High Performance

5 Supplements You Shouldn't Train Without

2013-07-11T12:00:00.003-07:00

I'm not sure why but it seems like supplements get a bad reputation. I really find this odd considering how focused the world has become on "quick fixes" and making things easier. I agree, that if you consume a well-balanced diet and eat the proper ratio of carbs/proteins/fats that you may not need supplements to the same extent as a person who eats 2 meals a day and one of them is fast-food. However, you could still benefit from supplements. One of the major reasons is because eating the amount of whole-food it would take to get ample amounts of some of the ingredients found in supplements would be impossible. A convenience factor is another reason I recommend supplements. They make it easy to eat exactly what you want, when you want even if you are on the go.

I get asked a lot what I think are the best supplements out there. I tell people it depends what you're goals are. Are you looking to bet bigger? Stronger? Faster? Improve your 10K time? Different goals can benefit from different supplements as they each have something to offer. In terms of brands, I'm really not too picky. I usually tell people to shop around for the good deals (i.e. gold card week at GNC or value packs at Sam's Club) as a lot of products have very similar ingredients regardless of where you purchase them as long as it's not from the guy selling protein in the alley behind the gym. Just make sure they are a high quality brands, meaning they are certified by some form of a governing agency.

1. Protein

Protein is probably the most popular nutritional supplements used regularly by exercising individuals. The benefits of protein are endless as each individual amino acid that makes up a complete protein has a vital role in our body. The most popular reason to supplement with protein is probably to help build and maintain muscle mass. This can have several positive benefits (i.e. higher daily caloric energy expenditure, increased strength & power, improved appearance etc.). So, in conclusion if you aren't consuming enough protein from your daily diet, I highly recommend including a protein supplement into your daily stack.

2. Creatine

Creatine has repeatedly been shown to help improve performance during bouts of high-intensity exercise as well as strength and power. Creatine helps provide energy during high-intensity exercise which allows an individual to maintain a higher force output for a longer period of time before fatigue sets in. This could help someone train at a higher volume over time and leader to greater gains in strength and size.

See Supplements 3-5 Below

3. Caffeine

Everyone is well aware of caffeine and what it can do for you (especially that individual who isn't a morning person and can't get out of bed without their morning java). However, athletes are beginning to understand there maybe more to caffeine than we originally thought. Evidence has shown that caffeine can improve short-term strength and power performance during activities such as sprinting, weightlifting and cycling. Anyone who has ever taken a pre-workout supplement (often times loaded with caffeine) can attest to this. Also, caffeine can help improve endurance performance by helping increase fat utilization which can spare glycogen (a major fuel source during endurance exercise) and ultimately delay the onset of fatigue.

4. HMB
HMB is becoming more and more popular as people are starting to get a better appreciation of what it can do for you. HMB is often referred to as an "anticatabolic" supplement; meaning it can help prevent muscle breakdown following strenuous exercise. It is often recommended for athletes involved with periods of heavy or new forms of training. For more information on HMB, click here:

http://ajshighperformance.blogspot.com/2013/03/what-is-hmb-and-what-can-it-do-for-you.html

5. Beta-Alanine
Beta-alanine supplementation helps increases carnosine levels within the muscle which acts as a buffer and helps counter-act the "burn" or lowered pH during bouts of high-intensity exercise. Research has shown that beta-alanine supplementation can improve high-intensity cycling and increase the total volume of a workout and therefore help improve training adaptations over time. A common "side-effect" (some people call it a negative one but I actually enjoy it) is a slight tingling sensation in the neck and face following ingestion. Therefore it's often included in pre-workout supplements to give people a feeling of a "pump" or "rush" as well as its performance enhancing effects.

Honorable Mentions:
Omega-3's (fish oil), L-Citruline-Malate, Sodium-Bicarbonate

Is Running Bad For You?!

2013-04-15T07:19:00.001-07:00

As I'm sure a lot of you know by now, I am not the biggest fan of running. Up until now, the biggest reason was mainly because I wasn't good at it and it was painful. However, some recent research has surfaced that has given me one more reason to not like running. A recent article published by a research cardiologist examined life-long runners and their risk of dying from heart related issues. What he found was actually rather startling....

I'm sure most of you (myself included) have always believed that regularly exercise is good for you and will increase your lifespan. On the flip side, if you sit around all day doing nothing, you probably have a higher risk of developing diseases, particularly cardiovascular disease, and therefore may not live as long. A recent article titled: "Run for your life...at a comfortable speed and not too far" found some rather contradictory evidence that this may not be the case. Everyone has probably heard of the individuals who have collapsed and died during/following athletic events or bouts of exercise EVEN THOUGH they were thought to have been in excellent shape. A lot of these cases are believed to have been caused by underlying genetic conditions (i.e. hypertrophic cardiomyopathy). which is the leading causes of cardiac death in athletes. However, there may be more to the story.

In the previously mentioned article, it stated:

"High-intensity exercise sessions lasting beyond 1–2 h cause acute volume overload of the atria and right ventricle (RV), which can bring about overstretching and micro-tears in the myocardium, as evidenced by a transient rise in cardiac biomarkers."

Basically this is saying long-term intense exercise can actually cause damage to your heart. This kind of goes against everything we have been believing for years, right? The authors did explain that the acute damages seen following the intense exercise does revert itself and things can go back to normal within a few days. However, they also explained that if high-intensity or high-volumes of exercise are sustained for multiple hours a day for multiple days/months/years (i.e. marathon runners) the damage can add up and actually speed up the "aging" process of the heart! In the graph below, it shows an individual's risk of dying, dependent on how many miles a week they run The red bar on the far left represents a sedentary individual who has the highest risk of dying. On the other end of the spectrum, there are 2 red bars representing people who run 20-25 miles and more than 25 miles a week and they also have a relatively high risk of dying....wait, what?A sedentary person has the same risk of dying due to disease as a life-long marathon runner who is in excellent shape!?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6U728AZnV0

So whats the deal? Is exercise really bad for me? The answer is no. Exercise is probably the single most effective way to extend your life. However, as with everything, it's all about moderation! The figure below shows an individual's % reduction in all-cause mortality on the y-axis as a product of the hours spent exercising (x-axis). So, it appears as though the longer you exercise, the less likely you are to die of a disease. However, this increase seems to reach a plateau around 40-50 min for vigorous exercise and ~100 min for light-moderate exercise. In other words, if you are exercising at a high-intensity you really won't receive additional benefits (in terms of increasing lifespan) if you exercise for more than an hour at that intensity.

So, if you are running at high-intensities for extended periods of time, make sure you give your body (specifically your heart) some time to recover from the high amounts of strain placed on your cardiovascular system. Your heart, as with any other muscle in your body, needs time to recover when high amounts of stress/strain are placed upon it during exercise. You wouldn't go to a gym and do 500 squats everyday for 15 years would you? No, because your legs and back would hate you forever and you would probably begin to have major complications due to overtraining and the high amounts of stress placed on your legs.

And On The Seventh Day...I Rested

2013-04-01T11:12:00.003-07:00

It's that day of the week that every exercise junkie dreads....rest day.

Hi, my name is Andrew Jagim and I am an exercise addict (not me in the picture by the way). In my eyes, if I didn't work out one day I go to bed worrying that I got a little fatter and probably lost all the muscle and strength I had worked so hard for. I think this way even though I KNOW this couldn't be further from the truth.

A lot of people fall into the misconception that if a little bit is good, than a lot is better! This can be true for some (i.e. if you weigh 400 lbs than there is no such thing as too much time on the stair climber). However, for those individuals who try to train/lift/workout all out, give 110%, balls out, day in and day out than you may be hindering your potential to improve. It may sound crazy but it's on your off-days that you actually get bigger and stronger. if you are training at a high intensity, you are actually causing micro-tears and other cellular damage to occur within your muscles. Just like restoring an old building, sometimes you just have to tear down the old stuff to make room for the new stuff. In a nutshell, this is how muscle growth works. You damage your muscles and therefore are essentially forcing to come back bigger and better than before. So not only is your time in the gym important but so is your time away from the gym. This is also the reason why you should try to avoid training the same body part/muscle groups on consecutive days as those muscles need proper time to recover.

Proper sleep and nutrition are not only important on training days but they may be even MORE important on your rest days. You need to make sure you keep your protein intake up in order to support the increasd rate of protein synthesis occuring as a result of your training. This is especially the case for the weekend warriors who during the week eat right, get a solid 8 hrs of sleep, workout every day and then when the weekend comes around they party for 48 hours, eat like crap and then expect to pick it right up where they left off on Monday. Then refer to their weekend as their "rest days." Not only will the extra (and worthless) calories from alcohol likely lead to increases in body fat, research has shown that alcohol can lower growth hormone and testosterone levels which are key players in muscle growth and recovery. A lack of sleep can also hinder your recovery and can have negative effects that last several days.

One thing I should mention, is that rest days or off-days don't have to consist of 12 hrs of couch time (unless it's football season). Your off-day can consist of light activities or even your normal exercise routine but just drop the resistance/intensity way down. This is one thing I'll knock on Cross-fit for. A lot of their workouts are very intense with little-to-no lower intensity or volume days which can lead to symptoms of over-training if carried out over time.

So, moral of the story: Train hard and rest hard!

What is HMB and What Can it Do For You???

