Essential Lower Body Training for Athletes

One of the biggest mistakes you’ll see in a strength program designed for athletes (or anyone for that matter) is the exclusion on unilateral lower body work.  Of course the foundational compound movements like the bench, squat, deadlift, military press, power clean & press, pull-ups, etc. have to be there.

But the supplemental work pulls everything together.   Common lower body unilateral exercises include; lunges, step-ups, Bulgarian split squats, power skips, one leg glute bridges and one leg hip extensions on bench.

In addition to building a well balanced program, unilateral lower body work will also reveal imbalances that are “masked” with conventional bilateral barbell work.

Does the athlete shift left or right when performing lunges?

Does the athlete fall forward during db step-ups?

Everything you have the athlete do is a screening opportunity for you as a coach.  Always be watching!

Benefits of Unilateral Lower Body Training

• stabilization of appropriate lower kinetic segments (ankles, knees, hips, torso)
• mobility of appropriate lower kinetic segments (ankles, hips)
• balance, coordination, proprioception
• torso rigidity
• mental toughness / acuity / alertness
• improved reactivity
• charged CNS
• dynamic stretching of the hips, glutes and hamstrings

How to Modify Unilateral Lower Body Training

• overloaded – with chains, dumbbells, kettlebells, sandbags, barbells, weight vest, partner’s bodyweight
• explosive – done explosively
• static - EQI’s
• barefoot – all done barefoot, highly recommended!
• hybrids - movement of the upper body independent of the lower body’s movement, ie.  lunges with twist

In the article today, I will be showing you two advanced unilateral lower body exercises.  Both should be done once the athlete demonstrates proficiency in their progressive transitional components.

Braced Bulgarian Split Squats

Key Coaching Points:

1. Upright torso posture
2. Brace core outward, and hold isometrically
3. Center weight in the middle of your foot and anchor foot by grabbing floor with your toes

Explosive Bulgarian Split Jumps

Key Coaching Points:

1. Spend as little time on the ground as possible
2. Explode up as hard as possible and flow between reps without stopping
3. Stay upright as possible throughout the movement

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Just got back from Fair Lawn, NJ for an exclusive interview with Martin Rooney.  After training at the Parisi Speed School, Martin and I sat down for this 30+ minute interview done for Elitefts.com.

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You Could Win a FREE DVD If You Can Beat This Time!

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Rules for the Contest
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TIME TO BEAT: 1:53  min:sec

1. Film yourself lunging with 50 lbs for 100 yards. You could hold 2 – 25lb dumbbells in your hand, or put a 50 lb sandbag on your shoulder, or a weighted back pack, it doesn’t matter.
2. Load video into Youtube with the title: Lunges of Death Contest Entry – www.DieselCrew.com
3. Email me at smitty [dot] diesel [at] gmail.com with the video link
4. Lunges must be legitimate, judged by me.

Entries are put into drawing to win renowned 2-Disc Combat Core DVD set HERE:

http://www.combatcorestrength.com/combat-core-DVD.htm

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Here is an old video of us hitting heavy support grip holds for time on the GRex.

Support grip is one component of grip strength. The others are crush, pinch, wrist postures and hand health.

Grip strength is the forgotten element of functional training and is essential since the hands are involved in all athletic and strength training endeavor (including building muscle or losing fat).

In fact the hands are the end point of the kinetic chain, so they must be developed if we hope to transfer the power created and accumulated from our bodies and express it through our hands.

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You’ve probably heard of using foam in the weightroom.  Previously, you might have only thought of using it for resting your knee on, while your stretching your hip flexors.

Well, a recent talk with Mike Hanley of HanleyStrength.com changed that.

He told me that he had his clients marching on thick foam to help with their knee and hip problems.  He said Louie Simmons had told him about it.   How he has been using it for activation and rehab purposes.

It is also well recognized in the powerlifting community that foam can also be used on the box squat, and we will talk about this too, later in this article.

Now, this of course got me thinking about other uses of foam.  I ordered a few blocks and started incorporating it into my program and the program of my clients.

Let’s look at a few different ways that you can incorporate foam into the weightroom.

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Quick Studies:

As you learned in the Chaos Manual:

Unstable foam surface = good rehab

Unstable foam surface = not good for power development

Studies from the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) confirm my publication:

“Instability resistance exercises induce high muscle activation of postural limb and trunk muscles. The increased activation has been attributed to the increased stabilization functions.  Instability resistance training with its high muscle activation and lower external stress on joints could also be beneficial for general musculoskeletal health and certain types of rehabilitation.”

“Unstable conditions can lead to decreased force and power output, decreased range of motion and velocity. Furthermore ground based weight training exercises such as squats and dead lifts can provide equal or greater trunk activation than using instability devices. Another study has also reported that highly trained individuals do not experience greater trunk activation when performing exercises under light or moderately unstable conditions.”

“Since many of the benefits of instability devices can be achieved with high resistance involving ground based free weights, advanced resistance trained individuals may not need to emphasize this type of training in their strength and power training programs.”

“The benefits of instability resistance training may be more pronounced for those individuals pursuing primarily general health and rehabilitation benefits and not participating in training with free weights involving high loads.”

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1.  Hand Walking

Taking the concept of activating the lower body with the foam, we can also activate the upper body.

Benefits of Hand Walking on Foam:

• Activate the traps, rhomboids, serratus anterior, pectorals, shoulders
• Vibrational training – reflexive/reactive motor unit activation, contraction and recruitment
• Stability of the shoulder
• Wrist, finger mobility

2.  Marching

By marching on the foam, you will be activating and rehabbing the musculature of the lower body.

Benefits of Marching on Foam:

• Activate the quads, gastrocs, soleus
• Vibrational training – reflexive/reactive motor unit activation, contraction and recruitment
• Stability of the knee
• Mobility of the ankles and toes

3.  Box Squat

Foam can be inserted on top of a conventional box squat box or platform.

Benefits of Foam on a Box Squat:

• Breaks the eccentric / concentric chain
• Enforces the need to contract harder and dynamically accelerate off the box and out of the hole
• Helps novice lifters progress as they learn how to utilize box appropriately and not collapse onto the box

4.  Ab Rolling on Foam

Foam can be placed under the support base for ab rolling.

Benefits of Ab Rolling on Foam:

• Activate the rectus abdominus, hip flexors, internal / external obliques
• Vibrational training – reflexive/reactive motor unit activation, contraction and recruitment

5.  Bulgarian Split Squats on Foam

Foam can be placed under the lead leg while performing Bulgarian split squats.

Benefits of Bulgarian Split Squats on Foam:

• Activate the quads, glutes, hamstrings
• Stability of the knee
• Mobility of the hips, ankles and toes
• Vibrational training – reflexive/reactive motor unit activation, contraction and recruitment

VIDEO

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