Quote of the Day 1/27/09

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.”

 

-Abraham Lincoln

Free HGH & Testosterone!!

Ok, here it is you want to get FREE Human Growth Hormone and Testosterone! That right FREE HGH and FREE Testosterone, all you have to do is perform exercises that require large muscles and many joints.  It is that simple.  So here are my Top 5 Free Hormone releasing exercises:

1. Any type of Squat. Sorry this does not include smith machine or partial squats.  I mean below parallel squats. You can do back squat, front squat, split squat, overhead squat, etc. Just squat and squat right!!

2. Deadlift. Pull something heavy from the floor to release you hormones!

3. Overhead Press. Done correctly in the standing position and pushing something heavy over your head not only will you get a heavy duty serving of humble pie but you will also get a great torso and upper body workout while getting your hormones raging.

4. Bench Press. Only because you can lift heavy weights when supported by the bench and heavy weights help with the hormonal response.

5. Bent over Row.  Now many may be thinking “what?” but hear me out. Done correctly you utilize the entire posterior chain. You work the hammies, the glutes, the erector spinea, the lats, the posterior shoulder, and the biceps. Guess what that is Large muscle mass and the wrists, elbows,shoulders, spine, and hips are all involved. So guess what it involves multi joints.  I bet you never thought of the Bent Over row while you are balancing out your pushing and pulling as a hormone time bomb waiting to go off.

Ok, so now comes the BIG disclaimer.  Now that you are ready to go and do your exercises and get your free HGH and Testosterone there is a catch. You have to get heavy and have short rest intervals of no more than 60secs.  Overall volume should be moderate to high.  Now, before you get heavy your technique must be solid.  So, go find a barbell and buy a copy of Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe and work your way to Free HGH and Testosterone!! And, remember there is no such thing as a free lunch, everything has a catch.

Free HGH & Testosterone!!

Ok, here it is you want to get FREE Human Growth Hormone and Testosterone! That is right FREE HGH and FREE Testosterone, all you have to do is perform exercises that require large muscles and many joints.  It is that simple.  So here are my Top 5 Free Hormonal releasing exercises:

1. Any type of Squat. Sorry this does not include smith machine or partial squats.  I mean below parallel squats. You can do back squat, front squat, split squat, overhead squat, etc. Just squat and squat right!!

2. Deadlift. Pull something heavy from the floor to release you hormones!

3. Overhead Press. Done correctly in the standing position and pushing something heavy over your head not only will you get a heavy duty serving of humble pie but you will also get a great torso and upper body workout while getting your hormones raging.

4. Bench Press. Only because you can lift heavy weights when supported by the bench and heavy weights help with the hormonal response.

5. Bent over Row.  Now many may be thinking “what?” but hear me out. Done correctly you utilize the entire posterior chain. You work the hammies, the glutes, the erector spinea, the lats, the posterior shoulder, and the biceps. Guess what that is Large muscle mass and the wrists, elbows,shoulders, spine, and hips are all involved. So guess what it involves multi joints.  I bet you never thought of the Bent Over row while you are balancing out your pushing and pulling as a hormone time bomb waiting to go off.

Ok, so now comes the big disclaimer.  Now that you are ready to go and do your exercises and get your free HGH and Testosterone there is a catch. You have to get heavy and have short rest intervals of no more than 60secs.  Overall volume should be moderate to high.  Now, before you get heavy your technique must be solid.  So go find a barbell buy a copy of Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe and work your way to Free HGH and Testosterone!! And, remember there is no such thing as a free lunch, everything has a catch.

Daily Quote 1/26/09

“in order to succeed you must fail, so that you know what not to do the next time.” –Anthony J. D’Angelo

More Success Quotes!!

“In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.” – Bill Cosby

“Success is dependent on Effort” – Sophocles

“Success without honor is an unseasoned dish; it will satisfy your hunger, but it won’t taste good.” –Joe Paterno

“Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” –Dale Carnegie

“Success has a simple formula:  do your best, and people may like it.” –Sam Ewing

Tip from the Field

When squatting sometime individuals will have trouble keeping their weight back on their rear foot.  Having the weight shift towards the toes is a technical flaw in the lift that can impact the whole exercise and make it inefficient.  By having the lifter actively try to lift up their big toe in their shoe will aid in keeping their weight distributed on the rear and outside of the foot. 

Starting Strength

This gem of a book by Mark Rippetoe is a bible for those of us who think of barbell training as the foundation of any strength & conditioning program.  I almost think my entire copy has been highlighted, dog eared and stick noted from cover to cover.  The beauty of this book is its simplistic approach to some very technical aspects of strength & conditioning.  From the novice to the most advanced strength & conditioning coach will take something away from this book.  I highly suggest it to anyone serious about training.

