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Did You Miss Me?

I’m a taaaaaaad bit delinquent in updating my blog this past week. It wasn’t until over the weekend that I realized I hadn’t written anything since last Monday. Oopsie daises. What can I say? Between watching the season finale of Lost– (SPOILER ALERT: Kate is hot) and making plans to go to see the new Star Wars movie that just came out, I’ve had my hands filled. The new trailer looks sweet! Wait a second. That isn’t the Millenium Falcon! Starship Enterprise???? What the hell is this? Who’s that dude with the pointed ears? Spock? Hahahahahahaha. That’s just stupid. It doesn’t even make sense- humans flying in space? Only a complete moron would believe this crap. *Ma! Where’s my Princess Leia lunch box???*

In all seriousness, I have been diligently working on a few “projects,” that I hope I’ll put the finishing touches on by mid-week.

One is a new article I’m writing for t-nation, that will be a continuation of my Alphabet of Manliness series. I’m more of an “off topic” kind of guy, and would rather write a few thoughts on a variety of things rather than write ten pages on one topic. Unless, of course, said topic was on Eliza Dushku’s, um, personality. Yeah that’s right, her personality. I could write an entire novel on that.

Nevertheless, I should have it submitted by the end of the week, so keep your eyes peeled.

Also in the works is a new personal website that will serve as a “homebase” for all of my content. I’ve been meaning to revamp my website for a while now, and I’m really looking forward to the new changes that will follow. That said, I’m having a hard time coming up with a new slogan and I figured I’d ask for some help. Here’s what I’ve come up with so far:

TonyGentilcore.com: Strength and Performance Enhancement with a Twist of ____________

TonyGentilcore.com: Because I’m Pretty Sure Your Sister’s a Dirty Pirate Hooker

TonyGentilcore.com: A Restraining Order Never Stopped Me Before.

TonyGentilcore.com: I Swear This Never Happens To Me!?

Anyways, I am trying to come up with a catchy slogan, so feel free to chime in and offer some suggestions. It would be very much appreciated.

On an aside, Mike Robertson was gracious enough to invite me on as a guest on his In the Trenches Fitness Podcast last week. Mike does an awesome job, and I was humbled that he asked me to come on and talk some shop for a bit. Check it out.

CategoriesUncategorized

Morning Cup of Vomiting In My Mouth

When most people think of gaming systems, they think of kids spending countless hours playing games such as Guitar Hero, Resident Evil, Call of Duty, and I’ll Never Touch a Boob Halo for countless hours at a time. As for me, I just like to watch this video:

Coincidentally, this was the exact same reaction I had last Christmas when I received my remote control car starter. YES! YES! YES!

Not surprising, within the past two years or so, gaming systems such as the Nintendo Wii Fit have grown in popularity amongst adults as well- particularly mommies.

I’ll admit that I’m at a bit of a conundrum with this one. On one hand, I think it’s great that people can find things that get them excited about exercise and get them active to some degree. Likewise, it’s hard to bash something after reading stories (from the link above) of women who have lost upwards of 60 lbs in one year just by using the Nintendo Wii. At least they’re doing something– and if anything else, it’s bringing out their competitive nature and keeping them motivated. I can respect that.

On the other hand, I want to set my face on fire. It seems like every “success” story is counterbalanced by the typical article or post by some woman complaining about how she’s tried every diet and workout program known to man, and that she’s frustrated she’s not seeing quicker results after only losing 1/2 lb in one week.

Call me crazy, but maybe it’s the fact that YOU’RE PLAYING VIDEO GAMES!!11!1! What do you expect to happen? I mean, it’s not like you’re running the Boston Marathon- you’re fake hula-hooping. Furthemore, it would also help if you actually stuck with a diet/training program for more than two weeks at a time before you decided it didn’t work. Ahhhhh, this is the stuff that drives me bonkers.

