CategoriesStrength Training

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Band Lateral Lunge with OH Driver

I wish I were more like Ben Bruno. Sure the guy is a freak of nature when it comes to feats of strength, but even more admirable is the uncanny ability he has when it comes to thinking of cool and innovative exercises that I’ve never seen before. It’s like the guy has a perpetual light bulb above his head 24/7.

Just check out his Youtube page (HERE) if you don’t know what I’m talking about.

It’s almost like he lives in his very own evil strength and conditioning lair doing nothing but 1-legged squats and stroking his evil strength coach beard while he conjures up exercises that will make people hate life.

Okay, that’s unfair to Ben.  He’s actually a much more well rounded person than that, and  probably one of the most decent hunan beings I’ve ever met.

But dammit, two can place this game. I’ve been coming up with a few of my own diabolical exercises, too.  Albeit instead of a lair, I work out of  an evil strength coach volcano. That’s surrounded by sharks with freakin laser beams on their heads.

PEW PEW PEW

Take that Ben!

All tomfoolery aside (and yes, I just used the word tomfoolery in a sentence), one of the exercises we’ve been using a lot lately at Cressey Performance is something I kind of haphazardly came up with when discussing both the Pallof Press Band Squat and Split Squat HERE.

Band Lateral Lunge with Overhead Driver

What Does It Do:  This is one of those exercises that provides a lot bang for our training buck.

1. There’s a definite Pallof press “vibe” going on, so it’s safe to say that we have a strong rotary stability component in the mix.

2. Simultaneously there’s also a decent anti-extension component coming into play as the arms reach overhead.

Which is to say, with both elements combined, it’s an awesome “core” exercise that plays very well into what the core’s actual role is:  stability and subsequent transference of force between the lower and upper body.

3.  Too, there’s a fantastic lunge pattern involved that helps increase adductor length (something most people woefully lack), which in turn helps improve hip mobility in the frontal plane (but I guess you could argue the transverse plane as well when you factor in the pull of the band).

4.  I could probably come up with a few more benefits, but those are the ones that pop out at the moment.  It’s still up in the air whether or not doing this exercise increases the chances that girls will want to hang out with you.

Key Coaching Cues:  It’s important to note that those with limited shoulder flexion (whether it’s due to stiff lats or an overly kyphotic upper back) may not be the best suited for this exercise as they’ll inevitably compensate by going into excessive lumbar extension.

Another thing to consider is the lunge pattern itself.  Many trainees will make the mistake of lunging with more of a “quad dominant” pattern (knees translating forward over the toes) rather than sitting back into the hip and keeping more of a vertical shin angle.

This isn’t to say that it’s wrong (or bad) that the knees go over the toes; it’s just not ideal in my book. Especially when we’re trying to place more of an emphasis on the glutes and hamstrings anyways.

Lastly, it’s important to not allow the rib cage to flair out at any point – especially during the overhead portion.  Try to think about “locking” your rib cage down throughout the duration of the set.

And that’s about it. I usually shoot for 6-8 reps per side for a total of 2-3 sets.  Try it out today and let me know what you think.

 

CategoriesUncategorized

Miscelleneous Miscellany Monday: Bystander Effect, PTDC Hybrid Training Seminar and Other Stuff

1. Behavioral economist, Dan Ariely, has often referred to the phenomenon known as ‘the bystander effect’ at length in many of his articles, his blog, as well as both of his books – The Upside of Irrationality and Predictably Irrational – which I couldn’t recommend highly enough.

For those unfamiliar, it essentially refers to cases where individuals do not offer any means of help in an emergency situation to the victim when other people are present.

The most famous incident which sheds a little more light on the topic would be that of Kitty Genovese who, back in 1964, was walking back to her apartment in Queens, NYC at 3 AM when she was attacked by a perpetrator.  Despite screaming for over a half an hour for help, no one responded and came to her aid.  What’s worse:  her attacker, after the initial stabbing, fled the scene when he caught the attention of a neighbor, only to return ten minutes later to finish the assault.

