Home → Aggressive Strength Magazine → Issue 158 - 10-3-08 

Aggressive Strength Magazine

Issue 158 10/3/08

1. Aggressive Strength Living Article Of The Week

There are only a few good scripts per year because people are looking for the lowest common denominator. - Paul Newman

One of the best actors of all time, Paul Newman, passed away last weekend.  Watching an old Larry King interview with him once, I was very impressed with Paul’s dedication and integrity.  You could tell he took genuine pride in his work and great care with the projects he undertook.  As a consequence, there are many great movies featuring Paul Newman out there.  My own favorites include:  The Hustler, The Color Of Money and, of course, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.  Paul told Larry King that as his career matured, he found it more difficult to consider new projects.  Not because he was burned out, or tired of acting, but there were fewer and fewer good scripts each passing year.  Larry asked him why he thought that was the case and Paul said people have simply lowered their standards and are seeking the lowest common denominator.  Producers now put the least amount of quality into a project to meet the lowest expectations of the customer.  This makes the consumers minimalists and the producers opportunists.

My wife and I love to see movies but there are few worth seeing.  Of all of the movies we've seen this year I can't remember a single good one.  In fact, I can't remember the last time I saw a great, potentially classic, movie.  My brother, Roger, is currently writing a script he's already put several years into, and in my opinion, it's good enough to get picked up for a movie ( especially given the current market standard!)  But that's not enough for Roger; he intends to create a masterpiece and will do whatever is necessary to make that happen.  Trust me, no one works harder than Roger and he will make this script a masterpiece.  In fact, the main reason he's writing scripts at all is because he's fed up with the crappy movies out there.  I'm looking forward to the movie his script becomes:  the odds of greatness are in his favor.

Joining movies in this recent entertainment dark age is the music industry.  I can think of only three songs released this year that I like at all and they're nowhere close to great.  When I was in high school, I couldn't keep up with all of the fantastic music coming out.  I used to go to Tower Records, where I'd buy five to ten albums at a time with my hard-earned minimum-wage-job cash.  These days I could buy ten albums every week--and I'd love to do so--but the music simply isn't there.  I got so fed up with the crappy music available, I invested thousands of my hard earned cash to help my good friend, Harley Flanagan (of the legendary cro-mags) record a new album. What I've heard so far is awesome, in fact, two of the three songs that made my list came from his album!  So that's how desperate I am to hear great music: I'll put down money to have a good album made!  Yes, I am somewhat crazy but it's also a sign of the times.

Unfortunately, the movie and music industries aren't the only places where people have resorted to minimalism and opportunism.  It's now in all facets of the private and public sectors.  The current economic crisis has politicians more concerned with getting re-elected than taking meaningful action.  Everywhere, I see people denying responsibility for the loss of their homes and jobs, instead blaming government and society.  These people took on loans they couldn't afford and when things go belly up they blame others.  It's downright pathetic and I'm completely fed up. No doubt lenders propagated the marketplace with shady offers and they should be held accountable. However, no one put a gun to anyone's head and made them purchase a house that they could not afford via a terrible lending offer. Free will always remains supreme and so does the responsibility that comes with free will.

I'm fed up with the minimalists, the way they run their jobs, businesses and personal lives.  Whatever happened to taking pride in your work--and your life?  Whatever happened to rising to the occasion in turbulent times with a show of strength and honor?  Living the life of the lowest common denominator is for losers and if you recognize yourself in what I say then that's exactly what you are:  a loser.  The lowest common denominators don't value their lives and if they don't value their own life's spark then what is there to take pride in?  What reason for integrity?  You guessed it:  nothing.

Our current economic crisis contains serious negative repercussions for many good people.  Good, well-intentioned people will lose their jobs and businesses will be folding left and right.  The good news is the shady companies are also going under.  Those rude, mean-spirited people providing terrible customer service will lose their jobs and they deserve it.  At the same time the opportunity is here for everyone to rise to the occasion and show the world what we are made of.

This is a good time for businesses to provide greater value to their customers and reward those regular customers who've been supporting them.  It's a great time for fitness professionals to create better DVD’s, present better workshops, write better books and, in short, provide more value than ever before.  It's a time for fitness professionals to take risks and create new material, rather than perpetuating clichés (I'm talking to you, kettlebell trainers!)  I predict the businesses that fail to rise to the occasion by rewarding their customers will go under and I don't feel bad about this nor, as a businessman myself, am I worried in the least.

