I began utilizing an arch for bench press after dealing with years of chronic shoulder pain, specifically for the 80-100% weight range. I have very long arms, which means a lot of distance for that bar to travel. Light bench wasn’t a problem, but trying to increase my max was destroying my shoulders. I found that a…

Yep, it’s the same fundamental reason that nobody (especially the “experts”) can agree on nutrition advice, and we get perpetually conflicting reports about what foods are alternately either horrible for you or cure all diseases [spoiler, they do neither]. Eggs will kill you, no wait, they’re healthy fat. Coffee is…

I absolutely despise those sensationalized, and utterly baseless fitness-trend spam ads, they prey on the weak-minded (or simply uninformed novices), and are simply obnoxious. Our entire world has just become an endless sea of shit-post ads from hucksters, and it’s just going to get worse. Learn the fundamentals,…

It has recently become more like a bump every 2 weeks by 2.5lbs, or adding a rep (seems to alternate). Unlike with benchpress where I blatantly go for 1rm, I feel safer sort of bracketing my OHP increases by getting a weight to 3 or 4 reps, and then adding a couple pounds which usually nets a 2-rep on that higher…

Dude, right now I’m at 155x3, a bit behind you, and I know the feeling of frustration making those tiny weight bumps each week. But it’s also really fun in a way, because it kind of takes the pressure off. When you think of making 5, 10, 15lb jumps on bench press, or 30lb jumps on your deadlift or squat, it’s always…

The overhead press was a game changing revelation for me when I started to include it in my routine. And it happened out of necessity after the gyms closed in March due to covid. I used to do elaborate shoulder routines at the gym- variations on seated DB presses, arnold presses, flys, plate-loader equipment, etc - …

The thing I love about sandbags is that their awkwardness makes them such effective functional training tools. We get spoiled with barbells/dumbbells, but the real-world fitness of yanking a heavy object off the ground with weight that can shift, and doesn’t have ergonomically convenient grips (sure, some sandbags…

As others have basically said, the problem with this assessment is that it’s highly subjective, and rarely deliverable without imparting a sense of criticism, harassment, and general douchebaggery, even if well intended. Having worked at a gym for 8 years, I can’t tell you how many times I saw guys take it upon…

I think this would be a cool time to bring back drive-in movies, at least in any towns/cities where it would be simple enough to set them up. I’m sure someone could dissect this idea and list all the reasons it wouldn’t work, but even if it only resulted in obviously limited capacity, it would be a decent alternative.…

One thing I find fascinating about conspiracy theorists is the particular paradigm of their self-reinforcing delusions and confirmation bias - specifically, how they perceive themselves as the rogue, maligned, dissenting voice of reason trying to fight for an unpopular “truth.” What’s interesting about this…

Pema Chodron has written extensively (and beautifully) about this general topic in many of her books about practical Buddhist philosophy. The trap of unilateral, forced positivity, aka false enlightenment, is that you end up suppressing rather than addressing real-life nuances, which include negative experiences, in…

From day one, there has been an immense amount of bad information on cleaning techniques circulating, combined with an absence of basic chemistry knowledge. That one video, however, that went viral of Dr. VanWingen sanitizing every grocery item like a surgical instrument might deserve a little of the blame. Granted,…

Kudos for being a good person during this time and helping your friends out. The price gouging on weights has been utterly disgusting to see. Clocked a pair of 35lb DBs yesterday of FB Marketplace going for - I shit you not - $200. That’s practically $3/lb, and they were just rusty old hex heads. The heavier DBs have…

My latest DIY was to make some parallettes. It’s a project I’ve wanted to try for years, and this was the perfect time, particularly given the exorbitant price hikes that even simple gear like parallettes have fallen victim to during the lockdown. Picture below. Total cost from Lowes was $41 - (including the glue…

I genuinely never expected to see the day when essentially every physical store, online retailer, and second-hand resource was devoid of plain old weight equipment. You just always think of that stuff being stockpiled and endlessly available. Even just loadable olympic dumbbell handles are nowhere to be found. The…

It’s a very important distinction to make, and I’ve encountered some confusion from others regarding the supposed home-arrest style of distancing they felt was necessary versus a much more livable protocol. Being outside in fresh air, sunlight, and being active is extremely valuable to physical and mental health, now…

There is absolutely and unquestionably a medical benefit - many, actually - of being more flexible. And flexibility can absolutely have the potential to limit or prevent injury - any suggestion otherwise is based on a serious misunderstanding of basic biomechanics. The article doesn’t do a deep dive (no offense), and…

For anyone already proficient in pullups, I highly recommend using baseball pull up grips. A lot of companies sell fancy (read expensive) rubber ball grips ranging from $35-60, but just spend $8 at walmart instead and get a couple of baseballs, eye bolts, heavyweight carabiners and straps to use to attach them to a…

This is the way...!

The thing that I absolutely love about grip training is that there are nearly limitless options available, and they can be employed both directly during your primary lift routine (as with DLs), as well as in isolation exercises. I’m glad you mentioned thumbless/suicide grip DLs, because I start my DL routine with them…