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Thursday, March 24, 2016

Intensity Training for Better Gains - Anthony Ditillo (1977)

https://www.ironleague.com/

Check This Out!

"Strength training is a topic which has an interesting past, a past which is swiftly disappearing because much of the artifacts, books, courses, magazines, articles and the like just aren't to be found any more. The Iron League is an organization where we are preserving the muscle building secrets of the past.

Some have called it "The Iron Game Library of Congress" which is a very good way to put it, and it is our goal to create our own "place" ...where everyone speaks a common language... and can 'talk shop' on what works and what doesn't in the world of serious training. You'll find material from the Golden Age of Bodybuilding, Olympic Weight Lifting, Powerlifting, Gymnastics, Boxing, Wrestling, Conditioning workouts and just about any other training topic you can think of."

http://www.dragondoor.com/b83/

Table of Contents

SECTION 1
How Your Mind Controls Your Body

SECTION 2
Mental Training Tactics and Techniques
Achieve the Strength and Body You Desire with
Well-Formed Outcomes
Easy to Use Methods You Can Put Into Practice Today for Hypnotizing Yourself and Others
Making Your Mental Movies So Powerful They Deliver
Instant Real Life Results (Most People Visualize Incorrectly—If They Do It At All!)
Psyched Up, Focused or Relaxed at the Snap of the
Fingers with Anchors

SECTION 3
Peak Performance Drills for Strength, Muscle, Fat Loss and Performance
Mental Training Drills for Strength
Mental Training Drills for Fat Loss
Mental Training Drills for Muscle Building
Mental Training Drills for Gaining Skills
Entering the Flow State

SECTION 4
Word for Word Transcripts of Mental Training Drills with Clients including the Results They
Experienced

Bibliography

Efficiency?

IronMan Editor Peary Rader's Note: Intensity training may be defined differently by various lifters but all agree that it is an advanced system which can and does produce increased results. Without intensity of application of both the mind and the muscles, advanced development is very unlikely. Too many men fail because they will not discipline themselves in the application of intensity training. In IronMan we continually emphasize the need for intensity of application.

This first of a series of articles will deal mainly with correcting the mistakes most of you fellows have been making in your workout schedules. What I am going to try to outline for you is the PROPER way to use your training time so such time is not wasted but instead utilized for your utmost physical benefit.

I'll begin by asking you a simple question.

Why are you exercising with weights?

Is it not to gain in physical size and strength? Are you not trying to make your muscle size increase and your strength along with it? And if the answer is "yes" to both these questions then why do you waste so much time during your routines? Do you think you can "wish" your muscles to respond without any effort on your part?

Well, if you do, you're greatly mistaken. Sometimes you have to grab your muscles by the neck and force them to grow. And how do you do this? For one thing, you DON'T train six days weekly for three hours each day using light pumping movements. You can accomplish just as much by training no more than twice per week around two hours each workout. And I am NOT speaking about Nautilus style training here. I KNOW these machines are MUCH too expensive for you to afford (myself included), and not too many gyms currently carry them.

No. the kind of workouts I intend to outline for you require simple, basic equipment and either a store bought or homemade POWER RACK. And even the rack is not ABSOLUTELY necessary. But it does afford you the safety of doing heavy partial repetitions without spotters. Power rack training is the most severe training I know of and I intend in the near future to dedicate an article or two to such training procedures.

[Here are some of them. You may find more on this blog.]

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2015/04/rack-training-for-massive-muscle-size_21.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2014/02/rack-training-for-size-anthony-ditillo.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2008/03/power-look-what-it-is-and-how-to-get-it.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2011/11/look-of-power-part-two-anthony-ditillo.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2009/11/thoughts-on-power-rack-anthony-ditillo.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2008/12/shoulder-and-trapezius-mass-anthony.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2008/11/shoulder-size-power-anthony-ditillo.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2008/09/rack-training-revisited-anthony-ditillo.html

http://ditillo2.blogspot.ca/2008/06/anthony-ditillo-size-increases-with.html

Proper training for muscle size and strength improvement requires no more than two workouts per week. No matter what you may have been told to the contrary, you only need two workouts a week for steady improvement. The difference between two workouts a week and six lies within the intensity and severity of each workout. There should be no "wasted sets" and "saving energy on this set for the next one." Each set must be worked into the ground.

Also, the weights used must be heavy enough so "pumping" cannot come into play. Muscle shaping movements may be employed but they are NOT necessary.

