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by Team Lilliebridge

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Want to be strong like a Lilliebridge? Then train like a Lilliebridge.
Lilli ebridge.

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 N
oti
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This program is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any
illness, disease or disorder. It is always highly recommended that you
consult a doctor to ensure that you are healthy enough to start this
program.

Team Lilliebridge, it’s owners, sponsors, subsidiaries, etc, are to

be held harmless for any and all claims
cl aims of injuries, illness, soreness,
etc. that occurs while using this training method. The Lilliebridge
Training Method is
Method is sold for informational purposes only. Follow at
your own risk and listen to your body at all times.

The Lilliebridge Training

Training Method is
Method is not to be copied, duplicated
or posted on any web site or forum (in part or in whole, or in any
digital or electronic medium. This book is not to be gi!en out or
e"changed.

#efore you start this program, remember form and techni$ue are
e!erything. It’s more important than the weight you are lifting. %lso, at

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all times, make sure you ha!e good spotters.

 2014 Team Lilliebridge, all rights reserved 

 2014
© 

Ernie Sr. failed to listen to his on advi!e.

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 B
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&rnie Lilliebridge 'r. is ranked ) nationally in the *+lb -pen
and aster raw classes. This includes any/all federations
in the entire 0'%.

&rnie 'r. started lifting at the age of )+. 1e began lifting because
he was in!ol!ed with martial arts, and wanted to get stronger to help
his fighting abilities. In )23, at the age of )4, he entered his first
competiti!e powerlifting meet. -nce in!ol!ed with powerlifting, he was

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hooked.

Today he’s 4) and still going strong.

&rnie 'r.
'r. is e"tremely well known for his coaching abilities as well
as his lifting. 1e has been unanimously named the top raw
ra w strength
coach in the country by many top names. These indi!iduals include
ark #ell from 'upertraining 5ym, &rnie Frant6 (the godfather of
powerlifting and many more. 1e has recently taken o!er the Frant6
7ower Team,
Team, and all the lineage/prestige that comes with it.

ore about &rnie Lilliebridge 'r.8

• 9:; years competing in powerlifting, including )++; meets

• 1older of national records in numerous federations (%%7F, %7F,
07%, '7F, 0'%7L, <0%7, etc.
• 1older of numerous world records in many !arious federations
• #est meet numbers raw8 '$uat = )>, #ench = >), ?eadlift =
:9, Total
Total @ 9+9
• 5ym numbers raw8 '$uat = )+, #ench = >>+, ?eadlift = +>,
Total = 9)3>

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 B
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&rnie Lilliebridge Ar. is currently ranked ) nationally in the
)2lbs raw with wraps weight class, and also holds the ) raw total in
the world with a *=lift total of ),24>lbs B)2. 1e also holds the )2lb
class world record s$uat raw with wraps of :::lbs/*>9.>kg.

&rnie Ar. is also currently ranked 9 nationally in the 99+lbs raw

with wraps weight class, and also holds the )+th highest raw total in
the world with wraps in the 99+ weight class with a )2>)lb total.

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  %t the age of )9,
)9, &rnie Ar.
Ar. got into powerlifting with his fatherCs
help and coaching. 7rior to his first competition, he had been lifting for
9 years to help other sports such as wrestling. 7owerlifting was about
getting bigger and stronger,
stronger, and this helped &rnie Ar. perform a lot
better in these sports.

ore about &rnie Lilliebridge Ar.8

• 7owerlifting for o!er )9; years, and has competed for the last )+
straight years
• Dompetes in 2+kg/)2lbs and the )++kg/99+lbs class, and also
the ))+kg/949lbs weight class
• #est raw lifts in a meet8 '$uat @ :::lbs, #ench @ 4>:lbs, ?eadlift
 @ :9lbs, )2>) total
total
• #est gym raw lifts8 '$uat @ ::>lbs, #ench @ >++lbs, ?eadlift =
+)lbs
• 1older of national records in numerous federations (%%7F, %7F,
07%, '7F, <0%7, etc.
• 1older of world records in numerous federations

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 B
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&ric Lilliebridge is currently ranked ) nationally in the 9:>lbs
raw with wraps weight class. 1e is also ranked 4th in the world with a
9,*>*lbs raw total. &ric also holds the 9:> world record s$uat raw with
wraps of 2>2lbs/49:.>kg, and the all=time Aunior world record deadlift
of (3>lbs/*29.>kg.

1e started training on his own in his basement, doing basic lifting

e"ercises like curls, o!erhead presses, bench press, s$uats and sit

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ups. It wasnCt until &ric started training seriously with his father and
brother that he began to notice huge gains in strength and si6e.

&ric competed in his first powerlifting meet at the age of )4, the
same age as his father. 1e is now 9* years old.

ore about &ric Lilliebridge8

• 7owerlifting for o!er )9; years, and has competed for )+ straight
years
• Dompetes in the )9>kg/9:>lbs weight class
• #est raw lifts in a meet8 '$uat @ 2>2lbs, #ench @ >92lbs, ?eadlift
 @ 3>lbs, 9*>*lbs total
total
• #est gym raw lifts8 '$uat @ 2>>lbs, #ench @ >>>lbs, ?eadlift =
2++lbs
• 1older of numerous national records in many federations (%%7F,
(%%7F,
 %7F,
 %7F, 07%,
07%, '7F,
'7F, etc.
• 1older of numerous world records in many !arious federations

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 1-T
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B
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#efore you start, remember that form and techni$ue are

e!erything. They are more important than the weight you are lifting.

 %lso, make sure you ha!e

ha!e good spotters at all times.

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P
EAK
INGF
ORAME
ET

If you are planning on running this training cycle to peak for a

competition, then week )+ will be the week of the meet. Find the date
of your meet for that weekend and back track from there, so you know
where to start your training for week ).

<eeks 2 and )+ will be deload weeks for the s$uat and deadlift
These weeks allow you to rest and reco!er for the meet, and to
ensure you are at )++E.

<eek 2 for the bench press will also be a deload week. ou
ou will
then rest until the meet day, or the weekend of week )+.

N
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If you aren’t planning on competing in a meet at the end of this

training cycle, and are just doing this to simply
si mply get stronger and up
your gym lifts, then weeks 2 and )+ will be your ma" attempt weeks
for the s$uat and deadlift.

<eeks )= are your your main training weeks. ou

ou will peaking

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during this time, setting you up to hit new
ne w 7Gs during weeks 2 and )+.

'ame for the bench. our

our main training/peaking will be weeks )=
, and you will try for a new ma" during week 2.

S
QUA
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-nce starting this training cycle you will not be s$uatting and
deadlifting on separate days. ou
ou will be s$uatting and deadlifting on
the same day each week.

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 'o, you will be doing both in one workout. -ne hea!y lift, and
one light lift. ou
ou will alternate each week until the !ery end of the
training cycle. -ne week will be hea!y s$uats and light deadlifts, the
ne"t week lift s$uats and hea!y deadlifts.

<hen you are on your hea!y s$uat and light deadlift day, you will
s$uat hea!y first then perform speed pulls (deadlifts after. -n your
hea!y deadlift and light s$uat day,
day, you will pull hea!y first, then s$uat
after.

C
ALC
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1ereCs how to figure out your working weight from the percent
listed for each week. For all listed percentages, take your best 7G and
multiply it by the percentage for that week.

Let’s say your best s$uat is 3++lbs. ?uring week one you would
take 3++ pounds and multiply it by +.: (the percent for week ). This
yields >99lbs. 'o round down to >9+lbs, and perform this s$uat set for
ma" reps.

Let’s say your ma" deadlift is 3>+lbs. Take

Take 3>+ and multiple it by
+.>+ (the percent for speed pulls during week one. This yields *9>lbs.

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7erform speed deadlifts with this number after your s$uats during
week ).

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 2-T
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The Lilliebridge method can be used for as little as 9 days a

week all the way up to > days per week. It’s up to you, based on your
workload, needs and time.

1ere is how we typically start our program...

<e start the week off on Tuesday by doing some light accessory
work. Thursday night we will bench. %fter benching we will do our

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accessory work for the bench. -n 'aturdays we will either s$uat
hea!y and deadlift light or, it can go the other way, deadlift hea!y and
s$uat light.

'unday we will do all our accessory work related to s$uats and

deadlifts.

<e usually train * to 4 days out of the week. Gest and reco!ery
is a major key to making gains and progress.

'o here is an o!er!iew of our week8

• Tuesday =
Tuesday = Light accessory work
• Thursday = #ench press H bench accessory
Thursday =
• Saturday =
Saturday = '$uats and deadlifts
• Sunday =
Sunday = '$uat and deadlift accessory

 %nother way you can use the program is bench

bench on Tuesday
Tuesday,,
accessory work on <ednesday, s$uat and deadlift on 'aturday, and
accessory work on 'unday.

ou can use this program howe!er you want. ou can pick and
choose the days that work best for you. These days are not car!ed in

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stone.

A
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RYWO
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Gemember though, accessory work is to work on your

weaknesses. If you feel as though you don’t ha!e a weakness in a
certain area, then donCt do an accessory mo!ement for it. <e typically
do accessory work for e!erything because we want no weaknesses.

ou pick and choose what accessory work you want to do. These
e"ercises do not need to be done all in one day. ou can split the
accessory work up into separate days.

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 3-S
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1ea!y s$uat week is highlighted in yellow and hea!y deadlift

week is highlighted in green.

For low rep warm up sets, do as many warm ups sets as you feel
you need to do. ake sure you are ready to go for your hea!y ma"
reps set.

 %ccessory work for s$uats and

and deadlifts are listed at the end of

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this section.

S
QUA
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Week 18
18 1ea!y '$uat/Light ?eadlift

'$uats = Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of :E of ma", and
perform it for ma" reps.

?eadlifts8 'peed pulls with >+E of your ma". * sets of * dead=

stop reps.

Week 28
28 1ea!y ?eadlift/Light '$uat

?eadlift8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of :E of ma", and
perform it for ma" dead=stop reps.

'$uats8 7aused s$uats with >+E of your ma". * sets of * reps.

