0 My Desire for Exercise Science Students

Before I get into my vision for the field of exercise science, I want to first tell all of you how excited I am for the future.

A dream of beginning a new university program is finally coming to fruition after 7 years. In the fall of 2020, I will begin my position as Head Coach of the Lenoir-Rhyne University Weightlifting Team. Recently I took my team to see the facilities and to check out campus. We even had the chance to train in our new home, and I think that I speak for all of us when I say we loved it. It felt like an Olympic Training Center, which is exactly what I am going for.

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On Tuesday I took the majority of our team to see what I’ve been working on for the last six months. If you take into consideration how long I’ve been planning and dreaming of a University Weightlifting Program, it’s more like 7 years. In this video you will see the main weight room complete with: Inverse Leg Curls, Reverse-Hypers, Glute-Ham Developers, @westsidebarbellofficial Belt Squat Machine, racking system with all the toys including jammer arms, monkey bars for days, every specialty bar you can imagine, turf area, multiple @assaultairbike air runners, air bikes, ski ergs, and of course we will have all the nice kilo bumpers and awesome bars. . There’s also a nutrition station as you exit for athletes to grab their post-workout shakes. . The Athletic Training Room is my favorite complete with Cold Tub and Hot Tub, @rapidreboot ‘s, and Athletic Trainers of course. The goal is to get each athlete an individual recovery plan. . You’ll also see the spillover room that is also beautiful for individual two-a-day sessions. . Another thing is the Heated Indoor Saltwater Pool. For all of you CrossFit Athletes that can also Snatch and Clean & Jerk well, I am 100% interested in having you, and I am totally fine with you continuing to do both sports weightlifting and CrossFit. Therefore indirectly creating the first University CrossFit Program. . If you’re interested in attending and looking into scholarship opportunities, you can DM me right here. Then I will give you my email. . FYI to all the coaches, we want you to remain the #1 coach of record and can keep your club name except during the University Nationals. . I want this to be a Team USA Program, and nothing to do with Team Mash. I hope we can work together to give athletes opportunities within the sport. Therefore giving them a reason to pursue our beloved sport versus one of the other sport like football or basketball. . Ask any questions right here as well, and I will answer. . @shruggedcollective @andersvarner @usaweightlifting #usaw #weightlifting #strengthandconditioning #powerlifting @alex_j_koch @lenoirrhyne @bearssports #lenoirrhyneweightlifting #crossfit

A post shared by Mash Elite Performance (@masheliteperformance) on Jan 9, 2020 at 1:52pm PST

I want the athletes on my team to have everything they need to succeed. However there is much more that I want for them. I want them to leave Lenoir-Rhyne with a degree and a future. I am also beginning the long process of working toward my PhD. Guys, I haven’t been in school in over 25 years. Luckily, Mash Elite Performance has kept my nose buried in research, learning, and writing of course. I definitely feel more prepared than when I first graced Appalachian State University with my presence. All I cared about back then was football, lifting weights, and girls. Now I want to make a difference in as big a way as possible.

The staff at LR is incredibly progressive and forward thinking. When I am around Dr. Alex Koch and Dr. Keith Leiting, I feel like the possibilities are endless. I’m excited about the research we will be capable of performing with elite weightlifters under our roof. However there is something that intrigues me even more. I want to make sure our exercise science students have futures in their chosen field.

BUSINESS AND BRAND

The buzz around the world lately is that college isn’t as important as we once thought. People are either taking up a trade, starting work right away, or skipping school to start their own business. With my goal of becoming a professor, I want to be a part of the solution. Exercise Science is comprised of students who are intrigued with health and fitness, and most of them simply want to help others. To me this is an admirable major filled with good people, and I want to help the students at Lenoir-Rhyne put their passion to work.

