I was on the road tonight

I was working in another facility tonight testing an Irish Superleague Basketball team.

We did a spider test or 150m test...whatever you want to call it...after you finish it people call it a lot of different things...none of which I can print here.

It is 6 30 second efforts with 30 seconds recovery run back to back. Lanes are laid out with markers at 5, 10, 15, 20 & 25 metre intervals. At the whistle you race out to the 5m line and back then out to the 10m line and back and on and on it goes...you basically have to cover as much distance as possible in 30 seconds basically. So if you make it all the way out to the last cone and back that is 150m. I really like this test for field and court sports because It gives me a lot of information in a really short time.

João Mimoso has left a new comment on your post "I was on the road tonight":

It's funny that i have the same test for my Basketball team. Only i don't mark the floor and count the last crossed line(baseline,free throw,mid,free throw,baseline. If they finish just 1m before the next line->boo hoo
Mine is the same...in that whether you just cross one line or get within a foot of the next line you get the distance covered to the last crossed line. I've had guys want to punch me in the head after just missing something like 3 consecutive lines by inches...I say 'want' to punch me because very few actually have the strength afterwards.

For example...here are some results from this week...one from a basketball player tonight and one from a footballer late last week.

Basketballer:
1. 135m
2. 125m
3. 115m
4. 115m
5. 105m
6. 110m
Total = 705m

Footballer:
1. 155m
2. 145m
3. 115m
4. 105m
5. 100m
6. 95m
Total = 715m

Actually...before I tell you what I get out of it...what do you get from these results?

Anyway...before we discuss this test...can I just say I'm a little disappointed. Out of the 8 guys that did the test only 2 of them threw up afterwards...if you are really 'putting in' on this test vomiting is usually the inevitable result.

After the the testing finished I gave them some quiet time before we went over the results. Then we headed up to the gym to do their 1RM bench, pull up repetition, push up and inverted row testing.

I had to laugh when I went into the gym...the place was a mess...good facility...not well managed...well basically from the looks of it not managed at all. I thought the sign was a nice touch. Obviously whoever manages the gym rules the place with an iron fist.

I don't think people really understand what this sign means?

Before that it was business as usual. The Fatathon is going well. I can't wait till the weigh in on Monday afternoon. I know the guys are doing well because the amount of abuse I've been receiving has been steadily ratcheting up this week. I mean above and beyond the standard abuse I receive normally.

The guys had a strength session tonight...Chops, Chunky & Little John the 3 merry men did the following:

10 minutes on the bike
2 sets of 8 reps of hurdle steps each side
2 sets of 8 reps of single leg hip pop ups
Trap Bar Deadlifts - 3x8, 3x4 & 3x2...they went 100kg+ for the 8's, 160kg+ for the 4's and 180-250kg for the 2's.
Elevated Split Squats - 4x8 each leg.

Natural Reverse Hypers - 3x25.
Incline Barbell Press - 3x8, 3x4 & 3x2. If Little John checks this or Chunky maybe they could tell you what the went for each progression...I know Chops won't tell you because he is a) too weak from dieting to even type. b) too busy thinking of how many ways he'd like to kill me.
Blast Strap Inverted Rows - 5x10
45 degree Back Extensions - 5x10
Bike - 10 mins

Q&A...otherwise known as Questions & Abuse
Michael Sullivan has left a new comment on your post "It's all about Pull Ups these last couple of days":

Will Heffernan said...
No kicking off the bottom but I don't mind you kicking at the top...and it has always been the same.

I think that may be the dumbest thing you have ever said and that is saying a lot. What the feck is the point of the test if a little cheating is OK?
OK...the problem is that I don't/can't do all the testing for all the athletes I work with. A lot of them train at a lot of other facilities and I was getting huge discrepancies in testing results so I basically ended up saying no kicking off the bottom to stop the kipping. I will take the criticism on the chin. I know it isn't perfect.

Why not bounce the bar off your chest when benching,
They do.

use knee wraps when squatting,
Never seen a single athlete ever squat with wraps in Ireland in nearly 10 years.

Dan John hump the bar for inverted rows?
I better not video any of the inverted rows then in that case.

When we tested in Utah you said each pull up had to done from a dead hang and kicking was not done by any of the people testing not even you.
I know...but that was just because it was a group of elite athletes.

