HEPBURN ON ADVANCED TRAINING PROCEDURE
A DRAMATIC "DROP" IN OVERALL LIFTING POWER WAS EXPERIENCED BY THIS WRITER WHEN AT THE AGE OF FIFTY-FOUR HE WAS UNDERGOING A REGIMEN OF HEAVY TRI-WEEKLY TRAINING SESSIONS. I ATTAINED A RATHER EXTRAORDINARY LEVEL OF STRENGTH.
VIZ:
SETS WITH THREE CONSECUTIVE REPS. WITH 370 LBS IN THE OVERHEAD OLYMPIC PRESS. SINGLE REPS 400 POUNDS. FIVE CONSECUTIVE REPS. IN THE TWO HAND CURL, WITH 225 LBS CONSECUTIVE REPS. IN THE SQUAT WITH 600 POUNDS. ALL ABOVE LIFTS WERE PERFORMED WITHOUT THE AID OF ARTIFICIAL ASSISTANCE.
AT THIS POINT AND AS PREVIOUSLY STATED, IN ORDER TO ARRIVE AT A CONCLUSION AS TO CAUSE AND POTENTIAL REMEDY SO AS TO ALLOW THE SERIOUS STRENGTH ATHLETE, AT A LATER AGE, TO EFFECT A CONTINUATION OF THEIR STRENGTH PROWESS IT IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL THAT WE EXAMINE, IN DEPTH, THOSE THREE BASIC AND FUNDAMENTAL FACTORS, TRAINING REGIMEN, DIET AND MENTAL ATTITUDE.
IT IS MY INTENTION TO INVESTIGATE THE ABOVE FACTORS UTILIZING A SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT APPROACH, AS I AM OF THE OPINION THAT, PERHAPS AN ADDITION TO OUR PRESENT KNOWLEDGE MAY BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE THE KEY AS TO WHY SUCH A REDUCTION IN LIFTING ABILITY GENERALLY OCCURS AFTER THE AGE OF 65 YEARS.
INTUITION, I AM CONVINCED, PLAYS A PRIMARY ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ANY FORMULATION OF AN ADVANCED PROCEDURE IN STRENGTH BUILDING. I AM FULLY CONVINCED THAT THE STRUCTURE OF SETS AND REPETITIONS COUPLED WITH THE APPLICATION AS TO THE INTENSITY AND FREQUENCY OF AUGMENTATION OF RESISTANCE REPRESENTS THE "KEYSTONE" IN THE BUILDING OF ULTIMATE PHYSICAL STRENGTH. POUNDAGE, SETS AND REPETITIONS REPRESENT THREE FUNDAMENTAL COMPONENTS OF A STRENGTH BUILDING PROGRAM. AN INCORRECT APPLICATION OF ANY OF THE ABOVE THREE FACTORS INVARIABLY CULMINATES IN FAILURE TO ATTAIN THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF PHYSICAL STRENGTH, REGARDLESS OF AGE.
DOUG HEPBURN,
EXCERPT FROM "ANATOMY OF STRENGTH"
AN INCIDENT COMES TO MIND WHEREIN DURING A DISCUSSION WITH A PROFESSOR OF GENETICS I MENTIONED THAT I HAD SET APPROXIMATELY 25 ALL ROUND WORLD LIFTING RECORDS THAT WERE CONSIDERABLY IN EXCESS OF THOSE PREVIOUSLY ESTABLISHED.
