Fibromangina?? Why I have never heard of this you say. Of course you haven’t, that is because this is a brand new hot off the presses release of a disorder I just uncovered and coined last Saturday. I stumbled upon my finding due to a dear friend, and training partner, who was suffering a most severe case. One that if left un-treated could have spread, and very well led to permanency which is a punishment worse then death.

As a power lifter and one who prides himself on a big and ever increasing deadlift I have become a student of the positions one needs to reach to achieve proper and efficient from in the dead lift. I have become as well a firm believe through teaching the correct positions first and foremost the rest of the things will work themselves out in time.

No matter what people want to believe money will not, and cannot buy you love as in the popular song, or progress in the gym. If it could then like most things you purchase with money you would own it for the life of you, or the product, and that JUST isn’t true when it comes to accomplishments in the gym or on the platform...

We live in a society that now more then ever wants to have their pudding without first eating their meat - to have their cake and eat it, too. In other words they want all the accolades with none of the work. Even worse, they somehow have this notion that they deserve it; that by some unidentified force they have been born with a right to expect to be blessed with any trait or possession those who came before them have had and more, with none of the work that was required to earn it.

It’s never dull when you take to answering hundreds of emails and phone calls from people all over the globe. Its that time again, Time for me to share some true gems of knowledge and some real wieners.

I have been asked by several clients and friends of late if I would write an article on deloading. Not so much the scientific benefit behind it’s use, as that been covered by people much more qualified then I in those fields, But more specifically the how to’s and general reasoning’s for the types of deloads I employ on myself and my clients....so here it is!

It was a great day all around, the athletes did awesome, the bands played great music the kids had fun, we raised a nice chunk of change for big brothers big sisters despite a hard economy and unseasonable heat that the athletes and crowd put up with...

"OK, come on you got this, LIGHT WEIGHT!, get tight, big air, Big! chest, get that stance, wide stance, Tight back, TIGHTER!!!, set that arch, high chest, knees out, KNEES OUT!!, push that butt back, TIGHT!, sit back, pull yourself into it, keep that chest up TIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!! Come on, Slow TIGHT!!! Be patient, SQUAT!!!!!! Elbows, Chest up, Good, fight it. NICE!!!"

To truly tap into our maximum potential we need to identify our body structure, our natural leverages, to identify our strengths and weaknesses. Like all else in training and nutrition the cookie cutter, one size fits all approach only goes so far. There is a lot of dogma out there as far as the “correct form” for every lift, when in fact what is strong and safe for you may be horrible for another, and vice versa...

Over the past few weeks my life work and personal has went from the usual level of nuts to down right crazy. I've heard it more then a few times; "Man where have you been? What are you up to? Don't you love me anymore?" LOL So do to this new level of insanity I have not had time to let my now jello like mind put together something that resembles an intelligent article. So instead of trying to force something out, I would just answer those questions above and simply tell everyone what I'm up to...

Listen to this special preview show for the Olympia weekend on Iron Radio!

I hear it time and time again from the usual abs and thighs to some outlandish ones, "Phil, thanks for listening. I have an incredibly fat face. The rest of me is fine can you give me some exercises and foods that will burn fat from my face and leave the rest of me how I like it." AAHHHH!!...

I hear it time and time again, not just the limiting and fear of fat in diet, but the plain old ignorance of the importance of fats in a healthy diet. One such instance a female stated “Can you give me an example of healthy fats, I honestly don't know any,” after I had reviewed her diet and instructed her to add more healthy fats from both saturated and unsaturated sources. This kind of question and bewilderment from clients is common place for anyone in this industry, due to, well numerous factors...

Phil has a sit down with Staley Training Systems newest Sponsored Athlete Sam Cox. They go over Sam, his accomplishments and plans, then open up the lines for questions on anything training and nutrition related to talk shop.

“If I were to say to a room full of average Americans, “I’ve run 4 times a week, every week, for the past 10 years, without an exception, even when I was sick,” I’d get most of the audience nodding their heads in appreciation and admiration. I’d probably even get some spontaneous applause and a few people would be so impressed they’d be speechless...

