Squatting and Getting Stronger.

I have been away from my blog or awhile. I have made some life and personal changes. During the last year or so I quit my job as a fireman and have become healthier. Last year at this time, my blood pressure was consistently 175/100 with a resting pulse of 90... My average this year has been 108/64 with a 62 resting pulse.

Lack of sleep and stress are powerful.

In any case, I have made some great progress in strength.

My bench has crept up to 305 lbs for one rep.

I have become much, much more comfort able with the high bar position in the squat. I switched last year from the low bar. I got my high bar squat up to 440 lbs earlier this spring. No videos, but I do have a smooth 420 lift here...

I've also been dabbling into the high rep ranges some, very close to a 315 x 20 squat. Here is a set of 15...

At some point I will probably write about my experiences with insomnia, PTSD, and depression. How it affected me, my life, my relationships, my health, and even my lifting. For now, I just wanted to update this blog-- as it kept my mind occupied at the fire station when I was there.

All good things and working my best to improve myself as a human being. Happiness is a choice.

In strength,
Phil

6 Week Squat & Bench Routine

Here are a couple routines you can use for breaking past lingering plateaus in the bench and the squat.

Use your current one rep max (1RM), not a training max.
70% x 8 x 5 reads 70% of 1RM x 8 sets x 5 reps.

Your squat days will look like this...

6 Week Squat Routine

	Day 1	Day 2
Week 1	70% x 8 x 5	80% x 6 x 2
Week 2	70% x 10 x 6	85% x 6 x 2
Week 3	75% x 8 x 5	87% x 7 x 2
Week 4	70% x 3, 75% x 3, 80% x 2, 85% x 2, 90% x 3 x 1	80% x 6 x 2
Week 5	70% x 2, 75% x 2, 80% x 2, 85% x 2, 90% x 1, 95% x 3 x 1	85% x 12 x 2
Week 6	OFF	TEST 1RM

Alternatively for your bench, your routine will look like this...

6 Week Bench Routine

	Day 1	Day 2
Week 1	55% x5, 65% x3 70% x 2, 80% 5 x 2, 60x10	55% x4, 65& x3, 70% 2 x 3, 75% 2 x 2, 80% 2 x 2, 85% 2 x 1, 70% x 4,60% x10
Week 2	55% x4, 65% x3, 70% x3, 80% 5 x 3, 60% x 12	55% x4 65% x3, 75% 2 x 3, 75% 2 x 3, 80% 3 x 2, 85% 2 x 2, 75% x4, 60% x12
Week 3	55% x4, 65% x3, 70% x2, 80% 5x4	55% x4, 65% x4, 70% x3, 75% x2, 80% x3, 85% 2x3, 90% 4x1, 65% x10
Week 4	55% x3, 60% x3, 70% x2, 80% 12x2,	55% x3, 60% x3, 70% x2, 80% x2, 85% x1, 90% x1, 95% 6x1
Week 5	55% x3 60% x3, 70% x2, 80% x2, 85% 3x2	OFF
Week 6	TEST 1RM	Rest

You can use these programs together. If you decided to, this is what it will look like with antagonist assistance work.

All Together For 6 Weeks

	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4
Week 1	Bench + BB Row	Squat + GHR	Bench + DB Row	Squat + RDL
Week 2	Bench + BB Row	Squat + GHR	Bench + DB Row	Squat + RDL
Week 3	Bench + BB Row	Squat + GHR	Bench + DB Row	Squat + RDL
Week 4	Bench + BB Row	Squat + GHR	Bench + DB Row	Squat + RDL
Week 5	Bench + BB Row	Squat + GHR	OFF or Light Work	Squat + RDL
Week 6	Max On Bench	OFF	OFF or Light Deload	Max on Squat

You can certainly add in some other assistance work of course. As always, just don't go nuts. You could throw in a little overhead pressing on one bench day and some type of vertical pulling (i.e. pull-ups) on the other bench day. Also, it should go without saying, to work your abs a few days a week through the cycle. You really should not have to do much more for your lower body other than the squats-- it should be more than plenty.

I used pretty much the exact some template to squat 430 lbs. You can check it out the video here:

Stick To Your Guns

One of the worst things a lifter, or anyone for that matter, can do is comparing yourself to others. In the modern day of the internet we are constantly bombarded with "do this," "do that," or some new fad. On top of that, we have the ability to expose ourselves to all of these people around the world who might seem ridiculously strong and you begin to question why the hell you're even busting ass in the gym.

You need to keep in mind that if you are doing the basics such as following a sound lifting program, lifting with great intensity, following a diet, and getting rest that there is little you can do outside of that to progress any quicker or further. The struggle, yet the key, is being creative and persistent through this process. I started lifting in high-school in a Strength & Conditioning class at the confused age of 14. I never cared about what I could lift. I just wanted a class where I could do what was natural to me, which was being physically active. I hated sitting in a class room and doing book work. Till this day, I hate it, and I have a degree in physics.

I fell out of lifting for years, I thought it was silly. Gyms made no sense to me. The people running in place on a treadmill like a hamster on an exercise wheel or some muscled up narcissistic douchebag watching himself pump his muscles in front of a mirror. I called the gym, and still do today, the Gerbal Gym. Most gyms are this. People in there trying to fulfill some bullshit that makes absolutely no sense to me. I hate gyms. However, the internet gave me a fantastic gift. I saw these guys lifting big weights and training their primordial personalities with passion. Hot damn, video after video, article after article, I began learning about a whole different culture of men and women who just trained to become better humans. They didn't train for beauty pageant shows, to look good for the beach, or because of some doctor's prescription... they trained to become stronger versions of themselves. For no other reasons other than to just do it. I believe that is what fascinated me with the whole powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting circles. I always associated general exercise, conditioning, and weightlifting with bullshit. It opened my eyes and I am not sure why. Athletes do these things to train for various sports, you name it. However, this gave me a gift-- a gift that enabled me to release the common sociological crap that plagues modern man.

When you feel like you are losing, you are stagnant, and perhaps regressing. Remember why you are doing what you are doing. I can guarantee the reason lies within you on such a deep personal level that what others are doing is absolutely of zero importance. Pave your own path. Recognize your own strengths and weaknesses. Never give up. Take pride in your struggles. The great music and emotional moving art is created through exactly what you are going through. Saturate yourself in it.

Bigger Traps Assistance Work

Large trapezius muscles are beneficial for many reasons, to name a few:


1) They look awesome and give a lifter that athletic "power look."
2) They provide an important platform for the barbell during movements such as squats and behind the neck presses.
3) They are insanely powerful muscles which aid in pretty much every compound movement.
4) They support stability in the upper back increasing the amount of weight lifted in the squat, bench, deadlift, and Olympic lifts.
5) Weak people have small traps. Larger traps correlate with a strong person.