I'm not worried because I always put my customers first before dollars. I care more about my customers having a great experience doing business with me than being petty and making a few extra dollars.  I am not a minimalist in my personal life, my training life, and never in my business life.  Like many of you I am fed up with con artists, poor customer service, and opportunists.  I have been screwed over many times, just as you have, and that's why I'll always treat my customers with the utmost respect.

Without the great people attending my workshops, buying my DVDs, and signing up for online training services, I wouldn't have the lifestyle that I enjoy so much.  I don't take any of this lightly and will therefore continue improving and providing more value as I move forward.  I put a lot of time and thought into each of my projects, whether DVDs or workshops, and I'll never short change the customer to make a buck.  I'd close my business and find a job working for the man before taking advantage of my customers...and since the idea of working for someone else thoroughly nauseates me, that's saying a lot!

I know that as people lose their jobs and/or endure salary cuts, they're going to re-prioritize their expenditures.  Now, more than ever, the free articles and online magazines I provide will carry more value with both customers and site visitors.  I'll keep cranking out free articles and magazine issues (all loaded with high quality information you can put into action immediately.)  I've given away free e-books in the past and I'm working on another one to give away in the near future.  I'm also shifting my focus and creating projects and products more economical for the customer.

Quality will never be compromised, like others in my field.  I don't write books with large print and filled with advertisements.  I won't sell books touting high-quality, straightforward advice only to bombard you with dozens of products you'll need to buy.  Other authors like to use books and DVD’s as promotional devices in which the customer pays on the front end and then is pressured to buy even more stuff on the back end.  Other people charge you hefty registrations for workshops, then try to sell you DVD’s--and other products--when you get there.  I hate these practices.  These are the companies that can expect hard times in our retraced economy--and justifiably so.

Now isn't the time to raise rates and product prices while offering less value in return.  Neither is it the time to cut prices and beg for customers...and many companies will.  No one respects desperation and begging. I have never yet, nor ever will, beg for any one's business or use hard-sell techniques to pressure people into buying unneeded, unwanted things.  My philosophy is to make great products, provide great service, and work with the people who show up.  This is why I don't have sales every month, like other desperate people.  I have more respect than that for the intelligence of my customers and as a result I work with great people.  I'm proud to say many of my customers are also my friends.

We're living in interesting times and next year is no exception.  These are times to rise up and show the world what you are made of.  Anyone can thrive when times are abundant but the true measure of your worth is how well you do when the world is falling.  This is survival of the fittest time and I will be at the finish line.  I hope to see you there as well and I wish you the best in the coming turbulence.  As important as it is to choose our next leader in November, it's even more important to be lead yourself and take charge of your life.  Put it all on the line and inspire your family and friends.

I'd love to hear some examples from you all of great business acumen and service to others.  Please feel free to pass on your stories to me.

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Live Life Aggressively!

Mike Mahler

***Article Edited by Teresa Blazey: teresa.blazey@gmail.com

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2. Power Talk with Top Martial Arts Strength Trainer Dylan Thomas

By Mike Mahler

Dylan Thomas is one of the first full-time professional Kettlebell Trainers in the US.  He's trained numerous Kettlebell instructors, a variety of athletes and martial artists, military/emergency responders, as well as everyday people wanting to break out of the conventional fitness mode and into something more in line with a more austere past.

Dylan is a progressive trainer and knows how to effectively combine kettlebells with conventional weight training and martial arts into an effective fitness system.  He's been doing this for years with his clients and now you get to learn what they have been benefiting from.

In addition to being a professional KB Trainer, Dylan is a 4th Dan Black Belt Combat/Aiki-Jujutsu Instructor and also trains in Filipino/Indonesian Martial Arts.  What does this mean?  It means Dylan is one tough dude and brings that energy to his training system to make you tougher in training...and in life in general.

Dylan is a presenter at the Collision Course workshop in October I guarantee you the attendees will be raving about his presentations.

How did you get into fitness personally and professionally as an instructor? 

