Thursday, April 22, 2010

Workout of the Day:
Five sets for max reps of:
60 seconds of Bench Press (135/85 lbs.)
60 seconds of Rest
60 seconds of Pull-Ups
60 seconds of Rest
60 seconds of Anchored Sit-Ups
60 seconds of Rest

Last weekend's jump rope clinic at Invictus was awesome! Thank you Sara!

Where is he now?
Written by C.J. Martin

It’s true; I am off once again.  I have been away a lot this year.  But I promise, it’s because I love you.

It’s no secret that I love education.  After all, I spent nearly 20 years of my life working toward academic degrees.  But I truly see it as my job as a coach and business owner to be on a constant hunt for information and better methods.

Now, what’s a better method?  I don’t know yet.  And that’s kind of the point of committing to lifelong education.  I am trying to be as informed as possible so that we can test methods and determine best practices.  I am sure we’ll make mistakes in the process, but I am also confident that we will continue to find ways to improve how efficiently we can help our members achieve their fitness goals.

So where am I off to now?

I leave before dawn on Friday to head to Rhode Island for a BioSignature Certification put on by Charles Poliquin.  If you haven’t heard of Charles Poliquin, he is an extremely accomplished strength and conditioning coach who has worked with a wide variety of athletes, from bodybuilders to Olympians and NFL players.  From all accounts, the man is a scientist dedicated to tracking trends and correlations seen in his athletes.  From these trends and correlations, he created the BioSignature Method.

BioSignature is a system based on scientific evidence that where people store their body fat is an indication of their hormonal profile.  The concept is that once you have an understanding of an individual’s hormone profiles, you can more efficiently correct their specific imbalances through diet, exercise and lifestyle modification.  Or more simply put, by understanding what’s going on under your hood, we can better tune your engine so that you run more efficiently.

I don’t know enough yet to tell you that it will completely change how I counsel clients on exercise and nutrition, but I know that I need to know more about it.  I also know that several coaches that I consider teachers and mentors, such as James Fitzgerald and Robb Wolf, have invested in learning about BioSignature and have incorporated elements into their practices.  So I am off to figure out what I can bring back to you all and how we can continue to improve the coaching and knowledge in the Invictus community.

While I am gone next week, we’ll run a review of some of our best blog posts of 2009.  I was reminded recently that not all of our members have read some of what I consider to be the most important posts we’ve put on our blog.  I have picked a blend of posts that have helped create or communicate our culture and showcase some of our bright coaches and the education that has helped them to become superb at what they do.

I look forward to sharing what I learn with you all when I return.