My dream is to integrate major specific business skills within the exercise science curriculum. I want to teach our students:

• How to brand themselves with social media
• How to create content to help others via podcasts, blogs, or vlogs
• Networking skills
• Entrepreneurial skills to develop their own businesses online or brick and mortar
• The actual job search itself

One thing I have learned listening to Gary Vaynerchuk is that brand is just about everything when it comes to one’s career. I am not just talking about entrepreneurs. I’m also talking about those want a job as a strength and conditioning coach or even as a personal trainer. In a competitive field, you have got to do something that sets you apart, and then you have to let the rest of the world know about it.

If a student begins the process during their freshman year, they will be able to build quite the brand by the time they are seniors. If they want to focus more on their futures than partying, we all know there is plenty of time to grow a brand and a following. I am not talking about four years of posting pics with your friends. I mean four years of sharing all that you are learning or sharing nutrition and exercise tips. The goal is that you graduate being known as that guy – with that guy being whoever you want to become in this noble field.

If you desire to help people with the knowledge you are gaining in your studies, you don’t have to wait until you graduate. You can start creating content on your favorite aspects of exercise science right now. The key is discovering your favorite way to produce content – whether it be podcasting, writing, or vlogging. Of course you don’t want to write about something that you don’t totally understand. Stick to the truths that you are learning along the way. The goal is to focus on the niche you enjoy and the particular aspect of exercise science you know the best (nutrition, speed training, athletic performance, etc.). Remember the goal is to become that guy or that gal in the field.

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Getting a job? Starting a business?

Here’s the truth regarding how one gets most jobs in the exercise science world: it’s whom you know. It might not be the right thing, but it’s a harsh reality. But there is an art to networking. Way too many people who are trying to network come across as annoying and desperate. It has to be a natural thing. The best people to network with are people you jive with. Then there is a high probability that your new acquaintance will introduce you to other likeminded people – and the next thing you know you will have a circle of folks that you love. There’s more to it, but you get the idea. We just need to make sure that our talented students get the idea.

And let’s not forget that many students can create their own jobs. Most college students simply don’t understand they aren’t held hostage by the hopes of someone hiring them anymore. This is the age of the young entrepreneur. However, it’s also the age of the broke entrepreneur. These young folks need guidance and someone who can be brutally honest because everyone isn’t cut out for entrepreneurship. If you’re lazy, you’re doomed to fail. If you aren’t self-motivated, you are doomed to fail. If you don’t have thick skin, you’re doomed to fail because everyone is going to tell you that you’re crazy.

The job will be to assess the students and see who is and who isn’t cut out for entrepreneurship. If they are, the next job would be to see what ideas they might have, and then give them direction. The key will be to get this going as soon as possible, so they can use their time in college to brand their future business. For example, maybe they love working with weight loss clients. They should spend their extra time writing and/or creating video of the dangers of obesity and making wise choices at the grocery store. Then they will graduate having created a solid following that they can begin to market to.

The most obvious place that these graduates need help is finding actual jobs. Most of them have no idea about the opportunities that are afforded them. For example, they could look for something in the strength and conditioning field, personal trainer, corporate wellness, physical therapist assistant, chiropractic assistant, personal trainer on a cruise ship (this is a real thing), or in cardiac rehab. The list goes on, but the key is informing the students and helping them map out a path toward their goal job.

The good thing is that Dr. Alex Koch and I have already been throwing around ideas. Since he helped me start this whole new program, I guess we believe anything is possible at this point. If you are looking for a school right now, you might want to consider what kind of job placement record they have as a school. I can promise we are going to make some changes you will all be reading about very soon. I want all of our students leaving Lenoir-Rhyne University ready to attack their chosen field and confident they made the right choice in a university.

If you are interested in our new University Weightlifting Program at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, NC, message me on here or shoot an email to info@mashelite.com. I will have a Lenoir-Rhyne email within days, which will be Travis.Mash@LR.com.

0 Perseverance and Starting a Coaching Career with Peter Kenn – The Barbell Life 290

It’s not really a surprise that Peter Kenn is pursuing a strength coach career.

After all, his father is my friend Coach Joe Kenn of the Carolina Panthers. And Peter joins us today to talk about what it was like growing up as the son of a great strength coach.

