Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

If you have ever hesitated when a client asks, “What muscle is that supposed to work?”, this shoulder anatomy breakdown is for you. We make the case that the most important skill for becoming a qualified personal trainer is mastering anatomy, because confidence is not a vibe. It is earned, and clients can tell when you have it. When you sound unsure, people default to objections like “It is too expensive” or “Let me think about it.” When you can speak clearly about the body, trust goes up and sales friction goes down.

We share what we see trainers struggle with most, from assessments and programming around pain to getting clients and charging what they are worth. Then we teach the shoulder the practical way: by mapping the 17 shoulder muscles and putting them into a study order you can actually remember. You will hear how pectoralis major and the deltoid each have three distinct parts, why biceps brachii and triceps brachii matter at the shoulder, and how the trapezius, serratus anterior, rhomboids, and latissimus dorsi shape scapular control in real training.

We also drill the rotator cuff muscles (supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, subscapularis) and the big takeaway that matters for programming and shoulder pain: their number one job is to stabilize and center the glenohumeral joint. If you are studying for a CPT exam, refining your personal training assessments, or tightening your exercise programming, this is a clean, repeatable framework you can use immediately. Subscribe, share this with a trainer friend, and leave a review with the shoulder muscle you want us to cover next.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Pass NASM w/ SUF Study Guide $75 showupfitness.com

Guarantee to pass NASM showupfitness.com which includes passing in 7-14 days, $500 worth of nasm material including tutoring AND either a SUF certification or hands on learning seminar.

Failing the NASM CPT exam usually has nothing to do with intelligence and everything to do with spending weeks on the wrong pages. We’re here to help you pass the NASM CPT 7th edition test faster by focusing on what the exam actually rewards, not what feels productive to highlight. We move quickly through the early chapters that rarely impact your score, then lock onto the high frequency topics that can make up a huge chunk of your questions.

We break down the Human Movement System in plain language: the anatomy terms you’ll see, the planes of motion NASM loves to define, and the muscle basics that show up again and again. Then we simplify cardiorespiratory essentials (chambers, SA node, bradycardia vs tachycardia, arteries vs veins), metabolism and energy systems (ATP PC, glycolysis, oxidative), and the nutrition numbers that are easy points if you memorize them.

The real test comes when NASM shifts into assessments and program design. We walk through screening concepts like PAR Q, key cutoffs like hypertension, and the logic behind the overhead squat assessment checkpoints. From there we drill the OPT model phases, acute variables, and the fastest way to choose between stabilization, strength, and power when the exam throws weird exercise names at you. You’ll also hear how NASM expects you to apply SMR, stretching choices by phase, and the inhibition terms that commonly appear.

If you want a clear NASM CPT study plan you can repeat until it’s automatic, hit subscribe, share this with a friend taking the test, and leave us a review with the topic you want us to break down next.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Want to get hired at Life Time fitness and become a successful personal trainer? SUF CPT is the best personal training certification for trainers who want to create a career. Sean Hyson was hired with his SUF CPT in Austin at Life Time. He had a great background as an author and writer for T Nation and Onnit. He went to a SUF Seminar in Houston for hands on learning and then got his SUF CPT. He was hired in March. 

You can be great at coaching and still struggle to sell, especially in a premium gym where the numbers feel big the moment the price sheet comes out. We talk with Sean, a new trainer at Lifetime who’s already leading the company in leads generated, but keeps running into the same wall: prospects love the workout and the vibe, then hesitate when it’s time to buy training packages.

We walk step-by-step through his real sales process, from workshops and goal-setting sessions to the InBody scan, the intro workout, and the close. Along the way we break down what his Austin client base looks like, why “pretty fit” members still need coaching, and how travel and inconsistent schedules complicate adherence. Then we get tactical about personal training sales: how to tighten the presentation, stop overselling, remove apologetic “it’s expensive” language, and use silence as a closing tool instead of filling the space with extra explanations.

The biggest shift is learning how to turn “need” into “want.” We dig into how the last five to eight minutes of an intro session can create a clear, emotional proof of value with smart intensity, the right exercise choices, and a memorable finish that makes someone think, “That’s what I’ve been missing.” If you want better conversions, stronger fitness consultations, and a repeatable close you can refine like film study, this is the playbook. Subscribe, share this with a trainer who’s stuck at the close, and leave a review with your biggest sales objection so we can tackle it next.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

SUF-STM LIVE calls helping trainers level up their business and mentorship.

Shoulder discomfort can turn a confident lifter into someone who dreads incline day, and the worst part is how often the “fix” starts with a guess and ends with a scary label. We walk through a clear, trainer-safe approach that starts where it should: keep a physical therapist in your network, stay in your scope, and collect the right data before you touch a single “corrective.” 

