If you’ve been following my stuff for a while via vids, articles, and blog posts, you know I have been working with push sleds for years now with people from all walks of life. SWAT teams, fitness models, strong man competitors, body builders, IFBB pro Figure competitors, to Joe/Jane every day fitness enthusiast, and those looking to shed some weight, to name just a few. The longer I use the sled with an ever wider variety of people with varying goals, the more convinced I became that the push sled is t
he single most effective strength and conditioning tool known to mankind. Push sleds from various manufacturers have become very popular as of late, and for damn good reason; or as creator of the highly popular 5/3/1 program, elite ranked power lifter, and strength coach Jim Wendler says of sled work:
“I am thoroughly convinced that the Prowler is the answer to most of our world’s problems: debt, overpopulation, drugs, obesity, etc. “
Ok, a slight exaggeration, but only slight! The fact is, a good quality push sled used correctly – in my view – one of the single most effective strength and conditioning tools ever invented. It’s whole body kick ass training nothing I’m aware of can match, and when combined as a cohesive program, impressive gains in strength, conditioning, and body composition are the result. I also find sled work allows people with various preexisting injuries and tendinopathies to make continued progress. If you already have a push sled, and have been working with it for some time, then you already know that. If not, well, find a push sled, or purchase one, and discover that for yourself. Enter, the BrinkZone Sled-Centric Program (BSCP) which is the Ultimate Program For The Ultimate Whole Body Strength & Conditioning Tool.å
Origins of the The Sled-Centric Program
The BSCP came about after years of working with all manner of people on the sled as mentioned above. No matter the goal, they always experienced benefits. People always asking me how to incorporate sled work into their programs a common issue, of which there’s endless possibilities But, I found people wanted a specific program they could follow. I noted that people tend to add sled work to their programs in a more haphazard afterthought then as part of a structured program. Perhaps the biggest mistake I see is people use the sleds for GPP/conditioning work, but rarely if ever for strength development. That’s a mistake in my view.
Enter the BSCP!
I developed the HERE or hit the photo above.
NOTE: You do not need a Prowler sled for this program, but you do need access to a quality push sled that you can push and pull using low and high handles. Basically a sled that allows you to do the same stuff you can do on a Prowler II sled of which there are many to choose from.
NOTE II: You do NOT need a Kindle reader to read it as Amazon offers free readers for phone, computer, etc HERE
Dr Peter Chiang of Northeastern Chiropractic shows what going heavy on the sled looks like and
Will Brink is the owner of the Brinkzone Blog. Will has over 30 years experience as a respected author, columnist and consultant, to the supplement, fitness, bodybuilding, and weight loss industry and has been extensively published. Will graduated from Harvard University with a concentration in the natural sciences, and is a consultant to major supplement, dairy, and pharmaceutical companies.
His often ground breaking articles can be found in publications such as Lets Live, Muscle Media 2000, MuscleMag International, The Life Extension Magazine, Muscle n Fitness, Inside Karate, Exercise For Men Only, Body International, Power, Oxygen, Penthouse, Women’s World and The Townsend Letter For Doctors.
He’s also been published in peer reviewed journals.
Will is the author of the popular e-books, both accompanied by private members forum access , Bodybuilding Revealed & Fat Loss Revealed.
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I have had partial knee replacement in both knees. Can I safely use a prowler sled?
Beth, I don’t want to give medical advice here. If you are cleared for exercise by your doc, I find the sled seems to cause less pain than other forms of exercise. I have had people in their 70s with double hip replacement for example using the sled thinking they’d never get a decent leg workout again as other forms of exercise (squats, etc) caused pain.
Obviously, I can make no promises as it applies to you.
Obviously, they used low resistance and built up very slowly. Specific to this program, it does call for max weights used on the sled, so may not be the best choice for you if you’re asking specific to this program.
If you’re fully cleared for exercise by your doc(s) than in my experience, sleds are a great choice for rehab, pre hab etc,
Reminds me of Rugby where they use a sled for scrum training. A giant sled is used when training as a pack of 8 forwards and a smaller sled when training individually or in pairs. The forces applied are astronomical and the technique for applying max force and to minimise injury is quite complex. A pack of 8 international forwards weighs on average around 920kg (115 kg /253 lb each). Though much of the training is isometric the effort is immense. It would be interesting to see how an elite Rugby prop, most of whom weigh about 120kg and are not particularly tall, around 1.8m, with massive hips and thighs, would go on your sled.
The above is about a sled based program vs a particular sled, and I’d expect they would do very well. They are used to driving loads using their entire body. Sled used in sports such as NFL football is also common and been around a long time. It’s incredibly productive and difficult training.