We decided it had been way too long since we talked to our good Canadian friend and YouTuber, Omar Isuf. What’s he up to and how is Toronto weathering the pandemic? This episode is a fun conversation and a good way to spend an hour plus. You can find Omar on IG @omarisuf and his YouTube channel. Check out his apparel at raskolapparel.com You can find Kyle on Instagram @kyle.castroo and Connor @connoroneal. Subscribe for updates about our new gym (Third Street Barbell) and apparel line at 3sb.co!...
Jul 22, 2020•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 90
Who really likes having difficult conversations? Does anyone actually like talking about subjects like death? But if we can’t talk about the hard things, how do we learn to move on? Derek McCormick, author of “Tea Time with the Reaper” and “Grim’s After Tea Desserts” joins us to talk about how is wife’s illness and death lead him to become an advocate for facing difficult conversations head-on. We break down ways to speak plainly about topics like illness and death, and what can be gained by act...
Jul 15, 2020•1 hr 2 min
Our friend Nick Scopoletti trains clients at an Equinox in Connecticut, but a couple years ago he got talked into trying standup comedy…and he hasn’t looked back. Nick was the subject of some very nice comments from last week’s guests from the Shameless Sex podcast, so it seemed like a good time to get him into the mix. Formerly co-host of the Strength Squat podcast, Nick now hosts the Mangina Dialogues comedy podcast along with his business partner @thegreggalicious. Be sure to check out the po...
Jul 08, 2020•1 hr 4 min
Here’s the thing: Adult people have sex. At least, a lot of us do. Why aren’t we better at it, or at least better about talking about it? We asked Amy and April of the Shameless Sex podcast to help us tackle these questions: Amy Baldwin is a Sex and Relationship Coach and Sex Educator, as well as co-owner of a mother-daughter owned online pleasure boutique called Pure Pleasure Shop. Amy has a passion for promoting shame-free, pleasure-focused sexuality education while emphasizing the deep emotio...
Jul 01, 2020•52 min
Our guests had to reschedule for next week, so we jumped on the mics with the 3SB Crew for a Q and A. Probably the biggest question was about how we came to have an entrepreneurial spirit, which turned into more of a discussion about who is – and is not – cut out for the kind of risks we’re taking in launching Third Street Bell. Subscribe for future updates about membership and Third Street Barbell merchandise at 3sb.co You can find Kyle on Instagram @kyle.castroo and Connor @connoroneal. Listen...
Jun 24, 2020•1 hr 6 min
For quite a while, we’ve been kicking around an idea. An awesome, but kinda scary idea. Some of our episodes lately have been centered around people we wanted to learn from and talk to about making this idea a reality. Maybe it was obvious. Maybe it wasn’t. But, we’re finally ready to talk about it and make an announcement: We’re working on opening a gym – back in the very building where our podcasting journey started! Our two other team members (Kyle Castro and Connor O’Neal) joined us for this...
Jun 17, 2020•1 hr 9 min
Michael Kory had early success on YouTube at the intersection of healthy cooking and fitness. Eventually, he decided to open a gym, but like anyone starting a business he walked a fine mental line between being optimistic and realistic about how quickly the gym would grow. Just a few months after opening, he was quickly running out of space. Good problem or unexpected financial hit? Michael also talks about how he approached Oklahoma’s lockdown and the temporary closure of his gym Obtain Strengt...
Jun 11, 2020•1 hr 1 min
Bryan Washington has been a friend of ours for years. He’s gym owner – in fact, he owns a couple of gyms here where we live in Sacramento. When we met him, he was a trainer inside the same gym building where we used to train. We don’t know many people who have more energy or hustle. He’s very involved in community issues, in part because he comes from a family in which his dad spent half a century in law enforcement. He’s also African American. He’s the one person we most wanted to talk to about...
Jun 06, 2020•1 hr 33 min
Joe Sullivan is a powerlifter and coach. Early this year, he became a partner at Pinnacle Performance in Columbus, Ohio…just in time for the pandemic to cause a wave of temporary gym closures. Joe shares the story of how he came to be involved in, and an owner of, the gym, and how it became a party to a lawsuit that allowed gyms to open a bit sooner than promised in Ohio. Some details are also in this news report. Business aside, we talk about his lifting and his goals. If you’re not aware of Jo...
May 27, 2020•50 min
Chris Duffin is a Guinness World Record holding powerlifter, a gym owner, an engineer, an author, a gym equipment manufacturer…and the list goes on and on. You get the idea. We’ve known Chris for quite a few years, but we hadn’t had a chance to really talk in a long time. Our conversation started around a question about how the pandemic has impacted manufacturers of gym equipment, but we ended up in much deeper topics. How do you stay on top of big, long-term goals that take years to complete? H...
