Jeff Cavaliere Reforms Weight-Training Protocols for Joint Longevity

Jeff Cavaliere 改良力量训练方案以保障关节健康长寿 针对常被忽视的远端肌群并拆分高消耗性训练，可在维持终生肌肉肥大的同时预防慢性训练损伤。 在本期节目中，Jeff Cavaliere 详细阐述了针对臀中肌、肩袖肌群、颈部以及足部内在肌等深层较小肌肉群进行训练，如何能够解决慢性疼痛并预防运动损伤。他概述了功能性评估测试、实用的居家练习，以及旨在优化动作力学的专项握法与站姿调整。此外，对话还探讨了可持续的营养策略、用于减脂的有氧运动选择，以及在保持高强度的同时兼顾现实日程限制的灵活训练框架。 真正的长久健康与关节保护在很大程度上取决于对臀中肌、肩袖肌群、颈部和足部内在肌等较小且常被忽视的肌群的针对性训练。 (0:00) 绝大多数下背痛病例属于非结构性问题，且往往是由臀中肌无力导致骨盆不稳定，进而诱发局部肌肉痉挛所引起的。 (5:33) 针对髋部和骨盆稳定性的简单矫正训练（如反向背屈伸或弹力带侧向髋部练习），每周仅需在家进行几次、每次5到10分钟即可高效完成。 (10:21) 髋部的功能性稳定性可以通过单侧负重动作（如手提箱式箭步蹲）或针对性的行走训练来有效锻炼，从而激活并挑战臀中肌。 (18:03) “老人测试”（old man test）可作为衡量身体机能长寿的基准，它要求受试者在活动脚不落地的情况下穿上袜子和鞋子，以此检验单腿平衡、髋部活动度以及动态腰椎控制能力。 (25:09)

Physical therapist and strength coach Jeff Cavaliere argues that long-term muscular strength and joint longevity depend on targeting overlooked stabilizer muscles, mastering kinetic chain mechanics, and maintaining sustainable lifestyle habits. Host Andrew Huberman and Cavaliere maintain that addressing subtle structural deficiencies—from the gluteus medius and rotator cuff to foot and grip mechanics—is essential for training pain-free across decades. Strengthening Neglected Stabilizers to Protect Primary Joints (5:33) Cavaliere explains that non-surgical lower back pain frequently stems from pelvic instability caused by a weak gluteus medius, which spasms to provide artificial stability for the joint. Because the pelvis directs lumbar positioning, an unlevel pelvis forces the spine to maladapt. Corrective exercises like wall hip slides, reverse hypers, and walking drills with a suspended weight force single-leg stabilization to restore pelvic levelness. Similarly, shoulder vulnerability often arises from chronic internal rotation and weak external rotators; Cavaliere advises banded external rotations while pinning a folded towel under the armpit to prevent the deltoid from compensating for a weak rotator cuff. Kinetic Chain Mechanics and Athletic Base Positioning (40:57) Cavaliere and Huberman reject traditional "sport-specific" weighted training that attempts to replicate unidirectional athletic motions under load, noting that loading asymmetrical patterns worsens joint wear and tear. Instead, athletic power transfers best from foundational bilateral lifts combined with standing, staggered stances that reflect natural defensive bases. Cavaliere advocates a "screwing down" technique—such as rotating the torso toward the forward leg during a lunge or turning toward the active arm during a curl—to co-contract the hips or lats and create a firm base that prevents force from dissipating. Hypertrophy Programming, Work Volume, and Flexible Cycles (109:53) When structuring workouts for muscle growth, Cavaliere favors training to muscular failure. He recommends keeping warm-ups concise—performing two to three lighter sets on the primary compound exercise, which eliminates the need to separately warm up secondary muscles like the biceps. Cavaliere prescribes 6 to 10 work sets per session for smaller muscle groups and 10 to 12 (up to 15 maximum) for larger muscle groups, using fewer sets per movement to incorporate diverse angles and loading positions. While elite bodybuilders like Dorian Yates relied on extreme intensity and forced reps, Cavaliere notes that extreme volume can also drive hypertrophy independently, pointing to cyclists developing massive quads at 80 to 100 RPMs or barbers building prominent trapezius muscles from sustained arm elevation. Furthermore, Cavaliere rejects rigid 7-day training cycles, often extending his routine across 9 to 12 days to balance recovery, late-night workouts, and work demands. Sustainable Nutritional Structures and Diagnostic Functional Tests (25:09) Addressing body composition, Cavaliere and Huberman emphasize that conditioning cannot compensate for poor dietary intake. Although high-intensity exercises like burpees burn 13 to 15 calories per minute, rapid fatigue caps sustainability at roughly 10 minutes (150 calories), making lower-intensity steady-state cardio far more reliable for accumulating caloric expenditure. For sustainable eating, Cavaliere structures meals around a "clean omnivore" framework: one-third lean protein and two-thirds carbohydrates, maintaining a 2:1 ratio of fibrous vegetables to starchy carbohydrates while carefully monitoring calorie-dense dietary fats. While Cavaliere and Huberman emphasize proactive protocols to protect physical function across the developmental arc, both acknowledge practical trade-offs: Cavaliere manages his own flat feet, previous joint damage, and late-night sleep schedule through pragmatic adjustments rather than rigid perfection. The central challenge for lifters remains resisting the urge to prioritize heavy compound loading at the expense of the unglamorous, foundational stabilizer work required for long-term durability.

物理治疗专家 Jeff Cavaliere 与 Andrew Huberman 认为，实现身体长期功能性与抗伤性力量增长的关键，在于重视深层稳定、动力链对齐及远端肌群维护等“微小细节”，而非仅依赖大重量复合动作；结合打破固定周期的训练编程与可持续饮食管理，方能支撑跨越数十年的健康体魄。 动力链对齐：深层稳定与关节微调 (5:33) Cavaliere 指出，绝大多数下背痛并非骨骼结构的器质性病变，不需要外科手术干预，其根源通常是深层肌群失衡导致的代偿性肌肉痉挛。臀中肌主导骨盆的水平与倾斜状态，当臀中肌力量薄弱时，骨盆失稳会迫使腰椎周围肌肉持续痉挛以提供“人工稳定性”。通过侧卧单腿后下伸展、贴墙滑髋或负重悬挂行走训练激活臀中肌，可以从动力链源头解除下背代偿。动力链末端的微小调整同样决定关节压力分布。例如在引体向上或弯举时，若手柄滑至指尖，第四和第五指所连的深层屈肌会承受过大拉力，并将应力直接传导至肘内侧诱发疼痛；若调整握法让“指关节扣过横杠”，使负重落于掌心肉厚处，肘部慢性疼痛常可完全消退。在下肢动作中，通过脚步与躯干的“旋转下拧”（screwing down）技术促成骨盆周围肌群协同收缩，能将力量建立在坚固基底之上，避免关节晃动与能量耗散。 远端肌群与平衡抗衰：颈部、足部与肩袖 (25:09) 从神经发育与衰老生物学角度来看，远离人体躯干中线的远端肌肉往往最先出现退化。足部作为人体直立行走的唯一着力点，常因缺乏主动强化而发生内在肌群塌陷。Cavaliere 建议通过赤足单腿平衡或用脚趾抓缩毛巾来评估与训练足底内在肌群；若抓毛巾时脚底迅速抽筋，反映的是深层力量短缺而非单纯需要拉伸。此外，颈部屈肌薄弱会导致卷腹或日常体态中代偿性前倾拉扯，采用轻量杠铃片包裹毛巾进行慢速、受控的四向颈部负重训练，能够改善不良姿态并提供应对外界冲击（如挥鞭伤）的韧性。肩关节作为高灵活性球窝关节，日常伏案久坐容易导致肩关节过度内旋与后侧失衡。Cavaliere 强调，控制内旋的核心在于强化肩袖外旋肌群的离心制动能力。在进行弹力带肩外旋训练时，应将手肘固定于身侧，必要时可在腋下夹毛巾作为防止代偿的本体感觉反馈。同时，“单脚穿袜系鞋”测试不仅评估柔韧度，还综合反映了前庭系统与下肢微小平衡肌群的衰退程度，可作为功能性老化的快速筛查工具。 摆脱运动专项模仿：双侧对称力量基石 (35:08) 针对高尔夫、网球和棒球等单向旋转类运动，Cavaliere 批判了在健身房负重模拟击球或挥拍动作的所谓“专项化力量训练”。他指出，在承重状态下复制单向运动轨迹往往会加剧身体原有的不对称性与软组织损耗。过度专项化正是导致现代青少年棒球运动员频繁发生肘关节尺侧副韧带（UCL）断裂、过早接受 Tommy John 手术的主要诱因。真正的运动表现提升与伤病防御，应当依赖对称性的双侧基础力量训练。无论是四分卫还是投手的球速与扭矩输出，本质均来自核心稳定性与下肢向躯干的力量传递。在抗阻训练中坚持深蹲、硬拉等基础复合动作，能够建立均衡的对称力量支撑，且无需对原本已因专项运动过度松弛的单侧关节施加额外的活动度牵拉。 灵活编程与负荷管理：打破7天周期限制 (120:28) 在肌肥大与力量维持的动作编排上，Cavaliere 倾向于在正式组中训练至接近力竭或完全力竭。大肌群（如股四头肌或背阔肌）建议单次训练安排10至12个正式组（上限不超过15组），而小肌群（如肱二头肌）通常只需6至10组。限制单个动作的组数，能为同一肌群留出尝试多角度受力（如长头拉伸位、短头收缩位）的容量空间。针对周期规划，Cavaliere 指出人体肌肉与神经系统只识别负荷刺激、代谢压力与恢复适应，并不具备以自然周为单位的生物钟。对于恢复能力有限或生活压力大的训练者，强行在7天内塞入密集的推拉腿（PPL）循环容易积累系统性疲劳。将一个训练循环延展至9天乃至12天，能充分容纳冲刺或单车等代谢训练带来的间接负荷，并在身心状态低迷时通过低疲劳的孤立动作进行动态过渡。 可持续饮食与减脂：餐盘法则与有氧真相 (87:14) 针对体成分优化，Huberman 与 Cavaliere 明确指出减脂的核心在于热量缺口，无法单纯依靠加大训练量来抵消不良饮食。虽然高强度间歇训练（HIIT，如波比跳）每分钟可消耗13至15卡路里，但受限于心肺与肌肉快速疲劳，高强度输出通常只能维系约10分钟（总消耗约150卡路里）。若要通过运动辅助制造能量赤字，能够稳定持续45至60分钟的中低强度 Zone 2 稳态有氧更为高效实用。在日常营养管理中，长期坚持优于激进节食。Cavaliere 主张“清洁杂食”模型：单餐约三分之一由优质瘦肉蛋白构成，其余三分之二由碳水化合物填充，并保持高纤维蔬菜与淀粉类主食约 2:1 的比例。完全切除淀粉类碳水容易诱发后期的心理代偿与暴食，而盲目过量摄入高能量密度的健康脂肪（如橄榄油、牛油果）或误信标榜高蛋白却高糖分的外包加工食品，同样会导致热量失控。 Cavaliere 与 Huberman 强调，身体的长久健康依赖于将细小肌群的保养与深层力学矫正嵌入日常习惯，而非追逐极端强度。然而，个体骨骼力学差异、既往损伤以及工作家庭压力对睡眠恢复的侵蚀，仍是这套训练理念在现实落地时的主要变量，需要训练者持续进行个体化观察与动态妥协。

[15:29] actually taste like candy bars [25:09] You can't be seeking easy. If you seek easy, you're going to get old a lot faster. [30:05] picnic date stance [40:57] if you want to look like an athlete, you have to train like an athlete [48:48] pull my finger [52:00] lights up [54:21] the Fonz [63:04] burning zipper pain [73:24] it looks like they got the wrong head on that body [73:24] nothing exercise [81:12] are not as healthy as you think you are [87:14] can't outrun a bad diet [101:00] Jeff Cavaliere: flippers for feet flat out [116:50] Jeff Cavaliere: the Michael Jordan of bodybuilding [120:28] Jeff Cavaliere: There's nothing special about a week. [129:31] Jeff Cavaliere: I don't have to bring it all today.

[0:00] Longevity ultimately is be being able to [0:02] maintain function as you age because [0:05] again it's it's not the the number of [0:07] years but the quality of the years. So [0:09] all muscles in your body serve a [0:11] function. You're training these muscles [0:12] to get stronger and you're training [0:14] these your your balance and you're these [0:16] are all skills that can be learned and [0:17] improved. They're all trainable. If it's [0:19] trainable, it's fixable. [0:21] >> Welcome to the Huberman Lab podcast [0:23] where we discuss science and [0:25] science-based tools for everyday life. [0:30] I'm Andrew Huberman and I'm a professor [0:32] of neurobiology and opthalmology at [0:35] Stamford School of Medicine. My guest [0:37] today is Jeff Cavalier. Jeff Cavalier is [0:40] a master of science in physical therapy [0:41] and a certified strength and [0:43] conditioning specialist. He is [0:45] considered one of the world's foremost [0:46] experts in training for both men and [0:48] women to increase the strength and size [0:50] of their muscles, their overall health [0:52] and longevity. Today we discuss some of [0:54] the things that are not often discussed [0:56] and considered the small things but that [0:58] are actually the big things because they [1:01] allow you to do the big things for your [1:02] health and fitness and longevity decade [1:05] after decade after decade and to do so [1:07] painfree and while making continual [1:10] progress. We also discuss the typical [1:12] big things, the specific multi- joint [1:14] exercises and cardio workouts that [1:16] create the greatest results. Today [1:18] you'll learn some simple exercises that [1:20] will strengthen and protect your back, [1:22] your shoulders, even improve your foot [1:23] strength, which most people don't think [1:25] about, but turns out to be foundational [1:27] for everything, your pressing and [1:28] pulling movements, leg training, and [1:30] your cardio. And that will allow you to [1:32] live your daily life with vigor and ease [1:34] at any age. I must say, I'm a longtime [1:37] fan of Jeff's work, which he's been [1:39] publishing to YouTube and elsewhere as [1:40] Athleen X. As you'll soon realize from [1:43] today's episode, Jeff is far more than [1:45] just another fitness trainer. He has [1:47] deep knowledge of human physiology and [1:49] kinesiology and he really understands [1:51] that everybody's situation and body is [1:53] different and thus needs different tools [1:55] to address and solve their specific [1:57] problems and to achieve their desired [1:59] results. I should also mention that Jeff [2:01] and I went to the legendary Gold's Gym [2:03] in Venice, California, where he took me [2:05] through an arm workout, so biceps and [2:08] triceps and forearms. and he showed me [2:11] what has become his kind of signature [2:13] move, which is face pulls, which are [2:15] essential for improving your posture, [2:17] for your rear delts, and for general [2:19] stability of the shoulders. So, you can [2:21] find a link to those workouts in the [2:22] show note captions. Before we begin, I'd [2:25] like to emphasize that this podcast is [2:26] separate from my teaching and research [2:28] roles at Stanford. It is, however, part [2:30] of my desire and effort to bring zero [2:32] cost to consumer information about [2:33] science and science related tools to the [2:35] general public. In keeping with that [2:37] theme, today's episode does include [2:39] sponsors. And now for today's discussion [2:41] with Jeff Cavalier. Jeff Cavalier, [2:44] welcome back. [2:45] >> Thank you for having me. This time [2:47] actually nice to come out to California. [2:48] >> Yeah. [2:49] >> A little workout in. [2:50] >> Yeah, we have a studio this time. Last [2:51] time I think we were in a in a rented [2:54] apartment in in New York City. [2:55] >> It worked. [2:56] >> I said it then, I'll say it again. [2:58] You're the man. I've been watching your [3:00] videos and following your training [3:01] advice for many years. I would say Mike [3:04] Mener, Dorian Yates, and you. That's [3:07] >> that's uh [3:08] >> I've merged the principles and um [3:10] >> very high humbling praise for me for [3:12] sure. [3:13] >> Well, you're 50. [3:15] >> Mhm. [3:16] >> Never touched gear. That's uh slang for [3:19] steroids. You're not on TRT. You've [3:21] never done it. [3:22] >> And you look amazing. I know you're very [3:24] disciplined with your diet, your [3:26] training, but you know, you have a [3:27] you're married. You have two kids. You [3:29] you put in the work all over life. and [3:31] you know you're a testament to what's [3:33] possible if people do things right. So [3:35] today I want to talk about a number of [3:36] things but something that I believe is [3:39] not discussed enough which you discuss a [3:42] lot and it's just been transformative [3:43] for me because I also happen to be 50 is [3:47] we both know that the big things like [3:49] doing the regular compound multi- joint [3:51] lifts regularly that's all critical. We [3:54] know the big stuff is critical and [3:56] people talk about the big stuff all the [3:57] time, but you talk about the small stuff [4:00] that makes the big stuff possible for [4:03] decade after decade. And I credit you [4:06] for fixing my back pain. I credit you [4:08] for the fact that I basically have no [4:10] pain despite training very hard for, you [4:12] know, more than three decades. So, let's [4:14] talk about the small stuff, which is not [4:16] actually the small stuff. These I think [4:18] of it as the the kind of hinges and and [4:22] uh bolts on the system that allow that [4:24] system to work. So [4:27] low back, shoulders, neck, these are the [4:31] pieces that nobody wants to train, no [4:33] one wants to think about, no one wants [4:34] to talk about. So let's start right [4:36] there. How can we keep our lower back [4:39] strong and painfree [4:42] while also doing things like deadlifts [4:45] and squats, etc. I'm glad you're talking [4:47] about all of this. Obviously, it's like [4:49] uh it's such music to my ears. But I [4:51] think the background of being a physical [4:52] therapist is is what set the stage for [4:55] my focus on these things. Cuz when I was [4:58] younger, prehysical therapy days, uh I [5:01] did all the dumb stuff, too. And I did [5:03] all the things, just the big things, and [5:05] realized that it wasn't necessarily a [5:08] path to longevity. But in the in the [5:11] immediate and in my 20s, I was literally [5:13] breaking down then. Like I had knee pain [5:15] then. I had back pain then. I had [5:17] shoulder pain then. So, I think people [5:21] who are in their 20s these days have the [5:23] luxury of having access to videos like [5:25] this where they don't just say, "Oh, [5:26] that's just um maybe a hard workout." [5:29] Now, they start to say, "Well, maybe I'm [5:30] actually doing some damage here, right? [5:32] Maybe I do need to pay attention to the [5:33] smaller things." And when you have [5:35] enough videos out there that showcase [5:37] these small things, for instance, you [5:39] mentioned back pain. We talk about a [5:42] major cause of back pain not being [5:44] structural back pain, right? A lot of [5:46] the times the back pain that we suffer [5:49] from in our lives is not surgical. It [5:52] doesn't need surgical treatment. It just [5:54] needs the right addressing of the [5:56] muscles that contribute to that or how [5:58] we allow muscles to get tight that that [6:02] shouldn't get tight if we did full range [6:04] of motion on certain exercises. Right? [6:06] So in in in particular, I mentioned the [6:08] glute medius, right? And the glute [6:09] medius is is a muscle that is going to [6:12] control hip position, hip movement. So [6:14] if it's controlling the position of our [6:17] hips, that means it's controlling our [6:18] pelvis. And if our pelvis is tilted or [6:20] twisted or forward or backward, [6:22] obviously the spine is literally [6:24] adapting to the position of the pelvis [6:26] beneath it because it's connected [6:28] through the sacrum. So how is that not [6:30] important? Right? So all these muscles [6:32] that connect to the pelvis that change [6:35] its position are inadvertently going to [6:38] change the position of the low back [6:40] directly the lumbar spine that is going [6:43] to likely cause dysfunction down the [6:45] road if you don't address that. So it is [6:47] these little tiny muscles and these [6:49] little tiny exercises. So, I made a [6:51] video years ago about an exercise that [6:54] you could do to help to loosen up if [6:58] there was a a a knot in the glute glute [7:00] medius, right? An area of spasm, a [7:02] localized area of spasm. Because when [7:03] the spasm's there, you adjust the way [7:05] you move, right? You're in pain. So, [7:07] you're trying to move around that spasm. [7:10] Something as simple as a leg raise down [7:12] and back while holding down that that [7:15] pressure point on the glute medius helps [7:17] to alleviate some of that that that [7:19] discomfort and and in and that spasm to [7:22] the point where you could restore normal [7:23] motion again because you're not avoiding [7:25] pain and all of a sudden the back pain [7:26] goes away. There's nothing structurally [7:28] there. Fine. That's a great video. It [7:30] helped. I think 50 million people have [7:32] seen it. We'll put a link to it. This is [7:34] the one where people you should everyone [7:36] you should watch the video. This [7:37] literally erased my back pain. What I [7:40] thought was going to require surgery. [7:42] You lie on your side. You uh, you know, [7:44] one leg, you know, is in front of the [7:46] other, toe down on the ground, you put [7:48] it up and back. Um, Jeff provides a a [7:50] beautiful description of what is [7:52] essentially a very simple movement, but [7:54] if you do it properly, the pain [7:57] evaporates. It's wild. And I thought it [7:59] was a back issue, but it was a glute [8:01] medius issue. [8:02] >> Yeah. And again, you feel you can you [8:04] can feel referred pain anywhere. But but [8:06] what what happens next is great, you [8:10] solve that area of spasm. Why do we get [8:12] spasm? Oftent times it's because we're [8:14] providing artificial stability to an [8:16] area of weakness because spasm is is [8:19] basically the muscles holding on and [8:20] saying, "I need to protect this area." [8:22] And so if the muscles around the low [8:24] back are protecting that area, there's a [8:26] reason for it. It's probably because the [8:27] muscles that are supposed to be stronger [8:29] are not strong enough. So that doesn't [8:32] mean that you do this one thing, you're [8:33] done. Yes, you might have no back pain [8:35] that day or you might have relieved that [8:36] episode, but it means that there's an [8:39] area of weakness that could benefit from [8:41] strengthening it. So you come back and [8:42] you start to do glute media [8:44] strengthening. I I demonstrate an [8:45] exercise where you you put yourself up [8:48] against the wall, right? And you stand [8:50] on the leg outside the wall, furthest [8:52] away from the wall, and you let yourself [8:54] drop. You just let your hips drop, [8:56] right? They get lazy. When they drop [8:57] like that, you're the only way you can [9:00] get them level again is to slide [9:02] yourself back towards the wall. And [9:04] that's abduction of the hip that way to [9:07] get you back to level again. That is the [9:08] glute medius dysfunction to get you back [9:10] to that level position. Well, [9:12] ironically, every time you lift a foot [9:14] off the ground to walk, you're getting a [9:16] pelvis that drops side to side, right? [9:18] Every time you go in single leg stance, [9:19] the pelvis is going to drop a little [9:21] bit. The people that have less control [9:23] of that have more of what they call a [9:25] trendelenberg gate where the pelvis [9:27] rocks side to side as they walk. [9:28] >> It's like if you were looking at them [9:30] from the back, you know, uh pick your uh [9:33] preferred opposite gender folks and then [9:35] uh the butt swinging from side to side. [9:37] >> Might look good on Instagram, but it's [9:38] not going to it's not going to do good [9:39] for your back, right? So, you go back [9:41] and forth. Well, all that uncontrolled [9:43] motion starts to wreak havoc and [9:45] eventually those muscles start to say, I [9:46] got I got to provide this artificial [9:48] stability. So, what do I do? I spasm. [9:50] And so if you don't extend the plan [9:53] beyond the fix, how do you then build [9:57] that strength up to prevent it from [9:58] coming back? And so I'm all about not [10:01] just the fixes, but but really about the [10:03] preventative things you can do to to to [10:04] save this off long term. So we'll talk [10:07] about the structure of a bas a really [10:09] good basic program. And many people talk [10:11] about that, you know, sets, reps, [10:12] splits, etc. But let's just assume for a [10:15] second that somebody listening to this [10:17] is training their lower body twice a [10:20] week. [10:21] >> They're doing compound exercises and [10:23] some isolation exercises, but they're [10:26] dealing with some back pain or they're [10:28] not like 20s, they're in their 20s or [10:31] 30s or structurally they're blessed and [10:33] they're not dealing with it. What are [10:36] some additional things that we would [10:38] call small things that make the big [10:40] things possible for much longer and also [10:43] make people stronger at the big things [10:45] that people can do? Would you say uh [10:47] back hyperextensions? Would you say [10:50] watch your video on medial uh glute [10:52] medius training? What would be the [10:54] exercise to insert and how many times [10:56] per week to do it and when? [10:58] >> That's a good question. So yeah, reverse [11:00] hypers are an amazing exercise. Um, I [11:03] like doing them because they're very [11:05] easy to do anywhere. You don't have to [11:07] have resistance on them. They make a [11:09] great machine that actually provides [11:10] resistance. Straps over your legs that [11:13] you can lift additional weight on. But [11:15] the challenge for most people, remember, [11:16] they're chronically weak in these areas. [11:18] So, even just their body weight lifting [11:19] of their own legs is going to be a [11:21] significant enough challenge to get [11:22] overload. But you can literally do it on [11:25] like your bed in the morning. You can [11:27] get up. You lay enough of your torso on [11:30] top of the bed so that you're not [11:31] falling off the bed, but you can just [11:32] have your legs hanging off your bed and [11:34] your body up on top of the bed and do a [11:35] reverse hyper. [11:36] >> So, raising the heels, [11:38] >> raising the heels [11:38] >> so that