Author: Eric Moss
How to get strong by taking it easier than you might think.
I was having a discussion with 2 separate people on 2 separate days on my approach to training. Both of them had been subjected to things like;
“You need to train to failure in order to get stronger.”
and
“You need to keep moving, rest less in between exercises”
I disagree. Who am I to disagree? Well I come at it from 2 different perspectives. I’m a professional performing strongman and I’m a personal trainer (and a good one too).
As a personal trainer I have to dispel some of the things that other well meaning but misinformed personal trainers say. And my approach often causes argument because it goes against the things they believed.
First off about that whole training to failure thing. I used to believe that too. It was brainwashing by bodybuilding magazines, and it was the writings of Pavel Tsatsouline that had changed my course of thinking.
Here’s the thing. With strength training I like to explain it as a process.
The brain sends a command through the central nervous system to tell your muscle fibers to contract. Muscle pulls on tendon which pulls on bone and that’s how movement occurs.
The central nervous system in the average person only normally contracts 20-30% of their muscle fibers. The strength is there in you already, you just don’t have access to it yet. Paul McIlroy has a quote that I love “Strength isn’t built, it’s granted by the nervous system.”
By teaching your body to use more of what you already have, you can get stronger, without having to train like a maniac, without getting bulky and you do it much faster. This is why I recommend people take my no cost trial.
Because during the no cost trial you’ll discover noticeable differences in your strength…within the week…oftentimes within the first session.
So how is this accomplished? By training to success not failure. By being generous with rest periods so that you can recover between sets. And by taking advantage of various neurological “tricks” that teach your body to activate more of what it’s already got more effectively.
Do yourself a favor and train effectively the first time by taking advantage of my no cost trial.
You can join my many success stories and get in the best shape of your life, even if you’ve failed before.
Would you rather use a treadmill… or get results?
My personal training studio is also listed under gyms in the Morris County area. And even though it’s tucked away in the back of the building I sometimes still get walk in traffic. Most of my business has either come from word of mouth, someone seeing me during one of my strongman performances/public speaking, google searches or from a deal of the day site etc. but when I get walk ins it’s a nice surprise….but it almost always results in the same question.
“Where are the treadmills?”
Now I’m not going to turn this into an anti treadmill rant but I’ll just say, I’m not into them. I’ve had opportunities to buy commercial grade ones for cheap, but opted not to because they are simply a waste of space in my studio. My response to this question is simply;
“I don’t have any. I’ve found them to not be useful in getting people to achieve the results they hire me for. I’ve filled my personal training studio with more useful things.”
I’ll try to do a run down of the different things I have, but I may forget some because I’m not at the studio to itemize it at the moment. Some of them don’t sound like exercise equipment but trust me, they work when you know how to use them correctly.
- Full range of kettlebells varying from 5lbs to 106lbs
- Barbell with plates
- Squat rack
- adjustable lock out stands
- pull up bars
- dip station
- junglegym2 suspension trainer
- jump stretch bands
- adjustable dumbbells
- sandbags
- sotsky exerciser
- hammer
- dowels
- steel bars
- nails
- cards
- phonebooks
- chairs
- FMS assessment kit
- lateral resistance bands
- Gray Cook band
- lacrosse ball
- fugly rubber
- grippers
- eagle claws
- chains
- ab ball
- power ball
- decline sit up bench
Out of those, the possible combinations are endless and pack far more punch than walking on a human hamster wheel. And there may be more that I’m not remembering at the moment but beyond the equipment is how to use it for best results. Even if I had nothing more than an empty room I’d still get you great results.
I’ve gotten knowledge from over a decade of experience training various types of people with a great track record. From cutting edge training theories backed by science, to the nearly lost subculture of steel bending super-humans to simply observing what’s working and what’s not with real people. Yes I have a veritable alphabet soup of letters after my name of various certifications I’ve attained but my real credentials are my success stories.
And that’s the thing really. Are you actually looking for a treadmill, or are you looking to make the change? Sometimes it really is a choice between the two and the decision you make will determine your future.
If you want to take my system for a test drive, I’m offering a trial at no cost. This way you can see if I’m the thing you’re looking for to help you achieve what you want.
Click here to try my trial at no cost and find out how to register.
12 reasons Turkish Getups will make you awesome
This past Saturday (3/26/16) the personal record cowbell was rung twice. One by Tom Daly who achieved his first get up of 80lbs. and one by Maria who in just her second session with me did a get up with 40lbs.
Now if you are unfamiliar with some of the benefits that comes with a getup here I’ll list them really quick but I’ll warn you…it’s REALLY geeky.
(via Strongfirst™)
- Promotes cross lateralization (getting right brain to work with left side)
- Promotes upper body stability
- Promotes lower body stability
- Promotes reflexive stability of the trunk and extremities
- Ties the right arm to the left leg, and left arm to the rightleg
- Gets the upper extremities working reciprocally (legs too)
- Stimulates the vestibular system (1 of the 3 senses that contribute to balance)
- Stimulates the visual system (2nd of 3 senses that contribute to balance)
- Stimulates the proprioception system (3rd of the 3 systems that contribute to balance)
- Promotes spatial awareness
- Develops a front/back weight shift
- Develops upper body strength, trunks strength, and hip strength
Turkish Get Ups Will Make You Awesome….plain and simple.