Happy Monday! I've got some recommended strength and conditioning resources for you, but before I get to them, I want to quickly remind you that the early-bird registration deadline for my September 17 seminar near Washington, DC is this Thursday, August 17. This event will sell out, as I only have a few spots left, so if you're interested in attending, don't delay on registration. Here's the information page.
Baseball America Podcast Interview with Dr. James Andrews - This was an an excellent 18-minute conversation between Will Carroll from Motus and Dr. Andrews. They covered Dr. Andrews' latest observations on arm injuries in youth baseball players.
Do You Need a Navy Seal? - This article from Dr. Brandon Marcello is a few years old, but warrants reincarnation in light of recent developments with alternative, military-inspired training approaches in the general and athletic populations.
Sabotaging Your Sales Pitch: 4 Mistakes to Avoid - My business partner, Pete Dupuis, presents a little fitness business advice. In this post, he covers the lead conversion conversation - and how to not screw it up!
Top Tweet of the Week
Educated, motivated athletes crave structure - and input on that plan. Deny them that organization and active role, and you'll lose them.
Yesterday, Cressey Sports Performance coach Miguel Aragoncillo delivered an outstanding in-service that led to a great discussion of characteristics of our clients who've had the best long-term success. Without a doubt, the one that stands out above all else is consistency. If someone continues to show up consistently - all other things held equal - they stand the best chance of making great progress toward their goals, whether they're performance, aesthetic, or a combination of the two.
The discussion immediately made me think back to a slide from my presentation on long-term athletic development on this year's Perform Better tour. In this slide, I talked about how the path to success is actually a circle.
Everything begins with having an environment that individuals find motivating and inviting - which drives interest. This might come from them relating to the like-minded training partners, music, unique programming or coaching styles, or any of a number of factors. Very simply, it has to be an environment that drives enthusiasm, the next component of the circle.
Enthusiastic athletes are more open to learning, whether it's about their unique movement issues or how they approach nutrition. This enthusiasm opens up a window for education.
When you get a motivated, enthusiastic, educated athlete, you've set the stage for a greater level of autonomy. When someone has the education and desire to change - but also the independence to do it on their own - you've created an optimal scenario for results to take place.
And, the more results you get, the more buy-in you receive in the form of increased interest - and the circle starts anew.
None of this should seem revolutionary, but you'd be surprised at how many individuals try to jump in at the education portion. They assume that everyone who walks in their door is interested and enthusiastic, and that isn't always the case. This is one reason why I'm always particularly cautious not to overwhelm folks during their initial evaluations; I'm actually far more interested in building rapport and making them comfortable in our environment than I am in telling them all about how they have brutal hip internal rotation or a serious lack of rotator cuff strength.
[bctt tweet="Initial assessments should start a relationship while tactfully delivering (not forcing) education."]
I try to view each client in the context of this circle to see how we can best optimize their experience with us and improve consistency. Do we need to do a better job of making them excited about the environment? Or, do we need to build on the enthusiasm they already have with a stronger educational component? Or, do we need to help them come up with strategies to best incorporate the knowledge they have to develop more autonomy to facilitate further progress? At the end of the day, it's a unique mix for every individual, but this framework can help you to get to the bottom of it.
I'll leave with a closing thought: when you get a 15-16 year-old athlete who has gotten to the autonomy stage that early in his athletic career, it is an absolute game-changer. These athletes not only follow everything you put on paper to a "T," but also become even better active participants in the training process. They're better communicators who ask good questions and help you to develop the best programming and coaching approaches to get them results quicker. And, when you combine this high motivation and early independence with someone who is a gifted natural athlete, you can see absolutely incredible progress.
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It was an eventful weekend in the Cressey household, as we had our first trip to the emergency room with one of our daughters. Everything is fine, but it was another not-so-subtle reminder of how two-year-olds can change your plans on a moment's notice! Since I didn't do any writing myself this weekend, here's some good stuff from around the 'net:
Forget Career Hacks - Dr. John Berardi penned one of the more insightful articles on professional success that I've read in recent years. I love this equation because it demonstrates to folks that passion is necessary, but ineffective by itself:
I really love strength and conditioning. I see athletes as similar to choose-your-own adventure books where you have to find the right assessment, programming, and coaching strategies to get them to where they need to be. Each case is unique, so I get genuinely excited in trying to solve new puzzles every day.