Great Video for Pull Ups

http://turbulencetraining.blogspot.com/2009/01/evolution-of-pullups.html

Daily Quote 1/25/09

“I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.” –Bill Cosby

Quote of the Day 7/28/08

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it."



-Lou Holtz

Quote of the Day 7/25/08

"Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character."



-Albert Einstien

Quote of the Day 7/24/08

"Great things are not something accidental, but must certainly be willed."



-Vincent Van Gogh

Quote of the Day 7/23/08

"Beliefs and convictions provide the boundaries and direction that people want and need in order to perform well."



-Don Shula

Quote of the Day 7/22/08

"If you do not stand for something, you will fall for anything."



-Unknown

Quote of the Day 7/21/08

"The most important key to achieving great success is to decide upon your goal and launch, get started, take action, move."

-John Wooden

Quote of the Day 7/18/08

"Success Demands Singleness of purpose."



-Vince Lombardi

Quote of the Day 7/17/08

"Let him who would move the world first move himself"



-Socrates

Quote of the Day 7/16/08

"Have a vision not clouded by fear."



-Cherokee Proverb

Quote of the Day 7/15/08

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."



-Confucius

Quote of the Day 7/14/08

"Let him who would move the world first move himself."



-Socrates

Quote of the Day 7/11/08

"There is no excellence without labor. One cannot dream oneself into either usefulness or happiness."





- Liberty Hyde Bailey

Quote of the Day 7/10/08

"One has to devote oneself to a particular pursuit. To be successful at anything, you have to make a total commitment to it."





- Donald Johanson

Quote of the Day 7/9/08

"Flaming enthusiasm, backed up by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success."



- Dale Carnegie

Quote of the Day 7/8/08

"How do you go from where you are to where you wanna be? And I think you have to have an enthusiasm for life. You have to have a dream, a goal. And you have to be willing to work for it."



- Jim Valvano

Quote of the Day 7/7/08

"There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?"



- Robert Kennedy

Quote of the Day 7/4/08

"The doors of wisdom are never shut."



- Benjamin Franklin

Quote of the Day 7/3/08

"The past is a source of knowledge, and the future is a source of hope. Love of the past implies faith in the future."



- Stephen Ambrose

Quote of the Day 7/2/08

"Discipline is based on pride, on meticulous attention to details, and on mutual respect and confidence. Discipline must be a habit so ingrained that it is stronger than the excitement of the goal or the fear of failure."



- Gary Ryan Blair

Quote of the Day 7/1/08

"Leadership is diving for a loose ball, getting the crowd involved, getting other players involved. It's being able to take it as well as dish it out. That's the only way you're going to get respect from the players."



- Larry Bird

Quote of the Day 6/30/08

"Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it."



- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Quote of the Day 7/28/08

"Great things are not something accidental, but must certainly be willed."



-Vincent Van Gogh

Quote of the Day 6/27/08

"Desire is the key to motivation, but it's determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek."



- Mario Andretti

Quote of the Day 6/26/08

"Obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal."



- E. Joseph Cossman

Quote of the Day 6/25/08

"Sports is a metaphor for overcoming obstacles and achieving against great odds. Athletes, in times of difficulty, can be important role models."



- Bill Bradley

5 Things Every High School Athlete Should Know About Resistance Training

Athletes are beginning to discover the benefits of resistance training at earlier and earlier ages. Resistance training is a very important part of the young athletes training for sports because with a decrease in physical education programs in our schools and early specialization of many athletes in one sport at young age. Athletes are already set up for injury because they have muscular imbalances, loss of functional movement, decreased range of motion at several joints and tight muscles at very young ages. Being involved in a proper resistance training program will help many of these issues and help to prevent many of the injuries that are epidemic among high school and middle school athletes. A “proper” and let me stress “PROPER” resistance training program for a middle school and high school athlete will be designed to improve or prevent the potential for injury because of lack of functional movement, muscular imbalances, decreased flexibility and mobility.

So, I have come up with my list of the 5 things every high school athletes should know about resistance training.

Check out my article on The Athletes Equation Website

Quote of the Day 6/24/08

"Sports is like rock 'n' roll. Both are dominant cultural forces, both speak an international language, and both are all about emotions."



- Phil Knight

Quote of the Day 6/23/08

"Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better."



- Pat Riley

Quote of the Day 6/20/08

"Infinite striving to be the best is man's duty; it is its own reward. Everything else is in God's hands."



