When you first started lifting with barbells, you trained with the idea of becoming both big and strong, as if the two words were synonymous. And for those first few months, they were! You saw significant increases in both your size and strength, regardless of what rep range you worked in. Continue reading at BodyBuilding.com...Read More

Here’s something you didn’t know about me–I get obsessed with things. In elementary school my obsessions were Native Americans and Barry Sanders.  The chronology continues from middle school to now in such a way: football, boobs, Metallica, guitar, powerlifting, football, vaginas, Kurt Vonnegut, football, Marcus Aurelius, vagina-boobs, deadlifting 600 pounds, corrective exercise, manual therapy, Functional Range Conditioning, power cleans…vaginas....Read More

Rather than participate in a transparent, fitness-industry popularity contest and name my favorite articles of 2013, I want to speak genuinely about people that had a huge impact on me this year. I do this in the hopes that it moves you to consider who made your life better this year; and, maybe, seek out...Read More

It’s too often in the fitness industry that people are enamored with a bunch of inconsequential happy horseshit. If you thought that sentence was bright and shiny, wait, it gets better. The unfortunate reality is most of our industry exists on a superficial level and thrives on subtle manipulation. Sure, that’s marketing for the most...Read More

I’ll start by saying I’m usually a live-and-let-live kind of guy; this is out of character for me but I think it’s necessary.   Earlier today I said an article was garbage, so it’s required that I say why.   For the sake of the rest of the argument, let’s all agree on a few...Read More

I saw an image on Facebook today–it was Santa Claus flying over a house toward the moon. Above, and below, Santa Claus, written in red lettering, was a reminder that there are only ten Saturdays until Christmas Day. Time flies. With a chill in the air, and snow flakes sputtering to the ground, people start...Read More

This post is a few days behind schedule–but I should have expected that; preparing to move usually encompasses more than we plan for. There are good byes to say, things to pack and unwanted crap to discard. I’ve been catching up on all of those because I’m moving next week. Michael Ranfone, and the guys...Read More

A lot of coaches that I respect coach their clients to dial their feet out while deadlifting. The Glute Guy says we shouldn’t. Chris and I aren’t here to be contentious; we started Beyond Strength Performance as a means to make others better lifters, athletes, coaches–whatever a guy or gal can take away from reading our...Read More

I’m out of bed every morning at 5:30. I lift, walk, write, feed my dog—I do something. I work to give back the time that I’ve borrowed. See, I’m not anyone special—a kid that grew up in rural Pennsylvania in a family that didn’t have much. When I was in elementary school we bounced around...Read More

Hey guys and gals, Chris here… it’s going to be a crazy few weeks for me.  I’ve got the “Modern Therapeutic Techniques” seminar this weekend with Todd and Dr. Rabinowitz at New York Chiropractic College.  A few days after that I fly out to Winnipeg to help Dustin Pague with his final weight cut for UFC...Read More

A few weeks ago I had a high school junior message me through Facebook to ask if I would take some time to answer a few questions on going to college for exercise science.  OF COURSE I said yes…  And my answers were some things I wish that I had heard before starting college as...Read More

Do your intentions match your actions? It’s a matter of congruency. My guess is no. I’m not saying that you, in part from everyone else,  have anything wrong with you–it’s just a numbers game. Most people intend to do more–training, living, growing–but fail to act accordingly by what they envision. It’s like playing a movie in...Read More

As many of you know, my gym is adjacent to a mixed martial arts school. So, you would think that there’s a constant flow of fighters strolling through the doors. And while there are some, it’s not nearly as many as you think…  You see, there’s a common term thrown around in the MMA game:...Read More

Earlier this week Chris asked us a question, have you progressed? Hopefully you took some time to think objectively on the question. Have you written a good movement history, or does it need a greater effort of penmanship? Are you learning? Do you have a support system? I thought about Chris’ questions a lot over...Read More

When I was growing up I kind of got in trouble- a lot.  Not big trouble, but I definitely pushed the envelope quite often.  For instance, in the first grade I got in trouble in class for something I don’t even remember.  But, I do remember that the punishment was to take a letter from my...Read More