Rest between sets must be kept at a bare minimum because the secret of continuous muscle growth lies within the amount of work you can perform, using the heaviest weight, within the shortest time.

There is no need to perform "cooling off" sets, since these waste your time, deplete your energy and do not increase your development or strength. To properly warm up a muscle does NOT mean to waste twenty minutes on light sets which will only tire you out. It does mean, however, that you should perform perhaps two sets of medium reps with a medium to heavy weight to get yourself prepared physically and emotionally for the work to come. Too many of you, myself included, are following outmoded training methods which are doing next to nothing as far as increasing our development or strength. And to try to make my point I'll use an example for you.

We all know how result-producing 20-rep squats can be. I mean, all the champs and trainers of yesteryear have written about them at one time or another. The real secret to 20-rep squatting is the intensity and severity that one puts into that ONE SET. Such squatting is not accomplished by using a light weight and merely pumping out 20 quick reps. Here is the way you squat for gaining the most in the shortest possible time:

Take one warmup set with a fairly light weight and squat 20 times with one or two breaths between each repetition. Begin the first few reps squatting only halfway down and as the repetitions progress squat lower and lower until you are hitting rock bottom (as low as comfortable given your current flexibility). If balance and forward lean is a problem use weightlifting shoes with a heel or a thin block of wood under the heels.

After this warmup set rest for between two and five minutes.

NOW, load your bar with a weight you can PARALLEL squat with for five repetitions. You should perform as many parallel squats as you possibly can. When you feel like the next rep will be your last, stand there with the bar on your back and catch your breath and concentrate! If you can't go all the way down cut the rep a little short, just enough so you can get back up. Keep breathing between reps, concentrating, and forcing yourself until you fall to the bottom after you bend your knees trying to descend. This "collapse" would terminate the set (although if you're a glutton for punishment you could include at this point a few attempts at rising out of the bottom). Then and only then should your spotters remove the weight from your shoulders, or if you train alone in the rack, at that point you should allow the pins to take the strain of the weight and slip out from underneath it.

As you can plainly see by the above description, such training will not require much time. And more than three times a week on such training would definitely be overworking for the vast majority of trainers. When you work each set in a routine to the maximum, you can't use and do not need to use many sets or many exercise movements.

This type of intensive workout is a boon to the beginner and the underweight. Also, the busy working man, who does not have many available nights or hours to train, will definitely continue to progress on such a routine. So, as you can see, both the underweight and the working men can progress on only two training days a week and depending on their level of available training energy, the workout should last between 1.5 to 2 hours.

I mention "level of available training energy" because it IS possible for some men to overtrain mentally on such a short but extremely severe routine. And while these fellows are for the most part in the minority, I still feel I should also help them in improving their training routines and conserving nervous energy. For you men who either cannot or will not as of yet work each set into the ground, here is the present routine and training theory I am presently on.

Place the bar for bench pressing in the power rack and set it so that when you squeeze under it, it is just barely grazing your chest when in the same position you would assume had you lowered the bar from the top. Slide under the bar and perform 2 sets of bench presses from the bottom position using medium weight for 5 to 7 reps. This is the warmup. Now jump the weight so that you CANNOT POSSIBLY perform more than 5 repetitions with such weight and force out as many reps as you can. Now, on the last possible rep, as you are lowering the bar back down to your chest, HOLD and support it momentarily in midair until it literally FALLS down onto the pins of the power rack at chest height. Finally, before ending the set, try now to do PARTIAL repetitions until it is impossible for the bar to be moved at all. THIS WOULD CONSTITUTE ONE SET!

How many of these sets do I perform?

Two, sometimes three. And when I can go through three such sets, I KNOW it is time to increase the weight. I do TWO such workouts per week using ONE movement per bodypart, sometimes two. I definitely cannot recuperate for a third weekly workout.

I feel only your mind and your previous mental conditioning can hold you back from "the ultimate routine" and I have much work ahead of me undoing all the mistakes I have picked up from so-called experts in all my past years of training.

In future articles, I will deal with the problems I know you men will be facing in trying to formulate the proper routines for yourselves.

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Anthony Ditllo Letter to Ken Leistner

Before we get started on this, here's a book that's out today.

An absurdly funny memoir.

"Unparalleled wit!"

"Heartfelt Candor!"

Say no more. Nudge nudge.

Okay then. This is from late '79, early '80.

