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Do cheaters prosper?
Plus: there are two sides to every line in the sand
Geoff Girvitz
January 09, 2025
Today on Dad Strength
Do cheaters prosper?
Coherent, not easy
There are two sides to every line in the sand
A book, a quote, a dad joke
The audio edition will be released… later
We’re having work done at the studio (AKA my home) today. So, I’ll get to the audio edition once the drilling and hammering noises have died down.
Do Cheaters Prosper? New research says about cheat-reps
Years ago, I remember a friend—a personal training director at a large gym chain—telling me that there was a Venn diagram between the guys he wished he looked like and the guys with the worst form in the weight room—and that it was damn near a circle. At least for those who didn’t get injured within their first year of training. At that point, we were both all about strict technique because—well, that was the way, wasn’t it? We were professionals! This was the first time I remember wondering if it was body awareness that made the difference.
Kettlebells took me from curiosity to certainty. Once you get into using kettlebells, clubs, or maces, there’s no such thing as not using momentum. So, I became open to the idea that strict technique sometimes demands using momentum. Later, with growing body awareness, I realized that a bit of body English could also be used to channel mechanical stresses into specific areas of your muscles. That’s more of what you might see in an exercise like a cheat curl.
There’s a pre-print of a study now available that asks whether using momentum stacks up against strict reps for muscle-building. And it does. Pre-print means that it has yet to be peer-reviewed or published and should be taken with a grain of salt BUT… it also matches what I believe to be true.
I don’t believe in being puritanical about technique, so I’ll just leave you with this caveat: you should be able to demonstrate great technique with meaningful weight before you start exploring momentum-based strategies.
Want some coaching on integrating momentum intelligently? I’ve got some time over the next two weeks. You can book with me here.
Support Dad Strength and get your hands on some bonuses—including trial calls and… well, wait and see. Actually, don’t wait. Sign up now and see next week.
Coherent, not easy
A sense of coherence (SOC) is a term introduced by medical sociologist Aaron Antonovsky. It is the feeling that life is comprehensible, manageable, and meaningful. I think of SOC as a spiritually-powered filing system for your thoughts, emotions, sensations, and experiences. It’s not a junk drawer—where you just stuff things in. Rather, it’s a 4-D photo mosaic that emerges from knowing—I mean really knowing—where to put everything. It relates to how you adapt, cope, and thrive.
Not only do our strategies for sense-making have to exist, they can’t be at odds with each other—or applied unevenly. That kind of internal inconsistency haunts us. That’s why building true coherence is unlikely to be comfortable or convenient.
There are two sides to every line in the sand
We’re cool, calm, and collected. That is, until our kids cross a certain line… When a behaviour becomes truly unacceptable. There are places that you have to draw a line in the sand. No question. Here’s the catch: your kids may draw even more lines in the sand than you do. That’s certainly the trend of kids between 18 months and three years—and then again for teens. These are essential stages of independence.
So, what are you teaching your kids about how to draw those lines? Is it in a style that you’ll be able to work with constructively—or one that you’ll be emotionally reactive to?
This stuff can be tricky. That’s why we talk it out every Tuesday.
To check things out visit dadstrength.com/calls
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What I’m reading:
I’m still on the same book as last week—it’s a tome.
Revolutionary Spring: Europe Aflame and the Fight for a New World Order –1848-1849– by Christopher Clark
Speaking of coherent, not easy, if you haven’t seen this commercial delivers.
A Quote
“Nature has no problem with coherence. Ecosystems react with their own logic.”
― Jonas Gahr Støre
A Dad joke
Who won the neck decorating contest?
It was a tie.
Take care of yourself, man!
Geoff Girvitz
Father, founder, physical culturist
dadstrength.com