2013-03-19T11:44:00.001-07:00

HMB

Hydroxy-beta-methylbuterate or HMB, is a metabolite of the branch-chain amino acid, leucine. Leucine has been shown to have several positive effects when consumed in conjunction with a structured training program due to its anti-catabolic effects:

1. Leucine may help increase lean muscle, strength and decrease body fat following a resistance training program.

2. Help decrease muscle soreness following intense exercise.

3. Help prevent declines in testosterone levels following intense training periods.

4. Help stimulate protein synthesis and slow down protein breakdown.

It was originally assumed that leucine was the key player in the afore-mentioned processes until the notion of HMB being involved came about in the late 90's. When HMB is combined with a training program it appears to help aid with recovery. Specifically it may help slow down muscle breakdown during/following intense exercise (i.e. heavy resistance training or 2-a-days). Therefore if someone is beginning a new training program or upping the intensity, adding HMB to your daily supplement stack may help improve gains in muscle mass, strength and power over time. It could also help an individual who is trying to cut weight, specifically fat, during a cutting phase by helping maintain lean muscle tissue even though their is a negative energy balance. Your body does produce leucine each day however only about 5% of leucine is converted into HMB daily....so,

"To put this into perspective, an individual would need to consume over 600 g of high quality protein to obtain the amount of leucine (60 grams) necessary to produce the typical 3 g daily dosage of HMB that is commonly used"

-ISSN Position Stand on HMB

The following conclusions were released by the International Society of Sports Nutrition in a recent position stand:

1. HMB can be used to enhance recovery by attenuating exercise induced

skeletal muscle damage in trained and untrained populations.

2. If consuming HMB, an athlete will benefit from

consuming the supplement in close proximity to their workout.

3. HMB appears to be most effective when

consumed for 2 weeks prior to an exercise bout.

4. Thirty-eight mg/kg of Body Mass daily of HMB (or about 3-4 g for a 200 lb individual) has been demonstrated to enhance skeletal muscle hypertrophy, strength, and power in untrained and trained populations when the
appropriate exercise prescription is utilized.

5. HMB has been demonstrated to increase Lean Body Mass and functionality in elderly and sedentary populations.

6. HMB ingestion in conjunction with a structured exercise program may result in greater

declines in fat mass (FM).

7. HMB's mechanisms of action include an inhibition and increase of proteolysis and

protein synthesis, respectively.

8. Chronic consumption of HMB is safe in both young and old populations.

Wilson et al.: International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB). Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition 2013 10:6.

Cross Fit

2013-01-27T11:06:00.000-08:00

"3....2.....1.... NEXT!!!" These words will forever haunt my workout dreams. For those of you who know what I'm talking about then you must have crossfitted at one time or another. I recently attended an "Open House/Workout" at one of the local crossfit gyms in town and I thought I would share my experience.

My brother and I both played sports growing up, both workout regularly and are both in relatively good shape. So, naturally I thought to myself: "Sure I can crossfit, how hard can it be?" Stupid question. The short answer: HARD.

We arrived early, not really knowing what to expect. We eyed the people walking in, trying to gauge what kind of athletes showed up for these kind of workouts. The people in attendance were all over the board: Some male, some female, some old, some young, some in shape...others, not. So again, we really didn't know what to expect.

As start time approached, the crossfit coaches gathered everyone around for a 5-10 minute warm up consisting of: high knees, jumping jacks, push-ups arm swings and lunges. Okay, not bad so far, the heart's pumping, got a little sweat going, ready to go.

Next, they have everyone (~50 people) split up into groups of 4. My group consisted of 2 male, regular crossfitters, one female who used to crossfit and myself. Just looking around the room, I figured we had a decent shot at winning the challenge. However, it was difficult to speculate because I didn't know what the exercise stations were going to be and what type of athlete had an advantage or disadvantage. The crossfit coaches went over 6 different exercise stations that each group would complete once. Each group had 3 minutes at each station and 1 person was completing the exercise at 1 time while the others recovered. The exercises were: Stationary bike, pushups, box jumps, push press, sandbag clean/jerk, and body-weight squats.

And we're off! Our group starts will box-jumps (a good choice) and we are flying through them with a nice 20-jumps/person rhythm going. Next up: Pushups, and we do even better! My heart rate is rapidly increasing, I'm sweating, my legs and arms are already burning. With little to no rest in between stations, we move to bodyweight squats: pretty easy. Again, we quickly move to the next station: dumbbell push-press. With my legs burning, and shoulders aching from box jumps, squats and pushups; the push-presses were no easy picnic and we struggled towards the end. But we got through them with everyone in the group, still on their feet and encouraging each other on. Then we move to sand-bag clean & jerk swings. These are brutal... period. The sand-bags may as well of been filled with bricks. Our group members, are sucking air and milking their rest periods as much as they can before the person performing the exercise needs a break. Finally, the 3 minutes are up and we move on to the final station: stationary bike. I'm thinking "Oh this will be cake, I bike all the time, I got this." And it was easy....to start with. But the longer I stayed on the bike the more my legs seemed to be on fire and my heart felt like it was going to explode. and then "3...2....1, DONE!" And that's it. 30 minutes of non-stop circuit style stations. Instantly, I got that feeling of euphoria from my endorphins kicking in; typical after an intense workout. However, this was followed by a feeling of "Am I going to passout? Am I going to puke? I should lie down, no wait, walk it off...." Eventually I found my way to my water bottle outside and was able to walk it off a bit without collapsing in the parking lot.

All in all, it was a great workout and a good way to jump start your day. My group ended up taking 2nd, not bad for a rookie. I've come to the conclusion that no matter how many days of lifting weights you put in a week or how many bike rides you go on...Nothing will get you ready for a crossfit workout. It's at another level.

A few apprehensions I have regarding crossfit and a few of these I have mentioned in an earlier article regarding crossfit is that sometimes they appear to lack a structured, periodized training schedule. Meaning: sometimes more is not always better and you can't go all out day in, day out every time you workout. Therefore, I would recommend mixing in a crossfit-style workout into your weekly routine maybe once or twice a week. Another concern I have is the lack of back exercises. I realize today's workout was just a snapshot of their program but other than pull-ups it's difficult to isolate the muscle groups in your back without some actual back exercise machines instead of relying solely on body weight exercises. Regardless, it was a great workout in a fun yet challenging competition-style workout. It's a unique combination of conditioning meets resistance training. I recommend everyone to stop by and try a crossfit near you at least once. It's a great way to mix things up and get in a great workout.

It's The New You

2013-01-23T15:23:00.000-08:00

It's a New Year, so why not make it a New You. Everyone always talks about their New Year's resolutions and how this is going to be the year that everything changes, the year you follow your diet and fitness plan religiously, the year you finally hit your goals, the year.....

Regardless of what your goals are, if they have anything to do with your body, nutrition will play a major part. And the biggest questions is: How much should you be eating?

Your daily nutritional needs are determined by a variety of factors such as gender, age, body size (specifically muscle mass) and activity levels. There are several ways to estimate the amount of energy or calories your body needs to support it's basic metabolic functions or your basal metabolic rate. For simplicity's sake here is a general rule of thumb for how much you should be eating:

On days that you are working out, you should consume ~18 calories per pound of body weight if you are looking to maintain your body weight.

If you are looking to add weight (hopefully just muscle mass but you never know) you should consume a little bit more and strive for ~20 calories per pound of body weight on days that you are exercising (3,000 calories per day for a 150 lb person) and 18 calories per pound on rest days.

For individuals looking to gain/maintain muscle and lose fat at the same time (never easy to do) you should be in the range of 18 calories per pound on workout days and 14-16 on off days.

*Another key concept to remember, is what type of calorie you are consuming. If I had to pick the most important macronutrient, I would have to say protein. Protein is involved in protein synthesis which helps you maintain and build muscle mass and muscle mass is highly correlated to calories burned throughout the day. Focus on hitting your daily protein goals first and then fill in the rest. For a general rule of thumb, I would shoot for 1 g of protein per pound of body weight followed by 1.5 g of carbs per pound of body weight.

Remember, these are just general numbers to shoot for. Don't freak out if you go over or under by a little bit each day as your body will adjust. Also, be patient; changes in body composition do not occur overnight.

Personalize Your Workouts

2012-12-19T10:09:00.002-08:00

Every person is different, everyone's anatomy and physiology are different, everyone's goals are different... All reasons why everyone's workouts should be different also!!! This message is not only important for people hitting the gym every day but also for the trainers, coaches, PT's or whomever is prescribing the program in the first place. I have to admit, in my early years of personal training I was lacking this blatantly obvious concept in my program design. I was guilty of writing programs for my clients that were similar to ones that I myself used in my own workouts and enjoyed doing until I realized that my 45 yr old female client probably didn't care if she had huge traps or could bench press 300 lbs. Therefore the theme for today is specificity!

This concept of specificity is important to realize as your are planning your exercise routine so that your program is specific to you and only you. It's not always as easy as cutting a routine out of a Muscle & Fitness magazine, following it and then hoping to look like the guy on the cover in 12 weeks. I often get asked to write a quick program for someone and send it to them without every seeing them in a gym before. I try to explain to people that it may not be the best program for them because I don't know what kind of experience they have with some of the exercises, whether or not they can physically do them and/or if the gym they workout at even has the required equipment. Also, not all people call exercises by the same name, (some exercises don't even have name!) so it's tough to explain the exercises without physically being present to demonstrate them and make sure they are done properly.

Each person is different and responds differently to exercise. For example a 20 yr old can handle a relatively high training load and can workout/train multiple hours a day 5-7 days a week whereas a 70 yr old may need days in between workout sessions in order to recover. Furthermore, some people may not be able to perform certain exercises whether it be from an old injury, lack of coordination, or they're 7 ft tall and a back squat is completely out of the picture. Therefore it's necessary to modify workouts so that they not only fit your individual bodies but your goals as well.

Another concept of specificity is training for a purpose or a specific goal. A football player doesn't need to be running 80 miles a week just like a swimmer doesn't need to be doing a bunch of jump squats to improve their vertical. Similarly, in terms of fitness goals, if you are looking to lose weight you don't need to be doing 5 sets of 3 reps with 5 minutes in between sets in the weight room, or if you are trying to increase strength and size you don't need to be doing a back squat.... on top of a stability ball.... on one leg....underwater for sets of 100.

