Categoriesmindset Motivational personal training psychology

The Planet Fitness Myth

We’re stuck in an emotionally devoid rut. And Planet Fitness isn’t helping.

I am all for showering my fellow humans with compassion and empathy. Treat others as you’d like to be treated isn’t a bad way to go about doing things.

However, taking politics out of the conversation1, it’s a safe observation to note we live in an era where we have a proclivity to shield people from “bad” feelings or from experiencing failure or hardship.

Social media plays into it. I mean, everyone on Facebook and Instagram lives in a world of butterfly kisses and rainbows (and delicious looking entrees), and it’s hard not to compare and feel up to snuff amongst everyone else’s hunky-doriness.

Society, in general, plays a massive role too. All we need to do is look towards the idea of participation trophies and “safe spaces” to note how we’re seemingly desensitizing people from a wider spectrum of feelings and uncomfortableness.

NOTE: I’d highly recommend checking out the Pixar movie Inside Out. The whole vibe of the movie is to demonstrate that feeling sad or angry or scared is okay…and that it’s a normal, nay, a necessary component of growth.

In today’s guest post by Texas-based personal trainer, Shane McLean, he does a brief “deep dive” into the phenomenon of Planet Fitness and how it mirrors much of the sentiment above.

I.e., shielding people from failure and uncomfortable situations. Is it really helping?

Don’t worry, it’s not an anti-Planet Fitness diatribe. There’s no need to preach to the choir here. However, bringing the (albeit slight) nefarious side of why Planet Fitness even exists is something I find very interesting and something worth discussing.

Enjoy.

The Planet Fitness Myth

The first time I entered a weight room, I had absolutely had no idea what to do or how to get started. However, isn’t that the case with almost everything we do for the first time?

The start of the New Year brings a stampede of newbie gym-goers who enter a gym for the first time disappointed by their ever-growing waistlines. They usually head straight to the cardio machines to watch TV or to the dumbbell rack to do endless variations of biceps curls hoping their belly will magically disappear.

The regular gym folk may get annoyed when ‘their’ gym is full or the machines have all been taken or the biggest granddaddy of them all, the squat rack is being used for biceps curls. This one makes me mad. How mad? This mad.

 

These newbies are looking to lose a few pounds and think doing endless sets of curls is no big deal. They just want to look better naked and are (usually) not interested in strength or performance goals.

The newbies may feel judged or intimidated because of the looks they receive from the regulars or from the lack of help they receive from the gym staff. Whether these feelings are real or imagined, they have led to a rise of gyms, like Planet Fitness, who market themselves as the “non-gym.”

Planet Fitness, which started in 1992 in Newington, New Hampshire now has over 1000 locations and 7 million members making it one of the largest health clubs in the U.S.

With their cheap per-month membership and their slick advertising slogans such as Judgement Free Zone®, Gymtimidation® and their world famous Lunk™ alarm, Planet Fitness is doing a great job of attracting these disenfranchised exercisers.

 

Planet Fitness has built its reputation on maintaining a non-competitive work environment which has led to banning of certain exercises (which happens to be my favorites) and certain types of lifters.

They keep their costs down by omitting fancy stuff like juice bars and personal trainers and by not following every exercise fad. They stock their facility with good old fashioned cardio, weight machines dumbbells and barbells and not much else.

I think Barney the dinosaur and LSU would approve of their color scheme. However, I’m not a fan of purple

They also offer free pizza, bagels and even tootsie rolls to their members on the gym floor. What an ingenious idea. Can you imagine holding a slice of pizza in one hand and doing curls with the other? It boggles the mind with other possibilities.

It’s not my intention to rag on Planet Fitness because the facts speak for themselves. They are doing quite well and have cornered their share of the market, and they keep on growing.

However, I take exception to the way they portray non- purple commercial gyms.

Our first commercial gym experiences were probably similar. We were surrounded by people who were in much better shape than we were. They were bigger, faster and stronger and most of them knew what to do.

We’d scan the room and realize, “Shit, I’ve got some work to do.”

Sure, we may’ve felt slightly intimated or maybe even judged by the other regulars at the beginning but those feelings will fade with time and sweat equity.

Being out of ones “comfort zone” is necessary for growth, don’t you think?

Instead of cowering in the corner and waiting for free pizza, I used this as motivation to get better. People who have taken the time, effort and sacrifice to get in shape should be role models to others and not kicked out of the gym because they’re ‘too muscly’ or for making too much noise.

The gym floor isn’t a church after all.

Furthermore, in my experience these type of people are more than willing to help and share their tips, tricks and techniques. Sure, they might be intimating, but once you get to know them, they could be as gentle as a pussy cat.

Planet Fitness fits right into the era where we give out trophies for participation and ribbons for finishing last. Nobody likes to lose and nobody wants to get his or her feelings hurt.

However, this doesn’t fit with real life. We lose. We get our feelings hurt. We get judged. We get intimated by a situation or a person. Either we pack our bags and go home or use this as a learning situation and move onward and upward.

I’m assuming I’m preaching to the converted here. You take your health and fitness seriously and invest time, money, effort and sweat equity into it. However, if you have a friend, family member or co -worker interested in joining Planet Fitness, tell them this

  • The deadlift is an awesome exercise that strengthens the whole body. Have them read THIS.
  • Having temptation around when trying to make a change is a sure way to fail.
  • Excluding certain people from the gym doesn’t mean judgment and intimdation stop.
  • Those feelings described don’t last. Whether they’re real or imagined, use them for positive change.
  • How can you tell if people are judging you anyway? They might just be checking you out.