Week 38
38 1ea!y '$uat/Light ?eadlift

'$uat8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of 2+E of ma", and
perform it for ma" reps.

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?eadlifts8 'peed pulls with >>E of your ma". * sets of * dead=
stop reps.

Week 48
48 1ea!y ?eadlift/Light '$uat

?eadlift8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of 2+E of ma", and
perform it for ma" dead=stop reps.

'$uats8 7aused s$uats with >>E of your ma". * sets of * reps.

Week 58
58 1ea!y '$uat/Light ?eadlift

'$uat8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of 29E of ma", and
perform it for ma" reps.

?eadlifts8 'peed pulls with 3+E of your ma". * sets of * dead=

stop reps.

Week 68
68 1ea!y ?eadlift/Light '$uat

?eadlift8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of 29E of 

ma". 7ull it for a strong double rep set. Gemember all reps are
dead=stopped.

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'$uats8 7aused s$uats with 3+E of your ma". * sets of * reps.

Week 78
78 1ea!y '$uat/Light ?eadlift

'$uat8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of 2>E of ma". ?o it

it
for a solid single rep.

?eadlifts8 'peed pulls with 3>E of your ma". * sets of ) rep.

Week 88
88 1ea!y ?eadlift/Light '$uat

?eadlift8 Low rep warm ups. <ork up to ) set of 2>E of

ma". 7ull it for a strong single.

'$uats8 7aused s$uats with 3>E of your ma". * sets of ) rep.

Week 98
98 If you’re competing during week )+, de=load s$uats and
deadlifts with around >+E of your ma". 7erform only a few reps
for each lift. Focus on form, speed and techni$ue. Gemember,
Gemember,
this week is about rest and reco!ery.

If you’re not competing, this is your ma" out week on the s$uat.

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 1it a big 7G

Week 18
18 If you’re competing you will be resting this entire week.
There will be no lifting at all. ou
ou will be resting for the weekendCs
meet.

If you’re not competing, this is your ma" out week on the deadlift.
1it a big 7G

S
qua
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adl
if
tAc
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sor
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To be performed after each s$uat and deadlift training session8

• !ront s"uats =
s"uats = 5o by how you feel. If you want to push it, then
do so. Aust don’t ma" out. If you want to go light and hit some
reps, that’s fine too. 5et at least 4 to 3 sets in.
• #arbell ro$s =
ro$s = 4 sets of )> reps.
• %a&k 'ulls =
'ulls = Gack pulls are used to work on grip strength. 1old
at the top for )+ seconds. ?o 4 to 3 sets.
• ('right ro$s (cable
ro$s (cable or barbell = 4 sets of )> reps.
• Leg e)tensions =
e)tensions = 4 sets of )>=9+ reps.
• *a+string leg &urls =
&urls  = 4 sets of )>=9+ reps.
• ,al- raises (standing
raises (standing or seated = 4 sets of 9> reps.

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• .b $ork =
$ork = Leg raises lying
lyi ng on a bench for * set of 9+=*+ reps, or
decline sit ups for * sets of )+ to )> reps.

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 4-B
ENC
HPR
ESS

If you are training for a meet, make sure that all bench press
singles are performed as paused reps. If you are not training for a
meet, you can train using to"!h and go reps
go reps if you want to. <e always
train our singles paused, so it’s up to you.

For low rep warm ups sets, do as many as you feel necessary.
necessary.
ake sure you are ready to go for your working percentages and

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weights.

#ench 7ress accessory work is located at the end of this section.

Week 18
18 (1ea!y. Low rep warm ups, followed by your * sets of
singles8

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = :>E single
• 'et 9 = +E single
• 'et * = :E single

Week 28
28 (Light. Low rep warm ups, working up to 3E of your
one rep ma". 7erform this set for as many reps as possible.

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = 3E for ma" reps

Week 38
38 (1ea!y. Low rep warm ups, followed by your * sets of
singles8

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = ::E single

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 • 'et 9 = >E single
• 'et * = 2+E single

Week 48
48 (Light. Low rep warm ups, working up to :+E of your
one rep ma". 7erform this set for as many reps as possible.

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = :+E for ma" reps

Week 58
58 (1ea!y. Low rep warm ups, followed by your * sets of
singles8

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = +E single
• 'et 9 = :E single
• 'et * = 2*E single

Week 68
68 (Light. Low rep warm ups, working up to :9E of your
one rep ma". 7erform this set for as many reps as possible.

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = :9E for ma" reps

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Week 78
78 (1ea!y. Low rep warm ups, followed by your * sets of
singles8

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = *E single
• 'et 9 = 2+E single
• 'et * = 23E single

Week 88
88 (Light. Low rep warm ups, working up to :>E of your
one rep ma". 7erform this set for as many reps as possible.

• <arm up sets
• 'et ) = :>E for ma" reps

Week 98
98 If you are competing ne"t week, work up to your
planned opener during this week. ou
ou won’t be benching or lifting
again until the meet.

If you aren’t competing, then this is your ma" out week. 1it a big
7G

Week 18
18 If you are competing, rest the entire week. Jo lifting at
all.

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B
ENC
HPR
ESSA
cce
sso
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To be performed after each bench press training session8

• Sling Shot ben&hing = 1it at least * to 4 sets on your hea!y

days. 7erform singles or doubles. If you are using the reacti!e
'ling 'hot (blue color, perform singles or doubles that are 9+=
*+lbs hea!ier than your top raw bench set of the day.
day. If you are
using the original 'ling 'hot, perform singles or doubles that are
*>=4>lbs hea!ier than your top raw bench set of the day.
day.
• $ork = ou can also do board work if you choose, instead
#oard $ork =
of using the sling shot. 0se a * board or 9 board (or both, and
hit at least * to 4 sets of either doubles or singles. ?o this on
your hea!y day.
day. ake sure to use nice e!en jumps. <e
recommend starting with the weight you used on your hea!iest
set that day, or adding 9+=9>lbs and going up from there.
• /n&line ben&h =
ben&h = 5o by how you feel. If you want to push it,
i t, then
do so but don’t ma" out. If you want to go light and hit some reps,
that’s fine too. 5et at least 4 to 3 sets in.
i n.
• !loor 'resses =
'resses = 5et at least 4 to 3 sets in.
• /n&line ben&h $ith du+bbells =
du+bbells  = > sets )> reps.
• 0e& -lys (cable
-lys (cable or dumbbell = > sets of )> reps.
• Tri&e' 'ushdo$ns =
'ushdo$ns = > sets of )> reps.

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• Side du+bbell lateral raises =
raises  = > sets of )> reps.
• !ront delt &able raises =
raises  = > sets of )> reps.
• %ear delt du+bbell raise =
raise  = > sets of )> reps.
• .b $ork @
$ork @ Leg raises lying on bench for * sets of 9+=*+ reps.

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 5-T
EST
IMO
NIA
LS

B
ran
tle
yTh
orn
ton

#rom $ro level %oerlifter &rantley Thornton, orld re!ord holder

in the ra ith ra%s 1'1 eight !lass ith a 1'00lbs total.

I Aust wanted to gi!e a shout out to Team

Team Lilliebridge and their
training method. I started running there
there method in Aanuary.
Aanuary. 'ince

32
then I ha!e taken my s$uat from 3*> to :*>, bench from 4:> to >9>
and deadlift from :+> to :3>. 'o all of my lifts ha!e blown up

I feel better and ha!e less pain then other workouts IC!e done. I
highly recommend this training method to anyone. It works no doubt
e!en for beginners to pros like me

D
ANP
AsH
OLK

(an $asholk, oner of )adton #itness gym in )adison,

Wis!onsin.

This is a bit long, but if you’re a lifter please take the time to read
it. Today
Today I hit a deadlift 7G. To most, that’s not something o!erly
impressi!e and it’s something that should happen after just about
e!ery good training
training cycle. #ut for me, a deadlift 7G
7G means a hell of a
lot more.

'i" weeks ago I was about to gi!e up on powerlifting, the only

sport that I’!e
I’!e e!er been e!en remotely good at. -!er the past two
years, I’d trained my ass off, only to ha!e e!ery single one of my
ma"es decrease. y knees felt like shit, my shoulders felt like shit,
and my back was e"periencing a whole new le!el of awkward

33
discomfort with e!ery s$uat or pull.

#efore throwing in the towel, I contacted a good friend of mine,

&rnie Lilliebridge Ar., who suggested I go on the Lilliebridge ethod.
Aust to be clear,
clear, o!er the last few years, IC!e gone through >/*/),
Auggernaut, the Dube, and just about e!ery one of the other popular
programs that ha!e come out.

I’!e followed e!ery one of them word for word, and I’!e gotten
weaker.
weaker. I’m not saying that they’re bad programs, but they simply
didn’t work for me. -n top of that, watching e!ery one of my friends
make continuous gains and lea!e me in the dust was completely
demorali6ing.

I’d walk into the gym feeling lethargic as if I already knew the
workout was going
going to be a waste of time.
time. #ut with a combination of
proper programming and the constant encouragement that I’!e
e"perienced from &rnie Lilliebridge Ar. and Team Lilliebridge, I’!e
gotten stronger
stronger for the first
first time in almost three years. Three years of
grinding through program after program, getting progressi!ely weaker
and going from getting called a prodigy at e!ery meet I attended to
con!incing myself that another 7G was always going to be out of
reach.

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 -!er the past si" weeks, Team
Team Lilliebridge pro!ed me wrong, and
today, e!en through a bicep tear, se!eral knee injuries, and se!ere
issues with my lower back, I hit that deadlift 7G that I’!e been working
toward for three fucking years. The Lilliebridges are some of the most
humble people that you’ll e!er meet and I know they won’t take credit
for it, but I can honestly say that their method and their guidance was
without a doubt the reason for me finally making progress.

 %s you can see by my emotion in this !ideo, I’m happy with my
training for the
the first time in literally years. Their method is totally worth
it and its pro!en to work and will net you huge gains I am li!ing proof
that it works just as well for natural lifters.

D
UST
YMI
LL
ER

$ro level %oerlifter ("sty )iller.

