Cornerstone Principles of Strength
It’s better to learn to fish than receive a fish. This guide will help coaches and lifters avoid common mistakes and build a solid foundation for long-term progress.
Top-5 Mistakes in the Bench Press
Avoid these five mistakes when benching in gear, raw, or unlimited.
How to Approach Training AFTER Your Meet
Come back stronger for your next meet by following these steps essential to your recovery and development as a lifter.
The DOs and DO NOTs of Picking Your Next Training Program
Feeling overwhelmed with all the different fitness programs out there? One of the strongest lifters in the world, Chad Aichs, provides insights on how to choose the best program for you.
Mental Strength 101
You may have the strength to lift heavy ass weight but what about your mindset? You can’t do one without the other.
Are You Overtrained? Should You Deload?
Two catchwords that continue to make me shake my head are overtraining and deload. The end goal is a balance between training and recovery.
Future Self, Don't Forget Your Past
Did you bomb your last meet? GOOD! Tell me, what did you learn from the whole experience? USE IT to get better.
How to Achieve Your Training Goals
The more bases you cover, the better chances you have of winning the game. Remember, meet prep is 24/7. So, what’s your plan?
4 (Big) Training Mistakes You're Making
When I decided to be on the platform competing with the best of the best, I had to fix these mistakes. You should too.
Never Fear Change
Trying to get stronger or bigger? Carrying too much fat? Regardless of the goal, change is inevitable. Embrace it to reach your goals.
PR Your Next Bench Training Session
If your movement is constrained, how will this directly affect your bench stroke? A LOT. Try these four stretches.
Lift with Intent and Intensity
If you’re going through the motions or overly amped while training, the perfect program on paper will do little for you. Why don’t we talk about this more?
12 Tips for a Stronger, Safer, More Efficient Bench Press
Lifting, and the bench press for that matter, is not rocket science, but you do need to use your brain. Use these twelve tips to fix your damn technique and showcase all of your strength.
No One Makes It Alone
It’s a long way to the top so find the main players who’ll walk beside you to make you better along the way. It’s easy to find people that look impressive but are they really everything they say? Are they all fluff with no substance?
Several Ways To Totally Screw Up Your Supplemental Movements In Training
"There are a few major ways I see lifters go astray when it comes to supplemental training. The first and biggest way is doing every set to failure. We are not bodybuilders, and we have very different goals than bodybuilders. The second mistake is training supplemental exercises too heavy. Most of the seriously heavy […]
It Wasn't What I Thought It Would Be
Sums up 2020…but rewinding the clock, I thought the top guys trained hard every day when I started powerlifting. I thought it was just a matter of getting strong enough and in good enough shape to go hard and heavy 24/7, 12 months a year.
Dynamic Training: Should You Be Doing It?
It is no secret that I have always used dynamic training and that I have my clients do it as well. My standpoint is that everyone can get something out of dynamic training, but the dose of it may vary.
The Gym is Open!
I pissed away a great opportunity to start fresh with a healed and rested body by jumping right back in and emptying both barrels. You can do better.
So, You Think You Want to Build a Home Gym?
Are you the kind of person who needs the premade atmosphere of a small or commercial gym? There is nothing wrong if you do, but I would put some serious thought into questions like this before putting in the time, effort, and money it takes to create a home gym.
Tough Times Need Clear Perspectives
The first thing is that lifters need to let go of the thought that they are going to lose all of those hard-fought gains after missing just a couple of training sessions. This is complete nonsense,
The False Idol
We all have struggles, and at times we don’t want to do the things we need to do to get strong(er). In fact, I have never met a top athlete of any kind who did not have times where he or she struggled to keep doing what he or she needed to.
Drag Those Gym Closure Blues Away
I see lots of bands, bodyweight exercises, and lightweight information, which is all great, but in my opinion, sleds are right up there. I can train every body part with one sled.
Excuses are the Language of Quitters and Non-Starters
I have seen way too many lifters lose before they even really get started because they fall back on excuses. Be more than an excuse.
Information Overload
In today’s world, information is being thrown at us 24/7. We have books, magazines, podcasts, video websites, Web pages, social media, etc. We have information about any subject literally at our fingertips. How do you decipher between what’s quality or crappy?
I Thought He Was Dead or Living in a Cave in the Desert!
Just because you’re getting older, doesn’t mean that you can’t reach your fitness goals. It simply means your goals need to shift to suit your current state.
New Year, New Resolutions?
Why wait until the start of a new year to start working towards your goals?
Is Programming More Important Than Technique?
I decided to poll lifters at a meet to get their opinion. Their answers may surprise you.
Got Upper Back?
It seems that lifters do not understand the importance of the upper back or how to use it in the three main lifts. The lifters I judged at a recent meet and just about all of my clients prove that to me, so let’s fix that.
The Good Trainer
You don’t need to hire the Stephen Hawking of all trainers, but you’ll still want a knowledgeable, safe, efficient, and successful trainer.
Common Strength Pitfalls to Avoid
Here’s an idea: If your team is losing a game, how about instead of celebrating one good play, try focusing on how you and your team can muster a win.
Life, Lifting, and Jeeps
Even after 47 years of life, I continue to realize there are crossover lessons between powerlifting and life. Case in point: modifying a new Jeep for desert driving.
Is Technique the Same for Raw and Geared Lifters?
The debate between raw versus gear has died down, more or less, but the debate of how to train one versus the other is still on-going. This might be controversial, but for the most part, I don’t think you need to train differently raw or geared with a few exceptions.
Chad vs. The World: Redefining Dedication
Even the smartest, strongest, and best of us can learn and improve on what we do or how we do it. The journey for strength is all about education and learning, and this is how we continue to get stronger. All of this takes dedication.
