CategoriesMotivational Strength Training

Jedi Mind Tricks to Make You Instantly Stronger

Today I have a guest post by St. Louis based personal trainer Ian Fagala. Ian actually reached out to me right before I left for vacation about writing a little sumthin sumthin for the website while I was away, but unfortunately I dropped the ball and forgot to put it up.

Oopsies.

In any case, when Ian forwarded the article to me and I saw the title, he had me at Jedi.

Some of the tips may see obvious, but they’ll still serve as a nice reminder that we don’t need to make things more complicated than they have to be.

Enjoy!

I’ve been at this lifting thing for a while now, approximately 14 years, which is hard to believe.  Now I’m no weightlifting prodigy, but having been in the game that length of time I’ve learned a thing or two.

Learning is a funny thing because we come armed to the teeth with information via google and the internet, but how much of that knowledge actually turns to wisdom?  Because wisdom I contend is much more about putting knowledge into action, than simply knowing answers.

However, I don’t believe your reading this article to listen to me wax philosophic about knowledge and wisdom, you want to find out how you can instantly get stronger.  Your goal might be to deadlift a Mac Truck, or bench press a volkswagen, but the distinction between knowledge and wisdom is an important one.

The reason is, I can list these two simple hacks to make you stronger, and you can know the answer of how to improve your lifts, but without actually putting them into action they don’t mean didley-squat.  (It’s only a bonus that I’ve made a Star Wars reference to illustrate them!).

#1 Confidence

You’ve seen it before, confidence that is.  For a prime example check out Ronnie Coleman below, arguably one of the best bodybuilders of all time.

The phrase “lightweight” is an example of it for Ronnie.

It doesn’t mean you psyche yourself and scream, yell, and sniff ammonia caps (you don’t’ want to be that guy), but you get ready for a tough set or PR by setting your mind on the task at hand without any other distractions.

You have to be confident that when you walk up to or slide under that bar and start to crush it with your grip, you know that you know that you know the only acceptable outcome is success.

#2 Visualization

This can tie pretty intimately to number one.

Visualization, as I’ve started practicing it, before tough sets usually increases my confidence before a lift.  Many pro and olympic athletes use visualization to increase success in their respective sports, and if it’s good enough for them it’s good enough for me.

Before you un-rack the weight, take a few seconds and play a tape in your mind of every step of the set or lift attempt.  Start by stepping up to the bar, gripping it and feeling the iron in your hands, imagine yourself getting into optimal positioning, and go through your entire setup.

Then continue through the set or attempt in your mind, each and every rep, and when you finish your set conjure up the same feelings you would have if you actually succeeded.

#3 Whole Body Tightness

I’m sure at this point some of you reading may be under the impression that I sit in the corner of the gym in the lotus position before I lift. Far from it.  I actually do lift heavy things, and one of the concepts that I feel many trainees fail to address is whole body tightness or stiffness.

Getting tight is an easy way to instantly add more weight to the bar.  Tony’s talked a lot about things like irradiation and the importance of gripping the bar hard, by adding the same advice to the rest of the body you can likely slip a few more pounds on the bar during your next training session.

Note from TG:  here’s a video I shot for BodyBuilding.com which helps explain how engaging the lats – and gaining more TENSION – can have profound effects on deadlift performance.

Note from TG (continued…sorry I’m hijacking your article Ian): The same idea or principle can be applied to any lift, but it fits perfectly with the “big three” (deadlift, squat, bench press).

Bringing the conversation to the squat, one major mistake I see a lot of people make is how they approach the bar and set-up.  Many will just haphazardly approach the bar without any intent or care in the world as if they’re Dorothy skipping down the yellow-brick road, duck under, un-rack the weight, and then perform their set.

Major, major mistake.

How you set-up for a lift is going to make or break the set.  Always. No Discussion.

Don’t you roll your eyes at me mister!!  I’ll send you up to your room with no supper. I’ll do it!

For a better idea of what I mean, check out the video below on how I coach someone to set-up to squat properly.  The theme is TENSION!

It’s uncanny how surprised people are with how much more weight they can handle once they understand and grasp the concept of tension. It will take some tinkering around, but it’s not at all uncommon for people to add 10-25 lbs to their lift in one session.

About the Author

Ian is a Fitness Professional that has been working in and around the St. Louis area for the last 10 years or so.  Most days you’ll find him at the gym or spending time with his family.  He has worked with people from all walks of life and is passionate about helping regular people reach their fitness goals.  You can read more about him at his blog  or you can find him at his Facebook page HERE.

About the Author Who Hijacked the Author’s Article

Tony trains people, and writes stuff.  Outside of his cat, Dagny, he’s obsessed with Matt Damon, Star Wars (obviously), and cheese.  God, he loves cheese.

Categoriespersonal training Program Design Strength Training

“How Much Weight Should I Use?”

Do any of you have a question or statement that, when blurted out, automatically sets off your inner Jaws theme music playlist?

For guys it could be something like, “hey, wanna go see the latest Julia Roberts movie?” or worse your girlfriend comes home and says, “I know what we could do tonight instead of watching Game of Thrones. Lets talk about our feelings!”

For the ladies some prime examples could be “babe, do you mind if the guys come over to play some cards?” or “was that good for you?”

There’s no right or wrong answer here.  We’re all human. It’s in our nature to get annoyed on occasion.

I hate to say it, but for me there’s one question that sometimes (not always) sets me over the ledge.

“Tony, how much weight should I use?”

I feel guilty because it’s a question, especially for those who aren’t seasoned veterans in the weight room, is applicable and is a reasonable one to ask. Moreover, as a strength coach it’s my job to guide people and point them in the right direction.

Sometimes I have to fight back the urge to say something along the lines of, “if you can do more reps than what’s called for, it’s too light.  If you can’t, take some weight off.”

But then I’d just be an a-hole.

On the flip side, I do feel that people – trainers and coaches included – tend to make things waaaaaaay more complicated than they have to be.  This isn’t a question that should involve some advance algorithm or a degree from NASA.

In my latest article for BodyBuilding.com I try my best to break things down and explain how I approach the “how much weight should I use” conundrum.

Click Me <—– But Gently, I Did Legs Yesterday.

CategoriesStrength Training

4 Ways to Make Exercise Harder

For many, the whole point or notion of going to the gym is to see how “hard” they can make it. To test the waters, and to find out just how far they can push their body.

To answer the question: what exactly is my outer limit?

In some ways this mentality – leaving the gym swimming in a pool of your own sweat or coming thiiiiiis close to throwing up a lung – serves as a right of passage to achieve gym-hero status.

While a part of me wants to (and to some degree can) respect this sentimentality, making exercise harder for the sake of making it harder can be analogous to playing tag with a pair of scissors in your hands.

With rare exceptions, it’s generally not a good idea.

This isn’t to say that one shouldn’t strive to push him or herself in the gym by any stretch. On the contrary, it’s just to point out that most people would be better served to focus more on quality of movement over quantity of movement.  And, rarely (if ever) is it in someone’s best interests to implement harder, more advanced techniques and protocols like adding chains or bands or conjugate periodization or Olympic lifting 0r juggling chainsaws without first having mastered the basics.

