Smarter Strength w/ Dr. David Skolnik, DPT

Our guest today is Chris Phillips. Chris is a US Army Veteran who conducted 4 tours of Afghanistan and Iraq as an Infantryman.  In 2019, a solider Chris has been especially close with took his own life, and Chris decided it was time to do something. So he created Quality Resilience Fitness, QRF Fit for short, a non-profit organization that uses their proceeds to help veterans pay for gym memberships, entrance fees into lifting competitions, and to find community through fitness. His ultimate goal is to make sure that our Military Veterans know they are not along, and there is always someone here to support them.

Follow Chris - @qrffit
Follow David - @dr.davidskolnik.dpt
Follow the Show - @essential.strength.podcast

Stronger Than Stigma

I’m really proud, and excited to announce that Chris, Myself and previous guest on the show Crystal Miranda have teamed up to launch the Stronger Than Stigma Initiative. This is a fund-raising initiative to support the work that is being done by Chris through QRF Fit and by Crystal through her non-profit, The Healthy Mind Movement. Stigma is harmful. It breeds bias, appropriates misinformation, and acts like fertilizer for fear. But we can be STRONGER THAN STIGMA. We can choose to understand that our differences are beautiful, that “normal” doesn’t exist, that we are all humans, we all struggle, we all feel uncomfortable in our own skin at times, and there is no place for discrimination rooted in willful ignorance. Chris, Crystal and myself have designed limited release apparel to support this initiative, with all proceeds to be shared between QRF Fit and The Healthy Mind Movement to support the important work they are doing to bring and end to mental health stigma and veteran suicide. All the information you need to get involved will be available at thehealthymindmovement.org,  QRFfitness.com and StrongerInMotion.com

Action Plan

Your action plan is to GET INVOLVED with the Stronger Than Stigma Initiative!

Whether that means purchasing a shirt or hoody, sending a link out to friends and family, sharing this podcast, or re-posting the Stronger Than Stigma content on Instagram - IT ALL COUNTS AND WE LOVE YOU FOR MAKING THE EFFORT. This is about giving back. This is about using your platform, no matter how big or how small, to make a difference.  YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE for people, veterans or otherwise, struggling with their mental health right now. So take action!

That’s it for this week, until next time we with you STRENGTH and GOOD HEALTH.

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Our guest today is Jumha Aburezeq. Jumha is the founder and head nutrition coach at StoopidFit, a health and wellness brand focused on helping people to live a healthier lifestyle as simply as possible. By focusing on simple actionable habits, Coach Jumha has helped hundreds of people lose weight, gain confidence, and feel better than they ever have before. In today’s conversation Jumha and I talk about the biggest pitfalls that trip people up when they are trying to loose fat and change their relationship with food. We talk about the STOOPID easy thing people overlook when it comes for fat loss and sustainable dieting and I get to learn about Jumha’s pet peeves in the diet industry, the advice and content that he wishes would just go away and never come back.

Follow Jumha - @stoopidfit
Follow David - @dr.davidskolnik.dpt
Follow the Show - @essential.strength.podcast
Download Jumha's Free E-Book - The Nutrition Manual: Mastering Your Diet Made Simple

Today's Partner

FNX Fitness - Our partner on today’s episode is FNX Fitness. FNX Fitness is my go-to sports nutrition and supplement brand and and couple of their products are staples of my morning ritual. One of these products is their Rebalance Super Greens. Rebalance supports immune health and digestive health and is the MOST convenient way to boost your nutrient intake on a day to day basis.
Use code ESSENTIALSTRENGTH at checkout to get 15% off every purchase of Rebalance Super Greens or any other FNX products!

Your Action Plan for the week:

This week’s action plan consists of two STOOPID easy things you can do improve your fat loss, if this is a goal of yours.

1. Will you try Jumha’s secret fat loss supplement? AKA can you get 30 extra minutes of sleep each night this week?
2. Can you add some color to your plate at each meal this week? Fruit or veggies - the brighter the better!

And if you want to be an overachiever - do a little journaling to really solidify these two actions. Write about how you feel at the end of each day, and in the morning, was it harder or easier than you thought to get more color on your plate? Does this feel sustainable? I’m really just trying to make you think a bit more deeply about this stuff, because the idea of starting a weight loss journey is scary and overwhelming to think about, and focusing on the small, simple changes and their impacts on how you think and feel can be the gentle nudge you need to get started.

