Kim Wood's new pod-cast!

[Kim Wood]

I'll be posting here in the future but not too much...but for those who follow what I do(even the dweebs)
my latest "pod-cast' was released today on the "strength-info" web-site www.ATHLETICSTRENGTHANDPOWER.COM ...
the show features weight training for football and highlights our up-coming Football Strength Clinic #5...
also included are new photos of some new "collector's items"(a Professor Barker "Strength-Maker" Barbell!)
and my new outdoor "dinosaur" gym...

[Steve Weiner]

Kim- Another great podcast. Outstanding! Thank you for sharing this with us.

[Kim Wood]

thanks, Steverino...there's a new "you-tube" piece entitled "Kim Wood's house" that shows-off the
"Prof. Barker Barbell"(I'm doing a "rectangular fix" in a few shots...)... the video also highlights a couple
of my Chinese guard dogs...the stone ones and Mickey the killer shih-tzu

[Steve Weiner]

That was a cool video. Looking at all that great stuff makes me want to go and lift.....even though I deadlifted last night! Love the action shots of Mickey! Outstanding pieces of equipment!

[WesOblander]

Kim, thank you for taking the time to post your podcast link. Good discussion about important topics.

Your outdoor gym is perfect! The equipment is solid, particularly the block weights, anvils and grip machine. Your protective agents look rather vicious!

[Kim Wood]

the outdoor gym pictured is actually one of four "out-door' gym areas I have... because it's in the front
yard and can been seen by passers by I have my least valuable things there. The heavy stuff
is out back in three other "out-door" areas( the big power racks, Olympic sets and the "coal cracker"
iron balls). I do the "little" stuff late at night in gym out front.

[WesOblander]

Nice arrangement of equipment, Kim. I had thought all of your equipment was inside your house. That grip machine in the video is a design that has stood the test of time and thoroughly effective for me. I bought one from Warren Tetting many years ago and still use it regularly.

[Kim Wood]

Wes, I've got a lot of stuff...the big house pictured has three floors and a big basement ... along with that
are the outside gyms and a large free standing ski-lodge type building ... all are filled with strength equipment.
I started training in 1958 or 1959 and set up gyms in my house in suburban Chicago... over time I just never
threw anything away... where-ever I went(and I went a lot of places) I'd always take at least a York Olympic set
with me. I still have and use all the equipment I used when I was growing up...much of it I bought from Peary Rader
(and a lot of that was built by Tetting) and from Bob Hoffman and Norb Grueber(one of the first "weight equipment
dealers " out of his "Bodybuilder Sport Shop" on Division Street in Chicago). So, I really live in a museum...which
to me is an active gym...

[Erick Brown]

Nice dogs!

[Charlie Bailey]

Coach- I remember you mentioning all the equipment and gyms you had on the forum before. Think I saw something on another website. Might have been your son's site or maybe Atomic Athletic. One of those had a couple of pics from inside that ski lodge type building. I'd really like to see the kitchen set up! After all these years, what is your training like now? I also remember you writing that you train everyday. Do you just do whatever you feel like each day or do you have a more structured program? Thank you.

[Kim Wood]

Charlie...there have been many pics from over the years on the web-site that I do the pod-casts for...
and some have gotten out on other internet sites(some actually on google)... I do have a lot of stuff and as time passes more seems to
show up... but even though I may play around with new things and different variations of exercises
over-all I use the same very basic routine...about 6 to 8 of the "basic" exercises...all for one set to failure(usually 3 days a week)
(as I've gotten older I usually do "floor" exercises every day...and this past fall I had knee-replacement surgery and am
just getting back into heavier leg training... I also use a Schwinn Air-Dyne and a Concept II (both drive the dogs crazy)).
But the real answer to your question is that when you know how to train (and like it)(and know your body) it all becomes a personal art-form that balances discipline vs. doing what you feel like... AND it's great to have a lot of equipment...but you
sure don't need a lot ...

[Charlie Bailey]

Thank you for the answer Coach.

[WesOblander]

Kim, your podcasts are always to the point and interesting. The overall theme at ASAP is similar, particularly Ken Mannie's latest podcast. I am thoroughly enjoying his speaking session! His points about positively shaping overall lives of student athletes are important to remember. The "My name isn't "Hey bud, Yo Bro..." material was terrific, as well as instructing students to learn how address others correctly in an email if they wanted to find a job eventually. It is nice to find others who understand real leadership, as well as the value of common sense and doing things the right way.

