Home Posts tagged "Strength Training" (Page 5)

Back Squats and Overhead Throwers

Q: You don't like back squats for overhead throwers, is this because of anterior instability or some other reason? A: In a word, yes; anterior stability is so crucial for a pitcher that I’m not tempted to push it. Then again, that’s the short version – and it also assumes that the lifter is using a closer-grip, which mandates more external rotation. So, to the casual observer, the solution to this would be to simply bring the hands out and squat with a wider grip, which requires less external rotation. Unfortunately, this logic is flawed, too, as you have to abduct (elevate) your humerus another 15-20 degrees to get to that position. In the process, you bring it further into the “classic” impingement zone. This not only compromises the rotator cuff, but perhaps more significantly, the long head of the biceps, which is an extremely common nuisance in both powerlifters and overhead throwing athletes. All that said, while I’d never do it with a pitcher, you can probably get away with it with position players because they have better upward rotation. I wouldn’t go near it if thoracic spine range of motion is subpar – or the athlete had a history of shoulder or elbow issues. Sign-up Today for our FREE Baseball Newsletter and Receive a Copy of the Exact Stretches used by Cressey Performance Pitchers after they Throw!
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Why I Don’t Like the 5×5 Strength Training Programs…

Actually, this post should have been entitled, “Why 5x5 Workouts Works for Some People, but Not for Others.” That title would have been long and not “black and white” enough to get your attention, though. The 5x5 workout (or 4x6, for that matter) approach works relatively well for taking people from beginner to intermediate. When all you’ve been doing is 3x10-12 (because the bodybuilding magazines said that was the way to do things), lifting heavier weights for continued progress makes perfect sense. I feel strongly that not working below five reps on the main strength movements in your program is a huge mistake for lifters who are intermediates (or more advanced) – whether the goal is size or strength. You see, in an untrained individual, you get strength gains on as little as 40% of 1-rep max (1RM). As someone gets more trained, that number goes up to 70%. However, you need at least 85-90% of 1RM in intermediate and advanced lifters to elicit strength gains. For the average intermediate, 85% of 1RM corresponds to about a 5-rep max. In other words, only your heaviest set of five would be sufficient to stimulate a strength improvement. Now, what happens if you do a 5x5 workout? You’ve done 25 reps – and maybe five of them (the first set) were actually performed at a high-enough intensity to elicit strength gains. As I show in my new book, Show and Go: High Performance Training to Look, Feel, and Move Better, if you want to get stronger faster, you need to spend time below five reps – and above 85% of 1RM (and preferably 90%). This isn’t just physiological; it’s also psychological. You’ll get more comfortable handling heavier weights.

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EC on Rest Periods

Q: How long do you typically allow your athletes between sets? A: Rest periods are subject to so many factors that - believe it or not - I never make recommendations. Big guys need longer than little guys, and metabolic conditioning factors play into it as well. In a broad sense, I recommend the following: on strength work (<6 reps), rest as long as you feel you need, and then add 30 seconds (trust me on that one; your CNS takes longer than the muscles to recovery). On higher rep stuff, rest as long as you feel you need or just knock 15 seconds off that figure. Truthfully, a lot of what we "believe" about optimal (and strict) rest periods is based on the acute growth hormone response to exercise. In the grand scheme of things, though, a few extra seconds between sets isn't going to impact the acute growth hormone response so much that it markedly changes the efficacy of a program. In fact, in many cases, the extra bit of rest will allow for more loading, which in turns provides for a better chronic adaptation in terms of strength and hypertrophy. So, if you're worrying about whether 63 seconds between sets is inferior to 60 seconds, you're probably studying for the wrong test.
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Plenty of Space… Am I Ready to Press?

