Both the leg press and squat are intended to strengthen the muscles of your legs, but the leg press has several limiting factors concerning the action of the movement compared to the squat… and the squat strengthens more than just your legs.

Elimination of stability

When jumping in the seat of the leg press to place your feet up onto the platform you’re simply moving a sled up and down on a set of tracks in order to lift the weight. The platform moves along a fixed track and your hips and lumbar are in a fixed position as you sit in the seat in order to lift the weighted platform.

Because you’re sitting in this fixed position and moving a platform along a set of tracks you are eliminating any need for stabilizing muscles to be activated in order for you lift and move the weight. This basically bleeds you of developing any strength throughout your core, or pillar like you would when resting a barbell on your back, or holding one in the racked position during a barbell front squat movement.

When you’re forced to stabilize the weight like you would with a barbell, dumbbell, or kettlebell during a goblet squat you are activating what is known as synergist muscles. Synergist muscles perform or help perform, the same set of joint motion as the agonists (the primary mover).

Synergist muscles act on movable joints. Synergists are muscles that facilitate the fixation action which in the case of you lifting a free weight such as a bar or kettlebell allows you to keep it steady during the up and down part of the movement.

As you see there is nothing for you to fixate when sitting in the driver’s seat of the leg press machine as the machine itself is facilitating the fixation action for you.

Butchering Your Range of Motion (ROM)

There’s no doubt when it comes to both the squat and the leg press that your average gym goer will find a way to destroy their ROM during both of these exercises. However, I would argue that with the leg press this almost seems to be a badge of honor with many guys.

I’m sure you know what I’m talking about when you see those guys in the gyms load up the leg press platform with damn near every 45 lb. plate in the gym. As if it’s not dangerous enough that they’re maxing out the machine itself they then get into the seat of the leg press with all of that weight hovering above them.

Photography by Bev Childress of Fort Worth, Texas

I’ve seen more videos of this on YouTube and Instagram than I care to admit and though these scenarios tend to provide a lot of humorous content for many comedians…such a ridiculous attempt is both scary and dangerous to me and I’m a professional strength coach.

What you generally see in these scenarios is a shitload of weight and the guy ends up moving his legs up and down only a couple of inches. This is a total waste of time in an attempt to build strength and on top of that is incredibly dangerous.

I admit I’ve seen many people butcher the squat as well, but in most cases, a guy’s ego can be crushed when trying to load up too much weight for the squat because when the bar is on your back you are directly going to feel that weight.

There are always exceptions and a village idiot exists everywhere you go, but for the most part, the ego would rather load that platform on the leg press than feel it on his, or her back.

Zero Functional Value

The squat is one of 7 foundational movements that allow you to live life as an able-bodied human being. When squatting you must be capable of demonstrating ankle mobility, knee flexion, and hip mobility when settling down into the squat movement.

When you sit on the leg press machine you’re not training yourself to be better, or more capable of picking something up off of the ground, or for even being able to do something as natural as to take a crap. Not to be gross, but this is where one of the biggest needs of the ability to squat came from.

With the leg press, you’re also not training yourself to be able to get into the squat position to take on tasks such as gardening, to work in low positions, or to get in and out of tight places like you might need to do with a home construction project.

The leg press is pretty much going to be more isolating to your quads in its application than anything else. You’re certainly not going to be able to demonstrate and train the hip hinge with the leg press either as your hips are locked into place.

If I had to guess there is virtually never going to be a situation in your life where you would sit in a fixed position and simply push a sled away from your body. However, there is going to be many situations that arise in your life where you’ll have to demonstrate to some level an ability to squat…even if it’s a partial attempt.

I believe there can be uses for the leg press, but for the most part, if you happen to be an able-bodied person you should practice to improve your squat on a frequent basis.

The squat is a functional movement. Just remember that a lack of mobility is a lack of function and a lack of function means a lack of mobility…and possibly stability.

If you want to work on a better understanding of squat movement patterns you can train with me at Brandon Richey Fitness in Buford, Georgia or remotely. I can talk about this stuff for hours and I think it’s important that everyone understands what it means when they make certain exercise choices.

Everyone is different, and we all need some help to figure out the best options for us based on our body’s abilities, age, sex, and ultimately, goals.

The post Leg Press Versus Squat appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The kettlebell swing elicits unique physical qualities and will provide you with unique strength characteristics to help transform your life, health, and performance—and here are 20 reasons why.

Reason 1: Combat Postural Imbalance

With the explosion of sitting jobs, technology, and the ever growing trend of living a cushy lifestyle, society has been plagued with an epidemic of bodies suffering from broken posture.

If this sounds familiar to you then much of this involves forward rounded shoulders and a slouching body that resembles folding up like a tent. This excessive forward leaning of the trunk and shrunken torso is known as anterior dominance. Kettlebell swings combat the hell out of this.

Reason 2: Reinforced Bracing

Right now if you take a pause from reading this to stand up and punch yourself in the stomach my guess is you’re not going to attempt that with a relaxed stomach. No, you’re going to tighten your midsection to absorb the blow without doubling over in pain. Kettlebell swings are like that constant punch to the stomach without a balled fist. They make you learn to brace your midsection.

Reason 3: Elicit an Athletic Response

Kettlebell swings are a ballistic movement, but require strong muscular control, grace, and timing. To control the arc of the swing you’ve got to develop some athletic qualities to hone your control over the movement and to continue progressing it to achieve greater reps and heavier swings. Kettlebell swings promote athleticism.

Reason 4: It’s Economical

For all intents and purposes kettlebell swings are economical. You can get in a hell of workout time and time again over a lifetime with kettlebell swings and you only need a single kettlebell to do it. So if you’re looking to cut costs then kettlebell swings may help keep your wallet fatter, but not your waistline.

Reason 5: Intense Caloric Expenditure

If you’re looking to blowtorch the body fat then kettlebell swings can help you with this very thing. Some well designed kettlebell swing workouts can help you to seriously ramp up your calorie burn due to the systemic stress placed on your body during the movement. If you’re looking to rid yourself of some excess body fat then kettlebell swings are a solid remedy.

Reason 6: Joint Preservation

Sure the kettlebell swing is a loaded movement, but swings do not place the same stress on your back, knees, and hips as compared to a standard deadlift or back squat. Because the weight is lighter and the movement is more ballistic the load stress is more manageable and less taxing on your joints. If you’ve got a handle on the technique then you can perform a lot of swings without joint pain, or wear and tear.

Reason 7: Optimal Cardio

If you want a crash course in what “cardio” feels like then I suggest you attempt a 100 or so crisp powerful swings. After returning the kettlebell to the ground from doing each set of swings that oxygen debt will hit you like a ton of bricks. Kettlebell swings can be structured for achieving a tremendous cardiovascular workout.

Reason 8: Posterior Chain Development

The kettlebell swing is not a squat movement. Instead, a proper kettlebell swing is done by hinging at the hips (similar to a deadlift) and engaging the posterior chain muscles such as the glutes and hamstrings. These muscles involve your power center and are necessary for athletic performance and overall function.

Reason 9: Grip Strength

After you’ve gotten a handle on the kettlebell handle for a few thousand swings your grip strength will also get a serious upgrade. Kettlebell swings are great for developing a crush grip and will build you some impressive forearms to help you in any strength demanding situation.

