The Barbell 1 Show

(photo credit - T-Nation)

I just got back from the AAU Nationals in Mesquite Nevada and am excited to bring you a very special interview. My guest is the only man to ever total 3,000 pounds in powerlifting, that’s right, squat, bench, and deadlift in a meet, totaling 3,000 lbs. In additional to his accomplishments on the platform he is an accomplished inventor and wizard of sorts when it comes to innovative sports therapy techniques - here is part 1 of 2 of my interview with Donnie Thompson.

So unlike many people who just blindly accept that they should always be striving for deeper squats, I am just always striving to understand what happens at different depths and also trying different variations – all with the goal of trying to find movements I can do safely and with sufficient range of motion to get the muscle development I want. This research study is along those lines – and it’s on women! John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22797000 .

Like any topic – say volume means the most gains, or undulating perioidization always means better gains, I think the biggest proponents of these stances would lead you to believe there is no debate and all strength and conditioning professionals agree. I like to show studies like today where there are some people that continue to challenge the “accepted” conventions. John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25760153 .

With a movement like a leg extension it’s pretty straight forward, either your quads are strong enough to move the weight or they’re not. However, with something like a squat, it’s much more complex. To achieve a certain range of motion takes coordinated expression of strength from multiple muscles across multiple joints. Today we try to gain a little insight into some subtleties that may help with achieving a deep squat safely and strongly. John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4415844/pdf/jhk-45-59.pdf .

The smith machine is always bastardized as being sub-par or below free weight variations of exercises performed on it. Does it deserve this bad rap, or is there research to show it can have its place? We review a study from 2010 on the ability of the smith machine to activate the pressing muscles compared to a barbell bench press. John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20093960 .

Let’s discuss the importance of dietary protein for anyone wanting to keep their muscle as long as they can. John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://jn.nutrition.org/content/early/2015/05/27/jn.114.204925.abstract .

Ever wonder what John does in a typical day? What he has up his sleeves for this summer? All of the above are discussed along with a transition to a 3 times a week show having reached our 450th episode.

Some people like to train in the morning and some like to train in the evening. There’s even some people who prefer to train fasted. Regardless of which seems to work best for you, there seems to be a common mediating factor – people are trying to master the amount of meals they consume before training that feels best for them. I thought it was pretty cool to find a study on this topic. John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25970668 .

With bodybuilders branching out into powerlifting training splits there are so many splits to choose from these days, but is there any research on which one actually builds the most muscle over the long term? Today’s research study is on just that! John always reviews the full-text of every article, but you may view the free abstract by clicking here: http://journals.humankinetics.com/ijsnem-in-press/ijsnem-in-press/effect-of-two--versus-three-way-split-resistance-training-routines-on-body-composition-and-muscular-strength-in-bodybuilders-a-pilot-study .

In this episode I share some nutrition, training, and lifestyle related productivity hacks that have helped me balance my bodybuilding lifestyle with everything else I have going on both now and in the past.