It’s Running Season! A Couple of Tips and Tricks for the Runners

May 23, 2013 By Leave a Comment

It seems that everyone I talk to lately is getting ready to run or has just run in an event (like the half-marathon or the upcoming Urbanathlon). Why are these things so popular? Because running, unlike swimming, cycling or lifting, requires nothing but pavement and a pair of shoes (or Five Fingers!).

Unfortunately, this accessibility also leads to injury. Deconditioned or inexperienced runners usually find this out rather early in their running careers. Like every other human movement, there’s a technique to running (more than just getting one foot in front of the other). So here’s a few tips and tricks to avoid injury and maximise efficiency for both training and competitive races:

1. Never cross the midline

Draw an imaginary line down the body, separating it into left and right halves. At no point when running should you find your arms crossing to opposite side of the body, nor should the legs cross over behind the body at the end of a stride. Both generate torsion through the spine and pelvis, and any rotation is energy that’s not really helping you move forward (not to mention the poor loading and injury risk!).

2. Relax

Carry as little tension as possible outside of the working muscles. Relax the hands and shoulders, with just enought tension to hold the arms at about 90 degrees at the elbow. Relax the face and jaw – just watch elite sprinters do this. Less tension means more efficiency.

3. Land light

Are you a “heavy” runner? Quiet runners are efficient runners. Generally, landing heavy (with a hard footstrike) can indicate a couple of things – overstriding, heel running and fatigue.


Overstriding is not particularly productive. It’s generally more efficient to increase cadence during longer runs (about 180 strides/min). This reduces the likelihood of heel running, where the runner’s first point of contact with the ground is the heel. When the heel contacts first, it is often in front of the body, as opposed to directly under the body. When this happens, there is a decelerating effect (any contact in front of the body when moving forwards will slow you down), thus reducing efficiency and increasing joint loading (not good for injury risk).

There’s plenty more things to increasing running effiency – these are just a couple of big ones that I see on a regular (daily) basis. If you want any advice or opinions, just ask the trainers or check in with Scott (our resident marathon man) for some running technique tips!

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Getting More Out Of Your Mobility Work

May 8, 2013 By Leave a Comment

We’ve come a long way as a gym with regards to mobility work. Gone are the old days where mobility was relegated to the post-workout stretch. A few of us trainers are now throwing around new rolling, trigger ball and stretching drills to help increase your range of motion and get the most out of your workout.

With that, what I want to address is this: how do we get the most out of your mobility work for the least time investment?

Order of Operations

Firstly, identify what is tight. Like the old saying goes, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Next, use a foam roller/trigger ball/golf ball to roll out the general area of tightness. I like to think of foam rolling as the equivalent of rolling out pastry – flatten and smooth out the tissues equally. The aim at this point is to minimise “adherences” in or between different tissues.

On the back of nicely rolled tissue, we’re going to find one or two stretches that target the movement we want to increase range of motion in. We can do this in a static form i.e. stretch and hold, or we can do this in a dynamic form i.e. moving continually through a range of motion.

Finally to tie it all in, start warm ups with the exercise that you originally had the tightness in. Where relevant, start with a body weight variety or empty barbell and work through full range, concentrating on using the newly-acquired mobility to improve the quality of your movement.

An Example

Let’s look at the squat, the most common mobility tester.

1. Identify what is tight:
- Have a look at an unloaded squat. We’ll presume for this instance that we can see that the ankles are restricted in their movement.

2. Roll/massage the relevant tissues:
- The two spots I would target are the underside of the foot (golf ball) and the calf area (with a small roller). Try and alleviate tender points or any “lumps and bumps” that you feel by spending more time on those areas.

3. Stretch:
- A basic calf stretch or ankle mobility drill with bands will do nicely.

4. Return to the squat:
- Try the squat again, using the extra mobility to get into a better, deeper squat position.

Questions? Post to comments.

Try this mobility approach if you’re struggling with a particular movement/tightness. As always, don’t hesitate to ask!!

We’ve come a long way as a gym with regards to mobility work. Gone are

the old days where mobility was relegated to the post-workout stretch.

A few of us trainers are now throwing around new rolling, trigger ball

and stretching drills to help increase your range of motion and get

the most out of your workout.

With that, what I want to address is this: how do we get the most out

of your mobility work for the least time investment?

