CategoriesFemale Training mindset muscle growth Program Design Strength Training

Maybe Less Isn’t More

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

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

I say: Bull to the shit.

It’s no secret I’m a firm advocate for women to strength train. Time and time and time again I witness women transform their bodies (and mindsets) when they choose to nix the endless elliptical sessions in lieu of picking up some barbells.1

There is nothing wrong with choosing to be more.

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

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

Maybe Less Isn’t More

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

More like “Yeah right!”

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

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

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

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

Strong? What a novel concept!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Because, sometimes? More is more.

Are You Ready for the Bigtime?

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

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

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

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

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

About Kourtney Thomas

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

Categoriescoaching Female Training rant Strength Training

Why I Prefer Training Women

I recognize the title of this post can be a bit misleading; as if to imply I don’t like training men. This is not the case.

Copyright: <a href='http://www.123rf.com/profile_vadymvdrobot'>vadymvdrobot / 123RF Stock Photo</a>
Copyright: vadymvdrobot / 123RF Stock Photo

 

I mean, I spent eight years of my career at Cressey Sports Performance training predominantly men (baseball players). They were all lovely, if not a bit overzealous with the Axe Body Spray at times.

What’s more, given half the population on Earth has a Y chromosome it should come as no surprise that 50% of my current clientele at CORE are the proud owners of a “boy down there part.” Although I’m sure if I crunched the numbers the percent breakdown of female/male clients would skew a little higher on the female side.

I’ve always enjoyed training women. Men, too. But looking back at my coaching career I’ve always gained a greater sense of satisfaction and enjoyment from working with and training women.

Back in 2002, at my first job in corporate fitness, it didn’t take long for me to “recruit” a few women and to introduce strength training to them. The guys, for the most part, didn’t need much egging from me to pick up a barbell. Like me, they had been indoctrinated and encouraged at an early age – mostly as a result of watching Predator 3,987 times – to lift weights.

Most were lifting weights to some capacity already.

Because that’s what guys are supposed to do.

For the women, though, not all of them of course, the story was a bit different. Most were never encouraged to lift weights, and if they were it was always directed towards machines or “girl exercises.”

Read: cardio.

37459682 - beautiful group of young women friends exercising on a treadmill at the bright modern gym

Copyright: dotshock / 123RF Stock Photo

A Quick Aside (WARNING: you may want to drop kick something after reading this it will make you that angry): This reminds me of a story a female colleague of mine once told me about a local high school here in Massachusetts. She had offered to help out in the school’s weight room during the summer months and had asked the Athletic Director (a woman, who also happened to be the varsity coach for several of the women’s teams) if she could “target” the young girls and attempt to set up a strength training program geared towards them.

The AD said something to the effect of:

“Oh, well, you can try but it won’t do much good. The girls here aren’t interested in weight training and tend to only use the cardio machines. Besides, there aren’t any “female friendly” machines available.”

Mind you, she said this with 10+ empty power rack stations behind here.

Riiiiiiggggggggghhhhttttt.

This was the ATHLETIC DIRECTOR (Remember: a woman no less) saying something so egregious and asinine.

Is it any wonder then, after hearing that kind of bullshit, why so many young girls grow up thinking they’re not supposed to lift weights and that it’s just something guys do? And why many take the same mindset into adulthood?

Thanks for nothing worst athletic director ever.

So anyways, back to 2002, I started working with a lot of women and slowly but surly began to “de-program” them and helping them learn to debunk many of the common fitness myths they had fallen prey to:

  • Lifting weights will make you big and bulky.
  • Yoga/Pilates/etc will make your muscles longer, leaner, and more toned (<— again, feeding into the idea that guys do “that” (lift weights) and girls do “this” (yoga/pilates, etc).
  • Gazing at a barbell for longer than 15 seconds will make you grow an Adam’s apple, or turn you into this overnight:

This last point brings up a whole nother conversation of, 1) “Who gives a flying fuck if someone wants to look like this?” and 2) even if it is an admittedly extreme example, it implies the connotation that having any semblance of muscle is NON-feminine..

However, I hope most of you reading recognize the larger point I’m trying to make: that it’s not uncommon for women to think the above picture is the end result of performing a few sets of deadlifts over the course of a few weeks.

Spoiler Alert: It’s not.

It was very rewarding to start working with those women early in my career and to watch them make amazing progress in their strength – not to mention their confidence in themselves – and to finally see that switch turn on to where they wanted to work towards more performance based goals rather than worrying about aesthetics or looking a certain way to fulfill some BS societal norm.

Fast forward through a few girlfriends and questionable fashion choices on my end…to my time at Cressey Sports Performance. During my time there I worked with countless women, even started a “women’s only” training group (for beginners), and helped to procure an environment and culture where training was training regardless of gender.

Girls didn’t train any different than the guys.

We didn’t make it a “thing.” Girls just, you know, trained. And became badasses.

 

Fast forward, again, to today. I have my own studio in Boston (okay, technically, Brookline) and I still follow the same mantra as above: women, outside of a few circumstances, do not need to train differently then men.

I’m very fortunate in that I’ve been able to generate enough of a reputation (and following) that when women do reach out to me for coaching they tend to know what they’re getting themselves into.

Deadlifts, EDM, and plenty of Star Wars references.

But that doesn’t mean I still don’t have my work cut out for me at times. Just the other day I came across this article while I was in the waiting room at the dentist’s office:

img_1996

The article implies that foam rolling leads to “lengthening” of muscles and a leaner look (because, you know, it’s foam rolling, not calories in vs. calories out that gets rid of fat).

It was all I could do not to want to run through the pane glass window to my left when I saw this.

This. This is why I prefer working with women.2

So I can help serve as a counterpoint or antithesis to the garbage that’s directed their way in much of (not all) of the mainstream media.

Awful.

CategoriesFemale Training

The Problem With “Female Specific” Training

Before I dive into the meat and potatoes of this tightly batched, to-the-point, soiree of a fitness article lets first address the obvious…

It’s bonkers that in this day and age if you Google the term “female training” or “women’s fitness” you’re inundated with images like this:

20821722 - fitness instructor exercising with small weights in green park

Copyright: zoomteam / 123RF Stock Photo

We all know what it implies:

1. Donald Trump is bat-shit crazy.

AND

2. Women should train with light weights (presumably for higher reps) for that “toned” and “sleek” look many are after.

And we all know what my reaction is:

Somewhere between wanting to toss an ax into my face and this:

GIF in #Dumbfounded

To say I feel it oozes a toxic tone and connotation – that woman shouldn’t (or can’t?) train with appreciable weights – would be an understatement. Not only does it set women’s fitness back decades (I’m talking pre-Thigh Master era), but it also would make Susan B. Anthony shit a copy of “Hey, You, Woman, Get Back In the Kitchen and Make Me a Sandwich” out of pure rage and embarrassment.

