The Strength Parlor

THE PR BOARD ISN’T A LEADERBOARD

We keep a PR board at TSP.

But it isn’t just for 1-rep maxes.

And it definitely isn’t reserved for the squat, bench press, and deadlift.

A PR could be your heaviest set of 5.

Your first pull-up.

More reps with the same weight.

A heavier dumbbell curl.

Your longest plank or pronated hang.

A farther broad jump.

A faster run.

More distance on the bike.

If you did something better than you have ever done it before, that can be a PR.

There is no minimum level you have to reach before it counts either.

Your first pull-up is personal.

So is somebody else’s 500-pound deadlift.

That’s kind of the point of the P in PR.

And the board isn’t really a leaderboard.

You’re mostly competing with the version of yourself who trained here before.

Some people love writing their wins up there.

Others would rather hit an incredible PR, quietly put the weights away, and move on with their day.

Both are fine.

But I do like when people put something on the board, because I don’t think it only benefits the person holding the marker.

Other people see it.

They ask what you did.

They congratulate you.

Maybe someone sees your first pull-up while they’re working toward theirs.

Maybe they see a number that gives them something to chase someday.

Or maybe it’s just another little piece of evidence that progress is happening all around them.

Not in a one-up-each-other kind of way.

More like, “Alright... people are getting better in here. I can too.”

I think that does something to the atmosphere of a gym.

It makes progress visible.

People are getting stronger.

Getting fitter.

Improving endurance.

Learning new skills.

Doing things they couldn’t do before.

And good training gives us a lot more ways to measure that than constantly testing the absolute most weight we can lift once.

So if you earn one, don’t feel like it has to be “big enough” for the board.

It’s your PR.

Put it up there.

And you might as well ring the bell too. 🔔

WHAT GROUP COACHING MEANS AT TSP

“Group Coaching” can mean a lot of different things.

At The Strength Parlor, it does not mean everyone shows up and does the same workout.

You walk in with your own program already written for you.

Your exercises.
Your weights.
Your reps.
Your progression.

All based on what you are trying to accomplish and where you are starting.

Then we coach what actually happens in the gym.

If your warm-ups tell us the planned weight is wrong that day, we change it.

If an exercise is not working the way we expected, we adjust it.

If your technique needs attention, we coach it.

If you are ready to progress, we progress.

Meanwhile, the person training next to you may be doing something completely different.

The coach moves through the room, watches sets, teaches, answers questions, helps select loads, and keeps track of how everyone is progressing over time.

That is why we call it coaching.

The “group” describes the setting.

It does not describe the program.

Private Coaching is still its own service. The coach is reserved entirely for you, which allows for more uninterrupted attention and tighter control of the session.

But we do not lower the programming standard just because someone trains in Group Coaching.

Your plan is still yours.

For a lot of our members, that combination works really well:

Individualized programming.

Real coaching when you need it.

People around you to train with.

And enough independence to actually learn how to train instead of needing someone to walk you through every rep forever.

That is Group Coaching at TSP.

If “group training” has always made you picture circuits, boot camps, or everyone following the same workout, ours looks quite a bit different.

Come in for a complimentary Intro Session or gym walkthrough and see how it works.

THE SOUTH PARK CREW

Chris said this photo had some South Park energy.

I’m not completely sure how he got there, but it had something to do with everyone having their own personality, their own sense of humor, and their own role when they’re all together.

So we did the only reasonable thing and turned them into cartoons. 😂

This group trains together multiple mornings each week.

They laugh.

They give each other grief.

They cheer each other on.

They check on each other.

And they help each other through the harder stuff too.

Chris described Theresa as his greatest frenemy:

90% friend.
10% enemy.

Which probably makes perfect sense if you know them.

That is part of what makes this place so fun.

Different personalities.
Different stories.
A whole lot of support.
And plenty of laughs in between.

Somewhere in the middle of all that, they keep getting stronger.

If you’ve been looking for a place where you can train seriously without the place feeling so serious, come see what TSP is like.

Complimentary Intro Sessions and gym walkthroughs are available.

MOVEMENT IS A GIFT

Today we had a pretty different kind of group at The Strength Parlor.

My son Lennox’s homeschool co-op came in for a little field trip.

Carly started things off with a short lesson on health and nutrition.

Then the kids made their own “healthy plates” with some arts and crafts.

After that, we headed into the gym.

We talked about what our bodies can do.

Then we moved.

Squats.

Squat jumps.

Push-ups.

Reverse lunges.

Inverted rows.

Planks.

A little freeze game mixed in because, well, they’re little kids.

Nothing fancy.

Just a bunch of kids learning that exercise does not have to be scary, boring, or something you only do because you “have to.”

