Athletic Lab

[This post is written by Drake Webster, CSCS - Athletic Development Coach at Athletic Lab]

The title has an intentionally sarcastic tone. The reason is that many ‘experts’ claim to make athletes faster. These same ‘experts’ like to pull out fancy gimmicks and gadgets to train people for speed. The funny thing is that every athlete was born with the greatest piece of equipment to get faster, themselves.

The best way to get faster is to just like the title states, run faster.  Many of the new techniques out today are sort of “gimmicks” to advertise to lure people in. Just have athletes sprint, sprint, and then sprint again. Sprint short. Sprint long. Sprint with resistance. Sprint up a hill. You get the point.

Athletes being coached on correct running mechanics will become faster and more efficient runners. Athletes being coached on proper work to rest ratios will increase speed, because the athletes are not fatigued and are focusing on speed development.
Other training can certainly contribute to faster times (strength training, plyometrics, etc.) but in the end if you want to run faster, run faster!

[This post is written by John Grace, CSCS - Athletic Development Coach at Athletic Lab]

Every athlete and fitness enthusiast will undoubtedly encounter a “sticking point” at some point in their career. The sticking point, or plateau, is when an athlete is stuck at a particular training or competition number or weight. For example, an athlete can’t get over a 150kg back squat or they can’t break the 10.0s barrier in the 100m dash.  To the athlete, it will become seemingly impossible to ever reach a score or weight beyond the number they are currently achieving.  This has the potential to create multiple problems: loss of form, loss of interest, decrease in motivation, unnecessary or premature reliance on anabolic substances, an endless search for plausible ergogenic aids, injury or even the end of one’s sporting career.

The following are some methods that Mel Siff, PhD lists in his book, Supertraining, that could be beneficial the next time you’re going for a max or near-max attempt:

1. Attempt to increase the number of repetitions with near maximal loads. For example, try to increase a 2 Rep Max (RM) to a 3RM or a 3RM to a 5RM.
2. Increase loads by unfamiliar increments. Sticking points often relate to the numerical value of the load that associates with one’s current 1RM. For example, if you are trying to increase your 1RM of 100kg via succession of sets of 80-90-95-100kg, the sequence could be changed to sets of 80-92.5-97.5-102.5kg.
3. Add minimal weights increments near your attempts with your 1RM. Very light weights (0.5-1.0kg) will be virtually unnoticeable. You should simply continue to train as if the small increment was not there.
4. Alter or improve technique in problematic exercises. Sometimes the plateau is due to imperfect technique.  A skilled coach’s eye or video analysis can facilitate necessary changes.

These are just a few methods provided by Siff, PhD, that can be implemented the day of training and don’t require a lot of preparation.  If you’re stuck on a certain rep max, try one of these next time you go for a personal best.  It could be the difference between matching your personal best and creating an all-time personal best.

References:
Siff, Mel, PhD. (2003). Supertraining (6th Ed.). Denver. Supertraining Institute.

[This post is written by John Grace, CSCS - Athletic Development Coach at Athletic Lab]

For some reason when the Olympics roll around every four years, most people I talk to jokingly say that they can’t wait for the water polo match.  Why? I’m not too sure why they use water polo, or handball for that matter, as the butt of their joke.  Regardless of the sport, any time an athlete reaches an elite (Olympic) or professional status, it means they’ve done what an extreme majority of people in the world can’t do.

Water polo, along with other sports, such as handball and soccer, combines the unique ability to sprint fast repeatedly with very short rest intervals.  What Hohmann and Frase found in their study “Analysis of Swimming Speed and Energy Metabolism in Competitive Water Polo Games” is that these athletes rarely sprint longer than 10 seconds (1). This fact alone, according to the NSCA, tells us that these athletes are mainly dealing with the phosphagen and fast glycolysis systems (2). With the former being your short bursts, high power output energy system.

Training for water polo is very much like soccer from a fitness standpoint because you need the ability to repeat sprints with very little rest. Although, needing a cannon of an arm you could only find on the top Major League Baseball pitching staffs is somewhat of a necessity.  Using traditional methods for power development (Olympic lifting and squatting) are always of benefit, but a water polo player must also have a high power output in their upper body due to their throws.  The throwing motion is very similar to that of a baseball pitcher, but the baseball pitcher will have the ability to create forces from the ground all the way up through the body, whereas water polo players have no ground support. This is the reason why water polo athletes need to rely significantly on upper body, core and rotational strength. With the swim training, much of the chest and shoulder will taxed and to prevent overuse injuries, much other upper body weight room training should consist of pulling i.e. rows or pull-ups.

These athletes swim over a mile a game (1) on the elite level, which is over 35 lengths on an Olympic-size pool, with a majority being max effort sprints.  Pair that along with the kicking, hitting, and the ripping-your arm-out-of-your-socket blocking, I’d call it legitimate.

References:

Hohmann, A. and R. Frase. “Analysis of Swimming Speed and Energy Metabolism in Competitive Water Polo Games”.  Biomechanics and Medicine in Swimming: Swimming Science VI. (1992). 268-274. Print

Baechle, Thomas R. and Roger W Earle. National Strength and Conditioning Association. Essentials of Strength and Conditionging. 3rd ed. Champaign IL. Human Kinetics. 2008. 32. Table 2.3. Print.

