Here is an old video of a few of my clients getting after it. I totally forgot I had filmed some of this stuff! I like this video because it shows the mix of athletes I may work with on any given day at MBSC.
A 14 year old chin-ups with 55 lbs, some AARP card holders fight off aging and some of my 6 adult group push their training to the limit before the work day begins. Enjoy !
The weather is unbelievable here in Massachusetts for Feburary. I hope I’m not speaking too soon but I think we may be able to say goodbye to winter. If it is as nice where you are as it is here go outside and do something fun.
If the weather is not as nice here is some random stuff to keep you entertained on this Sunday…
Here is a great video of MBSC coach Tim Morrill coaching up some Ultimate Frisbee athletes at MBSC. When Tim talks you can really see his passion for both strength and conditioning and ultimate . Check out his site here.
Every so often I’ll re-watch a video or re-read an article and get a new appreciation for it. I randomly re-watched this video of my friend Neghar Fonooni bent pressing a 32KG and it reminded me how freakin’ strong she is!
Here is a great article from Dr. Mark Hyman about how wheat and gluten can be damaging to our health. I’ve been reading a lot about this lately and it’s pretty alarming how widespread the damage to our countries health is from living off processed grains and sugar.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/wheat-gluten_b_1274872.html
This is an AWESOME article. Marc from Marc and Angel Hack Life list 30 Things To Stop Doing To Yourself. This is a great reminder for daily living. Read it and you will instantly be better at life.
http://www.marcandangel.com/2011/12/11/30-things-to-stop-doing-to-yourself/
Thanks for reading! Have a great week!
Kevin
With the combine coming up soon and our NFL hopefuls at MBSC training for their pro-days I figured now was a good time to write a post on linear speed development.
This is the season when 40 times are the hot topic and 2 out of every 3 yahoos on the internet will claim they have the “speed secrets” to give you faster feet. Thankfully, the best coaches in the world know speed isn’t made with faster feet but with stronger legs and better mechanics.
At MBSC we train 2 qualities to get our athletes faster.
1). Lower Body Strength and Power
2). Acceleration Mechanics/Force Transmission
We build lower body strength and power via Olympic lifting, KB swings, dead lifts, rear foot elevated split squats, single leg dead lifts, hip bridging and single leg squats. We bridge the gap from the weight room to the field with variations of sled pushing and pulling. Sleds are a great resource for building lower body strength and power while also coaching up good backside sprint mechanics. Sleds can be be weighted heavy or lighter for speed and contrary to what some of these track crazies say you can load them with more than 10%. On the other end of the continuum we use sprint drills like lean fall sprints and ball drops to coach the initial push off and acceleration phase.
The Sprint Development Continuum
Strength/Power <> Strength/Power/Speed < > Speed
Oly Lift, Trap Bar etc.. <> Sled Work <> Sprint Drills
Throughout any training program the lifting shouldn’t change much. We train for power and strength the whole time. As the end gets closer power work in the weight room becomes a little more focused. What I do want to show is the progression of sled and sprint drills that we use with the athletes. Keep in mind we do this with everyone from 14 year old soccer players to NFL hopefuls.
Phase 1:
Wall Drills
- Great for teaching the knee drive and hip extension concept to younger athletes.
Sled Marching
- Both of these drills create a nice lean similar to in acceleration. You should be looking for good hip extension and these are best when done heavy.
Push
Drag
Sprint Start Lean Fall Run
- The lean fall run in the sprint position helps teach the athlete about how to get their weight forward for the initial push. Initially, most athletes are not comfortable with the forward momentum and weight shift required for a good start. This drill helps teach that. (I swear I am not as slow as I look in this video)
Phase 2:
Continue Sled Marching: Push and Drag
Ball Drops
- This would be the next progression from the lean fall sprint. The ball drop provides a cue for the athletes to run for and also trains their reactivity. I find this drill really helps me explode out of the start.
Phase 3:
Plate Drags
- Plate drags are a great progression from heavy sled drags and regular 10 yd sprints. We find that doing these prior to timing our athletes 10 yard sprints is actually leading to better times.
There are a few other drills I like as well but these are the ones we keep coming back to over and over at MBSC.
The bottom line is if you want to get faster you need to get strong, powerful legs. In addition to that it would be beneficial if you actually practiced sprinting. You should be sprinting for the sake of getting faster not getting tired. I’m talking about good quality reps with enough rest to ensure full effort. Run hard, rest, repeat.
Brendon Rearick sent me this in an e-mail about an article he is working on. Another great quote from John Maxwell in his book Today Matters. This little reminder applies to everything in life from health, to relationships to your professional life.
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“If you neglect enough todays, you’ll experience the “someday” you’ve always wanted to avoid”
For me, training purely for raw strength is the most enjoyable pursuit in the world. The beauty of this endeavor lies in its simplicity. There is no secret ingredient or special sauce in the recipe.
