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02.17.06

NEWS!

Olympic Gold Medalist, Butch Reynolds, travels to New Jersey to learn NFL Combine test-taking techniques!

Butch Reynolds

Olympic Gold Medalist in the 400-meters & current speed coach to the Ohio State University football team, Butch Reynolds, spent the weekend in New Jersey to learn our world-renowned football Combine test-taking techniques. Butch also worked with our athletes and refined their top-speed sprinting mechanics. (Can you think of anyone better to teach you how to run?) We were honored to have Butch work with our guys and we were glad to provide him with some insight on training his Ohio State Buckeye’s for the NFL Combine & Ohio State’s Pro Day. Look for DeFranco’s to team up with Butch in the future!

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FREAK SHOW!

Miles Austin re-writes the DeFranco’s record board before leaving for the NFL Combine!

Miles Austin

After running a 4.41-second 40-yard dash on Monday (improving from 4.59), Miles finished his final week of intense training before leaving for the NFL Combine with a bang! On Friday, he weighed in at a shredded 219 ¾ lbs. (down from 240) and he broke the following 2 records in our College Athlete (under 220 lb.) division…

VERTICAL JUMP RECORD!

Miles on his way up to a 43” vertical jump!

225 lb. bench press test record!

Miles benching 225 lbs. 23 times!

*Special thanks to Dave Tate of Elitefts.com for providing us with the above pictures during his recent visit to our facility. Dave also provided our athletes & staff with some great knowledge and advice on our strength training program.

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Q: Joe,

I recently heard your interview on T-Nation.com Radio and I was intrigued by your thoughts on grip training. I’m currently on your WS4SB routine (2 upper body days & 1 lower body day), but I’m interested in improving my grip specifically and my overall muscularity.  I’m also willing to buy any grip equipment (within reason) that you recommend.

Thanks for providing us with the best training website on the web coach!

Donnie
Brooklyn, NY

 A: Donnie,

I’m glad you enjoyed my t-nation audio interview. For those of you that haven’t heard it, you can go to t-nation.com, click on Media & Art, then click on T-Nation Radio and you will find my interview. In the interview I talk about how I feel that specific grip training is the missing link to most “normal” people’s training. Grip training is most often associated with the training of wrestlers, baseball players, strongmen & powerlifters.

You rarely see guys that are just looking to get “jacked” perform any specific grip work. Simply put, when your grip improves, you will be able to handle more weight in every single upper body exercise, as well as many lower body exercises. Obviously, if you can handle heavier weights for more reps, this will contribute to hypertrophy gains. Also, your forearms are the most prominent muscle that is shown every time you wear a t-shirt (unless you’re from New Jersey and you shop at Baby Gap so your t-shirt is 10X too small!) Anyway, here’s a sample training template to build Popeye-like forearms & grip strength, which will directly improve overall hypertrophy gains.

  • MONDAY – Max-Effort Upper body, (abs at end of workout)
  • TUESDAY – Lower body, grip training (support strength)
  • THURSDAY – Rep Upper body (abs at end of workout)
  • FRIDAY – Full grip/forearm workout

On Tuesdays, I would perform 3 sets of a “supporting” grip strength exercise after your leg workout. We usually perform thick barbell holds (with a pronated grip) or we hold the Blockbuster pinch grip blocks from Ironmind.com. Perform 3 sets for a max time. Try to break a record every week and change exercises every 2-3 weeks.

Ryan Gibbons

Pictured above is 1st Team All-Atlantic 10 offensive tackle, Ryan Gibbons of Northeastern, finishing a recent workout with Ironmind’s Blockbuster pinch grip blocks. The 6’06”, 320-pounder has been improving his grip strength for his future in the NFL! (Not that any offensive lineman would ever think about holding anyone…)

Here’s a sample Friday workout:

  1. Alternate hammer curls – 4 sets of 6 each arm
  2. Captains of Crush Gripper – 4-5 sets of 5-8 reps (choose an appropriate level that enables you to complete the prescribed set/rep scheme.)
  3. Wrist roller – 3 sets of 2 reps (up/down equals 1 rep) *Our 2 favorite wrist rollers are One Wicked Wrist Roller & Twist Yo’ Wrist. Both wrist rollers can be purchased from Ironmind.com.

There is your simple, inexpensive workout/equipment recommendation to improve your grip & forearm strength.

Get ready to grow!

Joe D.

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Q: Coach DeFranco,

What post-workout shake are you currently recommending to your athletes? There are so many out there I don’t know which one to choose.

Dillon

A: Dillon,

We are currently recommending that most of our athletes mix 4 scoops of CytoGainer by CytoSport in water. This makes for a great post-workout shake because it is loaded with carbohydrates & protein, low in fat and it actually tastes very good and it doesn’t make you feel like crap after you’re done drinking it. One serving of CytoGainer provides the following:

  • Calories: 620
  • Total Fat: 5g
  • Total Carbohydrates: 80g
  • Sugars: 5g
  • Protein: 56g

Once the MoJoe bars hit the market, we will start developing our own post-workout super-shake!

Joe D.

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