Scapula/RC Circuit

Bench against mini bands: 6x3 and 1x10 at 245

Neutral Close Grip Pulley Row 3x:10x10

Pulley Face Pulls 3x10

BW Tri Ext. against Purple Band 3x10

Chris

I'll start with food today: I bought myself 3 birthday donuts yesterday - because I love them - that's a great reason. I purchased 1 chocolate cake, 1 boston cream, and 1 apple fritter. Last night I only ate the chocolate cake. So, this morning I decided if I were going to eat the other two, I would at least position them at a point in my day when my body was most likely to use the sugar. "When is this magical time?" you ask! It's post-workout, of course.

Breakfast: oatmeal, protein, peanut butter/ snack 1: 1c greek yogurt, 1c berries/ training: protein & gatorade shake/ post-training: chicken breast on greek salad, 1 boston cream delicious donut, 1 amazing apple fritter

That's it so far. I'll probably have an omlette in a bit when I go home to get ready for the game tonight.

Training:

45 minutes foam rolling and stretching

MB Scoop Throw 10x2 (:30)

Deadlift 5x5 @ 135, 155x4

A1 SL RDL 4x10/leg @ 15, 20, 25x2

A2 Bird-dog 3x16

B1 BB Goodmorning 5x5 @ 65, 85, 95, 115, 115

B2 Wall Ankle Mobilization 4x8/leg

B3 Plate Pinch 4x:12/hand

Will be get our second conference win tonight? I hope so... it's the battle of the basement teams tonight at the Patriot Center!

- Sarah

Sumo Pulls from 2" deficit
3x3 at 390

Conventional Pulls From Floor
3x3 at 390

Suspended GM's w/ SS bar
5x5 at 245

GHR, Band Abs, and Shrugs completed as a circuit.

Drank my protein shake and then exclaimed, "now I'm done," just like Brady Quinn.  You guys should try that sometime; the shake goes down so much better.

Today is Sarah's birthday, so make sure you send your regards.  I've had a crazy week, and because of this I completely dropped the ball on purchasing her a gift.  So, instead I brought in last nights leftover chicken parm and spagetti.  Before you pass judgement, you must first consider a few things; (1) newsflash, Sarah is pregnant, and pregnant women traditionally get pretty hungary, Sarah is no exception, so I thought how appropriate (2) this chicken parm is restaurant good, I mean goooood; (3) it's very well documented that I don't miss many meals nor do I share my food with many people, I think you know where I'm going with this. 

Bon appetit,

Chris

Today is my 29th birthday and, while I am working a usual schedule, I am taking the day off from training. I did about 20 minutes of foam rolling, which felt great. My glutes are a mess of muscle adhesions.

Right now I'm watching practice and looking forward to going to SAPT to enjoy the homemade chicken parm that Chris has brought for me. He says it's a lame gift, but giving the gift of food is NEVER lame.

- Sarah

Eating Kirkland Tuna (Kirkland products are the best) and reading about shoulder sulcus.   I probably should have twittered (or is it tweeted?) this one, 

Chris

Here's my training from this morning:

Light upperbody mobility work w/tennis ball rolling of the upper back

Pushups 5x5

A1 Incline DB Chest Press w/Eccentrics 3x3x:06x6 @ 25

A2 BO DB Row 3x15 @ 25

B1 Machine Lateral Raise 4x10

B2 Pushdown Eccentrics 4x3 @ :06 @ 100, 120, 120

B2 Cable Curls 3x12

C1 GHR 10x10 @ bodyweight

C2 DB Shrugs 10x10 @ 35-50lbs

I believe the baby is using my bladder as a punching bag. This is undoubtedly one of the cruelest parts of pregnancy.

I'm waiting for practice to start right now then it is off to the house to drop some things off and then to SAPT for the evening. New kids starting today!

- Sarah

20 min Bike - very easy setting, I mean really

Foam Roll

A1 Hack Squat 4x8 @ 90

A2 Standing Band Adduction 5x10/leg

Low Bar Squat 4x5 @ 185, 185, 205, 205

SL Leg Press Eccentrics 4x3/leg @ :06 @ 90, 115x3

B1 Bird-Dog 3x16

B2 BW SL Toe Touch 3x5/leg

Throughout the workout I did 10x10 DB Lat Raises, 10x10 Pushdowns, and 10x10 Inverted Row

Since I can literally see my body get softer and softer every day in the mirror I have been doing a great deal more volume than ever before in hopes of maintaining some of my upper body muscle mass. I think I'm fighting a losing battle.

