More brilliance from Dan John...

Armor Building

by Dan John – 5/23/2012
There are many reasons why most people don't achieve their physical goals. I've come to the conclusion that the number one reason is simply trying to do everything all the time.

I'll get a question about mass building, and I'll recommend lots of squats, lots of food, and lots of rest. The follow up question from the same person will usually include something about "six pack abs," agility work, and dunking a basketball.

This is too much! As noted in my last T Nation article, much of the confusion stems from the fact that I basically use one tool – the barbell – and its close cousins like kettlebells, dumbbells, and the like to help folks accomplish their goals, from fat loss and muscle gain to mobility and flexibility.

Most people need to find periods in the year, usually from three to six weeks, perhaps as long as eight weeks, to work hard on specific qualities. For example, the Velocity Diet is amazing for fat loss, but it would be hard to do while also in an NFL training camp. It doesn't mean that the Velocity Diet is good or bad, nor does it mean that training camp is right or wrong. This isn't moral theology. Yet this is precisely the kind of thought process that destroys most people.

Trying To Do (Or Be) Everything All The Time.

There are times to burn fat, build muscle, get more explosive, and prep for a sport, but it's nearly impossible to do this all the time. And there are some qualities that you should only work for a little while and only when you need it.

I work with a lot of people in the collision sports and collision occupations. One of the hardest things to do while preparing for these endeavors is what I call "Armor Building," a term that one of my football players coined a few years ago.

At first I didn't understand what he meant. Basically, he felt that some of the exercises we were doing, in his case the thick barbell curl and the double kettlebell front squat, were helping him be a better running back. It gave him a feeling "like armor."

A few years ago, I worked with a high school running back, Tony N., who had a coach that didn't believe in weightlifting. (Yes, I said that. The coach probably also didn't like these "new fangled automobiles," either.)
After a few sessions of working with him, he found that doing what he called "The Exercise" – a combination of power snatches and overhead squats – gave him some tools no one else on the field had. In his last five football games his senior year, Tony ran for over 200 yards each game.

Callusing

The great fighter Frank Shamrock calls it callusing – a focused attempt to prepare the athlete for contact. When I wrestled in high school, I would spend the first week or so stuffing wet toilet paper up my nose as it bled every session. Magically, around week two, that very same forearm to the face wouldn't cause a drop of blood to come out.

While there will definitely be some callusing, the armor-building training will also include specific movements to gear up for collisions. Strangely, most of the athletes I have do this program note that they also look better in the mirror. In a sense, armor building is a kind of bodybuilding for sport.

The most basic moves might also be the most exhausting. Every football player should have some intense loathing for "Grass Drills" which are also known as "Up-Downs." The coach has a whistle and your job is to run in place driving your knees high. When coach blows the whistle, you throw yourself to the ground and leap right back up to running in place. The running in place, as you soon discover, is the easy part.

Grass drills alone can prepare you for many things. Late in my high school football career, I realized that of all the things we did for conditioning, most had no carryover to the games. But as much as I hated them, grass drills seemed to be the most "game like."

Football, rugby, and war are much about getting on the ground as fast as you can and then getting back up. I can remember one of my teammates complaining about practice and especially "Up-Downs." He was a star in middle school and was learning that getting to puberty first was great, but you had to keep working afterwards. I noticed that all the guys who never played felt that the hard work was a waste of time.

I'll Tumble For Ya

If you don't have access to a high school football coach with a whistle, try just rolling. I'm a firm believer that tumbling and rolling is the missing link in most people's training.

My good friend, Tim Anderson, has been writing a lot lately on how simple rolling "resets" the body. I know one of the great fears of adulthood is to say, and here comes the advertisement, "I've fallen and I can't get up." I'm proactive about almost everything and would rather practice falling and getting up. My standard "Do this" tumbling training is this:

5 Somersaults (forward rolls)
5 Right shoulder rolls
5 Left shoulder rolls
4 "Ninja" rolls (right shoulder roll, left shoulder roll, right, left)
Bear crawl
3 Cartwheels facing one direction
3 Cartwheels facing the other
And finally, as I always joke, run to the bucket.

For whatever reason, tumbling seems to affect the tummy at first. You can think of it as a lousy but effective diet program, too.

For many, grass drills and tumbling tossed into some training weeks once or twice a year is a fun jump start to a fat loss program, or even just a nice way to keep the motor running towards the end of a serious ripping program.

One reason I like the Turkish get-up so much is that it's a kind of Tai Chi grass drill or tumbling session. Conversely, I rarely see the typical fitness enthusiast touch the ground save for planks and that exercise seems to waver in popularity.

