Learn how to better your bench with proper technique and good equipment. Improper gear and form means less weight on the bar. Bench more. Learn the way.  Better Your Bench with Good Equipment  For anyone who has tried to bench heavy in a commercial gym, they typically find that the experience is frustrating. Weights are harder than expected and may even come with missed reps. Bad equipment is often to blame. Whether it is slippery bars with nearly no knurl to those bench-rack combinations that have the bar far too low or too high to slick benches that prevent you from digging into the bench and freezing your scapulae, these gear problems abound in commercial gyms. You can, typically, make a bad situation worse. You can better your bench. Wearing a bar grip shirt helps your shoulder blades stick better to the bench. You may want to bench in a squat rack, which typically has smaller jumps between holes, then in those bench-rack combos. Having a spotter so you don't have to shrug the bar 4 inches off the j-hooks can help. You may need to put plates underneath your feet so you can get a better arch. At home, getting a monolift is a good investment, especially if you tend to experience shoulder pain. Also, you may need to lower expectations. This can be a good situation for autoregulation. Better Your Bench with Correct Technique  Technique matters too. You want to have the maximum amount of stability for the longest duration possible. You should not be wiggling after the bar is unracked. Don't do it! Build tension as you set up. Your legs should drive up the bench into your shoulders into an arch. You should use the weight of the bar to help pin your shoulders down into the bench. You should squeeze the bar hard. Another consideration is breathing. If you can do it efficiently, complete 2-3 reps on one breath. If not, focus on maintaining scapula position between breaths. Better your bench with proper equipment and good technique.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Better Your Bench - Beast Over Burden - #531

We talk about defining your core values. These underpin your goals & actions, help you make decisions, & reflect your personality and aspirations.  Defining Your Core Values: Brainstorming & Reflecting   Matt discusses how to identify and list your core values. These should reflect your personality but also be aspirational. For example, for Matt, quite reflection would not be a core value. He verbally processes ideas, and he would be working against his natural tendencies. Rather, lean into your personality, though work on addressing your weaknesses and bolstering your strengths. Notice what attracts you on social media, literature, podcasts, movies. Which characters and actions attract you (and which repulse you)? What are your natural tendencies and preference that you have no problem with? Start listing these out, thinking about them, and you can move on to refining your list.  Defining Your Core Values: Refining & Defining As you create your list, think about different aspects of your life, such as family/relationship/interpersonal, business/professional, religious/spiritual, etc. Once you feel you've taken some time and reflected, identify the top 5 core values. These help underpin your goals and actions and all your decisions. They help avoid chasing shiny objects and help you avoid the lesser, easier, more comfortable paths that clash with your values. Defining your values is useful, whether for just yourself or your business.   This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE. Check out Coaching 101 - the new Academy course designed to cover the basics of coaching. It's leaner and tighter than our other offerings (and cheaper). Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Defining Your Core Values - Coaching Success - #530

Programming Difficulties for New Dads  Having a newborn changes your life, and training has to change as well. For a dad, the change is different than for a mom. For the mom, she undergoes physical changes for 9-10 months leading up to the birth, so her training has to change prior to birth. For fathers, however, their changing (mostly) does not change before the birth. At birth it changes drastically. This is an especially busy time for fathers, and part of it is the lack of predictability. When will the baby sleep (when will mom sleep). You might think you were going to train and then mom falls asleep and you're watching the kid. Flexibility is required in your training for these programming difficulties for new dads. Programming Solutions for New Dads  If you have a coach, it's important to talk to your coach prior to the birth about what is likely realistic (this will change). Lower your expectations for how long training will be. You might also have to cut training sessions short. Both Andrew and Niki have seen many clients train with their babies in the gym. This is fine. Something like a one life a day program is probably what is called for. It helps if you have a home gym or at least some equipment at home. If you don't have a home gym, you need to make your gym as convenient as possible. Something that is on the way to work and open early so you can workout early is likely ideal. Working out before bed affects sleep. Overcoming programming difficulties for new dads also tends to involve more autoregulation and lifter control. The client might decrease the weight and volume a bit if they're exhausted. If they're feeling good, they might go for extra reps or an extra set. Aim for at least 3 workouts a week. Think about getting in a training session over a series of workouts, as opposed to one longer workout. Mindset Shift for New Dads How you define training and training sessions and how you identify that will have to change. 4 sessions of 90 minutes a week is probably over. Uninterrupted training sessions and full body training sessions are probably on hold for a bit. Productive, useful training, however, does not have to look like that. Planning, preparing, and completing something each week is massively better than taking weeks or months off. Here are some thoughts on overcoming programming difficulties for new dads.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Who's Your Daddy? Programming Difficulties for New Dads - Beast Over Burden - #529