Wrapping Up

There will always be gyms who compete only on price and price alone. However, most people’s health and fitness is worth way more than $10 per month and free tootsie rolls.

No matter how delicious they are.

About the Author

Shane “The Balance Guy” McLean, is an A.C.E Certified Personal Trainer working deep in the heart of Texas. Shane believes in balancing exercise with life while putting the fun back into both.

CategoriesFemale Training

Why Women Should Embrace the Bigness

Or, to make things a bit more click baity maybe an alternative title of this post should be: “Why Women Should Train for Gainz.”

Copyright: restyler / 123RF Stock Photo

 

I mean, why do words such as “mass, size, gain, muscular, bulk, and bigness” need only apply to men?

While the tides have changed in recent years – in no small part to places like Cressey Sports Performance, MBSC, I-FAST, AMP Fitness, Tuff Girl Fitness, War Horse Barbell Club, SVPT Fitness, Mark Fisher Fitness, Legacy Strength, and Beyond Strength Performance, to name a few, not to mention the popularity of CrossFit2 – it’s still readily apparent walking past any magazine rack or watching any infomercial, the overall message directed towards women with regards to fitness is still one rife with less than stellar connotations.

“Tiny”

“Tone”

“Tight”

“Drop”

“Small”

“Smaller”

Women tend to be inundated with these sort of words all….the….time. Actually, more like punched in the mouth 24/7, seven days a week.

Being smaller, or less of what they currently are is the reverberating theme. And I don’t like it. I don’t like it one iota.

NOTE: Please don’t interpret this as me saying any one woman has to look or strive to look any one way. It’s your prerogative to look how you want to look – small, big, twight (<– said with Goldfinger’s accent from Austin Powers), rotund, I don’t care. Be you. However, I think it’s a fair assessment that the majority of the mainstream media nudges women into thinking that adding, or being more, is less than desirable.

And with that, here are some reasons why women getting their diesel on is a GOOD thing.

1. Purpose

This bodes well for anything – whether it’s to add size, lose fat, train for a competition, or squat King Kong. Having a goal in mind, any goal, gives your training a little oomph, or purpose.

It’s amazing what happens to one’s mindset and approach in heading to the gym when there’s a plan in place. Rather than haphazardly “showing up” and doing a little of this and little of that, training under the guise of adding muscle provides a kick in the pants like nothing other.

To steal some insight from Julie Read:

“You see, a hypertrophy program helps you build the size of your muscles, the cross-sectional size…the girth. I really like how Nick Tumminello puts it “unlike strength training, the goal of training for size is more physiological than it is neurological. It’s about upgrading your body’s hardware, like bones, connective tissues, and muscles. You literally build your body, forcing the tissues to develop and grow stronger.”

And, while it leaves me feeling fatigued, it does so at the muscular level versus in the Central Nervous System (CNS).”

Which is a nice segue to…

2. It’s a Nice Break

I like getting people strong. That’s what I do best. Many of the women who train with me operate underneath the same umbrella. It’s like they’re my own personal army of deadlifting fembots.

Ohhhhh, snap. Austin Powers reference #2!

I can’t deny, though, that training for strength – at least long-term – can be a bit of a drain. Both physically and mentally. Taking a bit of a break and dedicating a macrocycle (or two3) towards aesthetics (namely, muscle growth), and using sub-maximal weight, is a fantastic way to approach things when you’re feeling drained and need an opportunity to reenergize.

Speaking of aesthetics…

3. Aesthetics

Far be it from me to attempt to explain or pontificate on what looks good and what doesn’t. I’m not here to sway anyone’s beliefs or preferences on the topic.

That said, I’d be remiss not to mention the aesthetic benefits of adding muscle to one’s frame. Muscle is what adds shape and contour to the body. What’s more, assuming one’s diet is in check, and there’s less fat covering the muscle, the more those shapes and contours can be shown off or accentuated.

You can’t do this trudging away on the elliptical machine for hours on end and performing endless repetitions of whateverthefuck with pink dumbbells.

Copyright: ammentorp / 123RF Stock Photo

There’s a saying out there a lot of misinformed people like to spout out in defiance of women strength training and training for size.

“Muscle weighs more than fat.”

This is often used as a scare-tactic – mostly by people trying to sell their shady products – to deter women from lifting (appreciable) weights.

Um, no. 1 lb of muscle is the same as 1 lb of fat. A pound is a pound.

You see, muscle actually takes up less space than fat. Which is why, often, when many women begin to lift weights they may only set a net difference of a few lbs. of total bodyweight lost, however look as if they lost much more.

Obligatory “lifting weights won’t make you big-n-bulky” diatribe.

“It’s hard to put on muscle. Real effing hard. 100% of guys wish they could add muscle as fast as many women “think” is possible.”

You won’t turn into He-Man in a week. Or a month, or a year for that matter.

This is still my favorite video ever on the topic:

 

4. Confidence

I think this one is self-explanatory. I LOVE when I witness the switch flip with many of the women I train, from delicate flower to Xena beast mode deadlift warrior.

The key to programs like The Bigness Project is to always, at all times, demonstrate success. The idea should be to showcase to women that they can do stuff, and not revert to lame semantics where the message is “oh, you’re a girl, you should do this instead.”

The easiest examples would be the idea behind “girl push-ups” and/or the idea that women can’t perform pull-ups/chin-ups.

 

Good programs, programs that work, are ones that build people up and help to make their participants autonomous.

And they also, not coincidentally enough, make people work.

