A few years ago, I read What the Dog Saw, a collection of short stories from popular author Malcolm Gladwell.
In one particular short story, Gladwell introduces the concept of "risk homeostasis." Essentially, risk homeostasis refers to the fact that modifications that are designed to make things safer often eventually have a break-even effect on safety because of adaptations to those modifications. In other words, something that should protect us doesn't because new compensatory factors make things more dangerous.
As an example, Gladwell observers that taxi drivers who are given anti-lock brakes actually wind up with higher incidences of traffic violations and accidents. Presumably, this occurs because the drivers feel they can drive faster and more aggressively because of this added "protection."
In another case, a study showed that adding childproof lids to medicine bottles actually increased the likelihood that children would die from accidental overdose of consuming drugs not meant for them. The added “safety” leads to adults being less cautious with where they hide bottles of pills.
While watching an absolutely atrocious YouTube video with some of the worst box squat technique in history the other day, my thoughts flashed back to this concept of risk homeostasis from when I read Gladwell's work. There are actually some remarkable parallels in the world of strength and conditioning.
1. Wearing a belt.
When a lifter throws on a belt, he assumes that it will make an exercise safer for him. While the research isn't really in agreement with this assertion, we'll roll with this assumption.
In real life, most lifters throw on a belt because it helps them handle additional weights - and at these weights, their form usually deteriorates rapidly, and does so under additional compressive loading.
2. Popping anti-inflammatories and getting cortisone shots.
When a doctor gives you a cortisone shot or recommends oral anti-inflammatories, it's because he believes you have some level of inflammation, whether it's a bursitis, tenosynovitis, or other issue. This short course of anti-inflammatories will reduce that inflammation.
You rarely see these issues in isolation, though; they're usually accompanied by degenerative changes (e.g., tendinosis) or structural changes (e.g., bone spurs) that could also be causing your symptoms. Unfortunately, your anti-inflammatories don't know that; they just know they're supposed to kill off all your pain. They make you asymptomatic, but not necessarily "healthy."
Many individuals get a cortisone shot or take a few days of NSAIDs and assume they can just go right back to training hard with no restrictions because their pain is gone. A few weeks or months later (when the cortisone shot wears off), they're back in pain (and usually it's worse than before) because they've done nothing to address the underlying causes of the problem in the first place. They shut off the inflammation and pain, but kept the degeneration, structural changes, and stupid.
The anti-inflammatory intervention is supposed to be part of a treatment plan to make folks healthier, but actually gives them a false sense of security, which in turn makes an injury or condition worse.
3. Lifting alongside an "experienced" coach who has done stupid s**t for decades, but has never been hurt.
It's not uncommon to feel a sense of security when you train with a coach with tons of time "under the bar" himself. His training background - and reportedly clean injury history - gives you peace of mind and you buy into his system. And, you continue lifting heavier and heavier in poor form because he's proof that it works, right?
Unfortunately, he's a sample size of one.
His experience should make training safer, but instead, it just leads you to take more poorly calculated risks with your training.
As an example, I did this while goofing around a few years back, but I'd never let one of my athletes try it. There are enough ugly box jump videos out there on YouTube to appreciate that a lot of coaches don't have the same kind of self-restraint.
4. Wearing elbow sleeves and knee wraps.
Elbow sleeves and knee wraps are incredibly common in the world of strength sports, and with good reason: they can really help with getting or keeping a joint warmed-up.
The only problem is that most lifters use them just so that they can power through the exact exercises that caused the joint aches in the first place.
As an example, a lot of lifters lack the upper back and shoulder mobility to use a narrow grip position on the barbell when back squatting, and the medial (inside of the) elbow takes a beating as a result. Rather than doing some shoulder mobility drills, they just throw on a band-aid in the form of an elbow sleeve.
5. Picking "joint-friendly" strength exercises.
There are lots of ways to deload a bit in the context of strength exercise selection. Maybe you do some single-leg work instead of squatting. Or, maybe you do some barbell supine bridges in place of deadlifting. These substitutions usually make a strength training program safer.