During my unfortunate and unavoidable hiatus from lifting one of the areas I wanted to bring up quickly was my traps. For the reasons above and others. They are a very important muscle to focus on. For me, the more beef I have on my back the more weight I can comfortably set on my back to squat. Also, strong traps make any type of pulling movement easier. Whether it is off the ground, vertically, horizontally-- and so on.


I would like to share with you what I did to focus on building distinguishable trapezius muscles. First, let me share with you before, during, and after photos. They are not the best of quality, but will give you an idea of what some simple persistent training can do for you.


First off, this is me around December 2012:

Dec. 2012

This is about 6 months later:

June 2013

...and finally, about 6 months after that at the end of 2013.

December 2013

This is what I did. Nothing fancy, just a combination of classic bodybuilding schemes and olympic assistance work. Regardless of your weekly split, just add these in accordingly however you would like, and what compliments your training days. 3 x 12 reads 3 sets of 12 reps.

Weeks 1-4
Day 1: High Face Pull 3 x 12

Day 2: Snatch Grip Hi Pull 5 x 5

Day 3: High Face Pull 3 x 12

Weeks 5-8
Day 1: High Face Pull 3 x12, pause for 1 second at top contraction

Day 2: Snatch Grip Hi Pull 3 x 3

Day 3: High Face Pull, Drop Sets 3 x 25, no rest between sets.

That is it, I pretty much cycled that for a solid year and the only thing I changed was increasing the weight every chance I was able to.

Now remember this is all assistance work. So this should be used in conjunction with a solid strength training template. If you're looking for a solid strength program check out my article on An Effective Variation of 5x5. It will get you strong and jacked, guaranteed. Hope this helps.

Training: The Mind

I got into a discussion (mostly listening) recently at work about exercise. A lot of people train for reasons that seem ambiguous and common. For example; a lot of people exercise for health reasons, they don't like the way they look (aesthetic), or their doctor or someone is telling them they need to exercise in order to add some amount of possible time to their life.

I find all of this hard to understand, because I wouldn't step foot into a gym for any of these reasons. For this reason people at face value often confuse me as a health nut, exercise guru, someone obsessed with the aesthetics and health benefits of exercising. I feel that this is also why a lot of people fail at ever changing anything physically, mentally, and emotionally through exercise.

The drive is not there. Just wanting to lose some flub around the mid-section, wanting to lower your blood pressure, or wanting to "look better naked" is going to result in less than ideals results over the long haul. It has to be beyond that I feel. Sure, there are those that become totally obsessed with a personal issue and will become persistent -- however, these are usually those that you see at the local gym doing the same thing day in and day out, year after year.

Like a mechanical organism, programmed to do one thing because "that is the only way" and in fear of transforming to their formal selves.

Training gives me a sense of self, it reminds me of my mortal barriers, that my body is still there. What I mean is that from day to day, the average person forgets about their body. It is sort of like when you get really sick you all of a sudden realize holy shit how awesome was it when I could breath clearly and my lungs were clear-- you realize you really take good health for granted.

Or, when you get injured and you lose the function of a limb, only then is the average person aware of the appendage. When you train, and train hard, you are constantly aware of your body. The very act of it being constantly torn down and built up, over and over, again and again. Sleeping good, sleeping bad, big appetite, small appetite, gorilla like strength one day, the strength of a mouse the next-- this dynamic process creates this self awareness of your body that is consistently in your face.

Training embodies a part of me, that is otherwise useless in current society. There is no true physical struggle anymore-- life is easy from a physical standpoint. Our hardships are mostly financial and social. I can walk into a store to buy my food, I turn a facet on to get clean water, walk into a doctor's office to get medicine-- necessities are in abundance granted that I keep my end of the bargain up and go to work and serve the system. This honestly leaves me in this unfulfilled state, where my primordial component handed to me from my ancient ancestors is left to rot and decay. Training keeps it alive, honed in, and trained.

Training resets the negative. I've commented before, training is often a religious experience for me. It is beyond a big squat or a nice chest. It is almost completely about my mind. The challenge is the fuel. The body is my vessel, it is a tool I use for my mind.

Training Specifics

This week I had a physical fitness test at work (Fire Department). It doesn't mean the department actually cares about my fitness, they do it so they can get federal funding. In other words, they have to have a "Wellness Program" instated in order to get that cash from the guv'ment.

The PT test consisted of nothing spectacular (which I am happy about):
- 1 mile run on a treadmill. (b/c we all know a treadmill mimics running on the ground...)
- Push-ups performed to the cadence of a metronome (total bullshit).
- Sit & reach test. (Still haven't figured out why this test is done across the nation.)
- Body fat done using neck/waist/weight ratio (You could imagine how accurate this is.)

You probably have concluded from my sarcasm the amount of merit I put into this test. I think a lot of it comes from my personal training of myself, so the fact that the department is testing me is almost insulting-- but I understand why they are doing it. Especially when you have a lot of overweight, out-of-shape fireman walking around. Not to mention, it is nice to have the grant money to buy equipment and so on... even though after two years I still have not received my second set of turnout gear... despite national standards, oh well. Another rant for another time.

In any case, while I was mind numbingly running on the treadmill like a hamster on a wheel I was thinking about how training specifically for a task is how you become good at things. Sure there is some carry over from some training, but to be efficient at a task you have to train for that specific task. Running being one of them. One of the "instructors" walked up to me and asked me if I was going to beat so-and-so's 6:17 mile run. My reply was, "Nope, I'm just here because I have to be." Sounds like a horrible disgruntled employee answer, but let me explain.

I never run, not do I care to run or to be good at running. I hate it, I think it is a waste of time, it is horrible on my joints, and it interfers with my training. If someone loves to run, that is fan-freakin-tastic. You don't see me asking the instructors if they want to find a squat rack and measure dicks that way. 

The last time I had ran any further than 80 yards was about 1.5 years ago. So I was quite happy with my 1-mile run of 8:28 seconds. The last time I had ran, I ran a 6:37 mile. Why? Because I was forced to run 3 times a week. So, my body was trained to run. Not now, I do nothing but train for strength and walk with my girlfriend and dog at the park for about 2 miles per day. I do that, because I enjoy it. It gives time for my girl and I to talk, get some low intensity cardio in, and play with our dog. That is it. If I hated it, you wouldn't see me walking. I don't do anything I don't want to do, that isn't how I want to live my life.

I do perform sprints, prowler pushes, and hill sprints when I feel I need the extra conditioning, but this has not been a year round training regimen for me, because I don't feel like I need it. I'm fairly lean, I get through my training sessions fine, and I can perform my job functions well. Basically, I can wear turnout gear, an air pack, and a set of irons and do some work in a hot house. Good enough for me. My goals are specific to me, as they should be for everyone. 