The world of fitness as we know it has grown immensely with the advent of the internet. What used to be shared by fellow gym rats, team mates, or possibly a region, are now out there for the world to see. If one wants to find information on any type of fitness regime or nutrition protocol you are merely a google click away from thousands of pages that will fill your need. Today, I interview a fitness enthusiast from the UK...

It is disheartening to see the amount of people who acceptingly drone through their days, letting their lives pass them by minute by minute. They seemingly lose the ability to even dream due to never letting themselves break out of the box they live in, that box they have allowed society put them in - yes, that THEY have allowed. You must take control and regain that passion for learning, for life, and for exploration that we all were born with; that underlying instinct to excel and try new and exciting things...

The world of fitness as we know it has grown immensely with the advent of the Internet. What used to be shared by fellow gym rats, team mates, or possibly a region, are now out there for the world to see. With that I welcome Daryl Sebro from Arima, Trinidad and Tobago...

We've got something a little different for you here today! It's an audio recording of Phil Stevens and world-class powerlifter and Staley Sponsored athlete Christopher Drummond talking shop...they cover topics like: Training Through Injuries, Breaking Plateaus, Sticking to it year after year, What strategies, if any, do you employ to avoid injury?, Building a big neck...

This MP3 recording is packed with great information - you can listen to it directly off the site here or save it to your computer and listen to it whenever (or even on your MP3 player).

The world of fitness as we know it has grown immensely with the advent of the Internet. The fitness knowledge that used to be shared by fellow gym rats, team mates or possibly a region, is now out there for the world to see. If one wants to find information on any type of fitness regime or nutrition protocol they are merely a Google search away from thousands of pages that will fill your need.

I’m not one to get pissed off easily, and definitely not one to write about being pissed. I try and make everything I write about as focused on the positive as I can. Yes, I’m intense when it comes to training and life in general, but intense doesn’t automatically mean pissed or angry. All in all I am pretty laid back and understanding.

The discussion began as my simple note of the ever-growing number of people/clients with eating disorders, i.e., bulimia or anorexia. I also suggested there appears to be a lack of desire in people to want to put in the work, or even desire, to carry around an above average amount of lean mass and strength. The desire for men to be masculine, or masculine simply as an acceptable trait (by the majority) seems to have passed...

Kids are just a lot of fun. I feel we as adults can learn a lot from them and from looking back at ourselves as children if we take a second to see it; how simple things were at times, and mainly our view of things. As an adult training and working with kids can be refreshing and remind us of a time when we didn’t know work as work, but hard work as fun, as play. Working, playing hard, and aiming to get better at an event, a sport, or an activity as enjoyment. It can be a nice enlightenment for us as adults who can at times lose sight of those facts and something I think we all need to regrasp at times.

Multi Sport Champion’s? Even multi-disciplinary champions or experts in any realm, be it business, the arts, or sports. Take a minute. Write, or get a mental list. How many people can you name who have truly reached the pinnacle of any aspect in life in more than one discipline?

Failure as an athlete or trainee is such a multi-faceted beast. At many times it’s our worst enemy and at other times our best friend. In this article I will try and give just a few examples and some of my thoughts on failure...show how it can be a one of the most perplexing issues a trainee or strength athlete has to face, and how it can either wreak havoc, or breed progress, depending on the situation or the individual.

This is the next in a series of quizzes to keep us sharp and use what we’ve learned over the years or continue to learn. Again I’m the first to admit I am more of a down in the trenches, get your hands dirty type. A get in there, get that bar on your back and fork in your hand and get er done Type of guy...

Its that time again, Time for me to share some true gems of knowledge and some real wieners. It’s never dull when you take answering hundreds of emails and phone calls from people all over the globe.

When it comes to confusion there is no subject with more confusing and conflicting dogma and crap out there, or that leads to the more fitness related questions then abdominal, or core work...

From reading the first three installments you have a fairly broad and clear understanding of the traits a person with this type of personally faces, the good the bad and the ugly. In this final installment I will give some recommendations on how to harness those traits and make them work for you.

In this third installment I am going delve into the positive aspects of having this personality trait. Explain the powers it lends those of us who have it. What is it that causes the fast rises, the "never say never" ability to reach goals that may seem unattainable to others. Oddly enough you're going to see a TON of overlap in the negative traits and the positive traits. They are almost, or at times are identical.

