AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH MAGAZINE

ISSUE 101 - 6/19/2006

1. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"If we are always guided by other people's thoughts, what is the point of having our own."
- From the movie "A Good Woman"

Recently I saw a documentary on Wal-mart and how the company exploits its employees. The documentary was basically two hours of people bitching about Wal-mart. The first thing that came to my head was why are they working at Wal-mart? If you do not like your job, quit and get another job. You may retort by saying that these people do not have other options. Very nice provincial thinking and I do not buy it. Maybe suck line of thinking is true in Nigeria. However, this is America and there are too many opportunities in America for me to accept that some people have to settle for Wal-mart.

Several years ago, I read about a lady that was fed up with the lack of opportunities in her small town and started an online business using "Ebay." She worked up to a $5000/month within in six months and went on to make over $10,000 per month working from home. So much for the, "there are no opportunities for people" theory. Sure it is true, if you do not want to use your brain and think. However, if you are not prepared to think then deal with the consequences of being ignorant. Ignorant is not bliss and you can never know enough.

When I started my strength training business several years ago, I did not have much of a budget to build the business. In a previous business I made the disastrous mistake of going into debt to promote my business. The lesson learned was do not spend money that you do not have and have the courage to think and come up with creative ideas to get the job done. Do not value your time over money, when you have no money. If you are not making much, your time is not worth much. Have a reality check on where you are at. The saying, "fake it until you make it" should be re-phased as "have fun faking it as you are never going to make it" or "Make sacrifices and make it and then you do not have to fake it." Pretending you are more than you are is not the solution. Being too busy working smart on getting to where you want to be is.

Working hard of course is not enough. If it were, more people would be successful. For example, working hard on an ineffective strength training program is only going to lead to frustration. Creating a successful business is no different. In a previous business I used to wake up at 3am to put 25-30 signs up on telephone poles five nights a week. I made a contraption that allowed me to staple the signs up fairly high on telephone poles all over town so that people could see the signs as they drove to and from work. Then I would get home, grab 1000 business cards and head downtown to hand them out at various metro stations. Basically, I was spending six hours per day just to get the phone ringing. My most profitable month was $4000.00. However, most months I barely made over $1000.00. After two years of working very hard, I was several thousand dollars in debt and had to take a job working for someone else to get out of debt. The ineffective methods that I applied for the business were only part of the problem. The real problem was the business. I made the mistake of listening to the wrong people. My initial instinct when I first examined the opportunity was to take a pass. However, I made the mistake of letting other people think for me and paid the consequences accordingly.

When I started my current business, I knew exactly what not to do to make it work. I knew for example that blowing a lot of money on advertising and promotion was a big mistake. I knew that prospecting was a waste of time and looking for methods for positioning was the way to go. In addition to the marketing methods, the services that many trainers offered were pretty generic. Just about everyone's income was derived primarily from private lessons. In fact when most trainers get into the business, private training is the only thing they come up with. Take on private clients and maybe eventually get a facility. Now I am not knocking this as it is fine if it is something you enjoy doing. However, there are tons of other ways to make money as a strength coach that are very lucrative. One example is personalized program design services.

Many of you have tried this service before and the feedback has been very positive. Instead of meeting with clients in person. I have them sign up for 3-6 months of online consulting. Upon receipt of payment I send the client a profile questionnaire to acquire all of the information that I need to design the program. Every Friday, the client sends me his or her training journal for feedback. The client has access to me anytime by email to ask questions and to ensure they are on track. In addition to being a great service for the client, it is a great income generator. There are no geographical boundaries. I literally have clients from all over the world. In addition, it is a great income source for people that want to work at home such as myself. I live in Los Angeles and commuting around here is a nightmare. I rather work at home and then travel to do workshops which are always great paydays. This income source can be derived from anywhere in the country that has internet access. You could even do it in small town America where some feel that Wal-mart is the only opportunity around.

If all you do is what other people do, why bother existing. What mark are you leaving on the world. What benefit are you bringing to the table. What is unique about you that can be a value offering to others? These are the kinds of questions that you need to ask yourself.

There is a reason why the best book on how to make money is called "Think and Grow Rich."

Live Life Aggressively!

Mike Mahler

Mike Mahler

2. HELP THE KATRINA VICTIMS

My friend and top body worker Dianna Linden recently sent me a list of non-profit organizations for helping out the Katrina Victims. Here is the list:

I encourage you to take a look at the above organizations and make a donation to the one that sits well with you. Also if you want to help out animals, make a donation to http://www.bestfriends.org.

3. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH TRAINING ARTICLE

3-5 Gradual High Volume Program For Incredible Gains In Size And Strength

By Mike Mahler

When it comes to getting bigger and stronger, I love high volume training. However, high volume training is only effective when executed properly. It has to be cycled and worked into gradually. One of the most popular high volume programs is "German Volume Training." The program calls for doing 10x10 on a few major exercises. While the program is effective for size, it is not very effective for strength. The intensity is far too low and many trainees notice strength decreases after several months of GVT. Not exactly desirable results. Moreover, starting with ten sets for someone that is not used to high volume training can lead to over-training with the quickness. It has to be worked into gradually, applied for a short period at an intense level and then cycled down again. Starting with five sets instead of ten is smart move and working with reps in the 3-5 range is big step in the right direction. This week I am going to go over the 3-5 program and how to apply it for strength and size purposes. Lets get started.

