Old-School Muscle Building Methods - Pat Casey, King of the Powerlifters

      The following is an excerpt from my upcoming book, currently titled "The Book of Old-School Bodybuilding Methods."  (It's my tentative title, so it could change.)  This is the chapter on Pat Casey.  It's a revision of a much earlier article that I posted in 2017.  I am posting this excerpt for a couple of reasons.  One, obviously, is to drum up interest in my new book.  The second is to demonstrate how different this one is from the earlier article.  Although most of the chapters in my book are revisions of articles I have already written for the blog, I have added a good bit to each one, and revised them so that they are, I believe, MUCH better than what I originally wrote, meaning that I think you will want to purchase the book even if I have articles already available on most of the book's subjects.

     With that out of the way, here is Chapter 11 of my upcoming book: Pat Casey, King of the Powerlifters...

Chapter 11: Pat Casey, King of the Powerlifters

     When I first fell in love with powerlifting—and power training in general—in the mid '90s, I immediately had a few heroes.  Some of the early 19th century strongmen such as George Hackenschmidt, Arthur Saxon, and Louis Cyr were all fascinating to me.  As was my favorite power bodybuilder of all time, Marvin Eder, who we covered in our recent chapter, and then, of course, there were guys like Bill Kazmaier, Don Reinhoudt, and Bruce Wilhelm.  But, once I did discover him, Pat Casey might have been my favorite.

     Several different things fascinated me about Casey.  First, was his strength (obviously).  He was ahead of his time when it came to the bench press and the squat.  Second, was his physique.  He looked as if he could, at any time, strip some fat and step onto the bodybuilding stage. And third was his training.  And it was this 3rd thing that I think I loved the most.  A lot of his training influenced my own training at the time, since I was trying my best to find the most innovative, effective, state-of-the-art forms of lifting I could.

     What follows are a few snippets from a booklet that the aforementioned Bruce Wilhelm wrote in either the late ‘70s or the early to mid ‘80s—long after Casey had retired. Even if you’re not a powerlifter, per se, there is some excellent information in here that I think would help your training.  At the time, powerlifting wasn’t the force that it would eventually become in the strength training world.  Casey trained as much like a lot of the strong, power-focused bodybuilders of his era rather than how, say, a modern powerlifter might train.  And, perhaps, that’s one of the “issues” with modern powerlifting.  When you look at Casey, and then the powerlifers that came after him in the ‘70s (John Kuc comes to mind), you find a group of men that weren’t just strong but were built like the proverbial brick out-house.  Powerlifters, for the most part, don’t look like that anymore.

     Initially, I hadn’t intended on including a chapter about Casey here.  My focus of the book, or so I told myself, was going to be on the classical bodybuilders, not powerlifters.  But there is a lot in his training that would serve the modern lifter well.  And, perhaps, that’s the best way to think of Casey: as a lifter.  Old-school bodybuilders thought of themselves as “lifters,” so it only makes sense to include a fellow powerlifter from the same era.  Even though Casey wasn’t a competitive bodybuilder, I think his training can be used by the modern bodybuilder just as much as Eder’s training, for instance.

     First off, here is a typical week of training that Pat would perform:

Monday:

Bench Press Lockouts: Singles from 4 inches off chest. 3 singles from 7 inches off chest. After lockouts, 2 sets of regular benches with 405 x 3.

Dumbell Incline: 3 sets of 5 reps warmup. 120 x 10, 200 x 3 sets of 5 reps. Best: 220 x 6 @ 285 bodyweight.

Lying Triceps Extension: 5-6 sets of 3-5 reps.

Chins: 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps.

Curls: 3 sets of 5 reps @ 100 pounds. Casey commented that he felt as if, looking back on it, he should have done more curling.  I think he’s correct.  If you decide to take on his training as a template for your own, then do the same number of sets on curls as you do with the other lifts.  This means that you should do at least 6 sets on curls.

