Summer 2019

USD $4.99

HOME GYM SUMMER 2019

QUARTERLY

Two Sport Champion Eric Roussin THE BEST FITNESS APPS FOR HOME GYM WORKOUT

4 TIME WORLD CHAMPION

DAN MCKIM RECIPES FOR BUSY PEOPLE

SUMMER WORKOUTS MADE SIMPLE 1

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HOME GYM

QUARTERLY

TABLE OF CONTENTS ON THE COVER

44 FEATURED How To Find Product Recalls

by Marisol Swords - pg 9

Is AirGym the Game Changer That Your Personal Training Business Needs?

by John Greaves III - pg 25

THE BEST FITNESS APPS Having a plan before you work out is incredibly important. You’re already busy enough and wasting time finding a workout plan isn’t an option. The good news is that with modern technology, you can always have access to a killer workout plan.

Summer Workouts

Best Fitness Apps

There are fitness apps that can provide workouts for just about any style of exercise you enjoy. However, since there are so many apps available, it can be hard to choose one. If you’re wondering which apps to download, we’ve got you covered.

Here are our five best fitness apps for home gym owners especially those who train alone.

by Lillian Bauer

SMARTWOD SmartWOD is great option for timing yourself when doing Tabata, HIIT, or any kind of interval work. The design is pleasing to the eye and is very easy to use. There are four choices when you open the app: AMRAP, For Time, EMOM, and Tabata. Click on which one you want, put your parameters in, and go. SmartWOD also keeps a log of your workouts. No workouts are provided but it really easy to use and makes doing HIIT workouts a lot easier.

By: Lillian Bauer

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By: Rob Brinkley Jr.

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WODCONNECT

Home Gym Evolution: The Story of Garage 562

by Kimberly Figge - pg 62 Editorial Advisory Board Randall Strossen, Founder, IronMind Enterprises Diana Young, Financial & Media Consultant Nick Nilsson, BASc Mad Scientist of Muscle Roberta Greaves, Editor Graphic Editor/Director: Kellie Kilgore Graphics, LLC Photography: Naomi Greaves Brian Tait

WODconnect functions like a social media version of Crossfit. The app will prompt you to connect to a Crossfit gym, but that isn’t necessary. Instead, head over to the workouts tab where you can find list of WODs (workout of the day) from a variety of Crossfit gyms. You can pay to upgrade for a journal that gives you a monthly report on your workouts, but it is isn’t required. It’s not the prettiest app, but if you need some WOD ideas, this will do it.

TRX

If you are a TRX fan, then this app is a must! There are videos that will walk you through any workout you can imagine. They tell you what moves to do, how long the workout takes, and what muscles you are working. You can watch the videos while you work out, so you don’t have to think too much. It also has workouts for running and cycling, so you can do cardio and strength training. It’s pretty inexpensive for a paid app - after your 2-week trial, the cost is $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year.

Eric Roussin

Recipes for Busy People

HIITMAX HIITMax offers a wide variety of HIIT workouts and challenges for specific body parts like abs and booty. They have exercises for bodyweight only, bands only, and weights. You can either follow along with their videos or just check out their demonstration videos. All the videos feature their toned instructors and are well produced. It’s a little pricey – after the 14-day trial, the cost is $19.99 a month or $189.99 a year. But it’s a nice-looking app that has a lot of exercise options.

30 DAY FITNESS CHALLENGE

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This is a cheaper version of HIITMax. It has more exercises, but the follow-along videos use animations and have a computer-generated voice, which might be a turnoff for you. They have plenty of free workouts, but there are ads. However, you can access a lot of the workouts for free and they have tiered levels – beginner, intermediate, and advanced. You can pay for a personalized, ad-free experience for $59.99 a month after a 1 week trial. This app also features meals plans, which is a plus.

by Riccardo Magni

By: Derrick Clark

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The Home Gym Quarterly Published by Garage Gym Life Media, LLC

John Greaves III Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Roberta Greaves Editor Kellie Kilgore Graphic Design Editor 3330 Cobb Pkwy.

Ste. 324 Acworth, GA 30101 Email: john@garagegymmagazine.com The Home Gym Quarterly is published quarterly: January, April, July, October Subscription rates for four books are: $14.99 USD Single issues are: $4.99 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews.

Cover Design: Kellie Kilgore Graphics Charlotte, NC

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The Twenty-Year Life Cycle If you look at your life, you’ll probably notice that it changes dramatically roughly every 20 years. That’s also about the time that fashion trends recycle so you get to see people who remind you of your younger self, making the same cotton blend mistakes right in front of you.

Older people often say as they reflect on life, “Man! If I could go back in time to when I was in high school!” Or “If only I knew back in college what I know now!” The sad thing is that often, they’re not following the advice they wish they’d known earlier because they think it’s too late. This is a mistake.

Two reasons to Listen to Your own Advice: 1. You are preparing yourself for the next dramatic life change. If you’re twenty, you’re preparing yourself to be a 40-year-old homeowner, hopefully with a paid off house. (yes, it’s possible, I know people who’ve done it.) If you’re in your 40s like me, you’re preparing yourself to be a 60-year-old who doesn’t have to report to anyone, and who is healthy enough to enjoy everyday life. If you’re 60, you’re training yourself to be a healthy 80-year-old who doesn’t need help to go to the bathroom, who can still enjoy time with family, and who can travel independently without scraping pennies out from under the couch.

2. Mentoring.You need to show those younger than you that good judgment is possible, and doesn’t mean life is over. That instead, it enriches life, and makes every passing year more fulfilling and outright fun. So your best years AREN’T in high school, but are always in front of you.

It’s Too Late to NOT Take Your Own Advice We all wish we’d started saving for retirement when we were younger. But statistics show that very few of us are saving for retirement now. So, in twenty years we’ll still be saying, “I wish I could go back and tell myself to start saving”. But, experts like Dave Ramsey all point out that no matter when you start saving, it’s important that you do it. You may not end up with as much if you start later rather than sooner, but you’ll have more than you’ll have if you don’t start saving.

Let’s talk about health. I wish I could go back and encourage my younger self to train more than the muscles I could see in the mirror. To eat more vegetables, to stretch consistently. Then I’d be in better shape now. But, am I doing those things now, so I can make my life as a sixty-year old easier? Ehn. Sometimes, sometimes not. So, if I don’t get on the stick, I’ll be sixty years old, stiff as a board, wishing I’d started stretching and doing preventative exercise when I was 46.

My advice? Whatever you would tell your twenty years younger self, is good advice to follow NOW. John Greaves III

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CONTRIBUTOR BIOS LILLIAN BAUER

Lillian Bauer is a fitness enthusiast who started exercising regularly after having her second child. She began with walking with short bursts of running and eventually worked her way up to road racing while also doing yoga and HIIT to keep her well balanced. Lillian has run 3 full marathons and countless half marathons, 10Ks and 5Ks. She is interested in the science of recovery and how cross training helps you run injury-free.

ROB BRINKLEY

N.A.S.M PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT SPECIALIST TRX SUSPENSION TRAINING CERTIFIED Rob Brinkley will celebrate his 10th year as a personal trainer this year. He began his fitness quest in a Mid-West basement circa 1993, starting with calisthenics, then moving to bodybuilding, powerlifting and more recently, he has adopted kettlebell training.

Although Rob has done bodybuilding competitions, five half marathons, and a strict curl competition – mostly, he prefers to keep fitness simple.

Rob helps busy people simplify their fitness in person in Fort Worth, Texas and at www.simplify.fitness with online personalized training.

RICCARDO MAGNI Riccardo Magni is a hardcore garage gym athlete and strength coach with a competitive background in track and field, powerlifting, strongman and Highland Games. Riccardo currently competes in Armlifting. He is one of the co-hosts of The Grip Guys podcast as well as the Secretary General of Armlifting, a husband and father to three kids. You can follow him on YouTube at Riccardo Magni and Instagram @riccardomagni1.

MAT WOODS Mat Woods has been involved in the powerlifting and personal training industry for over 15 years. He has been a competitive powerlifter and personally trained clients of all backgrounds and abilities. You can follow his workouts and tips on Instagram at @ redbeard49.

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MARISOL SWORDS Marisol Swords is a yogi, martial artist, recreational powerlifter and certified Macefit instructor. She’s owned a home gym on two continents and multiple states, from her roots in her father’s basement gym to a patio gym in Peru, a carport gym in southern Georgia and a garage gym in the Pacific Northwest.

DERRICK CLARK, SR. NASM-CPT Derrick Clark, Sr. is a Philadelphia based personal trainer who trains primarily in his basement laundry room. Derrick is the host of Busy Dad Meal Prep on the Garage Gym Life Media IGTV Channel. He also regularly contributes videos to Technique Tuesday for Garage Gym Life Media on IGTV. You can follow him on Instagram @mr.clark_sr.

SUZY DESHIELDS Regular photographer contributor Suzy DeShields is a former NCAA collegiate gymnast and the founder and photographer for Lind and Love Photography, which serves Dallas and surrounding areas in Texas. A garage gym owner of two years and never looking back, Suzy enjoys CrossFit, yoga, and anything else involving movement and fun with her family on a daily basis! You can follow her fitness and nutrition pursuits at @barbelleinspire on Instagram, her photography at @lindandlovephotography on Instagram and contact her at suzy@ lindandlovephotography.com.

FRANK DIMEO Frank DiMeo is an Underground Strength Level 2 Coach, a Vintage Strength Coach Level 1 and the owner of the Cave gym in Sarasota, Florida, along with a home gym enthusiast. Frank is the Mace Fit® Coordinator and MaceFest TM Coordinator. He is a Veteran of the U.S. Army Airborne

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Home Gym Tips

How To Find Product Recalls

by Marisol Swords Ah, tax day in the U.S. has come and gone and many of us used some of those funds to purchase shiny new equipment to further fuel our home gym lives.

Our new toys have arrived and we lovingly assembled them and placed them in their rightful places of glory amongst our carefully chosen collection of equipment.

But how often do we check for product safety recalls on our equipment?

One of the most beautiful parts of living in the Information Age is not only is everything tracked, but that information is then available to us at the click of an onscreen button. The United States Product Safety Commission has a simple, easily searchable website where you can find recall information on over 9,000 products, including home gym equipment.

Their site offers not only a recall list, but information on lawsuits and a violation database listing companies who have been issued warnings on products that have not yet been recalled.

A quick search of the word “fitness” will give you 39 listings with information on how to determine if your item is affected and how to get a refund on your products with the company.

Information on everything from full pulley gym stacks to compact gym door anchors sold by Rogue, including the exact quantity of products impacted by each recall.

If you get creative on your searches or if you know the exact identifying information for an item, it’s all easy to find right from your phone, tablet, or obviously, computer.

You can also sign up for alerts via multiple platforms to stay on top of recalls as they are listed. Bookmark the site and check back periodically for your gear; let’s keep our home gyms safe for many years of lifting to come!

Having a plan before you work out is incredibly important. You’re already busy enough and wasting time finding a workout plan isn’t an option. The good news is that with modern technology, you can always have access to a killer workout plan. There are fitness apps that can provide workouts for just about any style of exercise you enjoy. However, since there are so many apps available, it can be hard to choose one.

If you’re wondering which apps to download, we’ve got you covered. Here are our five best fitness apps for home gym owners especially those who train alone.

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Home Gym Tips

bushes, potted plants and other sources of shade from near your garage door help encourage them to find another campsite. This is also why you want to keep your grass neatly trimmed.

Let’s say you don’t want to get rid of your prize azalea bushes (aka your wife says you don’t touch her plants) here are some other options:

Keeping Keeping the the Bugs Bugs Outthis this Summer summer Out

Consider having your yard treated. This isn’t a perfect solution, because unless you get your neighbors on board at the same time, some mosquitoes will still fly over to visit from your neighbors untreated yard. But it will give you some relief and most pest control techs will also give you some DIY tips for further prevention while they are on your property.

It’s summer time, the garage Bugs doors are open and Keeping the you’re in the middle of your last set of squats Out this when an uninvited summer guest stings you right between the shoulder blades. No bueno.

So what are the best, most cost-effective ways to keep the bugs out of your garage this summer?

