A Home Gym Made of Wood
Desperate times call for desperate measures. I was tired of floor presses off unstable pickle buckets and the inability to squat, so here’s my attempt at building a home gym.
My Crappy Diet
I have been a fat boy all of my life and have struggled mightily to be less fat. Here’s where I’m currently at in the sea of macros and micros.
Coping with COVID-19
I was alive when Pearl Harbor was attacked and the U.S. entered into World War II. In the 1940s, I remember polio. How does all of this relate to COVID-19 pandemic? I have an idea…
More Advantages of Weight Training for Senior Strength
We all now know that we begin to lose muscle in our third decade. It happens so insidiously slow that we don’t realize it. Stop the cycle! Don’t succumb to fragility!
To Go or Not To Go?
The IPA, one of my favorite federations, held the Tennessee State Championships in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, on March 14th. I went.
How I'm Prepping for My Next Meet
How do you prepare for your next week? When do you start preparing? Jeff Guller likes to get started with conjugate powerlifting nine weeks before meet time.
2020 Vision
Powerlifting benefits all ages, from young to mature. No matter your age, results won’t come without motivation and motivation won’t come without discipline. What are your 2020 goals and how will you achieve them?
Jeff Guller's 2019 in Review
Even though I didn’t make all of the goals I set for this year, I did have some good results. And if results are the measure of a year, then it was a good year.
Even More Conjugate For A Little Old Man
This little old man’s secret to recovery lies in one word: bands.
Meet Report: Morganton Misfits at The IPA World Championships
I was very fortunate at this meet to have had excellent help at this meet. Dear friends helped manage the meet, wrapped my knees, called my depth, and gave me coaching advice and lifting cues.
The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men
I think that sometimes-spontaneous people, those that fly by the seat of their pants, are better off than those who plan everything. It is my considered opinion that those who can alter or adopt a new one in the face of adversity or changed circumstances are the ones who succeed in anything.
More Conjugate For A Little Old Man
I recently turned 78, and that certainly hasn’t stopped me from training. After the responses from last month’s article, I decided to delve a bit deeper into my little old man conjugate training program. Enjoy!
Conjugate For A Little Old Man
People have asked me to write about how I train. I haven’t done it because I figured you guys thought it’d be boring… until now. Here’s a look at my training and the process behind it.
Meet Report: A Squat Suit Depth Experiment at 365 Strong World Games
My training was more organized than it was for the IPA meet. But I decided to experiment before this meet: I trained using my squat suit without the briefs. It actually improved my speed, depth, and how much weight I could handle.
Important Business Considerations for Gym Owners
All questions and no answers here. That’s good, though — it’ll make you aware of issues that may need to be addressed in your gym business and figure out how to fix these issues before they become an issue.
Murphy's Law Reigns Supreme at Tennessee State Championships
Murphy’s Law: Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. That’s pretty much a solid description for how the Tennessee State Championships went for me. But hey, good job to the victors. Now it’s time to prepare for my next meet…
The Meet That Was Like a Family Reunion
This was the first meet that I attended neither as participant, lifter, nor spectator; instead, I was a coach, cheerleader, and go-fer. At this meet, Flex Gym proved it is as much a family as any group I have ever seen. Everyone is there for everyone else.
Can We Build Muscle After 50?
I asked my elitefts colleagues to do a study or if a study exists on whether or not we can build muscle and get stronger as seniors. Rather than wait for their responses, I decided to take matters into my own hands to address the topic myself, based on the individuals I’ve trained and observed.
To Be or Not
People keep asking me how long I intend to train at a high level and compete? My answer: As long as I can continue to improve and get my old ass to the platform, that is where I intend TO BE.
2018 in Review
2018, you were a great new chapter. You’ve put me in a good place with my training, my clients’ training, and the team’s training. 2019, see you soon.
A Conversation with Me About Competing at 77
When I entered these very senior divisions, there was no bar, no standard, no records. Now there is.
Confession: I'm a Coachaholic
Heavily inspired by the LTTX, I took what I taught and learned there and shared it with my gym members. Although basic (think powerlifting 101), these new lifters needed to hear my message. Watch the entire presentation here.
Learn to Train X — What We Taught and What We Learned
From the presentations and coaching, I derived more knowledge than I shared. Everyone who has a serious interest in powerlifting should see the S5 Compound, and one of the best ways to do that is at a learn-to-train seminar.
I Read a Book: Re-Implementing Conjugate Training with More Knowledge
When I practiced law, it was a standing joke at our bar that an expert was some son of a bitch from Charlotte who had read a book. Well, I read a book.
A New Team
Here I am at my age, in a new town, in a new gym, with new people, starting all over from scratch.
