I take training very seriously.

I’ve spent years traveling around the country to different seminars, conferences and gyms to learn from the best coaches in the world. When my work week was done, I started my weekend either in my car or on a plane going to an event to get better.

People told me I was wasting my time. I did it with the intention of one day working with those who were truly dedicated to be their best.

Training is not my only source of income. I don’t rely on it to put food on my table or pay my bills. This means I don’t just take on clients for the sake of filling up my schedule.

I’m not a salesman. When you come to me inquiring about training, I’m interviewing you as much as you are interviewing me. I put a lot into this. I only want to work with people that want to get better and will do what it takes.

When athletes come to me saying they want to be trained, I tell them that there are three non-negotiables that they need to agree to before we start. They have to be coachable, willing to bring the intensity and be consistent.

1. COACHABILITY

This is where it all starts.

You have to be willing to be coached. It does not matter how good you are at your sport, if you have no formal training experience your training age is zero. This means you have to be willing to start with the beginning progressions and be ready to hear that you are not doing something correctly.

One-on-one and even two-on-one training is a lot different than large group training. The focus is solely on you. You have to be able to accept and apply constructive criticism. Anyone that has worked with me will tell you that I’m not a rah-rah yeller or a dictator. But, if you’re going to work with me, I want things done the right way because I have your best interests in mind. My business is only successful if you are successful.

You also have to remember that you hired me for coaching, I didn’t hire you. I am open to suggestions and listen to my clients when they tell me something hurts or doesn’t feel right. But, I am not doing a workout that you found on TikTok or doing an exercise you saw a pro athlete do online when you can’t do the basics right yet.

Working with Gabe Pimenta back in 2019 on his sprinting. He’s now playing high school football in South Carolina.

The best athletes I’ve had get it. They all came in right away and were coachable. Coincidentally, they also came from teams where they had coaches who were hard on them and said I was much easier in comparison. The best want to be told what they are doing wrong and how to fix it. They know the end goal is to get better and put their egos to the side.

Also, most of my experience the past 11 years comes from working with youth athletes. When a parent tells me their kid is interested in training, the first question I ask is: are they mature enough for it? Maturity is the differentiator with youth athletes and will determine whether the program will be successful or not. I’ve worked with 7 year old’s that did great because they came ready to listen and I’ve had other kids that didn’t take it seriously and turned it into a glorified baby sitting service.

I don’t care how good you are at your sport. I care that you come in wanting to get better and then it is my job to help get you there.

2. INTENT

People will knock some of the big guys in the gym saying that they don’t know what they are doing. I’ve talked to a few and there’s some that really don’t know much besides what body part they are doing. But, they’re huge so they must be doing something right. You hear them grunting and slamming weights because they attack every set with intensity.

You can have the perfect program, but if you are not locked in during each rep and each set then you are not going to see the results. This matters no matter what your goal is — gaining muscle, losing weight, getting faster, more powerful, etc. Like Coach Kav says, “Intent Matters”.

Alex Diaz attacked every rep in the gym and ran every sprint hard, leading to him taking 4.5 seconds off of his 60-yard dash time.

Speed and power exercises are built on intent. The exercises themselves don’t have any special powers, it’s all about how you execute them. These are sprints, jumps, throws and quick movements that rely on you executing them with speed and force in order for them to be successful.

It’s not just about how hard you go, it’s also about how focused you are. This goes for kids learning the most basic bodyweight movements. For kids, training must be treated like a skill in the beginning because you are programming your body to move the right way. Don’t just go through the motions. When you’re doing your technique work make sure you are locked in and following the proper tempos. and make sure you’re doing everything right so you can reap the benefits and move through the progressions quicker.

You have to take every exercise seriously, from the warm-up all the way through the main movements. This will ensure you are getting everything out of the program that is specifically built for you.

3. CONSISTENCY

Training is not like other services. You can’t come in one session and have all of your problems solved. Training takes time to see all of the benefits.

Juliana Carrara never missed a session. She came to train even when she had multiple practices in one day.

In order to see those benefits, you have to consistently come to work every week. Listen, I understand that life gets in the way and people need to take a day off here or there. I get that.

I’m talking about the people that are constantly missing sessions or missing full weeks. If that’s you, then training isn’t for you. You’re just wasting both of our time.

Success in training and reaching your goals comes from constantly showing up and getting after it. We are trying to build off what you did in the last session and that can only happen if you have great attendance.

Here’s another thing — not every session is going to be a record breaker. There’s going to be days where you are tired or a bit run down. That’s OK, we will adjust and plan accordingly.

I know you’re not always going to be 100% ready to work. There’s going to be days where you had a lot going on. Just give me what you got that day and I’ll help fill in the rest. Training progress isn’t a straight line upward. There are peaks and valleys. But, if you are always showing up, the line will go up and the dips will be small. If you are inconsistent, we will get stuck and not able to push the wheel forward.

I can’t be your main source of motivation. When parents say they need me to get their kids motivated, then it’s not going to work out. The drive has to come from you. I will always give that push on those last couple of hard reps or help you through on those days when you’re sluggish. But, I can’t be the one that wants you goals more than you do. I can’t be the one to get you off the couch. You have to be the one that wants it and are the one who is motivated to crush their goals.