Hi, and welcome. Really looking forward to the discussion.
Quick thing : if you'd like to share the Youtube link on your own site, you'll find it over on Josh's Youtube channel. The image above shows where it is.

Just create a new post on your blog, tell everyone what's going on, and paste in the code from the 'share' section. Same as with other Youtube videos you may have embedded on your site.

Alternately, just point everyone to the front page of Straight to the Bar. It's already on there.

cheers,

Scott

This Week on Straight to the Bar

I'm constantly amazed at just how much my training is influenced by the people on this site. Whether you're looking for a new piece of equipment, an unusual exercise variation or just an idea of how others approach things, you'll enjoy these :

• Gem From the Vault : Heavy Sandbag Training (Part I)
  Michael Amos
  Building the Sandbags.

  
  

• Looking At : Sep 15, 2013
  Scott Andrew Bird
  We've been discussing some very interesting techniques, products and services recently. Here are the highlights.

  
  

Over to you. I'd love to hear what you think : leave your comments on the above articles, and share them with your friends/colleagues/clients and so on.
NB : If you'd like to submit your own piece for Straight to the Bar, here's how.

Video : Tire (Tyre) Flip Technique & Alternatives

Nice one Josh.

Gymchat 212 - How to Gain Muscle (with Conor Kelly)

No matter what your goals are, at some point you're going to be thinking of hypertrophy. Packing on a bit of muscle.

How exactly do you go about doing that?

This week we're going to be focusing on this very area - 'Hypertrophy 101' if you like. Helping us is Physique Transformation Coach Conor Kelly, together with Strongman & Personal Trainer Josh Hewett. If you've got questions, add them to the Google Doc. Details below.

---

Details -

Who : Physique Transformation Coach Conor Kelly, together with Strongman & Personal Trainer Josh Hewett
Topic : How to Gain Muscle
When : Wednesday Sep 18, 9pm EST
Questions : Post them here (please add your name if you'd like us to credit you on the show)
URL : We'll be posting this shortly - both on the blog and in the Straight to the Bar Community on Google+.
How : Watch the live stream, or join us on the hangout. Here are the details.

See you there.

---

Previously : Last week we held the first of the Gymchat Roundtables, looking at Training Approaches. Great discussion.

On the panel were Josh Hewett, Adam Klymkiw, Jason Paris, Chris Lutz and Kurtis Frank. And if you missed the live stream (or just want to go over a particular point again), you can watch the entire video here.

---

Coming Up : In upcoming Gymchats we'll be talking to Zach Even-Esh, Mike 'The Machine' Bruce, Al Kavadlo and many, many others. Get your questions ready.

If you'd like to suggest a topic for a future discussion - or volunteer to be interviewed on the show - just drop us a line. Cheers.

Tip of the Week: Getting Back Into It

Each week we publish a number of tips and techniques via Twitter, Google+, the blog; and now the newsletter. Wherever you are, there's always a way to improve what you're doing.

---

If you've been away from the iron for a while, how do you get back into it?
Vic takes a thorough look at this in the 'Returning to Heavy Training After a Break' ebook. For a brief overview though, check out the discussion we held on that very same topic.

In Gymchat 136 - Heavy Training after a Break, Vic noted :

I lost a LOT of strength on some lifts. It was surprising. That's why that initial 3 weeks of lighter work was important to me - it was smart to underestimate my strength at first.

And

It's important to consciously do less those first few weeks. I was off for almost 2 years - as a rule I did not put any more than 135lbs on the bar the first week. I did not push any sets to failure the next two weeks while still staying at 5 reps or less for most sets.

Good stuff.

New Guide : Creating a Home Gym

We received some great feedback following the Setting Up a Home Gym Gymchat (if you haven't seen it yet, the video's here). Cheers for that - greatly appreciated. Thanks.
A new page has been added to the 'Guides' area, The Straight to the Bar Guide to Planning, Designing & Building Your Own Home Gym. Would love to hear what you think.

And thanks again, these discussions are fantastic.