I Aust wanted to gi!e a shout out to my good friends and some of

the best powerlifters in the sport. The Lilliebridge family,
family, they ha!e
helped me out so much in my short powerlifting career and are always
willing to help me out if I ha!e any $uestions or any ad!ice.

-n February )st I hit a ):++lb total in

i n my first e!er 99+lb

35
competition, up from )2lbs. It was a ):+lb meet 7G from my last
meet where I totaled )>*+lbs. y numbers for this past meet were
:)>lb s$uat, *3>lb bench and 39+lb deadlift. 7re!ious numbers were
3++=**+=3++.

This Lilliebridge ethod has helped me out a ton. It took me into

this meet feeling healthier than I ha!e e!er felt going into a meet. The
percentages in this program are on point, ne!er failed a single time on
any lift during this whole training cycle.

If you watch my !ideos on ouTube from this training cycle you

can see I was hitting 7Gs week after week and by doing this my
confidence was on a whole new le!el going into this meet. I highly
recommend this training method. This was the first cycle of the
Lilliebridge method that I ha!e done and I can’t wait for the ne"t one.

Thanks for all the help and support in this last )+ weeks of
training. 5reatly %ppreciated

t
yle
rmo
ore

I just want to thank Team

Team Lilliebridge for the training method that
they ha!e de!eloped and i wanted to share my results. I ha!e lifted for

36
about )+ years now but I’m just now getting !ery serious about it. %fter
%fter
one )+ week round of the Lilliebridge Training ethod I ha!e
increased my bench by *> pounds and my deadlift by > pounds.

 %lthough I do not
not own a 'ling 'hot shirt or rarely ha!e access to
to
boards to do board press, I am still !ery pleased with my result and
I’m e"cited to start my second round. I will hopefully be able to ma"
out on my s$uat in the ne"t day or so.

-nce again I really appreciate the training method that your

family has designed and I’m beyond impressed on my results. Thank
you

J
ust
inS
age
r

1ello Team
Team Lilliebridge. I just wanted to take a $uick moment to
share with you my success using your familyCs peaking method. I went
into G&L&JTL&'' with my biggest meet total being )34: B '1<.
'1<.
#odyweight right around **+. I left relentless with a huge
impro!ement at the same bodyweight.

I hit my first s$uat in

i n the :++s with a :+>. 7re!ious best was 3>+.
y first meet press in the 4++s with a 494 bench. To
To top it off I had a

37
huge deadlift 7G of :++. y pre!ious best was 399. )*+ meet total
that blew me away.

ou guys ob!iously ha!e pro!en meet numbers yourself to go

along with what I feel is the best peaking method out there. I thank
you and wish your family much more success on the platform.

J
onJ
urs
ic
h

Elite %oerlifter *on *"rsi!h.

I ha!e been a competiti!e strength athlete for almost )+ years.

Then add in the 4 or > years I lifted in high school and middle school
for sports. I ha!e tried and undertaken many different programs to
make gains throughout my years of training. 'ome better than others
but none stood abo!e the rest until I was gi!en the Lilliebridge training
method.

 %bout a year and a half ago I was coached

coached and trained using
using the
Lilliebridge training method. %fter
%fter the first  week program I saw
results but it did not stop there. For e"ample before I first started my
competition bench was *3> lbs. %s of %pril 9+)4 its 4*+ lbs in
competition. y s$uat went from >> raw to 3>> lbs.
l bs. ?eadlift has

38
gone from >3> to 34+ lbs.

&!en with all the gains I ha!e made I ha!e stayed in the 9:> lb
weight class. I am the leanest and strongest I ha!e e!er been in my
life and I see no stop in sight.

This method is hands down the best I ha!e used. I would highly
recommend it to anyone from beginner to !eteran lifters. Its the
programs ability to adapt to the indi!idual lifter that makes it
i t the best
program out there.

T
omK
all
as

#rom Elite %oerlifter Tom

Tom +allas.

I ha!e always had a tough time finding a program to help me

peak for a powerlifting meet. I would always o!ertrain and would not
ha!e ade$uate time for reco!ery to help me do well at a meet. Then I
found the Lilliebridge 7rogram.

It is a program guaranteed to help you peak for a meet. I ga!e it

a shot and started the )+ week training for my ne"t meet. The
program was e"tremely easy to follow.
follow. There was no complicated

39
formulasK just plug numbers in and start training.

y pre!ious meet total at )) was )*+. %fter a little time off and
doing this program and watching diet, a few short months later I was
able to total )>)+ at )3> lbs. %ll of my lifts went up and I actually left
the meet feeling happy that I was able to preform at the meet with the
strength I built during the training cycle.

0sually I would lea!e the meet pissed cause I wasn’t able to

preform when the day of the meet came. I would recommend the
program to anybody looking to peak for there ne"t meet.

I cannot wait to start the program for my ne"t meet

40
 6-O
URP
RPL
AYL
IS
T

$oerlifting m"si! that e listen to.

&!eryone knows you’!e got to ha!e badass music to mo!e big

weights in the gym and to get yourself in
i n that 6one. This music gi!es
us a mental kick in the ass and helps us to destroy the weights.

1ere are some of the artists/songs we listen to during our

41
training.

• 7antera
• ?isturbed
• &minem
• ?rowning 7ool
• Limp #i6kit
• ?)9
• Fi!e finger death punch.
• .>+ cent
• Linkin park
• 1atebreed
• orn
• etallica
• ?a!id #anner
• MThe 5ameM by otorhead
•  %D/?D
• id Gock
• 'lipknot

42
 7-C
ONN
ECTWI
THT
EAML
IL
LI
EB
RI
DG
E

7lease follow us8

• Website8
Website 8 http8//teamlilliebridge.com
• !a&ebook8
!a&ebook8 Team Lilliebridge
•  outube
 outube88 Team Lilliebridge outube channel
• ri&  outube8
outube 8 &ric Lilliebridge outube channel
• rnie r
 r  outube
outube88 &rnie Ar. outube channel

43
 • /nstagra+8
/nstagra+8 Team Lilliebridge
• rnie r  /nstagra+8
/nstagra+ 8 &rnie Lilliebridge Ar
Ar..
• ri&  /nstagra+8
/nstagra+ 8 &ric Lilliebridge

&"clusi!e inter!iew with the Lilliebridges8 click here.

here.

I
ns
tru
cti
ona
lvi
de
os

'ome Instructional !ideos8

• 1ow to acti!ate your lat’s on the bench press8

https8//www.youtube.com/watchN!O?P<
https8//www.youtube.com/watchN!O?P<oiGtaQI
oiGtaQI
• 1ow to use a lifting
li fting belt for s$uat, bench and deadlift8
https8//www.youtube.com/watchN!Oi&
https8//www.youtube.com/watchN!Oi&m$!9Rjg
m$!9Rjg

1a!e fun with this and push yourself to the limit on the ma" rep
sets for all the lifts. They are called ma" rep sets because you are
supposed to ma" on the reps until you ha!e nothing left in you.

These sets are going to increase your strength dramatically and

prep you to hit a big 7G at the end or at the meet. #e sure to ask
$uestions in our forum, ask anything training, or ask $uestions about
this training cycle. &njoy

44
 8-L
if
t.
ne
tTa
lksT
oer
niej
r.

e%rinted !o"rtesy of lift.net. !li!k here to

here to vie the original
intervie.

 %s a member of Sthe strongest

strongest family on the planet,
planet, &rnie
Lilliebridge Ar.
Ar. does not disappoint. <ith lifts such as an ++lb seadlift,
:>+ s$uat, and >++ bench, &rnie’s on his way to the top of his class.
<e are proud to present8 &rnie Lilliebridge Ar.

45
 LIFT8
LIFT8 Dan you tell us a little about yourself, gi!e us a little
backgroundN

&LA8 I started powerlifting when I was twel!e with my dad. %t that

time my dad trained me on and off until the age of si"teen when I
became !ery serious about powerlifting, and ha!en’t stopped since.

I ha!e always lifted

l ifted raw,
raw, but in 9++: I started to incorporate gear
into my lifting when I began training with team Uen6en. I competed for
a year in gear and stopped after I suffered a se!ere injury while
s$uatting at a meet. I had :3+lbs on my back when it happened. I
herniated two discs and had one bulged disc in my back. This has
impacted all of my raw lifts dramatically I could not lift for two months,
took off si" months of s$uatting, went through two years of therapy,
talked to many doctors who wanted me to $uit powerlifting fore!er,
fore!er,
and had to finally gi!e into ha!ing three cortisone shots in my back.
This is something I am totally against and did not want to do. I still
ha!e pain when I s$uat, could not arch as well, and lost grip strength
in my hands. I ha!e worked to o!ercome these issues for many years
now by training as much as possible, therapy,
therapy, changing my form while
s$uatting, going to the chiropractor, and setting high goals for myself.

 %s I reco!ered from this injury

injury I decided to $uit
$uit geared lifting all

46
together.
together. <hen I lifted in gear I ne!er felt proud of what I lifted. I
always felt like I wasn’t the one really lifting the weight. %lmost like
saying I am bullet proof because I ha!e on a bullet proof !est. Then
when I take it off I no longer am. %s of today’s date I ha!e officially tied
my best geared total G%< I would ha!e beaten it if I made all my lifts.

LIFT8 <hat is your height, weight, and best liftsN

&LA8 1eight8 >’)+ <eight8 <hen I am not training for a meet I am

around 9*+ish and when gearing up for a meet I get up to 94+ish

#est lifts raw in a meet8 '$uat= 33)lbs bench=4*>lbs deadlift=

:::lbs.

#est gym lifts raw8 '$uat= :)+lbs bench=>++lbs touch and go

deadlift= :+lbs

#est geared lifts in a meet8 s$uat :44lbs bench >++lbs as a

teenager )2 years old 99+ weight class I always
al ways deadlifted raw.
raw.

LIFT8
LIFT8 <hat made you decide to pursue powerliftingN

&LA8 I grew up watching my dad compete in 0'%7L powerlifting

powerlifting

47
meets. I was always ama6ed that my dad was competing raw and
beating the geared lifters.

