Mark Rippetoe Mark Rippetoe has worked in the fitness industry since 1978. He was a competitive powerlifter for ten years, retiring from competition in 1988. For the next 10 years he announced most of the powerlifting meets in North Texas, while coaching lifters and training the members of his gym, the Wichita Falls Athletic Club, for strength and athletic performance. He retired from powerlifting involvement in 1997, to focus more on Olympic weightlifting. Rip acquired a solid background in coaching the Olympic lifts as a result of his coach, Bill Starr, using them in his powerlifting training. He obtained his USWF Level I certification in 1988 at the USOC’s Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, followed by his USAW Senior Coach certification in 1999. In 2000 he was invited, as an Olympic weightlifting coach, to the Olympic Solidarity course at the OTC. He taught both the USAW Club Coach course and the Sports Performance Coach course from 1999 through 2005, and competed in the masters division for several years. Rip coached national and international-level athletes at WFAC from 1999 through 2006, as well as the collegiate weightlifting team from Midwestern State University through 2010. He still coaches the sport on a daily basis at WFAC, and coaches the power clean and power snatch at our seminars around the country. Rip was in the first group certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association for the CSCS credential in 1985. After 24 years of continuous certification, he became the first to formally relinquish that credential in 2009, due to his concerns about the direction taken by the NSCA. He is the author of Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training, Practical Programming for Strength Training, Strong Enough?, Mean Ol' Mr. Gravity, and numerous journal, magazine and internet articles. He has been the owner of the Wichita Falls Athletic Club since 1984. Starting Strength Forums Mark Rippetoe Q&A Articles 100 Starting Strength Gyms in 5 Years The "Corporate Culture" of The Aasgaard Company Abs Academic Preparation Active Hip 2.0: The Directors’ Cut Age and Bodyfat Back Pain and Back Strength Bad Advice About Higher Reps Can You Put Your Kids on a Strength Training Program? Cardell and Dr. Coleman A Clarification Coaching “Core” Stability “Training” Deadlift Mechanics: The Obvious Can Be Obscure Deep Squats Diversity is NOT our Strength Exercise, Government-Style Form Creep From Heart Patient to Lifter Getting Played: Whose Fault is It? Good vs. Bad Trainers How to Build a Home Gym How to Fix Powerlifting? Incremental Increases Intermediate and Advanced Training: A Few Ideas Leg Length Discrepancy Lifts vs Assistance Exercises Losing Bodyfat or Gaining Muscle Mass: Which is More Important? Maybe You Should GAIN Weight New Year's Resolutions and Your Lazy Ass Is Olympic Weightlifting Strength Training? Is Physical Therapy Fraud? It’s Time to Stop Talking About “Supercompensation” Nothing New Under the Sun One of the Most Underrated Strength Exercises You Can Do Pajama Boy Redux: The Male in Modern Society Physical Potential Protein Recovery and Growth Rehabilitation Squats and Your Knees Should Personal Trainers and Coaches Be Licensed by The State? Squat Mechanics: A Clarification Squats, Presses, and Deadlifts: Why Gyms Don't Teach the Only Exercises You Need Strength and Conditioning - Conditioning and Strength Strength and its Derivatives Strength and Prevention of Injuries Strength is Money in the Bank Strength vs. Endurance: Why Are You Wasting Your Time in the Gym? Strength Training for People My Age Strength Training, CrossFit, and “Functional Training” Tactile Cues and Coaching The Belt and the Deadlift The Biggest Training Fallacy of All The Blind Lead the Willing The Deadlift: 3 Reasons The Difference Between Ignorant and Stupid The First Three Questions The Mathematical Nature of Strength Training The Minimum Effective Dose of Training The Most Important Aspect of Programming The Most Important Thing You Will Ever Learn About Lifting Weights The Novice Effect The Olympic Games: Time to Stop The Overhead Press The Phenomenology of Barbell Training The Power Clean The Press The Problem with “Exercise Science” The Profession of Barbell Coaching The Progressive Exercise Science Community Embarrasses Itself Again The Snatch-Grip Deadlift The Standing Overhead Press The State of Strength & Conditioning Coaching The Texas Method The 3 Most Effective Ways to Waste Time in the Gym The Truth about the Starting Strength Method The Two-Factor Model of Sports Performance Training and Discipline Training and Pregnancy Training Female Lifters: Neuromuscular Efficiency Understanding the Master