Both hard and intelligently. And that begets confidence. And that’s priceless.

5. Because, Why the Heck Not?

*Also, because my wife is obsessed with Jen Sinkler.4

In my wife’s eyes Jen can do no wrong. Everything from her funny daily anecdotes to her choice of eye liner, my wife is on board with. And when Jen made her big reveal the other week after completing The Bigness Project….

…….all I heard over my shoulder was “daaaaaaaaaaaaayum.”

I think she was referring to both the biceps and leg warmers.

Suffice it to say, Lisa was impressed and is already chomping at the bit to give this program a go once she has the “all clear” from her doctor. She’s 40 weeks pregnant (our little guy is due any minute now), and she’s amped to get started. How cool is that?

I mean, it’s no secret many women struggle with feeling “too big” during and post-pregnancy. The fact my wife is salivating over a program squarely focused on “Bigness” is very cool and a radical notion.

The Bigness Project

Is on sale NOW. However TODAY will be your last chance to get in on the action before it’s taken away.

That’s right, if someone wants to get a copy of The Bigness Project they’ll need to do it between now and end of day today (1/27), or wait until the project is offered again at a future date to get in. If you’re interested, even remotely, THIS is your last chance to get in.

Do it. DO IT.

CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: Any Day Now Edition

Normally my “Stuff to Read” post goes up on Fridays, but in the event I get called into action tomorrow I wanted to make sure I got this up early.

Copyright: oksix / 123RF Stock Photo

 

Soon I’ll be a dad. And soon my kid will be yelling at me “you’re ruining my life!”

*slams door*

I’m going to laugh so hard.

Stuff to Check Out Before You Read Stuff

1. 2 Workshops Coming Up

Complete Shoulder & Hip Blueprint – Vancouver, April 1-2nd.

Dean Somerset and I will be in Vancouver that weekend to talk shoulders and hips and to start a tickle fight.

For more information and to sign up you can go HERE.

SUNY Cortland Health & Wellness Conference – Cortland, NY, April 8th

I’ll be at my alma mater the weekend of April 8th speaking at what I believe is the 4th or 5th annual SUNY Cortland Conference. Other guest speakers include my wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis, Mark Fisher, Brian St. Pierre, and Dr. David Just.

For more information you can go HERE.

2. Men’s Health

Check out THIS article I helped contribute to on MensHealth.com titled 6 Reasons You’ve Stopped Losing Weight.

HINT: it has nothing to do with starting a detox diet of Unicorn tears with a squeeze of lemon.

3. Oh, and this happened

In case you missed the title of the next Star Wars film was revealed the other day along with the poster.

Commence 11-month long nerd boner………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….now.

The Bigness Project: How to Look Like You Lift – Kourtney Thomas & Jen Sinkler

I received an advance copy of this program last week, and I love it. I love everything about it. Who says women can’t (or shouldn’t) train for size? Kourtney and Jen (pictured above) have done a really nice job coming up with a program targeted towards women (but men can do it to!) that’s well designed and complete with everything you’d need to be successful.

All I know is that my wife is sooooo excited to give this program a go once she gets the clear from her doctor. It’s on sale through this Friday night (1/27) so you don’t have much time left to save.

Shoulders: I Like Them Big, Buff, and Beautiful – Julia Ladewski

I think the pic says it all, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give this article a read.

“When you’re at the gym, or maybe the beach or even people watching at a fancy dinner event, what’s one of the first things you notice on a fit, in-shape woman?

Her legs? Maybe.

Her butt? Probably.

More often than not, her shoulders.  Why? They grab your attention. They are eye level and a fit woman’s shoulders pop.”

6 Foundational Movements That Every Person on Earth Needs to Master – John Rusin, et al.

I was pumped to be asked to contribute to this article, featuring knowledge bombs from other stellar coaches like John himself, Joel Seedman, Eric Bach, Dr. Ryan DeBell, Tim DiFrancesco, and Luka Hocevar.

The only movement not listed? Sparta kicking global warming in the face.

Social Media Highlights

Twitter

Instagram

NOTE: I was a slacker on IG this week and only posted this one about an hour ago. I suspect 1 million views by 6 PM. Give or take 995,000 or so.

Categoriespodcast

Part 2 of Push Pull Legs Podcast Appearance

I apologize for my clear lack of writing this week, but you know…our little guy is primed to arrive at any moment.

Fret not! I got your back and am still prepared to provide some semblance of new content for you. Like a boss.

Copyright: dr911 / 123RF Stock Photo

 

In case you missed it last week, you can check out Part I of my appearance on the Push Pull Legs Podcast HERE.

Part II was released yesterday. Here the guys (Tom Hall and Daniel Meek) and I discuss the business of personal training, whether or not to offer freebies or discounts, and Star Wars. Because, Star Wars.

All in all, that’s about 90 minutes of my smooth, silky voice. Or the equivalent of two Game of Thrones episodes. Totally worth it.

You can check it out HERE or listen below.

CategoriesFemale Training mindset muscle growth Program Design Strength Training

Maybe Less Isn’t More

Peruse pretty much any fitness magazine targeted to women and you’ll inevitably see words like, “lose, fat-loss, tight, drop a size, tiny, hot, and lean” plastered all over its pages. This is unfortunate.

Women are programmed, often at an early age, to be less, that in order to be attractive and have self-worth, the smaller you are the better.

I say: Bull to the shit.

It’s no secret I’m a firm advocate for women to strength train. Time and time and time again I witness women transform their bodies (and mindsets) when they choose to nix the endless elliptical sessions in lieu of picking up some barbells.5

There is nothing wrong with choosing to be more.

