Knee sleeves are a common piece of equipment for most power, strength, and functional fitness athletes. They provide the knee with additional support during loaded movements, general warmth around the knee ... Continue Reading
Video: Lu Xiaojun Snatches 150kg for 3 Reps at 77kg Bodyweight
World record holder and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Lu Xiaojun is training hard and pulling some serious weight as he trains for the Chinese National Weightlifting Championships in September. In a newly ... Continue Reading
Brooke Ence Withdraws from 2017 CrossFit Open
CrossFit® athlete Brooke Ence is withdrawing from this year's Open due to herniated disk injuries. This news is going to come as a shock to some, as Ence only recently posted about how severe ... Continue Reading
The 8 Most Impressive Feats of Strength By Hollywood Actors
Usually when an actor needs to get a Hollywood Body™ for a role, it means cutting to unbelievable, unsustainable, but admittedly impressive levels of body fat. (Ryan Reynolds is said to have ... Continue Reading
Strongman’s Guide to Odd Objects: Fingal’s Fingers, Max Holds, and Max Distance
There are events in Strongman that even the casual fan or strength sports enthusiast is familiar with: deadlifts of course, yoke walks, farmer carries, stone loads, circus dumbbell, and log press are ... Continue Reading
Wes Kitts’ 201 Kg Power Clean Is One of the Heaviest We’ve Ever Seen
The 105 kilogram weightlifter Wes Kitts has just pulled off the heaviest power clean we've seen from an American in recent memory: 201 kilograms, or 443 pounds. A post shared by Wes Kitts ... Continue Reading
Are These Two Videos the Most Epic 17.1 Showings Yet? (We Say Yes)
There isn't a whole lot more to say about the first workout 17.1 of the Reebok CrossFit® Open. Besides the deadline recently extending and learning the couplet of dumbbell ... Continue Reading
A Process to Improve Your Strongman Game
Constant measurable progress is every athlete's primary goal. To improve every time you step into the gym may come fast and easy for beginners, but it grows increasingly difficult with every subsequent ... Continue Reading
Returning to Weightlifting After Time Off
Recently, I was asked by a few different athletes how I train to come back to weightlifting after taking time off whether from injury or just a break. In all honestly, I was a little stumped. I’ve had ... Continue Reading
Translated: An Interview With World Weightlifting Champion Artem Okulov
Although he missed out on the Rio Olympics due to the blanket ban of Russian weightlifters, 22-year-old Artem Okulov still has his eye on weightlifting's most celebrated prize. Okulov is perhaps ... Continue Reading
Reflections on Running for 24 Hours Straight
I started my last post on BarBend asking if CrossFit® training would prepare me to run a hundred miles in 24 hours. The answer, as I’m sure many of you guessed before I even started, was a resounding no. ... Continue Reading
Bodyweight Versus Barbell Movements: Is One Really “Better”?
Before we can talk about building strength, let me start by asking you a question: how do you define “strength”? In the world of athletics, the concept of “strength” is rather ambiguous. Take elite ... Continue Reading
17.1 Deadline Extended and Jacob Heppner Withdraws From Open
The Reebok CrossFit® Open is in full swing as workout 17.1 - the first workout of the Open - was released last Thursday. This workout was a grueling ascending ladder couplet that paired dumbbell ... Continue Reading
Katie Anne Squats 405 Pounds at a Bodyweight of 72 Kilograms
Katie Anne is a powerlifter and IFPA Natural Figure Pro who has been taking her squats very seriously. The 2015 USAPL Raw Nationals 72kg Junior National Champion just posted the following video to her ... Continue Reading
5 Exercises to Build a Stronger and Healthier Squat
As coaches and athletes, we know all too well the powerful effects of the almighty squat. We also know how daunting and elusive a strong, stable, and healthy squat can be for many athletes, client's, ... Continue Reading
Celebrity Trainer Bob Harper Recovering After Heart Attack
Bob Harper recently revealed to TMZ that he suffered a heart attack while training in NYC. Harper was subsequently hospitalized for 8 days and is recovering in New York City. Harper, 51, told TMZ ... Continue Reading
CrossFit Games Athlete Kari Pearce on How to Unlock Your Inner Athlete This Open
Very few people may know the the journey behind Kari Pearce’s explosive rise to the top of the fitness scene. In just over two years, Kari has made herself an elite female CrossFit Games ... Continue Reading
Should Powerlifters Train Calves?
It's interesting to note that there are some generational differences among strength athletes. Older athletes tended to be much more wary of dietary fat, for instance, and younger lifters tend ... Continue Reading
3 Reasons Why Coaches Should Program Weightlifting More Frequently (and How)
Like any skill-dependent sport, Olympic weightlifting demands high degrees of motor control, neurological stimulation, and force capacities. While advancements can surely be made training the formal lifts ... Continue Reading
Forget the Scams: These Nutrients Are What Matters for Testosterone
When most people think testosterone, they think huge muscles, better workouts, and a raging sex drive, and look: that’s not totally unfounded. Testosterone plays a significant role in muscle mass, bone ... Continue Reading
The First Workout of the 2017 CrossFit® Open Has Been Released
There's been a lot of hype and lead up to this year's Reebok CrossFit® Games Open. From Dave Castro's Instagram posts that hinted at full snatches and dumbbells, to the hype around the new CrossFit ... Continue Reading
69kg Liao Hui Makes a 150kg Snatch Look Like a Warm Up
Chinese weightlifter Liao Hui appears to be crushing his training without missing a beat. In December 2016, Hui made a return to training - after a shocking pre-Rio retirement announcement - with ... Continue Reading
How to Get Better at Olympic Weightlifting
Olympic weightlifting is not something people naturally pick up and find great success at on a regular basis. While it is true that some gifted lifters may transition/get started very easily into the ... Continue Reading
Watch Pete Rubish’s Incredible Set of Ten 710-Pound Beltless Deadlifts
Raw powerlifter Pete Rubish is redefining the kinds of lifts we thought were possible without a weightlifting belt. At a recent training session at Maxed Out Gym in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the 249-pound ... Continue Reading