Last week, both Joe Dowdell and Dr. Mike Roussell shared some pretty sweet webinars discussing a few of their thoughts and philosophies on topics ranging from career success to fat loss to whether or not Kim Kardashian should give back her wedding ring.
Okay, that last one was thrown in there for comedic effect, but if you’re like me, while you found both presentations very insightful and well worth the time invested, you wanted there to be more.
……….A lot more.
Well, as you might have surmised, there is more. And not just a lot more, but a boatload more.
Did I mention there’s more?
A few months ago, I had the opportunity to travel down to NYC to attend The PEAK Diet & Training Summit in the flesh. It was two days of Joe and Dr. Mike dropping knowledge bombs and essentially turning my brain into a bowl of gluten free mush.
For those interested, I actually wrote a recap of my experience HERE.
It was a lot to take in, for sure, but it was easily one of the most comprehensive and thought provoking seminars I had attended in a while.
And now, starting today (Tuesday, 11/15), you can actually watch the entire seminar for yourself, as Joe and Mike have just released their 15 – yes, you read that correctly, 15 – DVD set at a sale price of $100 off.
====> PEAK Diet and Training Summit <====
If the sale price alone doesn’t strike your fancy, how about any of the following:
- Did I mention it includes 15 DVDs, covering eleven presentations in all?
- Kim should totally give back that right, by the way.
- 298 page Training manual & appendix (which includes the 650 exercise database, sample programs, and programming templates)
- 286 page Nutrition manual & appendix (including 37 recipes to use with clients, 21 ways to eat more vegetables special report for clients, and more)
- 2.0 NSCA continuing education credits
I wanted to provide some unique content and showcase just how valuable I think this product is for any coach, trainer, or regular Joe out there reading. So with that in mind, I asked Joe if he’d be willing to sit down and answer a few questions about it.
Enjoy!
TG: Okay Joe, first things first, you’ve invited me down to your gym numerous times, and you’ve even let me crash on your couch (sorry about spilling that protein shake all over your kitchen counter!) – so while I know you fairly well, I know there are some people reading who haven’t the faintest idea how awesome you are. Can you give them the Cliff Notes version? How did you get started in the industry? Who were (and currently are) some of your main influences? Why do you have to be so good looking?
JD: I sort of backed into the fitness industry via the modeling world. I worked as a model, all over the North America and Europe, for about 10 years. As a result, I was always training in order to stay in shape for work. I was looking to get out of the modeling world and do something different with my life. An ex-girlfriend of mine, at the time, was working with a personal trainer. One day, after one of her training sessions, he and I got to talking about personal training. Up until this point, I didn’t know much about the industry and I didn’t even know it was a viable career option.
After a pretty extensive conversation with him, I decided to do some investigating. I ended up enrolling in the ACE Personal Trainer certification course later within a few days just to see if I liked it. After about a week of reading and studying the materials, I was totally hooked. I decided to completely immerse myself in learning as much information about strength and conditioning as I could possibly cram into my brain.
Over the last 17+ years, I went on to take the NSCA CSCS, NASM CPT, USAW Club Coach and another dozen certifications. I’ve attended multiple internships with Paul Chek, Charles Poliquin, Mark Verstegen, Tom Purvis, PT and I even slept on the late Dr. Mel Siff’s basement floor for four days in order to learn from him.
Some of the weekend seminars that I had the honor of attending were given by people like Dr. Vladimir Zatsiorsky, Dr. Tudor Bompa, Dr. Steven Fleck, Dr. William Kramer, Dr. Fred Hatfield, Dr. Mauro Di Pasquale, Dr. Eric Seranno, Dr. John Berardi, Dr. Perry Nickelston, Dr. Craig Liebenson, Donald Chu, Vern Gambetta, Louis Simmons, Dave Tate, Ian King, Greg Roskoff, Gray Cook, Eric Cressey, Mike Robertson, Robert Dos Remedios, Josh Henkin, Mike Mahler, etc.
I guess the point I’m trying to make is that I made it a point to learn from everyone regardless of their ideological philosophies.
As for my looks, LOL, I have to thank my Mom and Dad.
TG: I know how well-read you are, and it’s abundantly clear (from the list above) that you don’t corner yourself into any one methodology, which is what I dig most about you. Having said that, Peak Performance NYC has grown into one of the most successful gyms in the country (if not the world) – yet, despite what many current experts advocate, you still ONLY do one-on-one based training there. I’ve seen the “system” in action, and it obviously works. How did you pull it off….what gives?
