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BLOG (last updated:9/21/2008)
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Random Blog-ings from The Lab Gym…
A mad scientist, a laboratory, and some rather unusual suspects also known as, “The Lab Rats.” What is this place? Where did they
come from? And why are they all doing what they are doing? Moving, pushing, grasping, breathing, stretching, bending, flipping,
jerking, running, jumping, all in a very concentrated focused manner. If one wouldn't’t know any better it would look like some
aboriginal tribal hunting ritual. There is sort of a focused buzz going on, unlike any other gym experience, no lines, no pick up lines,
no obnoxious stalkers trying to give you an requested spot, no otomix bodybuilding shoes, no oily pose downs, no fads, no quick
fixes, no pushy sales types, no potions or magic powders, just focused, determined, lab rats…and they are taking over the city. Join
them before its too late….
From ages 14-95, male and female, from diabetics, to weekend warriors, to professional athletes, the Lab rats vary widely from age,
gender, and health and performance goals. However, they all share one thing, a goal, a mission, a lifestyle, and here at The Lab gym
they share that passion on their journey to live their ultimate lifestyles. Here their stories, experiences, and wisdom will be shared…
This blog will exist to help you understand them and their lifestyle in some form or another. This may come across as vague as the
parables from the New Testament, but I assure you if you grasp the core concepts you will soon understand. They may sometimes
come from Dr. Jekyl and sometimes from Mr. Hyde, or even the new reformed or seasoned lab rat, the end result is the same. Here in
lies a mixture of ideals, concepts, theories, stories, and practices to achieve optimum performance and health. Take what is useful
and disregard what is not…welcome to the pack.
The stories and information here are for entertainment purpose only. Use of any information or exercises is at your own risk. Please advise your medical
doctor before beginning an exercise program. Then, contact us and we will show you the way.
Dedicated to my dear Lab rats…(go to blog now!)
10/22/2008
Focus, Concentration, Daylight, and Death
I tell you what, I meet some of the most interesting people before the sun comes up. Not from staying out late all night, but from
getting up at 5am everyday to come and train some of the most focused and successful people I have ever met. Like clockwork, at 5:
30 am everyday the gym is buzzing, and more crowded than it is all day long. If some one is not present immediately phone calls
usually go out to see if everything is ok.
A little under 2 months ago, I met an interesting guy by the name of Harry Ratliff. From the second I met Harry I knew he had some
special characteristics about him. He knew EXACTLY what he wanted and WHEN he wanted to do it. He had crystal clear goals and
a specific plan of action already mapped out. Furthermore, Harry had already experienced a great deal of success on his own by
losing over 40 pounds. He brought with him all of his meticulous exercise and diet records from the years past. And the progress
was even GRAPHED! I have never had anyone walk into my office with such focus and energy being aimed right for the heart of their
goals. I knew immediately that we would have much success together.
Unfortunately, as time went on Harry had some incredibly difficult heart breaking situations. Enough to push anybody into insanity,
depression, or even worse. Usually, when a little adversity gets in the way I often see people disappear and never find their way back
to the gym. But let me tell you, Harry is dealing with more than his share of adversity, and is ticking off his goals full steam ahead.
When I first met Harry his wife had been sick and was dealing with the difficulties of a lung transplant for over 5 years. Harry was in
and out of the hospital day and night to see his wife. He got his exercise in one way or another and kept gradually losing weight.
When he was in the gym he was determined and aiming for his goals with laser focus everyday and you could just see him
channeling out the frustration into every rep of every set. Half the time I cant even get him to stop the sets, he just keeps pushing
along. Harry is appropriately and positively releasing the pain into the workout. Dumping out the emoting and driving him to higher
levels of success. You see, Harry is using the adversity in his life to fuel the his fire and as an impetus towards his goals.
But that is just the start of it. Harry is also a financial advisor. As you might expect he is getting a TON of phone calls these days with
panicky clients who are watching the markets flood their life savings. Harry must handle these people and deal with the pain and
frustration they are going through. With the markets as bad as they have been in my lifetime Harry has his hands full. But
nevertheless, Harry keeps losing weight hits his workouts hard, and keeps focused on managing his diet. He keeps himself
composed and on course.
Now don’t get me wrong. Harry has missed workouts and has had some bad meals along the way. But every time I see him his
attitude is not focused on the mistakes, but on how he is moving on from there. He doesn't’ let one or two failures steer him off the
course.
