What do you think of this split: Day 1: Hammer curls Day 2: Barbell curls Day 3: Alternating curls Day 4: Incline curls Day 5: Barbell curls Day 6: Tricep extensions Day 7: Rest

You look more sunburned every video. At this rate three videos from now you might literally be on fire.

I have NEVER heard that technique of the military pressing out of the hole! That makes sense on many levels. This would alleviate a decent amount of weight but also make it so your elbows stay in alignment keeping the chest up and the bar path straight as possible. Thank you for this!

Brian, I referenced you during an interview and threw your name around when asked where I got it from. It was the bit about being 'too blessed not to" and I feel like it applies to everything and it's made me be less of a bitch lately. Instead of coming in as a regular welder/fabricator I was offered a management position. Still super stunned. Keep doing what you're doing.

Love this, always try and apply a few cues each session. Must admit I'm bad at this sometimes though, particularly for bench so looking forward to that video

Without doubt this is one of the very best KZfaq channels. Intelligent, informative and well presented. You have a really good way of explaining everything, and at the same time it's very motivating. I'm learning a huge amount, having been training for a few years - thanks very much, I'm sure the channel/website will go from strength to strength ('scuse the pun :O)

Actual Squat tips start at 7:30

Man I've squatted some pretty solid weight before (for reps) but after listening to your cues I immediately jumped under my olympic bar and tried them out, to be honest I felt more in the groove than ever before. Game changer. Thanks bud.

Now after a month of your squat cues, I am working little by little on your deadlift techniques. I've worked you strict overhead press tips and having great success with it.

Thank you for video, these lifting queues have greatly improved my squat and I thought I was a good at squatting before this. I am 49 years old and I couldn't feel any better. No back pain or anything, this video is helping me not only in strength but longevity, I can vision myself squatting well into my 50's and beyond.

Incredibly excited for this series!

Great tips! I've started doing these cue sheets for all of the lifts just on my own volition and it's helped me to remember everything, especially being a newbie.

THANK YOU SENPAI I was watching videos of my squat the other day and noticed that basically the whole thing sucks. Hopefully these cues help me fix things - your squat series already gave me some helpful tips.

Hey brian, yours stuff is rad, just ran across it and your explanations on lifts are amazing!

Great info, as usual, Brian! Thanks for the great content.

These are great cues, will be working on some of these today. Thank you

That point about how queues recycle is brilliant. It’s something I’ve definitely experienced. I’m a lot stronger now than I was a year or two ago, but I feel like I’ve spent a lot of time performing less efficiently because I’ve lost track of certain points over time and didn’t make a habit to continuously review them. Because of that, there have been times where I know I moved 200 pounds way better and tighter back in the day on a squat than I did 335 in the present. It was because I lost track, got distracted, and usually didn’t have a map to guide me once something went awry. I also think I had too much of an all or nothing approach. I would actually some times make a diagram or list of queues like you said, and maybe review it before a session (not often enough though). However, I would just try and do them all at once, and then beat myself up for not mastering all the queues right away. If that approach didn’t work for a few sessions in a row, I would just say screw it, and chalk it up to overthinking. This video is gold. I know that there is no such thing as a perfect lift, but there is certainly a best way, a great way to lift. I feel like I’ve been there before. In fact, know I have. I just need to tap into it more often, as often as I possibly can. My results have been great already, but who knows what could be possible if I string together many of these sessions in a row?! You have an incredible mindset, and are an excellent and humble dude, coach and general person. You have a way of lighting a fire under people’s asses, inspiring and making them want to be excellent without so much of the bro attitude that fills this industry. Thanks, Brian.

Brian - for the Q&A - can you cover your thoughts on getting athlete buy in as a coach/your coaching style in general. Keep up the great work man!

Hi Brian! Thanks for the great informational vid! It sure helped with my squatting On another note...had to bail on a heavy set of squats just yesterday and thought that 'how to bail out of a squat as safely' would be an interesting topic to address

Hei Brian! Squated today earlier, and remembered the walkout cue you mentioned in another video, now watching this one, awesome! Thank you very much!

Watched this video this morning. Went to the gym. Squat PR! Thankyou Brian 👍

I'm 4 years late for this video, but this is the First time hearing the military press in squat. And good motivation and content. Thanks

I appreciate all the free content, I've binge watched your videos since discovering them. Do you recommend wearing weightlifting shoes for every squat session? Do you ever use them for deadlifting?