Remember the axiom, "If no one in a typical gym is doing something, it's probably pretty hard to do."Rolling around on the floor doing get-ups is an insightful, thoughtful way to get reacquainted with getting off the ground. And as you age, learning to catch a fall, recover, and get up might be the secret to a more vigorous old age. Trust me: you will get older nearly every year.

Barbell Armor

With the barbell, there are several great armor building moves. As noted, the thick barbell curl has been one of my odder "go to" movements for a few years. I'm not sure what it does to the forearms, elbows, and guns, but try them. I use both actual fat bars and those new grips that mimic the metal. I think your budget will decide which way you go on this decision.

Thick bars are expensive, but the curl and deadlift movements are stunning to do with them. The thick bar curl can be done for reps up to ten, but I notice I simply fail when the reps go up. For whatever reason, this exercise seems to get the body ready to take a hit.

The snatch grip deadlift and the duck foot (heels together, toes out) deadlift also seem to help the collision athlete. I've been thinking that this compromised position tends to wake up more of the system, especially the connective tissue. I've gone heavy with snatch grip deadlifts in my career and I always seemed to be able to take a whack or two.

Correlation or causation is never too important to me because these two movements will quickly tax you out and we won't need a deep philosophy discussion after doing them.

For squatting, I hate the Zercher squat. Hate it. It kills me, but I've always noticed that my human inner tube seems much powerful after doing these squats. This is that odd internal pressure – talk to a martial arts person for more details.

Also, holding the bar in the crook of the elbow is callusing for the ages. I've also experienced, as many other brighter people than me have, like Pavel, that the Zercher squat demands a kind of moving mobility that has to be experienced to understand. If you hate Zerchers, you're probably doing them right.


With kettlebells, I have a "funny" challenge for you:

1 double KB clean and 1 double KB front squat
2 double KB clean and 2 double KB front squats
3 double KB cleans...and you see where this is heading.

Here's the challenge: go all the way up to 10 and 10 with the 24 kilo bells (32's if you're real serious) without putting the 'bells down. So far, no takers!

So, to recap:

Grass drills
Tumbling
Get-ups
Thick barbell curls
Duck stance deadlifts
Snatch grip deadlifts
Zercher squats
Double KB cleans and front squats

Beware: each of these has the ability to bring forth an odd kind of soreness.


You can do Armor Building for about three weeks. Reps and sets must be open ended. (Without a coach blowing a whistle at you, it's going to be tough to push through some of these.)

WEEK ONE

Generally, week one should emphasize get-ups and some tumbling. In the weight room, try a few simple moves. You should be fine tuning your conditioning and basic technical skills, too. Try to spend the bulk of your time prepping for the season.

Monday

General warm-up
Get-ups
General orientation into the tumbling moves (practice!)
Double KB cleans and front squats (practice!)

Tuesday

General warm-up
Snatch grip deadlifts
Zercher squat
Thick barbell curls

Wednesday

General warm-up
Get-ups
General orientation into the tumbling moves. Try doing a basic rolling sequence (see above).
Double KB cleans and front squats. Try getting to 5 + 5.

Thursday

Sports practice only

Friday

General warm-up
Get-ups
General orientation into the tumbling moves. Try doing a basic rolling sequence (see above).
Double KB cleans and front squats. Strive for two sets of 5 + 5.

Saturday

General warm-up
Duck stance deadlifts
Snatch grip deadlifts
Thick barbell curls

WEEK TWO

Monday

General warm-up
Get-ups
Duck stance deadlifts
Snatch grip deadlifts
Zercher squats
Thick barbell curls

Tuesday

General warm-up
Tumbling
Double KB cleans and front squats (Try to get beyond 5 + 5)
Grass drills

Wednesday and Friday

Repeat Monday

Saturday

Repeat Tuesday

WEEK THREE

Monday

General warm-up
Tumbling
Double KB cleans and front squats
Grass drills

Tuesday

General warm-up
Get-ups
Duck stance deadlifts
Snatch grip deadlifts
Zercher squats
Thick barbell curls

Wednesday and Friday

Repeat Monday

Saturday

Repeat Tuesday
You may ask where your beloved bench press is on this program, or whatever your heart desires that's missing. Well, add it in! Or as I usually suggest, leave it out. It's only three weeks and we're trying to use our valuable time to literally toughen the skin and body for contact.

Even if you're not a collision athlete, there's still a lot of value in trying some of these lifts and moves. From a fat burning perspective, you're going to have a hard time finding movements more compelling than grass drills and tumbling. With the odd barbell moves, you're going to discover the beautiful simplicity of the basic deadlift and squat when you return to them.

So here's the lesson: when it's time to kick it up a notch, you need to take a few weeks aside and really attack it. If you need to get some calluses and build some armor, take some time to do it before you need it.

