Uncharted Performance

Ben Dziwulski of WODPREP is this week’s guest in the first episode of Season 6. Ben, aside from creating WODPREP, is a former coach at CrossFit Invoke as well as former owner of his own CrossFit box. Ben has always been a natural at coaching and was able to create opportunities for himself to not only get better but to succeed beyond his initial plans. We’ll learn how he distills difficult concepts into small, manageable steps (or dominos, as he refers to them) to be able to teach others how to tackle them. Other gems from this interview include how to advance in training through what Ben refers to as an “unbalanced life” or letting the pursuit of a goal consume you for a time while you maintain single-minded focus and cherishing small victories to enjoy life to the fullest.

To wrap up this season Uncharted Performance, our guest of the week is Jeff Clapacs. Jeff is Bethune-Cookman University basketball team assistant coach with a decade of experience in college basketball coaching all over the U.S. This interview probably won’t make you better at basketball but we hope it inspires you to live a life of passion and purpose and that’s what Jeff is doing. He has learned that aspiring to always get better, practicing patience and paying it forward are the keys to success. All of us will encounter adversities or tough circumstances and Jeff has a few pointers on how we can stick with it through these rough times. Enjoy!

In this episode we’re happy to introduce you to Shellie Edington. Shellie is an age 50-54 division CrossFit Games champion, business owner and former gymnast. We got to pick her brain about her experience at the CrossFit Games, how she improved with every single year of competing and what keeps her coming back stronger than ever. We also touched on topics such as coaching and developing athletic kids, loving the challenge and brain engagement of a movement practice as a way to develop the life-long habit of exercise, as well the benefits of gymnastics for CrossFit. Among other helpful advice Shellie recommends using all the resources at your disposal (sports psychology is a good example), keeping a good handle on your work/exercise/leisure schedule to maximize efficiency and last but not least, finding the fun in the workouts even when you’re doing something you’re not very good at!

This week on Uncharted Performance we’d like to introduce you to Tim Robertson Jr. of Speed Strength. Tim holds a master’s degree in sports physiology, is a CSCS and owner of Speed Strength. Tim has over 20 years of experience training both youth and profession athletes and his impressive list of clients include LeBron James, Ben Simmons, Nene, Ellie Hess and London Fletcher. This conversation spanned from discussing how effective leadership can make you a better coach to what exercises can have the biggest carryover on the field/in sports, and everything in between (no surprise here, folks - do your squats). Tim’s recommendations and wisdom will benefit not only coaches but athletes as well, especially when it comes to developing your own philosophy and work ethic.

In this episode of Uncharted Performance our guest is Matt Gildersleeve, who is the director of football strength and conditioning at the University of Akron and the youngest strength coach in Division I football. Matt brings energy, drive and inspiration this week as he walks us through his story. Matt knew from an early age  what he wanted to pursue and credits mental fortitude and character resilience as the biggest factors that helped his along the way, with just a little bit of luck. The way he chooses to show gratitude for working his dream job is through serving others who cross his path. Some actionable takeaways from this episode are listening to feedback, learning from others, and acting the part of what you want to achieve long before you get the part. 

Welcome to episode 56 of Uncharted Performance! This week we are returning to Black Flag Athletics to talk to Lindsey Kelly, Tom Rini, and Pete Nelson II. The topic of this discussion, as all three of our guests have extensive experience in, is coaching. We start off with learning why coaching is such a passion for them and how it helps them find fulfillment. As Tom puts it, it is an opportunity to give something of yourself and build a relationship with those you’re coaching that impacts the rest of their lives.  Lindsey, Pete and Tom describe their growth as coaches and give some useful advice on how others can evolve in this unique role. Learning from other coaches, developing good communication with clients of all different types and going out and getting that all important experience are just some of those critical skills. 

Thanks for joining us for episode 55 of the Uncharted Performance podcast. Some familiar faces are back at it, Mark Valenti of Blind Dog Gym and Shawn Schumaker of Team BBS Fitness. These gents have a combined 50 years of experience in the strength game and they’re more than willing to share what they know and reveal their strength secrets. This is one of the most technical episodes we’ve done. You’ll find out what the most effective accessory movements are for the core, posterior chain, glutes, upper body, as well as the all important grip development. Additionally, we’ll list numerous variations of those standard movements to avoid injury and plateaus. Both Mark and Shawn emphasize the importance (surprise, surprise!) of strict movements so get your strict pull-ups in, ladies and gentlemen!