Great content Brian, always look forward to your videos. This cheat sheet is excellent, used a couple of cues on my squats this week to good effect. When will you be sharing the other big 4 lifts videos?

the wedge between the bar and the floor while setting up the squat is a great cue , and one that I never heard, Wish I had though

Great tips on focusing on 2-3 queues at a time. I am guilty of trying to fix too many things at a time. Q&A 1. Atlas Stone training video - How to setup/build a stone platform and set up the floor to not smash the concrete (oops). How often to use tacky vs no tacky. 2. How to viking press - I have found tons of log and axle videos, but can't find anything on setting up a viking press, what the technique is, general rules, how to breathe (top or bottom), where the pivot height should be relative to your height. And differences in facing vs looking away from the apparatus. This event seems to be coming up more often now. 3. How would you set up the giant set training while on a significant weight cut? I have seen a lot of different opinions on high intensity/low volume vs low intensity/high volume and was curious what modifications you would make to your giant sets. 4. For your gym series - what equipment would you consider necessary "must have" for having a strongman oriented gym, what should be on the "really nice to have" second tier, and what would be lower priority but still nice to get? I am trying to get a training crew together (home gym, no cost) and I am having a hard time getting people to come out. Wondering what I should prioritize in my purchases.

Watched this video just to waste time figuring my squat was already pretty good, but the bit about trying to push the bar so it bends around your back helped a lot. Made my 5RM weight feel easy.

So so good stuff. Brian you rock!

the cue about pushing the bar like a press during the squat sounds genius. will definitely be trying that tomorrow

Great video! picked up some things. can't wait for the other videos especially the deadlift

Can't wait for the rest of this series

Hi Brian, I keep coming back to this video cuz every time I do it’s a winner

That’s that level-up video. Good shit, man.

Brian, I immediately went out to my gym and did a few squats and flexing my butt and pushing out with knees was $$. Thanks for the tips! Hopefully this helps, I had a grinder of a squat day last week

perfect practice makes perfect....... great video man

Thanks for the video Brian! Great job simplifying what can be a much more complicated topic. Been enjoying your vids for a while but just now followed you...because I'm a goober and kept forgetting to do so. Question for you: Tips to keep yourself focused when you're working with inadequate rest? I'm a dad of 2 (soon to be 3) and average about 5-6 hours of sleep per night because the early morning (5 am) is my only time to workout. Since lifting is a mental game I'm convinced that I can reasonably overcome my physical fatigue - just looking for some direction. Keep up the great content!

Q&A Hey Brian! Big fan here! I've been watching your videos for a month. You've changed my mindset about how important condotioning is. I've been doing giant sets and i've also made my workouts more intense. It works wonders. Now my question is, do I need to have a break or like a "deload" for my workouts or an adjustment with my diet since I've been working harder than usual. Or should I keep going with the same or higher intensity every workout with the same diet? (p.s. i dont count my calories)

Yeahhh squat day today and then this video pops up. Cheers man!

awesome awesome advice...i think everyone will pick up at LEAST 2 or 3 queues that will help their squat numbers or at the very least their form and safety..

So far I have the best luck with watching this video before squats and then analyze 3 things where I’m lacking and focus on those for the following sets.

Alsruhe, you always remind me of that quote from Hemmingway. The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice.

Awesome infortmative video. Im not sure what Im doing wrong but the flexing my butt actually makes my squat worse. I have to break at the hips and knees simultaneously or hips first with them slightly back. I dont blame you, I blame my body mechanics. Thanks for the going over the cues tip. That will be monumental. For Q&A what was your favourite place that you have traveled to or want to travel to?

Hi Brian. Love the tip on pushing the bar up military style coming out of the hole. Definitely trying this

Will give some of these a try next monday. Thanks for the video man! For the Q&A, I'm curious how you balance BJJ with your strength training. Do you do it on the same days or rest days? I can imagine something that needs as much mobility as BJJ would be quite difficult if you're quite sore from a heavy session or your have tweaked something. Its something I would love to try and do alongside my training but am still unsure for now. (Also need to find someone to go with ha!)

so looking forward to this!!!! thank you!!!!

Squatted yesterday! Gonna give those cues a go on Saturday :)

Awesome idea, can't wait for the OHP video! Your tip to constantly try to accelerate the bar has already helped me quite a lot. When you finish with the cues for the big movements could you do a video explaining how to properly perform assistance work - e.g. stiff-legged DL, good mornings, all that good stuff?