One of the more interesting letters I have received of late came from Anthony Ditillo. I have to think that every reader knows of Tony. He has written for Iron Man for many years, authored two very fine books on proper training, and has had some of his work appear in PL-USA this past year. I have long held that if nothing else, Mr. Ditillo is one very unique individual. His articles are always interesting and most often thought provoking. From his bulking routine to his infamous "Mr. Body Weight Control" article, he has endured over time and is today a very important contributor to the many publications.

Note: His articles appeared in PLUSA July, August, September, October 1979 and February, March, April, May of 1980.

I felt that my reply to his letter, only because it covered such a wide variety of ares, was suitable for this month's column. My reply . . .

It was with much surprise and delight that I received your letter today. It isn't every day that someone of your knowledge writes. I have read your articles since you first started writing for Iron Man (what, 12 years ago?), and have always enjoyed your no-nonsense, load the bar approach.

Note: Ditillo's first Iron Man article, "Simplicity: Key to Great Gains" - January 1968.

I'll try to give reasonable answers to some of your inquiries. Perhaps it will also help a number of others with the same questions.

I think it's unfortunate that your business doesn't allow you to get to many (make that any) meets, as I'm sure that many fans would like to speak to you. Some may not care for your physique or emphasis on sheer power and mass, but it can't be denied: You're probably the best exponent and finest example of what you preach. Yeah, I know how it is to scramble for the buck and can appreciate what limitations it places on your involvement in the competitive arena.

Your experience with Bill Starr parallels almost everyone else's. I think that Bill, many years ago, paid for his belief that one should speak the truth regarding drugs and other ergogenic aids. As you found, he always took the time to give you straight answers and that has meant a lot to the game. remember that he was one of the first to reveal that the lifters actually took steroids! It opened up things, for better or for worse, but at least for equality for all lifters.

Your experiences, I feel are typical, regarding the bench press. Often, and I've done this myself in the past, one will do a number of "assistance" exercises to work the bench, but not bench at all during that period of time. More specifically, they will overhead press very, very heavy, and do some partial standing presses in the rack. They then get on a bench and find that their bench press has jumped 60 pounds or so, after a short time on the "other" work. "Hell, if my bench press goes up without benching, well, it should go berserk if I start doing them regularly." What they'll most often do is add a day or two of benching to the routine and

https://www.metacritic.com/movie/lo-and-behold-reveries-of-the-connected-world

Yes, lo and behold, their bench gets wasted. They wind up overworking the area, often get injured, and invariably degenerate (at least in terms of the bench press). The other approach is to drop the other pressing and just bench, also with less than expected results.

Your statement that the partial press (standing) in the rack is the best means for "developing muscle mass all over in the shoulder, trap, upper pec, and triceps areas" is valid (for most) and indicates that one doesn't have to bench much to bench well. I've previously stated that the best way to get your bench up was to bench, but not too often. I also stated the overhead pressing and full range dips were the way to go, especially for those who, because of injury or personal dislike for the bench would not or could not bench more than once a week, every two weeks, or even once a month. Your experiences confirm this. I'd just take it to the limit on the other work and hit the bench every now and then (say three weeks before a meet for a competitive powerlifter, just to see where you stand. This is similar to Starr's DL approach (lots of cleans, pulls, shrugs and good mornings but no DL.)

Here:

http://ditillo2.blogspot.com/2018/09/no-deadlift-deadlift-routine-30-years.html

Your friend, Dezso Ban, is tough to argue with, regarding his belief that the secret, or key, to advanced training is a combination of "much work and hard work which will take many hours per week for long periods of time" is held by many, including the Bulgarians and hell, it's tough to argue with such a successful system, or at least I'm told it is.

But let's put this into a different perspective. For any program, or approach, to be considered successful, or result producing, it must produce certain minimal results for the average trainee and more accurately, the greater majority of the average trainees. The top men can do almost any, as long as they're working hard, and still beat everyone. A top bodybuilder, as well as Arthur Jones, recently stated that if the steroids were removed from the game of bodybuilding, the physiques might be less spectacular, but the winners would be the same. I have to agree with this. This is even truer in regards to the foreign athletes as they are handpicked and honed over many years, with little outside interference (things like going to work everyday, supporting a family). They are the cream of the crop.

