Lilliebridge Training Method Book v.2
Lilliebridge Training Method Book v.2
Lilliebridge Training Method Book v.2
LILLIEBRIDGE
TRAINING METHOD
by Team Lilliebridge
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Want to be strong like a Lilliebridge? Then train like a Lilliebridge.
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Notice
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.
Before you start this program, remember form and technique are
everything. It’s more important than the weight you are lifting. Also, at
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all times, make sure you have good spotters.
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BIO - ERNIE LILLIEBRIDGE SR.
Ernie Lilliebridge Sr. is ranked #1 nationally in the 308lb Open
and Master raw classes. This includes any/all federations
in the entire USA.
Ernie Sr. started lifting at the age of 10. He began lifting because
he was involved with martial arts, and wanted to get stronger to help
his fighting abilities. In 1986, at the age of 14, he entered his first
competitive powerlifting meet. Once involved with powerlifting, he was
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hooked.
Ernie Sr. is extremely well known for his coaching abilities as well
as his lifting. He has been unanimously named the top raw strength
coach in the country by many top names. These individuals include
Mark Bell from Supertraining Gym, Ernie Frantz (the godfather of
powerlifting) and many more. He has recently taken over the Frantz
Power Team, and all the lineage/prestige that comes with it.
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BIO - ERNIE LILLIEBRIDGE JR.
Ernie Lilliebridge Jr. is currently ranked #1 nationally in the
198lbs raw with wraps weight class, and also holds the #1 raw total in
the world with a 3-lift total of 1,945lbs @198. He also holds the 198lb
class world record squat raw with wraps of 777lbs/352.5kg.
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At the age of 12, Ernie Jr. got into powerlifting with his father's
help and coaching. Prior to his first competition, he had been lifting for
2 years to help other sports such as wrestling. Powerlifting was about
getting bigger and stronger, and this helped Ernie Jr. perform a lot
better in these sports.
• Powerlifting for over 12+ years, and has competed for the last 10
straight years
• Competes in 90kg/198lbs and the 100kg/220lbs class, and also
the 110kg/242lbs weight class
• Best raw lifts in a meet: Squat – 777lbs, Bench – 457lbs, Deadlift
– 782lbs, 1951 total
• Best gym raw lifts: Squat – 775lbs, Bench – 500lbs, Deadlift -
801lbs
• Holder of national records in numerous federations (AAPF, APF,
UPA, SPF, WUAP, etc.)
• Holder of world records in numerous federations
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BIO - Eric LILLIEBRIDGE
Eric Lilliebridge is currently ranked #1 nationally in the 275lbs
raw with wraps weight class. He is also ranked 4th in the world with a
2,353lbs raw total. Eric also holds the 275 world record squat raw with
wraps of 959lbs/427.5kg, and the all-time Junior world record deadlift
of (65lbs/392.5kg.
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ups. It wasn't until Eric started training seriously with his father and
brother that he began to notice huge gains in strength and size.
Eric competed in his first powerlifting meet at the age of 14, the
same age as his father. He is now 23 years old.
• Powerlifting for over 12+ years, and has competed for 10 straight
years
• Competes in the 125kg/275lbs weight class
• Best raw lifts in a meet: Squat – 959lbs, Bench – 529lbs, Deadlift
– 865lbs, 2353lbs total
• Best gym raw lifts: Squat – 955lbs, Bench – 555lbs, Deadlift -
900lbs
• Holder of numerous national records in many federations (AAPF,
APF, UPA, SPF, etc.)
• Holder of numerous world records in many various federations
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1 - The LILLIEBRIDGE TRAINING METHOD
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PEAKING FOR A MEET
Weeks 9 and 10 will be deload weeks for the squat and deadlift
These weeks allow you to rest and recover for the meet, and to
ensure you are at 100%.
Week 9 for the bench press will also be a deload week. You will
then rest until the meet day, or the weekend of week 10.
Weeks 1-8 are your your main training weeks. You will peaking
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during this time, setting you up to hit new PRs during weeks 9 and 10.
Once starting this training cycle you will not be squatting and
deadlifting on separate days. You will be squatting and deadlifting on
the same day each week.
