We have some of the most dedicated clients and athletes you’ll ever find at Athletic Lab. They put in their time and often embrace the discomfort associated with the hard physical training necessary to reach one’s goals. Yet, there are still times when the temptation to cheat can get the best of you. Perhaps it’s because you’re exhausted and just want to be done. Maybe it’s because you want to post the best time of the time on a given workout. Or maybe it’s just because you thought no one would see your partial range of motion reps. Whatever the case, we encourage you not to cheat yourself. Everyone here is here to work. No one cares what your score, time or lift was. But everyone cares if you cheat. Be honest with yourself and be honest with everyone else. If you give in to the primitive monkey brain that’s telling you to short the range of motion, cut off a couple reps or skip a round you’re the only one who’s losing out. Push on.
Being flat footed isn’t the end of the world. There have been many successful athletes who have had missing arches in their feet. In fact, there’s ongoing research based on the thought that flat footed sprinters might actually be faster than their counterparts who have normal feet. No matter the level of success, it is necessary for the flat footed to be mindful when it comes to the care of their feet.
There are different types of flat feet. For the purpose of this article, we’ll define flat feet as a medical condition in which the arch of the foot has fallen. When standing, the entire foot of someone who is flat footed would either be in near or complete contact with the ground. If studying the footprints that are left behind near a swimming pool, a footprint that lacks an arch might be found by searching for an entire footprint.
With flat feet, the tendency is for the foot to turn inward or to become pronated. When running, people with flat feet generally overpronate. This puts extra stress on the joints of the ankles, knees, hips and the back. The feet should be viewed as the base of the body. If the foundation is crumbling, everything on top of the base has the potential to become unstable as well. Proper shoes and orthotics have the potential to prevent injuries by alleviating the tendency for the feet to pronate. Without proper support, injuries may occur.
Over recent years, minimalist shoes and barefoot running have increased in popularity. There’s an ongoing debate as to whether or not these shoes, or lack thereof, are worth the rage they’ve become. On one side of the debate: minimalist shoes do have their benefits in athletics. They weigh less and they require less metabolic work while running. Dr. Kelsey Armstrong, DPM, Athletic Lab’s podiatrist, offers the following insight: “Recent studies, most notably Lieberman’s 2010 study (1), have talked about the benefits of minimalist/barefoot running. Minimalist/barefoot running has a lower ground impact, decreased stride length, decreased ground contact time, decreased flight time and less movement of an individual’s center of mass (2,3,4,5). In addition, minimalist/barefoot running requires less oxygen consumption (6).”
On the other side of the debate, minimalist/barefoot running is seen as a source of running-related injuries for some individuals as it offers very little to no support for the feet. Are minimalist shoes the best choice for flat footed people? Depending on the individual, probably not. According to Dr. Armstrong, “Unfortunately in many cases, the risks outweigh its rewards.” In the case of people with flat feet who are interested in minimalist shoes, Dr. Armstrong points out the following regarding minimalist/barefoot running for those with existing medical conditions: ” The Achilles tendon is placed under a large amount of stress during minimalist/barefoot running, which could lead to Achilles tendonitis; and the lower ground impact places increased stress upon the ball of the foot, which could lead to stress fractures. Because of these risks, certain individuals may not be good candidates, i.e., limb length discrepancy, hip musculature weakness/dysfunction, rigid flat and high arched feet, osteopenia.” He concludes with the following list of injuries that individuals with the aforementioned medical conditions may encounter as a result of minimalist/barefoot running:
“Limb length discrepancy: Potential of stress fracture of the longer limb if the deformity is structural. If the discrepancy is functional, then it can be corrected.
Hip musculature weakness/dysfunction: Flexible flat feet usually is due to dysfunction/weakness of the gluteus medius and maximus. If this can not be or is not corrected, it will suffer the same fate as rigid flat feet.
Rigid high arched feet: Obvious potential for stress fracture due to the high impact caused by this foot type.
Rigid flat feet: Places increased stress upon an already tight Achilles tendon complex and by flat feet’s tendency to have prolonged midstance stance during gait/running, the plantar fascia is more likely to be overloaded.”
Minimalist/barefoot running can be beneficial for some people. However, proper preparations should be taken before jumping into minimalist/barefoot running. In his blog, ” Running shoes Are useful,” Dr. Armstrong recommends a protocol of biomechanical examination, stretching and strengthening before reaping the benefits minimalist/barefoot running can provide.
A special thanks to Dr. Armstrong for his contribution to this article. He comes highly recommended by Athletic Lab for the needs of our clients and athletes. His website can be viewed here. His blog may be viewed here.
[This article was written by Cate Young. Cate has been a lead instructor at Athletic Lab since its inception. She is a former collegiate athlete and holds certifications from USAW and USATF]
References
1) Lieberman DE, Venkadesan M, Werbel WA, Daoud AI, D’Andrea S, Davis IS, Mang’eni RO, and Pitsiladis Y, Foot strike patterns and collision forces in habitually barefoot versus shod runners. Nature 463: 531-535, 2010.