For the Record: the above book doesn’t exist.

I’ve written several pieces on this site (HERE , HERE, and HERE, for example) extolling some of my thoughts on the topic of training women. I’d be remiss not to at least entertain the idea that there are many women out there who, by and large, could care less about deadlifting 1.5x bodyweight, performing a strict, un-assisted chin-up, or doing anything with a barbell on their back.

As much of a fan as I am of encouraging women to pursue performance-based goals, many are happy (and do very well) following programs that suggest they use “light” weights or no weights at all.3

Hey, anything that nudges anyone into a consistent behavior that gets them active where the alternative is binge-watching Netflix is cool with me.

However, being the strength coach that I am, I’m biased, and feel such programs (you know, the ones that promise 10-20 lbs. lost in one week, but only if you follow a cabbage soup detox sprinkled with belly-button lint from a Centaur) lead to inferior results.

In all the articles I’ve written and points I’ve made detailing my beefs with female specific training and the problems I have with it, there’s one “thing” I’ve always neglected to point out.

The Biggest Problem With Female Specific Training is Using the Term “Female Specific Training” In the First Place

I kinda feel stupid for not addressing this obvious point sooner.

I remember listening to a story Mike Boyle said once where he chuckles every time he comes across a “ACL Prevention Program,” particularly when it comes to female athletes.

It’s BS.

Yeah, yeah, we can talk about how research demonstrates that female athletes are 6-8x more likely to tear their ACL compared to their male counterparts, how Q-angles enter the conversation, and even how estrogen receptors during the menstrual cycle can affect things.

20561464 - image of young woman football player hitting ball

Copyright: nexusplexus / 123RF Stock Photo

But at the end of the day, as Boyle noted, there’s no such a thing as an “ACL prevention program.” Any well-designed program that focuses on getting athletes stronger (particularly the posterior chain), teaches them how to decelerate and land properly, as well as works on change of direction and movement quality in general is an ACL prevention program in its own right.

And lets just call a spade a spade:  I don’t think it’s so much an ACL issue with women as it is “they’re just weak” issue.

Now, this doesn’t apply to all women of course. But generally speaking many women are “hand held” when it comes to programming (see above) and it just comes down to getting them stronger.  Plain and simple.

So while I do agree there sometimes exists a slight dichotomy between men and women, what their goals are, how they’d like to look, and how that affects our approach to training them, any program that teaches the basic movements – squat, hip hinge, push, pull, lunge, carry – caters those movements to fit the individual needs, ability level, and anatomy of the person, and then follows suit with the principles of progressive overload….is a (good) program.

Do we really need to call it “female specific?”

CategoriesFemale Training Motivational psychology rant Strength Training

Striving to Be More, Instead of Wanting to Be Less: Why Strength Training is a Perfect Fit for Women

I was going to title this article “Why Women Should Strength Train,” and then, being my witty/whimsical self, write something to the effect of:

“Because, it’s the shit.”

[Smoke bomb, smoke bomb. Exit stage left].

Copyright: bialasiewicz / 123RF Stock Photo

 

But that would have been lame for a few reasons:

  1. The title wouldn’t have been click-baity enough.
  2. There’s little to no context.4

It stands to reason if you’re reading a blog who’s tagline is “Because Heavy Things Won’t Lift Themselves” you need little convincing on the merits of strength training.

You’ve already been converted to the “dark side.” (<— Best if said using the same accent and inflection as Darth Vader from Empire Strikes Back).

 

However I’m hoping the commentary that follows will resonate with those who aren’t yet “converted,” have preconceived notions, and/or who have been programmed into thinking strength training is something women should not be doing, which saddens me deeply (and makes me want to hurl myself into a live volcano).

NOTE: If you happened to have stumbled on this website by accident using the key words “adorable,” “World’s best hugger,” or, I don’t know “crazy cat gentleman” then welcome! I hope you stick around for awhile.

What Strength Training Is Not

To be clear: “strength” is subjective. I feel part of the problem as to why some (not all) women refrain from strength training is that some (not all) automatically assume they have to be lifting heavy-ass weight.

Not true.

Yes, possessing the ability to deadlift 2x body-weight or to be able to bang out ten bodyweight chin-ups is impressive and is strong.

But strength can also be other things.

I mean, have you ever watched a Cirque du Soleil show and the crazy positions those performers can get into and hold? That’s strong too.

All that said, I’ve long been a champion of doing my part in debunking and offsetting the message the mainstream media often perpetuates to the masses (women in particular) with regards to strength training.

The message that strength training is for men and that women should focus more on “toning” or “lengthening” or any other vomit-in-my-mouth worthy phrase or comment the likes of Tracy Anderson has regurgitated over the years.

She’s had some doozies.

“No woman should lift a weight heavier than 3 lbs.”

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

“It’s important to use lighter weights so we can target our deep, less angry, stabilizing muscles. Also, dipping your left hand into a bucket of unicorn tears detoxes the body of sadness.”

One of the quotes above I made up. The fact you may have to figure out which one speaks to her asininity.

In General:

For men the message tends to lean towards “building” or “make stronger.”

For women the message tends to reverberate towards “to lessen” or “to slim” or “to make smaller.”

There’s nothing wrong with any of those things; if that’s your bag, that’s your bag.

So be it.

I just find the overall message of smaller, thinner, sexier, to be very toxic in nature and encourages a mindset that paints strength and strength training (with regards to women) as something that should be avoided altogether.

Strength = bulk, mass.

Strength = BAD.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ytCEuuW2_A

 

It Needs to Stop

Sure, I could wax poetic about how strength training for women helps to increase athletic performance, increase muscle mass (which helps improve body composition (muscle takes up less space than fat), metabolic rate, and overall caloric burn “at rest”), stave off osteoporosis/osteopenia, in addition to reducing the likelihood of injury.

ALL of these are wonderful things.

Yet still, many women refrain from the iron.

Like myself, my good friend, Ben Bruno, trains a lot of women.

He does a masterful job of framing strength and strength training as something that should be embraced and that more women should adopt and gravitate towards.

“It’s about strengthening the right areas,” he often says.

What makes his message all the more effective is that he works with some high-profile clients, and has them performing some kick-ass stuff.

Stuff that many women would be reticent to try because they’re deemed unconventional and don’t involve sitting in a room set at 106 degrees.

Kate Upton pushing 500+ lbs on the sled:

 Chelsea Handler hip-thrusting some significant weight:

No pink dumbbells in sight.

Embrace Strength & Strength Training

Why?

1) Because I Said So

I don’t treat the women I train any differently than the men I train, and I think they appreciate that.

What can I say: I’m a feminist.

I don’t “baby” them, I don’t treat them like delicate snowflakes, I don’t have them perform “girl push-ups,” and I don’t feed into any fanatical nonsense that placing a barbell on a their back is going to turn anyone into He-Man.

