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Best Cardio Exercise
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Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: 7/17/20
THE WEEKLY BRIEF UPDATE
1. #Achillesgate2020 Update
I’m just past the seven-week mark in my rehab and I have to say…
…I’m crushing it.
I feel like if my Achilles had to fight Megatron it could give him a run for this money. I’ve been working with Dan Pope from Champion Physical Therapy & Performance in Waltham, MA and he’s been having me work on my gait the past few weeks attempting to put more weight into the forefoot of the affected side.
I’m still in the boot, but we did manage to take a wedge out last week.
And I think we’re gonna begin to experiment with some BFR (Blood Flow Restriction) shenanigans this week to help stave off any further atrophy of the calf muscle.
Onward!
2. Oh, hey, have you checked out my new CORE @ Home platform yet?
It’s designed so that I can deliver workouts you can perform at home – pants optional – using minimal equipment.
You have two options:
1. Subscribe for FREE and receive one workout per week.
2. Subscribe for $29.00 and receive three workouts per week (in addition to special bonus content).
My hope is that it helps take the thinking out of things and keeps people more accountable to workout more consistently despite not having access to their normal gym.
For more information go HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA SHENANIGANS
This is the most absurd, fantastic thing I have seen…
…ever. https://t.co/yQ53YuxHlX
— Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore1) July 12, 2020
STUFF TO READ WHILE YOU’RE AT HOME NOT WEARING PANTS
The New Hybrid Workout Plan – Bryan Krahn
COVID-19 has changed everything.
LOVED this perspective from Bryan on what the “new normal” will likely be for most people as they begin to contemplate heading back to their big box gyms.
Lies Your Pilates Teacher Told Ya – Trish DaCosta
I’ve always appreciates Trish’s perspective on things and how she’s able to keep a level head on often controversial topics. I also appreciate she actually lifts weights…;o)
The Exercise That Was Condemned By Everybody – TC Luoma
HA – raises hand.
CategoriesStrength Training
Deadlift Perfection: 4 Easy Cues
Check out my latest article over on T-Nation.com.
I went with a little change of pace compared to my normal content wheelhouse:
1o Reasons I Was Wrong All Along About Kipping Pull-Ups: They’re Awesome!Maybe Tracy Anderson Does Know What She’s Talking AboutCarnivore Diet vs. Keto vs. Godzilla
Deadlifts, of course!
Deadlift Perfection: 4 Easy Cues
In this one I discuss how to figure out your best stance for deadlifting success as well as some of my go to cues to help clean up deadlifting technique.
It even includes a 20-30 minute video of me taking Dani Shugart through the process.
Check it out HERE.
Stuff to Read While You’re Stuck at Home Not Wearing Pants: 7/10/20
THE WEEKLY BRIEF UPDATE
I got nuthin.
I mean, I had to cancel my teeth cleaning appointment today.
That’s exciting.
Oh, hey, have you checked out my new CORE @ Home platform yet?
It’s designed so that I can deliver workouts you can perform at home – pants optional – using minimal equipment.
You have two options:
1. Subscribe for FREE and receive one workout per week.
2. Subscribe for $29.00 and receive three workouts per week (in addition to special bonus content).
My hope is that it helps take the thinking out of things and keeps people more accountable to workout more consistently despite not having access to their normal gym.
For more information go HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA SHENANIGANS
What get results: Consistently being consistent.
What Doesn’t Get Results: Following an 8 to 12 to whatever week program and then when finished being like “huh, guess I’m done” and then wondering, weeks later, why you’re not getting results or they never seem to stick.
— Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore1) July 10, 2020
STUFF TO READ WHILE YOU’RE AT HOME NOT WEARING PANTS
Examine Personalized – Examine.com
This may seem surprising, but I hate reading research. It’s important of course, and I try my best to stay on top of current trends and to balance the teeter-totter between being evidence-based and respecting the power of anecdotal experience.
But yeah, I’m more likely to sit down and read Elvish poetry before reading a full-length research study.
This is why I am SO pumped to share with you Examine.com’s Personalized.
To be as succinct as possible: they scour the internet for pertinent research you’re interested in, they summarize it, it gets copy edited so that you don’t need a degree from Harvard to read it, and then it’s peer reviewed for accuracy.
They make it SUPER easy and it saves a TON of time.
Today is your last chance to take advantage of their initial LAUNCH pricing:
- Monthly: $9/mo
- Yearly: $75 (normally $90)
- Lifetime: $299 (normally $399)
Click HERE to get more information.
