Mind nor body wanted to train today, but I got it in anyway.

Cluster Conventional Deads 4x2x3 :8 between clusters, 2:00 between sets, weight was at 78%

Weighted (25lbs) Pullups and Chinups, 20 total each grip

Barbell Roll-Outs 3x6x:3 hold; last set, small intestine was left on the floor.

I work with some pretty smart people.  Check out Steve and Sarah's previous posts, good stuff.

I still train for the ladies...

Chris

So the big news is that I'm not pregnant anymore! Whoooooooooo! June 22nd at 3:15pm Arabella Violet Walls was born at Sibley Hospital weighing in at 6lbs 10.8oz. Briefly, the whole experience was awesome: nurses, doctor, hospital were all fantastic. My water broke first and I ended up having to be induced about 6 hours later because the contractions had not started yet. The pitocin got things moving withing 15 min... I'm convinced that I was in "transition" as I received the epidural. This was the most unreal pain I've ever felt, it was the kind of pain that makes your entire body shake. But once I got the meds going the whole event was great and I actually got to enjoy the birth process.

For anyone who trains heavy and seriously and is curious what giving birth is like, here is my analogy: Imagine you are taking a max effort attempt in the squat - not a gym max effort, but a second or third attempt on the platform in a meet. Okay, so these attempts are usually real grinders... let's pretend for the sake of my example a max attempt takes approx 10 seconds. Okay... got the imagery? Remember how that feels? Now imagine being told to relax, take one breath, and do it again... and then a third time. How'd that feel? You just made it through your first contraction. Now relax for about 30-45 seconds, try to catch your breath and reload your strength and get ready to do it again. Remember, we're thinking second or third attempt meet weight here. You must hold your breath through each attempt/push and are only allowed one deep breath between. I honestly thought I was going to make myself pass out several times. 

All the strength training paid off though, the baby was born after about 50 minutes of pushing - they tell me this is good for my first child. I won't dive into all the details of how quickly my body began recovering (in measurable ways), but please contact me if you're curious. It was fascinating and all credit is given to my training and high quality of diet.

Okay, enough of that. I gave birth last Tuesday and today was my first post-baby training session. I wish I could say I underestimated myself with today's session, but in reality I hit the sweet spot of what my body can handle right now.

MB Circuit - 6 minutes as many rounds as possible (AMRP): MB OH Throw x10, MB Chest Pass x10, MB Side Throw x5/side 

KB Circuit - 15 minutes AMRP: SA KB Swings x10, SL KB Knee Drive x10/leg, KB Windmill x5/side, Plate Drivers x10

Conditioning - 10 minutes AMRP: Sled Push x1 trip, Plank to Pushup Plank x4

I gained exactly 26lbs (the goal weight gain for most women is 25-35lbs). I have lost 11lbs as of this afternoon -15lbs to go. I'm going to keep my weight loss posted to prove to anyone who has tried blaming their kids for weight gain that it's not the pregnancy's fault...

It's unbelievable seeing a little person that is a perfect blend of you and the person you with whom you choose to spend your life - Sarah

Myth: If one gains a lot of muscle when young, it will all “turn to fat” when he or she is older.

The other day, I heard my housemate make the comment “I don't want to lift weights like Stevo, because when I'm older, all my muscle will turn to fat and I'll be more overweight than if I had never lifted.” My initial reaction was laughter, but then I had to humble myself and remember that I too once believed this. I do not know at what point this “fact” hit mainstream culture, but I hear it all the time. When I first began lifting in high school, I heard the same thing (and believed it for a while), but lifted anyway because I wanted what every hormonal teenage boy wants: big muscles to impress the ladies (oh how silly we all are at some point), and to be stronger than the guy next to him so he could win the next spontaneous wrestling match that will inevitably ignite during a gathering of guys (although this happens during every stage of a male's lifespan). As I'm now beyond high school, and train for the pure rush of accomplishing something physical that was not possible to me at an earlier point in time, I better make sure that I'm not setting up myself for future obesity eh? Anyways, let's take a closer look:

What does basic science say? Well, muscle and fat cells are completely mutually exclusive of each other. At the physiological level, they are completely different. Muscle cells are elongated and contain multiple nuclei, whereas fat cells are globular-shaped and contain a single nucleus (you can look this up in any anatomy or exercise physiology textbook). Both types of cells may grow and shrink, but it is impossible for one to “morph” into the other. It is not physiologically possible for a muscle cell to turn into a fat cell, or for fat to convert to muscle. There are many other differences in the composition/function of these cells, but that is beyond the scope of this post and most of you would probably fall asleep reading about it.

