TO LOVE ALL IS TO LOVE NONE.

TO LOVE ALL IS TO LOVE NONE.
 

Do not waste your talents, energy, and focus for six month faces and P/T peers. Even if you are not an aggressive or hardened human you should be able to acknowledge there can really be true peace or one love. Maybe individually but to me that is a person who has stopped exploring or experiencing their path. It is vital that you must understand there are people in this world who would harm you because they can. They will do it without hesitation, no matter your best efforts to convince them otherwise. You are a small casualty in their fucking war. The times of being naive are over. It is the time to assert yourself with who is with you, who is against you, and which of those will switch sides. You are foolish to believe your crew can have no Judas.

To be truly dominate in the gym as much as your mentality in life, you must reserve your dark energy for the deserving. The strain on a persons mental endurance day in and day out is overwhelming. Even if you haven't physically exerted yourself. You can feel it after a long day your energy is depleted by the evening. Much of this is unavoidable due to career, education, family, or life's work. However, there are ways to conserve your mind's power and focus. One way is by weeding out the poison of others. You must learn that you cannot be everyone's friend. Even if you could, why would you? Spreading yourself thin hurts those in your inner circle the most. Which is incredibly damaging because the inner circle is the most intimate. It is the circle you see and feel each day of your existence. 

To pull yourself inward and save your best for the most important, you need to establish who are your allies and who is your enemy. Accept there will always be people who won't like you or what your doing. This is a good thing. This can be the greatest weapon for a weightlifter since the squat rack. You can use their ill will as fuel for supreme dominance in the weight room. There is no better motivator than knowing you are getting stronger as your enemies get weaker.

The dislike or hatred people harbor for you is not your concern, it is theirs. To waste any effort on that is only hurting your strength gains. Which is exactly their intentions. Pushing you out of your boundaries and derail you. Everyone knows you need to be physically rested to perform at your best, but I meet few who understand how powerful a fully rested and focused mind is. Surely you have experienced this. Sometimes you get in the gym and your self esteem is surging, confidence is high. You already know your going to make this lift before you even get under the bar. You have told yourself you are making this happen. Get under it and get it done. Other times you feel like wet bread. You are self consciousness and bummed out about how you look. Disappointed in yourself that you missed too many days since the last lift. Its when 315 use to feel like butter and now its a grinding chore to get a double without bursting a blood vessel.   

By assigning your energy to people, ideas, and concepts that mean the most you are doing two things. 1) You are conserving your complete strength (mental and physical) for better, successful sessions in the gym. 2) You are giving them the best and most deserving version of yourself available. You are not short-changing the people who hold you up. When there is balance in your life outside the gym, your time in the gym becomes more productive.

Productive motherfuckers making things happen on their terms. Not concerned with the activities of the weak and feeble. Focused on themselves and their brood.

Hold yourself to a higher standard. Don't sell yourself to someone on why your a cool dude. Don't lower your self worth to some meaningless job in hopes they except you onto the team or job site on their terms. You don't need them, they need you! It's your life's mission to make them aware of that.  It is the other who must earn your approval. They show YOU why they belong. You make them say "we want you on our team, we need you in our ranks."

Your azimuth is shot, it points directly to your end point of success. You are too motivated to detour. You have to maintain accountability of yourself and your pack. You prioritize all decisions with "how will this effect myself and my group?" Picking up hitchhikers delays forward progression. Moves the timeline further to the right. It's another item on the list of life's bullshit. Looking to stop or distract you from getting what you deserve.You only help those that are able to help themselves by giving them knowledge and the tools to become self reliant. Do not care for the abled mind and body. Doing so makes them weaker in the long run.  

"There's an important phrase that we use here, and think it's time that you all learned it. Act as if. You understand what that means? Act as if you are the fucking President of this firm. Act as if you got a 9" cock. Okay? Act as if." - Jon Young from the film Boiler Room.

"Act as if". I've said this before. It still applies. You fucking belong here. Write it down and repeat it. If you don't feel confident at your location or environment don't breakdown. The idea is to not let fear or doubt show. Wear the mask, act the part. Survey your surroundings and pay attention to the leaders. Follow their lead.

It's a advanced version of fake it till you make it but different in that were not faking ourselves. We are convincing them. If you are outside your element and it's apparent in gestures, attitude, gait, voice, or presence that you aren't supposed to be there, you will be fingered very fucking quick. They will attack. They will eat you up, spewing you out to the other side with the force of a hammer. 