I treat the women the same as I treat the men.

Giving credit where credit is due: CrossFit has pretty much nipped this mindset in the bud in recent years. I see more and more women ditching the elliptical machines in lieu of barbells, and it’s amazing.

However, I’m not married to the barbell.

One’s goals and ability level will always dictate the path I’ll take with any client. Sometimes, and I credit Ben (Bruno) for this little tip, a little reverse psychology can help nudge a woman to the benefits of strength training.

The body can’t differentiate a barbell from a kettlebell from a dumbbell from a band.

Tension is tension.

While there was no “trickery” involved with the video above – I was using the KB and band to better groove Yael’s hip hinge – I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a female client give me the stink-eye when I tell her to lift “x” weight with a barbell, only to nonchalantly crush the same weight with a kettlebell or dumbbell.

As a coach, sometimes it’s best just to meet people where they are.

But it’s fantastic once the switch flips, and I can get a female client comfortable and more confident with barbells.

2) Body Acceptance

It’s impossible for me to elaborate more eloquently on this subject than how Jen Sinkler did recently:

“This weekend I was told by a man I knew in college that I was “unrecognizable” now thanks to my “really big arms.”

I love how I look. I love the thickness. It’s one of the reasons I lift. My concept of beauty is different now. It involves more determination.

No one gains muscle by doing nothing. It takes action, diligence, and a strong work ethic. Muscle represents those qualities, tells me about that person.

Hard work is beautiful.”

Another fantastic quote, from Fabienne Marier, which was in response to Jen’s quote above (as well as served as an impetus for the title of this article) also hits the nail on the head:

“I love that my body is now an ally, instead of being an adversary.

My look is deliberate, not accidental. And it’s the result of striving to be more, instead of wanting to be less.”

3) Get S*** Done

Every so often my wife is approached at the gym while she’s training, and in between sets of deadlifts or chin-ups, is asked by a curious onlooker, “what are you training for?”

Many people – men and women – watch her train and assume she’s training for a competition of some sort.

It’s a compliment, and she takes it as such.

But how often is a man asked that same question? No one blinks an eye when a man is using the squat rack.

Yet when a woman is using it, it’s assumed she’s a competitor.

Lisa has the most appropriate response, though:

“I’m training for life.”

BOOM.

Not coincidentally…she’s never asked me to open up a jar for her, she isn’t timid to move furniture, and she certainly doesn’t back down when she has to (farmer) carry the groceries a few blocks from the grocery store to our apartment.

She’s strong.

She…gets…shit…done.

4) Provides More Purpose and Intent

Strength training by it’s nature yields itself to more performance-based goals, which I am a huge fan of.

Whenever I start working with a woman and she’s all like “I want to lose ten lbs,” I’m all like (fast forward to the 0:35s mark in this clip)…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDQx1Kn9wUM

 

This IS NOT to discount or belittle someone’s goal to lose weight…it’s my job as their coach to dig deeper, peel back the onion, and figure out why this is the case (why do they want to lose 10 lbs?, why do they feel they need to lose 10 lbs?)….and then set them up for the best path of success possible.

However, in my experience, often (not always), it’s a lazy, shallow, and meaningless goal.

If anything, the sentence “I want to lose 10 lbs” is nothing more than a default setting many women have been programmed to say because, well, they don’t know what else to say.

Ladies: You’re not Microsoft Word.

You’re better than that.

Striving for more performance-based goals, and setting a higher standard for why you head to the gym day in and day out can be a game changer.

It frees you from a stagnant, poisonous mindset

Take my client, Shannon, as an example.

Client of mine, Shannon, hitting a top set of 260 lbs on her deadlift today. Solid lockout.

A video posted by Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore) on

Her goal is to deadlift 300 lbs. It’s not every female’s goal.

She arrives to every training session with a sense of vigor and passion that wouldn’t come close to what it consistently is if her goal was to “just lose 10 lbs.”

I’d argue that setting performance-based goals sets the tone for aesthetic goals anyways. All the hard work and dedication it takes to nail the performance goal –  whether it’s performing your first chin-up or hitting “x” number of reps of squats at “x” weight – allows for the aesthetic goals to just kinda happen.

Strength training helps to mold, shape, and add contour to the body.

You don’t “shape” anything by spending copious hours on the treadmill. You may lose weight, but you make yourself a smaller, weaker version of your original self.

If that’s what you want, cool. But I doubt that’s what you want.

Yeah, strength training is the shit.

Categoriescoaching Female Training Motivational psychology

Strong Body-Strong Mind Workshop

I’m pumped to announce the inaugural Strong Body-Strong Mind Workshop featuring myself and my wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis.

*smoke bomb, smoke bomb*

TA-DA!

This is an event Lisa and I have been marinating on for a few months now, and something we’re really excited to explore and hopefully make into a “thing.”

The 10-second Elevator Pitch:

1) I’ll spend the bulk of my time speaking on the Art of Coaching, program design, as well as sharing pictures of my cat spending a fair portion of time dissecting common barbell lifts; going over technique cues, troubleshooting strategies, and regressions/progressions.

2) Lisa (Doctorate in Sports Psychology) will speak to the Psychological Art of Coaching, as well as peel back the onion with regards to behavior change and how fitness professionals can best set up their clients and athletes for long-term, consistent success. In short, she’s totally going to demonstrate some Jedi mind-tricks.

This workshop will be an asset to any fitness professional or enthusiast looking to not only hone their coaching/programming prowess, but it will also provide more depth into the art of mindset, in addition to helping attendees learn to create/develop better interpersonal skills (with themselves and their clients).

The Deets

When: Saturday, June 18th.

Where: Life Time Fitness – Austin South, Austin, TX.

Why: Because Lisa and I are the bomb to hang out with (and we want some good BBQ).5

Cost: Early Bird (until June 1st) – $149, and $179 thereafter.

CEUs via the NSCA will be available.

Sign-Up: Click link below to register.




Categoriescoaching Female Training Strength Training

Find a Winning Community: Spandex Optional. Why More Woman Should Consider Strength Training

People tend to perform best and feel their best when they know they’re a part of a community.

This sentiment is true in almost any context whether referring to AA, drama club, team sports, galactic Empires, or hell, even one of those super secret societies, like in the movie Eyes Wide Shut. But it’s especially true within fitness circles.

It’s in fitness where people can commiserate in unison through a brutal squat session, conditioning circuit, or a random CrossFit WOD of muscles ups paired with running over your right arm with a Prowler for AMRAP.

In short: If you’re part of a (fitness) community you’re more likely to see things through, build an increased sense of perseverance and resiliency, and less likely to give up.

Too, you’re more likely to see the fruits of your labor; I.e., results!

I can attest to this phenomenon via my affiliation with Cressey Sports Performance for eight years, as well as my past experience training at South Side Barbell, a powerlifting gym formerly located in Stratford, CT.