To say that their particular training method was responsible for their success is not totally accurate. If you have noticed, and I'm sure you have, we've gone from the Polish system, to the Russian system, to the Bulgarian system. The common denominator is extremely hard work, harder than most men are willing to put out, at least in most gyms that I've been in. Time has little to do with it other than needing time for proper recuperation. The average man, meaning most men as our systems operate on the same physiological commandments, will respond better to very, very intense work, but common sense would dictate that this level of training could not be carried on very long, in terms of the individual workout, or the number or workouts over an extended period of time.

In watching and coaching many athletes, having taken part in some of the madness that went down in Lake Helen, Florida a number of years ago (for those who remember, I was the guy who fell off the ramp of the truck with the curl-triceps machine and had it land on me and then got up dazed but hysterically laughing, the result of four consecutive days without sleep) and priding myself on having an open mind if nothing else.

I honestly believe that working brutally hard (and it's tough to describe in words. You have to see it to understand it), not necessarily for "high reps" or using special machines, for brief periods (one hour to an hour and fifteen minutes should allow you to do all that is necessary over a limited period of time) before cutting back to a less severe level of training, will prove to be the most efficient, i.e., the most result producing method of training, for most trainees.

Again, some guys will grow on almost anything. I remember two incidents to illustrate this: Bill March had not lifted for a few months and decided on yet another comeback.

Whoa, Daddy!

He got all ticked off because he couldn't press a world record only three weeks after beginning his routine. He responded that quickly and the method of his training really didn't matter. He could train "conventionally" or on his power rack and because he could and would train hard, and had lots of proper genetics, he grew. Casey Viator, a man that could, I feel, break any number of powerlifting records if he so desired, once leaned over to me during a workout and said,

"Hey Ken, you know what?"

He dropped his voice to a whisper and said, "I can hear myself growing."

And let me tell you, he probably could and would have no matter how he trained as long as he trained hard! And for these fortunates, who also happen to be our world and national champions, almost any amount of work will suffice.

Ask Fitton about the extent of Pengelly's routine. As I understand it, and if I'm mistaken then it's an honest mistake, he comes into the gym after a very arduous day as a roofer, loads the bar and squats his rear off, benches half the gym and walks out. A few days later, he'll wander in, covered with tar, load the platform bar, and do a few very, very heavy DLs. That's it. One, he's working very hard and heavy in terms of working near his momentary limit, and two, especially in light of having to work every day, as most of us mortals do, he gets lots of time for recuperation, perhaps the most important factor, after intensity of work, for the aspiring power champ.

As far as drug use is concerned, you've read my comments before. Most of the top guys use them in some form. Some don't or claim not to and I won't argue with anyone. It's a personal decision. Most guys who use injectables, use an oral agent concurrently and the doses vary widely. In regards to the individual you mentioned, your information is wrong. He used closer to 12 cc per week of depo. The oral dose you quoted is close, but perhaps on the light side. And no, additional bodyweight will not alter the physiological effect; steroid use will not initiate a fat burning mechanism in the body, not to the best of my knowledge.

Let's face it. The top guys have been at it for years and it takes years of consistent intensely hard workouts, staying injury free to maintain that consistency, and the proper parents (in terms of inheriting the genetic potential to make it) to get to the top and stay there.

Not much to add at this time. Stay in touch. Hope some of this stuff helps.

Sunday, September 11, 2016

Olympic Assistance Movements to Increase Powerlifting Proficiency - Anthony Ditillo (1979)

First Published in this Issue

Note: Here's a little something of interest from the same issue, tucked away in a small paragraph between advertisements -

One of Tony Ditillo's training partners is Dezso Ban, a Hungarian immigrant, who at 50 years of age and a bodyweight of 195 -

Full squatted Olympic style (leg biceps on calves, high bar placement, standard width foot placement) 445 for 10 sets of 3 reps with no wraps.

Front squatted 445 x 5 (Olympic style).

Stiff Legged Deadlifts with 582 for 2 sets of 2 at the end of his pulling workout.

He once pulled and shrugged (from above the knee) 940 x 3.

Tony has also heard some rumors about Dave Rigert:

Clean grip high pulls for 3's with 650 and full back squats (Oly style) for 3's with 625.

Also, Enaldiev [sic], the Russian Super, has reportedly squatted Olympic style 1005!

Here is a great interview with Aslenbek Yenaldiev, as well as other info:

http://www.chidlovski.net/liftup/a_aslanbek_yenaldiev.asp

And . . . I found another very small, almost unnoticeable Bench routine hidden in the back of the same issue (Aug 79):

A reader from England, Michael Thompson, developed a good bench press routine based on a Russian Press routine from the 1960s.

