Monthly Archives: May 2014

Meaningful Lifting

by Thom Van Vleck

On May 28th of this year I will have been lifting for 35 years.   There have been times when life has kept me from training like I wanted.  There was a year when I worked on  my Master’s degree that I was taking a full load of classes, working a full time job as a counselor, and I had to do an 800 hour internship.   As an undergrad I worked full time but there was a point where I was needing the money so I took a night job (I could study while at this job) but for a 6 month period I averaged around 80 yours a week and went to school full time.  I know….I know….excuses, excuses!

So recently I pulled a 700lb trap bar deadlift at age 48.  This is more than I’ve ever done in my life.  I have a buddy who lifts and I was bragging about it to him.  He was a top powerlifter in his day totalling 2105 at 220lbs bodyweight back before all the super gear of today.  He has known me since high school.  He looked at me and said, “You know what that means….if you’d gotten your head out of your a$$ you’d pulled 800 years ago”.

He’s right.  There is no good reason why I’m stronger in most ways now than at any point in my life.  Sure, I now I have more time to train.  But the honest truth is I’ve always been a head case.  I would over think things. I would over train, then under train.  I would spend too much time thinking about my workouts and not enough time actually doing my workouts.  I have spend countless hours writing down workouts which would be okay but I’ve rarely (maybe never) completed them.

So, the past few years I’ve tried to change that.  I think it’s working!   Here are some key points that I have come up with that have led to my “late in life” success.  By success, I mean “good for me”.  I don’t claim to be a champ!  I just feel like I’ve gotten more out of my body than maybe I should have and had MUCH more fun doing it.

First, I try to may my workouts rewarding.  I try to establish a clear link between work and reward.  Too often the benefits of lifting are too distant in the future to really appreciate.  So I try and do things I enjoy in my workouts.  For me I use many ways to do this.  I can constantly set personal bests in the gym even if it’s doing more reps with the same weight or doing a new exercise.  It’s also reward myself after the workout with a meal I enjoy or a movie.  My wife and I have a “date night” once a week.  I try and workout that morning with the idea that our date is my reward.  I have also bought myself a tool or some new training implement after reaching a short term goal and in my mind I make the attachment.  I recently bought a new music CD and made myself wait to listen to it when I worked out (that made me move a workout day up!).  I have set a can of Mt. Dew in a bowl of ice and refused to let myself drink it until that last set.

Second, I create variety.  I have to tell you, me personally I find a 16 week program impossible.  Heck….8 weeks seems like a prison sentence to me.  I switch things up all the time.  I try and do 3 week cycles and then switch.  For me that’s about my attention span for a workout routine.  It eliminates my number one enemy that stymies my progress…BOREDOM.  I look at a workout routine as a battle plan in the Marine Corps.  Sure, you want to stick with the plan.  You have a plan for a reason….but there’s no reason that when you see a short cut or another easy target you could hit along the way that you can’t do it!  I have finished a planned workout and if I was jacked up….I do the next workout right after.  I have thrown in a new exercise if I feel like I’m just not enjoying the one I’m doing.  I try to experiment all the time as well.  Recently, I tried doing a push press from a dead stop off of my jerk boxes.  They were awkward at first, but now I love them!

Third, I need autonomy.  This may be most important of all.  I will workout with others but I believe that if you want to workout for life then you need to have autonomy.  I have often talked to guys that had loads of talent but when someone stopped running their workouts they quit.  Autonomy is responsibility.  I am responsible for my own workouts.  I accept the failure but more importantly, I take the credit for success.  The key element is I need to want this for myself.  Not a trophy, not for a pat on the back from others, not for any other reason that for myself.  That other stuff is great, it’s icing on the cake but it’s NOT the cake.  When I stopped thinking about winning my next contest, stopped thinking about what others thought of me and my workouts, and focused on what I wanted and needed I began enjoy my workouts more.  They gained intrinsic value.

I have been around guys who can discipline themselves for the long haul.  I admire those guys…..but that’s not me.  I needed to find my own way.  So if anyone has read this to this point I want to make clear that this is not an exact guide.  It’s just intended to put a couple more tools in your mental tool box for your lifting.  I think this is what I enjoy about this process.  Lifting has not only made me physically stronger, but emotionally and intellectually stronger.  And it never ends unless you let it.  As I age my body won’t keep up, but I know I will continue to grow through my training.  Getting better and better!

Heavy Lift Championships

by Al Myers

2014 USAWA HEAVY LIFT CHAMPIONSHIPS

Group picture from the 2014 USAWA Heavy Lift Championships (left to right): Dennis Mitchell, Dave Hahn, Chad Ullom, Eric Todd, Lance Foster, and Dean Ross

What a big day at the Dino Gym!!! Saturday, May 3rd, the Dino Gym hosted a “double-header” of strength events – the USAWA Heavy Lift Championships in the morning and the Kansas Strongest Man in the afternoon.  Six brave all rounders showed up to tackle the heaviest of the lifts in the USAWA.  Veteran Dennis Mitchell made the longest trek to Holland Kansas to compete, coming from Cleveland, Ohio.  I was very glad to see Dennis and Flossy here, as less than a year ago Dennis had a knee replaced and I didn’t think Dennis would be up to taking on these heavy types of lifts yet.  But Dennis was an eager as ever, and lifted solid in all lifts.  Eric Todd and Lance Foster from the KC STRONGMAN club made their appearance as well.  ET set the tone early on that he was going to be the guy to beat when he went three for three, and set the highest Neck Lift of ALL TIME with a 1080 pound successful lift!!!  I’ve seen ET lift over 1000 pounds several times in the Neck Lift to date, but I’m continually amazed at seeing it again.  This big lift of ET’s overshadowed Chad Ullom’s herculean Neck Lift as well. Chad lifted a personal record 1014 pounds in the Neck Lift.  Very rarely do you get to see two lifters put up these type of Neck Lifts on the same platform.  Eric went on to win the overall best lifter of the day, with Chad a close runner-up.

