Categoriescoaching psychology

What People Need In a Time of Crisis: Leadership

Before you go a head and post your 47th bodyweight exercise of the week on IG or send out another free e-book to your followers, give today’s guest post by Jonny Pietrunti and Erica Suter a read.

NO!

Listen to me.

Read it.

Copyright: flynt / 123RF Stock Photo

What People Need in a Time of Crisis: Leadership

If you are a coach, you need to be leading right now. No one cares about how many fitness stories you are posting on Instagram. And I’m not talking about me not caring…your clients largely don’t need this either.

What people really need now is LEADERSHIP.

I’ve been telling you for years you needed to hone your leadership and you thought learning 7,428 different Dead Bug variations and counting reps was more important than learning motivation theory and actually communicating with human beings outside of sales calls.

You mad? Good. I have your attention.

Also: we have a pandemic.

For better or for worse, I’m still in the wellness industry. Though I’ve largely discontinued diet and exercise programming, I still own a massage therapy and bodywork studio, and I still do a fair amount of mindset coaching.

I’m also a Navy Chief Petty Officer, and that’s something that never leaves you. I was trained to lead through change and crisis, embrace adversity, and run toward fires when others were running away. I was trained to be responsible for my actions and those of the Sailors that were in my charge.

The thing is: even if you train for the worst case scenario, you never really know how you will react when it happens, and even if you have a plan for it, no plan ever survives first contact. That’s the reality of it.

When Coronavirus started to make the rounds – and later kick in the door to crash every party around the globe – I began to notice workouts in my social media feeds. This started off innocently at first, with many gyms and trainers powering through, as we really weren’t sure about the severity of this virus.

But this phenomena grew to the point where everywhere I turned, I was seeing this crap in my feed.

Everywhere. From, EVERYONE.

  • Home workout stories.
  • Garage workout Facebook Live.
  • Push your car workouts.
  • Push up “challenges” and “nomination” chain-letters.

And it continues unabated.

I would make a crude virus analogy, but now is not the time or place for that level of nihilistic snark.

This is all very Kubler-Ross.

Between my leadership and psych backgrounds, it seems like a preponderance of people in the fitness industry are stuck in the middle of the Bargaining Stage of grief. The reaching out, the rationalization, the “if only”.

Much of this is a manifestation of fear.

People aren’t crowding onto Instagram to pump out an array of home workouts solely because they think it will be useful.

Granted, I know plenty of trainers that have clients that legitimately need some workouts, but a lot of people are simply panicking because their way of life is completely uprooted. It’s a coping mechanism.

It’s nothing to be ashamed of, but it is something to be AWARE of.

People are terrified and are operating out of fear. You and I are susceptible to this, too. I’m not knocking this or even saying that these feelings of fear are things you should repress or deny. Those of you that are familiar with me or are in my Facebook group know that I hate “toxic positivity”.

The world is not all sunshine, rainbows or unicorns, and if there is at all a reason that your mindset sucks, it’s because gurus are trying to tell you to ignore all of the bad things that are happening…and you are listening.

The majority of people don’t need home workouts right now.

Think about this: there are millions of resources for workouts, for both in gym and at-home settings. There are millions of simple books that anyone could buy if they really wanted to get a decent calisthenics workout.

I was in the military for over a decade, what do you think we did on the grinder? What do you think we reverted to while deployed to austere locations?

I’m not saying this to gloat, but to prove a simple point: people aren’t coming to you as a coach for simple information like bodyweight workouts. Rather, they are coming to you for leadership and the transformation that you provide.

They are coming to you for COACHING, Coach.

Your primary job is to lead. If you are in a panic mode and are unable to step back and provide sound leadership and guidance to your clients, whether through text, skype, zoom, or email, then you have essentially had a major gap in your skillset revealed to you.

I’m not immune to this, either.

This was a time of reckoning for me. My massage studio for athletes is closed until god-knows-when, and when I took stock of my mindset coaching options, I realized that I have middle and high-ticket coaching options for people, but I DON’T have entry-level offerings for mindset and goal setting.

Not even a lousy eBook!

If you are in the business of coaching, training, programming…you are also in the business of leading. Period.

You cannot have one without the other.

If you are training without leadership, you are an overpaid, glorified rep counter.

If you are coaching without leadership, well, that’s actually not possible while simultaneously being effective.

Social media, specifically in the fitness and wellness industries, breeds the exact behavior that ISN’T needed right now.

FitPros, by and large, exhibit a ridiculous amount of attention seeking behavior. This is great for marketing – I mean, you need to have a certain amount of flash and “it” factor in order to stand out from the sea of carbon copies and make a living.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the process of content creation as a marketing tool.

But…

The problem is that this isn’t the time for “Look at Me! Look at Me! Look at Me!”

Now isn’t the time to bask in the limelight of being an “influencer.”

People aren’t going to feel safe and at ease by watching you do a workout.

People don’t need to be giving you attention.

You Need to be Giving THEM Attention

You need to be LISTENING. What are your clients saying? What do they really need? Are you hearing this? It is very easy for us to get caught up in the cacophonies in our own minds during times like these and completely disregard what others are saying.

Pay attention.

Listen.

You need to be EMPATHIZING.

Some people are getting hit with this harder than others. Some have lost jobs. Others have lost loved ones. Do you understand this? Or are you just waiting for the smoke to clear so you can get them back on their normal billing cycle?

You need to be setting an EXAMPLE.

Show people that you are concerned, and that you are taking it seriously. For my part, I have been very candid about the fact that I have certain anxiety about this, and I have been using this as a way to educate followers on the importance of mindset training so that fear does not paralyze you, but rather drives you to positive action.

You need to be LEADING.

Pure and simple.

Some people don’t realize that when they sign on to be a trainer, they are also signing on to be a leader. Hell, leadership was something I didn’t want initially, it just came with the territory of being in the military. But I rose to the occasion. It wasn’t about me. It was about people that depended on me.

It’s time for all of us to rise right now. We don’t have a choice. It’s game time and the stakes are simply too high.

Let’s Get This ‘Free’ Thing Out Of The Way

Hi all, Erica here now.

^^ Erica ^^

Thank you, Jonny for opening this piece.

Of course, there were so many mic drops above, that he could’ve just exited stage right, and I could’ve gone home with my take-out pizza and called it a day.

But yo.

He fired me up and I’m ready to light this fire further.

In fact, let it burn.

So.

First and foremost…

Just like New York, it’s bad here in Baltimore, MD.

People are breaking into people’s cars. Ambulance sirens are going off every minute. Helicopters are hovering over my house. Crime rates are rising. Crab cakes are running low.

It’s scary times, no doubt.

The last thing I want to discuss are personal finance and spending more money in the midst of a global crisis.

Oh! And how “free services” are real freaking stupid.

However, I feel it’s necessary to unpack what people need during this time.

To kick things off, in the past week, I’ve seen more fitness influencers offer free workouts and programs than ever before. People who have been quiet in the online space are now suspiciously bubbling to the surface, and screaming, ‘get my FREE bodyweight workout at-home eBook!’

Look. I get it. People are scared out of their minds, offering free stuff with the hopes of retaining (or getting new clients) when this all blows over.

Or, on the other end of the spectrum, they’re financially privileged and are already in a good position to blast out free stuff. It doesn’t harm them to send out free coaching to the masses, as they sit comfortably in their abode, with a glass of wine, their spouse, a wearable blanket, Netflix, and a fully stocked refrigerator.

It is what it is.

Whatever the reason – fear or privilege – the fitness industry continues to be infused with people who don’t view themselves as valuable professionals with something high level to offer.

If you’re scared and offering free services, you’re devaluing yourself.

If you’re privileged and offering free services, you’re also devaluing yourself.

OH, And PRIVILEGED WITH NO CONCERN TO PAY BILLS AND FEED YOUR KIDS.

It’s frustrating, to say the least.

Let’s go over this first: I don’t want to be inconsiderate of the handful of people this might be helping now. Your free stuff is benefiting some…maybe.

Chances are, though, if these people are struggling to make ends meet, pay rent, and pay credit card bills, as they homeschool their kids, and argue with their spouse about taking the trash out, the last thing they want to do is your 100 burpee, 100 air squat, 100 push-up free workout.

Instead of taking into account people’s emotional needs, they’re blasting out general, cookie cutter templates.

Moving on…

We’ve All Been Giving Free Stuff for Years, Anyway

This isn’t a novel concept.

At least, I’d hope.

Whether this has been through blogs, podcasts, email newsletters, Tweets or Instagram posts, or continuing education “office hours” we’ve been overdelivering the free content.

And then guess what? If your audience enjoys it, respects you, and wants more access to you as a professional, you tell them about your coaching services.

Not just any coaching, but quality, intensive, detailed coaching.

It’s hard to give this out for free, especially if people want to make it tremendously transformational and life changing.

With that said, I urge fitness professionals to sell away during this time.

For one, selling doesn’t have to be this greasy thing.