So where does this myth stem from? Are there people that are oh-so-muscular in their youth, and then develop a much higher level of body fat when they're older? Certainly. Do many of you personally know (or at least know of) someone who used to possess a lot of muscle but now they look fat? I bet you do. Is this because his or her muscle actually morphed into fat? Not a chance.



What we commonly observe is a result of lifestyle change. Typically, (using a male in this example) a guy who lifts weights in high school and college does so because of a requirement by a sports team, or perhaps because he decides to do it as a hobby while he still has a lot of free time. As he enters his mid-twenties and pursues a career, he still exercises regularly, and receives enough guidance that he's able to put on a fair amount of muscle. This includes remaining in a caloric surplus (intaking more calories than he is expending, in order to gain size). However, as he gets older, an increasing amount of commitments find their way into his life. This may be an insatiable drive to climb the corporate ladder, thus requiring frequent late nights and early mornings at the office. Or perhaps he marries and has children, and needs to spend extra time providing for his wife and/or driving his kids to school/sports practice. As more and more obligations (positive or negative) consume him, he eventually foregoes exercise in order to make room for other things. He still eats a lot, because he has developed this habit when he was younger and was lifting consistently (and could just “work-off” any junk food he consumed). However, these food choices will probably become quite poor, as a fast-paced life will “demand” that he utilize fast food restaurants, and purchase highly processed foods in the supermarket. Over time, he skips more exercise sessions so that he can prioritize other activities, and continues to eat not-so-gut-friendly-food as he finds himself frequently rushed and stressed.

See the trend? Over time, he exercises less, and doesn't reduce his calories to match his new activity level (which is next to none). Since he is no longer lifting weights (with the exception of maybe once every couple weeks), his body stops building muscle because he's no longer imposing that demand on himself (to be able to lift heavy stuff). His muscles become smaller because there is no stimulus for growth. However, he's still eating a lot of calorie-dense foods, and those calories aren't going to be used for muscle building. Since he's now intaking way more calories than he's expending throughout the day, those excess calories are stored as fat. Over time, our muscular college boy has gradually morphed into an overweight business man.

And the conclusion people draw? “Ohh, yeah, I remember he used to be quite fit-looking. He must be fat now because he put on all that muscle when he was younger, and now that he has aged, his body is converting it to fat.”

Riiigghht. His muscle did not “melt into fat.” He lost muscle mass because he wasn't exercising, and he gained fat because he didn't adjust his dietary intake to match his lower caloric expenditure throughout each day.

So what can we take from all this? You need not avoid lifting weights as a youth in fear of that muscle turning to fat. Just be conscious of your lifestyle as you age. Are you frequently stressed? This will increase cortisol (a hormone leading to fat storage as well as a number of other maladies) levels, so you either need to remove that stressor from your life, or find some way to combat the stress (try taking a walk outside, spending time with a loved one, reading, exercising, etc). Are you as active as you were in middle school, high school, college, or whatever your most recent stage of life was? If not, then you need to adjust (down) your daily caloric intake accordingly. Build the habit of exercising for the right reasons while young, and you'll be more likely to make it a regular part of your schedule no matter how old you are or what time commitments may be pressing. Even if it's a workout out twice a week for 45 minutes per session, you'd be surprised at how much it will help your quality of life.

Best, Steve

A) Hill Sprints.  Performed 15 hill sprints (hill was about 50yds long) with 5 burpees at the top immediately following each sprint.  Rest period = walking back down the hill.  

B) Prowler pushes for 45yds.  Alternated between high handles and the low handle.  Wanted to do 10 passes but a bunch of parents showed up in my cul-de-sac to pick up their kids (I live right next to a school).  Thus I only completed 6 before becoming overpowered by moms and dads.  I did get a lot of odd looks in the process though as adults couldn't understand why I was spending my morning battling with this odd-looking steel beast. 