Yeah, I work here. I own the fucking building. I own the internet in the building. I own the wires that carry that internet in this building. I own the water that flushes your painful shits because of your garbage nutrition. I am the first person you need to come to with a solution. I am the last person you want to see when there is a problem. I am the boss of all your bosses. I am the best looking motherfucker here. I am the most oiled guy on the block. No one is as well oiled as I am. I own the oil that makes me oily. I own oil. Olive, sunflower, canola, coconut....I own them all. The Oil in the Middle East? mine.

Love for the deserving. Disdain for the undeserving. Love for everyone is superficial and meaningless. Control your empathy. Know that when you confront an enemy it is you or them. I trust you will act accordingly. 

MERCH STORE IS NOW OPEN.

The Black Metal Fitness Store is now live. 

http://blackmetalfitness.bigcartel.com/ 

You can purchase VOL. II "DEATH IN GYM" silkies, the "HELL IS REAL" tank top, and

the "DEADLIFTS FOR SATAN" shirt.

The store will remain open until Monday June 20th. After that date no more orders will be accepted. 

If you purchased a pair of the VOL. I silkies check your email for your discount code.

STAY GRIM. HIT THE GYM.

Are You A Skinny Wiener? Gaining Weight On A Budget.

"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't lift."

Gaining Weight On A Budget:

You wanna put on size. You want to increase your strength. You want to scare people. But, you're not about to overdraft your bank account at the risk of getting fat. I gotchu. This is my specialty. Buying food needed to gain sustainable weight is actually affordable. You will have to man up and understand that you may pony up a little more money up front than you are use to, but the food will last much longer then your usual grocery run. Trust you are making a wise investment.

First, we gotta assume that you are looking to increase by at least 15 lbs. but preferably more. Otherwise, you are wasting time. I don't write blog post that consider competitors or fighters into equation. For them a five pound increase could be the difference between 1st place and 24th place. I write for the common man. The brothers who want to look strong as fuck and be strong as fuck, for the guys who have been lifting for years but don't look like the guys who got them into weightlifting, and most importantly for the skinny wiener who has no shape and wants to get big. (the skinny wiener guys really need to be all eyes on this post). If you are cherry to weight training with a shapeless body the first order of business is to eat everything all the time. You have no dietary restrictions. I'm serious. Start cramming everything, all the time. Come at this project like a professional competitive eater. You need to jump start your body. Flood the crease and get to work in the gym. Enjoy these first few months of asshole level eating while you can because it will be the last time in your weightlifting life that will be the allowed.

Second, the amount you've been eating is obviously not cutting it. You have to make a legitimate effort to increase your caloric intake. It is difficult, definitely annoying, and your stomach is gonna hate you at first. It gets better though. Once your body adjusts to the increase you'll find that nothing seems to stop your hunger. This is a great sign and means shit is working.

Low Cost and Affordable Food:

• oatmeal. Not the packaged sugar molested shit. You get plain as fuck oats. If your a pussy and you need sweetness in your oats then put your own fruit in it. My advice is just to hike up your skirt and throw some peanut butter and cinnamon in it.
• peanut butter
• raw almonds (almonds are expensive no matter where you go. So take the hit because they are a must for between meal snacking or during those marathon lift sessions. The energy they provide is real. You can nearly feel it).
• chicken breasts
• canned tuna
• pasta (100% whole wheat or veggie infused is preferred)
• white rice
• black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans
• cottage cheese
• plain greek yogurt in a large tub
• 100% whole wheat bread
• ground beef (get as lean as you can afford)
• ground turkey
• whole milk
• un-sweetend vanilla almond milk
• avocados (expensive everywhere expect ALDI. they have em for like 50 cents each).
• bananas
• spinach
• talapia fillets
• entire pizza's
• canned chili (low sodium, reduced fat or low fat)
• canned soups (again low in sodium with reduced or low fat)
• lower sugar ice cream 

Many more options available but it all depends on starting weight, goals, and ideal end weight. Until you are advanced enough to navigate your own nutritional needs don't stray from this list. Just get it home and make it fucking work. If dudes from the 1950's can get thick there is no excuse why you cant in 2016.

Remove your spit guard and start eating.

But, but,......I...uhhhhh:

• Anything that is single serving ready will be higher in price. You are paying for the convenience. Get the big tubs and separate your portions at home like an adult.
• Buy your produce fresh. Green veggies and fruit are most nutritious fresh. Frozen veggies arent too bad but not ideal.
• Get your chicken and fish frozen. 
• Get your ground turkey and ground beef fresh if you can, otherwise buy the huge refrigerated portions, freeze them, then thaw as needed
• Everything you get needs to be as low in sugar as possible. Sugar is the enemy. 