When you train around like-minded individuals (or train with a purpose) great things happen.

CrossFit Gets All the Hype

There’s no denying the overwhelming sense of camaraderie and community that CrossFit has been able to establish amongst its fans and members in recent years. It’s something I commend with vigor.

Nothing has gotten the barbell in more people’s hands – especially women – than CrossFit.

However there’s another fitness “faction” that’s been doing the same thing for years, and one I feel is every bit as motivational and a champion of community as CrossFit.

Maybe even better in several ways.

And it’s a community I wish more people – especially women – would consider.

Drum roll please……..

Powerlifting (But Really, Strength Training In General)

Fear not ladies! I know the word “powerlifting” is often synonymous with “I’m not touching that with a ten foot pole.”

Besides, handstand push-ups and cartwheels look a helluva lot more fun than grinding out a heavy deadlift. I get it.

Plus, the word itself – powerlifting – reeks of intimidation and infers something only advanced lifters dabble in.

Relax. Deep breaths. There’s nothing advanced about it. At it’s base level..all powerlifting really means is strength training.

Besides, what follows assumes that you are equipped with some very basic tools: a working knowledge of gym lingo (you know the difference between a set and rep, can differentiate between a squat and a deadlift, and understand that the word “muscle confusion” is moronic). Also: if you recognize that this picture…..

…is of a dumbbell and not, say, a stapler…we’re good, and you can safely proceed knowing you’re not going to be over your head.

Why More Women Should Powerlift/Strength Train

Okay, I lied. There is a teeny tiny degree of intimidation tied to powerlifting. I mean, I felt it the first time I ever visited South Side Barbell with Eric Cressey back in 2006.

I had just moved to Connecticut (where Eric and I were working and living together) and I tagged along with Eric to South Side to get a lift in. Note: Eric was a competitive powerlifter at the time.

I remember walking through the doors the first time into a room full of 280+ lb giants warming up with my 1RM. Intimidation doesn’t begin to articulate what I was feeling. I was trying every trick in the book not to destroy the back of my pants.

Moreover, as the weeks passed, I had to “wear” the not-so-subtle ball-busting…you know, being the skinny, veiny guy and all. But it didn’t take long for me to be accepted and to feel as if I was part of the group; part of a team.

Likewise, it didn’t take long for me to understand that it was one of the most giving and educational experiences in my lifting career, despite not competing.

To reiterate, though, you don’t need to train AT a powerlifting gym in order to strength train. You can do it anywhere.

Also, on an aside: Spandex (those silly singlets) are only needed to compete.

1) Community

This is very much on par with CrossFit. The powerlifting community is a generous one, and one that will always give back (assuming you’re someone who will show up, do the work, and take a role as part of a team). Basically you need to give too, and not just take.

And like CrossFit, when you’re surrounded by like-minded individuals it’s pretty much impossible not to see results.

Cressey Sports Performance coach, Tony Bonvechio, started the CSP Women’s Powerlifting team a few months ago and when I was still there I saw firsthand how empowering and invigorating it was for the women who took part.

 

It was awesome to see them train as a team, and to watch them coach and cheer one another as they continued to hit PRs.

The “community” element can’t be understated, and I’d encourage anyone reading to seek out a facility or group to work with, even if it’s only 1x per week. It’s worth it.

2) Purpose

Admittedly, not everyone is going to have easy access to a facility or group of people who like to powerlift and/or strength train. But that doesn’t mean you still can’t reap the benefits.

Following a powerlifting/strength-centric program gives people PURPOSE in their training; a goal. It helps to take away the notion that progress (or results) is dictated by what the scale says or what the gossip magazines like to portray as the ideal body type.

Instead, powerlifting (like CrossFit) places higher credence on performance-based goals, which to me has a greater carryover to long-term, consistent progress than anything.

It’s funny: when things start to click and a woman latches on to strength as a positive thing – and not something to be condemned – many of the aesthetic markers she may have be working towards for years with little or no result begin to manifest.

It becomes less about “look at me, I’m hot. Do you think I’m hot? I’m hot, right?” and more about “look at me, and this deadlift PR I just smashed.”

3) Technique

By now some of you may be thinking:

“Well, it seems there’s not much difference between CrossFit and powerlifting in terms of advantages. So, why not just CrossFit?”

This third point is where I feel the two start to separate themselves.

Disclaimer: Yes, CrossFit, I know plenty of coaches and boxes you coach their athletes/clients up well, use intelligent programming, and take the time to properly ramp up or progress individuals based off ability level, goals, and limitations.

But lets be real: that’s the exception and not the rule. Because, CrossFit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opYj0XICHvQ

 

The overwhelming mentality is “lets do stuff because it looks cool and because it’s hard6” rather than “lets do stuff that will make people better, educate them, and allow them to build some semblance of fitness autonomy.”

As Dean Somerset noted recently:

“The benefits of learning technique for outweigh the benefits of simply doing an exercise. Using powerlifting principles to teach positioning, bracing, and organization to perform a lift helps to limit secondary movement from joints that shouldn’t be causing the movement, and helps reduce the likelihood of problems down the road.”

The principles of powerlifting help to build proficiency in the “big 3,” which makes the learning curve when introducing new movements much less of a barrier.

You learn to become your own coach.

Unapologetically Powerful

Jennifer Blake and Jen Sinkler have constructed a resource – Unapologetically Powerful – I feel will help a lot of women understand the power behind powerlifting. <— See what I just did there. Clever, right?

I mean, why should you have to “apologize” or feel ostracized because you’re strong or want to be strong?

They help to make powerlifting more accessible to women and less intimidating. Here’s what’s in the program

  • A comprehensive training manual that includes Beginner and Early Intermediate 12-week powerlifting programs with a detailed introduction to biofeedback training.
  • An extensive guide on how to compete for first-time powerlifters who want to step onto the platform.
  • A complete exercise glossary with clear-cut written coaching cues and images.
  • A MASSIVE video library of more than 140 exercise demonstration videos. Every movement in the program is in the video library, with detailed coaching cues to walk you through each exercise step by step.
  • A revamped version of Lift Weights Faster geared specifically toward powerlifters.

Unapologetically Powerful is on sale for HALF OFF now through midnight Friday, December 11. For more info, click HERE.

Categoriescoaching Exercise Technique Female Training Strength Training

3 Squat Variations You Haven’t Tried Yet, But Need To

Today’s guest post comes courtesy of Jennifer Vogelgesang Blake – or JVB as she’s affectionately called – a coach at The Movement Minneapolis, competitive powerlifter, and author (along with Jen Sinkler) of Unapologetically Powerful, a new resource designed as a go-to source for learning the “big 3” lifts, and removes the intimidation often attached at their hip.

Or weight clamps in this case.

