Frostillicus

STS 2-12-09 & The Triple Extension

2009-02-12T14:33:00.000-08:00

"There is no substitue for athletics." - Robert Francis Kennedy

- The reason why you train for power & explosiveness.

That is simply a product of his training. If he can do that at his weight, why can't you?

The most important thing to notice about the video is his Triple Extension. The Triple Extension is explosive extension of the hip, knee, & ankle joints, in any direction. The T.E. is involved in every single explosive lower body sports movement, so your training should emulate as such. (You know it when you see it on the field, the receiver "loads" his jump and springs through the air, extending through all 3 major lower-body joints) When training, every single lower body exercise you perform should involve the Triple Extension, as explosive as possible (once you've perfected proper form, of course).

Here's a solid article on the Triple Extension and the benefits of training for power. You can skip the parts on the Clean & the Snatch if you don't already know them. While the clean & Snatch are phenomenal ways to train the body & the Triple Extension, they take a legitimate 6 weeks to master safely. And in the 6 weeks it's take to learn them you could also learn 35+ other different full-body athletic movements that would train the T.E. & body as effectively. The Clean is awesome, but it's not your only option.

Workout

Warmup

Med-ball Warmup consisting of continuous movement on the "power pads" (just bouncing on the toes like jump-roping) while moving through every type of standing, twisting and 1 leg throws. Also mixed in lots of shuffles, backpedals, and some pushups-to-sprints.

Lunge Complex
W/40lb Bar. Nothing hits the entire hip complex top to bottom like it.

1A: Forward lunge with simultaneous overhead press w/50lb bar (step back to standing, bar comes back down to shoulder position) 12 reps
1B: Backward lunge with simultaneous overhead press (step back to standing, bar comes back down to shoulder position) 12 reps
1C: Backward lunge with simultaneous overhead press then step through (bar comes back down to shoulder position) with same leg into forward lunge with overhead press (step back to standing, bar back to shoulders) 10 reps.

Cable Sequence

10 minutes of Cable work, lots of cable squat rows, lunges w/punch, backwards lunge w/row. Just training the entire body as one single unit with the core as the center of the action moving with Flow. All pillar strength (shoulder, hip, & core stability) all the time.

2: Crossover Step-Ups 2 sets of 12

Same as the video (notice the awesome Triple Extension) but with a nice lil' added proprioceptive aspect. Instead of just going straight up-n-down, start with right foot on the left side of the plyo box. Step up properly with strong knee drive and then step over with the left foot now landing on the right side of the plyo box and then step back down with right foot. Repeat, crossing over every step. Really hits the outer & inner hips muscles while challenging your balance & stability.

3: Deadlift-to-Snatch. See previous post for beginner & advanced descriptions. 4 sets of 6 as explosive as possible with Flow.

4: 1-leg squats on calf machine. Instead of using this machine for just your calves (laaame) you might as well get some Triple Extension & unilateral training action in. Remember: you dictate the movements...not the machine. Put the height all the way at the bottom, use a light weight, and start with your right leg with left leg locked out in front of you in dorsiflexion. Flow through 1/4 squats on 1 leg, do 20, then switch. Really feel that T.E. and power from each leg. I also call these bad boys "knee savers".

Stay Frosty,
#40

STS 1-28-09

2009-01-28T15:25:00.000-08:00

"There were probably about five games in my career where everything was moving in slow motion and you could be out there all day, totally in the zone, and you don't even know where you are on the field, everything is just totally blocked out." - Lawrence Taylor

"I played one game, and one game played me." - Lawrence Taylor

More Scary Fitzgerald. His ability to time his jump so that he catches the ball at it's highest point is uniquely superior. Little known fact about him is that he was the ball boy for the Viking's when Chris Carter and Randy Moss were both playing for them. (It was Randy's rookie year). You think he picked up a thing or two from one of the surest hands in the game (Carter) & the 2nd most athletic receiver ever?

Workout

Had to fit in a quick but deadly workout today.

Dynamic warmup- 5 minutes

Lunge Complex:

1A: Forward lunge with simultaneous overhead press w/50lb bar (step back to standing) 12 reps
1B: Backward lunge with simultaneous overhead press (step back to standing) 12 reps
1C: Backward lunge with simultaneous overhead press then step through with same leg into forward lunge with overhead press (step back to standing) 10 reps. These are so dirty.

Cable Sequence:

10 minutes of Cable punches w/lunges mixed in with Cable Squat Rows (see previous post for example). Finished with 2 sets of Cable Squat Rows as heavy as possible for 20 reps moving as fast as possible with consistent pace & form. (i.e. moving with Flow)

2: Box Jumps w/weight: 3 sets of 12+ jumps w/20lb dumbbells in each hand landing on box and standing tall.

3A: RDL's - 12 reps moving with Flow, on the last rep clean the bar up to Front-squat position and immediately transition.
3B: Front-squat

2 sets with no rest in between exercises.

4: Deadlift to Hang Clean to Push-Press: Transition fluidly from one movement the next as explosively as possible. Explosive with proper form is the key, use a weight you can explode fluidly with. I use 95lbs and if done right it's more than enough. 3 sets of 6 reps.

Advanced Progression: Start in Hang Clean position (standing tall, bar just above knees), drop into bottom of a deadlift, let the weight lightly touch the ground, then explode straight up bringing bar all the way to overhead (standing tall with locked arms) in 1 fluid movement (move the bar as close the body as possible, just like a full snatch except without the super-wide grip & catching in a full squat). So awesome.

Out of the gym in 40 minutes hitting every muscle in the body equally & explosively in all 3 planes of movement with the core as the center of the action.

Tempe is this weekend and ZippO is back and gunnin' for the 3-peat. I'll be missing most of the Saturday's game to watch the Phoenix Open from the suites just off the 16th hole, then we'll be bringing the rain to the desert on Sunday. Phoenix Open + NYF + Super Bowl= yet another awesome weekend o' sports.

Stay Frosty,
#40

Back in Black & Back to the Beach

2009-01-13T14:54:00.000-08:00

"The harder I practice, the luckier I get." - Gary Player

Scary Fitzgerald. Dopest catch of the year?

Back at this thing after a lil' break. I definitely miss playing Ultimate but have been having a blast with football season. Last week our team entered a crazy but fun 4x4 flag football tourney. 40 yard field (split into two 20yard sections) with only 3 downs to get 20 yards. Legal handoffs, 7 seconds to throw, and 30 minute games or first to 28 points wins all added to the ridiculousness. I thought beach ultimate was the most offensively advantageous sport ever invented till I played this. Essentially, to win all you needed to do was win the coin toss and stay on serve, or hope for at least 1 stop. Only 3 downs meant that you couldn't make 1 mistake or you buried yourself into a tough deep look. Extra points (5 yards out for 1, 8 yards for 2) also were huge difference makers. Football is crazy like ultimate in that a good pass and a good route will beat a good defense every time. We played 6 games to get the Finals, but lost the game on a questionable OB call by the ref as we lost the race to 28. Still a bunch of fun though.

One of my focuses on the off-season has progressing on cable movements. Especially after reading from T.O.'s trainer how he does an hour-long cable workout every morning (before practice & weights), and it's been truly enlightening. Like the medicine ball, you can manipulate the cables to train the entire body as a single unit, with the core as the center of the action.

The most effective cable station at my gym is the FreeMotion, with adjustable arms sticking away from the machine. This is great because it allows for freedom of movement, exactly what we want. I put the arms down at the bottom, sticking out just a bit to the sides. I can do a 100+ different full-body exercises on this machine alone, all sport-specific and proprioceptively challenging. Walmart also sells a home/portable version for cheap for you non-gym people. (I loathe walmart but unfortunately nobody sells them cheaper. Believe me, I checked).

Basic Movement: Cable Squat Rows

Use this as a starting point. When your form is perfect you can progress to moving as fast as posssible with Flow opening up your elastic/reactive musculature. You can keep the weight light, or go heavy as well for different options.

2nd progression: from the squat explode the arms up like a jumping jack and pause at the top, standing up tall with true Pillar Strength. Oh look. Now you just hit every muscle in the body explosively in a different way than the row and re-created the exact movement path of jumping for a disc. Remember, it's all about Pillar Strength (hip, core, and shoulder stability). Train for that in every movement.

Cable Split-Squats- This is as close to them as I could find. But instead of keeping your feet in the same place think about starting with feet together (back to machine) stepping out into a deep lunge (or split squat, try 'em both) then back to feet together. Alternate legs. Now instead of just keeping your hands in the same place try extending them into a punch explosively as you land in your lunge with proper form. Now you've got an active, but stable, core and all 4 appendages moving explosively and independently.

2nd progression: Step out with your right leg into full deep lunge and explode with a punch with left arm. Step back to feet together and step left leg and punch right arm. Move with Flow. Bring martials movements into the weight room. It worked for Bruce, it might work for you.

Other types:

- Backward lunges w/cable row
- forward lunges with uppercut punch
- Forward lunge with butterfly punch. Just like the swim technique. Bring the pool into the weightroom.

You need to manipulate all planes of movement to become a true 360 degree athlete, capable of moving in any direction equally and explosively.

For other cable ideas I turned to The Man Himself: Mark Verstegen. (Know that name if you don't already). You can't do all these exercises on the same machine like he is doing, but you can sure get close. This is what it's like to train for power. And yes, this is also what a true 360 athlete looks like.

More Mark in action:

-X-Pulls- think about doing standing, add in a squat and make them explosive.

-Push-Pull

- Just to show you where you could progress given the right equipment.

Workout:

Lots of jump-roping to warm up mixed in with bodyweight squats, lunges, step-ups, handstand pushups, etc

1A: cable squat rows (12)
1B: Forward cable lunges w/punch (12)

No rest between, moving immediately from the squat movement to the lunge.

5 sets of that mixing in all the variations listed above. Also mixed in some footwork drills intermittently.

2A: RDL (12)
2B: Front Squat (10-12)

2 Sets

On your 12th RDL clean the bar straight up into the front squat position and move immediately into the front squats. SO dirty.

3A: Hang Snatches
3B: 1 leg squats

2 sets. Put a box behind you and do 1 leg box squats if you need to. Most people will, I still do some days. Add a weight overhead (bar or plate) for further core/upperbody focus.

Leiout is upon us again. My absolute all-time favorite tourney outside of the series. 70 degrees in perfect sunny Santa Monica, dead next to the world-famous pier, plus LA eye-candy up n' down the boardwalk. Suck it Wildwood, NO way Jersey compares to LA in anything. Except for maybe Soprano's backdrops. You win that one.

Carbomb! will once again be wrecking teams & livers in a flurry of delicious deliciousness from the 'bu to the beach and beyond. Stop on by if you get a chance, and if you say the right things you might just find yourself dropping drinks in drinks and drinking those drinks.

Stay Frosty,
#40

Break

2008-11-20T16:17:00.000-08:00

With Nationals over I'm taking a quick break on this blog thing for a bit. Not sure how long, but I'll be back. Looking forward to switching gears to flag football season and snowboarding as much as possible as soon as the snow makes it's way West.

In the meantime, check out this dope video Faust sent me on Tyson Griffin training. Crazy metabolic.

Stay Frosty,
#40

STS 10-20-08 & The Show

2008-10-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

"Imagine you're in a room you've never been in before, and you're blindfolded and have to walk across the room without touching any furniture. Hitting is harder than that." - Harmon Killebrew

Cool Links

- Paul Chek being Paul Chek. True examples of training movement paths, not body parts. I like Chek because he demonstrates what all the great experts demonstrate: that the true power of the muscular system is that it's all connected. Da Vinci recognized it first in his drawings and ever since we've applied to it to athletics, dance, yoga, etc (i.e. movement). Harness the power of the body's connectivity: train movements not muscles.

- Study on barefoot walking. Spend as much time as you can barefoot, open up the proprioceptive musculature of your feet & strengthen those ankle/heel/foot muscles. Feel the ground beneath you. Pillar strength starts from the ground up.

- hip mobility

- Duh.

- Good food for thought. Just use common sense for supplements. Remember that the supplement industry is not here to make you healthy. It's here to make them money.

- 10 tips for good nutrition

- Interval training article. Nice little add-on at the bottom as well to keep you thinking.

- Pools are up. Getcha popcorn ready!!

Workout

Warmup: Usual jump-rope & bodyweight exercises

Med-Ball & Plyos

Worked out with a partner. We set up a nice lil' circuit that consisted of medicine ball throws till failure, then bosu lateral bounds (2 sets till failure). That's 1 circuit, did 6 circuits. Each circuit incorporated different types of throws from list below:

Pillar strength (standing) throws
PS twisting throws
PS 1-arm dominant throws
squat-to-throw (all variations: throw at top, throw on the way up, throw at bottom, etc)
split-squat-to-throw (all variations: split-squat forward, backward, throwing while moving, etc)
side-lung throws
overhead throws
unilateral throws (1 leg throws, all types, example would be to chest pass with 1 leg at top of sprinter position, switch every throw, etc)
step-out backhand throws with a 12lb ball (those are killer, re-create your backhand huck with the ball, focus on generating torque from the hips)
jumping throws (all types)
1 arm throws

We got 300+ throws in easy, hitting every single muscle in the body as one complete unit. Explosive appendages moving independently around an active but stable core= what it's all about.

Functional Lifts

1: OH squats (3 sets moving as fast as possible with consistent pace n' form for 30 seconds)

2: Walking backwards OH split-squats w/twist (mad core stability) 2 sets

3: Cable punches (3 sets)

3: 1 arm kettlebell swings (2 sets)

Collapse.

Stay Frosty,

#40

STS 10-1-08

2008-10-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

"I got a Chris Paul state of mind, I'm never out of bounds" - The Game

Cool Links

- Barry

- An interesting sprinting article. Like Dr. Harry Edwards says "We have made no further progress in sport than we have in society"

- More smartness from Vern Gambetta.

- Couldn't have said it better myself. Be creative, have fun in whatever you're doing.

- More on the effectiveness of intervals

- Mark Twight: The guy that trained the cast of 300. If you've never visited his site before you should check it out. Interesting stuff. And I love his attitude/intensity. "Appearance is a consequence of fitness" . Truth.

- Real Clear Sports- A sweet website to get all your articles at the same place. A great way to get your plaschke on. Plus my fellow Condor Robbie Gillies is a writer for them.

Workout:

Movement Prep: Pickup basketball game

Med-Ball: 1 arm throws, lots of twisting throws, chest passes, overhead passes, squat-to-pass, lunge-to-pass

Plyos

- Box March x2

- Sitting box jumps x2

Functional Lifts

1A: Backwards walking lunges w/bar overhead
1B: Jumping tuck pull-ups

2A: Hang Cleans
2B: Ring Dips

3: OH Squats- as fast as possible with consistent pace & form.

3 sets: 30 seconds on: 30 seconds rest

Finished with a core circuit:

- standing twists w/weight
- Hanging leg raises
- Decline situps w/weight

3x's through

Go DODGERS!!! suck it cubbys.

Stay Frosty,
#40

STS 9-12-08

2008-09-12T10:21:00.001-07:00

"Strength training= coordination training with resistance" - Frans Bosch

Here's a great breakdown of sport-specific speed from Vern Gambetta. These skills are truly use-it-or-lose-it. Which area(s) is missing from your training?

Noteworthy links:

- More on strength-training from Vern. Like the man says: it's only about the application of strength. Strength is nothing if you can't do anything with it.

- The hang snatch. Looks like coordination training to me. Check out the part on the Triple Extension.

- Awesome article on positive running. Very interesting stuff.

- understanding pain. Good stuff for all those crazy-ass 8-games-in-2-days things we call tournaments. Hector is dead-on with match play being the way to go for the future of the sport.

- The pistol squat. Hip stability at it's finest.

- Interesting article on some rules of rest. I much prefer to keep the tempo as high as possible always but it's good food for thought nonetheless.

Warmup:

We just jumped right into the medicine ball starting with standard chest passes moving to overhead passes, vertical tosses, downward slams, & twisting throws etc. Mixed in jump rope, bodyweight squats & split-squats, handstand pushups, and finished with 1 arm throws (squat-to-throw, 2-touch throws, etc) good stuff.

Plyo Skills & Drills

Bosu Lateral Bounds:

I got this one from LT's trainer: we set up 2 bosu balls next to each other about a 2 feet apart and did Single-leg lateral bounds from one to the other (like this, but landing on the inside of the bosu ball). Focus is on minimal contact time & moving explosively with proper landing mechanics. So awesome cuz if you didn't land properly & explosively you either bounced straight off it or fell straight on your ass. Apparently LT is so ridiculous at them that his trainer throws med balls & weighted footballs at him in different sequences and he catches & throws them back in mid-air. Just. Dirrrty.

Now think about your lateral training, where could you go with it? Here's a starter to get ya thinkin'. No. Limits.

Functional Lifts

1A: split drops- same as these but split-squat instead of regular squat and the bar in front
1B: Jumping tuck pullups

2x's through alternating forward leg on the split drops

2: hang cleans

2 sets, threw in a couple jerks at the end of each set also.

Squat complex:

3A: OH Squat
3B: Superman Pushup (from standing, walk hands out to SP, do 1, then walk hands back)
3C: Pistol squat (sitting onto box behind for beginners)

8 reps of each, moving directly to the next with no rest. 2x's through.

Core Circuit:

Finished with a quick circuit of:

- Hanging leg raises
- Side twists w/weight
- GHD's

2x's through.

This Week:

Monday: Bikram (am) throwing workout (pm)
Tuesday: Field workout with plyometric emphasis
Wednesday: Heavybag work
Thursday: Workout Above
Friday: Throwing & Recovery
Saturday/Sunday: Sectionals "I do what I do and you do what you can do about it" - Lil' Wayne

Stay Frosty,
#40

STS 9-5-08

2008-09-05T13:32:00.000-07:00

"A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey players plays where the puck is going to be" - The Great One

Noteworthy links

- Cool breakdown on bounding. You can really see how maximum impact it is and how well bounding improves both running & jumping simultaneously.

- Wooden's pyramid. Again. Because I can never look at it enough. The HBO documentary on his dynasty is truly amazing. Some of the best examples of Flow in sports ever.

- Bolt's NFLability

- More on Bolt, still flying fast. But not at the speed limit just yet.

- Great article on muscle balance with pretty informative ratios broken down by muscle groups.

- Decent article on lifting for beginners. Lots of good info with a bit of fluff thrown in. There's also 2 really good photos of cable punches. Instead of just flat-footed like photos think about being able to explode into the different footwork positions (when your form is good enough to allow you to progress) You want rotational strength? then do cable punches. Want to train your entire upperbody & core in 1 move? then do cable punches.

- MJ's old workout program

Workout:

Movement Prep:

Shot some hoops for 15 minutes

Med-ball

Trained with a partner today and did all 1 armed throws n' catches. Focus was on generating torque & rotational ability, catching everything while centered, and always moving explosively. Lots of throws, squat to throws, twisting throws, and 2-touch throws (catch with left hand immediately transfer to right and explode out, repeat opposite arm)

Cables/Plyos

Mixed in cable punches, squat-to-punch, with lateral shuffles for 40 seconds with mini-bands above knee. 4 sets moving from punches to shuffles, resting 30 seconds, then repeat.

Metabolic Circuit

My legs were still pretty rocked from Labor Day to go heavy so we set up a full-body circuit instead. We were working out at an MMA studio so we had access to a heavybag and lots of open space, which was awesome.

Round1 (1 min each, no rest till finish)
Heavybag: power punches (1 min)
Kettlebell swings (1 min)
Jump rope (1 min)

Rest 1 min

Round 2 (1 min each, no rest till finish)
Heavybag: speed punches
Hang snatches
Jump rope

Rest 1 min

Round 3 (same as before)
Heavybag: switch-kicks
OH squats
Decline sit-ups

Rest 1 min

Round 4 (same as before)
Heavybag: speed combos
backwards walking split-squats
Jump-rope

Round 5:
Heavybag: switch-kicks
kettlebell swings
GHD's

Finished with 3 rounds of plyometric arms swings (30 seconds on: 30 seconds rest)

This week:
Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Yoga (am) pickup basketball 1/2 court (pm)
Wednesday: Workout above
Thursday: field workout w/acceleration & deceleration emphasis
Friday: Weights
Saturday: pickup basketball & beach volleyball. Endless summer out here. :)
Sunday: More beach.

Stay Frosty,
#40

STS 8-20-08 & The Bolt

2008-08-20T16:12:00.000-07:00

"Three words Gentlemen: Tempo, Tempo, Tempo." - Godfather, Generation Kill

If anything was going to topple the hysteria & mystique of Phelps, the Bolt of Lightning just did it. Simply jaw-dropping. I hope people recognize what occured these past few days, Bolt winning like he did is the equivalent to Tiger Woods winning the masters by 12+ strokes. He might be the guy to finally make Track & Field cool again. The craziest thing to me when watching the 200 was he easy he made it look. Michael Johnson made it look like work when he was flying, Bolt makes it look fluid & effortless. He's so fast his 200 times would translate over to a 3.53 40-yard dash. Marinate on that for a second. a 3.53 40. He set the 200meter world-record time for his age when he was 15 (a 20.5) , 16, and 17. He's now 22 and we'll probably be watching him break 19 for the next 2 olympics.

Yup. Here it is again. Don't static stretch before sprinting. It has a negative effect.

Static stretching before sprinting resulted in slower times in all three
performance variables. These findings provide evidence that static stretching
exerts a negative effect on sprint performance and should not be included as part of the preparation routine for physical activity that requires sprinting

I don't care that it feels good (of course it does! putting your muscles to sleep should feel good.) Yes, of course flexibility is a crucial part of athleticism, but that's most effectively obtained through dynamic stretching and a static stretching regimine post-workout. Nothing is more ridiculous to me than watching people train to be faster for months and then undercut all their progress by temporarily disabling the elasticity in their muscles right before they step onto the field and put all that work into use. It might be time for you to get over your stretching-I-need-it-mentally-thing and use that time instead to get some more throws in before you play. Just sayin'.

Here's a fantastic article from Alwyn Cosgrove on Metabolic Training. Couldn't find it in link form so here it is in full. He always does a great job of linking movements that complement each other and every thing he does has a purpose. Like always, it's a great framework. You can tweak it around how you see fit to work on your own specific weaknesses if need be. Remember, these movements are about developing your "Pillar Strength" i.e. your hip, core, and shoulder stability. Pillar Strength is the building blocks of your fundamental movement skills, you need a strong base if you ever want to truly improve athletically. Alwyn's program combines that with a metabolically-taxing tempo & linkages of movements so it'll improve your work capacity base as that same time, which is exactly what you want. If this workout looks daunting then try to remember that your brain is 10x's weaker than your body. So test your mettle & push past what you think you can do. You might just surprise yourself.

Metabolic Acceleration Training: A better way

I'm a huge believer in using the "alternating set" system when training. For time management reasons, I tend to do exercise one for a set, rest 60 seconds or so, do exercise two for a set, rest 60 seconds or so, and continue. This allows me to increase work density while still getting "true" rest.

In other words, I perform a set of squats, rest 60 seconds, perform a set of push-ups, rest 60 seconds, and repeat. So in effect, I've almost tripled the rest period between squat sets (60 seconds plus the time taken for push-ups plus 60 seconds) as opposed to using a straight set system. And for fat loss training, it's unparalleled.

However, the biggest problem or complaint I get from clients who use commercial facilities is that it's really hard for them to tie up two pieces of gym equipment at peak hours. I have my own facility, but I realize this can be a real problem elsewhere. So I started experimenting with a few things--doing dumbbell lunges and push-ups for example or step-ups and dumbbell bench presses where I could use one set of dumbbells and one piece of equipment.

It was an okay compromise, but it started to somewhat limit my exercise selection. And to be honest, it still had the issue of people working in and possibly disrupting your rest periods.
So I went a step further. What if I created a fat loss or conditioning program based around one piece of equipment where you stayed in the same spot, using the same load for the entire duration. So I tried it. At first it was awkward, but after reading Istvan Javorek's work and talking with über strength coach, Robert Dos Remedios, I started to implement different variations of combination lifting.

I just hoped that it would work as well as alternating sets for fat loss and conditioning or at least close enough that it wasn't too much of a tradeoff. As it turns out, it worked better! In fact, it worked so well that it became a cornerstone of my conditioning programs with several athletes.
Part twoPart two of the evolution of our fat loss programs came shortly after. I have always recommended interval training as a superior form of fat loss over steady state cardio. Interval training is essentially periods of hard work alternated with easier periods of work using a cardio exercise.

The problem--running a mile doing intervals involves about 1500 repetitions. For someone looking to cut body fat, and hit total body weight training two to three times a week, that is a lot of extra volume and potential joint stress. So I started thinking. Interval training is similar to weight training in that it involves sets (and reps) followed by a rest period (albeit active). What if I used a lighter version of traditional strength training and created metabolic circuits?

Timed sets

This is the simplest variation of metabolic work. Pick a load that is about 80% of your 10RM. Perform as many reps as possible at a constant tempo for a period of time (e.g. 60 seconds) and try to perform as many repetitions with as good form as possible. Rest for 15-30 seconds and perform another exercise.

Example #1

Barbell reverse lunge, left leg, 60 seconds Rest 15-30 seconds
Barbell reverse lunge, right leg, 60 secondsRest 15-30 seconds
Barbell push press, 60 seconds Rest 15-30 seconds
Repeat three times for a 12-minute routine.

Example #2

Kettlebell swings, 30 seconds Rest 15 seconds
Push-ups/burpees, 30 seconds Rest 15 seconds
Prowler push, 30 secondsRest 15 seconds
Repeat for five rounds for a 12-minute finisher.

Metabolic density training

This is a modified version of EDT as popularized by Charles Staley. However, Charles recommends two exercises performed as a superset for 15 minutes. In this case, we are going to use three exercises and work for ten minutes.

Example #1

Dumbbell bench press
Alternating lunges
Swiss ball crunch

In this method, select a load that will allow 10-12 reps and perform sets of 6-8. There is no rest between exercises. Work continuously for ten minutes moving from one exercise to the next. The alternate version is to perform five rounds of 6-8 reps of each as fast as possible.

Complexes

Be warned, these are pretty grueling. Perform the complexes at the beginning of your workout when you're fresh. They'll elevate your metabolism beyond anything you've ever experienced before. The most frequently asked question about complexes is how much load to use. Remember, it's a metabolic stimulus, not a strength or hypertrophy stimulus so be conservative. Now, don't go too light either. A good "Cosgrove rule of thumb" is that if you're not questioning why in the hell you're doing these exercises or convincing yourself that twice around is enough, you're not going heavy enough.