When one teaches two learn. Matt shares his teaching approach - from interest to refined speech or presentation. Teaching and coaching with pressure are critical to mastering anything.  When One Teach Two Learn: Importance of Teaching   In order to become an expert coach, or to master any subject, you have to coach, or teach, when it matters. You may have found at some point that you had read or consumed a lot of material on a subject. When you tried to explain it to someone else, the apparent coherent thoughts were not there. Technique coaching in person is important to mastering technique coaching (you can simulate that, to some degree, online). This goes for teaching as well. Taking your ideas and trying to turn them into an article, podcast, or speech helps the knowledge not only deepen but also cohere. Many times, you have unordered ideas in your head - you need to order them.  When One Teach Two Learn: Matt's Teaching Process   Matt has a process he has followed to go from interest to refined speech, presentation, sermon, etc.  Dive deep into a topic of interest Organize major thoughts Speak it or write it  Before the first action, you have to find something that interests you. It could come from a book, podcast, YouTube channel, thoughts - whatever. Something peaks your interest and you want to learn more. Matt starts at a general place, such as Wikipedia, and goes from there. Look to the sources from those initial places, dig deeper, and learn as much as you can. As you do so, take notes. As you take notes, you'll start to see certain patterns and major points or thoughts. Consider these major bullet points and how they related to each other. Try to put them in a coherent order. Next, speak it (or write it) and share with someone else. For example, if you have to talk in front of a group of 20, first talk to your spouse or a friend. This rehearsal helps you better organize your thoughts and refine your speech. It is, however, a critical step. When one teach two learn. Go learn (and teach).   This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE. Check out Coaching 101 - the new Academy course designed to cover the basics of coaching. It's leaner and tighter than our other offerings (and cheaper). Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

When One Teaches, Two Learn - Coaching Success - #528

Niki and Andrew interview Melissa MacGregor, wife of BLOC coach Mac and BLOC client, and her coach Joel Rasmussen. Melissa suffered a stroke but, with patience, perseverance, and strength training, was able to return to physical activities she never thought she could do again.  Healing Through Strength Training: Perseverance & Experimentation  Melissa saw her husband benefit from strength training and decided to give it a try herself. Joel, her coach, tried many creative ways to help her focus on what she could do. They experimented and pushed into the pain. Pain was feedback that, in her case, was positive because it was a sensation. Joel also had to get creative for new ways to feel her body during lifting, as she did not have the normal sensations and proprioception that others have. Over time, with patience and hard work, she has regained not only the ability to complete certain lifts "normally," but has also been able to return to activities such as biking and skiing, that she never thought she would be able to do again. Listen to this heartwarming and motivating story of patience, perseverance, grit, and healing through strength training.   Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Don't Abandon Your Body - Beast Over Burden - #527

