Archive for November, 2009

Episode 158: Turkey Day Rehab with Nick Tumminello

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 29 - 2009

Get this Week’s Episode:

MP3 Download/iTunes/RSS/Odeo


Hosts:

Kevin Larrabee (Twitter), Dr. Jonathan Fass,

and Nick Tumminello

NEWS

Interview with Nick Tumminello

  • Waz up guys!! My name is John Corona I’m 22yrs old  5′10 about 200lbs and around 12%bf. My questions for Nick are:
    First What type of workouts or rep range do I need to do to increase my pull ups? since I’m only able to do like 10 the first set than it goes downhill after the first set. usually I do like 10,8,8,6 forcing it. I looking forward to change my cycle to strength training in the next following weeks so I need some advice.
    Second. I haven been dealing with what I believe is achilles bursitis for about six months. For the last three months I haven’t run since the back of my heel starts to hurt mostly when I decelerate (I play soccer) I don’t have medical insurance so I haven’t gone to the Dr. but I went to a chiro but it was much help. So any advice on what type of rehab work should I do or what type of professional should I go see since I sure who to go to? Thanks guys great work!!!. Happy Thanks Giving…

    JC

  • Hi, I would like to know your approach to dealing with clients that have disk herniations in the L5 S1 region.What would be your typical approach to aiding a client to recovery.
    Do you use the FMS on a regular basis with your clients/athletes?, and if so what are the most common weaknesses/imbalances you find?
    Cheers -Craig
  • Fat-Loss Complexes
  • Hi,

    What exercises/strategies do you use with shoulder and t-spine mobility issues? I understand that each individual is different but are there some things you find yourself using time and again with most of your clients? Thanks for your time!

    Pasi

  • Let’s talk about fat-loss since the holidays are here. How do you go about programing for fat-loss with your clients?

Links Mentioned

Episodes

Destination Abs Redux: Day 10

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 24 - 2009

the-fat-loss-troubleshoot

Are we back? Yes, we’re back.

It has been a long time since I have done a Destination Abs update. Too long. Some have even e-mailed me to ask me what the hell was going on with this project Leigh and I set out on 9 or so months ago. Well, I took some time off from counting calories and worrying about every single calorie I consumed. It seemed like it was much needed, but after regressing a bit, and putting on some more muscle, Leigh and I think it is time to rev up the engines again for one more 16-20 week journey to reach our Destination.

If you want to do what I am doing you should check out the OPT program that is in The Fat Loss Troubleshoot.

10 Days down, still going strong. I know I am locked in when I get past the first Saturday, a day that I psychologically schedule my cheat DAY (cheat meals OK, cheat days…not so much). I survived thanks to some cans of diet orange soda and sugar free gum. My stomach and intestines did not like all that artificial sweetener…

The first week really is the hardest because your body gets used to things, especially the pleasure it gets from eating pizza, cookies, and ice cream. It takes some serious will power and control to get past that first brick wall. I recommend you have some seltzer, diet soda, and gum on hand to preemptively strike on the want for something sweet and calorie dense.

For training I put together a three day a week full body program with some extra bells and whistles for maximum fat-loss.

Now, without further ado, here are the pictures.

From Day 1 to now

frombeginning-1

Redux Day 1-Day 7

week1

week1side


Questions Anyone?

That wraps it up for this week’s blog, let me know if you guys have any questions in the comments section and I will do my best to answer them.

If you are liking what you see here and want to jump in as well check out Leigh’s book The Fat Loss Troubleshoot and her new book Body By Eats.

the-fat-loss-troubleshoot

bbe2

Destination Abs

Episode 157: Technical Difficulties

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 22 - 2009

Get this Week’s Episode:

MP3 Download/iTunes/RSS/Odeo


Hosts:

Kevin Larrabee (Twitter), Dr. Jonathan Fass,

and Leigh Peele

FitCast News

  • Destination Abs Update
  • Round Table on the Holiday Gameplan

Mailbag

  • Hi, my main goal is to gain healthy weight and put on some mass. I have been swimming 90 laps every morning and lifting weights in the afternoon. Most of the time i swim 1/2 mile after I lift weights( i lift 6 days a week, 1 body part a day).

