Tip Always Start With An Empty Bar Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip Always Start With An Empty Bar Some of the strongest lifters on the planet start their workouts with an empty bar Here' s why you should too by Paul Carter May 10, 2016January 28, 2022 Tags Tips, Training The longer you take to warm-up on your initial movement, the better your working sets will feel, and starting with the empty bar to see how your body is feeling on that day will tell you a lot early on. Get to the point where you can tell, just by using the empty bar, whether the training session is going to be on point, average, or sucky. Using an empty bar will allow for some instinctive regulation in regards to loading patterns, rather than just sticking to an outlined routine. If you're scheduled to do heavy-ish sets of 5 but can tell through your empty-bar warm-up that something feels tight or off, lower your intensity for the day and do more volume with a lighter load. This has saved my ass on more than one occasion in regards to avoiding injury, and it'll save yours too. Empty Bar Warm-Up Rules Treat the warm-up with respect. Set up for empty bar warm-ups the same way you do for your biggest sets. In other words, set up like it's heavy. Treat the reps the same way as well. Yes, an empty bar will feel light. But doing kipping empty-bar reps where you're flailing all over the place is dumb. Use smooth reps. Pay attention to what your joints feel like and how your body is moving. This will give you some clues about the rest of your workout. Does it need to be adjusted? The empty bar will let you know. Do 2-4 sets of 20-40 reps. Yes, that's a wide range. If everything feels great after two sets, add some weight. If you still feel stiff after two sets, no one said you have to start adding weight. Take as much time as you need with the empty bar until your setup, technique, and rep execution feels dialed in. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Tip Master the Lunge for Better Legs & Glutes There are several ways to lunge, and one big way to screw it up. Here's what you need to know. Tips, Training Christian Thibaudeau March 5 Training Tip Fix Your Tight Hamstrings All you need is a lacrosse ball and the ability to tolerate pain. Here's how to do it. It Hurts Fix It, Tips, Training Kelvin Ali April 10 Training How to Increase Your Pull-Up Power High-rep pull-ups are cool, but you'll stagnate and bang yourself up if you keep chasing volume. Instead concentrate on adding weight. Most Popular Pull-Up Articles, Powerlifting & Strength, Pull-Up, Training Dan John July 9 Training The Best in Training Jim Wendler lists the best in conditioning, getting stronger, assistance work, home gyms, and strength training books, along with torpedoing the “best” myths. Metcon, Powerlifting & Strength, Training Jim Wendler February 25