Recently, we have seen a number of students coming to SFG Certifications who clean and swing with their thumbs up. I am here to put an...

Mikhail Kalashnikov, the inventor the (in)famous AK-47 assault rifle, recently passed away at the age of 94. RIP. Revered in Russia, the...

Recently I designed a training session that involves the get-up and the one-hand swing. I designed this session to help clients gain a...

Note: About five years ago, I wrote up the following workout for operators and martial artists in my newsletter. Run. Shadow box. At...

Simple & Sinister, Pavel Tsatsouline’s new book, is eloquent in its simplicity. People try to overcomplicate a position by adding more...

Ladies and gentlemen, I present you my new book, Kettlebell Simple & Sinister. If you are new to kettlebells, Simple & Sinister (S&S) is...

Editor’s Note: Mike’s voice is in italics. Mike has been in the strength and conditioning for over a decade splitting time between...

If strength and conditioning are equally important to you, the following weekly kettlebell training template will serve you well. Focus...

No matter what your goals are—strength, mass, conditioning, or cuts—kettlebell complexes deliver. This is why they are so frequently...

The StrongFirst Bodyweight Instructor Certification is likely coming to a city near you soon. Now, if you are like me you may be thinking...

At every Barbell Certification and Bodyweight Certification I get the same question: “If StrongFirst is a principle-based school of...

A “complex” of different kettlebell exercises strung together in an intelligent manner delivers many benefits: muscle hypertrophy, fat...

Eleven years ago, I arrived in St. Paul to attend the second ever kettlebell certification from Pavel Tsatsouline. Throwing water...

Since time immemorial, young people jockey for position in their peer groups. In less enlightened ages, you had to be stronger, tougher,...

At social gatherings, when I’m presented to new acquaintances as a strength coach or, God forbid, “fitness expert,” the same question...

When I was a kid, a merchant marine friend of my parents gave me a treasured gift, a calendar with scenes from Enter the Dragon. The envy...

Several months ago, I wrote how a girevik should go about converting the posterior chain strength he or she has built with swings and...

If you want to learn to write effective training plans, first you must understand the principles of program design. These will vary from...

I started training with barbells when I was seventeen years old during my senior year in high school. Our weight room was the size of a...

This is a little embarrassing to admit, but I was an obsessed bodybuilder for about six years of my life. My training was completely...