That’s it for today. Until next time, I wish you STRENGTH and GOOD HEALTH.

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Today’s guest is Gini Grimsley - Gini is the Director of Fitness Product for VASA Fitness. She is known for creating cutting-edge programming and introducing approachable, results-driven fitness concepts. She enjoys any opportunity to empower the next generation of fitness professionals and is passionate about furthering their education and expertise to provide opportunities for development and career advancement.

Today's conversation spans everything from the common strengths and weaknesses of new fitness professionals, how to build a brand, how to build teams, and how VASA balances aggressive growth in the gym industry while raising the bar on personal training services for their members.

Follow Gini @gdotperiod
Follow David @dr.davidskolnik.dpt
Follow the Show @essential.strength.podcast

Today's Partner:

GetPPSC - a ground breaking educational platform for Health & Fitness professionals worldwide, offering the Pain Free Performance Certification Course. This course will teach you how to train SMARTER, train HARDER and stay HEALTHIER.
For 10% off any in-person course, go to www.getppsc.com/events and use the code essential at checkout.

Your Action Plan for the week:

This weeks Action Plan is specifically for the health and fitness professionals out there - I want you take a pulse check on your approach with clients and patients. Specifically, I want you to check on your approachability. If you’ve been in the game for a while, have you become excessively calloused by the number of clients who don’t follow through on their goals? If you’re newer to the profession, are you trying so hard to sound knowledgeable that you’re losing the human connection? And if you’re somewhere in between, are you effectively balancing results-driven interventions with empowering communication and energy? I know that I need to more committed to effective communication, especially with my remote clients - that’s my big focus this week. I hope you find this exercise insightful and motivating…

And until next week, I wish you STRENGTH and GOOD HEALTH.

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Hello my Friends! And welcome  back to The Essential Strength Podcast!

Our Partner on today's show is FNX Fit - maker of Rebalance Super Greens and tons of other amazing performance nutrition and supplementation products. Hitting this link RIGHT HERE or using the code "ESSENTIALSTRENGTH" will get you 15% off your entire purchase - protein, creatine, a sleep aid, some krill oil, pre-workout... it's all there and it's all Uhh-Mazing.  
 ........

Today’s guest is Sam Johnson.  Native to Portland, Oregon, Sam is passionate about leading all people to live a sustainable, strong, healthy lifestyle.  He is the owner of Strength Farm in Southwest Portland, and has 10+ years of coaching experience as well as personally competing in the CrossFit Games, USAW Weightlifting Nationals, and numerous sports give him a unique perspective to help Athletes reach their Goals.  His prior experience as a Staff Sergeant in the United States Air Force for 7 years also gives him a unique perspective to help military members train to be mentally and physically prepared for service. No matter who you are or what you do, Sam believes Strength is for you.

Sam recently turned all took all these experiences and forged them into a multi-disciplinary training system Called SFX Athletes that focuses on strength, speed, conditioning and mobility for building explosive performance in athletes. For everyone listening - if you would like to try a FREE 30 day trial of SFX Athletes, Sam has shared links for both Apple and Android users.

Action Plan

Sam knows his worth. He knows that he has a system that works. A body of knowledge that is valuable, and he has the track record of success to back it all up. As he said plainly, he doesn’t give a damn what other people think of his methods, because his methods speak for themselves. I’d encourage each of you listening to take time this week to reflect on your areas of expertise, the concepts and skills you’ve poured yourself into and make an effort to give yourself some credit for that work. It’s all to0 easy to put more stock in what others think of us than what we think of ourselves, regardless of the evidence all around us. If you’re good at something, or great at something - give yourself the credit you deserve this week!

.......

Until next time - I wish you Strength and Good Health.

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Welcome to another episode of The Essential Strength Podcast. Our guest this week is Crystal Miranda.

Crystal Miranda is a clinical social worker and a currently pursuing her PhD in psychology. Her area of research is examining the experience of utilizing emotional states to enhance performance among strength athletes. Crystal is also the founder of The Healthy Mind Movement – A non-profit organization that aims to promote mental wellness and self-growth through evidence-based information and community immersion.

In today’s conversation, I ask Crystal about how psychological pathologies have been used to label people and how she helps people separate themselves from their diagnosis. We talk about alternative coping mechanisms that can aid us in dealing with difficult times, and about how Crystal helps the folks she works with realize that even strong people can struggle with mental health. 