Reason 10: Great for Athletic Performance

As a strength and conditioning coach that has coached many competing fighters in MMA, BJJ, and Muay Thai I can tell you first hand that kettlebell swings have been a regular ingredient in their training. Kettlebell swings have proven to deliver on the athletic specific needs of these athletes every single time.

Kettlebell swings stress the nervous system in a very similar manner as striking the pads during sparring work. Kettlebell swings are tremendous for developing the speed, reaction time, and conditioning for fighting and every other sport, for that matter.

Reason 11: Efficient Hip Loading

When performing the kettlebell swing with proper technique the move is powerful. To pull it off you must be capable of integrating your posterior muscles while driving through your legs and hips firing your glutes and hamstrings to propel the kettlebell up from between your legs.

If you’re performing kettlebell swings with a high level of proficiency for a set of 20 to 30 reps every swing repetition should look the same from the first one to the last one. This is because you’re engaging the hips with an efficient loading pattern known as the hip snap.

Reason 12: Optimal Stabilization

Swinging the kettlebell in a working set becomes a battle between grounding your body in a tug of war with the outward momentum of the kettlebell swing. Once you engage the hip snap to propel the kettlebell out from between your legs into the arc of the swing, you must effectively ground yourself as the momentum of the kettlebell will try to pull you off balance. You must stand firm and controlled. You must have optimal stabilization to root yourself into the ground at the peak of each swing.

Reason 13: Kinesthetic Feedback

Because the kettlebell swing is such a dynamic and powerful movement once you’ve honed your technique, the arc of the kettlebell is created between two phases of the swing involving the loading of your hips (when the kettlebell is hiked between your legs) and the peak of the bell at the end of the swing (when the kettlebell is stalled out and at a float at the end).

Your objective is to get the bell from the hip load to the peak and from back from the peak to the hip load as quickly and efficiently as possible. This back forth process will involve the kettlebell giving you constant feedback so that you can keep producing momentum with each swing repetition.

Reason 14: Convenience

Kettlebell swings are a quick and convenient way to get in a day’s training if you’re pressed for time and space. When I have hurried days I like to grab 10 pennies. For a simple swing workout I may perform 20 to 30 reps per set with a moderately heavy kettlebell. After each set is completed I remove a penny to help me keep count of my sets. Once all the pennies are gone so is the day’s training.

Reason 15: It’s Easy to Apply the KISS Method

The KISS method (or Keep It Simple Stupid) is always a solid approach to training when you’re looking for answers and effectiveness for a good workout. Once you have a handle on the technique of the hardstyle kettlebell swing then it makes for an ideal KISS opportunity to be fulfilled for your workouts.

Reason 16: Increased Power

Muscular power is essential for athletic function and for being able to maintain a high level of functional fitness over the long haul. Kettlebell swings are great for building that posterior chain maintaining your ability to perform sprints, jumps, runs, and kicks for a lifetime.

Reason 17: Increased Muscular Endurance

In case you weren’t sure muscular endurance essentially involves your body’s ability to perform submaximal muscular contractions for extended periods of time. With kettlebell swings you can perform moderate to high reps while keeping your rest times brief. This allows you to achieve a high level of work volume enhancing your muscular endurance in your hips, glutes, hamstrings, back, and forearms.

Reason 18: Increased Aerobic Work Capacity

When looking to enhance your aerobic capacity you need to be able to sustain a work output for a prolonged period of time. Kettlebell swings allow you to do this. By engaging swings with a lighter bell you can perform up to 50 reps and beyond for continuous work tapping into your aerobic capacity. The key to this is making sure you try to set a steady rhythm of execution and stick to it.

Reason 19: Increased Anaerobic Work Capacity

Kettlebell swings are an easy method to use for HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workouts. These type of workouts can easily be accomplished by swinging a moderately heavy to heavy kettlebell for 20 to 30 reps.

The set is short, but intense, causing your heart to have to pay back the oxygen debt that you owe from the intense interval. This will tax your system, but after your recovery interval you can repeat the process over and over again to build up your anaerobic work capacity.

Reason 20: Improved Resiliency

Last, but not least, if you’re performing kettlebell swings with a high level of proficiency they will make your body more injury-proof and allow you to bounce back from most any intense physical situation. Your resiliency is the biggest sign of your fitness. Being able to bounce back from difficult physical and mental circumstances is something that kettlebell swings can help you to enhance in a hurry.

The Takeaway

At the end of the day, if you’re serious about upgrading your strength, fitness, performance, and lifestyle kettlebell swings will cover the bill. There is a reason this hunk of iron has been around for hundreds of years. It’s here to stay so we all should take advantage of it.

Do you currently use kettlebell swings in your training program? If you’re using swings what are your training goals? Post up and share. If you would like to work with me in person, in the Atlanta, Georgia area, or online, please take a moment to visit my Breaking Muscle Brandon Richey profile to connect with me through my social media pages.

The post 20 Reasons Why You Should Be Using Kettlebells appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

When it comes to any sensible strength training program it is hard to neglect adding in the almighty push up to produce a formula for developing strength and lean muscle gains. This dependable calisthenic has always been a staple for my programming and my athletes. There is a very good reason as to why you see the use of the push up throughout the military, fight gyms, and nearly every independently owned box gym around the globe.

Related: The Best Chest Workouts for Muscle Mass, Strength, and More

Even though we can probably agree on the value and power of the standard push up once you develop a high level of proficiency for this movement, there are ways you can take this powerful drill even further for greater strength gains and achieve other strength objectives with some creative movement variations.

The push up can be done almost anywhere and at anytime with very little space. It’s probably the most resourceful movement that can deliver you results for strength with little time and space to spare. There is just simply no replacement for the bodyweight push up.

The Walkout Push Up

One commonly ignored element involved in the push up is understanding hand placement and how to go about activating the push-up movement through your hands as you work against the ground. The walkout push-up is a method I like to use to help my students to grasp this concept.

Hand activation is crucial for wrist stabilization and understanding how the force of the movement is generated from the point of contact at the ground up through the wrists, forearms, upper arms, shoulders, and even the lats.

If you want to see whether a person is inhibited in their push-ups look at their hand placement on the ground. If their fingers are close together they’re weak in activation. If their fingers are flared apart like they’re trying to grip the ground then they’re going to be able to develop a higher level of proficiency in the movement.

By training with the walkout push up, you will learn how to handle the ground at the point of contact with your hands. I always tell my students to imagine how a cat stalks its prey. It doesn’t plod along on the ground when it moves towards its target. Instead, that cat moves with intention feeling the ground beneath its feet having total control over its body. This all starts with the feet, or in this case your hands.

As you perform the walkout push up you want to feel the ground at each point of contact when your hands touch the ground with each arm stride. Give these a try and I promise they’ll change the way you think about and execute your push-ups.

Hindu Push Ups

As a strength and conditioning coach, I’m a huge proponent of this push-up variation because we can kill two birds with one stone. With the Hindu push-up, you are able to mobilize your shoulder girdle by training to get your shoulders into flexion, giving the lats a bigger stretch to open up the movement.