    My question : Is the second swim of the day detrimental to my goals, I try to eat plenty of clean foods but need more fat… what are your thoughts?

    Example:
    6am- swim and abs
    730am- breakfast- oatmeal, whey protein and fruit
    10am- eggs, fruit, cereal
    11am- chest and triceps, 1/2 mile swim
    1pm whey protein banana
    145pm sandwich
    3 almonds
    430pm apple with peanut butter
    6- fish/chicken, sweet potato or pasta, veggies
    8- cottage cheese
    9pm- casein shake -Tim

  • Hello all!
    First of all, I’m a 28-year-old 5′1″ female who comes in between 15-18% body fat (depending on my diet factor) and I’ve been lifting seriously for about two years. My question concerns my tendency toward lower body injuries. When I first started lifting on a serious level, I noticed a lot of pain in my hips and the piriformis muscle. I took a break from heavy lifting and began a stretching regime focused on hip mobility and the pain has more or less subsided. I went back to my regular squatting, straight leg deadlifts and sumo squats and evetually developed pain in my left knee. A trainer at my gym suggested it was due to tight hamstrings and suggested a more intense stretching routine. Sure enough, the pain in my knee eventually went away and I went back to my old squatting, deadlifting, etc. ways. Fast forward to today and I’ve been seeing a chiropractor for what appears to be cervical facet joint inflammation. He’s been adjusting my back once a week and giving me “electro-therapy “on the affected area. It seems to be helping but I’ve decided to learn my lesson and give up squatting and dead lifting all together. I’m not a professional athlete and the risk of injury is no longer worth it to me. My question is this: Is it possible for “kinder” exercises such as the leg press machine to provide the same results as squatting? I suppose this is more of a question for John so I’d like to ask him what he would recommend to someone in my situtation. Thanks to you all for such a great show! -Sarah
  • Hey gang, i have questions about 2 diets. I don’t follow either of these diets, but I know people who do and I have seen some unbelievable things so I wanted your thoughts. First, the raw foods diet. I know that to some people, the raw foods diet may seem like a very hippy, vegan, thing to do. I watched the movie simply raw (i recommend watching it if you havent, its very inspiring, at least watch the youtube trailer) a couple weeks ago however, and what it did for some people with diabetes is remarkable. I showed it to other people I know with diabetes and they began a raw foods diet. Since then, they have shown the same results. What do you guys think about a raw foods diet? Obviously, it is working great for some people, and therefore there must be some merit to it. On the other hand, the diet is very low in protein and very low in fat. Is there any crossover between a raw foods diet, and someone working out? The other diet is the primal diet, which is sortof the opposite. Eat like our ancestors did. It makes sense to avoid all the processed foods in our diets these days, but many primal eaters eat lots of organ meats and really fatty meats. Is this healthy? Sorry for the random question, but I was wondering if you guys had any experience with these diets, and if so, how they relate to working out and getting HUGE like kevin is. -Michelle
  • Ok since you were sick (from a person who said awhile back you never get sick) with the flu did you work out with it If you did why did you decide to work out while sick;  or did you take a break from training. When should we NOT train and with what symptoms can we train with. Today snapped an almost streak of 2 years of not being sick. I had a stomach virus and I said forget it with training today.

    Thanks,-Rick

  • Dear Kevin and the fitcast crew,
    First off, i love your podcast and have learnt infinite amounts from you. Thank you very much.

    I was hoping that Mr Fass would be able to help me with my problem.
    Here’s the deal.
    I’m a long distance runner (i also stregth train – i score points for that right?)
    Anyway, i’ve had lateral calf pain in my right leg for around a week now which has stopped me from being able to run. The right calf is tighter than the left, as is the IT band.
    I have been to the physio who did a proper assessment and has found a substantial downward rotation in the right side of my pelvis which means that i’m overusing the right leg a lot and the weight distribution is more to the right hand side. The wear on the sole of my shoes showed what he said was as marked a difference as he had ever seen.

    I’ve been given a PNF stretch/exercise which involves bringing my knee to chest and pushing away which he says will help to correct this. He also said that i should see a podiatrist.

