Here's this week's list of random tips to make you more awesome, in collaboration with Cressey Performance coach Greg Robins.

1. Optimize your strength training program's warm-up sets.

Too often, I see people make the mistake of moving a ton of weight before they reach their top sets for that day. Many strength training programs are based on hitting a certain “top set” or sets in a given lift for that day. While this number may be a good distance from the first weight a person touches that day, it is important that you work to this set in a fashion that has you prepared to attack the weight, but not exhausted to a point that you cannot give that weight a true effort.

I often get asked how should one work up to these top sets. The answer is really dependent on the person asking; over time, a person will learn what works best for them. Here are a few things you should keep in mind:

• “Treat the light weights heavy and the heavy weights light.” Move everything fast, be methodical in your approach, take advantage of every set as repetitions in good form. By doing so, you will set up for successful top sets, prime your CNS to deliver more powerful, coordinated efforts, and be more confident under heavy loads.
• Keep your weight jumps consistent. How many pounds each jump should be will depend on how dictate how many warm-up sets you’ll take on the way from A to B. Just make sure to keep the jumps consistent, 10, 20, 30lbs, etc.
• Just because the top sets call for multiple reps doesn’t mean the sets leading up to them need to be the same. I often take singles and doubles at the heavy weights that land near my top sets, and recommend you do the same. I advocate any additional volume (work done) you need to add be done via drop down sets, or via supplemental lifts.

Here are two examples of how to work up to the top sets in a program:

Deadlift 3 x 3 (Assuming my top sets will be between 475 and 505lbs)
135 x 3, 225 x 3, 315 x 1, 405 x 1, 455 x 1, 475 x 3, 495 x 3, 505 x 3

A1. Squat 3 x 5 (Assuming my top sets will be between 365 and 405lbs)
135 x 5, 185 x 3, 225 x 2, 275 x 1, 315 x 1, 365 x 5, 385 x 5, 405 x 5

You'll notice that the sets that "count" toward my working total follow the 90% rule that Eric outlined HERE.

2. Understand How to Modify Total Work as a Fat Loss Diet Progresses

You will be more successful with your fat loss dieting when you understand a simple concept: the harder you train, the hungrier you get.

The most important thing in losing fat is, has been, and will continue to be your nutrition. Your strength training program should be the priority in training when dieting. You want to maintain as much lean mass as possible, and what made the muscle (resistance training) is what’s going to keep it on you. However, you can’t just continue to strength train, add more conditioning, and eat less. It just doesn’t add up. Either you’re going to fail on the diet or get super weak. Neither of those sounds good to me.

So what’s the solution? Lower the volume as you lower the calories. Whether that comes in the way of shorter strength training workouts (focus on the top sets of big lifts and keep the accessory work limited), or you do less conditioning, you have to do less somewhere.

People are really into metabolic resistance training protocols nowadays, but in reality, all training is metabolic; your diet needs to come first, and these programs are just basic better management of total work done. Base your training around your diet, and as you eat less, do less. Pretty simple.

3. Make Kale Taste Better.

Kale by itself does not taste good. Fortunately, I have a simple recipe to make a delicious dressing to spice it up. I must admit that I am not the originator of this, so thank you to the person who showed me the recipe!

In a bowl, mix the following to “dress” four cups of uncooked kale:

• 3 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 3 TBSP Balsamic Vinegar
• 3 TBSP Dijon Mustard
• 1 TBSP Pepper
• 2 TBSP Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

Enjoy!

4. Make all Reps Quality Ones When You’re a Beginner.

When teaching a new athlete or client an exercise, trainers and coaches must understand the importance of using lighter loads. From a safety and development standpoint, it just makes sense. Moreover, a novice lifter can make gains from loads far below their estimated one-rep maximum.

In order to achieve technical proficiency with the exercise, make sure that you are also keeping the rep ranges low - even when the weights are light. While the person in question may very well be able to move the given load for 12 reps (as an example), you are better off splitting that into 3 sets of 4 reps. Even if that means they are doing 12 sets of 4 instead of 4 sets of 12 overall. Keep the rest a bit shorter, get quality reps, and don’t set them up to fail.

5. Make Sure Your Arm Care Program Includes Upward Rotation Training (from Eric)

I speak a lot to our staff about the importance of training scapular upward rotation to prevent and correct upper extremity problems (especially shoulders) in our clients, and one of my most prominent points is to consider not just "front to back" shoulder balance, but also "top to bottom."  This point was verified yet again by research from the Musculoskeletal Research Center at LaTrobe University in Australia.  Investigators found that "The major difference between groups was that the shoulder pain group displayed a significant downward rotation of the scapula in almost all shoulder positions. There were no differences between the two groups for training factors, range of motion, or in clinical test results."

Below are a few exercises we regularly include in our warm-ups to address these issues.  Forearm wall slides at 135 degrees stops short of full upward rotation and gives us a chance to train the lower trapezius in its line of pull.

