Blog Archives - Tucson Strength

Professional Personal Training in Tucson

Danny — Sat, 03 Jan 2026 22:13:09 +0000

We started as a personal training studio in 2010 and have expanded over the years to become a full service gym, offering open gym, group training, and personal training. I came up in the Big Box scene and saw the revolving doors of trainers that came through. Here one day and gone the next. The trainers were treated like a commodity to the ownership.

Here at Tucson Strength our trainers do this for a career, they are professionals and we treat them accordingly. We are proud that we contribute thousands of dollars per year towards there continuing education. All of our full time staff receive matching 401K, vacation pay, and health insurance benefits. When you look around the gym you will see that our trainers have been with us for 5,10, and even 15 years! That is unheard of in the industry.

If you are looking for a personal trainer in Tucson consider scheduling a consultation. Our team of coaches is diverse in there expertise will understand how to meet you where you are at and get you to where you want to be.

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Gym Has Been Completely Renovated

Danny — Fri, 19 Dec 2025 00:46:28 +0000

Check out the new layout

We are super excited about our new gym layout. This allowed us to organize the gym with a much more cohesive layout. We have upgraded our equipment line to offer the newest most innovative equipment on the market as well as some of the greatest classic pieces of all time. We have hand picked each piece of equipment from around the country to offer the best experience for the serious strength enthusiast. We are proud to carry some vintage Cybex, Body Masters, and Flex equipment as well as new pieces from Arsenal and Hammer Strength.

Our powerlifting area is the most comprehensive over any gym in the state of Arizona. We have numerous competition combo racks, competition benches, a monolift, and professional deadlifting platforms. All of our bars are competition bars. We have Texas Power bars, deadlift bars, and squat bars as well as every specialty bar you could imagine.

Our Functional Training area boasts an 1800sqft turf inside with More kettlebells than any other gym in town. We have a fully functioning Crossfit area and 5 Olympic Platform with bars and kilo bumpers.

Whether you are into Powerlifting, Olympic Lifting, Bodybuilding, Hyrox, Crossfit, or general Strength, you wont find a better equipped gym.

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Where it All Started

Danny — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 01:43:19 +0000

Tucson Strength Origin Story

Tucson Strength started in a small community park as a kettlebell class. I was working as manager of a gym chain and putting in 70 hours a week. When bonus time came they said they couldn’t afford the promised $8,000 bonus. I was disappointed, but believed the owners didn’t have the money. The very next day they pulled up in a brand new BMW. I had a 4 month baby at home and a family to support. With no money in the bank I quit my job. I had a friend that found a few ladies that wanted to train and took some kettlebells I owned and met them in the park a few blocks from my house. We were rained on, chased by bats, and eaten by mosquitos.

Within a few months I rented a spot that was smaller than the turf area of our current gym. I borrowed $25,000 from my parents and opened a spot with 5 clients. Till this day I still can’t believe what Tucson Strength has become. We started small and have grown into an amazing community. I am so grateful for every person that is or has been part of our community. God has put some amazing people in my life to make all of this happen.

When you walk into Tucson Strength you aren’t just walking into a gym. You are part of an amazing community built by a passion to help become stronger and overcome their own obstacles in life.

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Why Don’t We Participate in the Silver Sneakers Program

Danny — Tue, 14 Jan 2025 19:16:16 +0000

Why we don't do Silver Sneakers at Tucson Strength

What is silver sneakers?

Silver Sneakers is a program that allows people to train at your facility and have their insurance company pay for it. The gym has to track the membership usage and file a report to the insurance company at the end of the month. The insurance then reimburses the gym $3/per visit for that member with a cap of $30 per month.

Why Silver sneakers doesn't work for gyms

Most small gyms don’t participate in the program. Gyms like Tucson Strength don’t work on high volume mameberships so our membership price is a little more expensive than the $9.99 gyms around town. The most we would get for that member would be Half of our current membership rate. Also sending in reports and waiting for an insurance company to reimburse you isn’t a fun game to play.

The other issue is when a gym offers silver sneakers they have to also offer specific Silver Sneakers classes. So now you are already receiving a discounted membership and have to offer a service that will had hundreds of dollars to your payroll every month. If you are a $9.99 gym it makes perfect sense to offer it, since you will probably receive more money from Silver Sneakers than you would originally charge for a membership.

In conversations with gyms that do take it, they have shared with us that they wish they didn’t offer it as it creates more issues administratively and doesn’t usually work for them in the long run.

So in conclusion we don’t offer it, and never will. There are numerous gyms in the Tucson Area that offer it and we are happy they do.

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No New Years Specials?

Danny — Tue, 14 Jan 2025 15:55:17 +0000

NO huge fitness Specials in january?

