RTS 2010 Speaking Calendar

Speaking Calendar

I've been getting a lot of questions lately regarding upcoming seminars and speaking engagements, so evidently I haven't been doing the best job of keeping everyone up to speed. :)

Here's my tentative speaking schedule for the rest of 2010.  If you'd like to book me for a seminar, please shoot us an e-mail ASAP at info@robertsontrainingsystems.com

April 17^th - High School Athletes and Strength Coach Seminar

Fort Wayne, Indiana

I'm not sure of the exact scope/set-up of this seminar just yet, but I know it's geared towards high school athletes and strength coaches.  I'll be doing a hands-on presentation regarding single-leg work, and how it can benefit the young/developing athlete.

June 18^th - 20^th - Bootcamp Bootcamp

Louisville, Kentucky

Bootcamps are all the rage - but are yours ideal for ALL of your clients?

At this event, I'm going to discuss the need for assessments in general, as well as why you should be assessing your boot camp clients in some form or fashion.  I'll provide practical solutions for both smaller camps, as well as bigger ones. 

June 25^th-27^th - Perform Better Summit

Chicago, Illinois

We all know that Perform Better is the best in the business with regards to seminars, and their three annual summits are can't-miss events.

This year I will be speaking on the topic of single-leg training.  This will include an hour lecture on the science and anecdotal evidence to support/refute single-leg training, as well as an hour of hands-on to improve coaching and observation skills.

August - Midwest Performance Enhancement Seminar

Indianapolis, Indiana

I would love to gauge some interest on this one.  It's something I've been mulling over in my mind for over a month now, and I think it could be an extremely viable event.

How many of you would be interested in coming to a seminar in Indianapolis in August that features the best strength coaches, nutritionists and business minds in our industry? 

If I get a decent amount of interest, I'm going to go for it - but I need to know I have some support!

December 11^th and 12^th - Vancouver Seminar

Vancouver, British Columbia

Rick Kaselj and I are in the final stages of planning this two-day event, and it should be fantastic!

The basic theme is this:  Two intensive days, one on the lower back, and the other on the knee.  This would be similar to the Building the Efficient Athlete seminar, where we cover functional anatomy, assessment, training, etc.  Needless to say, I think this is going to be a powerful event.  I'll keep you posted on this one as well.

Stay strong

MR

BTW - if you want to download my Low Back Care presentation from last year, all you have to do is sign-up for my FREE newsletter at the top of the page.

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The Whirlwind Week

Whirlwind

We're going to go off the beaten path a bit here today, as I give you the past week's recaps.  It's been a busy one, but there's a ton of great stuff going on that I want all of you to be aware of!

Tomororow we'll get back to formal content, and I'll  be writing up our "Rock the Vote" winner in the coming days as well.

Tuesday

I kid around about it, but I always say that the NFL Combine is one of the few reasons that anyone knows about Indianapolis (the other main reason being the Indy 500!) 

Regardless, the combine kicked off last week, and as a result, some really great coaches came into town.

Last Tuesday Bill and I went to dinner at Fogo de Chao with physical therapist Charlie Weingroff.  First off, Charlie may be one of the smartest guys I've ever met - Dewey Nielsen calls him a "brain with arms and legs." 

Regardless, we had a fantastic dinner and got to talk powerlifting, vibration training, and a whole host of other topics.  Needless to say it was great stuff, and I can't wait to get Charlie on the phone in the future to pick his brain.

Wednesday was busy running around all day, in lieu of....

The Weekend

I flew out to Los Angeles this past weekend for the Cosgrove Business Seminars, which were hosted by Perform Better.

To say this was a fantastic seminar would be an understatement of epic proportions.  This seminar has literally changed how I look at our gym, and how we have to run it.

The people around me are probably tired of hearing this, but here goes:  I feel we have a great gym.  More than just a gym, I feel we've developed a great community of clients who are serious about getting results.

But that doesn't pre-qualify us as being a great business.  Bill and I would both rather be in the trenches working with clients than designing procedures manuals, phone scripts, and marketing pieces.

In that same breath, though, those are the things that have to be done for us to enjoy long-term success.