Cue What is a "Coach"? What Your Doctor Doesn’t Know About Squats Who Wants to be a Novice? You Do Why Barbells Are Better Than Machines Why Being Sore Doesn't Mean You're Getting Stronger Why Functional Training Pushes Kids to Use Steroids Why You Should Not Be Running Why Your Kids Should Be Lifting Weights Women in Ground Combat You Must Understand the Gravity of Your Situation Your First Two Weeks of Strength Training: What to Expect Your Gut, Your Health, and Situps The New Fitness Industry Collars on the Bar When to Omit the Power Clean The Two-Factor Model: The Stronger Golfer Hits the Ball Farther Maintenance: When to Stop Trying to Train Muscle “Imbalances” and Injuries Aesthetics and Training What Makes a Good Coach? Bodybuilding Mythology Perception vs. Reality: The Problem with Things That Make You Happy But Are Still Wrong Don't Artificially Limit Your Lifts Why You Won't Do the Program, Part 1 Why You Won't Do the Program, Part 2 Why You Won't Do the Program, Part 3 Why You Won't Do the Program, Part 4 Going To College – Or Not Strength Training: What It Is – And What It Is Not “Functional” “Training” The Deadlift vs The Clean Bodyparts, Or Movement Patterns? The Role of Assistance Exercises in Strength Training An Example of the Peer-Review Process Physical Therapy: There Are No “Safe Spaces” on the Savanna The Inappropriate Use of the Rack Pull Pulling Mechanics: Hip Position Bodyparts vs. Movement Patterns Starting Strength Channel Ask Rip Podcasts Videos Mark Rippetoe Teaches John Lovell the Deadlift Why We Train the Power Clean Learning to Squat Learning to Deadlift Learning to Press Learning to Bench Press | The Starting Strength Method The Starting Strength Power Rack The Barbell Row How to Push the Prowler How to Pick Stuff Up The Case for the Starting Strength Model The Squat - Starting Strength DVD The Squat - Bar Position Lower Back Position Control Learning to Press 2.0 The Press 1.0 - Starting Strength DVD The Deadlift - Starting Strength DVD The Bench Press - Starting Strength DVD The Power Clean - Starting Strength DVD The Power Snatch The Split Snatch The Split Jerk The Barbell Shrug The Halting Deadlift The Rack Pull The Front Squat The RDL The Lying Triceps Extension Is Your Bar Straight? Managing Calluses Knee Wraps Shoulder Rehab The Dumbbell Rack Barbell Basics - Starting Strength Equipment The Iron Plate Problem The Leg Press How to Box Squat Ed Coan Marty Gallagher Shane Hamman Dan John Kirk Karwoski Joe Ladnier Charles Staley Tommy Suggs Mike Tuchscherer Eva Twardokens John Welbourn Jim Wendler How to Properly Roll Up an Extension Cord Rip Coaches the Deadlift The Shrug in the Power Clean The Double Knee Bend Rip Fixes Your Press Grip Learning to Squat Clean How to Find Your Grip Width for the Bench Press The Most Important Exercise in Any Training Program In Depth on the Power Snatch Exercise Selection - SSC Prep Course How to Make a Vesper Martini A Comparison of Two Start Positions v3 Teaching the Split Snatch You Need to Learn How to Power Clean Get Strong First How to Split Jerk In Depth on the Power Clean Revisiting the Barbell Row Everyone Should Drink a Gallon of Milk a Day Gaining Weight and a Bigger Deadlift Fixes Back Pain for Skinny Guys The Split Clean Throwback Q&A Why Ass to Grass Squats Don't Use the Longest Effective Range of Motion Functional Training is a Waste of Everybody's Time Deadlifts and Squats are Training for Olympic Weightlifting Roger Estep, Doug Young, and Westside Barbell | Mark Rippetoe Q and A Quit Putting Your Plates on the Bar the Wrong Way Rip Gives Santana Some Life and Business Advice Are You a Spotter or a Panic-Stricken Rep Stealer? How to Do Weighted Chin Ups What it Takes to Become a Starting Strength Coach, Part 1 How to Properly Enjoy Irish Whiskey How to Micro-load a Lat Pulldown Machine Why the Trap Bar is Completely Useless How to Repair Your Lifting Shoes Using Box Squats for Knee Tendonitis Rip Coaches Starting Strength Coaches on the Power Clean Don't Bail On Your Squats - How to set the bar on the pins if you get stuck When You Bench Press - How to Set the Safety Pins Power Clean Series Part 1 - Learning the Three Positions Power Clean Series Part 2 - Jumping with Straight Arms Power Clean Series Part 3 - Racking the Bar Power Clean Series Part 4 - Reinforcing the Jump Position Power Clean Series Part 5 - Adding Plates and Tying it All Together Power Clean Series Part 6 - The Details: Diagnostic Angles and The Shrug Quarantined? House Arrest? Work on Getting Your First Chin-Up Military PT, Testing, and Standards A Tour of Wichita Falls Athletic Club You have to Learn to Control Your Back How to Train the Press Low Back Positions - Flexion, Extension, and