We asked experts for their top tips: Get Rid of Standing Water and Bushes It’s a home gym, so you likely have some heavy tires somewhere around for flipping, tire jumps or dragging. But those tires can collect water and serve as a mosquito breeding ground. You don’t want to get rid of your tires, but nobody enjoys mosquito bites either, so you have a couple of options: 1. Drill small holes in the tire to allow rainwater to drain out. This will prevent water from pooling in the tire and creating a space for mosquitoes to lay eggs.

2. Move the tires as far away from your garage door as possible to reduce the likelihood that pests will find their way to your open garage door. to cross the threshold on a raid.

The reason you want to remove bushes is because mosquitoes prefer shade to lay eggs, and removing 10

Invest in a garage door screen. These are typically fairly easy to install and even if you choose not to leave it up all of the time, a good product can be taken down and put up in less than five minutes. Small price to pay for peace and quiet during your workout.

Experiment with Citronella based products.

If you’re not a fan of spraying yourself just to deadlift, you can always set some small citronella candles on either side of the garage entrance.

Again, this isn’t a perfect solution because a few bugs will likely shoot the gap, but it will help by narrowing their avenue of opportunity.

Bonus Tip: Another trick to try is setting a fan to blow across the garage door entrance. The cross breeze MIGHT make it tougher for winged invaders to cross the threshold on a raid.

THE BEST FITNESS APPS Having a plan before you work out is incredibly important. You’re already busy enough and wasting time finding a workout plan isn’t an option. The good news is that with modern technology, you can always have access to a killer workout plan.

There are fitness apps that can provide workouts for just about any style of exercise you enjoy. However, since there are so many apps available, it can be hard to choose one. If you’re wondering which apps to download, we’ve got you covered.

Here are our five best fitness apps for home gym owners especially those who train alone.

by Lillian Bauer

SMARTWOD SmartWOD is great option for timing yourself when doing Tabata, HIIT, or any kind of interval work. The design is pleasing to the eye and is very easy to use. There are four choices when you open the app: AMRAP, For Time, EMOM, and Tabata. Click on which one you want, put your parameters in, and go. SmartWOD also keeps a log of your workouts. No workouts are provided but it really easy to use and makes doing HIIT workouts a lot easier.

WODCONNECT WODconnect functions like a social media version of Crossfit. The app will prompt you to connect to a Crossfit gym, but that isn’t necessary. Instead, head over to the workouts tab where you can find list of WODs (workout of the day) from a variety of Crossfit gyms. You can pay to upgrade for a journal that gives you a monthly report on your workouts, but it is isn’t required. It’s not the prettiest app, but if you need some WOD ideas, this will do it.

TRX

If you are a TRX fan, then this app is a must! There are videos that will walk you through any workout you can imagine. They tell you what moves to do, how long the workout takes, and what muscles you are working. You can watch the videos while you work out, so you don’t have to think too much. It also has workouts for running and cycling, so you can do cardio and strength training. It’s pretty inexpensive for a paid app - after your 2-week trial, the cost is $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year.

HIITMAX HIITMax offers a wide variety of HIIT workouts and challenges for specific body parts like abs and booty. They have exercises for bodyweight only, bands only, and weights. You can either follow along with their videos or just check out their demonstration videos. All the videos feature their toned instructors and are well produced. It’s a little pricey – after the 14-day trial, the cost is $19.99 a month or $189.99 a year. But it’s a nice-looking app that has a lot of exercise options.

30 DAY FITNESS CHALLENGE

This is a cheaper version of HIITMax. It has more exercises, but the follow-along videos use animations and have a computer-generated voice, which might be a turnoff for you. They have plenty of free workouts, but there are ads. However, you can access a lot of the workouts for free and they have tiered levels – beginner, intermediate, and advanced. You can pay for a personalized, ad-free experience for $59.99 a month after a 1 week trial. This app also features meals plans, which is a plus.

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Easy Ways to Protect Outdoor Gym Equipment

By John Greaves III

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Home Gym Tips

You just dropped a sizeable chunk of cash on that outdoor rig complete with anchors for your backyard and you want to keep the rust off. How to do it?

Pick equipment designed for outdoor use, protect it with regular maintenance, repaint when necessary, show the equipment some love frequently.

of CRC spray for his backyard gym equipment. He did two applications a month apart and according to Dedrick applying the CRC was, “As simple as spraying cooking spray in a pan to be honest. Flow came out real easy and applied evenly.” His product was put to the test soon after in a month of heavy Georgia summer rainstorms. “ After heavy storms and rain yesterday and application of CRC, the water that did make it through the cover just beaded up and did not soak through,” Ded reported. “It’s been raining like crazy the last month, but the metal is not rusting and the upholstery is not fading or cracking. I got this bench used. I don’t make any compensation for this product, just want to let those know who have outdoor gyms or gyms in moisture prone areas, this product is definitely worth it!” Jones adds, “When the bench pad needs replacing, treat the plywood of the pad with a wood preserver, get the most mold resistant foam and cover with marine grade vinyl fabric.”

The Right Tools for the Job Alec Candiotes from South Africa based outdoor gym equipment supplier Cactic Fitness says, “Choose equipment that has been made for outdoor use. The manufacturer would have thought of issues such as rust and moving parts seizing up.” Sounds simple enough. Rogue Fitness is probably the most well known provider of outdoor gym equipment, but brands like Cactic are stepping into the fray to serve this growing market. Shop around and buy what you need, not just what’s on sale.

Maintenance is Critical Steve Jones of the U.K. based custom strength equipment manufacturer, Full Metal Industries says, “Benches will always be tricky. The foam gets damp and mouldy and it’s very difficult to prevent that from happening.” That’s why bench press competitor and personal trainer, Dedrick Henry, is a huge fan 13

Home Gym Tips

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Repaint Most metal gym equipment will come painted but after a few sessions, that paint is liable to chip, increasing the chances of rust. While manufacturers don’t necessarily endorse spray painting their products, Jones points out, “If the equipment is really going to be exposed to harsh conditions the key is to keep the air and moisture out as best as possible.” Candiotes agrees. “Make sure you maintain your equipment by repainting or touching up places where paint has come off,” he says.

Here are some final ways to show you care if you train in your backyard, carport or driveway:

Show Your Outdoor Gym Some Love Just as you should wipe down your benches with disinfectant and mop your mats with disinfectant at least once a week in your home gym, especially if you train barefoot, outdoor gyms need frequent love.

• If you’re re-purposing a piece of indoor equipment like a power rack, drill drain holes in the bottom and put caps on top of the posts to keep water out and swap out your bolts for galvanized steel if possible.

• Give the bars some love with a light coat of bar oil from time to time.

• Clean it once a week. Candiotes says that in addition to yearly repainting of your equipment, it’s also a good idea to clean it. “Dust, leaves etc. can really make your outdoor equipment look ugly,” Candiotes says.

Super Simplify your Summer Workout –by Rob Brinkley Jr., NASM P.E.S., SFG 1 I want to spend my summer filled with fun & sun with my kids. And I want the same for you! I also want both of us to maintain our strength. I believe simplicity is our key.

Below I’ll guide you, step by step, to your Super Simplified Summer Workout.

Begin Here: Pick your favorite between: • Squats • Standing overhead press or Deadlifts Next: More specifically, which version of that lift will you practice?

For example, if you chose squat, will you

practice: Front squat, Back squat, Zercher squat, etc?

There is no right answer. You just want to identify which you will practice. Part of the benefit of this program is to further develop your skill of the movement. If you are switching back and forth between versions of the lift – you’ll miss out.

Shift your mindset: In lieu of zooming in and thinking of the overhead press for shoulders or squats for legs, zoom out and think of how your body works together, in concert. We want to get the most out of your time and your lift(s). You need to turn your lift(s) into a total body expression. Still, with the idea of keeping it simple, we can look at what your hands, feet, and trunk are doing during your lifts.

15

Training

Hands: No limp wrists. Be mindful of where you grip. Be consistent with every lift. Don’t just weakly hold. Grip and squeeze during your reps.

Feet: No weeble wobble of the feet and/or ankles.

Keep your feet in constant contact with the floor.

Practice pressurizing/planting your feet into the floor. The wrong shoes can screw you up. Barefoot (or close to it) may be best. If you notice you have difficulty keeping your feet “rooted” to the floor, stomping before the lift can help.

Trunk: Visualize you are lying on the floor, very relaxed. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a kid jumps on your stomach. Ouch. Expletives! Now, contrast that image/feeling with – playing with your kid/niece/nephew/etc, and they are jumping on your mid-section. But this time you expect it, and you are “braced” for impact. Incorporate this “brace for impact” into your lifts. It will get better with practice.

Even if you are a great lifter, you can brace better.

Even if you are a newbie, you can get better. If you need help with this skill, poke and prod your middle with your fist before your reps.

Bonus: Squeeze your butt:

At the top of your squat.

As you snap your hips for your deadlift.

As you press overhead.

*Reminder you aren’t practicing all these lifts.

This is just when to squeeze for each movement.

Your Program Details: How often should you practice?

Every day would be great.

Five days per week would be good.

If you had to, you could make 3 days work.

You could definitely rotate how many days per week you practice. During a busy week you could practice 3 days; and then the next week you could practice five days per week.

“Everyday!?” You aren’t maxing out. My suggestion would be to practice with a weight you can take seriously, but doesn’t require numerous warm-up sets to get to.

What does “take the weight seriously mean?” If you use 30% of your 1 rep max, you’ll have a difficult time staying balanced and bracing, etcetra.

What’s the right weight?

There is no magic number. You have to experiment and find your sweet spot. Your goal should be a weight you can go right into after one or two “warm-up” drills.

How many different weights?

If possible, you should stick with one. This will keep your sessions short. If you are doing your due diligence with your hands, feet, truck, and glutes (butt) – you can really crank up the difficulty level without having to add more weight.

How many reps?

For this program, rep ladders work well. You do one rep, short break. Two reps, short break. Three reps, short break. Once you reach your max rep count of the day – you take a break, as needed. Then start back at one rep again. You follow this until your available time is expired.

How many sets?

For your summer workout, think in terms of how much time you have available.

• A short workout could be 10-15 minutes. Practice single reps.

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Training

• A medium workout could be 30 minutes. Practice rep ladders up to 3 reps.

• A Long workout could be 45-60 minutes. Practice rep ladders up to 5 reps.

Some weeks you may only have time to sneak in short, quick sessions. That’s ok. Most likely you’ll have a mix (Some short days, one or a couple medium, and perhaps one or two longer workouts).

How can I warm-up and workout in 10-15 minutes?

On the short days, pick 1 warm-up drill. Practice it 1 or 2 times. Then get to your lift.

On the medium and long days, pick 2 warm-up drills.

Practice 1 or 2 times. Then get to your lift.

What kind of warm-up?

Your warm-up is not a mini-workout. It should be something short and sweet that gets you feeling ready for your lift. Personally, I like crocodile breathing and rocking for squats or deadlifts. For overhead presses, I like halos and crocodile breathing.

Plan your week(s)/month(s) There is freedom in the framework. If something fun comes up and you have to switch today to a short day and fit a longer day in tomorrow, swap away! But if you don’t plan out your workouts, all the days will end up short. So, look at your calendar. Based on things you have to do, schedule how many days you’ll get in a particular week. Of those days, which will be

short, medium, and long.

Put it all together, Example: You chose deadlifts. You use the Goldilocks Principal and discover your “right weight”. You keep your bar loaded against the wall. After your quick short “warm-up”, you roll your bar out, and you are ready!

Monday is your short day. You start by rocking for a 30 count. Then step up to your preloaded bar. You mindfully set your stance. Push your feet into the floor hard. Grip the bar tightly, brace your torso, and stand up; snapping your hips forward and squeezing your butt for a second or two at the top. Lower the bar. Step back. Take a couple breaths. Step back to your bar repeat for another single rep. Continue for your available short time.

Tuesday is your medium day. You start with 30 crocodile breaths and then rock for a 30 count. You follow the same guidelines for your repetitions as described on Monday. But this time you get one rep, set the bar down. Step back, take a couple breaths.

Step back to your bar. Set up and get two reps. Then you step back, take a couple breaths. Then get three reps. After the three reps, you can take a slightly longer break (if needed). Then start over with one rep. For your allotted time, you continue the sequence of: • 1 rep, short break 17

Training

• 2 reps, short break • 3 reps, longer break if needed Wednesday is another short day, repeat Monday.

