We are very pleased to announce that our gym has been featured in the number one Powerlifting magazine in the country. Powerlifting USA’s latest issue has an article about us listed under “Hardcore Gym!” This is a very cool honor and we would like to thank Rick Brewer, House of Pain, and of course, [...]

So what is it that truly makes our gym different than others?  In this series of articles, as well as several others, we talked about teaching proper training techniques.  Implementing a good program that focuses on the big multi-joint free weight lifts, and the best types of equipment to use for safety and progress.

What is different about my gym, is the second question I would like to answer in this series of articles. This question makes me laugh when I hear it. You would laugh too if you have ever been down to The Iron Empire Dungeon.  This gym is the very last of its kind in the [...]

I feel my last article MYTHS, HALF TRUTHS, AND LIES was a pretty hard hitting article. Like many before me, I was becoming more and more frustrated with the training industry that I am a part of. By the responses I received,  the article did it’s job and told the story fairly and accurately.
Along the [...]

In this series of articles, I really aimed at shedding some light on various types of bogus training.  As I had to explain to some, the idea was to target those who have no business being in the athletic training game.  The reason is simple, I want to help as many athletes as I can.
To [...]

The rumors that some of you have been hearing are true! We have finally realized our long term goal of adding a wrestling area to our gym.

If you are training at a club where you use mostly machines and you do not have the ability to do the basic heavy lifts properly, you are fooling yourself and you need to leave and find a place to lift!

At approximately this time of year, every year, the same thing happens. A great deal of people begin to talk about training. Coaches will tell me their team needs to get stronger!

I can’t help but feel the need to vent some frustration and give some honest cold hard facts about the whole fitness industry. While I am certainly not the first (and I am sure I won’t be the last) to be disgusted by the garbage being spewed and all the misinformation being given.

” I remember sitting behind the bleachers about 45 minutes before the deciding match. I was depressed, feeling lousy about everything. Joe Wells, a former assistant coach of mine at Michigan, walked by and said the usual, ‘let that match go, this next one is the one that counts.’ Then he told me a joke and made me laugh. That changed my whole mood. I started to feel better. I got out of my funk and started focusing on what I had to do in the last match.”

While reading Coach Bevilacqua’s article “WHY WRESTLE” it certainly got me to thinking. His understanding of wrestling is obvious, and he seems to have been involved with the sport forever. He points out many of the details that make the sport of wrestling in my option the greatest sport in the world. I will not go over all the reason Coach Bevilacqua gives because if you have read the article, you already know. If you haven’t, then go and do so.

For those who have asked, these new links will give you a better understanding of some of the stuff we do down at the gym. We will be adding and up dating soon. Please let us know what you think. Thank you, Coach Ellinger

The high school season has come to an end.  For me it was very different because I was not with any school coaching for the 1st time in 19 years.  Although I missed not being “in the corner” for any one team, it may have been a blessing in disguise as I was able to [...]

This post is being written to give everyone details of THE IRON EMPIRE’S training. I would like to talk a little about the gym and what it is that we have to offer. Also, I would like to give the details of the NEW group training package.

Being in superior condition to your opponent can be a huge asset. Just like having superior strength, a better conditioned wrestler has a distinct advantage. This becomes even more important in the hard fought matches that produce championships at the end of the year.

Over the last few weeks I have been asked several times about the personnel training I offer. I have met many new people and appreciate all the feedback on the website and my articles. Here I will give you all the info you will need to get started. The Christmas break will be a very good opportunity for all to set up an appointment to come on down and check out the gym and some training.

Many wrestlers have asked about nutrition over the years, with the latest asking just last week. While nutrition can get pretty complicated and in depth, I usually find that some very basic guide lines are what most wrestlers need and are really asking about.

The wrestling season is now underway and this brings new challenges to the wrestler as far as maintaining his strength levels. The high physical demand of the sport is one challenge as is the amount of competitions one will wrestle over the course of the year. A new strategy is needed which we will discuss here.

We begin here with Tuesday’s workout. The general warm-up for ALL days remains the same. Please look back at part one if you need to refresh your memory. The specific warm for the BENCH PRESS will also follow the same guidelines as the Squat. You will start with the bar X 10 repetitions and work up with the appropriate number of sets needed to reach your work sets.

Before we get into the program we have to speak of several issues. As with any work out program or sports activity, you must get the proper MEDICAL CLEARANCE from a doctor. Make sure you lift with the proper supervision, equipment and spotters. Don’t attempt anything if you are unsure on how to do it. First, get instruction from a knowledgeable person.

Moving forward with part three I would like to go back to the beginning, WARM-UPS. I have all the athletes who train with me start by doing the proper warm-ups. The warm-ups we do target the CORE specifically. Now the word core has been thrown around lately in the fitness industry. It is one of [...]

In part one I gave you 3 lifts that should be the foundation of any program. When these lifts are performed correctly, amazing things start to happen. Your strength levels climb through the roof, and you start to see muscles you didn’t know you had.
Wrestlers who have trained with me in the past have said [...]

Once it is established that it is time to start weight training, the question “now what?” has to be answered. In this article I will first talk about what happens most often and the problem with this approach. Then I will give you what every athlete should be doing and the reasons for this.

Unbelievable as it may hopefully seem to most reading this. Some in the year 2008 still do not understand the direct relationship of weight training and wrestling (and all other sports for that matter).

To all readers I would like to welcome you to Lighthouse Wrestling, Long Islands newest and soon to be greatest website for all information on everything that involves wrestling.