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Training
Training 4 to 5 days a week is usual with plenty jogging and fast walking on non-training
days. (Bruces house overlooks the Indian Ocean, being only 50 yards from the beach.)
The high dead lift work has been of great help in finishing heavy attempts, as the final
pull is the hardest for Bruce. He has never trained with the bar lower than 9 from the
floor or done stiff legged dead lifts. I noticed that the initial pull from the floor to knee
height was very strong and easy at all poundages.
The way Bruce improves his initial pull for the first few inches is to occasionally move a
very heavy bar just off the floor this weight being well in excess of his best dead lift.
This is the nearest to isometrics he uses.
Grip training is always of paramount importance and follows all dead lift workouts.
Chalk is used together with an ordinary reverse grip without hooking the thumbs, for all
poundages. Wrist straps, knee bandages or a lifting belt have never been used and Bruce
mentioned that he was firmly against any type of drugs for lifters. His grip training has
mostly consisted of lifting smooth sided barbell plates from the floor to waist level, and
pinch grip chinning.
A number of different and highly complicated programs have been followed over the
years, but here is Bruces current routine and it is a fairly simple one.
A limit single dead lift is attempted once every two weeks. Three days before a heavy
single day, Bruce does a medium heavy session of singles to prepare his muscles for an
all out effort.
No squats are being done now as they are omitted from any special dead lift program
such as the current one. Good mornings are done every second training day between limit
attempts. Three sets of five are performed bending over to parallel with as heavy a weight
as possible. On the day after a limit attempt workout, 2 light sets of 10 reps are used as a
sort of warming down session, as no further lifts are made of the day of the limit single
after the last attempt.
Bruce has tried continuous heavy training, but he found that staleness came too quickly,
while the present fort-nightly limits work very well. All training sessions are commenced
and concluded by an easy jog in preference to light barbell repetitions. A track suit is
always used for training, even in summer.
Before lifting a heavy weight, Bruce takes several deep breaths and then expels all the air
from his lungs as he bends over to grip the bar. Approach to the bar must be as physically
relaxed as possible but mentally steamed up. Lots of deep breathing helps Bruce achieve
this, and also lifting on empty lungs increases leverage and lowers internal pressure.
Although I trained with Bruce on a limit day, no attempt was made to conserve energy for
a TRUE limit attempt, as every set of full dead lifts was alternated with a set on the rack
from knee level.
The program went like this: (the + sign means dead lift from knee level)
210 lbs. x 10 reps; +290x10; 260x8; +340x8; 310x8; +390x8; 350x6; +430x6; 390x4;
+470x4; 430x2. +510x2; 470x1; +550x1; 510x1; +590x1; 550x1; +630x1; 580x1;
+660x1.
For working up to a true contest single the reps per set would be 10-5-1-1-1-LIMIT
ATTEMPT.
The alternate +sets were done as quickly as possible with about a minutes deep breathing
between each set.
Grip training was next and here I observed some incredible feats.
For a warmup, the 50 lb. smooth sided plate was lifted for 20 reps with each hand. Then
the 90 lb. plate was raised for 8 reps with each hand. Bruce adds weight via a dumbell rod
through the plates center (see photo) and works up to limit attempts around 105 lbs.
Bruce has moved 121 lbs. off the floor.
Next is pinch grip chinning on 2 parallel rafters, and he has done 10 consecutive reps,
and one rep with added weight for a total of 238 lbs. Bruce currently trains by gripping
the one 2 thick rafter on its vertical face (see photo). He has done 2 reps, hanging by a
pinch grip for 5 seconds, and also a single rep this way with weight, at a total weight of
175 lbs.
To finish off, we rolled the railway wheels out under the gum trees which circle the gym.
They weigh 440 lbs. with a 3 diameter axle. Bruce had just purchased them and lifted
them and on this day lifted them for the first time, holding the bar for at least 15 seconds
while I took several photos. An incredible impromptu strength feat. The axle is now lifted
for reps with an added 20 lbs. on, and Bruce tells me that he expects to do 500 soon. You
can see his ordinary thumbless grip used on this in the photo.
Diet
Supplements are very important to Bruce and a special cabinet full of health foods are
kept in the gym. These are taken 3 times a day after meals. Bruce averages 2,500 calories
a day mainly from eggs, yogurt, soya products, meat, fish, honey, fresh fruit and green
vegetables. He drinks only fruit juice and rain water. Bruce has found he can train better
when a good diet and supplements are strictly adhered to, and takes daily soya flour,
milk protein, germ oil concentrates, Vitamin C, multi-vitamin tablets, kelp tablets,
molasses, cider vinegar and homemade energy bars.
Since the age of 11 when he first began dead lifting, Bruce has lifted 300 lbs. or more
over 27,000 times; 400 over 6,3000; 500 over 1,000; 600 over 19. Best official
lightweight DL 611 lbs. Best official middleweight DL 632 lbs.
He has moved 666 off the floor on a number of occasions and also lifted 705 lbs. from
the knees on the rack. Records for continuous reps in a set 24 with 402 lbs. at 160 bwt.;
16 with 450 at 154 lbs. bwt.; 11 with 500 at 165 lbs. bwt., all done with normal reverse
grip.