I walked away from the seminar with not only page after page of notes, but also just a ridiculous amount of ideas in my head that I had to get on paper.  I can see how this seminar is going to revolutionize our gym and our business.

To Alwyn and Rachel - thank you guys so much for putting on such an amazing seminar!  I know this is only the start, but I can't thank you enough.  I wish every gym owner would take this course so they can start to envision what their facility can be like.

As well, to Chris Poirier from Perform Better - thanks for always putting on first-class seminars.  Alwyn jokes that people just assume PB is a seminar company, because they put on such fantastic events.  PB is actually an equipment company, so be sure to check them out when you need supplies.

Coming back Sunday night, sleeping was not an easy thing - between jet lag and the numerous ideas bouncing around in my head, sleep wasn't the best

This all leads me to yesterday...

Monday

I worked in the AM on all sorts of gym stuff, and then coached at IFAST in the evening.  Last night, Bill and I headed downtown again to meet with Chip Morton, head strength coach of the Cincinnati Bengals.

I have no qualms saying Chip is an extremely intelligent guy, and it's very cool to hear about some of the plans he's got for training his players in the upcoming months.  Dinner topics ranged from assessments and evaluations, all the way to football-specific training and conditioning.

(Random Side Note: Sitting in Shula's, I turn around last night and was forced to do a double-take:  "Neon" Deion Sanders was sitting right behind me!  Luckily I didn't shriek like a little school girl, but that was crazy.  It got crazier when 2 minutes after that, Rex Ryan walked in as well.  That dude is a BIG guy!)

Needless to say, it's been a hectic (yet exciting!) week.  Hopefully over the course of the next few days we'll get some traction and start cranking on the content again.

One last thing - every time I get to travel, train people at my gym, or just hang out with like-minded individuals, I'm reminded how lucky I am to do what I love every single day.

Thank you all for supporting me.  I sincerely hope that my work is benefitting you in some form or fashion!

All the best

Mike

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Rock the Vote!

Rock the vote

This week, we're going to do something a little bit different.

This week, YOU ALL are going to choose next Monday's blog topic!

Last week, I ran a contest on my Facebook/Twitter pages (which you can find on the right-hand side of this post.  The contest was simple:  What would you like to read about on my blog?

All you have to do is this: Pick out your favorite section from the list below, copy and paste it into the "Comments" section at the bottom of the page, and we're all set!

The winner of our contest will receive a free copy of Assess and Correct.  In the case of a tie, I'll choose the topic I feel will make for the best content.

The only rule I have is that you can only vote once.  And please, don't create five different e-mails just so you can vote five different times!

Without any further ado, here's the list:

How to develop speed via strength training methods

Static stretching vs. a dynamic warm-up

How people beat up their knees in the gym

Workouts for on the road

Why its unhealthy to train like a bodybuilder/figure athlete

The effects and signs of overtraining

How to integrate Olympic lifts in a training program

So there you have it.  Please rock the vote, and whichever idea gets the most votes by next Sunday evening wins!

All the best

Mike

PS - This is just another reason to get on the social media (Facebook/Twitter) bandwagon.  I'll be doing more and more promotions like this in the future, so be sure to follow/friend me!

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The RTS 2010 Manifesto

The RTS 2010 Manifesto

Today's post is going to be a little bit off-the-cuff.  I've got a few things that I know I want to address, but how they all come across is going to be interesting!

I've never written a manifesto before, so I think this is going to be one part manifesto, one part mission statement, and one part motivational piece.  If nothing else, it's going to be something along the lines of me thinking out loud, and you getting to see where my heads at nowadays.

If you've been with me for any extended period of time, you've seen a lot of changes. 

My thoughts on training and coaching have changed. 

The website has changed. 

My career path, to a degree, has changed.

But in all honesty, I think I'm right where I need to be. 

So here goes: The RTS 2010 Manifesto.  We'll begin with the website, because that's kind of the hub for everything I have going on online.

The Blog

As you can tell, I've been putting a ton of time and energy into the blog.  What once was a sporadic and haphazard event has become much more focused and direct.  My goal is to post at minimum four times per week, and at most five times per week.  I would like to think that one those weeks were I only get four posts up, I'll fill in the gaps with some quality newsletter content and Podcasts.