Harry’s wife had just passed away, the markets are at a long time low, and Harry is now realizing with the markets hit he might have to
work more years to recover. But, Harry is not thinking ‘oh poor Harry.” Harry is charged, he is focused, and he has the confidence and
drive to rebuild things and stay on course. As I was thinking about Harry’s ordeal it reminded me of one of my favorite quotes, “fall
down 7 times, stand up 8.”
As Harry was telling me about some of the things going on I was thinking to myself, “Gee, I wish I could get ALL of my clients to have
this much focus and concentration on their goals.” Then, I was slapped out of my daze when Harry said, ‘I just took this psychological
evaluation with over 100 people and I tested out at #1 for FOCUS and CONCENTRATION….” Then, I lit up, BINGO! How ironic,
FOCUS and CONCENTRATION! Harry, you read my mind! That is the key!
No matter what goes down, Harry will not be shaken badly enough to get off his path.
His life is not over. There is more to be done.
Many times I find my self repeating the words, focus, concentration, focus, concentration. When life gets so chaotic and I feel like I am
losing control, I just start repeating to myself, focus, concentration. Whatever it is I might be doing, I try to de-scramble the thoughts
and become totally engaged with what I am doing or trying to do….Harry hit the nail right on the head when he said those three magic
little words, no, not “I love you,” but, “focus and concentration.”
Anytime, you feel over worked, too much multi tasking, and a lack of focus….just start repeating the words, ‘focus and concentration.”
9/30/2008
Yoga and Core, Oil and Water, Alcohol and Ammo
If you are as avid of a Sesame Street watcher as I am than you already know how to play this game. Which one of these things
doesn’t belong? I mean we have all had our fair share of fun with alcohol and ammo, but we all know oil and water don’t mix. But, I
am going to perhaps enlighten you on something. If I had a penny for every time someone walked into the lab and had to
‘reeducated” on their core and posture around this whole ‘ draw your abs into your spine craze,” I could personally pay for the Bush
administrations $700 billion dollar bailout, restore the economy, and reduce back injury nationwide. Sound too good to be true? It’
simple really and you will soon see.
I want you to try something. First you should know that the lumbar spine is naturally curved with a slight concaved arch in the low back
region right above your belt line. This is the natural curvature of your back and thus holding this arch is optimal for vertebral disc
alignment in the spine (optimally placing and spacing the vertebral discs and nerves up and down the back from each other) .
Deviating from that arch is a big no-no and is exactly how you can blow out and herniate discs and pinch nerves. On the flip side, you
can develop excessive lordosis by arching to aggressively. However, with the amazing wide spread tightness and loss of flexibility in
America’s hamstrings and low back excessive lordosis is nearly impossible and seldom the issue.
Normal/Optimal Spinal Curvatures Sway/Flat Back Lordosis: Extreme Arch
So, here we go. Sit upright or even better stand up. Now, place a hand on your stomach and a hand on your low back so you can feel
what is about to happen. No, “draw in’ or suck your abs into your spine. What happened? Yes, your back kicked out and flattened as
your abs sucked into the spine. While this may be a good quick fix on the beach to ‘slim’ the waist, during exercise you just set
yourself for a low back blowout. If you placed weight on your back at this point it won’t be long until your leaning tower of Pisa of a
back will blow and you will swear off exercise.
The thing is that abs are a very mobile structure and not well suited for the task of holding the lumbar spine in place. They serve as a
decent support once the lumbar spine muscles are engaged but nothing more. What I would like you to do is arch your lumbar spine
muscles (ironically the muscles that always hurt because you are always humping over and inappropriately using) and “lock in” tightly
your low lumbar spinal muscles. They run vertically on each side of the spine. Arch, tense, and squeeze these muscles. They are
the true stabilizers of the spine and will do 80% or more of the core stabilization work you are always hearing about with the abs.
Now, for good measure once you master this lumbar arch, go ahead draw in your abs if you like, but KEEP the back LOCKED into
position. Next roll your shoulders back and down and walla you have a strong posture position.
Furthermore, learning hyper mobility from extreme low back stretching, as in yoga classes, further exacerbates this situation. Now,
don’t get me wrong, I am not bashing yoga per se, and every time I have any client walk in with some Yoga training they have
incredible hamstring, hip, low back, and shoulder flexibility, but this is simply a case of to much of a good thing. I know these
instructors mean well but they are ill advised here.