Matt talks to Dave Tate about building EliteFTS. What were the struggles, successes, and untold stories that created EliteFTS? Dave Tate &amp; EliteFTS had a huge impact on Matt Reynolds &amp; Barbell Logic, whether it be from introducing him to the Russian programming literature, to programming tips and principles, to recommending the e-Myth. This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE.  Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Check out Coaching 101 - the new Academy course designed to cover the basics of coaching. It&#39;s leaner and tighter than our other offerings (and cheaper). Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Building EliteFTS - Before EliteFTS   Both Dave&#39;s dad and grandfather were business owners, who inculcated and demonstrated the value of hard work. Dave helped his dad as a teenager, and his dad stressed the importance of quality products (which Dave has stressed with EliteFTS&#39; equipment). As a teenager, Dave grew sick and tired of being &quot;beat all the time,&quot; so he trained harder and worked harder and started to see benefits. His wrestling coach saw him running stairs one day and told him that if he worked harder than everyone else, he wouldn&#39;t be beat. This, paired with the benefits of strength, started to help him build confidence. Dave also struggled in college, but ultimately decided to return, work hard, and brought up his GPA. He was deciding whether to move to Columbus or Cleveland and ultimately decided to move to Columbus (in part) because of a girlfriend, which meant that Dave would train with Louie Simmons at Westside Barbell. Dave had different jobs, including personal training, bouncing, and gym management, and describes in his story at a couple points where he did not want to continue on the track he found himself, so he made a change. Helping Louie sell equipment and deal with customer service, paired with creating a Q&amp;A website, ultimately created EliteFTS.  Building EliteFTS Elite FTS began in the late 1990s, with the internet early and shipping times for gym equipment being 16 weeks. He learned, from eMyth, that he needed to free up time to spend more time as manager and then owner of the business. Dave and Matt talk about the importance of adversity and how it has refined them both. This aligns with Matt&#39;s voluntary hardship principle. Ultimately, as a business owner, coach, and human, you will face adversity. Prepare yourself by doing so voluntarily so that when the involuntary challenges come, you can handle them better and grow from them as well. Enjoy Dave and Matt talking about building EliteFTS.    Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki o

Building EliteFTS with Dave Tate - Coaching Success - #526

We explore professionalism and why it's hard to be professional. Professionalism is difficult, but deliver values and sets you apart.  Professionalism: Competence, Integrity, Benevolence  Andrew has delivered, through podcast and in-person talks, a deep dive on how competence, integrity, and benevolence make up a professionalism  value equation. Matt also has also delved into this  here. This framework or model to conceptualizing your coaching or business really helps you think more intelligently about where to improve. Professionalism Sets You Apart  When you have built yourself some expertise and are above the level of amateur, you should respect yourself, expect a high value of yourself and ask a relatively high price of your customer (the price should be less than the perceived value). Then, you need to deliver a high level of service consistently across the competence, benevolence, and integrity. Plenty of people are delivering online coaching. Personal trainers and coaches abound. Professionalism sets you apart.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

It's Hard to Be Professional - Beast Over Burden - #525

Matt discusses that, whether in life or business, you should chase value not status. This leads to a successful business and happier life. This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE.  Chase Value not Status   In a social media world, it can be easy to pursue status. In the world we inhabit, it can always be easy to chase money. Pursue something else. Chase value. Deliver value to your customers. When entrepreneurs talk about opportunities, unless they are discussing some loophole or morally questionable pursuits, they're talking about a clear area where a problem exists where business can provide value. You provide a customer a new roof, they give you money. The value you provide should be more than the price point.  Chase Value not Status - Appearance Versus Reality   You don't have to have thought too much about social media to know that people don't typically put mundane tasks, boring events, or things they're not proud of. People select, for their own purposes, what they present to the world via the social media site. This is illusory (and might be fake). Chase value and deliver it to others. Yes, business have to make money, but the singular pursuit of value does not lead to long-term success or happiness. Chase value not status.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Chase Value not Status - Coaching Success - #524