Similar to all of my other program, the "3-5 Program" focuses on compound exercises that provide the most band for the buck. Isolation exercises are out and the following are in:

The Exercises

The 3-5 12 Week Plan

Here is how the program breaks down:

The Split

In order to avoid over-training and burning out, you are going to do two high volume workout per week and two low volume workouts per week. Rotate the exercises each week to balance the high volume workouts for each exercise. Here is an example:

Week 1:

Monday:

Do A-1 and A-2 back to back. Do a set of A-1, rest for a minute, then do a set of A-2, rest for a minute and repeat A-1 again. Continue until all five sets are completed.

Tuesday:

Do B-1 and B-2 back to back. Do a set of B-1, rest for a minute, then do a set of B-2, rest for a minute and repeat B-1 again. Continue until all five sets are completed.

Thursday:

Do A-1 and A-2 back to back. Do a set of A-1, rest for a minute, then do a set of A-2, rest for a minute and repeat A-1 again. Continue until two sets are completed per exercise.

Friday:

Week 2:

Monday:

Do A-1 and A-2 back to back. Do a set of A-1, rest for a minute, then do a set of A-2, rest for a minute and repeat A-1 again. Continue until all five sets are complete.

Tuesday:

Thursday:

Do A-1 and A-2 back to back. Do a set of A-1, rest for a minute, then do a set of A-2, rest for a minute and repeat A-1 again. Continue until two sets are completed per exercise.

Friday:

Do B-1 and B-2 back to back. Do a set of B-1, rest for a minute, then do a set of B-2, rest for a minute and repeat B-1 again. Continue until two sets are completed per exercise.

As you can see the exercises are rotated each week so that everyone gets a chance to play with some high volume. The program has a built in cycling mechanism every week and over the long haul. Thus, this is a great program to break into high volume training with in order to avoid the pitfalls of going from low volume to high volume too rapidly.

Need help with program design for your specific goals? Click here.

4. GET THE AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH DVD COMBO PACK TODAY

"Kettlebell Solutions for Speed and Explosive Strength is incredible! All of the exercises are explained and displayed perfectly and leave you with no questions. There is absolutely no filler and it gives so many options to add to your arsenal. Watching it gets me so amped up to train! One of the best things is the Free DVD User guide to set you on the right track. I love all of the exercises and together with Tke Kettlebell Solution For Size and Strength, I will never get bored of training!"
- Chris Pontius of MTV's Wildboyz and Jackass

Kettlebell Solution for Size and Strength

Kettlebell Solution for Size and Strength

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The Kettlebell Solution For Size And Strength will show how to get much stronger with kettlebells and build a muscular physique as well. This detailed DVD is for all levels and covers the basics enough for beginners and offers new challenges for experienced kettlebell lifters.

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Kettlebell Solution for Speed and Explosive Power

Kettlebell Solutions for Speed and Explosive Strength

Super comprehensive kettlebell training DVD that goes over how to build speed and explosive power in four different categories: Full body explosive power, Upper body explosive power, Lower body explosive power, and Rotational explosive power. Translation? You will be one explosive hombre after you practice the exercises on this DVD and follow the programs in the Free Kettlebell Training DVD E-book. I did not leave anything out on this DVD. Even if you do not care about getting faster and more explosive, you will love the wide variety of exercises that this kettlebell training DVD contains.

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5. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH PERSONALIZED PROGRAM DESIGN SERVICES

"Lost 10 lbs and went down from a size 12 to a size 8 in jeans – that was something I expected not to happen for another 10-15 more lbs! So thanks for your guidelines – they really have helped a lot."
- Michele Milevoi

Tired of trial and error? Want a training program that actually works? Click here for more info!

6. NEW AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH PRODUCT RECOMMENDATIONS

I have just added some great new products to my website including: medicine balls, the ultimate portable gym, and some pull-up straps that allow you to do a pull-ups anywhere! Click here.

7. THE AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH SOLUTION FOR THE ROAD WARRIOR

Tired of terrible hotel gyms and getting out of shape on the road? Tired of doing bodyweight only routines in your hotel room because there are no other options? You need Lifeline's resistance cable products. Not only are they light and portable but they provide enough resistance to humble the strongest athletes around. Click here for more info

8. KETTLEBELL TRAINING INFORMATION PAGE (NEW)

http://www.mikemahler.com/kettlebell_info.html

8. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH MAGAZINE ARCHIVES

http://www.mikemahler.com/newsletter

10. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH ARTICLES

http://www.mikemahler.com/articles.html

11. AGGRESSIVE STRENGTH TRAINING JOURNAL

http://www.mikemahler.com/journal.html

12. RECOMMENDED READING LIST

http://www.mikemahler.com/reading.html

Until next time.

Live Life Aggressively!

Mike Mahler

Feel free to email me with your comments and feedback at mahler25@yahoo.com

Mike Mahler