DT:  It's a long story but I'll try to be brief:  My mother was in the fitness industry since I was a child. She worked at gyms as an "Instructress" (Yeah, that's what they called them then!) basically a trainer who also taught aerobic classes.  Eventually, she owned her own gym for women and as a kid I was there a lot so I grew up around training.  I was a fairly weak little kid, with asthma and a crossed eye, so I got messed with a lot.  Thus I gravitated towards martial arts.  My step father, who was a martial artist, wouldn't train me until I built myself up, so I started with the basic push-up, sit-up, dumbbell curl, and running type of workout and progressed to weights around puberty.

When I got older, I worked in construction but even then there was a period of three years where I was lifting and running a lot, but at that point I was moving away from training for toughness and started to train more for looks, since I was in a band, and Henry Rollins, Glenn Danzig and other guys showed it was cool to be in shape, not just some skinny, body-by-heroin and Jack Daniels body.

When I left Florida for Virginia, I stopped lifting all together and threw myself into my job.  I was a foreman, then a project manager for a commercial construction company.  Over time, I got out of shape.  I was getting a gut at 25 since all I did was work, eat the wrong stuff and sit on my ass in order to relax at all.

Well, I got the itch to get back into martial arts again, and it took finding the dojo where I am still that everything changed around.

I saw one of your instructor's classes and it was hardcore.  Certainly not an aerobics-disguised-as-martial-arts class! 

DT:  No doubt!  In our classes, we don't spend any real time on pure physical fitness.  We stretch and what-not, but other than the physical stresses of drilling, training techniques and sparring, physical fitness is on you.  The dojo back then was 80% military, with the rest being police and "Get Action!" types.  I knew that to be able to hang with these guys I needed to hit the weights and PT again.  I mean, one of our alumni was Col. George Bristol, the founder of the Marine's martial arts program, our #2 Instructor was an SF Officer--you really didn't want to be a marshmallow in their midst.

What did you do to learn more about training to customize it to your martial arts training? 

DT:  Besides the training I had as a youth, I threw myself into reading anything on fitness that could be applied to MA, most of it being military-type stuff, I really got into ruck marching and weight lifting.  I drifted into reading Pavel Tsatsouline's articles in Muscle Media and made some great gains in a short time.  I was interested in kettlebells, but I thought the price was nuts.  Then, one day after a belt test, my sempai, the late Col. Jim Tirey, informed me he'd signed me and my training partner up for a Kettlebell workshop in McLean VA, with some dude named Mike Mahler.  As you remember, it was a good, small group that day and you went right to it.  I was impressed that as I was swinging the kettlebell, how much stress it put on my breathing and muscles, to be blunt, it felt like fighting.  I looked at my buddy and said, "Screw what they cost, tomorrow I'm buying a set and so are you!"

I well remember that workshop and also how you and Jim helped me out with my early VA workshops back in 2002-2004.  Those workshops were a great time and the best part was hanging out with you, Warren, and Jim, having a few cold beers after a hard day of training.  I miss Jim and those good times. 

DT:  It was a great time and I remember at one of those post-workshop gatherings you said I should be a kettlebell instructor.  I was burnt out with construction anyways (the environment constantly reactivated my asthma) so I took you up on your offer to help me get started, went to the RKC cert, and I've been training ever since.

You've been a trainer for some time now and have worked with a wide variety of people.  What are some of the common mistakes people make with training?

DT:  We can go on forever there, but the biggest thing is information.  People believe a  lot of misconceptions about fitness.  I hear things like, "I'm only going to do cardio, because I want to lose weight, then I'll lift weights." or "What exercises should I do to lose the fat <here>?" all the time.  People still believe cardio is the best way to lose weight and they think you can actually spot reduce body fat.  Infomercials have brain washed people!  LOL!

No lie, the ubiquitous ten-minute workouts on fitness infomercials are particularly irritating! 

DT:  Ha ha!  Then there are martial artist, athletes and G.I.s training with bodybuilding programs that do more harm than good to their performance.  I'm not saying there aren't good points to that type of training nor elements that are useful to the above-mentioned people, but it's not efficient, it's not looking at "What is it that I do or will be doing?"  How many guys in the gym live for bench presses and curls, with very little leg work other than leg extensions and leg curls?  I wish every opponent trained like that!  LOL!  Lastly, something you touch on a lot is people spending too much time in the gym and breaking themselves down.

You've been training people with kettlebells for many years now.  Let's cut through all of the hype:  What are the pros and cons of kettlebell training?

