Deep down, beyond the crunch, when the teeth have chewed and the small intestine has broken down your food…. are the essential vitamins and minerals needed for your tissues, organs and cells need to survive. These bits, elements and enzymes are the Micronutrients that have so much to do with the Balance that is necessary to make all things go in the body. But what are they and what are they responsible for is a mystery that I hope to unlock for you today.

Data Driven Performance testing is no new thing in fitness. From High School weight rooms to the Olympic Fields, we look to measure performance. As a Sports Science Student there are a number of variables that I can point to; from blood markers, muscle biopsies, and the most prevalent... Heart Rate Variability. Monitoring your heart rate has always been the gold standard for cardiovascular fitness assessment and training programs.

If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me how many days per week they should be training their arms or legs, I would be quite well off. But rarely does anyone ask me about how many days they should practice strengthening their backs! If you look at the data behind the most common reasons why people visit the doctor it never really has to do with how weak the biceps or calves are; people overwhelmingly see the doctor because they have hurt their backs. So we have to ask why this is happening so much and how to can we fix this from occurring

Without even being aware of it, you favor certain things in your life. From your favorite coffee cup to the leg you balance on, we form habits and those habits form dominant lifestyle habits. Habits in our movement and posture create imbalances in our strength and no where is this more visible than in the main fulcrum of our body , the Hips . At the intersection of our body lives the connection between some of the most important pieces of our independent living. maintaining good hip health means you are able to create a hedge against injury, pain and long term deterioration. Unilateral Movements are one solution. Lets explore the Top 5 best exercises for Hip Health.

Ill admit that I live in a bit of a bubble. Meal Prepping, Farmers Markets and Nutritional Awareness is kind of my thing and Its so engrained in my lifestyle that there really is little to think about each week. When I engage with y’all in and out of the gym this confidence in my meals and nutrition is certainly not the norm. Nerves, Fear, Confusion and Wishful Thinking are just some of the topics that come up when we talk about feeding ourselves correctly. Thank goodness we live in the most efficient time in history because I have 3 Reasons why Meal Delivery Solutions are right for you.

What came first? The Chicken or the Egg? A new study released this week has made a direct correlation between circulatory disease/death and the consumption of Sugar Sweetened Beverages. But what does this really show? Is it the soda that kills people or the overall habits of the people (which includes soda drinking) that ultimately causes disease and death? Lets play devils advocate today and look a little deeper into the science.

Your feet are the energy centers where the connection with Mother Earth begins. Rooted is a term that I use a lot in coaching and no place does it refer to more than with the connection of your feet to the floor. The feet are often underserved and their connection to the the Earth is overlooked. We search for the right shoes like bandaids that can mask underlying problems, pains, and weaknesses. Keeping them strong, healthy and connected to the earth is so important for longevity in life. Lets dive into some of the best exercises to Ive found to keep your tootsies strong!

Before the Gates of Performance open up for you ; you need to stand upon a foundation of good health. Good Health is predicated upon your ability to maintain a healthy weight. Therefore if you are beginning or feeling Plateaued in your Journey, it is time to start taking a hard look at the pieces of you life that make up the complete package of health and wellbeing. When we sleep, how well we sleep should be in balance with our Nutritional Timing and of course, quality of food we are eating. Lets talk today about how we can link those two important pieces together.

This week a ground breaking Study came out from a Team of Swedish scientists. The STUDY was the most comprehensive done on an array of children, proving that the amount of Gluten that a child consumes is related to their risk for developing Celiac Disease. The reason why this is so big is that the sample of children spans not just European but American as well. While the line has now been drawn between the Celiac and Gluten this does not fill the void of information which lies outside of this test. I have so many questions which I will lay out for you, and I encourage your thoughtful response.

Every athlete that is at the top of their game believes that their training methodology is the best. I know because I AM one of those guys. How everyone balances training intensities is truly a matter of trial and error, of the athletes they test their program against, and of the countless variables that pertain to a specific outcome. There is one thing that science downs dispute, Anaerobic (Threshold) training delivers the most juice for the squeeze. But what it is and how it should be approached is as varied as you could imagine. So Here are my top 5 hacks to ensure you are getting the most out of Anaerobic Training.