I am pumped to help promote The Bigness Project from Kourtney Thomas and Jen Sinkler. It’s everything I’m a fan of when it comes to directing women to the right kind of information.

Please enjoy the guest post Kourtney was kind enough to write below.

Maybe Less Isn’t More

I used to be one of those women who made a point to talk about how little space I took up. I’d brag about taking the first middle seat I came to on a Southwest flight because, “I’m just a little girl!” On top of that, I made a point of keeping everything about my already small body as tiny as possible. Because, after all, being less is more when it comes to women’s bodies, right?

More like “Yeah right!”

Over the years, I eventually began to see that there was another way to go. And while, yes, I do walk around in a petite frame, I’ve come to see that what I do with it and how I carry myself can convey a whole different message.

When I first got into fitness, though, it was pretty much cardio only for me. I loved group cycling and endurance running. I enjoyed sweating all over the floor teaching a high-energy cycling class, and I loved running out to the middle of nowhere and melting into nature and myself.

At the time, I didn’t yet grasp that my participation in each of these sports tended to reinforce that same, constant message for me: that less is more. Endurance runners have to be rail-thin so they can be fast. Group cycling classes will claim to burn a gazillion or so calories. The rest, if not explicitly stated, is often implied in skewed marketing messages: stay little.

In time, I experimented and found my way to some weight training. But I started with methods I thought wouldn’t make me too big or bulky. And obviously, to burn more calories, because I still believed that less was more. Along the way, I began to see glimpses of a different way though. Who is this Jen Sinkler person, and what is this Lift Weights Faster stuff I see? Oh my goodness, Girls Gone Strong?

Strong? What a novel concept!

And women were using…what was that called again? A barbell? I was clueless and petrified to touch the thing for the first time, but I eventually gave myself a dose of my own tough love, sucked it up, and walked into the weight room one day. As it turned out, it wasn’t so bad, and I felt capable of being there! (I also realized not everyone knew what they were doing in there.)

And, so, I started with strong, and I believe in that wholeheartedly. I completely agree with Tony when he says that training for performance in lifting is a great place to start. I not only saw my strength come up substantially, but as Tony has also mentioned many times before, I began to see significant physical changes in my body shape and composition.

I was getting bigger. Bigger! Everywhere. And I liked it.

I liked it so much, in fact, that it became my primary goal. I’ll never forget writing my initial email to my first coach and my No. 1 goal as “Gain some size. As much hypertrophy as possible.” Oh, how different that was from the last 30 or so years of my life — that a woman should actively say to herself, I don’t want to shrink. I want to grow! I don’t want to lose weight. I want to gain! And then deliberately work toward getting bigger?

It took a little time to get behind fully, I’ll admit. Just like so many other women, I’ve been conditioned by the mainstream messaging to know nothing other than slender, slim, and thin-is-in. Not to mention, quiet, polite, and ladylike. Flipping the script on all of that doesn’t happen overnight. But changing my training focus to hypertrophy not only helped me to discover the most fun kind of training ever (seriously!), but it helped me to embrace my own body, more than I ever thought possible.

I used to hate my “linebacker shoulders” and big arms. Now? Are you kidding me? Let’s beef ’em up so I can bust out of my sleeves! I used to cringe at my outer thighs and cover them up with my hands so they’d look like the ones I saw in the magazines. Now? I cannot stop leg pressing because I want to see my muscles through my pants.

Letting go of less is more was freeing. It was empowering. It was a gift, an open door to start exploring what other mainstream misconceptions might be out there. I’ve always been one to go a bit against the grain and question the norm, and while it took me a little while longer to do it when it came to what I wanted for my body, when I got there? Everything changed.

Loving my big arms (and doing 10,000 biceps curls) enriched my life exponentially and boosted my confidence about everything through the stratosphere. Who would have thought that working deliberately to bulk up would have that effect? Oh, and it also happened to have the effect of creating a physique that I, personally, consider totally rockin’.

More muscles has meant more everything for me. More quality relationships, more fun, more business, more love. All of it — seriously — because I made a choice to defy that less is more rhetoric and train specifically to be bigger.

Because, sometimes? More is more.

Are You Ready for the Bigtime?

The Bigness Project is a brand-new hypertrophy-training program built to get you built. Written by Kourtney Thomas, a strength and conditioning coach who has spent the last few years focused on the small details that will get you big, this program—or “brogram,” as she refers to it in the most gender-neutral of ways—delivers on the promise of bigger arms and a bigger life.

Consisting of tried-and-true muscle-building techniques, The Bigness Project will guide you through 14 weeks of training that will support your overall strength, develop a stronger mind-muscle connection, and give you a look that leaves no doubt that you lift weights.

Designed for lifters of any experience level, The Bigness Project includes:

  •       A comprehensive User Manual that explains the philosophy behind the program and walks you step-by-step through every aspect of Bigness training and lifestyle.
  •       14-week hypertrophy training program.
  •       A complete exercise glossary including 95 written and photo demonstrations of every movement in the program.
  •       A video library containing 20 in-depth explanations of the most detailed movements and components of the program.

Now available—all aboard the gainz train! To celebrate the kickoff of the Bigness Project, the program is on sale now. Get your copy HERE and join us in the gym this week!

