Around here, the kids are all back in school and they have the whole year ahead of them.
There’s tons of excitement as they look forward to the many possibilities and potential for the year.
I still remember my Senior year, when I said I was going to not play basketball (which I pretty much hated) and just concentrate on baseball.
I wanted to go into the school weight room three days a week and put on some serious muscle, because I was 6-feet tall and about 200-lbs, but thought for sure with hard work I could put on some muscle and show up for my Freshman Year in college looking like Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire.

While I never ended up looking like Mark or Barry, I did end up putting on some muscle and planting the seeds that would grow into a life-long interest in weight training.
Unfortunately, at the time, I didn’t realize some of the things these guys were doing and taking in order to get so freakish. I also didn’t realize that there was a difference between training for size and for training with strength. I just went in there and did what I read about in bodybuilding magazines and didn’t understand the importance of proper loading and rep schemes in order to get stronger. If finding a balance between muscle gains and improvements in strength levels is something that you struggle with, then today’s article is perfect for you.

Today’s post comes from Eric Cressey. Eric is probably best known for his work with professional baseball players at his facility in Connecticut, Cressey Performance, but he is also know for his work in the arena of fitness and especially the field of strength & conditioning. His knowledge blows me away and he is one of the few professionals in the field I subscribe to. Every article, video and product he puts out is GOLD. Possibly his most well-recognized work, Show and Go: High Performance Training to Look Feel and Move Better is on sale for this week only for $50 off the regular price.
Enjoy today’s post from this world class author, speaker coach, and lifter.

5 Reasons You’re Not Getting Stronger

By: Eric Cressey
Like most lifters, I gained a lot of size and strength in my first 1-2 years of training in spite of the moronic stuff that I did. Looking back, I was about as informed as a chimp with a barbell – but things somehow worked out nonetheless. That is, however, until I hit a big fat plateau where things didn’t budge.
Truthfully, “big fat plateau” doesn’t even begin to do my shortcomings justice. No exaggeration: I spent 14 months trying to go from a 225-pound bench to 230. Take a moment and laugh at my past futility (or about how similar it sounds to your own plight), and we’ll continue.
All set? Good – because self-deprecating writing was never one of my strengths. I have, however, become quite good at picking heavy stuff off the floor – to the tune of a personal-best 660-pound deadlift at a body weight of 188.

Eric Cressey, 660-lb Deadlift
My other numbers aren’t too shabby, either, but this article isn’t about me; it’s about why YOU aren’t necessarily getting strong as fast as you’d like. To that end, I’d like to take a look at a few mistakes people commonly make in the quest to gain strength. Sadly, I’ve made most of these myself at some point, so hopefully I can save you some frustration.

Mistake #1: Only doing what’s fun and not what you need.

As you could probably tell, deadlifting is a strength of mine – and I enjoy it. Squatting, on the other hand, never came naturally to me. I always squatted, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say that it took the back seat to pulling heavy.
Eventually, though, I smartened up and took care of the issue – by always putting squatting before deadlifting in all my lower-body training sessions (twice a week). I eventually wound up with a Powerlifting USA Top 100 Squat in my weight class.
More interestingly, though, in addition to me dramatically improving my squat, a funny thing happened: I actually started to enjoy squatting. Whoever said that you can’t teach an old dog (or deadlifter) new tricks didn’t have the real scoop.

Mistake #2: Not taking deload periods.

One phrase of which I’ve grown quite fond is “fatigue masks fitness.” As a little frame of reference, my best vertical jump is 37.3” – but on most days, I won’t give you anything over 34” or so. The reason is very simple: most of your training career is going to be spent in some degree of fatigue. How you manage that fatigue is what dictates your adaptation over the long- term.
On one hand, you want to impose enough fatigue to create supercompensation – so that you’ll adapt and come back at a higher level of fitness. On the other hand, you don’t want to impose so much fatigue that you dig yourself a hole you can’t get out of without a significant amount of time off.
Good programs implement strategic overreaching follows by periods of lighter training stress to allow for adaptation to occur. You can’t just go in and hit personal bests in every single training session.

Mistake #3: Not rotating movements.

It never ceases to amaze me when a guy claims that he just can’t seem to add to his bench press (or any lift, for that matter), and when you ask him what he’s done to work on it of late, and he tells you “bench press.” Specificity is important, but if you aren’t rotating exercises, you’re missing out on an incredibly valuable training stimulus: rotating exercises.
While there is certainly a place for extended periods of specificity (Smolov squat cycles, for instance), you can’t push this approach indefinitely. Rotating my heaviest movements was one of the most important lessons I learned along my journey. In addition to helping to create adaptation, you’re also expanding your “motor program” and avoiding overuse injuries via pattern overload.
I’m not saying that you should overhaul your entire program with each trip to the gym, but there should be some semi-regular fluctuation in exercise selection. The more experienced you get, the more often you’ll want to rotate your exercises (I do it weekly). Assistance exercises ecan be shuffled every four weeks, though.

Mistake #4: Inconsistency in training.