What does joyful self-improvement look like (and is it possible)? Today, we explore solutions sans suffering.  Joyful Self-Improvement: Struggling & Floundering  People really struggle to make important changes in their lives (that they at least ostensibly want) such as to lose weight or gain more muscle. Reasons abound for the difficulty. People hear and see conflicting, extreme solutions or short-term, impossible solutions (e.g. 6 weeks to six-pack). Furthermore, every person is different. People have different goals, preferences, body types, and reactions to training stimulus (e.g. you cannot become faster than Usain Bolt simply by trying really hard, though you will certainly fail if you do not try). Joyful self-improvement also confronts the reality that change takes a long time. It took you a long time to reach the point where you have decided it's time to make a difference. The positive changes you desire will also take a long time. Joyful Self-Improvement: Solutions Sans Suffering  Whatever solutions you (or a coach) decides on, they have to be sustainable. Can you really go the rest of your life only eating meat (or some other extreme diet). Note that many of the people who follow a strict diet have quick feedback regarding when they eat a certain food (such as celiac disease). Niki and Andrew recommend getting to a baseline before making changes. When you make changes, don't through the kitchen sink at your problems, but try one (or a couple) small changes. Consistently eating a couple hundred calories less than you have can make a BIG impact. For joyful self-improvement, lean into what you like and embrace the long path to change.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Solutions Sans Suffering: Joyful Self-Improvement - Beast Over Burden - #523

Mitchell Baldridge, CPA, CFP, talks to Matt about how to find the perfect accountant, something a growing business will have to do at some point. He owns Baldridge Financial and Better Book Keeping. Check out the Stupid Tax podcast, with Scott Hambrick and Mitchell Baldridge.  How to Find the Perfect Account - First, Don't   If you're starting a business, you first need to find clients and jobs. Start making money. When it comes to tracking and handling money, start a business bank account or use a different bank account than your personal. Simply, you need to clearly separate business expenses from personal expenses so at the point when you or someone else needs to prepare taxes, things are easy to delineate. Early in the year (when this podcast airs) is a great time to start a business, because you have the rest of the year (and really until taxes are due) to get your money in order. Right now, though, it's just about not screwing up. Another recommendation, which is unrelated to accounting but for business owners is to not expand your expenses to your new income. If you make $80,000 at your full-time job and begin to make money from your company, at some point you'll have to quit the full-time job and take a paycheck. Save that other money, pay off debt - but don't increase your monthly expenses.  How to Find the Perfect Account - Use Your Network   The best way to find a accountant is similar to how you might find an electrician. Ask people you trust about who they use. For example, Matt asked his trusted HVAC technician if he can recommend an electrician. He did, and the electrician provided great service. Try to find business owners you can talk to and pick their brains with. It might be a group of people who are in the same industry, or not, who are all small business owners. Similarly, you might reach out to someone who has done this before. Mitchell, for example, reached out to Scott after hearing him talk about his experience with Diamond David Keesling on the Barbell Logic podcast.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

How to Find the Perfect Accountant with Mitchell Baldridge - Coaching Success - #522

What is the goal of long-term strength training or barbell training? Muscle is the motive. It's your health & capability 401k. Niki & Andrew explore their changing mindset and training.  The Motive is Muscle - Shifting the Goal  The measurement that is most correlated with force production (strength) is the cross sectional area of muscle mass. Basically, more muscle means you're stronger. Strength equates to more capability. At some point, though, if you only value force production, whether it be because of gyms closing or an injury or getting older, your PRs are behind you. What is the goal? You could say it's to keep your PRs as high as possible, but for many, that's is pretty unmotivating. Muscle is the motive. Aim to accumulate hard sets each workout, each week, and increase stress over time. As you get older, it gets harder to add muscle mass (but not impossible - it's never to late to start training!). Aim to build muscle and keep training. Muscle is the Motive - Shifting the Mindset  This changing goal requires a changed mental approach. We have stressed PRs for year - and we still celebrate PRs. Especially when someone begins to train, PRs help motivate as well as measure progress. Gaining muscle mass and focusing on hypertrophy is harder to change. It takes awhile to measure progress, and it's even harder than with strength training to remember the goal of each training session because there is not necessarily a scheduled PR attempt lurking days, weeks, or months off. Really, because at some point - whether it be a permanent shift or temporary period of life - you have to train knowing PRs aren't coming. Hopefully, at this point, you've built up the habit. Try to ensure you enjoy training (understanding you won't enjoy every rep, set, or workout). And, worse case, take your medicine, because it's good for you. Muscle is the motive. Gaining muscle mass is the goal. Go get it.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

