The use of specialty barbells is a hallmark of the Conjugate Method. These barbells provide us with tools to specifically target anterior and posterior muscle groups while also challenging our athletes' technical proficiency. For instance, the safety squat bar (SSB) is a great way to add an anterior bias to a squat movement while challenging an athlete's ability to maintain optimal mid and upper-back posture. 

As we have mentioned previously, when a beginner uses the Conjugate Method, it is crucial that the athlete gets the most adaptation out of the least amount of exercise variation. This ensures no strength is left on the table before moving on to more advanced exercise variations. It also gives athletes meaningful experience dialing in their technical execution of basic exercises. 

However, at some point, a beginner needs to introduce new stimuli into the exercise rotation to avoid accommodation and bring about new training adaptations. The timing of this introduction depends on the individual athlete and can be anywhere between the six-month and two-year training mark. Evaluating each athlete and making the call to advance training at the correct time is essential. 

When using a Conjugate-based approach, we typically begin changing the joint angles of certain exercises, adding or modifying the use of accommodating resistance, and introducing specialty barbells. These changes to training help avoid strength plateaus, allowing athletes to make consistent progress. It's a simple idea: new training stimulus leads to new training adaptations. 

Many believe that the phenomenon of "beginner gains" only happens for a short time, then an athlete should be satisfied with 5-10 lb PRs on their lifts each year. At Westside, we understand that while we may not be able to constantly improve at the same rate as a beginner, we can still use exercise variation and different training tools to maintain a rate of improvement that far surpasses 5-10 lb PRs once per year. 

Below, we will discuss how to introduce specialty barbells into the training program of a beginner athlete to help take training to the next level. 

Level One: Bow Bar and Football Bar

The first specialty barbells we will typically have a beginner utilize are the bow and football bars. These barbells are relatively easy to use and add enough difficulty to an exercise to challenge a beginner without overwhelming the individual. The bow bar will be used for lower body exercises, while the football bar will be used for upper body exercises. 

The bow bar is a great way to add a bit of variation to a beginner's lower body training without totally changing the setup and execution of squats or good morning movements. 

Here is what a month of lower body max effort exercises using the bow bar would look like:

Week 1: Bow Bar Box Squat

Week 2: Deadlift 

Week 3: Bow Bar Good Morning 

Week 4: Squat

The bow bar has a slight camber, so this barbell will help beginners understand the importance of maintaining optimal posture when performing a squat or good morning. This will help as athletes move on to more demanding lower body specialty barbells such as the SSB or giant cambered bar. 

The football bar is the first upper body specialty barbell we will introduce to athletes. It is a reasonably easy barbell to adjust to, with the only significant difference being a change from a pronated bench grip to a neutral bench grip. This helps to relieve stress on the shoulders and involves the triceps and posterior shoulder a bit more during the press. 

The only issue a beginner might encounter with the football bar is the demand it can place on the wrists. Our first recommendation is to ensure athletes are gripping the barbell with authority. A weak grip will place more stress on the wrist joints. Next, we recommend a good set of wrist wraps. 

Here is what a month of upper body max effort exercises using the football bar would look like:

Week 1: Bench Press

Week 2: Football Bar Floor Press

Week 3: Close Grip Bench Press

Week 4: Football Bar 2 Board Press

The football bar is a simple way to add some variation to upper body training without making drastic changes to the basic exercise mechanics. This barbell will help beginners improve their triceps and posterior shoulder strength and is a good way to teach the importance of grip strength during the bench press.

Level Two: Safety Squat Bar and Axle Bar

Now that the beginner athlete has experience adjusting techniques and utilizing specialty barbells, we can increase the training demand. The SSB and axle bar raise the training difficulty just enough to be an extremely effective stimulus, without overwhelming the athlete. In this case, the SSB will be used for lower-body exercises, while the axle bar will be used for upper-body exercises.

The SSB is a specialty squat bar that increases the anterior chain bias of the squat. It does this by placing the barbell in an exaggerated high bar position on the back of the athlete, which also increases the mid and upper back posture demands during the squat. This barbell is a great way to improve the strength of lower body anterior muscle groups and teach the importance of bracing and maintaining a brace during the squat. 

Additionally, the SSB can be utilized for good mornings, placing significant demand on the glutes, lumbar, thoracic, and cervical spine. The SSB good morning helps to build great squat and deadlift strength, as well as improved trunk stability. 

Here is what a month of lower body max effort exercises using the SSB would look like:

Week 1: SSB Squat

Week 2: Deadlift 

Week 3: SSB Good Morning 

Week 4: Squat

Keep in mind that the use of the SSB can be challenging for some athletes. It is critical to use this barbell only once an athlete has displayed the ability to perform movements consistently to standard. Failure to properly execute with the SSB can result in excessive stress being placed on the thoracic or cervical spine, resulting in injury. 

