Tom Sheppard Split squats

The Foundation of Power: A Beginner's Guide to Mastering Single-Leg Training

Dave Tate

"And this is a bit of a game changer when you do it and you get annoyed at yourself for not thinking of it sooner, so even within the regular split squat there's an almost infinite number of variations that we can kind of work with there but there's going to be a couple of key tenants that we want to see staying the same. What's up, guys? Today's video is all about single-leg training, and I know you hate it, I hate it, we all hate it, but unfortunately, it's crucial."

 

Dr Drew Donaldson

The Deflation Paradox: Hard-Won Lessons on Being ‘Every Type of Jacked’

"If you want to achieve your ultimate physical goals, you must become 'every type of jacked' by mastering autoregulation and truly understanding the biological systems that drive your performance and recovery."

 

ZERCHER SQUATS

A Beginner's Guide to the Zercher Squat

 The Zercher squat is an accessible anterior-loaded variation that builds the quads and upper back without requiring the wrist and shoulder mobility often necessary for a traditional front rack position. By placing the barbell in the crook of the elbows just in front of the bicep tendon, lifters can enforce a more upright squatting pattern that strengthens the core and balances out posterior-chain dominant training.

 

ss yoke bar JM Press

How to Use the elitefts SS Yoke Bar: Every Application Worth Knowing

The SS Yoke Bar is not just a squat bar replacement. Here is how to get everything out of the most important specialty bar in any serious gym.

Bull, Steel, and Fang on Table Talk: What the American Gladiators Cameras Never Showed

Bull, Steel, and Fang on Table Talk: What the American Gladiators Cameras Never Showed

Three elite athletes sat down at the S5 Compound and broke down the American Gladiators reboot on Prime Video, including everything the cameras didn't show.

Drew one arm pulldown

Stop Choosing Sides: How to Build an Efficient Upper Body Workout That Actually Works

Drew Donaldson brings 20 years of coaching experience to the S5 and lays out a glycolytic upper body session that merges research with what's been working in gyms for decades.

Pat Davidson

The Comical Truth About "Accidental" Muscle Growth

Dr. Pat Davidson breaks down the billionaire myth of accidental muscle growth, the meathead bell curve, and how high-ground training choices change everything for hypertrophy.

gym training at retreat

6 Hard Truths About Strength and Movement That Will Change How You Train

Dr. John Rusin redefines functional training not as a specific exercise, but as a complete human movement system that ensures you maintain physical capacities for life. He argues that adopting a "movement mastery mindset"—prioritizing foundational skills like breathing and bracing—is essential to avoid orthopedic breakdown and break through performance plateaus.

 

Dr Dwyane Jackson

The Neural Gap: Six Training Lessons From Dr. Dwayne Jackson | Table Talk #409

Dr. Dwayne Jackson returns to Table Talk with six science-backed lessons on RPE calibration, auto-regulation, the gym as medicine, and what actually separates lifters who keep progressing from those who plateau and break down.

belden bar use

The Belden Bar Framework

Dave Tate

The Belden Bar is a highly unique training tool that adds rotational torque to traditional closed-chain movements like push-ups and glute bridges, exposing muscular weaknesses and demanding intense full-body coordination.

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Bruss

The Milk-Chugging Marine: Why Russ Hamilton Bet His Body on the Simple, Brutal Path to the WWE

Dave Tate

Strongman champion and professional wrestler Bruss Hamilton details his transformation from a Marine Corps veteran to a title-holding athlete, discussing the "Gallon of Milk a Day" (GOMAD) diet for mass gain, the development of his "Gentleman Barbarian" persona, and the extreme sacrifices he made to secure a WWE tryout.

 

Dr Pat Davidson

The 8-Box Framework That Explains Why Some Exercises Build Muscle and Others Don't

Dr. Pat Davidson breaks down the three mechanical variables that determine whether an exercise builds muscle, inoculates against injury, or gets you hurt.

Tom OHP

The Perfect Press: A Narrative Journey of the Overhead Press

"The overhead press is probably the single best exercise for ingraining your ability to root into the floor and maintain a neutral posture compared to any other exercise."

 

dave tate sports performance

The "Meathead" Manifesto: 6 Unconventional Lessons on Performance, Recovery, and the Edge of Sanity

"I wanted to know what it felt like to break a PR one more time."

 

The quadrant management systems cover

Quadrant Management System

Casilyn Meadows

Quadrant Management System by Ashley Jones, a structured yet flexible strength training approach that empowers athletes through individualized programming, progressive autonomy, and performance-focused development.

Jack Lovett

The Professionalism Crisis: Why Most Coaches Fail and How to Build an Undeniable Culture

 "You learn very quickly that any idiot can get somebody tired, but it takes a skilled, professional coach to get somebody better."

 

dips

Mastering the Essentials: A Learner’s Guide to Dips and Chin-Ups

Dave Tate

"Hopefully by the end of this video, not only are you going to be better at performing your dips and chin-ups, but you're going to be doing them in a way that allows you to get better carryover to the other things that you're doing outside of these lifts."

 

Table Talk Podcast Guests

5 Surprising Lessons from World-Class Strength Athletes on the Art of the Pivot

"I really started to lean into like let's be as healthy as we can while we wreck our bodies... and then as I've gotten older and my priorities have shifted, my avatar has shifted with me."

 

The 4:00 AM Standard: How The Spot Athletics is Killing the 'Gig Economy' Gym Model

The 4:00 AM Standard: How The Spot Athletics is Killing the 'Gig Economy' Gym Model

Dave Tate

J.L. details the evolution of The Spot Athletics from a humble 2,000 square-foot start to two 20,000 square-foot facilities, emphasizing how custom EliteFTS equipment, a client-first "family" culture, and salaried coaching positions are pushing the strength and conditioning industry forward.

 

elitefts

Mastering Hamstring Resiliency with the Assisted/Resisted GHR

Dave Tate

By maintaining a neutral pelvic position and initiating the descent by pushing through the quads like a leg extension, lifters can isolate the hamstrings without relying on the lower back or glutes for compensation. This technique allows for heavy training in a lengthened position with zero spinal loading, making the Glute Ham Raise (GHR) a superior tool for injury prevention and long-term resiliency.

 

Tom Autoregulation

Why You’re Actually Getting Weaker: The Neurological Secret to Breaking Plateaus

Autoregulation is fundamentally about managing your neurological fatigue by strategically adjusting training volume, intensity, and load to prevent overtaxing your central nervous system.

 

rackable cambered squat bar

The Cambered Squat Bar Is One of the Hardest Bars You'll Ever Put on Your Back

Dave Tate

Why the rackable cambered squat bar belongs in your training and how to use it to build a squat that doesn't fall apart under real weight.

LTT Seminar

You're Tweaking the Wrong Knobs: Why Volume and Intensity Still Run the Show

Most lifters spend their time obsessing over sleep, supplements, and nutrition while the two variables that actually drive progress sit untouched. Here's why volume and intensity are still the volume controls on your training board.

BARS

4 Unexpected Lessons on Strength and Life from a PhD 'Meathead'

Dave Tate

"Bodybuilders don't need sports science to be big, but it can take sport to the next level and help us iron out details".

Meta Description Dr. Eric Helms joins Dave Tate to discuss bridging the gap between "meathead" passion and academic rigor, detailing the origins of 3D Muscle Journey, the science of autoregulation and RPE, and optimal approaches to protein intake and hypertrophy for natural athletes.