I tell our clients from all walks of life that the best strength and conditioning programs are ones that are sustainable. I’ll take a terrible program executed with consistency over a great program that’s only done sporadically. This is absolutely huge for professional athletes who need to maximize progress in the off-season; they just can’t afford to have unplanned breaks in training if they want to improve from year to year. However, it’s equally important for general fitness folks who don’t have an extensive training background to fall back on, unlike the professional athletes.
If a program isn’t conducive to your goals and lifestyle, then it isn’t a good program. That’s why I went out of my way to create 2x/week, 3x/week, and 4x/week strength training options – plus five supplemental conditioning options and a host of exercise modifications – when I pulled Show and Go together; I wanted it to be a very versatile resource.
Likewise, I wanted it to be safe; a program isn’t good if it injures you and prevents you from exercising. Solid programs include targeted efforts to reduce the likelihood of injury via means like mobility warm-ups, supplemental stretching recommendations, specific progressions, fluctuations in training stress, and alternative exercises (“plan B”) in case you aren’t quite ready to execute “Plan A.”
For me personally, I attribute a lot of my progress to the fact that at one point, I actually went over eight years without missing a planned lift. It’s a bit extreme, I know, but there’s a lesson to be learned.

Mistake #5: Wrong rep schemes

Beginners can make strength gains on as little as 40% of their one-rep max. Past that initial period, the number moves to 70% – which is roughly a 12-rep max for most folks. Later, I’d say that the number creeps up to about 85% – which would be about a 5-rep max for an intermediate lifter. This last range is where you’ll find most people who head to the internet for strength training information.
What they don’t realize is that 85% isn’t going to get the job done for very long, either. My experience is that in advanced lifters, the fastest way to build strength is to perform singles at or above 90% of one-rep max with regularity. As long as exercises are rotated and deloading periods are included, this is a strategy that can be employed for an extended period of time. In fact, it was probably the single (no pun intended) most valuable discovery I made in my quest to get stronger.
I’m not saying that you should be attempting one-rep maxes each time you enter the gym, but I do think they’ll “just happen” if you employ this technique.
To take the guesswork out of all this and try some programming that considers all these crucial factors (and a whole lot more), check out Show and Go: High Performance Training to Look Feel and Move Better.
-Eric Cressey-

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Around here, the kids are all back in school and they have the whole year ahead of them.

There’s tons of excitement as they look forward to the many possibilities and potential for the year.

I still remember my Senior year, when I said I was going to not play basketball (which I pretty much hated) and just concentrate on baseball.

I wanted to go into the school weight room three days a week and put on some serious muscle, because I was 6-feet tall and about 200-lbs, but thought for sure with hard work I could put on some muscle and show up for my Freshman Year in college looking like Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire.

While I never ended up looking like Mark or Barry, I did end up putting on some muscle and planting the seeds that would grow into a life-long interest in weight training.

Unfortunately, at the time, I didn’t realize some of the things these guys were doing and taking in order to get so freakish. I also didn’t realize that there was a difference between training for size and for training with strength. I just went in there and did what I read about in bodybuilding magazines and didn’t understand the importance of proper loading and rep schemes in order to get stronger. If finding a balance between muscle gains and improvements in strength levels is something that you struggle with, then today’s article is perfect for you.

Today’s post comes from Eric Cressey. Eric is probably best known for his work with professional baseball players at his facility in Connecticut, Cressey Performance, but he is also know for his work in the arena of fitness and especially the field of strength & conditioning. His knowledge blows me away and he is one of the few professionals in the field I subscribe to. Every article, video and product he puts out is GOLD. Possibly his most well-recognized work, Show and Go: High Performance Training to Look Feel and Move Better is on sale for this week only for $50 off the regular price.

Enjoy today’s post from this world class author, speaker coach, and lifter.

5 Reasons You’re Not Getting Stronger

By: Eric Cressey

Like most lifters, I gained a lot of size and strength in my first 1-2 years of training in spite of the moronic stuff that I did. Looking back, I was about as informed as a chimp with a barbell – but things somehow worked out nonetheless. That is, however, until I hit a big fat plateau where things didn’t budge.

Truthfully, “big fat plateau” doesn’t even begin to do my shortcomings justice. No exaggeration: I spent 14 months trying to go from a 225-pound bench to 230. Take a moment and laugh at my past futility (or about how similar it sounds to your own plight), and we’ll continue.

All set? Good – because self-deprecating writing was never one of my strengths. I have, however, become quite good at picking heavy stuff off the floor – to the tune of a personal-best 660-pound deadlift at a body weight of 188.

Eric Cressey, 660-lb Deadlift

My other numbers aren’t too shabby, either, but this article isn’t about me; it’s about why YOU aren’t necessarily getting strong as fast as you’d like. To that end, I’d like to take a look at a few mistakes people commonly make in the quest to gain strength. Sadly, I’ve made most of these myself at some point, so hopefully I can save you some frustration.

Mistake #1: Only doing what’s fun and not what you need.

As you could probably tell, deadlifting is a strength of mine – and I enjoy it. Squatting, on the other hand, never came naturally to me. I always squatted, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say that it took the back seat to pulling heavy.

Eventually, though, I smartened up and took care of the issue – by always putting squatting before deadlifting in all my lower-body training sessions (twice a week). I eventually wound up with a Powerlifting USA Top 100 Squat in my weight class.

More interestingly, though, in addition to me dramatically improving my squat, a funny thing happened: I actually started to enjoy squatting. Whoever said that you can’t teach an old dog (or deadlifter) new tricks didn’t have the real scoop.

Mistake #2: Not taking deload periods.

One phrase of which I’ve grown quite fond is “fatigue masks fitness.” As a little frame of reference, my best vertical jump is 37.3” – but on most days, I won’t give you anything over 34” or so. The reason is very simple: most of your training career is going to be spent in some degree of fatigue. How you manage that fatigue is what dictates your adaptation over the long- term.

