It’s been a few months in the making, but the CP Elite Baseball Development video has finally come to fruition after going through all the footage and numerous edits along the way.
Speaking truthfully, I’m not going to say that this is the most bad-ass video ever made, but it pretty much is. Seriously, if this doesn’t hit at least ten million views by lunch today, I’ll be disappointed.
Joking a side, we’re really happy with the end product, and we hope it allows everyone to get a peek inside what Cressey Performance is all about.
As you’ll see, we work with a bunch of great guys, so a huge thanks goes out to all of them for their continued support and dedication each and every off-season. Give em’ hell this summer fellas!
Not that this is going to come as any surprise, but a plastic surgeon and an orthodontist (huh?) have recently teamed up to promote an extreme weight loss plan that involves daily injections of the pregnancy hormone hCG in conjunction with a 500-calorie per day diet. Of course they would!
Here’s the basic logic (from the story linked above): despite the fact that there’s absolutely no scientific research that it actually does anything, you tell people to inject themselves with this hormone (which coincidentally isn’t cheap) so that they won’t feel hungry when they’re only eating 500 calories per day.
What the shit!?!?!?!
I don’t know about you, but I’d like to see the percentage of people who actually keep the weight off once they stop “treatment.”
My guess is not many.
Moreover, I’d love to be a fly on the wall as this soul-less, asshat of a doctor explains to people that following a 500-calorie per day diet, long-term, is in any way healthy. Why not just tell them to drink battery acid and eat paint chips? Surely they’ll lose some weight that way, too.
I really don’t know how these people sleep at night. Hey, anything to pay off that BMW and fake tan, right?
And, I don’t care what anyone says, despite their claims to the contrary, the reason why they’ve never lost any weight (even though they’ve tried everything) is because they crush Dunkin Donuts like it’s their job and their idea of exercise is taking the elevator to the second floor.
People don’t like to be held accountable for their own actions. It’s well established in the research that people vastly UNDER-report how much they really eat, and OVER-report how much they actually exercise. We’re not honest with ourselves.
It’s pretty amazing how many people out there follow a “strict” and “clean” diet (supposedly) and run a marathon before breakfast everyday (supposedly); yet, low and behold, they’re still 40 lbs overweight.
Simply put, we’re just not as active as we think we are. Sadly, for many, their ONLY form of exercise is the 3-5 hours per week they spend in the gym – and, that’s assuming that when they go to the gym, they’re actually exercising.
Think about it: THREE hours of exercise per week.
While there are exceptions to the rule – more often than not, that’s not going to cut it (particularly when things like yoga, elliptical trainers, and pink dumbbells are the staple for most people). We’ve all seen the infomercials selling exercise machines that promise the body of our dreams with only three, twenty-minute sessions per week. Yeah, right. And I’m going to drive over to Brittney Daniel’s house in my tank and take her out to T.G.I.Friday for dinner tonight.
In your dreams!
Listen, most people watch three hours of television before bed every night; so you’re kidding yourself if you think your Pilates class you take three times per week is going to do anything. Even still, like I said, most people aren’t moving around as much as I they think in the first place. Something’s better than nothing, but lets be real here. What’s more, as my good friend Mark Young has noted repeatedly, if we’re talking strictly caloric deficit and it’s effect on weight loss, exercise takes a back seat to diet anyways.
Which brings us back to Dr. McDouchington. Really? You’re going to tell me that you have your patient’s best interests in mind by telling them to stick a syringe in their body and inject a hormone that 1) isn’t even being used for its intended purpose and 2) has no proof that it even works other than a few suspect studies? On top of that, you’re then going to advocate they eat only 500 calories per day?
Excuse me while I go throw an ax into my face.
I’d love to hear what all of you have to say. Do you find this just as absurd as I do?
Every so often I get random emails from other fitness professionals asking me if I’d be interested in doing an interview for their website. Admittedly, it’s always humbling for me to know that people actually want to listen (or, in this case, read) what I have to say. It’s an honor, really.
I mean, I don’t necessarily consider myself that big of a deal – I piss excellence just like everyone else out there – but it’s a nice feeling, nonetheless, to know that there are some out there who don’t think I suck. I’m sure they’re out there, no doubt, but at the end of the day I like to think I’m doing something right..
That said, today, I want to share an interview I did for fellow-trainer, Mike Arone, over on his site mikearonefitness.com. Mike’s originally from Boston (hence, the blog title) and currently resides in NYC. In much the same way, Mike takes more of an “infotainment” approach with his blog that I feel many of you who read my stuff consistently will definitely appreciate.
