Week 10 Day 1

Move the bar as fast as possible on the concentric phase, pause 1 second, return quickly to starting point, breath deeply, brace and repeat.

1.) Press 3x8

2A.) KB Clean & Jerk 3x8

2B.) Muscle ups 3 x submax

3A.) Handstand Walk 3x max distance

3B.) Chin up 3 x submax

4.) 5 rounds for time

A. C2 row x 200 meters

B. Ball slams 20lb x 15

Week 9 Day 4

1.) Clean Drills

-Power clean+front squat+hang clean x 6

2.) Clean & Jerk work up to heavy single

3A.) Front Squat 6x2

3B.) Bent over barbell row 6x5-6, heavy

4A.) RDL 3x8

4B.) Step ups 3x8 each leg

5.) Hanging leg Raise 3 x 15

Article with Zach at Elite FTS

Had my interview with Zach Even-Esh published in EliteFTS, so I'm pumped about that. Time to crush the gym. Enjoy the read here...

Week 9 Day 3

This is one really cool lookin trunk! I hope everyone who is following along is making good gains. Its a 12 week cycle, so a few more weeks to go jack up some PR's before we switch things up a bit. I am heavily favoring a short 4-6 week fat burning cycle through April. Anybody have any ideas or wishes? Please let me know so I can make a utilitarian decision. But really, I'm gonna do whatever the fuck I want anyway :) But i love to hear your thoughts.

1.) Incline Bench Press 10x2

2A.) (KB bottoms up) clean & press 5x5

2B.) Muscle ups 5x5

3A.) (Sandbag) Zercher lunges 3x10 each leg

3B.) (Keg) Carry 3x200 feet

3C.) Farmers Carry 3x200 feet

3D.) Power Wheel 3x100 feet

4.) Foam rolling, mobility, etc. Prepare for heavy cleans and squats on Saturday

Anybody have any questions, comments or concerns about the Underground Strength Mentorship being held at The Strength Shop on March 20? I will be happy to discuss any queries anybody might have. Zach Even-Esh and I have a big day planned for all attendees, so I hope you get on board!

Week 9 Day 2

1.) Snatch 4x2, 3x1

2.) Snatch Grip Deadlift + chains 8x2

3A.) Walking lunges 3x8-10 each leg
3B.) Good Morning 3x8-10
3C.)GHB Situps 3x8-12 weighted and slow

3D.) Back Extensions 3x12-15

4.) Hill sprints or sled drags 10-15 minutes

Week 9 Day 1

I'm just kickin it with my homie, you know how we do!

1.) Push Press 8-5-3-1-1-1

2A.) Muscle ups 5 x submax

2B.) Kettlebell Clean & Jerk 5x8-10

3A.) Ring pushups 3 x submax
3B.) Double KB highpull 3 x 10-15

4A.) Backwards sled drag 5 x 30 Meters
Follow immediately with:
4B.) Sprint 5 x 50-75 meters
4C.) Rest 90-120 seconds

Maybe this is a time in your life that you feel you should be kickin some major ass. Maybe you are, maybe you're not. If you want to take your training to the next level for you are your clients, and grow your business as well, come to the Underground Strength Mentorship hosted by Zach Even-Esh and Matt Wichlinski on March 20, 2010. There is going to be some serious information on training and business from some of the best in the business, come check it out!

Week 8 Day 4

1.) Power clean 3x3, 2x2, 3x1

2.) Front squat 8x3

3a.) Good morning 3x8-12

3b.) Lunge 3x8-12 each leg

4a.) Russian Twists 3x20

4b.) KB swings 3x20

5.) Sprint 5x50-75 meters

Athletes in Action

Underground Strength Mentorship on 3/20 info click here

Week 8 Day 3

1.) Handstand Skill Work x 5 minutes, practice 1 arm handstand

2.) Single KB Clean and Press 8 x 3-5

3.) Bottoms up Bench Press w/ chains 8x3

4A.) 1 Arm FAT DB Bench Press 3 x 8-12
4B.) 1 Arm FAT DB Bent Rows 3 x 8-12

5.) Pullups 3 x submax

6.) Row Concept2 x 500 meters for time

7.) Foam Roll, massage, mobility work and prepare for saturdays clean and jerks and squats

Week 8 Day 2

1.) Snatch 3x3, 4x1

2.) Snatch Grip Deadlift 6x3

3A.) Step ups 3x8-10 each leg
3B.) RDL 3x8-10
3C.)GHB Situps 3x8-12 weighted and slow

4.) Hill sprints or sled drags 10-15 minutes

Week 8 Day 1

Barbell Warm up x5 reps each movement before changing
a. RDL
b. muscle snatch
c. front squat
d. press
e. good morning
f. press behind neck
g. back squat
h. lunge, each leg
i. deadlift
j. power jump