I know, I know:  doing your push-ups correctly isn’t nearly as fun as slapping on some chains and bench pressing till you can’t feel the left side of your face.

But I don’t want to play Debbie Downer here.  I want people to work hard, and I want people to push themselves.

That said, here are some simple ways to make your exercises a bit more challenging.

1. Uh, Add More Weight

This is my Captain Obvious comment of the day, and seems self-explanatory.  I always chuckle a little bit whenever someone says, “Tony, “X” exercise is too easy.”

Add some weight Sherlock…..;o)

I say this one with a grain of salt, though.

One of my golden rules with my athletes and clients is to never sacrifice form/technique for more weight.

The more advanced or the more time under the barbell someone has the more leeway they get with this rule. But for 90-95% of people, 90-95% of the time, this rule always applies.

Stealing a line from Mike Robertson:  There’s no such thing as perfect technique.

Anyone who says their technique is perfect is an asshole.  Point blank.  I know some really strong dudes (and gals) who have been training themselves (as well as other people) for a very long time who are still constantly tinkering with their technique.

Using myself as an example, I feel my deadlift technique is pretty solid – but I would never say it’s perfect.

As Robertson notes in THIS article, think of technique as something that’s on a spectrum.

<——————————->

How’s that for fancy schmancy graphics!

In the middle is what I like to refer to as “eh.”

In this realm technique isn’t horrible, it doesn’t make me cringe, but it’s certainly not impeccable.

As we move further to the right, the categories range from “acceptable” to “I want to make a baby with you.”

Ie: I don’t really want to make a baby with you. Come on, don’t be so presumptuous. You’re a little high on yourself, huh?

All it means, is that, you know, your form is really, really good.  Like, reaaaaallly good.  

So uh, do you come here often? Whatchu doin?

As we move in the opposite direction, to the left, we see the spectrum shift from “unacceptable” to “please, no, make it stop, my eyes, my eyes!”

In this scenario the athlete or client isn’t lifting with acceptable technique – why?

According to Robertson it boils down to one of three things (or a combination there of):

1.  They can’t get into proper position or posture

2.  The coach doesn’t know good technique him or herself.

3.  The coach isn’t coaching or can’t get their athlete/client to reproduce good technique.

All of the above are valid, almost universal truths – and should be addressed.

However, I also feel that sometimes we try to get too cute and make things more complicated than they have to be.

While I’m all for people making a concerted effort to increase the weight they’re lifting, sometimes, the progression is to DECREASE THE WEIGHT.

This section is a bit of a conundrum, sorry.  In one breath I’m telling people to increase the weight; and a few paragraphs later I’m telling them to take it off.

A bit of “user discretion” is advised here.  Let technique be your litmus test.  By all means, go out of your way to consistently increase the weight on the bar; but not at the expense of routinely allowing technique to break down.

2. Increase ROM

Another “well, duh!” way to make an exercise harder is to increase the range of motion of said exercise. This serves as a nice segue into why I love box squatting for beginners so much.  While it helps to pattern the hip hinge and allows trainees to learn to “use” the hamstrings and glutes more, the biggest advantage in my eyes is that it forces people to be honest with themselves with regards to hitting proper depth.

It’s amazing how many 400+ lb squatters (internet max) are reduced to an uncanny dose of humbleness when forced to actually squat to an appropriate depth.

They soon realize that they can’t squat nearly as much weight, because it’s, well, it’s harder!

Increasing the distance and thus total work being done will have that affect.

Another example would be to take your standard reverse lunge and perform them from a deficit.

3. Use Offset Loading

One of my favorite – and unfortunately lesser utilized – strategies is to implement more offset loading into one’s programming.

This has several advantages:

1.  It highlights and thus forces people address any weaknesses or imbalances that may exist between one side of the body and the other, as well as variances between limbs.

2.  It increases total time under tension.  Performing 8-12 repetitions per limb essentially doubles the amount of time you’re under load.  It sucks!

3.  And most important of all, offset loading really forces people to address core weakness.

Performing a 1-Arm, 1-Legged (Offset) DB Romanian Deadlift is a lot more challenging on balance, body-awareness, and stability than one may think, as you have to pay much more attention to not tipping over.

The same principle can be applied to the upper body as well.  Try this:  perform a 1-arm (offset) dumbbell bench press.  Except here, take note of making sure to keep the contralateral side on the bench.

It’s a lot harder than you think!

4. Raise Center of Mass

This is one that my friend and colleague, Eric Cressey, highlighted in an article he wrote a few years back for T-Nation.

In short:  if you bring a person’s center of mass closer to the ground, it makes the exercise easier.  As Eric points out, “These guys all seek efficiency through stability, but in a resistance-training context where we’re attempting to get bigger and stronger (and improve our balance), we need to seek inefficiency through instability with our exercises by raising the center of gravity when appropriate.”

One of the easiest examples would be to take a standard Dumbbell Reverse Lunge and switch to something like a Barbell Reverse Lunge w/ Front Squat Grip.

By switching the weight from a lower center of mass (with the DBs at the side) to a higher center of mass (with a barbell up across the shoulders) you inherently make the exercise more challenging.

And That’s a Wrap

There are certainly numerous other ways to make exercise more challenging, but these were just a few to help you get started.

As it happens, if you’re looking for more top-notch progressions to make exercise more challenging or fun, in anticipation of the release of her brand new project, Lift Weights Faster, NEXT week, my good friend, Jen Sinkler, released THIS video today highlighting some doozies.

She’s a heckuva lot more good looking than myself, plus the video is FREE (with no obligations), so you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

You’re welcome….;o)

CategoriesProgram Design Strength Training

CrossFit and Baseball: The Two Don’t Mix

Some things are just made to complement one another.

Will & Grace

He-Man and BattleCat

Boston & Red Sox

Peanut butter & jelly, peanut butter & chocolate, peanut butter & well, pretty much anything.

Hint: I really like peanut butter.

It goes without saying we could fill an infinite abyss of “synergistic” pairings that play off one another, of which one component helps to enhance or harmonize the effectiveness of the other.

One pairing that doesn’t belong on that list is CrossFit and baseball.

We work with a crap ton (just a shade under a boat load) of baseball players and one of the more common themes or questions we receive on a weekly (if not daily) basis is our opinion on CrossFit.

It seems you can’t walk more than 20 yards nowadays without crossing paths with a CrossFit gym – or someone bragging about their Paleo lifestyle.  And, for better or worse (mostly better, it’s hard to dismiss anything which gets people excited to grab a barbell), it’s abundantly clear it’s been tattooed into our popular culture.

As such, many people – athletes in particular – are curious about its merits.

CrossFit is a great fit for a small percentage of people, an okay fit for a slightly larger percentage, and an absolute ball of walking fail for an even larger percentage.