Only a certain degree of this lumbar mobility/flexibility from the yoga classes is needed. Excessive stretching here will only lead to a
blowout and pathetic posture down the road making holding your own bodyweight upright a chore.
I hesitate to mention Pilates at this time but you may run into similar instructions there. And any good Pilates instructor I have ever
known is just as dedicated to their craft as any self respecting scientologist. But just Remember, just about ALL exercise is good,
anything to keep you active and healthy, but sometimes good people are simply misguided.
So, remember use the BACK muscles to protect the back.
9/22/2008
Rich and Sujata Buck Part The Waters at The Lab
Over the past year or so I have had the pleasure of getting to know the Bucks. Rich and Sujata, otherwise known as, “Suj” Buck. Both
retired physicians who live very close by to the gym. Rich is a VERY dedicated guy. Rich may be the one guy who is at the gym more
than anybody else at The Lab. However, you may never see him, he is here in the most quiet hours of the day generally between
about 11am and 1pm and it seems like he is here 7 days a week getting either his weight training, stretching, and cardio exercise in.
I always know when Rich was here because his favorite old time black and white movies are the last channel left on the televisions.
When I first met Rich he came to me and told me about his dear wife. He said, “Justin, I would love to help get my wife started on an
exercise program but I am not sure how comfortable she is going to be in the gym. Could you help her get started and with a routine
to get things going for her?”
Fast forward 12 months, Sujata Buck is a machine, when most people maybe make 3 weeks and quit, she has been pumping away
consistently for over a year now. She is DEDICATED and she LOVES it! She even tells me at home how she makes sure to do all of
her mobility, stability, and flexibility exercises from the JTLC program (joint, tendon, ligament, and central nervous system warm up
and mobility routine).
I have been very pleased to have converted her to weight training and help keep her going in the gym. She has even suffered falls
injuring hr shoulder and long trips through Africa chasing lions and wild animals but has always made it back into the gym to keep
her routine going. She even brought resistance bands with her to Africa to keep her exercise regular!
Despite Suj’s big barriers from ever joining a gym in the past, I was very shocked about 2 weeks ago. Following a major storm in the
Midwest which caused major damage all across the region, I walked into the gym on a Sunday morning to see my gym in shambles.
The tiles were blown out, I had a river of water passing through the middle of the gym, and the place was an absolute wreck. Shocked
by the disaster, my attention immediately switched over to Rich and Suj going to work on their exercise routines.
It made all of the gym damage diminish and gave me quick perspective on the situation. Despite the tremendous damage to the gym
(over half of the gym was unusable at this time) Rich and Suj were not going to be stopped by something like a flood and a caved in
roof. True Lab rats they are…
The Lab is literally 1 mile away from a very posh 3 million dollar gym were you would expect to see the likes of Rich and Suj.
However, you will find them here regularly Monday through Friday and sometimes on the weekends working away with the rest of us.
Rich and Suj are a true blessing at The Lab and literally “parted the waters” at The Lab to get their workouts completed.
9/22/2008
75 Push ups on your 75th birthday…
I have seen some crazy things in the gym before, pregnancies, robbings, baptisms, and even a wedding. But, seldom does
something like what I am about to explain happen. I would be hard pressed to survey every gym and every 75 year old man on this
planet for that manner. You see, I bet most 75 year old men wake up, put in their teeth, take the brown, white, red, yellow, (4)white,
and (6) blue pills each morning, swallow their Metamucil, and have their nurse help them from the stool. Not Dr. Donald Suggs. I had
the pleasure to spend part of his birthday with him this year. Yes, from 5:30-6:30am to be exact. Not long after the regular 5:30am
gym crew was finished singing him happy birthday Donald was at it. His workout went on as usual. Just like his normal 3 mile runs,
and weight workouts that occur every morning at 5:30am. Just a normal day, no lay offs just because it was his birthday. Well, it just
happened to be one of the days of our workout cycle when Donald had to finish his workout with some push ups. My theory here is,
gosh at 75 it must be important to be able to push yourself out of bed, to push yourself off of the ground in case you fell and “life call”
was just to slow to respond that day, then you would want arms strong enough to push your bodyweight back up.
