This past weekend, I hit a new PR on hang cleans at 225 (which, forthe internet, is probably not all that impressive).  While I’ve posted thevideo, what you can’t see is how after my reps I walked around an empty gymhigh fiving walls, fake people, and screaming the lyrics to Luke Bryan. True story.

But, it made me realize that I don’t talk about Olympiclifting on here, even though I do the lifts very often.  So why do I stayquiet about it?  Well, for the majority of adults, Olympic lifting justdoesn’t make sense (yup, I’m looking at you, Crossfit).

I hate bragging, but my clients have been absolutely ferocious in the gym these past few weeks.  I'm not sure if it's been the fact that the holidays are right around the corner, or if the moon is in some crazy lunar stage, but personal records are falling faster than Miley Cyrus' dignity.  This past week, five clients of mine have hit new PR's on their deadlifts (of at least 15 pounds or more), which makes me as happy as a Camel on Wednesday.

I find nutrition fascinating but not confusing.  Slogans like "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants" make sense because it's easy to follow. "Eat like a grown up" and "everything in moderation" are ambiguous but we know where it leads - unlike the current Star Wars trailer which has me stumped.  All I know is Han shot first!

Anyway, I'm lucky to have a healthy relationship with food.  It's a big reason why I'm never confused by the eyewash and fads out there. But that doesn't mean I always knew what I was doing.  

Five years ago I was 40 pounds heavier and nowhere close to consulting others on the topic. Before there was Tatum, my goal was to #getmychanningon but I was failing miserably. I was skipping important tenets of nutrition.  It's as if I thought I was close to deadlifting 600 pounds....when I could barely do half.

One issue I hear pretty often is that people have "tight" hamstrings.  Now, I'm somewhat among this crowd, because my legs are far from those of a supple leopard*, and for 364 days in elementary school, I would wake up fearing the dreaded sit and reach test. 

As such, I tend to do a lot of corrective work on my hamstrings/hips, but you'll rarely see me do any normal stretching.  Why?  Because simply stretching your hamstrings is a waste of time.

Think about it - if just stretching your hamstrings worked, why would so many people be so tight back there?  Before we talk about how to correct the issue, it's important to talk about WHY you may have tight hamstrings, and like much in this field, there's no easy answer. 

Do you remember the Y2K scare?  I'll be honest, I don't really.  Of course, that's probably because I was in the 8th grade and wayyyy to into professional wrestling to give a hoot about anything else.  And, I was also fresh off my role as "Elvis," the emcee in my 8th grade Cabaret.

Before we go any further, let me answer your questions: 1) No, I no longer follow professional wresting (thank GOD it was a phase).  2) Yes, there is video evidence of me as Elvis somewhere in my parents' house.  It was actually the same show where I lip synced to "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys. And, I....I think I've said too much.

Back to the topic at hand, the Y2K scare made the entire world think doomsday was right around the corner.  And, had it not been for some foresight and work by people like my Dad - who was actually working in the World Trade Center on the night of December 31, 1999 - Y2K could have been a big deal.  (And yes, he stopped working there a few months before IT happened)