On one hand, you want to impose enough fatigue to create supercompensation – so that you’ll adapt and come back at a higher level of fitness. On the other hand, you don’t want to impose so much fatigue that you dig yourself a hole you can’t get out of without a significant amount of time off.

Good programs implement strategic overreaching follows by periods of lighter training stress to allow for adaptation to occur. You can’t just go in and hit personal bests in every single training session.

Mistake #3: Not rotating movements.

It never ceases to amaze me when a guy claims that he just can’t seem to add to his bench press (or any lift, for that matter), and when you ask him what he’s done to work on it of late, and he tells you “bench press.” Specificity is important, but if you aren’t rotating exercises, you’re missing out on an incredibly valuable training stimulus: rotating exercises.

While there is certainly a place for extended periods of specificity (Smolov squat cycles, for instance), you can’t push this approach indefinitely. Rotating my heaviest movements was one of the most important lessons I learned along my journey. In addition to helping to create adaptation, you’re also expanding your “motor program” and avoiding overuse injuries via pattern overload.

I’m not saying that you should overhaul your entire program with each trip to the gym, but there should be some semi-regular fluctuation in exercise selection. The more experienced you get, the more often you’ll want to rotate your exercises (I do it weekly). Assistance exercises ecan be shuffled every four weeks, though.

Mistake #4: Inconsistency in training.

I tell our clients from all walks of life that the best strength and conditioning programs are ones that are sustainable. I’ll take a terrible program executed with consistency over a great program that’s only done sporadically. This is absolutely huge for professional athletes who need to maximize progress in the off-season; they just can’t afford to have unplanned breaks in training if they want to improve from year to year. However, it’s equally important for general fitness folks who don’t have an extensive training background to fall back on, unlike the professional athletes.

If a program isn’t conducive to your goals and lifestyle, then it isn’t a good program. That’s why I went out of my way to create 2x/week, 3x/week, and 4x/week strength training options – plus five supplemental conditioning options and a host of exercise modifications – when I pulled Show and Go together; I wanted it to be a very versatile resource.

Likewise, I wanted it to be safe; a program isn’t good if it injures you and prevents you from exercising. Solid programs include targeted efforts to reduce the likelihood of injury via means like mobility warm-ups, supplemental stretching recommendations, specific progressions, fluctuations in training stress, and alternative exercises (“plan B”) in case you aren’t quite ready to execute “Plan A.”

For me personally, I attribute a lot of my progress to the fact that at one point, I actually went over eight years without missing a planned lift. It’s a bit extreme, I know, but there’s a lesson to be learned.

Mistake #5: Wrong rep schemes

Beginners can make strength gains on as little as 40% of their one-rep max. Past that initial period, the number moves to 70% – which is roughly a 12-rep max for most folks. Later, I’d say that the number creeps up to about 85% – which would be about a 5-rep max for an intermediate lifter. This last range is where you’ll find most people who head to the internet for strength training information.

What they don’t realize is that 85% isn’t going to get the job done for very long, either. My experience is that in advanced lifters, the fastest way to build strength is to perform singles at or above 90% of one-rep max with regularity. As long as exercises are rotated and deloading periods are included, this is a strategy that can be employed for an extended period of time. In fact, it was probably the single (no pun intended) most valuable discovery I made in my quest to get stronger.

I’m not saying that you should be attempting one-rep maxes each time you enter the gym, but I do think they’ll “just happen” if you employ this technique.

To take the guesswork out of all this and try some programming that considers all these crucial factors (and a whole lot more), check out Show and Go: High Performance Training to Look Feel and Move Better.

-Eric Cressey-

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Image Source: EliteTrack.com

If you spend a lot of time seated, or if you travel a lot in vehicles or in airplanes, then this post is for you.

Also, if you are an athlete and your sport requires you to be able to perform powerful movements with the lower body, like jumping and bounding, then this post is for you.

In addition if you run, whether in sprinting fashion or distance, then this post is for you.

And if you participate in strength sports or feats of strength, then this post is for you as well because today I am going to show you how you can get more power out of your glutes which will lead to better striding power when running, better leaping and jumping power, and better executtion of posterior chain strength movements such as deadlifts, cleans, throws, and braced bends.

Importance of the Glute Muscles to Sport, Strength and Power Movements

Your Glutes are some of the most powerful muscles in your body.

They are heavily involved in Power Movements like jumping and sprinting as well as directional changes.

Unfortunately, if you spend a lot of time sitting down, then you might be making your Glute strength disappear.

You see, when you are seated, your hips remain in a flexed position. Over time this joint angle at the hip can cause the hip flexors to shorten and tighten.

The image above from Human Kinetics shows the relationship between the front of the body and the rear. With tight hip flexors, generally comes weak lower abdominals and conversely, the muscles on the opposite side, the lower lumbar muscles and the glutes get weakened and can’t do what they are meant to do.

When the hip flexors shorten like this and become tight, they can actually hinder the amount of power your glutes can generate because they will keep your hips from extending correctly in the movements we mentioned earlier, such as jumping, running and other unilateral and power movements.

To illustrate this a bit better, imagine trying to jump up in the air, but attached to your waistline is a chain on either side, connecting you to the floor, and just as you are about to really get some drive going, the chains hit their maximum length and won’t allow you to explode. That is kind of what is going on when you have tight hip flexors.

Two of the main reasons to address this issue are stretching the hip flexors and activating the glutes.

Understanding the Hip Flexors

In the image above, you can see where the hip flexors are located, and where they attach. A lot of people don’t realize the actual articulations of the hip flexors.

