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09/17/2026

DISCOVER YOUR CORE

I think having a strong core is incredibly important—but there are so many different ways to train it.

And sometimes, the best way to start working your core isn’t even a traditional core exercise.

Everyone is different. Where you start should depend on your posture, movement patterns, strength, limitations, and what your body can actually control.

For someone with a really bad back, jumping right into leg raises may not be the right starting point.

One of the first things I want to discover is:

How do you touch your core?

Can you learn to create tension, control your body, and understand what a true full-body contraction feels like?

One of my favorite starting movements is incredibly simple, but the details matter.

• Chin tucked
• Arms lengthened
• Body moving toward a 90-degree/perpendicular position
• No throwing or swinging—control the movement
• Knees and ankles straight
• Heels touching
• Toes touching
• Equal pressure from side to side
• No leaning excessively right or left

Then I want you to pay attention to every intricate part of the movement.

Is your body symmetrical?

Are you shifting?

Are you compensating?

Can you create the same amount of tension on both sides?

The goal isn’t simply to complete the movement.

The goal is to learn how to connect your entire body and create a full contraction, from the top of your chest through your abdominal wall and down into the lower core and pelvic region.

The more of your core you can actually learn to control, the more you can eventually get out of your training.

Core training starts with discovering what your body can control—not simply choosing an ab exercise.

There is no one-size-fits-all starting point

09/15/2026

The three things everyone should be doing in exercise.

09/03/2026

i’m not anti-heavyweight. I’m anti-moving wrong/momentum

Stop believing that more equipment equals better results.

Every time I walk into a gym, I’m reminded that the goal isn’t just to work out—it’s to become stronger without breaking your body in the process.

Strength isn’t about how many machines you use. It’s about how well you move.

You can spend thousands on equipment, but if you don’t understand posture, alignment, resistance, and movement mechanics, you’re simply repeating patterns that may eventually lead to muscle imbalances, joint stress, or overuse injuries.

I’ve learned that your body and gravity are some of the greatest training tools you’ll ever have. When you understand how to create resistance through leverage, control, tempo, and positioning, you don’t need a room full of machines to get stronger.

This isn’t about saying gyms or machines are bad. They’re tools. But tools are only as effective as the person using them.

Real fitness starts with education.

Learn how your body moves.
Learn why an exercise works.
Learn how to create resistance instead of just chasing heavier weights.

The strongest people aren’t always the ones lifting the most.

They’re the ones who move with purpose, train with intention, and build a body that’s still strong years from now.

Movement first.
Strength second.
Longevity always.

FitnessEducation MoveBetter Longevity InjuryPrevention QualityOverQuantity

09/01/2026

One of the first things I set out to prove was that I wasn’t a luxury—I was a necessity.

I’ve always taken pride in finding the gaps that others overlook. Innovation has never been about creating something flashy; it’s about seeing what’s missing and building solutions that truly change people’s lives.

Even today, I sometimes struggle to answer the simple question, “What do you do?” because my work doesn’t fit neatly into a box. People often ask me to write them a meal plan or an exercise program, but that’s not really what I do.

What I do is study people.

I study how they move, how their bodies have adapted over the years, where compensation patterns have developed, and what those patterns are telling us. Every person is different. They have unique movement habits, different injuries, different strengths and weaknesses, different food intolerances, preferences, lifestyles, and goals.

Because of that, there is no template.

I meet people where they are today and create a path forward that is completely individualized. That path isn’t static—it’s constantly reassessed, refined, and adjusted based on how their body responds and how they progress. The process is dynamic because people are dynamic.

Movement is at the center of everything I do.

As you’ll see in this video, I evaluate how the body has adapted over time and identify the imbalances that may be limiting performance, causing pain, or preventing progress. From there, I determine what that individual truly needs—whether that’s strength, flexibility, better posture, improved core connection, mobility, stability, or simply the ability to move confidently through everyday life, including something as fundamental as getting up and down from the floor.

My goal isn’t to hand someone a workout or a diet. My goal is to understand the person in front of me, uncover what they truly need, and build a system that evolves with them so they can move, feel, and live better for the long term.

This picture truly warms my heart.Barb turns 86 this week, and she’s one of the most inspiring people I know. She works ...
08/31/2026

This picture truly warms my heart.

Barb turns 86 this week, and she’s one of the most inspiring people I know. She works with me because she wants to stay strong, independent, and able to keep doing the things she loves—living in her own home, making trips to Vermont, and spending days at Knoebels Grove riding the train with family and friends.

Moments like this remind me why I do what I do. I genuinely believe that helping people build and maintain their strength plays a vital role in healthy aging. It’s about staying safe, staying functional, and continuing to enjoy life’s simple joys for as long as possible.

Happy early 86th birthday, Barb. Thank you for inspiring all of us.

08/28/2026

Pound for pound, Drew is one of my strongest athletes. It’s honestly freaky how strong he is relative to his body weight.

He has a goal of doing 50 pounds for 50 reps, and I think that’s such a cool goal. People always talk about using lighter weight for high reps or heavier weight for low reps. I like the idea of heavy weight for a lot of reps. I’ve always been interested in hard work.

