How to squat and the StrengthCast PowerShow

 

• Author Chris Adams

How to Squat

The squat is often performed incorrectly. After reading this guide, you'll know how to back squat.

Setting up for the squat

The first part of this guide will be about how to set up for the squat. I’ll explain where the bar should be positioned, hands width, elbow position, bracing, getting tight, walking the bar out and creating full-body tension.

Bar position

There are two basic bar positions on the back squat, high bar, and low bar. With the high bar squat, the bar rests on the traps, while the low bar squat rest on the rear delts. The biggest thing to avoid while positioning the bar for the high bar squat is to make sure it’s on the traps and not on the neck. Having the bar too high is generally the reason people have sore necks after squatting. With the low bar squat, some people get on the shoulder blades. That generally comes from letting the bar rest directly on the spine of the scapulae. Just slightly moving the bar up or down of the scapula should remove the problem. People who have shoulder problems and lack the mobility to have the bar that low without pain are better off using the high bar position. The low bar causes a slightly more forward lean low bar than the high bar squat. Ensure you are in the middle of the barbell as you set up. Placing the bar asymmetrically on the back will cause one side to take most of the load and it will be hard to maintain your balance.

Hand position

In general, you should try to get your hands as close as comfortably can get without it causing pain in your wrists, shoulders, or elbows. A narrow grip will help keep your upper back tight.

Elbows

Try and keep your elbows down and pulled into your sides. It should feel just like you're doing a lat pull down. This will cause tension in your lats which will help with upper back tightness. Some people benefit from driving their elbows up behind the bar when doing low bar squats. This is because some people don’t have very big rear delts and driving their elbows back creates a bigger shelf to put the bar.

Bracing and getting tight

Getting tight, bracing and creating full-body tension is important as it reduces the chance of injuring yourself and it allows you to lift the most weight. Strong legs and hips aren’t enough to squat. You need to be able to transfer the force into the bar through the torso. To get your upper back tight, you should actively pull your shoulder blades together and maintain this the whole time the bar is on your back. As mentioned before, pull your elbows down and in towards your body unless you need to drive your elbows behind you. Before every rep, you need to take a big breath into your diaphragm to create Intraabdominal pressure. When breathing into your diaphragm, your stomach should inflate out. This helps protect your lower back. If you’re chest and shoulders raise while you take your breath you’re not breathing into your diaphragm. You will hold this breath during the rep at least until you’re 2/3 of the way back up. Contract your abs like you’re about to get punched in the stomach. This combined with taking a big breath will ensure you’re core is braced.

Foot stance and angle toes point out

How wide people’s stance is will vary depending on individual anatomy and their mobility. You’ll need to use trial and error to find your best stance. A good starting point is to have your heels at shoulder-width apart and slightly pointing out. See how that’s feels. Then try it an inch or two wider, and an inch or two narrower. Try with the toes pointing out and driving the knees out, and try with the feet pointing straight ahead. See how comfortable and how deep you can squat with each stance width without your back rounding.

Walking the bar out of the rack

First thing you need to check that the hooks are a good height. You shouldn’t ever have to tiptoe the bar out of the rack. This is a common mistake people often make. You also don’t want it too low that you waste too much energy. A good starting point is to have the hooks set so the bar is level with your sternum. With your feet the width you plan to squat with. Start your hips a bit behind the bar, take a deep breath into your stomach, tense your back, and get your hips under the bar and squatting the weight up out of the hooks. Be aggressive when unracking the bar. Once you unrack the bar, wait for a second and let the weights settle. Take a small step back with one foot, then a little step back with your second foot, and then a third step if an adjustment is needed. You want the walkout to be as efficient as possible so that you waste minimal energy. You shouldn’t ever need more than three steps to walk out. Once you’ve walked the bar out, you will already be braced and the upper body will be tight. You now want to get even tighter so you have complete control of the bar. You need to ensure you have your weight evenly distributed across your big toe, your little toe, and your heel. Next, you need to create tension in your hips. With your feet planted into the floor try and rotate your hips outwards. Do this by imagining trying to touch your heels together and move more toes towards a wall either side without actually moving your feet.

