DIBS Fitness

Stop paying for answers you already have ✋️

I had a client pay double their usual rate just to be told exactly what I'd been telling them for months. It wasn't because they didn't trust me...it's because their brain was stuck in the complexity trap.

We've been a conditioned to think that if a solution is simple and affordable, it must not be the *real* answer.

Watch the full breakdown of why we do this in Brackets and how to stop in brackets at the link in my stories/bio. YouTube channel (Dibs Fitness)

Follow me on YouTube if you dont already!

https://youtu.be/_oyxCn2iSjU?si=oELZOlS7OofU51lM

What a fantastic way to end the week!

This win has so many layers attached to it. Colin first started working with me in November of 2024. When I arrived at Colin's house, I was mostly speaking to his mum about how I could help him - and Colin seemed hesitant to start working with a new face in town.

Our first few sessions together were very slow with me gaining trust, and allowing Colin to dip his toe into the world of Dibs Fitness. We were using mostly resistance bands and 2 lb dumbbells for exercises he was familiar with.

Over the next few months, I had to sneak extra weight to Colin during our sessions. I never would have thought that HE would specifically ASK ME to add more weight without being prompted.

When I told him that deadlifts were next in our workout this afternoon, he told me that he wanted to double his previous record of 40 pounds. I told him that is a great goal to have and maybe we should start with 50 lbs first so he can feel what that is like.

He easily did a set of 10 with 50 lb, so I asked him if he wanted more, and with an enthusiastic yes, I then went and grabbed an extra 10 lb plate for each side of the barbell. And well... you see what happens next in the video!

Building confidence in my clients is one of the most rewarding things that I get to experience in this career. It is tied closely with building Trust with clients who have previously been skeptical about what I am trying to coach them to do.

Colin specifically asked me to record his attempt because he is highly motivated by the praise he received in his last video on my page. Please send your best wishes and congratulations to him in the comments 🎊

The Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift (DB RDL)

good for:
✅️ building the brakes for sprinting and jumping. therefore increasing your athletic power!
✅️ lower back resilience. By teaching you how to hinge at the hips you take the load off your lumbar spine during daily life.
✅️ injury rehab. If you've had a hamstring graft on a ACL surgery (like me!) , RDL's are vital for rebuilding that donor site strength. 🦵

✅️ Disc issues: under professional guidance, the RDL is often used to re-pattern the hip hinge so you stop lifting with your back

So, how can it be done the right way?

- unlock your knees, but don't squat the weight.

- imagine a string pulling your hips backward. Your chest should stay proud and your back flat like a table. Squeeze your shoulder blades together during ALL Phases of the movement.

- keep the weights close to your body! If they drift away, your lower back will take a hit. Your hands / Knuckles should be travelling towards your midfoot, not in front of your toes.

- only go down as low as your hamstrings allow. For most, this is mid shin. If you go lower and your back rounds, you've gone too far!

- snap up. Squeeze your glutes to return to the starting position. This is also the part of the movement where you will feel your abdominal muscles assisting you the most.

📌 save this for your next leg day!

The Secret Sauce to Ankle Stability

We spend a lot of time moving forward and backward, but our ankles are designed for 3D movement. when we neglect the side to side stabilizers, we leave ourselves vulnerable to the classic roll 😦🦵

⬆️ this exercise is great for somebody who is a 'frequent sprainer', or anyone wanting to work on their range of motion.

1. Eversion: push the bolt of your foot outward against the band (targets the peroneals)

2. Inversion: pull the sole of your foot inward against the band (targets the posterior tibialis)

keep the rest of your legs still! if your knee is swinging side to side, you're using your hip, not your ankle. isolate the movement for the best results.

Slow it down, breathe, and build your foundation from the ground up! 🦶 🧱

Stop stretching your neck and start moving your ribcage.

If your upper back feels like a solid block of concrete, the Side-Lying Windmill is the upgrade you need.

While a standard "Open Book" rotation is great for the spine, the Windmill introduces a circular arc that forces your shoulder blade to actually dance with your ribcage.

Does the "Windmill" feel more restrictive in a specific part of the arc when you try it?

Happy birthday to my wonderful mum, Katarina ❤️💟

These photos are from her first trip to Canada last summer. ☀️ hopefully we can be on the same side of the ocean again soon.