Doug LarsonThis week we interview Cal Dietz, head strength coach at Minnesota, and are also joined by the smartest goofball you’ve ever met, Dr. Andy Galpin as a co-host.
After sitting in a few of Coach Cal’s panels at Paleo FX, I could not wait to interview him.
He’s coached a TON of really, really good athletes in multiple sports. Coach Cal is a legend in the strength and conditioning community, so I’m honored and excited to share this episode with you.
We cover topics like movement selection for assessing and training an athlete, and why you might be plateauing in your strength cycle. We also talk at length about movements that actually get your ass firing correctly.
We discuss in depth the principles in Cal’s book, Triphasic Training, which covers the periodization of isometric, concentric, and eccentric strength and why you need a balance of each one of these strength qualities to get the most out of your program. You’ll also learn a little about how and when to implement these principles into your training.
Coach Cal has a ton of REAL experience coaching athletes. There is so much I wanted to ask him, especially now since I’ve finished his book. We will definitely try to have him on again in the future.
Enjoy the show!
McG
P.S. I just finished reading my copy of Triphasic Training e-book and I loved it. There is a TON of great information in there if you’re interested in programming your own strength training for your self or other athletes.
He gives a really good understanding of how to properly stress an athlete so you can optimize the success of a strength program and avoid plateaus or even worse, become overtrained.
Get your copy of Triphasic Training here (use the code “barbell4” to save 10% on the e-book.)
For more:
Follow Cal on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram (@cal.dietz)
Get the Triphasic Training e-book here or the hardcopy here. Use “barbell4” to save.
Is there a link to the stuff Cal mentioned he would share? 7 things about the foot and its dysfunctions or something.
Hey Mohammad,
Here are some screencasts Coach Cal created assessing several ankle dysfunctions in multiple sports and how to train to improve.
Triphasic Training Exercise Manual Ankle Rocker Part 1:
https://youtu.be/GdcKW0FUZfA
Triphasic Training Exercise Manual Ankle Rocker Part 2:
https://youtu.be/opXjOhtyk5k
Enjoy!
New follower…some really invaluable stuff here. One of the more intriguing things I found was Cal D. discussing the dysfunctional movements of ankles and I think it may really apply to me (a basketball player; I’ve sprained my ankles dozens of times) I did some research but I couldn’t find the exercises he mentioned. Is there a link you could give me to this “manual” he spoke about.I’m also curious about developing strength in just one side of your body (the left lef/hip/glute in this instance) .. Is it beneficial to isolate the leg in workouts in addition to your routine workouts- so added strain on the weak side- or is that actually counter productive and it would be more beneficial to focus on lifting at lighter weights, longer sets until the weak side feels as strong. I’m a crossfitter too I’ve gone back and forth between these methods and my right side feels at least twice as strong as my left. Thanks for your consideration.
Hey Elliot,
I’m glad you enjoyed the episode. Thanks for listening.
I’ll post the article and exercises referenced here soon.
Generally, whenever I’m trying to fix a strength imbalance between limbs, I use single arm/leg work but I always train the weaker side first.
For example:
Split Squats @ 3010: 10 reps/side, rest 1 min b/t sides; rest 2 min b/t sets x 3 sets
*Weaker leg first.
In my opinion, training the weaker leg first allows it to catch up with the stronger leg and this is also assuming you are using the same load for both legs. We want to be overall stronger, but we want the weaker leg to catch up first.
Holler if you have any other questions.
Hey Mike,
Are you guys going to post the 7 ankle movements Cal talked about? I see a few requests for them in this comment thread. Thanks! Love the podcast.
Hey Elliot,
Here are some screencasts Coach Cal created assessing several ankle dysfunctions in multiple sports and how to train to improve.
Triphasic Training Exercise Manual Ankle Rocker Part 1:
https://youtu.be/GdcKW0FUZfA
Triphasic Training Exercise Manual Ankle Rocker Part 2:
https://youtu.be/opXjOhtyk5k
Enjoy!