I would like to put in a formal protest to the testing committee and would like to revise the testing numbers I submitted. Add 3 pullups to my score, 4 inverted rows and 25kg on squats.
I will lodge your application...wait to hear back from us before posting again.

idiot.
True.

Adrienl has left a new comment on your post "I was on the road tonight":

hi will few questions on the testing
1) what type of flooring and footwear was used (eg grass or hardcourt)
Tonight it was on court.

2) Are these results the best worst or middling for what you would expect? (i say a bad middling based on my basketball team)
Tonight's results weren't great...but it was their first session of pre season so we'll see where they go from here.

3)did the athletes pace themselves in any form or was it just go hard from start to finish?( i would think the 2nd option)
I want them to go flat out from start to finish. I want to see the best first score they can get then they should just try and survive from there.

Adrienl has left a new comment on your post "It's all about Pull Ups these last couple of days":

Will thanks for that and a few more if you don't mind
1) so the athletes just do the full testing then go home correct?
Some do and some don't...but yes, when they are finished testing I am done with them for the day.

2) also with athletes who have a long offseason eg (4+months) do you ever see the need for a deload or does the changing of focus( eg stregnth to fitness) provide it for you? If the former how would you be implemnting them after a strength or fitness type stage?
I have no idea what the hell you are talking about...but let's just say yes, as I'm in a generous mood.

3) do you ever bother deloading your normal people or do they not really warrant it due to the lower intensity?
Non sport related clients you mean?

just realised that deloads cost you money so maybe you never bother with them ;)
thanks again for your time and patience.
Actually I do...and yes, it does cost me money.

The other thing I was asked about today and yesterday were supplements

I am not the expert on this...far from it. My experience with supplements have been pretty basic...basically Dan Fouts who is an avid reader of the blog turned me on to Muscle Milk and I never looked back.

I am actually going to see if Lyle McDonald has some summary or recommendations that I could post up here on different supplements...what they are good for and how you should use them...so Lyle...if you have something like that could you email it to me? If you don't I'll just have to rip off your stuff and post it any way!

If you train at our facility you know you can talk to Hugh about whatever you need...if you are just a blog reader and are based in Ireland then I suggest you go to Irish Lifting and get yourself sorted...Mick loves to hear from customers and if you get anything from him make sure you email him everyday and thank him or just say 'Hi' because he loves getting email. This isn't a paid for advertisement. I actually BUY my Muscle Milk from him...which is ridiculous...I should really be a sponsored lifter or something and get it all for free...if only I lifted and didn't look like a fat mess and if it wasn't for the fact that I look more like an example of the dangers of taking too much Muscle Milk when not training. So before anyone else asks me where they should get supplements...you've been told. Now at least I can say just check out the blog.

Speaking of which...Check out the blog...is becoming my get out of jail free card...any time any asks me anything these days and it is dumb or I just can't be bothered explaining it I just say...check out the blog...it's brilliant...and anyone who actually reads it knows how hard it is too find stuff on here so if they come back to me and say they couldn't find it I can just say....look harder.

I was asked today about whether I knew of any good journals...

...and it made me realise that I don't. The NSCA coaching and research journals used to be be quite good but has completely gone off the rails over the last few years.

There are also very few consistently good training and coaching websites out there...or maybe I'm just not looking hard enough? If anyone has any good training or coaching websites that would like to suggest then post them in the comments section here and we can vote on what we think is adding a link on the blog to...it has to at the very least be better than this 'Pull Up' blog.

It's all about Pull Ups these last couple of days

Well Pull Ups and questions from Adrienl

Adrienl has left a new comment on your post "I haven't plagerised the answers to these question...":

thanks for answering those questions will, just got a few more
1) i haven't yet seen you use a jump before a strength exercise so would you say this is a more advanced exercise and what would you be looking to acomplish through it? (eg give strength boost through more explosiveness or get better at pushing through fatigue)
That's because I actually need to have a full time cameraman and blog writer in the gym with me because I actually have to work and don't get to capture the best action unless it is quiet.
It isn't necessarily a more advanced exercise. It is just different...when it next appears in a program and I remember to do so I will film it for you. I never do jumping before or after lifts while the athlete is 'really' fatigued.

2) in regards to testing are these planned out weeks ahead(the athletes therefore knows they are coming) or are they announced on the day?
They are planned out before in that athletes will know when they have a testing week. They do 6 weeks between full tests and at the end of 3 weeks have a mini test. Which is a 3RM box squat, repetition effort bench at body weight and a 3RM pull up....I have written about this before....you are obviously not paying attention to what I write....don't worry though...neither am I.