Baseball players fall into the latter category and in my latest article for Stack.com I explain why.

Is CrossFit a Good ‘Fit” for Baseball Players? (<—- Spoiler Alert:  No.)

CategoriesExercise Technique Product Review Strength Training

4 Little Known Tips to Increase Your Squat

Today’s guest post comes from a very good colleague of mine, Jordan Syatt.  Jordan actually interned for us at Cressey Performance a few years ago and since has gone on to do some pretty fantastic things in the industry.

Not only is he one of the more passionate coaches I’ve ever met, but he’s just an awesome human being.  There aren’t many people who are more genuine and gracious than Jordan.

I sincerely mean that.

Oh, and he’s also one strong son-of-a-bitch (no offense to Jordan’s mom.  She’s wonderful, too). My man deadlifts over 3x bodyweight, and he’s also an IPA World Record holder in the squat.

No big deal.

Jordan’s Elite Performance Squat Seminar went on sale this week, and to speak candidly…..it’s awesome. It’s two hours of anything and everything you’d need to know about the squat from someone who knows a thing or two about squatting.

Jordan was nice enough to write up some unique content for the site regarding some (not so common) tips that will help to increase/improve your squat.

Enjoy!

I struggled with the squat for years.

No matter how hard I tried or how much I read, I just couldn’t pin-point which style worked best for me.

To make matters worse, I was beyond confused with the programming aspect. Some coaches were telling me to squat once per week while others told me to squat every day.

I was lost.

As the years went on, though, I eventually figured it out. Following my internships at Westside Barbell and Cressey Performance, I learned not only how to squat but, more importantly, how to adjust my technique and programming based on biomechanics, goals, and preferences.

Fast-forward 3 years and I’m currently an IPA Powerlifting World Record Holder, I raw squat 2.9x bodyweight, and have helped countless lifters improve their squats by hundreds of pounds.

In this article I’m going to share with you four little-known tips to help increase your squat as quickly as possible.

By the end you will understand the squat better than most strength coaches and be armed with four new tips to help you achieve your ultimate strength potential.

1. Drive the Floor Away From You

We’ve all heard popular squat cues like:

“Head back!”

“Chest Up!”

“Knee’s Out!”

Cues like as these are known as internal focus cues because they force the lifter to focus on how the body moves in relation to itself.

While they aren’t completely useless, internal focus cues have been shown to be drastically less effective than their counterparts: external focus cues.

Note from TG:  For those interested, and who want to explore the rabbit hole a bit further, you can check out THIS article I wrote on internal vs. external cues.

Contrary to the former, external focus cues force the lifter to focus on how the body moves in relation to its environment. Take, for example, one of my all-time favorite cues:

“Drive the floor away from you!”

Rather than trying to move your body in relation to itself, this cue allows you to focus on moving your body relative to the environment.

On paper it might seem arbitrary, but research has consistently found external focus cues to be drastically more effective than cues with an internal focus.

So what does this mean for you?

When squatting, think about driving the floor away from yourself as hard and fast as humanly possible.

Don’t think about pushing into the ground or pressing as hard as possible.

Instead, try to push the floor away from you so forcefully that you leave a foot-print in the ground.

2. Nix the Box Squat

The box squat is overrated.

It’s great for geared lifters and doubles as a fantastic teaching tool but for intermediate & advanced raw lifters it’s a waste of time.

With my Westside background I know I’ll get a lot of flak for this but, in my experience, the box squat will not only do nothing to improve your squat…it will actually de-train it.

First and foremost, sitting on a box takes the stretch reflex out of the equation. While geared lifters don’t need to worry about this, raw lifters depend on the stretch shortening cycle (SSC) to rebound safely and explosively out of the hole.

Second, box squatting often changes the mechanics of the lift. Since geared lifters predominantly depend on the posterior chain (hamstrings, glutes, erectors), sitting back to a box is in their best interest. For raw lifters, however, it’s of the utmost importance to squat using a more knee-dominant approach that includes the quads. When performing box squats, though, most lifters focus entirely too much on maintaining a vertical tibia which reduces quad involvement and makes it less specific to raw squatting.

Plain and simple, if you aren’t a beginner and/or a geared lifter…nix the box squat.

3. Grip the Bar As Hard as Humanly Possible

Try it.

Next time you un-rack the bar and let it sink into your traps I want you to grip the bar as hard as you possibly can.

Tony has a great cue for this which works extremely well: “Try to melt the bar in your hands.”

^^^ Yep, I do use that one a lot.

Dean Somerset uses another good one: “Squeeze the bar so hard it oozes through your fingers like play dough.”

I’m more of a simpleton and stick with “Choke the bar,” but they all work.

Regardless of which cue you use, I guarantee if you squeeze the bar as hard as you possibly can you’ll immediately squat more weight.

Don’t believe me?

Give it a shot. I’ll be the guy laughing in the back of the gym saying “hate to say I told ya so!” even though I really love saying it.

4. Grip the Floor with Your Feet

Many powerlifters and coaches advocate squatting with all of your bodyweight centered directly under the heels. Some lifters take this to such an extreme that they literally pick all of their toes off the floor and visibly rock backwards to make sure they’re only on the heels.

I think that’s excessive.

While it’s important to keep some weight on the heels, it’s also important to create a stable base of support through using what’s called an “active foot.”

Watch this short clip to see what I mean:  CLICK ME!

As you saw in the video, an active foot only works if your bodyweight is centered on three points of contact: the knuckle under the big toe, the knuckle under the pinky toe, and the heel. This creates a tri-pod, of sorts, from which you can “grip the floor” with your feet.

To grip the floor, imagine centering your weight on the tripod while trying to pinch the floor in the middle of each foot. Done properly, you’ll stimulate the nerves of the feet while improving overall foot position to give you a stable base of support off of which you can squat more weight.

Wrapping Up

I hope you enjoyed this article and were able to take away some valuable information.

If you’re still looking for more information to improve your (or your clients) squat performance, my Elite Performance Squat Seminar covers all the topics mentioned above in more detail…..and then some!

In just under 2 hours I cover everything including:

  • Self Assessment and Correction
  • Technique Analysis
  • Progressions and Variations
  • Programming Considerations
  • And much more!

I legitimately cover every single thing you could ever want to know (and then some) related to the squat.

The best part?

For this week only the seminar is on sale for just $29! The sale only lasts until Friday (2/21) at midnight at which point the price will nearly double so if you really want to learn the secrets behind optimal squat performance don’t miss out – download your copy today!

Never Minimal. Never Maximal. Always Optimal.

CategoriesExercise Technique Strength Training

Two Components to Deadlifting Success

– “One thing I could do….was finger roll.”

So said George “Iceman” Gervin in the classic mid-90s Nike commercial featuring Tim Hardaway, David Robinson, and pretty much the coolest barbershop known to man.

For a little taste of nostalgia you can watch the video HERE.

Now, I’m not an ex-NBA legend.  I might be able to dunk a tennis ball.  Maybe.  But only if you gave me a running start (and a trampoline). Or a JetPack.