Order of Operations

Firstly, identify what is tight. Like the old saying goes, “if it

ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Next, use a foam roller/trigger ball/golf ball to roll out the general

area of tightness. I like to think of foam rolling as the equivalent

of a rolling pin to pastry – flatten and smooth out the tissues

equally. The aim at this point is to minimise “adherences” in or

between different tissues.

On the back of nicely rolled tissue, we’re going to find one or two

stretches that target the movement we want to increase range of motion

in. We can do this in a static form i.e. stretch and hold, or we can

do this in a dynamic form i.e. moving continually through a range of

motion.

Finally to tie it all in, start warm ups with the exercise that you

originally had the tightness in. Where relevant, start with a body

weight variety or empty barbell and work through full range,

concentrating on using the newly-acquired mobility to improve the

quality of your movement.

An Example

Let’s look at the squat, the most common mobility tester.

1. Identify what is tight:
- Have a look at an unloaded squat. We’ll presume for this instance

that we can see that the ankles are restricted in their movement.

2. Roll/massage the relevant tissues:
- The two spots I would target are the underside of the foot (golf

ball) and the calf area (with a small roller). Try and alleviate

tender points or any “lumps and bumps” that you feel by spending more

time on those areas.

3. Stretch:
- A basic calf stretch or ankle mobility drill with bands will do

nicely.

4. Return to the squat:
- Try the squat again, using the extra mobility to get into a better,

deeper squat position.

Questions? Post to comments.

Try this mobility approach if you’re struggling with a particular

movement/tightness.

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Front Squat Variations – The Why

April 24, 2013 By Leave a Comment

We use the front squat religiously here. Kettlebells, dumbbells, barbells and even the odd sandbag or medicine ball front squat have appeared at different times. Why? Because each has a slightly different loading pattern or transfers to different exercises.

Barbell (BB) Front Squats

Quite simple, the epitome of strength training. There is no real way to “cheat” a BB front squat. Great for general strength and specific transfer to the BB clean and jerk.

Kettlebell (KB) Front Squats

Kettlebells load the body slightly differently to barbells. The weight is further in front of the centre of balance, meaning that someone with mobility issues can sit back further and achieve a greater range of motion in their squat.

When it gets heavy, the KB really taxes upper back strength. Often, the KB falls forward from the rack position as one fatigues. Great for introducing a weighted squat to beginners or tighter individuals, and a good starting point for learning weighted pistols (single leg squats). Also really handy for outdoor training.

Dumbbell (DB) Front Squats

Easier than the KB version, one can rack the DB’s on the shoulders. This requires more mobility than KB’s, but less than BB’s. It also allows for practice of the DB rack position, which is used in exercises such as DB thrusters, DB push press and DB cleans.


Various Object Front Squats

The “various objects” can include medicine balls, dead balls, sandbags, logs or any other object that can be “racked”. The reality of using odd-shaped objects is that most things carried in life aren’t ideal BB or KB shapes. A squirming eight year old just doesn’t behave like a barbell!

The Split Squat

The single leg version of a front squat. While I could probably write an entire post about the split squat, I’ll keep it short (this time). It requires roughly the same mechanics and mobility as front squats, but challenges each leg independently, just in case there’s an asymmetry.

Chances are you’ve come across at least a couple of these variations. If you haven’t yet, you will!

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What’s Your Learning Style?

April 10, 2013 By 1 Comment

I teach a lot of people to lift. But I don’t teach everybody exactly the same way. Simply because not everybody learns the same way.

Understanding Learning Styles

The easiest and most widely used system for classifying learning styles is the VAK system. Visual, auditory and kinaesthetic. Each individual tends to learn using one of these primary outlets. Some like to see a technique, some like to have a technique described to them, and others yet need some sort of hands-on positioning to “feel” an exercise.

Teaching An Exercise

I use a rather simple method (it’s about the only thing I took away from my personal training certification). Name an exercise, identify its purpose, visually demonstrate and get a client to replicate using tactile cues. This way, it covers all three learning styles right from the outset.

Introducing a new exercise this way not only gives you the opportunity to experience a couple of different learning stimuli, it gives me the opportunity to assess what helps you learn best. Win-win!

How Do You Learn Best?

Are you primarily a visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learner?

If you are a visual learner, you will prefer to watch an exercise. YouTube, demonstrations, slow motion and the like. Often you’ll find yourself asking “can you just show me that once more?”. Visualising movements, angles and diagrams works best for you (I’m most definitely a visual learner!).

