GoodFriday: On rotating focus, being bored, and near-death experiences

Happy GoodFriday!

Here’s something I heard, thought, and did this week.

Something I Heard:

• I recently listened to The Perform Podcast with Dr. Andy Galpin, featuring Dr. Bret Contreras (The Glute Guy). One segment (1:22:32) really stood out: the concept of Rotating Focus—prioritizing one or two lifts for a set period, then shifting focus while maintaining progress elsewhere.

  As an aspiring powerlifter, I've struggled to progress all my lifts simultaneously. When my squat improves, my deadlift dips, and vice versa. But whenever I focus on just one lift, it skyrockets. This aligns with what Layne Norton has discussed and what research suggests: the body adapts best when given a few clear priorities rather than trying to improve everything at once.

  Bret likened it to juggling—it's far easier to manage two balls than six. Natural lifters, especially, need to embrace the long game. Instead of trying to do it all at once, strategically rotating your focus may actually lead to faster progress over time.

  I’ll be testing this approach in my own training and programs—stay tuned!

  Layne’s episode

Something I Thought:

• Being bored is becoming more and more of a privilege these days. With so many things competing for our attention, the experience of being bored and allowing the mind to wander is something we don’t get to enjoy as much. Take some time over the next week to embrace the silence. Put the phone down, turn the tv off, and see what happens. It’s ok to be bored. 

Something I’m Doing:

• A client and I have a book club called The Deadlifts Society Book Club. Every month, we pick a book to dive into. This month, we’re reading After by Dr. Bruce Greyson. Dr. Greyson is a psychiatrist who has studied over 1,000 near-death experiences (NDEs) in an attempt to find a scientific explanation for them. It’s an incredibly interesting book, filled with stories that will send shivers up your spine. It’s well worth the read and will make you think about all the things we still don’t know. 

Until next week!

-Cameron Harn