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So, you will be doing both in one workout. One heavy lift, and
one light lift. You will alternate each week until the very end of the
training cycle. One week will be heavy squats and light deadlifts, the
next week lift squats and heavy deadlifts.
When you are on your heavy squat and light deadlift day, you will
squat heavy first then perform speed pulls (deadlifts) after. On your
heavy deadlift and light squat day, you will pull heavy first, then squat
after.
Here's how to figure out your working weight from the percent
listed for each week. For all listed percentages, take your best PR and
multiply it by the percentage for that week.
Let’s say your best squat is 600lbs. During week one you would
take 600 pounds and multiply it by 0.87 (the percent for week 1). This
yields 522lbs. So round down to 520lbs, and perform this squat set for
max reps.
Let’s say your max deadlift is 650lbs. Take 650 and multiple it by
0.50 (the percent for speed pulls during week one). This yields 325lbs.
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Perform speed deadlifts with this number after your squats during
week 1.
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2 - TRAINING DAY & ACcESSORY WORK
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accessory work for the bench. On Saturdays we will either squat
heavy and deadlift light or, it can go the other way, deadlift heavy and
squat light.
You can use this program however you want. You can pick and
choose the days that work best for you. These days are not carved in
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stone.
ACCESSORY WORK
You pick and choose what accessory work you want to do. These
exercises do not need to be done all in one day. You can split the
accessory work up into separate days.
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3 - Squats And Deadlifts
Heavy squat week is highlighted in yellow and heavy 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. Make sure you are ready to go for your heavy max
reps set.
Accessory work for squats and deadlifts are listed at the end of
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this section.
Squats - Low rep warm ups. Work up to 1 set of 87% of max, and
perform it for max reps.
Deadlift: Low rep warm ups. Work up to 1 set of 87% of max, and
perform it for max dead-stop reps.
Squat: Low rep warm ups. Work up to 1 set of 90% of max, and
perform it for max reps.
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Deadlifts: Speed pulls with 55% of your max. 3 sets of 3 dead-
stop reps.
Deadlift: Low rep warm ups. Work up to 1 set of 90% of max, and
perform it for max dead-stop reps.
Squat: Low rep warm ups. Work up to 1 set of 92% of max, and
perform it for max reps.
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Squats: Paused squats with 60% of your max. 3 sets of 3 reps.
If you’re not competing, this is your max out week on the squat.
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Hit a big PR!
Week 10: If you’re competing you will be resting this entire week.
There will be no lifting at all. You will be resting for the weekend's
meet.
If you’re not competing, this is your max out week on the deadlift.
Hit a big PR!
• Front squats - Go by how you feel. If you want to push it, then
do so. Just don’t max out. If you want to go light and hit some
reps, that’s fine too. Get at least 4 to 6 sets in.
• Barbell rows - 4 sets of 15 reps.
• Rack pulls - Rack pulls are used to work on grip strength. Hold
at the top for 10 seconds. Do 4 to 6 sets.
• Upright rows (cable or barbell) - 4 sets of 15 reps.
• Leg extensions - 4 sets of 15-20 reps.
• Hamstring leg curls - 4 sets of 15-20 reps.
• Calf raises (standing or seated) - 4 sets of 25 reps.
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• Ab work - Leg raises lying on a bench for 3 set of 20-30 reps, or
decline sit ups for 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps.
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4 - BENCH PRESS
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 touch and go reps if you want to. We always
train our singles paused, so it’s up to you.
For low rep warm ups sets, do as many as you feel necessary.
Make sure you are ready to go for your working percentages and
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weights.
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 75% single
• Set 2 - 80% single
• Set 3 - 87% single
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 68% for max reps
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 77% single
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• Set 2 - 85% single
• Set 3 - 90% single
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 70% for max reps
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 80% single
• Set 2 - 87% single
• Set 3 - 93% single
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 72% for max reps
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Week 7: (Heavy). Low rep warm ups, followed by your 3 sets of
singles:
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 83% single
• Set 2 - 90% single
• Set 3 - 96% single
• Warm up sets
• Set 1 - 75% for max reps
If you aren’t competing, then this is your max out week. Hit a big
PR!