Where can I find these items the cheapest?

• Sketchy, rundown Mexican markets forever have the best prices.
• ALDI is without a doubt ground zero for deal you will never forget. Insanely cheap, excellent quality.
• Grocery stores that poor people frequent. Use your best (or worst) judgment. The rule of thumb is the farther south or west it is, the cheaper the prices.
• Costco. It takes a heavy blow to your bank account up front but when its two weeks later and you still have 100 eggs, gallons of almond milk, and endless frozen meat you'll be stoked. If you are sloth like me when it comes to protein shakes then you need Costco;s Pure Protein individual chocolate shakes in your life time now. Best fucking protein shake in the game. Left hand promise. 3g sugar, 30g protein. No after taste. No refrigeration required. The 25 case comes out to like 1.80 per shake. That price it "TOOOO SWEET"!
• Trader Joe's: If you have never been then check it out. It looks expensive but is actually cheap. Solid business plan. Go here for all your seasonings, snacks, sauces, and random protein bars. Take your significant other with you and make them feel like them fancy rich folk. Turn it into a date. Chicks love cool guy alternative health grocery stores. Also when you go to Trader Joe's it's a 93% chance you will be the biggest, buffest, and strongest man walking the aisles. Real talk.

the photograph equivalent of weightlifter shopping at Traders Joe's

I have these things but what do I do with them?

Welcome to bowl life. I'm strong proponent of all meals eaten out of bowls. Gangbang the ingredients together in a plastic bowl and shovel it into your head. Its faster, easier, and much more realistic than that high-speed culinary pornography found in recipe ideas and fitness magazines/websites.

I can't cook, things taste plain, I don't have a large frying pan, one spatula, and a cutting knife.....

You are a man, it is 2016, These are basic tools. teach yourself a skill. I cannot think of a better skill to have then the ability to feed yourself. Get it into your head right now that the gym and the kitchen are connected. Eat and cook the same way you lift. With purpose and discipline. Get your firm glutes into the kitchen and figure it out. Don't worry my brothers. Ill get you started. These are a few of my own creations.

• Poor and Hungry:1 large can of tuna, 1 cup of whole wheat pasta shells, 1 cup veggie pasta, massive handful of raw spinach that you chop up into tiny pieces. Put it together in a bowl, add some lemon juice and reduced-fat parmesan cheese for seasoning. done.

• Bachelor Stew: 2-3 whole eggs and 6 egg whites scrambled, half pound of ground turkey sauteed in a pan, 1 can of low sodium black beans. mushrooms if you want. combine in bowl, season with salt, pepper, paprika. Or us can use an all-in-one seasoning like Lowery's or Weber Grill.

• Custom Chili:get fucking liberal on this one. Nothing is off limits.1 can kidney beans, 1 can black beans, 1 can pinto beans, 2 cans of roasted tomatoes, saute some peppers or whatever gets you off and put it all together. cook it slow and throw a bunch of wild ass seasonings in it.

• Night Cap: a bunch of natural peanut butter, 1 cup plain greek yogurt, 1 cup cottage cheese, 1 scoop of whey protein, 1/2 almond milk, a lot of cinnamon, and some honey for sweetness if you desire. miss that shit and put it in the fridge. 30 mins later you are feasting hard without the guilt of a cheat meal.

• White Privilege Tuna: 1 large can of tuna, 1 whole avocado, mustard (I prefer Trader Joe's mustard seeds), 

I don't know how else to help out the plebe gainers. I've laid out everything for you to do. I'm not gonna cook it for you. So here is the hard part ....YOU HAVE TO MAKE IT WORK. Time to get in the kitchen and crank out some meals that go the distance. All the above recipes can go the distance. lunch and dinner for one day.

get in on that new Cape Fear Program. yacht murder gains.

There is a podcast I follow called Smart Drug Smarts: Brain Optimization. Its all about the different ways to to improve cognition in the human brain. If you recall from previous posts I have stated time and time again that weightlifting is 50% mental. So to improve your mind will naturally improve your lifts. They recently released two really good episodes I recommend you check out.

The first is Episode 75 Creatine: Brains and Brawn? Here is the episode description from their website: "Creatine has long been known as a supplement-of-choice for athletes and weightlifters… but what cognitive benefits might Creatine provide"? I've always said Creatine is one of the very few must have supplements for serious lifters looking to gain weight or increase size/strength.

