Day 31 of 365: Pulling BIG!!!

Hey Guys!

Tonight, I want to give a shout out to Brannon Muska of CrossFit Texas.  He is the owner and head trainer of the gym and just a badass guy.  

It never fails...whenever I see Brannon, he always walks right up to me, asks how I'm doing and shakes my hand.  

You couldn't find a more humble, or nicer dude.

Well, this past weekend was no different.  The first day of the CrossFit Powerlifting Certification, Brannon walked right up to me, shook my hand and asked how everything was going.  This time there was an added bonus, though.  We got into a conversation about my Strictly Strength program, and my blog project, 365 Days of Strength.  During that conversation, Brannon called me the "regional strength expert"!!!  

Now, you have to understand, Brannon is a massive human-being 

(You'll see a video of him pulling a new deadlift PR of 565# here soon -  for now just take my word for it.)  For him to call me the "strength expert" was a huge compliment!!!  

It is something that I aspire to be, for sure, and I definitely feel like I am on my way!!!   

Nothing's getting in my way to the top!

Just like Brannon pulling a massive deadlift PR, I too, am setting new standards for myself - both as an athlete and as a professional.  

As I reach new benchmarks and standards, I will bring you all with me.

You have to keep pulling BIG if you want to move the world!  

Just think about that...As you do, watch Brannon take it to the next level!

Day 30 of 365: An Amazing Investment!!!

YO!!!

I am back in Austin, and I am FIRED UP!!! 

This past weekend was FREAKIN' AWESOME!  Ihave come away with a new insight into how to train OPTIMALLY....and the prospects are exciting, to say the least.

L-->R: Me, Laura Phelps, Shane Sweatt, Jeff McKinney, Conner Moore

 In my post yesterday, I mentioned that a lot of the information covered during Day 1 was actually a refresher for me.  Well, today had tons of new information that I soaked up like a sponge!  

I gotta say, I am stoked to begin implementing more of the Westside Barbell/Conjugate Method into my Strictly Strength Project and Strictly Strength Classes.  I have no doubt that my athletes, as well as myself and the CrossFit Central coaches that I train, will see some amazing progress during the next few weeks and months....and that's just the beginning!  

BIG THINGS ARE GONNA HAPPEN!

Ask anyone in my Strictly Strength Project/Class what they enjoy most, and I am willing to bet that their response would have something to do with the huge variety of training modes and tools we use.  

Well, it's the very same thing for the Conjugate Method.  They rotate through a crazy amount of exercises, all with tons of different variables that allow for consistent and massive gains while staying mentally and physically healthy and fresh!  

Pretty amazing stuff when you consider the amount weight they move and the intensity at which they work!

My point here is this:  This weekend definitely validated the type of training that I utilize for myself and my athletes.  On the other hand, it opened my eyes to where my programs are lacking.  All in all, this weekend was one of the best investments I could have made in to Strictly Strength, the Coaches' SWOD, and myself!!!

Thank you, Laura, Shane and especially, Louie Simmons for providing this opportunity!

All I can say is that you all better be ready for some SIC content coming your way!!!

Day 29 of 365: Day 1 Down

Day one of the CrossFit Powerlifting Certification is complete, and it was AWESOME!!!  I'll be honest, a lot of the stuff that was taught I already knew, but to receive validation was well worth the cert. price and travel expenses! I mean, we all like to be told that we are doing things right, right?  Well, this cert. is doing that for me, as well as providing me with new ideas and thoughts that I know will prove to be extremely valuable.

The perfect example of this is our "hands-on" session today.  We worked a light box squat with light band tension for 12 sets of 2 reps, moving as quickly as possible through all 24 reps.  As soon as that work was complete, we quickly started our deadlift lecture and demo, and before we knew it, we were going for new PRs!!!  

Now, I am very comfortable with the box squat, and found myself coaching the technique nearly as much as the cert.coaches(validation).  But the deadlift technique that they taught us was something completely foreign to me.  In fact, I had a hell of a time just getting into the start position of a conventional deadlift!!!  I quickly forced myself to forget everything I thought I knew about deadlift, and soon I was pulling a new PR of 465# with relative easy.  Mind you, this is a 10# PR where afterwards I felt crippled and wrecked.  The really badass part of all of this was that I was definitely not the only one pulling massive PRs!!!  People were setting PRs left, right, and center!  One guy actually increased his PR from 405(he said he had been stuck here for over a year) to 455!!!  It was freakin' awesome!!!