We dig into why pain is multifactorial through the biopsychosocial model and why words matter. Calling something scapular dyskinesis might sound smart, but it can create fear, guarding, and a client who thinks they’re broken. Instead, we focus on what you can actually do as a coach: take a clean history, run simple movement screens, watch for red flags like numbness or shooting pain, and refer out fast when it’s not your lane. 

Then we get practical with shoulder anatomy, scapular control, and the common “kink” many people miss: limited thoracic mobility that forces the shoulder to compensate. You’ll hear exactly how we use soft tissue work to calm down overworked areas like the upper traps and infraspinatus, then build real tolerance with a progression that includes isometrics, heavy slow resistance, and finally a return to the demand. We finish with training options like the landmine press and loaded eccentrics to help clients press again with confidence. 

If this helps, subscribe, share it with a coach who trains around shoulder pain, and leave a review so more lifters and trainers can find a smarter path back to strong shoulders.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Read the article here on Showupfitness.com: https://www.showupfitness.com/blogs/blog/chronic-tendon-pain-why-load-beats-rest-and-what-shockwave-actually-does

That nagging Achilles that “felt better with rest” and then flared the second you returned to training isn’t bad luck, and it usually isn’t an inflammation problem you can ice away. Chronic tendon pain is often a capacity problem, which means the fix is not doing less forever, it’s rebuilding tolerance with the right load, the right timeline, and the right rules.

We read a detailed article from Dr. Rob, a physical therapist and clinic owner, and translate it into practical coaching for personal trainers. We break down what tendinopathy actually looks like in chronic cases, why the old “tendinitis” model leads people into months of stop-start training, and how the pain monitoring model gives you guardrails without demanding zero discomfort. The centerpiece is the 24-hour rule: judge your dosage by how the tendon feels tomorrow, not just how it feels mid-set.

From there, we lay out a four-stage tendon rehab and return-to-sport framework you can run with cleared clients: isometrics for high irritability, heavy slow resistance as the main tendon remodeling tool, energy storage work for running and jumping, and a smart return to the real demand while keeping strength work in the plan. We also call out common trainer mistakes, the importance of upstream strength, and the specific red flags that mean you stop and refer out.

We finish by getting honest about shockwave therapy (ESWT): what it is, where evidence is strongest, and why it never builds tendon capacity on its own. If you want more confident programming, better outcomes, and a stronger PT referral network, subscribe, share this with a trainer friend, and leave a review.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

A sales sheet won’t save a shaky consult, but a confident coach can. We’re live at Equinox running a real-time role-play with West, right after a hard chest session, to show what personal training sales actually looks like when the client is excited, hesitant, and ready to bolt with “I’ll think about it.” If you’ve ever fumbled the pricing, overexplained packages, or felt weird about “closing,” you’ll hear exactly where the momentum drops and how to get it back without turning into a pushy salesperson.

We walk through two consult scenarios: the first where the subscription pitch gets muddy, and the second where the client pushes back on price and even complains about the gym being too hot. From there, we break down the fixes that matter in fitness coaching and client acquisition: eliminate decision fatigue, make the plan feel obvious, and ask for the next commitment while the energy is still high. “How does tomorrow look?” beats vague follow-ups, and a service-first response can turn a complaint into trust when you handle it like a luxury, service-based gym should.

Then we zoom out into the deeper skill: selling value. That means connecting training to outcomes people actually want like strength milestones, confidence, consistency, better days outside the gym, and yes, a better life. We also dig into client retention tactics like multiple points of contact, referral energy, and asking for honest feedback so you don’t get ghosted and start doubting your career.

If you got value from this, subscribe, share it with a coach who needs the confidence boost, and leave a review so more trainers can find it.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Hands on learning workshop with SUF x Life Time Fitness partnership. How to train a client who has low back pain? The best hands on learning workshop / seminars for personal trainers. Show Up Fitness Low Body seminar

Low back pain is everywhere, and the worst part is how quickly it turns into fear: fear of bending, fear of lifting, fear of the next flare up, fear of what an MRI might “find.” We’re teaching from Franklin near Nashville with a room full of trainers, using a real world approach that blends pain science with coaching instincts, so you can stop guessing and start making smart decisions inside a personal trainer’s scope.

We dig into the biopsychosocial model of pain and why discs, degeneration, and “abnormal” imaging can show up in people who feel totally fine. Then we shift to what actually helps many backs: movement that is scaled to the person, repeated in pain free ranges, and progressed like any training program. You’ll hear how we use exposure therapy and hope as tools, plus a practical daily flow that builds mobility, stability, and tissue tolerance without poking the bear.

From there we run through clear screens to identify likely pain drivers: flexion, extension, lateral flexion, compression, and thoracic rotation. We talk red flags, when to refer out, and how to avoid cookie cutter plans by matching drills to what the client tolerates today. We also demonstrate quadratus lumborum soft tissue mobilization options and why breathing and positioning can change everything.

