Costa Rica Underground S&C 2018 Retreat Review

I recently had the opportunity to attend a strength and conditioning retreat hosted by none other than the legendary Ben House at his Flo Retreat Center. The retreat consisted of a morning filled with meditating, writing, thinking, and of course learning. Afternoons were time to bro down with fellow bros at the beach, on hikes, and exploring all the wonders that Costa Rica has to offer. The experience was life changing for me. Very rarely do I get a chance to be a part of a community like we had in Costa Rica, especially as a mercenary PT. I had the opportunity to learn from great people, share phenomenal moments, and make new friendships that I hope last a lifetime. If you want to get schmarter, meet amazing people, or simply get away from the riggers of a overconnected environment, I strongly encourage you to sign up for one of these retreats. I’m hoping to be there again next year. Without further adieu, if you want some knowledge bombs from the heavy hitters who were there, check out the review below.  

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Why You Need Sun Exposure

Do you get out in the sun at all? Increasing my sun time has done wonders for my energy and sleep levels, and it’s an area we probably don’t hear enough about. That’s why I brought my buddy/fam/mentee/amazing Canadian physio Iordan Krouchev to teach y’all about all things related to sun exposure. In this post, he educates you about how to safely be out in the sun, and dispels many common myths surrounding the sun. Read this, enjoy, follow Iordan on Facebook, and get outside afterwards 🙂 All praise the sun For eons, humanity has worshipped the sun very well knowing that without “it”, there would be no “us”. Helios, son of the Titans Theia and Hyperion, drove his fiery chariot from East to West every single day keeping Homer, Socrates and all our other beloved philosophers alive. As much as the sun was venerated, its power was also feared. Losing control over the chariot, Helios’ son Phaethon set the Earth on fire and was quickly struck down by Zeus killing him on the spot in order to avoid the end of mortals. We now know that nor Helios, Ra, Belenus (Celtic), Xihe (Chinese; she also almost led to everything burning) or Surya (Hinduism) are the source of light and life on our planet. However, the fascination, adoration and fright of our ancestors of all cultures was well justified. Without the sun, or with changes in its activity, life as we know it would likely cease. Fast forward to 2018.

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June 2018 Links and Review

Every week, my newsletter subscribers get links to some of the goodies that I’ve come across on the internets. Here were the goodies that my peeps got their learn on in June. If you want to get a copy of my weekend learning goodies every Friday, fill out the form below.  That way you can brag to all your friends about the cool things you’ve learned over the weekend. [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Hell yes I want weekend learning goodies every Friday!”]

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The Reckoning: Part Deux Course Review

I recently had the opportunity to attend The Reckoning: Part Deux, a course taught by Dr. Pat Davidson and Dr. Ben House. The host was my boi, Mike Ranfone. This course focused on two concepts: understanding evolutionary history to influence programming (Pat’s talk),  and discussing all things hypertrophy, fat loss, health, and nutrition (Ben’s talk). I’ve heard Pat speak in the past, and always appreciate his drawing from many aspects of science to influence programming. His evolution discussion led to many light bulbs going off. What had me really excited was to hear Ben speak. I have several colleagues who speak highly of his work, and given that nutrition/functional medicine is a weak point in my game, I wanted to hear his perspective. Let’s just say, neither of the doctors disappointed. There was an excellent mix of theoretical and practical application, and both fellas approached performance from such different angles that the Reckoning as a whole was beyond comprehensive. If you get a chance to hear either of these guys talk, sign up yesterday, you won’t regret it.

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Paleofx 2018 Conference Review

I decided to get out of my comfort zone, and attended the health conference, PaleoFx. This conference covered a wide variety of topics and products, ranging from stem cells to pesticides, and everything in between. I appreciate the approach that most people in this domain take towards health and wellness, and being here made me realize both how important nutrition is, and how little I know about the topic. I look forward to diving more into this domain over the next several years. Check out the video review, then read my course notes below.

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May 2018 Links and Review

Every week, my newsletter subscribers get links to some of the goodies that I’ve come across on the internets. Here were the goodies that my peeps got their learn on in May. If you want to get a copy of my weekend learning goodies every Friday, fill out the form below.  That way you can brag to all your friends about the cool things you’ve learned over the weekend. [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Hell yes I want weekend learning goodies every Friday!”]

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April 2018 Links and Review

Every week, my newsletter subscribers get links to some of the goodies that I’ve come across on the internets. Here were the goodies that my peeps got their learn on in April. If you want to get a copy of my weekend learning goodies every Friday, fill out the form below.  That way you can brag to all your friends about the cool things you’ve learned over the weekend. [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Hell yes I want weekend learning goodies every Friday!”]