The Motive is Muscle - Beast Over Burden - #521

Matt covers the excuses that derail progress toward your goals, whether they be personal, business, or otherwise. Master and overcome these excuses.   Excuses that Derail Progress - Valuable Things are Hard   We at Barbell Logic value voluntary hardship. Simple, hard, effective training brings you toward your goals. Voluntary hardship is refining, whereas involuntary hardship may or may not refine someone who experience the difficulty. As we grow and encounter growing challenges, common pitfalls or excuses arise, where people can sabotage themselves, their goals, or their businesses. You may have all or some of these to differing degrees, and even if you improve yourself in mastering them they do not completely disappear. The Excuses that Derail Progress Matt discusses the following four excuses:  fear chaos self-medication stubbornness  Fear We often consider the approaches to the flight or fight response. Maybe this excuse is someone who freezes. Matt identifies 3 types within fear: the staller, the saver, and the micromanager. The staller hesitates to make decisions, putting off the hard decisions as long as possible (or longer). The saver never spends money or invests in needs of the business. The micromanager lacks trust in his or her staff to get the job done correctly. All these stifle and potentially end progress, maybe even to the point of failure. Chaos Maybe chaos is someone who fights in response to fear. Without consultation or consideration, he immediately makes the easiest, quickest decision. This person often drowns in urgency, and whereas they do not stall, they also do not think very much. Some time, reflection, and discussing things over is warranted for most decisions. You have to spend time on the important. Self-Medication The third excuse that derails progress is self-medication. Self-medicators rely on pleasurable activities to ignore or bury the stress. They may dive deep into vices such as gluttony, drugs, sex, or other pleasurable pursuits, These behaviors can often wreck people, families, and business. Important, they do nothing to deal with the issues at hand. Stubbornness The stubborn fail to take personal responsibility, own up to their mistakes, and say &quot;my fault.&quot; If you&#39;re a business person, you have to be learning, and learning, often times, is painful. Yes, much of it is reading books and listening to podcasts and seeking out those more experience than you. Ultimately, though, even with reading books, you have to see that a recommendation approach to solution in the book is better than what you are currently doing. Many times, learning comes in failing or stumbling. You cannot ignore these. They hurt. They&#39;re not fun. Learning opportunities, however, exist from reflecting on these failures. Excuses that derail progress abound, and we can&#39;t let these derail progress or lead to failure.   Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today

The Excuses that Derail Progress - Coaching Success - #520

Andrew & Niki talk sleep strategies & fluff updates: how snapping back after the holidays improves sleep, health markers, appearance, how you feel, and more.  Sleep Strategies & Fluff Updates  It's January, post-Holiday period, and time to snap back. Andrew & Niki share their fluff updates and tips and tricks for improving sleep. Niki has had a 19-day period thus far, which has included weighing and measuring, no alcohol, and reduced sugar. She is not trying to lose tons of weight, as she wants to support training. She wants to look good for an upcoming television appearance and feel good. From this period, she has seen improvements to sleep (especially deep sleep each night) and improve resting heart rate. Andrew has similarly snapped back with 3 (no 4) drinks. The biggest thing he has noted has been improved sleep, especially deep sleep. Sleep Strategies & Deep Sleep  Andrew has even had some drinks and still seen improved sleep. Andrew and Niki have both seen magnesium supplementation before sleep helping sleep. Andrew stumbled on the benefits of sodium before bed after eating popcorn and noticing he did not get up to go to the bathroom. Stan Efferding has actually recommended this (not eating popcorn but just the sodium) as well. Andrew has also began to read before bed, not on his phone, and this has helped with his pre-sleep routine. Let us know if you have any questions on sleep strategies!    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Fluff Updates and Sleep Strategies - Beast Over Burden - #519