3) what is the average time between testing for athletes and after performing the tests do they just head home or do they do extra work?
See above.

thanks again and don't hesitate to tell me if i am getting annoying
No problem and you are getting annoying. Don't let that stop you asking more questions though.

I just wanted to post Rammer's because he did pretty well in the over 100kg class today.



He had a pretty good day testing wise with a PB on the bench, pull ups and deadlift.

I haven't plagerised the answers to these questions I swear

Sami has left a new comment on your post "In a bit of a funk this afternoon so blogging to d...":

Will said,
Then what I do is to start manipulating the distances, sets, reps and recoveries so I can increase the distance and hence the time that near maximal intensity can be maintained. I then go back to closer to the original distance used and repeat the process with less recovery..

Will, how do you figure out the total volume?
It is a carrot and stick thing...to be honest (which by inference I never am) I do it by feel and experience rather than to a formula. I was talking with some athletes yesterday about the fact that I somehow manage to make each conditioning session session just painful and yet not impossible. I was trying to explain how I try to coax athletes to 'fitness' without them actually realising it...the reason they never realise it is because sessions are always hard but for different reasons. Sometimes it is hard because of the intensity...sometimes it's the volume...other times it is the reduction in recovery. This is what coaching is actually about...having a feel for your athletes and what they can handle. I actually know a lot of them better than they know themselves and this is demonstrated clearly every time I ask them to do something and they give me 'that look' and say 'Will I can't do this.'...and then I make them do it and they do. I don't get it wrong very often. This is the thing isn't it. This is the bit they can't teach at University and that you can't learn from books. So in short to answer your question on how I figure out the total volume....in short...I don't actually know...or more to the point...I don't know how to explain it to you.

-Where to start?
Be conservative...giving them too little and them being able to do it hard and fast is better that giving them too much...less is always more....except of course when more is better.

-When upping the distance do you reduce the number of sets to keep volume roughly constant?
I usually manipulate it so they do more but without them realising it...I have a special way of describing sessions to always make them 'sound' easier than they are...just ask any of my athletes. The ones that have been with me for years are excellent at doing the mental calculations to work out total volume, total estimated session time and total recovery time before I even pause at the end of my explanation.

-or let the volume grow? How much? Is there a cut off point?
This is really dependent on what you are training for as in what you are trying to improve and the sport for which you are training.

ian has left a new comment on your post "Apparently I only train rugby players":

BTW...Mike Robertson has stolen your catchphrase, "If you are not assessing, you are guessing." Saw it on his blog.
Thief.

Actually, Mike and Will have stolen that phrase from Alwyn - it's on his website. I don't know where he got it from though :)
I bet I stole it before either of those two.

Will - since ROK's knees are veering inward I can see how some coaches might have ensured the load was much reduced - even just to doing bodyweight box squats - until the knees travelled more correctly. Any thoughts?
Yes, plenty of thoughts. Firstly, like I said...this problem 'was' much worse. Have we got it 'fixed' no..not yet. I work with athletes some of these 'coaches' you mention...I put coaches in brackets because a lot of these 'coaches' don't actually have any athletes and just write about training rather than conduct it. I will talk about this issue because it is an important one. Have a look at this guy.



He has a lot of scap control issues and a load of strength imbalances...what you are talking about leaves a couple of options...I could stop all his training and correct every single imbalance and problem he has...just as a side note...I don't have a single professional or semi professional athlete that doesn't have to 'nurse' some sort of imbalance or injury...and as a side side note...if I ruled out every player that wasn't completely fit to play two things would happen...1. None of the teams I work for would have players to take the field. 2. I would be beaten to a bloody pulp.
Back to Cookies and ROK....so I could stop all their training and just address all their imbalances or I could do what I always do...train them appropriately and address their issues through training. ROK started squatting the bar with difficulty and deadlifting 40kg and now she's repping with 85kg and pulling nearly twice bodyweight and along the way we've improved her knee issues hugely. Cookies did his testing the other day and nearly PB'd on his bench, did 11 pull ups, 60+ push ups and 30+ inverted rows and pulled near double bodyweight. I've seen and heard the arguments regarding the point you are raising in this question...I just completely disagree with it. My first priority is to reduce these guys likelihood of injury and optimising their performance...I think I can do both at the same time.