Episode 54 of Uncharted Performance is back, this time introducing Korey Smerk of EYE Fitness. Korey is a fitness coach, an obstacle course racer, trail runner, and nature lover. Korey shares his journey with bipolar disorder, from his diagnosis several years ago to how he manages it and learns to function with it daily. He approaches it by doing frequent self checks to assess where he is at that moment in time but even more importantly, he admits that having patience is the key. Korey’s biggest motivation is wanting more for himself and he achieves that by life-long learning and growing despite the sometimes daily obstacles (no pun intended!). 

Thank you for joining us for episode 53 of Uncharted Performance! We are at CTown CrossFit for this episode talking to Cory Moore and Brian Warner about what it takes to make it in the world of bar athletics. Cory is a nationally and internationally recognized masters weightlifting competitor and coach, and Brian is a 2016 NPC natural master’s physique competition winner and a personal trainer. However, both have an extensive history in the bar world. In this interview you will find out how simple (but not easy!) bodyweight exercises can help develop strength, agility and coordination, especially as it applies to bar athletics. Both Brian and Cory cannot emphasize enough that repetition of strict movements (e.g., pushups, dips) can elevate your performance but that we shouldn’t forget to utilize different variations of those “basic” exercises for maximum muscle recruitment. Finally, both of these gents just want to “reach people with positivity” so make sure you tune in!

This week on episode 52 we are back at Eleventh Element CrossFit, this time talking with Graham Holmberg. Graham is a multiple-time CrossFit Games competitor, former Games champion, family man and owner of Eleventh Element CrossFit. Graham was always a voracious athlete and before he found CrossFit, he played multiple sports in high school and college. We discussed how he developed some destructive behaviors such as substance abuse in his younger years and how one event brought him back to himself and God and set him on the path to success. Of course, we couldn’t interview a former Games champ without talking about his training, recovery, coaching and plans for the future. His advice for athletes and non-athletes alike? Have a big vision and slow down to get better. 

We are back with episode 51 of Uncharted Performance coming from Eleventh Element CrossFit. We are talking today with Savanna Holmberg, graduate of the Institute For Integrative Nutrition, nutrition coach at Eleventh Element, mom of 3 and the SavyMama herself. In her coaching style, Savanna advocates for consistency and connection with her clients while focusing on four values: career, spirituality, relationships and nutrition. We discussed how she feels coaching keeps her on track with her own goals and what specific approach to eating that Savanna found is the most effective for her own and her family’s health. Last but not least, we find out what SavyMama is all about and pick up some tips on how to heal oneself through food and natural remedies. 

Pawel Wencel, is the host and co-creator of Uncharted Performance. He does a phenomenal job seeking out the stories of his guests where he highlights the adversity they’ve had to overcome. What I found most fascinating in this conversation was the process of thinking that Pawel uses to continually achieve his goals. He has a full time corporate job while pursuing his passion project. It’s very easy to blame time, circumstances, or be paralyzed by the enormity of the task ahead. How does he take responsibility for what’s most important? How did he break down his vision into actionable steps? What does that structure look like? These concepts are not just limited to side hustles and passion projects. It’s about figuring out how to make time for whatever is most important to you.

In the mid-season finale episode 50 we are joined by Mike Cerbus who has competed at multiple US Nationals competitions and American Opens, including medalling at 3 Nationals and 5 American Opens (taking the title in 2011) as well as currently being the weightlifting coach at Power Monkey Fitness. There is a reason that his favorite phrase is “technique matters” in this interview and he truly lives and coaches by this. Mike leads us down a path of becoming a more capable lifter by emphasizing the key: repetition until mastery is achieved has to precede moving on to higher weights or more complex movements. But there are many more gems in this episode so hurry and tune in!