This push-up variation is performed by you starting out in the downward dog yoga position and then performing a swooping motion as if you are diving under a fence post. This variation is very dynamic and you’re able to both strengthen and stretch. This push-up variation will also aid in improving your overhead lifting movements.

Push Up Dumbbell Drag

This push-up variation does require the use of a dumbbell or kettlebell. By performing the push-up and then dragging the dumbbell across the body you’re immediately intensifying the movement and forcing your body to create more static core stability and engagement.

Moving the dumbbell across the body adds in shoulder adduction and while moving the dumbbell you need to resist the urge to twist your trunk. When performing the drag portion of the movement you’ll feel a line of tension run diagonally from the grounded hand moving down your midsection to your opposite leg.

This anti-rotational type of resistance during the dragging portion of the dumbbell will significantly enhance your core stability and will improve on your ability to actually perform other rotational movements better.

Glide Disc Push Up

This variation requires the use of a glide disc or a furniture disc mover that you can pick up at your local hardware store. With this push-up variation, you’re essentially going to be obtaining the benefit of performing a couple of different movements within a single push up.

To execute this one you’ll want to place one hand on the ground and one on the disc. As you descend into the base of the push up you’ll want to actively slide the disc hand above your head bringing your shoulder into flexion.

As you ascend back up you’ll want to push with the grounded hand while pulling the disc back in front of your body bringing you back into the upright starting position for the movement. This is where you’re essentially performing a push and pull type of movement within a single push up.

Of course, you can add in additional variation with the movement by sliding the disc out to the side and abducting your shoulder as you descend into the base of the push-up. The glide disc is going to force you into performing the movement with a high level of controlled tension. Believe me, these are a lot more challenging than they appear.

Plank to Push Up

I will warn you that this one is probably the most advanced variation of this article. This unique push up variation is a beast.

By starting this push up from the plank position it automatically makes performing the movement tremendously more challenging. The reason for this is because you’re already restricted on leverage and for building much momentum to sprint yourself from the plank position up onto your fists to perform the push-up portion of the movement.

To execute this one you want to start out in the plank position resting on your forearms. Next, you’ll want to rock your chest forward bringing your chest out over your forearms.

From here you want to create what momentum and strength you can to spring up out of the plank and up onto your fist bringing your body into an upright push up position. From here, simply complete the movement by performing a standard push up on your knuckles. These are great for everyone but can do wonders for advanced martial arts and fighting athletes.

The Takeaway

At the end of the day when it comes to building real-world fitness and strength, you’ve got become proficient with the push-up. The good news is that once you can do them, you can readily ratchet up that intensity by varying and building off of the foundation of that movement with some additional drills.

Challenge yourself with these and I guarantee you’ll transform your strength and conditioning. What type of push up variations are you including in your training at the moment? Post and share here. If you need additional help please make sure to visit my profile and website. I’d be glad to help.

The post 5 Unique Push Up Variations to Increase Your Strength appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Ballistic movements are those that require muscular contractions that produce maximum velocity and acceleration in a short period of time. They are great for keeping the blade (our body) sharp by enhancing our ability to produce force for a given lift, or for other athletic movements. Ballistic movements challenge us to adequately produce force for real-life situational fitness.

The good news is that such movements can be integrated into our strength and conditioning program to transform us into more athletic machines. The better news is that they don’t require anything too complex, or too burdensome in order to make it happen. 

The Ballistic Power Squat

I suggest incorporating ballistic movements after you have first built a solid foundation of strength. Once this foundation is in place, then you can ramp up the intensity by introducing movement that challenges you to exhibit more force and control. Once you are proficient in moving with a high level of quality and have a solid foundation of strength, I have a simple bodyweight drill to ease you into more ballistic movements to step up your training program.

The following drill is designed to perform the standard bodyweight squat with greater velocity. This is what I refer to as a power squat, and is a great prerequisite for squat jumps or other similar loaded ballistic hinge movements such as kettlebell swings.

As you can see in the video, the key component of the power squat is to create a solid counter-movement by swinging the arms back while rapidly descending the hips into the hinge. The key to executing this with a respectable level of skill is to make sure that we can perform the standard bodyweight squat with quality and stable movement.

Plyo Box Jumps

Once you have mastered the power squat, you can build further off of what you’ve already learned. The next ballistic movement in this progression is the squat jump, or to be more joint-friendly, the plyometric box jump. Once again, this doesn’t require a great deal of space or equipment in order to incorporate it into your strength and conditioning program.

If you have a plyo-box available, I recommend the box jump over the squat jump to reduce compressive forces on the ankles, knees, and hips. After all, protecting the joints is always a good priority.

As you can see in the video, the key is to make sure to perform the movement without banging up your shins, or bounding the jumps. The standard plyometric box jump is designed to potentiate the nervous system by being performed in a controlled, athletic manner and not merely thrown into a workout as another rushed and sloppy conditioning drill.

Ballistic Strength for Better Athletes

Ballistic strength movements are incredibly advantageous for helping us acquire and maintain a high level of focus, control, and athletic function with our bodies by enabling us to perform certain strength movements with speed and precision.

Besides acquiring the physical benefits of ballistic strength movements, many of these can be performed with little to no equipment and only a small investment of space. What type of ballistic movements do you incorporate to keep your blade sharp? 

The post Ballistic Strength: Adding Velocity to Muscle appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The Pursuit of Strength

Embracing the discipline of physical culture is something primal and unique. This journey is a pursuit of strength, and something that has been celebrated for ages—dating all the way back to the ancient Greeks. Visible strength is a characteristic that is often seen as attractive and respected, yet some may debate this in today’s society.

Aesthetics, performance, and attitude are all unique identifying qualities of strength. In order to acquire a true level of strength we must be willing to test ourselves by creating challenges that require more unique and dynamic athletic characteristics. The key to becoming more resilient is to step out from under the barbell from time to time. This type of change creates mental and physical challenges that demand a higher level of coordination, skill, and mental toughness.

You can call it getting out of your comfort zone, breaking the monotony, or even just trying to become more athletic. Call it what you want, but the point is that to move forward you’ve got to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, period.

Enter the Hybrid Protocol

So, how do we go about improving our physical capabilities in general? How do we bridge the gap between muscle strength and other types of performance? For instance, the traits that are associated with bodybuilding involve lean muscle and symmetry. For powerlifting, goals are set to measure strength and hit new lifting PRs. What is the best approach to improve our capabilities across the board?

This is where I like to apply what I call “hybrid” training. Hybrid training involves blending different styles of athletic conditioning drills with normal lifting and strength movements. The result is that we give our programming a blend of fitness elements that stress both strength and endurance, while fostering athleticism and coordination.

The point here is that if we happen to be powerlifters, we can strive to go beyond the bench, squat, and deadlift. If we’re bodybuilders, we need a bit more variety in our training besides mechanical drop sets and burn out sets.

Agility, Coordination, and Reaction Time

One way that we can implement this concept is by working to incorporate more movements such as jump rope and agility drills. Doing these types of movements help to increase coordination and skill. We become more mobile, conditioned, and resilient.

This hybrid approach essentially involves blending (within a program) the elements of strength combined with elements of conditioning that revolve around more athletically based movements and drills. I’m a big believer in this concept because I’ve personally practiced it for years, but as a strength coach it’s something that I apply to my students on a regular basis.