Julia Child was pretty much a boss in the kitchen.

You can’t discuss the history of film and not mention the name Steven Spielberg.

Sandy Koufax had arguably the most devastating curveball in baseball history.

Is there a bigger douche to the douchiest power nowadays than Justin Bieber?

All of this to say: Everyone has their own speciality or a skill that they’re known for.

Me?  While I’d like to sit here and say it’s hanging out with Jason Bourne, in reality it’s nothing nearly as badass.

While they’re badass in their own right, I think anyone who’s read my stuff for any length of time knows that I have a particular affinity for deadlifts, and that that’s what I’m known for.

Which is weird because I don’t own any records.  Not even close.  Heck, I’ve never even competed! Giving a little credit to myself, though, my best pull is 570 lbs (which at the time was 3x bodyweight).

On top of that, if someone triple dogged dared me, or, I don’t know, if Kate Beckinsale walked into a room and said, “Tony I’ll make out with you right now if you lift 500 lbs this very minute,” I’m fairly confident I could do it.

For reps.

On one leg.

Blindfolded.

Standing on a BOSU ball.

More to the point (and a bit less facetious in tone):  I know how to coach the deadlift very well.  So to steal the quote from the Iceman above.

One thing I can do…..is coach the deadlift!

And it’s with that quote in mind that I wanted to take today and do a pseudo “brain dump” on a few insights and common (or not so common, depending on who you are) mistakes I notice with regards to deadlift technique.

1.  Not Choosing the Correct Deadlift Variation

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: everyone should be deadlifting in some form or another.  What other exercise accomplishes so much?

I’m biased. You’d be hard pressed to convince me otherwise that the deadlift isn’t one of the best overall exercises for hypertrophy, not to mention the best functional exercise you can do with respects to posterior chain strength, core stability, glute activation (terminal hip extension), power development, and transference of force throughout the entire body.

Likewise, when done correctly, deadlifts help to prevent shear loading on the spine, help engrain a hip hinge pattern (which spares the spine), and you could make a case plays a role in “preparing” people for life.

Ask your grandmother to pick up a bag of groceries.  That’s a deadlift!

My friend, Nick Tumminello, wrote a fantastic post awhile back on assessments and brought up an interesting question:

“What’s the point of doing whatever assessment you’re doing, when you have all your clients squat, deadlift, perform X, Y, and Z anyways?”

I respect Nick a ton. It’s hard not to look up to someone with as much experience as him, and  I’ve learned a lot from him.

And while I “get” what he was trying to say, even when I originally read his post (and forgive me if Nick’s perspective has changed since he wrote it) I couldn’t help but cock my head like a curious puppy being asked to fetch.

From my point of view, YES, the goal is to have all my clients squat, deadlift, perform single leg work, crush push-ups, row, bench press, sprint, push the Prowler, arm wrestle a tank, and many other fitness and performance based methodologies.

The point of the assessment – outside of the obvious – is for the client/athlete to prove to me that they can perform said movements correctly and without causing further harm.

With regards to the deadlift, the results of their assessment – outside of providing information on any imbalances or any glaring deficits that may exist – is going to tell me which variation of the deadlift I’m going to start them on.

Not everyone is meant to (or should) walk into the gym on day one and conventional deadlift.  Truth be told: the conventional deadlift is the most advanced variation of the deadlift, and I rarely start an athlete or client there.

If someone has a cranky lower back or anterior knee pain (or both), it may be wise to start them on a trap (or hex) bar deadlift.  Because the body is placed inside the bar, there’s less shear on the spine.  Likewise, the trap bar (like most DL variations) require a more vertical tibia which will feel significantly better on the knees.

Looking a bit deeper, if someone has a deficit in ankle dorsiflexion or needs a crowbar to loosen up their hips, having them attempt to get all the way down to the bar for a conventional deadlift is going to be compromising.

Instead it may be more advantageous to have them perform a Sumo style deadlift – maybe even elevated slightly depending on the severity of their limitation.

The point is: not all deadlift variations are created equal, and it’s important to consider what will be the right fit based off of one’s body-type, experience, limitations, and injury history.

2.  Tension, Tension, Tension!

One instantaneous red-flag I’ll notice with many people deadlifting is when I see their hips rise too quickly when initiating the pull. Like this:

Kelly Starrett mentioned this same concept in his book Becoming a Supple Leopard, but when this happens it’s generally a failure to get (and maintain) TENSION!!!  You could also make the same argument whenever you see someone initiate their pull and they turn into a “scared cat” with their back rounding like crazy.

The deadlift is a bit more than just “bending over and picking up a bar.”  I like to tell trainees that the hips and shoulders should “break” synchronously.  Meaning there should be a synergistic dance or interplay between the hips and shoulders.  If the hips break first or come up too fast in relation to the upper body, we just need to slow things down a tad and get more tension.

Lack of tension = an energy leak, and that’s the last thing you want when trying to pull heavy things off the ground.

Here’s a checklist I like to follow:

1.  Hinge back – pushing your butt back towards the wall – as if you’re performing an RDL – until your hands reach the bar.

2.  Once there, you’ll grab the bar with one hand and pull the “slack out.”  Basically, you’re going to activate or engage your lat and posteriorly tilt the scapulae, which will provide a ton more stability/tension.

3.  You’ll then repeat the same process with the other hand.

Note:  a more simplified and less geeky way of explaining things is to pretend you have an orange in your armpit and that you’re trying to squeeze out some orange juice.

This cue will ensure all of the above:  lats will be engaged, scapulae will posteriorly tilt, and the chest will be up.

4.  In order to maintain tension in the hamstrings (kind of important for deadlifting big weight) the hips should stay somewhat high (this will vary for numerous people, but they should never be above the shoulders), and you should think about “pressing” or “pushing” yourself way from the floor – generating force INTO THE FLOOR. Like this:

Notice how, compared to the first video, the hips and shoulders have more of a timed interplay?

This is what’s “ideal” and will result in better deadlifting performance for most people.

Just two things to ponder.  Cheerio!

 

CategoriesMotivational Program Design Strength Training

5 Ah-Ha Moments

Sometimes I feel like I’m the dumbest person on Earth.

Not “dumb-dumb” mind you.  I mean, I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on the human body (how it works, how to make it stronger, etc), I know to pay my taxes, I’ve already made Valentine’s dinner reservations (holla!), I can make a piece of toast without burning down my apartment, and I know my multiplication tables like no one’s business.

So I don’t mean dumb in the literal sense of the word.

What I’m referring to are those times where I read a book, an article, watch a DVD, have a casual conversation with someone, or attend a seminar or workshop and somebody says something so profound and utterly jaw-dropping that it blows my mind.

Or makes my face melt (<— it happens a lot).

And it doesn’t necessarily have to exit the mouth of  some intellectual luminary such as Stephen Hawking, Richard Dawkins, or Captain Planet.

Yay for random 80s cartoon references!

I’ve witnessed some doozies from the most unexpected people.