Early in my career, though, that excitement often got the best of me. My brain would race faster than my mouth could keep up, and I used my mouth more than my ears and my eyes. Looking back, I threw way too many questions, observations, and cues at athletes. In talking so much, I probably not only confused them, but also missed out on invaluable chances to listen more and learn about their stories - which would help me solve these puzzles. Now, I talk much less and do a lot more listening. My goal in every assessment is to listen 80% of the time and only talk the remaining 20%. And, in my coaching interactions, I try to be as to-the-point as possible, using fewer words and more body language and gestures to convey my points.
This one never gets old: "You've got two eyes, two ears, two legs, and one mouth. Use them in that order."
Not surprisingly, I feel strongly that shutting up more often has made me a far better coach. Improving in any of life's challenges - athletics included - is about learning to tune out the noise - and too many coaching cues are just distractions as you're trying to learn how to move correctly. Interesting, as author Adam Grant recently pointed out on Twitter, there are academic parallels to this. A 2014 study (described here) reported that "when kindergartners were taught in a highly decorated classroom, they were more distracted and scored lower on tests than when they were taught in a room with bare walls." When we're trying to learn - whether it's our ABCs or how to trap bar deadlift - loads of distractions are our biggest enemy.
With that in mind, you have to ask yourself: "As a coach, am I a facilitator or just another distraction?"
If you're giving an athlete 58 visual, verbal, and kinesthetic cues all at the same time, you're overcoaching and overwhelming them. Moreover, if you're asking them asking them about their weekend while they're in the middle of sets, you're likely taking them further away from their goals. As I've written time and time again:
[bctt tweet="Good coaching cues are clear, firm, concise - and TIMELY."]
As much as it may hurt to admit it, sometimes, the best way to get athletes to where they want to be is to shut up. The next time you're struggling to get an athlete to make the adjustments you're trying to accomplish, take a step back and simplify your coaching approach with fewer words.
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I used to regularly program scap push-ups in training programs in an attempt to improve shoulder health. Nowadays, though, I realize there are much better ways to get the job done. Check out today's video to learn the problems with scap push-ups as well as some better alternatives:
If you're looking for some good serratus anterior activation drills in place of scap push-ups, check out these videos:
If you're interested in learning all my favorite strategies for getting serratus anterior firing, be sure to check out my popular resource, Sturdy Shoulder Solutions at www.SturdyShoulders.com.
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When they were still in diapers, my 2-year-old daughters would always request the ones with "Big Bird" on them. The images on the diaper didn't change how effective it was at doing its job, of course.
And, if the paper towels didn't have a picture of Olaf from "Frozen" on them, a temper tantrum might very well occur - even if any regular ol' paper towel would've gotten the job done just as well.
They adored the Mickey Mouse sippy cups my mother bought them even though they weren't any better at delivering the beverage than a generic cup.
All of these are perfect examples of Brandscaping, a concept to which I was introduced by Andrew Davis in his outstanding book by the same name.
In its simplest form, brandscaping is an approach to developing partnerships with other brands who also cater to your target market. Davis spends considerable time discussing how Tony Bennett's resurgence in the past decade has a lot to do with joint ventures with Lady Gaga and the Muppets; they've modernized his classic approach to create a new synergy.
As an more applicable fitness industry example, Cressey Sports Performance (baseball strength and conditioning) and New Balance (baseball training apparel and shoes) are a great synergistic fit - and it even led to a limited edition training sneaker.
Referrals to and from physical therapists are another example, and the list could go on to include pitching instructors, massage therapists, meal preparation services, and a host of other complementary services. If we look at the classic "here's how you can grow your business," brandscaping is likely the single-best way to grow the "same product, new market" component. Your brandscaping partner recognizes your specific expertise/offering and brings new folks to it. You, in turn, do the same for them. Everybody wins.
