by

Tim Ferriss

Dr. Stefi Cohen — 25 World Records, Power Training, Deadlifting 4.4x Bodyweight, Sports Psychology, Overcoming Pain, and More (#491)

Leave a comment

Topics:
Artist's rendering of Stefi Cohen.
Illustration via 99designs

[Visualize] a negative outcome. We don’t want to plan for it, but we need to prepare for it so we know how to react. Can you keep it together and try again, or will you crumble under pressure?

— Dr. Stefi Cohen

Stefi Cohen (@steficohen) is a 25x world-record-holding powerlifter and the first woman in the history of the sport to deadlift 4.4x her body weight. She is a doctor of physical therapy, author, co-host of the Hybrid Unlimited podcast, and business owner passionately educating people with her NO BS, evidence-based view on all things training and nutrition.

Stefi is the co-owner of Hybrid Performance Method, where hundreds of thousands of strength seekers go monthly to find progressive strength training and nutrition programs plus tons of free articles and videos. Stefi is a creative mind and loves collaborating with the Hybrid team and partners to develop powerful content, inspired fashion, and both fitness and nutrition tools for a stronger life.

Stefi is also the co-author (with Ian Kaplan) of Back in Motion, now available for pre-order.

Please enjoy!

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Brought to you by Tonal smart home gym, LMNT electrolyte supplement, and Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement. More on all three below.

The transcript of this episode can be found here. Transcripts of all episodes can be found here.

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast
#491: Dr. Stefi Cohen — 25 World Records, Power Training, Deadlifting 4.4x Bodyweight, Sports Psychology, Overcoming Pain, and More

This episode is brought to you by Tonal! Tonal is the world’s most intelligent home gym and personal trainer. It is precision engineered and designed to be the most advanced strength studio on the market today. Try Tonal, the world’s smartest home gym, for 30 days in your home, and if you don’t love it, you can return it for a full refund.

This episode is brought to you by LMNT! What is LMNT? It’s a delicious, sugar-free electrolyte drink mix. I’ve stocked up on boxes and boxes of this and usually use it 1–2 times per day. LMNT is formulated to help anyone with their electrolyte needs and perfectly suited to folks following a keto, low-carb, or Paleo diet. If you are on a low-carb diet or fasting, electrolytes play a key role in relieving hunger, cramps, headaches, tiredness, and dizziness.

LMNT came up with a very special offer for you, my dear listeners. For a limited time, you can get a free LMNT Sample Pack with any purchase. This special offer is available here: DrinkLMNT.com/Tim.

This episode is brought to you by AG1. I’ve taken AG1 for more than a decade. Longtime listeners have heard me call it my nutritional insurance. Here’s the news: they’ve just launched AG1 Pro, designed for people focused on performance and longevity. I’ll be traveling soon, and I’m throwing this in my bag to cover my bases while I travel. Past a certain age, maintaining lean muscle becomes priority number one, and AG1 Pro is formulated to support exactly that. It includes HMB, a clinically studied compound that supports protein synthesis and helps reduce protein breakdown, plus zinc carnosine to support the gut lining. Remember: training is only half the equation. Recovery is where the work compounds, and AG1 Pro is built to support it. It’s NSF Certified for Sport, so what’s on the label is what’s in the pouch. Get your free AG1 Pro Yeti Shaker in the Welcome Kit at Drinkag1.com/Tim.

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to hear another episode with a world-class powerlifter? Listen to my conversation with Mark Bell, in which we discuss exercises for the new and aspiring powerlifter, idiot-proofing the bench press, using the warmup as a diagnostic tool, why it’s sometimes dangerous to emulate techniques of top performers, and much more.