That is, of course, unless you do them with horrendous technique. Sadly, this isn't uncommon. You see people who meticulously prepare for squatting and deadlifting and heavily scrutinize their technique with video analysis, yet they'll blow through other exercises with terrible form. They expect exercise selection alone to make their strength training program safer, but compensate for this added safety by butchering technique.
Of course, these are only five examples of how risk homeostasis applies to strength and conditioning programs, and there are certainly thousands more. Where do you see good intentions go astray in your training? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below.
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Here is this week's list of recommended strength and conditioning reading:
Light Lifting, Big Muscles? - I was interviewed for this Chicago Tribune feature by James Fell. It was particularly cool for me to be featured alongside one of my mentors, Dr. William Kraemer. Dr. Kraemer was actually on my master's thesis committee for my graduate degree at the University of Connecticut.
Cressey Performance In-Service: Get-up/Swing - Tony Gentilcore (with help from Greg Robins) gave this week's staff in-service at CP, and Tony videoed it and put it up on YouTube. If you listen carefully, you can hear me playing catch in the background with one of our baseball guys. Sorry about that!
The Who-What-When-Where-Why-How of Barefoot Training - I got a question the other day about my thoughts on barefoot training, and I referred the individual in question to this post. I thought I'd reincarnate it from the archives for you, too.
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Today's guest blog comes from current Cressey Performance intern, Landon Wahl.
By its very nature, the life of a pitcher avails itself to many hours of pondering the game. Fresh out of my senior year of pitching at the collegiate level and having time to reflect upon my experience, overall I can say it was the best time of my life. However, there were many times during practice where I felt like I should have stayed home because nothing was accomplished. I would often stand in the outfield gaps behind the position players wondering: “how is this making me a better pitcher?”
After 2-3 hours of batting practice, our coach would have us bring it in and that was the end of practice. Summary: a 3-hour practice that consisted of a 10-minute warm-up, 5-10 minutes of throwing, and 2 hours and 40 minutes of standing around listening to my teammate tell me how sure he was that all of his teachers were trying to fail him (go to class, buddy). Some practices involved the pitchers more than others, but for the most part, practice time could have been used much more efficiently. Below are some ways practice time can be used to make pitchers more involved at practice as well as some things to avoid!
1. Set aside time in practice to have a proper warm up.
Too often, players come to practice and will disregard the warm-up or perhaps not warm up at all! Players grab a ball and start throwing with no physical or mental preparation. Every program is different in regard to warm ups. As a coach, make sure that regardless of what style warm-up you prefer, that you stick to it! At Cressey Performance, all athletes go through a foam rolling series as well as a dynamic warm-up before even touching a baseball, medicine ball, or weight. If you are a coach looking for inspiration, watch the video below and have your guys do it for a warm up. It almost goes without saying that it will help your guys feel and move better as well as prevent future injuries.
2. Make sure throwing - especially the long toss component - isn’t rushed.
Some programs are pretty good about this, but others aren’t. It is understandable that as a coach you have a lot to cram into a 2-3 hour practice and you want your guys to get as many swings in as possible, too. Think of long toss as a pitcher’s BP. It is important to let your pitchers get their arm speed up to help improve performance and stay healthy throughout the season. Try not to rush through the throwing to get to batting practice; it will help everyone be more prepared for your big weekend conference series.
3. Stop making pitchers stand around during batting practice.
First of all, I understand that sometimes pitchers are needed to help shag fly balls and make sure that the hitters get their work in, but this doesn’t have to be ALL the time! Sure, it’s nice to talk with fellow teammates and occasionally track down a fly ball, but overall there is little to no value to preparing your pitchers. Instead of having the pitchers stand around during the early parts of the week at batting practice, send them to the weight room for resistance training, athletic training room for manual therapy or stretching, or elsewhere on the field to do movement training or plyos.
4. Set aside time in practice to work on pick-offs, 1st/3rd defensive plays, PFP, live situations, and bunt defenses.
Too often, basic pitching defense gets brushed aside on the daily practice schedule. All of these essential parts of the game could take a full week just to cover, not master. For incoming freshman, these situations may not have been covered very thoroughly or even at all in high school! Have the coaching staff split up and cover these situations often; they may arise at any time during your important conference series! For your players to have confidence in the plays and skills that they will develop in practice is crucial, and will directly relate to confidence on the mound during in-game situations. This is also a good time to break away from the monotony of an extended batting practice session and get the pitchers involved.
