For the first time in months, I'll get to immerse myself in some reading. Here's what's waiting for me:
1) Mr Porter Post - Menswear site Mr Porter isn't just a website but also an extremely well curated lifestyle site as well. Want to see cool? Check them out. www.mrporter.com 2) Monocle - Amazing how a monthly magazine can be so current with important world happenings. These guys have your bases covered. www.monocle.com 3) Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research - Because once you stop learning you start moving backwards.
4) Man About Town / Fantastic Man - The only two menswear magazines that do it well ALL the time. Classic and simultaneously forward thinking. If they only came out more than twice a year... www.manabouttown.tv www.fantasticman.com
If I thought I'd have more time to read, I'd include more, but that research journal is dense...
I get lots of new training shit. It's my job. But it's too easy to fill up post after post of expensive shit no one really owns and has only seen through press releases or online. Most of the products featured here will be ones I have at least gazed my very own eyes upon...
Including the bag, here are 10 items that will make each trip to the gym more effective, more efficient and might even help you catch some glances on the way out the door too.
Clothes
Patagonia Fore Runner training shirt - Lightweight and Gladiodor protected...meaning you won't smell like the shirt has sat in the bag through 3 workouts, even if it has.
H&M Functional Shorts - Because long ass basketball shorts should stay on the court. Ditto for short ass grazing runner's shorts...no one wants to see you do lunges in those.
Bands - Pull-ups, stretching, push ups...1000's of uses. Have several if possible. Available here at bgstraining.com in 2014.
Speed rope - Not your school yard, double dutch jump rope. While lots of people talk about the benefits of heavy ropes, the light, fast ones keep you on your toes...literally.
Yurbuds head phones - I bought the Iron Man Inspire version, and for it's price point (approx $50) , I'm very happy. And the weird earpieces aren't really that weird and they stay put which is always my problem. Plus, they're from St Louis!
iPad mini with Retina - I got the 64GB version and its mainly for video usage. As a coach I use it with clients daily but like the saying goes, most things are easier said than done. With apps like Ubersense, I can record my technique and slow it down to 1/8 the speed to watch each moving part to see if its doing what it should. Worth the price alone. It won't take the place of a personal trainer but it will make their constant watchful eye less necessary (and therefore less expensive).
Pre- and Post-Workout food - Those protein shakes that you think are basically liquid muscle? They're most likely over loaded with unnecessary sugars and probably more protein than you need. Not the case for all but an apple with peanut butter and a cup of coffee before and a some good old chicken, rice and vegetables after will give you a more nutritious fill than some whey and water.
The Bag
Filson small duffle - Filson is legendary. They've made quality goods for over a century and these duffles should last at least half that long. There are a ton of great duffles out there but these are the grandaddies. Buy one now, show it equal parts recklessness and love and not only will you have a friend for life but the refined ruggedness just may attract another life long friend...
Over the past few years a fourth element has been added to the "do not discuss" list in certain circles. There's politics, religion, money and now CrossFit. With it's cult-like following, CrossFit has permeated every inch of the training world and unfortunately, all that good comes with some very bad. Try to talk to a devotee about proper strength and conditioning principles and program periodization...and be ready if the conversation escalates to try and outrun someone who most likely can catch up to you. While running backwards. And swinging a kettle bell overhead simultaneously.
While that, in and of itself, is nothing bad. This is. And so is this. And this. And well...just Google "CrossFit injury" and over 3 million results pop up. Let me be clear: Any type of intense training can produce injuries. Those warnings on training programs that say you should consult your physician before undertaking any new exercise programs is there for a reason. BUT (and this is a Sir Mix-a-Lot sized but) the main reason that so many injuries pop up in CrossFit is that the participants are often unprepared (despite any on-ramp course members are forced to go through before being able to join the WOD's) and frankly, the trainers are even less prepared to train these highly technical, complex Olympic style movements to relative beginners. Simply put, do some research before walking into the nearest Box to your house because of proximity.
Not just at CrossFit...this can be true with any irresponsible trainer.
This month the Journal of Strength and Conditioning published a study confirming what many people familiar with CrossFit already knew: you'll build muscle, lose body fat and you have about a 1-in-5 chance of overtraining and/or getting injured. In the study, 54 participants began the program but only 43 finished. the other 11 dropping out for the aforementioned reasons. My biggest problem with CrossFit is that it wants to be recognized as a sport, going so far as marketing it as "The Sport of Fitness", yet it vehemently resists the type of performance training that is the status quo in every other sport. Olympic sprinters don't just go out to a track and run a lot to get better. They have coaches that help them pinpoint any and every small detail in technique that will make them faster. For years, ice hockey was plagued by this mentality (and still is to some extent) of "play more, play better" combined with some outdated training methods. But today, hundreds of professional hockey players enlist personal (and dedicated) strength and conditioning specialists to help improve their game. It wouldn't surprise me if Rich Froning and other high-profile CrossFitters employed this as well, but it has yet to trickle its way down to the Paleo obsessed, CrossFit is the cure of all things mentality that is rampant in nearly every Box I've ever stepped foot into. They're slowly getting it, with the help of guys like Dr. Kelly Starrett bringing mobility and injury prevention methods to the CrossFit consciousness, but there's a still a long way to go.
Simply put:
PRO'S-
Will increase VO₂Max
Will lower body fat %
Will build muscle
Will make training fun again (unless/until you get injured)
You will be a marginally better athlete (you will run faster, jump higher) but you will be a better CrossFitter
Dr. Kelly Starrett and MobilityWOD.com
CON'S-
Due to explosive expansion, many Box's and/or trainers are not properly prepared to teach such technical lifts...
but instead focus on the intensity and competitive atmosphere created by the WOD-style training method. Better put, some trainers are better equipped to push and motivate than teach proper technique and recognize when an athlete places themselves in an injurious position.
Plus, with the WOD-style sessions, no one would want to hear what you said anyway, lest you worsen their latest attempt at a sub-3:00 Fran time
MEANING, it's very easy to ignore proper and safe technique as well as your own limitations, simply in pursuit of better scores/times.
No proper strength and conditioning principles in place for a group of people that likens themselves to athletes.
It works. Yes, this is a CON because people are willing to ignore all of the above warning signs simply because they have finally found a training program that works. Go into any commercial gym and you'll see gym rats spending countless hours at machines and doing curls, only to see results at a snail's pace.
Like I said...buyer beware. All good things come with a price.
Yeah, it's been a minute since my last post and laziness is hardly the culprit. Since my last post on performance gear I have:
Joined Norway's premier athletic strength and conditioning center as a performance coach. Magnat Center (especially now that I am there) has everything an elite athlete or weekend warrior could ask for in a training center.
Became a dad.
Am starting a new venture that aims to assist not only top athletes but pregnant mothers as well. Stay tuned.
Became a dad.
Am working with two of Scandinavia's top modeling agencies on different projects with each respective agency to promote training and fitness in a healthy manner in the modeling industry. 2PM (Denmark) and Team (Norway) represent some of the world's top talent and are dedicated to presenting their models with a healthy, maintainable training regimen. Read more on 2PM's website www.dengodeside.dk
Became a dad
As you can see one of these things is a bit more time consuming than the others. But the posts will begin to flow a bit better as more things are happening.