Get out of the gym!

Two a Days

http://barefootfts.com/blog/two-a-days

Playa Guiones

A common request I get is for workout tips while traveling. Many people have a good routine going at home and are able to eat and train consistently in their familiar gyms and in their own kitchen or at the restaurants they know well, but aren't sure what to do once they're away from that.

Physical fitness wasn't meant to be confined to a gym. Very few of the goals one has in a gym setting can't also be attained in the real world, yet most of the meaningful experiences you can have under the sun, in the water or in the mountains can't be replicated anywhere else.

Ultimately, what we do indoors should be a means to facilitate the physical life that we lead outside. You train indoors to build strength, rehab injuries, correct imbalances and develop the capacities that you know you'll need on the other side of that door. It's a portion of what is generally necessary for a happy, healthy, fulfilling life.

It's like the auto body shop where you take your car for maintenance, to get it detailed or to upgrade components. There's not much point if you don't actually take the car out on a real road and see what it can do. 

Most of the movements people should be doing in a gym merely imitate what they would be doing if they didn't live in Cleveland in February anyway. It was never meant to be the other way around. Gym life should reflect real life.

Forget about what you would do if you could bring your gym with you and understand that your gym is everywhere. It's a physical life and a physical world.

Get outside and do what your body was meant to do. Swim, surf, run, jump, climb, play.

You don't need a someone with a doctorate to explain to you the subtle nuances and theories of what your body is doing. You don't need to read a book. It will work itself out. Just go.

Same with nutrition. How did we ever go so wrong that people actually need an expert with ten years of education to tell them what to eat for breakfast? Your ancestors weren't out hunting and gathering Pop Tarts and there's a reason you get diabetes when you take up the practice. Do what would come naturally if you weren't living in a cage being fed corn and soy pellets and you'll be fine. 

Here's a sample of my "workouts" for two days while traveling through Costa Rica on the Nicoya Peninsula.

Day One
Workout One - AM

Lower Body - Quad Dominant
Energy System and Capacity - Primarily aerobic with periodic maximal effort sprints which are generally short enough in duration to remain in the alactic range. Develop local vascular networks, mitochondrial density and improve cardiac output and left ventricular hypertrophy. 
Required Equipment - Kona Kahuna 29'er mountain bike, single track trail.
Method - Ride the entire Pura Vida Ride trail system through the rainforest overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Duration - Approx 90 minutes.

 

Workout Two - PM

Upper Body - Back Dominant (horizontal/scapular retraction) and Lumbar Anti-Rotation (abs)
Energy System and Capacity - Primarily aerobic, approximately 20-30 reps per minute at a high force output to develop oxidative capabilities of fast twitch fibers in the upper back musculature and anterior core.
Required Equipment - Stand-up paddleboard, ocean.
Method - Paddle a stand-up board around the furthest island in the bay in front of Pura Vida Ride, pause for several minutes to dive underwater and listen for whales, then paddle around the point into the adjacent bay and return.
Duration - Approx 90 minutes

 Day Two
Workout One - AM

Lower Body - Hip Dominant
Energy System and Capacity - Develop high-threshold fast twitch oxidative capacity, primarily in the lower posterior chain. Develop aerobic recovery capacity between maximal effort bouts. Secondarily develop upper body anterior chain (horizontal pushing/scapular protraction) fast twitch oxidative capacity and lumbar spine anti-extension stability.
Required Equipment - Wristwatch (I.e. G Shock) or stopwatch with countdown timer and a beach with enough space for ten second sprint repeats.
Method - Maximal effort barefoot sand sprint for ten seconds. Allow heart rate to recover to below 135 bpm. Perform eight explosive pushups, followed by a twenty second pushup position plank. Allow heart rate to recover to below 135 bpm and repeat for up to 20 reps.
Duration - Approx 45 minutes

Playa Guiones, Nosara Costa Rica. Also a good place for a sprint workout.

Workout Two - PM

Upper Body - Back Dominant
Energy System and Capacity - Develop anaerobic threshold with local emphasis on oxidative capacity of fast and slow twitch fibers in the upper body posterior chain (vertical pull, scapular upward/downward rotation/depression) and shoulders. Improve thoracic spine extension and the ability to maintain high levels of T-spine extension for extended periods during a fatigued state. Secondary emphasis on hip mobility and proprioception.
Required Equipment - Surfboard, ocean.
Method - Find the guys from Nosara Tico Surf School. Rent a board and go along to whichever beach they're heading for that day. Bonus points for sessions at the secret break (4x4 access only) outside of town. 
Duration - Until sunset. Approx 90 minutes. 

