Smarter Strength w/ Dr. David Skolnik, DPT

Good coaches take responsibility almost to a fault. We feel like we should make every decision correctly, never cause a flare-up, never produce pain. And when a client does experience increased symptoms, it can shake our confidence hard — which then shakes theirs. In Episode 7, Dr. David Skolnik answers a question from Steph, a physical therapist and coach, on exactly this: what to do when a clien...

There's a version of stagnation that's hard to see coming because it doesn't look like failure. You're not getting worse results. Your clients aren't unhappy. You're not regressing. You've just stopped growing — and you've been there long enough that it's started to feel normal. That's the good coach plateau, and in Episode 6 of the Smarter Strength Podcast, Dr. David Skolnik breaks down how to id...

Your client comes in with someone else's plan. They saw the before-and-after. They read the testimonials. They've done the math — a $37 PDF with pages of success stories versus several hundred dollars a month with you. And now you're in the uncomfortable position of defending custom coaching against results they can actually see. In the first ever listener question episode of the Smarter Strength...

You've said it a thousand times. Your client asks a question — about an exercise, a rep range, a training approach they saw on TikTok — and you say "it depends." Because it does. Every single question a client asks a fitness professional is context-dependent. Some questions have one layer of context. Some have fifteen. "It depends" is not wrong. But when it's followed by silence, or the next exerc...

You know what exercise can do. You've seen it reverse the trajectory of someone's health, eliminate chronic pain, restore confidence, add years to a life. To you, the value of structured physical activity is a 100 out of 100. To most of your clients? It's a 5. That gap — between your real value and their perceived value — is, according to Dr. David Skolnik, the single biggest problem facing fitnes...

When a client's motivation dips, nothing else survives the fall. Compliance drops. Consistency disappears. Effort fades. And without those three things, results become impossible — which circles right back to episode one's core fear: the client who isn't getting results. But here's what doesn't work: yelling louder. Making the program harder. Wondering why a fully employed adult with a family, a m...

What's the number one fear every coach carries? That their clients aren't getting results. But before we can talk about client behavior, programming, or nutrition — we need to call out the elephant in the room: Sometimes, we are the problem. WELCOME TO THE SMARTER STRENGTH PODCAST Dr. David Skolnik, DPT is back behind the mic — and this time, the mission is bigger. After 98 episodes of the Essenti...

Our guest this week is Dr. Kyle Gillett . In today’s conversation, Dr. Gillett and I talk about the concerning health trends he sees in men and women between the ages of 25 and 45 as well as the health trends that those over 50 should be aware of. We talk about the continuum of diet, exercise and pharmaceutical interventions in addressing obesity and the many downstream risk factors associated wit...

Our guest this week is Frank Benedetto . On today’s episode, Frank and I talk about why so many healthcare professionals are finding themselves burned out but scared to leave their jobs, when and how to find your niche as a practitioner and I ask Frank if it is ever too early or too late to start a side hustle. Frank is also gracious enough to offer two free tools to help everyone listening design...

Our guest this week is Dr. Kristin Phillips, DPT & a Re-Release of the fifth most popular episode in Essential Strength History! Check out our partner on today's episode - Barbell Rehab - and use the code "stronger25" to save $25 off any online continuing education course! Remember - if you are enjoying this podcast, be sure you’re subscribed, and that you’re sharing these episodes with your f...

Our guest this week is Saad Alam .  Saad Alam is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Hone Health (formerly known as Peak), an online clinic that treats men’s hormonal imbalances and low testosterone. Saad is a lifelong health advocate dedicated to researching new and innovative ways to improve overall well-being. Saad set out on his journey to build a next-generation men’s health clinic...

Our guest this week is Danny Matranga . In today’s conversation, Danny and I talk about the key elements he wants every client to understand about training, the difference between the idea of a “best diet” vs. “best dietary practices”, what Danny sees as the biggest scam in the fitness industry and the potentially bleak inevitability that we will all eventually have to prioritize our health. Remem...

Our guest this week is Shanté Cofield . Shanté is a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) and the creator of The Movement Maestro, a website and social-media based platform devoted to all things human movement and mobility and a business coach who helps people discover their unique stories so they can stand out in the crowded online business landscape.  In today’s conversation, Shanté and I talk about...

