Challenging Convention

This conference is designed to create light bulbs. It's designed to shift mindsets and pose questions. However, this year there was a definite rebellious bent. Each session I attended challenged conventional wisdom. From the importance of core training and corrective exercise to current common business practices to calorie obsession, this year seemed focused on rethinking what is thought of as truth. 

Michol Dalcourt, ViPR inventor and owner of the Institute of Motion suggested that the practice of developing stability before mobility may be inhibiting physical function. "We should never sacrifice mobility for stability," he argued. Alluding to the research and practices of Stuart McGill, PhD, Dalcourt questioned one specific exercise--the plank. "How long should we hold it?" He asked to mixed responses. "According to McGill, we should hold it for only 10 seconds and rest." He goes on to say that anything beyond that creates an overactive muscular system. And that such practices could potentially create dysfunction because muscles are unable to shut off. "It's time to work on chain reaction kinetics, rhythmic movement patterns. Rhythm and timing is the next corrective exercise."

Steve Jack spoke about how most fitness professionals are stuck in conventional business modalities. Going to work, training for 8 hours and then returning home burnt out and energy deficient is an inefficient way to live, he said. Focusing on active income--that which requires actual in-person man-hours is limited. He urged attendees to work toward developing passive income, or income that can be made, essentially, while you sleep. Passive income can be made selling online products and services, for example. "Once your passive income matches your expenses, then you will truly be living."

Finally, Jade Teta, ND, co-owner of Metabolic Effect left attendees reeling with his charge that the "calories in, calories out" model should be tossed out. "If any other industry utilized a model such as this, that has had such a low success rate, it would have been abolished long ago." Instead, he suggests that fitness professionals focus on hormones, not calories. "Have you had clients who have done everything right according to conventional wisdom--they're on a caloric deficit eating plan, exercising multiple hours per week, but can't drop a pound? Yet others, who have poor nutrition choices and exercise a few times a week achieve success? Still think it's about calories?" 

Your food and exercise choices impact what messages your hormones send such as whether to store or burn fat, he explained. This session was so full of information that I could easily write pages and pages, but I don't have the bandwidth--nor energy after this incredible conference--to do so. 

Why is it that we do what we do? And if what we're doing isn't working, isn't it time to rethink the system and challenge conventional wisdom? I suppose that's up to you.