But Peter is a skilled athlete in his own right, and he is determined to make his own way in the world as a strength coach. I think he’s going places – and as you’ll hear about in this podcast, he has some strengths that might even make him a better strength coach than his father.

We talk about all of that – and we also get to Peter’s plans for breaking into the strength coach industry… and what has already brought him tremendous benefit.

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LISTEN IN TO TODAY’S PODCAST AS WE TALK ABOUT:

• Why track requires a lot of mental fortitude – and what makes Peter so mentally tough
• Having a successful Block Zero
• What it was like growing up as Coach Joe Kenn’s son (and what Coach Kenn has learned the hard way)
• How Peter’s “court room experience” made him a better coach
• Peter’s tactical plan to enter the coaching world and what you can learn from it
• and more…

0 Owning a Gym and Training Young Athletes with Scott Paltos – The Barbell Life 289

Scott Paltos has come highly recommended as a guest for this podcast – apparently we have tons of mutual friends.

And I can see why after this podcast. Scott has seen so much in the strength game, and he has a lot of wisdom to share.

We talk all about his experience in several different sports, owning a gym, training kids, and some advanced thoughts on speed work. I could talk to Scott all day.

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LISTEN IN TO TODAY’S PODCAST AS WE TALK ABOUT:

• “Dinosaur” days and “Beach” days in the training week
• How he uses contrast training in his own way
• His advice for young coaches
• The real story of owning your own gym
• Speed training lessons from the dream team
• and more…

0 A Better Way to Plan

2019 has been a roller coaster of a year for my team and for me personally. There have been some extreme highs and lows, which unfortunately seem to go hand-in-hand.

My business has noticed steady growth – something I am extremely thankful for. My baby girl, Magnolia Taylor Mash, was born in February – which was the highlight of the year. But this is not a year in review, this is more of my thought process heading into 2020 based on the happenings of 2019. I think a lot of you will be able to take this process and apply it to your own life.

Highlights… and mistakes

If I listed all of our successes this year at Mash Elite, it would appear we’ve had the best year of any gym in the world. Here’s a look at some of the highlights:

• Two gold medalists at Junior Nationals
• Two athletes at Youth Worlds
• Two bronze medals at Youth Worlds
• Silver medalist at Senior Pan American Championships
• Best male and female lifter at the Senior National Championships
• Two athletes at the Youth Pan American Championships
• One gold medalist at Youth Pan Ams and Best Male Lifter
• Great year for Tommy Bohanon in his final year in the NFL (maybe his final year)
• Two athletes at the Pan American Games
• Two athletes at the Junior Pan American Championships with two medalists as well even though both were still Youth Athletes.
• Multiple American and Pan American records
• Winning the team championships at Youth Nationals including multiple gold medal performances
• Best overall male athlete at Youth Nationals
• Qualifying four American, two Danish, and one Irish athlete for the Senior Worlds
• Visiting Jamaica twice with Stronger Experts to help their track athletes
• Tate Carney compiled 2,000 yards of offense as a sophomore in high school
• Tate and his teammate Cam Beck were nominated all-conference
• Cade Carney played his last season of Division I Football for Wake Forest University
• Creating the newest University Weightlifting Program in the country at Lenoir-Rhyne University
• Youth Athlete Ryan Grimsland won the 67kg class at the Senior American Open.

These are just a few of the highlights. If you look at this list, you’d think I had a great year. I would be omitting a lot of the bad things that happened, but it would make me look awesome. But that would be a lie, and it wouldn’t help any of you. So I want to talk about the biggest issue I ran into this year, and I want to explain some of the steps I plan on taking to counter this snag.