DT:  I will start with the pros:  One, the shape and the way the weight sits is a big advantage.  You can rack heavier KBs than you can DBs, so you can work your legs with them better than DBs.  They're easier to use in combinations of exercises within a set as well.  I can swing, clean, press and squat in a combo much easier than I can with a barbell and for me that's great as a martial artist, since you do different movements and techniques within a fight, not just one movement!  It's also good for making things fun because of the variety and randomness you can work in.  I like kettlebells much better for shoulder presses, snatches and jerks than any other implement, for myself and most of my clients.  I can do these things with barbells and dumbbells but the kettlebellss make these movements more accessible to people quicker.  Back to shoulders for a moment, many of my clients love using the KB for shoulder presses over DBs and BBs, because of the rack position and the ability to adjust the path of the bell to fit their anatomy.  Lot's of folks who gave up on shoulder pressing because of injury and discomfort love KBs because they can do these exercises again, and in my opinion, a standing KB military press is a much more functional drill then a bench press any day.  The big thing for me though, is that it's the easiest way I've found to combine, speed, strength, power, movement, and conditioning into the same drill.

Man was built for the 3 F's:  Fighting, Fleeing...and I'll leave the other F to your imagination, ha ha.  During these actions, you're using it all:  cardio, strength, sensitivity, flexibility.  I believe it's best to train with that in mind, as the ancients did, with none of the science we have now and they were very impressive.

MM:  I know you're a big history fan, so can you provide a few examples? 

DT:  Sure, Julius Caesar in his late 40's would still jump into the front lines of a battle, taking on men on average much bigger than himself.  King Leonidas of Sparta, of 300 fame, was in his late 50's/early 60's when he fought in the front ranks at the Battle for Thermopylae.  If you've ever messed around with a sword and shield, it feels a lot like training with kettlebells.

 MM:  What are some of the cons with kettlebell training? 

DT:  Cons:  After a certain point, you can only get bells so heavy before they are simply too cumbersome to use, so if raw strength is your thing, then kettlebells aren't the best primary tool. You, Mike, have showed that you can build impressive size and strength with them, but if someone wants to be either a recreational or competitive bodybuilder, they need to hit the barbells, DBs--and even machines--but kettlebells have a place in there all the same.  I train fitness competitor Alissa Carpio with kettlebells for her conditioning, but we originally started with the KBs to bring her legs up and she gained a good deal of muscle with them quickly.  Another thing is, they're a fixed weight, so unless you have multiple kettlebells, you're limited as far as load variation, a barbell doesn't have that problem.  I, myself, still train with barbells for deadlifts, but not for much else.

What are some of the common mistakes people make with kettlebell programs?

DT:  Not getting instruction.  There's a skill set and a learning curve to using them properly and it's a very rare individual who can read a book, watch a video, and then use them right.  Most people who do that complain that their backs hurt when they perform swings, their wrists hurt when they clean and snatch, and their shoulder joints hurt after pressing.

I liken it to trying to learn martial arts from books and videos--it's a great way to get your ass kicked.  You need basic instruction--the small things matter--but it's not rocket science either, you don't have to go to the kettlebell Shaolin temple and study for a long time under a master.

If you are properly taught how to swing, press, clean and snatch, then you can now start to pick up new drills from videos and books because you have the foundation techniques that the other exercises are built from. 

Another problem I see is people all over the place with their training.  So much of the kettlebells rise has been Internet-fueled, with the attendant pros and cons, including training ADD.  Lots of flavor-of-the-month stuff going on and people jumping from thing to thing too fast and too often. 

The other problem I see are a lot of people in the kettlebell community looking for guru's.  They'll dive into one guy's system for a while and then something else comes along and suddenly they dump on what they were doing and follow some One True Way and then off to something else a month later. 

I know what you mean.  Many KB enthusiasts refer to kettlebell training as the ultimate form of training.  Do kettlebells work best as a stand-alone training system or as one of several training tools?

DT:  Well, you can use them as a stand-alone tool and get great results--as long as you make small changes here and there, you can go a long way with just kettlebells, but I do think they're better used in conjunction with other tools, depending on your goals and needs.  Even when I was doing kettlebells at home, I still put in some bodyweight stuff , including pull-ups.  If I had to live on an island, I would take kettlebells above anything else (for fitness) but I'd be climbing trees as well.