As a result, the bystander effect is also commonly referred to as Genovese Syndrome.

I’ve never really experienced this sort of thing firsthand.  I mean, I witnessed a pretty severe case of road rage a few months ago where I saw one motorist get out his truck to punch another motorist (who cut him off) in the face, only speed off once I ran over to see if they guy who got hit was alright.  Other than that, I’ve never really seen the bystander effect in action.

Well holy shit, this changed this past weekend.

I was a bachelor all of last week – Lisa was away touring Napa and Sonoma Valley with her best friend – and I figured what better way to spend my Saturday night than to go see Prometheus, which I had been anticipating for months on end. Directed by Ridley Scott and presumed to be a sorta/kinda prequel to Alien, I was ready to get my space nerd on.

As is the case most of the time when I go to the movies alone, I sat in the very back row, you know, cause I’m a rebel like that.

Anyways, the movie rocked. It had spaceships, people getting their heads torn off, explosions, and robots. What’s not to love?

With about twenty minutes to go, I see a couple about two rows in front of me get up from their seats, and I just assume they’re leaving. Maybe it wasn’t their bag, or they had a late dinner reservation to get to?

Then, without warning, the gentleman just straight up face plants onto the floor. HARD.  At first I just thought he tripped, but after hearing the woman’s reaction, I figured something a little more serious must have happened.

No one moved. I could see a few people in the same row as them kind of look over to see what was happening, but for the most part, people were more concerned with the big screen than the fact that there was an unconscious human being lying on the floor.

Uh, hello?

I get up from my seat and approach the couple, and the man comes to. He’s bleeding from his eye and mouth (he landed on his glasses), but he was coherent and able to speak. I asked if he was alright, and his girlfriend, clearly distraught, allows me to stabilize his head (I wasn’t sure how hard he hit, or even if he hurt his neck, but I figured it was better to be safe than sorry). I asked the couple’s other friend to go inform the theater staff and to call the EMTs.

Meanwhile I just talked to the guy, asked him questions – his name, whether he was dizzy or thirsty, whether or not he had a history of passing out, or if he thought Charlize Theron was a smoke show in that space suit?

Okay, I didn’t ask that.

The movie didn’t stop. People just kept watching, not blinking an eye. Unbelievable!!!!!

Now, in all fairness, and giving people the benefit of the doubt, it was dark (and loud) and I suspect that the majority of patrons had no clue what was going on.

But I found it strikingly surreal that the people in the same row were just going about their business and not offering to see if there was anything else that needed to be done.

Finally, after 15 minutes, the EMTs arrive, and the manager pauses the movie and turns off the lights. “We have a medical emergency people.”

Yeah, no shit Sherlock.

Long story short, the paramedics carried him away and took him to the hospital. The guy did have a slight history of low blood pressure, and he had passed out before. The woman thanked me, repeatedly, and I said it was no problem at all. I was glad to help.

I’m like Spiderman, ya know. Everyone gets one.

But seriously. Anyone ever experience something that before? Where literally NO ONE responds? It’s weird.

2.  Not that I needed another reason to take Spike – I’m addicted to the stuff – but I needed a little mental boost yesterday to get myself in “the zone” to bang out my presentations for the PTDC Hybrid Strength Seminar coming up this weekend in Toronto

I was like a presentation writing Jedi I tell you.

I was able to get the meat and potatoes down, and now it’s just a matter of organizing the material – adding in a few videos here, a few Jon Goodman jokes there.  You know, the important stuff.

I’ll just take this opportunity to let everyone know that there’s still a few spots left. If you’ve been on the fence about attending, I assure you, you WILL NOT want to miss this.

Both Nick Tumminello and I will be hosting a pre-seminar (the COREssessment) this Saturday, where we discuss assessment and anything and everything as it relates to core training.

