Note: This is part 2 of The Problem With Research series. Part 1 is here.
The truth is more important than the facts. Frank Lloyd Wright
FACTS.
They’re everywhere. You can find facts in a book, in a magazine, or on the World Wide Web. You can find people talking about facts on the news, in a political convention, or at a health professional conference. You can find facts almost everywhere you go because our culture bombards us with facts supporting this and facts supporting that. Facts are literally being fired off in every direction just like free throws in one of Shaq’s basketball games.
Here’s a brain-crasher: facts aren’t always true. In fact, some facts are false… deceptive… even lies. Other times facts are an illusion of the truth, but have been skewed into half-truths (this means that they’re not true!). There are a great many things that differentiate the truth from the facts.
Facts can be interpreted many different ways. Truth is known.
Facts can be used as evidence to support an opinion. Truth supersedes opinions.
Facts can be used out of context to create the illusion of truth. Truth is absolute.
The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end; there it is. Winston Churchill
Note: maybe you’ve already read my TACFIT Commando Review, and you’ve gotten most of your questions answered from yesterday’s Q+A with a hesitant buyer. This one last bit of info is about why I love this program and why you will, too.
I’ve been talking about it since December, and now it’s finally here. The buzz has all but worn off.
Yesterday, Scott Sonnon (the co-creator) told me that this is already the most successful product launch in the history of his company RMAX International – and that was only the first DAY of being released at the introductory sale price (of the 3-day launch sale). The response has been massive, and many of my readers have made a choice in the last 24 hours to take on the TACFIT Commando challenge. I truly think that this program will set a precedent for future bodyweight products, strength training products, and even just general fitness products. It’s that good.
I’m particularly excited about this program for several reasons…
5 Reasons Why You’ll Love TACFIT Commando
1) It’s based on the cutting-edge Circular Strength Training system - What others criticize as the “cool kids club of fitness,” or “a group of blind followers baited into hyped-up, ineffective training programs” I see as a collection of principles and methods that are universally accepted as valid training advice. CST is a framework that includes all the relevant tools and strategies for achieving physical goals. It is a SYSTEM that puts them all together with a health-first focus. When you boil CST down to it’s very essence and when you get rid of all the gossip-baggage associated with it, what remains is what every good coach agrees on that works for physical goals – the commonalities, not the differences. TACFIT Commando is based on this genius CST system and that’s exactly why it works so well.
2) It’s a cheaper, equipment-free version of the original TAC-FIT - One of my major reservations in recommending the original TACFIT program was that it required special equipment like parallettes, gymnastic rings, clubbells, etc. These are all great tools that I love using, but not everyone has access to them. TACFIT Commando requires ZERO equipment so your only investment is the product itself. Speaking of investments, this program is WAY cheaper than the original TACFIT – hundreds of dollars cheaper actually (even after the sale expires on Friday). At the 51% off sale price, you’re getting a ridiculous amount of material for a very low price. It’ll still be well-worth the full price when it nearly doubles on Saturday.
3) It’s a bodyweight program, and therefore hugely beneficial and practical to its end-users - I’ve covered the benefits of bodyweight exercise many times in the past. Let alone the practical benefits of not requiring much, if any, equipment – and therefore a gym membership, you can do it anytime, anywhere, and it doesn’t cost any money (unless you want to invest in specific tools like pullup bars or parallette’s, for instance.) But there’s also physiological benefits from training with bodyweight exercises.
You may have heard some strength coaches say that you shouldn’t lift weights until you can control your own bodyweight – that’s very good advice. World renowned coach, Alwyn Cosgrove is known for holding this mantra at his California facility, Results Fitness. Before you load your body with external forces, make sure you have adequate control of your own bodyweight. Bodyweight training develops inter-muscular coordination. That’s a fancy way of saying “being able to transfer force throughout your entire body.” It also serves as a foundation for good lifting skills (and swinging skills for you clubbell athletes).
