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Continuing with the “Best of” theme of 2013, today I wanted to share some of the more popular GUEST ARTICLES I posted up onto the site this year.

I was fortunate enough to have some really smart and passionate people offer to write for my site (and for free no less) within the last twelve months.  Some were respected and well known names, while others were less known (albeit no less respected) and just looking for an “in” or avenue to a broader audience.

Nevertheless I was very appreciative for their contributions and whether you read them already or this is the first time you’re laying eyes on them, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

By the way:  go see Wolf of Wall Street. It’s legit!

I bit disturbing that we go out of our way to glamorize “shady” people with the moral compass of a dingle-berry (the movie is based off a true story), but it’s vintage Scorcese (drugs, violence, and boobs) and DiCaprio acts his ass off.

I’ll be writing up a Year in Review in movies soon, but suffice it to say that this one is right up at the top of the list for on my favorites of the year.

Okay, lets get to the topic at hand:  The Best Guest Posts of 2013!

Exercises You Should Be Doing (Better): Box Jumps – Trust me:  this is an exercise that, while in theory should be a “piece of cake,” is probably one of the more butchered exercises out there in terms of not only execution but application as well.

5 Reasons Your Glutes Aren’t Growing – Glutes are all the rage nowadays, but there are still some very common misconceptions with regards to how to train them effectively.

The Truth About a Healthy Spine – Part One, Part Two – Everyone at some point deals with a back that hates them.  And while there are a million and one different opinions as to which is the best approach in terms of diagnosing and treating low back pain (some are spot on, and others, well, not so much), there are still a hefty number of fallacies that seem to reverberate within the industry.  This article attempts to debunk some of the more common fails.

Why We Are the Even Weaker Sex – We are a society that is scared shitless of everything.  This article was targeted towards women in particular, but could just as easily be applied to men.  Excellent piece of writing by my friend Kellie Hart Davis.

6 Ways to Make Your Body Hate You – Some people treat their cars better than their own body.  In this article my friend James Garland expounds on a few common “themes” that people (including himself) tend to gravitate towards which do nothing but derail progress in the gym.

Muscle Confusion – At the end of the day it’s a bulls*** term that a lot of people like to use to make themselves sound smart.

An Athlete’s Approach to Optimal Eating – This was an excellent article written by Nate Miyaki who’s someone I respect a lot when it comes to 1) nutrition and 2) being ripped.

Don’t Let That Injury Derail You – I’ve said it numerous times here on this site as well as various articles I’ve written: “You can ALWAYS find a way to train around an injury.”

Of course there are extenuating scenarios like a major spinal injury that will throw a monkey-wrench into things, but for the most part it’s uncanny how some people will use ay excuse (OMG – I’ve got a hang nail!!!!) to not train.

A Deadlift 3 Times Per Week Program – You didn’t really think an article with this sort of title wouldn’t make the “Best Of” list did you????

Stay Excited! About Anything! – Written by my girlfriend, Lisa, this article serves as a point of motivation for people to, well, get motivated.  About anything.

It’s growing to be a running joke:  but people seem to LOVE it whenever Lisa chimes in with an article.  Look to see more of her on this site in 2014!

Today’s guest post comes from Justin Kompf, who’s been a familiar face here on TG.com (he’s written a handful of other posts for this site in the past and I’ve always enjoyed the messages he delivers).

Today’s post deals with a hot topic and something that’s caused a bit of a dichotomy in the “real world.”  Should people do an UNPAID internship.

On one hand you have those who feel it’s the road everyone has done in the past, and if you read books like Decisive by Chip and Dan Heath, unpaid internships are a way give yourself an “ooch” or “taste” to figure out whether or not you even like that particular career path.

On the other hand, you have those who gravitate towards extremes and feel unpaid internships are the worst thing since Pepsi Clear.

I don’t agree with this for many reasons.

In any case, Justin does a great job at giving some perspective and I hope that if you’re someone who’s considering taking an unpaid internship in the S&C field that this post helps – TG.

Oh, and before I forget: on April 5th, 2014 I’ll be participating in the First Annual Cortland Strength and Conditioning Symposium, which Justin is kindly organizing.

With the likes of myself, John Gaglione, Dr. Mike Roussell, Dr. Cassandra Forsythe, and Spencer Nadolsky as the slated line-up it’s going to be an unparalleled event for students and fitness professionals alike.