Unfortunately, though, a lot of fitness professionals get in their own way and "obstruct" opportunities for brandscaping. A big mistake is definitely trying to be everything to everyone. If you're training everyone from cardiac rehab patients, to fitness competitors, to basketball players, to powerlifters, chances are that potential partners are going to struggle to see the specific realm in which you'd be a good partner. When you have a really broad collection of offerings, it's a challenge to market to them. The cardiac rehab patients might hate the internet, the fitness competitors love Instagram, the basketball players are on Twitter, and the powerlifters are on Facebook.
Moreover, some fitness professionals mismanage their web presence, even if they have a specific, marketable niche. As an example, if you train high school athletes, but a huge majority of your social media posts are about beer and partying, that's going to be a huge turnoff to their parents (who pay the bills). And, if you're a rockstar when it comes to training middle aged corporate executives, they're likely going to be turned off if all your social media content is shirtless photos of you from your recreational bodybuilding hobby.
In wrapping up, there are really three huge takeaways for you as you try to grow your business.
First, someone else has your ideal customers. Think about how you can partner with them in a mutually benefical relationship.
Second, your ideal customers or brandscaping partners might not be able to appreciate how good a cross-referral or co-banding relationship with you could be because you keep getting in your way. Think about the image you're creating publicly for your business or brand.
Third, don't let your daughters boss you around like mine do to me.
While we're on the topic of the business of fitness, I wanted to give you a heads-up that my business partner, Pete Dupuis, and I will be offering our Cressey Sports Performance Business Building Mentorship in an online format for the first time. This offering will take place September 22-24. For more information, click here.
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I normally like to get these sent out on Monday, but I spent a rainy day at Fenway Park yesterday for the annual Cape Cod Baseball League workout. A day late (but no less sincere) here is our recommended reading for the week!
Setting up for Speed: Base, Balance, and Angles - This is an excellent, to-the-point blog post from Mike Robertson. I wish I'd had it early in my career to help me pick up coaching speed and agility sooner.
Want More Clients? Maybe Consider the Following. - I really enjoyed this post from my old friend Tony Gentilcore. It's top-notch stuff for any up-and-coming trainer who is looking to build a larger clientele.
Top Tweet of the Week
If already taking 150 ground balls/day in-season, do you really need extra agility work? NASCAR guys don't hit up go-karts after each race.
I've devoted a lot of my articles to shoulder assessment, training, and programming over the years. Some have been lengthy articles (like my lat strain feature), others have been quick hit posts (like this bear crawl vs. crab walk one), and some have been video technique tutorials and common mistakes, like this:
When you've been at something a long time, the natural tendency is to chase increasing complexity. The more complexity you chase, the more novelty you encounter - and that novelty is what keeps folks engaged when they "specialize" in the same joint over an entire career. One thing I've done well in this regard is to chase complexity in my own education, but kept our application of these principles simple in the way we evaluate and coach athletes. Because, at the end of the day, this is what it comes down to:
[bctt tweet="Shoulder health is about keeping the ball on the socket. Period."]
Keep in mind that we're speaking specifically to the glenohumeral (ball and socket) joint, when in reality the entire shoulder girdle is comprised of many different articulations). As I mentioned, though, the point of this blog is to simplify this discussion.
There are a lot of factors that impact how well one is able to do that. It could be cuff strength, scapular control, ligamentous laxity, previous injury, bony changes, faulty thoracic positioning, tissue density, core control, and a host of other issues. These things all - in one way or another - impact how the ball and socket interact.
As strength and conditioning and rehabilitation specialists, you still need to understand the most common injuries incurred at the shoulder. You must appreciate population specific norms. And, you need to understand the assessments that determine whether static posture and movement quality are where they need to be. However, you should never get away from always bringing these concepts back to the fact that they all have to do with ball-and-socket interaction.
As Einstein once said, "If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough." That's both the goal of this particular blog, and also in my resource, Sturdy Shoulder Solutions. You can learn more at www.SturdyShoulders.com.