Setting up for the squat

1 Place the bar on either the traps or rear delts. Ensure you're set in the middle of the bar.

2 Grip the bar as close as you comfortably can. If you’re getting wrist, elbow, or shoulder pain or discomfort, move your hands out. Drive your elbows under the bar, or behind if you need to.

3 Take a deep breath, get tight and brace before lifting the bar out of the rack. Walk the bar out, using as little energy as possible.

4 Get in your preferred stance width

5 Take another deep diaphragmatic breath. Brace like you’re going to take a punch to the stomach6 Create total body tension.

The Squat

When squatting, look straight ahead or slightly down. Focus on something and don’t take your eye off it. Two cues when doing the squat is sit down and sit back. When sitting down you break at the hips and knees at the same time. When you cue to sit back you break at the hips first by pushing your butt back as if you’re going to sit on a chair. Sitting down tends to keep your body more upright but there isn’t a massive difference. For most people breaking at the hips and knees at the same time will be best to start with. Try both and do what feels most comfortable. You should descend as fast as you can while being able to remain tight and remain in complete control of the barbell. Try and squat to just below parallel. Parallel is where the crease of the hip joint is level with the top of the knee. Some people are able to go lower, while some people will struggle to reach depth due to mobility issues. When at the bottom drive your traps into the bar and push your feet into the floor. Your hips and shoulders should come up at the same speed. This will keep your back angle the same throughout the lift. A common mistake is to allow your hips to rise up faster than your shoulders and end up bent over. Driving your traps into the bar should prevent that.

Chris Adams

Personal Trainer

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MMA Workout Routine

By: Josh Rafferty MMA is quickly becoming the fastest growing sport in the world. A basic MMA workout routine can be extremely difficult as well as extremely demanding. MMA training requires a tremendous amount of conditioning and endurance. What makes MMA workout routines so challenging is training all aspects of combat. With so much time being spent on boxing, grappling, and strength training, it’s easy to over train.

Training for a fight can be a little confusing if you are new to the fight game. Most schools have the workouts broken down to specific skill training. Training should be organized and thought out before fight preparation. Dividing your work between striking practice, wrestling, and jiu-jitsu is a great start. When training for a MMA fight, fighters should try to train anywhere from 5-6 days per week. Training sessions should be between 90minutes to 120 minutes. As the fight becomes closer, workouts should be shorter and more intense.

Mixed martial arts training is very similar from team to team. As I said before, most MMA fighters train the same martial arts. MMA strength training workouts and conditioning are unique to each fighter. Everybody is different. Some fighters respond better to certain training programs as others would benefit from something completely different. I have been lucky enough to train with some great teams and coaches. In just about every MMA training center I have been to be different when it comes to conditioning.


After years of competing and coaching I have found that my fighters and myself respond the most to circuit training. This type of training allows the fighter to simulate the workload of fight while incorporating a number of exercises. Circuit training should be set up just like a fight. Three five-minute rounds with a one-minute break is a good place to start.

Here are a few basic MMA workout routines:

BODYWEIGHT WORKOUT

- Squat jumps 1 minute
- Shadowboxing 1 minute
- Leg raise 1 minute
- Hindu push up 1 minute
- Shadowboxing 1 minute

WORKOUT # 2

- Wall walks 1 minute
- Ground and pound drill on heavy bag 1 minute
- Box jumps 1 minute
- Wrestling 1 minute
- Thai pad drills 1 minute

WORKOUT #3

- Power cleans 1 minute
- Versaclimber 1 minute
- Takedowns 1 minute
- Medice ball slams 1 minute
- Ground and pound 1 minute

MMA workouts can be challenging as well as exciting. The workouts above are just a few examples on how you can set up your own MMA workout routine. Workout number one is a basic workout using bodyweight exercises. This workout is a great beginners workout. Workout number two incorporates more specific fighting drills. Keep in mind that you can implement your favorite drills into each circuit. It is important to try and incorporate all ranges of fighting when designing your program. Workout number three is a little more advanced. In this circuit we use free weights and cardio equipment like the Versaclimber. Keep an open mind and have fun with these intense training sessions.