The second one is Episode 125 Exercise and Cognition "Brains and Brawn, long positioned as polar opposites, turn out to be anything but. In this episode, Jesse talks with fitness trainer Sal di Stefano — also the co-host and resident science geek at the MindPump podcast — about best practices to use physical exercise to enhance your cognition." This dude Sal di Stefano, who's own podcast is generally good, but the episodes are filled with entirely too much small talk that goes off  subject much too often for my patience. Sal drops some seriously awesome knowledge and calls out the entire modern fitness business model that pumps out so much garbage. Really inspiring stuff.

PREPARE TO COPY: 

Standing order is as follows......ALL TEARS WILL BE SHED AND COLLECTED AFTER DARK. If you have tears to shed save them for the night.Your pillow will listen, we will not.

Come back soon my friends. Next post is going live this week. I am in my last week of the spring semester with a 4 week break till summer classes start. Been extra motivated lately and I got a load of content to dump. 

P.S. The Black Metal Fitness merchandise store got a small update. The Sabbath-purple Deadlift shirt is up for sale. Don't spend all your money just yet though. I got a fucking gnarly tank top hitting the store next week as well as the very much sought after Ranger Panties VOL. II. The promised 15% off promo code for everyone who ordered from the first press will be sent to your email when the ranger panties and tank top go up for sale. I'm really excited for everyone to the new gear. Dominate the gym world wide in uniform. Hails!

STAY GRIM.

BEYOND THE MUSCLE: Vintage Bodybuilding Culture. A Call For It's Return.

The content of this blog is not necessarily dense, but admittedly I stay pretty serious face when I write. This is because I care. I have passion in my craft of lifting weights, talking about lifting weights, reading about lifting weights, and most importantly writing about lifting weights. To me it is more than a hobby or a lifestyle. Weightlifting and things affiliated with it are an extension of my being as a human. I don’t know how else to explain it without creeping you out. So I am just gonna leave it at that. Point is,  I'm so focused and obsessed with myself and everyone else who carry the torch of real strength that the only way I can lay my eggs of motivation into peoples brains is with intensity.

But even the darkest and most corrupted trigger man has to lighten up (but only when no ones looking.) Not really….but srsly. So I’m shifting gears and putting this thing in reverse. Were going on a field trip, brothers. You don’t know where you’re going, if you don’t know where you’ve been. I’m taking you to a place in time where vanity, pride, excess, and fame was the standard operating procedure. Where modesty was an insult. When life was simple and people were put into two groups: 1) You had muscles. 2) You were boring. If you haven’t guessed by now we are going to walk the halls of the single greatest decade in the history of Bodybuilding. The golden age of roid rage, the decade of decadence, 1980’s Gym Culture.

Even your redneck as fuck, drug dealing cousin from central Florida was hitting weights.

Before we go any further I want to go on the record and say that I am 100% serious about everything I will be showcasing. My commentary is true. I’m patiently waiting on this level of beauty to bloom once more. The best way to make this a reality starts with YOU, the reader. Live your life by the same code these buff bastards lived. Never miss an opportunity to flex. If you friends don’t lift weights, they are not your friends. The more buff guys there are in one collective group the better your life will be. If you shirt or shorts are too small, go down a size. Chicks wont bang a guy who squats 405lbs, Chicks will bang a guy who LOOKS like he squats 405lbs. HAILS! Let us respect the muscles who came before us. May we absorb their wisdom and ethics like a cheap white gym towel. Bow your heads and say with me …….

“In the name of The Squat, The Bench Press and The Holy Deadlift. Amen.”

QUESTION: IS IT STILL A MUSCLE CAR IF THE MUSCLE AND CAR ARE SEPARATE?

Do enough digging around in the back catalogs of FLEX magazine or google searching "80's BB (bodybuilders will from here on be abbreviated as BB) you will undoubtedly spot a familiar trend of weirdly buff dudes awkwardly posing in front of, what I assume, are their cars. This is an advanced maneuver. Is this a photo of Doug in front of his car OR Is this a photo of Doug's car and he is standing there? They had it down to a science. I cannot decipher between the two, which means that no one can complain about Doug being vain. It deflects mockery by posing this paradox. "Aye, fuck you Mick. The wife wants a photo of our car, she takes the damn photo. I swear you cant tell her nuttin'." Case fucking closed. You are now forced to mire' both Doug's chiseled physique and his very clean automobile.

"Picture me rollin in my 500 Benz with my 500 Bench max."

