New Intern and Make That 3 days in a Row

I have a new intern in from the University of Florida and her first day was yesterday. If I wasn't with a client I was getting her set up for the upcoming semester. I love interns. Not in that "Mentor on a power trip" way where I get to make them do busy work and all the crap work I don't want to do. I hate when I hear that people's internships are full of that kind of stuff. I eat up the opportunity to teach people fresh out of academia. Get them in the trenches, get them lifting, keep them away from the "fitness trend" stuff that makes this industry reek of douche-baggery. So far I'm batting .500 on interns as far as success, but the last guy I had didn't have "it".

You have to have a certain amount of personality and presence to succeed in this industry. You have to be able to carry on a conversation, think on your feet, and speak clearly without mumbling. The cat had the knowledge and all the book smarts he needed, he just could not get it going on the other front. Too timid, too soft spoken and just had very little confidence. I can teach you all day long on Block Periodization, Conjugate Method, Non-Linear Periodization, stretching, flexibility, etc..., but he couldn't come up with the things I can't teach.

The other intern has become one of our busiest trainers. She logs in hours to rival the big dogs and gets her clients phenomenal results. She is logging in double the hours of the other trainers in her hiring class. This new intern has the potential of the first intern, I just have to make sure that I give her all the tools she need to succeed. Plus, it helps that now I get to hand-pick the interns and she was one I picked out of four others that applied.

I had only 30 mins yesterday to lift, so I was going to work up to 405 on the Squat and do a pain set. A pain set in my book is a 75-80% of your 1 Rep Max done for max repetitions. Well it is New Year's Resolution time in the gym and both Squat racks were occupied and the rest of the straight bars were being used for Power Biceps Curls. So I hit up the Trap Bar and SFW.

Trap Bar Deadlift
135x5
225x5
315x5
405x3
455x3
495x3
545x4 (Rep PR!!!)

I love a PR even if it is 5-10lbs or 1-2 more reps with a set weight. It keep me going and gives me drive. I'm going to take today off and do some Accessory work Friday then deload next week to get ready for the Highland Games. Right now my Erectors and Glutes are fried. 

Highland Games PRs here I come. I want to set at least 5 PRs next weekend

Sticking With a Program

I see, over and over again, people switching their programming up way too soon. Everyone wants to gain as much as they can as far as size, weights, etc... but no one wants to stick with a program for longer than a month. We live in a society where everything is instant and when we don't get instant results in the gym we throw a hissy fit and switch it up because, "Its a problem with the program". I say bollocks, you being a gigantic weenie is the reason you are not getting results.

For the past year I adhered to the Conjugate Method of training(Notice I didn't say Westside here). You read that right, I followed the same exact protocol for an entire year and saw continuous results. Traditional/Linear Periodization says that you have to switch up training styles every 4-6 weeks to see results and I'm calling shenanigans. Now here is where people who hold the certifying bodies up as the gold standard are going to get butt hurt.

Let me ask you one question, "If your goal is to gain strength, what happens to your strength when you switch back to an "Endurance" phase or even a "Hypertrophy" phase?" It is going to go to crap. Stick with your programming longer. Now I'm not saying stick with a 5x5 for the rest of your life. Give your programming some time, seek the advice of people that are bigger, faster, and stronger than you. Success leaves trails, so follow them. Which leads me to my next point...

When seeking the advice of someone that has written programming for you, take it as it is. I see people trying to change up protocols that are tried and true all the time. If you write your own programming, by all means change it up. Let us take Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 into account here. Jim gets bombarded every friggin' day about questions about changing up his programming. He has written the program a certain way for a reason, he knows what he is talking about. If you think you're such a training guru write your own damned program and sell it. Give the programming a chance, wait three months, then if you feel as if the programming is inadequate, or there is something you want to change about it, do it! Wait another three months and compare the results to the previous training cycle's. If they are not as good as before, then you know where you went wrong.

Find what works for you. There is no golden standard when it comes to one method being vastly superior to another. Some people get better results from the Westside Template, others do better on 5/3/1. Hell, Doug Hepburn used his Program A/Program B protocol for years before he switched it up. Every person is different. If you are built to be explosive, using the Conjugate Method might not do you all that much good, but if you are slow but strong, the Dynamic Effort Day will do you some good.

All in all, JUST BE PATIENT. It took Andy Bolton almost three years to put 5 lbs on his deadlift when going from 1003 to 1008. You keep that in mind and you'll do fine.