If you're in a sport that's well-rounded, you can get away with kettlebells only, but I'd find that boring.  Most of the people I train in the gym do a mix, kettlebells are the center, for sure, but I'm big on doing pull-ups, or using the assisted pull-up machine.  I use a good degree of Freemotion machines as well as body weight drills.  I also encourage people to have either a sport, a martial art, or some kind of other physical outlet besides just working out with kettlebells and resistance.  So, can they be a stand alone tool?  Sure, but I think it's best to use them as part of a larger system, be they the center or not.  In construction work I carried a hammer; a screw gun; a tape measure; a saw; snips and a level, among other things, and there was some interchangeability of tools in a pinch, but scew gun on screws and hammer on nails worked best--ha ha ha!

What are the benefits of kettlebell training for the martial artist?

DT:  The main reason I use them is because of what they do for me as a martial artist and more and more MMA stars using them shows that others are impressed with them as well.  As I said earlier, working with a kettlebell can be very similar to working with weapons or fighting, as far as physical stressors go.  The mechanics of kettlebell lifting is very in-line with martial arts.

You don't punch from the chest--it comes from the legs, to the waist and into the upper body in a synergistic manner, at least if you want to destroy what you hit and not be off balance from punching from your chest and shoulders.  In Jujutsu such people are called Throw Bait and when you grapple, you don't isolate your chest and push the guy off, you use as much of your body as you can.  This carries over into common, everyday things as well.

With ballistic moves, you use the whole body to generate power, just like throws and take downs.  I've noticed that the guys in our Jujutsu class who train with kettlebells tend to hit harder, move faster, throw better and last longer than those who don't train with kettlebells--and almost all of our guys work out with something.  I've got a lot of the guys into kettlebells and yoga and it's improving everyone all around, which makes for better classes.

Much is made by others about the ballistic shock of kettlebells being good for taking hits, but in my opinion, you need to take hits to get good at taking hits.  The added strength does help you fight of submissions.

 The openness of kettlebell movements tends to ward off that muscle-bound feeling and tightness you get with traditional weight programs.  Add yoga, and you're good to go.

You recently told me about a training program that turns a workout into more of a performance rather than a collection of sets and reps.  Can you elaborate on that?

DT:  I'll go into it a bit, it comes back to when I was talking about how you can combine moves and string them together, so as opposed to doing a set of swings, then a set of presses and so on, I might pick up the bell and snatch it, then press it, then go into a squat, then a windmill and so on. I like to switch hands a lot, similar to H2H kettlebells--but for the less coordinated or adventurous--and just randomly flow into movements, as opposed to telling myself in advance what I'm going to do.  It becomes more like Kata or a dance.  Add some music and try to keep it going without putting it down for a whole song.

It's not as scientific or as structured as a conventional rep and set scheme, but that's the point:  sometimes it's good to just flow, for your body, but also for your head.  It's not that I came up with anything really new--lots of us have been doing kettlebell combos for years and Cotter's KBMA stuff is an inspiration--but I do like it less structured and more random.  It's not how I always work out, but it gets tossed in there, either within a regular workout or a quick, random workout of its own and it's a great way to use those lighter KBs that don't challenge you anymore in straight sets, after a 3-minute rock song, it feels much heavier!

As much as I laugh when I see Kettlenetics, it's more because of the puny weight.  The way she strings dance moves into kettlebell moves is kind of cool, I'd just rather perform KB moves in a more flowing way, than dance with a KB in my hand.

What do you do for restoration personally?  And what's helped your clients bounce back from workouts faster?

DT:  Well, we all have things we let slide or don't spend enough time on, but boy, that can really bite you on the ass!  I really didn't stretch much--and definitely not with any real effort.  I 'd get by with the flexibility I've gained from a lifetime doing martial arts, but even so I can't do the front splits and straight-up side kicks I could do when I was 16 (nor do I want to!)  I was losing flexibility, and after a string of injuries there came a time, about 6-8 months ago, where I was a wreck and couldn't work out like I was used to.  Bro, I couldn't even squat anymore without my knee screaming and my back aching; it was stupid and I knew better. Using the martial arts-style stretches and sports stretches weren't making me feel any better either.  I kept thinking back to when I was little and Mom had a yoga instructor at her gym and I used to go along with the class.  I remembered a conversation with Jon Hinds where he said he used it like chiropractic and all the guys on I.G.X. talking about their yoga experience.  We also have yoga classes at the gym where I train and all this was in my mind.