Week 10: If you are competing, rest the entire week. No lifting at
all.
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BENCH PRESS Accessory work
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• Side dumbbell lateral raises - 5 sets of 15 reps.
• Front delt cable raises - 5 sets of 15 reps.
• Rear delt dumbbell raise - 5 sets of 15 reps.
• Ab work – Leg raises lying on bench for 3 sets of 20-30 reps.
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5 - TESTIMONIALS
Brantley Thornton
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then I have taken my squat from 635 to 735, bench from 475 to 525
and deadlift from 705 to 765. So all of my lifts have blown up!
I feel better and have less pain then other workouts I've done. I
highly recommend this training method to anyone. It works no doubt
even for beginners to pros like me!
DAN PAsHOLK
This is a bit long, but if you’re a lifter please take the time to read
it. Today I hit a deadlift PR. To most, that’s not something overly
impressive and it’s something that should happen after just about
every good training cycle. But for me, a deadlift PR means a hell of a
lot more.
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discomfort with every squat or pull.
I’ve followed every one of them word for word, and I’ve gotten
weaker. I’m not saying that they’re bad programs, but they simply
didn’t work for me. On top of that, watching every one of my friends
make continuous gains and leave me in the dust was completely
demoralizing.
I’d walk into the gym feeling lethargic as if I already knew the
workout was going to be a waste of time. But with a combination of
proper programming and the constant encouragement that I’ve
experienced from Ernie Lilliebridge Jr. and Team Lilliebridge, I’ve
gotten stronger for the first time in almost three years. Three years of
grinding through program after program, getting progressively weaker
and going from getting called a prodigy at every meet I attended to
convincing myself that another PR was always going to be out of
reach.
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Over the past six weeks, Team Lilliebridge proved me wrong, and
today, even through a bicep tear, several knee injuries, and severe
issues with my lower back, I hit that deadlift PR that I’ve been working
toward for three fucking years. The Lilliebridges are some of the most
humble people that you’ll ever 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.
DUSTY MILLER
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competition, up from 198lbs. It was a 170lb meet PR from my last
meet where I totaled 1530lbs. My numbers for this past meet were
715lb squat, 365lb bench and 620lb deadlift. Previous numbers were
600-330-600.
Thanks for all the help and support in this last 10 weeks of
training. Greatly Appreciated!
tyler moore
I just want to thank Team Lilliebridge for the training method that
they have developed and i wanted to share my results. I have lifted for
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about 10 years now but I’m just now getting very serious about it. After
one 10 week round of the Lilliebridge Training Method I have
increased my bench by 35 pounds and my deadlift by 85 pounds.
Justin Sager
I hit my first squat in the 700s with a 705. Previous best was 650.
My first meet press in the 400s with a 424 bench. To top it off I had a
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huge deadlift PR of 700. My previous best was 622. 1830 meet total
that blew me away.
Jon Jursich
About a year and a half ago I was coached and trained using the
Lilliebridge training method. After the first 8 week program I saw
results but it did not stop there. For example before I first started my
competition bench was 365 lbs. As of April 2014 its 430 lbs in
competition. My squat went from 585 raw to 655 lbs. Deadlift has
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gone from 565 to 640 lbs.
Even with all the gains I have made I have stayed in the 275 lb
weight class. I am the leanest and strongest I have ever been in my
life and I see no stop in sight.
This method is hands down the best I have used. I would highly
recommend it to anyone from beginner to veteran lifters. Its the
programs ability to adapt to the individual lifter that makes it the best
program out there.
Tom Kallas
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formulas; just plug numbers in and start training.
My previous meet total at 181 was 1380. After a little time off and
doing this program and watching diet, a few short months later I was
able to total 1510 at 165 lbs. All 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.
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6 - OUR PR PLAYLIST
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training.
• Pantera
• Disturbed
• Eminem
• Drowning Pool
• Limp Bizkit
• D12
• Five finger death punch.
