CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: 5/13/14

Before I get into this week’s list of stuff to read, I wanted to reach out to all of my esteemed, intelligent, and radically good looking readers to ask them for a little feedback.

I plan on giving this website a “face-lift” in the near future with the help of my friends from Copter Labs, who built this site from scratch way back in 2010.

I have a few things that jump out at me:

1.  Make the site more compatible for those who log on through their iPad or iPhone.

2.  Upgrade some of the aesthetics like the font (I want to make the font larger), getting rid of some of the superfluous stuff on the home page like the link to Flickr and my YouTube page, as well changing the standard “bald-strength-coach-tough-guy-who-crosses-his-arms” picture that’s plastered on the front.

For all I know that scares more people away than welcomes them.

3.  And then there are some backend things like updating the NewsLetter software and including more links to LOLCats….;o)

I’m wondering, though:  is there anything YOU’D like to see change?  Anything I’m missing or need to improve on (Note:  calling me out on grammar mistakes doesn’t count!).

I’d really appreciate some feedback in the comments section below.

10 Health Myths That Just Won’t Die, Debunked by Science – Various People Smarter Than Myself.

Does fat make you fat?

What about carbohydrates?

Just because something is “gluten-free” means it’s healthier, right?  Ahem, soda is gluten free.

I enjoyed this article, because for starters it includes one of my man-crushes, Dr. Spencer Nadolsky, but also because it debunks MANY of the most common myths out there (like the ones mentioned above).

 Ladies, What’s YOUR Goal? – Emily Socolinsky

For those who read this site regularly, Emily shouldn’t be a stranger.  I link to a lot of her work because I respect the hell out of her, and think she’s a powerful advocate for women and strength training.

This was a wonderful commentary on the batshit-craziness of some women and how they can be snarky, judgmental, a-holes, and otherwise act like they’re in Junior High School all over again.

My Butt is Doing What?  Squats and Butt Wink – Ann Wendel

Very succinct and to-the-point article by Ann on something which is common in the weight-training community:  the butt wink!

Many people glide towards the idea that the hamstrings are the biggest culprit….which they are not!

Ann breaks down a handful of the most common reasons and how to address them

CategoriesMiscellaneous Miscellany

Miscellaneous Miscellany Monday: 5/12/14

I hope everyone had a lovely Mother’s Day yesterday. I did what every son on Mother’s Day does and went out and bought a new Spring blazer and pair of jeans for myself….;o)

I blame my new fashion sense on reading Unleash Your Alpha: Eat Like a Man, Train Like a Beast, Operate Like a Gentleman, and Become a Legend recently.

I received a signed copy by the author himself, Mike Campbell, a few weeks ago (no big deal), and after reading it came to the conclusion that “not wearing sweatpants” didn’t count as dressing up.

Thanks Mike!

And yes, I called my mom to say “I love you,” and to let her know that she’s was the best thing since Thunder Punch He-Man.

Diving right into things, it’s been a while since I’ve done a Miscellaneous Miscellany Monday post, so lets get started!

1.  I’m an avid reader. I read a lot of books on anatomy, strength and conditioning, performance, and how to otherwise make people make other people destroy the back of their pants on the playing field or court.

Too, I also read a fair number of non-fiction and fiction books. I’m constantly asked by others what are some good books I’m reading, and one I’m reading now which I’ve found fascinating is The Divide: American Injustice in the Age of the Wealth Gap.

I’m not an overly political person, and I believe that if people work hard and are honest and aren’t “douchy,” that they’ll be compensated accordingly.

This book explores the 2008 financial disaster and how, despite causing panic and dire ramifications that affected millions of people across the world, not one (NOT EVEN ONE) Wall Street banker saw jail time.  However, for those on the other end of the socio-economic spectrum, it’s not uncommon for many to see jail-time for petty crimes such as “blocking pedestrian traffic.”

It’s quite the tale, and one that will make you want to throw an ax into your face from sheer rage.

On the lighter side of things, I also just finished Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir on the Craft, which is something I’d recommend to anyone  looking to 1) learn writing tips from one of the best (Hint:  limit those adverbs!) and 2) understand that writing is a process, albeit a painful, often relentless (and thankless) process that only the insane would ever actively pursue.

