The Secrets of Super Strength

The Secrets of Super Strength

The Secrets of Super Strength with Jim Wendler Copyright ©2007 by Jason Ferruggia Relentless Athletics

All rights reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the expressed written permission from Jason Ferruggia.

_________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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Question: Jim, before we get started can you tell everyone what your best numbers are in competition as well as what weights you are doing now without any equipment, and weighing fifty pounds lighter than the weight you used to compete at? Answer: My best competition numbers are a 1000lbs squat, 675lb bench and a 700lb deadlift. Fortunately, these were all done at the same competition which is rare. I posted a 2375 total in that meet in the 275lb class. After losing a bunch of weight, I still train very much like I did before. I can’t train for health or aesthetics, so I still continue to get stronger (or at least try to). As a side note, if you train for strength the aesthetics will come. Now I train with minimal equipment and have Olympic squatted (high bar, close stance) 700lb, close gripped bench pressed 440lb and deadlifted 605x3. By the way, I dropped 45lb in about a year.

People ask me what I did differently or

what kind of diet I had. Here is the secret. Move more, eat less. There is no secret diet or exercise plan. Question: If you had to give a few of your top tips to someone who came to you and said, “I want to get freaky strong,” what would they be? We need to define “freaky strong” before we do anything. It is not squatting 400lb and benching 315. Freaky is 1000lb squats and 700lb In the case of becoming “freaky strong” there are 3 important factors that will come into play. •

Consistency – most people that are incredibly strong have been lifting and training very hard for a long period of time. Most have been training for 15+ years with a purpose and with incredible desire.


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The Secrets of Super Strength •

Attitude – it takes some serious cajones to lift big weights. It’s not normal to lift this kind of weight and you have to have the right attitude to do this.

•

Work Ethic – those that succeed almost always work harder and smarter than the next guy.

I wish I had some secret formula for getting stronger. In fact, there is nothing that magical about it. Those that have strength and have built it – these people simply have the desire to do it. Much like someone who practices his guitar, it is usually the person that practices his craft that masters his craft. You can’t ignore genetics, but this is usually an excuse made by those who simply don’t have the desire to be strong. It is a shame because they are not honest with themselves and it discredits the work of others. I hate it when I hear genetics being used as an excuse for being weak. This is usually said by the Foam Roller Generation. I have busted my ass for 20 years in the weight room and have endured more training than these weasels ever will. And then they have the stupidity (it is not ignorance) to tell me and the world that my strength is genetic. That is why they will never be part of my crowd and my life – they are too busy making excuses and selling their souls to be part of something that I have lived for. Anyway… No matter what level you are at the basics of strength training exercises will remain the same; Squat, Bench, Deadlift, Military, Rows and Chins. The exercises will remain the same but the application and how they are done; this is what will change. The interesting thing is this: You know what to do (Exercises). Now all you have to supply is the programming (sets/reps/days, etc.) and the attitude. I guarantee that you can find a program on the internet that you can follow for these basic lifts. So now it’s up to you – do you have the attitude? See, that is what it’s about. “Strong” is simple but not easy. The exercises have not and will not change. A squat, pull and press have always been part of the strength world. The barbell will always be the King of the weight room so


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The Secrets of Super Strength be wary of all gimmicks. All you need is a program and attitude. And I’ll take a hardcore attitude over a perfect program any day.

Question: When training for strength what’s more important, volume or intensity? Answer: In general, a beginner will need more volume at a lower intensity. This is because a beginner will be able to make gains in strength and hypertrophy using higher reps. This is more efficient and safer than maxing out all the time. Now when I say a higher volume, this doesn’t give you license to spend 3 hours in the weight room. It simply means that he is going to perform a workout with a smaller percentage of his max and his target reps are going to be higher. As one becomes an intermediate, the intensity becomes more of a factor. As an advanced lifter, someone that has been training at a high level for a long period of time, he needs to regulate his training so that his volume is high enough to maintain his potential but low enough for recovery. This gets kind of complicated, but understand that a high level athlete (of any sort) can’t be on overdrive the entire time. He needs to idle and then bring up his intensity. The problem, and the hardest thing to do in sports, is figuring out how high or low to idle. 99% of people in the world won’t have to worry about this, but this gives you an understanding of the training process. In regards to volume and intensity, the two problems that most often see is this: •

Beginners use all intensity (maxing out) and little volume.

•

Intermediate lifters using all volume (doing nothing less than 10 reps) and no intensity.