Bench 3 times weekly for 12 weekly work sets.

Monday:

3 reps, 3 reps, 2 reps, 3 reps.

Wednesday:

3, 2, 2, 1.

Friday:

2, 3, 1, 1.

Increase weight between sets. Try to add 5 lbs. throughout at the beginning of each week, and when it gets tough only add to the initial sets if necessary.

Example:

Monday -

200 x 3

210 x 3

220 x 2

230 x 2

Wednesday -

210 x 3

220 x 2

230 x 2

240 x 1

Friday -

220 x 2

230 x 2

240 x 1

250 x 1

When stale on the above, go to this workout, which should milk out another 10-15 lbs:

Monday -

5, 3, 3.

Wednesday -

2, 2.

Friday -

1, 1 (two singles).

Once again, you strive for the 5 lb. per set increase each week.

Once you learn to determine the appropriate starting weights it all makes sense.

And works!

Lifters can tend to select poundages that are too high when using this type of layout. Figure out what you believe to be the correct starting weights, then start with less than that. What's that line . . . "You don't build the roof first . . ." Something like that.

Okay, on to the Anthony Ditillo article:

How to Use Olympic Assistance Movements for Improving Powerlifting Proficiency

Article #1: The Squat

by Anthony Ditillo (1979)

I am positive the reason for so many injuries today in our sport is the fact that most powerlifters do not use assistance movements correctly to insure complete muscle activity and improved conditioning of the major muscle groups used in the three powerlifts. A powerlifter needs more than power squats to insure continued progress and few injuries; this is especially true as he progresses from beginner to intermediate stage in his lifting progress.

If squatting is done twice weekly, Olympic Full Squats, with bar in front and/or back of neck could be employed on either ONE of these training days or at the end of BOTH squatting sessions. If you choose to do them on both days, light weight and medium repetitions (3to 5) should be employed.

We include Full Squats in our powerlifting training because in order to obtain greater and greater gains in power, the ENTIRE thigh area as well as glutes - hips - calves - MUST used and therefore strengthened, and you can't do this by using ONLY parallel "hip" squats. By Olympic squatting we mean an upright torso, bar HIGH on traps, thighs folding completely over on calves at the bottom position. You'll be surprised how little weight you can use when you begin implementing this movement. By persisting, within a few months, rapid increase in thigh development as well as overall squatting power shall be yours. And POWER is the name of the game, isn't it?

Let's try and outline an example squat routine:

Day One -
Power Squat:
Heavy singles with 90% of limit (limit being 500 lbs.) - 450
50% (250) x 1 x 10 reps
60% (300) x 1 x 7
80% (400) x 1 x 4-5
90% (450) x 3 singles
85% / 75% / 65% for 3 backoff sets, reps as comfortably as possible.

Day Two (Medium Light Day) -
Olympic Full Squats (as described above):
135 x 10
205 x 5
255 x 5
305 x 5
355 x 3 sets of 3 reps working over time to 3 sets of 5.
Remember, I'm talking about Olympic squats here. When 355 for 3 sets of 5 becomes easy increase to 400 and begin with 3 x 3 and once again work up to 3 x 5.

After these 3 sets of 5's are done you can reduce to 205 and knock out a few sets of 10 if you have the energy available. Don't believe that the less you do, the more you can - because it's just NOT true. I'm sure, if you include full Olympic back squats in your routine and give them a chance to show you what they can do for you, you'll NEVER regret you did!

The front squats could be included during the off season when you're not competing and they can also be done as a separate workout in themselves or after a power squat workout. This choice is yours.

A friend of mine and present 275 lb. champ at this year's Juniors, Dave Shaw, used to do Olympic squats. Then another champ told him to "drop the bar lower on the traps, widen your stance, use super wraps, etc." Well, Dave has had nothing but problems ever since, in the way of leg injuries. Needless to say, he is back to adding the full Olympic squats to his training!

Next: Tony Ditillo on assistance movements for the Bench Press, and a letter from 1970 Jon Cole sent Ken Leistner describing his training at the time. Oh yeah, also a few paragraphs by Dr. Ken on the technique and the importance of strength. Actually I might as well put those two shorter Ken Leistner things here now :

Ken Leistner -

No doubt about it, technique in anything will be absolutely necessary, but it's difficult to "technique" a very heavy weight off the floor [I love that last line! Worth reading a second and third time, isn't it.] Olympic lifters delight in telling about the exploits of Rick Holbrook. You may recall that he held a number of American records in The Lifts and was a snatcher par excellence. He may have looked like a basketball player, and no doubt this contributed to everyone's attitude that he lifted so well due to superior technique (and make no bones about it, he did have superior technique), but these same people tend to forget that he was also stronger than all hell!