- Mohandas Gandhi

Quote of the Day 6/19/08

"What it lies in our power to do, it lies in our power not to do."



- Aristotle

Quote of the Day 6/18/08

"The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities."



- James Allen

Kinetic Chain

I am reading "Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training" by Mark Rippetoe & Lon Kilgore. Not only is this book very worth picking up it is very enlightening on many different topics. One thing that is emphasized in this book is the importance of the Kinetic Chain.

The Kinetic Chain is a fancy way of saying the foot bone is connected to the shin bone the shin bone is connected to the thigh bone and so on. Basically how it works is that the body is interconnected by soft tissue and connective tissue. These bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons and connective tissue is what allows our body to be strong, dynamic and highly mobile.

In the Book "Starting Strength: Basic Barbell training" the authors have one of the best explanations for how strength training with free weights trains the Kinetic Chain. In the chapter going over the deadlift the authors explain the lift simply and very concise with this explanation of how the body moves to perform the lift:

"The quadriceps straighten the knees, and if the back angle stays constant, the bar comes vertically up the shins. But, it is the hip extensors - glutes and hamstrings - acting as stabilizers during the initial phase of the pull, that maintain the back angle by exerting tension on the pelvis from the posterior, at their insertion points on the ischium and ilium. if the spinal erectors keep the back flat, the hip extensors "anchor" the back angle by pulling down on the distal pelvis. The pelvis and the spine are locked in line by the erectors, so the hamstrings actually keep the chest up and the back angle constant. This enables the scapulas to stay over the bar, allowing the quad work of straightening the knee to lift the bar off the ground."

That is a GREAT example of how the kinetic chain works. So if you think machines are better to train with than barbells and free weights. I challenge you to comment on this post and give me an explanation on how Machines & Nautilus can provide such a benefit to the Kinetic Chain.

Rules for Using Lifting Straps

It is common to see lifting straps being used in the weight room. But, these useful training tools are often used at inappropriate times or abused all together. Lifting straps are used to help increase grip on a bar. Well, lets look at this statement a little closer. "lifting straps are used to help increase grip on a bar." Well, if grip strength is a limiting factor for an exercise then it should be trained and one way to train it is to lift weights that stress grip strength. Take the Deadlift exercise. This exercise requires optimal grip strength. If you are training the Deadlift for competition you are not going to be allowed to use straps in competition so why use them during training. If you are trianing with the deadlift for sports then one of the benefits of the lift is the improvement of grip strength. With the deadlift the only time grip strength will become an issue is if one of two things happens. One, the load being lifted is unable to be lifted because the back is not strong enough to lift it. If this is the case then YOU SHOULD NOT BE LIFTING IT. Second, your grip strength is not strong enough to handle the weight. If this is the case straps are indicated. So, with the deadlift example here are the rules for useing lifting straps.

1. DO NOT use straps for any warm up sets.

2. DO NOT use straps if you are trying to improve your grip because your hands are sweaty. If this is the case DO USE chaulk. If your gym does not allow the use of chaulk then you should find a gym that does.

3. DO use straps when you are training heavy lifts that are near max effort.

Using straps comes down to common sense most of the time. Look at your goal of training, look at the weight you are lifting, and know if using straps is needed. If you have to question useing straps or not to then your desicion is made don't use straps.

Quote of the Day 6/17/08

"You have to dream dreams to live dreams."

- Eric Lindros

Quote of the Day 6/16/08

"What you are will show in what you do."

- Thomas A. Edison

Thoughts on Mental Toughness

Watching the final round of the US Open today I began to think if it is possible to train Mental Toughness. Watching Tiger Woods battle with a bad leg and the other golfers battle knowing Tiger is lurking.

To find the essence of what mental toughness is you must watch the drama of the final round of a Major Golf Championship and there has been anyone as mentally tough as Tiger Woods. Watching him line up his put on 18 today to force an 18 hole playoff tomorrow, you knew he knew he was going to sink it.

Is it possible to train mental toughness. I think it is and I think it is easier than you think. The first place an athlete should look to train for mental toughness is in the weight room. Putting yourself in position to do things you may think you are not capable of is one way to develop mental toughness. In the weight room athlete do this day in day out. But, do they think about the time they were max testing or going for a triple at 95% 1RM when in their sport they need to be mentally tough?

I think that in the weight room every once and a while an exercise needs to be placed into the program to train mental toughness. If athletes develop the resolve in the weight room to "Belly up and get it done" they will be able to bear down when it gets tough.

