CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff To Read While You’re Pretending To Work: 6/24/16

I’m mad at myself.

Not for something stupid like forgetting to turn the stove off or forgetting to send in my quarterly taxes.

No, I’m mad at myself for slacking in the movie-watching department.

Anyone who knows me well knows how much I love watching movies, and how much I pride myself on being a movie snob.

Ever since I was a kid I’ve been a movie nut. I have vivid memories of seeing E.T, Return of the Jedi, and Back to the Future in the theater when I was younger, and immediately becoming hooked by the escapism those movies provided.

Sure, like everyone else I enjoy the big budget, popcorn movies like Captain America: Civil War. I mean, who doesn’t enjoy explosions, fists being thrown into other people’s faces, and Chris Evans’ pecs?

But I also love watching independent, artsy-fartsy movies too.

Foreign movies, movies that star Chloe Savigny, or movies that have some bohemian, artistic title like, I don’t know, I Stare at a Rock, Love is Blind.1

They’re all good in my book, and I’ll give everything a chance.

Regardless, I’ve been slacking this summer. I mean, I haven’t even seen X-Men: Apocalypse yet!

Putting things into perspective, however, it’s with good reason. Between all the traveling I’ve been doing for work in addition to taking over the lease for my own training studio here in Boston…I’ve been a little pre-occupied.

That said, what movies have YOU seen lately? Anything you recommend or made you want to drop kick the director in the neck for wasting two hours of your life?

I’m heading to my snobby theater tonight to go see The Lobster. I’ve heard good things.

 

Lets get to this week’s list of stuff to read…..

What’s Wrong With Your Deadlift? – Todd Bumgardner

Everyone has different body-types and leverages, which makes the deadlift different for everyone. However, Todd hits on some BIG ROCK cues and suggestions that pretty much have a universal connotation.

3 Steps to Better Basketball Conditioning – Ty Terrell

Remember those weighted shoes you used to wear to help with your vertical jump? Or, the crotchety basketball coach who used to run his athletes into the ground during every…single…practice?

Most still do.

In this article, Ty hits on where most coaches miss the mark with regards to conditioning for basketball. Awesome stuff.

Double Your Back Growth – Nick Tumminello

In this article, Coach Nick hits on my favorite part of the body, the boobs the upper back. There’s plenty of info in this article to keep any meathead happy, but there’s also a fair bit of science for the nerds out there too.

CategoriesWriting

5 Ways to Become a Better Writer: Written By Not Stephen King

The fact I’m writing a post on how to write, much less how to do it well, dumbfounds me.

I’ve joked in the past that I don’t consider myself a “writer” in the first place. I’m a strength coach who happens to have an ability to construct two coherent sentences back-to-back. And sometimes, usually through sheer luck, use a semicolon as it’s intended.

I’ve also joked in the past that my high-school English teachers – Ms. Davie, Ms. Gambitta, and Mrs. LaVack – would shit a copy of For Whom the Bell Tolls if they knew that Tony Gentilcore, the same kid who could never grasp the difference between there/their/they’re and whom used adverbs incessantly (<— HA, see?!), had thousands of people read his website everyday and was a published author.

[Full credit to them for their patience back in the day.]

There’s other stuff that dumbfounds me too.

Like, why did Hollywood feel the need to remake Point Break?

And what’s the rationale in calling something “vegetarian meat loaf?” That makes no sense. There’s no dead animal involved. Why not just call it vegetarian loaf?

Or, I don’t know, sawdust?

But as it stands, as far as things that really dumbfound me, seeing my name in the likes of Men’s Health, T-Nation.com, Women’s Health, Men’s Fitness, and many other reputable fitness publications on a regular basis is nuts.

However that dumbfoundedness (did I just make up a word?) isn’t devoid from a sense of pride and accomplishment.

There is a small degree of bravado on my end. #sorrynotsorry.

Nevertheless, whenever I travel for workshops (or open up my inbox) it’s not uncommon for the conversation to sway towards writing and how to get better at it.

Fitness professionals from all walks of life and backgrounds are interested in this topic. And it makes sense. Writing is a fantastic way to get your name out there and your information/expertise in front of more eyes.

Due to the digital nature of our society and the ease of access to information there is something to consider:

It’s never been easier to be heard, however it’s never been harder to get heard.

The fitness industry is saturated with everyone vying for everyone else’s attention. Writing, writing well, and possessing the ability to get (and maintain) people’s attention is a bonafide way to separate yourself from the masses.

Here are some ways to do so.