Connect

To learn amore about Crystal and the work she is doing, you can check out The Health Mind Movement on both Instagram and Facebook, or to straight to www.thehealthmindmovement.org

If you enjoyed this podcast, and want to help us grow and get stronger - screen shot this episode and post in on social media. Tag the podcast @essential.strength.podcast and tag me @dr.davidskolnik.dpt - let us know you’re listening. Send this podcast to a friend or colleague that needs to hear it. And, as always, subscribe, rate and review the show. It only takes a few seconds to have an outsized impact on the future of this podcast!

Action Plan

You’re Action Plan for the week is this:

Stop forcing yourself into someone else’s definition of “self love” or “mindfulness” - If journaling frustrates you, like it frustrates Miranda - find another way to get your thoughts out of your head. If sitting and meditating frustrates you the way it frustrates me - go for a walk with your favorite music playing through your headphones and maybe the incessant thoughts careening around your mind will start to settle a bit. Long story short - find what makes your mind happy and healthy.


Alright, that’s it for this week. Until next time, we wish you STRENGTH and GOOD HEALTH.

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

What’s up everybody, welcome to this week’s episode of Health & Fitness Friday on The Essential Strength Podcast. This is your 5 minute download of some health and fitness knowledge meant to make you a little bit smarter and a little bit stronger as you head into the weekend!

Last week, we started the conversation about corrective exercise, some of it’s limitations, and I gave you my thoughts on whether or not it’s still useful. Today, we’re going to continue that conversation with the number one, most important consideration and caveat for using corrective exercises that will enhance pt and client outcomes.

Just like last week, this conversation is framed by a recent article from Barbell Rehab which can be found on the reading list at StrongerInMotion.com. 

Long story short - Words Matter. Language Matters.

If you, as a coach or clinician, feel that you need to break a person down and show them all the areas where they are broken, so that you can then sell your services as the “fix” - you’re creating more problems then you are solving. If, however, you can prop up your clients and patients, show them all the ways in which they are strong and robust AND help them address specific dimensions of their physical capacity that are not yet optimal - then you are truly using corrective exercise in its more power and empowering form.

That’s it for this week on Health & Fitness Friday - tune in next week as we dive into an entirely new topic!

Appreciate each and every one of you! Catch ya’ll next week!

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Our guest this week is Greg Everett, owner of Catalyst Athletics and author of the new book “Tough”

As the subtitle of Greg’s book explains, this book is a guide to building true mental, physical & emotional toughness for success & fulfillment. It’s about a lot more than how to be the traditional vision of a “tough guy” - and in today’s conversation we talk about why clearly defining your values and purpose are foundational to becoming tough, the four C’s that define toughness for Greg, and why tough people should have a journaling routine.

To connect with Greg, give him a follow on Instagram where he is @catalystathletics and to order the book online you can check out becomingtough.com where you will find a ton of absolutely glowing reviews for this book. 

This conversation is not what you might expect.  A world renowned olympic weightlifting coach, on the Essential Strength Podcast, talking about toughness - and we’re having a conversation about fulfillment, empathy, journaling and discovering your true purpose.

But that’s the point - being tough doesn’t mean falling in line with some pre-historic definition of being the burly man who shoves their feelings down into the deepest recesses of their brain, carries a big stick around and pretends that nothing hurts. Being tough is about having the courage to identify what sets your soul on fire, creates that greatest good in the world and being tough enough to stay authentic to those things.

Action Plan

Your action plan this week is simple - start a journaling practice. Try it for at least two solid weeks. I know I was super resistant to this for a long time but in the last 4 weeks of podcasts, we’ve had an Olympic athlete, world record-holding powerlifter and author/weightlifting coach all have one thing in common - they are adamant about the incredible power of journaling. So start - TODAY - by writing down one thing you are grateful for and one affirmation - an “I am”, “I can” or “I will” statement - and do that each day for 2 weeks. I’ve been doing it for about 4 weeks now, not perfectly, but as many mornings as I remember too, and I can say the mornings I write down my gratitude and my affirmation always set me up for a great day.

Alright, that’s it for this week. Until next time, we wish you STRENGTH and GOOD HEALTH!

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

This week, we are talking about the concept of Corrective Exercise, and as always this conversation is framed by the latest article that we posted on the Reading List at StrongerInMotion.com. The title of the article is: Revisiting the Corrective Exercise Conundrum, written by Dr. Ben Geierman and published by our friends at Barbell Rehab.