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I've been crushing audiobooks, print books, and DVDs of late, so it's generated some good material for these weekly installments.
Certified Program Design Specialist Course - Robert Dos Remedios just released this course, and I'm working my way through it right now. Program Design is this huge "hole" in industry education; it's so incredibly complex to teach that I'm impressed that Dos even tried to tackle the project! I've enjoyed what I've seen thus far, and this could be a great resource for up-and-coming coaches. It's $100 off this week as an introductory discount.
Smart Baseball- I really enjoyed Keith Law's new book, as it delved heavily into the world of advanced statistics in baseball. If you're a casual observer to the sabermetric world, this would be a good read for getting up to speed - and it'll help you watch baseball through a different lens.
The Quadruped Rock-Back Test: RIP - Doug Kechijian just published this article that asserts that this classic test probably doesn't hold as much merit for predicting squatting success as one might think.
Top Tweet of the Week
1-leg RDL anti-rotation taps: great balance drill for throwers. Research shows improved balance equates to improved pitching performance. pic.twitter.com/4KvLAXQMDh
Most fitness industry folks are convinced that their single biggest area for improvement is lead generation. If only they could get more people to know about their gym - and possibly even take a tour - then they'd absolutely blow up.
I hate to burst your bubble, but while your lead generation might need work, in the overwhelming majority of businesses, systems and retention are where the biggest opportunities for improvement exist. You see, if you shore things up on these two fronts, you'll create a better product and dramatically increase the number of word-of-mouth referrals you get. Over the life of your business, word-of-mouth should blow any direct mail or Facebook advertising you do out of the water, so why not work on the things that impact it the most?
Now that I've gotten that off my chest, I should actually talk a bit about lead generation, as the truth is that it's probably more complex than it's ever been.
If you look back 15-20 years, a lot of folks weren't on the internet - and they certainly didn't have social media. It was really, really hard to get in front of people affordably if you were a small business. If you didn't have the cash to pay for radio, TV, newspaper, or billboard ads, your only option for generating leads began and ended with pounding the pavement to shake hands and kiss babies. Nowadays, things are a whole lot different; you can get in front of just about anyone pretty quickly and easily.
If this wasn't the case, a kid from small town Maine named Cressey - who didn't even play high school baseball - wouldn't be training more than 100 professional baseball players each offseason.
This modern marketing world creates opportunities, but also a lot of noise. People are bombarded by more marketing messages than ever before because we have more devices (phones, tablets, computers, radios) and mediums (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Email, etc) than ever before. There is so much noise that people are completely desensitized to the marketing messages that are being sent their way. That means that top of mind awareness is substantially harder to achieve.
What does this mean for lead generation in the fitness industry? You have to get in front of people regularly and via a number of different marketing channels. If you're reading this blog, you probably hear from me here, on various social media channels, and via email. Perhaps you read an article by or about me on another website or print magazine or newspaper. We might have interacted with one another at a seminar, or we might have a mutual friend who recommended that you check out EricCressey.com.
The point is that you have to stand on your head to make expertise easy to perceive. It's just not good enough to just pay for a newspaper ad and hope for people to show up.
This is particularly complex because everyone will perceive expertise differently - and in different places. Teenagers aren't really on Facebook very often, but it's a great marketing avenue for those over the age of 30. Some of the people there might like video content, and others may prefer writing. Every lead must be generated via a unique marketing mix, and that can make it very challenging to be really successful across multiple niches. At Cressey Sports Performance, we can easily market to baseball players, coaches, and parents, but it'd be really hard for us to build a successful discharge program for cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation patients. It's an entirely different demographic that we'd struggle to access.
Bringing things all back together, some closing thoughts:
1. You probably generate a fair amount of leads but need to do better at making sure they aren't disappearing out the back door while you're so focused on getting more people in the door.
2. You may need to prioritize optimizing your systems to put yourself in the best position possible to deliver a high-quality product (both training and environment) that will yield more word-of-mouth referrals.
3. Make expertise easy to perceive across a variety of marketing mediums, especially if you're trying to cater to multiple demographics.
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