Thanks again for another great video. I have pulled the bar down like you said, but took me awhile to figure out why I was stuggling coming back up with the weight. I was still pulling down on the barbell like there was no tomorrow when going up. Blonde moment. LOL Once I figured my mistake I wasn't struggling like I was before. I will now think of pulling the weight up as I go up. P.S. My question is when do you know you need to use straps, belts, and stuff like that? I started my strength training in January. I have not felt the need to use any of those things. Sorry if this is something you have covered lately. I just remember if you have covered that.

Haha. Wow, there is a lot more that goes in to the squat then I thought. Thanks for the video Brian, I'll be sure to be a lot more conscious of my lifts from now on (especially the underated things like unracking, the walk out, etc...).

Q&A! (First of all, I always get something good from your videos. Your tips are really well-explained, logical, and most of all, original! A lot of other channels seem to regurgitate same tips amongst themselves, but from you I get tips I never heard before that also truly work). 1. I'm curious about your story about how you deadened a nerve in your hip-flexor and couldn't lift your leg. I'd like to know in detail what happened, what the symptoms were, and how you overcame it. I think it'd be educational and inspirational. 2. Front-squats...I feel like what limits me is actually my ability to keep my elbows up. I can do it in the first few reps, but when the weight gets heavy my elbows start to sag and shake violently, and my fingers feel like they're about to pop off or snap. What does this mean? Is this normal? I feel like the limiting factor is supposed to be your leg/hip/lower-back strength, not the ability to keep elbows up. Is there an accessory exercise I can do to improve this?

Awesome tips Brian! Any thoughts on how to know if high or low back position is the best for your squat?

The "military press" cue made a huge difference for me. I feel way more in sync coming out of the hole now. Thanks Brian you're the man

any advice to fix muscle imbalances? especially traps and lats. thank you and keep up the great work

Yes Brian I believe I’m going to steal from you quite a bit out of this list brother thank you for the info

Pushing up on the bar like a military press. Ive never heard that que, and it sounds awesome. Im gonna give a shot. Thanks Brian!

Great video. Q&A topics - Managing rest How many days between sessions, training split.etc. I do 5/3/1 right now and go bench / squat/oh press/deadlift with a day in between. Just general guidance on that type of thing. Thanks

Brian no lie brother but you've seriously helped me with my squat. It was stagnant for the longest time but the belly breathe added 30lbs since April. Thank you.

These cues are great man thanks

You helped me a ton getting past plateaus and making gains thanks your a beast

Would you possibly be able to make a video on how to train/practice the viking press without the implement? Love all your videos, keep up the great work helping us all!

I really liked the part where you said to press the weight up. I never have heard it before. Thank keep it up👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻💪🏼

Dude I remember reading your first logs back on tnation way back when... must have been 10 years ago? thanks for sharing all this great knowledge. I'm glad you're starting to reach a larger audience all the best bro

Fantastic video! Thank you so much.

This cue cheat sheet is perfect, cant wait for the rest!

Dude, I love the energy and positivity.

Q&A: 1. Why do you estimate your arms as "short"? Because of reach (how many? Confess! ; - ) or length from finger tip to shoulder or height/reach ratio or you cant touch your knees not bending? Thick arms sometimes look short, are you 18" or 19" thick? 2. What is your best double overhand grip AA deadlift? 3. Your DL PR almost = your SQ PR. My best DL is 50 kg heavier than my best SQ. Is my back strong or my legs are weak? Should I try to shorten that distance? Is there any "right" DL/SQ ratio? 4. If you SQ ATG what is the difference in weight? Sticking point is always 3-5" above parallel, so why not use full range of motion? Thank you, good strong man!

Excellant Video I watched it like 4 times I really appreciate the Help. I am gonna apply these to my squat. I learned alot.

Great video Brian. I was 'losing strength' on my squat and deadlift for several months until I realised I just wasn't putting in my usual effort into setup and bracing!! Looking forward to your deadlift cues for sure. Would love to hear your tips for weighted pull up progression (since yours is WAY better than mine!). I've been stuck at 100lbs for too long than I care to admit - I got there within about 2.5 years of training and have been stuck there for the last 2.5 years! Doing fairly typical cycles which go from high volume, lower weight to low volume with higher weights over say a 2 month cycle. Clearly not working though!

i like his movements of squatting his explanation is well said

The second I saw the title of the video I got so excited.

Awesome video. Thank you very, very much.

the "Push knees out to initiate descent" tip is a GAME CHANGER ! Thank you so much Brian !

