FC Strength

I've been chasing a new 1RM in my deadlift for some time now. I've created program after program, tweaked popular programs, and tried just about every way humanly possible to peak for an all-out effort just to have a new number to play with. Then I took a step back and asked myself a question: How important is my 1RM?

The answer I came up with kinda stopped me in my tracks ... it's not. I'm not a competitive powerlifter nor do I seriously have plans to compete any time in the near future. So having knowledge of what I can lift for one gut-busting rep really doesn't make much of a difference to my training. Unless it's on a platform during competition it doesn't do me any good other than supporting my ego and having something to brag to my friends about. Lame. Not to mention unneccesary.

I'm pretty sure I will never come across a time in my everday life where I will need to exert a 100% effort in the deadlift (unless some one needs their car moved out of a tight spot like Franco Colombu did in "Pumping Iron"). Plus, the constant chasing has put my CNS on overdrive and left me burnt out. So if I'm not going to be hunting for singles what rep range should I train instead? In my experienced opinion you should ...

Lift Heavy in the 3-5 Rep Range

This will allow you to move a significant amount of weight, will help to build up some high load strength endurance, and will stop you from getting injured under heavy weights with less-than optimal form. We all know things get a little sketchy when you're pushing with all you got. And heavy singles have their place but 3-5 is the bread and butter for the every day strength enthusiast and athletes not competing in strength sports.

This past Saturday I attended my first powerlifting meet at the Ramada Plaza Hotel in Newark, NJ. I did not compete but I got a chance to watch my friend and fellow iron addict, Bryan Tompkins, pull 3 times his bodyweight in his first meet ever. Needless to say, I spent the better part of the day in a conference room with a bunch of super strong dudes lifting heavy weight. It was so intense I wanted to either lift something heavy myself or punch some one in the face. I couldn't decide.

Anyway, after filming a few mind-blowing lifts I interviewed Bryan and here is the interview and the highlights:


Franco: Tell us a little bit about yourself, your training philosophy, and where you train.

BT: I just want to start off by thanking you for coming out and supporting me during my first meet. My name is Bryan Tompkins, from East Orange NJ, and I'm a Strength Coach/Kettlebell Coach. I'm am also the co-owner of Full Metal Athletics.

I started training when I was a sophomore in high school with some of my friends and like a lot of people, had no real clue what I was doing. I thought squatting would stunt my growth and had no idea what a deadlift was.