Usually, when starting or restarting your fitness routine/journey, individuals will OVER-estimate what they want to achieve in 3-4 months and UNDER-estimate what they can achieve in a year.

It is no fault to you; unfortunately, what gets marketed more are these six-week, three-month, eight-week challenges where individuals make drastic changes in their bodies with regards to appearance and strength. The thing is, when you look at the small picture that is portrayed, you feel like you can achieve such results in a short amount of time. However, what is not shown or ever discussed is what happens afterwards.

Has that individual continued to build muscle? Get leaner? Maintain their six-pack abs? Get closer to achieving their ideal physique? Have they regained their weight back or lost their strength? What did they do next?

More often than not, once individuals have achieved such feats in a short period, they often revert back to what they did before… The changes they did achieve were a systemized rigid process that is very hard to maintain over a longer time, be it a one year, two, or a lifetime.

This then opens the door for numerous issues to arise, comprised of: disruptive relationships with food, disruptive behaviours with friends and family, how you look and feel about yourself and psychological implications around all of these.

Even individuals of higher social status, be it celebrities, actors, athletes, etc., do not maintain these drastic changes you may see them make. If they do, it is usually because they have the money and resources to do so. Also, it is their job to do so! People often forget this component when looking at these particular individuals.

So what then to think? This refers back to what I said in the beginning of this article. The main message is to have a longer-term approach to the multitude of things you want to accomplish. It allows for the variability of life that may come into effect when looking to make significant changes in your health and fitness.

Fitness and health and the gym, in particular, is a tool to help enhance your life, NOT take away from it. Giving yourself a larger allotment of time to achieve goals throughout the process of making better choices, and improving your health and quality of life, will allow you to better develop the consistency and habits needed to maintain all of the progress you have made up to this point.

I like to relate health and fitness a lot to investments. For most people, having a longer term outlook of what you can achieve is the best route. Think of building compounding interest: steadily shaving off pounds of fat, increasing muscle mass, putting pounds on the barbell, improving your eating habits, shaving time off your running time, gaining improved movement though your hips, decreasing how much pain you live with day to day, etc… All of these things will steadily improve your quality of life as you continue to progress in your health and wellness journey. Imagine trying to do all of this in the next 3-4 months?

Make your changes for life, and see these changes through for life.

The post Fitness as an Investment: A Life Style Change Over Fads appeared first on Yard Athletics.

Yard Athlete Development is an elite training program catering to high-level athletes from various sporting backgrounds and experience levels. Specializing in strength training, power development, mobility, & energy system training, our coaching staff have over 30 years of combined experience working with amateur, professional, and international athletes.

Our coaching staff consisting of, Ilan Cumberbirch, Sam Shaw, and Nick Tataryn, have answered some questions below about our renowned program.

1. What type of athletes are best suited for The Yard Athlete Development program?

Any athletes that are seeking to improve their performance in their respective sport. We have worked with Olympians, professionals, collegiate, amateur, youth, Masters athletes, and Parasport athletes from all different sporting backgrounds. NHL Hall of Famers, Boston Marathon competitors, NCAA Hobey Baker nominees, Olympic rowers, International rugby superstars, MLS soccer players; the list goes on. Regardless of who an athlete is, or what they are seeking to achieve; understanding the sport, its requirements from a physiological standpoint, and the athlete’s strengths and weaknesses are what is most important to their development.

Sam Shaw and Ilan Cumberbirch with athlete Tyler Morley

2. How did the program start?

Yard Athlete Development is the by-product of the now-defunct Factory Hockey Player Development, a hockey-specific development company, that at one point was the premier on & off ice hockey programs in BC. Today, we have expanded our scope of practice and work with a wider range of athletes from various sporting backgrounds.

3. What are each coach’s qualifications?

Ilan Cumberbirch

UBC, Bachelor of Kinesiology

CSCS through the National Strength & Conditioning Association; Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist

More important than said accreditations are the thousands of hours spent working on the floor with various athletes and experiencing the rigors of said programming first hand.

Nick Tatyrn 

UW Bachelor of Exercise Science

Bond University, Doctor of Physiotherapy

Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist certification through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA)

Experience as a strength coach and as a physiotherapist working with athletes trying to make a name for themselves in their sport, all the way up to star-level players in professional sporting leagues.

