine. Nothing screams newbie more than working ‘chest and biceps’ on Monday. It’s easy for me to tell if a guy has been spending too much time at the magazine rack or on the bodybuilding.com forum when he asks me which muscle is being worked when we do a box jump. “I’m not really feeling it anywhere specific,” he may say. For this reason, I rarely if ever speak about muscle parts in the gym with trainees. One thing I learned from Coach Dan John was to break everything down into movements that the human body was designed to perform.

The ‘primal patterns’ are the best for developing strength, power, and athleticism, not isolation movements like bicep curls, leg extensions, etc. Most athletes and trainees will get more out of their training if they rarely, if ever, perform isolation movements. And if they are performed, they should be used as accessory movements at the end of a workout. Understand that every isolation movement you perform is actually a partial movement of one of the primal patterns. For example, a bicep curl is the shortening of a full horizontal or vertical pull like a barbell row or a chin up. It can be an accessory movement to add to your routine, but never a replacement of one of the primal patterns. If you are doing curls in place of chins or rows, know that you are working half- assed. And if you are one who trains half- assed, there is a good chance that you live your life the same way. So get your training right. As I have stated before, training serves as a metaphor for life.

Below is a list of the movements, or primal patterns and some examples of exercises and lifts that correspond to each. Use them as a guide to structure your training program and you’ve got all your bases covered to develop a strong, symmetrical, athletic physique.

Squat –Best movements are the barbell squat or box squat. Sure, there is the front squat but unless you’re an Olympic lifter it’s not going to serve you as well because it doesn’t recruit enough muscle to load it as heavy as a back squat. Though front squats make a great mobility drill and warm up movement.

Bend – Correct answer is deadlift. Good Mornings and Kettlebell Swings as accessories.

Vertical Pull – Pull ups, Chins, and more pull ups. Every man regardless of size should be able to perform 20 strict dead hang pull ups. To quote Jim Wendler, “Leave kipping where it belongs. In the trash.”

Horizontal Pull- Here you have a lot of options. Regardless of your sport, row like a bodybuilder. A thick, dense upper back is crucial for the powerlifts and it keeps your shoulders healthy. Inverted rows, d.b. rows, T-bar’s, seated rows, barbell rows. Row in the 8 to 20 rep range.

Vertical Press – Press. Why there is such an aversion to overhead pressing in both athletic training and powerlifting is really no mystery to me. It’s because pressing overhead is hard work. Some will say it’s dangerous to press overhead. These people are either stupid or too egotistical because the only way pressing overhead is dangerous is if it’s done incorrectly or you use weight that’s too heavy for you to handle. Brace your abs hard and press. For accessory use a log or dumbbells or something else heavy like a stone or sandbag. Chicks are doing it you pussies.

Horizontal push – Bench Press or weighted pushups. Both have their pros and cons. The bench press is the best upper body developer there is but it can come with a heavy price tag – your shoulders. Benching the right way (and most do not) can minimize this risk but any deviation in the bar path when pushing puts a lot of torque on the shoulders and elbows. Pushups are safer, recruit more muscle, and may be just as effective for muscle building but it can get tough to load them progressively like you can a barbell. Use chains, weighted vests, sandbags, and plates.

Explosive Power Movement – Power cleans, snatches, box jumps, sprints, med ball work, and other jump variations. Many strength coaches think that power cleans and snatches are too technically difficult and that most guys suck at them. And? So what? I suck at them too. But is this how you act in life? Something that has huge benefit requires a little technical skill and practice so you puss out and stop doing it? Quit with the excuses, grow a pair, deadlift a bar off the floor then jump with it. There’s instruction for your “too technical” power clean/snatch. Box jumps are great too because there is no deceleration phase like there is with a barbell lift.

Rotational Movement – Med ball throws and barbell twists will work.

Anterior Chain (Abs) – Weighted Situps, Roll outs, Hanging Leg Raises, and Planks. Leave everything else for the frat boys.

There you have the primal patterns and some of the movements associated with each. Go through your training log and check that you’re incorporating each one in your program.

For the month of March, SBS is offering $30 off of new memberships. To inquire, call 831-801-2901, or email hunter.sbs@gmail.com.