But in the realm of strength and conditioning – there are a LOT of very smart people, and I’d be lying if I said I felt I was one of them.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a conversation with Eric Cressey, Bret Contreras, Mike Robertson, Kevin Neeld, Cassandra Forsythe, Mike Reinold, or Bill Hartman (to name a few) and thought to myself, “holy shit, I have no idea what the hell they’re talking about.  Okay Tony, just nod your head, say “mmm hmmm” a few times, and pretend as if they haven’t lost you”

Likewise whenever I’ve had the opportunity to listen to the likes of Dr. Stuart McGill, Charlie Weingroff, Gray Cook, Thomas Myers, or Professor Dumbledore speak….I can’t help but feel like the a complete nincompoop.

And don’t even get me started on Shirley Sahrmann’s Diagnosis and Treatment of Movement Impairment Syndromes.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read a page or two and immediately got a headache from all the big words.

All of this to say: sometimes I feel really, really inadequate.

But that’s the price you pay when you try to get better; as if it’s a prerequisite – your DUTY – to go out of your way to surround yourself with smarter people than yourself.

A few years ago Alwyn Cosgrove wrote a very popular article on T-Nation titled “5 Ah-Ha Moments,” (hence the very original title of this post) in which he described five instances where the proverbial light bulb went off inside his head.

I thought I’d take today and share a handful of my own ah-ha moments.  Some you’ll undoubtedly recognize, and others maybe not so much.

While I’ll be the first to admit my brain doesn’t work in the same fashion as some of my colleagues – I don’t think I’ve ever come up with an original idea, like, ever – I can “steal” (while giving credit) with the best of them. As such I feel my strongest asset is being able to take complex ideas, water them down, and explain them so that even a cave man can understand.

You’re welcome…..;o)

1.  Joint-by-Joint Approach

Giving full credit to Gray Cook and Mike Boyle, I don’t think anything has influenced my train of thought as far as how I approach assessment and thus, program design, as this concept.

In short it goes like this:  some joint need to be addressed or trained with mobility in mind (ankle, hips, t-spine), while others need to be addressed or trained with stability (knees, lumbar spine, scapulae) in mind.

What both Cook and Boyle noticed was that if you look at patterns, the whole mobility-stability continuum alternates on a joint-by-joint basis up and down the kinetic chain of the body.

The foot generally wants/needs stability. The ankle wants/needs mobility.  So on and so forth as you work your way up.

And it was here where the entire industry slapped their collective hands to their foreheads.

Taking things a step further, when discussing pain and dysfunction in any joint – lets say the lower back – it’s generally accepted that the source of pain stems from either the joint above or below (or both!).

If someone’s hip and t-spine mobility rivals that of the Tin Man – ie: they’re stiff – it’s no wonder why their lower back will flip them the middle bird.

The reason why – again, generally speaking – their back hurts is because they’re asking it to do more work than it’s designed for.  Because their hips and t-spine are locked up, the lower back has to pick up the slack and sacrifice stability for more mobility.

Does the “theory” have its flaws?  Absolutely.  Nothing is 100% infallible.  Even football Jesus, Tom Brady.

But I’d argue the Joint-by-Joint approach has done more to progress the industry than anything in the past decade, and that’s saying a lot.

Sorry Shake Weight.

2.  No One Cares About Big Toe Dorsiflexion.

Seriously, outside of the uber anatomy geeks no one cares.

This was a lesson I learned back when I first started personal training.  To put it bluntly, as a way to try to impress new clients and try to “win” their business I used to put them through all these elaborate assessments and screens to try to show them how smart I was and how I was going to take over the world.

I took them through all the normal screens like a Thomas Test, shoulder ROM, core stability, as well as movement quality tests such as the squat and lunge.

But then I would up the “wow factor” and start talking fascia, contralateral limb restrictions, and even go so far as to test their great toe dorsiflexion to demonstrate how a limitation there could affect their hip mobility!

While research will back-up its efficacy, in hindsight it was a dumb idea.

Here’s a piece of advice to any new trainers who may be reading.  No one – outside of you and your other geek friends – gives two shits about anatomy.  This is especially true with your clients.

All they care about is feeling better and losing 15 pounds.  They don’t want to hear about superficial fascial lines or glenohumeral range of motion deficits or anterior pelvic tilt.  And frankly, they don’t care that you can name all the muscles in the body in alphabetic order or that you were named one of the 50 Best Trainers by NoOneGivesTwoShits.com.

[Of course it’s cool and an honor to be named to any list……..but just know that a vast majority could care less.]

This isn’t to say that you won’t have more proactive clients who want to put on their geek hat from time to time, but trust me when I say this:  97.45% of your clients don’t care.

3.  Vertical Tibia

This is a concept that was popularized by physical therapist and uber strong dude, Charlie Weingroff a few years ago.

First off: lets address the pink elephant in the room.

It’s virtually impossible not to squat without *some* forward translation of the tibia.  But there’s a huge difference between *some* and going to the point where the knees go so far forward that the heels come off the ground.

Moreover, PAIN is the determining factor here.

If someone walks into my facility complaining of chronic knee pain, and I watch him or her squat/lunge/brush their teeth, almost always I’m going to see an excessive amount of tibial translation and I have to teach/coach them to maintain a more vertical shin angle.

Stealing a line from my pal Mike Robertson: stacked joints are happy joints.

If someone squats to the point where their knees go waaaaaay over their toes, it’s going to cause a ton of shear stress on the knees.

It is any surprise why their knees would be hating them?

Much of the time it’s going to come down to re-engraining a good hip hinge pattern and to try to teach a more vertical shin angle.

I know some will argue that, “well, if you block the knees from going forward, the stress has to go somewhere, and the hips and low back will end up taking the brunt.”

This is true.  But again, there will ALWAYS be some forward movement of the knees. I want to avoid anything that’s excessive.  When someone is in PAIN, coaching a more vertical tibia makes a ton of sense.

4.  Being More Cognizant of Anterior Humeral Glide

There are a plethora of things that can irritate a shoulder.  Poor tissue quality, poor t-spine mobility, poor scapular stability, lack of glenohumeral ROM, poor programming, too much bench pressing, and too much overhead dwarf throwing to name a few.

While many like to gravitate towards the more inane things, I’d make the case that most fail to see the forest for the trees and would be better served taking themselves through an exercise technique audit.

Take the cable row for example.  One of the more glaring “mistakes” we have to correct at CP is guys going into too much glenohumeral extension when performing their rows, essentially allowing their elbows to go way past the midline of the body, causing the humeral head to glide anteriorly (forward), and placing a lot of undue stress on the bicep tendon.

Eric Cressey does a fantastic job of explaining this whole idea in more detail in this video:

 5.  Nixing the Sleeper Stretch

I received an email the other day from a trainer asking what we do at CP – other than the sleeper stretch – to increase internal range of motion in our baseball players (or general population clients as well).

Apparently he had been doing sleeper stretches with many of his athletes and clients with little or no results.

