4 Random Things: Mike T Nelson Interview, Travel Training, and More
Greetintgs from Dallas TX
I just have a few minutes before I am off to meet up with Craig Keaton at the Movement Dallas. A huge shout out to Craig and his wife for letting Jodie and I stay at their place, eat their food (raw organic whole milk with carob nibs is amazing), drink his cpoffee, and snag his wireless access. HUGE thanks.
1) Interview with me!
I was interviewed a while back by James. We chatted about metabolic flexibility, working through pain, biofeedback and personal records every day
One of my fav drummers of all time is Gene Hoglan who has done drums for many band including Testament, Dark Angel, Death, Dethklok, Strapping Young Lad, Pitch Black Forecast, and most recently Fear Factory.
Below is a video of him in action with Strapping Young Lad. If you have sensitive ears, you may want to skip this one. Gene does some insane drum work and makes it look easy.
3) Hotel Training
If you are in a hotel for a longer period of time, you can get by with just body weight exercises. Here is what I did today
1) Stairs up and down to 13th floor. I also saw a few black cats too, haha
2) TRX rows. Mounted the TRX to the door with their handy door anchor
3) Asymmetric push ups: I did some biofeedback testing (as always) and it was better to have my left hand further down towards my feet.
Just put those together in a circuit and you are set!
4) Dallas TX is hot
The temp yesterday was around 106 F I think. Yikes. I have not been in the sun much at all, which is ironic since it is sunny like every day.
Comments
Let me know! I will have a bit more time to reply to the ones people left also (and the webinar ones too).
Rock on
Mike T Nelson
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Jodie and I shot this video up at my parents cabin to show you that you can get in a good training session (workout) anywhere! We brought up the TRX suspension trainer, hooked it up to a tree as shown above and a few kettlebells.
We even found a wheelbarrow and had some fun with that too!
Now you don’t have any excuse when you are up north or traveling. Make use of whatever you can find, put a few kettlebells in the trunk of your car or toss a TRX gym in a bag in your suitcase!
Here we go again, a tip inside my brain as to what is rattling around in there. Trust me, you have been warned!
1) Mushroomhead is a highly underrated metal band
Adam T Glass just found them and was blown away. Great stuff. I prefer their earlier work with J Mann, but the new upcoming CD still sounds pretty cool. Awesome live shows if you ever get the chance to see them–go!
2) One of my favorite quotes of all time
“The iron never lies to you..the iron will always kick you the real deal. The iron is the great reference point, the all-knowing perspective giver. Always there like a beacon in the pitch black. I have found the Iron to be my greatest friend. It never freaks out on me, never runs. Friends may come and go, but two hundred pounds is always two hundred pounds.” – Henry Rollins
3) Axial loading is key for muscle hypertrophy
It seems that loading the body axially like squats and overhead pressing seems to have a greater trigger for muscle hypertrophy (bigger muscles).
There is not any direct research that I have seen on this looking at similar loads (volume), but adding squats and kettlebell clean and jerks into your routine can pack on some mass quite fast.
I added about 3-4 lbs in the past month by adding these in. I also increased my calories again and my stress level was a bit lower too. Make sure those movement test well though (ala Grip n Rip).
4) Corrective exercise
I think we are making it entirely too complicated. An exercise/movement either makes you better or worse. If it makes you worse, you are not doing it correctly for YOUR body, or it is not good for you at THAT time. We are either getting better or worse. Is corrective exercise any more complicated than that?
5) Bad foods
We need to stop putting foods into categories as “good” or “bad.” Very few foods are really bad. If something is really bad it will kill you fast. That is bad. A poorly prepared puffer fish will kill you very fast. I say avoid it, but even eating twinkies for a week straight will probably not kill you. You may look similar to a twinkie by the end of the week though.
Twinkies in their natural state
6) The goal of health
Along those lines our goal of health is backwards. People think they need to eat “clean” 100% of the time. Even the most strict, pre-competition bodybuilder types don’t need to do that 100% of the time and even then the pre contest period is short compared to the rest of their life.
Having people try to get to a goal of 100% is not realistic and will set them up for massive failure.
The goal should be to eat as “BAD” as possible WHILE maintaining health (blood tests) and body composition goals.
If you can do this at a 70% compliance vs a 90% compliance, 70% is better!
The ability to take in virtually any food item and convert it into fuel (termed Metabolic Flexibility) is key to health.
Do you want to have more freedom with your diet and eat the foods you love, or feel like you are boxed in and “never good enough”?