4) It’s been created for the elite men and women whom we count on every day, but it’s still relevant to fitness trainee’s and weekend warriors alike – TACFIT Commando is cutting-edge. No if’s, and’s, or but’s! This is exactly what elite forces all around the world are using to train themselves for peak conditioning. Let me say that another way. The BEST of the BEST are using this program, so naturally, it must be outstanding. The great part is that it has scalability built-in to the program so anyone who is healthy enough to exercise can start it. You don’t have to be a Navy SEAL to start TACFIT Commando. It was created with the intention of being used by a broad range of people like you and I (see the Q+A post for more info specifically for beginners or deconditioned folks).
5) It’s going to slap CrossFit in the face - Pretty hard, too. You see, the TACFIT Commando protocol is based on the SAID Principle, which states that the body adapts specifically to the demands imposed upon it. SPECIFICALLY. There’s no such thing as general conditioning. If you still think it exists, I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but it doesn’t exist. That’s why TACFIT Commando was created very specifically for the needs of our servicemen. It’s not a general conditioning program at all. That’s not to say that people won’t use it to build muscle, burn fat, and build their conditioning levels with it (what we often equate with “general fitness goals”). What we must understand is that these things are by-products of training specifically for tactical fitness. They aren’t the end goal, but they are some of the results.
TACFIT Commando has a lot more over CrossFit besides that. And yes, I know – THEM’S FIGHTEN WERDS!!!
If you haven’t made up your mind about TACFIT Commando yet, then I hope this brought some light to the program. If you have more questions about it, feel free to comment in yesterday’s Q+A with a hesitant buyer, and you can also read my official TACFIT Commando review here.
For more information, or to purchase TACFIT Commando, please visit the official site here:
Note: I received some questions from a hesitant buyer about TACFIT Commando this morning. They graciously allowed me to republish my response here on my blog. Their name has been left out for anonymity sake.
QUESTION:
Hello John,
Thanks again for your responses to all my questions! I wonder if I could ask you a few more questions, this time about Tacfit Commando. One of the things that has impressed me so much about CST is its extensive vocabulary of bodyweight exercises. While many of these movements are not absolutely unique to CST, they are thoughtfully put together all in one place, with accompanying forms of joint mobility, compensation, etc. One of the challenges of being a newcomer to CST is sorting through all the different products, and trying to differentiate them from each other and determine their distinctive value. I am delving into Flowfit and Intuflow. I think I can already appreciate (and more importantly feel) their commonalities and differences. To me, being able to move in a sophisticated manner is much more compelling than increasing my bench press!
Tacfit Commando looks like a very interesting product. I tried the Israeli Challenge and truly enjoyed it, even if movements like the quad squat, springing tripods, and swinging planks were not entirely new to me (for example, they are all in Flowfit). The marketing of Commando, however, has me very wary. Frankly, I think it is packaged in a hokey manner that makes me feel like I’m being sold snake oil. This comment has nothing to do with the goal of training soldiers, the sincerity of Commando’s creators, etc. It is simply a comment on how
it is all packaged. I feel as though the approach can stand on its own without all that artifice (i.e. Intuflow has little artifice and amazing content), and the artifice makes me wonder about the value of its actual content!
I know you do not endorse products lightly. In fact, your endorsement is encouraging me to give Commando a chance. As there are pros and cons to any approach, I wonder if you could suggest some of the weaknesses in Commando. What kinds of athletic goals and plans would it not be particularly well suited for? Could you give me a sense of how it differs from products like BER? Can it be incorporated with other forms of resistance or endurance training? Is there a substantially new vocabulary of movement in Commando as opposed to
what has come before?
I’m not expecting you to say anything negative about your colleagues, or put you in a bind, but I thought it might be helpful to get feedback from one person who thinks the packaging is a real turn off (i.e. Sonnon’s statement that the enemy is not honorable enough to do the workout- I mean c’mon…). I will probably end up purchasing Commando before the initial deal expires, but hoped your feedback could help me make an informed decision.
Many Thanks,
Anonymous
ANSWER:
You’re very welcome. I’d be happy to assist you in your buying decision. Times are rough and money is tight, so I want to make sure you don’t feel like you’re getting scammed into something that isn’t right for you.