Two, selling during times of crisis isn’t out of integrity.

Three, there will always be people appreciative of your expertise and willing to invest in you and themselves.

For the past eight years, I’ve given out so much free content with a smile on my face.

And I’m going to say this right off the bat: I’m incredibly happy that this free content has been life changing for some, especially my most motivating and empowering articles HERE HERE and HERE. And not to mention, creating this content has truly been passion, in-my-flow work that doesn’t take the brain power it takes to solve backwards calculus equations.

To that end, customized programming to the athlete takes an immense amount of brain power. And for me, I’m so incredibly picky with how I coach and write workouts, and want to bring the juice, if not, overdeliver it. It takes energy, man. And admittedly, I lose sleep over it at night.

Too, the people who have seen the most sustainable change, the consistent habits, the daily routines, and the best results, have been my paying coaching clients. For years.

Let me backtrack before the “money is the root of all evil” crowd comes at me.

Last week, I offered a free email campaign to my email list. I sent out two at-home exercises a day from the kindness of my heart. I ran this campaign for 10 days, and initially, I was only going to do it for 5 days.

Not only did it take me 30 minutes to draft these emails in the midst of my most chaotic work schedule of 12+ hour days, it left me with a jarring outcome.

The open rate of my free workouts was immense. A boasting 600 opens.

On the other hand, the click rate on my exercises was disappointing. A meager 15 clicks.

OUT OF 600 OPENS.

That’s Pathetic, to Say the Least

Especially for a woman who truly wanted to provide and service people with some free stuff during a crisis.

The click rate on the free exercises started strong (I guess) with an average of 50 clicks, then 30, then 25, then 20, then 15…

Now this isn’t to discount the folks who actually did my workouts. Shout out to you! You rock. I appreciate you and I’m so proud of you for doing them.

But this begs the question to everyone else, what do the majority of you need during this time to stick to something meaningful? It sure isn’t a library of free workouts.

No.

Right now, humans need leadership and accountability – two things that empower you to stick with something for the long haul, and be inspired to take action on consistently. As Jonny mentioned, you need to feel safe and connected to another human in times of isolation.

And it shows in my private coaching groups. With my in-person and remote athletes, they are committing to a program as a community, with weekly check-ins, training sessions, added resources, personalized teaching videos, mental journaling habits, and accountability from group exercise video uploads.

People thrive on engagement within a community. The lazy, once-a-month check-in, or quick email blast, or free circuit on Facebook LIVE are not going to suffice.

People are in turmoil more than ever before, so high level coaching – from accountability, to motivation, to community, to meticulous programming, to technique teaching, to direction, to done-for-you-outsourced-work, to connection, are all needed.

Good old-fashioned leadership.

Transformational leadership to be exact.

I’m sure some of you are exclaiming now, ‘well no one needs more people selling right now!’

Listen, Bunky, selling is a service.

It’s a service to tell people what gems you will bring into their lives.

It’s a service to tell people how you’re going to help them maintain a routine.

It’s a service to tell people how you’re going to track and measure progress.

It’s a service to tell people how you’re going to weave them into an empowering community.

It’s a service to tell people how amazing you are to hang out with.

Selling. Is. A. Service.

Also, here’s your stimulus package for your crashing economy: PAY YOUR SERVICE PROVIDERS.

And surprise! Training is a service. Coaching is a service. Mentorship is a service. Programming is a service.

Pay.

These.

Professionals.

To take the conversation away from the fitness industry, would you not pay your hair stylist now?

Your accountant?

Your maid?

Your babysitter?

Your gas station?

Your Uber eats delivery man?

I digress…

Why do trainers work for free? It’s unprofessional.

And why do people expect we work for free? It’s disrespectful.

And why does the fitness industry laud that we work for free? It’s degrading.

Now more than ever, I’ve had to adapt so hard to be able to deliver for my athletes. Even in the online space, prices stayed the same, too.

Why would I drop them? Why would I offer for free?

It’s not like I became a bad coach overnight as soon as the apocalypse happened.

It’s not like I lost my Master’s Degree as soon as I went into quarantine.

It’s not like my strength coach certification disappeared as the toilet paper supply ran out.

I’m still the same coach, offering the same service, if not more quality than ever before. Virtual coaching has its way of pushing my creativity, channelling my infectious aurora through, as well as forcing me to sharper and more articulate with verbal cues.

Mind you, it’s a tremendous amount of work to deliver the passion through a glowing screen and ensure your clients feel your energy x one billion.

So it’s business as usual.

And then some…

I’m adding more value, more service, more energy than in person training – from extra Zoom calls, to articles, to private YouTube videos for my paying clients, to guest trainers, to customized training phone apps based on equipment access at home, to technique coaching Google Drive folders, to community with group messages, to mental coaching with accomplishment journals.

Truthfully, I’m happy to do so.

Yes, I go hard as an in-person coach, but I’m going even harder as a virtual coach, doing more than what is expected of me…multiplied times 100. Again, people need connection now, and better yet, personalized coaching videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhlLfbhS6Xo

 

So I’m pointing at you, trainers, who are offering a free service. I ponder if you are working this much overtime?

I wonder if you are paying for advanced systems?

I wonder if you are writing painstaking, personalized programs?

I wonder if you are working 12+ hour days to go above and beyond for your clients?

I wonder…

Coming back to Jonny’s point, ‘if you are coaching without leadership, well, that’s actually not possible while simultaneously being effective.’

Be a leader.

People need you during this time, Coach.

Sure, some people you train may go through the motions and get by with free workouts thrown together on the web. And some people you train may be going through lay-offs and income cuts. Fine. This article isn’t for them.

This is for people who need connection, accountability, and leadership, and who can afford it, which is most of your clients right now.

In times of chaos, it’s a disservice to yourself and others if you play small and scared.

Play big.

Value yourself.

Rise above the noise.

But more critically, be a leader. 

About the Authors

Jonny Pietrunti is a former Navy Chief Petty Officer and the owner of Brooklyn Body Mechanic in Brooklyn, New York. He specializes in massage and bodywork for athletes as well as mindset coaching. He holds a BA in Applied Sport Psychology, is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), and has numerous other letters after his name that no one cares about. In his spare time you can catch him rescuing pitbulls and playing video games.

Erica Suter is a certified strength and conditioning coach in Baltimore, Maryland as well as online for thousands of youth soccer players. She works with kids starting at the elementary level and going all the way up to the college level. She believes in long-term athletic development and the gradual progression of physical training for safe and effective results. She helps youth master the basics of balance, coordination, and stability, then ensures they blossom into powerful, fast and strong athletes when they’re older.

Follow Erica on Twitter and Instagram

Categoriescoaching

“Lost” vs. Pressing the Pause Button

Before I dive into the meat-n-potatoes of today’s post a few #COVID19sucksdonkeyballs “quarantine” thoughts:

  • Caffeine is glorious.
  • Disney+ is saving my wife’s and I world right now with a toddler at home all day.
  • I don’t have enough eye rolls to give to those people complaining about getting fat during this time.
  • Wouldn’t it be amazing if the cure was banning kipping pull-ups for good?
  • LOL.
  • That would be spectacular.
  • But for real: Disney+ = fist bump x infinity.
Copyright: photographyfirm / 123RF Stock Photo

“Lost” vs. Pressing the Pause Button

I’ve been seeing the same therapist since 2011.

We’ve worked on everything from me finally addressing the fact my biological father left me when I was three to my incessant negative self-talk to, I don’t know, Michael Bay deciding to make more than one Transformers movie.

She’s helped me through some shit, to put it mildly.

When we first started working together we met upwards of 1x per week for about a year (OMG was that hard). That was eventually “downgraded” to every other week for a number of years. And now we’re in a nice routine of meeting once per month as a sort of “check-in” on life and other shenanigans.

Truthfully I’ve felt great for awhile now and have questioned whether or not I should even bother continuing on. As tepid as I may be at times, I still consider my therapy session(s) a stand-alone, non-negotiable appointment akin to getting my car’s oil changed every 5,000 miles, or, I don’t know, working out.

In short: It keeps me from wanting to throw my face into a brick wall.

As it happens, my most recent session served as a stark reminder of all of this.

I left the States for Europe on February 26th…just as the Coronavirus had kinda-sorta started to take shape here in the States (and had most certainly entered the day-to-day psyche of the average European).

  • I spent five days in Athens, Greece (workshop and pleasure).
  • Two days in Paris, France (pleasure; mostly to eat cheese).
  • Five days in London (two more workshops and because I’m obsessed with it).

Each day that passed I saw more face masks in public, more people carrying hand sanitizer and keeping their distance, and more general unease.

I flew back to the States on March 10th.

Two days later the US had made the decision to implement travel bans while entire countries had started the process of shutting down completely.

A week after that, a Thursday, was my first therapy session. By then the world had changed (and toilet paper seemingly ceased to exist).

And boy-oh-boy did I unload on my therapist.