7) PhD programs are long, really friggin’ long
I knew when I start this, that it would be a long road. I had other warn me about it. I thought they were nuts. No way I was going to be in school for another 5-7 years after the 11 years I had already done. Screw that.
Well, fast forward to many years later and I am still plugging away at it. Very few things have I started that I have though long and hard about quitting and this is at the top of the list. The good part is that I am fully determined to finish, no matter how long it takes. I have decided it will not rule my life and as long as each day I am making progress, the end will come. And I can’t wait for that day. Wow. Once I graduate, all hell is going to break loose as my ability to output will go through the roof. You have been warned.
8 ) Poor exercise form
Adam mentioned this on a conference call and some are now sooooo scared of not doing an exercise correctly that they will not even TRY.
How can you get better at say a kettlebell clean and press, without ever doing one? The answer is you CAN’T.
The first rep is always the worst rep.
I am NOT recommending that you go load up the bar with a max load and do your first deadlift attempt ever with it. That is just stupid. But starting with the bar and doing a few reps and measuring your range of motion (biofeedback) to see if it is good is an excellent start. Then work to make it better every time. Not starting will not help you. To get better, you can video your movements and keep testing or find a local qualified coach to help determine what is best for YOUR body; not what looks picture perfect. The goal is better, not initial perfection.
9) I still love the TRX
Very fun to use and easy to travel with too!
10) You should train for falling and ill movements
I believe that if you may fall in life (which is all of us), you need to train for falling. Special thanks to Frankie for pointing this out and covering it in the Movement Certification.
Great discuss on this at Charlie Weingrofts blog.
11) Joint mobility is just one movement
Joint mobility,while it can have its place and does work, is only a handful of movement the human body can do. Plus, we learn by performing large (gross) movements first and then work to refine them over time. Why would we start with the smallest movements FIRST?
If you want to learn how to squat, I want to see you friggin squat first! I don’t give a crap at that point about your ankle dorsiflexion or the ability of you to active control your pinky finger. I don’t care. If I can’t correct your squat movement, I will then start to go to more fine and fin movements. I may end up with ankle work or even thumb mobility work, but I would not START there.
You must read this post on Joint Mobility from Frankie below. It is a MUST read.
I have changed how I look at things this year once again. Here are the top things I learned in 2009 below. Can you see how I do things differently now? If so, place a comment below
13) B-Stance Deadlifts are one of the most underrated versions
If you have a weakness in one leg (most of use do) and you want to bring up your deadlift, doing a B-Stance deadlift where once foot is closer to the bar than the other (think of a very mild or shallow lunge where one leg is about 4 inches back from the bar in an asymmetric stance). Check it out at
I am still not happy with modern shoes and we would all be better off training in a pair of Vibrams, flat shoes, or no shoes at all.
15) Joint Pain
I love GLC 2000 for joint issues. I have been using it for several months now and it is great. Others that recommended it to have tried it love it too. I have tried similar supplements like it in the past and they did nothing for me.
While I don’t have many joint issues, they did get a bit achy after many weeks of increased volume. I even tried to push it a bit more and still had no issues. I stopped taking it and within a few days to weeks, they got a bit touchy again.
GLC 2000 has a very high form of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, which are natural substances found in and around the cells of cartilage (joints). Glucosamine is an amino sugar that the body produces and distributes in cartilage and other connective tissue, and chondroitin sulfate is a complex carbohydrate that helps cartilage retain water.
I have some other theories that this should help connective tissue health, which then should help maximal strength.
If you go to the link below, you can pick up 2 for the price of 1 from Carl at Super Human Radio (which you MUST listen to).
The Perfect PushUp Biofeedback Style and Grip n Rip 2.1 DVD Set Update
Bombardier Wells Circa 1915
If you go to most gyms you will see some horrible looking push ups. I mean bad.
Here is what you will typically see
1) The Floor Humper
The athlete will have their butt way too far down, with a crazy bend in their back and it looks like they are humping the floor as they crank out horrible partial reps.
2) The Sky High Butt
Their butt will be super high in the air and their body almost looks like a V as they stick their neck out to reach the floor and then back up.
3) Partial Rep King
The one goes hand in hand with “invisible chest syndrome” where they think their chest is so massive that it must be getting close to the floor, so they only need to go down about 2-3 inches. The reality is they are doing massive amounts of horrible partial reps.
The Fix Is In
Now I know none of you are doing the above, but I want to arm you with some simple tips and tricks to help anyone in the gym.
