Gurus make training complex so everyone has to come to them for answers. Why haven’t people figured this out? – Vern Gambetta, world-renowned strength and conditioning coach
I’ve got good news for you. You don’t need any gurus in your life! And you definitely don’t need me either. The truth is that you already know what you need to do to get healthier, more fit, and achieve your own individual goals. In fact, you know it better than anyone else, better than any so-called guru ever could. Think I’m kidding? Nope. I’m dead serious.
Note: I got this question from one of my readers not too long ago, and thought I’d post the response as a Q+A for you here.
There was a time in my life when I ran six days a week, and almost every single run pushed me right to my limit. I ran myself so hard for so long that I developed debilitating injuries that ultimately took years of rehabilitation before I could even run again. Yes, I was dumb, and needless to say, I’m a little wiser for the wear. If I was going to start running that much again, my approach would be completely different from what it used to be – light-years different actually. So, if you are at all interested in high-frequency or high-volume running, then here is a laundry list of tips for you – tips I gave to a man who has a goal of running every single day for a year.
QUESTION:
My challenge for myself this year is to run 365 days this year. I’m a runner. I love running. I am not perfect and I’m still overweight, even after all the running that I do. Do you have any tips for an [relatively] extreme challenge like this? – Joshua
ANSWER:
Hi Joshua,
There’s so much I could say. So, I’ll just point you to a handful of resources to help you get started…
1) First, definitely read Joe Henderson’s short book Long Slow Distance, which is available for free online. I wrote an article highlighting some of its lessons on my site and you’ll see a link to the book in this article: The Little-Known Philosophy of Gentle Running
2) Second, I would HIGHLY recommend beginning a daily pre and post run practice involving some joint mobility and yoga compensatory routines that are specific to running. This is especially important since you’re a little overweight. Your body has more stress on the joints and soft tissues and you’ll want to go above and beyond on this prehabilitative work. For perspective, if you were my personal training client, this would be required. It’s that important.
The DVD called RMAX Powered Running by Joseph Wilson is a perfect program for this and will cover almost all of your bases. There’s some more info about the program in this article:
Few comments make my blood boil more than when someone tells me:
You must have great genetics.
As if my accomplishments are merely the result of a lottery-winning DNA!
Discipline, hard work, clarity of purpose, consistency – these things certainly wouldn’t have anything to do with it.
Well, I’ve got news for you. Here are 10 things that your genetics won’t do for you…
Genetics won’t get you up at 5 in the morning to do your training.
Genetics won’t plan your meals, do your grocery shopping, or cook for you.
Genetics won’t help you say no to the chocolate cake during the holidays, or the birthdays, or the company parties, or the…
Genetics won’t help you quit smoking, alcohol, sugar, or other addictive behavior.
Genetics won’t help you set specific, measurable goals and pursue them passionately under a deadline.
Genetics won’t get you out for a run or a hike or a bike ride when it’s pouring rain outside.
Genetics won’t help you push through discomfort to score just one more rep than you thought you could.
Genetics won’t drive you to the gym when you’re exhausted after work or get you into your home gym after the kids are finally asleep.
Genetics definitely won’t help you when your heart is pounding, you’re huffing and puffing, barely standing, and still have to keep going – with good technique.
Genetics won’t help you do it all again tomorrow, and the next day, and the next.
Genetics are like excuses. Everybody’s got them, but some people don’t let that stop them from pursuing success anyways. So, don’t be weak. Choose strength. You are strong. Listen to what I’m saying. YOU are strong. So, be strong.
“I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.” – From the poem “Invictus” by William Henry
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I’ve seen a recurring theme about exercise in some media outlets recently, both in mainstream and smaller sources. It’s the notion that exercise somehow makes you fatter, or similarly, that it won’t actually help you get thinner. If that wasn’t outrageous enough, I’ve even seen claims that exercise doesn’t improve fitness at all. Of course, it’s all complete nonsense, and in some cases, blatant lies. Humanity has known for a long, LONG time all about the various benefits of exercise. And if millennia of culture, tradition, and common sense isn’t convincing enough for you, then you can scour the research archives that have grown to a monstrous level over the past several decades. Of course, the overwhelming evidence is that exercise is extremely good for us, and for the most part, people have been doing it just fine all along.
In fact, the many benefits of exercise are now extremely well-documented. It is an indisputable fact that exercise, or to be even more general – physical activity – is good for us and that it comes with a myriad of physical and mental benefits, among many other things. It is arguably the single best thing you could do to improve your health, fitness, body composition, and quality of life. Anyone who says otherwise, or even hints otherwise, should immediately be dismissed as someone who is misinformed, but more likely a complete quack who is not worth a moment of your attention. You see, it’s one thing to investigate an issue that may have some loopholes that we just haven’t figured out yet, and report on that. But it’s quite another to do that while also ignoring logic, reason, and the massive quantity of evidence in the research data that has already been compiled and verified in peer-reviewed journals. Yet, this seems to be happening more and more often, and not just from fringe groups either. Does TIME magazine ring a bell?
Have you ever seen those guys or gals at the gym doing an exercise with a partial range of motion? Maybe they were doing 1/4 squats or even the dreaded half pullups (I call them “sissy pullups”). If you’re like me, then this probably drives you crazy. There have been times when I just wanted to grab someone by the scruff of their sweaty tank top and yell, “you’re doing it wrong!” But are they really? Do they know something that we don’t, and is there something to partial rep training that we could all do well to draw on? Well, a new study shines some light on this issue, and we’re going to take a quick peek in a minute.