Wall slides with overhead shrug and lift-off gets us to near full upward rotation of the scapula and recruits the upper trapezius more.  Remember, while upper trapezius recruitment has gotten a bad rap, the upper traps are actually tremendously important, as they elevate the scapula and directly oppose the depressive pull of the latissimus dorsi, which is heavily overrecruited in most folks.  As a heads-up, I generally teach this with the hands a bit closer together throughout the movement.

The upper and lower traps work with serratus anterior to get the scapula upwardly rotated (serratus recruitment is already optimized because we are slightly protracted and above 90 degrees of humeral elevation).

Summarily, remember the importance of scapular upward rotation when you see arm care programs where all the exercises are done with the arms at the sides.  Assuming folks can get there pain-free, get the arms up and start training upward rotation functionally.

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Compliments of Cressey Performance coach Greg Robins, here are some random tips to help you lose fat, gain muscle, get strong, be healthy, and move well.

1. If you're tested in fitness, train the test.

If you are a powerlifter, Olympic lifter, or training for a standardized physical fitness test (such as those administered by the military/police/fire), I recommend that you keep your training specific to what you will be tested on. If you are a powerlifter, you compete in the squat, bench press, and deadlift. Therefore, I believe the majority of your training should be done using the back squat, bench press, and your deadlift stance (sumo, conventional). Variations of those three lifts may be done as a supplement to the main exercise, but should not replace it. The same goes for Olympic lifters with their specific lifts (snatch and clean and jerk).

Furthermore, not much will prepare you better for standardized tests than actually taking the test. If you have to do two minutes of push-ups, do push ups. If you have to run two miles, focus on running two miles faster, not being able to run longer distances. As far as sit-ups go, I think daily high repetition sit-ups will do a number on your body. In my experience, if you want to excel at them, you have to do them. Stick to 1-2x/week of sit-ups at most – again, only if you have to be tested on them. Attack the area with other exercises as well to supplement this specificity.

2. Cure your low-bar back squat woes.

With the back squat: there are three things I see people do that hold them back from moving appreciable weight, staying safe, and being an overall squat ninja. Oddly enough they all depend on each other, like a happy squatting family.

First, they support the bar in their hands. The wrists are mostly likely bent back, and the majority of the weight is actively supported by the arms. This is a nightmare for your squat, wrists, elbows, and shoulders. Correct this by keeping the bar lower in the hand, actively working to straighten the wrist (think: knuckles forward, or don't crease a piece of tape on the back of your hand/wrist), and literally pulling the bar down over your upper back like you are trying to break it.

Second, people try to stay too upright. The upright torso position is not what we are after. Similar to the deadlift, what we want instead is to maintain a neutral spine while the angle of the torso increases, keeping the weight over the mid-line of the body. When the bar is positioned lower on the back this equates to a more predominate forward lean; let it happen. In order to do this you need to hold the bar correctly (see point 1), brace the stomach well (draw air into the stomach, not the chest), and have a strong upper back and anterior core that can hold its stiffness.

Thirdly, many folks simply don’t “get” how to use their hips when squatting. In Starting Strength (as an aside, it's appalling how many young "coaches" haven't read this), Mark Rippetoe draws the picture of attaching a piece of string to the tailbone and pulling it straight up out of the hole. I often explain to people the feeling of using the hips out of the hole actually feels like you are pushing the hips back, not up. Imagine someone standing behind you, digging their fist into your tailbone. As you come out of the hole push back on their fist. Check out this video of me squatting 405 for 5. It's a 5RM and a good example of how the hips are going straight up out of the hole (mostly) for reps 1 - 4, but as I fatigue you can see the slight breakdown on rep 5 (of coming forward in the hole) that is common with most people.

3. Jump, jump, jump on it – and only off it, sometimes.

Jumps are a fantastic way to build explosive and reactive strength qualities. While they are not for everybody, those who are able to safely perform jumps need to consider adding them to part of their routine. In a strength and conditioning setting, they should be a staple. Jumps can be divided into a few categories. You can (in general):

• Jump Up: Box Jumps
• Jump Down: Depth Drop
• Jump Up and Down: Box Jump to Depth Drop
• Jump Down and Up: Depth Drop to Box Jump
• Jump Out: Broad Jump
• Jump Laterally: Heiden, Half Kneeling Jump

So what are the differences, and why does it matter? Jumps are more taxing on your body than one might expect. After all, in a similar fashion to lifting weights or sprinting, you are putting a ton of force into the ground as quickly as possible. Additionally, the impact of landing, and the absorption of force, is highly demanding on the body. This is why the box jump has become such a popular tool.