The entire workout, including relocating to my street after the hill sprints to set up the sled, took less than 40 minutes, jacked up my EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption) for the next 2 days, and earned me 10,000 Awesome Points. 

“Pushing the prowler on the low handle is like flirting with Satan”.  - Coach Chris

Well said Chris.  (You have no idea how difficult it is until you actually try it)

Until next time,

Steve

Sarah and Ryan Walls welcomed a beautiful 6lbs 10oz baby girl, Arabella Violet Walls, Tuesday at 3pm.  If you haven't seen the pictures I'm sure Sarah will be posting them once she gets out of the hospital.  Sarah already has Arabella on a strict regimen of pushups, pullups, and planks.

I trained today.

Conventional Deads 4x5 at 405, in a cluster set rep scheme; rest :8 and then pull again, and then rest 2:30 between sets.  Then die.

Pullups, paloff walkouts, and something else to complete my 40 minute session.

I work harder than you,

Chris

I can't explain why, but Wimbledon is my hands-down, all time favorite sporting event to watch every year. I started watching it when I was about 12 years old out of sheer boredom. Since that summer I've tried to watch as many matches as possible. I'm on quasi-maternity leave right now, so I should get to enjoy watching some of the earlier rounds for the first time in about 8 years.

Right now I'm watching Federer fight for his life against this unranked guy from Columbia - Falla. I'm not a Federer fan and love seeing a good upset.

- Sarah

8 Days until the due date.

Box Squat 5x5

A1 SL BB RDL 3x5/leg

A2 KB Knee Lifts 3x6/leg

B1 KB Swings 3x12

B2 SA KB Pinch Farmer's Walk 3 trips/hand

Normally I train at Mason, but I lifted at SAPT for the first time in months this morning to save myself some time. Not bad, got to do some different things as a result. 

My feet keep swelling and I hate it - Sarah

-11 Days to go:

20-min walk on track at Mason

A1 Inverted Row x50 reps

A2 Incline Pushups x40 reps

B1 Lat Pulldown Ecc 3x8x:03

B2 Cuban Rotation 2x12

C1 SA DB Shoulder Press 3x6/arm

C2 SA Band Pushdowns 3x12/arm

C3 Hammer Curl Ecc's 3x6x:03 (b/c I want big guns)

We've got a great Due Date Pool going on at SAPT. Everyone's guesses are posted on the large chalk board... who will the big winner be?!?!??

This morning I this car with several bumper stickers that proclaimed the driver's love for Johnny Depp/Jack Sparrow - Sarah

I've been having some heel pain in a very specific location for several months. It's been mildly annoying until my walk yesterday. I was walking around the Lake Accotink trail wearing my FiveFingers (the ultra-thin 2.5mm shoes) and became acutely aware that the trail has portions comprised of large chunks of gravel. Occasionally, my right heel would land on a rock and send enormous, lingering amounts of pain through my lower leg. For a while, I was angrily wondering why I was only hitting rocks with my right heel, thinking somehow my left heel was avoiding all rocky encounters. Fortunately, (I'm not quite this dense) I realized I was in fact hitting rocks on the left heel, it just didn't hurt one bit. Additionally, I was having a LOT of pain in my lower left back/left glute. This has been bothering me on and off for some months, but I attributed it to the pregnancy.

When I got back home I did some research and found out a very interesting connection between sciatica and pain in the abductor hallucis muscle in the foot. Apparently, sciatica can cause the pain I was feeling - fascinating! Previously, I had investigated the sciatica option as a reason for my back/glute pain but discarded that idea as I didn't feel like the symptoms were what I had going on. This connection is a little too clear to ignore. 

In the end, I found a great YouTube video describing how to treat the pain in the origin of the abductor hallucis through raking.  After spending about 5-min working on the area the pain was gone in the heel and about an hour later the pain in my back subsided, too. All-in-all a successful self-diagnosis day!

- Sarah

Why is it that when I meet someone who asks what I do for a living they often feel the need to tell me why they do not exercise? Let me say this: I do not care, at all. No one in this industry gives a crap about why people don't exercise. If you're my client, I care because you pay me money to care about your health and wellness. If you are a friend, I care only ever so slightly. If you are a family member, yes, I care a great deal.

