By Al Caslow

A new feature has come to www.sostrength.com.  A newbie to SOS will be participating in an onsite log here on the website to document his journey.  This will be an outstanding chance for those individuals wanting to get in to powerlifting to relate to a similar subject and gather his thoughts, hear his challenges, and successes.  His contributions will include things such as a training log, his thoughts along the way, and his interactions in a true powerlifting environment.  Join us here under the Newbie Log link to follow Ryan’s training and see how he progresses on a weekly, bi-weekly and monthly basis.

The Story:

Approximately six months ago I met a neighbor beginning to get involved with lifting, nutrition and supplementation.  Ryan and I spoke at length about Society of Strength, my participation in powerlifting, and nutrition.  A few months later he approached me and asked if I would design a simple plan for him to build his strength while at the same time eating better without the difficulties that come along with a strict diet.

Based on that discussion, I designed a nine week plan of action, personalized to his current state of physical fitness.  It would include three phases – each three weeks long in duration.  The first phase was raw and very generic; just something to get him “primed”, if you will, without driving him to the ground with soreness and exhausting his work capacity.  The second phase focused a little on power and more on increasing his anaerobic threshold.  I wanted him to get the feel of some heavier weight in his hands but also push him with some super sets.  The final phase was time for him to get to work!

The first two phases (six weeks) was plenty of time for him to get in shape, get the newbie soreness out of the way and get to a point where he could really push hard and make some gains.  Therefore, in the third phase, we began to push through with a combined method of weights, GPP, and cardio.

Ryan’s final phase ended Friday, November 13th, we tested his maxes on Sunday, November 15th in some core lifts (bench, squat, deadlift), he'll take a week to do some recovery, and then head into a new nine week phase of training that will continue to push him hard but also increase his strength, power, and muscle mass.

Join the SOS team on this journey!