Watch Rigert lift sometime. His form or technique is far from excellent. In fact, I've heard some of your so-called Olympic lifting experts say that his form is really lacking in many phases of his lifts, and yet, I believe it is safe to say that he has been, pound-for-pound, the greatest lifter to ever grace the platform. "Man, if he had better form, can you imagine what he'd do?" I think not. The attitude seems to be that he lifts well IN SPITE of his form. Perhaps he lifts well precisely BECAUSE of his form. More specifically, perhaps rounding a bit, etc. allows him to best exert his STRENGTH in the most efficient manner in accordance with his individual body leverages.

I was fortunate enough to see about 20 minutes of Rigert training in Manila prior to the 1974 World Championships. At one point, with approximately 474 on the bar. He backed off the rack for a push press with it (right, a push press), and one of the plates slid toward the end of the bar. He just stood there, waited for a colleague to slide the plate back on, grinned, and shot the weight up. He also did a few back squats, a double or a triple as I recall, with 600 and change, perfect form, rock bottom, pause, and up.

Now, you can tell me about form for the rest of your days, but don't try to tell me that it's not his incredible STRENGTH that allows this man to lift as he does.

We have many lifters whose form is every bit as good as the Eastern athletes. They're just not very strong in comparison to them and that, as it is said, is the bottom line when it comes to moving a very heavy weight.

As it was, the comments greeting me at a meet I recently lifting in were something else. "Imagine what he'd do if he had any technique." Well, yes, I'd do a whole lot better, but being stronger than anyone else in the class certainly helped. So when Olympic lifters put down Powerlifters remember where the source lies in the barbell sports, laugh inside, and walk away.

I have a 1970 letter from Jon Cole describing in detail his training procedures at the time. As I have yet to see anything on him in PL USA yet, I thought I would share it [a lot of this strange and otherworldly not-for-dollars "sharing" thing went on back then]. This is how it went in preparation for his performance at the 1970 Seniors . . .

Jon trained Tuesdays and Saturdays in the following manner:

Bench -
225 x 8, 350 x 5, 400 x 3, 500 x 1, 1 rep with maximum, 475 x 2 sets of 2.

Squat -
335 x 8, 425 x 5, 515 x 3, 605 x 1, 700 x 1, 750 x 1, 1 rep with maximum, 700 x 2.

This was followed by Calf Raises (3 x 30 reps), Curls and Triceps Extensions (5 x 5 each, working up to 200 lbs.) and finishing with Wrist Curls for 5 x 5.

On Saturdays he added the Deadlift to the above program, working up to maximum poundage for a single. He stated that he stressed the lower reps on the lifts in order to build the connective tissue strength, and confidence needed to lift the really big weights. Sorry, but that's all the information I can offer on Jon. Will get something to you later.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

An Intermediate Mass Program - Anthony Ditillo

Bruce Randall, 1979

An Intermediate Mass Program
by Anthony Ditillo

During the past eight or nine years of writing for Iron Man magazine I have received many letters from aspiring trainees, all seeking physical improvement in one form or another. By far, the most popular subject on the minds of most young men is the increase of muscle size and all over body mass and power. The routine I am going to outline presently is in direct response to these letters.

This routine is NOT for the advanced man. He would never respond to the amount of work I’m going to advise herein. Being advanced necessitates diversity in performance and volume of work as well as tightening up the dietary schedule, since continued weight gain would NOT be desirable for the truly advanced man who has already gained sufficiently in basic bodyweight.

For the majority of beginners and intermediates, three total body workouts per week seems to be just about right. You will have two heavy days and one medium day, for variety and recuperation. On you two heavy days the movements are heavy and basic. The repetitions are kept low to enable you to use truly heavy weights to ensure mass gains. The first and second sets should be warmup sets. Sets three, four and five are to be performed with all the weight possible for the required reps. Rest no longer than one minute between sets. When sets three, four and five can be done fairly easily, add ten pounds to your upper body movements and twenty pounds to the lower body movements. The entire schedule consists of between twenty-five and thirty sets. Surely this much work can be finished within ninety minutes.