Chad vs. The World: Widening My Tunnel Vision
It is tough to look back with a clear open mind to see from a different perspective. It is with a clear open mind that I was able to see I did it wrong — and it’s not just in terms of my powerlifting career, but my life as whole.
Chad vs. The World: An Old Soul
I’m a little behind for writing about my thoughts on Westside Vs. The World, but I have a lot of thoughts to add. Better late than never, right? Maybe I’m too old for this social media stuff, but I’m not too old to write about my powerlifting exploits.
How Many Times A Day Do You Train?
One of the hardest things I’ve ever done was train less. But thanks to a little advice from Dave Tate, I started looking at training in a whole new light. Strength comes from so much more than lifting heavy weights in the gym.
The Myths of Iron
My niece and nephew recently took weightlifting classes, and I am baffled by what they are being taught. This information is not only wrong, but it puts them at greater risk of injury. Quality knowledge is easily accessible, so why are we stuck in this loop of bad information?
5 Things Beginner and Intermediate Lifters Should Understand
Newer lifters seem to think that they can squat 1,200 pounds in less than a year of training. I hate to burst your bubbles, but that’s not going to happen. It’s a long game, and you need to understand that if you’re going to survive in this sport.
The Ghost in the Machine
Your body is like a race car. Even the best race cars break and wear parts down. When one of those things breaks, it, in turn, puts added pressure on other parts, which are then at risk of breaking. Take your foot off the gas pedal every now again and recover.
Shooting From the Hip
Sometimes, I have to remember I am not Superman. I remembered how I have been feeling, sleeping, and how much I have been working. So I took a break and slept in… and managed to get this article done, too.
The Lost Art of Smelling Salts
No, that white powder I sniff before lifting is not cocaine — it’s smelling salts! If you’re curious about smelling salts, you’re in the right place because back in my day, we would’ve never wasted the greatness of smelling salts…
The Lift Starts Before You Touch the Bar
Listen: Technique is a major part of why all top lifters are top lifters. It is crucial to being a successful strength athlete. Technique before the lift is just as important as during the lift.
Gaining Strength in Your Twenties, Thirties, and Forties
Why on earth do I keep hearing guys ask if they can still get stronger in their 40s or how they should be training in their 40s? You can get stronger at any age, and you do it by doing exactly the same stuff you always did!
Strength Programs Don't Work
Unless you just have some crazy genetics or happen to be the perfect person for a strength program, the majority of these programs are not a valid long-term plan. But don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater…
Supplemental Training Mistakes and Essentials
I learned a large portion of my knowledge of supplemental training from many mistakes I made in the gym. I am hoping to help all of you readers avoid at least a few of the mistakes I made and get more out of your supplemental training.
Kill Your Heroes
My heroes were strength athletes I admired and wanted to be like. They give us a base for the kind of person we want to become. But as we grow up, we eventually realize that our heroes are no different than us. That moment is the time to kill the heroes and rise above them.
Training Our Thought Process
Just the other day, I was listening to a motivational speech that got me going. That speech made it clear to me that an evolution of the thought process and perception of what training should be is how lifters and strength athletes progress to the higher levels.
I'm Sick — Should I Train or Stay Home?
Listen: I’m no doctor or rocket scientist, but even I have enough common sense to know that if you’re feeling under the weather, you shouldn’t be lifting. You should be resting at home. Yeah, you heard me: Go home and stay home. And stay out of your fancy little garage gym, too!
5 Tips That Will Increase Any Lift
It’s inevitable that a lifter will hit a plateau at some point or another. It’s frustrating, I know. Trust me, I’ve been there. But after 10 years of powerlifting and 14 years of strength training before that, I think I’ve unlocked some of the secrets to making gains. Here are five things that helped me increase my lifts.
The Most Important Principle for Strength
With all of the information we have at our fingertips, it’s easy to lose track of some of the basic principles of strength training. One that’s easy to forget: Balance training and recovery as evenly as possible.
Who is in Charge Here, Anyways?
Don’t let your ego get the better of you. Think carefully about your choices — and if you’re really the one making those decisions.
In the Spirit of the New Year: I Quit
What is the last thing you quit to better yourself? Reflecting on this past year, 2018 has been a very interesting year for me all around, and I have grown a lot. In with new and out with the old, here’s what I’m changing for 2019.
Make it More Than Just a Warm-Up
When it came to warm-ups, I didn’t always practice what I preached. As it turned out, warm-ups have done me a solid and increased my strength, endurance, and recovery. Plus, they’re a great way to hone your techniques.
Life in the Void
It is nothing and everything all at once. It is something that comes on strong and pulls you in. It strips everything away, but if you stick with it and trust it, then it will give you more than you can imagine.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Program
If we are not seeing progress in the right direction within an expected length of time, we must change things up. If we are not evaluating, then how do we even know if we are making progress at all?
Undervalued Tools and Overused Methods in the Weight Room
When I fully shifted to powerlifting and really began learning about strength, I just kept thinking about why I never got any of this information when I was an athlete.
The Necessity of Olympic Lifts for Athletes
I don’t know exactly where this concept came from—that they are essential to athletes’ being explosive and strong. I do know that this concept has grabbed on tight and locked into the heads of coaches for decades. I say let’s cut to the chase and trim the fat.
Teaching the Squat, Bench, and Deadlift to Athletes
Do you teach them the squat, bench, and deadlift the same way you would teach a powerlifter? If not, what differences are there?
Determining the Needs of an Athlete
If an athlete is training on heavy squats but is unable to get into a good technique, he is risking injury, plus he is not getting the most of his training because he is in bad positions. First things first, let’s start with an assessment.