He’s not scared to call B.S when he sees it, tells people to lift heavy things, thinks Tracy Anderson is kinda douchy, and, what’s more, he’s representing Red Sox nation in the Big Apple. In a word – he’s legit.
Check out the interview HERE, and let me know what you think.
So, yesterday marked the start of a new “plan,” in a manner of speaking. Outside of posting the occasional video of me lifting heavy things off the floor or just my general awesomeness, I never really go into any great detail on my training or what my goals are.
Believe it or not, it’s not just always about having a steel plate for a chest 24/7.
As it stands now, I spent the past few weeks following Lean Hybrid Muscle, and while it kicked the living piss out of me (a good thing), I’ve decided I need a little more focus and something specific to train for. To that end, I’ve decided that I’m going to do something similar to what I did roughly two years ago when I did Project Tony Gets Sexified.
To review, back in January of 2009, I put myself through a short, planned out, six-week phase where I was going to get as lean as possible and then, like an idiot, not take pictures. In hindsight, it was a horrible time to do an experiment like that. I mean, who gets shredded right smack dab in the middle of winter, anyways?
Anyways, I had a few stipulations:
1.I couldn’t get too sexy. It would have been unfair to all the other guys out there.
2.I didn’t want my bodyweight to drop below a certain threshold – 195 lbs to be exact (starting weight was around 205 lbs at the time).
3.And, maybe most important of all, I wanted to maintain my strength levels. Simply put, I didn’t want to end up looking like an emaciated Abercrombie model that couldn’t punch his way through a wet paper towel.
That was about it, really.
Looking back – while there was definitely some structure (my good friend, Jen Heath, wrote my nutrition plan) – there was no real end-goal other than to diet for six weeks, hate life, think about carbs all…..the…..time, and say that I did it.
In the end, I was happy with the results and I looked pretty damn good if I do say so myself. Well, as good as you can expect in mid-February with no tan.
So, here’s the dealski. I’m going to give it another go, but not until mid-May/early-June. I’m saying this NOW because by writing it here on my blog, I’m hoping that the sense of accountability will actually force me to go through with it – because unlike two years ago, there IS an end-goal this time around.
The game plan is as follows:
Take the next three weeks and clean things up a bit. My girlfriend and I booked a flight down to Florida at the end of the month for a week, and I can’t, in good conscience, be walking around on a beach in the shape I’m in right now. In the grand scheme of things, this is nothing more than dialing in my nutrition for a week or two, and maybe throwing in some quick, ten-minute finishers at the end of my training sessions. Although, on an a side, I trained with EC yesterday and it was a doozy, so I may not have to worry about it.
A1. Front Squats vs. Chains (3 per side) 2×3, 2×6
A2. Stretch/activate something (which we didn’t do, LOL)
Once we’re back from Florida, I’m going to spend the next 6-8 weeks getting after it. Eric is currently doing a 5-6 day per week split (two upper body days, two lower body days, one “specialty day**,” and one carry/strongman day), and I’m just going to follow suit….I think. Personally, I want to take this time and really “bring up” (yes, I just used a bodybuilding term. And yes, a little piece of my soul just died) my lower body, so I may just toy around with a Smolov squat cycle, depending on how sadistic I feel.
By the time mid-May/early-June hits, it’s go time! There’s no need to go into the details now (truthfully, I don’t even know what they are yet), but suffice it to say, I’m thinking I’m going to do it right this time. Which is to say, I’m going to diet down, do an actual water manipulation/deplete/carb up the final week, and possibly hire a professional photographer to come to the facility and take pictures. If you play your cards right, I may even show them to you. You’ll have to beg, though……;o)
And no, I’m NOT stepping on a stage – so save your breath.
Then, after all of that, I’m going to make a run at that 600 lb deadlift I’ve been talking about for a while now. Time to put up or shut up.
So, um, yeah, that’s it. This should make for an interesting next few months in terms of my training. Having some focus – a plan – will undoubtedly light a fire under my ass. What about you? What’s your game plan? If anything, I hope this post got you in the mindset that having some kind of plan is kind of important.
* I pulled heavy last Friday, working up to 495 lbs for 4×3, and this was absolute torture. Anything over five reps is cardio to me, and I can’t remember the last time I did ten reps on deadlifts. Jesus, that sucked.
** Translation: arm day. ROTFLMAO. No but seriously, though, I’m on it.
You know you’re struggling for blog content on a given day when all you have is a video of you deadlifting with an Alicia Keys t-shirt on.