1. Becoming a Better Writer = Becoming a Better Reader

I don’t know of any writer worth his or her’s weight in number 2 pencils who doesn’t also have an insatiable appetite for reading.

“Reading—the good and the bad—inspires you. It develops your palate for all the tricks that writers have invented over the years. You can learn from textbooks about the writing craft, but there’s no substitute for discovering for yourself how a writer pulls off a trick. Then that becomes part of your experience. – Roz Morris“

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught myself marinating in a sentence or paragraph when reading, transfixed by the genius and wordsmithery (I think I just made up another word) of the author.

I’ve heard of other writers doing the same – so I don’t feel weird in divulging this – but it’s not uncommon for me to read someone’s prose and re-write it in a notebook or on my laptop just so I can gain a sense of what it feels like not to suck.

From Ernest Hemingway to J.K Rowling, Malcolm Gladwell to Lou Schuler, and Robert Ludlum to Dr. Seuss…try to immerse yourself with a variety of authors and genres (books, blogs, articles, etc).

It’ll not only broaden your palate, but help you to find your own writing style to boot.

2. Write To Your Strengths

Who better to quote here than one of my all-time favorite writers, Kurt Vonnegut:

“Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. It is this genuine caring, not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style.”

This is a particularly prudent piece of advice for (fitness) writers.

If your passion and strengths as a fitness professional reside in fat-loss, how to get people shredded, and arguing over ideal macronutrient breakdowns, then that’s what you should write about.

If you work with athletes, tend to gravitate towards getting people stronger, and want to turn people into deadlifting Terminators, then it makes sense to stay in your lane and talk about that sort of stuff.

If your speciality is how to train bomb-sniffing dolphins, write about that.

Of course, this isn’t to imply you should never go off the beaten track; there’s only so many articles you can write about the deadlift before you want to jump through a pane-glass window.

However, be forewarned that if you do choose to go outside your scope of expertise, you do run the risk of opening yourself up to an exponentially increased level of fuckery.

The internet trolls will get ya.

3. Everything Counts as Writing

I spend a large portion of my day responding to emails. Does that not count as writing?

We’re programmed to think that “writing” only counts if we’re writing a novel, and that’s simply not the case.

Writing a blog is writing.

Answering emails is writing.

Tweeting is writing.

Updating a Facebook status is writing.

Signing another restraining order is writing.

It all counts, and it all allows for an opportunity to get better. Check out Ann Handley’s book, Everybody Writes. It’s a game changer.

4. Find Your Creative Space (and Time)

Some people find their writing groove sitting at home in the peace and quiet. Others prefer to head to their local coffee shop or cafe, where the ambience and background noise helps them to focus more.

Everyone’s different.

Me? My best writing occurs while flying in a F-16 fighter jet.2

Likewise, some people find their creative juices are flowing more in the AM hours; others in the PM. I’m in the former camp. After coaching for a few hours the last thing I want to do when I get home at night is sit in front of my computer and pontificate on what to write about.

Not when there’s Netflix to be watched anyways.

Suffice is to say I’ve found my most productive hours to write are between 8-12 in the morning. Anything outside that window is a bonus.

Find what works best for you and what fits your schedule.

5. F*****G Write!

Stop emailing me or reading articles on “how to write,” and just go write for crying out loud. Make it a habit to do it everyday – whether it’s 50 words or 500.

You have to start somewhere.

It’s not a sexy piece of advice, but consistency and repetition is paramount. It’s what every writer in the history of ever will tell you to do.

It’s that simple.

CategoriesExercises You Should Be Doing

Exercises You Should Be Doing: Deep Squat Press

Today’s “Exercise You Should Be Doing” has a unique flavor compared to exercises in the past.

1. It’s as miserable as it sounds.

2. The word “deep” is going to be contingent on individual anatomy, overall mobility (ankle dorsiflexion, hip flexion, t-spine extension), and one’s ability level to actually squat. Basically, unlike the internet, I’m not an a-hole and expect everyone to squat ass-to-grass.

Likewise, as I’ve stated 717 (+/- 203) times on this site, not everyone can/should press overhead. You have to earn the right to press overhead. Limitations in shoulder flexion have to be taken into heavy consideration here.

That said this exercise is pretty baller, albeit a fairly advanced variation.3

3. It’s two exercises in one! Two is always better than one. Two ninjas are better than one, two pairs of clean underwear are better than one, hell, two sandwiches are better than one.

I mean, when isn’t it?

About the only time two isn’t better than one is Michael Bay movies.

