The Daily Grind

       I personally believe that anyone looking for a simple, effective way to build power, athleticism, and functional strength needs to consider adding the single-arm kettlebell clean to their workout repertoire. The exercise movement of the "clean" in general is a fantastic exercise for building power, explosiveness, and strength. For any individual just learning about the "clean" exercise movement, I advocate for the single-arm kettlebell clean over the barbell clean. I like the kettlebell clean specifically for beginners (versus a barbell) because of its forgiveness to first-time learners, its simplicity of movement, and the fact that it requires only a single kettlebell (versus a barbell, plates, and clips).       The kettlebell clean is very forgiving. The grip of the kettlebell allows for the easy transition of your hand position when lifting the weight to avoid straining your wrist (as you might with a barbell or dumbbell). Likewise, a p...

       Remember. Nothing good in life happens fast. For every successful person you see, remember that it took them countless hours, and many trials and tribulations to get to that point of success. They got to that point of success because they learned patience, they trusted their process, and they consistently put in the work, day in and day out. Have patience, keep grinding away at your dream. Success will follow the man who persists in his dream when others give up on their own. Be patient and get after it. Never quit. Never Settle. 

     You've been training your Strict Overhead Press  for several months now, consistently seeing gains in your strength...until the past couple of weeks. You've plateaued and you just can't seem to increase the weight on the bar. You're frustrated with your lack of progress, and you curse the lifting gods. You're stuck and you don't know what to do. Enter the Push Press .       A well-known exercise in the Olympic Weightlifting and Strongman communities, the Push Press has been a staple exercise in these long-standing strength communities for decades now, and for good reason. It works. Very well. If you are currently struggling with increasing your Strict Overhead Press, the Push Press can help you push through (pun intended) your strict press plateau.       The Strict Overhead Press - aside from the recruitment of lower body stabilization - isolates the usage of only the upper body to press the weight up and overhead from a d...

      Unilateral  Leg (Single Leg exercises) are excellent exercises for an individual to perform for a variety of reasons: 1. Unilateral Leg exercises promote core stability 2. They allow for less loading on the joints and connective tissue while still delivering a similar stimulus to the muscle that would be provided by a bilateral exercise (ex: back squat) 3. They allow for loading primarily on the desired leg muscle rather than accumulating systemic fatigue throughout the entire body and other indirect muscles. (Ex: a bilateral barbell back squat will accumulate a large amount of fatigue in the leg muscles, but also in the lower back, traps, shoulders, etc. versus a dumbbell lunge which will primarily accumulate fatigue only in the lower body leg muscles. 4. Unilateral Leg exercises are more transferrable to sports and athletics where athletes are almost always primarily generating the majority of force from a single leg (think of a sprinter running down a track,...

       With all the Instagram fitness influencers out there these days, I would think that I might see more loaded carry variations on their "stories" and "images". Loaded carries are brutal and work like magic on the individual, both physically and mentally. I wondered why I didn't see them on the fitness influencers' stories, but then I realized why. It's not their fault at all. Loaded carries aren't sexy, flashy, or even much fun when you're working hard. They don't attract much attention. No, loaded carries are simple, humbling, and direct; boring to watch but they deliver hard-to-beat results. Oh and even though they might be boring to watch, they definitely aren't boring to do. Loaded Carries demand a high level of concentration to ensure they are performed properly and safely. They also allow for many variations. You are only limited by your imagination.     With that being said, here are three of my favorite forms of loaded carri...

       A dream without a plan is just that; a dream. If you have a dream - some goal that you want to achieve - you need to make an actionable plan that will help you to fulfill that dream. The plan does not need to be perfect. In fact, the plan won't be perfect. But there must be a plan. Without a plan, you have no direction, and without direction, you will be paralyzed. Make a plan, choose a direction, and start walking. It's better to walk 20 miles in the wrong direction than to stand still, paralyzed by indecision. At least walking 20 miles in the wrong direction will teach you some lessons along the way that you can implement when you turn around and start walking in the right direction.       If you're feeling stuck, and you're feeling like you have no direction, one thing I know that can get you started on the right path is daily exercise. Try out this workout if you need to give yourself a swift kick in the butt and get on the proper path....

       Pullups . Often referred to as the King of Upper Body Exercises. The exercise that separates the boys from the men. If you can do 10 strict pullups, you're on the football team. If you can do 20 strict pullups, you are the star athlete on the football team. He who can do 30 strict pullups is the captain of the football team and is dating the head cheerleader. You get the point. People who can do solid, strict pullups are admired and envied by many.       Because everyone wants to do pullups, it can be hard not to cheat on those last couple of reps in your set to say that you hit that "certain number". Don't fall victim to this trap. No one wants to be the individual who says he or she can do 10 pullups, and then dolphin kicks the last 8 in order to catapult his or her chin over the bar. Ugly pullups earn disrespect, and rightfully so. Check your ego. Do the pullup the correct way and reap the rewards, both physically and socially.  ...

The Hex Bar Deadlift (sometimes also referred to as the Trap Bar Deadlift) is a fantastic full-body exercise that works out just about every muscle in the entire body. It does all of this while also positioning you in a much safer, more biomechanically friendly way that reduces strain on your lower back and shoulders, while also allowing for optimal force generation through the lower body. This is not to say that the conventional deadlift or sumo-deadlift (or any other deadlift you might see at the gym) are not great exercises. When performed properly with technical proficiency, any deadlift variation is an awesome exercise. Some deadlift variations simply carry a higher risk for potential injury versus others.  Here's why I believe the hex bar deadlift is the best deadlift variation for any general individual training in the gym (versus say, a powerlifter, who must train with the conventional or sumo deadlift form due to those variations being the accepted variations that the pow...

Stop worrying about perfection. Trying to be perfect leads to paralysis by analysis. You want things to be perfect, yet deep down you know things cannot be perfect. That realization can often lead to you not taking action, not moving forward, not making progress. Perfection is the enemy. Stop trying to create the perfect outcome, and start taking action. Adapt and learn along the way. Ditch perfection and consistently work towards getting the job done. Build the mental resilience that accompanies an individual taking action towards a goal. Oh, and if you haven't worked out yet today, try this bodyweight workout. It won't be fun, it will hurt, and your work most likely won't be perfect. Doesn't matter. You took action, and that means you're getting better. Never Quit. Never Settle. Enter The Daily Grind.