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Muscle Club Training Guidelines

Keep it simple.

Build strength and tolerance to volume.
Change your body.
 
Here we GROW.
  • 1-2 main movements
  • 6 movements per session
  • Starting with 20-30 minutes of Dense Strength work time.
  • Gradually increase workload as tolerance grows.
  • Start with conservative weight selection and get used to consistency.
  • There is plenty of time to build and improve!
  • Alternate lower - upper - assistance
 
Extra skill and conditioning work can be included.
AMRAP on the last set if you're doing well.
 

Bringing The Program To Life


Ultimately you’re the boss, you’re the driver. Give me some power to guide you and give you feedback. Don ‘t give me enough power to make you a victim. Don’t hurt yourself.
You can find great inspiration in Muscle Club.
You won’t find the exact customised perfect experience for your optimal gains.
You will find people who want to see you win.
You won’t find a mother figure that will hold your hand and comfort you.
Life is competition.
If one day you have to sprint to survive and you’re too slow
 you lost.
Women choose men who can provide for them and protect them.
Be the man you want to be.
 

Leading In Muscle Club Will Transform Your Path In Life

I’ve been leading groups of men since my late teens.
I coached mens hockey teams ruthlessly at 20 years old
 and we won.
I coached NRL players at 22 and challenged them to find new levels, new positions, new strength.
I challenged Roosters players to have the highest vertical jumps, the most mobility and the biggest power cleans in the league
 that team broke all-time records and started a dynasty of trophies.
I challenged Sonny Bill to build strength where there was weakness.
I challenged him to kick when he couldn’t previously.
I challenged Ben Patrick to change the way the world trains.
I challenged him to get on Joe Rogan.
Now I’m challenging you to lead in Muscle Club.
 

Lift Like Life Depends On It
 It Does.

Common people assume they would train hard if they were professional athletes.
They assume they would work hard if they were paid millions.
They assume they would fuck like a porn star if they had a 10” dick.
FUCK WITH THE DICK YOU’VE GOT!
Lift with the body you have.
Work your best in the role you have.
Muscle Club is depending on you.
You have a chance to make a name for yourself here.
You’re either lifting

Autonomy Vs Coachability

There is a program here BUT if we were training together it would probably only go according to this plan around 50% of the time. Generally there will be some adaptation of MORE, LESS or DIFFERENT

The goal of Muscle Club is for you to understand why you’re doing what you’re doing so that you can make these adjustment intelligently to get the results you want for yourself and others.
 

Cutting Weight & Sets

If you’re turning up everyday then feel free to cut weights and sets. 5 rounds is enough sometimes. Less weight is ok.
Live to fight another day.
Finish most sessions feeling like you could do that session again without it being a big deal.
Over time standards will raise and your threshold for pain and work will increase.
Don’t be the hero today and sacrifice the next months and years.
It’s easy to find excuses to get back on the common path.
 

Niggles

Avoiding turning niggles into inhibition and chronic challenges is part of the game with muscle building.
To avoid them or overcome them sooner
 DECREASE TENSION.
Less speed, less load, less aggressive repetition styles, less stretch.
This means going slower, with lighter loads, controlled movements, shorter range.
If avoiding the area doesn’t solve the issues within 3 days then rest may never be the answer.
Bring heat and healthy blood to the area without so much tension that you rip the “scab” off.
The “scab” should be respected and gradually trained to function as high function tissue.
 
What If I Train High Volume For X (rugby / BJJ etc)
Honestly you’ll probably be fine. Most athletes can tolerate more volume than we have programmed here.
If you feel that your body isn’t keeping up and adapting

Simply go a little lighter to start with and change some of the 10 minute blocks to 5 minutes if you’re cooked.

Triple Down On Weak Muscles

Train a weak muscle 3 days in a row then only use it if it’s in the main programming for the rest of the week. Don’t focus on it more.
Do this each week until that muscle is no longer lagging behind.
 

Loading

Use micro plates if you want
 2.5kg, 1.25, 0.5kg. Or don’t.
If you don’t use small plates then you might sometimes have to make more adjustments to the reps.
 

Bar Speed

(Almost) never grind on the barbell lifts.
By grind I mean taking 3-4-5 seconds to complete the concentric phase of a lift.
Getting close to failure says that much fewer fibres are working.
Fibres that aren’t working aren’t growing.
Failure and muscle damage aren’t as important as most people say.
Weightlifters and CrossFit athletes are good examples of excellent muscle development without grinding or failing lifts. In CrossFit once you grind a weight then it’s over. The same is true in Dense Strength.
Grinding also empties the neural drive from the central nervous system which takes longer to recover than the muscles and will leave you feeling energetically flat more often.
Don’t grind.
 

The Programs

Prep - 5 minutes of skills to activate the nervous system
Loading - 5 minutes. Use short range partial priming movements up to relatively heavy loads with very light long range work to lengthen the tissues.
  1. Dense 10D3-5-10
  1. 15 second timer (chins & push-ups / bodyweight squats & pistols)
  1. 10D1 Eccentric + 1 second concentric
  1. Wave reps 1-2-3 at the same load.
  1. Wave load and reps
  1. Alternate Lower / Upper 10D5 Squat - 10D3+1-2 Dips & Chins
  1. Full Body
  1. Giant Sets
 

Volume / Repetitions Methods

Dense Speed → Strength =
50% x5 progressed to 60% x10
70% x10 progressed to 80%x5 over 4 sessions.
Ramp to a top weight session 1 and 4.
 
Dense Pairs / Triples
Dense Twins / Triplets (same muscle group) alternating with antagonists
15 second timer chins & push-ups
Total repetitions for time eg. 100.
Total repetitions for time eg. 100. 15 seconds rest when needed
CT Fletcher Volume - Random loading
Bands for volume
Railroading
 

Mobility

1 minute sets
Full repetitions / Bounces / Pauses
10 repetitions
20 bounces
 

Athletic Muscle

Jumping
Hopping
Landing
Barbell Combos

Week Templates

Programming Styles

MUSCLE
  1. Upper - Lower. - Extras x2 Same sessions for 2 weeks.
  1. Upper - Lower. - Extras x2 Different sessions
  1. Full Body Daily - Push Day / Pull Day
  1. Full Body Daily - Push-Pull Daily
 
ATHLETE
Upper Speed, Upper Strength / Lower Speed, Lower Strength
 

Workouts

Tempo & Pauses - Repetition Types.
Workouts are different to testing.
Use tempo & pauses during training to make faster gains through full range of motion.
 
Paired movements
Pair with a skill - This can help increase general conditioning, add more gains to your training time. Keep you ready for sports etc.
Pair with antagonists -
Pair with agonists in opposing range -
Pair with opposite part of the body -
Pair with micro muscles / movements -
 
 
These sessions are self regulating to remain repeatable.
10D10 Squats + 3 Handstand Kick-Ups