When all is said and done, I don’t really care. Whatever floats their boat. I’m just surprised that Nintendo hasn’t caught on to the other games they could direct towards the moms- like Wii: Mom, Make Me Some Meat Loaf, Wii: Can I Have 20 Bucks?, and Wii: What Do You Mean I Can’t Borrow the Car Tonight? I Hate You!

KA-CHING!

CategoriesUncategorized

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Hand Switches w/ Push-Up

What Is It: Hand Switches w/ Push-Up

Who Did I Steal It From: I can’t remember, so I’m claiming this mofo.

What Does It Do: This is actually a pretty versatile movement since it could be used as either part of a general warm-up or as part of an actual training program. I like this particular exercise because I get a lot of “bang for my training buck,” with regards to:

1. Core Activation (from an anterior/posterior perspective). As I have said on numerous occasions, push-up variations are a fantastic way to learn to engage the “core” musculature. Here we’re trying to have as little movement in the lumbo-pelvic-hip area as possible. Likewise, once a trainee learns to engage these muscles, it’s almost inevitable that their numbers will go up on other lifts (squats, deadlifts, bench, DB isolation bicep curls; you know the important one’s that make chicks want to hang out with you).

2. Serratus Anterior Activation: In conjunction with the upper trapezius and lower trapezius, the serratus anterior plays a crucial role in scapular “upward” rotation. Of the typical 180 degrees of overhead reach in a healthy shoulder, the scapulae’s upward rotation is responsible for about 60 degrees of it. As you can surmise, many trainees lack this upward rotation (also called scapular downward rotation syndrome), due to weak/inhibited upward rotators- as well as tight/overactive downward rotators: levator scapulae, rhomboids, pec minor. As a result, impingement syndromes develop and you have an ouchie.

3. General Conditioning: do this for 30-45 seconds and tell me your heartrate doesn’t skyrocket.

Key Coaching Cues: As stated above, you want to try to stay as “stable” as possible, and limit excessive movement in the general hip area. Furthermore, as is the case anytime you perform a push-up, chin should stay tucked and the back should say in a nice “neutral” position. I’m not too concerned with speed on these, but certainly as one gets more proficient, he/she can pick up the pace a bit.

Preferentially, I like to do these for timed sets of 30-45 seconds. However, you could also shoot for a specific number per side- say 5 repetitions per.

Of note, Rehbands around the ankles are totally optional. Just sayin.

CategoriesUncategorized

5 Questions: Tony Gentilcore

Just wanted to share with everyone an interview I did for Leigh Peele’s site FLzine.com that was just put up today. I can only imagine the conundrum you’re in at this moment. I mean, you’re sitting there at work trying to keep yourself occupied from doing whatever it is you’re paid to do, and you have any number of things you can be reading.

On one hand, you could continue perusing your celebrity gossip sites and read all about how Hands of Death Madonna wants to save the world and adopt every orphan known to man.

OR

You could click on this link and read all about my favorite hip mobility drills, rate of force production as it relates to improving one’s vertical jump, and what the last cd I bought was. You know, the important stuff. Call me crazy, but I’m pretty sure if Fox News ranked interviews by how much they influence people’s lives it would look something like this:

1. 5 Questions: Tony Gentilcore

2. 5 Questions: Optimus Prime

3. 5 Questions: He-Man

4. 5 Questions: Jessica Simpson

5. 5 Questions: Rowdy Roddy Piper

10,745. 5 Questions: Ghandi

CategoriesUncategorized

Miscellaneous Miscellany Monday (Cupcakes, Food Allergies, and a Movie Review)

1. Now that the weather is warmer, I’ve been making a point to go for some morning strolls before breakfast just to get the blood flowing, and to kick-start the day on the right note. Did I just come across as if I were a 70 year old man just then? Rest assured ladies, I’m quite not. *pours a glass of prune juice and turns on tv to watch Matlock re-runs*

Nevertheless, I’ve noticed an alarming trend on my walks- people jogging while talking on their cell phones. It’s bad enough that they’re jogging in the first place (yep I just said it), but come on, a cell phone!?! Really? Do these people honestly think they’re getting any benefit at all? I burn more calories opening a can of tuna. I’m surprised I haven’t seen someone jogging past me watching their portable dvd player yet. Just wait, it will happen.

