This afternoon I managed to tear myself away from the cricket to catch up on a podcast or two. Among them was the latest from Strength News; episode 7. This week Chris discusses :
Anyone familiar with the martial arts' concept of rooting will immediately see the power of Chuck Halbakken's suggestions. A Tae Kwon Do black belt and certified kettlebell instructor himself, Halbakken discusses a way to generate power for hand strength - starting at the feet.
This article [,pdf, 24 kb] is the first in a series looking at power generation. Should be a good one.
This month's article series with Run to Win's Blaine Moore looks at workout locations. Whether you're training in a commercial gym, your parents' basement, a garage or the local park; there are a few things to keep in mind - as well as some benefits associated with each location. This article looks at a training location more than a few people have employed over the years - for sports, yoga, weight lifting, running and general fitness - the beach.
Hardness of the surface
Much of what you will choose to - and be able to - do at the beach will depend upon the hardness of the surface. Throwing a medicine ball about is something which can be done almost anywhere; running generally requires a long, flat, stable surface (think about the beach scene in Chariots of Fire).
Generally speaking, the firmer sand is nearer the water's edge. Naturally, there are a number of exceptions to this; it really is a case of going down there and walking around in bare feet to get a feel for the surface.
If you're in any doubt about bare-footed workouts (on the beach, anyway), take a listen to Martin Rooney's April '06 interview [.mp3, 5.7mb] on EliteFTS. In this, Rooney discusses the advantages and disadvantages of bare foot training. Whether you wear shoes or not really depends on what you're going to be doing.
Popularity of the location
If you've ever been to St Andrews' West Sands (location for the abovementioned beach scene in Chariots of Fire), you'll appreciate that whilst the beach itself may be ideal for training; the number of visitors may suggest otherwise. Privacy is not the issue - instead it's simply one of not having to move out of the way every five minutes.
Suitable types of workouts
Obviously some types of training are more suited to the beach environment than others, and this will depend partially on the layout of the beach and your preparedness to carry a few things. To get you started, here are a few ideas.
Hill sprints on dunes. Without getting into the intricacies of hill sprinting itself, let me just assure you that running at any speed up a sandy surface is a challenge. Running coach Percy Cerutty (pictured at left) used this training technique with great success on legendary runners John Landy and Herb Elliott. Hill sprints on sand are also enjoyed regularly by several major Rugby League teams.
Kettlebell training. Whilst kettlebells can be swung almost anywhere, the exercises which involve letting it go (either intentionally or accidentally) lend themselves well to the beach. As well as the snatch/C+J/press training, try out a spot of kettlebell juggling or putting. They're effective exercises, and fun.
Team sports and activites. Beach volleyball is perhaps the first thing that comes to mind, but think also of activities such as a Tug-of-War or short sprint races along the harder sand. Bring a couple of empty hessian sacks and make quick sandbags - passing them around is always interesting.
Medicine ball workout. As mentioned earlier, a great way to train at the beach is with a medicine ball or two. Think conditioning rather than strength, and try all those exercises that'd usually have you thrown out of a commercial gym. Hurl the medicine balls around and have some fun.
Yoga. If you're looking for something a little different to your regular weight lifting, try a bit of yoga at the beach. A great way to start the day.
Danny O'Dell's* latest newsletter lists 12 factors that affect recovery, according to Dr Fred Hatfield.
These are :
- The larger muscles take longer to recover than do smaller ones.
- Bigger muscle groups take longer than do smaller muscle groups.
- Predominantly white fibers – the fast twitch – take longer to recover than do the slow twitch or red fiber muscles of the body. Recall that fast twitch fibers produce power and the red or slow fibers are more suited to long endurance types of activities.
- High intensity lifting in ranges above 80-85% 1RM requires greater recuperation times than do those who are in and below the 75% range.
- Full range exercise movements cause more muscle tissue damage than partial range motions and necessitate greater recovery times and methods.
- Older lifters or those above 35 need more time to recover when compared to a younger athlete.
- Recovery rates can be advanced as a result of aerobic weight training load program manipulations. The recovery can also be retarded if there is little to no aerobic efficiency training to the regimen. A general basis of physical fitness helps ensure greater recovery between exercise sessions.
- Better nutrition habits can have a significant impact on the recovery process. Especially when compared to poor eating habits.
- A healthy body generally recovers faster and more efficiently than an unhealthy one.
- Eccentric muscle contractions increase the recovery time due to the interfibril damage that occurs with this type of lifting.
- Overtraining or undertraining, whether occurring from biological and/or psychological causes, increases the demands on the recovery mechanisms.
An excellent list.
Via Powerlifting Watch : video [streaming, 3.1mb .flv download via KeepVid] of Finnish superheavyweight Ove Lehto's record squat. 425 kg (935 lb) of fun.
Several people have been sending me emails recently on possible items for Straight to the Bar. Whilst this is great, and certainly encouraged, there's another method that may be even easier for some. The choice is yours.
The alternative is the del.icio.us bookmark. Anything tagged 'for:sttb' will appear before my eyes on a regular basis, and if you're anything like me (I tend to spend an inordinate amount of time in services such as del.icio.us) it may be a little faster. Naturally, the email alternative (send suggestions to scott AT straighttothebar DOT com) is also a good one.
Strongman Phil Pfister hit the headlines a couple of months ago when he took the title of World's Strongest Man; the first American to do so in over 20 years. This morning I stumbled across his site (via the Diesel Crew's Jedd Johnson), which contains some great photographs of the big guy.
The pool's been handing out invitations all week, the Aussie cricketers are in fine form and Kris' Virtual Meet is only 10 weeks away. Sit back, relax, and enjoy a few of these :
Chad Waterbury talks up his new book, Muscle Revolution, over at T-Nation. Looks like a great read.
The world of sleep research is one which never, well, sleeps. Here are just a few of the sleep-related things I've noticed recently :
If all this talk of sleep has made you keen to dig a little deeper into the strange worlds of polyphasic and biphasic sleep (reportedly used successfully by both bodybuilders and powerlifters), consider the Uberman and Steve Pavlina forums (particularly Health and Fitness). Some great information on each of them.