 

I know it's not always possible.But it's not always impossible either. And "workouts" like this can be found almost anywhere in the world.

I know there are reasons you've never tried most of the things you sometimes think about late at night when you can't find sleep and start to wonder what else is out there. Those mental forays are pretty easily quashed though. You've got a job, you've got offspring, you've got a mortgage and you need save up for that sweet 52-inch plasma and get your car paid off so you can buy a shinier one.

Stop it. You're going to die soon.

And this will never be as good as what it's trying to simulate.

Go.

REALIZATION


Good guys finish last.  Tim Tebow and Tony Dungee are the exceptions rather than the rule.  What kind of world rewards people that use, hurt and then discard people?  Our world does.  Unless you are exceptionally gifted, prepare to live a life of hardship, persecution and poverty if you try to do the Right Thing.  


Nearly ALL business is dependent on vice to make money.  Marketing is based on the desires to have more (greed) and to have what is not yours (lust).  Think about things you spend your money on.  How many of those products rely on scantily-clad women (real or images) to push their product?


What about the motivation to buy new things?  Do we really need what we buy or are we hoping to create or maintain an image/status?


Our desire to be excellent at a given activity is supposed to be based on the proper stewardship of our abilities to honor our Creator, not to gain popularity, assert our dominance or to "get stuff".  But that is what it has become.


My advice to everyone who is trying to do the right thing is to keep on doing the right thing.  There will probably not be any rewards in this life.  One could argue that telling the truth, spending quantity time with your kids, paying off your debts, and loving your spouse, for example, are rewards in themselves... and they are.  But people used to believe that adversity created character and that one day, we would all have to stand before our Creator with nothing but our character and deeds.

10 Forgotten Tips for Smarter Lifting

http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/10_forgotten_tips_for_smarter_lifting

by Mike Robertson – 5/22/2012

This article isn't meant to wow you or teach you a bunch of new stuff.

Instead, look at it as a friendly reminder to start doing some of the stuff you used to do, but may have forgotten about.

As I get older, I learn less and less "new" stuff. What I'm finding, however, is that I'm constantly reminded of old things that I used to use with great success, but for some reason have moved away from.

So what you're about to read might be considered "nothing new" to the hardcore T Nation reader, but there's probably a few gems that even the most well-rounded trainee could benefit from inserting back into his or her program.

1. Use a planned deload week

This is an argument that never seems to go away. One guy swears he needs to deload every fourth or sixth week. Another says he never takes planned deloads and just "listens to his body."

Here's what I've found: The guy that takes a planned deload tends to see longer and more consistent gains. He's banged up less often, and as a whole, enjoys lifting more.

The other guy, however, tends to push and push until he ends up injured. This leads to an unplanned deload week, when his body has finally had enough and tells him he has to take a break or risk serious injury.

Which guy would you rather be?

Most lifters that are new to the iron game can get away with taking a break every 6-12 weeks. However, if you've been at it for a considerable length of time, I'd take a deload week every fourth week.

There's always that unique time when everything is going great and you end up cruising through a deload week and hitting PR's, but I'd argue that's the exception versus the rule.

Play it smart and you'll not only hit more PR's, you'll be injured less often, and training will be more enjoyable.

2. Include periods of high volume/base work

This is geared more towards the Olympic lifting and powerlifting crews, but it's applicable to everyone.

This past winter I trained extremely hard for a powerlifting meet and was probably the strongest I'd been in years. Immediately following the meet, I went back to the grind and started hitting it hard again. The problem was that about three months into my training, I found myself beat up. Bad.

This wasn't just simple joint irritation – this was a deep soreness that seemed to surround the musculotendinous junction at my knees and shoulders. As ridiculous as it may sound, I believe that my gains in muscular strength were outpacing the strength of my connective tissues.

I had to dial it all back and do a period of high-volume/base work. The goal wasn't to achieve "hypertrophy," or get bigger, but develop my connective tissues for more intensive loading later on.

To achieve this, you can do higher-rep sets (8-12 reps), or you can do fewer reps per set (5 or so), but work on around 60 seconds rest. The choice is yours, but the goal is the same – your body needs time to develop connective tissue strength if you want to be your best.

It's not sexy, but it's a critical component of long-term success.

3. Perform bilateral and unilateral lifts

You need to perform both bilateral and unilateral lifts. Saying you perform one exclusively at the expense of the other is asinine.

The strongest powerlifter in the world would probably see improvements in strength by incorporating a limited amount of split-stance and single-leg work into their programming.

In contrast, I can guarantee a frail and emaciated distance runner would benefit from doing less "functional" single-leg training and spending more time getting strong with bilateral lifts.