• 8.50 cent
• Linkin park
• Hatebreed
• Korn
• Metallica
• David Banner
• "The Game" by Motorhead
• AC/DC
• Kid Rock
• Slipknot
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7 - CONNECT WITH TEAM LILLIEBRIDGE
• Website: http://teamlilliebridge.com
• Facebook: Team Lilliebridge
• Youtube: Team Lilliebridge Youtube channel
• Eric @ Youtube: Eric Lilliebridge Youtube channel
• Ernie Jr. @ Youtube: Ernie Jr. Youtube channel
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• Instagram: Team Lilliebridge
• Ernie Jr. @ Instagram: Ernie Lilliebridge Jr.
• Eric @ Instagram: Eric Lilliebridge
Instructional videos
Have fun with this and push yourself to the limit on the max rep
sets for all the lifts. They are called max rep sets because you are
supposed to max on the reps until you have nothing left in you.
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8 - Lift.net Talks To ernie jr.
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LIFT: Can you tell us a little about yourself, give us a little
background?
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together. When I lifted in gear I never felt proud of what I lifted. I
always felt like I wasn’t the one really lifting the weight. Almost like
saying I am bullet proof because I have on a bullet proof vest. Then
when I take it off I no longer am. As of today’s date I have officially tied
my best geared total RAW! I would have beaten it if I made all my lifts.
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meets. I was always amazed that my dad was competing raw and
beating the geared lifters.
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ELJ: Currently no. I used to do cardio and run a lot outside the
gym. I ran 1.5 miles each day. I finally got my time down to 11min 52
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.
LIFT: How do feel training with your dad and brother has
improved your lifting?
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We grew up together so we know each other’s strengths well. He also
encourages me to do my best, writes all of my training cycles, and
calls some of my numbers at meets.
LIFT: What powerlifter do you feel has had the most influence on
you?
ELJ: My dad by far. He has been through many injuries and just
comes back stronger. He 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. He is a warrior!
LIFT: What is your mindset before approaching a new personal
record?
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Before approaching a new pr I just try to get my mind in the right zone.
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.
ELJ: There are goals that I want to meet and records that I want
to hold. I want to be the number one 242lber in the nation. As of right
now I am currently ranked number 6 in the nation and I just missed
the number 2 spot by missing my third attempt squat and deadlift at
the last meet.
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LIFT: What lift are you most proud of?
LIFT: What are your goals for the upcoming year? What meets
do you have planned in the future?
ELJ: My goals for the upcoming year are to total 2000 plus raw at
242lbs and taking the number one 242 spot in the nation. The meets
that I have planned thus far are SPF Pro/AM meet in March and UPA
Nationals in April.
LIFT: Give me 5 factors you feel every lifter should know to make
gains.
ELJ:
1. Proper training.
2. Proper forms for each lift.
3. Eat and get enough rest.
4. Supplements to take such as protein, glucosamine,
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glutamine, fish oil omega 3s, etc. I get a lot of my stuff from
USP Labs and Gorilla Pharma.
5. Have a positive attitude, set goals, and do not give up. Push
yourself!
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9 - Paul Carter Talks To Eric
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already gone over the double grand mark twice and has gotten almost
zero amount of coverage about it. So, I decided to do something
about it and hunt Eric down for some questions. An hour and a half
later I had my answers. For those that want to know how Eric trains,
eats, peaks for meets, and other stuff well here is part 1 of our 2 part
interview....
Competing
Paul Carter - Thanks for taking time out to do this interview Eric. I
want to say first off that we've talked online quite a bit and I always
come away impressed by how courteous you are and the way you
handle and carry yourself. Most young men I know can be cocky
know it alls but even with your natural ability you maintain a lot of
humbleness and that's very refreshing. Seems like mom and dad did a
real good job, that's a big credit to them.
Eric Lilliebridge - Yeah I've never really been like that. When
people ask me how much I can lift I just say I've done this and done
this, and that will be it. I'm not one of those people that like to talk
about themselves a lot. My lifts pretty much speak for themselves I
don't need to go around bragging about it. I put my time in the gym
and that's that you know?
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PC - And you put your lifts up on the platform so you don't need
to say anything.
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wraps at the time, just belt only. It was just a high school meet and
ever since then I've been interested. I just couldn't stop lifting after
that. It's just in me to compete.