“You cant…” are the two most powerful words in the world for us. This rings true for both negative and positive actions. It’s all that it has taken for me time and time again to do the opposite and “DO IT.” A challenge. We are content and happy as long as we aren’t bored, as long as there is further to go, more hill to climb, places others or few have been. Parts of us can sit idle but most of our being has to be striving for a goal, pushing the limits and proving everyone and ourselves wrong...

I don’t like Cutting Fat! Who does? But it ain't as bad as people make it out to be. Restriction, dieting, eating less then you need to sustain yourself, your training, your strength and hard earned muscle. No, its not fun, but in reality it isn’t that darn hard...

I've been taking a look at the past ten years of my life as of late— all the changes and transformations I’ve been through, and all the hurdles I’ve conquered. And— the good the bad areas of health mental and physical that go along with them.

My latest little hill to climb was this short "cut" I did that was seemingly just another easy, painless, and very effective transformation for me...

So a couple of weeks ago I’m sitting at my computer working away. As my usual I’d throw up a tid bit here and there on Facebook about what the “wombat” is doing for those endless fans that just can't get enough. So multiple times a day I post about the training I’m doing, odd food concoctions I’m eating etc. Well next thing I know I get a reply back from an old friend, Her reply was a simple:

“You're Obsessed”...

Something that came up in conversation today with Charles, myself, and a client...simple dietary basics. Meaning, just fundamental habits. It is easy to forget that a large part, or the majority, of the population simply doesn’t know, register, or use, simple solid habits.

Its easy to lose sight of this when you're around, and dealing with people that have been in the game a long time. Even then, many of us lose sight of things and try and make diet and training more complicated then it has to be.

This is the next in a series of quizzes to keep us sharp and use what we’ve learned over the years or continue to learn.

Again I’m the first to admit I am more of a down in the trenches, get your hands dirty type. A get in there, get that bar on your back and fork in your hand and get er done Type of guy.

With spring coming and summer on the horizon comes the loads of questions on how to get Swole and Ripped to show off the awesome Abzzzz and Gunzzzz.

With my past, injuries, training for meets and competitions, dealing with client both in person and distance in training and nutrition and just daily life in general. Pain is always something that’s comes up at some point in a day, inevitably strain must come along with it if one is going to extremes and training hard, getting mentally or physically taxed...

The straight out fact is, no matter how much we think we can or want to be, we have to get it through our heads, WE CANT BE ON TOP ALL YEAR LONG! Plain and simple, I don’t care what the fitness rags and the popular media portrays. It is all lies. If your training hard and trying to get to the extremes in your chosen sport or profession you cannot be at the top, in peaking all year long...

The following aren’t rocket science and aren’t anything new or cutting edge but I see it time and time again people fall off the boat on these. I am sure there are a few more but I believe if you stick to these big simple principles your sure to have the best meet you can resulting from whatever amount of devotion and intensity you gave your preparation.

30 days. One month. A lunar cycle. One 12th of a calendar year. Or one 936th of an average American life span. Really it’s a drop in the bucket but its a something most people just wont give. Or they don’t think that’s long enough to see an appreciable change. It’s a drop in the bucket, real change takes time and commitment.

We all face adversity in our training and life. Many people dread it or harp about it. I feel that adversity in most any form is what makes us truly advance. It's by facing and dealing with these time that we truly find out what we love, our passions.

Due to the popularity of the first pop quiz article, I figure lets make this a running series and give away something to the winner every month or so. Get ready for Round 2!

When the name D.J. Satterfield comes up I'm never quite sure what to expect. I'm only sure it's going to be something of overall quality, excitement and possibly just a wee bit crazy. I have had the pleasure to workout with, compete with, and learn from D.J. the past few years.

Every Saturday Morning the calm break in the nice little quite neighborhood that holds the Bed & Barbell www.bedandbarbell.com. About 9:45 the cars start to arrive with the lifters that we are having over for this weeks session. A day for a nice dose of tossing Iron, cracking jokes, trying new, sometimes questionable, things, above all working hard and having fun.

With the new year here I can literally here the hum from peoples brains thinking of all the wonderful new and technically perfect habits they are going to start. I can already feel the tremble of the feet running into the fitness centers and around the perimeter of the grocery store instead of the junk food aisle and drive thru’s.