It was 1990, The Summer after freshman year and I was finishing up my days traveling to the Metuchen YMCA. At the time, the weight room was down stairs, a small dungeon filled with York Barbell Weights, a York Isometric rack and a small radio where the big guys allowed me to bring in my cassette tape to play hard rock music. I knew these were my last days at The Y as construction was in full swing and a new weight room was coming. The few who trained at The Y were big guys. It was a small … [Read more...]
The UPenn Crew: NOTHING Worth Having Is Comfortable
Episode 110 of The STRONG Life Podcast is with Jim Steel (Head Strength & Conditioning Coach at UPenn) along with his assistants, Cristi Bartlett and Tracy Zimmer. Check out some of their training videos below (BIG Numbers + BIG Reps) as well as everything we spoke about from training to nutrition, mindset to dogs, injuries and more. Enjoy and help spread the word, invite 1 friend to listen to The STRONG Life Podcast! Thank you in advance! … [Read more...]
3 Ways WE Can Change The WORLD Through STRENGTH
Kid parks his car in front of the house to deliver pizza. It's a test. All of it. I watch to see if he'll take the sidewalk or cut across the front lawn. He cuts across the front lawn. I think to myself..... "That kid never struggled under a heavy squat...." It's not his fault. We failed him. Teachers. Coaches. Somehow, someway, we missed that kid. … [Read more...]
STRONG Life 106: Being STRONG & Successful Through Simplicity | Matt Reynolds
STRONG Life Episode 106 is Round 2 with my friend and Coach, Matt Reynold of Reynolds STRONG & The Barbell Logic Online Coaching Community. Matt is not only a good friend but also a mentor to me. He guides me in business and we regularly chat on Life, Lifting and Success. The theme we always come back to is: Keep it Simple, Trust Your Gut Instincts, Be STRONG & Train for Life. Simple, NOT Easy. Nothing worth having ever is "easy". In this episode of The STRONG Life … [Read more...]
Strength Lessons from The Iron Gladiators of The 80s & 90s
Photo Cred: Grégoire Alessandrini / http://www.nyc90s.com The photo above is from the no longer open, Gladiator Gym. This gym was housed in "Alphabet City" in The East Village of NYC. Pro Bodybuilders used to train there. Hard charging weightlifters trained there. The unspoken rule was simple: Train Your Ass Off. Intensity Rules. This was the story in MANY local gyms back when I was a teen and in my early 20s. So when I was a teen and in my early 20s, the way I learned was by getting under … [Read more...]
Do What You Can, Even When You Can’t
Whether you're a sport athlete or a hard charging lifter, injuries and obstacles will always be popping up on your journey. I am still trying to figure out WHY they happen. Is it all about movement? Because I see some horrific stuff that would destroy my body and those people don't get injured from it. Then I see people who move great and do all the right things: nutrition, lifestyle, etc and they DO get hurt. I think it's part of your journey. Maybe it's a test to see where you fit in this … [Read more...]
Will Anyone Ever Squat In Peace Again?
I feel bad for this generation of lifters. I'd say that 99.99999999% will NEVER know what it's like to JUST train for the sake of training and have NO phone around them. The kids I train nowadays always sneak a look at their phone when they grab a drink. Eventually ya gotta tell them to STOP taking a water break after EVERY SET. The beauty and purity of a training session where / when there were NO cell phones is beyond what my words can describe. When I was 17 years old, my buddy … [Read more...]
Gaining Muscle, High School Workouts & Program Design
Yet another hard charging Facebook LIVE QnA for you. This episode is loaded with training knowledge bombs. i LOVE answering training questions. In fact, when a Strength Coach asks me for business or marketing advice, I always emphasize, "Training IS the business." It's ALL part of The Relentless Pursuit of Excellence. This episode covers the following topics: nutrition for muscle and strength gains various training methods for strength and size / program design methods thoughts … [Read more...]
STRONG Life 83: Strength In Life & Business, Matt Reynolds Will NOT Be Out Worked!
STRONG Life Podcast 83 - Matt Reynolds Will NOT Be Outworked! In this episode Matt & I discuss training as a powerlifter & strongman as Matt is an Elite level Powerlifter and a PRO Strongman! Here are just some of the questions / topics we crushed in this episode: … [Read more...]
3 Simple Tips To Improve Olympic Weightlifting & Get STRONGER
Here's a cool question that came in the mail box and I wanna answer this question more in depth for you with some sample workouts: Zach, I've been following you for awhile and now that I'm not an active trainer at my local CF box, I have slowly pieced together a garage gym to call home. Which program from your Online Training would you recommend to A) build my strength and .... B) stay on top of Oly/CF type movements? I know I desperately need the strength build up, but … [Read more...]