With Avengers: End Game right around the corner it’s inevitable we’re going to be inundated with articles, interviews, and videos on how to get a Thor or Black Widow bod.
Follow “x” routine, and you too can look like a superhero.
To be fair: I have nothing against said routines. Pretty much anything will get someone lean(er) if they stay consistent and not eat like an asshole.
That said, I think one of the biggest mistakes people make when their goal is getting lean, is not placing a premium on strength.
What inevitably ends up happening is someone will crank up their training volume (lots of high-rep sets compounded with endless amounts of cardio) in addition to hopping onto the Keto train.
And while I’m not here to say that that approach is fruitless (<— ha, pun intended1, dumb, or won’t work – it probably will, for a stretch – I’m also a realist, and have seen with my own eyes the same thing happen time and time and time again.
Which is…(?)
A week, or two, or three (hell, maybe several) go by and you feel great. Your body fat is melting off, you can see some abs, and you can sense the inevitable influx of Tinder matches.
And then, you know, you don’t feel so hot.
You’re lethargic, you’re cold, you’re achy, and your motivation to train wanes.
The high volume of training tethered with a low-calorie/low carb diet begins to take its toll. You’re starting to think that the reason Wolverine is so angry all the time isn’t because he discovered some nefarious government conspiracy to turn him into a mutant and control his life.
No, rather, the reason he’s so angry all the time is – despite being ripped and the envy of fanboys everywhere – he’s sick and tired of all the EMOM sets of burpees and he just WANTS…SOME…FUCKING…CARBS.
Again, to reiterate, this is NOT to insinuate that all the popular programs people follow to lose fat and get lean are a waste of time.
However, what I am suggesting is a slight re-frame or paradigm shift.
What Makes Muscle, Keeps Muscle
Even if fat loss and getting lean is someone’s goal, if they hire me as their coach I’m still going to have them strength train.
Maybe it’s the dumb meathead strength coach in me talking, but I strongly feel the bulk of anyone’s fat loss is going to stem from making dietary/nutritional adjustments.
Namely: Figuring out what strategy or approach will elicit a caloric deficit.
This, of course, can be highly individual. Some people do well with Keto (although, I’d argue most people who think they’re doing Keto are really just following a low-carb diet), some do well with Paleo, some do well with Intermittent Fasting, some do well, with, I don’t know, pick something.
The point is, the main determining factor of whether or not a diet will actually “stick” is whether or not someone will follow through and stay consistent with it.
Not to mention it should fit their lifestyle and goal(s).
But I don’t want to go down that rabbit hole of clusterfuckery. Too many mental gymnastics for me to deal with at this stage in the day.
I do, however, want to pontificate and persuade you on the merits of STRENGTH TRAINING with regards to getting lean.
While dieting the idea of strength training isn’t so much to build strength as it is to MAINTAIN as much muscle as possible while in a caloric deficit. It’s important to give the body the stimulus it needs to hold onto as much of it as possible during this time.
What makes muscle, keeps muscle.
And what accomplishes that is low(er)-rep, strength training.
Again (again), I’m not saying incorporating things like density sets, finishers, circuits, HIIT style training, or anything in between doesn’t have its place or serve a purpose; they all, indeed, can help expedite the process.
[But this is also why I feel one’s nutrition is going to be the main determinant when it comes to fat loss].
All I’m saying is, from my vantage point, people tend to place too much emphasis on all of the above protocols and unwittingly end up losingmuscle rather than keeping it.
Many people (not all) end up becoming a smaller, weaker version of their original selves.
I do not want this to happen, and I feel there’s a simple way to prevent it.
It doesn’t have to be a complicated “thing” either. The obvious question, then, is how would I go about writing a program for someone in this situation?
Easy.
Have him or her hit a challenging set of 3-5 reps (maybe the occasional heavy single for more advanced lifters) a few times per week using the obvious exercises – think: deadlift, squat, bench press – and carry on with your traditional fat-loss programming self.