So lets jump into it.

Deep Squat Press

 

Who Did I Steal It From: Can’t say I recall. But for shits and gigs I’ll say Ben Affleck.

What Does It Do: Works as a nice progression with regards to squat patterning. The asymmetrical or “offset” load provides a fantastic rotary stability component to the exercise. And, of course, the pressing component incorporates the upper body making this a full-body exercise to be reckoned with.

Key Coaching Cues: First and foremost I’d make sure to audit your clients and ensure they can perform a standard Goblet Squat before tossing this into the mix.

Some key points to consider:

  • Differentiating between Active vs. Passive Foot.
  • Can they maintain proper alignment – in that there’s no excessive rib flair throughout the duration of the set. The anterior load of the KB or DB should help offset this.
  • Chest Up.
  • Push knees out (heels stay glued to the floor), squat DOWN not necessarily BACK.
  • Maintain abs, and think about “pulling” into the deep squat position.
  • End result should be elbows inside knees, chest up, natural arch in lower back.

If they hit all the checkmarks above, your client(s) are probably good to go with this variation.

HOWEVER: screening them for ample shoulder flexion is crucial. If they lack sufficient overhead mobility the “press” component of this exercise may be contraindicated.

HOWEVER (PART II): Squat depth will be highly individualized. Some people lack the requisite mobility to squat below parallel. Others, however, lack stability in the form of protective tension, which more or less tells the CNS to put on the emergency breaks. So, what may seem like a mobility restriction is just lack of stability.

It’s important to screen for this and note the difference.

[^^^ There’s more to this screen that I’ve added since writing the post above (I should update it), but this should provide ample insight].

Do you or your client pass the above caveats? Good, you’re good to go.

Grab a kettlebell and start in the racked position. With your free hand make a fist and squeeze like a mofo. This will help create more bodily tension.

Squat down to your “usable” ROM and once there, maintain tension (don’t relax), pause for a 1s count, own the position, and then press the KB up towards the ceiling making sure to follow with your eyes.

Now that I think about it: this is also a great t-spine rotation exercise!

Perform 5-8 repetitions, and repeat the same process on the other side. Alternatively, you could perform this exercise as squat, press, stand back up, squat, press, stand back up, etc.

You get to pick your poison here. Give it a try and let me know what you think

CategoriesMotivational

Porcelain Post: The Key to a Perfect Training Program

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

Enjoy.

The Key to a Perfect Training Program

Here’s the thing: there is no “key,” or ideal way.

First of all, everyone is different. What works for one person may not be the best fit for someone else.

We can sit here and argue over ideal exercise selection, exercise order, sets/reps, high-bar squats vs. low-bar, rest intervals, and whether or not it’s best to use a 2-1-2 tempo or a 1-2-1.4.

None of it matters if you don’t show up.

3×52

Props to Charlie Reid for this.

The best set/rep scheme for your client(s), especially beginners, is the one that gets them in the gym 3x per week for 52 weeks. Get them to master that – the art of SHOWING UP –  and magical things will happen.

CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff To Read While You’re Pretending To Work: 6/17/16

As this post goes live I’m in route to Austin, TX with my wife Lisa to take part in our inaugural Strong Body-Strong Mind Workshop.

We’re excited because we both feel this is an underserved “niche” within the fitness community. The stuff I’ll be speaking about is nothing new – program design, breaking down squat and deadlift technique, why Darth Maul is the best Sith Lord ever, you know the important stuff.

While I feel I offer a unique perspective on all of those things and feel I have expertise, they’re all topics that are covered by many other coaches.

However, it’s the stuff the two of us will be speaking about in tandem – The Art of Coaching & Behavior Change, how to increase motivation and autonomy with your clients, how to assess your client’s willingness to change – that’ll be the real treat to the attendees attending.

Well there’s that, and the 0.01% chance they all witness a marriage crumbling before their eyes. This is mine and Lisa’s first attempt at working with one another.

Either the weekend ends as a glorious success, complete with high-fives and a ticker-tape parade, or we’ll be hiring divorce lawyers and fighting over custody of the cat.

And who gets the VitaMix.5

The 6 Biggest Lies About Eating Meat – Mike Sheridan

I always appreciate articles like this.

Coincidentally, best read while eating a steak….;o)

How to Reduce Your Risk of Injury – Ann Wendel

Girls Gone Strong resident physical therapist, Ann Wendel, chimes in with some sage advice on what “functional training” really means.

