Want to Get Published on StartingStrength.com?

by stef bradford, PhD, SSC | July 21, 2021

how to get published on starting strength

Starting Strength accepts articles and videos on strength training and related topics from coaches and lifters. Every week we get a few legitimate submissions for consideration amid a flood of proposals from marketers, scammers, and purveyors of shallow nonsense pieces of the sort repeated endlessly on the internet and in monthly magazines. To improve the ratio, we've clarified and expanded the submission guidelines.

What we won't publish

#1 Marketing: StartingStrength.com is not for sale. We don't accept paid collaboration or ads. We don't accept payment for marketing, do-follow links, backlinks or link exchanges. We don't publish to game traffic or other metrics.

I’m looking for the finest blog to post one of my client’s articles. During my search, I came across your blog. Well, I found that the posts on your blogs are quite edifying and admirable to read. So, I’d like to suggest your StartingStrength.com to my clients. Now, I’m reaching out to you to ask if you are interested in posting sponsored content on your blog. If so, please devote some time to tell me your thoughts in your busy schedule.

I'm a representative of the [redacted] outreach marketing team. Our company would like to work with you. We are interested in publishing a sponsored article with a permanent do-follow link indexed by Google on your site. We have several different topics and would like to provide you with a relevant article that will fit your site.

I wanted to ask if you are now available for paid collaborations?

I'm reaching out to you from [redacted]. Our team operates an extremely popular furniture site. We've had a few of our visitors mention your site recently, so I took a look and I'm happy to say that I was really impressed! I'm interested in a possible article exchange between both of our sites as I am sure it will strongly benefit our sites in terms traffic.

My name is [redacted] and I'm the marketing specialist. First of all, I would like to say that I really like your content and the quality and wide range of information presented at your website. Being a marketing specialist, I wanted to ask you if it is possible to publish article with do-follow links on your site? And how much will it be?

I’m wondering if there are ways we can collaborate, either through sharing, backlinking, or a guest post for [redacted] - which would be totally awesome! [Redacted] is passionate about the health benefits of collagen powder, and his goal is to share this passion with those who can read the benefits for themselves in the content we produce.

#2 Nonsense filler: StartingStrength.com is not about silly bullshit.

We don't want cuteness or click-bait. We especially don't want cuteness or click-bait that is about exercise instead of training. We absolutely don't want articles or videos describing how to diversify your restaurant business or choose a workout towel. This is true even though you should always know where your towel is.

I’ve got few guest post topics that you may like to publish on your website, here:

7 Amazing Chest Workouts For Building Awesome Pecs
8 Awesome Chest Workouts That’ll Work Your Shoulders and Arms Too
6 Best Chest Exercises and Workouts of All Time
4 Go-To Chest Exercises For Beginners

Here are some contents kindly review and let me know which content you are interested in:

The Unique Home Gym Mirror That Makes Beautiful Room for Gym – As far as the home gym mirror is concerned, you will come to know the fact that they cannot be selected randomly...
Share your Best Selfies on Social Media using HD Gym Mirrors to get Maximum Likes – Man is a social animal and social media continues to satisfy the human need to socialize. Everyone wants to get likes and be at the center of attention...
A DIY Guide for Building a Garage Gym: Home Gym Idea – 2020, undoubtedly, has been a major blow to all the fitness plans. With the pandemic unleashed on the world, everything kind of stopped. Our everyday work routines have disturbed, the educational system is at sixes and sevens, simply put, pretty much everything is in a pickle....

It occurred to me that your site visitors might like to take a look at an article which looks at how it’s possible to diversify your restaurant business in the wake of a global crisis and still be successful. I’d also be happy to write around any other ideas you had too. Of course, the article will be tailored to your existing content and fully referenced for accuracy.

I’d love to put together an article for your site that will detail best practices for entrepreneurs and small business owners. One of those best practices is: join your local chamber! May I write this article for your consideration?

[I'm] hoping to get my stuff published and starting to develop myself as an authority on small business development, financial training, and process automation. I want to write for your website. I’ll do it for free, too, if you’ll be so kind as to find some room on your content calendar for a business-minded woman.

Let me get straight to the point, I want to submit helpful resources (guest post) to your site. I’ve been working on a piece about health and dental topics, it's overall addressing health, lifestyle, and informational pieces of what consumers usually search for.