2.  Since we’re on the topic of stuff-I-like-and-it’s-obvious-I-have-impeccable-taste-basically-I’m-George-Clooney, I might as well showcase some of the recent movies I’ve watched that I enjoyed.

Rush – easily one of the more OVERlooked movies of 2013. This one stars Thor Chris Hemsworth as Formula One racer James Hunt and highlights his rivalry with Niki Lauda during the 1970s.

There’s car crashes, profanity, and boobies.  A+!!!

In all seriousness, I had no idea that this was directed by Ron Howard (Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind) till after the fact, and have no idea why it never received much fanfare.

It was a well directed movie, with amazing characters, and an awesome story. I’d even go so far as to say it would make my list of Top-10 Movies of 2013.

I’d highly recommend it to anyone looking for a “wild card” movie to try out.

12 Years a Slave – I purposely chose not to go see this in the theaters when it first came out because I knew it was going to be a “hard” movie to watch.

I recognize that’s a cop out and a weak excuse, but I knew that if I was going to sit through a 2+ hour movie on the topic of slavery, I had to be mentally prepared for it.

All I have to say is that it’s one of the most powerful, unflinching, and effed-up movies I’ve ever watched.

Note:  effed-up in the sense that it DOES NOT back down in showing what things were REALLY like back in those days.  I give Steve McQueen, the director, all the credit in the world for not “sugar-coating” anything.

It deserved EVERY award and accolade it received.  And, just to toss it out there:  both Chiwetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender, both of whom didn’t win the Academy Award, should have been the ones holding up the trophy a few months ago.  They were robbed.

Philomena – starring Judi Dench, this film follows the true story of a woman who had her son taken away from her decades ago and was forced to live on a convent, and the journalist who helped her seek out the truth years later.

Equal parts funny and heart-wrenching, this film shows how much of a boss Judi Dench is as an actress.  You gotta love that Brit humor!

3.  I have a few BIG announcements to pass along.

First

I’ll be holding a one-day workshop/seminar at Warrior Fitness in Cancun, Mexico on Tuesday, July 1.

I don’t speak a lick of Spanish, so worse case scenario I end up nixing my talk on how to coach the big 3 lifts (squat, deadlift, bench press), as well as my discussion on upper extremity assessment and how to “manage” CrossFit progressions, and hold my own Lucha Libre wresting match complete with drop-kicks and kick-ass masks!

You can watch the promo video HERE (complete with sub-titles!!) to get a better idea of what to expect and topics to be covered.

In addition, for more information and to reserve your spot, you can contact Roberto Aguilar at the Warrior Fitness website HERE.

Second

As we’ve alluded to in the past, Dean Somerset and I are taking our Workshop global!

Our first stop is London, England.

We’ll be holding a TWO-DAY workshop at The Third Space Soho on September 13th and 14th, 2014.

For full details (itinerary, cost, accommodations, and Dean’s favorite 007 villain)  you can go HERE.

Our second stop will be in Washington D.C in mid-October (18-19, 2014) but we’re still ironing out the exact location.  I do know that the location itself will be in Sterling, VA….not too far outside DC itself.

We’ll be posting a link shortly regarding information on hotels, etc….but you can still sign up for the early bird price HERE (scroll down to the bottom).

We’ve had inquires from other places – Chicago, Australia, Tatooine……and would be open to others as well.  If you’re someone who’d like to help us organize an event please contact feel free to contact me HERE or Dean through his site.

And that’s it for today

Categoriespersonal training

Do You Need to Train People In-Person In Order to Write About Training People?

I’m not at the facility today.

As I tap these words on my keyboard I’m sitting in my apartment at the dining room table with the cat right beside me serving as a reliable writing companion. I’m sipping on some tea. I also have some ambient “chill” music playing in the background. And I may or may not be wearing pants.

I’ll leave that up to your imagination, you saucy minx!

Put another way, I’m not at “work” today. Truth be told: as of early September I’ve been staying home every Monday. And prior to that, for the past few years I’ve taken both Tuesday and Sunday off as well.

Yeah, I know….sweet schedule.

Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

My schedule hasn’t always been so open and friendly. When Eric (Cressey), Pete (Dupuis), and I first opened up Cressey Sports Performance back in the summer of 2007, all three of us worked six days a week, many times seven.

