Vigor Life Podcast

I’ve followed Jake Tuura for a while as he shares great information on everything tendons, and was able to finally connect in person as we both spoke at Mike Boyle’s Spring Seminar, then had to bring him out on the podcast as his presentation at Mike’s was excellent. We talked about, well, everything tendons! This is a must listen for every person that wants to keep healthy and strong tendons for life, especially coaches that can help their clients do that.  Jake Tuura, MS, CSCS is a collegiate strength and conditioning coach.  He currently works at Youngstown State University.  Prior to YSU, Jake was an assistant S&C coach at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Superior (2014) and his Masters from The College of St. Scholastica (2015). His website: jackedathlete.com helps athletes gain copious amounts of muscle, hit PRs in the weight room, and improve athletic performance. IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => What started Jake’s fascination with tendons. => One of THE worst things you can do for tendon issues - rest!  => Why most tendon issues are misdiagnosed for by doctors or even physical therapists.  => How Jake finally overcame jumper’s knee after many years of issues and pain.  => If you don’t have tendon issues you don’t have to care about tendon training, Jake explains in depth.  => The two biggest reasons you will run into tendon issues and how to address them.  => What aging will do to a tendon and why you must strength train and do plyometrics as you age.  => Strong muscles help tendons, weak muscles lead to “beat up tendons.” => The reason younger athletes run into tendon issues and how AAU is crushing the young athlete’s body.  => The difference between acute and chronic tendon issues and how to approach the rehab of each one. => Why strength training when you have tendon issues may be the FIRST thing you have to do.  => The exact breakdown of how to get back from a chronic tendon issue/injury.  => How you know whether training is helping or hurting your tendon recovery (most people have no idea about this!). => The “weekend warrior” protocol to make sure you can perform at your best and keep your tendons healthy.  => How lifestyle affects your tendons and why you should pay attention to your nutrition and your sleep/recovery.  => Why being “fit” is not the same as being “basketball fit” and how you must approach getting ready for ball.  => Why Jake believes that super heavy calf raises are going to be used more and more to prevent achilles issues.  => How blood pressure and metabolic factors can affect the health of the tendon. => Why mobility matters when it comes to tendon health and why you must maintain it (also why people that don’t, have problems).  => Does PRP or stem cells work when it comes improving the healing and rehab of the tendon.  => Why you can have similar outputs in your 40’s but you’ll have to __________. => Jake breaks down the exact rehab process of clients that have had knee tendon and achilles tendon issues.  => The power of isometrics and why you’d do it every day when you have tendon issues.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Jake's Website  www.JackedAthlete.com  Jake's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jaketuura/ Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Luka's YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

I’ve been fortunate to learn from and develop friendships with the best of the best. My relationship with Eric Cressey goes back close to 17 years where I went to a seminar of his in Birmingham, UK. Since then he’s been someone I have constantly learned from and continue to as we have grown in the industry, built our businesses and expanded in what we do. He’s not just an extraordinary coach but also a great human being that I’m honored to call a friend. Having a conversation with him is always insightful and thought provoking, and I learn a lot from it.  Eric Cressey is president and co-founder of Cressey Sports Performance, with facilities located in Hudson, MA and Palm Beach Gardens, FL.  A highly sought-after coach for healthy and injured athletes alike, Eric has helped athletes at all levels - from youth sports to the professional and Olympic ranks - achieve their highest levels of performance in a variety of sports. Eric is perhaps best known for his extensive work with baseball players, with more than 100 professional players traveling to train with him each off-season. In January of 2020, he joined the New York Yankees organization as Director of Player Health and Performance. IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => Eric’s involvement in multiple areas from being director of performance for the New York Yankees, running two successful facilities, coaching elite MLB players daily, and how it affects his views on strength and conditioning.  => Insights on the principle of: “What you know vs what you can implement.” => How strong is strong enough for athletes (as well as general population). => Strength is simple to build and sticks around but ________ is much harder to develop.  => The studies that show how impactful the work that high school and college strength coaches do and why building a foundation is SO critical. => The dangers of carrying your own training biases into the training programs of your clients and athletes. => Power drops close to 10% per decade in the aging population and rarely finds itself in most programs. => The surprising ability that we lost the most as we age, that MUST be trained.  => What Eric has charged in his in season programming for athletes in the last 5-years, based on research and his personal insights.  => The power of high quality warm ups and why it is so important and how you can get a 40% injury reduction.  => Why you may need less strength work in season and how 30 minutes of strength training can be enough. => Focusing on building relationships to get buy in to your program/system.  => The best ways to learn and speed up your growth that are completely underutilized.  => The sacrifices that have to be made to develop yourself as a great coach.  => Eric on investing in yourself and betting on things you understand.  => What is “work life harmony” and why balance in life isn’t what you think it is.  => The “Say yes to everything before 40, and no to everything after 40” quote and what it means.  => Eric’s thoughts on getting a college degree in the exercise science realm that will shock you.  => One thing that young coaches really need to analyze and the question they MUST ask themselves. => Why you should consider spending $100k’s on your undergraduate degree.  => How to really stand out as a coach, be a linchpin, and be scarce so that you can keep progressing in your career. => The #1 thing you can do is get a good mentor and be part of a great facility to learn in person, skin-to-skin.  => The power of the apprenticeship model and why it’s the missing link for most coaches.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Eric Cressey's Site www.EricCressey.com Cressey Sports Performance http://cresseyperformance.com/ Elite Baseball Development Podcast h Eric's IG https://www.instagram.com/ericcressey Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Luka's YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