Another test, the push-ups to a metronome, were no different. The interesting thing about this was I scored the exact same as I did about 18 months ago. Why that is interesting is becasue my bench press has improved by 70 pounds during this time. You would think my push-ups would increase because my bench press had increase so much, but it did not. So, again, my body is adapting to specifics. I find this pretty cool.

The reason for this rant, is just to show that if you take a physical fitness test or see someone do something that you don't do regularly-- take it with a grain of salt. Perhaps a tablespoon of salt. I am one of those people that likes to be great at everything, but I have to take a step back and think about what is important to me. Rather than be defensive, I should understand that I am in fact very strong in what I do and I train significantly different than what I am being tested on.

I respect everyone's great achievements, one of the fireman ran a 5:20 mile! Pretty badass, but it should be noted that he runs marathons. He trains to run extremely long distances, so 1-mile for him was probably like a walk to the kitchen to grab a snack.

Bottom-line, do what you do and be as awesome as you can at it.

Maximal Lifting: Controlling Fear & Anxiety

Man the fuck up.

Could you imagine what went through the minds of these young 18, 19 year old kids when they stepped off on to the beaches of Normandy, Omaha, Iwo Jima, Tarawa? This is something I think about day to day, when I am feeling like a bitch in my cozy little life.

Fear and anxiety are a part of our every day life. However, in order to move forward, in order to achieve, in order to succeed, in order to be stronger today than you were yesterday-- you have to remember something... your mind and body lie to you. You still have a choice. Regardless of what you think and feel.

You need to remember that you subconsciously want to be lazy. Your body does not want to do anymore than it has to. It wants to be comfortable. It does not want to have to burn energy and work anymore harder than it has to. Have you ever found yourself feeling sluggish, tired, and lethargic? Therefore the thought of just getting up to take a piss sounds like an all out effort that would be similar to running a marathon while carrying a hippo on your back? Yeah? Me too. Then, you force yourself to do something, say like vacuuming the floor or going to workout, and once you get going you realize you had more energy than you thought? Hell, I've been running off of 2 hours a sleep after a busy 24 hour shift at the Fire Department then I go and have an epic squat session. Even though before my vision was blurred, I was dizzy and the world seemed like a thick fog.

I don't know the science behind all of the brain chemicals and hormones in the body, but I can certainly liken these effects to adrenaline, dopamine, and the like. Before I go on, I am certainly not advocating not sleeping and training when you should certainly rest. Sleep is extremely important for the body. However, one needs to weigh their situation with reality and the way it has got to be. I choose my battles and push myself beyond the pseudo "normal limit" one could say. This is because I understand my mind and body. I know when to ignore it and when to listen to it.

A a very similar thing happens with anxiety towards lifting heavy weights. It is natural and happens to everyone that genuinely pushes their physical and mental barriers.

Controlling Fear & Anxiety

First, a lifter needs to understand why they are feeling anxiety when lifting at maximal, sub-maximal weights, or even just during a challenging training program. Anxiety with lifting generally comes from either one or a combination of these reasons:

• Fear of failure.
• Fear of putting out; hard work. i.e. it is really gonna suck.
• Fear of injury or death.
• Fear of quality performance; performance anxiety.

That is really it and I have experienced every single one of those fears in my time of lifting. I have been lifting weights on and off for about 16 years now, 6 years of how I do now (powerlifting, Russian systems, etc.), and can confidently say I am very familiar with them. The amazing thing is, I no longer experience them any longer, and it is a pleasant freedom to have. I feel I have gotten this way through the experience of never succumbing to them, much like never giving in to being "tired." That is not to say I have never had to do internal battle with them. It is important to note that these fears/anxieties are just as  important to becoming a stronger lifter as the actual physical lifting.

Learning to deal with these is just like learning to deal with dying loved ones, betrayal, social anxiety, discipline in school studies, and so on. You will find the harder you push your mind in the weight room the stronger your mind will become in your everyday life. It is what I always say about why I lift, and why I lift the way I do, because it tempers my mind and soul into something more than just Phil York. Part of the process is learning to deal with these fear and anxieties just like you would outside in your normal life.

To start, look at each one, and realistically analyze them.

Fear of  Failure
Remember, the only person that cares is you, and you alone. You manifest these qualifications of yourself. No one else. You must also remember that failure is what drives all of us. Without failure there would not be greatness and success. There would be no reason for anyone to push themselves beyond the standard. It is why we have personal records, right? I have never met a true success whom has not failed, and failed multiple times. I can not tell you how many times I failed getting to where I could squat 405 lbs before I ever got it, but I eventually got there through persistent failures. In short, the failures were what ultimately made me succeed and find out what worked.

Fear of Hard Work
This is my favorite one and I still feel these viral feelings creep into my head every once in awhile. The best reason I have come to believe for the cause of such anxieties is your body simply telling you, "Hey! You do not have to do this!" The best way to deal with this is to just remind yourself why you are doing what you are doing. If the reason/goal is great enough, you will do anything to achieve it. This is where personality plays a huge role. Some people want things bad enough, some people don't. Bottom line, there is no sense in fearing hard work. It is only your mind trying to talk you out of the uncomfortable experience. Over time, you will feel these less and less because you adapt to harder and harder training. 20 rep squat programs, Smolov, and the like are great programs to deliver lessons in overcoming fear of hard work. It is just hard work. Not a big deal.

Fear of Injury/Death
Certainly a legitimate concern. You just have to rationalize it. I can remember when I first started training my working sets in the high 300's for squats. I remember my mind telling me to rack the weight, rack the weight, rack the weight all of the time! I hate to admit it, but I have listened to those words a few times and every time I regret it as soon as the weight is off me. I realize I was in no real danger, it was just a natural reaction. Your mind realizes that weight could kill you or seriously harm you. In a twisted way, it is why heavy compound lifts are so awesome and why they work. You must keep yourself alive by doing them. Pretty awesome right? In reality there is nothing to fear. If you are using good solid form and are lifting with a spotter or in a rack, you really have nothing to worry about. Keep it in perspective. Lift smart and safe.

Performance Anxiety
Fear of your own personal performance. Whenever you get anxious about how you will perform in your training, break everything down to it's most simplistic form. Which is again, just hard work. If it is a thought of, "How am I going to do this?" Again, break everything down to it's simplicity. If you are using smart programming, especially off of percentages, then that ability to succeed lies within you and you alone. That means, you are capable of doing it. The anxiety comes from self doubt and lack of confidence. Consider the moment when you feel this way an opportunity to prove to yourself that you can do it. If you do in fact fail at the given task, then you are rewarded with a defining point to improve from. Keep your weaknesses closer to you than your strengths, as they are your point men, they will define where you go from here.

Conclusion
Failure is a step to success. Think about that.

Hard work is the corner stone to the development of anything. It is what tempers and molds humbleness, character, and ability.