It was a grind; a necessary grind; a grind we happily accepted in lieu of the BIG PICTURE: To grow CSP into one of the best training facilities in North America.

I’d like to think we succeeded. gggggk9;;;;;’hhhhlllll[[[ (<— my cat just got up, walked across the keyboard and says hello).

As the years passed, we grew. In more ways than one.

The facility grew, of course. What started as a rundown 2600 sq. foot facility in the corner of an indoor batting facility grew to what is now a 15,000+ sq. foot facility.

Our personal and professional lives also grew. All three of us are now married (or about to be), in addition to starting our respective families. Pete has an 8-month old. Eric and Anna are expecting twins (TWINS!!) next month. And Lisa and I are, well, not quite there yet…..;o)

Professionally, Eric is juggling upteen million things at once. I’ve known him for over a decade, lived with him for two years, and even today I still wonder if he’s half-cyborg. The man is a machine.

Pete, Vice President and business manger, to his credit, is the unsung “rock” of CSP. There aren’t many small businesses – let alone in fitness – that can back up saying they’ve seen consistent and continued growth financially despite a less than consistent economy.

Tossing myself into the mix, I too have seen a growth professionally. When I first started out in this industry I would have slapped you in the face if you told me at some point down the road I’d be paid to write for some of the most well known fitness publications out there.

And I would have slapped you twice if you told me I’d get to the point where I’d be doing public speaking without hyperventilating into a brown paper bag (let alone people would pay to come see it).

As Larry David would say: things are pretty good.  Preeeeeeeety, preeeeeeeety good.

Bringing my thought process back to the point above, though (the part where I said I’m not at “work” today or tomorrow), I wanted to clarify and elaborate a bit.

I’m going to go back on Wednesday and inevitably someone’s going to say, “hey Tony your pecs are looking extra pecky today how were your days off?”

I’m not a douche. I’ll play along and say something like, “they were great! Thanks for asking.”

However, here’s what I actually did this morning. On my “day off.”

– Woke up at 5:3o.

– Made an epic omelet for breakfast and ate it while watching The Daily Show.

– Wrote the latest program for my Premium Workout Group on WeightTraining.com.

– Wrote five programs that were due today for athletes at CSP.

– Performed two separate phone interviews with other writers from WomensHealth.com on articles they’re  writing on box jumps and common core training mistakes.

– Answered emails from distance coaching clients. A lot of emails. It never ends.

– Washed some dishes.

– Wrote this blog post.

– And once I press send I’m heading over to Boston University Strength & Conditioning to get my lift on.

And then, this afternoon, I plan on hitting up my favorite coffee shop to catch up on some writing deadlines for T-Nation and MensHealth.com.

So, is it really a day off?

Granted I’m not physically at the facility coaching people (today), but I’m not sitting at home on the couch crushing Netflix either.

Which parlays into another discussion altogether, and something I brought up on Twitter yesterday:

This phenomenon happens more often than you’d think; people who write about fitness and write about how to train people, yet don’t train anyone in real life. Ever.

As one commenter noted yesterday:

“I wouldn’t want a surgeon that only played Operation.”

I may come across a bit jaded in saying this, but this is something that really irritates me at times. Grinds my gears if you will.

Don’t get me wrong: I think there’s a difference between someone who reports fitness and knows their limitations as opposed to someone who pawns him or herself off as a fitness authority and pretends they know what the hell they’re talking about.

As my good friend, Bryan Krahn, noted:

It’s my #1 pet peeve and you can spot it in their work/programming. AKA: The Fitness Expert.”

And my other good friend, Peak Performance NYC owner, Joe Dowdell, agrees:

“You can spot frauds a mile away from their unrealistic and/or poorly designed training programs.”

People who write about fitness and don’t actually train people (or worse, never perform their own programs) write garbage like this (which I saw recently on a popular site):

A1. Deadlifts 5×10
A2. Chin-Up 5×10

*** 60s rest in between sets.

This was an “advanced strength” program and there was more to it, but this was as far as I made it before my eyes started rolling to the back of my head.

A Few Thoughts

1. If “advanced strength” is the goal, why is it asking for sets of ten? I’d be inclined to keep total reps for each set under five. Three most likely.

2. Deadlifts are a very grip demanding exercise and pairing it with another grip demanding exercise like chin-ups makes no sense.

