Depends to a large extent on the time of year, but in a nutshell:
-P&F with veggies all day long until training.
-Surge during/post-training
-P&C meal 1-1.5 hours later (this becomes P&F as I need to shed a few pounds near a contest to make weight)
-P&F meals with veggies through the next training session.
-Grow! shake in the middle of every night.
Every 10-14 days, I’ll have a post-training carb-up consisting of four high carb meals.
I never count calories, and I never have my clients count calories; I feel it’s counterproductive and just jacks up cortisol even higher in people that don’t need that kind of stress. Caloric intake is viewed on a minute-to-minute basis and not as a 24-hour cycle.
[quote]JNeves wrote:
I beleive you have said you eat mostly P+F meals throughout the day… can you give us some basics of your daily eating habits (i.e. total cal, and macronutrient profile)[/quote]
It’s definitely more trap dominant. You could either do chin-ups or some scapular depression movement like face pulls.
I wouldn’t pair hang cleans with deadlifts; both are heavily reliant on the posterior chain.
[quote]Bearhawk wrote:
Eric; What is a good exercise to match up with the Hang Clean? is it more of a Upper back or a trap. I was thinking of matching it with Deadlifts on Wed because on M and Fri I would do Ch/Back/Quads/Ham total body?/[/quote]
EC, I wanted to ask if you could comment on the thread on the strength forum that I started considering ME Lower body training. I really want to keep the ME lower body work (I finished front squats recently, broke my anticipated record by 15 pounds) but I want to keep them mostly squat varations (because my team tests the squat). What I have thought was using the following sequence: Front Squat (wk1-3RM, wk2-1RM)(already done this one), Box Squat (same sequence), Manta Ray Squat (same sequence), and either Free Squats or Zercher Squats.
Does this sound like a good progression. I worry that by staying with the squat varations that I won’t have enough varation to prevent my CNS from being fried.
As long as you’re rotating the exercises, it shouldn’t be a problem. I was discussing this with coach who is very in the know when it comes to using Westside-influenced programming for football guys, and he noted that they’ve gotten their best results with sticking with a movement for two weeks before moving to a new one. Those who specialize in lifting can shuffle them week-to-week, but athletes for whom lifting is done to improve performance tend to respond better to having a week to relearn the movement and then really go for it. Obviously, this changes a bit with more experienced lifters.
Overall, the most important thing to consider in trying to avoid CNS burnout is how much CNS-intensive stuff you’re doing and how long you’re doing it without a break. If you’re not deloading at least every fifth week, you’re going to run into some trouble with injuries or just stagnate.
Using all the squat variations shouldn’t be a problem; I’m actually doing something similar in my own training right now. I haven’t done a pull or good morning on ME day in this entire training cycle (this is week 8).
[quote]buckeye75 wrote:
EC, I wanted to ask if you could comment on the thread on the strength forum that I started considering ME Lower body training. I really want to keep the ME lower body work (I finished front squats recently, broke my anticipated record by 15 pounds) but I want to keep them mostly squat varations (because my team tests the squat). What I have thought was using the following sequence: Front Squat (wk1-3RM, wk2-1RM)(already done this one), Box Squat (same sequence), Manta Ray Squat (same sequence), and either Free Squats or Zercher Squats.
Does this sound like a good progression. I worry that by staying with the squat varations that I won’t have enough varation to prevent my CNS from being fried.
Recently i have been getting pain in my knees when squatting (it is worse in my warm-up than work sets and worse on back squats than front squats). Also I have noticed that when I am sat down for long periods with my knees bent, eg.car journey, I get a feeling of intense heat in the knees - more in the upper knee - and have to straighten my legs to ease this.
I squat with my heels elevated on plates or a board and have done for years without any problems at all. I had a spell in the last year where for around 6 months I performed squats on a smith machine exclusively. The pain I am now experiencing started when I returned to normal squatting.
Do you think using the smith machine has caused this or do you think it would have happened anyway? Have you any ideas as to what the problem is and what I can do to stop it?
You’re right! I’m definitely not a heavyweight (175) and I guess I do have a relatively short torso compared to my legs (wouldn’t consider my arms long).
[quote]Eric Cressey wrote:
Let me guess…you have long limbs and a short torso and aren’t a heavyweight. Am I right?