    My questions are:
    1. What could be causing the rotation? Glute medius dysfunction? Rounding of my right shoulder caused by writing one handed hunched over/working on the computer?

    2. Isn’t seeing a podiatrist and getting shoe inserts or something jsut masking the problem?
    3. Is this something that means i cannot run in life? (i’m only 18 and had high hopes of marathon competition at a competitive level)
    4. Could the problem be caused by running shoes? Would barefoot running be different?

    Please please please help me, I am distraught and want to have a long running career. What can I do?

    Thank you for your time.
    Tim, Birmingham, England.

Round Table
The Holiday Game Plan, what should people to in regards to training and nutrition this holiday season?

Episodes

Destionation Abs Redux: Day 3

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 19 - 2009

Are we back? Yes, we’re back.

It has been a long time since I have done a Destination Abs update. Too long. Some have even e-mailed me to ask me what the hell was going on with this project Leigh and I set out on 9 or so months ago. Well, I took some time off from counting calories and worrying about every single calorie I consumed. It seemed like it was much needed, but after regressing a bit, and putting on some more muscle, Leigh and I think it is time to rev up the engines again for one more 16-20 week journey to reach our Destination. Also read Leigh’s Blog post on this project.

Previously on Destination Abs…

This is where we left off, or at least the last pictures that I posted on July 13th, 2009.

That was after 133 days.

Here is where I stand now:

kevinlarrabee1

Here is where we are trying to get (preferably more awake):

possible-kevin1

Still not too shabby, I got to eat a lot more for a few months, go on a vacation and not worry about what I ate, and not stress about where my friends and I were going out to and if they would have food options that fit the guidelines. But on the same end I found myself having “free days” on many Saturday and Sundays. Not a good thing. “Cheat meals,” are OK, “cheat days,” are just bad. I found that although it was great to be able to eat some more junk food week to week, I wanted to continue to build on the progress that we mad a few months back, and now was the time to do it.

Are You Setting Yourself Up For Failure?

I am sure some of you are asking that question because the most dangerous and treacherous time for someone in a fat loss phase is the 30-45 days from Thanksgiving to New Years Day. Pies, cookies, brownies, your grandma’s famous six-layer chocolate pudding cake, ect. It isn’t easy, but that is why I am bringing in some extra guns.

gunsneo

Neo: I need guns. Lots of guns.

I am getting some extra support and ACCOUNTABILITY (that is our word of the year folks) from Leigh at her site LeighPeele.com. I am going to be posting these blogs on her site as well as TheFitCast.com each week. Sometimes you just need that extra push so you don’t let people down, even if you don’t know them except for the e-mails you get every so often.

More on Accountability

Accountability is HUGE. we have discussed this in the past but I need to mention it again. I know how to get someone down to 6% body fat for a competition, I can get the average Jane or Joe the down to body fat % where they see abs for the first time. Trust me, I have done it before. But when it comes to training yourself, that is sometimes a different story. Walk into a fitness club or gym anywhere and you will see overweight out of shape trainers and coaches. Are they just stupid and don’t know what the hell they are doing? Most of the time that isn’t the case. They just don’t practice what they preach.

Questions Anyone?

That wraps it up for this week’s blog, let me know if you guys have any questions in the comments section and I will do my best to answer them.

If you are liking what you see here and want to jump in as well check out Leigh’s book The Fat Loss Troubleshoot and her new book Body By Eats.

the-fat-loss-troubleshoot

bbe2

Destination Abs

Episode 156: We Need Leigh Peele

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 15 - 2009

Get this Week’s Episode:

MP3 Download/iTunes/RSS/Odeo


Hosts:

Kevin Larrabee (Twitter) and Dr. Jonathan Fass

FitCast News

Mailbag

  • Hey Kevin,
    I came across this “sneak peek” look at a new documentary coming out called “Inspired” I really don’t know anything about the project but it does have Tom Venuto in it- seems pretty interesting.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Qiwtod_uYI