they're parallel with the floor [11:39] >> as level as you can get them. You know, [11:41] again, the bed's a little a little soft. [11:43] So, sometimes you kind of dip down as [11:45] you're lifting your legs up, but it's [11:46] it's it's sturdy enough that you can get [11:48] to almost a parallel position to the [11:50] floor. I like to make sure we'll talk [11:53] about this, but like you're moving the [11:55] muscles are doing the work and not [11:57] momentum, right? So, you want to hold [11:58] that contraction briefly at the top to [12:00] convince yourself that you actually were [12:02] able to perform the movement. So, you [12:04] get up, hold it for for a second. And I [12:06] think what's important on that, too, is [12:08] people who don't have the strength in [12:10] their glutes, cuz it really is a glute [12:12] weakness issue, not necessarily a low [12:15] back issue. it. A lot of times it's [12:17] weakness in the glutes that's [12:18] transferring the load to the low back [12:20] that can't handle it. And people get the [12:22] symptoms in the back, but it's the [12:24] weakness somewhere else that's causing [12:26] that. So, I like to focus first and [12:28] foremost on the glutes, glute max, glute [12:30] me, is to make sure that they're strong [12:31] enough. And again, if you test even big- [12:34] time athletes, we would test their [12:36] rotational strength of their hips. Some [12:38] of the strongest athletes, some of the [12:40] biggest squatters, some of the best [12:42] lungers, right? They're lunging over 200 [12:44] pounds. they you put them in position, [12:47] you try to bend their their uh their hip [12:50] into internal or external rotation of [12:51] their of their bent knee, they can't [12:53] resist it at all. So they it just goes [12:55] to show you that all the squatting, all [12:57] the big lifts aren't enough to [13:00] counteract the smaller muscles, right? [13:02] There are different functions. A [13:04] rotational muscle of the hip is not a [13:06] sagittal plane muscle of the hip. It has [13:08] a different function. So they all have [13:09] to be strengthened. So along that along [13:12] that line, we will do the the the [13:15] reverse hyper as a good sagittal plane [13:17] exercise focusing on the glute. When [13:19] they get to the top and I tell you to [13:20] contract it, squeeze so you know that's [13:22] the glute that's squeezing and doing the [13:24] work, not that you're arching at the low [13:25] back, that you're using the muscles that [13:27] are already overworked in the first [13:28] place. So get that up there. Squeeze. [13:30] Reinforce that it's the glute that did [13:32] the work. Great exercise. The glute [13:34] medius, like I said, the hip bump. Super [13:36] easy exercise. You could do it anywhere [13:38] against the wall. You can do anywhere [13:40] against the wall. Any anything you can [13:41] do [13:42] >> like a butt bump. You you basically [13:43] raise the leg that's closer to the wall [13:45] like 90° outer one you're standing. It's [13:48] almost like you're trying to slide that [13:49] hip that's along the that's closer to [13:51] the wall up the wall. So it's like Yeah. [13:53] It's like a kind of like side booty bump [13:55] to the wall but sliding it up. And and [13:57] this is sometimes where you have to [13:59] invest and this is the small things but [14:00] you know they're also small investments. [14:02] >> A little mini hip band. You know the [14:04] little elastic bands. They're just [14:06] loops. The little fit loop they're [14:07] called. Put it around your heels. [14:10] >> Lay on your belly. Bend your knees to [14:12] 90°. [14:13] >> And then just try to open your feet [14:15] apart, [14:16] >> right? Spread your feet apart. So now [14:18] you're strengthening rotation of the [14:20] hip. Or hold one steady. Let one leg, [14:22] it's a little hard to show here, but let [14:24] one leg come a little bit in front of [14:25] the other and then try to cross it over [14:27] the other one. So now you're getting [14:28] external rotation of that hip. So you're [14:30] working external rotation against [14:31] resistance, internal rotation against [14:33] resistance. [14:35] >> Super easy things to do. You can you can [14:38] attach a band around your around your [14:40] ankle and then you can do lateral hip [14:44] swings but with a component of rotating [14:46] against the resistance of the band too. [14:47] So I'm moving my leg out and rotating [14:50] out at the same time. How do you do [14:52] that? Just focus on your toe. If your [14:53] toe is turning out, your hip is turning [14:56] out. If your toe is turning in and your [14:57] hip is turning in. So you don't have to [14:59] focus so much on how do I move that. [15:01] Just focus on what the foot is doing and [15:03] you're turning. As long as the knee is [15:04] going with the foot, right? You're not [15:05] just spinning the foot. the knee and the [15:07] foot go together. So, there's there's [15:09] simple things and again, you might need [15:11] a band or a mini band or something to [15:13] get these smaller muscles more [15:15] specifically, but it's $10, $15 for a [15:18] band. It's well worth the investment if [15:20] you can get rid of these long-term [15:23] recurrent issues that keep come, you [15:24] know, back and and causing agony every [15:27] 2, three months as a reminder of what [15:28] you're not doing. [15:29] >> I'd like to take a quick break to [15:31] acknowledge one of our sponsors, David. [15:33] David makes protein bars unlike any [15:36] other. Their newest bar, the Bronze Bar, [15:38] has 20 grams of protein, only 150 [15:41] calories, and zero grams of sugar. I [15:43] have to say, these are the best tasting [15:45] protein bars I've ever had, and I've [15:48] tried a lot of protein bars over the [15:50] years. 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Once I realized that [18:06] the glute medius was causing for me back [18:09] spasm issues that were severe enough [18:11] that it was immobilizing, [18:14] but then it was resolved by the [18:16] information you provide in your videos. [18:17] I started doing the um the hip slide up [18:20] the wall movement. I still do that. the [18:23] reverse hyper and then the one that you [18:25] put in a video and again we'll put links [18:27] to these that I found uh a little bit [18:30] more uh of a setup [18:33] but seems really useful is where you [18:36] take some sort of rope or dog leash [18:38] >> and you put it around your waist and [18:40] then you actually have a weight between [18:41] your your legs hanging a couple inches [18:45] off the floor and then the goal is to [18:46] walk and it makes you kind of have to [18:49] kind of monster walk or [18:51] >> and the idea is to not let the weight [18:53] swing and hit your your feet. Now, I [18:55] know that sounds really awkward, but it [18:57] really works and I know it works uh for [18:59] a number of reasons. And by the way, all [19:01] this strengthened other lifts for me [19:03] dramatically. I was kind of at a [19:04] sticking point with a number of of lower [19:06] body lifts and upper body lifts. And it [19:08] really seems like it helped create a [19:10] real stability in the lower back glute [19:12] area. [19:13] >> What is that dog leash thing doing? Uh [19:16] it's very simple, right? Just tie a [19:17] weight between your legs and then you're [19:20] trying to walk but not let it swing. [19:22] what why does that work? [19:24] >> Anytime you can take these smaller [19:26] exercises and bring them a little closer [19:28] to actual function, I think it's better [19:30] is better carryover. So, if you're [19:31] talking about actually being on your [19:33] feet and walking, that's a step towards [19:35] function. That's that's you're going to [19:37] be more useful, I think. Um, but what [19:39] you're doing is, as I mentioned before, [19:41] every time you pick up a foot off the [19:43] ground, you're in single leg stance. So, [19:45] when you're in single leg stance, if [19:46] you're not contracting the glute medius [19:49] on the side that you're standing on, [19:51] your pelvis is going to drop. You drop [19:53] in the side because you're you're not [19:54] balanced anymore. You're going to drop [19:56] towards the up leg. You may not drop if [19:59] you're consciously trying to stay level [20:01] because you're firing the glute medius. [20:03] But for someone that has a weak glute, [20:05] you just have them stand on that one leg [20:07] and you're going to see that pelvis [20:08] drop. So, when you're doing this test [20:11] and you're adding the weight to the [20:13] equation here, the weight is really to [20:15] create a pendulum effect, right? Because [20:16] when you start to move anything, that [20:17] weight's going to want to go in an [20:19] exaggerated way. So, what what we're [20:22] trying to reinforce is, okay, can you do [20:24] this and take these slow steps in these [20:26] single alternating single leg stance and [20:29] prevent that that weight from shifting [20:32] so much, i.e. because you're dropping [20:35] too much that it would hit or bang into [20:38] the other leg. So, you have to be able [20:40] to walk slowly through a single leg [20:42] stance and not allow enough of a drop by [20:45] having good contraction and control of [20:47] the glute medius so that it would [20:49] minimize the the the weight itself. It [20:51] would quiet the motion of the weight [20:53] itself. So, you're reinforcing how hard [20:55] can I keep this thing engaged as I walk. [20:58] And you know, if you could do this, the [21:00] faster you could move yourself and still [21:03] have minimal displacement of the weight [21:05] would be a good indicator that, wow, [21:07] you're really starting to get good [21:08] control and strength in those in that [21:09] glute medius. Another thing I like to do [21:11] is um we call a suitcase lunge, right? [21:15] So, you do a a lunge where you offset [21:17] the weight on one side. So, you carry it [21:20] in the if I'm going to lunge forward, I [21:23] put it on the opposite leg, right? Hold [21:25] on the opposite side. What that's going [21:27] to theoretically do is obviously when I [21:29] lunge forward, I'm going to want to fall [21:32] to the side of the weight. Picture [21:33] having even like a 50 lb weight or a 60 [21:35] lb weight in your hand. It's going to [21:36] want to go that direction. In this lunge [21:39] position, if I can straighten my self [21:42] out and keep my torso rigidly in place [21:45] the whole time, then I can really [21:47] strengthen that glute medius on the [21:48] opposite side. And what's cool about [21:49] that is it's also done on a in [21:51] conjunction with a sagittal plane lunge. [21:53] So now I'm starting to plane in train in [21:56] multiple dimensions and planes at one [21:57] time. So a lunge in this direction [21:59] suitcase carry offset only one dumbbell [22:02] not in the other side. Obviously you're [22:04] going to get that desire for the body to [22:06] fall towards the side of the offset [22:09] weight. And again that starts to shift [22:10] the pelvis up. The only thing will keep [22:12] it down is by keeping the hip in [22:15] abducted and level. And that pelvis [22:16] stays level. So we'll do that with a lot [22:18] of our athletes and work up to some [22:20] pretty heavy weights there too. And [22:22] again, it is a kill two birds with one [22:24] stone type exercise because you still [22:25] get the benefits of the lunge, which I I [22:27] love as an exercise. [22:29] >> So, let's say somebody is going to do [22:31] some hip slide up the wall or andor [22:34] reverse hypers if they're lucky enough [22:36] to have a gym with a reverse hyper [22:37] machine or or even a just a high bench [22:40] or hyperextension machine, right? [22:42] Classic hyperextensions. [22:43] >> You just go face inward the upper body [22:46] moves and um for classic hyper uh heels, [22:49] >> which I like too, by the way. That's [22:51] more direct low back strengthening [22:54] >> which is always good like we can always [22:55] strengthen our low backs that those [22:56] muscles need to be strengthened but [22:58] again I I would say more often the time [23:00] times the source of the low back pain is [23:04] coming from the muscles but beneath them [23:05] that are weak chronically weak like the [23:07] glutes. Okay. So, reverse hypers, the [23:10] hip sliding up the wall approach, maybe [23:14] the dog leash uh with weight between um [23:16] legs. Doesn't have to be a dog leash, [23:18] folks, but you get the idea. To try and [23:20] minimize the hip sway. [23:23] >> Should those be done at the end of a [23:25] lower body workout when the lower back [23:27] and glutes are partially fatigued or [23:29] very fatigued or done separately at a [23:32] time when they're really fresh? [23:33] >> Two times. I think I think you could do [23:35] them on a dedicated day at a dedicated [23:38] time. So I I approach my ab training as [23:41] ab training and I always keep it [23:42] separate. I just like to focus on I'm [23:45] going to do 5 to 10 minutes of core [23:47] strengthening right now here and now [23:49] separate from my workout because I don't [23:50] want it to be an afterthought. I think [23:52] it should be it's a it's a key component [23:54] of what I do to keep a strong core. So I [23:56] want to focus it and I don't want to add [23:58] it to the end of my workout when I'm [24:00] already mentally checked out. Right? So [24:02] I do that. I think when you start to [24:05] have these issues that require special [24:09] programming, right, then you should own [24:11] that special programming because it's [24:13] yours. It's what you need specifically. [24:14] Others might need things for their [24:15] shoulders or for the rotator cuff, but [24:17] like whatever special programming is, do [24:19] it as a small routine on its own day at [24:21] its own time or even it could be on a [24:23] workout day, but a separate time that [24:25] you just go through as a routine. 5 [24:27] minutes to 7 minutes three times a week [24:30] or so. That's it. If you want to put it [24:33] on a training day, it's actually not a [24:36] bad idea to put these smaller muscle [24:38] exercises or smaller focused exercises [24:41] after your bigger training cuz a you're [24:44] not going to compromise your big [24:45] training and the goals that you have for [24:47] for that, but you also are pre- [24:49] fatiguing some of those bigger muscles [24:50] that are going to want to dominate these [24:52] small movements anyway. The [24:53] compensations that you're going to see [24:54] on these small movements are always [24:56] going to be the big muscles trying to [24:57] kick in and do what they've always done, [24:58] which is take over. And you're trying to [25:00] get them to not. So, if you can pre- [25:02] fatigue them a little bit prior to doing [25:04] these small exercises, you're actually [25:06] setting the smaller muscles up for more [25:08] success. [25:09] >> Yeah. If I could travel back to my teens [25:12] and I started lifting when I was 16 and [25:15] 20s and 30s, I would have started doing [25:18] all of these things a couple times a [25:20] week or even just once a week even [25:21] before there were there was any pain [25:24] because I had the same I don't know if [25:25] it's arrogance or just ignorance that oh [25:28] you know pain like that's what old guys [25:29] talk about like I have no pain I feel [25:31] fine like you know but I think by [25:34] training a certain way without pain for [25:36] a very long time it's almost like the [25:38] spring is getting compressed ressed [25:40] because it means that unless someone has [25:43] perfect mechanics and they're covering [25:45] all their bases through other sports and [25:46] and things of that sort, it's almost [25:48] like the stronger stronger stronger you [25:50] get, you're just setting yourself up for [25:52] one of these things to go. And in my [25:53] case, it was this lower back thing. And [25:55] for some people, it's their shoulder. [25:56] When you're young, those things that [25:58] that appear as post-workout soreness, [26:02] even can be masquerading for long-term [26:05] pain problems and dysfunction down the [26:07] road, right? cuz you're again when we're [26:09] young we just feel hey I'm sore I had a [26:10] hard workout yesterday I'm a little [26:12] stiff again we get through it we manage [26:14] it it's not that uh interruptive of our [26:17] life at that point so we move on but I [26:20] believe that those are [26:22] many examples of what is potentially [26:25] happening beneath the surface that if [26:27] you continue down that road that normal [26:29] workout soreness becomes more chronic [26:32] joint pain discomfort movement [26:34] limitations and and we also lose range [26:37] of motion as we get older. So, if we're [26:38] not focusing on actually trying to [26:40] maintain that, it just starts to pile [26:43] up. And it's one of those things where [26:44] you look back, we look back years later [26:47] and go, "Wow, I can't believe I've lost [26:48] this much range of motion or I can't [26:50] believe I've gotten to this state." When [26:52] it really was just accumulation of many, [26:53] many of those days of doing things where [26:55] you weren't paying attention to all the [26:57] little things. So, it doesn't really [26:59] creep up on anybody. It's like it it's [27:01] it's happening, you know, and it's [27:02] happening every day. It's not like you [27:04] can't intervene. You just have to be [27:06] aware of what you need to do to [27:07] intervene. [27:08] >> You have a post that really humbled me [27:12] and people are going to laugh. They're [27:14] going to be like, "I can't believe you [27:15] can't do that." Well, now I can do it. [27:16] I'll explain what it is in a moment. But [27:18] a longevity test. [27:20] >> Oh boy. [27:20] >> That includes test of balance, [27:23] >> strength, [27:24] >> and um inner fortitude. And that's the [27:28] put your shoes and socks on standing on [27:31] one foot obviously one foot then the [27:32] other not sitting down but doing that in [27:36] the morning every day. And I'll tell you [27:38] if you're training hard that lower [27:40] back's going to ache a little bit when [27:42] you first, you know, first thing in the [27:43] morning. This is a very cool test and I [27:46] force myself to do it now. And I have to [27:48] say a lot of mornings I'm like I just [27:49] want to sit down and put my shoes on, [27:51] you know, and I got this puppy now and [27:52] he's grabbing my shoelaces which makes [27:54] it even more dynamic. But in all [27:56] seriousness, it's it's a very [27:58] interesting, very simple test. If you [28:00] could just explain what it is, folks, [28:02] trust me, you want to do this every [28:04] single day. So, they call it the old man [28:06] test is is gender neutral, though. It [28:08] could be a woman test. Everybody is fair [28:10] game. The goal here is to simply put [28:12] your sock and your shoe on the floor on [28:15] both sides. Lay them down in front of [28:17] you. Um, untie your shoes, make them [28:19] sure they're they're loose enough that [28:21] you can get them on your foot. Stand on [28:23] one foot to begin the test. lean over, [28:25] pick up that shoe or pick pick up that [28:27] sock, put the sock on, pick up that [28:30] shoe, put it on, tie it, and then put [28:33] the foot down. Only after you've tied [28:34] the shoe can you put it down and then go [28:36] and do the other side. And it is [28:39] difficult. It is very, very difficult. [28:41] It happens to be one of the tests that I [28:42] do a little bit better than other tests, [28:45] but um we were joking before. I told you [28:47] that I about twice a year I still get [28:50] back pain every now and then and mine [28:51] came from leaning over to put my sock on [28:53] the other day and my whole back felt [28:54] like it was going to blow up on me like [28:56] that. So there's a lot going on inside [29:00] the body when you're doing this, right? [29:01] Why would my back all of a sudden seize [29:03] up on me when I'm going to pick put on [29:05] my sock? because you don't realize the [29:07] responsibility that those lumbar [29:09] parispinal muscles have in trying to [29:11] control even just leaning forward and [29:13] they're trying to make sure that you're [29:14] doing it at a pace that's safe for your [29:16] spine. So doing this every day is a [29:19] little mini workout for those muscles. [29:22] And again, we we I I think we tend to [29:25] get so lazy as we get older and [29:28] complacent and so that once you start [29:31] sitting down, you're just going to sit [29:32] down when you put on your socks and [29:34] shoes. What's the need to get up and do [29:37] this every day if I'm comfortable [29:38] putting it my, you know, doing this [29:40] sitting down or, wow, this was easier [29:42] because I sat down today. You can't be [29:45] seeking easy. If you seek easy, you're [29:47] going to get old a lot faster. So, this [29:49] test is testing your balance. It is [29:52] testing against some of the mini dynamic [29:55] control from those muscles in the low [29:57] back. It's is testing your ankle [30:00] mobility in a way because you're going [30:01] to get a lot of this going on the [30:02] perturbation through your ankles and [30:04] your knees and it's testing your hip [30:05] strength because again once you go on [30:07] one leg you're now talking about pelvic [30:10] control the same way we did before. So [30:12] you have to have good strength there. [30:14] But it's not uncommon for people to not [30:17] be able to pass this test. But with [30:18] practice like anything else you're [30:21] training these muscles to get stronger [30:22] and you're training these your your [30:24] balance and you're these are all skills [30:25] that can be learned and improved. [30:27] They're all trainable. I actually put a [30:29] a video out not long ago about um [30:32] different measures of of longevity. And [30:36] one of them was that test. Another one [30:38] was pull-ups. Another one was the number [30:40] of push-ups you could do. We we could [30:41] talk about these after, but the number [30:43] one was like going back to your glute [30:45] media strengthening. Can you lay in a [30:47] side lying plank position with the top [30:50] leg up about 45°? You could keep it [30:54] stacked. It's a lot easier to stay in a [30:55] plank position. You raise that leg off [30:58] of the other. Now it's