Hi there.  My name is Alex, and I'm a strengthaholic.

As I've written on this blog about 306 times by now, strength is what matters.  It's the ultimate equalizer, and not just because I'm terrible at conditioning (I'd rather drop a 45 pound plate on my foot than go for a 5 mile run).  It's because I have yet to meet someone who hasn't had better movement, felt better overall, or needed extra help moving apartments (a nod to all of you on a September 1st lease in the Boston area) once they were stronger.

Yet, how do you quantify strength?  The inner meatheads will use the powerlifting "big 3" of back squatting, bench pressing, and deadlifting with good reason - those three movements are tested at powerlifting meets, and dedicating time and effort to them will make you super strong.

....but what if I told you, that unless you're a powerlifter, it's silly (and sometimes downright stupid) to use those exercises and metrics?

I’ve made it no secret that I favor large, multi-joint exerciseslike pullups, squats and deadlifts.  In fact, if all you ever did in thegym was deadlift and some Turkish Get-ups, you’d be eating a whole, balanceddiet.

However, blame it on the new year,how much I’ve learned the past few months, or even the size of my own arms, butthere’s one exercise I’ve recently added to my own workouts...

The much maligned, and “nonfunctional,” bicep curl.

I really enjoy training women.  In fact, they can be easier to train than guys because they A) are overly concerned with form/technique, B) tend to ask more questions, and C) can't stop bragging about their newfound strength.  In fact, when a female client tells me she was showing off her deadlift videos, or is able to fit into her "skinny" pair of jeans, I tend to react like this:

For better or worse (and for the introvert in me, the worse), Summer has a way of forcing you to meet new people.  With weddings, parties, BBQs, etc. I always tend to find myself describing what I do for a living....and receiving some pretty interesting questions.  Among them:

1. "I'm so out of shape, can you not look at what I'm eating!?"
2. "I want to get stronger, but will I get too big?"
3. "Is Bachelor in Paradise really that good?"
4. "What are some of your good motivational tips for clients?"

Now, my answers usually go something like this:

1. No, I don't care what you're eating. Knock yourself out!  Seriously!
2. Let's cross that "too big" bridge when we get there....worry about getting strong and picking up heavy things.
3. Make no mistake, Bachelor in Paradise is complete trash on TV.  But, if you want to turn off your brain for a couple hours and make sarcastic remarks while drinking a beer....it's perrrrfect.
4. My motivational tip is pretty simple: I have none.

I'm going to let you in on a secret: I hate squatting. 

Yes, you read that correctly.  

Blame it on the fact that I'm on the taller side (long levers and squatting don't always get along), but the "king of lower body lifts" just doesn't have a special place in my heart anymore.

However, I realize that squatting still has an important place in any program as it's a fundamental human movement.  And even though I may not love to squat, you need to train your weaknesses, along with your strengths.