Example Muscle Maintaining Program (Not Fat Loss Program)
Day 1
A. Work up to a challenging set of FIVE on a Squat Variation (Front, Back, Zercher, Anderson, Safety Bar Squat)
B1. Same Squat Variation (same load you hit for 5 reps): 3×3
B2. DB Bench Press: 3×8
C1. DB Romanian Deadlift
C2. Push-Ups
C3. Gripless FacePulls
8-10 reps each, 10 Minute Density Circuit
D1. 1-Legged Hip Thrust
D2. DB Curls
10-15 reps each. 8 Minute Density Circuit
Day 2
A. Work up to a challenging set of FIVE on a Bench Variation (Regular, Close Grip, Decline, Incline, Larsen)
B1. Same Bench Variation (same load you hit for 5 reps): 3×3
B2. 1-Arm DB Row: 3×10/arm
C1. 2-Arm Landmine Press OR DB Push Press
C2. Bodyweight Step-Ups
10-15 reps each, 8 Minute Density Set
See?
Nothing crazy.
This doesn’t need to be more complicated than it has to be. We’re not doing long-division here.
Keep….it….simple.
Work your ass off. But keep it simple.
All these workouts can be completed in less than 60 minutes (including a warm-up).
It’s likely this approach is in stark contrast to what many are used to seeing when it comes to a fat-loss program; no tantric length, more is better, workout palooza.
Assuming one’s diet is in check, this approach is all that’s needed to help keep muscle…which should be the goal in the long-run anyway.
I have been woefully delinquent – bordering negligent – on providing my own content on the site of late.2 I’d like to sit here and say it’s because of a noble cause like spending my time reading scripture to orphaned kittens or, I don’t know, writing a screenplay.
But all I can chalk it up to is entrepreneurial shenanigans. I’m actually flirting with the idea of finding a larger space for CORE here in Boston which is equal parts exciting and sphincter clenching. I’ve been prospecting a few potential locations in addition to going back and forth with my realtor and accountant to make sure I’m not being an asshole. So, yeah, that’s been taking up a lot of my time in the past few weeks.3
While I haven’t been doing much writing, I have, however, been making the rounds on several popular podcasts. My most recent cameo was this past Friday on the Chalk Strength Podcast with Simon Bungate.
Simon is actually hosting Dean Somerset and myself this July at his Sydney, Australia based gym, Clean Shred, for our (Even More) Complete Shoulder & Hip Blueprint.
NOTE: Dean and I will also be in Melbourne, Australia (along with Dr. Lisa Lewis) the following weekend. Details for that are also in the link above.
I took a little time to discuss the workshop and what Dean and I will cover, but the bulk of mine and Simon’s conversation stemmed around business; Namely my time with Cressey Sports Performance, how there was a lot of “luck” on my end in terms of being involved with the it’s roots, and what spurned me leaving in 2015 to go off on my own.
We also riff on the fitness industry in general, which is always fun.
Luke and I did this workshop last summer in London and figured it’s only fair to bring it State side.
Combined we have 30+ years of coaching experience (I.e., one Mike Boyle or Dan John) and this workshop will be two days where we uncover every nook and cranny as it relates to how we assess our clients/athletes and how we best prepare them for the rigors of every day life/sport.
This will be a unique opportunity for people to learn from myself, but especially Luke, who is one of the best and brightest coaches I know.
For more information and to register you can go HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA SHENANIGANS
Twitter
Bio hacks are garbage.
No one ever got strong/shredded/whatever jumping into a Cryo tank for 37 seconds 2-3x per week or eating acai berries that have been meticulously washed with unicorn tears.
No.
It happened b/c they trained CONSISTENTLY, hard, for YEARS.
All our cues we use ad nauseam to help prevent our client’s knees from buckling when performing squats. There’s actually a simpler way. It takes a degree of up-front coaching, but it’s time well spent.
You all know the stat: upwards of 80% of the population will experience some form of debilitating back pain – often times a disc herniation – in his or her’s lifetime.
It can strike with one dubious rep on a set of deadlifts, bending over to pick up a child, or, I don’t know, during a random after hours office Fight Club.
However (0r whenever) it happens, it sucks. But what also sucks is the often archaic advice many receive with regards to what to do when a disc herniation happens.
In today’s guest post by UK based physical therapist and strength coach Alex Kraszewski, he helps to set the record straight.
Why You Can and Should Lift Weights With a Herniated Disc
Just like Crossfitters, Vegans and Anti-Vaxxers4, if someone has back pain and they think it’s a disc herniation, it’s probably the first thing they’ll tell you.