Question: What’s your opinion of training to failure and getting overly worked up in the gym? What kind of impact does it have on getting stronger? _________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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Answer: First, I believe everyone has to go to failure and get overly worked up. At least one time. This is because people need to cross the line first to know where the line is. Since everyone is very different with this, people need to learn where their limits are. For example, you often hear someone telling a lifter to stop a set “one or two reps before failure.” Well, if you don’t know where failure is or how it feels than you are going to have a hard time figuring this out. There are no absolutes in training so I can’t tell someone not to do this. Sometimes it’s fun to do this stuff. But doing this every day or even once a week is usually a recipe for failure. You will be exhausted, both mentally and physically, and your next training session will probably be compromised. This doesn’t mean that you don’t push yourself or don’t exert yourself. You have to learn how to attack the weights without actually attacking the weights. Question: How often should you test yourself and really push the limits and max out in the weight room? Answer: You have to test yourself. If you don’t than why are you training and what are you training for? How often you test can be as frequent as every 8 weeks or once a year. This is going to be dependant on your schedule and your training level. The more advanced you are the less you will test. A beginner can test every 8 weeks. A true beginner will technically test himself every time he goes to the gym as he will be getting his “weight room legs” and trying to figure out where he is at. What people need to do is set a goal and a definitive time table for the goal. Then map out a plan to get there.

People fail in this regard for three reasons:

•

They have no goals.

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If they do have goals, they are completely unreasonable.

•

They don’t have a plan.


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For example, let’s say you have someone that benches 225lb. Invariably, this person will want to bench 275 or 315. They set this as a goal for 6 months. What this person needs to do is shoot for 245 in 10 weeks. They will definitely hit this goal with the right training and nutrition. If they shoot for 275, they will get frustrated and discouraged and quit. Then they will still be benching 225. It’s all about small goals over many, many years. Another thing that people need to do is focus on one or two things. I always read about someone that wants to increase their squat, bench, their body fat and the size of their arms.

They throw everything into a big pot of stew and start working.

Because of their lack of focus on one area, they will invariably fail at all of them. Work on one of these, achieve it and then move on. This is getting off topic but something that needs to be addressed. Question: Let’s move on to the big three exercises; the bench press, the squat and the dead lift. We’ll start with everybody’s favorite lift; the bench press. What are the most important keys to building a big bench press? This is pretty simple: •

Technique - this is obvious

•

Strengthening your shoulders - most people need to increase their shoulder strength via military presses. I have seen too many people have positive success with this to think it’s a fluke. Do them standing and do them in a full range of motion. You don’t have to go extremely heavy on these, but this is the most efficient way to increase your shoulder strength.

•

Strengthening your upper back and lats – not only is this injury prevention but this provides a stable surface to maintain your form and press off of.

If most people address these 3 things they will increase their bench press. _________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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The Secrets of Super Strength Question: Can you walk us through the perfect set up and performance of the bench press? Answer: Part I: The Set Up 1. Begin the set up by lying on the bench with your head completely off the bench and your feet slightly tucked (very slightly tucked) and flat-footed. 2. Take an underhand grip on the bar and pull yourself up and towards your feet. Your feet must remain in the same spot. What you are trying to do is create a stable and strong base to push from. As you are doing this, begin pushing your shoulder blades together as hard as you can. 3. As you set yourself on the bench, the first thing to touch should be your head. That is how high you must pull yourself. When you set yourself on the bench your upper back must remain pulled together and tight. Your feet should be still and your eyes should directly under the bar or slightly forward, towards your feet. Your feet will probably not be flat. If you are on the balls of your feet, do not worry about it. This is normal. 4. Grab the bar and maintain your upper back tightness. Just so you know, this set up is not comfortable. Part II: The Descent 1. Once you take the bar out of the rack, hold it out in front and stabilize your body. At this point you must concentrate on the following things: squeezing the bar tight, pushing your chest up, arching your upper back, driving your heels down into the ground and pushing your stomach out and up. It’s important to note that your heels my never be on the ground, the mere act of driving them into the ground will force your body to raise up to the bar and tilt your pelvis down (think of it allowing your mommy/daddy parts to be driven and tucked in the bench). There are a lot of things to be doing at this time so my advice is to tackle one at a time. Once it becomes a habit, move on to another one. If you have _________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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The Secrets of Super Strength training partners, get them all on the same page! They can help you with verbal cues and you can follow suit. 2. The bar should be held out so that your elbows are pointed out – to the sides of your body. 3. The first movement on the way down is for you to begin tucking your elbows slightly to your sides. As the bar begins it’s decent, keep driving your heels into the ground and bringing your body up to the bar. 4. Keep tucking your elbows to the sides of your body. You do not have to touch your elbows to your lats; just perform a very natural tuck. This will keep much of the stress of the lift off of your shoulders. You will thank me in 10 years when you do not need to have a shoulder surgery. 5. Your wrists must be cocked back slightly. They should not look like you are performing a triceps extension and they shouldn’t be cocked forward or held straight. The best way to describe this is make a fist and pretend you are going to punch someone. Your top of your hand should not perfectly line up with the top of your forearm. These two body parts should form a slight obtuse angle. 6. Lower the bar to just below your nipples. Keep squeezing the bar as tight as possible and keep your upper back pulled together. Part III: The Ascent 1. Once the bar touches your chest, immediately push your feet into the ground. Leg drive is one of the most essential things in bench pressing and something that most people disregard or are simply ignorant about. Learning leg drive takes time but once you get it, it will add instant pounds to your bench press. When I first struggled with leg drive the first thing that I did was think about “squatting the weight up.” This phrase helped me remember that once the weight was on my chest, I simply wanted to drive my feet into the floor and push like mad.