I already wrote an entire piece about this here, so I'd highly recommend reading it to see what unique benefits can be derived from each style of training.

4. Use appropriate rest periods

Rest periods are a forgotten component of program design.

On one hand you have the cardio bunnies that bounce from one exercise to the next with little (or no) rest, forfeiting some much needed intensity as a result.

On the other hand, you have guys that are supposedly training for "fat loss" that spend more time talking about last night's NBA game than they do training!

If your goal is fat loss, you need to be somewhere between 30 and 90 seconds of rest between sets.

If your goal is hypertrophy, somewhere between 60-120 seconds is ideal.

And finally, if pure strength is your goal, shoot for 3-5 minutes between sets.

The point? Figure out what your goal is, and then make sure that your rest periods are in-line with said goal.

5. Don't forget about foam rolling, mobility, and recovery work

With our ultimate goal of getting jacked, ripped, or hella strong, let's not forget about the little things that are important.

I'm a big believer in quality over quantity. I'd rather go through an extensive warm-up, dial my body in, and hit 2-3 quality sets of squats and call it a workout than go in stiff and try to rush through all of my main exercises. Foam rolling and mobility work may not look sexy, but it's damn important and I'm going to spare you the nitty-gritty details.

Deep down, you know I'm right.

6. Address weaknesses in your off-season

If you're a powerlifter, bodybuilder, or Olympic lifter, you have a defined "off-season" or "transition" phase after your competition.

This is the ideal time to work on any specific weaknesses you have, bring up lagging muscle groups or movement patterns, or simply regain a bit of general athleticism. If done properly, you can incorporate this seamlessly into the base/high-volume work described earlier.

If you're a guy that just likes to hang and bang in the weight room, you need to take a step back and think big picture. Most importantly, you need to set aside a dedicated block of time every year to devote to "off-season" training.

Failure to do this will inevitably lead to an injury, plateau, or at the very least, poor performance. Take one step back with the goal of taking two to three steps forward.

7. Don't forget about structural balance

I was incredibly lucky to be reading T Nation early in my training and coaching career.

While other sites and muscle mags were espousing crap like "50 pounds on your bench press in 8 weeks!", I was reading guys like Charles Poliquin and Ian King who were taking the exact opposite approach.

Instead of focusing on the main lifts, they were preaching the need to balance the body front-to-back and side-to-side. This approach not only led to a more balanced physique, but fewer injuries and improved long-term strength and physique development as well.

However, achieving "balance" in every program is an exercise in futility. Instead, it works much better to go full-steam-ahead in one direction, then work to maintain those gains and switch gears.

If you want to get really strong at squatting, squat 2-3 times per week, perhaps even more. But once you've maxed out those gains, cut the volume back drastically to try to maintain strength while following that up with a dedicated block focused on the posterior chain.

Give this approach a shot – I guarantee you'll like the results!

8. Use time under tension

Time under tension, or TUT, is another tool in the toolbox that we tend to forget about or ignore.

I'm guilty of this myself. I get into a training groove and the next thing you know, every exercise is performed at the same speed or cadence!

If you're unfamiliar with tempo training or how to incorporate it, start by reading this article.

Chances are you have a preferred way of performing your lifts. If you're a very reactive or explosive lifter, you likely try to do everything super explosive and fast. Try slowing the eccentric tempo down and really controlling your lifts; you'll not only develop connective tissue strength, you'll also put more stress on the active muscles.

But if you're one of those "slow and controlled" all the time lifters, you'll benefit greatly from working some explosive or speed work into your programming. You'll hit more fast-twitch fibers and feel more athletic to boot.

9. Make sure your EST (Energy System Training) is in line with your goals

This goes hand-in-hand with point #4. Too often, I see people who really don't have clearly defined goals and as a result have an eclectic mix of randomness in their workouts.

This is fine if you don't really care about progress, but since you're on this site, you likely expect more out of your lifting than most!

If you want to see the most rapid progress possible, every aspect of your training should be focused on achieving one or two goals. Some call this block periodization, some call it unidirectional loading.

The end goal is simple: Focus on one, or at most two goals, per block of training.

If your goal is fat loss, then everything should be dialed in for fat loss. Alternating supersets, high reps, incomplete rest periods, and to bring it together, your conditioning/energy system training should be glycolytic in nature.

In contrast, if your goal is maximal strength, you'd be better served performing energy system training that's aerobic in nature. This doesn't necessarily mean low intensity, long duration work. In fact, Joel Jamieson outlines 8 methods to improve the aerobic energy system in his book, Ultimate MMA Conditioning. While his methods are focused on developing the aerobic energy system, trust me, they're far from low-intensity work!