5. Don’t enforce “punishment” running.
As a coach, it is understandable that players can upset you in many ways: poor play, off-field offenses, or on-field offenses. Nothing as a player is worse than hearing, “on the line,” not just because the punishment is usually miserable to complete, but also because nothing productive is being accomplished!
Consuming alcohol at the collegiate level is what unfortunately gets lots of guys into trouble. Having to participate in “punishment runs” was an absolute nightmare, usually because I was always running for someone else's screw-up. And, it didn’t matter how many times we were punished; guys would still go out to the bars later that night, not having learned a thing. It brings team moral down and creates problems between teammates. Believe me, there were some guys with whom I was not happy.
Some of the most successful teams win games because they're close-knit groups, not because they have the most talent! A prime example was my high school baseball team during my senior year of 2008. One could debate whether we were the most talented team in comparison to teams in the past, but we made it all the way to the state championship game. This was due to the fact that we did absolutely everything together as a team, and never had situations that compromised our positive team dynamic.
Punishment runs not only wreck your players physically, but also destroy them mentally. Sometimes discipline is in order, but try and find another way to do it! There is only one thing you need. Bench the player until behavior improves. Negative reinforcement such as running only deals with issues temporarily. Benching a player might cause some player-coach tension, but that’s part of being a coach. Make the best decision for the whole team and ensure that every player represents your college or university in a proper manner.
6. Don’t make pitchers catch bullpens.
This is just my personal opinion. I understand that some programs do this and others don’t. Hopefully, I can provide insight for just one coach, at any level. Coming from a previous program who endorsed this, I saw firsthand how it can really end up injuring a pitcher. I’ll relate a personal account...
One afternoon during freshman year at practice, I walked up to the field and my coach informed me that I would be catching every single pitcher, and then I would get to throw my bullpen. Unfortunately, I had never caught an inning in my entire life. Still, I suited up. The first few fastballs went well. The first curveball, however, didn't. It bounce in front of me by about two feet and you can probably guess what happened next.
The whole team thought it was funny (and in hindsight, it was), but at the time, it was not. In the months after that experience, I was afraid of the ball, shying away whenever it got close to the mitt. This not only was physically taxing on me, but the pitchers couldn’t get in a rhythm and their bullpens suffered as a result. There is something to be said for having a catcher who sticks your pitches, moves back and forth across the plate, gives feedback on your pitches, and encourages you because they are confident; this was not happening with me. After I caught all of the bullpens, I began to throw mine. You can also be sure that another fellow freshman caught me; the practice was a total waste, for everyone.
7. Talk to each player one-on-one.
Every coach could do this more often. I know that after a game in which I performed well (or not so well), it was nice to have my coach tell me things I could improve upon while highlighted things I executed correctly. This is also important for players who are not regular starters, or kids who have never played an inning. It is essential to provide hope for these players; at any time they can be a cornerstone in the lineup! Too often, good baseball players don’t receive the proper mental reinforcement. It sounds cliché and simple, but even telling a player “good job” can carry them a long way. It is also important to have meetings with players outside of practice and listen to their thoughts and concerns, both academically and athletically.
8. Have fun.
Having fun is what the game is all about. Winning is fun. Having fun at practice is fun, too! Create competitions between the players. Let pitchers take batting practice. Create incentive for your players to be excited and ready to go when practice time rolls around! Most of all, be supportive of every player. Playing college ball and going to class is quite a workload. There is nothing better in the world that blowing off some steam and forgetting about school responsibilities by playing some baseball.
Questions or comments? Please post them below. Also, Landon Wahl can be reached at landonwahl@yahoo.com.
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Here are some random tips from CP coach Greg Robins to help you improve health, get strong, lose fat, gain muscle, and move better.