Do you own a job or a business? Does owning a business make sense for you? Either way, you need to approach this intelligently, thinking about the business you're in and the job you have. Check out the Stupid Tax podcast, with Scott Hambrick and Mitchell Baldridge.  Job or Business - Should I Own a Business?   Not everyone should own a business. Probably, most people should not own a business. It's not an insult: it's reality. Owning a business is too much risk and stress for some people. You still may be an excellent coach or technician. You may provide a huge amount of value to your employer or to your customers. If you're the right person to own a business, you probably find yourself unable to put up with some of the downsides to jobs and tend to naturally get after it. Matt and Scott are great examples of people who are natural business owners.  Job or Business - Which Do You Own   You may want to consider simply owning your own job, rather than a business. For example, you may want to be a coach, get as many clients, but not be a business owner. You may own a job. You'll still have to be your own boss and complete certain functions that aren't simply coaching, but you may not want to have other employees, and may be happy with growing to a point, making good money, and not be worried about a business. As a business owner, you assume the risk. You will likely, over time, hire employees - some will be technicians, others will be managers. You need to understand the nature of the business you are in. For example, Scott talks about the gym owner business as a type of real estate.  Job or Business - How Good Can This Get?   Regardless of whether you own your job, a business, or you work for someone else, you need to think about what your options are. What is important to you? Can you deal with the risk and stress of business ownership, or not? Do you want to grow a business, or are you okay with a smaller, steady income stream? Would you like to simply punch the time clock and not worry about things when you're off? Understanding the nature of your business or job and whether it is really a business or job is important. On the Stupid Tax podcast, Scott and Mitchell discuss thinking or your job, even if you work for someone else, as a service you are providing that employer. It may make sense, for some, to work for that company as a contractor rather than an employee, for example. Do you own a job or business? Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Do You Own a Business or a Job? - Coaching Success - #518

Looking to 2024, we predict, hope, and share our thoughts on what you can expect from BLOC and what we are looking forward to.  Looking to 2024 - Smell What BLOC is Cooking Matt, Niki, and Andrew share their predictions and goals for 2024 - fitness, fashion, and more.  Fashion Predictions  Matt: traditional, classic forms of clothing (feminine dresses & masculine suits and outfits) Niki: onesies & swapping of normal gender styles Andrew: 2000s are coming back, with belly buttons  Goals  Matt shared his here Niki: journaling every day; and being able to quickly return to the body she wants (after periods of more relaxed food & drink) Andrew: being more present & intentional (while acknowledging that these terms have become common, but that doesn't mean they're not admirable things to strive for)  Business Predictions  Matt: First $2M quarter Niki: strength for life catching on and bolstering BLOC & TKC Andrew: another step-function increase in the organization of Barbell Logic  Looking to 2024? We share out thoughts, predictions, and hopes.  Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Can You Smell What BLOC Is Cooking? - Beast Over Burden - #517

Matt, Niki, & Andrew continuing looking back on 2023 with The BLOCies, BLOC Wrapped, part 2 - favorite books, biggest surprises, and more.   The BLOCies - BLOC Wrapped, part 2   Despite starting the podcast saying they'd look to 2024, they ran out of time (stay tuned for the next podcast). This podcast is Matt, Niki, and Andrew reflecting on more of their best and favorite of 2023. Below are some of the highlights. Best Experience  Matt: Alaska trip with Rachel that included a helicopter flight; #blessed Niki: all-inclusive resort vacation to Mexico; the resort set the standard for customer experience, anticipating her needs better than she could Andrew: financial benefits of YNAB  Favorite Book  Matt:  Outlive by Peter Atia Niki:  Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah, Susan Ericksen, et al. Andrew:  Brain Audit by Sean D'Souza  Personal Growth  Matt: Series A raise, involving pitching the business ~60 times, along with the Forbes book deal Niki: BLOC oversight role and all that comes with being THE leader Andrew: felt more like a product developer, alongside podcasting and working on those skills  Listen to the episode for more on the BLOCies. Stay tuned for a look forward to 2024.   This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE.  Check out Coaching 101 - the new Academy course designed to cover the basics of coaching. It's leaner and tighter than our other offerings (and cheaper).  Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page. Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