In reality, it was a social experiment of sorts.
1. For starters, would wearing said t-shirt improve the bar speed on a 90% + deadlift (515 lbs)?
2. How long can I go without doing my laundry?
3. Based off the moves I’ve made thus far, two things are bound to happen: either Alicia is going to show up at CP for an assessment the next time she’s in Boston; or, most likely, issue a restraining order. Only time will tell…..
Be back tomorrow with some actual content – promise.
Giving myself a little credit, I’ve been on the vitamin D bandwagon before there was even a bandwagon – lets just be clear here. Moreover, given vitamin D’s role in improving bone health, helping with depression, decreaing fatigue, and it’s overall effectiveness with turning people into barrell chested freedom fighters, it should come as no surprise why I was touting it as the “next big thing,” all the way back in 2008.
Thing is, though, as more and more research spills out of the medical world on the merits of supplementation (or just simply getting more sunshine throughout the day), there are seemingly more and more naysayers out there who are kind of douchy – big pharma being one of them,
This was a fantastic article by John Meadows that details just how much of a big deal the liver is not only for general health, but how it also plays an integral role in fat-loss as well.
No surrpise here, Bret drops some knowledge bombs. I love Bret for many reasons – his smile, his witty personality, his charm – but most of all, I love him because he’s humble and not scared to tell it like it is.
And, it certianly doesn’t hurt that he gives me some props in the interview (which, admittedly, wasn’t warranted). Thanks to both him and Dean for an awesome interview.
ou happen to come across any filming of The Hobbit while in New Zealand, you HAVE to send me pics!!!!!
A few months ago, my girlfriend and I attended the company Christmas party where she’s currently interning. Like the good boyfriend that I am, I got all dressed up, shaved my head, put on some cologne, and even made sure the color of my shoes matched my belt. You could say I stepped my game up.
The night was par for the course – filled with introductions to her colleagues, a few courtesy laughs here and there, and an impromptu skull session on the importance of wine and the type of glass you drink it in.
Long story short, one of the big wigs sat at the same table as us – great guy; very amicable, engaging, and clearly a bit tipsy. Anyhoo, at some point during the evening we (and by “we” what I really mean is I was just listening) got on the topic of wine – the different kinds, how it’s made, where it comes from, how you store it, and even the types of glasses you drink it in.
Cleary I was out of my element, because this was all news to me. Then again, I think Applebee’s is a fancy place to eat, so there you go.
Now, I don’t drink wine – but if I did, I wouldn’t care what it was served in. Give me an empty pickle jar for all I care. All the same, it was really interesting to listen to this guy talk about all the intricicies that go into selecting the proper glassware for the type of wine you’re drinking.
Thing is: It’s total bullshit. In his phenomenal book, Predictably Irrational, Dan Ariely discusses the notion that it makes absolutely no difference what shape (or type) of glass you drink your white wine in – it’s still going to taste the same whether it’s served in a tall glass or a short glass, or whatever type of glass white wine is supposed to be served in. According to Dr. Ariely, research proves it.
Nonetheless, it’s interesting to note that wine is perceived to be more “pleasant” (and as a result, more expensive) when it’s served in high(er) end wine glasses; that is to say, glasses carefully and strategically designed to presumably bring out the wine’s full aroma and texture.
In other words, you can take a bottle of two buck Chuck from Trader Joe’s, serve it in really expensive wine glasses, and people will automatically assume that they’re drinking an expensive Cabernet Sauvignon. They’re surroundings influenced their overall experience – in a positive way, no less. Pretty cool trick if you ask me.
So, by now you’re probably wondering what’s my point with all of this? Well, I was talking with one of our clients, Chris P, at the facility the other day, and he brought up an interesting point that parallels the discussion above. Namely, the notion that what makes Cressey Performance so successful is the fact that people are surrounded (and influenced) by other people doing things RIGHT!
When he’s not training at CP three times per week, Chris uses a local commercial gym closer to his home. He watches, first-hand, people just go through the motions.
He notices how many of the members always use the same machines; how most will be watching more television than actually training. He also watches how people rarely (if ever) squat or deadlift, or perform chin-ups; or do anything remotely hard for that matter. People rarely change – they look the same now as they did two years ago. There’s no one to really influence them to do otherwise.
Conversely, at CP, it’s the exact opposite. People are pushing one another; everyone is either squatting (to depth), deadlifting (without rounding their back), performing single leg work, doing heavy push-ups, throwing med balls (and breaking them), pushing the Prowler (and hating life), hitting tires with the sledgehammer, and just being badasses in general. Their environment influences them to do so.
