Brains, Then Brawn

So you're competing, at least, you should be.

Welcome to real life - no one makes it out alive, so why stay on the current plateau?

Everyone falls, but a select, dedicated few reach heights that, when they do fall, let them fall to a greater degree.  Ask more of your body every day.

Hell, you don't need to be in an actual competition to compete, you should be going against yester-you every single day.   The effort from last week is what drives you further today.  We acquire the strength it takes to overcome obstacles.  More obstacles, more strength.  Competition just puts it on a stage.

So when it comes to testing mettle amongst others, the one who has sought the most obstacles, who has bled the most, cried the loudest, and dug holes deep enough light doesn't hit bottom, and then keeps digging - they are the ones who usually find themselves crossing the finish line with no one in front of them.

You can be a bad ass, but a smart bad-ass will go further.  The one reason that makes this so: they seek out the untried.  They will the way.

All of this should be on the road to competition, because upon arrival you have to make some strategy decisions.  Here's the rambling's of someone who wants you to succeed at your next competition adventure.

Know your objective.  If you aren't interested in winning (WTF?!) then you better be ready to lose.  Your all-comsuming goal is to win.  Blow the ever-loving doors off.  Rip the souls from the competition's chest and use them as fuel on your way to a massacre of a victory.   This feeling can be replicated with the purchase of a large Americano quad-shot.

Attitude.  This must align with your goal.  To be a winner, you must think like a winner.  "I am a winner.  I will win."  This will prepare you for the pain, at least, when it hits you will know why it hurts so fucking bad.  It hurts to play at the highest levels.  That's why so few choose to do so.

See the future.  What's coming and how do I respond to it? - would be a great question to outline for yourself as you prepare to do battle.  Knowing your strength's and weaknesses will allow you push yourself on a personal forte and hit it the best you are able on your not-so-hot abilities.

Remove distractions.  Listen up, we've all destroyed our hands, arms, legs, you-name-its with workouts before.  Is a shitty piece of tape really going to give you a leg up on the others as you do pull-ups so you don't hurt your wee little hands?  Fuck that shit.  Go in raw, come out bleeding and laughing at how awesome it was to have blood as chalk.. you do know blood gets sticky right?  Fuck yeah, natural chalk.

Stick with your plan (as long as possible).  I know, your plan goes to shit almost immediately in comp time, but having a plan allows you have something to go back to mentally when everything else dissolves.  If you are planning on doing a set of 30 burpee's as two sets of 15, and by the time you get to 10 your eyes are bleeding, you can then tell yourself, "Hey, I've only got 5 more until I can wipe the blood from my vision!"  And now you have a motivating goal.

Be a pro, go for quality.  Stepping up to a heavy bar for deadlifts after a chipper of other brutal movements might make you think, "Back, you're fucked."  And as you round out your back to pick up heavy shit you automatically destroy 10x the amount of tissue you needed to.  Be a rockstar and take the fraction of a second to remember how you set-up for the lift.  Then do it.  This should be a given if you are truly thinking like a winner.  The athletes that do the most work the fastest usually have the best mechanics.  Stick with that.


Get your rest.  The advantage so many forget is simple stuff.  Lots of sleep, lots of water, clean food, and getting your body mechanically aligned.



Go forth, and conquer.

FOR THOSE ABOUT TO SQUAT, I SALUTE YOU

The back squat.  Those of you reading this aren't new to it or else you'd probably never have found this blog.  Coffee and Squats is dedicated to being more, every day of your f-ing life.  Heavy squats accomplish this in a way nothing else can come close to...ok maybe outlaw programming, but for those who don't know WTF that is, squatting is your path.

I'm currently writing another blog on my personal endeavor with CrossFit Football, one of the most bad ass strength programs CrossFit, or any program, has to offer.  In case you are not familiar, CFFB begins its newer athletes with an Amateur Strength program.  Google it and check out their bitchin' site if you want more info on it, but suffice it to say that it blows weak ass programs away.

Part of the genius that is CFFB is the foundation by which everything is based on:  Squat twice a week.
As an amateur, this means back squats, and adding small amounts of weight to the bar EVERY SINGLE TIME YOU SQUAT.   CFFB creator John Welbourn also explains his program at length through his blog, talk to me johnnie, and if you have questions his seemingly un-ending knowledge is for the taking, granted its an explosion of information (think Jackson Pollock) and can be quite overwhelming if you are new and haven't lifted heavy weights before.  Make no mistake though, he's very well educated on how to be strong, powerful, and getting more out of yourself a power athlete at every stage in the game.  Ok, enough poo-nosing.

Getting under a constantly heavy bar takes a person of domineering will and fierce spirit, and the longer you stay with a program that always asks more of you than ever before, the more you will need to have an iron constitution to carry you through the shit-storm cycle of self-destruction and growth.

This is relevant.

This post is not about how-to or how low to squat, that should be understood already, and is documented here.  But for reference, send your ass to grass, shove your knee's out, keep your chest up, & push your heels through the crust of the earth.  This post is about getting your head out from the sand and prepping for some heavy squats.

The day's effort should begin with the night before, getting lots of quality sleep in a dark room, and upon waking brewing some not-to-be-fucked-with coffee.   Consume proteins and fats as needed.  Then, off to the cave...

#1.  Relax as you warmup, roll out, get your hips un-fucked with some mobility, lay on a lacrosse ball, unglue your tissue issues, and break a sweat.  Pound coffee.  Perform one or two sets of 5 squats with just the bar.

#2.  Build Belief.  Start loading the bar with weight, performing 5 reps to "grease the groove" at heavier and heavier loads leading up to what you will be performing for the day.  As weight increases, don't let yourself slow down, this will help you believe in your ability to complete the soul-crushingly heavy sets to come.

#3.  Focus.  Post warmup and pre-workout you should have something pumping in your head that gets you geared toward killing the weights.  I suggest the group Bloodbath, or Vader.  Both are on Pandora.  Develop a personal mantra such as "kill the weights", or "destroy" and let it guide you to victory.

#4.  Detach.  Elite level performers often experience a "blackout" during maximal efforts.  This out of body experience is usually due to the athlete being serious about #3.  Remove any ideas you have about the outcome and stay focused on the process.  Let the story write itself.  There is only one right way to do this, and its different for everyone.  The right way is the way that gets it fucking finished.  If you think about getting blah blah many reps, you won't be thinking about where to breathe, the timing of it, staying back on the heels, and most importantly, being fucking awesome.

#5.  The devil's in the details.  Know your stance, your ability, make small jumps when you add weight near your limits, and give it your everything.


Go squat.