Today I want to share a rowing exercise using the landmine that serves as a great alternative to dumbbell rows if your gym doesn’t have heavy dumbbells or if you’re a complete beast and have maxed them out. I didn’t come up with these, but I use them quite a bit and really like them. To do them, put a barbell in a landmine unit (or securely in a corner if you don’t have a landmine) perpendicular to a bench and row just as you would with a regular dumbbell row. Once you’ve finished on one set, leave the bar [...]

Hey there. Sorry I’ve been a total putz about blogging. I’ve been super busy at the gym and consequently the blog is suffering a bit. Luckily other people haven’t been slacking, so I’ve got a list of stuff to share with you from around the web. First, here’s a post of mine from earlier in the week. Banded Glute-Ham Raises And here’s an article I contributed to on T-Nation along with five other writers about chest training. 6 Coaches Weigh In On Chest Training Now for the best of the rest. Enjoy! Training For the 40 by Mike Boyle Creating [...]

I do glute-ham raises (GHR) on average twice a week and have been doing so going on two years now, so when you do them that often, you start to plateau and get bored so it becomes important to modify the exercise slightly to keep it fresh and keep progressing. I do all sorts of different GHR variations, but today I’d like to share a few that I use with the bands, which is a great way to add resistance. The first variation uses bands to overload the eccentric portion of the rep specifically. Watch this video to see how [...]

Time for another Good Reads list. Here are some blog posts from earlier in the week. 8 Unilateral Pressing Variations Simple Guide to Olympic Weighlifting I also had a new article published on T-Nation. Not Your Average Core Training And now for the rest of the list. Enjoy! A Foolproof Way to Learn More in 2013 by Mike Reinold Tips for Bigger, Leaner 2013 by Sean Hyson More Tips for a Bigger, Leaner 2013 by Sean Hyson Bang For Your Buck by Girls Gone Strong Coaching the Dumbbell Pullover by Eric Cressey Coaching and Cueing Tips: Knees Out in the [...]

Today I’ve got a great guest blog post for you from Conor Nordengren about unilateral pressing variations. Conor approached my recently about writing a guest post, which I was really happy to have him do because I think he’s a super nice and smart dude. He really knows his stuff and I knew he would deliver so I left the topic up to him entirely. Well, he totally delivered in a big way and I think/hope you’ll enjoy his post as much as I did. 8 Unilateral Pressing Variations Sometimes the hardest part about writing an article is actually coming [...]

I think a lot of people are put off the Olympic lifts because they either can’t do them very well, can’t coach them very well, or both. I know that was the case with me. It’s easy to write something off that you aren’t good at, but often once you learn it better, your perception changes. That’s what happened with me with single leg training, and it’s also happen with Olympic lifting. The better I’ve got at coaching the Olympic lifts, the more I see their value and the more I like them, and they’re a staple in my athletes’ [...]

Sorry I’ve been slacking on the blog a little as of late. It’s been really bust at work and when that happens, blogging is one of the things to take a backseat. I’ve got a great compilation of training articles for you this week though, so fear not. Here’s a blog you may’ve missed on Monday. Excellent Learning Resource And here’s the best of the rest. But first, a picture of Ray Lewis in honor of today’s game. Did you see his facemask last week? Badass. How to Fix Glute Imbalances by Bret Contreras Guard Your Precise Time by Rachel [...]

Hey y’all. I’m in the middle of working on a project for StrengthCoach.com where I asked a bunch of different strength coaches and trainers one simple question: What’s one thing you’ve changed your mind about in the past year? The answers have been really interesting thus far, and they’re still trickling in so I’m exciting to hear all the various responses. The project got me thinking though. I do a lot of work with StrengthCoach.com but I haven’t really mentioned it in well over a year on my blog, so I thought I’d mention it again since I have a [...]

Hope everyone's starting off 2013 with a bang. So far so good my way. I've had an awesome week of workouts, probably the best in a long time actually, so that's good. I'm going to be lifting 4-5 days a week and then take the weekends off. Anyway, that's not the point of this post, though I may get into my own training at some other time. Moving on. It’s Saturday already, and that means it’s time for another Good Reads list. Here’s a blog post you may’ve missed. Wide Grip Ring Chins Next, one of my client’s, Megan Graham, [...]

First off, Happy New Year! Hope everyone had a nice holiday week. I did, but I’m ready to back to the grind too. Today I want to share an exercise that I think you’ll really like: Wide Grip Ring Chins. I’ve allows loved the way wide grip chin-ups (or pull-ups) feel my lats and upper back, but when I do them on the bar, they usually really piss off my shoulders and wrists. I know a lot of people have had a similar experience, and I’ve also heard complaints that using a wide grip really bugs some peoples’ elbows. So [...]