1) Who is Greg Nuckols? (where are you from, what do you do, a bit about yourself (hobbies, etc)
I'm from just outside Mocksville, NC (literally the middle of nowhere), but currently live in Chapel Hill, NC for grad school.
I'm a powerlifter, coach, and writer. I'm a pretty simple man. If I'm not working, I'm generally reading something, lifting, cooking, or drinking some good beer.
2) How many years have you been training?
The first time I ever touched a weight was almost 16 years ago. I've been training consistently for about 11 years, though.
3) Whats been the hardest part of your journey so far? and how have you overcome them (set backs, rejections, injuries, basically anything difficult that you have had to overcome)
I had a pretty bad back injury about 9 years ago. The rehab I received for it was pretty bad (and I didn't know nearly enough at the time to try to rehab it myself), so that's ended up causing some chronic pain issues. I can't necessarily say I've overcome this problem, but I've figured out how to manage it well enough that I can generally train the way I'd like to without too much discomfort. It also seems to be getting better with time very gradually.
4) What does your typical workout/diet routine look like?
Training is on the back burner at the moment, so this isn't necessarily representative of how I'd train if I had a meet coming up.
Currently, I'm training four days per week.
Day 1:
Squat to a heavy set of 1-3 reps, followed by lighter sets of 10-12.
Accessory work for my posterior chain (back raises, RDLs, good mornings, rows, etc.). I'll generally just pick one or two exercises that sound fun that day, and bang out 2-3 hard sets of 8-10ish reps.
Day 2:
Bench to a heavy set of 1-3 reps, followed by lighter sets of 10-12.
DB shoulder press for sets of 10-12
A bunch of sets of rows
Accessory work for arms, pecs, and delts
Day 3:
Deadlift to a heavy set of 1-3 reps, followed by lighter sets of 10-12
In theory, I'd do some quad accessory work after this, but I'm generally wrecked after deadlifting
Day 4:
Push press to a heavy set of 1-3 reps, followed by lighter strict OHP for sets of 10-12.
DB incline press for sets of 10-12
A bunch of sets of rows
Accessory work for arms, pecs, and delts.
The top sets are all autoregulated. When I can go heavier, I go heavier, and when my body isn't cooperating, I go lighter. I try to squat at least 635, deadlift at least 675, bench at least 405, and push press at least 275 each week. Those are my current "pretty heavy but always doable" weights. When they start getting easy, I'll just bump up my daily minimums. Progression is driven by the higher rep sets. I'll stick with a weight until I can get 5 sets with it, and then go up in weight.
I'm definitely not claiming this is the optimal way to train, but I find it fun, and that's enough for me at the moment.
For nutrition, I just try to make sure I'm eating 150g of protein per day as a bare minimum, not eat a ton of garbage, and not drink too much beer.
5) What have you learned over the past year regarding training, lifestyle and nutrition?
Probably nothing that would be amenable to an interview like this, honestly. I mean, I've been doing this for a long time, so I learned the basics a long time ago; most of what I've been learning for the past few years is just stuff underlying physiology.
However, these are general things people should pay attention to that often go overlooked:
a) Don't neglect your sleep. Try to get at least 8-9 hours per night, if possible. I can't stress this enough: you'll recover better from training, not be as tempted to make bad food choices, be more focused during your workouts, and generally feel better. Get your damn sleep.
b) When you're having a bad workout and something just doesn't feel quite right, do more warm up sets. If that doesn't sort things out, skip the exercise and move on. Live to fight another day. Sometimes freak injuries happen out of the blue, but more often than not, your body gives you hints beforehand. Trying to force a good workout on a day your body is telling you "no" is rarely a good idea.
c) Develop hobbies outside the gym. This is a lifesaver for when a serious injury/setback eventually comes. When your whole identity revolves around working out, anything that forces you away from the gym can seem like a catastrophe. When you have other passions to fall back on, it's easier to roll with the punches when a setback comes.
6) Whats your favourite cheat/Treat meal?
Ice cream and beer.
7) One supplement that you could not live without?
I guess the "right" answer is creatine (since it's the supplement that's been most consistently shown to have a positive effect on strength gains and hypertrophy). However, I literally just started taking it again about 3 days ago when I found a bag of it tucked away in the back of my bathroom cabinet, so clearly I could live without it. That's the only supplement I take, except for the occasional protein shake when I'm in a rush.
8) If you had to start out from scratch with your physique what would you do differently and why?
When you phrase the question to ask about my physique, the answer would be damn near everything. As a strength athlete, it's not something I've ever really paid much attention to. The biggest thing would just be staying at a lighter body weight, and not just gaining weight to chase bigger lifts. I've never really trained shoulders or biceps consistently either (at least, not with any sort of real focused approach), so that would clearly need to change as well.
9) Who do you look up to in the fitness industry and why?
A few of the folks I look up to are Eric Helms, Danny Lennon, and Mike Tuchscherer. They're all very knowledgeable, humble, and great communicators.
10) If you had to give one bit of advice to people starting out what would that be?
Focus on yourself and your own results. If you're improving, you're doing it right. Comparing yourself to other people doesn't accomplish anything (unless you eventually decide to compete in some sort of strength or physique sport). You should be in this for the long haul, and gradual progress over years and years eventually adds up to great results.
11) What new goals are on the horizon? (new goals, aims, etc)
Short-ish term is graduating with my Masters in a couple of years. PhD after that, in all likelihood. After that, I really don't know. With regards to training, I've been chasing an 800lb squat and deadlift, and a 500lb bench for several years now, so those are still my main training goals. I'd like to put a 2000lb total on the platform as well. Once this semester gets underway, I'm hoping I'll be able to find a good rhythm with school and my business, and be able to make training a higher priority again.
12) Where can people find you? (website, social media accounts)
strongerbyscience.com
I'm pretty active Facebook as well, and occasionally post on instagram. Both accounts are just under my name (Greg Nuckols).