Thursday is your long day. Everything is the same as Tuesday except your rep sequence will go up to five reps: • 1 rep, short break • 2 reps, short break • 3 reps, short break • 4 reps, short break • 5 reps, longer break

Rob began his fitness quest in a Mid-West basement circa 1993. Starting with calisthenics; then moving to bodybuilding; then powerlifting; and more recently adopting kettlebells. Although he has done silly things like bodybuilding competitions, five half marathons, and a strict curl competition – mostly, he prefers to keep fitness simple.

Friday you are going to the lake/beach something great – so you fit in a short day, repeat Monday.

He will celebrate his 10th year as a personal trainer, this year.

The following week could be: • Monday = Short • Tuesday = long • Wednesday = Medium • Thursday & Friday = Long • Saturday & Sunday = Short

Rob helps busy people simplify their fitness in person in the St. Louis Area or online at www.simplify.fitness

It’s worth mentioning – if you are sore all the time from this plan, you probably picked a heavier weight than you are ready for currently. However, if you aren’t use to squeezing your butt so much, make sure to throw in a few glute stretches from time to time, as needed (standing glute stretch).

You could practice this for just one or two of 18

your busy weeks or you could do it for a few months. When it is no longer fun, or you aren’t as active outside of your home gym – switch up your program.

Rob wrote a couple of kindle books (free in you have kindle unlimited) to answer several fitness questions that have come up from family, friends, and clients over the years. The books are to educate and get folks on the right track with their exercise practice.

Exercise Tutorial V1: amazon book link Exercise Tutorial V2: amazon book link Instgram: @simplify.fitness_

Yeah, you take a lot for granted. When life hums along, you don’t think twice about the things that can bring your life to a screeching halt.

Maybe that’s why you don’t worry about your joints–until you have a problem. But when you do, serious joint issues can not only keep you out of the gym, they can make doing the simplest things a whole lot tougher. That’s why we created a fast-mixing and delicious powdered version of our multiple award-winning, time-tested joint supplement, Animal Flex. Think of Animal Flex as “insurance” for your joints, and take a scoop to keep things running smoothly in the gym… And in life.

youtube.com/animalpak | @animalpak | info@animalpak.com | 800.872.0101 | www.animalpak.com

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Reintroducing the Good Morning

By Mat Woods

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Training

I would argue that there is one exercise needed outside of the Big 3 that is probably not completed by 90% of commercial gymgoers.

I introduce you to the classic movement: The Good Morning.

This move is more popular among powerlifters and strongman competitors, but the benefits can stretch to anyone looking to strength train. The argument against The Good Morning is that there are “safer” methods to strengthen the low back and hamstrings. Yes, it’s true that if you perform this move incorrectly you run a risk of injury. Guess what? That rule applies to every exercise!

While The Good Morning has been popularized

by Louie Simmons and the Westside Barbell workouts, it has been around for quite some time.

The major benefits are stronger posterior chain, spinal erectors, hamstrings, hips, and to a lesser degree the abdominals. With the benefits being so vast, why don’t more people perform this exercise on a weekly basis? Most general population gymgoers only see the bottom position of The Good Morning and see a back injury waiting to happen. Let’s go over the basics of the barbell Good Morning.

The basic movement starts with a barbell on the

back, similar to the start of a squat, and pushing the hips back to start the descent down. Once the back has reached a “bottom” position, push the hips forward and return to the starting position. The bottom position for everyone will be different heights all dependent on the flexibility/mobility of the lifter.

A good rule of thumb is to keep the bar behind the toes during the movement. This keeps the low back in a stable position during the entire lift and pushes the focus on the hamstrings/hips.

A few key points…

1. Keep the knees slightly bent like the start of a Romanian Deadlift 2. Brace the abs/core prior to pushing the hips back, this will keep the back tight throughout 3. Pull the bar down into the traps to prevent it from rolling forward in the bottom 4. Start with only the bar, no need to add weight at the start!

Like all exercises, The Good Morning has its own variety of variations and too many to name in this article. There is wide stance, close stance, different 21

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bars used, add bands, add chains, concentric only, seated, etc. the list can go on and on… Here a few of my favorite variations of the classic movement that I have found have gave me the best results: Reverse Band Barbell Good Morning The biggest variation with this movement from the classic barbell version is the addition of the reverse bands. The weight will be lighter at the bottom of the movement and heaviest at the top. This is a favorite of mine if I’m pushing a lot of volume in one session of Good Mornings. The benefit is the slight deload at the bottom of the lift allowing the lifter to increase the workload at the mid and top range of the lift. I prefer a reverse band of between 60lbs to 100lbs of assistance at the bottom of the lift.

Seated Good Morning with Barbell These are excellent for taking the hamstrings/hips completely out of the lift. The ROM is not as big, but the benefits are plentiful! Start with a barbell on the back and sit down on a bench or box. Keeping the feet wide will allow the hamstrings to aid in the lift and bringing them close together will take the legs out of the equation for the most part. I like to alternate between sets with these. Once the feet are planted, pull the bar into the traps and lean forward.

Descend as far as possible, making sure to keep the head up, and lean back once the “bottom” has been reached. When completed, simply stand up and rack the weight. Doing these seated will place most of the stress on the low back and spinal erectors, which, depending on where you miss on the deadlift or squat, may be just the ticket for you.

Good Morning Off Pins This variation will take the eccentric portion of the traditional Good Morning out completely. Set the pins at whatever height your bottom is in The Good Morning, all dependent on the lifter. Set up under the bar, brace the core, and get the upper back tight prior to starting the lift. The benefits of this exercise only work if the lifter is completing the lift as if it’s the mid-point of a regular Good Morning. It will 22

take a significant amount of force to move a stopped object into motion, because there is no stretch reflex in this movement much like the starting point of the deadlift. I like lower reps with these and really stacking on the weight!

Zercher Good Morning Off Pins Much like the traditional Good Morning Off Pins, the Zercher style is similar except the weight is in front of the body rather than behind it. Pins might have to be set a little lower than previous movements due to the Zercher set up. Simply grab the bar in the Zercher carry style by bending over (the quads need to be taken out of the equation, so don’t drop the hips lower to lift) and push the hips forward to stand up right. Return to the pins and pause before completing another rep, this will force the lifter to reset and get tight before doing another rep. The only drawback to this is the limitation of weight being used due to the Zercher carry. I prefer these in the 6-8 rep range.

Banded Good Morning Last, but not any less effective, is the Banded Good Morning. These can be performed seated or standing. I tend to do more of these standing than seated as the setup is extremely quick and easy. Place your feet inside of a band (preferably an average/ medium) about shoulder width apart and pull the other end of the band over your head and around the shoulders. Placing the band lower on the shoulders will take the stress off the low back, whereas pushing the band up closer to the neck will place more focus on the low back. Hold the sides of the band and push the hips back to start the lift, then push the hips forward to complete. I like to hit higher reps (20+) with these for 3-4 sets. These are excellent to add volume when time is short or a little too beat up for heavier barbell movements.

On a normal training block, I perform Good Morning variations at least twice a week on lower body days. I believe they are that important!

Typically, I like to do a heavier variation on one day and a lighter version later in the week. As our society

Training

becomes more sedentary and we are more likely to be sitting for our work hours, a strong back and posterior chain becomes crucial to having a healthy

body later in life. Anyone can find benefit in The Good Morning and its many variations. It’s not just for the powerlifters and strongman anymore!

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AirGym.com Workout at a Verified Home or Commercial Gym

Fueled By:

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Is AirGym the Game Changer That Your Personal Training Business Needs?

by John Greaves III

AirGym is a free mobile app that allows home gym owners to rent out their space when they’re not using it, aka most of the day. AirGym founder, Chris Daskam, who is himself a home gym owner, got the idea of time sharing space in a home gym from training in his neighbors, Mitch and Shannon’s, garage gym before Chris took the plunge to start training in his own garage. We’ve watched the platform grow since we met Chris at the Arnold Fitness Expo two years ago, and even covered the AirGym launch party last July. During a recent interview with Chris for the Garage Gym Life Media channel, he highlighted several benefits of the AirGym platform for personal trainers which we had to cut for time, but we were able to present that information here for you. Check out how AirGym might be the key to helping personal trainers increase their revenue and maybe even decrease the commute for themselves and their clients.

JGIII: Chris, thanks for spending this Sunday

talking with me for a few minutes. It’s a pleasure as always to see you.

Chris Daskam: Good to see you too.

JGIII: Yeah man, I want to talk about what’s going on with AirGym. Briefly describe AirGym for anyone who might not be aware of what it is.

Chris Daskam: Yeah, so AirGym is a free mobile app and it’s a platform that allows home gyms and commercial gyms, to be able to find clients without the traditional way of finding clients. If you have a home gym or commercial gym you can put your profile on there, and it’s a way to attract new clients who are more willing to pay by the hour than sign up for a contract, and have the sign up fees and commit to just one gym. For members, members are able to work out wherever they want to. So, we negotiate rates with the home and commercial gyms so that you can bounce from gym to gym. Fitness, strength, Crossfit, yoga, Pilates, you name it, go wherever you’d 25

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like to.

Chris Daskam: Then the last thing is really fitness trainers. We felt it’s important to promote fitness trainers and make sure that they were able to find clients in a very nontraditional way. So fitness trainers can build their profile, they can go ahead and log in, and people can book a time to work out with fitness trainers within the app. All the payments, all the scheduling.

JGIII: Let’s talk about something that I’ve been wanting to bring up every time you say, “This is an option for trainers”. My brother has a backyard gym in Tennessee, in Dayton, Tennessee. He’s a strongman competitor and he’s had multiple people who want to train with certain strongman implements. Some people also want him to coach them, and they come in from out of town. He hasn’t had an easy way to schedule and/or to charge because his gym is listed on Starting Strongman but there’s not a way through them, as far as I know, for him to list his rates. Also, when he wanted liability insurance, he had to get it on his own. Talk about what AirGym means for people in that situation, especially considering a gym owner with a full-time job might not want clients showing up unannounced at six o’clock in the morning because that’s when it’s convenient for them!

Chris Daskam: Yeah, I’ve got a few friends who are fitness trainers and I really use them as the guinea pigs to understand their current situation. The feedback from all of them was they’re committed to one location. They’ve got members from all over the place who come into that one location. Furthermore, the second problem was that some of the rent that they pay is very expensive, and it may just be more efficient for the trainers to go to the members, right?

So when we built out the AirGym app, fitness trainers were a big portion and the thing that most people don’t know is that when you sign up as a fitness trainer on the AirGym app, you’re building your 26

profile based off of your experience. So there’s a place for all your licenses, for your insurance, for your specialties. There’s a place where you can put in how much you want to charge per hour. You can put your contact information if you want, but what happens is that members who sign up for the AirGym app can search for gyms or they can search for trainers. It’s in the filter options.

Chris Daskam: So, say I search for trainers and I want to train strongman. It filters all of the strongman coaches and then once they find the trainer they want they just go ahead and book a time. They can see their schedules and they can book the time that they want to work out. So the trainers themselves actually set their schedules and whatever works for them is perfect. So if he’s looking for something like that, AirGym would be the perfect app. And the last thing I want to mention to you here John, is AirGym as a company does not take any fees or commissions from people who book with a fitness trainer. I felt, and still feel it’s very important that as fitness trainers are starting to build their business, that we don’t cut into that. They’re already paying, say $500 a month rent or they’re already an employee of a traditional commercial gym, and I didn’t feel it was right for us as a company to take a commission off of that.

JGIII: Okay. So then where does AirGym get its money? From the members who join the app?

Chris Daskam: It comes when and only when a member books a gym— just like Airbnb. When you book a hotel room in Airbnb, once you make the payment Airbnb takes a portion and we do the same thing. Other than that, it’s free to download the app, it’s free to use it. There’s no ads, there’s no popups, there’s no annoying marketing techniques. It’s just a very basic app that allows you to book a gym wherever you want to.

JGIII: So, there’s a guy we know in Philadelphia who trains himself at his house. But he works at a public gym and currently, if he’s hired by a client who’s not a member of that gym, he’s

Home Gym Business

either got to bring them to his house or get them to join the public gym where he works.

Chris Daskam: Yeah.

JGIII: So, in that situation the personal trainer, would arrange for the location through AirGym. He would pay to use that location and he would pay for two people, and then when his client pays him, he wouldn’t have to pay a commission on what they pay him?

can vary. And a 10% commission off of that is four or five bucks out of their pocket, right? But you’re exactly right; that’s the exact workflow, logistically, what they would have to do. However, when a trainer is booking a time at an AirGym they’re only booking one person. So they’re not paying for two.

