I'd like to preface this blog by letting you know that I'm not a big supplement guy. I love reading all of the research and trying to find ways to help my clients and athletes gain a legal competitive edge, but the industry creates far too much hype. Rarely does a supplement really stand out and offer something that food can't provide you in the first place. After all, magnesium and other supplements usually provide something that you need in pretty trace amounts (aka micr

Youth training is and always has been one of the most popular markets in the training industry, and rightfully so. What youngsters practice at a precious young age will literally set the stage for what happens later on, not only in athletics, but also potentially later in life as well. 1 So here are the 5 rules any coach or trainer should take into account and follow for getting the most bang for their buck with youth athletes and children alike. RBS' 5 GOLDEN RULES FOR YOU

Now I'm sure many of you have heard of the three hip flexors which comprise the Iliopsoas muscle group (Psoas Major and Minor, and Iliacus). Right now we are going to cover this very powerful and still misunderstood muscle group thoroughly. T he reality is that if you want to become your best athletically and remain healthy, then you need to emphasize the Iliopsoas in your training program regularly. Reports from elite coaches years back showed greater cross-sectional areas o

I can still remember when I began this profession nearly 20 years ago. Corrective Exercise was a relatively new term at the time that was initially intended primarily for trainers to help bridge the gap from rehab to performance work. Naturally, trainers do not possess the qualifications and typical knowledge of doctors and therapists, so it makes sense for the latter to provide proper instruction and progression to support and hopefully sustain their treatment efforts. Si

If you or someone you know is an aspiring athlete then you may very well be wondering whether or not meal frequency, or how often you eat, plays a role in your outcome-based goals. Fortunately for you, meal frequency is a secondary factor that can benefit you, but conversely, it will not break you or prevent you from reaching any of your goals according to science. Below are the common focus points related to meal frequency. #1-Metabolic rate/fat loss #2-Muscle Building and P

THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION OF THE WARM­UP I’m sure many of you can vividly recall going through traditional calisthenics, or sport stretching routines prescribed by your coaches and physical education teachers. Do you remember the laps upon laps of light jogging, loads of slow static stretching, countless jumping jacks and pushups, and the other staples of the traditional warm­up? It was probably evident to many of you that what you were doing at the time was a hand me­ down

I thought it would be helpful to coaches, trainers, athletes, and general gym goers if I disclosed my top go-to sled training drills. The sled can seem a bit bland and limited if you look at the web, and it can be difficult to identify variations that satisfy the purpose outside of just pushing and sprinting a loaded sled. Fortunately for you, there are some applications that you can implement with anyone to immediately develop or sustain several training skills which I wil

An introduction to the benefits healthy fats have on athletic performance and other associated factors that affect performance is long overdue. Like its counterparts of carbohydrates and protein, fat plays a vital role in the human body. Without its presence in the proper amounts, every type of athlete will be rendered far less capable when the time comes to compete. Below, you will be provided with 4 key pathways that contribute to your athletic success, or a lack thereof. *

The Core is, without a doubt, still one of the most popular topics in the fitness industry today and probably always will be for various reasons. Before we can discuss anything related to the core, it’s important to first define what the core is according to science. The core musculature is centered around the lumbo-pelvic-hip complex. It consists of over two dozen muscles attaching throughout the region at different origins and insertion points. According to movement science

When it comes to testing maximal strength in athletes, industry advice often attempts to differentiate between training populations. Collegiate and professional players should test differently from high schoolers, and high schoolers should be separated from youth testing. This may be a viable option if done properly and according to the physical demands and needs of each level of athlete, but there is nothing wrong with simplifying and using a "one size fits all" model when

Beta-Alanine is one of those supplements that has flown under the radar compared to the common, predictable supplement trends. How does beta-alanine work? The notion is pretty simple. Beta-alanine converts to Carnosine in the body and is a major contributor to buffering hydrogen ions from lactate production that inevitably accumulates during intense, continuous exercise in the 1-3 minute range. This information would apply to a certain type and percentage of athletes (400m r

Let's take a look at the remainder of the upper half of the human body and identify which areas need stretching, and vice versa. In part #1, you were introduced to a foundational stretching principle and gained valuable practical insight into how to go about selecting stretches for specific joints of the lower body. Recall that some areas are designed to be stretched, while others are naturally geared towards stability and not so much stretching. Next, we are going to look a

Timing your nutrient intake is crucial. This refers to the specific timing of nutrient intake- aka nutrient timing- before, during, and after your workout (i.e. Peri-Workout Nutrition). The proposed idea historically is that if you eat certain types of foods at certain times, you can effectively maximize training responses and adaptations, which are vast in number and benefit the athlete in one way or another over time. Science even suggests that regular practice of peri-wor

I'm sure that if you have been reading research or are a fitness enthusiast, you have heard Citrulline advertised all over the supplement market as of late. The next obvious question is what it does and whether it is worthwhile for any of your training goals. Understand that much of the potential benefit of Citrulline centers around general health measures; however, research has aimed at looking at whether or not it has any merit when it comes to aerobic exercise and streng

BCAA’s are another one of the most popular muscle-building/sports performance supplements on the market today. On paper, BCAA’s sound amazing. BCAA’s make up approximately one third of the protein content of muscle and include the amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Unfortunately, research for BCAA supplementation in the presence of adequate protein intake for a referenced athlete or individual does not seem to promote a benefit.1 Another example can clearly be see

Zinc and magnesium are two potential powerhouse supplements that can be difficult to get enough of from diet alone. Especially zinc with competitive athletes, since this micronutrient is excreted rapidly with higher sweat or perspiration rates.1 I want to warn you that this quick blog is just a simple "primer" on each of these supplements, especially Magnesium. As you may know, Magnesium is involved in hundreds of distinct and important reactions in the human body and would

I truly and sincerely hope that gets people up in arms because it should, but I'm definitely not lying. Why is it that I've been able to develop top-notch athletes for two decades without integrating more than 5 percent of the entire program coming from static stretching? The reasons are many, and I discuss all of this in my stretching book here. If you happen to like what you read here, then I would strongly suggest picking up a copy of my book, and then you'll never hav

If you’re trying to lose weight and fat, it would be in your best interest to strive to select and eat foods that are lower in calories and higher in volume. This is yet another underrated aspect of fat and weight loss nutrition that somehow eludes mainstream media. Examples include vegetables, fibrous fruits, lean protein, healthy whole grains, and minimal healthy fats. By eating higher volume/lower calorie foods, you'll feel fuller sooner and longer by stretching stomach

There is currently no shortage of exercises available on the open training market today. Like most things related to the training industry, it's more than safe to say that we have tipped the scales one way and offered arguably far too many exercises for physical development and athletic improvement purposes while simultaneously neglecting other viable options for other significant training factors in the process. One of those factors is "set type" training options. Below you

Glutamine, or L-Glutamine as it’s often called, is one of the more popular and hyped up sports supplements on the training market today. Moreover, Glutamine is often associated with false claims that Glutamine supplementation is essential and helps speed up the recovery and muscle-building process and is more related to performance outcomes. I’m here to hopefully offer some relief and provide you with a clear perspective on the supplement, how it applies to the research, and