A Confidence Booster
I read a great article on EliteFTS the other day which you can find here… A Case for Bullying . I strongly advise you read it as it really struck a chord with me, although judging by the comments section some readers REALLY missed the point of the article. Anyways, it inspired my post for this week not really because I was bullied but because of what weight training and powerlifting has done for me and what I feel it can do for younger kids and adults alike. Throughout the entire time I was in school I always had a good bit of friends, I was never the kid who felt so pushed away by other people they had to go eat their lunch in the bathroom (although I can empathize with those kids). However, in elementary school I was a short fat kid who’s nickname amongst friends was Louie because I looked EXACTLY like the kid from the cartoon show Life with Louie. Again at no point were people outwardly mean to me about it but I was still really self-conscious about the way I looked.
Onto middle school, once I was here I had lost the fat but gained a crazy amount of acne…. It was gross. Again, I had a good bit of friends and no one really outwardly made fun of me about it (maybe it was my short temper who knows) but again I was really self-conscious about it.
Onto high school, now I’ve lost the fat, lost the acne, and started doing pull-ups, pushups, and bodyweight squats until it burned. Only problem was I never really hit that growth spurt I was looking for. I was standing at a whopping 5’7” on a good day (which I still am today). Again, nothing that I was teased about but I was really self-conscious about being relatively shorter than a lot of the people I hung out with.
My point is not for you to feel bad for me because I don’t want you too that would be ridiculous. My point is that all kids or adults no matter what circle of life they come from can feel bad about themselves or that they’ll never measure up to other people. However, there has to be an outlet for these kids to make them feel better about themselves and be able to gain self-confidence and a way for them to be able to say “I honestly don’t care what you think about me”. I feel like a lot of parents first instinct is sports which is great and works a great deal of the time. It gives them an outlet for their aggression, makes them feel part of a team, and teaches them that some days you lose and some days you win. What about the other kids? The other kids who end up not making the team and ultimately feel even more isolated. THEY NEED TO WEIGHT TRAIN!
When I got to college I read Arnold, the Education of a Bodybuilder and there it was the epiphany I was looking for my whole life. I read that book cover to cover in two days, I wrote down what he ate and how he trained and I did it. Somewhere along the line my confidence went through the roof, I got bigger and stronger and for the first time in my life I was able to truly not care what other people thought of me. The only thing I cared about was how to get bigger and stronger. I was no longer concerned with the people who didn’t matter in my life and their opinions of my clothes, hair, personality, job, etc.
Why did weight training work so well for me in that respect? Because unlike most things, weight training gives you tangible results all the time; every month I saw myself becoming bigger and stronger and I loved it. I played basketball my whole life and worked hard it but it was very hard for me to see gains because it was so hard to measure it against things. But, weight training is something I could track each and every week.
I know I’ve kind of rambled a bit but the whole point I’m driving at is more kids should weight train and by kids I’m talking about 10 year olds and up. Please don’t gasp, if you have a problem with 10 year olds weight training; then I have a bone to pick with you at a later date. Are you concerned with your kid’s well-being and self-esteem? For that matter are you concerned with your own well-being and self-esteem? If you are I STRONGLY suggest you start a resistance training program. I promise that you will be better off for it.
Since high school I knew that I wanted to work with kids in some fashion. I had a lot of great coaches and teachers that helped me become a better person. For me the best way to return the favor was by becoming a strength coach and showing kids how to become stronger. Part of my job is to help kids become stronger and better for their sport. Honestly though that is NOT my main priority. My main priority is to help every kid who walks in our doors to feel better about themselves physically, mentally, and emotionally and to truly not care about what someone says about them or thinks about them.
And in case anyone is wondering what i look like now...
You Might Have a Bad Strength Coach or Trainer If....