Complimentary Circuits: Effective Programming Made Simple – Kevin Mullins
As is the case always, Kevin provides a bevy of useful info in this article.
READ IT!
How to Overcome the 8 Biggest Diet Problems – Krista Scott-Dixon
Dieting or “locking in” sound nutritional habits always tends to be the elephant in the room for most people. For some it’s eating when bored, for others it’s a sweet tooth.
And for others it’s simply all just too confusing.
Krista helps to drown out the noise.
Categoriescoaching
The Trainable Menu Revisited
A few years ago on Mike Robertson’s Physical Preparation Podcast (<— you should check it out if you haven’t already) I listened in as Memphis Grizzlies’ Director of Performance, Chris Chase, went into detail on the concept of the Trainable Menu.
It was such a simple phrase, yet so eloquent of an idea that it:
- Blew my mind.
- Melted my face.
- Made me hate him because I didn’t think of it.
- All the above.
I’ve written several blog posts and adopted the concept as my own in the years since, even championing the hashtag #findyourtrainablemenu on Instagram.
It truly is a splendid way to re-frame training (and program design) into highlighting what people CAN do rather than what they can’t.
The Trainable Menu Revisited
One of my biggest pet peeves in the industry is when coaches or personal trainers treat program design as this one-size-fits all phenomenon; as if it’s an Old Navy knit scarf.
It drives me bonkers.
To take the mentality that a 60 year old “computer guy” with a history of low back pain (and who hasn’t touched a barbell since Dalton was practicing shirtless kung-fu and busting heads in the movie Road House) should have the same “menu” as a 21 year-old college basketball player is, well, dumb.
Don’t get me wrong.
Across the board – whether we’re talking about computer guys, basketball players, baseball players, someone training for fat loss, or Orcs – there are going to be more commonalities in everyone’s trainable menu than differences.
Meaning, most are going to be squatting, deadlifting, pushing stuff, pulling stuff, throwing stuff, carrying stuff, performing single leg work, doing an array of dedicated core work, and otherwise just getting after it.
However, where the difference show up are in the types or variations of those movement patterns being performed.
As an example, if I am working with a 6’7″ basketball player I’m probably not going to be too concerned with his or her’s ability to squat ass-to-grass.
I mean, it’s possible they’ll be able to do it (and do it well), just like it’s possible I’ll someday make-out with Jennifer Lopez.
But, it’s unlikely.
Rather, more often than not, if I’m working with a tall(er) individual, their trainable menu (which is an amalgamation and compromise between their health/injury history, training goals, ability level, and anthropometry) will consist of things like box squats, rack pulls, elevated Trap Bar deadlifts, pin squats, and the like.
Likewise, I can take the same train of thought with regards to any sport. For instance, I work with a fair number of endurance runners here in Boston; a handful of which train yearly for the Boston Marathon.
Do I have them deadlift?
Can Gandalf smell the color blue?1
Of course I do!
Strengthening a runner’s hamstrings and glutes and developing the ability to put more force INTO the pavement – in short: getting strong(er) – will undoubtedly help with getting to the finish line faster.
However, none of them are competitive powerlifters or Olympic lifters so I could care less whether or not they deadlift with a straight bar (or from the ground for that matter).
Every trainable menu should take into account an athlete’s sport, the demands it places on the body, what (s)he needs to do in order to succeed at that sport (from a movement standpoint), and then the cost-benefit of the exercises being prescribed.
To steal my own quote:
“A football strength & conditioning coach may look at a program that doesn’t include Olympic lifts and back squats as a joke.
Well, if we’re not talking about football players, what the fuck? That’s a completely different menu we’re talking about.”
A more germane angle to take would be what I am going through currently with my Achilles injury. For the past several weeks I have been highlighting some of my training sessions on my Instagram feed.
My goal in doing so is to prove to people that I’m still jacked AF despite an injury – even a significant one – you CAN still train.
I remember vividly as my wife and I were driving home after rupturing my Achilles I was sitting in the passenger seat actively building a mental rolodex of exercises I KNEW I was still going to be able to still pull off:
-
- All the bench pressing and pull-ups I wanted.
- Arms.
- Affected Leg: open chain band curls and leg extensions, hip clams, etc.
- Non-Affected Leg: Supported 1-Leg RDLs, 1-Leg Squats, etc.
Heck, even 1-week post surgery Hallway Lightsaber Battles were on the menu…
View this post on Instagram
The #hallwaylightsaberbattle continues… . …at a slight disadvantage. . No mercy given.
