Jim Clair

@TheMattSeaton @specialedge_ @Degen_CPA New cheat code unlocked.

@FindJimClair @specialedge_ @Degen_CPA I let it roll all the way down my back onto the floor. I can now squat infinite weight.

what powerlifting has done to squating via the low bar back squat can never be forgiven.

@specialedge_ @Degen_CPA To maximize the lift let the bar roll down more so you can lift more weight, total cheat code executed perfectly. No clickbait in the original post detected.

@FindJimClair @Degen_CPA Extremely low bar squat

Most people conflate "big" with either bodybuilders or massive powerlifters, when that is .0000001% of general lifters. I was lean and toned at 195 and focused on wellness, but my overall health is vastly superior now with more mass. I travel better, I handle sickness better, the muscle mass helps.

@FindJimClair Great narrative. Been at SS for just 2 mo, and i am a changed man. Don't understand the American obsession with being bigger. Why not the lean & toned physique especially for older folks focussed on optimum wellness?

I recently started training at a bodybuilding gym. I used to train at a famous bodybuilding gym just outside of Denver for nearly 10 years. Then the last 6 or so years I was at Starting Strength Denver, then SS Boise, until we moved back to CO. First, I loved that old bodybuilding gym, I was there consistently for years. I was 195-200lbs BW the whole time. I was super lean, usually around 10-12% bf, abs - essentially the ideal according to many fitness personalities and corners on here. I got a few hello's and knew some of the guys and gals, but mainly it was just because I was there a lot over the years. I never did any impressive lifts. I dated a gal for a bit who competed in the bikini division. I was consistent. But I was probably known as that guy who skipped rope after a workout, This gym also had a ton of other people training, pro athletes, BJJ and MMA athletes, runners, strongmen, powerlifters, and so on. I left when I started Starting Strength in late 2019. At SS I went from 195lbs up to 262.4lbs BW. My squat PR 645, Deadlift 655, Bench 382.5, Strict Press 222.5. I'm currently at the tail end of a cut, I'm 232.8. And I'm a new dad. Despite what a lot of people claim with certainty wha SS can't do or why deadlifts and squats are trash for hypertrophy, I went from no traps to traps with DL, squats grew my legs and a lot of my back, and press and bench, plus accessories grew my arms. Big fitness accounts on here claim those lifts are pure trash, but they fundamentally changed my physique and my physical health. At the new gym, the clientele is much of the same as the old bodybuilding gym. What shocked me is instantly the amount of respect thrown my way. I always he fist bumps, introductions, and I get competitive bodybuilders asking about my leg routine. One even asked on my traps. I have BJJ and MMA guys asking me questions on how I do my squats and deadlifts for form tips. Runners, climbers, bodybuilders, etc. all throw the respect. The powerlifters ask questions, they know of Rip and SS but only the basic NLP and are intrigued with my accessory exercises and rep schemes on regular lifts. The bros are way more social, even the young guys. I'm not lifting anything crazy with my program tailored to my cut and being a new dad. I did hit a volume PR at this bodyweight on dynamic squats (slow down, fast up, 90-120 seconds of rest between sets) , 500lbs for 8 sets of 2. My deadlifts are in the low mid 500s, keeping it easy. Upper body work is mainly accessory, banded and block work, various press schemes. But after being away from a bodybuilding gym for years, and from most big box gyms, and seeing fitness twitter dump all over barbell training, how trash it is, how you can only get fat or break your back on it - it was what I saw. I knew it wasn't reality. When I walked into this gym, I expected to just be the guy for a few months there who trained before the home gym was built. I got the opposite. The nods, the fist bumps, the ball busting, the questions, the "damn that's strong" from the guys. I never expected to get asked for tips and advice either. It made me realize the dudes trashing barbell training on here are complete wimp weirdos with personal fitness insecurities mixed in with their cluelessness. Also they fear a lot. The whole "no man should be more than 200lbs" crowd tells on themselves. At 232 I know I have way more of a presence than 195 with no traps. I get way more respect. And in a good gym, it doesn't resemble the trash talking on here. The respect is everywhere for guys who put in the work and do it well. It's an unwritten bond that happens. It's wild to see the spite on here but great to see it's the opposite in the real world with the dedicated fitness bros.