Per Wikipedia:

Origins: The Psoas major originates along the lateral surfaces of the vertebral bodies of T12 and L1-L5 and their associated intervertebral discs. The Psoas minor, which presents in only some 40 percent of the population, originates at the transverse processes of L1-L5. The Iliacus originates in the Iliac fossa of the pelvis

Insertions: Psoas major unites with iliacus at the level of the inguinal ligament and crosses the hip joint to insert on the lesser trochanter. The Psoas minor inserts at the iliopectineal arch, the thickened band at the iliac fascia which separates the muscular lacuna from the vascular lacuna. femoral nerve, L1, L2

Common Hip Flexor Stretches

For individuals who have tight hip flexors, one of the ways to correct the situation is with stretching. Below is a commonly used stretch and some slight variations in order to intensify it.

Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch

One common Hip Flexor stretch is the kneeling hip flexor stretch. Just getting into a position like what is shown above is not good enough, however. You must keep the torso upright and as you move forward, keep the pressure directed into the hip flexor muscles themselves. Improper angling here can result in stretching the quad. The quad originates on the ilium so its path is similar to the hip flexors. Not that there’s anything wrong with stretching the quad, but the purpose of this stretch is the hip flexor.

With Arm Raised

This stretch can also be intensified by raising the arm on the same side as the leg being stretched.

With Foot Elevated

As your flexibility increases, the rear foot can also be elevated to increase the stretch on the hip flexor and the quad as well.

Again, this is just one stretch that you can do for the hip flexors, along with a few modifications. In a bit I am going to show you another exercise to try that actually stretches my hip flexor even better while activating the glutes at the same time.

How to Activate the Glutes

When tightness on one side of the body inhibits a muscle on the opposite side of the body, we often have to retrain the muscle to fire properly. In the case of Glutes that have been shut down, the athlete has probably learned to use the hamstrings and muscles of the lower back to provide the force needed for hip extension. We have to get the body back in tune by training the Glutes to fire when they are supposed to.

Glute Bridge

Perhaps the most common of Glute activation exercises is the glute bridge. This movement can be done with one or two legs, and can be modified by extending a leg or by adding resistance, such as chains.

Quadruped Hip Extension

Quadruped refers to being on all fours. One leg is then lifted upwards by means of the Glutes. Very simple to perform, but attention must be put forth not to cheat or use momentum.

Fire Hydrant

Named after a dog lifting its leg to mark a fire hydrant, I learned this movement from Joe Defranco, and in particular, I learned that you don’t half-ass this movement (sorry for the pun, but I had to). The way I heard Joe describe this movement is to imagine you’re sneaking into a house through a very large window. Perform the exercise by carefully pulling the hip around the full range of motion, slowly and deliberately. Doing the exercise like this REALLY helps you feel it. Don’t just go through the motions.

How to Do Both at the Same Time

There is absolutely plenty of value in performing the above exercises. I have done all of them and they have worked for me in varying degrees.

However, recently, when shooting footage for a DVD on Braced Bending, I stumbled onto an exercise that actually is highly effective at stretching the hip flexors while getting an extremely intense contraction from the glutes. In fact, of all the Glute exercises I’ve ever tried, none of them can compare to the heightened contraction of this maneuver.

I call this move the Knee Driver, because I was using it to demonstrate the initial kink used when braced bending things like steel bars, wrenches and other odd objects. In the initial kink, you use the strength of your glute to drive your knee into the bar to get it to bend, thus the Knee Driver.

Knee Driver

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My apologies for the poor quality video. I had changed the settings
by accident and did not realize it was so grainy until I uploaded it.

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For me, I have never felt a Glute Exercise that caused such a deep and hard contraction of my Glute Muscles. I mean, this exercise balled my glute up so tightly when I first tried it that I could not believe it, plus it stretched my hip flexors at the same time, and I have done it just about every workout since then in order to get my Glutes ready to go.

I like to perform this exercise for two sets with each leg and to do at least 6 to 8 good solid contractions per set. I don’t even bother with a lot of the other glutes exercises I used to do, because the contractions pale in comparison to what I get out of the Knee Driver.

I encourage you to give this a try and report back what you have found and how it compares to other exercises you have tried.

All the best in your training.

Jedd

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Slight Change of Plans, DIESELS!

A couple weeks back, we contested the Dumbbell Snatch and I said that during the week of June 11th we would be contesting the Barbell Snatch.

I am changing that up, but it is for a VERY COOL REASON.

After this week, the next four weeks’ challenges will be WILD CARD events to qualify for the Wild Card spots at the North American Grip National Championship on July 16th, 2011.

ANYONE in North America can take part and instantly qualify, IF they win in just ONE of the FOUR wild card weeks.

Next week, the challenge will be the Two Hands Pinch. The Euro-Pinch device will not be necessary. Instead, two 35’s or 45’s or their kilogram counterparts can be used with a pipe through the middle. An entire video demonstration will be available on my YouTube Channel showing you exactly what to do.

IF YOU WANT TO COMPETE WITH THE BEST IN THE NATION, BUT HAVE HAD NO QUALIFIERS NEAR YOU, THEN THIS IS YOUR CHANCE TO GET TO NATIONALS.

That’s next week – let’s look at this week’s challenge!

This Week’s Challenge – Barbell Snatch

The Barbell Snatch is another OUTSTANDING drill for developing not only full body strength, power, and explosiveness, but also Grip Strength, as long as you don’t mess around with a hook grip or use straps (please don’t be that guy…)

The Barbell Snatch is great for athletes because it trains the core, is a posterior chain dominant, and it also requires the all-important triple extension of the ankles, knees, and hips, which is also present in jumping, leaping/bounding, and sprinting. So put this movement, or a variation, into your program on a routine basis to get the most benefit.