The reality is that, as long as you’re training safely, with control and intention, there isn’t just one right way to do it. At the end of the day, resistance is resistance—it’s your body working against gravity.

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve been experimenting with all the variables that go into building strength. What’s the right warm-up? How many sets and reps should you do? How much rest should you take between sets so you activate your systems without completely depleting them? It’s actually pretty complicated, and it’s different for everyone.

Each person has to figure out what works best for their body. There are so many factors that affect performance: your breathing, whether you woke up with a stiff neck, how tired you are, what you ate, how hydrated you are, what you trained earlier, what you’ve done throughout the day, and whether you’re mentally or physically stressed. All of those things influence whether you’re in a position to make progress.

Part of getting stronger is learning to understand your body—knowing when to push and when to back off. That’s something I’m trying to teach Drew.

He’s already in the high 30s. One day he hit 38 reps, which is phenomenal. We’re also learning that going all out every single workout isn’t always the best strategy. Sometimes taking a deload week or giving your body a chance to recover is exactly what helps you come back stronger.

That said, Drew is still incredible. The amount of strength he has for his size is amazing, and having a challenging goal like 50 pounds for 50 reps gives him something meaningful to keep chasing.

Hey guys, check out my article on training throughout the year. This is something people rarely talk about, but my elite...
08/27/2026

Hey guys, check out my article on training throughout the year. This is something people rarely talk about, but my elite clients understand that eating and training should follow different rhythmic cycles with the changing seasons. It has a much bigger impact than most people realize—especially for women, whose hormones naturally fluctuate throughout the year.

Unfortunately, in today’s world, we’ve stopped paying attention to the things that truly matter. Instead, we chase trends while overlooking the fundamentals. Understanding how the seasons influence training, nutrition, recovery, and hormones is one of those fundamentals, and it can make a bigger difference than most people think.

https://matterhealthassociates.com/fitness/the-seasonal-training-cycle/

I still find myself amazed every time I watch Kevin do this. Seeing where he started compared to where he is today has b...
08/27/2026

I still find myself amazed every time I watch Kevin do this. Seeing where he started compared to where he is today has been an incredible journey—one defined by overcoming adversity, trusting the process, being patient, and staying committed every step of the way.

Along the way, we’ve had to correct years of dysfunctional movement patterns. That meant working around a previous hernia surgery, rehabbing a shoulder that had suffered from years of improper movement and wear and tear, improving posture, and rebuilding the way his body moves from the ground up.

Now, take all of that into account, and Kevin is arguably in the best shape of his life—at nearly 60 years old.

That’s exactly why I’m so passionate about changing society’s perception of aging. We’ve been taught that getting older automatically means getting weaker, slowing down, and accepting decline. It doesn’t have to be that way. Aging is inevitable, but how you age is heavily influenced by how you’re willing to adapt.

I say it all the time: if you believe you’re going to get weaker just because you’re getting older, you’re probably right. But if you choose to evolve, embrace the process, and commit to becoming stronger and healthier with age, you’re right too.

The path you choose becomes your reality.

Watching Kevin continue to improve as he gets older is proof of what I’ve been telling people for years: if you’re willing to change, your best years don’t have to be behind you—they can still be ahead of you.

Follow my monthly blogs!I write them for free each month to share practical insights on nutrition, fitness, and overall ...
08/25/2026

Follow my monthly blogs!

I write them for free each month to share practical insights on nutrition, fitness, and overall health. My goal is to provide a different perspective than you’ll often hear—one that focuses on simple, effective strategies that can make a meaningful difference in your health and performance.

Sometimes the biggest improvements come from the little things most people overlook. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read along and see if there’s something you can apply to your own journey.

My latest blog explores GLP-1 medications and the critical role of resistance training. If you’re taking a GLP-1—or thinking about it—this is information you won’t want to miss.

You can finish it with:

Ryan Matter
Matter Health Associates
Mind • Body • Life
🌐 matterhealthassociates.com

https://matterhealthassociates.com/fitness/glp-1s-and-resistance-training/

08/20/2026

Weight loss isn’t where the journey begins—healing is.

One of the biggest shifts I’ve seen over the years is that more people are starting to understand that lasting results come from fixing the foundation first. Everyone wants to lose weight, build muscle, and see quick changes, but those things are often the result of doing the right work—not the starting point.

Sometimes the first step isn’t counting calories or spending more time in the gym. Sometimes it’s healing your gut, reducing inflammation, getting out of pain, improving your sleep, or simply relearning how to nourish your body. Those “small” changes are often the biggest game changers.

Tammy’s journey is a perfect example. She came to me after struggling with significant digestive issues following surgeries and living with chronic pain. Instead of chasing the scale, we focused on helping her feel better first. We simplified nutrition, worked through the obstacles her body was facing, and built healthy habits one step at a time.

Once her body started healing and her pain improved, everything else became possible. The weight loss followed. The strength followed. The confidence followed.

Today she’s not just lighter on the scale—she’s lighter in spirit. Watching someone regain their health, confidence, and joy never gets old.

If you’re frustrated because your body isn’t responding the way you want it to, remember this: your body may not need more punishment—it may need more healing.

The strongest, healthiest version of you is built from the inside out.

HealthyHabits LifestyleChange Nutrition Transformation StrongerEveryDay

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