 %s a teenager I wrestled

wrestled in high school. I wanted to become
stronger so that I could beat the other kids. y dad helped me by
teaching me ways to gain strength. %s I continued wrestling and lifting
at home I started to ha!e conflicts with the two sports. %s a wrestler I
needed to stay at a certain weight or drop weight. I felt that I couldn’t
get any stronger at the weight my wrestling coaches wanted me to
compete at. I enjoyed powerlifting more then wrestling so I started to
focus )++E on powerlifting. I really enjoy lifting with my dad and
brother.

LIFT8 <hat are your other hobbies or interestsN

&LA8 I am definitely a family guy. I lo!e to spend time with wife

and two children by going out to see mo!ies, tra!eling, going to my
son’s sports games, and going to amusement parks, etc. I enjoy
racing. I ha!e two )+ second street cars that I like to take to the drag
strip. This is another sport that I enjoy with my dad and brother.
brother. I like
racing and working on nice cars.

LIFT8
LIFT8 ?o you do any other forms of e"ercise outside of the gymN

48
 &LA8 Durrently no. I used to do cardio and run a lot outside the
gym. I ran ).> miles each day. I finally got my time down to ))min >9
seconds. It didn’t help my lifting at all. It made me lean and lose
weight. I could maintain my lifts but could not make any gains.

LIFT8 <hat does your training look likeN

&LA8 %s of right now I only get to train two days a week8

<ednesday nights and 'aturday mornings. I work a lot during the
week and like to dedicate at least one day as a family day.
day. I bench on
<ednesdays and rotate hea!y s$uats and hea!y deadlifts e!ery other
'aturday. 1owe!er, on my light days I do both light s$uat and light
deadlifts on the same day.
day. I also do a lot of accessory work on both
days.

LIFT8 1ow do feel training with your dad and brother has
impro!ed your liftingN

&LA8 1onestly,
1onestly, if I did not ha!e them I do not think I would be
where I am at today.
today. Jot only has my dad coached me and taught me
e!erything he knowsK he has been a big support. 1e encourages me
to set and achie!e higher goals, he pushes me to be my best, and he
has ne!er missed one of my meets. y brother is my training partner.

49
<e grew up together so we know each other’s
other ’s strengths well. 1e also
encourages me to do my best, writes all of my training cycles, and
calls some of my numbers at meets.

&LA8 LIFT8 <hat is your diet likeN

5earing up for a meet I try to eat anything and e!erything to keep

and gain strength, drink about fi!e gallons of milk a week, drink a lot of
water, and drink four )3 o6. protein shakes a day. -ff cycle I clean up
my diet by eating lean meet like a lot of chicken, drink many small
protein shakes throughout the day,
day, drink a lot of water, and eat a lot of
high fiber foods.

LIFT8 <hat powerlifter do you feel has had the most influence on
youN

&LA8 y dad by far. 1e has been through many injuries and just
comes back stronger. 1e has had many surgeries, blown out knees,
detached tricep, numerous pec tears, hamstring tears, and like I said
he is able to rehab himself and come back stronger.
stronger. 1e is a warrior
LIFT8
LIFT8 <hat is your mindset before approaching a new personal
recordN

50
#efore approaching a new pr I just try to get my mind in the right 6one.
It’s more of a mental thing. I am thinking about completing the lift. I try
to get some aggression going and put that momentum into the lift.

LIFT8 <hat is your most memorable moment thus farN

&LA8 For sure my :::lbs deadlift I suffered an injury during

s$uats at that meet. ?uring warm ups I had >9>lbs on my back when
another lifter threw the rack back in too early.
early. I hit the rack and
popped a rib out of place. y belt lodged
l odged under my rib causing it to
pop. ?r.
?r. Gob was able to pop it
i t back in for me after s$uats and ga!e
me some pain medication so that I could compete. I would ha!e had
++ in me for sure that day but e!en with an injury I was still able to
finish the meet with a 7G pull and a national record

LIFT8 <hat dri!es you as a lifterN

&LA8 There are goals that I want to meet and records that I want
to hold. I want to be the number one 949lber in the nation. %s of right
now I am currently ranked number 3 in
i n the nation and I just missed
the number 9 spot by missing my third attempt s$uat and deadlift at
the last meet.

51
 LIFT8 <hat lift are you most proud ofN

&LA8 I would ha!e to say my s$uat right now.

now. 'ince my back
injury my s$uat is finally coming around I am finally hitting some of
the big numbers that I ha!e worked so hard forK for so long.

LIFT8
LIFT8 <hat are your goals for the upcoming yearN <hat meets
do you ha!e planned in the futureN

&LA8 y goals for the upcoming year are to total 9+++ plus raw at
949lbs and taking the number one 949 spot in the nation. The meets
that I ha!e planned thus far are '7F 7ro/% meet in arch and 07%
Jationals in %pril.

LIFT8
LIFT8 5i!e me > factors you feel e!ery lifter should know
kno w to make
gains.

&LA8

). 7roper
7roper trai
trainin
ning.
g.
9. 7roper
7roper forms
forms for
for each
each lift.
lift.
*. &at and get
get enough
enough rest.
4. 'upplements to take such as protein, glucosamine,
glucosamine,

52
 glutamine, fish oil omega *s, etc. I get a lot of my stuff from
0'7 Labs and 5orilla 7harma.
>. 1a!e a positi!e
positi!e attitude, set
set goals, and do not gi!e
gi!e up. 7ush
yourself

LIFT8
LIFT8 <hat would you like to see change in powerliftingN

&LA8 I would like to see it

i t more unified. 1a!ing one federation
would make things way less confusing. %s of now there are a ton of
federations and e!ery federation has its own world champions with
indi!idual federation record holders. There really is no number one
spot. There are many number one spots in each weight class when
you count all the federations. I belie!e the only way the sport will get
any credit or e!er be considered to be in
i n the -lympics is if e!eryone
plays by the same set of rules and it goes back to raw lifting
l ifting
completely.
completely. %lso, I would like there to be more money in powerlifting. It
is a !ery e"pensi!e sport but !ery hard to earn any money back. ou
ou
always see golfers, baseball players, football players, etc. that make
millions of dollars a year but when it comes to powerlifting there is no
money to be found.

53
 9-P
aul
Car
terT
alk
sToE
ri
c

e%rinted !o"rtesy of $a"l -arter, Lift &ang "n. -li!k here to

here to
vie the original intervie.
intervie. $lease note that this intervie is from
2010.

If you follow powerlifting you probably ha!enCt heard a whole lot

about &ric Lilliebridge. ThatCs no typo. &ric has to be the most non=
talked about 9V 9 total raw guy e!er. %t the ripe old age of 9+ heCs

54
already gone o!er the double grand mark twice and has gotten almost
6ero amount of co!erage about it. 'o, I decided to do something
about it and hunt &ric down for some $uestions. %n hour and a half
later I had my answers. For those that want to know how &ric trains,
eats, peaks for meets, and other stuff well here is part ) of our 9 part
inter!iew....

C
omp
eti
ng

7aul Darter = Thanks for taking time out to do this inter!iew &ric. I
want to say first off that weC!e talked online $uite a bit and I always
come away impressed by how courteous you are and the way you
handle and carry yourself. ost young men I know can be cocky
kno it alls but
alls but e!en with your natural ability you maintain a lot of
humbleness and thatCs !ery refreshing. 'eems like mom and dad did a
real good job, thatCs a big credit to them.

&ric Lilliebridge = eah

eah IC!e ne!er really been like that. <hen
people ask me how much I can lift I just say IC!e done this and done
this, and that will be it. ICm not one of those people that like to talk
about themsel!es a lot. y lifts pretty much speak for themsel!es I
donCt need to go around bragging about it. I put my time in the gym
and thatCs that you knowN

55
 7D = %nd you put your lifts up on the platform so you donCt need
to say anything.

&L = Gight, right. IC!e ne!er tried to be a person that came off as
arrogant and you know brag about what I can do. I donCt respect
people that do that, it doesnCt really impress me. If youCre going to brag
whatCs the purpose of itN It just makes you look
l ook like an asshole in the
end.

7D = &"actly.
&"actly. 'o tell me a little about yourself. <hat got you into
liftingN our
our dad heCs strong as hell too. 'o you wanted to lift and your
dad helped get you into lifting. <hat age did you start lifting
l ifting atN

&L = It was right about :th grade so I started at about )*. I didnCt
start out powerlifting, it was just regular lifting. Light leg work, curls for
biceps and tricep work that kind of stuff and e!entually my dad started
to see me lift and was like Mwhy donCt you just do powerlifting with meN
ouCre down here three or four times a week why not just lift with meNM
I said Myeah ICll try it.M 'o e!entually I started it doing it and learned all
the form for the lifts and I started competing at the end of th grade. It
was a good full year of straight powerlifting before I e!en did my first
competition. 'o at the end of th grade when I was around )4 I did my
first competition. I weighed in at, I belie!e, )3>. I didnCt e!en wear

56
wraps at the time, just belt only. It was just a high school meet and
e!er since then IC!e been interested. I just couldnCt stop lifting after
that. ItCs just in me to compete.

7D = Tell me a little about how you progressed through your

weight classes and meets.

&L = %fter that meet I only did two meets at )3>. %fter that I
started putting on more weight, I was doing a lot of hea!y raw training
and started putting on more muscle mass. I did my ne"t meet in the
winter of +4 and I was a )). %fter )) I was at )2 for almost two
years. I did not gain any weight but kept gaining strength.

7D = ou
ou still hit some good lifts at )2.

&L = eah my )2 deadlift was 3++. I did that at the %7D
worlds, itCs still a world record for that class. That was my really good
lift at that age. y deadlift really stood out, a lot more than my s$uat
or my bench. That was my best lift.

7D = eah youC!e always been a really good deadlifter.

