I was fortunate enough to attend the first EliteFTS Sports Performance Training Summit. Fortunate for two reasons: One I was able to learn some things that were previously over my head. And two I got to catch up with Dave and the rest of the team.

I did not sit in on all of the presentations, but I did catch at least a half hour of everyone's except for Joe Kenn's. And I didn't get to meet Joe. So I dropped the ball there. But a quick run down...

Buddy Morris

Buddy is a bad ass strength coach. I would run through a wall for this guy. I train with Todd Hamer who was a former intern under Buddy at Pitt, so I knew a little of what to expect from him. He had a phenomenal presentation, but I was lucky enough to sit down with him, Dave, and Uggs after lunch and BS about growing pains, life after 50, and the "tuck." If you don't know what the tuck is then don't worry about it. Ask Dave Tate on the Q and A and see if he'll answer you.

Mike Robertson

Mike is a stand up guy as well. Very intelligent and had some great stories about growing up a powerlifter in college and attending one of Dave and Louie's first seminars. My takeaway from his presentation- applicable to my training partner- the broader  your aerobic base, the faster you will recover. My training partner is a former D1 soccer player turned powerlifter. So he went from 160 to 185ish, but he recovers extremely well. I envy him. Anyways, Mike's presentation touched on that and it stuck with me. The importance of conditioning. I might need some sled pulls this spring.

Joe Kenn

I missed Joe. Everyone said he was phenomenal. Sorry Joe, don't beat me up.

Joe DeFranco

Joe recently started working with Onnit, who has sponsored me from the very beginning of my powerlifting career. So we had some mutual friends and some things to catch up on even though that was the first time I met him. He's a fun guy and a great presenter. He had an entourage with him the whole day too. Jersey style. His explanation of the importance of the 10 yard sprint and ways to make it faster aka make your athletes faster was concise and 'user friendly' for lack of a better term.

Chip Morton

I talked to Chip for about 15 minutes before he headed out to present. He asked a million questions about me and I didn't get to know him as well as I would have liked. But that's him- a selfless guy that cares about other people. And this guy cares about his athletes. Chip's point- "I coach people, not lifts." His presentation was applicable in all aspects of life...how to treat people and how to get the best out of those around you. After his presentation he pulled up his last slide and said 'I recommend reading this book. It has some great information in it, some of which I covered today.' The book was The Five Languages of Love. This is a judge free zone, so I've been told, so I'll give you the honest truth. I have been going through a tough spot in a relationship over the past few months and someone recommended this book. It is brilliant and simple. It teaches you how to talk to the people you love in your life. You owe it to yourself to read it, and more importantly you owe it to your significant other and your parents and children to read it.

My last takeaway from the weekend- as each presenter spoke, the other speakers were taking notes. THE EXPERTS IN THE ROOM WERE TAKING NOTES AS THE OTHER EXPERTS PRESENTED. No one knows it all. If they tell you they do then stop listening to them and run in the other direction. These guys are amazing at what they do and they're still trying to get better. The iron keeps teaching life lessons, just make sure you're ready to listen.