Adrienl has left a new comment on your post "Apparently I only train rugby players":

Will with regards to 1)athletes performing the supersets of a strength exercise and then a jump or medball throw are you looking to train them to be explosive under fatigue or utlising the reducing of the resistance to allow for greater explosiveness?
We do both those things.

2) would you ever look at utilising the jump before the weight exercise and what type of situation would this be?
Yes.

3) with regard to the training of sports such as baseball or cricket how much conditioning work would you do(as the sports consist of sprinting and then a long rest) and what would it look like?
No matter what sport you do...being 'fit' never hurts.

4) a weird one but have you ever read inside sport and would you be willing to have a look at some of the training programs they are publishing detailing the weeks of professional athletes? they just seem off ( eg a rugby player doing PILATES!!!! for his legs this was timana tahu)
A lot of athletes succeed in spite of their training not because of it.

5) when doing blast strap pushups how much lower or higher should the reps be compared to regular floor pushups
We go hands to chest...so lower.

Okay that's it for now (just gave you your next blog post if you want) again thanks for putting yourself out there and talking to a kid like me.
Adrienl
You keep asking questions and I'll keep answering them.

All the power must be in the hair

The red heads have been running riot. First Fergus then Fanj and now Hogie just smashing the place up. Hogie had a good 8 week block of training and I don't have my results book in front of me but off the top of my head...added a few kilograms of quality..his bodyfat is the same as it was when he started. He added 15kg to his bench...and would of added more if Fanj hadn't sabotaged him by using the Jedi mind trick on him. He got 19 pull ups...well done Hogie...with Hugh out of action that could stand as a record for a while.


He thinks he was robbed...after looking at it in slow motion several times...I think as always...I was generous.

He did about 60 push ups and did 34 inverted rows in 60 seconds. Hogie has a back issue that we are nursing him through so even though he wanted to deadlift I didn't let him. A lot of the lads are heading off to the US this week I hope they have a great time and don't destroy all the hard work they've done.

Apparently I only train rugby players

The truth is the majority of work I do is with rugby players. This season though is actually the first season that is the case. I work with lots of athletes from lots of different sports...Rugby, Gaelic Football, Hurling, Basketball, Tennis, Athletics, Football, Martial Artists and Boxers. This is as well as the individuals I train who are just looking to get in shape or lose weight. The athletes I coach in all shapes a sizes.


Some are big strong and aggressive.


While others are basically just little girls.

Basically I'll coach anyone who walks through the door and the athletes tend to pick me rather than me picking them.

I was talking with some athletes who just started with me the other day

What we were basically discussing was how they got seemingly so strong so fast. Now before you start thinking I'm blowing my own trumpet...I was actually explaining that it had nothing to do with me. What we were discussing is that when they started I did what I usually do and have them do 2 'induction' sessions...this is just to give them a bit of a feel for the facility and to have a bit of a poke around. Then they do their testing just like everyone else.

Anyway...back to my point. One of the lads was saying that he basically did for reps what he did for 1RM in testing on the bench. The reason this happened is because when he loaded the bar he neglected to take account of the fact that the bar weighed 20kg's. Now he's only been doing 3 sessions a week for 3 weeks now. Put quite simply he has not gotten 'stronger' in 3 weeks...well not significantly anyway. All that has changed is his ability to stabilize and control the bar. What has gotten better is his ability to express his strength. If we tested him now I'd say he would do close to 50-70% better. Now I ask you this...is he actually 50-70% stronger? Of course not.

Why am I talking about this I hear you ask....or more likely you are probably saying...what the hell is this idiot going on about now...or words to that effect. Well the reason is that I think experienced even elite lifters and trainees forget this fact. Say you are stuck at 100kg on your bench...or that you can squat and RDL 60lbs more than you can deadlift...is getting stronger the answer? What most lifters try to do is to keep trying to smash their head against that brick wall. They keep piling on the weights and think to themselves that it is just a matter of training harder, training more or trying harder...have you been there and done that? It isn't always a matter of getting stronger.


Sometimes improving your control, flexibility, mobility and stability are more important in enabling you to better express your strength.

This guy will test this week after only a month of training...and he is going to smash his previous scores. Is he significantly stronger? I doubt it. Is he better able to express the strength and power that he has? You bet. More importantly that better expression of strength and power means increased km/h on his serve and improved court speed and agility. Do I care that he'll add 10kg's to his bench...not really...too me what it is more of a sign of him being able to control and apply the strength that he has in a focussed and specific way.