[This post is written by John Grace, CSCS - Athletic Development Coach at Athletic Lab]

Consider two cars. On one end you have a 1988 Yugo, who’s engine runs well and can get you around at the 30mph speed limit all day without an issue, and on the other you have a 2012 Porsche Boxter, with a gem of an engine that has enough power to go from 0 to 60 in 5.5 seconds. You direct them both to drive 60mph down the highway.  Both cars are able to keep up for a while at 60mph at the same pace. The Porsche Boxter is only at a fraction of its potential, but the Yugo is going 90-100% of its maximum speed. Eventually the Yugo starts shaking, becomes overheated, and has to pull off to the side of the road.  The Porsche Boxter can go for hundreds more miles without skipping a beat and staying at a relatively easy pace.  In essence, this is running economy.

This concept can be flipped and used to relate to speed/power development as a means to improve running economy. Running economy, defined as the steady-state VO2 for a given running velocity1, dictates the amount of oxygen one’s body would have to consume to stay running at a given pace. Running economy is most crucial for athletes, such as triathletes, long-distance runners, or even middle-distance track and field athletes. 

Paavolainen, et al. studied this concept: speed and power training = improved running economy (5km running times in this case).  With two training groups in the study, Group C and Group E consisted of 32%  and 3% of training hours devoted to sport specific explosive-strength training2, respectively, with the rest of the training devoted to endurance and circuit training. With significantly more resistance training in Group C than in Group E, they proved, that the higher resistance trained group, group C, out-did group E in their final 5k times after a 9 week training program.

Speed and power development have a place in every sport, with some being more prevalent than others. Train outside the confines of your sport while keeping specificity in mind. It’s all how you manage your training and progress your athlete through these training cycles and phases that will give you the certain outcome you are looking for.

References:
1. Morgan DW, Martin PE, Krahenbuhl GS. “Factors affecting running economy”. Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.). 7.5 (1989): 310-330. Print

2. Paavolainen et al. “Explosive-strength training improves 5-km running time by improving running economy and muscle power”. Journal of Applied Physiology. 86.5 (1999): 1527-1533. Print

[This post is written by Drake Webster, CSCS - Athletic Development Coach at Athletic Lab]

Many times you see athletes before they compete or maybe people before they are about to train and a lot of times you see a common theme, they are getting in some last second static stretching. If they have learned anything about current research on static stretching they would ultimately know that they are actually hurting themselves and most likely hindering their upcoming performance. Why is that? Well before getting into why this method of warming up could prevent the athlete from a stellar performance, static stretching needs to be defined.

Static stretching is defined as a slow and constant stretch, with the end position held for 30 seconds (1). The amount of time a stretch is held can fluctuate between 10 to 30 seconds with very minimal movement, if any.

Now that static stretching is defined, what is that makes this type of stretching harmful to an athlete’s performance? This type of stretching being done as part of the warm up is wrong for two main reasons. First it is going against the grain for what a warm up should be doing and that is preparing the body ready for the physical demands of competing or training. A warm up should be dynamic in nature with sport specific movements that increase’s the body’s core temperature and the synovial fluid of the joints, hints the name “warm up”.

Secondly static stretching done before competing affects the elastic energy stored and also the stiffness of the tendons. The static energy capability is decreased due to the fact that the static stretching causes the stiffness to decrease, hindering the capability for the body to use the elastic energy stored. The final consequences of this is a lower power output causing a detrimental effect on performance. “Our results show that the time of a 40 m sprint was significantly increased when preceded by static stretching. Thus, it appears that pre-performance stretching exercises negatively impact skills that require multiple repetitive high power outputs in addition to those that depend mainly on maximizing a single output of peak force or power.”(2) This is characterized by a research study done by LSU’s Kinesiology department.

If the goal is to get faster, stronger, lift heavier, be more explosive or just plain win whatever competition the athlete is competing in, maybe try a different approach to the warm up. Be more dynamic and sport specific and alleviate the static stretching prior to competition.

References
(1) Jeffreys, Ian. “Warm-Up and Stretching.” Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning. 3rd ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2008. 299+. Print.

(2) Winchester, Jason, Arnold Nelson, Michael Young, and Dennis Landin. “STATIC STRETCHING IMPAIRS SPRINT PERFORMANCE IN COLLEGIATE TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETES.” The Journal of Strength and Conditoning Research 22.1 (2008): 13-18. Print.

[This is a guest blog by one of our Athletic Interns, Jesse Wang, an Exercise Science student from the University of Oregon]

Testosterone is the principal male sex hormone that improves body composition, prevents osteoporosis, increases libido and is responsible for most male sexual characteristics. Testosterone improves body composition through increased protein synthesis and muscle mass as well as reduced body fat. There are ways to maximize the natural production of testosterone, which leads to improved health, aesthetics and athletic performances without facing the negative side effects of steroids.