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

The Triple Threat: you know who he is, you know what he drives, and you know where he lifts. No further questions your honor.

If I may contradict my argument, There are rare instances where you simply cannot fool a man. If the guy shows up in the photo with a thong and gold chain we know your angle. Appreciate the effort buddy but stick to the stage, its much easier than real life. (still mirin' the.chest to lat separation though. respect,)

OK, last car themed photo I promise. I just want you observe the the "Hardstyle" pose in its infancy. Notice how both participants have slight knee bends. Proof of the Hardstyle's eventual evolution into full knee-to-ground contact. Also note this man gives the lady the right-of-way for outside bicep privilege.Very courteous move, but upon further inspection you will observe the left arm curled inward and well flexed. Quite possibly stronger of the two. An the extremely rare siting of both female flattery and showcasing the males best feature. Seeing the subtle complexities of the Hardstyle pose in its developing stages really brings a new appreciation of its evolution.

In times before digital cameras or smart phones with filters you had only one camera and one filter. The "Low Ceiling Basement Lighting" filter. This was the only location in the entire house able to do your figure justice was. Finished or un-finished, it didn't matter. The low ceilings provided that optimallighting that draped over every inch of your curves and cuts like a luxurious sex robe. The basement was the preferred filter for generations of men dying to document their gains. No one saw these photos either. The dude took them strictly for himself. The photos kept like treasured relics in scrapbooks across attics coast to coast.  Relics that would be unearthed by zit faced teens searching for nudie magazines in the twilight of Grandpas life. "Look here grandson...Grandpa wasn't always a shriveled sun grape. I woulda whooped your ass." You can hear this guy yelling at his wife to come downstairs and take some photos of him after his bicep super set. She likely finished the roll and was forced to immediately drop the film roll off at the local pharmacy.

Real recognized real. Big dudes were friends with other big dudes. Not by choice, by necessity. The more big dudes in one location, the bigger everyone looked. I call it Muscular Conjugation, A transfer of genetic material between two lifters. The muscley genetics transferred from one physique to the nearest neighboring physique. Which is beneficial to both hosts, thus increasing the overall strength of a buff dude colony. 

Similar to Muscular Conjugation we have what is known as "Anabolic synergism." Again, the mechanism of action occurs when a colony of buff dudes and their buff girlfriends formed in a public space. Anabolic synergism is most often seen when multiple bodybuilders are pressed together for a photo opportunity. Their builds become stronger and bigger than if just a single BB was present.

Not a single ounce of irony in this photo. It's what Iron Madien would look like if they spent more time weightlifting instead of logging flight hours for a pilots license So they can play a 4 hour set in Lima Peru.

So many avenues of approach in this gem. Could spend an hour writing about this so I will let the reader indulge themselves in this one. I do, however, want to bring your attention to the middle mans shirt. It is literally a shirt that says Vitamins. It has a picture of vitamins below it. Fuck. Brilliant. Is this shirt part of a series? Is there another that says "Protein" with a scoop of whey below it? Is there one that says "Food" and features a steak with a glass of milk? I need to know goddamnit. Who made this shirt?!

Obviously without social media how is a lifter suppose to stroke his ego? How is the lifter gonna let the betas know hes out there? You know what they did? They used their own money to buy ad space in a muscle magazine. Respect. That means whatever picture was hitting the presses had to be your absolute best work possible because that's the only one people would see (plus you fucking paid for it). I like this idea better. So instead of flooding the public with shitty pictures of a temporary physique, you only brought out the big guns.

While I'm on the subject here are some gain photos that need to stop. The 20 min. arm pump, the appearance of a obscure basilic or cephalic vein that cannot even be measured with a small ruler, the full mirror gym selfie of someone who is not sweating, any picture in a bathroom with the toilet visible, and a photo that is both out of focus and visibly heavily filtered. Look, I'm the document your progress guy 100% no doubt. A little vanity is good for the human condition. Pictures are crucial in motivation and reflection. But I'm pleading with gym culture to please bring an end to the hour by hour update of what your building. It ruins the transformation and makes even people making big strides look thirsty as fuck. Not every workout needs a photo. Weightlifting ins a tricky balance between vanity and humility. Close the curtains, get to work, and come out when you have actually built something worth showing.

So much more to cover. I could write for days about this topic and all its glory. I'll save the rest for another post otherwise this thing will never get published. Too easy to get lost in a wormhole of oiled & thick physiques. 

The legendary Scott Hall. None greater.

Doug Young is not concerned with your macros count. Your mobility does not impress him.