EL - After that meet I only did two meets at 165. After that I
started putting on more weight, I was doing a lot of heavy raw training
and started putting on more muscle mass. I did my next meet in the
winter of 04 and I was a 181. After 181 I was at 198 for almost two
years. I did not gain any weight but kept gaining strength.
EL - It's honestly all about your form and the way you train. A lot
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of people think if you do a bunch of reps on the deadlift that it will
make it go up like other lifts, and it might to a certain extent. But
whenever I did that it just tweaks my back. I always felt like I couldn't
recover fast enough from it. So what my dad taught me was, when I'm
cycling up for a meet 6 to 8 weeks out, I'll pick a number that I want to
hit at the meet and I'll pretty much just back track from there. So each
week I'll add 10,15,20 pounds on my deadlift. But only for the last few
sets. Those are singles. I don't do doubles or triples there. So when
you get to the meet you're ready to pull that big single. It's not a rep
contest.
PC - Right. So you stayed at 198 for two years. Did you actually
do any 220 class stuff?
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that I was at 242 for about a year. I did the state meet, which was my
senior year of high school and I did my first 600 plus raw squat, my
first 400 plus bench in competition, and I pulled 672 at that
competition also. All raw, so I totaled like 1708. And that was when I
was 18.
PC - And you've been in the 275's for the last couple of years.
EL - Yeah I've been in the 275's for over a year now. I honestly
don't see me going above that for a long time. My weight keeps
fluctuating between 255 and 270. I gain so much weight, then it will
start to fall off. But my strength will remain. It seems like I'm filling out
more. So I hoenstly think I'll be at 275 for a really long time. Even if I
go past 275, like 280 or 285 a few years from now, I'll still cut down to
275. It wouldn't make sense to go to 308.
Training
PC - Let's get right into the meat and potatoes of things. Let's talk
about training and how you prep for your meets. What does a normal
week for you look like in terms of training? Lay out the days of the
week on what you do on those days. We'll just start with your squat
and deadlift day. Go ahead and just lay the week out for me.
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EL - Well like before I even start training I'll write everything on
paper. I'll get like a date, and if I want to do a 6 week cycle or an 8
week cycle my last week before the meet I don't really count it. That's
like an off week.
EL - Right. So I'll back track from there like 6 to 8 weeks, and I'll
just start writing out 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, I'll tweak numbers here and there. I usually have my base
numbers already set out for where I want to be. So for my week I
always squat and deadlift like on a Sunday. But my accessory work
switches. Like for example if I'm doing my heavy squat day, after
squats instead of doing bent rows, I'll do lat pulldowns. Just to hit a
different area of my back. and since I did heavy squat, I won't do
heavy leg presses. I do leg presses on my heavy deadlift day, just to
hit my quads. One thing I've found to help tremendously for me is just
leg curls. Those are really my golden accessory work for helping my
deadlift. Those have helped me so much. I know I've gotten injured
from heavy deadlifts, but they really helped a lot with my strength off
the floor.
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PC - You mean just regular old leg curls?
EL - Yeah, where you lay down on the bench with the cable. Just
regular leg curls have helped me tremendously.
PC - It's 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
quads since I wasn't squatting. And on squat day I would do stiff legs
and I hit some PR's at the time with it. But you don't do any stiff legs
right?
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EL - Well actually I start off with light squats. Kind of like I'm in a
competition. But I go light. Like 5 warm up sets. The bar, then a plate,
two plates, three plates, then I'll do like 5 plates for a single. Just to
warm up my hips and get everything firing So when I go to pull, I'll just
start out with a plate and then do my warm up and go from there. After
my deadlift I will do bent rows. Those have helped a lot too, with my
lock out. I won't do a lot of sets, like maybe 3 heavy sets of like 12 to
15 reps. I don't do that swing form. I keep it real strict. Guys who are
just swinging the weight, they aren't really doing anthing, you're just
kidding yourself you know?
PC - Right, I agree.
EL - So get a good weight that you know you can do for a decent
amount of reps, that you're not cheating yourself.
PC - Yeah, the right weight is a weight where you feel like you're
being worked, but it feels good at the same time.