Now, ask yourself if I program 15 jumps for my athlete today, and he decides to jump off the box from 36" every time, what have I really programmed? Is it in line with my general approach now? Probably not. Make sure that you, and your athletes, follow a progression in jumps. Instruct them as to how to perform and dismount the jump, and use more demanding variations such as the depth jump sparingly.

4. Consider a nutritional supplement pyramid.

While perusing the latest research, I came across this case study: The Development of Nutritional Supplement Fact Sheets for Irish Athletes. While the abstract doesn't tell us much about the study in general, I was intrigued by the initiative. In particular, I was interested in how something like this might be useful for the United States. In recent years, nutritional supplementation has become quite pronounced in our country. I'm sure the overwhelming majority of folks reading this article are taking at least one supplement. This is largely in part to the poor quality of our food, the poor quality of our diets, and the mass marketing of these supplements (none of which is changing for the better). What is also apparent is the lack of quality control and general information about what supplements should be prioritized for different populations.

I know we all have our beef, pun intended, with the nutritional pyramid, but have we considered creating one for supplementation?

My thoughts are that it would be a useful way to educate the general population on what is worth taking, what is beneficial but less important, and what should be used sparingly or with caution. As the industry continues to boom, the food quality continues to plunder, and the consumption of such products becomes the norm I think a standardized table seems appropriate.

The closest thing I could find was this table by The Council For Responsible Nutrition.

Does something more in depth already exist? Is it in the works? What do you think?

5. Wall - Sled - Run.

Here is a video on a three step progression you can put to work right away to teach positive shin angle and proper acceleration mechanics with your athletes. Give it a try!

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Here are some strength and conditioning and nutrition tips to help you lose fat, gain muscle, get strong, and scare obnoxious kids off your lawn, compliments of Cressey Performance coach, Greg Robins.

1. A friendly reminder: you're not that special.

After recently perusing the internet, I felt the need to give you this friendly reminder. I came across (as I am sure many of you have) the commencement speech delivered by David McCullough, Jr. to the 2012 Wellesley High School graduating class. I enjoyed his speech greatly, and found that much of it can be applied to training, nutrition, and athletics.

You're not that special. The reason you're not getting stronger likely has nothing to with your program. The reason you're not losing body fat is probably not a major fault in the nutrition plan you were given. The athletes who impress me the most are the ones who pick up their teammates. They're the ones who celebrate wins and mourn losses as a team, not the ones who advocate their own success and dwell upon their individual shortcomings.

You aren't making progress because you aren't consistent. You aren't losing fat because you're not following that nutrition plan. You aren't impressing coaches because you are not willing to be a team player. Stop worrying about what strength and conditioning program you're on, seek out those who know what they're doing, and devote yourself to that approach. Stop dissecting your nutritional approach and truly embody the basics of better eating. Stop keeping your athletic talents on a pedestal, show up to practice every day, and work hard to make yourself and your teammates better. Stay humble, stay hungry.

As an interesting little aside to this, check out this recent report that New England Patriots coach Bill Belichek removed all jersey numbers from practice uniforms this week as a means of building team unity. Nobody gets special treatment, even if they're a well-known name.

2. Focus on bar speed as much as you focus on bar load.

One of the biggest mistake I see - particularly with intermediate to advanced lifters - is thinking that they need to be setting personal records in every single training session. While you'll certainly hit a few PRs employing this strategy (and there are certainly times to get after them), this expectation is a quick way to not only get discouraged, but burned out on training.

Let's say that Tank's best trap bar deadlift is 415.

Do you really think that - at the end of the day - his body will appreciate a huge difference adaptation-wise between grinding out a rep at 435 and absolutely smoking a single at 400? The time-under-tension difference on one rep is trivial, the injury risk is dramatically higher with the PR attempt, and you run the risk of developing poor technique habits under significant load.

Don't get me wrong; you should still seek to constantly get stronger in your strength training programs. However, you should appreciate that you can still get stronger by leaving a rep or two "in the hole" in some of your sessions, particularly as you get older and more experienced. And, as Anthony Michal pointed out in a recent guest blog for Bret Contreras, you can still get strong at 75-85% of one-rep max - even if a large percentage of your training is performed there.

3. The pullover is a forgotten gem, and we can make it better!

The DB pullover can serve as an outstanding exercise for those who can safely perform it. The benefits of the exercise are three-fold.  First, it build tremendous strength in the anterior "core" as one resists excessive lumbar hyperextension.  Second, the exercise provides a nice "active stretch" for the lats.  Third, it can be a great strength exercise for the lats when someone has medial elbow issues that prevent them from doing the intensive grip work that chin-up and pull-up variations mandate.

Athletes should be cued to keep the rib cage down as the shoulders move further into flexion. Also, make sure that athletes contract the glutes while in the bridge position, and don't allow a forward head posture to occur.