How To Do This?

So, now the important question: How the hell do I do this? Well, below are a few tips on how to design a workout specific to you!

1. Set Personal Goals

Before you start any type of program you need to decide what you want to get out of it. Do you want to lose weight? Build muscle? Improve your endurance? Or just look good in a swimsuit? Regardless of what you want, write it down, set a timeline (a realistic one), join a gym and go for it. In life you often hear the phrase "more is better" is this case it's not always true. I'm all for the idea of you wanting to be awesome at everything but some times it's simpler to just pick 1 or 2 goals and focus solely on them because a lot of times if you have too many goals they can get in the way of each other and become conflicting. For example, it's difficult to try and improve your marathon time while trying to gain 40 lbs at the same time.

2. Know Your Environment

Know what you have to work with; meaning if your goal is to improve your swim performance but you don't have access to a pool, you may not hit your goal as quickly as you'd like to. The same goes for weight lifting or gym workouts. If you belong to a smaller gym that doesn't have a lot of equipment or machines, you need to get creative and design a workout that focuses more on body weight exercises or unconventional exercises such as "playground pullups" or "tire flips." The creator of P90X has made a fortune off of this concept. He has designed a plethora of workouts that you can accomplish all in the confines of your own home.

3. Trial/Error

Don't be discouraged when something doesn't work or goes wrong. For example, if you wanted to increase your back squat but you soon realize you can't properly hold the bar behind your head because of shoulder issues, don't just quit, try something else; maybe incorporate front squats or leg press into your routine instead. It's important to constantly try new things and plug them into your workouts because variety is the spice of life and it will force your body to continually adapt and improve. It's also just as important to toss something out if it's not working for you or has gotten too easy. Keep your body guessing!

4. Monitor Progress

In order measure the effectiveness of your program and determine how close you are to achieving your goals, it's important to monitor your progress throughout the way. This can mean anything really, depending on what your goals are. If you were trying to gain lean muscle, you can have your body composition assessed. If your goal was to improve your 5K time, what better way to monitor your progress than to go out an run one!? If you are working towards strength/power goals, you can test your 1RM on certain exercises (this is especially important for program design as you continually need to adjust your weights each week as you get stronger).

5. Continually Improve

This tip goes along with the previous two. In order to improve, in whatever area it may be, you need to continually challenge yourself so your body adapts. Without progressively overloading your system you will hit plateaus and become stale and you will never reach your goals. So go big or go home!

No One Ever Got Awesome Just Sitting Around

How To Spice Up Your Workout

2012-12-17T04:50:00.004-08:00

Often times workout routines become a chore, a routine, just something you check of your daily to-do list. And that's fine for a lot of people and it's definitely better than what the majority of Americans do everyday. However, the best way to improve i.e. get bigger, stronger, faster, is to change your routines and make your body adapt and force it to make improvements.

The easiest way to do this is make adjustments to your daily workout routine. This can be as simple as switching up your daily splits and hitting different body parts different days or completely overhauling your entire workout by incorporating different exercises, set/rep schemes, recovery periods etc. I typically recommend to completely change your workout routine at least every 3-4 months, if not more. I understand how easy it is to get to the gym, hit your favorites, do what's comfortable and get out of there but that's all it is, is easy. You're not getting the as much bang for your buck as you could. So, don't let all of that time and work go to waste. Change up that workout and mix things up a little bit.

Below are some modifications/lifting techniques that you can incorporate in to your workouts to mix things up a little bit and add some intensity to your workouts:

1. Drop Sets
The term "Drop Sets" refers to a weightlifting technique used following your last set of a particular exercise. Follow your last rep of a set, or when you've reached failure, you immediately drop the weight ~20-40% and continue to lift the new weight as many times as you can. This technique is a good way to overload your muscle fibers and stimulate muscle growth.

Warning: They call them drop sets because you drop the weight on your last set, not because you drop the weights on your face. It's recommended that you use a spotter for these sets as your arms, legs or whatever are going to feel like jello when you're done.

2. Super Sets

Super sets is a technique that combines two exercises into one never-ending set. For example, if you were super-setting bench press with lat pull-downs, as soon as you finished your last repetition of bench press you would immediately head over to lat pull-downs and complete a set followed by a rest period. Then you will start over with bench press at the end of the rest period. Some people, will use 2 exercises that utilize opposing muscle groups similar to the super set mentioned above, whereas others will super set similar exercises i.e. back squat with leg press. Super sets are a good way to speed up your workouts and keep your heart rate elevated.

3. Negatives
Negatives or "forced reps" are techniques used by weigh lifters to promote muscle growth and strength by lifting heavier weights than you normally can handle. How is this possible? During a muscle contraction there is a concentric (shortening) and eccentric (lengthening) motion. During the eccentric motion, a muscle can handle heavier loads than during a concentric motion. For example, during the bench press the lowering motion is eccentric and the pushing phase is concentric. So, in order to apply this technique you should lift a weight that is 10-20% heavier than you normally would for that rep range and with the assistance of a spotter, focus on the eccentric motion of the exercise. In other words, you should be doing the lifting during the lowering phase and then with the help of your spotter, get the bar back up to the starting position and then repeat. This is a very effective strategy to not only increase muscle strength but size as well because heavy eccentric lifting is a powerful stimulator for muscle growth. However, I recommend only doing negatives once every 6-8 weeks as eccentric lifting can be damaging to the muscles and your body needs time to recover.

4. Cluster Sets
Cluster sets, inter-repetition rest, rest-pause are all names for a lifting technique that focuses on repetitions separated by short rest periods to allow for fully-recovered explosive movements. By allowing your muscles to recover in between reps, you should be able to lift heavier loads and heavier loads, equals greater strength gains. Below is a comparison between traditional strength training and cluster sets:

Traditional Strength Training:
- 6 sets of 6 reps with 3 minutes of rest in between set @ 80% of your 1RM typically taking ~20ish minutes to complete.

Cluster Set Training:
- (1+1+1+1+1+1)*6 sets. In the scenario, each plus sign corresponds to a 10 second rest period. So, during 1 set, you will complete six reps with 10 sec of brief rest in between each rep. Then, following your 6th rep you will rest for 3 minutes. This will take approximately the same amount of time ~20-25 minutes but you should be able to use a heavier load of roughly 85-90% of your 1RM.

5. Circuit
A circuit style routine is very common in the fitness industry. During a circuit, you will continually move from one exercise to another without rest until the very end. Each "circuit" or rotation through all of the exercises is one set. Usually people will do 2-3 sets per workout. The idea is to move as quickly as possible and keep your heart rate elevated. Some people recommend doing sets with a certain number of repetitions i.e. 15 reps for each exercise. Another technique is to complete as many repetitions as possible for a certain time period i.e. 30 seconds per station. Circuit style workouts are a great way to combine your weight lifting with your cardio as you are continuously moving from one exercise to the next forcing your body to ramp up the cardiovascular system while also stimulating your muscles to grow. It's also a way to get a quick, efficient workout in as most circuits usually only last 20-40 minutes.

6. 1-Arm/Leg Exercises
If you can do it with 2 legs, try it with 1! One-legged, or "armed" exercises are a great way to mix things up in the weight room, especially if you have any muscle imbalances. Obviously you won't be able to lift as much weight as you could with 2 limbs, but this way you are forcing one limb to do all of the work instead of having one overcompensate for the other (if there are imbalances). Also, one-limbed exercises will engage the core to a greater extent as your body will be forced to stabilize itself due to the odd positioning and alterations in your center of gravity. In terms of what exercises you can do, the sky is really the limit. I've seen 1-leg squats, leg press, dead-lift, leg curl... Similarly for upper body exercises, I've seen 1-arm lat pull downs, bench press, rows, etc.

Don't Get Fat on Thanksgiving

2012-11-21T09:30:00.001-08:00

Alright everyone it's that time of the year again, a day dedicated to eating so much you literally slip into a food coma or have to put on sweatpants so you can breathe.... It's Thanksgiving Time! A day dedicated to food, football, and napping!

This year let's try to practice some self-control so that you don't waste all of your hard-earned results you've spent the past few months achieving. And I don't want to hear the excuse of "Oh, I'll start my diet again AFTER the holiday season... or "I'll just wait until my New Year's Resolution...." I'll be the first to admit, there is nothing wrong with throwing the diet out the window for one day a year and enjoying yourself but just don't go too crazy because if you're not careful you can easily chow down 7,000 calories without even realizing it if you're aren't careful.

Here are a few tips to prevent that Turkey-10 from showing up on your scale the next day....

1. Pace Yourself:
By eating more slowly, you allow your satiety mechanisms to catch up with your mouth to signal your body that it's full and that more food isn't necessary. Also, eating smaller portions and bite sizes will help with this process as well. If you've ever had the opportunity to enjoy a meal with me you know this concept is damn near impossible for me. Usually when I start eating something it's like a sub-conscious race to the Empty Plate Club. So slow down and enjoy that delicious food.
*Tip: Count to 5 while chewing to ensure you are consuming food at an adequate pace.
*Tip: Put your fork down in between bites so you aren't constantly shoving food into your mouth.
*Tip: Try to avoid a second helping. Save it for later in the day to try and space out your calories.

2. Go Easy On The Carbs:
Try not to set any mashed potato records or fill up on dinner rolls. Meals high in carbohydrates result in an insulin spike following the meal. High insulin levels promote fat storage and inhibit fat burning. Also, evidence suggests that fluctuating glucose and insulin levels may trigger hunger sensations which is the last thing you need on Turkey Day. Try to focus more on turkey and some of the vegetables rather than the starchy carbs and dessert trays.