If you are reading this and we have never met, please do not meet me (or any other professional in this industry) and begin justifying all your poor life decisions relating to your own health. I simply don't want to hear it. Here's a list of responses I have come up with for the next time this happens:

1. Thank you for warning me that you're lazy and undisciplined.

2.Congratulations, you are consistently setting a poor example for your children by showing them how not to live a long, healthy life.

3. (mid-sentence, cut person off and say...) Please stop talking, I don't care.

4. Yes, it is quite obvious you never exercise. Just look at you!

5. I'm sorry, I must have blacked-out for a moment - did I ask about your exercise habits?

As this happened very recently, my real response was something like this: staring blankly at person, while running an inner dialog about how I could not believe this individual was going on and on about how they don't exercise, then wondering why they would think I care, and wondering why this always happens. Once said person stopped talking I said "Okay" smiled and waited for a subject change.

Literally, when we go to parties I do my best not to let anyone know what I do for a living. That's just how much this happens and just how much I dread the other person's justification of their poor health habits.

- Sarah

12 days to go:

BB Deadlift 4x5 @ 135 (got the video footage)

A1 RDL Ecc's 3x8 (X-1-3) @ 95

A2 BB Shrugs 3x12x:01 @ 95 (b/c I want to look jacked in the hospital)

B1 *Side Squat 3x8 @ 25

B2 *Band Abd/Add 3x5/leg (x-1-3)

Bird-dog 2x8/side

Plate Pinch 3x:10/hand (:10)

*For the last several months I have been careful to put an overload of movements in my lower body training days that focus on groin/abd/add/"hip" strength and flexibility. This is to be sure the area is as healthy as possible prior to labor. For those of you who may not know me personally very well, I go through life approaching virtually everything from marriage to business and all that's in between as if I am in competition to "win." All that means is that I prepare myself to 100% of what I am capable in hopes of giving my best effort (at being a wife, a business owner, boss, athlete, etc.). Obviously, you can't "win" at birth, but it's still my mentality during preparation and I expect it to pay off - how? I'm not sure yet... I won't know until it happens.

- Sarah

Articles like this remind me that the general population has an extremely poor understanding of dietary information. It's a good article, find out what I've known for years: Eating Brown Rice to Cut Diabetes Risk.

- Sarah

Conventional Deads 3x6 up to 415
BB Rollouts 3x6x:3 hold

Charles Poliquin Pullups and Chinups; you know, chest has to touch the bar in order for it to count.  2x8/grip
SL Lowering 3x8/side (4-1-4)
Practice Golf Swing with Dowel Rod: 2x10/just right side

Overlooked Coaching Ques, The Plank:
-"Pull chest through," to eliminate upperback rounding, and promote proper scapular positioning.
-"Pull your stomach to your spine;" hollow abs to prevent lower back hyperextension.
-"Squeeze your glutes;" aka "crush a walnuts between the cheeks;" again, to stabilize lower back.

Might as well do it right,

Chris

A) Front Squat.  Worked up to an easy set of 5 @265

B1) Trap Bar Deadlift 3x3 @355, 365, 375
B2) Seated 90/90 stretch b/c my hip external rotation (or lack thereof) is abominable.

Circuit:
C1) Single-leg DB RDL
C2) TRX Atomic Pushup (a suspended pushup with two jackknives at the top)
C3) *Hyperextensions
C4) Pallof Press
→ 4 Rounds at 12 reps each

*Worst name of an exercise ever.

I was short on time and wanted to get my heart rate up so I constructed a quick circuit to do.  Was this just a random set of exercises thrown together so I could look awesome while doing it?  No.  Each exercise had a purpose:

-SL DB RDL: Tremendous proprioceptive benefit at the ankle.  It engages the deep longitudinal subsystem (it's primary function is to allow forces generated in the lower body to carry to the upper body), and forces the peroneals and anterior tibialis to maximally engage in order to provide stability to the ankle (and the hip as a consequence).  It develops the entire posterior chain, reduces load and stress on the back, and enhances balance.  It also forces the glute medius to contract maximally in order to stabilize the hip.  Since I'll be racing 5 miles in sand, I see this exercise as extremely beneficial to me (not too mention most athletes in general!).  I did some sand running while in the Outer Banks 2 weeks ago, and my glute medius was on fire.  In case I was unsure of it's function before, the answer was definitely made known to me as I finished my "yog" (an easy jog) and began to perform sand sprints.  