Let's get into it. Perform each complex once per week for four training sessions per week. Use the following progression:

Week one: 4 sets of 5 reps of each, 90 seconds rest
Week two: 5 sets of 5 reps of each, 75 seconds rest
Week three: 5 sets of 6 reps of each, 60 seconds rest
Week four: 6 sets of 6 reps of each, 45 seconds rest.

Then puke.

Complex A

Bent over barbell row
Hang clean
Front squat and push press hybrid
Jump squat (bar on back)
Good morning

Complex B

Romanian deadlift
Hang clean and front squat and push press (combination lift, perform one rep of each in series)
Reverse lunge (alternate legs)

Complex C

Deadlift
High pull (onto toes)
Squat clean (clean the bar from the hang and then drop into a full squat on the catch)
Military press (strict)
Jump lunges (switch legs)
Insert my evil laugh here!

Complex D

Jump squat
Squat
Squat and hold for 10 seconds
Military press
Push press
Squat and press (combination lift, perform one rep of each in series)

Note: Try to work all exercises at a speed of 1-2 reps per second.

Tabatas

A Tabata protocol is a very high intensity anaerobic interval program that involved eight rounds of 20 second work periods at 170% of your VO2 max with a negative recovery period of 10 seconds. The best way to use these with strength training exercises is to alternate one upper body with one lower body exercise. The second progression we used is to vary the work to rest ratio.

Beginner: 10 seconds work, 20 seconds recovery
Intermediate: 15 seconds work, 15 seconds recover
Advanced: 20 seconds work, 10 seconds recovery

A great pairing is squat jumps and running push-ups (a single push-up and two reps of mountain climbers in alternating fashion) in pairs.

Medley conditioning

This is similar to the other methods in that we are working for time, but we will use 15 seconds on and 15 seconds off and perform multiple rounds with different pieces of equipment. For example, an MMA fighter competing in five-minute rounds may use four exercises in a circuit and perform multiple rounds until the five-minute period is up.

Example #1
Prowler push15 seconds, rest 15 seconds
squat jump15 seconds, rest15 seconds,
sledgehammer or medicine ball chops15 seconds, rest15 seconds,
kettlebell swing15 seconds, rest 15 seconds
Keep working through the medley until the five-minute period is up.

Finishers

Finishers are just short body weight or single piece of equipment only, 3-5 minute routines at the end of each workout.

Screamers:

3 push-ups,
1 tuck jump
6 push-ups,
2 tuck jump
9 push-ups,
3 tuck jumps
12 push-ups,
4 tuck jumps
15 push-ups,
5 tuck jumps

Continue to add three push-ups and one tuck jump to each set until you miss a rep. Then climb back down the ladder.

Leg Matrix:

24 squats
12 lunges each leg (alternating)
12 lunge jumps each leg (alternating)
24 squat jumps(If you can complete this in under 90 seconds, do two rounds with no rest.)

Squat series:

20-second squat jump
20-second squat
20-second isometric squat
Repeat for three rounds with no rest.

Countdowns

Select two exercises (e.g. kettlebell swing and burpees or squat jumps and plyometric push-ups).
Perform 10 reps of each, nine reps of each, eight reps of each and so on.
Each week start with one set of one more rep than your top set (e.g. 11 reps, 10 reps, 9 reps, etc.).

A final warning

This isn't for the faint hearted or de-conditioned. They are not beginners' routines. If you're coming back from injury or illness, don't try this program yet. It's brutal. However, if you follow this routine for four weeks, you'll see a very significant improvement in your conditioning and a massive drop in your body fat!

This article originally appeared at EliteFTS.com

Workout

Movement Prep

Shot hoops for 15 minutes, lots of lateral movement off the dribble and pulling up for the J. I'm totally gonna bring back the mid-range jumper.

Med-Ball Work

Did everything today 1 handed, just for fun.

1 arm rotational tosses against wall w/catch - 15 each arm
1 arm sumo-squat toss (start in full squat with ball next to ankle on the outside) - 15 each arm
1 arm split-squat vertical toss w/jump (hold ball just under chin like shot putter, throw ball up as you switch legs in the air) - 12 each arm
1 arm toss to sprint- 8 each arm

Cable Work

Tons of cable chops, cable punches, squat-to-cable punch, and push/pulls (like these, but with a cable in both arm so you truly get the push/pull action)

Functional Exercises

1A: OH Squat- 30 seconds moving as fast as possible with proper form.
1B Jumping pull-up w/tuck

2x's through

2: Hang clean

2 sets

3A: Hang Snatch
3B: 1 Leg'd squats

2x's through

Core Circuit

3x's through resting only when possible.

Decline situps
Standing twists w/weight
Floor wipers

This Week:

Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Yoga (am), Field work w/sprint mechanic emphasis (pm)
Wednesday: Workout above
Thursday: Field work w/lateral agility emphasis
Friday: Heavybag work & throwing practice
Saturday/Sunday: Practice, practice, practice

#40

STS 8-14-08

2008-08-14T15:14:00.000-07:00

"No. I want to be the first Michael Phelps." - The man himself, in response to being asked if he hoped to become the second Mark Spitz.

With the Olympics in full swing I'm having trouble concentrating on anything else except for watching the games, mostly in awe at the sheer athleticism, as usual. And we're not even at the field events yet. Man I can't wait for the decathlon. The true greatness of the games is that it showcases every type of athleticism you could think of (and some you've never even fathomed) all in different platforms, all in 2 weeks. When watching swimming the part that is the most amazing to me is the extension (especially through the hips & legs) that the athletes get with their bodies. They just get crazy l-o-n-g in the water.

I do find it tragically hilarious that coke & mcdonalds are 2 of the biggest corporate sponsors of the olympics though. 2 of the biggest contributors to the obesity epidemic cozying up to the greatest displays of athleticism is such a ridiculous oxymoron. That's like budweiser hanging out at an AA meeting. Just goes to show again how intertwined fast food & soda are in our society, which sucks as it makes an uphill battle even tougher. Good thing there's that whole personal responsibility thing then, I guess.

Coupla noteworthy links:

- Cool article on phelps

- Vern Gambetta has been on roll lately, challenging you to think further & further about the whole system to develop complete & balanced athleticism. As always it's about a complete comprehensive program (use it or lose it), perfecting fundamental movement skills then progressing to sports-specific skills, and continually working on your weaknesses. Athletic development is no different than any other type of development: you get out of it what you put into it. Simple. As. That.

- More on a balanced program

- More on Flow

- The maze. It's been said before by others many times, but I really like the idea of working in blocks (this article states 4 weeks). Makes things much easier to break down. As Magic Johnson said: you must set small goals to reach big goals.

- new ross video. This guy fires me up so much.

- more food for thought.

Workout

Movement Prep

Standard stuff, lots of jump roping today

Med-Ball

3-throw sequence 5x's through with mini-band shuffles mixed in

Cables

First off, by cables I mean the freedom-allowing cable machines with the arms that move vertically and horizontally, (like this)not the old-school square frames with cables that just move vertically and restrict movement. I f'ing hate machines that restrict movement.

I mixed in a bunch of standing cable chops, cable punches (both punching to the side for rotational strength, and punching downwards while exploding into a lunge) and other full-body cable movements with some plyos work.

Some of the plyos I worked in:

- Box march w/mini bands above knee

- sitting box-jumps

- Lateral shuffle w/mini bands above knee

Functional Lifts

- split-squat quick drops- same as video but split-squat instead of standard squat

3 sets alternating legs

Finished with a sick squat complex

1A: quick drops- original style
1B: OH Squat
1C: Thruster

Finished with a set (each arm) of 1-arm kettlebell swings moving as fast as possible with proper form for 30 seconds.

Core/Upperbody Circuit

- GHD's
- jumping pull-ups w/tuck
- 1 leg GH situps
- Dips
- Side Plank

2x's through resting only when necessary

Go USA!!

#40

STS 8-5-08 Head Games & The 'wood

2008-08-06T15:24:00.000-07:00

"A dog is forever in the push-up position"- Mitch Hedberg

Cool Links:

- The man himself on flow. The Theory of Flow is really, really interesting as it extends much further than the field and into all facets of life. Like a jazz musician in his element, flow is so f'ing beautiful to see on the field. Most people can't articulate it, but everyone knows it when they see it.

- it's all in your head.

- suspension training

- agility techniques

- these dudes= mad athletic. That's hip mobility/stability at it's finest.

- Cool study on the "hot hand" of basketball. Pretty applicable to ultimate, especially given how streaky our sport can be.

- interesting article on the validity of recovery methods.

Workout:

I just moved from the Eastside back to Hollyhood again. Among the many, many awesome things about living in the 'wood (if you don't the others you really should come visit here. Trust me.) is that I'm back to being a couple blocks away from Runyon Canyon. RC is simply awesome, yoga in the grass every evening, tons & tons of trails to hike, and at the top you're standing at the same height as the Hollywood sign (just one hill to the west) looking out in the basin below. After the rain when the smog is cleared out you can see from Pasadena to Catalina. Not too shabby of a view. the city looks okay too. :)

I started off the workout with a full-body circuit consisting of:

- 1 arm kettlebell swings (w/dumbbell)
- plyo-pushups
- pullups
- 1 leg squats
- ab wheel

4x's through resting only when necessary. Did this in my living room for all you i-hate-going-to-the-gym excuse people.

Jogged up the canyon till I got a to a part I call Hurdler Hill. It's about 40 yards with soft dirt/sand at the bottom and two seperate 2-foot "walls" of hillside near the top that you have to hurdle over to keep going, with every step uneven. In 1 40-yard sprint you get sand training, hurdling, and uneven ground work for proprioception skills & foot/ankle stability. SICK. Did 7 sprints up, resting at the top, then "sprinting" down working on minimal ground contact time and quick feet (which is pretty much the only way to do it without falling down the hill).

Jogged up a bit further till I got the start of the trail that leads up to the top. This trail is soft sand all the way, with steep uneven stairs, chunks of concrete mixed in from when it was paved long ago, and wood 4x4's barriers that make for either great hurdles, or steps to spring off of for some sprint-to-jumps. Just tons of cool terrain to creatively challenge your legs, every single step is a new one. The trail to the top is easily 3/4's of a mile, so I broke it up, sprinting as far as I possibly muster, resting till my lungs stopped burning, then off again. My focus was on making every step explosive & minimal ground contact time while keeping a proper uphill forward lean with explosive arm drive through the shoulders.

The best part is the run back down. There's a couple great not-too steep sections that are about 100 yards long and you can just fly running downhill in the soft dirt, hurdling over the 4 x 4's. Overspeed training is the sh*t. Just fluid through the hips, leading with the core. I did the hill twice, then sprinted all the way down running as fast I possibly could downhill. My lower abs were straight burning at the end from stabilizing out in front.

So yeah, training uphill running (which forces proper running form), ankle/foot stability, leg/foot proprioception, plyometrics, and downhill (overspeed) training all at the same place. As it should be.

Med-Ball Field Workout

Only had a quick 1/2 hour at the park to get in a workout today. The medicine ball is the best way to kill yourself metabolically in a short amount of time.

Movement Prep

Standard plyos

Throws

- 30 sumo squat-to-toss throwing the ball backwards w/jump, then turn n' sprint to catch on 1st bounce.

- 40 overhead slams w/jump. Arms & ball slam down, body jumps up, core stays stable. Dissasociation at it's finest.

- 30 front-squat vertical tosses w/180 jumps. Stand with med ball in front squat position, jump squat and do a 180 in the air, land in a squat, explode out with toss, catch on 1st bounce, repeat. SO sweet for training proper landing mechanics.

- 20 side tosses to 15 yard sprint (each side). Don't fight the energy of the ball, harness it to propel you into your sprint.

- 25 chest-passes to 15 yard sprint

Finished with med-ball burpees to failure.

This week:

Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Runyon Canyon
Wednesday: Med-ball field workout above
Thursday: Summer League
Friday: weights
Saturday: field workout w/agility emphasis
Sunday: beach workout

#40

STS 7-25-08 & Wednesday Night Lights

2008-07-25T10:59:00.000-07:00

"Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It is already tomorrow in Australia." -Charles M. Schultz

Photo from the Condor vs. Dingos Scrimmage

Some cool links:

- This guy is the mothaf'ing man. IOC tells him he can't compete, and he responds by breaking his personal best. That's what I'm talking about.

- From the perform better seminar

- barefoot running

- What it's like to workout with Alwyn Cosgrove. Great article. And you thought my workouts were tough.

- The A-11 offense that's got every football coach on it's ear right now. Smart stuff, lots of options. Again proves how much innovation is possible within a set system of rules.

- sprint training for endurance competitions

- Lessons from Mike Boyle

- Dingos in the news

Wednesday night we had the excellent opportunity to scrimmage the Aussie National Team. We managed to get the sweet, sweet synthetic fields at Occidental College in LA, and it was a great night for SoCal Ultimate. Playing under the lights always get me fired up and we had a great crowd come out to see the action. I still can't get over how fast the fieldturf surface is...too much fun. The Dingos are tall, athletic, disciplined, and seemed to be all clicked in with each other as they've been practicing & playing together for a while now. We started off slow, had trouble adjusting to their physical underneath man D and had some defensive miscues, spotting them a 9-4 lead at half. Definitely not how we wanted to start things out. But we maintained our poise like true Condors, we knew we still had a lot of game left and just focused on making some key adjustments. We finally busted the deep game wide open in the beginning of the 2nd half, and also started playing some sick Team D, tightened our marks, and forced some turns. Went a nice 11-5 run where our offense was really clicking & moving with flow, and some of our rookies stepped up huge and made big plays on D to bring it to 15's. We traded to 17's (game to 19) and had the ball to take the lead for the first time but turned it on a huck. They marched it back up patiently for the score, then closed it out on the next point after a lay-out drop to take the W. The game was extremely well-spirited, clean, and one of the most fun experiences I've had playing disc. We took over a sweet LA bar afterwards with the crowd and showed 'em a good time droppin' carbombs like rain. Funny post-game story: A group of the aussies stopped at the Taco Truck outside the bar for some food and they ordered one of the guys (the captain I think) a tongue taco which he devoured without knowing. They still hadn't told him by the end of the night, hope he's finally figured out that that wasn't carne asada...

Workout

Movement Prep- Same story, see previous posts if you need details.

Med-ball

30 1-arm front-squat vertical tosses (each arm)

20 side-twists throw against wall w/catch (each side)

Plyos Skills & Drills

1. Sitting box jumps

2. Split-squat jumps

3. Box lateral shuffle with weight overhead (locked arms)

Functional Lifts

1. Split-squats w/weight- as fast as possible for 30 seconds with proper form. rest 1 minute, repeat alternating leg. Twice through

2. Hang Snatches- 3 sets

3. RDL's- 3 sets

Core Sequence

Moved from swiss-ball pikes, side plank, leg lifts w/med ball between leg, and standard plank. 3 times through, each exercise to failure. Resting only when necessary.

#40

STS 7-14-08

2008-07-14T13:40:00.000-07:00

"You ever see a cheetah stretch?" - Deion Sanders

You know you miss primetime

This makes me so f'ing happy. Ultimate being shown for what is really is: athletic, especially on an industry-recognized website. Also some great information on jumpability.

- Vern Gambetta on athleticism

- Decent video on acceleration

- Good ideas for mini-band training

- Breaking down the nervous system

- Muscle fatigue: it's all in your head

- Good information on Tabata Intervals

Workout

Movement Prep- same shizzle, different dizzle

Med-ball- 3-throw sequence

Throw 1: sumo-squat vertical toss
Throw 2: Overhead slam
Throw 3: front-squat vertical toss

5x's through the sequence with no rest between throws. Moved immediately from there to mini-band shuffles & high-knees. Repeat 3x's.

Plyos Skills & Drills

1A: Cable Punches
1B: Outside-in Stepups- stand over small plyo box with legs on the outside. Step up explosively with left leg onto box followed by right, then back down to floor in same sequence. Focus is on landing everytime with no noise (minimal ground contact time + explosive fast-twitch movement). Alternate starting leg 2nd time through.

2x's through resting only when necessary

2A: Split-squat jumps
2B: depth push-ups

2x's through resting only when necessary

Functional Lifts

1A: Crossover Step-ups
1B: Jumping tuck pull-ups

2x's through resting only when necessary

2: Overhead Squats (30 seconds focusing on moving as fast as possible with absolute pure form)

3 sets, with 1 minute rest in between.

3: 1 arm snatches

1 set each arm

Core Circuit

A: GHD's w/swandive
B: Hanging leg raises
C: Standing twists w/weight
D: Side Plank

2x's through with no rest

This Week:

Monday: Workout above (AM); throwing workout (PM)
Tuesday: Field work w/agility emphasis
Wednesday: Basketball (AM); throwing workout followed by heavybag work (PM)
Thursday: Strength Training
Friday: Recovery
Saturday: Surfing & beach sprints
Sunday: Field work with plyometric emphasis

Hit it hard this week!

#40

STS 7-8-08 & The Development of Power

2008-07-08T10:45:00.000-07:00

"The season is not about maintenance; it's about manipulation"- Dr. Craig S Duncan

"The most effective way to boost power is to lift weights rapidly. This trains muscles to contract quickly and react appropriately when it is necessary to exert force.- Mike Boyle"

Back at it again after a quick break. Summer has been stacked n' packed in the best kind of way, with 2 weddings, birthday, vegas, the 4th, and a full training schedule. Too much fun. Hope your training is progressing solidly as the season ramps up.

Some awesomeness:

- Impossible is nothing

- Some sweet stairs action. Check out the jump-to-sprints, among other things. Landing mechanics with flow= where it's at.

- Switch kicks. My new favorites.

- more impossible is nothing. So dirrty.

- A great video to get you thinking about your field workouts. where could you go from here? how could you incorporate a disc into these?

- Cool article on athleticism. Obviously as subjective as it gets, but still smart.

- Titans gettin' in on some kettlebell action

- Vern on recovery

- Ross with some great reads

- Once again proving how little we really know about the human body. This is just Mind-boggling.

- Such a great article on power. Another must read for any athlete.

Power is the ability to exert great force in a short period of time and
results in being able to move quickly and explosively, says Mark Verstegen,
founder of Athletes’ Performance in Tempe, Ariz. His facility specializes in
training competitive athletes, teaching them, among other things, to accelerate
and change direction quickly. That ability is developed by lifting weights
rapidly and helps athletes move more explosively during games and
other competitions.

A significant degree of power is the efficiency with which your nerves
communicate and your muscles respond to the need to apply force.

Workout:

MP- standard, see previous posts for description.

Med-Ball

20 front-squat vertical tosses
20 sumo-squat backwards tosses (against wall w/catch)
25 side twists each side
20 chest throws in lunge position (against wall w/catch)

Plyo Skills & Drills

1A: sitting box jumps
1B: depth push-up

2A: Box jump march
2B: Jumping pullups w/tuck

Jump Shrug

2x's through resting only when necessary

Functional Lifts

1: Hang Clean

2: Split Drops- same as these, but into a split-squat instead of regular squat. Love these.

3A: Overhead Squat- as fast as possible with proper form for 30 seconds.
3B: Walking superman pushups- 8x's (stand, walk hands all the way to front, perform superman pushup, walk hands back to standing)
3C: 1-leg squats (use the bench like this video if necessary)

2x's through each one resting only when necessary.

Upperbody/Core Circuit

40 arm swings w/5lb each hand
GHD's
GHD sit-ups

2x's through no rest. Finished in just under 55 minutes.

Couple of off topic items:

- A teammate of mine just bought a 40lb sandbag at OSH for $2.50. Yeah, that's right. 100+ difference awesome exercises for $2.50. That whole $$$-excuse for not lifting just got tossed out the window.

- Something that bugs me about the top teams in Ultimate is their unwillingness to share pertinent information with each other. I'm not talking about set plays, specific strategies, or other proprietary information (of course that information stays in-house, as it should.) I'm talking about frameworks of smart drills or Energy System Development (work capacity) programs, etc. Concepts that make the sport better for everyone. But for teams & players to straight stonewall each other, (especially mutually-respectful teams & players) just makes no sense to me and shows a lack of athletic professionalism. It's a very different attitude in other sports. HS football coaches meet the week before and trade game films. (college and pro's don't because tape is already available for them. Unless of course, it's defensive play signals. :) They do this for the same reason I post my so-called "secrets" in full view of my competition. First, because there's a HUGE difference between knowing about something and actually incorporating it into a progressive comprehensive program. And then actually bringing those refined abilities and combining them with your throwing skillset and incorporating it into the actual game. Secondly, because it's silly to think you could keep anything a secret anyway, the information is going to get out there somehow, most likely by a teammate changing teams and bringing what they've learned with them. So you're really just delaying the inevitable. But mostly because my philosophy of preparation & competition runs a little different: You can have my training, you can know what I do; and it won't matter for a second. Because I'll still beat you with it. Because you won't train as intense as I train. And you won't put train in as many creative combinations as I do. Your drills won't be as mentally & physically demanding as mine are. So you can watch all the tape you want on me (I'll even give it to you) and think you know all my tendencies; I'll just beat you with my 2nd & 3rd options. Because it's not about what the other team does or knows; it's only about what my team does.

So don't stonewall. Show some professionalism and give a smart framework that promotes thinking so that that framework can eventually trickle down and be passed along to all the other college, league, & youth, etc teams in that area that that team influences. It's not going to hurt your team (if giving away a drill hurts your team, you've got much bigger issues than drill strategies) and it's the only effective way to advance the sport: from within. Props to The Huddle for recognizing this and doing an fantastic job of getting smart information to players and promoting the on-field advancement of the sport. Only good things can come from the sharing of information like this.

My strong makes your strong look like cottage cheese,
#40

Quicker, Faster, Stronger, More Explosive

2008-06-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

The abdominal and lower-back muscles work as a team. The point guard is the transverse abdominis, which is the first muscle that's recruited each time you move. If you can keep that "TA" activated and your tummy tight, you'll be well on your way to optimum movement and preventing long-term deterioration. - Mark Verstegen

Here's a preview for Bigger, Faster, Stronger. This documentary is definitely going to turn some heads. Too bad for 95% of the gym rats out there that all that size doesn't mean a thing if you can't do something athletic with it. Strength is necessary, but not sufficient. It needs to be transferred into athletic movement. Forget bigger, faster, stronger. Think quicker, faster, stronger, more explosive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KzGfuFFSxA

Training secrets from Vern Gambetta:

http://functionalpathtraining.typepad.com/functional_path_training/2008/06/training-secret.html

Conditioning Research has had some really great posts recently. This one on proprioception training is especially pertinent to ultimate players because knee joint position sense is extremely useful when pivoting and marking as you often find yourself with your legs spread away from the body during footblocks, step-out fakes, etc. Proprioceptive training and proper landing mechanics should always be an important part of your program.

http://conditioningresearch.blogspot.com/2008/06/more-on-balance.html

Some proprioceptive training ideas. Expand upon these when you're ready, think outside the box and be progressive. Keep the body guessing.

http://www.sportsinjurybulletin.com/archive/proprioceptive-training.htm

Another CR post, this time on water consumption. The whole point of proper energy consumption for an athlete is to never be hungry, never be thirsty, and never be full. Never hungry, never thirsty, but never full.

http://conditioningresearch.blogspot.com/2008/06/water-is-heavy.html

An article confirming what you probably already knew: that eating a smart meal is 10x's better than those $120 post-workout nonsense hype shakes & any ripped/cut/stacked/jacked pills. The supplement industry is as lucrative as it is unregulated; anyone can sell anything at any price. As such 99% of the stuff on the market is pure fluff and will have no discernible difference on your training. Skip the hype, there's no "magic" pill (if there was, I'd would have found it by now), and as always, do your own research and find your own answers. If you really want to learn more about nutrition, read "Nutrition for Serious Athlete's" by Dan Benardot.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/health/nutrition/05Best.html?em&ex=1213243200&en=b265fe277e59fd2e&ei=5087%0A

My strength coach in HS always said a glass of milk had all the amino acids the body needs post-workout. Follow that up with a healthy meal and you're now smarter than 99% of the US population. (Turns out he was right, check out the study below).

http://insidefatburning.blogspot.com/2007/08/post-workout-milk-boosts-fat-burning.html

Mark Verstegen once again being The Man. Do yourself a favor and read anything this guy writes.

PILLAR STRENGTH Pillar strength is the foundation of all movement. It consists
of hip, core, and shoulder stability. (if you're having a hard time getting your
head around this concept, it might help to picture your body as a mannequin with
no limbs.) Those three areas give us a center axis from which to move. If you
think of the body as a wheel, the pillar is the hub, and the limbs are spokes.
We want to have the hub perfectly aligned so we can draw energy from it and
effectively transfer energy throughout the body. It's impossible to move
the limbs efficiently and forcefully if they're not attached to something solid and stable. There's a reason why parents are forever telling kids to
sit up straight. Without pillar strength, without what, I call "perfect
posture," you will significantly increase the potential for injury in a chain
that starts with your lower back, descends all the way to the knees and ankles,
and rises up to your neck, shoulders, and elbows. The reason we train
body movements instead of parts is because everything about the body's
engineering is connected. What happens to the big toe affects the
knees, the hips, and ultimately the shoulders. The muscular system is
both complex and simple, a series of muscular and fascial bands that work seamlessly to produce efficient movement. Many workout programs do more damage than good by producing muscle imbalances and inefficient movement patterns that sabotage this highly coordinated operating system that we're born with.
Remember the way that movement evolves in infants. They move on their backs
until one day this action allows them to roll over, initiating the hip crossover
movement. Soon they progress to crawling, standing, and, finally, walking. With
each step, they realize how to stabilize their bodies. Aging reverses that
process. Many people lose the ability to squat and maintain their balance,
creating poor posture. Eventually, they lose the ability to stand, surrendering
the core fundamental movement patterns they developed as toddlers. But instead
of conceding that devolution as an unavoidable part of aging, why not look at
getting older as a process of taking these movements to new levels? It's
possible to become physically stronger every day of our lives. Instead of
looking at movement as coming out of the arms and legs, remember this perfect
posture. If you can master the following three elements of pillar strength --
shoulder stability, core stability, and hip stability -- both while working out
and in everyday movement, you will go a long way toward a healthier life.

