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Home » News » Invictus Launches New Total Strength Program Created by Games Podium Athletes Sam Dancer and Holden Rethwill

Invictus Launches New Total Strength Program Created by Games Podium Athletes Sam Dancer and Holden Rethwill

The goal is to get your squat, deadlift, and bench press better than ever.

Written by Julia Papworth
Last updated on January 31st, 2025

It is a new year and an excellent chance to switch up your training. Invictus has you covered! 

  • Launching February 3, the Invictus Total Strength Program is designed to help you improve the core strength movements that are the basis of weightlifting: the squat, bench press, and deadlift. 

This program was created to push your limits, maximize your gains, and elevate your performance, whether you are a seasoned lifter or just starting with weights.

About the Team

The Total Strength Program is the brainchild of Invictus athletes and coaches Sam Dancer and Holden Rethwill. 

  • Dancer is a five-time Games athlete across multiple divisions and won the 2023 Fittest Man title in the 35-39 Men’s Division.
  • Rethwill is the head coach at Invictus San Diego and a five-time team Games athlete, including both first- and second-place finishes on Team CrossFit Invictus.

Origins

“Sam and I have been friends for years now and have always been interested in collaborating on something together,” Rethwill told the Morning Chalk Up in an interview. “Having both played collegiate football, we realized that our strength development came from a similar path.”

The two men are combining their experiences to build “one of the best and most comprehensive strength programs on the market,” he continued.

  • The squat, bench, and deadlift are the cornerstones of any serious strength routine, but Invictus Strength is doing it differently. Rethwill and the team at Invictus saw a void in athlete programming that they could fill.

Invictus has always had its athlete program, Masters track, Olympic Weightlifting, and a previous eight-week strength track, but it has never offered a continuous subscription-based option for a strength program. 

For athletes interested in giving it a try, you start at week one, day one, regardless of when you sign up. In other words, you can jump in anytime and not feel like you’ve missed out.

The Details

The program is designed for anyone looking to get stronger overall, especially in the foundational lifts.

  • “Whether you’re an athlete looking to compete in CrossFit, an athlete looking to get bigger/faster/stronger for another sport, or you’re not an athlete and just want to build some strength, this program is for you,” Rethwill told us.

The programming seeks to build raw power by targeting an athlete’s weak points through well-selected accessory work and a progressive plan that is easy to follow on a platform that will let you track your development over time. 

The Total Strength Program includes:

  • Structured Cycles – Smart progression is vital to building strength, and each training block builds on the last, leading to consistent improvement.
  • Expert Coaches – You will video record your lifts, upload them into the Fitr app, and get individualized coaches’ feedback.
  • Customizable Loads – It doesn’t matter how heavy you can lift; the program is adaptable to your strength level. You will work off of percentages rather than set loads.
  • Community – With the chat feature, members of the Total Strength community will be able to use the community chat feature to get ideas for recovery and support from the coaches and other subscribers

The Total Strength Program can also be used as a jumping-off point for other Invictus programs if athletes are interested. 

  • “[It’s] a great way to gain some raw strength before switching over to something like ‘Athlete’ or ‘Masters’ or even used during the off-season in between cycles,” Rethwill said.

One key part of the program is the community aspect through Invictus’ partnership with Fitr. This feature allows athletes to track progress, post videos, or join the community chat.

  • “As coaches, [Sam and I will] be monitoring this regularly to give our subscribers some of the best coaching on the market,” Rethwill concluded.

Invictus is offering an exclusive early access discount to those who act now. 

  • Click here to get started and receive 50% off your first month by using this discount code: “TOTALSTRENGTH50.”

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Featured image: Invictus

About Julia Papworth

Writer, hairstylist, football fanatic, and CrossFitter, Julia makes her home in sunny Southern California. When not handstand walking, she is writing for The Fantasy Footballers and running the Hair Department for CBS’s S.W.A.T. Her guilty pleasures are animals dressed as humans, babies wearing tiny headphones at sporting events, and every episode of “Arrested Development."

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