3. Know what else doesn’t make sense? Allotting 60 seconds of recovery between sets. Again, if strength is the goal, no one outside of Superman is going to recover remotely close enough between sets. And for 9 out of 10 people their last set is going to be significantly lower compared to the first.

Performance and technique are going to be compromised.

I’m half surprised the author didn’t give people a choice between “resting” or juggling a few chainsaws between sets. You know, to make it more hardcore.

The Point Is This

Speaking personally, I feel there’s a degree of integrity involved with fitness writing. Yes, there’s a minute case of the pot calling the tea kettle black here, as I am spending less time physically coaching people and more time at home writing. But I’ve also spent twelve years working 5-7 days per week, amassing thousands of client contact hours (<— don’t worry, in a non-creepy way) coaching people face to face.

I still spend 25+ hours a week coaching.

I’ve been fortunate enough to get to the point where I can spend less time at the facility if I choose to do so (which also means less commuting in my car, 40 minutes both ways), and I’m thankful for that. If I wanted to I could make my living doing nothing but writing, making fitness products, and uploading pics to LOLcats.

However it’s important to me – as someone who does write about fitness and how to train people – that I actually train people. It’s sounds silly, but I feel it gives me a bit more “street cred” compared to some (not all) fitness writers who don’t train anyone. And it certainly provides me more credibility than www.JackedGunzFatLossJedi.com. For the record. That’s not a real site. I think.

Taking this train of thought further, this also explains why I’ll promote internet programs like Eric Cressey’s High Performance Handbook, Bret Contreras’ 2×4 Program, John Romaniello’s Superhero Fat Loss, Molly Galbraith’s Modern Women’s Guide to Strength Training, or Neghar Fonooni’s Lean & Lovely program without blinking an eye.

BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY TRAIN PEOPLE!!!!!

To be clear…….

This DOES NOT imply that one MUST train people in order to be a fitness writer. I know many, many people whom I have a lot of respect for who consistently put out great content who don’t train anyone in person. More importantly, their clients get results (which at the end of the day counts for a lot).

UPDATE: another point to consider (as someone noted after I posted this on Facebook) is that just because someone does train people in person, doesn’t mean anything either.  There are plenty of trainers who train people in person and can create sweat, exhaustion, and a bucket of DOMS…and that’s about it. There’s very little progress or adaptation being made.

Plus, we live in an era where more and more people can work from home. It’s hard to fault anyone to jump on that train and to ride it for as long as possible.

But the ones I know don’t pretend to be someone they’re not. They don’t write about topics they have little experience with. They know their limitations and they seek out (and give credit) to others for help and insight. And THAT’s where the distinction lies.

Also

1. They don’t refer to themselves as a “fitness expert.”

2. And they sure as shit don’t write programs that make no sense.

3. I’m totally not wearing pants right now. I win!!!

CategoriesFemale Training

Some Thoughts On Training Women (Post # I Don’t Know, I Lost Count)

“Can we please just shut-up about Tracy Anderson!?!”

Those were some powerful words uttered by David Dellanave of Movement Minneapolis last weekend during the Expert Panel at The Fitness Summit.

Up until that point a fair amount of Tracy Anderson bashing had accumulated, partly in jest (as the brunt of some jokes), but too, partly because her name came up in several presentations (mine included) as a talking point about the the state of the industry, and I think Dave just kinda got sick of it.

The tipping point, I believe, was when powerlifter, T-Nation writer, and overall nice guy, Greg Nuckols, asked the panel a simple, albeit powerful question: “How do we promote good training information without turning people off from training?”

On an aside, I watched Greg PAUSE squat – ass-to-grass no less – 585 lbs for an easy, clean single last weekend.  I secretly hate him….;o)

As my friend, Harold Gibbons, noted in his summation of the entire event, “This question was posed in contrast to a conversation at the time that discussed how we as an industry can do battle with some of the horrible training suggestions out there.  I say “battle” and “horrible” because we can all be vocal about the disregard for science and safety from certain training methodologies.  While I don’t agree with some of them, I don’t know if these people deserve to be cast as pariahs, as much as we can accept them as well intentioned and flawed with opportunity for growth.”

I’ll be the first to call myself out here.  I’ve done my fair share of championing the charge against the likes of Tracy Anderson, Jillian Michaels, or any other example you can come up with.

