So, with that said, here are five tips for a stronger deadlift:

1. Work on Your Technique

It doesn’t matter whether you decide to deadlift conventional or sumo – you must work on your technique. The reason why you must work on your technique is that bad technique will lead to weakness and injury. Two things you want to avoid, right?

On the other hand – good technique will lead to stronger deadlifts and a much lower injury risk. Two things you definitely want.

So before you load up the weight and go heavy on your deads, spend a few weeks mastering the basics. Regardless of whether you deadlift conventional or sumo, here are some key tips:

• Your lower back should be in a neutral position because rounding your lower back can be dangerous.
• Your arms should be straight at all times because bending them is a recipe for bicep tears.
• Your abs and lats should be tight throughout the duration of each and every rep. This will make you stronger and will help to stop your lower back from rounding
• The bar must stay close to your body at all times. If you let it drift away from you, you’ll put extra stress on your lower back and you will severely limit the amount of weight you can lift. Great deadlifters have scars on their shins for a reason. Keep that bar close!

2. Train Explosively

You may find it hard to believe, but I rarely train anywhere near my maximum in the gym. For proof, consider the fact that I’ve pulled 1,008lbs in competition, yet I’ve never gone over 900lbs in training. Instead of maxing out, most of my training is done with sub-maximal weights, pulling doubles and triples as fast as possible, whilst always maintaining perfect form. Most of my training lifts are around 500-700lbs.

Let’s say you have a max deadlift of 400lbs – a respectable lift for a man weighing 200lbs. If I was training you in person, you’d do a ton of doubles and triples with 200 to 280lbs and occasionally we’d go a little heavier. Every eight to twelve weeks you’d test your max and only after a new max would you then increase your training weights.

3. Warm Up

Before hitting the fast doubles and triples with 50-70% of your max, you must warm up. Most guys don’t do this and it’s asking for trouble. When you warm up properly, you’ll not only decrease your injury-risk – you’ll also increase your performance. A pretty good return on investment, I’m sure you’ll agree.

Assuming you have a 400lbs maximum, here’s how a good workout could look, including warm up sets:

• 135lbs x 5 x 2 sets (warm up sets)
• 185lbs x 3 x 2 sets (warm up sets)
• 200lbs x 2 x 2 sets (working sets)
• 225lbs x 2 x 2 sets (working sets)
• 245lbs x 2 x 2 sets (working sets)
• 260lbs x 2 x 1 set (working set)
• 280lbs x 2 x 1 set (working set)

Remember to pull every rep as explosively as possible, without sacrificing your form.

4. Decrease The Range Of Motion

Deadlifting from just below knee height can be done using a power rack, rubber mats, or wooden blocks and has several benefits:

• You can overload the top part of your deadlift and get used to handling heavier weights.
• You can build a stronger lockout
• You can handle more volume because pulling through a partial range of motion isn’t as tiring as pulling from the floor

Sets of 3-8 reps work well.

5. Do Some Assistance Exercises

There are many additional exercises that you can use to help to build your deadlift. We call these assistance exercises. Here are some of the best:

• Leg press: for building strong hamstrings, quads, and glutes
• Kettlebell swing: for strengthening the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back and for teaching you to be explosive
• Plank: for teaching you to get tight from head-to-toe. All strength athletes need to know how to get tight
• Farmer’s walks: For building grip strength and overall athleticism
• Rows of all kinds: For building the lats and upper back – essential for a strong lockout on the deadlift

So there you have it – five big tips for a bigger deadlift. Use them wisely and you’ll pull a personal best very soon!

Check out Andy’s book “Deadlift Dynamite.”

The post 5 Tips for a Stronger Deadlift appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 4, Day 3: Bench Press Day

A. Bench Press: TEST your 1RM (Hopefully hit 310lbs and a new personal best!)

B. 2 Board Bench Press: 5 reps x 3 sets

C. Pull Ups: 8-12 reps x 3 sets (add weight if possible)

D. Bent Over Rear Delt Raises: 12 reps x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 4, Day 3 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 4, Day 2: Squat Day

A. Squat: TEST your 1RM (hopefully hit 420lbs and a new personal best!)

B. Leg Press: 12 reps x 4 sets

C. Lying Leg Curls: 12 reps x 4 sets

D. Plank: 30 seconds x 3 sets

After re-testing your max, omit your next squat session and start a new cycle the following week.

