Velocity based training with Jacob Tober

Episode 72 of Struggle to Strength. In any application, identifying areas for improvement is a critical component of success — the more variables you can improve upon, the better you become. Especially in health, fitness, and competitive performance.

We get into VBT, what Metric is, and how velocity tracking fits into a real training plan.

That “variables” framing shapes the whole conversation. Most lifters track two things: the weight on the bar and the reps they got. Velocity adds a third variable that’s arguably more informative than either — it tells you how hard those reps actually were, whether today’s 100 kg is the same 100 kg as last week’s, and whether you’re progressing even when the load hasn’t changed. Progress you can’t see is progress you can’t manage, and bar speed makes a lot of previously invisible progress visible.

We also keep it grounded in the general lifter’s reality rather than the elite weight room: what’s worth tracking when you train alone, how little friction the phone-camera workflow adds, and which numbers to actually look at between sets.

If that’s the thread you care about, tracking progress in the gym with VBT and the velocity-based training guide are the follow-on reads.