2. Last weekI wrote a little rant on The Swine Flu. For those who are still in panic mode about whether or not you may be infected, I encourage you to check out this very informative website: doihavepigflu.com. Who needs the CDC anyways?

3. Are hidden food allergies making you fat? This is a question that Dr. Jonny Bowden brought up in a recent blog post of his. Admittedly, this is a topic that I need to read up on more, because it makes perfect sense. We all know of someone who has tried every diet imaginable, only to be disappointed by the end result. As Bowden discusses above, many people who are unable to achieve their weight loss goals through conventional caloric restriction, may in fact, have a food allergy they’re unaware of:

Food sensitivities often provoke delayed and chronic symptoms, like IBS, migraine and arthritis that are not as obvious as the dramatic and immediate onset of “true” food allergies, such as peanut anaphylaxis, but, over the long term, can be just as devastating and are more difficult to detect.

Furthermore, Bowden discusses a recent study where participants took an ALCAT test (a test that identifies foods that cause an immune response), and the results were pretty impressive to say the least.

By just eliminating the foods to which they were sensitive, the study participants dropped an average of 37 pounds in 12 weeks- a very impressive amount. They also dropped an average of 6 points on their BMI (body mass index) and a reduced their body fat by a stunning 30%.

Pretty cool stuff.

4. I went to the movies yesterday and saw State of Play. Normally whenever I watch a movie that includes Ben Affleck all I end up doing is drop kicking the movie screen. But I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by this one. As far as political thrillers are concerned, I’d put this up there as one of the best in recent years. And I’m just going throw it out there- Rachel McAdams is kinda hot.

And her boyfriend, whoever he is, is kind of a douche.

5. I’m not a huge fan of guys adding in an extra day of dedicated shoulder training. I think the bulk your shoulder development will come from the mere fact that you’re benching and rowing on a consistent basis. That’s not to say that I don’t like to include some overhead pressing into the mix, but as a general rule of thumb, I don’t think the vast majority of trainees need to go out of their way to include more lateral raises into their programming. That’s just an overuse injury waiting to happen. If you want to add in some extra shoulder work, do more external rotations.

6. My friend Jen Sinkler sent me this link (The Cupcake Flowchart) the other day and I thought it was hilarious, yet felt it hit the nail on the head in regards to how people tend to approach food. Time and time again I try to instill in my clients that you really are what they eat. As rudimentary as it may sound, I think if more people asked themselves whether or not “name scrumptious food item here” will get them one step closer to their physique goal, or two steps back, they would probably make better progress. Mmmmm, cupcakes.

7. The Boston Herald ran a really great article on CP client, and Weston senior pitcher Sahil Bloom yesterday. Check it out here.

8. My back is killing me today. Can anyone come over here and make me an egg sandwich?

CategoriesUncategorized

We’re All Going to Die. Thanks Babe

Just wanted to share a really good article that Mike Boyle linked to on his blog the other day written by Dr. Mercola concerning the recent hoopla surrounding the Swine Flu.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Lets be honest, Dr. Mercola is technically bat shit crazy at times, and I don’t necessarily agree with a lot of things he often writes about. But I do have to admit that he’s great at filtering out the retarded and putting things into perspective. Which is to say, IT’S THE FREAKIN FLU people. While I do feel horrible that people have died, it’s not like this is Swine Cancer, Swine Ebola, or worse yet- Swine Paris Hilton.

It’s the flu. Every year roughly 36,000 people die from influenza, so it’s not like this is anything new. Besides, I’m willing to bet more people have vomited this morning watching The View than from the Swine Flu. True story. How come CNN doesn’t report that? Do I have to do all the work around here?

