I’m busy editing the chapters for the Texas Method: Part II e-book and don’t have anything lifting-related for you. My friend Shawn sent me this video last week and I have saved it for a post since. The speech is about 15 minutes long and I thought it was good enough to share on the site.

In the following video General Peter van Uhm, Chief of the Netherlands Defense Staff, eloquently explains why he chose the gun, instead of the pen or the brush, to make the world a better place.

Keep in mind that his son, First Lieutenant Dennis van Uhm, was killed in a roadside bombing in Uruzgan, the southern province of Afghanistan. Some have tried to turn this into a supporting argument for the right to bear arms, but I prefer the General’s direct message.



Also, you guys are weapons free to ask questions or start discussions in the comments.

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This is just a small collection of videos that can help motivate the female readers. Also, I’m taking topic requests for this Monday column; I have a few ideas but my list doesn’t have much on it right now.
Edit: It was hard to find decent lifting videos of chicks when you don’t know names to search.

This first video is probably more for the fellas, but it shows some world class and American weightlifters:


This one is a random video of a Canadian gal who is doing a log clean and push press with 110 pounds.

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Happy PR Friday — Post your training PR’s and updates to the comments. You have about three more weeks for hard training before the Christmas and New Years break, so let us know what your goal is in that span.

Consultation inquiry asks:
Hey, when the hell are you going to consult with me?

Dear you,

I apologize for the delay. I’ve been trying to wrap up two big projects in the midst of doing the whole Thanksgiving thing. I’ll be in contact with you soon, but it will be in order of inquiry. Thank you for your patience. I love you.

Hypothetical Question Guy asks:

Justin, what does the clean and jerk work?

Dear Hypothetical Question Guy,

Since I did 72 of them last night (31 of them at 300 pounds), I can give you a detailed and educated answer on what clean and jerks work. They work the skin of your hands primarily. They also work the skin of your upper chest and collar bone area. Speaking of the collar bones, clean and jerks especially work those. Don’t forget about the skin on your thigh — they work that pretty good too if you’re wearing short shorts and a tank-top (and you should). They also work on your will to live by letting you experience a case of “not fun” so that the next time you’re when you’re not having having fun, you can always put it in perspective and say, “At least I’m not doing (that) again.” I think the military calls that “character building”. Hope this helps.


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The first 70’s Big chat in a long time will be tonight at 6:00 PM EST and coincides with the Movember Lift-a-thon I’m doing. I (regrettably) agreed to do one clean and jerk for every $50 raised when we were at the $2700 mark. That means I have 72 reps to do this evening during the chat, and it’ll be streamed live.

Keep an eye on the Facebook/Twitter for updates (in case of problems).
Thanks to Adam at Panhandle CrossFit for allowing me to act like a stooge in his gym tonight.
Here’s a link to the stream if you want to chat.



There will be a chance for Q&A during the chat, but most people like to mingle with 70’s Big folk.

Last Friday one of history’s greatest weightlifters died at the age of 69. Vasily Alekseyev won two Olympic gold medals, eight World Championships, and set 80 World Records. Yes, 80. He was the first man to clean and jerk 500 pounds, and the first to total 600kg (when the clean and press was still in competition). He also had one of the first legitimate power bellies in strength sports. I’ll recap his life by linking various articles that have been published in the last few days, including two by Dr. Michael Hartman and Nick Horton.


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