Yea that's right. Brian's talking about squatting again. Go figure. I love the squat. It's the bees knees. But in my experience of teaching others, that often include fitness professionals, I here one excuse all too often when people struggle to squat, "I can't squat deeper because of my ankle mobility." Poppycock I say. I'll tell you why.
4 Things I Travel with to Stay Strong and Feel Well
Travelling for MovNat workshops I end up spending too much time seated on planes and too little time picking up heavy stuff. Here are four things I travel with to keep myself feeling strong and well. What travel tools do you take with you?
A Little Friendly Front Squat Competition
When someone throws down the gauntlet it doesn't always matter if it fits your current plan or not. Sometimes you just gotta be awesome for the sake of competition and the dare. Vids. Check it.
Weighing In on an Article
Recently, the New York Times wellness blog psted an article about people seeking out more dangerous and extreme exercise alternatives. I have some thoughts about it.
Powerlifting and Bodybuilding - A Match Made in Heaven
It seems nowadays people shy away from the words bodybuilding and powerlifting. I know this because I have worked with women, and as soon as you say the word bodybuilding or powerlifting they think a mastadon physique, accompanied by a hairy chest, and the voice of a viking. Well let us address this.
Overhead Pressing: From Top to Bottom to Top
Once upon a time when men were men and Strongmen were legends, few people even thought of lying on their backs to press a weight. Putting weight over your head was the only acceptable way to demonstrate super human strength and impress the onlookers. Since the days of Saxon and after the introduction of nautilus machines and bench pressing, the art of pressing overhead has been all but lost. But there's hope yet and you can still learn to press weights and people overhead with a blatant disregard for gravity.
Meatheads in the Park
Last weekend I invited several other coaches and trainers from the San Diego area to meet with me in a park by the bay to eat pulled pork sandwiches, lift stuff, play on monkey bars, and talk shop. Despite not needing all 14 pounds of pulled pork and a whole gallon of dill pickles I had brought I felt it was a successful endeavor and hopefully the first of many to come. I'll recap a few points I took from a day of BBQ, comradery, and lifting stuff.
1-2-3 Squatting Made Simple
I’m gonna teach you how to squat. It won’t be fancy and we’re not gonna go through all the variations. Squatting is pretty simple, but its a hard test of your will when you start adding pounds to the bar. The problem is most people have really just forgotten how. I think this is where I'm supposed to put the obligatory cliche photo of a toddler squatting perfectly.