To perform the Barbell Snatch, load up a barbell and Snatch it overhead in one movement.

For the challenge, again, no hook grip or straps are allowed. A wrist wrap is fine for support and injury prevention and belts and chalk are also perfectly fine.

To see the Barbell Snatch in action, just play the video below.

The winner this week will be the one who Snatches the most weight the most times in one (1) minute. No press-outs will be counted. Also, the off-hand should be used to a minimum. My watchful eye will be checking this out. And again, no hook grip or straps!

Make sure you are getting quality reps. You should be locked out with one hand on the bar and feet in line. Any questionable reps will not be counted. I will begin the 1-minute time limit once you begin your first rep.

Get warmed up and get your best effort on film! Remember, any number of reps at a higher weight will beat any number of reps at a lower weight. So go heavy and go for time!

Let’s see those submissions, and please pass this on to anyone you think might be interested in winning one off the Wild Card spots at Nationals for their Division, so they can participate next week.

All the best in your training.

Jedd

P.S. Get on the Strongman Training DVD Early Bird List. Put your name and email in the box below.

This past weekend, I traveled to Slippery Rock University to speak at the 3rd Annual Pennsylvania Strength Clinic. The clinic was organized by Tony Tridico (Titusville) and the on-site organizer was Dr. Jonathan Anning (Slippery Rock).

The entire clinic was designed around the premise of how to build a solid strength and conditioning program and each speaker presented with this in mind… (more…)

Hardest Core Exercise – Part II

Dragon Flags with Bruce Lee Son!

by Jim Smith, CSCS, RKC

In the first installment of Hardest Core Exercise Ever, you’ll remember we setup a sit-up to press on the GHR bench with two kettlebells.  This variation provided a high intensity, powerful contraction of the rectus abdominis and hip flexors, as well as engagement of the lats.  A contralateral torque was also was also overcome by the internal / external obliques and TA.  More so when the kettlebells were pressed independently.

In this next installment, we will target the same musculature with another high intensity exercise.  It is not called the Hardest Core Exercise Series for nothing!

For our next exercise, we’ll give a shout out to the guy with one of the best known six-packs in the biz – Bruce Lee.  No one can deny his world-class physique.  But unlike most guys, he was not only ripped, he was strong.  And one of the reasons for his strength was some of the advanced bodyweight exercises he used in his training.  One such exercise was the Dragon Flag.

Oh you’re still not convinced, let me throw in Rocky from Rocky IV (even though Rocky III was the best one!)  Sly was at his peak and wanted to show how hard he was training to conquer the evil Russian.  So again, the Dragon Flag was pulled out.

Dragon Flags

Dragon Flags are performed by bracing hard on a bench or hard surface, while locking your arms in a fixed position.  The legs are driven up as if you are performing a reverse crunch.  From there, the lifter will lower themselves down not allowing any part of their body to touch the bench except for their upper back.  This is an important form cue.  This makes the exercise so much harder.  The lifter lowers their body until it is right above the bench.  The other important coaching cue is to make sure when the lifter raises back up, they do NOT bend at the waist, but rather raise their entire body as it was lowered, in a straight line.

Why Are Dragon Flags Good?

Dragon Flags entire the entire torso.  The entire torso is (and should be considered) the core.  Isolated movements attempting to target one muscle group are not effective in the real world.  More torso rigidity for squats, deads, bench press, clean & press, sporting events, athletes, power development, etc…you name it, is developed with Dragon Flags.  Long duration tension (static and engaging strength training movement patterns) along with a full body engagement will always be preferred in the long run.

Where to Incorporate Dragon Flags?

We typically engage them after the workout.  We know that the athletes are warmed up by that time and also that none of their primary lifts will be affected by the recovery from doing the Dragon Flags.  They are a seriously powerful movement and full recovery between sets is a must in order to give an all out effort with each attempt.

If I Can’t Do a Dragon Flag, What Do I Do?

You can modify the Dragon Flags to make them easier if you can’t perform them right away.  It took me a long time to be able to start hitting them on a regular basis.  You can just perform negatives.  Lower as slowly as possible and then drop your feet onto the bench and drive back up to the starting point.  You could lower slowly as far as you can and then tuck your knees to your chest instead of raising back up and keeping your body straight.  This would be considered then next level up.  If you can hit the knee tucks AND control the negative to a stopping point above the bench and with your body in a straight line, you can then move to the full execution.

Dragon Flags

As you’ll see in the video, I hit 5 reps on the first set.  I think I could have hit a couple more with good form.  In the second set, I throw on ONE 10lb ankle weight and try it again.  You’ll have to check out the video to see how I did!

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There’s been a HUGE surge in people wanting to learn Nail bending recently. If you do too, start out with the two best resources available today:

The Nail Bending eBook and the Nail Bending DVD

Extreme Hamstring Training

How to Build Big, Powerful Legs

by Jim Smith, CSCS

It is true that there must be a balance with all training.  Unfortunately, the “go” muscles of the posterior chain are most often neglected in strength programs.  Lower back issues, hamstring strains and unrealized strength potential are just some of the everyday issues you will face if your training programs don’t include unilateral training AND strengthening the posterior chain (lats, erectors, glutes, hamstrings, gastrocs, soleus).

Powerlifters, athletes, strength enthusiasts, meat heads, weekend warriors and everybody else must incorporate exercises that target the posterior chain in their lower body training days.  Not only for increasing your lower body strength potential and reducing your risk for injury but making sure you don’t end up looking like a lightbulb (big upper body and no legs).

