In the book Extreme Ownership by retired Navy SEALs Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, the prevailing message is that great leaders take ownership of every situation they’re in and never point the finger at others. Even in situations where outside people or events may have affected the outcome, true leaders reflect on how they could …
6 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Say Your Program Isn’t Working Read More »
Program design for powerlifting is equal parts art and science. As a coach, you have to balance the scientific principles (progressive overload, specificity, etc.) with the lifter’s individual differences and your own coaching instincts. There are many variables to manage, with some of them more important than others. The biggest ones are: Exercise selection Intensity …
And just like that, our first full year is coming to a close at our brick-and-mortar Bonvec Strength facility. There’s been no shortage of excitement, from rebranding the business, to moving the gym, to having six lifters compete on the national stage. We have a lot to be proud of! Today, we’ll round up the …
When I first started personal training in 2012, breathing drills were all the rage in every avenue of fitness. You couldn’t read a training-related article without the opening line being some derivative of, “Did you know that we take over 20,000 breaths per day?” Belly breathing was the key to maximal strength, the diaphragm was …
Humor is a powerful teaching tool. I try to use as much of it as possible in my coaching, mostly because I’m not that funny and it takes a lot of jokes to finally make somebody laugh. My favorite style of humor is self-deprecation. Maybe I’m just unloading decades of low self-esteem, but I do …
Lifters will plan out a training cycle for their squat, bench press and deadlift down to the most nano of details. Sets, reps, RPEs, variations – there’s no such thing as too obsessive when it comes to training for a new PR. But accessory work? Nah, that’s just fluff, right? Do a couple sets, get …
Coaching powerlifters on meet day has come to be one of my favorite things in the world. I take tremendous pride in watching my lifters lay it all on the line, channeling months (or even years) of effort into one single day. The drama, the attempt selection strategy, and ultimately, the satisfaction once the meet …
7 Strategies for Powerlifting Meet Attempt Selection Read More »
Specificity is one of the most important principles of strength training. The SAID principle (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands) states that, in short, you get what you train for. So if you want to get better at squatting, you’ve gotta squat. Same goes for any of the other competitive powerlifts. However, the longer I’ve trained …
Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, life has a way of cutting you down to size. That’s how I felt at last week’s IPL Drug Tested North American Championships in St. Louis. We took six lifters to this national-level meet and had a great showing, coming in second place in the …
Last week, I covered five of the most important lessons I’ve learned in a decade of coaching. This week, I’ll unveil the next five. You can read the full article here, but to recap: Care More Ask More Questions Overcomplicate Before You Simplify Be a Good Lifter Set High Standards Let’s start the second half, …