By implementing this drill, we can use several variations to build up to a higher level of skillful conditioning within the structure of our programming. We can also implement the jump rope to achieve greater endurance by skipping for several minutes on end, or we can invest in a heavy rope to emphasize more power development within the scope of our training. The possibilities are virtually endless.

Jump roping has some immediate benefits:

• Enhanced footwork
• Increased coordination
• Better reaction time
• Increased athleticism
• Enhanced cardiovascular conditioning
• Improved training variety

In addition to all the variation the jump rope offers, there is also the benefit of being able to train within a relatively small space. Cardio equipment has its place, but the point here is that we can utilize minimum equipment while maximizing our results.

A Challenge for the Nervous System

The application of agility and jump roping drills are great for keeping our nervous system sharp. Fundamental jump rope and agility drills provide low grade plyometrics that help to foster and maintain short bursts and forceful contractions in our muscles.

The short burst contractions derived from these low grade plyometric drills are a result of the stretch shortening cycle (SSC) within the muscle. The SSC is basically a muscle contraction that consists of three phases:

• The eccentric phase (the stretch)
• The amortization (the transition)
• The concentric phase (the shortening of muscle fibers)

This whole process triggers an immediate forceful contraction. This contraction is essential for building more coordinated and athletic qualities in our training.

Hybrid Training Works

After all, the key to intelligent programming is being able to address needs and to plug up the holes in our physical programming. If we neglect this, then we’re only limiting ourselves. Depending on what those limitations are, we are potentially setting ourselves up for either failure or injury.

Each of us have probably had more experience in one training category than another. It’s great to focus and hone our skills for a given type of training, but the introduction of a hybrid form of programming from time to time can elevate other areas of our physical abilities.

Conditioning doesn’t have to be boring:

Strongman Is for Everybody: The Log Clean and Press

The post The Hybrid Protocol: Jump Rope to Build Strength appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

No matter what type of physical activity is about to be performed, the key to doing it right is to properly set up and apply quality technique. Failure to do this will only snowball into a more undesirable outcome.

Just as when lifting barbells, dumbbells, and kettlebells, there are rules to follow for correct technique in sprinting. In my 15 years of experience, I have found that there are six fundamental rules to remember. Three of these rules apply to the upper body, and three apply to the lower body. These rules apply to everyone, and they have always served me well.

The Six Rules of Sprinting Technique

• Run with the hands moving from the hips (pockets of pants) to the chin, eliminating side-to-side motion.
• Maintain a 90-degree bend of the elbows, and drive the elbows back.
• Keep the shoulders square.

• Pull the knees straight up, and do not allow them to angle towards the midline of the body.
• Run by striking the ground directly below the hips, particularly when accelerating.
• Run on the balls of the feet. Don’t be flat footed and noisy. If I can hear you coming, then you’re too slow.

Progress Your Sprinting With Intelligence

The key to intelligent sprinting is to use the same approach as intelligent lifting. Along with solid technique, we should also ease into the intensity. We don’t have to look to hit PR’s immediately. Your focus should be on learning and applying a smart progression. Once you have a hold on the technical aspects of sprinting, we can then shift the focus to performing sprints in ways that build proficiency, and fine tuning the motor skills that are necessary for full-effort sprints.

Level 1: Sprint in Place to Build Proficiency

By performing sprints in place, you can direct you focus to the six rules of running and work to balance out arm motion and foot placement. The emphases of knee drive, body control, and overall efficiency should be at the center of your attention.

One element I like to get my students to focus on is how their feet are striking the ground. I always cue them to “pull their knees up,” rather than cuing them to “lift their knees up.” This may seem like a debate on semantics, but I’ve found that it is easier for them to internalize the difference when cued to “pull” their knees. The result is a knee drive with more control and precision.

Level 2: Practice Building Up Sprint Distance And Intensity

Beginners should perform sprints at a manageable distance, while at the same time performing them at a reasonable intensity based on individual fitness and ability level. It’s reasonable to assume that, in general, a beginner shouldn’t go out and try to burn up 100 yard sprints at full capacity. You should first have a handle on technique, along with a respectable level of fitness.

A good way to build up is to steadily increase both distance and intensity. Start out performing 10 to 20 yard sprints, and gradually add speed. Once you are used to building up speed at this distance, then focus on a full effort for the whole distance. Once full effort has been achieved for a given distance, you can increase that distance and repeat the cycle. This is safe and practical progression that requires nothing more than some running space.

Level 3: Resisted and Assisted Sprints

Once you have a handle on sprinting for a reasonable distance and intensity, you can look at manipulating intensity further by performing resisted sprints and assisted sprints.

• Resisted sprints can be performed by adding an external load to make a sprint more challenging. Tools for this include bungee cords, a weighted sled, or a weighted vest. This can be structured to reach a desired outcome for more speed, or to just simply make the conditioning aspect of sprinting more challenging.

• Assisted sprints force you to run faster than you would be capable of running on your own. Assisted sprints can be performed by running on a slight downhill grade, or by using a bungee cord to assist the speed of the runner.

Resisted or assisted sprinting will add another degree of intensity to facilitate progress in your sprinting ability. Once the practical rules are in place and the progression is applied, you can readily progress your training for a more proficient gait.

Practice the Fundamental Skill of Sprinting

Sprinting is a tremendous part of fundamental human movement. I enjoy wrestling with the iron as much as the next guy, but I also believe in addressing all of the fundamental elements of human performance.

Sprinting is a skill, and like any skill, it must be practiced and honed to achieve greater results. There are technical components to consider, and with the rules that are outlined here, you have a blueprint for an effective plan of action.

How does sprinting work, anyway?

Sprinting Biomechanics and the Myth of Triple Extension

The post Sprinting Skill Development: 6 Technique Rules appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

So when it comes to hiring a quality coach or trainer, how does all of this work? What variables or characteristics should we look for in a quality coach? And how do we assess one coach against another?

Introducing Game Theory

Welcome to the art of strategic decision making. Believe it or not, I first learned about this system in a story regarding the 80s rock band Van Halen. While on the road traveling from city to city, Van Halen had contracts with multiple promotional companies. These companies would assist the band with everything involved in setting up a safe concert.

Don’t let the hair fool you. Van Halen had a clever trick up their sleeve when it came to hiring.

To minimize danger and damages, Van Halen put a clause into their contracts to specify that there should be a bowl of M&M’s placed in their dressing room, and that the bowl should not contain any brown M&M’s. This detail would only be noticed and executed by a true professional.

The purpose of this clause was to determine whether or not the promotional company was doing the job they were hired to do. If Van Halen came into their dressing rooms to find there was a bowl that contained brown M&M’s, or if there was no bowl of M&M’s at all, this served as immediate grounds for the band to walk away from the agreement. In many cases they could still be compensated in full.

How Game Theory Can Help You Find a Good Coach

This method of strategic decision making is known as game theory. So how does this apply to hiring a coach? As you can see, the process of game theory enables us to recognize (in a mathematical sense) the conflict and cooperation between two decision-making parties concerning a particular endeavor.

In the case of searching to hire a good strength coach, this process would involve our observation of the coach and his or her understanding of our needs. Let’s look at a couple of hypothetical scenarios from the standpoint of a consumer.

