Dorian Yates on High Intensity Training, Injury Prevention, and Building Maximum Muscle
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“Freedom is not giving a f*ck.”
– Dorian Yates
Dorian Yates (@dorian_yates) is a six-time Mr. Olympia who took the extreme sport of bodybuilding to a new level. He’s one of my adolescent heroes whose innovations in training influenced what I later put into The 4-Hour Body (e.g., Occam’s protocol).
In this particular conversation, we dig into all sorts of topics that I’ve been dying to ask Dorian since I was a teenager. We discuss specific workouts, how he warms up, the realities of PEDs, common mistakes, his relationship to pain, self-talk when setting records (or bouncing back), his favorite books, and much more. We don’t dodge controversy and get into plenty of details.
Enjoy!
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Want to hear another episode about building muscle and strength? — Listen to this interview with Charles Poliquin. In this episode, we discuss, muscle-building techniques, how to become stronger, warmup routines, why people struggle to lose fat, and more (stream below or right-click here to download):
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QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY: What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
Scroll below for links and show notes…
Selected Links from the Episode
Connect with Dorian Yates:
DY Nutrition | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
A former inmate describes what life was like at Whatton Detention Centre in the ’70s, where Dorian wound up after a youthful indiscretion.
Dorian Yates: Inside the Shadow documentary at London Real
Portrait of Dorian Yates: A Warrior’s Story by Dorian Yates and Peter McGough
The old “Dungeon” Temple Gym in Birmingham vs. the new Temple Gym.
Dorian Yates Workout Routine, Diet Plan and Training Philosophy by James Gold, Born to Workout
Dorian Yates — The Most Insane Train via BodybuildersforLife
Dorian Yates Legs Day in the Temple Gym via World Bodybuilder Workout
DY HIT (Dorian Yates High Intensity Training) Bodybuilding Certification
Dorian Yates demonstrating a bent-over barbell row.
This is what Dorian Yates’s Christmas tree looks like.
1990 IFBB Night Of The Champions results
Lee Haney vs. Dorian Yates — The Greatest Olympia Rivalry That Never Was by Peter McGough, Muscular Development
The Nautilus Bulletins by Alan Stuart Radley and Arthur Jones
If You Like Exercise…Chances Are You’re Doing It Wrong: Proper Strength Training for Maximum Results by Gary Bannister
Lee Haney vs Dorian Yates Posing, Mr. Olympia 1991 via Fitness Trainer
Dorian Yates Talks Yoga via London Real
Dorian Yates Mr. Olympia 1993
Gentlemen Prefer Body-builders! Pictures Reveal How Marilyn Monroe Kept Her Iconic Figure in Shape with Weights and a Bizarre Diet by Ashley Collman, The Daily Mail
The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat Loss, Incredible Sex and Becoming Superhuman by Timothy Ferriss
Dorian Yates — Effects of Steroids & Health via London Real
Testosterone & Ageing — Dorian Yates on Steroids via London Real
Chris Bell’s Bigger, Stronger, Faster documentary
The Handbook of the Navigator: What is God, the Psychic Connection to Spiritual Awakening, and the Conscious Universe by Eric J. Pepin
Meditation within Eternity: The Modern Mystics Guide to Gaining Unlimited Spiritual Energy, Accessing Higher Consciousness and Meditation Techniques for Spiritual Growth by Eric J. Pepin
Freedom Is Not Giving a F*ck — Inside the Shadow Teaser
The Truman Show
Help Tim Ferriss Fund Research for the Treatment of Major Depression at Johns Hopkins
Show Notes
My first encounter with Dorian. [08:35]
Dorian takes us on his journey from farm boy to urban juvenile delinquent — and how he discovered a passion for weightlifting. [10:02]
Why is it hard to find pictures of Dorian smiling prior to 1997? [14:03]
How did Dorian get the nickname “The Shadow?” [15:32]
Dorian describes the gym (aka “The Dungeon”) in Birmingham where he built his physique. [17:02]
What did Dorian’s workout look like during his peak? [19:02]
Dorian describes a leg day workout. [21:01]
What it takes to get results. [25:53]
How much rest does Dorian take between sets? [27:52]
What is the right way to do a bent row, and what compelled Dorian to focus on this technique? [29:50]
On the role of tempo in lifting and the difference between weightlifting and bodybuilding. [33:53]
How did Dorian connect with high intensity training pioneer Mike Mentzer? [36:32]
Thoughts on Nautilus inventor and eccentric Arthur Jones. [37:15]
What are the most common misconceptions and mistakes Dorian observes in newcomers to high intensity training? [40:56]
Dorian explains what his life was like in 1990 when he placed second in his professional debut at IFBB Night of the Champions. [42:46]
What was Dorian’s self-talk like when he didn’t place first? [46:01]
On competing with personal hero Lee Haney, and what it takes to change from a mindset of reverence to rivalry. [48:53]
What was Dorian’s relationship with pain while competing from ’92 to ’97? [50:56]
How much water weight would Dorian lose in twenty-four to forty-eight hours prior to a competition? [53:01]
Did dehydration ever play a role in Dorian’s injuries? [53:58]
On setting goals: “Instead of saying something, get a pen, get a piece of paper, and write it down. It just makes it a hundred times more powerful.” [54:47]
For Dorian, what occurs between having a plan and putting that plan into action? [57:54]
What has Dorian changed his mind about since his competition days? [1:00:31]
Dorian talks about including yoga and how he feels better at 55 than he did at 35. [1:03:19]
What does Dorian wish he could change about his competition-era training program? [1:09:23]
What was Dorian’s Plan B if bodybuilding hadn’t panned out? [1:12:43]
What is the best way for women to build beautiful, lean muscle: higher reps with light weights, or lower reps with heavy weights? [1:13:56]
Differences in training and nutrition for steroid-enhanced vs. natural lifters. [1:19:55]
On dealing with clinical depression when injuries forced him into retirement. [1:29:25]
What helped Dorian emerge from this dark period? [1:32:08]
What is Dorian reading these days? [1:33:47]
What would Dorian’s billboard say? [1:39:44]
People Mentioned
Dan Gable
Brian Rose
Peter McGough
Mohammed Benaziza
Lee Haney
Mike Mentzer
Arthur Jones
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Casey Viator
Robby Robinson
Marilyn Monroe
Gal Ferreira Yates
Chris Bell
Mark Bell
Eric Pepin
Bruce Lee