-TRX Atomic Pushup: Who doesn't need to do more pushups?  A closed-chain exercise (much safer on the shoulder girdle) which enhances scapular and core stability, and it also teaches the body to transfer force from the lower body to the upper body (have to keep the midsection tight).

-Hyperextensions: When performed correctly, these are a great exercise for developing the glutes/hamstrings.  The key is to not hyperextend the back at the top (hence the terrible name of the exercise), and use your glutes and hamstrings (not the low back) to extend your body as you perform the concentric phase of the exercise.

-Pallof Presses: We do these all the time at SAPT, so I probably don't need to elaborate, but they're great for developing a very important, yet often overlooked, function of the core: stabilization of the torso while resisting rotation. 

"So, what do you take before you workout?" 

Hilarious.  

 Steve

13 days left:

30-min Stationary Bike

A1 Incline DB Chest Press 50 total reps @ 30lbs

A2 Seated Cable Low Row 60 total reps @ 90lbs

B1 Hammer Curls 3x10

B2 Pushdowns w/Ecc 3x10x:03

I'll be taking a walk on the 4-mi trail around Accotink lake in a few minutes.

Tomorrow I'm deadlifting in the morning and I'm planning on getting some video of the event for posterity's sake - i.e., I want to prove how badass my training still is/was at 9.5 months pregnant for now and all of eternity.

- Sarah

I ordered a pair of Vibram Five Fingers and they arrived in the mail yesterday so I decided to try them out this morning:

10 minutes of movement prep to get my heart rate up and blood flow to the working muscles.

3x800m intervals at 85%.  I didn't want my calves to rip off (but they did anyway) with the new foot strike I'm forced to use with these shoes so I kept the volume and intensity relatively low today.  These intervals felt awesome in the Vibrams.

40yd prowler sled pushes followed by 60yd sprints until I felt I nearly depleted all my glycogen stores.  

Short. Simple. Sweet.

Steve

A1) One-Arm DB Snatch 3x3 @ 75, 85, 85
→  Triple extension was more thorough and the weight moved faster this time around which felt great
A2) Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch (rear foot elevated) 3x15s/side

B1) Bench 3x3 @ 210, 240, 270
Had to celebrate National Bench Press Day today
B2) Various Band Pullaparts

C1) Towel Pullups 4x12 @ BW
C2) Dips 4x12 @ 45, 45, 50, 50

D1) Seated Cable Row w/Pronated Grip 4x8 @ 160, 170, 180, 180
D2) Standing Ab Wheel Rollout 4x10 = ouch

Playtime:
E1) DB Curlz w/hand on the outside of the handle (this also incorporates the forearm-supination function of the biceps).
E2) JC Santana Pushup Circuit.  Perform the following without resting:
5 med ball lock-offs each side
5 crossover pushups each side
5 close-grip pushups w/hands on med ball
5 medicine ball drop and returns

Sarah's recent article is great so check it out if you haven't yet!

-Steve
       

I'm going to be doing some writing for the LIVESTRONG website. My first article is on poor leg stamina in martial artists, you can read it here. It's a very quick read. Go ahead, click thru and learn a little something.

- Sarah

15 days to go.

20-min Stationary Bike

A1 Box Squat 3x5

A2 SL TKE 3x12/leg

B1 SL DB RDL 4x8/leg @ 25

B2 Elev Side Lunge w/Push-off 3x8/leg @ BW

C1 Face Pulls 3x10

C2 Low Back Exts 3x10x:01 - these were written to be done on the GHR, but alas, my baby gut is too large so I had to use the 45 deg back hyper which can still accommodate me.

Taking it pretty easy from now until the delivery, so I'll probably go for a walk this afternoon.