3. All You Can Drink Water:
Here's one thing you can splurge on: WATER! By consuming lots of water (especially before your Thanksgiving Feast) you will give your body the idea that it's full and prevent you form overeating.

4. Easy on The Sauce....

This tip has a double meaning. The first being: Go easy on gravies, dressings, butter etc. Substances like these have tons of hidden calories and can easily sabotage a plate even with the best intentions. The other meaning is to go easy on the alcohol. Calories from alcohol are selfish calories; meaning they want to be first and take priority over the other calories. In other words, the alcohol you consume will be metabolized and burned for energy first while the remaining calories take a back seat (are stored as fat) until the alcohol is cleared from your system.

5. Don't Just Stand There Bust a Move!
And last but not least, my personal favorite: Get up early and exercise! Whether you take the dogs out for a long walk, hit the gym first thing in the morning or jump on the ever-so-popular Turkey Trot bandwagon, partake in some form of exercise on Turkey Day. This way, you burn off calories (in anticipation of the thousands more you are going to be consuming) and set your body up for an influx of food. Personally I recommend exercising before your big feast so you can enjoy the rest of your day in your food coma, watching football and trying to get off the couch. This is probably my favorite strategy on Thanksgiving, as I am absolutely terrible at the previous tips. I always eat too much, eat too fast, go back for seconds, divulge in dessert, lay on the couch all day and drink beer...But, I get up and exercise beforehand so it's all okay :)

Good Luck Everybody! Have A Great Thanksgiving!

Go Fishing For Health

2012-11-19T06:07:00.001-08:00

Fish Oils - The Hottest New Supplement?

Fish oil may be the most underrated supplement on the market. Not only do fish oils have several health benefits but we are learner more and more about potential performance enhancing effects as well! Fish oils contain certain fatty-acids known as Omega 3 fatty acids which are classified as an essential fatty acid (meaning our body cannot make them and they need to be obtained through the diet). The primary active components of Omega 3 fatty acids are EPA and DHA. These fatty acids have been reported to have a "cardioprotective" effect meaning they can lower your chance of developing cardiovascular disease. They are also required for normal growth, cell integrity, and proper joint health.

How Much To Take?
The average American only consumes ~0.15 g/day which is far below the recommendation of ~1-3 g/day with an EPA:DHA ratio of 2:1. As you could probably guess, the best source of Omega 3's are fatty fishes such as Salmon, Herring and Trout. And if you're like the majority of Americans, you probably don't consume fish every day. Whether it be you don't like the taste of fish or you live in North Dakota (far from salmon country) and you refuse to believe that the salmon at your local Hornbachers is "fresh," regardless you should still try to consume enough Omega 3's each day. Luckily supplement companies have made it easy for us to do this with the help of fish oil supplements.

*Tip: When looking for a fish oil supplement, choose one with a high DHA and EPA content (the higher, the better).

Fish oil supplementation is most commonly known for it's health benefits, particularly because of it's ability to lower one's risk of developing cardiovascular disease by lowering blood pressure and improving the blood-lipid profile. Recent evidence has also suggested that fish oil may help improve brain functioning and help with concussion symptoms following a traumatic brain injury. Below is a summary of just some of the health benefits of fish oil supplementation. We are constantly learning more and more reasons to include fish oils in the diet and I'm sure there will be many more reasons coming in the future.

Health Benefits:
- Lowers risk of developing coronary artery disease.
- May improve recovery from brain injuries (concussions).
- If taken before brain injury may lessen the amount of damage.
- Can lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels.
- Reduces the chance of clot formation.
- Lowers blood pressure.
- Improves bone health (increases bone density and lowers risk of fracture).
- May help improve cognitive functioning over time and prevent dementia.
- Improves insulin sensitivity and decreases risk of developing diabetes.

Not only can fish oils benefit the average human but they may even be more important for athletes who are engaged in heavy training. There is strong evidence that suggests fish oils have anti-inflammatory effects and can help speed up recovery from exercise as well as prevent muscle damage. It also seems to improve heart function during exercise by improve cardiac efficiency (your heart doesn't have to work as hard). Below is a list of several other benefits of fish oil supplements and why they are important for athletes to incorporate into their daily food intake.

Performance Benefits:
- Lowers heart rate during exercise.
- May reduce muscle damage and soreness following intense exercise.
- Has anti-inflammatory effects.
- Has anti-oxidant effects.
- May help stimulate protein synthesis and prevent protein degradation (builds muscle and prevents it from being broken down).
- May improve body composition.

A FAST Track To Fat Loss

2012-11-15T15:26:00.003-08:00

Intermittent Fasting

First there was the "Eat 3 square meals a day," followed by "6 small meals throughout the day is best," and now there is "Intermittent Fasting." It's difficult to keep up with the ever-changing theories of dietary strategies and weight-loss as there always seems to be something new hitting the market. Intermittent Fasting (IF) is a new diet strategy intended to enhance fat loss and improve body composition. It consists of alternating periods of fasting (only water and/or calorie-free liquids) and eating. So what's the difference between that and regular eating patterns? Intermittent Fasting designates certain extended periods of time as "Fasting" followed by a relatively short, or none at all, window of time when food can be consumed. The rationale behind this strategy is that the periods of fasting will maximize fat burning while still maintaining lean muscle mass which is why it is often used to improve body composition. There are a few different methods of intermittent fasting which are described below.

The Periodic Fast

This method consists of a 24 hr fasting period which is to be used ~1 day per week. The creators of the IF diet don't recommend starting off with this method as it can be difficult for your body to adjust to the sudden lack of food. The only thing that is allowed during this fast period is water, low calorie beverages (i.e. diet green tea, coffee etc.) and BCAA's (in pill form). The green tea and caffeine are substances that promote fat-burning and are thus included during the fasting period. The BCAA"s are intended to maintain muscle mass and help stimulate the building of new muscle tissue.

Below is an excerpt from the Book: "Precision Nutrition" by Dr. John Berardi which describes a sample day utilizing the Periodic Fast:

".....HOW TO DO IT

Essentially, you pick any 24-hour period, and don’t eat during it. But we like to add a few things to make it easier. Here, we’ll assume a Sunday fast:

10 PM Saturday:

Eat your last meal of the day
Drink 500 mL (2 cups) of water

10 AM Sunday:

Drink 1 L (4 cups) of water + 1 serving greens powder
Drink 250 mL (1 cup) of green tea
Take 5 grams BCAA (branched chain amino acids) powder (or take 5 capsules)

3 PM Sunday:

Drink 1 L (4 cups) of water + 1 serving greens powder
Drink 250 mL (1 cup) green tea
Take 5 grams BCAA (branched chain amino acids) powder (or take 5 capsules)

10 PM Sunday:

Eat a small snack before bed
Drink 500 mL (2 cups) of water

Monday:

Eat normally....."

The Daily Fast

This strategy breaks up a 24 hr period into 2 windows: 1) A fasting window and 2) An eating window. The authors recommend a 16 hr fast and 8 hr feeding window. Now, this doesn't mean that you are eating constantly throughout the 8 hr eating window. The authors of Precision Nutrition recommend 3-4 meals during the 8 hr feeding window instead of 1 large meal or 8 hrs of grazing. Now, if you are an individual who trains or exercises during the week (and if you read this blog I hope that you do!) it's recommended that you get your workout in at the end of the 16 hr fast and then consume your first meal immediately after your workout. This may be challenging for some people as working out on an empty stomach may not be well-tolerated (I just about pass out every time).

And Then Eat....

Monday

8:30 PM - Eat small snack (last meal before 16 hr fast)

Tuesday

8:00 AM: Wake up, Drink 500 ml of water

9:00 AM: Drink 1 L of water + 250 ml of green tea

11:00 AM: 250 ml of green tea

12:00 AM: Workout session with 10g of BCAA before/during

1:30 PM: Eat first meal (largest of the day)

4:30 PM: Eat second meal (moderate size)

8:30 PM: Eat third meal (moderate to small size)

Tips:

Just because you are strategically eating (or not eating) at certain times throughout the day, doesn't mean that when you do eat that you splurge and park yourself at an All You Can Eat Buffet all day. It is still just as important to eat not only the proper amount of calories but also the proper ratio of macro-nutrients, focusing on lean meats and fruits & veggies.

Does It Work?

And now, the important question: Does it work? Granted there isn't really any clinical research that has been done on this program, I believe it's safe to say that yes, this program is an effective strategy for losing body fat and improving body composition. The majority of anecdotal evidence I've heard on IF has been in support of it and said it was successful at improving body composition. Personally, I'm someone who loves food and gets cranky when I go extended periods without it so this diet plan isn't really for me but don't let that deter you from trying it! Also, I DO NOT recommend this program for athletes or those engaged in heavy training as it may be difficult to A) Train on an empty stomach and B) Consume enough calories to support high energy expenditures. If you are interested in trying this new diet, I suggest starting slowly and easing yourself into fasting periods to prevent hunger pangs, mood disturbances and dizziness. And please, if you do try this diet let me know what you think of it because I'd love to hear if it worked or not!

For those interested in more information, here is a link that goes into more detail on the program......

http://www.precisionnutrition.com/intermittent-fasting/appendix-a

T-Ball: Part I

2012-11-08T06:30:00.002-08:00

Testosterone-Ball

My friends and I were recently partaking in our favorite American past-time which is of course late night beers and baseball talk. We've long since given up our baseball careers and moved on to more important things like fantasy baseball, arguing about who was the best catcher during the 90's and our recent argument regarding the prevalence of steroid use in baseball and whether or not they ruined or saved baseball....