About Kourtney Thomas

Kourtney Thomas is a personal trainer and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with a passion for empowerment and hypertrophy training for women, which she coaches virtually with Kourtney Thomas Fitness. When she’s not at the gym doing some variation of biceps curls, Kourtney loves to ride her Harley-Davidson Softail Deluxe anytime the weather is above 50 degrees, travel to national parks, stay up too late reading copious amounts of science fiction and fantasy, and bake elaborate cakes and cookies—because something has to fuel those gains. Drawing on the above, her personal motto is “Big Arms, Big Life,” and she lives by that daily.

CategoriesMiscellaneous Miscellany

Miscellaneous Miscellany Monday: It’s Go Time Edition

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these.

First things first: We’re in the final countdown for baby Gentilewis6 to arrive. Lisa entered week #40 this week and we’re gearing up for the due date which is technically this Friday, January 27th.

Copyright: alien185 / 123RF Stock Photo

 

We think we’re ready, but we’re both pretty realistic about the shit-show (literally and figuratively) that’s about to be dropped into our laps. Don’t get me wrong: we’re both super excited and pumped. However, all of that is met with equal parts trying not to destroy the back of our pants too.

If for some reason I happen to not update this blog this week, you will know why.

Wish us luck….;o)

1. It’s still surreal to think that by this time next week I’ll be someone’s daddy. I have zero confidence I’ll be able to keep my bearings and I know it’s going to be one of the most emotional and spectacular events of my life.

My emotions came to the forefront even more this past weekend when I finally sat down to watch the documentary, Gleason.

 

It’s hard to explain in words how this film made me feel. As a relatively newlywed (1.5 years) and a dad-to-be, it definitely brought to light the unparalleled beauty, complexity, and tragedy that life can deal us sometimes. We can either bow down or do something about it.

Do yourself a favor and watch this film. Keep a box of Kleenex handy too.

2. My wife is a rock star. Throughout her entire pregnancy she’s been hitting the gym pretty hard. She’s kept up with her strength training 3-4x per week in addition to teaching three spin classes per week.

Lisa will be 35 weeks pregnant tomorrow. Forget the idea that we’re quickly approaching the “shit is now getting real” window and that I’m equal parts excited and trying not to destroy the back of pants. How cool is it that Lisa’s still getting after it in the gym? Strength training through pregnancy can be a tricky thing and I always default to how the woman feels and whether or not anything makes her feel weird. Prior experience plays a key role here. In Lisa’s case: 20+ years of strength training prior (and the load used in this video – 155 lbs – is no where near her 1RM). All that said I do find there’s still a lot of stigma with training through pregnancy and unfortunately many women are told to stop lifting weights. Of course no pregnancy is the same, but assuming one is healthy and has experience there’s no reason not to keep up with it. Modifications need to be addressed as a woman progresses (in the case of the video above we elevated the trap bar, even with high handle setting, to accommodate for her belly), but we need to do a better job at relaying the message that pregnancy is NOT a disease and doesn’t mean you have to be relegated to the elliptical and pink dumbbells.

A video posted by Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore) on

 

Although, she did stop teaching her classes three weeks ago and has only been attending them since. Slacker.

I feel there’s a lot of stigma with regards to strength training and pregnancy, which I find dumbfounding. Everyone is different and the answer as to whether or not a woman can (or should) do it is dependent on her previous experiences (and preferences). That said, women have been giving birth for thousands & thousands of years in much more complicated scenarios, and the body is more resilient than we give it credit for sometimes.

There’s a degree of bias in me saying this but, I don’t feel strength training is in any way deleterious during pregnancy. In my eyes strength training during this time is helping to prepare the body for something a helluva lot more taxing than a few sets of deadlifts.

#makinglaborlesslaborious

I wrote a much more thorough article on the topic a few years ago HERE when I was working with a few female clients through their first pregnancy.

3. I’ll be the first to admit my wife is a bit of an outlier. As an example throughout her pregnancy she’s still been hammering her chin-ups (and having weird taco cravings). Even with 25-30 lbs of natural progressive overload she’s been crushing them. Beast mode.

I think she made it to week #34 or 35 before she started giving me the “dude, really? look” and we stopped performing bodyweight chins and started using band assistance. She’s already planning her “come back” and is excited to give Kourtney Thomas and Jen Sinkler’s The Bigness Project a go once she’s cleared to resume normal physical activity.

I happened to get an advance copy of it last week, and am really impressed. What I love is the message: it’s okay, nay, more than okay, for women to want to put on muscle.

All this past week Kourtney and Jen have been putting out killer content in anticipation of it’s release this week:

How to Look Like You Lift

Get Buff in the Buff

And the latest, Pace Yourself for Big Payoffs.

Keep your eyes peeled because this program is going to change a lot of women’s lives.

 

4. The topic of program design is an abyss of dichotomies, paradoxes, and juxtapositions. What works for one person may have the polar opposite effect on someone else. I never like to marry myself to any ONE way of doing anything and wholeheartedly believe that it’s important to cater each program to the individual.

What’s more, each program is going to be contingent on several factors:

  • Past/current injury history.
  • Goals.
  • Training frequency.
  • Ability/Experience level.
  • Equipment availability.
  • Expectation management. I had someone ask me to write them a program to bring their deadlift from 300 to 400 lbs in four weeks. Um, yeah, what’s next? Beating The Mountain in being a ginormous human being?

This will likely be a topic of a more thorough blog post down the road, but there are some “rules” I have to program design to carry over to most everyone.