    Love the show by the way.
    Tom

  • Hey guys,
    First off great show, I listen everyday on the metro as I commute to work and everyone there probably thinks i’m schizophrenic because I just laugh and smile to myself the whole time, I thoroughly enjoy and benefit from the great information great interviews. So thanks!
    My question:
    I am really unequal in how I use the right and left sides of my body. My right side- arm and leg are much stronger and more coordinated than my left. This inequality even exists in the muscles of my face! (ie i can’t wink with my left eye, or move the left side of my mouth or crinkle my nose to the left independently from the right, but can do all these things with the right side)
    I’m right handed and also tend to always carry things (like bags, groceries etc.) on my right. Im worried that with time this will mess up my posture even more than it already is (i’m a major sloucher).
    Is this completely weird or what? Is there anything that I can do to make myself more coordinated and stronger on the left? Are there any exercises that i can do to bring my body back into alignment?

    Thanks alot,
    Karen
    Montreal, Quebec

  • I would love for you to get Joe DeFranco on as a guest. He is launching a new eBook this month that features his latest workout program titled Built like a Bad Ass. I recently switched from a 5×5 to Joe’s West Side for Skinny Bastards. My gains on WS4SB have been incredible. I would really enjoy hearing Joe talk about his latest program on your show.
    Love your PodCast. Keep up the good work – Kurt
  • Just discovered I have an umbilical hernia. It’s quite small and doesn’t even protrude out of my belly button. I can push it back in, but it keeps coming out when I stand. It’s too small now to go through the risk of surgery. Anyway my question is: have any of you trained anyone with a hernia like this? Are there any modifications you would make in training? My favorite lift are the deadlift and the pullup. I’m considering wearing a thick belt when deadlifting to prevent the hernia getting bigger. Any thoughts? Thanks for the great show guys!

    Jin from the UK

  • Hey Kevin,

    First off, I really enjoy the FitCast, keep up the great work. I remember reading a while back that you did a 5 day split of 2 upperbody days, 2 lowerbody days followed by a full body day. How did you like that? How were the results? How was it structured?

    I truly appreciate the help.

    Best,

    Doug

  • For a while now I have had a tightness in the muscles in my chest. It is very intense in the mornings and when it is at it’s worst I have trouble lifting my head. I always eventually manage to “pop” it and things go back to normal. The tightness showed up around the time that I was making major gains on all my lifts, including bench press, deadlift, and squats. I am assuming it is connected to the gains in the bench press, despite doing an equal amount of rows in an attempt to keep everything balanced.

    What gives? Does this have a name and what can I do about it?

    Thanks,
    Adam

Episodes

Episode 155: Be the B.I.T.C.H. with Rachel Cosgrove

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 12 - 2009

Get this Week’s Episode:

MP3 Download/iTunes/RSS/Odeo


Hosts:

Kevin Larrabee (Twitter) and Rachel Cosgrove

Q&A with Rachel Cosgrove

  • 1. Any tips for preparing for a 50km (fund raising) walk in 1 years time?2. The trendy girls at work have upper arms the size of my wrists with no muscle mass at all. Their arms are like little chicken wings, skinny and weak! :-)
    However the stronger I get the more I feel like the Incredible Hulk as my clothes get tighter and tighter.

    So do you have any tips for dressing for the office as a fit chit?

    Cheers,
    Frances

  • Hi, I hope it’s not too late, but I have 2 questions about triathlon training for Rachel. I’ve done a couple of sprint triathlons, and I really want to try to place in two of them next summer, as well as increase my endurance so I can try an Olympic distance tri.Swimming used to be my weakest sport of the three, but I worked at it last year and was able to do the 1/2 mile in about 16-17 minutes. Unfortunately, I won’t have access to a pool until March or April. Can you recommend any strength or cardio work that can help me, so I’m not starting from scratch again in the spring?Also, I’m NOT a runner at all, and tend to get hip bursitis from time to time. I’m fine running a 5K, but have never really been able to run farther than that. What’s the best way to work on increasing my distance to a 10K without injury, so I can do an Olympic tri?