EL - Right, right. And those help a lot with my back work. After
that I don't do my lat pull downs, I do those on my squat day. I do leg
presses after my bent rows. And that's pretty much my assistance
work. I'll do a few sets of abs after that. We have a little decline sit-up
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bench and I'll do like 3 sets of 15.
PC - Absolutely. And I think the thing you are finding out early is
that recovery ends up being the most important thing.
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PC - So then on Monday what do you do?
(We both laugh, as I've teased Eric about having days dedicated
to upright rows.)
EL - Yeah it's just something that I like to have on me. Plus, when
I squat, I keep the bar high on my back and it feels better now that my
traps have grown a little bit. It feels natural for me to have the bar high
on my back when I squat so having more traps has been better for me
in that regard. I don't know if it helps my lift but it just makes me feel
better.
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EL - Right. I'll just hit some stuff here and there to stay loose.
Like a light, hour workout to keep some blood flowing.
PC - Ok so now on Wednesday.
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EL - Pretty much.
PC - So when you cycle in prep for a meet, how many squat and
deadlift workouts do you like to plan for? Because since you alternate
your heavy squat and deadlift workouts week to week, obviously if you
wanted to get in 5 or 6 squat workouts you're talking 10-12 weeks. So
how many weeks is typical for meet prep?
PC - Yeah I'm the same way. I think it's about week 7 into meet
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prep that I really feel strong. Week 8 I might be pushing it. But I find at
about 7 weeks I feel strong.
EL - Yeah you have to know your body. So with your cycles and
how your training goes you have to know where you're going to peak
out so you can plan your cycle perfectly. If you know where you can
peak at you can get it almost perfectly. It's hard but it can be done.
EL - Yeah it also could have been that I did that heavy squat.
Maybe if I don't push the squat that heavy I peak for the meet. But I
was happy, I got my 804 squat. That was what I wanted to get.
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EL - Right squatting first. I do stretch for a while before I squat. I
do the bar for like 15, a plate for 12 reps, two plates for 8 reps, 3
plates for like 6 reps, then 4 plates for a couple, then after that I'm
pretty much doing singles. Unless I'm training to do a top set for a
triple, then I'll do it a bit differently. It really all depends on how I want
to go about approaching my singles for squats. I've made great gains
off of doing singles, but I've also made great gains off of doing triples.
The thing that I've found when I do triples is that my joints don't hurt
as much, the heavy singles tax 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 it's either going to be heavy singles or triples.
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PC - Do you ever do chins?
(Laughter)
PC - So are you going to try and substitute in the stiff legs there
instead of pulling semi heavy maybe?
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incorporate it into my squat and deadlift workout.
EL - Actually for this meet I was lost because I was coming back
from my hamstring injury. So I had no idea where I was at. I had no
idea I'd be lifting this heavy this soon. I did push it really hard, but not
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at the point where I was going to peak out too soon, I mean, I did peak
out too soon but it could have been sooner if I had pushed it. I did my
usual singles for squat, and for deadlifting I barely deadlifted at all.
The most I did in the gym was 705 in training. Honestly I was scared
shitless to pull again.
PC - Right anytime you get injured the trepidation you feel can
cause you to be hesitant in certain movements.
PC - Yeah I remember in your old videos your speed off the floor
was amazing. But then it would get above the knees and would almost
look like a hitch.
EL - Yeah that's true, and at that point I was using the best of
leverages that I could get just to lock it out. I always try to keep the bar
as close to my body as possibly through the whole lift. And sometimes
the bar would stick on my legs, and that's why I used so much baby
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powder. But since then I've widened my stance a little bit, and that's
helped. But I'm really trying to get my floor speed back because once I
do that my deadlift is going to be stronger than ever because my
lockout is really strong right now.
PC - So for this particular meet you didn't really have set plans
because you had a lot of question marks with your injury.
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competition especially after squatting 800. I wasn't expecting to max
out like I did in the gym.
PC - What about box squats? Have you played with box squats
because everyone will tell you they're the bees knees.
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EL - Oh God yes it is. That's for sure.
BENCH PRESS
EL - Right. Now on close grips, I don't like going too close, I like
going about an inch or more inside the rings. I still get a good tricep
workout. What I'm probably going to end up changing with my next
cycle though, is instead of doing touch and go benches for my
competition grip I'm going to train all pause benches.