4. Fitness professionals should be supportive of injured athletes and clients.

At Cressey Performance, we receive a lot of referrals of athletes who have recently undergone surgery and/or physical therapy. It is no surprise that many of these athletes are not in the greatest place mentally about their injuries. Can you blame them? As an athlete, your world largely revolves around playing sports and an injury can lead to a bit of an identity crisis; sports are a huge part of your life that can be taken away overnight. With that in mind, how important is it as a strength coach to keep these athlete's positive about their return to the game? Furthermore, what impact to do we have on their outlook?

A recent study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research looked at the perceived social support from strength coaches among these injured athletes. The results found that:

"...the strength coach (SC) had a significant psychosocial impact on student-athletes' overall psychological well-being during reconditioning. This study provides evidence of the vital psychosocial role that SCs can play during an injured student-athlete's reconditioning program."

Make sure that you do not ignore an athlete because he or she may be unable to fully participate (or participate at full intensity) in your strength and conditioning program. Give positive feedback, attention, and show them that you care. It can make the difference in their recovery and there is no greater feeling than helping an athlete beat the odds and return to top shape post-injury.

5. Find ways to make fitness social.

We often hear about how you need to "shut up and squat" when you're in the weight room, but the truth is that the overwhelming majority of lifters who are successful long-term are great friends with their training partners.  Nobody can be "on" all the time, and while it's important to get serious when you get under the bar, you'll usually find a lot of joking around between sets in even the most accomplished powerlifting and Olympic lifting gyms on the planet.  Training is supposed to be fun, and if it isn't, you need to find a way to make it more enjoyable.

At Cressey Performance, the Thanksgiving morning lift is always very popular, and we notice that many clients really get extra motivated when they see our staff training hard, too.  

We have athletes who schedule their training sessions so that they can lift with friends for extra motivation, and even kids who book sessions when certain professional athletes are in so that they can draw inspiration from those who are living their dreams.  I also love it when we get coaches from other facilities, colleges, and pro teams training with our staff when they visit CP, as you get to see what they're doing and chat a bit between sets.  

Whether it's recruiting your spouse for a walk in the park, calling a buddy to spot you on the bench, or rounding up a team of college roommates to do an adventure race, it's valuable to find ways to get friends in on the fitness fun. 

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I'm psyched to announce that Cressey Performance will be expanding to a new space within our building that doubles our size to over 15,000 square feet.

To say that we're excited would be an understatement, and while there are a lot of renovations required to make this just the way we want it you can pencil Saturday, August 25th into your calendars for a grand opening.

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Here are some random tips to help you lose fat, get strong, gain muscle, feel better, and take over the world - compliments of Cressey Performance coach Greg Robins.

1. Swing it!

As a strength coach, you will be confronted by two big issues. One, you will most likely have a budget. Secondly, you will struggle to keep all your athletes consistently in the gym, or on track while in season. A recent study published in the NSCA's Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research provides us with a solution: kettlebell swings. "The results of this study clearly demonstrate that six weeks of bi-weekly kettlebell swings provides a stimulus that is sufficient to increase both maximum and explosive strength offering a useful alternative to strength and conditioning professionals seeking variety for their athletes."

Purchasing kettlebells for your program, or advocating the purchase of kettlebells by your athletes for at home use, is a low cost option to deliver a great training effect. The swing is a relatively easy movement to teach and safely prescribe to your athletes to keep up with, and improve their strength. The kettlebell swing has largely been touted as an incredibly efficient movement, most recently by the king of efficiency himself, Tim Ferriss, in his book, The 4-Hour Body. In this article he talks about his own incredible results, as well as links to a profile of another swinger, who garnered impressive results with as little as 10 - 20min of swinging a week. Not bad!

2. Make food taste better by adding...more food.

Chicken, turkey, and pork all taste great when you eat them right out of the oven or off the grill. However, everyone knows that "so dry that I'm coughing up dust" taste that you can get when you eat them as leftovers. To that end, try chopping the meat up and adding it to an omelet; it tastes great.

This is just one example of how you can "disguise" something that might not taste good. Don't like spinach? Blend it into your shakes. Don't like tomatoes? Grind them up and add some spices and fruit to make a salsa. Your imagination is the only limit.

3. Some small stuff is worth sweating.

More times than not, I am telling people not to sweat the small stuff. However, I would advocate locating small things, that are easily done, that can have a large effect on the bigger picture. When it comes to the gym I can think of a few examples:

• Learn to, and teach your athletes / clients, to set up, un-rack, and re-rack weights properly. I like to see things done right, from the moment someone gets under the bar, to the moment they put it back. This isn't just the purist in me, these so called "little" things will have a big effect on the quality of the set, and the safety as well. Make sure that you, and those you teach, learn to do it right from the start. I don't usually make videos, but when I do, they are awesome:

