Huge Mistakes I Made Prior to the Year 2014 – Part II

Picking up where I left off in my last point, please find below some additional huge mistakes I made prior to the Year 2014.

5. Inappropriate Program Selection and “Program Jumping.”   I think just about anyone who “self-programs” their own training has probably been guilty of this at one time or another, and truth be told, there is a good chance they are probably still jumping from one program to the next without any underlying theory.  Regardless, in my opinion, the best, i.e. the most efficient and sustainable, way to get any young athlete or novice lifter strong is through linear progression.  The reason being that without a true one-rep max, a percentage-based approach is superfluous, and the individual would be better served using small, intra-workout jumps.  On the other end of the spectrum, the so-called “Bulgarian Method” is receiving a lot of hype these days, as is the “squat every day” style of training advocated for by John Broz and a few other weightlifting coaches.  I used the latter approach in my own training this past year (for full disclaimer: I added 40 kilos to my back squat in ten months using Nick Horton’s “Squat Nemesis” program), but I am young and have tremendous recovery capacities.  Having experimented with a few different approaches, I have come to believe that there are more efficient ways to skin the proverbial cat, ones that require far less time in the gym, than the squat every day program.

I would also like to point out that there is a key difference between “program jumping” and “program progressing.”  The former comes about after too many visits to online forums, while the latter presents itself only after an athlete has exhausted a particular approach.  Think linear progression to Texas Squat Method, or possibly linear progression to a percentage-based program.  Again, any such progression should only take place once an athlete has exhausted linear progression, as evidenced by repeated stall outs around the same point.  The time it takes for a particular individual to exhaust linear progression depends on a wide range of factors, and it would be inappropriate for me to pose an average due to this high degree of specificity.   

6.  Neglecting Assistance Exercises.  Okay, you got me, the Bulgarian national team under Ivan Abadjiev only performed five lifts – the snatch, clean and jerk, power snatch, power clean, and front squat – during most of their training cycles, but let me tell you this, my man, you are most definitely not Naim Suleymanoglu.  Assistance lifts like push presses, RDLs, glute-ham raises, and Pendlay rows are excellent tools to keep in your toolbox, especially with more underdeveloped athletes.  RDLs and glute-ham raises are also great exercises for stretching and strengthening the hamstrings, something that all “desk jocks” need in spades.  In my experience, push presses carry over very well to the jerk, and Pendlay rows are a great total back exercise (erectors, lats, etc.).

In the past, I, too, have been guilty of neglecting these exercises, a laziness that manifested itself in a lower level of general physical preparedness and often times lower numbers in the competition lifts.  Don’t be lazy.  There are always RDLs.

7.  Living in Fear of Carbs.  Quite recently I heard the expression, “glucose is king,” but unfortunately I cannot give proper credit to its author, because my memory is failing me.  Nonetheless, the underlying idea is simple – eat carbs.  My “go to” choices are sweet potatoes, yams, and yucca, but I will also eat a bowl of oatmeal with sliced apples and a tablespoon-ish amount of raw honey before a morning lift, especially if I plan to squat heavy that day.  Carrots and Yukon gold potatoes also come into play from time to time.  I know a lot of people respond well to waxy maize pre- or post-workout, but I prefer nutrient-dense solid food.

During my excessive metcon days several years back, I ate “squirrel food,” i.e. nuts and berries, for most of my carbohydrate intake, but this strategy was the wrong one because berries produce very little glucose.  I think the low-carb approaches advocated by some Zone and Paleo followers have their place, especially for those individuals who are first learning about better food choices and more appropriate serving sizes, but for a hard charging athlete you need to feed the beast.  Eat some carbs in your pre- and post-workout meals and your performance will most likely improve, thus resulting in positive body composition changes.