Incidentally, if you'd like to take part in an upcoming Gymchat, just drop Josh a line. You'll find him on Google+.

---

Quick update on the Renaissance Fitness Supplement Kits we mentioned recently - superb idea.

As we noted, we'll be reviewing these shortly. And if you missed the announcement, here's a brief video to explain the basic idea :

For more information, head on over to the official site - renaissancefitnessinc.com.

This Week on Straight to the Bar

I'm constantly amazed at just how much my training is influenced by the people on this site. Whether you're looking for a new piece of equipment, an unusual exercise variation or just an idea of how others approach things, you'll enjoy these :

• Gem From the Vault : Pull Like A Strongman
  Max Misch
  Time to lift heavy.

  
  

• Looking At : Sep 8, 2013
  Scott Andrew Bird
  We've been discussing some very interesting techniques, products and services recently. Here are the highlights.

  
  

Over to you. I'd love to hear what you think : leave your comments on the above articles, and share them with your friends/colleagues/clients and so on.
NB : If you'd like to submit your own piece for Straight to the Bar, here's how.

Video : 3 Quick Tips For The Stiff Legged Deadlift

Nice one Jon.

The Gymchat Roundtables

As you may have seen on Google+, we've been fortunate enough to add a new member to the Gymchats team : Josh 'Do It With Hewett' Hewett. Josh will be one of the hosts of the show, and is currently scheduling various fitness professionals for upcoming episodes.

First up - 'Training Approaches'. Why everyone does what they do, when and how. If you'd like to be on the panel, just drop Josh a line. You can find him on Google+ :

And thanks Josh. Welcome.

---

Details -

Who : We'll be announcing the panel shortly. If you'd like to be a part of it, just drop Josh a line.
Topic : Training Approaches
When : Wednesday Sep 11, 9pm EST
Questions : Post them here (please add your name if you'd like us to credit you on the show)
URL : We'll be posting this shortly - both on the blog and in the Straight to the Bar Community on Google+.
How : Watch the live stream, or join us on the hangout. Here are the details.

See you there.

---

Coming Up : In upcoming Gymchats we'll be discussing Rope Training, Strength Sports in the Media and the Fitness Education in Schools. Get your questions ready.


And if you'd like to suggest a topic for a future discussion - or volunteer to be interviewed on the show - just drop us a line. Cheers.

---

If you'd like to suggest a future topic, or schedule an interview for one of the upcoming discussions, you can send us a message privately here, or swing by our Community site on Google+. Look forward to hearing from you.

Tip of the Week: Build Your Own Tire Sled

Each week we publish a number of tips and techniques via Twitter, Google+, the blog; and now the newsletter. Wherever you are, there's always a way to improve what you're doing.

---

A tyre (or tire if you prefer) sled is a beautiful thing.
If you're considering adding a little sled work to your routines, but haven't tried it before, this is a great way to see if you like it. What's more, it's an incredibly quick (and easy, and cheap) DIY project. Well worth diving in to.

Matt explains the overall process in his article DIY : How to Build Your Own Tire Sled, but the video below - showing the sled in action - will give you the general idea.

Good fun.

New Guide : Creating a Home Gym

We received some great feedback following the Setting Up a Home Gym Gymchat (if you haven't seen it yet, the video's here). Cheers for that - greatly appreciated. Thanks.
A new page has been added to the 'Guides' area, The Straight to the Bar Guide to Planning, Designing & Building Your Own Home Gym. Would love to hear what you think.

And thanks again, these discussions are fantastic.

Incidentally, if you'd like to take part in an upcoming Gymchat, just drop Josh a line. You'll find him on Google+.

---

Quick update on the Renaissance Fitness Supplement Kits we mentioned recently - superb idea.

As we noted, we'll be reviewing these shortly. And if you missed the announcement, here's a brief video to explain the basic idea :

For more information, head on over to the official site - renaissancefitnessinc.com.

During the past week we've discussed a number of great links; on Google+, Twitter, Facebook and so on. Here are a few of my favourites.

