Q. What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A. A good coach is also a good student. Training is creative. It begins with good science and it never ends. I learn about my clients and I learn from my clients. A broad based physical training can produce highly functional strength and abilities. I use a ramp-up program, great exercises and a level of variability that will keep things interesting. I follow the idea of a broad, general and inclusive fitness. We also accept that good fitness chases out bad. You are in good hands here.
Q. If you were a customer, what do you wish you knew about your trade? Any inside secrets to share?
A. I am not a coach by trade. I had to make a lot of mistakes, read a lot of useless books, go down the typical path of gym knowledgelessness, and suffer the frustration and indifference of working out alone in big box gyms where I made no friends, couldn't do much more than work up a slight sweat and take a shower. What a waste of time. Enter the need for functional strength, the curiosity to find a way to actually get strong, and the goal of being able to train at boxing, grappling and self-defense without getting so tired I couldn't stand up or get up at the end. I focused on the need for self defense and the strength and stamina to protect my life if the need ever arises. Now we have a career goal. Now we have something practical that can be defined, learned, and accomplished -no matter how long it takes me.
Q. What questions should a consumer ask to hire the right service professional?
A. You should ask yourself the following three questions and know the following answers. First, can you take a de-conditioned person and train them in a progressive manner while understanding their present conditon? (You can only do what you can do under your current circumstances and physical condition/health. Goals are good. Pushing you off a cliff isn't). Second, do "I" have to be an athlete to train with you? (Everyone is athletic to a degree. The point is not to become an athlete but to inspire and stimulate the natural physical adaptations that will occur if the program is filled with the type of variant movements that support the end goal). And third, is there an end point where I won't have to work out anymore? (The value of training is in the value you place on your health, feeling of well being, people you meet along the way, involvment in an elite level of training, and overall mental investment in never giving up on life).
Q. What important information should buyers have thought through before seeking you out?
A. I can address this only from personal experience. I decided long ago that working out at a gym was fruitless, cold, embarrassing, and under-productive. I came to CrossFit after getting crushed on the grappling mats by guys half my age, punched in the face during boxing by people quicker and stronger, and thrown around like a paper doll during self defense class by guys and women who simply were stronger and more flexible than me. Going to the gym didn’t mitigate the issue, personal trainers couldn’t answer the strength and endurance question and I was 30 pounds overweight and less than athletic. I did some research within what I call the extreme athletics community (Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai boxers , Parkour…) and CrossFit popped up seemingly out of the ether. I looked into it and here I am almost 5 years later.
Put an emotional reason behind establishing your goals. Seek to find out what it is that you “don’t know” even if you think you know it all, and then take action. If you are honest with yourself you will soon admit that maybe, like me, you aren’t the smartest guy in the room. Allow a seasoned coach to take control of your life for 3-5 sessions a week, stick with it for at least a year, and relieve yourself of the burden of knowing everything. Concentrate on what you are good at. Training is a science. CrossFit is a culture. Mix culture and science and now you have a party.
Q. Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?
A. In the training world there is a lot of information that must be turned into practical skill in order to instruct, coach, guide, and program an individual to attain a genuine level of conditioning and
fitness. It also takes personal experience to assist anyone to attempt and follow a conditioning program. But aren't the programs similar with like exercises, and workout routines? No. In fact
training programs can be as distinct and unique as faces in the crowd or clouds in the sky. Think of this. Your workout is an equation. It can be thought of as a "work session" and made 3-
dimensional by using the formula for work where Work = Force * Distance. How many times has that been shown to you when you worked out? Probably never. Ask yourself why. I put forth
the effort to bring some definition, some practicality, some math to the training situation so aside from the subjective benefits I could make use of our natural curiosity towards the pragmatic
to help add dimenson to the work we do. And there is where I leave other trainers behind. I use resistance (weight), gymnastics, plyometrics and running (aerobic) to set up a training situation
where we develop metabolic capacity and strength. In short the functional capacity to do work. This is today's training.
Q. What do you like most about your job?
A. People. They make me a better coach. There is no one size fits all to this training thing. It is case by case even among a group of sweaty fire-breathers. CrossFit isn’t for everyone. But for those who subscribe, and persevere, and set their goals high there is a huge payoff. If getting in shape came in a can at the vitamin store there would still be an active culture following CrossFit. Why, because its about the people. People who love people love people… Did I say that right? -Coach
Q. What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?
A. The most common question is “…do I have to be in shape to do CrossFit?” Think about this. Is it easier to learn something new when you are a complete duffer and know nothing about the work ahead, or when you are a self proclaimed “expert” in the field and have to unlearn old concepts in order to learn new and better ways of thinking and doing?
Are you out of shape and know nothing about the science or creativity of training? You are my best chance of success. If you are already a seasoned “weight lifter” or pump room groupie then I will have to dig deeper into your past experiences and habits to get you on the path of strength and conditioning at an athletic level. Like I have said before this is science meets culture. We train not only to learn to train better, but to build our bodies, our self esteem and wage an all out attack on our proclivity to take it easy, when the more difficult path leads to a higher level of activity. We work for a return on our investment.