In the beginning, everything works. You can run a 5k while simultaneously running a 5x5 squat program and still see results.

But the older and more developed you become, the more specific you need to get with each training block. And a key constituent of that is smart EST programming that's in-line with your goals.

10. Training should be enjoyable

At the end of the day, training should be fun.

Sure, there are going to be workouts we all dread. Russian squat cycles, anaerobic threshold training, leg matricies, etc. – there are some workouts that just aren't fun.

But as a whole, if you walk in the gym each and every day with a feeling of dread, chances are you need a change.

If you're following the rest of the tips above and getting enough variety into your workouts, chances are this won't be an issue. But if you've focused on one goal or method of training for an extended period of time, this could be your body telling you it's time for a change.

That's A Wrap

So those are my 10 forgotten tips for smarter lifting. I could've easily stretched it to 15 or even 20 rules, as once you've been training for a while, you really do start to forget more about training than most newbies will ever know.

This is still just one man's thoughts, however. What would you add? What lessons have you learned over the years?

I look forward to continuing the discussion below!

Sports and Conditioning Philosophy

The key phrase: "Jumping and other explosive work should be done after the warm-up and before the strength work."

http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/531_and_athletes

5/3/1 and Athletes

by Jim Wendler – 5/21/2012

I've been asked many times how 5/3/1 could be adapted for athletes. Most would say this is a legitimate question, as surely the needs of the performance-driven athlete would be much different from the guy who just wants to be bigger, stronger, and more awesome in general.

However, I'm here to tell you that regardless of the sport being performed on the field, not much really changes. This obviously goes against the "sport specific training specialists" who are trying to convince you that each athlete and sport is a special snowflake. Let's examine the facts.

All sports require that an athlete have strong hips, legs, shoulders, arms, and midsection. The best way to develop these areas is with a basic and effective barbell-training workout. There are no "sport specific" exercises as weight training for sports is nothing more than General Physical Preparedness (GPP).

So the goal of the coach is to use the most efficient exercises in the weight room to develop these parts of the body. This will allow for less time in the weight room, as athletes must develop things other than strength and thus don't have hours and hours to spend in the weight room. At least they shouldn't.

An athlete must train speed, strength, agility, conditioning, and most important, skill work. When one spends too much time on one thing, other areas are compromised. In the United States, especially with football, the weight room seems to take up the majority of the time.

Remember this simple statement when preparing athletes: they should be mobile enough to achieve the proper positions in the sport, and strong and explosive enough to move from those positions.

With any sport, the basic barbell lifts are the best and most efficient ways to train the entire body. These include the squat, deadlift, press, bench press, and power clean. Perform them with a full range of motion and proper loading and the athlete will become stronger. Pepper these exercises with assistance work and you'll have a complete strength-training program.

The assistance work is where the strength coach and athlete can infuse a little creativity, but don't use this time as a free-for-all in terms of exercises. Assistance work for athletes should be used for the following:

• Muscle mass
• Rehab
• Injury prevention (often termed "pre-hab" by some coaches. This refers to an area of an athlete or his/her position that's often injured and needs some preventive medicine).
• Balance (this means that the assistance exercises chosen are used to balance the whole of the athlete. This would include upper back training, lat training, and abdominal/lower back, otherwise known as core, training, etc.).

The right assistance work can often fulfill all these areas. This is called training economy. And when training athletes in the weight room, training economy (a.k.a. "getting the most out of the best and fewest exercises") is vital. If the exercise doesn't serve a function, leave it out.

Choosing the correct assistance work is easy. For athletes I recommend doing hamstring, single-leg, lat/upper back, abdominal, lower back, and in some cases, neck work. The lifts you choose are going to be entirely based on what you have access to as an athlete and a coach.

Remember that athletes have become explosive and strong long before fancy machines and equipment came into vogue. You don't need much equipment, just the right coach and smart programming.

If the athlete has had an injury in the past, it's smart to do a couple sets of a proper exercise to help strengthen the area. If the athlete's sport or position is predisposed to a certain area of injury, adjust the assistance work to help him avoid an injury.

As an example, for many athletes, shoulder, back, hamstring, and knee injuries are part of the culture. So hit these areas with glute ham raises, external rotation (internal rotator stretches), extra abdominal work, reverse hyperextensions, and back raises. Properly performed squats and single-leg work will help strengthen the areas around the knee to help prevent knee injuries.

For in-season athletes, I recommend two workouts per week be performed. The set up would look like this:

Day One
Squat – 5/3/1
Bench press – 5/3/1
Assistance work

Day Two
Deadlift – 5/3/1
Press – 5/3/1
Assistance work

In-season assistance work can be 3-4 exercises of 8-12 reps per workout. If you choose to keep power cleans in your training, you can do them on either day.

