So You Want to Be an Online Trainer — Three Steps to Getting Started
Within part one of this article series, I want to pass on the basics, the startup, and the initial thoughts before starting an online training business.
Shades of Grey
I remember a time in strength and conditioning when hard work and sweat equity were paramount, and the integrity of the workout was the most important thing. Our most important job was player development, period.
Learn From the Back to Lead From the Front
In sports performance, sometimes you need to shut up, take a seat in the back of the room, and learn before you are ready to lead from the front.
WATCH: The Biggest Mistakes of the Strongman Axle Clean and Press
In weightlifting, the bar has the power and your body will move around it. In strongman, your body has the power and the bar will move around it.
Kettlebells Explained — A Guide to the Most Versatile Movements
The exercises you can incorporate with kettlebells are virtually endless. Here’s how to get started with some of my favorites.
Q&A with James Smith: Upper Body Training for Volleyball Players
It is time for you to blur the lines between volleyball practice and physical preparation and fuse them into one holistic entity of movement.
Body Mechanics 101: Training Partner Form Fix
In my entire life of training, I’ve only ever had six training partners, and never more than one at a time. Now I have two. That’s right — there are three of us.
All Together Now — The Nutritionist
This article relies both on a bird’s eye-view of the scientific discipline itself, with some history to make sense of the information, and on the input of people who actually use this knowledge on a day-to-day basis.
WATCH: Table Talk with Nate Harvey — Do You Need A Planned Deload?
Is deloading a necessary part of improving as a lifter or is it just a weak excuse to be lazy one week out of every month?
Coach of the Year
This weekend would be more of that testing, coaching twenty-one lifters over the course of a single day. People say I am crazy for working with the number of lifters I do.
WATCH: Dr. Eric Serrano SPS Presentation — Factors that Influence Diet a...
In this final video of his presentation, Dr. Serrano gives advice on goal-setting, explains the factors that influence the success of a diet, and answers questions directly from the audience.
How to Make Money as a Personal Trainer
My last year as a personal trainer I averaged over 40 billable training hours a week and sometimes did over 60 hours a week. The tactics I used to get to that point are now the basis of our trainer development program.
Take It, Take It, Take It
What can I say? Learn from my hard lessons. Make sure your spotters are aware of the intent BEFORE the set.
Staying the Vigilant Lifter
The vigilant lifter wants to be a student of strength. They do not just want to be told what to do to get stronger. They want to learn and understand how to get stronger.
Engineering Physical Performance — Reassess Utilization of INOL Model
I have been a huge believer in Intensity Number of Lifts (INOL) to develop programs that are achievable and that follow a sensible loading pattern over time, but I’ve recently made some important changes.
Combatting Shoulder and Elbow Pain from Low Bar Squatting
Where you lack motion or motor control, your body will pass down the chain to the next moving part that can buy you an extra bit to help you get into position. This is dysfunction.
Bodybuilding Exercises for the Powerlifter — Widen Your Grip to Beef Up ...
Bulk up your back, strengthen your deadlift, and learn to activate your lats with this one exercise.
The Goal Review Session
Sometimes a client gets bored. Sometimes they get busy. And sometimes they just want something new.
Converting to Sumo Deadlifting: How I Made It Work for Me
Deadlifting is one of the oldest and hardest exercises around. It’s very simple—you just pick the bar up off the ground and stand up with it. Well, it’s not that easy for everyone.
LISTEN: The Podcast with Jay DeMayo — Mark Watts on the Field Today
Stepping outside ‘the grind’ of coaching has given Mark a different perspective on his career in strength and conditioning and the challenges that young coaches face. He shares his thoughts on this topic and more in Episode 77.
Celebrate World Wish Day with elitefts
To date, we (thanks to you) have granted 47 wishes. Let’s make it 48 — meet Hayden. #worldwishday
WATCH: Table Talk with Nate Harvey — How Important Are the Quads for a R...
You want debate? Go to a powerlifting meet and ask the lifters in the warm-up room if you should be focusing on your quads to build your squat. You’ll hear a lot of opinions. Who’s right?
Four Rules for First-Time Competitors
Many first-time competitors end up as only-time competitors because they neglect to take the right precautions before beginning their prep. Follow these rules to avoid letting your first show be your last.
WATCH: Dr. Eric Serrano SPS Presentation — Eating and Supplementing for ...
In part two, Serrano gives you macronutrient ratios, supplements for fat loss, and which popular ingredient found in many supplements you should avoid.
What I Learned from Arnold Schwarzenegger
Do this every chance you get and see where it gets you in life.
Off-Season Conjugate for Intermediate Strongmen
Strongman requires speed, endurance, strength, and explosiveness. What if you could build all of these qualities at the same time?
Contingencies — Why Plan B Might Be the Most Important Part of Your Stra...
As painful as it might be to ponder our actions in the event that the rug is pulled out from underneath our feet, it pales in comparison to the pain of not having a viable Plan B when life happens.
WATCH: The Hanging Hamstring Raise
Evaluate hamstring general function, range of motion, asymmetry, strength, potential for injury and more with Dr. Eric Serrano’s hanging hamstring raise.