Anyone can (and will) benefit from this resource – especially beginner and intermediate lifters who are even the slightest bit interested in competing and/or honing their technique.

And, I’d be remiss not to mention I feel this is a home run for any woman who may be on the fence about this whole “lifting heavy things” thing.  

Without further ado, I’ll let JVB take it from here. Enjoy!

3 Squat Variations You Haven’t Tried Yet, But Need To

I’m going to be bracingly honest with you. If I were forced to choose, with my feet to the fire, I would have to own up to liking to squat more than I like to deadlift.

(I can picture Tony Gentilcore’s eyes firing up like Darth Sidius in The Empire Strikes Back and pledging an oath to never host a guest blog from me on his site ever again. This is what they call “going out on a limb.”)

I don’t think it’s unusual for lifters to hold a slight allegiance to one or the other. Both big lifts remind me of a bricklayer laying bricks: strengthening the quads, hams, back, and core are going to construct a house no one is going to be able to knock down. Even so, to me, there’s something really thrilling about loading a bar onto your back and refusing to let it plaster your face into the ground.

 

Squats open up the lifting in a powerlifting meet.

Of the three main lifts (back squat, bench press, and deadlift), squats come first. I’ve come to regard this lift as the party starter—it sets the tone for the rest of the day.

Starting the meet off strong gets your mind in a good place and a great result there infuses confidence into the following two lifts. Feeling strong also improves your mental game.

On that note, make all versions of your squat the same sort of tone-setter.

There are so many riffs on the movement: bilateral variations, such as kettlebell goblet squats and barbell front squats, are excellent for targeting anterior core strength, and unilateral variations such as Bulgarian split squats, skater squats, and pistol squats are key for giving both legs the chance to work, and to even out strength imbalances.

These variations are like the sprinkles on a cupcake, though: while I like to sprinkle that ish liberally, I know that these sprinkles alone do not a great, big, fluffy cupcake make.

I acknowledge that I need to work on my similes, but you don’t have to be a powerlifter to embrace cupcakes and the following three lifts, you only have to be interested in improving your strength everywhere—but especially in your core and in the bottom position of a squat. If you are, chances are good that you could give your current back squat PR a nice bump if you incorporate them regularly.

Barbell Squat-To-Box

First things first: what’s the point of having a big squat if it’s not a big, full-range-of-motion squat? Quarter squats don’t count when you’re going for bragging rights.

Depth issues sometimes come down to a lack of awareness in how low you are actually getting.

Heads up: Don’t confuse the Barbell Squat-To-Box with Barbell Box Squats, a variation in which you actually sit on the box. This is a touch-and-go movement and will help you learn what it actually feels like to squat to proper depth.

 

Zercher Squat

When David Dellanave, owner of The Movement Minneapolis, originally showed me how to do the Zercher squat, I was like, “Really? Why would I want to hold the bar like that?” His answer, “It’s going to get you really f#cking strong, that’s why.”

Zercher squats hammer your quads like crazy, and you’ve never experienced an ab workout quite as intense as a set of heavy Zercher squats. Getting your body strong in weird positions will make lifting in more conventional position that much more lovely.

Zercher squats require that you hold the weight in the crook of your elbows while you complete the movement. The Zercher isn’t just limited to the squat, either: you can also Zercher hold, carry, and deadlift. Because of the position of the weight on your body, this variation is killer for strengthening the upper back.

Hot Tip: Wrap the bar in padding or even a yoga mat for greater comfort.

 

Pause-in-the-Hole Squat

Many lifters rely on the stretch reflex, that rubber-band-like contraction that happens when the muscles stretch at the bottom of the squat, to bounce out of the hole. There’s nothing inherently wrong with taking advantage of this phenomenon, which is particularly handy when attempting to move the most weight your body can handle.

But, there’s something to be said for eliminating the bounce and building strength from a dead stop in the bottom position.

It means you’ll be less likely to stay stuck in the hole.

Pause-in-the-Hole Squats are a favorite for addressing this issue because your position must inherently stay tight from the top position and hold tight throughout the bottom pause (lest you topple) before driving out of the hole. The extra time under tension will fully hammer home the need to keep the upper back tight and entire core braced, as well as build static strength in the lower back, hips, and abs.

Pausing at the bottom is undeniably challenging, even when your form is shipshape, so lessen the weight accordingly.

 

About JVB

Jennifer Vogelgesang Blake’s leggings might be pink but her weights aren’t. A personal trainer at The Movement Minneapolis, she is a powerlifting coach and competitor with a passion for helping her clients discover and grow their strength, inside and out.  She’s here to spread the good word that strong is empowering and because of that, really, really fun.

Unapologetically Powerful is here!

Are you ready to become Unapologetically Powerful? If you’re even just a little bit interested in improving your back squat, bench press, and deadlift, and building lean, beautiful muscle, you’re going to love digging into this program.

Unapologetically Powerful is your go-to resource to learning all about the “big three” lifts, and removes any intimidation from training for and competing, should you decide to, in the sport of powerlifting.

Trainers Jen Sinkler and JVB have teamed up to provide you the answers to all of your powerlifting questions—and get you radically and unapologetically strong. Here’s what’s in the program:

  • A comprehensive training manual that includes Beginner and Early Intermediate 12-week powerlifting programs with a detailed introduction to biofeedback training.
  • An extensive guide on how to compete for first-time powerlifters who want to step onto the platform.
  • A complete exercise glossary with clear-cut written coaching cues and images.
  • A MASSIVE video library of more than 140 exercise demonstration videos. Every movement in the program is in the video library, with detailed coaching cues to walk you through each exercise step by step.
  • A revamped version of Lift Weights Faster geared specifically toward powerlifters.

Unapologetically Powerful is on sale for HALF OFF now through midnight Friday, December 11. For more info, click HERE.

CategoriesExercise Technique Female Training personal training Program Design Strength Training

How To Improve Chin-Ups and Pull-Ups From the Ground

Excuse my language: but fuck what the scale says.

I hate that the scale is often deemed the end-all, be-all measure of progress; the litmus test innumerable people gravitate towards to gauge their success when it comes to their health and well-being (or worse, self worth).

I’ve written on this topic before – Should You Use Scale Weight As a Measure of Success? – so I won’t go too off tangent here. Besides, if I do I’ll get all worked up, emotional, and inevitably end up having to resist the urge to Sparta kick a random wall in my apartment.

But in case you’re too cool for school to read the article it can be summed up as follows:

  1. See that scale in your bathroom?
  2. Toss it out the window.
  3. But be sure no one is standing underneath it.
  4. Because, you know, you run the risk of someone wanting to fight you. Or, you’ll kill them. Which would suck.
  5. Just read the article will ya?

Why Performance Based Goals Matter

Whenever I start working with a client (male or female) I almost always “nudge” them towards a performance based goal, rather than something arbitrary like:

“I want to lose 10 lbs.”