[Dave Hartnett]

Kim, thanks again for another great podcast. Outstanding as always... Looking for the video now on youtube, cant wait to see your equipment, I love that part of the iron game.
(The equipment and training)...

[Dave Hartnett]

Just found the video as well, outstanding stuff...

[Kim Wood]

thanks, guys... ASAP covers a lot of good stuff that most strength training people wouldn't know about
if they went to the usual printed and inter-net sources or to "expo's" like the Arnold Classic
... Ken Mannie has a great program at MSU and
his "strength clinic" each winter is a must for those interested in training athletes(up until last year Dr. Ken
was the MC at the MSU Strength Clinic and it was well worth the effort of going there just to hear him tell stories and introduce the speakers)... Mickey Mariotti's Ohio State strength clinic each spring and the University of Michigan strength clinic
are also worth going to especially the one at Michigan now that one of Dr. Ken's sons, Kevin Tolbert is the new strength
coach there and the whole program is getting back on track. There's a whole world of strength training out there with the
pros and college and even major high schools(the world that ASAP covers) that's missed by many interested "strength"
people...

[Mike Corlett]

Very nice podcast, lots of good stuff in there. Seems like anyone serious about football would find it interesting.

Now to digress, to the subject of "Strength Coaches". About two months ago I watched the 2014 movie "Draft Day" starring Kevin Costner. I know it got "mixed" reviews, but I liked it.

But there was a character in the movie that I may have never seen in a movie before. There was a role for a guy playing a NFL Strength Coach. Which makes me wonder, was that role less realistic than the roles played by team players, team draft prospects, team head coaches, general managers, and owners? I have no idea. But the strength coach was talking like a meathead, acting as a cheerleader for a guy working out, and grunting excitedly to the general manager how strong the recovering-from-injury quarterback was, how many reps he could bench with X pounds, squats, etc., all sounding like the way the general public would imagine how a strength coach is I guess. The point is, if that character was real, he would definitely NOT be doing a podcast and speaking articulately a dozen years after he retired...

I guess I have only met two high level strength coaches in my life. Neither of them were anything like the guy in the movie. But, a Strength Coach in a movie, well that's something in itself, eh? And a Kevin Costner movie at that.

[Kim Wood]

thanks for the nice words, Mike. I am familiar with the Costner movie but haven't seen it. From what you say
the portrayal of the goon strength coach might fit a lot of guys these days in pro football(and major college also).
It wasn't always like that because in the early days many of the "strength coaches" were real coaches and teachers ...
but in many situations today the jobs go to "rah-rah" guys, the characters and "chest bumpers"... the first strength coaches
(other than the pure "self promoters" and drug gophers) had to justify everything they were doing in the context of playing
football... as the job of "strength coach" has matured over time there's a real "personal trainer" vibe taking over and there's a huge
focus on the "strength coach" being a "facilities" guy who takes care of huge showplace gyms. I always treated the job
as a part of preparing players to play the game and it was "coached" like the "position coaches" coach the skills of the game(and the people I worked for backed me up on this).
Today, it seems in many places "the strength program" means fabulous facilities with the players pretty much doing
what they want to do... and the "strength coaches" are there "to be of service" to the players...and to be pretty much cheer-leaders.

[WesOblander]

Kim, have you come across the Iron Neck device in your travels? http://www.ironneck.net/the-iron-neck/ I suppose it is just another path to developing a strong neck, yet its design is interesting. I tend to stick to bridging, neck raises and band neck work off of a door hook, though this one could be a fun variation. The focus on preventing concussions is nice to see, in any case.

[Kim Wood]

thanks, Wes... the gizmo looks interesting. I'll follow-up on it. " Preventing concussions" is an interesting subject
(with a whole bunch of hustlers involved along with many serious individuals...). I believe(as many do) that the number of concussions can be reduced by developing the muscular structures that dissipate the forces that can cause concussions. It's a subject
that's going to need a great deal of research... because the human brain is far more vulnerable than we ever thought...
And, there are no quick answers.

You would have enjoyed my presentation at our clinic last June. I presented a slide show of over 150 slides showing
neck development methods and gizmos throughout the ages. As a wise Sage once said, "All things CAN yield knowledge..." ...
and quite honestly, most gizmos are of some value. At the turn of last century(the early 1900's) development of
a "big neck" was a major topic in the popular "strength" magazines. The tragedy of CTE will make it a major topic again.

(apart from some of the very new and sophisticated neck development machines...I too always found great value
in training with neck straps, weighted football helmets(first seen in Peary Rader's old "The Iron Man" magazine) and
bridging... ain't nothin' the matter with sticking to the basic stuff...)