I’ve had many conversations with family, friends, and random people about general fitness and what they should be doing. For the most part people tend to be know-it-alls and really aren’t seeking my professional opinion. All they really want is affirmation that what they are currently doing is correct. When I go on to tell them that standing on a BOSU ball doing dumbbell curls actually does nothing for their physical fitness level they get very defensive with me. Maybe they’re actually angry about the fact they spent a bunch of money on a useless piece of equipment, who knows? The other people who are actually interested in my advice tend to tell me they want to get a personal trainer or a strength coach to oversee their training. This realization they come to is a mixed bag for me. On one hand I’m excited for them that they are willing to invest their time and hard earned money in their personal health. On the other hand I’m weary of their decision. The reason being is that there are so many terrible trainers out there that these honest hardworking people are going to end up flushing their money away. I refuse to sugarcoat things for anyone which is why I tell them exactly this if they tell me they want a trainer/coach. They respond with “well, how do I figure out if the trainer/coach is good or not?” Great question! My answer USED TO BE to make sure they have a bachelor’s degree in something exercise related and to make sure they have their CSCS or CPT through the NSCA. As I’ve gone on in my career I have come to understand how WRONG I was. Since I’ve been a strength coach I’ve found that neither of these things mean you are a good trainer (it doesn’t mean you’re a bad one either, I myself have both). This lesson has been learned through life’s greatest teaching tool, experience. Some of the best fitness professionals I know have neither of these. So, what do I tell people now? Honestly, I try and keep it short but the following are some things you should find out before enlisting the aid of a trainer or coach. Without further ado; You Might Have a Bad Strength Coach or Trainer If….
- You don’t see any pull up, row, squat, deadlift, or pushup variations (because these aren’t functional movements right?)
- They use the word “functional” or “core” more than 5 times within the first 5 minutes of meeting them (“What we’re going to do for your first session is get you up on this wobbly lookin’ platform and have you squat for 2 sets of 15 reps to really help your “functional” balance and to really get you to engage your “core”. Don’t worry about that pain in your knee, that’s perfectly normal.”)
- There is any type of bicep curl at the beginning of your program (just trying to sculpt the guns BRO!)
- They have you do a cable row while squatting on a BOSU ball (two birds with one stone right?)
- They have you perform a snatch without teaching you how to goblet squat correctly (DUDE! It’s all about being explosive. Forget about the back pain, correct form is for SISSYS’!!!)
- They have never heard of a goblet squat (I feel like it has something to do with Harry Potter, am I close?)
- They have no idea who the following people are (comic book villains?)
-Mel Siff -Tudor Bompa -Leo Matveyev -Yuri Verkhoshansky
- They ever put you on a BOSU ball or wobble board and try to get you to pistol squat holding a med ball over your head (Hey guy! I thought I told you, we are trying to functionally engage your core)
- They look like this guy…
- Honestly, it’ll just save us some time if I just say… They have you do anything on an unstable surface (I know I know, we get it… It’s all about being functional and engaging your core)
- Their idea of a good deadlift looks like this… (We want to take your hamstrings and glutes completely out of it. It’s all about using your lower back and lifting the bar with a jerking twisting motion.)
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- Your workout consists mostly of ladder drills and cone drills (It doesn’t matter that you can’t squat 15lbs correctly; it’s all about working on your AGILITY!)
- You get thrown on a bench press yet still can’t do a bodyweight pushup correctly (If you can’t bench press 315lbs you will never be a good athlete…. HAHAHA! Sorry, I couldn’t keep a straight face with that one)
- They coach you on how to turn your pinky up at the top of a bicep curl (FOR THE LAST TIME! We are trying to sculpt the guns!!!)
- They tell you that the only way to get fit is to get on the treadmill everyday (Strength? What do you need strength for? Lifting weights is just going to get you bulky and then that muscle will turn to fat when you’re older. I see you have an awesome valgus collapse going on in your knees and your feet have no arch whatsoever… Sweet! Let’s go run for 30 minutes on the treadmill!)
I’m running short on time, that’s all I can think of for right now. RELAX internet warriors; I’m only 99% serious, HA!
If anyone has any other ones they want to share then feel free to post it to the comments section.
Q & A: How to Write Resistance Training Programs, Part 2: Coaching
Q. One thing I was wondering, and maybe it’d be a topic to write about … how do you come up with workouts?? Do you make stuff up?? Have a “grab-bag” of moves and pull out of that?? Borrow and modify from other trainers?? I always wonder where trainers come up with new ideas.A. For those who missed Part 1, I discussed the importance of training yourself on a regular basis. Let's move on to #2 on the list....
2a. Spend Time Coaching
I don't care if it's your mom, your coworker, or your friend who wants some help getting ready for Spring Break. Just start coaching someone. The best coaches (and, thus, those typically good at writing programs), are those that have spent thousands of hours in the trenches, coaching the heck out of people.