SHOULDER STABILITY Anyone who participates in a sport involving hitting
or throwing understands the importance of the rotator cuff. It's even more
important in everyday life. We tend to think of the hands and arms as carrying
the workload for the upper body, but it's really the shoulder, or at least it
should be. After all, we think of someone shouldering a burden. The shoulder
"girdle" consists of the humerus, scapula, and clavicle. It's engineered for a
remarkable range of three-dimensional movement. From the shoulder, it's possible
to rotate, press, and pull. We can raise our arms to the side or across the
body. We can rotate shoulders by holding the elbows in and by moving the hands
up and in -- or in a 90-degree angle to the torso. Our natural instinct is to
drop the shoulders forward, especially after long periods of sitting. But you
want to do the opposite, bringing the shoulders back and down, which will give
you proper posture. Remember The Karate Kid? Mr. Miyagi, the wise martial arts
instructor, made his young student Daniel LaRusso paint his fence and wax his
cars. For days this went on and Daniel wondered if he was ever going to learn
karate. When he confronted Miyagi, the old man asked him to demonstrate the
various motions of painting and waxing and then attacked Daniel from all angles.
Using the same motions, Daniel easily defended himself and quickly realized that
he had not just been painting and waxing but stabilizing and strengthening his
shoulder muscles and mastering these vital, functional movements. If you're
involved in martial arts, this program will help by stabilizing your shoulders
-- and I won't make you wax cars and paint houses. Even if you have no desire to
become the next Bruce Lee or Chuck Norris, you must strengthen this area to
perform everyday activities from cleaning to passing objects to filing to, yes,
waxing and painting. Most of us don't realize how hunched over we are from
sitting at computers and traveling in cars and airplanes. People tend to think
that this affects only the elderly, but that's not the case. The next time
you're people-watching at a mail or airport, pay attention to the position of
their thumbs. If they're rotated in, pointing toward the body, that means their
heads and shoulders have moved forward. Unless those people do something, I
guarantee that they will soon have rotator cuff and back problems, which will
limit their ability to participate in the daily activities of life. As
people age, they tend to flex forward, as if the chest is caving in. We want to do the opposite, almost as if there's a fishhook inserted under the sternum, pulling us up. This will allow the shoulders to fall into place and
help give perfect posture. We're not trying to be military cadets, standing at
attention. Instead, think of this as standing or sitting tall in a comfortable
position, always elevating the sternum. To make lasting change, we want to
lengthen the chest and strengthen the muscles of the upper back. Think
of pulling your shoulders toward your back pockets. This posture is the exact opposite of the shoulder shrug, the same motion that you make when you say, "I don't know." That's what a sitting lifestyle does to you. If you create a habit of bringing your shoulders down, you'll be amazed at the results. People will find you more confident and think you've lost weight because you're no
longer slouched over. They might even think you've grown. There have been
instances of adults following this program and gaining up to an inch of height
from standing tall and bringing their shoulders back, as well as improving hip
and core stability.

CORE STABILITY The middle third of our pillar is the
"core," which consists of the muscles of the abdominals, torso, and lower back.
It's the vital link between shoulder and hip stability, and it includes such
muscle groups as the rectus abdominis, transversus abdominis, internal and
external obliques, lats, the erector spinae, and many small stabilizer muscles
between the vertebrae of the spine. These are the tiny muscles that often get
shut off because of a back injury and never become reactivated, causing
long-term back problems. These small stabilizer muscles cannot function alone;
they must be helped by training the muscles of the core to become strong and
stable with the right types of recruitment patterns that will enable them to
work in tandem with the shoulders and hips. Core training is not just
about the abs -- abs are less than a third of the equation. Countless
books and magazine articles promise great abs, and though many of them have
terrific exercises that we believe in, they're of little use unless done in
conjunction with exercises aimed at integrating your shoulders and hips. Instead of just focusing on the abs, we want to create the framework for all
movement. The aim isn't just a well-sculpted midsection; it's a high-performance core. In order to maximize the benefit of the exercises in this book,
it's important to keep your tummy tight, not just while exercising but all day.
Think of your tummy flat against the hip bones. Keep your tummy tight, as if
pulling your belly button off the belt buckle. This isn't the same as sucking in
your gut and holding your breath. Keep the abdominals in, but still breathe. The
abdominal and lower-back muscles work as a team. The point guard is the
transverse abdominis, which is the first muscle that's recruited each time you
move. If you can keep that "TA" activated and your tummy tight, you'll be well
on your way to optimum movement and preventing long-term deterioration. - Mark
Verstegen

Workout:

Movement Prep: standard stuff, also mixed in dynamic plyos

Med-ball: standing throws, overhead throws, downward slams, sumo squat-to-throw, front-squat vertical toss, 1-leg chest & overhead passes, twisting throws, throws-to-sprint (these are awesome and killed me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtpgLMmDyPU )

Plyo skills

Twice through resting only when necessary

1A: 50 double-unders on jump rope
1B: hanging leg raises

2A: sitting box jumps
2B: cable punches

3A: Hang snatches (15)
3B: 1 leg'd squats (12 each leg)

4: thrusters for 30 seconds focusing on moving as fast & elastic as possible with proper form
(3 sets, 30 seconds on: 1 minute rest)

5A: GHD's w/swan dive
5B: GHD lockout 1-arm bench press (from mark twight's video)

6: push-press focusing on moving as fast & elastic as possible with proper form
(3 sets, 30 seconds on: 1 minute rest)

7A: row machine (1 minute max intensity)
7B: Box jumps with different takeoffs/landings (ex: two footed jump w/1 foot landing, 1 foot'd jump with opposite foot landing, etc)

Core Circuit:

3x's through resting only when necessary

-Jumping tuck pullups
-Standing twists w/weight
-Reverse crunches w/weight
-Leg raises locked out at top of dip position

Quicker, faster, stronger, more explosive,
#40

STS 5-5-08 & The Serape Effect

2008-06-05T09:50:00.000-07:00

“We first make our habits, and then our habits make us.” - John Dryden

Keegan-tino providing me with video proof that I need to jump earlier, especially when covering a dude 6 inches taller than me. Great slowmo footage to analyze throws as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94XSS9XM3I4

This video is awesome! So many ideas & combinations, check out how well these guys move laterally.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZajP6CKhPdM

Cool article on the Serape Effect. Again hits back to how connected the body is. When it talks about ballistic action, think in terms of your huck throw.

http://lsabin.wordpress.com/2007/02/19/runnning-and-the-serape-effect/

Awesome article from Alwyn Cosgrove on his training program. A great read for desiging workout programs, he really encompasses all pertinent areas of athleticism.

http://alwyncosgrove.blogspot.com/2008/06/rhode-island-workout.html

Article on Psoas muscle and it's role in movement.

http://resistancetraining.wordpress.com/2007/04/06/pelvic-girdle-and-psoas-muscles/

More than you ever wanted to know about muscles:

http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/M/Muscles.html#Anatomy_of_Skeletal_Muscle

Smart article on post-workout eating. Always remember that you have a 15-minute window from the end of your training to eat, anything past that and your body's ability to absorb what it so desperately needs decreases exponentially. Be proactive about having smart food nearby, and you have to eat irregardless of your hunger level. Remember muscle is built not in the training, but in the recovery.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/01/sports/playmagazine/601physed.html?_r=4&pagewanted=1&ref=playmagazine&oref=slogin

Add-on to the article

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/05/30/sports/playmagazine/20080531_RECOVERY_GRAPHIC.html#step1

It seems everybody lately has an opinion on the Olympics, from Tibet to drug testing. With the steroid issue still lingering in the media I came across this pretty incredible article. Interesting stuff.

http://www.gladwell.com/2001/2001_08_10_a_drug.htm

Workout:

Today's emphasis was on elastic/reactive strength.

Movement Prep:

Similar to last post, also mixed in standard plyo warmups. Buttkickers, skips, etc.

Medicine Ball:

Trained with a teammate this morning so were able to do a number of standing throws, overhead throws, 1-arm throws, twisting throws, squat-to-throws and split-squat-to-throws. There's no limit on the explosive movements you can create with the medicine ball. Also mixed in front-squat vertical tosses and overhead slams with mini band shuffles.

Elastic/Reactive & Plyometrics

Each station twice, resting only when necessary.

1A: down n' back step-ups on small plyo box (see archives if you need a description)
1B: Cable punches

2A: Sitting Box Jumps
2B: Plyo pushups

3A: squats with low weight for 30 seconds, focus is on moving as fast and elastic as possible. These are sick.
3B: kipping pullups http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAZaHzd6qAY

4A: Lateral shuffles with 10lb plate overhead http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxLateralShuffle.html
4B: GHD swan dives (same as GHD's but with 10lb dumbbells, and as you raise up bring the dumbbels out in a reverse fly) here's a cool video of GHD's with a twist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvNlaaFYnPg

5A: Box March with mini-bands just above knee http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxMarchHigh.html
5b: hanging leg raises

6A: Push-press with just the bar for 30 seconds focusing on moving as fast as possible & explosively from the feet
6B: GHD situps

Finished with 10 minutes hard work switching between different hip swivels with the cable machine focused on minimal ground contact exploding off the balls of the feet. Nike SPARQ program calls them your "power pads" and it's a great way to describe landing and moving from the balls of the feet. Also mixed in standing core twists w/weight and more cable punches to finish it off. We worked at a relentless pace and was out in an hour.

This week:

Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Boxing Workout, dynamic recovery on the legs
Wednesday: Field work with speed transition emphasis
Thursday: Workout above
Friday: Yoga
Saturday: Field work with lateral movement emphasis
Sunday: Either beach day where I'll get some sand training in, or some pickup ultimate.

Can't wait to watch The Lake Show win tonight. Suck it Boston.
#40

STS 5-28-08

2008-05-28T14:16:00.000-07:00

"If you meet the Buddha in the lane, feed him the ball." - Phil Jackson

Check out this sick video on bounding. Bounding is the culmination of all your sprint training, the ability to move with maximum full-body impact with consistent pace & form. If a 180lb male can generate 370lbs of force with each footstrike during a sprint, think of how much force is generated through bounding and how that translates over to fast-twitch muscle development. (Hint: Kobe generates around 1200lbs of force when he jumps off 1 foot for a dunk. Yeah, 1200lbs. That's not a typo.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yZ3kp_IMk0

The full article

http://conditioningresearch.blogspot.com/2008/05/bounding.html

A great article on box squats. Box squats are absolutely the best tool for learning to overhead squat and 1-leg (pistol) squat correctly.

http://stronglifts.com/build-explosive-strength-how-to-perform-box-squats/

Speaking of squats, here's how to front squat properly. If I'm not overhead squatting it's my primary form of squat as it requires much more core control & stabilization than a traditional backsquat. Plus I can transition into a push-press, hang-clean, etc at any time. Try 1 set regular and 1 set front squat and see if you notice the functional difference.

http://stronglifts.com/how-to-front-squat-with-proper-technique/

A good article on anterior core training

http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/anterior_core_training

and a couple videos for examples of isometric exercises and some other types. Good stuff to incorporate into your field workouts.

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXD69lc1OTY

Workout:

I've gotten a good number of questions regarding my workouts and it's important to note that what I post are just my weightroom sessions, which make up only 25% of my training program. (sorry, can't give away all my secrets) I follow Jim Radcliffe's program, the strength coach at U of Oregon, and the father of plyometrics. I had the extremely fortunate opportunity to train with him in high school and he's forever left a distinct impact on my athletic career. My program follows as such:

This week I spent a lot of time analyzing the sportlab videos and concepts and figuring out how to incorporate it into my training, which exercises were pertinent, and how I could re-create some of the movements at my gym as they pretty much use what looks like a glorified calf-raise machine. It's important to realize that when it comes to exercise science new ideas don't necessarily negate old ones, but rather build upon them. I don't have all the answers to the questions (yet), but it sure is fun exploring these new movements and how they translate over to the field.

Movement Prep: Circuit consisting of:

Jump-rope (1 min)
Handstand pushups against wall (TF)
bodyweight squats (12)
Jump-rope (1 min)
Handstand pushups (TF)
Walking split-squats w/core twist forewards, then backwards no twist (8 each direction)
Jump-rope (1 min)
inchworms (10)
Side-lunges (8 each direction)
Jump-rope (1 min)
step-ups (8 each leg)
bodyweight squats (12)

Med-Ball

25 front-squat vertical tosses
25 Overhead slams
25 side-twist throws (in backhand position) each side
10 1-arm front-squat vertical tosses each arm(keep ball next to chest like shotput position, then explode upwards)

I mixed in mini-band shuffles between the different throws as well, switching between wearing the bands on both the ankles and just above the knee.

Plyo Skills & Drills

Each sequence performed 2x's resting only when necessary

1A: Box March with mini-band at knees http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxMarchHigh.html
1B: plyo-pushups

2A: Split-squat jumps (not a lunge jump. There's just no lunging involved)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zLTDUFjbXA
2B: jumping pull-ups w/tuck

3A: Lateral shuffles w/mini bands and holding medicine ball overhead
http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxLateralShuffle.html
3B: Ab wheel (To failure)

4A: Box jumps w/1 foot landings
4B: jumping pull-ups w/tuck

Functional Exercises:

For this portion I performed a number of the arm swivels/circles on top of the swiss medicine ball that I saw from the sportslab videos as well as a bunch of balancing stability exercises such as bulgarian split-squats with back leg on the swiss ball, glute bridges, etc. I really just explored new movements and what their respective areas of focus were. I finished with a cable machine that has a foot attachment and did a number of different hip swivels and leg extensions focusing on minimal but explosive ground contact time and moving with hip mobility & stability. Great stuff and I could really feel it in the pelvic girdle muscles.

Core Circuit:

-GHD swandives (from sports lab video w/weights in each hand
- Standing core twists
- Side plank
- GHD situps

3x's through resting only when necessary.

This week:

Monday: Yoga/recovery
Tuesday: field work w/lateral agility emphasis
Wednesday: Workout above- plyometric/explosive emphasis
Thursday: Short but intense (always train as close to game speed as possible) sprint workout consisting of short-yardage sprints & speed transition work, followed by 4 rounds of heavybag work, punches & kicks. Kicks= the shit for making your legs strong.
Friday: Recovery
Saturday/Sunday: Cal States

#40

STS 5-22-08

2008-05-22T11:53:00.000-07:00

“If you look at a track guy or a jumper, his foot is only in contact with the ground two-tenths of a second; it takes six- to eight-tenths of a second to create a maximum contraction in weight lifting. It looks good, but you can’t use it. Your foot can’t be on the ground that long. If you train slow, you’re going to be slow. You have to train explosively fast.” -Marv Marinovich

Crazy interesting article on Troy Polamalu's workout program and a style of training that truly increases athleticism. Reminds me a lot of the concepts of Fre Flo Do with more of a strength aspect. Damn it gives you lots to think about. Charlie Francis (Ben Johnson's old coach) says that "training is 5 years ahead of the science to back it up" and that qoute definitely fits here. I'm going to spend a good amount of time figuring out how to incorpate these principles into my workouts. Thanks to Robbie for showing it to me.

http://www.postgameheroes.com/?p=2338

Here's the website where he does his training

http://sportslab.net/

another cool video on them

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

and check out this pyramid of athleticism, really smart stuff.

http://sportslab.net/aboutus.html

Here's Victor Conte's (former head of BALCO) letter to Dwain Chambers about his doping regimine and how easy it was to circumvent the drug tests. Think about this the next time you hear someone hate on Barry, cuz he sure wasn't alone. Sports Sociologist Dr. Harry Edwards once wrote that "we've made no further progress in sports than we have in society" and that definitely applies here. Ethical/moral issues aside, this is one crazy-ass doping regimine with true science behind it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-566744/Victor-Contes-letter-Dwain-Chambers.html

Workout:

Movement Prep

Med-Ball-

1A: 3-throw sequence (sumo-squat overhead toss, overhead slam, front-squat vertical throw with jump)
1B: Mini-band shuffles

2x's through

Plyos

1A: split-squat jumps- switching legs in the air
1B: plyo-pushups

2A: box jumps alternating regular and 1 foot landings
2b: jumping tuck pullups

2x's through each one

Functional Lifts

1- Hang clean w/jerk- 3 sets of 4

2- Kettlebell swings- 50, used dumbbell instead of kettlebell

3- 1-arm snatches w/dumbbell- 2 sets of 10 each arm-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg77Os9mtXs

4- wide-grip hang snatches w/barbell- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ht62GrOj5_Q
3 sets of 8

Finished with GHD's and a crazy-awesome 1-arm press exercise I got from Mark Twight's video I posted last time.

Beginner- grab a swiss ball and make a table-top with your body with just your upper back & neck on the swiss ball and a 90-degree bend at the knee (torso & upper legs horizontal) and grab a weight plate or dumbbell and do 1-arm bench press while squeezing the glutes & core and locking out in the tabletop. Same as this video but keep a tighter tabletop. I like to use a weight plate because it strengthens your hand/forearms in a different way than usual. Routine is the enemy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53GQNWHE1N4

Intermediate: same thing but alternate each arm while holding the other dumbbell up locked out with the other arm.

Advanced: perform 1-arm press while locked out on GHD machine with upper-body suspended in air. These rocked. You can see an example at 1:48 of the video below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=628qphA1-8M

#40

STS 5-15-08

2008-05-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

Of all the people I evaluate, including the best athletes in the world, the No. 1 focus is hip function and stability, which is to say how we use our pelvis. If people better understood how to use the pelvis and hips, we could eradicate lower back pain, knee pain, foot ailments and a host of other aches that make us miserable. - Mark Verstegen

This article is one of the best I've read in a really, really long time. Read it, adopt it, & share it with everyone you know. There's not a single person who can't benefit from this.

http://www.coreperformance.com/article.php?p=1&s=1&id=794

We want to move from the hips in everything we do, while maintaining
perfect posture. The reason we see so many running-related injuries is
because people don't have the necessary hip stability. Runners have to
be able to effectively balance on a single leg and move from the hips. If the hips don't stabilize, the force created by the pounding of
running is stored in the body.But if you're stable in the hips, core and
shoulders, the energy transfers through the feet, legs, core and through the opposite arm, creating maximum energy. If you lack stability, the
energy is absorbed and stored in the muscles, tendons and joints, leading to overuse injuries. By creating a mobile and stabile hip joint, we will store and release energy efficiently, creating optimum movement. Muscles are our suspension system. Their job is to store and release energy efficiently.

Here's Mark Twight being his usual badass self. Check out the Overhead Squats to sled runs...just filthy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=628qphA1-8M

Here's a pretty decent website with video displays, great for any beginners.

http://askthetrainer.com/exercise-information.html

An article on an interesting concept. I remember my hurdle coach in High School yelling at us to sprint with a "soft face" over and over, really goes to show what kind of effect it can have. Also shows yet again how connected the muscles are to each other, tense facial muscles means tense neck muscles. Tense neck muscles means tense traps, which run down to the middle of the back, etc. Curious to see some further studies done on it, but good food for thought nonetheless. When you read about the increased rotational ability think about it in terms of your backhand huck.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/twins/18914659.html?page=1&c=y

"There are so many gimmicks out there, but the other day I watched Michael
getting fitted, and they put the sensors on his face and looked at the large
muscles of his neck, and his facial muscles, and he had increased range of
motion," Castellano said. "Not an inch. Eight to 10 inches.

If you think my workouts are tough, check out JumpCoach's Monday session. Dirty, just dirrty. Then go back to your training and ask yourself if you can work harder.

http://jumpcoach.blogspot.com/2008/05/shortmedium-length-rant.html

Workout:

Movement Prep: standard movement prep

Med-ball:
50 overhead slams w/heavy ball mixed in w/mini band shuffles
25 side-tosses w/feet in backhand huck position (each side)

Plyo drills:

1A: box march w/mini bands on knees http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxMarchHigh.html
1B: Plyo pushups

2x's through

2A: lateral shuffles w/medicine ball overhead http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxLateralShuffle.html
2B: Jumping tuck pullups (10)

2x's through

Functional Lifts

1: Quick Drops http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/QuickDrop.html
3 sets

2: Split-squat Quick Drops- same as above except landing in split-squat instead of regular squat, alternating legs each time. 3 sets.

3: 1 Arm Snatches- 3 sets of 8 each arm.

4: Kettlebell Swings- 50 swings, used a dumbbell instead of kettlebell.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI37d_1gZVU

F yeah Lakers,
#40

23/1 & STS 5-12-08

2008-05-12T14:54:00.000-07:00

The best posture is the one that's constantly changing!- Eric Cressey

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Here's Nike with yet another awesome commercial:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-EyRUgp9Mk

Here's a short article by Eric Cressey that I really like.

The 23/1 Rule

The 23/1 rule states that although you may do everything
perfectly from a technique standpoint while you're in the gym for ONE hour per
day, you have TWENTY-THREE hours to do everything incorrectly outside the gym.
This is especially applicable to the desks jockeys who spend 8-10 hours per day
at the computer using poor posture. Make a point of getting up and moving around
as often as you can. Reach up to the sky, walk around, and do some doorway
stretches for your pecs and lats. The best posture is the one that's constantly
changing!- Eric Cressey

He speaks to what I emphatically believe, that athleticism is truly a lifestyle. Athletes don't stop being athletic when they leave the gym/field. Athletes move always with a proper, athletic gait. Athletes sit, reach, twist, & bend with an athletic posture. Postural control isn't something you only have when you're playing sports, it's something you practice and perfect all throughout your day. Yoga practitioners seem to grasp this concept best, as a direct result of the emphasis that's placed upon correct posture during poses.

Here's a great article on where to look while squatting, really good information for everyone, not just beginners. Remember, where your eyes go, your neck follows. And where your neck goes, your spine follows.

http://stronglifts.com/where-to-look-during-squats/

and another one on pushups:

http://stronglifts.com/how-to-perform-push-ups-correctly/

Workout:

Movement Prep: changed it up this morning and shot hoops at my gym for 15 minutes to warm up, just moving with the ball and shooting mid-range jumpers & finger-rolls. Basketball, such a fun game and a really effective way to warm the entire body up.

Med-ball:
20 sumo-squat tosses
20 front-squat tosses
15 side-twist tosses against wall each side (in backhand throw position)
20 sumo-squat backwards tosses against wall
10 front-squat 1 hand tosses (each hand)

Catch every throw with an emphasis on catching it with soft hands, accepting the energy of the ball, not fighting it.

Plyos:

1A: split-squat jumps
1B: plyo pushups

twice through, resting after pushups

2A: Box jumps w/1 foot'd landings
2B: Superman pushups

twice through, resting after pushups

Functional lifts:

1: Hang Clean w/jerk: 6,4,4

2. Lateral Step-ups w/crossover: 8,8 each leg

3. Deadlifts: 8,8,6,4,4,4.

Circuit:

Finished with a circuit of:

Dips
Pullups
GHD's
GHD situps
Side twists w/weight
Side plank raises-12 each side

Two times through, resting only if necessary.

This week:

Monday: Workout above
Tuesday: Field work w/lateral movement emphasis
Wednesday: Goaltimate w/short yardage sprints afterwards.
Thursday: Weights w/elastic & reactive strength emphasis
Friday: Recovery
Saturday/Sunday: Condor Tryouts

Fired up that the pre-season is just around the corner. Curious to see who has been working out in the off-season, and who is going to get exposed. Most of all just excited to see the boys all together again, working towards something all bigger than ourselves. Also really excited to see new faces and what talent they can potentially bring to the squad. This year's going to be a fun one!

#40

STS 5-7-08

2008-05-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

"The secret of winning football games is working more as a team, less as individuals. I play not my 11 best, but my best 11." - Knute Rockne, American football coach

"It is possible that the number of accelerations and decelerations a player performs in a multi sprint sport (soccer/netball/basketball/hockey etc) is the most potent predictor of athletic performance" - Craig Duncan

Great qoutes that apply extremely well to Ultimate.

This is amazing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lM-IndBayWA

Vern Gambetta has been posting some phenomenal stuff lately. Really does a good job of explaining the big picture and how to apply all facets of athleticism to your workouts.

Functional Path Training Rules

In order to travel effectively on the Functional Path there are some basic rules of travel that must be followed
Ø Have a Plan, Execute It, and Evaluate It
Ø Build the Complete Athlete
All systems work together
Train all components all the time - Use It or Lose It
Ø Always Train Fundamental Movement Skills Before Specific Sport Skills
Ø Train Sport Appropriate - You Are What You Train To Be
Ø Build the Athlete from the Ground Up
Ø Train the Core as the Center of the Action
Ø To Be Fast You Must Train Fast
Ø Build a Work Capacity Base Appropriate For Your Sport
Ø Train Toe Nails To Fingernails
Train Movements not Muscles
Train Multi Joint & Multi Plane Movements
Ø Training is Cumulative
Win the Workout

The characteristics of
Functional Path™ training are:

No system of the body is emphasized to
exclusion of another, all systems of the body work together synergistically to
produce smooth efficient movement. No one method or physical quality becomes an end unto itself. Each athlete is a case study of one; each athlete brings something unique to the table.
In order to be considered functional, an
exercise or training method must meet all of the following criteria:
-Multiple Plane
-Multiple Joint
-High Proprioceptive Demand
-The Work Must Be Mindful

Full Article:

http://functionalpathtraining.typepad.com/functional_path_training/2008/05/a-functional-pa.html

The 20metre Rule: (really think about this)

http://athleticdevelopment.blogspot.com/2008/04/team-sports-and-20metre-rule.html

I believe that the maximum distance a multi sprint sport athlete needs to run
in one direction during conditioning training should be limited to 20metres.
Think about it for a while and try it as I have tried to follow my 20metre
rule for the majority of the training year. In the analysis of soccer we can
see that it is rare a player runs more than 20metres in one direction so I
ask why should we do anything differently in training. we want to
move away from players cruising during the game and move towards attacking the space at pace.

I've always said that at least 70% of Ultimate is played in under 30 yards (probably more if you're a handler-type) so at the very least 70% of your training should be in under 30 yards. Speed transition (start-stop-start speed) is always the difference-maker in so many types of cuts (and D) and should be a focal point of your training. It's also important to note that one of the other major benefits is that short-yardage training will have a substantial affect on your long game. The converse of that isn't true unfortunately. Remember, Ultimate is not a middle-distance activity (even though it has moments of jogging), it's a sprint-endurance sport. Train as such. Side note: If we really want to make sport analogies, Ultimate is a sprint-specific type of biathlon. Work at absolute max intensity, then stop, focus & make a precision throw while under time constraint, then immediately back to max intensity work. That's why this sport is the shit, it's a perfect balance of mentally and physically demanding work.