JGIII: Well, I guess technically, only one person is using the equipment, but there are still two people there for the purposes of insurance.

Chris Daskam: Yeah.

Chris Daskam: That’s correct, and typically, trainers are charging $45 to $65 an hour— at least here in Nashville. It might be more in Chicago or L.A. It

JGIII: So this is a big deal; since the AirGym owner has insurance because of AirGym, if

https://www.garagegymlifemagazine For Athletes Who Train At Home

Model: Wes Jenkins Powerlifter Garage Gym Owner Charlestown, West Virginia

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Home Gym Business

somebody gets hurt or whatever, it’s covered?

More to come on this and many more exciting news coming soon!

Chris Daskam: Correct.

JGIII: So lets say the trainer slips, falls and hurts himself, but there’s only person who’s mentioned in terms of being there. How does that work?

Chris Daskam: Well, technically, there’s two transactions that are happening because the member is booking a trainer and then the trainer is actually booking the AirGym. We gave this a lot of consideration before we even launched. And if a trainer is there, a trainer has got a license and a certificate. They’re likely to be more highly trained to watch out for any sort of slips, trips, falls; bad form.

So we felt more comfortable with only having one person being booked at the actual AirGym than two.

That also comes into the physical responsibility of a company as well. It’s almost like double dipping, right? Triple dipping if you think about it because you have the member booking the trainer, then the trainer booking two spots there at the AirGym and then we’re going to collect on all three of those? It doesn’t feel right.

JGIII: Competition is inevitable. How will AirGym react to market pressure from competitors like Odyssey while keeping costs down but maintaining ease of use and functionality for fitness trainers and other end users?

Chris Daskam: We expect to have competition sooner than later given the trajectory of the home gym market. AirGym has business objectives and will stay focused on these business objectives regardless of competition. AirGym doesn’t control any of the prices for what the gyms or trainers charge. This is all controlled by the users of the app based on what they feel their gym or training programs are worth.

We have two strategic partnerships that are close to being signed. These partners give the AirGym app users (gyms and trainers) a lot more back end software functions that our current app doesn’t offer.

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JGIII: That is pretty cool. So where are all the places that people can find you?

Chris Daskam: It’s @AirGyms with an S on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. We’re on LinkedIn, we’re on Quora. We’re on Tumblr, AirGym.com is our website and then you can go to iTunes or Google Play for the app, both which are free.

JGIII: That is pretty cool. So where are all the places that people can find you?

Chris Daskam: It’s @AirGyms with an S on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. We’re on LinkedIn, we’re on Quora. We’re on Tumblr, AirGym.com is our website and then you can go to iTunes or Google Play for the app, both which are free.

JGIII: Cool, and if anyone hasn’t had enough of the two of us talking to each other they can always check out when you interviewed me on the AirGym podcast!

Chris Daskam: That’s true. But continue to do what you’re doing because we love it.

JGIII: Awesome man. I really appreciate you having this conversation with me.

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So You Want To Start A Podcast?

By John Greaves III and Chris “Smitty” Smith

Podcasting is growing in popularity as a way for brands to directly engage with their clients.

But is it right for you? Christophir, “Smitty” Smith is the host of the Garage Gym Coach podcast, and we caught up with him recently to get his input on the best tools for small business owners or bloggers who want to try their hand at podcasting.

JGIII: Smitty, I know you’re a very busy guy, building a business. Great to talk to you.

Smitty: Thanks for having me, man.

JGIII: So, Smitty, I know several people who have expressed interest in getting into podcasting. I know it’s not a simple matter of just grabbing your phone and calling people.

Was there anything that surprised you about the process of starting this?

Smitty: Yeah. What was surprising, I thought, was 30

the learning curve. I don’t come from a musical background, but every piece of equipment that you use is designed for musicians. So every piece of equipment has like a thousand buttons, or you have to know so many decibels, and there’s a whole bunch of stuff. I used to make movies for the garage, or for the box that I owned, and then also for the one that I managed, and I thought making a two minute movie when I first started, that was difficult. Well, now, I get into what is reverb, what is noise cancellation, what is all these different things to create a product that, when you listen to it, is pleasing to hear, and it’s not this person’s voice up here and this person’s voice down there, and echoes, and so a lot of that comes with just understanding how to work equipment and what buttons do you need to push to make everything sound the right way.

JGIII: That’s interesting, because I was listening to a video interview on YouTube with Jon Youshaei, the marketing manager for IGTV, and he said, “The longer somebody’s going to

Home Gym Business

interact with something I created, the more time I have to spend with it.” So, he was writing an article for a magazine; he said it took him six months to write an article that’s going to take people maybe six minutes to read, and he spends about four hours for every ten seconds of a video that he posts.

Smitty: Wow. JGIII: So then I think about the fact that, lots of people who listen to your podcast are going to be [driving]. So you have more of their attention. So they’re I’m going to pick up on the little noises like, “Hey, what’s that?

Smitty: Sure. One thing, the reason why I started the podcast; I was looking for an outlet for all this creativity that I generally would get to do while I was owning the [Crossfit] Box or running someone else’s, and like I said, make movies and whatnot. So I started just looking around, and like one domino led to another. And that led to what is the most engaging type of media? And that path led me down to podcasts, that people are more likely to listen to a podcast regularly than almost any other type of media when it comes to information.

JGIII: All right. So you mentioned that all the stuff that you use was designed for musicians.

What software do you use for podcasting?

Because I know that Anchor is kind of popular, but what’s your thing?

Smitty: Yeah, Anchor’s one of the up and coming platforms. So the way a podcast gets disseminated is, basically, you have a host, and that host then pushes it out to all the other outlets, so like your iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play. So you apply to those, and then your host gives you a feed, and that feed goes on, so you can do that with Anchor I found out. So if you hold your podcast on Anchor, they’ll disseminate it out, but the reason why I went with another company was because I wanted the full rights to my media. So with Anchor, it’s a free platform, so there’s some give

and take. So I actually use something called Libsyn, and they were in the game for a long time. Their logo is actually an old school iPod with the rotating disk.

JGIII: Nice.

Smitty: So I pay them to host my thing so that I can do whatever I want with my media, and so then there’s that, and then, so I do recording. I use GarageBand. I also have a Zoom H4n, which is this external audio recorder. I use GarageBand to put the format together, then I send it off to a company that, basically, it’s a computer that listens as a human ear would hear, and then it fixes all of my mistakes, and that’s Audiophonics. That’s what they call normalization and like flat lining, so this way, everything sounds the same.

JGIII: Okay.

Smitty: And now that it’s getting easier, because I’m not making these large mistakes and taking up a bunch of my time, I’m actually getting more time to background the people who are coming, even though, like I said, most of the people I’ve had on are my friends, but when you’re just friends in passing— I don’t get to look into what they’ve been doing, like hardcore.

JGIII: So, one last thing, what do you hope to offer with your podcast that home gym owners can’t already get? I mean, there are tons of podcasts already out there. What do you hope to offer that they can’t get now?

Smitty: Sure. Great question. So why would you even start this thing if there’s so many out there?

So before I got started, I looked into what are other people doing, and where is the gaps, and the thing that I found was, almost every podcaster, every kind of media outlet that deals with home gyms or garage gyms, deals with the athletes. So kind of my focus is helping garage gym coaches, because I think if you’re hosting people in your house, and you are working out with your friends, your family, your people from 31

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church, if you’re just writing a workout up on the board, you want to make sure that you keep your friends and family safe. So my niche, in this kind of deal, is to help increase coaching capacity, as well as athletic capacity.

JGIII: Cool! Well, Smitty, I really appreciate you coming and hanging out with us for a little bit.

If you enjoyed this article, be sure to check out Episode 5 of the Garage Gym Coach podcast where Smitty turns the tables on me and grills

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me about the Garage Gym Life Media brand and the Home Gym Quarterly specifically. You can also find more from this conversation on IGTV where we get into Smitty’s roots in in the home gym and his views on coaching in a home gym setting versus owning a Crossfit Box. You can find the Garage Gym Coach podcast on iTunes or wherever you listen to podcasts, and definitely give him a follow on Facebook and Instagram @garage_gym_coach

An Interview with Matt Dahl, CEO of Sanddune Stepper

by Joe Gray

I’ve been digging into the Sanddune Stepper for the past several months, sharing some experiences and trying to fix my wonky right leg.

I’ve tried a lot of things, from rehab and prehab, to cardio, to bodybuilding work, to plyometrics, and more on it. I even have my wife and my daughter getting in on the fun. I was at the point where I had written my review, but I personally had some gaps in my knowledge of the Sanddune Stepper, and I thought what better way to fill those gaps than to speak to the CEO of Sanddune Stepper, Matt Dahl?

Joe Gray: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions today Matt, let’s kick it off with a quick intro. What is your background?

Matt Dahl: I’ve been active most of my life, I lifted at the Jack LaLanne institute, roller-skated 20 miles a day in my teenage years, I’ve done every sport you

can think of, and I’ve been injured, and gotten out of injury, numerous times on my own determination, research, and abilities. I’m 65 years old, live in Palm Springs, CA, own a Harley, and just had hernia surgery. Thanks to the Sanddune Stepper, I’m already a full 2 months ahead of schedule on my recovery plan and looking forward to riding again soon.

Joe Gray: Why the Sanddune Stepper? What triggered you to say “the world needs this!”?

Matt Dahl: My father had a stroke when I was about 25 years old, and after seeing the typical Physical Therapy treatments only get him so far, I knew there had to be more. PT stops when they stop making improvements with the patient. Whether that is at 25%, 70%, or 90% recovery. There was clearly more my Dad could have improved, so I started researching. I learned a lot about rebounding, the lymphatic system, neural feedback, the central 33

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nervous system, and more. There was something to a lot of these common injuries and issues, a lack of balance was common in strokes, injury, Parkinson’s, and more. This led to a first prototype, which we got to a 75-year-old with Parkinson’s who was falling down regularly, walking with a walker, and on his way to an assisted living. We put him on the protype, after 3 months he was walking with no cane or walker. I knew we were on to something.

Joe Gray: My father had a stroke when I was a child so I can relate to some of what you shared.

And I fractured my heel bone about three years back, and I know the PT process, while helpful, is extremely limited. Especially for athletes.

They just don’t prepare you well enough to go back to squatting heavy weights, running, jumping, etc.

Joe Gray: Who is the Sanddune Stepper for?

(Matt shared a TON of stories, so I’ll only share a few of my favorites here).

Matt Dahl: I started in the physical therapy industry, until a foot and ankle specialist contacted me for an interview. That is how Donnie Thompson, the powerlifter with a 3000lb total, got involved. He was an outside the box thinker about foot and ankle rehab. Donnie got it to the Philadelphia Eagles, players started getting them for their locker rooms and houses; rugby players started using it with ankle injuries, MCL problems; NBA players, runners, and more were finding ways to cut their injury and recovery times. Demarcus Cousins used the Stepper to recover from his ruptured Achilles. Matt Brown, a UFC fighter, was having ankle issues for a year. We got him a Stepper six weeks out of a big fight. The night of the fight he said his ankle felt better than it had for a year. He’d been rebounding and doing what he could on two other items for a year, with no success. The Stepper was the answer. Dustin Ortiz, another fighter, had major ankle and foot trauma as a kid. Using the Stepper, even years later, he’s been able to take a weakness and turn it into a strength.

He has one in his house and training facility, uses it 34

throughout the day, every single day. Joe Defranco [of DeFranco’s Training Systems] got one, and within three days he was doing HIIT and sharing it on Instagram. He immediately got TripleH, the WWE wrestler, and his wife Stephanie a Stepper. TripleH has a lack of mobility and Stephanie has too much mobility, both in their ankles. The Stepper is working for both of them.

Joe Gray: I guess the answer is, anyone and everyone. Why is the Stepper so effective? It can do cardio, low-impact plyometrics, bodybuilder work, and more. And it seems to make each of those activities more effective. What is going on there?

Matt Dahl: Neural feedback and muscle engagement.

It simply forces your body to work harder, and smarter, to get the job done. I think there is more going on than we know actually. I think there is something about the rebounding effects, detoxification, regulation of hormones, and a bunch more.

Joe Gray: There seem to be mixed feelings out there on “stability” training. What is your take?