The axle bar is the second specialty barbell we will introduce into the upper body max effort exercise rotation. This barbell opens the hands of the athlete while gripping the barbell, and places great demand on the triceps and upper back. The axle bar is a great way to build a strong bench press and upper torso. 

When using the axle bar with beginners, it is vital to choose correct training weights. We want enough weight on the barbell to deliver adequate levels of training intensity but not so much that an athlete loses control of the axle and dumps the barbell onto their stomach or face. 

Here is what a month of upper body max effort exercises using the football bar would look like:

Week 1: Bench Press

Week 2: Axle Bar Push Press

Week 3: Close Grip Bench Press

Week 4: Axle Bar Bench Press

As long as a coach takes the time to reinforce technique with the axle bar, this barbell will be extremely beneficial to an athlete. To build brute pressing strength, look no further than the axle bar. 

Level Three: Giant Cambered Bar and Bamboo Bar 

The final step in introducing specialty barbells to beginner-level athletes involves using the giant cambered bar and bamboo bar. Of all the specialty barbells listed in this article, these two are typically the most difficult for beginners. Both barbells add an aspect of instability to their respective lifts, so it is critical that athletes are prepared to match the physical demands brought on by these barbells. 

The giant cambered barbell has been referred to at Westside as the King of all specialty barbells. This is due to its effectiveness when seeking to improve lower body strength. While this barbell does have a posterior chain bias, an athlete training with it will undoubtedly improve anterior hip and quad strength as well. 

What makes this barbell so effective is its movement. While a traditional barbell remains in a fixed position during a squat or a good morning, the giant cambered bar oscillates. This forces an athlete to exert an even higher level of technical discipline and taxes all involved muscle groups significantly. 

This barbell is a great way to strengthen the squat and develop technical mastery of the movement. Add some giant cambered bar good mornings, and the deadlift will benefit immensely as well. 

Here is what a month of lower body max effort exercises using the giant cambered bar would look like:

Week 1: Giant Cambered Bar Squat

Week 2: Deadlift 

Week 3: Giant Cambered Bar Good Morning 

Week 4: Squat

When using this barbell, it is not uncommon for beginner athletes to experience a reasonable reduction in working weight. This is due to the demands the giant cambered bar places on the athlete. Additionally, the barbell is heavier than most, which can throw a beginner-level athlete off. 

Similar to the giant cambered bar, the bamboo bar introduces instability and chaos to the upper body. However, unlike the giant cambered bar, we will not use the bamboo bar for max effort work. We will save that barbell for repeated effort work focused on technical mastery and recovery. 

At Westside, we use the bamboo bar to improve shoulder stability and triceps strength. We also use this barbell any time an athlete is dealing with pain or mild injury to the soft tissue of the shoulders and pecs. Over the years, this barbell has helped even the strongest bench pressers improve technique and reduce shoulder wear and tear. 

When using the bamboo bar with beginners, you must be mindful of how you load the barbell. We want to double up minibands or monster minibands and hang kettlebells or plates from the barbell. When selecting training weights, we recommend choosing a weight an athlete can do for at least ten repetitions. 

Here is how we would recommend programming the bamboo bar for the upper body accessory training of beginner athletes:

Option 1: Bamboo Bar Bench Press – 4 x 10-12

Option 2: Close Grip Bamboo Bar Bench Press – 4 x 10-12

Option 3: Bamboo Bar Overhead Press – 4 x 8-10

Option 4: Bamboo Bar JM Press – 4 x 8-10

As you can see, we have two exercises that help improve the bench press: one that targets the shoulders in a vertical press and a final exercise that specifically targets the triceps. These exercises allow a coach to target almost any aspect of a bench or overhead press using the bamboo bar. 

Variation and Adaptation

Undoubtedly, beginner athletes need to focus on getting the most out of the basic strength training movements. However, at some point, these basic movements must be altered to some degree to allow athletes to continue to make gains at a meaningful rate. This is when specialty barbells must be introduced into training. 

For many years, the use of specialty barbells was questioned or mocked by many in the strength and conditioning world. Now, look around the strength and conditioning social media world. You will see coaches of both strength and conventional athletes using specialty barbells on a regular basis. 

One thing is for sure: as always, Lou was right. Specialty barbells are a necessary addition to any respectable strength and conditioning plan and must be utilized to allow an athlete to reach their full potential. The stimulus these variations provide cannot be mimicked in other ways and will lead to significant training adaptations.  

Hopefully, those who have questioned Louie and his methods in the past will realize the error in their ways. It is great to see folks employ our training methods and techniques, whether they admit they are following Westside methods or not. We have always known, and the world is sure to learn that Lou is always right. 

Sources:

Simmons, L. (2007). Westside Barbell Book of Methods. Westside Barbell.

Zatsiorsky, V. M., & Kraemer, W. J. (2006). Science and Practice of Strength Training. Human Kinetics