Hi Guys
I am struggling to download a copy of the book for South Africa.
Is there a portal that can be made available for SA?
Thanks for the great content
Hey Dwayne, let me check with our tech guys and we’ll get back to you.
Hey Dwayne,
I’m sorry this is out of our scope of help.
You can e-mail Coach Cal at xlathlete@sbwireless.net and reach out to them.
Sorry if this isn’t much help.
You mean dont have difference of cyclic work than lift weights dont stop ? I know for heart maybe its the same but for muscular amybe not work the same in biologic chemetric for the body , volume keeping with blood flow etc..
Hey Rafs,
I’m really sorry, I’m not entirely sure I understand your question?
loved this podcast so much! I know I struggle with proper firing patterns (bad part about learning from a bad coach to start and trying to fix bad habits.) But this really shed a lot of light on some of my imbalances. Coach Cal is phenomenal. Love every one of your podcasts. Keep them coming!
Thanks Alisha! Glad you took something from it!
This was one of the most interesting podcasts I’ve ever heard. Something that makes you rewind and take notes. I’m a huge nerd when it comes to eccentric and isometric work so I’m excited to dive into Cal’s book. Also can’t wait for Dr. Andy Galpin to put up that site he was talking about!!
One of my favorite episodes yet. Definitely going to affect how I program for both myself and my clients.
Thank you, Dr. Galpin, Coach Dietz and BBS crew!
Thanks, Mark. Glad you enjoyed it.
I’m more interested in the science and evidence, . Cal has been getting results long before the fascia fad/ activation etc. So before this some “mkt” stuff what he does before dont work? Or still work , and say results from “fascia”stuff? . He uses good basics in his programs.
Really appreciated this ep, guys. McG you have a good knack for getting back to important issues and asking questions to delve deeper.
Info was excellent to help me as a novice coach; esp with masters athletes who come in and don’t know the intricacies and importance of connective tissue.
Best hack was Dietz’ big toe activating the glutes – for my chair yoga peeps, tho, believe it or not. So much of what I try to do with these folks is get them to relearn their bodies and feel what needs to activate in order to just walk well again, or get up from a chair. Body awareness and useful cues are just as important for them as the gym athletes. And so much is transferable from coaching weightlifting. Always learning from y’all, thanks much.
Thank you, Lori. Glad you enjoyed it.
I’ve heard them all. Thought you guys knocked it out of the park with this one.
Thank you very much!
New follower…Great show today really enjoyed all the information that was talked about. One of the more intriguing things I found was Cal D. discussing the dysfunctional movements of ankles and I think it may good prehab for my college basketball players during the season really like to apply the movements to my program. I did some research but I couldn’t find the exercises. Is there a link you could give me to this “manual” he spoke about. I’m also curious about developing strength in just one side of your body .. Is it beneficial to isolate the leg in workouts in addition to your routine workouts- so added strain on the weak side- or is that actually.
Thank you
Hey Coach Lee,
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the show.
Here are some screencasts Coach Cal created assessing several ankle dysfunctions in multiple sports and how to train to improve.
Triphasic Training Exercise Manual Ankle Rocker Part 1:
https://youtu.be/GdcKW0FUZfA
Triphasic Training Exercise Manual Ankle Rocker Part 2:
https://youtu.be/opXjOhtyk5k
Can you guys link the study that was discussed about the max grip strength exercise improving blood pressure?
[…] Developing Explosive Strength w/ Cal Dietz and Dr. Andy Galpin – Episode 217 […]
Great episode! Do you guys have a link or more info on that max grip strength test you talked about? Seems like something that would make a pretty easy add on to training. Thanks!
I’ve probably listened to every Barbell Shrugged episode. They are all excellent, but this goes down as 1 of my all-time favorites! Can you reference any corrective exercises for misfiring patterns for hip extension? My issue is the QL firing 1st, then the hamstring and finally the glute. Thanks!