You're only as strong as your Core

More recently, there have been advertisements for exercise equiptment that will "shape your core" or give you "the perfect six pack." Well, as most of us know, these types of equipment are phony, really don't work and are quite frankly just a waste of money. For example, have you seen the infomercials about the belt you wear around your stomach which sends electrical impulses through your superficial layer to invoke a contraction of your abdominals? This thing really works right???.... No. There really is no quick, simple way to tone and strengthen your core. Yet, there are really good exercises which can strengthen those vital muscles which are classified as your core.


Your core is not just your ab's, but includes the transverse abdominis, multifidus, rectus abdominis, obliques, latismus dorsi, erector spinae, gluteus maximus, quadratus lamborum and many other deep muscles. Functional movements are highly dependent on the core musculature and lack of core strength and stability can result in a predisposition to injury. Along with preventing injury, the core muscles are specificially designed to align the back and effect posture. These muscles are important in resisting force whether it's a static force or a dynamic force. Not only does the core work to support the back in terms of posture, there is a dynamic function to it as well. When you move, you weight shifts back in forth. When walking, you're not always walking at the same speed on on level ground thus recruitment of the core muscles are needed to maintain balance. These responsibilities include postural reactions to changes in speed (quickness of a contraction), motion (reaction time of a contraction) and power (amount of resistance resisted in a period of time).


Since we move throughout all the planes of motion (Saggital (left to right), Frontal (front to back) and transverse (head to toe)) and not just one, we must train our body's to be able to resist the forces put on the body and prevent injury. Here are a few exercises which I use in my strength training routine which I've found will strengthen and full proof your core:


1.) Side Plank (30 second static hold)
2.) Decline Trunk Rotations w/ medicine ball (3x15)
3.) Glute bridge (30 sec static hold)
4.) Standing trunk rotations w/ resistance band (3x15x3 sec static hold)
5.) Static Supermans (3x10x5sec hold)
6.) Alternating Bicycles (3x10x5sec static hold each)
7.) Alternating leg lifts (3x15; can add medicine ball)


Warm up always before any workout, possibly warm up with crunches on an exercise ball, light standing trunk rotations and alternating bicycles so you don't strain yourself. A lot of these exercises are meant to improve posture (static exercises). The side plank is one of the best exercises to align you spine and strengthen the obliques. Trunk rotations are so often undermined as a great exercise. People typically think that doing a million crunches is going to improve your core, yet like I stated we don't move like that. We twist and turn as we move everyday, so you might as well train and strengthen in the ways in which you move!

The Power of The Resistance Band

When you hear the phrase weight training or strength training, you typically think of bulky free weights or machine weights, but on the contrary the new age form of strength training can be looked at from a wide variety of methods. Typically I refer to strength training as resistance training, which speaks for itself; training against a resistance. This resistance which I have become an enormous fan of and has worked incredibly well in terms of my training habits is the use of resistance bands. Or in other words rubber tubes with hands on the ends of them. This is a phenomenal tool and should be used by all in my opinion when strength training.

Resistance bands allow you to train in all three planes of motion (Saggital, Frontal, and Transverse) with ease and allow more functional movements, as if you were truely moving as you normally do but with an added resistance. One of the biggest differences that I've noticed is that when you lift a normal weight, you're forcefully acting against that weight to move it in a desired direction. The weight maintains the same force on your body throughout the whole motion. For example, a 30lb bicep curl puts 30lb's of force on your muscle throughout the whole motion, through the concentric contaction, isometric contraction and the eccentric contraction. Where as a resistance band builds tension as you increase the length of the lever. Picture a bicep curl with a resistance band, you can control the motion but as you bring your arm up the resistance increases making the exercise harder.

The best thing about resistance bands is that it allows you to train safer. You can change up the tempo in which you're working out easily, they're cost effective, easy to transport and if you can't make it to the gym you can workout at home or on break at your job. They're very beneficial to core training do to how dynamic they work. As I said, they allow you to be more functional in your movement patterns and training your core is a very important part of total overall strength. Have you ever heard of the saying "you're only as strong as your core"? Well, that's true. Simple core exercises that you can modify with resistance bands can range from side planks to trunk rotations. The variable resistance allows your core musculature to increase, improving balance, stability and posture along with preventing injury. In addition, they're a great tool to use as a warm up and cool down during strength training sessions.