Back with a Q & A with a number of questions that have built up over the weeks and it’s become one of my favorite things to do. If you want to drop more questions you can either DM them to my Instagram or e-mail them to luka@hocevarperformance.com As usual I’m breaking up the episode into training, nutrition, coaching and program design in the first part, and business, mindset, marketing, content in the second (although 60-70% of the podcast is the former).  IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => A BIG announcement!  => What’s the best “next step” for you in your nutrition.  => I break down examples of 4 clients with different next steps that are the right fit for them.  => The biggest mistake people make when it comes to their nutrition (and it’s not what you think!) => How paused squats (or pause in any exercise) can help you with your gains. I give you a 4-week plan. => How to program to get faster and more powerful for an in-season athlete. => Explosive conditioning for tactical athletes, examples and how to program it. => What type of workouts could replace a game of sports (and could also prepare you for the sport).  => If focusing on muscle building how much cardio do you really need.  => How do you train the endurance of the fast twitch fibers. => The best 45 minute strength training program design for a group of 6-12 people  => How to increase your productivity in chaotic times.  => When it the right time to go “all in” with your side hustle (personal training, online coaching).  => What trends will take off in the fitness industry in 2024.  => Do I consider owning a gym a good investment compared to other investments.  => More insights and strategies to creating quality content that is valuable to the audience.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Athlete For Life: Compound-V 8-week Training Program www.LukaHocevar.com/compound-v/ Luka Hocevar YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

After speaking together at Raise The Bar in Dallas, I had to get finally get Nick on the podcast and talk about the principles that have helped almost a million people transform through Renaissance Periodization products and services, while also doing $100 million in revenue. Nick is the Founder and CEO of Renaissance Periodization, a diet and fitness company founded on evidence-based practices to help our members achieve their health, athletic performance and physique goals. He is also co-host of the RP Strength Podcast with wife - and RP colleague - Lori Shaw.  Himself a former competitive powerlifter and bodybuilder, Nick has also personally coached numerous world-class athletes, including CrossFit Games Champions, international medalists, Olympians, UFC fighters, professional athletes, and Navy SEALs.  Nick holds a B.A. in Sport Management from the University of Michigan, where he helped establish a scholarship for undergraduate Kinesiology students, and from which he received the Early Career Achievement Award.  IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => The #1 principle of success when it comes to transforming your body for good. Nothing else matters without this.  => Calories, macros, timing does matter, but only if you do THIS.  => What have I repeated 10,000x over and tell stories about every day and why does it matter to you as a coach (it’s your job!)  => Losing weight and getting lean is not easier than _________ (this is where people get stuck).  => Why trying to rely on willpower over skillsets will always lead to frustration.  => The actual science of self control and what people get wrong (the science shows it’s not what you think).  => The “P & P” principle that you MUST include in achieving anything worthwhile.  => The 4 steps to subconsciously do habits that will lead you to your goals. => How to make bad habits harder to do and the right habits easier to do.  => Why your emotions are the main culprit to negative behaviors, and how you can fix it.  => Nick’s lessons from getting the leanest ever and winning the IFBB pro card.  => The trade off between athletics and aesthetics, the cost of getting “shredded.” => The power of community and finding your tribe, and how it will be a catalyst to your success (or your obstacle). => How to change your environment so that it fits what you want to achieve and who you want to become.  => Why Nick drove an hour to train with training partners rather than train at home.  => How to check your effort and see if you’re really putting in the work you say you are.  => Sage advice Nick received that really made him cut out a lot of things he was doing in his business.  => The power of mentors and why Nick gets around business owners when he has a completely remote business.  => Why you should read books that are recommended from smart, successful people, and then do THIS. => How did RP get started and what was the first product that made Nick go “we have something here.” => “It only took 6 years to figure out YouTube”…..it takes persistence and consistency.  => Building the product by solving a problem that you see and experience.  => How Nick and RP pivoted when one form of media stopped working and the the overcoming of challenges in the business.  => The reason you MUST have proof of concept in your business (the story of Dr. Mike and college students).  LINKS & RESOURCES: Renaissance Periodization https://rpstrength.com/ RP Strength https://www.instagram.com/rpstrength/ Nick Shaw Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nick.shaw.rp/ Vigor Life Podcast (iTunes)  h Vigor Life Podcast on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0gp1uXtwfRUcBkfS1P1uim?si=kcUu2vhPRwuxdV5kTzQrug Luka Hocevar YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