Or

“I’d like to look like Hugh Jackman when he’s Wolverine.”

Or

“I want to lose fat here (<— points to body part).”

Or

“I want to mud wrestle Rhonda Rousey.”

Save for the last one, which is creepy as hell7, none of these “goals” speak to anything concrete or quantifiable.

It amazes me how often the magic number is “10 lbs” whenever someone refers to losing weight, as if that number really means anything. Likewise, will looking like Hugh Jackman as Wolverine make you a better human being?

Yep, probably

This isn’t to belittle these goals or begrudge the people who make them. Honestly, if either of them are what helps keep people motivated to train and to stay consistent with their training I’m all for it.

I just feel these types of goals pale in comparison to setting concrete, measurable, performance-based goals. Goals like deadlifting 1x, 1x5x, or 2x bodyweight, or bench pressing bodyweight for reps, or being able to bang out a clean, full ROM, bodyweight chin-up/pull-up.

THESE are the markers of true progress IMO.

Here’s a video of Lisa hitting 5-reps during one of the 17,9428 snow storms we had last winter in Boston.

I feel it’s these types of goals which give people more intent and purpose in their training. Moreover, from my own experience as a coach, it’s these types of goals which (almost always) result in people attaining their aesthetic goals as well.

And, as an added benefit: more often than not, the whole notion that “scale weight” means anything is tossed to the curb (especially as it relates to the toxic mindset and environment that many women impose on themselves).

I dig that.

The sooner I can get them to say “sayonara” to the scale, the better.

So, Speaking of Chin-Ups/Pull-Ups

I work with a lot of women as a coach, and it’s not uncommon for many to express how they’d love to eventually be able to perform a chin-up/pull-up.

Unfortunately, for some, the negative self-talk takes over.

Whether because they’ve been programmed to think otherwise from magazines which tell them that lifting 3-5 lb dumbbells is what they’re supposed to be doing, or from ill-informed and ill-intentioned trainers in the past who bought into the bullshit and “vomited” said bullshit in their direction …many are left thinking themselves:

“I’ll never be able to do that!”

With that mindset: you’re 100% correct.

However, with the right information, support, and plan…it is possible.

[The video below highlights a 6-Week Chin-Up Challenge I wrote for Women’s Health back in 2013, where a number of the participants succeeded].

I’ve had a slight change in strategy of late, though. My initial “step” to training the chin-up/pull-up with the bulk of my female clients9 starts from the floor and not from the chin-up/pull-up bar.

Say Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

Much of the credit goes to Artemis Scantalides. It’s been the information I’ve gleaned from her that’s been the main influence on my revamped approach.

The biggest “take home” point is allowing people to understand and respect the importance of getting and maintaining full-body tension, and then taking that tension and applying it to the bar.

Many are unable to grasp this concept and frankly, until they do, aren’t ready to hang from a bar.

This can be done in several ways, and it doesn’t require anything elaborate or fancy.

1. Push-Ups

Yep, plain ol’ vanilla-flavored push-ups.

Improve someone’s ability to perform a push-up, and inevitably you’ll see improvements in the sexier lifts like deadlifts, squats, and chin-ups/pull-ups.

Why?

Better lumbo-pelvic-hip control and a better understanding of core tension (specifically: Anterior core control).

The sooner one learns to “own” the push-up, the sooner he or she will own the weight room. And I don’t mean “girl push-ups” either. You know, the ones that girls are supposed to perform with their knees on the ground.

I think those a stupid and set a dangerous precedent.

Girls can (and will) do push-ups. We just may need to augment them to better set them up for success.

Elevated Push-Up

 

Band Assisted Push-Up

 

One variation a really like that better emulates carry-over to the chin-up/pull-up is:

Push-Up Walkout to Plank

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2DzjiJsllc

 

2. Rollout Variations

Along the same lines as the push-up, I also find a ton of validity in rollout variations. Many of the same benefits apply: cuing of bodily tension (brace abs, squeeze glutes), better anterior core activation, and improved lumbo-pelvic-hip control.

What’s more: the rollout – from the extended position back to an upright position – very much “copies” the pulling motion akin to the chin-up/pull-up.

 

Both exercises are crucial in introducing tension and bodily awareness and help to build context in a more “user friendly” manner. It’s not uncommon for me to program one or the other – choosing from a wide array of variations – every training session for some trainees.

Another teaching tool I’ve been using a lot of late (thanks to Artemis and other coaches like Karen Smith) is something called the Hollow Position.

The Hollow Position (w/ Stick)

 

This move has been a game changer for me as a coach, and something I’ve been incorporating into many of the programs of my new clients in Boston, like Alex in the video above.

The Key Points to Remember

  1. They must press both the ankles and hands together. This will create TENSION.
  2. The legs and upper torso must move simultaneously (the spine needs to stay in a anatomically neutral position).
  3. The objective, to start, is to build-up time under tension. For many, 5 seconds will be challenging. It may be best to perform 3-5 repetitions of 5s holds (with 5-10s rest in between), and build up from there. With Alex I’m working up to one, strict 30s hold. She loves it/hates my guts.
  4. Adding the stick helps to build context even more, which will translate nicely once someone “graduates” to the bar.
  5. Once they do progress to hanging from a bar, the hollow position is still paramount. From there we can train both the bottom and top of the chin-up/pull-up with hanging leg raise variations and flexed-arm hang variations (ensuring maintenance of hollow position and “sucking” the shoulder blades into the sockets).

And Most Important Of All….

Once I clicked “publish” on this article: there are 30 Days, 8 Hours, and 43 Minutes until Star Wars Episode VII premiers.

Not that I’m keeping track or anything…..

Categoriescoaching Female Training psychology rant

Stop “Should-ing” All Over Yourself

This past weekend I attended the I Am Not Afraid To Lift Workshop at Iron Body Studios in West Roxbury, MA. It’s an event created by Artemis Scantalides geared mainly towards women – although men are encouraged to attend too – that teaches strength training as a form of empowerment, a road to improved confidence, and a less arduous avenue towards increased autonomy.

(In addition to giving the attendees any excuse to flex their biceps whenever possible).

It shouldn’t take more than 1.7 seconds to find where I’m located in this picture.

What made this past weekend particularly special for me was that my wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis (located front row, 3rd from left, next to Artemis, on her right), was a co-presenter invited to speak on the topic of mindset, dealing with negative self talk, and to elucidate further on some of the psychological hurdles that many trainees tend to encounter in the weight room…and in life.

As someone who works with a lot of women and who has long championed the idea that strength training is a good thing and something that should be embraced and not euthanized in lieu of buzz words like “toned,” “long,” “lean,” and “sexy”…I felt this was a perfect melding of worlds, and something there’s a massive need for.