Tuesday:

Squats: 135 x 5, 225 x 3, 315 x 2, 405 x 2, 585 x 2, 650 x 5 singles, 515 x 10.

Leg Extension: 3 x 20 reps.

Leg Curls: 2 x 12 reps.

Deadlifts from below knee: (working on sticking point) 315 x 5, 405 x2, 515 x 1, 565 x 6 singles.

Wednesday and Thursday:

Rest. Casey worked an 8 hour manual labor job during the day, so he said that he could use the rest.

Friday:

Bench Press: 135 x 20, 225 x 10, 315 x 5, 405 x 5, 515 x 1, 560/570 x 5 singles, 405 x 10, 315 x 20.

Seated Military Press: (He was so large, that he said he had to turn his head to the side just to be able to perform this lift.) 135 x 10, 225 x 5, 315 x 3, 400 x 1, 315 x 5, 225 x 8.

Dips: Bodyweight x 3 sets of 5 reps, then 10 sets of 205 x 5 reps.

Saturday:

Lockout Squats: above parallel, squat down and stop on pins. Dead stop. No bounce at the bottom. 135 x 10, 225 x 5, 315 x 3, 405 x 2, 515 x 1. 585 x 1, 650 x 1, 750 x 5 singles, finish with full squat – 405 x 5 with a pause at the bottom. These lockouts were mainly for the feel of handling heavy weight.

Leg Extensions: 3 sets of 20 reps.

Leg Curls: 2 sets of 12 reps.

     He said that he would also throw in some “bodybuilding work” and some neck work.  What exactly this entailed, I’m not sure.  If you decide you would like to replicate his program, I would refrain from doing this extra work (at least, at first).  With everything that he included, I just don’t think most lifters would need it or that it would be useful for them.  The only exception would be if you have built up the work capacity to actually handle this amount of volume and still be capable of doing more.  Let’s admit it, however.  That is not most lifters.

     Now, let’s analyze the program a little bit more and see if there are any changes that the modern lifter might want to make, whether it’s a change to a movement, an addition, or a subtraction.

     As I mentioned earlier, Casey was influential on my own powerlifting training when I was a competitor.  The first thing, however, that I think I would substitute would be board presses for the bench press lockouts.  Both of them are good movements, but the board press has more of a direct transference to one’s bench press.  By using a board, as opposed to training in the rack, you are able to take the exact same position on the bench as your “standard” bench press.  Most lifters, when they do pin presses, are not set up with the exact form that they will be on their regular bench, so the “carryover” to the regular bench press just isn’t the same.  Board presses take care of this matter.  Instead of doing singles with the pins 4 inches off the chest, as in Casey’s first movement, you could replace it with the 2-board press.  For the pin lockouts 7 inches off the chest, you can replace that with the 3-board press.

     Dumbbell incline presses are good, but you don’t have to limit your assistance movements (for the chest, at least) to just dumbbell inclines—Casey used them because they are what worked for him.  Other options that you could include would be flat dumbbell bench presses, incline barbell presses, and the bottom-position bench press.

     One interesting thing about Casey was his emphasis on performing dips in his workouts.  Marvin Eder, of course, was a huge fan of dips, and apparently Casey was influenced by Eder.  Here is what Casey had to say about dips when asked in an interview:

     Marvin was the reason I did dips. This movement works every part of the body, but most importantly it puts special emphasis on the triceps and deltoids. As I’m sure you are aware, triceps make up 2/3’s of the arm and that explosion off the bottom and continuous follow-through, especially lockout at the end of the bench press, comes from triceps strength.