I love these discussions - it's alway great to hear how everyone does things.

This is a brief overview of the current Gymchat process. What we do, when and how.

Dive in.

Before the Gymchat :

• Send out invitations to anyone you'd like to appear on the show. I tended to do this in batches, but whatever works is fine.

NB : if they're new to the hangout thing, point them to http://straighttothebar.com/gymchats/gettingready/. Or you can simply put this in your invitation messages.

• Once people (and the general topic) are confirmed, I'll put the details in the newsletter & on the blog. I'll also invite everyone to add questions to the Google Doc.
• Create the Google+ event, and invite everyone to add any further questions to the Google Doc.

During the Gymchat itself :

• Ask everyone on the show to help spread the word by sharing the event URL. Everyone can watching the streaming video directly on the event page (it'll also be posted on Youtube shortly after the Gymchat finishes).
• Invite everyone (ask one person at a time) to introduce themselves and explain what they do.
• Run through the questions on the Google Doc. This is the main part of the show.
• Ask everyone on the Hangout to share a new resource (a piece of equipment, a person, a site, an app on their 'phone etc) that they've discovered recently. Again, via screen sharing.
• Finally, thank everyone, and invite them to show (via screen sharing) any projects they're currently working on.

After the Gymchat :

• Point everyone to http://straighttothebar.com/gymchats/thanks/ . This will invite them to appear on another show, and ask for general feedback on their experience.


• Once the video's posted on Youtube, edit it if necessary (handy if you suddenly remember something just after the show) and add any relevant text beneath the video. Participants, links etc.


• Send everyone the URL and ask if there's anyone else they'd like to invite.

That's it. As I mentioned earlier, I'm very much open to suggestions on this - let me know if you'd like to add anything, or do it another way. It's a constantly evolving thing.

This week we'll be holding the first of the Gymchat Roundtables. Group discussions featuring a number of fitness professionals and competitive athletes.

First up - 'Training Approaches'. Why everyone does what they do, when and how. Love it.

NB : As Kirk will be unavailable for the next few weeks, Josh Hewett's kindly agreed to guest host the show. Please give him a warm welcome.

---

Details -

Who : Josh Hewett, Matt Palfrey, Jason Paris
Topic : Training Approaches
When : Wednesday Sep 4, 9pm EST
Questions : Post them here (please add your name if you'd like us to credit you on the show)
URL : We'll be posting this shortly - both on the blog and in the Straight to the Bar Community on Google+.
How : Here are the details. And if you'd like to join us on the hangout, just drop Kirk a line. Cheers.

See you there.

This Week on Straight to the Bar

I'm constantly amazed at just how much my training is influenced by the people on this site. Whether you're looking for a new piece of equipment, an unusual exercise variation or just an idea of how others approach things, you'll enjoy these :

• Transformation Techniques (with Jason Paris)
  Jason Paris
  If a physical transformation is one of your goals, check this out. Fantastic series.

  
  

• Looking At : Sep 1, 2013
  Scott Andrew Bird
  We've been discussing some very interesting techniques, products and services recently. Here are the highlights.

  
  

Over to you. I'd love to hear what you think : leave your comments on the above articles, and share them with your friends/colleagues/clients and so on.
NB : If you'd like to submit your own piece for Straight to the Bar, here's how.

Video : Deadlifting the 78k and 64k Inch Dumbbells Together

Love it. Nice one David.

Gymchat 211 - Training Approaches (Roundtable)

This week we'll be holding the first of the Gymchat Roundtables. Group discussions featuring a number of fitness professionals and competitive athletes.

First up - 'Training Approaches'. Why everyone does what they do, when and how. Love it.

---

Details -

Who : Kirk Fontaine, Josh Hewett, Matt Palfrey, Jason Paris
Topic : Training Approaches
When : Wednesday Sep 4, 9pm EST
Questions : Post them here (please add your name if you'd like us to credit you on the show)
URL : We'll be posting this shortly - both on the blog and in the Straight to the Bar Community on Google+.
How : Here are the details. And if you'd like to join us on the hangout, just drop Kirk a line. Cheers.