I hear you on the marketing, but as I said in my email newsletter… If you take away all the marketing, all the shiny signs and fancy sales copy, and leave ONLY the program, I think it stands alone as an excellent product, which is why I gave it an endorsement. If I were in charge of releasing it, I’m sure I probably would have done it a little differently, but let’s get to your questions. Continue reading TACFIT Commando FAQ and Concerns From a Hesitant Buyer (Q+A)
How to Get a Commando Body Without Ever Going to the Gym
*Note: this is the official TACFIT Commando Review featured on PhysicalLiving.com. See below for a FREE gift offer.
Body by TACFIT Commando
Body by TACFIT Commando
Today, conditioning coaches to the elite Special Forces groups around the world are shaking their heads at fitness trainers who earn fortunes by regurgitating cookie-cutter exercise programs for all of their mis-informed clients. And today, these elite coaches are finally revealing the simple proven system for real life functional fitness that no one else will tell you about.
Professional fighter, MMA conditioning coach, and creator of the Circular Strength Training system, Scott Sonnon, has teamed up with Ryan Murdock to teach you how to build go-muscle (not show muscle), burn off body fat, super-charge your metabolism, and do so while practicing the highest level tactical fitness program ever devised. Discover how they’ve taught thousands of people to build combat-ready, commando-like physiques faster than they ever thought possible.
Even if you are not in the military, even if you’re not as fit as the “elite,” even if you have less-than-average genetics, and even if you don’t have a gym membership or a home gym to train in…
You’re about to discover what might be the most effective bodyweight conditioning system ever developed. It’s the same system that elite Special Forces groups around the world are using to build hard bodies and the functional fitness that goes with them.
If you’d like to learn how to lose bodyfat, build muscle, and vastly improve your conditioning, then you absolutely must check out TACFIT Commando:
I know what you’re thinking… Commando? Tactical fitness? Is this really relevant to ME???
100% YES!
You see, TACFIT Commando isn’t being released to the public just so that our servicemen have yet another way to gain access to cutting-edge workout programs. TACFIT Commando is being released to the public because it was meant specifically FOR the public. That’s right, people like you and I.
It’s true, the term Commando does seem a little cheesy unless you’re into that hardcore mentality, and I do feel that sometimes the marketing goes a little over the top, but there’s a reason for that. TACFIT works. It works very well, in fact. I’ve used it, and know many people personally who swear by its effectiveness for achieving
common fitness goals. Nobody is debating that it works better than practically any other functional fitness program available.
But there’s something about it that makes it very unique. Not only does it require absolutely no equipment at all, which is amazing since it literally requires no further investment (it works right out of the box, actually a download, so you get it instantly – you don’t even have to wait for shipping), but TACFIT Commando is unique in that it is currently used by the Israeli counter-terrorism and secret services, American special ops personnel, Italian bodyguards to the Prime Minister, US federal agents, firemen, law enforcement agencies and even professional MMA fighters.
These are the people whom not only are required to be in the best physical shape for their jobs, they’re also the very same people who have access to the latest and greatest resources to meet their basic needs – including their fitness and conditioning needs.
That’s exactly why TACFIT is so unique, because it best serves the needs for those who truly need it most. Given that it works so well, and that’s it’s currently being used by our elite servicemen, there’s something you should probably know – a disclaimer of sorts.
It’s not for everyone, and I mean that – it might not be right for you. I’ve tested the program extensively, and I can tell you with no uncertainty that this is one of the most difficult training program’s I’ve ever encountered. I would wager that 75% of my readers have not trained with an intensity that TACFIT not only depends on, but thrives on.
I don’t say this to puff it up and make it look all tough and hardcore. I’m saying it to warn you. In the same breath, I don’t say this to scare you or deter you from trying it out, only to let you know that it’s not a sissy system for wannabes.
When you get down to it, it’s not a flashy fitness program – it’s very hard work that requires dedication and discipline to truly benefit from. When you take away the catchy intro music and the cool graphics, what’s left is a pile of sweat, some fatigue, and an undeniable knowledge that you’ve done something wonderful for yourself.