On one hand it seems a bit misguided or hypocritical (and I’ve even been called jealous) given the thousands of testimonials they have from women all over the world who have followed their advice with great success and lost “x” amount of weight performing their programs.

That should be commended.  Kind of.

You see, extenuating circumstances aside (medical issues), it isn’t hard to get people to lose weight. Take them from doing nothing to doing something, and “stuff” will happen. How’s that for science!?!

What I hate, what really ruffles my feathers, gets my goat, and makes me go bat-shit crazy….is the incessant fear mongering that the likes of Tracy Anderson gravitates towards and advocates.

Here’s a sampling of some of her better known gems:

“No woman should ever lift a weight above 3 lbs.”

“While running, strength training, and cycling may burn calories, they do not design feminine muscle or get rid of an imbalance that may masquerade as a “problem area.”

“I would never recommend (kettlebells) to women, even women who are fans of bulkier muscle lines.  While bulkier muscles looks OK on women in the 20s and 30s, it doesn’t age well.”

And while I don’t like to use ad hominem attacks as part of an argument, I do find it somewhat “odd” that for as much as Ms. Anderson is an advocate of her own method (as she should be), and for as much as she advocates for a certain look and bastardizes strength training for women…..she’s had fair amount of plastic surgery done.

Doesn’t THAT seem a bit hypocritical?  In an offhanded way, we could make the argument that not even Tracy Anderson got to look like Tracy Anderson by doing the Tracy Anderson Method. #Wordplay

But anyways, getting back on track, she’s a master at toying with women’s emotions and irrational fears towards lifting weights.

Does her method get results?  I guess.  I mean, I can Google “Tracy Anderson before and after pictures” and get a few hundred pages of evidence.  And that should be commended.  To a point.

Stealing some commentary from “Brent” who left this comment on an old(er) blog post the other day:

Any dipshit can teach to the test, or run a client into the ground, get them to lose x amount of pounds and show off their ‘success’ (usually its even easier in the fitness industry because clients come to you, usually somewhat motivated and willing to do what the ‘expert’ tells them to).

Setting up someone for long term success isn’t immediately quantifiable and is quite a bit harder. Kinda requires skill. It’s why any trainer can have a buttload of ‘success’ stories. The goal though is empowerment (at least in my mind) and setting one up for long-term success. This is more difficult to market though and frankly not as sexy.

Anytime I critique a trainer and someone says ‘yeah but they get good results..”) I just tell them Jillian Michaels and Tracy Anderson have thousands of positive testimonials, weight loss success stories, tweeter followers etc. Smart peeps in the fitness industry bash them though because they do nothing to empower their clients and set them up for long term success. I wonder how many of their clients or Biggest Loser winners come back years later and are like ‘wow, you really changed my life! 

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

In a roundabout way, this goes back to my presentation last weekend where I talked about some of my strategies when it comes to training women.

I brought up Tracy Anderson to showcase a point:  that fear mongering, feeding into, and placating into the irrational fears of (some) women is not doing anyone any favors.

At Cressey Performance we don’t feel women need to train any differently than men. 90% of what we do is the same across the board whether you have a the Y chromosome or not.

I was going to toss in a Sex and the City joke here, and showcase women’s unparalleled infatuation with it, but then I realized I’ve actually watched every episode.  And [cue high-pitched voice here] looooooooooooved it.

Our gals are deadlifting, squatting, bench pressing, performing chin-ups and push-ups, and otherwise TRAINING like the guys.

What stands out, oftentimes, is the psychology that comes with training women.

Men tend to be more Temporal Comparative, where they compete or compare against themselves.

What did I deadlift last week?

What did I squat last week?

How much do I weigh now compared to last month?

Guys tend be more interested in what they, themselves, are doing.

Conversely, women tend to be more Societal Comparative, and compare themselves to other women.

She’s doing “x” amount of weight on the bench press, how come I’m not doing that much?

She has an amazing back.  Why doesn’t mine look that way?

I can’t believe she’s wearing that to the gym. What a ho!

I once had a 50+ year old female client who would beat herself up and downgrade HER results, because she didn’t look like the 22 year-old former Division I female athlete who trained at the the same time as her.