2) Braunstein B, Arampatzis A, Eysel P, and Bruggemann GP. Footwear affects the gearing at the ankle and knee joints during running. J. Biomechanics 43: 2120-2125, 2010.
3) De Wit B, De Clercq D, and Aerts P. Biomechanical analysis of the stance phase during barefoot and shod running. J. Biomechanics 33: 269-278, 2000.
4) Heiderscheit BC, Chumanov ES, Michalski MP, Wille CM, and Ryan MB. Effects of step rate manipulation on joint mechanics during running. Med Sci Sports Exerc 43: 296-302, 2011.
5) Squadrone R and Gallozzi C. Biomechanical and physiological comparison of barefoot and two shod conditions in experienced barefoot runners. J Sports Med Phys Fitness 49: 6-13, 2009.
6) Hanson NJ, Berg K, Deka P, Meendering JR, and Ryan C. Oxygen cost of running barefoot vs. running shod. Int J Sports Med 32L 401-406, 2011.
Maximum speed sprint mechanics are often addressed during training sessions. Acceleration mechanics, however, can sometimes be overlooked. Acceleration mechanics, in field and court sports, are just as important, if not more important, than max speed sprint mechanics because of the amount of changes in direction one has to make in a single game. Don’t get me wrong, maximum speed is important, but if you can’t reach your maximum speed efficiently and your opponent can… Guess what? Your team will probably lose the game.
To get the most out of each acceleration, a good first step starting angle should put your body roughly 45 degrees from the ground. Focusing on a good knee drive and extension should be next on the agenda. If you don’t fully extend the back leg during the acceleration phase, you’re shorting yourself precious distance that your opponent is covering and not taking advantage of the power of your hamstrings and glutes. With each step, your ground contact times should become shorten and the torso will come to a more upright position. Don’t rush into this upright position, though. Any changes in body position should be gradual and progressive.
There are several great exercises that can be used to work on acceleration mechanics. The first is medicine ball throw starts where the athletes would start with a moderate weight medicine ball at chest level and as explosively as possible; throw the medicine ball out in front of them as they begin the acceleration process.
Falling starts are another great training tool for acceleration. To perform a falling start, the athlete starts in either a bent over (as seen in the video below) or standing position. From this position, they shift their weight forward until they are off balance. As soon as the athlete feels they are going to fall to the ground, they should drive one knee forward and begin to accelerate.
[This entry was written by John Grace, John is sport performance coach at Athletic Lab]
There are so many structures that are attached at the hip joint but often times they are neglected when stretching. People often stretch other muscles that actually weren’t used nearly as much as the different hip muscles. At the end of a workout, how many can actually say that they spend adequate time stretching their hips? Often people neglect the hips until they feel pain or some injury occurs. Now if anyone has had an injury to your hip whether it is the adductors, rotators, or the iliopsoas group knows that once it occurs they can be very slow in healing and one bad movement can set you back weeks. Why wait until an injury occurs? Instead be proactive in getting the hips loose and improve the range of motion so that an injury is less likely to occur.
In a study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research about hip joint range of motion improvements using different interventions, they found that after 6 weeks of traditional hip stretching and also core endurance exercises the groups that started in the 30th percentile for hip mobility jump into the 75th percentile. The 30th percentile would be in the “limited” hip mobility category, with the 75th percentile putting the groups in the “average” to almost “excessive” hip mobility. This shows that it takes time a dedication the hip joint for longer than a week or stretching before an injury occurs.
Tight hips or hip injuries are an issue and will continue to be a problem until a proper stretching protocol is done for tight hips. Athletic Lab frequently implements Olympic lifts, a squat variation, kettlebell swings, or all three in workouts every single day. If you are an elite level athlete or someone who just wants to improve their fitness, the hips are being used every day. Let’s make it an emphasis to make sure to never skip out on stretching the hips and keep improving range of motion to reduce the likelihood of injury.
[This entry was written by Drake Webster. Drake is a sport performance coach at Athletic Lab and a graduate of ECU. He has both his CSCS and USAW coaching certifications.]
All iphone, ipod touch and ipad users can now make reservations directly from their mobile device using the new zenplanner mobile reservation application available in the iTunes App store. The application is free and users can login using their Athletic Lab username and password just as they would directly from the web. This application should make it easier for users to make reservations while on the go. An Android application should be available shortly.
There are two Olympic lift variations used quite frequently in CrossFit and with athletes in the speed-power realm: the power clean and power snatch. Now, read that last sentence one more time. Did you notice anything? The word POWER precedes both clean and snatch. This is exactly what these movements require and are designed to train. Power. Many CrossFits and performance training centers around the world use high repetition Olympic lifting in their programming. Rarely, if ever, will you ever see this performed at Athletic Lab.
