Welcome to Straight to the Bar
If you’ve just joined us, welcome. Here you’ll find everything that grunts, groans and ticks in the world of strength training. In short, this site is the home of all things strength.
Incidentally, this site’s been helping people become fitter, healthier and stronger since January 2004. If you’ve just joined us, I highly recommend subscribing to the weekly Strength & Fitness Newsletter (part of the Strength Kit), which contains details of new posts on the site, freshly-minted video demonstrations & tutorials, details of upcoming Gymchats and a whole lot more.
And yes, it’s absolutely free.
To help get you started, here are a few of our most recent posts. And if you want to dive in to a particular area. check out the ‘Start Here‘ page above. Enjoy.
Looking At : Jan 23 2022
This week on Straight to the Bar…
Fitness Reading For The Week : The Big Questions of Neuroscience (by Susana Herculano-Houzel)
The Big Questions of NeuroscienceIt'll come as no surprise that we discuss a lot of fitness-related books; on this site as well as the various networks noted in the sidebar. This course is definitely my kind of thing. The Big Questions of Neuroscience looks at the...
SWEMAX (Sweat Analysis)
The SWEMAX is a sweat analysis tool for your workouts – telling you how much to drink, the salts to replace and the intensity of each exercise. Paired with the usual information gleaned from your training, this is certainly wonderful data to have.
How to Set Up For The Squat (megsquats)
A great look at the ‘setting up‘ side of squatting.
Looking At : Jan 16 2022
This week on Straight to the Bar…
Fitness Reading For The Week : Lifespan: Why We Age—and Why We Don’t Have To (by David A. Sinclair, Matthew D. LaPlante)
Lifespan: Why We Age—and Why We Don’t Have To looks at the incredible field of longevity, from the ‘increasing healthy years’ side of things. Particularly in the short term.
NB : Although we first mentioned this one a couple of years ago, it really hasn’t aged at all since then. It’s a wonderful read.
Boxx (Punching Bag With Smart Trackers)
The Boxx is a punching bag for the home, together with a couple of bluetooth trackers for the gloves. A smartphone app pulls it all together, turning it into a class rather than a solitary experience. Unless you want the isolation, of course.
Best Exercise For Your Biceps Is NOT Curls (Mind Pump Show)
Interesting. Haven’t really thought about it before, but I agree completely with the logic.
Looking At : Jan 9 2022
This week on Straight to the Bar…
Fitness Reading For The Week : How to Train Your Mind: Exploring the Productivity Benefits of Meditation (Chris Bailey)
How to Train Your Mind looks at the incredible benefits of a daily dose of meditation on productivity – both in the knowledge worker sense and in the gym (or on the field). Nice one.