If you prefer the auditory approach, often an auditory cue or two (“drop your hips”, “flat back”) help you pick up an exercise technique. Podcasts, audios and lectures will bring the best out in you.

Finally, for the kinaesthetic learners, you prefer to get into the mix. You learn by doing/feel. You will more than likely find that physical cues like touch can get you to activate muscles far better than anything else. A great example is when trying to squeeze your shoulderblades together. If you find it easiest when somebody pinches them together for you to allow you to “feel” the movement, then you are predominantly a kinaesthetic learner.

Finally…

No one style or technique is right. It is purely an individual response that one (occassionally two) of these styles tends to dominate the others. Decide what type of learner you are and how that can best benefit you when you train. I know if I’m struggling with a skill I will watch a video/demo on it, rather than have someone describe it to me or give me a tactile cue. It’s just what works!

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Universal Motor Pattern Concepts

March 27, 2013 By Leave a Comment

On the left, what we see after "fixing" squats. On the right, a common position for the knees to be in landing from a jump, despite being "fixed."

A while ago I discussed the inherent differences between the squat, deadlift and lunge patterns from a functional standpoint. Each are their own fundamental pattern to be used in different circumstances.

I’m going to go one step further with these patterns. When we learn an exercise or a movement, we create a kind of blueprint. Rather than the adage “practice makes perfect,” think of movement learning as a case of “practice makes permanent.”

When we learn these movements (such as the squat) for the first time, we immediately begin to develop habits (the cognitive stage of learning). We require external feedback to correct, as we don’t have the experience to self correct.

Over time, we get better at “feeling” when a movement isn’t right. We have a much greater ability to correct ourselves without having to devote too much attention to it (the associative stage of learning).

The most experienced people know exactly when a movement is wrong, and can often correct it during the exercise or movement (the autonomous stage of learning).

The Universal Motor Pattern

What I’ve noticed over the past six or seven years of training people is that the first squat pattern learned is often the one that dominates through all squat-related exercises (a universal squat motor pattern).

We (as trainers) aim to correct faulty squat patterns right from the outset, often with good success. The issue that arises is once the basic squat looks okay, we progress to wallball, thrusters and jumps.

And the same training mistakes that presented themselves in the initial squat training rear their ugly heads again when these more complex squat movements are introduced.

It’s almost assured that if an individual had initial problems keeping the knees out in a squat, they’re going to have the same problems when first starting box jumps.

Moral Of The Story

- “Fixing” a basic movement pattern will not guarantee that the problem doesn’t show up again in more complex movements.
- Each movement needs to go through the three learning phases (cognitive, associative and autonomous).
- Don’t presume that because your knees don’t roll in on a bodyweight squat anymore, the same won’t happen in a box jumps. You’ve got to be aware of things like that.
- Universal motor patterns always dominate in high complexity exercises or under conditions of fatigue. It takes months to years of good quality practice to make good habits autonomous.

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Reflexes: Legal Performance Enhancers

March 13, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Think Mr. Miyagi. Flies and chopsticks. Well, not quite.

Reflexes are rapid physical responses to sensory stimuli, without processing via the brain (in most cases). Initially in human development, reflexes were used to escape danger without lengthy thought processes. We’re talking about withdrawal reflexes and crossed extensor reflexes, pupillary light reflexes and pharyngeal reflexes (to name a few).

Moving forward from survival to performance training and reflexes once again feature heavily. Understanding and exploiting these reflexes can boost performance and increase mobility.

The Stretch Reflex

When muscles are rapidly stretched under tension, muscle spindles inside skeletal muscles send a signal to the spinal cord. The spinal cord then sends a direct signal back to the stretched muscle to contract, and an inhibitory signal to the opposing muscle to relax.

The application of this is simple. If we can rapidly stretch a muscle while we try to contract it, the resulting contraction will be significantly stronger. The best example is box jumps. Jumping down from the box loads the calves and quadriceps on contact with the ground (the rapid stretch under tension). We then try to jump as soon as we make contact with the ground, adding the reflex contraction to our own efforts to boost jump height and efficiency.

Other examples include touch and go push press/jerk, dynamic starts in Olympic lifting, any type of jumping and skipping.