Without sounding too morbid; When you woke up this morning, you were one day closer to dying. Im sorry but its a reality. While I could easily spin this conversation to dive through the cultural and philosophical relationship we have with “Death” and “Aging” my goal today is to give you some real insight into the physiology of your cells and how aging is happening. As we thirst for the Fountain of youth thru Diet and Exercise this Natural Process continues to move along in our lives just as it has throughout the history of our species. So Here is your 3 Minute Read on why we age.

New York is great in the Summer. Unlike the Winter time everyone has smiles on their faces. Even on the hottest day in the gym, I love that New Yorkers take it in stride. And, just like Winter Time, New York weather is extreme. Mid nineties on the thermometer with 60-75% humidity can literally make your skin burn. Im not joking when I say its hot. So what are the limits of our training when it gets this hot outside? When is training in the heat too much. I have dug around and found some surprising things about High Heat Training that might surprise you.

I have studied countless athletes over the years. When they walk into the gym the first 2 things I look at is how their feet are positioned when standing and how they hold their shoulders. In 5 minutes of a consultation I can usually have a pretty good understanding of their athletic ability and a snapshot of their past. The shoulders play a huge role in our health and it is imperative to keep them flexible and strong. As we spend more and more time in front of our computers, there is a tragic postural change that is happening which is hurting our ability to perform even the most mundane of physical tasks.

Its not just your lung capacity that you are developing during training. Its not just how big your muscles are getting that make you stronger or get that one last rep. A new study Published in the Nature Medicine journal may shed some more light on just how important your GUT is in relation to your overall athletic ability.

If you care about your health and performance enough to supplement with Vitamins and Minerals, then you should be paying attention to when and how to take them. Lets face it, Supplements are expensive and most of us take them without REALLY knowing the What, Why and How for each. Because the marketing machine behind supplement sales is strong, we just buy and consume. So lets put all of our bottles on the table and dive in on some important timing aspects to your daily SUPP game.

What do you crave at the Movies? Are you a Salty Popcorn lover or a Sweet Candy person? For me, its all Popcorn. The sweet nature of anything but Chocolate or raw honey is quite distasteful to me. But why is this? What makes my brain go for one thing over the other? Well, It turns out that ‘TASTE’ is both premeditated and genetic. Where some of our taste is learned through exposure and through the make up of our GUT, there is also some imprinted tastes that are bestowed on us while we were in the womb!

If you are a long time reader of my Content, there is no mistaking my love for research studies. Im absolutely crazy for the latest published study because two things usually happen; 1. The wide variety of research being done is inspiring and it gives me deep faith in the last bastion of objective virtue . 2. The Complex Research Reaffirms a lot of the simple thinking that we already know to be true! This week, Food Vs. Supplementation in regards to probiotics. The real truth that could save you money and time.

I swear that as Both a Firefighter and an Athlete, I have heard every colloquialism about hydration you can think of.
”Hydrate today so you are good tomorrow”
”Drink Before you are Thirsty”
”1 Quart Gatorade to 2 Quarts Water for the Best hydration”
If it has to do with drinking for Performance, there is no myth I have not heard. But I have always wondered about the real Science behind liquid absorption. And with a little digging, I found that there is some really interesting Research on it that you should know about. So how fast do you think you absorb water?

As the gears turn in our daily lives, there is a machine that hums overhead. We live in a time where consumption is driven by marketing and not by choice or necessity. Our fault is in the blind trust that the system has our best intrest in mind. I am speaking of the Food Product industry and its grasp on our lives. As the separation of citizen and government becomes more apparent, industry leans in on policy. By extension what happens to policy, has a downstream effect on Public Health. Lets peel back the package and see who really is in control.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, Hormones Run the show. Your body is simply reacting to the stimulus acted upon it by the chemicals flowing through. No matter what it is you are doing, your endocrine system is responsible…. Walking, Thinking, Talking, and Especially SEX. We all know that a good diet and healthy living are important for maintaining the machine but there is growing research which shows that Fish Oil could have farther reaching benefits than just controlling triglyceride levels. Your Sex life (and performance) is a key indicator of overall health. Fish Oil may just be what you need to optimize this important aspect of existence!