  • I LOVE using fillers. In short, there are various l0w-grade mobility, activation, stretching drills that are paired with a strength exercise. So, rather than make someone feel like a patient and bore them to tears with a litany of “correctives,” I can include fillers to take on that role and still ensure a training effect. For example, if someone lacks hip flexor length and t-spine mobility a good pairing may be:
    • Trap Bar Deadlift: 3×5
    • Stationary Spiderman w/ Reach 3×4/side

 

  • Volume is an under-appreciated component of muscle growth. However, it’s important to understand that training to failure all…the…time isn’t the same thing as volume.

 

  • I’ve been trying to do a better job at making sure my clients leave a rep or two in the tank in their earlier sets. The idea is that if they putter out too quickly, it’s going to impede their ability to hit all their prescribed reps in the first place.
  • Along the same lines, and a bit counterintuitive given what I said above, one easy way to get your bench up is to include more rest/pause AMRAP sets. This is something I “stole” from strength coach Greg Robins. After you hit your top set on your bench do this:
    • 80% of 1RM for AMRAP, rest 20s, AMRAP, rest 20s, AMRAP
    • Rest 3 Minutes
    • 75% of 1RM for AMRAP, rest 20s, AMRAP, rest 20s, AMRAP
    • Try not to die.

5. Two coaches who are putting out amazing content of late are:

Joel Seedman

Meghan Callaway

Check them out if you aren’t already.

And that’s all she wrote. See you tomorrow, I think….;o)

CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: 1/20/17

Lets get right to it shall we?

Copyright: donatas1205 / 123RF Stock Photo

 

Stuff to Check Out Before You Read Stuff

1. I Am Not Afraid to Lift: The Retreat

Save over $300 off registration with the Early Bird rate for I Am Not Afraid To Lift® – THE RETREAT with Artemis Scantalides, Julia Ladewski, and (my wife) Dr. Lisa Lewis on May 5-7, 2017 at the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa in Phoenix, Arizona.

Designed BY women FOR women this weekend retreat is sure to be a treat (<– HA, get it?) covering anything and everything with regards to lifting things (bodyweight, kettlebells, barbells), nutrition, and mindset training.

I’ll be there too, albeit on Daddy Day Care duty with a then 4-month old. Any dudes wanna hang out? Anyways, it’s going to be an amazing weekend and a lovely opportunity to surround yourself with other positive, powerful, intelligent, and unabashedly strong women.

Go HERE for more details.

2. Complete Shoulder & Hip Blueprint – Vancouver

Dean Somerset and I will be in Vancouver, BC, Canada the weekend of April 1-2nd, 2017 putting on your flagship workshop.

It may be the only time we’re on the west coast of North America all year so whether you have to hop on a plane, drive a few hours, or take a hovercraft….get there.

Go HERE for more info and to take advantage of the EARLY BIRD rate.

3. Push, Pull, Legs Podcast

In case you missed it earlier this week I made a cameo appearance on the Push Pull Legs Podcast.

And now this week’s list of stuff to read…

How to Look Like You Lift – Kourtney Thomas

I really dug this article from Kourtney Thomas. One quote stood out:

“Building a muscular physique requires deliberate work.”

It ain’t just gonna happen.

The Best Way to Get Motivated for the Gym – T-Nation

I had the pleasure of being asked to contribute to this article that was featured on T-Nation earlier this week. Having a little trouble motivating yourself to get to the gym? Know someone who feels the same way? Slide this article on their desk or pin it to their door. They’ll get the message.

4 Warm-Up Mistakes You’re Probably Making – Tony Bonvechio

Don’t worry: this won’t be your typical slap on the wrist article reminding you to do your warm-ups. And it won’t cause you to toss your face into a brick wall from sheer boredom (you know, cause most articles on the topic are boring as shit).

Tony’s a legit coach. Listen to him.

Social Media Highlights

Twitter

Instagram

Categoriesbusiness fitness business Motivational personal training

Hierarchy of Fitness Industry Success

There’s a lack of resources out there informing new(ish) fitness pros what it takes to be successful in this industry. I thought I’d take some time to offer my two cents.

I’m not even going to swear, that’s how professional I want this post to be.

Copyright: yarruta / 123RF Stock Photo

 

I’d be remiss not to give credit to Alwyn Cosgrove who wrote one of the best fucking7 fat-loss articles I’ve ever read way back in 2007: The Hierarchy of Fat Loss. It’s an article I still refer to to this day and obviously served as inspiration for this one.

As with fat loss, when it comes to not sucking in this industry and being successful (whatever that may mean to you8), there’s a hierarchy of things that should be met and/or prioritized.

Just to be clear, having the cutest cat in existence isn’t one of them.

But it doesn’t hurt either.

Based on current trends you’d think all you need to become successful in the fitness industry is a YouTube channel, an endless collage of Yoga pants, or some kind of witty self-promotional title like, I don’t know, “Paleo Pirate” or “Han Swolo.”

[Not sure if those are already taken, but if not, you’re welcome]

I understand it’s popular and altogether easy to rag on “fitness celebrities.” I do it too and it’s often warranted. By the way, THIS article is one of the better ones in recent memory.

However:

  • I don’t have a million followers. You don’t have a million followers. Let be real: We both want a million followers. They must be doing something right.
  • Writing a snarky Facebook status or Tweet isn’t going to help anyone or solve the divide, so I decided to do something productive about it.

Hierarchy of Skillz

The roots of this post can go back several years, when we started our intern program at Cressey Sports Performance. Almost inevitably, when asked what they wanted us to cover, every new intern class wanted to go over more nuanced topics right away like assessment, PRI, or why my music playlist was way better than Eric’s

Yet, many couldn’t tell what muscles upwardly rotate the scapulae or coach a proper squat if their life depended on it. Or, on occasion, some weren’t socially comfortable enough to take the reigns on coaching someone in the first place: whether it was breaking down someone’s squat or demonstrating a proper deadbug.