all relying on [31:00] that lateral pillar strength of the [31:02] underside hip, the one closest to the [31:04] floor. So one arm down or stack on the [31:07] on the on the elbow. [31:08] >> Okay. Heels stacked at first. Yeah. At [31:10] first. [31:10] >> Okay. On your side. So side plank, not [31:12] just lying on your side. Side plank. [31:14] >> It's not the the uh the picnic date [31:17] stance. It's uh um you lying on your so [31:21] side plank and then you're going to [31:22] raise the top leg up to make a 45° and [31:26] see if you could hold that even for just [31:28] 30 seconds [31:29] >> and it's difficult. You'll feel a lot of [31:31] shaking. You'll feel a lot of of u [31:34] sagging of that bottom hip because [31:36] you're you're asking your glute medius [31:38] on that underside leg to hold you up [31:40] into that position. So the beauty about [31:44] that series of tests though is that [31:45] they're all trainable. So if it's [31:48] trainable, it's fixable, you can improve [31:50] as you have, right? You've you're now [31:52] much better at at the test. [31:55] Oh yeah, old man test. Yeah, definitely. [31:57] Um there are mornings when I want to [31:59] cross one leg over the other kind of go [32:01] into like what do they call it that like [32:02] kind of pseudo crow pose they talk about [32:04] in yoga like rest the ankle and the like [32:07] and sometimes it people are probably [32:09] laughing at this. Go try it folks. Some [32:12] people might do it just right away is [32:13] very easy. Many people will find this [32:16] difficult like to the point where like I [32:18] don't think I can do this but quickly [32:20] get good at it. [32:20] >> Yeah. Strength is not even like a [32:23] determining factor or predictor here [32:24] either. You could be very very strong [32:26] and do incredibly poorly on this test [32:28] >> because you're not strong in these areas [32:31] or you could just have bad vestibular [32:34] balance, right? You could it could be [32:36] that alone. Once you start to lean [32:37] forward or look down, you don't have [32:39] good control. But there it is testing a [32:41] variety of things. And if it if you do [32:43] poorly on it, you can look a little [32:45] deeper, investigate a little deeper [32:46] through additional tests to try to find [32:48] out exactly where your weakness is. But [32:50] it but it's a good broadspectctrum test [32:52] to see how how good your your functional [32:55] balance is. [32:56] >> Yeah. Some people people might wonder [32:57] how do you work up to it? There's [32:59] something called Velcro shoes. No, I'm [33:00] just kidding. The uh or slippers like [33:02] there it's easier, right? It's going to [33:04] be quicker. Right. Right. [33:05] >> Yeah. I think um it's definitely worth [33:08] trying and uh I think identifying these [33:10] weak points um I think is just so [33:12] critical and I'm probably going to say [33:14] this 20 times during today's um [33:16] recording, but for the young guys and [33:18] gals who are thinking, "Oh, like that [33:20] thing is so easy." Trust me, with time, [33:22] it's the gradual creep of little things [33:24] that you stop doing. I'm going to add [33:26] the side plank uh in because I'm I just [33:28] haven't been doing much planking, not [33:30] much isometric stuff. And I'm sure that [33:32] I've got a weakness somewhere along the [33:34] chain of muscles that's required to do [33:36] that properly. Yeah. [33:37] >> And what I love about these sorts of [33:39] small things that support doing the big [33:40] things for much much longer, hopefully [33:42] forever, is that they don't have to be [33:44] done as part of the standard workout. [33:46] and they can be incorporated into like [33:49] you're watching something on Netflix and [33:50] you just kind of move some furniture out [33:52] of the way and you just do these at that [33:54] time which is really cool and important [33:57] because it's not just about like an [33:58] additional workout because people are [33:59] slammed. They've got so much to do and [34:01] like how am I supposed to do all this [34:02] stuff and be with sunlight and this and [34:04] that but it's straightforward. [34:05] >> Yeah. Well, that it look I think the [34:07] thing that you've done better than [34:08] anybody is practical implementation of [34:13] the things that are going to benefit [34:15] people that are not time consuming or [34:17] overly timeconuming. They're e easily [34:19] implemented. A lot of what I focus on is [34:21] when we're talking about these drills or [34:23] exercises to do, a lot of them are body [34:24] weight or a lot of them are done in [34:26] minimal space because the more elaborate [34:28] it becomes or the more timeconuming it [34:30] is or whatever it is, there's just so [34:32] many reasons for people not to do them [34:34] and they are going to be viewed as the [34:35] extra stuff until they become adopted [34:38] and they realize how much they're [34:41] helping them. It's always going to be [34:42] viewed as the extra stuff originally. So [34:44] to get someone to buy into the concept, [34:46] open up the time frame where they can do [34:49] them. Let them do it during watching [34:51] Netflix. Let them do it while me while [34:53] I'm on the floor doing some crunches [34:55] after I've already done my workout. Like [34:57] open up the restrictions so that you're [34:59] still getting the effect, but you're [35:00] you're you're minimizing the the uh [35:04] prescription of it. So it's so demanding [35:06] people don't want to do it. So, one [35:08] thing that we I don't think we've ever [35:10] talked about on this podcast is that [35:12] many people don't just work out, they [35:14] also play a sport. Uh maybe they do golf [35:18] or maybe baseball or softball, maybe [35:20] they swim. In every sport, there [35:23] obviously dominant patterns of of [35:25] movement. And there's a lot that's out [35:27] there about how to train to improve [35:29] those patterns of movement. I'd like to [35:31] ask the opposite question. Let's say [35:33] somebody played baseball or golfed or [35:36] whatever their sport was and now they [35:38] have imbalances that are the consequence [35:40] of having done some activity like a golf [35:43] swing over and over and over standing in [35:46] a particular way and they have pain and [35:48] they are thinking about longevity not [35:50] just of their golf game but of [35:51] everything else tennis whatever people [35:54] just pick your sport. I think this is [35:56] very common and not commonly discussed. [35:59] What can people do to compensate for [36:02] these unilateral movements or for these, [36:04] you know, you know, always left foot [36:06] forward type stance things that won't [36:08] compromise their their game but also [36:12] overcome any pain and imbalances? I've [36:14] always been curious about this. That [36:16] brings up the point of like how sport [36:18] specific training has evolved over the [36:20] years. There was a time when sport [36:23] specific training meant doing everything [36:25] that you could to replicate the motions [36:28] of the sport and trying to strengthen [36:29] those movement patterns. I think gladly [36:32] we've moved past that stage of of [36:34] training because you can get better at [36:37] that movement pattern by simply doing [36:39] that movement pattern. You can increase [36:41] the strength of your entire body by [36:43] increasing the strength of your entire [36:44] body. So the focus of the weight room [36:46] can be to do your general strengthening [36:49] bilaterally, right? in regardless of [36:51] what movement pattern direction your [36:54] sport favors and improve the strength [36:56] there and the function there because the [36:59] carryover to your movement pattern is [37:02] there. Like when you get stronger and [37:04] then you go back to swing a bat, you're [37:06] going to still have the increased [37:08] strength that you built in the weight [37:09] room in your swing of the baseball bat. [37:12] And you can throw harder if you're a [37:14] pitcher or you can throw further if [37:16] you're a quarterback. if you improve [37:18] your overall arm strength in your upper [37:20] body strength. A lot of upper body [37:22] throwing strength has nothing to do with [37:24] your arm. It has to do with the [37:25] stability of your core. So, if you're [37:26] getting much stronger in your core, you [37:28] can have more torque generation to throw [37:31] the ball further without having to do [37:32] anything to your arm. So, I think the [37:35] the strategy should be that when you're [37:39] a playing a sport and devoting a lot of [37:42] time to it, whether at the professional [37:44] level or not, you you still should be [37:47] focusing the majority of your strength [37:50] training and conditioning work towards [37:52] your overall balanced physique, trying [37:54] to get strong across your entire body. [37:57] Let the skill work be the skill work. [37:59] And if you want to focus, there are [38:01] certainly few few things. We mentioned a [38:03] couple when we were at the gym [38:03] yesterday, but a few things that [38:05] specific athletes can do to improve [38:08] their specific skill and that's fine [38:10] from a strength training perspective. [38:12] And that's fine. Like maybe more forearm [38:13] work if you're having to swing a a [38:15] racket or a bat, right? That's fine. [38:17] That can that can be done in addition to [38:20] your basic core lifting. But to go back [38:23] to the days where the strength training [38:26] was was basically replicating the [38:28] motions of the sport, especially [38:30] nowadays where you've got athletes who [38:32] never stopped playing their sport. It's [38:34] young athletes. They're they're playing [38:36] baseball year round through all these [38:38] fall leagues and winter leagues and like [38:40] there's way too much repetition of the [38:43] same movement pattern. And that doesn't [38:44] end well because you you can see what's [38:46] happening these days with pitchers like [38:49] it's almost a right of passage. when how [38:51] many years are they going to be able to [38:52] pitch before they have to have a Tommy [38:53] John surgery? [38:54] >> What is the Tommy John surgery? [38:55] >> Their owner collateral ligament, you [38:57] know, basically being replaced or it [38:59] tears in their elbow. They're out for an [39:01] entire season. But it's like some of [39:04] these pitchers, it's like you want they [39:05] want to get it done early so they can [39:07] hopefully come back and then have a [39:08] string of years where they can dominate. [39:10] It's it's it's crazy. But I think a lot [39:13] of it is coming from a lot of overuse, a [39:16] lot of repetition, not enough moving [39:18] into other sports and movement patterns [39:20] to balance off the strains and stresses [39:21] that they're going doing in that sport, [39:23] their chosen sport. And it's and it's [39:25] and it's causing a a lot of uh avoidable [39:29] avoidable stress that again just fixing [39:32] it through a more managed well-balanced [39:34] approach in the weight room is probably [39:36] key number one. [39:37] >> It's interesting. That's not the answer [39:39] I expected, but um really cool to hear [39:42] that. So, doing the uh classic [39:46] all-around weight training, you know, [39:48] squats, some deadlifts, [39:49] >> the goal should be to strengthen to [39:50] strengthen your body to improve your [39:52] flexibility everywhere to, you know, if [39:55] you're talking about, let's say, a [39:57] situation with a pitcher where you have [39:58] hyper mobility of your shoulder because [40:00] you're your your move your throwing [40:02] requires a lot more range of motion than [40:05] than a non-throwing shoulder. [40:08] You don't have to say, "Well, I'm [40:09] mobilizing my my shoulders now, so I [40:11] have to do a lot of mobility work on my [40:13] on my my throwing shoulder." That might [40:14] not be necessary. In some cases, you [40:16] might want to not do that because it's [40:17] already mobile enough because of the [40:19] skill work. So, it's not like a a broad [40:21] you do everything you do here, you do [40:23] there on each side. You you might want [40:26] to actually steer away from some of the [40:28] things that you're repetitively using in [40:29] the in the in the sport itself. But from [40:32] a strengthening standpoint, you'll never [40:34] go wrong sticking to the the core lifts, [40:37] building up your strength in those core [40:38] lifts and and bilaterally strengthening [40:41] your body and your balance and your [40:43] coordination and your explosivity and [40:46] your power. You're you're not going to [40:48] go wrong. That does transfer back over [40:50] to the sport itself. People think that [40:52] it has to be in this sport specific [40:54] motion to transfer back over there. [40:56] That's not that's not true. One thing I [40:58] noticed yesterday when we were training [40:59] as well as in your videos is that [41:01] whenever you have the opportunity to do [41:04] a movement standing as opposed to [41:05] seated, you'll do that. Whenever you [41:07] have the opportunity to stagger your [41:09] stance a bit, not fully lunging, but [41:11] offset your stance a bit, you'll do [41:13] that. And then you also talked about [41:15] >> even on a on a dumbbell curl, leaning a [41:18] bit toward the side that you're curling [41:20] up, assuming you're doing alternating [41:22] dumbbell curls, uh can be very useful. [41:24] Would you sort of explain the general [41:25] logic for that and then maybe we can [41:27] touch into a few of the specific [41:29] examples? I have a phrase if you want to [41:30] look like an athlete you have to train [41:32] like an athlete, right? And and the the [41:34] what that really means is like sure [41:36] people might want to look athletic. They [41:39] want to have an athletic physique. They [41:40] might want to have the six-pack abs. [41:42] They want to have what they think is an [41:43] athletic looking physique. That's great [41:46] because a lot of people want that. But [41:49] you have to train for it. It comes at a [41:51] price. You have there's a way to get [41:52] there. And I believe that the way to get [41:54] there is by training like an athlete. [41:57] Doesn't mean you have to start going out [41:58] and doing again the all these things [42:00] that people thought is what athletes [42:02] need to do to be athletic. You just have [42:05] to start a caring a little bit more [42:07] about what you do. So treat it like [42:09] you're an athlete. And these little [42:10] things matter. It goes back to the [42:11] original point. The little things matter [42:13] just like they would if you were if this [42:15] was your contract on the line. Every [42:17] little thing would matter. But more [42:18] importantly, functionally, what do [42:20] athletes do? Most athletes, not all, but [42:22] most athletes are on their feet. Most [42:24] athletes move around. You move around, [42:27] you're not squared up with your feet [42:28] right next to each other and and unless [42:30] you're, you know, I mean, in one phase [42:33] of an offensive lineman's uh duty, they [42:36] stand up and their feet are square, but [42:37] they quickly stagger their feet for more [42:39] stability. So, you need to be able to [42:42] operate from that position, I think, as [42:44] often as you can because [42:47] it's not to produce professional [42:48] athletes. is to produce a body that's [42:50] functioning the way it prefers to [42:51] function. Why do we default do that? If [42:54] I told you, Andrew, I'm going to come [42:54] over here. I'm going to try to push you [42:55] over right now. Would you stand up like [42:57] this or would you put one foot back? [42:59] Like, by default, you would instantly go [43:00] to one foot back and you try to lean [43:02] into me and get get more stable because [43:04] your body instantly knows that's a more [43:06] stable position. If I can train with [43:08] more stability, I know I can decrease [43:10] injury risk no matter what I'm doing. [43:12] You talked about even something as [43:13] simple as the curl. When I [43:17] it's not just looking at the bicep, but [43:19] when I turn towards the bicep and I kind [43:21] of screw I I call it screwing down. As I [43:23] screw down on that weight, I'm able to [43:27] stabilize the torso a little bit more [43:29] over this shoulder. Or I can even dig [43:30] the the arm into my side a little bit, [43:33] engaging the lats, stabilizing the [43:35] shoulder girdle, so that when I lift the [43:37] weight, I have more tension in the [43:41] biceps, number one, but more stability [43:43] that the biceps can work from by [43:45] stabilizing the entire shoulder girdle. [43:46] When I'm out in space like this, it's a [43:48] little bit more of a freewheeling deal [43:49] here where I don't have that stability. [43:51] So, is something going to happen or go [43:53] wrong from doing that? No. But that's [43:54] not creating the most functionally [43:56] stable body. So, by turning your body [43:59] around that arm, keeping it stable in [44:01] your side and curling, I'm able to [44:03] create a little bit more stability [44:04] there. I take it to the same the same [44:06] way down to the ground with a lunge. [44:08] When you lunge and do my favorite, a [44:10] reverse lunge, which takes a little bit [44:12] of the stress off the anterior knee, [44:13] stepping backward, step backwards rather [44:15] than forward. Just again, I'm sensitive [44:17] to that cuz I have pretty bad knees from [44:19] those early days in the 20s of doing [44:21] things wrong with flat feet. [44:23] You want to as you step back a take a [44:27] little bit of a wider step on that back [44:29] leg. So you're creating a wider base of [44:30] support, more balance, right? Rather [44:32] than being completely narrow cuz not [44:35] just staggering my stance, but [44:36] staggering and widening my base of [44:37] support. [44:38] >> This is key. It's funny. If you're [44:40] you're in the gym with people, I I'm not [44:42] a trainer, but occasionally I've shown [44:43] some people how to do some things and [44:44] you say widen your stance, they [44:46] immediately put one foot further out in [44:48] front of the other. But what you're [44:49] talking about is getting them the space [44:52] between the [44:53] >> um the insides of your feet further [44:56] apart. So w literally widening outside [44:58] shoulder [44:59] >> lengthening your stance. [45:00] >> Right. And and and especially as you [45:02] lengthen your stance, widening them in [45:04] in in conjunction is going to create a [45:06] wider base of support, more stability. [45:08] So when we do that, you step back, you [45:11] create a little bit of that width and [45:12] balance. But as I go down into the [45:14] lunge, you'll find [45:17] if you don't lean your torso or turn [45:19] your torso a little bit in the direction [45:21] of that forward leg and kind of do that [45:23] same screwing down effect that I talk [45:25] about, that front leg will wobble a [45:27] little bit. You'll feel that the hip is [45:29] a little bit more unstable. Back to [45:30] again that single leg suitcase lunge we [45:32] talked about where that hip drops and [45:34] you get a lot of that instability. I [45:36] want to be able to turn and sort of [45:37] screw down on that hip. And what I'm [45:39] doing is basically kind of tying the [45:42] muscles of the pelvis together, muscles [45:44] of the hip, co-contracting and creating [45:46] more stability so that now when I ask [45:48] that quad and and and glute and [45:50] hamstring to to work and push me back to [45:53] a standing position, it's working more [45:55] efficiently because it's on a stable [45:56] base. I I've mentioned before if we were [46:00] gonna jump and try to get a the highest [46:03] vertical jump jump we could, would you [46:05] jump off this ground, this floor, or [46:07] this table, or would you jump off of [46:09] sand? [46:10] >> Jump off a firm firm firm. [46:12] >> You jump off of sand. As soon as you try [46:13] to place force down into the ground, [46:15] it's going to dissipate because the [46:17] ground itself is moving. Well, we want [46:18] to create as much force and efficient [46:20] force as possible. Want to have a stable [46:22] base. So all that co- contraction of the [46:25] hip when you screw down into it or even [46:27] in the shoulder girdle when you're going [46:28] to then operate this this elbow flexion [46:31] shoulder flexion movement of a curl then [46:33] you basically get a more efficient [46:35] movement. So stability is a key for more [46:40] efficient movement and also I think [46:42] long-term safer movement. 