Rationalize your fears. Never abandon fear, but control it and keep it in perspective.

No one can judge you but yourself. Recognize your weaknesses and keep them in front. It is the only way you will grow stronger in any form.

I simply believe that everyone must find their "reason." A passionate reason at that. It comes in different forms and different areas of our lives. For me, training has been like medication. I can zone away under the bar. Nothing matters outside of my little space. I forget about hardships, pain, and all of the negativity that comes with living. I love squats for this reason. It is the only exercise where I feel like I have to fight with everything I have to win. Every time. The anxiety, the fear, vanishes when you realize none of it matters. It is that natural power of absolute mental struggle that you cause on yourself. It is pure. You must find that special place if it is in you. It may not be, but that is why I do it. I don't know how it is for others-- but for the short moments when I am grunting through an agonizing set of squats again, and again, and again... I am in a world far beyond the physical one I walk.

Find your reason and you will never fail in the weight room again.

Protyazhka. Warming Up For The Squat

Is it bad when I see a baby squat I get jealous? Everyone's goal should be to squat like a baby! Their form is pristine. Properly warming up and good flexibility should be priority before you squat. Below I will share some of my methods for doing so.
For a functional warm-up for your lower body training, give this old school method a try. It is known as a Protyazhka, a Russian Olympic lifter's protocol developed by yours truly, Sergey Smolov.

If you are not familiar with Sergey Smolov and his infamous squat routine check out these two articles: Druge Free Steroid-Like Gains for the Squat and Smolov for Front Squats.

A Protyazhka consists of a snatch grip long pull without any knee dip. It is combined into a combination of a press behind the neck and an overhead squat. Keep in mind, this will be essentially a barbell complex without rest. It will look like this:

Snatch Grip Long Pull 3-5 reps
+
Wide Grip Overhead Press 3-5 reps
+
Overhead Squat 3-5 reps

Do this for a total of four to five rounds.

To perform the snatch grip long pull, without knee dip, imagine the stiff legged deadlift (SDL). Start in the beginning portion of the SDL using a snatch grip. Using your hips only, drive the bar up. Remember, you are not performing an actual snatch overhead, you are just using your hips to drive the bar up.

The wide grip overhead press is to be performed behind the neck.

The overhead squat forces good technique. An overhead squat cannot be performed correctly with any major flexibility or form issues and I am in favor of utilizing this moving before every squat session. It forces one to use good technique, and it is a great motor pattern warm-up for this reason as well.

This circuit is a great way to promote good blow flow, raise core temperature, and stretch out tight areas. I personally use just the barbell, you can also use a broomstick as well. You could add a small amount of weight if you need it to push you into the hole if you are that tight, but remember it is a warm-up.

To take this a step further I like to incorporate the following before every squat session.

Leg Swings 2 x 12-15 swings
Garland Pose 2 x 45 second holds (use the elbows to apply pressure to the inner knee)
Stretch the Piriformis 2 x 20 second holds
Overhead Squats w/ a broom stick 2 x 10 reps
Foam Rolling (focus on, IT Band, Piriformis, quads, & hamstrings)

Slowly work-up to your working sets. If my first working set is say 275 lbs, my work-up will look like this:
45 lbs (bar) x 5-10 reps
95 lbs x 5 reps
135 lbs x 3 reps
185 lbs x 2 reps
225 lbs x 1 rep
Start...

The goal for me everytime is to make sure every weight feels "good." I shouldn't have any tightness, hot spots, or areas that are problematic. If I do 95 lbs for 5 and it feels shitty, I do it again. So, in other words, I don't move up till that weight feels nice and my body is warm with it.

If you do this, it will ensure a pretty awesome squat session every time. You will move bigger weights with better form and feeling better about it. Take the time to warm-up every time you squat!

The Fear of Mortality: A Fireman's Experience.

As a fireman, I see death on a regular basis. I don't experience this any more than say a nurse or emergency room doctor, but in some cases it is so very raw from my vantage point. I am sensitive to this. Without a doubt I keenly observe someone's actions when they are about to embark on this ethereal, yet frightening, experience that we must all face at some point in our time. It makes me weep. I feel for some of these people. The most notable images that stand out in my mind are the elderly, as they generally have this long drawn out ordeal that they unfortunately are well aware of.

When we ran nursing homes as a fire department on a more regular basis (the majority of these calls were cut out of our response directives due to budget savings being that there are qualified medical professionals in these facilities) I ran into this all too often, and honestly I do not know how nurses work in that environment. The look in someone's eyes when they are suffocating from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease day in and day out is a look that it is very horrible when they gaze upon you, clenching your arm for help. I once walked in to a room where some nurses were suctioning out a guys lungs. Just from old age, his lungs were not functioning properly, he was probably in his 80's. God, I still remember his cries and his attempts to pull the suction tube out of his throat, but myself and another nurse held his arms down. He squirmed uncomfortably as the tears rolled down his cheeks. I tried not to look at him directly, but I kept feeling him stare at me with those glassy eyes of sadness... I eventually looked at him. We met eyes.. I stared back into his soul and he saw the anguish in my eyes as I turned the corner of my mouth up to let him know I understood his pain. Fuck, how could I? For a moment, he stopped moving, relaxing momentarily as he starred back at me. The sounds of the fluid being sucked out of his lungs and the nurse talking some gibberish to my Captain faded away and I felt like I connected with this guy for that brief time. I would like to think so. He smelled horrible, blended with the smell of a nursing home-- the piss, shit and bleach... fuck, he probably couldn't smell any of that anymore. I would dry heave every fuckin time I would go in to these places. I hope he is dead now, in a better place... wherever that is. He didn't deserve that bullshit. Nobody does. Every day of his life was a "Hey you son of a bitch, here is some pain before you die."

There was this lady who would always roll her wheelchair through the halls or into a room of another resident/patient when we were there to do whatever. Amongst the screams and yelling in the halls, she was always clutching a Minnie Mouse stuffed animal toy. Here she was, in her late 60's probably, in bad health, left to die in a nursing home. I would always talk to her when I visited. Her children rarely visited her. She was all alone. All she had was that Minnie Mouse toy and her television. She would tear up when I would tell her hello, I never knew what to do. I guess I could have gone to see her on my days off from work, but I simply could not bear to be around that environment any more than those brief moments when we would get called over there. Selfish? Yeah, absolutely.

Her friend on one particular day was one of our patients. I can't remember what was wrong with her, but she was in a lot of pain and we were helping the paramedics get her on the stretcher to transport her to the hospital. She had a stuffed animal toy dog in her bed. I placed it on her chest when she was on the stretcher and she clutched it in her arms like a child. The paramedic looked at me like I was stupid, but I looked back at him ready for him to say anything to me. He didn't, but I can't understand how some people forget that these people are living a pretty shitty life. A stuffed animal might be the only comfort they have, and fuck it, they deserve a young 29 year old fireman to take the 3 seconds to give them that...

