Greg Nuckols - Strength and Science eBook PDF

STRENGTH AND SCIENCE: THE MIND OF A LIFTER

Greg Nuckols GREGNUCKOLS.COM

Read This First: Let me start by saying “thanks” for downloading a copy of this Ebook. Next, let me explain what this IS, and what it ISN’T. This is not a comprehensive training manual. You won’t find much that looks like “do x sets of x reps of these exercises and you’ll get big and strong.” There are plenty of books like that, and I’m planning on writing specifically about programming in the future; but that’s another book – not this one. Also, this is not a book in the traditional sense of one section building upon another. It’s a collection of articles and essays from my blog, loosely organized around themes. Because of this, don’t feel obligated to read it cover to cover. If a heading looks interesting to you, dive in. If it doesn’t grab your attention, skip on over. More than anything, I want this collection to give you a glimpse into my mind – how I approach training, how I approach programming, and how I approach heavy weight. There aren’t many books out there that allow you to really get into the head of an elite lifter in a comprehensive manner. I’m not saying my way is the only way to go about doing things, but it’s what has allowed me to break records and enjoy the process 1

without having to resort to drugs. If nothing else, I think you’ll find it to be a different voice and approach than most out there. I don’t expect you to accept everything I say in this book, but I do think you’ll benefit from reading it, and from really taking the time to reflect. If you like it, I’d appreciate it if you’d share it with 5-10 of your friends who are also into lifting.

That’s all. Let’s dive in!

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Contents Read This First: ....................................................................................... 1 Applying Science to the Training Process ............................................. 5 Science, bro-science, and real-world application ..................................... 5 Acute vs. Chronic effects – understanding what you read ..................... 16 Mindset of a lifter: ................................................................................ 20 Efficiency and excellence are contradictory goals .................................. 20 My Philosophy of Strength...................................................................... 25 An observation about priorities .............................................................. 32 Key to confidence – Knowing your worst ............................................... 34 Assessing motivation .............................................................................. 37 Some thoughts about fear ...................................................................... 39 The size of your pond .............................................................................. 42 Steroids ................................................................................................... 48 The dangers of orthodoxy ....................................................................... 53 Remove your filter .................................................................................. 56 False bravado, marketing, and masculinity ............................................ 58 Lessons Learned Through Experience ................................................ 63 What I learned on the way to benching 350 pounds.............................. 63 Peaking – AKA how to hit PRs in meets .................................................. 67 What I learned to squat 500 ................................................................... 75 What I learned on the way to deadlifting 500 pounds ........................... 80 Muscular endurance ............................................................................... 87 Implementing paused squats .................................................................. 89 Getting stronger: the evolution .............................................................. 92 A Case Study in Programming Insanity ................................................. 100 3

Be Honest with Yourself. Training for Health vs. Performance ............ 104 Gaining ground: a simple method to ensure long-term progress ........ 108 My bench program................................................................................ 110 Nutrition:............................................................................................... 111 The Three Laws of Protein ................................................................. 112 Carbs at night make you lean! So does a big breakfast? ...................... 116 Healthy pumpkin apple cheesecake recipe .......................................... 125 Science-backed training tips .............................................................. 127 Increasing work capacity ....................................................................... 127 Being strong is not an excuse to be fat (and being fat is probably holding you back) ............................................................................................... 135 Cardio and Lifting – Cardio won’t hugely impact your gains in the short run, and may be beneficial for strength and size in the long run ......... 143 High frequency training for a bigger total – research on highly trained Norwegian powerlifters ........................................................................ 151 Genetics – How much do they limit you, and what can you do about it? .............................................................................................................. 163 Fixing the good-morning squat ............................................................. 172 Hamstrings – The most overrated muscle group for the squat ............ 176 Should you wear a belt or not? Study write-up .................................... 181 How hydration affects performance AND muscle ................................ 186 Do women need to train differently than men? ................................... 189 Losing weight and getting stronger ...................................................... 194 The rich get richer and the poor get poorer ......................................... 196 Some thoughts about retaining muscle as you diet ............................. 202

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Applying Science to the Training Process Science, bro-science, and real-world application Of late, bashing “bro-science” has come into vogue, and I understand why. The fitness industry has very low barriers to entry, and for a long time the sorts of claims made with an utter paucity of evidence by people in the industry more resembled articles of faith than evidence-based statement from practitioners of a legitimate profession. Such is often still the case, but within the last several years there has been a strong movement toward evidenced-based training and nutrition. I think that, on the whole, the change has been a very positive one. However, I think that it is a reactionary movement by its very nature, and that the pendulum may have swung too far. The old guard used to mock the “pencil-necked nerds in lab coats” who didn’t have “in the trenches” experience – but now the same disdain is often seen from the other side, with evidence-based coaches mocking any claim that can’t be directly substantiated in the scientific literature. I do think there’s a happy middle, and I think that’s where most people are starting to gravitate. So, what I want to do here is outline the strengths and weaknesses of relying solely on science for strength-related endeavors, and suggest that “bro-science” DOES 5

still have a place – as long as it doesn’t try to claim too much and is content with receding as new evidence comes to light. Science – what is it even? This is an important place to start. Most people have the wrong idea when it comes to science. Science, especially in the field of exercise physiology (and most biological sciences, for that matter), is NOT people in a lab poring over data before exclaiming “Eureka! This is precisely how this works!” Rather, it’s a systematic way of asking questions, designing experiments to answer those questions with the fewest possible confounding factors, and assigning statistical likelihood to what’s probably happening. It’s very rare that you can claim anything even bordering on certainty using science. More than anything, it’s a reliable means of determining what’s NOT true, so we can get a little closer to approximating what actually IS true.

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So much more is involved in science than what is often portrayed by the stereotypes floating around out there. Science and fitness – strengths 1. Science is the best way humanity has devised so far to answer questions objectively. Of course there will be some subjectivity in interpretation, but the scientific method is still the gold standard in regards to ruling out personal bias. 7

This means that if the current literature is backing up what you’re saying, you’re probably pretty close to right, regardless of other peoples’ opinions. 2. Science is pretty good at ruling out things that aren’t true. When you see a p-value in a scientific study, that tells you how likely it is that the effect seen could be attributed solely to chance. In most exercise science studies, it’s p