 Josh Rafferty Professional MMA Fighter and Coach www.i-supplements.com

Arnold Strongman Sports Festival 2020 - Day 1 Live! And Robert Oberst's Rep-Crazy Strongman Workout Presented on US Sports Net By BBcom

Rogue’s complete live stream of the 2020 Arnold Strongman Classic begins here on Friday, March 6, at 1 PM EST. 10 strongmen will compete in 6 events over 2 days for the title of Arnold Strongman Classic Champion.

Rogue’s coverage of the Arnold Classic weekend will include daily episodes of the Rogue Iron Game show featuring guests from the worlds of Strongman, Olympic Lifting, Powerlifting, and CrossFit. We will also be streaming the full 2020 Rogue Record Breakers competition and the IWF Rogue World Challenge.

Robert Oberst's Rep-Crazy Strongman Workout

The "World's Strongest Man" contender Robert Oberst has dropped 80 pounds and is getting himself ready to crush the competition in 2018. Here's his upper-body workout, and his story.

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The first time Robert Oberst rambled into a strongman-oriented gym, he knew instantly what he was born to do. Although at 6 feet 8 inches tall and well over 350 muscular pounds, he may have been the last to realize what everyone around him already knew.
"A buddy of mine was an amateur strongman who was just obsessed with the sport," Oberst recalls of that fateful day in 2012. "He kept begging me to come try it. So finally I did, and the first time I ever touched the log, I broke the amateur world record for the log press."
To be sure, the former high school, collegiate, and Arena league football player was no stranger to weights. But unofficially cracking a world record the first time he hoisted a log? That got his attention. Before long, he experienced his first strongman-contest thrashing.
"I got my ass handed to me, but I had so much fun," Oberst chuckles. "I was hooked."
What he wasn't so keen on was losing.
"The competitor in me is just not willing to suck at something," he says. "As soon as I left that first contest, I started training hard and turned pro less than six months later."

Big, Strong Plans for 2018

Five years later, Oberst has solidified himself as a top athlete in the pro strongman ranks. Strongman is a unique sport that involves not only intensive strength, but also a heavy dose of endurance as competitors lift, carry, throw, and drag around all manner of awkward, heavy objects for reps, time, and distance.
Oberst has competed in the World's Strongest Man contest since 2013, finishing as high as ninth, while also winning two pro shows and placing in the top six at 12 others, including runner-up in the 2013 and 2014 America's Strongest Man.
Currently, the 32-year-old is preparing for two big events. The first is the Log World Championships in London, England in April, 2018. Oberst's goal for that event is to break the world log press record. He already owns the American record of 465 pounds, set at the 2015 Arnold Strongman Classic Australia.
Next up will be the 2018 World's Strongest Man, where he's hoping to place in the top three.
"As part of my preparation, I'm going to training camp in Houston, Texas," he says. "It'll be a couple months of just focusing on getting my head and my body where they need to be to go out there and compete."

Prioritize Strength Over Size

Oberst has a multipronged plan of attack for these events, including a training, nutrition, and supplementation regimen that has, he says, helped him re-engineer his physique and given him more power and energy than ever before.
"About three years ago, I made strongman competition my full-time job," he says. "It's a big difference. Now that I have my nutrition figured out, I've dropped close to 80 pounds. I was about 440, but came down to 360, and now I feel so much better. I've done two shows since getting to that new weight, and both were the best performances of my life."
His goal now is to solidify himself at that 360 level, and make sure as much of his mass as possible is muscle.
"I don't want any excess weight," Oberst says. "People involved in strongman try to tell you that the heavier you are, the more competitive you'll be. I bought into that for a little while, but when I got so heavy that I couldn't take four steps without breathing hard, I knew it was the wrong approach. It's not about being as heavy as possible. It's about being as strong as possible. There's a big difference."

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Cutting Down…From 20,000 Calories a Day

To spearhead his transformation, Oberst radically changed his diet, cutting back from a height of 20,000 calories per day—seriously—to "just" 5,000-6,000.
"I count carbs exactly," he says. "I work with a nutritionist who has given me a very rigorous six-meals-per-day meal plan. Three of the meals are whey protein shakes with a banana. My big meal of the day is 10 ounces of chicken with a cup of rice in the afternoon. I can also have 12 ounces of lean meat with some carbs for dinner. It's not flashy, but it works."
His diet looks a lot like what a physique athlete would create.
"I work out with extremely heavy weights and higher endurance, but at the same time I eat like a bodybuilder," he says. "When I first cut down my calories, my body was screaming for pizza and all that high-calorie stuff. But once my system adjusted, the clean diet gave me more power and energy than I've ever felt."
Oberst also takes a number of supplements in addition to his regular whey protein, including L-glutamine, BCAAs, a liver-cleansing supplement, and a pre-workout.