Answer to follow!
homer23 wrote:
EC,
Another DL question for ya. I find myself leaning slightly forward (i.e. shoulders beyond the bar) just prior to lift off. It feels as though I am stronger from this position as opposed to starting the lift more upright. From what I’ve read, this is not the proper way to deadlift though. Thoughts?
i’m close to the weight class I want to lift in next spring (very from 130-136 and going to lift in 132’s) so I’m just trying to stay in that range with hopefully some body recomp.
Basicly your doing as I expected you are and I plan on doing similier, thinking maybe a weekly carb up as I’m on my feet alot and have my most free time and hardest training on sundays so it will be easy to do a carb refeed then.
I have deadlifting woes. Sorry if this becomes too long, but I’m a beginner and I know that you’re THE guy to bring these issues to.
Last week I deadlifted a PR and this week also, and I think my form breaks down badly as in rounding of the lower back, I think. The next day my lower back hurts, but just on the right side, and it seems to be localized. It’s a tight pain, and changes as I wiggle around. I iced it last week and then it went away immediately. Is this a good pain telling me that I worked really hard, or a pain telling me that I did something wrong?
Also, I’m a long legged, long armed lifter and I have problems keeping my back arched when doing a conventional deadlift. Do you think deadlifting sumo style would be of any benefit? Or do I just need to get my lower back stronger via good mornings?
Thanks a lot for your help.
PS I live in the Chicago area and I saw that you’re going to be here in July. If I could meet you sometime that would be so cool. I have so many questions and so many things I want to pick your brain about.
I guarantee that you’re just having problems with anterior weight-bearing; this is a big problem with people who squat with the heels-elevated for extended periods of time. The Smith machine certainly didn’t help, either.
Tightness of the quadriceps is a big time risk factor for patellofemoral pain. Stretch your quads and hip flexors like crazy, lay off quad-dominant squatting for a while, and train your posterior chain extensively. Also, get a foam roller and go to town on your quads, calves, hamstrings, ITB/TFL, and hip flexors. You should be good to go in 6-8 weeks, probably sooner.
[quote]Dan E wrote:
Hi Eric,
Recently i have been getting pain in my knees when squatting (it is worse in my warm-up than work sets and worse on back squats than front squats). Also I have noticed that when I am sat down for long periods with my knees bent, eg.car journey, I get a feeling of intense heat in the knees - more in the upper knee - and have to straighten my legs to ease this.
I squat with my heels elevated on plates or a board and have done for years without any problems at all. I had a spell in the last year where for around 6 months I performed squats on a smith machine exclusively. The pain I am now experiencing started when I returned to normal squatting.
Do you think using the smith machine has caused this or do you think it would have happened anyway? Have you any ideas as to what the problem is and what I can do to stop it?
You’ll actually see a lot of people with your build (myself included) that use a similar approach. Watch videos of Ron Palmer pulling and you’ll see what I mean.
Check out the “Deadlifting Fun” thread on the photos forum for more details on what’s going on. If you’re an experienced lifter, it isn’t a huge deal if there’s subtle rounding on max attempts as long as that rounding does not reach the critical last 2-3 degrees of flexion. That’s where the injuries occur more frequently, and experienced lifters tend to have the motor control to avoid this portion of the range of motion. Go to any powerlifting meet and you’ll see this happen several times.
[quote]homer23 wrote:
You’re right! I’m definitely not a heavyweight (175) and I guess I do have a relatively short torso compared to my legs (wouldn’t consider my arms long).
Eric Cressey wrote:
Let me guess…you have long limbs and a short torso and aren’t a heavyweight. Am I right?
Answer to follow!
homer23 wrote:
EC,
Another DL question for ya. I find myself leaning slightly forward (i.e. shoulders beyond the bar) just prior to lift off. It feels as though I am stronger from this position as opposed to starting the lift more upright. From what I’ve read, this is not the proper way to deadlift though. Thoughts?
Good call; I do the same thing myself when activity levels are significantly higher than normal.
[quote]JNeves wrote:
Eric:
Thanks for giving some more details on your diet.
i’m close to the weight class I want to lift in next spring (very from 130-136 and going to lift in 132’s) so I’m just trying to stay in that range with hopefully some body recomp.