MEET REPORT: IPA North Carolina State Powerlifting Championships
Two meets in less than a month? I know I’m 76—not 26— but when Joey Smith told me to get in the meet, I got in the meet.
My First Meet in My New Gear
I am, as I am after every meet, hurting in places I didn’t even know I had — this time in my head as well as my body, as I shall explain.
My SPS Weekend and Visit to the S5 Compound
My recent trip to Ohio included attending the 2018 elitefts Sports Performance Summit and visiting the brand new elitefts office, warehouse, and gym. Along the way, I learned a lot about training.
Reflections on 2017
I have been younger and I have made more money but I have never been more content.
MEET REPORT: 365 Strong Nationals — A Long-Ass Day and Questions Answered
I had help getting into my single-ply suit and didn’t have to wrap my own knees, but there was still the hand to deal with. There’s a long way to go and I’m taking it one post-surgery PR at a time.
Conundrums of My Meet Prep
Raw classic or single-ply? 181 or 198? And what about my hand? There are still a lot of questions to be answered.
Motivation Found in the Gains of Others
I have trained with three classes of people in the last few months, including young college men, 50-year-old women, and two very strong powerlifters. Each group has encouraged me in its own way.
Finally Back on the Platform
This was my first experience with 365 STRONG, and my goals were to squat more on the platform than I previously had while continuing to rehab my hand.
A Brand New Perspective for Meet Prep
I greatly enjoy training and competing in powerlifting. I plan to compete, train, and train others for as long as I am able — not, however, without having a life.
Metal Cylinders — Two Devices Helping My Training
I’ve used these items before training as a way to warm up and loosen muscle fiber, and I’ve used them after training as a form of relaxation and recovery. In every case, they’re improving the way I feel and lift.
Teams, Camaraderie, and a Lifetime of Being an Athlete
It was a team atmosphere that made me fall in love with sports, and it is a team atmosphere that has been restored to my athletic participation through powerlifting.
Preaching to the Choir: Don't Slow Down or Reduce Activity
What can we do to get our seniors off their collective ass and into the gym for resistance training?
Preaching to the Choir: Seniors and Strength Training
Muscle loss? Reduced bone density? They may come naturally with age — but there’s a way to fight back.
Rehab Report: Repairing My Hand and Planning My Return to the Platform
This article was meant to have been about the results of my meet in December and the setting of PRs and possible world records. All of those aspirations ended on October 7, 2016.
Another Setback, Another Challenge...Another Path to PRs
We experience breaks, tears, sprains, joint replacements, and other sundry surgeries. We could stop, but we don’t. We overcome, persevere, and come back stronger.
Three Quarters of a Century and Still Getting Strong(er)
How long will getting stronger continue? At what point, or age, or condition does deterioration begin? Am I racing a clock? Is my time on the platform limited?
The Aging Rebels: An Exercise in Rehab and Friendship
Being stalked by the orthopedic reaper (not to mention the internal reaper) has been a challenge for Jack and I, but we have found ways to overcome every obstacle.
How To Train Around Old
Please don’t believe the clichés that age is only a number or you’re only as old as you feel. If it were only a state of mind, we all could stay 21 forever.
The Other Side of the Long and Winding Road
I’m sharing my difficult story not to elicit sympathy, but to point out facts of life. We all experience challenges, we all have our stories. It is how we deal with them that determines who we are.
How We Learn: Being Better Students and Teacher in the Weight Room
Maximize teaching strategies and improve learning reception by familiarizing yourself with the processes of creating and enforcing new behavioral strategies.
Do Your Records Mean Anything?
There’s a lot of hatred thrown around when a lifter hits a federation record. Should we be celebrating the PR with them?
Lessons from Zane
There's always someone that has had the same dilemma as you and made it out successfully.
I'm Too Young To Be This Damn Old: Lucky 13
A year of challenges makes you focus on the things that matter.
I'm Too Young to Be This Damn Old: Divas
Most are willing to share their knowledge, but there are exceptions.
I'm Too Young to Be This Damn Old: Training Update
What the hell could this old man have discovered that is not already known?
I'm Too Young to Be This Damn Old: Best
We all strive to be the very best we can be to achieve our genetic potential.
I'm Too Young to Be This Damn Old: Baby Steps
He’s back…and he’s getting ready to take the platform!
I'm Too Young to Be This Damn Old: Strong(er)
I’ve been told that to have obtained world records at age 71 requires extraordinary resolve. I don’t see it that way.
I'm Too Young to Be This Damn Old: Me Training Me
Please excuse this dialogue that I’ve had with myself. It is done in an effort to show that I will try to be responsible as I start training.