The theme was loss:

  • I “lost” clients.
  • I “lost” all my workshops scheduled for later in the year.
  • I “lost” my new gym (I had to renege plans to expand CORE to a larger location).
  • I “lost” all my pants (I mean, shelter at home advisory = who needs pants?).

After 20-30 minutes I finally gave pause and my therapist, with a reassuring smile, made the time-out sign with her hands.

She said simply:

“You didn’t LOSE anything. Things are just on pause at the moment.”

NOTE: Now, of course, this wasn’t meant to imply there wasn’t substantial suffering and real loss going on the world (then or now). No one, least of all my therapist, was making light of the situation.

That said:

Holy Fuckin A – what a baller re-frame!

Her words punched me in the kidney.

It was exactly what I needed to hear (and something I hope resonates for the bulk of fitness professionals who may be reading).

Like many of you I’ve vacillated between determination, fatalism, ennui, and just trying all I can to clone anything that feels normal.

The health/fitness industry – like many industries – has been decimated in recent weeks.

There’s no sugar coating things.

It’s bad.

Thousands of us have been left to marinate in uncertainty, doubt, and the feeling of inevitable loss.

The unknown.

It’s not fun and it’s going to stick around for a while.

But not forever.

As cheesy and as impossible as it sounds…

…the pause button has been pressed.

What this means for me:

– Checking in and being there for my clients.

In the end I know my clients will come back (or I’ll kill them). It’s important to recognize we’re in the service industry and that we should still serve our clients. This could mean accommodating them with at home workouts of course, but it also could mean nothing more than sending a “hey, how are you doing?” text.1 I haven’t lost my clients; the pause button has been pressed.

– Making the pivot to more online & virtual training until social distancing measures are loosened. Who knows: maybe it’ll turn into a more viable and robust revenue stream when all is said and done? I haven’t lost in-person training; the pause button has been pressed.

– Recognizing that I can (and will) reassess expanding my gym at a later point this year. I haven’t lost my new gym; the pause button has been pressed.

– Recognizing 2021 will be an EPIC travel year for workshops. I haven’t lost all my workshops; the pause button has been pressed.

– Finally getting my head out of my ass and watching Ozark on Netflix. No excuses here. I suck.

Categoriescoaching Female Training

My Wish For Female Fitness: Less Talk About Less

NOTE: This is a blog I originally wrote back in 2017, but I’m repurposing it today because:

  1. It’s really fucking good.

AND

      2. It matches well with the release of Psych Skills for Fitness Pros, my wife’s (Dr. Lisa Lewis), latest resource for personal trainers, strength & nutrition coaches, and physical therapists designed to improve their communication and motivational skills.

It too is really fucking good…;o)

This is the last week you’ll be able to purchase it at $100 off the regular price.

My Wish for Female Fitness: Less Talk About Less

“Why should I be fit?”

Ask a male that question and you’ll hear a bevy of terms and phrases ranging from “to get swole and jacked” to “to get swole and ripped.”2

Ask a female that question? Well, the bulk of them will have an entirely different orientation or framing of answers.

Copyright: dolgachov / 123RF Stock Photo

 

Most of the time we’ll see an avalanche of words like:

  • Lean
  • Slim
  • Toned
  • Thin

In other words: For many women the idea of being fit revolves around being LESS. Rather than embracing and accepting their body as something unique and worthy of its own admiration (regardless of size), many women are fixated on the notion that less is sexier.

Healthier.

Better.

This is in stark contrast to the psyche of their male counterparts. Peruse any magazine rack and you’ll immediately notice a different tone:

  • Big
  • Strong
  • Mass
  • Gain

Here, the goal is MORE.

My wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis, who speaks on this topic and phenomenon frequently, refers to this as a Growth Orientation.

Woman are (generally) programmed to strive for less. By contrast, men are (generally) programmed to strive for more.3

“Striving to Be More, Instead of Wanting to Be Less”

Rather than being seduced into the rabbit hole of incessant “weight loss,” which, lets be honest, is the quicksand of the industry – slowly swallowing any semblance of enjoyment and fun out of fitness – I’d like to see more women gravitate towards something I refer to as 3×52.

Instead of a goal of weight loss and steady diet of disappointing results (and Paleo recipes that taste like old lady fart sprinkled with sawdust), the ultimate goal, as far as my own female clients, is to get them in the gym 3 days a week, 52 weeks a year…aiming for CONSISTENCY and  PERFORMANCE.

 

I find if I can get them “married” (for lack of a better term) to finally conquering a chin-up, or deadlifting their bodyweight for reps, or, I don’t know, beating Xena Warrior Princess in a street fight, the aesthetic goals they’re chasing (often saturated with a tone of weight loss) just kinda-sorta…happen.

Better yet…they forget about them altogether, and just want to crush weights.

It’s All About Motivation

This is where my wife Lisa would chime in with her expertise, but I’m going to take as stab at it.

In the seminal book, “Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Exercise and Sport,” a light read (said no one, ever), motivation is described as:

“….[is] an internal state that energizes and drives action and behavior and determines its direction and persistence.”

The fitness industry, as it relates to women (exponentially so), is very much fixated on extrinsic factors: external appearance, sex appeal, being less.

This isn’t entirely wrong or altogether a bad thing. I understand that for many women looking at magazine covers like the one above, or perusing any number of Instagram accounts of fitness celebrities can be motivating.

However, it’s also very superficial.

Happiness, it would seem, is tethered to one’s waistline or ability to look a certain way society (or magazine editors) deems attractive.

This is not healthy.

And, funnily enough: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard stories and have seen personally people (both men and women) who have sacrificed a lot to look a certain way.

They give up social events and carbs (CARBS!) in pursuit of six-pack abs or tank-top triceps, only to attain the goal and be like, “huh, that’s it? Well, that’s a bunch of bullshit.”

The moral of the story, however, is to help your clients find and recognize INTRINSIC factors that will fuel their motivation to get fit and healthy.  And do so long-term.

The difference and power of intrinsic factors is that they have less to do with external appearance and sex appeal and more to do with finding value in other ways, like:

  • How exercising makes someone feel.
  • Exercise matches their values and beliefs.
  • Someone feels exercise is an important part of their personality, and makes them the best version of themselves possible.

You do that – help someone seek intrinsic motivation – and Tracy Anderson will have less of an influence.

Yay.

via GIPHY

So, Uh, Tony, How Do We Enhance Motivation?

Good question.

1. Facilitate Intrinsic Motivation

This is where being a good, intuitive coach brings value. I’m a strength guy and love the barbell lifts, so it stands to reason I have a little bias towards them.

While I’m at a stage in my career where the majority of women who reach out to me know what they’re getting themselves into – a healthy dose of deadlifts and Tiesto – I also recognize that for some, I can’t force feed anything.

If someone would rather jump into a live volcano than perform a back squat…what good is it to force them to do back squats. That’s a sure-fire way to crush motivation.

It’s my job, then, to do the best I can to match their goals with shit they’ll actually want to do. Maybe instead of back squats we perform Goblet squats, or a crap-ton of sled work?

More to the point, if I can identify their strengths and talents – and utilize things that make them feel like a rock star – we’re in a good place.

This is what happens when @alexandraleigh22 crushes her deadlifts. We pay homage to Kid-n-Play.

A post shared by Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore) on

2. Highlight Ways to Grow

Building autonomy should always be the goal with any client. You should want them to eventually leave.

Listen to a client’s goals and ALWAYS create plans based on those goals…..always. Allow room for goals to change, be modified, or even abandoned. Everything is negotiable.

A large reason why so many people fail to get results – even when working with a trainer – is that the trainer sucks balls. He or she never takes the initiative to provide education and feedback to increase competency in their clients.

I don’t feel there is nefarious intent or that such a thing is done purposely much of the time, but it does speak to the pure laziness of some trainers and coaches.

I know when I start to work with a new client (female or otherwise) I go out of my way to explain everything, why we’re doing a certain exercise, it’s benefits, and why it will help get them closer to their goals.

Moreover, I make sure to meet her where she’s at.

This kinda mirrors what I said above – I.e., not force feeding YOUR preferences onto your clients – but a crucial component of sustained motivation is competency. This is why I rarely have someone – male or female – straight-bar deadlift on Day #1.

Clients want to feel as if they know what the hell they’re doing, that they can do “stuff,” and that they don’t look foolish.

Foolish

 

Less Foolish

 

Look, a Demon Kitten (Which Has Nothing to do With Anything)

3. Build Relatedness

Your relationship & rapport with clients is an essential element of success. Be mindful of your clients’ social needs in regard to their fitness.

For example, if you partake in semi-private training as I do, and you’ve just started with a new female client and you know she’s a bit timid and self-conscious…it’s probably not a bright idea to pair her alongside your male client training for his next powerlifting meet.

Another example, especially when training female clients, Beyonce Radio on Pandora is like female relatedness catnip. It never fails.

Never.