     The last workout I did on dips was one of my marathon workouts. At a bodyweight of 300 and using a 250 pound dumbell I did 200 repetitions. I started with sets of 5, then 4, gradually descending all the way down to singles. I did this over a 7 hour period of time and I can readily attest to the fact that I was totally thrashed. I felt shot for the next two weeks. But for some reason at that time I felt that they helped. On several other occasions I did over a 100,000 pound workload dipping, working over a period of 8 hours. I might add that while I was in this pre-power phase I truly trained to exhaustion. I really had to drag my butt home. In addition, I would also go on these marathon binges with the press behind the neck. Looking back now, it was total insanity. It caused numerous injuries and I stopped this type of training in ’65. I can probably trace many of my shoulder injuries to this type of workout. Looking at the situation today, if I were training heavy now I would cut the sets back to probably 5 or 6 sets. I would still do dips, but no marathon sessions.

     The 2nd alteration I would make involves the deadlift.  On his first squat/deadlift day, he performed deadlifts from “just above the knees.”  Partial deadlifts, for most lifters, have little carryover to their standard deadlift.  The problem is similar to that of the bench press pin presses.  Unless you are in the exact position in the rack for the partial deadlifts as you would be when in that position pulling it from the floor, it just doesn’t carry over.  I would begin by just doing your “standard” deadlift, whether you max out with a sumo or a conventional deadlift.  Another option is to replace it with deficit deadlifts off of a 4 to 6-inch box.  When I pulled over 600 pounds around 20 years ago, I only used deficit deadlifts, working up to around 525 to 550 pounds on deficits before my 600 pound-plus pull.  I’ve worked with several powerlifters over the years, and most of them used partial deadlifts because they believed they would help their sticking point—most of them got “stuck” somewhere around their knees.  However, the best movement for helping that sticking point is the deficit deadlift.  It builds more explosive power off the floor to “blast” past that sticking point and it also helps it by making it harder to pull once you reach your sticking point.  You can use it for either conventional or sumo deadlifts.

     On Casey’s 2nd squat/pull session, he didn’t do any deadlifting, but, rather, utilized leg curls on this day.  I don’t think leg curls have much of a transfer, if any, to either squats or deadlifts, so I would just eliminate them.  Most lifters do well with only one deadlift session per week, anyway, but on the 2nd day, if you feel as if you need more work, instead of doing leg curls, some other options would be Romanian deadlifts, good mornings (or good morning squats), reverse hyperextensions, or stiff-legged dumbbell deadlifts (assuming you have access to heavy enough dumbbells).

     I would probably also drop the leg extensions from both days.  If you need more quad work, then front squats, goblet squats, lunges (forward, reverse, or walking)  or double kettlebell front squats would all be good options that have transference to your regular back squat.

     In an interview  for Wilhelm’s “booklet,” here are some of the tips that Wilhelm garnered from Casey:

1.) Train twice a week, cut the reps and sets back.

2.) Get more rest.

3.) On diet, he probably wouldn’t have consumed so much. He did, and still strongly believes in supplementation. When he was training heavy he would drink 6 quarts of milk daily plus ½ dozen eggs with protein. He would also take numerous vitamins.

4.) On wraps and supportive gear: Feels that the equipment today must be extremely helpful. If the bench shirt is only for joint protection, then why don’t the athletes build up their strength through hard work and lockouts and innovative training? It looks like it takes 2 very strong men to just put the bench shirt on the lifter. That seems like a lot of work for a piece of equipment that is only used for protection! The same goes for the squat suit and knee wraps.

     Pat may be somewhat envious here as he was never afforded the opportunity to wear such gear. It is beyond my mind to think what poundages he could have handled had he been afforded such opportunities. Also keep in mind that he never used a power belt, only a 4” Olympic lifting belt. I am sure that we could let our minds wander a little, and could really visualize some fantastic lifts. But then again, that is pure speculation and we want to keep away from that.

     Wilhelm might not have wanted to speculate, but I will.  For one, since Wilhelm wrote this in (probably) the early ‘80s, supportive gear wasn’t near as helpful as it eventually became in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, when powerlifters used double and triple ply shirts and squat suits, often denim ones, as well, which can boost your lifts by hundreds of pounds!  Casey, in modern gear, would easily have a 2,500 pound total.  It might be speculation, but I don’t think there can be any doubt that it’s true.