Matt Dahl: You need the neural feedback that the Stepper provides. The high intensity foam, compared to air, provides constant feedback. The flat surface allows your ankles to get in a stable position and activate all the right muscles and stabilizers. The grade from high to low throws your proprioception off. The two sides are independent, so one side doesn’t impact the other, which means you are truly doing single leg stability and strength training. The majority of the other equipment is instable, but doesn’t align with the needs of the athlete. Air doesn’t give you the right feedback and proprioception, standing on a ball forces your ankles out of alignment, and those balance boards are too hard of a surface, it’s too tough on the joints, too stiff to activate the muscles and provide the neural feedback, etc. I’ve had PTs that saw the Stepper as a gateway to getting athletes onto something “more

Home Gym Business

difficult” like the balance boards. After using the Stepper, they often get rid of the boards entirely.

Joe Gray: Which exercises can you do with the Stepper?

Matt Dahl: The basics are the best. Squats, one leg work, etc. You get these big guys who think they are strong, get down on a squat on the Stepper, and it seems to reset them. They all of a sudden have full use of their ankles, hips, leg muscles, etc. It is something that often is overlooked, people don’t identify their compensatory movements and it leads to problems, especially when we are talking about strongmen, powerlifters, and elite athletes. Mike Burgener, Crossfit and Olympic Weightlifting coach, got the Stepper from Donnie Thompson. He has done battle ropes on it, and he owns three of them.

Mike’s word for the Stepper is “Legit”. The hill next to his house was on fire during some LA fires, and he ran back into the garage and grabbed the Stepper.

His wife, asked him what he was doing and he said if their house was going to burn down and they were stuck in a hotel, at least he could get in a solid workout!. A few strongman competitors actually introduced me to using the Stepper for upper body work. They were able to remove tendonitis in the elbows and wrists, increase their weights, and reduce their recovery time. I hadn’t even thought of upper body work until then.

Joe Gray: The biggest thing I hear over and over is why $300 for a piece of foam? Can’t I just go down to my local shop, buy some foam, and call it a day?

Matt Dahl: You can get the Stepper for about $250 and free shipping with discount codes that are readily available. Shipping costs me about $50, the cover is anti-bacterial and is another $20. So, we are talking about $180 for the foam Stepper on its own.

The price of the R&D and the foam construction process, the molds, etc. adds up as well. The process involves molding two chemicals together at once to create the high-density foam.

Comparing to regular upholstery foam— it doesn’t push back. The foam compresses too much, isn’t dense enough, and fills with air. That means you aren’t getting that full proprioception throughout your workout. The Stepper also won’t bottom out, and is still useable for all parties, whether a 300lb linebacker or 100lb rehab patient. Most foam is going to tear with any considerable use, especially with elite athletes, sweat and moisture, etc. So you’ll be replacing it often. Pair that with the overall design we talked about, having two sides that don’t interact with each other, the slight grade from high to low, and you get a very detail oriented and specific production process. It just doesn’t compare to standard foam.

I’ve not had a single return of the Stepper by the way, even working with these elite athletes. People will sometimes call and say it isn’t what they thought or expected. I ask them to stick with it, 60 days, twice a day, and come back to me. They always come back and tell me they are glad they did, and they end up keeping it.

Joe Gray: What is next for the Stepper? Any design changes?

Matt Dahl: Our next batch is going to have a stronger, Velcro based strap on the bottom that should help for carrying purposes.

Joe Gray: That is perfect, because that is the single design flaw I noticed. What’s one thing you want to leave our readers with?

Matt Dahl: The Sanddune Stepper is all about improving quality of life, especially when people have no alternative. Being able to help people recover from injury, prehab, rehab, improve performance, etc.

It is all there in the Sand Dune Stepper.

Want more on the Sanddune Stepper?

Check out my written review in the Spring 2019 issue of the Home Gym Quarterly!

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36

Welcome Back Frank

Frank Rhea began his bodybuilding career at age 24 after a year of training; finally hanging up his trunks at age 42. We had a fun conversation with Frank for our IGTV channel where he told the story of how he got started and how he once lost by a single point to Eight time Mr. Olympia champion, Ronnie Coleman. Frank also pulled no punches about his views on posing in modern bodybuilding so we got more of his

unfiltered views on why modern gym culture can be so unfriendly, the philosophy behind his diet, his current training style and why it is that bodybuilders seem to be so injury prone outside of the gym.

JGIII: So, Frank, what do you miss most about bodybuilding in the 80s? It seems like there was a different atmosphere, I guess because not as many 37

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people were into lifting, so there was more of a community feeling?

Frank Rhea: I miss the bodybuilding only, the popularity. John, that show I was in with Ronnie, his first show? That was the smallest auditorium I ever performed in! And it held over 3,000 people! And they were packed to the brim. The vendors were there. The magazines were great. The TV shows were so awesome. I loved the gym attire from those days. I loved it all. And I got to hang around a lot of great bodybuilders, Vickie Gates, Jay Matlock, Max Garcella, a lot of people don’t know him, but he was really big in Texas, Ronnie Schrier who was a legend in Texas, he just ran into some bad luck, and Brian Krol, and Rickie Gates. So, I got to be around a lot of really competitive and good bodybuilders. And with Dickie and Jay being pros; Jay trained me some for getting ready for shows, it was a great atmosphere to be around.

JGIII: I know you say that you don’t have a lot of your photos, but man! You’ve got to find me a picture of yourself in some of those Zubaz; those bodybuilding Hammer pants.

Frank Rhea: I’ll see what I can find for you. I’m sure I can come up with something. It’ll be embarrassing.

JGIII: But you know, the funny thing is, that’s part 38

of ... I would say that’s part of that culture at the time. And if you think about it, it could be something embarrassing that’s negative. At least it’s just like, “I can’t believe I wore that in public.” You know?

Frank Rhea: Hey, I don’t ... You know what? I can remember people ... I’m not exaggerating. I went to ... I would be standing in line and people would pull their kids out from in front of me. And people with me would go, “He doesn’t eat kids man. He’s okay.”

Yeah. Yeah. They just couldn’t figure it out, the mask and stuff, you know? It was interesting.

JGIII: So, speaking of kids, I love that you’re so committed to passing on what you know. You give wellness talks to kids that you’re helping at the gym.

Just the way you even post on Instagram shows that you have the heart of a teacher. And that seems to be something else that was more prevalent back in the 80s. You could go in the gym, and everybody there would be willing to help you, and not in like a douche-y way. But I mean like honestly wanting to help you because they remember what it was like to be in your shoes. Now, people are quick to criticize,

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and the few times I go to a commercial gym— I remember, I was like, “Yeah. I’m just warming up.

I’m going to move after I’m done warming up. Can I just work in with you?” “No, no, this is mine. That’s my bar.” I’m like, “Okay. Whatever dude.” How do you think we can get back to that community feeling in physical culture in general?

Frank Rhea: Number one is I think that everybody thinks they have to be a character in today’s world.

And they have to be somebody they’re not. You know, I dress flamboyant. I act flamboyant. But I don’t need to be a character. And the other thing I see is we didn’t have headphones, we didn’t have music. Music played up there [in the speakers]. We didn’t socialize. We were in there to workout. And if somebody was training somebody back in those days, it was because they were training somebody with money. Bodybuilders didn’t have money. And so, if somebody said, “Hey, I need a spot over here.” You ran over and you gave them a spot. And we were all friends. We all loved each other. We all helped each other get ready for shows. We’d compete against each other.

Frank Rhea: But we all tried to figure out where we wouldn’t have to be in the same shows, but sometimes that didn’t work out. And we went against each other and we still helped each other. And we still praised and tried to be supportive. And I think that in today’s world, I think that this instant everything ...

Everybody’s got their phones. They got their cameras.

They got their video. They got everything going on in there. If you’ll notice, unless my wife walks down here and takes a picture, there’s no pictures of me ever working out. I’m not on social media when I’m working out. And so, I think that that’s a lot of it. I think it’s these people that think they’re too tough, or they gotta act like they’re something they’re not and, I guess, they get away from being respectful of people.

JGIII: How did it feel when you got on stage for the last time? Did you know that was going to be your last competition?

Frank Rhea: I did not. So, it was a little bit different.

I tell you, I had a lot of fun, way too serious by then. Prep time was 20 weeks and hours of cardio. I started at 260 and I got down to 204. I didn’t even make my heavyweight. And I was off in the morning.

But I came back that night and I was really proud because I dialed in. I won the Masters. I didn’t win the Open. But the most proud moment of the night was I was walking out after the show. And Vince Taylor stopped me, and he said, “Dude, I came here to see you pose. I’ve heard how great you are.” He said, “I got to tell you. That was the best posing routine I’ve ever seen in my life.” And that was a great feeling.

JGIII: Because Vince Taylor was known for his posing!

Frank Rhea: He was. He told me, “I’m going to steal some of that stuff.” He goes, “That was really good.”

JGIII: So eventually, you had to quit bodybuilding because of injuries. I’ve always thought that training your muscles to be strong from every angle is the most effective way to prevent injury. Right? And that sounds to me like bodybuilding, because you’re going to be looked at from every angle. Right?

Frank Rhea: Right.

JGIII: But I remember when IFBB pro, Evan 39

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Centopani, injured his quads slipping on ice a few years ago and I saw IFBB pro, Branch Warren, get hurt falling off a horse during the first Generation Iron documentary. Closer to home, our mutual friend Anthony DeAngelis, who was on the cover of our Fall 2018 issue, hurt himself when he fell on the stairs.

on your connective tissue.

Frank Rhea: So, I think that anytime that we get sudden movements or we have things that throw us off balance, it’s not only the fact that we’re bigger, but we’re also trained to be in a controlled environment and straight line environment. And therefore, I think that’s why those injuries happen.

Frank Rhea: Right.

JGIII: Dude, that is the most well-reasoned and thoughtful answer I’ve ever gotten on that! I mean, that’s one reason why I started doing some of the old physical culture exercises, [after getting hurt training purely for powerlifting], I was like, “Why am I getting hurt?” So, that’s why I started to go back in time to see what I could do using old school methods to get strong but be healthier. Because Jack Lalanne for example, I mean that guy was towing boats filled with people well into his 80s! Obviously, he knew something.

Frank Rhea: But Jack did a lot more than straight line training too.

JGIII: Bobby Allen, who interviewed Anthony for the article in our magazine, also hurt himself slipping and falling on the stairs! And these are all bodybuilders with what looked to me like complete physiques. Why do you think so many pure bodybuilders get injured outside of the gym doing things that, to somebody who might not even workout, would just be an inconvenience?

Frank Rhea: I can tell you, my son and I were shooting water guns at each other on a tile floor.

I slipped and fell, landed on my elbow, tore my tricep. And a while back, I did the same thing to my hamstring once, running, playing around in football, never in a gym. But I think it’s because we train in a very controlled straight line environment of lifting.

And so, we build a lot of strength around that. On top of that, we’re trying to put as much mass and muscle as we can to rip down on the smallest parts of our bodies, of our bone structures, which are our joints. If you’re like me and have tremendously small joints and long muscles, it’s even that much more pull 40

JGIII: Exactly.

Frank Rhea: He did calisthenics. He did a lot of the coordination movements and stuff that we don’t do, and we don’t “waste” our time on, because we’re so focused on building that muscle.

JGIII: But speaking of training, you changed your training a lot since you first started training, because you mentioned that you don’t even do cardio anymore.

Frank Rhea: Three years ago, I really found out my knees don’t do well with cardio. So, I cut it out. I’m 100 percent weight training now. And I’m actually leaner than I was and I’m really putting on the size.

JGIII: I’m assuming you have shorter rest periods.

Frank Rhea: I don’t do much rest. And I will tell you, if I would have had the intensity I have right now

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Frank Rhea: Complete fatigue and complete exhaustion, mentally, everything. I don’t want anything left when I walk out of here, if I walk out.

JGIII: So, that’s probably why you don’t have to diet because you’ve got this amazing list of foods that you post on Instagram that makes everybody mad.

You said you eat about eight meals a day. How many calories are you taking in?

Frank Rhea: Well, it’s funny. I don’t count calories.

But I did a calorie count the other day and I’m taking in, in between 5000 and 6000, depending if I eat six or seven meals. I rarely get up to eight. But I try to.