 

Less Talk About Less

Taking all of the above in consideration will, I feel, help with all the “less” talk that permeates female fitness.

No! We want more.

More confidence, more autonomy, more competence, more muscle (because, why not?), more cowbell, more Beyonce.

Psych Skills for Fitness Pros

What burns us out as coaches isn’t sets/reps, breaking down deadlift technique, or writing a metric-shit ton of training programs (although that last one can be debated).  No, what grinds our gears are our…

…clients!

They can be inconsistent, unmotivated, drop off the face of the Earth only to show up three weeks later wondering why they’re not getting results, have poor boundaries, smell really bad, any number of things.

All of which require communication skills to deal with.

Creating a long-lasting career in fitness, one that rewards you with loyal clients who stick around, isn’t about how much you lift, how great your butt looks on Instagram, or how much you spend on Facebook for advertising.

It’s about creating a CONNECTION with your clients.

Psych Skills for Fitness Pros will help you accomplish that.

  • 12+ hours of content – webinars, quizzes, interviews – you complete at home at your own pace.
  • Earn CEUs via NSCA and NASM.
  • Gluten free.

Remember: This is the last week to purchase it on SALE, so act now while you can.

Categoriescoaching Program Design

4 Coaching and Program Design Digressions

ksuksa@123rf.com

Coaching & Program Design Digressions

1. Fillers Instead of Warming Up?

You know it, I know it, your mom’s second cousin’s Little League baseball coach’s sister knows it, everyone knows it…

…people always skip their warm-up prior to training.

Hell, [industry secret revealed] I skip my warm-up more than 50% of the time.4

Now, to back track a bit, I am not anti-warming up and I do advocate my clients and athletes do follow one.

I do write them in.

However, what I am not a fan of is the laundry list approach to warming-up.

You know what I mean: the warm-up that consists of a never-ending list – 10, 15, sometimes 20 exercises deep – of positional breathing, t-spine mobility, glute activation, and stretching drills.

I take a gander at something like that and am like…

via GIPHY

I can only imagine what some of my clients in the past were like…

via GIPHY

This is not an attempt to discount or demerit the importance of doing any of those drills mentioned above. I just know humans, and I know the vast majority of them would rather jump in front of a mack truck than do their warm-up.

Which is where the idea of “fillers” comes in.

These are nothing more than low-grade, low-intensity mobility or activation drills that are performed DURING the workout, typically during rest periods.

In short: It’s a sneaky way to put the shit that people need to work on in the program in a way that they’ll actually do it.

I’ve written about fillers in the past and how to best incorporate them depending on the main lift of the day:

2. Underwhelm Them Early

This is a phrase I stole from my good friend Mike Robertson, but it mirrors much of what I do with all of my new clients. In the beginning all I am really concerned with is letting my clients marinate in the basics.

I want them to hinge, squat, push, pull, carry, and perform some single leg work.

Now what variation of all those things will depend on a multitude of factors: health & injury history, goals, ability level, not to mention their anatomy (anthropometry and leverages).

When all is said and done, though, from a programming standpoint, my clients should be underwhelmed. I want their programs to be mind-numbingly boring.

People need reps out of the gate, a lot of reps…of the same thing(s). That is the only way they’re going to learn and begin to “own” their movement.

What they don’t need is a bunch of novelty and a coach who’s only goal is to entertain them.

I can appreciate (and understand) that training should be fun and stimulating and fill everyone’s love tank to the ‘enth degree.

However, in my eyes, that needs to be earned via lots and lots and lots of repetition of the same shit.

No one ever got strong or mastered any exercise by constantly changing things up.

Wow your clients with customer service; underwhelm them with exercise selection.

3. Easy Training is Good Training

Keeping in tune with the whole “underwhelming them early” vibe, I’m a firm believer in the anecdote – astutely stolen from Dan John – that “easy training is good training.”

Put into other words: I’m less of a “holy shit I can’t feel the left side of my face, that workout was awesome” kinda guy and more of a “huh, I could totally do more, but [insert anything from going to see a movie and hanging out with your spouse to reading a book and drowning in kitty cuddles]” kinda guy.

See, I’d rather my clients/athletes leave a session feeling as if they could do more, maybe even wanting to do more, but don’t.

This is not to say “easy” training doesn’t involve some amount of effort or uncomfortableness; far from it. It is to say that pounding your clients into the ground every…single…session isn’t necessarily making them better or more resilient or whatever other cute adjective you want to toss in here.

There’s a common saying I’ve seen many other coaches use and it bears repeating:

“Your progress in the weight-room is directly correlated with how well you’re able to RECOVER from said workouts.”

This entails training with sub-maximal loads (65-80% of 1RM) more often in addition to other things such as encouraging more GGP/Zone 2 work (think: heart rate hovers in the 120 BPM range), sleep, calories to support one’s goals, and hydration to name a few.

4. Is It Necessary to De-Load Often?

It’s common practice for many gyms and trainers to use every fourth week as a rudimentary “deload week” (or a structured tempering of training volume, load, or both) for their clients and athletes.

It makes sense…especially when you consider billing cycles.

For example, to a large degree I still use this approach because every month my clients “re-up” their packages and I get to ding their credit cards in exchange for a freshly curated program.

But even then I have to take into consideration a few things.

  • Training Frequency: someone who only trains 2x per week won’t necessarily do enough work to warrant a de-load as compared to someone who trains 4x per week.
    .
  • Training Experience/Goals: someone who is working out for basic health or is a complete newbie will have a stark difference in approach to de-loading compared to someone training for a powerlifting meet or has more experience and is just stronger as a general observation. The former may go weeks without the need for any type of deload while the latter may be best suited for one every 3-4 weeks.
    .
  • Life: Work, vacations, the beach, your slow-pitch softball schedule, your kid’s explosive diarrhea…all have a tendency of tossing us organic de-loads as it is. Oftentimes there’s no need to go out of my way to plan de-loads for some clients because “life” takes care of that anyway.

All of this doesn’t even get into the weeds on all the different types or ways to implement a de-load. I already touched on the idea of lowering one’s overall training volume or even intensity (personally I’m a fan of lowering volume but keeping intensity on the high(er) side of the spectrum, if not the same), but there are a bevy of other options too:

  • Omitting compound movements in lieu of more isolation type movements (I.e., less axial loading).
  • Going into full-on body-part-split-per day bodybuilder mode for a week or longer (<— this is fun).
  • Reducing training frequency (instead of 5x per week, go with two).
  • Get out of the gym entirely and partake in more outdoor activities.

For the Record: I’m very much a fan of people taking a full-week off from training – particularly if they’re consistent – 1x per year just to give themselves a break.

That said, I will sometimes push the boundaries with some of my clients and won’t implement an actual de-load until 1) I see a drastic decrease in their progress or performance on the gym floor 2) they’re eyes start bleeding or, you know, 3) they simply ask.

Often, especially if a client shows up to a session and they look like death, I’ll implement a de-load session, affectionately referred to as a Bloop, Bloop, Bloop workout.

HERE the idea is to listen to them, understand that, yes, life gets in the way sometimes, but to also not let them off the hook so easily.

They’re still going to workout and move – it just won’t involve working up to a heavy triple on their front squat.

Categoriescoaching personal training Program Design

90s Hip Hop, Complete Coach, and Mike Robertson

My good friend, Mike Robertson, released is latest resource this week…the Complete Coach Certification.

Check it out here —> http://bit.ly/2lWGhpJ

It’s on sale this week only (until Friday,  9/6) at a hefty discount.

If you’re a strength coach, personal trainer, you work with athletes, non-athletes, Doug from accounting, or ninjas, this resource will make you a more well-rounded health/fitness professional.

I had some questions for Mike about the product, but more specifically about his coaching philosophy and what he feels we (as an industry) need to do better.

Copyright: jtrillol / 123RF Stock Photo

Mike and Tony Talk Shop

TG: Mike, first things first: When I came onto your podcast a few weeks ago I introduced you to muy new favorite obsession: the Take It Personal Radio Podcast. How much do you love me it? Which has been your favorite episode (I know it’s hard to choose)?

I have only two words:

Life changing.

Seriously, I love that show so much. I mean, it’s all of the artists I grew up listening to, chopped and mixed to perfection.

My favorite so far is the Wu-Tang episode, but anyone that really knows me knows that I’m a pretty massive fan of the WU!

Note from TG: It’s hard to pick my favorite, but if I had to choose I’d go with the DJ Premier Tribute. Eight freakin hours or Premier beats. My head just about exploded when I listened to it for the first time. And then there’s the Native Tongues (Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Jungle Brothers, Queen Latifah, Money Love, etc) tribute that’s something like 12-13 hours long.

I can’t handle it.

TG: Okay, let’s get on track: What was your vision/goal in creating the Complete Coach Certification?

MR: Simple: To push our industry forward, and over time, positively influence 10,000 trainers and coaches across the globe.