Reciprocal Inhibition

This is a really easy neural trick to apply. When a muscle contracts to produce a movement, the muscle responsible for the opposite action relaxes. If you want your hamstrings to relax (i.e. during a stretch), then contract the quadriceps.

Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) Stretching

When a muscle is slowly put on stretch (as opposed to rapidly as in the Stretch Reflex), tension is developed just like when pulling an elastic band. Sensors in muscles known as Golgi Tendon Organs (GTO’s) are stimulated by this type of tension. Their role is to reflexively relax the muscle that is maximally tensed.

PNF stretching takes advantage of this. Using the hamstrings as an example, stretch the hamstrings as far as you safely can for 7-10s (you should feel some tension). Try to actively contract the hamstrings for 3-6s(developing extra tension and allowing the GTO’s to reflexively relax the muscle), then relax for 1-2s. Repeat. Each time you repeat, you should feel the muscle “release”, giving you slightly more range of motion. In theory, this technique can be applied to almost any movement for range of motion gains!

 

Just a couple of examples on how human reflexes can benefit performance. Don’t hesitate to ask any of the trainers about this information or how it can be applied to you. I’ve got quite a number of clients using modifications of the techniques you’ve just read with solid results!

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The Games are Upon Us!

February 27, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Games time again! Anxiety, anticipation and action all rolled into one. Here are a few new (and a couple of old but no less important) ideas to prepare for the 2013 Reebok CrossFit Open.

Have a game plan

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. Think about each workout and how you want to approach it. Will you need to rest more in the heavy lift component, but less in the gymnastic exercise? Do you aim to rest every ten wallball?

If your plan changes halfway through a workout (an exercise was harder/easier than you anticipated), then run with it. Cycle through the easy stuff and pace yourself for the more challenging exercise.

AMRAP

We can be pretty sure that every workout is going to be in an “As Many Rounds As Possible” format. Don’t go like a bat out of hell at the first round. You’ll build up way too much lactic acid and spend the rest of the workout sucking wind trying to recover. Save full throttle until the latter stages of the workout.

Eat, hydrate and recover

Good food, plenty of water and a good (couple of) night’s sleep. Prerequisites for performance.

Have fun!

This is a must. You do this because you enjoy the challenge. You enjoy seeing improvement in your own performance. Keep it that way. At the end of the day, it’s all about having fun and learning a thing or two along the way.

Over and out.

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Mobility Exercises To Test You Out!

February 13, 2013 By Leave a Comment

I’ll get straight to the point on this one. If you can do any (or all) of these mobility exercises with sound technique, you’re doin’ ok!

Downward Dog

A nice combination of ankle, hip, lumbar, thoracic and shoulder mobility. The final movement should look like a triangle with the heels on the ground and back completely flat and in line with the shoulders.

KB Overhead Squat

A similar demand on the body to the downward dog. The big difference here is that it also relies on great squat mechanics and can be loaded up for some serious strength gains!

Skin The Cat

A great measure of shoulder stability and mobility (along with gymnastic control), and downright tough. Not for the faint hearted or those with previous shoulder injuries. Remember, thumbs out!

High Manna

Well, forget this one! Few people in the world can do it due to the huge mobility and strength requirements. The high manna never ceases to amaze me…the human body is capable of some incredible things!

 

If you do decide to give any of these a go, make sure you warm up appropriately and I recommend trying them under supervision (at least the first few times)!

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Five Random Thoughts About Training

January 30, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Occasionally I stumble across useful tidbits of information. Just one journal article, book, blog, video or training session can tweak my mental blueprint on exercise. These random thoughts you’re about to read have no real connection to each other and are from completely different sources. They really are random…

#1. Technical perfection is crucial.

I had a discussion in the distant past about “CrossFit slop.” The argument put forward was that a level of “sloppy form” was acceptable in order to post faster workout times. I disagreed.

Technical perfection breeds efficiency. Efficiency means more work done for less effort. Better athletes are generally more technically perfect. And less injured.

#2. Changing direction is a skill.

I always thought that changing direction just happened. I played footy for so long that it was an inherent skill. Only when I recently started incorporating directional change into workouts did I realise that, like all things, changing direction is a skill to be learned and practiced. Those who haven’t played sport (particularly team sport) as a kid never really got to practice changing direction. Agility drills are important.

#3. I like push ups.

They can be modified to be made easier. They can be modified to be made harder. They tell me a lot about a client and their movement patterns, strength and whole-body coordination. And they’re fun!

