50% Facts

Injuries can be huge setbacks for competitive athletes. Everyone has a certain window of time in which they can play their best. Time out of competition is time lost that can’t be recovered. For some, they can end a career. The question dovetails well with episode 46’s discussion of workload management, but obviously that’s not the whole story. Dr. Ramsey Nijem gives us insight from his doctoral t...

We're working on our studio, so this week's episode is an encore.  Dr. Matt Johnson, a Certified Sport Psychology Consultant (and former Notre Dame quarterback), joins us to discuss a fundamental question about performance under pressure. Our thoughts: Are some people just born to be gamers? To perform at a high level in the clutch? Can regular people learn to handle pressure situations better? Is...

We’re inspired by a lot of people in different situations. This week’s guest is someone we’ve talked about on the show quite a few times. His growing success – and the focus and attitude he brings to his goals – has inspired us for several years. One of last week’s guests, Dean Saddoris for Caffeine and Kilos, has known him for much longer than we have gave us the most obvious suggestion: “Why don...

We took this episode to catch up with our long-time friends – and owners of the lifestyle brand Caffeine and Kilos -- Danny Lehr & Dean Saddoris. This show was recorded in our new, still-under-renovation gym, which is the same building where we (probably) met. We reminisced about some of our shared history and how the Caffeine and Kilos brand started. We also hit these questions: Why C & K, which...

Layne Norton & Holly Baxter join us for a discussion about who to listen to in the fitness and nutrition space. Specifically, we talk about the list that was published to Twitter by Kevin Bass of fitness/nutrition figures who are…and aren’t…quacks. What are the hallmarks of someone who isn’t worth listening to? Why do some start out with great, supportable claims and end up supporting ludicrous th...

We're taking a break this week, so we're bringing back one of our favorite early episodes with one of our favorite guests. We'll be back with a fresh episode next week.  Original Episode Notes: Can activities in the gym that are built around the requirements of a specific sport actually help athletes get better at that sport? Our good friend, Jacob Ross —  an athletic performance coach and consult...

A Q and A episode that was broadcast live to Twitch. The big question in this episode is our discussion of the question “How do you find people with similar goals” and the related question “How do you work (or go into business) with friends?” Other questions include, “How has Covid-19 affected our efforts to open a gym?” and “What’s our biggest ‘non-lifting’ physical accomplishment?” Keep listenin...

Hani Jazayrli is an engineer by education, but he found that coaching was more of a passion for him so he decided to follow it. Eventually, he added real estate sales into the mix as a way to keep his coaching load manageable. He talked us through the process of making these transitions and how he knew that the timing…and the changes…were right. Just because you enjoy something, does that really m...

The motto of our new gym is “Good Company.” Mike, Jim, Connor, and Kyle talk about what the phrase means to each of us. We kick things off with an update on what we’ve accomplished and what we’ve learned already through the process of renovation and creating a new gym.   Sandwiched in between are discussions about customer service challenges and influencer authenticity. You can find Kyle on Instag...

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 @con...

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...

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 Dia...

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 pass...

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 Barb...

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 podca...

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 t...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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-rang...

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 th...

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 indust...

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...

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 assistan...