Speaking of Acceleration/deceleration:

Acceleration/deceleration Threshold

It is possible that the number of accelerations and decelerations a player
performs in a multi sprint sport (soccer/netball/basketball/hockey etc) is the
most potent predictor of athletic performance. There is a need to research this
further and with GPS equipment it is possible. I advocate that an
acceleration/deceleration threshold and training to increase this threshold
maybe a very important advancement in training for team sports. It all makes
sense to as straight line running in training involves only small if any
acceleration/deceleration and this is why a player wont be fit or match fit as
they maybe aerobically fit and their anaerobic threshold may improve but there
is no training or the acceleration/deceleration threshold. I am interested in
your views on this topic- Craig Duncan

Repeated sprint recovery:

http://conditioningresearch.blogspot.com/2008/04/repeated-sprintshow-to-recover.html

A nice Q & A with Alwyn Cosgrove where he explains the difference between
strength & metabolic conditioning. (2nd question down)

http://alwyncosgrove.blogspot.com/2008/05/may-q-i.html

Workout:

Movement Prep: standard stuff

Med-Ball: 3-throw sequence with intermixed mini-band shuffles. 2x's through, 10 throws each throw.

Plyo Training:

1A: Sitting box jumps
1B: superman pushups (walk hands all the way out in front
of body, do pushup so forearms are touching ground, walk hands back up to
standing)
2x's 10 each

2A: split-squat jumps
2B: Knee-to-elbows (hang from bar, bring knees to elbow)
2x's 10 each

Functional Lifts:

Split-squat push-press: http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/QuickDrop.html
same motion as this except bar is in front and land in a split-squat vs.
regular squat. Arms go up, legs go down, core stays active but stable.
-3 sets of 6 each leg alternating

1A:
Thrusters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOFegns0qwI
1B: Pullups
-3 sets of 10 thrusters and pullups TF

RDL's: http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/RomanianDeadlift.html

2 sets

This week:

Monday: recovery
Tuesday: workout above
Wednesday: 15 min. high-intensity jump workout followed by tabata row machine intervals & 1:1 sprint/rest intervals on the elliptical
Thursday: Weights- metabolic conditioning
Friday: med-ball & sprint training
Saturday: Beach ultimate
Sunday: yoga and/or recovery

#40

STS 4-29-08 & Lifting the dead

2008-04-29T14:31:00.000-07:00

"From beginning to end, the deadlift hits everything, at one point or another."—Ronnie Coleman

Don't fear the Deadlift; embrace it. People avoid it because it's hard and requires perfect form. Of course doing it wrong can have a high-injury potential (what doesn't though really?) but doing it right will have you stronger than you've ever been in your life. Just think of it as a squat, except your also pulling the weight instead of already having it on your back. Keep that clean line of movement as close to the body as possible, and move from the glutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjBI9qxibTc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-O_MT72rck

An interesting article on the feet & proprioception ability. Kinda makes that whole Reebok pump phase seem even sillier, if that's even possible.

http://nymag.com/health/features/46213/index2.html

The sole of your foot has over 200,000 nerve endings in it, one of the
highest concentrations anywhere in the body. Our feet are designed to act as
earthward antennae, helping us balance and transmitting information to us
about the ground we’re walking on.

Another factor, she points out, is that when your foot can feel the ground, it sends
messages to the rest of your body. “Your body tells itself, My foot just hit the ground, I’m about to start walking, so let’s activate all these mechanisms to keep my joints safe. Your body’s natural neuromechanical-feedback mechanisms can work to protect the rest of your extremities. You have much more sensory input than when you’re insulated by a thick outsole.”

The same holds true with athletic shoes. In a 1997 study, researchers
Steven Robbins and Edward Waked at McGill University in Montreal found that the more padding a running shoe has, the more force the runner hits the ground with:
In effect, we instinctively plant our feet harder to cancel out the shock absorption of
the padding. (The study found the same thing holds true when gymnasts land on soft mats—they actually land harder.) We do this, apparently, because we need to feel the ground in order to feel balanced. And barefoot, we can feel the ground—and we can naturally absorb the impact of each step with our bodies. “Whereas humans wearing shoes underestimate plantar loads,” the study concluded, “when barefoot they sense it precisely.”

She explains that, when we don’t use our feet
properly, our muscles have to strain to compensate—not just in our feet but in our whole body

Epidemiologically speaking, it’s been estimated that, by
age 40, about 80 percent of the population has some muscular-skeletal foot
or ankle problem. By age 50 to 55, that number can go up to 90 or 95 percent.” Ninety-five percent of us will develop foot or ankle problems? Yeesh. Those are discouraging numbers—but wait. Are we talking about 95 percent of the world population, or of North America? “Those are American figures,” he says. Which makes me think, North Americans have the most advanced shoes in the world, yet 90 percent of us still develop problems? We’ve long assumed this means we need better shoes. Maybe it means we don’t need shoes at all.

Workout:

Movement Prep: usual suspects, see previous posts for a breakdown

Medicine Ball: 3-throw sequence with mini-band shuffles & skips in between. 3 sets.

Plyometric Training:

1A Sitting Box Jumps
1B Plyo Pushups

Twice through, resting after pushups

2A: Split-squat Jumps: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qad7oHkdzE8
2B: Jumping tuck pullups

Same rest sequence as above

Functional Lifts:

Hang Cleans: 6,6,4, with increasing weight

Deadlifts: 8,8, 6, 6, 5, 4, 4 with increasing weight, heavy as I could go.

Push-Press: 6,6,4,4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQmtYO9-f1w

Circuit o' Death:

Finished with a Xfit inspired circuit that I set for 8 minutes straight, or until I couldn't go anymore. I made it the 8 minutes. Just. Barely.

-1 leg'd GHD's-TF (to failure)
-decline situps w/weight-TF
-standing twists w/weight- TF
-Dips w/weight (hold with feet) -TF
-Chinups w/weight(hold with feet)-TF
-1-leg'd squats-6 each leg

Rest only when necessary.

Last post for a week or so. Going out of town on business, then back to Vegas for Brian's Boglepalooza Bachelor Party. Just in time too, my liver was just starting to get healthy.

23 dudes from SF to CO + the panorama suite at PH= the best kind of crazy.

Like Kanye said "You know what this is...it's a celebration bitches"

#40

Medicine Men & the Truth of Strength

2008-04-25T11:32:00.000-07:00

"Strength is the single greatest equalizer in sport and therefore strength training is the most important physical preparation quality" - Alwyn Cosgrove

Notice he didn't say a specific sport, but all sports.

Here's the full article. Smart writings from an industry leader.

http://alwyncosgrove.blogspot.com/2008/04/moments-of-clarity-part-iv.html

Here's a fantastic article on Medicine Balls that everyone should read.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3336435

"When you're talking about optimizing performance, from gladiators to the
French Open, this simple ball might have more power to unlock an athlete's
potential than any other tool ever invented."- Mark Verstegen, a trainer, author
and founder of Athletes' Performance Institute

While hoisting weights on a bar controlled by a machine is a user-friendly and efficient way to build muscle mass and fundamental strength, it also reduces the dynamic elements of balance, explosion and sport-specific movement that are gained from resistance training. In fact, the very idea of functional training got lost during the machine craze as performance took a backseat to looking good. With static, mass building training ascendant in the States, the Soviet Union and East Germany began to dominate Olympic-medal counts in the 1960s and 1970s. Heavy doses of illegal drugs aside, athletes in Eastern-bloc countries had developed faster contractions from dynamic methods kinesiologists call jump training or plyometrics—lighter weights and faster reps that produce more elastic, efficient and explosive muscle contractions.
While the ball itself is simple, the kinetic science behind it is anything but. The unpredictable path of a med ball as it flies through the air forces the exerciser to use entire muscle groups instead of, say, just the biceps or deltoids. After aeons of evolved movement, the body can still grow more kinetically efficient as it links dozens of its smaller muscles to adjust to the ball's flight. Adaptation is the key to athletic development, and no two med-ball reps are the same. "If the game you play is chaotic, you have to train chaotic," says Titans tight end Alge Crumpler. "How are you going to do that with a machine?"
Human power is determined by the level of contraction in the muscles. By lengthening the muscle just before contraction (more so than in static weight lifting), the med ball creates stored elastic energy that dramatically increases the speed and strength of the contraction. (The farther you stretch a rubber band, the more it stings your little brother when it snaps back.) It's the difference between standing flat-footed as you take an arms-only chop at a golf ball (static) and the violent entire uncoiling Tiger uses to explode off the tee (dynamic). "That's the foundation, the operating system that has developed all human movement," says Verstegen. "The med ball has always been smart. It just had to wait 3,000 years for athletes to catch up."

A simple medicine ball workout: (best done with a partner, but can be done against a wall)

-Chest pass- 15 reps
-Chest pass w/squat- 15 reps
-Overhead pass- 15
-Overhead pass in split/squat stance- 15
- Sideways twist toss-15 (both sides)
- Sumo-squat backwards toss w/jump - 20
- Overhead slam w/jump - 20
- Front-squat toss w/jump- 20

The medicine ball is whatever you make it. If you train boring, don't be suprised if you're bored. Create your own explosive movements. Incorporate throws-to-sprint, hop into explosive throws, lateral movement, 1 arm throws, hooverball, rotational jumping (180's etc), anything that involves explosive footwork and core control. etc, etc, etc. No limits.

The best medicine ball is the bouncy hard-rubber ones. Nike makes a great one, just make sure whichever one you get has the bounce-back ability.

Some youtube examples. Pay attention to how they move with an athletic base.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB4Seksx0zw (this one is great)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9STVOgSdO8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzGynV5TDRM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9SlDRkiRTI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPNRHV1CeCc

#40

STS 4-22-08

2008-04-22T10:41:00.000-07:00

"Jumping rope toughens the body. It proves that quickness comes from staying relaxed in the extremities while keeping the spine erect and the abdominals drawn in. and reinforces this pattern in your body. Pulling in the abs does not require holding the breath or tightening the stomach as if anticipating a blow to the gut. However, the more the trunk is held in the appropriate position and the more the extremities are relaxed, the quicker and more powerful movements will become."- Gray Cook

The sky is the limit. Literally: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7QL2BT0ZJY

Smart article on benefits of jumping rope. Maybe the best $20 investment ever. I've said it before, nothing warms you up like a speed rope, and it couldn't be more posture specific if you tried.

http://www.coreperformance.com/article.php?p=3&s=2&id=770

An easy read on guidelines for sprint-training:

http://www.coreperformance.com/article.php?p=3&s=1&id=733

A great article on addressing weaknesses in your squat. The squat is too important to not do absolutely correct. Check yourself before you wreck yourself.

http://www.straighttothebar.com/2008/03/addressing_weaknesses_in_the_s.html

And an easy read about one of the most important muscles in the core. Don't just view the core as this mysterious middle part of your body, recognize the different muscles and their roles in athletic movement.

http://www.straighttothebar.com/2007/11/specific_training_for_the_tran.html

Workout:

Movement Prep: Usual awesomeness with a extra side of jump-ropes. Did tons of split-stance jump-roping, one leg in front, one leg in back, switch as rope passes under. It's all about staying on your toes, landing with no noise, and only leaving the ground enough for the rope to pass under.

Plyo-Skills & landing mechanics:

This one is inspired by my captain Whit, who's always challenging me to more difficult sequences and pushing my creativity levels. Do this when you are fully warmed up and at the beginning of your workout.

Sitting box jumps to forward depth jump: Start with the medium plyo box behind you and the large plyo box directly in front of you. Sit on the medium box with just your ass touching and your feet in dorsiflexion. From there spring up to land backwards on the box in a 1/4 squat, landing with proper mechanics and no noise. From there do a depth jump forward to land on the large plyo box. That's 1, go for 8-10.
Advanced: Once you feel comfortable with the sequence it's time to land 1 foot'd and test your unilateral landing mechanics. Sit on medium box, spring up and land backwards with left foot. Drop into 2-foot'd depth jump and land on large plyo box with right foot. Alternate feet each time, and try landing on the same foot on both boxes if you can handle it. Break out of your comfort zone and push your ability.

4 sets:
1 set- 2 legs
2nd & 3rd set- alternating legs
4th set- same leg

Functional Lifts:

1A Split-squat Quick Drops: Same movement as this video except land in a split-squat (not a lunge) instead of a regular squat. 8-12 reps
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/QuickDrop.html
1B: Jumping tuck pull-ups
2x through sequence 1

Next I did 4 sets of the 3-step Squat sequence:

2A: OH squats- 10 reps. Put a box behind you if you can't maintain proper control & form.
2B: Squat-to-Superman pushup- 10 reps. From standing squat down and walk hands all the way out in front (inchworm style) till hands are completely out in front (like superman), perform pushup and walk hands back. That's 1. Concentrate on a locked core and initiating movement from it. So dirrrty.
2C: 1 leg squats (pistol squats) 10 reps each leg: put a box behind you and sit down n' up just like you were getting out of a chair.

3:Arm Swivels: Holding 1 or 2lb dumbells in each hand stand in athletic stance. With your arms in a 90 degree angle (bent at elbow) pump your arms as fast and as hard as you can like you're sprinting moving the hands from your hip-pocket to your eye-socket. Focus on a stable core and movement through the shoulders. Keep those 90-90's and focus on the hip-pocket to eye-socket. 3 rounds of 40 swings total.

Finished with core sequence of med ball twists, GHD's, GHD sit-ups and hanging leg raises. 3 x's through resting only when necessary.

Crazy weekend up ahead. Our flag football team finished as A-division champs in both Sat. & Sun. leagues, finishing the regular season 22-0. A crazy stat (even crazier considering we won two of those games trailing both by a score with 5 seconds and 22 seconds left on the clock. And we were penalized 6 points each in the semi's and finals because of mis-matched jerseys and still won each game by more than 12. Yeah, our league gives the other team points (2points per) if you don't all have the same jersey. Nonsense!), but one that doesn't mean anything unless we win the SoCal Shootout tournament this weekend in LA and grab that $800 1st prize. Can't wait until the majority of ultimate tournaments offer cash for the winners. 5 on 5 flag football is such a fun game, and the crossover effect has been awesome, my dump D has gotten way better from football as well as my toe-the-line ability, a skill that doesn't get enough respect or recognition till you really need it. I'm pretty fired up to win 2 tournaments in 2 different sports in a 2-month span.

This week:
Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Field work
Wednesday: Workout above
Thursday: Field work
Friday: Recovery
Sat/Sun: SoCal Shootout.

click-clack,
#40

Sport-specific speed & STS 4-15-08

2008-04-15T13:26:00.000-07:00

"The muscles don’t move because of cardiovascular demand. It’s the reverse. The cardio system is elevated because of muscular demand. We need to program the body based on the movements it’s going to perform – not based on the cardiovascular system.

The only reason that there is any demand on the cardiovascular system is because the muscular system places that demand – the muscles require oxygen in order to continue to work. In fact cardiovascular exercise is impossible without moving the muscle first."- Alwyn Cosgrove

Another excellent post by Alwyn Cosgrove. Really makes you think. Here it is in full:

Cardiovascular programming is an ass backward concept.
I don’t know when I first thought this – but it was confirmed to me when viewing
Lance Armstrong’s performance in the New York Marathon. I’d been taught through my college education and countless training certifications and seminars that
cardiovascular exercise was necessary to improve the cardio vascular system
and subsequently aerobic performance.
But there seemed an inherent flaw in that argument…. Let’s say I tested your aerobic fitness through a treadmill test. Then – for sixteen weeks – we developed a five-day per week aerobic training program that involved you running at various heart rates and for various lengths of times – progressively increasing in difficulty and duration – and this resulted in a very significant improvement in your aerobic fitness.At the end of this sixteen week period, how much do you expect your swimming times to have improved? Marginally, if at all.
Seems dumb to ask right? However – if we have one cardiovascular system – why doesn’t your cardiovascular system improve across the board regardless of the activity? Why didn’t Lance Armstrong – with perhaps the highest recorded VO2 max in history – win the New York Marathon? Or beat people with lesser aerobic levels than himself? The greatest endurance cyclist (and possibly endurance athlete) of all time – the seven time Tour De France winner – finished 868th and described the event as the “hardest physical thing” he had ever done. Runners World Magazine actually examined Lance's physiology (and VO2 max which was tested at 83) and compared them to the numbers of Paul Tergat (the World Record holder and defending NYC Marathon Champion at the time).
They concluded:
" This figure wouldn't mean much if it weren't for the pioneering research of famed running coach Jack Daniels, Ph.D., who first published his Oxygen Power tables in 1979-- According to Daniels, who's rarely off by more than a smidgen or two, a max VO2 of 83 is roughly equivalent to a 2:06 marathon" Based on his other physical qualities the magazine suggested that Lance was capable of running 2:01:11.
The world record at the time was 2:04:55 Lance ran 2:59:36 (and don't misinterpet me - that's still a great time). But it's clear that the physiology didn't transfer the way even the running community expected.
The flaw in this thinking was looking solely at aerobic capacity -- VO2 max - the "engine" as it were. And it's fair to say that Lance had a "Formula One" engine. But he didn't have the structural development for running. Lance was a cyclist - his body had adapted to the demands of cycling. But NOT to the specific demands of running (in fact Lance had only ran 16 miles at once EVER prior to running the marathon). Lance had developed strength, postural endurance and flexibility in the correct "cycling muscles” - but it didn't transfer to running the way his VO2 max did.
The muscles don’t move because of cardiovascular demand. It’s the
reverse. The cardio system is elevated because of muscular demand. We need to program the body based on the movements it’s going to perform – not based on the cardiovascular system.
Basically, if that muscular system cannot handle the
stress of thousands of repetitions (which is what running, cycling etc is) then we have to condition that muscular system first. And by doing so, we automatically improve cardiovascular conditioning. The only reason that there is any demand on the cardiovascular system is because the muscular system places that demand – the muscles require oxygen in order to continue to work. In fact cardiovascular exercise is impossible without moving the muscle first.
I’ve seen this across various sports. The cardio conditioning required
to run a 10K won’t transfer to motocross or jiu-jitsu.
Conclusion - If cardio training doesn’t transfer well from one activity to another – and it only ‘kicks’ in because of muscular demand – why don’t we program muscular activity first – in order to create a cardiovascular response.

And another solid one from Vern Gambetta on sport-specific speed training. The picture below is from it. It's from the perform better website which has a good number of entry-level articles.

http://www.performbetter.com/catalog/matriarch/OnePiecePage.asp_Q_PageID_E_34_A_PageName_E_Training3

And just cuz it's that awesome, the top 15 jukes of all time. Check out Barry Sanders in case you've forgotten what Reggie Bush is trying to look like. If the two main concepts in athletic movemement is: 1) An active, but stable core and 2) Arms & legs that move independently and explosively, then Barry is Text.Book.

http://theangryt.com/?p=539

Workout:

Movement Prep: Standard, see previous posts if you need detailed info.

Medicine Ball: 3-throw sequence mixed in with mini-band shuffles and skips

Plyometric training: Did 2 sets of box-jumps landing on 1 foot for landing mechanics & proprioception. 8 jumps landing with each foot, followed by 4 jumps on 1 foot landing with same foot. Landing should be with no noise and with proper balance, if you don't stick it becomes an exercise in reaction skills, land and bounce out safely.

Functional Lifts:

1: Jump Shrugs: http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/JumpShrug.html

4 sets- 6,6,4,4

2A: Deadlifts: 3 sets of 8
2B: Jumping tuck pullups- 3 sets of 15

3: Overhead walks: Just like they sound, grab a barbell, put it overhead and lock the arms and walk. I was on the basketball court and set up a figure-8 scheme as well as some lateral movement.

4: Plyo arm-swings: 5lb weights in hand, swings arms like you're sprinting while keeping pillar strength in an athletic stance. 40 swings- 4 sets mixed with a core circuit.

This week:
Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Field work w/lateral movement & agility emphasis
Wednesday: Workout Above
Thursday: Heavybag & hill runs
Friday: Weights
Saturday: Field work w/plyo emphasis
Sunday: Football

click-clack,
#40

STS 4-9-08

2008-04-09T13:46:00.000-07:00

“But don't forget my ideas are only what's been written down in history by the great people of the world who've gone before. All I've done is condense the wisdom of the world into an attitude for athletics. Athletics aren't just running, it's a way of life” - Percy Cerutty

Another awesome video on Fre Flo Do redefining proprioception ability. Go ahead and marinate on this for a minute.

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

A good entry-level article on swiss ball exercises:

http://www.chekinstitute.com/articles.cfm?select=35

And some advanced swiss-ball nonsense:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QR3BZGfchk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9dTtFCNHZs

And a great article on strengthening the ankles. After breaking my foot (twice) this article definitely hits close to home. As I'm sure some of you can relate, as foot/ankle injuries are such a pain in the ass. Better to be proactive about it now then deal with an injury later.

http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/the_ankle_paradox_building_indestructible_ankles&cr=performanceTraining

Workout:

Movement Prep: Same as before, also added 50 jump-rope double unders at the end.

Medicine Ball: 3-throw sequence (sumo-squat toss w/catch, overhead slam, front squat toss w/catch) with mini-band shuffles in between. 3 sets of 5

Functional Lifts:

1A: Lateral Step-ups w/crossover: Stand on the left side of the medium plyo box with your right leg on the box in proper step-up position and bar w/weight on your back. Movement is the same as regular step-up except you step down to the side instead of backwards. Step up with right leg 3 times then at the top of step-up cross your left foot in front over to the right side of the top of the plyo box and step down with right foot so that you are now on the right side of the box with left foot on top of box in proper step-up position. Perform 3 with left-leg then cross-over back to original position. Shoot for 9-12 reps with each leg. Advanced Level: once you can lateral step-up with complete control crossover each time you step up instead of waiting until your 3rd rep.
1B: Jumping pull-ups w/tuck

2A: Hang Clean & Jerk:

set 1: 6 reps
set 2: 6 reps
set 3: 4 reps
set 4: 4 reps
set 5: 2 reps (clean only)
set 6: 2 reps (clean only)

2B: Push-press: finished it off with 2 sets of push-press, heavy as possible for 6 reps

3A: weighted pullups
3B: weighted dips

4: plyometric arm swings: 5lb dumbells in each hand TF. Maintain 90-90's with arms and swing through the shoulders, same motion as if you were sprinting.

Core Circuit: finished with circuit of GHD's, GHD situps, medicine ball twists, hanging leg raises. 3 times through no rest.

This week:

All the guys I train with were on different schedules this week so I dropped some weight days and mixed in extra field work.

Monday: Heavybag work/field work w/sprint mechanic emphasis
Tuesday: field work w/agility & lateral movement emphasis
Wednesday: weights- heavy day
Thursday: field work w/medicine ball and plyometric emphasis
Friday: recovery
Saturday/Sunday: One Love One Beach. I can almost taste the carbombs now. And it tastes good. Real good.

tic...tic...tic...BOOM!

#40

Field Work & Hamstring Pulls

2008-04-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

"warm-up to stretch, do not stretch to warm-up"- Vern Gambetta

"Flexibility of the hamstring is basically a non factor in hamstring pulls, it is dynamic hip flexibility that is important. You don't get that wallowing around on the ground in pregame stretch."- Vern Gambetta

The article on hamstring pulls written by Vern on his website (link to the right) should be passed around to every athlete you know. Here it is in full:

We have just started hamstring pulling season (AKA Major League Baseball
Season) So far in first two days of the season there have bee two hamstring
pulls. Do you ever wonder why? Is it the cold weather? No I don’t think so
although can be a factor at times. Are they out of shape? I hope not they have
spent six weeks in spring training getting game fit. Based on my observations
over the years here is my take on the hamstring pull situation in baseball and
for that matter other sports. Too much emphasis on static stretching in
warm-up. Warm-up to stretch, do not stretch to warm-up. Flexibility of the hamstring is basically a non factor in hamstring pulls, it is dynamic hip flexibility that is important. You don't get that wallowing around on the ground in pregame stretch. Lack of sufficient warm-up. The current rage in warm-up does not involve enough movement, way too much at walking tempo, you need to build the warm-up in a crescendo to top speed sprints. Another reason is too much emphasis on linear running mechanics, very little on turns. The hamstring is a transverse plane muscle that is stressed when running a curve and on deceleration. There is too much strengthening using non functional exercises in prone and supine positions. The solutions are simple, but require understanding muscle function and compliance to a program. More lunges in all planes, step-ups both low and high, more emphasis on running turns and at least two days a week of all out sprinting outside the game. It takes time and preparation with attention to detail. - Vern Gambetta

Reality Check time: go re-read that part on running curves & deceleration and think about how much time you spend in your program on those areas. Probably not enough is it?

Here's a great video on rapid-reponse (quick feet) movements. These kids are just creating movements as they go along. We should all be so smart to apply this methodology. Don't just follow, invent. Think outside the athletic box; push the limits of your movement ability. You might just surprise yourself. (Also, take notice of their arm swing movements and how much force you can generate from the arms. Movement comes from the whole body, not just your legs).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfR4DP6w8e4

Field Work:

10 mins throwing
10 mins dynamic stretching/mini band movement
10 mins medicine ball pillar strength work- standing throws (all types) squat-to-throw, squat-to-toss, etc. Focus on postural control and explosive core/hip/ass initiated movement with your weight underneath you.
10 mins rapid-response drills- quick feet movement drills.
15 mins long-response lateral movement drills- full-body maximum impact drills moving lateral.
15 mins long-response forward movement drills- full-body max impact drills moving forward

Anytime we took a water break we would immediately throw 20 backhands and 20 forehands in to practice throwing while fatigued.

Finished with a 3-ball football receiver drill. This drill can easily (and effectively) be used with disc's instead of footballs for ultimate training. It trains turning, deceleration, field awareness, and acceleration to full-sprint with constant catch (and throws if done with a disc) movements. Keep it as anaerobic as possible.

3-ball Drill:

Line up on right side of the field with thrower to your left that has 3 footballs with them. The 1st Route is a 3 yard slant across the field catching the ball (disc) at 8-10 yards to the opposite side side of the field from where you started. Catch the ball, tuck it for a second and drop it (for a disc you would catch it, plant, and throw back to the thrower). Immediately explode into 2nd Route which is a 12-yard out back across the field to the opposite sideline (you should be at about 12 yards already) catch the second ball, tuck & drop (or plant and throw with a disc). Immediately explosively transition into 3rd route which is a streak up the right side of the field. Catch the deep ball (or huck) at full sprint. Your partner now comes and meets you down at the end of the field and it's their turn to run and your turn to throw heading back the other direction. 3 explosive sprints all finishing with a catch with turn & decleration transitions. Sick.

Don't just work out...work out with a plan. If you're going to train put some thought into it. Focus on what you need to improve on and equal out imbalances. Your game will thank you for it.