If you are familiar with Circular Strength Training, you’ll know right away that not only will this program work, but you’ll leave a TACFIT session feeling better and more energized than you were going into it – even though the workout was exhausting and challenging. Despite facing fatigue head-on, you’ll also experience second wind (aka flowstate) if you follow the program as outlined.
One of the best things about TACFIT is its scalability. Anyone, regardless of fitness level, can begin a TACFIT Commando program because it has difficulty levels directly programmed into it. So, even though it can be brutally hard, the beginner level (recruit) routine will work for anyone who is healthy enough to exercise.
Which leads me to my last point. It sounds too good to be true, and the package that Scott and Ryan are offering truly is outstanding. These guys are in the habit of over-delivering when they release something to the public, and this is no different.
Now, I want you to go check out the TACFIT Commando package that is finally available for sale. Consider this a very strong recommendation. I would hope that all of my readers would benefit from using this program if it’s aligned with their goals.
And I assure you, much of what you’ll find in TACFIT Commando will be brand new to you – never-before-seen methods for functional fitness. You’d be hard pressed to find a program this original and innovative, and especially at such a low cost.
Now, stop reading and go check it out immediately – that’s an order!
*If you order through my referral link, please send me a copy of your receipt and I’ll send you a free gift: The TACGYM Double Leg Swoop Coaching Video (11 minute instructional video in WMV format). This has been one of my favorite exercises for years. It’s great for strengthening the core muscles, and releasing tension in and around the hips and lower back. Plus, it’s a lot of fun to do because you feel like you’re breakdancing! After you’ve placed your order through my referral link, just forward your confirmation email containing your receipt to physical (dot) living [at] gmail (dot) com and I’ll reply with your free gift. Thank you for supporting PhysicalLiving.com!
To your health and success,
CST, CST-KS, NSCA-CPT
Fitness Professional
More Information About TACFIT Commando
TACFIT Commando FAQ Page – I received some questions from a hesitant buyer about the TACFIT Commando program. They graciously allowed me to republish my response here on my blog. It ended up becoming more of a FAQ section – including a lot of comments from people who have used the program themselves. If you’ve got product-related questions, then chances are they’ve already been answered on that page. If not, please post your questions in the comments section there, and I’ll make sure someone gets you the answer you’re looking for.
TACFIT Commando Workout Video – Check out the TACFIT Commando Israeli Challenge Workout if you’d like an idea of what the actual program is like.
TACFIT Commando Review (updated 11/2011) – I wrote an updated product review that goes into much more depth than my original review above.
Hello John, Thank you for your site. It is a tremendous resource. After years of running and swimming regularly (a few pull ups and push ups mixed in) but without any sort of training strategy, I’ve become more deliberate about my “physical living” over the past several months. Bodyweight training has figured prominently in this shift, as it aligns with my lifestyle and physical goals. Gyms don’t let you bring the dog along, or provide sunshine! I’ve collected a few tools along the way to add variety- a rope for climbing, homemade parallettes and adjustable straps, a timer for HIIT sprints, a sledge hammer, jump rope, sand bag, pull up bar, and balance ball. I’m learning more about the work of individuals such as Steve Maxwell and Scott Sonnon. Also, I’ve just started Intuflow.
I appreciate your emphasis on tailoring workouts to individuals. My training goals are oriented towards long term physical health. Though the idea of sophisticating movements is very appealing to me, I seek general preparedness for activities like hiking and surfing. Given these generalist tendencies, and my desire for variety and the ability to alter workouts due to weather conditions, daily schedule etc., I don’t think programs like the 4×7, prescribed workouts of the day, or alternating complementary cycles are for me. At the same time, I don’t want variety to descend into randomness.