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 4, Day 2 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 4, Day 1: Bench Press Day

A. Bench Press: Work up to 295lbs x 2 reps x 2 sets

B. 2 Board Bench Press: 5 reps x 3 sets

C. Pull Ups: 8-12 reps x 3 sets (Add weight if possible)

D. Bent Over Rear Delt Raises: 12 reps x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 4, Day 1 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 3, Day 3: Squat Day

A. Squat: Work up to 405lbs x 2 reps x 2 sets (A small personal best)

B. Leg Press: 12 reps x 4 sets

C. Lying Leg Curls: 12 reps x 4 sets

D. Plank: 30 seconds x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 3, Day 3 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 3, Day 2: Bench Press Day

A. Bench Press: Work up to 280lbs x 3 reps x 3 sets

B. 3 Board Bench Press: 5 reps x 3 sets

C. Pull Ups: 8-12 reps x 3 sets (Add weight if possible)

D. Bent Over Rear Delt Raises: 12 reps x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 3, Day 2 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

I deadlift using the conventional style.

I tried sumo once and quickly found I severely lacked the inner thigh mobility to pull off this style with any kind of professionalism. For the record, I think I checked out with around 350kg for a single. At the time my conventional was over 440kg, so as you can see, the sumo wasn’t the style for me.

As is the case for all good pullers, my deadlift style is the product of my levers, my particular strengths, and a lot of hard work!

What this means is that I pull without a great deal of bend in the knees, with very vertical shins and with an arched lower back. I believe that my pull is a fairly equal combination of leg drive, lower back, and upper back strength. However, the truth of the matter is that I have no way to prove this without going to a ‘lab’ and having a scientist see how much force all my muscles are generating at different times during my deadlift.

The bottom line is that my technique works perfectly for me and provides maximum strength and minimum injury-risk.

NOTE: For anyone thinking of pulling with a rounded lower back or even a very rounded upper back: your injury-risk will be much higher than if you chose to use a style more like my own.

Let’s take a more detailed look at my deadlift technique:

I address the bar with a hip width stance, shins touching the bar.

Then I bend down and set my hands on the bar; as I do this I bend my legs only enough to grasp the bar. Remember, this is a deadlift not a squat!

This next point is very important: when I set my hands on the bar I use a mixed grip and make sure that my arms are hanging straight down from my shoulders. If I was to take my arms out and away from my shins I’d be turning the pull into more of a snatch grip deadlift. With max weights this would make a bicep tear likely and would significantly reduce the amount of weight I could lift.

To re-cap:

• Hip width stance
• Shins touch the bar
• Arms hang straight down from the shoulders and take a mixed grip on the bar

Another point you should be aware of is with regards to my head position. My neutral head position means that I am looking at a spot on the floor about 6 to 8 feet in front of me when I am in the start position of my pull. I don’t listen to all those dudes saying, “Look up, look up!”

What I do next is allow my hips to rise and then forcefully pull them back down so that my shins touch the bar. I do this again and then I do it a third time.

On the third go, I pull. Be aware that as I pull my scapulae are directly over the bar – this is essential for a strong deadlift.

What you need to understand is that each time I pull my hips down into the bar I am generating more force. In other words, I don’t go from relaxed to generating over 1,000lbs of force in a split second. Instead, I allow the force to build over the course of a second or two, using these three ‘dips.’

NOTE: That’s why you see the bar bending before I pull it.

When the bar leaves the floor, my abs and lats are as tight as I can possibly get them. The abs are braced – imagine what you would do if you were about to get punched in the stomach to absorb the force and you will understand the meaning of ‘braced.’

Most average lifters ‘get’ the concept of bracing the abs fairly quickly, but many struggle with getting their lats tight. This tightness of the lats and abs is what enables me to keep my lower back in a good position throughout the pull, while also preventing any ‘strength leakages.’

To get the feeling of locking your lats, set-up in your regular deadlift stance. Now have your training partner karate chop you in the lats five times. Providing you are alive, you will soon learn to tense your lats! Once you understand how to tense your lats, lock them at the start of the pull and keep them like that throughout.

Now, back to my pull…

As the bar leaves the floor, I keep it very close – that’s why all great deadlifters have scars on their shins. Letting the bar drift away from your shins and out in front of you is a great way to fail a big deadlift attempt. For every centimeter you allow it to get in front of you, the weight feels much heavier and greatly stresses the lower back.

So the bar must stay close.

As I lift the bar higher and higher off the ground I carry on squeezing my grip as hard as possible. As the bar passes my knees I drive the hips forward to lockout the weight.

At lockout I stand tall, chest out, shoulders back and down.

I do not hyperextend at lockout – always the tell-tale sign of an inexperienced puller or simply a masochist who enjoys hurting his or her lower back!