Why Push Ups?
Pushups are a great exercise for multiple reasons
1) You can do them anywhere
I have literally done push ups in hotel rooms, when traveling on kiteboard and business trips to WA, La Ventana and Puerto Vallarta Mexico, to even a weekend trip up north, airports and pretty much anywhere.
2) You can do higher reps In a recent post, Dr. Lowery talked about how a load as low was 30% 1 rep max done for higher reps can be a great trigger for muscle hypertrophy (read, a bigger chest). Even if you are a big bench presser, pushups may just be the ticket for some new muscle and it is a new stimulus if you have not done them in some time.
3) Scapular movement
When you are doing a bench press, your scapula (shoulder blades) don’t move much. When you do a push up, the scaps move much more and this is a good thing for most. Many people that I have worked with could not bench press without pain, but could do push ups pain free. The scapula should move quite a bit in a normal functioning shoulder, so getting them to move again is a good idea.
How To Do a Perfect Push Up Using Biofeedback Video
Pushup Variations: With Bands, Chains and More!
TRX Suspension Trainer for Pushups (I love the TRX)
Action Time
Try is out now and let me know how it goes. The tip of putting your feet against the wall I got from Dr. Cobb.
More Biofeedback Information
Much much more information on biofeedback is covered in the Grip and Rip 2.1 DVD set. This will be the last fitness product you will ever buy for exercise program design. It will show you how to set a PR (personal record) in the gym EVERY time!
Yes, perpetual progress is entirely possible. I’ve been doing it for a long time now and the clients I have worked with have been setting PRs every time for either density, volume or intensity (amount of weight lifted).
The DVD set goes on sale early this Friday AM (May 21, 2010) and based on the questions I’ve been getting and the great feedback from Grip n Rip 2.0, I won’t expect the 115 copies to last long at all.
I would be surprised if they last much past the first 24 hours to be honest.
I will have a post up very soon with all the sweet bonuses I will be giving you when you pick up your copy through my site. Yes, I do make a few bucks off selling them, but it is an amazing product that I recommend you pick up (and I don’t recommend many products).
Those who attended the last Grip n Rip workshop paid $500 to go and everyone one of them said it was money very well spent.
What is NEW for Grip & Rip 2.1
The following is just the NEW stuff included in Grip n Rip 2.1 I will have a complete list of everything in the DVD set very soon.
An all new Grippers section where you’ll learn:
* Why the “SET” is vital to gripper domination, ignore this and you will always suck at grippers.
* The easy way to position the gripper for maximum strength gains and forearm size increases.
* How to make an easy gripper harder and get more use out of it, so simple you will slap yourself for not thinking of this first
* And more.
An all new Pull-Up section which includes:
* Brad’s little-known super simple progression to your first one-arm pull-up.
* How to take your your pull-up strength to a level you never thought possible.
* A simple tip to move you right along on that first pull-up.
* And more.
A completey new quick start section where you can learn:
* EXACTLY how to choose the exercises that will benefit YOUR body the most THAT day.
* EXACTLY how to select the load that YOU will respond to. This might shock you when you try it.
* EXACTLY how to determine how many reps to do per set.
Comments
Let me know what you think! I want to hear about all your upcoming push-up PRs! If you have not signed up at Grip n Rip and viewed the free video, so so now by clicking here.
Random Updates: TRX Suspension Trainer, Eat Stop Eat, Biofeedback, Evil Shoes, Metal, and More
Claud Derrick, New York AL, at Polo Grounds, NY
Random Updates
Wanted to drop you an update on some cool stuff that is coming up and help you out with some biofeedback questions I’ve been getting (aka how for your to maximize your results)
1) New Phone : D R O I D
Thanks to all that helped me select a new phone! Wow, it is sweet! My old phone was barely a phone at best. I am still trying to figure out all the new features, but I will get there. I figured out how to stream music through my phone to my home stereo and that is awesome! Love it.
2) Updates to Facebook and Twitter
Since I can now update Facebook and Twitter pretty easily, I will have more updates there.
Join in on the fun at my facebook and twitter accounts.
I will have more picture of food, training and whatever I feel like. I want to hear from you, you drop me some comments there. My schedule does get nuts at times, so it may be a few days at times for an update, but I will do my best to get back to you!
3) Teleconference on Grip N Rip DVD and Biofeedback Training ; How to set a PR EVERY TIME in the gym!
If you want to change your body, add more muscles, strength and decrease pain, you NEED to listen to your body (biofeedback). For those that picked up the first round of the Grip n Rip DVD set, you know what is going on!
