I was telling my father-in-law yesterday that I have written over one thousand articles since 2002.
I have always taken the outlook if I give as much as possible to all of you, the rest would take care of itself. For 17 years, I have been writing articles, making videos, and producing podcasts, so I could teach all of you the best ways to get strong and in shape. From 2002 until now, things have changed so much – and that change is what I am writing about today.
GOALS and PRIORITIES
We are a busy society. The Internet has given us access to our businesses and customers we didn’t have before. We can always be posting, writing, or making videos, so now we are all busier than ever before. We want to train, and we want to get in better shape. However, the fact of the matter is time is limited.
This has been my reality since 2016. I have a growing family, a thriving business, and athletes who are competing all over the world on a monthly basis. I still desire to be strong and in shape, but I care more about my family, athletes, and customers than I care about my own fitness and strength. Are those bad priorities? That’s open for debate, but the fact is that’s the way it is. I am going to spend time with my family. I am going to communicate with my online team and ebook customers. I am going to focus on my in-house athletes.
However, I have found a way to get in shape without spending countless hours in the gym. As I write this, it sounds like an infomercial, but the difference is I am not selling anything. This is 100% for your benefit.
First let’s talk about the goals of the program, which happen to be my goals at this stage of life. Here’s what I am trying to do:
- Get stronger – This will always be a priority because I love being strong.
- Get fit – By ‘fit’ I mean more work capacity and better cardiovascular health.
- Mobility is a key – At this stage of my life I want to be able to move and play sports with my children. I have a 19-year-old, 4-year-old, 2-year-old, and a 6-month-old. My 19-year-old is in college, but the other children are wild and crazy. They want to play sports, run around, and have fun.
- Leave each workout feeling and moving better – I don’t like the word ‘feel’ because it is so subjective, but really I want my body to experience less inflammation and joint pain. With proper movement patterns and a solid warm up, this is definitely an achievable goal.
- Get jacked – I have always loved bodybuilding. Yes, even at 46 years old I love chasing the pump. I might be known as a strength athlete and strength coach, but I am definitely a fan of bodybuilding. My desire for the iron was 100% inspired by Arnold, Ferrigno, and Colombu.
So is it possible to accomplish all of these goals in less than 75 minutes? Absolutely, if you have a focused plan, keep the head phones on, and quit the chitchat. Here are a few keys that are important for this to work:
- a warm up that includes a lighter version of the strength focus on the day (ex. the bar only or 60kg/132lb) – pinpointing the joints that are trouble areas and pinpointing the joints required to perform the tasks at hand
- a simple periodized approach to the strength movement on the day
- a circuit-style approach for accessory work
- a plan that includes bodybuilding movements, joint mobility work designed to improve movement deficiencies, and exercises designed to spark the heart rate
- targeted strength movements that are also a part of the circuits for efficiency’s sake
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SAMPLE WEEK
Day 1
Back Squat: 5 x 5 (75% minimum, working toward 5RM at 9 RPE)
Met Con 1
Hang Snatch: 3 x 5 at around 7 RPE
Leg Press: 3 x 10
Farmers Walk: 3 x 25 yards
Barbell Hip Thrusts (with strap around knees): 3 x 12
Met Con 2
Rower: 4 x 250m
Russian Baby Makers: 4 x 10
Lunge: 4 x 50-100m
Day 2
Bench Press: 5 x 5 (75% minimum, working toward 5RM at 9 RPE)
Circuit 1
Clean and Push Press: 5 x 1 + 5 at 70%
Barbell Bentover Row: 5 x 10 (65% minimum)
Weighted Pushups: 5 x 10
Circuit 2
Double Unders: 3 x 25 – 50
Spider Man Walks: 3 x 10 per leg
Weighted Dips: 3 x 10
Day 3
Deadlift (eccentric slower than concentric): 5 x 3 (83% minimum, working toward 3RM at 9 RPE)
Met Con
OH Squat: 4 x 5 (around 7 RPE)
Pullups Strict: 4 x submaximal reps (use weight if more than 10 per set)
TRX Leg Curl: 4 x 10
Circuit 2
Reverse Hypers: 3 x 45 sec
Step-Squat-Lunge (Hip Mobility): 3 x 10 per leg
Prowler Push: 3 x 25 yards (heavy)
Day 4
Clean and Jerk: 5 x 2 (start at 70% and work up to 8 RPE)
Circuit 1
Bench Press: 4 x 10 (start at 65% – work up if too easy)
Horizontal Bodyweight Rows: 4 x submaximal reps (2-sec pause at top of contraction)
Axle Bar Biceps Curls: 4 x 10
Circuit 2
Kettlebell Potato Squats: 4 x 6 (with three deep breaths in the bottom of squat)
Sled Drag Forward: 4 x 40 yards
Heavy Med Ball Throws for Height: 4 x 8
Sled Drag Backward: 4 x 40 yards
Day 5
Front Squat: 5 x 3 ( at minimum of 83% – with last set being 3+ leaving one in the tank)
Circuit 1
Kettlebell Goblet Squat on Belt Squat: 4 x 10
Hyperextensions with Bands:4 x 10
Barbell Lunges:4 x 10 each leg
Circuit 2
Side Lunges: 4 x 8 each side
One-arm Overhead Dumbbell Squats: 4 x 5 each arm
Dumbbell Power Cleans: 4 x 10
Steep Inclined Treadmill: 4 x 60 seconds
GOALS AND LEGACY
This workout shows you the way I would use this style of training to emphasize the movements I love – the snatch, clean and jerk, squat, bench, and deadlift. You can also see the way I am targeting optimal movement for my hips. As far as mobility, my hips are my only trouble spot.
Of course you can change the workout around to fit your own goals. For example, you can totally focus on the squat, bench press, deadlift, and strict press. This would allow for more frequency in those movements. Therefore you could achieve better neural efficiency in the movements that are more important to you as an individual.
There are a few more keys to living a healthy and strong life that I am applying to my life. I am trying to be active everyday with a minimum being to take a 10-minute walk. I am at the beach with my family right now. My wife Emily Drew and I totally took advantage of the public park yesterday. My workout was filled with dips, pushups, pull-ups, squats, rows, and explosive step-ups. We followed up this workout with a swim in the ocean.
It’s funny to see me transitioning to the stage of my life. I was consumed with a desire to lift the heaviest weights on the planet, which was all I cared about. It’s exciting to be entering this new world of fitness. Recently I have watched so many of my powerlifting and strongman friends die in their pursuit to be the strongest men on earth. I have four babies I want to watch grow up, and hopefully I will get to see them become parents. I want to be the most jacked grandfather on the planet – which will require me to live long enough for that to take place.
I will never be an aerobic fitness bunny hopping around in my tight outfit encouraging people to jump around with me, but I can get in better shape. I can encourage others to do the same. When I think about it, it’s a bit more fulfilling to inspire others to live longer and more healthy lives versus inspiring them to lift the most weight on the planet. With a little thought into the program, we can have both. Let’s lift some heavy weights and get fit. Coach Dan John has been preaching this for years. I want to see my athletes living long lives – heck, Morgan McCullough is my godson. I sure don’t want to see him dying early.
Yes, I want to pass the torch of strength to my children and my athletes. However, I want to pass the torch of health and fitness as well to my children and my incredible athletes. It seems way more fulfilling to coach balance rather than coaching absolute strength. As this workout evolves, I will pass it on to all of you more and more.
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It is funny u talk about this I have been following ur Mash Jacked for athletic performance program as a fifty year old lifter wanted to increase fitness too so I just turned all aux lifts into a met con and have seen some pretty good results in just four weeks