#40

STS 4-1-2008

2008-04-01T10:19:00.000-07:00

I don't have any tricky plays, I'd rather have tricky players.-- Abe Lemons

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1aDz3lNMxc

Great video. You can really see the connective chain of movements. Can also be done with dumbbells as well. Also pay attention to the landing mechanics. How you land is just as important as how you jump.

A smart article by Alwyn Cosgrove:

http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/cosgroves_five_ahha_moments&cr=performanceTraining

And another great one from Paul Chek. Check out the importance of the Anterior/Posterior Oblique System and how it translates over sports. Also pay attention to the image at the bottom of the article and the progression you should follow with your core training. If you don't know this name, you should.

http://www.chekinstitute.com/articles.cfm?select=12

Fre Flo Do. I call it: The Answer. How to take athleticism to truly it's greatest heights. Simply Brilliant, simply phenomenal.

http://www.freflodo.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKHcJ_X0Kig

Workout:

Today's focus was on split-squats and OH movement. Remember, it's a split-squat, not a lunge. You are pushing with power from the back leg, not pulling from the front leg. There's simply no lunging involved. Your back leg should maintain a 90 degree angle with a straight line running from the top of your head down to the bottom of the knee of the back leg. For most of you that means shortening up your stance and cognitively focusing on flexing the posterior chain of your back leg. In Yoga you lunge. In sprinting you split-squat. Recognize the difference.

Movement Prep: usual mixture. See previous posts if you need a full breakdown.

Jump Training:

-Sitting box jumps 1 set of 12. Focus on landing with no noise.
- Standing box jumps landing on 1 leg in a 1/4 squat, focus on landing mechanics. 1 set of 8 each leg
- Split-squat jumps 2 sets of 12

Functional Lifts:

Split-Squat Drops: 2 weeks into these and love them. Starting in athletic stance with bar in push-press position, explode into split-squat while arms explode the bar overhead. Lower body explodes downward, arms explode up, core stays active but stable. Land with weight completely underneath you on the back leg, and keep that scapular retraction. Pop back up into push-press position and repeat with opposite leg in front. Really focus on fluidity and control while moving explosively. 3 sets x 10

This next sequence is a killer and couldn't be more functional. Props to my boy Chris for designing it.

1A: OH squats- 10 reps. Put a box behind you if you can't maintain proper control & form.
1B: Squat-to-Superman pushup- 10 reps. From standing squat down and walk hands all the way out in front (inchworm style) till hands are completely out in front (like superman), perform pushup and walk hands back. That's 1. Concentrate on a locked core and initiating movement from it. So dirrrty.
1C: 1 leg squats (pistol squats) 10 reps each leg: put a box behind you and sit down n' up just like you were getting out of a chair.

3 sets all the way through.

Arm Swivels: Holding 1 or 2lb dumbells in each hand stand in athletic stance. With your arms in a 90 degree angle (bent at elbow) pump your arms as fast and as hard as you can like you're sprinting moving the hands from your hip-pocket to your eye-socket. Focus on a stable core and movement through the shoulders. Keep those 90-90's and focus on the hip-pocket to eye-socket. 3 rounds until failure.

Core Circuit: finished with quick circuit incorporating twisting movements from Paul Chek's article from above. Used cables, medicine balls, and also threw some GHD's in to hit those hammys one last time.

This week:

Monday: Recovery
Tuesday: Field work & throwing (agility/sprint mechanic emphasis)
Wednesday: weights
Thursday: Field work & throwing (plyometric emphasis)
Friday: football receiver drills & dynamic stretching. Light movement day, emphasis on football mechanics & skills.
Saturday: Flag Football Championships. Time to stay undefeated.
Sunday: Weights or pick-up ultimate.

Hopefully you had a chance to check out the Nike Sparq commercials and it piqued your interest into all the different types of training you can incorporate to be stronger, faster, & quicker. Keep your body guessing and your workouts fresh. Routine is the enemy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4TbxS_CdWE

Your agility owes my agility $20,
#40

STS 3-24

2008-03-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

"75 percent of the world is covered by water. The rest is covered by Smoot." --Fred Smoot, Washington Redskins cornerback

Here's a great video on overhead split-squats:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I1YI2y-W4M

And a great article on overhead squats and how important they are to training the shoulder girdle. (not to mention that whole core thing)

http://www.crossfit.com/journal/library/67_08_Overhead_Lifting.pdf

And yet another split-squat article of awesomeness. Check out these lifts for some great ideas. I already planned my next workout with the examples from these. Such smart athletic movements.

http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/split_stance_lifting_for_athletes&cr=performanceTraining

Workout:

Movement Prep: standard ciruit. Added 50 double-unders and step-ups w/mini bands also.

Jump Training:

1A: sitting box jumps
1B: full-body plyo pushups (both feet and hands leave the ground and land in unison)

1A: box march w/mini bands
1B: jumping tuck pullups

Functional Lifts:

Hang Cleans- 6,4,4,4,2

Front-squats- 8, 6, 4, 4. If you're having trouble with the front squats try putting 2.5lb plates behind your heels. This puts your foot in a sprinter position, eliminating any calf flexibility issues (which forces your upper body forward) and allows you to really sit back deep into the squat. A simple thing that can make a big difference.

Romanian dead-lifts- 8,8,8. Great for the P-chain, you really feel it in the hammys.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/RomanianDeadlift.html

1-arm Snatches: 2 sets of 8 each arm. Love these mofos, they just crush.

This week:

Monday: Weights
Tuesday: heavybag work and sprint/agility training/throws
Wednesday: Weights
Thursday: Plyometric/field work/medicine ball/throws
Friday: Recovery
Weekend: Fools West

#40

Hill Runs & Heavybag

2008-03-20T15:23:00.000-07:00

"You are how you train" - Vern Gambetta

Everyone should go back and re-read the article Vern posted on developing an aerobic base, then share it with someone it might help (link on the right). There's no "easing into" sprinting, it just doesn't work like that. That might be tough news to hear for some of you, but if you're going to do something, might as well do it right and get the absolute maximum benefit from it.

Heavybag Work:

5 rounds with 1 minute rest in between.

1 round=

- 1 minute power punches
- 1 minute speed combos
- 2 minutes jump-rope
- 30 kicks each leg- 10 roundhouse, 10 straight-kicks, 10 side-kicks
- Ab wheel- 10 reps

There was a study published in the UK about a year ago on the effects kicking a heavybag had on soccer players. Surprise surprise, those who kicked a heavybag 3x's a week had a lower % of injury, and stronger quads. I'm definitely no karate kid but kicking the bag sure does have a great affect on my legs. A heavybag is a staple to any home gym, they're not that expensive for the life you get out of them and the fitness possibilities are endless.

Hill Sprints:

Set 1: 10 x 10 seconds sprints with no rest. As soon as you finish the run walk backwards (for further posterior chain stabilization) down the hill to your starting place and repeat immediately. Focus on proper sprinting technique, hip-pocket-to-eye-socket with the arms in your 90-90's. You should be anaerobic as long as possible.

Set 2: 10 x 10 seconds backpedaling. Same concept, no rest till the 10 are finished. As soon as you're done walk forwards back to your starting spot and repeat. These killed me.

Set 3: 6 x 10 seconds forward sprints. Shoulda done more but punked out. This is where I really need a training partner to push me that extra distance. Hill runs by myself aren't exactly my favorite.

Finished with 2 rounds of:

- 2 minute speed & power punches
- 45 kicks each leg- 15 of each type

Finished in just under an hour and each movement was explosive, full body & core initiated. As it should be.

Off to Vegas for the Madness of March tomorrow. F yeah. 24 hours from now we'll be poolside care-free and drink-heavy watching UCLA take the title home yet again.

Vegas baby,
#40

STS 3-18-08

2008-03-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

"The harder I practice, the luckier I get." - Gary Player

The following chart is the program for the U of Oregon athletes. This was designed by Jim Radcliffe, the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach who is also regarded as the "Father of Plyometrics." If you've done any kind of plyometric/jumping program (air alert, etc) the concepts behind it all flowed from him. For years he has been challenging new progressions of sports movements and showing the world just how explosive and fast-twitch the human body can be with the right training and the proper biomechanics.

Take a look at the breakdown on this. Right away you'll notice the two largest pieces of the pie: Weight training and movement specifics. As if you needed further confirmation that proper weight training is an absolutely critical part of your training program. Sorry it's a little blurry but the original chart is on the U of O strength & conditioning website if ya need a better copy.

Quick bio on Jim Radcliffe:

http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=3376&SPID=233&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=217975&Q_SEASON=2007

Here's a great article on the P-chain and the importance of glute activation:

http://stronglifts.com/how-to-optimize-posterior-chain-power-glute-activation/

Workout:

Movement Prep: circuit of jump-rope, bodyweight squats, split-squats, side lunges, step-ups, handstand pushups, inchworms, and mini-band shuffles.

Plyometric Training:

-Box march w/mini bands: 2 sets TF

http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxMarchHigh.html

- Sitting Box Jumps: 2 sets x 10. Sit on medium plyo box, explode up and land on top of box in 1/4 squat with proper landing mechanics. If you don't land correctly it's now an exercise in reactive strength, bounce out of the landing in control back onto the ground. Resume sitting on box and repeat.

Functional Lifts:

- Hang Cleans: 2 sets x 6. Nothing prepares your body for front squats like a hang clean.

- Front Squats: 8, 8, 4, 3, 3. Went heavy as I could on the last two.

- Overhead split-squats: 4 x 8. Alternated legs each time and sets 1 & 3 were moving forwards, sets 2 & 4 were moving backwards.

- Overhead 1 leg (pistol) box squats: 3 x 8 each leg. Put the medium plyo box behind and just worked on sitting back and standing up with proper glute/core activation. Such a great exercise.

- Hang Snatches: 3 x 8. This exercise is sick because it trains the exact movement your upperbody, core, & arms make when reaching up for a disc during a jump. The more explosively you can reach upwards to your fullest extension could be the difference maker in getting to the disc first in the air and making the grab or getting sky'd yourself.

Here's a decent Xfit video showing the motions. Would be nice if they provided some commentary to go with it, but so it goes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXg3O-uU0Jw

Core Circuit: finished with a core circuit that consisted of decline situps, jumping tuck pullups, core twists w/medicine balls, & dips-to-knee raise. Twice through resting only between circuits.

#40

STS 3-12-08

2008-03-13T20:01:00.000-07:00

"Dont look back. Something might be gaining on you" -Satchel Paige

Vern does it again. The article by Jack Blatherwick on developing an aerobic base should be should passed around to pretty much everyone, everywhere. Like the man says "you are how you train."

http://www.functionalpathtraining.blogspot.com/

Check out this link for more great ideas. Take the concepts from some of these examples and apply them to ultimate.

http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/50_more_tips_for_serious_athletes&cr=performanceTraining

Workout:

Movement Prep: Usual mixture of bodyweight squats, pushups, jump rope, step ups, split-squats and inchworms. I'm completely convinced now that nothing warms you up better than jumping rope. It's control at it's finest, both postural and plyometric.

Medicine Ball:

1A: Front-squat throw x10
1b: mini-band shuffle, mini band skip

2A: sumo-squat backwards toss x10
2b: mini-band shuffle, mini band skip

Functional Lifts:

1: Hang Cleans-4 sets of 6,4,2,2 went as heavy as I could on the last two sets. If you've never done hang cleans now is a good a time to start as any. Grab the bar and work on your form. Just practicing it with light weight is a great warmup.

2: Tried the split-squat presses from the 50 tips link above and they were awesome. 3 sets of 8. Start with bar in push-press position, drop into a proper split-squat (not a lunge, there should be a line from the bottom of the knee of your back leg and the top of your head. All the weight should be on the back leg, ready for a push movement; not a pull movement from your front leg) while the bar extends overhead. Pop back up into push-press position and alternate legs. Same motion as the quick drop, except a split-squat landing and the bar starts in front. I started with 1 leg in front of the other, but still underneath my body. Seemed to work the same, at least until I get the hang of it. Check out the link above for a visual display.

3: Deadlifts 6 sets of 6,4,4,3,2,1 , went as heavy as I could just to see what would happen. I felt great and wanted to see where the line was. The result was that I went a lot heavier than I've ever attempted before, and it wasn't nearly as impossible as I anticipated. Lesson: your body is most definitely stronger than your mind thinks it is. Once you're confident in your form, try and push your weight a bit, you might surprise yourself. Just keep that form rock solid and see what you're capable of.

This week:
Monday: Weights
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: Hill runs, heavybag
Thursday: Weights
Friday: Elliptical intervals, core work
Saturday: football game
Sunday: heavybag in the morning, pickup ulty in the afternoon.

Daylight savings is finally back and that means field work is back on during the week. Definitely gonna make that tire sled from the link above, that should make a nice addition to the ol' sprint training. We'll see how that goes.

#40

STS 2-25-08

2008-02-25T14:19:00.000-08:00

How you respond to the challenge in the second half will determine what you become after the game, whether you are a winner or a loser. -Lou Holtz

A great qoute, as the ability to make mid-game adjustments cannot be understated. I know Lou meant for the qoute to extend further than the field, but it's a great example of yet another attribute of an intelligent coach: the ability to step outside the game and view it strategically from a peripheral level without emotion. Definitely one of the most useful attributes for player/coaches in a uber-streaky sport like ours.

Here's a new article by Alwyn Cosgrove that is extremely informative. Listen to the man:

http://www.alwyncosgrove.com/leg-training-myths.html

And one of my favorites that needs to be re-read at least once a year:

http://www.alwyncosgrove.com/Articles.html
(click on "the best exercise you're not doing")

One day I'll learn how to do those link-things like one of those real blogger types. One day.

The focus of today's workout was a longer-than-usual emphasis on jump-training and also on hang-cleans for the Functional Strength part.

Movement Prep: cycle of jump-rope, walking split-squats, squats, side-lunges, inchworms, handstand pushups, and shootin' hoops.

Medicine Ball:
1A: front-squat throws
1B: mini-band shuffles

2A: sumo-squat backwards toss w/jump backwards
2B: mini-band skips

3A: Medicine Ball 3-throw circuit (see previous posts for reference)
3B: mini-band shuffles

Plyometric/explosive movent:

1A: mini-band high knees on med. plyo box
1B: plyo pushups
2 sets

2A: down n' back step-ups on small plyo box
2B: jumping pullups w/tuck
2 sets

3A: sitting box jumps w/alternating leg pistol squats
3B: hanging leg-raises
3 sets

4: box jump march on med. plyo box: http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxJumpMarch.html
2 sets

Tried a new exercise today also, a romanian dead-lift to weighted squat-jump hybrid. To do this I took dumbells in each hand, performed the first part of the RDL (lowering) and then at the bottom I bent my knees fully and transistioned into the bottom of a squat. Then once I was centered I exploded up in a jump-squat. Very simple, and very effective. A nice variation on two seperate exercises. Here's the RDL portion:

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/RomanianDeadlift.html

Functional Strength:

1: Hang Cleans: 6 sets w/increasing weight

Also did a crazy-hard circuit 4 times through, each time alternating wearing mini-bands. Like I said, the possibilites of them are endless.

2A: Deadlifts
2B: Push-press
2C: Decline sit-ups w/weight

3A: Overhead split-squats
3B: core twists w/medicine ball

Finished the workout with a killer circuit of:

- chinups w/dumbbell between feet
- GHD's
- GHD situps
- dips
3x through w/no rest

This week:
Monday: workout above
Tuesday: Winter League game
Wednesday: rest and/or yoga/stretching
Thursday: weights
Friday: Heavybag work & hill runs. On my last heavybag workout I alternated rounds wearing the mini-bands and it had an amazing effect on my lower body. Trying to keep your power stance and move properly with your knees being tugged together is amazingly good on the core/hips/legs. Crazy, I know.
Saturday: Flag football game in morning, ultimate in the afternoon.
Sunday: Golfy-golf, ultimate if good weather, weights if not.

Your goal for this week is to:
A) buy some mini-bands. Seriously.
B) find a way to incorporate them into a portion of your workout that you haven't done before. If what you've created with them is awesome then feel free to write me about it so I can try it out as well.

Now go to it.

#40

300 Club

2008-02-20T13:43:00.000-08:00

"Appearance is a consequence of fitness" - Mark Twight

Did the 300 workout that everyone has been spoutin' about since the movie came out for the first time today. The story goes that it was an invitation-only rite-of-passage workout for the actors & stuntmen at the end of the training camp for the movie. The guy that designed the program for the movie, Mark Twight, is realer than the real deal holyfield. His workouts are based on the concept of sprint methodology: high-intensity full body movements done in succession for complete metabolic and neurological fatigue. Sound ultimate related to you? For a further explanation check out the man himself:

http://www.gymjones.com/

The 300 workout:
(done in exact order, can't move on to next exercise until all reps are completed)

25 x pullups
50 x Deadlifts w/135lbs
50 x pushups
50 x box jumps on largest plyo box
50 x floor wipers
50 x 1 arm clean-n-press w/36lb kettlebell (I substituted a 35lb dumbbell as I had no kettelbell available)
25 x pullups

This workout was a useful measuring stick for my off-season program, and for my off-season program only. I couldn't care less about fitness "tests" like these, as my one & only concern is how my training translates over to W's on the field. But it was nice to check in and see where my training program stacks up to other fitness professional's on a quantitative level.

I'm writing this 2 hours after the workout and I'm still dizzy. When I first took a look at the workout the deadlifts stood out immediately. 50 is quite a daunting number, but I broke it up into 5 sets of 10 and it went by much easier than I anticipated. Thank god they were second. I really started to feel fatigue on the second half of the box jumps, which I broke into the same rep/set count. The 1-arm clean-n-press were a blur, mostly just tried to keep my feet underneath me, my food down, and the room from spinning.

Even if I did care, since I didn't use a kettlebell which incorporates a bit more core stability, grip strength, and would be 1lb heavier, my time wouldn't be considered "official". But I will say that I broke the 20-minute mark, putting me up there with 'dem dudes from the movie. What does that mean? absolutely jack shit. But it was still fun to get a ferociously difficult workout done in under 20 minutes.

This week:
Monday- rest
Tuesday- winter league game
Wednesday- 300
Thursday- row machine & elliptical intervals
Friday- weights
Saturday- flag football game in the morning, beach ultimate in the afternoon
Sunday- golf in the morning, heavybag workout & hill runs in the afternoon

#40

STS 2-12-08

2008-02-11T09:30:00.000-08:00

I'm tired of hearing about money, money, money, money, money. I just want to play the game, drink Pepsi, wear Reebok.
-Shaquille O'Neal

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

This video is fantastic for showing the sequence of movements that make up the hang clean. In slow motion you can really see how the bar follows a direct line from the pull to the catch as close the body as possible. If your experience in olympic lifts are limited then start with deadlift-to-high pulls, front-squats, and jump-shrugs combined with lightweight cleans (just the bar) until you feel comfortable with the sequence of movements and can keep the bar on that single line close to your body. Truly my favorite excercise as it just about trains everything all at once. Add the push-press and your now into badass territory.

Todays Workout:

Movement Prep: 15 minutes worth of jump-roping, clock split-squats, inchworms, T-pushups, side lunges, bodyweight squats, & ab wheel.

Medicine Ball/Mini Band Sequence:
1A 10 front-squat throws w/catch
1B 4 mini-band shuffles

2A 10 sumo-squat backwards throws (instead of throwing straight up, throw against wall behind you as high up as you can throw) w/catch
2B 4 mini-band shuffles

3A 3-throw sequence from previous post (5 times through)
3B 4 mini-band shuffles

Plyometric Movement:

2 sets of each with plyo-pushups and jumping pull-ups w/tuck mixed in intermittently

- Mini-band high knees on med. plyo box http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxMarchHigh.html
- Explosive step-ups, alternating legs in air
- split-squat jumps (make sure your feet don't get too far away from the center of your body. it's not a lunge jump, as the video incorrectly states). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVmJKsMmd1A

Advanced Level: Pistol Squat-to-sitting box jump: sit on medium plyo box, perform 1-leg'd (pistold) squat with right leg, lower back to sitting on box and repeat with leg left, lower back to sitting and perform sitting box jump, landing on box in 1/4 squat with zero noise. That's 1 rep.

Functional Strength Training:

1A: Lateral Step-ups w/crossover: Stand on the left side of the medium plyo box with your right leg on the box in proper step-up position and bar w/weight on your back. Movement is the same as regular step-up except you step down to the side instead of backwards. Step up with right leg 3 times then at the top of step-up cross your left foot in front over to the right side of the top of the plyo box and step down with right foot so that you are now on the right side of the box with left foot on top of box in proper step-up position. Perform 3 with left-leg then cross-over back to original position. Shoot for 9-12 reps with each leg. Advanced Level: once you can lateral step-up with complete control crossover each time you step up instead of waiting until your 3rd rep.
1B: Hanging leg/knee raise

Go through 1st superset twice with rest only after hanging leg raise.

2A: overhead split-squat: 12 reps, movement is initiated by posterior chain of back leg.
2b: Lateral shuffles with mini-bands: 30-45 seconds, focus on no noise on landings.

Go through 2nd superset twice with 1st set forward split-squat, 2nd set backwards split-squat.

This next sequence is from Tyler Hansbrough's strength coach and it's emphasis is on strengthening the back. This mothaf'er is crazy-ridiculous and a huge reason for his strength gains since he came to college. Perform this with 40% of your bodyweight or below. And as always, Form. Is. Everything.

Move from one movement to the next without rest:

Deadlift-to-high-pull (6 reps)
Hang Snatches (6 reps. If you don't know how to do these substitute with russian dead-lifts)
Good-mornings (6 reps)
Thrusters (Front-squat to push-press- 6 reps)
Bent over back rows (6 reps- don't round that back)

You need to be able to keep scapular retraction while in movent the entire time. Imagine trying to squeeze a grapefruit with your shoulder blades, that's how it should feel. A round back is like drinking a beer with a straw: just f'ing useless. Don't be that guy.

Scapular retraction: http://catalog.nucleusinc.com/generateexhibit.php?ID=20873&ExhibitKeywordsRaw=&TL=&A=2

3-5 sets, depending on your strength levels.

3A: pullups/chinups TF (to failure) Advanced: weighted pullups/chinups
3B: Dips TF Advanced: weighted dips

2-3 sets. Finish with 10-15 minute core circuit, making sure to include rotational movment.

Stretch, foam roll, and eat smart food within 20 minutes of your session.

This weeks schedule:
Monday: Heavybag work (30-40 mins) followed by Bikram yoga
Tuesday: Weight session above
Wednesday: Interval work followed by full stretching session (i've been mad tight lately and trying alleviate that with extra stretching/yoga sessions)
Thursday: Reactive/elastic strength training+ jump workout
Friday: Winter League Game
Saturday: Flag Football game in the morning, pickup ultimate in the afternoon
Sunday: Golf in the morning, either heavybag work or co-ed pickup in the afternoon, or both.

#40

Back to it.

2008-02-05T10:35:00.000-08:00

You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.
- Plato

Took a break from this thing for a minute there, but I'm back to it now. The past few months have been great for my training, I've progressed in a lot of key areas I've been emphasizing (step-ups, hang cleans, lateral movement, etc...for example) and spent LOTS of time regressing and improving other areas that definitely needed it (overhead squats, split-squats, postural control, for example). You know what your own weaknesses are, make sure you give them their due. Lots to cover today so I'll jump right into it.

Things that are awesome:

- Mini-bands. Simply the most effective way train lateral movement and strengthen the outer hip muscles. The options with them are simply endless. Just start with the greens first big guy, then work your way up.
http://www.performbetter.com/detail.aspx_Q_ID_E_3893_A_CategoryID_E_327

- 10 commandments. Couldn't have said it better if I tried.
http://www.saintwilhelms.org/Commandments.htm

- 50 tips for serious athletes. Great article.
http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do;jsessionid=BC65C70A3950A8AA59188E6D56E5972E.hydra?id=1354863

Today's workout:

Movement Prep: 15mins worth of jump-rope, bodyweight squats, split-squats, inchworms, handstand pushups, side lunges, etc. Again, save that static stretching for afterwards when you want to put the muscles to sleep. Not before.

Medicine-ball Work:
I incorporated medicine ball throws into the beginning of my explosive work now and it's been phenomenal. Really warms the entire body up at once and innately trains the "kinetic chain" from your feet to your fingertips. Plus it's fun. I designed a 3-step sequence that hits the most functional type of movements.

Move from one throw to another without rest.

Throw 1: sumo-squat overhead toss. Put the ball on the floor, squat down in proper squat form, pick the ball up and throw it straight overhead with arms extended exploding upwards. Catch the ball.
Throw 2: Ground Slam. Standing upright put the ball behind your head (like a soccer player attempting a throw-in). Jump up while at the same time throw the ball down in front of you as hard as you can. Your feet should stay together and will be out in front of you at the height of your jump. So your lower body is exploding up while your upper body is moving explosively downward. Catch the ball on the bounce in a front-squat position.
Throw 3: Front-squat throw: Since you're already in front-squat position finish it off with a front-squat throw, leaving your feet and throwing it straight up as high as possible, like a jump-shot straight up. Catch the ball.

Sequence: Go through the throw-sequence 5 times with no rest, then put a mini-band on just above your knees and and shuffle back and forth while staying low, on your toes (feet always pointed forward and feet should never touch each other). I do my throws on a basketball court and then shuffle down n' back to halfcourt twice.

2 times through, resting after the band shuffles. Add more throws as you see fit.

Explosive Movement:

3 new types to go over. Incorporate these into your normal box jumps, box marches, etc. Explosive & nimble are the name of the game here. Minimal ground contact as possible. I usually pick 2 of these and work 2-3 sets in.

- Mini-band high knees. Same as the box march but with mini-bands just above the knee. Stay as anaroebic as possible. Don't stress is the bands ride up the quad as you're going, sometimes it happens, just power through. Go till failure and keep that form solid.
http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxMarchHigh.html

- Back n' forth step-ups: using the low plyo box stand with the box in front of you. As fast as you can while staying on your toes step-up onto the box with right leg first then left leg then step down in front of the box following the same pattern. Now reverse the direction while still facing the same way (always face the same way) so that you are stepping back up onto the box and then back to your original position, then repeat so that you are going back n' forth to the front and back of the box, back n' forth..etc. Alternate which leg leads the next time through, or tranisition during movement if you're advanced enough. Can also be done with those plastic reebok stepper things if you need a smaller box. Incorporating backwards movement with step-ups is the shit.

