Aesthetics Of Dillon's Physique In Foundation 1

Has anyone else noticed the difference in the physical physique of Dillon, between say:

Single Leg Squat Preparatory Elements - Deck Squat - SLS/PE1

compared with

Hollow Back Press Preparatory Elements - Xiaopeng Forward - HBP/PE2>iM   (Looks like a beast!!!)

Do any of the moderators know the time lag between when these two videos were shot? Or more importantly, what exercise/nutritional changes did he make to build that physique?

Coach, you posted somewhere on this forum that "Over the years, ALL of my gymnasts have had the poor nutritional habits of the standard American diet and were hardly shining beacons of nutritional wizardry and yet they still outshine the vast majority of bodybuilders in terms of both physique and athletic performance"

I have sort of a hard time believing that that body right there was built solely on GST and junk food. Or am I wrong? Is there some other factor involved? Or does the body just respond to demands placed on it?

Look at the forearm of his right hand when he brings the dumbbell down behind his back in HBP/PE2>iM
. Can anyone guess at which of the GST elements/exercises are causing his forearms to grow to that size and width? (they look like the Italian sculpture of Hercules below!) My guesstimate is that it might be the rope climbs.

INA said:

I have sort of a hard time believing that that body right there was built solely on GST and junk food. Or am I wrong? 

- Yes, you are wrong.  

- There was approximately a two year window between those particular photos.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Because so many GST exercises involve balancing oneself on the hands, GST uses a lot of wrist strength. Handstands, planches, muscle-ups, crosses, mannas and support holds all use a lot of wrist strength, either directly or for stabilization. GST also requires the development of a reasonable amount of grip strength given how much time is spent hanging from the hands. Both of those factors contribute to large forearms. 

Coach Sommer said:

- Yes, you are wrong.  

And what might have been the result if he had ate wholesome traditional food during his training!... A modern day Greek Myth...

Coach Sommer said:

- There was approximately a two year window between those particular photos.

 

To probe further, how long has he been training consistently for altogether? > 10 years? < 7 years ? Just a ballpark figure would be nice..

To probe even a little further: was this development a result of :

1) the simple two year time period of consistent training OR

2) during this two year period, he was training with more advanced exercises which recruited more fibers, resulting in the body to respond by growth

INA said:

Has anyone else noticed the difference in the physical physique of Dillon, between say:

 

Single Leg Squat Preparatory Elements - Deck Squat - SLS/PE1

 

compared with

 

Hollow Back Press Preparatory Elements - Xiaopeng Forward - HBP/PE2>iM   (Looks like a beast!!!)

 

 Or more importantly, what exercise/nutritional changes did he make to build that physique?

 

I have sort of a hard time believing that that body right there was built solely on GST and junk food. 

 

 My guesstimate is that it might be the rope climbs.

 

Hercules.jpg

Yes Dillon is a beast!!

I arrived in Arizona a couple of days before the seminar in 2011 and had the chance to watch Coaches athelets train. I assure you that it came from the training Dillon did in that gym. I´ve been to alot of gyms and there was one thing that stood out and impressed me. Coaches athletes worked hard ALL the time. There were no standing around waiting, talking etc.

For example, when they were doing skills work on rings, they had a "in between station" where the would work a mobility or strenght element. To sum it up there were very little rest time during the FOUR hours the worked out.

This is how we should work in F1. First the main exercise than the mobility (rest) and then back to the main exercise. 

They also did ALOT of ropeclimbs (6 meter rope) so that is probably ONE of the reasons. 

After the Helsinki seminar I aslo started to do RC more frequent and it does make a difference!

- Mats' description of our workouts is spot on; we work very hard.

- All of my athletes which you see are "homegrown".

- Dillon began doing serious GST with me at 16 years old; with GST continuing as his only conditioning for the next 4 to 4.5 years.

- Prior to that he had been only a recreational level athlete in a variety of sports with no real conditioning background.

- One time, a year or two into Dillon's training with me, all of my athletes were doing the rope climbs that are a part of their daily warmup.  Part way through this portion of their workout, Dillon became rather quiet (which for Dillon is unusual in itself).  I asked him if there was something wrong.  He said he couldn't feel his forearms and that he was positive the muscles had been torn in half.  He shared all of this with a very sad, forlorn look on his face.  With a serious, concerned look on my own face, I examined his "injury".

Then I told him it was his turn and to get his @#% up the rope.  

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

He is pants at arm wrestling though This thread is great, I love hearing more of the 'behind the scenes' stuff that goes on

I've noticed a dramatic improvement in my general conditioning by following the structure of the foundation series.  These mobility or "rest" periods definitely makes the mastery levels a lot more challenging than they first appear.