Serious Strength Through…High Reps?

Oberst's whole-food and supplementation routine provides ample fuel for his four-day-a-week training regimen, which includes three days of traditional in-the-gym lifting, including an upper-body day, a deadlift-focused day, and a squat-focused day. On these days, he's not afraid to use bodybuilding rep ranges of 12 or higher, or even bodybuilding movements like preacher curls or triceps push-downs.
Why? Well, strongman training doesn't just hit big muscles, it hits all muscles—and all the slow-twitch and fast-twitch fibers making up all those muscles. A well-rounded approach including some pure hypertrophy work is necessary.

Robert Oberst's Upper-Body Workout

1

Seated Barbell Military Press

3 sets, 4 reps (warm-up)

2 sets, 20 reps (plus one final burnout set)

+ 6 more exercises

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However, here's the big difference between what Oberst does and what the rest of us do: He's also got an epic six-hour strongman practice every week.
"Unlike most strongmen, I do lots of reps," he says. "I work up to a good weight over a number of sets for my main lift. Once I get up to about 80 percent of my one-rep max, I'll do 2-3 sets there, then I'll come back down for a few back-off sets. I do a disgusting number of reps."
Of course, that's 180-degrees away from the typical power approach of near-max sets of singles, doubles, and triples.
"My football coaches taught me to do lots of reps to gets the blood flowing," he says. "Plus, the pump tightens the muscle and makes it bigger, more stable, and stronger."
No, it's not how everyone else trains, but as he says, it's hard to argue with results. He keeps getting leaner, stronger, more muscular, and improving his endurance—a perfect trajectory for any sport.
"Everything has come together so quickly for me because of the way I train. At first, people were like, 'Man, it's ridiculous to do all those reps.' Then a year or two into it, everyone was like, 'Oh wow, tell me more about what you're doing.'"

Sunday Is Crazy-Weight Fun-Day

On Sundays, all the efforts of the previous week culminate in exactly the setting you'd imagine. There's Oberst, surrounded by the tools of his brute-force trade, performing one event after another for hours on end. From the iconic atlas stones to the log press, farmer's walk, and every other kind of bone-cracking push, pull, and in-between, he does them all.
"Doing this workout once a week makes the actual contests seem easy in comparison," he says. "I'll run through a whole show's worth of events: the set-up, the warm-ups, the events. I'll also allow myself ample rest times between sets so I can feel fresh when I finally touch the weights."
Unlike most strongmen, he also does cardio throughout the week. At least three times a week, he'll do wind sprints or hike a couple of miles, do sprints up a hill, stretch for up to 40 minutes, then walk back home again.

Lucky Number Eight

The eighth of 10 children, Oberst was short and chubby as a child. Between 10th and 11th grade, though, he grew seven inches while he working at a summer camp.
"I remember sitting up at night in my tent just rubbing my legs because they hurt so bad from the growing pains," he recalls. "When I came home at the end of the summer, my mom just started crying, 'Oh God, what happened to my baby?'"
It took about a year for him to adjust to his new height, but eventually Oberst shed his awkwardness and became a menacing two-way football player. He was named All-State as center and nose tackle, no small feat in the competitive environs of California high school football.
He went on to play football in college, turned pro with the now-defunct San Jose SaberCats of the Arena Football League, then turned his attentions to strongman competition.
These days, during strongmen contests, you'll most likely find him off in his own world before an event, earphones in, bobbing his head to Eminem as he breathes slowly and deeply, with his eyes focused on the distance as contest turbulence swirls around him.
"It doesn't take much for me to get jacked up," he admits. "For me, it's more about trying to keep myself calm. I do meditation exercises beforehand, then come breathing fire."