Sam Shaw

UBC, Bachelor of Kinesiology

CSCS through the National Strength & Conditioning Association

Over seven years of experience coaching athletes and 15 years of playing competitive sport that led him to the national and provincial level, respectively.

4. What can an athlete expect to walk away with after completing the Yard Athlete Development program?

We can confidently say that every athlete we have ever worked with has left our program in better condition, with improved body composition, increased strength, power, mobility, body awareness, injury resistance, and overall athletic ability. They will also realize the endless capabilities their body and mind can achieve. The mental and emotional commitment is just as important, if not more important than the physical commitment to the program.

5. What’s your favourite part about training athletes?

The relationships which are forged, and the mutual trust and respect which develop between the athlete and coach. You spend a great deal of time with these athletes, and you get to know one another on a much deeper level. You realize and appreciate the impact you can have on their personal lives and athletic careers, and that is a great deal of power and responsibility which is not to be taken lightly. These relationships often result in lifelong friendships which resemble those that are created while playing on a team.

Ilan Cumberbirch with several athletes from the Yard Athlete Development Program

6. Is the style of training sport-specific?

The concept of “sport-specific” is a misnomer. The most “sport-specific” training is to go play said sport. Our job as Strength & Conditioning coaches is to improve on the physical qualities of the athlete, which will subsequently enhance their athletic capability and ability to excel at their respective sport. This can be done by increasing your level of conditioning in specific energy systems, tensile strength, rate of force development, and structural integrity of the musculature, tendons, and ligaments, which are most crucial for your sport. We can decrease the likelihood of injuring highly vulnerable areas by ensuring that any asymmetries and muscular imbalances are addressed.

So no, the training is not “sport-specific,” more accurately, it is specific to the exact needs of the athlete and their respective sport’s physical requirements.

7. What can you expect to get at Yard Athletics that you won’t get anywhere else?

Athletes can expect exceptionally dedicated coaching staff that has a genuine care for their development in and out of their sport, with a culture that revolves around the trust and respect of one another. There is a high level of intent and specificity within our programming that will undoubtedly result in progress from a physiological standpoint. However, it is the demand for excellence between all involved that makes the program unique. Athletes, if committed to the process, will leave a better version of themselves.

The Yard has also partnered up with The Workshop Performance Clinic. All athletes in the program will have the opportunity to have their health and injury concerns addressed by top-tier healthcare professionals. It is incredibly advantageous to have your physiotherapist, chiropractor, RMT and strength coaches actively communicating about your needs, in order to address the physical demands and stressors required by your sport.

If you have any questions regarding the Yard Athlete Development program, please contact Nick@yardathletics.ca.

The post Exploring the Athlete Development Program appeared first on Yard Athletics.

Our team has grown significantly over the past year and we are stoked to have Nick as one of our newest coaches. What better way to get to know him than a classic Yard 20 questions blog post! Let’s get to know our newest coach better!

1) Hometown?

East Selkirk, Manitoba

2) How did you first hear about Yard?

One of my friends from physio school, Matt Ney, told me he used to work here before moving to Australia for school

3) What was your first experience with Yard?

Instagram creeping which led to a cold-call email to Ilan about potential opportunities, and an interview shortly after that

4) Favorite lift?

Tie between Barbell Clean and Bench Press

5) Least favorite exercise? 

Steady-state running on a treadmill. Sooooo boring…

6) How do you stay motivated?

Passion for the human body and its capabilities, which leads me to want to set an example for others. Practice what you preach!

7) Best advice you received? 

Do a couple of push ups before getting your photo taken in a gym

8) Worst advice?

Deadlifts are bad for your back

9) Your favorite part about Yard?

High-quality equipment, welcoming yet serious atmosphere, and the accountability/work ethic that every person shows when they’re in. You never see anything half-assed in there.

10) Top 3 songs in your gym playlist?

– Bulls on Parade – Rage Against the Machine

– When the Levee Breaks – Led Zeppelin

– For Whom the Bell Tolls – Metallica

11) Go to post-workout meal?

Runny eggs, cubed potato/veggie hash, feta cheese, and spinach

12) How did you start your fitness journey?

