Many years ago, when my self-worth was still intrinsically linked to how much I could squat, I was fortunate enough to receive a reality check from the late, great Don Styler.
We got to talking about training when I asked him what his best ever squat was.
His response?
“Oh, about 400lbs”
(That’s 180kg or thereabouts for those who speak metric).
Now, at the time my mind was thoroughly corrupted by the drug-fuelled numbers being put up by top powerlifters, so the thought of someone who looked as good as Don (who was staunchly “anti steroids”) did in his prime “only” squatting 180kg for a single came as quite a shock.
It was undeniable, objective proof that you don’t need to squat (or bench press, or deadlift or whatever) a house to look good. Quite the contrary, the joint-mulching shenanigans you have to engage in to “optimise” your form to lift extreme loads often has the opposite effect if you’re not injecting a pharmacy and following a dietary approach that looks awfully like an eating disorder (and even then you still might end up looking and will almost certainly feel like hot garbage).
Indeed, back then I was squatting a good deal more than 180kg for reps, yet I still looked awful and would be woken most nights by searing back pain (it was so bad, for a while I genuinely thought I might have spine cancer).
And no, I did not take this lesson on board when I was taught it.
I actually only really let it sink in and affect how I trained after Connie was born.
Part of that was because it was 2020 and Dear Leader shut the gyms (while encouraging everyone to eat takeaways) “for our health”, so I couldn’t go squat heavy.
The other part was accepting that I had a moral obligation to show (not just tell) her what a smart, healthy, and sustainable relationship with exercise looks like. Obviously this did not include chasing bigger squat numbers when it was causing my body to crumble beneath them.
None of this is to say I don’t squat hard or heavy any more.
I do both every week.
The difference is in how I am going about it.
There’s less weight on the bar for sure, but the quality of the reps I am doing is far higher, and, quelle surprise, I look, feel, and perform significantly better than I ever did trussed up like a spring chicken in wraps and a belt squatting attempting to move the bar the least possible distance while still getting my hips to just break parallel.
Anyway.
You can learn a lot more about my approach to leg training (including squatting) in the “Legs” part of “The Back and Legs Bundle”, which is on sale for 50% off until 23:59 tonight (8th).
This is absolutely not the book for you if you are interested in achieving superhuman levels of strength. There are far better people to learn that stuff from than me, not that I recommend most people go down that route for various reasons.
If you want the book, here is what to do now:
1) Read the letter at the below URL closely to make an informed purchase,
2) Enter the code NACHO at the checkout (where it says “Have coupon code?”)
3) Check the price has changed
4) Pay
5) Wait for your book to arrive
Here’s step 1:
https://philtyreman.co.uk/bundle
Thank you,
Phil Tyreman