"A workout??? In your condition?" - Sarah

20-min Stepper

BO BB Row 5x5x:01

B1 Alt SA DB Shoulder Press 3x5/arm

B2 Shoulder Box 3x5

C1 Inclne DB Chest Press 3x8

C2 DB Shrugs 2x20

D1 SA Band Pushdown 3x10/arm

D2 Hammer Curls 4x6

20-min Stepper

- Sarah

19 days to go:

20-min walk/jog

A1 BB Deadlift 8x2

A2 Banded Cuban Rotation 4x8

B1 BB RDL 3x8 @135

B2 Banded Standing Abduction/Adduction 2x12 all

C1 Split Squat 3x5/leg @ 25

C2 Banded Internal/External Rotation 2x10 all

D1 BB RDL 3x5

D2 Bird-Dog 2x5x:01

20-min Walk/Jog

- Sarah

Conventional Deads:  Worked up to 550 for a single

Chins, RDL's, and Paloff Press; all 2x12

Take that, Gravity!

Romo

Two seasons ago we had an athlete on the men's volleyball team at Mason who would begin getting debilitating cramps in his calves in the middle of the third game in a match. Of course, this guy also happened to be our All-American, so we needed him for the duration of a match pretty badly.

From my side of things, I worked with him on diet, fluid intake, and sleep. There was a lot to be improved upon in his diet, in particular. He was 21/22 years old and lived off of gummy bears and sports drinks. Unfortunately, while he may have felt better from the changes for most of the day, he still caught cramps at the same point and with the same writhing intensity.

The team's athletic trainer tried many things, too, including planned rest from practice, massage, bananas, salt tablets, and eventually, pickle juice.

I think he discovered the pickle juice by accident while they were travelling for a couple of matches. Unbelievably, it worked! Although the pickle juice didn't prevent the cramping, it did reduce the intensity very quickly and allowed the athlete to get back on the court faster than just massage and salt tablets alone.

The frustrating thing about trying to help this guy was that there had been virtually no conclusive research to show what causes cramping and how to avoid/treat the problem. So, everything we tried was like throwing mud at the wall just to see if any of it will stick. Fortunately, a small study at BYU seems to show the validity of pickle juice, or, more specifically, the vinegar in pickle juice as helping with the cramping.

Check out the article here.

- Sarah

MMMmm, they all sound delicious.

The big day is here for Nats fans.

-21 Days: Today the baby is officially "fully cooked" - she's reached full-term. Now the waiting begins. Much like the Duck King's Fully Cooked Salted Duck, the baby will sit sealed for freshness until ready to use.

Training this morning...

30-min Stationary Bike

Rotators

A1 Incline BB Bench Press 3x5

A2 SA BO DB Scap Retractions 2x10/arm

B1 Neutral Grip Lat Pulldown 5x5

B2 Incline Pushups 5x5,6,7,8,9

C1 Hammer Curls 3x8

C3 DB Lat Raise 3x8

Will go for a long walk this afternoon - approx 1 hour.

Stick a fork in me - Sarah

22 days left to go:

30-min stationary bike

Box Squat 3x5

A1 Lateral Step-up 3x8/leg

A2 DB Sidebend 2x20/side

B1 Inverted Row 3x8

B2 Hex Hold 3x:15/hand

Will go for a walk tonight.

- Sarah

Vigorous Exercise Linked to Better Grades

- Sarah

Some things:

• Yesterday I was wearing a pink shirt - Chris said I looked like a giant Peep

• This morning at a traffic light on Braddock I noticed the man driving the car behind me was playing a harmonica. His license plate read "HARP MAD."

• The harmonica guy reminded me of another musical oddity found, I'm certain, only on Braddock Road: every Friday or Saturday evening Ryan and I drive down Braddock for our weekly visit to Wegman's. About 7 trips out of 10 we will see a man with a tuba walking and playing music on the sidewalk. We assume his wife kicks him out of the house during practice time. I really want to get a picture of him, but I am always taken by surprise when we see him... maybe tonight I'll get a shot.

• The picture is of my new shoes, they are called Vibram Fivefingers. Yes, they are strange and you can feel free to make fun of me if you'd like.  They are about as close to barefoot as you can get while still having a layer of protection surrounding your foot. I wore them for the first time for about 3 hours on Wednesday and my feet were really sore later on. I plan on wearing them while I coach this afternoon.

Training:

15-min Stationary Bike

BO BB Row Eccentrics 3x3x:06 @ 75

A1 SA Band Row 3x12/arm

A2 SA Incline DB Chest Press 3x10/arm

B1 Bench Dips 3x10

B2 Band Curls 2x10

30-min Stationary Bike

50% of women having their first baby deliver after their due date, boooo - Sarah

A1 Deads 5x5 at 375
A2 SL Planks 5x:15/side

Chins,BSS holds, and pushups until I felt randy.