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It tastes great, and it's [48:10] the only sleep supplement I take. It has [48:12] a collection of different things in it [48:13] that has dramatically improved my sleep. [48:15] Both my slowwave deep sleep and my rapid [48:18] eye movement sleep and I absolutely love [48:20] it. Again, that's drink a1.com/huberman [48:23] to get a week supply of AGZ and a bottle [48:25] of D3K2 with your subscription. Jumping [48:28] around a little bit here, but I I'm [48:30] recalling the many things that have uh [48:32] reversed or eliminated pain that is very [48:36] common in anyone that works out. And one [48:39] of those, you mentioned it, is pain at [48:41] the kind of inner elbow point, kind of [48:43] forearm, inner elbow. And I figured I [48:46] had an elbow problem. I had something [48:48] going on with tendonitis of the elbow. [48:51] And you know, it [48:52] >> turns out it was further away from that. [48:55] It was all happening at the level of the [48:56] grip. [48:57] >> Yeah. [48:57] >> And you said, and I listened fortunately [49:01] on pull-ups [49:02] >> to not let the bar be at my fingertips, [49:05] to try and get my knuckles over the bar. [49:07] Yeah. Right. And you have a beautiful [49:09] demonstration of this. It almost sounds [49:10] like that trick that kids do where they [49:11] go, "Hey, pull my finger." You know, um [49:13] it's not that trick, folks, but where [49:15] you um got to put some resistance to [49:18] each of your own fingers, like your your [49:19] index finger, your middle finger, your [49:21] ring finger, and then your pinky finger. [49:23] And when you do put the pressure on that [49:24] pinky finger, you can feel it right at [49:26] that elbow. [49:27] >> And so, sure enough, I was causing this [49:29] elbow pain by doing, you know, uh [49:31] pull-ups and and slipping off the bar a [49:34] bit, and I'm at my fingertips. As soon [49:36] as I took your advice and got my [49:38] knuckles over the bar, even though it [49:39] puts requires a little bit of a wrist [49:41] bend, sure enough, I haven't had elbow [49:43] pain in a decade. It is uh one of those [49:46] things that can happen so quickly, too. [49:48] Like, you could go from having no elbow [49:50] pain to the very next day having elbow [49:52] pain or even right after the workout [49:53] doing elbow pain if you're doing a lot [49:55] of chin-ups with this issue where the [49:57] where the bar is too far away and it's [49:59] just an overload issue. essentially the [50:01] the muscles, the flexors, the deep [50:03] flexors of the forearm that run down [50:05] into the fingers. It's it's actually the [50:07] the ring and fifth fingers, so the [50:09] fourth and fifth finger that tend to be [50:11] the the weakest and least resilient to [50:13] that kind of stress. If you're gripping [50:15] through there and that bar gets deep [50:17] into the into the fingers [50:19] >> or if you do it where you're doing a [50:21] curl, even the bar sits too deep into [50:23] your hand there and you try to curl [50:24] heavy [50:25] >> toward the ends of your fingers. [50:26] >> To the ends of your fingers. Yeah. [50:27] and not into the into the actual meat of [50:29] your hand. It's just a lot of strain [50:31] more than that that muscle is really [50:33] built for to handle and those tendons [50:35] get a little bit strained and it can [50:37] immediately feel like a knife in the in [50:39] the elbow feel and it takes a long time [50:41] to go away because how many other [50:43] exercises do you do where you're [50:45] gripping and and requiring the grip to [50:48] be in place to do that. Now, if you want [50:50] to intentionally do this, you can do it [50:52] intentionally. let's say a an underhand [50:55] lat pull down like they call it a hook [50:57] grip because what people want to dis [50:59] discourage people from doing is pulling [51:02] down too much with the bar, right? [51:04] Causing too much forearm involvement in [51:06] whatever back exercise I'm trying to do. [51:09] But in that case, you're really trying [51:10] to hook through the stronger fingers of [51:12] the index finger, middle finger, right? [51:14] And and even the just, you know, you're [51:16] getting a little bit of assistance on [51:18] the ring finger, but you're really [51:19] trying to hook through there. All four [51:20] fingers might be on the bar, but most of [51:22] the force is being held through there. [51:24] And you're you're still pulling down a [51:26] lot through your lats to build to pull [51:28] that bar down. So, it's not like you're [51:29] just letting it hold all the weight. But [51:31] that that little hook grip is meant to [51:34] discourage any meaningful wrist flexion [51:37] that would take over and take away some [51:38] of the work of the lats. But if you got [51:40] a history of elbow issues, you don't [51:43] need to use that grip. Like, that's just [51:45] it's just not worth it. the extra [51:46] benefit of a little extra forearm [51:48] involvement may not be worth it for you. [51:50] But for people who find that they don't [51:52] have elbow issues and they want to get a [51:54] little bit of that, you can do it in an [51:55] intentional way, but you really have to [51:57] kind of steer away from making these [51:58] fingers do the bulk of the work. How did [52:00] you figure that out by having that issue [52:02] multiple times? [52:03] >> Yeah. I mean, I was just again, you [52:06] know, just blown away. I was like, okay, [52:08] I've got this inner elbow pain and I'm [52:10] like curling and I'm doing my tricep [52:12] work and my back work and I'm wondering, [52:14] okay, what's wrong with my elbows? And [52:15] you know, I'm I'm at that time, you [52:18] know, young guy. I'm like, what's going [52:19] on? And then [52:20] >> and then it makes perfect sense as you [52:21] pointed out, you know, ring finger, [52:23] pinky finger are are are taking too much [52:25] of the at the load at the near the tips [52:27] of the fingers, force myself to put the [52:30] bar or the or the dumbbell in the meat [52:32] of my hand. Yeah. Now, we take a more [52:34] traditional grip, right? You're not like [52:36] relying on that those distal tendons to [52:40] have to do all that work and manage that [52:41] load. Now, now the hand the hand can [52:43] hold on to hundreds and hundreds of [52:45] pounds, right? So, if we can just get it [52:46] into the meat of the hand, now I'm [52:48] getting all the assistance of the [52:49] intrinsic hand muscles on top of it. So, [52:51] now it's no longer a strain or a stress [52:53] to those particular tendons. But believe [52:56] me, uh, two things contribute to me [52:59] figuring these things out. Number one, [53:00] being a physical therapist changed [53:01] everything for me because I had to think [53:02] of things differently. Number two, when [53:04] you're treating patients, not everyone [53:07] everyone presents the same. So, you have [53:09] to come up with alternative ways to get [53:10] to the same end result. I might be able [53:13] to tell nine out of 10 people to do a [53:15] Bulgarian split squat to alleviate knee [53:17] pain. But for that 10th person, it just [53:20] lights them up and you and they can't do [53:22] it. You have to be able to figure out [53:24] how to how to work around that. And the [53:26] second thing is that I I had the [53:29] unfortunate but fortunate experience of [53:31] having to deal with a lot of these [53:33] things through my life in the early [53:34] years and even still now. I I still do [53:36] things that cause inflammation and and [53:39] uh a need to reassess and look at what [53:41] I'm doing and maybe why. And like you, I [53:44] didn't I knew I when I first started [53:46] experiencing that pain also in my 20s, [53:48] like that wasn't I didn't have an elbow [53:50] issue. Like there's nothing structurally [53:51] wrong with my elbow. So I had to look [53:53] somewhere else. I didn't look then, but [53:54] I looked when I got older and had way [53:56] too many of those incidents happen. So [53:58] it forces you to look and it forces me [54:00] to look. I have to look cuz this is what [54:01] I do for a living. But it forces me to [54:03] look and figure out what's causing this [54:05] and more importantly, what can you do to [54:06] stop it? [54:07] >> Well, I and many others are eternally [54:10] grateful cuz that inner elbow pain, the [54:13] lower back pain. Yeah. They're brutal. [54:15] Like they they can really take the they [54:17] can really take the pleasure out of a [54:18] lot of things cuz it's not just during [54:20] training. [54:21] >> Yeah. [54:21] >> The shoulders. Um I'm going to knock on [54:24] wood in a second because I I've been [54:26] fortunate that my shoulders haven't [54:27] given me issues, but that means it's [54:28] probably just next. But perhaps that's [54:31] also the consequence of having once [54:33] again listen to your content and [54:36] whenever possible I've tried to get into [54:38] external rotation which is uh if I [54:40] reference the fawns will anyone know [54:42] what I'm talking about. So thumbs out [54:44] and uh you know giving the thumbs up but [54:46] thumbs rotated away from the belly [54:47] button away from the midline. Could you [54:49] explain where the shoulder tends to be [54:52] most vulnerable and this business of [54:54] internal thumbs pointing toward the [54:55] belly button versus external rotation [54:57] during all sorts of movements and also [54:59] just daily life? Good point here too is [55:02] on top of the thumbs is, you know, not [55:04] just the flipping of the hand itself [55:07] through supernation and pronation of the [55:09] forearm, but literally letting the elbow [55:12] kind of travel with that, right? So, [55:14] you're letting everything move together [55:15] cuz it's the it's the rotation that's [55:17] happening in this joint, this ball and [55:18] socket up top. [55:20] >> Shoulders got to rotate out, right? [55:23] We're not just talking about moving your [55:24] thumbs away from your belly button out [55:26] for those just listening. We're talking [55:28] about getting the elbows in in a bit [55:31] more. As those thumbs go out, the [55:33] shoulders externally rotating as well. [55:35] >> Yeah. Which is key. And and [55:38] the the issue with internal rotation, [55:39] external rotation is that it's in [55:41] they're both motions of the shoulder, [55:43] right? We're needing we need both of [55:44] them. We need to be able if you go back [55:46] to the pitcher, he needs to be able to [55:48] externally rotate and then of course [55:50] internally rotate to throw the ball. I'm [55:52] not saying that internal rotation is is [55:54] is the devil. What we need though is the [55:57] ability to control internal rotation. We [56:01] need to be able the ability to have [56:02] enough external rotation strength to [56:04] hold that position for longer or to or [56:07] to be able to control right the ex the [56:09] eentric control from the external [56:12] rotators is what actually controls the [56:13] internal rotation. the eccentric control [56:15] from the internal rotator external [56:17] rotators [56:17] >> from the external rotators which [56:18] controls internal rotation because as [56:20] we're lengthening the external rotators [56:23] we're controlling if we have good [56:24] control the eentric control of that then [56:26] we're slowing down the internal rotation [56:28] or at least controlling it at a certain [56:30] pace that's extremely important when it [56:32] comes to pitching. we have this rapid [56:35] internal rotation going on, right? Which [56:38] is that essentially the thumb is moving [56:40] toward the midline to throw, [56:41] >> right? And so is the so is the elbow, so [56:44] is your shoulder. [56:44] >> So if the external rotators are [56:46] eccentrically strong, they can control [56:49] that and control the the pace of that [56:51] and make sure that it's not outpacing [56:53] what your your shoulder itself can can [56:55] structurally protect. So it's important [56:58] to have that, too. But internal rotation [57:02] in the world of the of of the [57:04] non-athlete is particularly problematic [57:07] if a you're posturally holding that [57:10] position for way too long throughout the [57:12] day and which is what we all chronically [57:14] are suffering from whether we're [57:16] texting, typing, not focusing ever on [57:19] the external rotators of our, you know, [57:22] in our training. You're just getting [57:24] chronically tight and internally [57:26] rotated. And then when you go to do even [57:28] basic things like lift your arm up over [57:30] your head, you're creating an internal [57:33] shoulder environment that's more prone [57:36] >> to [57:38] creating less space in inflaming tissues [57:40] that wind up getting pinched in that [57:42] position. That basically when you're [57:44] tight internally, you get changes to the [57:47] shoulder capsule itself, which is all [57:49] the ligamentous structures that surround [57:50] it that make you more internally rotated [57:53] and tight. You can't get out of that [57:55] position. So now when I go to raise my [57:56] arm up, there's just less room in here. [57:59] For instance, I think I we might have [58:00] done this before you and I, but if I [58:02] were to have you just lean forward like [58:04] this or slump your shoulder and then [58:06] raise your arm as high as you could in [58:07] front you, you're going to that's as far [58:09] as you get, right? And you're limited [58:11] not because of anything that's [58:13] necessarily tight right there, but [58:15] structurally there's a little bony bump [58:18] on the top of your humorous that's [58:19] actually getting stuck on the upper [58:22] portion of your shoulder joint there. So [58:24] now bring your arm down. Open up your [58:27] chest as much as you can. Turn your arm [58:28] out a little bit. Now raise it up [58:30] overhead and it goes higher. Why? [58:32] Because you just created external [58:33] rotation inside the joint that allows it [58:35] now to go up in a higher position. Well, [58:38] what happens if you're chronically in [58:40] this position of internal rotation and [58:43] you go to raise your arm, you go to wash [58:45] your hair, you go to get stuff out of [58:46] the cabinet, you go to do all the things [58:47] you do every day. Every time with there [58:50] being less space in there, there's more [58:52] likelihood to pinch on a super spinous [58:54] tendon. There's more likelihood to be [58:56] pinched on a bersa. There's more any and [58:58] every time we pinch, we potentially [59:00] inflame and cause more swelling inside [59:03] that joint, which causes less joint [59:05] space, right? So, you're inflaming those [59:07] tissues, more more uh compression in [59:10] that joint, and then more pain [59:12] ultimately. And then that winds up [59:13] causing down the road things like [59:15] partial thickness tears and tears of the [59:17] of the rotator cuff that we don't want. [59:20] So internal rotation in this elevated [59:23] position is not good. having external [59:28] rotation abilities or strength that can [59:31] help to centralize what it what it [59:33] really does when people talk about [59:34] rotator cuff training is yes you're [59:36] working the external rotators but really [59:38] what its main job is to actually keep [59:41] that ball centered in the middle of the [59:44] socket. [59:44] >> I see. [59:45] >> So as you go and you raise your arm up [59:48] in an internally rotated dominated [59:51] dominant shoulder it will migrate up. [59:54] Why? because the deltoid pulls up. So as [59:57] you're raising your shoulder up, the [59:59] deltoid is pulling that humorris up and [60:02] the internal rotation of the other [60:04] muscles are already too tight, [60:05] chronically tight or just keeping it in [60:07] the front side anyway. So you're lifting [60:08] your arm up and you're getting very [60:10] little space. What the external rotators [60:12] will do is they'll keep it centered so [60:14] that as you raise instead of it [60:16] migrating up, it's countering the force [60:18] of the deltoid. So staying in the middle [60:21] and it basically can rotate and stay [60:23] right in the middle where it has to be. [60:24] You're not getting this migration or [60:25] pinching going on. So that's the real [60:28] function of the rotator cuff is to [60:30] maintain a more centralized position [60:32] with less of this pinching. So you [60:34] really have to focus on when we're [60:36] talking about avoiding shoulder issues. [60:38] The biggest thing you can do is start [60:41] training the rotator cuff, [60:43] not stop training the rotator cuff. And [60:46] if you're doing a lot of heavy pressing [60:48] or a lot of work with exercises that [60:50] tend to internally rotate your shoulders [60:52] now, then you have to do even more work [60:55] for the rotator cuff to try to maintain [60:57] that balance. If you're doing all kinds [60:58] of delt work, you're never doing it [60:59] rotator cuff work, you're just creating [61:01] more and more of that imbalance. So I [61:04] think the biggest thing you can do is [61:05] maintain mobility of the shoulder, [61:07] mobility of the shoulder girdle itself. [61:08] So the the the scapula being able to [61:11] rotate and then having strength of the [61:13] muscles of that shoulder girdle which [61:15] are the rotator cuff. Those are the [61:16] three main things you can do to keep [61:18] that shoulder functioning well and [61:20] staying out of this domination of [61:22] internal rotation with elevation. What's [61:24] your favorite uh external rotator [61:27] exercise? [61:28] >> My favorite is just simply attaching a [61:30] band to a stable. could be a stair uh [61:35] like a stair post or it could be in a [61:38] gym just a rack, right? And you you step [61:40] away. You you put the band in your hand [61:44] from the anchor point. You're going to [61:45] step out until there's good tension on [61:47] the band. If you were to let it relax, [61:49] you will pull your your hand towards [61:51] your chest, towards your belly. You [61:53] externally rotate to about back to [61:56] neutral or a little bit beyond if you [61:57] can. [61:58] >> A little bit beyond your torso. [61:59] >> Yep. Yeah. A little beyond your torso if [62:00] you can. That's even better if you have [62:02] that range of motion. Sometimes people [62:03] don't. And when you get it there, you [62:05] again hold it, right? You hold it for a [62:07] second just so you know that you [62:08] actually muscled it out there. You [62:09] didn't just swing it out there. The [62:10] number one thing people do here to cheat [62:13] and we talk about this, we talked about [62:15] it in the gym quite a bit. Your body [62:18] knows how to compensate. Like if you [62:19] ever want to know what you're doing [62:20] wrong, just look at yourself in the [62:22] mirror and then look and see what your [62:23] body's trying to do. You'll realize the [62:25] compensation is the direct opposite of [62:27] what it's not doing, what the job is is [62:29] is avoiding. So when the ro rotator cuff [62:31] is trying to externally rotate the [62:33] shoulder, [62:34] >> the way I can avoid that is just lift my [62:37] elbow away from my side. I can get my [62:39] hand from here to here if I raise my arm [62:42] out to the side. But now I'm using my [62:44] delt to do it and not the rotator cuff. [62:46] >> Keep that elbow pin. [62:47] >> You got to keep the elbow pin to the [62:48] torso. So the easiest thing you can do [62:49] is just put something underneath your [62:51] arm, a little towel. Fold the towel, put [62:53] it underneath there, and then do the [62:54] exercise. And if you find that your [62:56] towel is dropping to the floor, it's [62:58] obviously that because you're lifting [62:59] your shoulder, your elbow away from your [63:02] body and you're using the wrong muscle. [63:04] Do this as a warm-up. Do it at the end [63:05] of the workout. How many sets, how many [63:07] reps, how many times a week? [63:09] >> There's different applications of it. [63:10] You can do it before a workout. So, if [63:12] I'm going to press, like, let's say [63:14] bench press, I could use this as a good [63:16] warm-up before I go press almost as a [63:19] neuroactivation technique to make sure [63:21] those muscles are alert and firing. So, [63:22] I can make sure that they're working [63:24] when I go to press to keep my shoulders [63:26] back in in a better position. And [63:27] especially as I raise my arms up in an [63:29] overhead press, I can make sure that [63:31] they're alert, they're fired up, they're [63:33] they're willing to contribute to keep [63:35] that head centered when the arm's going [63:36] up overhead. So, I like to do them on [63:39] pressing days as a neuroactivator before [63:42] I train. And it's serving as a warm-up, [63:44] too, or on other days. Again, treating [63:46] it as my special program, which is what [63:48] I have to do because of all the issues [63:50] that I've had with my shoulders. Again, [63:52] not from this one didn't come [63:53] necessarily from bad training, but just [63:54] dumb decisions trying to throw a [63:56] baseball back with the Mets. Um, I lost [63:58] a bet. It's kind of famous at this at [64:01] this point, but like a player bet me [64:03] that I couldn't throw the ball from, [64:04] well, let's rephrase that. I bet that I [64:07] could throw the ball from right field to [64:09] third base on the fly cuz it just looked [64:12] rather short from where I was, but it's [64:13] actually a lot longer and only the [64:16] better arms in baseball can actually do [64:17] that really easily. So, I have no idea [64:19] why I thought I could, but I did. And [64:22] literally the the moment I let that ball [64:24] go, I feel like my lab went with it and [64:27] maybe landed somewhere near second base [64:29] because it just felt like a burning [64:32] zipper pain in my shoulder and I've had [64:34] to deal with it ever since. Did the ball [64:36] get to the third base? [64:36] >> Oh, no. No way. No. I think it landed [64:39] with the labor bat at like second base, [64:41] you know, like no way. So, [64:43] >> you know, I learned my lesson, but the [64:46] fact is it's something that you can [64:49] you can adopt pretty easily as a special [64:52] programming type thing. Um, there's [64:55] things you could do too to make it a [64:56] little bit more interesting. Like once [64:58] you get into position where you could do [65:00] the actual repetition, you could then [65:02] hold it in a neutral position. Neutral [65:05] for this exercise would be not in, not [65:07] out. So where your fist is pointing [65:09] straight ahead and then then take a big [65:11] giant step away from the band. [65:13] >> So you're increasing the resistance of [65:15] the band dynamically but still having to [65:17] keep yourself in that same position. [65:19] >> So elbow still locked to the side, fist [65:21] out in front of you. You're holding the [65:22] band, there's tension. Step away from [65:24] the bar that the band is fixed to, so [65:25] there's additional tension. [65:26] >> Yeah. And it's going to want to pull [65:27] your hand back, but you keep it right [65:28] where it is. And then the fun part of it [65:30] is that I could then take it even [65:33] further. I could jump out there. So now [65:35] it becomes a little bit more ballistic [65:36] and dynamic. So I can be in this [65:38] position and then jump. And if I jump [65:41] quickly, now it really wants to pull me [65:43] in, but I have to still keep that same [65:45] position here. So it's mimicking a [65:46] little bit more of a of a ballistically [65:49] dynamic force. So I could do that. I [65:51] could start to change the angle. I could [65:52] be here in this position now facing [65:55] facing the the the anchor point and it [65:58] still wants to pull me into internal [65:59] rotation. [66:00] >> The band in front of you, not to the [66:01] side. Okay. [66:02] >> And I could jump back and see if it [66:04] pulls me down this direction. Interal [66:06] external rotation is is is [66:09] >> is done so many different ways. Again, I [66:11] could be in this position here. I'm just [66:13] reaching my arm out in front