The emails have come in daily on what special deals we are running for January? Just about every gym runs their best prices of the year in January. It seems to be an industry standard. January is usually the biggest month of the year for the gym industry. Over indulgence, time off and travel for the holidays usually pushes people over the edge with their weight, and January seems to be the month to get back on track. The picking is hot for gyms. Most gyms can expect to have 50% more business than normal in January than any other month of the year.

At Tucson Strength we don’t toe the industry line. Yes, we love new members and want to help people get back on track, but we don’t offer huge deals to attract EVERYONE. Actually we rarely ever run big specials except for our November Holiday specials. Why? Because we don’t want to have 100 new members that are shopping by price only to choose our gym. When a gym throws out a net to catch as many members as they can, they many times attract people that aren’t the best fit for the culture and community that they are trying to build. At Tucson Strength we are about attracting the people that want what we have to offer. We offer a great community, a helpful staff, and world class training equipment. We aren’t the big box gym.

Also when gyms just offer huge discounts in January they flood their gym with new members and your long time members feel shoved to the side, waiting on equipment and it throws off the entire vibe of the gym. We are offering a discount on our enrollment fees this month and a special for first time personal training clients, but that’s about it. If you are looking for a new gym that feels like home and want to escape the over crowded big box gyms, we encourage you to check us out..

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STRENGTH TRAINING FOR ATHLETES

Danny — Mon, 18 Nov 2024 22:53:34 +0000

Strength Training for Athletes: Why it Matters and How to Start

To become remotely competitive in any athletic endeavor it is essential to incorporate a strength training program.

Athletic programs understand the importance of building strength not only for performance but for injury prevention as well. Here at Tucson Strength, we offer classes and 1 on 1 coaching to develop your potential and teach basic muscle mechanics. Using tools such as sleds, medicine balls, ropes, kettlebells, tires, and chains you will build strength and explosiveness to take your game to the next level.

Let’s dive into what a strength program can do for you:

You Need Strength for Power: We’ll keep the math pretty simple, but here it is, Strength+Speed=Power. Athletic power is defined by how quickly an athlete can generate maximum force. By doing so you will be able to jump higher, accelerate quicker, and throw farther.

Injury Prevention: Strength training increases the size and density of your tendons, ligaments, and connective tissues reducing the risk of injury. The stress of lifting and high-impact activities also strengthens bones and helps avoid osteoporosis later in life.

Muscle Mechanics: Developing a mind-muscle connection is crucial for any athletic endeavor. By utilizing a strength program you will better understand how your body works. This will help you incorporate your new strength into sport specific movements.

Improved Body Composition: Muscle mass improves metabolic functions and decreases fat stores resulting in lower blood pressures and a lower likelihood of developing Type 2 Diabetes. Incorporating heavy compound movements will also trigger the production of anabolic hormones aiding in the repair and building of muscle.

All of the best athletes from the likes of Kobe Bryant, Tom Brady, and even Tiger Woods have all used strength training as a way to stay ahead of the pack. Start your strength training journey by talking to one of our experienced trainers to see what you need to up your game.

Author: Cody Grimm CPT

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Deadlifting Dont’s

Danny — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 17:11:47 +0000

What not to do on the Deadlift

The Deadlift is one of the Big 3 in the sport of Powerlifting, something we take seriously at Tucson Strength. When I first shot this video the intent was to inform the powerlifting athlete of what NOT to do because it will disqualify you in in powerlifting competition. The more I think about, if you are going to deadlift with barbell you shouldn’t do any of these things regardless if you are competing in a sport or not.

Ramping

Ramping isn’t a powerlifting rule book term, but it’s the slang for letting the bar rest on your legs. Once that bar passes your knees, you should not let your knees shoot under the bar. This allows you to slide the bar up your legs and can create a mechanical advantage to getting the weight up. I’ve seen people do this quickly and get away with it, but when you do this you leave it up to the judges, you run the risk of getting DQ’d for the lift. I see people doing this in the gym on their training sets and the more you practice it, the more you will be prone to make it a part of your habit. STOP IT.

DESCENDING BAR

Once you break the ground with the bar, the bar must always be moving up. The bar can stop, but it can’t go back down then up again. If you are in a grind of a lift and fighting the weight and keep the bar moving up. Many times at a meet if the head ref sees the bar go down and back up they will give you the down command because they already know the lift has failed. Also your feet have to stay planted. If you step before the bar touches the mat its a red light.

DOnt drop the bar

DOn’t get in the habit of dropping your deadlifts in the gym. You will always revert to your training when things get heavy. When you lockout the deadlift and receive the “down” command keep your hands on the bar until the plates touch the mat. If you drop right before you will still get a red light.

shaking the bar

Many lifters have a prelift tradition of getting nuts and jerking on the bar. If you jerk on the bar so hard and the plates leave the ground, that is a red light. Once the plates leave the ground it is considered an attempt. Yes getting psyched up is part of the sport, but so is control.