    Thanks so much, I LOVE the Fitcast! -Carrie

  • Hi everyone,I am really enjoying the fitcast, and I wish I’d discovered it earlier.  I learn so much every time I listen.  You guys rock!I have a question about transitioning off of a pre-contest diet.  I compete in my final fitness model competition (of 3 this year) next weekend, and I am getting nervous about transitioning off my pre-contest diet.  I have so far been really dilligent about not to to gaining too much weight between competitions, but I have had gaps of less than three months between them.  This next gap will be much longer, as I will likely not compete again until next summer.

    I lost 30 pounds in january, and this year was the first time that I have competed, and I’m not sure what to do when competition season is over.  I work out at home without a trainer, and have been using The New Rules of Lifting for Women as my guide.   I plan on continuing with my weightlifting program and I know that I need to comsume more calories than I am consuming now if I want to gain muscle.  But I don’t want to blimp up in the off season and then have to drop a ton of weight all over again.

    My diet right now is fairly low carb and high protein, with most of my carbs consumed around workouts.

    Any suggestions or stragegies that you have would be awesome.

    Thanks so much for your help!
    gina

Episodes

Review: Functional Strength Coach 3.0

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 6 - 2009

functional_strength_coachThere are three or four people in the industry that I turn to for the latest and greatest in strength and conditioning. Mike Boyle is at the top of that list. Since I was in college I have seen Mike present six times, and on every single occasion I went home  more competent and educated in this field many of us love and have made our profession. Yes, there is tons of information in these 8 DVDs, but the most important aspect of this package is Mike. Just watching him present gets you pumped up to be a better coach, trainer, or weekend warrior. The passion and enthusiasm really pours out of the guy. It is the main reason why I went to go work for Mike, just being around him is infectious (in the non swine flu type of way). One more quick example of this is at his seminars. Mike literally sits with dozens of people who came and takes the time (at Ryan Lee’s Boot Camp it was literally over an hour) to answer questions and just talk shop. Because Mike has coach for all of these years he has that anecdotal evidence you just won’t find from a 12-week study.

Now lets talk about the content of these DVDs:

The first two DVDs cover Mike’s joint-by-joint approach to training. This by itself is worth $200, for many of you it will change the way you look at mobility, stability, and program design. You will have one of those, “son of a bitch how didn’t I think of that?” moments. In the third DVD Mike talks about the lumbar spine and the mobility vs stability debate. This 45 minute section will end it.

The next two DVDs are practicals with Mike going through the flexibility and mobility circuits that he uses at Boston University. He sets up ten stations and goes through 10 flexibility and mobility movements and some of their progressions. Workout Muse is used to keep all of the athletes on the same page and done in a reasonable amount of time.

After the hands on stuff we go back to the slides where Mike talks about core development. Anti-rotation, planks, rollouts and their progressions are gone through here. Basically which movements to use for certain situations (think back pain clients) and how to progress them so they can gradually increase the load. The TRX also comes into play here with some newer exercises and progressions including TRX rollouts, planks, and more. This may be the most important DVD for some of you since almost everyone will suffer from some kind of low back pain in their lifetime. You need to know how to address it.

Finally for the last two DVDs Mike talks about how he trains his athletes from pro to middle school. No stone is left unturned here, as Mike says, he has nothing to hide, there are no secrets after these DVDs come out. He also addresses the CNS intensive workout project and the results. What he says here may surprise you…

Included in the package is a binder will all of the slides and workout templates to see how Mike designs the programs.

Overall is this a good purchase at $199? What do you think? Can you spare $200 to become a better coach? What is it worth to you? If you take what you do as a trainer, coach, or athlete with any kind of seriousness or passion, that is a resounding YES. Go buy it now and in 8 hours be leaps and bounds ahead of others in your field.

You can get the package at http://www.functionalstrengthcoach3.com/

Blog Posts

Episode 154: Assess and Correct

Posted by Kevin Larrabee On November - 1 - 2009

Get this Week’s Episode:

MP3 Download/iTunes/RSS/Odeo


Hosts:

Kevin Larrabee (Twitter) and Eric Cressey

FitCast News

  • EC Interview coming up
  • VOICE MAIL: 978-633-3488
  • Rachel Cosgrove next week
  • FSC 3.0 Review Coming
  • Video Blog on my Garage Gym

Mailbag

  • Hey guys, great show as always.
    Firstly, since I know you guys love bad trainer stories, I thought I’d share one.  Yesterday, I saw a trainer having her client perform clean and presses using a Bosu Ball. And by using a Bosu Ball, I mean it was the weight.  I wondered if the poor client felt swindled as he overhead pressed a five-pound plastic ring.
    Okay, to my question(for whomever)….

