The Best Westside Barbell Training Programs from Louie Simmons

This guide compiles the best Westside Barbell Training Programs from Louie Simmons all in one place. From here you can browse through and find the perfect training plan for your exact needs.

If you already know which area of your fitness you would like to improve, click on the relevant link in the table below.

Squat and Deadlift

Bench Press

Olympic Weightlifting

Strength for Throwing

Explosive Strength for Jumping

Strength for Running

Strength for All Sports

Methods

Strength for Kids

Memoir

Westside Barbell in their Own Words

“Westside Barbell is an invitation only training laboratory where only the strongest of mind and body survive. Our goal is simple. To become the best and push every boundary known to man in doing so.”

“The lineage and achievements of all Westside Barbell athletes who have walked through our chalky doors is of legends. Our gym has broke over 140 world records, won olympic gold, heavyweight world championships, to name but a few of our achievements.”

“Our education is based on theoretical research and is backed by practical application. We only write about what works, not what might work or what doesn’t work. We believe that training information should filter down from the athletes at the the top rather than spew out from the keyboard hero’s at the bottom.”

The programs are designed by Louie Simmons, and you can learn more about him here.

He also inverted the Reverse Hyper Machine.

Westside Barbell Training Programs

1. WESTSIDE SQUAT & DEADLIFT MANUAL – EBOOK

This is a digital eBook-only version of Westside Barbell’s Squat and Deadlift Manual, which is also sold separately in paperback here.

Along with being one of the most accomplished powerlifters of all time, Westside’s late founder Louie Simmons (1947-2022) was perhaps even better known for his vast knowledge and innovative, scientific approach to strength training.

In 2010, Simmons personally wrote the Squat & Deadlift Manual as a follow-up to his Book of Methods and Bench Press Manual. In it, he covers the dynamic training cycles done at Westside, with deep dives into many of the gym’s famed maximal effort workouts.

Across 14 chapters, Louie also holds back no secrets when it comes to his views on technique, preparation, recovery, gear selection, loading + periodization, and eliminating weaknesses.

Simmons served as a strength consultant for several NFL teams and was the inventor of the Reverse Hyperextension Machine. His highly exclusive gym, Westside Barbell in Columbus, OH, has more than 100 World Records to its name.

Click here for the paper version.

2. WESTSIDE BENCH PRESS MANUAL EBOOK

The 40-page Westside Bench Press Manual, available here in a eBook, was written by the late, great Westside Barbell founder Louie Simmons himself, and serves as an introductory guide to the groundbreaking strength training methods that made him a legend–with a specific focus on Westside’s approach to the bench press.

As Louie explains in the book’s introduction, “I wrote this bench press guide for the novice to the most advanced bencher. . . . The methods will help any lifter or athlete–male or female–reach his or her ultimate goal. With 27 lifters benching 700 LBS or more, we have developed a complex but simple system to take you to stardom.”

Along with breakdowns of the primary Westside methods, the eBook also includes sample workouts, technique guidance, and tips for competition prep, rehab and prehab training, and much more.

3. WESTSIDE BARBELL – OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING STRENGTH MANUAL – EBOOK

First published in 2016, the Olympic Weightlifting Strength Manual was written by legendary powerlifter, strength coach, and Westside Barbell founder Louie Simmons (1947-2022). His unique, in-depth instruction brings together 50 years of experience—combining Westside’s own innovative methodology with a long-range development plan first popularized in Russia’s famous Dynamo Sports Club.

Simmons meticulously lays out the methods behind early technique refinement, the process of specialization to high performance, and above all else, the value of top strength, no matter which weight class you’re starting in.

As Louie sees it, some trainers focus most of their discussion on technique “to camouflage the fact that they don’t know how to make a person super strong.” The Olympic Weightlifting Strength Manual changes the conversation, shining a light on special strengths that can help raise individual lifts and set new PRs.

4. WESTSIDE BARBELL – THROWER’S GUIDE TO STRENGTH TRAINING – EBOOK

Written by legendary strength coach and Westside Barbell founder Louie Simmons, Thrower’s Guide to Strength Training (available here only as a digital eBook) applies many of the longstanding pillars of Westside’s methodology specifically to the world of competitive throwing, i.e., shot put, discus, hammer, and javelin.

“My goal,” Simmons explains in the book’s introduction, “is to convince both the coach and the athlete that the Westside System can make it possible to combine strength and power training all year long—not just in the off season—by integrating all training efforts together. This means the athlete must continue to weight train and perform explosive power training during his or her competition period.”

While many throwing athletes and their coaches reduce strength training in-season, Simmons lays out the science behind his belief in a better approach. This includes deep dives into Westside staples such as periodization, the Conjugate System, explosive strength through jumping, maximal and dynamic method strength training, and much more.