I was always very fit and active and “athletic” from a very early age, but I had an unhealthy relationship with food which led to having an unhealthy relationship with my body image. I weighed close to 280 at my heaviest, which was not a healthy 280, even though I was playing in multiple sports throughout the weeks/months/years. Wasn’t until the end of first-year university that I decided to buckle down and change some eating habits while focusing on lifting more. It really snowballed from there, leading me to change my Bachelor’s degree one year before finishing into a Kinesiology degree and subsequent Doctor of Physiotherapy.

13) How would you describe the Yard environment? 

Loud music. Heavy weights. Amazing staff. Better clientele. What more could you ask for in a gym?

14) The last book you read?

Glute Lab: The Art and Science of Strength and Physique Training – Bret Contreras, Glen Cordoza

15) Advice for someone coming to train with you for the first time?

No matter what you think your barriers are to your goals (time, injuries, experience, interest, motivation, etc.), we can definitely work within those limits to make an effective and enjoyable experience each and every time.

16) What are you doing when you’re not at the Yard? 

Physiotherapy with clients, working on research, playing with my dog, being active outdoors, eating at high-end restaurants and hole-in-the-wall dives

17) Advice for someone who is starting out their fitness journey?

Don’t do it for anyone but yourself. You have to want to make the changes/choices you do. Otherwise the motivation and drive to stay committed is transient at best.

18) What’s in your gym bag?

Pair of Batman & Robin Converse Chuck Taylors, pre-workout, chalk, Bluetooth speaker, spikey rolley ball, Bluetooth headphones

19) Are you a morning person?

No issues with getting up at 4 am to lift/study/work if I plan my evening before properly

20) What’s your morning routine?

Check emails, take the dog out for a walk, grab bags (prepared the night before) and head out the door

The post 20 QUESTIONS WITH COACH NICK appeared first on Yard Athletics.

We are back with a new ’20 questions” blog post. This time we are getting to know our athlete Caitlin a little bit better. Read to find out what her favourite exercises at Yard are, 2021 goals and more.

1) Hometown?

Montreal

2) Favorite thing about Yard Athletics?

There are too many things!! Incredible trainers, epic workouts, the best banter in Vancity, banging tunes (especially Ilan’s playlists), and cool swag. 

3) Fashion trend that you can’t stand?

Not really a trend but when people wear sunglasses indoors or when it’s not sunny. Please stop!!

4) Guilty secret Instagram-follow?

I follow a lot of astrology accounts…judge me if you will! 

5) Death row meal?

The French Holy Trinity – good bread, cheese, and wine (preferably a natural wine) – and a big steak. 

6) Ramen or Pho?

Ramen. No contest. 

7) Tell us something we don’t know about you.

I have a phobic-level hatred of mayo. My brother used to taunt me with it when we were younger and now the sight of it makes me want to be sick. It’s the only food I hate though!! 

8) Junk food that you will never stop eating?

Movie popcorn with all the butter

9) If you weren’t working your current job, what would you be doing?

Probably working as a trainer. I’m a boxer and used to be a trainer at Contenders Boxing Studio. 

10) Talent you would most like to have?

I’m not sure if this is a talent but I’d love to be able to do a pull-up (without a band)!

11) Best / worst thing about Vancouver?

Best: Being so close to the ocean and mountains and all the breweries.  

Worst: The nightlife. I’m from Montreal, I have high expectations!! 

12) Best smoothie at Body Energy Club?

Blueberry Almond Acai or Junior Mint

13) Favorite patio?

I’m a sucker for the patio at Local in Kits. 

14) Favorite drink to order on that patio?

A cheapskate – keepin’ it old school! It’s not on the menu anymore but it’s a white wine spritzer with berries. Perfect for summer!

15) Stranded on a desert island, what 3 books do you take?

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov 

Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey (ideally the audio book because he has the best accent)

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

16) Wreck Beach or Spanish Banks?

Spanish Banks. Wreck is awesome but I love running along Spanish Banks!  

17) Secret to happiness?

Great friendships! 

18) Favorite / least favorite exercise at Yard?