Our Guest this week is Mark Breedon . Mark is an online strength coach for women who uses strength training to build their confidence in and out of the gym, and make them feel like a confident badass lifter. Mark is passionate about helping those who don't fit the typical mold of someone who is strong and wants to show you that strength training is for everyone. Mark's mission is to change the foc...

Our guest this week is Ebenezer Samuel. Ebenezer is the fitness director for Men’s Health, the largest men’s media brand in the world, and a personal trainer for a wide range of clients from NFL players to working mothers and from broadcast personalities to firefighters. He's also the head of training innovation at the virtual training platform FlexIt . In today’s conversation, Ebenezer and I talk...

Our guest this week is Reed Davis . Reed is a Board Certified Holistic Health Practitioner (HHP) and Certified Nutritional Therapist (CNT). He is an expert in functional lab testing and holistic lifestyle medicine. Reed is the Founder of Functional Diagnostic Nutrition® (FDN) and the FDN Certification Course with over 3,000 graduates in 50 countries. Our Parter on today's episode is Functional Dia...

Our guest this week is Ali Gilbert . Ali has 20 years of experience as a Strength & Conditioning Coach specializing in Men’s Health and Hormone Optimization and has presented on these topics nationwide. Our Parter on today's episode is Testosterone School - Use this special enrollment link to sign up and learn everything you need to know about testosterone and TRT in this self-paced course! Re...

Our guest this week is Roman Rodriguez . Roman is the founder of The Coaching Marketplace , Director of Training at Moxy , PPSC Lead instructor and has been coaching and educating in the fitness industry for over a decade. Our Parter on today's episode is Pain Free Performance - Use the code "ESSENTIAL" to save 15% on the BEST weekend certification in the fitness industry! Remember - If you are en...

Our Guest this week is Kenny Santucci . Kenny is the owner of Strong New York and The Strength Club NYC. Kenny has established himself as a top trainer and thought leader in the New York City Fitness Landscape Our Partner on today's episode is the STRONG Coffee - save 15% with the code ESSENTIAL at checkout! Remember - If you are enjoying this podcast, be sure you’re subscribed, and that you’re sh...

Our guest this week is Kevin Mullins . Kevin is a Miami-based personal trainer, Pain Free Performance Lead Instructor, and published author. Kevin and I share many of the same interests and passions in the realm of health & fitness and we are both part of the Pain Free Performance Education team. Our Partner on today's episode is the Pain Free Performance Specialist Certification - save 15% on...

Our guest this week is Doctor Chris Swart . Doctor Swart is an Exercise Science Professor with a PhD in Exercise Physiology. While this conversation is built on our shared experiences in the field of Exercise Science, there are a lot of universally applicable lessons that can be applied to the pursuit of any career or any stage of life - including the importance of networking early and often, find...

Our guest this week is Cory Camp . Cory is a former Division One athlete, Founder of Forever Athlete and host of the Forever Athlete Podcast. After his athletic career ended, Cory experienced a profound loss of identity and felt that he’d been “locked out of flow” - the state of being where we are at our most creative and intuitive. The realization that he had invested too much of his identity int...

Our guest this week is Matteo Franceschetti . An athlete his entire life, Matteo has always been obsessed with performance. First, it was athletics. Then business. Now, sleep. The first two pursuits - athletics and business - lead to many sleepless nights, rationalized by the pursuit of record performance. It was Matteo’s quest for more restorative sleep, in fact, that led him to quit his previous...

Our guest this week is James Ellis . James is a friend here in Phoenix and the owner of Hammer CrossFit. I’ve described James as a guy who would give you the shirt off his back, even if it was the last shirt he owned. This selflessness is juxtaposed by James’ self-proclaimed tendency to be an “over thinker” and today’s conversation is a deep dive into how James is able to both take bold action whi...

Our guest this week is Astrid Narajo - aka The Anti-Diet Dietician . Our Partner on today's episode is FNX - save 15% on every purchase with the code ESSENTIAL at checkout! Remember - If you are enjoying this podcast, be sure you’re subscribed, and that you’re sharing these episodes with your friends and family who would appreciate what we’re talking about on a weekly basis! Today’s Conversation c...