Archive for Darius' Random Thoughts
This Week on The DS Blog
Posted by: | CommentsWe’ll I know it’s been a long time since we put out our last blog entry and I just wanted to say it will never be that long between entries again! I think I’m still suffering from P.K.C.S. (Post Kids Camp Syndrome).
Speaking of kids camp, I want to mention how awesome the kids were this summer and how hard they worked! Their workouts were really tough and demanding, but never, ever did I hear them complaining. Everything from their flexibility to their coordination improved dramatically in the 4 weeks that they were with us. We are definitely looking forward to many of the athletes continuing to train with us year round in our Sports Performance classes beginning September 13th.
Alright, my first article is a MUST READ for all of the parents that have kids participating in sports.” More Kids Falling Prey to Sports Overuse Injuries” by Serena Gordon pretty much sums up my feelings on the huge problems I see in youth competition today. In this article, Dr. James Andrews, President of the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine, explains why he is seeing an alarming number of young kids experiencing adult-type injuries while participating in organized sports. Check this article out and protect your young athletes future!
Next up, is “Hip Flexors vs. Abs” by Master RKC Jeff O’ Connor, my team leader at my RKC Certification. The hip flexors are a hot topic within the RKC community. And If you hadn’t noticed, the powerful hip flexors can present a problem for the body unlike any other muscle. With an increasingly more sedentary population, we are now seeing how seriously functional movement is affected when flexors are short and tight. We try to stretch our flexors before, during and after each workout. Jeff has come up with a good little exercise that he calls the “ballet leg drop”, which cues you on how to get the hip flexor to relax while engaging the abs. In many ab exercises, the back is doing the bulk of the work. Take it from me, I enjoy an ab exercise that doesn’t require me to do 1000 reps to feel like its working. Well this ain’t one of those! We will definitely be implementing this into our dynamic warm up.
Last article this week, is from one of our own, Mike Davis DPT, ART., entitled “A.R.T. Your Way to Increased Performance”. What do you know… another important article for parents who have kids that participate in sports! Simply put, if your young athlete isn’t engaging in some sort of soft tissue therapy, I can certainly guarantee you their movement mechanics and performance are not going to be up to par. Soft tissue therapy by definition is the assessment, treatment and management of soft tissue injury, pain and dysfunction primarily thru the neuromusculoskletal system. Thru A.R.T. or other soft tissue therapies, an athletes mobility, stability and neuromuscular efficiency all can be addressed . This in turn will improve functional movement. There are so many amazing benefits to A.R.T., that most knowledgeable folks in the sports arena will tell you, that knowing a reputable provider could be an athlete’s best friend! I’ve met a few A.R.T. providers over the years and I know this may seem a little biased, but Mike Davis DPT is one of the best in the business. How do I know? Because all of the A.R.T. providers that I’ve met have told me so!
If you would like to contact Mike, his e-mail is: mikedavisdpt@gmail.com
Video of The Week- Kettlebell Timed Sets
This week I’m posting an old video of my girl Ashley Masters , who will be going to her RKC Certification next weekend. Ashley is performing a kettlebell timed set. Although I don’t use this style of training in my workouts a lot, I think it’s perfect for those building up to an event or competition. I find that I can challenge clients mental toughness, enhance their strength endurance and also decrease volume and training time with these types of workouts. Check it out!
Stay Strong… Kettlebell Strong!!
Power Training for In- Season Athletes
Posted by: | CommentsAt Dynamic Solutions, we believe in athletes remaining on a year round training program. But, we all know how hard this is to pull off, with so much of an athlete’s time dedicated towards practices and games. Although it may seem like its impossible to fit working out and practice in on the same day, I can proudly say I did it for 4 years.
While playing football at U.V.A., during the season we were required to workout at least 3 times a week and many of us would train up to 5 times a week. Workouts would start after your last class, lasting about 45 minutes, just in time for a 2 hour practice. Although this may seem difficult for many to pull off, we all wanted to better football players and knew the only way to get better was thru HARD WORK!
Our workouts mainly focused on Power and usually involved Olympic style lifting and low level plyometrics. Snatches, clean and jerk and high pulls were a few of my favorites. These lifts are perfect for in-season training because so much more is accomplished in fewer exercises than any other style of training. Also, I really like these exercises for high school athletes. The more exposure they have to Olympic training the more prepared they will be for sports after high school. What college coach doesn’t want a powerful athlete?
Here’s a few videos of the type of workouts we like to have our athletes perform while they’re in-season:
Stay Strong…Kettlebell Strong!!
My Top 5 Speed Training Myths
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There are so many myths when it comes to training for speed out there, but I want to make this blog entry short, so I decided to narrow my top speed training myths down to 5. These are the statements I hear most often when talking to parents and young athletes about gettting faster:
1) You can’t train speed
This is one of the most insane things I have ever heard! Please tell me how Usain Bolt can go from running a 9.9 100 meter dash to a world record 9.58 in under 6 months! Was it just a lucky day or was it a smart training program? I think you know the answer to this. So many young athletes are so physically weak and unsound mechanically, that you can significantly increase their speed thru technique training and small amounts of resistance training. When you add in the multiple benefits of training with a kettlebell, your young athlete will be well on his/her way to becoming a true speed demon!
2) Long distance running will improve your speed
When I get a look at an athlete’s summer training program, I am totally amazed at how much long distance running these kids are asked to do. One thing that eats me up is a 150 pound kid with hardly any muscle running mile after mile after mile. Not only will this type of training rob you of your hard earned muscle, but it will actually make you a slower athlete. How many sports involve running slow for minutes at a time? Not many! The athletes I work with are asked to get up to top speed immediately. So, in order for us to improve upon this, all sprint work must be done full speed!
3) Young athlete’s shouldn’t strength train
Well I guess it’s okay for little Johnny to get tackled by mammoth defenders, slide into second base, fall down and get kicked, but he’s two young to start learning how to master his own bodyweight. This is a huge problem! Believe me, getting knocked to the turf repeatedly will have a much greater affect on your young athlete than a well designed strength training program. Exercises such as push ups, lunges, and squats will improve an athlete’s muscular efficiency, coordination, overall speed and help to speed up recovery after a game.
4) Hard Workouts= Better Results
This one isn’t just for athletes wanting to get faster! I’ve been a trainer for about 8 years now and I can tell you that pounding athletes and clients into the dirt has NEVER worked for me. While at UVA, we had probably one of the best strength coaches ever in John Gamble. Now, he had his days were he wanted to push us beyond our normal limits, but the majority of our workouts focused on using proper technique to stimulate an adaptation in the body, without reaching a point of diminishing returns. Most coaches and trainers think that if the athlete or client isn’t vomiting after a workout, than their training was ineffective. Not only will this produce mediocre results, but the athlete becomes more susceptible to injury. Not good!
5) Static Stretching will prepare you for running & competition
Many still don’t understand static stretching will reduce an athletes power output. A good dynamic warm is the best way to get the athlete ready for game time. Starting with low intensity movements and progressing to faster more explosive movements will elevate the athlete’s core temperature and loosen up muscles in a way that doesn’t reduce power. It is also important for the athlete to simulate movements that they will be using within the game. Stretching muscles while the body is still cold is a surefire way to get injured!