Scenario 1:

Trainee A is looking for a coach to help with movement and strength development, but knows nothing about lifting technique or exercise. Trainee A schedules a meeting with a prospective coach for a physical assessment. During this assessment, the coach pinches some skin with calipers, hands some 10lb dumbbells to Trainee A, and then proceeds to have Trainee A do sets of bicep curls for 15 to 20 reps right out of the gate.

There is no assessment of how well Trainee A moves at the shoulders, hips, knees, or ankles. Not knowing any better, Trainee A forks over a few hundred dollars to hire the coach for the next several weeks. Eight weeks later, Trainee A is complaining of hip and shoulder pain and is no better off than when he or she started.

If you don’t know what to look for in a coach, the odds are probably against you.

Scenario 2:

Trainee B is looking for a coach to help with a more efficient way of training. Trainee B has been doing homework on what it takes to build strength, and has even put time into studying basic foundational movements such as squats and push ups. The trainee has read about the importance of movement for strength acquisition and general health.

“Trainee B’s understanding of some basic squat mechanics and observation of the coach’s knowledge in this area proved to be Trainee B’s own brown M&M clause.”

Trainee B meets with the prospective coach and clearly communicates his or her goal of wanting to move better and build strength. The coach proceeds to look at how well Trainee B can perform a standing squat, a hip hinge, and standard bodyweight push up. Trainee B takes notice of how the prospective coach cues to correct certain postural positions and other positions of control during these movements. Trainee B understands that collapsing the knees inward towards the midline of the body is a bad way to squat. The trainee feels more at ease when the prospective coach points this out during the assessment.

Finally, Trainee B forks over a few hundred dollars to hire the coach for the next several weeks. At eight weeks of training, Trainee B is much stronger and moving a great deal better than when they started. 

What Made the Difference?

In Scenario 1, Trainee A was oblivious as to what to expect from the coach. There was no assessment that was geared towards the purpose of moving better and getting stronger, but Trainee A didn’t know this due to lack of prior research. To make matters worse, Trainee A was solely dependent on the word of the coach and too ignorant to recognize the risk involved even at the most basic level. As result, the trainee ended up making a regretful investment.

In Scenario 2, Trainee B was a bit more informed prior to the assessment. Trainee B doesn’t claim to be an expert, but has done enough homework to know what important things to look for in his or her prospective coach leading into the assessment.

Knowledge and prior research were Trainee B’s own brown M&M clause.

Trainee B’s understanding of some basic squat mechanics and observation of the coach’s knowledge in this area proved to be Trainee B’s own brown M&M clause. You see, Trainee B worked ahead of time to be informed, and it made all the difference in the world. By knowing what elements to observe in the prospective coach’s observation, the trainee was able to immediately determine whether or not the coach was set on doing the job at hand.

This is no different than you paying attention to specific important details during any other purchase or investment. I’m willing to bet you have particular requirements when you go car shopping, and if the car salesman fails to deliver on those details then there is no deal. But if you walked into the situation oblivious as to what kind of car you would want and what to look for, then chances are you will end up putting your trust solely in the car salesman, just like Trainee A.

The Takeaway

Hiring a professional to help you to do a job is often a smart decision. As long the professional can demonstrate attention to detail and a decent track record, you should be confident in his or her advice. But it’s up to you to apply strategic decision making (game theory) by informing yourself prior to making a hire. Slow down and let that sink in for a moment, then go out to make a quality investment.

Good luck on making the right hire. Stay strong and keep training smart!

More Like This:

• What You Need to Know to Choose a Personal Trainer
• Grading Your Trainer: Are You Getting Your Money’s Worth?
• Buyer Beware: How Not to Hire a Phony Personal Trainer
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photo 1 by Carl Lender (Flickr: Diamond Dave), via Wikimedia Commons

Photo 2 by LocalFitness.com.au, via Wikimedia Commons.

Photo 3 courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Use Game Theory to Increase Your Odds of Hiring the Best Coach appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Priming is a comprehensive strategy involving a variety of tactics to get us stronger and get our bodies ready for the stress we are about to place on them. Essentially, we are preparing ourselves for the squat before the lift even happens. With the priming strategy, we can do this almost anywhere and at any time.

Isometric Grooving Primer

Consistent neural activation is the key to preparing the body for physical battle. It’s like turning the engine on in a racecar, putting it in gear, and revving up the RPMs. When you reach this point, everything is ready to perform.

Call it frequency, frequent practice, greasing the groove, or the isometric grooving primer (IGP). IGP involves practicing the isometrics of a lift throughout the day to prime the body for physical activity.

In the back squat, the name of the game is force production. Without increasing force production, it’s going to be hard to get your ass out of the hole at the base of that squat. So if we want to increase our squat, we certainly need to practice squatting heavy, but we also need to ready the body in other areas.

“Priming is a comprehensive strategy involving a variety of tactics to get us stronger and get our bodies ready for the stress we are about to place on them.”

An example is making sure we can fire the traps and lats as we pull the bar down into the descent of the movement. As we descend, the muscles of the superior kinetic chain (muscles above the waistline) become more tense because we’re pulling the bar down on us as we lower our bodies. Conversely, our inferior chain (muscles below the waistline) is somewhat relaxed compared to the upper body as we sit our asses back into the hinge. As we ascend out of the squat these scenarios swap.

To descend properly into the squat position, we need to make sure our traps and lats are strong. This is what we can practice grooving with isometric tension throughout the day.

Imagine firing the top shoulder muscles to cushion the weight of the bar.

At this point, squeeze your traps and lats as you would do when in the squat rack. Imagine firing the top shoulder muscles to cushion the weight of the bar.

Dynamic Tension Primer

Self-applied resistance can also be varied so that it’s not just isometric or static. In other words, we can apply an element of movement with self-resistance by pitting one muscle against another.

Popularized by Charles Atlas in the 1920s, this dynamic tension method is a way to create a movement form of self resistance which is slightly different than when compared to the static isometric resistance.

We can use dynamic tension to fire the lats for improving the squat:

• Place your arms at about a ninety-degree angle in front of you
• Firmly grab each of your wrists with your hands.
• From here, use your left arm to pull your right arm across your body.
• Resist with your left, but still allow enough give for the right arm to be pulled across.
• Fire your lats on each side during both the pulling and resistance phases of this exercise, while also bracing the hell out of your midsection.

Use this tecnique to create dynamic tension and fire the lats.

Groove this technique by practicing three to five pulls in each direction throughout the day. When coupling this with getting under the bar, you’ll stand to hit your percentages better due to the fact your body’s nervous system has been in a constant state of activation.

Stabilization Primers

Being functional does not mean you have look goofy standing on a Bosu ball. In order to be functional, we simply need to eliminate dysfunction. This is done by mobilizing joints that need to be mobile, while stabilizing joints that should be stable.

Mobile joints such as the hips and ankles must be able to move throughout a full range of motion, but they should also be able to stabilize during movement. Especially if that movement involves us fighting against a significant external load, e.g. being under a squat bar.

Unilateral (single limb) training is an effective supplemental tool to foster greater joint stability. When in the weight room, during your more conventional training, it’s beneficial to inject some lunges, step ups, and single-leg deadlifts into your program. This will certainly improve your strength for the next squat day. For the past twelve years, I’ve experienced firsthand the positive results of unilateral training.