of me and [66:15] turning my my my arm all the way. Thumbs [66:18] down to the floor, all the way back past [66:21] the sky, and then thumbs out towards my [66:23] side. Right? That's internal external [66:25] rotation. I don't even have a bent [66:26] elbow, right? Because we're talking [66:28] about a shoulder movement, not an elbow [66:29] movement. But when we when we do it, we [66:31] could do it down low is going to be [66:33] easier for people to start. And the more [66:35] things you start to do with external [66:36] rotation, internal rotation with the arm [66:38] elevated, the more challenging it starts [66:40] to become. So you progressively move [66:42] towards movements where you're internal [66:45] or externally rotating against [66:46] resistance in a higher and higher arm [66:48] position. Love it. I want to take care [66:52] of my shoulders. Uh for me, neck [66:54] training has been u fundamentally [66:56] important for avoiding injury outside of [66:58] the gym. got rear ended in a car. I had [67:01] just bought my first car. This was many [67:03] years ago. 2005 CRV. I'm like driving my [67:06] first new car. I' driven, you know, used [67:07] cars before. [67:08] >> Yeah. [67:09] >> Parked at the light or stopped at the [67:11] light rather. And all of a sudden just [67:14] someone just ran into me. Person next to [67:16] me ended up with some pretty bad whip [67:17] whiplash and back pain. I was a little [67:20] sore but um nothing really. And uh you [67:24] know it's not a controlled experiment [67:25] but I credit that. uh been training my [67:28] neck um even back then. Now I learned [67:31] how to do it properly from you in your [67:33] video and we will definitely provide a [67:34] link to it. I talk about this non-stop. [67:36] This video is so valuable. You don't [67:37] need any special equipment, some uh [67:39] standard plates and a towel. But this [67:42] neck thing, it's not just for fighters. [67:44] It's your upper spine. Posturally, I [67:47] feel like people don't like nowadays [67:49] everyone's posture is so terrible. [67:50] Posturally, it just makes your default [67:52] posture better. It's something we're [67:54] always all working on. But neck training [67:57] for men and women, I think men probably [67:59] would be okay with having a most of them [68:01] would be like, "Oh, cool. I get a [68:02] slightly bigger neck." Women probably [68:04] want to avoid that. Is there is there a [68:05] way that women or men, but tends to be [68:10] women who want to have a, you know, [68:12] great posture, a a strong neck, but they [68:15] want to maintain that kind of, you know, [68:16] like elegant neck. They they don't want [68:18] a thicker neck. Is there a way that they [68:19] can strengthen the neck muscles and [68:22] achieve that without thickening the [68:23] neck? Yeah, I I think that women would [68:26] be less resistant to the idea of having [68:28] a stronger neck. I think as long as we [68:32] weren't talking about building massive [68:34] traps along with it, right? And I think [68:36] that they think neck and traps cuz they [68:38] do feed into each other. The reason why [68:40] men who train their neck tend to have a [68:42] a better or much thicker look to their [68:46] neck better for men is that they're also [68:50] in conjunction likely training their [68:51] traps either directly or indirectly [68:53] through some of the other movements that [68:54] do in a heavy way. Women who tend to [68:57] train their neck directly and not [68:59] focused on building their traps at the [69:01] same time, they're just going to have a [69:03] stronger neck because they're not [69:04] necessarily the biggest muscles in here [69:06] that that grow substantially. And again, [69:08] when you look at the proportional growth [69:10] in muscles from men and women, there's [69:13] already a difference in how big these [69:14] muscles will grow, male versus female. [69:17] But now, in an area where the where the [69:18] the muscles themselves don't grow to [69:20] astronomically large proportions, you [69:23] really aren't going to get that much [69:24] size in the neck. And I think women are [69:27] chronically undertrained when it comes [69:28] to the neck. I I can't tell you how [69:31] often that you'll prescribe some kind of [69:33] an ab routine. And I'm not even thinking [69:37] about the repercussions on the neck cuz [69:38] for me it's like it's it's no strain at [69:40] all. But a lot of people will complain [69:42] and most often it's women that just [69:44] doing the crunch cuz you I don't want [69:46] them holding on to their neck and [69:48] cranking on their neck during a crunch. [69:50] >> They'll say my my neck is hurting. I [69:51] can't do that. I can't do that routine. [69:53] It's it's only hurting because of [69:54] fatigue, not because there's their their [69:56] neck is being held in one position and [69:58] their fingers are just basically [70:00] touching back there to just keep them [70:02] away from cranking. And it's also [70:04] >> that's how you want them people doing [70:05] crunches. Not cranking, not pushing the [70:07] Yeah. So just touching the back of their [70:08] head very [70:09] >> touching the back of your head lightly. [70:10] And you know what you're getting there [70:11] also is a little extra weight. The [70:13] weight of your arms back there is going [70:14] to provide a little bit of extra [70:16] resistance on a basic crunch, [70:17] >> but it's also leaving the neck [70:18] unsupported because so often people are [70:20] used to holding the entire weight of [70:22] their head and then what happens is they [70:23] start to fatigue and their ab here we go [70:25] again. What is the body's natural [70:26] compensation? They know that the eyes [70:28] have to get up when they're doing a [70:30] crunch. The eyes have to raise up. So [70:32] what do they do? they just pull on the [70:33] head and the eyes come up and they're [70:35] not doing any more work for their abs, [70:36] but they've gotten to where they thought [70:38] they were supposed to be. Natural [70:39] compensation gone wrong. That's not what [70:42] we want to do. So, when women are [70:43] encouraged to do it quote unquote right [70:46] and don't pull on your neck, they don't [70:48] have the strength in their anterior neck [70:49] to do that. So, doing this neck series [70:51] that you were referring to is a is a [70:54] great way to strengthen the neck. And [70:56] again, depending on how much weight you [70:58] use, you could just use a five or a 10 [70:59] pound plate and have plenty of of of [71:02] overload there to create a stronger neck [71:04] without a lot of hypertrophy. And and [71:06] for those that aren't aware, the the the [71:09] series is simply taking a plate. Let's [71:11] just say we start really light. We take [71:13] a 5 lb plate. We wrap it in a towel, [71:15] nice cushy towel, so it's not [71:17] uncomfortable at all. You lay on a [71:19] bench, and you're going to go basically [71:21] in four different directions. You're [71:22] going to rotate your body's position on [71:24] that bench in four different ways. to [71:26] work the extensors, the flexors, and [71:29] then the lateral neck muscles on both [71:31] left and right sides. So, all you have [71:33] to do is, let's say you're starting on [71:35] your back, you lay on your back, head is [71:37] off the edge of the bench, that nice [71:40] cushy towel with the plate inside of it [71:42] is put up on top of your forehead. You [71:44] allow yourself to to lean your head [71:46] back, but as you come up, you want to [71:48] also pull your chin down, right? Because [71:50] you're not just trying to like [71:52] overextend or hyper extend your your [71:54] neck at any point. You want to you the [71:56] stability we talked about before, [71:58] whether it be the hip screwing in or the [71:59] shoulder screw, the stability you get [72:01] here is the retraction of the chin that [72:03] provides the stability to the neck. So [72:05] you have the retraction of the chin, [72:06] which is just pulling it straight back. [72:08] It's going to feel like it moves only [72:09] about a half an inch or so. That's the [72:11] position there. And then you you pull [72:13] your head back up to neutral again. You [72:15] you flex your neck until you're back to [72:16] neutral again. You do that 12 [72:19] repetitions, however many, you know, sub [72:22] fatigue here, but just enough to to [72:24] cause some some fatigue. Turn on to your [72:27] stomach at that point if you like. Put [72:28] the weight on the back of your head and [72:30] then do the same thing. Retract first. [72:33] Make sure you got the stable neck. [72:34] >> Chin closer to your [72:35] >> elbow. Good way to talk about it. And [72:37] then you basically allow your your head [72:40] to to sink down forward off the edge of [72:42] the bench. And then you're going to [72:43] extend your neck back up again to [72:45] neutral or in this case a little bit [72:46] beyond into a little bit of extension. [72:48] And then you go to your side and the [72:50] same deal. You allow your head to just [72:52] bend a little bit to the laterally like [72:54] ear towards the shoulder [72:55] >> but you're laying on the bench. You do [72:57] the same thing. Place the weight on top [72:59] of the opposite side of your of your [73:01] head. And then you're going to lift up [73:03] against that weight. These are just [73:04] supposed to be done very slow, very [73:06] controlled. There's nothing crazy [73:08] explosive about these. You're just [73:10] supposed to feel those muscles. And [73:11] trust me, like if you have not done [73:13] these, you do one, you start with one [73:16] round of this and then wait until [73:18] tomorrow cuz like you don't want to do [73:19] too much cuz I guarantee you're going to [73:21] be sore. Back in the day when I played [73:23] football, [73:24] you didn't realize how weak your neck [73:27] could get in an offseason until you put [73:29] the helmet on for the first time and [73:31] just one practice with the helmet on and [73:34] you know you're controlling all that [73:36] extra weight of the helmet dynamically [73:37] and the neck would be sore for for two [73:40] three days. we had to accommodate even [73:42] to the to the weight of the helmet. So [73:44] with neck training, it's a it's a long [73:46] slow process. You just start very light. [73:48] You start submaximal and you start [73:50] building up your strength. And then when [73:52] you talk about a crunch, that's a [73:54] nothing exercise for maintaining [73:56] stability and control. When you get into [73:58] situations like you where you have [74:00] accidents and car accidents, you become [74:03] not only just resilient, but potentially [74:05] life-saving, you know, by having a [74:06] stronger neck. Gosh, if I, you know, [74:09] could highlight bold and, you know, and [74:11] and uh underline this and send it out as [74:13] far as I can that the next stuff, men [74:16] and women, it's, you will be positively [74:18] amazed at the transformations. Your [74:20] pressing lifts will get stronger. Your [74:23] pulling lifts will get stronger. You get [74:25] stronger. Aesthetically for guys, you [74:27] know, I mentioned this in the video [74:28] yesterday, but I'll say it again that a [74:30] lot of guys who work to widen their [74:32] shoulders, if their neck strength is [74:34] isn't coming up um proportionally, it [74:36] looks like they got the wrong head on [74:38] that body. It looks crazy, guys. You [74:39] look you look ridiculous, especially in [74:41] street clothes. Like, I'm not saying you [74:42] need a giant neck, but there's there's a [74:44] proportion thing there that's that's [74:46] important. If you care about that sort [74:48] of thing, [74:48] >> as I say this, I know that most people [74:51] won't take the time to do it because it [74:53] looks awkward. Mhm. [74:54] >> It's a tiny play. [74:55] >> It's a weird thing to do in a gym, too. [74:56] You know, it just seems a little weird, [74:58] but look, it people do a lot of weird [75:00] stuff in gyms and and uh this is one of [75:02] the weirder things that the better weird [75:04] things you can do if you're going to [75:05] invest sometime. Again, it doesn't take [75:07] a lot. It really doesn't take a lot to [75:09] to pay big dividends here because it is [75:10] an area that's pretty much untrained. [75:13] Again, we're not talking traps. Traps [75:15] get a lot of work, but those deep [75:17] muscles of the neck don't get trained [75:19] very often at all. [75:20] >> Yeah. So much of what you teach is about [75:21] winning the short game and the long [75:23] game. And to me, winning the long game [75:26] is about being able to come in and do [75:28] the big stuff year after year, decade [75:30] after decade. So that, you know, when [75:32] you're 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, why not, [75:36] right? I mean, the the experiment of [75:38] whether people can have great strength [75:41] and mobility, etc., into their 80s and [75:44] 90s, [75:45] >> with rare exceptions has never actually [75:48] been done. And that experiment is [75:49] happening now because resistance [75:50] training, you know, especially for [75:52] women, you know, a few years back, like [75:53] if it wasn't bodybuilders, nobody did [75:55] it. Now, everyone knows this as part of [75:56] the longevity game. So, I'm so excited [75:59] that these again, what sound like small [76:01] things are getting out there thanks to [76:03] you because they really do make a [76:05] difference. And I believe that in our [76:06] 80s and 90s and maybe even beyond, [76:09] people can move right and feel right and [76:12] be posturally right. There's a cool [76:13] video, forgive me for going long, um, [76:15] but we'll put a link to it that I saw. [76:17] No, it's not AI. Of a woman escaping [76:20] from a um Chinese uh resting home. [76:24] >> Okay. [76:24] >> So, she's in her 90s. She's 92 and she's [76:27] climbing over the front gate. She was [76:28] caught on surveillance camera and it's [76:30] so cool. [76:31] >> Surprised it hasn't come on my feed for [76:32] >> Yeah. So, she's crawling over the [76:34] surveillance gate and then she gets out [76:35] and then she walks away. Now, she's [76:36] she's got some a little bit of frailty [76:38] to her, but there was a drop down to the [76:40] ground of this a big iron gate and she's [76:43] just like, I'm out of here. [76:45] But it doesn't that's not to say that [76:48] when you do the things I'm saying you do [76:51] the small things that you're not going [76:52] to still have aches and pains and things [76:54] that you you have to be able to also [76:57] manage that like how can you show up [77:00] each day and still manage the fact that [77:03] yeah this shoulder is still a little bit [77:04] sore this shoulder is still or this this [77:06] knee is a little cranky. [77:09] you have to continue to show up if [77:10] you're going to um play this longevity [77:13] game, right? Because stopping [77:16] is the fastest way to slow your body, [77:19] right? So, I think to slow your body [77:21] down to a point of of really poor [77:23] quality of life, you have to figure out [77:25] how to manage through these injuries and [77:27] train around and through these injuries. [77:29] And and and in a simple example of that, [77:31] I always like to use an analogy of like [77:34] a construction zone. If there's one [77:37] street that's shut down, you're not [77:38] going to you're not going to shut the [77:39] whole city down, right? You need to find [77:41] a way to redirect traffic around there [77:43] so the city can operate. So, if it was, [77:46] let's say, that shoulder and you were [77:47] doing a I don't know, a dumbbell or a [77:50] barbell overhead press, you can't do it. [77:51] It hurts. You have to have a way to [77:55] reroute that. So, let's say it's a [77:57] machine press. Is that my first choice [77:59] based on the things we talked about? [78:01] You're sitting down, you're on a [78:02] machine, you're in a fixed pattern. No. [78:04] But if it allows you to still train, [78:06] you're getting a lot of other benefits. [78:08] Number number one, you're getting some [78:09] additional strengthening of the [78:10] inactivation of the deltoid. You're [78:12] getting some movement through the joint [78:14] itself, which we know bathes the joint [78:16] surfaces and helps to provide nutri [78:18] nutrition to the joint. You're moving [78:20] that capsule so it doesn't get stiff and [78:22] and tight. You're doing a lot of things, [78:24] right? Even though it might be choice B [78:26] for the exercise. Let's say you can't do [78:28] any pressing at all. Again, you don't [78:30] shut the city down. You just take a back [78:32] road, right? You just take another back [78:33] road. The back row might be rowing. [78:36] >> Rowing is going to still work the [78:37] shoulder joint through extension. It's [78:40] still going to provide some of those [78:41] joint benefits. It's still going to [78:42] provide the capsule benefits. It might [78:44] not be stimulating the delts that way, [78:46] but there's other exercises you can do [78:48] for the delts that won't do that. So, [78:50] our job is to figure out how we can [78:54] always have something we can do so that [78:56] the option is not or the alternative is [78:57] not nothing. Cuz that's when things [78:59] really start to go go wrong when you [79:01] when you opt for nothing. And that's [79:03] when the the aging process starts to [79:05] really accelerate to the point of even [79:07] just the functional aging, how you feel [79:09] and and and the quality of your life [79:12] will will will sink if you don't [79:14] continue to figure out ways to do that. [79:15] So I always felt my my my mission or my [79:18] goal was to empower people with these [79:20] options and these alternatives of how do [79:22] you do these things? Because again, if [79:24] someone came to me as a as a PT and then [79:26] and and my bag of tricks contained one, [79:29] two, and three and they couldn't do any [79:31] of them, then what do I do? I have to [79:33] have options four and five there, too. [79:35] And I think that's always been my [79:36] strength is to figure out not just to [79:38] have option four and five on reserve, [79:40] but then also have 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 in [79:42] case I needed those, too. And if I could [79:44] provide people with that information, [79:46] then they know how to dip into those at [79:47] the right time to keep going, keep [79:49] training. I would like to take a quick [79:51] break and acknowledge one of our [79:53] sponsors, JWVE. JWVE makes medical grade [79:56] red light therapy devices. Now, if [79:58] there's one thing that I have [79:59] consistently emphasized on this podcast, [80:01] is the incredible impact that light can [80:03] have on our biology and our health. Now, [80:06] in addition to sunlight, which I've [80:07] talked about a lot on this podcast, red [80:10] light, near infrared, and infrared light [80:12] have been specifically shown to have [80:14] positive effects on improving numerous [80:16] aspects of cellular and organ health. [80:18] These include faster muscle recovery, [80:20] improved skin health, wound healing, [80:22] improvements in acne, reduced pain and [80:24] inflammation, improved mitochondrial [80:26] function, and even improvements in [80:28] vision. Nowadays, there are a lot of red [80:31] light devices out there, but what sets [80:33] Juv lights apart and why they're my [80:35] preferred red light therapy device is [80:36] that they use clinically proven [80:38] wavelengths. Meaning, they use the [80:39] specific wavelengths of red light, near [80:41] infrared, and infrared light in [80:43] combination to trigger the optimal [80:45] cellular adaptations. Personally, I use [80:48] the Juv whole body panel about three to [80:50] four times a week, usually for about 10 [80:51] to 20 minutes per session, and I use the [80:54] Juv handheld light both at home and when [80:56] I travel. If you would like to try JWV, [80:58] they're offering up to $400 off select [81:00] products for listeners of this podcast. [81:03] To learn more, visit JW, spelled [81:04] JV.com/huberman. [81:07] Again, that's jovv.com/huberman. [81:12] >> Do you do cardio? I mean, you're you're [81:13] naturally pretty lean. I know you eat [81:15] extremely well. Yeah. [81:16] >> And we can talk about nutrition a bit as [81:18] well, but um what are your thoughts on [81:20] cardio? [81:21] >> Cardio is is like the right foot to the [81:24] left foot. Like it's it's it's very [81:26] important for the overall um picture of [81:30] health. If you're if you're avoiding [81:32] cardio and conditioning entirely, you're [81:34] not as healthy as you think you are. Um [81:36] I don't do as much cardio as I should. [81:38] It's always my big confession that I [81:39] don't. And the reason why is simply [81:41] because I have to choose based on time [81:43] limitation. And for me, with priorities [81:46] being to spend some time with my family [81:48] and my boys and and and how much can I [81:50] actually get done with work and and my [81:52] workout time, I always will take a step [81:55] in the direction of of strength training [81:57] and weight training, but I try not to [81:59] ignore it entirely. when I do I jump on [82:02] a bike and I do stationary bike riding [82:04] because I can I like the fact that I can [82:06] increase resistance on the the pedals [82:08] and kind of turn it into almost a [82:10] pseudo, you know, again, the meat side [82:11] of me wants to turn into some sort of a [82:13] of a resistance activity, but of course [82:15] doing it for the duration to improve my [82:18] uh my my cardiorespiratory health. Um, [82:20] but it's also good for my knees. My [82:22] knees are quite beat up. Again, that's [82:24] that's something that I'll never be able [82:27] to reverse, at least not without modern [82:30] medicine, but I I uh I have to manage [82:32] that. And anytime I try to do anything [82:34] where I'm running or jumping, um it [82:39] tends to hurt a little bit. I do still [82:41] love to jump rope. We talked about jump [82:42] rope before. Jump rope happens to be a [82:44] lot lower impact for me as long as you [82:47] can do it properly on the balls of your [82:49] foot and absorb absorb the shock of jump [82:51] roping. But I would say between jump [82:53] roping and and stationary bike at a [82:56] higher resistance level and done