Architect of Resilience

You may have noticed that we have a minor obsession with feet and the human-to-ground interface here at Kabuki Strength, and today's guest is an expert in the field! Dr. Ray McClanahan is a Podiatric Physician and Surgeon, who today runs his own practice - NW Foot and Ankle - right here in our hometown Portland, Oregon. For those not familiar, podiatry is the branch of medicine devoted to the study, diagnosis, and treatment of the foot, ankle, and related structure of the leg. The good doctor is also the inventor of Correct Toes, which are anatomical toe spacers designed to be worn either barefoot or inside footwear - and here's the important part - while being active. Dr. Ray has loads of clinical experience dealing with foot/ankle issues and provides us with valuable insight into his views on barefoot training, the foot-to-ground connection, rooting during loaded movement, issues with footwear, and other nuanced topics of the sort. Our hosts had a great time bouncing concepts/ideas off the mind of an incredibly talented MD like Dr. Ray. We hope you enjoy!

Today's guest is a well-known figure in the strength world, having been a writer, coach, and educator for a number of years and was voted Powerlifting Coach of the Year in 2016.  Swede is the creator of the popular 5th Set methodology and owns Keyhole Barbell. He has published numerous popular articles on various topics and is a man of many talents and depth of expression.  On today's episode Swede discusses his time in prison, how 5th Set came to be out of that darkness, and where it is today. He provides a very interesting, and thought-provoking perspective on working around training limitations when it comes to equipment and time - based on his experiences behind bars.  Today, Swede coaches athletes, writes regularly as a contributor to EliteFTS. You can learn more about him on his website, via Instagram, or read his published works on EliteFTS.

Today's host may be familiar to many of you - Dr. Craig Liebenson has been a long-time friend of Kabuki Strength and has previously been a guest on the show - all the way back on Ep. 34. We're glad to have him on again today and this is one of those episodes that you don't want to miss.  In today's discussion you'll hear our hosts and Dr. Liebenson discuss: How to manage your passions with your responsibilities Failure, Progress, and why you'll never be Perfect The Silo: On the dangers of too much data/information The "Fix It" mentality  Earning your recovery "The Tyranny of the Clinic", and why I kicked a doctor out of my clinic and into the gym Online Coaching: Technology, personalization and data collection to improve outcomes The Spine Fusion Disaster This list doesn't begin to cover the depth of content covered in this episode. Hope you enjoy!   Dr. LIebenson's groundbreaking work with Dr. Karl Levit and Dr. Pavel Kolar have heavily influenced our core understanding of spinal health and performance, and is a member of the Kabuki Strength Advisory Board. Hope you enjoy this episode! 

Mike McCastle is a living legend - having performed feats of strength and endurance that will have you saying "...he did WHAT?". Like doing 5,804 pull-ups in 24 hours while wearing a 30lb pack. The first time he tried that, he ended up in the hospital for 4 days with torn biceps, forearms, and rhabdo. Mike has flipped a 250lb truck tire for 13 miles, he even spent 10 hours climbing a 20 foot rope 1450 times, which is the height of Mt. Everest. Perhaps the most fascinating and best part about Mike is his deep conviction and passion for doing good in the world. All these insane accomplishments fall under The 12 Labors Project, Mike's personal philanthropic endeavor to raise money and awareness for important causes via feats of endurance and strength. In this episode you'll hear lots of laughs and funny stories, but also moments of self-reflection from Mike on what drives him to do this and what his "why" is. Our hosts and Mike also discuss details regarding his training, nutrition, and recovery modalities used to be able to perform at such an extreme level. A fascinating episode and a must listen. Mike's passion is contagious, and we guarantee it will inspire you. To learn more about Mike McCastle visit his website twelvelaborsproject.com and make sure to follow him on social media @mikemccastle

Today's guests share an incredible story of tragedy, trauma, survival, perseverance, and ultimate victory. We are honored to have Ben Toderico and his wife Denise Gorondy-Toderico on the show today! Three years ago Denise - a veterinarian from Virginia - was on her usual run on the same route she had run 3-4 times a week for over a decade. After about a mile, she was hit from behind by an SUV traveling around 60mph, and knocked about 50 yards into a ditch.  The driver left and left her for dead in a ditch for over an hour until someone saw her and called for help.  Refusing to live in fear and accept her injuries, Denise, with help from her husband Ben has worked relentlessly to recover from this incident and regain her quality of life and passion for training and health. Tune in as our Ben and Denise share their story and talk post-trauma and post-rehab training.  Ben, Denise...thank you for sharing your story with us and our listeners. Your relentless drive to not only survive - but thrive in the face of extreme adversity and pain - has inspired many and will continue to do so for years to come. Thank you.