-Sitting box jumps: Sit on the edge of the medium plyo-box with your feet in dorsiflexion. From the sitting position explode up and land on top of the plyo box on your toes in a 1/4 squat (or deeper if you are able). Your landing should make zero noise, focus on your landing mechanics- absorbing with your muscles not your joints. In fact, your landing mechanics should be on your mind for every ballistic movement you make. When you stick it, hold it there for a second or two then jump down with control and repeat (you can also do a depth jump from here if you're so inclined). If you don't stick it then it's now an exercise in reactivity, bounce out of it and back to the ground as safely and as athletically as possible. Who said we only have to train jumping forwards?

Functional Strength-training:

1A: Overhead squats. Keep the heels on the floor. If you can't do these well then put the medium plyo box or a bench behind you and do box-squats. essentially re-create sitting back and standing up out of a chair, but with a bar overhead.
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/OverheadSquat.html
1B: Lateral shuffles on the low plyo box with the mini-bands above the knee. 30-45 seconds
http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxLateralShuffle.html

Twice through, resting after the shuffles

2A: Overhead split-squats. Don't lunge out, all your weight should be on the posterior chain of the back leg, not the quad of the front leg.
2B: lateral shuffles as above. Don't be scared tough guy, it's only 30-45 seconds.

First time through split-squat forwards. 2nd time through split-squat backwards.

3: hang-cleans heavy. 3 sets. Substitute another full-body lift if you can't perform these. Deadlift, deadlift-to-high-pull, more split-squats...etc.

4A: front-squat thrusters: with the bar in the push-press position perform a front-squat and finish with the bar overhead.
4b: jumping pull-up tucks TF: stand under the pull-up bar, jump up and perform a pull-up while simultaneously bring your feet into a tuck position so that you finish your pullup in a full tuck. land, repeat. Shoot for 10-12 or to failure. I also mix these in intermittently whenever I feel like so that I'll usually finish with 5-7 sets of these at the end of the workout. Same with plyo-pushups.

2 sets through, rest when necessary.

5: 2 sets of either heavy front-squats, or heavy walking split-squats.

6: 2-3 sets of hamstring/posterior chain dominant exercises: russian deadlifts, GHD's (try 1 leg if you're able) are all good examples.

Finish with 10mins of a core circuit, emphasizing your transverse abdominis (translation= do something more than just crunches.)

Now you can stretch, foam roll and eat.

This weeks schedule:
Monday- Workout above
Tuesday- Interval work & 10min. core circuit
Wednesday- Winter League game
Thursday- yoga or recovery/stretch day, depending on how I feel
Friday- weights
Saturday- Flag football in the morning, golf in the afternoon
Sunday- 40min. Heavy-bag work (punch & kick combo), pickup frisbee in the afternoon.

Have a good week, and remember to always train as close to game speed as possible.

#40

In with the old, in with the new & STS 12-4

2007-12-04T12:46:00.000-08:00

"Fast as the wind, quiet as the forest, aggressive as fire, and as immovable as a mountain" - Samurai battle banner

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57pv_1j4dH0

I love Ross's back-to-basics training style with his emphasis on getting absolutely as much intensity and efficiency out of every single movement. Everything is as intense as possible, as explosive as possible, and with as much resistance (of all variety) as possible. I also dig how much he thinks outside the box and creates new movements and new tougher progressions. Because that's the true beauty of creating new movements and workouts, they don't negate the previous ideas and concepts, but instead builds upon them. Too many people make the mistake of thinking that something new has to replace something old and that the old no longer has any value, but that couldn't be more wrong. Like every other area of your life it's all just a series of progressions.

Like Vern Gambetta said, you have 3 constants to play with to affect your workouts: gravity, ground, & your body. Think outside the box for your workouts on how to affect those constants most effectively, the point is to THINK and focus on your body, not plug into a TV and mentally check out for your workout or zone out through the same boring stuff you've been doing since High School. Your training should be where you do the most thinking and analyzing, not the least. I have a teammate that hates standard workouts and prefers to get his training in by altering his ground environment. Running through dry creekbeds where he bound/runs from rock to rock, down steep hills, and the like are all part of his training routine. 2 different roads to reach the same fitness goals. Though I will say that I prefer combining different ground environments with the weightroom because while you can't make your steep hill any steeper, I can always add weight. And at the end of the day we still play on a flat grass surface so training on flat grass is still unquestionably a major part of your workout. But I love that he's thinking outside the box and figuring out new ways to push his body.

Todays workout session was inspired by a Crossfit workout with some adjustments. This thing is a killer.

Movement Prep: Same as usual.

Superset 1:
Squat-pulls
Jump punches (2x w/no rest)

Superset 2:
Step-ups w/weight
Box Jump March http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxJumpMarch.html
(2x w/no rest)

Hang Cleans- 4 sets of 6,6,4,4 increasing weight

Xfit section: Perform activities in any order, must completely finish each activity before moving to next one, and workout is timed. Obviously the focus here is working at maximum intensity and fighting fatigue.

50 Box Jumps (24 inch box minimum)
50 jumping pull-ups (jump up to pull-up bar, do full pull-up, land, repeat)
50 Kettlebell swings w/dumbbell (I use 45lb)
50 GHD's
50 Walking lunges
50 combo of handstand pushups/dips/plyo pushups
50 Double-jumps w/jump rope
50 Knee-to-elbows
50 burpees
50 push-press w/bar

Flat. Out. Exhaustion. If you're Tuff Enough to do this hit me up and let me know how it goes.

This weekend was absolutely amazing here. A bit o' rain on Friday left the fields in perfect playing conditions. It was even a bit chilly, making for perfect outdoor sports weather. Practiced with my football team on Saturday, we've got a slew of great receivers to catch the ball and a stacked defense to match. Our first tournament is this weekend, it'll be fun to see how we match up against the best LA has to offer. Supposedly there's something like 160+ teams and 12 divisions from all over SoCal going to be there. I dream of the day when local Ultimate tournaments have that kind of draw.

Sunday was the tournament for Beach League and brought the 3peat for our ridicuously fun team o' clowns. Kind of fun winning a league since it's been in existence, regardless of the league. It was 72 in Santa Monica and sunny enough for me to even get a lil' tanny-tan. Semi's and finals were both close in the beginning, but with our stacked defense and margaret jackin' it to timmy "2pointer" paymaster who grabbed everything under the sun it was Crushville, Population: us. (Cross-gender coast-to-coast goals worth 2 points is the dopest rule ever for beach). One thing I noticed specifically is that busting down on the pull is even more important on the sand than on grass as field position in the sand is really everything, and being on the mark when your guy picks up the pull for a stall-6 count is just dirty, easy defense.

Keep on truckin'

#40

What off-season?

2007-11-08T11:39:00.000-08:00

No, seriously. What off-season?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtOPgv8ZxYg

With Nationals over most Ultimate players enter some sort of off-season. I refuse to call it that, as it suggest that you're taking this time off. (just like I hate it when people call split-squats/lunges, they're split-squats. There's no lunging involved.) There's NO off-season 'round here, just a time to get back to other sports and to make gains in the weightroom. Off-season is for chumps.

Now is the time to accomplish two goals:

1. Get healthy. Give yourself time to fix all those nagging injuries. Note: this isn't taking time off, this is recovery.
2. Further increase your strength base for next year.

The most effective way to accomplish Goal 2 is through functional full-body strength-training 3 times a week. As I've said before, if your body is a car, then sprint training gives you more miles to the gallon, while strength training gives you a bigger gas tank. Neither one is nearly as effective without the other.

As for me, I'm looking forward to changing my workouts up and focusing on moving up in weight on my functional lifts and spending this time playing Flag Football with my team (8 years running and still league champs every year...perks of having the best QB in the league. Ah football...so nice to only have to work 6 seconds and then get a 30 second break), spending more time on boxing workouts and in the pool with sprint-swim training, snowboarding, more advanced medicine ball work, and winning beach league again. Only in LA can I play beach ultimate and snowboard in the same month, even if they are lame Mtn's with sucky man-made snow. But like my dad says "a bad day skiing still beats any day at work."

Today's Boxing Workout:

1 round:

-2 minutes of heavy-bag work. I usually break up it up into 1 minute of cardio boxing (rhythm-based combos for speed n' agility) and 1 minute of power-punch combos. (as fast and as hard as possible). Mad cathartic.
-2 minutes of jump-rope. Different variations all the way through.
-1 minute rest

I usually do 10-12 rounds then run do hill sprints 10x10 seconds, no rest.

Hill Sprints: Find a hill and measure out a distance that'll take 10 seconds to run (over-estimate the first one). Focus on sprinting the hill at maximum intensity for 10 seconds anaerobically (no breathing), then walk directly back down the hill backwards taking large steps so that you're further putting extra stabilization efforts on your posterior chain, once you reach your starting point, repeat. No rest until you've done 10 in a row.

Yesterday's STS:

Movement Prep

Functional lifts:

-Hang Cleans 4 sets @ 6,6, 4,4 w/increasing weight

-Front-Squats Supersets:
4 sets @ 8 reps w/increasing weight
Pullups TF
Hand-stand pushups TF
1 set= Front-squat to pullup TF to handstand pushup TF, no rest between exercises

-Overhead backward split-squats w/bar & weight
3 sets @ 8 reps, then 2 more sets of split-squats with heavy weight on back instead of overhead.

-Deadlift Supersets:
3 sets of deadlifts @ 10 reps
Box-jumps
1 set= deadlift to 12 box jumps w/no rest inbetween. SO crushing.

-Push-Press Supersets:
3 sets of push-press @ 8 reps
Box-jumps
1 set= push-press to 12 box jumps w/no rest inbetween.

Finished with jump-punches (2 sets each arm) and 2 sets of 1-arm snatches.

Hope your non-competitive part of the season goes well. Hit. Those. Weights. If you do, and you hit it right, I won't have to tell what it'll do for your movement ability...you'll already know.

Train hard, train smart.
-Chris

STS Oct. 11th

2007-10-11T11:17:00.000-07:00

"Besides pride, loyalty, discipline, heart, and mind, confidence is the key to all the locks." -Joe Paterno

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2J9uuU1BCY

This guy makes two great points with this video: 1. Don't wear spandex in the park by yourself. (WTF!?) and 2. There are easily 30+ variations of pushups you can do with different levels of progression/regression. Plyometric pushups with arms close to the body should be an absolute staple for any Ultimate player as you're training the exact movement you'd make if you'd layed out on a D and missed the disc and now have to get back on your feet and throw a mark on or play recovery D. The faster you get back on your feet could be the difference between stopping their offensive flow and getting scored on.

Today's focus is on moving explosively while at a high rate of fatigue. To do this I combined functional lifts with jump movement supersets with no rest in between.

Movement Prep: Same as before.

Functional Lift:

Hang Cleans- 3 sets

Superset 1 (2x):

1A: Squat Lat pulls- on the cable machine with handles in each arm and the cables at the top perform lat pulls while in 3/4 squat position. 10 reps.
1B: plyometric pushups TF

Superset 2 (2x):

2A: 1 leg'd step ups w/weight
2B: pullups TF

Super-duper Superset 3 (each specific superset 2x's through with no rest)

3A: Overhead squat w/weight
3B: Lateral Jumps http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxLateralJump.html
x2
3C: Quick drops http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/QuickDrop.html
3D: Lateral Jumps
x2
3E: Front Squat
3F: Lateral Jumps
x2

Superset 4 (2x):

4A: Push press
4B: Box jumps

Next did 2 sets of Hang Jump-shrugs http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/HangJumpShrug.html

Finished with 2 sets of 1-arm snatches and row machine intervals.

18+ different sport-specific explosive movements all in under an hour. That, my friends, is what we call nationals-ready training.

#40

STS Oct. 8th

2007-10-08T10:45:00.000-07:00

"Winning isn't everything, but the will to win is everything"- Vince Lombardi

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdgXgjCaus4

Floyd's rope is moving so damn fast it's hard to tell if it's even there. Awesome. So that's one of the reasons he can bounce on his toes and throw lightning-fast punches for 15 rounds straight. Huh.

This weekend was a local workout with the LAdors. Took advantage of another 75 and sunny Santa Monica Saturday and did a beach workout. (suck it rest of the country) There were six of us so we threw first to warm up and did some standard plyos on the sand, shortening the distance to 10 or 20 yards (depending on the specific plyo) and focused on just moving explosively and anerobically for the entire shortened distance. Great thing about sand is that it warms you up REAL quick. From there we moved into Lateral Movement and went through marches, highknees, explosive karaoke, shuffles, lateral bounds, and tons of shuffles-to-sprint. Threw again, then moved onto Forward Movement: marches, high knees, skips, 2 inch skips, bounds, a grip of backpedal-to-sprints and did some backpedal 10 yards to sprint forward 10 yards. Backpedaling in the sand is f'ing comedy, especially when you specifically tell the group to make sure they stay low and keep the feet moving or else they'll bail and then 5 seconds later 2 of the 6 are face-down in the sand. Threw again then broke into 2 groups for some agility work. One group did quick change-of-direction drills while the other group did sprint-progression work: One guy would start holding a 6lb medicine ball over his head, he'd sprint with the ball for 10 yards, then throw it to the side as he accelerated through to top speed for 15 more yards, then immediately had to jog and retrieve the ball for the next guy waiting. Mad fatigue and an awesome drill for disassociation and core work. Finished with 3-man mark for a long time and did some medicine ball throws for pillar and core strength. I showed up early for a mini-hat tourney fundraiser to support the US womens beach team in Brazil, so I got two easy games of beach in, plus the 1 1/2+ hour workout, then strolled back over to my team that was now playing in the finals and were down 9-6. I came back in, decided to run my already-fatigued self silly and played the rest of the game as we cleaned house 15-10. It was great to get back to fun no-stress ultimate for a day, and I forgot how much I love beach ultimate. A ridiculously fun sport in the best environment (could it be the most offensive sport ever??) . Throw in beer, good peeps, and bodysurfing (things that were all in high supply) and you've got a recipe for awesomeness. Needless to say that after 5 hours of running on the beach I was a tad bit tuckered out, but nothing that a meatball sandwich the size of my head and some college football couldn't fix.

Today Workout:

Movement Prep:

Jump-rope TF
Handstand pushups TF
Walking lunges w/weight overhead forwards n' backwards
Overhead squats w/weight
Jump-rope TF

Did 2 sets w/no rest then switched lunges for side-lunges and squats for quick-drops. Also added 25 burpees and 2-inch runs.

Functional Lift:

The Bear. Ugh. I keep waiting for it to be easier, but no luck yet. Hang clean to front-squat to push-press immediately back down into another front-squat to push-press. That's 1 rep. 6 sets of 6 reps. Here's it broken down:

Hang Clean:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/HangClean.html

Front-Squat:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/FrontSquat.html

Push-Press:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/PushPress.html

36 hang cleans and 72 front-squats to push-press. Just typing it makes my core want to start crying like a little girl.

Finished with jump-punches w/a squat (check previous post for description) and overhead jump punches.

Overhead jump-punches: Starting with the cable up top and my arm in an 90 degree L (like I was doing a shoulder press) I squat then explode up switching my feet in the air so that I'm landing with both feet pointed to the left but still underneath me at the same time punching explosively straight down to the ground on my left side. So my legs are moving up while my upper-body is moving down, which obviously means that my core must stay locked n' active to keep me balanced and stable. Note: when I explode up it isn't necessarily about how far up in the air I can jump, but about how explosively I can leave the ground, change direction in air, and land with my feet underneath me ready for the next explosive movement. Make sense?

Did 12 box-jumps in between each set of jump-punches. 3 sets of 8 reps both regular punches and overhead punches.

Two weeks before The Show so this is really the last week to make any significant improvements. This weeks workout schedule:

Monday: Weights
Tuesday: Core & Explosive work in the morning, throwing and agility work in the evening
Wednesday: Weights
Thursday: Speed training, medicine ball work, and throwing.
Friday: light weight, core work, and light explosive work.
Saturday & Sunday: Practice

Side note: went to The Shins concert last night at the Greek with Paymaster, Corey, and some other great friends. If you're a fan do yourself a favor and see them in concert. One of the best shows I've ever been to, they legitimately sound better live than on CD and their musicmanship was solid. They just looked like they were having so much fun and their vocals were even more phenomenal live. We officially decided that they are our generation's Beach Boys.

I wish they all could be California girls...

#40

STS Oct. 3rd & The Show.

2007-10-02T14:56:00.000-07:00

Well, SW regionals is over and the dust has settled. Condors have once again secured a spot to The Show and took Bravo down to the wire for the #1 seed.

Recap:

Saturday- Things in the Inland Empire started out screwy, as they normally do in the IE, or as I like to call it, SoCal's armpit. I've been in LA for most of my life and have only been to the IE maybe 4 times. It's everything you don't like about LA (unbearable traffic, smog, intense desert heat, plus the always comical white trash population) without any of the good stuff. I made sure to remind Calle the RC of my disdain for his field choices throughout the entire weekend. The morning started off with a helpful phone call from a friend that the main freeway to the armpit was completely closed at one section...sweeet. Luckily us roadwarrior badasses knew an alternate route and jumped the 10 and made it out there lickety-split. Thank god, because the only thing worse than going to the IE is sitting in traffic going to the IE.

Games 1-3 were against Anomaly, Sunburn, and some other team I can't remember. We were firing on all cylinders and rolled through the games 13-4 or 5ish. Nothing especially spectacular to report.

Game 4 was against Monster, and we finally got the SoCal Showdown I had been looking forward to all year. Playing against a former team is always emotionally intense, especially when you're still good friends with the majority of the team. They came out fired up and ready to play, and we did too. A decent crowd had gathered and created an exciting atmosphere. Unfortunately for Monster it was business as usual for the Condors as our Zone D was looking SICK and played some of the best team defense I'd seen all year. They jammed up the Monster O, forced quick turns with great field position and scored even quicker. We took half at 8-5 and rolled from there. I somehow managed to match up on Ben Spears the majority of the game on both sides of the ball, and we ran each other silly. He was unquestionably the best player on their roster this year and it was so much fun battling with him. We each got each other good a couple of times, I caught a nice score on a great huck from Geoff Buhl, and he got a good D on me on a huck that fell short. I thought it was mine all the way till his hand knocked it out of the way...so it goes. We rolled through the second half with fierce efficiency all the way until the final point, which also happened to be the longest point of the game. 4 turns on each side (one of them mine) till I caught a caught a filthy IO forehand break from Rory and hit Robbie G in stride with the only IO huck I've thrown this season for the score and the win. 13-4, no 2nd half points for Monster. Mission: accomplished. Message: delivered.

Sunday:

Semi's: Yet another game against SDU. This one was much more clean and much more fun. We jumped out to a 4-0 lead with more aggressive Zone D and transition work, kept our marks sharp and capitalized on turns. Ran away with it 15-6.

Finals: 'Dors vs. Bravo. The excitement in the air was palpable. So thick you could cut it with a knife. We played at 11am and it was mothaf'ing HOT. The crowd had grown and everybody came to see some entertainment. I can't even describe how exciting it was to be a part of that game, it was one of the most intense and emotional games I've ever been in. It was exactly as I thought it would be: a battle of athleticism. We threw a grip of zone transition at them and tried to slow their offense down as best as possible. They went mostly man on us. The 1st half was pretty standard, we each got a couple breaks, and mostly traded to half, which Bravo took 8-6. Don't remember much specifics, but we did open our deep game up and had some nice huck scores on them. Lorenz the Swiss Air Force was droppin' bombs! Bravo did their usual bravoness and made some athletic plays. Second half was equally as tight and we took it down to the wire, getting to Universe Point, but unable to get the score and the win. Beau was unfortunately the hero of the day with the most athletic rundown of a huck I've ever seen on a full-field backhand from Dugan, and also scored the game-winner with yet-another iso play to him to take it 17-16. I don't remember much else of the specifics, but there's a video that should be floating around soon enough. One thing I did notice was the concept of "Big Game" players though. Some players have the ability to raise their level of play according to the impact of the game and we sure had some guys that proved their Big Game ability this weekend. Seeing guys play their absolute best when it matters most was truly inspiring. That's really what this is all about, competition and athleticisim at it's highest, and players rising up to meet that level and exceed it. You can't write drama like how sports have the ability to play themselves out (just ask Box & Rare). We had some guys step up huge, but these 3 come to mind first: Alex "A-bomb" Roedel played the best game I've ever seen him play. Dude had 5 D blocks on Bravo, including the filthiest game-saving layout D on Universe Point on an up-the-line throw to rabbit for the score. He was everywhere on the field and played a truly complete game. Jimmy Chu was another Big Gamer with super solid D on some of Bravo's best, and had the sickest layout score when we really needed it. He loves those trailing-edge grabs. Always a crowd pleaser. Tim Paymaster showed his old team how much they miss him with some of the best D on Beau I've ever seen and had some great grabs and hucks.

After the finals we saw ourselves emotionally and physically spent. But we also saw what kind of team we are, and what we are capable of. I'd say we learned a LOT about ourselves from that game and from this weekend. I think we also really became a team for the first time this weekend, and that's a great thing. We played the best team defense we've played all season and the emotional and mental connections with the guys have never been better.

Backdoor Finals saw us with SDU again. 4 times in 7 days. We made a decision to not let our finals heartbreaker affect our backdoor game, as John Wooden says "the best athletes have no short-term memory" and we had to learn to move on to the next game real quick. Same story as the morning, we jumped out to a lead and kept it to grab the #2 seed. I will say that that wormser guy on SD is a hell of a runner and never quit the entire game. Real respects real.

So we accomplished 1 of 2 goals for the weekend. We made it back to The Show, but didn't beat Bravo. But what I didn't expect was what we learned from it and how close it brought us together as a team. And it reminded me (again) how much I love team sports.

Now, there's still tons of work to be done. Florida is going to be a dogfight...and the Condors are comin' to rumble.

My focus for today's session was on explosiveness.

MP: same story, but I included 2-inch runs and added more jump-roping in between the quick drops.

Functional Lifts Supersets:

Overhead squats w/weight 3 sets @ 1o reps immediately followed by plyo-pushups TF

Overhead backwards lunges w/weight 3 sets @ 10 reps immediately followed by pullups TF

Deadlifts 3 sets @ 8 reps immediately followed by box jumps 12 reps

Cable explosions: starting with the cable down low at my right side I face outward holding the handle in my arm in a karate punch-ready position. I perform a squat and explode up switching my feet in the air so that I land facing my left with my feet still underneath me now pointed to the left while throwing a punch across my body. Resume regular athletic stance facing forward and repeat. 3 sets @ 10 reps each arm.

1 arm-snatches 3 sets @ 10 reps

Lateral box-jumps 3 sets TF http://www.exrx.net/Plyometrics/BoxLateralJump.html

Finished with some abs and a bit more jump-roping.

#40

STS 10-26-07 & Sectionals/Regionals

2007-09-27T10:32:00.000-07:00

-Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing that you made the effort to do the best of which you are capable.

-Winning is a by-product. Focus on the product: EFFORT.

-The teams that compete at the highest level love the thrill of the contest, They may have winning in their heads, but they have a love for the struggle in their hearts.

-Intensity makes you stronger. Emotionalism makes you weaker." -John Wooden

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-KDhVwD0UA

Some great quotes from one of the greatest coaches ever. I had the chance to meet John Wooden and hear him speak at a charity event when I was in High School, and I even got to shake his hand and tell him how great it was to meet him. It wasn't I got a little older that I realized how lucky I was to be able to meet and listen to such an impactful coach. Easily one of the top 5 most influental coaches ever.

Put Rocky in there because pump-up montages are meant for the days before tourneys. Man Law. Special note: The original script was written by Stallone in 3 days and had Rocky throwing the fight at the end. Kinda adds a whole new perspective on the movie had they kept that in.

Sectionals was last weekend and unfortunately didn't bring the matchup I was so fired up for, as Monster forgot to close out their semi's game and lost to SD United. I was curious to see how the PBR split would work out for San Diego, but they surpised Monster by showing up strong and putting it to them 15-11. My initial thoughts were that SD would be weaker than last year as I depth would be an issue, but SD United is most definitely better than last year's PBR squad. They still play the split offense with two downfield receivers on each sideline and the middle of the field open, and depend on big breaks from their handlers to their always-active cutters. Finals was an ugly, scrappy game with the old condor/pbr/tide/squid bad blood spilling over onto the field. The first half was simply terrible, too many stupid turns to write about, but we managed to cleaned it up a bit in the second half. Our offense was clicking and moving the ball fast, and our D had some great marks, held up their offensive flow and kept their main guys in check. Bad calls and bad vibes were unfortunately the order of the day, and it left a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth, but so it goes. SD does play hard the entire game and have some athletic dudes who made some athletic plays, so I respect them for that, even if neither side showed each other much respect during the game. I guess I just much rather like playing tough, physical, athletic ultimate with my opponent and then be able to look each other in the eye and acknowledge our mutual heart & hustle vs. having them talk shit after we shake hands. Luckily my football background is one of nothing but shit-talk and showboating, so it's an environment I'm used to and quite comfortable in. There's more shit-talking and mental games in one of my flag-football league games than in an entire Ultimate tournament. For a game that requires so much communication between opponents (contested calls...etc) it's a cakewalk in the shit-talk department. Thank god. But I will give SD mad props for beating Monster early and supplying me with an endless amount of jokes for all my LA buddies. :)

Workout:

Movement Prep: Same bat time, same bat channel. Added the usual quick-drops also.

Functional Lifts:

I sprained my right pinky this weekend, nothing serious, but it's swelled up something fierce which means I can't hold a bar in my hand so it meant I had to alter things up a bit. No hang cleans makes me a sad panda.

Front squats 4 sets @ 8 reps

1 leg step-ups 3 sets @ 8 reps each leg

Backwards lunges with bar overhead 3 sets @ 8 reps. Gnarly mofos.

Cable twists while in squat position 3 sets @ 8 reps each side

Box Jumps 3 sets @ 12 reps

Core Circuit:

Couldn't hold anything so that meant no pullups, dips, or medicine ball work

GHD's

Sit-ups

Side twists

Plyo push-ups

Windshield wipers while holding 135lbs with locked arms http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcNGCG2L0OA Those KILLED me. Did mine on a bench instead of on the floor.

Repeated circuit 3x's with no rest.

Regionals this weekend in San Bernadino. Time to do what I've been in the weight room and on the grass 10 months for...get back to Nationals. Playing Monster last game of pool play on Saturday, and if things go as planned, Bravo on Sunday. Time to go to WORK.

http://www.upa.org/scores/tourn.cgi?div=124&id=3871

STS 9-19-07 & The Sectionals Beatdown

2007-09-20T08:39:00.000-07:00

Do you know what my favorite part of the game is? The opportunity to play." -Mike Singletary

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uy2ElkOuNF0

Posted that again because it's just so awesome to watch. Imagine training so that each time is different than the last time and each session pushes a new threshold of fatigue. Now stop imagining it and make it a reality. Seriously.