Unfortunately what I’m seeing nowadays is a dearth of trainers/coaches who have gone the traditional route – school and a certification – and then struggle to be of any value whatsoever on the gym floor.

They can’t interact with other humans.

They can’t progress or regress clients.

And forgot about asking them to write a program! Their brains are so scattered and influenced by random Instagram trainers you can’t get a cohesive, streamlined program out of them to save their lives.

And while I may sound a little harsh, the fact of the matter is, it’s not really their fault.

This is the culture we’ve created for training and coaching.

So my goal is to fix that.

To show trainers and coaches how systems and procedures can make their lives easier, and help them get better results.

To show them it’s not about knowing 1,879 exercise variations, but knowing 10-15 really good exercises, being able to progress/regress as necessary, and then coach the hell out of them.

And to show them that if you act like a professional and get really good at what you do, this can be an amazing career.

One where you can make real money and have a life outside of the gym as well.

At the risk of sounding bold or narcissistic, here’s where I’m at:

I’m only 41 but I don’t think it’s too soon to start thinking about my legacy.

  • What did I bring to the table?
  • Did I really make an impact?
  • Or did I live a life where I could’ve done more, and instead settled to play small ball?

If I go out tomorrow, I want people to be like “That Mike Robertson wasn’t perfect, but damn he did his part and made a massive push to  drive this industry forward.”

TG: I, uh, taught my toddler to go pee-pee in the potty last week. That’s my legacy…haha. I know this is about as lame of a question as I can ask (but I’m going to ask it anyway). What are some common mistakes you find coaches make with regards to program design?

MR: I don’t think it’s a lame question – it’s actually one we need to be asking more often.

Here’s a brain dump:

  • Having no clear goal.
  • Having too many goals and “program jumping.”
  • Not knowing the basics of program design (sets/reps/time under tension, how they all work together, etc.)
  • Poor (if not awful) exercise selection.
  • A lack of cohesiveness across all elements of the program (resistance training, conditioning, etc.)
  • Failing to meet a client/athlete where they’re at.
  • Failing to give a client/athlete some of what THEY WANT in the program.
  • Letting their beliefs/training focus influence that of their clients/athletes.
  • Being too boring with their programming.
  • Being too random with their programming.

I mean I could go on and on here, but hopefully you catch my drift.

As an industry, we have a looooooooong way to go to get our program design skills up to snuff.

TG: What do you feel has been the biggest change or maturation in your own programming since you first started coaching? As an example, for me, it was the under-appreciation of sub-maximal training; I’m a firm believer (now) that easy training is good training.

MR: Man this is a really tough one, so I’m going to give you two:

1 – I do a better job of planning and programming all elements of a program nowadays. For instance in the past, I was a powerlifter so I skewed everyone towards a strength focus.

Because if it was good enough for me, it was good enough for them. Right???

It’s taken me a long time to break that habit, but now I can write a really smooth and well-rounded program for virtually any client or athlete.

TG: Oh man, good one!

2 – The second piece is I’m better at streamlining and transitioning clients between two programs.

Let me explain that in a bit more depth…

Imagine taking a client who is doing an accumulation phase and they’re using like 60-70% of their 1 rep max.

Then the next week, you decide they need to move to max strength and so you start crushing them with 90% loads.

Can you imagine how jarring that is to the body?

So it’s been a big goal of mine to smooth out all of the elements I have to program for my athletes – from speed/power, to strength, to conditioning – and trying to make those transitions from block to block smoother and easier on the athlete.

It’s never perfect, but I’m light years of where I was even a few years back.

TG: Complete off-topic, but is Bill (Hartman) a cyborg?

He is, but here’s the strangest part – he’s not alone.

There are actually a few hiding in plain sight in our industry.

I’m sure there are others, but these three I can confirm from first-hand experience.

TG: I lived with Eric for two years and was a business partner for eight, I can confirm he’s not a T-1000 (but close).

One of my biggest pet peeves in this industry (other than kipping pull-ups) is how some coaches take this bravado approach and more or less “bully” people into thinking that THEIR way is the only way to coach “x” exercise.

I feel this is a narrow-minded take and fails to appreciate (much less consider) each person’s individual anatomy and how that will dictate set-up and which variation of certain lifts will be best suited for them.

Your take? Agree? Disagree? 

MR: Couldn’t agree more.

TG: Okay, whew, good. Cause if you didn’t shit was gonna get awkward.

MR – and that’s where I think progressions/regressions come into play.

I have a model for what I want a squat/deadlift/push-up/whatever to look like, but I also realize that everyone is going to move different.

  • They have different lever lengths.
  • Their body (thorax, pelvis, hips, etc.) are positioned differently.
  • They have different joint structures on top of that.

So while I might have my model, I also have to realize that every/client athlete is going to find the strategy that works most effectively for them, based on their goals.

Part of the evolution of coaching is realizing that how you think/feel/move is great, but it shouldn’t necessarily impact how you train other people.

Once you get there, training and coaching become a lot more fun.

TG: One missing component of program design, I feel, is centered around the soft skills of coaching. It’s one thing to write a solid program, but then how it’s executed and coached is whole different matter.

I know you touch on this in the certification, but can you maybe elaborate on this here?

MR: Look man, I got by for my first 3-5 years on the floor because of soft skills, so I’d like to think I’m better to speak on this than most!

A big part of my success early-on was due to my ability to relate to people, to empathize, and to build rapport – NOT due to my coaching or program design skills.

I know John Kiely has talked about this in the past, but there’s actual research out there that shows if a client likes you and has positive emotions about you, that they could potentially get better results than someone who might have a “superior” program!

TG: The fuck outta here Mike Robertson! What’s next? Telling me bacon isn’t delicious? That Bachelor in Paradise isn’t where one find true love?

Isn’t that crazy?

When they like you, they have the right biochemical make-up when they enter the gym, and they end up getting better results.

But this is why I’m such a stickler for finding that blend between the hard and soft skills.

Relationships, rapport, and trust are critical – if you don’t have them, you won’t have success in this industry.

Period.

But the results are fast tracked when you have streamlined programming and coaching on top of that.

I’m sure you would agree, it’s not an either-or proposition – but finding the balance that works best for you as a trainer or coach.

Complete Coach Certification

I know I say this all…the…time, but it needs repeating:

Those who invest in themselves will last longer in this industry, are less likely to burn out, and, frankly, will often make more money and be more successful.

There aren’t many coaches whom I direct other coaches to more than Mike.

I’ve learned a ton from him throughout the years, I still do, and he’s really outdone himself with the Complete Coach Certification.

It’s on sale this week only and includes the option to pay with installments rather than one-lump sum. Everything from basic anatomy, breathing mechanics (<– SO important), keys to coaching, program design, and Mike’s “R7” protocol is covered.

There’s also a bevy of additional bonuses, including training templates, exercise regression/progression charts, and access to Mike’s fitness business webinar.

Check it out —> http://bit.ly/2lWGhpJ

Categoriescoaching

Program Design Tip: Simple Before Sexy

I often joke that when other coaches and fitness professionals come shadow or observe me for a day that they leave underwhelmed by what they see.

“Huh, Tony’s not really doing anything innovative or exciting with his athletes and clients. I mean, sure, it’s interesting he refuses to wear pants, but all in all…he’s pretty lame.”

Now, I don’t necessarily feel what’s written above is precise representation of their inner dialogue, but I will admit…

…I’m lame AF when it comes to the exercises I prescribe and the programs I write.

Also, the no pants comment is a joke.6

Copyright: kucherav / 123RF Stock Photo

Simple Before Sexy

Let’s discuss the box jump.

Peruse social media and you’ll see a bevy of videos from coaches showcasing their athlete’s jumping prowess. Some are “vanilla” and “quiet” in nature, simply highlighting an athlete jumping onto a box with little to no fanfare.

My favorite.

Others, however, will go out of their way to “one-up” everyone else and seemingly highlight a video that’s more concerned with garnering likes and increasing “viralability” than offering anything useful or of substance.

Don’t get me wrong: There’s a time and place to have fun and to not take things so seriously.

I get it.

That said, with regards to youth athletes (and, to be honest, even with high level or professional athletes 98.2% of the time) I don’t feel this sentiment applies or is warranted.

Videos of athletes/clients jumping to boxes at 40, 50, or even 60+ inches in height (with poor form) and/or that involve circus like acts – such as jumping onto a stack of foam rollers while juggling a pair of chainsaws – don’t impress me much.

I don’t have enough eye rolls to give.

via GIPHY

I want my athletes to do the simple things, and do them well.

Here’s one of my high school basketball players – Theo, 15 – performing a Box Jump to a 1-Legged Landing.

 

Could we have used a higher box?

Maybe.

Could I have had him look straight into the camera after sticking each rep, rip his shirt off, and yell “THIS….IS….SPARTA“?

Next time.

Neither is the point of the drill, though.

The point is to:

1️⃣ Learn to create force (putting force into the ground to propel him up), but to also ABSORB it and learn to decelerate.