Today's guest is PNW-native and an industry leader/pioneer in the Strength & Conditioning field. Joel Jamieson is the man who introduced HRV [Heart Rate Variability] training to the masses and continues to break new ground with his recovery platform Morpheus and online education platform 8WeeksOut.  Joel is known for his work as a coach in the combat sports arena, having trained world champions since 2004 and worked with athletes in nearly all professional and collegiate sports, not to mention Navy Seals and other elite groups. Today, Joel works with thousands of coaches, trainers, and athletes around the world through 8WeeksOut, an authoritative platform and certification for recovery-driven conditioning and performance.  In this episode, Joel breaks down the early history of HRV, how it works, and application to strength and conditioning. He and the hosts talk recovery, data, inflammation, and practical application. They also discuss some upcoming collaborative content between 8WeeksOut and Kabuki Education, as well as other little tidbits and funnies. This is a good one folks!  Joel is also a helicopter pilot, and showed up at The Lab to record this podcast by landing his chopper in our parking lot.

We are honored to have a legend in the fitness world joining us today! Jeff is an educator, coach, and the man behind the world-renowned and wildly-popular Athlean-X fitness program. Athlean-X has over 7 million subscribers on YouTube and millions more on other social media platforms!  He has previously worked as the Head Physical Therapist and Assistant Strength Coach for the New York Mets, a role in which he coached some of the game's most accomplished athletes and future hall-of-famers.  He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and has a Masters Degree in Physical Therapy and Bachelor of Science in Physioneurobiology / Premedicine from the University of Connecticut in Storrs, CT (one of the top 5 universities in the country in physical therapy and sports medicine). Jeff is a highly sought after speaker and lecturer, presenting on topics of injury prevention in baseball and sport-specific conditioning and his writings have been featured in numerous print and web publications. Our hosts discuss a plethora of subjects with Jeff; diving into training methodologies, sport-specific training and recovery, common mistakes, and more. To learn more about Jeff, visit athleanx.com, subscribe to the Athlean-X YouTube channel, and Instagram.

Today's guest on Strength Chat is natural bodybuilder and coach Julian Smith! Julian is also known as "the Quad Guy" and has one of the most aesthetic physiques in the sport! His unique, extremely-effective, and detailed training style is wildly popular and he has amassed a very engaged following of over 1 million people on social media: @smith.julian Julian is a PNW-native and trains out of his private facility Arms Race Gym in Hillsboro, Oregon. He owns the hugely-successful training site The Daily Pump, as well as Clifford Lenox, a fitness lifestyle and clothing brand. Our hosts spend time chatting with Julian about his unique training philosophy, the fitness industry, building a brand, the effects of social media, and other topics. As always, we hope you enjoy the show and share it with others!

Today's guest on Strength Chat is the Bryce Lewis, an elite-level drug-free powerlifter and world-renowned strength coach. Bryce is the founder of The Strength Athlete, more commonly known as TSA, whose team of coaches works with and educates beginner-to-elite level powerlifters all across the world.  Bryce holds records in the USAPL and IPF, and works to promote the sport of powerlifting globally as an ambassador using his platform. His educational background is in philosophy, and he is a passionate advocate for the application and love of the sciences, evidence-based philosophies, and skepticism of pseudoscience. Tune in and hear Bryce talk with our hosts about the latest in sports psychology, applications to strength sports, and other related topics! 

Introducing today's guest in one or two paragraphs would hardly break the surface of her incredible career and accomplishments. She was the first female Head Trainer in US professional sports history - working with the LA Dodgers for 6 years. She has also served as Head of Athletic Training/Performance for the US Men's National Soccer Team, and has presented at state, national and international level conferences in areas focusing on pillar strength, integration of physical therapy and performance training, and comprehensive kinetic chain assessment and rehabilitation. Sue sits on the advisory boards for over a half-dozen highly respected organizations in the S&C and Physical Therapy space, and has numerous professional certifications as well as a graduate education in human movement science from UNC Chapel Hill.  Today, Sue runs S&F (Structure and Function), a consulting and education business for healthcare clinicians, as well as a consulting company for the athlete. Today's discussion touches on a wide-variety of topics and Sue's experiences working with a diverse and highly-skilled athletic population. Thank you again Sue, for being our guest on the show.