Food so far today: oatmeal w/protein powder and 1tbsp peanut butter; 1c yogurt & cottage cheese w/1c mixed berries;  6 egg whites, 1 whole egg, spinach, salsa, 1/8c shredded cheese, 1c brown rice

Right now I'm drinking some terrible decaf coffee. I think my brain gets tricked into thinking there's some caffeine in it as I seem to be more productive. Placebo effect anyone?

Can't wait to have this baby and supplement myself back to some legitimate productivity - Sarah

Fat Bar Floor Press with 2 ~25lbs chains on each side.  Worked up to 295 for an easy triple.

Dips plus two chains 4x10

T-Bar Row 3x10

Lat Pulldown 3x10

Romo

One of the girls on the Mason basketball team told me I had a "muscle butt" yesterday at practice. I said thank you. I was being sincere, too.

Sarah

Woke-up with an awesome headache; should be a great day!

Was in the best of moods to train this morning!

Squat 405x10
Chinups 2x8, 1x15
Sliding Planks 3x10

A bit of sarcasim?

Happy Happerson

I just read this on a website about bodily changes during pregnancy: "A woman will produce more estrogen during one pregnancy than throughout her entire life when not pregnant." NO WONDER I feel so weak and pathetic when I'm lifting. Here's what I did today:

Foam Rolling 10 min, Static Stretching 5 min, Light mobility work 

A1 Sumo Deadlift 3x5 @ 135

A2 Seated Band Abduction 3x:15

B1 RDL 4x10 @ 95

B2.1 Wall Goalposts 2x10

B2.2 Wall Ankle Mobility 2x8/leg

C1 Cossack Squat 3x5/leg @ 10, 25, 25

C2 Stepdown ECC's 3x3/leg @ :06

D1 Seated Banded Hamstring Curls 3x10

D2 Face Pulls 2x12

E1 GHR 2x8 --- felt way too difficult today

E2 Low Back Extension Holds 2x:10

No cardio, didn't have the time. Glad to be back from NY. We drove right past where I used to live in Brooklyn and got to see the neighboorhood around it - it was cool to see, brought back some memories. Traffic was terrible and our bus driver was even worse.

Sarah

WU:
Scap Wall slides
SA Band Y's
Pullaparts
Cuban Rotations

Bench with mini's
5x4, first 3 at 215 last 2 at 225; last set 1x12 at 225

CG Neutral Grip Cable Row
3x:10x10

Banded BW Skull Crushers
3x15

Face Pulls
3x12

Front Plate Raises
1x20

3x8 Pullups

Massive pump,

Chris

This is my Best Man; seriously, I'm getting married on Oct. 2nd and he's my best man.  Brett used to put on my powerlifting gear back in college because it made him feel less skinny.

I call him my "BM,"

RomohI'mgonnapayforthisone

Training 2-17-09…

 

Sumo Pulls (from deficit) 3x4

Convegtable Pulls 3x4

 

Suspended GM’s 4x8

 

GHR w/ purple band

Banded Abs w/ blue band

Shrugs

 

Know why,

 

Chris

You should hear what she calls me when I train...

Romorcawhale

That is how I am referring to myself now. Here’s what the fat lady did this morning:

20 min Elliptical

A1 Rope Lat Pulldown 4x10 @ 80

A2 Incline DB Chest Press 4x8 @ 30

B1 SA DB Row w/iso pause at top 4x:10x10 @ 25

B2 DB Shrugs 4x15 @ :01 @ 35

C1 Bodyweight Skull Crushers 3x10

C2 Hammer Curls against wall 3x8 @ 20

D1 Elbows-out Exts 3x8 @ 15, 20, 20

D2 Bird-Dog 3x12 @ :02

20 min bike with 15 of those minutes being intervals

My legs are sore from yesterday!