“It may seem easy enough, but doing this for a single hold on each leg a couple times a day and several days a week will significantly improve your stability and it will show during your time underneath the squat bar.”

Strength gains can be acquired from unilateral training by forcing us to manipulate and and master weight distribution during the movements. Additionally, if you find yourself short on equipment and time, you can take advantage of unilateral exercises to get in your training while also addressing some of those stability (or instability) needs.

As far as priming, one way to integrate unilateral stability is to regularly practice standing on one leg while reaching down to touch your toe. Essentially, you’re performing a single-leg deadlift by bending at the hip and knee of the grounded leg as you lower your body. If you’re standing on your left leg, then reach down to touch your toe with your right hand. Once you have lowered yourself down, hold and stabilize your body in the lowered position for four to six seconds.

It may seem easy enough, but doing this for a single hold on each leg a couple times a day and several days a week will significantly improve your stability and it will show during your time underneath the squat bar.

Mobility Primers

Many imbalances are brought on by adopting poor programming habits. People tend to address their training “wants” instead of their training “needs.”

This can be seen with the traditional desk jockey who spends all day slouched in front of a computer screen. His posture is compromised due to tight chest muscles causing a forward rounding of the shoulders. There is a serious lack of shoulder mobility and any core stability since he has trained his body for the act of sitting.

One day he decides to return to lifting and walks right into the gym and starts hammering out sets of bench presses and then follows it up with some sit ups. Training “wants” are taking precedence over his training “needs.”

“The bottom line is that in order for the lifter to execute the back squat, he or she must have enough mobility in the shoulder to abduct and externally rotate at the glenohumeral joint.”

This trainee is potentially worsening his physical situation by reinforcing negative patterns he already gets too much of while sitting at work. As a result, the trainee starts to complain of shoulder, neck, and low back pain.

Aside from using corrective programming such as some band pull aparts, pull ups, and some good old fashioned deadlifts to fix these movement restrictions, I’m also a big believer in manual therapy to restore function in the shoulders and the hips.

A great deal of the tightness we experience may be due to varying levels of fascia restriction. Stretching alone isn’t going to cut it, so grinding it out with a massage (or with a lacrosse ball) will free up those bound trigger points, in turn releasing the contracted fibers associated with the restricted area.

The bottom line is that in order for the lifter to execute the back squat, he or she must have enough mobility in the shoulder to abduct and externally rotate at the glenohumeral joint. By using the lacrosse ball to roll out the pectorals and the deltoids, and to alleviate stiffness in the neck, the lifter is going to be more able to get the barbell into a stable position on the shoulders so that he or she can safely execute the back squat.

If the lifter is unable to comfortably do this, then the lifter will generally experience shoulder pain. Until this is fixed there aren’t going to be any squat PRs set anytime soon if this is the case.

The Takeaway

Priming consists of small strategies to prep the body for performance. The best bodybuilders, the strongest lifters, and the most dominant athletes I’ve seen are experts at consistently doing the little things. The athlete who is able to consistently and effectively prime the body while pursuing an intelligently designed strength program wins.

More Like This:

• Squat Therapy: 4 Drills for a Better Squat
• Science Compares the Back Squat to the Overhead Squat
• Pro Advice for a Better Overhead Squat
• What’s New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photo 1 courtesy of CrossFit Impulse.

Photos 2 and 3 courtesy of Brandon Richey.

The post How to Prime Your Body for a Bigger Squat appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

There is no question that all of these scenarios demand the quality of speed. Speed is a physical characteristic that excites us. It makes us stand up and cheer, it saves lives, and it is something man is always working to improve in one form or another.

The Definition of Speed

In looking at building on athletic speed, we first must recognize what methods are most efficient in developing it in the first place. In order to do this, we need to understand the definition of speed. Speed involves increasing the rate at which an athlete can perform a certain task.

RELATED: How to Get a Faster Punch

Strength Is the Foundation of Speed

Strength is at the foundation of building speed. The more efficient we are at building strength and mastering control of the body, the better we will be at escalating skillful movement. Once an athlete is able to perform a task with greater ability, he or she can then do so at a faster rate. This is the definition of power. Power can be referred to as strength speed.

Now, I understand that certain lifts, movements, and drills can be performed at a faster rate in order to produce power output. But none of this can be done without the athlete first having built a foundation of strength in order to perform the most elementary exercises relating to strength. In other words, a novice needs to master the ability to properly perform movements such as push ups, squats, and dead-hang pull ups before trying to grab a bar to perform clean and jerks

“The more efficient we are at building strength and mastering control of the body, the better we will be at escalating skillful movement.”

Additionally, strength is a necessary component and a key mechanism in helping an athlete obtain the specific speed elements of acceleration, deceleration, and lateral speed, as well as the ability to hit an efficient sprinting stride for linear speed during competitive athletic performance. Otherwise, a weak athlete may try to make a cut or abruptly stop on the field of play and fold up like a tent.

There are four types of speed that any versatile athlete must develop in order to be competitive:

• Acceleration Speed: From stop to go
• Deceleration Speed: From go to stop
• Lateral Speed: From side to side
• Linear Speed: Running in a straight line

Developing these different types of speed depends on a number of variables. But all these types of speed stem from the initial foundation of strength. Keep in mind this is only accomplished by placing proper stress on the body and subsequently producing specificity of a certain type of power output to foster the development of speed as it relates to these four given elements.

RELATED: The 7 Laws of Training According to Dr. Fred Hatfield

Enter Plyometrics

Plyometrics are exercises that produce short-burst, rapid muscular contractions. Jumping, skipping, and bounding are examples. The degrees of these drills can be varied in order to produce desired intensity and outcome.

The goal with plyometrics is to initiate the SSC (stretch shortening cycle) of the muscle and soft tissue in order to unleash the potential energy of the muscle for the desired physical outcome. As it relates to the four elements of speed, this is a valuable thing that allows us to acquire the trait of speed and multidirectional speed at a much faster rate. No pun intended!

LEARN MORE: Plyometrics: Terms, Definitions, and Proper Planning

Additionally, plyometrics condition the body to perform speed movements more efficiently, while also helping the body adapt to physical stress in order to become more resistant to injury. In a nutshell, if we are unconditioned to doing things quickly, then we may get hurt.

Enter Resisted Speed Training

When talking about true speed training, we want to force the body to work to move as quickly as possible. This may seem like an obvious application, but it’s not uncommon for coaches to get confused when attempting to apply this concept within a so-called speed-training model.

“When talking about true speed training, we want to force the body to work to move as quickly as possible.”

To illustrate this, let’s take a look at a form of resisted speed training. Resisted speed training means that we add resistance to the athlete when performing a speed drill, but the athlete is still able to move with significant velocity. For example, an athlete running while dragging a sled attached to his or her center mass.

Imagine two different scenarios:

• Scenario #1:The athlete is attached to a sled with a harness. The sled is loaded with a fairly heavy load and the athlete drags the sled for a designated distance. With each stride, the athlete has to dig in his or her toes and gradually muscle his or her way down the running lane, dragging the sled behind in a struggling manner.
• Scenario #2:The athlete is attached to a sled with a harness. The sled is loaded with a weight that will add some resistance while still allowing the athlete to generate rapid velocity during the natural turnover of his or her running stride.