Registration is now open, and it’s set at a VERY reasonable price as we want to ensure that this is an event that’s accessible to everyone.

For more information you can go HERE.

Okay for real this time, I’m done.  Have a wonderful Holiday everyone.  See you in a few days – TG.

About a week ago I received an email from a former student. He was considering a strength and conditioning internship in San Diego, the only catch was that it was an unpaid internship. This student wanted to get my take on unpaid internships.

Little did he know that he was talking to the king of unpaid internships. Before I received a paid strength and conditioning position I spent close to two years interning at two colleges and one year observing a physical therapy practice.

This is a question a lot of young strength coach hopefuls have and I think my experiences and the insights gained from them can help these people (possibly even you) make that decision.

I’d like to go over the three internship experiences I had and what I learned from each of them.

SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY

Before graduating from the Kinesiology program at SUNY Cortland I had to complete an internship. I had my sights set on Syracuse University. After spending my Friday mornings observing the football team for two months one of the strength coaches gave me an intern position with the Olympic sports teams.

That semester was far from what I had expected.

It consisted of cleaning equipment and observations. I suppose I was naïve to expect that I would be coaching from day one. I ended that semester wishing I had gotten more out of the experience so I made the decision to stick around and intern with another Olympic sports strength and conditioning coach the following Fall semester.

By then I was a graduate, had passed my CSCS, and was familiar with what was going on at Syracuse so I was given a lot more responsibility. I was able to be hands on with the women’s lacrosse, softball, volleyball, and rowing teams.  I spent most of my day at Syracuse before I would go personal train.

I can say two things about that experience, without it I would not have had the skills to coach big groups on my own and without that experience I probably would not have gotten a job as a strength coach or teacher at Cortland.

LESSON LEARNED: if you intern at a major university you probably won’t be doing too much coaching, even over the course of an entire semester.

Most of your job will be cleaning and observing. If you want to take the coaching experience seriously I highly recommend riding out this period and sticking around. If I had just left Syracuse after one semester I would not have gotten to get the coaching experience I needed.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE

Less than a week after graduation I took a flight out to California to live with my cousin while I interned at the University of California at Riverside. UC Riverside is a D1 school like Syracuse but the resources that they had to work with were a small fraction of what we had at Syracuse. Syracuse has four strength coaches (still considered understaffed) and three weight rooms. UC Riverside had two coaches and one weight room.

Their head strength coach was in China for the summer teaching so I had the opportunity to step in and work with a lot of his teams. This was the first time I got to be hands on in my coaching so it was all new to me. The assistant strength coach was great in going over their coaching protocols. He took me through all of his progressions for teaching cleans, squats, and deadlifts which I still use at Cortland.

LESSON LEARNED: I was stepping out of my comfort zone in so many different ways. I was 3,000 miles away from home and didn’t know anybody other than my cousin and her husband and I was essentially thrown into the fire to learn how to coach.

I learned how to coach with minimal equipment which has came in handy since Cortland is a division three school with limited resources as well.

SUMMIT PHYSICAL THERAPY

Note from TG: Being originally from the Syracuse (Go Cuse!) area I’m very familiar with Summit Physical Therapy.  Most notably I’m familiar with Mike Hope.

I remember back in like 2004 I was having some knee issues and by chance someone referred me to Mike at SPT.  Having worked with several PTs in the past and being less than satisfied my hopes weren’t too high upon my initial visit…..but I tried to stay positive.

Within two minutes of meeting Mike I was hooked – thanks to no small part in that he references Louis Simmons and WestSide Barbell during casual conversation.  

My mind was blown:  a PT who actually lifted weighs???  

Not only that, at the time, Mike was a regular contributor to Elitefts.com as one of their rehab specialist. 

Long story short:  Mike’s the shit.  That is all.

The first time I went into Summit Physical Therapy I immediately learned that I didn’t know anything.

Imagine that, a senior in a kinesiology program who just figured out he didn’t know anything.

Crap!

In that year I would go in at least once a week whenever I would have a break from Syracuse or personal training. I learned so much about functional anatomy as well as the importance of research. Every time I left Summit Physical Therapy I would have a new book or paper in my hand that I had to read. It helped me a lot when it came to teaching my personal training class at SUNY Cortland.

LESSON LEARNED: Coaching experience is extremely important but it is also important to have people that will challenge you intellectually.