1.) Clean grip power snatch 5x3

2.) Jerk behind neck 6-8x3
change every rep, ie. left, right, power jerk, work up to heavy triple

As many rounds as possible in 15 minutes, 4-6 reps of each
3a.) Handstand Pushup
3b.) Pull up
3c.) Pushup
3d.) Supine row


Sorry for the late post, life happens

Week 7 Day 4

1.) 1 Power clean+ 1 front squat+1 hang clean x work up to heavy load for the day

2.) Front squat 5x5

3A.) RDL 3x8
3B.) Chin ups 3 x submax

4A.) Wall ball shots 3x15
4B.) Jumping Ball Slams3x15
As fast as possible


Check out the Underground Strength Mentorship!!!

Week 7 Day 3

1.) Box Jumps 20x1

2.) Bottoms up incline BB press with chains 5x5

3A.) Ring push ups 3x10-15 weighted if possible
3B.) 1 arm DB rows 3x10-15

4.) Double KB swings outside legs 10x10-12
(Begin every set on the minute every minute for 10 minutes)

Make sure you check out the Underground Strength Mentorship...

Week 7 Day 2

1.) Power snatch+overhead squat+hang snatch 1+1+1x5

2.) Snatch grip deadlift 4-5x4-5

3A.) Walking Lunge 3x12-20 (Go heavy, make it a fight)
3B.) GHR with hip extension 3x6-10
3C.) Twisting Hanging Leg Raise (HLR) 3x8-12

4.) Sprint 10x50 meters

Inspiration from The Strength Shop

The following is a message thread from a loyal fan of The Strength Shop videos and physical culture lifestyle. He has come a long way, and we hope to keep him motivated for years to come...

My man... how are you doing? Well, I finally got around to making the dip station and bulgarian heavy bag. Thank you for all you are doin bro. I was wondering how long is your battle rope? Is it one long rope or is it a pair? Thank you again. Take care and have a blessed week.
Forever inspired by you,
Fil

I am well, thank you. Hope you are kick ass and the new toys are treating you well!
The rope is 1.5 inch thick and 50 feet long, one rope, I loop it around things and also use it as one long rope as well. I will park my car on top of one end, or you could have one partner stand on the opposite end and switch users for time, etc.
Matt

Yeah... I'm trying to get on your level... haha. But I got a long ways to go. I use to be fit, weighing 195 - 200 lbs. I'm a big boy now, weighing about 318. I know... I let myself go, got married and got lazy. The heaviest I've ever been was 357 bro. Yeah... that's right, a fat ass! I met a guy who was a 3rd degree BB in Brazillian Jiu Jitsu and was a boxer in his day. I went from 357 to 250 in less than a year. I felt good, my self-esteem was thru the roof. I got comfortable and got big again. Christmas time I weighed around 342 lbs. Now I weigh 318 lbs. I've been a diabetic for several years now, trying to keep a healthy blood glucose level. It isn't easy but again... I thank GOD for coming across your videos bro. You have inspired me to get off my ass and work hard. I know it's hard but I can't quit... that will just make me a quitter. I know you aint a quitter. As for the toys, they work fine. I will be picking me up some rope soon. Do you have any recommendations on where to get the rope?
Thanks again. Sorry for being so long winded.
Fil

depending on where you live, there might be some local spots to find rope like marinas or junkyards. But I got mine from E-bay, you can sometimes find pretty good deals there. I found one with $10 flat rate shipping, which helped a lot with the price. The rope would be a very good choice of high intensity cardio, especially for a big boy like yourself to avoid banging up your lower body while running. You have lots of options, and I'm glad to have helped with your motivation. Keep searching, you will find that long term strength you are looking for.
Live hard,
Matt

Week 7 Day 1

1.) Dbl KB parked power jumps 8x3

2.) Push press 5x5

3.) Muscle ups 5 x submax

4A.) Ring dips 3 x submax
4B.) 1 arm high pulls 3 x 15

Prehab sets for shoulder health:

5A.) Rope pulls, hand over hand dragging tire or sled 3 x 60 feet (substitute recline rows)
5B.) DB bent raise 3 x 10
5C.) DB front raise 3 x 10
5D.) DB side raise 3 x 10

Week 6 Day 4

1.) Power clean+front squat+power jerk 6x2

2.) Front squat with chains 3x6-8

3.) Good mornings 3x8-10

4.) Jumping ball slams 6x10

Back flip technique

The following is a response to one of my videos on YouTube. I found it fascinating and very informative. Hopefully you will also...

Matt,

Love your channel! I am 36 years old and played all sports growing up but after building a business, getting married, having kids and being heavily involved in church ministry I got away from a regular fitness rutine. This along with bad diet and over working at a physical job My back gave out and I was in bed for a week and could not stand up straight. I evaluated my priorities or really put more emphasis on areas that where lacking attention.