Nonetheless, check out the article. There are some parts that are a bit looney (mainly one of the theories that Swine Flu was industrially engineered by our government to boost pharmaceutical sales), but I do feel that it brings up many valid points that everyone should take the time to read. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts below.

CategoriesUncategorized

A Little Piece Inside of Me Died Today

I did leg curls for the first time in like two years today*. I blame Eric Cressey for giving me the day off, and thus, forcing me to train at a commercial gym. That is all.

UPDATE: I can’t figure out which is manlier- me doing leg curls or Jillian Michaels’ kankles. Discuss.

*And by “two years,” what I really mean is “one year.” Now excuse me while I go hand in my man ca
CategoriesUncategorized

I Watched a Movie on Friday Night That Didn’t Include Kate Beckinsale.

At the expense of sounding like a broken record (and keeping up with my current man-crush on Michael Pollan), I wanted to share with everyone a really good documentary I watched last week titled King Corn.*

For those who have been out of the loop, or possibly reading my blog for the first time today (Welcome!), I recently finished reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma (written by said man-crush mentioned above), and it’s really opened my eyes to just how atrocious our food industry is. Americans want cheap food, and that’s exactly what we’re getting.

Corn is in everything. To be honest, it’s rather disconcerting just how many things have corn (or it’s derivatives) included in their ingredients. Walk down the aisle of your local grocery store, and I can guarantee that 90% of the food you pick up has “corn” in it.

If you don’t believe me, the next time you’re in the store grab a random product. I’m willing to bet you’ll find several of the following listed:

  • High fructose corn syrup
  • corn flour
  • corn starch
  • buttcrack
  • corn gluten
  • dextrin/maltodextrin,
  • xanthan gum

And the list could go on and on. Compound all of this with the fact that the bulk of our beef is “tainted” due to the geniuses who decided it would be a great idea to feed cattle a predominantly corn-based diet (to fatten them up more quickly), and it’s no wonder we’ve seen the quality of our meats go down the tubes. Watch the documentary and you’ll realize just how FUBAR it is that we’re feeding cattle something they weren’t meant to eat in the first place.

Nevertheless, I’m a “realist,” and I don’t mean to come across as if corn is the anti-christ. I realize that King Corn had an agenda and only stated one side of the story; albeit it was a very convincing one. When all is said and done, I tend to always take the middle road and can filter out info from both sides of the spectrum. I mean, I’m sure there’s someone out there who claims that corn will cure irritable bowel syndrome or something. However, it is rather amazing just how oblivious we are when it comes to what we put down our pie-holes on a daily basis without even a second thought as to what the health ramifications could be down the road. I mean, it’s one thing to eat corn on the cob or even corn bread on occasion. Yet, something completely different when we guzzle down two liters of soda a daily basis and can find “corn” in relish!

*Thanks to Colleen for the recommendation.
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Miscellaneous Miscellany Monday (A Certain Someone Gets Engaged: Hint: Not me, Catch Phrases, and De-Load Weeks)

1. What an awesome weekend. FINALLY we had consecutive days of really nice weather in Boston, and you can bet that I took full advantage of that fact. Normally my weekends are spent singing hymns to old people and watching Hugh Grant movies. However, this weekend I had all sorts of fun “activities” planned.

  • Friday night a group of us got together to celebrate Eric Cressey’s engagement to his girlfriend of two years, Anna. I could be that guy and insert the obligatory “ball and chain” joke here, but I won’t do it. Instead, all I’ll say is that I couldn’t be happier for the two of them and that they better have lots of open space at their wedding reception, cause I’m totally busting out my robot on the dance floor. As well, I will also be challenging random people to Michael Jackson dance-offs if or when “Billie Jean” is played. Hint: it will be played. Oh yes, it will be played.
  • Saturday, a good friend of mine had an extra ticket to the Sox-Yankee game at Fenway. Besides that one time I built a volcano with my bare hands, It was pretty much the manliest afternoon, ever. I mean, when you combine baseball, beef jerky, and a 300 lb drunk Yankee fan sitting next to me getting berated by the Fenway crowd; it just doesn’t get much better than that.