Posted in Baseball Training, Deadlift, Football Training, Pullups, Squat, Strongman Training, Uncategorized, Wrestling/Combat Training | Leave a comment

The SBS Combat Club

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Hunter

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The REAL GYM REVOLUTION of 2012

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Hunter

What makes Strength Beyond Strength the only REAL gym in San Benito County?

Where to begin? Here’s a start:

1.We are not a gym for everyone. While we may let everyone in, we do not let everyone stay. We live by a principle called integrity. We do not allow our training environment to become infected with laziness, or any other trait that sucks intensity out of the gym. As a member, you have a say in who is permitted to sign up. The feminization and pussification of the American male stays outside of our doors. If you wear skinny jeans or colored contacts, you will be better served by either Gold’s Gym or Rovella’s.

2.Everyone lifts heavy. While we may be ¼ of the size of many gyms, we have more iron and other performance enhancing tools than possibly all the other gyms combined. This is because of the fact that to get stronger, which should be the goal of every athlete (or every man for that matter), you MUST lift heavy.

3.We strive to conquer goals EVERY session. That means every session we are either trying to lift heavier, lift a weight for more reps, jump higher, run faster, or last longer on a conditioning drill than the last time.

4.Members hold each other accountable. Not just for showing up to sessions, as that should be a given, but for never slacking and always cranking the intensity level to 100%.

5.Everyone lifts or learns to lift correctly. This is probably what sets us most apart from a standard gym. Everyone squats to parallel. Pullups must be done to full extension of the elbows. Bench presses must hit the chest. Pushups to floor, etc. etc. This is not just to get the most benefit from these movements but it’s also to maintain a safe training environment as partial movements usually happen to be anatomically incorrect and can cause muscle and joint problems down the road.

6.We prioritize the important, big compound lifts and movements for strength, power, and athleticism. That means we strive to increase our squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, power clean, jump height, and sprint speed. All other lifts are usually done to serve these movements or to help with mobility/ flexibility. You can strive for a good workout on your assistance work, but you must go for great on your main movement of the day.

7.Everything is done in its proper context. This is kind of the same as #6. But it goes beyond. Like no curls in the squat rack. And deadlifts and Oly lifts only on the main platform.

8.We finish harder than we started. This is a rule that I need to get more strict on enforcing in 2012. All members, including myself, should be doing some type of finisher at the end of every session. It doesn’t always have to involve blood and vomit, but it needs to kick your ass a bit. The only exception here may be in season athletes.

9.A squat is a squat. I just had to throw this one in. I hate the term ‘back squat.’ This is used by Crossfit and other movements to differentiate the squat from its many variations. The squat itself (which is indeed a back squat) does not have to be differentiated from its other variations. The variations themselves do. Like front squats, box squats, goblet squats, etc. But a squat is a squat. Would you call a pushup a ‘flat pushup’ to differentiate it from incline or decline pushups? No. Also, a squat with no weight is a bodyweight squat, NOT an air squat (which doesn’t even make sense). And so a squat is a squat. Period. Rant over.

10.We are 100% results driven. We don’t want to be like other gyms. You wouldn’t believe the many offers I get from people with good intentions for different gym accessories like mirrors or treadmills. Because we are located off the beaten track in an old firehouse barn, people seem to think of us as a struggling start up. The truth is, we are a start up, but that is not why we are away from town or in a barn. This is the exact atmosphere I and other driven trainees need. It’s a perfect, no b.s. environment for maximizing athletic potential. We can scream, throw chalk(and other objects) around the place, jump, run, drop weights, and crank music. We offer one thing – results. There is no other reason to come out here. You won’t meet chicks, you can’t tan, watch T.V., or do any of the other things done at those fag gyms. Just train, and get results.

If you are interested in getting results and joining the REAL GYM REVOLUTION, contact hunter.sbs@gmail.com, or call 831-801-2901. Space is limited. Act while available.

P.S. We are not the Wal-Mart of strength and conditioning. So if you seek cheap when it comes to your strength, health, and performance, then we are not the gym for you. You can continue to spend more on your iPhones and lattes and tell me we are too high priced.