Scenario #1 makes for a pretty cool strength drill, but not such a good speed drill. With the trainee digging in and having to gradually muscle his or her way down the running lane, he or she is not producing any rapid movement specific for speed production due to the additional weight of the sled. Additionally, the SSC is not being initiated for the much needed production of power.

Remember, we defined speed as being able to increase the rate at which a task is being performed. Granted, you could argue the trainee is performing the heavy sled drags as quickly as he or she can. But the real question is, “Is he or she producing speed?” True resisted speed training is about the athlete being able to move the resistance with significant velocity.

RELATED: Speed Kills, Part 2: Speed Development for the MMA Fighter

Simply put, to be fast you must train fast. This is just the SAID principle (specific adaptations to imposed demands) being applied to the scenario. With the SAID principle in mind, Scenario #1 is good for training an athlete to drag heavy loads, while Scenario #2 is great for training the athlete to move resistance at a high velocity.

Enter Assisted Speed or Overspeed Training

Another method of speed development is the use of assisted speed training, also called overspeed training. This involves the use of tools such as bungees, cords, and even downhill running to assist the athlete in running or jumping at a rate faster than he or she is capable of on his or her own. These tools and methods assist the athlete in moving faster.

This assistance once again trains and stresses the body for the production of velocity. Assisted speed training can also aid in helping the athlete to accelerate and decelerate out of a stationary position, during movements involving the changing of direction, and with flat out being able to stop on a dime.

Don’t Misunderstand Speed Training

We can develop rapid velocity by properly applying the methods of resisted and assisted speed tactics. The important thing is that coaches should be able to recognize the purpose of these tactics within the overall speed-training strategy.

Unfortunately, many coaches misunderstand what constitutes true speed training. On top of the resisted speed example, another mistake coaches make is when they have their athletes perform sprints (without resistance or assistance) and call it speed training.

“Training for athletic purpose is a process of adaptation and should also be a specialized process based on the needs of the athlete and the sport.”

Sprinting does foster the development of power and the SSC is being initiated during this activity, but this is only the case up to a certain point. After the athlete is adapted to the act of sprinting, then additional sprinting without some level of specific physical manipulation (resistance or assistance) has more to do with speed conditioning rather than speed development.

The Takeaway

Training for athletic purpose is a process of adaptation and should also be a specialized process based on the needs of the athlete and the sport. Speed development falls in line with this methodology, yet many fail to address the necessary prerequisite of strength. Instead, they prematurely implement and overemphasize various speed running, agility, and quickness drills without first addressing the needs of athletic efficiency. Speed has many faces, but it’s our job as coaches to recognize them and to match their identities to our athletes in order to achieve optimal performance.

Photo 1 courtesy of Shutterstock.

Photo 2 courtesy of Ryan Kish.

Photo 3 courtesy of Strength Education.

The post Everything You Need to Know About Speed Training appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The Concept Known as Survivor’s Bias

Survivor’s bias is a phenomenon typically observed in the financial sector where people tend to place the emphasis on the winners or survivors within a given system. But it is a mistake to only analyze winners. By only focusing on the winners, you neglect to discover the real reasons concerning failures within that system, as you neglect those failed or lower-level parties that are involved within that system as well.

Allow me to elaborate on this as it relates to the performance of athletes. The example in this case is the recent and noticeable spike in Major League Baseball of pitchers having to get Tommy John surgery. This surgery is done to repair arm injuries pertaining to the elbow of their throwing arms.

Ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) shearing and tearing often occurs from continuous pattern overload with the high volume of throwing motion that occurs over time with pitchers. Many baseball analysts want to place the blame for this on the innings pitched, rest times (or lack thereof), or the strength and conditioning training of the players during the off-season.

Asking The Wrong Questions

As a strength coach this is something that got my attention and I could see that many people in TV, sports talk radio, and articles I’ve read on this subject were all asking the wrong questions. The fact is UCL injuries have been substantially rising among baseball pitchers long before any of the “survivors” were ever good enough to get into the Major Leagues.

The focus has been wrongly placed on the survivors, or in this case the players who were good enough to make it into Major League Baseball. But UCL injuries have been consistently increasing in youth and high school pitchers, as well. This can be seen here below in the chart provided by the American Sports Medicine Institute.

As you can see, there has been a steady increase in the number of UCL injuries spanning over a sixteen-year period. What is especially interesting when looking at this chart is that twenty or so years ago youth travel baseball exploded onto the scene, overtaking the traditional community baseball leagues as the standard in youth baseball competition. And some of these youth travel teams can play over a hundred games a season! Now I don’t care how you try to spin it, a schedule like that will result in a tremendous amount of throwing volume on young pitchers over the course of even just an amateur career.

So as you can see when people start blaming the Major League pitcher and everyone around him for his elbow injury, they are generally doing so with no regard for the player’s history and the thousands of innings pitched before he ever got to the big leagues.

Survivor’s bias is an easy trap to fall into. The key to sniffing out a solution to a problem is making sure the right questions are being asked in the first place. As a strength coach, I get a bit frustrated when other strength coaches are put on the chopping block because some of the pitchers are getting injured. The prevalence of these injuries might in fact be a lot worse if the strength and conditioning field were absent from MLB.

As coaches, we all want the best for our students and clients. As a result we’re more than willing to look at what we can do to better serve the athletes we train by taking responsibility for the criticisms that come when the injuries occur. Now don’t get me wrong – I’m not saying strength coaches or programs should be excluded from the discussion on injury prevention, but I am saying that with survivor’s bias a greater piece of the problem pie may be attributed to coaches than is appropriate.

Other Observations on Athletic Development

I’ve always found it to be interesting that large portions of the athletic communities in Russia and Eastern Europe have historically worked to develop training clubs to foster the development of youth athletes with regards to body mastery and strength – before they emphasized their skill development in specific sports.

We do just the opposite here in the United States. Many of our kids start learning to swing a bat or throw a ball while trying to maintain some semblance of control and stability during this process at those early ages. These kids learn the sport skills first, before working on any respectable level of foundational strength development.

The emphasis on athletic performance and strength development with our athletes isn’t even a thought with many of the kids until they reach their early teenage years. Could this also be part of the problem with the increase in Tommy John surgeries?

Conclusion

As strength coaches, we can certainly work on strengthening our athletes in the right ways to prevent various injuries and ailments. With emphasis on strength, mobility, and flexibility we can certainly improve the health of most any athletic community.

But, given the example of the baseball pitchers and with youth travel baseball not seeming to go away anytime soon, as strength professionals trying to curtail injuries are we merely having the effectiveness of a Band-Aid trying to slow the bleed of a massive wound? Remember it’s all about asking the right questions.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Survivor’s Bias: How We Miss the Mark With Our Athletes appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

This is no joke, and there is good reason for muay Thai having this alternate name. The concept is derived from the fact that a fighter can strike using the hands, elbows, knees, and legs. Hence, the art of eight limbs.

As both a strength coach and muay Thai practitioner, I can tell you that having a solid base of strength in place can result in a great deal of knockouts in the ring. This comes with a well-rounded strength and conditioning program designed with the physical needs of a Thai fighter in mind.