Well, it took me a while to convince Donald to “enjoy” the push ups, which he lovingly refers to as “elder abuse.” On this particular
morning I joked with Donald, "wouldn't it be great if you could do 75 push ups on your 75th birthday? Donald gave me that same “you
must be out of your mind young man” look. But, with no further a due, Donald started busting out his push ups….”10”…”20…”50”…
“Holy crap,” I was thinking, he might actually be able to do this, …..60….70….71,72,73,74,75….At this point I was freaking out, Donald
looked like a machine….76, 77, 78, 79, 80!!! Donald stopped, shook himself off, jumped to his feet, “ok, gotta go.” “I have a meeting,
and I have to catch a flight before noon, and a big party in new York this afternoon.” And out the door he went. The rest of us in the
gym stood in amazement with our mouths still sitting on the floor. We were absolutely shocked by this display of performance by this
75 year old man. A good 30 minutes went by before all of us in the gym stopped freaking out. Most people I see in the gym are very,
“studly” if they can crank out 50 push ups at any age. For Donald, this was just another day in the office…or “The Lab.” So, I wrote that
up on the Fame board to Donald’s long list of personal records….with a body weight under of under 150 pounds, age 75, deadlifts
routinely with 135 pounds for 15 reps, 80 push ups, squats with 205 pounds for 15 reps, dumbbell bench presses with 55 pounds for
10 reps, leg presses at 500 pounds for 10 reps, step-ups with 135 pounds for 10 reps on each leg, planks easily over 3 minutes and
on and on…I can’t wait until he is 100.
So, how old are You? Can you do that many push ups?
9/21/2008
Tenacity….ala Lab Rat Divas: Thelma and Louise
I was walking into my gym the other day…You know The Lab Gym, the best Gym in the whole wide world. And to my surprise two of
my fellow gym rats Sonya and Marian (2 of the most dedicated women I have seen in my 17 years of weightlifting), 2 beautiful middle
aged women, converted from curves and into the lab rat laboratory at The Lab). They were pumping and pushing away as usual with
their usual hilarious chatter intact. Everyone at the gym knows these two delightful characters as a real world Thelma and Louise, but
much cooler, and much, much stronger.
On this day in particular, something was different. Thelma, a secretary at Saint Louis University School of Nutrition and Dietetics, had
a cast on her hand that extended from mid forearm to the top of her knuckles….hmmmm, curious. I had wondered what happened.
Next, and even more shocking, was the small dumbbell which was accompanying her cast. I was blown away by her tenacity. She
was on a roll, she had entered into a very rigorous training routine (5 plus days of weights and cardio exercise with The Laser Weight
Loss Program) and not even a broken wrist was going to stop her! I watched in amazement as she went through he entire workout
with her partner performing ever set and every rep. With weight or without it. She said, ‘its better that I go through the motions and
add weight where I can than to completely stop! “Amen, music to my ears,” I replied. She had a goal, and she was sticking to the
plan.
The day that cast came off not a single step was missed on her path to her goals. Workouts performed, endurance and stamina
intact, calories incinerated. Thank you Thelma, this is a remarkable display of tenacity that I hope will help people make similar
decisions when faced with adversity.
9/20/2008
“The best kept secret in the Central West End can change your life”
At age 47, I wondered if it was really possible to radically change my life. I missed the energy level associated with my younger years.
It seemed like no matter how I altered my diet, I continued to gain weight. I was one of many men my age with a predominant
abdomen and my blood glucose level indicated that I was pre-diabetic.
I needed to change my life for the better or accept who I was and health-wise where I was going. But, could I do it?
I took a short walk to just off the corner of Boyle and Laclede and met Justin Thacker, owner of “The Lab” gym. Justin was an
imposing character with a history as a weight lifter and strong education in nutrition. I asked myself, “Can I do this?” I wasn’t sure.
Justin started my training off slow and allowed me to find my own pace and he offered just enough push. I felt comfortable. The place
was not a meat market. Looking back, feeling comfortable was critical.
That was just under a year ago. I still can’t get used to using the phrase, “I’m going to the gym.” It just doesn’t seem to fit who I am.
But, it does.
Now, my blood glucose level is back in the normal range. My blood pressure is down. My cholesterol levels are great. I eat better
and more than I have in years and I’ve lost 25 pounds. Most importantly, my energy level is way up.
My friends often refer to, “Your new body.” It sounds so strange. Looking so much better was just a side benefit.
K. David Zeiser, Extraordinary Training, St. Louis
SEE OUR NEW NEW BLOG HERE!