So, it just depends on the meals. I’ve only eaten twice today because I train later in the afternoon. So, I pack in all my meals in ... I will have two meals between now and that workout. And then, I’ll have a meal instantly after, and then another meal. So, that’s when I get all my food in mostly.

... I think you’re so focused on moving mass when you’re young. If I would have had the intensity I have right now, there’s no telling what I could have done.

Because when I do training now, I’m literally ... my arms ... I can’t go drive for 30 minutes.

JGIII: Wow. Is it because of the pump, or because you’re tired, or is it a combination?

JGIII: Yeah. Layne Norton was talking about this a few years ago when he was talking about you can train your metabolism to be more efficient. So, you actually default to being leaner. I mean, you’ll have to start eating to keep the weight on. You have to eat more.

Frank Rhea: Well, the more I eat, the better I look.

JGIII: I like what you said. You said, “I eat for flavor, texture ...” and what’s the other one?

Frank Rhea: It’s mostly just flavor and text— like if I don’t like something . . . like if it has a bad flavor, I want the texture. I’m sorry. I see these guys mixing that mushy oatmeal and sauce, John, I’m not eating that. They can eat it if they want to. I’m not going to; so I eat a lot of Mexican food, is what I do. I have a lot of pinto beans, a lot of rice, and a lot of chicken and steak cooked just grilled. But I have some chips and cheese here and there.

JGIII: And Dr. Pepper, right?

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Frank Rhea: Yeah, Dr. Peppers.

JGIII: Hey, it says Doctor on the can. That means it’s good for you.

Frank Rhea: That’s right. Ha ha! Hey, I started getting leaner when I started drinking them. So, I just kept it up.

JGIII: I’m glad that you’re addressing it all. Because people forget that it’s not about how long you live.

Cause everybody say, “Oh. Well, you’re going to die anyway.” Yeah. But what kind of life do you have before you do die?

Frank Rhea: And my family has a lot ... my family lives a long time. I’ve had people die of cancer in their 90s in my family. So, you know, I ... we last.

But I will say this John, everybody should build a healthcare support system around them. I have an oncologist. I have a cardiologist. I have a non-surgical orthopedist that does PRP, stem cell, prolotherapy, ozone, vitamin. I have a dermatologist. I have a rheumatologist. And I have a health and wellness person who does all my hormone body function; all those things. I have had hundreds of PRP treatments and pro lobe, all those things have helped put me back together. And I feel better now than I’ve probably felt since I walked away from bodybuilding ... in fact, before that.

Frank Rhea: And I’m on the path I need to be because I’ve built this great health support system.

And my wife is a registered nurse. And so, she heads all this thing up to make sure I’ve got the best of care.

Frank Rhea: So, I feel really good for what I’m doing and I’m loving it. And I’m determined, and I have goals. And that’s why I do it.

You can follow Frank on Instagram @ttfrhea and shoot him a direct message for any training related questions. He is a busy executive running a company, so give him a day or so, but 42

he’s said that he’ll be glad to answer training and diet questions from you guys. Be sure to tell him that you saw this article in the Home Gym Quarterly!

CrossFit, Olympic Lifting & Yoga.

HANDCRAFTED IN THE USA

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Truly Victorious with Dan McKim

by John Greaves III 45

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Four-time Highland Games world champion, Dan McKim is a large man with a larger than life sense of humor. Dan has been on the cover of MILO magazine multiple times, but it’s what he’s done since retiring from competition that is remarkable. In an era when strength athletes often struggle to come to terms with no longer being in the spotlight, Dan has transitioned into a new role as a sales rep for Sorinex, while continuing to be a present husband and father. A published author and speaker, Dan continually pushes the envelope of what’s possible, and uses his unique sense of humor to gently poke fun at the fitness industry while using his fame to spread his faith. He also loves Little Debbie’s Snack Cakes - enough to have started a campaign to be their first brand advocate.

Seriously. We caught up with Dan recently to talk about crafting a life you love to live after the final buzzer sounds on your athletic career.

JGIII: Okay, Dan, thank you for taking the time to talk to us. I know you’re a busy guy, you’re running all over the Midwest for Sorinex, so thank you for taking time to talk to me.

Dan McKim: Awesome man, I appreciate it. Thanks for having me.

JGIII: Now, you were a successful athlete. I think you and Matt Vincent would just alternate who was going to be world champion that year.

Dan McKim: Yeah.

JGIII: So you retired in 2017 from Highland Games, and you said that you don’t regret retiring at all because it gave you the opportunity to spend more time with your family. You’ve even been blessed with a job that gives you the flexibility of being home more often. Talk about designing the life you want based upon the opportunities you’ve been given.

And also touch on how you knew that the Sorinex job was the right move, because you were working somewhere else and then you switched to Sorinex.

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Dan McKim: Yeah, actually I met Burt, the owner of Sorinex; we threw together in the Scottish Highland Games; we went overseas and traveled together.

That’s how I met him. And then -- I was working different jobs -- and then Sorinex started to blow up, and was growing. Burt called me up one day and he’s like, “Hey man, things are just blowing up and I can’t keep up with everything. I really need somebody in the Midwest to take care of my customers. Would you want to do that?” I’m like, “Are you kidding me? Let’s go, right now.” So I was able … very, very fortunate, very blessed, I feel like, with this job, in the sense that I get to do something I love, right? You talked about physical culturist; this is in our blood.

We love to train, we love to be a part of that physical culture. And now I have a career that I can be that, and I can get paid to do that. That’s awesome. I’ll take that any day!

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JGIII: You are a published author along with being a Sorinex sales rep, and public speaker. What led you from Behemoth and Throw Heavy and Bench Mode to Heavy Confessions? You wrote these training manuals and then you wrote a book of funny anecdotes. I don’t see the dots that connect them; ha ha!

Dan McKim: Oh man, that’s a good question. I think the dots are just honestly who I am. I am just kind of a goofy guy. I look goofy, I act goofy, I walk goofy man. I can always be tracked in the snow because my feet are like this when I walk, right? And so, I’m just a goofy guy and I love to laugh, and I think that part of what God’s given us is a sense of humor.

Life is very serious. Life is tough, and life can be very painful at times. And I like to bring some humor to it. And so Heavy Confessions is a book I wrote— It’s actually, it’s all true stories of things that have

happened to me from emergency bathroom stops at Chinese buffets that were closed, but somehow you pay them to let you use the bathroom …

JGIII: That one where you just pulled over on the side of the road and you had your in-laws or something like that in the car. You’re like, “It just needs to happen.” You’re like, “Look, just trust me. It needed to happen.”

Dan McKim: Yeah, that was a rough one because being a goofy guy, and being an awkward guy at times -- spilling soft drinks on a guy on an airplane to putting Bio Freeze under my arms -- One day at work I decided -- I was training before work, and I had to go into the office -- “Man, I don’t have any deodorant, but I got some Bio Freeze or Aspercreme;” I can’t remember what it was, and newsflash: if you put that on your armpits it burns like crazy.

JGIII: That was one of my questions I want to ask, like, why did you try Bio Freeze? I mean like, there are other things.

Dan McKim: I’m not a smart man. We already have established that.

JGIII: Baking powder, I mean... I mean baking powder would have done it. Anything else! Let’s try that.

Dan McKim: I know; well, I’m at the gym and I’m trying to go to work and so I’m— JGIII: Crush some flowers!

Dan McKim: Ha, ha! Crush some flowers . . . I know. You think if I’d have washed well enough -- but here’s the thing, this is where it gets hard. The place I trained didn’t have any AC. It was in the summer, you went to shower, you got out of the shower, you’re sweating, you’re trying to put on your clothes - I had to wear a shirt and tie every day to work at that point. And then, I’m getting in my truck 47

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that didn’t have AC either. So that’s why I was trying the Bio Freeze and it was bad; don’t do it.

JGIII: I can’t even imagine in what way that would work. Like what ingredient did you see on there and say, “You know what? This might do it.”

Dan McKim: I think it was like, “Well, it smells better than I do, so put it on.”

JGIII: Ha, ha! I mentioned Behemoth, and you wrote that specifically for large athletes, so can you tell me briefly what the difference is, besides the audience, between Behemoth and some of the other training templates that are out there?

Dan McKim: Sure. Behemoth – as God blessed me more in the sport in the Highland Games, I was starting to get a lot of people asking me, “Hey, can you write a program for me? Can you write this?” So what I was doing is, I was writing all these programs for people and I was sending them my workouts and such, and I was like, “You know what? I’m just going to help. This... this is going to make it a little easier on me.” So I wrote a training book for, essentially, the Scottish Highland Games, for larger athletes you know? And I’m honest in it in that I say that it’s for bigger athletes, for throwers, for maybe a lineman or something. It’s not like, a speed development thing for a receiver or something.

Dan McKim: I think that the only reason I did it was it enables me now to send that out. I’m sure I have it on my website but quite honestly, John, it’s not like people are coming all over out of the woodwork to buy it, right? I probably give away as many as I sell, which isn’t a lot. But within that, I talk about true victory, which to me is my relationship with Jesus Christ, so it’s an avenue to where I can provide: “Here’s a 14 - week workout. Here’s what I do, or what I did, in the Scottish Highland Games to improve, and this is how I like to program things.”

So I did that, and honestly it’s not a speed. You ain’t going to get fast on it, but you’re going to get strong.

JGIII: I know you say it’s specifically for large 48

athletes, so is it because bigger guys have bigger joints so it’s only for them? Or is it, “Nah, you can use it if you’re smaller, I’m just warning you what you’re not going to get,”?

Dan McKim: Right, it’s a more thrower specific workout, so it’s something that I’ve had some college throwers get on in the past at different colleges; they loved it. They threw well with it. It’s thrower specific, so it’s Highland Games or track and field. It’s more specific to those needs in that it’s not going to be... it’s not something like a quarterback’s going to really jump on and embrace. But it is enough for anybody, and that’s what I always tell people. Hey, if you want to get strong, and you’re willing to invest 14 weeks in this, it’s going to be brutal and you’re going to be super sore. It’s going to be as hard as something you’ve probably done, but it’s worth it. Now, keep in mind your goals at the end need to be to gain weight and get stronger; not to lose ten pounds and improve my 40 time. They aint going to get that from this.

You’re going to hit that, get stronger, gain weight.

JGIII: Okay, you’ve also got some other training manuals. I mentioned Throw Heavy, Deadcember, Bench Mode and then you had a Hammer Behemoth Block and then a Stone Behemoth Block, right?

Dan McKim: Yeah.

JGIII: So the Hammer and the Stone, are those addendums? You’re like, “Oh, by the way, I forgot to say this,” and you wrote those or, is it like you discovered something else over the years and said, “Oh I should . . .” but there’s not enough to write a whole new book or whatever?

Dan McKim: Yeah they’re honestly . . . they’re like ten - dollar, month long, training programs, specifically for the Highland Games because the Highland Games are nine different events, right, so some athletes are really... maybe they’re really struggling in their stones right now, but their hammers are better, or they’re struggling with their hammers. So I started getting more questions

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and I said, “You know what? I’m going to create a month-long block.” So what it’s specific for is . . . say, if you’re in season, or you’re wanting something different to train, and you wanted to be training specific for those events— So that’s why Stone and Hammer— for the two stone events. If somebody’s struggling in their stones –- of course, nothing replaces the real sporting event; the time you can put in a practice – but what training can you do? So, I wrote those blocks specifically for - I have a month maybe between games, that I want to commit. I really want to improve these two events. That’s how you can do it; you can jump on those blocks.

JGIII: So, if I got Behemoth, would I have had the material that is in the Hammer and the Stone blocks, or would you need to buy them separately as well?

Dan McKim: Yeah, you want to buy them separately because what I do in the Behemoth book, honestly, is, I have a 14 - week program at the end of it, but it is - it’s all my training philosophy— I don’t train with percentages. I’m not a percentage-based guy; I’m not a big fan of it. Now, I’ve written programs for people that want percentages, but I train better without it.

So I talk about that. I talk about the different things I want to eat; different things: the way I train, my philosophy in squat depth to everything else, the hang cleans, versus the hold cleans.

Dan McKim: So with Behemoth, you get all of that information as well as a 14 - week block, 14 - week training program. Now the block ones are just, honestly, it’s a… just… it’s a spreadsheet with a month long focus on those events. Like I said, many times you’ll be in season where I have a month before my next competition, and I want to focus on hammer. I want to improve that. So you’ll improve that. That’s the challenge of Highland Games, right? You’ve got eight different events to manage, keeping all the balls in the air juggling at the same time, and so you want to focus. Like, as soon as I would improve my weights, my stones would start to struggle. So it’s finding that balance. So that’s what those books are, helping people find that balance.

