Miscellaneous Miscellany Monday: 5/21/12

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Only 2 posts this week? I feel slighted.

That was a comment left for me last week by someone who was a little “miffed” at me for my lack of blogging prowess. Believe me, I felt bad for only posting two blogs last week, but I think it’s because you’re all spoiled and are used to me writing so often as it is. I’m not blaming you.  I’ve set the standard and I need to own up to it.

If it’s any consolation, though, last week was a HUGE week.

First off, while we had a little bit of a heads up leading up to it, our apartment got a bit of a face lift last week getting all (13) new windows installed within a two day span, and as an added bonus, we also got a new kitchen as well.

Well, by “new kitchen” what I really mean is a new sink and counter tops.  But to say our apartment looked like it went through a nuclear blast would have been an understatement.  It was a mess.  And with a bunch of random dudes walking around making all sorts of noise, it made it hard to get much (if any) work done.

What made the process even more stressful was the fact that both Lisa and I were expecting our families to come into town to celebrate her graduation last weekend, and it was IMPERATIVE that everything got done in time.

It did………….and all was well in the world.

And all I have to say now is that everything looks FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABuuuuuuuulos!1!11!!!

Above all, Lisa is now officially a doctor in sports psychology. After a Hobbit like journey, through all the trials and tribulations, and ALWAYS amazing me with her character and perseverance, she did it!  I couldn’t be more proud of her.

To make the occasion even more sweet, we spent the entire weekend with friends and family celebrating her achievement, and it couldn’t have been more awesome.  THANK YOU to everyone who stopped by and for the well wishes on Facebook.

2.  As a final reminder, I’m going to be in Edmonton the weekend of June 2nd as part of the Spinal Health and Core Seminar along with Rick Kaselj, Dean Somerset, and Dr. Jeff Cubos. Not only will it be my first trip to Canada since I was a sophomore in college, but it will officially mark the furthest West I have ever been in North America.  Go figure!

Additionally, I’ll be making another trip up to Canada a few weeks after that – this time to Toronto – to speak at the PTDC Hybrid Training Seminar along with Jon Goodman, Nick Tumminello, Dan Trink, Mark Young, and Geoff Girvitz.

Spots are still available in both cases, but if you’re on the fence I’d suggest you snag one up now because as it draws closer to the actual date(s), they’ll be harder to come by

3.  I came across this video of Dr. Craig Liebenson going through a case study of a flexion intolerant back which I felt needed to be viewed by more people. It’s only like ten minutes long, but well worth the investment.  Trust me, your Words with Friends battle can wait.  Watch the video.

If nothing else take notice of the look of death he gives the audience when he points out that ALL signs point to it being a flexion based issue and NOT an extension based one.  Classic.

4.  One of the more common email questions I receive is how one can go about writing for reputable fitness publications like T-Nation or Men’s Health. While I offered a few thoughts on the topic in THIS post not too long ago, fellow strength coach Jon-Erik Kawamoto upped the ante and wrote an awesome blog post HERE which provided some great tips from a lot really smart people like Ben Bruno, Bret Contreras, Molly Galbraith, Mark Young, Sean Hyson, Nick Tumminello, and Optimus Prime.

Okay, not Optimus Prime (although, how awesome would that have been????), but definitely a lot of other recognizable names that go out of their way to offer a lot of insight.

5.  Keeping the same theme, if you’re looking for something good to read, I’d HIGHLY suggest picking up a copy of Easy Strength by Dan John and Pavel. Not that I have to pimp anything by these two guys – the names speak for themselves – but this is quite honestly one of the best books I’ve read in a while.

It’s formatted in a way where both authors offer their two cents as the book progresses.  Coach John will speak on a topic, and then Pavel chimes in with thoughts of his own.  Both are generally on the same page in terms of their thought process, but I love the contrasting styles.  While I’m obviously familiar with Pavel, I really haven’t read much of his stuff, and I totally dig his no BS approach.

I started the book last week and haven’t been able to put it down since.

And that’s it for today.  I’m about to get my lift in.  Since I’ve been feeling a bit beat up as of late, I decided to drop my training frequency from four days per week to three.  In the past I’ve found that that approach works REALLY well for me in terms of giving my body a break.  What’s more, with several other things going on in my life competing for time – blogs, articles, programming, etc – it just makes more sense to tone it down a bit.  So, for now, for those who care, my training schedule will look like this:

Monday:  Full Body (DL emphasis)
Tuesday:  Hill sprints (grass)
Wednesday: Full Body (Bench emphasis
Thursday:  GPP/Mobility Day (LIGHT Prowler pushes, possibly hug someone)
Friday:  Full Body (Squat emphasis)
Saturday:  GPP/Mobility Day (or what we like to call Superficial Saturday, which can be anything from extra bicep work to even more extra bicep work….haha)
Sunday:  eat lots of dead animal flesh and take a nap.