Optimizing Movement – Eric Cressey & Mike Reinold

With their 4th installment in the Functional Stability Training series, Eric and Mike break down “movement,” from the assessment process to the gym floor.

The sale price ($30 off) only lasts until the end of this weekend, so act quickly while you can to take advantage.

How to Test Overhead Mobility – Me

In my latest article for Men’s Health I break down one of the easiest ways to “screen” for overhead mobility, and what you can do to improve it.

Epic beard not included.

Categoriescoaching Exercise Technique

Turkish Get-Up Tip: Vertical Knee

The Turkish Get-Up.

Some people love them.

I mean, really love them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_98w0cwqFQ

 

And others are indifferent maybe even skeptical.

I know some strength coaches who view them as a valued asset to their programs, providing insight on their athlete’s movement quality as well as highlighting any “weak links” that may exist.

And I know some strength coaches who could make a list of other things more valuable or worth their time:

  • Deadlifts
  • Squats
  • Arguing with a vegan
  • Running a 5K
  • A basket of dicks

I, for one, do find value in them.  Of course, whether or not I transplant them into someone’s program depends on several factors; namely, their goal(s).

Sorry, but if someone’s goal is hypertrophy I can think of roughly 412 other exercises more prudent to get the job done than the Turkish get-up.

I’m not saying it’s a waste of time to include them in a program designed to get someone jacked – maybe include them as part of an extended warm-up to get the joints primed for larger, compound movements, or, say, if someone has the movement quality of a pregnant pig (they’re a nice addition to GPP days) – however, I’d raise an eyebrow (or two) to any coach who places heavy precedence on including them in such a program.

That said, I find the get-up to be one of those universal movements I use with my athletes and general fitness clients alike. For athletes it’s a great way to control fatigue and reduce axial loading. Not to mention we’re accomplishing a lot with regards to scapular stability, hip mobility, glute activation, as well as working on primitive patterns such as rolling, half kneeling, to standing.

I pepper them into programs for general fitness clients because, well, it’s good for them (and I like to LOL when they call me an a-hole for making them do it).

There are a lot of moving parts to the get-up. Not surprisingly, this makes the learning curve a bit tricky for some with regards to honing technique

Much like how I prefer to layer the KB Swing, I think it’s wise to also break down the get-up to more bite-size portions.

Today I’d like share a tip I learned from StrongFirst Team Leader, Artemis Scantalides, on a subtle “technique trap” many seem to fall prey to.

Maintaining a vertical knee (which helps to keep the glute engaged during the initial roll to press).

Vertical Knee

Categoriespodcast

Deadlift and Chill: Appearance on the Fit Info Club Podcast

Deadlift Black and White Attempt

Guy Bortz was kind enough to invite back onto his show for a second time this past week, and the link is now live.

I know there are a lot of fitness podcasts out there jockeying for your attention, but Guy is building quite the empire with the guests he’s been able to line up:

  • Dan John
  • Dr. John Rusin
  • Nick Winkelman
  • Greg Nuckols
  • Dean Somerset
  • Mark Fisher
  • Tony Bonvechio
  • Pete Dupuis
  • Kamal Patel
  • Max Shank
  • Mike Israetel
  • Mike Boyle
  • General Hawk from GI Joe

You should listen – he’s doing an awesome job. And I think what I like most about this podcast is that it’s very conversational in tone.

Just two dudes talking shop.

This time around we discuss my leaving Cressey Sports Performance, branding, how to do it well, and we also touch on training hips, shoulders, and deadlifts.

And there’s some small-talk about movies at the start….;o)

You can go HERE to listen.

CategoriesOff Topic

The Secret to Getting Good At Anything

I’m not a good writer.

In fact, I don’t consider myself a “writer” in the first place. I’m a strength coach who happens to have the ability to write sentences that don’t suck. Sometimes back to back; and sometimes including the proper usage of the semicolon.

Full Disclosure: I don’t even know if I used the semicolon correctly in that last sentence. If I did, sweet. I win the internet today. If I didn’t, whatevertheflyingfuck. I don’t care.

Kurt Vonnegut hated semicolons:

“Here is a lesson in creative writing. First rule: Do not use semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites representing absolutely nothing. All they do is show you’ve been to college.”

My buddy, John Romaniello, a talented writer in his own right (and someone who, too, lifts a metric shit-ton of weight), by contrast, loves the semicolon:

“I think it’s a splendid little piece of punctuation.