Random Blog-ings from The Lab Gym…
A mad scientist, a laboratory, and some rather unusual suspects also known as, “The Lab Rats.” What is this place? Where did they
come from? And why are they all doing what they are doing? Moving, pushing, grasping, breathing, stretching, bending, flipping,
jerking, running, jumping, all in a very concentrated focused manner. If one wouldn't’t know any better it would look like some
aboriginal tribal hunting ritual. There is sort of a focused buzz going on, unlike any other gym experience, no lines, no pick up lines,
no obnoxious stalkers trying to give you an requested spot, no otomix bodybuilding shoes, no oily pose downs, no fads, no quick
fixes, no pushy sales types, no potions or magic powders, just focused, determined, lab rats…and they are taking over the city. Join
them before its too late….
From ages 14-95, male and female, from diabetics, to weekend warriors, to professional athletes, the Lab rats vary widely from age,
gender, and health and performance goals. However, they all share one thing, a goal, a mission, a lifestyle, and here at The Lab gym
they share that passion on their journey to live their ultimate lifestyles. Here their stories, experiences, and wisdom will be shared…
This blog will exist to help you understand them and their lifestyle in some form or another. This may come across as vague as the
parables from the New Testament, but I assure you if you grasp the core concepts you will soon understand. They may sometimes
come from Dr. Jekyl and sometimes from Mr. Hyde, or even the new reformed or seasoned lab rat, the end result is the same. Here in
lies a mixture of ideals, concepts, theories, stories, and practices to achieve optimum performance and health. Take what is useful
and disregard what is not…welcome to the pack.
The stories and information here are for entertainment purpose only. Use of any information or exercises is at your own risk. Please advise your medical
doctor before beginning an exercise program. Then, contact us and we will show you the way.
Dedicated to my dear Lab rats…(go to blog now!)
10/22/2008
Focus, Concentration, Daylight, and Death
I tell you what, I meet some of the most interesting people before the sun comes up. Not from staying out late all night, but from
getting up at 5am everyday to come and train some of the most focused and successful people I have ever met. Like clockwork, at 5:
30 am everyday the gym is buzzing, and more crowded than it is all day long. If some one is not present immediately phone calls
usually go out to see if everything is ok.
A little under 2 months ago, I met an interesting guy by the name of Harry Ratliff. From the second I met Harry I knew he had some
special characteristics about him. He knew EXACTLY what he wanted and WHEN he wanted to do it. He had crystal clear goals and
a specific plan of action already mapped out. Furthermore, Harry had already experienced a great deal of success on his own by
losing over 40 pounds. He brought with him all of his meticulous exercise and diet records from the years past. And the progress
was even GRAPHED! I have never had anyone walk into my office with such focus and energy being aimed right for the heart of their
goals. I knew immediately that we would have much success together.
Unfortunately, as time went on Harry had some incredibly difficult heart breaking situations. Enough to push anybody into insanity,
depression, or even worse. Usually, when a little adversity gets in the way I often see people disappear and never find their way back
to the gym. But let me tell you, Harry is dealing with more than his share of adversity, and is ticking off his goals full steam ahead.
When I first met Harry his wife had been sick and was dealing with the difficulties of a lung transplant for over 5 years. Harry was in
and out of the hospital day and night to see his wife. He got his exercise in one way or another and kept gradually losing weight.
When he was in the gym he was determined and aiming for his goals with laser focus everyday and you could just see him
channeling out the frustration into every rep of every set. Half the time I cant even get him to stop the sets, he just keeps pushing
along. Harry is appropriately and positively releasing the pain into the workout. Dumping out the emoting and driving him to higher
levels of success. You see, Harry is using the adversity in his life to fuel the his fire and as an impetus towards his goals.
But that is just the start of it. Harry is also a financial advisor. As you might expect he is getting a TON of phone calls these days with
panicky clients who are watching the markets flood their life savings. Harry must handle these people and deal with the pain and
frustration they are going through. With the markets as bad as they have been in my lifetime Harry has his hands full. But
nevertheless, Harry keeps losing weight hits his workouts hard, and keeps focused on managing his diet. He keeps himself
composed and on course.
Now don’t get me wrong. Harry has missed workouts and has had some bad meals along the way. But every time I see him his
attitude is not focused on the mistakes, but on how he is moving on from there. He doesn't’ let one or two failures steer him off the
course.