&L = ItCs honestly all about your form and the way you train. % lot

57
of people think if you do a bunch of reps on the deadlift that it will
make it go up like other lifts,
l ifts, and it might to a certain e"tent. #ut
whene!er I did that it just tweaks my back. I always felt like I couldnCt
reco!er fast enough from it. 'o what my dad taught me was, when ICm
cycling up for a meet 3 to  weeks out, ICll pick a number that I want to
hit at the meet and ICll pretty much just back track from there. 'o each
week ICll add )+,)>,9+ pounds on my deadlift. #ut only for the last few
sets. Those are singles. I donCt do doubles or triples there. 'o when
you get to the meet youCre ready to pull that big single. ItCs not a rep
contest.

7D = Gight. 'o you stayed at )2 for two years. ?id you actually
do any 99+ class stuffN

&L = eah I think I did a couple at 99+. I donCt remember what I

did at my first meet at 99+, I remember at my last meet at 99+ was the
07%,
07%, the same meet I just did, it was three years before that. #ill
Darpenter had a meet in Iowa, I think it
i t was in the same place in
9++:. That was actually my first meet where I wore a s$uat suit. Aust
to try it out. I s$uatted :49, but my raw s$uat was >>+. 'o I really
didnCt get a whole lot out of the briefs and suit. Jot compared to what I
know some people get out of it. I think I benched upper *++Cs and I
pulled 3>+ for the first time. The bench and the deadlift were raw. %fter

58
that I was at 949 for about a year. I did the state meet, which was my
senior year of high school and I did my first 3++ plus raw s$uat, my
first 4++ plus bench in competition, and I pulled 3:9 at that
competition also. %ll raw,
raw, so I totaled like ):+. %nd that was when I
was ).

7D = %nd youC!e been in the 9:>Cs for the last couple of years.

&L = eah IC!e been in the 9:>Cs for o!er a year now. I honestly
donCt see me going abo!e that for a long time. y weight keeps
fluctuating between 9>> and 9:+. I gain so much weight, then it will
start to fall off. #ut my strength will remain. It seems like ICm filling out
more. 'o I hoenstly think ICll be at 9:> for a really long time. &!en if I
go past 9:>, like 9+ or 9> a few years from now, ICll still cut down to
9:>. It wouldnCt make sense to go to *+.

T
rai
nin
g

7D = LetCs get right into the meat and potatoes of things. LetCs talk
about training and how you prep for your meets. <hat does a normal
week for you look like in terms of trainingN Lay out the days of the
week on what you do on those days. <eCll just start with your s$uat
and deadlift day.
day. 5o ahead and just lay the week out for me.
me .

59
 &L = <ell like before I e!en start training ICll write e!erything on
paper.
paper. ICll get like a date, and if I want to do a 3 week cycle or an 
week cycle my last week before the meet I donCt really count it. ThatCs
like an off week.

7D = Gight, a rest week.

&L = Gight. 'o ICll back track from there like 3 to  weeks, and ICll
 just start writing out numbers.
numbers. Like what do I want to do for my top
sets on each day. If I get stronger than what I originally thought I was
going to do, ICll tweak numbers here and there. I usually ha!e my base
numbers already set out for where I want to be. 'o for my week I
always s$uat and deadlift like on a 'unday.
'unday. #ut my accessory work
switches. Like for e"ample if ICm doing my hea!y s$uat day,
day, after
s$uats instead of doing bent rows, ICll do lat pulldowns. Aust to hit a
different area of my back. and since I did hea!y s$uat, I wonCt do
hea!y leg presses. I do leg presses on my hea!y deadlift day,
day, just to
hit my $uads. -ne thing IC!e found to help tremendously for me is just
leg curls. Those are really my golden accessory work for helping my
deadlift. Those ha!e helped me so much. I know IC!e gotten injured
from hea!y deadlifts, but they really helped a lot with my strength off
the floor.

60
 7D = ou
ou mean just regular old leg curlsN

&L = eah, where you lay down on the bench with the cable. Aust
regular leg curls ha!e helped me tremendously.
tremendously.

7D = ItCs funny that your split is like this because I used this split
for a long time and on deadlift day I did leg press as well to hit my
$uads since I wasnCt s$uatting. %nd on s$uat day I would do stiff legs
and I hit some 7GCs at the time with it. #ut you donCt do any stiff legs
rightN

&L = %ctually ICm going to start doing light stiff legged deadlifts. I
spoke with &d Doan a few weeks ago and he checked to see how my
hamstring was doing and he told me when he tore his hamstring
before he used light stiff legged deadlifts to get that stretch and that it
will help breakdown the scar tissue that builds up back there. %nd that
will help when I go to pull hea!y again. That should decrease the
percentage of me getting an injury again.

7D = 'ounds like a plan. 'o letCs go through a workout. LetCs say

itCs a deadlift day. ou always pull your three progressi!ely hea!ier
singles.

61
 &L = <ell actually I start off with light s$uats. ind of like ICm in a
competition. #ut I go light. Like > warm up sets. The bar, then a plate,
two plates, three plates, then ICll do like > plates for a single. Aust to
warm up my hips and get e!erything firing 'o when I go to pull, ICll just
start out with a plate and then do my warm up and go from there. %fter
my deadlift I will do bent rows. Those ha!e helped a lot too, with my
lock out. I wonCt do a lot of sets, like maybe * hea!y sets of like )9 to
)> reps. I donCt do that swing form. I keep it real strict. 5uys who are
 just swinging the weight,
weight, they arenCt really doing
doing anthing, youCre
youCre just
kidding yourself you knowN

7D = Gight, I agree.

&L = 'o get a good weight that you know you can do for a decent
amount of reps, that youCre not cheating yourself.

7D = eah,
eah, the right weight is a weight where you feel like youCre
being worked, but it feels good at the same time.

&L = Gight, right. %nd those help a lot with my back work. %fter
that I donCt do my lat pull downs, I do those on my s$uat day.
day. I do leg
presses after my bent rows. %nd thatCs pretty much my assistance
work. ICll do a few sets of abs after that. <e ha!e a little decline sit=up

62
bench and ICll do like * sets of )>.

7D = our workout sounds a lot like mine.

&L = (laughs eah a lot of people think you need to do more than
that but you really donCt. They think you need so many e"ercises and
sets and you really donCt. ou
ou just end up o!erworking e!erything.

7D = %bsolutely.
%bsolutely. %nd I think the thing you are finding out early is
that reco!ery ends up being the most important thing.

&L = -h yes, absolutely. ou really need to reco!er. ou can ha!e
your good workouts, but if youCre not eating good and not resting good
the ne"t time you go into the gym youCll probably feel like shit. Then
you sit around a wonder why youCre ha!ing a bad workout and you
should already know you need rest and you need to eat to ha!e
strong workouts.

7D = 'pot on. 'o deadlift day is basically some light s$uats, you
pull your hea!y singles, then some bent rows, leg press and abs.

&L = Gight, thatCs it.

63
 7D = 'o then on onday what do you doN

&L = Jo, onday is an off day. I might stretch. -n Tuesday I do

my upright rows.

We both la"gh, as /ve teased Eri!

Eri ! abo"t having days dedi!ated
to "%right ros.

&L = ou know I do my upright rows, IC!e seen people that ha!e
big traps and I just wanted big traps.

7D = Jo doubt. #ig traps are the shit.

&L = eah
eah itCs just something that I like to ha!e on me. 7lus, when
I s$uat, I keep the bar high on my back and it feels better now that my
traps ha!e grown a little bit. It feels natural for me to ha!e the bar high
on my back when I s$uat so ha!ing more traps has been better for me
in that regard. I donCt know if it helps my lift but it just makes me feel
better.

7D = #igger traps make e!ery man feel better.

better. 'o upright rows on
Tuesday, and then pretty much whate!er you want to. ind of a
playing around day rightN

64
 &L = Gight. ICll just hit some stuff here and there to stay loose.
Like a light, hour workout to keep some blood flowing.

7D = %nd sometimes if Tuesday comes around and youCre tired

you just say screw it and donCt do anything rightN

&L = eah honestly, if something hurts or my joints are hurting ICll

rest. ItCs not going to hurt me to miss
mi ss it, itCs just an accessory day.
day.

7D = -k so now on <ednesday.

&L = <ednesday is my bench day.

7D = %nd what on ThursdayN ?o you take Thursday offN

&L = If I workout on Tuesday

Tuesday and go hea!y with my upright rows,
ICll go like light on the upright rows on Thursday.
Thursday. ICll do, kinda
ki nda like the
same thing just lighter o!erall. Those days are really identical but one
day is lighter with more sets and reps and the other day is hea!ier.

7D = 5otcha. 'o basically the truth is, youCre just training twice a
week. %nd
%nd the other two
t wo days are just au"illary/whate!er days.

65
 &L = 7retty much.

7D = 'o when you cycle in prep for a meet, how many s$uat and
deadlift workouts do you like to plan forN #ecause since you alternate
your hea!y s$uat and deadlift workouts week to week, ob!iously if you
wanted to get in > or 3 s$uat workouts youCre talking )+=)9 weeks. 'o
how many weeks is typical for meet prepN

&L = <ell I still s$uat and deadlift e!en before I start my cycle,
 just not hea!y all of the time. I really just try
try to maintain my base le!el
le!el
of strength, so that I donCt fall below a certain line. Like we were
talking about yesterday,
yesterday, I know that any day of the week I can lift V
amount.

7D = Gight, your foundation le!el of strength.

&L = Gight. I usually like to get in * hea!y s$uat and deadlift

workouts in before a competition. 'o weCre talking like, : to  weeks
because the week before the meet I donCt train hea!y.
hea!y. %nd ICm starting
to find out that within * to 4 hea!y s$uat workouts ICm really at my
peak.

7D = eah ICm the same way. I think itCs about week : into meet

66
prep that I really feel strong. <eek  I might be pushing it. #ut I find at
about : weeks I feel strong.

&L = eah you ha!e to know your body. 'o with your cycles and
how your training goes you ha!e to know where youCre going to peak
out so you can plan your cycle perfectly.
perfectly. If you know where you can
peak at you can get it almost perfectly.
perfectly. ItCs hard but it can be done.

7D = <e both felt like you peaked a little early this time.

