STS 6-26-07 & Count Snatchula in da house.

"If you train hard, you'll not only be hard, you'll be hard to beat." -Herschel Walker

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCKuLT9wqP8

That clip is probably the most athletic thing I've ever seen.

Changed things up a bit today. Got up early to do an AM workout. Not really a huge fan of early morning lifting because it usually takes my body a lot longer to warm up and sometimes I feel like it doesn't respond as well...almost like my muscles are used to being in a resting state at that time. Huh. But it's good to keep 'em guessing, and I should get used to working out in the morning as first round games are definitely in the AM. Plus now I can play golf tonight. Booyah. Here's todays workout:

Movement Prep: (no rest between these exercises)

Jump-rope TF (to failure)
Lunges w/med. ball
Handstand pushups
squats w/med. ball
Jump-rope TF
Side lunges
Handstand pushups
1-foot'd squats
Jump-rope TF
Walking lunges w/med. ball
Hand-stand pushups
side-step squats
Jump-rope TF

That was set #1. Switched up the handstand pushups for 1-handed pushups (on an incline platform) and also added some hanging leg-raises on set 2. Finished that and jump-roped for another 8 minutes or so going through the different variations to warm up further. (Remember that 10 minutes of jumping rope burns as many calories as 30 minutes of running. Something to think about.) I'm also a big fan of 1-leg squats right now. They are SO much harder than they look, and really work the intertior/exterior stabilization muscles. Legs were feelin' pretty saucy by this point so I knew it was going to be a good workout. Had to move fast today as well as I only had an hour to get through all the lifts before work so I decided to do a lot of circuit n' superset (moving from exercise to exercise without rest) work after the heavy lifts.

Multi-joint Lifts:

As always, started with hang cleans. Don't forget the primary focus of these strength-training sessions is on the Posterior Chain (back, lower back[& core], glutes, hammy's, calves). Legs were springy today so I was able to pound through the first 3 sets of cleans pretty fast, ended up doing 6 sets total. Cleans are fun because it's 100% maximum output on a quick-burst movement vs. slow n' steady lifting, so while they are immensely tiring n' difficult, they only last 3-4 seconds per lift.

Hang Cleans 6 sets @ 4 reps
Deadlifts 2 sets @ 8 reps
Front-squats 2 sets @ 8 reps
Regular squats 3 sets @ 6 reps (heavy)

Front-squats are still one of my favorite lifts right now because nothing makes my core work as hard and you can really feel it in the wrists n' grip strength as well. (Great for holding onto that disc). Dropped down the reps on the regular squats but went heavy throughout. When doing your squats remember to go slow on the way down, no reason to rush at all. Should take you 3-4 seconds to completely lower. Focus, as always, is on form and control.

Core/Stability/Circuit:

Physioball pushups 3 sets TF-(feet on a small physioball, hands on large. Balance for 10 seconds then attempt pushups. Notice I said attempt. Only could do pushups on the first set. Those mofo's CRUSH.)

Did a Pillar Strength Circuit next:
Cable-chops to medicine ball twists to physioball knee-tucks without rest.

Moved directly into Army Ranger standards just to make sure I could still hang:

80 pushups in 2 minutes
80 situps in 2 minutes
14 pullups
(Super-set)

Technically I should run a 2-mile in under 15 minutes immediately following to truly say I kept up with Army Ranger standards, but I'm fairly confident that I could do that pretty easily if I ever wanted to run for 2 miles. In a row. Without catching a football or frisbee. Just running. Yeah...sounds like fun. Bleh.

Last Multi-joint lift:

Walking lunges w/weight 6 sets @ 12 reps
Finished with a super-set of Power-band walks @ 4 sets TF

Second time using the powerbands, those things are S-O-L-I-D. Will post further about them in a future blog. But I will say that they are lateraliffic.

Only had 7 minutes left on the clock by now, only enough time to get one last lift in. Decided to stick to an oldie-but-goodie, also one of my top 3 favorite lifts right now: 1-handed Snatches. Same lower-body and core movement as the hang-clean, exploding up out of a squat and catching yourself back in it, but the single arm goes straight overhead following the natural line of the body. It's a phenomenal exercise because you're using the whole body and strengthening the abs at it's weakest point (arms extended). You're teaching your body to stay strong n' stable while fully extended from the torso up...exactly the same body positioning when you're at the height of your jump skying some chump for the disc.

Seems to fit all the criteria for an effective ultimate-specific exercise:

Full-body and functional: check.
Explosive n' fast-twitch: check.
Body positioning during lift translates over to body positioning during on-field movement: check.
Stimulates muscles in way different from previous exercises: check.
Makes me tired: check.

Final Synopsis:
Count Snatchula is up in da heezy.

Here's a visual example for all ya suckas that don't know:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg77Os9mtXs

Ran the 'dors through the speed movement program on Saturday for the first part of practice. I managed to get through the first 3 phases in under an hour and threw a good amount of information at them. Almost all of them picked right up on the concepts and were able to recognize how it translates to on-field movement. Because that's what it's all about: how does what I do while training apply to how I move and react on the field.

The most rewarding part was seeing how f'ing athletic some of my teammates are. I had them doing movements that they had never done before and some of them looked like they'd been practicing it for years. All good signs. I'm very excited to progress further into the program with them and see how they respond to it. Most importantly, I got some of them to analyze my program and methods against their current workouts and compare/contrast. Anything I can do to get my teammates to cognitively analyze their training will only serve to enhance their training. (even if they disagree with me for some weird reason) Because the point is not just to train hard, but to train smart as well.

Practice was both days this weekend and they were constructive, informative, and exhausting. Our captains do a great job of setting up smart, tough practices that make the most of the few hours that we have together. Very fundamental practices...exactly what I need. And love. I am SO fired up for the upcoming season. Our team is starting to come together and find it's sense of identity. We're practicing with fire n' intensity and everybody seems to be on the same page in terms of discipline and commitment. This squad definitely has heart n' grit. Two things I'm a big fan of.