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The Secrets of Super Strength The important thing to remember when using leg drive is timing. Timing is critical or you will be all over the place, squirming like a fish out of water. You must coordinate your leg drive with pressing the bar. Think about it like this – you must press the bar and push the floor simultaneously. If one goes before the other – look out. But when you do get it synchronized watch your bench press shoot up. If you are having trouble with leg drive here is a simple solution. Once the bar hits your chest you must think, “PUSH!” As soon as this thought gets in your head, the strength of your feet and your hands must be brought into the bar. The bench press should no longer be considered an upper body lift! If you do this correctly, your entire body will be involved. This does not give you license to lift your ass off of the bench press, so don’t turn a bench press into a decline press. All the power of your leg drive must be focused into the bar, not in lifting your hips off of the bench. This is wasted movement and wasted energy. 2. As you begin pushing the bar up, you must also focus on pushing the bar back. The bar should end up over your nose, mouth or eyes; the position at the end is going to be an individualistic and something that is going to take sometime to find out (much more than this 12 week training cycle). The point is that the bar will end up over your face and it’s path to this spot must begin immediately but slowly. You don’t want to immediately begin pressing right to your face; this is a sure way to make your dentist a rich man. The initial push off of your chest must be done with your elbows still tucked to your sides. 3. As you get about halfway up, the bar should be over your upper chest area. At this point you must begin making a transition to an elbow-tucked position to an elbow-flared position. You must simply begin rotating your elbows out and to the sides. This will allow you to effectively lockout any weight provided that your triceps aren’t pre-fatiuged and that the bar position and path is optimal. Just remember that towards the last half of the bench press, you must begin the elbow tuck to elbow flare. This does not mean that at the halfway mark you immediately flare your elbows! 4. As it passes the halfway point (about ¾ of the way up) you should focus on pushing the bar back to its final position and flaring your elbows hard. This final _________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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The Secrets of Super Strength position, if perfect and done with perfect form, should almost feel weightless and effortless. This doesn’t happen very often for most lifters but once you get there, you will know what I mean. 5. Finish the lift by holding at the top. Don’t just drive the bar into the rack. Make it a good clean lift. Make is something that you can be proud of. Question: Let’s move on to the squat now. What are the most important keys to building a big squat? Answer: Again this is easy: •

Technique

•

Strong Legs

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Strong Abs

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Strong Back

Here is what you need to do for your legs (besides squatting)– lunges, sled dragging, belt squats, leg presses and glute ham raises For your abs – straight leg hanging leg raises, ab wheel, side bends and weighted sit ups. For your back – all rowing (for your lats), high rep dumbbell rows is especially important, back raises, Reverse Hyperextensions and good mornings. Question: Ok, let’s get under the bar and go through a perfect set up and execution of a squat. Answer: 1. Get into an athletic stance: For most people this is very easy. Most have played a sport and almost every sport position is the same. If you played volleyball, get into a position as if you were ready to receive a serve. If you played baseball or softball, get into the same stance as you would as a shortstop. If you played football, the stance of a middle linebacker will suffice. All of these positions are the same; butt and hips are pushed slightly back, knees are bent, lower back is arched, head is up, weight is evenly distributed on the feet, upper back is pulled together, toes are _________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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The Secrets of Super Strength slightly pointed out and the mid-section is tight. Notice that each of these positions are slightly wider than shoulder width; if you are any narrower in any of these sports than you will compromise lateral speed and will be pushed over. Also, I hope that I played against you as were surely on your ass and back most of the game.