&L = 1onestly it was probably within my )9 days. %t least on my

bench. y s$uat still felt pretty strong, but it definitely wasnCt as
e"plosi!e as the )+ I did in the gym.

7D = eah you smoked )+ in the gym.

&L = eah it also could ha!e been that I did that hea!y s$uat.
aybe if I donCt push the s$uat that hea!y I peak for the meet. #ut I
was happy,
happy, I got my +4 s$uat. That was what I wanted to get.

7D = 'o we talked about your deadlift day.

day. LetCs talk about what
you do on your hea!y s$uat day. ou start with s$uats ob!iously.

67
 &L = Gight s$uatting first. I do stretch for a while before I s$uat. I
do the bar for like )>, a plate for )9 reps, two plates for  reps, *
plates for like 3 reps, then 4 plates for a couple, then after that ICm
pretty much doing singles. 0nless ICm training to do a top set for a
triple, then ICll do it a bit differently
differently.. It really all depends on how I want
to go about approaching my singles for s$uats. IC!e made great gains
off of doing singles, but IC!e also made great gains off of doing triples.
The thing that IC!e found when I do triples is that my joints donCt hurt
as much, the hea!y singles ta" my joints a lot harder. I really just
switch it up to see if I make better gains off of one than the other, but
basically itCs either going to be hea!y singles or triples.

7D = 'o what do you like to do after thatN

&L = %ctually after that I do light deadlifts. ICll go up to around >++

or 3++ pounds just to see how it feels and keep my form. In the meet
you e!entually ha!e to pull after you get done s$uatting. 'o I just like
to do something to see how my joints are feeling and play around with
it a little bit. Jot super hea!y,
hea!y, just > or 3 plates to see how it feels.
 %fter that I do hea!y
hea!y lat pulldowns. 0sually
0sually like * sets of )9 to )>.
)>. %nd
again, I donCt swing em, I pick a weight that I donCt ha!e to cheat.
<here I work the muscle, not to where I use my damn body to mo!e
the whole thing.

68
 7D = ?o you e!er do chinsN

&L = Jo IC!e honestly ne!er tried em.

7D = ?o some pullups bro.

La"ghter

7D = 'o after pull downs what do you doN

&L = 'ince itCs my s$uat day IC!e already worked my legs, there is
no need for leg presses and I did the pull downs so no bent rows so I
usually just do some ab work after that.

7D = 'o are you going to try and substitute in the stiff legs there
instead of pulling semi hea!y maybeN

&L = aybe. Like after I do like the >++ deadlift I might do that.
ItCs probably just going to be a light weight to get that stretch
afterwards. ICm definitely going to start doing them. In fact ICll probably
start doing them after s$uatting and deadlifting just to work that
stretch. I donCt think itCs going to do any harm, ICm not going to go
hea!y.
hea!y. I think if anything it will make e!erything better.
better. 'o I think I will

69
incorporate it into my s$uat and deadlift workout.

7D = -k. 'o where did you used to fit in leg curlsN

&L = %ctually we donCt ha!e one at my gym but at the house. 'o
the days when I do my assistance work that would be a day where I
would do that.

7D = %hh I see. 'o on the days you do your upright rows you
would do those along with it.

&L = &"actly. If I donCt feel like doing an all around you know,
upper back, arms, legs, ICll split it. Like Tuesday
Tuesday upper=body and
Thursday lower=body,
lower=body, one hea!y and ) light. I like to switch it up, I
donCt like doing the same thing e!ery time I go in on Tuesday and
Thursday.

7D = 'o from this last week did you go back 3 to  weeks. ?o

you remember what you hit for your s$uats and deads in that timeN

&L = %ctually for this meet I was lost because I was coming back
from my hamstring injury.
injury. 'o I had no idea where I was at. I had no
idea ICd be lifting this hea!y this soon. I did push it really hard, but not

70
at the point where I was going to peak out too soon, I mean, I did peak
out too soon but it could ha!e been sooner if I had pushed it. I did my
usual singles for s$uat, and for deadlifting I barely deadlifted at all.
The most I did in the gym was :+> in training. 1onestly I was scared
shitless to pull again.

7D = Gight anytime you get injured the trepidation you feel can
cause you to be hesitant in certain mo!ements.

&L = eah, and especially since it tore off of the floor. Like my
lockouts feel incredible now. It used to be the e"act opposite. ICd be
really fast off the floor and then it would get past my knees and slow
down. Jow when I pull off the floor itCs kind of slow,
slow, and now when it
gets past my knees I lock it out easily.

7D = eah
eah I remember in your old !ideos your speed off the floor
was ama6ing. #ut then it would get abo!e the knees and would almost
look like a hitch.

&L = eah thatCs true, and at that point I was using the best of
le!erages that I could get just to lock it
i t out. I always try to keep the bar
as close to my body as possibly through the whole lift. %nd
%nd sometimes
the bar would stick on my legs, and thatCs why I used so much baby

71
powder.
powder. #ut since then IC!e widened my stance a little bit, and thatCs
helped. #ut ICm really trying to get my floor speed back because once I
do that my deadlift is going to be stronger than e!er because my
lockout is really strong right now.

7D = eah your lockout looks really good right now.

&L = eah and ICm surprised that I e!en pulled :3+ because I
hadnCt trained the deadlift !ery hea!y going into that for like )4 weeks.

7D = 'o for this particular meet you didnCt really ha!e set plans
because you had a lot
l ot of $uestion marks with your injury.

&L = Gight yeah. It was honestly like, ICm going to go about it and
play it week by week. If itCs
i tCs good this week, I will push a little harder
the ne"t week. I didnCt really ha!e it written
wri tten out on paper until about 4
weeks out from the meet. 'o I thought I could actually s$uat this much
and pull this much so I actually got my ++ in the meet like I wanted
to. #ut for bench I was just playing around in the gym really.
really. I started
making gains and I started pushing it harder. It was just kind of this
thing between me and my dad. 1is best bench in the gym is >>+, and
he kept telling me Myou canCt beat my benchM. 'o I hit >>+ and then I
think I peaked too soon, but I was still happy with the bench I got in

72
competition especially after s$uatting ++. I wasnCt e"pecting to ma"
out like I did in the gym.

7D = -k so what about good morningsN

&L = Jo IC!e honestly ne!er done those but they donCt look
comfortable.

7D = <hat about bo" s$uatsN 1a!e you played with bo" s$uats
because e!eryone will tell you theyCre the bees knees.

&L = eah IC!e tried em before. <hen IC!e tried me before they
donCt work for me. y stance isnCt !ery
! ery wide so when IC!e used em I
feel like ICm pitching too far back or too far forward. 'o when I tried em
I did widen my stance a little bit, and I didnCt do em for too long. I really
 just didnCt care for em.
em. I figured if ICm going
going to s$uat I might as well just
s$uat, and s$uat all the way down like I normally do.

7D = Gight, and I think a lot of information is misguided for raw

ra w
lifting. 'ome raw guys will follow e$uipment based templates or ideas,
and itCs mostly based around hamstrings and glutes and low back. %nd
the truth is, raw s$uatting is a lot of $uad power.

73
 &L = -h 5od yes it is. ThatCs for sure.

7D = Gight, and no matter what anyone says the philosophies are

backwards. Gaw guys need to train to be strong out of the bottom and
e$uipped guys need to train to be strong at the top. 'o the
philosophies canCt be the same.

&L = Jo they really canCt be.

B
ENC
HPR
ESS

7D = %wesome. 'o letCs talk about

about benching. I know you rotate
rotate
between bench and boards and close grips. Tell me about that.

&L = Gight. Jow on close grips, I donCt

donCt like going too close, I like
going about
about an inch or more inside the
the rings. I still get a good tricep
tricep
workout. <hat ICm
ICm probably
probably going to end up changing with my ne"t
cycle though, is instead of doing touch and go benches
benches for my
competition grip ICm going to train all pause benches.

7D = There you go.

&L = ainly because touch and go, they donCt do a lot for you

74
come meet
meet time. They will help build
build your strength of course
course but if
you donCt train
train the pause before the meet youCre not going to perform
perform
as well as you think you might.

7D = Gight you gotta pause your benches you might as well

pause em in training.

&L = &"actly
&"ac tly..

7D = %nother
%nother techni$ue I know that #illy 5illispie pushes is t=shirt
benches. Like put on a loose t=shirt and lower the bar and
and just lightly
touch the bar to your t=shirt.

&L = 'o youCd be holding it barely abo!e your chest.

7D = Gight, for like 9 seconds

seconds or so. #ut I noticed
noticed this past time
you did do more touch n go stuff and I think youCll see a big jump in
your competition
competition bench by training the pause.

&L = e too, and what I figure I will do is, the day I do my

competition grip is I will do my pauses then, but on the close grip day I
will do more touch n go stuff. 'o the close grip days will be a day
where I probably do
do more reps. 'o ICll pause the
the comp grip because

75
it just seems like it will work a lot better that way.
way.

7D = I think so I think thatCs a great

great idea. 'o on your
your competition
grip day,
day, you like to do the same thing you did with your s$uat and
deadlift you like to do 9 or * progressi!ely hea!ier singles.

&L = Gight yeah. 'ingles or doubles. I donCt really like doing reps
reps
on hea!y sets. If ICm e!er going to do reps
reps it will be like on a down
down
set. The down
down set for me helps my bench go up
up a lot.

7D = Gight.
Gight. Trying to beat rep 7GCs.

&L = up.

7D = 'o after comp grip benches whatN

&L = <ell what ICll do is do board work after my pause benches,

then on the
the days when
when I do narrow grip, then
then ICll do some
some drop sets
for reps.

7D = so really in a 3 week cycle you might only do your

competition grip bench
bench 9 times rightN

76
 &L = yeah two or three times.

7D = %nd thatCs fine because you keep that feel because youCre
still pressing
pressing from the same plane.

&L = Gight.

7D = 'o what do you do after you do your bench workN

&L = I usually do incline. Jot a lot of sets. I will usually do like *

sets and I donCt like doing those
those sets for the same amount
amount of reps.
Like I will do the first set
set with a light weight for )+ or )9 reps, then my
second set is for like  or )+ reps, then
then my third set will
will be something
for like 3 or . 'omewhere in that ballpark.
ballpark.