• Ask for spotters and hand-offs. It's always best to perform a lift safely and with a clear mind. If you have someone available to spot you, why wouldn't you ask? Furthermore, if you set up correctly in a bench press (uncomfortably tight, shoulder blades retracted, etc.) You will benefit greatly from receiving a good hand off that keeps you in position. Lastly, if you happen to train around people who know what they are doing, asking for an appropriate spot, or hand-off when they are not busy is a good way to grab a little sage wisdom

4. Always take the bar.

In sticking with the theme of the little things that make a big difference, here's a lesson I learned early in my training history: "Always take the bar." It means exactly what it says. Whether you are squatting, benching, lunging, or pressing always do a set with the empty bar. You don't pick up a baseball and throw it 200ft before you have thrown it 50ft do you? It is always best to ramp up to your working sets and get a gauge on how you feel. Furthermore, repetition is the principal of learning. Even as someone whose working sets are a good distance from 45lbs, I will take anywhere from 5 - 8 sets to get where I am going for that day's big exercise. In this time, don't just go through the motions, it is the perfect time to smooth out any form issues and build a habitual approach to each set.

5. Avoid paralysis by analysis.

There is a time for thinking, and a time for doing. Be careful not to let your thoughts interfere with your ability to execute. Additionally, remember that in many cases, "perfect" will be the enemy of "good." In order to achieve more from your training and sport practice, follow these two guidelines:

• Separate planning and doing. I recently read a fantastic article from Dan John that speaks about managing options in your training. The article closes with a saying: "Plan the hunt, hunt the hunt, discuss the hunt." In other words take the time to formulate an intelligent plan, execute that plan with a full effort, and then review and revise based on the outcome. There are many different ways to achieve the same outcome, the difference maker will often be the effort put forward into whatever that approach may be. With that in mind, do not limit yourself by over thinking what you are doing while you are doing it. Just do it!
• In the moment, redirect your thought process. In a recent discussion with one of our athletes at CP, I was reminded of something somebody had shared with me a while back. If you are in the "hunt," it is not a time to dwell on mechanical reasons for something not working right. Instead, technical changes and observations should be made during practice, or after the fact during review. While in the moment simplify your adjustment process. If you are throwing up, aim down. If you are coming forward in a squat, stay back. Easy enough, right?

Co-Author Greg Robins is strength and conditioning coach at Cressey Performance in Hudson, MA. Check out his website, www.GregTrainer.com, for more great content.

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Today's guest blog comes from Pete Dupuis, my business partner at Cressey Performance.  Pete might fly a bit under the radar with respect to the online scene, but as you'll learn below, he plays a huge role in the success we've had at Cressey Performance. 

So you’ve decided to open your own strength & conditioning facility…

As any aspiring entrepreneur knows, there’s a considerably long list of expenses that come with getting your business off the ground. For those of us who’ve decided the right move is to open up our own gym, the obvious staples include: racks, benches, dumbbells, bands, mats, sleds, etc. Based on my experience, there are plenty more expensive surprises along the way.

Below, you will find ten quick examples that came to mind as I reflected on the time, energy and cash flow it took to get CP to where it is today. While I’m sure I could double or triple the number of bullet points on this list with a little time to run through my transaction records, the following collection represents the ten that either caught me by surprise, or simply slipped through the cracks as Eric and I sat at a local Applebee’s drawing up a business plan on a napkin during our “let’s start a gym” extravaganza. Enjoy!

1. The fine print on our insurance policy – Every business needs insurance. What every business does not need, is the anti-terrorism coverage built in to the policy that nearly went undetected on our radar before paying the year-one premium. A quick Google-search (or the application of common sense) told us that the terrorists of the world don’t seem to be particularly concerned with Hudson, MA, or the new gym that just popped on to the scene. We saved ourselves some money by throwing a check mark in the “no thank you” box next to anti-terrorism coverage.

2. Registering your LLC and maintaining it annually – I can’t speak for other states, but Massachusetts has devised a particularly profitable little policy that requires business entities in the Commonwealth to slap down a quick $500 LLC filing fee. Now, the filing fee wasn’t particularly shocking, but the realization that we’d owe an additional $500 on the anniversary of starting our business each July certainly stung a little bit when times were tight in the early stages of our operations.

3. Furnishings – Once you’re done with pulling together that list of equipment for your dream gym, you’ll probably realize that the key to keeping it full of clients is not only delivering results, but also demonstrating some level of professionalism. It’s pretty difficult to be taken seriously if you’re pitching your services from a poorly equipped office - or if Eric is passed out on a sketchy red couch after working a 20-hour day.  

While a laptop and a cell phone will get the job done for a couple days or weeks, you’ll soon realize that printers, phones, chairs, desks, trash barrels, etc. can pile up to make for a pretty hefty bill at Staples.