There’s not many days that go by where I don’t see someone with back pain, and in more cases than I’d like – the opening conversation tends to go like this;
Me: “So what brings you in today and how can I help you?”
Client:“My doctor/chiro/shamanic healer said I’ve got a disc out, a trapped nerve and my MRI proves it. It hurts and I need you to put it back in.”
Me:
The intervertebral disc has become the scapegoat for a lot of back pain and disability. When the word ‘disc’ is used, it tends to create a cascade of fear, anxiety and worry for the future.
Do I need surgery? Am I going to have problems later in life? Can I still lift and get jacked? Will Dr. Dre ever release Detox?
I don’t know if we’ll ever hear Detox, but the answer to the other stuff is more promising.
I had a great follow-up question from my webinar on Flexion & Extension based back pain as part of The Complete Trainer’s Toolbox, and it gives us a great opportunity to discuss this and think critically about this topic:
“Do you consider exercises with reasonably high compressive and shear load to be risky for someone with disc herniations?”
Short Answer: No.
Long(er) Answer: It depends. We know that only Sith’s deal in absolutes – particularly on Tony’s site, because six other articles have made this gag. Lucky number seven for me.
Let’s break this question down into two smaller questions:
1) Are disc herniations always bad or problematic?
2) Will exercising under high levels of shear or compression increase the risk of pain, injury or further problems?
Are Disc Herniations Always Bad or Problematic?
No.
Many of us jump to the conclusion that when told we have a bulging or herniated disc, we’re doomed.
It’s normal to worry – our back hurts and we’re told there might be a problem with it that could threaten what we enjoy doing and how we earn money.
Whilst disc herniations can contribute to back pain, it doesn’t mean they absolutely will contribute to back pain.
One of the best things here is to look at research investigating the low back in pain-free populations. This study from 2015 pooled over three thousand pain-free people, and at least 30% of people had either a disc bulge or protrusion with no pain.
Nada.
Zilch.
The other biggie here is a steady increase in pain-free findings as we age.
The older we get – the more likely it is to find ‘stuff’ on MRI, that doesn’t have to be a straight up cause of a client’s back pain.
So again, no, disc herniations are not a death sentence for your quest for jacktitude.
But
Pathology can still contribute to pain.
This research is great, but sometimes the pendulum swings a little too far, and these findings can be dismissed without proper assessment. Want to piss off your client who believes their back is due to a disc problem? Tell them outright it’s not a problem with no real justification other than ‘the research says MRI findings don’t matter’.
Rapport = gone.
But how do we know when to take notice of an MRI report or not?
Consider the concept of an active wound or healed scar to weigh up how relevant pathology is to pain. I picked these terms up from Dr. Stuart McGill, who knows a thing or two about spines.
He also knows a thing or two about awesome mustaches.
An active wound is where symptoms, assessment findings, and imaging reports all match up enough to connect the dots.
A healed scar is the presence of pathology on imaging, but without clear correlation to assessment findings. The dots are there, but not clearly connected at this point time.
Remember that an MRI is a single snapshot in time of your client laying on their back, doing nothing. It might look ‘bad’, but they might also be in no pain and crushing their training without fear or worrying about it.
How do you figure out whether you’re dealing with a wound or a scar?
Work with a healthcare professional who knows how to lift and help come to a clear understanding of your client’s back pain. Trainers are one million percent qualified to work with clients with back pain and disc herniations, when they have been screened and assessed properly.
Will Exercising Under High Levels of Shear or Compression Increase the Risk of Pain, Injury or Further Problems?
Short Answer: No.
Longer Answer: You need to ‘dose’ things appropriately.
As a quick refresher, spinal compression is the force that approximates each vertebrae. Spinal shear is the force that tries to pull one vertebrae forwards or backwards on another (at least in the sagittal plane).
Compression (image via Stronger by Science)
Shear (image via Stronger by Science)
The spine is designed to bear load, and the interactions of motions, loads and postures will load the spine in different ways.
What counts as ‘high’ levels of shear and compression?