But first, let me be clear that there are two kinds of people who use partial reps in their programs. First, you have the advanced weightlifters – the guys who may or may not be competitive strength athletes, but at the very least, have been at the iron game for years. These are the guys who will plug some partial rep training into their routines – usually to help improve a weak portion of a lift (like the rock bottom position of the squat, or the lockout portion of the deadlift). For example, you might see one of these guys doing deadlifts with an barbell that is elevated on pins in the power rack so that he’s only doing the top half of the range of motion, or he may be using resistance bands to make the very last portion of the ROM the toughest. So, that’s your first category of partial rep trainees. These guys are the elites and they know what they’re doing.
Then you have the next category, which is just some person who knows hardly anything about training and generally uses sloppy technique in all of their lifting exercises, usually because they are trying to lift with way too much weight. You thought 1/4 squats were bad? Try watching someone do 1/8 squats with twice their bodyweight on the bar! Needless to say, it doesn’t take a strength and conditioning coach to tell the two categories of trainees apart.
TACFIT Firefighter is a low-tech, high effect fitness training program that involves a carefully-selected collection of health-first conditioning methods that are packaged into one comprehensive, plug-and-play system to help you improve your fitness by burning stubborn fat, building functional muscle and improving your conditioning level in a variety of movement skills that were specifically engineered to improve performance in the firefighting profession. I’d say that sums it up, but boy, what a mouthful!
Christian Carson
TACFIT Firefighter was created by firefighters, for firefighters, but it is an excellent program for anyone who is interested in a high standard of fitness and peak performance in their job and in their lifestyle. You may never need to rescue someone from a burning building, or wield a 290 psi fire hose like firefighters do every day, but if you want to be leaner, stronger, and more fit for your life, then TACFIT Firefighter may still be a good option for you. Of course, almost anyone could benefit from using this program, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily right for everyone, which is why I recommend you get your questions answered BEFORE you pull out that credit card and shell out your hard-earned cash.
Ryan Provencher
TACFIT Firefighter was created by two fire captains who both have had a lifelong love of fitness. Both of the co-creators, Christian Carson and Ryan Provencher, are fitness professionals and TACFIT Division Chiefs, the highest level certification awarded in the TACFIT hierarchy (TACFIT is short for tactical fitness and is a fast-growing system under the RMAX International organization, which also puts out the Circular Strength Training system, in which the author is certified). These guys are well-credentialed and certainly qualified to address the fitness needs facing the firefighting profession, but what is the REAL TRUTH behind this system they’ve put together – is it worth it, does it work, and who would be best served by TACFIT Firefighter?
This review is going to answer all of those questions and more. Ultimately, my goal is to help you decide if this product is right for you.
So, what is TACFIT Firefighter and what do you actually get when you buy it?
Well, have a look at this first. This will give you the general gist of what you’re getting…
It’s ok. I get it – that was pretty dang cool. And I hope you caught how the exercises chosen coincide with the actual duties that firefighters need to perform. That’s something we discussed at length during my interview with Christian and Ryan about TACFIT Firefighter. But I’m getting off topic. Suffice to say, that was a pretty sweet trailer, and it’s that kind of production quality and attention to detail that you can expect from the rest of the TACFIT Firefighter Program. Sometimes, it’s better to SEE the quality that you’ll be buying instead of just hearing about it.
A few days ago, I had the opportunity to get on the phone with the creators of the new TACFIT Firefighter Program. Christian Carson and Ryan Provencher have been hard at work on this product for two years now, and the program has actually been in development for much longer than that. To say that I was impressed with their candor and knowledge would be an understatement. These guys are the real deal, and I’m going to go out on a limb when I say that TACFIT Firefighter is going to revolutionize the methods that firefighters in this nation, and around the world, use to maintain a high level of fitness year round – fitness that requires them to be ready to perform at a moment’s notice.
Ryan Provencher
Even after only a few minutes on the phone, it was obvious how deep of an understanding each of these men has of fitness training, and more specifically, how it pertains to firefighters and those in similar professions. These guys are able to break down complex ideas and explain them in layman’s terms, and their program operates in much the same way. I’ve had a chance to preview the materials and try out one of the workouts, and let me tell you, this is some sophisticated program design, but the way it has been presented couldn’t make it easier to follow on a day to day basis.
QUESTION:.jpg "John Sifferman")
In fact, the many benefits of exercise are now extremely well-documented. It is an indisputable fact that exercise, or to be even more general – physical activity – is good for us and that it comes with a myriad of physical and mental benefits, among many other things. It is arguably the single best thing you could do to improve your health, fitness, body composition, and quality of life. Anyone who says otherwise, or even hints otherwise, should immediately be dismissed as someone who is misinformed, but more likely a complete quack who is not worth a moment of your attention. You see, it’s one thing to investigate an issue that may have some loopholes that we just haven’t figured out yet, and report on that. But it’s quite another to do that while also ignoring logic, reason, and the massive quantity of evidence in the research data that has already been compiled and verified in peer-reviewed journals. Yet, this seems to be happening more and more often, and not just from fringe groups either. Does TIME magazine ring a bell?
But first, let me be clear that there are two kinds of people who use partial reps in their programs. First, you have the advanced weightlifters – the guys who may or may not be competitive strength athletes, but at the very least, have been at the iron game for years. These are the guys who will plug some partial rep training into their routines – usually to help improve a weak portion of a lift (like the rock bottom position of the squat, or the lockout portion of the deadlift). For example, you might see one of these guys doing deadlifts with an barbell that is elevated on pins in the power rack so that he’s only doing the top half of the range of motion, or he may be using resistance bands to make the very last portion of the ROM the toughest. So, that’s your first category of partial rep trainees. These guys are the elites and they know what they’re doing.