Artemis speaking to the intricacies of the deadlift, squat, swing, press, and chin-up/pull-up – both from a coaching/cueing and program design perspective – and Lisa speaking to many of the pervasive mental road blocks many women and men battle on a daily basis which CAN be managed with some easily implemented drills and strategies.

“Should-ing” On Ourselves

While speaking with an attendee about her anxieties and frustrations about not being able to hit a specific fitness goal, Lisa commented, “It sounds like your “SHOULD-ING” all over yourself, instead of feeling energized by your goal.”

The entire room erupted in laughter10. I’m lucky I wasn’t drinking anything at the time, because this totally would have been me:It was an awesome line, but not a Lisa original.

She borrowed it from Dr. Albert Ellis who’s the man responsible for something referred to as RET, or Rational Emotive Therapy. RET was popular decades ago, before CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) came on the scene. Ellis would focus on “irrational thoughts” as the source of our anxieties and negative emotions.

I have to assume there’s a book somewhere out there with big, fancy words or entire courses describing this type of therapy in more glamorous detail, but in other words it can be broken down like this:

The origin of your problem isn’t actually the problem… it’s how you’re thinking about the problem.

Some common health and fitness examples may include:

“I’m not fit until I can run a marathon or deadlift 2x bodyweight.”

“I’m not in shape until I have a six pack or I’m “x” dress size.”

“I have to workout every day.”

“If I don’t achieve my goal of hitting a bodyweight chin-up, I’m a failure.”

Lisa interviewing an attendee on her “mental roadblocks” and anxiety about hitting a specific fitness goal.

Many of us form these beliefs and inevitably turn them into doctrine:

Who says they’re real in the first place?

Who says you have to deadlift 2x bodyweight?

Who says you have to train everyday?

Who says you have to lose 10 lbs. in order to look good in a bikini?

Who said that? Who says these rules?

A trainer? An article your read on the internet? Some magazine cover? A Kardashian?

Even me?

Even if a reliable source makes a professional recommendation about what you “should” be doing – does that mean it’s come down from the mountain? No11. My goal as a fitness professional is to help – offer ideas, alternatives, new ways to approach your strength goals. But if something I (or anyone else) recommends doesn’t help, and in fact makes you stressed, feel bad, or NOT WANT to pursue your fitness goals, THROW IT OUT!

Try a different approach.

It’s All Made Up

The thing to point out – especially as it relates to YOUR goals and YOUR happiness – is that there are no rules. Everything – more or less – is someone else’s belief. Someone else’s opinion.

[Not coincidentally to help sell an ebook, or DVD, or Gluten-free, GMO, organic, Acai Pills soaked in Unicorn tears.]

That doesn’t mean it’s right for you.

As Lisa notes:

“Buying into a “rule” that makes you unhappy is the problem.”

And this is something that permeates into other aspects of our lives as well; not just fitness.

We make rules for ourselves – often irrationally and without much thought – and make a habit of measuring our happiness, sense of well-being, and worse, our overall sense of self-worth on our ability to successfully cross these rules off like a checklist:

  • I have to – should – be married by the time of 28.
  • I have to – should – make Dean’s List every semester.
  • I have to – should–  be making “x” amount of money per year.
  • I have to – should – get caught up on Game of Thrones12.

Bringing the discussion back to health and fitness, according to Lisa:

“If “shoulding on yourself” is messing you up and makes you feel upset, then it’s time to reevaluate.”

That’s not the point of fitness. Don’t should on yourself.

If you can deadlift 290 lbs and your goal is 300, are you any less accomplished or less of a person? Does all the hard work you put in for the past few months (or years) all of a sudden become moot or negated because of 10 lbs?

It’s true: we celebrate growth and progress in the gym by how much weight is on the bar. We take before and after pictures. We set goals and standards for ourselves, which is fantastic.

However, once we allow someone else’s arbitrary (even if well intentioned) rule from a magazine or book affect our well-being – I should be avoiding carbohydrates after 6PM (even though I feel lethargic and want to drop kick everyone in the face), I should be back squatting (even though it never feels good, despite good coaching) – and it becomes more toxic than helpful… it’s time to change your mindset.

In the end who cares? What matters and what’s important is that you recognize the process is every bit as important as the outcome.

It’s time to stop SHOULDING all over yourself.

How about you? Any “shoulds” out there that you’d like to share? Lisa says it can help to acknowledge and “put it out there” to help yourself start to reevaluate what really matters…

Thanks for your thoughts!

CategoriesFemale Training rant

Hey Vogue Magazine, Thanks For Setting Women’s Fitness Back A Few Decades

My wife is angry at you Vogue. And so am I.

The other night as I plopped down on the couch after a long day at the gym to say hello to Lisa and to catch up on her day, she chuckled and said, “oh boy, do I have something to show you.”

She had ripped a page out of this month’s issue of Vogue Magazine (August 2015, pg. 128) and handed it to me.

Knowing it was Vogue I wasn’t sure what to expect. All I knew was that Lisa had handed me the piece of paper with some conviction.

Was it fashion tips for me?13 Outlandish outfits? Offensive accessories? Was neon green named this year’s color of Fall? Shit, no, maybe it was something far, far worse…skinny jeans for men are here to stay!?!?!

Thankfully it had nothing to do with any of those things.

Rather the article she handed me was on, of all things….foam rolling?

At first my wife was like “oh, wow, cool…..I can’t believe there’s an article on the benefits of foam rolling in a mainstream magazine like Vogue!”But then she read it, and noticed the all-too familiar feeling she gets whenever she ends up reading mainstream fitness fiction: Disappointment and the uncontrollable urge to punch a wall.

I couldn’t find a link online, so I opted to take a picture instead. Here you go.

I take no responsibility if a small piece of your soul dies:

Behold: A parfait of fitness fact and fiction, topped with a fluffy yet crisp meringue of bullshit. Toning, lengthening, leaning, bullshit.

Some Highlights:

1. The subtitle:

“Amid the current craze for foam props, Courtney Rubin asks, can they really make you LONG AND LEAN – or is that a bit of a stretch?”

– Is the craze really that current? I started using foam rollers with my clients over a decade ago. I’ll give a pass here because Vogue is a fashion magazine, not a fitness magazine, and staying on top of the latest fitness trends isn’t their strong suit. Plus, Lisa did defend this subtitle, reminding me that foam rollers can now be spotted in gyms, commercial and otherwise, as well as stores like Marshall’s and other chains with popular fitness equipment.

However, after reading on, I wished Vogue decided not to stray from their wheel house.

– Because lo and behold, there they were, those terrible words, rearing their ugly heads again….the dreaded “long and lean” buzz words that mainstream magazines love to use to prey on women and promote unrealistic expectations.

2. From the first paragraph of the article:

“These days, those of us who dream of long and lean (<—ahhh, my eyes) physiques are turning to – or rather, rocking over – foam rollers.”