I am soooo out of the loop

If you want to know why I'm not part of the fitness biz...other than for the obvious reason like the fact that I am barely literate, am a terrible public speaker and have a propensity to cut my nose off to spite my face when it comes to interpersonal skills or more specifically my complete lack of them...then read this.

Is plagiarism the new internet business model.

and

Is plagiarism the new internet business model - Part II.

I just realised how funny my link to Lyle's book appears now:

Lyle McDonald's Books - Everything I've stolen in the area of nutrition. If I've told you how to lose weight... it was from here... if you've got advice on bulking up... also here... if you are seriously interested in nutrtion and sports performance... don't talk to me unless you own them.

Why can't every one just use my disclaimer...this is something they should feel free to copy.

In a bit of a funk this afternoon so blogging to distract myself

I'm just trying to tidy up my homework stuff as well as getting back to do all the stuff I said I'd do that I haven't....so in no particular order.

Michael Sullivan has left a new comment on your post "Slowly getting back on top of things":

Wool,
I want to increase my deadlift but not quite sure how to go about it. I can squat about 80 pounds more than I pull. RDL about 60 pounds more than I pull and good morning about the same as I pull. What this means to me is that I need a bit of eccentric loading to potentiate the eccentric portion of a movement. Is this a predisposition that can be remedied and if so how?

I want to see this...any chance of a video?

ian has left a new comment on your post "You can never be too safe...":

Hi Will,

After posting my rowing time trials a few weeks back...150m/28s – 500m/1:48.8s – 2Km/7:55...could you outline what jumps out at you from those figures and how they would shape up any program you would develop...bearing in mind you haven’t seen my technique or know my goals though I am very similar to Patrick. I saw your analysis of recent tests and can see that power is an obvious concern in the 150m trial.

This isn’t me touting for a program...as I’m actually following Patrick’s Phase...I am in much need of conditioning work and I was curious to see how I would get in mixing the rowing with the strength work. I’ve just finished the first 2 weeks and already I am feeling great progress with the rowing conditioning.

Have you got Patrick on Phase 4 yet?...I know you’re looking at adding some size and I was interested to see how you keep the mix of volume and intensity of the rowing for this phase.

I was discussing this with a basketball coach today...not rowing but conditioning in general. I generally do the opposite of what most coaches do when it comes to conditioning. What you usually see and hear about is the typical pyramid...build an aerobic base, the do speed endurance and then speed work...you all know the deal. My view is that you need speed first otherwise the speed you are enduring is 'slow' and that is easy to come by. This all comes back to my 'look at all the fatties finishing fun runs and even marathons' argument/statements. What I try to do is to develop acceleration, power and speed first...the reason being that I think these attributes are the hardest to acquire...it are these attributes that separate the good athletes from the bad, the great from the good, the elite from the great and the best from the rest. So improve these first then I try to improve work capacity after that.

I'll put this really simply and generally first and then if we need to or if people want to we can talk specifics after that.

I'll use the rowing example because it's an easy one...and I'll use Ian as an example. His best time for 150m was 28 seconds. The first thing I'd do is work out how much recovery he needs to perform sub 30 second 150's consistently for say 10 sets. Is 30 seconds enough? What about 45 seconds? Is it a minute? Say it is 30 seconds...what I would do then is to try and accrues some high intensity volume...so I might have him do 10 sets of sub 30 second 150's with 30 seconds recovery. Then I'd give him 2 minutes rest...recovery but probably not complete recovery...then 10 sets of sub 30 second 150's with 45 second recovery and see if he could still do it...then give him another 2 minutes...then I'd have him do another 10 sets of sub 30 second 150's with 60 second recovery and see if he could still do it. Are you following me? By the way...Ian...you should try that and give us your results...the CII will record all the details for you...do that as a session...try to do your best times on all of them and post them for us. This is basically what I did with the lads early on...some of them caught me snooping...some of them didn't but what I then did was to adjust all there sessions so I could have them perform as many sets as possible at near maximal intensity. Then what I do is to start manipulating the distances, sets, reps and recoveries so I can increase the distance and hence the time that near maximal intensity can be maintained. I then go back to closer to the original distance used and repeat the process with less recovery...to give you and example...some of the lads have been through a process where when they started the were doing those sub 30 second 150's with the recoveries I suggested to Ian...they worked up in distances as high as 500's before coming back to sub 30 second 150's with as little as 20 second recoveries. Last year during a normal training session I had 3 guys do a 2000m time trial...this was during a session mind you...the three of them would of all have been in the Top 10 in Ireland in the Indoor Rowing Championships and all have made the Top 20 in the English Championships if I remember correctly..it might have actually have been the Top 15. These were not rowers...these were guys that had actually not done a 2000m time trial ever before. Like I said...I don't care how it works...only that it does...only an idiot prepares for a marathon by going out and running 42km every day. I'll leave it at that until someone asks some good questions.

