Training Solo or in a Group?

 

 

Now this is a fun topic. I have found myself on both sides of this topic at times. Spoiler alert I lean toward the group side these days. That's not to say I don't enjoy the solo side at times. It definitely feels more meditative and I pretend that I'm way more hardcore than people who rely on people to perform. Honestly for me though it's just not the case. If your training is tough enough that it produces great performance results then it definitely gets easier to skip workouts or do less sets than you are supposed to. Accountability brings success in so many avenues of life why wouldn't you want it applied by default in your lifting life. 

Also I am a freaking show off so having people around to be amazed by my awesomeness is kind of nice. It sucks really bad when people stronger than you are there if you are a straight ego lifter. The flip side is that if you are surrounded by people better than you it tends to raise the bar and you will progress way faster. The little fish in a big pond gets bigger or gets eaten. Be the little fish and grow your ass off.

A final thing that's pretty beneficial is coaching and keeping you honest. If you are squatting high and you are solo it's pretty easy to convince yourself it was a good rep. If you are with a crew they can and should call your butt out.

Yep after my last trip to the Mash Compound I am having a really hard time being okay with flying solo. Find a crew and start progressing.

So what's your experience? Solo or Group?

Talk soon,

Dan is a nationally ranked amateur

strongman competitor in the 242lb

and 275lb classes and a powerlifter in the 275lb class. He holds instructor level ranks in Taekwondo, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He as been training people for strength and martial arts since 2004.

You can follow Dan on Instagram @RoninStr
For training and diet plans email roninstr@gmail.com

Why Supplements Suck

 

So let's get this out of the way right off the bat. You are not fat because you haven't found the best fat burner. And you...skinny guy over there! You are not skinny because you don't buy enough mass gainer. The secret sauce? The magic trick? Food.

There are so many reasons why food is awesome compared to supps and here's just a few.

-Food is cheaper! Tuna and rice with ranch and Buffalo sauce is less than 2 bucks for 50g of protein and 70g of carbs. And if you are going dirty, a large Little Caesar's pepperoni pizza is 150g of protein and 250g of carbs for $5.00. Whole milk is dirt cheap too. Stack that up to your mass gainer and see what's a bigger bang for your buck and what actually tastes better.

-The second big bonus to food is that it has a more complete hormone profile. Now I am just a dirty meathead so I don't know the specifics of why that's a good thing but I heard a smart sciencey guy say it once so we will just go with that. Feel free to Google if you really care to find out specifics. I am a cheap bastard so the cost effectiveness is all I needed to hear.

This isn't to say that supplements don't help, but for crying out loud. They are called "SUPPLEMENTS" not "MAINS!" The real issue isn't supplements it's lazy people who spent 100% of their efforts unintentionally trying to get fat or unintentionally trying to stay skinny, in the hard gainer's case, for the past 20 years wanting a quick fix that takes as close to zero effort as possible. You may have to put that kind of dedication toward your goals on purpose to change your body. But time and time again I will see people piss and moan about changing 10% or 20% of their habits. 20% of eating poorly and being lazy didn't make you 5'4" and 300lbs. It was 110% (which is impossible. I hate that term.) dedication to not moving much and eating doughnut holes by the handful while you empty a bag of Doritos down your gullet as a chaser which had that effect.

So the  title was kind of appropriate, but really it should have been "No Magic Bullet" or "Why are People so Dumb?" All harshness aside. If you want to change your body, career, or anything else you are going to need to put some serious work in. The magic doesn't happen by accident or over night. Change is a series of choices made every moment of every day for months or years that result in where you are at now or where you will be the future.

Don't be a slacker. Get to work.


-Dan

Dan is a nationally ranked amateur

strongman competitor in the 242lb

and 275lb classes and a powerlifter in the 275lb class. He holds instructor level ranks in Taekwondo, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He as been training people for strength and martial arts since 2004.

You can follow Dan on Instagram @RoninStr
For training and diet plans email roninstr@gmail.com

Annihilate Weaknesses

 

So I have been working out at a big commercial gym a lot for the past few years. It's a mixed blessing for sure. On one hand I get instant cred for being one of the stronger guys there, which is a nice ego boost. On the other hand it makes it hard to push yourself when you are the metaphorical big fish in a small pond. But one of the biggest things I notice at a commercial gym is how the vast majority of people will avoid their weaknesses. It seems to be so much more about looking cool and talking a big game than performing well. There are exceptions of course, but people seem to fear failure, strain, and hard work even if it's those very things that would catapult them to the next level. 

Now that I've picked on the Bros let's take a look at powerlifting. Yes I am newer to this strength sport but I see very similar behavior. Unless you are breaking some sort of lift record or you have an injury preventing you from doing one of the lifts, why in the heck are you doing bench only or push pull? Brandon Lilly blew both of his knees and his first meet back hit a 135lb squat and was ok with it. A guy that squats over 800lbs being fine with sub 200lbs while recovering is awesome. Some candy-ass afraid to look weak on stage is ridiculous. How about you squat or deadlift your butt off in training so you can actually put up respectable numbers? Avoiding your pathetic lifts won't get them better and there's only so much bench pressing your 75 Instagram followers care to watch. If you consistently do bench only meets you are not a powerlifter you are a bench presser. NBA players don't just play knockout or shoot free throws. They play the whole game. Nut up!

Now let me step off my soap box for a second. If you just want to curl or bench or squat or whatever that's fine but don't talk and act like you are hardcore and pushing for greatness with your shirts that have the "f" word on them unless you actually are that person. If you are that person you will attack your weaknesses because that's how you achieve greatness.

So what is your biggest weak spot and how are you addressing it.

Comment Below!

 

Talk Soon

Dan Mason

Dan is a nationally ranked amateur

strongman competitor in the 242lb

and 275lb classes and a powerlifter in the 275lb class. He holds instructor level ranks in Taekwondo, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He as been training people for strength and martial arts since 2004.

You can follow Dan on Instagram @RoninStr
For training and diet plans email roninstr@gmail.com