Chris Romanow comes to mind. If you've never trained at SAPT, you're probably asking who Chris Romanow is. He hasn't published any books or articles on training, he doesn't have a Twitter, he doesn't a keep a fitness blog, doesn't send out a newsletter, and he hasn't produced any fitness products.
Yet he is one of the best coaches in the industry, hands down. He can coach people and design training plans better than anyone I know. Heck, the man could teach a freshly born giraffe how to perform a solid overhead squat.
And you know what Chris received his college degree in? NOT Exercise Science, or even in a related field. He became a great program designer, and an even better coach, not by reading some textbooks, taking a few exams, and receiving a diploma for it, but by coaching his butt off, twelve hours a day, for years on end.
He was forced to learn how to teach kids the squat pattern (including hundreds who aren't genetically gifted and couldn't pick it up, even after the hundredth six attempt), how to teach a good pushup to mothers who never weight trained in their lives, show an unmotivated 12-year old softball player how to rotate through her hips instead of her lumbar spine, to teach an arrogant 17-year old that no, he really can't really squat 400lbs to depth.
And to do this over, and over, and over, and over again with people from all walks of life and varying genetic predispositions.
I, on the other hand, did study Kinesiology/Exercise Science in college. I also had many colleagues right alongside me doing the same thing. Going to lectures, learning about muscle insertions and attachments, the sliding filament theory, force-velocity curves, motor unit force potentiation, glycolysis, yadda yadda yadda.
And you know what I find myself telling people on a weekly basis? I would trust Chris with coaching me, and writing ME a program, a thousand times more than having one of my fellow colleagues (with a B.S. in Exercise Science) coach me or write me a workout plan. No question about it. And no offense to those of you from Virginia Tech who may be reading; it just is how it is.
As strength coach Mike Robertson once put it, "Some of the best coaches in S&C are the ones you’ve never heard of, and never hear from. They’re tucked away in some remote part of the country, just kicking ass and taking names."
That's Chris. And any talent I have at writing programs and coaching others, I owe in large part to him.
My point in all that is that learning the "science of training" is completely different from practicing it in real life. And no graduate degree or Ph. D. can replace time invested learning it first-hand (wasn't it Malcolm Gladwell who articulated it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert in something?). It's very difficult to become proficient at program design without putting in your dues coaching others. And you can't truly appreciate this until you experience it for yourself.
I can't tell you how many times I've written what I thought to be a "perfect program" only to see it fail miserably upon implementation. And, unless you work with Olympic-level athletes, you're going to have to help countless people with quite poor movement quality (yes, even "higher level" athletes) learn to hip hinge, squat, pick things up off the ground, press things, and pull things. Correctly. And they aren't usually going to get it the first time.
Coaching teaches you a lot of things. As long as you pay attention, remain awake, stay astute, and make an effort to truly observe the feedback you're receiving (both verbal and nonverbal), you'd be surprised at how much your clients can teach you about yourself. And you will then learn to be a better program designer.
I remember, upon first becoming a personal trainer in college, I decided to take one of my clients (a soccer player) through a few sets of front squats. Easy peasy, right? Except that his knees persistently collapsed inward during the bottom half of his squat. So me, being the brilliant trainer I was, continually barked at him to drive his knees out. Yet he couldn't do it.
Was he deaf? No. Was he stupid? Of course not. Yet me, in all my trainer awesomeness, thought the only way to get him to align his knees over his second toe was to tell him to do it.
Now, don't get me wrong, on many occasion this can fix the issue. However, what I didn't realize at the time was that structural restrictions in this guy's ankle and/or hip could possibly prevent his knees from tracking correctly, despite how hard he tried to. I had no clue what implications closed-chain ankle dorsiflexion had during a front squat, or that poor hip internal rotation combined with flexion could force his knees inward in the bottom, or that sucky gluteals wouldn't allow him to power the movement correctly.
And, naturally, didn't know that I might have to program these into his workouts in order to help him squat correctly. This forced me to research and learn.
Should squats be in the program of most people? Yes, duh. However, what good is it if they can't do it proficiently? (Hint: they probably can't, at least until they're coached on it.) You need to be able to write their program so they can receive a training effect in the meantime, while at the same time helping them get from Point A to Point B.