I'm chucking this in here because I know you are all too lazy and disinterested to read the 'comments' section.

ian said...
Will said...
So I might have him do 10 sets of sub 30 second 150's with 30 seconds recovery. Then I'd give him 2 minutes rest...recovery but probably not complete recovery...then 10 sets of sub 30 second 150's with 45 second recovery and see if he could still do it...then give him another 2 minutes...then I'd have him do another 10 sets of sub 30 second 150's with 60 second recovery and see if he could still do it. Are you following me? By the way...Ian...you should try that and give us your results

Will - on July 5th during session 1 I managed this:

150m/30s
29.3
28.9
29.8
30.0
29.5
29.7
29.9
30.5
31.0 !
30.2

150m/45s
28.7
28.8
28.8
28.6
29.0
30.2
29.0
30.9
29.5
29.5

150m/60s
29.3
29.7
29.2
29.8
29.9
29.8
29.3
29.2
29.8
28.5

Not quite as you requested as I did the strength stuff in between.

It is actually written to be done just that way. To combine your strength work with the near maximal effort conditioning intervals.

Without prompting I actually made it a goal to go sub-30s for each 150m - I was slaughtered at the end of the session - and it seems coincidental that the rest periods was probably about spot on for me.

So you think that is a coincidence? You really don't have any faith in me at all do you?

Thanks for posting your comments - that helped clear a few thoughts I had.

As usual...I've no idea what comments you are referring to but glad to be of help anyway.

Mission Accomplished

Rats was a skinny little S.O.B...he used to behave like most little guys. He'd whine & moan about how training damaged his hands...he spent more time looking at himself in the mirror...it was embarrassing...well today Rats finally became a man.


I feel so proud.

Try to ignore the fact that I can't spell bulimia.


So much for him not being able to put on weight!

MIke Robertson doesn't like my.....in my posts.

Mike you can kiss my.................! Only joking...I like Mike..you can check out his blog.


The Fatathon continues...with the obvious results.

Here's an example of what some of the lads and myself had today.

Session 4 - Conditioning
Rower - 6 sets of 300m with 1 minute recovery
1A Step Ups - 5 reps per side
1B Pull Ups - 5 reps
1C Bridging - 30 seconds
*Done as a 15 minute work block...and many circuits as possible...Johnny, Logi & myself got through 7.
Rower - 6 sets of 300m with 1 minute recovery
2A Straight Bar Deadlift (100kg) - 5 reps
2B Bench (60kg) - 10 reps
2C Med Ball Sit Ups - 10 reps
*Done as a 15 minute work block...and many circuits as possible...Johnny, Logi & myself got through 9.
Rower - 6 sets of 300m


As I said...this seems to be the most common use of the treadmill these days.

OK...I want to go back a little

Kira was talking about Muay Thai training and what I thought of it and the fact that a lot of it seems counter intuitive by today's standards and what we know about strength and conditioning. Basically stating what is the 'standard' training method in Thailand and the fact that by current standards Kira thought it could be done better or improved. Kira also noted that it was the way that most 'champions' in the sport trained. I think I mentioned boxing and the use of 'road work' and the fact that people often mention to me how stupid and inappropriate they think it is with what we know these days of training 'specificity'. The fact that basically all 'champions' still do it seems lost on these people.

I want to blend a few things together here...firstly one of the reasons I started this blog is because 1. I am a terrible writer...and it seemed like a good way to practice...and to annoy people along the way. 2. I find it really difficult to articulate my views and thoughts on strength and conditioning...and it seemed like a good way to practice...and to annoy people along the way. The second of these points hit home tonight when Cookies & Killer asked me in the middle of their intervals why I had put so much effort into getting them bigger only to start breaking them down running the arse's off of them. It made me realise a couple of things...1. How much faith athletes have in me to put their training and by extension to some extent their sporting careers in my hands. 2. How poorly/badly I get across to them why I have them do what I do. That isn't good...not on any level...I will add that to the list of things that I need to improve upon.