See you there.

---

Previously : In Gymchat 209 we talked about 'Setting Up a Home Gym', with Strongman Josh Hewett and Personal Trainer Kirk Fontaine. Great discussion.

If you missed the broadcast, the video is available over on Kirk's Youtube Channel. That's also the best place to subscribe to the videos directly, and to see previous discussions.

---

If you'd like to suggest a future topic, or schedule an interview for one of the upcoming discussions, you can send us a message privately here, or swing by our Community site on Google+. Look forward to hearing from you.

Tip of the Week: Become a Morning Person

Each week we publish a number of tips and techniques via Twitter, Google+, the blog; and now the newsletter. Wherever you are, there's always a way to improve what you're doing.

---

A study published in the American Psychological Association journal 'Emotion' suggested that - at least anecdotally - there may be both happiness and health benefits to getting up early.

As I switched to being an early riser fairly recently (after 40+ years of being a self-confessed night owl), I've noticed a similar change myself. And in our conversations on Google+, Louis George helped explain exactly why :

Our evolution makes us more suited to the "lark" type behavior. The circadian rhythm is based on the pattern of day and night. Fighting it continually, with shift work and personal preferences usually ends badly.

More than behavior patterns, or being organised, I feel, the damage done to hormonal regulation by poor sleep is a bigger factor.

Good stuff.

Checking Out : AtLarge Nutrition Gold Membership

This looks great.
In the same vein as something like Amazon Prime, AtLarge Nutrition is now offering a discount on everything you buy, for a fixed fee. In this case it's a 20% discount for only $75.

If you find yourself buying the AtLarge powders and supplements on a regular basis - and they're highly recommended, well worth checking out - then this is a no-brainer. Definitely worth doing.

The AtLarge Nutrition Gold Membership.

---

Quick update on the Renaissance Fitness Supplement Kits we mentioned recently - superb idea.

As we noted, we'll be reviewing these shortly. And if you missed the announcement, here's a brief video to explain the basic idea :

For more information, head on over to the official site - renaissancefitnessinc.com.

New Guide : Creating a Home Gym

We received some great feedback following the Setting Up a Home Gym Gymchat (if you haven't seen it yet, the video's here). Cheers for that - greatly appreciated. Thanks.
A new page has been added to the 'Guides' area, The Straight to the Bar Guide to Planning, Designing & Building Your Own Home Gym. Would love to hear what you think.

And thanks again, these discussions are fantastic.

Incidentally, if you'd like to take part in an upcoming Gymchat, just drop Kirk a line. You'll find him on Google+.

---

Before the Gymchat

Getting any sites, products, techniques, suggestions etc ready : if you want to show any sites or products during the Hangout, you're more than welcome to do so. Your own projects, or anything interesting you've seen elsewhere. Whatever it is, we'd love to hear about it.

The easiest way is just to put it on your screen, and use Screen Sharing during the Gymchat. If you're not quite sure how to do this, no problem - Josh will help you get everything set up. Just turn up to the Gymchat a few minutes early.

Setting up your Lower Third : during the Gymchat itself, it's possible to have your name/company/site etc across the bottom of the screen. Once again, if you'd like a hand in setting this up, just turn up to the Gymchat a few minutes early.

Tackle the Live Questions : During the Gymchat there'll be a number of questions posted on the Events page (ask Josh to point them out if you can't see them). Feel free to answer as many of these as you like - either in one hit, or whenever you're discussing a relevant topic. Up to you.

NB : if you'd like to offer your own communities the opportunity to ask questions, just point them to the Event page. They'll be able to ask as many as they like during the live session.

Follow the Top Form Fitness Page on Google+ : No doubt you're already part of the Straight to the Bar Community on Google+, appreciated. For the Gymchats specifically, you'll also need to follow the Top Form Fitness (Josh's facility) Page; as the invitations will come from here directly. Cheers.