an [82:57] interval fashion, those are my two [82:59] favorite ways to do it. [83:00] >> Yeah, jump rope's great. I haven't been [83:02] doing it as much as I used to. And uh [83:04] now that I got this new pup, I've got [83:06] him in his little penned area sometimes [83:08] and I'll and I'll skip rope. I I don't [83:10] let him run around while I do it cuz I'm [83:11] afraid I'm going to I'm going to whip [83:12] him, you know, on accident. I don't want [83:14] to do that. But um I'd forgotten how how [83:18] effective it is at getting heart rate [83:20] up, especially if you're doing some [83:21] double unders or speed it up or high [83:23] knees and things like that. The [83:25] coordination piece is awesome. You know, [83:27] it's one of these things like back to [83:28] the basics feels good. [83:30] >> It's also there's a gamification aspect [83:32] like you want to Yeah. You want to learn [83:34] a new skill. Can I do it single leg? Can [83:36] I do it side to side? Can I do it double [83:38] under? as you said, like there's there's [83:39] there's little built-in challenges that [83:41] I think we inherently always try to like [83:44] up the up the level of what we're doing [83:46] to see what we can do or what we can't. [83:48] But, um, that's built in that's not [83:50] really built in on a lot of the other [83:52] modes of of conditioning, which is why [83:54] people who do skip it skip it cuz it [83:56] tends to be unapologetically kind of the [83:58] the most boring part of training. If [84:01] you're used to doing lots of different [84:02] exercises and feeling the the weight in [84:04] your hands, it could be a little bit [84:06] boring, but there's ways to make that [84:07] more fun. [84:08] >> Do you like running? [84:09] >> I actually like running, but again, I [84:11] can't tolerate it. My knees are just [84:12] they they feel like they want to [84:14] detonate when I take about after about a [84:17] quarter mile. Now, I could do it on my I [84:19] have a Woodway treadmill, [84:20] >> which are incredibly forgiving. It's [84:22] like [84:22] >> Which one is it? [84:23] >> Woodway. [84:23] >> Woodway. [84:24] >> Yeah, we have we used to have them in [84:25] all the um MLB weight rooms. They're [84:28] they're basically there's no deck [84:30] underneath them. So they're it's like [84:31] running on air and best treadmill. Also [84:34] pretty super expensive, but they're [84:36] they're worth the money if people have [84:38] the ability to invest in one. They want [84:40] to run indoors. [84:40] >> Are they arked ones or are they [84:42] straight? [84:42] >> They make an arked one, but they're [84:43] straight and they're just there's just [84:45] no deck in there. So it feels a lot [84:47] lighter and more forgiving on your on [84:48] your feet. They actually have some [84:50] amazing um versions of of the woodway [84:53] that they um um called the Alter G where [84:55] they actually take the gravity away so [84:57] you can run in a gravity free [84:59] environment. Yeah. You can like which is [85:00] crazy because if you think about [85:03] >> injury rehab, [85:04] >> we've taken players with lower body [85:07] injuries, put them on the the alter G [85:10] and have them run with only five% or 10% [85:13] of their weight. So you can unweight [85:16] their body. Get them into the mechanics [85:18] of foot on the ground and running and [85:21] >> transmitting the force through the the [85:23] whole body, but do it in a in a in an [85:25] environment that takes all of their body [85:26] weight away and then progress up to now [85:28] you got 10% of your body weight that [85:29] you're running on and 20% of your body [85:31] weight that you're running on. So you [85:32] can actually progress them to not have [85:33] to go from nonweightbearing to fully [85:35] weight bearing in a in a cool athletic [85:38] way. [85:38] >> Yeah. Cuz swimming is great, but you [85:40] have to have access to a pool and I miss [85:42] swimming. I need to get back to that. [85:44] swim as a kid all the time. [85:46] >> Yeah, likewise. Yeah, every kid in my [85:47] town did soccer and swim team. Those are [85:49] kind of the big sports. I'm comfy in the [85:51] water. I I live near the ocean now, but [85:53] unfortunately the um ocean hasn't been [85:55] that clean since the fires. [85:56] >> There's a bunch of hazards to ocean [85:58] swimming that I've I've seen. One person [86:00] swim got hypothermia once, so I'm like, [86:02] I don't know. Um, yeah, I think that the [86:05] cardio piece, the big debate seems to be [86:07] whether or not if people have a limited [86:09] amount of time, which most people have a [86:11] limited amount of time, whether they'd [86:13] be better off investing in some [86:14] highintensity training, high-intensity [86:16] interval training or some, you know, [86:19] so-called zone 2, zone 3 kind of steady [86:21] state stuff for we know that caloric [86:24] deficit is required for fat loss. But [86:27] assuming caloric deficit, is there a [86:29] best cardio for fat loss? the one that [86:32] you're going to do is going to be the [86:33] best one for sure. Um, [86:35] >> good answer. [86:36] >> And I think, um, [86:39] >> it's hard to it's it's it's hard to [86:41] sustain some of the higher zone 5 [86:43] cardios for long enough to have a [86:45] significant cardio um or calorie burn [86:48] effect. Uh, I did a famous video with [86:51] Jesse where I had him do um burpees, [86:55] which is one of the is one of the most [86:56] calorically demanding exercises you can [86:58] do, which is for anybody that doesn't [87:00] know the burpee. You basically quickly [87:02] lower yourself down to the ground. You [87:03] do a full push-up. You push yourself [87:05] explosively out of that push-up back to [87:07] it. You jump up to your feet again and [87:08] back to a standing position. That can [87:11] burn around um I believe it was 13 to 15 [87:14] calories per minute if you did them [87:16] non-stop for a minute. Well, if you're [87:19] doing burpees non-stop for a minute, [87:21] you're likely not doing them non-stop [87:22] for many more minutes than the first [87:23] minute cuz it's a very demanding [87:25] exercise. So, while your heart rate will [87:28] go soaring right through the roof very [87:29] quickly, you're going to have um uh you [87:32] can apply even intervals to do this, [87:34] right? You're still going to start to [87:36] fatigue because of the the anorobic part [87:39] of it too through the the muscles of the [87:41] chest and the arms getting fatigued. You [87:43] just can't really do it for more than [87:45] let's say 10 minutes even interval [87:46] format. So what are you really burning [87:48] there? If you did it even straight [87:50] through forif for 10 minutes 15 calories [87:53] a minute you're talking about 150 [87:54] calories. So people who use their cardio [87:57] for weight loss or caloric deficit are [88:00] going to do better doing longer distance [88:03] cardio at at lower intensity levels. So [88:05] getting on a bike and riding or getting [88:08] uh jogging or running or even doing laps [88:12] in interval fashion where it's a jog and [88:14] a run and a jog and a run. There's a lot [88:16] of different ways to do that, but to [88:17] sustain them for a lot longer periods, [88:19] 45 minutes to an hour. But there again, [88:22] I and I I'm you know, I'm just I'm a big [88:25] believer that when you're trying to [88:27] create the deficit, relying on the [88:30] conditioning, we're not talking about [88:31] cardiovascular here. We're talking about [88:32] just creating the deficit, relying on [88:34] the conditioning is a much more [88:36] inefficient way to go about this than [88:39] what's actually should be done, which is [88:41] just to focus on your nutrition. [88:42] >> Cuz it's it's just so much more [88:45] effective to create large deficits or or [88:49] large swaths of deficits from cutting [88:51] back the crap you're eating right now [88:53] than it is to try to get it through zone [88:56] 2 cardio done for very long periods of [88:58] time. Again, not to say that that's not [89:00] beneficial for your cardio and your and [89:03] your cardiac conditioning. It's separate [89:05] issue. But when you're trying to create [89:06] caloric deficits there, I always tell [89:08] people first, you got to work on what [89:11] you're putting in your mouth cuz the old [89:14] saying goes, you can't outrun a bad [89:15] diet. And there's just there's just no [89:17] way to really do that effectively over [89:19] time. So, of the two forms, I'd say the [89:22] the zone 2 steady state longer form is [89:24] going to do more absolute levels of [89:26] caloric burn. I don't know if you've [89:27] ever done this, but I know you're you [89:30] and everybody has to, you know, pay [89:32] attention to their caloric needs and [89:33] nutrition needs, but what what does [89:35] nutrition look like for you in a given [89:36] day? [89:37] >> So, I don't know how many calories I [89:38] take in in a given day. Um, I've never [89:40] really counted past when I really first [89:42] started out. And I think it's an [89:44] important part of the process is people [89:46] should count because it does two things [89:48] early on. They should count because it [89:50] gives you awareness. You may have no [89:51] idea how many calories you're actually [89:53] having until you actually count them. [89:55] You also become aware of many of the [89:58] things that you are taking for granted [89:59] that you're just doing almost second [90:01] nature that are just not healthy. You're [90:03] eating things that repetitively that are [90:05] just not healthy or drinking things that [90:06] are just not healthy. And when someone [90:07] asks you to log what you're eating, you [90:10] become very aware of every calorie you [90:12] put in your body. So that's part of it. [90:14] The second thing is there's an education [90:15] that goes into learning how many [90:17] calories each food has. I can't tell you [90:20] how many people they they'll think that [90:23] chicken parmesan is the same as grilled [90:25] chicken just because it's chicken and [90:27] they're very different in terms of their [90:29] caloric impact. So educating yourself on [90:32] to about what those um macronutrient [90:36] profiles look like for whatever food [90:37] you're having is part of the process too [90:39] because ultimately where you want to be [90:41] able to get to is can you make [90:44] equivalent swaps in your head on the fly [90:47] wherever you are. Right? That would be [90:48] nutritional freedom. [90:50] >> As far as what that day would look like, [90:53] what I try to do is I try to build my [90:56] base around protein. I always have. The [90:58] reason for that is I it's one of those [91:01] macronutrients that I know I need to [91:03] build lean muscle. It's one that I know [91:05] can provide satiety. Um it's one that I [91:09] know is [91:11] important to everything I'm trying to [91:13] pursue and what everyone really should [91:14] be trying to pursue. They are trying to [91:15] be healthy. So they should base their [91:17] meal around that first. Start with your [91:19] protein. And I I usually use a visual [91:21] way of doing that where I just say, [91:22] "Hey, take your plate and divide [91:24] onethird of that plate or that meal if [91:27] you're having it in separate plates or [91:28] separate dishes. One third of that meal [91:30] should come from a lean source of [91:31] protein." And that could be chicken, [91:34] fish, beef, whatever it is that you [91:36] prefer. But have that be the the the [91:39] one/3. And then divide the rest of your [91:42] plate with carbohydrates, [91:44] preferably in a 2:1 ratio with fibrous [91:46] carbohydrates to starchy carbohydrates. [91:48] So the fibers being the the green, the [91:50] vegetables, asparagus, the broccoli, and [91:53] then the starchy carbohydrates, the [91:54] rice, potatoes, pasta. I don't believe [91:57] me personally, I don't believe that I [91:58] should eliminate my starchy [91:59] carbohydrates. Again, inherently I'm an [92:03] athlete and I know that that's, you [92:05] know, served a very important purpose [92:06] for me for energy, for fuel resources, [92:08] for glycogen, for my muscles that I [92:11] don't I don't avoid that. Plus, I know [92:14] that I could never long-term restrict [92:16] myself from carbohydrates. So, when I [92:18] started out, I said, I have to adopt a [92:20] plan here that I know I can stick to. If [92:22] it was taking away pasta and taking away [92:24] oatmeal and taking away the things, [92:26] there's no way that I could sustain [92:27] that. So, I don't think that people [92:29] should try to start out on some change [92:32] to their diet where they're restricting [92:34] foods they know they're never going to [92:35] be able to maintain long term or keep [92:37] away long term. So, that if you can [92:40] learn to manage them and eat eat them in [92:42] a way that's more controlled because the [92:45] rest of the stuff on your plate is [92:46] actually helping to minimize your [92:48] cravings for that or or controlling your [92:50] portion sizes there. That's the [92:52] long-term goal, I think. And then [92:54] overarching overall that [92:57] calorically just because it's it's a [93:00] fact of nature, fats are more [93:02] calorically dense than carbohydrates and [93:04] proteins. So just be aware of your fats. [93:07] I I know a lot of people who go down the [93:08] path of healthy eating and they're [93:10] putting olive oil on everything and [93:12] avocado on everything because they're [93:13] healthy foods, but they're putting so [93:15] much of it because they want to feel [93:17] like they're doing they're doing the [93:18] healthy thing. But you're also [93:19] skyrocketing your calories. So, you have [93:21] to at least be aware where where and how [93:24] you're applying your fats because [93:25] calorically they will add up. I have [93:27] nothing against fat. I think everybody [93:28] should have it. I think it it should be [93:30] part of every meal. I'm just saying it [93:32] should be you need to be aware of your [93:33] fat content. I try to go low sugar as [93:36] much as I possibly can. I do not try I I [93:38] try to avoid processed foods. I try to [93:40] avoid um blatant sugars unless it's my [93:43] birthday and I'm having my carrot cake. [93:45] But for the most part, [93:46] >> that's really your only quote unquote. [93:48] That's not my That's not my only like, [93:50] you know, that that's a that's become an [93:51] urban myth a little bit. Maybe I'll have [93:53] it twice a year, but but no, I I don't I [93:55] don't I really try not to um indulge in [93:59] those things, but I'm not missing it. [94:01] >> I really enjoy it when I have it, but [94:02] I'm not depriving myself of it along the [94:04] way. If people felt deprived and have it [94:07] more often, you could have I could have [94:08] a piece of carrot cake uh once a week [94:11] and probably not have anything happen to [94:13] my physique. So the fact that I don't is [94:16] just really more out of habit than [94:18] anything else. But if you're in a plan [94:19] where you feel so deprived that you know [94:21] you're pulling your hair out and you're [94:23] trying to like the first chance you get [94:25] to just jump off your diet and and eat [94:27] all the things that you you really were [94:29] keeping yourself away from, then you're [94:30] on the wrong plan. So I think that no [94:32] matter what it is, whether it be keto, [94:34] whether it be the what I I guess you'd [94:36] call this a bodybuilder style diet that [94:38] I eat or [94:39] >> or I call it clean omnivore. [94:41] >> There you go. Yeah. you know, like [94:42] you're not like I basically eat the same [94:43] as you, although I I suppose I probably [94:46] a little little high on the fats [94:47] sometimes just cuz [94:49] >> I mean I I love, you know, nuts and [94:52] parmesan cheese and a little bit bit [94:54] little bit of butter and some olive oil [94:55] and stuff [94:56] >> which which are all good foods. It's [94:58] just that calorically there's an impact [95:00] there. [95:01] >> And if you're going to eat them, what I [95:03] always recommend people do is again you [95:04] could just cut back a little bit on some [95:06] of the other portion sizes to just to [95:08] accommodate calorically for what you're [95:10] doing. But I do think that that concept [95:12] of the equivalent swaps is big because [95:16] if you learn to eat the way I just [95:17] suggested and there's no magic behind [95:19] what I do. It's just been very I've been [95:21] very consistent with it is that you'll [95:23] be able to make swaps when you go [95:25] anywhere. What's a protein I could have [95:27] here today? What's the restaurant have? [95:28] Oh, they only have uh uh pork chops. [95:31] Okay, fine. I'll have a pork chop. Like [95:32] like you you can you're visually just [95:35] replacing equivalents on the plate. [95:37] Sometimes it doesn't always work. I I [95:39] just did a video where I talked about a [95:41] steak and a and a grilled chicken breast [95:43] are potentially [95:46] uh the same protein in terms of their [95:48] protein content, but they're not the [95:49] same calorically because the steak has a [95:51] lot more fat than the chicken breast [95:53] does. So, you might have a smaller steak [95:55] to make that equivalent swap out. But [95:57] that's only going to come through your [95:59] understanding and knowledge of the foods [96:00] and what they contain. So, that early [96:02] phase of learning what they have is is [96:04] important there. But ultimately, [96:07] nutritional freedom comes from the [96:09] ability to be consistent with what you [96:11] do. I talk a lot about the fact that we [96:14] can get to the gym, we can train for an [96:16] hour. It's not easy for people, [96:19] especially to do it at a high enough [96:20] intensity level, but we can train for an [96:22] hour, go home, and feel like I did my [96:23] work today. I feel good. I did what I [96:25] was supposed to do. Great. Your [96:27] nutritional job just started. you now [96:29] have to figure out how do I navigate the [96:31] next 23 hours whether I'm asleep or I'm [96:34] awake but how am I gonna navigate the [96:35] next 23 hours because that's what [96:37] nutrition is that challenge is [96:38] infinitely harder and the reason why a [96:40] lot of people struggle with their weight [96:43] is because they have to figure out how [96:45] to get that right and do that in a [96:47] repeatable way day in day out day in and [96:49] day out and I've been doing what I've [96:50] been doing here now with my nutrition [96:52] approach for 30 years 30 years so when [96:55] people ask me is it hard it's for me [96:57] it's not hard at all. But it wasn't [97:00] super easy in the beginning. It just [97:01] there's a process to go through to get [97:03] it there. And I was willing to to go [97:06] slowly, but also not sacrifice the [97:07] things that I really knew I wouldn't be [97:09] able to live without. So therefore, I [97:11] could live with it for forever. And I [97:13] think people make way too aggressive [97:15] changes when it comes to nutrition. [97:16] They're basically, you're not just [97:17] changing your diet, you're changing your [97:19] habits and you're changing your [97:20] lifestyle. So when you go and you start [97:22] making these radical changes to your [97:23] nutrition plan because you're on a diet, [97:27] it does not work. [97:28] >> Listen, what you described, what I'll [97:30] just call clean omnivore is I think is [97:34] it's just an awesome way to approach [97:36] nutrition for a couple of reasons. One, [97:38] it works. Like you said, it's flexible. [97:40] Even with travel, you can always make [97:41] some adjustment toward that. It handles [97:44] the protein needs thing [97:46] >> pretty much on its own. I mean, you have [97:47] to make sure you eat enough of those [97:48] meals and enough protein. But as you [97:50] were saying it, I I realized that it [97:52] gets people if they adopt this mindset [97:55] that you do that you have for nutrition. [97:57] It gets them out and away from the [98:00] marketing based draw of nutrition cuz [98:03] people say like, "Oh, like protein bar [98:05] or you know, high high protein yogurt." [98:07] And listen, there's some great yogurts. [98:09] I love Bulgarian yogurt. It's like Greek [98:11] yogurt's great. Bulgarian yogurt, no no [98:13] disrespect to the Greeks. Love Greek [98:14] food, by the way, too. But Bulgarian [98:16] yogurt is so good. full fat Bulgarian [98:18] yogurt or lowfat Bulgarian amazing and [98:22] yeah and it you know the Bulgarians are [98:23] known for their strength in many ways [98:25] but you get outside that the marketing [98:28] pole and you start thinking about food [98:31] for its macronutrient content [98:33] >> and its micronutrient content and [98:36] quality as opposed to like the packaging [98:38] based stuff because even the [98:40] nonprocessed or non- highly processed [98:42] foods mostly we're reaching for them [98:44] because of what's on the label like the [98:46] colors the the words and these And what [98:48] you're describing is completely [98:49] different. It's getting to the the the [98:51] actual food. I think that's a very uh [98:54] very important not so subtle [98:55] distinction. And once people make that [98:57] switch, they're really in the driver's [98:58] seat. It's not like you're like have to [99:00] go prepare every meal, this kind of [99:02] thing. [99:02] >> Well, yeah. I mean, and again, even with [99:03] some of the the push towards higher [99:05] protein foods now, again, the packaging [99:07] is brag bragging about the protein [99:09] content, but they've also increased the [99:11] sugar, they've increased the fat, and [99:13] it's like you've you've all you've made [99:14] is a higher protein. I mean, even [99:16] Snickers has a high protein bar. [99:18] >> Are you serious? [99:18] >> Yeah, I Snickers are Milky Way. They [99:20] have a high protein bar. It's like, [99:22] >> okay, this is this is insanity. So, show [99:24] me the seauite of the Snickers. Uh, you [99:26] know, I'm going to get in trouble for [99:27] this, but whatever. Um, I I want to see [99:29] how fit these people actually look, you [99:31] know, and if they're eating that stuff, [99:34] you know, it's like something tells me [99:35] they're not. [99:36] >> Yeah. Thank you again for for being a [99:38] voice of reason in in the nutrition [99:40] space. [99:40] >> Yeah. And I'm not a nutritionist, you I [99:42] I I and people are quick to remind me of [99:44] that when I whenever I speak of [99:45] nutrition. I'm only speaking from my [99:48] experience both with myself and anybody [99:50] I've ever advised on how to do that. It [99:53] works. It's it's sensible and um it's [99:56] something that could be sustained. So [99:58] for me, that's what's most important [99:59] with nutrition. And again, I don't [100:01] fixate on any one particular way. If if [100:03] doing keto works for you, great. As long [100:06] as you can sustain your your eating that [100:08] way, great. because all we're trying to [100:10] do is manage our weight long term and [100:12] and and not sacrifice other elements of [100:14] our health in the process. So, if it [100:16] works for you, cool. But this is what's [100:17] worked for me. [100:18] >> I'm starting to see more content out [100:20] there about foot strength. You've [100:21] mentioned you have flat feet. I I uh had [100:23] some foot injuries from skateboarding [100:25] years ago, broke my left foot twice, [100:27] some quote unquote snapped arches. It's [100:29] not really a thing, but um and have [100:32] started to think about, you know, foot [100:34] health and foot training and stability. [100:37] And so, on the one hand, it seems kind [100:38] of silly. is like are really we're going [100:40] to start training our feet but on the [100:41] other hand you know our feet are always [100:43] in contact with at least our shoes if [100:45] not the ground. So what are your [100:46] thoughts on um this notion of flat feet [100:49] um foot strength and how it plays into [100:52] stability and uh and performance and [100:54] just overall ability in life. Yeah, it's [100:56] actually something I wish I had done [100:58] more of at an early age. One of the [101:00] easiest ways to test this is to [101:02] especially for someone like me who has I [101:04] mean I have flippers for feet flat out [101:06] just [101:06] >> genetic [101:08] sports based. [101:09] >> I think it is partially genetic. My mom [101:11] had pretty flat feet and then I also [101:13] think that it was years of doing things [101:16] um without addressing that. So I was I [101:19] was as I started to lift weights and [101:21] applying a lot of external force and [101:22] load onto those feet that were not able [101:24] to support that, it just got worse and [101:26] worse. They they definitely they didn't [101:28] always they weren't always as bad as [101:29] they got to. But I wish I had done more [101:33] for it at an early age because even now [101:36] if I were to go back and try to train [101:38] the intrinsic foot muscles more, it's [101:40] it's just not going to reverse the [101:41] damage that I've done in the knee to [101:44] this point. So I'm less motivated to try [101:46] to do it cuz I've also figured out how [101:48] to manage with the flat feet now to [101:52] decrease the impacts of it. So, I'm not [101:54] so motivated to go jump in now and spend [101:57] extra time on something that may not [101:58] have a huge impact for me. But for [102:00] someone who's just starting to, you [102:02] know, deal with flat feet and the [102:04] weakness in the in their feet, um, I [102:07] would definitely jump in and do [102:08] something. And and the easiest test is [102:09] simply to put a towel on the floor, put [102:12] your foot on a barefoot, try to scrunch [102:14] up the towel with your feet, and and if [102:16] you start to rapidly cramp up in those [102:19] foot muscles of yours, and again, it [102:21] goes back to what we talked about before [102:22] in the low back. [102:24] The cramps are coming from a lack of of [102:28] strength. They're trying to provide [102:29] support in an area that doesn't have it. [102:32] So, if you don't have intrinsic support [102:34] or arch strength, then you're trying to [102:37] ask the foot to do too much of what it [102:38] can. Even a simple scrunching or [102:40] activation of those muscles to scrunch [102:41] the towel together is too much for you [102:43] to handle. Kind of like the weak neck on [102:45] a crunch. You have very weak feet and [102:47] you would benefit from doing a lot of [102:49] those activities that help to do that. [102:51] Some people recommend uh uh running in [102:53] sand. Some people recommend using these [102:56] towel drills. Um just even just [102:59] balancing barefoot and doing single leg [103:02] balance drills barefoot are going to not [103:04] just cause ankle strength improvements, [103:06] but intrinsic foot strength [103:07] improvements. They're all good things to [103:09] do because you can improve. They're [103:11] muscles. They are literally muscles, [103:12] too. You can improve the muscle muscular [103:14] strength of your feet. And when you do, [103:16] you can I think you can start to restore [103:18] some of the natural arch that you've [103:20] lost to the foot. If it's if it's [103:22] because of tendonous [103:25] um dysfunction that's there or [103:27] inherited, as you said, a genetic um um [103:30] predisposition to this, you may not be [103:32] able to to to have the arch of somebody [103:34] who has naturally better arches, but you [103:36] could certainly create enough of an arch [103:38] where all the arch is really doing is [103:40] it's just changing the position of your [103:41] ankle joint itself. Right? So of how the [103:44] tibia sits on your ankle. If the if the [103:47] foot collapses, the tibia is now torqued [103:50] essentially on in the in its [103:52] relationship to the foot. And so now [103:54] every time you step, whatever forces are [103:57] are being incurred on the ground are [103:59] being sent up through the ankle into the [104:02] knee into the hip into the back. So [104:05] you're just trying to maintain a better, [104:06] more natural alignment between the tibia [104:09] and the foot itself. So that's what [104:11] happens with the with the the the the [104:14] weakness of the foot is you're basically [104:16] allowing it to collapse too far to start [104:17] to create that torque in its [104:19] relationship to the tibia. So if you can [104:21] start to increase the strength of those [104:23] muscles resting, they can basically [104:25] maintain a higher arch or more natural [104:27] position that's more aligned with the [104:28] tibia and that's where the benefits come [104:30] from. Something I knew nothing about [104:32] back in my 20s, nothing. I didn't think [104:34] for at all to do that. All I did was go [104:37] put an orthotic in, right? which [104:39] basically put me in a better position [104:42] for that. It it lifts the foot up and it [104:45] puts me in a better alignment to try to [104:47] start decreasing some of the ongoing [104:49] damage I was doing to my knees by being [104:51] in that torqued position. But did [104:53] nothing to actually fix the problem [104:55] itself. [104:56] >> It's like wearing braces. [104:58] >> Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. So, [104:59] >> not mouth braces, but like a knee say, [105:02] right? Yeah. Like a mouth brace actually [105:03] would actually create some long-term [105:05] change, but this is doing nothing but [105:07] limb brace. [105:08] >> Yeah. you know, um this is something [105:10] I've been thinking about and reading up [105:12] about a lot, but you might find [105:14] interesting. And I don't know may maybe [105:16] uh since you're so much uh more versed [105:19] and formally trained in in uh you know [105:21] strength training and these uh [105:23] offsetting these unhealthy compensations [105:26] and spending a lot of time looking at [105:29] how the human body degenerates as it [105:32] gets older because I'm trained as a [105:34] developmental neurobiologist and and [105:35] what we what you learn is that [105:36] development it doesn't just stop at like [105:39] puberty or something or even in when [105:40] someone turns 25. It's our whole life is [105:42] a developmental arc. Mhm. [105:44] >> And it really is an arc, right? And [105:46] people who can offset that, you know, [105:48] last third of the ark have remarkably [105:51] better lives in terms of their [105:53] unassisted living, their ability to be [105:55] there for others, etc., cognitively and [105:57] physically. To make a long story short, [105:59] it really appears that both at the level [106:01] of the spinal cord and brain, but also [106:03] at the level of the muscles that the [106:05] muscles that are furthest away from the [106:06] midline degenerate first. And it's [106:09] interesting, today we've been talking [106:10] about neck. Yesterday we did forearm [106:13] training. We'll provide a link to that. [106:14] You know, for grip strength goes, calf [106:17] strength goes, foot strength goes. And [106:20] this could be taken down to the motor [106:21] neuron level, the spinal cord level, [106:23] molecular level. There are data starting [106:24] to emerge. So, I'm of the mind that many [106:27] of the things that you've been teaching [106:28] and that we've been talking about today [106:30] of working these distal muscles, [106:32] especially as one gets older, but [106:35] ideally one's entire life, are really a [106:38] going to be a big piece of the longevity [106:40] game. I really am. longevity ultimately [106:43] is is basically in my eyes is be being [106:45] able to maintain function as you age [106:49] because again it's it's not the the [106:51] number of years but the quality of the [106:53] years. So all muscles in your body serve [106:55] a function. They're all there for a [106:57] reason almost. I think there's one or [106:59] two that were potentially they don't [107:01] actually even have a function. I forget [107:02] which ones they are but they're but [107:03] they're but for the most part they're [107:05] there for to serve a purpose. The idea [107:08] that we don't train all of them in some [107:10] way is a little bit crazy because like [107:13] we're they're they're there. They need [107:14] to be able to function for the lifetime [107:16] of of however long you're going to be [107:18] here. [107:19] Finding ways to do it where we don't [107:22] have to do hundreds of different [107:24] exercises to address all these muscles [107:26] is the ultimate goal so we can become [107:28] more efficient with our efforts and [107:29] we're not skipping them. But the idea [107:31] that they're not necessary or they're [107:33] not they don't need to be maintained or [107:34] ma or m or maximized over a lifetime [107:36] doesn't make sense to me either. Right? [107:38] So I think we need to be able to just [107:40] find ways that we can work them into [107:42] what we're already doing. And again I do [107:44] think that we have different rates of [107:46] decay too. You versus me versus someone [107:49] else. So that's where I really believe [107:51] people need to adopt these [107:52] individualized plans. We all do, let's [107:55] say, the the the basic strength [107:57] training, but then your specialized plan [107:59] that addresses your accelerated [108:01] weaknesses is this group of exercises. [108:03] And my specific plan to address my [108:06] accelerated weaknesses is this specific [108:07] exercise plan. So, but they're all [108:10] they're all there to be to be worked on [108:12] and they're all there to be maintained. [108:15] I'd like to take a quick break and [108:16] acknowledge our sponsor, Function. [108:18] Function provides over 160 advanced lab [108:21] tests to give you a clear snapshot of [108:23] your bodily health. This snapshot gives [108:25] you insights into your heart health, [108:27] your hormone health, autoimmune [108:29] function, nutrient levels, and much [108:31] more. They've also recently added access [108:33] to advanced MRI and CT scans. 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[109:53] There are millions of hours of content [109:55] on the internet about body part splits [109:57] and ways to train. So, I know you've [109:59] covered essentially all of them, but [110:01] maybe we could do a pseudo yes no uh [110:05] >> Q&A type thing uh for a moment about [110:07] body type splits and rests and training [110:09] to failure, etc. And then I have a very [110:11] specific question about training splits [110:14] that relates to real life and how to [110:16] incorporate uh resistance training [110:19] program into real life in a way that's [110:22] truly sustainable. Okay, so first things [110:24] first, how many warm-up sets per [110:26] exercise? Typically, [110:28] >> depending upon what you're doing, we [110:30] we're right off into the nuance of all [110:32] this because the nuance is really [110:33] everything here when we talk about [110:35] muscle splits and there's so many [110:37] factors that contribute to this. But [110:38] let's say you're doing just for sake of [110:41] argument, you're doing a pull workout. [110:42] If if I'm doing pull would be, let's say [110:44] back and biceps and even rear delts if [110:47] we want to put them on the same the same [110:49] day. So you would warm up your bigger [110:52] muscle group first. So let's say you [110:54] start with back and you warm up the [110:56] first exercise you're doing there. You [110:57] could do a general body warm-up like we [111:00] did a little warmup for our arm workout [111:01] yesterday, which is actually a shoulder [111:03] warmup. we talk about in that video why, [111:06] but you do a little general warm-up [111:08] first and then you start the first [111:09] exercise with lighter weights. You warm [111:11] up. I I'm I'm doing two or three warm-up [111:13] sets and I'm done. As long as I feel [111:14] like I've sufficiently uh warmed up that [111:18] movement pattern that I'm going to do [111:20] before I start to load it. As long as I [111:21] feel like the joints I've got all the [111:23] creeks out and I feel like I've I've [111:26] done the enough of an assessment of how [111:27] everything feels for that day, then I'm [111:30] ready to go. People spend way too much [111:31] time warming up to work out. You just [111:34] get yourself ready and what happens is [111:36] the workout itself becomes the rest of [111:37] the warm-up you need for the subsequent [111:40] exercises. Once you get through that [111:41] first exercise, you're usually ready to [111:42] go. And when we're talking about then [111:44] shifting focus to let's say even the [111:46] biceps, my biceps have been done been [111:48] working every one of my pulling [111:50] repetitions whether I was rowing or [111:51] doing pull downs in some way. So there's [111:53] no more warm-up after that. train work [111:56] sets to failure or stop with so-called [111:59] reps in reserve. [112:01] >> Oh, this is a great one for me. I mean, [112:03] I'm failure. I'm just I I understand the [112:06] science shows that they can get close, [112:08] but it's also very heavily dependent [112:11] upon meaning failure or not failure. [112:13] Very heavily dependent upon volume. So, [112:16] when you're looking to do a workout that [112:19] is going to have you can do it in 30 to [112:21] 45 minutes, have a high impact in terms [112:24] of its ability to stimulate growth, [112:26] you're going to train to fail if you're [112:27] with with me, you're going to train to [112:28] failure. And I like objectively training [112:31] to failure because I know I got to [112:33] failure. I'm not talking about getting [112:35] to a point where I don't recognize the [112:37] exercise I'm doing, where I'm [112:38] compromising the the the quality of the [112:41] exercise I'm doing. I'm not talking [112:42] about doing it on the comp the more [112:45] compound or complicated exercises that [112:47] do require synchronized movement for [112:50] multiple muscle groups because it could [112:52] you like let's say a row a heavy row [112:54] could start to get dangerous if you're [112:56] losing body position because of fatigue. [112:58] So we're doing it on the the exercises [113:01] that are the hypertrophy based exercises [113:03] a little bit more focused on one single [113:04] muscle group a little bit more isolated [113:07] in nature. So, for instance, a uh um a [113:11] single arm row versus a bent over [113:13] barbell row. That'd be a good difference [113:14] between [113:15] >> So, you won't take the bent over bar [113:16] barbell row to fail your necess. [113:21] Yeah. Oh, yeah. For me, it's always [113:22] going to be close. My criteria there [113:24] would be form breakdown. So, as soon as [113:26] my form started to break down, I might [113:28] have had another two reps left or three [113:30] reps left, but that's it for that on the [113:31] barbell row. Whereas, if I'm doing a [113:34] here's a better example. If I'm doing a [113:35] one arm cable pull down for my lats, [113:38] which I love that exercise. Gets a [113:40] really good stretch on the lats and come [113:41] down like I could I it could look a [113:43] little ugly at the end where I'm just [113:45] doing a couple partial repetitions or [113:47] something just to just to add a little [113:49] bit more stimulus that with no extra [113:51] risk to my to my body from doing it. So, [113:53] there's the difference between them. [113:55] But, I'm always advising that you're [113:57] training towards the the the high end [113:59] unless you're training for strength, [114:01] which is a whole different game. That's [114:02] a whole different set of rules. It's a [114:04] whole different stimulus that you're [114:05] trying to build there. That is high high [114:08] loads that you're trying to manage [114:09] efficiently, not with inefficiency to [114:12] try to force muscle growth. So, that's a [114:14] whole different ball of wax. You're [114:16] really trying to uh stay away from true [114:18] failure there. It's actually not the way [114:19] you would actually build maximum [114:20] strength because maximum strength relies [114:22] on clean, efficient, well performed [114:26] repetitions done cumulatively over time. [114:28] That's how we get neurologically [114:29] stronger volume [114:30] >> and a lot more volume. Right? So that [114:32] that's a different that's a different [114:34] game here. [114:34] >> Well, so for squats and deadlifts, are [114:36] you taking them to failure? [114:38] >> No. Same same concept as the row, those [114:40] big those big presses like that. I'm not [114:42] going to or or leg movements. I'm not [114:44] I'm not doing true failure on those. I [114:47] could do other exercises in different [114:48] variations. I could do a Bulgarian split [114:50] squat to failure, [114:52] >> right? Because it's a I love that to [114:53] failure because when I go down and I [114:55] can't go up anymore, I just simply drop [114:57] the weights right to the floor right [114:58] next to me. So, there's different ways [115:00] to still do squatting patterns without [115:02] having to put a bar on my back with the [115:04] heaviest of loads that I can handle and [115:06] do and do that. [115:07] >> And then, uh, total volume, I guess, if [115:09] you're going close to failure or [115:11] failure, um, per muscle group, and I'm [115:13] not calling legs a muscle group. I'm [115:14] calling quads a muscle group, hamstrings [115:16] a muscle group, glutes a muscle group, [115:18] work set ranges, um, per workout, [115:20] >> per workout. Um, again, probably [115:23] somewhere between [115:25] 6 to 6 to 10 on some of the smaller [115:28] muscle groups like the biceps, and a [115:30] little bit more um maybe 10 to 10 to 12, [115:34] 10 to 15 at most if you're looking at [115:37] some of the larger muscle groups like [115:39] the quads, like the lats. I I would I [115:41] would go a little bit more. So, that [115:42] breaks down into around if you're doing [115:45] roughly three sets an exercise, you're [115:47] looking at three to four exercises to [115:49] get to those larger muscle groups. And [115:50] for the biceps, you can get away with [115:52] doing two two exercises or three [115:56] exercises for for a total of around [115:58] seven or eight sets. When we do our [116:01] workout and did our workout like what we [116:03] do to ex expose ourselves to more [116:05] exercises because we can influence the [116:08] biceps in different ways. A little bit [116:10] long head stretch, short head focus, [116:13] heavier load, more concentration work. [116:15] You can do that just by doing less sets [116:18] of the exercise. And again, when you're [116:20] properly warmed up and if you have [116:21] enough experience training, there is [116:23] nothing magic about doing three, right? [116:25] We all think three, but like you could [116:27] do two and then move on to a different [116:30] exercise that stimulates the biceps [116:31] differently. That's a better total [116:34] effect than maintaining that you have to [116:36] do three of this and three of this and [116:38] three of this and then therefore [116:39] limiting yourselves to the three [116:40] exercises. I could do four or five [116:42] exercises that give all complimentary [116:45] functions to the biceps, do two of them [116:48] each and get a better workout. [116:50] >> Yeah, I like a couple of warm-ups on the [116:52] first exercise. [116:54] >> Two two work sets, move to something [116:57] else. Two work I tend to do, [116:59] >> you know. And a few uh regular listeners [117:01] of this podcast are probably thinking, [117:03] well, how's this square with the [117:04] conversation with Dorian where it was [117:06] really like one, maybe two work sets per [117:09] exercise. He's always insisting on [117:12] taking the work sets to failure and [117:14] often beyond failure with force reps. So [117:16] >> when you start looking at it as like you [117:18] were saying like with squats and [117:19] deadlifts or rows, you're not going [117:20] completely to failure [117:22] >> in the I'm not going to say they're [117:23] equivalent. Um but [117:25] >> there is some offset there, right? It's [117:27] either taking one maybe two sets to [117:29] complete failure with four reps per [117:31] exercise [117:32] >> and then another exercise. It wasn't [117:33] like we just did one exercise for back. [117:35] Then we did the pullover and then you [117:37] know we had a row and a pull down and [117:38] then some rowing and you know and so [117:40] forth. So it ends up being about six [117:43] work sets with some uh pushing beyond [117:46] failure. You're talking about you know [117:48] 10 to 12 but maybe not so many sets [117:50] where you're pushing past