I didn’t attempt anything asinine, and in fact, took a full three days post-surgery to just chill and sleep like a champion. But I’d be lying if I didn’t reach a tipping point on Day #4 and was like…I…NEED…TO…DO…SOMETHING.
By Day #5 I was back in the gym doing a little of this and a little of that, and if felt gooooooood. Seated DB Bicep curls and 1-Leg Hip Thrusts never felt so empowering.
In my mind it was more about starting the healing process (without being an asshat about it) while also giving me a much needed mental boost.
I’m now six-weeks post surgery and fully weight bearing on my affected side (still in a boot, though). Just the other day I performed my first bilateral RDL @ 135 lbs.
Nothing crazy in terms of the weight on the bar, but I’m constantly tweaking and adjusting my Trainable Menu to match my current capabilities.
I have zero doubts this mindset is going to help expedite my recovery and rehab.
That’s the beauty of the Trainable Menu: It’s applicable whether you’re an athlete prepping for a competitive season or you’re someone trying to train through an injury.
It’s a powerful mindset.
Categoriespodcast
Appearance on the 3 Things Podcast
3 Things Podcast: Return of Gentilcore
It doesn’t have quite the same ring as “Return of the Jedi” but nevertheless it was AWESOME to make another cameo appearance on Casey Lee’s 3 Things Podcast.
This format is really fun and engaging and I appreciate Casey’s interview style.
We cover topics ranging from business and goal setting to COVID shenanigans and also get a little off-topic with some Star Wars geekery.
You can check out the episode HERE or listen directly below.
Stuff to Read While You’re Struck At Home Not Wearing Pants: 7/3/20
THE WEEKLY BRIEF UPDATE
1. Happy July 4th weekend!
Not that there’s anything fun to do.
- Look outside?
- Have a mask painting party?
- Throw an ax into your face?
But seriously, for those that celebrate it I hope you’re able to find some joy eating some burgers, setting off some fireworks, or, I don’t know, watching Flight of the Navigator (<– I don’t think 4th of July movies exists, but if there are this should be in the Top 3).2
2. I Started PT Today
For those interested (and following along with #achillesgate2020) I was cleared by my surgeon to start PT and I met up with my man-crush friend/colleague, Dan Pope, of Champion Performance & Physical Therapy located in Waltham, MA.
Dan’s been my “go to” guy for numerous years with several niggles I’ve had here and there – strained adductor, neck kinks, a broken heart, you know, stuff – and I could think of no one better to help me get back on track.
Day 1 was exciting – we worked on swaying side to side, a few step throughs, and me learning to put weight back on my Achilles (while in a boot).
Who knows, next week we’ll live life dangerously and I’ll walk without crutches (and be able to do long division).
I keed, I keed.
I was thrilled to test the waters today and I can’t wait to see what Dan has in store for me in the coming weeks.
3. Oh, hey, have you checked out my new CORE @ Home platform yet?
It’s designed so that I can deliver workouts you can perform at home – pants optional – using minimal equipment.
You have two options:
1. Subscribe for FREE and receive one workout per week.
2. Subscribe for $29.00 and receive three workouts per week (in addition to special bonus content).
My hope is that it helps take the thinking out of things and keeps people more accountable to workout more consistently despite not having access to their normal gym.
For more information go HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA SHENANIGANS
Gym Owners:
Stuff to do more of:
– Writing thank you notes to your clients.
– Leaving your bad day at home.
– Point out a client’s “wins” before pointing out what they did wrong on an exercise.Stuff to do less of:
– Buying 35 lb weight plates.
— Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore1) June 26, 2020
STUFF TO READ WHILE YOU’RE AT HOME NOT WEARING PANTS
Complete Trainers’ Toolbox – The Avengers
The Complete Trainers’ Toolbox is currently on SALE ($100 off the regular price) now through this Sunday. Myself as well as an all-star list of other fitness professionals delve into common topics that will make you a better trainer and help you to grow your fitness business.
- 17+ Hours of content
- Earn CEUs
- Payment plan available
Check it out HERE.
The World Has Changed and So Have the Rules For New Online Coaches – Andrew Coates
Just to be clear: COVID can eat a bag of dicks.
But complaining and whining isn’t going to pay the bills. COVID has flipped the health/fitness industry on it’s head and if you’re not adapting you’re not going to survive.
Switching (or adding) online coaching to your repertoire is a smart move. Andrew provides some much needed levity and insight in this fantastic article.
Choosing the Weight on the Bar: Percentage, RPE, and RiR – Tony Bonvechio
This may very well be my favorite article so far this year.