I mention both of those ladies, because I find it peculiar on how people will revert to childlike ways when everything is stripped away from them. When I say everything, I don't mean houses, money and cars. I am talking about life. When your life is slipping through your fingers like water, no matter how tightly you clinch your fist-- people will become like children. It is as if that loss of all control to natures inevitable forces, causes them to surrender all that they believed who they were. I have seen it in every person that I have seen die, or about die. That fear, that reaction to death, is honestly something that I think a lot of people do not ever realize until it happens to them. Perhaps, very few are prepared for it... if you can even prepare for it at all. It has certainly changed how I look at people. Even those whom believe they are tough and ready for the worse. They are not.

I was with a younger lady when she took her last breaths from a motor vehicle accident. She was only conscious very briefly before her body shut her brain down to try and stay alive. Her eyes darted frantically for some type of clarity on the situation, as she looked to me and another fireman as we raced to put oxygen on her. She held her hands up as if she had no idea what to do. Her eyes said it all, "I have no idea how to make this different." I didn't say a word to her, we just tried to get to work to hopefully make the situation better. Sometimes, we can't do enough.

If you could imagine the very worst mistake you have ever made-- and that feeling you have when you have made that mistake-- and you know that there is nothing that you can do to reverse the mistake that you have made. Do you understand that sensation I am talking about? I interpret that is what the young lady was feeling on the asphalt. Except, it was her life, and she knew it.

I once had an older fella tell me to throw him in the river and get it over with. Life was bad for him. He was done with trying to beat his disease. If you would had let him, he would have taken his life, I am sure of it.

I... I could go on... There is no point I guess to mention any more examples, but believe me they are there. I think about them from time to time. Usually when I am tired, frustrated with life, and ready to give up doing what society expects of me. I think about all of these people and their deaths. What did any of it matter? What does any of it matter presently?

One of the most peculiar things about getting off of work from the fire station, is the drive home. Watching everyone frantically get to their jobs, get their kids to school, or whatever. I always feel in a state of slow motion. As if death and suffering were these ghostly ethereal beings floating around everyone but everybody is too preoccupied to notice. Sometimes that transition from work to your "day off" is impossible to create. I would talk about bad calls in the beginning with family members or my girlfriend, because you're "supposed to talk about it." That isn't real life. You start to bring people down with you if you shared with them what goes on at work and how you feel about it. It doesn't work. That is just what they tell you, because simply, people will not get it. They are just stories. They weren't there and they'll never, ever understand.

That is unfortunately how it is. We all die. However, some of it is certainly worse for others. I am not sure how I view the fact that I was with someone in their last moments. That is something very personal, something very special in a way. Some of these people made bad choices, sure, some didn't-- it was the cards they were given in this life. Either way, it was personal. That is not to be taken lightly. I hope in some way, I can learn from these people. I hate being a fireman because it is a goddamn reminder of the fragile nature of life. However, I sincerely hope I made that "life to death" transition easier for some. Whether it was by holding their hand through the process or giving them hope that I was going to save them when I could not... I hope they are all in a much, much better place.

Smolov for Front Squats

..and it goes like this.

Recently, I wrote a post regarding my love for the Smolov squat program, called Drug Free Steroid-like Gains for the Squat. A few weeks ago I concluded my run doing the base mesocycle using front squats. I have looked around the internet and have not found too much information about using front squats with Smolov. So here is a basic run down of what I learned, and can share with you, if you are deciding on whether or not you want to do it.

First off, I had all intentions of doing the Intense cycle with the front squats, but knee pain for some reason became an issue. I had no pain what-so-ever during the base cycle, so I was a bit perplexed when it happened during the first week of the Intense phase. What can I say? I had to listen to my body.

Here is my 1-rep max (1RM) test before starting the base mesocycle, this was after doing a few months of an intermediate version of 5x5 I have adopted.

 

That was 275 pounds for a pretty smooth rep. I set my 275 pound max for my 1RM input into Smolov. So my training cycle looked like this:

Week #	Monday	Wednesday	Friday	Saturday
1	195x4x9	205x5x7	220x7x5	235x10x3
2	215x4x9	225x5x7	240x7x5	255x10x3
3	225x4x9	235x5x7	250x7x5	265x10x3
4	Rest	Rest	Rest	Test 1 Rep Max

Here is my 1RM test at the end of the four weeks:

So, that was 325 pounds for one rep. Not too shabby, 50 pound gain for just three weeks of hard work.

I have read a lot about coaches not recommending front squats for over 5-6 reps... Coaches like Charles Poliquin, who know way more than I, advise against front squats for high reps and to treat them like Olympic movements (low reps). Their reasoning is that the upper back can not sustain the load for high reps and you risk kyphosis (upper back rounding) as the muscles fatigue possibly leading to injury or dropping the bar on yourself.

I personally never had a big issue with it. In the beginning I did have a little bit of forward lean (more than needed) from muscle fatigue but this quickly disappeared after the first week and I was pretty upright on all of my sets. I kind of want to take the road of saying your body will adapt to anything. I certainly feel like this was the case here. As with any time I have ever done Smolov, my form becomes exponentially better with squats. My front squats were no exception, even my training partner commented on how well my sets looked more controlled and grounded.

So on the days of 4x9 and 5x7, don't fear them, you will adapt and get stronger. I really feel like my upper back got thicker and stronger in the process. I did add in band pull-aparts to aid in upper back/scapular strength. I did 3 sets of 50 reps with a micro mini band.

As far as additional work, I trained my upper body three days per week. I usually did them on the Monday, Wednesday, and Friday training days. This is what I did:

Monday:
Bench Press 5x5
DB Row 4x5
Band Pull Apart 3x50

Wednesday
Overhead Standing Press 4x5
Pull-Ups 1 x Failure
Face Pull 3x12
Ab Wheel 2x15-20

Friday
Bench Press 4x5, 1x3, 1x8
Chest Supported DB Row 4x8
Band Pull Apart 3x50

Saturday
Ab Wheel 2x15-20

That is pretty much it.

I stretched a lot, as I always do. I feel better physically when I do. About three to four days a week I would walk about 2 miles with my girlfriend and our dog. I never once felt "overtrained" through the process. My diet was pretty casual, probably around 3,000 calories on most days, I didn't track it. I just ate normally, which for me is in the 3,000 ball park, sometimes a little less. My weight did not budge at all, I hovered around 175 to 180 pounds. I do feel I lost some fat, as I visually looked leaner in my mid-section. Again, I did not take measurements as I didn't really care.