If you’re a Sith dealing in absolutes:
High shear loads come from a more horizontal torso angle and increased spine flexion
High compressive loads come from greater loads lifted, more intense bracing strategies and a more extended spine position
If you’re a Jedi and want to consider context:
‘High’ for a super heavy powerlifter will be different to ‘high’ for a yoga instructor
‘High’ for your client who has never lifted a weight is different to ‘high’ for your seasoned lifter who has accumulated decades of time under the bar.
‘High’ for someone in pain is different to ‘high’ for someone who is pain-free.
‘High’ is the upper end of an individual’s tipping point to tolerate load at that moment in time
This is where the science & art of training and rehab meet.
Science tells us that a conventional deadlift and back squat can probably allow us to lift the most load, but knowing your client would benefit more from front squats and trap bar deadlifts whilst their back hurts or if they are learning the ropes of lifting, is the art.
Don’t be this guy.
So what happens if we apply the appropriate ‘high’ level of stress with a disc herniation?
Just like everything else – discs will adapt
The body is a wonderfully adaptive organism that will react to the stresses placed upon it. If you get the dose of ‘high’ in the right ball-park, you will create positive adaptation. We’ve known about this the 80’s,where this study found the intervertebral disc positively adapts compressive load, yet it’s often viewed as a fragile structure that, when injured, spells game over.
Seems not.
This can be incredibly empowering for the clients suffering from back pain, whether it’s a diagnosed disc pathology or otherwise, that things can get better. This case study showed a huge improvement in a patient with an L4/5 herniation in just 5 months:
Credit – New England Journal of Medicine
Not sure if this applies to lifters?
Check out Brian Carroll’s MRI before and after working with Stuart McGill.
He started being disabled by pain with a broken sacrum and pretty banged up lumbar spine, but returned to the Powerlifting platform to set new world records at a lower bodyweight.
Credit – Brian Carroll
For me – this is where we need load within a low back rehab program.
If back pain stops us exercising, we will lose some level of fitness and adaptation as a result, which means we need to find a way back to exercising, based on what we can currently manage. I think this is why a lot of rehab programs don’t do well – it’s either too much load too soon which lead to flare ups and setbacks, or not enough load over time which means symptoms linger for longer than necessary.
So if we can say with confidence that disc herniations are not permanent, can get better and need load to return to our meaningful activities, how do we decide how to push it, when to push it, and how far?
Let’s answer these too.
How Do We Push It?
If you’re working with someone with back pain (or any pain really), your assessment should tell you this by answering this question;
“How much load can this client currently tolerate right now, and how can I best safely apply this?”
Don’t be afraid to use load in your assessments.
In fact, USE LOAD IN YOUR ASSESSMENTS.
A table and movement assessment is the starting point to see what the foundation is like, but how does what you see ‘at rest’ compare to when you’re at working weights?
Your client might have a perfect air squat, but if it resembles a melting handle at their working weight, you probably want to find that point where it looks good enough. Not perfect, not scratch-my-eyes-out terrible, just good enough.
Your 3/3 on the Overhead Squat won’t save you if you look like this under load.
If you start running into pain or problems under load, be comfortable enough to tweak the load, change the exercise variation, or coach it further. It’s OK if your assessment starts to resemble a training session, because it will give you way more information for your initial program with that client than relying on unloaded tests alone.
This is where you need the nuts and bolts of exercise progressions/regressions, coaching cues, and loading/tempo schemes to find the sweet spot for your client at that moment in time.
When Do We Push It?
Adaptation takes time, but it shouldn’t take forever. Your assessment gives you your starting point and how you feel during and after your lifting should guide how you progress. You don’t have to be pain-free, but you shouldn’t be pushing yourself through agony either. Here’s how I tend to work;
Pain settled within 2 days and below a 3-4/10? Carry on wayward son.
Pain longer than 2 days and/or above 5/10? Slow your roll.
Previous injury, pain, surgery or a lot of concern from your client will influence how quickly you choose to reapply the ‘stress’.
It’s ok to give it a little longer if needed, so know you can be flexible.
If things do go beyond what’s deemed acceptable, it doesn’t put us back to square one, but it might just require a little course-correction from time to time. No return from pain or injury ever moves in a nice linear, expected direction.