My friend and owner of HIDEF Physical Therapy Zach sat down with me to grill me about training clients and the principles and foundations of getting results over the short and long-term, what really matters and where people get it wrong. I felt time flew by but we ended up doing a bit under two hours of deep dive into what creates successful programs and coaching and things that aren’t talked about enough in the real world.  IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => What’s the foundational piece of strength training that has to be in place for anything to work.  => The multi-step program design process you must go through to create the best possible program for each individual client.  => The 7 training principles, what they mean, and which ones matter most.  => Why discovering these 4 things about your client will then lead to determining the training template.  => While progressive overload is one of the most important principles, this is THE key principle people miss.   => How much does the “interference effect” matter and can you train strength, power, and conditioning together.  => Using the R7 program design principles with the foundational training principles to create a program for clients that works every time.  => How to develop multiple things such as improving movement, becoming more athletic, building strength and muscle, as well as getting “fitter.” => The difference between bodybuilding training and what most clients want.  => Why communication and problem solving skills can be the missing piece to getting the best results with clients.  => The “hidden” mistakes people make that puts a halt to their gains in the gym. => What I think about people commenting “thats a horrible muscle building exercise” on social media. Rant!  => The principles of results based training you can only learn in the gym and not through theory and books.  => Why the “Athlete for Life” model of training is what most people really want (even if they don’t know it).  => What is the “SRA” training principle that most people mess up on, and get stuck with progress.  => Why variation is important but not as important as you may think (unless that is your type!).  => How to progress based on your neuro type, small adjustments that can create big gains.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Athlete For Life: Compound-V 8-week Training Program www.LukaHocevar.com/compound-v/ HIDEP Physical Therapy https://www.hidefpt.com/ Vigor Life Podcast (iTunes)  h Vigor Life Podcast on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0gp1uXtwfRUcBkfS1P1uim?si=kcUu2vhPRwuxdV5kTzQrug Luka Hocevar YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