4. Logo design – Since we have yet to spend a dollar on what most would call traditional advertising (newspaper/internet/television/radio), CP has been dependent on delivering noteworthy results and some memorable t-shirt designs to stay top-of-mind with the baseball community. Without a decent logo, we’d be struggling on the brand-recognition front. Since design work isn’t cheap, we recommend taking the trade-barter approach with any client who’s got the right skill-set - and you'd be surprised at how many there are. You make them strong, and they make you the next Swoosh or Golden Arches…everybody wins. 

5. Website Design – On a similar note, writing HTML doesn’t come naturally to most of us. The “do-it-yourself” web-design tools might cut it for a little while, but the moment you begin working with professional athletes, their agents, or the organizations employing them, it becomes time for a website that reflects the same level of quality product you are promising on the training floor. Do yourself a favor and find a professional who is qualified to design an appealing site for you – and it’s especially nice if they’re interested in doing it in exchange for some of your appealing strength and conditioning programming and coaching.

6. Medicine Ball Wall – While some facility owners are fortunate enough to find space that incorporates cinderblock walls capable of handling the violence of a good med-ball session, many of us are not so lucky. In our case, the expansion from 2,000 sq. feet of gym space to over 6,600 came with the unanticipated $2,500 cinderblock wall installation. In our case, the 150+ feet of straightaway sprinting space outweighed the fact that brick/cinderblock walls were nowhere to be found upon our arrival.

7. Med-Ball/Equipment Replacement – The harsh reality of CP making baseball players better is the fact that we destroy medicine balls at an alarming rate. The same goes for wear and tear of exercise mats, bands, etc. Just because you managed to pull together the funds to outfit a facility on day one doesn’t mean you’re not going to be reinvesting in the business early and often.

8. Audio Equipment – In an industry where a mediocre training environment can singlehandedly kill your gym, loud music is a must. Unless you’re operating in a garage, it’s going to take more than a boom box to get the job done. Plan on investing in a receiver, some decent speakers, and an iPod to get the ball rolling on an environment in which people set PRs on a regular basis.

9. Memorabilia Mounting Fees – Assuming you’ve got a client or two that you’re proud to say you train, you’re going to want to hang a jersey, some photos, or the occasional newspaper story. Since thumbtacks are a little abrasive on game-worn MLB jerseys, professional mounting/framing is a must, and it isn’t cheap. The more successful your client roster becomes, the more expensive the gym walls become. It's a good problem to have.

10. City of Hudson Dumpster Licensing Fee – I saved this one for last because I find it to be both the most unanticipated and most obnoxious annual expense I’ve managed to come across since starting our business. Despite paying rent to the property owner and a dumpster rental fee to our trash-removal vendor, the city of Hudson “has enacted regulations to require licensing dumpster within the town” as of mid-2011. So if you potential gym owners are looking to open a S&C facility here in Hudson (which, by the way, would not be cool), you can plan on budgeting $75/year for the privilege of housing a dumpster on your off-street private property.

Like I mentioned earlier, these ten expenses are just the tip of the iceberg, and I could certainly go on all day with them. With that in mind, if you're a business owner who has walked a mile in these shoes, I'd be curious to hear what expenses surprised you along the way.  You can post your replies in the comment section below.

For those of you looking to learn more about Fitness Business start-up, be sure to check out the Fitness Business Blueprint, which includes loads of business, relationship-building, assessment, program design, and training strategies you’ll learn to instantly help take your business to the next level.

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We have quite a few baseball coaches, athletic trainers, physical therapists, and strength and conditioning coaches who stop by Cressey Sports Performance to observe our training.  While they are the ones visiting to learn, I actually learn quite a bit about the "norms" in the baseball strength and conditioning field by listening to them tell me about what surprises them about what they observe at CSP.  Here are some of the areas that seem to surprise quite a few people:

1. They're surprised we don't do more sprint work and change-of-direction training.

The competitive baseball season essentially runs from mid-February all the way through early September, and during that time, guys are sprinting, diving, and changing directions constantly during fielding practice.  They're also on their feet in cleats for an absurd number of hours each day.  To that end, when the off-season rolls around, most guys want a few weeks away from aggressive sprinting and change-of-direction work.  Once they get their rest, we typically go to 2-3 movement training sessions for October through December, usually on off-days from strength training.  I prefer to break them up so that we can get more quality work in with our strength training program, and also so that the sessions don't run too long.  Once January 1 rolls around, the volume and intensity of sprinting increases, while the strength training program volume is reduced.  

Summarily, because we often separate our sprint/agility work from our resistance training, many folks get the impression that we don't do much movement training - but that couldn't be further from the truth.  It's a big part of our comprehensive approach to baseball development; we just fit it in a bit differently than most coaches, and emphasize or de-emphasize it at different point in the year.

2. They're surprised how much medicine ball work we do.

One of the reasons there is a bit less movement training than you might see in other strength and conditioning programs is that we do a ton of medicine ball work, particularly during the months of October through January (for our pro guys).  