1. Consider mixing protein powder with something other than water or milk.
I hardly ever recommend protein powder as the best choice for a quality protein source. However, a quality product (with minimal garbage thrown in the mix) is an easy way to get more protein into someone's diet. For some, a scoop with water or milk is fine; they even enjoy the taste. For others, myself included, the novelty of protein shakes has diminished greatly. Enter other viable options to mix in a scoop or two of your favorite protein supplement.
Option 1: Ice Coffee
This is a game changer. Adding a scoop of vanilla or chocolate protein powder to black coffee is a delicious alternative to milk, cream, and sugar. It not only tastes great, but also fuels your body and gives you a little boost. Furthermore, I find it to be a fantastic option for people looking to shed some weight. The protein powder will satiate you, while the caffeine can work to curb your appetite and stimulate your metabolism.
WARNING: don't try this with hot coffee. The protein powder will not mix well and tends to curdle at the top.
Option 2: Oatmeal
After you cook up a cup or two of raw oats, throw in a scoop or two of your favorite flavor. Make sure the protein goes in after the oatmeal is cooked, and before it cools down and solidifies.
Option 3: Plain Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt is delicious on its own, but sometimes it needs some variety. I would much rather get some flavor from a scoop of protein than the sugar filled "fruit" you find at the bottom of most other varieties. One of my favorite concoctions looks like this: 1 cup of plain greek yogurt, 1 scoop of chocolate whey, 4tbsp of oat bran, 4tbsp of shredded coconut flakes. Mix it all together, place it in the fridge over night, and you’ve got a delicious breakfast or snack for the next day.
2. Keep things fresh to keep people motivated.
Last week, I touched upon the importance of sticking to exercise selections long enough for them to have value/transfer in a strength training program. That said, I have spent some quality time inside the walls of commercial gyms, and run a number of different boot camps. You have to keep it fresh, I GET IT! So, how does a coach or trainer get the best of both worlds? First and foremost, educate your clients. You don't need a fancy explanation; just give them a little insight. Show them the "why" that backs up the "how" that gets them the "what."
Look to your assistance exercises as the first place to add variety. Monitoring the progress in (most) assistance work is not as important as just doing it. With that in mind, this is the first place where exercises can be altered more often. There is no point in choosing variations without a purpose. Luckily there are a lot of different exercises that accomplish similar, or the same thing. Resources, such as this blog, are full of different ideas.
Likewise, coaches such as Ben BrunoandNick Tumminello have made it a point to offer up tons of innovative exercise variations, so check them out!
Lastly, "finishers" (circuit/medley training) at the end of a strength session is a logical place to add in something creative and fun. Keep the intensity high, the duration short, and mix it up. I know many people utilize these, so if you have a “go-to” option, please drop a comment below.
3. If you can’t do full push-ups, stop doing them on your knees.
The push up is a fantastic exercise. It will forever remain a staple for building the pecs, shoulders and triceps. However, let's not forget to appreciate its most redeeming quality: The push up is an ultimate test in torso stability, and the ability to coordinate movement around a stable midsection. While this function of the push up makes it such a great choice for gym goers, it also provides us the reason that push-ups from a kneeling stance will have little transfer to performing them on your feet. Instead, elevate the hands as necessary, and train the push up in the position you ultimately desire to do them from in the future. Doing so will not only help you to train the muscles responsible for pushing, but also those responsible for keeping the spine in a neutral position.
4. Get outside!
5. Remind parents and team coaches that gaining good weight is still a good thing!
Without fail, I will hear at least one young athlete each week ask one of our CP coaches if putting on weight will make them slower. We all know "speed" is what separates the good from the great, as the faster we can move, react, throw, etc., the better we’ll perform. We need to appreciate that speed is dependent on force, and stronger people have more force potential.
In a recent study, published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, investigators looked at the off-ice fitness profiles of elite female ice hockey players relative to team success. The study found that, "Athletes from countries with the best international records weighed more, yet had less body fat, had greater lower body muscular power and upper body strength, and higher aerobic capacity compared to their less successful counterparts."