There were actually times when I would walk away quite jaded where I felt like my intelligence was being insulted, times when I considered not going back. Luckily I got over myself and decided it was worth it if I could learn something new whenever I went in.

I learned that I should always have a reason for everything that I do as well as a thorough understanding of any topic I want to discuss. I would be light years behind in terms of knowledge if I didn’t spend time at Summit Physical Therapy.

Take Away?

So should you do an unpaid internship?

Will it benefit your career in anyway?

Based on my experiences I’ll put it this way:

Doing an unpaid internship does not guarantee that you will get a job as a college strength coach, however, passing up on an unpaid internship guarantees that you will not get that strength coach job.

If you decide to embark on this experience I recommend getting out of your comfort zone, and coach as much as possible.

Make mistakes, they’re bound to happen, and learn from those mistakes. That way when you move up to running your own program you won’t make them when it’s important.

Be sure to retain good relationships with the coaches you work with as well. You’ll want to use them as references at some point. Odds are they will know someone down the road who might be able to help you get a job.

My student ended up emailing me a couple days later informing me that he had accepted the intern position in San Diego. Unpaid internships are a crucial stepping stone in the career path of a strength coach so without reservation I would recommend them.

About the Author

Justin Kompf is a certified strength and conditioning specialist and certified personal trainer through the NSCA. He graduated from SUNY Cortland in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology. He currently teaches and trains clients at the University. Justin like burritos, deadlifting, peanut butter, and The Fast and the Furious movie saga (minus 2 and 3). He is an author for bloodandiron315.com . He can be reached at [email protected].

Here’s this week’s list of stuff to read while you’re pretending to work.

Paleo: The Good, Bad, and Ugly – Dani Shugart

Here’s a joke for you:

Q: How do you know someone is “Paleo?”

A: They tell you.

Hahahahahahahahaha.  Get it?   Oh man I love that one.

Okay here’s the dealski:  I’m not a Paleo guy through and through.  Sure I have a few Paleo tendencies.  I eat a ton of meat and vegetables, I don’t go out of my way to include a lot of processed foods, and I’m pretty sure I ate enough saturated fat during breakfast this morning for an entire platoon.

But I don’t have a major conniption if I happen eat a piece of bread or two (or three)* at dinner, and I’m sure as shit-fire not going to deprive myself of ice cream when I want it.

My sentiments run parallel with my good friend John Romaniello’s:

Whether or not our ancestors (in a given period) ate a certain food is ultimately not relevant to whether that food affects you positively or negatively.

Stop worrying about whether something is healthy based on the criteria that some hypothetical caveman may have eaten it.

Criticizing a version of the paleo diet because it contains potatoes is like criticizing Jurassic Park because most of the dinosaurs in the movie were actually from the Cretaceous period.

Stop nitpicking. It’s just a name. If it makes you feel like shit, don’t eat it.

Exactly.

Either way, in this very well written article, Dani Shugart brings some clarity to an ever polarizing topic.

Your 2014 Weight Loss Challenge – Dan John

It’s no secret that I have a ton of respect for Dan John – and a teeny tiny man-crush, too – and it should become fairly self-evident once you read this article he recently wrote on MensHealth.com

Coach has a way with words.

Weighing the Risks – How Weekend Athletics Can Ruin Your Gainz – JC Deen

No one is saying that you can’t go play a pick-up game of basketball here and there, join a beer league slow-pitch softball team, go annihilate and ruin some random kid’s day at your local paint ball course, or play a leisurely game of lawn darts (preferably not drunk).

Sports, hobbies, and other fun activities are a part of life.

BUT there does come a point every so often where you need to weigh the rewards along with the risks – especially as it relates to your fitness goals.

* = or four, don’t judge me

1.  Starting things off with a bit of TG content, I had the pleasure of teaming up with the likes of other top-notch coaches like Lee Boyce, Geoff Girvitz, Jeremey DuVall, and Anthony Yeung on a tongue-in-cheek piece on www.conFitdent.com on exercise selection and programming.

It’s a running series that I participated in a few months ago where I answered a litany of questions but was told I could only use “x” number of words (which is a lot harder than it seems) to portray my thoughts.

The gist is that every few weeks they’ll release a “series” of compatible questions or just go with a running theme.

In case you missed it the first time around, here’s one that involved Cardio Tips.

Just to reiterate:  if you want to geek out and read all about supercompensation, strength deficit, periodization, or the difference between central fatigue and peripheral fatigue than I suggest opening up your copy of SuperTraining and have at it.

