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Form
Form is the most underrated principle of strength training. The pros know how vital it is, but the average weightlifter doesn’t. Think I’m wrong? Look at the majority of YouTube videos. Poor form is everywhere. I’m constantly trying to improve my form. Every set and every rep is a chance for me to improve. The more efficiently you can move a weight, the easier it is to move it. Too many people only care about moving the weight in any way possible. That’s a huge mistake. Learn proper form and watch your PR’s explode!
Safety
My dad (and coach) is a disabled veteran. He works out 6 days a week and usually the same programming as me or my brother. He’s strong but suffers way more than us to achieve the same results. Severe damage to his joints keeps him restricted and recurring injuries are a constant challenge. He believes strongly in safety. We take supplements to help protect our joints. We avoid the temptation to lift more than we can. We practice working to Technical Failure instead of Positive/Negative Failure. We warmup properly before each session. We’ve learned to listen to our bodies and leave our egos at the door. Once you’re injured, it never completely heals. Ankle or knee damage can permanently keep you from squatting or deadlifting. At least not coming close to your true strength. Be safe! This is a marathon, not a sprint.
Rest
Rest is the most therapeutic thing you can do for your body and mind. 7-9 hours of sound sleep each night will help you build more strength than just about anything else. If you’re putting in the effort in the gym, rest is required for growth. CNS Fatigue is real. Pushing your body hard each day requires a down time of quality rest and relaxation. CNS is not just affected by working out. Stress from school, work, or home life will also contribute to CNS Fatigue. I limit the use of my phone at night, take melatonin, dopamine and Benadryl each night to help me sleep and help my body recover. I’m in bed by 10 PM (at the latest) each night and earlier if I can. I’m up at 5 AM to get ready for school. It’s a long drive. Being young, you can get away with more stress than when you’re older. Build good habits now for years of success!
Nutrition
This is one of the most important principles! I’ve pretty much been off candy and other artificial sweets for most of 2022. It was tough at first, but I kept feeling better and better each day. I had more energy for sure. I’m not saying you should do the same. I don’t think it’s necessary if your cardio and programming are in line. Eating quality foods are very important. We don’t eat fast food. It’s seriously toxic. We eat lean meats, eggs, milk, water, vegetables, potatoes, pasta, soups, yogurts and breads. A typical breakfast for me is 3-4 eggs, orange juice and a yogurt. Lunch may be a chicken breast sandwich, chips and a couple cups of milk. Dinner is usually pork/beef/chicken with pasta and veggies, milk and bread. We don’t drink soft drinks/sodas/pop. No alcohol, drugs or smoking either. Only clean and beneficial food consumption. We work hard in the gym so why would we want to blow all that hard work by consuming poor-quality food. Again, I’m not saying you must go to this extreme, but you should start to cut back on things that are hurting your growth. Carb Master yogurt from Harris Teeter can be bought on sale for $0.20 per cup. That’s 9 grams of protein for $0.20! Skim milk has 1 gram of protein per ounce. Pasta and eggs are also relatively inexpensive and are loaded with protein and complex carbs. Beans are another inexpensive super food! You’ll be stronger, recover faster and feel better if you eat what your body needs. I try to intake 1 gram of protein per lb of lean bodyweight.
Supplements
Supplements are, in my opinion, important. If your diet is perfect, supplements play a lesser role in recovery and performance. We take supplements to increase our output in the gym and our recovery afterward. Increased amino acids, vitamins and specialty supplements provide the best environment for growth. We take a pre-workout for energy and recovery and a post-workout for recovery. We also take Creatine and Glutamine along with our pre-workout. I use Serious Mass, but only drink two shakes per day with 1/2 of a serving per shake. It has protein, vitamins, aminos, creatine and helps round out my protein intake. Joint health supplements are also important. While using creatine, it's vital to remember to drink plenty of water. 
Programming
Another vital part of balancing the effort and the gains. I have a few different programs that I follow. Hypertrophy being in “off-session” training. Mainly hitting all the muscle groups for high reps, moderate weight. I’m coming off (4/2022) a 3-week hypertrophy to start my pre-competition programming. I’ll post a separate page going into detail on my current hypertrophy program. Warm-up programming is after hypertrophy. I’ll reduce my 1RM for the 3 main disciplines by 10% to come up with my working weight 1RM (WW1RM). Monday – Deadlift, Tuesday – Squat, Friday – Bench Press. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday are hypertrophy workouts based on the previous days workout. I’ll follow this for 2-weeks before starting my pre-competition strength program. 
The muscle you have can only move so much weight. You need to add muscle to add strength. What muscle you do have can very likely move a lot more weight than you think. Once you get your form as efficient as possible, you’ll see your true potential. After the North Carolina State Competition, I’ll start an 8 week hypertrophy program. 
The Warm-Up programming is getting back into using heavier weight in all 3 disciplines. Again, safety is key to longevity. I ease back into using the main lifts with heavy weight. Since this hypertrophy program has been short, I only need a two week Warm-Up before heading into my strength programming. 
My strength program is 6 days per week: Monday – Deadlift, Tuesday – Bench Press, Wednesday – Squat, Thursday – Deadlift, Friday – Bench Press, and Saturday – Squat. I use strength programs for each day. I will use this program for 6-8 weeks and take three days off before the day of the competition. I’m hoping to add pages to the site for all three programs and list my actual weights/set/reps for each one.
So far, my programming has been excellent! 
Effort
Here’s the toughest one of them all! Effort. Real effort. Some days you just don’t want to be in the gym. Some days the weights feel heavy. Some days you’re stressed. Still, if you want to reach your goals, you have to put in the effort. My dad says that, along with your ego, you should leave your problems at the door. The gym is a time to be relaxed and focusing on nothing but making yourself better than you were when you got there. It’s a time to enjoy your pursuits. I don’t feel like that sometimes, but I try. If you’re going to go to the gym, make the most of it. Don’t waste one rep. Slow down and feel every one. Make each one as perfect as you can and make sure it’s a quality rep. Stick to the program. Don’t quit. Ever. Embrace the burn. Set your goals very high. Know that every minute is moving you closer to your goal. Don’t ever quit. You’re only there for an hour or so. That’s not long, so you have to make the most of it. Make your body need the nutrition, rest and supplements. Do it all over the next day. The only person you’re competing with at a competition is yourself. Trying to do better every workout will make you better in ever competition. Even if you have an off day, there will be some improvement. We do this because we want to. So push yourself to be better. Stronger, mentally and physically. It’s 70% mental anyway. If you can conquer your mind, the rest is easy.  
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