It's the hundreds of hours you spend teaching a wide variety of people - coordinated and uncoordinated, conditioned and deconditioned, male and female, young and old, hobbit, dwarf, and wizard - to do things correctly that make you a better coach and program designer. Teaching and coaching elite level athletes is easy. Your only job there is basically to ensure they don't injure themselves under your watch (now, increasing their vertical five inches is another issue, but I'm just discussing the coaching component for the time being).
If you can coach some of the most uncoordinated, deconditioned people in the world through the fundamental human patterns, then chances are high you can write a program that doesn't suck.
Which leads (kind of) to the next point....
3. Practice Writing Programs. Apply these programs to real people, then write more programs. Repeat x Infinity.
I'll return with this part on Monday. Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Q & A: How to Write Resistance Training Programs, Part 1
Q: Hi Steve,I'm very new to the powerlifting/strong(wo)man training world ... and I love reading your blog! It's always chock full with information. One thing I was wondering, and maybe it'd be a topic to write about ... how do you come up with workouts?? Do you make stuff up?? Have a "grab-bag" of moves and pull out of that?? Borrow and modify from other trainers?? I always wonder where trainers come up with new ideas.
Thank you for all the great info!!
A: First, I'm humbled that you enjoy reading my (and my fellow coaches) musings here on SAPTstrength and I thank you for the kind words. It's always good to feel appreciated and to be assured that not everyone, to put it as eloquently as possible: thinks I suck.
Second, as I began to draft my response, it didn't take me long to realize how multifaceted this topic really is, so I'm going to break up my answer into a short series that hopefully doesn't tank as much as Pirates of the Caribbean. Moving on to the first point....
1. Train Yourself
Yes, I'm serious. You'd think I wouldn't have to make this #1 on the list, but I'm continually shocked by how many people are out there, either on the internet or in actual gyms, training other people when they don't walk the walk themselves. I'm not saying you have to look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, or possess the raw strength of Andy Bolton, but at least get after it yourself, for the love!
For one thing, are people going to listen to your advice regarding fat loss if you're borderline obese and get winded simply from walking from your car to the front door? Second, and more importantly, consistently training yourself gives you a chance grow in understanding of how all the training variables interact with one another.
And I'm not talking just sticking with one training methodology, either. While I personally haven't experimented with everything under the sun, I've completed full cycles of Bodypart Splits (more cycles than I'd like to admit, hah!), High Frequency Training, Upper/Lower, Powerlifting, Escalating Density Training, Total Body Training, Push/Pull Splits, Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 (for six months....not sure why I stopped to be honest), Stevo-Gets-Sexified Training, and more.
Through this, I've figured out which exercise pairings are brilliant, those that are not-so-brilliant (I'd be embarrassed to recount them all), what type of plans actually make me stronger rather than turning me into a huge pile of fail, and what style of training is best to implement based on what my goals are and/or what I have going on outside the gym walls.
Heck, I've competed in running/obstacle races, and even Triathlon, in order to garner a deeper understanding of the training stressors distance athletes face specific to their style of training. This, in turn, has helped me become a better coach and and allowed me to write the programs for SAPT's endurance athletes with much greater accuracy and proficiency, due to the fact that I've walked (or ran) in their shoes. These races provided me with a real, first-hand opportunity to see how:
- Performing 4x8 Bulgarian Split Squats or SL RDLs the day before a Threshold or Cardiac Power Interval run will be akin to asking for a suicide mission, and also, perhaps, for your gluteal musculature to fall off the bone and onto the pavement
- Intervals are a very powerful tool in training for endurance events, but should not be used exclusively
- When designing conditioning programs (be them interval or steady state), it's best never to increase the total distance or time by more than 20% per session, as this will greatly reduce the risk of injury while still allowing the athlete to improve
- The frequency/volume of swim sessions will affect the implementation of vertical and horizontal pressing performed in the weight room
- You actually won't turn in to a weak pile of poo if you do steady state cardio, as long as you design your weight lifting program appropriately
- Yes, distance athletes need to resistance train. They needto foam roll (I don't care what people are saying, just do it). They need soft tissue work. They need to stop worrying about their six-pack.
The same can be said for when I experimented with all the weight training methods above, it gave me a chance to feel what it's actually like to train different ways, and this has helped me to better write the programs for my athletes and clients.