Harry’s wife had just passed away, the markets are at a long time low, and Harry is now realizing with the markets hit he might have to
work more years to recover. But, Harry is not thinking ‘oh poor Harry.” Harry is charged, he is focused, and he has the confidence and
drive to rebuild things and stay on course. As I was thinking about Harry’s ordeal it reminded me of one of my favorite quotes, “fall
down 7 times, stand up 8.”
As Harry was telling me about some of the things going on I was thinking to myself, “Gee, I wish I could get ALL of my clients to have
this much focus and concentration on their goals.” Then, I was slapped out of my daze when Harry said, ‘I just took this psychological
evaluation with over 100 people and I tested out at #1 for FOCUS and CONCENTRATION….” Then, I lit up, BINGO! How ironic,
FOCUS and CONCENTRATION! Harry, you read my mind! That is the key!
No matter what goes down, Harry will not be shaken badly enough to get off his path.
His life is not over. There is more to be done.
Many times I find my self repeating the words, focus, concentration, focus, concentration. When life gets so chaotic and I feel like I am
losing control, I just start repeating to myself, focus, concentration. Whatever it is I might be doing, I try to de-scramble the thoughts
and become totally engaged with what I am doing or trying to do….Harry hit the nail right on the head when he said those three magic
little words, no, not “I love you,” but, “focus and concentration.”
Anytime, you feel over worked, too much multi tasking, and a lack of focus….just start repeating the words, ‘focus and concentration.”
9/30/2008
Yoga and Core, Oil and Water, Alcohol and Ammo
If you are as avid of a Sesame Street watcher as I am than you already know how to play this game. Which one of these things
doesn’t belong? I mean we have all had our fair share of fun with alcohol and ammo, but we all know oil and water don’t mix. But, I
am going to perhaps enlighten you on something. If I had a penny for every time someone walked into the lab and had to
‘reeducated” on their core and posture around this whole ‘ draw your abs into your spine craze,” I could personally pay for the Bush
administrations $700 billion dollar bailout, restore the economy, and reduce back injury nationwide. Sound too good to be true? It’
simple really and you will soon see.
I want you to try something. First you should know that the lumbar spine is naturally curved with a slight concaved arch in the low back
region right above your belt line. This is the natural curvature of your back and thus holding this arch is optimal for vertebral disc
alignment in the spine (optimally placing and spacing the vertebral discs and nerves up and down the back from each other) .
Deviating from that arch is a big no-no and is exactly how you can blow out and herniate discs and pinch nerves. On the flip side, you
can develop excessive lordosis by arching to aggressively. However, with the amazing wide spread tightness and loss of flexibility in
America’s hamstrings and low back excessive lordosis is nearly impossible and seldom the issue.
Normal/Optimal Spinal Curvatures Sway/Flat Back Lordosis: Extreme Arch
So, here we go. Sit upright or even better stand up. Now, place a hand on your stomach and a hand on your low back so you can feel
what is about to happen. No, “draw in’ or suck your abs into your spine. What happened? Yes, your back kicked out and flattened as
your abs sucked into the spine. While this may be a good quick fix on the beach to ‘slim’ the waist, during exercise you just set
yourself for a low back blowout. If you placed weight on your back at this point it won’t be long until your leaning tower of Pisa of a
back will blow and you will swear off exercise.
The thing is that abs are a very mobile structure and not well suited for the task of holding the lumbar spine in place. They serve as a
decent support once the lumbar spine muscles are engaged but nothing more. What I would like you to do is arch your lumbar spine
muscles (ironically the muscles that always hurt because you are always humping over and inappropriately using) and “lock in” tightly
your low lumbar spinal muscles. They run vertically on each side of the spine. Arch, tense, and squeeze these muscles. They are
the true stabilizers of the spine and will do 80% or more of the core stabilization work you are always hearing about with the abs.
Now, for good measure once you master this lumbar arch, go ahead draw in your abs if you like, but KEEP the back LOCKED into
position. Next roll your shoulders back and down and walla you have a strong posture position.
Furthermore, learning hyper mobility from extreme low back stretching, as in yoga classes, further exacerbates this situation. Now,
don’t get me wrong, I am not bashing yoga per se, and every time I have any client walk in with some Yoga training they have
incredible hamstring, hip, low back, and shoulder flexibility, but this is simply a case of to much of a good thing. I know these
instructors mean well but they are ill advised here.