Credit – Sports Physio
As long as the loads, intensity and your client’s confidence and pain are steadily improving over time, you’re on the right track. Where ‘how’ is the science, ‘when’ is the art – know when to hit the gas, and when to pump the brakes, because it’s rarely a straightforward process.
How Far Do We Need to Push It?
What’s your client’s endgame?
The greater the demand of what your client is asking their body to deal with, the more time you’ll probably need. The new parent with a month or two of back pain wanting to pick up their kids without hurting and get 2-3 workouts in a week, will have a vastly different course to the powerlifter who’s been beaten up for years and wants to be out of pain and setting new world records.
Not everyone needs to hit soul-crushing, nose-bleeding levels of intensity, but if a client wants to work on their true maximum strength, you better be ready to take them back to working to 90% and above.
The goal of any rehab plan should be to build both physical and mental robustness that allows us to remain resilient to the stresses wewant to place on ourselves, and still have enough in the tank to deal with the stresses we have to put on ourselves. As much as we want ourselves and our clients to crush their training sessions, it shouldn’t come at the expense of living the rest of their life the way they want to.
Remember – Disc Diagnoses Aren’t Death Sentences
The biggest challenge when someone is in the depths of an episode of back pain that may or may not have involved the ‘D’ word, is that they have the opportunity to get better and it’s not game over.
If we can get past this barrier, it becomes a matter of ‘when’ will they get better, not ‘if’. The intricacies of getting can be incredibly individual, but with the right approach, there’s no reason why you and your clients can’t get back to crushing it.
If you want to take a deeper dive on this – check out the Complete Trainer’s Toolbox, where I spend nearly three hours talking through what influences spinal loading during exercise, and how to plan a way back to beast-mode if back pain is a problem.
Ps – disc’s don’t ‘slip’ (courtesy of The Honest Physio).
About the Author
Alex works as a Physiotherapist in Essex, United Kingdom, with a special interest in working with those involved in strength and barbell sports.
Alex holds a triple bodyweight deadlift, and regularly publishes content through Rehab to Robust on Facebook & Instagram.
My good friend and fellow Massachusetts based strength & conditioning coach, Matthew Ibrahim, comes through today with the final installment is in “Complete Warm-Up” series.
The shoulder is a complex area that deserves the finest attention to detail when it comes down to a proper warm-up, especially when discussing the overhead shoulder press. The goal here is to prepare the shoulders to perform well in the overhead press pattern for long-term health, function and durability.
One of the key areas to focus on first will be to spend quality time training trunk stability, which acts as a STRONG base of support from which to press upon. Consider the trunk and associated core musculature as your anchor. You need a STRONG anchor for a STRONG overhead press.
Next up will be to work on shoulder mobility and overhead range of motion. The way to achieve this will be through tackling shoulder joint mobility, thoracic (t-spine) extension and flexibility in your lat muscles.
Once all of that is taken care of, be sure to then focus on rotator cuff activation for general shoulder health and robustness, in addition to stability and motor control in your shoulders during the overhead press pattern.
Check out the list of eight overhead shoulder press warm-up exercises below, which have been delicately organized in a progressive manner to help your shoulders feel healthy and strong.
1) Mini-Band Tall Plank w/ Alternating Lateral Tap – x8 each side
2) Yoga Pike w/ Alternating Toe Tap – x3
3) PVC Bench Tall Kneel Rockback – x8
4) Mini-Band Standing Long Pull-Apart – x8
5) Mini-Band Standing Front Lift – x8
6) Mini-Band Standing Overhead Press – x8
7) KB Half Kneel Bottoms-Up 1-Arm Press – x5 each side
8) DB Z-Press – x8
About the Author
Matthew Ibrahim is the Co-Owner & Lead Performance Coach of TD Athletes Edge in Salem, MA.
He has been an invited guest speaker nationally in over 10 U.S. states, which was highlighted by his presentations at Google Headquarters and Stanford University, in addition to guest speaking internationally in Milan, Italy.
His work has been featured in Men’s Fitness, STACK Media and The PTDC.
Currently, he is completing his masters degree at Rocky Mountain University with a direct track into their PhD program. He is a big fan of interacting on Instagram and regularly posts about training, performance and recovery.
Matthew Ibrahim is the Co-Owner & Lead Performance Coach of TD Athletes Edge in Salem, MA.