Part of my job as their coach is to help them turn off the negative and unrealistic messages they’re inundated with as they watch television or walk through the magazine aisle, and teach them to compete against themselves.

While it may take some women longer than others to buy into, one of the best things I can do is to get them to focus more on performance based goals rather than less quantifiable goals such as scale weight.

Of course, some women may need to lose some weight….and that’s fine.  But the sooner I get them to focus more on performance based goals like working towards performing a strict push-up on the ground or squatting their bodyweight for reps – the less they are s slave to the scale.  And that’s HUGE!!!

Scale weight doesn’t tell you anything!

The work and effort it will take to eventually be able to do a push-up from the ground, or squat one’s bodyweight for reps, or to be able to perform a strict body-weight chin-up trumps ANYTHING you can do with a pink dumbbell or an elliptical machine or a Tracy Anderson DVD.

Sorry if that rubs some people the wrong way…..but that’s just the way things are.

Of course, if strength training isn’t your bag, and you prefer to use pink dumbbells, perform yoga, and run a treadmill, go for it!!!  As noted earlier: anything is better than nothing. If you like the way you feel doing those things, and your proud of your body….awesome.  You get a gold star.

But please don’t be the person who, despite going to the gym 5x per week, bitches and whines that you never seem to get the results you’re after – or if you do, that they never stick for longer than a few weeks or months – and then continue to repeat the same process over and over and over again.

What was it Einstein said about insanity again?  If you continue doing the same thing(s) expecting a different result…….

Likewise, if you’re a fitness professional reading this post, I implore and encourage you to learn to EMPOWER your clients (both female and male).  Teach them the skills they’ll need to make LONG-TERM progress, be their coach! COACH THEM!!!!!  

So while I understand I set myself up for snarky comments by starting a post off with “can we please just shut up about Tracy Anderson,” and then proceeded to write another blog post on Tracy Anderson…….I hope people can appreciate the overall message/tone.

Which, in a roundabout way can be summarized like this:

One of the best compliments you can receive from a client is when they no longer need your services.

When they finally reach their goal(s), are able to make them stick, and can then look you pointblank in the eyes and say “I got this,” your job is done.

There’s no need to exploit people and cater to their fears.

CategoriesExercises You Should Be Doing

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Goblet Elevator Squats

As far as “fool proof” exercises are concerned, you’d be hard pressed to do much better than Goblet squats.

I’d toss in an obligatory “it’s so easy a cave man can do it” joke here, but, well, shit, I just did.

Time and time again I’ve seen someone with some of the worst squatting technique you can imagine (Think: knee valgus, rounded back, my corneas perpetually bleeding), only to see them squatting flawlessly in a matter of minutes when coaching them up on the Goblet squat.

Likewise, almost always, whenever someone complains about how much “squatting hurts my knees,” I can get them performing them pain-free with a little cueing and attention to detail.

I like call it “pulling a Dumbledore,” because it’s borderline magical in their eyes.

It makes complete sense when you think about though.

– Give them an anterior load to force them engage their core musculature more efficiently and to provide more stability.

– Cue them to SIT BACK (keeping their feet flat,however placing the brunt of their weight into their heels), while simultaneously pushing their knees out (t0 open up the hips).

– And then teach them to “finish” with their glutes at the top, and not only do they see drastic improvements in their technique (and depth), but it feels effortless and less painful.

That said, even though the natural progression is to (eventually) move towards barbell variations, sometimes it’s advantageous to stick with Goblet squats in the interim and make them more “challenging.”

Goblet Elevator Squat

Who Did I Steal It From:  In a roundabout way, Ben Bruno.  I saw a video he posted doing the same thing with a front squat, and figured this would be a nice regression for those of us who prefer not to hate life.

What Does It Do:  Well, first, it’s important to recognize that you should master regular ol’ Goblet squats before moving on to this variation.

HERE’s a great starting point from the guy who pretty much popularized the movement, Dan John.

Having said that, Goblet elevator squats are an easy way to increase time under tension, or TUT for the exercise physiology geeks in the crowd.

Key Coaching Cues:  All the same cues for a normal Goblet squat come into play, except here you’re going to break up each repetition into segments where you come up 1/2 way, go back down, come up 3/4 of the way, then come back up to the starting position.

Your quads should be flipping you the bird by the end.