If you're interested in resistance bands they're available at the Ely Wellness Center for your use and trust me they work. Check out this video of T.O using resistance bands as part of his core training:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U75JUCqd2s

Strength Training at a Young Age: Bad or Good?

From my previous blogs I've talked about the benefits of strength and resistance training from an adult standpoint, yet I haven't got into how it effects the youth. Well, despite the previous belief that strength training was bad for children that it "stunted growth" or "inhibited them" was a hoax, or in other words complete and utter nonsense. Just like adults, strength training has valuable positive benefits for children. According to John A. Bergfeld, head team physician of the Clevland Brown's, he defines strength training related to children as a method of "conditioning designed to increase an individual's ability to exert or resist force. The goal is not to see which child is the strongest, but to improve the musculoskeletal strength. Strength training can mean using weights, or it can mean doing sit ups, push ups and leg curls without weights. "


When you look at it in this perspective, I'm not talking about putting a child on a 7 day a week, 2 hour a day hypertrophy weight training session, I'm talking about regular fitness to improve the child's quality of life. According to recent studies from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), they now  "support children's participation in appropriately designed and competently supervised strength training programs." These experts have found that strength training can be safe and an effective means to improve a child's qualtiy of life. In addition, it may also help prevent certain sports-related injuries among young athletes. Recent findings suggest that strength training during childhood and adolescence may make bones stronger, a benefit which can last a lifetime. 


The same methods for adults usually apply to children in terms of showing them proper form and technique. Children also learn best by doing not by watching so supervision is key to make sure they perform the exercises the right way. In addition, proper diet is also important, such as appropriate amounts of carbs, fats and proteins to keep them energized and allow them to build muscle.


The best time to start a child on a strength training program is if the child is involved in athletics or some type of physical activity where strength training can benefit them. So if the child is starting athletics around the age of 7 or 8, implementing a strengthening program would be a good idea. 


Warming up and stretching should be performed before every session. Since children are more prone to heat illness than adults, they should be encouraged to drink plenty of water throughout the workout. For a beginning program, start with one set of 10-15 repetitions of 6-8 exercises that focus on the major muscle groups of the upper and lower body. Start with light weight and high reps and increase the load and decrease the reps as strength improves (ACSM). 


What's important to understand from this is advocating exercise, physical activity, strength training and proper diet at an early age will only have positive effects on the child's lifestyle choices as they grow into their adult years.

Best Cardiovascular Workout Routine

Running, biking, swimming, walking, eliptical training: lets be honest they're boring to do. I mean, yes it feels good after a nice long run or biking trails can be fun but a stationary bike or treadmill running is just boring and quite frankly a waste of time. You need cardiovascular training for fitness, health and  possibly fat loss but those traditional methods that we all know so well but hate to do isn't the most effective option. On top of that, the high impact that running puts on your joints over time can be stressful. The method:


Circuit Training: A circuit training routine that builds muscle and endurance in one work out is by far the best method. The energy system which is predominately used in circuit training, as i've talked about in one of my previous blogs is the Glycolytic zone. This zone is optimal for fat loss.


What is Circuit Training?
- Well, Circuit Training incorporates high intensity aerobics along with resistance training. Each circuit incorporates roughly 3-5 exercises with no rest. Following the circuit (doing a set for each exercise in the circuit) you can rest for a minute. For optimal results, a training session that incorporates multiple circuit routines within a workout is best for caloric expenditure and fat loss.


Why Circuit Training?
- As stated, this exercise method is the best for fat loss, so if that is your desired goal then this is the best training method. Circuit training incorporates resistance training which deals with EPOC or Excess Post- exercise Oxygen Consumption. So, after a workout your body needs to bring itself back to it's original homeostatic state. This is done by consuming oxygen at an elevated rate. Weight training or resistance training is thought to have a greater rate of EPOC compared to regular aerobic exercise (running, biking etc).