And then on Sunday, it’s the main event with presentations from myself, Nick, Jon Goodman, Mark Young, Dan Trink, and Geoff Girvitz……with an expert panel to follow.

It’s definitely shaping up to be one of the “go to” fitness events in Canada this year, and I can’t even begin to tell you how much of a networking opportunity it’s going to be for those who attend. Sure, you’re going to learn a crap ton, but these types of events are always worth the price of admission when you factor in the networks established with other professionals.

3.  I’m thinking about implementing more video blogs (vlogs) into the mix. Truth be told, they’re more efficient from a time saving standpoint, and my fingers take less of beating.

I was just wondering if there were any topics that people wanted to me cover whether they’re more exercise technique based stuff, programming design, shadow puppet shows, anything???

4.  Check out THIS awesome transformation from one of Bret Contreras’ distance coaching clients.  Wow. Truly inspirational stuff.

What I liked most about Ruth’s story was how she goes into detail about how her transformation not only improved her physical well-being, but her emotional and inner well-being as well – especially with regards to her marriage.

Being kind of banged up right now and not being able to train the way I’d like to, has definitely played mind games with me, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel a little down as a result.

Suffice it to say, it was a breath of fresh air to hear someone speak so candidly on both the physical AND mental attributes that come with taking your health into your own hands.

 

CategoriesRehab/Prehab

Balls In Your Pants and Breathing Patterns

BOO-YAH – how’s that for an introduction!

For many the topic of breathing patterns can be about as exciting as doing your taxes, so I figured I’d push the envelop a bit and use a catchy title to entice people to click on the link.

And, it worked!  I win!!

Don’t worry. Despite the risque title, the topic below is completely PG.

So, now that you’re here and I have your attention, lets watch this video by the Miami Dolphin cheerleaders:

Okay, so, um, yeah……breathing patterns.  It’s a topic that’s gained a lot of momentum (in the mainstream fitness media anyways) in the past year or so, due in no small part to the brilliant life-long work of Dr. Pavel Kolar and the “way smarter than the rest of us” team at The Prague School.

Taken right from their homepage:

The nervous system establishes programs that control human locomotion, which is comprised of posture and movement. This ‘motor control’ is largely established during the first critical years of life. Therefore, the “Prague School” emphasizes neurodevelopmental aspects of motor control in order to assess and restore dysfunction of the locomotor system and associated syndromes.

It’s some deep and innovative stuff for sure, and it’s something that I myself have only just scratched the surface of.

Thankfully there are other fitness professionals out there like Bill Hartman, Charlie Weingroff, Jim Laird, and Dr. Jeff Cubos (to name a few), who have are doing a wonderful job of spreading the knowledge, “dumbing” it down, and exposing people to the why’s/what’s/and how’s of assessing and fixing breathing patterns.

As it happens, one of the major themes that resonated this past weekend at the Spinal Health and Core Training Seminar (of which I was a part of) was the concept of breathing patterns and how there’s a significant interplay between aberrant patterns and how they effect not only performance but everything from posture to dealing with chronic back pain, neck pain, shoulder, or lower extremity issues as well.

As it happens, one of the major themes that resonated this past weekend at the Spinal Health and Core Training Seminar (of which I was a part of) was the concept of breathing patterns and how there’s a significant interplay between aberrant patterns and how they effect not only performance, but everything from posture to dealing with chronic back pain, neck pain, shoulder, or lower extremity issues as well.

In my talk, titled Spine and Core Training: From Assessment to Badass, I dove into some of the general “drills” we’ve been implementing at Cressey Performance to help teach people more appropriate breathing patterns.

You see, most people tend to be chest breathers and completely leave their diaphragm and the other “inner” core muscles out to dry.

It’s kind of like the playground when we were kids:  one group of muscles bullies the other, says their dad can kick the other dad’s ass any day of the week, someone gets called a big, fat, poop face, punches get thrown, the moms then get involved, and everything becomes one massive ball of breathing dysfunction.

