C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

Forgotten or Never-Used Workouts for Muscle Size and Strength Several of the workouts below are just the sort that Bronze Era lifters, such as George Hackenschmidt, used to great success.      I've written a few articles or essays similar to this one in the past.  Years ago—as in the '90s —I wrote an article for IronMan magazine called "X-Factors" which was about workouts that were never  used by mainstream bodybuilders, rarer even than sightings of Bigfoot or other pseudo-scientific, supposedly-existing cryptids.  And about ten years ago, I wrote an article here on the blog entitled "The Best Leg Workout You've Never Tried."  I doubt many people have still  ever tried it.  (Hint: it involved bottom-position squats, deficit sumo deadlifts, and sled drags—combined together, which is brutally hard, so, yep, it probably still is the best leg workout you've never done.)      Which brings us around to  this  essay.  Collected here are a few different mass

Stillness, Rest, and Relaxation The Forgotten Keys to Muscle Growth Epictetus, the founder of Stoicism, one of the inspirations for this article. “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit alone with himself in a room.” ~Blaise Pascal I begin our essay with this quote from the great French writer, philosopher, and Catholic theologian, not just because 2023 is the 400th anniversary of his birth, and not just because I believe in the utter, complete truth of the statement, but because it can easily apply to all of man’s problems—including, whether you believe it or not, your goal of getting bigger, stronger, or the combination of both. That’s correct, man’s inability to rest in stillness (and woman’s, too, although women actually tend to be naturally better at this than men) often prevents one from achieving his/her muscle-building, strength-gaining, physique-enhancing goals. Now, as I mentioned, you may not believe this, and if you don’t, then I only ask that you sus