Now I'm going to step out onto the thin ice here now and mention the post I made about periodisation...you know the one where bunch of people got their panties in a twist and everybody told me that I didn't understand what I was talking about...well anyway...what I was talking about was peaking in team sports and the fact that everybody involved with teams is preparing their teams as best as they can and they are all obviously trying to do the best they can. They are all trying to 'peak' their teams to win the championship/final/series...but obviously somebody wins and everybody else loses.

Are you all still with me? What generally happens next is that whatever the winners did is now best practice...Michael Jordan did this...the New York giants trained this way or that...I had some one mention to me today that some NFL team in the US is doing their entire pre season with kettlebells...you have the champion team who did all their weight training with machines...the other team in some other sport who did nothing but Olympic lifting...only to be beaten by some other team who's training revolved around power lifting etc etc etc.

If I have to listen to someone tell me one more time what the All Blacks do in training I might just go postal. Every time I here someone mention this I immediately know that they don't actually have a clue about training and or coaching. I feel the same way every time someone comes to me and shows me the pre season program that was given to their team....and this happens a lot. I mean I have athletes in the same team who are 125kgs and others who are 70kgs and everything in between...do you think you could write a program that is perfect for all of them? I couldn't. One that was right for the guys who need to lose fat and those that need to gain lean muscle mass? Actually...if you can...send it to me.

You see this all the time though...as an aside...can anyone tell me who this NFL team is that is doing their entire pre season primarily with kettlebells? Think about it...now I use kettlebells in training with 'some' athlete...'sometimes'...are you telling me that they are the perfect training apparatus for everyone? That every player on that NFL team is going to benefit equally from kettlebell training? Give me a break.

Same with the All Blacks...if every team were to run endless 150's will they all win World Cups? Sorry...bad example...the All Blacks have only won one World Cup...and that was years ago. Once again supporting my point that I made in that post about periodisation...the All Blacks throw enormous resources both human and financial into peaking for a World Cup and the last one they managed to win was a couple of decades ago...yet everyone keeps telling me that they are the best team and the best players and best coaches in the world? What am I missing? Are they the best players and coaches in the world or not? Which is it?

Anyway..it is late now. I'm going to post this now so people can tell me I'm an idiot then come back and finish this post tomorrow.

Now where was I?
Firstly I can't believe I didn't get any Kiwi hate mail...but that is probably because they don't have the internet in New Zealand yet so I shouldn't be too surprised.

I've seen lots of guru's do there '10 Things I Know' articles...and since apparently I supposedly aspire to gurudom...or so I was told today...I thought I better get with the program. Now...I don't know if I actually know 10 things...I'm just going to start at 1 and play it by ear after that.

1. There is no such thing as a perfect program.
2. There is no 'best' training methodology.
3. There is no best set and rep scheme...no best training frequency or volume.
So what do I know...I hear you ask.
4. In the majority of cases athletes that complain about 'over training' are really suffering from 'under recovering'.
5. Coaching is a cross between science and art...you need to understand the science...I mean understand it...this is different from knowing the names of muscles and their origin and insertion etc...I mean ACTUALLY understand it...you also need the artistic flair to apply it. There is a reason that most graduates of sport science end up getting a job in the construction industry. It is the same reason that if I went to university to study art instead of sports science I think everyone who knows me knows the only thing I'd be painting is houses...and that's if I was lucky.
6. There is no best training methodology for a particular sport...only effective ways for individual athletes to train. This is where a lot of mistakes are made...if someone wants to get good at cycling...giving them Lance Armstrong's program is not the best way for them to achieve that...if someone wants to get into MMA...doing GSP's program is not the best way for them to achieve that.
7. There is nothing new in training and nutrition but the way that the information is expressed and communicated is definitely unique and stealing other peoples work is a no no...unless you want to make boat loads of cash...in which case it seems like it is definitely the way to go.

Once again...it's way passed my bedtime...I'll come back to this post tomorrow and see if I can make it to 10.

How does a 2.7km sprint sound to you?