To those of us in the field, this is obvious. As with many topics, we as strength coaches or trainers tend to forget the popular opinions of those less involved with what we do. Many parents and coaches still argue that "lighter" means faster, and muscle is "bulky”. Gaining 25lbs of muscle over the course of year will make a 16 year-old athlete who weighs 165lb. into a 190-lb., faster, bigger, stronger athlete. Moreover, 25lbs dispersed evenly over the frame of a 6' athlete will not transform him into the next Lou Ferrigno. Be mindful of this, and again, educate your clients, athletes, and parents!
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The chin-up is one of the most sacred inclusions in strength and conditioning programs, but unfortunately, it's common performed with incorrect technique. Check out the video below to learn how to avoid the most common chin-up exercise technique mistakes.
If you're looking for more detail on the "gross extension" pattern I discuss in this video, I'd encourage you to check out Functional Stability Training of the Core.
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Okay, it's time for another live Q&A here at EricCressey.com. To get your questions answered, just post your inquiry in the comments section and I'll approve it and then reply.
My only rule is that your question must be limited to five sentences or less. I'll answer the first 25 that are posted, so please don't bother posting questions if you come to this post days, weeks, or months after it was originally posted.
With that said, head on down to the comments section below and ask away!
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Here's this week's list of recommended strength and conditioning reading:
Corrective Carries - This excellent piece from Bill Hartman highlights just how valuable carrying exercises can be if they are executed with correct form.
The Paradox of the Strength and Conditioning Professional - This guest blog from Rob Panariello for Bret Contreras' blog was excellent, even if it did read very "sciency." I'd call it must-read material for up-and-coming strength and conditioning coaches.
6 Primo Pressing Permutations - Here's another innovative article from Ben Bruno. He always has some good exercises for spicing things up in your strength training programs.
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In this week's mobility exercise of the week, I've got an excellent drill for reducing stiffness in the hip adductors. I came up with this exercise when I realized that I wanted to be able to do more drills to improve hip abduction range-of-motion, but I didn't always want them to be ground-based. And, just doing lateral lunge variations all the time can get a little boring for athletes. Enter table adductor dips.
I especially like to use this with our throwers because it actually parallels some of the hip angles we see with the pitching delivery, so it makes for a great warm-up and off-season maintenance/improvement exercise. I also like it for them because they can do it out on the field without having to roll around in the grass (which would be the case with a lot of other adductor mobility drills).
In terms of coaching cues, it's important to keep the weight on the support leg's heel and sit back "into" the hip. The majority of the weight should be on the down leg, with minimal pressure put on the leg that's up on the table.
As you go through the exercise, brace the core to ensure that the movement comes through the hips (flexion and abduction) at the bottom position, rather than just allowing the lower back to round. Having the arms out in front as I do in the video above can help as a counterbalance to prevent your butt from tucking under. If you're super stiff, you may want to consider holding a ten-pound plate out at arm's length as an additional counterbalance.
At the top position, be sure to extend the hips all the way to stand tall between each rep. I usually cue folks to activate the glute on the support leg to finish each rep. This will also help guarantee that you're stretching the adductors in both flexion and a neutral position.
We'll typically do sets of eight reps on each side during the warm-up period. This can, however, be held for a longer duration as a static stretch at the end of a training session.
Compliments of Cressey Performance coach Greg Robins, here are this week's random tips to kick your nutrition and strength and conditioning programs up a notch.
1. Pull back (not up) when deadlifting.
Incorrect bar "direction" is a common mistake I see in folks' deadlifting technique is something I have had to work to overcome myself. Instead of pulling "up" on the bar, you actually want to think about pulling "back" as you begin the deadlift. When you pull up, the bar tends to drift away from the legs and creates a gap between your body and the bar. As we know, the closer we can keep the resistance to the hips, the better leverages we are going to have during the pull. As the bar begins to move away from the hips, it's like moving the weight to the end of a seesaw. Furthermore, as the bar drifts, the upper back will have to compensate and end up more rounded as it takes more of the load.
2. Change exercises LESS often to increase results.
Adaptation is big, scary word to most self-proclaimed fitness experts. The truth is, you will not adapt to resistance training very easily.
It never ceases to amaze me to hear people's reasoning for how they set up their training. A common theme is that they chose to switch exercises so often to "keep the body guessing." Maybe my experiences have led me wrong somehow, but when, if ever, is your body going to treat moving hundreds of pounds as a normal occurrence?