It is difficult for a novice to wade through the sometimes heated disagreements between proponents of different training strategies. For elite athletes, the consequences of poor training can be serious and severe, but it is hard to know how and whether these arguments truly apply to someone with my goals. Since I am coaching myself, I lean towards safety, and do not push my limits in the way that an elite athlete might. I am willing to work hard, hoping to work smart, and interested in sophisticating my skills. Many programs intensely focused on maximizing particular results, however, don’t fit me too well.
I wonder whether you might provide some general training guidelines for someone in my situation. I don’t want random variety without any direction or deliberation, but I like the ability to just go on a nice run in the woods when it fits the weather or my mental state. I realize my question may eventually lead to a more intense engagement with the CST system (ideas of compensation and functional opposites), but in the meantime, are there some guidelines I can follow to fit balance variation with the desire to train safely and progress over time?
This is a guest column by Dr. Kathryn Woodall for expressing health first. It was originally published in the RMAX Magazine, volume 7, issue 6. I thought it was such an excellent piece, and Kathryn was kind enough to allow me to republish it here for you. The knowledge she conveys in this article doesn’t come from mere education, it comes from in-the-trenches experience. You may be shocked or even scared to digest this food for thought, but I assure you that this is the reality we are facing today. We are in desperate times, and knowledge is the greatest asset we can share with each other.
“You’re only as strong as your weakest link.” You’ve heard it thousands of times, but what does it mean when it comes to your health? It means you need to identify and take care of limiting factors.
We’ve talked about how the food you eat and absorb, the movement you do, and the thoughts you think (your paradigm) all work to create ‘you.’ If those basic components create your health or destroy it should you neglect or abuse them, then those are the first places you should look for weak links. With the exception of trauma and poison, the point at which your health begins to breakdown can almost always be traced back to those three components—they can be the limiting factor when it comes to the degree of health you create and enjoy.
In this article, I’m going to give an example of how something as simple as ‘the food you eat and absorb’ can be your weakest link. I’m not presenting an actual case history—it’s just one possible scenario designed to show you how interconnected your health is. Continue reading Your Weakest Link – is it Food, Movement, Thoughts, or Knowledge?
Since my early childhood, I’ve been notorious for doing seemingly crazy things. From running barefoot over gravel roads to swinging “those heavy bat things” for the pure joy of exhaustion to ranting on end about the cardiovascular benefits of consuming omega 3 fatty acids… I’m the guy in the group who makes people wonder “Is he alright? No really, is he?”
I’ll be the first to admit that I think we need some more crazies in the world and I’m giving YOU an opportunity to join the ranks. Right now.
Here’s the skinny…
There’s a free workout program here. I’ve reviewed it, practiced it, and found it to be fantastic program for people who are looking for full body conditioning without needing any equipment.
It’s a bodyweight-only workout from the upcoming TACFIT Commando program and it’s setup with 3 levels of difficulty – recruit, grunt, and commando (beginner, intermediate, and advanced). Anyone who is healthy and cleared for exercise can participate in this challenge. This workout only takes 20 minutes, and the goal is to score 20 points in 20 minutes. That means you need to complete one circuit per minute. 1 completed circuit in under 1 minute equals one point. It sounds easy enough, right? (That’s exactly what they want you to think) You can get the full details in the special report that explains the entire challenge here.
So, I want you to read through the manual, learn the exercises, and complete the session sometime this week – ideally in the next 24 hours. Then, post your results in the comments section of this post.
This can be done in place of any strength training or cardio session. But don’t be fooled, it’s not gonna be easy. You may even hate me after you start, and very likely will begin whispering sweet nothings under your breath to curse me from whence I came. But alas, I am no stranger to discomfort or exhaustion, and I’ll be participating in the challenge within the next 24 hours along with you.
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This is a guest column by Dr. Kathryn Woodall for expressing health first. It was originally published in the RMAX Magazine, volume 7, issue 6. I thought it was such an excellent piece, and Kathryn was kind enough to allow me to republish it here for you. The knowledge she conveys in this article doesn’t come from mere education, it comes from in-the-trenches experience. You may be shocked or even scared to digest this food for thought, but I assure you that this is the reality we are facing today. We are in desperate times, and knowledge is the greatest asset we can share with each other.