 
And now I leave you with the hardest, most savage, black metal friendly wrestling tag-team to ever step inside the ring. Ax and Smash. Pioneers of both the bloated powerlifting guy look and the wet leather black masked assailant villain that haunted your dreams as a youth look. 


DEMOLITION

inspired to craft my own Demoliton mask now.

STAY GRIM.

SMOLOV IN DEPTH: SQUAT, EAT, SLEEP, HATE YOURSELF, REPEAT and WHAT IS THE 40% RULE?

"...and as for why I no longer kill? I hate no man as much as I hate myself."

DISCLAIMER: 

If weightlifting is not 50% of the reason you are still alive, then promptly execute an about face and swiftly walk out of this room afraid to even breath. Do not make eye contact with any of us. Go back to your scenic hiking trails, your spartan-military-warlord-beastmode-challenger XxXtreme hard-earned-mud soaked obstacle course fetish, and your sisters walk/run/fun 5K benefits. Only the committed and proven are worthy of the content in this blog. You have to leave because the things we discuss and addresses require qualities not allowed with the garbage modern gym culture. Things like uhhhhh.....COMMITMENT, DEDICATION, or (get this) ACTUALLY TRYING! We do things that are hard and painful. WE ARE PEOPLE WHO DO NOT QUIT WHEN ITS GETS HARDER. When its difficult we look up and say “Gimme Some.”

sadistic in all of our endeavors.

If you are still here:

Hit yourself in the face once or twice.

 Bang your chest.

Spit on the floor.

Scream at the mirror.

Channel your disgust. 

Have pride in how fucked up you are.

Walk into your gym confident and strong.

Crawl out of your gym humbled and stronger.

Hopefully your dick is hard and your palms are seizing up into fists that refuse to release. Enjoy that pre-post Fluff. GET SOME! Now lets get our knuckles bloody.

"IF IT DOESN'T SUCK, WE DON'T DO IT."

LEARNING THE 40% RULE. 

What is the 40% rule?  This quote is from a Navy SEAL who created the 40% mantra.

“…He would say that when your mind is telling you you’re done, you’re really only 40 percent done. And he had a motto: If it doesn’t suck, we don’t do it. And that was his way of every day forcing us to get uncomfortable to figure out what our baseline was and what our comfort level was and just turning it upside down. We all have that will. It’s just a matter of how we apply it.

A brief overview of the 40% mentality.

This is biblical. I know this first hand. One of the greatest gifts the Infantry gave me is the ability to push past the point of your exhaustion. When I was in boot camp I started learning what I was capable of. Each grueling two-a-day Physical Training session peppered with little sleep and endless 45pound ruck marches with a 27 pound rifle had me breaking down fast and looking for sympathy. In the Army we called it “feeling sorry for yourself.” That is the initial 40% peak. Your smoked and ready to stop, but the reality of the task ahead would not accommodate my butt hurt feelings and tired body. There was no sympathy and there never will be. I had to move on for the greater good of the team. If I failed, my squad failed. If our squad failed, we either died or were punished with even more grueling physical exercises after we finished whatever task we were currently doing. What we called “getting the shit smoked out of you”. I swear to you there were times where I was so drenched in sweat and hadn't stopped moving for hours. I was seeing shit. The face of God appeared before me. That is how I know I was fucked up. I was seeing shit that doesn't even exist. So, with each passing week I began going a little bit further and faster than the previous week but I never realized it until the end of my 16-week Ft. Benning vacation. I reflected on how far I came and how much more resilient I was. Resilience is a crucial ingredient in endurance and fatigue.  

All the hardest and strongest dudes I served with had become soldiers who fed of the failure of others around them. Two reasons: 1) That is one less competitor in the event or training and 2) It was a tool used to guilt those who couldn’t hack it into manning the fuck up, stop feeling sorry for themselves. They were mocked in hopes they would dig into that 60% reserve to get that famed second wind. 9 out 10 times the fading soldiers fell out with heads down and little shame. But that 1 dude out of every 10 responded to his failures and mockery by quickly getting back in line and pushing on silently. That 1 dude has now earned the respect his peers because he showed his ass (flagrantly showing people your weakness) and was ready to tap but something clicked in him and he carried on.

Mind Control.

 Self Control by Laura Branigan.