While I don’t think it’s really necessary in any respect, I do notice that people who use the semi appropriately tend to be solid writers; or, at least, have a firmer grasp of structure than most. (An observation of cognitive bias, perhaps.)

….to me, the semicolon implies, “there’s always more to say.”

So, yeah, I’m not a good writer.

But I don’t think anyone who writes thinks he or she is good at it. Only a select few can be Kurt Vonnegut, Ernest Hemingway, David Eggers, Anne Lamott, Stephen King, or He-Man.6

Most people who write – at least in my experience – will describe their prose as “bat-shit awful” on average days to an “indiscernible, incoherent attempt at passable English” on the good days.

I 100% fall into this camp.

I’ll admit that writing doesn’t come easy to me. I am not one of those people who can sit in front of their laptop, swiftly tap away on their keyboard, and conjure up some masturbatory masterpiece that’ll live in literary lore.

Fact: that last paragraph alone took me five minutes to write. But hot damn, alliterations are awesome aren’t they?

Writing can, and often is, a marathon of agony for me.

However, what can I say: I love it. As a self-described introvert…nothing recharges me or satiates my inner “leave me the fuck alone” troll than writing.

I can sequester myself in some corner at a cafe, or, preferably, in my office with my cat, Dagny, and be as content as content can be.

Oh my god, I can’t stand it how cute my cat is. Writing programs for clients and she snuggles right up to my laptop.

A photo posted by Tony Gentilcore (@tonygentilcore) on

As agonizing as writing can be now, it used to be way, way, way worse.

However, as with anything, you get better at doing it by, you know, doing it.7

I’m approaching 1,800 blog posts on this website. That’s a lot of writing. And that number doesn’t include all the articles I’ve written for other publications and websites.

I started, and I got better.

I often receive emails from other fitness professionals asking me how they can get their names out there and how they can become better at writing.

I’m honored they’d ask me in the first place, and feel obliged to be honest:

“First of all, thank you for the kind words. You obviously have impeccable tastes in the strength coaches you follow. I bet you’re super good looking too. To answer your question: Just start. Shut up, and start. Stop emailing me (and everyone else you’re asking the same question to) and start.”

Okay, maybe I’m not such an awful “writer” after all.

I’m leaps and bounds better today than I was when I first started a little over ten years ago. I can see growth in my writing. I have a style. There’s better sentence structure, transitions, flow, and I finally know the difference between there/their/they’re.

But all this happened because I started.

And haven’t stopped.

Still working on that semicolon, though.

CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff To Read While You’re Pretending To Work: 6/10/16

REMINDER: Strong Body-Strong Mind Workshop – Austin, TX (Saturday, June 18th)

Hey fitness pros/fitness enthusiasts in the AUSTIN, TX area. I’ll be down there next weekend (Saturday, June 18th) – along with my wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis – for our inaugural Strong Body-Strong Mind Workshop.

Topics covered include:

1. The Art of Coaching & Behavior Change – not only learn the ins and outs of coaching your clients on the gym floor, but also learn some cool Jedi mind-tricks on mindset and avoiding negative self-talk to boot.

2. The difference between external and internal cueing (and why one is better than the other).

3. Introversion vs. Extroversion – and as it relates to be an effective coach.

4. Breaking down squat and deadlift technique.

5. Why squatting ass-to-grass isn’t for everyone.

6. Why our cat is the cutest cat ever.

 

And much, much more. CEUs via the NSCA are available.

For more information (location, payment, etc) you can go HERE.

How Tight Lats and Kipping May Cause Shoulder Pain – Dr. Dan Pope

The lats are a game changer with regards to athletic performance, strength, and aesthetics. They can also wreck havoc on shoulder health.

In this article, Dr. Dan Pope sheds some light on why.

How (and Why) To Do Push-Ups – Lee Boyce

Yeah, yeah…push-ups are boring and un-sexy. And you know how to do them.

Um, no, you don’t.

My Top 5 Coaching Cues – Mike Robertson

I always love Mike’s perspective on coaching and the cues he uses.

Note to Self: copy this idea and write my own “Top 5 Coaching Cues” post.

Categoriescoaching Motivational psychology

Disfluency and Why It Can Help You Reach Your Fitness Goals

In the Spring of ’96 I made my first collegiate start as a pitcher. I was playing for Onondaga Community College out of Syracuse, NY, and we were down in Florida for our annual Spring Training trip.

Can you find me?