#4. Speed strength.

Something I’ve never contemplated until recently. Motor recruitment patterns are different for, say, a back squat at 90% of 1RM versus a back squat at 70% of 1RM done with an explosive up phase.

Interestingly, incorporating speed into “strength” lifts like squats and deadlifts actually requires the recruitment of more motor units. It teaches you to fully activate muscles from a neural perspective. Even though the load isn’t maximal, 1RM numbers will increase from this type of training.

#5. Understanding why you’re doing something.

I’m not just talking about “I squat so I can get stronger.” I’m talking things like understanding why you’re rotator cuff tendon is impinging on the scapula and why reducing the activity of the upper traps will help to alleviate that impingement. Or why allowing the bar to leave the body in a clean leads to failure at heavier weights.

Understanding an issue allows us to better conceptualise and visualise what’s going on. With this information we can, in turn, modify or concentrate on a particular aspect of an exercise or training program as a whole.

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Squats, Deadlifts and Lunges – Movement Patterns, Not Exercises.

January 9, 2013 By Leave a Comment

As always, I like to view things a little differently to others. And today is no different.

What I propose from the rather cryptic title of the article is this: don’t think about squats, deadlifts or lunges being exercises. Think of them as movement patterns that allow you to select exercises based off your ability to perform them. Let me further clarify…

The Squat

The basic squat is a knee-dominant pattern. It requires the aligned coordination of the ankles, knees and hips, together with a relatively upright spine to perform the movement. In optimal cases, the deep squat should act as a functional resting position (just watch babies and young children sit).

Now, my point is this. Mastery of this basic squat allows you to adapt the movement to suit your current needs. A bodyweight squat should differ very little from a barbell squat or squat component of the wallball. If it does, then we need to revisit and modify the squat pattern.  A good squat pattern will maximise efficiency and output in squat-based exercises, while eliminating any undue risk of injury.

The Deadlift

The deadlift, unlike the squat, is a hip-dominant, hip-hinge movement pattern. It is not knee dominant. In a technically perfect deadlift, the posterior chain muscles (hamstrings, glutes, erector spinae etc.) are loaded up in lieu of the anterior muscles (particularly quadriceps). The deadlift relies on a vertical tibia (shin) with more extensive movement at the hip joint.

The deadlift pattern is the most effective and efficient way for humans to reach objects on the floor (yes, you could squat, but it is neither as effective nor as efficient).

A perfect illustration of why a deadlift is not a squat. The tibia is near-vertical, the hips are much higher and the body is loaded primarily through the posterior chain in a deadlift.

A faulty deadlift movement pattern result in two things. One is for the knees to continue over the toes, lowering the hips and finishing in a squat pattern (inefficient and impractical at heavy loads). The second is for the back to round in order to reach a predetermined distance, comprimising back health and increasing the risk of injury. Either of these outcomes indicates that the deadlift pattern needs to be worked on before progressing to some of the exercises listed below.

A good deadlift pattern can be adapted to different exercises based on a hip-hinge, including barbell and kettlebell deadlifts, suitcase deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, kettlebell swings (and any variation of), good mornings and GHD variations.

The Lunge

Oft-forgotten when compared to the deadlift and squat. The lunge pattern is unique in that it represents a stable, strong movement pattern in an asymmetrical stance. That is, our lunge pattern will determine our ability to handle loads when our feet are not symmetrical.

A lunge represents the middle ground between the squat and the deadlift, and has much more application than you think. We walk, run, change direction and take the stairs with one foot leading, and often jump more effectively off one leg (no one has ever won longjump or highjump with a two foot takeoff!).

An effective lunge pattern requires the shoulder, hip and rear knee to be in total alignment, with the hips in a neutral position. Any deviation from this and the body must compromise both its stability and strength for range or comfort.

Good lunge. Shoulder, hip and knee are in alignment with the pelvis in neutral position.

Bad lunge. Pelvis is in anterior tilt, lower back in excessive lordosis and nothing in a straight line. Placing a load on this pattern will require the body to make plenty of compensations, increasing injury risk and minimising efficiency.

Good lunge patterns transfer into exercises like running, jumping, sprinting and changing direction (just about any team sport), as well as any lunge variation you care to name. You could even put a case forward to say that a good lunge pattern is essential for human locomotion!

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