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About the Author

Michael Berg, NSCA-CPT

Michael Berg is a freelance health and fitness writer based in New York.

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S.L.A.P. BJJ – Blue To Purple Belt

by Darin Reisler

About this Course

Over 100 videos. Created on the mat, refined through competition, and structured with the student in mind.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a VERY interesting martial arts discipline. Learning it… can also be interesting (and highly frustrating). The learning often jumps around quite a lot. As such, finding structure can be difficult. I like to make the analogy that the different martial arts styles are like 10,000 piece puzzles. Each puzzle creates a different picture. When you train in Kung-Fu, you tend to get puzzle piece number one on your first day. On your second day, you get puzzle piece number two, and so on. The same holds true for Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Japanese Jujutsu, Aikido, and most of the other martial arts. However, with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, you are likely to get puzzle piece number one on your first day, puzzle piece number forty-eight on your second day, and puzzle piece number eight hundred fourteen on your third day. This is why the Structured Learning Advancement Program (SLAP) for BJJ was created. 

SLAP BJJ provides the student with an unparalleled level of structure and guides him or her through the learning process in a step-by-step fashion. I was thirty years old when I started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), and, as a traditional martial artist with black belts in several different styles, I knew what structured learning should look like. (I’ve also worked as coordinator of a college program for aspiring law enforcement professionals, and piecing together primary and secondary competency areas as they relate to learning was something I knew how to do.) 

So, with a background in the martial arts and higher education, I began my BJJ training as a white belt in the system. I took copious notes during every step of the journey from white belt to black belt… for TEN YEARS! Then, I structured those notes. That’s where this curriculum comes from. Now, as a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, this curriculum is the compilation of everything that I had to learn at each belt level prior to advancement, and it’s the curriculum that I teach to my students. It’s notable that, prior to being given rank advancement in BJJ, I had won first place at each belt level in various tournaments before I was promoted to the next belt level. 

Basically, I KNOW THIS CURRICULUM WORKS! 

As an International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) certified black belt instructor, my rank has been tournament tested at every level from white belt onward, and, as a black belt, I continue to compete at the local, national, and world levels. Overall, this course aims to provide a level of structure that is rarely seen in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It aims to help the student progress through primary and secondary competencies along the path to continued educational success. 

BJJ has three basic components: positions, transitions, and submissions. This curriculum guides the student through those areas in an articulate fashion that helps to heighten the student’s ability to retain and utilize what is taught. Let me be straight; there is no substitute for mat time! You must have it, and you need quality instruction (preferably from an academy that is IBJJF approved, like mine is). With that said, the online instructional videos that compose this curriculum can help you, no matter your belt rank, to understand and advance your knowledge. 

The requirements in BJJ are very strict, and it usually takes about ten years to go from white belt to black belt. (There are over 100 techniques in the white to blue belt curriculum, alone! These techniques are listed and you can learn them in order, or you can watch individual videos ahead or behind of the suggested order.) Every student who purchases access to the online instructional videos can download a copy of the curriculum for the belt level purchased. You can also purchase the textbooks that go along with the curriculum, Move-A-Day BJJ: A Daily Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Desktop Reference, and Brazilian Jiu-JItsu: Surviving the Journey to Black Belt in either e-book or hard copy format.

My desire is to give you the ultimate experience in structured learning for BJJ.

Coach Credentials

Darin ReislerOwner/Head Instructor at Plus One Defense Systems

Darin has been recognized as a “Soke,” “Sensei,” “Sifu,” “Kru,” and “Professor” throughout his coaching years. In addition to publishing two books, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Surviving the Journey to Black Belt and Move-A-Day BJJ : A Daily Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Desktop Reference, Darin was also on the Advisory Counsel for the Style of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu- United Martial Arts Alliance in 2014. He was deemed Martial Arts Health & Fitness Association Hall of Fame Induction- Soke of the Year in 2009 and Action Martial Arts Magazine’s Hall of Honors Induction as a Master Instructor. In 2006, he was a US Martial Arts Hall of Fame Induction and was awarded United Martial Arts Alliance Instructor of the Year in 2005. 

Book This Course...