Olympic lifts are used in training to develop power and explosiveness, not to enhance muscular endurance or power-endurance. Using power cleans for power-endurance (high rep sets) is like using a hammer to cut a piece of wood. You reduce the power aspect to a power clean or power snatch if you perform these lifts to muscular fatigue. If you are trying to train to improve your muscular endurance or power-endurance, there are other, safer, less technically difficult multi-joint exercises (i.e. squat jumps) to choose from that can do just that, while limiting fatigue-induced poor form.
Olympic lifts are among the most technically challenging of multi-joint movements. To perform these lifts, and perform them well, you will need to recruit almost every muscle in your body. As the repetitions increase in a set, your ability to produce power and velocity decreases in the later reps, due to fatigue. This increased fatigue can wreak havoc on the body, in the form of the ability to, or lack thereof, maintain proper form throughout the movement. For most people, the lower back is usually the first to falter. This can result in poor posture or rounding of the back during the first pull phase of these Olympic lifts. If your starting position is not correct, everything can, and usually does, follow suit, putting you at immediate risk for injury.
Many speed-power athletes on the collegiate and professional levels use these lifts in combination with other exercises to generate sport-specific power and velocity. At Athletic Lab, we run our CrossFit with this in mind; a smooth operating collegiate or pro-style strength and conditioning weight room. This maximizes one’s potential to become the most athletic and fit they have ever been in their life while reducing the likelihood of injury.
Eric Broadbent, member of our HPC Elite team and Athletic Lab Sports Performance Coach, will represent the United States in the 2012 Pan American Games as a decathlete. The Pan Am Games will be held on May 26th and 27th in Ottawa, Canada. Eric is among two other athletes chosen to compete for the U.S. in the decathlon. Eric, who took home the gold medal two months ago at The National Indoor Championships in Bloomington, Indiana, is looking to solidify his spot at the 2012 Olympic Trials with this performance.
“No pain, no gain!” Without a doubt, that phrase is something we have all heard at some point. This expression can be used in any aspect of life, and most of the time it is true. In fitness, it’s a different story. There are two kinds of pain in fitness, and it is important to be able to distinguish between the two. One kind of pain is the “Holy crap, my muscles are burning so much, I don’t think I can push out another rep” and the other is “Ouch, my joints and muscles hurt so bad and I feel like something is going to snap if I push anymore”. It is important you mentally and physically push through the first when appropriate and recognize when the latter is occurring.
To make any kind of progress in your workouts and personal best performances, you will sometimes need to push through the discomfort caused by fatigue (the people who don’t are known, in Athletic Lab, as ‘sandbaggers’). We don’t want people to become ‘sandbaggers’. Rather, we want our athletes to embrace this fatigue and be able to mentally and physically push past their “limitations” to become better athletes or fitter individuals.
Listen to what your body is telling you though. Your body is the best platform to relay these injury messages to you, so don’t ignore them. If they are telling you “I feel like I might seriously injure myself if I keep going”. Chances are, your body is right on point.
There is a fine line between these two types of pain and it is important for you to stay injury-free so you can continue to make progress to your ultimate fitness goals. Whether it is to do one pullup or to hit a 300lb back squat. It might take some time for you to figure out the differences between these two types of pain and what your body is trying to tell you, but, with anything, in due time, this will become more natural. Open communication between coaches and athletes is the key for the continuation of you on the road to your goals.
Hoops City, a premier AAU basketball program out of North Carolina, is teaming with Athletic Lab. Hoops City has some of the best up-and-coming basketball players in North Carolina. Athletic Lab is going to take them one step above their competition by providing on-site training for their AAU teams on speed, power, strength, and agility. Hoops City, who had over 40 teams in the program this past year, is adding to their arsenal with the top sports performance training center in North Carolina.
By popular demand, Athletic Lab will be offering two special skills clinics in the upcoming weeks. These clinics will give members the opportunity to learn in a hands-on, classroom setting, fully dedicated to teaching these technical movements and the progressions to execute the exercises correctly.
Kipping Pullup Clinic - Saturday, May 12th 12:30pm-1:45pm
Learn the progressions and positions to effectively perform the elusive kipping pullup.
In this clinic we will demonstrate and break down the movement so that it can be learned in a safe and efficient manner.
Power Snatch Clinic - Saturday, May 26th 12:30pm-2:00pm
Learn the movements to achieving the proper technique for the snatch. In addition, you will learn how to correct common errors during the snatch and learn the proper stance and grip width for the snatch.
Cost: $20 for each clinic
We are limiting each clinic to 15 spots. Please signup at the front desk.
Being flat footed isn’t the end of the world. There have been many successful athletes who have had missing arches in their feet. In fact, there’s ongoing research based on the thought that flat footed sprinters might actually be faster than their counterparts who have normal feet. No matter the level of success, it is necessary for the flat footed to be mindful when it comes to the care of their feet.