It flies in the face of what many young coaches today are programmed to think, but, no, Instagramming your deadlift won’t get you into Men’s Health.

You’re going to have to build some career capital and experience the old fashioned way.

I’ll break down my hierarchy in more detail in a minute. Before that, however, I want to have a real, un-censored conversation. Here’s the umbrella theme I want you to consider the rest of the way:

I give you PJ Striet ladies and gentlemen:

“Work ethic. Cliched but true. Not many are willing to get out of bed at 4:30, get home at 8, and turn around and do it again and again, for YEARS. You work when other people don’t-early mornings, late nights, holidays.

And you have to combine that with the wherewithal to over deliver, all the time. I used to show interns a picture of a BMW or Mercedes and tell them “This is what your future clients could choose to spend their money on each month for what they will pay you. You better bring it, because this car is a helluva lot more attractive than doing lunges and rows.” This is where the people skills come in.

I’m not going to millennial bash, but most young trainers just ask me how to get in magazines, get book deals, etc. The thought of spending 17 years, much of which was spent doing one-on-one training over 14 hours a day, isn’t really appealing. God I sound like my late father.”

Categoriespodcast

Appearance on the Push, Pull, Legs Podcast

It’s always a great feeling to be in demand. I’ve been very fortunate to get to a point in my career where people will seek me out to listen to me talk. 11

Copyright: dr911 / 123RF Stock Photo

 

Just last night my wife and I sat down at our dinner table to hash out a trip to Europe this summer. I’ve had several places reach out and ask if we’d be interested in doing our Strong Body-Strong Mind workshop over there. You may be seeing the Gentilewis clan in Ireland, London, Denmark, and/or Warsaw. That’s pretty cool.12

Also, mine and Dean Somerset’s ongoing globe-trotting shoulders & hips bromance continues in Vancouver this coming April. Stay tuned for more dates in the future. I.e., here’s looking at you Orlando, FL.

More to the point is that I continuously get invited onto different podcasts each month. This is great as it allows me an opportunity to expand my brand, reach different audiences, and not wear pants.

Recently I was invited onto the Push, Pull, Legs Podcast.

Dan Meek and Tom Hall are two chaps I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in person (they’ve both attended workshops I’ve done in London) and are also two very accomplished coaches over in the UK.

You can check out Part I of my appearance HERE on iTunes or listen below:

Categoriescoaching Exercise Technique personal training Program Design

If You Want Bigger Arms: Squat

At the expense of sounding like an uber meathead, squats pretty much solve anything. You want to be stronger? Squat. You want more muscle? Squat. You want to lose fat? Squat. You want to beat Captain America in an arm-wrestling match? Squat.

Copyright: Kurhan / 123RF Stock Photo

 

About the only thing squats can’t do is help you grow hair, make you an omelet, and cure cancer13.

There’s a reason squats are a staple in most weight training routines, and today’s guest post by strength coach, George Kalantzis, breaks down the proper progressions most people should consider when starting for the first time.

Enjoy.

The Squatzzzz

“If you want bigger arms- squat. Squatting makes everything grow.”

Sergio Olivia, 3 time Mr. Olympia, on offering advice on how to get bigger.

Squatting has been around for centuries. It is one of the primary movements that Dan John says can impact your life, and also one of the best movements for mass strength and muscle development. Yet unfortunately squats are still one of the most neglected and butchered exercises in the gym.

But Why?

Squats are tough and working hard separates the strong from the weak. Squatting heavy stresses the entire body and it takes a lot of will power and strength to put something heavy on your back, drop down, and stand back up. Therefore most people neglect them altogether.

Then you have some people who claim squats are bad for your knees and stick to leg extensions and leg presses. While it is true that squats can place a lot of stress on the knees, it is typically the form and amount of volume that is the cause of knee pain.

In fact, from a exercise science point of view leg extensions can actually place more stress on the knees than squats because they are an open chained exercises. Open chained exercises like leg extensions cause the quadriceps to contract and pull on the knee ligaments and surrounding muscles without counteraction of the hamstrings. Squats actually recruit both the hamstrings and quadriceps.

Research (Escamilla, 98) supports that squats generate twice as much hamstring activity as leg presses and leg extensions. That same research suggests hamstring recruitment is advantageous to enhancing knee stability and functional capacity of the hips. Squatting does not sound that bad now does it?

Ok, I’m Ready Where Do I Start?

It is always important to start with an assessment to figure out where the you will stand in reference to squatting. Tony wrote an in depth post on that HERE.

Mobility Drills

After establishing a baseline, it is time to begin start preparing the body to squat. Starting with some light soft tissue work and warm-up drills will help prepare the body for full ranges of motion needed to squat and prime the nervous system.

Most people have a hard time reaching full depth in a squat and I have found that it is usually a lack of mobility in the areas of the hips and ankles often leads to compensations in the squat..

Core Engaged Deadbug

A deep squat requires proper pelvic position. If you arch your back to hard during a squat , your femur will have a hard time moving around in the hip socket. This is often the cause of the butt-wink.

A core engaged deadbug will help you learn how to keep the ribs down and control the pelvis which are needed for a good squat pattern.

 

Wall Hip Flexor Mobilization

This drill really teaches you how to keep your glutes tight, extend the hip and flex the knee at the same time to get a deep stretch in the quads. You should focus on getting the range of motion through your hips and not lower back.