No toilet paper...no bueno,

Randy

26 days to go...

A1 BB Deadlift 5x3 - weight was light and fast, felt good

A2 SL TKE 3x12/leg @ green

B1 DB Split Squat 3x5/leg

B2 Seated Band Abduction 3x10x:01

C1 BB RDL 3x5x:02

C2 Face Pulls 2x10x:01

30-min Stationary Bike

I begin tapering into my "maternity leave" next week and have so much to get done between now and then. I'm not too confident I'll get everything done which is why I'm terming this break a taper.

- Sarah

Disclaimer: Make sure you are seated before reading this; I'm about to blow your mind...unless you are Eric Cressey, Mike Reimold, Mike Robertson, Bill Hartman, Tony Gentilcore, Mike Boyle, Dale Buchberger, or any other reputable and knowledgeable strength coach who just isn't as good a self-promoter as the aforementioned stud muffins.  Also old news for anyone with a Russian surname...oh, and James Smith.  

This is my response to an inquiry requesting our shoudler care protocol:

Here is the approach we take to elicit healthy shoulders in all of our athletes, and especially our overhead throwing athletes. We perform a ton of rotator cuff and scapular stabilizer work.  We typically incorporate two external rotation movements per week.  One movement, the humerus is abducted, and on the other, the humerus is adducted.  For most individuals, we’ll do some direct internal rotation training for the subscap.   For the scapular stabilizers, most individuals walk into our doors with the hunchback and rounded shoulders.  To address these issues, we’ll do extra work for the scapular retractors and depressors.  Typically we’ll program a variety of horizontal pulling variations, and middle and lower trap raises (usually in the prone position). We don’t discredit the importance and function of the serratus anterior.  To train this muscle we’ll have the athlete do supine and standing single-arm dumbbell protractions along with scap pushups, scap pull-ups, various pushup variations, and crawling variations; in every instance the athlete is instructed to keep the scapulae locked to the rib cage.  We also aim to loosen up the pecs and lats.
 We also incorporate posterior capsule stretching with our overhead throwing athletes to combat internal rotation deficits commonly seen in these athletes.  We typically prescribe the sleeper stretch and cross-body mobilizations.   We also remind our athletes about the importance of their posture throughout the day. 

All this being said, we do not discredit the importance of ankle mobility, thoracic mobility, hip mobility, grip work, posterior chain strength and tissue quality (especially the forearms and posterior shoulder girdle) as they are intimately related to the development and maintenance of healthy shoulders and elbows. 

As magical as a unicorn,

Chris

 

Went to the high school track this morning to get in a quick training session before work.  Had to arrive at the field early to beat the kids out there :)

Warm-Up: Walk to track, 10 minutes of movement prep, jumprope, and 400m light jog.

A) 3x800m intervals.  Kept the work:rest ratio at 1:1.  Last week it was about 1:1.5 so I shortened my rest interval a bit.  (I haven't done running training in a looonng time so I'm very slowly increasing my running volume).

B) 10x110yd sprints (85-90% top speed to work on sprint form).  Work:rest was 1:3.  I did this on the field and sprinted the straights, walked the endlines. 

I took Christopher McDougall's advice and tried the 110yd sprints barefoot (one of the reasons I did these on the field).  We'll have to see how this continues to pan out.  I typically have a very sloppy heel-toe gait even while sprinting so this helped me work on keeping it toe-heel and my sprints just felt a bit more fluid in general.  All in all felt pretty great, but we'll see how my shins/achilles feel tomorrow!

 -Stevo

Leaving town for the weekend tomorrow so had to condense today's training:

A1) Front Squat for Speed 6x2 @70% 1RM (225)
A2) Standing No Money w/Band

B1) Trap Bar Deadlift 3x5 @315, 335, 345
B2) Knee Break Ankle Mobilization 4x8
B3) Kneeling Hip Flexor Mobilization 4x5/side

C1) Weighted Chin-up 3x4, 1x10 @BW+90, +90, +90, +55
C2) Feet-Elevated Band-Resisted Pushup 3x10
C3) Single-leg DB RDL 3x10 @45 (kettlebells work much better for these)

D1) Standing Ab Wheel Rollout 3x10
D2) SA Standing Row w/Band 2x12

Random Thoughts:
Haven't tried trap bar deadlifting since high school (during which I blew out my back due to poor coaching from my instructor).  Amazing how much I feel my glutes, hamstrings, and upper back...well pretty much my entire posterior chain...working like crazy now that I know how to do these correctly. 