Overhead Pressing for a Bigger and Safer Bench Press
After two pec tears, I needed to try something new. Not only did training the overhead press make my bench stronger, but it also solved all my pec injury problems.
The Law of the Paint Can: Delegate and Say No
Our ambition may be endless but our abilities are finite. When we try to take on too much, something is soon to go wrong.
Preaching to the Choir: Don't Slow Down or Reduce Activity
What can we do to get our seniors off their collective ass and into the gym for resistance training?
Dear Powerlifting
I owe a lot to the sport of powerlifting. Now it’s about giving back in more ways than on the platform.
Unlocking Your Full Power Potential Through the Blue Zones
In five locations on earth, the people live 30% longer and continue to be active and healthy until their final days on earth. What’s the secret?
Generation Pussy
I can’t help but be annoyed at what has come of this generation in the gym. Basketball shorts over tights? Nalgene bottles? Functional exercises? What is wrong with these kids?
WATCH: Table Talk with Dan Green — Hip Position, Not Strength, to Fix Yo...
Want to know how to have a better deadlift lockout? Look at what Pete Rubish has done in recent years and you’ll see it.
WATCH: How the Bite of the Iron Nurtured My Growth
Sometimes we get so caught up in the physical nature of training we forget about the other impacts it has.
Meet Report: New Challenges and New Lifters — USAPL Spring Meet at CBUS ...
With this meet, I wanted to prove to myself that I could go from competing equipped to qualifying for USAPL Raw Nationals.
WATCH: Dr. Eric Serrano SPS Presentation — Eating for Size and the Probl...
In the first part of his presentation, “Sports Nutrition for Peak Athletic Performance”, Dr. Serrano discusses nutrition for muscle gain, and shares several health concerns and issues with protein supplementation.
Unilateral Movements to Help Heal Nagging Injuries
I recently realized I've been looking at my back injury the wrong way all along. I needed to simplify the way I was thinking about it.
Meet Report: CETC US Open 2017 — Second Place with a 2121 Total at 220
I've had a taste for where I'm meant to be, and now I will be training with an unmatched ferocity. I may not have been strong enough to beat the colossus on this day, but I faced him prepared to die.
5 Coaching Rants to Reframe and Apply
Layering thousands of coaching hours on the floor with successes and failures, I think I know what works and what doesn't work.
My Experience at the SWIS Exercise Muscle Testing Certification
The latest and greatest from Dr. Ken Kinakin includes specific muscle tests for upper and lower body exercises to determine if the muscles are functional and capable of handling the stress of weight.
Meet Report: 2017 CETC US Open Powerlifting Championships with Ben Pollack
I’ve already written about my training strategy going into the meet, and what I’ve learned from my meet prep, but I didn’t share a few things for competitive reasons.
WATCH: Wendler's UGSS Compilation Series
If I can teach a kid to squat correctly, I can teach him anything.
WATCH: Westside History with Mark Bell and Dave Tate
Training goals after powerlifting, quality time with children, training at Westside, leaving Westside, thoughts on training methods, the purpose of life, the challenges of being a mentor, and more — all in this video.
Training Lanes: A Guide to Conjugate Programming for Athletes
Some people say that being a good teacher means explaining things in the simplest, easiest-to-understand terms. When it comes to conjugate programming, using training lanes is the way to accomplish this.
Three Solutions to Bust Through Your Next Training Plateau
Stalled progress can occur for a number of reasons. Which of these solutions will be the key to restarting your progress?
Some Like It Hot — A Guide to Choosing your Liniment
One, two, three, or even four Screamin' Daves. If you aren't sure which liniment is for you, use this guide to direct you to the perfect product.
WATCH: Table Talk with Dan Green — How to Choose Secondary and Accessory...
A good training program has three main parts: the main lifts for technique, the secondary movements for strength, and the accessory exercises for muscle-specific work.
WATCH: Buddy Morris SPS Presentation — The Mission and Purpose of an S&a...
We all know that your role as a strength and conditioning coach is to produce higher-performing, more injury-resistant athletes. But what does that actually mean for your program? How do you achieve it?
Building the Yoke
A big yoke equals instant respect. No one wants to screw with a guy that has a big neck and a thick yoke.
Meet Report: RPS King and Queen of Spring
I went into this meet to total 1800 at 180 pounds bodyweight, but learned an important lesson about having backup plans.
What Are You Trying to Build?
When you say "culture", are you sure you know what you're referring to? Here's what this word means to our program.
Raspberry Ketone Supplementation: A Woman’s Perspective
This compound became popular a few years back, especially after it received attention on national television. But does it work?
How to Optimize Your Biggest Recovery Asset
The benefits of improved sleep are just as real as the consequences of deprivation. Follow these simple rules for sleep and watch your recovery—and your progress—skyrocket.
What's Your Game Plan?
You're never going to build a big total by going into the gym and lifting as much as possible every session, week after week, year after year.
The Plant-Based Strength Experiment
Is it possible to remove meat from your diet and still train and compete at the highest level of powerlifting? I'm going to find out.
14 Things About Bodybuilding and Building Muscle That I Know to Be True
These underlying training principles contribute to keeping your body healthy, growing, recovering, and building muscle over the long-term. You simply need to follow them.
