Guess What? You’re Not an Elite Athlete!
In light of some recent articles and blog posts written by my buddy, Bret Contreras, I just needed to take a few moments and vent a little bit. BRB
Ahhhhhhhhh…….expletive, expletive, expletive, *punches hole in wall,* expletive, *flips over coffee table,* expletive expletive, *drop kicks a puppy,* and expletive.
There I feel better now.
So, for those wondering what’s got me so fired up, Bret wrote an article on t-nation a few weeks ago titled Max Out on Squats – you can click HERE to read it – where the basic jist was this:
John Broz lived with an elite Bulgarian Olympic lifter for three years. Said Olympic lifter (Antonio Krastev, to be precise) went all Yoda on John and taught him everything he knows about being strong as hell. It works, no question. John now runs a gym in Las Vegas and teaches this same system to all of his athletes. They train everyday, sometimes twice a day, six days a week, eventually working up to 13 training sessions per week when all is said and done.
As Bret mentioned in the article:
The Broz Olympic Method involves only six exercises: the snatch, clean & jerk, power snatch, power clean, back squat, and front squat. Each of the 13 sessions includes heavy squatting, either back squats or front squats. Usually three lifts are performed each session, and between 30-50 total reps (including warm ups) are performed for each lift.
In addition, Bret noted:
Every session involves a specific warm-up for several minutes either squatting with an unloaded barbell or a barbell loaded up to 50 kg depending on the lifter, followed by working up to a 1-rep maximum on every lift for the session.
All of this I have no issues with. In fact, I thought the article was brilliant and had a lot of great and innovative things to say. But, almost inevitably, within 24-48 hours of the article going live on t-nation, I received a swarm of emails from random dudes asking me if they thought it would be a good idea if “they too!!!” should train everyday?
Excuse me while I go throw an ax into my face.
NEWSFLASH: you’re not an elite athlete!!!!!!!
Unless you have 4-6 hours per day to train, and that’s literally all you do, it’s probably not going to be a good fit.
Lets be real: for many (not all), you read an awesome article, and right then and there, decided it was “exactly what you needed.” In theory, it sounds amazing. But here’s the thing – you move like shit. The last time you lifted anything remotely explosively was back when Patrick Swayze was rocking stone washed jeans. And, the last time I checked, you sit in front of a computer for 8-9 hours per day, and actually work for a living. You have the time for this when?
Oh yeah, and lets not forget that any time you lift something heavy above your head, your shoulder hates you; you have not one, but two bum knees which makes squatting consistently problematic; and your hips are tighter than a camel’s ass in a sandstorm.
And you thought this was a good idea because……………….. you read it on the interwebz???????
Listen, I get it. You like to exercise. What’s more, who am I to say that people shouldn’t be enthusiastic to train more often and actually move around a bit more? I encourage that, wholeheartedly!
But come on fellas – lets not put the cart before the horse.
This whole thing is analogous to what happened a few years ago when the minimalist shoe training trend hit its peak (and stll going strong). People read Born to Run (awesome book, by the way) and decided that they’d go out the next day and run barefoot without actually taking the proper time (and effort) to work up to it.
End result? A lot of physical therapists were all of a sudden able to make advance payments on their mortgages and driving around in Beemers. Holla!
In much the same way, this is what I find is going to happen to many who emailed me asking me if they should start training everyday. Actually, scratch that. I’m not opposed to people training everyday. I mean, there’s definitely a way to do it right and I think that’s what most people should strive for.
What I don’t agree with, and think is borderline dangerous is when guys read an article about ELITE athletes whose sole job is to train – and who have been doing this type of training FOR YEARS - and then run out to their local globo gym, try to be a hero, and hurt themselves the third day in.
Trust me - it will happen.
Honestly, unless you’re an Olympic athlete – or training to be a competitive weightlifter; or somehow have seven hours to spare everyday – lets step away from the “that’s not such a great idea,” take a more objective look at what you just read, and come back to reality.
I swear, I’m going to do a social experiment someday, write an article detailing how running over your right arm with a car repeatedly will somehow increase testosterone levels by 317%, and see how many people email me asking for more info.
That said, Bret did follow up his article with a more detailed (and realistic) blog post on daily training and how he would structure a program for the regular Joe’s out there reading. It’s a fantastic read and I HIGHLY suggest you check it out if training daily is something you’re interested in.
In the end, I’m not saying you shoudn’t want to push yourself; rather, all I’m saying is that, sometimes, you just need to be a little more realistic with expectations and learn how to digest the information you read and see who it applies to YOU and your current goals.
Sorry for the rant, but it’s just something I had to get off my chest. Seriously, I feel better now.
PS:
On an a side, for those who have balked at The Super Hero Workout – the CP staff is finishing up the first week and we’re LOVING it. I know I said this the other day, but it’s really been a long time since I’ve had this much fun training. We’re definitely getting after it, and the change of pace has been a welcome addition to our weekly training sessions.
Thing is, though, the introductory price of $47 ends THIS SATURDAY (7/23) at midnight. After that, the price bumps up to $87. Just a heads up…….in case you’re dragging your heels.
======>The Super Hero Workout <======
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