Welcome to elitefts — your destination for everything strength.

Well, as no one could’ve predicted, our lives have changed drastically from one letter to another based on the onset of the spread of COVID-19. As there’s no need to go through the extensive list of closures and the uproot of what was our daily routine, I hope this letter lifts your sanity as we at elitefts continue to live, learn, and pass on – educating and outfitting the strongest athletes around the world.

As we wrap up the content pillar of new physique goals and conditioning, we slide into April, where our columnists and outside authors delve into the squat and everything legs. From the ground up, we have articles that cover squat stance, new exercises, technique considerations, squat programs, and even a fictional piece starring Ricardo Garcia and the Posterior Chainsaw.

We’ll continue to write and publish articles every day to compliment the use of home gym essentials as we, too, train in our garages, basements, yards, spare bedrooms, you name it. They’ll give you TONS of applicable ideas you can try today.

You’ll also find related articles that target COVID-19—specifically your training approach and mentality, how to make quick changes to your business model, and home training for children (especially for children and young adults with autism). Check out these articles published so far:

Home Gym Essentials — Exercises and Workouts

Considerations for COVID-19 — Business, Children, Motivation, Training Approach 

Here’s a preview of some of the content we have in store for you this month, as well as March’s most popular articles and coaching blogs. As always, thank you to our outside submissions. If you recently submitted an article, it'll soon be reviewed, and I'll be in touch per usual.

Happy Easter and Happy Autism Awareness Month!

Week 1

Bryan Mann turns to strength coaches and suggests how the strength and conditioning profession can use social distancing to sharpen the craft—from burnout to invigoration. Skip Hill rants to online trainers and warns, “Don’t blame COVID-19 or the government if you’re broke.” Listen to Table Talk Podcast #50 with Matt Rhodes, Vincent Dizenzo, and Jim Wendler. On the pillar side of things: Julia Anto lists her home gym mainstays, sharing her favorite barbell for squats and gives us a lower body workout using bands only, Jordan Shallow debunks “everyone can squat,” and Marilia Coutinho shares her squat epiphany.

Week 2

Alycia Israel gives bodybuilders recommendations for those who are deep in contest prep. The show must go on diet-wise. We feature the home gym of Lee Zimmerman, a proud elitefts customer who shares his shopping list and experience. Get ideas for ways to blast your legs without equipment from Josh Bryant, and find endless sled dragging variations that you can accomplish on any surface.

Week 3

We feature Sales Director Matt Goodwin's home gym, an empire six years in the making. As he shares the process and the layers involved, he begins with the foundational pieces of equipment he used to get started. Legs in demand: Brandon Smitley outlines his 12-week world record squat program—how he squatted 567 pounds in the 132-pound weight class. Nic Bronkall presents a simplistic guide on how to effectively run a sprint program for team sports. And swap the sled for the Prowler® this week—we have 55 workouts to try.

Week 4

Chris Janek interviews Head Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach Shaun Snee from the University of Wisconsin. Their discussion begins with the National Collegiate Athletic Association Power 5 and moves to COVID-19. Stefan Waltersson urges you to change your squat stance—I know, you’ll just have to read the article. Wrapping up this month’s pillar, Christian Anto gives you a quick coaching guide on the characteristics of four specialty squat bars and why you must diversify the bar you have on your back at all times.

Across Social Media Channels

Keep up with the newest elitefts articles on Twitter and Facebook. Feel free to give us a shout-out, and we’ll do our best to share. DM us as well with any questions you may have, and we’ll do our best to respond to you there!

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On Instagram, read the 25+ microblogs you missed in March, watch and attempt the weekly exercises with Mark Dugdale, and listen as elitefts team members take over elitefts’ IG for daily “Live Q&As."

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On YouTube, watch interviews, live podcasts, podcast clips, training, “I Am” features, product spotlights, tutorials, featured gyms, and more! Don’t forget to subscribe so that you don’t miss any of the fun.

Content by the Numbers

  • Articles — 8,891
  • Coaching Blogs — 8,080
  • Videos — 2,607
  • Full Seminar Videos — 19
  • Archived Question and Answer Sessions — 700,000
  • Archived Logs — 350,000
  • Table Talk Podcasts — 50
  • Sports Performance Podcast — 64
  • Instagram — 1,000+ team elitefts AMAs per week
  • Pro IG Athletes — 9
  • Coaching Blogs — 14
  • Team Columnists — 40
  • Digital Footprint — 14.5 million
  • Years in Business — 21

Check out March’s top-five articles and blogs from your favorite columnists and coaches:

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  1. Unstable Load Training for the Bench Press – Bryan Mann
  2. 100+ Stay-at-Home Workouts and Exercises – Team elitefts
  3. WATCH: 17 Band Exercises Powerlifters Can Do at Home – elitefts staff
  4. The Advantages of Weight Training for Seniors – Jeff Guller
  5. Sick of Your Gym? — How to Start a Private or Home Gym – Dave Tate

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  1. Kettlebell and bands for the homebound – Marilia Coutinho
  2. The Best Advice Jim Wendler Ever Gave Me – Vincent Dizenzo
  3. Two Things You Should Be Doing During Coronavirus – Vincent Dizenzo
  4. The Thing About Westside Barbell That Nobody Talks About – Dave Tate
  5. Top 5 Tricks of the Trade for the Deadlift – Ben Pollack

Header image credit: Micha Klootwijk © 123rf.com

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