Culture, Capacity, and Commitment

Our culture took a dive at the end of the year. We lost several top athletes. Of course some needed to go, and some I will miss forever. The questions are:

1. What happened?
2. How do we avoid this happening again?

The biggest mistake I made was bringing on too many top athletes in a year that would require them traveling all over the world. Most coaches have at most one elite athlete, which is easy to handle. Even the ones who have multiple elites normally have seniors, juniors, or youth. This year we had multiple of each age category. We had four youth qualifying for international trips, including Youth Worlds and Youth Pan Ams. We had two junior athletes qualifying for Junior Worlds and Junior Pan Ams. We had four seniors qualifying for Senior Pan Ams, Senior Pan American Games, and Senior Worlds. This doesn’t even cover the international athletes we coach – and we had youth, junior, and senior international athletes qualifying for meets all around the world.

Does this sound like a lot? Well, it doesn’t even cover our powerlifters and athletic performance athletes. Oh yeah, I’m a husband and father to four children who need my attention, and I run multiple businesses. This is not an excuse. I am simply setting up the mistake that I made. I simply didn’t consider my capacity as a coach, and it bit me in the butt.

Pretty much all of the problems originated from the fact I was too busy – causing me to ignore issues, to communicate ineffectively, and to allow things to slip through the cracks. A big part of the problem was bringing on athletes simply because they were awesome, without considering if they fit the culture of my team or me as a coach. All of this combined has caused me to think deeply about how I do things. I don’t know about you, but in my experience, an extreme trial normally precedes extreme growth.

Considerations moving forward

So what do I plan on doing about it? That’s the real question. All of us have bumps in the road, but it’s how we respond that makes us who we are. The first thing I plan on doing is figuring exactly what the values of our team are. I am not basing this 100% on what I think. I am taking into consideration what my athletes and coaches think as well – so the set of values that decides how our team will be conducted is developed from our team as a whole. I want the entire team to take 100% ownership in our set of values moving forward.

I am also having each team member hand me his or her personal goals. I am going to help them develop these goals into a macro and micro set of goals they can check off almost weekly. This will govern the way I expect them to act.

For example, if an athlete tells me he or she wants to make an Olympic team someday, then I will expect their actions to match their goals. If they are staying up all night playing video games and demonstrating terrible nutritional habits, then I am not going to take them seriously. At that point, we will either:

• Change their behavior
• Alter their goals
• Ask them to change or train somewhere else

These same goals and values will follow us to Lenoir-Rhyne University and will help govern our team there as well. Each new crop of athletes will give their input – making the set of values a living document. So far I love what our team has evolved into. Everyone is working hard, focused on their goals, and ready to take on 2020. We still have multiple senior, junior, and youth athletes here in America and around the world who will be traveling to multiple international competitions. We are looking to smash American, Danish, Australian, and New Zealand records along with some world records next year.

One thing I am doing as a university weightlifting coach is allowing current coaches to remain the coach of record, so they will do the traveling with the athletes they have developed. I also plan on working closely with the coaches in regard to programming and technical cues. This will help cut down on my travel time and will help keep me focused on the training of each athlete.

Planning Ahead

I’m excited that all of this happened now – causing me to think hard about the way I plan on growing our program at Lenoir-Rhyne University. I want to develop a program we can all be proud of. More importantly, I want to form a culture that will allow the incoming athletes to have the best collegiate experience possible during their tenure at LR.

I hope all of this helps you guys as you grow your own clubs. More importantly, I hope all of you can learn from my mistakes, so you don’t have to go through a season like I just did. Twelve countries in one year was a bit too much for me.

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0 Making and Surviving the NFL with Tommy Bohanon – The Barbell Life 288

If you’ve been around me long enough, you’ve heard me talk about Tommy Bohanon.

He was the most powerful athlete I have ever personally trained. He was an absolute beast of an NFL player, and programming for him was my thrill.

Tommy has now retired from the NFL – but he hasn’t slowed down. He’s still training, he’s still reaching for his goals, and he’s still making a difference in the lives of many through his charitable foundation and through his newfound career.

So listen in to this podcast to hear about it – and also to hear Tommy’s insight on the best way to make the NFL and survive the NFL.

MASH FILES: LEARN FROM THE PROGRAM OF AN NFL BEAST

Travis Mash shows you all the details and reasoning behind the recent off-season program for Tommy Bohanon (starting fullback for the Jacksonville Jaguars)

Then you can use these principles to individualize your own programs to fit an athlete's strengths, weaknesses, age, gender, sport demands, and unique response to training.

