I got this question from a reader last week, and it echoes a lot of questions I’ve received over the years: “I hate weight lifting and no matter what strategy I tried, I just can’t make it stick. Standing or sitting, lifting dumbbells for more than a few minutes just bores me to death. Walking truly has been easier to do because I can do it while I do other stuff I need to do that day; […]
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When someone comes to me with an injury (or one of those nagging aches that’s been hanging around for weeks and they can’t figure out why) I run the same diagnostic almost every time. It’s simple. You can run it on yourself. And it’ll teach you what to look for to dodge future issues. The 3-part diagnostic I’m looking for a recent spike in any of these three: Volume – how much of the thing you’re doing Intensity – […]
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Tell me if this pattern sounds familiar. One of my clients (let’s call him Elliot) would go hard every three months. Aggressive diet. New workout plan. The full deal. And it would work…for a few weeks. Then life would do what life does – motivation would fade, work would get stressful, there’d be a sick kid to take care of, a vacation – and the whole thing would unravel. Three months later, the cycle would start all […]
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When someone joins our coaching program, we ask them to rank three things in order of importance so their coach knows where to start: Fitness Nutrition Mindset Almost everyone ranks them in exactly that order. Fitness first. Nutrition second. Mindset a distant third. (And that makes sense! They came here to move better and eat better. That’s the tangible change.) But here’s what’s interesting: When I look back through eight years of success stories, the physical wins are […]
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Have you ever caught yourself thinking, “I need it to work this time“? Maybe you’re trying to start a workout routine again. Maybe you want to take better care of yourself and finally eat in a way that feels good. Maybe it’s something else entirely. Whatever it is – if you’ve tried before and it didn’t go how you hoped, a quiet desperation can creep in. “I’m so tired of trying and getting nowhere.”“Will this ever work […]
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After 4+ years of work, Steve’s new book, How to Try Again, is on bookshelves everywhere! In case you’re new to this email list, Steve is the nerd who started Nerd Fitness in 2009, and stepped back from NF to spend the last few years writing it!) I was lucky enough to be a small part of Steve’s writing process. I got to jam with him about behavior change, provide feedback on his opening chapters, and heck, one of […]
Read moreI just got an awesome video question from a reader named Dale – and it got me so fired up, I had to share it with you. Dale’s been working out at planet fitness for the last couple of years, but in the last 6-weeks, she’s made it her mission to start learning how to strength train. (HECK YES!!!) She’s watching Youtube videos and trying to figure the whole thing out. Here was her question: I want […]
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Squats. Rows. Deadlifts. Presses. There’s a reason why these are the foundation of any good strength program.[1] But if you’re goal is to be capable outside of the gym, there’s another category of movement that’s often overlooked. These are the movements that help you build qualities other than absolute strength: power, mobility, and work capacity. So you can break into a game of tag with your kiddos or help your friend move that awkward piece of furniture without worrying […]
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Thanks to social media, fitness trends spread faster than ever. Instead of asking the biggest guy at the gym for advice, we now turn to TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube for the latest training hacks. Sure, some trends are questionable. But every now and then, a simple, science-backed idea gains traction—one that can help you train pain-free and transform your body. Like walking backward. And not just walking backward on a treadmill, but walking backward up a hill. […]
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When Anthony, a 53-year-old, told us he wanted to look like Jason Statham, we gave him a plan he didn’t expect: Three workouts per week.A moderate calorie deficit. No complicated macros—just protein and total calories. Anthony was skeptical. His past weight-loss attempts followed the same frustrating pattern that probably looks familiar if you’re a man looking for fat loss over 50 : Drastically cut calories See quick results Hit a plateau and stall Get frustrated and give up […]
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