7D = %nd what do you usually hit on incline, what are your top
weights on inclineN

&L = The best IC!e e!er done on an incline, well our bench is
weird. IT only has two notches. 'o one is like a low incline and one
is like a really high incline
incline so itCs a lot of shoulders too.
too. #ut the best
IC!e e!er done there is *)> for :.

77
 7D = #ut thatCs after a lot of hea!y benching.

&L = eah my incline isnCt really really good but itCs not bad to
follow all of that benching.

7D = Gight I donCt often go hea!ier than 99>=9>+ for )> after I

bench.

&L = eah
eah youCre hea!y work is on the bench. ThatCs your
foundation, the other
other stuff is just accessory work.

7D = 'o do you do more stuff after inclineN

&L = -h yeah I do dumbbell flyes.

7D = Incline or flatN

&L = I usually just do them flat.

flat. Like * sets. The first set I go
hea!y but
but for like )9 reps. The thing
thing is, I donCt do the reps fast.
fast.
'ometimes I see people
people do those choppy
choppy reps, kinda fast. I like to do
em nice and slow,
slow, really bring em down and
and feel that stretch. Then ICll
mo!e it a little faster.
faster.

78
 7D = eah
eah I would hate to do some fast dynamic flyes, that
seems like a bad idea.

&L = eah when I see those guys I think Mshit youCre going to tear
somethingM. That doesnCt seem
seem like a lift where you would want
want to do
something
somethi ng like that. ou know a fast mo!ement.
mo!ement .

7D = %nything where a big stretch is in!ol!ed ICm not wanting to

mo!e that fast.

&L = -h hell no.

7D = 'o what do you like to do after flyesN

&L = &ither push downs or skull crushers.

7D = <atch your elbows on the skull crushers.

&L = eah
eah I stick to the push downs more actually
actuall y. #ut
occasionally I will do the skull crushers just to switch up.

7D = eah
eah I donCt think your triceps are weak bro.

79
 La"ghs

&L = eah I donCt want any one area to be weak so I try to hit
e!erything.

7D = Jow the other thing is, when youCre not prepping for a meet
you do something I think is really smart. ou kind of coast a bit rightN
rightN
'a!ing the hea!y stuff for when youCre
youCre prepping for meets and the
the
meet itself.
itself. Is this
this something
something your
your dad helped ad!ise you
you on or
something you kind of figured out for yourselfN

&L = Gight pretty

pretty much. <hen ICm done
done with my meets ICll do light
stuff all the way up to mid may.
may. 'o like 3 weeks of light stuff now.
now.
Jothing written out. I go to the gym and go by how I feel. I wonCt
wonCt
push it real hard. -ne week I may go a little harder
harder than the other but
but
otherwise I play
play it week by week. #ecause going
going hea!y is what
what my
ne"t cycle for.
for. There is no need
need in injuring yourself going hea!y for
for
no reason.

7D = right you beat yourself up bad enough going into a meet,

and it doesnCt
doesnCt take much to keep that foundation le!el
le!el of strength.
and as we ha!e talked
talked about, I donCt
donCt care what people say peaking is
a real thing. ou can only hold a peak le!el of strength for
for a short

80
term.

&L = -h for sure. 7eople will write to me online

online and be like Mwell
Mwell
what happened to your liftsN you look weaker.M
weaker.M %nd ICm like no shit.
There is no way you can
can stay at that top le!el fore!er,
fore!er, there is no way
you can. I canCt pull ++ any day of the week. I only hit that
that number
a couple of weeks before a meet or at the meet.

7D = Gight and some people donCt get that youCre trying to peak
and time that
that out, and you donCt hold those le!els for !ery long.

&L = Jo, you canCt. I think you can hold it for a good two weeks
weeks
maybe. '- youCre
youCre competing and )4 days
days before
before or )4 days
days after
after
that, you would be able
able to hit those
those numbers. #ut not in that
that time
frame youCre probably going to lose it.

7D = 'o this coasting thing is that something your dad showed

you as wellN

&L = eah he was the one who always told me, you canCt stay at
the top fore!er.
fore!er. &!en before I did my first competition he
he would
always tell me that you wonCt
wonCt always perform
perform at the same le!el week
week
after week
week and not e!en
e!en meet youCre going to hit 7GCs.
7GCs. %nd itCs really

81
hard to get e!ery one
one of your lifts to peak
peak properly on the same day.
day. It
took me a while to grasp that because I was
was just a little kid and it took
took
me a while to
to learn that and understood what he was talking
talking about.

7D = ?ad got smarter as you trained longer.

longer.

La"ghter

&L = es he did. 1e helped me out a lot with all of his ad!ice and
and
ideas. 7retty much e!erything heCs e!er told me has worked.
-b!iously if it wasnCt for
for my dad I wouldnCt be along as far as I am
am
now.

7D = I think itCs unbelie!able the kind of guidance heCs gi!en you

because from the
the first time we talked about training I thought that you
trained really smart, and really old school which is cool.
cool. -b!iously
youC!e got really good
good genes for strength
strength but the truth is there are a
lot of guys that do but burn out or fail because they donCt ha!e good
guidance.

&L = eah thatCs true because they donCt ha!e anyone to help
them out like I do.
do. To tell them whatCs
whatCs right and
and wrong and
and if I didnCt
ha!e that from the start thereCs no way ICd be this far.
far. I would be

82
where a lot of other kids are at. Trying to figure out what works and
what doesnCt.
doesnCt. 'o I already had
had that from the start. ItCs like letting me
start )+ steps ahead of e!eryone else, I already know all of that stuff.

7D = I think about that

that all the time. If I could go back to
to your age,
I wouldnCt be where
where you are at but ICd be a lot further along
along than I was
at 9+ then.

&L = Jo doubt. ost people

people would be. If you start out lifting and
youCre a!oiding all of
of those pitfalls youCre going
going to be a lot better
better off.

7D = 'o youC!e gone o!er 9 twice

t wice now right.

&L = Gight

7D = %nd I figured it out, that if you were to peak perfectly youCd

be good for something like 9)4+ or 9)>+ rightN

&L = 7robably in that ballpark. I mean at this last meet ob!iously

my deadlift was really suffering and I still pulled
pulled :3+ but at the meet
before I pulled ++. 'o thereCs 4+ pounds right there.

7D = %nd you did touch

touch n go with >>+ on bench. %nd as we

83
talked before had you timed
timed your peak a little better youCre probably
good for a pause with say, >9>.

&L = 7robably.
7robably. that pause I did last week was actually
actuall y my best
e!er IC!e ne!er done
done more than >+) paused.
paused. IC!e ne!er
ne!er e!en tried it.
'o thatCs why
why this summer ICll be training a lot harder using pause
benches. This time I wonCt push it so that I peak too
too soon because I
really want to hit my number at the meet, but I want to pause
somewhere in the
the ballpark
ballpark of where
where you just said,
said, around
around >9>.
>9>. I think
think
ICll be good for that ne"t cycle.

7D = eah
eah because once you start grinding for too many weeks
in a row things start to get bogged down.

&L = Gight, that

that e"plosi!eness. <hen youCre really
really getting strong
strong
it feels light as shit. #ut then you start grinding singles and some
some
week >+ pounds less feels e!en hea!ier.

7D = &"actly.

&L = %t that point it becomes a mind game. 'ometimes if I ha!e

a bad day I feel like ICm getting weaker
weaker and getting smaller.
smaller. % bad day
can really screw with your head. #ut you ha!e to come back the week
week

84
after and ha!e a good workout.

7D = %nd that can mess with you for a while.

&L = eah
eah because you can say Mwhat did I do wrongN IC!e been
eating good IC!e been resting good. <hat happenedNM

7D = The body doesnCt mo!e on our clock. It goes when it wants

to go.

&L = 7retty much.

7D = 'o youCre kind of

of a light 9:>. <e kind of talked about that a
bit. ou ho!er around the 9>> range and low 93+Cs. 1a!e you gi!en
any thoughts about leaning up and trying the 949Cs againN

&L = 7eople ha!e asked me if I want to do that and honestly ICm

not really sure yet. ICm actually pretty
pretty surprised that
that ICm this light
light right
now because back in like mid=-ctober
mid=-ctober I was like 9:). %nd somehow
right now, ICm at around 9> as of today.
today. %nd I feel leaner and bigger
than I was back then.
then. ItCs kind of like, ICll
ICll put on some weight, go up
and come back down, go up and come back down.

85
 7D = %nd thatCs not uncommon youCre still a young guy so as you
get more muscle maturity you will lean out as more mass gets built
underneath there
there if your eating
eating is staying the same. 'o there might
might
be times when you are carrying more muscle at a lower bodyweight
because of the
the increase
increase in muscle density
density.. #ecause in your
your recent
pics you look leaner and harder than you did a year ago.

&L = -h yeah for sure. I feel a big difference now.

now. %nd really
about a year ago I was weighing about the same that I am right now.
y weight would flucuate between 9>> and 93+. %nd that was my
competition weight. <hen I wasnCt
wasnCt training for a comp my weight
weight
would drop to around
around 9>+Cish. %nd right now ICm not
not training for
anything and ho!ering around
around 93+. #ut if there comes a point to
where I lean out to
to around 9>+, I might
might do 949. I donCt see why
why not, I
would only ha!e
ha!e around  pounds to drop. 'o thereCs a big possibility
I could do that.

E
ri
cli
ll
ie
bri
dg
eOnD
IE
T

7D = 'o that leads us into the ne"t part.

part. ?o you pay attention
attention to
your diet a lotN %re you a big protein shake guy or a big food guy,
guy, or
are you a mi" of bothN

86
 &L = ICm kind of a mi" of both.
both. &!ery day I try to get * shakes in,
sometimes 4. <hen I wake up in the morning I ha!e a small breakfast
sometimes. I donCt ha!e
ha!e much of an appetite in the morning I donCt
know why.
why. '- an easy way for me to put on weight is to ha!e a big
protein shake in the morning. ICll put like )3 ounces of milk in my
blender, some powder, some peanut butter,
butter, and a banana. ItCs simple.
The rest of the day ICll just ha!e little shakes, )3 ounces of milk with
some powder.

