World-class training facilities don’t pop up overnight, and Mike Boyle Strength & Conditioning is no exception. For 15 years and counting, elite athletes of all ages have come to the Boston-based facility for high-quality personal training, sports performance training — even NFL combine training, too. And now, with three cutting edge locations to his name (featuring multiuse turf for sprints, drills, and sled work, along with functional training equipment like slide boards and plyo blocks), it’s no wonder Mike Boyle Strength & Conditioning made our list of the 21 Most Innovative Gyms in the U.S. But before hopping in with the pros, Greatist caught up with the renowned strength coach to talk training smart, keeping it simple, and what a proper warm-up should really look like. What inspired you to open up shop? There were a bunch of reasons, but I think the number one reason was I didn’t want to be the guy that said, “I could have done that.” [At that time] no one had opened a private training facility [like this] and made it work. What’s the philosophy at MBSC as far as training goes? KISS. Keep It Simple, Stupid. Push something, pull something, do something for legs, and a few core exercises. Do that after doing a good job of rolling and stretching. Finish with some intervals, and call it a day. Simple, yes. Easy, definitely not… In your opinion, no workout’s complete without what? A great warm-up. You should train to feel better, not worse, and the warm-up is key to staying healthy. I think it’s the difference between success and failure. The warm-up, for us, is what most would call dynamic flexibility and corrective exercise. At MBSC, a typical warm-up will look something like this:

  • Foam Rolling: Glutes & Hip rotators, Lower & Upper Back, Posterior shoulder, Adductors
  • Stretching: Band Hamstring, Box Hip Flexor, Floor Hip Rotator, Partner Adductor, Bench Quad/ ITB
  • Activation: Cook Hip Lift w/ Tennis Ball, Mini Band Circuit
  • Active Warm-Up (including just some of the following): Knee to Chest, Heel to Butt, High Knee Skip, High Knee Run, Heel Ups, Straight Leg Walk, Straight Leg Skip, Back Pedal, Backward Run

Facility, equipment, and all that aside, what does your gym have that no others do? There are lots of people doing what we do, but we have the best brand. We are the Cadillac or the Mercedes Benz of our industry. We have some of the best young coaches in the business. It’s tough to compete with that. … They were all chosen for their personality. I’ve always felt that if you hire great people you get great results. Are there any other facilities (or so-called competitors) out there that you particularly admire, respect, or make a point of keeping an eye on? I’m a huge Athletes’ Performance fan. Mark Verstegen is one of my favorite people. I also love Joe Dowdell’s Peak Performance. Really cool city vibe. The Bottom Line (in 140 characters or less): Push something, pull something, do something… (See above!) And always train smart. As for the future of MBSC? We are going to license our system for the first time. I’ve recently partnered with Bruce Mack, a really bright young guy to bring our ideas to lots of clubs in a really affordable way. More on that soon… MIKE BOYLE STRENTH & CONDITIONING Website: www.bodybyboyle.com Locations: Woburn, N. Andover, and Haverhill, MA Hours: Vary by location. Price: $85 per session with a personal trainer; $15 per session for group training (sold in 10-week packages). Also, look out for new monthly adult memberships. Have you ever trained at Mike Boyle Strength & Conditioning? Tell us what you think in the comments section below!