There's no greater feeling than going into the final games of the season and feeling strong. This will give you (if you're an athlete) or your team (if you're a coach) a physical edge over your opponent. More importantly, this will give you a mental edge, which is invaluable.

If you're a strength coach, time in the weight room can also be used (and should be used) to develop other physical areas of the athlete. This includes flexibility, mobility, jumping, and medicine ball throws, amongst other things.

For example, an abbreviated version of the Parisi Warm-up (the Parisi Warm-up DVD is a great resource for every coach) should start each workout. I'd advise every coach have 3 or 4 variations of the warm-up and start each workout with one of them. Not only does this prepare the athlete's body for the upcoming workout, it can also address mobility problems. That's training economy at it's most basic.

Additional mobility and flexibility work can be done in between the sets of the main exercises. Brad Arnett, who was strength and conditioning coach at the University of Arizona but now runs a private facility, uses hip and piriformis stretches between sets of squats to help address depth issues and hip mobility problems.

Between sets of upper body pressing, don't be afraid to stretch the internal rotators or do some kind of upper back or lat work. This will allow you to get more work done in a minimum amount of time.

Jumping and other explosive work should be done after the warm-up and before the strength work. When designing your program, look beyond just the sets and reps and exercises. Use this simple training template when preparing athletes:

1. Speed (this includes sprints, jumps, throws – anything explosive)
2. Strength (this is any barbell work)
3. Conditioning

Done in this order, we prioritize the most important areas of athletics when the athlete is fresh. Don't turn the speed/explosive work into conditioning work – be sure your athletes are getting the proper time to rest between maximum efforts. It's always better to do things better, not do things more. Save the conditioning work for after the speed and strength work.

Young strength and conditioning coaches often feel overwhelmed by the amount of information out there. There's a never-ending urine stream of coaches and experts who lay claim to the "latest and greatest" and there's constant pressure to always use the newest ideas.

I know this because I've felt this pressure – you often feel like you're in a turbulent Sea of Genius getting tossed around on your Idiot Raft, but before you abandon ship, let me give you a few pieces of advice.

Don't coach what you don't know or don't feel comfortable with. You may hear something at a conference or in a magazine/book that sounds great, but if you aren't sure or if the information/application is out of your pay grade, let it go.

There's nothing more dangerous than a coach applying a concept haphazardly and without knowledge. Anyone remember the DVD of Adam Archuletta and the training of Jay Schroeder? That training (along with the painfully complicated "D.B. Hammer") was all the rage a decade ago and it was used and abused by coaches that had no grasp of the process and application of the methods. Don't coach what you don't know.

Drop your Philosophical Anchor! If you don't have a core philosophy when training athletes (or training anyone), you'd better develop one. This is something I've heard Dave Tate say repeatedly at seminars. I don't care what it is, but you need to take a stand on the things you believe in.

This doesn't happen overnight. I had to sift through years of training and reading to get to my own philosophy. There's big pressure for people to always be open to new ideas and that's fine – but you can't fall for everything.

If you have a solid, well thought-out philosophy, you'll be able to learn new things and apply them to your current training without selling your soul.

Learn to coach. Coaching is more than teaching – coaching is about getting your athletes to do the things you want them to do, in a language that they understand. I've seen countless smart coaches fail miserably because they can't get their point across. Just because you know your stuff doesn't mean you know how to coach your athletes. There's no book or course to learn how to coach – you gotta' get your hands dirty.

No matter what sport you play or coach – boxing, MMA, basketball, lacrosse, football, baseball, etc. – the same principles of training apply. With the 5/3/1 program, this means the main lifts are done as the program is laid out and the assistance work is done with the athlete and sport in mind. For almost all sports this entails work for the hamstrings, upper back/lats, and core.

The only change made per sport/athlete is the exercises chosen for rehab and prehab. This is up to you, the athlete or coach, to determine. And that's pretty easy – just look at the training room and the injury roster. Now train in such a way to prevent those injuries.

In the off-season, you can train 2, 3, or 4 days/week – the days don't matter as much as the principles that are applied. Once you've embraced the principles, you'll realize that everything falls into place. The minutia is no longer important.

When in doubt, remember this: get them mobile, get them strong, and get them fast. There are no hidden exercises. The secret lies in smart and simple programming.

I remember when this came out and I haven't stopped enjoying it since.

More great stuff from Dan John's Blog...
http://danjohn.net/2012/05/training-for-middle-age-and-beyond/

Training for Middle Age and Beyond

May 20, 2012 in BLOG2 Comments

About two years ago, I was asked to comment on growing old gracefully. Or powerfully. I reread this and added a point or two and I still think it passes the test of time. I added a few points, but it is still worth the discussion.