Only a certain degree of this lumbar mobility/flexibility from the yoga classes is needed. Excessive stretching here will only lead to a
blowout and pathetic posture down the road making holding your own bodyweight upright a chore.
I hesitate to mention Pilates at this time but you may run into similar instructions there. And any good Pilates instructor I have ever
known is just as dedicated to their craft as any self respecting scientologist. But just Remember, just about ALL exercise is good,
anything to keep you active and healthy, but sometimes good people are simply misguided.
So, remember use the BACK muscles to protect the back.
9/22/2008
Rich and Sujata Buck Part The Waters at The Lab
Over the past year or so I have had the pleasure of getting to know the Bucks. Rich and Sujata, otherwise known as, “Suj” Buck. Both
retired physicians who live very close by to the gym. Rich is a VERY dedicated guy. Rich may be the one guy who is at the gym more
than anybody else at The Lab. However, you may never see him, he is here in the most quiet hours of the day generally between
about 11am and 1pm and it seems like he is here 7 days a week getting either his weight training, stretching, and cardio exercise in.
I always know when Rich was here because his favorite old time black and white movies are the last channel left on the televisions.
When I first met Rich he came to me and told me about his dear wife. He said, “Justin, I would love to help get my wife started on an
exercise program but I am not sure how comfortable she is going to be in the gym. Could you help her get started and with a routine
to get things going for her?”
Fast forward 12 months, Sujata Buck is a machine, when most people maybe make 3 weeks and quit, she has been pumping away
consistently for over a year now. She is DEDICATED and she LOVES it! She even tells me at home how she makes sure to do all of
her mobility, stability, and flexibility exercises from the JTLC program (joint, tendon, ligament, and central nervous system warm up
and mobility routine).
I have been very pleased to have converted her to weight training and help keep her going in the gym. She has even suffered falls
injuring hr shoulder and long trips through Africa chasing lions and wild animals but has always made it back into the gym to keep
her routine going. She even brought resistance bands with her to Africa to keep her exercise regular!
Despite Suj’s big barriers from ever joining a gym in the past, I was very shocked about 2 weeks ago. Following a major storm in the
Midwest which caused major damage all across the region, I walked into the gym on a Sunday morning to see my gym in shambles.
The tiles were blown out, I had a river of water passing through the middle of the gym, and the place was an absolute wreck. Shocked
by the disaster, my attention immediately switched over to Rich and Suj going to work on their exercise routines.
It made all of the gym damage diminish and gave me quick perspective on the situation. Despite the tremendous damage to the gym
(over half of the gym was unusable at this time) Rich and Suj were not going to be stopped by something like a flood and a caved in
roof. True Lab rats they are…
The Lab is literally 1 mile away from a very posh 3 million dollar gym were you would expect to see the likes of Rich and Suj.
However, you will find them here regularly Monday through Friday and sometimes on the weekends working away with the rest of us.
Rich and Suj are a true blessing at The Lab and literally “parted the waters” at The Lab to get their workouts completed.
9/22/2008
75 Push ups on your 75th birthday…
I have seen some crazy things in the gym before, pregnancies, robbings, baptisms, and even a wedding. But, seldom does
something like what I am about to explain happen. I would be hard pressed to survey every gym and every 75 year old man on this
planet for that manner. You see, I bet most 75 year old men wake up, put in their teeth, take the brown, white, red, yellow, (4)white,
and (6) blue pills each morning, swallow their Metamucil, and have their nurse help them from the stool. Not Dr. Donald Suggs. I had
the pleasure to spend part of his birthday with him this year. Yes, from 5:30-6:30am to be exact. Not long after the regular 5:30am
gym crew was finished singing him happy birthday Donald was at it. His workout went on as usual. Just like his normal 3 mile runs,
and weight workouts that occur every morning at 5:30am. Just a normal day, no lay offs just because it was his birthday. Well, it just
happened to be one of the days of our workout cycle when Donald had to finish his workout with some push ups. My theory here is,
gosh at 75 it must be important to be able to push yourself out of bed, to push yourself off of the ground in case you fell and “life call”
was just to slow to respond that day, then you would want arms strong enough to push your bodyweight back up.