Recently, the Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy published an editorial that included the following statement:

"In physical therapy, management paradigms for various musculoskeletal conditions are dominated by identifying abnormalities in posture and alignment, among others, Most abnormalities have NO ASSOCIATION with pain or disability, challenging the use of corrective exercises.”

So…what might this mean for physical therapist and coaches? Particularly for those who have found consistent success with corrective exercise prescription?

Just because more recent research indicates corrective exercise isn’t the super start we once thought it was, doesn’t mean that utilizing it was totally wrong, and that continuing to incorporate it into practice is “bad”. It means there is more to learn - shocker - and time to add additional tools to our professional tool belts.

For more on what kind of tools we should be adding, you’ll have to tune in next Friday when we conclude this conversation on corrective exercise.

In the meantime: If you appreciate this podcast, and the topics we cover each week, do us a favor - screen shot this episode and post in on social media. Tag the podcast @essential.strength.podcast and tag me @dr.davidskolnik.dpt - let us know you’re listening. Send this podcast to a friend or colleague that needs to hear it. And, as always, subscribe, rate and review the show. It only takes a few seconds to have an outsized impact on the future of this podcast!

Appreciate each and every one of you! Catch ya’ll next week!

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Our guest this week is none other than Stacy ‘Bama’ Burr.

Bama is a former competitive power lifter who, in 2019, achieved her lifelong goal of becoming the Strongest Woman in the World, achieving a powerlifting total of 1,435lbs - including a 565lb squat, a 320lb bench press and a 550lb deadlift - all while weighing in at only 148lbs bodyweight.

The road to this achievement was extremely rocky. She lost friends, lost touch with family, and nearly lost herself to a battle with depression and hopelessness when her goals seemed out of reach. But she battled back, continued to do the work, and ultimately achieved everything she set out to in the sport of powerlifting. These days, Bama is traveling around the country hosting workshops where she teaches others how to build a Champion Mindset, which is how I was fortunate enough to connect with her. Stacy also hosts a weekly podcast called The Champion Mindset Podcast, and she coaches powerlifting athletes and anyone who wants to get strong through her training and coaching company - Bama Brick Squad. 

You guys are in for a treat today, and you’re guaranteed to leave with strategies you can implement TODAY to start living like a champion.

As you listen, don’t hesitate to hit pause and take notes, send this episode to a friend, or snap a screenshot of the podcast and post it on social media (just tag me - @dr.davidskolnik.dpt and Bama - @bamaburr) - because everyone deserves to live like a champion!

Action Plan

Your action plan for the week is this:

Make your bed. And I mean that both literally and figuratively. First, literally make your bed or Bama is gonna come knockin’ at your door and you don’t want that. Second, on the more metaphorical level, start taking steps to make small things into big habits. Practice being disciplined in the shallow end before going to the high dive. The results of small disciplines will surprise you.

Alright, that’s it for this week. Until next time, we wish you STRENGTH and GOOD HEALTH.

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt

Welcome to this week’s episode of Health & Fitness Friday on The Essential Strength Podcast. This is your 5 minute download of some health and fitness knowledge meant to make you a little bit smarter and a little bit stronger as you head into the weekend!

Today we are going to finish the conversation we started two weeks ago about Why Fitness isn’t Essential in America. In part one, we discusses the ways in which the fitness industry itself - and how we represent ourselves to the public - is largely responsible for the disconnect between the way fitness professionals view their services, and how most American’s view “fitness”.

This episode outlines 4 strategies we can implement RIGHT AWAY as coaches, trainers and business owners to make ourselves ESSENTIAL in the eyes of the public. And just like last time, today’s conversation draws on information from the an article posted on John Rusin’s blog, authored by Kevin Mullins, and which can be found by going to strongerinmotion.com/reading-list where it is the first article you’ll see pop up!

The Four Strategies:

1.  Implement "Five Star Standards"
2. Passion Based Service
3. Word of Mouth and Results Based Referrals
4. Build a Community Based on More Than Fitness

Be An Active Listener

If you appreciate this podcast, and the topics we cover each week, do us a favor - screen shot this episode and post in on social media. Tag the podcast @essential.strength.podcast and tag me @dr.davidskolnik.dpt - let us know you’re listening. Send this podcast to a friend or colleague that needs to hear it. And, as always, subscribe, rate and review the show. It only takes a few seconds to have an outsized impact on the future of this podcast!

Appreciate each and every one of you! Catch ya’ll next week!

Want more content? Follow Dr. David on Instagram: @dr.davidskolnik.dpt