My goal is to make this blog a discussion piece and resource for strength coaches, personal trainers, and high-end fitness enthusiasts.  I see the readership growing almost daily, and that motivates me to continue taking things to the next level.

The Podcast

Last year, I purchased a Mac with the goal of creating a Podcast.

Almost one year to that date, I've now developed 22 Podcasts with some of the best and brightest in our industry.  If names like Dan John, Brett Jones, Eric Cressey and Michael Boyle mean anything you to, then this Podcast is right up your alley.

One point of contention that I get in regards to the Podcast is this:  A few people (and in all honesty, it's probably only one or two) get pissed when I don't "call out" interviewees.  And I'm going to tell you my stance on this, once and for all.

Many of the people I interview are not only great coaches, but people I often consider close friends as well.  In the course of a discussion with a friend, would you ask them to qualify every statement?  Or "call them out?"

If you do, I'd imagine you don't have many friends.  I also imagine that's why you have nothing better to do than criticize me on an Internet forum.

My goal with In the Trenches Fitness is to talk to a variety of people within the industry, to see what makes them successful.  If they are successful, but use techniques or methods that I don't necessarily use or agree with myself, who am I to judge them? 

If they get results, I want to know why.  Maybe I'm missing something, and there's information out there I can be using to get better results.

My goal over the next year is to release 1-2 podcasts every month.  I already have some fantastic coaches lined up, so I'm really looking forward to chatting with them.

Online Training Services

Last month, I offered my "Help Pierre Help Haiti" training discount.  I discounted my online coaching services by 50%, and as such, took on 16 new clients.  All of the proceeds ($7700 in all), went to the Pierre Garcon Haiti Relief Fund and the Red Cross.

As you can imagine, this has put a tremendous strain on my time.  Was it a great idea?  I think so.  Has it gone to a great cause?  Absolutely.

Is it kicking my ass in the process?  Yes. ;)

As such, I've closed my online training services for the time being.  In the future, I'm going to open this up four times per year, to a limited number of clients.  Doing so will help me better manage my time and resources.

Product Development

In October of 2009, Eric, Bill and I released Assess and Correct.  Not only was this by far the most comprehensive product we'd ever pulled together, but it's been our most successful as well.  If you're still on the fence, take a moment to review the testimonials we've received from some top-flight people in our industry.

My goal in 2010 is to release at least one, if not two new products.  As I've mentioned before, my first release will be the Single-Leg Solution (SLS).  The SLS is not only going to cover my thoughts and rationale behind using single-leg lifts in my programming, but the exact progressions and coaching cues I use as well.

I feel strongly that there's a lot of misinformation out there on this topic.  Hopefully The SLS will bring the pendulum back to the middle a bit, and give us better perspective on how to effectively use single-leg lifts in our programming.

Newsletter

Last year I made a big move with my Newsletter; instead of simply interviewing coaches, I made a focused effort to infuse more of my own knowledge and experience in writing the pieces.

Needless to say, the result has been fantastic - my subscribers have gone through the roof, and I feel like I have a perfect avenue to express my "bigger" thoughts.  The blog is perfect for quick hit information, but the newsletter affords me more time and space to really flesh out my ideas.

Again, if you're not a subscriber, I would definitely check it out.  Just for signing up you'll receive access to the following:

- A one-hour video presentation that I gave last year on the topic of low back health and effective core training,

- My Self-Myofascial Release manual, and

- The Insight from the Experts PDF, and

- Access to all of my previous newsletters!

This is really a no-lose proposition, as I typically only send out one e-mail per week (except for VERY specific exceptions).

Article writing

With all the new ventures I've taken on over the past two years, something had to give.  In the past year, I probably wrote fewer articles for external websites such as T-Nation than any year past.

My goal this year is to write at least one article for external sites per month. Along with that, you'll also notice that I do quite a few interviews and guest blogs, but my goal is to help spread my word by going outside the confines of the RTS website a bit more.  Stay tuned.

Video clips

As I write this, I'm in the midst of reading Gary Vaynerchuk's "Crush It" and realizing just how important video content really is.