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LISTEN IN TO TODAY’S PODCAST AS WE TALK ABOUT:

• How you should prepare in high school if you want to play college football
• Insane skills at reading the opponent’s position at the line
• The adjustment from high school to college to NFL football
• Hidden dangers in the NFL and how many players end up ruining their lives
• Have concussions changed the game? (And how Tommy avoided ever having one)
• and more…

2 A New University Program

I found the sport of weightlifting in 1996. I was able to earn my USA Weightlifting Level 1 Coaching Certification in that same year.

In 1997 I made the move to Colorado Springs to be coached by two-time Olympian Wes Barnett. I thrived under his tutelage, and in 1998 I was invited to train at the Olympic Training Center with Coach Dragomir Cioroslan. Shortly after that I moved home to North Carolina because my father was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer.

Thanks to CrossFit, the sport became popular around the entire world. By 2009 I started dabbling in the sport once again, and coaching a few people in my gym. By 2013, weightlifting was slowly becoming my focus as a coach. Around 2014 I started writing articles about improving the sport of weightlifting in America. I was working with Team MuscleDriver USA as a coach, which gave me a pretty solid voice in the sport.

Making the Sport Better

Some of the things I was recommending were:

• A better culture overall – one of expecting to win versus happy to just make a team.
• Providing financial assistance to our top athletes to motivate them and also so they would be able to focus on training.
• Targeting all the mundane areas of performance that add up to big results – like sports psychology, nutrition, and recovery.
• A successful university program to motivate exceptional young athletes and to get the buy-in of their parents.

Phil Andrews has taken USA Weightlifting out of the dark ages during this Olympic quad. Our athletes are winning medals at every major international competition. Our athletes are breaking world records. We are no longer happy to simply make the team. Our top athletes are receiving stipends that allow them to focus on their sport. Phil has done a tremendous job of assembling a staff of rock stars that are supporting our top athletes in the areas of sports psychology, nutrition, and recovery. Phil obviously had a similar vision – and more importantly he knew how to execute the plan.

The University Dream

My dream as a coach has always been to start a university weightlifting program that would provide athletes a place to become truly great at their sport – while providing scholarships and academic opportunities to pursue the career of their choice. If we want the parents of exceptional athletes to buy-in to the sport of weightlifting, there have to be opportunities for their children. If not, those athletes are going to choose sports like football and wrestling where there are opportunities after high school.

I have worked on this dream for over five years. I have approached four different colleges only to get lost in red tape and decision makers. Finally, Lenoir-Rhyne University answered the call with the help of Professor Alex Koch. They announced the new program last week, and we wrapped up the details yesterday. I am starting the recruiting process now, which is why I am releasing this article now. I want the other coaches in America to know where I am coming from.

First off, I have dropped my personal club, Mash Mafia Weightlifting. I don’t want any conflict of interest. I will form a club for Lenoir-Rhyne, but our athletes only have to list that team for the competitions that we attend as a team, which I am anticipating to be University Nationals and Junior Nationals. Otherwise, they can keep their current affiliation for events like Senior Nationals and the American Open.

We still have on online team, and we are still coaching athletes online. Nothing is changing there. We still want to help all of you crush your goals. The only reason I’m dropping the personal club is I don’t want there to appear to be any conflict of interest with me being a coach for two clubs.

Second, I want the athletes to keep their current coaches as their number one coach. I get what it’s like to develop an athlete to the top national or international level only to have them picked up by another coach. That hurts – and in most cases, it doesn’t work very well. If I recruit an athlete who is enjoying constant and steady improvement, I would be a fool not to collaborate with that coach. I would only ask that their programming fit the weekly structure for the team. (For example, Friday is a heavier day for snatch and clean and jerk with Saturday being focused on strength work.) This way the athletes can still benefit from the camaraderie and competition of the group.