Medicine ball drills are great for not only training power outside the sagittal plane, but also because it helps to iron out excessive asymmetries while maintaining pitching- and hitting-specific mobility.  Our guys may do 240-360 medicine ball throws per week during their highest volume phases.

You can learn more about the medicine ball exercises we incorporate in our program by checking out Functional Stability Training of the Core.

3. They're surprised that we don't Olympic lift our baseball guys.

On multiple occasions, I've written at length about why I don't like overhead pressing and Olympic lifts in light of the unique demands of throwing and the crazy adaptations we see in throwers.

While the Olympic lifts might have great power development carryover to the sprinting one encounters on a baseball field, the carryover to power in the frontal and transverse planes just isn't as pronounced.  In other words, power development is extremely plane-specific.  I'll take medicine ball work and non-sagittal plane jumping exercises over O-lifts for baseball players in a heartbeat.

4. They're surprised we don't do more band work.

It's not that I think bands are useless; I just think most guys use them incorrectly, and even when used correctly, they just don't really offer that much advantage other than convenience.

The fundamental issue with bands is that the resistance is generally so light that guys can quickly develop bad habits - poor humeral head control, lumbar hyperextension, etc. - while doing them.  They'd be much more effective if guys would just slow down and use them correctly.  I am also not a fan at all of using the bands to get the arms into all sorts of extreme positions; you're just using a passive implement to create more laxity in an already unstable shoulder.  If you want (and need) to stretch a shoulder, do so with the scapula stabilized.  

Additionally, I'll take cables over bands whenever possible simply because the resistance is heavier and it matches the strength curve for external rotations better.  Throwers are generally weakest at full external rotation, yet the band has the highest tension in this position; meanwhile, the cable's resistance remains constant.  Obviously, manual resistance is ideal, but bands are a distance third.

5. They're surprised how "aggressive" our throwing programs are.

The overwhelming majority of our guys long toss, and most of them throw weighted baseballs at certain points of the year as well.  They pitch less and throw more.  They all still get their 2-3 months off from throwing each year, but when they are throwing, they work hard.

This is in stark contrast to some of the throwing models I've seen in professional baseball, where many organizations limit players to 90-120 feet with their long tossing, and the only time a baseball is "weighted" is when it gets wet on a rainy day.  Guys take so much time off that they never have any time in the off-season to actually develop.  I firmly believe that while you have to have strict limits on how you manage pitchers, you also have to stop short of completely coddling them.

These are surely just five areas in which we deviate from the norm with respect to baseball development, but important ones nonetheless.

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Here are this week's random tips to get you headed in the right direction with your workout routine and nutrition program, with assistance from Cressey Performance strength and conditioning coach Greg Robins.

1. Take a preventative approach.

Often times nagging pain, injuries, and adverse health effects are an issue of negligence. It is is important as a coach, athlete, or weekend warrior to take a preventative approach to keeping your body healthy. There is no shortage of information on how to deal with various joint pain, or why its important to do "this" to prevent "that". At Cressey Performance, we take a preventive approach to keep our athletes on the field, but the ball doesn't stop there.

A common example is resistance training among older women to prevent bone degeneration. A recent study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology found that younger women, in their mid twenties, who participated in a 12-week resistance training program showed significant increases in the hormones responsible for new bone growth. This isn't revolutionary, but the take home point is to promote heavy lifting long before signs of degeneration begin to present themselves.

Similarly, anterior knee pain is a hot topic with active individuals. This pain can be debilitating, especially as an athlete or someone with a more active job / lifestyle. Another recent study conducted at The University of Cincinnati found that an intervention with four daily close chained kinetic exercises among military recruits (undergoing rigorous training) greatly reduced incidents of knee pain when compared to a control group who did not. Military personnel underwent daily physical training for 3-4 hours per day, including endurance marching, military field exercises, running, weapons and foot drill, and strength and conditioning. If as little as four exercises were able to help these individuals, imagine what they can do for you.

2. Eat more fish - and preferably ones that did cool stuff like this while they were still alive.

3. Wear a pedometer for a day.

If you talk to a lot of people "in the know," non-exercise physical activity (NEPA) is an often overlooked factor contributing to fat loss success (or failure). Some people just move all the time, whether it's because of their occupation (e.g., manual laborer) or the simple fact that they are constantly fidgeting. It might surprise you, but this NEPA can really help get you lean - or keep you there.

One quick and easy way to get a feeling of where you stand on this front is to simply wear a pedometer for a day.  I did this about two years ago and discovered that I actually walk about four miles in eight hours of coaching at Cressey Performance.  That's a lot of calories burned!

Just like writing down everything you eat can force you to consider what you're putting in your mouth, wearing a pedometer can motivate you to take some extra steps each day.  Give it a shot; you may be surprised at how many or few steps you take each day.

