A lot of the strength & conditioning programs I see tend to have major, glaring holes in them. The kind of holes in them that the average gym goer would not be able to pick up, but as a seasoned veteran of the training world, you can pick out some of the big ones. This isn’t to say I’m the Almighty when it comes to program design, but I’ve been around the block and can tell the obvious from the ignorant.

Most programs that focus simply on gaining muscle and losing fat tend to leave the person feeling like they’ve just been put through a meat grinder, but they’re effective at what they are trying to do. Athletic programs focus on getting the individual to put up bigger numbers in specific areas, such as vertical jump, sprint performance, or maximum strength, but neglect the relevancy of the entire body in producing performance, meaning they can jump out of the gym but can’t touch their toes. There’s also a lot of exercises in there that may be suitable for some specific elite athletes, but the average Joe who clocks time in the cubicle farms may wind up shooting a disc across the room. But hey, 60 percent of the time, it works every time.

Is there some semblance of balance between pressing and pulling? Typically this should be in a 1:2 ratio to keep the shoulders from being chewed apart.

Is the core work involving a lot of flexion and extension work? That’s an easy way to get some disc issues.

Most people sit all day, meaning they have tight hips, collapsed thoracic spine, and weak spinal stability.

Are there single leg exercises and 2-leg exercises in balance with each other? Most focus on 2-leg exercises

Does the metabolic conditioning actually make sense based on which energy system is being trained (creatine phosphate, anaerobic glycolysis, aerobic glycolysis, lactate threshold, aerobic power, etc), or is it simply 5 exercises thrown together and the phrase “for time” thrown in on the end?

Is there some focus on posture, gross motor coordination, and making someone feel like a million bucks as well as look like it too?

Was it designed by Tracy Anderson? Burn it.

Yes, I am not a fan of hers. After forcing myself to watch some of her “videos” to see what I was dealing with, I came to the conclusion that I don’t drink nearly enough.

Anyways, a great program takes a lot of factors into play, such as mobility through segments of the body like the ankle, hip, thoracic spine, and shoulders, plus training each through the planes of action they have available. It also takes into account the “imbalanced” approach that produces the healthiest major joints, metabolic specificity, and enough variety to keep you happy for a long time.

That’s why I’m a big fan of Eric Cressey’s Show and Go Training. I even have it on my Recommended Reading page. This is a program that takes into account a heavy emphasis on how the body moves, not simply on pounding it into the ground. There’s a lot of heavy lifting, active mobility, spinal stabilization, and metabolic conditioning designed to produce the specific results of making you more athletic, drop body fat, and actually feel like you are in better shape instead of just beat up and lean.

The beauty of any program built to be used for a large breadth of the population is not in its finite variables, but in its ability to be adjusted, progressed, regressed, and manipulated based on the equipment available. This one has those components built in, allowing you to switch exercises based on what you have in your gym, work on a 2 day, 3 day, or 4 day per week program.

One aspect I’ve found when it comes to any workout program is simply describing how to set up an exercise and perform it typically falls short. Using pictures is okay, but only goes so far. Show and Go includes access to a video library with over 175 different exercises that will help show you how to get the most out of the exercise, allowing you to see bigger and better gains than on any other program.

Now, I’ve actually gone through this program to see what it was all about. I’ll admit to being a bit of a gym snob, as I tend to pick apart anything and everything I get my hands on and find all the holes and ways to try to improve and adjust. But a funny thing happened when I was going through the program. I actually liked it. I managed to finish it, felt stronger, more stable through my low back, shoulders and even had some chronic issues with my ankle reduce. Plus, the variety was pretty cool and was able to keep me interested through each workout and each of the four phases.

Eric’s decided to put it on sale for the Labour Day week, which is pretty sweet because you have the chance to save $50 on an awesome training program. It normally goes for $127 and until September 9th it’s on for only $77. Let’s put it this way:

I’VE EVEN RECOMMENDED THIS PROGRAM TO MY OWN CLIENTS WHO WEREN’T ABLE TO TRAIN WITH ME DIRECTLY.

I don’t recommend a lot of training programs by other trainers (again, a gym snob), so this is a pretty big endorsement in my mind. Also, in my mind you should be able to deadlift and hit the splits, look awesome naked, and mow your lawn shirtless without the Environmental Protection Agency trying to push your ass back into the ocean. But hey I’m kinda different like that.

===> GET SHOW AND GO WHILE IT’S ON SALE <===