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You’re Hurt, Now What?

Getting hurt. It happens. Many times when it does, your mind will end up racing. What should I do? Should I go see a doctor? Do I just wait it out? What can I do to help me get back on my feet faster? Without a guide, these questions may seem impossible to answer. Until now. Check out today’s podcast and post that creates for you a standard operating procedure anytime an injury is sustained.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Over the last year I’ve been asked a bunch of questions, and I’ve tried to answer them immediately. Instead of sifting through all my Movement Debriefs to get your answer, maybe you just want to get a quick answer and then go apply what you learned. Or maybe you can only stand listening to me for so long. I GET IT! Well, look no further. Below is a link to every question that I have answered thus far on my Movement Debriefs. While I won’t continually update this post, going to my FAQ page will be updated after each debrief. If you have a question, just sign up for my newsletter, and when the next email comes by, just hit reply and I will do my darndest to answer yours. [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Yeah, I want Zac to A my Q”] Learn away my fam! Continuing Education   PRI vs. DNS Exercise Coaching Anchoring Old Movements to New Coaching Progressions Getting Changes to Stick Home Exercise Execution Lower Body Death of the Vertical Tibia Slideboards Squats Performance Agility Programming Exercise Programming Periodizing Physical Therapy Sessions Upper Body Dead Hangs   Overhead Pressing Pushups vs. Quad Sets   Health and Wellness The Off-Switch Sleeping Tips for New Parents Stress Response Taking care of your health Personal Development Daily Routines Building Daily Routines Deciding What to Learn Just in Time Learning Embracing Failure Detaching Refocusing Check Your Ego The Art of the Debrief Work-Life Balance Professional Development Questions to ask an interviewer New

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January Links and Review

Every week, my newsletter subscribers get links to some of the goodies that I’ve come across on the internets. Here were the goodies that my peeps got their learn on in January. If you want to get a copy of my weekend learning goodies every Friday, fill out the form below.  That way you can brag to all your friends about the cool things you’ve learned over the weekend. [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Hell yes I want weekend learning goodies every Friday!”]

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Speeches, Hip Openers, and PRI vs DNS – Movement Debrief Episode 32

Movement Debrief Episode 32 is in the books. Here is a copy of the video and audio for your listening pleasure. Here is the set list: How do I organize a talk or course? How do I get speaking engagements? Should we be performing hip openers? How do I integrate PRI and DNS into rehab and performance? Is there a dichotomy between PRI and DNS? Why we need to transcend commercial models What things I am learning now Why a clamshell won’t destroy Usain Bolt   If you want to watch these live, add me on Facebook, Instagram, or Youtube. They air every Wednesday at 7:30pm CST. Enjoy!                    Here were the links I mentioned: Explain Pain Supercharged Slideology Sign up for my newsletter to access my Practical Pain Education and Respiration Revisited talk [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Oh, free talks sound cool”] Ben Fergus guest post on squatting Effect of Changes in Pelvic Tilt on Range of Motion to Impingement and Radiographic Parameters of Acetabular Morphologic Characteristics An Anatomic Investigation of the Obers Test Barking Up the Wrong Tree: The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong  Oxygen Advantage Enhancing Life Method Strength Andy Mccloy  Trevor LaSarre Here’s a signup for my newsletter to get nearly 3 hours and 50 pages of content, a free acute:chronic workload calculator, basketball conditioning program, podcasts, and weekend learning goodies: [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Get learning goodies and more”]   Speeches Hip Openers PRI vs DNS

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Top 10 Posts of 2017

At the end of each year, I like to see what you beautiful…sexy…outstanding people liked the most from the jazz I be putting out. I want to understand you. Let me in!!!! While most of the top 10 were in the exercise-specific realm, I didn’t really see a common trend. It seems as though my fam have eclectic tastes. It’s probably why we get along so well! I want to thank you, the fam, for making 2017 an outstanding year. It has been all the comments, questions, stories, and praise that keeps me outputting content for you. I got some big things planned for 2018, and we may mix up the format a bit, but I think you will like the changes. But enough rambling. Let’s check out the top 10. First off… 10. Resilient Movement Foundations Course Review One of my favorite classes of the year,  put on by my fam from Resilient. Here we learned all the fundamental keys to effective movement, how to perform the big lifts savagely well, and how to use specific movements to improve joint position in these lifts. Follow these guys, they are some of the biggest stewards of the profession. 9. Practical Pain Education My thoughts on pain education have morphed a substantial degree over the past year. While I think my understanding of pain’s complexities have enhanced, I’ve worked on simplifying my education paradigms. I’ve often found that going down the neurophysiological rabbit hole is completely unnecessary, and providing simple examples

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