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Perhaps the most genetically gifted (and certainly one of the strongest) Starting Strength Coaches joins us today, Mr. Nick D'Agostino. Nick has been an SSC since 2012, and will soon call himself a Physical Therapist as well. Unlike many of the coaches we have interviewed who began with the Starting Strength method and the novice linear progression, Nick was already a strong lifter before he discovered Starting Strength at a lecture by PT and SSC, Dr. John Petrizzo (who we interviewed on Episode 75).

Matt and Scott bring on Eric Shugars of Westminster Strength to talk about his path to becoming a Starting Strength Coach through Beau Bryant's internship program, and how he has developed inroads with local high school sports teams.

Matt and Scott talk once more to frequent guest Robert Santana, RD, SSC, about a common complaint of middle aged trainees... the skinny-fat body. These trainees have a normal BMI (between 20-25) yet low muscle mass and high bodyfat. Trainees like this often come to Santana desiring a leaner physique, especially visible abs, but the path to this goal is usually longer than they realize.

Scott and Matt interview Starting Strength Coach Michael Burgos about his transition from occupational therapy into the field of strength coaching. Burgos trained as an occupational therapist and certified hand specialist, but despite his dedication and commitment to helping his patients, he eventually became disenchanted with the relentless productivity culture in the field which demanded long hours -- 12hrs a day, often 6 or 7 days a week.

Our friend Robert "Bob-tana" Santana is back on the podcast to talk more about nutrition and diet. Since joining SSOC as the head nutrition coach, Santana has evolved his approach to coaching clients to reach their body composition goals. Observing that the biggest hurdle for clients was their compliance with eating their prescribed macros, he now offers more guidance on meal planning with specific foods to show clients what compliance looks like on a day-to-day, meal-to-meal basis.

Matt and Scott interview Starting Strength Coach John Musser about his career in law enforcement and high-level security detail. Musser's experience in security has taught him to be detailed and probe for things that don't fit into known patterns. Importantly, he says, you have to search for the facts you don't know, which can be uncomfortable for most people. Yet this is where Coach Musser thrives, and the same attention to detail has made him an excellent coach.

Andy Baker is back for another episode, and today he's tackling hypertrophy for the intermediate lifter. After walking through his preferred strategies for implementing a Heavy/Light/Medium (HLM) model during the intermediate phase, Andy explains the need for most intermediate lifters to gain muscle mass without necessarily a lot of excess bodyweight. This is particularly true for older lifters, he observes, and women, who cannot metabolize a lot of excess calories after the novice phase like younger males.

Matt and Scott interview Angie Bryant, a Starting Strength Coach, Physician Assistant, lecturer, gym owner, and mother of four. Angie is clearly a busy lady, yet she still manages to train consistently amid the chaos of juggling family and several jobs. She firmly believes that women, and especially mothers, should take time to incorporate strength training in their lives for the physical, mental, and aesthetic benefits.

Andy Baker, co-author of Practical Programming 3rd Edition, returns to the podcast to talk about advanced programming. Practical Programming defines advanced trainees broadly as those having fully exhausted linear progression, no longer able to make workout to workout, or even week to week progress. Advanced trainees must make progress on longer scales, usually over months of training.

Matt and Scott interview the man behind the Starting Strength Instagram (and it's memes), coach Pete Troupos. Pete is a Starting Strength Coach currently based out of Dallas, TX. He is also an SSOC coach as well as the organizer for all Starting Strength lifting camps across the country, so he is well versed in the Starting Strength model and the variety of coaches in the organization.