Straight to the Bar FAQ

I love seeing how other people train. If you'd like to share a strength-training article with the fantastic community here (comprising professional athletes, coaches and those that simply love throwing heavy objects around), here's how to do it. As you'll quickly see, it's a great way to share your ideas with an incredible audience.

Here's how to do it :

1. Sign in to the forums, and click on 'Post to your Blog' in the column on the left.
2. Enter the title and content of the article. Format as desired (see notes below).
3. Check the box next to 'Articles' in the Blog Categories section (further down the page).
4. When you're happy with it, click Post Now.

Notes on Formatting

Naturally the content is the main thing, however there are a few elements you may wish to add. These include images, video and links to related information. A few examples :

Images : there are two options here. Either link to an image which is already on the web somewhere (a picture on Flickr, or perhaps on your own blog), or upload one and attach it to the article.

Of these, the first method is recommended; as this embeds the image in the article, and shows it to everyone who sees the page. An example :

[img=left]http://www.scottandrewbird.com/sttbimages/posts/061004_ofs.jpg[/img]

The [img=left] will show to image to the left of the text, and the path is to the image itself.

Video : to insert a video clip (perhaps a demonstration of a particular technique or feat), simply add :

[yt]biNenGOn5Hw[/yt]

The [yt] is just for YouTube, and the other part is the unique ID for the video itself. This is the last part of the code which appears in your browser when you play the video.

NB : I'm using YouTube here as it's the most common video-sharing site, if you'd like to use an alternative let me know.

Links : creating a link to another page or site is just a matter of inserting a URL here and there. The following example (which links to David Horne's excellent site) will show you what I mean :

[URL="http://www.davidhorne-gripmaster.com/"]David Horne[/URL]

In this case, the text 'David Horne' will appear on the page, and clicking it will take you to his site.

Of course, there are many other ways to format your articles. Try out the items on the toolbar above the main input area - adjust the text, spacing or overall layout to show exactly what you mean. Experiment.

Final Note on Articles

A few of the articles will appear in the Strength and Fitness newsletter each week, as well as on the front page of the site. If you've just posted a brilliant piece which deserves to be highlighted, send me an email. Love 'em.

I love seeing videos of training techniques, feats and general strength-training inspiration. Whenever you find a great YouTube video (strength-related of course) on the web, embed in a new post or article using the following code :

[yt]youtube_id[/yt]

The youtube_id is just the number part of the URL you see in your browser. For example, if you're looking at 'Windshield Wipers - Parkour Training and Conditioning Exercise' on the page http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvN7uGX5QP4, the youtube_id is just the 'HvN7uGX5QP4' part. To embed it, just put

[yt]HvN7uGX5QP4[/yt] in a post.

NB : although YouTube is the most common, there are many, many other video-sharing sites. If you've come across a great video on one of these other sites, let me know.