12/08/2024
This is a great summary of histroical eating guidelines in the U.S. and one of the biggest health scams ever foisted on the public.
The Food Pyramid is a Giant Scam Paid for by Big Corporations
Discover the surprising history of the USDA's nutritional guidelines—from humble beginnings to the infamous food pyramid shaped by politics, corporate intere...
09/18/2024
Love both the split squat AND the emphasis on working the full range of motion! Absolutely great advice!
The Most Underrated Hip Mobility Exercise (Not Stretching)
If you’re frustrated not seeing your mobility and flexibility improve, it’s time to not just focus on your prehab and warm up but also how you’re truly using...
11/02/2023
We've known the food pyramid is bogus for a long time now, but this video is still scary.
The food pyramid is literally a scam.
Go to → https://ground.news/evilfood to stay fully informed on breaking news, compare coverage and avoid media bias. 🗞️ Try it out or subscribe through our ...
04/11/2023
Ron’s Gym Pet Peeves #4 – The Feet Elevated Push-up
This is one I frequently see from the young guys trying to get a pump on their chest days. Apart from what should be the obvious pressure it puts on your lumbar spine, if you are going to let your back sway to the point that your chest is parallel to the floor there is no longer any point to elevating your feet to begin with! And the quarter to half range of motion is also working against you.
Tighten the abs, engage the core, and go through a full range of motion!
https://youtu.be/VW5Fk0h-P6A
04/04/2023
Ron’s Gym Petpeeves #3 – The Lat Pulldown:
Okay, this variation of the lat pull down should have died long ago! The behind the neck pull a) puts you in a forward head posture that we should ALL be seeking to avoid as we get older; b) encourages the shoulder to roll forward, causing more poor posture and shoulder impingements, c) has virtually no physiological or functional benefits in terms of muscular development or movement patterns. Finally, while it should never happen with appropriately maintained equipment, I have witnessed a cable break in a gym before. A break while doing behind the neck pulls would be life altering in a bad way.
Lean back a little, fully engage the lats at the beginning of the lift by pulling the shoulder blades back and down, and pull the bar to your upper chest!
https://youtube.com/shorts/2Te4ZnmY1LI?feature=share
03/28/2023
Ron's Gym Petpeeves #2 - The Decline Press
This seems to be most common among the older men who still want to believe they can lift just as heavy. Butt bouncing up and down, no control of the shoulder - just asking for an injury.
Swallow your pride, lower the weight, pack the shoulder (back and down!), and perform the lift with good form THROUGH A FULL RANGE OF MOTION!
Ron's Gym Petpeeves - The Decline Press
This seems to be most common among the older men who still want to believe they can lift just as heavy. Butt bouncing up and down, no control of the shoulder...
03/20/2023
https://youtube.com/shorts/8GGfOYH5OXs?feature=share
Are you doing your stability ball crunchs correctly?
Ron's Gym Petpeeves: Stability ball situp
I'm going to post a video a week for the next few weeks demoing some things I see regularly in the gym that are "less than ideal." First up, the stability b...
02/19/2023
Thank you, Dave, for taking time out of your vacation to send me this write-up!
"For the past 6 months I’ve engage Ron to help with my personal fitness training. At 65 and recently retired from a lifelong and somewhat sedentary engineering career, my health was certainly suffering and affecting my quality of life. Moreover, I suffer from COPD and have some significant cardiac concerns.
I would think anyone in my condition would be pensive about beginning a new exercise regime with a personal trainer like Ron. How would it pan out? Would I soon quit due to boredom, pain, injury, lack of self discipline, progress, etc? Would the trainer asses my situation correctly and provide a balanced program that was motivating due to progress made, yet not so arduous that I dreaded going to the gym?
I’m enthusiastically writing this review because Ron has walked the razors edge with me and I couldn’t be happier with how much better I feel, the weight I’ve lost and the body strength I’ve gained.
The most surprising result has been the improvement in my breathing. My pulmonologist says that COPD is incurable and an irreversibly degrading lung disease. That may be so, but after 6 months of the type of exercise that Ron customized for me, there’s no question that my lung volume has increased and my coughing spells have decreased. It’s difficult to express my gratitude for that!!
I’ve made another discovery with Ron as well. Without a personal trainer, I know I’d be solely dependent upon: my own discipline, perceived pain threshold, exercise routine and its planning, etc. Some may be too ambitious and quit soon after, while others aren’t ambitious enough and quit due to life distractions and/or not making enough tangible progress. Ron has provided me with the right balance. He pushes me just beyond my comfort level but I feel great about myself when I walk out the door.
So, in conclusion, I’m providing this glowing recommendation for Ron. He knows his stuff, human anatomy and he’s a creative and affable guy that makes the drudgery of fitness fun, results driven and easy to make a habit of. What’s not to like about that?"
Dave Poulson
02/19/2023
Eric Cressey is about as well inform source as you could ask for in the industry. I highly recommend you follow him!
Crossfit and Confirmation Bias
Last month, I published a blog about the importance of building strength in the teenage years. In case you missed it, you can read it here. The gist was that strength is foundational to many other …
02/06/2023
One of my resolutions for the new year was to give my Lifetime Athletics page some love. Thanks Andy, for providing the content!
"I have had Ron Baglien as my personal trainer now for about 18 months. When I first began with him, I had significant tendonitis in my left knee. Ron was able to tailor the exercises to accommodate this injury and to strengthen everything around the area. That knee is now pain-free. In general, he is always asking me what’s hurting or what feels good. He’s excellent at not pushing or straining anything that is sore or has been over-worked. I also developed angina several months into my workouts with Ron, which turned out to be due to a significant block in one of my main coronary arteries. I got this stented, and Ron was terrific in fitting my workout activities into my overall cardiac rehab routine. I’m not only lucky to be alive, but in the best shape I have been in for years, thanks to Ron. The bottom line is that Ron is a terrific person and trainer."
Andy Blauvelt
01/11/2022
This is an excellent article. Don't overthink it folks. Start with a few siple changes that work for you.
Superstition, Sciencestition, and How to Stop Overthinking Your Food Choices
Sometimes a glass of lemon water is… just a glass of lemon water