I have lots of favourites: trap bar DLs, rack pulls (right, Shawzo?), banded front & back squats, anything with the landmine, the list goes on… 

I don’t have any least favourite exercises – if it’s hard, it means it’s working something and I’m getting stronger! 

19) When COVID is over, where are you traveling?

I had 2 trips that were canceled because of COVID. The first one was to LA to run the Nike Women’s Half Marathon with my running crew the Wo(men) in Flight. We all met at Vanrunco (shout out to Rob Smith for creating such a great running community and introducing all of us!!) and wanted to do a half in a different city together. The other trip was to Scotland to run the Edinburgh Half Marathon and then go to the highlands to hike and drink all the whiskey. 

20) Goals for 2021?

Try to stay positive amidst all this weirdness! I’m also signed up to do the Golden Ultramarathon in September and would love to get a boxing fight in by the end of the year if it’s allowed by then! 

The post 20 QUESTIONS WITH CAITLIN appeared first on Yard Athletics.

by Henry Gould – March 24th, 2021

It’s been over 12 months since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in that time we’ve gone through several phases of lockdown, reopening, and depending where you live, locking down again. Most restaurants were either closed or only doing takeout for an extended period of time, meaning many people resorted to home cooking projects (anyone still making sourdough???), and were generally eating more meals at home.

From a health and wellness perspective, that’s a good thing! We all love restaurants, but generally speaking they are in the business of making food taste as delicious as possible so that you enjoy your meal, tell your friends, and come back again. Whether that food is healthy to eat on a daily basis is a completely different question.

If your home kitchen isn’t stocked with certain essentials – be it equipment or ingredients – you’re always going to be one step behind. Being able to cook and feed yourself is in my opinion, an essential life skill, and it’s never too late to learn. You’re not always going to have Uber Eats available, and even if you had unlimited cash to burn, wouldn’t that get boring??

Below is a list of several essential items to keep in your kitchen that will help you start cooking better. More expensive doesn’t always mean better, but generally you get what you pay for.

Also, ask the people at the kitchen stores what they recommend. They’re usually thrilled to help, and can steer you in the right direction of stuff that’s on sale or a better bargain.

Good quality pot with a lid

A big heavy pot that you can sear, stew, braise and put in the oven is essential for any kitchen. Lots of people swear by cast iron, but they take time to season and maintain so that food doesn’t stick. If that sounds like it requires too much cognitive input, go for something that is enamel coated as it will be a little more forgiving.

Brands like Lodge, Le Creuset and Staub are all great options, worth the money, and if you treat them well they will last a lifetime.

Sea salt

If you read the recipes on this blog, I only ever recommend sea salt. There’s really no other option for cooking, and no reason why it shouldn’t be the only thing on your counter. Most grocery stores have 1kg boxes of sea salt from Italy going for $3. Use this for general purpose seasoning of soup, stews, meat, pasta boiling water (…as salty as the sea!) or anything else. Iodized salt is too salty, tastes of chemicals, and will almost certainly ruin whatever you’re cooking.

If you fancy yourself a bit of a chef, Maldon sea salt from England is a favorite of professional kitchens the world over. There’s also a great product from Vancouver Island that’s very similar, large flakey crystals that are perfect for finishing dishes.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

A lot of people have weird misconceptions about extra virgin olive oil. Let’s clear some of them up!

“Will it burn?”

Not necessarily! EVOO burns somewhere between 375-400F, so unless you left your pan on high for 10 minutes, you’ll be OK.

If you’re searing meat or vegetables in EVOO, have all your ingredients ready to go so that when you add the oil to the hot pan you can get them in quickly.

Worst comes to worst, you burn the oil. Dump it out, clean the pan and start again. No big deal.

“Is it bitter?”

Sometimes! Depending on the quality of the olive oil, it can have a bitter taste, but that depends on the origin of the olives, acidity, many other things. Some people like that peppery flavor and prefer it, so it’s just a matter of finding one that you like.

“Can I only use it for savory dishes?” 

Depends who you ask! Many Mediterranean and Middle Eastern countries have long traditions of cooking desserts with olive oil. Because it’s a liquid at room temperature it doesn’t typically have the “puff” effect of butter or lard, but can often be used in cakes and other sweets.

“Is it good for you?”