With Sectionals under way it's crunch time for everyone. While this is the point to fine tune the high-level concepts of your game, don't fool yourself into thinking that where you're at physically now can't be improved in time for The Show. We are a month & change away from Nationals and if you've been working hard consistently then there is still time to make significant strength, speed, and recovery gains. Time for another check-in to make sure you're doing what it takes to get you where you want.

Yesterday's workout:

Movement Prep: same ol' story. Added 2 sets of overhead squats with the bar and 3 sets of quick-drops. Btw...if you're still not jump-roping as either part of your MP or workout then you should feel real guilty right now. Have I taught you nothing!?!? You're killing me smalls.

Functional Lifts:

5 sets of Hang-cleans. Last two sets were hang-clean to push press. Just cuz.

3 sets of Jump-shrugs- did 6 jump-shrugs then finished with 4 regular deadlifts. Coretastic!

3 sets of Front-squats @ 8 reps

2 sets of 1 leg step-ups @ 8 reps...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXngKlZhqiQ

Interval Training:

For this I did a set of 10 push-presses at 135lbs then immediately did 12 box jumps, rest 30 seconds and repeat for 3 sets.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/PushPress.html

This superset was awesome because of the progression/regression involved. The push press is hip-initiated and requires the body to enter a 1/4 squat to begin movement and generate power. And the box jump obviously uses the entire legs & core to generate the vertical leap. So you'd go from small (but equally powerful) squat to 3/4 squat for box jump back to 1/4 squat movement. Filthy. And really, really effective.

Finished with core & upper-body circuit that consisted of:

Pull-ups TF to hanging leg-raises TF
GHD's sets of 20
Plyometric push-ups- both feet & hands off the ground TF, then hands-only TF
Medicine ball twists
Sit-ups w/weight

Went through circuit 3 times w/no rest. Finished in 1 hour and 5 minutes and did more work in 1 hour than all the meatheads at my gym could do in 3 hours. Suckers. But their curls and bench press did look sick. Seriously. Sick.

SW Sectionals this weekend. That means a beatdowns a' coming. Condors are Back in Black and will be putting some people on notice that they might have made the wrong decision a couple months ago. Frosty-frost has been waiting for a specific game against a specific team and is so fired up for it that he's now speaking in the third person.

Showtime.

#40

STS- 9-13-07 & Your Ego

2007-09-13T09:56:00.001-07:00

"Do not let your ego get in the way of your speed potential"- Me

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVKayGh7LTg

Little dude with BIG hops.

I was training with a new client for the first time this morning and I realized how much easier it is to train women than men because of the ego factor. No guy (especially an athletic one) likes hearing that they have imbalances or weaknesses that need to be addressed before they can reach their full potential. But all truly intelligent athletes know that once you have a solid strength base and aerobic capacity your main focus needs to be on recognizing and addressing any and all weaknesses. Because an imbalance or weakness during speed movement translates over to an energy leak, and that means you're now working harder to move slower.

The problem is that addressing a weakness correctly sometimes means that you have to move back down levels of regression to a very basic movement and build up from there. Something guys with egos hate to do, myself included. I still remember how much I fought the simple routines when I was learning Athlete's Performance (http://www.athletesperformance.com/) until my trainer showed me how ridiculously deficient I was in some areas, and then it fully hit me how much I had to learn and re-teach myself about movement efficiency and form. Because a lot of it isn't innate principles and has to be cognitively recognized and applied, and bad techniques have been reinforced throughout the years with muscle memory and movement patterns. And it can take a long time to un-learn incorrect technique if you're fighting it the whole way and think you're too cool for school. News flash Walter Cronkrite: you aren't.

So in summary:

1. Drop. Your. Ego. and recognize that you have weaknesses and imbalances that need to be addressed before you can reach your speed/strength/agility/vertical leap potential. And recognize that some of those imbalances might mean that you might have to start at the basic moves and build up from there. How do you expect to be able to jump your highest if you can't even squat correctly?

2. Recognize that exercise science has evolved significantly in the past few years and that the routines and techniques you were taught in High School or Jr. High may not necessarily be the most effective or even correct way to acheive the results you're looking for. Recognize that you DON'T know everything about exercise science and be open and willing to learn new things. You might just surprise yourself.

3. Variety is the spice of life. There are too many activities out there for you to keep doing the same routine over and over. Change it up constantly so that you're always keeping your body guessing and ready for anything. Running stairs exactly how you've run them since college is not only f'ing boring, but also means you're getting 1/2 the bang for your buck. If you're going to commit the time to training you might as well get the most out of it.

Onto the training:

Movement Prep- usual nonsense. Also did 3 sets of quick drops and 3 sets of overhead quats. Steadily improving at those.

Did The BEAR today, and...well...it was quite unbearable. The BEAR consists of a hang clean to front-squat to push-press, then back down for another front-squat to push-press. That's 1 rep. 6 sets of 6 reps. Yeah, that's right. 72 front-squats to push-press in one setting...with 36 hang-cleans. Note: the regular BEAR calls for the 2nd squat to be a back squat but I keep both front-squats as I'm really trying to improve my front squat. And it's harder.

Next I did an core-circuit consisting of hanging-leg raises, medicine ball twists, sit-ups, & GHD's (glute-ham developers- awesome exercise). Went through circuit 3 times with 45 second rest between circuit, no rest between exercises.

After core-circuit I did box-jumps and row machine intervals. 30 seconds on/30 seconds rest for 4 sets to hit that lactate threshold even more. Legs. Were. Spent. Along with the rest of me.

Tonight will be medicine ball throws, speed & agility work, and throwing. Love September in LA, it's sunny and 78 degrees till 8pm 7 days a week. Say what you want about the traffic, smog, and flaky people but I'll take that weather any day o' the week!... along with the saucy girls that walk their silly little dogs at Studio City park in their silly little skirts. God bless that park.

CF

STS 9-9-07 and Rollin' with Nolan

2007-09-06T08:52:00.000-07:00

"I wouldn't ever set out to hurt anyone deliberately unless it was, you know, important —like a league game or something."

-Dick Butkus, former Chicago Bears linebacker.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5pWMP6HdXc

Yeah that's right kids. It's that time again. It's time for some mothaf'ing football!

I've been waiting 7 months for this. 49ers on tonight and back in the hunt. We're winning 10+ games this year. I'm calling it now.

Football has always been my first true love. The only good thing about Nationals being over is that I get to play Flag Football with my boys again with the Sandlot All-stars. 6 of us on the team have been playing together for 7 years now. In honor of the season finally here I ran a bunch of routes with QB Chris this week intermixed with our speed workout. We also did some 2 and 3 ball drills. For The 2 ball drill we would run a 12-yard out, catch the ball, then immediately drop it and explode into a post-corner route as ball #2 was coming over the shoulder. The 3 ball drill consisted of a slant across the field, catch & drop, immediately change direction to a 15 yard out across to the opposite side of the field, catch & drop and immediately turn upfield for a streak and a long-bomb ball #3. The focus is obviously on changing direction at maximum speed and catching every ball. Both of the drills felt VERY ultimate-specific as it was 5 cuts in a row. Oh yeah, and it's fucking sweet to catch 3 balls in a row from a guy who's got a collegiate-level arm. Dude throws darts.

On to the workout:

Movement Prep- Same stuff as before. See previous posts if ya don't know. One change though as I started incorporating more overhead squats and quick drops into my workout. Quick drops have officially taken place as my new Hot Exercise of the Moment. An unbelievable disassociation & explosive exercise. In a single explosive move the arms move up, the legs move down into a squat, and the core stays stable. Simply phenomenal. And amazingly difficult to get your arms and legs to move in opposite directions with fluidity. Took me 3 seperate sessions before I felt mildly comfortable, so don't worry if they don't automatically click the first time you try them. Remember, the point is that you're trying them. Because I guarantee the guy you cover at the next tournament isn't...well, unless you cover me.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/QuickDrop.html

Functional lifts:

Hang-Cleans 4 sets: 6,6,4,4 increasing weight

Front Squats 4 sets @ 8 reps increasing weight

Jump Shrugs: 3 sets of 6, then immediately transitioned into 6 deadlifts after each set. Those rocked.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/JumpShrug.html

Push-Press: 3 sets @ 10 reps

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/PushPress.html

Russian Dead-lifts: 2 sets @ 10 reps, wasn't planning on doing these but felt like hitting the hamstrings a bit extra today so I only did 2 sets. I'm such a wimp.

Next was a core circuit that consisted of twists on a swiss-medicine ball w/weight, weighted situps on a decline bench, glute-ham developers (SICK exercise), swiss-ball planks- improved at those to the point where I can balance on two swiss-balls, one on my feet, one on my hands in push-up position. Really fun to balance on those, even though I don't think people like it when I take up two of six swiss balls we have available. :)

Finished with Box Lateral Shuffles while holding a 10lb medicine ball overhead. This strengthens your core at it's weakest point (hands overhead). Remember the longer your body is the more your core is forced to stabilize it.

Two words to think about this week: Pillar. Strength.

What are you doing to improve your pillar strength?

STS 8-27-07, the Beach & Labor Day

2007-08-28T11:45:00.000-07:00

Bruce Lee on competition:

"Do not be tense, just be ready, not thinking but not dreaming, not being set but being flexible. It is being "wholly" and quietly alive, aware and alert, ready for whatever may come."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bw_v67Izt50

Probably still the most amazing thing I've ever seen. The ability to generate usable force from a standstill (or deceleration) can't be understated in sports. It's what seperates great athletes from the rest. If that is not an area of primary focus in your training then don't be surprised if you find yourself left behind...literally and figuratively.

Did a beach workout on Sunday out in beautiful Santa Monica with a buddy and realized (again) how much I miss living out by the beach. SM is the perfect exercise beach. Tons o' deep sand, the usual running path stretching for miles, and a big-kids jungle gym full of rings, 40-foot rope climbs, and a different assortment of parallel bars, ring-swings, etc. Interesting note: SM is actually home to the 1st Muscle Beach. Venice Beach is the epicenter of the body-building craze and where the sport really took off, but the first beach to offer any kind of exercise equipment was SM.

Did a variety of sprint & agility work on the sand and found out that all my lateral movement exercises can be done effectively on sand, which was awesome because I was concerned that I'd get too bogged down and not be able to move explosively, making the exercise essentially useless. But much like swimming, the faster I moved the more I stayed on top of the sand. Was even able to do lateral bounds for about 35 yards across the sand. I'm okay with that. I forgot how much sand running exercises the foot muscles as they were aching at the end. Finished with some rope climbs and some parallel-bar work. Also forgot how much climbing rope makes your hands ache and how scary being 40 feet in the air is, especially when the only thing holding you up is fatiguing really quickly.

Sunday in the sand left my legs feelin' great for my workout yesterday. All springy n' stuff, exactly how I like them for the jump-intensive workout I did yesterday.

Movement Prep set #1 (no rest in between):

Jump-rope TF
Lunges w/weight overhead (25lb plate)
Hand-stand pushups
Side-lunges
Jump-rope TF

Set 2 I replaced lunges with bulgarian split-squats (essentially a lunge with back leg on a bench or plyo box) and side-lunges with overhead squats with the bar. If you have any trouble with your squat form (which is 98% of the population) these are the best way to correct it. Set 3 was clock lunges and hang-cleans with just the bar.

Lift #1:

Hang cleans 5 sets @ 6,6,4,4,4 reps with increasing weight

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/HangClean.html

Lift # 2:

Front squats 4 sets @ 8 reps with increasing weight

Lift # 3:

1 leg step-ups 3 sets @ 8 reps
(Haven't done these in a while and they crushed. Such a great exercise).

Next I did an Interval Circuit that consisted of 4 sets at 30 seconds, with 30 seconds rest, and 1 minute rest between exercises.

The exercises :

1. Jump-shrugs- LOVED these. Hadn't done them in a long time, and kicking myself for it. As functional as functional gets.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/OlympicLifts/JumpShrug.html

2. Box Jumps on a 30 inch platform

3. Romanian deadlifts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eZA_QDy9cY

4. Row Machine- emphasizing generating as much force on the pull-back rather than using the momentum from the forward motion. Again, working on that generating usable force thing.

Finished with an ab circuit and lateral stepper walks. Lateral steppers= still ROCK.

http://www.power-systems.com/nav/closeup.aspx?c=4&sc=27&g=1419&Lateral/Stepper™

Labor Day is this weekend. Besides having quite possibly the lamest Saturday schedule I've ever heard of (game 1 at 8am, then 3 games in a row starting at 1:15...WTF!?!?) we've got a solid weekend ahead of us. At least we can play game 1 then grab some breakfast and have it fully settled before facing JAM & Sockeye back to back. Can't wait. We've definitely improved some from Colorado and cleaned up some much-needed areas. Hopefully we show up ready to blow up both days instead of coming out flat like we did on Sunday in CO. Time will tell.

Funny note: my Summer League team won the LA Men's League despite me being there. Coolest part about the team was that it included my old Fraternity brother and college roomate Ulises, the guy I started playing Ultimate with and who I won back-to-back Fraternity Champs with. Also on the team was 3 guys from our rival Fraternity, the guys who used to win it before we came along. These dudes were actually the spark that ignited my ultimate career. In college ultimate was the first sport of the semester-long competition and since it was directly around rush there was always BIG bragging rights on the table. Well, the 3 dudes (along with some others) would play in the LA Summer League every year and clean house till we joined the league and then cleaned house on them. From my Summer League team I was invited to play with DAMN, a Winter League that included Butta & Corey, who took me under their wing and really taught me the game and later on invited me to try out for the Condors. The rest, as they say, is history...

#40

Cabo'n & Wabo'n

2007-08-21T11:12:00.000-07:00

Like Tom Glavine, now it's time for a change-up.

http://www.stevenellis.com/steven_ellis_the_complete/images/wallace_circle_changeup.jpg

Instead of crushin' in it in the weightroom and on the grass like my normal, I spent a glorious 5 days in Cabo San Lucas with some great friends last week. Although I've already given up my soul to Mexico many a' time in college (mmmm...she was a giver), this was my first time experiencing the Wabo that is Cabo.

Epic & beautiful are the two most appropriate ways to describe this place. Warm water beaches and air temp so perfect you want to spend every moment you can outdoors. Palm trees as far as the eye can see, beach town vacation vibe, and carne asada & 'ritas 'round every corner. The bansion (beach + mansion= bansion) was the true main character of our story as it was THE place to be. The greatest part of my room was that it was beachside so when I left my huge sliding glass doors open as I stood in the open-air shower I could watch the waves crash onto the rocks. I can't describe what that's like, but I hope you get to experience something like that someday.

The view looking out into infinity:

The view from the right:

And the view to the left overlooking the most awesome rocky shore I'd ever seen:

This trip was the longest amount of time I've taken off from training since my foot break. Since I only had a 1/2 season last year (started playing about a month before sectionals) I didn't need to take any time off after Nationals, instead jumping right into my program the day I got back as I was still ridin' the Natty's wave and determined to do whatever it takes to get back there this year. And the next. And the next...etc. :)

I figured the best way for me to fully enhance my 5-day break from training (and life) was to drink my body weight in Tequila. Luckily I had my partners in crime (or enablers, as some people like to call them...whatever that means) Brian Bogle, Aussie Steve, & the infinity pool to help me in my quest. It was a big task, but we were up for the challenge.

Cigars taste good in Cabo. Real good.

Our schedule consisted of laying around the infinity pool listening to the uber-swanky sound system that was hooked up to every room in the place, including outside, meandering down to explore the rocks & our private beach, and heading out to the club/bars at night. The spots were decent, the employees were well-versed in the art of handing you alchohol when didn't ask for it, making you drink it, and then charging you for it. They only fooled me 9 times before I caught on to their sinister plan. Tricky bastards. But a sizeable amount of dodgy characters plus the Entourage-esque bansion waiting at home made for us mostly just showing our faces for a couple hours, getting some drinks, and heading back to the swanky pad. Plus I'm now fully convinced now that living in LA has tainted me in the club department.

Another unexpected bonus in an already over-the-top adventure was that the company that owned the house also gave us another smaller condo & private resort to use during the day since they were doing construction on the house next door. The only thing better than having one isolated picturesque place to chill is...having two! This resort came with another private beach, 4 ridiculously beautiful and huge pools to relax in, and a nice lil' grass area to throw the ol' bee around.

All in all, it was a perfect trip that I'll never forget. Getting a chance to spend some quality time with Steve and Brian was SO great since they're up in the Bay and we only see each other sporadically. Miss those guys already.

Random awesomeness from the trip:

-The $1.50 silver plastic running suit that Steve & his girl found at the supermercado. Apparently mexian physical fitness extends further than futbol and bullfighting. Who knew?

- Supermercado's have a whole aisle dedicated to straw hats. They LOVE them straw hats.

- Apparently eating 3 pounds of fresh shrimp + 5 pitchers of margaritas = a bad thing. Again, who knew?

- Cabo Wabo= Lame. You heard it here first.

- Hunter Steve and his homemade spear.

- Crabs on rocks.

-Snorkel Time with Sara

-Butta vs. infinity

- Mr. Iguana

- Rocky beach Sunday morning after an unforgettable 24 hours.

-Da Boys at da pool

- And last but not least, some jerk.

We'll get back to that exercise thing later. For now just try and soak up a bit o' Cabo for a moment...

STS July 29th- Fight Gone Bad & the C-Cup

2007-07-31T12:38:00.000-07:00

"Vision without action is a daydream, Action without vision is a nightmare."- Japanese Proverb

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMZcCeS0Ph8

It's been a couple weeks since I posted last as I've been busy stepping up my training another level in anticipation of the upcoming season. Last week I got three 2-a-days in and I'm looking forward to the results it brings. I've already noticed that my lactate threshold has increased substantially, and I'm getting stronger and faster than I've been before. Who woulda thought that I'd be getting faster at 26? all I can say is God Bless Athlete's Performance.

On Sunday I attended another Crossfit session at my new favorite hangout in the Valley. Each time I've taken a class there I've sworn that it was the hardest class, but Sunday's really takes the cake. We performed a routine called Fight Gone Bad, but upped the intervals to Tabata intervals, which is 8 rounds of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds rest. I know what you're thinking, and you're right. 10 seconds is NOT a lot of recovery time at all. For this we did a normal Movement Prep warmup with some plyometric movements and then jumped right into Tabata FGB.

http://www.valleycrossfit.com/

Fight Gone Bad consists of a circuit of 5 exercises, each one done 8 times with a 20 second maximum intensity/10 second rest interval with a 1 minute break in between exercises. You perform each exercise 8 rounds, then move to the next.

The exercises:

1. WallBall- Using a 20lb medicine ball you do a front squat with the ball at your chest, explode up and throw the ball against a wall 10 feet high as your feet leave the ground. Catch the ball as you enter your next squat so that you accept the ball's kinetic energy and transfer it into your explosion out of the squat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lstv1mOqNaw

2. Dead-lift to High-Pull- With a dumbbell or kettleball perform a deadlift and then bring the weight to your chin with your elbows flared out. Can also use a barbell if necessary, just bring your hands to the middle of the bar, about 2 inches apart from one another. We used a 32lb kettleball. Here's an example, though you want to keep your feet facing forward, rather than flared out.

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

3. Box-Jumps on a 24" platform.

4. Push-press- With a 75lb bar start with the bar at chest level while standing. Explode up and press the bar overhead so that the lift is activated by your feet and legs. Remember that you generate power for this from your legs & core, not your upper-body.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOfaWlres4A

5. Rows- On a rowing machine with medium-level tension

So the whole workout took less than 20 minutes but it was the most exhausting 20 minutes. Each lift is a full-body multi-joint lift, and 4 of them involve a squat. As you can imagine, the 20 seconds go quick, but the 10 second rest goes even quicker. It seems daunting when you start and are only at set 3, but you quickly stop thinking (because you're too fatigued) and just focus on moving as hard as you can as fast as you can as correctly as you can. To give you an ultimate analogy it felt like a hell-point for the entire session, I was at absolute total maximum output for almost a solid 20 minutes. Crossfit doesn't just make your muscles hurt, it makes your muscular system hurt. Along with your neurological, motor skills, pride...etc, etc.

We paired up for FGB and had a partner count reps for us and push us. I was (un)lucky enough to be partnered with Miss Fitness (my exercise goddess from the previous post) who gave the class a lesson in athleticism as she was easily the most in-shape person there. She went first and set the bar REAL high for me. Crossfit does a fantastic job of making everything a competition so we tallied up all the reps for all 5 activities giving you a total score. For rowing we counted calories burned per round instead of reps.

WallBalls gave me a bitch of a time because we use a huge, cushy ball that has displaced weight as opposed to the basketball-sized rubber ball that I'm used to. I must have dropped that damn thing 4 or 5 times, losing valuable rep time. Or gaining valuable recovery time, depending on the way you look at it. :)

I felt pretty strong going into the Deadlift High-Pulls and posted solid reps on that. I was most proud of my box jumps though as I managed to get 9 jumps in for 5 of the 8 rounds, which is moving fast for only having 20 seconds. I was spent for the Push-press and rows but still finished mildly strong. I finished second overall in the class with a total rep count of 333. (Miss Fitness finished at 327) and 1st place went to a cop who posted a whopping 384. The dude managed to get reps of 20 on the push press for 4 of his 8 rounds. Yeah, that's 1 a second.

Afterwards I finished some boxing intervals. It consisted of 1 minute jump-rope, 1 minute on the heavy bag, 1 minutes on the speed bag, set of ring dips, set of kipling pullups (pullups on the rings) followed by 1 minute rest. I managed to get 6 rounds in and then headed for the pool where I spent the rest of the day lounging around in the glorious LA sun and wondering why my body ached anytime I moved. I hadn't felt that bad since the last time I went to that Evil Exercise Facility of Death. Love/hate that place.

In the Ultimate world we had an awesome practice weekend up in SB the weekend before last. The weekend itinerary went something like this: practice, burritos, beer,butterfly beach & the SB co-eds, beer, bbq at Whit n' Nick's pad, beer, foosball, beer, bar, bar, bar (& more co-eds), sleep, bagels, practice, burgers, couch. Things I love about SB: see all the above.

We've also got a big weekend coming up at the Colorado Cup. Saturday has us starting off with Johnny Bravo, followed by Sub-Zero, Boston, and finally JAM. Sunday brings us Revolver, Machine, and BAT. If we were looking for a test to find out what kind of team we are then I think we found it. I am absolutely stoked to play boston and sub as it'll be my first time playing these teams. Can't wait to go to battle with the boys and get into the thick of it.

Train hard, train smart.

#40

STS 7-11-07 and what could've been

2007-07-12T13:04:00.000-07:00

"You don't win the fight in the ring; you win it in the gym"- Muhammad Ali

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vL19q8yL54

Rumor on the street is that Adrian Wilson once jumped over Beau while Beau was jumping over some other guy. Just what I heard.

Did another Xfit-style workout again. And I do mean WORKout. Tried to stick to the time allotment as best as possible this time around which turned an already fatiguing set of activities into a completely gut-busting session. Seriously, at one point during the front-squat-to-push-presses I thought I was going to throw-up cuz I was so fatigued. Guess that means it's working...that and the fact the I am sore in every large muscle group today. And I thought I was in shape.

Movement Prep:

Same great stuff, different day.
Jump-rope TF
lunges w/weight overhead
hand-stand pushups
Squats w/weight overhead
Jump-rope TF

Did two sets of that with no rest in between then switched lunges for side-lunges, squats for 1-leg'd squats, and handstand pushups for plyo pushups w/one hand on a medicine ball, switching everytime. Also added hanging leg raises. Performed 4 sets total.

Functional lifts:

Hang-cleans 4 sets of 4

I then moved into the crossfit activity which consisted of a front-squat-to-push-press for 20 reps, then immediately move to 20 pullups. That's 1 set and you're supposed to perform 3 sets without rest. I still needed a solid 30 seconds rest after the first set, and a full minute after the second because I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest...followed by my lunch. Always humbling to find out you're not as tough as you think you are. Sigh.

The front-squat-to-push-press is a great exercise that adds an extra lil' twist because you're holding the bar in a push-press position instead of a regular front-squat position (elbows extended forward, bar on shoulder) which forces your core to be even more activated and the stabilizer muscles in the shoulder and upper & middle-back are working in overdrive to keep the bar centered and stable.

Once my Central Nervous System calmed itself down enough I moved into Tabata intervals for pushups and pullups. Tabata intervals are 20 seconds of as many pushups you can do, followed by 10 seconds of rest, then 20 seconds again to failure, 10 seconds rest...etc. Perform 8 sets which means that you're only working for 4 minutes total, but it is the most crushing 4 minutes, believe me. Immediately followed with pullups, and by the end I could barely grip the bar my hands and forearms were so fatigued. Great stuff all around.

After I moved back over to regular back squats and went heavy. I also followed each set with a set of medium-weight russian deadlifts to hit the hammy's even more. I had to do medium-weight because I literally couldn't hold the heavy bar as my grip was completely shot.

3 sets @ 8 reps for squats
3 sets @ 10 reps for russian dead-lifts

Moved directly into a Pillar Strength circuit that consisted of:

incline-situps w/weight
back extensions
Swiss-ball pikes
Swiss ball twists

Performed two circuits with no rest.

Finished with Powerband walks and calf raises. Workout took an hour and 10 minutes and I think I sweated 4 gallons of water out of my system. Note to self: bring 3 shirts next you work out, you're going to need 'em.

On a side note, I realized today that I've missed out on 5 seperate tournament finals this year alone because I either couldn't make the tourney or had previously committed to another team. That sucks, as I need all the big-game experience I can get. But just for chuckles:

-Fools Fest-unable to attend. But no regrets there as Bogle's birthday in Vegas was so much ridiculous fun it would require it's own blog to fully explain. Where else can you meet Neil Patrick Harris and Travis Barker in the same club? well, LA, but you know what I mean.
-SB Classic- a local tourney, but still a tourney. Committed early to a team that lost in the semi's instead of playing with one of the 'Dor squads.
-Kaimana- Played with Voltron instead of Ono and lost to them in the semi's. But absolutely no regrets there as playing with Voltron was one of the top 3 frisbee experiences of my career thus far. It really is just SO much better in the future. And we will be back. Yeah, you heard me Ono.
-Potlatch- had an invite by both teams in the finals. Sigh. Shoulda made it happen but $700+ for a non-open tourney is a tough pill to swallow, especially when you're saving for a new car (my truck is at 120K and counting).
- Huck it Long Beach- another local tourney, but I missed the chance to play/party with Husak & Tommy again, damien, Brent Russel and some goofy guy named Corey.