Bruce Wilhelm: Did you have any innovative or creative ideas?

Pat Casey: Not really, but I have always wondered why if they have a rule on 32” grip on the bench, why they don’t set a limit on foot stance for both the squat and deadlift. Hell, some of the squats, the lifter barely goes down. That is not really a squat. The same goes for the deadlift. I don’t really like the sumo style deadlift either. I don’t see it as much of a lift with that style.

BW: What is your opinion on performance enhancing drugs?

PC: I feel that it is a personal opinion and should be up to the individual. One has to weigh the potential side effects as well as the moral issue. Then there is also the issue of trying to be a role model for young kids. Kids should look up to you for the way you live your life. You want them to know that good things happen to those who work hard. Just remember—easy come, easy go.

BW: What do you think about the lifters of today versus the lifters of 20-30 years ago?

PC: That is a difficult question to answer. The one great thing that holds all lifters together is the pursuit of strength. The means and methods you use to get there vary as well as how you go about it. But most important, it is the quest for strength. It is really a great fraternity, but I feel that some of the lifters today are more self-centered. They have no respect for the past and the history of the sport. They are too self-centered.

     I don’t know if Casey used steroids.  I’m sure that cynics who are reading this would say that it’s quite obvious that he did.  Dianabol was readily available, and widely used, by bodybuilders in the mid ‘60s.  Most folks, even if it’s just guys commenting on the internet, believe that Casey probably used a low dose, at the least, of Dianabol.  If he did, however, it probably wasn’t much.  Even though you may not be capable of reaching rarified heights in bodybuilding without performance enhancement drugs, you can get very strong without them.  I never used anabolic steroids or any other performance enhancement drug during my years powerlifting, and I was capable of a 1,500 pound-plus total in the 181-pound class.  It is possible, therefore, for a much larger guy of Casey’s build to total 2,000, then, I believe, drug-free.

     If you have made it this far in reading this book, then there is no doubt that you have respect for “the past and the history of the sport.”  But Casey was, and is, correct.  The quest for strength, and the lifters who are after it, are a fraternity.  The fraternity needs to be respected and loved by all modern lifters, the same way that athletes in other sports have respect for their predecessors.

Tips for Lifting

Bench Press: As far as performance on the bench, try and get everything into the start. Explode! Bring the weight down in a controlled manner, pause, then blast off the chest. This exploding, Pat felt, would carry you to the sticking point or a little past, and then the triceps would kick in. Position on the bench is also important. Feet tucked back, but not so far as to cause pain or cramping.

Squatting: Set up with the weight as quick as possible. Don’t waste time backing out and moving around. Inhale, descend under control, blast out of the bottom. Think explode. Head back as you fight through the sticking point.

Deadlift: Grab bar, drop hips and explode off the ground pushing with legs, keep arms straight like cables.

BW: I asked Pat about his heavy power rack lockouts. Why and how? What was the purpose?

PC: I needed something to jolt my body once I got past 500 in the bench press. I thought about doing the lockouts from two positions: 4” off the chest and 7” off the chest. The thought being that I would strengthen my tendons and ligaments. Then I could do more volume work in the other exercises without breaking down or getting injured. I was also after the psychological effect of lifting tremendous weights as well as thinking there might be some motor pathway carryover. (i.e. a muscle learning theory whereby the body takes a movement and incorporates it into a similar movement. For example: a partial movement in the bench press would correspond with a full movement. To reinforce such motor pathway transference, a last set would be done with a lighter weight doing the full movement.) When doing this type of rack training I would warm up very thoroughly, then go to doing 5 or so singles in these two positions. I felt that singles were best for building strength, but they also called on your fast twitch muscles to fire. So that was my theory and it worked well for me.

     The 2nd exercise I used was the heavy incline dumbbell press. I’d do a warmup set and then go straight to a heavy weight for 3 sets of 5 repetitions. The reasoning for this exercise was to attack the chest muscles from a different angle as well as working the deltoid and general shoulder girdle.