While there are exceptions to the rule, we haven’t performed a sleeper stretch underneath our roof in like four years.  For a few reasons:

1.  Outside of most people performing it incorrectly, there are just better ways to garner more IR other than people cranking on their shoulder.

We can look into tissue quality in the pec minor and lats, focus on more t-spine mobility, and even toss in some dedicated anterior core stability work and breathing patterns and often see a (transient) improvement.

2.  You also have to recognize that a lack of IR is just a measurement and oftentimes a completely NORMAL adaptation.  It’s not uncommon to see right-handed throwers with less IR on their dominant arm compared to their non-dominant side.  And this sentiment mirrors those in the general population as well.

3. The more important thing to consider is TOTAL ROM between left and right sides. If there’s a huge discrepancy or asymmetry between the two, that could present as a bright, red flag that may need to be addressed sooner rather than later.

The answer isn’t to crank on their shoulder like you’re trying to jam a square peg through a round hole. Sometimes you just have to understand that a lack of IR is okay, and sometimes, normal.

Honorable Mention

– Realizing that trying to “win” an argument with my girlfriend – who’s a clinical psychologist – is a pointless endeavor.  Trying to win an argument is pointless either way, but especially when you’re dealing with someone with Jedi mind-trick powers.

– Cueing someone to “keep their chest up” during the deadlift is actually more of an effort to get them to learn how to posteriorly tilt their shoulder blades.  Too much “chest up” may cause them to excessively arch their lower back.

– Intermittent fasting isn’t for everyone.  Sorry, but you’re not going to get huge putting yourself through 24-hour fasts every three days.

– Who knew I’d be such a cat lover????

– No matter which way you swing it, bulgarian split squats suck!  A lot.   More than Tracy Anderson.  Okay, maybe not that much.

Note:  by “suck,” I mean they’re a fantastic exercise…..they’re just not fun to do.

CategoriesProgram Design Strength Training

Why Baseball Players Shouldn’t Bench Press

I’ve been keeping this article in my back pocket for a while now because I wasn’t quite sure how I wanted to approach writing it.  Lets be honest:  talking smack about the beloved bench press is the fitness equivalent of talking smack about Princess Diana or worse, kittens.

You just don’t do it!

To save face, though, let me be clear up front:  I LOVE the bench press.  Well, let me back track a little bit.  From a personal standpoint I freaking hate the bench press.

I’m an admittedly horrible bencher (god awful in fact), and if it came down to choosing between bench pressing or tossing my body in front of a mack truck, I’d seriously consider the latter.

Every time I look at my program and see the words “bench press” written down this is pretty much my standard reaction:

Temper tantrums aside, I do recognize that the bench press is an important strength building (and for those more aesthetically minded individuals reading, chest building) exercise.  I think we can all agree that the bench press is a super star and is one of the staple exercises behind any well-rounded program.

But is it for everyone?

One of the more common questions we receive at Cressey Performance when people come in to observe is:  Tony, why do you coach with your shirt off? Tony, how come you don’t allow your baseball guys to bench press?

It’s a loaded question, but one that can be answered relatively easily.

I’m of the mindset that there aren’t many contraindicated exercises (you can generally find a legitimate and appropriate use for any exercise. Yes, even if done on a BOSU ball), as there are contraindicated lifters!

For me bench pressing and baseball don’t mix – for a variety of reasons – and there are plenty of other exercises we can use in lieu of the bench press to elicit a training effect.

In this article I wrote for Stack.com I explain my rationale on both fronts:

Why Baseball Players Shouldn’t Bench Press (<— Click Me, That Tickles)

CategoriesFemale Training Motivational Strength Training

Hey Ladies, Lift Something Heavy!

The term passion is defined as “an intense desire or enthusiasm for something,” or as a “strong and barely controllable emotion.”

Everyone reading (I hope) has a passion for something.  For some it’s their children and loved ones. For others it may be the charity work they’re involved in.  And even for others it may be something more tangible or finite such as their car or their collection of un-opened Star Wars action figurines.

Hey, I’m not here to judge

Passion is a great thing, and we should all be so lucky as to have a little passion in our lives.

I’m passionate about a lot of things:  my family, my girlfriend, movies, deadlifts, caffeine, my ever growing collection of vintage t-shirts.

A bit closer to home, however, and as a coach in particular, I’m passionate about fitness and helping others attain their goals.

I spend a great portion of my day training athletes, but what’s often glossed over is that I also train a fair number of regular “Joes and Janes,” or people who, like many of you reading, aren’t paid to jump higher, throw harder, or run faster. But rather just want to feel better, possibly shave a few lbs off their frame, lift some heavy things, and maybe not think twice about getting nekid with the lights on.

BOM CHICKA BOM BOM.

To that end, I often go on tirades when the topic of women and training pops up.  Speaking a bit more colloquially – and excuse my language – there’s a lot of shit information out there in the mainstream media, and it’s exponentially shitty with regards to women and strength training.

So I guess you could say I’m also passionate about doing my part in dispelling common myths and fallacies that’s regurgitated by the media.

Below is an interview I did for Marco Berardi and the people over at CrossFit LaSalle located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Marco Berardi: Tony, I know it is probably weird to ask one of the top strength and conditioning bloggers on the web to chat about women and lifting heavy things but your opinion on the subject has been one of my favorite parts of your blog. 600 pound deadlifts and big bench presses are great but for a large majority of coaches, we have many more women clients who want to get “toned” rather than athletes, so the topic of women and weight training is a great interest to me. Thanks for agreeing to answer some questions.

I know you just went on vacation and spent some time at a Globo Gym. What was the experience like? Especially when it comes to how women train? I bet you saw lots of isolated bicep and tricep work with those cute pastel colored weights.

TG:  I live in a fairly secluded “bubble,” because in my world – especially in the realm of strength and conditioning – I control every component of training with my clients. I tell them what to do, how to do it, and most important of all….I coach them and make sure that everything (everything) is done correctly.

So, it’s always interesting when I stumble outside of my little bubble and make my way to a commercial gym to train, as I really have to prepare myself for the massive number of epic fails I’m going to see.

Note:  this isn’t a slight against all commercial gyms – just most of them.

If my thought process offends you – particularly if you’re a trainer and you fall into the camp that’s described below – it’s probably because the truth hurts.  Sorry I’m not sorry. 

Now, to be fair:  I’m not some cynical bastard who just likes to poo-poo on people. Who am I to judge what people do in the gym and how they do it?  At the end of the day, at least they’re doing something, and that should be commended.  Wholeheartedly.  All the time.

Whether it’s Zumba, Yoga, CrossFit, Jazzercise, Prancercise (look it up on Youtube), traditional weight training, or mimicking the dance from Napoleon Dynamite, anything is better than sitting on your ass.

But I’d be lying if I said that I don’t walk away a little let down about the industry whenever I happen to train at a commercial gym.