Trust me!  I am super stoked to share the footage I have with you all ASAP!!  I plan on posting my first cert. video tomorrow, so be sure to check back here for that!!!

Until then, hang in there, have a great Halloween weekend and be safe!

Day 28 of 365: More Schoolin'!!!

What's up, People?!!?

Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell

 I'm in San Antonio eagerly awaiting the first day of the CrossFit Powerlifting Certification(!!!), so I am going to make this one quick.

I'm super stoked to participate in this certification for several reasons.  But I gotta say, the main reason is to reinforce what I already know with what the experts know.  I love learning from the best and using what  makes sense to me.  I know that this weekend will be jam-packed with tons of awesome information and skill practice.  I will be filming as much of the cert. as I can, and I'll be sure to share it will you as soon as I can!  

Until then, here's what will be going down this weekend!!!  

Go ahead....You should be jealous!

Day 27 of 365: Try, Try Again

My job as a coach is simple.

(Remember, simple does NOT mean easy!)

I challenge people to be better than they think they are capable of. 

  

This is a never-ending quest, as no one in this world has ever met their full potential.  

In that sense, I am in the right business!  Hahaha.

The reason I am so passionate about what I do is that I get to watch people break through barriers - both physical and mental - on a daily basis.  I get to experience the thrill and excitement of smashing through old limitations with my athletes.

THIS IS WHAT DRIVES ME! 

It creates momentum in my world so that I, too, can continue my quest for self-improvement.  And for that, I am extremely grateful for my athletes and the effort they bring, day in and day out.

You may be asking yourself, "Where is this guy going with all of this?"

Well, have no fear.  I am coming to the end of this rambling.

I want to share a video with you all of my client and friend, Dr. Sam Sneed of Next Level Chiropractic breaking through one of these said barriers.  

And trust me....this one is most definitely a physical AND mental task!

(BTW...You'll hear me doing my JOB when Sam questions himself.  Hahaha.)

Sam was not the only one to blow old PR's out of the water.  Sam's business partner, Dr. Dave Yancey also set a new record box jump along with fellow Strictly Strength'ers, Erik Ditmer(40" @ age 100, as he put it.) and Melissa Bustama who jumped on a 24" box for the very first time, and then continued to stack bumpers on top!!

Great job, crew!!!  

Thanks for relentless work ethic you all bring. 

Day 26 of 365: Talk the Talk, Walk the Walk

BEASTS

What sets CrossFit Central apart from the vast majority of other gyms is the fact that we TALK the TALK and WALK the WALK.  We practice what we preach.  We live the code! 

More specifically, I run my program, Strictly Strength, in the very same fashion.  I do all of the same SWODs that I put my athletes through.  I will not ask them to do anything that I am not willing to do myself.  Plain and simple.  

I have a duty to LEAD FROM THE FRONT, as my mentor, Zach Even-Esh puts it.

I take great honor in doing so.  

Without the willingness to suffer with your troops, you will lose respect and your integrity.  

This just can not happen!!!

So, as a practice in application, Michael Winchester and I threw down a nasty SWOD at our usual 1pm coach's hour.  

This was NO JOKE, people!!!  

Take a quick look...

WARMUP-

20 minute AMRAP

3 Wall Walks

10 Up-Downs

5 In and Outs

10 Grasshoppers

SWOD-

3 Rounds NFT

Yoke Carry OR Zercher Walk ----->

Handstand Walk <-----

Prowler Sprint <----->

Dual KB Front Rack Carry <----->

Check out the footage of this beast of a SWOD and let me know what y'all think!!!

Day 25 of 365: Take ANOTHER Walk

As promised....here are a few videos discussing the farmer's carry, as well as some variations that you can use to spice up your routine.  Check it out and let me know what you guys think by leaving your comments at the bottom of the post. 

GO HEAVY or GO HOME!  :  )