Tasty but not effective for strength gains...
It all comes back to one common denominator: Your time spent under the bar.
Some are more genetically gifted than others, but what Pavel says is true: “Strength is a skill”
You have to learn to be strong and get good at lifting. Treat it like a sport and practice. You don’t always have to go hard but you’ve got to get in the gym and practice your skill. Practice pressing, practice squatting, practice dead lifting and practice whatever else you want to be strong at. The best lifters have practiced.
Don’t get fancy. Be “brilliant at the basics.” Learn Dan John’s essential movements: Squat, Hinge, Press, Row and Carry. Call me bias to Boyle, but I think you should get proficient at a single leg movement as well. All together that gives you 6 things to work on. 6 things. That’s not a lot to ask for. Practice the patterns DAILY and load them a few times a week. Do this for years and progress the pattern variation and intensity accordingly.
Slow, consistent progress is key. Don’t worry so much about Russian Periodization Models or the new Delt/Arm routine that Jimmy Gunz has in this months Muscle and Fitness.
Bill Starr’s 5×5, Jim Wendlers 5/3/1 or Dan John’s Mass Made Simple are all that 90% of people in this world need to reach their strength training goals.
I’ve been using Wendler’s 5/3/1 for my main lifts for years now and it hasn’t failed me yet. It goes like this. Find your max. Base your training numbers off 90% of that.
Week 1: 60% x 5/70% x 5/80% x 5+ (last set as many as possible, 5-9 rep range)
Week 2: 65% x 3/75% x 3/85% x 3+ (last set as many as possible, 3-7 rep range)
Week 3: 70% x 5/80% x 3/90% x 1+ (last set as many as possible, 1-5 rep range)
Week 4: Deload
Don’t miss reps. Learn to accept starting with lighter weights on the bar. Getting pinned because you wanted to impress the yoga pants on the elliptical is stupid and only impedes progress. Lift sub-maximally and set rep records weekly. If you did weight X for two more reps than you did last phase then you got stronger. At the end of each phase, if you are hitting your numbers then bump your max up 2.5 or 5 lbs. If you missed stay where you are. Adapt your numbers and repeat. Do this for years, consistently. I’m not kidding.
You need to stop over thinking accessory work. Ask yourself this: “What do I suck at?” Answer honestly and then go train that quality. Realize that Pareto’s Law applies here. You’ll get 80 percent of your results from 20% of what you do (i.e. your main lifts). The accessory work is exactly that, accessory. It’s there to supplement what you are already doing. Pick what needs work and train it. Wendler likes to prescribe 5 sets of 10 on assistance work. I do this and think it works great, but choose what works for you.
Here are my favorites…
Pulling: Chin-Up/Pull-Up Varitions, DB Row, TRX Row, Batwings, Sled Rope Pulling
Pressing: Close-Grip Bench, Floor Press, Board Press, OH KB Pressing, Push-Up Variations, Single Arm Pressing
Knee Dominant: Lunge Variations, Front Squat, Single Leg Squats, Heavy Sled Pushing/Dragging
Hip Dominant: SLDL, GHR, Hip Thrusts, RDL
Core: Anti-Rotations Press outs, Carrying Variations, Rollouts, Landmine, Cable Chops and Lifts.
A good choice for assistance work..
Your soft-tissue quality will certainly take a beating if you’re training hard, so take care of it. Think about a race car that never take a pit stop. Your body is no different. You can’t get stronger if your knees and shoulders go to shit.
Know where your mobility and stability weaknesses are and have a consistent soft-tissue maintenance routine. Use the roller and lacrosse ball daily. Stretch everything, do your mobility drills and movement prep work. Go get massage treatments periodically. This stuff is easy to do and not very strenuous so if you skip it you’re just being stubborn and lazy.
Eat to support what you’re trying to achieve. You won’t get bigger and stronger if you’re eating like a little girl. Consistent protein, starchy carbs, a variety of fruits and vegetable and post-workout shakes everyday is the key. Don’t waste your money on the XXX Super Sizer Mass Gainer at GNC instead, learn to cook quality meats and vegetables and don’t be afraid of having seconds.
Finally, learn that there will be ups and downs. Realize, that strength gains won’t be linear.
Think about it like this:
Lifting is like baseball, you won’t hit home runs on every swing. Sometimes you’ll hit singles, sometimes you’ll walk and even strike out. Month to month, you will have a lot of workouts that are “pretty good”, some that were “awesome” and a few that “flat out sucked.” Realize it’s not about the grand slams, it’s about your on base percentage. Keep in mind, the best lifters, just like the best hitters don’t miss often. Great hitters consistently get on base, similarly the best lifters consistently put in their reps year round. This assures long-term progress and a pretty good batting lifting average.
Thanks for reading,
Kevin
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