 

Kneeling Glute Mobs

I love this mobilization drill because it really looses up the posterior chain and allows you to safely work on hip internal rotation without cranking on the knee.

 

Ankle Mobilizations Drill

An often-overlooked area of squatting tends to be the ankles. In order to squat to full depth the ankle needs around 4 inches of dorsiflexion. If the ankle is lacking the appropriate mobility, you may see yourself coming up n your toes, or not hitting appropriate depth.

 

Squat To Stand With Reach

By the time you have complete the other drills your body should be primed to squat. The squat to stand synchs the entire body and recruits all the muscles needed to perform a good squat. If you have a hard time getting into this position, you may no the ready to squat to full depth.

 

Assisted Squat

Assuming no pain or restrictions are present a great place to start is an assisted version of the squat. There are many ways you can do an assisted squat, but I like using a suspension trainer for assistance.

Holding a suspension trainer allows the trainee to work on static stability and groove a great pattern. Make sure the trainee maintains a neutral back position and uses as much assistance as needed in order to get to the bottom position.

 

Bodyweight Squat Versions

Once someone has mastered the assisted squat, it is time to move onto a bodyweight squat. Here you can really learn how to squat to full depth and drive up under control.

Sometimes people will have trouble with their heels coming up of the ground. If that is the case, you can create a little heel lift with plates or shoes to help the body recognize how to sit back onto the heels and reduce coming up off the floor.

Another common error for someone just learning to squat is a knee collapse. A great trick for that is to put a mini band around the knees. The bands feeds into the bad movement pattern by pulling their knees farther in and the body reacts by correcting the movement.

 

 

Goblet Squat

For most people, a goblet will be the basis of a squatting program. Legendary coach Dan John says that goblet squat is all a lot of people will need and there is a good reason behind that.

Grab a Kettlebell or dumbbell and hold it close to your chest. With your elbows pointing down, lower your body into a squat. Allow your elbows to be inside your knees and put pressure on the outside of your heels to help keep your knees out. Return to the starting position.

 

Many people are under the assumption that the Goblet Squat is just this plain ol’ vanilla squat variation that offer no variety. Au contraire! There are any number of ways to make it more challenging.

Goblet Squat Against Wall

Cannot seem to keep your back straight and knees from caving in? Try the goblet squat against the wall. Face a wall with your feet around 6-12 inches away from it and work to actively pull down into the squat.

Start further away and work closer to the wall, as you get more comfortable with the position.

 

Goblet Squat With Pause

Mastered the regular goblet squat? No problem, try a pause in the bottom of the squat. Pause reps will keep you honest, and really challenge your strength because you cannot rely on the momentum to pop back up from the bottom.

 

Goblet Squat With Heartbeat

This is one of my favorites to use with people, and it is one version that is not used that much. I first saw it from Mike Robertson when I was learning progressions for group training. It is great for people who have shoulder issues and really challenges the core.

 

Offset KB Squat

Holding a kettlebell on one side of the body will expose any asymmetries from side to side and really teach the body to own the position. Try to really focus on driving through the entire foot rather then shifting to the side of the kettlebell.

 

Double KB Front Squat

It only makes sense that once you have mastered the above it is time to load up. The double KB front squat is a great squat version because it really teaches you to sit down rather than back and down.

Essentially what you get is all abs and quads without demanding mobility requirements. It can be very humbling if you have never tried this before.

 

Front Squat

If you have become comfortable with the KB front squat and are ready for more of a challenge it is time to move on the barbell front squat.

Just like the KB, barbell front squats are all abs and quads. They are great because you have to really sit down into the squat rather than sit back or you’ll loose the bar. Due to the position of the bar your body must learn to stabilize the core instead of using back muscles to stand up. If you constantly get stuck hitting depth on a back squat this is a great exercise for you.

 

Back Squat

At this point, we have covered a lot of information on squatting. The back squat requires tremendous strength throughout the quads, hamstrings, glutes, hips, abs, and back. There is a reason why most people mess the exercise up or neglect it all together. If you have truly mastered the above exercises then it might be time to try a back squat out.

If you want to learn how to set-up, Tony wrote an awesome post HERE.

Conclusion

Squatting is a lot tougher then it seems. Consider hiring a coach for help on some of the barbell work, and if you are just starting out, goblet squat variations will surely get the job done. Try not to be a hero and start with something that is in between.

Quick things to consider before squatting:

  • If it hurts, you should hire a coach for an assessment and or see a qualified physical therapist.
  • Not everyone is made to squat to full depth or made to squat.
  • Squatting with a bar is not for everyone
  • When you first start out, you will not need that much weight, typically 45-55 % of your true max. Working on technique and conformability with the different squatting positions should be your first goal before trying more advanced versions.

References

1) Escamilla RF, Fleisig GS, Zheng N, Barrentine SW, Wilk KE, Andrews JR. Biomechanics of the knee during closed kinetic chain and open kinetic chain exercises. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1998 Apr;30(4):556-69.

About the Author

George began his time at Cressey Sports Performance as an intern in the fall of 2013, and returned in 2014 as CSP’s Group Fitness Coordinator, overseeing all Strength Camp coaching and programming responsibilities.

George is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and was awarded an honorary discharge after eight years of service. He possesses an MBA from Southern New Hampshire University and is currently attending massage school to become a licensed massage therapist.

Outside of CSP, George maintains a fitness-related blog that can be found at www.sgtkfitness.com.

He and his wife Shawna reside in Manchester, NH.