Because of the increased TUT, I like to keep the repetitions on the low(er) side – 5 to 6 – but for the more sadistic minded people reading, feel free to work your up to ten total repetitions (which is really 30 when you factor in the “breaks” in each rep).

Have fun!

Also

For those looking for even more ways to up the ante with their Goblet squats (or their exercise repertoire in general) check out Jen Sinkler’s Lift Weights Faster.

The programming and exercise database will undoubtedly keep you on your toes and satiate anyone who gets easily bored with their workouts.

CategoriesMotivational

Why The Fitness Summit is THE Fitness Summit

As I type these words I’m cruising at about 39,000 feet above the ground on my flight back to Boston from Kansas City after having attended The Fitness Summit over the weekend.

I feel somewhat sick to my stomach because 1) I’m not what you would call a “fan of flying” and 2) the two pounds of burnt ends I ate last night from local KC BBQ staple, Arthur Bryant’s, isn’t doing my digestive track any favors.  Nor are the three servings of ice cream I devoured.

Embarrassingly enough, after my second serving of ice cream I was approach for an impromptu photo-op during the social last night by one of the female attendees and I had to make sure that my face wasn’t covered in Cookies-n-Cream.

It wasn’t.  I think.

And that, in part, is what makes The Fitness Summit THE Fitness Summit.  It’s just like-minded people coming to together to do nothing more than hang out, geek out about fitness, perform a Predator hand-shake or two, and simply, unapologetically be themselves.

For the record:  I won.

When I was first contacted by the Brombergs (brothers Nick and David, who organize and run the event) to come and speak at this year’s Summit I kind of felt like I was one of those characters from the movie The Social Network getting their first invite to Final Club shoved underneath their dorm room door.

When I got the email I felt equal parts trying to resist the urge to pee myself a little and running outside my apartment down Beacon Ave and high-fiving every stranger who crossed my path.

While neither of those two happened, I was pretty excited (and honored) to say the least.

You see, I’ve always been somewhat enamored with The Fitness Summit.  I was vaguely familiar with its “grass roots” beginnings in Arkansas when it was known as the JP Fitness Summit and was nothing more than an annual gathering of forum members and the Grand Master, Lou Schuler.

As the years passed it slowly grew, with more and more people making the trek to Arkansas, and, along with Lou, other well-known fitness trainers, coaches, and/or writers.

Fast forward to the last few years – it’s now known as The Fitness Summit, it takes place in Kansas City, and has grown into one of the “go to” fitness events of the year.

This year’s panel of presenters.  Front Row (L-R): Galina Ivanova Denzel, Alan Aragon. Back Row (L-R): Dr. Spencer Nadolsky, Lou Schuler, Roland Denzel, Han Solo, Jen Sinkler, Dr. Mike T. Nelson, David Dellanave, Nick Bromberg, Bret Contreras, Dr. Brad Schoenfeld, Bryan Krahn, Dr. Cassandra Forsythe

I broke my Fitness Summit cherry this year and was was invited to come speak – unbeknownst to myself, given I was slated to speak last, as the “main speaker” (no pressure) – and, well, it was an amazing experience and I can’t wait to go back.

Unlike a lot of fitness seminars, symposiums, conferences, and soirees, The Fitness Summit isn’t about making a profit.

The organizers are happy to break even, and while the presenters are compensated (and treated like gold), it isn’t about the money, or selling product, or egos,  or anything like that.

It’s about the people.

The Summit itself has a very friends-hanging-out-with friends vibe to it.  And, to be honest, the highlight of the entire weekend isn’t so much the abyss of knowledge bombs being dropped by the presenters – and there were many – but more so the networking, shenanigans, and “informalness” of it all.

Some highlights:

1.  Again, I can’t stress how amazing the people are.  On top of the presenters, the attendees themselves resembled a fitness industry All-Star team.  What’s more it was so cool to finally put a face to some of the names I’ve grown familiar with over the years. So many people approached me to introduce themselves and to tell me how much they enjoyed my work.

My head grew maybe thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis much over the weekend.

2.  Getting an impromptu deadlift session in with Bret Contreras. HERE’s my 465×3, and HERE’s Bret’s.

Afterwards Bret turns to me and says, “Tony, I’m not kidding, you have the best deadlift technique I’ve ever seen.”

