Over the past year, I’ve continually identified sleep as the limiting factor for many people’s weight loss attempts. Beyond tracking food intake and exercise, I’ve had people I work with track sleep. It ... Continue Reading
Practice Like It’s Game Day
“Put your game face on!” “Train like your life depends on it!” “Practice like it's game day!” These are all phrases we coaches bark at our athletes. Like most of the things we say, our athletes tend ... Continue Reading
Your Muscles Work Better At Certain Times of Day
New research1 out of Northwestern Medicine has discovered that circadian clocks in muscle tissue control the muscle’s metabolic response and energy efficiency meaning that the muscles reactions differ ... Continue Reading
Big Finger; Big Athlete?
Apparently, it is common knowledge that adults whose index finger is shorter than their ring finger were exposed to greater amounts of testosterone when they were in the womb. Carl Pintzka, a medical ... Continue Reading
Attitude Determines Weight Gain in Pregnancy
Research1 from Penn State College of Medicine shows that overweight or obese women with the mentality that they are "eating for two" are prone to put on more weight while pregnant. Cynthia Chuang, ... Continue Reading
3 Health Hacks From Your Bathroom
Why do you work out? Most people will say they work out to look good, feel well, or perform at a high level; something along those lines. Those answers are just the outer layer of a much simpler ... Continue Reading
Music Brings Joy to HIIT Workouts
Good news for people who like to stay in shape by doing short interval training: Music makes it easier. This, according to researchers at the University of British Columbia's Okanagan campus, in a study ... Continue Reading
Low-Key Strategies for Skill Building
I’m really bad at balancing on narrow, round things. Especially if they are high up. I know the technical points I’m supposed to observe, but I still suck at it. I suck at it because I’ve been woefully ... Continue Reading
Training Through a Disaster
On Saturday, August 13th 2016, I found myself sitting with my family in a boat. This wasn’t a vacation pleasure cruise. We had just been rescued from our neighborhood due to the rising flood waters in ... Continue Reading
Pain Is Not a Life Sentence
Look, there’s no clearer way to put it: pain is a signal that something is wrong with your body. Masking it with pills or shots is only going to prolong the problem. Your pain will simmer and ... Continue Reading
How the Leopard Got So Supple
With the rise of CrossFit and the mainstreaming of barbell culture, the associated surge in mobility methods has been enormous. As aches and pains and restrictions accumulate, it seems everyone's hoping to ... Continue Reading
How the Western Diet Triggers Weight Gain
One of the most common refrains I hear from clients is, “I’m always hungry.” We’re in the midst of an obesity epidemic, where caloric surplus is the norm, yet we’re still chronically hungry and looking for ... Continue Reading
Is Sgt Nick Your Next Great Fitness Guru?
Why should you know about Sergeant Nick Rians? First of all, Sergeant Nick is a very smart man. And for several years now, he has been almost superhumanly busy building a fitness program with specific ... Continue Reading
How to Mentally Rehearse Your Weightlifting Competition
Before I ever entered a weightlifting competition, I had a rather naïve view of the whole process. Most newcomers do. I figured that all you had to do was train, enter a meet, and lift the most that you ... Continue Reading
Qigong Made Simple
What the heck is qigong? Why does it have a “Q” when it is pronounced “chee-gong”? Do you have to wear a silk uniform? Is it religious? Does it really cure cancer? What is “jing?” Is qi the same as “the ... Continue Reading
3 Exercises to Build Your Kettlebell Swing
As I wrote in my last article, the kettlebell swing is one of those bang-for-your-buck exercises that touches on the important aspects of strength and endurance. While it’s a tremendous exercise and ... Continue Reading
Study Reveals 3 Keys to Diet Success
The world has many deficiencies, but there’s no shortage of opinions on fat loss. Low carb, high carb, popcorn at every meal, detoxes, fasting, and thousands of other protocols exist. However, according to ... Continue Reading
The Punch the Clock Training Program
The following is a “punch the clock,” workman-mentality training program. The intent is to progressively raise your overall level of strength. It is not designed to make you peak in a particular exercise ... Continue Reading
Embrace the Chaos and Try Something New
“And now for something completely different…” That was the line I always remember from watching Monty Python. The whole show was so different that it took a couple of episodes to really embrace their ... Continue Reading
Simple Progression Training – Where Did It Go?
I've been in the strength and conditioning field for over 30 years. I've trained thousands of athletes and clients. The list includes male and female high school, collegiate, and professional athletes, ... Continue Reading
Motor Pattern Training for Advanced Calisthenics
Human flagpoles or press-to-handstands are some of the coolest displays of physical strength. Many people who want to learn these movements either have no idea where to begin or have been stuck on ... Continue Reading
A Primer on Diaphragmatic Breathing
The most important element of life is the breath; however, most of us pay little or no attention to the way in which we breathe. Whether it is breathing correctly through an exercise, or taking a moment ... Continue Reading
Growth on the Platform: Female Olympic Talent
As the first week of the Games of the XXX Olympiad wrap up in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, all weightlifting creatures are indeed stirring. The controversies leading up to the Games, including the country’s ... Continue Reading
Time to Stop Fearing the Weight Room, Ladies
You walk into the gym during peak hours, change into your cutest fitness apparel, and visualize the “fitspirational” quote you posted on Pinterest the night before. With your earbuds blasting your favorite ... Continue Reading
