Chris and Mike continue to make abnormal videos when they train. This first one includes Chris squatting 600×2, and Mike squatting 495×3 (amidst cutting weight for his upcoming PT test).
The following video includes Mike squatting 405×12, Chris’ shaky camera work, and some random narration by Chris.
Urlacher is 70’s Big
Duane weighs 225 and grew a beard, so he thought he was kinda big. Then he met Brian Urlacher at the airport (after that Thursday night game the Bears won last week), and Brian makes Duane look like a kid.
For you noobs, Brian is a very good linebacker in the NFL. He’s big, fast, and explosive. He’s also a strong lifter; I have a friend who played football with him at New Mexico, and Brian power cleaned 405. Probably looked like this:
PR Friday
Post any PR’s you had this week. I’d prefer if we kept the weight gain postings to yesterday’s Thanksgiving post.
I’ve ran this site since last September — for free. I don’t know if yous guys know that. In the past nine months, this website has consumed more of my time than anything else. I bet I spent more time working on it than I did training. Sometimes it’s painstakingly hard to think of something to post when it’s 10:00 PM the night before, but some how I’ve managed to pull something out of my ass on a regular basis.
I like to think that I’ve had a nice blend of humor and entertainment. The only thing I really care about it is teaching people to get stronger and subsequently healthier (among other things). That’s the whole purpose of this site. So if I have to put up a YouTube video of my friends or me dancing like fools to get you to read some of the serious/helpful stuff, then I’ll do it (I have more of these videos, by the way).
Anyway, with that being said, here is my shameless plug for some new services that are available, Online Programming, Programming Consultations, and 70’s Big Workshops. You can read about them here, or click on the Services tab at the top of the page.
The Online Programming will net you a new best friend (me) and a training program. I will not sing you lullabies. The Consultations are those who don’t want a new best friend, but want to talk on the phone once t hash out a program. The Workshops are a traveling whacky inflatable sideshow and educate people on all kinds of things about training. You can read about them in more depth on the Servicespage.
Now that that’s settled, here is an obligatory European techno/electro/dance video that includes half of a 70’s Big guy with a sick beard. Warning: intense flexing and confusing images ahead. Watch the whole thing if you really want to be confused.
PR Friday — post all your personal records to the comments.
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USA Weightlifting’s School Age Nationals begins today (at 7:00 AM actually) in the bay area of California. There will be 287 kids from around the country competing on two platforms. I’ve never seen an Olympic weightlifting meet run on two platforms (seen it in powerlifting), so it should be non-stop lifting. The best part is that they are running a live webcast for both platforms. You can watch it here.
Remember when I talked about Paul Doherty and Hassle Free? Well, they have lots of lifters competing as well as other bay area clubs like, FitBBC, TJ’s Gym, Catalyst Athletics, California Strength, The Sports Palace and Myles Ahead — somewhere around 50 lifters from this area alone.
I wish I would have been recruited for weightlifting when I was younger (I was pretty good at power cleaning), but we can watch all of these kids that range from 13 to 17. You can see the schedule and qualifying totals for each weight class starting on page five of this .PDF file. Oh, and here’s a quick shout out to my pal Kyle — he’s 15 years old and qualified for nationals, but won’t be making the trip to compete. Good stuff nonetheless.
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Here’s a pretty cool video of David Rigert, a 90kg lifter, pressing 203kg in a 1971 competition. That’s about 446 lbs. boys and girls. You’ll notice the obvious knee kick, but that’s how guys pressed because the judges allowed it. The press was eliminated from competition one year later. I always wonder how different weightlifting meets would be if we had to do the clean and press first.
You’re training hard, right? You go in the gym or garage, do stuff that is hard, and you feel better about yourself. Some times, you may not feel a little tired, but you think, “Man, I don’t want Mark Rippetoe or any of my friends on 70’s Big to call me a pussy, so I’ll train (choo choo) anyway.” And that’s how it goes.
Well, proceed with caution, my friends. Eventually that tired feeling may be a bit more than the “I’m sleepy blues”. You may actually have HIV, or some derivative thereof. Okay, maybe a little less severe, but you may be legitimately sick, and training may even exacerbate your condition.
The other day I had a PR on a sloppy snatch day (that never gets old). I got 127.5, and proceeded to miss 130 three times even though I racked it overhead each time. Later, I was pinned by a 155 kilo clean and was baffled (I’ve done 165 and front squatted 170 for a few triples after training the week before Christmas). Well, turns out I was in the beginning stages of having what I am convinced is some horrific ancient ailment, one that only Elvish medicine can cure. Saturday evening I was on my deathbed for 18 hours with a fever from hell, chills, and had aches and pains that were analogous to getting my ass kicked by fourteen hoodlums that looked like Doug Young.
There were a few hours on Saturday where I felt like I could actually train, but I didn’t because I was busy coaching. Had I done so, it probably would have left me worse off than I eventually was on Saturday evening. Furthermore, I thought I was just having a shitty training session on Thursday, but it was actually the development of the devilish disease that dawned demonically with dastardly defiance.
You will learn through time what the difference is between a sniveling cold that you can train through and dark magic. Accept the fact that you may not know this difference right now, and take caution when you feel a bit under the weather. If you suspect that training will make your condition worse, you have my permission to take the day off. Be careful out there…the world can be a dangerous place.
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Do you guys remember that picture of Yosh, the dude who deadlifted 480 at a body weight of 165? Well he weighs 182 now. Partly because he ate 8 McDoubles at once. Jesus, I know. It was 3,120 calories and 176 grams of protein. Nice job, Yosh. You set the bar.
I wanted to write an article that would inspire quality strength training and eating. The article will have to wait, because you all need to see these pictures that were sent to me today. And you need to see them immediately.
I have a friend named Springer. He trains with AC in Georgia. He sent me a picture of his weekly groceries (he weighs 215 right now and wants to be 230 by December):
Yeah. No big deal.
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Then I got another e-mail.
Ladies, this is Johnny. Johnny is 6’5″ and is up to 275 from 215. He trains in a crusty-ass gym near the Afghan and Pakistan border. Aside from lifting in the gym, he pushes and pulls ATVs up the “shitty Afghan hills”. He’ll toss sandbags and do buddy carries and .50 cal can carries.
Diet: 6 times a day at the 24 hour chow hall. 6 to 8 eggs every morning, oatmeal with peanut butter, bagle with cream cheese, protein shake, two lunches or MREs if out on a mission, and dinner. I eat everything until I vomit, then I eat more.
Behold…
He’s got the beard
He’s got the clothes
He’s got the kick-ass attitude
And he STILL has room to grow
Gold star for Johnny.
All right knuckleheads, you’ve got a whole weekend to make submissions. Go check out the Submissions Page for the criteria. Expect the Hall of Fame page to be finished with some new Hall of Famers inducted next week. Gant and I will also be working on a special video segment, and I’m working on some interviews. You’ll get so much content, you won’t be able to contain your bowels. Oh, and t-shirts are on the way…