Well that's what Goodsy, Cookies and Killer did tonight. We warmed up (as usual...whenever you see me use the word 'we' just assume I mean 'they') and then the lads did a 5m, 10m, 15m, 20m and 25m out and back sprint...for a total distance obviously of 10m, 20m, 30m, 40m & 50m. They had 10 seconds recovery at the end of each individual sprint. They then got a whole 30 seconds at the completion of those 5 sprints. They did 6 of these back to back and after 3 minutes rest at the completion of all 6. They did 3 sets of these. Well done guys...like I said to you there are a lot of athletes walking around in a dreamland if they think anything we've done so far this year is 'tough'.


Sometimes the place is so busy the photos look like one of those where's Waldo images.

Don't tell me...tell Jonathon

If you want to make suggestions regarding the layout or design of the blog email Jonathan (he can insert and edit his name to make it link to his email address). I want him to regret offering to help me out right from the beginning so it isn't a surprise later on...please make the 'subject' line...'Suggestions regarding the greatest blog in the world.' so he doesn't get the emails mixed up with the rest of his work.

Fat Camp
The lads were in for their conditioning session this morning...they loved every minute of it.

This seems to be what the treadmill is mainly used for these days.

They jumped on the CII and did 750m, 500m and 250m with 60 seconds recoveries and then 5 all out 100m efforts with 40 second recovery between efforts. They took a 5 minute break and did 5 sets of these in total.

Forgot to include this yesterday.

I get this look from athletes a lot.

One thing at a time

Kira asked a question...well actually asked the same question a few times...I just didn't get around to answering it.

Kira said...

Juat reposting a question. . .

I just got back from training Muay Thai in Thailand. If you don't know, muay thai is like kickboxing, but you can grapple standing up and also use knees and elbows to strike.

A fight is 3min x 5 rounds with 2min rest in between each rounds.

The average fighter in Thailand would fight once or twice a month.

Okay, so my question concerns training (particularly frequency & duration).

A standard training routine for a thai fighter is . . .

two 3-4 hour sessions a day (morning/late afternoon), 6 days a week.

a typical session would be . . .

5-10km run
skipping (1/2 hour)
warm up dynamic/passive stretching (1/2 hour)
bag work (1/2 hour)
pad work (1/2 hour)
sparring or grappling (1/2 hour)
bodywight exercises (1/2 hour)
cooldown (1/2 hour)

Whilst I had a good time over there, I thought their training wasn't really ideal for the event they're training for. That being said, ALL the champion fighters have and do train this way.

What are your thoughts on how they do things? Are they training right? Are they succeeding in their sport IN SPITE of their training?

If you were coaching a thai fighter, what would be the basic strategies you would use?

I just realized I've asked a shit-tonne of questions. Sorry about that . . . any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated.

thanks

I get this question asked of me a lot...not this exact question but a variation of this theme...that is...why do boxers still do miles and miles of road work? Or about successful rugby teams doing 150's back to back or 400's etc. Take any sport and you'll find successful teams and athletes doing stuff that seems counter intuitive based on what we 'know' now.

Firstly I'm going to make some generalisations in no particular order just to kick things off before I come back to this later on today.

1. Be careful of research...researchers start off with a premise and it isn't any surprise when they often come back with results that support their hypothesis. You need to be able to interpret and get from research the 'take home points'...as a coach don't get bogged down in the details. I was discussing this with an athlete yesterday...take the post workout window...is it good to get some carbs and protein after training? Yes. Will your muscles explode and atrophy if you don't get some carbs and protein within 30 minutes of training? No.

2. When looking at research or training programs or advice...you always have to filter it through your field of reference. Once again...I was discussing this with an athlete yesterday...he was quoting a paper he read stating that static stretching reduces maximum power by 30%...is doing static stretching alone the best way to prepare for max effort exercises? No. If I stretch static stretch my pec and tricep prior to my 1RM bench will I lose 30% of my best total? No.

3. Lots of athletes succeed in spite of some of their training methods not because of them. Another athlete was mentioning the fact that some NFL team was doing their entire pre season weight training with kettlebells. Is this the perfect way to prepare for the season? No. Is it the worst? No. Will anyone be able to tell the difference? I doubt it.

4. A lot of training methodologies help psychologically as much as physiologically. Is a boxer running 5 miles in the morning going to be better conditioned for fighting? Perhaps a bit. Will it hurt? Not much. Is it the best way to condition an athlete to fight? I doubt it. If they believe they are better prepared because of it will it help. You bet your arse it will.

I could go on and on...and you guys know I will but I actually have to go to work...more later.