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The WKF Karate 1-Series A is a world-class competition that provides karatekas around the world with more competitive opportunities to shine at the highest level. The first event of the season is held in Guadalajara (Spain) in a record-breaking competition. [Video Below] Go to karateworld.tv to watch more Karate events LIVE. SUBSCRIBE ► http://bit.ly/N7c4H0 Official World Karate Federation YouTube channel for the distribution and broadcast of Karate Championships.

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The Ten Important Strikes You Must Master for MMA

by Rich Alten

About this Course

Learn The ten most important strikes that should be mastered for MMA. These striking techniques have been modified specifically to be more adaptable to mixed martial arts competitions, and under the unified rules. This course also covers the important global principles that make up an effective strike and striking system. Regardless of your gender, weight class or style of fighting, the physics and science of these tactics and techniques can help anyone become a more well rounded MMA striker very quickly.

Coach Credentials

Rich AltenA Comprehensive Cutting Edge Innovative MMA System to Improve all Fighters Knowledge Base and Skills

 I am one of the few MMA coaches that has stepped outside the traditional and common forms of mixed martial training regimes, and discovered a detailed comprehensive dynamic method to improving MMA striking techniques. I greatly believe that martial arts should be approached first and foremost from the correct applications of physics and body mechanics. Regardless of what style(s) you study. I believe you should study concepts before techniques as a base for quicker understanding, and learning.the technical applications of all techniques first.
I have study many styles of combat such as western and European boxing, Wing Chun, Jeet Kun Do, Shotokan karate, American Kenpo, Mauy That, Taekwondo, Jun Fan Gung Fu, along with many others.

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“WTF IS THIS?”: BEHIND THE SCENES

Presented on US Sports Net By BPI Sports!

• By Team BPI
 

So you’ve seen the “WTF is This?” videos, but who are these guys? Why are we featuring them in our videos? Today we’re going to give you a bit of background info on our customer service reps and how they became the stars of your favorite series.

DEREK ROTH (BETTER KNOWN AS DT)

Age: 28
Height: 5’10
Weight: 235 (stage), 275 (off-season)

FITNESS LIFE:

DT is originally from Ft. Lauderdale. His fitness journey began in high school, where he played football. When he graduated in 2008, he was overweight and didn’t like the person he saw staring back at him in the mirror. He decided to make a change.

On his journey from “fat to fit,” as he called it, he found every resource he could to learn his body and all the ways he could change it – YouTube videos, nutrition articles, training programs, etc. I looked at bodybuilders like Jay Cutler and wanted to be just as big and ripped.

DT started bodybuilding when he was 22. He competed in his last show when he was 24 (4 years ago), but now he’s finally ready to get back into it. His next show, the NPC Southern States Championships is only a little over a month away. It’s one of the biggest in Florida, and has always been on his list of shows he’d like to compete in.

After his time away, he’s slowly gotten back into the sport of bodybuilding, but this show gives him the opportunity to get his name back out there. To help him get the outcome he wants, he hired Nick trigili as his trainer. Nick is an IFBB Pro bodybuilder and owns World Class Trainers. He’s one of the top up-and-coming trainers, and DT says he’s made huge improvements to his physique in as little as a few weeks.

When we asked what the hardest part of bodybuilding was for him, DT responded with “self-doubt.” He explains that he’s constantly wondering if he’s good enough. Despite the physical transformation from who he was as a kid, he’s still the same, insecure guy inside. And the easiest part? Eating, of course!

PERSONAL LIFE:

Sorry, ladies, this guy is off limits. DT has been with his girlfriend, Adriana for one year. The two met on Bumble, where DT was originally attracted to the fact that Adriana was a massage therapist. As a bodybuilder, your muscles and joints are constantly out of whack, so selfishly, he thought having a girlfriend around to help him work through those issues would be great! Luckily, it turns out she had a lot more going for her, too.

Today, the two love birds live together with their two dogs, Xena and Loki. Xena was rescued from the Humane Society after DT and Adriana watched The Jungle Book and couldn’t help fawning over the wolf puppies (no… really). Originally a bait dog, Xena was very timid and scared at first. To help her feel more at home, DT and Adriana decided to adopt another dog to be her friend.

Enter Loki. When they picked him out at the shelter, the 8-week old puppy had earned the name Mr. Grumpy. It didn’t take too long to turn his frown upside down though. Now, the two dogs are besties and round out DT and Adriana’s small little family.