Following this last discussion, I decided to look into it a little more and see if I could find any hard facts to back up my opinions. I tried to look up as much information (legitimate information, not just Jose Canseco's book on steroids) as I could find on this issue and do the best to provide it in a non-biased fashion. It is difficult to understand exactly how many players are/were taking steroids, how steroids may have changed their performance and ultimately how it changed the game because a lot of this information is A) Impossible to obtain and B) Difficult to quantify in the first place; however I will give it my best shot.

What Are Steroids?
In order to understand how steroids are affecting the game of baseball. We first need to define what all is entailed with the term "steroids." According to the all-knowing wikipedia, steroids are drugs that mimic the hormones testosterone and dihydrotestosterone. These hormones are responsible for promoting the growth or anabolism of certain tissues within the body (i.e. muscles, bones, cartilage etc.). They were first isolated and synthesized in the 1930's for medicinal purposes. The use of anabolic steroids became popular during the 1940's and 1950's by Eastern European countries who saw improvements in the athletic performance of their athletes. Eventually the International Olympic Committee placed anabolic steroids on the banned list in 1976. In 1990 Congress passed the Anabolic Steroid Control Act which classified steroids as a controlled substance, making it a felony to possess or sell them. In 2003 MLB instituted a random, but anonymous, testing program to gauge the percentage of steroid use in baseball. This anonymous testing stated that only 5-7% of players tested were using steroids. Many believe this number largely underestimates the prevalence of steroid use as rumors surfaced stating that players knew when they would be tested to they could easily take the necessary precautions to avoid a positive test. Eventually there was a modification in the "steroid policy" and punishments for a positive test were finally instated. However, there were again rumors and speculations that Major League Baseball simply looked the other way during the "Steroid Era" and allowed players to take steroids in hopes to bring fans back to the game following the strike in 1994.

How Do They Improve Performance?
The theory that steroids can turn you into an MVP caliber player has several holes in it. First of all, steroids can't turn a minor leaguer into a triple crown-caliber player such as Miguel Cabrera. They can't teach you how to pick up the spin on a curveball or get a little more break on your slider. But what they can help you with is promoting growth and improving recovery, thus allowing an individual to train at a higher level with the hopes of taking the body to its maximum capacity. I am currently reading the book "Bases Loaded" which tells the inside story of the Mitchell Report and the scandal of the Steroid Era. The narrator made a great point of how steroids won't necessarily make you a great player. He said to look at The Giambi brothers; both of them were on steroids (allegedly) but only one of them found success at the Major League level. The same could be said for the Canseco brothers; one of them was a reputable slugger in baseball and the other was a reputable slugger in bar fights and played against the Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks.

Why The Sudden Change?

This is a question I found myself struggling with following the argument. A reoccurring comment was: "They had to be on steroids during the 90's! Just look at the physical transitions of some of those guys!" The picture below of Barry Bonds is a great example of how the bodies of some of the "sluggers of the 90's" changed during this time period. I have to admit, I jumped on the bandwagon theory of "They had to have been on steroids! They were so big and got that way so fast!" However, the more I looked into it the more I found myself doubting this theory.

One of the reasons I believe players got so big during the 90's was the development and advancement of training practices in Major League Baseball. A lot of the reports and articles I read stated that before the 90's players didn't really train or lift weights at all. They were followers of the old school train of thought that if you got too big and bulky you would lose flexibility and wouldn't be able to perform as well. Players didn't lift weights, they didn't train in the off-season, there were no strength coaches or trainers. However, following the fitness boom of the 80's, Major Leaguers seemed to jump on the bandwagon as well and training facilities starting popping up in stadiums and clubhouses. Players began to train regularly and thus the shapes and figures of players changed as well. Players started to become bigger, stronger and faster as a result of a structured training program. In today's world, every team has a training facility with multiple strength coaches and trainers. Players often times have their own trainers and/or nutritionists that work with them individually throughout the year. So, one could argue that the larger players seen during the 90's could just be a result of the natural evolution of athletes as they realized the importance of proper strength training & conditioning. That or they were just hitting the juice hard....or both!

If I had to take a guess (and this is purely speculation with no hard evidence), I would say that the physical transformations seen by some of the players during the 80's and 90's were likely a result of both structured training programs AND some steroid use. This of course doesn't include every player. I fully accept the idea that not all players were taking steroids just as not all players participated in structured training programs. Just look at David Wells (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/bbw/2002-02-13/2002-02-13-cover.htm), clearly he was still able to find success without doing any exercise outside of his walk to the pitchers mound and back. Not only is it difficult to speculate how many players were actually taking steroids but of the ones that were, how do we know how much or what kind they were taking? There are hundreds of different formulations of anabolic steroids available and each one of them can have a different effect on the body. My guess is the guys that suddenly put on 80 lbs of muscle in a year or two and looked more like a professional wrestler than baseball player were probably using higher dosages than other players. Regardless, the truth is we will never know exactly who was taking what and for how long but what we can determine is how the game changed during this time period......

*The next post will focus on how the Steroid Era changed the game of baseball.

If you are interested in the Mitchell Report here is a link for the full report. It's a very interesting read but a very long one at that.

http://files.mlb.com/mitchrpt.pdf

Is Fat Really Flammable?

2012-10-17T10:47:00.001-07:00

"Melt away the fat," "It Will Burn the Fat Right Off You," "Ignite Your Metabolism"....Sometimes I can't tell if someone if supplement companies want you to lose weight or start a forest fire. Some of the hottest (pun intended) new supplements on the sports nutrition scene are weight loss supplements aka fat burners. As usual, it's difficult to sift through the marketing strategies and to decipher if these products really work. In theory, these products are typically designed to either A) Increase your metabolic rate or B) Increase lipolysis or the breakdown of fat stores. Believe it or not some fat burners have actually been shown to be successful. There is some evidence that shows elevations in one's metabolic rate following the ingestion of these metabolic stimulants or thermogenics as their often called.

Now some of the above mentioned alterations in thermogenesis (the production of heat within the body) and lipolysis (fat breakdown) can be achieved through diet alone. One way to go about this is by consuming foods that seem to induce thermogenesis such as spicy foods. We've all experienced this before right? Pop a couple of jalapenos and before you know if you're breaking a sweat just by eating! However it may not be enjoyable to walk around all day eating peppers like they're candy. Other food products that seem to have a thermogenic effect are those containing high amounts of protein. Research has shown that protein ingestion may increase energy expenditure by roughly 10% (the increase is energy expenditure is due to the increased energy needed to digest protein). My brother used to always joke that after a nice 72 oz. steak he would get "The Meat Sweats." It appears as though he was on to something. However, this concept should be taken with a grain of salt; and no it's not to make your steak taste better. If protein ingestion can increase energy expenditure, it doesn't mean that those extra calories burned will off-set that 72 oz. steak you just ate. It's important to remember that just because your body is experiencing a thermogenic enhancing effect, doesn't mean that your going to lose weight just by eating those foods. You still need to be burning more calories than you are consuming to lose weight. Another way to manipulate fat burning within the body is maintain low insulin levels. When insulin levels are high, as is seen with diets high in sugar, fat breakdown is inhibited. This concept is the backbone of diets such as The Atkins Diet and Nutrisystem's Diet of Glycemic Control. This is also the reasoning behind doing your cardio (low intensity only) in the morning before you've had breakfast; low insulin levels will promote a greater utilization of fat as energy during your workout.

So now on to the important stuff, fat burners, do they really work? And the short answer is: probably not to the extent we are led to believe. Some thermogenic products have been shown to increase energy expenditure by up to 10-40% upon ingestion as well as decrease body fat percent by 1-3% after long-term supplementation. The main ingredients in these products are typically caffeine, green tea extract, Chromium, B-Vitamins, L-Carnosine, Ketones and usually a variety of other herbs. The ingredients that seem to be the most effective, in terms of increasing metabolic rate, are caffeine and green tea extract. There used to be another popular ingredient that was very effective but unfortunately was banned by the FDA as it was "linked" to some "adverse events" (I think it was wrongfully banned). This ingredient was known as ephedra and was a staple in many weight loss products, Hydroxycut (the original patented formula) being one of them which is why it WAS so effective. The problem with a lot of weight loss products is that they combine several ingredients together into one formula without really understand how they will interact with each other. Luckily, these ingredients are in such low dosages that they probably don't even have any effect on the body at all. However, I advise caution when selecting these products and make sure you read the label and know what you are consuming. If you wanted the cheapest, safest and most effective product, you're best bet is probably caffeine pills. They are low in calories, cheap and caffeine is probably the most effective metabolic stimulant. Green tea extract would be my next choice. Green tea extract not only has caffeine in it but also several anti-oxidants and health promoting ingredients.

There really isn't a lot of research that tells us about how effective and safe these products really are over extended periods of time. Most studies just show acute elevations in energy expenditure. Therefore it's difficult to speculate whether or not these products would be successful at promoting weight loss after years of supplementation. Below is a list of the most effective fat burner ingredients as well as literature that supports the use of some of these thermogenics.

Top 4 Fat Burner Ingredients:
1) Ephedra
2) Caffeine
3) Green Tea Extract
4) Synephrine

http://www.jissn.com/content/4/1/10/abstract
http://www.jissn.com/content/6/1/4/abstract
http://www.jissn.com/content/6/1/1/abstract
http://www.jissn.com/content/5/1/19/abstract

And of course, there is the easiest, cheapest and most effective method of burning fat and increasing energy expenditure: EXERCISE

Sir Mix-A-Lot Knew What He Liked

2012-09-27T12:09:00.000-07:00

Did Sir Mix-A-Lot have right? Are big butts really what everybody likes? Of course there is such a thing as too much of a good thing (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BKZD0klUbE).