Smolov for front squats works just fine, and I would recommend any intermediate or advanced lifter trying to bring up their quad strength to give it a go. As I mentioned before, I did not do the Intense phase, so the might possibly be another animal. It is much harder, if not impossible, to cheat on front squats. So that would certainly play a factor in the Intense phase as a lot of the reps are simply grinded out with nothing but sheer will power and heart. It is more difficult to do that with front squats. Using the base cycle is a quick three work burst to your performance, give it a shot!

Supplements That Are Worth a Damn

One of the things that aggravates me is the supplement industry. Not only are 90% of the supplements out there pretty much bogus, for the price you pay, but the claims are even more so. If you have ever taken a second to really examine a supplement ad, you'll see a teacher's dream for examples of marketing genius. The only thing is, these tactics are old, outdated, and are easy to pick up on.

The claims on the bottles are always full of asterisks and other indicated symbols because they run out of symbols for the many disclaimers. What is even more mind blowing is how easy it would be to make your own supplements. You can buy any ingredient in bulk for a fraction of the cost you would buy it from a dedicated supplement company. Where do you think they buy theirs from? They are not making this stuff in a factory, no, they are combining previously made ingredients from another company, putting it in a bottle or capsules, and slapping a label on it. What drives a supplement companies success is strategic marketing, fancy labels, and sponsoring a "pro" athlete. This is all to drive a name, not a product. Every single sponsored athlete got to their physique/goals/level not by that company, but by many other factors.Then by some magical force that athlete gets sponsored and is all of a sudden saying, "I trust BSN Syntha-6 to help me recover everyday!" or "I wouldn't be at the level I am at now without N.O. Explode!"

I like to hear people talk about how one pre-workout concoction is better than another. It is all the same shit. Different label, different name, different flavor. Then listening to that same person talk about how they can't workout without it. Take apart the ingredients and you will find it is bogus. Take BSN's N.O. Explode for example. People think this shit is amazing because of the energy drink effect and the vasodilation (widening of the blood vessels) that occurs from the nitric oxide, thus making your muscles feel bigger temporarily because of the increased blood flow. In a healthy adult, it doesn't make you stronger and it doesn't make you perform better. It is a psychological effect. If you had some type of cardiovascular disease or diabetes, N.O. could help you perform better-- but in a normal adult it isn't doing anything other than giving you a physical feeling. I will say, studies have shown very high doses of arginine (an ingredient in N.O. Explode) can have a positive effect, but this supplement can be bought as a stand alone far, far more cheaper than the $60 you'll spend on a pre-workout supplement. So I don't write a lengthy blog on case studies, I will leave it at. Do your research and you'll find your answers. I can tell you, many, many studies have been done and people are honestly just drinking really expensive Red Bulls with a lot of added vitamins.

To keep this as short as possible I will list what I feel are the only supplements people need to use. Remember, supplements are exactly what they are called, supplements. That means they supplement your normal daily diet. If your diet sucks, supplements will do nothing for you. Hell, steroids will doing nothing for you if your diet sucks. Neither are the golden ticket. Only proper diet and training will get you your results. Always keep that in mind. Also, it is wise to speak with a physician before starting to use any supplement. Ok, here we go, in no particular order...

1) Protein
Protein is great. I try to get at least 200g of protein per day, sometimes more depending on my diet. I weigh 175 lbs now, so I would recommend what I've found to work, no less than 1g per pound of body weight. I try to get 3/4 of my protein from actual whole food sources, the rest I supplement, usually immediately after my workout. There are different proteins out there such as whey isolate, whey concentrate, whey hydrolysate, casein, vegetable proteins, egg proteins, and the list honestly goes on and on. At some point I might write an article on all of the different types and their benefits. For right now I really believe you can't go wrong with either a blend (most are blends of whey concentrate and isolate) or just simple whey isolate.

Some people will get all freaked out because they read too many internet forums and supplement labels and will tell you that you need a different protein for every part of the day. For the love of the penguins, don't buy into this. Eat a balanced diet, supplement a little protein here and there, and you'll be fine. If you think for a second that protein powder is going to be the defining piece of your ability to achieve your goals-- you need to come out of the fog and start thinking realistically. Don't feel bad if you do think the supplements are what create a physique or strength, I bought into this too at one point! Just find a protein you like the taste of and roll with it.

Currently I have been using Optimum Nutrition's 100% Whey Gold Standard Natural.

I stick with the chocolates and vanillas in just about any protein, I've learned my lesson for ever venturing out of those flavors... I am also a fan of Met-Rx's products.

2) Multivitamin
Unless you are one of the few who do a lot of juicing with vegetables and all sorts of exotic fruits, I would suggest a multivitamin. A lot of people complain about stomach pains when taking vitamins and I have had that experience too. Only when I have taken cheap vitamins like Centrum, Sams Club brand, or One-A-Day do I get stomach pains. Over the last 7 or so years I have experimented with different vitamins, these are the ones I have found work great for me.

• Nature's Way Alive! Whole Food Vitamin, no iron added
• GNC Branded Vitamin's for Men, Mega-Man etc.
• Optimum Nutrition Opti-Men

Now, just like any supplement, vitamins are not necessary-- but if you're like me, I am deficient in some areas of my diet, especially vegetables. I do try to stick to the whole food vitamins the best I can and I always take them with a meal.

3) Fish Oil
Fish oil is pretty awesome.  I have been taking fish oil for 6 years now on a consistent basis. I take around 6g per day. If you eat a lot of fish common sense should tell you that you don't need to take that much. About 1g of oil is in about 3.5 ounces of actual fish. The important components of fish oil are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). When you shop for this supplement you will find varying prices which generally depends on the concentration of EPA and DHA per 1g of fish oil. The higher the the content of these acids, the better the oil is and the more expensive it will be. The health benefits are pretty outstanding, well studied, and even used in medical therapy. Anything from helping control inflammation, heart health, lower bad cholesterol, lower blood pressure, lower triglycerides, and the list continues. Probably the best quality out there that I have tried is Biotest's Flameout.

The old FlameOut label, they no longer have the shark on there. Super bummed when that happened.

4) Creatine Monohydrate
Till this day people still view creatine as an evil supplement! That should tell you how awesome creatine is. People have tried to blame creatine for even deaths! "High-school baseball player dies at practice, had high levels of creatinine in blood, parents found creatine in his gym bag. Creatine killed him!!!" I just summed up an article I read a couple years ago, crazy right?

Some people, usually parents, believe creatine is a steroid too. These are generally the same people who believe muscle turns into fat as well. They'll look you in the eyes with all truth and logic and tell you, that creatine is steroids! This couldn't be further from the truth. Steroids are synthetic hormones, creatine is a naturally occuring amino acid. Creatine works by increasing the bodies ability to create energy. When creatine monohydrate enters the body, it is turned into creatine phosphate, creatine phosphate helps create adenosine triphosphate (ATP), ATP provides the energy for muscle contractions. Unfortuantely, there is only enough ATP in muscle fibers for a few twitches then it has to draw ATP from the ATP "pool." Creatine helps keep this pool full. With more ATP, the muscles can work longer and harder, and thus become stronger in less time. The awesome thing about this is when you stop using creatine the muscles are still just as strong as when you were using creatine, there is no loss of strength.