SMOLOV SQUAT PROGRAM: THEN AND NOW

Long time readers should already be familiar with the Smolov Program. I have relentlessly preached its merits over the last three years. In all my years of gym weightlifting nothing I’ve done or tried to do has ever given me results the way Smolov has. It a program crafted to perfection. It is philosophical as much as it is quantitative. Weight room poetry in motion. It is a rewarding path littered with landmines of short-term goals that accumulate into gratifying long-term triumphs.

If you have no idea what I am talking about the click the link below to learn. You are required to visit the link below before further reading.

How to add 100 pounds to your squat.

This article is intended for anyone interested in growing respectable legs, confidence, size, weight, and wisdom. From the flabby n00b who knows hes gotta shape up before his bad back and left knee give out at the "old" age of 28, to the overly tattooed Co-Magnon who recently unlocked his true potential and has actually transformed himself into a respectable monster, to even the tanned IG rock star who somehow manages plug a garbage ass "sponsor" into photos of a bottled water and cuddling rescue dogs.

I feel confident in my ability to molest the entire spectrum of lifters because this is not my first Smolov Cycle.  I completed my first Smolov cycle at Anytime Fitness in Olympia, WA and Wilson Sports and Fitness Center on JBLM North Post in Fort Lewis at the start of 2014. Currently I am quarter into my 2nd descent.

The above information is crucial to you the reader because who I was then as a lifter and who I am now are depressingly similar but incredibly different.

HNNNG

I am going to list and compare the circumstances, differences, nutrition, opinions, and results of both cycles. I hope this helps you and give you the motivation or idea to submit to this program. I also hope its aids in better understanding the unseen work of a typical Smolov cycle.

Now, I am writing this with the assumption that you are not a competitive bodybuilder who's finances are dictated by the number of pumps achieved before 2100. You are a workingman, you are a student, you are a three job-working bachelor, you are a father/husband/guardian. You spend your days and nights shifting your energy and empathy into multiple facets of existence. Plainly put, you got other shit going on in your life all the time. BUT like any hobby, when you want to pursue your interest you find the fucking resources and you make the goddamn time to make it happen.

The caption of this photo is really what sells it for me. Time To Feel indeed.

Cycle One: March -June (2014)

1. Before this I only recently began squatting. I would say about 8 months of squatting once a week. High reps of weight that never went heavier than 225. I thought I was building big legs but really i was just building false hope. I already addressed the error of my non-squatting ways before. I’m ashamed it took me that long to realize how important legs were in building a strong frame. Because I had not squatted for very long or frequently I was totally blind to proper squat form and technique. I learned as I progressed in the program.  In hindsight I wish I had focused more on that kinda stuff when I was cherry because I did suffer some minor tears and long lasting aches that took an incredibly long time to correct and become habit.

2. I was in the Army and my normal M-F work schedule was as follows:

Wake up at 0430, leave by 0515, at work 10 minutes before 0600

Physical Training was 0630-0930 (average 10-12 miles of running a week)

Work till 1700 or 1800

Eat and at the gym by 2000 for the lift.

Asleep by 2230-2300

3. Sleep was decent but by no means good. Weekend's allowed me to catch up on rest. Rest and Relaxation is an extremely important component of this program. Do not miss an opportunity to lay down and do nothing.

4. I had no child and was not in college. This is the single reason I was able to execute this program despite my grueling work schedule.

5. My final 3 weeks of the program where I was to attempt my new true max was cut off because of an extended training exercise. I left for the desert of California to train outdoors in 100 degree heat for 6 weeks. Everything I built was lost. It was a very hard climb back to the top. I still remember how depressed I was when I came back. Never again.

6. I ate like an animal with complete disregard for calories or content. Talking medium pizza and 10 wings for lunch like it was nothing. Dozen eggs a day, Burger King and Wendy’s value menu daily, etc… It was actually quite fun. I had never done anything like that before.

7. I drank alcohol waaaaay more than I do now. Binge drank every weekend getting wasted. Its just was soldiers do.

8. My legs, shoulders, trunk, arms, grew exponentially. Incredibly significant gains were achieved boys. I had to buy new underwear and pants quicker than I expected. It’ll never for the ecstasy of finally being one of the big dudes who always complained about jeans not fitting.

9. My start weight was 205 and my finish weight was 222.

10. I did not keep a written log with notes of all my lifts. I just screen shot the week’s program and followed it from my phone. I did however document significant portions of my lifts on Instagram and with photos. I can now go back and compare where I was then to now to actually see with clear vision how much I was improving and growing. This is highly recommended for everyone attempting this program or something similar. You don’t know how far you’ve come if you don’t know where you’ve been.