Hope these tips help.

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Are you Doing This on Your Bench Press

Danny — Wed, 19 Jun 2024 16:29:11 +0000

This is important for a big Bench Press

The bench press is the king of all gym lifts even if you aren’t a powerlifter. How much do you bench is first thing people ask when you tell them you lift weights. It is by far the most popular and visible of the barbell lifts. Unfortunately most people mindlessly unpack the bar, let the weight drop onto their chest then push the weight up.

Try This

The bench press is a a compound movement that involves nearly your entire body. We won’t go into all the details in this blog as to keep it focused on upper body mechanics. Your lats and upper back musculature is just as important as your chest and triceps on the bench press. Before you unpack the bar your shoulders should be retracted and depressed. You should feel the muscles between your shoulder blades engaged and your lats (underneath your armpits) fully activated. Once unpacked you should be actively pulling that bar down to your chest. If the bar just falls down onto your chest you will lose tightness and be forced to fight the weight up.

Don’t mistake the lowering of the bar to a general eccentric lowering of the bar with your chest. This is an active recruitment of the back. Think about pulling your chest to the bar as you are lowering the weight. When executed correctly, you will feel your lats light up and the weight bearing on your back, not your chest. This tightness will allow you have maximal recruitment of your chest and tripes when executing the lift.

The best way to master this is to practice using your back on all your warm up sets. How you lift light weights is how you lift heavy weights. You are only as good as your practice.

In the video above we also have a warm up drill to help you activate the right muscles.

If you need help we strongly encourage finding a qualified strength coach. Don’t ask the random personal trainer at a Big box gym. If you are in Tucson, our team of coaches are happy to help.

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Low Bar vs High Bar on Squats

Danny — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 16:56:27 +0000

High Bar VS Low Bar on Squats

This blog could be an entire chapter in a book. Lets start with the basics of bar position. High Bar squats should have the bar placed in the meat of the upper traps. Many times lifters will put the bar where the trapezius muscle meets the cervical spine and that is not an optimal position. The bar can end up resting on the spine and cause issues. Also, having the bar that high on the back can cause the bar to roll forward and cause you to tip forward. The ability to let the bar sit on the upper trapezius muscle will give some padding and also also the lifter to achieve maximal tightens and connection to the bar. On the high bar position the lifter wants to think about pulling the body up into the bar to create a wedge. Some people think about pulling the scapula down to create the wedge. Many people will use the cue of Chest up, which is ok, but it can also cause the lifter to arch the lower back which isn’t a position to be in while squatting.

Low Bar Position

Low bar has the bar resting on the top of the rear deltoids. The lifter things about retracting or squeezing the scapula together and the bar will rest on ledge made by the rear deltoid muscles. Maintaining the back squeeze throughout the execution of the squat is crucial for a strong squat. Some lifters will allow the bar to be lower than the rear deltoids which may make the squat feel easier because the bar is lower on the back, but this can cause issues of having the bar slide down the back. If this happens it can risk serious injury or at minimum dropping of the bar off the back. The USPA Powerlifting Federation actually have rules in place to ensure super low bar position is not used.

WHO SHOULD USE WHICH POSITION?

If you are an upright squatter the high bar position is optimal. It allows the bar to stay over the mid foot throughout the execution of the squat. If you are someone that has to lean forward a bit to squat to depth then low bar position will be optimal for you. Again putting the bar lower on the back will allow the bar to stay over the mid foot during the execution of the squat. There is so much more I could say on this topic but I will point out a couple of things to be aware of. If you have really tight ankles and long femurs High bar will be very difficult for you to execute, you are most likely a low bar squatter. If you are a low bar squatter you have to have decent shoulder mobility to keep the bar in position on your rear deltoids. So if you are struggling with each position it would be helpful to get with a coach that can get you dialed in and possibly work on any mobility issues you have that is holding your squat back. Here is an article on some other key aspects of squatting you should know if you want to have a big squat. If you are looking for a gym in Tucson that specializes in powerlifting feel free to reach out to us. We also offer online programming and coaching.

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A Gym for Everyone

Danny — Tue, 04 Jun 2024 00:24:52 +0000

We aren't just a bunch of meat heads

Yes we are a strength focused gym. People have known us as the hub of powerlifting in southern Arizona, but Tucson Strength has something for everyone!

Shelly is 80 years old and crushes her workouts with the help of her trainer, Diane Zibaoui. At Tucson Strength we meet you where you are at and help you build a solid base of mobility, strength, and conditioning to improve your overall health.

We are gym that caters to the elite athlete needing a place to train as well as the beginner just starting their journey. We have some of the most dedicated personal trainers in Tucson that can guide you in one on one personal training, group training and programming. If you are an advanced athlete come on in and enjoy some of the best Strength Training equipment around.

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