Creatine is the most researched supplement in the world and there has yet to be any evidence pointing towards the unsafe use of it. Creatine is found naturally in red meat and fish, and is even created by the body.

With creatine, less is more, because once your ATP levels are full creatine is simply secreted out of the body. I don't believe in the loading protocols you see on the bottles either. I just start taking any where from 2g-5g per day with my protein powder and that is it. I see benefits after about a week of taking it. A lot of people gain weight when taking it because of the increased water retention in the muscles. If I do, its not much. Just remember to drink plenty of water with creatine.

Don't worry about the creatine ethyl esters and other variants. Classic monohydrate works, is safe, and it is cheap. $6.00 for 30 servings at 5g per serving... That is stupid cheap for what it does.

That is it. I've tried all sorts of other stuff out there, but these have stood the test of time. Most importantly these all work and I feel are worth the money. If I could, I would like to get to where I can eat everything I can and ditch the multivitamin. Nothing beats good quality fresh whole foods. Nothing. The most important things you can do for your training are a good diet in accordance to your goals and quality sleep. Supplements should be the last thing you think about, or spend your money on. If I only had enough cash to choose between food and supplements, I would be buying packs of meat, pasta, and vegetables.

Honestly, don't waste your time with all of the other stuff. Save your money or use it for something beneficial like a steak burrito, a tank of gas to drive somewhere cool, or some new music. Hope this helps.

Is Overtraining Misunderstood?

I have always battled with accepting the idea of overtraining, also called overreaching, and applying the concepts to my training. In case you are not familiar with this concept, overtraining is essentially a physical, behavioral, and emotional reaction when physical activity exceeds the bodies ability to properly recover from physical exertion. It can cause loss of strength and muscle mass, inability to sleep, irritability, and negative changes in the brain-- among many other effects. In otherwords, it is believed that it is possible for someone to exercise harder than their body will allow which in return causes a bunch of bad shit to result physiologically.

Now, I am not debating the fact that overtraining causes a physiological effect, it does, it is why we get stronger. I am questioning the idea that it is bad, and more importantly, what percentage of the training population should be concerned with overtraining. I am also not an expert in neuroscience, nor neurobiology, but I come from a physics background and one thing that taught me was to find out why things happen. What causes them to work or behave like they do... I don't like taking much for face value, rather I try to find holes in the logic of something, like a statistic for example. If all you ever did was believe everything at face value, you will live your life being severely misinformed. Take this wonderful statistic for example:

100% of people who drink water will die.

That is not a lie, at all. It is 100% true! Seriously, everyone who drinks water will die, right? Of course. This happens all the time, we're only looking at a very small slice of the puzzle. If you read this statistic at face value you will not want to drink water, because apparently everyone who does, parishes. The same can be said for overtraining, why does the body have certain responses to overly intense physical exertion? Instead of simply accepting that the body having this response is automatically bad for you, let's explore it...

If Overtraining Is Such A Prevalent Concern...

 ...then why are the so many people who push well beyond this so called physical limit to become more awesome? My first example is undoubtedly the most badass military unit on the planet, the United States Navy SEALs. I've had a fascination with this group of guys since I was a kid, I've always admired them. Let's take a look at the training one must undergo to just be considered for a spot on the SEAL Teams-- BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition / School). On a small slice of land in Coronado, California, you will find a school called BUD/S. This is a 24 week school one must endure to move on to further specialized training. The attrition rate is generally around 80%. Sure, I will acknowledge that some of these are due to stress and overuse injuries. However, this is where I will address the issue that one most build up and train their body for a given task. You can't take raw metal and expect it to perform like steel, it most be tempered.  Plus, shit happens.

Drown proofing. Its like swimming but with your hands and feet tied.

If you're curious or don't know a lot about this training, I encourage you to read about it. There are tons of books on it. For the sake of this article, let's just look at Hell Week. This particular week falls into the first phase of training and is five and a half days where the trainees only get 4 hours of sleep for the entire week, they run about 200 miles during these days, are still expected to perform evolutions, all the while doing everything else like swimming, carrying boats on their heads, etcetera. How's that for overtraining? There is a reason the President gives these guys the high end jobs like killing Osama Bin-Laden, because they put out and get results.

Let us also take a look at elite level olympic lifters, or even amateur level olympic weightlifting. It is not uncommon for these men and women to squat twice a day, 7 days per week, also while performing the competition lifts like the snatch and/or the clean & jerk. Some gyms even advocate working up to a max every day for their athletes, which defies all conventional wisdom you see in 99% of the gyms across the globe. That basically gives an uppercut and roundhouse kick to the notion that you must only train a body part when it is not sore and never train a muscle group two days in a row. If they took this soft and pansy-like mentality you would not see the impressive numbers being put up today in olympic lifting meets all around the globe.

Chest and back splits? Nope.

Benoît Lecomte swam 3,716 miles in 73 days across the Atlantic ocean... you read that right. In 1998, this badass was followed by a boat that emitted a 25 foot electromagnetic field to ward off sharks. I great white shark followed him for 5 days. To prepare for this great feat, he swam for 5 hours a day, 6 days per week.

Shaolin Monks balance on their heads for hours to strengthen their necks for fighting... 

Just chillin' and taking a load off.

The Princeton Crew Quintathalon rows twelve miles, bikes seventeen miles, then runs a 10k, then rows another 15k on a rowing machine followed by about 50 stair sprints... 

Those are all just a few examples. A fantastic analogy said by owner of Average Broz Gymnasium, John Broz:

  

"If you got a job as a garbage man and had to pick up heavy cans all day long, the first day would probably be very difficult, possibly almost impossible for some to complete. So what do you do, take three days off and possibly lose your job?

No, you'd take your sore, beaten self to work the next day. You'd mope around and be fatigued, much less energetic than the previous day, but you'd make yourself get through it. Then you'd get home, soak in the tub, take aspirin, etc. The next day would be even worse.

But eventually you'd be running down the street tossing cans around and joking with your coworkers. How did this happen? You forced your body to adapt to the job at hand! If you can't' squat and lift heavy every day you're not overtrained, you're undertrained! Could a random person off the street come to the gym with you and do your exact workout? Probably not, because they're undertrained. Same goes with most lifters when compared to elite athletes."

– John Broz 2002

 Well said. 