Q: Using much of the advice from your T-Nation articles, I am successfully fixing all my kinetic chain problems and my shoulders feel better than ever. I had a minor tear in teres minor. I know that overhead pressing might not be a good thing for someone with my problem; however, when my doctor x-rayed my shoulder, he told me that I have plenty space in the joint. Would you recommend that I still follow the advice given in the Shoulder Savers series? Would you recommend that I do dips? Any advice is greatly appreciated. A: Let pain be your guide. Your pain could be related to an AC joint problem that you don’t even know about; that would be made much worse by dips – but you likely wouldn’t have any pain with overhead pressing. Conversely, if your teres minor tear is the problem, the overhead pressing would probably cause more problems than dips (although neither would be particularly good for the shoulder). Just so you know, a good subacromial space on x-rays doesn't necessarily mean that you'll have a good space during dynamic activities. Keep that in mind as you move forward cautiously... Also, a lot of people have good spaces, but poor scapular stability, thoracic spine mobility, etc. A lot of things affect whether or not you can perform a particular exercise pain-free. Eric Cressey
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My Take on Reverse Hypers

Q: What’s your take on reverse hypers? I’ve heard some people who adore them and others who completely dismiss them. A: Put it this way: there are already some pretty noteworthy lawsuits taking place against chiropractors who have injured patients with flexion-distraction techniques. Our spines aren’t designed to buttress shear that comes from the lower body moving on the upper body with flexion (the bottom part of the movement). We can handle the “hyper” part of the hyperextensions without worrying as much about injuries to the disc, but over time, repeated hyperextension patterns can lead to such problems as spondylolysis (vertebral fracture), spondylolisthesis (vertebral slippage), and the diffuse lower back tightness that so many people have. As with almost any exercise, though, the devil is in the details. If you don’t allow your legs to swing under you in the bottom position (i.e., stay in neutral spine), and also fire the glutes to stop-short and avoid hyperextension at the top, you can avoid the aforementioned problems. The problem for most lifters here is ego; if you are going to use these modifications strictly, you’ll have to take your load down by a LOT. So, there are contraindicated people and contraindicated techniques – but not necessarily a contraindicated exercise. For more information, I highly recommend Dr. Stuart McGill’s Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance.
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Who Needs Training Percentages?

Q: Eric - I bought your e-book on deloading. Thanks for it! I'm 57 and compete in WABDL. I'm going to do the high-medium-very high-low programming set-up you outlined prior to the 8 week precontest cycle you mention. What percentages do you use in those eight weeks? My next meet is June 14th, so including this week, I'm 12 weeks out. Thanks! A: I rarely use percentages. Think about it this way... If you test your squat and it's 500 at the beginning of a 16-week cycle, and then put 50 pounds on it over the course of that period, the percentages based on that 500 number aren't very accurate by the time week 11, 12, 13, etc. roll around, are they? The secret is to build tests into your training program. Within the high, medium, very high, low set-up, it's best to test them right at the end of the medium and low phases. Or, if you're a more experienced lifter, you can rotate exercises on a weekly basis - and test maxes on lifts almost weekly as long as they're changing. So, an 8-week set-up for bringing up a back squat using this approach might look like: Week 1, High: Front Box Squat, work up to a heavy single, then 5 singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 2: Medium: Trap Bar Deadlift, 1RM, then two singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 3, Very High: Back Squat, 5 sets of 3 Week 4, Low: Sumo Deadlifts, 3x3 easy Week 5, High: Box Squat, 1RM, then 5 more singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 6, Medium: Front Squat, 4x4 Week 7, Very High: Back Squats, 1RM, then 8 more singles over 90% of that 1RM Week 8, Low: 3x5 nice and light back squats (maintain familiarity) Week 9: Retest Back Squat 1RM as part of Week 1 of next phase Week 0: 1RM Back Squat Test
The Art of the Deload
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Rugby Recovery

I am currently in the midst of my rugby season and have a few questions for you. My training schedule breaks down as follows. We play a match every saturday morning (80 intense minutes), train for 1 hour-1.5 hours Tuesday evening, Wednesday evening AND Thursday evening. These training sessions can be pretty tough.

I would like to continue resistance training but am finding it very difficult to recover from the training sessions alone. I feel stiff, sore and rundown by thursday and am often not 100% for the match. I fear throwing in weights to the mix will exacerbate the situation. Do you have any tips for recovery and how would you implement resistance training into this schedule? Cheers in advance EC, your book is awesome!


It's all about selecting the appropriate volume and exercises.

In terms of volume, you need to keep volume down and frequency up in the 2-3 sessions per week range. Sessions shouldn't last more than 30-40 minutes. Get in, keep your strength up with a few heavy sets, then do just enough prehab work to keep you healthy.

In terms of exercise selection, don't rotate exercises too frequently in-season. Stick to familiar ones to minimize soreness.