Today's post is a tribute to nice butts....and how to get them (The wife might not like this one). The inspiration of this post comes from the number one request of EVERY FEMALE CLIENT I HAVE EVER HAD: "I want to tone my inner thighs and butt; how do I do that? Well here is my advice:

Type of Exercises:

First of all, I can tell you an exercise that IS NOT the fastest way to a nice butt and that is the thigh machine at the gym. I don't know how many times I've seen a girl camp out on those machines for a good half an hour and then call it a day hoping they'll wake up will killer thighs the next morning. This clearly isn't the most effective strategy. The best way to look like you have nice legs and a great butt is to GET nice legs and a butt. This means packing on some muscle and developing the back side a little. Now with that being said, you don't have to set any squat records or train/look like Serena Williams to do this but you will have to lift weights or perform some type of resistance-based exercises to accomplish this.

Best Exercises:
If I had to pick the 5 best exercises for a nice butt they would be:

1. Hip Thrusts (and no, not the ones in the bedroom)

2. Squats

3. Lunges

4. Deadlifts

5. Step-Ups

How Often?
Obviously you can't go into the weight room everyday and work your legs so hard you can't walk up stairs anymore. Like I said before, you don't have to set any squat records or join the powerlifting club to get great legs. I would recommend working this 5 exercises into your weekly workouts at least twice a week. You could split your workouts into upper and lower body days and split it up like this:

Monday: Upper Body
Tuesday: Lower Body
Wednesday: Cardio or Rest
Thursday: Upper Body
Friday: Lower Body
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Rest or Cardio

Or you could perform a whole-body workout 3 times per week while incorporating cardio on the days between. Regardless how you set it up, there are a few key things to remember:

1) Never work the same body part 2 days in a row. The body needs time to recover.
2) You don't have to lift so often that your sore all the time.
3) Try to hit each body part at least twice per week.

How Much?
If you are just starting out I would recommend performing 6-8 exercises per workout, completing 2-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions with 1-2 minutes of rest in between sets. You could also utilize a circuit style workout, in which you move from one exercise to the next as quickly as you can. You want to select a weight that is difficult to lift towards your last 1-2 repetitions of each set. If it feels too easy, or you could lift the weight another 10 times than it's time to add more weight.

Which Muscles?
In order to get the "perfect" legs (if there is such a thing), make sure you are working ALL muscle groups. This includes the front of your legs, the back of your legs, your butt and inner thighs. Otherwise, you may develop muscle imbalances and set yourself up for an injury. You should be able to tell which exercises work which muscle groups as they will likely start to burn towards the end of each set.

In Summary: Remember, performing cardio and sitting on the thigh machine all day will NOT get you the killer legs you are looking for. Pick up some weights and get after it....Make Sir Mix-A-Lot proud!

I'm Going To Pump You Up

2012-08-15T08:55:00.001-07:00

It's two-a-days, ACDC's "Thunderstruck" is cranked so loud it's rattling the squat racks, and 35 team members have you surrounded with deafening cheers to lock out your 1-rep max.....If you're not pumped up for that then there is something wrong with you. Switch gears to February, in Minnesota, a blizzard in full-swing with -30 degree weather and you "can't find your workout clothes" so you shrug your shoulders and decide the gym can wait one more day. Unfortunately the latter scenario is probably a lot more common. So what's the secret? How are you supposed to get pumped up for a workout? It was easy back in high school right? You either had a coach always on your case during practice/drills, or a team mate constantly fighting for your starting roster spot, or the pressure of looking bigger in your school uniform; but now you're 30, married, and the only person that sees you with your shirt of is your wife and she is legally bound to you forever. One direction that a lot of people are turning towards are pre-workout supplements.

What's In Them?

N.O. Explode, Redline, 1-More-Rep, C4 Extreme are all examples of pre-workout supplements that are common items found around the gym. Most pre-workout supplements promote their products by saying they will give you a "pre-workout pump" or "it will get you jacked up!" etc. In order to get this "pump" most manufacturer's put caffeine in their supplements to give you the notion of feeling pumped up. The research is equivocal on whether or not caffeine will improve performance in the weight room. Personally, I like taking caffeine before a workout because of its stimulatory effects. Whether or not it actually improves my performance is beside the point because I just feel better and more pumped up for a workout. Another common ingredient in pre-workout supplements is L-Arginine which is an amino acid used in the production of nitric oxide. Higher levels of nitric oxide in the vasculature has been purported to dilate blood vessels, thus allowing for an increase in blood flow or "pump." Research has shown that nitric oxide supplements are relatively ineffective at improving blood flow or training adaptations. Creatine is also found in pre-workout supplements. Creatine supplementation has been shown to be successful in improving training adaptations (see previous article on creatine). However, there really isn't an acute effect of creatine; meaning if you take it 20 minute before a workout, you won't see any improvements as it takes time to work its magic. The same could be said for nitric oxide supplementation. And last but not least, one of the newer supplements to hit the market: beta-alanine. Beta-alanine is used to increase the buffering capacity of your muscles during high-intensity exercise. In other words, it will help delay that burn you get in your legs during your last set of squats. Again, this supplement needs time to take action so popping it 5 min before your workout won't really do much. However, you will fell a slight tingly sensation upon ingestion which I personally enjoy before a workout.

In summary, there are several pre-workout supplements available on the market and some of them actually work! However, as previously mentioned a lot of them do not really have acute effects and need time to take effect. In other words, they really aren't PRE workout supplements and more just supplements. Caffeine is the one ingredient that can get you "pumped up" before a workout as it does have stimulatory effects. A lot of companies will combine a lot of these ingredients into a magic powder but it's important to read the labels to see what's really in them. My personal favorites are Redline Extreme, C4, and NO-Shotgun. Unfortunately these are also rather on the pricy side.

Get your pump on!

Olympic Time

2012-07-31T06:30:00.002-07:00

The Olympic Games

It's that time again: The Summer Olympic Games, when the best athletes from all over the world compete for the title of the world's best! As an exercise physiologist and strength coach, it's truly an amazing spectacle to watch such displays of incredible athleticism and talent (unless you are watching ping pong, they're good don't get me wrong but maybe not what you think of when you hear Olympic Athlete). The drive for athletes to better themselves and improve performance is the basis for my field in the first place, so it's exciting to see the inspiration and reason for what we do!

History of The Olympics
Originally the Ancient Olympic Games were held in Olympia Greece, going back as far as the 8th Century BC! Some of the original games hosted events such as: running and jumping events, discus, javelin throw, boxing, wresting and some equestrian events. The majority of the competing athletes were from surrounding city-states that declared a temporary truce while the games were in session. The Olympics continued to be a popular event until sometime around ~400 AD when the Emperor put a stop to them. They weren't resumed until the 19th century! The games were continued again in 1890 when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was established. The Winter Olympic Games weren't even established until 1921.

Politics, Performance Enhancing Drugs and Professionals
The 20 and 21st century molded the Olympic Games into what they are today. The Olympic Games have come along way from 241 participants representing 14 countries in 1896 to about 10,500 participants from 204 countries at the 2008 Summer Games. During this span, issues such as professional athletes competing, mass media and corporate sponsorship have had a huge impact on how the games are portrayed. There has been a lot of debate on whether or not professional athletes should be able to compete in the games. Personally I think the Olympic Games wouldn't be a competition of the world's best athletes without them! It has brought on challenges of athletes being forced to choose between their regular sport season or the Olympics but I think an athlete would be crazy to turn down a shot at Olympic gold.

There are also some major political issues that come into play with the Olympic Games. A lot of countries seem to associate winning medals with being a political powerhouse and therefore put a lot of pressure on their athletes to be the best in the world. This pressure actually led to a lot of the performance enhancing drug developments that seem to go hand in hand with today's sports. Some of the Eastern European countries were known to "recruit" athletes as a young age, pump them full of who-knows-what kind/amount of performance enhancing drugs, and send them out to settle for nothing but gold.

The technological advances of recent, have brought with them issues of corporate sponsorship, media rights and battles for advertisements. Watching the Olympics is now like watching a digital billboard. However, we can't complain too much because this has given us the ability to watch any event at any time. It's just a shame that so many issues and conflicts have stolen the thunder from the athletes and the reason for the Games in the first place.

Regardless of the negative issues, the Olympic Games are still an amazing spectacle and I highly recommend everyone watch them! Go watch your favorite country/team and find out how they're doing:

http://www.london2012.com/

Eat Like Matt Kemp....Swing Like Matt Kemp?

2012-07-25T07:50:00.003-07:00

Eat Like Matt Kemp....Swing Like Matt Kemp? If only it were that easy. No matter how closely I or probably the majority of the population, followed Matt Kemp's eating/training program, it's doubtful we could ever swing the bat like him. However, that doesn't mean his nutritional strategies can't be helpful. I recently read a Men's Health article that focused on Matt Kemp's nutritional practices during training and thought I would comment on them.

What is it?
Matt Kemp uses a nutritional strategy called "Carb Cycling" which is often used by bodybuilders and athletes that are training at a high intensity or are looking to put on lean muscle mass versus fat and muscle mass. It basically consists of a rotation between high-carb days and low-carb days. The idea is that training days are high carb days and rest/off days are low-carb days.

What Does It Do?
During exercise, specifically intense exercise (as is common during sports training), carbohydrates are the primary source of energy. So, it makes sense to provide your body with higher amounts of energy (carbohydrates) on days that you are training hard. Carbohydrates are also important during the recovery process as well, especially when you are training heavy multiple days in a row. In the body, carbohydrates are stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles which can be broken down and mobilized during exercise for energy. However, when carbohydrates are consumed during rest/inactivity and carbohydrate stores (glycogen) are full, then they are converted to fat and stored as an alternate source of energy. This is why off days require lower amounts of carbohydrates as they are not needed as much on those days. It's important to remember that you still need to hit your total calorie mark for the day. So, on low-carb days you need to make up those calories with either a higher protein or fat intake in order to prevent muscle loss.