#252: Inside the World of SuperTraining – Mark Bell

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

  • Connect with Dr. Stefi Cohen:

Hybrid Performance Method | Hybrid Unlimited Podcast | YouTube | Instagram

SHOW NOTES

  • What was Stefi’s childhood in Venezuela like, why did she eventually move to the United States, and how did she feel about it at the time? [08:38]
  • Where did Stefi arrive when she first moved to the US? [14:04]
  • As a 25x world-record-holding powerlifter and the first woman in the history of the sport to deadlift 4.4x her body weight, Stefi shares the details of these epic feats of strength. [15:01]
  • Who is Ed Coan, and what does Stefi find most impressive about him? [18:05]
  • What are the differences in how the deadlift is approached, and how does someone cross the chasm into being able to defy gravity with weight that physics might suggest is impossible? [22:12]
  • If hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard, how much do genetics factor into the success of an aspiring powerlifting juggernaut? What might someone with average physical attributes do to improve their deadlifting potential? [25:54]
  • What goes into a competition training split, and what a typical week of training looks like for Stefi. [35:13]
  • How do rehab and prehab figure into Stefi’s training? What is the question we should really be asking? [38:58]
  • What has Stefi done to recover from an injury that might differ from more common approaches, and what was the wake-up call that directed this course of action? [43:50]
  • You always need to consider the sources of your research because, as Dr. William Osler famously said, “Medicine is a science of uncertainty and an art of probability.” [50:54]
  • Because, as Stefi says, “pain isn’t a reliable sign of damage,” she lays out the problem with the question “What can we do to fix it?” and what we might ask instead. [54:07]
  • Taking the first steps in trying to pinpoint what might be causing back pain and what form its relief might take. [57:52]
  • My own experience with ketamine infusion and its effects on the pain from a long-term back injury, and Stefi’s thoughts on what may have transpired behind the scenes. [1:01:23]
  • How someone might develop greater resilience to prevent injuries from happening in the first place or at least diminish their likelihood, and why the concept of “bad” versus “good” form is relative. [1:04:44]
  • The benefits of adding certain exercises to our routine that extend our range of movement variability, and why Stefi believes it’s crucial to have a general physical preparedness (GPP) regimen if we’re training — especially in overspecialized sports like powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting, but really in any arena prone to repetitive motions, whether it’s playing tennis or sitting at a desk for hours every day. [1:12:02]
  • While she stresses that there’s no such thing as a magical exercise, Stefi shares her thoughts on The McGill Big Three — bird dog, dead bug, and side plank — and why they’re particularly efficacious in decreasing back pain. [1:15:50]
  • Stefi addresses the value of visualization — for positive and negative outcomes — and how she’s put this into practice. [1:19:27]
  • What were the benefits Stefi gained by spending a year with a sports psychologist? [1:25:53]
  • Books Stefi has gifted or recommended most. [1:29:21]
  • Describing herself as someone who doesn’t really memorize well, how did Stefi manage to pull off a doctorate in physical therapy, and why did she choose not to follow through with taking the licensing exam? [1:31:26]
  • In the realm of physical therapy, what is it about Greg Lehman’s approach that stands out for Stefi? [1:37:40]
  • Winners never quit and quitters never win: false, in the life experience of Stefi Cohen. Bonus: what Stefi, in hindsight, wishes she hadn’t quit. [1:40:41]
  • As someone who completed her doctorate while training to break 25 world records and simultaneously creating a successful business, how does Stefi approach time management — and how did she wrangle the complication of scoring less than 75 on a test at a school that kicked people out for such infractions? [1:47:31]
  • Favorite failures that opened the door to unforeseen opportunities, and how pandemic and pain collaborated to nudge Stefi in the direction of a new sport. [1:57:04]
  • Six things you should do for any injury [2:03:38]:
  • Stop doing what hurts. [2:04:16]
  • Don’t underestimate isometric exercises. [2:04:33]
  • Increase aerobic activity. [2:04:48]
  • Use pain to optimize your movement. [2:05:17]
  • Turn off the pain alarm. [2:05:35]
  • Understand that tissue adaptation takes time. [2:05:55]
  • Parting thoughts. [2:06:30]

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

Comment Rules: Remember what Fonzie was like? Cool. That's how we're gonna be — cool. Critical is fine, but if you're rude, we'll delete your stuff. Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your PERSONAL name or initials and not your business name, as the latter comes off like spam. Have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Brian Oberkirch for the inspiration.)

7 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted

Keep exploring.