I’m a coach, and as such, it’s really hard for me not to observe what others are doing. Now, with regular patrons I’ll give the benefit of the doubt.  Sure, I can face palm myself and wonder why that woman who is 30 lbs overweight – and woefully de-conditioned – is wasting her time performing bicep curls on a BOSO ball.  She doesn’t know any better.

What really grinds my gears – and, if I may, makes me absolutely bat shit crazy – is when I see a fitness professional (who should know better) has their client perform the same thing.

Really?  She’s paying you $50, $60, $70 $80+ per hour so that she can stand on a BOSU ball and then follow that with tricep kickbacks and arm circles?  I kid you not:  that’s EXACTLY what I saw while I was away on vacation.

Moreover, it was readily apparent that none of the trainers felt the need to “push” their female clients – treating them as if they were these delicate snowflakes that couldn’t (or shouldn’t) lift anything heavier than their Prada handbag.

Not once, in the four days (FOUR days) I was at this gym training with my girlfriend, did I watch a trainer coach his or her client (whether male or female) through a compound, free-weight movement.  Not once.  I did, however, see a lot of poorly done push-ups, lunges, planks, and a bevy of other exercises that made me want to swallow a live grenade.  It was really sad.

MB: On a side note, how the media portrays training to women it is almost not their fault they are so confused. I mean they can look around their Zumba class and see that no one has improved in the last 3 years but I digress.  Is there anyway to change what is being marketed to women as “exercise”?

TG:  Completely true, and it’s something that I do see changing – albeit at a snail’s pace. Walk down any aisle at your local grocery store, and you’re bound to see numerous “women’s” magazines with a teeny-tiny (airbrushed) actress or model on the cover holding a pink dumbbell underneath some innocuous title like “10 Tips for a Bikini Body” or something equally as nauseating.

In reality, it’s not even the title that’s most annoying – it’s the trivial, almost offensive workouts that are attached. Much like to what I described above at the commercial gym, many (not all) of these so-called “workouts” aren’t even remotely challenging.

I mean, come on:  recommending a workout based solely around a can of soup (which I saw one magazine publish) – how to curl with it, squat with it, lunge with it, throw it at the editor’s face who decided this was viable fitness information – is a bit of waste of everyone’s time don’t cha think?

But this is the type of stuff that’s marketed towards women.  As you noted, can you blame women that they curl up in the fetal position whenever you ask them to perform a deadlift?

As far as the mainstream media is concerned, I don’t think their formula is going to change anytime soon.  While it’s changing somewhat – they do still have to sell magazines, and what sells magazines are articles with Kim Kardashian on the cover telling the world that performing strength training with high heels on is the key to badonkadonkness.

Thankfully, we have women out there like Nia Shanks, Molly Galbraith, Jen Comas Keck, Neghar Fonooni, Jen Sinkler, the rest of the Girls Gone Strong crew, as well as many, many others fighting the good fight and trying to empower women on the benefits of (real) strength training and to step away from the elliptical and treadmill.

Likewise, I too try my best to provide information to women that goes against the norm of what they’ve been spoon-fed for decades.

Like THIS one on The Myth of Female Specific Training, or THIS one on Should You Use Scale Weight as a Measure of Success, or THIS one on The Fitness Double Standard.

I try to debunk as many myths as I can – lifting heavy things WILL NOT turn you into The Rock, endless hours of cardio IS NOT the key to fat loss, Yoga WILL NOT make your muscles long and lean, Tracy Anderson IS NOT a credible source of fitness and health information and is about as intelligent as a ham sandwich.

There’s still a very long battle a head, but I do see the tides turning, and it’s a beautiful thing.

MB: Obviously, the women who come to your facility (I’m guessing) are already sold on the Cressey Performance values. They probably want to lift heavy things and achieve a chin up without assistance. How would you convince a woman that is scared to “bulk up” and feel they need endless amounts of cardio to drop their body fat?

TG:  Yes and no. While it’s true that most people who walk through our doors kinda already have an idea of what they’re getting themselves into, there’s still a fair share that need to be “de-programmed.”

The best thing I can do as a coach is listen.  I try to ask as many questions as possible and do a little digging.

– How often do they train?

  – What has their training looked like?

    – Are they happy with their results?     – If not, how come?

    – What is their ideal body type?

    – Why?

    – What do they feel is holding them back?

So on and so forth.  Once I’m done listening, I then go into a little (not a lot) of what I feel would be the best approach to take.  It’s not about me being confrontational, forcing information in their direction, and trying to convince them that what they’ve been doing for the past five years has been a complete time killer (although, for many, that’s exactly what’s happened).

At this stage it’s about comfort zones and showing them success right out of the gate.

Almost inevitably, once I start throwing out words like squats, deadlifts, chin-ups, Prowlers, hell even if I toss out the word strength…….I’ll starting getting a little push-back, and many of the same myths and fallacies I described above – things many of these women have been regurgitating for YEARS, with limited (if any) results mind you – rear their ugly heads.

Once that happens, I have one more question for them:

“How’s that working for you?”

Clearly, if your way is the superior way, and it’s the approach you’ve been using for the past 5-10 years…….why have you seen NO results?  Zilch.  Nada.

To that end, all I ask is that they give me two months.  Give it their all for 60 days and see what happens.  Almost always, after three weeks they’re hooked.

Once they start to see (and feel) the confidence they gain, it’s always a done deal.

Once they realize that putting an extra ten pounds on the bar won’t turn them into a roided out she-man, and they start noticing small, incremental changes to their body, the sky’s the limit. It’s a beautiful thing.

MB: When you begin to train women do you have specific goals you would like to help them achieve? If I can get a woman to do 5-10 proper push ups on their own, a chin-up, and deadlift better than 99% of the men in the gym, it is safe to assume they will achieve their body image goal. Is that an ok thought process?

TG:  Sure.  With any client – whether I’m working with a male or female – it’s usually my job to tell them what they need to do, and not what they want to do.  Big difference.

With any client, it’s about getting them outside their comfort zone.  With women in particular, their Kryptonite is the free-weight area.  Can you blame them?  Who wants to train around a bunch of dudes who reek of Axe body spray and scream as if they’re passing a kidney stone?  Hell, I don’t want to be around that.

That notwithstanding, I think you’re on the right track.  Having clear and defined (not to mention realistic and attainable) goals is an important component many trainees fail to grasp.

As a trainer or coach, I think it’s crucial to sit down with your client and come up with goals to strive for – whether it’s to perform an unassisted, body weight chin-up, “x” number of lbs on the deadlift, or to lose ten lbs of fat by summer.  Having something to work for gives people a sense of purpose and holds them more accountable in the end.

With the women that I train, they’re going to get coached on all the basic movements – squats, deadlifts, push-ups, etc. Much like you, it’s not uncommon for many of the women I train to train on their own “x” number of days per week at the other gym and to boast that someone complimented them on their deadlift form, and I totally dig that!

Even cooler is when they come back with stories about how they were waiting to “jump in” on a certain exercise at their commercial gym, and they warmed-up with the weight that the guy leaving ended with on his last set.