The Big Posterior Chain Movements

• Chin-ups / Pull-ups
• Squats – all variations
• Deads – all variations (*really like snatch grip deads from deficit)
• Bent Over Rows
• Good Mornings
• Zercher Back Extensions
• RDL’s
• GHR
• Hip Thrusts – all variations (Contreras)
• Jump Training / Plyometrics
• Sprinting

FREE EBOOK WITH OVER 199 + MUSCLE BUILDING EXERCISES

In today’s article we are going to specifically talk about developing the hamstrings and the exercise we are going to focus on (and modify) is the glute ham raise or GHR.  Muscle strength ratios are important and many researchers have attempted to define the exact percentages required for each kinetic segment.  It is very difficult because these ratios “not only vary with joint angle, joint velocity and type of movement, but also with muscle group and the type of athlete. (i.e. knee extension strength vs. knee flexion strength:  60:40 ratio)” (Reference 6, Siff and Verkhoshansky)

Regardless of the exact percentages, we need to understand the basics.  The surrounding, supportive, antagonistic muscle groups for each kinetic segment must be developed to ensure the integrity of the engaged joint.  That is the basics, bottom line.  Simple, right? 

Elevated Glute Ham Raises [VIDEO BELOW]

In this article we are showing an advanced version of GHR’s.  Instead of overloading GHR on a GHR bench, we are going to increase the intensity by elevating the back end of the bench with a box.

Why do this?

Because at this angle, there is constant tension on the hamstrings and there is no release of the tension. Also more of the lifter’s bodyweight is being utilized.  These are no joke, trust me!  Try them out and let me know in a comment below.

Which muscles are engaged with GHR’s?

“The erector spinae are active, primarily isometrically; the glutes and hamstrings raise the upper body to parallel; the glutes maintain isometric activity, and the hamstrings contract further and raise your body higher by flexing the knees; the gastrocs press against the foot plate, contracting isometrically.  A glute/ham/gastroc raise lets you use the muscles of extension of the lower body one at a time.” (Reference 2, Kreis)

Alternatives

Many people don’t have access to a GHR bench.  If you don’t, you can perform natural glute ham raises.  This is a glute ham raise performed on the ground with someone holding (anchoring) your feet.  You definitely want a pad underneath your knees for this one.  They are much harder than GHR performed on the actual GHR bench.  As always, these too can be progressed if you are super strong.  Check out the variation below.

Natural Glute Ham Raises

A partner will hold the lifter / athlete’s feet while they perform GHR’s.  This variation is much tougher than the variation done on an actual GHR bench because momentum and pad angle plays a huge role in the moment arm and percentage of the lifter’s bodyweight that is utilized.

Advanced Natural Glute Ham Raises

This variation is done on a decline sit-up bench.  Because of the angle the intensity and strength requirement is off-the-charts.  Only your elite athletes will be able to do this.  As always, to aid in the concentric phase of the exercise, a plyometric push-up done off the bench can be incorporated.

The Programming

When do you use GHR’s?

They should be used in conjunction with squats (all variations), deadlifts (all variations), kettlebell swings, barbell hip thrusts, sprinting, etc… on your lower body days.

Volume for GHR’s on GHR Bench:

Bodyweight Only – typically 3-4 sets x 12-20 reps

Weighted (weight vest, chains, bands) – typically 3-4 sets x 8-12 reps

Volume for Natural or Advanced Natural GHR’s:

Bodyweight Only – typically 3-4 sets x 8-12 reps

Weighted (weight vest, chains, bands) – typically 3-4 sets x 6-8 reps

Resources

1.  Horrigan, Joseph M., IRONMAN Magazine, August 1995 (updated 2007)

2.  Kreis D.A., E.J., Speed-Strength for Football, Taylor Sports Publishing, 1992.

3.  Baechle and Earle, Essentials of Strength and Conditioning 3rd Edition, NSCA, June 2008

4.  Schache AG, Crossley KM, Macindoe IG, Fahrner BB, Pandy MG.,  Can a clinical test of hamstring strength identify football players at risk of hamstring strain?, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20697691, Aug, 2010.

5. Silder A, Thelen DG, Heiderscheit BC., Effects of prior hamstring strain injury on strength, flexibility, and running mechanics., Department of Biomedical Engineering, Aug, 2010

6.  Siff and Verkhoshansky, Supertraining – 6th Edition, UAC, 2009.

GHR With Back Elevated

2 Insanely Effective Mobility Exercises for the Lower Body

Here are two exercises I just filmed on my alternative YouTube channel (Muscle VIP).    Both are highly effective for increasing the mobility of the hips, dynamically stretching the hamstrings and warming-up the entire body for a training session.

Spiderman Crawls (with Rotation)

Coaching Cues:

• Stay low to the ground
• Keep a neutral torso and head position
• Try and lay forearm to ground on initial movement
• Rotate toward the forward leg
• Watch hand during rotation
  

Squat to Stand

Coaching Cues:

• Grab under foot and hold throughout
• Drive hips upward straightening knees, dropping the head (dynamic stretching of hamstrings)
• Swing hips through while pushing chest through and upward
• Head should be in neutral
• Drive knees outward with elbows
  

Diesel Crew Compilation 2009-2010

by Jim Smith, CSCS

Finally, a new video compilation of training here at the compound.  I haven’t made one in years, but the last video compilation I made inspired so many.