My older brother tore a muscle in his shoulder lifting yesterday performing an overhead lift.  It reminded me of the importance of the “corrective exercises” that we program at SAPT.  I'm specifically referring to exercises that strengthen the muscles assisting in upward rotation of the shoulder blade (ex. serratus anterior, lower trapezius).  Think wall angels, pushups with a “plus”, no-money with bands, etc.  Performing these during workouts will go a long way in enhancing shoulder health.

Take a look at Sarah's post-delivery competition schedule if you haven't already.  If that isn't motivation to remain active then I don't know what is!

-Steve

As one can imagine, I've grown tired of lugging around all this extra weight and have begun daydreaming about a life involving increased activity and a lighter body. Yesterday I mapped out a competition schedule for Fall 2010 through Fall 2011. Here goes:

1. September/October 2010 - 5k for fun, sense of accomplishment, and bar setting; hopefully, the baby will join me in her jogging stroller for this one - I always see women with kids in jogging strollers during races.

2. Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving 2010 - 5-10k distance, work on improving pace; I hope to take this one a bit more seriously, so probably no baby.

3. Holiday Run 2010 - 5-10k distance, working against time from Thanksgiving

4. Competitive Run Spring 2011 - By "competitive" I mean that I hope to finish and feel I was at least slightly competitive within my age range by this point (maybe finish in top 15%?), but the primary focus will be on setting some decent PR's.

5. Sprint Distance Duathlon Summer 2011- For fun and to see if I enjoy the format (run-bike-run)

6. POWERLIFTING MEET!!!!! Fall 2011 - Will focus on competiting in the 148 weight class to see if I can put up any good numbers. I acknowledge that for me to be really successful for my height I probably need to weigh in the neighborhood of 190+. BUT, I'm not willing to do that. Instead, I'll just go up against the midgets in the 148 class.

Anyone who knows me may be wondering why I'm putting such a decidedly large emphasis on racing. The reason is that I need to be training for something competitive and would like for the time spent training to be something that I can do while spending lots of time with the baby. Plus, I'm concerned that my body's structure may not be up to the task of max effort lifting for quite a while. This will give me a chance to spend a great amount of time with the baby, will allow me to ramp up my lifting sensibly, and see if all the time spent jogging during pregnancy pays off in 6-12 months (the blood doping effect I've written about).

That's it, it's out there. I'm looking forward to the challenge of getting my body back to top physical condition while learning how to balance my training with the new responsibilities of being a mom (and a wife, and a business owner, and a college coach...)

- Sarah

A1 Incline DB Chest Press w/Scap Protractions 3x10

A2 SA BO DB Row w/Scap Retractions 3x10/arm

A3 DB Shrugs 3x20

B1 Wide Neutral Grip Lat PD 3x10

B2 Incline Pushups 3x10

B3 Incline Side Hip Pop-ups 3x10/side

C1 Straight Bar Pushdowns 2x15

C2 Hammer Curls 2x10

15-min Stepper, 15-min Stationary Bike, 15-min Stepper

The Fieldhouse is at 99% humidity, so there was a lot of sweating in all this - Sarah

Box Squat 4x8

A1 Lateral Step-up 3x8/side @ bw

A2 Standing Band Abd/Add 3x10/leg

B1 BB Goodmornings 3x8

B2 Plate Pinch 3x:15/hand

15-min Stepper, 15-min Stationary Bike

- Sarah

Took advantage of the long weekend to get some important baby prep work done. The highlight of which was that Ryan and I successfully installed 2 new windows in the house. We only tried two in case we really messed something up. Now it's on to the remainder of the house! Here's the rest of the stuff we got done:

• Assembled crib

• Finished baseboard and began painting

• Washed 17,947 tiny baby clothes

• Rediscovered Ryan's "man cave" in the basement as all the baby's stuff was moved to her room

• Setup 95% of the baby's room

- Sarah