What do you think your favorite sports stars are doing when they are not in season? Are they laying on a beach soaking up the sun? (Probably at some point) Are they buying expensive shit and dodging Paparazzi? (Most certainly). No matter what, I damn sure am certain that they are not playing their sport! This is because the ravages of professional athletics take a toll on the body and the last thing that needs to happen is more of the same.

Take a moment right now and place your hand just below the diaphragm. Inhale deeply, exhale and take a moment to thank your Liver. This little guy has been working hard for you all your life, a thankless job but one that is essential for your life as you know it. No matter what you have thrown at it, the Liver works hard to keep you on track. If you are like me, you and your liver could share some stories! Well today we are going to give thanks to our livers and Im going to give you 5 EASY DETOXIFYING TIPS to help you keep your Liver at Peak levels and boost your performance as an athlete. Given all that you two have been through, its time.. and probably overdue.

Success in Sport is defined by not just speed or strength. Underlying athleticism is in Position and Posture. The best athletes are those that can seamlessly perform a given task no matter the circumstances. Often this means having the utmost control over the position of the body in space. Isometric Training is crucial for developing the strength and flexibility necessary for optimal body control. The following are 5 Proven facts about Isometrics and why you need to be putting them in your training.

Life is unpredictable. As soon as you wake in the morning you become part of the wave in this worlds ocean. If you have a few years under your belt this is very apparent. We are all interconnected and subject to everyone and everything around us. Well, given this truth you still have control of the most important thing, your state of consciousness.

Popular dietary antics pervade our Nutritional Landscape. There are binges, fasting, liquid only, Vegan, you name it… someone is selling you on it. Maybe its commercialism or maybe its just us Humans always wanting to confuse the shit out of things and creating drama in our lives. To me, nutrition fads and social hashtags are ‘First World Problems’, created to dumb down aspects of our existence. BUT.. they could also be harming our health. While a good dose of entropy is beneficial for our health , the Cheat Day may be doing us more harm than good. Today Im going to dig into new research and lay out some not so new ideas as to why you should cut it out.

In case you missed it this week, a unique study came out that was picked up by all the major new outlets. I always get excited when this happens as News agencies are concentrated on reporting the low hanging fruit when it comes to science. Studies are often used to give us information that is clearly obvious like, ‘Drinking Round-up is bad for you’ and ‘Exercise is good for you’. But there is also glimmering hopes that the population is getting smarter through persistent reporting on emerging topics. High Fructose Corn Syrup is a sweetener which has garnered lots of attention because of the Diabetes epidemic. Several studies are underway which will help to educate the population about its harmful effects and the prevalence in so many of our processed foods. Lets dive in today on this study, what it says and how it is going to be part of a trend in our health consciousness.

Im going deep today.. Real deep inside your cells to educate you all on the building blocks of who you are. DNA or Dioxyribonucleic Acid is the genesis of all living things on this earth. The macromolecule is anything but simple. Some speculate that the arrangement is as close to proof of a GOD as anything that science can offer. Think about it. Out of all the space junk floating around the universe Nature has found a way to carefully group nucleotides (Amino Acids) together to form the instructions for LIFE! If this doesn’t flip your lid, you gotta get with the program. Lets dive in on 5 amazing facts about your DNA.

Telomeres.. Im going to lead with this today. Have you heard of them? Telomeres are end caps which live on each one of our Double Helix (DNA) like the ends of a shoe lace. Our DNA is not unlike our cells in that they have a protective shield which surround them. When the Protective coat around the DNA starts to break down, that is when aging begins to accelerate and chronic disease may take hold. While there are many lifestyle and genetic factors which determine Telomere health, Science has identified important steps that we can take to increase the length of our telomeres and our life span.

I have an addiction to confess. When I am in Costco and see the flat of flavored Soda Water for $7… Im like a fiend. I dont even make it out to the car before if pulled back the plastic covering, digging into it with vengeance like determination. I feel fulfilled when I have the weight of the full can in my hand, bubbles sparkling out of the top. I can take a whole can down in one go…. Well, chances are that if you are just like me. Soda Water has exploded in popularity in the last few years so Im going to dig into why it is , and if the naysayers are correct.. could it really be bad for me?