Hopefully this new video will do the same.  It contains some never-before-seen footage and exercises guaranteed to kick your training programs in overdrive.

As always, please click on the video itself and when it takes you to YouTube, please “LIKE” the video at the bottom left.  It really helps with ranking!

INNOVATIVE SLED DRAGGING VARIATION

by Jim Smith, CSCS

Today we are going to talk about sled dragging and a very unique variation I came up with.  Most  anaerobic alactic / anaerobic lactic sports (especially combat athletics) require not only specific metabolic adaptations but a general conditioning foundation (GPP).  It is this foundation that allows more specific, higher level conditioning to be implemented and developed.

Sled dragging is an excellent tool to help develop this general conditioning baseline.

Different types of sled dragging:

• forward dragging
• backward dragging
• lateral dragging
• rotational dragging

You can also attach different attachments to the sled to drag it to make it more difficult

• tow ropes
• thick ropes
• thick “V” handle
• and now a car tire!

The Setup

Hook the tow rope through the car tire and anchor it back onto the sled.  Grab over the circumference of the tire and perform a tight chest crush.  Now walk backwards.  We also did a variation where we perform a strong rotation to move the sled.

Standard Setup

Holding Lacrosse Balls

In the video I show another variation of holding lacrosse balls.  This makes the chest crush even harder.

Cool Metabolic Core Training Exercise

Great for Conditioning and Power

Check out this cool exercise from Martin Rooney.  He demonstrates the proper execution of the movement with a powerful rowing motion with the arms and an explosive flexion at the hips.  Pulling in the lats and upper back is key to any real core training movement.
CHECK OUT THE REST OF THIS KILLER POST AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

Cool Metabolic Core Training Exercise

Great for Conditioning and Power

Check out this cool exercise from Martin Rooney.  He demonstrates the proper execution of the movement with a powerful rowing motion with the arms and an explosive flexion at the hips.  Pulling in the lats and upper back is key to any real core training movement.
CHECK OUT THE REST OF THIS KILLER POST AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

Hardest Core Exercise EVER

Part 1

I am starting a new series on Diesel to really jack up your core training.  It is titled the “Hardest Core Exercise EVER” series.  It will contain some of the hardest core training exercises ever created.  Most are used with the athletes or bodybuilders I train at Diesel.  Needless to say, there are very tough.
CHECK OUT THE REST OF THIS KILLER POST AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

Hardest Core Exercise EVER

Part 1

I am starting a new series on Diesel to really jack up your core training.  It is titled the “Hardest Core Exercise EVER” series.  It will contain some of the hardest core training exercises ever created.  Most are used with the athletes or bodybuilders I train at Diesel.  Needless to say, there are very tough.
CHECK OUT THE REST OF THIS KILLER POST AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

High Intensity Metabolic Training

Powerful Prowler Combination

I am training two MMA fighters for their upcoming fights on August 6th.  We recently did a killer prowler finisher after their lower body workout.
CHECK OUT THE REST OF THIS KILLER POST AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

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

Check out AMD Muscle Building

Check out Chaos Training for Athletes

Check out Core Training

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Copyright© 2010 The Diesel Crew, LLC. All rights reserved. You may not reproduce this article or post. How to Build Muscle | Muscle Building Workouts | How to Lose Fat | Six Pack Abs | Build Muscle, Muscle Gaining Workouts | Build Muscle Membership Site

Non-Conventional Strength Training for Real Results

When you look around during your typical day what do you see?  You probably see a lot of people who look like they’ve never worked out a day in their life.  Let’s take it one step further.  When you go to the gym, what do you see?  I would bet you even see people in the gym who look like they never worked out, OR you see the same people you’ve seen for the last several years, doing the same exercises they always do.

And you know what?  They still look the same as they always do.  How can this be?  They are always in the gym, yet they never change?

Well, they’re not doing something right.

Bad Nutrition?  Definitely

Wrong Exercises?  Probably

Wrong Intensity?  Probably

Too Much Volume?  Maybe

Something is not right.  Maybe they’re allergic to exercise?  That must be it.

Something has to change.

If you are stuck in a rut with your workout and you’re looking for some new exercises and some new challenges, try out some of the following movements.

Hindu Push-ups

Incredible movement for the shoulders and hips and is great to hit for high volumes for conditioning.  It can be done on an elevated surface to help perform the movement through a full range of motion (ROM).   The movement can also be overloaded with chains, a weight vest or elastic bands.  It is a very popular movement with old school grapplers and fighters.  I actually use it a lot in warm-up because of the benefits of the shoulders and hips.

Mace Swings

This movement can be performed using a mace or a clubbell.  I love the movement because it fries the grip and opens up the upper back and shoulders.  If you don’t have any of these special implements, we’ve actually used and ez-curl bar as a substitute.  Mace swings should be done for high repetitions or for a specific length of time.

Sandbag Get-ups

This movement is brutal.  It taxes the entire body and forces it to act as a single unit.  Because the entire body is working, it becomes very metabolic, very quick.  If you don’t have a sandbag, a dumbbell or kettlebell, held at arms length, can be substituted.  As you drive upward on the outstretched arm, tension on the bent leg allows the straight leg to swing through into a lunge position.  From there, the lifter braces hard and drives to a standing position.  This movement is amazing for conditioning and great for fighters for bracing while fatigued.

Try any or all of these movements during your next training session.  They can work as the supplemental exercises or you can throw them in at the end for conditioning.