In the end, though, it’s about coaching the basics.  There’s no need to make things more complicated than they have to be. This isn’t NASA.  If your female client can perform ten picture perfect push-ups – despite push-ups being as exciting as watching grass grow – then they’re leaps and bounds a head of 99% of other females out there.

Sadly, this doesn’t happen too often.  Trainers (and trainees) are more concerned with looking cool and doing something unique than mastering the basics.

CategoriesMotivational Strength Training

Newsflash: People Lifted Weights Before CrossFit

Two quick stories – both of which serve as the impetus behind this post.

1. I can’t tell you how long I resisted the whole Lululemon phenomenon.  Mind you:  I’ve always been a big fan of their work. All apologies to my gay guy friends, but I have a Y chromosome  – so sue me for appreciating the finer points of yoga pants on a female’s body.

In fact, if I had to make a list of three people who’s hand I’d like to shake it would look something like this (in no particular order).

– Optimus Prime

– Han Solo

– Chip Wilson – the founder of Lululemon.

Half of my girlfriend’s wardrobe is from Lululemon (have a I mentioned I’m a fan?), and while I love it when she wears her yoga pants to go grocery shopping, I’d be lying if I said the Darth Vader theme music didn’t reverberate inside my head every time her and I would be walking around in the city and happen to cross paths with a Lululemon store.

Because inevitably she’d want to walk in and then try to convince me to put on a pair of something. Dudes DO NOT wear Lululemon.  In my head, as far as masculine things to do, it ranged somewhere between peeing while sitting down and watching Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

Fast forward to about a year ago when I noticed many of our pro-baseball guys walking into the facility with their Lulu pants on.  When I brought it up to one of our guys – Oliver – and asked what’s up, he just responded with “they’re the most comfortable things, ever!”

When I dug a little deeper and started asking a few more questions, he just put his hands on my shoulders, looked me straight in the eyes, and said, “DO IT.  You won’t be disappointed.”

It took a while, but eventually I relented and tried on a pair of their Kung-Fu pants.   And OMG – ammmmmmaaaaazzzziiiiiinnggg.

In fact, Lisa bought a pair for me this past Christmas and I Tweeted the following picture to Oliver with the caption:  I did it!

So now walking into a Lululemon store isn’t quite the chore it used to be.

But a funny thing happened a few weekends ago.

Lisa and I were doing our Sunday “routine,” you know, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Home Depot, squeezed in a little West Elm, when we happened to see a Lulu store.  Lisa beelined it in and I followed suite.  I wasn’t quite as “beeline(ish),” but I wasn’t tossing my face into a cement wall as I would have in the past.

As she was perusing the sales rack, I was standing near the front of the store adjacent to the men’s section.  I wasn’t necessarily looking at anything, but rather just waiting in the area where all the other boyfriend’s waited.  We’re like a little club.

A salesperson approached me and we started chatting me up. She told me all the sales going on – I don’t remember, I kind of blacked out – and then asked what I like to wear to the gym.  I told her that I own one pair of the Kung-Fu pants, but that I’m a strength coach and that I don’t wear them to work because they’d get torn and beat up.

She then pointed to the right at all their men’s shorts, and said “a lot of our CrossFitters like to wear those.”

Wait………huh?  My inner dialogue was like….“Did she just refer to me as a CrossFitter?“

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1Y73sPHKxw

Don’t get me wrong:  I didn’t take offense to it or anything. I mean, she was making a compliment that I actually look like I workout.  But did she not just hear me say that I was a strength coach?

Which leads to story #2.

2.  My internet buddy and intermittent guest blog contributor on this site, Emily Giza Socolinsky, sent me a message the other day.

Long story short:  Emily used to be a Barre instructor and after switching to the dark side – Ie: strength training – and after seeing the results she not only received herself but with her own clients as well, she opened up her own gym.  And she fucking dominates!

Check it out HERE.

She’s long been an advocate of helping to promote people goals – whatever they may be – she doesn’t believe in only ONE way to train, but she’ll be the first to admit that everyone – in particular women – should strength train in some form or another.

And yes, in her own words that does mean “picking up some damn weight.”

Every so often she’ll get a comment on her blog from someone who, *coughs*, is not happy with what she has to say.  Case in point, Emily wrote a fantastic blog HERE a while ago on why she feels Barre classes aren’t the answer for most women.  Mind you:  this was written by a someone who was formerly a very accomplished Barre instructor herself.

Anyways, she ruffled a few feathers when she originally posted that blog post.  And to this day, she still continues to get snarky comments from women.  Like this one:

“Wow, you certainly seem to have a chip on your shoulder toward women who do care about not bulking up!

I’m 42 years old and have been a lifetime runner. For years, I went to the gym and did traditional heavy weight programs (I even leg pressed nearly 3 times my body weight).

I tried the cross fit thing. For me, these programs resulted in injury and chronic pain in my knees and shoulders.

I’m a tiny person and I didn’t really bulk up, but I didn’t look feminine either.

Barre 3 and Bar Method have provided wonderful results for me.

I run faster and I have more endurance because my knees don’t hurt at all anymore! I am still very strong and in fact I can now do 50 push ups with good form. And I’m not embarrassed to admit, I love how how I look. Any women who doesn’t admit they don’t mind having a lean body with feminine muscular toning is lying to themselves and everyone else.”

Emily wrote back a very professional and considerate response – something I would have had a hard time doing – and ended with this:

“Congratulations on how you feel. It is very important for women to love how they look. But my reasoning for the article was to let women know that there are better ways to achieve one’s goal that will actually make them stronger and feel better about themselves. I would be lying to them and to myself if I told them them that barre classes are the way to a stronger body. Thank you for your comment.”

Lets ignore the whole leg press 3x bodyweight comment, or the “50 push-ups with good form” comment. I feel like my eyes have never rolled so hard in my life when I read those.

What I was most interested in was the “I did the CrossFit thing” comment.

Hello??!?!?!?  Since When Is E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G CrossFit??????

Correct me if I’m wrong, but people were lifting weights and doing “strength training” long before CrossFit came into the picture.  No where in Emily’s original post did she mention CrossFit.  In fact, what she was referring to was everything CrossFit isn’t (more or less).

What she was advocating was a well-structured, coherent, planned, approach to strength training based off of one’s needs, goals, and health/injury history.

I don’t want to make this into some CrossFit bashing diatribe – that’s not the point.  And for those reading who feel that’s what I’m doing, take a deep breath, relax, do some handstand push-ups or something, and read THIS.

There’s actually a lot about CrossFit I like and advocate.

But I just find it comical that, in the eyes of the general public, everything involving lifting a weight is now somehow lumped into CrossFit.

Much of that has to do with the marketing genius of CrossFit – there’s no doubting that.  For what it’s worth I applaud it.  A LOT more people are getting their asses off the couch and exercising now.

But what did people from the dawn of man to about ten years ago call weight training?  I’ll tell you what it wasn’t called:  fucking CrossFit.

Just a little rant for the day.  I feel better now.  Carry on.