If you coach clients with low back pain, want better screening, or simply want your own back to feel more resilient, you’ll leave with a simple framework you can apply immediately. Subscribe, share this with a trainer friend, and leave a review with the biggest back pain myth you want us to tackle next.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Incline bench press has a way of making strong lifters feel brand new under the bar. If you’ve ever wondered why your flat bench numbers don’t carry over, we walk through the real mechanics that make incline pressing so challenging and so valuable for upper chest strength and hypertrophy. 

We break it down into five clear drivers: anatomy (the clavicular head of the pectoralis major has less “real estate” to contribute), torque (more distance and tougher angles), leg drive (harder to wedge and get that back-and-up bar path), the SAID principle (you adapt to what you practice, and most people don’t practice incline enough), and range of motion (which can expose flexibility limits fast). Along the way, we talk shoulder discomfort on incline bench press, why it shows up, and how to troubleshoot it with better mobility, soft tissue work, and smart exercise selection. 

We also get practical about programming: when it makes sense to keep barbell incline, when to run a short block with dumbbell incline for a friendlier shoulder position, and how changing fly angles can shift chest emphasis depending on what you’re trying to build. If you care about pressing strength, powerlifting carryover, or getting that upper chest to finally show up, this one is for you. Subscribe, share this with a training partner, and leave a review with your biggest incline bench struggle or PR so we can talk about it next.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Location: Austin C4 / Nutrabolt. Time 8-4

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/navigating-low-back-pain-in-training-with-katie-dabrowski-and-q-willey-tickets-1996909407794

CODE: SHOWUPFITNESS $50 off

Doc Q IG: Coach_Q_Physio & Doc Katie: Ktdabrowski

Back pain is one of the fastest ways to make a confident lifter feel fragile and it’s also one of the easiest places for bad information to hijack a training plan. We sit down with physical therapists Doc Q and Doc Katie to talk about what actually feels “scary” in both personal training and physical therapy: flare-ups, client anxiety, imposter syndrome, and the pressure to deliver a perfect fix when pain doesn’t behave like a neat checklist. 

We dig into pain science and the biopsychosocial model of pain, including why fear based language and over-medicalization can create nocebos that shrink someone’s life. You’ll hear how they think about progressive overload in rehab, why many posture and biomechanics stories don’t hold up well in research, and how to stop treating every ache as a crisis. A key takeaway is the “trainable menu” for low back pain: keep a list of movements someone can train right now, then build smart entry points back into the positions they fear or avoid. 

We also cover when imaging makes sense, when surgery is truly appropriate, and why population level data often favors conservative care while still leaving room for individual exceptions like progressive neurological symptoms. If you coach clients, treat patients, or manage your own low back pain, you’ll walk away with clearer language, better decision making, and more confidence under the bar. Subscribe, share this with a coach or clinician, and leave a review with the biggest back pain myth you want gone.

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com

Send us a text if you want to be on the Podcast & explain why!

Show Up Fitness hands on learning seminar at Life Time in Franklin Tennessee. If you want to become a successful personal trainer, find personal training certifications and specializations like SUF STM to make you an elite personal trainer. Next personal training seminar Tampa September 25/26.

That deep “right there” ache in your low back can make you feel stuck, especially when stretching and foam rolling do nothing. We walk you through a practical way to determine when the quadratus lumborum (QL) might be involved and how to stop guessing with your hands. If you work with clients or you’re trying to manage your own low back tightness, this is a clear, anatomy-based approach you can use immediately.

We demo a QL release in a prone position, including the detail most people miss: you have to get under the erectors and direct pressure toward the spine, not just press straight down on the surface. Then we layer in the simplest performance upgrade we know for soft tissue work, 360-degree breathing. When someone can breathe into the back and sides instead of only the chest, the tissue response changes fast, and the release becomes more comfortable and more effective.

We also compare positioning options, because bodies are different. Side-lying can give better leverage for bigger bodies or anyone who’s hard to access prone, and we share a third variation using a supported deep squat with a reach. Finally, we connect the dots for runners and high-intensity training: the QL is a frontal plane stabilizer, so repetitive impact and stabilization demands can keep it irritated unless you address it directly and safely with the right landmarks.

If this helped you think differently about low back pain, subscribe, share the show with a training partner, and leave a quick review so more people can find it. What’s the most stubborn spot in your low back right now?

Want to become a SUCCESSFUL personal trainer? SUF-CPT is the FASTEST growing personal training certification in the world!

Want to ask us a question?  Email [email protected] with the subject line PODCAST QUESTION to get your question answered live on the show!

Website: https://www.showupfitness.com/
Become a Successful Personal Trainer Book Vol. 2 (Amazon): https://a.co/d/1aoRnqA
NASM / ACE / ISSA study guide: https://www.showupfitness.com