Basicly your doing as I expected you are and I plan on doing similier, thinking maybe a weekly carb up as I’m on my feet alot and have my most free time and hardest training on sundays so it will be easy to do a carb refeed then.[/quote]
I have deadlifting woes. Sorry if this becomes too long, but I’m a beginner and I know that you’re THE guy to bring these issues to.[/quote]
No sweat; I’m here to help!
If it’s only on one side, it’s not a good pain at all - especially if your hamstrings and glutes aren’t sore at all.
Actually, your problem is likely that your lower back is TOO strong. I’d rather see you do a ton of work to bring your glutes and hamstrings up to par. GHRs, pull-throughs, and single-leg movements are all great choices for this. You could try sumo; it’s really an individual thing. BTW, what’s your training age (experience)?
You got it.
[quote]PS I live in the Chicago area and I saw that you’re going to be here in July. If I could meet you sometime that would be so cool. I have so many questions and so many things I want to pick your brain about.
-Geoff[/quote]
I’m lifting at AWPC Worlds at the Purple Hotel Plaza in Lincolnwood, IL. I’ll be flying out there July 28, weighing-in July 29, and lifting July 30 (Saturday) at 9AM. I should be finished lifting by early afternoon, and my flight back to CT doesn’t leave until 9PM. Any T-Nation reader that is around is certainly welcome to meet up with Mike Robertson and I to talk shop and get some grub. Here’s a little bit about the venue:
Natural glute-hams can be pretty good. Other choices include deadlift variations (I can think of about twenty of them), box squats and powerlifting-style free squats, regular back extensions, pull-throughs, good mornings, single-leg movements with a long stride, belt squats, band stomps, band leg curls, and even Olympic lifts.
I’ll probably think of a dozen more once I post this, but that should get you started.
[quote]kpd315 wrote:
What are the best exercises for the posterior chain and hamstrings for a gym without a hyperextention and a GH raise…will natural GH raise work?[/quote]
Thanks again for the help. I have decided to check out an ART practitioner in my area based on your and MR’s advice. My training age is between 4-5 years (since the summer after freshman year of HS) but somewhere in there I took about a 4 month hiatus. Actually, I have another question. When I descend into my deadlift, I feel like I get better position if I don’t grab the bar first. Sometimes I bend over and grab the bar, then descend before I pull, but on my max attempts I just drop down, grab the bar without looking and pull. What are your thoughts on this?
Also, because of my body type, it feels very difficult to follow the advice of keeping my shoulders behind the bar and my hips close to the bar at the same time. Which, if either, is more important? I have to go pretty low to get my shoulders behind. And I don’t think flexibility is limiting me. I’m very flexible and stretch often.
Hey Eric, here is something I asked Coach Staley, but I’d like your opinion as well: what is exactly muscular failure (or are there diferent types?concentric, eccentric) and what do you think of it, useful or not, and when? I know it sounds basic an stupid, but I had an argument with a buddy of mine, and I want to get back at him, so I want to cover the most ground on the subject
Eric,
What are your thoughts on the Red Sox playing against the Phillies tomorrow? I think Lieber is going to pitch a no-hitter… what are your thoughts?
But since your PM system is off, I couldn;t do so.
So thank you very much!
I purchased the book by Komi and Zatsiorsky
I was wondering… is there any section in either book that you would warn me against from following (other than the one in Komi’s book on proprioception)?
Thanks again for the help. I have decided to check out an ART practitioner in my area based on your and MR’s advice. My training age is between 4-5 years (since the summer after freshman year of HS) but somewhere in there I took about a 4 month hiatus. Actually, I have another question. When I descend into my deadlift, I feel like I get better position if I don’t grab the bar first. Sometimes I bend over and grab the bar, then descend before I pull, but on my max attempts I just drop down, grab the bar without looking and pull. What are your thoughts on this?
[/quote]
I think that you should get into the habit of training like you compete. In other words, if you’re going to grip, grip, and rip on max attempts, you should be doing it on lighter sets as well.
[quote]Also, because of my body type, it feels very difficult to follow the advice of keeping my shoulders behind the bar and my hips close to the bar at the same time. Which, if either, is more important? I have to go pretty low to get my shoulders behind. And I don’t think flexibility is limiting me. I’m very flexible and stretch often.
Thanks man.
-Geoff
[/quote]
Again, go read that “Deadlifting Fun” thread; we really delved into this quite a bit. My shoulders are typically right over the bar or slightly behind the bar when I pull. The position of your hips is going to be dependent on the length of your legs.