May 20, 2020•1 hr 7 min
Yet another format breaking episode. (We may be in this mode until the world settles down a bit.) Jay Ashman is one of founders of Kansas City Barbell in Kansas City, MO. His gym is poised to reopen in just a few days -- after the shelter-in-place orders were put in place at the beginning of the pandemic are lifted. But his gym wasn’t just closed, it moved and expanded into a larger location. With so much uncertainty the future of gathering places like gyms, some are declaring bankruptcy, and so...
May 13, 2020•55 min•Ep. 80
Another format breaking episode. Matt Reynolds is the founder and CEO of Barbell Logic Online Training. He’s a former gym owner, former pro strongman, and a former high school teacher. He also hosts the Barbell Logic podcast along with Scott Hambrick. We asked Matt to make some educated guess about the future of online coaching in the post-pandemic world, but the bulk of the episode is a wide-ranging discussion of coaching strategies, thoughts about working with clients of all ages, and his take...
May 06, 2020•1 hr 15 min
We’re living in extraordinary times (which is why you’ll notice that we’re still taking a break from our regular format). A world of great uncertainty, division, fear, and sadness. A few weeks ago when we spoke to Dr. Reef Karim, we discussed the need to control what we’re exposed in terms of media and messages due to the depressive impact on mood. The flip side of that is who should we talk to that can help keep our spirits high and our thoughts hopeful. We decided to talk to someone who Mike b...
Apr 29, 2020•1 hr
On the spur of the moment, we decided to do a Q and A episode on Mike’s channel on the Twitch streaming platform and take some questions from viewers there. We don’t usually act as experts on this show, but it’s ok once in a while, right? News reports have come out this week about the possibility of 24 Hour Fitness filing for bankruptcy protection. What impact would that have on the fitness industry? Some of the issues we covered: What is daily undulating periodization? (Related) What is auto-re...
Apr 22, 2020•1 hr 19 min
Gyms are closed, and everyone is scrambling to build out their home gyms so they don’t lose all their gains. Even in the best of times, it can be hard to decide what equipment you really need and where to buy it. We got Alan Thrall’s perspective on this topic in an earlier episode. Now we’ve tapped our friend and veteran YouTuber, Brandon Campbell Diamond. Brandon is known as a connoisseur of home gym equipment and has been producing honest, straight-forward reviews of lifting related equipment ...
Apr 15, 2020•49 min
No expert this episode due to some availability issues on our side. We talk about how we’re filing time during this lockdown and address an issue that a lot of people have asked us about privately the last few days. “With great power comes great responsibility” isn’t just for Spiderman. Hosted by Mike Farr (@silentmikke) and Jim McDonald (@thejimmcd). Produced by Jim McDonald Production assistance by Connor O’Neal. Theme by Aaron Moore. Branding by Joseph Manzo. Become a supporter of this podcas...
Apr 09, 2020•1 hr 6 min
Challenging times right now. How retain your sense of self well enough to meet them head on? We turned to Dr. Reef Karim, a leading expert in human behavior, to help us understand how we as humans react to prolonged stress and how to survive or even thrive these crazy times. Dr Karim is a double board-certified psychiatrist, addiction medicine physician, and relationship expert. He’s also a writer, host, and media personality. He’s served as an Assistant Clinical Professor at the UCLA Semel Inst...
Apr 01, 2020•1 hr
The world is packing a lot of fear and anxiety into every day right now. That can complicate anyone’s emotions (and diet). It's especially for those of us who tend to be emotional eaters. Is staying away from the foods we love most the only answer? Why do we connect certain activities with food? Can we uncover the underlying reasons for our emotional eating? We asked Adrienne Ngai, RD, CDE, MSc to help us understand what drives emotional eating and what we can do to control it. You can find Adri...
Mar 25, 2020•48 min
We invited our old friend and training partner, Fat Dan, into the studio to talk about his private security business, and the disruptions were all facing in the wake of the Coronavirus. Why do people continue to put themselves in unsafe, crowded situations right now? Should you quit your full-time job to work for yourself? What (or who) is Diet Caramel and how do you get into that? You can find Dan on Instagram: @stormcloud415 and Twitter: @stormcloud415 and at his business website: Capital Prot...
Mar 18, 2020•1 hr 2 min
While waiting around for a guest who we couldn’t quite reach on the phone, we talked ended up talking about some things that people strive for that are hard…or even impossible to reach. Similar to a recent episode of the podcast “Reply All,” we’re trying to identify a children’s horror movie or TV show from the 90s. Can you help? Check the episode for some familiar, oddly specific, and hopefully memory jogging, detail. It was about…a monster under the bed. Is it real? Or is it just the Mandela E...
