As part of my transition from powerlifting to bodybuilding, I think it’s important to discuss the changes I’ve made in my diet and training. After all, diet and training are the cornerstones of success, ... Continue Reading
5 Steps to Becoming a Great Powerlifting Coach
When I was young and thought about my career, like many, I dreamt of being a police officer, doctor, lawyer, or pilot. Coaching was not something that came to mind. In fact, when I was younger, I was not ... Continue Reading
5 Types of Supersets and When to Use Them
Who doesn’t love supersets? You can pair almost any two exercises together to build muscle, lose fat or bring up a lagging body part. Not only that, you’ll do more work in less time and hit the showers ... Continue Reading
The Pros and Cons of MCT Oil for Athletes (Brought to You by Ample)
It stands for medium-chain triglycerides and it’s one of the most talked about fats in fitness. It’s often sold on its own as a kind of tasteless oil, but over 50 percent of the fat in coconut oil is ... Continue Reading
A Free Lifting Program for Golfers (And Why It’s Important)
Tiger Woods raised the bar when it came to how you approach the game of golf off the course. Within 11 years of turning pro, through a combination of flexibility and weight training, which included ... Continue Reading
3 Common Deadlift Errors and How to Fix Them
Ah, the deadlift — a lift loved by many and loathed by some. The deadlift is simplistic in nature, but can become incredibly complex when things are not going swimmingly. Typically, the deadlift is more ... Continue Reading
The Fascinating Untold History of Powerlifting
To me, there is nothing more humbling than watching the powerlifters train in my local gym. Huddled around a barbell, sniffing ammonia, slapping each other's backs and violently screaming as they rip ... Continue Reading
How to Choose the Perfect Cross Training Shoe
Over the course of my two years here at BarBend, I've spent a ton of time reviewing, testing, and wearing the best cross training shoes on the market. After all of my reviews, I've learned two major things ... Continue Reading
The Best Resistance Band Accessories for Powerlifting
The biggest drawback to resistance bands is after a certain point, they will not get you stronger. They only come so thick and stretch so far before they snap. Ever had a band break and smack you? Not ... Continue Reading
Why Pulling Is An Underrated Cue for the Bench Press
If you're a strength training regular and love the bench press, then there's a good chance you've heard the cue "pull the bar apart" at least one time or another. This cue is thrown around a lot in ... Continue Reading
How to Work Around a Rotator Cuff Injury
The shoulder is a shallow ball and socket joint that has the handy ability to move in multiple directions. This allows you to lift humongous weights, throw baseballs and footballs really hard, or throw ... Continue Reading
Squats and Deadlifts Are Not Enough to Build a Strong, Defined Core
How many times have you heard the phrase or the idea that squats and deadlifts are enough to build a strong core? More than likely you've heard this phrase at least once in your lifting career — and it's ... Continue Reading
The Untold History of Women in Strength Sports
Immersed in a cultural moment in which it may seem that strong women are more celebrated than ever, are women in fitness in fact bursting into weight rooms, packing on plates, cranking out sets, feeling ... Continue Reading
4 Tips for When You Love Lifting But You Live With Depression
(Editor’s note: The content on BarBend is meant to be informative in nature, but it shouldn’t take the place of advice and/or supervision from a medical professional. The opinions and articles on this site ... Continue Reading
What Every Athlete Should Know About CBD (Cannabidiol)
Cannabidiol (CBD), a natural substance derived from cannabis, is legal. As of 2018, it’s no longer on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited list. A new company creating CBD-infused products seems to ... Continue Reading
Why Pushing Is An Underrated Cue for the Deadlift
In the world of strength sports, some of the most beloved and frequently used coaching cues include the word pulling. On the bench press we have, pull the bar apart and pull the scapula back, and for the ... Continue Reading
How Many Times Should You Squat and Deadlift Per Week?
The question of workout frequency tends to be a hot topic for general lifters. How much is enough and how often should you be performing a particular lift? More and more, research is suggesting that ... Continue Reading
The Best Natural Ways to Increase Your Testosterone
There’s actually not much evidence exercise increases testosterone. That may sound like heresy, but of all the topics out there in the world of fitness and supplementation, increasing testosterone may ... Continue Reading
Never Stop Growing: How to Win Your Off Days From the Gym
It’s an off day from the gym for me today, and on off days, I get a little stir-crazy. You can probably tell from some of the other articles I’ve written about how to get stronger away from the gym! I ... Continue Reading
Dead Bug Benefits and Three Core Blasting Variations
There’s no need for fancy core training. You don’t need to twist yourself up into knots or hold your front planks for far too long. All core training really needs to do is to be is effective and have carry ... Continue Reading
Got Post-Training Anxiety? Here Are a Few Methods That Could Help
Editor’s note: The content on BarBend is meant to be informative in nature, but it should not be taken as medical advice. The opinions and articles on this site are not intended for use as diagnosis, ... Continue Reading
Why RPE-Based Programs May Be Better for Women
Editor’s note: This article is an op-ed. The views expressed herein and in the video are the author’s and don’t necessarily reflect the views of BarBend. Claims, assertions, opinions, and quotes have been ... Continue Reading
Two Rules Every Powerlifter Should Follow With Accessory Exercises
One of the biggest mistakes I see in the gym: powerlifters focusing way, way, way too much on their assistance work. If you are a powerlifter, then the vast majority of your training needs to involve the ... Continue Reading
3 Shoulder Prehab Exercises That Will Improve All of Your Lifts
As a pretty seasoned lifter, I’ve had my fair share of injuries — it’s just the nature of the sport. In fact, I get more questions about injury rehab than any other topic. That said, though, I can rarely ... Continue Reading