The GDF Training Philosophy

I won’t sit here and pretend I’m some sort of savant. I won’t make some crazy promises. I can’t even tell you that you’ll lose weight, or gain muscle.I will say this:

If you follow pretty much any program, it will work.

As I mentioned in my About section, I developed this programming out of necessity. As a full time new parent with a full time job, I was stretched for time. I did have a lot going for me, however-
– A lifetime of sports
– A decade of functional fitness (CrossFit)
– A foundation of strength, skill, flexibility and movement patterns
– A half decade of coaching athletes and programming
– A pretty complete Garage Gym

I had put training for any level of competition behind me, and had no plans for additional raw strength, no races I was priming for, and no intention of PRs or surpassing goals.

The basics of my programming are simple-

1. Make it fast
   Between warming up, stretching, set up and cool down, under an hour
2. Make it accessible
   Using minimal to no equipment, with details on how to scale or modify
3. Make it useful
   Every workout uses the full body, and incorporates the methodology I found effective in CrossFit (NOTE-I am not affiliated with CrossFit Inc., or any gym)
4. Make it Complimentary
   To a strength cycle, a weightlifting program, or training for something particular
5. Make it universal
   Easy enough that someone with little to no experience can follow along, and hard enough that a seasoned athlete can find it challenging and effective

Some various notes:
–I use a combination of AMRAPs (As Many Reps As Possible), and ‘For Time’ workouts, but don’t think of these as competitions. Working out mindlessly doesn’t really work, so the clock is just a way of staying on task. Every workout is designed to have as minimal rest as possible, so obviously someone more advanced will get more done in a time, or finish a task faster. Work at your own pace, and just focussing on moving as much as possible.
–There are no ‘RX’ weights used. The intent will always be listed in the details page for each workout. Since the time domains are relatively short, struggling through reps, where time is wasted, and more importantly, form is probably breaking down, is NOT the point. Scale the weight to what YOU need, and if you aren’t sure, shoot me a message and I will answer as quickly as I can
–Do your homework. I purposely try to avoid some of the more complex movements (snatches, overhead squats, handstand pushups etc) in the programming, to make the workouts as accessible as possible. I will program them on occasion, as well as variations. I highly suggest if you are going to attempt those movements, have a foundation in those movements already, either from a professional trainer, or from a lot of videos and practice. If that isn’t an option, scale to movements YOU are familiar with. While I’m all for learning new things, alone in your home gym without a clue what you’re doing leaves you with a better chance at getting injured and being out of commission, than mastering a full snatch from a YouTube video and a positive attitude.
–Make these workouts work for you. Besides scaling down or up, modify them as well. Use them as a template for your own thing. If you are working on a strength program, incorporate these workouts in as you see fit. If you need a one-off, look through the Workouts archive, and cherry pick! Although I post a workout pretty much every day, work out when you have the chance. 
–Enjoy life. I have the utmost respect for any athlete, especially the ones I see in the ‘Sport of Fitness’ realm. They bust their asses, multiple times a day, every day, continuously. Many weigh and measure their food, and rarely have “cheats”. Their social media feeds are filled with nothing more than grueling workouts, vegetables, and more workouts. I know many of these individuals, and I can say the perception is the reality. That’s not me, and probably not you. I dedicate a lot of my time to work, to my family, to other hobbies, to travel and new adventures, and I eat a LOT of treats. If you have bigger fitness goals in mind, I applaud and respect you. If my programming helps, I am honored. If my programming is just the excuse you have to eat cake every night, I applaud and respect you too!
–Know that it’s a process. If you are a newbie to working out, especially working out at home alone (or maybe you and a spouse/friend/etc), know that any program out there will have some rough patches, some massive gains, and some stagnation. Think of fitness as a long term skill you continue to develop and hone as time goes on. I have seen my own body and fitness level go through more fluctuations in 25 years than I thought was possible. Do your best to not get discouraged if the scale isn’t moving, or if the strict pullups aren’t coming as fast as you’d like, or if it really sucks using the one set of dumbbells you have for everything. In the big big big picture, this is about starting, or continuing, a lifetime of wellness, fitness, and betterment. It’s becoming increasingly hard to be patient in our current, instant gratification society. Make the commitment, and accept that it will pay off in the long run!