And then we both went into the garage to practice karate together.

3.  Dr. Spencer Nadolsky describing his first “non-sexual vaginal approach” was CLASSIC!  In short:  while in med-school he described his first Pap Smear, and how the woman whom he was testing looked him, in mid-approach, and said “you have beautiful eyes.”

HAHAHAHAHA.

4. Me getting trolled by Alan Aragon during the Expert Panel.  I look at it as a right of passage.  Thanks for taking it easy on me Alan……;o)

5.  Louie Guarino’s and Dean Somerset’s calf off.  Yes, that happened.

6.  And, one of the coolest things – for me anyways – is seeing so many women showing up!  The audience was roughly split 50/50 as far as male/female ratio and I think that kicks ass.

 To sum it all up:  I can’t wait to go back.

And, GFY Mark Shields (sorry, a little Fitness Summit inside joke).

CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: 5/2/14

Hey, hey, hey!  So, like about 73% of the entire fitness industry population I’m in Kansas City for the weekend for The Fitness Summit.

You know it’s a legit event when said event begins with the word “THE.”

I’ll speaking alongside the likes of Bret Contreras, Alan Aragon, Brad Schoenfeld, David Dellanave, Jen Sinkler, Cassandra Forsythe, Mike T. Nelson, Roland and Gayla Denzel, Bryan Krahn, Spenser Nadolsky, and I think Professor Dumbledore may be making a cameo appearance too.

And this is in conjunction with the people in attendance:  Nick Tumminello, Dean Somerset, Chad Landers, Jon-Erik Kawamoto, Mark Fisher, James Fell, Lou Schuler, and a handful of other well known coaches, trainers, and writers.  It’s like we’re celebrating Fitness Christmas!

AND least we forget the attendees themselves…people from all over the world have made the trek to KC to hang-out, learn, eat dead animal flesh, and challenge Bret to random glute-offs.  True story!

So what I’m trying to say is…go see The Amazing Spiderman 2 this weekend.

Why We’re Losing Athleticism – Eric Cressey

Eric NAILED this one, and it’s something I’ve written on in the past as well.  It saddens me that we as a society have placed more credence on our kid’s ability to answer meaningless standardized test questions than allowing them to be kids, and grow, and mature, and otherwise develop as human beings.

Physical education is more or less extinct in most curriculums now.  And, even worse, is the fact that recess is no longer a part of their school day.

When I was in school we got 45 minutes every day to go outside and run, play kickball, play catch, and chase girls with bugs.  Hell, I still do that…..;o)

In any case it’s no surprise that rates of childhood obesity have risen by astronomical standard, and that “test” scores are down…….WE NEED TO ALLOW OUR KIDS TO FREAKIN MOVE!!!!

When to Use Speed…and When to Slow Down Your Reps – Steve Bergeron

This is a conundrum and concept I deal with on an almost daily basis when coaching, and Steve helps shed some light on when it’s appropriate to lift slow and fast.

Are Personal Trainers Missing the Point? – Will Davis

It’s one of my biggest pet peeves in life – other than anything that comes out of Tracy Anderson’s mouth – personal trainers who fail to COACH THEIR CLIENTS!!!

This was an excellent post by Will and I highly encourage all personal trainers to read it.

 Also, TWO Things (Actually, Three)

1.  I love you.

2.  This weekend (Sunday, 5/4 at midnight) will be your last chance to purchase The Modern Women’t Guide to Strength Training at the introductory price.

For those who missed it, I posted an excellent article by Molly Galbraith HERE which discusses common mistakes (many) women make with their own training as well as goes into more detail on the product itself.

Suffice it to say it’s a product FOR women written BY women…..and I 100% endorse it.

3.  Also, my good buddy John Romaniello (Roman for short) “released” his flagship fat-loss product, The SuperHero Workout 2.0 earlier this week.

I say “released” because it’s actually a re-release of  his original product, albeit here he’s added a boatload of additional content, workouts, penis jokes, and overall badassery.

The entire Cressey Performance staff did this program a few years ago when it was originally released and we all loved it!

If you ever wondered how the likes of Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Henry Cavill (Superman), or Chris Hemsworth (Thor) got in such great shape for their roles….well, this manual is pretty much the holy grail on how they did it.