Training full body movements with high intensity and volume affects the endocrine response of the body in a positive way. In the weight room, benefits are reaped from heavy Olympic weightlifting movements as well as deep squats multiple times a week. For this purpose, it is better to sprint instead of going on a steady state jog on the track. These complex and compound movements increase natural testosterone production by placing a large metabolic stress on your body.

Diet also plays a critical role in maximizing testosterone levels. It is essential to consume an optimal amount of saturated fat and zinc. Egg yolks and red meats contain saturated fat. Red meats are a good source of zinc. Vitamin D levels are correlated with testosterone levels. If Vitamin D levels are low, both Vitamin D3 supplements and exposure to the sun may be utilized to raise those levels.

Sleeping properly and avoiding alcohol will also improve testosterone levels. Improper sleep will increase cortisol levels and decrease testosterone levels. Alcohol reduces sleep quality by increasing non-REM sleep and by reducing REM sleep. Alcohol also inhibits the body’s ability to remove estrogen from the blood stream and decreases zinc levels.

Increased testosterone levels will lead to a healthier life in addition to improved athletic performances and aesthetic appearance. Training often with high intensity, eating properly, avoiding alcohol and sleeping properly will all help to naturally increase testosterone levels. It is important to try and adhere to these guidelines everyday for maximum benefits.

Maggie was recently featured in the August 2012 Issue of “Lacrosse Magazine”.  Maggie’s Green Hope Lacrosse team ranked #3 in the South Division at the conclusion of the season; not to be out-shined by an MVP award and a dominating state title performance.

“Unranked in the preseason, Green Hope had a storybook ending, finishing undefeated and winning a state title.  On their run, the Falcons defeated each of the last two state champions twice: preseason no. 8 Apex and Charlotte Catholic.  The latter included a 17-6 victory in the championship game, in which MVP Maggie Auslander scored five goals despite sporting a cast due to a fractured bone in her left forearm.”

Maggie also earned All-American and Sportsmanship accolades.

CrossFit Endurance on Mondays at 6:00pm will now be held at 6:30pm. Please take note that this change will take effect on Monday, August 6th.

In the final post in this mini-series on how we’re striving to make Athletic Lab the best possible training center it can be, we’ll look at the actual training experience. In our first post in this series we looked at how our coaches are the most qualified in the area and are still striving to separate themselves from their peers through continuing education and certifications. In the second post we looked at the improvements we’ve made to our facility to ensure that even as our numbers grow, we’re able to offer an un-compromised training experience. While those two points are admirable, at the end of the day, what we’re ultimately trying to provide is the best possible training experience for our members. That’s why on this post, we’ll focus on how we’re ‘connecting the dots’ and making sure that our efforts are guided toward that end goal. Here’s some of the things we’ve done to ensure that this is being done:

• We’ve upped the class size limit to our CF / Performance Fitness class from 15 to 20 to accomodate increased demand
• We’ve added one to two instructors to every class so that there are now AT LEAST two instructors on every class and in some cases as many as three
• We’ve added almost 10 hours of class hours for members to take advantage of
• Our RSVP system now sends out email notices if an RSVP’d member cancels and your wait list status changes to having a reserved class spot
• We’ve added extra events and skills clinics for our members to take advantage of such as our recent Overhead Squat and Snatch Skills clinic, the monthly Scholastic Combine, and our upcoming Soccer Fitness clinic
• We’ve added the ability to RSVP via mobile application
• We’ve added post-workout nutritional options from Gatorade and Vita Coco.

We’re grateful to all our awesome members who make our job easy. We’ll continue to make Athletic Lab the premier training center in North Carolina to serve you better.

Good, better, best; never let it rest till your good is better and your better is best.

~Unknown Author

[This is a guest blog by one of our Athletic Interns, Jesse Wang, an Exercise Science student from the University of Oregon]

In order to perform at a high level, it is essential to train hard as well as recover from the training stress. The quicker you are able to recover from the workouts, the faster your progress will be. Inadequate recovery can lead to slow progress, overtraining, and/or injury. Active recovery, contrast showers, and self myofascial release can all increase the speed of recovery and lower the chance of injury.

Active recovery is low intensity exercise between high intensity training sessions. These workouts will increase capillary density and general fitness. An example of active recovery is when a sprinter does tempo running (ex. 15x100m at 70%) between his speed days. Other examples include medicine ball circuits, long warmups, or light weightlifting circuits. Since the intensity is low, it is recommended to keep the rest periods low as well.

Contrast showers increase the rate of recovery by improving blood circulation. The increased blood circulation will help increase the amount of nutrients to the muscles. One way to perform a contrast shower is having 3 minutes of hot water followed by 1 minute of cold water. Repeat this cycle three or four times.

Self myofascial release is more commonly known as foam rolling. Foam rolling can get the knots out of tight muscles. This will lead to increased mobility as well as a decreased chance of muscle tears. The IT band and lats are especially painful but it is important not to neglect painful areas. Foam rolling will hurt at first, but the pain will decrease as the tissue quality improves over time.

These activities can help you recover in between training sessions. Paying attention to recovery and will distance yourself from the competition. It can help increase your work capacity, fitness, and reduce the chance of injury.