THIS OVERALL GAP THAT I SET IS IN ALL PROBABILITY THE GREATEST EVER ATTAINED IN ALL ROUND NATURAL STRENGTH. I THEN ASKED THE PROFESSOR IF HE COULD EXPLAIN HOW I HAD MANAGED TO ACCOMPLISH THIS. WITHOUT HESITATION HE REPLIED "I HAVEN'T GOT THE SLIGHTEST IDEA, ALL I CAN SAY IS THAT NUMEROUS KNOWN AND PRESENTLY UNKNOWN FACTORS CAME TOGETHER IN A MOST FAVORABLE MANNER. I CLEARLY REMEMBER AN OCCASION WHEN I WAS HAVING A DISCUSSION WITH A GROUP OF DOCTORS IN RESPECT TO HOW I ACQUIRED SUCH AN EXTRAORDINARY LEVEL OF STRENGTH. IN ANSWER TO THEIR QUESTIONS I MENTIONED DIET, REST AND OTHER BASICS OF STRENGTH BUILDING. AS I WAS ANSWERING THE DOCTORS KEPT REPEATING "WE KNOW ALL OF THAT. HOW DID YOU DO IT?" AT FIRST I DID NOT UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF THEIR ANSWER AND IT TOOK SOME TIME BEFORE I FULLY UNDERSTOOD THE DEPTH OF THEIR STATEMENT. I THEN REALIZED THAT THERE WERE UNDERLYING FACTORS PROMOTING MY ACTIONS THAT WERE NOT FULLY UNDERSTOOD BY THE DOCTORS.
WAS IT POSSIBLE THAT I KNEW THE ANSWER THAT THE DOCTORS COULD NOT EXPLAIN? IF SO, IT MEANT I COULD UNEARTH THE TRUTH.
A CONSIDERABLE PERIOD OF TIME END SELF EXAMINATION REVEALED A PROCEDURE WHEN IMPLEMENTED, FORMED A WORKABLE FORMULA EXPRESSLY DESIGNED TO PROMOTE THE REALIZATION OF ULTIMATE PHYSICAL STRENGTH TO A POINT OF EQUALING OR EXCEEDING STRENGTH ACQUIRED VIA DRUG USAGE.
IT WOULD APPEAR, ACCORDING TO THE OPINION OF A RAPIDLY INCREASING NUMBER OF WORLDWIDE KNOWLEDGEABLE AUTHORITIES THAT MY ESTABLISHMENT OF ALL ROUND RECORD LIFTS BEFORE THE USAGE OF ANABOLIC SUBSTANCES STANDS ALONE IN THE WORLD OF STRENGTH.
WHEN TRAINING TO SET A RECORD LIFT IT IS OF VITAL IMPORTANCE TO VISUALIZE A PROCEDURE IN ALL ASPECTS FROM BEGINNING TO COMPLETION AND VICE VERSA. IN OTHER WORDS, ONE MUST ALSO COMPREHEND, IN DETAIL, THE PROCEDURE FROM THE POINT OF SETTING THE RECORD TO THE POINT OF STARTING THE TRAINING PROGRAM.
THIS IS ACCOMPLISHED UTILIZING THE PRINCIPLE OF MATHEMATICAL PROJECTION. THOSE INDIVIDUALS PRESENTLY NOT UTILIZING THIS PRINCIPLE ARE PRONE TO THE LOSS OR LIMITATION OF A SENSE OF DIRECTION. SUCH AN OVERSIGHT MAY BE SIMILAR TO TRYING TO FLY ACROSS THE ATLANTIC WITH TWENTY GALLONS OF GAS IN THE TANK. THE PRIMARY PURPOSE OF PROJECTION IS TO ASSURE THAT THE RECORD, WORLD OR OTHERWISE, IS WITHIN THE ABILITY OF THE TRAINEE.
PROJECTION ALSO ACTS AS A "FAIL SAFE" WARNING WHEN FAILURE TO INCREASE THE REQUIRED PRESET REPETITION GAIN IS EXPERIENCED. THIS PREWARNING SIGNAL INDICATES THAT A FAULT EXISTS SOMEWHERE IN THE OVERALL TRAINING REGIMEN. IN THIS WAY THE FAULT IS EXPOSED AT THE EARLY STAGE OF THE EXTENDED ROUTINE.
EXCERPT FROM ANATOMY OF STRENGTH BY DOUG HEPBURN