2. From this position, place your weight on your toes, pivot on them and move your heels out. After this, redistribute your weight on your heels, pivot on your heels and turn your toes back to the original angle. If you have any rhythm at all then this will look similar to a dance move. This will take your stance a bit wider than normal and put you into an ideal squat position. With some experimentation, you will find that you may have to go back to the original stance or even go wider; whatever the case begin with this and experiment. Everyone will have a slightly different stance. 3. Place your hands on your thighs and side them down to just above your knees. This position should be the same as if you were taking a breather between windsprints or something similar. This is a very basic position. No one takes a breather between sprints or in a basketball game with their weight on their toes. They will grab their shorts, push their glutes back, rest their upper body on their hands and drop their head. Sound familiar? If you have any trouble picturing this position then take a look at football players in a huddle or a basketball player during free-throws. They look almost the same. From this position, simply raise your head, arch your upper and lower back and place your hands as if they were on a barbell. This is the exact position you want to be in when you perform a squat.

4. At this point, your hips and glutes should be pushed back, your lower and upper back is arched, head straight ahead, bodyweight on your heels and your mid-section is held tight. If you are not in this position, repeat the first 3 steps and make sure you are in this position.

5. Begin your squat descent by leading your body down with your hips and glutes. Maintain the arch in your lower and upper back. If you are having a problem sitting back into the squat, you may have to lean your forward. This is not dangerous as


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The Secrets of Super Strength long as you keep your upper and lower back arched. About 60-70% of the weight should be distributed on your heels.

6. When you are about half way down, begin pushing your knees out and opening up your groin. This is what has been called “spreading the floor” but I have found that the term “open your groin” or “show your groin” or “open the knees” to be better terms when teaching people how to squat. Also, by pushing your knees out and opening your groin, you will have an easier time reaching parallel and will reach it quicker. Now the weight will be shifted to your heels and the sides of your feet.

7. For many people, once they sit back into the squat and open the hips, at this point they can simply squat down. Once your body is in perfect position, opening the hips will allow them to hit parallel without pushing back. This may be difficult to see when you read this, but try it out on a box with someone watching your knees. If you do it correctly then your knees will not move (they will remain over your ankles) when you squat down. The key is learning how and when to open you groin. This will take practice and some more practice; this is something that you will not get correct after a few tries, so be patient.

8. Hip flexibility and mobility is one key in squatting correctly, so this may be your limiting factor. If you are having problems with hip flexibility and mobility I highly recommend getting the Parisi Warm up Method on DVD. This video highlights many of the hip mobility and flexibility exercises that will prepare you for squatting correctly. Also, it is a great for conditioning and overall body preparation. Question: Now for the greatest test of strength of all; the dead lift. What are the most important keys to building a big dead lift? This is going to be the same as the squat – strong legs, strong back and strong abs. The best exercises to build a deadlift are:


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The Secrets of Super Strength •

Olympic Squats – great for quad strength, this will help throughout the entire movement.

•

Good Mornings – great for lower back strength and hamstrings. This is great for the start.

•

High Rep Dumbbell Rows – great for grip and upper back strength. Great for lockout strength.

•

Ab work – Great for ensuring that your midsection is safe and strong.

Question: Can you give us some tips and expert advice on how to properly perform a perfect dead lift? Answer: The first thing that people have to do is get in a correct stance. To do this, pretend you are about to perform a vertical jump. Get in your stance and squat down. STOP. Look down at your feet. This is about the stance you want to be in for your deadlift. Some people will go a little narrower but this will be the most powerful and comfortable stance. Second, put your shins on the bar. This will ensure that you will be pulling in the safest and straightest line. Place your hands just outside of your legs. Many people use and over/under grip; this is fine. At this point, arch your upper back and keep your chest up. Begin pushing your feet into the floor and pulling the bar up. Do not use your arms and do not jerk the bar off of the ground! As you pull the bar off of the ground keep your lower back arched (or arch it as much as possible) and your head and eyes forward. Complete the lift by standing up tall; there is no need to overemphasize the lockout by leaning back. This is a waste of time.

Question: Thanks, Jim. This is truly incredible information and I really hope that people read through it several times and put it all to good use. Answer: You’re welcome. _________________________________________________________________________________ Copyright © 2008, Jason Ferruggia. All rights reserved. http://www.MuscleGainingSecrets.com/

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The Secrets of Super Strength

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