A Good Foundation to Deliver Muay Thai Skills

I had the fortunate opportunity to train my good friend Jeff Perry who is formally ranked sixth in the world in muay Thai and has had his share of knockouts inside the squared-circle. Here is a highlight video of his:

In Jeff’s strength and conditioning program, along with those of several of my other fight athletes, I like to focus on the development of both total-body strength as well as speed and power production.

Thai fighters are obviously explosive athletes and have to be well trained in performing movements with rapid ability in order to successfully land blows on their opponents inside the ring. But in addition to being a collision sport, muay Thai is also a focused chess match in which both fighters must express a rhythm and patience before an opening may present itself. These openings allow them to take a shot and capitalize on their opponent during the fight.

Elements of Strength and Conditioning for the Muay Thai Fighter

In order to wait for and capitalize on these openings, the successful fighter requires all-out cardiovascular conditioning. He or she also requires a significant level of strength in the transverse plane of motion in order to execute effective strikes and punches from the upper and lower portions of the body.

The energy from a Thai strike – whether it be a punch, elbow, knee, or kick – starts from the ground and moves up the fighter’s body to be delivered with a significant level of rotation throughout the fighter’s torso. This rotational movement is key for helping a Thai fighter strike with respectable force and with the intent on breaking his or her opponent in the process. Yes, in the words of the great Dolph Lundgren from Rocky IV the Thai fighter is thinking, “I must break you.”

When working with my fighters I love to include the standard deadlift by performing heavy sets, as well as lighter sets with speed. Not only is this great for helping the Thai fighter develop overall strength, it’s also great for building dynamic core strength, hip drive, leg power, and grip strength, which is necessary for clinching action.

As far as enhancing rotational movement, I’m big on implementing athletic drills such as rotational medicine ball slams and other similar drills to promote lumbar and thoracic rotation. Of course, regular kettlebell work is always part of the package, too.

Muay Thai Fighter Workout

A sample workout for one of my Thai fighters may look like the following:

Dynamic Warm Up:

• 2×15 Skips (each leg)
• 2×50 Jumping jacks
• 2×10 Stretch kicks (standing in place and kicking with one leg keeping that leg straight to stretch out the glutes and hamstrings.)
• 2-15 Second groin stretch holds in sumo squat position.

Standard Deadlift: 2 warm up sets and then 5×5 heavy

Superset:

• Reverse lunge 3×5 (each leg)
• Barbell front squat: 3×3

Superset:

• Kettlebell or plate halos 3×5
• Rotational medicine ball or tire throws: 3×6

For Halos: Hold Olympic plate or kettlebell by the horns and circle around the head and shoulder girdle, starting at the chest clockwise and then counterclockwise for 5 reps. When using the kettlebell, make sure the bell is upside down.

For Throws: Pivot front foot and throw across the body by turning the hips. Perform both right and left sides. With the medicine ball you can throw against the wall using either a sand filled ball or with a rubberized ball for additional bouncing. With a rubberized ball allow for more throwing space because of greater bouncing. With a tire all you need is your front yard.

Bilateral/Unilateral Box Jumps:

• 2×5 With both legs
• 2×5 Single leg

Note: Before performing any plyometric drills, be certain of your ability and consult with a professional strength coach. Also vary the height of the box depending on your level of ability.

Perform double leg jumps by jumping hard off both legs and landing soft on both feet. You shouldn’t “stampede” or “bash” your jumps in an attempt to just finish. Take your time and make sure to land softly and to absorb your landing with each jump by flexing at the hips and knees. Land on top of the box flat footed and not on the balls of your feet.

Perform single leg jumps by jumping hard off of one leg and landing on that same foot on top of the box. These are great for developing leg power for speed, :kicking, and jumping.

The Takeaway

Absolute strength and quality movement make for a dangerous combination in a Thai fighter. I said a Muay Thai fight was a chess match, but I promise you that a chess match with a well-prepared and conditioned Thai fighter will be the longest three minutes of your entire life.

Photo 1 by ColbyOtero.com [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons.

Photo 2 by Thaifighter911 (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 or CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons.

The post Muay Thai Workout: Training for the Art of 8 Limbs appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

If a fighter is going to compete they have to have a grip on three solid characteristics. In the eyes of this strength coach, a solid ring (or cage) presence is all about: quality movement, power, and conditioning.

Effective Training for the MMA Athlete

A great way to build these characteristics is to make sure you implement a sound hybrid training program stressing the importance of both power and endurance development. If you remember the three necessary qualities that I just mentioned a couple sentences ago this training program covers two-thirds oft that pie. The last third of the pie (quality movement) can be built with intelligent exercise selection and attention to detail by the strength coach.

In a nutshell, the physical preparation of a fighter has to involve traits that support the active attempt of knocking other human beings unconscious, choking them out, or submitting them in some other fashion depending on which opportunity presents itself first. Ha, I know what you’re thinking, “Coach, where can I sign up?”

Well, pump the brakes, my young Jedi of strength. Before you go any further in your training, continue reading first. Some effective methods that I prefer to employ involve putting my serious competitors through various strength and athletic performance drills to promote the big three of quality movement, power, and conditioning.

The beauty is that in many cases I have actually done this with little equipment – nothing other than a heavy kettlebell, a track, and the fighter’s own body resistance in the form of some heart-pounding interval work. Check out this demonstration I did out at the local track while testing out my GoPro:

The workout you just witnessed involved me performing the given kettlebell drills of the double-arm swing, jerk, and a push up variation, each followed by an intense sprint burst of fifty yards. This workout is a real smoker and will definitely humble anyone depending on how it’s scaled.

I realize I’m not talking baseball today, but this workout is a homerun for fighters looking to get an edge in the ring. Here’s the breakdown so you can try it yourself:

Dynamic Warm Up

2×50 Jumping jacks

2×15 Skips

2×15 Stretch kicks (kicking one leg up at a time keeping it straight to stretch the hamstrings and glutes)

Workout

5×20 Kettlebell swings (with a 72lb bell) + 50 yard sprint

Perform sprint after each set of 20 swings

5×3 Kettlebell jerks (with the same bell) for 3 reps on each arm + 50 yard sprints

5×5 Push ups, isolating off of one arm at the top of the push up (5 on each arm) + Stadium sprints up 88 stairs at the football stadium.

Note: Sprints can be substituted for stadiums if no stadium is available.

Finished!

The Essential Fourth Trait of the Successful Fighter

As you probably noticed from this workout, the needs of being a well-rounded athlete that can physically go to the limit also requires a fourth trait that I failed to mention. The trait of mental toughness is a must if you’re going to acquire optimal performance in MMA – or any sport for that matter.

In ending, I do believe there are certain foundations and principles that can be applied to any athlete in any sport. However, I believe that specificity is the absolute power and key to the success of any given athlete. This is exactly what I’m always trying to communicate and offer to my students. In my opinion, coaches who believe solely in a cookie-cutter approach end up neglecting the definite needs of the athlete(s) in question.

I teach my students that most anyone can train hard, but only the best train smart. This mantra is something that I’m always shouting from the rooftops! So keep training smart, my friends.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post MMA Workout: To Develop Movement, Strength, and Power appeared first on Breaking Muscle.