3 Seasons Educational Resources
Most recently updated October 15th 2023
I changed careers from law to health/fitness because I wanted to help people live the healthiest life they could happily live. Eventually this led to me opening 3 Seasons, where we help people play the sport they love, at the level they desire, for as long as they want.
Our service is REALLY good. I am proud of what we do and how high our renewal rate is. However, I know not everyone can afford our services. If personal training would cause you financial hardship, then that financial stress will bleed into other areas and eventually it will negatively impact your physical and mental health.
While this article is not exhaustive (for example Ido Portal was a big influence at one time and none of this resources are included below) I have been putting off doing this for too long. If you dig into these resources and either really liked (or did not like) something, feel free to reach out so I can suggest where you prioritize your learning efforts in the future if you want to try and work towards your health and fitness goals independently (although you will get their safer, faster, and even have a higher ceiling if you work with a coach!)
Books:
- Here is the book recommendation page from Charles’ old website (before he passed):
- Since Charles didn’t put his own books on the list, here is where you can buy his books
- If your goal is body composition (build muscle and fat loss / get leaner) start with German Body Comp Program
- For all other goals start with Modern Trends in Strength Training and Poliquin Principles
- If you want to really go down the rabbit hole then also get his various arm training books (you’ll learn concepts that are applicable to more than training arms, although that is the main focus of “Winning the arms race” and “Bigger, stronger arms the poliquin way”
- Other training books high on our reading list include:
- 66 Strategies to program design
- Rebuilding Milo
- Outlive
- Author is longevity medicine expert Peter Attia. I originally had thought about naming the gym “Delta Healthspan” instead of 3 Seasons, so this topic has always been of interest to me!
- Antifragile
- Humans actually need stress to thrive. Just the right kind and amount of stress. This is basically what strength training is – it’s a form of hormesis (beneficial stress).
Articles:
Youtube
Maybe pick one video from each and then do a deeper dive into whichever channel resonates with you most). We don’t agree with 100% of what any of these people say necessarily, but the resources below have all influenced our thinking in a meaningful way.
- Knees over toes guy
- Minimalist and simple programs
- Has standards to aspire to for each exercise
- Sometimes oversimplifies things so that his message will have a broader reach
- Wenning Strength
- Expert at tactical training (fire, police, military, etc.)
- Has a masters degree and also set world records in powerlifting
- Basically took the conjugate system and modified it so that you can not just get brutally strong, but also stay injury free and have longevity
- StrongFirst
- Gold standard for kettlebell training… some good technical tips for bodyweight and barbells as well
- Their programs are great at getting you strong, but some people find their programs to be boring and they’re not good for building muscle or body composition.
- Not good if you have mobility issues or injury concerns.
- Stefi Cohen
- Squat University
- PHD in Physical therapy/physiotherapy and was a competitive weightlifter. Works with an athletic population.
- Mindful Mover
- Great for minimalist training to get strong and mobile
- Good for avoiding injury, but not the best for rehabbing injuries
- Even less variery in training than strongfirst – many people would get bored from this, but if you just care about results their system works!
- Better for relative strength than hypertrophy training (muscle building)
Podcasts:
Research Reviews:
A few years ago I invested in a lifetime subscription to the MASS Research Review. A research review is when a group of knowledgeable and thoughtful experts read all the newest research studies on a regular basis and summarize the findings for their audience.
It is considered to be one of the leading (if not the best) research review in the health and fitness field.
