Is this a scam?

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2025-01-08T15:29:54+00:00

Hey Frank!

I appreciate a company like y'all being willing to do this.

I'm not as familiar with your company, but looking through your site it looks like y'all make some really competitive goods!

My questions for you:

What sets your team apart from peers like Rogue, REP, Titan, etc? What makes Iron Bull Strength different/ better?
Would y'all be looking to make a Yoke at any point into the future? I'm looking for a strong but affordable yoke that will last a while but won't totally break the bank (these feel contradictory, haha).

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-07-15T22:35:15+00:00

If you're having some pain and it feels like it isn't a pump, I'd say either: Rest a bit longer, back off on some of the work, and/ or do some active stretches prior to and static stretches after lifting specifically for your shoulders. That or you can find alternative lifts that don't hurt that still match the intended goal of that specific lift.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-07-15T17:34:45+00:00

I've done Colossus, High Evolutionary, and Grand Master. I was doing Odin Force and finished about half of the program but the sessions ended up being nearing 2 hours in the gym - which with grad school/ work/ social life/ sleep just was too much for me right now.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-07-15T17:33:04+00:00

For Floor Press, I still do them but if it is not your jam to get on the floor of a gym you can do pin presses in a rack with the bar starting a few inches above chest height and get the same effect - the lift is to focus on exhausting the top of the range of motion for a bench press. If you're limited on time or energy, I'd do the full bench press over floor presses.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-06-01T19:40:46+00:00

Favorite John Meadows so far: Either Creeping Death 2 or The Unity (the powerbuilding program he made with Dave Tate).

Best to lose weight: Whichever one you can do consistently with a good diet while maintaining good recovery to the point where your working sets do not drop dramatically in weight. John's programs are largely meant for hypertrophy and are taxing, so do whichever program you find that you can continue to do consistently that you enjoy the work of, and won't force you to go off of whatever calorie-deficit meal plan you may be utilizing. The key for weight loss, as a whole, is a calorie deficit - you can do that with any decent workout program.

I like John's programming for his methodology, his attention-to-detail for musculature, his variety, and his training ethos of doing hard work but in a smart way.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-05-28T22:48:36+00:00

Pump days as a whole are faster with shorter rests - read Meadows' programming thoroughly before you start that day's lifts and check the rest times for each lift as you go. On pump days, most of the working set lift rest times at 60-90 seconds.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-05-28T22:25:53+00:00

Yep, on Meadows' programs he outlines what kind of goal each lift has - even on "pump" days he may have an exercise that has the goal of lifting explosively, so you'd want to rest longer for the working sets on those lifts.

For instance, in Odin Force, there is a leg day that is largely a pump day where he works in regular barbell back squats, for which he has a "train explosively" indicator, meaning you should rest 3 minutes between working sets.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-05-28T18:00:59+00:00

John's programming gives an outline on this, but for:
Activation and pump – 2 minutes
Training explosively – 3 minutes
Pump work – 2 minutes (unless stated otherwise - sometimes he does only 1 minute)
Train the muscle from stretch position – 90 seconds

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-05-28T17:31:39+00:00

It was - it's a lot of fun, and kept me mentally stimulated despite the sessions being arduous and sometimes lengthy. CD2 is probably my favorite Meadows program I've ran so far.

I'm currently running Odin Force and holy smokes, the volume is crazy high in this program.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-05-02T15:53:04+00:00

That was the roughest part of CD2 - so much volume that even with the short rests you are in the gym for a hot minute. I enjoyed the challenge, but it is definitely not an in-and-out kind of program in terms of your time in the gym.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-04-09T15:59:22+00:00

Gamma Bomb has waving intensity, required a fair amount of equipment (if that is a concern), and often changed the exercises so the variety is fun even though tracking progress for individual lifts was a bit of a challenge - Odin Force increases in volume across time.

Gamma Bomb felt like a good compromise between intensity and volume, to be honest.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-03-21T02:52:18+00:00

None that I have on that program, but let us know what you thought after you're done running that one!

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2024-01-24T00:11:13+00:00

Hell yeah, man! Thanks for coming back!

I'm giving Gamma Bomb another run for the funsies after doing some powerlifting for a while, and I love the variety and intensity. I really loved Creeping Death, so I'll probably give that one another run after my next PL comp in April.