I’ve been getting many questions about the next round of DVDs, what is biofeedback training, and how can I gain more muscle with less pain.
I will have a special 3 part teleseminar series coming up very soon where we will answer all of these questions and much more.
Sign up on my Insider Newsletter today and I will automatically send you 1 hour of free video on common questions about mobility work, strength and exercise programming.
You will also be the very first to get the teleseminar series info too. We will have to limit the amount of callers on the line initially too, so don’t miss out. Sign up below.
4) TRX Fun
I have a few more videos of the TRX in action coming soon too. I’ve received some more questions about the TRX as of late and the short version is that I love it for travel and doing some unique body weight drills. I have one and would recommend that you pick one up (yes, I do make a few clams from selling them, but I would never recommend anything that I have not tested first myself and really love)
TRX suspension trainer review video the professor speaks from his lab
5) More coming from Brad Pilon at Eat Stop Eat
Brad will be back on to answer one of your top questions about the Eat Stop Eat Intermittent Fasting approach. I like Brad because he never pulls any punches and just tells it like it is.
I will have an article showing you (I mean your friends, since the readers here are super smart) how to transition to a more barefoot (Vibrams, Nike Free) shoe for increased performance.
In the meantime, Dr Doug Briggs, Ph.D., CSCS,*D and Director of Human Performance-US ARMY/MWR has a video below in his Vibrams showing how to do a proper squat.
If you go into any gym, it is rare you will see anyone using the squat rack from something else other than curls in-between shouts of
“Yo, yo need to work the chezt, pac and gunz brah”
Yeah
The readers here know that overload is the key to muscle growth and strength and it is hard to beat compound exercises like squats, deadlifts, bench press, overhead lifts, farmers walks, etc.
As I Lay Dying and Demon Hunter will be here in Minneapolis Minnesota May 12, so drop a comment below if you are going to be at the show and we will meet up. It is going to be an amazing show as I have seen both of them before and they always deliver live!
Comments
Any thoughts, comments, yeahs, neahs, let me know!
3 Tips to Staying On Track With Your Fitness Goals
I love it when a plan comes together!
I am a huge fan of the A-team and I am so stoked to see the new movie. It looks great and I really hope it does not suck!
Having a plan come together is truly a great feeling.
Having a plan fall apart, no so good.
Yesterday at about 8:31am my computer started acting weird and forced me to reboot a few times. Being paranoid I ran the virus scan and nothing major was found. Now it was not running at all and I got a call that it had a virus.
Crap. I hate viruses.
My computer was now a brick. In addition to work, I had planned to put the finishing touches on a revision of my dissertation on HRV (heart rate variability) to send to my advisor that night. I also managed to leave my jump drive with the latest revision at the U of MN last time I was there and my most recent copy was now locked up on my hard drive. Wonderful technology.
As it turns out, it was not a virus (sigh of relief) but an update from McAfee Ant-virus that got pushed out and it attacked vital components of the operating system itself. Something like that and somebody can fill me in on all the details.
Sort of like a computer version of and autoimmune issue.
Now my computer is back up and running, but while it was down I had to execute my back up plan to attempt to stay on track. Good thing I had a back up plan.
Does Your Training Have a Back Up Plan?
Let’s face it, life gets in the way of our training some times. That is the nature of life and shifting priorities. How you REACT to it, is what matters.
Here are 3 tips to make sure you don’t stray too far off from your training goals
1) Prepare
On any given day, your body may not respond the way you want it to and don’t force it. If you push it, be prepared for the consequences. I had to learn this recently once again too My Top 3 Training Mistakes
Another option is the TRX Suspension trainer. It weighs only a couple pounds and you can fit it in your suitcase easily. It allows you tons of great exercise options from almost anywhere – even Mexico!
3) Have Fun
Maybe it is a day to just try something new. Does a certain exercise just sound horrible? Maybe it is not the best one for your body.
Now this is a fine line between doing what is best and skipping all the things that you should be doing. Having a coach guide you through your body’s own feedback is going to be best.
Sample TRX Suspension Trainer Workout Video from Mexico!
Greetings from Mexico! Jodie and I are having a blast down here!
Traveling is no excuse not to get some training and a few fun workout sessions in.
How?
Here is a video that was actually shot when Jodie and I were kiteboarding in La Ventana Mexico about 5 weeks ago (even though we are in Mexico again now on our honeymoon).