If, however, you don’t take yourself too seriously, and want a quick, bullet-point read…..than you can check out the latest iteration – Exercise Selection: How to Optimize Your Workout.

2.  I touched on this a few weeks ago, but I want to try to keep this fresh in people’s minds as I think it’s going to be a SICK event.

I’ll be heading back to alma mater – State University of New York at Cortland (SUNY Cortland) – on April 5th, 2014 as part of the First Annual Cortland Strength and Conditioning Symposium.

With the likes of myself, John Gaglione, Dr. Mike Roussell, Dr. Cassandra Forsythe, and Spencer Nadolsky as the slated line-up it’s going to be an unparalleled event for students and fitness professionals alike.

Registration is now open, and it’s set at a VERY reasonable price as we want to ensure that this is an event that’s accessible to everyone.

For more information you can go HERE.

3.  Part of the “charm” about this blog and what I feel makes it so successful is that I’m not afraid to go off the beaten track and let people know that I’m not just some fitness cyborg.  I don’t eat, live, and breath fitness 24/7.  I occasionally – not often – scratch a scheduled training session.

Sometimes I squat above parallel.

I eat gluten!!!

So I guess I won’t be invited to a Paleo party anytime soon.

More to the point:  sometimes I just like talking about other stuff, and I’m not shy to share more personal components of my life here on this blog.  I can’t tell you how many times people have stopped by to check out Cressey Performance and asked how my cat, Dagny, was.

At first I’m taken aback – “how the hell do you know the name of my cat?!”  But then I remember that I talk about her on this blog about once a week, and I also post pictures like this on my Facebook page:

O…..M……G.  She’s the cutest thing, like, ever.

And for the record I didn’t take a selfie of myself chilling with my cat.  Come on:  I do have some standards.  Lisa happened to snake this pic of me when I got back from Edmonton and I was a little jet lagged the following day.

Anyways, with that out of the way I wanted to share a funny story from this past weekend.

Every Saturday night Lisa and I have our weekly “date night,” where 1) I actually take a shower and wear matching socks and 2) we go out to a nice dinner somewhere in the city.

As it happened this past weekend Lisa was taking me out for my belated Birthday dinner. As we were walking from point A (super secret birthday surprise) to point B (dinner at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse) we found ourselves on Newbury Street.

For those unfamiliar with Boston, Newbury Street can be thought of where all the upscale shops and stores are located and as such, where all the uppity people tend to spend their money

For shit and gigs we both figured, “huh, we have some time to kill, why not walk into this fancy schmancy jewelry store and peruse some rings?”

As a side note and just for the sake of clarity:  Yes, Mom, you read that correctly….Lisa and I were in a store, looking at rings. But more cogent to the point – I just want to let everyone know that I in no way would EVER buy a ring from said fancy schamancy store.

We just wanted to walk in – it was freezing outside! – and get an idea for what Lisa likes.

After about five minutes of meandering around the woman in the store approaches us and asks Lisa which one she’d like a closer look at. “That one,” Lisa said. Pointing to a 6.1 carat cushion cut diamond.

What followed was a whole diatribe about cut, quality, angles of light, and I think there may have been a Pythagorean theorem thrown in there for good measure.  The woman was very friendly and more than willing to answer our questions.

Then, the question that was on both our minds came out.  Lisa asked, “out of curiosity, how much is this one I’m wearing cost?”

$175,000.

Cue me destroying the back of my pants.

LOL – Lisa’s got good taste it seems…….;o)

4.  One of the perks of being “kind of a big deal,” (my words, no one elses) is that I get sent free stuff to try out.  Recently a Boston based company called EnergyBits sent me a sample to try out, and I just wanted to toss their name out there to my readers.

Giving the Cliff Notes version (ie: stealing from their own website):

Want more energy, more mental vitality, or a healthy high protein snack you can grab on the go? How about a quick way to boost your athletic performance, supercharge your run or crank up your endurance while working or working out?

Made from 100% organically grown spirulina algae and loaded with 40 nutrients, ENERGYbits® algae tabs have the highest concentration of protein in the world (64%) all for just one calorie per tab.

I’ve been trying to make a concerted effort to tone down my energy drink consumption, and have been using EnergyBits sporadically for the past two weeks as a way to boost my  “morale” in the late stages of the day when I’m coaching.