Mar 11, 2020•36 min
A few weeks ago, our good friend Jacob Ross was very sick but he didn’t know it. What he thought was a pinched nerve turned out to be a dangerous, and potentially lethal, accumulation of fluid around his heart. He’s much better now, so we can ask: how could this have happened to a young, healthy guy? What were the symptoms and why did he pass them off as simply an injury? How did he manage to squat a PR just a few days before having to be rushed to the hospital? Who intervened to help get him li...
Mar 04, 2020•38 min•Ep. 70
We’re not runners, so we’re definitely not racers. We followed up last week’s episode on starting to run with a conversation about setting a goal to compete on one of a couple of popular types of races. Both of these have large, supportive communities and are considered to be a lot of fun. Is the prep the same for both races? Can you do it alone? Do you have to be able to run the whole distance before your first race? How can you prep for the all the kinds of tasks and obstacles of a Spartan rac...
Feb 26, 2020•40 min
A lot of people grew up running for sports, but plenty of people stop just as soon as they can and never do it again. We ask runners James Van Prooyen & Rich Nicholes to tell us how to get started (or started again). Once you get your ass off the couch, what does the first day of running look like? What should your initial goals look like? What’s a really good way to get and stay motivated? If you get started, will you never want to stop? You can find James and Rich on The Ragnar Life podcas...
Feb 19, 2020•1 hr 1 min
We finally connect with Kalle Beck, the man behind StartingStrongman.com. If you saw the Facebook commercial during the Super Bowl, the Oscars, etc., you’ve seen Kalle and some of the members of the online strongman community he started years ago. How did he get interested in strongman in the first place? Did he really quit his job so he could compete in China? What’s it like to be in a huge TV commercial? What’s it like to move from California to Tennessee? How do you actually get started train...
Feb 12, 2020•1 hr 35 min
Our good friend Omar Isuf is in town, so he joined us for a conversation in which we actually talk quite a bit about celebrity, fitness, and how Omar accomplished his recent transformation? So much of the coverage of celebrities who get jacked revolves around their training, but does anyone believe they don’t use PEDs? Was Kobe Bryant’s death come about because people have a hard time saying no to celebrities? How did Omar know he could accomplish his transformation? What are the factors that co...
Feb 05, 2020•1 hr 15 min
In a “just us” episode, we take a look at a couple articles claiming to track the top fitness trends for 2020 – notably one from Men’s Health. Will personal trainers really be like rock stars in 2020? Are you really working out hard enough to need an extensive recovery plan, or is a regular good night’s sleep enough? Is mental/emotional health really, finally, going to be on par with physical health and fitness? We start by talking about the personal, and cultural, impacts of the deaths of Kobe ...
Jan 29, 2020•57 min
Some programs claim to have been written for beginning lifters. Others for intermediates, etc. How do you when you’re past the beginner stage, and how much does it really matter? We asked Greg Nuckols to break it down for us. Here are some of our thoughts befgre we talked to Gret: Do you stop being a beginner when you stop having PRs every week? Or is it just when they are a little less frequent? With a conjugate program, you don’t test the same specific lift with much frequency, due to all the ...
Jan 22, 2020•52 min
Does women’s training really need an entirely different approach or just a couple tweaks? We asked Greg Nuckols, someone who recently wrote an article on this topic, to break it down for us. Here are some of our thoughts: Do women actually have great stamina for reps than men? Can women actually lift heavier on a percentage of max basis more frequently than men? The headcount of strong women is great than it’s probably ever been. What changed? Was training for women in the past too “soft” and we...
Jan 15, 2020•46 min
New Year. New avalanche of fitness and nutrition-related studies to confuse the resolutionistas (and the rest of us). How are we supposed to decide which ones to believe? We asked Greg Nuckols, someone who spends a lot of time evaluating research, to break it down for us. Here are some of our thoughts: Are there some sources we should listen over others? Should you read the entire study or is the abstract enough? What’s a legitimate sample size and why are large sample studies rare? How long sho...
Jan 08, 2020•1 hr 4 min
The next regular episode will drop on Jan 8, but we thought we’d have some fun and throw in this holiday bonus episode. We both saw “The Rise of Skywalker” so we talked through our thoughts and opinions. We also used the Business Insider’s ranking to discuss our thoughts on all the Star Wars films. There are tons of spoilers, so beware if you haven’t seen the movie yet! Hosted by Mike Farr (@silentmikke) and Jim McDonald (@thejimmcd). Produced by Jim McDonald Production assistance by Connor O’Ne...
Dec 27, 2019•47 min