So, one day I came off my horse and joined the housewives for the restorative yoga class at the gym and I felt so much better right after, that I started taking 2-3 classes a week, as well as researching yoga on the web and in text.  In three weeks I was back to hitting it hard, swinging and squatting without pain.

Wow, that's quite a testimonial on the benefits of yoga!

DT:  It's worked wonders for me and I encourage all of my clients to take the yoga classes as well as showing them some basic yoga moves during PT sessions--and I do mean basic, I'm no yogi, and the classes at my gym are beginner-to-intermediate level, but that's good enough for putting yourself back together again.  I plan on delving deeper into the practice, but the basics get you moving right.  I also encourage massage, I get one or two a month myself, since I train a massage therapist.
 
I'm telling you, I felt like I was sixty years old a few months back--not good when you're thirty-five--and now I feel like I did in my mid-twenties.

I think one of the next evolutions in kettlebells is a kettlebell/yoga integration.  I assert that if you do those two activities and you have some other physical outlet, like a sport, martial art or something outdoors, you're good to go and don't need much else to be physically well-rounded...at least that's the path I'm on now.

Thanks for doing the interview Dylan and looking forward to working with you later this month and in NYC next month 

DT: You got it thanks 

Dylan is based in Northern VA and is available for seminars all over the US and overseas. For more information on Dylan's private lessons, classes, and workshops email him at: martialstrength@gmail.com

 

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3. Ask The Strength Part 2 With Strongman Legend Mark Philippi 

What gym lifts carry over to everyday life?

I think that many people could prevent a lot of injuries by training for everyday life at the gym, instead of trying to add another ½ inch to the biceps.  Lower back problems are a big source of injury.  Wearing a protective belt to lift things at home or at work has proven not to be effective.  The low back and abs need to be strengthened to prevent lower back disc injuries. 

First, if a person is overweight, the weight must be reduced because the extra poundage hanging from the stomach will cause excess pressure on the lumbar spine area.  Next, I think a great exercise to do to strengthen the lower back is the stiff leg deadlift. To perform this lift, place your feet underneath a bar approximately armpit width.  Grab the bar with your hands shoulder width apart turning one hand over with the palm up.  The bar should be behind your toes when looking down at it.  Bend at the waist slightly bending your knees.  Be sure to keep your abs and back tight.  Eyes should be looking forward.  Lift the bar keeping it close to the body.  Maintain the slight knee bend and flat back.  Pull the bar up to the thighs, and finish the lift by standing in an erect vertical position.  Lower the bar under control to the ground maintaining the proper body position to perform another repetition.  I would start to do 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 8 repetitions.

I also think rotational abdominal strength is also important to preventing daily injuries.  A good exercise is a plate rotation.  Start with a ten-pound plate.  Hold it at arms length.  Place the feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent and back in a neutral position.  Tighten the abs by pulling your belly button to your spine and hold this position.  Rotate the torso 45 degrees to the right, pause, and then back to the start.  Do the same for the left side.   Focus on keeping the abs tight the whole time.  Do ten reps each way.  Do this for 2 to 3 sets.  Stop and rest if you can’t maintain the ab contraction the whole set.

What is the right age to have kids start training with weights?

I get this question all the time.  It is funny we will let our kids watch countless hours of TV and play hours of video games without thinking about it but when it comes to working out we then get concerned about their welfare.  Kids can start an exercise and resistance training program as early as 8 or 9 years old.  Now I don’t suggest that they start doing heavy squats and deadlifts at 8 years old but they can start to learn the movement patterns of the exercises.  Bodyweight exercises or movements with a stick or light bar can be started at this age.  This is a good time to teach a young athlete proper lifting technique, which is often neglected, by many coaches later on in the young athletes sport career.  I think the critical factors at this age are making sure the lifts are taught correctly and that the child can pay attention throughout the workout.  I usually like to start working with kids at 11-12 years old, because they are a little more focused.  Young athletes that wait until they start high school before they begin a resistance program are missing a critical window of development that occurs between 11 and 14 yrs old.  They are going through growth spurts where they will lose coordination and relative strength.  By participating in a proper strength program they will increase their athletic ability during these growth periods, setting them ahead of their classmates.  A young athlete that begins a weight-training program for the first time will initially get stronger because they learn the motor skills of the exercise technique not because of muscle growth.  Hypertrophy will take 4 to 5 weeks of consistent training before the young athlete will become “ buff”.  It is even more important for you female athletes to start a resistance-training program.  According to the National Strength and Conditioning Association girls are six times more likely to blow an ACL than boys while participating in athletics. Research shows that this can be prevented with a proper resistance-training program. It is time to get your kids off the couch and into the gym