It can be fun.

It can be challenging.

It can be playful.

It can be something we are grateful for.

That was really the biggest thing I wanted them to take away.

Having a body that can move is a gift.

Getting stronger is a gift.

Learning how to use that body well is a gift.

At the end, they all got to ring the PR bell.

Then we wrapped up together and one of the kids said a very sweet prayer.

Pretty cool morning.

And honestly, not a bad reminder for the adults either.

A GOOD DEADLIFT SETUP ISN’T GUESSWORK

There are a lot of things we like about Genevieve’s setup here.

She’s balanced over the middle of her feet — not shifted onto her toes or heels.

The bar is over midfoot.

Her shins are against the bar without pushing it forward.

Her knees have moved slightly out, giving her a little more room to get into position without changing where the bar sits.

She’s squeezed her chest up and created tension through her back, hips and hamstrings before the bar ever leaves the floor.

That leaves her arms hanging long, straight and taut, with her shoulders slightly in front of the bar and her shoulder blades essentially right over it.

Everybody’s build is different, so everybody’s deadlift setup is going to look a little different too.

Longer or shorter legs, arms and torsos change where the hips end up and what the torso angle looks like.

But the main landmarks stay pretty consistent.

That’s why we don’t teach people to randomly put their hips at a certain height or try to copy exactly what somebody else’s deadlift looks like.

We teach a repeatable setup:

Get the stance right.

Put the bar over midfoot.

Take your grip.

Bring the shins to the bar without moving it.

Squeeze the chest up, get tight, and push the floor away while dragging the bar up the legs.

Get those landmarks right, and the lifter’s build will determine what the final setup looks like.

That’s how we teach the deadlift at The Strength Parlor.

Not by throwing a handful of cues at someone and hoping one sticks, but by giving them a setup they can understand, repeat and eventually execute on their own.

If you’d like to get stronger but aren’t really sure where to start, send us a message or use the link in our bio to set up a complimentary Intro Session.

START WITH A CONVERSATION

A lot of what we do at The Strength Parlor starts exactly like this:

A conversation.

If you’ve been thinking about getting stronger but aren’t really sure where to start, you don’t have to figure all of that out before walking through the door.

That’s the point of the complimentary Intro Session.

We sit down and talk through what you’d like to accomplish, what you’ve done in the past, what has or hasn’t worked, and what you’re looking for now.

Then we show you around the gym and help you figure out what makes the most sense from there.

You don’t need to already be in shape.

You don’t need to know how to use the equipment.

And you definitely don’t need to know what kind of program you need.

There’s no workout required.

No pressure to sign up for anything.

It’s really just a chance to meet, ask questions, learn how we do things, and see if The Strength Parlor feels like a good fit.

If you’ve been curious, send us a message or use the link in our bio to set up a complimentary Intro Session.

P.S. Based on my face here, I’m pretty sure I was explaining that “the program says this weight” doesn’t mean we have to force it on a day when your warm-ups are clearly telling us otherwise. 😂

PREGNANCY DOESN’T HAVE TO MEAN LOSING YOURSELF

This is my wife during her third pregnancy.

She looked incredible then, and she looks incredible now. But how she looks isn’t really the point of this post.

I’ve watched her navigate pregnancy and everything afterward three different times. Taking care of herself got harder each time. The first time, you’re pregnant. The next time, you’re pregnant while caring for another kid. By the third, your time and energy are being pulled in even more directions.

She strength trained throughout pregnancy, but the training changed as needed. Exercises, loads, range of motion, and expectations all changed with it.

She wasn’t chasing PRs. The goal was to keep moving, maintain strength, feel good, and keep the habit of training intact.

She walked often, ate well most of the time, and never expected perfection.

There were days when she didn’t love how she looked or felt. There were also times when she felt like she had eaten far more than she intended and worried about it afterward.

But she didn’t decide she had “blown it” or try to make up for it. She went back to her usual habits and carried on.

Genetics matter. Every pregnancy and postpartum experience is different, and nobody should use another woman’s body as the timeline their own is supposed to follow.

But habits matter too.

This is about much more than how someone looks afterward. Maintaining strength and fitness can help someone stay physically capable through pregnancy, recovery, and caring for a new baby.

Pregnancy changes your body, and training will probably need to change too. But pregnancy does not automatically mean giving up everything you have built.

And afterward, there doesn’t need to be a frantic race to “bounce back.”

Recover. Walk. Eat well most of the time. Enjoy life too. Gradually do more. Then build from there.

Sometimes training is about making progress. Sometimes it’s simply about continuing to be someone who trains.

I have a tremendous amount of respect for how she has approached all three pregnancies and everything after them.

I’m very proud of her. ❤️