Mental toughness is an intangible in sports but one every athlete can achieve at a high level. Being strong from the weight room does not have to be limited to just the muscles.

Quote of the Day 6/13/08

"Life is a gamble. You can get hurt, but people die in plane crashes, lose their arms and legs in car accidents; people die every day. Same with fighters: some die, some get hurt, some go on. You just don't let yourself believe it will happen to you."

- Muhammad Ali

Quote of the Day 6/12/08

"What we live by we die by."

- Robert Frost

Quote of the Day 6/11/08

"While living I want to live well."

- Geronimo

Quote of the Day 6/10/08

"The man who makes everything that leads to happiness depends upon himself, and not upon other men, has adopted the very best plan for living happily. This is the man of moderation, the man of manly character and of wisdom."

- Plato

Quote of the Day 6/9/08

"Persistence is to the character of man as carbon is to steel."

- Napoleon Hill

Quote of the Day 5/6/08

"Paralyze resistance with persistence."

- Woody Hayes

Quote of the Day 6/5/08

"It's a piece of cake until you get to the top."

- Richard M. Nixon

Quote of the Day 6/4/08

"You only get better by playing."

- Buddy Rich

Quote of the Day 6/3/08

"The most successful men in the end are those whose success is the result of steady accretion. It is the man who carefully advances step by step, with his mind becoming wider and wider - and progressively better able to grasp any theme or situation."

- Alexander Graham Bell

Quote of the Day 6/2/08

"Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment."

- Buddha

Quote of the Day 5/30/08

"Success is where preparation and opportunity meet."

- Bobby Unser

Quote of the Day 5/29/08

"And die of nothing but a rage to live."

-Alexander Pope

Quote of the Day 5/28/08

"The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven."

- John Milton

Quote of the Day 5/27/08

"Keep in mind that neither success nor failure is ever final."

- Roger Babson

Quote of the Day 5/26/08

"In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure."

- Bill Cosby

Quote of the Day 5/23/08

“I never could have achieved the success that I have without setting physical activity and health goals.”

-Bonnie Blair

-Olympic Gold Medalist

Quote of the Day 5/22/08

“In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.”

-Yogi Berra

-Hall of Fame Baseball Player

Quote of the Day 5/21/08

“Always keep learning. It keeps you young.”

-Patty Berg

-A founding member of the Ladies Professional Golf Assoc.

Quote of the Day 5/20/08

“I love the winning, I can take the losing, but most of all I Love to play.”

-Boris Becker

-Champion Tennis Player

Quote of the Day 5/19/08

“Success is a journey not a destination. The doing is usually more important than the outcome. Not everyone can be Number 1.”

-Authur Ashe

-Champion Tennis Player

Quote of the Day 5/16/08

"Durability is part of what makes a great athlete."

-Bill Russell
-Basketball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 5/15/08

"Always keep an open mind and a compassionate heart."

-Phil Jackson
-Former NBA Great Player & Current Coaching Legend

Quote of the Day 5/14/08

"If You're feeling pressure, then you shouldn't be here."

-Eric Davis
-Former Baseball Great

Quote of the Day 5/13/08

"I want to be a good person and live my life the right way, keeping in mind that there might be a little kid who's watching what I do."

-Rebecca Lobo
-Women's Basketball Star

Quote of the Day 5/12/08

"What keeps me going is goals."

-Muhamad Ali
-Champion Boxer

Quote of the Day 5/9/08

"You Know, heroes are ordinary people that have achieved extraordinary things in life.'

-Dave Winfield
-Baseball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 5/8/08

"Success Seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go."

-William feather

-Author

Quote of the Day 5/7/08

“I don't think about goals and records. Competition is what keeps me playing.”

-Lou Brock

-Baseball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 5/6/08

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”

- Eleanor Roosevelt

- Former First Lady of the United States

Quote of the Day 5/5/08

“Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles.”

- Alex Karras

- College Football Hall of Fame & former NFL Great player

- Former Professional Wrestler & Actor

Quote of the Day 5/2/08

“My God given talent is my ability to stick with training longer than anybody else.”

- Herschel Walker

- College Football Hall of Fame player and former NFL Great

Quote of the Day 5/1/08

“Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value. “

-Albert Einstein

-Theoretical Physicist

Quote of the Day 4/30/08

“If you don't love what you're doing and you can't give it your best, get out of it. Life is too short. You'll be an old man before you know it.”

- Al Lopez

- Baseball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 4/29/08

“No one remembers who came in second.”