11. I stretched out often before and after my lifts. Learned a lot of new stretches and which ones helped me the most for recovery and performance. I learned the basics of foam rolling but admittedly did not do them 100% the right way. My stretching routine did not incorporate rolling out the bottoms of my feet or my calves. Which is imperative in maintaining muscle, joint, and tendon health. Especially the older you get and the longer you’ve been a hard lifting meathead.

Commin' outta a 13-week program like...

 

Cycle Two: January-April (2016)

1. No longer in the military. Fuck yeah. This now gives me ample time for recovery since my other responsibilities (class, homework, studying, writing papers, Dad stuff) requires minimal physical output. On the other hand, the accelerated mental output throughout my day does breed its own challenges. 

2. I am keeping an detailed and descriptive written log of each lift. I have notes on some of those pages to get a better look on where I am at and what, if anything, needs to be addressed. 

Keeping a workout log like this is also helpful in keeping me focused and motivated. So again I strongly suggest you do something similar when tackling any extended training program.

3. Now instead of being a soldier I am a full time college student. Classes are long with labs. No summer breaks. Every semester has been full-time.

4. I am a father now. My daughter recently turned 1-year old. This makes scheduling gym times a little harder but I am not complaining. I have learned how to adapt to the change. Like any dedicated lifter should.

5. My wife works now. Her hours are erratic and she works random weekends when asked. Another hurdle to jump when planning lifts.

6. My diet is nothing like the first cycle. I eat often and a lot but within reason, I do not gorge on fast food. I eat big meals I make at home, always eating snacks, and whatever my wife cooks I try to eat as much as humanly possible. I never leave the house without something to eat. I am a walking commissary. 

7. My drinking has decreased tenfold. I don't drink because I am home and bored. I have occasional weekend outings where I drink with my buddies and we stay out late but it is light years away from my behavior during the Army and my first cycle.

8. I have learned soooooo fucking much over the last two years about my body, weight lifting, form, stretching technique. I am by no means an expert, but I have a better grasp on what I am doing. My form is considerably better, my stretching is disciplined and effective, my muscles are stronger, and I have learned the merits of mobility and conditioning during the cycle. Basically I have gained more wisdom. A natural side effect of caring.

9. Things that once hurt no longer hurt me. Knee is no issue at all. Left foot cramping and burning pains have subsided, ankles have gotten stronger, my lower back no longer activates as rapidly and burns out before my quads do.

10. I am in an environment (Rockwell Barbell) filled with the proper tools. I have access to friends and people with years of power lifting experience and years of personal and corrective training. If ever I have a pressing question or need a recommendation they are quick to help. It’s a lifesaver. I am grateful for my place in the gym and am humbled to be a part of something so heavy. If I may be real for a moment there is no gym in Chicago and definitely no gym in the Midwest that compares to what we have. If you have ever been fortunate enough to come through then you know what I speak of. Its literally like going to a punk or hardcore show except there are no bands playing. But its just as intense as if they were. Friday nights are lit son. Its is organic, cathartic, and raw. I equate it too a ritual of the utmost extreme. You walk in there on Friday night bench press and it smells like a goddamn fight club. 

Obviously I have not completed this cycle yet. I'm in Week 5 right now. This is where I remember it getting hard. The weight is increasing and I slightly dread it sometimes. Which is awesome. Punish the deserving! Im finding this cycle to be a little more challenging because I am a little older and some aspects of my body are weaker than I'd like. I fine tuned my program schedule to accommodate more back work on days that don't call for squatting.

When you thought you were gonna miss the rep but still managed to fart it out.

 

THE TAKE AWAY: You do not have to do Smolov or have an interest in it to see the pay-off is no secret. Boiling away the spreadsheets, gram counting, recovery, planning, and high-speed discussion points or critiques what remains is this….

Consistent and methodical hard work with reasonable challenges executed over extended time creates Net Gains. We know this truth in the weight room as much as the work place.  It’s an ethos all successful people hold dear.

I refuse to live the farrow existence.

I hope my observations on extended program training impact lifting. I do not intend to talk down to anyone. I just record my observations and relay them to anyone who cares to listen. Take what thou wilt and do what thou must. I’ll see you in Hell.

I leave you with three powerful quotes from the late Jim Rohn. The most sincere and real motivational speaker there ever was and ever will be. Let these words marinate in your head. Really take the time to read them and analyze them. You’ll see that everything I have wrote about and speak of is what this man said for 40 years. Respect.

 

 

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with”

“We all must suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret”

 “If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.”

STAY GRIM. HIT THE GYM.