I have to say:  it’s working! I definitely notice a steady surge in my energy levels without the jitteriness that comes from downing a metric shit ton of caffeine.

A word of caution, though – they taste like butt-crack.

But this isn’t a slap against the company since they go out of their way themselves to tell people that the taste takes some getting used to.  In fact they encourage people to not EAT THEM, but rather to take a handful and down it with a glass of water.

Either way, for those looking to get an energy boost without feeling like their left ventricle is going to explode, I’d highly encourage checking www.EnergyBits.com (<—- no affiliate  code).

5.  Lastly, my boy Dean Somerset wrote an EXCELLENT blog post last week titled Fit/Fat Shaming, Judging, and Simply Being You.

At the end of the day, what you do with and how you feel about your body is entirely up to you.  It’s your body.  Stop allowing others to dictate your thoughts and predications.

Dean’s explanation and insight is A LOT more thorough than that…..so I’ll just defer to him. Read it!  Do it!

Raise your hand if you’re kinda still feeling out of sorts from all the apple pie you ate over the weekend. Don’t be bashful – there’s nothing to be ashamed about.

*Raises hand*

For those who celebrated it, I hope you had an amazing Thanksgiving weekend.  Despite not going back to my hometown and being around family for the first time ever, my Holiday was pretty spectacular.

Rather than risk me burning our apartment down attempting to help with cooking, Lisa and I opted to order Thanksgiving “to go” from one of our favorite restaurant here in Boston and had a lovely catered dinner.

It wasn’t quite the same as mamma Gentilcore’s home cooking, but it was scrumptious nonetheless….complete with turkey, stuffing, mashed sweet potatoes, kale, some roasted mixed veggies, and gravy!  SHA-ZAM!

The following morning we had a wicked early flight to Virginia for a friend’s wedding.  Trust me:  getting up at 4:15 AM after eating what mounts to a crap-ton of food less than eight hours earlier isn’t fun. I’d liken it to being forced to watch a Jillian Michaels video on repeat.

But both Lisa and I persevered and met the rest of the Cressey Performance crew at Logan Airport for the weekend of festivities. I won’t bore all of you with the details, but taking a few moments to highlight some of the weekend’s shenanigans:

1.  I’m pretty much the best minivan driver in the history of the world. I was somehow knighted as the weekend’s version of a “soccer mom” and was responsible for all the driving.  I rocked that shit.

Seat belts on or so help me god I’ll turn this van around and give you something to cry about!

2.  Virginians love them some pancakes.  I’ve never seen so many pancake houses in my life.

3.  We visited Colonial Williamsburg and I couldn’t help myself from having a little fun and yelling out, NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION.  NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION.

No one joined me. Jerks.

4.  Since last weekend was also my birthday weekend, I enjoyed myself by having four pieces of apple pie on Saturday night.  In case you haven’t figured it out by now: I kinda like apple pie.

5. By the way:  thank you to everyone who sent me B-day wishes on Facebook!

6.  If there’s one song that will get the entire CP crew on the dance floor and act like a bunch of idiots it’s this:

On the return trip back we had some time to kill and had the opportunity to walk around and see the sights and sounds in Washington, DC.

I had never been to DC before, and definitely plan on making a trip back so that I can spend more time in the museums.

One my favorite stops, though, was the World War II Memorial.  My grandfather was at Pearl Harbor when it was bombed in 1941 and I have always had a fascination with that era and how the people during that time came together, stepped up, demonstrated courage beyond measure, and did what had to be done.

In any case, enough about that.  I know the majority of people didn’t log on today to hear all about my weekend.

Oh, did I mention I crushed some leg extensions!

Eric Cressey, Matt Blake and myself made a cameo appearance at a local gym in Williamsburg and basically took ourselves through the most meat-headed of meathead workouts.

Yep, that happened.

Okay, lets get to the meat of this post.

Prone Kettlebell Drag

Who Did I Steal it From:  As with the Supine Band Pallof Press, I stole this gem from Providence, RI based strength coach, Sean St. Onge.

What Does It Do:  Rather than come across as a broken record, I’ll just defer to THIS post as to why I like plank variations, as well as delve into a minor rant as to why I could care less if someone can hold that position for the duration of a Katy Perry song.

It really doesn’t mean jack squat if you’re someone who looks like this and is just hanging on your passive restraints in your lower back.

What I love about this variation is that not only are you going to get a killer oblique workout, but with the drag (and grab) of the kettlebell you’ll also get a fair amount of shoulder internal and external rotation, too.