– LOLLOLOLLOL. I see what you just did there Vogue. Very witty. But come on, can we stop with the LONG AND LEAN nonsense?

Let’s first review a clear and permanent fact you can’t lengthen a muscle without lengthening bone. Muscles have what we refer to as an origin and insertion. This is something you cannot change without some rather extensive (and painful) bone lengthening surgery or a magic spell from Professor Dumbledore.

And lean means fat loss. People become more lean by losing fat. By alluding that foam rolling will lead to lean physiques is somewhat comical and borderline shameful. But hey, catchy titles that use buzzwords sells magazines right?

A defender of the article might argue that a muscle could technically be “longer” (or lie flatter?) after scar tissue, adhesions, or “the kinks” as they refer to them, has been rolled out. Do you think your reader is thinking technically, Vogue? Of course you don’t. You know that when the average reader is reading “longer and leaner muscles” she is not envisioning excellent tissue quality, like this:You know that she’s envisioning this:

So, was this statement made out of ignorance of human anatomy, or a deliberate twisting, or “spinning” of a fact in order to promote magical thinking? Either way, it is offensive to those who know better, and a major disservice to those who don’t, but would very much like to!

Many (not all) women who read this article are going to equate foam rolling with trimming their waist and getting skinnier, which is absurd.

This is why people (women and men) do stupid shit, often waste their time spinning their wheels at the gym, and why many have unrealistic expectations and rarely (if ever) attain the results they’re after.

Foam rolling DOES have a place and there’s a ton of validity to it. Just not in the way it’s being portrayed in this article.

Continuing On

3. From there it’s more blah, blah, blabiddy, blah and then we get into some legit, credible information:

“Rolling key areas of the body such as the hamstrings or hips back and forth for as little as a minute releases fascia – the connective tissue that webs through our muscles and contracts to produce stiffness and pain. Lose the kinks, the thinking goes, and you will improve body function and lengthen muscles, too.”

– Love it! The article did give a loose “background” of the history of foam rolling and how it’s been traced back to the rehab/physical therapy realm, that it targets fascia, and that rolling helps “break up” connective tissue which can (not always) lead to stiffness and pain. Bravo

It’s quick and a bit reductive in it’s explanation, but whatever. It’s not inherently wrong. And I’d imagine there was a word count to be cognizant of.

Unfortunately, this brief little blurb takes another wrong turn – right back to fiction. This is why everyone gets duped. Articles like this toss out a fact as bait, switch to fitness fiction, brimming with magical cures and fairy princesses (or Gwyneth Paltrow. But same difference), and then start to mind fuck the reader.

Cue Revolutionary Magic Pill

4. And right on cue we get introduced to some revolutionary answer/quick fix.

“So and so’s (I’m not going to share the name, you can read it for yourself) foam rolling method is designed to redistribute bulk – her clients, who include Devon Aoki (no idea who that is) Gwyneth Paltrow14 say the elongating effects of six months of biweekly $495 sessions can help trim their waists.”

– What does “redistribute bulk” mean?

Push around problem areas?

What is “bulk”? Is it fat? Muscle? Vital organs? Whatever it is, it’s negative, and when you prompt the average American woman to consider the presence of “bulk” on her body, the resulting thoughts and feelings are not good.

They’re negative, judgmental, and completely fictional. What’s worse, is that the average American woman now believes she has discovered a method of “redistributing” her unwanted “bulk” (again – love handles? Juicy quads? Kidneys?)

So anyone reading this is going to think to herself, “Hmm, I have big thighs and big hips,”(undoubtedly leading to a negative inner monologue about her body) and THEN she’s thinking a foam roller is going redistribute her bulk from her hips and thighs to maybe other areas of her body.15

FML.

– Also, can we do the math? Six month’s worth of twice-a-week foam rolling instruction is costing someone roughly $12,000???? Must be tricky! It must be too complicated/sophisticated/dangerous for someone to perform on her own. For free.

 

Even more ironic is that I googled some videos put up by said foam rolling expert and most of them don’t even show her using the foam roller for its intended use (in the away the Vogue article suggests). I mean, she uses the foam roller (as a prop) to perform various glute bridges, push-ups, rollouts, etc…but not in the way suggested by the article.

Sure, the article says “props” but then discusses rocking/rolling and addressing fascia/kinks/etc. Not the same thing.

To her credit, though, the woman does have several videos demonstrating more traditional uses geared towards self-myofascial release and addressing (soft) tissue quality, which I am 100% on board with.

But still: $12,000? To bridge and perform push-ups? Yowsa/mad respect.

– Next:

CAN HELP TRIM THEIR WAISTS???!!!! My wife was yelling when we got to this part. Vogue has just notified all readers that they can trim their waists by foam rolling. Just let that sink in.

A Trimmer Waist.

By F*&%#@^ FOAM ROLLING!

But the best case scenario is that women read this article and feel indignant and insulted. Buzzwords like elongating, lean, lengthen, etc should instantly put up a red flag. The worst scenario? That women are going to read this article and think foam rolling will trim their waist and get them leaner. (Just for the record. One more time. Fat loss gets folks leaner).

NOTE: It would help if Vogue took the time to differentiate between actual foam rolling and using the word prop correctly. I know, I’m being nit-picky.

5. In the middle we get some more quality nuggets of information, this time factual (again the parfait effect):

Rolling is also beloved for its performance-enhancing properties. “I recommend foam rolling prior to physical activity,” says Nina Figeroa, owner of Base Physical Therapy, where the majority of clients are assigned foam-rolling homework.

Awesome. I’m on board with that. I feel bad for Nina, though. She’s most likely someone who’s well-versed and understands the science, yet quoted in an article selling foam-rolling as a body slimming method.

6. And the coup de grace, end-all-be-all shititude of a comment from the article:

“Makeup artist Gucci Westman has two rollers at home, one long, one short, to help her break up lactic acid before and after workouts.”

Amazing!!!!!

Too bad lactic acid is “buffered” by the body fairly quickly and converted back to glucose to be used as energy substrate during exercise.

Lactic acid doesn’t “build up.”

Lactic acid can’t be broken up by a foam roller.

Do you even science Vogue Magazine? And why are you soliciting fitness advice from make-up artists?

Come On Vogue!

You just wrote an article that set women’s fitness back decades, and told them that foam rolling will slim their waist and worse, redistribute bulk. Why not just roll out some stock footage from the 1920’s of women using those vibrating belts to battle belly fat?

It’s just as useful as this article.

Worse, you continue to use fictional buzz words and questionable commentary that does nothing other than confuse the reader and make the weeds thicker. You can do better than that.

For the record: This isn’t advice coming from a meanie head strength coach either. This is coming from my wife, a reader of your magazine. A fan of your magazine. And a woman who’s offended on behalf of women who want to learn and understand how to be fit and gorgeous.