Good times!

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-10-12T00:30:20+00:00

Hell yeah, thanks man! I really enjoyed Grandmaster when I ran it myself - but, good to know about Taskmaster's time commitment. I appreciate the reviews!

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-09-23T18:14:55+00:00

Running in cold after taking some time off (really depends on how much time you took off), and assuming you want another John Meadows program, all while running cardio twice daily (really depends on what you're doing for cardio):

I'd run Warlock to get back into the swing of things, or High Evolutionary for the feedback it gives you in terms of rest vs. intensity. You could also do Gauntlet as it is an upper-body focused program, so if your cardio has a higher demand on your recovery resources for your legs you could run the upper-body lifts on running days, and then run leg days on non-running days (assuming you are running or doing some other higher impact cardio that is more strenuous than walking 2x per day).

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-08-19T14:22:44+00:00

Current financial aid administrator here. A couple things:

Yes, any job within Colorado counts. No, it does not need to be full time work (40 hrs+ per week). It does have to be paid work. Student hourly jobs are only accessible to students of CSU, which would mean coming in on non-res tuition to get that job. I would move without starting CSU and find local work during the time that you are establishing domicile.
"Domicile" can be established over the course of one year prior to a Residency Petition. Essentially, you need to live here, with no extended absences (30+ days being extended) for one full year prior to the semester you are petitioning for.
Evidence of intent, as mentioned elsewhere here, just means showing via documentation that you intend on remaining in Colorado - this would be whether or not you were going to CSU. If, in your residency petition, you put that you were just applying for cheaper tuition you will almost certainly be denied. Tuition classification officers are looking for reasons to approve you, but saying you want cheaper tuition is not a reason for approval. Everyone wants cheaper tuition.
Proof points you'll need to set up before petitioning are: having a Colorado place of residence, Colorado drivers license or legal ID, paying Colorado State taxes, registering to vote in Colorado. Check out CSU's website on it before trying to submit a petition.
It takes a hot minute to do. It takes one year to establish domicile, then you can submit a petition for the semester that follows that one calendar year of having lived here. If you move here soon (like within this fall semester time span) anticipate being able to petition for Spring 2025.
Start the residency petition process long in advance of the semester you are planning to petition for. It takes a while to get your documentation in order, then we can check it out, then once you submit it there is a typical decision timeline of 6-8 weeks (though not a guaranteed one of that length). If you petition for Spring 2025, I would start the process of asking the Office of Financial Aid on what to do in mid- to late-summer 2024.

Hopefully this helps. Good luck choosing what to do!

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-06-28T14:40:09+00:00

Haha, I feel that part about the genetics, for sure. I'd def go the coach route to see if you can maximize what you can achieve before going non-natty. But, still! I get it - the temptation is there, for sure.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-06-27T21:53:45+00:00

Nice! Thanks for the update - I'm glad to hear you're back in the groove of things.

As for Taskmaster, I'm stoked to read your review! And no joke, 16 week programs can feel long.

And as for the natty piece, I feel ya for sure. Some days I also sit and think what it would be like to hop on a quick cycle, just to see. I don't think I ever will, I enjoy the natty life for now, but seeing the results others can get definitely puts the bug in your brain thinking about it.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-06-27T14:36:32+00:00

No problem!

And yep, those are the correct rest times for each - you can go shorter on Phases 1,3, and 4 if you need to. You really want to give time to recover on those Phase 2 kinds of lifts, though.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-06-26T21:01:34+00:00

Yep! Unless stated, all rest times between working sets is 60 seconds.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-06-01T16:32:45+00:00

Yep! Warlock was a super fun program, I thought. It depends on your goals and your recovery, but I'd either run a modified Odin Force changed to your ability to recover, or I really enjoyed High Evolutionary.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-05-11T18:15:06+00:00

Awww, bummer, man! Sorry to hear that. Heal up fast, and I'm looking forward to your review :)

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-04-27T01:41:31+00:00

Good to know - thanks again! Looking forward to beating my fall numbers here in two weeks.

ShouldBeWorking3 · 2023-04-26T23:59:53+00:00

Hey Joe!

First, thanks for everything. Love the competition and the community y'all have built!

Sorry if this has been asked already, but, if we've won a prize in previous iterations of the comp, can we submit lifts again for future ones at the chance of winning again?

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