It's not going to, and the basic barbell exercises (i.e. squatting, benching, deadlifitng, overhead pressing) are going to continue to improve if you work at them consistently week after week, month after month, year after year. You can quote fancy scientific reasoning, or you can look at sports like power lifting, and olympic lifting for evidence enough.
Consider leaving a few basic exercises in your strength training program ALL the time. It will take years of practice to hone in technique, and simple management of volume and intensity in these strength exercises will keep you progressing. The constant monitoring of a stable variable (exercise selection) will enable you to easily measure progress. There is room enough in a long-term strength and conditioning program to play around with different strength exercises through supplemental and accessory exercises. Do yourself a favor and simplify your approach by sticking to an exercise long enough to let it work for you and teach you something.
3. Tell people your goals to set up external sources of accountability.
Whether you are trying to lose weight, gain weight, get stronger, or accomplish another fitness goal, be sure to tell everyone!
People tend to keep their goals to themselves; they want to quietly make changes. While this may work for some, the more successful approach is often to tell the world your plans. When you announce your plans to make a change you instantly set up numerous sources of accountability. You must hold yourself accountable for your actions, but it helps when you know others are also looking to see your progress. If this is the case, you will be less likely to grab dessert in front of family at dinner, miss a training session (where others at the gym know your goals), or repeatedly stray from your diet when you know in a few weeks you are meeting up with people who are interested to see how far you have come. Other ideas include joining a site (e.g., Fitocracy) where people can track your workouts, or doing a blog or weekly Facebook post on your progress.
4. Grab a deck of cards for an impromptu home workout.
I get asked a lot about travel, or at-home workouts. A while back, I introduced my standard answer: get a deck of cards! Assign an exercise to each suit in the deck, and let the number dictate reps for each choice (face cards are always 10). Here is an awesome workout you can bring with you anywhere:
Spades: reverse lunges Clubs: single-leg bridges Diamonds: prone bridge arm march Hearts: push-ups
Bonus!
Aces: 10 burpees Jokers: 10 jump squats
If you have a TRX or pull-up bar, I recommend making one suit TRX rows, and jokers a doable amount of pull-ups.
Turn over a card, and GO! See how fast you can make it through the deck, and try to beat your time every workout.
5. Consider using a food journal to aid in weight loss.
I recently came across this Science Daily report on a study from The Journal of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that found that women who used a food journal to monitor daily intake "consistently lost 6lbs more than those who did not." It's always great when research backs up something that you're already doing,
You see, the first step we take with our nutrition consults at Cressey Performance happens before the initial consultation. The client is asked to fill out a 3-day food log detailing everything (food and drink) that they consume. More often than not, this alone helps raise people's awareness as to how much they are consuming, and of what quality that food/drink is. It never ceases to amaze me how unaware people are until they actually take the time to write it all out.
While the act of filling out a food journal will help initially, in order to use this tool for constant progress I recommend a few key pieces of advice. Likewise, Anne McTiernan PhD, MD, and her colleagues asked the same of the 123 women participants: "Be honest -- record everything you eat. Be accurate -- measure portions, read labels. Be complete -- include details such as how the food was prepared, and the addition of any toppings or condiments. Be consistent -- always carry your food diary with you or use a diet-tracking application on your smart phone..."
Pay close attention to being accurate and complete. Many diets fail when people are unaware of extra calories coming from condiments, dressings, or inaccurate portion estimates. I realize this may seem tedious, and it is not something one needs to continue for an extended period of time. However, keep an accurate journal long enough to help you know what "right" looks like.
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Today marks the fifth anniversary of the day my business partners and I founded Cressey Performance. In that time, we've gone through two expansions, and we're now in the process of a third one, which will effectively double the size of our space to over 15,000 square feet.
It's been somewhat of a tradition for me to write something about Cressey Performance on EricCressey.com every July 13 in honor of the occasion. To that end, in light of the fact that I know I have a ton of current or aspiring facility owners reader this site, I thought I'd use today's post to outline one of the most important considerations I want our entire staff to understand.