A circuit training routine is time relative, which means you do each set of each exercise as many times as you can within a desired time limit (roughly a minute usually).


An example of a typical circuit routine would be a minute of each exercise, followed by a minute of rest after the circuit is completed. Heres an example of an intermediate circuit routine:
1.) Squats
2.) Pushups
3.) Lunges
4.) Inverted rows
5.) Burpee's (Start standing up and then bend and put your hands of the ground and kick your legs back so that you end in a push up position, then thrust your legs forward between your arms and jump into the air.)
- This incorporates both upper and lower body high intensity work, resulting in large caloric expenditure, good cardiovascular and muscular endurance training. So get out there and try this form of training, trust me you'll feel it and it definitely works!

Why Kettlebells Represent FUNCTIONAL TRAINING in it's Purest Sense

The History: Since the 1800's, Kettlebells have slowly but surely made their way into the mainstream spotlight as one of the top, new ways to improve physical fitness. Developed in Russia as a counterweight for market produce sales, the kettlebell was born. First being used by the farmers as a juggling instrument which turned into exercise brought upon "Girevoy Sport", which in Russian means Kettlebell sport. In 1948 Russians commenced kettlebell sport (Girevoy sport) which pitched a man and a time clock against the maximal repetitions obtained in 3 types of lifts , the snatch (weight swung with one arm straight above head ) , the clean & jerk ( 2 bells swung to chest once , and then put overhead as many times as possible) and the one armed push press. This sport inevitably made it's way to America and the Kettlebell is now one of the best overall functional exercise tools of our time.

Now that the history is out of the way, lets talk about the importance and overall greatness of kettlebells.
When an individual typically weight trains, as I've talked about in my previous blogs, they train in one plane of motion. Kettlebell training uses momentum rather than stationary strength to produce movements. Training in multiple planes while using momentum, kettlebell training improves the body's cardiovascular level, postural control, total body muscular strength, endurance and power.

The Science: You see, when a regular free weight is situated in your hand, the center of the mass, being the weight, is in the palm of your hand. Thus when performing any exercise with a free weight the center of the mass remains constant and the lever stays the same. A kettlebell has a U-shaped handle so the center of the mass of the kettlebell lays outside of ones hand. As the kettlebell rotates around the person's hand while performing an exercise, the kettlebell rotates therefore creating a fluctuating resistance arm and a variable lever length throughout each exercise that is performed. In addition, while performing rotational exercises, such as a single arm swing, centrifugal force is involved creating a greater inertia.

The functionality: Ask yourself this next time you go into a gym and look at the people lifting weights, "what are they doing?" More than likely someone's either standing up, laying down in the supine position or sitting up moving a single joint in a stationary position. Ask yourself another question, "Is that how we move?", do people actually move in one plane of motion. When are you actually every going to press something over your  head while you sit in a chair, probably never!!! That is why kettlebells are a great way to incorporate the various muscle groups into a single motion while still getting the great strength training effects of free weights.

Being both durable and economic, kettlebells can train people in all walks of life whether being young fit and athletic of elderly. So next time you get into the gym, see if they have some kettlebells and try it out for yourself. As always I stress proper form and technique, so if you are going to begin a kettlebell routine, you should educate yourself on the proper movements and safety behind using these great tools.

Know Your Muscles for Optimal Training!!!!

(http://www.brianmac.co.uk/energy.htm)

What many people don't know about the human body in terms of the muscular system is that their is more than one type of muscle fiber. Actually, the muscle fibers can be classified as Type I which is slow twitch and Type I which is fast twitch. From there you can further categorize Type II fibers into Type II-A and Type II-B.


Type I muscle fibers have the slowest-contractile speed, the smallest cross-sectional area, the highest oxidative (aerobic) capacity, and the lowest glycolytic (anaerobic) capacity. They contract slowly and are able to hold a steady paced twitch for long durations without fatigue. Type I muscle fibers are predominately used in endurance activities. Long distance runners, swimmers, and cyclists mostly use Type I fibers.