2. A huge congratulations goes out to CP client Danny O’Connor who completely dominated his opponent’s face Saturday night at MGM Foxwoods to remain unbeaten in his professional boxing career (6-0, 2 KO’s). Danny’s a great kid who works his tail off, so stay tuned for big things to come.

3. It never ceases to amaze me the camaraderie that develops amongst the athletes who train at CP; not to mention their dedication. A great example would be Weston senior pitcher Sahil Bloom. Last week, he showed up to train a mere twenty minutes after having just thrown a complete game one-hitter. Not long afterwards, two players from the opposing team, Wayland seniors Alex Hill and Grant Nishioka, showed up to train as well. All three spent time joking and talking about the game and then trained together, offering each other spots and encouragement. Coincidentally, all three will be playing college ball in the Fall. Weird how that works.

4. I was in Trader Joe’s yesterday, and as I was leaving the checkout line, the clerk muttered, “stay focused.” Which got me thinking that I need a catch phrase too. I spent the better half of yesterday afternoon trying to come up with a few, and here’s what I’ve got thus far.

  • Wiggidy wiggidy check yoself, before you wreck yoself.
  • Have a nice day.

Or my favorite:

  • THIS. IS. SPARTA!!!!

5. One of the best pieces of advice I can give trainees is to know when to listen to their body and back off a bit. Using myself as an example, this past week was an absolutely atrocious week of training. Five weeks ago, I was able to perform 5×5 at 515 lbs on the trap bar deadlift. Last week, I struggled with 465 for three; and tweaked my back in the process.

Admitedly I’ve been amping up my training volume the past few weeks due to the nice weather, which just goes to show that fatigue will always mask fitness. This is a crucial point to remember, since the vast majority of trainees fail to recognize how controlling training stress will undoubtedly affect their overall progress. You aren’t going to set PR’s every week. As such, this is why we tend to include structured “de-load” weeks when designing programs for clients (typically every 4th or 5th week).

So, of course, the obvious thing for me to do is to tack on an un-scheduled training day (like I did yesterday) and wonder why my numbers are going down. I’m such an idiot.

6. I finished The Omnivore’s Dilemma last week, and I can’t say enough how much I enjoyed reading it. Regardless of whether or not you’re in the fitness/nutrition industry this book is applicable to everyone, because you know, we all eat food. If you think you have a good sense of where your food is coming from, you really need to give this book a read.

I’m still pissed that I had to pass on the opportunity to go listen to the author, Michael Pollan, speak at Tufts University a few weeks ago. In any case, I’m going to dive into his most recent book, In Defense of Food this week. I’ll let you know what I think.

CategoriesExercises You Should Be Doing

Exercises You Should Be Doing: The Rainbow Deadlift

Short and sweet today. Here’s one of my new favorite exercises. Not the most manly sounding exercise, I know. Unfortunately Kitten Tears Deadlift and Puppy Dog Kisses Deadlift were already taken.

What Is It: The Rainbow Deadlift

Who Did I Steal It From: Nick Tumminello (who coincidentally just released a really great dvd two weeks ago which I will be reviewing here in the near future). Trust me, you’ll love it.

What Does It Do: It kicks your ass, that’s what it does!

Key Coaching Cues: For those who don’t have access to a landmine (as shown in the video), you can certainly just set up a standard barbell in the corner somewhere. Or better yet, just set up shop in a powerrack or squat rack. Any reason to kick the douchehole’s doing their arm curls out of the way is cool with me.

  • As always, keep that chin tucked while maintaining a “tall” chest.
  • Shoulder blades should be retracted, and you should keep proper spinal alignment throughout (ie: no rounding).
  • You can do this exercise one of two ways. 1). For time, which if that’s the case, sets of 30 seconds will be more than enough. Or 2). my preferred method, sets/reps. I like to shoot for 3-4 sets of 5-6 reps per side.