The key, then, is to get everyone to play nice, and work synergistcally.  Ideally, we’d like to see the smaller, inner core muscles – diaphragm, mulitifidi, etc – to work properly, so that the larger, more global muscles can do their job as well and not have to work overtime.

 

To do so we need to take more of a 360 degree approach to breathing.  Meaning, instead of solely focusing on the anterior core (pushing the belly out: which still isn’t a bad place to start for most people), we need to take into consideration the lateral and posterior components as well.

Before we can do that, however, we need to actually learn how to breath into our bellies.

To start, here are some simple drills you can use:

1.  3-Month Pose

This is a drill I snaked from Mike Robertson, and the idea is to lie supine and focus on breathing into the belly and NOT allowing the rib cage to flair out too much.  You’ll notice how I keep my fingers at my sides to ensure that I’m not only pushing my belly out, but also expanding the sides (and back, into the floor) as well.  Be sure to inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth.

Of note:  a regression would be to start with the feet on the ground, and then once that’s mastered, elevate the feet in the air.

2. Prone/Alligator Breathing

Lying prone on your stomach, the objective here (again) is to breath into the belly and try to get the lower back to rise.  Make sure to inhale through the nose, push the belly into the ground, and exhale through the mouth.

For many, those two drills alone will be a fantastic starting point.

Now, for years (YEARS I tell you!) I’ve always been engrained to “push the belly out” or to “make myself fat” when getting ready to lift big weights – particularly when wearing a weight belt.  Bill Hartman had a fantastic post on this very topic not too long ago, and he noted that when people push out they do so at the expense of going into excessive anterior pelvic tilt which can be a lower back killer.

Below is a longer video where I go into a bit more detail on how we can go about re-grooving these patterns using a weight belt (correctly) and/or regular ole tennis balls (which was an ingenious idea that Jeff Cubos brought up this past weekend). Moreover, it isn’t JUST about anterior expansion. Rather we want to start grooving more of a 360 degree expansion to help increase stability.

A Few Things to Note:

1.  Yes, I’m wearing a gray t-shirt with gray sweat pants.  Whatever.  I’m bringing gray on gray back, baby.  Recognize!

2.  Clearly this is something that Rob – my demonstrator – can work on. Not to throw Rob under the bus or anything (although I kinda am…..sorry Rob), but this would be a fantastic drill for him to utilize more frequently. If for nothing else to give his body the kinesthetic feedback it needs to learn how to breath properly.  Ie:  through his belly and NOT his chest.

I purposely chose him for the video because it allowed me to demonstrate how most people look when you tell them to take a deep breath.  With a little practice, I think he’ll be able to get it down.

3.  As far as when and where to implement these drills.  I’ve been doing more of them at the start of a training session, as part of an extended warm-up.  I may lie down for a good 2-5 minutes and just focus on my breathing. Hell, maybe pop in a little Norah Jones and just chillax.

It’s a bit “voo-doo’ish,” but it works, and I’m willing to bet if you take the time to implement these drills into your repertoire, you’ll feel a marked difference in how you feel.  Try them out today, and let me know what you think!

UPDATE:  for those interested, HERE is the video done by Bill Hartman I referenced above (where he discusses belly breathing and APT).  As you’ll undoubtedly realize – if you watch it – Bill is kinda smart.

CategoriesUncategorized

I’m Still Alive…….

But, I just had to go through travel hell for the past 24 hours.  I had every intention of posting up a little sumthin sumthin today, but instead, decided my efforts would be better utilized punching a hole in the wall.  Repeatedly.

Long story short, I spent the better portion of my day traveling back to Boston yesterday sitting on the tarmac and then missing my flight.  Had to spend the night in Toronto, which is ironic considering I’ll be there next weekend for the PTDC Hybrid Training Seminar.

Anyways, it’s good to be home.  I’ll be back on task tomorrow with some new content…..

