Bars Of Gold Program    

Throughout history great human achievement has been rewarded with gold. Gabe Harrington the Strength and Conditioning Coach at Colgate University wants his athletes to appreciate what small incremental increases really mean and has instituted his ‘Bars of Gold Program’.

The smallest plate in most gyms is a cast and stamped 2 1/2 pound  piece of iron. This requires that when you add weight the incremental increase is preset. When you obtain your goal weight lifting,  the smallest amount you may raise the weight is a 2 1/2 pound plate placed  on either side of the bar, or a total of 5 pounds.

Improving 5 pounds to many is seemingly a small increase, but in fact, over time it can be construed as an enormous amount of weight.

If you were to increase 5 pounds every week in your squat and your current strength was 300 pounds at the end of one year, you would be able to deep knee bend 560 pounds (5 lbs x 52 weeks = 260 pounds increase).  After a four years you would be up to 1,340 pounds, which is rather good if you could make the little 5 pound increases every week.

At Colgate University the 2 1/2 pound plates are painted gold to rightfully represent the special achievement of great progress.

When an athlete reaches their strength goal they  add  a gold plate. Everyone in the room knows the value of the ‘gold bar’ and that it represents that the athlete and the team are moving forward.

Set a Gold Standard and Get Strong!

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