The other day, I was trying to tie a piece of furniture to the top of my car. It was a two-person job, because I was threading twine through the open windows. I had to shove the twine far enough into the ... Continue Reading
Momentum: Recognizing and Dealing With It
Over the holidays I read Andre Agassi’s autobiography Open. The book is an outstanding and candid look at the life of a person born and raised to become a world champion tennis player. Agassi’s writing is ... Continue Reading
Reevaluating Communal Health in the Wake of Tragedy
I was going to write a piece about something. I hardly remember now because any time I tried to write something meaningful about my athletic life, I kept thinking about the news out of Sandy Hook ... Continue Reading
This One’s for the Butch Girls
I’ve only been to one Pilates class in my life. I’ve also only been referred to as the “butch” one time in my life. Well, at least one time to my face. And while it shocked me, it didn't anger me, as the ... Continue Reading
Own Your Stuff: Intention and Responsibility – The Ultimate Athletic Power Couple
The saying goes, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” This implies that if you say you mean to do something but then don’t do it, that’s just as bad as not even thinking about doing it in the ... Continue Reading
CrossFit and the Modern Canadian Military
Over the past ten years or so, fitness regimens in the military have seen as much of a transition as everything else in the government. As history has taught us, everything evolves, for better or for ... Continue Reading
How Grapplers Celebrate the Holidays: Pretty Much Nothing Is Sacred
People, places, and things that are important in other contexts are not necessarily important to grapplers in the same way. Given that grappling is a lifestyle and not just a hobby, grapplers tend to find ... Continue Reading
Pregnant Athlete Journal, Week 9: To CVS or Not to CVS
My heart rate is increasing during my workouts and I have to be careful not to get overheated. I’m more injury prone – my wrist hurt after vacuuming. (What is THAT?) I drop things and trip more. I can’t ... Continue Reading
Game Plans: When to Hold ‘Em, When to Walk Away
"Everyone has a plan until they get hit.” - Joe Louis Joe Louis was a brilliant heavyweight in a time that was certainly a difficult one for African American men. Joe Louis was a quiet champion and ... Continue Reading
Your Spirit-Filled Practice: Building Your Inner Sweat Lodge
Truth is, we get busy. Too busy in this day and age living in an urban environment inside a technological bubble. We buzz around our life like a bee hurriedly flying from plant to plant to find the ... Continue Reading
How Bad Is a Hit to the Head? Very, Says Science
It is sometimes shocking to see an unconscious fighter take a few extra strikes to the head before the referee is able to end the match. MMA proponents have long argued that their sport is safer than ... Continue Reading
6 Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Private Lesson
In grappling, weightlifting, and many other athletic endeavors, you can derive great benefit from a group class. Feedback, support, slightly different approaches to a given movement or technique, and, in ... Continue Reading
Underwater Cycling Provides Great Fitness Without Stress
For aging athletes or even those of us approaching "mature athlete" status, working out can become more of a challenge. As we age, conditions such as arthritis and injury-related issues become more ... Continue Reading
Be What You Love: Finding Purpose in Art, Sport, and Life
"Let the beauty of what you love be what you do" - Rumi We've all heard that old adage do what you love and the money will follow. Yeah, tell that to a starving artist or an amateur athlete. Doing ... Continue Reading
Staying Ahead of the Cheaters: A New Test for Human Growth Hormone
I know this is a beat-to-death topic, but you have to admit, any breakthrough in drug testing for sports merits some discussion. After all, are we not attempting to level the playing field so ... Continue Reading
Seasons of the Athlete: Evolving with Change
There’s something about the changing of seasons that puts things in perspective. We note the change of seasons by the sports we play and the activities in which we participate. With a change of season ... Continue Reading
Combining Eccentric and Over-Speed Training Increases Strength, Power, and Speed
Speed and power are essential components needed to succeed in many sports. Consequently, athletes are constantly implementing programs to improve specific aspects of strength and power. Eccentric and ... Continue Reading
Step On the Gas: How to Throw a Killer Left Hook
The prettiest punch by far in boxing is the left hook. It’s precise, it’s technically sound, and it’s gorgeous. The left hook is the closest power punch to your opponent if you are right handed, and most ... Continue Reading
My Medical Mission to Tanzania: A Purer Life
Five years ago, around this same time of the year, I was prepping for medical school. I was applying, planning out interviews, doing everything I had to do to make sure I would be in medical school come ... Continue Reading
How to Hip Escape: A Fundamental BJJ Movement and a Low-Cost Mode of Transportation
Hands are good things in many contexts. We use them to drive, to type, to make contact with the people we love, to eat and drink, and to feel our way in the dark. That combination of wiggly fingers and ... Continue Reading
Hero To Villain And Back Again: The Chris Herren Story
I watch a lot of documentaries and I read a lot of biographies. Human beings are profoundly interesting and one of the best ways to explore what it means to be human is to study one. Lately I’ve found ... Continue Reading
Weight Training Increases Leg Power in Elite Rowers
Since 1970, there has been a twenty-percent increase in endurance volumes in the training of the elite rowing athlete. Total training time has also increase to upwards of 1,100 hours a year. Consequently, ... Continue Reading
Analysis of the Liver Shot: Throwing and Defending
I've only dropped someone to the canvas once with a body shot, but it felt like hitting a ball over the fence or a perfect 250-yard drive - exhilarating. A perfectly executed punch is a thing of beauty and ... Continue Reading
Unweighted Treadmill Training Increases Performance, Decreases Injury
Speed and acceleration are major skills required to excel at many sports, and coaches are constantly looking for ways to improve. But the banes of competitive athletes are always looming - overtraining and ... Continue Reading