JGIII: Okay. So, I mean you obviously know what you’re doing. I mean you don’t get that many world championships and that many national championships without knowing what you’re doing.

JGIII: But you seem to have a high recovery ability because you do favor training with so much volume.

Another natural athlete who is on the opposite spectrum from you is Richard Hawthorne. Richard Hawthorne is, pound-for-pound, the strongest man in the world in terms of power lifting. He’s like, 140 pounds, deadlifts about 600. And number one, he understands the leverage of the lift. But the point I’m making is, he likes a ton of volume. You would think that would cripple somebody, especially somebody that size. But he’s just able to recover from it. So then I would assume that’s part of why, when you got hurt in the deadlift, it was hard for you to like figure out what’s going on because normally you recover from everything, right? You’re like, “I’m Wolverine, what happened?”

Dan McKim: Oh man! I’m very thankful God blessed me, I got out of the sport on my terms. A lot of people get out of strength sports because of injuries, back, knees, whatever. Now I’m going to have lingering wrist problems later on in life I’m sure; but I was very fortunate of that. Now when I was training, when I was first coming up as amateur, a lot of guys used to make fun of my training because I was so much volume. They used to think it was stupid, ridiculous, and I’m not training it right and I just knew that’s how my body reacted. Well, I was using high volume for different shoulder work and shoulder girdle work; and I was doing all this accessory stuff, and they’re like, “Oh what are you doing? You just need to do the big three. You just need squat, bench and dead, that’s it.”

Dan McKim: And now, I think it’s interesting to see the industry, the strength industry, is embracing some of those auxiliary, accessory movements, right? What they call bodybuilding movements to stay healthy.

And so yeah, when you see some of my program, you’re like, “Oh there’s so much volume.” I’m like, 49

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“Well, it’s the way I can stay healthy.” And honestly, I have never programmed— whether it’s Bench Mode or Jackedstreet Boys or Deadcember – whatever I’ve programmed, Behemoth - it’s stuff that I do, or have done, and the things, I believe, that train and make me the strongest, and make me the most prepared.

You’re never going to get anything in there that I throw in there just because I think it sounds cool or looks fun. That’s not who I am.

JGIII: Okay, now conversely, when you were competing, you said you would take time off from the games where you wouldn’t throw at all. You said your body just needed that break. Was your training volume high even when you weren’t throwing -- your training volume still high in the weight room? And is that part of why you were able to continue to have such high training volume -- because you’re only hammering your body with the two things for so long every year?

Dan McKim: Yeah, I mean part of it was just listening to my body too. I did, I will say, the first year. I was so addicted to the sport and I was so intense with it that I trained, I think it was for 18 months straight. I threw four to six times a week. It would be snow on the ground, I don’t care, I’m going to go throw. It’s raining out? Hey, today I need to go throw. I’m going to go throw in the rain. So I was throwing in the snow, I was throwing in the rain, bad temperatures, good temperatures, it didn’t matter. So when I did that, I got injured. I got buried. I was just over-trained. And so I kind of navigated that. But I think for me, it was the mental break too.

Dan McKim: So, when September hit, and after Celtic Classic, which is our national championship, I wouldn’t touch an implement until March of next year. And so many of my competitors would take two or three weeks off, and then they might go do some drills in the gym or something like that. But I just... as my career went on, especially probably four years into it, I especially, I was like, “You know what?

I can’t. I just have to get away. I don’t want to pick up another implement. I don’t need to be burned

out.” And we see that, right? There’s a lot of things you see about a ten - year itch that people are willing to spend, and to commit ten years to something, and then they’re done. I think you see that now with kids in sports. We start kids sports so young, by the time they get to high school, they’re done. I think adults are the same way.

JGIII: Yeah, like over-specialization; yeah.

Dan McKim: Yeah, so I think for me, I just had to keep my body fresh but yeah, to answer your question too, with the volume, yeah, I was... man, end season, I was four to five days a week in the gym.

Out of season, I was definitely five days a week at a gym. And probably to my detriment. I have been a meat head. Many times, a meat head first, and an athlete second. I love the gym; I love to train.

Dan McKim: I remember when I graduated college my dad was like, “What are you going to do? You know you’re not throwing more.” And I said, “Dad, I’m kind of excited.” He said, “Well what do you mean?” I said, “I feel like I’ve been training for two things all these years in college.” He said, “What do you mean? You’re a thrower.” I said, “Yeah, I was a thrower but I was also like a gym rat. Now I get to train just to be a gym rat.” I was really excited because I would … Man, in college I did stupid things. I felt like the coach’s program was too easy, so I would go before and do my own training, and then I would do his workout, and then we would go throw, and then we’d go to the gym; so I wound up doing two and a half hours a day in the weight room.

Two hours a day throwing, and 30 minutes to an hour doing sprints and running. And I could never understand, “Why am I not gaining weight? Why am I not getting stronger? I’m out-working everybody. I don’t get it.”

JGIII: Exactly, yeah. That’s hilarious.

Dan McKim: I needed somebody to come just put their arm around my shoulder and say, “Hey man, let’s eat a lot more and let’s not train so much.” I just 51

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had to have it though, man.

reconstruction. Ha ha!

JGIII: Speaking of eating, you singlehandedly spearheaded a movement to create an affiliate position with Little Debbie. How did you mobilize your followers on social media to accomplish that, and can a job as JC Penney Big and Tall Cover Model be far behind?

JGIII: Never say never. Ha ha! So every athlete has to balance your training responsibilities with family, and then if you’re an athlete with a “Day job,” that’s another variable, so I know that the Sorinex job was an improvement over your previous situation, but from what I can tell, just even in our text messages back and forth, that’s a lot of hours in the car. I mean you’re waking up at like 3:00 in the morning, going to drive to an appointment, doing what you’ve got to do, driving all the way back, driving to a kids sporting event or something like that. You have a lot of hours in the car; how did you adjust your warm up routine, for example, to account for all of that time just sitting?

Dan McKim: Ha ha! Well, you give me too much credit! I have been sharing my love for the sweet treats from Debbie, and I think others just jumped in on the fun . . . and food! It was the perfect storm, honestly. I wrote in on an old application Little Debbie had online, and a good number of people wrote in on my behalf on Instagram. So much so Little Debbie herself made a call to the marketing staff on my behalf! For real! And in terms of JC Penney, that one may never happen short of facial

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Dan McKim: Yeah, oh man, I’ve never been a good warm up guy. A couple of arm circles, pop my neck,

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I’m good to go. But it is hard, right? And it’s been hard to balance that because before, I was always an early morning training guy. And now, with my job, I am a training guy whenever I can get it in. So a lot of times it’s mornings, but sometimes that means it’s afternoons or sometimes it’s over lunch. It doesn’t matter. I just know I have to get it in. I just don’t know when I’ll get it in.

Dan McKim: And yeah, there’s days, yeah, I drive four or five hours one way… meetings; drive four, five hours, I come back, if I don’t train at the school, then I get home and I train. It’s a chore. It is a chore.

It’s a lot more warm up; it’s a lot of rolling out. It’s

getting ready, because yeah, I’ve been on my butt for ten hours that day already but I still want to get it in.

It’s not too different, I think, than a lot of society though, because we’re so sedentary; we sit at our desk, the computer. So sometimes I feel like I’ve traded in the cube for a pickup as I sit a lot. But yeah, when I am home, I do a lot of things man. Like I’m here in my office, which sounds great but it’s actually like an unfinished basement room in my basement.

Over here I’ve got kind of a modified standup desk; I love to stand up. I roll out my feet while I do it.

JGIII: So you mentioned to Bret Contreras that, you couldn’t squat deep at the time because you have

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Cover Story

a structural issue with your hip sockets. And then you were talking about how your feet are turned out when you walk, right? So you said you always had like severe butt wink, and I know that a lot of taller lifters— I have one son who’s 6’4 and another one who’s 6’6, right? And they both have issues with squatting. They have like the butt wink, and I don’t get it because I can squat; no problem. But then you fixed it. So talk about what you did. It was, like, in 2013 you fixed that. And are you still able to squat to parallel today?

Dan McKim: Yeah, yeah, I can squat to parallel today.

I am not . . . I’ve always had chicken legs, man, just genetically. My dad’s got chicken legs; I got them from him. My little brother’s got a big old booty, and huge legs, and I didn’t get that.

JGIII: I was going to ask if the whole family looked like Johnny Bravo, but okay never mind . . .

Dan McKim: Dude, I haven’t heard that one... Man, they used to call me that in high school and college all day. Johnny Bravo. Oh man … because my hair used to be longer. And then I get Mr. Incredible a lot because I have the jaw line— JGIII: As long as it’s not The Tick. If it’s The Tick, you got issues! So what did you do to fix that?

Because I was reading the article that Bret Contreras did on you and that’s how I found out about it. But then I saw the video; I said, “Well, it looks like he’s fixed it.” So what did you do to fix the issue?

Dan McKim: Yeah, honestly, maybe not the best strategy but I spent a season where I did high box squats. For all this time I was going butt to calves right? That’s one thing I’d always preach, “Hey, you just got to go butt to calves no matter what.” And that wasn’t a great strategy for me as a thrower. That has been a part of my strategy with doing cleans from the floor, snatches from the floor. When am I ever in that position in the sport? So I want to be better. That’s why I always believed a thrower should be much better at a hang clean or a hang 54

snatch than they should be like at a floor clean.

That’s compromising back. It’s more risky; it’s not as applicable to the sport. So honestly, I spent a year kind of... Maybe they’re not the best fix, but I did some just touch-and-go box squats for about a year.

My knees felt a lot better, my depth per se, was a little more, I think, applicable to my sport so I did that.

And then I took the box out and started hitting those squats and focusing; not focusing on butt to calves but focusing on a parallel position.

Dan McKim: So, you know, I never want to say you’ve squatted too low, but I feel like I was compromising perhaps my knees and my hips with some squatting practices and mechanics. And the other big thing that I fixed it with, I feel that helped a lot, was I ran a program called Triphasic training, by Cal Dietz.

JGIII: Yeah.

Dan McKim: And one of the things to that is the different phases, right? Eccentric, isometric and concentric. And so I ran a whole off season one time of triphasic training; and so I did a bunch of eccentric squats, and those are killer. I tell you what, that fixed my squat pattern and my mechanics better than probably anything I’ve ever done. And between that and the iso holds with squats, killer, killer.

JGIII: Did you use like a mono-lift for that?

Dan McKim: No, I— JGIII: Because otherwise, how did you get the bar back up to the top?

Dan McKim: Yeah, one thing that Cal talks about is . . . he does a lot of is . . . those eccentric isos are at a high percentage, even beyond maximal amount. Now being a garage gym guy, training by myself, I can’t do that. I can only hit those isos and eccentrics with loads that I can manage, but it’s tough right? Doing a five second eccentric, and legit five seconds; not this one, two, three, four, five, and then coming up.

Cover Story

I have a metronome app on my phone and it would tick, tick, tick, tick, and it’s brutal and it felt like 20 seconds, but it’s only five.

Dan McKim: It was rough, but that helped me man, because I feel like when I’m struggling, that’s when my mechanics get better, and I’ve always felt that as a high schooler, I wish I’d have done more eccentric and iso movements just because it taught me to struggle. It taught me to get that pattern better, so I don’t know if it was the high box -- just hitting the box squats and improving that top half of my squat better -- but I definitely feel like those eccentric and isometric... that whole block, I did it for six months and it was brutal, but it helped a lot.

JGIII: Okay, do you do clinics?

Dan McKim: I do. I should say I speak at clinics.

I’ve had the opportunity to speak at different NSCA clinics, state clinics and then at different strength and conditioning clinics.

JGIII: What about the other public speaking you do?

I think you said you’ve been involved with Fellowship of Christian Athletes since college, right?