Wednesday’s workout consists of two strenuous freehand movements which will give the joints, ligaments and tendons time to fully stretch during performance and also greatly add to your conditioning and shape. The two sets of Full Squats will enable aerobic conditioning, as well as metabolic stimulation, which in turn will greatly intensify your ability and desire to assimilate protein and nutrients.

Use half your twenty-rep limit for set number one and go for broke on set number two. Do these (as well as the benches) using some type of safety rack or device. Stiff-legged deadlifts should be done lightly and performed fluently for a flushing throughout the entire lower back. It will also give you the lower back development of a gorilla, if you perfect its performance. Wednesday’s workout consists of approximately twenty sets and could be done in one hour, should you care to push it. You could superset the chins and dips to further flush the tissues and also, weight can be added to your own bodyweight as strength permits.

These routines are for the goal of adding muscle size, strength and power for the beginner and intermediate trainee. They are short because rest is necessary for the would-be strongman in order for complete recovery. Believe me, as you progress from intermediate to advanced you’ll have more than enough problems trying to find enough time and training energy to continue to gain. So why jump into this situation prematurely! Better to rest and grow.

As far as nutrition is concerned, I feel a well-rounded diet consisting of fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grain cereals, eggs, fish, poultry and meats, adding on milk and milk products should do nicely for the average fellow. A basic protein powder mixed with skim milk, a few soft-boiled eggs, peanut butter, bananas and a choice of flavoring should work if one is desperate to put on a few pounds.

Finally, I encourage you to believe in yourself and in your actions. For your actions make you what you are and your dreams and plans are possible future actions. Remake yourself continuously.

Monday & Friday (heavy days)

Press Behind Neck – 5 sets of 5-7 reps.
Bentover Barbell Row – 5 sets of 8-10 reps.
Barbell Curl – 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
Lying Triceps Press – 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
Half Squat – 5 sets of 8-10 reps.

On your off days, do four or five sets of calf raises and light abdominal work.

Wednesday (medium day)
Dips – 4-5 bodyweight sets doing all the reps you can.
Chins – the same as dips.
Full Squats – 2 sets of 20 reps as described.
Stiff-Legged Deadlift – 2 sets of 10-15 reps using light to medium weight.

Anyone interested in a personal routine and diet should address all inquiries to Tony Ditillo, 145 Inslee Place, Elizabeth, New Jersey, 09206. Please enclose ten dollars money order to cover cost, time, postage, etc.

Thursday, December 15, 2016

An Example of My Training Approach - Anthony Ditillo

When deciding just what type of bulk and power routine you are going to use, you sooner or later will have to come up against the following question: What number of sets and repetitions is best for gaining bulk and power?

You see, you are not going to be the only one who has ever asked such a question. No, for surely this question is one of the most commonly asked by all beginners. The real problem here is that since we all are basically different, then it seems natural and logical to assume that sometimes what will work for one will not work for another. Some fellows will be able to use a certain number of sets and reps and for them it will be the answer to their prayers.

However, you or I might try the same routine and for us, we not only would we fail to gain, but we might actually lose in the process! This is what makes it so hard to deal with this problem. There are just too many different kinds of men for us to be able to use any one certain set rule to govern repetitions and sets in lifting exercises. There are too many variables involved within this problem for us to come up with any clear cut answer for everyone once they're out of the beginner stage. And it's too bad we can't, for this would make it very easy for us indeed, to decide just what it is we should do. This would take al of the guesswork out of it.

But we would also take away THE INDIVIDUALITY of the 'man at work' so to speak. The right for us to choose, competently, comprehensively, and most of all, logically; this most assuredly would be done away with. We would become so bored with the same dull and drab training routine, using the same set scheme of sets and repetitions that in the long run most of us would give up training anyway. So you see, it is actually good for us to have to choose among so many different, possible schedules of sets and repetitions. This way we will enjoy more interesting training periods and in the long run will develop quite a bit of a training background and have interesting memories and topics to discuss with out friends and those who are interested in physical culture.

