MAS Performance Podcast

Why do smart, capable people still make mistakes? That's one of the questions Joseph T. Hallinan explores in Why We Make Mistakes . And one of the biggest things I took from the book is this: Mistakes aren't always the result of laziness, carelessness, or a lack of effort. Sometimes they're simply part of being human. We miss things. We remember things incorrectly. We focus on the w...

Sometimes the best training doesn't need to be complicated. That's one of the biggest things I took from The Great Gama Protocol by Pavel Macek. Inspired by the training traditions of legendary wrestler The Great Gama , the program brings things back to basics: bodyweight movements, quality repetitions, gradual progression, and consistency. And that's what I really like about it. In...

Episode Description — The Tipping Point Why do some small changes eventually create massive results? In The Tipping Point , Malcolm Gladwell explores how ideas, behaviors, and trends can build quietly before eventually reaching a moment where everything starts to change. That idea made me think about training. We love the breakthrough moments. The PR. The transformation. The faster sprint. The mom...

Episode Description — The Tipping Point Why do some small changes eventually create massive results? In The Tipping Point , Malcolm Gladwell explores how ideas, behaviors, and trends can build quietly before eventually reaching a moment where everything starts to change. That idea made me think about training. We love the breakthrough moments. The PR. The transformation. The faster sprint. The mom...

Episode Description — The Tipping Point Why do some small changes eventually create massive results? In The Tipping Point , Malcolm Gladwell explores how ideas, behaviors, and trends can build quietly before eventually reaching a moment where everything starts to change. That idea made me think about training. We love the breakthrough moments. The PR. The transformation. The faster sprint. The mom...

Episode Description — Rambo: First Blood I recently rewatched Rambo: First Blood , and I walked away from it thinking about something completely different than the action. How often do we judge someone's behavior without understanding what's behind it? Throughout the movie, people see John Rambo's actions. They see someone who's angry, difficult, and eventually violent. But und...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What does it actually mean to be proactive? I'm starting a seven-part MAS Performance: Quick Thoughts series exploring Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People —one habit at a time. Part One starts with: Be Proactive. Being proactive isn't about believing you can control everything. You can't. Athletes get injured. Plans change. Work gets busy. You don't get...

What if leadership isn't about setting the standard once? What if it's about constantly bringing people back to it? Danny Meyer's Salt Shaker Theory is one of the simplest explanations of leadership I've come across. Imagine setting a restaurant table exactly how you want it. A guest moves the salt shaker. You put it back. Someone moves it again. You put it back again. That&apo...

Who are you when nobody knows what you've done? That's one of the ideas that stuck with me after watching Spider-Man . Peter Parker finds himself in a world where the people closest to him don't remember who he is. The recognition is gone. The relationships have changed. And he's left with an important question: Who am I when nobody is watching? I think there's a powerful...

What if one of the biggest things preventing you from getting better is believing you already know enough? In Ego Is the Enemy , Ryan Holiday explores how ego can interfere with us at every stage—while we're trying to succeed, after we achieve success, and when things aren't going our way. For me, one idea stands out: Ego makes it difficult to remain a student. This shows up everywhere i...

What can Ted Lasso teach us about coaching? A lot more than you might think. One of the biggest lessons I took from the show is that great coaching isn't just about knowing the game. It's about knowing the person. In strength and conditioning, we spend a lot of time learning programming, biomechanics, physiology, exercise selection, and performance. All of that matters. But there's...

I recently watched The Odyssey , and it sent me down a rabbit hole learning more about the original story and why it has survived for thousands of years. One idea stood out to me: Knowing where you want to go doesn't mean the path there will be a straight line. Odysseus knows his destination, but his journey is filled with setbacks, mistakes, obstacles, and unexpected changes. Training isn&ap...

What if motivation doesn't come before action? What if it comes because of action? In The Motivation Manifesto , Brendon Burchard explores personal freedom, responsibility, and our ability to take greater control over the way we live. One idea really stood out to me: We spend too much time waiting to feel motivated. We tell ourselves we'll start training when we feel ready. We'll st...

What if getting better didn’t require making training more complicated? That’s one of the biggest things I took from Pavel Macek’s The Great Gama Protocol . Inspired by the training traditions of the legendary wrestler The Great Gama , the program brings training back to something incredibly simple: Move well. Do the work. Stay consistent. The approach centers around basic bodyweight movements—par...

Coach Fabio Zonin is back on the MAS Performance Podcast . It’s been a few months since our last conversation, so this episode was all about catching up, talking training, and going down a few strength and conditioning rabbit holes. We dive into how Fabio’s coaching philosophy continues to evolve, what he’s currently working on, and some of the lessons that are shaping the way he approaches traini...

Pavel Macek, StrongFirst Certified Master Instructor, founder and chief instructor KB5 Gym, is a pioneer of kettlebells in Czechia, Central Europe. He began training Chinese combatives in the Hung Kyun style in 1991, studying in the USA, Hong Kong, and China. Pavel was the first StrongFirst Certified Instructor in Czechia. He is also an FMS/CK-FMS specialist. In 2008, he opened the first kettlebel...

In this episode, we dive into Italian Volume Training (IVT) as outlined by StrongFirst, exploring how it compares to traditional German Volume Training.  We break down the structure, purpose, and unique progression model of IVT. Plus, we introduce "Block Blast," a new program designed for targeted hypertrophy and performance.  Whether you're a coach or lifter, this episode is packed...

In this episode, I sit down once again with Brett Jones , longtime Director of Education for StrongFirst and one of the most respected voices in kettlebell training.  We dive into Iron Cardio Volume 2 , the long-anticipated evolution of his minimalist, brutally effective protocol that has quietly reshaped how coaches and athletes approach conditioning, strength, and longevity. Brett shares what’s...