…….Promise.

Now excuse me while I go swallow a hive of live bees.

CategoriesUncategorized

An Inside Look at The Spinal Health and Core Seminar

Hey there peeps! I thought I’d take a little break from my vacation to check in and see what’s going on the world. I see the Celtics have tied the series with the Heat?  Sweet!

As it happens I was able to convince Lisa to let me snake away for a little bit to do a teeny tiny bit of work, and  I’m actually sitting here in a local Starbucks here in Vancouver chilling and sipping on a chai tea as I type this.

Simply put:  Vancouver is an amazing city!  Before I left the States, I had numerous people warn me how beautiful it was and that I was going to have to fight the urge to want to stay. They were right.

We’ve been walking around taking in the sights and sounds, and relishing every second. It’s such an active city.  And clean.  And don’t even get me started about the views.  Stunning! Where else can you trek in the mountains and then be by the water in the same day?

We’re having a blast and it’s going to be rough to leave and head back to Boston tomorrow. Nevertheless, I do have to keep this short, but wanted to give everyone a quick “sneak peek” at the Spinal Health and Core Training seminar I participated in this past weekend in Edmonton – along with Dr. Jeff Cubos, Rick Kaselj, and Dean Somerset, who hit a new deadlift PR while I was training with him on Friday!  I took 5% credit just for the proximity effect.

It was an amazing seminar and I can’t thank everyone enough for the opportunity to be a part of it.

Rick was kind enough to film a small clip during my talk, and as you’ll notice, I was wearing tan khaki pants – so you know shit got real!

And, just an FYI

The entire seminar will be released as a stand alone product later on this year, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

I’m out!  Be back in a few days.

CategoriesStrength Training Uncategorized

Supreme Strength

I’m posting this a little later than usual, I know. But for those who aren’t in the loop, I’ve been traveling all day and have officially touched down in Canada, baby!  Lisa and I have been on the go since 4 AM this morning trekking from Boston to Edmonton, and after taking a few moments to manually unclench my butt cheeks – Note to any new readers out there: I absolutely HATE flying – we’re all checked into the hotel and waiting to meet up with my boy Dean Somerset to get our swole on at his facility.

Later on we’ll be getting together with the rest of the Muscle Imbalances Revealed crew – Rick Kaselj and Dr. Jeff Cubos – for dinner and, depending on how crazy things get, dessert too.  It’s vacation, right!?!!

Tomorrow will be game time, and I’m really looking forward to giving my presentation:  Core and Spine Training – From Assessment to Badass (ß best title, ever).   Likewise, I’m also looking forward to listening to all the other presentations, and am fully prepared to get my mind blown into a million pieces.

Speaking of mind blownage, today I have something really cool for all of you. Two coaches I truly admire – Todd Bumgardner and John Gaglione- have recently released their new training manual, Supreme Strength, to the masses and I thought I’d take the opportunity to introduce everyone to it because, well, I’m cool like that.

I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy sent my way not too long ago, and to say I was thoroughly impressed would be an understatement.  I’ve long been an advocate of telling people that if you want to look like an athlete, you need to train like one.  Supreme Strength fits that bill and then some.  Those familiar with programs like Eric Cressey’s Show and Go will LOVE Supreme Strength because it has many of the same components – getting people strong (and lean, if that’s your bag), addressing postural deficits, movement quality issues, and just providing people will an all-encompassing program – but with a flavor that only Todd and John can provide.

You see, both have an uncanny ability to think outside the box and provide a unique training experience that, not only gets results, but actually TEACHES people along the way.

I asked Todd if he’d be willing to sit down and answer a few questions to give everyone a little more insight.  Enjoy!

TG: Hey Todd, thanks for taking time out of your day to answer a few questions. You know the drill, this is the part where you’re supposed to tell me all about yourself. Care to give my readers a Cliff Notes version of who you are, what you’re about, and why I should never, ever, pick a fight with you?