Sarah

Foam Roll Sequence
TB Calf and Achilles Roll 2x10pass/side
Wall Ankle Mobilizations 2x8x:3/side
Add and Ham Rockbacks 2x8x:3/side/position
Spiderman to glute Stretch 2x5x:5/side/position

(A1) Seated Tuck Jump in SP  5x3
(A2) Thumb Reaches 3x8/side

(B1) Squat 4x4 @ 75%
(B2) Face Pulls 4x10

(C1) Side Lunge w/ Push 3x6/side
(C2) Pushup Postition Elbow to Sky 3x6/side

(D1) Sissy Ham 3x8
(D2) BW Calf Raises 3x6,6,6 hold

It's snowing again!

Here was this morning's training:

A1 Hack Squat 4x10

B1 Low Bar Squat 4x8 @ 135

C1 SL Leg Press Eccentrics 3x3 @ :06 @ 135

C2 Cable Low Row 3x8

D1 Split Squat 3x8/leg @ 25

Men's soccer came in while I was training and sort of slowed down my workout so I didn't quite get done everything that was planned.

Sarah

Rapido…

Speed Squats 6x3 plus the intermediate bands; probably was around 2,000lbs at the top.

Snatch Grip Speed Pulls 5x2; would’ve taken it over my head but I was afraid of damaging our roof.

Sliding Planks 3x8; because Tony Gentilcore said so.  These are hard.

I might have embellished a bit,

Chris

Training this morning was kind of rough. Felt slow and out of it. I'm finding that I really need to stay on top of my conditioning, because even a few days off causes a big difference in how I feel.

15min Bike

A1 MB Squat to Slam to OH Throw 4x5 @ 6lbs

A2 SL Leg Press (Hammer Strength) 3x10/leg @ 90 1x12/leg @ 100

Low Bar Squat 2x8 @ 135

Hammer Strength Leg Extensions 4x10/leg @ :01 pause

B1 Standing Leg Curls 4x10/leg

B2 Seated Band Abduction 4x12 @ 2 reds

SL Calf Raise 4x10/leg

30min Bike

Food So Far…

7am – 4oz deer steak, apple

8:15-10am – 3 scoops Gatorade, 1 scoop vanilla protein

11:45am – 5 egg whites, 1 egg omelet, 1/8^th cup shredded cheese, 2 tiny tomatoes, sautéed spinach, 2tsp olive oil, 1 cup garbanzo beans

3pm – 6oz shrimp, ¾ cup garbanzo beans

Not sure about the rest of the day.

  If you want to reach the top, you need to pay attention to every detail. - Sarah

 

There was a real fear amongst all tenents in the 3800 block of Pickett Road that our roof might collapse under the weight of the snow. If you have ever been inside of our unit - or any other - you would see our fears were justified. The roof survived just like the old, grizzled relic of a building upon which it is attached. You really can't ask more of this place than that it has four walls and the roof. Stay warm in the winter? Bah! You've asked to much! Keep cool and comfortable during the summer? Ha! Too much, again!

Today I am spending my time finishing the structure for a two-day training & discussion intensive session I'm giving to an assistant coach at Palm Beach Atlantic University this Saturday and Sunday. I also need to finish some programming for my teams at Mason and make some final decisions on how we are going to launch Precision Nutrition.

I'm so proud of our building for not falling to pieces - Sarah

Bulletproof Backs…

40+” of snow and ZERO back injuries amongst our athletes and adult clients.  Some actually commented that shoveling was an, and I quote, “enjoyable experience,” “reminded them of a medball triple extension,” “became a competitive event between their peers,” “good abdominal bracing and lower-back arching practice.” We train some weird people; weird, awesome people!

Making manual labor “enjoyable” since 2008,

Romovesomesnow

Snow Training Round 2, 2/10/10

I felt myself getting a bit distracting while doing some work, so I decided to venture into Blizzard 2 for some snow training. 

WU: Shovel driveway and remove snow from some low hanging branches.

46” (a very unofficial measurement) snow bank “box jumps;” I got a picture of these. 5x1

(A1) DL Snow Bounds 5x20yds up a hill; jumping through 40+” of snow is quite challenging.

(A2) Pullups from I-beam in garage, 5x10

(A3) Pushups 5x20

Tired,

Romo-no-mo-snow-please

Here are a couple of reasons why I am glad that I am strong:

1. I have not slipped and fallen on the ice. I have slipped, but have not fallen. This is because I am strong in a variety of ways and, thus, have pretty good balance.