What about injuries. Well, injuries happen, it is part of the game. I've never met anyone that has accomplished something great that did not have some unfortunate event happen to them. You name the situation, you'll probably find something that stood in their way-- its the way it works. World record holder in powerlifting Matt Kroczaleski is a great individual for this discussion. He believes people can come back from pretty much anything... He has this to say,

"None of us ever want to experience a serious lifting injury, but many will. The longer you stay in the sport and the stronger you become, the greater the odds that at some point you'll be faced with a serious injury. Due to my strength level and approach to training, I've suffered more muscle and tendon tears than just about any active competitor I know.
I've torn my left calf, right quad, left pec, left lat, my groin on both sides, my lower back numerous times, both biceps, right triceps once, and my left triceps three times including the most recent tear which required surgical repair of the tendon.
Three of the injuries resulted in me being wheeled into an operating room for surgical repair and many others required an extensive rehab. I've also separated my right acromio-clavicular joint, dislocated my right shoulder, and even pushed myself to the point where I caused intracranial bleeding – on two separate occasions."
 -Matt Kroczaleski
 

Matt Kroc

Look up videos of Matt "Kroc" training, you'll be impressed with his intensity. 

I come from a climbing background, so one more fantastic story to mention is Joe Simpson's and Simon Yate's first ascent of Siula Grande in the Andes Mountains. A 20,813 ft alpine route they did in 1985. There is a book and a movie published on this incident, called Touching The Void. After their successful ascent, on their descent from the summit Simpson slipped and broke his right leg by crushing the tibia into the knee. Bad weather was closing in on them and they had ran out of fuel for their stove so they could not melt snow for drinking water-- thus they could not could stick around. In an effort to descend down on a very steep portion of the descent, Yates had to lower Simpson over this area because of his injured leg. During this process, Simpson and Yates could not see or hear each other because of the howling weather and terrain. Yates had unknowingly lowered Simpson into mid-air over a cliff. Simpson had tried ascending the rope to free himself of hanging in mid-air, but his hands were too frost-bitten to properly tie the knots to do so and inadvertently dropped the Prusik cord. So, here Simpson floated. Unable to be lowered any further, unable to go up, and unable to communicate. They remained in this position fora few hours and the snow around Yates' belay seat began to give way, cold weather began to take its toll, and Yates' had no idea what had happened to Simpson. Yates had to make a decision, because both just sitting there exposed each of them to death. 

Siula Grande, Peruvian Andes Range. Not too many hospitals close by.

Simon Yates decided to cut the rope which sent Joe Simpson falling into a deep crevasse. Yates dug a snow cave and waited the night out and descended the next day. Upon his descent, he realized what happened to Simpson and called out his name, but heard no reply. Assuming that he had died in the fall he ventured back to base camp. Simpson however was very much alive. Despite having a broken leg, falling onto a ledge in a crevasse, and going unconscious for a period of time-- he was still alive and regained consciousness. Simpson managed to lower himself deeper into the crevasse and eventually found his way out through a steep snow slope. He then spent three days without food and very little water crawling 5 miles back through a glacier navigating more crevasses to base camp returning only moments before Yates' depart for civilization. 

With that story in mind, I think it is safe to say most "experts" would have deemed this situation as a certain death for Joe Simpson. He literally pushed his body to his absolute limits, for the sake of staying alive. His body had two options, stop and die, or keep pushing. I couldn't imagine the amount of will power this feat required. I relate this to anything else when it comes to pushing the body, the majority of people do not have a clue as to what they are capable of as a human. If a doctor told me I was going to die unless I added 100 pounds to my squat in a month, I can guarantee you I would be squatting every day, multiple times a day, to make this happen. Apply some extreme unconventional logic to everyday things and it can certainly change how they appear.

So What Is Going On In The Body?

 Now that we have seen some defiance in the logic of what constitutes the "norm," should we really be worried about taxing the central nervous system and the body? A great article I read a while back broke it down like this. I don't remember where I read it, but it has stuck with me.

When we train our bodies with weights, or whatever, there is more than just your muscles, tendons, and ligaments that are being trained. Our brains are being adapted as well. When you warm up in your routine to lift heavier weights, you are not only warming the muscles, stretching soft tissue, introducing more synovial fluid into the joints, or raising the body temperature- but you are priming the nervous system for the tasks at hand. Your brain directly responds to training by the chemicals it uses to make your body work, in short, it changes its structure chemically from physical stress. The central nervous system  (CNS) does not operate like the electrical impulses in a power cable you would plug into your wall to charge your computer. It operates by chemicals to the nerve impulses, or neurotransmitters to synapses. Synapses allow a nerve cell to pass a signal (chemical) to another cell. Neurotransmitters are the chemicals in which pass the signal across the synapses. These chemicals are what make everything work in the body. The electrochemical reaction is the reason electrical impulses are detected, because they are a byproduct of this process. A big reason why we get stronger when we train is because the nerves develop more receptor sites and a greater amount of neurotransmitters are made to result in a stronger impulse. 

When a greater than usual stress is placed on the nervous system it gives it a reason to adapt. So if you start a routine of squatting heavy every day, and you previously did not do this, the body will then realize it isn't prepared to handle the work load. Thus it will began to make changes in order to survive from the demands placed upon it. So, the brain will shut down certain functions in order to go through this period of adaptation. This is the reason for some of the side effects of overtraining. Serotonin is a major component in muscle contraction and how hard it contracts. Serotonin is also the main hormone that effects our happiness, mental outlook, willingness to go train and do things. A lot of this is used when lifting maximal weights and thus why this effects our mood. 

So when this sudden demand gets placed on the body serotonin receptors get shut down in order to be upgraded. This period of adaptation can take days or weeks, and a person will feel the effects of it. Serotonin also regulates appetite, sleep and your cardiovascular system. Which is why these are also effected during this time of change. Naturally, your brain is giving you signals to stop whatever it is your doing so it doesn't have to make these changes. The human body and brain are always  looking for the easiest method for survival, it is why we get pleasure from things like sleeping, eating, and being lazy. This is exactly what you don't want! You want to push through this process in order to put the greatest demands on the body to receive the greatest adaptation. 

This is why high volume, high intensity, high frequency programs are so difficult; such as Smolov or Bulgarian lifting methods. Because they do not make you feel good! However, it is also why they work like no other program. A lot of people lift weights and exercise because it makes them feel good, they are essentially addicts like a drug user is. When you lift lighter weights serotonin is raised but their is no adaptive response from the brain. So all you get is the feel good affect much like someone who is snorting a line of coke.

Conclusion

This is hopefully something you can consider in your training. I firmly believe in understanding why we feel and react the way we do to certain aspects of our lives. The body is very complex and I am not in any shape or form saying there are not more pieces to the puzzle. Though, in my personal experience in training I've managed to send my training volume through the roof by forcing myself to train through some very bleak moments. Moments when I was tired, sore, and felt like my body couldn't take anymore-- I was back in there doing it again, and again. Surviving these moments has adapted my body to be able to handle greater training loads. I firmly believe if you don't have swollen hot joints, you can probably train, regardless of how you "feel."