Todd: You deserve the thanks, my friend! I appreciate the opportunity.

Wow, though, what should people know about me? Well, I’m a 6’0” balding ginger, an innovative high-fiver and I have a rib tattoo. I’m also a strength coach based in Central Pennsylvania, a co-founder of Beyond Strength Performance and avid lifter. I train clients at a small, invitation only powerlifting gym in Bellefonte, PA. I can also listen to John Mayer and Lamb of God during the same car ride and I’m completely comfortable with it.

Note from TG:  Well played sir.  Well played.  I can relate because I spend the better part of my days listening to Metallica, Linkin Park, and Rage Against the Machine, but as soon as I get into my car I’ll tone it down with a little Norah Jones action.

* hands in man card *

I started working as a strength coach while I was still in college. I was 21 and green behind the ears. My first gig was with the women’s lacrosse team and they owned me for about three months. Thirty chatty females vs. one unsure gym hermit is a recipe for domination. But I learned some valuable lessons and got hooked on coaching. By the time we were done working together they won a league championship. It was a pretty cool thing to be a part of.

Since then I’ve earned my Master’s in Exercise Science, helped a lot of people get stronger, benched 405 and started dating one of the best female rugby players in the country (oh, shit shout out to Annie Z!).

From a coaching standpoint, though, my main emphases are strength and clean movement. Oh, and proper celebration. If you crush a big weight you have to have celebration go-to’s. I like the jumping top-gun high five.

TG: You and John Gaglione (the other co-creator of Supreme Strength) are well known for thinking outside the box and are constantly coming up with new and innovative exercises and ways to train. Do you two have some sort of secret underground laboratory where you all stroke your evil strength coach beards? What gives?

Todd: Beards, Tony. Beards are the answer. We really just focus on creating beard equity and it seems to carry us along.

Seriously, though. It’s cool to be known for something—especially since I didn’t realize it!

John is just a great coach. The dude can teach anyone to do anything. I’ve seen him turn a mangled squat into a work of art. It’s very impressive. Necessity has given him a great set of innovative tools.

We’ve each also had the opportunity to work under awesome coaches. John and Zach Even-Esh are tight, and James “Smitty” Smith has really taken me under his wing. They are two of the most innovative coaches in the game—it’s tough not to catch their paradigm breaking bug.

I also just think about training all of the time. It rarely leaves my brain, so I think of cool ways to apply basic concepts. So I write stuff down in my journal and try it out when I get to the gym. If it works I’ll apply it where I can.

TG:  What persuaded both you and John to develop Supreme Strength, and how is it different from any other program out there someone can purchase off the internet?

Todd: It all started with a conversation.

I was helping out Smitty and Joe DeFranco at their first AMPED/POWER seminar, John was there—he and I got to talking.

We found out that we do things pretty much the same way—teach movement, preach strength and then practice what we preach. Right after that we fist pumped and decided we needed to create something awesome, something with depth, and something based on what we’ve seen work for a lot of folks.

Most of all we wanted to create a resource, and I think that’s what sets Supreme Strength apart from other internet programs. Rather than just jotting down some sets and reps and sending a chap on his way, we worked hard to create something bigger. We created a strength system. We explain the why and demonstrate the how. You’re also given the means to modify when necessary. It’s more than a program. It’s a great reference.

TG:  First things first:  I also want to give a shout out to Smitty.  The man is, well, the MAN.  Absolutely amazing coach and one of the most humble (and giving) human beings that exist.  He ranks right up there on my man-crush list with Jason Bourne and The Rock.

Back on task: One thing I noticed while looking over the program is the emphasis on the basics.  I absolutely love that approach.  Can you explain to everyone reading why they’re not that special and why they should listen to you?

Todd: It’s simple, man. We know WE aren’t that special.

I know, that may not sound compelling. But, if you think about it for a minute, it makes sense.

