Shift Barbell- Josh Christie

Getting bigger and stronger is all about compounding effects over a long period of time.

Every person you see with a big total or big muscles have been training for a long period of time.

You don’t start a new program, get a new coach or start a new diet and see crazy results. You get crazy results when you stick to it for a long time.

I haven’t PB’d my squat in 3 years but I’m still squatting every week and working on my squat. I know that if I keep showing up, I will break my squat PB. The only way I won’t is if I stop and that’s not happening.

Give your goals time! Make sure things are trending in the right direction, making tweaks and adjustments along the way.

There are 3 options when it comes to persisting:
Do the same thing over and over and expect a different result
Changing your approach every few months, waiting for that magic program to show up
Intelligently alter things as you go without giving up

I think you know which one you need to choose.

If you chose option 3- DM me for coaching💪🏼

How often should you compete in powerlifting?

I was getting shoulder pain during nationals prep. I have quite an extreme bench press technique with elbows very flared and shoulders internally rotated.

This presents me with an issue of not being able to handle as much volume and intensity because the structures of the shoulders are exposed to more force in that position.

and I were left with 2 options: (1) change my bench technique that has got me good results in the past, (2) reduce the volume/intensity that has been proven in the past to progress my bench.

We came to the conclusion that if we continued to use a technique that put the shoulders in a position that can’t handle the amount of volume and intensity required to progress, my bench may stall and never progress.
If we changed my technique to one that can handle slightly more volume and intensity, I might take a step back in the short term but in the long term it gives my bench a better chance of progressing.

We decided to go with the later.

Once we made the change to a less flared position, the pain didn’t completely disappear. There was discomfort up until I competed at nationals. It just became a lot more manageable and I was able to do every bench session, and do every set. In the end I got a +2.5kg bench pb.

Morale of the story: pain does not always mean you should stop. There’s usually other options.

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“You can only put on muscle in a specific hypertrophy phase🤫”
This is the results of doing powerlifting specific strength blocks leading into nationals.

Strength training by nature is hypertrophic. You’re providing a lot of tension across muscles at volumes that are adequate for growth.

I may have grown more doing body building style training- my point is that you can’t separate strength and hypertrophy. Generally if you’re getting stronger, you will get bigger.

Anyone can take someone who’s genetically gifted and make them stronger. It becomes less about the coaching and more about the lifters genetics.

But not any coach can take someone with average genetics that has been training for +3years and continue to progress them.

It requires being able to see trends, make small tweaks, keep the lifter on the straight and narrow, nutrition, accountability, support etc.

When you’re looking for a good coach- don’t automatically go for a coach with lots of top tier athletes. Go for a coach that gets good, consistent results with average athletes.

The closest I’ll ever get to bring Spider-Man 🕷

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If you want a specific result you need to do specific training. But training too specific has it’s catches. Find out 3 ways you can get around this while still being specific☝🏼

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How can you achieve this for yourself?
If you strip any goal back, it comes from daily choices that add up over time.
1. You need a training modality and diet that you love and can stick to no matter what- there will be ups and downs in a 10 year period
2. Consistency- a few months off here and there won’t cut it.
3. An environment conducive to your results- supportive people, access ect.
4. Times to push and times to maintain. You can’t always push for 10 years straight

I offer online coaching- I will help you find the thing you love, create habits around that- specific to you and create a supportive environment you can thrive in. DM me to find out how you can get this for yourself!

A question I’ve been thinking about lately: What takes us from surviving to thriving?

We are emotional creatures built to survive. If we’re hungry- we eat, tired- we sleep, bored- scroll insta, sad- look for happiness…

This line of thinking and acting is great if all you want to do is survive. What if that’s not enough? What if you feel you have something to offer? How do you make the transition from surviving to thriving?

You need to stop listening to every momentary thought and feeling. The only way to thrive is by showing up everyday, no matter how you feel or what’s going on. Do that for 5-10years and you’ll be in a dramatically different place.

I want to be able to show up everyday and not be controlled by my daily feelings. If you want that too, leave a “👊🏼” in the comments and we can keep each other accountable.

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I’ve often thought to myself- why do we as humans continually put ourselves through challenging and painful experiences to see no results in the short term?

I recently had my teeth straightened with clear aligners. I had to change pairs every week or two. Every time I got new aligners it would be painful, I’d get pain in my jaw, loose teeth and sometimes headaches. The first month was the worst. It was a massive change for me and it was uncomfortable. Worst of all, there was no noticeable change. I stuck with it and after just 5 months you can see the results

This post is a reminder that at first the discomfort and pain will outweigh the results but stay with it and the results will far outweigh the pain.