BLOC Wrapped, pt 2 - Coaching Success - #516

Enjoy us look back on 2023 with BLOC Wrapped - the BLOCies. We share the best of our coaches & clients, fitness trends, & more.  BLOC Wrapped - Coaches & Clients  Our clients and coaches are amazing. We've got the stats to prove it. Matt joins Andrew & Niki to discuss clients who lifted the most tonnage, hit the biggest lifts, and more. They also discuss which coaches has the best on-time feedback and which lifts were the most programmed. We love celebrating our clients and coaches. What these stats reflect is a dedication and work that is reflected in the progress. The process creates the progress. BLOC Wrapped - Fitness Trends & Lifts  Matt, Andrew, & Niki share their favorite and least favorite lifts and favorite and least favorite fitness trends of 2023. Niki loved the pendulum leg press (though they are incredibly rare). Matt enjoyed both the incline dumbbell press or Bulgarian split squat, and Andrew agreed about incline pressing. Matt's least favorite exercise was the incline barbell press (seems to cause shoulder issues for some people). Andrew wasn't crazy about the overhead press. Niki has avoided deficit deadlifts because of her observation that they seemed correlated with injury (personally and for clients). Matt sung the praises of GLP1 drugs, which have helped him lose weight. Andrew has enjoyed the shift in the fitness and nutrition sector of focusing on quality of life, as opposed to suffering and restricting. Niki loves all the women strength training in the gyms. Stanley water cups (that don't even fit in cup holders) tick Matt off. Andrew is not crazy about broccoli hair and red plaid pajama pants. Niki can't stand fitness influencers using photoshop. That is BLOC wrapped.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

BLOC Wrapped - the BLOCies - Beast Over Burden - #515

New Year's resolutions get a bad rap, but, if done well, they're simply an opportunity to plan your goals for the upcoming year. Matt shares his 2024 New Year's resolutions with you.   New Year's Resolutions Done Well   New Year's resolutions have really been dismissed in recent decades, likely because of the high failure rate they have (especially when you consider fitness or health goals). It's true, New Year's resolutions can be done poorly. If this is the only time of year you make big, bold goals and you find yourself never having achieved them, you may need to reevaluate how you create and pursue goals. If, however, your built more like Matt, it's simply a way to make goals for the upcoming year. It takes advantage of the down time during the Christmas and New Year's holidays. It also makes sense because it simply follows the natural calendar year. You should have goals you're pursuing. You should be improving yourself. Having an annual time where you evaluate the past year and make goals for the upcoming year is not foolish.  Matt's New Year's Resolutions   Matt ultimately broke his goals up into 5 categories, with over 20 goals. His categories are listed below:  physical business material spiritual family  You might have different or fewer categories. That's okay. Some of Matt's physical goals include reaching a 225 pound bodyweight and 35-inch waist. He wants to complete 250 workouts in 2024 and track macros every day in 2024. Having at least 80% of meals be homecooked and reducing alcohol consumption by 90% are also included. For business, there are some big projects he would like to include, such as a Series A funding round, a book deal with Forbes, and a couple TV shows. In the realm of spiritual goals, he wants to hit 0 debt (including mortgage), make some home renovations, and go to Europe. His spiritual goals include reading the entire Bible and preaching 10 times. Lastly, his family goals include having a date night once per week with wife (barring travel) and have bi-monthly daddy-daughter dates with his youngest daughter. Your New Year's Resolutions might be different. But, if you're someone who makes goals and accomplishes them, don't be afraid of New Year's Resolutions.    This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE.  Check out Coaching 101 - the new Academy course designed to cover the basics of coaching. It's leaner and tighter than our other offerings (and cheaper).  Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page. Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