WORK LIFE:

DT has worked at BPI for four years now. He originally started in domestic sales, moved over to international sales, then outside sales, and now works as a customer service rep. He had always wanted to work in sports nutrition, so he turned his relationships with several staff members into his first job at the company.

Now, he enjoys working in customer service because it allows him to help people. He likes offering advice on the right products and solving people’s problems. He also likes knowing that he’s helping BPI become the “best supplement company in the industry.”

And then of course, there’s Mark, who he loves working with. According to DT, they have a very “good cop/bad cop dynamic. He’s very PC and I’m not.” I think it’s fair to say that this is what comes through in the “WTF is This?” videos as well. So what you’re seeing really is what you get with these guys.

MARK GRIMM

Age: 28
Height: 5’9
Weight: 195

FITNESS LIFE:

Mark actually has a very similar back story to DT. He first started working out in high school because he was overweight. He started running on the treadmill and lost 30 lbs.! His success inspired him to get involved with MMA, which he did for 4 years. He even went to Thailand for six weeks to train. However, his trip there was the beginning of the end.

In Thailand, he found that everyone who practiced martial arts had more respect for form and skill vs. the focus on violence and hurting someone here in the states. When he came back to U.S., he was turned off by the whole approach to MMA; but he still wanted a focus for his workouts. So he turned to bodybuilding.

After about two years, he started doing StrongMan. He liked that it was measurable, not subjective like bodybuilding. Honestly, he also liked the ego boost of being able to pick up a massive rock and carry it across the room. However, his StrongMan days only lasted for about 6 months. His coach at the time was also a CrossFit coach, so it wasn’t long before he convinced Mark to try it.

He started doing CrossFit, and worked his way up to competitions, which he stuck with for about three years. Like StrongMan, he liked that it was measurable, that it was always competitive, and that he always had a challenge to work towards.

From there, Mark started doing Olympic Weightlifting. For about a year, it overlapped with his CrossFit training, but for the past three years, he’s been exclusive. He likes that the sport requires so much precision and attention to detail. One wrong move and the lift is wrong. He admits he has some OCD tendencies so this precision helps him keep them in check.

In the short term, his goal is to make in on the podium at the Olympic Weightlifting State Championships in October. There, he hopes to qualify for the American Open Finals (aka the Arnold of Olympic Weightlifting). In the long term, he wants to qualify for Nationals.

Mark has come a long way since his high school days. But the biggest change? His mentality.

“I used to work out just to lose weight. Now it’s about challenging myself and learning how I can continue to improve.”

WORK LIFE:

Mark started in the fitness industry as a manager at GNC. There, he met a BPI sales rep and the two became fast friends. He was soon recruited as an outside sales guy in St. Louis. Next, he moved to Chicago as the Midwest Sales Rep, and about a year ago, moved to FL to work at BPI’s headquarters.

As a customer service rep, he enjoys the fact that he has more interaction with customers. It’s more hands on and he no longer has to work out of his car! Plus, he gets to help with the “WTF is This?” videos.

Compared to the rest of the content put out by the fitness industry, Mark appreciates that the videos are different. He and DT get to be themselves and help simplify the complicated supplement industry for the everyday person.

“When I first started, I didn’t know half the stuff I know now,” he says. “So I can relate.”

As DT said, Mark likes working with his partner in crime because they’re polar opposites.

“He’s act first, think later and I’m a planner; very by the book. It’s perfect because we balance each other out. My way isn’t always the best way and working with DT has helped me learn that.”

PERSONAL LIFE:

You guessed it: Mark has been spoken for as well.

Mark’s girlfriend, Anna, is from Ukraine. They’ve been together for year and a half now, and bond over their mutual love for fitness. She also competes, but as a bodybuilder (figure) and a power lifter. She loves to bake – particularly when it comes to adding protein to anything and everything. Mark says it makes bulking fun, but don’t get the wrong idea. Anna only uses clean ingredients. Prep can be a stressful time, so baking helps her relax.

Anna has a 9-year-old daughter, Nicole, and the couple is also raising two rescue pitbulls, Akuma and Piglet.

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