I’ve been of Nir’s work starting with his first book “Hooked” that really dove into how to lock in behaviors and how companies get people to repeat behaviors. The second was “Indistractable” which has been very powerful since like most people, I get distracted! It was great to dive into the science, strategies, and tactics to help you improve your attention, not get distracted, and get work done that matters!  Nir Eyal writes, consults, and teaches about the intersection of psychology, technology, and business. Nir previously taught as a lecturer in marketing at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford. Nir co-founded and sold two tech companies since 2003 and was dubbed by The M.I.T. Technology Review as, “The Prophet of Habit Forming Technology” Bloomberg Businessweek wrote, “Nir Eyal is the habits guy. Want to understand how to get app users to come back again and again? Then Eyal is your man.” He is the author of two bestselling books, Hooked: How To Build Habit Forming Products and Indistrcatable: How To Control Your Attention & Choose Your Life. His books have resonated with readers worldwide, selling over 1 million copies in over 30 languages. Indistractable received critical acclaim, winning the Outstanding Works Of Literature Award as well as being named one of the Best Business and Leadership Books Of The Year and one of the The Best Personal Development Books Of The Year by Audible. The Globe and Mail called Indistractable, “the best business book of 2019.” In addition to blogging at NirAndFar.com, Nir’s writing has been featured in The New York Times, Harward Business Review Time Magazine and Psychology Today.  Nir invests in habit-forming products that improve users’ lives. Some of his past investments include Eventbrite, Anchor.fm (acquired by Spotify), Kahoot, Canav, Homelight, Product Hunt, Marco Polo, Byte Foods, FocusMate, Dynamicare, Wise App and Sunnyside.  IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => Distraction is not something that happens to us it is an action that you took.  => Shocking data about how much of your distraction comes from an external trigger (ping, ding or ring of your phone, or people)! => We get distracted not by what is happening outside of us but rather because whats happening inside of us.  => What REALLY motivates us (it’s not what you’ve heard over and over again)! => How boredom, loneliness, fatigue, anxiety, stress, are the true culprits of our distraction.  => How food is a big distraction from internal triggers and how diets, fitness, and lifestyle have a lot in common with productivity.  => Time management is really  ____________.  => What you should and shouldn’t be doing with e-mail and meetings.  => Why to do lists are one of the worst things that you can do for productivity.  => How to turn your values into time and a powerful schedule that will help you achieve the most you ever have.  => Control the inputs, not the outputs.  => Why not scheduling important relationships is one of the biggest mistakes you’re making. => Real strategies that work on how to hack back on external distractions that are throwing you off and making your day busy and not productive.  => The 3 pacts that will have you performing  at levels you’ve never experience before.  =>  Nir and Luka get vulnerable and share what they have implemented to become more indistractable.  => Why changing your environment, hiring mentors, and finding a tribe can be a superpower.  => How to create an indistractable workplace.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Nir's Site: https://www.nirandfar.com/ Book: Indistractable  https://a.co/d/3Ndjbrl Book: Hooked https://a.co/d/iVUe8Jk Luka’s Courses & Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Vigor Life Podcast  https://open.spotify.com/show/0gp1uXtwfRUcBkfS1P1uim?si=kcUu2vhPRwuxdV5kTzQrug Luka's YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

Learn about the importance of sprinting for body and performance, unique set and rep schemes for strength building, and tips for building an online coaching business. Discover the value of continuous learning, individualized programming, and creative exercise variations in fitness training.

It was great to have Eve Guzman on the show. After speaking at the same events, we got to chat about how to sustainably lose weight for good, nutrition coaching, and building an educational business that helps coaches help clients.  Eve Guzman, MLS (ASCP), is a nutritionist, personal trainer, business coach and CEO of MacroU, which aims to help women ditch fad diets, lose weight effectively, and build their metabolism through evidence-based coaching. She has personally lost more than 150 pounds through exercise and her macro nutrition philosophy, going from obese to a nationally qualified figure competitor. She inspires and educates women worldwide on ways to create sustainable healthy lifestyle changes to become their best selves. Eve’s mission is to see all women achieve real body goals by eating the foods they love for the rest of their life. Eve is the creator of the Macro Nutrition Coaching Certification (Macro Mentorship) a 4-month NASM, AFAA, and ISSA approved CEU group coaching certificate program plus business course for health coaches. IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: => The sneaky ways calories creep into our daily nutrition without paying attention to it (you won’t believe how much!). => How Eve finally discovered to lose 150 lbs and kept it off for good.  => What gimmicks, fad diets and quick fixes did Eve try and what were her results. => The 3 key principles everyone must apply to have long term weight loss and health success. => Why the short term solutions you’re seeking out are crushing your long term success.  => The shocking truth of how much the average American underestimates their daily calories.  => Why tracking and data is so important and what to do if someone doesn’t want to track their food. =>   “I don’t eat that much” really means _________ . => How one meal a week can derail your weight loss efforts - you must hear this scenario.  => Eve and I discuss the biggest culprits for things that have a lot of calories that we don’t think about but eat often.  => The number one thing you must do as a coach and how not doing it will break trust and prevent you from helping the client. => What to do when clients come to you after watching a diet documentary and want to do it.  => Strategies to eat the foods you want and still get the results you’re seeking. => How Eve built her nutrition coaching business through word of mouth and referrals.  => The key components to building and maintaining a successful long term online nutrition coaching business.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Eve Guzman Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/eveguzmanofficial?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw== The Macro University - https://www.themacrouniversity.com/ Vigor Ground Fitness and Performance www.VigorGroundFitness.com Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Vigor Life Podcast (iTunes)  h Vigor Life Podcast on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0gp1uXtwfRUcBkfS1P1uim?si=kcUu2vhPRwuxdV5kTzQrug Luka Hocevar YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