Of course, I am going to want to communicate with each of the coaches based on what I am seeing. That way, adjustments can be made when needed. I am not trying to benefit from anyone’s athlete. I am simply trying to provide an opportunity for young athletes. If you send me an athlete and they make it to the Olympics, you will be going and not me. This brings me to the other half of this announcement.

Want to come to Lenoir-Rhyne?

Here are the benefits to being a weightlifter at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, NC:

• There will be scholarship opportunities based on level of performance.
• All weightlifters will have access to athletic training.
• All weightlifters will have access to the recovery methods provided to all athletes (cold tub, hot tub, sauna, etc.).
• All weightlifters will have access to intra-workout and post-workout nutrition and supplements that are NSF certified.
• The facilities are beautiful.

For anyone reading this who doesn’t know about me as a coach, I am a USA Level V Senior International Coach. Since 2015, our team has produced 23 Team USA athletes. I have been the Team USA Head Coach at four major international competitions – including the 2016 Men and Women’s Junior World Team. We have taken beginners all the way to Team USA – like Ryan Grimsland, Morgan McCullough, and Hunter Elam. We have also taken athletes with some degree of success and made them even better – like Jordan Cantrell and Nathan Damron. The point is that we can help you get better regardless of your situation.

Starting in January, I will start the long process of pursuing my PhD. Here’s why! In our industry, most of the time coaches are either:

• The great athlete turned coach
• The great coach who wasn’t a great athlete but has produced countless amazing athletes (much like Coach Don McCauley)
• The PhD, PT, or Chiro who has all the research and book knowledge

My goal is to combine the three and see what happens. I want to perform research in the areas that we all debate without any concrete science to back our theories up. The other complaint I constantly hear is that certain research studies were performed on non-athletic general population folks. I want to use athletes and gen pop folks to figure out these questions. I have so many questions to answer! What average intensity is best, and which is best for different populations? How often should someone squat? Are deadlifts good, bad, or indifferent for snatch and clean?

These are just a few, but I am so excited to go to work. I am excited to be challenged both academically and as a coach. I am excited to work with all of you on developing a university program we can all be proud of. I want a program that:

• Produces champions.
• Produces athletes with functional degrees.
• Produces humans who make a positive impact on the world.
• Aids in the research that will benefit all coaches and athletes in America.
• Aids in the research that will make our practices as coaches safer than ever.

Getting Started

Here are a few final thoughts I want to make all of you aware of. In the past we have raised money that benefited our athletes for Mash Mafia Weightlifting. Starting right now, any money raised by our nonprofit will go toward scholarships and competition expenses for our future athletes. The minute I learn about the ins and outs of how this will work, I will start raising money for this program. My goal is to make this program as attractive to top athletes as possible.

One thing I am considering is working with CrossFitters who either want to do weightlifting as well or who simply want to get better at the Olympic movements. If that is you and you are of college age, you might consider this opportunity as well. If you are awesome at the movements (like David Bradley), you might get a scholarship as a CrossFitter as long as you can compete at University Nationals. If not, it would still be a good decision. I will teach you how to be a great weightlifter, and you can still CrossFit. This is an aspect of the program I intend to elaborate on immediately, so please start considering it. Contact me if you are interested!

For now, here is what I need from coaches, athletes, and parents:

1. If you are interested in the program or you’re a coach with an athlete who might be interested, you can email me at masheliteperformance@gmail.com and soon at Travis.Mash@LR.edu
2. I am totally open to suggestions – so once again, email me or message me. I want this to be a program we can all be proud of.

I am excited for this new era in my life. My family is excited for the move. For all of you who I coach online, nothing will change. If I am your coach, I will continue as your coach. Of course, if you have one of our other awesome coaches, you will continue with that coach. Our gym in Lewisville, NC will continue along – and I will be present there until August of next year. Most of my athletes will be coming to Lenoir-Rhyne, and other athletes we work with will be able to train with the team at Lenoir-Rhyne. So nothing really changes there. Now we are simply able to provide more to our athletes. Wish us well please because this will be my legacy to the sport of weightlifting.