4. Count your blessings.

Being happy, and finding fulfillment in your life and training, can be as easy as remembering all that you already have. Stop stressing about what you don't have, and focus on the many things you do have. Take five minutes and write down everything you are grateful for. Every morning start your day by reading through your list, and add to it as you see fit. Doing so will give you a positive start to each day. Try it out!

5. Be more specific with your "conditioning."

The term conditioning is grossly misunderstood. The lack of understanding, in consideration of the demands of an individual within their chosen sports or activities, has led to many asinine training protocols developed by misinformed coaches and general people alike. An elite powerlifter may not be able to run a six-minute mile, but they are perfectly conditioned for their sport. Likewise, a baseball pitcher has no business doing extensive distance running when they a play a sport that involves covering as little as 100ft of total ground per outing (if that). More appropriately, they need to develop the energy systems conducive to producing explosive movements repetitively for the amount of time they spend on the mound. This will differ within the position as well: Starters, long relievers, closers, etc.

Using resources such as "time motion analysis" is a great place to investigate the actual demands placed on an athlete in a given sport. You can access A LOT of these through a basic google search. As a team sport coach, take a critical look at what you assign as "conditioning" work to your athletes during practice. In this day and age, many kids are participating in strength and conditioning programs outside of their practice and game schedules. Assuming that they are receiving intelligent programming, you do not want to interfere with their training by having them do additional work that is detrimental to their progress. Solutions: stop the ridiculous amounts of distance running and "suicides," and instead form a relationship with their strength and conditioning coach.

For you weekend warriors: Your approach to conditioning will be as specific as your main goal. Many general fitness people are kind of across the board on what they are trying to accomplish. With that in mind, try to keep a similar stimulus in your conditioning work to what the rest of your training for that day is. For example, place sprint work with adequate rest on heavy lifting days, place more aerobic work on off days, and include a day of high intense intervals with shorter rest later in the week after training.

Co-Author Greg Robins is strength and conditioning coach at Cressey Performance in Hudson, MA. Check out his website, www.GregTrainer.com, for more great content.

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I'm excited to announce that new Cressey Performance employee Greg Robins is going to be helping me out with this series moving forward.  Greg brings a unique skill set to to the table, and I think that the two of us together will kick out some great content in this weekly post moving forward.  With that said, here are five quick and easy ways to feel and move better to get you week off on the right foot:

1. Focus on less.

Too often I see people make the mistake of doing too much in the gym. Additionally, many folks jump from strength and conditioning program to program, or change strength exercises too often. Make it a point to do two things.  

First, pick a few big movements that you can execute correctly, and continually work to become great at them. Second, settle on a specific outcome for your training. Are you trying to lose fat, gain muscle, or get strong? While your approach may have elements that address all of these, prioritize one or the other for an extended period of time. Allowing yourself time to get better with movement, and eliminating competing demands from your program, are both great ways to maximize your efforts. 

2. Declutter your life.

"Spring cleaning" is a hackneyed expression, but that doesn't mean it isn't an incredibly worthwhile project to undertake!  Let's just say that I filled a trunk with trash from my home office last week.

Considering that my home office is only 13'x13', I expect my productivity to increase quite a bit.  Think about ways you can "declutter" your life; it should help you focus on the task at hand.

3. Carry heavy stuff with friends.

Dan John has put out some great content with respect to how valuable carrying variations can be.  They are easily learned, don't make you ridiculously sore, and provide a great whole-body training effect.  One thing we like to do as a staff is set up our farmer's walks in a group format.  Our turf is 40 yards long, and each set is either one or two trips.  One person goes, then the next person goes, and so on until everyone has finished all their sets.  It keeps you accountable to strict rest periods, builds in the motivation of competition (who wants to be the one guy who can't finish his trip?), and distributes the loading/unloading responsibilities among several people!  Here's an old video of us on this front:

4. Get every rep.

Nobody makes progress by missing lifts. Check your ego at the door, and take a more patient approach to your training. The most beautiful lesson in training is one of delayed gratification. To succeed in the gym, you need to do what is necessary in the training session in order to make the subsequent training sessions beneficial. Nobody can set personal records for themselves every day, so focus on executing each and every rep smoothly. Over time, add to the bar, add a rep, or do a little more work in the same time period. It will all add up, and a year from now you will marvel at what you accomplished. However, if you choose to blow it out every session, in a year, you will be lucky to have made minimal progress.

5. Spend less time down at the bar.

It drives me bonkers when lifters spend too much time down in the bottom position of a deadlift.  I always encourage people to get their minds right while they're standing around, and then get right to it when they get up to the bar.  Spending too much time in the bottom position of your deadlift technique means that you'll lose any benefit of the stretch-shortening cycle, and run the risk of becoming an overly pensive, weak schmuck.

Co-Author Greg Robins is strength and conditioning coach at Cressey Performance in Hudson, MA. Check out his website, www.GregTrainer.com, for more great content.

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