Chasing Capacity

The fitness industry is much like the rest of the world.  Folks seem to get really comfortable associating with other fitness professionals who are fairly like minded.  This can be really frustrating for me because I think it is critical to constantly look outside your comfort zone and challenge your beliefs to continuously improve your programs.  If you notice my blog roll is fairly extensive (and always growing) and I do my best to keep up with what other folks in the industry are doing.  The purpose of this on-going series of blog posts is to highlight someone whom you should know.  I’ve included a few of their posts that I thought were valuable and deserve some of your attention. This in no way means that I agree whole-heartedly with everything they say.  In fact some of these folks may have belief systems that are 180 degrees from my own, which in my mind is even more of a reason to spend some time taking a look at who they are and what they are about.

Who:

Charlie Weingroff

(Editor’s Note – Charlie’s bio was taken directly from his website)

Charlie is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, a Certified Athletic Trainer, and a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist.  He is currently the Director of Sports Performance and Physical Therapy at CentraState Sports Performance in Monroe, NJ, as well as the Director of Clinical Education for the Vibraflex Whole-Body Vibration and Andante Medical, the makers of the SmartStep, mobile force plate.  He graduated from Ursinus College with a degree in Exercise and Sports Science in 1996, and went on to earn an MSPT in 1999 and DPT in 2010 from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

Prior to returning to his home state of New Jersey in the Fall of 2006 after 12 seasons of professional basketball, he was the Head Strength & Conditioning Coach and Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA.   Among the highlights of his tenure in Philadelphia was being part of the medical staff that ranked 1st in the NBA in Player Games Missed in the 2005-06 season.

Through rehabbing patients, he subscribes to a movement-based approach popularized by the works of Dr. Vladimir Janda, Dr. Shirley Sahrmann, Dr. Stuart McGill, and Gray Cook.  In training athletes and clients, he champions the principles of the Functional Movement Screen and sound, evidence-based training principles.

Aside from working with patients, athletes and clients, he is also under the bar himself.  In 2007, he achieved AAPF Elite status in the 220 weight class with a total of 1915 pounds. His best powerlifting competition total is 800 squat, 510 bench press and 605 deadlift.

Why:

Charlie’s blog is always on my list of must reads for anyone interested in health and performance.  Charlie is highly analytical and approaches everything from a movement perspective.   He believes that training and rehab are the same thing and you are just limited by your scope of practice.  Charlie is always learning and seeking out new viewpoints to improve his practice.  His blog also serves as a healthy reminder that there is so much more to performance enhancement than just adding weight to the bar.

Articles You Should Read:

Training Basketball Players – Charlie’s thoughts on training basketball players.  He makes some excellent points about this population that anyone that trains these type of athletes should consider. I also feel this article is a must read for most trainers because much of the content can be applied to other athletes.

Janda’s Lower-Crossed – A brief post by Charlie on the ramifications of Janda’s Lower Crossed Syndrome today and a short discussion of how this can apply to someone with abnormally large calves.

Leg Curls – Charlie answers a readers question about why he doesn’t believe leg curls are a useful exercise, but in doing so also crafts a powerful argument for movement based training in general.  Most readers of this blog probably already agree with this approach and Charlie paints an eloquent picture of this viewpoint.

The fitness industry is much like the rest of the world.  Folks seem to get really comfortable associating with other fitness professionals who are fairly like minded.  This can be really frustrating for me because I think it is critical to constantly look outside your comfort zone and challenge your beliefs to continuously improve your programs.  If you notice my blog roll is fairly extensive (and always growing) and I do my best to keep up with what other folks in the industry are doing.  The purpose of this on-going series of blog posts is to highlight someone whom you should know.  I’ve included a few of their posts that I thought were valuable and deserve some of your attention. This in no way means that I agree whole-heartedly with everything they say.  In fact some of these folks may have belief systems that are 180 degrees from my own, which in my mind is even more of a reason to spend some time taking a look at who they are and what they are about.

Who:

Tony Gentilcore

(Editor’s Note – Tony’s bio and image were taken directly from his blog)

Tony Gentilcore is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) holding a degree in Health Education with a concentration in Health/Wellness Promotion from the State University of New York at Cortland. Recognized as one of the premier trainers in New England, Tony has established an outstanding reputation due to his no-nonsense approach to training, unique perspective on program design, and corrective exercise experience.

Tony is also one of the co-founders of Cressey Performance, located in Hudson, MA. His ability to relate closely to CP student athletes, aspiring professional athletes, and experienced professionals, dates back to his collegiate baseball experience. Tony was named Most Valuable Pitcher in 1996 and 1997 for Onondaga Community College (Syracuse, NY), where he was also named 1st Team all Conference and 1st Team all Region. He earned an athletic scholarship to play baseball at Mercyhurst College in Erie, PA where he was also named a “Division II Player to Watch” in 1998.

Why:

I have been reading Tony’s blog ever since he started writing the now famous Step Up! blog for the Boston Herald.  Tony’s blogs are always informative and highly entertaining.  They often highlight a particular topic he would like to rant about or demonstrate a new exercise to consider for your programs. He is a huge fan of the basics (heavy barbell lifts, push-ups etc.), but he also understands that just placing a barbell on someone’s back isn’t going to magically fix everyone’s problems. You will need to find ways to correct client’s issues as part of the training process.  Tony has a 3x bodyweight deadlift (570 at a bodyweight of 190).  Check out a nice video of him deadlifting (that may be one of the cleanest max DL pulls I’ve ever seen) and definitely practices what he preaches.

Articles You Should Read:

Mistakes Trainers and Coaches Make: Writing Workouts, and Not Programs – Tony’s rant on trainers that only write workouts and don’t understand how they fit into the big picture of what the client is trying to accomplish.

Contraindicated Exercises vs. Contraindicated Lifters – Tony’s post on the idea that no single exercise or exercise setup will be appropriate for every client when they enter your gym and you will need to identify appropriate progressions to safely move them along the exercise continuum.

What You SHOULD Do On Your “Off Day” – Tony proposes an alternative to the standard cardio or do nothing approach for an off day. Tony’s idea is that perhaps you should spend some time correcting some of your known issues while also breaking a nice sweat.  I couldn’t agree more.