CFNI: Coach Cam

I couldn’t have planned a greater crescendo to the CFNI Coaches Series than a shoot with Coach Cam. What a blast! With my soundtrack in the background, we talked endlessly about music and live bands and concert stories. Music has always been a passion of mine; it is certainly satisfying to find someone with similar tastes and the same level of interest and appreciation. After some portrait work, Cam decided to focus on his deadlift. This was such a treat for me as I like to lift stuff and I’m training for a heavy CrossFit total. Here’s a great story about why this Coaches Series is so interesting for me ... So, Cam was deadlifting serious weight; I believe he ended up somewhere north of 400 pounds during our shoot! I caught a cool image of him setting up for a heavy lift and wanted to share it with him. What happened next was pure gold. I was so proud of the composition and lighting. I was like, “Oh, man, check this out!” Cam looked at the image on the back of my camera and said: “hmm, nice little curve in the lumbar spine. Straight back. Shoulders back. Are my shoulders back? Yup. Good. Steve would kill me if my shoulders were rounded. Nice strong position. Chest up. Butt down.” “When you’re training for your CFT, you’ll need one heavy lift. Best way to prepare is by squatting. If you train heavy squats, it will help your deadlift; it does not work the other way around.” What he said next resonated with me. He explained, “this is why CrossFit works! I haven’t trained deadlifts in a long time, but I’ve been enjoying the other WODs. With all that other work, I’m still able to maintain my strength and pull some heavy weight.” I believe it was natural and instinctual for Cam to seamlessly slip into coach mode, teaching me nuances of the movement, and coaching me towards achieving my goal. He showed a real interest and passion for explaining and teaching. I took it all in and celebrated Cam’s natural ability to communicate and pass on his depth and breadth of knowledge. This was such a perfect way to punctuate my CFNI Coaches Series project. Enjoy!