CategoriesProgram Design Rehab/Prehab
3 Unconventional Shoulder Health Exercises
I was going to run with the title “3 Unconventional Shoulder Health Exercises (That Aren’t Band External Rotations)” but I didn’t want to come across as a pompous a-hole.
😉
Alternatively, I was considering “3 Unconventional Shoulder Health Exercises (That Aren’t Band External Rotations) and STOP DOING KIPPING PULL-UPS FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.”
But again, kinda douchy.
To that end, I suck at intros.
3 Unconventional Shoulder Health Exercises
Just so we’re on the same page: I am NOT against external rotation drills (band, side lying, whatever else you can come up with here).
On the contrary I use them often when working with clients who exhibit shoulder discomfort or have a lengthy history of shoulder pain – specifically with the rotator cuff.
Many EMG studies have shown that when it comes to activation…
…Side Lying External Rotations are the Don Corleone of rotator cuff exercises.
They’re wonderful and are a home-run for most people, most of the time (when done correctly). They’re also, you know, about as exciting as watching another parent’s kid’s Clarinet recital.
No one gets excited to head to the gym to perform Side Lying External Rotations. You can make them more palatable, of course:
But even still…
…ZZZzzzzzz.
I’m a firm believer that training, especially rehab, should look (and feel) like training. So today I wanted to pass along a few drills I think you should add to your repertoire.
1. Seated Reach & Row
I got this one from strength coach (and person who makes me feel like an old curmudgeon), Conor Harris.
I’m starting to fall into the camp that addressing Serratus weakness is the answer to everything:
- Shoulder pain?
- Neck pain?
- Back pain?
- Lawnmower won’t start?
More Serratus work my friend!
Reaching (or protraction) is a bonafide way to target the Serratus anterior and improve shoulder health. Likewise, working on ribcage expansion is also part of the equation.
The ribcage is shaped in a convex manner.
The scapulae (shoulder blade) is concave, or rounded, in nature. The ability for the two to play nicely together is an often overlooked mechanism of what I like to call “my shoulder fucking hurts syndrome.”
A stiff ribcage can lead to one of two things:
- Lack of rotation.
- Inability to expand during inhalation.
- BONUS: Also less likely to win an arm-wrestling match vs. a Lumberjack. Trust me.
By combining a reach with an alternating row (and then adding a pause to INHALE in order to induce posterior expansion of the ribcage) we can sorta “unglue” it, which can have profound implications (in a good way) to shoulder health; namely, the scapulae have an increased ability to move.
I think we’ve been programmed to think that shoulder health begins and ends with rotator cuff. I’d make the case that the more germane approach – or attack point – is to address scapular function via the ribcage.
If the ribcage can’t move, neither can your shoulder blades.
2. Elbows Up Banded Press
Pigging back off my Serratus obsession above (<– totally not creepy),3here’s a splendid drill I stole from my friend (and person I hate because he’s way stronger than me), Dr. Jonathan Mike.
Too, what I dig about this exercise is that it very much has a meathead vibe to it.
OMG – the pump you feel after performing a set of these is insane.
After a killer upper-body session, instead of Band External Rotation drills, do this for 2-3 sets of 10-20 reps.
3. 1-Arm Band Upper Cut
This is a drill I’ll often pair with things like squats or deadlifts. Both entail “setting” the shoulder blades in place in a more downwardly rotated (or depressed) position.
This is ideal for lifting heavy things – and for keeping the joint “safe” – but as I alluded to above, not for overall shoulder health.
The scapulae are meant to move in a myriad of ways up, down, and around the ribcage.
The Banded Upper Cut not only targets the Serratus (reaching), but also the upper traps which aid with scapular UPWARD rotation.
The key is to make the movement one seamless movement by thinking about directing everything through the pinky finger. I like to tell clients to think about pointing their pinky out in front of them…
…then UP towards the ceiling.
This ensures the shoulder blades moves around (and up) the ribcage. It feels great.
Want more similar ideas (and then some)?
The Complete Trainers’ Toolbox
TODAY through this Sunday (7/5) The Complete Trainers’ Toolbox is on SALE at $100 off the regular price. Included here is my 60+ minute webinar on How to Improve Overhead Mobility, but you also get 16+ more hours of content from the likes of:
- Dean Somerset
- Dr. Lisa Lewis
- Dr. Sam Spinelli
- Meghan Callaway
- Dr. Sarah Duvall
- Alex Kraszewski
- Kellie Davis
- Luke Worthington
If you’re a fitness professional you’d be hard pressed to find another resource that covers such a wide variety of topics pertinent to the industry. Everything from program design and pelvic floor considerations to assessment and psychological skills is included.