Well, it took me a while to convince Donald to “enjoy” the push ups, which he lovingly refers to as “elder abuse.” On this particular
morning I joked with Donald, "wouldn't it be great if you could do 75 push ups on your 75th birthday? Donald gave me that same “you
must be out of your mind young man” look. But, with no further a due, Donald started busting out his push ups….”10”…”20…”50”…
“Holy crap,” I was thinking, he might actually be able to do this, …..60….70….71,72,73,74,75….At this point I was freaking out, Donald
looked like a machine….76, 77, 78, 79, 80!!! Donald stopped, shook himself off, jumped to his feet, “ok, gotta go.” “I have a meeting,
and I have to catch a flight before noon, and a big party in new York this afternoon.” And out the door he went. The rest of us in the
gym stood in amazement with our mouths still sitting on the floor. We were absolutely shocked by this display of performance by this
75 year old man. A good 30 minutes went by before all of us in the gym stopped freaking out. Most people I see in the gym are very,
“studly” if they can crank out 50 push ups at any age. For Donald, this was just another day in the office…or “The Lab.” So, I wrote that
up on the Fame board to Donald’s long list of personal records….with a body weight under of under 150 pounds, age 75, deadlifts
routinely with 135 pounds for 15 reps, 80 push ups, squats with 205 pounds for 15 reps, dumbbell bench presses with 55 pounds for
10 reps, leg presses at 500 pounds for 10 reps, step-ups with 135 pounds for 10 reps on each leg, planks easily over 3 minutes and
on and on…I can’t wait until he is 100.
So, how old are You? Can you do that many push ups?
9/21/2008
Tenacity….ala Lab Rat Divas: Thelma and Louise
I was walking into my gym the other day…You know The Lab Gym, the best Gym in the whole wide world. And to my surprise two of
my fellow gym rats Sonya and Marian (2 of the most dedicated women I have seen in my 17 years of weightlifting), 2 beautiful middle
aged women, converted from curves and into the lab rat laboratory at The Lab). They were pumping and pushing away as usual with
their usual hilarious chatter intact. Everyone at the gym knows these two delightful characters as a real world Thelma and Louise, but
much cooler, and much, much stronger.
On this day in particular, something was different. Thelma, a secretary at Saint Louis University School of Nutrition and Dietetics, had
a cast on her hand that extended from mid forearm to the top of her knuckles….hmmmm, curious. I had wondered what happened.
Next, and even more shocking, was the small dumbbell which was accompanying her cast. I was blown away by her tenacity. She
was on a roll, she had entered into a very rigorous training routine (5 plus days of weights and cardio exercise with The Laser Weight
Loss Program) and not even a broken wrist was going to stop her! I watched in amazement as she went through he entire workout
with her partner performing ever set and every rep. With weight or without it. She said, ‘its better that I go through the motions and
add weight where I can than to completely stop! “Amen, music to my ears,” I replied. She had a goal, and she was sticking to the
plan.
The day that cast came off not a single step was missed on her path to her goals. Workouts performed, endurance and stamina
intact, calories incinerated. Thank you Thelma, this is a remarkable display of tenacity that I hope will help people make similar
decisions when faced with adversity.
9/20/2008
“The best kept secret in the Central West End can change your life”
At age 47, I wondered if it was really possible to radically change my life. I missed the energy level associated with my younger years.
It seemed like no matter how I altered my diet, I continued to gain weight. I was one of many men my age with a predominant
abdomen and my blood glucose level indicated that I was pre-diabetic.
I needed to change my life for the better or accept who I was and health-wise where I was going. But, could I do it?
I took a short walk to just off the corner of Boyle and Laclede and met Justin Thacker, owner of “The Lab” gym. Justin was an
imposing character with a history as a weight lifter and strong education in nutrition. I asked myself, “Can I do this?” I wasn’t sure.
Justin started my training off slow and allowed me to find my own pace and he offered just enough push. I felt comfortable. The place
was not a meat market. Looking back, feeling comfortable was critical.
That was just under a year ago. I still can’t get used to using the phrase, “I’m going to the gym.” It just doesn’t seem to fit who I am.
But, it does.
Now, my blood glucose level is back in the normal range. My blood pressure is down. My cholesterol levels are great. I eat better
and more than I have in years and I’ve lost 25 pounds. Most importantly, my energy level is way up.
My friends often refer to, “Your new body.” It sounds so strange. Looking so much better was just a side benefit.
K. David Zeiser, Extraordinary Training, St. Louis
