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In 2019 Coach Matt delivered a series of lectures to the Barbell Logic staff on Minimum Effective Dose (MED) programming. MED is all about simplicity, identifying the smallest change you can make to a lifter's programming to keep him or her progressing.

Of course, MED is not a new concept for Barbell Logic. Matt and Scott have discussed it as far back as Episode #53, and the idea underpins all of the programming episodes we've done since then.

Despite this, there is still much confusion around what to do after the novice linear progression. Many people see programming as a progression through a series of templates -- Novice LP, Texas Method/HLM, Block, DUP, etc -- and while you may make progress on these templates for a while, eventually things stop working. And without an understanding of how programming actually works, you're left scratching your head for what to do next.

The MED approach essentially throws away the idea of templates, and asks you to first understand what the problem is -- why exactly did you stop progressing? Is it because you need more stress to drive strength adaptation? Or are you under-recovered?

In the MED masterclass, you'll get to sit in the coach's seat and learn how to think more deeply about programming, identify problems, and formulate solutions based on logic and analysis -- not just looking at templates.

Discounts

1. Want to try online coaching for FREE? Email [email protected] for a free trial of Barbell Logic Online Coaching. You'll get feedback on your technique and programming from a Barbell Logic coach, and see what the fuss is all about!

Connect With Matt

• Matt on Instagram
• Barbell Logic Online Coaching — Matt's website
• Matt on Facebook
• Matt on Twitter

  Connect With Scott

• Scott on Instagram
• Silver Strength – Scott's website
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on Twitter

  Connect With the Show

• Barbell Logic on Twitter
• Barbell Logic on Instagram
• The Website
• Barbell Logic on Facebook
• [email protected]

In the MED masterclass, you'll get to sit in the coach's seat and learn how to think more deeply about programming, identify problems, and formulate solutions based on logic and analysis -- not just looking at templates.

Longtime strength coach and now PhD Neuroscience student Jayson Ball joins the show today to talk about his work in the world of pain neuroscience. Pain is a perplexing thing. While many people understand it as a strictly mechanical phenomenon (you slam your fingers in a door and say "ouch!"), pain also has a complex emotional and neurological component that cannot be ignored.

A massive pain management industry, including opiate and opioid drugs, has grown to meet the demand of pain sufferers, but with little to show for making long-term impact on pain symptoms. So it's an important question. What is the nature of pain and what can we do to manage and treat pain symptoms?

Clearly, exercise -- and strength training in particular -- is the best drug we have today. But neuroscientists are close to running human trials which could help deal with the unforeseen consequences of the pain management industry, such as the current opioid epidemic.

Coach Jayson Ball works at the University of Colorado in Boulder. He is also a staff coach at Barbell Logic.

Discounts

1. Want to try online coaching for FREE? Email [email protected] for a free trial of Barbell Logic Online Coaching. You'll get feedback on your technique and programming from a Barbell Logic coach, and see what the fuss is all about!
2. Regain control of your email inbox with Sanebox. Listeners can try Sanebox for FREE with a 14-day trial!

Connect With Matt

• Matt on Instagram
• Barbell Logic Online Coaching — Matt's website
• Matt on Facebook
• Matt on Twitter

  Connect With Scott

• Scott on Instagram
• Silver Strength – Scott's website
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on Twitter

  Connect With the Show

• Barbell Logic on Twitter
• Barbell Logic on Instagram
• The Website
• Barbell Logic on Facebook
• [email protected]

Longtime strength coach and now PhD Neuroscience student Jayson Ball joins the show today to talk about his work in the world of pain neuroscience. Pain is a perplexing thing. While many people understand it as a strictly mechanical phenomenon (you slam your fingers in a door and say "ouch!"), pain also has a complex emotional and neurological component that cannot be ignored.

Barbell Logic coach Niki Sims returns to the podcast to discuss her experience balancing strength training with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Niki has been strength training for about 10 years, and started training BJJ about two years ago, seeking a new hobby.

During that time she has kept strength a priority, pulling 430lbs at a meet in 2019. BJJ is a stressful sport that demands a lot of recovery resources, however, so Niki has learned to balance her rolling with strength training.

BJJ is a metabolically intense sport, similar to HIIT style conditioning, but it doesn't have to be all sparring. Niki recommends BJJ athletes limit their sparring and spend plenty of time working on technique at 70-80% intensity. Likewise, she doesn't do any conditioning off the mat, as BJJ practice alone is sufficient to keep her in shape for rolling.