Athletes need to know when (and how) to turn on their brakes. It’s serves no advantage to ALWAYS focus on the throttle, or acceleration.

I often tell my athletes to “land like a ninja.”

If I hear a loud THWAP when (s)he lands, especially if I’m across the room, and even more especially if it’s over a sick Tiesto beat in the background, then I know they’re not landing correctly.

Too, if the landing is noisy, the height of the box may be too aggressive. Train force development (the jump) AND force absorption (the landing) and NOT the ego.

I’m more concerned with the fact Theo had no idea who A Tribe Called Quest was before he started training with me then I am about the height of the box he’s jumping onto.

2️⃣ OWN the landing.

I shouldn’t see any “excessive” caving-in of the knee or foot as he lands. Nor should I see his posture collapse as he lands on the box.

If that is the case the height of the box is likely too aggressive.

Lower it.

Moreover, there’s nothing wrong with performing Single-Leg Hops on the ground. It isn’t sexy, it won’t win you any “innovative coach of the year awards,” but by gosh will it ever transfer more eloquently to the daily needs of your athletes/clients.

On a Side Note: I told Theo to hold his landing position for a 1-2s count so we could reinforce it. Slowing athletes down is often advantageous so they learn what appropriate positions look and feel like.

3️⃣I also feel appropriate technique requires stepping off the box rather than jumping off it back to the ground…👍.

4️⃣ Oh, I also feel you’re cra-cra if you haven’t started watching Mindhunter on Netflix yet. Season two just came out.

Get to it.

NOTE: And yes, I understand that on Theo’s first rep his knees caved in a little as he was generating force. Not ideal, something we’re going to work on, but certainly not an egregious error and nothing where I felt he was going to hurt himself.

My expectation isn’t perfection out of the gate – especially with beginners (of any age) – but each rep got progressively better, and subsequent sets were even more betterer.

God, I’m a wordsmith.

In any case, there’s always going to be a learning curve when introducing new exercises, even the “simple” ones.

Categoriescoaching Motivational

The Lost Art of Adult Play

I’m currently in the Barossa Valley with my wife.

There’s not a chance in hell I’m writing a blog post this week. Thankfully TG.com regular contributor, Shane McLean, was a champion and took it upon himself to pinch write for me.

Thanks Shane!

Copyright: szefei / 123RF Stock Photo

The Lost Art of (Adult) Play

When you were a kid, (I assume) you were a blur of movement.

One moment you’re tugging on your dads leg and the next moment you’re chasing the dog (or cat, sorry Tony) throughout the house, tearing shit up while your father is trying to figure out how you moved so quick.

Like the flash baby.

 

There was no stopping you.

Then age, responsibilities, jobs, kids, bills and a mortgage took care of all that. With more adult time there comes less play time because you have to grow up sometime, correct?

Well some of us do and some of us don’t.

I’ll leave it to you to determine where you are on the kid scale.

However, now to keep up your lean machine look, you hit the gym and do squats, presses, pulls and curls so you can keep up with the younger generation, to feel less like an old fart and more like a superhero, crushing everything in your path.

However, trying to recapture your childhood through exercise is fine but acting like a one (or Flash Gordon) is okay frowned upon.

So please keep your tantrums under control.

You cannot have desserts before your main meal.

Whoops, I’m projecting. Let me get back on track.

During your early childhood, you discovered what you were capable of and what you get away with through playing.

But What is Play?

Play is an activity done for its own sake, with no real goal in mind and play is characterized by flexibility (making up stuff as you go along), and the positive effect it often has on the person playing (smiling, laughing, and having fun.) (1)

The exact role of play in learning is often debated and opinion tends to exaggerate the evidence for the essential role of play.

However, other evidence suggests the important benefits of play and its contribution to learning. (2)

What Has This Got to Do With You?

 How does play benefit you now, the adult trying to shed fat and crush PR’S in the gym?

Firstly, it gives you a welcome break from the barbell. When you get wrapped up with the weight on the bar and have the blinkers on, other things like moving in different directions and a little thing called cardiovascular exercise gets neglected.

When ‘playing’ you may discover your weaker points that are holding you back.

Secondly, it may help you through a plateau and improve your co-ordination.

When you were a child, you engaged in locomotor (exercise) play, which involves physical activity to support the training of your muscles for strength, endurance, and skill.

Think of the local school or park playground and all the fun you had on the swings and monkey bars.

Back then, play was the neural and muscular basis of your physical co-ordination and physical growth. And going back to ‘play’ may help you break through your sticking points and make exercise more enjoyable. (3)

And when things are enjoyable, you’re more likely to do them.

Who’s up for crushing their goals with a smile on their face?

If you answered yes, start inserting these ‘play’ drills into your routine (or separately on off days) because the gym is the one place where nobody cares if you act like a child.

Because they’re all too busy taking Instagram selfies.

1. Reaction Ball Drills

 

And who doesn’t like playing with balls?

The beauty of the reaction ball is movement without thinking. See the ball, go get the ball. And before you know it you’ve performed squats, hinges and dozens of lunges without realizing it.

Furthermore, training hand-eye co-ordination never goes astray.

And with so much of your program planned, it’s great to add a little chaos and uncertainty to it.

2. Agility Ladder Drills

 

Some coaches’ poo-poo on the agility ladder while other coaches over emphasize it with athletes trying to get them faster.

However, there is plenty of middle ground and they’re another tool in the toolbox.

But for the regular joe, who’s looking for a little variety, a fun way to get the heart rate up and to raise a sweat while improving their co-ordination, these drills are perfect.

The agility ladder will help you learn a wide array of different movement patterns without you even realizing it because you’ll be having too much fun.

3. Friendly Competition

Exercising with a partner is shown to increase exercise adherence. Use these fun drills will a friend and you’ll be sweating and smiling in no time.

4. Stability Ball Wrestle

You and your partner will be too busy trying to knock each other off-balance, and not realizing that you’re working on your ankle stability/mobility, balance and core stability.

Set Up – Put one foot on top the ball making sure your knee is bent 90 degrees. Your partner puts the opposite foot on the ball, directly across from you

Rules – Both people are trying to knock the other one-off balance by rolling the ball aggressively with their feet.

This exercise can be done either as warm-up, for 30 seconds or so on each foot or you can turn this into a full-blown friendly competition. Every time some loses his/her balance it results in a point for the opponent. First to 5 or 10 points wins.

5. The Boxer

This exercise with work on your power, muscular endurance and hand-to-eye co-ordination. You’ll be too busy hitting your partner’s hands to realize any of this.

Set Up – Use a resistance band with handles looped round a solid anchor point. Bring hands to shoulder level and keep the resistance band tight.  Your partner puts hands up, open palms facing forward and away from the face.

Rules- Hit the open palm (with a clinched fist), one hand at a time. Your partner can change his/her hand position up, down or left and right to increase the challenge.

Do this for time (30 seconds) and record the amount of hits, and then your partner can try to beat it. Winner takes all, baby.

Wrapping Up

Exercise doesn’t always have to be a grind. Taking a slight break to think and play like a child is reinvigorating and a welcome break from the barbell.

And because you’re an adult now, you can have dessert before dinner.

Knock yourself out.

About the Author

Shane “Balance Guy” McLean, is an A.C.E Certified Personal Trainer working deep in the heart of Louisiana with the gators.

References

  1. Learning Through Play PETER K SMITH, BA, PhD ANTHONY PELLEGRINI, PhD Goldsmiths, University of London, UNITED KINGDOM University of Minnesota, USA
  2. Smith PK. Children’s play and its role in early development: A re-evaluation of the ‘Play Ethos’. In: Pellegrini AD, ed. Psychological Bases for Early education. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.; 1988: 207-226.
  3. Byers JA, Walker C. Refining the motor training hypothesis for the evolution of play. American Naturalist 1995;146(1):25-40
Categoriescoaching rant

Porcelain Post: Trying to Answer a Question That Has No Right Answer.

NOTE: The term “Porcelain Post” was invented by Brian Patrick Murphy and Pete Dupuis. Without getting into the specifics, it describes a post that can be read in the same time it takes you to go #2.

Huh, I guess that was more specific than I thought.

Enjoy.

Copyright: nexusplexus / 123RF Stock Photo

Trying to Answer a Question That Has No Right Answer

This past weekend I had the honor of teaching alongside my good friend Luke Worthington as we put on our 2-day Strategic Strength Workshop here in Boston.

Side Note: We will be teaching it again in London this September. You can find out more details HERE.

We had an eclectic group of 30 fitness professionals ranging from personal trainers and coaches to physical therapists and gym owners, young and old, newbies to those with more experience, all under one roof to listen to the two us speak about assessment, program design, coaching up specific strength exercises, and swoon over Luke’s British accent.

I’m all like, “blah, blah, blah, who’s your favorite Power Ranger?, blah blah blah.”

Luke and I covered a metric shit ton of information (FYI: which is more than a metric boat load), and as is always the case, we had a bevy of questions.