Is it Healthy?
Research has shown that a low carbohydrate diet for an extended period of time may actually increase insulin sensitivity. In other words, your body will become more efficient in the way it responds to sugar and can increase the rate that sugar is cleared from the blood and stored for energy. A higher level of insulin sensitivity decreases one's chance of developing Type II diabetes. A low-carb diet has also been shown to be beneficial for weight-loss programs and is currently one of the more recommended diet plans by dietitians.

So, in the slightly modified words of Barney Stinson: "Carb Up!" (on training days that is)

Running is Stupid

2012-07-23T05:42:00.004-07:00

I don't even know why people go for long runs anymore? They're boring, painful, and you can get more bang for your buck by doing High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) or "sprint work" than you can from long runs. Okay, so obviously I'm incredibly biased against running and it's mostly because I'm not good at am jealous of those that are. However, I wasn't completely exaggerating when I said you can get more out of your workouts utilizing HIIT than from long/slow runs. When you go out for a long run, you will burn ~400-500 calories an hour and you can improve your cardiovascular system (i.e. increased blood volume, decreased RHR, increased metabolic enzymes, improve aerobic capacity). But that's really all your doing is burning some calories and improving one area of fitness, endurance. Long distance running can also result in a decrease in power, speed and compromise your ability to increase muscle mass.

Now, when you go out and work on interval training you are going to experience a whole smorgasbord of benefits. Sprint work/interval training can give you similar improvements in cardiovascular performance as long-distance running (not quite to the same extent), as well as several other benefits, including: increased power, improved training tolerance at high intensities, maintain muscle strength and size, and a higher calorie expenditure throughout the day (EPOC).

Specificity of Sport
Depending on what your goals are, you should adjust your HIIT accordingly. For example, if you are training for football with the average play lasting 5-7 sec with 25-35 sec of rest in between plays, you should train in a similar manner and perform sprints in the range of 5 to 7 sec of all out effort. On the other hand, if you are looking to increase your 800m time then you should train with longer duration sprints. By employing different sprinting strategies, you will utilize different energy systems and make improvements in certain areas. It all depends on what speeds you want to improve at. Train with a purpose! If you are just looking to improve general fitness than I would suggest doing a little bit of everything and mixing it up.

Work to Rest Ratios
When performing interval work, obviously it's not possible to just sprint non-stop for 30 min and call it a day which is why it's call INTERVAL work. In other words, you split up the bouts of running with intermittent rest periods. Like I mentioned before, it all depends on what your goals are. Below is a table that lists examples of work to rest ratios and what energy systems they are using.

Work to Rest Ratio	Work(s)	Rest(s)	Purpose/Event	Intensity
1:12-1:20	5-10	60-200	Short-Term/Explosive (football, Shot put)	90-100%
1:3-1:5	15-30	45-150	Short-Term (100-200m sprint, hockey)	75-90%
1:3-1:4	60-180	180-720	Long Sprints (400m, 800m, Basketball)	30-75%
1:1-1:3	>180	>180	1600m	20-35%

In conclusion, I recommend HIIT training to people. Not only will you receive a lot of the same benefits as long-distance running, it also takes less time, increases calorie expenditure throughout the day, improves power/sprinting endurance and won't diminish gains in muscle mass. So get out there and sprint!

Counting Calories Made Easy

2012-07-12T08:11:00.003-07:00

I know I know, counting calories sounds lame and tedious and a very "obsessive/compulsive" thing to do but it can have a HUGE impact on your fitness goals. I'm sure most people associate counting calories or label checking with weight loss and I'm here to say that's not always the case. I once heard a quote that fitness is 30% gym work and 70% kitchen work. So regardless of your goals, tracking your diet is definitely going to help!

How To Count?
It sounds simple enough right? Just count the calories for the amount of food you eat by reading food labels. Well sometimes you don't always know what you ate. For example, some restaurants don't have their nutrition information listed or maybe you ate a homemade recipe at a friends house and they didn't measure exactly what they put into it. It's okay to guestimate a little bit; just use your best judgement on amounts or contents of certain foods. There's no need to whip out your food scale at a restaurant and measure the ounces of your salmon fillet. A ballpark figure is good enough, unless you are a bodybuilder in the final days of a cut phase trying to melt off those last few pounds of fat; then you may want to pay a little closer attention.

Counting Made Easy
Luckily we live in a day and age where technology can pretty much do everything for us which is why counting calories is so much easier these days. I've recently become hooked on the app "My Fitness Pal." It's a dietary/fitness tracking software that syncs an online publicly shared profile with your app on your phone, similar to a social network for tracking fitness. One reason I like it so much is because it has the nutritional info for a lot of foods already plugged into their database, so all you have to do is point amd click what you ate for what meal. It also allows you to pull up "reports" for different time periods so you can see what you ate over a week. It will give you total amounts in calories and grams for your food intake as well as percentages of total intake. So if I want to see how much protein I average each day and what percentage of my daily intake is protein, all I have to do is pull up that report. The program will also take into account your gener, age and activity level in order to come up with a recommended daily total for calorie intake. And if you are looking to gain/lose weight, it will show you how many calories you SHOULD be eating.

Tracking Progress:

One of the other nice features about calorie/fitness counters, is the ability to track your progress. A lot of them have the ability to check-in with daily measurements (i.e. weight, hip/waist measurements etc.) which allows you to track your progress over time and see the effectiveness of your eating strategy. Whenever, I start a new workout program I like to monitor my progress to "test" out how well it works or whether or not I like it. I recommend doing this to all of my clients as well. It allows you to go back to old workouts and adjust them accordingly to fit your goals. By tracking your food intake, you can combine that with your workouts, weigh-ins, and pictures (it all comes down to what you look like anyway, right?) so you can get a great idea of how well a program is working/not working for you.

Recommendations:

I recommend to everyone, whether you are trying to lose weight, gain weight, or just stay where you are... counting calories can help! You don't have to get all nerdy about it and directly calculate out how much you need of each macronutrient but it is a good idea to have a general number in your head of what to shoot for. Plus, with how easy smart phones and apps have made calorie counting, it hardly takes any effort at all! At least try it for a week to see what your typically dietary intake looks like, you may be surprised at how much damage your Saturday night on the town is doing to your diet. And remember, it's not as tedious as it sounds, thanks to technology!

Are You Fast or Slow?

2012-07-09T07:22:00.001-07:00

Fast Twitch, Slow Twitch, Red, White....What does it all mean?

Skeletal muscle is made up of different fiber types and each fiber type functions differently. I'm sure a lot of you have heard the term fast or slow twitch muscle fibers which are sometimes referred to as red or white fiber. Basically, there are three main types: 1) Type I (aka slow twitch, red fiber type), Type IIa (aka fast twitch-a, hybrid) and TypeIIx (aka fast-twitch-x, white fiber type). The top picture below shows what a stain of muscle tissue looks like. The red areas represent Type I and Type IIa fibers, while the white areas represent Type IIx fibers. As science progresses and the techniques used to measure fiber types become more sensitive, more and more isoforms (hybrids or types in-between the big 3) of these fiber types are being discovered. The bottom picture portrays the different isoforms and how they are classified.

Each name implies a slightly different meaning and is basically just a term to characterize the different fiber types. Fast twitch is a term given to muscle fibers that can contract very quickly (the name says it all) compared to slow twitch fibers that contract in a much slower fashion. Because fast-twitch fibers contract so quickly and powerfully, they also fatigue easily. Therefore they are best-suited for fast, explosive movements. On the other hand, slow-twitch fibers are more fatigue resistant; meaning they can continue to work for extended periods of time. That explains how muscle fibers are characterized by contraction speed but why the red/white names? Slow twitch fibers are typically red because they have a rich blood supply. They are built for slow contractions performed over an extended period of time, so they derive most of their energy from aerobic metabolism (oxygen consuming). On the other hand, type II fibers are often white because they have a poor blood supply and derive the majority of their energy from anaerobic metabolism (without oxygen). So how does this apply to performance?

Each person has a different percentage of these fibers distributed throughout their musculature which may help them perform better at certain types of exercises/events. Your fiber type isn't necessarily going to predict what kind or how good of an athlete you will be but it can be a predictor of your genetic potential. For example, if the majority of your muscles are made up of fast-twitch muscles, marathon running probably isn't going to be your forte. However, you can "manipulate" your fiber type to some extent. Research has shown that any type of exercise will shift your type IIx fibers towards more of a typeIIa isoform, meaning it becomes more aerobic in nature and will be more fatigue resistant. So there is hope!

Gain Muscle While You Sleep?

2012-07-03T11:24:00.001-07:00

Maybe your mom did have a reason for making you get your 8 hours every night. Sleep is probably one of the most overlooked areas of human performance. I'm sure all of you have experienced that feeling of being dazed and confused after a night of terrible sleep or none at all. A lack of sleep can have a huge impact on performance. Research has shown that it may not have a significant effect on maximal performance; meaning if you were to stay up all night you could still probably perform maximal effort exercises (i.e. sprints or max lifts) just as well as you could after a full nights rest. However, sub-maximal efforts or long duration exercises may be affected by the lack of sleep. Also, metabolically there could be some major disruptions occurring that could impact you later down the road. For example, sleep is one of the most potent stimulators for the production of growth hormone (GH). Growth hormone is a major player in protein synthesis leading to increases in muscle and bone mass. Levels seem to reach their peak about 4 hours after the onset of sleep and slowly decline throughout the night/day. Therefore if you go a night without sleep or "good sleep" you will miss out on this increase in GH. Another hormone that is affected by sleep is cortisol. Cortisol is often referred to as the "stress" hormone. It is often classified as a catabolic hormone which means it can lead to tissue (i.e. muscle) breakdown instead of synthesis, which is NOT ideal for someone looking to gain muscle mass. Cortisol levels are highly correlated with a lack of sleep; meaning the more you don't sleep, the higher your cortisol levels will likely be which can be detrimental to muscle growth. A lack of sleep can also increase insulin resistance which is a condition than can lead to Type II diabetes if continued over time. This will also set you up for possible weight gain and trouble maintaining your figure.