EL - Mainly because touch and go, they don't do a lot for you
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come meet time. They will help build your strength of course but if
you don't train the pause before the meet you're not going to perform
as well as you think you might.
EL - Exactly.
PC - Right, for like 2 seconds or so. But I noticed this past time
you did do more touch n go stuff and I think you'll see a big jump in
your competition bench by training the pause.
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it just seems like it will work a lot better that way.
EL - Yup.
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EL - yeah two or three times.
PC - And that's fine because you keep that feel because you're
still pressing from the same plane.
EL - Right.
PC - And what do you usually hit on incline, what are your top
weights on incline?
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PC - But that's after a lot of heavy benching.
EL - Yeah my incline isn't really really good but it's not bad to
follow all of that benching.
PC - Incline or flat?
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PC - Yeah I would hate to do some fast dynamic flyes, that
seems like a bad idea.
EL - Yeah when I see those guys I think "shit you're going to tear
something". That doesn't seem like a lift where you would want to do
something like that. You know a fast movement.
EL - Oh hell no.
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(Laughs)
PC - Now the other thing is, when you're not prepping for a meet
you do something I think is really smart. You kind of coast a bit right?
Saving the heavy stuff for when you're prepping for meets and the
meet itself. Is this something your dad helped advise you on or
something you kind of figured out for yourself?
EL - Right pretty much. When I'm done with my meets I'll do light
stuff all the way up to mid may. So like 6 weeks of light stuff now.
Nothing written out. I go to the gym and go by how I feel. I won't
push it real hard. One week I may go a little harder than the other but
otherwise I play it week by week. Because going heavy is what my
next cycle for. There is no need in injuring yourself going heavy for
no reason.
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term.
PC - Right and some people don't get that you're trying to peak
and time that out, and you don't hold those levels for very long.
EL - No, you can't. I think you can hold it for a good two weeks
maybe. SO you're competing and 14 days before or 14 days after
that, you would be able to hit those numbers. But not in that time
frame you're probably going to lose it.
EL - Yeah he was the one who always told me, you can't stay at
the top forever. Even before I did my first competition he would
always tell me that you won't always perform at the same level week
after week and not even meet you're going to hit PR's. And it's really
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hard to get every one of your lifts to peak properly on the same day. It
took me a while to grasp that because I was just a little kid and it took
me a while to learn that and understood what he was talking about.
(Laughter)
EL - Yes he did. He helped me out a lot with all of his advice and
ideas. Pretty much everything he's ever told me has worked.
Obviously if it wasn't for my dad I wouldn't be along as far as I am
now.
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where a lot of other kids are at. Trying to figure out what works and
what doesn't. So I already had that from the start. It's like letting me
start 10 steps ahead of everyone else, I already know all of that stuff.
PC - I think about that all the time. If I could go back to your age,
I wouldn't be where you are at but I'd be a lot further along than I was
at 20 then.
EL - No doubt. Most people would be. If you start out lifting and
you're avoiding all of those pitfalls you're going to be a lot better off.
EL - Right
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talked before had you timed your peak a little better you're probably
good for a pause with say, 525.
PC - Yeah because once you start grinding for too many weeks
in a row things start to get bogged down.
PC - Exactly.
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after and have a good workout.
EL - Yeah because you can say "what did I do wrong? I've been
eating good I've been resting good. What happened?"
EL - Pretty much.
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PC - And that's not uncommon you're still a young guy so as you
get more muscle maturity you will lean out as more mass gets built
underneath there if your eating is staying the same. So there might
be times when you are carrying more muscle at a lower bodyweight
because of the increase in muscle density. Because in your recent
pics you look leaner and harder than you did a year ago.
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EL - I'm kind of a mix of both. Every day I try to get 3 shakes in,
sometimes 4. When I wake up in the morning I have a small breakfast
sometimes. I don't have much of an appetite in the morning I don't
know why. SO an easy way for me to put on weight is to have a big
protein shake in the morning. I'll put like 16 ounces of milk in my
blender, some powder, some peanut butter, and a banana. It's simple.
The rest of the day I'll just have little shakes, 16 ounces of milk with
some powder.