Key Coaching Cues: Playing the Captain Obvious card, it stands to reason you should first MASTER the regular (low) plank before attempting this variation.

Assuming this is the case, all you’re going to do is get in the “set” position (eyes in line with your fists, backside should be neutral, abs and glutes engaged, pull elbows towards toes to garner more tension) then reach over and grab the handle of the KB.

Pinch your shoulder blades together and drag the bell to the opposing side. When there, flare the elbow in towards your ribcage, and place the bell down.

Then all you’re going to do is repeat the same process of “x” amount of repetitions per side.  I like to shoot for 5-6 reps per side.

Of note, for those who need to REGRESS this exercise (particularly for those with limited shoulder IR or ER), you can perform the same movement in the standard push-up position – with both arms fully extended – which will allow a little more wiggle room.

And that’s that.  Give it a try today and let me know what you think!

 

Today’s guest post is brought to you by University of Washington strength coach, Dave Rak.  Many of  you may recall a handful of past posts that Dave has written for this site, and it’s always a pleasure on my end to welcome him back because, well, he’s freaking good!

On top of being a former Cressey Performance intern Dave was also my training partner for the past year whenever I snaked a lift at Boston University where he served as a Grad Assistant.

A typical text exchange would go like this:

Tony:  Dude, deadlifts tomorrow, you in?

Dave:  You had me at deadlifts.

Tony: I’ll bring the Spike, you set the Pandora station at Wu-Tang radio.

Dave: Done

Tony:  OMG, I am soooo excited!

Dave: Same-sies!

In any case, in this brief post Dave breaks down one of my favorite back exercises – the Deadstart DB Row.

Enjoy!

Whether you’re building a superior athlete, training for the zombie apocalypse, or trying to get more yoked than The Rock, building a big back should be one of your priorities.  A monster back will help athletic performance, improve your big three lifts (Squat, Bench, & Deadlift), and it will make you look like a straight boss.  The dummbell row is a great exercises to get this job done.

There are a variety of other pulling exercise that are great for building both size and strength, but some of these lifts are not for everyone.

Deadlifts, vertical pulling, and farmer carries are great for adding both size and strength to your back.  But, before you start blasting out a million pull-ups keep this in mind: Tony touched upon the issue of scapular depression and extended postures, and how chin-up/pull-up’s, farmer carries, and deadlifts may not be the best fit for some people.

Also, heavy vertical pulling may piss off your elbows.

If you are an overhead athlete this can cause some serious problems.  A lot of my athletes fall into this contraindicated group, which is why I feel horizontal rowing is a much better option for these individuals.

My athletes seem to love dumbbell rows almost as much as I do and eventually they start to venture down to the heavier side of the dumbbell rack to see how far they can push themselves.

All of a sudden they go from having great technique to looking like someone trying to start a broken lawnmower.

Once you start to go heavy on an exercise of course you may start to sacrifice technique, but I hold my athletes to a higher standard, especially when I am trying to get them out of forwarded head postures, anterior glenohumeral glide, and substituting trunk rotation for actually pulling the dumbbell up.

This is where the deadstart dumbbell row comes into play.

Who Did I steal It From: I can’t remember but I owe that dude a can of Spike (it actually may have been Tony now that I think of it)

Note from TG:  Maybe. I actually had a minor brainfart and just remembered that I discussed this exercise awhile back HERE, albeit I called it a deadSTOP row.

Consider Dave’s post a nice refresher….;o)

What Does It Do:   Once I started programing it in for my athletes their form instantly cleaned up.  Since the dumbbell is rested on the floor after each rep it actually simplifies the exercise.

Deadstart dumbbell rows inadvertently turn a set of 5 or 8 reps into 5 or 8 singles. This allows the athlete to slow them-self down and reset after each rep, locking their body into a good position each time they pull the weight up.

It is also a great way to teach the athlete how to get their core set and get their back tight which will carry over to other major lifts.  This exercise becomes pretty clutch when training a large group of athletes since it cleans up technique almost on its own, much similar to the way a goblet squat cleans up a squat pattern.

This will teach your athletes how to handle heavier weight without sacrificing technique, making the transition back to standard dumbbell rows easier. This rowing variation is also a great way to add variety to a program especially if your athletes are not ready for any kind of vertical pulling.

Key Coaching Cues:  Keep in mind that I use this as a progression from a traditional 3 point dumbbell row.