Niki trains BJJ twice per week, and despite being an advanced lifter, Niki strength trains only 3x per week. She takes the weekends off. True rest days are important, she says. BJJ is a hobby, not a profession, so she limits her frequency on the mat to avoid overuse injuries and ensure she has plenty of recovery in between bouts of heavy strength work.

To keep her lifts progressing, Niki trains each lift frequently, pulling three times a week and pressing 4-5 times per week. Squats are particularly taxing, so she typically only squats twice per week. Accessory lifts -- particularly chin-ups -- fill in the gaps of the program.

You can find Niki at Barbell Logic and on Instagram at @vera_nahce.

Discounts

1. Want to try online coaching for FREE? Email [email protected] for a free trial of Barbell Logic Online Coaching. You'll get feedback on your technique and programming from a Barbell Logic coach, and see what the fuss is all about!
2. Regain control of your email inbox with Sanebox. Listeners can try Sanebox for FREE with a 14-day trial!

Connect With Matt

• Matt on Instagram
• Barbell Logic Online Coaching — Matt's website
• Matt on Facebook
• Matt on Twitter

  Connect With Scott

• Scott on Instagram
• Silver Strength – Scott's website
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on Twitter

  Connect With the Show

• Barbell Logic on Twitter
• Barbell Logic on Instagram
• The Website
• Barbell Logic on Facebook
• [email protected]

Barbell Logic coach Niki Sims returns to the podcast to discuss her experience balancing strength training with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Niki has been strength training for about 10 years, and started training BJJ about two years ago, seeking a new hobby.

It has become something of a tradition at Barbell Logic for Hambrick to share some of his favorite jazz tunes to celebrate the Christmas season and the passing of the old year. In this third annual Christmas special, Scott plays selections including classic big band swing from Benny Goodman, Joao Gilberto, the father of Bossa Nova, hard bop from Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, and more.

You can listen to the complete versions of these songs, as well as the music from previous Christmas specials, on the Barbell Logic Jazz Selections Spotify playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4IKnTFtnZhNNqDrV2qnesQ?si=EjzdTwWUQx-erOJXhAel4w

Discounts

1. Want to try online coaching for FREE? Email [email protected] for a free trial of Barbell Logic Online Coaching. You'll get feedback on your technique and programming from a Barbell Logic coach, and see what the fuss is all about!
2. Regain control of your email inbox with Sanebox. Listeners can try Sanebox for FREE with a 14-day trial!

Connect With Matt

• Matt on Instagram
• Barbell Logic Online Coaching — Matt's website
• Matt on Facebook
• Matt on Twitter

  Connect With Scott

• Scott on Instagram
• Silver Strength – Scott's website
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on Twitter

  Connect With the Show

• Barbell Logic on Twitter
• Barbell Logic on Instagram
• The Website
• Barbell Logic on Facebook
• [email protected]

It has become something of a tradition at Barbell Logic for Hambrick to share some of his favorite jazz tunes to celebrate the Christmas season and the passing of the old year. In this third annual Christmas special, Scott plays selections including classic big band swing from Benny Goodman, Joao Gilberto, the father of Bossa Nova, hard bop from Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, and more.

Matt and Scott are back with another round of Thursday Q&A. If you'd like to ask Matt and Scott a question, email [email protected] and we'll feature you on a future Q&A episode!

Discounts

1. Want to try online coaching for FREE? Email [email protected] for a free trial of Barbell Logic Online Coaching. You'll get feedback on your technique and programming from a Barbell Logic coach, and see what the fuss is all about!
2. Regain control of your email inbox with Sanebox. Listeners can try Sanebox for FREE with a 14-day trial!

Connect With Matt

• Matt on Instagram
• Barbell Logic Online Coaching — Matt's website
• Matt on Facebook
• Matt on Twitter

  Connect With Scott

• Scott on Instagram
• Silver Strength – Scott's website
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on Twitter

  Connect With the Show

• Barbell Logic on Twitter
• Barbell Logic on Instagram
• The Website
• Barbell Logic on Facebook
• [email protected]

Matt and Scott are back with another round of Thursday Q&A. If you'd like to ask Matt and Scott a question, email [email protected] and we'll feature you on a future Q&A episode!