Alchemist
I introduced my workout partner (not life partner, NFW) to SS for an ACL injury rehab. With that half tucked away, she is NDTFP but only squats and deadlifts and only 2x a week, primarily due to life/time constraints....and this issue I'm about to ask about. So, truly, asking for a friend.
The issue is warm ups seem to be either ineffective or taking WAY too long and we can't seem to suss out the middle road. Maybe pertinent she is hyper flexible due to Elher-Danners syndrome and also has the corresponding lack of proprioception.
She is 6'1", 220 lb. Squats are currently 5x3@165 lb. DL @185 lb
Keeping in mind we've tried a slew of warm up scheme, her basic is
The issue is, per her, she does not feel warmed up with that scheme and the work sets both look and feel pretty bad. She's been back and forth at this weight due to the form being so bad as we try to add more weight. We've tried 3 lb, 2 lb and even 1 lb increases and she gets pinned at 168 lb and form looks like corresponding hell. We deloaded her a couple times to no effect. But now I find an interesting data point.
Out of utter sheer frustration she did the above, and then 3 sets at 165x5 and tried a 4th set because of the observation the last reps on set three were not feeling too bad.....and she proceeded to destroy the 4th set. and 5th. and 6th. I've never seen her form and speed so good. She proceeded to do 9 fucking sets and capped it with 5 @ 170 and they were easy.
Her conclusion is only after 3 working sets was she feeling properly warmed up. And I'm having trouble arguing. The issue is that scheme is taking a fucking hour. Our last test cut that scheme in half, had her do 3x5 of her working sets....and it didn't have the same effect. She didn't feel warmed up.
What the hell are we missing? Can you suggest a better warmup scheme....or something? I feel like we are missing the forest for the trees.
A last side note, her warm ups and squat set don't seem to carry over to DL in that without way too many warm up sets, the pattern repeats. Jerky form, struggles, etc.
Mark Rippetoe
You're missing the fact that human perception is inadequate. These are far too many warmup sets. It doesn't matter what she thinks, because she doesn't have the experience to know. If she does a couple of empty bar sets, 95x5, 125x5, and 145x2, she's warm. And she's obviously not doing the program at all, so she probably needs a better coach, one who charges money so she'll listen.
Isaac Medina
How necessary/important would it be to establish a social media presence if I'm wanting to become a Starting Strength Coach?
I live in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and I've seen that there are no SSCs or SS gyms in New Mexico, so I figured I'd have to market myself a little harder if I'd want to be successful.
Your marketing as a coach is almost entirely word-of-mouth, IOW your effectiveness as a coach. Social media has become an evil system, and the farther away you are the better.
Oso Rojo
I've watched three specialty gyms go under in Santa Fe and that is a perfect demographic for a gym, aging population with high income. So I suspect the big issue is education in the market. Two of the three I have used in the past and they had great equipment but were targeting top athletes. From what I see of the market you need to target 40 - 45 and older with above average income. That pays the bills. The local athletes just provide the volume. I think you can do well in Abq with some direct marketing and education to the groups you want to target. You have a solution to a problem they may or may not know they have, but definitely don't yet know they need it. So get in front of them, make sure they know they have the problem, and then tell them how you can help them. Go out and recruit a full schedule of clients, and then start farming them for who they know that needs help.
My wife asked me about social media for her business. I told her to stay away, she and I are not in the age demographic for that and even if we were it's a lot of work for questionable results.
Social media has always been a place where people can pretend that their opinion is both qualified and somehow matters, and the problem with it is that we have come to accept their premise. Twitter and FB are not the real world, and the more time you spend on it the more the illusion of reality soaks into your mind, whether you want it to or not. It taints everything with the viewpoint of its owners/managers, and we are happily playing along. We are the product Tw and FB are selling. It's best not to depend on it.
Gym Business Fundamentals –Ray Gillenwater
Building Something Rather than Working for Someone –Jay Livsey
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