New Year's Resolutions - Coaching Success - #514

What the fluff!? What do you do when you suddenly realize you feel bad, aren't happy with you look, and want to get rid of the fluff?  What the Fluff!?  It's January 2nd (or maybe later). You pull the belt across you on the plane, you get into your pants, you look in the mirror...what the fluff!? You may have eaten normally for most of the holiday period. For many people who find themselves gaining weight, it doesn't come from the decisions they're making for lunch on Wednesday, it's the "abnormal" days. Many who fail to lose fat do well on the week days but then overeat far too much on the weekends, negating any caloric deficit they may have created during the week. During the holiday periods or similar times like vacations, "abnormal" days increase, further increasing the caloric surplus. What can you do? Snap back to health by resetting your baseline. What the Fluff!? Snap Back Strategies  Before you begin addressing the problem, consider your approach. Don't catastrophize. This may be a long habit of unhealthy decisions that you've decided to stop, or you may generally feel pretty good about your nutrition habits and just need a quick course correction. Either way, don't expect to fix this in a couple days. For big changes, you need to think about 6 to 12 months. When it comes to metrics, know yourself. For some, recording your weight each day will drive you crazy. For others, it's useful information that helps inform their decisions without causing overreactions. In terms of approaches, starving yourself is not a good approach. It may be useful, however, to have a short period where you're strict with no alcohol, no added sugar, and focus on having as many single-ingredient foods as possible. This resets your baseline and will, actually, have you feeling better after a couple days. You'll find that the bloat is gone and you come to begin appreciating healthier foods. Weighing and measuring for a period of time may also help. Why? Because it helps prevent a slide into hidden calories ("that's close enough"). It also, if you have not done it, helps inform you of just how many calories peanut butter, whiskey, and cooking oils have. Filling your plate with more veggies really helps too. What the fluff!? Don't freak out, snap back to health with these strategies.    Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page.  Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

What the Fluff!? Strategies - Beast Over Burden - #513

Don't prioritize. De-prioritize. First identify and remove the things that provide you no value. Pull those weeds!  Don't Prioritize. De-prioritize. Remove Things That Provide No Value If you're looking to create your GAMEplan, first remove those tasks and goals that do not provide you value. Remove the unimportant and non-urgent.  One way Matt has identified these tasks is by how he creates his daily to-do list.  He has a to-do list that populates on his tablet or phone every day. He simply renames it.  When he notices the items that consistently don't get done, it's probably time to reconsider them (and likely remove them).  Don't prioritize. De-prioritize.  You can think about this with nutrition too. There are so many calories you can eat (or want to eat). What on your plate is not moving you closer toward your goals and does not matter to you?  For nutrition, this can help you identify your non-negotiables - those foods or activities such as a small dessert in the evening, pizza on Fridays, etc. that provide you value and you desire to remain in any nutrition plan you follow.  Don't prioritize. De-prioritize.  This podcast is brought to you by TurnKey Coach. Enhance your coaching effectiveness and efficiency with TurnKey Coach. You can learn more by going HERE.  Check out Coaching 101 - the new Academy course designed to cover the basics of coaching. It's leaner and tighter than our other offerings (and cheaper).  Check out the Barbell Logic podcast landing page. Get Matched with a Professional Strength Coach today for FREE! No contract with us, just commitment to yourself: Start experiencing strength now: https://store.barbell-logic.com/match/ Connect with the hosts  Matt on Instagram Niki on Instagram Andrew on Instagram  Connect with the show  Barbell Logic on Instagram Podcast Webpage Barbell Logic on Facebook Or email podcast@barbell-logic.com

Get Started

Download the App