I heard a great quote once. It goes something like ‘a person that doesn’t make mistakes is unlikely to make anything.’ That’s definitely true for the strength and conditioning world.

I’ve been lifting for fourteen years and I still manage to mess something up every day—I’ve never gone through a session and done everything perfectly. I’ve gotten really good at a few things, but I haven’t perfected anything. I’m still busting my ass to achieve basic perfection. I think that’s where people miss the point and they jump ship too soon.

The basics will always work—strive to be great at them. It’s a point that I repeat constantly to myself. I think people miss this fact because they want something sexy. It’s not a bad thing, just a little misguided.

Mainly, I think people hold a misguided view of the basics. A lot of guys and gals think that basic movements can only be applied one way, when, in truth, there are thousands of ways to use basic movements and train to be great at them.

It’s like dance moves. Everyone wants to hit sick hip-hop moves before they get down the basic shuffle steps and they end up doing the Carlton dance. You can live with the shuffle steps for years. It’s how I keep my white boy dance prowess.

TG:  NAILED IT!  Well stated, and couldn’t agree more.

For the hell of it:  what are your top five programming faux pas mistakes that people make while training for strength?

Todd: Ah, the mistakes question. This is like an interview rite of passage. I’m psyched to answer this one! Not necessarily because I like to be negative, but I feel like this is my jump into the club. Here goes!

1.  Dismissing Autoregulation: No one can predict what they are going to feel like three weeks in advance, it’s silly to assume so. Programming so strictly that switching things up for a day implores waves of guilt is counterproductive.

I’ve heard great coaches say that the best programs are those that are sustainable. If an athlete or coach can’t autoregulate, their program is as sustainable as a Kardashian marriage. At the very least use the RPE scale.

2. Not Prioritizing Movement: I see a lot of programs that prescribe lifts but don’t prioritize movement. You want someone to deadlift? Great, but how will they get into the best starting position? How will they train a clean pattern?

I understand that strength is built with big weights, but it’s solidified with clean movement. Every good strength program should start with a movement preparation phase to groove, or re-groove, patterns and prepare for heavy loading.

3. Not Prescribing Active Rest: I know if I’m not told what to do sometimes, I’ll stare at the wall and think about chicken wings. By knowing my own shortcomings, I make sure that I keep my clients moving between sets by using mobility fillers. I learned a lot about fillers from you and Mr. Cressey.

Back to the rest period—I think it’s the most misused variable in training—I don’t see the point in just moving aimlessly about between sets. This is a great time to work on weaknesses, improve movement and prepare to boost performance during subsequent sets.

4. Forgetting Relative Strength:  Unless a person happens to be a super-heavy weight powerlifter or strongman, relative strength is important. Squatting 500 pounds is great and all, but if it you have to put 40 pounds on to do it your performance is going to suffer.

That’s why body weight training is so important. Exercises like pull-ups are a great relative strength barometer. If the big lifts go up, but pull-up performance declines, there’s a good chance a gent is running slower and jumping lower. Even for the 9-to-5er, maintaining athleticism and body composition while gaining strength is important for longevity.

5. Not Teaching Tightness: Ok, so I know this is more of a coaching point than a programming point, but I think it’s too often missed on. Tightness and tension are so important for strength, but so few coaches are harping on it.

Before anyone picks up a bar, they need to be taught what tension feels like. They need to know how to set their grip aggressively, how to use air to create pressure and they need to know how to brace. Unless a trainee is constantly working to master tightness, they aren’t training as safely as they should be and they are missing out big strength gains.

TG:  Thanks Todd!  Awesome interview, and I hope it gives everyone reading a little kick in the pants to check out the manual.  I really do feel it’s top notch and will help a lot of people.  For more information, where can people learn more about you and your products.

Todd:  Thanks TG, always a pleasure to talk some shop.  The best way to reach me is to check out my website HERE, and, of course, check out……….

—–> Supreme Strength <—–