You can find a ton of exercise video clips on my You Tube page, and I'm going to use Tube Mogul to get my information out to more and more sites.

But beyond simply posting exercise video clips, I'm also going to make a concerted effort to create more video blogs that discuss things we're doing in the gym.  I think this will make for great content, as well as immediately improving what you're doing in the gym.

Affiliate Marketing

This is one of those sticky issues that tends to come up quite often, and for good reason - there are a lot of shady internet marketers our there whose only goal is to get rich quick using affiliate programs and dodgy sales tactics.

Here's my view on affiliate marketing - yes, I will use affiliate links in my blogs posts or newsletters.  With that being said, however, here are my quick and dirty rules for affiliate marketing on my site:

• I will never promote a product that I haven't reviewed myself.
• The product has to be great.  The question I always ask myself is, "If there was no commission associated with this product, would I still promote it?" If the answer is yes, then it's acceptable.
• I always question the person behind the product.  If I don't like, trust AND respect them, I won't promote the product.
• Finally, would I be comfortable recommending this product to a close friend or family member?  If not, I won't promote it.  Period.

I believe in complete transparency here, so going forward here's my take on affiliate marketing:  If there's a link in my blog, newsletter, etc. that goes to a product, you can assume I will make an affiliate commission on it.  Some times I will, and some times I won't.  Again, I will promote great products regardless of whether I get a commission (ala Dan John's book and DVD's, products at Elite Fitness, etc.).

And in that same vein, I understand 100% if you don't want to follow that link.  If you want to go directly to the source to purchase the product, I get that.  Some people just aren't comfortable with affiliate marketing in general.

Just keep in mind that at the end of the day, I provide a ton of great content for free. I hope that if a specific product I recommend can help you achieve your goals, that you would help support me in return.

Sorry if that got a little long-winded, but that's my take on affiliate marketing, once and for all.

Coaching and IFAST

At the end of the day, coaching is my first love.  I absolutely love helping clients and athletes develop the body they've always dreamed of.  I was reminded of this the other day when I was taking two young brothers through their workout - just seeing them wanting to improve themselves immediately took my energy through the roof.

My goal in 2010 is to absolutely kill it at IFAST.  I want to be a better coach in all respects; I want to better understand programming, client psychology, and how to effectively communicate my thoughts and ideas to clients.

I also want to let the entire city of Indianapolis know that IFAST is where it's at.  I'll be attending a Cosgrove Business Seminar later this month to take my business knowledge to the next level.  I know we provide a great service, but I also understand we're fighting a losing battle if we're not getting people in the door.

Summary

I want to wrap this up by telling you a quick story, and the thought process that led me to writing all this.

After watching my Colts lose the Super Bowl this past weekend, I was absolutely crushed.  Those of you who know me know that I'm a huge fan, and 100% committed to the team.

Now I know what you may be thinking - it's stupid to get that tied to a game or sporting event.  But that's not the point of all this.

The reason it hurt so bad was because I was committed.  So many times we go through life at 50% commitment; hedging our bets just in case something goes wrong. 

Unfortunately for me (or maybe fortunately, I guess it depends), that isn't in my DNA.

When you are 100% committed to something, you see the highest peaks when things are going your way.  On the flip side, you can also see the depths of despair when the bottom falls out.

But for me, I can't do it any other way.  If I'm not 100% committed to my goals or what I'm doing, I' short changing not only myself, but the people I'm working and associated with as well.

At the end of the day, I'm 100% committed to what I'm doing both here and at IFAST.  If I can help clients, athletes, readers or listeners achieve their goals, then I know what I'm doing is working.

I have no doubt that 2010 is going to be our best year ever.  Those of you who know me personally know that 2009 had a lot of ups and downs, but I also know that the lean times help you realize what you're really made of. 

If nothing else, the hard times have firmed up my resolve and intensified my focus.  Be on the lookout for a kick ass year in 2010!

All the best

Mike

P.S. - If you've enjoyed this, please forward it on to someone else.  Re-tweet it, post the link on Facebook, or e-mail it to a friend.  I hope I can help them the same way that I've (hopefully!) helped you.

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