Check out AMD Muscle Building

Check out Chaos Training for Athletes

Check out Core Training

Spread The Word
Smitty on Twitter Smitty on Facebook
Products

Resources

Smitty’s Bio Smitty’s Articles Smitty’s Videos Ask Smitty a Question

Copyright© 2010 The Diesel Crew, LLC. All rights reserved. You may not reproduce this article or post. How to Build Muscle | Muscle Building Workouts | How to Lose Fat | Six Pack Abs | Build Muscle, Muscle Gaining Workouts | Build Muscle Membership Site

Some things in life are simple.

Like finding a good web designer or in our case for this article, building muscle.

How can building muscle be made simple?

Easy, just by applying some key principles and using the right exercises.

Key Muscle Building Principles That Are Easy to Apply

READ MORE AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

Lean on Me

Guest Post

Barry Gibson

http://www.grapplefit.com

It’s something of an honor to be asked to do a guest post for Smitty and Jedd, especially as I’ve been a big fan for some time. For people that don’t know, my name is Barry Gibson and I own and operate Grapplefit Training in Sunderland, England. I have been the regular strength contributor to Fighters Only Magazine for almost four years now, and have had the concept of Grapplefit for at least seven years. Only now is it becoming a reality and I have my own unit where I train combat athletes full time. I also run fat loss boot camps for ladies and gents not involved in the fight game. One of my more recognizable clients is Ross Pearson – TUF season 9 lightweight winner and now UFC fighter. At the time of writing, Ross has just defeated Aaron Riley at UFC 105.

SEE THE KILLER WORKOUT VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP (more…)

I don’t usually comment on videos for many reasons (everyone thinks their opinion is so important for others to hear haha).   When in fact, no one cares.

But sometimes I can’t help myself.  Because sometimes videos move me.  They validate many of my own opinions and I truly appreciate originality.  Something that has been lost in the fitness industry.

I mean tons of people have stolen my stuff.  Should I be flattered or enraged?  Or should I put my head down and continue to put out solid content focusing on trying to help as many people as I can?
(more…)

Speed Training for Athletes – Two Factor Strength Training

When discussing speed training applications for athletes, there are numerous factors to consider.

Some of which include:

1. improving stride length
2. improving stride frequency
3. improving leg drive
4. improving transverse hip to shoulder action, ie. rigidity (resistance to movement), mobility for the sporting action (remember, mobility is specific to the action), removal of soft-tissue abnormalites
5. improving the strength of arm action; drive speed and turnover
6. improving individual and synergistic kinetic segment stability (where appropriate) and mobility (where appropriate)
7. improving RFD (rate of force development) and reactivity
8. decreasing ground contact time

(more…)

“How a UFC Fighter and High School Wrestler Got Insanely Strong, Explosive AND RIPPED for Their Competition by Training for Real World Strength, With NO BS FAKE WORKOUTS.”

This ebook is your Essential Guide to Training for Grapplers and Combat Athletes!  Immediately Make Improvements in Your Strength, Power and Conditioning So You Can SMASH Your Compeition!

From the Desk of:

By Jim Smith, CSCS

I have just updated my MMA strength and conditioning reference, Building the Ultimate MMA Athlete and re-released it as Blunt Force Trauma, High Impact Strength & Conditioning for Combat Athletes.

The new ebook is HUGE!!!  Over 800 pages, containing not only the main document and massive exercise index, but an ADDITIONAL 12 EXPANSION PAKS!!!

The Expansion Paks

Expansion Pak 1 – Kettlebell / Strongman Sample Programs

Expansion Pak 2 – The Exercise Bible – By Jason Ferruggia

Expansion Pak 3 – Lunge Specific Exercises

Expansion Pak 4 – Grappling Bodyweight Training

Expansion Pak 5 – Sled Dragging Training

Expansion Pak 6 – Sledgehammer Training

Expansion Pak 7 – Medicine Ball Training

Expansion Pak 8 – Ring Training

Expansion Pak 9 – Grappler Sandbag Circuit

Expansion Pak 10 – Grappler Keg Circuit

Expansion Pak 11 – Power Ropes Circuit

Expansion Pak 12 – Combat Core

Check out some of the exercises you’ll find in this MASSIVE new ebook.

How about this feedback from The Ultimate Fighter 8 (UFC, MMA) fighter Tom Lawlor as he prepared for his winning fight on the show’s finale:

“As a MA student in Sports & Fitness, I am a huge fan of anything related to Strength & Conditioning. Additionally, I have been a huge fan of the DieselCrew.com website. I immediately reached out to Smitty for help in organizing my workouts for what I knew would be the biggest fight of my life.”

“Come fight time, I felt stronger and fresher than I have for any of my past fights and was able to impose my will on an opponent who was 4 inches taller, and at least 15 lbs heavier come fight time. There are a lot of people who have helped me get to the level of competition that I am at today (the UFC), and Jim Smith is among those people. I will undoubtedly be looking to keep “Smitty” on my staff of coaches as I continue in the sport of mixed martial arts.”

Tom Lawlor
The Jungle MMA & Fitness

“I’ve followed Smitty for some time now and their revolutionary training ideas are (and have been for some time) shaping the future of combat athletics. This ebook is no exception. When I received it, I was amazed at the size of it. It is a veritable encyclopedia of brutal and effective drills to blast your training through the roof. I’m no fan of the term functional as I think it’s over used by the fitness industry – but this book has functional drills that have a real carry over to combat sports. Buy it if you want to reach the next level in your game – if you don’t, the opposition will!!!”

Barry Gibson

Grapplefit Strength Training

Want more information, hit me at smitty [dot] diesel [at] gmail.com.