Ask any nutritionist, dietician or doctor and they will unanimously agree that cooking and eating extra virgin olive oil is one of the best additions to any diet. Not only is it full of Omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, as well as being anti-inflammatory, a lot of research suggests that industrial seed oils like canola and sunflower have inflammatory properties (i.e. BAD) so cooking with EVOO should be your go-to lipid of choice.

Try to keep at least two EVOO’s on hand; one for general cooking where the flavor isn’t as important (frying, slow cooking) and a higher quality EVOO that you’ll be using for salad and other raw dishes.

Metal Bowls (multiple sizes)

Having a stack of metal bowls is essential for cooking at home. Whether it’s mixing cake batter, tossing salad, straining sauces, cooling broth or marinating meat, metal bowls are key.

They’re also light and easy to clean, which makes them the thing you’ll use every day, over and over.

Good quality chef’s knife

Knives can be a topic of debate amongst chefs and home cooks. Some like the hard-to-sharpen carbon steel of Japanese knives, whereas other think it’s all for show and a $50 utility knife is all you need. Depending on your budget, it can be both.

Knifewear on Main St in Vancouver is a good place to start. Their selection is amazing, and everyone there knows more about knives than you or I ever will.

Salad Spinner

Seems silly, but I use a salad spinner nearly everyday to wash and dry vegetables and herbs. Often times you buy some lettuce, forget about it in the fridge, and after a few days it’s looking a little droopy. Solution? Throw in your salad spinner with cold water and some ice cubes and leave for an hour. Instant rejuvenation!

If you don’t properly spin dry lettuce and herbs for a salad, the dressing won’t stick and you’ll end up with a soggy wet mess.

An OXO Salad Spinner is your best bet, and it’s $29.99.

Strainer

Again, something you’ll find yourself using every day once you have one. Strain vegetables, pasta, wash rice before cooking, sift flour. Line it with paper towel to stain yogurt for tzatziki or labneh. The strainer really is your best friend.

Vinegar

Acidity in cooking is one of the least appreciated aspects in flavor balance. Samin Nosrat’s popular Netflix show “SALT FAT ACID HEAT” did an amazing job showing why acid is such a crucial component in making food taste better.

Good vinegar is something you can always have on hand that won’t go bad, and allows you to turn pretty much any vegetable into a salad, along with a little salt and olive oil.

Red wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, rice wine vinegar, sherry vinegar… all great.

Plain white vinegar? It has its place, but generally will taste more sour and isn’t as pleasant in salad, so opt for the others instead.

The post The Yard Guide To Cooking & Eating Better appeared first on Yard Athletics.

by Yard Athletics – March 10, 2021

Recently you might have seen on Instagram that Yard has put together a number of tutorial videos to walk you through the basics of bench press, barbell squats and deadlifts. These 3 exercises form the core of any strength and conditioning program, and are essential to any sort of weight training program you may want to begin.

They also form the basis for the majority of our workout programs at Yard Athletics, so if you haven’t yet been into the gym they are a good thing to get familiar with prior to your first session.

Let’s get started!

Bench Press

“How much can you bench bro??”. For as long as there’s been weights on a bar, bench press has been the classic measuring stick for gym rats who want to compare notes on their lifting abilities. Despite all this, it remains one of the single best exercises for building upper body strength in the chest, shoulders and back. It’s also one where it’s easy to see big improvement in a short period of time if you have not ever done it before, hence why it can become addictive.

It also involves lying down, with little cardio output needed, so it’s a favorite for when you can’t seem to get out of 1st gear in the gym 😉

HOW TO: Bench Press via IGTV (link)

Key points:

• Make sure the bench is straight and perpendicular under the bar and not leaning to one side
• Barbell should be close to lockout of your arms, but not so far away you couldn’t rack if you were struggling
• Shoulders should be tight and “retracted” to give a strong base to push from
• FEET ARE IMPORTANT: you need a solid base from which to push. Find a position that’s comfortable and strong
• Grip: Wider = more pectoral, Narrow = more tricep and shoulder activation

Deadlift

Another very important exercise in the Yard Athletics world, forming a part of the “hinge” movement pattern. Deadlifts get a bad reputation as something that will ruin your back. Wrong! When done properly, they are one of the best exercises for total body strength and will not hurt your back. If done incorrectly, with weight that is too heavy for you, or when you’re fatigued and sore from overtraining, only then can you risk hurting yourself.