Dan McKim: Yeah. In college, I got involved in FCA, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and so I’ve been able to speak at some of those events through the years. God’s opened doors at different college ministries, churches, youth groups, sometimes community or men’s events as well as leadership events of sorts. That’s something I felt like God taught me in 2014. 2014’s when I really started to kind of break in with more of my social media stuff, right? That’s when I came out with those two books, those first books. I felt like I was in a niche for it, which I was; Scottish Highland Games is a niche sport. And I was like, “Ah, nobody really cares about it,” and God really convicted me. He told me that what I think is a small platform is still something He can do great things with. So what I saw was like, “God, I’m not ESPN; I’m not even a big deal—”

JGIII: It’s like Gideon— Dan McKim: Yeah, exactly, yeah, like Gideon, and so He wanted, I felt like He wanted me to do more within that platform, however small I felt it would be. He’s going to do it, and He can bless it greatly, and if that’s the impact, just one person, mission accomplished. That’s what I was supposed to do, so from 2014 is when I really started to do more. I started writing more. I started doing some . . . just— that’s kind of when the video started doing a little bit— doing some stupid videos. @strengthshorts stuff came a couple years later. But I feel like God wanted me to not limit Him based on what I felt was an insufficient platform.

JGIII: Did you show up— this is another point where I’m going to need you to tell the truth—did you show up in a kilt the first time you were speaking to a bunch of kids?

Dan McKim: Right? I don’t know if it was the first one, but I definitely had numerous speaking events; yeah. And my boys don’t like it because the boys are kind of like, “Your dad’s wearing a skirt.” And they’re like, “Don’t you talk about my dad. He’s not wearing a skirt, it’s a kilt!” And they’re like, “Well, I don’t know what a kilt is.”

JGIII: Ha ha! Awesome. Well man, I’m going to let you go because I know, like I said, you’re a busy guy, and you’ve got a five - year old running around, and my three -year old is amazingly quiet, and that makes me nervous.

Dan McKim: That’s probably bad, right?

JGIII: Yeah, ha ha! So I’m going to let you go, but Dude, I really do appreciate you carving out time to talk to me.

Dan McKim: Appreciate it man, good to see you.

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Two Sport Champion Eric Roussin

By Riccardo Magni 58

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Features

Eric Roussin is one of the best Armlifters on Planet Earth. An APL World Record holder, an LA FIT EXPO ViseGrip Viking Champion, and a five-time Canadian National Champion, Eric trains for these International contests exclusively in his basement. He’s also an armwrestling champion! Let’s read more about this very strong home gym athlete!

RM: What was your first armlifting contest?

ER: My first grip contest was the Canadian National Hand Strength Challenge, a contest I organized and held in conjunction with the Canadian National Armwrestling Championships that I hosted in Ottawa in 2011. The contest simply consisted of a grip medley: 35 different grip feats/challenges were spread out over the floor and competitors had four minutes to complete as many as possible. There were two divisions: one for people with a hand length of 7 ¾” or less and one for people with a hand length of more than 7 ¾”.

RM: How did you do in the contest?

ER: I won the large hands division after a tiebreak. Another competitor and I each completed 29 feats. The tie-break was a strap hold for time with a Captains of Crush #1 gripper. I was able to hang on longer than my opponent, so I won.

RM: What was your favorite event?

ER: I designed the medley and I liked all of the feats (though I wasn’t necessarily very good at all of them).

But my favourite was probably lifting a 172-lb anvil by the horn, because it’s a classic old-time feat. In training I was able to do this easily, but in the medley I barely got it. The contest was held following the conclusion of the armwrestling tournament, so exhaustion was beginning to set in.

RM: What is your favorite contest of all time?

ER: I’ve competed in more than 40 grip contests, and 60

I have good memories of all of them. But my first trip to Russia for the 2016 APL Armlifting World Championships was probably my favorite experience to date.

ER: That year, I was the sole competitor from North America, and I was the first Canadian to ever take part in the Armlifting World Championships. For these reasons alone, I felt very welcomed by the contest organizers as well as the competitors. I also feel I was able to represent my country well, earning medals in three events, including a gold medal for the Rolling Thunder.

RM: Tell me about competing in Russia: ER: The whole trip was an adventure. The only words in the Russian language I knew were “yes”, “no”, and “thank you”. But more Russians could speak English than I expected, so communicating generally wasn’t too difficult. The venue was near many of tourist attractions in St. Petersburg, so I was able to do some sight-seeing. Because of armlifting, I visited a part of the world that I otherwise probably wouldn’t have and had an experience that I’ll never forget.

Features

RM: What does it mean to you to be a multiple time National Champion?

ER: I’m proud of it. Each subsequent title I’m able to win will be even more meaningful as the sport continues to grow in Canada and the field becomes bigger and stronger. 2020 will be a big test, because the Nationals are likely to be held in Alberta. This would be the first time they are held in western Canada, allowing many strong athletes to compete in the contest for the first time.

RM: Tell me about the crossover between grip and armwrestling.

ER: The two sports go well together. Strong hands are obviously very beneficial for both. However, while a successful armlifter needs to be strong in all aspects of hand strength, armwrestlers’ hand strength needs are more specific. Most important for armwrestling is wrist strength in all angles. Crushing strength is probably the least important, however if

the hand and thumb can thicken through extensive gripper training, this would be a positive - your hand would become more uncomfortable for your opponent to grab.

RM: Please explain to us how you train.

ER: I generally split my grip training across four workouts over the course of a week: one for crushing strength, one for pinching and hub work, one for thick bar, and one for wrist. Some are standalone workouts, while others are combined with other full-body strength training. I typically follow basic strength training principles. Three to five sets of each exercise, upping the weight and reducing the reps each set. For my last set, I choose a weight that I can manage about 3 reps. One thing I almost never do in training is test my one-rep maximum. I save this for armlifting contests. A weight lifted in a contest means much more to me than a weight lifted in training, so I focus on peaking for these events.

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Home Gym Evolution: The Story of Garage 562

by Kimberly Figge Home gyms are a perpetual work in progress.

The ability to tweak our home gym setup to fit our current needs and lifestyle is part of the freedom that comes with being in full control of our workout spaces.

In Home Gym Evolution, we let our readers tell the stories of their home gym builds so that others can learn from and be inspired by them.

Here’s schoolteacher, Kimberly Figge’s home gym story in her own words.

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My house is a little California bungalow. The original garage was a standard detached 2 car garage. With a kid on the way, we decided to add more space. The two-car garage became a four car. For many, many years the garage was filled with lots of activity and great times. Many hotrods and motorcycles were built here. The garage always seemed to have people in it. It was a hub of activity and shenanigans and camaraderie. About four years ago my fourteen-year marriage ended. My ex chose to keep his hotrod, so I got to keep the house, and the four-car garage.

After the divorce it became a sort of tomb for the past. Everything remained inside it except for the laughter and energy. Change is hard. And reminders of things lost can make moving forward difficult, but there came a day when I was ready to claim it as my own.

The gym has a way to go. The original 10x10 gym is now my home office. I’d like to add a small bathroom. But it’s a super fun space and my little crew and I are having a blast doing workouts, laughing and fooling around.

Check us out on Instagram @garage562!

I wasn’t sure what it was going to be to tell you the truth. I had a nice 10x10 little gym in the back. It was great for my two spin bikes and a treadmill, but there was limited space for other kinds of workouts— which at the time I didn’t know I wanted to do.

I had a few ideas about the garage. A music studio for my kid. A cooking studio to host classes and epic feasts. An apartment for extra income. A local circus venue (ok not really). The idea that kept sticking was a gym. A big gym that friends and neighbors could use.

And so, I got to work. I cleared out everything.

Except for the washer and dryer. I spent a few weeks painting it— some mirrors, and some mats were the first additions. Then I was gifted a punching bag. I love my punching bag. The garage has a small room that used to be the office, it became my new spin room. I love this little room. It’s super clean and minimalist.

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Low Calorie Quick and Easy BBQ Chicken Thigh Recipe

By Derrick Clark, NASM-CPT Ingredients The calories may vary depending on which brand of BBQ sauce you use. For the chicken, package and serving sizes may vary.

• 4oz Boneless skinless chicken breast 180 calories per breast - 0g carb 10g of fat 18g of protein • Salt • Pepper • Walden Farms BBQ Sauce zero calorie • Non-stick cooking spray Directions: • Pre heat oven for 420 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes • Spray pain with non stick cooking spray • Place chicken thighs in pan • put salt and pepper to taste • place chicken in oven once oven is heated • let chicken cook until done • Once done apply barbecue sauce Note: I like to mix hot sauce with my barbecue sauce in a plastic container to give it flavor. You could add whatever you like just remember that if you use honey or a barbecue sauce with calories in it, that will add to the calorie count of the recipe.

Once you apply BBQ sauce place the chicken back into the oven for five to ten minutes until done.

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GUESTS

EPISODES

REASONS TO WATCH

SUNDAY CONVERSATIONS new episodes every Sunday on the

IGTV CHANNEL

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In their own words...

The garage gym.This is the place where your budget, your creativity and the sport you're involved with all come together to create your perfect training facility.

CHRISTOPHER "SMITTY" SMITH HOST OF "THE GARAGE GYM COACH PODCAST

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The floor still needs cleaned. .

Along with every other job on the list. .

It's 6.30pm on a cold Sunday night, middle of winter. .

Clients are set to arrive in the morning. .

Attention to detail is key... .

You better believe the floor gets cleaned. #howyoudoanythingishowyoudoeverything

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It’s dusty. It's full of iron and kids playful shit.

It has holes in the wall from ball tosses. It has blood stains and dirty handprints. There’s weighted bars leaning against the wall next to hockey sticks.

There's weight plates in random spots because I'm too scared to kill the bugs with a Kleenex. It smells not of a car garage, but of a sanctuary. An iron sanctuary.

It’s not a pretty smell. It took years to ferment. And it's glorious. This place is full of memories, PRs and major fails.

Sometimes I don't put my weights away. I don't follow the gym rules like I do in the public place. We don't have to here.

There's more room to dance, kiss, glute smack and yell (mainly at the children) between sets.

This dirty mirror here? That's the only soft thing in this place . . . everything else is flawed.

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Up since 5 2 bicycle classes Leg strength session 5mile trail run

_

None of which has anything to do with a picture from the other day of me doing dips and the dog chewing a stick

-THOMAS LONSDALE, BRITISH ARMY VETERAN, ENDURANCE RACER, KETTLEBELL ENTHUSIAST

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One of the all-time classic strength feats is to lift a 45lb plate by the hub. This was definitely a test of strength in the “olden and there’s no reason Falldays” 2019 why you can’t learn how to do it too. Let’s look at what the feat entails and outline a program that can help you get there.

QUARTERLY

COMING OCTOBER 1, 2019

First things first To begin your quest to lift the 45lb plate by the hub, you need to assess where you are. By that I mean you need to first start with a 25lb plate and see if you can lift that. If you’re successful with the twenty-five then you need to graduate to the 35lb plate. If you conquered the 35lb plate, you should be feeling pretty good about yourself at that time.

If you have done a 25lb and 35lb, by all means, have a go at the 45lb plate! It may budge, it may stay welded to the Whatever F EA TU REfloor.

D: DAN JO the HNcase may be, let’s look at different ways to train to help you conquer 40 Years of Lessons on Life this feat. And make sure to train each hand! and LIfting How to get it done It is imperative that you have the plate well chalked and also that you works well for B UILDIN G have A P chalk ORTthat ABLE you. There are many different brands of chalk and DE ADLIFT P LAT FO RM everyone seems to have a different preference of chalk. I like Hand Armor chalk. Experiment with different types of chalk yourself and see what you G ET TO K NOW like. I would train the hub two times per week. One Personal day I would useTrainer: a plate loadedAnna hub system like the Cameron Ironmind hub or the Barrel Strength Systems Dub Hub. The other day of hub training I would practice lifting only plates. Using the idea of a twelve week system, I would firstPstart S EB AS TIAN AZoff with finding your max on the plate loaded hub system that you’re using be on VetWod and Street ii the Ironmind hub or the Barrel Strength Systems Parking hub.

Once you know your max on that hub and you know what kind of plate you can lift, that makes the job a lot easier and figuring out the weights that you would use. The table below outlines a program that may help you lift plates by the hub using a loadable hub trainer and a series of plates that you can hub.

Remember, if the plate is too easy by itself, microload the plate with a series of small plates around the edges of the plate that you are picking up.

Where do you get plates to lift by the hub?

In this issue:

plus: Paul Anderson: The Mightiest Minister Has Crossfit Become Irrelevant to NonCrossfit Athletes Holiday Gift Guide

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