As much as we can easily be influenced by what type of glass we drink our wine from, so to can we be influenced by our training environment. Simply put – if you surround yourself with people who think bicep day and Bikram yoga is “working out,” good luck trying to take your body to the next level. How’s that for an analogy?
Like most people, at times, I work way too much. A typical day for me starts between 5-6 AM where I wake up and spend the majority of my morning writing programs, answering emails, catching up onsome writing, and maybe reading a few blogs here and there.
I then drive to the facility, get my lift on, and spend the rest of the day helping people achieve a higher level of ridiculawesomeness than what they had prior to walking in.
I’m loading an un-loading plates, putting chains on people’s backs, demonstrating exercises, taking people through their warm-ups, performing assessments, and basically running around like a chicken with its head cut off for the entire day – it’s non-stop.
At the end of the day, I drive home, and much to my girlfriend’s chagrin, I spend the next hour or two before bed writing more programs, answering emails, and pretending to listen to her as she quote-on-quote, “tells me about her day.” Just kidding, babe – I TOTALLY listen. No, really, I do! Remember that thing you were telling me about where what’s-her-face was driving to that place? Hahahahahaha. That was hilarious! I’m in the doghouse aren’t I?
Anyways, while it’s not uncommon for me to be working six (sometimes seven) days per week, it’s things like the video below – made by Chad “Dragon” Rodgers of the Atlanta Braves and Matt “Scorpion” Kramer of the Boston Red Sox that only reaffirm why my job kicks your job’s ass:
Q: Hey Tony, I was wondering if you could write up a blog post on the proper way to work up to a heavy set, like when you work up to a 1rm, 3rm or a 5rm. When does the warm up end and the work sets begin, etc? Thanks in advance, love the blog.
A: This is actually a really great question because if there is any one thing that I see most people flub in the gym, it’s this.
You have two sides of the coin, really. On one side you have the guy who thinks he’s some kind of superhero, and just loads the bar up to his “working” set(s) and has at it.
Unless you’re name is He-Man or Charlie Sheen, this is stupid.
On the flip side – and equally as stupid – is the guy who takes foooooooooooorever to get up to his work set. In reality, he’ll do what seems like 17 sets before he even sniffs his actual sets; and then wonder why he’s always struggling to make any progress.
But to keep this as concise as possible (I could easily go off on a rant here. As a matter of fact, I kinda alteady did HERE), lets use myself as an example and go through how I’d progress to a heavy single on the bench press.
Note: Lets just assume that “heavy single” means anything at or above 90% of my 1RM.
Another Note: it’s also important to keep in mind that anytime we’re going for a heavy single, there’s going to be some sense of auto-regulation coming into play. Meaning, you’re not always going to feel like a million bucks and break PR’s every time out. Sorry, it’s the truth.
Having said that, we always need to be cognizant of the fact that every day is different – some days you’ll have it, and others you won’t.
Current 1RM: 315
Goal is to work up to 3 singles at or above 90%
Bar x whatever – as silly as it sounds, I always start with the bar just to groove technique.
From there I typically add either a 45 lb plate or a 25 lb plate with each subsequent “set,” until I start getting close to my estimated “work set’ (which again, is at or around 90% of my 1RM = anything 283 lbs and up).
For less advanced trainees, it may come down to adding only 25 lb plates and 10 lb plates – this is obviously dependent on the individual and their current strength levels.
Basically, with every subsequent “set,” I add a 45 then a 25, like so:
135 x 5 185 x 3 225 x 3 275 x 1 – for me, this is generally my last warm-up set, and depending on how “fast” this feels is usually my marker for how high I think I’ll be able to go. If it’s fast, it’s on like donkey kong. If it’s slow, I suck at life.
295 x 1 – was a little bit of a grinder, but still have a little more in me. Technically, this would also count as my actual first set since this was my first set above 90% of my 1RM. As such, I now have TWO more sets left, which means anything at or above 285 (rounded up) lbs would count as a true work set.
305 x 1 300 x 1
And that’s basically it. You can also use the 90% rule when working up to a 3RM or even a 5RM. So, for example, if you’re planning on working up to a heavy 3RM, you’ll follow the same warm-up and just gradually work up to a challenging set of three. Once you hit it (lets say it’s at 225 lbs), then every set that’s at or above 205 (rounding up from 202) lbs will count as an actual “work” set.