PC - And what's your staple food. What do you really like to eat
a lot of?
PC - I can remember being 20 and eating like that too bro. But
eventually you get older and you have to watch it. I eat a lot less now
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and hover at around 250. So enjoy it while you can. I did it and loved
it.
EL - Yeah everyone needs that time to just relax and chill. But
outside of lifting it's just school, my daughter, hang out with my
girlfriend and friends.
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PC - I love that you guys have such a tight family.
PC - Right.
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strength. So losing strength really screws with my head a lot. I might
look bigger and stronger but I wouldn't be stronger. So that's not for
me.
PC - Yeah but there has been a lot of crossover for guys doing
that like Matt Kroc and then Johnnie Jackson has done push pull
meets. And then obviously your guy Stan Efferding does both.
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EL - Yeah after the meet he wrote to me on powerliftingwatch and
then through e-mail and we've been chit-chatting back and forth and
as of yesterday he said it's final he's going to do the meet with me July
30th.
On EQUIPMENT
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EL - I don't have anything against people that lift in gear, but i
think it's pretty obvious that the gear now a days has gotten a little out
of hand. Well let me rephrase that, it's actually gotten REALLY out of
hand. There are some guys in the gym that struggle hitting a 405 raw
bench, but can go put up a 700+lb bench in a double or triple ply shirt
easily...i mean come on, 300+lbs out of a shirt? That's just ridiculous.
Like i said i have nothing against people that use the gear, but i've
heard a lot of people say they use the gear so they can help prevent
"injury" but how in the hell are you going to help prevent injury if you're
trying to handle weight that's 300 or 400lbs above what you can max
out at raw, instead of trying to prevent injury, you're asking for it! I've
also seen guys that squat in gear, that have 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 ever do. When you
see someone struggle to unrack the weight in full gear, you know
that's a real big problem there. I think if people are going to get into
gear, you should have a couple years of raw training in your
background before doing that and also continue to stick with raw
training throughout your cycles.
PC - What is your opinion that a lot of geared lifters say that the
top geared lifters would still be the top raw lifters?
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EL - Whoever says the top geared lifters would also be the top
raw lifters are absolutely insane. Someone would have to be really
ignorant to say something like that. Geared lifting and Raw lifting are
totally different. I know that I've never experienced any kind of training
in a bench shirt before or a deadlift suit before, but i have tried out
squat gear before and i thought it was absolutely horrible. My raw
squat barely went up at all, within a 10 month period, my raw squat
went up maybe 25 pounds? And that was with wearing squat gear
almost every week, either brief only or both brief and suit. I do believe
your back will get stronger from holding the heavier weight, but your
raw strength won't really increase at all unless you train raw. For a
pretty good example, I train raw consistently all the time, it's hard as
hell for me to even put 20 or 30 pounds on one of my lifts on a training
cycle with raw training every single time I'm in the gym. So how is
someone that never trains raw, going to make better gains than I
would, when I train raw ALL the time?
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heavy and pulls light.
• Upright Rows
• Leg Curls
• Biceps
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Wednesday - Bench Day
Eric rotates between his competition grip and close grip bench
with boards mixed in. For his competition grip bench he works up to a
top single. On close grip days he does more rep work. He usually
follows his competition grip work with some heavy board work.
Summary
Anyone that wants to get bigger and stronger can take some
notes of what Eric had to say in this interview. It's the same thing I've
preached about on here in all of my articles. Grab a few basic lifts,
work on simple progression, and don't deviate from it because you
think some other workout is going to give you magical results. Train
two or three days a week and get a solid eating plan. Couple it with a
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simple training routine focused around basics and getting stronger is
all you need. This is tried and true over and over again. Be patient.
You probably don't have the genetics that Eric does, but Eric wouldn't
be where he is today without the fact that his dad gave him a great
training plan from day 1 and he hasn't deviated from it. That's the
model of consistency. And look how simple it is. It works. Don't let
anyone tell you bullshit otherwise.
It's no coincidence that the majority of the strongest raw guys all
train really similar. Basics, using simple progression and listening to
their body.
Again a big thanks to Eric for taking the time out to do this
interview.
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