My Bench Press Has Stalled It must be one of the most frequently asked questions on internet fitness forums. It’s also the most common conversation I have with every member at my gym who practices ... Continue Reading
The 10 Most Important Reasons to Squat
By the time we have reached the age of thirty, the muscles used to straighten our spines (erector spinae) and keep our shoulders from falling forward (trapezius and rhomboids), have atrophied in the ... Continue Reading
Big Man Training
Big Man Training (BMT) was the name of the program the strength and conditioning coach at my first professional rugby club put me on when they needed to add some size on my frame as fast as possible. It ... Continue Reading
Muscle Growth and Inflammation: How Much Is Too Much?
One of the most complex biological processes that human biology is privy to is inflammation. Given how important muscle is for our health, wellbeing, longevity, and quality of life, it’s impressive that ... Continue Reading
The Rack Position Deserves Your Time
So far we have covered ankle mobility, hip mobility, and thoracic stability in this series of video instructionals. This time, we are going to review the rack position. The rack position is neither ... Continue Reading
The Split Style Isn’t Dead
In the early days of competitive weightlifting (think of the Gay Nineties and France’s Belle Epoch) weightlifting technique was very rudimentary. Since the lifts were not yet standardized there was little ... Continue Reading
Step Into the Arena Part II: You Need a Team
At age 9: “Okay, it’s time for y’all to come inside and clean-up for dinner.” At age 12: “I know y’all go to the park to play football after school, but I need you home by 5 to do homework and get ready ... Continue Reading
Exceed Your Limits with Functional Overreaching
Overtraining for long periods of time is bad. Short-term, planned overtraining, however, can be a massively powerful tool. Functional overreaching is essentially short-term overtraining where you have a ... Continue Reading
Make Linear Progression Work for You
Do you feel like you’re spinning your wheels every week in the gym? Are you clueless about your progress? Training programs are created in order to work around you, the individual. Don't consider a one ... Continue Reading
Step Into the Arena Part I: Shape Fitness to Meet Modern Needs
“We don’t stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.” George Bernard Shaw “We don’t stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.” George ... Continue Reading
Why You Need a Woman on Your Staff
No, this is not some politically correct, pandering to the masses, and public give-in to the pressure of what big mouths in our society deem to be mandatory ways of thinking. In fact, their noise makes ... Continue Reading
Thoracic Mobility: Chest Up When You Squat
So far we have covered ankle mobility and hip mobility in this series of video instructionals. This time, we are going to review thoracic mobility. Funnily enough, it isn't about mobility so much as it is ... Continue Reading
Fundamentals Over Flash
Your favorite athlete continuously works on the fundamentals, so why don’t you? Not to sound like an ass, but what do you think gives you the right to skip building a foundation? Answer: No ... Continue Reading
9 Reasons Why Stretching Your Psoas Isn’t Working
Most of us who train frequently are familiar with the psoas muscle, short for iliopsoas, and commonly referred to as the hip flexor. “My hip flexors are tight.” “My hip flexors hurt.” “My hip ... Continue Reading
Complacency or Tenacity: It’s as Simple as What You Praise
It is easy to get our kids doing push-ups with us and to comment, “Wow, I couldn’t do push-ups like that when I was your age. You are so strong!” Likewise, when our kids are playing at the park and we ... Continue Reading
Everything Is Connected
"Enlightenment, for a wave in the ocean, is the moment the wave realizes it is water." Thich Nhat Hanh A wave is not separate from the ocean. It's just water moving in different ways. If ... Continue Reading
The Pain Free Truth
The fitness industry is wrought with lies. The fitness industry is wrought with lies. Are these lies intentional? Generally not. Exercise science is still a fairly new field with very ... Continue Reading
The Awesome Things Helping Me Regenerate Knee Cartilage, Avoid Surgery and Snowboard a Whole Lot
I love mountain sports. They energize, inspire, and motivate me—highly so. But sadly, I’ve become a regular patient at the orthopedic clinic. A renowned surgeon told me I need surgery on my right knee. As ... Continue Reading
Reset Your Default to Force Adaptation
“Looks familiar, doesn't it? We've been here before, you and I, remember? I do. I think of nothing else.” – Agent Smith (Matrix - Revolutions) You’ve dedicated yourself to a training regimen. ... Continue Reading
Choose the Challenge
You have two choices. Over the next year you can either: Option A Live in a barracks with 19 other same-sex peers. You will all be woken up every morning before 5 am for arduous physical training. ... Continue Reading
Find the Gym that Works for You
Progression often times comes with a change in location. We have a tendency to become comfortable with the familiar. As a coach and bodybuilder I have seen stagnation within my own physique when I’ve ... Continue Reading
Hip Mobility – Unleash Your Power
Our previous video dealt with Ankle Mobility. This time, I want to review your hip flexibility, specifically abductors and adductors, and hip flexors, predominantly how tightness in those areas hinders ... Continue Reading
A Cautionary Tale of Modern Youth Development
Brad Johnson is your typical American teen. He grew up playing baseball, watching MTV, and taking two Adderall pills each day for his ADHD. Brad first showed signs of hyperactivity in kindergarten, ... Continue Reading
Use Fitness to Counteract Automation
In November of 2017 my wife, Neely, and I nervously attended orientation at an adoption agency. We filed into our seats and attentively followed the day’s program, brimming with all the obvious ... Continue Reading