Eric Cressey
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Lifting at a Young Age

Thanks for your great articles and for the guidance you provide here. I'm planning to buy your Ultimate Off-Season Training Manual and had asked a question over on EricCressey.com and Omri asked me to post it here: I have enjoyed lifting for the past 30 years and now my 11 and 12-year-old nephews are training with me in the weight room. They are making tremendous gains in strength and are very enthusiastic about our workouts. Family members are appreciative of the time I spend helping them and can see the results, but they are also expressing concerns because of their young age. The boys are in early and mid-puberty and are both tall for their age (5'7"). They have a great-uncle who is 6'10", so they will possibly be pretty big. They're growing very fast right now. Their family has a history of knee problems on both sides of the family. Also three generations of hernia weaknesses on one side of the family. The older boy has very flat feet, but they seem to still enjoy running and sports (tennis and volleyball). Are there any lifts that we should be avoiding at this stage? Any dangers of bone damage, hernias, etc? I realize that you would have to send them to a Dr. for a physical in order to give a certain answer, and standard disclaimers apply, but considering that they both seem to be perfectly healthy and doing very well, it doesn't seem like the program is doing anything but good at this point. I have helped them see what proper form looks like and they are both adamant about form (and they tell ME when I'm not using proper form!). Would appreciate any insight, especially things I need to watch out for which could be doing more harm than good. Thanks again. Your goal should be to expose them to a wide variety of movements and set them up for success. Keep it interesting and FUN. Avoid maximal loading, obviously, but do work to incorporate quantifiable progressive overload for the kids; it'll keep them motivated. Start with plenty of body weight drills; get them stable at the lumbar spine, shoulders, and knees, and mobile at the ankles, hips, and thoracic spine. That'll set them up for success long-term. Getting them barefoot more often is great. The weight-training will actually help tremendously in avoiding that "clumsy" stage that occurs when guys grow a lot in a short amount of time. Avery Faigenbaum from The College of New Jersey has some good writing on this subject, and Brian Grasso (IYCA.org) is the king of training young athletes. GREAT reading material. Good luck! Eric Cressey
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Enhance your Pressing Days

Hey Eric. I just wanted to see if I could get some quick suggestions from you. I have been powerlifting for a little over a year now and absolutely love the sport. I had been training hard since 2001, but eventually training just to train lost its luster. So I turned to the strength sports. I compete raw in the 181 class and typically weigh 175-178 at any given time. My Squat and deadlift have made steady progress over the past year...I have primarily been using the basic westside template the entire time. Right now I am squatting around 425-435 and deadlifting consistently in the low 500s. My bench press is where I have absolutely made no progress at all...I have actually regressed. In my meet this past weekend I only managed 275 and struggled with 286 as if it were 350. The most I have ever done in competition is 290. I have followed your writing as well as many of the coaches on T-Nation and elitefts. I have read stuff from Bill Hartman about determining whether or not you are elastic dominant or muscle dominant. Right now I think I may need some more muscular based work...going from that dead stop after the pause in competition is very difficult for me...my sticking point seems to be basically right on my chest. If you could throw some suggestions my way on things I can do on my pressing days to improve things I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks for all that you contribute and keep up the good work! A few thoughts on this front: First, it would definitely be to your advantage to get your body weight up a bit during the off-season; bench and squat gains tend to come along quicker when you are less cognizant of weight and more in tune with eating what it takes to support performance. When the time is right, gradually take the weight off and work to maintain the strength you've built. Second, work on strengthening your upper back and really emphasize both speed and heavy work off the chest with a pause. Good luck! Eric Cressey
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Changing Parameters: Volume and Intensity

Q: It's almost the off season and I can't wait to start hitting the weights hard again. Just need your wisdom on a few things. I don't fully understand the volume and intensity weeks. If I perform, for example, 4 sets of 4 for deadlifts on week 1, and the next week calls for 6 singles, how am I supposed to progress since the parameters have been changed so much? I hope that makes sense, thanks for your time EC. A: Work up to a PR in good form for the day in week 2 - and then work backward from that. Let's say you work up to 400 and it's the best you can do in good form - and on the way up, you took 365 as your last warm-up. 360 is 90% of 400, so you've got two singles over 90% at that point. Then, take four more singles between 360 and 400, and you're done. www.EricCressey.com
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