- Walter Hagen

- Hall of Famer Golfer

Quote of the Day 4/28/08

“Every time you compete, try harder to improve on your last performance. Give nothing short of your very best effort.”

- Elgin Baylor

-Basketball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 4/25/08

“I don't believe you have to be better than everybody else. I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be.”

- Ken Venturi

-1964 US Open Golf Champion

Quote of the Day 4/24/08

“Success is often the result of taking a misstep in the right direction.”

-Al Bernstein

-Famed Sports caster & writer

Quote of the Day 4/23/08

“Paralyze resistance with persistence”

-Woody Hayes

-College Football Hall of Fame Coach

Quote of the Day 4/22/08

“Anyone who thinks they're important is usually just a pompous moron who can't deal with his or her own pathetic insignificance and the fact that what they do is meaningless and inconsequential.


-William Thomas



-16th Century Scholar

Quote of the Day 4/21/08

“Go ahead, work hard and never be afraid to try something. Even if you don't make it, at least you can say you tried.”

-Guy Lafleur

-Hockey Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 4/18/08

“Be more concerned with your character, than your reputation. Because your character is what you really are. While your reputation is merely what others think you are.”

-John Wooden

-Basketball Hall of Fame Player & Coach

Quote of the Day 4/17/08

“Never quit. It is the easiest cop-out in the world. Set a goal and don't quit until you attain it. When you do attain it, set another goal, and don't quit until you reach it. Never quit.”

-Paul Bear Bryant

-College Football Hall of Fame Coach

Quote of the Day 4/16/08

“I firmly believe that respect is a lot more important, and a lot greater, than popularity.”

-Julius Erving

-Basketball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 4/15/08

“I always tried to do the best. I knew I couldn't always be the best, but I tried to be.”

- Frank Robinson

-Baseball Hall of Famer

Quote of the Day 4/14/08

“Fundamental preparation is always effective. Work on those parts of your game that are fundamentally weak.”

-Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

-Hall of Fame Basketball Player

Quote of the Day 4/11/08

“The strength of the pack is the wolf and the strength of the wolf is the pack.”

-Ward “Piggy” Lambert

-Basketball Hall of Fame Coach

Quote of the Day 4/10/08

“Time spent getting even would be better spent getting ahead.”



-Anonymous

Quote of the Day 4/9/08

“Experience is what enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.”

-Earl Wilson

-Former MLB Player

Quote of the Day 4/8/08

“The toughest thing about success is that you've got to keep on being a success.”

-Irving Berlin

-Composer & Song Writer

Quote of the Day 4/7/08

“Consider the rights of others before your own feelings, and the feelings of others before your own rights.”

-John Wooden

-Basketball Hall of Fame Coach & Player

New Website for Sports Performance & Training Advice

I am currently involved in a new business venture with a few of my former classmates from graduate school. We have created the website http://www.athletesequation.com/. This website is going to be the source for information on Sports Performance training that is evidence based and proven through research. There is so much false and untested information out there that so many Athletes, Coaches, and parents of athletes come across and believe. However, there is many different philosophies on Sports Performance training. All of these different approaches are not right or wrong but some work best for some athlete and some don't. It is our hope at Atheltes Equation to diseminate the information we believe that will give athletes of all ages, skill levels and the coaches, Athletic Trainers, and parents who support them in their endevours. As one of the Co-Founders and the CEO of this company I truely believe that this venture is going to be the forerunner for Sports Performance Training information. The Athletes Equation is a network of sites to utilize the World Wide Web to create a internet community focused on gaining the most benificial Sports Performance Training information. The Athletes equation has a YouTube Channel, Facebook Group, MySpace site, and an Online Forum. The Athletes Equation is currently focused on providing information from our linked websites and through articles written by our contributing athures. In the near future we will be providing products, Seminars, and training programs. To learn more or if you are interested in contributing to the Atheltes Equation email solutions@athletesequation.com.

Quote of the Day 4/4/08

“Everytime I look at the rings, I re-live the joy of each of the season’s victories. I feel the sting of each defeat. I feel the aches of every injury.”

-Tedy Bruschi

-3x Super Bowl Champion Football Player

Quote of the Day 4/3/08

“Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out.”

-John Wooden

-Basketball Hall of Fame Coach & Player

Quote of the Day 4/2/08

"Don't be a spectator, don't let life pass you by."

-Lou Holtz

-Former College Football Coach

Quote of the Day 4/1/08

"Who can ask more of a man than giving all within his span? Giving all it seems to me is not so far from victory."

-George Moriarty

-Invoved in MLB from 1903-1940 as player, umpire and manager