In episode 49 of Uncharted Performance we go back to one of the basic movements to develop strength, the deadlift, with Shawn Schumaker. Shawn is the owner of Team BSS Fitness, Ohio Representative for United States Strongman, coach and athlete. We start off with Shawn’s experience in bodybuilding, strongman and now powerlifting. His approach to competing and maximizing your lift is to save your energy and stay calm so it can be channeled towards the lift when it’s go time. Then we delve into the art and science of the deadlift, how Shawn has succeeded in this lift and how he currently trains (including types of accessory work), including some surprising confessions. Think you need to only perform the deadlift frequently to get good at it? Think again.

Episode 48 of Uncharted Performance presents two exciting new guests, Anjua Maximo and Jen Speed. Anjua is the creator of PURE MVMNT, a certified life coach and co-creator of GrooveRyde and Jen is the co-creator of IronWill and a coach at PURE MVMNT. This is not our usual “how to get stronger in your lifts ” type of episode as we explore an entirely different movement practice.  Anjua and Jen take us on a journey into the world of sensual dance. They’ve build more than a fitness studio but a place for women to find connection, community and a no-judgement place for self-love to flourish by encouraging self-expression through movement. Their goal is for women to feel great in their bodies but we could all learn to slow down a little and move with intention. 

On this week’s episode of Uncharted Performance we want to introduce you to Nate Helming and Craig dos Santos, endurance athletes and coaches and founders of The Run Experience in San Francisco. They’ve found a way to connect and unite a community of runners, both in person as well as virtually, by teaching the correct running technique in a way that does not feel overcritical or deprecating. Nate and Craig want to bring back the joy of running before it became equated with athletic punishment. For those of you preparing for an endurance event or if you run regularly but still struggle once in a while, you’ll learn a refreshing new approach. Lastly, we’ll discuss how posture and stability, mobility and strength as well as being in tune with your body can help you run better but also love running more.

Another olympian joins the ranks of our wonderful guests in episode 46 of Uncharted Performance. Today we welcome Lauren Bay Regula, co-owner of TrAk Athletics, who has gone to multiple Summer Olympic games for softball and won the bronze medal in World Softball Championship in 2016, all as part of team Canada. You’ll find out why Lauren is a fan of taking chances and thinking big, such as coming out of an 8-year retirement to play in the World Championship. With important decisions, she lives by the principle “close your eyes and jump in” (after sleeping on it, of course). We are so inspired by how Lauren has stayed tenacious and humble through this journey!

In episode 45 of Uncharted Performance we visit Trak Athletics and its co-owner, Dave Regula. He tells an inspiring story of a radical lifestyle change that he and his family undertook in order to stay true to themselves. Dave recognizes the importance of training but urges everyone to get out of the gym, even though he owns one. We can do that by playing often, finding new experiences to learn from and not being stuck in that dreaded comfort zone. One of his goals with TrAk was to create a community that was like a family and we think they’ve been more than successful in accomplishing that goal.

This week on episode 44 of Uncharted Performance, we're presenting a new guest, Christina Bangma. Christina is a USS lightweight pro Strongwoman. Her journey into the world of strength started out, surprisingly, in running. Why? As one of the main themes of this conversation, the vast majority of people tend to gravitate toward familiar and comfortable things. She didn’t stop there, of course, and used her natural drive to improve and get better as a catalyst to her success as a Strongwoman. We loved Christina’s motto: live, learn and pass it on! Without further adieu, we’d like to pass on all that knowledge, inspiration and advice that she has to you!

Episode 43 of Uncharted Performance welcomes back our old friends from the previous two-part mini-series Strength Summit (Part 1 and Part 2), Tom Rini and Lindsey Kelly of Black Flag Athletics, and Mark Valenti of Blind Dog Gym. When we thought we’ve covered it all when to comes to getting strong, there’s a lot more hiding behind the surface! In this episode we dig into our guests’ surprising reasons for first starting working out and training, discuss variables that can help promote longevity in gaining and maintaining strength, as well as some general advice from these seasoned athletes and coaches.  The pieces of advice that stand out the most? Don’t get stuck in single modality training, have one plan and commit to it, find what drives, you and seek out the best people at what they do to get to that goal.