Overextension How to Make British Navy Grog Why Barbells to Get Bigger and Stronger Strengthlifting: A Better Way to Compete Conditioning, Strength, and The Two Factor Model of Sports Performance Putting the Bar Down After a Deadlift the Right Way How to Punch a Hole in Your Belt "Core" Stability "Training" Mark Rippetoe Teaches You How to Make Chicken Fried Steak | Texas Cafe Classics How to Make Hamburger Steak with Mark Rippetoe | Texas Cafe Classics Mark Rippetoe Makes Fried Okra | Texas Cafe Classics Mark Rippetoe Teaches You How to Make Texas Chili | Texas Cafe Classics Sirloin Tips with Mark Rippetoe | Texas Cafe Classics How to Make Fried Chicken | Texas Cafe Classics Creamed Corn | Texas Cafe Classics Rip Makes Beans and Cornbread | Texas Cafe Classics Rip Makes Salmon Patties | Texas Cafe Classics Using the TUBOW Rip Coaches the Split Snatch What it Takes to Become a Starting Strength Coach Rip Responds to Confused YouTube Strength Coaches Foot Movement during the Clean The Clean: Accelerating the Bar and a Clarification on the "Jump" Olympic Lifters Have to Train the Front Squat Venison with Bleu Cheese and Wine Reduction | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Baked Mac and Cheese | Contemporary Texas Kitchen How to Cook a Steak | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Aunt Patsy's Pecan Pie | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Bachelor Steak | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Creole Spaghetti | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Bachelor Enchiladas | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Popcorn | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Frito Chili Pie | Contemporary Texas Kitchen Training Log A Clarification on the Squat Grip A Comparison of Two Start Positions v1 A Comparison of Two Start Positions v2 Bend Over When You Squat “Butt Wink” Correcting Squat Back Angle Deadlift Stance Doctors and Exercise Advice Finishing the Snatch Fixing an Arm Pull in the Clean Grip Width in The Press Hip Drive Hip Flexion vs Spinal Flexion Hook Grip for the Deadlift Making a Shake Putting on Your Belt Should Your Training Be Sport-Specific? Squat Grip Correction Strength and Endurance Strength is Not Specific The Deadlift in 5 Steps The Difference Between Starting Strength and Powerlifting What is Strength? Why Will You Not Do The Program? Wrist Over-Extension in the Press The Stiff-Legged Deadlift The Fourth Power Lift The Press and the “Get Under It!” Cue How to Rack Pull How to do Dips How to do the RDL The Barbell Curl Why Is Modern Strength and Conditioning Ineffective? A Clarification on Strength and Force Production Force Production Muscles, the Nervous System, and Mechanical Advantage Physical Activity, Exercise, and Training Training and The Novice Effect The “Jumping Position” in the Power Clean Teaching Method Hamstrings and The Squat The Close-Grip Bench Knees Out/Toes Out in the Squat Fixing the Squat Grip The Correct Place for the Bar in Your Hands in the Deadlift Going Too Deep in the Squat Looking Up in the Deadlift The Starting Strength Bench Rip Coaches The Squat The Starting Strength Bar The Hook Grip Hitching the Deadlift Eye Gaze Direction in the Squat Eye Gaze Direction for the Bench Press “Push/Pull” Workouts: Seriously?? Your Back Angle in the Squat Shoes Which Book? Can You Squat Too Deep? Knee Wraps and Knee Sleeves Rip’s Chili Recipe Low Back Overextension A New Cue for Setting the Lower Back Soreness, Training, and Practice Comparing the Deadlift and the Power Clean After the Floor Stance Width in the Squat Is the Starting Strength Seminar Right for Me? Keeping a Training Log Chalk in the Gym Catching a Power Clean on Locked Knees Keep Your Butt on the Bench Stress The Primary Start Position Error in the Deadlift Teaching Hip Drive in the Squat Grip for the Pull When To Do the Lifts “Wrong” Bar Path in the Press What To Do If Workouts Need To Be Shorter How to Safely Handle the 45s Warmup Weightlifting Shoe Soles For the Coaches: The Starting Strength Method, The Model, and You What the Hell Are You People Doing? Using the High-Bar Squat “Locked” Knees in the Squat Which Bench? Sweats or Shorts? The Only Emphasis Is Strength Get Some Shoes The Correct Use of Fractional Plates Put Your Plates In The Rack Low-Back Position in the Deadlift Conditioning for Novices The Chalk Box The Lat Machine The Incline Bench Press vs The Lat Machine The “Sumo” Deadlift: What's the Point? Cueing and Feedback: Science or Art – Does it Matter? Sleep The Squat: Hips are the Key The Deadlift: Pushing the Floor “Assistance” Exercises – What do They Assist? The Press as a “Throw” Power Clean Your Deadlift Warmups The Economics of Training