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5 of your training questions answered.

And that's fine - many champions have been built without using a barbell. But as anyone who has an IQ over 4 knows physical training/GPP has a bigger effect on the less than talented (you literally have to be a thick-tongued drooler to not know this).

Question: From your experience as a strength coach can you give some advice for a young strength coach just coming up in the industry?

Answer:

I'll list several things, in no particular order that would help any person be a better coach.

I love doing dips, although I'm 100% convinced they didn't help my bench press. I do think they helped my press, though.

Question: 

A few weeks ago, I did a Q/A on Instagram. Keep in mind that I asked that the questions be short/answers short - like most people I find typing on a phone ridiculous and impossible to write 16 week training cycles.  So I tried to be as precise with my answers as possible while not being so damn boring.

If you don't have time to watch this, in short: because we are animals. Men are being declawed and our teeth are getting dull. Our bodies and minds were never meant to spend half of our day laying around and the other half on our knees.

1. I think people need to understand the difference between being sick and being ill.  Being sick and training is fine - being ill and training isn't.  I'm sure you've seen the multitudes of weak individuals who stop training when they are hurt; it's very similar. Being hurt and being injured are very different.  So suck it up and learn to differentiate between the two.

I just had a question regarding missing reps.  I've done about 5 cycles of 531 now and love it.  Some odd days I might mess my final set up by having a bad starting position or something small.  I usually end up repeating the final set again properly, not sure if this is wise. 

In the future, if I miss the # of required reps should I:

(a) punch a hole in the gym wall, rip my hair out and worry about it for the next 4 weeks 

(b) suck it up and do it again 

(c) forget about it and continue to assistance work 

(d) kill myself

I am 31 5'9 and weigh a jello-like 376 as of yesterday. I have purchased your 5/3/1 2nd edition and was wondering if there were any special tips you can give me on dropping this fat suit that aren't in the book?

Question: I wanted to get your thoughts on this. I'm a college student and next week I'm taking a new job unloading trucks at UPS. I worked there over Christmas peak season and my training went to shit. When I start next week I'll probably be working around five hours a day, five days a week. After a couple days of working there it begins to be a bitch. I'm planning on adjusting my training schedule from 4 days/week to 2 days/week. Keep in mind, I'm trying to stay as north of vag as possible, but I was wondering how you would recommend balancing my training schedule with my work schedule and avoid burning out.

Answer: I did this for a year as a job. I lifted 4 days/week and ran hills 4 days/week. You’ll be fine. First week sucks but you’ll adapt. Quick tucking it and let it swing.

Q:  I am not a huge fan of caffeine (aside from my morning cup of coffee) but there are times when after a long day at work it is really tough to get up for a good workout. My drug of choice here would be sugar-free Red Bull, but I am leery to start introducing something like that to my routine. What do you think - good, bad, who really gives a crap if it works for you?

A:  If you can tolerate it, it’s fine. If not, don’t use it. It’s not like you are injecting heroin so I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Stimulants, especially the older you get, have a bigger price so be sure you are willing to pay it.

Question:
I know there are a lot of variables to this question but do you find that older lifters (over 55) respond better to full body training 2 days a week or focusing on one main lift a day 4 days a week?

Answer:
It doesn't matter at all - for any lifter. People get so caught up in this stuff, and I totally understand why, but it doesn't matter at all. Just like where you put the bar when you squat, what kind of grip you take on chins/pull-ups, casein vs. whey...I should write an article on this. Just a lot of bickering and ridiculousness.

Anyway, with an older lifter there are a couple things that need to be addressed/looked at. First...

Question: Fasted cardio...worth it? If your schedule permitted and your main goal at the time was fat loss, would you do some of your prowler work/hill sprints in the morning on an empty stomach?

Question: I did 5/3/1 previously and am considering starting it again soon. I had a couple questions that I could really use answering First off, could I add an arm day as the 5th day to workout?