Once locked out I usually do some immature, fancy stuff like sticking my tongue out and looking at the crowd, but you don’t need to this.

All that’s then left is to stay tight, push the hips back and lower the bar to the floor.

Let’s summarize my deadlift technique:

• Set-up with a hip width stance, shins touching the bar, toes turned slightly out.
• Letting my arms hang down from my shoulders, I take a mixed grip on the bar.
• I now let my hips rise and do 3 ‘dips’ into the bar.
• On the third dip, I pull.
• My abs are braced and my lats are locked.
• As I pull, the bar stays close to my body at all times.
• As the bar clears my knees I drive my hips through to lockout.
• At lockout I stand tall but don’t hyperextend.

That’s it – that’s how I deadlift.

One final point: you’ll notice that my hips and back lockout at the same time.

For many lifters their legs are locked out a long time before the pull is completed, leaving their backs to finish the pull.

I believe this increases injury-risk for the back.

Train with Andy Bolton – Click here for his free strength training program.

Curious about the rest of the book? Read our book review.

“Deadlift Dynamite” is available for $49.95 at DragonDoor.com.

The post How to Deadlift More (Book Excerpt) appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 3, Day 1: Squat Day

A. Squat: Work up to 385lbs x 3 reps x 3 sets

B. Leg Press: 15 reps x 4 sets

C. Lying Leg Curls: 15 reps x 4 sets

D. Plank: 30 seconds x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 3, Day 1 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 2, Day 3: Bench Press Day

A. Bench Press: Work up to 265lbs x 3 reps x 3 sets

B. 3 Board Bench Press: 5 reps x 3 sets

C. Pull Ups: 8-12 reps x 3 sets (Add weight if possible)

D. Bent Over Rear Delt Raises: 12 reps x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 2, Day 3 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 2, Day 2: Squat Day

A. Squat: Work up to 365lbs x 3 reps x 3 sets

B. Leg Press: 15 reps x 4 sets

C. Lying Leg Curls: 15 reps x 4 sets

D. Plank: 30 seconds x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 2, Day 2 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 2, Day 1: Bench Press Day

A. Bench Press: Work up to 245lbs x 5 reps x 2 sets

B. 3 Board Bench Press: 5 reps x 3 sets

C. Pull Ups: 8-12 reps x 3 sets (Add weight if possible)

D. Bent Over Rear Delt Raises: 12 reps x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 2, Day 1 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Strength & Conditioning Workouts – Andy Bolton

In the next four weeks, twelve workouts total, I’ll show you how to use the method of training that I used to build my 1,214lb squat, 755lb bench and 1,008lb deadlift.

The method is called cycling. And it’s not just me who has used cycling to build serious strength. Powerlifting legends like Ed Coan and Captain Kirk trained in a similar way.

I’ll be providing you two examples: a six-week cycle for your squat and a six-week cycle for your bench. You can work these in with other training, dedicating one day per week to these lifts. We will be posting these workouts over four weeks, so you’ll have plenty of ability to plan ahead in your six-week cycle.

On day one for either lift you will need to establish your 1RM. Once you have established your 1RM, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. At the end of the cycle, after re-testing your max, omit your next squat or bench session and start a new cycle the following week.

That’s the basic cycling approach:

1. Establish your max.
2. Set a challenging but realistic new max to hit in 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12 weeks.
3. As the weeks go by, the weight goes up and the reps go down.

Here are guidelines for adding weight:

For the squat:

• Jump 10-20lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 20-30lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 30-50lbs per session if you’re advanced

For the bench:

• Jump 10-15lbs per session if you’re a beginner
• Jump 15-20lbs per session if you’re an intermediate
• Jump 20+ per session if you’re advanced

Once you have established your 1RM on the squat, you’ll need to pick a challenging yet realistic target to hit the next time you test your max in six weeks’ time. For example, let’s assume your 1RM on week one was 400lbs. You decide to aim to squat 420lbs when you re-test – a solid gain of 20lbs.

It might not be fancy, but it gets the job done. Of course, there are many ways to set up your cycles – I’ve just given you a couple of examples to get you started. To learn a lot more about cycling, check out the book I wrote with Pavel called Deadlift Dynamite and visit my website.

Week 1, Day 3: Squat Day

A. Squat: Work up to 345lbs x 5 reps x 2 sets

B. Leg Press: 20 reps x 4 sets

C. Lying Leg Curls: 20 reps x 4 sets

D. Plank: 30 seconds x 3 sets

The post Strength & Conditioning: Andy Bolton, Week 1, Day 3 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.