Today’s episode (part I of II) is actually three talks in one show, featuring segments with Jeremy Frisch, Rob Assise, and Dr. Tommy John.

In our current world situation, many have found themselves without our typical training structures.  This can be anything from not having a team, or partners, to train with anymore, a lack of gym space, and a lack of a training equipment in general.  It’s times like these that, although tough, can allow us to shave things down, to the essentials of how we are training, and perhaps more importantly, why we are training in the first place.  Each of our guests have had one or multiple appearances on the show before and were those who have a unique perspective on getting to the core essentials of training and movement.

Jeremy Frisch is a former NCAA D1 strength coach who is now the owner of Achieve Performance in Clinton, Massachusetts.  He is a leader in youth training and play, as well as all-around performance coach who works with athletes of all levels.   Jeremy not only coaches physical prep methods, but is also involved in team sport coaching on the youth level.

Rob Assise is a teacher and track coach at Homewood-Flossmoor high school who has written some fantastic articles (How I Deal with the Restrictions of COVID-19 and One Man’s Dive Into Extreme Isometrics) on his use of “Extreme Isometrics” in his at-home workouts, a topic of which we went into detail on for today’s show.

Dr. Tommy John is a chiropractor, author and performance coach who is no stranger to this show.  Tommy has an awesome ability to blend health, training and big-picture ideas into a powerful message in our own performance.  His workout, training style, and overall message is one that brings out our true power as human beings.

Today’s episode is brought to you by SimpliFaster, supplier of high-end athletic development tools, such as the Freelap timing system, kBox, Sprint 1080, and more.







Timestamps and Main Points

3:45 Jeremy Frisch’s take on how COVID19 is bringing children back to a more natural mode of play, albeit in context of current restrictions

8:50  The difference between movement and exercise for children, and when they are mature enough to make that distinction

13:35 Jeremy’s own workouts, and what he does to train in his basement gym setup

21:40  What Rob’s workout is looking like with his own daily schedule

29:45  How using extreme ISO’s offers good benefits for endurance of speed and strength qualities to athletes

35:00  Tommy John’s workouts and how they haven’t really changed much since quarantines

45:45  The importance of cultivating a creative practice in coaching

54:00  The inner meaning behind why we train, and the distinction between playing and training



 “(kids) Riding bikes has been brought back from the ashes, which is nice to see”

“I feel there is a silver lining, because of some of the things that are happening out in the world, we have to go back to what we were doing when we were kids”

“While moving is great for kids, they don’t have the maturity to understand what exercise really is”

“I felt like I could feel the (cycling of energy systems) in the last minute, or minute an a half of a lunge.  It’s something you have to try and see”

“I hated doing the 5 minute ISO lunge while I was doing it, but afterwards I felt completely at peace.  I never regretted it afterwards”

“(After doing 5 minute ISO lunges 11x a week) playing “old man basketball”, flat out, I just did not get tired.  I was able to go as hard as I could, for pretty much the whole game”

“My training has not changed much, but my miles in walking have” Dr. Tommy John

“We’re all artists, whether it’s programming or bringing in information in a creative way”

“I love walking because it’s an ever-changing environment, it’s outside… there’s different people, there’s different flowers, there’s different shades of light… it’s almost like a movie”