This is a good thing.

Nothing is worse than when you ask “does anyone have any questions?” and all you get is a bunch of tumbleweeds. I am elated when attendees ask questions, and I always attempt to answer every single one to the best of my ability.

Attendee: “Tony, what muscles upwardly rotate the scapulae again?”

Me: “Serratus anterior, upper and lower traps.”

Attendee: “Thank you. Also, can you put your pants back on?”

Me:

via GIPHY

However, there’s one question in particular – which can present itself in a variety of ways – that I often have a hard time with when I present.

Invariably, after two days – and close to 14 hours of content – where I’m showcasing a litany of drills, exercises, concepts, and breaking down my way of doing things (which isn’t to suggest they’re the right way) I’ll get the following question:

“If I implement “x” exercise how long before my client will see results?”

I understand why it’s asked.

If I take the time to demonstrate a particular drill and how I like to use it for a given scenario, it’s only logical for someone to ask the question: “hey, if I use that, how long before it works?”

 

But the truth of the matter is…

…I don’t know.

How good of a coach are you?

I mean, how long did it take you to master deadlift technique, the intricacies of the Turkish Get-Up, or, I don’t know, the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique?

Chances are it wasn’t overnight or during the course of a 1 or 2-day workshop.

Are you the type of coach who, after taking a weekend course, heads into work on Monday to torture your clients with new stuff you only knew existed a few hours prior?

Or, are you the type of coach who lets things marinate for a bit, gives yourself some time to understand the information, and try it out yourself before unleashing it to the masses?

My suspicions are that old(er) fitness professionals – or those with more experience – take the latter approach; they want to spend time with their notes, go through with a fine toothed comb, and really digest things.

Conversely, new(er) fitness professionals – or those with less experience – are quick to start posting “this cool new drill I learned” on Instagram.

So maybe there IS an answer here: Don’t be that coach.

Categoriescoaching Program Design psychology

The Road to Recovery Is Paved With More Training

Today’s guest post comes courtesy of trainer, writer, and guy I hate because he is waaaaaaay too good looking, Michael Gregory.

Michael wrote an excellent post on nutrient timing for my site last year which you can check out HERE. He’s back again discussing an important topic: “reframing” injury and how to use (more) training to aid recovery.

Warning: Avengers: End Game spoilers ahead.

But come on: It’s been three weeks for crying out loud. If you haven’t seen it by now it’s your fault.

Copyright: javiindy / 123RF Stock Photo

The Road to Recovery Is Paved With More Training

Let’s talk about acute injuries in your clients: those accidents that leave a scar in the shape of a teddy bear.

“Oh! What a cute injury!”

Allow me to elaborate, for those of you who aren’t a fan of Dad jokes.

If you hurt yourself, the best recovery plan you can follow includes continuing to train and actually treating the injury as if it is less egregious than it may actually be.

I’m not suggesting that you act as if nothing happened, but I am suggesting that you only adjust your training as much as you have to in order to work around the pain.

As a coach, you aren’t a doctor, so don’t act like one. You are, however, in the chain of recovery, and may be the only fitness professional around when an injury first occurs.

Know your role Snoop Lion

How you react matters to your client more than you realize.

The Assumption Is You Know What You’re Doing

You’re a shit hot programmer that doesn’t plan anything your client isn’t ready for because you follow the principle of progressive overload.

One-rep maxes are not a spontaneous event that you perform when the sunset is a particularly auspicious color. They are planned for and prepared for, for weeks or even months in advance.

Because you program smartly, you know that any injury a client sustains under your care isn’t going to be a career ender.

It’s simply a kiss from the weightlifting gods that initiates them into the barbell illuminati.

If you train hard you will have battle wounds. That being the case, it’s time you learn how to get your clients past their injuries in the most economical way possible.

The Biopsychosocial Model of Pain for Acute Injuries

This framework comes from Dr. Austin Baraki over at Barbell Medicine. It applies on some level to every injury you or a client may sustain.

This entire process is about facilitating the best environment for healing. That means not freaking out and quitting, but rather, changing training only as much as is needed.

Step 1: Reassure AKA “Don’t freak out.”

Even if someone’s eye is hanging out of their skull, the best thing you can do is keep your cool. The power of positive thought is a hot topic these days.

There’s guys healing broken spines with just their minds, supposedly.

Even if those stories are only 10% accurate the power of the placebo effect is a wildy useful tool to have on your side. Keeping your cool and addressing unhelpful thoughts and fears are the first things you can to do to help your clients harness the effects of the placebo.

This is the psychosocial aspect of the model. It is the most important to get right the first time. Poisonous thoughts are really hard to uproot once they’ve been planted.

This whole step is the opposite of what my Junior Varsity football coach did to me and my relationship with the 2-plate bench press.

He told me I’d never be able to bench 225 with my long-ass arms unless I weighed 300+ pounds and the gravitational pull of the moon was twice its normal strength.

(Brief aside: Of course, the world’s weather and tidal patterns would be thrown into absolute chaos if all of a sudden the moon was twice as strong. So the joke’s on Coach J, because we’d all be dead before I could even make it to the gym. Try to remain calm after that sick burn.)

Regardless, I struggled for years with that negative reinforcement (nocebo effect) in my head. I could rep out 205 for sets of 5 but as soon as that second plate went on the bar “it was too heavy.”

Step 2: Assess the Situation

Like a good cub scout that just stumbled onto the remains of a deer that had been hit by a car, you’ve got to get your bearings.

Should you help it?

Put it out of its misery?

Add it to your Instagram story?

He already knows he messed up. Overreacting isn’t going to help the situation.

Start by asking the trainee what they were attempting and what they felt.

Remember, poker face: don’t let ‘em see you wince.

This is the first two “O’s” of the OODA loop, something that fighter pilots and military tacticians love to reference. Observe and Orient to the situation. (DA is Decide and Act, but you have to orient first).

No need to jump to any reactions here or start calling people lower life forms.

Be a professional.

Step 3: Move Forward by Reintroducing Movement in a Non-Threatening Context

Your special snowflake of a client is down, but not melted. You can still fix this and get them back to lifting heavy and kicking in doors faster than you can say “rubber baby buggy bumpers”.

Arnold said it first.

Your goal is to work your way backwards from the exercise that caused the injury in as short a distance as possible.

Start by asking these questions:

1st Question: Load. Is there a weight you can use that does not hurt?

If you can just reduce the weight of the exercise and the client no longer feels pain or discomfort then… do that.

If your client felt a “tweak” (technical term) in their mid-back while deadlifting, deadlift day isn’t over. Just take some weight off the bar. If it still hurts with 135, use the bar.

If it still hurts with the bar, use a PVC pipe.

The goal here is to show your client that the movement isn’t inherently dangerous at all weights.

2nd Question: Range of Motion. Where does it hurt?

If your client is still in pain conducting the movement with only their bodyweight, the next thing to adjust is range of motion.

In deadlifting, for example, if their pain is in the first two inches off the floor, elevate the bar until you are out of the danger zone.

No, this isn’t perfect form, for you deadlift sticklers out there, but your client isn’t going to be doing deadlifts from the rack or with the high handles on the trap bar forever. Pretty much as soon as you adjust the range of motion of a movement you should be planning for a progression to get the trainee back to the full movement.

If you haven’t seen it, consider this your warning.

Secondly, who the fudge decided what “full range of motion” is for any given exercise?

If your client isn’t a competitive lifter, it doesn’t actually matter.

I promise you won’t cause a rift in the space-time continuum resulting in an alternate timeline where Thanos succeeds in destroying half of all life in the universe and it stays that way. (Okay, that’s not really a spoiler so much as conjecture. Hey, spoiler warnings entice the reader to finish the article).

3rd Question (well, statement): Exercise Selection. If decreasing the weight and range of motion still results in pain, work your way backwards down the line of exercise specificity.

Only now should you be thinking about changing up the exercise entirely. This is assuming that you chose the initial exercise because it is the one which most completely trains you client to achieve their specified goal. If you just chose the exercise because it makes the vein in your biceps pop when you apply the Clarendon filter on Instagram I ask you the following question. How did you get this far in this article?

As an example, let’s say you were doing conventional deadlifts with your client. In my mind, the regression looks something like this:

  • Conventional deadlift
  • Snatch grip deadlift
  • Sumo deadlift
  • Straight leg deadlift
  • Romanian deadlift
  • Trap bar deadlifts
  • Rack pulls
  • Dumbbell deadlift variations
  • Single-leg DB deadlift variations
  • Single-arm DB deadlift variations
  • Single-arm single-leg DB deadlift variations
  • Good mornings
  • Cable pull-throughs
  • Hip thrusts

Okay, I digressed quite far there, but I think you get the point.

There are lots of exercises you can try with your client to teach them that they are not only not broken, but in fact still strong even with pain.

There is no excuse for the countless number of trainees doing leg presses and camping out on the stationary bike in the name of recovery.