We had a welcomed newcomer to the USAWA on Saturday – if you could really call him that.  I say that because Dave Hahn of Overland Park, Kansas made his return to the USAWA after a 23 year absence!  The previous time he lifted in our organization was at one of Bill Clark’s Zercher Meets in the early nineties.  I was very impressed with Dave’s lifting ability – and he seemed to have knowledge of the heavy lifts as well.  He put up great numbers – 350 Neck, 520 H&T, and 900 Hip.  He took a shot at over 1000 in the Hip, and if not for a little balance issues, would have got it.  After the meet I told Dave not to wait another 23 years before lifting in the USAWA again!!

Now who have I forgot to mention????  I guess I saved the best for last – Dean Ross!  Dean has been one of the biggest supporters of the Dino Gym events over the years, and rarely misses anything!  He’s also been a tremendous supporter of the USAWA these past few years and probably does more USAWA events than any other lifter!  One thing about Dean – when he’s in attendance there’s never a dull moment!  I was most impressed by his 700 pound Hand and Thigh.   Also – once the meet was over Dean had to “hit to road” immediately to make it to Texas for a Highland Games the next day!

I hope all the lifters had a great time at this championships.  I know I pushed things along at a fast pace to get done in time for the strongman meet afterwards.  From start to finish the meet lasted just a little over 3 hours!   I especially want to thank my dad LaVerne for officiating and helping me out, all the guys who pitched in loading, Chad for helping me finish the awards and helping with the BBQ,  and Scott who was my partner in the day’s promotion.

MEET RESULTS:

2014 USAWA Heavy Lift Championships
Dino Gym, Holland, Kansas
May 3rd, 2014

Meet Director: Al Myers

Scorekeeper: Al Myers

Officials (3-official system used): Al Myers (head), LaVerne Myers, Lance Foster, Chad Ullom, Eric Todd, Dennis Mitchell

Lifts: Neck Lift, Hand and Thigh Lift, Hip Lift

LIFTER AGE BWT NECK H&T HIP TOT PTS
Eric Todd 39 247 1080 1350 1810 4240 3384.4
Chad Ullom 42 254 1014 1210 1610 3834 3107.5
Dave Hahn 76 152 350 520 900 1770 2560.7
Dean Ross 71 267 250 600 760 1610 1631.3
Dennis Mitchell 82 153 246 350 475 1071 1611.2
Lance Foster 48 332 300 600 850 1750 1320.9

EXTRA FOR RECORDS:

Dean Ross – Hand and Thigh 700#
Dean Ross – Hip Lift 800#
Dennis Mitchell – Hip Lift 600#

NOTES:  BWT is bodyweight in pounds.  All lifts recorded in pounds. TOT is total pounds lifted. PTS are overall adjusted points for age and bodyweight correction.

Try DIGGING into a heavy workout!

by John McKean

" Winning one of Al's Dumbbell Walk Handles helped crafty ole John to develop an enjoyable new fitness movement! Can ya DIG it?!"

Before we started dating, my future wife, Marilyn, told me I couldn’t touch her with a 10′ pole. So I got an 11′ pole – it musta worked as we’ll be married for 45 years this September!

Seriously, the long pole has figured its way into my training regimen ever since I studied and practiced Chinese long pole FORMS over 20 years ago in Wing Chun Kung Fu. In addition to use as a self defense tactic, this leverage form of resistance has been terrific for both cardio training, when done for a sufficient length of time, and is fantastic for a warmup to an all-round lifting program. A long pole’s smooth flow and circular motions, when done in precise martial arts patterns, really activates and awakens every muscle of the body.

However, while playing around with training tools this past winter, it occurred to me that the long pole, with one of Al’s homemade “Dumbbell Walk Handles” slid down and positioned on one end would yield a lot more resistance from the pole’s other far side. This would yield a heavier, rep oriented, leverage-weighted exercise, that maybe wouldn’t require a half hour of work, for use as a pre workout warmup. I recalled how my old friend, the late Dr. Len Schwartz, in his original “Heavyhands” text had advocated a digging type movement with the small dumbbells that he employed for aerobic training. Dr. Len was very high on all the benefits of his shoveling motion, but couldn’t convince many to attempt it, as this particular exercise seemed awkward to maneuver with 2 dumbbells. Later, however, as Schwartz formulated awesome “Longstrength” programs – which were much shorter duration than standard aerobic sessions, with slightly heavier fitness movements – shoveling fit right in. He even devised a screw-in 6″ dumbbell connector which welded two dumbbells into one solid unit.

Now my LONG lever “shovel” makes this exercise quite a bit more hardy than did Dr. Schwartz’ tool. With added barbell plates and collars it can be loaded heavy enough, if desired, to produce an actual one rep maximum lift ! Yet I still keep it unloaded as pictured here to go through wide arc front circles, back circles, and realistic over the head shoveling. Hitting both left and right sides, I find that about 35 reps for these 6 maneuvers instills a robust feeling that just begs the ole bod to attack some serious heavy barbell work!

Of course, there is plenty of room for much further exploration, and many other digging style exercises to be discovered. From my initial experimentation I can assure that besides a superb warmup, my forearms, biceps, and obliques are becoming seriously toned from this fun activity! Even Marilyn must see the positive benefits – I’m now allowed a mere 7′ pole around her and for workouts!

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