I will start by telling my athletes to pretend like they a playing pick up basketball and are on defense (this gets them into an athletic stance) and then tell them to fall into the bench setting their support hand in place. Then keep a flat back, and make an ugly double chin.

From there I will slap them in their belly and their lats (not too hard of course) to get them tight, and begin the exercise.  As you pull make sure you’re not letting your chin or back move, stay locked in.

Avoid pulling your elbow too far behind your body to prevent anterior glide at the shoulder.  When you lower the weight be sure not to drop it, but make sure the dumbbell come to a complete stop on the floor before your next rep.  Get your body tight before you pull again.

You will be able to go heavier with these rows since you get to set the weight down between every rep.  I shoot for 5-8 reps per side and anywhere from 3-5 sets.

About the Author

David Rak is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA (CSCS) and a Strength and Conditioning Certified Coach through the CSCCa (SCCC). He is currently an Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach at the University of Washington where he works with Baseball, Men’s & Women’s Golf, Throwers, Middle Distance Runners, & Cross Country.   Dave received his Bachelor’s in Exercise Science at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and his Master’s in Coaching from Boston University. He has and completed a graduate assistant position at BU and has interned at Mike Boyle Strength & Conditioning, Cressey Performance, and with the University of South Carolina (Football).

Dave can be reached at [email protected] Twitter: @dave_rak

 

Before we get to this week’s list of stuff to read I have a few “house cleaning” items to address.

1.  Cool news!  I had a video chat** with the guys over at WeightTraining.com the other day about the possibility of partnering with them to a greater extent in the near future on providing some programming content on their site.

Some of you may recall that I’ve done some work with WT.com in the past mostly of which consisted of me logging my own training sessions on their site (which is what they’re about in the first place).  But I also provided some of my own programming as well as helped to organize a little deadlift battle around this time last year which, not to brag or anything, made the Battle of Helms Deep in The Two Towers pale in comparison.

Looking into my crystal ball, and assuming things stay on course, it seems I’ll be back on board providing some killer content – specifically monthly programming – for their site soon.  So stay tuned for more details on thay front.

2.  Lastly, as I was going through my emails yesterday I noticed I received one from Laura over on Greatist.com informing me that I was named on their list of 50 Bloggers Making a Difference in Fitness, Health, and Happiness.

 

[Still waiting to be named to People Magazine’s Sexiest Strength Coaches]

It’s always an honor to be named to lists like this especially given the company I’ve been bundled with. Nevertheless, I just wanted to thank Greatist for their continued support and I encourage all of you reading to check out the list yourself as there’s bound to be some (new to you) people dropping some knowledge bombs.

My Success Is a Lie (How to Avoid Feeling Like a Fraud) – Nate Green

I thought this was a powerful piece of writing by Nate, and it’s topic that I feel is always on the back of most people’s minds.

People define success in different ways.  Not surprisingly, wealth is usually at the top of the list.  Some people gauge success by their sense of happiness and self worth; while others gauge it by how many times they went poop this morning.  Hey, I’m not here to judge.

I know there are times where I still feel like a fraud.  Despite being in this industry for a little over a decade, helping to run a successful business (Cressey Performance), continuing to build my own business/brand (Tony Gentilcore), and appearing in just about every major fitness publication, there are still times where I feel like I don’t know what the hell I’m doing or talking about.

Nate helps to shed some light on this topic, and I highly suggest giving it a look.

What the Hell is Gluten – Steve Kamb (NerdFitness.com)

It seems you can’t walk more than ten feet nowadays in a grocery store without walking past some display, sign, or advertisement extolling that “x” product is GLUTEN FREE!

Speaking candidly:  while I understand that celiac disease is a real thing that real people suffer from – and it’s NO joke (it sucks donkey balls) – and too, while I understand that there are varying degrees of gluten intolerance, I still feel that this whole gluten craze has gotten a bit out of hand.  Nothing exemplifies my thoughts on this matter more than this cartoon that my friend, Leigh Peele, made:

 

Suffice to say:  there’s a lot of misinformation (not to mention a bit of overblown propaganda) when it comes to gluten.  You would think, after watching the nightly news or perusing Facebook that gluten was the worst thing since Hitler.

Thankfully Steve came through in the clutch and helps to set the record straight.