Which is better for developing strength, the front squat or the back squat?

Both are great for developing lower body strength and mass.  At PSI we perform both lifts.  Being a former powerlifter I much prefer to do back squats but I think because of the bar position forcing the torso to remain upright, the front squat is a more effective total body-training tool and a little safer.  While performing a back squat, there is the possibility of flexibility issues or poor technique preventing proper torso position from being utilized causing an individual to lean forward excessively resulting in a low back injury.

While performing the front squat the bar is resting of the front deltoids being held into position with the hands, pointing the elbows forward.  If an individual cannot get into the proper position, engage the abs, and hold the torso upright, the bar will fall off of the shoulders before the lower back is excessively strained or injured.  Basically the bar position forces you to perform the exercise properly reducing the chance of injury.

Have a question for Mark? Email him at coachphilippi@yahoo.com

Mark Philippi Information

Mark has been a fixture on ESPN’s Worlds Strongest Man contest, competing for seven years, making the finals twice and finishing 7th in 1997 after winning the America’s Strongest Man title that year. Mark has traveled the world competing against the best strength athletes on almost every continent. Before competing on the professional strongman circuit, Mark was a National and World powerlifting champion (1996).

Mark is the President and Co-owner with his wife, Tracey, of Philippi Sports Institute Las Vegas, Nevada. PSI is a 9000 ft training facility with a staff of performance coaches, physiotherapy personnel, and scientific consulting team who’s mission is to help athletes of all ages and sports achieve their goals in the areas of athletic performance, fitness, diet and conditioning.

In addition to being an incredible athlete, Mark unlike many athletes is an outstanding couch and instructor. Numerous world class athletes such as MLB Star Jason Giambi of the NY Yankees have traveled across the country to learn from Mark. Here is what Jason had to say about working with Mark:

“I am a power hitter. I need to be strong. Mark is an expert at developing strength and power. He had me ready for the season.”
—Jason Giambi, New York Yankees

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4. 2008 Aggressive Strength Kettlebell Workshops 

November 15, 2008  

Mike Mahler-Dylan Thomas Level One Kettlebell Training Workshop in NYC (Bonus: get $209.95 worth of free DVD's) 

>>click here for more information

Special Event November 1 in Fairmont, North Carolina 

On Saturday November 1st in Fairmont North Carolina at 2:00 in the afternoon John Brookfield and Jon Bruney will be pushing themselves to the limits by pulling a semi-truck the distance of one mile plus using only their physical strength and mental fortitude. This will be a world record event for all to witness as they pull the semi-truck through the streets of Fairmont. John Brookfield and Jon Bruney have done this feat on several occasions, however, this time they will be increasing the pulling load and pushing themselves to pull the truck for the mile distance in the fastest time possible. Many are saying this could be the greatest feat and test of strength and endurance ever accomplished. Come out and witness this event and walk beside them as they push to keep the truck moving forward. For more information on the location and the specifics please email John Brookfield at john@powerropes.com

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5. Aggressive Strength Equipment Recommendations

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6. Aggressive Strength Product Recommendations

Meditation is one of the best things you can do to relax your mind and handle stress more effectively. High stress equals low DHEA, testosterone, and GH levels. You must get a handle on stress to be at your best. My online client Les Larson told me about this program and after only a few weeks I am hooked.

Just listen to the program for 30-60 minutes per day and you will notice a difference after a few days. After a week you will look forward to each session. I like to use it after working out or before going to bed. Check it out at:

» Meditation CD's That Actually Work

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7. Kettlebell Training Information  

 

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

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8. Aggressive Strength Magazine Archives 

http://www.mikemahler.com/newsletter

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Until next time.

Live Life Aggressively!

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

Mike Mahler

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