But so it goes. Guess I'll just have do my darnest to make sure my team is every other tourney finals from here on out. That should even things up quite nicely. :)

On saturday I'll be participating in a Crossfit session in a studio out in the valley followed by a grappling class immediately after. (They've got a Xfit & grappling combo for $20, hard to turn that down). Never done grappling before so I'm excited & curious to see how I'll hold up. Like Fight Club says "you never really know who you are until you've been in a fight." We'll see if that applies to a training class as well.

Train hard kids, and keep that 'Dorsiflexion.

#40

Oaks of a Thousand and Goals for the season

2007-07-11T09:54:00.000-07:00

"The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team"- John Wooden

Had another great Condor weekend with practices on both days. This year the majority of our practices are in Thousand Oaks, a quaint little suburb about a half hour (with no traffic) outside the city that is so picturesque that it makes me want to puke. But it's a perfect location as it's about equal distance from both SB and LA. The team has done a really fantastic job of making things easier for us LA kids, as all the Santa Barbara weekends can sometimes wear you down by the end of the season.

Funny note about TO, we used to play them for the season opener every year in HS football. It was an f'ing trek out there on the bus, used to take an hour and a half. That's a loooong time to be sitting in your football pants, especially when you're SO jacked up for the season to start. But since it was an upper-class suburb they had an amazing plethora of smoking hot rich girls there, so that gave us something to look forward to. Nothing better than beating a team AND stealing their girls. So when our JV game was over and we had to stay to watch the Varsity team play my boys & I would take our jerseys off and go over to the other side to hit on the girls, telling them that we were from nearby Agoura, or Malibu, or whatever else we could think of at the time. Some great memories of making out with a girl and getting a tap on the shoulder from my coach telling me it was time to get on the bus and asking where my jersey was. Needless to say I didn't get her number. :)

Saturday practice was great, full of fundamentals n' drills for the first couple hours, then we ran through the O plays and finished with a solid scrimmage of Broken Home kids vs. Nuclear Family's (their cheer of "mommy loves daddy" was only slightly better than our "we get 2 Xmas's") I started out sloppy, continuing my retarded trend of doing 1 dumb thing for every good thing I did. After getting off a nice forehand huck for the first goal I proceeded to turn the next 3 forehands over the course of a few points (1 bad decision, 1 bad throw, and 1 that Robbie Gillies had the sickest layout D on to get the turn. If you've never seen a 6'4" guy get completely horizontal at full speed, trust me, it's pretty f'ing amazing. Robbie is also my pick for the blow-up player of the year. That guy is going to turn some heads this season. Just you wait.) But I managed to clean it up after that, scoring a few goals, playing solid D, and no other turns as we won the scrimmage. Chalk another one up to the dysFUNctional latch-key kids. But my parents still love me, right? right?

Sunday morning brought tons o' marking drills, hucks drills, and a whole bunch of endzone work, for which we definitely needed. I felt great by the end of it, felt much better about my timing, and worked with Dugan a bunch on endzone cuts. SO good to have that guy out there with us. His calm demeanor and ability to translate his knowledge of the game makes a world of a difference. And he's got some ok breaks too.

My goals for the upcoming season:

1. Take the other team's stud receiver, D him up, and shut him down/contain him enough that we get the W.
2. Move the disc as fast as possible when it's in my hands with a high-percentage throw.
3. No drops. Ever.
4. Improve my mark tenfold. Which would move it from god-awful to just plain mediocre.
5. Be a supportive & positive teammate always.
6. Be super-vocal and active on the sidelines always.
7. Score goals when we get the turn.
8. Be a resource for my teammates to help them achieve their athletic potential.

Going to do another Xfit workout in about an hour. Will post on it and let you know it goes. My prediction is that I'm going to be exhausted. Just a hunch.

STS 7-4-07 XFit and the Kwik-E-Mart

2007-07-05T11:07:00.000-07:00

"Doctors and scientists said that breaking the four-minute mile was impossible, that one would die in the attempt. Thus, when I got up from the track after collapsing at the finish line, I figured I was dead."- Roger Bannister (After becoming the first person to break the four-minute mile, 1952)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=zPo7qwMluHo

Had a great workout yesterday. Whit, one of the Condor captains, showed me a Crossfit workout that I incorporated into my session. Crossfit is a program designed by police and military tactical specialists for combat conditioning. It's principles are extremely effective: full-body exercises done in rapid succession until exhuastion immediately followed with body-weight activities. They stress doing a variety of different athletic skills to keep your body adapting and workouts fresh. They use a lot of kettelball, medicine ball, and gymastic fundamentals in intense, exhuastive, and short workouts.

Movement Prep:

Usual nonsense. Set 1 was Jump-rope to failure followed by lunges holding a 6lb medicine ball in each hand over the head followed by hand-stand pushups followed by medicine ball squats. Switched up leg and pushup exercises for sets 2 and 3.

Full-body Lift:

Hang-cleans: 4 sets @ 4 reps

Jumped right into the Crossfit activity. This particular one is called "Frans" (not sure why, and frankly the name is kinda lame) consisted of 20 front-squat to push-press immediately followed by 20 pull-ups. You're supposed to then go directly back into another set of those, but I must admit that I was flat-out fatigued from the first set and needed a break before going again. Here's another video of what it looks like:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=e0nwx7Q5j-k

Now I consider myself in decent shape, but it's been a long time since I've done 20 front squats in row, much less combined with a push-press, so I was exhausted at the end of the second set. I knew it was going to be a good workout, but those XFit guys know what they're doing. Full-body, functional, and exhausting. Sounds good to me.

Pillar Strength Circuit:

Went directly from that into a Pillar Strength circuit that also included some medicine ball plyometrics. Went through each activity once with no rest. Completed two circuits.

Swiss-ball pushups
Split-squat medicine ball forward throws against a wall.
Swiss-ball knee tucks
Side-plank
Swiss ball situps w/weight
Hanging leg raises

Last functional lift:
Russian deadlifts 3 sets @ 8 reps

Finished with power-band walks to failure and calf raises. Props to CrossFit for inspiring this workout. For more info check out www.crossfit.com. I even looked at a CrossFit center in the Valley to check out the real deal. We've got practice this weekend but I'm definitely going to next weekend. They have a CrossFit session immediately followed by a grappling class, all for $20. Never done grappling but it'd be fun to take a class on it. Will let you know how it goes.

Also, as a sweet teaser for the new Simpsons Movie they put a Kwik-E-Mart in Burbank complete with it's own Frostillicus in the freezer. Must get over there and get photo taken with the Man himself. God bless the Simpsons. So. Funny.

http://www.7-eleven.com/kem.asp

#40

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

2007-06-26T10:56:00.000-07:00

"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.

ST Workout 6-21

2007-06-22T12:15:00.000-07:00

"I can barely lift my arms, I did so many" - Ron Burgundy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwbDoQGdDKo&mode=related&search=

My Strength-Training program (you'll notice I don't refer to it as weight-lifting because...well...you do so much more than just lifting weights that it's actually insulting to my Strength-training program to call it that. Seriously. She told me she was insulted. We're all about new-age terminology 'round here) also follows a four-phase system.

Phase 1- Movement Prep

Movement Prep is SO much more than just warming up. It's about getting your body (with emphasis on legs + core) ready for the madness you're about to put it through while also raising your internal body temperature. You're going to perform the movements you're about to do but with body-weight.

The single greatest activity for Movement Prep is jumping rope. If you fancy yourself an athlete and jumping rope isn't a part of your routine then you are simply selling yourself short. Jumping rope for 10 minutes burns as much calories as 30 minutes of running. There's a reason jumping rope has been a staple of boxing and other sports for many, many years. Because to jump rope successfully your body must be in correct positioning. Everything from your head down must be in perfect alignment and your core holds your body stabilized while your legs are plyometrically and anaerobically moving. So you're warming up, getting lighter on your toes, and teaching your core it's proper alignment. Name me another activity that does all of that as effectively. Plus it's pretty f'ing fun when you can go for a couple of minutes and do all the many variations that there are. Still workin' on the double-jump crossovers though...not much luck there yet. Yet.

I like to mix in different body-weight functional movements in between my jump rope intervals. (Functional is defined as any full-body activity that resembles any movement either on the field or in your normal daily activity. Two examples would be a side-lung, such as when you're trying to stop a backhand break, or a deadlift, like when you're picking your grocery's up off the floor).

Last night's MP went something like this:

Jump rope TF (to failure)
body-weight lunges-10 reps
hand-stand pushups against the wall-10 reps
Jump rope TF
body weight side-lunges
hand-stand pushups against the wall
Jump-rope TF
1-legged squats
hand-stand pushups against the wall
Jump-rope TF

That's one set. In 7-8 minutes I've done 3 different types of full-body functional movements for my core and legs, an upper-body stabilization exercise that also hits the core, and done high-intensity anaerobic and plyometric movements.

For set 2 I switch the Hand-stand pushups for some variation of a plyometric pushup (like doing the "clap" pushup without the clap part, simply springing off the ground with your hands and landing back down into the pushup and plyometrically repeat) and mix-in hanging leg raises (for further core activation and to warm up my grip) or a pull-up set and some type of twisting activity with a medicine ball. The point is to do different activities, keep moving, and make sure every activity is functional and full-body. There is NO body-part training involved in these workouts. For further clarification on the reasons for that read my previous blog.

I usually do 2 or 3 sets depending on how I feel. I also like to grab a 25 or 35lb pound and perform the lunges and squats while holding the weight over my head with locked arms. This strengthens the abs and core at it's weakest point (fully extended upper-body) and works the stabilization muscles in the upper-body. If I'm doing a 3rd set I'll again change up the movements in between the jump-rope sessions. Inch-worms, backwards-walking lunges, cross-over squats are all examples of other body-weight activities.

Phase 2- Multi-joint full-body lifts

This, as my old football coach used to say, is where we separate the men from the boys. Phase 2 is the nitty-gritty. The emphasis on this phase is on working the Posterior Chain (from your Erector Spinae and Core down through the hip muscles and glutes (ass) through the hamstrings and calf). Your Posterior Chain controls all of your movement, especially running and jumping. The two exercises I always do religiously is the hang-clean and the squat. They are without a doubt the two greatest strength exercises ever. After that I pick 2 other full-body lifts to perform along with them.

Last night:

4 sets of hang-cleans @ 4 reps each
2 sets of dead-lifts @ 8 reps each
4 sets of squats @ 10-8-8-6 with increasing weight.

Also, every other workout I do front-squats to switch things up. If you've never done those, give 'em a whirl. They f'ing CRUSH. Usually by this time my legs need a lil' break before I can jump into the next full-body lift so I move into Phase 3, then come back and finish the last full-body lift. Cuz that's how I roll. :-)

Phase 3- Core and upper-body supersets

This phase is all about working your core, or what Mark Verstegen calls your Pillar Strength (core + hips + stabilization muscles in the legs) while also hitting the upper-body with supersets (moving from one directly to the other) to keep your heart rate up, to work when you're tired, and to push that threshold further, further, further. The only isolated upper-body work I do is body-weight activity (dips, pull-ups, push-ups...etc). Boxing takes care of the rest of my upper-body strength so I can focus on my legs and core. It's been a long time since I've bench-pressed anything, there's simply too many other better exercises to be done.

Last night:
Physioball push-ups- balancing on two physioballs, one for the hands and one for the feet TF
Pull-ups TF
Dips TF
Physioball Pikes TF
Chin-ups TF
Plyometric push-ups
Physioball Plank w/feet on bench TF
Close-grip pull-up TF
Dips TF
Twists w/medicine ball TF

All these exercises are done as a circuit, without a break. Keep moving, keep pushing. None of these activities are using weight so you've really got nothing to piss n' moan about. Pushing through when you're tired now means you won't be as tired on double-game point. Hopefully.

By now my core and stabilizer muscles are rocked so it's the perfect time for that last multi-joint lift. Here's where you figure out what kind of mental toughness you have. Walking lunges, step-ups, donkey-press (1-legged if you're a badass), squat-presses, straight-leg deadlifts...etc are all examples of full-body multi-joint lifts. Enjoy this last exercise knowing it's the last heavy lift of the day.

Phase 4- uni-lateral/stabilization training w/disassociation

Phase 4's emphasis is on performing 1-footed (unilateral) leg + core exercises intermixed with stabilization training with upper-body disassociation(being able to maintain an athletic position while your upper-body is moving independently and explosively...sound familiar?).

85% of your stride is done on one foot (think about it) so we want the body to be so unbelievably comfortable working on one foot that it's second nature. I usually pick 2 exercises and mix them in with 2 stabilization/disassociation exercises

Last night:

-1-legged russian deadlifts 2 sets @12 reps

-split-squat medicine ball presses (while in a lunge, hold a medicine ball and chest-pass it against a wall, catching it still in the lunge. Maintain the stance and hold. That. Core. Strong. ) 1 set w/each leg forward. 10-12 reps.

-Step-ups w/medicine ball toss (step-up onto a platform while pressing the med. ball up, catch and come down, repeat with opposite leg) 2 sets @ 12 reps

- split-squats w/overhead med. ball tosses (same thing but throw the med. ball like you would soccer-style on an out of bound throw-in) 1 set w/each leg forward. 10-12 reps.

Recovery

Eat. Eat. Eat. You have a 15-minute window from when you finish your workout for maximum amount of absorption of protein and carbs for muscle-building potential. Every 15 minutes after that window passes your body's ability to absorb that food is decreased exponentially. I know you're not hungry, but it doesn't matter. Food is not food anymore, it's fuel. And your body needs it irregardless of what your stomach or head says. So Eat, and eat healthy. Protein and simple carbs are essential right away. Follow with complex carbs and more protein. and Drink a mad grip of water, but you should be doing that anyway.

Rest, stretch, and buy a foam roller. It's like your own personal massage. LOVE those things.

New Strength-Training Program

2007-06-21T14:53:00.000-07:00

Things they are a' changing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90xhaI8TNgA

A huge study was recently published and has been causing a mini-revolution in the weightlifting world because it's shattering some old time bodybuilding dogma. The study was done on male subjects with a variety of fitness levels (something like 20 thousand separate workout sessions were recorded) and what they found is really interesting, and makes a lot of sense when you get all the info. Here's the jist of it, and a new program to try out:

Old Program: "Body-part Training"This is the type of program that we've all grown up on. It consists of dividing the body into specific muscle groups and dedicating an entire session to working each individually. (ex: back and bi's one day, chest and tri's the next.) The first main problem with this program is that even though you are training daily, each muscle group is targeted only once a week. Twice a week if you're aggro. This limits the body's muscle-building potential because multiple studies have shown that "muscle-protein synthesis is elevated for up to 48 hours after a resistance-training session." Which means that after the 48-hour muscle-growth period has expired, the biological stimulus for your body to build new muscle returns to normal. With the old body-part training method the 48-hour muscle growth period will have passed by the time you get to that muscle again. (ex: you do chest on Monday, the earliest day to do chest again would be Friday, if you rest a day. Obviously missing the 48hr window). By taking too many days between individual muscle sessions the program simply isn't taking enough adanvantage of the body's full muscle-building potential.

The other problem is since body-part training is usually performed intensely on consecutive days, it impedes the recovery process because the nutrients your body needs to repair the muscle damage from the previous day are allocated toward providing energy for your workout instead. The important thing to remember about muscles is that they grow best when you're resting, not working. The new program erases this problem because a day of recovery automatically follows each workout.

New Program: A full-body workout three times a week, resting a day after each session. With this program you are going to work each muscle more often, and it's going to spend more total time growing. (Note: rest is defined as a non-weightlifting session. You obviously can do ultimate practice/training on these days. I prefer to do my abs on these off days also.)

Day 1: 4 sets with 5 reps with 90 seconds rest between.
Day 2: 2 sets with 15 reps with 30 seconds rest between.
Day 3: 3 set with 10 reps with 60 seconds rest between.

Each workout choose 2-3 exercises for each muscle major muscle group (chest, back, shoulders, legs) and 1 exercise for the smaller muscles (triceps, biceps, calves..etc). Vary it up each time, choosing different lifts each day (ex. regular bench-press Monday, incline Wednesday, decline Friday). If you stick to the rest schedule you can easily get out the door in an hour. For legs, make sure at least two lifts is a full body movement i.e. squats, deadlifts, powercleans, lunges...etc

Important: The other major change you are going to make is on the the lift technique itself. The focus of this lift is going to be on the negative. During the lift you are going to take 3 seconds to lower the weight and 1 second to raise it. Literally count to three while on the negative part of the lift.This can be a change for some, but slow the lift down on the negative, control the weight, and let it burn on the way down. You might to have start lighter than you usually do, but don't worry about that. Do whatever weight that allows you to perform the lift in true form and in total control. Think of momentum as your enemy, void it from your workout completely, and never ever let it bounce off your body or swing it. Don't be that guy. This rep/set range stimulates both your strength/power and endurance muscle fibers and the variance also keeps the routine from getting stale. To do this right you should have a stopwatch and keep to the schedule, especially the rest between. Don't forget, it's the intensity of the session that counts, not how much weight you throw around.

The obvious objection to this program that bodybuilders argued is that total-body training doesn't allow you to work muscle groups hard enough. They are basing this on the assumption that a single muscles requires 30+ minutes to work out. (Meaning you'd be in the gym all day to hit every muscle). But if you compare the set/rep numbers of each program, you can achieve the same number of exercises per muscle per week, if not more. For example, the old body-part program would have you do 4 chest exercises at 3 sets each per week (total= 12 sets). With the new program you can achieve 12 sets simply by doing 4 sets 3x a week. According to Alwyn Cosgrove, the trainer that collected the data, "you need to think of training like a presciption. You wouldn't take an entire bottle of Advil on Monday to relive pain all week; you'd take smaller doses at regular intervals."

Also refuting the bodybuilder's argument is a concept called volume-threshold theory that states that "muscle growth occurs once a muscle has been exposed to 90 to 120 seconds of total tension." The beauty of the negative-emphasis lifting technique is that each repetition is going to last around 6-7 seconds. So it's very easy to achieve that 120 second total tension bar and stimulate muscle growth.

Important: To save on time and increase your workout intensity even more you can also perform alternation sets. When possible, pair exercises that work opposite muscle groups and cut the rest period between sets in half. (ex: one set of bench press, followed by quick rest, then upright-row for back. That's one set. Repeat according to what rep/set schedule you're doing that day). This concept is based on the the law of reciprocal innervation that states "for every neural activation of a muscle, there is a corresponding inhibition of the opposite muscle" So by working your back the opposite chest muscles are forced to relax, thereby resting. This can cut 8-10 minutes off your workout time and increases heartrate, calories burned, and workout intensity. Just don't forget to emphasize the negative, and keep that form perfect.

Here's an example of an alteration set:
Exercise 1: Wide grip deadlift
Exercise 2: Dumbbell incline press (chest)
Exercise 2A: Cable Row (back)
Exercise 3: Wide-grip Lat pulldown (back)
Exercise 3A: Swiss ball pike (pushup positon with shins resting on swiss-ball. Raise your hips as high as you can as you roll the ball toward your body. Pause at top, then return to start by lowering your hips and rolling the ball backward.)

For more info check in with the man himself at http://www.alywncosgrove.com/ and Mark Verstegen's site at http://www.coreperformance.com/.

In the Beginning

2007-06-21T11:24:00.000-07:00

"Did you take sterioids? Yeah, 'bout a cup. Cup and a half."- Will Ferrel

"Absorb what is useful; reject what is useless"- Bruce Lee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKRMEDK14iY&mode=related&search=

Yup, I jumped on the Blog-bandwagon too.

This blog will be filled mostly with ultimate-specific workouts as well as post-tourney recaps and other nonsensical nonsense that I feel like writing about.

The past few months have been really exciting in terms of gaining further advanced knowledge in sports-movement. I've been voraciously consuming any piece of info I can come across in order to become bigger, faster, stronger for the upcoming season. Well, not bigger, but you know what I mean. Fortunately my great friend Chris (who's the best workout partner ever and 'bout damn near my twin) and I have been constructing an ultimate-specific workout program using the techniques and knowledge from Athlete's Performance, the training center based out of the Home Depot Center in Carson. These is the company that trains Beckham, gets the Phoenix Sun's in shape for the Run n' Gun, and gets the NFL rooks ready for the combines. If you don't know about the combines, it is the purest test of a football players athletic ability. They test you on everything from 40-yrd dash, vertical leap, shuttle run, bench-press...etc. Even your gait is analyzed. That part always reminds me of a horse on show, they make the player simply walk across the room and back. Apparently biomechanic experts can predict how fast a player could be just by their walk. Performing well there single-handedly determines their draft status and size of their signing bonus.

Simply put, Athlete's Performance is the foremost authority in the world of athletic movement, and the stuff they come up with is jaw-droppingly brilliant, functional, and makes so much sense when applied onto the field. Chris is a baseball coach and teacher at a local HS and was able to attend a week-long training session and learned exactly what they teach the pros from the leaders of the industry. We have since then been training twice a week together and I get to absorb all this information from a top-notch teacher. I couldn't have asked for a better situation (other than attending the course myself, obviously).

Saturday I'll be teaching this program for the first hour of the Condor practice. It's my goal that we will be able to apply this directly onto the field from Day 1, not only becoming faster and quicker, but have increased high-end endurance, better body positioning, and faster recovery to an athletic position (example: while marking being able to go from off-balance with your weight all on the right side of your body to stop the backhand back over to the left to prevent the IO forehand faster than the thrower can pivot). I am really excited to show this to the guys and have them realize what kind of athlete they can become.

The two basic concepts to efficient athletic-movement is:

1. An active but stable core.
2. all four extremeties working independently and explosively, with power and fluidity.

By core I don't just means your abs, but the entire core from the obliques (side abs), back (including the erector spinae, the muscle that's involved in pretty much every type of movement) and the transverse abdominis (your body's weight belt) through the internal hip muscles that connect the legs to the core. Google those words if they are foreign to you.

The Transverse Abdominis. When you contract your core and lock it, this is the muscle that does a bunch of the work. Your body's "natural weight belt"

The Erector Spinae. The name is pretty self-descriptive. It holds your spine erect and helps with any type of movement.

Best visual example of the two concepts working together I can give is Reggie Bush running. When he's running his Core is LOCKED....and I mean locked. He's in a dead-sprint to the endzone and his numbers barely move at all...while his legs and arms are flying explosively and independently. He honestly looks like he's swiming.

Here's a typical speed-movement workout we'll do. Some of the stuff we've just named ourselves so it might look mighty confusing to the layman.

Important: Do NOT stretch before beginning this. Static stretching temporarily disables your muscles elasticity and should be done post-workout. Ya hear me? POST-workout. Static stretching is great, but it doesn't have anything to do with getting ready athletic movement. So forget everything your Jr. High Basketball coach told you and save that time before for a proper warm-up, and do your stretching AFTER.

Phase 1- Movement Prep 2 sets of each exercise to 20 yards
Jog/stride check-in
Shuffle Jacks
Butt Kickers/Backward BK with extended reach
High knees
Straight-leg kicks Short/Long
Forward Lunge w/twist + knee extension/Backward lunge w/over shoulder
Falling Leaf Hip Circles/Backwards over-extension
Karoake-short n’ quick to over-hip progression
Sideways high-knee
Sideways high-knee crossover’s
Inch-worms to spiderman
Shuffle Switches forward/backward
Double-double point block w/shuffles
Warriors to hip swivel
Skip-kicks
Progression jog-to-sprint

Phase 2- Rapid Response- Rapid response is short-burst movement in rapid succession. Each exercise is 2 sets to failure.
2-inch runs in place
2-inch runs in place with arm switches
2-inch runs w/forward movement
2-inch runs with single leg sideways disassociation
2-inch runs to sprint
2-inch runs to sprint-ladder
2-inch runs to sprint-ladder w/star jumps
2-inch runs to sprint-sideways ladder

Phase 3- Long Response- Long response is the converse of rapid response. It's generating maximum force in a single full-body action. 2 sets to 40-60 yards

Marches
Skips
Bounds- bounds are a combination of rapid & long response. It's maximum full-body movement in rapid succession. Focus is on form and pace.
2 inch run progression: in place to arms switches to moving forward to skip to bound
1-leg runs

Phase 4- Plyometrics/Sprints 2 sets to 20 yards
Skips for height
Skips for distance
1-foot’d jumps
1 foot’d diagonal jumps
1-foot’d backwards diagonal jumps
15-yard sprints with 4 progression starting stance: on ground, 4-point stance, sprinter stance, receiver stance
Shuffle-to-sprint
Back-pedal to sprint
Bear Crawls
Lunge Jumps
Lunge Jumps switches

You're probably asking yourself exactly what the 2-inch runs are. Unfortunately there is no good way to explain them other than actually being on the field and doing them, but here goes: Assume an athletic stance (knees bent, chest out, head up, ready to explode in any direction) and while maintaining that stance (literally sitting in it) you plyometrically (explosively and fast-twitch) pop your legs up n' down at a height of about 2 inches as fast as you can for as long as you can. Like doing high knees in place, except only 2 inches off the ground. The focus is on repeated ground contact with consisten pace and form activated by the glute muscles. It is the supreme example of atheticism, the ability to move the feet explosively and fast-twitch while sitting in an athletic stance, with a low center of gravity, and able to move lickety-split in any direction. You start just doing them in place, then progress to involving the arms at about a 1/3 of the rate the feet are moving. This works on dissasociating the arms from the legs. After that you progress to moving forward while in the 2-inch run, and then doing a 2-inch run for 8ish seconds to a 10-yard sprint...etc.

The 2-inch runs are done to failure. This goes along with the threshold concept of working out. You should be pushing a new threshold every time you workout. Otherwise you're never going to improve. Your body HAS to be pushed a little harder each time if you want it to respond effectively. Approach every workout with that mentality and you'll be starting with your head in the right spot.

The long response phase is to improve stride efficiency and stride power. A 180lb person can generate around 370lbs of force with their stride. Being able to generate that much force with every foot strike is one huge element to becoming a faster sprinter. Combine that with proper body positioning (keeping your legs under you and a low center of gravity) and you're on the way to sprinting much more efficiently.

Note: your feet should be in dorsal flexion (toes raised up) the entire time, landing on the ball of your foot for all the activities.

So there ya go. Hopefully I can convey this workout better out on the field than I've done in this blog. Will post back with how it went, but I'm stoked that I've been given this opportunity to teach it to the 'Dors. If nothing else, I'm going to have some sore-ass teammates at the Sunday practice.