Our War on Fat Was a Huge Mistake – Kris Gunnars

I’m a visual learner, and this article – on top of providing some awesome commentary – has SIX graphs which essentially dispel many (if not all) of the LIES we were told back in the day on saturated fat being the root cause of  everything from heart disease to having a bad hair day.

For realz.

** = Just as an FYI:  Despite it being a video conference I did end up wearing pants.  You know, to keep it professional.

I’ve been in a bit a writing funk lately – hence why I only posted two blogs last week.  It happens. But when it does it’s frustrating because, at some level, outside of myself, I feel like I’m letting people down.

Last week was weird, though.  I did manage to submit three different articles to three different publications, so I guess I can chalk my lackluster blogging to writing fatigue (and the Red Sox winning the World Series).

Unfortunately, words just don’t come to me. In fact it’s hard for me to sit in front of my laptop and just seamlessly move from one blog post or article to the next without taking a break or becoming easily distracted.

I mean, in the time it took me to write the first word of this post to what you’re reading NOW I’ve checked my email seven times, cleaned the kitchen, alphabetized my BluRay collection, watched Season 4 of Breaking Bad, flossed, dropped our rent check off, and read scripture to a bunch of orphaned kittens.

Hahahahahaha.  Just kidding.  I didn’t clean the kitchen.

But in all seriousness, writing is HARD.

It’s never come easy for me. While I love doing it (outside of the times I feel like face planting into my keyboard), I’d be lying if I said it’s been anything but challenging.

I used to think that that’s just how it is.  That writing is supposed to make you sick to your stomach sometimes; that it’s unrelenting; that it makes you feel like a failure and that paranoia will eventually render its ugly head and make you feel as if all people do when they read your stuff is look like this:

Of course I’m just by own worst critic.  I don’t think there’s ever been a writer in existence who felt that he or she was actually a good writer. Passable, sure.  But good?  I don’t think so.

I remember reading an interview once that Stephen King did on his writing process, and how he retold a story about when he got roughly 3/4 of the way through a novel (we’re talking several hundred pages here), decided it was garbage, tossed it into, well, the garbage……and moved on to his next project.

When I read that it blew my mind.

If Stephen King – arguably one of the most prolific authors of our generation – thinks he’s a horrible writer, even if it’s only for a nanosecond…….what’s that say about the rest of us? Is there any hope?

To that point, I do get a fair number of questions via email or in person from upcoming trainers and fitness professionals on writing and how they should go about pursuing it.

I’ve written on this topic in the past and I won’t go too far here in reinventing the wheel – namely because I can’t stand repeating myself.  For those interested:

HERE is a post I wrote on how I create content and how I picked up my writing style.

HERE is a post answering the commonly asked question, “Tony, how do I get my name out there and start writing for fitness publications?”

Speaking honestly, though, I can sum up both in a succinct paragraph:

Stop thinking it’s just going to happen, that it won’t require years of hard work, consistency (and just a touch of luck). Get really good at what you do – whether it’s catering to the fat loss crowd, athletes, or, I don’t know, training bomb sniffing dolphins (hint:  I think there’s a lot to be said for actually training people in REAL LIFE, and not just talking about training people). And if you want to write and write well, you have to fucking write.  Like, a lot.

Now, I don’t think every person who asks me that question actually feels as if everything’s going to be handed to them on a silver platter. A vast majority aren’t that naive.  But I can’t help but feel a smidgeon of resentment towards some people who can’t see the obvious answer(s).

And that is:  you’re going to have to put the work in, and grind it out like the rest of us.

To that end, I do want to recommend a few books which helped me along the way. Once I started doing fitness writing I realized that if I wanted to hone my craft I couldn’t just read the likes of Zatsiorsky or McGill to become a better writer.  I needed to read things about writing as well.

The War of Art – David Pressfield

Bird by Bird – Anne Lamott

The Forest for the Trees – Betsy Lerner

Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life – Dani Shapiro

Everyone Poops – Taro Gomi (I just think this is a brilliant book).

And for something a bit more closer to home and speaks to the topic at hand…..

How to Get Published: Writing Domination in the Fitness Industry

Okay, I’ll get off my soapbox now. Hopefully I didn’t come across as some condescending doucher. Then again, and not that anyone cares, I just noticed that my new car has this HUGE scratch on the rear passenger side and whoever did it didn’t have the common courtesy of leaving a note.  Which means:

A).  I’m in a pissed off mood right now (sorry).

B).  I basically have no choice but to go all “Taken” now…….