Training is recovery.

It’s All Really Just Reassurance

This entire process of managing acute injuries is really just reassuring people that they aren’t fragile.

Some of our fellow humans, some of them your clients, have spent their entire lives avoiding pain at all costs. As a result, they’ve never had to learn how to overcome true adversity. By teaching this process to your clients, you are giving them the gift of self-reliance.

Resiliency is something most trainees are looking to build, mostly in the context of making their muscles more resilient. As far as I’m concerned, tenacity, fortitude, resilience, and mental toughness are all muscles. Each and every one of those is embedded in this process, and they are all made stronger every time someone learns to overcome something you or the barbell throws their way in the weightroom.

Does that tempt you to injure your clients on purpose now so that you can teach them about mental toughness?

Don’t do it.

But do be prepared to react calmly and with precision when accidents happen.

About the Author

Michael is a USMC veteran, strength coach, amateur surfer, and semi-professional mushroom connoisseur. As an intelligence officer and MCMAP instructor Michael spent the majority of his military career in the Pacific theater of operations.

He now lives in Bali where he writes, trains, and has had multiple near-death experiences in surf that is much too heavy for him.

For more by Michael check out his Instagram,  Facebook, or his website www.composurefitness.com.

 

 

Categoriescoaching

Coach’s Roundtable: Two Things They Should Know

If you work with high-school athletes this is for you.

Friend and colleague, Mike Anderson, who’s a strength coach in Ohio, reached out and asked if I’d be open to sharing a roundtable discussion of several coaches discussing the rigamarole of working with this population.

I always enjoy other coaches riffing and pontificating on this subject and I think there are many perils of wisdom below.

Enjoy!

Copyright: tonobalaguer / 123RF Stock Photo

Two Things They Should Know

One of the most important populations for strength and conditioning / fitness right now is the high school aged athlete.

Training has become so common amongst this age group that if you even think that you might want to compete at the next level then you need to be in a gym. I myself train a metric shit-ton of high school athletes and it’d be an understatement to say that this population has some unique traits and attributes.

As a strength coach, it’s sometimes easy to forget that not everybody knows the same things you do. I occasionally take some information for granted and am surprised when the kids or their parents don’t know it.

Some recent interactions I had with athletes spurned the writing of this post and I thought it would be really interesting to get some points of view from friends of mine in the industry around the country regarding the two things that they, as coaches, wished that both high school athletes and their parents would really understand about training.

Jarrod Dyke – Owner / Coach, First XV Performance, Brookline MA.

1. Every athlete that walks into a weight room or training facility needs to remember this: you are there to help you get better at your sport, not to set the world record in powerlifting or weight lifting (unless those are your sports). Check your ego at the door.

If your squat doesn’t jump 100 pounds in 3 weeks, it’s not the end of the world.

Put in the work and the weight will go up! You will get stronger and be much stronger on the pitch, field, court, ice, track etc. Just because you tick the room temperature up from 29 degrees to 30 and the ice isn’t melted yet doesn’t mean you aren’t making progress, be patient!

2. In season training is a big must if you want to last throughout the season.

It is very possible to maintain your strength or even gain strength, depending on the circumstance, throughout your sport season.

Not training at all is probably the worst thing you can do; your practices and game aren’t enough to maintain the strength you just put all the work into building up. Then when the off-season comes you are not starting all the way back at square one, but rather you’re still better than you were at the start of the last off-season.

Hilary Lederer – Strength Coach, Force of Nature Strength & Conditiong, Toronto, Canada.

1. The first thing I’d want parents and athletes to understand about strength training is that it doesn’t need to be (and almost always shouldn’t be) something that completely exhausts the athlete. A ton of productive work can be accomplished while still feeling pretty fresh after.

2. The second thing is how valuable a solid coach and program can be for every athlete. You can be talented and successful without, but those athletes tend to be less common and rarely last long.

Injury prevention, weak points, confidence, etc. will all be positively affected in the short and long term, plus you are setting the athlete up for lifelong good habits relating to health and fitness.

 

Mitch Gill – Head Athletic Trainer at Dacula High School, Private S&C in Dacula, Georgia

1. “Sports specific” training is just practice; it is not the weight room. Strength and conditioning is about building the qualities such as strength and speed to increase the robustness of the athlete’s skills. The goal in the weight room is to create a better all-around athlete who is able to express that athleticism on the field.

2. Athletic development is a long term process; or as I like to call it, “slow cooking the athlete.”

We live in a microwave society that wants to see results right away.

They want their squat to go up 80 lbs in a month or their 40 time to drop half a second in that same time. For long term success, let nature and time in training take its course.

No one cares if the kid is the best 14 year old in their county at their sport if he/she has already peaked or is always hurt.

 

Brandon Strausser – Performance Coach, Spire Performance, Geneva Ohio.

1. The idea of “Sport Specific training” is a hoax – Athletes and parents need to understand that our jobs as strength and conditioning coaches is to make better athletes (through strength, speed, and power gains along with injury reduction protocols).

The training program that the athletes receive will be very similar to one another (in regards to the movements and speed development). The only thing different will be how they apply their training program into their sport (ex: A swimmer and a baseball player will both squat to develop stronger and more powerful legs.

For the swimmer it’s to have a better start and turns off the walls. For the baseball player, it’s to have a stronger swing and faster sprint to the bases). Leave the specificity to the actually sport coaches who know and understand the sport like the back of their hands.

2. Be patient with your training – Understand that good things take some time to develop.

You actually have to work your tail off to get results.

Some people adapt quicker than others and see improvements much sooner than their counter parts. But that’s the beauty of us being human; we’re all different and react to stimulus and stress differently. This might sound like another point but it goes right along with being patient and that is staying consistent with your training and who you are training with.

Be organized with your training and have a set schedule of when you’re doing it (certain circumstances I understand will pop up but try to stay as close as you can to your schedule).  The number of training sessions per week will alter how fast or slow your results will be.

You see that your vertical hasn’t improved in two weeks.  Well maybe it’s because you’ve only had a total of four training sessions in those two weeks.

Lastly, jumping from coach to coach will break up and stunt your progress because each coach has a different approach to their training.  Your body will not be able to adapt if you are constantly changing the training stimulus with a new program from a new coach each month or even week. The moral of this spiel is that good things will come to those who wait!

Greg Robins – Co-Owner / Coach, The Strength House, Worcester MA.

1. I need you to understand what it is you want to gain from training with us.

Can some of this be coached? Yes, probably.

However, if you don’t have a clear picture of what you hope to gain from training you will not achieve much of anything in the end. While I can explain what training can do for you, it is not the same as YOU knowing what you want to gain from training.

As parents, you need to understand that from the same level as I do as the coach. You telling your kids what they should get from training is not the same as them expressing what they want to get from training. It has to come from within them…what is it that they want to achieve?

2. I need you to understand WHY achieving that is important to you.

I mean really break it down on every damn level. Why, why, why, why, why?

Why do you want to get stronger? To play on varsity. Why do you want to play varsity…oh snap…now that’s where the ball is usually dropped. Guess what? You’re 16. Your child is 16. Why do you want to play varsity?

Don’t give me the lip service of you want to be the best you can be unless that is really true. Maybe you want to elevate your social status. Maybe you want to be like someone you look up to. Maybe you think it will help you get a date with that girl on the softball team you like. Why you want it is the most important thing you need to understand about training.

WHY ARE YOU HERE?

You are going to be pulled in 6 directions at that age…you will continually have other things you could do. If you understand WHY you are training, and have therefore decided that that “why” is the most important thing to you then you will get it done. Whether or not you’re training with me, whether you’re on the best program or worst program. The kids that know their why and who are supported by parents that know their WHY will succeed.

Mike Anderson – Owner / Coach, Anderson Strength & Fitness, Cleveland Ohio.

1. The real impetus behind this discussion, for me, was that I really want athletes and their parents to understand that getting ready for a particular season takes more than two weeks.

I recently had two different kids reach out to me ready to “get jacked” and “crush shit before season” only to realize that one of them had three weeks to go and the other one was actually in the middle of try-outs.

There is very little I can legitimately do for you in that time frame. If you really want to explore how much you can develop athletically then it needs to be a year round part of your life.

2. The other thing that I’d really want to impress upon both athletes and their parents is that you will directly get back what you put into your training.

If you consistently show up to Saturday morning training after a seven hour Fortnite binge ending with three hours of sleep and no breakfast, then you’re going to have a really shitty training session.

If we are fueling our young athletes with Pop Tarts and Captain Crunch then we should be expecting their development to be reflective of that. Sophomores in high school are rarely in charge of their own nutrition, and thus parents really need to be aware of providing the right things for their kids to make good choices with.

I hope that this was ultimately helpful in some way, and if you found it to be so then please share it so that other athletes and/or their parents can benefit! If you’re in the same area as any of the coaches on this panel please don’t hesitate to find them on social media and get your young athlete in the gym and working!