@dan_morrisett @Michael_Druggan It worked miracles for me with my shoulder and my back. That's me, but I know it helped some others. And congrats on the 3 week old! My daughter is now 3 months old.

@FindJimClair @Michael_Druggan Interesting, thanks. I’ve always been afraid to press with my shoulder. Also, SS is 25 minutes from me I guess I should check them out. Although, have a 3 week old so my schedule is upside down at the moment

@Pointer_Chaser Thank you. Sam keeps trying to get me to come back. I miss it there.

@FindJimClair I miss having your articulate erudition and personal philosophy around here.

@Pointer_Chaser I never did BB contests, I was just lean. I looked like a different human lol. No traps, skinny neck, in shape but skinny. I sometimes still think I look like I'm 195, but when I see picture of me then, I wonder, "Who is that!?" And man, I miss Boise and Boise SS.

@FindJimClair Great post. But, knowing you from the Boise gym, I'm just stuck on trying to imagine you at 195, even if you had been doing BB contests. I just cut to 200, probably going to 190, but you have a dramatically larger build. You look like you were 185 at birth.🤪

@Jojobeef31 @RedactedDeGen @AJA_Cortes Bro, if you're over 200lbs and under 6'3" - automatically fat.

@RedactedDeGen @FindJimClair @AJA_Cortes lol this is what you have to say after reading his post?

@tigerjvideo BULK CLAIR

@FindJimClair GYM CLAIR

@wolfstrength @TimTimboFL This is right into the cut, maybe 5lbs down in this one. Somehow those 5lbs must have been pure fat.

Aside from the fact that he’s posted his lifts here multiple times, I don’t see where he said that he stayed lean. Unless I missed it. He said he gained a bunch of weight and strength, and now that he’s leaning out again at about 35-40 pounds heavier than he was when he stayed lean all the time like everyone says to, he is much bigger and gets way more attention and has more cred at his bodybuilding-specific gym because of it. He obviously didn’t get *fat* by any normal standard but I don’t think he or anyone would say he stayed lean exactly either. Point is, it’s almost like a combination of focusing primarily on driving up the big basic lifts and not being obsessed with being lean all the time is better in the long-term even if the goal is solely building muscle and not “powerlifting.”

@TheWillToToweR I was planning on it after this but had a tweak (I have an old L4/L5 injury) that happened traveling the week after. I was bummed, I was gonna go for it but decided to go for the cut because I was so sick of eating lol.

@FindJimClair Bet you could've done at least 20 more pounds in that deadlift! Moved faster than most second attempts at powerlifting meets

645 squat and 655 Deadlift at 262.5 BW:

@GhostWarrur LG!

@FindJimClair I’m a lifelong martial artist and have employed many methods of strength training over the course of my life but had never seriously or consistently used a barbell. Began the SS program 2 years ago at the age of 42. It fundamentally changed my body…like different organism. 💯

@dan_morrisett @Michael_Druggan Press, oddly enough, was the best thing for me.

@FindJimClair @Michael_Druggan I’ve also had some shoulder dislocations. Did you do any specific rehab that helped? I’m open to anything at this point.

@SS_Strength_CO Thanks man! It was a blast having you coach me.

@FindJimClair Coaching you for a few months was a blast. You are 1 of 1 bro!

@NotScott91549 It just opened recently, in the last few months.

@FindJimClair I've been to the glass shop there twice and never knew there was a gym there.

@NotScott91549 Arcane is great.

@FindJimClair I'm down the road from you. Any gym recommendations? PF is working for now, but looking for options.

@sam_gzstrength The Tesla Oak.

@FindJimClair His barrel chested ass could probably bench 405 if he trained right

@retailrefugee Hook grip for life!

655 w/ double overhand grip. Absolute monster.

@mastashredda 6'2"

@FindJimClair Impressive 💪 how tall are you?

@forcade_mi39238 Special place.

@FindJimClair And also the fitness culture in a good gym is second to none, everyone wants each other to do well. We all want to look good, feel good and live long healthy lives and the community is there to support you.