I wanted to share the principles and strategies I often talk about with clients to help them create sustainable change with their body and health. This speaks both to you as an individual looking for change or to coaches helping clients achieve meaningful change. There’s so much confusing information out there that it makes it harder to begin or to stick to something that will actually help you improve how you look, feel and perform.  I share principles, as well as strategies, tactics, and examples of how to attain true change, one that sticks for good and that most people can take on.  There’s theory, and then there’s application and real world experience of applying research. I share the real world experience and examples of how you can make 2024 your best year yet when it comes to your body.  IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: The principles that nutrition success is built on and what NOT to do!  The 6-steps that you must follow as a coach or client to win at changing your nutrition, health, and body.  Your current results are based on your behaviors today, the desired results you want will require these behaviors.  Why everything should being with an assessment, you can’t get a path without typing in “point A” on the GPS.  Does calorie counting matter? How much? What are alternatives to calorie counting that work? The absolute #1 habit you must develop, and it’s not what you think it is.  When you should weigh in daily and when not to. The 2 most important things to track at the beginning of your nutrition change.  Does tracking carbs and fat matter at all when it comes to macros. Creating your daily meal plan that is simple, stress free, and effective.  How many meals per day should you eat for your goals and should you intermittent fast.  How strength training, cardio, and stress affect your calorie intake and daily nutrition.  What you MUST know about your food environment or it could be the obstacle that prevents you from changing.  The breakdown for calories, macros, and habits whether you’re trying to lose fat, gain muscle, or do a body recomposition.  Which supplements make sense and which are a waste of money.  Why journaling makes sense for training and nutrition.  What every successful body transformation has in common.  LINKS & RESOURCES: Athlete For Life: Compound-V 8-week Program www.LukaHocevar.com/compound-v/ Vigor Ground Fitness and Performance www.VigorGroundFitness.com Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Vigor Life Podcast (iTunes)  h Vigor Life Podcast on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0gp1uXtwfRUcBkfS1P1uim?si=kcUu2vhPRwuxdV5kTzQrug Luka Hocevar YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber

It’s been a while so I went back through a pile of questions I’ve had from the past and organized them into training and nutrition questions, as well as coaching and business questions.  I break down the show and answer the training and nutrition questions in the first part of the show (up to 58 minutes) and the coaching and business questions the second part of the show.  I didn’t get through them all but we have plenty for another episode coming up in the near future. IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: How long should you expect to lose the last bit of fat around your abs. How to program/structure performance training while not sacrificing your hypertrophy gains. The simple framework I use to manage my meal prep with a crazy busy schedule. Why will keeping a logbook make 2024 your best training year yet.  Should you be using mixed cardio methods in the same session, if so, which ones.  Using tests to determine which areas of fitness you need to work on.  The rarely talked about principle to keep you jacked and lean in your 40’s. What you need to do to regain and rebuild your speed and power. One of the most important factors in cardio training that gets overlooked, and why you MUST pay attention to it.  How to supercharge your learning and knowledge as a coach, forever.  Why you’re stuck at 50-70 clients at the gym and what to do about it to grow.  The 3 little tricks I use to create a lot of quality content on multiple platforms that will save you 7 hours per week.  My equipment list that’s a must for starting a small group personal training business.  Using cardio based monitoring to individualize group training and stay ahead of the curve.  The surprising truth about how important it is to get leads from social media. Is it possible to become a top tier trainer, reputation wise and financially, while staying in your garage.  The technologies and systems you MUST have as a start up training business.  And much more….. LINKS & RESOURCES: Athlete For Life: Compound-V 8-week Program  Vigor Ground Fitness and Performance www.VigorGroundFitness.com Luka’s Courses and Workshops  www.LukaHocevar.com Vigor Life Podcast (iTunes)  h Vigor Life Podcast on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0gp1uXtwfRUcBkfS1P1uim?si=kcUu2vhPRwuxdV5kTzQrug Luka Hocevar YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ29YcBh-g6onRujX3wD_XA?view_as=subscriber