Home 2008 November (Page 3)

Supinated Feet and Interval Training

Q: I have rigid supinated feet that seem to aggravate my Achilles which keeps me from performing my HIIT on a treadmill. What can I do to overcome this? (I am expecting you to tell me to run on a track) By the way, I bought your Maximum Strength book and I am working my way through it. I wish I had you for a strength coach when I was in high school as I know I could have landed a full ride scholarship at a 1A school. I worked my beach muscles my whole life and now I have serious imbalances that I am working on with your help. You have really made a big difference in my life and I look forward to training since discovering you, your articles, books, etc. A: First off, thanks for your kind words! I’m glad you enjoyed Maximum Strength. With respect to your feet, believe it or not, one of the best things you can do is just pick up a pair of cushioned insoles. They shouldn't change the contour of the shoe; they should just offer added padding. I actually wrote about it in The Prehab Deload (toward the end). On a related note, to be honest, I’m not a fan of HIIT on a treadmill (or much of anything on a treadmill). It just doesn’t afford the same benefits of running outside, although I do understand that weather gets in the way in the winter in many areas. At these times of year, I prefer to have clients gravitate toward rowing, cycling, and jumping rope.
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FFL Week 9: My Vote Goes To…

....Greg Olsen of the Chicago Bears as the newest representative of the "Eric Cressey's Tight Ends Can't Score Points Club." I lost 73-72 this week and he scored me a whopping one point. The only thing more pathetic than losing to someone who puts just 73 points on the board is delayed-onset muscle soreness from bowling. And, yes, that happened to me this week as well. I hadn't bowled in about five years, and we went on Sunday night. Sure enough, Monday morning, the DOMS had kicked in. How is it that I trap bar deadlifted 625 pounds last week and had zero soreness, yet rolling a ball could actually do that? I know non-familiarity is a part of the equation, but it's still absurd. Oh yeah, I bowl like an uncoordinated chimp. Let's just say that I barely outscored my fantasy football team. As with the past few weeks, if you don't like fantasy football (or bowling, for that matter), check out this week's newsletter. I go into some detail on the types of shoulder impingement and how each needs to be managed differently.
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Can Little Leaguers Strength Train?

Q: Mr. Cressey, I was given your name and website from my massage therapist, who is a big fan of yours. I was wondering what your opinion is about when a child should start muscle strength training (not weight training) for baseball? I have a 10-year old son who pitches and I always worry about his shoulder since I have had to have surgery on both of mine. He is playing up in age so he is pitching from 50 feet and pitches a consistent 48 mph. I always ice him down after for 30 minutes, but what do you recommend him to do to prevent injuries? A: This is a great question, and the timing is actually perfect (as I'll explain in the last paragraph). In a nutshell, assuming good supervision, I'd start as early as possible. While most of our work is with athletes in the 13+ age range, we run a group of 9-12 year olds every Saturday morning at Cressey Performance. There is a lot you can to with kids at that age to foster future success - but, more importantly, have fun. It was actually started by popular demand of some of the kids who had older brothers in our program; they wanted to jump in on the fun. Now, we look at it as a feeder program of sorts; by teaching things effectively early-on and exposing them to a wide variety of movements, it makes it easier for them to become athletes down the road. We work on squat technique and/or deadlift technique, with the majority of the time aimed at just keep them moving by performing various circuits that include things like jumping jacks, med ball throws, lunges, and wheelbarrow medleys, etc. We also have tug-o-war battles and SUMO wrestling where we have them grab onto a SWISS ball and try to maneuver each other outside of a circle. All in all, we have fun while at the same time improving their motor skills. That is what's most important. I don't want the kids to dread coming to the gym, which is what I think happens when trainers and parents start taking it too seriously. There's going to come a time when things will get more specialized, but ages 9-12 isn't that time. Truth be told, kids nowadays are more untrained and unprepared than ever - yet they have more opportunities that ever to participate in spite of the fact that they are preparing less. It's one of several reasons that youth sports injuries are at astronomical rates. As perhaps the best example, you can now see glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD) in little leaguers, as this study shows. The GIRD isn’t the problem; that’s a natural by-product of throwing. The problem is that kids throw enough to acquire this structural and flexibility anomaly, but have no idea how to manage it to stay healthy. So, in a nutshell, find someone who understands kids both developmentally and psychologically - and make it fun for him. Looking for someone affiliated with the IYCA (www.iyca.org) would be a good start. Also, among the products out there, Paul Reddick's stuff is a great start if you're looking for things to do with up-and-coming baseball players.

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