Not only was it the first time I saw green grass in several months (winters in Central NY are long and brutal), but it was my first trip to Florida, which meant it was also my first time seeing palm trees.8

We arrived in West Palm Beach to play West Palm Beach Community College. On the bus ride from our hotel to the field I was fidgeting, listening to my Discman – remember those? – probably Wu-Tang Clan or Tribe Called Quest, and trying everything I could to take my mind off of destroying the back of my pants.

It was my first collegiate game, my first start, so of course I was nervous.

And if that wasn’t enough, I heard inklings from some of the players and coaches that 8 of the 9 players in the line-up for WPBCC were drafted out of high-school in the previous year’s MLB draft.

Okay, now I was really nervous.

I took a few deep breaths, said a few words of encouragement to myself9, and proceeded to do my normal pre-game ritual of stretches, long-toss, and warm-up.

And then it was game time.

1st Batter: ground ball out.

“Whatever, this is easy.”

2nd Batter: strike out.

“MLB prospect my ass.”

3rd Batter: walk

“Okay, you can’t win them all.”

4th Batter: 0-2 count, I threw a hanging curveball, and I think the ball is due to pass Neptune’s orbit any day now.

 

If my memory serves me, I lasted four innings, and we ended up losing that game 12-4. Or 72-4. I don’t remember all the details.

Whatever the score ended up being it stands to reason I didn’t do well.

That said, it was a learning experience:

1) Don’t throw hanging curveballs on an 0-2 count to arguably the team’s best hitter.

2) Even though I was nervous heading into that game, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a tad bit smug. I mean, I was an All-League selection in high-school, twice! I got this.

Um, no.

My first college game served as a wake-up call for me, and provided the slap in the face I needed to respect that anything can be a lesson you can learn from. And it’s how you observe, reflect, digest, and use those lessons moving forward that will make all the difference in the world. It’s how you prevent history from repeating itself.

While I didn’t realize it at the time I was using a form of DISFLUENCY to my advantage.

In his book Smarter, Faster, Better, Charles Duhigg, discusses this phenomenon:

“The people who are the most successful at learning – those who are able to digest the data surrounding them, who absorb insights embedded in their experiences and take advantage of information flowing past – are the ones who know how to use disfluency to their advantage. They transform what life throws at them, rather than just taking it as it comes. They know the best lessons are those that force us to do something and to manipulate something.”

In other words: people who are actively “disfluent” take data and transform it into experiments whenever they can.

Taking an example from the book, Duhigg references a study performed in 2014 at UCLA which examined the relationship between learning and disfluency by looking at the difference between students who took notes with their laptop and those students who took notes the old fashioned way.

By putting pen or pencil to paper.

As Duhigg states:

“Recording a speaker’s comments via longhand is both harder and less efficient than typing on a keyboard. Fingers cramp. Writing is slower than typing, and so you can’t record as many words.”

In not so many words, students who use laptops put forth less effort and can “collect” twice as many notes as their pen holding counterparts.10

“Writing is more disfluent than typing, because it requires more labor and captures fewer verbatim phrases.”

Common sense would make us assume that the students who took notes with their laptops – and thus, collected twice as many words – would score better on tests and be able to recite more of what the lecturer said.

Of course, you would be 100% incorrect in assuming this.

Don’t worry, if it’s any consolation, when I first heard Eminem I thought to myself “no way this guy lasts.”

There was also a time I thought Mariah Carey and I were soul mates.

Shows how much I know.

What the researches found was that, time and time again, those students who wrote their notes down out-performed laptop users on test scores of the lecturer’s content.

What Does This Have To Do With Your Health and Fitness Goals?

When we bump uglies with new information, and want to learn from it, we should force ourselves to do something with the data.

NOTE: it’s not physically possible to “bump uglies” with information. It’s just a metaphor. Don’t be weird. Unless, you know, you’re part of The Matrix or something and you actually can do it.

If so, we need to hang out.

To quote Duhigg one more time:

“It’s not enough for your bathroom scale to send you daily updates to an app on your phone. If you want to lose weight, force yourself to plot those measurements on graph paper and you’ll be more likely to choose a salad over a hamburger for lunch.”

Likewise, those people who take the time to track their training sessions – recording exercises done, sets, reps, and total weight lifted – tend to stay more consistent and make better progress than those who don’t

Too, when it comes to honing technique on any given exercise, reading other coach’s insights and perspectives on it is great. You may learn a new cue or subtle tweak that resonates.

However, I’d argue it’s those people who take a more laborous approach, take the time to record their lifts with a camera, and analyze their lifts that end up hitting their goals quicker and with more efficiency and precision.

Disfluency. Use it.