     The 3rd exercise was dips. This developed tremendous overall body strength, especially when attaching a dumbbell and doing reps. It really affected the strength of my triceps, but also worked deltoids and pectorals.

     The 4th important exercise was the lying triceps extension. As I said before, I would lean forward and take an Olympic bar with a narrow grip and hook my feet around the bench, then lean back on the bench. I would then do a pullover/triceps extension. I would do 5-6 sets of 3-5 reps. My best was 365 x 3 in this pullover and extension movement. This exercise really strengthened my entire upper body.

     The 5th and last exercise for improving my bench was the seated press. I would use a fairly wide grip and would press the weight, having to turn my face to keep from hitting it with the bar.

A Casey-Inspired Program

     Here is one example program that uses Casey’s principles and might be better for a modern lifter.  It uses all of Casey's wisdom, but also incorporates some of my suggested changes.  It’s also the kind of workout that you would be capable of handling if you took your time over a year or more to do some of the full-body workouts in Part 1 of the book.  And it’s definitely something you can handle if you have already attempted a program similar to Marvin Eder’s in Chapter 8.

Monday - Bench Press Session #1

2-Board Presses: Work up to 3 to 5 singles with approximately 90% of your one-rep maximum.

3-Board Presses: Add weight to what you used in the 1st movement, and do another 3 to 5 singles.

Dumbbell or Barbell Incline Bench Presses: 3-5 sets of 5 reps.

Lying Triceps Extensions: 3-5 sets of 5 reps.

Weighted Chins: 2-3 sets of 5-8 reps.

Barbell Curls: 5 sets of 5 reps with 90% of your 5-rep max.

Tuesday - Squat/Deadlift Session #1

Barbell Squats: Work up to 5 singles (over 5 to 8 progressively heavier sets) with 90% of your 1-rep max. 1-2 back off sets of 8-10 reps.

Front Squats: 3-5 sets of 6-8 reps.

Deficit Deadlifts (sumo or conventional): Work up to 5 heavy singles the same as the squats.

Friday - Bench Press Session #2

Bench Presses: Work up to 3 to 5 singles with 90% of your 1-rep maximum.  If you wish, you can alternate this from week-to-week with bottom-position bench presses.  I prefer this latter approach.

Seated Military Presses: Ramps of 5s, 3s, and singles.  Do progressively heavier sets of 5 reps until they get tough, and then switch over to triples.  Once those get hard, start doing progressively heavier singles until you work up to a near max.

Weighted Dips: 5-8 progressively heavier sets of 5 reps—2 to 3 sets with your near-max weight.

Saturday - Squat/Deadlift Session #2

Bottom-Position Squats in the Rack (slightly above parallel): Work up to 3-5 singles with 90% of your 1-rep maximum.

Good Mornings or Good Morning Squats: 3-5 sets of 5 reps with approximately 90% of your 5-rep maximum.

Reverse Lunges: 3-5 sets of 6-8 reps

     If you have the work capacity to handle it, you can also throw in some “bodybuilding work,” to use Casey’s words.  Don’t overdo it—1 to 2 additional movements on each day for 2-3 sets each should be plenty.  Work on a bodypart that needs development or on a lift that will help one of your 3 powerlifts.  For example, on your bench press days, an extra triceps movement such as rope pushdowns for your triceps if it’s your triceps that are holding back your bench press or they are in need of some additional size.

     With Casey out of the way, it’s now time to move on to Part 3 and the advanced training methods of our old-school legends.

Sources

All of the italicized quotes here are from Bruce Wilhelm’s booklet entitled “Pat Casey, King of the Powerlifters.”  I’m unsure of exactly when it was published.  If anyone knows the answer, please let me know so that I can add that if I publish a revised edition.  You can contact me by email or leave a comment on my blog.  You can find more information on those at the end of the book.