JD: Yeah, this is a very hot topic in the industry and I guess I’m a bit of a pariah to the commonly held belief that the one-on-one business model is outdated. The bottom line is I believe wholeheartedly that the highest quality of training is provided when a coach is able to work with a single client at a time.
And, before everyone goes bananas, I’m not saying that you can’t provide quality training in a small group, or perhaps even in a larger group, like a college team, etc. But, if all things are equal, and two coaches have the same abilities, and one coach gets to work with a single client while the other coach has to work with 10 or more, who is going to have the greatest potential to make a greater impact on their client? I believe it’s the guy conducting the one-on-one session. I’ve never wavered from this belief and I made sure that I (and my brand) was the best at delivering that impact. In NYC, we deliver the best training results, bar none.
TG: You’ve trained a wide variety of clientele – from your regular Joe Schmo’s to numerous professional athletes ranging from NBA players to MMA fighters to Victoria Secret models (I hate you). Obviously, when dealing with such an eclectic mix of people, training variables and parameters are going to change depending on one’s goals and needs.
However, personally, I’ve found that there are quite a few commonalities (regardless of who I’m working with) when it comes to program design, and I’d be curious to hear your thoughts on the matter. Do you agree? Disagree? It’s okay, I won’t cry.
JD: Yup, I agree. It’s funny, Nick Tumminello just wrote an article called, “Here are the results to 90% of Your Functional Movement Assessments… Sight Unseen!” Basically, he outlines many of the commonalities between most clients (and even athletes) and I’d have to agree with him. Specifically, I find that most people have the following issues:
- Weak upper back musculature (Rhomboids and mid & lower Trapezius).
- Weak external shoulder rotators (Teres Minor & Infraspinatus).
- Weak Glutes, especially the Glute Medius and Minimus.
- Weak Core musculature, especially in the frontal and transverse planes.
- A lack of mobility in the T-Spine.
- For males, a lack of hip mobility.
- Women tend to need more stability in their hips.
- Ankle mobility issues especially in females because they tend to wear high heels, but I see it in guys as well.
From a nutritional perspective, I’d say about 80-85% of the general population does not know how to eat properly. And, poor sleep seems to be a universal issue.
TG: So, you and Dr. Mike (Roussell) have been in cahoots for a while now. What made you two decide to join forces, and can you go into a little more detail on who the Peak Diet & Training Summit is designed for?
JD: Well, to be honest Tony, I kind of felt bad for the guy. He lives in the middle of nowhere in Pennsylvania; he’s got three kids; spends his spare time at Home Depot and I just wanted to help him out a bit. You know, drag him out of the boonies (i.e., AAA ball) on occasion and get up to NYC for some excitement. J
No, but seriously, Dr. Mike and I connected via some mutual friends in the industry, he is so well respected, and I really liked his philosophy so we started to work together on some projects. While working on one project, we decided that we wanted to do a seminar together and that led to the development of the PEAK Diet & Training Summit.
And, in reality, it’s designed for anyone who’s interested in learning anything and everything with regards to program design – whether it be on the training side of things, or the nutritional side of things. We left no stone unturned, and I defy anyone to find a more comprehensive product that covers both ends of the spectrum.
TG: I certainly can’t argue with that! Although there were many (believe me, I was there), what do you feel are the Top 5 Knowledge Bombs a fitness professional will take from this product?
JD: It’s hard to narrow it down to just five, given there are 15 DVDs (not that I’m bragging), but here you go
1) It’s all about the client and their goal(s)!!!
2) How to properly structure a training session. I travel quite a bit for work and it always amazes me when I go into gyms (sometimes for an entire week) and see what these places and their trainers are trying to pass off as quality training. The lack of structure to the training session; the total randomness of the sequencing of exercises in the sessions and they fact that most of the trainers are not even writing anything down is just mind boggling.
3) How to properly manipulate all of the different acute training variables in order to safely and effectively help your client or athlete get to their goal.
4) That you need to meet the client where they are nutritionally and develop their habits from there.
5) There are a core set of foundational nutrition principles that you need to have mastery over in both communication to and manipulation for your clients.
And, that’s all she wrote folks!
Remember, be sure to click the link below in order to take advantage of the sale price. Considering the information involved, the knowledge you’re going to gain, and the fact that you’re getting a host of additional bonuses – like 2.0 CEUs through the NSCA, it basically pays for itself!
====> Peak Diet and Training Summit <====