7D = %nd whatCs your staple

staple food. <hat do you really
really like to eat
a lot ofN

&L = eat.
eat. #eef, chicken, thatCs my base. -therwise, whate!er I
eat it doesnCt really
really matter.
matter. 7asta, pi66a, just stuff
stuff to help me keep my
weight up. Gight now I can pretty much eat anything and
and I donCt put
on much fat. %t this point in my life I ha!e a pretty good
good metabolism
so ICm just going to
to ride it out as long as I can. <hen that time comes
that I need to watch what I eat ICll
ICll switch up my diet more. #ut as of
right now,
now, I can just eat anything
anything and I donCt gain much fat from it. 'o
whate!er I can get my hands on ICll eat it.

7D = I can remember being 9+

9+ and eating
eating like that too bro. #ut
e!entually you get older and you ha!e to
to watch it. I eat a lot less now

87
and ho!er at around 9>+. 'o enjoy it while you
you can. I did it and lo!ed
it.

&L = -h I know, I already know it wonCt be like this fore!er. #ut

for the time being ICm going to take ad!antage of it.

7D = 'o on a personal note, what do you like to do outside of

liftingN

&L = 1onestly I ha!e a pretty

pretty busy schedule.
schedule. ICm taking college
college
classes and I want to get into training people.
people. 'o ICm going
going to a
community college that is like > minutes from my house. I go to
school full time, you know I ha!e a daughter sheCs almost 9 actually.
actually.
 %fter lifting and school
school and I see my daughter
daughter $uite a bit, I donCt ha!e
a lot of free time. <hen I ha!e free time I just like to
to rela". I like to sit
around and rela". 'ometimes I will
will go out with my family or girlfriend
but I ha!e to keep
keep myself busy.
busy. -r I feel like ICm wasing
wasing time.

7D = 'o stay busy, and rela".

&L = eah e!eryone needs that time to just rela" and chill. #ut
outside of lifting itCs just school, my daughter,
daughter, hang out with my
girlfriend and friends.

88
 7D = I lo!e that you guys ha!e such a tight family.
family.

&L = eah
eah not many families ha!e what we ha!e. %nd especially
especiall y
training wise. Lots of powerlifters do it by themsel!es.
themsel!es. -r they
they lift with
a team or partner. #ut my training partners are my dad and brother.

7D = Jow what
what about outside
outside of powerlifting.
powerlifting. 1a!e you had any
thoughts about transferring your strength to %, or football, or
strongmanN

&L = <hen I was in high school a lot of people would ask me to

do football and stuff because I was the strongest kid in my school by
far,
far, but I wasnCt really
really interested you knowN I think I could ha!e
ha!e done
pretty well at football
football but I didnCt really care
care for it. If I had free time I
wanted to put it into lifting. I just wanted to get
get stronger.
stronger.

7D = Gight.

&L = 7eople ha!e also asked me about getting into bodybuilding

shows, they tell me I ha!e a naturally good build for that because ICm
naturally kind of lean.
lean. #ut then ICm like if I do that, I will probably
probably lose
a lot of strength. %nd ICm a guy that trains just to get stronger
stronger.. I do
like getting bigger but when it really comes down to it, I just train for

89
strength. 'o losing strength
strength really screws with my head a lot.
lot. I might
look bigger and stronger
stronger but I wouldnCt be stronger.
stronger. 'o thatCs not for
for
me.

7D = eah but there has been a lot of crosso!er for guys doing
that like att roc and then Aohnnie Aackson has done push pull
meets. %nd then ob!iously
ob!iously your guy 'tan &fferding
&fferding does both.
both.

&L = -h yeah, but I dunno

dunno man heCs just so gifted. I mean I canCt
belie!e he can cut down and get that shredded and go a couple of
months later and
and put up a humongous raw total. It just blows my
mind.

7D = Jo kidding I watched his training out at ark #ellCs place

(supertraining and when he was prepping for the meet he was
absolutely shredded still.

&L = eah e!en at the meet he looked like he could still step
onstage.

7D = eah
eah 'tan is like from another planet as far as powerlifting
goes. %nd since we brought 'tan up you guys ha!e been in touch,
touch,
which is really cool. ouCre doing a meet together this summer.

90
 &L = eah
eah after the meet he wrote to me on powerliftingwatch and
then through e=mail and weC!e been chit=chatting back and forth and
as of yesterday he said itCs final heCs going to do the meet with me Auly
*+th.

7D = an thatCs awesome.

&L = eah I mean ICm really happy about this.

7D = -h yeah
yeah I think a lot of people are e"cited.
e"cited. Jow heCs going
to go *+ for this one rightN

&L = eah he said he just doesnCt feel like cutting down and
honestly I donCt
donCt blame him.
him. 1eCs ho!ering up
up around 92+
92+ or *++ then
thatCs a long ways to diet down especially if heCs already really lean at
that weight. %nd it will be good for
for both of us because
because you know if I
win or lose it doesnCt really matter to me because it will be an honor to
lift with him.

O
nEQ
UI
PME
NT

7D = <hat is your opinion of geared liftingN

91
 &L = I donCt ha!e anything against people that lift in gear, but i
think itCs pretty ob!ious that the gear now a days has gotten a little out
of hand. <ell let me rephrase that, itCs actually gotten G&%LL
G&%LL out of
hand. There are some guys in the gym that struggle hitting a 4+> raw
bench, but can go put up a :++;lb bench in a double or triple ply shirt
easily...i
easily...i mean come on, *++;lbs out of a shirtN ThatCs just ridiculous.
Like i said i ha!e nothing against people that use the gear, but iC!e
heard a lot of people say they use the gear so they can help pre!ent
MinjuryM but how in the hell are you going to help pre!ent injury if youCre
trying to handle weight thatCs *++ or 4++lbs abo!e what you can ma"
out at raw, instead of trying to pre!ent injury,
injury, youCre asking for it IC!e
also seen guys that s$uat in gear, that ha!e absolutely no base to
them. They jump right into gear as soon as they start training which is
probably one of the dumbest things anyone could e!er do. <hen you
see someone struggle to unrack the weight in full gear,
gear, you know
thatCs a real big problem there. I think if
i f people are going to get into
gear,
gear, you should ha!e a couple years of raw training in your
background before doing that and also continue to stick with raw
training throughout your cycles.

7D = <hat is your opinion that a lot of geared lifters say that the
top geared lifters would still be the top raw
ra w liftersN

92
 &L = <hoe!er says the top geared lifters would also be the top
raw lifters are absolutely insane. 'omeone would ha!e to be really
ignorant to say something like that. 5eared lifting and Gaw lifting are
totally different. I know that IC!e ne!er e"perienced any kind of training
in a bench shirt before or a deadlift suit before, but i ha!e tried out
s$uat gear before and i thought it was absolutely horrible. y raw
s$uat barely went up at all, within a )+ month period, my raw s$uat
went up maybe 9> poundsN %nd that was with wearing s$uat gear
almost e!ery week, either brief only or both brief and suit. I do belie!e
your back will get stronger from holding the hea!ier weight, but your
raw strength wonCt really increase at all unless you train raw.
raw. For a
pretty good e"ample, I train raw consistently all the time, itCs hard as
hell for me to e!en put 9+ or *+ pounds on one of my lifts
l ifts on a training
cycle with raw training e!ery single time ICm in the gym. 'o how is
someone that ne!er trains raw
ra w, going to make better gains than I
would, when I train raw %LL the timeN

O
utl
in
eofE
ri
c'
sTr
ai
ni
ng

Sunday  S"uat or eadli-t day

&ric rotates his

his hea!y s$uats and deadlift workouts. 'o one
week he s$uats light and pulls hea!y and the ne"t week he s$uats

93
hea!y and pulls light.

*eay S"uat ay

• '$uats = triples or to a top single

• ?eadlifts = up to a fast light
li ght single
• Lat 7ulldowns = * sets of )9=)> reps
•  %bs = * sets of )>

*eay eadli-t ay

• '$uats = up to a light fast single

si ngle
• ?eadlifts = up to a top single for the day
• #arbell Gows = * sets of )9=)> reps
• Leg 7ress = * sets of )>
•  %bs = * sets of )>

Monday  .ssistan&e Work

• 0pright Gows
• Leg Durls
• #iceps

94
 Wednesday  #en&h ay

&ric rotates between his competition grip and close grip bench
with boards mi"ed in. For his competition
competition grip bench he works up to a
top single.
single. -n close
close grip days he
he does
does more rep work.
work. 1e usually
usually
follows his competition grip work with some hea!y board work.

1is assistance work is as follows8

• Incline 7ress = * sets of 3=)9 reps

• Flat Flyes = * sets of )9=)>
• 7ushdowns or 'kull Drushers = * sets

Thursday = %ssistance work

S
umma
ry

 %nyone that wants

wants to get bigger and stronger can take some
notes of what &ric had
had to say in this inter!iew
inter!iew.. ItCs the same thing IC!e
preached about
about on here in all of my articles. 5rab a few basic lifts,
work on simple progression, and donCt de!iate from it because you
think some other
other workout is going
going to gi!e you magical results. Train
two or three days a week
week and get a solid
solid eating plan. Douple it with a

95
simple training routine focused around basics and getting stronger is
all you need. This is tried and true o!er and o!er
o!er again. #e patient.
patient.
ou probably donCt ha!e the genetics that &ric does, but &ric wouldnCt
be where he is today without the fact that his dad ga!e him a great
training plan from day ) and he hasnCt de!iated from it. ThatCs the
model of consistency.
consistency. %nd look how simple it is. It works. ?onCt let
anyone tell you bullshit otherwise.

ItCs no coincidence that the majority of the strongest raw guys all
train really similar.
similar. #asics, using simple progression and listening to
their body.

 %gain a big thanks

thanks to &ric for taking the time out to do this
inter!iew.

96