I really like this approach because it forces people to 1) work at a higher intensity than normal and 2) Be less douchy. Many trainees tend to undershoot their actual work sets by counting their warm-up sets, too. Big, big mistake. Is it any wonder, then, why so many people are baffled why they’re not making any progress when they’re counting their set of 135 lbs as an actual set!
Nevertheless, while this is a topic that could easily be dissected a bit more, I hope this clears up some of the confusion.
1. I’ve had to keep my lips sealed for far too long on this one, but this past weekend I flew home for the day for a surprise 60th b-day party for both my mom and step-dad. My sister and sister-in-law have been in cohoots for quite some time, and they did an amazing job at pulling off an epic party.
Now, rather than spend ten hours in a car driving to and from NY, I elected – reluctantly – to fly instead.
Five hours in the car vs. a 60 minute flight: easy choice, right?
Upon arriving at the airport early Saturday morning, I looked at my plane and it had freakin propellers. PROPELLERS!!!!!
Anyone who knows me, knows I HATE flying. And, as you can probably surmise, up untll that point I had never flown in such a small plane before. Packed in like sardines, we took off, and I pretty much destroyed the back of my pants.
Long story short, both my parents were caught off guard, and it was awesome to see their reactions when they walked through the door to see all of us standing there.
Everyone: SURPRISE!!!!!!!
Mom [deer in headlights look]: Oh…….oh my gosh, what in tha………OMG, Tony! Where’s Lisa?
Me: Hi Mom, I love you.
Mom: Where’s Lisa?
Me: Happy Birthday!!
Mom: Where’s Lisa?
Needless to say, my Mom really likes my girlfriend…….haha.
2. While away this weekend, I was able to get a quick lift in at my alma mater, SUNY Cortland. I hadn’t been there in like eight years, and it was really surreal to be walking around campus again.
A quick aside: for those that don’t know, Cortland has played host to the NY Jets for the past few seasons during their training camps, and was featured this past season on HBO’s Hard Knocks.
Of course, as expected, I was surrounded by a bunch of dudes with wife-beaters on, doing every bicep curl variation known to man – not to mention the obligatory guy who puts waaaaaaaay too much weight on his back, only to squat down maybe four inches.
It comes with the territory, I suppose; kinda what I expected.
I was didn’t expect, however, was how the facility itself has really improved since I left. While most college (student) gyms are lucky to have one squat rack, this one had three – as well as an olympic platform, various different bars (thick bars, trap bars, etc), a glute ham raise, battle ropes, kettlebells, and a host of other goodies that made me feel like a kid in a candy store.
I kept it pretty simple: worked up to a few heavy singles on the deadlift, followed by some bulgarian split squats, then glute ham raises, and then finished off with some KB windmills and swings. Okay, okay…..I also sneaked in some curls, too. Jesus! But it was only two sets. Okay, three. I mean four.
3. Someone sent me this quote from strength coach Nick Horton, and asked for my response:
But, personally, I’m in favor of dumping box squats all together (we never do them), as the idea of spinal compression from BOTH ends is scary to say the least. You should never sit down when heavy weight is on your back, IMO (powerlifters start throwing stones at me … now). The potential benefits do NOT outweigh the risks.
Still, he’s dead right about Oly squats kicking the butt of box squats. And, that you should squat if you have any interest in not being wimpy.
My Response: We use box squats quite a bit at CP – as we feel it’s a great tool to teach proper depth in the squat. Likewise, we don’t teach our athletes the traditional “powerlifting” box squat (rocking off the box); instead, we teach more of a tap-n-go approach, and to stay tight in the bottom. Additionally – and this is an important point – the spine does a fairly good job at handling compressive loads – it’s sheer loads (rounding of the back) that you have to be careful of.
To that end, we also use Olympic style squats a lot, too. It just depends.
Either way, this is no jab at Coach Horton – the guy trains a ton of athletes and he’s doing things the right way. Besides, there’s more than one way to skin a cat, and who am I to say that he’s wrong and I’m right? We may have different thoughts on certain things, but so long as our athletes are getting better, that’s all that really matters.
4. I will say, though, if we’re going to talk about how NOT to perform box squats, this video pretty much hits the nail on the head. Seriously, if you can make it past the whole “you don’t want to squat to parallel – you should keep your knees below the hips” comment without wanting to jam a pen through your eye, you win!
Since you’re not going to parallel, the key to this exercise is to load it up as heavy as possible, so that the body gets used to handling a lot of weight.
Says the guy with 15 lbs on his back.
A small part of me is thinking this has to be fake – but them again, it probably isn’t. Excuse me while I go jump into a live volcano.