HOW TO: Deadlift via IGTV (link)

Key Points:

• Feet straight ahead, hip width apart (narrower than you think)
• DEEP BREATH – bracing the abdomen and core with a deep breath of air is crucial to staying strong
• Spine stays flat / neutral, rising at the same time as the bar and your legs
• Focus on pushing through the legs rather than pulling from the back

Barbell Squat

Never skip leg day! For building a strong lower body, there is no better exercise than the traditional barbell squat. Despite it’s popularity, the barbell back squat is the most complex of these 3 movements, deserving extra attention paid to form and technique to avoid injury.

In terms of how “deep” one should squat, that totally depends on flexibility, ankle mobility, and a number of other factors. At the end of the day, do what feels comfortable, but you should be going at least to the point where your thighs are parallel with the floor.

HOW TO: Barbell Squat via IGTV (link)

Key Points:

• Set the bar so you can get under it comfortable with a mild knee bend
• Hands should be as narrow on the bar as is comfortable without hurting the shoulder
• Set your feet shoulder width apart with toes pointed slightly outwards
• Same as the deadlift, deep breath before squatting in order to tighten the torso and brace for the push

When in doubt on technique, come get a refresher with us at the Yard.

The post HOW TO: Bench Press / Barbell Squat / Deadlift appeared first on Yard Athletics.

by Yard Athletics – Feb 18th, 2021

Big news! Yard Athletics has just picked up a new first round draft pick 😉 … Please give a warm welcome to our newest personal training specialist, Melis Papila!

Melis is now available to book for 1:1 and 2:1 personal training sessions at Yard on the following days and times. For all availability please log onto the MindBody app (…please don’t DM us on Instagram ❤️)

Monday: 5pm – 8pm

Wednesday: 5pm – 8pm

Sunday: 9am – 11am

Who is Melis??? Let’s get to know her!

Bio:

As a competitive powerlifter and coach, Melis’ mission is to help people see how much a barbell can change their lives. She works relentlessly to share information on health, mental health, strength training, and cultivating an athlete mindset, even for the everyday gym-goer.

Outside of the gym you can find Melis obsessively talking about her dog Duke, eating her weight in pizza, blogging about beer, hiking, miserably failing at snowboarding and traveling (pre-pandemic)

Training Experience:

B.A, University of Ottawa

USPL certified coach

USPL competitor

Who’s in the gym with Melis:

Anyone who wants to invest in their health and fitness.

Strength athletes.

Anyone looking to get strong AF and improve their body composition.

What to expect with Melis:

Melis is your personal cheerleader who will keep you accountable and push you to nurture your inner competitor. Whether you’re picking up a barbell for the first time in your life or getting ready for a competition, Melis will help fine-tune your movements and provide you with a fun yet challenging workout.  Her supportive attitude and contagious energy will help you crush your fitness goals.

The post Introducing Melis Papila! NEW Yard Athletics Coach appeared first on Yard Athletics.

by Henry Gould – Feb 11th, 2021

You might have heard; Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers just won Super Bowl LV. For Brady this was his 7th Super Bowl ring from 10 total visits to the big game. That’s a lot!

More impressive is the fact that Brady did this at the ripe old age of 43, making him the oldest quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl title. The NFL is definitely a young man’s league, with the average age of players clocking in at 26 years old and a typical career lasting only 3.3 years. Given these unprecedented results, it begs the question: what is Tom Brady’s secret?

Much has been made about Brady’s less than typical training regimes (as well as his unorthodox alternative medicine practitioner Alex Guerrero), but most of the intrigue comes from his diet. Famously, Brady had never eaten a strawberry until a joke-y visit to the Stephen Colbert show, and claims to avoid all nightshades – peppers, tomatoes, eggplants and potatoes – claiming they have inflammatory properties, sticking to an alkaline diet instead.

Now, it’s hard to argue with 7 Super Bowl rings. But whether that’s a product of very specific dietary restrictions that don’t have a lot of evidence behind them, or if it’s simply because he is already eating a healthy diet regardless of the type of vegetables.