I 100% agree with you on the "pushing your butt back" cue. I think it stems from geared powerlifting and for some reason, people thought it would be a good cue for raw

Hey Brian, thanks for another informative video, great content in this one. Great comment about reviewing the cues the night before. I always try to review the next day’s workout the night before, review what I did on the previous workout and think about what I’ll be doing the following morning (4:30 am crew). I'm a firm believer in visualization, so I'm going to start reviewing your cues as well. 2 Questions for Q&A: 1. Trying to heed your advice regarding weight of Barbell Rows being about the weight I can do on Bench Press. Unfortunately, I have Poverty Barbell Rows and yes, I have some left shoulder issues (upper bicep tendinitis). Would you suggest any supplementary exercises to help improve my strength on the barbell rows, or should I just concentrate on the barbell rows? 2. I'm at a commercial gym (for the moment), so I have to make due with what is there. As unbelievable as it seems, there are times when the lone squat rack is tied up at 4:30 in the morning :-(There's a leg press machine in the gym as well. Is there any value in doing leg presses, or should I just focus my energy on the squats? Thanks!

Thank you for posting ,I’m utilizing this.

Great cues! Thanks for sharing.

Great tips! Thanks!

For the Q&A: how do you breath during farmers walk and other carries? A big gulp of air at the start is obvious, but how do you maintain the pressure during the whole walk?

Q&A: 1. Why do you estimate your arms as "short"? Because of reach (how many? Confess!) or length from finger tip to shoulder or height/reach ratio or you cant touch the floor not bending knees? Thick arms sometimes look short, are you 18" or 19" thick? 2. What is your best double overhand grip AA deadlift? 3. Your DL PR almost = your SQ PR. My best DL is 50 kg heavier than my best SQ. Is my back strong or my legs are weak? Should I try to shorten that distance? 4. If you SQ ATG what is the difference in weight? Sticking point is always 3-5" above parallel, so why not use full range of motion? Thank you, good strong man!

Another AWESOME Video!

Q and A questions. Whats your opinion on box squats? Do you feel they benefit raw lifters? Do you think power cleans should be done on squat day, deadlift day, or ohp day since they tax so many muscles? Do you feel its better for someone to pull sumo as an assistance to conventional or are they better off sticking with movements that closer mimic the conventional pull? Do you do anything on your off days? light conditioning and active recovery or just strictly rest

im definitely gonna try to push the bar up next time i squat thnx man!!!

Brian this is a great video. I've always squeezed the bar through my body, but never heard of switching to pushing like in a press when coming up. I can't wait to test that out! Lol. How can I get one of those stickers from you?

Hey Brian awesome video man keep bring the best on KZfaq! You ever think of doing a video with Elliot hulse that'd b cool

Q&A stuff: How would you combine strength training, whether it be strongman or powerbuilding(as I like to call Wendlers 531) and grappling? I practise both 3 days a week, on separate days, and I'd really like your take on the subject because you've done both for many years. Also what do you think of doing sport specific training to grappling. I mean sand bag throws and such as that. Or do you prefer general strength exercises.

I loved your stories about older trainees. Do you have any inspirational stories about younger athletes training at your gym as well?

I have a few questions: 1) Does taking pine pollen really boost testosterone? How can I raise my levels? 2) Is there any way to making lifting and cardio more fun? 3) Do you do anything for muscle imbalance in the quadricept? My kneecap shifts sometimes and I think I need to strengthen my VMO to improve my knee stability. Squats probably don't help solve muscle imbalance issue because stronger muscles get stronger and weaker ones may remain under-utilized 4) What's your mobility workout like? Does being flexible help prevent injury? 5) I heard lifting heavy weights makes you prone to constipation : ) That's not true right? Thanks for all the great content Brian

hey Brian, great video like always. Im conflicted because I've been reading Starting Strength (im not a diehard Rippetoe fan) but he insists on flaring elbows and using thumb over bar, and a more hip-dominant horizontal back position. Have you experimented with these differences?

Good stuff... will try this today. :)

Q&A: what's your book recommendation for the summer? and when will you come to Europe? keep up the good work and thank you.

sending much love from australia

Great cues 😊

That military pressing tip is no joke!

needed this, just getting back to heavy squats after a few years of being lazy. forgot all of the cues i used to use

Great vid!

great as always ☺

It's easier to go from average to good than from good to great, and it takes even more dedication to go from great to outstanding.

Sup bro. What are your top tips for improving log? I know a lot of people are starting to favour the jerk over push press. What's your take on it?Beast deadlift PB btw!

Q&A: Brian, you've trained a lot of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and MMA in the past, and I think you've had a few fights. Are those days mostly behind you now that you have a gym? What are you still doing now and what kind of combative training to recommend for the average lifter?

I would love to know some programming basics, any good literature/article that you can point me at? Thanks for being awesome man.