However, setting aside the idealistic attitude involved within our problem of selecting sets and repetitions in order to achieve our aims, we will have to use as a basis for our choice the experiences of ourselves and others we know and read about, and how we ourselves react to certain sets and reps and how others have reacted also. [Mr. Ditillo seemed to have a real desire to write long, winding sentences. Shortly after, well, a couple years after first being drawn to his stuff, I set out to find some of the 'outer reaches' of authors who did likewise. No, not jokers who intentionally wrote some very long sentences with the length as the actual goal. Writers who chose to write very long sentences, used semicolons repeatedly in single sentences and . . . you get the idea of what I was looking for. At the far reaches I came up with Sri Aurobindo, born 1872, died 1950, which gave him plenty of time to write these long and winding sentences. Because he dealt with mysticism and the philosophy of spiritual evolution his choice of very lengthy snaking sentences proved to be the perfect match for what he was trying to share with his readership. This guy can take you, in the space of a sentence that runs on for two or three pages, so far into your own head that it often becomes questionable if he's ever going to help you come back. And that, my friends, is the joy of running a blog that takes on absolutely no for-profit adverts or like promotions. The author can just ramble on and get lost following a tangential flight plan whenever he or she so desires. Seriously, Mr. Ditillo did have a penchant for the longish sentences.]

Basically, though, past the beginner stages the only trainer you can trust in handling your personal training problems is yourself. [This was written well before the personal trainer/coach business of idolatry blossomed out and became what it is now. If you has money you has to haves a personal trainer/coach or you simply is not reaching your maximum progresses, eh. Written long before nonprofessional lifting (read 'hobby') became the somewhat perverted for-profit fiasco it now is. Or might be, depending on how you perceive things. Personally, I've always perceived 'fiasco' to be a word of the highest order.]

However, to carry on before I'm rudely interrupted once more, what I am getting at is this: Only you know exactly how your body responds toward a certain type of exercise and only you can logically determine just what kind of workout will benefit you the most. So, in a sense, you are your own best trainer. But since you are most likely not yet an expert in the field of physical culture when it comes to the best form of training for your own specific goals, you will have to look everywhere for quite some time in order to find the suitable information you need. It can be done over time, and with perseverance, consistency and adequate keeping of records you will become your own best coach and trainer.

And after all that . . . here is a good example of one of Anthony Ditillo's favorite style routines:

I, myself, have a definite opinion as to how my body adjusts to to various stimuli (in this case the stimuli would be reps and sets).

I have found that I gain in bulk and power most readily when I use four training periods per week.

I perform one pressing movement, one pulling movement, and one squatting movement each workout.

I do not perform the same movement two days in a row.

For example:

Monday -

Bench Press

Bentover Rowing

Full Squat

Tuesday -

Seated Press

Curl

Half Squat

Thursday -

Floor Press

Bentover Rowing

Deadlift

Friday -

Seated Half Press

Curl

High Deadlift in Rack

And there you have a perfect example of the type of training routine I seem to thrive on. As for the sets and repetitions I perform, my schedule usually looks like this:

A) First set use 5 reps with 50% of 1-rep max.

B) 5 to 7 singles using 90% of 1-rep max.

C) One set of as many reps as possible with 75% of 1-rep max.

For me, this type of routine has always been most gratifying. I have gained the most bulk and power ever, using this type of routine.

Now, I cannot positively tell you that if you perform the same routine you will gain also; this is because of many possible things. For instance, suppose you did not particularly like my type of routine but decided to try it nonetheless. Why, your mental attitude would cause you to fail in obtaining results right from the very beginning. You did not want to follow my type of routine in the first place, so it would be foolish of you, indeed, to expect outstanding results with this type of mental attitude.

However, there is also the possibility that such a routine would either be too fatiguing (or not severe enough) for your particular system to accept it as being good. Such a routine might cause you to become too fat and on the other hand it might also cause you to not gain at all.

So you see, you can use my sets and repetitions as examples for your future training routines but you cannot and should not consider (once past the beginner stages) any information you receive from me or from anyone else as being completely correct and true as far as everyone else is concerned, for this would be a grave mistake. For by taking such an attitude of blind acceptance you would be denying yourself the ability to think, to decipher, and to decide. You would become a robot able to perform only the tasks which are computed into your brain.

----- Okay, the obvious question about that routine above. Full Squat on Monday followed by Half Squat on Tuesday. Regular Deadlift on Thursday followed by Rack Pull on Friday. You can't do that and still gain!

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Intensity Training for Better Gains - Anthony Ditillo (1977)

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Anthony Ditllo Letter to Ken Leistner

Sunday, September 11, 2016

Olympic Assistance Movements to Increase Powerlifting Proficiency - Anthony Ditillo (1979)

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

An Intermediate Mass Program - Anthony Ditillo

Thursday, December 15, 2016

An Example of My Training Approach - Anthony Ditillo

Friday, October 23, 2026

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