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Giveaway, Benches, and Strongman
Another jam packed newsletter with new gear and opportunities
Joseph Gray
August 07, 2025
GML - Darko Giveaway, Hyper Pro Review, and Cardio Stuff
Community - Dialed Motion
GGC - Cerberus Strength & Lifting Technique
r/HomeGym - AMA Schedule
Links throughout may include Affiliate Links. These help fund the Newsletter, Website, Garage Gym Competition, Videos and more at no expense to you.
Gray Matter Lifting
I am doing two things right now in the gym… Benching… and Cardio.
Giveaway w/ Darko
My dude Darko just launched a new grip option for the TRAK Handle Sports… and you KNOW these are one of my favorite options. I happen to have an extra handle, so we are doing a giveaway together. Hit the link on Instagram for your shot.
Freak Athlete Hyper Pro Review
This was a big one. I had ALMOST finished this review in May and then they wanted to release the Belt Squat Attachment, so I waited. I’m glad I did, as this got me right at that 1 Year mark, handling every attachment, and putting together a really comprehensive review.
Speaking of Nordics
We got the new NordBench Pro in the gym recently. I snapped some pics, took some initial notes, and will be taking this for a spin in a few months. It will mostly sit to the side for now, as I’m focused on the bench project (below). But once that wraps up, this will be slotted for later this year.
Benches EVERYWHERE
I am currently running a Bench Spec program with JuggernautAI, benching 4 days a week and doing 1 leg day. This is because I am going all in on this Adjustable Bench (w/ attachments) showdown… The goal is to be done in early September, where we will be comparing:
Inspire SCS
and one more bench in development
Plus, a whole boatload of their attachments.
Cardio!
The next review is on the Merach Rower. I borrowed my neighbors Concept2 and have been using them side by side, as I think the key decision here is going to be… is this GOOD ENOUGH to buy instead of the reigning champ! Got some more work to do here, but I’m most of the way through. Hoping that by the time this hits your inbox, I’ll be recording or prepping to record.
I mentioned in the last newsletter, that I’ve had a LOT of offerings to get a treadmill recently. We finally said yes to one that the company agreed to me doing my thing. We got it last week, I snapped some pics, and shared some initial details in the following write-up.
Unfortunately, we have already run into quite a bit of hiccups. I had to tear it apart, we have multiple cracked pieces, and there are some serious design flaws. Oddly enough, one of the OTHER reviewers already covered this treadmill and completely skipped over these items. Oh well.
I’m HOPING it will perform well overall, but we shall see. Not a great start.
Behind The Scenes
I just got an offer to join the Legion Ambassador team. I’ve never used their products before, but I’ve seen a bunch of people promote them over the years. I asked for details to see what it entailed, and got a fun piece to the puzzle.
“we ask our athletes and ambassadors to stay exclusive to Legion (not promote/have a discount code with other supplement companies).”
This is an immediate red flag for me. In my 20+ years of taking supplements, I’ve never once found a single company that crushed it on EVERYTHING to the point where their price and offerings were the perfect offering for everyone.
I took a look at their supplement line, looking at protein powders first. They are WAY over priced. TrueNutrition, who I have been using their protein for close to 2 decades, comes out at $21.50lb for their grass fed whey. If you use a discount code and subscribe, it is down closer to $17.50 a pound. Legion wants $58.49 a pound… that is a 334% more expensive product. And that is their SALE price. That ended my search and interest right there.
I currently have two supplement companies listed on my discount code page… TrueNutrition (code GML saves ya 5%), and Bulk Supplements where I get my Creatine from. I don’t see that changing any time soon. Next time you see someone pumping a Legion code, remember this fun little tidbit.
Whats New In The Community?
One of the most talked about new releases is coming from Dialed Motion with their Leg Developer. It makes sense, I’m pumped as well.
My dude Tim at GoReckFit posted this great clip of their cable retractor system on Instagram. And one of the comments is spot on something I think people are going to need to be ready for with this release. This guy ordered his Dialed Motion cable retractor in January, and here he is in August, still waiting. The Leg Developer is supposed to open for pre-order end of 2025, but that first shipment might be months after that. And a second round? Who knows?! Something to keep in mind when considering these items. I’m still pumped, and I MIGHT get special treatment because of what I do. But you likely won’t.
Merch Newsletter subscribers get Merch at a 10% discount, the biggest discount I can give ya. Thanks for being here and doing what you do, so I can do what I do. You just need this code: FAM9731a60 | Discount Codes I just added Temple of Gainz, based on your request for an affiliate… Thanks for that! So if you plan to snag a new machine from them, hit ya boy up! |
Garage Gym Competition
Another week closer to the #25FallGGC. I have been prepping by dieting, benching, and all things not super conducive to a monster total… But you know I am competing anyway. No EXCUSES!
Sponsor Highlight
I have a dream that at some point I will have a space large enough for my garage gym that I can have a stall for each of my 3 favorite things.
1 stall for powerlifting with comp plates, a combo rack, specialty bars, and other odds and ends.
1 stall for bodybuilding with all the machines and cable attachments and pump producing glorious equipment.
and 1 stall for strongman, with stones, sandbags, logs, and other weird stuff you can pick up, toss around, and be crazy.