2. With my stupendious pregnancy weight gain, I now weigh about 12lbs more than I ever have in my life. But I don't feel it. No back, knee, or hip pain. I may change my tune after another 10-15lbs, but this is a good start.

Headed for another day at home tomorrow,

Sarah

Mobility Movement: Adductor/Hamstring Rockback Step one, take a knee with knee directly under the shoulder; step two, straighten opposite leg out to the side, toes should run even with your shoulders and foot should be flat on the ground; step three, place hands on ground; step four, arch back and reach butt to heels (you should feel a deep stretch in your groin); hold for a :5 count in the bottom position; after 5 “rocks” with your foot flat on ground, turn your toes toward the sky and repeat (this time the focus of the stretch is on your hamstrings). Congrats to T. for a big pull this weekend! 

Romo

Roughly the amount of snow I've picked up and launched over my shoulders the past 3 days; 423 shovelsXroughly 10lbs/shovel.

Why I do deadlifts and GM's,

Chris

PS We are closed today but will reopen tomorrow.

SAPT is still closed today. I'm happy to have my first full day off since mid-October! The snow continues falling like crazy. We spent about an hour or so outside clearing off cars and sidewalks and went for a short walk. Lots of tea drinking, snacking, and tv watching is on-tap for this afternoon. We'll call it a recovery day.

Sarah

I have "prepped" myself for the snow removal effort we will be wrapped up in the rest of the weekend with my training session this morning:

Foam Rolling

Hack Squat 3x10 (warm-up)

DB Front Squat to Stepback Lunge 3x3 (warm-up)

A1 BB Straight Leg Deadlift 5x5

A2 Standing Abs 3x15

B1 Lateral Stepup 2x10/leg

B2 Seated Banded Abduction 2x15

C1 45 Deg Back Exts 2x12

C2 SL Calf Raise 2x10/leg

Then I came home and Ryan and I went to Smith & Clarkson's where we destroyed some breakfast type food. Now it's time to relax inside and enjoy looking at the snow.

We're having a GIRL! - Sarah

A1 Speed Pulls 6x2
A2 Clap Pushups 6x5

B1 Walking Lunges 3x8/side
B2 Pullups 3x12

C1 Paloff Presses 3x8/side
C2 Sliding Planks 3x8

A simple "thank you" makes all the difference sometimes,

Chris

Minor League baseball, early morning training session 2/5/10…

-Foam Roll, ankle and hip mobility

-MB Circuit

A1 1 Leg Speed Hop 3x20yds/leg

A2 Adductor Rockbacks 3x8/foot position/leg

B1 Sandpit Vertical Jump 3x4,:15 rest between jumps

B2 Seated Tilts (thoracic mobility), 2x5/side

C1 Sandpit LSq Ankle Jump 3x2/leg; hold landing for :3 count

C2 Scapular Wall Slides; prime shoulders for speed squat

Banded Speed Box Squat 6x2@65%, intermediate bands

D1 Sumo Deads 2x4

D2 Band Leg Curl 2x15/leg

Is it supposed to snow?

Chris

Snow training…

In anticipation of another apocalyptic snow storm here in Northern VA, I thought I’d put together a list of exercises to do in between cups of hot chocolate and burying your younger siblings face in the snow.  Just because we will likely be closed, this doesn’t exempt you from getting your work in.

WU:

Stationary Movements:

The snow doesn’t prevent you from doing your prisoner squats, so do them! 2x10

The same goes for your side and front lunges, wideouts, and gateopeners! 2x6/ex

Low-Level Jumping Sequence; enjoy the challenge and benefits of hopping on an uneven, absorptive surface.  Ankle pre-hab, check! 1x12/ex

Movement Stage:

The movements to halfway, you know the drill!

Muscle Activation Phase, ground based:

I hope you’re wearing water proof clothing because it might get a little chilly doing your bulldog hip mobility.  But hey, you train at the SAPT warehouse; you’re conditioned for freezing temperatures! 

Continue with the corrective exercises unique to your SAPT program.  Bad posture and weak hips don’t correct themselves when it snows. 

Alright, now let’s train Rocky IV style.

A1 Double Leg bounds 4x4

A2 Snow Shovel Row 4x6/side; get your shovel and start rowing the snow like you’re in a canoe; pull hard!