And then some.
There’s even an option to split your payments into four monthly installments (and you earn CEUs). And we’ll become BFFs.
There’s really no downside here.
Go HERE for more information. And remember: you only have through this weekend to take advantage.
CategoriesExercise Technique Program Design
5 Ways to Upgrade Your Skater Squats
Today’s guest post by San Diego based personal trainer, Scott Hansen, is quite fortuitous.
- I’m in a bit of a writing funk and this, for better or worse (likely the latter), allowed me to lean into my procrastinating ways. Thanks Scott!…;o)
- I posted my own version of Skater Squats yesterday on IG HERE.
- Pretty badass, huh?
- Adding chains to any exercise make it more badass.4
Anyway, check out Scott’s tweaks below. I think you’ll dig em.
5 Ways to Upgrade Your Skater Squats
There’s more to building strong, powerful legs than just traditional barbell squats and deadlifts.
Note From TG (cue Southern Belle drawl): I do say kind sir, I have never heard such blasphemous shenanigans uttered in all my life. I feel a bit of faint coming on.
Someone.
Catch me.
CATCH ME!
While those movements certainly have their place, you know by now not to skimp on single leg work.
Single leg exercises are going to help you work out imbalances between sides, improve coordination, balance, stability, and athleticism, while helping to make you more resistant to injury.
Single leg work can be divided into two categories:
- Supported – As in a lunge or rear foot elevated split squat
- Unsupported – As in a single leg deadlift or skater squat
Both categories are sagittal plane dominant, meaning the body moves from front to back.
But when you do unsupported single leg exercises, the need to resist motion in the frontal and transverse plane increases significantly. You need to call in your adductors, glute medius, minimus, the intrinsic muscles of the foot, and your core musculature, to a larger degree.
The best single leg exercise is the skater squat.
Why?
Because just like with every other exercise in the world, progressive overload is the name of the game. Of all the unsupported single leg exercises, skater squats allow the greatest range of motion and the most loading potential.
Not quite a single leg squat and not quite a single leg deadlift, skater squats are the ultimate hybrid. They build lower body strength and add size to your quads and glutes, without beating up your back, hips, or knees.
The only problem with them is most people don’t want to do skater squats because:
- They take a little bit to get the hang of the technique, and
- They are really hard and humbling.
Here’s How to Master Them
1. Use a Counterbalance
Use 2.5 or 5 pound weights in your hands as a counterbalance, and squeeze a tennis ball between your hamstring and calf on the non working leg. This will help keep the back leg in a better, tighter, position and keep you from turning it into a reverse lunge.
2. The Rest
- Reach with your hands slightly across an imaginary line coming out of your middle toe of the working leg and towards the wall in front of you as you lower your back knee down to a pad without letting your back foot touch the ground.
- Then, use your hands like ski poles and drive them down as you push through your front foot to return to the starting position.
- Start by stacking a few airex pads for your back knee and lower them as you get stronger to increase the range of motion.
I mentioned before that they have the greatest overload potential. After you start knocking out 8+ skaters to the floor, you need to continue upping the ante to keep building muscle and strength.
Here Are 5 ways to Take Them to the Next Level
1. Torso Weighted
Use a vest or chains to increase the load.
2. Front Loaded
Using a sandbag or weight plate increases the core challenge and emphasis the quads more.
3. Angled
Full disclosure: I picked this up from performance coach Vernon Griffith. The angled loading places more stress on the muscles involved with stabilizing you in the frontal plane: your adductor and glute complexes, QL, and obliques.
4. From a Deficit
Elevate the working leg on a 45 pound plate or two to increase the range of motion.
5. Eccentric Emphasis
Use anywhere from a 3-8 second lowering phase to increase the time under tension.
Whichever variation you’re using, try these for 2-4 sets of 5-8 as either your main lower body exercise or after your heavier bilateral exercises to balance out the spinal loading.
About the Author
Scott Hansen is a Bostonian transplanted in Southern California, a strength/fitness/wrestling coach, educator, sub par surfer, and die hard New England sports fan.
He works with adult athletes, as well as an assistance wrestling coach and strength and conditioning coach for La Costa Canyon high school wrestling in Carlsbad, CA.
Website: www.hansen-performance.com
Instagram: Hansen_performance
Facebook: www.facebook.com/