I have said this before and I’ll say it again… if you haven’t at least tinkered with Strongman training, you should. I enjoy it so much that I tend to sneak it into my program regardless of what my goals are. Even when running JuggernautAI, I add in some weighted carries (don’t tell Chad).
Cerberus USA is our official Strongman Sponsor for the GGC. This means not only are they tossing up some officially awesome and certified fantastic strongman gear as prizes, but we have some articles stamped and approved
Prize Announcement
Cerberus Strength USA is tossing up some of my favorite stuff from them (Yeah, I told them to). Sandbags are freaking awesome and humbling. And we got TWO up for grabs. They are also tossing in some Dinnie Stone Handles, something I will probably grab in the future for no apparent reason other than they look awesome.
And if you happen to no win the big dudes, we got some shirts up for grabs too. I pressured them to hand them all out as individual prizes, so we spread the love around.
Training Tip
Coming off the Spring GGC and the Live Streams, we had a LOT of feedback around proper set-up for the big lifts. So we’ve got some helpful tips and tricks for that today.
First up is the Pillars from JuggernautAI. They have multiple videos on each lift, and will walk you through just about everything you need.
Then I went ahead and asked our coaches for their notes.
One of the easiest ways to help tighten up a setup on any of the big 3 lifts is to remember your lats.
Squat - as you set up under the bar, imagine doing a lat pulldown or a pull up, keeping your lats tight and bringing your elbows down as you secure the bar on your back.
Bench - use your lats to help squeeze your shoulder blades together as you’re setting up on the bench.
Deadlift - use your lats to create tension on the bar and stabilize your upper torso and trunk. Think of squeezing an orange or tennis ball in your armpit and roll your shoulders back.
These tips/cues may not be for everyone depending on your lifting goals, anatomy, etc.
As an extension of the GGC, I can offer a FREE form check to the first 5 people who go to my blog and fill out the Form directly on my online coaching page at
https://rebel-strong.com/online-coaching/ and mention GGC in the comments!
Happy lifting!
Training tips I have used to help with this:
1) After your main working sets for your main lift like squat or bench, overload the bar so it's 110% or more. Get under it. Lift it off the J-cups. For squats, as you get comfortable, walk it out. hold, then walk back in.
Doing so not only starts to prep your body to handle that heavier load, but it also starts preparing you mentally for what it feels like. When I have a PR on my back, I usually end up thinking something along the lines of, "Oh shit this is heavy.". Getting used to the heavy load takes that out of the equation a little bit. Word of warning: Be sure you either have a spotter or safeties. Lift big but not dumb.
2) Pausing after I take my bracing breathe. I saw Eddy Coan working with Nick Best here, and took his advice. My lifts felt stronger, more stable, more explosive.
Stop Rushing Your Squat
Be Deliberate & Intentional - Your set up and walk out are just as important as the squat itself. I’d even argue it’s more important. Your set up should be simple, efficient, and routine. The set up and walk out on every single warm up set all the way to your last set should look exactly the same.
3 Step Walkout - I teach my kids a 3 step walk out because it’s easily repeatable and extremely efficient. After unracking, take a step straight back with whichever foot is most comfortable. Then with the other foot, step back and out. Lastly, that the first foot and move it out to your actual squat stance.
Let the Weight Settle - depending on the weight on the bar and the type of bar you’re using, you might experience some whip. After the walkout, letting the weight settle allows you to create maximum stability in your brace
Brace - Chad Wesley Smith can explain this much better than I can: https://youtu.be/ZFiosv9_vis?si=A0FckWRGm6sr79dE
Squat - After putting it all together now it’s time to move some weight!
For upper back tightness in the squat, my first instinct would be to have the lifter bring their hands closer together. While I normally advocate a "thumbs over the bar" grip on the squat, until better shoulder mobility is achieved, the lifter may need to use a thumbs around the bar grip to work on getting those hands closer together to form the meat shelf upon which the bar rests.
We’ll have a full article on this topic in the next newsletter… so stay tuned!
r/HomeGym
AMA w/ Push Pull Fitness
I got a chance to chat with some dudes across the pond making some seriously crazy rack attachments. And their AMA is THIS WEEK! Make sure to check out the chat, and their AMA for some insights into what they are working on next.
ForceUSA AMA
Dropping this Saturday, is the AMA Warm-Up with ForceUSA on YouTube. This was an awesome chat about a lot of things, including of course, ForceUSA and their new C20 on the way.
As Newsletter Subscribers, I’m going to start giving you pre-release access to videos. You can find this one right here: ForceUSA AMA Warm-Up.
Their AMA will be in a couple weeks.
What Is Coming Next?
We’ve got 4 more AMAs before we hit the Black Friday Window and everything turns to deals, deals, deals…
I’m also already planning for 2026 AMAs. I’ve got my list of companies and people to connect with and schedule. A side note, we are likely dropping the AMA Warm-Ups moving into next year. This was a fun experiment and a great way to connect with some companies, but the time investment and scheduling is getting more and more difficult.
We’ll still have AMAs, just no more Warm-Up videos. Instead I’ll have some details to share for every AMA on the way to give us some insights, but without the video.
One Last Thing…
Thanks everyone for voting in the Review Pipeline Survey. This feedback helps me moving forward more than you know. The 5 winners have been selected, and emailed.
I’m already making moves on some of the items mentioned. I’ve reached out to some companies as well. And I’m doing things that you have asked me to do. Seriously. Thank you!
Joe