B1 Cycled Lunge Jumps 4x2/side

B2 Snow Angles 3x12; just like your scapular wall slides except you’re lying in the snow.  Pull the elbows to your ribs and puff the chest out.

C1 Modified Pushup Fallouts 5x3; on your knees, fall towards the ground with outstretched arms, absorb the impact into pushup position and drive yourself up out of the snow!

C2 Sliding Planks 3x6; the snow surface under your feet should make sliding pretty easy.  Who needs a slide board!

D1 Snow Cannonball BO Row 3x10; roll a big snow ball and perform a BO row with it; keep your arch!

D2 Lateral Snow Slides 3x8/side; just like the band X-Walks except you will be pushing against a foot of snow!

E1 Heavy Shovel Farmers Walk 3 Trips; scoop up a lot of snow into your shovel and walk 20yds with it on the left side of your body and then 20 yds back with it on the right side; brace hard with the abs!

E2 Sissy Hams in the snow; now I’m just being mean.  A snow monster walk would be good substitute for those who can’t do the sissys.

E3 Snow ball Cuban Rotations 2x12; I hope you plan on wearing gloves.

Enjoy,

Chris

Felt great today (feeling better and better each day – more energy, mostly), I actually felt somewhat strong which I haven’t felt in MONTHS. Started off with about 20 minutes of a variety of prehab and mobility work for my warm-up.

A1 Hammer Strength Chest Press 5x5

A2 Cable Low Row 4x10

B1 Incline DB Chest Press 4x5

B2 Banded Scap Retraction Row 3x15

C1 SA BO DB Row 4x8/arm

C2 DB Scap Punch 3x15

D1 Pushdowns 2x15

D2 Curls 3x10

D3 DB Lat Raise 3x10

Food for today:

Meal 1: 2 eggs, 4 egg whites, 3 pieces turkey bacon, sautéed spinach and onion, 1/8 cup shredded cheese

During Workout Shake: 3 scoops Gatorade powder, 1 scoop vanilla protein

Post Workout Shake: 1 scoop chocolate protein powder, 2 tbsp dry oats, ½ cup cottage cheese, 1 tbsp peanut butter, ½ cup skim milk, ice

Meal 2: 5 oz chicken breast, 3 cups spinach, 1/8 cup shredded cheese, 1tbsp olive oil

Meal 3: 1 cup cottage cheese, 1 cup mixed berries, splenda

Meal 4: 5 oz chicken breast, 3 cups spinach, 1/8 cup shredded cheese, 1tbsp olive oil

*** I will probably throw in a couple pieces of fruit and maybe another shake throughout the day.

I’m shooting for 2600 kcals/day – 2300 is my maintenance and I’m supposed to add about 300 each day to stay on track with the weight gain. I’m not taking exercise into the equation at this point. If it becomes a problem (which I doubt) I will start accounting for weight training and conditioning.

Sarah

Mobility Exercises that will save your life…

Not really, but they’ll make you a stronger, less restricted athlete.

-Cossack Squats:

I was turned onto this exercise by the guys at Diesel Crew, Defrancos, and Mike Boyle (he may call them something different).  This exercise has been great for developing adductor/hamstring/glute flexibility, hip mobility, and knee stability with many of our athletes.  Eliminating restrictions in these areas often improve poor pelvic alignment, ones inability to recruit posterior chain musculature, and decreases lumbar and knee stressors.    

To perform this movement:

-Feet set-up slightly wider than sumo stance; toes slightly open.

-Descend into a “deep” (relative to the athlete) squat making sure you are back on the heels and lower back is remaining arched.  Some athletes may have to support themselves onto a stationary object to allow for a greater range of motion to be achieved.    

-Transfer bw from side to side without rotating the hips; simply shift your bw.

-The knee of the bent leg should track with the toes; again, bw should be situated on the heel.

-The straight leg then rotates so the toes are pointing towards the ceiling. 

-Keep hips low, and transfer bw to the other side.

I have a few more that I’ll share, but I’m running out of time.  I’ll save them for another day.

Romo

Felt pretty good this morning for my lift. Had to move some weight today, I can't do that circuit stuff for too long - and 2 weeks was too long.