I stopped working out because I did not have time in my schedule, so I had to design a workout that would still inspire me as a hard core worout, but take minimal time. I also wanted a workout that would not have the goal of looking pretty but develop real usable core strength and endurance. Stuff that can be used in real every day life. So I made a list of single exersizes that would focus on strengthening all the major muscle groups and work them in a circuit to develop endurance as well as strength.

I looked on you tube for some ideas and stumbled across your videos. Just what I needed! Along with a few other resources I now have the workout I have wanted my whole life but never knew existed. I just wanted to say thanks for the excellence of what you do!

Also I wanted to return the favor and through you a tip that I think you will enjoy. Please keep in mind I am not giving you this tip out of pride or criticism. I can't stand that! I only comment so I can give back and in some small way return the favor.

I noticed in your workouts you do some gymnastics moves. The one I noticed was the back flip. I used to coach gymnastics so this is my department. I noticed your technique was off. Not that this is any big deal if you only want to do back flips, but you strike me as the type of guy that you always challenge yourself and try to improve, taking things to the next level. If you correct your technique with your vertical jump you could do more than back flips wich would increase the intensity of the flips increasing the results of the exersize.

If you watch your video you will notice when you start your back flip the first thing you do is through your head back as you jump and then you tuck your knees around as fast as you can bringing them around and back underneath you. This technique is a natural response to your bodies defense mechanism to want to know where you are at all times relative to the floor. Its like a cat that always wants to land on its feet. This technique however kills your ability to gain heighth on your back flip wich is necessary for doing more than just one tuck flip befor you land on the floor. You have to retrain your mind and your badies natural instinked. You have to learn to use your senses to identify where you are at in the air relative to the ground.

The proper technique is to: At the atart of the back flip instead of thraoughing your head back to whip your body around jump straight up reching your hands as high as you can (try to touch the ceiling). Keep in mind there is two parts to the back flip 1.the jump giving you height that buys you the time to flip around befor you hit the floor and 2. the spin or flip in the air the speed of which will also determine how many rotations or other tricks you can do befor you hit the floor. Your flip, even though you jump hard, is focused on the spin because through your head back detirmines the direction the force of your jump is applied. If you whip it back you are jumping back not up, so mo matter how hard you jump you will never go any higher.

Start developing your jump straight up to direct the force up. Stretch your arms straigth and keep your head facing forward as long as you can until you reach the heighth of your jump and then flip. Remember the higher you are the more time you have to spinaround and get back to the floor. This will take alot of practice. On your spin ot flip part instead of whiping your head back to generate your spin at the height of your jump pull your knees up over the top of your head and keep your head facing forward. Do not use your head for the rotation. Use your knees. This will give you full height in your jump and when you tuck your knees up over your head you will tuck up over the height of jump rather than droping your flip by whiping your head back and down.

Employ this technique properly with your vertical leap and you will find that your flips will be 2-3 times as high and you will have so much time in the air you can start trying to do other tricks in the air or add a spin to your flip or even another flip befor your feet hit the ground. This would increase the intenstiy of your workout.

I hope that helps sorry for the length but proper technique requires detailed instruction. Let me know if you have any other gymnastic questions such as strength moves or tecchnique. I will help if I can.
Thank you again for your skills.

Travis McGhee

Week 6 Day 3

1.) Standing broad jump 5x3
-(reset each jump)

2.) Inc bench 4x6-8

3A.) Face the wall handstand with hip slap 3x20 slaps
3B.) BTB around the worlds 3x20 each direction

4A.) Chinese rows 3 x 10
4B.) DB flys 3 x 10

5.) Tabata Burpees

Rollin

Week 6 Day 2

1.) BB power snatch + 2 OHS 6x2

2.) 2 KB snatch+jerk+clean+jerk 6x2

3.) Snatch grip deadlift 4x6
-(Start with 50% of max deadlift on go up from there)

4A.) Ab wheel 3x12-15
4B.) 2 KB swing outside legs 3x12-15

Warm Up of the Week

Choose 1 moderate weight (something you could press at least 10x) kettlebell or dumbbell and perform each movement for 15-30 seconds:

Waiter carry while marching with high knees
Suitcase carry while Frankenstein walking
Goblet squats
Samson stretch
Push ups
Bootstrapper kickbacks
Horizontal shrugs
One arm rows
Scorpion push ups
Single leg rdl's
Alternating split squats
Swings
Pull ups

These are several movements which will wrm the body and prepare you for the ensuing battle to come, you will soon be a warrior, young grasshopper. Stay the path, and move seamlessly from one movement pattern to the next. In short time you will pick this brief routine up well and I guarantee instant increased infatuation and decreased inflammation.

I'm sure I'll be posting a video shortly of the elements