Success isn't just measured in revenue.
Most business owners look to at a net income total at the end of each month to determine if they're successful. While this certainly governs whether or not they'll be able to keep the lights on at the facility and feed their families, it doesn't speak to the far-reaching implications that a successful business has.
In the case of a fitness business, how many chronic diseases have thousands of exercise programs helped prevent? How many bum shoulders have become asymptomatic so that a father can throw 400 pitches at his son's team's batting practice? How many kids have gained confidence that's gone far beyond the weight room, impacting school performance and social interaction? How many shoulder and elbow surgeries have been avoided by proactive strength and conditioning program initiatives? How many young athletes have spent 10-12 hours a week at Cressey Performance surrounded by professional and college athlete role models when they could have been out getting into trouble with the wrong crowd? How many families have collectively started eating healthier because a young athlete came home from CP with some healthy food options for them to try? How many young athletes have been inspired to pursue fitness as a career? How many people have learned to stand up for their beliefs in vigorously defending their answers to the Tim Collins Question of the Day?
It excites me to see our former interns doing absolutely fantastic things. Many have gone on to master's degrees and doctorates in physical therapy, and two are in medical school. Some have started their own training facilities, and others have gone on to college strength and conditioning positions. Kevin Neeld is working with the U.S. Women's National Hockey team and loads of high-level hockey players. Brian St. Pierre and Jay Bonn are having a huge impact on a number of lives through their work with Dr. John Berardi and Precision Nutrition. Brad Schnitzer can drink a bottle of water really fast, too.
I could go on and on, but suffice it to say that I'm very proud of all these interns and what they've accomplished.
Taking it a step further, I'm always psyched to see guys like Tim Collins (Royals), Steve Cishek (Marlins), Kevin Youkilis (White Sox), and Bryan LaHair (Cubs) doing as much stuff as possible in terms of charity work.
And, I'm even more psyched when I see our minor league guys wanting to follow their lead, and that's why getting involved with charity initiatives is an important part of our off-season pro baseball training crew. These little gestures of kindness mean a lot to people, and they mean even more when you're on the biggest stage and have a rare opportunity to impact thousands of people with your words and actions. My hope is that the Cressey Performance experience has helped to not give our younger guys the the awareness to appreciate these opportunities to help others, but instill in them the humility to properly make use of them.
Additionally, in our case, Hudson, MA isn't a tourism hub by any means (although we do have an Applebees, for what it's worth). Yet, CP brings anywhere from 80 to 120 clients per day to Hudson from all over Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, New York, and Rhode Island. They spend money on food (including at our building's cafeteria), gas, and any of a number of other things while they're in town. Additionally, we have a lot of clients and interns who travel from all over the U.S. and abroad to train with us, and they support local hotels and rental properties. Finally, in Tony's case, he single-handedly keeps a local auto body shop in business with all the repairs on his car; in fact, I think their owners would vote for him if he ran for mayor because of all the "economic stimulus" he's provided them. At least these kids got some exercise and entertainment pushing his car to the mechanic.
All these considerations in mind, recognize that you don't go into business solely to make money. When you're six feet under and looking up at the grass, nobody remembers you for your net income in August of 2010, but rather the impact you had on the world before you left it. And, on a related and interesting note, looking at ways to overdeliver and add value to someone's experience is often the best way to make a business more profitable. As my friend Pat Rigsby would say, pursue "value addition" opportunities, not "value extraction" ones.
To all our clients who have supported us for the past five years, thank you very much. Our entire staff is deeply appreciative of your continued support.
Speaking of Pat, he, Mike Robertson, and I collaborated on a product called the Fitness Business Blueprint last year. It discusses all the mistakes we made when opening our fitness businesses, as well as the common mistakes Pat sees in the businesses for which he consults. Mike and I complement Pat's business teachings with training-specific information like assessment and program design. Taken all together, it's a great product for someone looking to start their own fitness business, or improve upon the one they already have. In honor of CP's fifth birthday, we've put it on sale for $100 off for this weekend only (sale ends Sunday, July 15 at midnight). You can pick up your copy at the special sales page HERE.
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