15 min bike sprints

A1 MB Slam to Side Throw 3x5/side

A2 SL Leg Press 3x10/leg

B1 Low Bar Squat (3 Holes) 3x5 @ 185, 185, 195

B1 Chinups 5x5 @ purple (yes my body weight is now too heavy to do normal sets/reps without assistance)

C1 DB Bulgarian Split Squat 3x5 @ 15, 20, 25

C2 Face Pulls 4x10 @ purple

D1 GHR 3x10 @ 10lbs followed immediately by…

D2 Low Back Ext Holds on GHR 2x:10x2

Food so far all Precision Nutrition inspired:

Omelet with berries and cottage cheese, shake made with Hood Choc milk, cottage cheese, and peanut butter; workout shake scoop protein and Gatorade powder; shake make with skim milk, protein powder, peanut butter, dry oatmeal, and cottage cheese.

I’m still trying to strike the right balance with my daily calories. It easy to eat too little and too much, but tough to hit the exact range.

- Sarah

 

MB Circuit/warm-up for the athletes this evening…

Jumping Jacks 20

MB Squat to Cyclone Slam 8/side

Seal Jacks 20

MB Halos 8/side

MB Lunge Matrix 2/direction/side

Thumb to Opposite Shoulder blade 12/side

Cossack squat 2x5/side

Standing Scapular Slides 12

MB Up-Down 8

Standing Scapular Retractions 8 w/ :3 iso/rep

Bowler Squats 1x6/leg

MB Rolling (SMF), constant movement 2x:20, target the glutes, IT band, adductors, quads

Spiderman to Glute Stretch 5/side

Bulldog Hip Mobility 1x10/direction/side

MB Walkovers 1x5/side

Scap Pushups 2x12

Birdog 1x6/side

 

I’ve found that this is a great way to increase body temperature, increase strength, work capacity, mobility, coordination and kinesthetic awareness.  As you probably noticed, I like to match upper-body mobility movements with lower-body compound movements.  I do this so quality is never compromised throughout the circuit, and to ensure proper motor patterns are being established for the training session.

 

Quality over quantity any day,

 

Chris

The best way to describe the trip to Boston is... rough. Here are the highlights:

• Got stuck sitting INSIDE the plane for 3.5 hours because of snow and, as our pilot seemed to imply, incompentence on the part of Dulles International Airport. Got de-iced, which was kind of cool b/c they spray the entire plane with this neon orange stuff, and took off.

• We still managed to make the last half of our practice time, practice was pretty solid. After that we drove around Boston for 45 min to the restaurant... it wasn't really worth the drive, good, but not worth the drive.

• On Sunday had an awesome breakfast at the hotel (fantastic fruit bar and omlettes). Literally almost got T-boned by another bus going to the arena for the game. And when I say almost, I mean we were like eye to eye with the driver of the other bus. It really got the heart beating... does that count as some sort of exercise?

• LOST the game despite playing incredibly well in the first half. Team came out the 2nd half and shut down. Frustrating.

• Flight was on-time and pretty uneventful if you ignore the fact that our athletic trainer started throwing up at the airport and continued to do so both at her seat on the plane and in the plane's bathroom.

I'm too tired to train today and have instead elected to focus eating some good food and getting caught up on some work at home before going into SAPT for the evening.

Sarah "Not-a-Fan-of-Mass-Transportation" Walls 

...Mobility in the ankle joint is the key to its stability, and in turn decreases rotational torque at the knee joint and allows for posterior chain musculature to properly engage in any athletic scenario.  ****** has made great strides in improving his dorsiflexion range of motion as evidence by his deeper squats and proficiency in executing his other compound movements.  This will pay huge dividends when he begins his drive down the mound towards home plate.    Every SAPT warm-up includes a 3-way ankle mobility protocol that all of our athletes complete prior to their training session.

Of course there are a whole host of other deficiencies we address, especially with our pitching clientele. 

Chris

Chris 

Bench Deload 2/1/10…

Definitely in need of a deload week.  Hands and joints are feeling a bit fatigued.  I did the following workout in a rest-pause fashion, mainly because it would be quicker and so I felt like I accomplished something.

Bench:

225x10x3, with 3 different hand placements

Cable Row  3x20

Dips 3x15

Face Pulls 3x15

Pushdowns 3x12

Somebody has got a case of the Mondays…

Romo