TRX Workout in Mexico Video
The TRX is portable and fits great into your suitcase, you pick one up today by clicking HERE.
Greetings! I have survived! It has been an absolute crazy past couple of weeks here.
I had the title of “Diary of a Mad Man” pop into my head when I was writing this up, so I thought I would include a live version of this Ozzy classic for your listening pleasure.
I remember seeing Ozzy on his “No More Tours Tour” in like 8th grade. It was awesome other than the treble was so high I think I had hearing damage for years after that. I’ve seen him many times since on Ozzfest also. So much for retirement!
As you know, I am getting married this coming Saturday (yes, like in a 2 days) and I am very excited.
PhD Update
I have also been working on my dissertation paper regarding HRV (heart rate variability - a way to measure biofeedback) and I handed in the latest revision to my advisor at about 2:30am today. I already have more work to do on it as I got the revisions back already, but getting closer to submitting if for peer review and publication.
Once that is taken care of, I will then work on finishing up my paper on the effects of Energy Drinks (Monster Energy Drink) regarding heart rate, HRV, exercise performance (like, do the darn things even work?) effects on fat burning (via RER- respiratory exchange ratio) among other things. I collected the data last year and have it analyzed already, so hopefully I won’t need to get any more subjects. All the studies were fasted, so nothing like getting up at 4:45am sometimes to be in the lab (or sleeping there overnight—shhhhhh, don’t tell anyone though). I still carry a pillow in my car to catch a quick cat nap for a few minutes wherever I can.
Once that is completed, I have my third paper to work on regarding Metabolic Flexibility as I am looking at a potential new way to measure metabolic flexibility without sticking someone with needles. I will combine those 3 studies plus a literature review and conclusion into my final dissertation. Lots and lots more work to go, but progress one step at a time is good.
I have only seen Jodie about 2 times in the past week, but we will get to spend a whole week in Mexico (top secret location) after the wedding, so we are super excited about the honeymoon! It will be sooooo nice to finally spend some time together and then I get to see her for the rest of my life every day—yeah!!
Jodie and I
Perhaps I will have an re-enactment of this photo from our La Ventana trip. Viva La Mexico
And lots of this! Although I do have a hard time sitting still for long.
A huge thanks to Jodie also for all the wedding planning and to our friend Dana and Nicole too for all their wedding planning help. I had no idea that planning a wedding was so much work, but it will be great! Neither one of us do much that is considered “normal” so we are even getting married in a cave!
Project 86
For those that missed the engagement story, see this link below.
We got engaged at a Project 86show in Arizona (huge thanks to the lead singer Andrew,the Rev, and the P86 Tour Manager). My wonderful colleges at work (I still work part time at a medical device company as an engineer for over 10 years now), bought me a Project 86 cake and had a nice celebration, wonderful card and gits too! Thanks everyone!!!
Myself, Jodie and Andrew from Project 86
The Project 86 cake
Lifting
Of course I am still lifting myself and it is going well, despite crazy levels of stress and enough caffeine at times to approach the LD 50 for small fury animals. Last night I came within 1 lb of breaking my all time bench personal record (PR) and pulled 8 singles at or over 365 lbs on deadlifts the day before. Yeah for biofeedback training. Keep your eyes open for the Grip n Rip DVD soon and it shows you the break down on how to custom your training to you!
I gave 435 a run, but no dice. I will get it though and will pull 450 lbs by the end of this year. My buddy Maximillian Barry (Nu_Fit on twitter) and a few others have a deadlift race.
Plus, once my schedule frees up a bit post PhD later this year (fingers crossed) I plan to hang out and lift more with those nuts Adam T Glass and Brad Nelson. Doing the Tactical Strength Challenge Elite style 10 days after coming back from my honeymoon is going to be brutal though! I will be traveling with trusty TRX suspension trainer though. Maybe the professor will show up in a future video from Mexico, who knows!
The Blog Marches On!
I am hoping to crank out some updates for you tomorrow AM yet, I will probably not have computer access in Mexico, so comment replies may be very slow.
Summary
That is the update on all the crazy updates from here. What is new in your life? Any good wedding stories that you wan to share? Post away in the comments
The Professor Does Lower Body Exericses via Video from the Lab
The professor is back on again and it is time to do some exercises for the lower body. I know that most people in the average gym shy away from doing legs, but I know that is not you; so here we go!
Jodie and I
Viva La Mexico
Although I do have a hard time sitting still for long.
Myself, Jodie and Andrew from Project 86
The Project 86 cake
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