Type II-B muscle fibers have the fastest-contractile speed, the largest cross-sectional area, the lowest oxidative capacity, and the highest glycolytic capacity. They are ideally suited for short fast bursts of power. These muscle fibers are used in such activities as sprinting, power lifting, and bodybuilding. Type II-A muscle fibers are intermediate and their properties lay between types I and type II-B.


Now that we've gone over the fiber types, we need to look at the energy that your body uses to fuel your muscles. Nutrition is very important in muscle function because your body converts the food it takes in and converts it into usable energy to fuel the muscle, this is called ATP or Adenosine Triphosphate. ATP is the immediate source of energy for muscle contraction. The human body makes ATP readily available through the three energy systems: Creatine-phosphate system or ATP-PC system, glycolytic system and the oxidative system. 
1.) ATP-PC system produces ATP the fastest amongest the other energy systems but only gives us 5-8 seconds of ATP
2.) The Glycolytic system or the Lactic Acid system due to the production of lactic acid as a by product. This system usually lasts less than two minutes and is used in moderately intense exercise. This system uses glycogen to produce ATP in addition this system doesn't utilize oxygen thus being called anaerobic (w/o O2).
3.) The Oxidative System comes into play for activities lasting longer than two minutes. It produces the greatest amount of ATP but takes the longest to produce it. This system uses the three macronutrients (proteins, fats and carbohydrates) to produce ATP. Oxygen is needed for this system to produce ATP.


Since we know the muscle fiber types and how the energy systems work, here is how reps effect strength and the muscle fibers:

Overview	Growth In Muscle Fibers Below
Repetition Range	Type I	Type IIA	Type IIB	Strength Gains
1-2 repetitions	Very Low	Low	Low	Excellent
3-5 repetitions	Very Low	Low	Decent to Good	Excellent
6-8 repetitions	Very Low	Good	Excellent	Good
9-12 repetitions	Low	Excellent	Very Good	Good Within Rep R.
13-15 repetitions	Decent	Very Good	Decent to Good	Endurance
16-25 repetitions	Very Good	Diminishing	Low	Endurance
25-50 repetitions	Excellent	Low	Very Low	Endurance

(http://www.criticalbench.com/muscle-fiber-type.htm)

So as you can see, the best range for strength and definition is 1-8, while muscular endurance is 12-50 reps.

USC Trojacn tailback Injury

Has anyone else heard about this? USC running back Stafon Johnson suffered a crushed larynx and neck on Monday after the bench press barbell slipped out of his right hand onto his neck. An immediate tracheotomy had to be done in order for the Trojan to breath. Stafon underwent 7 hours of surgery at a Los Angeles hospital. He's listed as in critical but stable condition. You can read the article at ESPN.com http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4516365.

What confuses me is that he was being spotted and the assistant strength and conditioning coach was only a mere ten feet away. In any case, if he was being properly spotted, the spotters would have been able to catch the bar and prevent it from landing on his throat and at least landing on his chest. "I've seen players have the bar slip and fall onto their chest, but never in my 25 years of coaching have I heard of someone dropping a bar on their throat," said head strength and conditioning coach Chris Carlisle, "We're fortunate he was being spotted." I heard this story on Sportscenter this morning and i figured he wasn't being spotted and was lifting improperly.

From my knowledge when bench pressing, the bar should be firmly on your palm more proximal to the wrist rather than being held by the fingers because this can cause someone to 1.) break there wrist or 2.) drop the weight on them self. So i feel that the strength and conditioning coaches should have done a better job educating the athletes on the proper way to bench press and also, how to spot another athlete. Most likely, there was a single spotter while he was lifting some near 300lbs... This is a lot of weight for one person to be spotting, if anything a two person spot from each end of the barbell is necessary. The article doesn't imply if there was more than one spotter but i can assume that there wasn't or that they weren't paying attention for this to have occurred.

Thankfully, doctor's say that the surgery was successful and Johnson will be able to return to football, yet the timeline isn't quite clear.