If you can clean & jerk your bodyweight, you're no longer a novice at Olympic weightlifting. If you clean & jerk double your bodyweight, depending on how much you weigh, you’re likely approaching ... Continue Reading
5 Reasons Why Everyone Should Train With Gymnastic Rings
In the wide world of fitness, where there’s a different contraption for isolating almost every individual muscle in the body, the idea of two rings hanging in the air, each suspended by a strap, seems ... Continue Reading
What’s the Best Time to Work Out? (For Strength, Power, and Fat Loss)
What's the best time to work out? The short answer: It depends. I'm currently in that awkward transition between switching from evening workouts to morning, and I'm not going to lie, it hasn't ... Continue Reading
So You Wanna Be A Powerlifter? Breaking Down the Sport’s Federations
So, you wanna be a powerlifter, but you’re not sure where to start? Over the next 12 weeks Calgary Barbell has teamed up with BarBend to release weekly YouTube videos to guide you to your first ... Continue Reading
The Ultimate Guide to Heart Rate Variability and Strength Training
There are a lot of things that can affect your strength levels, which makes it super difficult to know whether or not your workout is going to be awesome or terrible on any given day. This is where heart ... Continue Reading
10 Undeniable Benefits of the Clean & Jerk
Sometimes, people are confused as to how Olympic weightlifting is just two exercises: the snatch and the clean & jerk. (And formerly the clean & press, which was part of the sport in the ... Continue Reading
How Long Does It Take to Get Good at Strength Sports? A Newbie’s Guide
"You just haven't been training long enough, don't sweat it," My boyfriend Mark said this me once when I was somewhat tearfully lamenting what I perceived as a stall in my overall progress. For a ... Continue Reading
Is Breakfast a Must for Strength, Muscle Growth, and Fat Loss?
When it comes to breakfast, it's not uncommon to hear things like, "It gets your day started right," and "It's the most important meal of the day," but is it? With the growing popularity of diets like ... Continue Reading
A Guide to Strength Training During Ramadan
Fasting from both food and fluid all day, every day, for an entire month, puts the body under stress. And for many Muslims, that’s the point: the month of Ramadan is for spiritual reflection and devotion, ... Continue Reading
How to Use Resistance Bands to Increase Strength, Power, and 1-RMs
One of the many ways strength athletes can increase their power and force production under the bar is with the use of resistance bands. Bands are an awesome modality to incorporate in programming when you ... Continue Reading
I’m a Night Owl. Here’s What I Learned from Working Out at 6am
During the remaining four weeks at my first job out of college, I embarked on a little experiment otherwise known as “Morning CrossFit”. I had a new gig lined up that I was starting to get excited for, and ... Continue Reading
6 Things That Happen to the Body When You Stop Lifting
Every athlete may encounter a time in their career when they stop lifting, this could be due to injury, temporary loss of love/motivation for the gym, or even a forced resignation due to something like a ... Continue Reading
High Volume vs. Maximum Intensity: How to Choose?
There is a maxim in the coaching world; you can train long or you can train hard, but you can’t train both. There are strongman coaches in both camps, and I will attempt to show you the difference and help ... Continue Reading
Elite Powerlifters Discuss Deadlifting With a Rounded Back
Maximal deadlifts performed with a somewhat flexed thoracic may be one of the few lifts that receives more criticism than bench pressing with a huge arch. Both are highly controversial topics in terms of ... Continue Reading
Diabetes and Strength Training – What You Should Remember
This article does not constitute medical advice. Please see your licensed medical physician for information about how best to manage diabetes in your individual case. It's always a good idea ... Continue Reading
What It’s Like to Always Be Hungry from Lifting
Constantly picking up heavy stuff is awesome, but the hunger that comes with it can be...umm...frustrating at times. Why? Well, while we're opening up new windows by working out like improved ... Continue Reading
Cable Pull Through Alternatives for Strength and Coordination
In an earlier article we covered in great detail the cable pull through, and why most lifters and athletes can benefit from them. Whether for glute development, warm up and/or corrective routines, or ... Continue Reading
Romanian Deadlift Alternatives for Muscle Growth and Strength
In an earlier article we discussed the immense benefits the Romanian deadlift can offer weightlifters, powerlifters, functional fitness athletes, and general trainees alike. Whether the purpose is to ... Continue Reading
3 Jefferson Squat Alternatives for Every Athlete
In an earlier article we discussed the benefits of the Jefferson squat, each benefit unique to the stance, loading, and specific movement of this classic barbell lift. Many lifters may have issues with the ... Continue Reading
How Being Stressed Can Impact Your Strength Training
When it comes to strength training, stress can be something of a double-edged sword. We need stress to grow physically. For example, every time we pick up a weight, we're producing a calculated stress on ... Continue Reading
Foam Rollers – How to Use, Benefits, and Best Exercises
Once an obscure tool for self-massage, today it’s rare to find a commercial gym without an area dedicated to foam rolling, and with good reason. When used correctly, foam rolling can be used for myofascial ... Continue Reading
5 Moves to Help Prevent Tennis Elbow in Strength Athletes
There aren't many conditions with as misleading a name as "tennis elbow." Also (and more accurately) known as lateral epicondylitis, it's caused by the overuse of muscles and tendons in the ... Continue Reading
Should You Eat Fat After a Workout?
There seems to be a general aversion to fat consumption post-workout for strength athletes. Although post-workout fat avoidance is not as common as the recommendation to drink a protein shake ... Continue Reading
4 Movements to Improve Your Thoracic Mobility
The importance of thoracic spine mobility — the area of the spine that runs from the base of the neck to just beneath the rib cage — can easily be overlooked. With low back pain being the most ... Continue Reading