Two Years of Tactical Strength Challenge Competitions

Last Saturday I competed in my 4th TSC (Tactical Strength Challenge) over the course of 2 years.

The TSC has been running, in some form, for over a decade now.  For those of you unfamiliar with the format, the TSC is simple:

- Maximum deadlift (3 attempts)

- Max reps for pull-ups (1 attempt)

- Max snatches in 5 minutes

Oddly, having competed more than 3 times puts me in a tiny minority of people who have done so over the years.

I like competing in the TSC because I feel like it’s one of the better overall tests of strength out there.

Each movement is different enough that it requires global strength and endurance.  In my opinion, one of the cool things about it is that you don’t really have to train for it specifically if you are already training in a way that makes sense.  The snatches are the only specialized movement, and frankly if you are strong enough they don’t take much time & effort to get up to speed in.

Which is why it’s exceptionally odd to me that someone wouldn’t continue competing in the TSC.

May I speculate as to why?

I think it’s a lack of progress.

With just a very small handful of notable exceptions, the progress displayed by the TSC competition results paint a very ugly picture for most people’s training.

Defining the problem

Going back 4 years to 2008, I looked at the results from 6 TSC contests and looked at the progress made by people who competed in more than 3 competitions, spanning a minimum of 18 months.  Running a little analysis this is what I saw:

Average DL change: 11%
Average PU change: 22%
Average SN change: 19%

Keep in mind, I only looked at people who competed 3 times in a TSC.  These are not casual competitors.  If you compete in a TSC 3 times over a 2 year year period you are probably pretty serious about getting stronger and getting better.

David’s April 2010 deadlift 475 lbs

But the results are dismal.

In fact, regression was fairly common.

Out of 17 athletes sampled, 6 of them had 1 or more events in which they made NEGATIVE progress over 3 competitions.

David’s September 2010 TSC deadlift, 541 lbs

If we drop down to athletes who competed twice, the results are even more grim.

Average DL change: 4%
Average PU change: 15%
Average SN change: 8%

Men lie. Women lie. Numbers don’t lie.  So who am I to criticize everyone else’s progress?  Well, you be the judge:

Deadlift improvement: 42%
Pull-up improvement: 35%
Snatch improvement: 34%

I am making somewhere between 50% and 200% faster progress than the result of the field?  Am I the best?  Fuck no.  But I am moving quite a bit faster than the best and the rest. Is there any reason to think that the logical conclusion won’t be overtaking the best? Remember kids, the numbers don’t lie.

David’s April 2011 575 lbs deadlift

Want to examine the numbers for yourself? Go here now and take a look.

Even though I am talking about relative progress here, it’s important to look at the absolute values too.  It might make sense if this were an analysis of Olympic athletes that the progress would be very slow.  But, frankly, the numbers we are comparing are just not that impressive.  To win a TSC you need a deadlift over 500, pull-ups over 25, and to be snatching well over 130.  The progress numbers I have examined are mostly 3-450lb deadlifts, 15 pull-ups, and around 100 snatches.  They’re just not so impressive that they can be excused for moving slowly.

So what do I do differently?

First, I do not follow anyone else’s program.

Second, I question my training. I do not seek guru’s approval, I find my own answers.

Third, I track my results to a detailed degree.

Fourth, I obey the sensations of my body.

Finally, I base my training on the results of the training, not on favorite exercises, rep schemes, or recommended plans.

Don’t you think you should try this?  If you’re not convinced yet, what is it going to take?

PostScript:  If you are reading this, and you ran a TSC at your gym, you are a jackass if you have not posted results yet.  It has been over 2 weeks since the official competition date, and it looks to me like at least 1/3rd to 2/3rds of the gyms have not posted their results.  Get off your lazy ass and post the scores for the people who worked hard to train, and came out to compete.