I've trained using 2x/week plans (when I was working three, part-time jobs simultaneously while studying for the CSCS), 3x/week, 4x/week, and even 6x/week plans (shoot me), all for extended periods of time which helped me feel out how to best distribute the training stress throughout the week depending on the plan being used.
And yes, I realize everyone is different, and other people won't always respond the same way I do (positively OR negatively) to a particular training plan, but it's still a much greater step in the right direction that sitting on your butt all day and then commanding other people to suck it up and train (because that always goes over real well).
Please don't mistake me sharing all this an attempt to brag (don't know what exactly it would be bragging about....but just in case). Continually training yourself, through no matter what "Life" throws at you, gives you a greater appreciation the demands your clients experience outside of the gym walls, and say, for example, you had planned for them to do cluster sets of front squats (hint: they're awful), but then Life hit them with a poop-storm before they walked in the doors of the gym, it is actually okay to change the plan you wrote for them, and instead, give them something more "invigorating" and something that will set them up for success rather than make them hate you for life. They'll still get results, and they'll love you more for it, I promise.
I was just talking to Sarah the other day about how she's just weeks away from giving birth to her second child and yet she's still getting after it every day, be it inside or outside the gym.
And you know what? When her daughter grows up and becomes pregnant, and then complains that it's not possible to exercise regularly while facing the demands of pregnancy (and if you're like Sarah, owning a business while simultaneously working as a full-time strength coach for a DI university), she'll be able to look her child in the eye and say, "You know what, twice a week I did one prowler push for every week you were in my belly, along with lifting 4x/week."
Pwned.
Anyway, that's it for now. Be back with part 2 on Friday.
Exercise & Your Body's Circadian Rhythm
Anyone who travels across time zones regularly knows quite well about the challenges of trying to quickly get your body on-board with it's new schedule. With the constant quest being to find the perfect combination of rest, food, relaxation, etc. to ease the transition quickly.
So, is there an answer?
A recent study from the University of Kentucky examines the role of "zeitgebers" - or time cues - in helping to reset the body's internal clock.
As it turns out the body has several tried and true time cues. The most common, strongest, and well-known is the role of night vs. day (or dark vs. light). Meals are also an important and well-known cue to help set the body's circadian rhythm.
But, as it turns out, scheduled exercise is also an important time cue:
These data provide evidence that the molecular circadian clock in peripheral tissues can respond to the time of exercise suggesting that physical activity contributes important timing information for synchronization of circadian clocks throughout the body.
What's the best way to quickly adjust to a major time zone change?
- Make yourself sleep when it's dark and wake when it's light outside.
- Eat meals at regular times (Usually have lunch in NY at 1pm? Then eat lunch at 1pm London time, too).
- Stick with your usually scheduled training times. Don't fall for waiting for your body to tell you 11pm "feels right" for training, that will prolong the adjustment process.
Hmm, that list above looks suspiciously like good advice to follow whether your traveling or just looking for good information on how to make the most out of your day and maximize energy levels!
2012 USAPL Richmond Open: Opening Attempts
The 2012 USAPL Richmond Open is a couple days away and I’ve officially switched into competition mode. This has been a very up and down training cycle. I’m attributing this to trying to get used to my gear and my own impatience. This is my first geared competition (single-ply) and I spent FAR too much time trying to get a lot of weight out of my gear. I rushed into trying to get a lot of support out of my gear which in hindsight was the worst thing I could have done, why? People spend years trying to figure out and use their equipment correctly; I tried to figure it all out in about 11 weeks. This took all of my energy and focus off the NUMBER ONE thing…. Getting stronger! Instead of spending those 11 weeks trying to get the most weight out of my equipment I should have just been trying to get stronger. After all this time I’ve gotten VERY little help out of my equipment and didn’t get much stronger at all. It was extremely impatient and immature of me to do that and trust me when I say I have learned from my mistakes. I know now that learning the gear will come I just need to focus on getting strong. With all that said I’ve sat down and examined everything that has gone on and what I hope to accomplish out of the meet and it’s quite simple…. Perform to the best of my abilities and get at least an 1100 pound total. I put all of this behind me a couple days ago and am now completely focused on the positive. I can tell everyone one thing, no one will compete as hard as me and no one will leave it all on the platform like I will.
Opening Attempts...
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It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
-Theodore Roosevelt
