Summary
Legendary strength coach Dan John joins Pat Flynn to share the origin story of how loaded carries became central to his training philosophy. After a devastating wrist injury ended his weightlifting career, John discovered that picking up heavy objects and walking with them was all he could do -- and it led to the best athletic performances of his life, including throwing the discus farther at age 47 than ever before. John breaks down the full taxonomy of loaded carries: suitcase carries (his top pick for everyone), waiter walks, rack carries, farmer walks, crosswalks, bear hug carries, and combination carries with sleds and backpacks. He provides practical programming advice including dedicating one day per week to carries, constantly varying load and distance, and always doing the hardest carry first. The conversation also touches on how minimal programs built around a carry and one or two lifts can produce remarkable results.
Key Points
- Dan John discovered loaded carries out of necessity after a wrist injury, and they led to career-best discus throws at age 47
- The suitcase carry is Dan John's number one recommendation for everyone -- if you only do one loaded carry, make it this one
- For men, the rack carry is the second priority; for women, the waiter walk
- With double weights, stick to farmer walks and crosswalks (suitcase on one side, waiter walk on the other at a 1:2 ratio)
- Bear hug carries with sandbags (50-150 lbs of playground sand in a duffel bag) are excellent for full-body conditioning
- Combination carries -- farmer walk with a backpack while dragging a sled -- build a unique kind of exhaustion and work capacity
- Constantly vary distance, load, and carry type every workout rather than following a rigid progression
- Dedicate one day per week to carries and sprinkle individual variations (suitcase Monday, rack Wednesday) throughout the week
Key Moments
Dan John's injury led to his best-ever athletic performance
Dan John explains how after a wrist injury forced him to only carry heavy objects, he threw the discus farther at age 47 than ever before, shocking fellow athletes who assumed he was using performance-enhancing drugs.
"i put on a heavy backpack i pick heavy things up and i walk with it uh and i and i i that so i carry stuff and that would be a carry and if i put a backpack on or i combine two things i call that a loaded carry"
The suitcase carry is the single best loaded carry for everyone
Dan John ranks the carry variations, declaring the suitcase carry the number one choice for everyone, with rack carries second for men and waiter walks second for women. For double-weight carries, he recommends farmer walks and crosswalks.
"the suitcase carry is probably the best for everybody. If you only pick one loaded carry, suitcase carry. Suitcase carry. For men, the rack carry would be number two. For women, the weight walk."
Constantly vary your loaded carry training
Dan John's top programming recommendation is to constantly vary distance, load, and carry variation every workout, noting that some combinations might not be repeated for six to eight months as you cycle through different options.
"the loaded carries the load so maybe one day you do suitcase carries with a backpack on you might not come back to that for six seven eight months because you're you're playing around with all these other things yeah it carries with a backpack with a sled I've never done that by the way I'm just saying that to you but after that the next time you say okay we're doing loaded carries"
Minimal programs built around carries produce remarkable results
Dan John outlines several minimal yet effective training programs centered on loaded carries, including snatch plus suitcase carry, and power clean plus push jerk plus suitcase carry.
"with my with my discus throwers it's snatch and suitcase carry if if you just want to be great uh if you could do power cleaning push jerk and suitcase carry power clean push jerk suitcase carry that's a pretty good a deadlift press suitcase carry those are all pretty good you know minimal programs"