A couple of quick suggestions: first, the role of hypertrophy needs to be addressed. One of things that starts to mellow out is the “passion” to train. Honestly, I don’t have the answer there, but a few years ago, DHEA was argued to be the answer here. So, whatever it takes to reignite the spark, do it. I suggest camps, workshops, seminars, or any kind of full leap back into whatever lights you up. Relearn everything. I think that might be part of the reason things like the RKC really got me going again. Call it immersion.

Now, health is the optimal interplay of the human organs, but you have had an effect on your health. On my list, the first eight are health related and the last two are what people want from me.
1. Don’t Smoke
2. Wear a seatbelt or a helmet
3. Learn to fall AND recover
4. Eat more protein
5. Eat more fiber
6. Take more fish oil
7. Drink more water
8. Floss your teeth
9. Build some muscle
10. Improve joint mobility

With that, the older person also needs to address specific hypertrophy issues. Now, be sure to look up tonic and phasic muscles and you really want to build up the deltoids, triceps, rhomboids, and glutes with explosive big movements. Doing stuff like Double KB Clean and Press or Double KB Clean and Front Squat will do a lot for you. At the same time, you need to do some flexibility work, but just what you need. I find stretching the pecs, the hammies, the hips psoas and the calves to be plenty. Absolutely, things like Bikram Yoga are great, but you can get by with much less.

Don’t be afraid to do workouts like my 2-3-5-10 press workout that emphasize one weight but you get 20 reps fast. Do that five times and you have 100 reps…good for hypertrophy, yet little damage to the system. Passion can come back through some hypertophy and a little fat loss. Take your Vitamin D, follow Atkins’s induction (see the recent books) and get in the sun. For supplements, do stuff like ALCAR and ALA and more fish oil than you think. Also, pound down the orange flavored sugar free metamucil. Drink your water. And….a big one…donate blood five times a year.

Honestly, that newer Atkins book, something like the companion or something, is a great thing to follow. Eat all you want of fish, eggs, meat, poultry…one cup of cooked veggies a day….3-4 cups of raw veggies and drink a lot of water. If you drink, buy the book, “Martinis and Whipped Cream.” Too bad locarbcris no longer has a site, she had great low carb drink recipes. Crystal Light and either rum, vodka or tequila is a pretty good little “how you doing.”

Sleep is huge. I take ZMA, Z-12, fish oil, Alpha Male and some metamucil before bed (about 45 minutes before bed) every night. I also invested in good shades, good pillows, and I worry about comfort in bed. It’s worth every nickel to invest in sleep. If you live in a dorm or in a busy city, buy ear plugs, eye shades and a CD or something that will teach you to relax and sleep. Underrated advice here…

Train in two week blocks. If you are doing Kenneth Jay’s VO2 max, that’s fine, do it like I did: an 8 minutes workout, a 12 and a 15. Do THAT five times every two weeks. So, week one is 8/12/15 then week two is 8/12 and week three is 15/8/12…you get the drift. Work over two weeks. If you do something like I just mentioned, week two might be three lifting sessions where weeks one and three are two. Also, you need to nail down this issue: do I do light days or off days. I can’t do light. I can only workout, so for me, an easy day is “off.”

Be sure to block out certain months where you are going to “Go for it.” That tends to be January and May for me now as it just works out perfectly for me and schedule. This is the time for “Kettlebell Fever” or Josh’s “21 Day Swing Challenge.” It could also be any kind of short term, “here you go, do this” program. The upside is that when you see the challenge approaching, you can prepare yourself (financial, nutritional, mental, or whatever needs) and be ready for the event. Also, as you bore of it, and you will, you will see the end in sight.

Don’t ignore these final two things: either do Farmer Bars and/orTraining for Middle Age and Beyond Sprints about twice a week. I call my sprints the “Great 8.” I start off slow and taper. I don’t measure the sprints and merely strive for 4 “Down and Backs.” The idea is to be smooth and get into a sprinting movement. Farmer Bars for distance is something you also need to do. I would argue these last two ideas tie into everything I have said (see tonic and phasic…explosive glute work…two week blocks, whatever), but many people will become addicted to the gym for their answers and the answer is probably outside.

Having said all of this, remember that part of the victory is simply playing longer than anybody else. I’m 52 (at the time of the original writing) and I’m already planning how to beat the crap out of college kids next year. In ten years, I would love to say that these guys will be competing but I have the sense that I will be in the kilt or the ring or the field and they will be discovering Scotch.

So, remember Buddha’s insight:
“What you are is what you have been,
what you will be is what you do now.”

I can’t say it better and no of few who can!