I wish that title was a joke. Guess they should move up the start of hockey season another month. Nine months isn’t nearly long enough.
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1. Popular Advice: Write down your goals and keep them nearby. So you stay on track.
Better Advice: Write down your excuses for not pursuing your goals. So you stay honest.
Keep that list right next to your list of goals. And every time you make a new excuse add it to the list.
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2. Wanna write better client training programs? If asked, you should be able to trace every choice you make back to the overall goal.
So if you can’t clearly justify the choice of exercises, number of sets and reps, length of rest, etc., then start over. You’ve stopped thinking.
Hell even if your reasoning is a steaming pile of bullshit broscience it’s still better than just winging it. Because say what you want about the tenets of broscience, at least it’s an ethos. It has an underlying set of rules to follow that creates and requires consistency.
Winging it? Not so much.
As for what you should consider when designing programs? That depends on many things, most of which won’t garner too much attention on IG. But here’s my short list of considerations.
Always Consider:
– goals, needs, previous training, context (age, training age, injuries, lifestyle, schedule, equipment)
Often Consider:
– what’s worked with similar clients
Sometimes Consider:
– what I’ve seen work or at least think should work for them.
Never Consider:
– what I’ve personally done or am doing.
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3. We’re all stressed up the wahzoo. While stress is a broad term and certainly a normal part of life, there’s a definite limit.
Most don’t realize how “under siege” they really are until they remove some stressors and come up for air. The good news is, some big offenders are easy to drop and make a dramatic difference in your quality of life.
Step one is shut off social media notifications on your phone.
Social media is the epitome of “pretends to be urgent and important but is really neither.”
Unless you allow it to be.
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4. People please, posting pics of when you were a skinny untrained teen next to you as a muscular, fully developed adult does NOT show that you “overcame bad genetics.”
All it shows that you don’t understand how gene expression works. Or puberty.
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5. On a podcast I was asked for 5 keys to training longevity:
1) Don’t get injured
2) Chase process-based goals instead of just outcome-based
3) Weave training into your lifestyle & schedule, and embrace natural ebb & flow. Life changes.
4) Keep it fun. Always.
5) Don’t get injured
For a legit number five I’m tempted to say “don’t take anything too seriously” but thats bullshit.
The real answer is to take the handful of important things VERY seriously but don’t give all the minutiae any bandwidth.
And what are those things? Consistency, focus, progression, planning, and keeping an eye on the big picture.
Off for an hour of biceps-intensive shoveling.
Best,
Bryan