These are just a view of the effects that sleep deprivation can have on the body as it relates to performance and building muscle. There is a slue of other side-effects, including psychological, physical and emotional effects that are also related to sleep. Basically, sleep is a time for your body to rest, recover, and repair itself for the next day of activities. Without out, you are setting yourself up for failure.

ISSN National Conference 2012

2012-06-27T18:42:00.002-07:00

So I recently got back from presenting our research at the 2012 International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference in Florida and thought I'd give a quick recap. First of all, the ISSN is a great association dedicated to researching sports nutrition and supplementation strategies, not only for athletes but for your gym rats and general public as well. I enjoy going to these conferences because I get to see fresh off the press research presented by some of the top dogs in the field and get a feel for what practioners in the field are actually doing and what's working for them. Plus, I came back with about $100.00 of free supplements!

http://www.sportsnutritionsociety.org/

Like I said, it's a great opportunity to meet some of the most well-known researchers in the sports nutrition world and see what type of work they are doing; such as my advisor Dr. Richard Kreider and his research:

Or Dr. Paul Cribb and his research on nutrient timing:

Or Dr. Kleiner and her research on power eating:

A great presentation on the history of how steroids were unjustly taken away by John Romano:

Or, my personal favorite, Dr. Jim Stoppani (senior science editor for Muscle & Fitness) and the difference between lab science and gym science:

I got some great tips on nutritent timing strategies for optimal growth, what to eat before bed, how to combine cardio and weights and still add muscle, how to eat "clean," supplements for weight loss, lab science vs. gym science, new supplements hitting the market and what they can do, as well as various other research findings that I plan to blog about in the near future. It's one of those "business" trips that you get back from and say: "I can't believe I get to do stuff like this for a living!" Most of the people at the conference all share a similar mentatlity of I get to call my hobby my job. It's exciting to be a part of a relatively new field, one that I wish I was aware back when I played sports in high school. Hopefully you enjoy seeing some of these big faces in the field and get ready for some great research out of them in the future! The field has come a long way.....

Are Protein Powders Worth It?

2012-06-13T13:25:00.002-07:00

Protein Powder

If you've ever walked into a GNC store I'm sure you've witnessed the infamous wall of protein. Protein powders are easily one of the most popular and used sport supplements in a $2.7 billion industry but are they really worth it?

Our muscles are primarily made up of water and protein which is the reason we need protein in order for our muscles to grow. When athletes are training and exercising at a high level their rates of muscle growth and breakdown are elevated. In order to ensure that synthesis > breakdown following exercise, we need to consume protein to providing our muscles with the necessary building blocks to construct new muscle.

The daily recommendation of protein for the average sedentary person is 0.8 g/kg of body weight. Anyone who is lifting weights should be more in the range of 1.2-1.8 g/kg of body weight. After you get the amount figured out, the next step is what KIND of protein. Believe it or not, proteins are actually "graded" on how beneficial they are for you. The protein digestibility corrected amino acid scale (PDCAAS), rates proteins on how "complete" and how bio-available they are. When a protein is complete it means that is has all of the essential amino acids (building blocks of proteins that your body cannot produce) needed to produce a protein. The top rated proteins are whey, casein (milk) and egg. They have all of the necessary amino acids needed to synthesize protein. A lot of these are in common foods and can be obtained through a well-balanced diet. However, a lot of times people aren't able to walk out of the gym and grab a few hard-boiled eggs and a chicken breast to go. This is where protein powders come in very handy.

In a perfect world we wouldn't need protein powders and we would be able to consume all of our recommended daily protein through whole foods alone but we all know that the convenience factor of protein powder is why it's so appealing. So now the question is which protein powder should you get? The first thing you need to consider is what are your goals: Build muscle, lose weight, maintain? It sounds kind of cheesy but what ever your goal is, there is a protein powder for you! Most of the protein powders are made up of primarily protein (no kidding, right?). If you are consuming a protein powder for the sole purpose of increasing your daily PROTEIN intake than your best option is to consume a 100% Whey protein powder with as little other ingredients (i.e. carbs, fats, etc) as possible. This is why it's so important to read the labels when you are picking out your 5 gallon jug of protein. Don't let the guy at the GNC store pressure you into buying something you don't need. Not that I'm picking on GNC, any nutrition store has that guy who thinks he knows everything and has been programmed to rattle off 10 sexy facts about each product; don't be persuaded! If your goal is to gain muscle or weight in general, than the "mass gainers" are going to be more beneficial for you. These don't have any special kind of protein that make you grow muscle faster or anything, they are basically a higher calorie protein powder; meaning they have a lot more carbs and fat in them. I have seen some powders that have up to 1,200 calories per serving size! Sometimes I will buy these powders but only consume about 1/5 a serving size. This usually equals 150-300 calories with a mix of proteins, carbs and fat which are all important for post-exercise recovery.

There are a lot of "tricks" to utilizing protein powders properly. I am a huge advocate for them not only for the convenience factor but sometimes they are necessary in order to hit your daily protein needs. Especially for larger athletes who need to be consuming ~200 grams of protein per day; which would equal about 7 chicken breasts a day! There are two important things to remember: 1) What are your goals? and 2)What KIND of protein powder fits that goal?. Again, remember to read the labels, look at each serving size and know what you are actually getting!

NSCA: Texas State Conference (Baylor)

2012-06-04T06:08:00.001-07:00

I recently got back from the National Strength & Conditioning Association's State Conference in Waco, TX aka "Home of The Baylor Bears" and thought I would share some of the experience with you. The conference was pretty interesting but the real exciting part of it was playing 7 on 7 football with Robert Griffin III....yeah right, I wish. Even though I didn't get to see RG3, it was still fun to see some of the behind the scenes workings of Baylor Athletics. They have some amazing facilities at Baylor, including a state of the art weight room and training facility.

I got to listen to some great presentations from some of Baylor's strength and conditioning staff who explained the training programs they use for their athletes; including their program for the 2012 Women's Basketball National Championship team, RG3's training program before entering the draft, how they trained their monster Brittney Griner and sprint techniques from one of the top track coaches in the country.

Baylor has recently made some huge changes in their athletics department, including a new athletic director and new director of strength and conditioning. I think these changes have led to a lot of their success lately in the world of NCAA athletics. They seem to have a sound program in effect that encompasses performance, nutrition and mental toughness. It's obvious that Baylor has a chip on their shoulder and works hard to overcome the scrutiny their program receives. Even though it felt like I was walking behind enemy lines I have to hand it to Baylor, they've come a long way and deserve respect. They are no longer the laughing stock of the Big 12 and I believe they are hear to stay.

Here are a few of the video clips that they showed us during the conference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_QGbdM9Rqw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7v5OLgFQW0&feature=relmfu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryVffmaWxtE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omxfanAZStE

The Junction Boy Days are Over

2012-05-28T08:41:00.004-07:00

The Junction Boy Days Are Over

I'm sure all of you have heard of the "Junction Boys" in one form or another. The term Junction Boys was given to those who survived Bear Bryant's summer football camp at Texas A&M University. The camp was famous for its tough conditioning drills, grueling hot temperatures and extreme field conditions. Bear Bryant created the camp because when he took the coaching job at Texas A&M he thought the players were soft and needed a summer camp to "toughen" them up. He decided to host a summer camp in Junction, TX that focused on intense, long workouts with minimal water breaks and recovery time. The camp was intended to weed out the weak ones and build mental toughness. And it did just that as several players ultimately quit or transfered to another school after the camp.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junction_Boys

Camps and practices like this are a dated strategy and have no place in today's world of sports. I'm okay with the idea of building mental toughness but overworking your players and depriving them of necessary things such as water breaks and rest time, is only going to A) Decrease performance and/or B) Injure them. Plus, mental toughness will only get you so far, just ask Tebow. I think that coaches are slowly steering away from these old-school strategies and realizing that proper practice management and nutritional strategies are far more effective than running someone until they puke. Nothing was more frustrating as an athlete when a coach would justify a technique or drill by saying "This is how we've been doing it for 20 years and this is how we're going to keep doing it." Just because you've been doing a drill for 20 years doesn't mean it's effective or the right way to do it. I get it, this drill used to work for you back in the day but you also thought not wearing a helmet during hockey and pitching complete games on consecutive days were good ideas too. Just as science evolves with new theories and concepts being learned everyday, sport strategies and practices need to evolve as well.

I'd say my biggest pet peeve is when coaches deprive their players of water during practice. Not only will the players continue to get worse without fluids some of them could become severely dehydrated. Players will perform much better if they are well hydrated which will allow them to execute and finish drills at a higher level. Another flawed strategy is not providing players adequate rest and recovery time. I don't know how many times we would play terrible in a game and coach would punish us by having practice early the next morning. Not only were we tired, sore and not able to practice hard but we weren't allowing our bodies to properly recover and prepare ourselves for the next practice or game.

Two-A-Days, Hell Weeks, Killers...Whatever you want to call them, they are strategies that are outdated, unsafe, and counterproductive and coaches need to realize that. I agree that in order to improve you must push yourself harder that you did the day before and constantly strive to do better but there is a fine line between working hard and overdoing it. I also agree that mental toughness is a necessity in sports and often times separates the winners from the losers but it can be achieved through hard work and determination rather than extreme measures.

In summary, if you know of a coach who is stuck in an old-school mindset and refuses to adapt to the evolving world of sports, explain to them they are doing more harm than good and not allowing their players to reach their full potential.