There’s no doubt that inflammation is a concern for human health regardless of your athletic ability, especially for things like heart disease and cancer. However, if we paid attention in statistics class, we know that correlation doesn’t always equal causation. Just because Brady following a strict “no nightshade” diet correlates with him winning 7 Super Bowl’s, doesn’t mean the two are related. He might just be really good at football, have good coaching, lots of money to pay for trainers and medical treatment, as well as GM’s who sign good players to play with him, and so on and so on.

Regardless, it’s fun to see what the best are doing behind closed doors. Maybe you pick up some tips and use them in your day to day routine, maybe not, but it can help inform us what it takes to get to get the next level.

Men’s Health visited Tom and went through his fridge to see what he’s eating on the daily, as well as how he fuels up and recovers for a big game.

If you’re more skeptically minded, Vox.com did a good breakdown on his 2017 exercise and diet book, “The TB12 Method”, concluding that the grandiose claims of his strict diet are probably not backed up by science, and instead a product of living a healthy lifestyle.

Either way, I guess if it ain’t broke don’t fix it…

The post What Tom Brady Eats Every Day appeared first on Yard Athletics.

by Henry Gould – Jan 27th, 2021

“It’s all about the push-pull, eh Hank? All about the push-pull…”

A few months ago as I got started a workout in the Yard, Shawzo’s words of advice came ringing through the gym. I can’t recall what prompted it – maybe me asking him for advice on an exercise? – but it’s since become something of an inside joke. Not a particularly funny one, however…

In essence, pretty much all exercise movements can be broken down into either a “push” or a “pull”. A “push” is where you’re pushing weight away from your body (bench press), or pushing the floor away from you (squats). A “pull” is anything where you are pulling your body towards something (chin-ups) or pulling a weight off the ground and towards you (deadlifts, rows).

PUSH

• Bench press
• Shoulder press
• Pushups
• Squats
• Lunges
• Box jumps

Weighted dips = PUSH

PULL

• Chin-ups
• Deadlifts
• Rows
• Sit-ups
• Banded glute raises

Bent over rows = PULL

If you’ve been following a Yard Online Training Program or training with one of the Yard trainers, the push-pull balance has been carefully laid out in the workout plan so that everything is in sync. However, if you’re training on your own without a program it’s easy to gravitate towards exercises that are easier, which can lead to favoring certain movements over others and eventually bringing on muscle development that is out of balance. Basically too much “push” and not enough “pull”!

Everyone has seen someone in the gym who only does curls and never got the memo about “never skip leg day”. Doing only one type of exercise can lead to bad posture, risk of injury, and muscles that pull too much in one direction, leading a disproportionate physique.

So how do we avoid this? An easy way is to treat each workout in the gym as a balancing act of push and pull. If you structure your workout around 3 exercises done in sequence as a “super set”, you’ll find yourself putting together a program that always includes a push, a pull, and then perhaps some sort of ab or core strength movement to balance things out.

For example, something like the below would be a fairly balanced routine of push and pull.

Squats = PUSH

Round 1

Bench Press (Push) – 4 sets x 8 reps

Chinups (Pull) – 4 sets x 5 reps

Weighted Sit Ups – 4 sets x 10 reps

Round 2

Squats (Push) – 4 sets x 6 reps

Romanian Deadlifts w/ Dumbbells (Pull) – 4 sets x 8 reps

Banded Palloff Press – 4 sets x 10 reps

It might not look like much, but in total that’s 24 sets of exercise. That’s a lot! If you follow that through each set, chances are you’re getting close to an hour in the gym. If you still have some gas left in the tank, 5-10 minutes of steady state cardio on a spin bike, rowing machine or treadmill would be a good way to round it out.

Obviously this is a sample, but the framework of including a push and a pull makes it easy to swap in other exercises.

When in doubt, ask the professionals at Yard Athletics…

The post Balancing “Push-Pull” In Your Workouts appeared first on Yard Athletics.

by Henry Gould – Jan 8th, 2021

Happy New Year! It’s a cliche’ as old as time: “New year, new me”. Rarely do the goals we set forth on Jan 1st last longer than a few weeks; soon the old habits creep back in and we find ourselves with a glass of Chardonnay on a Tuesday when we said it would be a dry month.