During the Gymchat

Muting your microphone : if you're about to cough, open a can of drink or anything else that makes a bit of noise - please mute your microphone. If you're not quite sure how, just ask.

Sharing the link : during the Gymchat itself, you're welcome to share the link to the video (on Twitter, Facebook etc). Just share the event page, and everyone will be able to watch the video & ask questions.

Wearing headphones : if you're using the built-in microphone with your computer (and they're actually quite good these days), please wear headphones. Otherwise everyone else on the Gymchat (and everyone watching the video) will hear an echo coming from your direction. Makes it hard to listen to.

The headphones don't have to be anything special - whatever you've got is fine. Earbuds, over-the-ear, anything at all.

After the Gymchat

Sharing the video : after the Gymchat, the video will be automatically posted on Youtube (Josh sends out an email when it's up, and we'll also post it in the Google+ Community). From here you can re-share it with your own community in any way you'd like.

Suggesting people to appear on future shows : we love hearing from as many people as possible. If there's someone who you think would be perfect for a show like this, just send Josh an email or a message on Google+.

Links for the show notes : if you mentioned any sites or products during the Gymchat, just send the links to Scott. He'll add them to the notes for that particular Gymchat, which will be added to the blog, newsletter and Youtube page.

During the past week we've discussed a number of great links; on Google+, Twitter, Facebook and so on. Here are a few of my favourites.

Last week I introduced the the idea of the body transformation and what it meant.


If you recall, 3 elements were presented...

• Change in appearance
• Change in composition
• Change in character

Today we're going to review the third element of a successful transformation.

We're starting at the bottom because this is the most important, and the most difficult aspect of the transformation.

We're going to talk about...

The change in character. The mental transformation.

Before you run off thinking I'm a crazed hippie, hold on. Give me a minute to explain why this is so important. A necessity.

I'll start by asking you a couple of questions...

• Have you ever tried to make a difficult life altering change and struggled?
• Have you ever tried to change your body and failed?

If so, you're not alone. Especially when it comes to weight loss. It's been reported that as many as 98% of fat loss diets fail. That doesn't mean people don't lose weight. They do. The problem is, it comes back.

It may not come back right away. For some it's a slow process taking up to five years to return. But it does come back. Often with a little extra.

You may have even battled with this problem yourself.

In future columns we'll dig into exactly what it takes to burn fat and build muscle to transform your body. You'll see that the concepts aren't difficult.

I do my best to keep it simple. I don't believe in hype and like to stick to the basics.

This may leave you wondering why something so easy, causes so much confusion for so many people.

Some of it is misinformation. With so many hokey pills and products on the market and popular myths, it's difficult to separate fact from fiction. Something we'll talk about next week.

Very few people have medical conditions that make it extremely difficult for their body to change.

I stress few. I was even hesitant to mention this because so few people really do have this problem. You're not one of them.

Difficulty In Change

The real difficulty in changing is psychological.

There are mental barriers that prevent dramatic lasting change to occur. All too often we are our own worst enemies.

That's why there needs to be a mental change. Staying the same will mean repeating the same mistakes and falling back into old habits.

It doesn't take a drastic shift. Some shifts in thinking are subtle and simple.

Like thinking of yourself as being on a diet.

What comes to mind when you hear the word diet?

I'm willing to bet that if you took the time to list them, many would be negative.

Not the best mindset when looking to change. Instead think in more positive terms. Think about all the foods you love that will help your body change.

This small mental shift to thinking of food as nourishment for your body will help put you on the right track.

The real shift in thinking comes when you get into setting goals.

Goals

Setting goals puts the wheels in motion and provides you with a plan.

This one simple task will help with both the physical and psychological transformation. It's the single most important step in a successful body transformation.

I'm not going to cover it in a lot of detail. I'll give you the basics so you can get started. Thousands of books have been written on the subject and can cover the topic more thoroughly than a brief article can. Psycho Cybernetics may be the best book on the topic. Well worth your time to pick up and read through.