5. WESTSIDE BARBELL – EXPLOSIVE STRENGTH DEVELOPMENT FOR JUMPING – EBOOK

Available here as a 280-page digital eBook, Explosive Strength Development for Jumping contains more of the singular training philosophy of Westside Barbell founder Louie Simmons (1947-2022). With dozens of detailed workouts and accompanying photos, this is an endlessly useful guide for coaches and athletes, alike.

Along with being one of the most accomplished powerlifters of all time, Simmons was perhaps even better known for his vast knowledge and innovative, scientific approach to strength training.

In this particular manual, Louie explores how “jumping builds explosive strength by combining speed, strength, neuromuscular coordination, and the elasticity of the body.” Through exhaustive research into the work of past trainers and scientists, and the incorporation of established Westside methodology (including speed strength training with accommodating resistance, the Maximal Effort method, and other special exercises), Simmons has created the ultimate bible for “overcoming gravity.”

6. WESTSIDE STRENGTH MANUAL FOR RUNNING – EBOOK

This is a digital eBook-only version of Westside Barbell’s Strength Manual for Running, written by Louie Simmons in 2017.

In this particular manual, Louie explores the importance of going beyond technique and emphasizing strength and power as a direct means for helping runners improve their performance, recover faster, and avoid injuries.

With detailed training tips, analysis, and illustrations, the Strength Manual for Running can help any dedicated coach, trainer, or athlete unlock new avenues toward reaching their goals. Focuses include: periodization, jumping and sled training, the conjugate sequence system, static dynamic development, special weight training for long distance, and much more.

7. WESTSIDE BARBELL – SPECIAL STRENGTH DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL SPORTS – EBOOK

This is a digital eBook-only version of Westside Barbell’s exclusive manual, Special Strength Development for All Sports, which we also sell separately in paperback here.

The late powerlifting legend and Westside founder Louie Simmons (1947-2022) put four years of meticulous research and 40 years of his own experience into this comprehensive, groundbreaking strength training handbook. Special Strength Development for All Sports leaves no stone unturned when it comes to proven, scientifically tested methods for maximizing one’s athletic potential—including techniques from the former Soviet training system, the Bulgarian system, and Simmons’ own Conjugate Method.

With detailed training tips, analysis, and illustrations, Special Strength Development for All Sports can help any dedicated coach, trainer, or athlete unlock new avenues toward reaching their goals.

8. WESTSIDE BARBELL BOOK OF METHODS – EBOOK

This is a digital eBook-only version of Louie Simmons’s classic Book of Methods, which we also sell separately in paperback here.

Along with being one of the most accomplished powerlifters of all time, Westside Barbell’s late founder Louie Simmons was perhaps even better known for his vast knowledge and innovative, scientific approach to strength training. The “Book of Methods” brings together more than three decades of Simmons’ real world experience—helping today’s weightlifters get an edge against the competition.

Topics covered in the Book of Methods include:

• The Conjugate Method
• Percent Training Method
• Periodization
• The 3 Week Wave System
• The Soviet System
• Special Exercises

9. THE RULE OF THREE: PREPARING BOYS AND GIRLS FOR ATHLETIC SUCCESS – WESTSIDE EBOOK

This is a digital eBook-only version of The Rule of Three: Preparing Boys and Girls for Athletic Success. This helpful guide for coaches and parents was published by Westside Barbell and written by Westside’s legendary founder Louie Simmons.

As Simmons explains in the book’s introduction, “to successfully participate in sports today, it is extremely important for all children in the 7-10 age group to develop coordination, flexibility, general strength, endurance, hand and eye coordination, and the ability to perform athletic feats.” With this in mind, Louie applies his half-century of knowledge, gained from his role as a champion powerlifter and strength coach, and as a lifelong student of proven training methods from around the globe.

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The Rule of Three explores differences in approach for girls and boys, training for flexibility, how to select a suitable sport for a young athlete, speed and endurance training, special strength training for beginners, and much more. The 100-page guide also comes with dozens of helpful illustrations covering some of the key recommended exercises.

10. THE IRON SAMURAI: THE TRUE STORY OF WESTSIDE BARBELL – EBOOK

This is a digital eBook-only version of The Iron Samurai: The True Story of Westside Barbell, a 2020 memoir written by the “Iron Samurai” himself, Westside founder Louie Simmons (1947-2022).

Written in the third person, The Iron Samurai follows Louie’s life from his earliest days as a powerlifter through to the founding of the Westside Barbell gym and the dozens of great mentors, competitors, and students who impacted his life and helped Westside establish its worldwide reputation for excellence.

This is a must-read for Westside and Simmons devotees or any coach or athlete interested in the science of strength, approaches to success, responses to failure, and above all else, great stories from a remarkable life.

Westside Barbell Training Programs

Squat and Deadlift

Bench Press

Olympic Weightlifting

Strength for Throwing

Explosive Strength for Jumping

Strength for Running

Strength for All Sports

Methods

Strength for Kids

Memoir