There’s no point making promises to yourself that you can’t keep. Just as a meal plan is pointless if you don’t actually follow it, so too are goals that aren’t realistic for your lifestyle.

Set goals you can crush –> Crush them –> Set new goals

Below is a non-exhaustive list of goals you can set for yourself that will at the very least give you a head start on 2021, or instead open your imagination to other ideas.

Remember, consistency is much more important than short bursts of intensity. No use working out every day for a week if you take the next week off. Focus on goals that are obtainable and within your reach, then work your way up.

These are very basic goals, and by no means original, but they are good starting points. Feel free to go further, but only if you think you can see them through to the end.

Alcohol: 6 Days Off, 1 Day On

Lots of people do “Dry January” by taking the month of booze to reset and recalibrate. That’s great (I’ve done it) and it’s an awesome exercise in restraint, allowing you to step back and realize what life looks like without drinking. It’s no secret alcohol is not the best for our health (or bank account), so taking time off is important to making sure things don’t become problematic, especially after the month of December when we tend to indulge more than we should.

However, 31 days is a long time, and often after the first week it feels like we deserve a treat, at which point Dry January becomes “Dry first week of January”.

Breaking up the month by allowing 1 day per week to indulge in alcohol is a decent compromise, and allows you something to look forward to and work towards. Generally after 6 days off, your tolerance will go down slightly and you’ll find you drink less than you might normally.

If you normally went out once or twice a week for drinks, instead put that money in a fund to buy a nicer bottle of wine you might never have purchased otherwise.

Sweat Every Day

Definitely not new, but “Sweat Every Day” is a great way to make activity a part of your daily routine. Sweating doesn’t have to mean a 10km run or intense weights session. It can be as simple as a brisk walk to get your 10,000 steps in, or a 20 minute flow Yoga session in front of the TV.

The goal is consistency, especially over an extended period of time when you will really start to notice results.

Also, don’t commit to things you don’t like doing. If you hate getting cold and wet but said you would run every day, that seems destined for failure. Find things you’re more likely to keep doing and focus on those.

Meatless Mondays

Plant based diets have come a long way since the days of bad jokes on South Park. In 2021 nearly every fast food and quick service restaurant chain has at least a few vegan options available, something that would have been unheard of 10 years ago.

Food is always political, and the eating choices we make have impacts that go far beyond the food on our plate. We could all stand to eat less animal products, but if you eat meat every day and have now said 2021 is vegan only, chances are that won’t last.

Instead, start small. It’s corny, but “Meatless Mondays” can be a weekly challenge to yourself to cook without the use of meat or animal products.

South Indian Lentil Curry

Since the majority of our protein needs are usually meat, finding alternatives can be tricky, but the internet is a wealth of knowledge! Beans, lentils, tofu, tempeh, as well as the vast variety of meatless products on the market are a good place to start.

Many food cultures have long been vegan, particularly Indian and Middle Eastern, which means eating food that actually tastes like food rather than things that are a facsimile of meat.

There’s also some great vegan recipes on this blog, so have a look through and see what appeals to you.

Push That Weight

Many people people set goals to lose weight in the new year, which is great… but you need a plan.

The general consensus used to be that cardio was the only way to lose fat. As knowledge and research evolved, it’s clear that training with weights has a much greater impact on burning fat, in addition to the clear benefit of gaining muscle.

If you have some dumbbells at home but don’t know how to use them; first step is to get a hold of the “Dumbbell & Bodyweight” Yard Online Training Program. Perfect for home workouts with minimal equipment, this is a great introduction into training with weights and allows you to see results much quicker than jogging ever will.

The other option is starting a weight training program either at your home gym or with Yard Athletics. Since group classes are still on hold, we are only hosting 1:1 and 2:1 Personal Training sessions in the gym. The good news is this allows you one of our expert trainers to stay focused on yourself and a friend through the whole workout, designing programs to achieve your goals.

Done safely and properly, weight training will deliver results much faster and with less overall work than cardio alone.

The post New Year’s Resolutions That Stick appeared first on Yard Athletics.