8 Thoughts. I had a random collection of thoughts banging around in my head this afternoon and I needed to get them out. This list is in no order of importance and it is a little all over the place but I hope you get something out of it!

 1) Moderation is the key to an enjoyable life. However, when you find yourself indulging a little bit too often it might be a good idea to get a little extreme for a few weeks. If you are eating more crap than usual, try avoiding these indulgences completely for 3 weeks. No, this wont “kick start your metabolism” or “reboot your whatever cleanses are supposed to reboot” but it can help you regain some control and return to moderation.

2) If you find your progress stalled you should drink more water, sleep more, eat more fruit/veggies/unprocessed crap and try to have more fun. Sometimes you just need to chill to boost performance.

3) If you are trying to deadlift 500lbs, spend more time lifting in the 400s. Work on improving your technique and bracing abilities. Develop the ability to move heavy ass weight with clean, crisp technique. Spend 3 weeks moving 400-425lbs for 3 sets of 3-5 reps followed by a deload week. Spend the following 3 weeks lifting 430-445lbs for 3 sets of 3-5 reps followed by another deload week. Spend the following 2 weeks lifting 450-475lbs for 2 to 3 sets of 1-2 reps and go for a personal record the following week. Take a week off after that and move on to another big lower body exercise for 6 to 9 weeks after that. This is a simplified approach and you should progress based on how your body feels but the idea is to spend a little bit more time within 100lbs of your goal to let your body get used to moving heavy weight.

4) Intermittent fasting is great if you do it correctly and you are getting in the proper ratios of carbs/fat/protein. The problem is, most people mess up the nutrient ratios and continue eating too much. It doesn’t matter if you are consuming those calories in 8 hours or 20 hours.

5) Newton knows speed.  All forces occur in pairs such that if one object exerts force on another object, then the second object exerts an equal and opposite reaction force on the first. This happens when an athlete sprints. The athlete exerts force into the ground and this helps propel the athlete forward. The more force an athlete can exert, the faster he or she will sprint.  Which brings us to number 6!

6) The amount of force an athlete can apply to the ground is directly related to the athletes strength level. How strong is strong enough? How much weight do we have to add to the bar? At what point is that strength just for show? I don’t know yet, but I hope to have some definitive answer before I retire at the age of 107.

7) Movement skills are great but I think the next frontier is developing methods to help athletes perception abilities. The athletes who dominate their sports are not always the strongest or the fastest, but they all think a step or two ahead of the competition.

8) Most athletes have default movement skills they resort to time and time again. I want to help athletes develop creative-default solutions for common problems they face on the field. I have no idea how to do that. Yet.