    What are the potential detriments to lifting to failure when performing bigger lifts.  Ever since I was introduced to weight training while playing high school football, I’ve been taught to push through each set until my muscles failed on me.  As I’m no longer a competitive athlete and am not as concerned with increasing my training loads, I was curious to hear your take on the physiological downside to this methodology(aside from the potentially destroying a perfectly good power rack/bench/spinal column).
    I’m thirty years old, 6′4 210, probably around fifteen percent body fat or so(more like twenty between Thanksgiving and Christmas).  As I said, I’m not as concerned with getting exponentially stronger as I am with maintaining solid fitness and of course, good health.
    Thanks as always and keep up the good work.
    Best,

    James

  • Hey Everyone,
    I’m a long-time athlete who is just getting into the personal training business. I have two questions for you: I know you guys are fans of the TRX Suspension Trainer and with good reason. Do you think this is a viable tool for personal trainers who work in the clients’ homes? Also, how much of a role does alkalinity (pH balance of the blood) play in losing weight? I’ve heard conflicting reports about some people being unable to lose weight because their body was too acidic. Thanks guys, great podcast.

    -Ken Sanford

  • Guys, love the show. I started listening a few months ago and have been making my way through the older episodes.

    I think Eric would be the best one to answer this question given the picture of his bruised leg on TMUSCLE. What should one be using for soft tissue work? I’ve seen most people recommend a tennis ball or foam roller, but have also heard of golf balls, and I’ve even used a cue ball. Will the amount of give the object have an effect and do certain areas of the body require more or less firmness?

    Thanks for any input you guys have and keep up the good work.

    Mark

Interview with Eric Cressey
  • I want to know how he assesses his general population clients, I was at the PB summit and saw how he assesses his baseball guys. -Jaison
  • You wrote on your blog (and Tony did on his) about recently deadlifting 4 days a week. Can you talk about thedeadlifting experiment? Are you going to write an article about it? Also do you think you will transfer what you learned to increasing your squat or bench numbers?  -Tom D.
  • What are your thoughts on Mike Boyle’s video on not bilateral squatting anymore? Do you agree with him? -Jesse
  • Hey Eric, I am a big fan of your articles on T-Nation and your book Maximum strength. A study review recently came out that compares front squats to back squats. have you seen this and if so what were your thoughts? -Roger
  • “Hi Keven, – Fan of the show. Eric – Just ordered A&C yesterday.

    Id like to know more about Eric’s thought process for programming clients. How does he turn a clients goal or request, and turn it into a program. Does he have a system in place and tweak it, or is it customized every time. How does he fit corrective exercises into the mix, before, in between sets. Does he have a minimum time frame hell program for (3, 4, 6 months?) And how does he envision progressing exercises, and how often does his programming line up with reality. What about cardiovascular programming? Is it part science, part art from experience? Huge question, and very vague, but i really would love to hear anything on this topic.

    Thanks!” -Neil

  • What are Erics views on the manual bodyweight hamstring curl for people that do not have access to a GHR? Can it be done without damage to the knees? I’ve done them before but worry about pivoting on my knees with my 235lb bodyweight on them. -Andrew
  • Now let’s talk about Assess and Correct, what is it, who is it for, and how does it compare to the previous DVDs you, Mike Robertson, and Bill Hartman have put together?
  • I’m curious about how the self assessments work. Will you need a camera or are these assessments the sort that can be felt out or seen in the 1st person adequately? As a general example, a lunge can have many things go wrong with it that the performer doesn’t notice, whereas a supine hamstring flexibility test would show imbalances to the performer fairly well. -Sean
  • Read any good training or nutrition books or seen any good DVDs that the audience should keep a look out for?

Check out AssessandCorrect.com for more info on the DVD!

Episodes

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