Kindly select one topic so that I’ll get started on writing an awesome post for your website:

10 Best Chest Barbell Training Routines For Men
How To Choose The Best Workout Towel?
8 Indications That You're Not Getting Enough Protein

What We Will Publish

We publish previously unpublished articles and videos on strength training and related topics. Articles may be long and theoretical or short and practical or some mix of the two. Articles published in our Training Log section are targeted to explaining single fundamental concepts as well as solving problems with cues and programming modifications. These often use case-studies to show how they are applied to specific situations. Videos are well-suited to demonstrating coaching techniques and tips, interactive Q&A, and telling stories of lifter progress.

Trainers Who Think They’re Physios

The Bill Starr Chronicles: Fielder's Shed

The Deadlift Set-up

Warrior Spirit: A Busy Military Commander Gets Strong in a Net Calorie Deficit

Leg Drive During the Bench

A Better Deadlift Setup with Less Fidgeting

Why Publish on StartingStrength.com

Not only do we not take bribes to publish on our site, we also compensate contributors with both fame and fortune.

We pay for all content. The amount is on a sliding scale, and depends on several factors, including:

Editing requirements: If Rip has to rewrite your article, he takes an authorship credit and the money goes way down. If you turn in a well-written piece you earn more.
Photo requirements: If you turn in good, usable photos, payment is greater. If we have to take photos or create illustrations for you, you earn less.
Response: If your topic is chosen well, and results in a good response, compensation is higher than work that generates less engagement.
Contribution frequency: If you turn in good pieces that are well edited and illustrated on a regular basis, you are rewarded.

Submission Guidelines

Articles

I. Articles must be previously unpublished work.

II. Article topics should be preapproved: rip@startingstrength.com

III. The typical featured article that is accepted is greater than 2500 words.

Training Log

I. Content must be previously unpublished text and/or video.

II. Topics should be preapproved : rip@startingstrength.com

III. Training log content is shorter content, focused on solving specific problems and/or case studies.

Videos

I. Content must be previously unpublished video.

II. Topics and format should be preapproved : nick.delgadillo@startingstrength.com

FORMAT

Written Submissions: Text must be kept separate from other elements . This means that images, links, reference links, and tables must not be embedded into the text. Put a placeholder for these elements in your main text or word processing file.

I. Main body text: Submit as a text or word processing file (doc/docx/txt/rtf/odt). Examples of unacceptable formats: pdf, pages.

a. Links: do not embed links in the text. Simply give the url for the website or file inline. Example: This great site http://greatsite.org

b. Program numbers: these should use our style convention of general case use as sets x reps and specific examples or already performed examples use weight x reps x sets. If you tend to flip-flop between the two, write out sets and reps in long-form in all your text and examples and we’ll simplify them to the convention before publication if needed.

c. Punctuation:

i. Quote marks – Use US quotation conventions – double quotes for the initial quotation, single quote marks for quotations within the quotation. Periods and commas are always inside quote marks whether they are part of the quoted material or not.

ii. Do not use apostrophes to “space out” abbreviations or acronyms – not “PR’s,” but “PRs.” Use them for contractions and possessives only.

iii. Numbers: numbers should use leading zeros (0.5, not .5).

iv. Abbreviations: most abbreviations in text should omit the period (lb, kg, USA). Exceptions are Latin abbreviations such as et al., etc.

d. References/notes: give as bracketed numbers after the place that draws the reference. All notes and references will be presented at the end of the document, in a separate section. Example: Nice sentence [2].

II. Images

a. All images must belong to you – your original work as the image creator – or you must have documented permission or a license from the copyright holder. Your ability to grab an image off a website does not constitute permission.

b. Images must be submitted as separate files. Place a note in the text to indicate where you prefer the image to be placed along with its caption, but do not embed the image directly in your text file. Images should be sent as separate attachments.

c. Image quality: send the best quality possible. Large (high numbers of pixels) and dense (dpi/ppi) images can easily be manipulated and matched to their medium and used at optimum sizes as the layout is finalized. It does not work the other direction, so make sure to send us the best you have. If you are creating a drawing, make sure to create at high resolution or use a vector format.

d. The Aasgaard Company can provide an image for your article submission. Send your image request to nick.delgadillo@startingstrength.com.

III. Tables:

a. Submit tables as separate files not embedded in the text body.

b. Excel, ods, csv are acceptable file types.

c. Keep the table super simple – columns and rows – the formatting will be put in at the end of the process.

IV. Author Information: Submit a short bio as a separate text file. If you’ve already been published, take a look at your bio and check to see if it needs to be updated. Submit an image or images to go along with your author entry. We will send you a W9 to fill out if needed for US contributors who are also subject to our friends at the IRS.