failure. [117:52] >> Yeah. And I I grew up watching Dorian [117:55] Yates and doing the workouts and I loved [117:57] it. Um, I found it hard for me to [118:01] maintain that kind of intensity, [118:03] especially training alone, right? [118:05] Training in in force reps are almost [118:07] impossible alone unless you have [118:08] machines that can allow you to do that. [118:10] >> So, it was more of a of a of a [118:14] difficulty of being able to stick with [118:15] that type of training or reproduce it [118:17] over and over and over again. Dorian [118:19] Yates is Dorian Yates for a reason [118:21] because in a six-time Mr. Olympia for a [118:23] reason because he had the ability. It's [118:26] like it's like Michael he's like the [118:28] Michael Jordan of of bodybuilding. [118:30] Michael Jordan did the things he could [118:31] do because he could do things other [118:32] people couldn't. Jordan Yates I feel [118:35] could do things that a lot of other [118:36] people couldn't in terms of tapping into [118:39] that pain discomfort and ability to go [118:42] further when he wanted to quit. Right [118:45] when it got to the be the hardest part [118:46] of the set he could like start to revel [118:47] in it and go further and further and [118:49] further. I don't know if everybody has [118:50] that ability. I I I can do it [118:52] intermittently but I can't do it [118:54] consistently. And so for me, I just have [118:56] to realize that and say, "Okay, I'm [118:58] going to have to back off a little bit [119:00] of the intensity, some of the force [119:01] reps, increase my volume just a little [119:03] bit." Because it ultimately comes down [119:04] to a volume and intensity game. And it [119:07] and it could be literally the extreme [119:09] examples of this. Like there's a lot of [119:11] cyclists who cycle at 80 to 100 RPMs, [119:14] but do hours and hours of that who blow [119:18] up their quads and have amazing lower [119:20] body size from their cycling. How is [119:24] that working? Well, there's a metabolic [119:26] effect they're getting too, which we [119:27] know is another stimulus for growth. But [119:30] at the right amount of volume, even low [119:34] levels of in of of absolute load can [119:37] create growth, right? There's extreme [119:39] examples of that. And I always go back [119:40] and say, she probably hates me for it by [119:42] now, but I I always use the example of [119:44] my wife who was a barber, and she used [119:46] to cut 40 40 haircuts a day. 30 to 40 [119:49] haircuts a day. She was like a machine, [119:50] but she's a little girl and she has like [119:53] these great traps, like really [119:55] well-developed traps. And it's not [119:57] necessarily from the load of the [119:58] scissors that weigh ounces, but it's the [120:00] weight of the arm being held like this [120:03] all day long. No direct trap work ever [120:06] in her entire life. Massive traps that [120:09] look great, by the way. Baby look great. [120:10] But but had great trap development [120:13] because of that. That's an extreme [120:14] example. That's eight hours a day, every [120:17] day. That's no load or just again very [120:20] minimal load but extreme amounts of [120:21] volume. So in terms of muscle growth, I [120:24] always think there's always a [120:25] possibility to get where you want to [120:26] get, but you have to know how to balance [120:28] volume and intensity. In terms of [120:30] frequency of training a given muscle [120:32] group across the week, I'll just say two [120:35] things that most people don't think [120:37] about. One, there's nothing special [120:39] about a week. I mean, we use a week as a [120:41] as a as a division of time, but muscles [120:44] don't really care about weeks. They care [120:45] about stimulus and recovery, the [120:48] adaptation, the hypertrophy, the [120:50] strength. [120:50] >> So, I consider myself somebody with a [120:53] relatively poor recovery quotient. [120:55] >> I can hit each muscle group directly [120:59] hard [121:00] >> once per week. So, sets to failure. Um, [121:03] somewhere in between what say Dorian [121:05] does and what you do. You know, [121:07] yesterday's workout felt slight slightly [121:09] higher than the normal volume that I [121:10] would do. The workout I did with him was [121:12] slightly lower. So, somewhere in [121:13] between. [121:15] But there's a lot of indirect training. [121:19] Uh for instance, I'll train my legs [121:20] really hard one day per week, but then [121:22] I'll also do a HIT workout on the [121:24] assault bike. And yeah, it's not a squat [121:26] workout, but my legs get some [121:28] stimulation from that. My lat my lats do [121:31] too. And I'll do a sprint workout one [121:32] day per week. So that's what works for [121:35] me. For you personally, before you make [121:37] a suggestion, the larger world out [121:39] there, how often can you directly hit a [121:42] muscle group with the kind of intensity [121:44] and volume that we did in the video that [121:47] you know we provide a link to. I can [121:49] only directly hit that muscle group the [121:51] same as you once a week with that level [121:53] of intensity. Even in what we were doing [121:55] yesterday, [121:56] a lot of my focus is on you. I'm trying [121:58] to focus on making sure you you're doing [122:00] what you're doing right. Um, I'm trying [122:02] to like, you know, coach my way through [122:05] what I'm doing. So, it's like if it was [122:07] just me and my own gym, I might have [122:09] even zoned out a little bit more, gone a [122:11] little bit harder, got a little bit [122:13] uglier face when I was doing my [122:14] repetitions that were hard. So, it might [122:17] be even a little notch above what what [122:19] was shown in our in our video in terms [122:21] of intensity. I can't do that more than [122:23] once a week for a muscle group. Now, [122:25] >> but you're also training back, you're [122:27] also training chest, you're also [122:28] training shoulders on a separate day in [122:29] that. [122:29] >> Well, that's the key, right? So what I [122:31] So [122:33] when people recommend higher frequency [122:36] sessions or every every 48 hours or [122:38] twice a week minimum and all that, you [122:41] are also forcing yourselves into some [122:43] splits that have a lot more muscles [122:46] being trained at once. Cuz in order to [122:48] get back to them again in the same 7-day [122:51] week period, you have to do multiple in [122:54] one day. So let's just say in a pushpull [122:56] leg scenario, you have to do all your [122:58] pushing muscles. So, right off the bat, [123:00] you're doing chest, shoulders, triceps [123:02] in one day. I find even that to be a lot [123:04] to ask for for me at times, not all the [123:08] time, but especially if I'm short on [123:10] sleep and short on time that day. I I [123:12] can't get through all those and get an [123:14] adequate stimulus because I'm I'm [123:16] there's just too much work to be done. [123:18] So that creates a need to have to [123:22] condense into these multi muscle group [123:25] splits that you go through the push, you [123:28] go through the pull, you go through the [123:29] legs. Now you got to have, let's say, [123:30] one rest day, come right back again. So [123:32] you're training six days a week. Some [123:34] people can't manage that either. But [123:36] what I do is I say, "All right, if I [123:38] train, let's just say biceps like we [123:40] did, and I do them really hard." And I [123:43] even just did biceps and triceps, say, [123:45] if I did those two, I still have to get [123:47] through legs. because I have to get [123:48] through shoulders, I have to get through [123:49] chest, I have to get through uh I I [123:51] break legs into anterior and posterior [123:53] chain. So, there sort of two workouts. [123:56] I I have to get through a lot more in [123:57] the week. So, if I had to get it all [124:00] done in one week, I would run out of [124:02] time. I first thing I do is I extend [124:05] beyond the seven days. So, I break that [124:07] rule cuz I I realize like you said that [124:09] our body doesn't know the difference. [124:10] So, it's okay if it takes me a little [124:12] bit longer to wrap around before I do [124:14] whatever the arms again. Let's say in [124:16] this case, the arms again. So I break [124:17] that rule. It could be nine days for me [124:19] in terms of my cycle. But I know that [124:21] when I come back after biceps, if I do [124:24] two, let's say I do posterior chain legs [124:26] and then I do um um let's say I do after [124:30] that uh chest, right? Even just a single [124:32] muscle group. When I come back and I do [124:34] back, the reason why back is following [124:37] chest is I'm going to give my chest a [124:39] reprieve from the day before. I'm going [124:40] to go pulling when I was just pushing. [124:42] Neurologically, I'm giving myself a [124:44] complete break. But I also know that I'm [124:46] looking backwards to when I did biceps [124:48] and it was 48 to 72 hours prior that I [124:51] did biceps. When I do my back, I know [124:54] I'm going to get indirect work for my [124:55] biceps again. Guarantee. So, and if I [124:58] don't know that, I can make sure I do by [125:00] doing underhand rows. I could do [125:02] underhand pull downs. I could do [125:04] chin-ups rather than pull-ups if if I [125:06] feel like I didn't adequately stimulate [125:07] my biceps that day. So I can make [125:10] selections in these back exercises that [125:13] indirectly hit the biceps. That's a lot [125:15] of volume. That's enough. Like you're [125:17] getting direct volume. There's no rule [125:19] again that says that it has to be [125:20] directly hit to contribute volume to the [125:23] work being done by by that that uh [125:25] muscle group. So I come back and I do my [125:27] indirect volume there. And a lot of [125:29] times these studies actually uh spoke to [125:31] Brad Shfeld about this when he spoke at [125:33] my event. They don't do a lot of [125:35] accounting for the indirect work because [125:37] we can't quantify what indirect [125:39] contribution that row had to a bicep. So [125:42] there's not a lot of data around that [125:44] anyway about how much contribution the [125:47] indirect work works towards. So when [125:48] they do these studies and they look for [125:50] how much total volume they're looking at [125:52] direct work for that muscle group. So I [125:55] feel as if it's um it intuitively from [125:58] my experience I know that I definitely [126:00] get another exposure for that muscle [126:02] group and that contributes to the [126:04] overall volume. And then again if it [126:05] takes me a little bit longer to wrap [126:07] around based on how I'm pairing things [126:08] together then so be it. But I'm but I'm [126:11] getting that indirect work but never [126:13] twice directly. [126:15] So in some sense you are similar to the [126:19] Mike Mener [126:21] um philosophy not of one set to absolute [126:24] failure because he was really really on [126:26] the far end of [126:26] >> I did that too. I just couldn't sustain [126:28] that. [126:28] >> Right. But in terms of not making the [126:31] 7-day week the the uh the holy grail of [126:35] how you organize your schedule because [126:37] you know Mike I was fortunate enough to [126:39] know him. Um I paid him for a consult [126:41] and got to know him over the years, you [126:42] know, before he unfortunately passed [126:44] away. And he had training like I think [126:46] it was like shoulders and arms rest two [126:48] days, you know, then it was like legs [126:50] rest two days and then chest and back [126:53] and rest two days. Mindblowing. Yeah, it [126:54] was it was mind-blowing. And the the [126:56] problem with that I think at for a [126:58] beginner is you get results. You [127:00] certainly get results but you don't get [127:02] the opportunity to develop the skill of [127:03] training. I mean there as you [127:05] >> or the enjoyment of it, right? [127:06] >> Or the enjoyment. So um three maybe four [127:09] days a week of resistance training for [127:11] me just is like the the the sweet spot. [127:13] But as with you, I found that I can give [127:15] myself permission like if travel comes [127:17] up or a poor night's sleep or some extra [127:19] workload or something like okay, there [127:21] can be an extra day after legs or you [127:22] can you can modify things. Which brings [127:24] me to uh my other question. Yesterday [127:27] after we were training, I learned [127:28] something remarkable which is there are [127:31] times when you will split your split [127:34] simply based on uh real life [127:37] constraints. And you gave a beautiful [127:39] example. I'm I'm smiling already. Um you [127:41] said, you know, there are times when uh [127:43] you're supposed to train at night, but [127:45] you go in to read to your boys or spend [127:46] some time with them before sleep and [127:48] you'll you'll like fall asleep next to [127:49] them. [127:49] >> That's more often than not. [127:51] >> Yeah. So then you'll you'll go into the [127:53] gym at your home gym at like 10 or 11 [127:55] o'clock at night and you'll do half of [127:57] your leg workout [127:58] >> and then you'll split literally split [128:00] the split and come back and do the [128:02] remainder of that workout um a few days [128:05] later. I love this example because it's [128:08] the real world and obviously you're [128:10] prioritizing time with your boys and [128:13] that's what really matters. That's why [128:14] you're training in the first place. I [128:16] mean yes to have your physique etc. But [128:18] you're that's what motivates me. [128:19] >> That's what motivates you to be around [128:20] for a long time. So splitting the split, [128:23] you wouldn't suggest it to people, but [128:25] life happens. So what does that look [128:27] like? Is it that you're doing like your [128:28] quad workout and and then you're um [128:31] normally you would also do something [128:33] else, but you're doing the other stuff [128:34] later or maybe doing three sets of [128:36] squats and coming back two days later [128:38] and doing the other three sets of [128:39] squats. [128:39] >> So here's the irony of it. Um I don't [128:41] know if I wouldn't recommend splitting [128:43] the split. You know, I feel like I'm [128:44] starting to learn that splitting the [128:46] split is me breaking a bad habit that I [128:48] was unwilling to break a long time [128:50] because of because of the same mentality [128:52] that led me to think of a 7-day training [128:53] week, right? That I think what's [128:55] happening and that I've been seeing is [128:57] that splitting the split does a few [129:00] things for me mentally. It recharges me [129:02] on a night where I really don't have a [129:03] lot in the tank. If I get over there and [129:05] I was just sleeping for the last 30 [129:07] minutes or 45 minutes, I'm not like in [129:09] the greatest state of mind to train. But [129:11] if I know that the requirement is let's [129:13] just get through if I'm going to do my [129:14] shoulders. Let's say um let me get [129:17] through half of what I would normally [129:19] do. I'm going to focus today on the [129:23] nonstrength focused stuff because I'm [129:25] just not neurologically prepared to do [129:27] that right now. So let's just work on [129:29] the lateral raises, the strict lateral [129:31] raises in that case. Um the um the the [129:36] hip exercise I like is a hip hugger. [129:38] It's just different exercises that I [129:39] would do that would be perceived as the [129:42] the non-compound exercises. And I'll do [129:45] those and what I find very quickly is [129:46] that because I can ease into those [129:48] exercises. They're not as heavily [129:50] loaded, but they're high intensity. It [129:52] doesn't have to become from the load. It [129:53] comes from the effort. I can ease into [129:55] them after one or two sets. I'm good. [129:57] And I'm like kind of into it. And I know [129:58] that once I'm done with these six sets [130:01] or so, I'm done for the night. and I can [130:04] come back and do my strength work when [130:06] I'm ready, which could be 2 days later [130:08] usually, sometimes the very next night. [130:10] Really, I'll just split it to the next [130:11] night and whatever was planned gets [130:13] bumped one spot. It's going to extend [130:15] that training week even further so that [130:18] nine days can become, you know, 11 or [130:21] 12. Uh, but I I we talked about recovery [130:25] before like it seems to be working well [130:26] with with me for my recovery at this [130:28] age. And again, I think this I have very [130:31] bad sleep habits only because the result [130:34] of working out at 11:00 or 12:00 is you [130:37] and then and by the way, eating dinner [130:39] after that, that's my dinner time. Like [130:40] eating dinner after that, you know, I [130:42] get to bed 1:30 in the morning and I'm [130:45] getting up at 7 or I get up to bed at [130:46] 2:00 and I get up at 7:00. [130:49] Th this might be what works for me best [130:51] right now because my I don't have the [130:53] recovery through as much sleep as I [130:55] should get. Now, I know a lot of people [130:57] yell and say, "Well, you need to work on [130:58] your sleep and get better recovery." I [131:00] understand that. Right now, this little [131:01] pattern is where I'm in. You know, it [131:03] can be fixed by me training earlier in [131:05] the day, stepping away from work and [131:08] training earlier in the day. I I haven't [131:09] found the time or the way to do that [131:12] effectively at this moment. So, this is [131:14] what I have to navigate. And I encourage [131:15] people to do the same thing. Find what [131:17] works with your current schedule. You [131:19] can have an eye towards fixing it, but [131:20] what works for your schedule to get you [131:22] through this time period? I think it's [131:24] working because I have more recovery [131:26] time in a less recovered sleep state [131:29] that seems to still be progressing [131:30] because I could still lift heavier than [131:32] I have been able to. I'm still able to [131:34] uh to to create effective workouts for [131:37] me. I feel I feel good. My joints are [131:39] actually feeling good. Things are [131:40] feeling even a little better than they [131:42] were. So, it happens to be working for [131:44] me. So I I I might be changing my mind a [131:47] little bit about frequencies and volumes [131:50] in terms of what I do in a given [131:51] workout. And accepting the fact that it [131:53] can happen over two days is so like [131:57] relieving cuz it's like I don't have to [131:59] bring it all today. I can just sort of [132:01] get this much done today and it allows [132:03] me to have a higher effort to handle [132:06] again some of the lower volumes that [132:07] we're doing. So it's it's like a win-win [132:09] all around and the kids like me more for [132:12] it too. [132:12] >> Yeah. Well, and someday they'll see this [132:14] and they're going to see uh so much of [132:16] your content. I mean, they're they're [132:17] they're grateful. [132:18] >> They're totally disinterested right now. [132:20] >> Yeah. But they're grateful for I mean, [132:21] they're they're going to be grateful for [132:22] the fact that I mean, you're obviously [132:24] prioritizing them uh and your wife and [132:26] your family and that's that's a [132:28] beautiful thing. [132:29] >> Well, Jeff, thank you so much for the [132:32] workout yesterday. I definitely learned [132:34] a number of things. I'm definitely [132:35] feeling more of those. [132:37] >> Yeah, we should do more. Um, and thank [132:40] you for coming back to educate us. And [132:42] you know, some people when they speak, [132:45] like not a whole lot happens except a [132:47] bunch of exhales shaped into sound when [132:49] you speak. [132:50] >> People learn and they learn super [132:53] valuable information. Everything from [132:54] the basics all the way up to the nuance. [132:58] Um, you're constantly educating yourself [133:00] already just a moment ago. You know, [133:02] you're um, you're still evolving the way [133:05] you're doing things and you share that. [133:07] And again, these so-called small things [133:10] that allow one to do the big things for [133:12] much longer and much more effectively is [133:15] really what it's all about. And you [133:17] clearly walk the walk. You look awesome. [133:19] You're 50. You know, steroid TRT free, [133:22] all of that. And you look incredible. [133:24] And so, you know, there are probably [133:28] none people who are doing what what [133:30] you're doing. You're truly an N of one [133:31] that you can encapsulate all this. And [133:33] you're just so generous with your time [133:35] and your energy. And so I'm very [133:36] grateful for you coming on here again. [133:38] >> I was so pumped. I I've been wanting to [133:40] come back here for so long and the the [133:42] negotiating the travel is always a thing [133:44] for me, but I was so excited to be able [133:46] to do it. Finally do it and getting the [133:47] workout in and come back and sit down [133:49] with you is always my favorite thing. So [133:50] thank you for having me. [133:51] >> Well, please come back again. You're an [133:53] inspiration to me and like I said, [133:54] you're a absolutely extraordinary [133:56] educator. [133:57] >> Thank you. [133:57] >> Thank you. [133:58] >> Thank you for joining me for today's [134:00] discussion with Jeff Cavalier. To learn [134:02] more about his work and to find links to [134:04] Athleen X resources, please see the show [134:06] note caption. In addition, you'll also [134:08] find links in the show not captions to [134:10] the workout that Jeff and I did and that [134:12] was referenced a few times throughout [134:13] the episode. So, that's a link to a [134:15] proper workout for the biceps, for the [134:17] triceps, for the forearms, and Jeff's [134:20] signature move, face pulls. If you're [134:22] learning from and or enjoying this [134:24] podcast, please subscribe to our YouTube [134:25] channel. That's a terrific zerocost way [134:27] to support us. In addition, please [134:29] follow the podcast by clicking the [134:31] follow button on both Spotify and Apple. [134:33] And on both Spotify and Apple, you can [134:35] leave us up to a five-star review. And [134:37] you can now leave us comments at both [134:39] Spotify and Apple. 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