How you like dem apples?

Did what you just read make your day? Ruin it? Either way, you should share it with your friends and/or comment below.

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Comments for This Entry

  • Aravind Sithamparapillai

    Sorry for being dumb tony but what is GPP (in your workout)?  My apologies for being ignorant.

    May 21, 2012 at 10:48 am | Reply to this comment

  • Barath

    "....it couldn't have been *more* awesome". That's a dangerous miss if your lady spots it :)

    May 21, 2012 at 10:58 am | Reply to this comment

  • Joe

    Like the workout, love that weight training widget you got their.  Great way to track.  Good luck with the SI joint.  

    May 21, 2012 at 11:25 am | Reply to this comment

    • TonyGentilcore

      After doing a little more digging....it's actually NOT the SI joint. Did a whole bunch of provocative tests for the SI over the weekend, and it's definitely not the issue. Instead, it's a QL that's pissed off. I still need to hammer the deadbugs and work on active stabilization of the lumbar, but it's great to know that it's NOT something more serious. WHEW.

      May 21, 2012 at 8:00 pm | Reply to this comment

      • Joe

        I wish I saw this post sooner! I have a similar problem myself. My left QL is a big jerk face and is always bugging me.  I have been doing Glute Bridges with the march on a SB.  That has shown me that my QL likes to be a bully take over and then cry to me later during the week.  I have been feeling much better. Those have seemed to help a lot as I get better with them. 

        May 29, 2012 at 11:13 am | Reply to this comment

  • Jonerikkawamoto

    Thanks again for contributing Tony! We'll get Optimus Prime next time! -Jon

    May 21, 2012 at 12:08 pm | Reply to this comment

  • Frey Bird

    GPP = general physical preparedness ... http://www.elitefts.com/documents/general_physical_preparedness.htm

    May 21, 2012 at 12:13 pm | Reply to this comment

  • Njh28

    Congrats on Lisa's outstanding achievement and your upcoming speaking engagements.  I noticed on your training schedule that you include hill sprints following a total body day with a deadlift emphasis.  Are you performing these at a very high intensity?  I'm interested to hear/learn of your programming strategies.    

    May 21, 2012 at 1:30 pm | Reply to this comment

    • TonyGentilcore

      Nah - not too high. More like an easy 70-80% effort "tempo sprint" on a grassy hill. All told, the "sprint" will take me roughly 10-15s. Sprint up, walk down, rest a bit, repeat.

      May 21, 2012 at 8:02 pm | Reply to this comment

  • jason

    1) Glad to hear there are no problems with the SI joint Tony. As a DPT student we've always been taught that in males due to the pelvis structure and (lack of) mobility of the joint its pretty rare you have any issue there (especially for someone who is as meticulous about lower back positioning as yourself during training) I actually had some similar pain that was diagnosed as a strain/sprain of the multifidus that mimicked SI pain due to the location as well. Either way seems like you're on the right track working the deep core stabilizers...but good luck not dying from boredom. 2) You ever read Pavel's Beyond Bodybuilding or the Naked Warrior? A couple of my earliest reads in the strength and conditioning field and couldn't have liked them more. 3) Seems like you are still looking for ways out of that training rut... keeping a log, dropping training frequency, dealing with nagging injuries. You ever thought about combining something you love (pulling heavy weights from the floor) with some a little novelty (training the oly lifts)? Just a former strength coach's suggestion to snap you out of it.

    May 21, 2012 at 9:34 pm | Reply to this comment

  • Eric Hagemann

    Ahem... " While I’m obviously familiar with Pavel, I really haven’t read much of his stuff, and I totally dig his BS approach."

    May 22, 2012 at 8:41 am | Reply to this comment

  • RS

    Congrats to Lisa, Tony. What an accomplishment. At least her having to tolerate you thoroughly steeled her tolerance, right? RS

    May 22, 2012 at 6:07 pm | Reply to this comment

  • Jennifer Chesshir

    First timer here. You seem real down to earth-this is how it is type of guy. I like it. I'm going to check out the book. thanks.

    May 27, 2012 at 11:42 am | Reply to this comment

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