A bit of bad news. This will be my final blog post. Unfortunately, at this point, I feel like I’ve touched on most of the topics which I wanted to address when I started the blog. Lately I feel like I have really been forcing posts, posting ANYTHING rather than actually posting for the sake of putting some important information out there. Since I’ve started the blog, two things have happened. First of all, I find I’m reading a lot less about fitness. That is partially due to the fact that the free time which I used to devote to reading is now devoted to blogging. Secondly, I am currently working as a manager rather than a personal trainer at the gym, and only directly working with one client. As a result, I haven’t been picking up new information via my own research or my own experience.
I have not given up on learning new information at all. In effect, I’m ceasing the blog for selfish reasons. I want more time for my own research!
My thinking is, rather than struggling to put out a sub-par product, I might as well end it here. I want to wish all of you who have frequented the blog best of luck with your athletic pursuits. Also, I wanted to thank you very much for taking the time to read my work. I had a great time writing the posts, and was happy that I felt I was making even the tiniest little difference in an industry which I love. Keep working hard and keep learning! #allgo
Did a fun conditioning session today. I wanted to hammer a medium-length circuit at the beginning and then do some heavy lifting while I was fatigued. In MMA or BJJ, it is important to be able to generate large amounts of force even when you are fatigued, whether that fatigue is due to muscular failure or high aerobic demands.To that end, the workout consisted of…
The 15 minute second portion of the workout may not seem like much, but after all of the burpees and thrusters, your energy will be sapped. Enjoy! #allgo
I’m going to start off this post by warning you, the reader, that this is going to be a rare post which focuses on an experience which occurred in my life this week, rather than a strictly informative post.
I generally get about 5-7 days of resistance training in a week (some conditioning, some strength/power training, the breakdown of which is based on which training phase I’m in). Generally I workout on my own, which suits me nicely. I don’t have to worry about another person’s schedule. I get to program the way I want. I have my own quiet time with my thoughts.
But sometimes I find it difficult to push myself in conditioning. Since I do all my own programming and am not directly monitored by a coach, it would be really easy for me to skip workouts here and there, or to dog it. I’m proud to say that I can’t remember the last time I skipped a workout simply because I didn’t want to do it. But, the bottom line is, it’s harder to push yourself when you’re on your own than it is when a parter is there spurring you on.
For those of you who don’t know, the CrossFit open started recently. 2 workouts have been released, 13.1 and 13.2. I decided that I wanted to do all the workouts this year, but that I would modify certain workouts if necessary. Since I am very much against high rep Olympic lifting, I had to modify 13.1, which was a burpee and snatch workout. Today I did the 13.2 workout with no modifications. It was as follows:
5 x 115# shoulder-to-overhead
10 x 115# deadlift
15 x 24 inch box jumps
(as many reps as possible in 10 mins)
I work and workout at a YMCA gym. There are a few CrossFitters around the gym, including a guy who I will call “Tony”. Tony trains at a CrossFit gym, and mostly comes to the Y to do midday stretching. He has completed at least one Ironman that I know of, and several distance runs. We chat from time to time about our workouts. I mentioned to him before I started my workout today that I was going to do 13.2. He gave me a few tips having already done the workout himself at his CrossFit gym.
After chatting about the workout for a few minutes, we went our separate ways. I did my lacrosse ball work, foam rolling, and dynamic stretching. Since I was planning on doing the workout by myself, I collected a pile of 2.5# plates which I intended to use to help myself remember how many rounds I had completed.
I wasn’t too worried about this workout. It looked waaaay easier on paper than 13.1. 10 minutes is short, and I knew 115# wouldn’t be a problem for me to throw around. About 2 minutes into the workout I realized that it was going to be more challenging than I thought. “Ah well,” I said to myself. “You’re used to pushing yourself through conditioning, you’ll getter done”. Just as I was making this realization that the workout was going to be a lot more challenging than I thought, something really cool happened.
Tony, unprompted, came up and started to coach me through. He stayed for the last 8 minutes of the workout. He helped move the bar and count the reps, but most of all he helped push me through. Telling me to pick the bar up again. Telling me I was allowed to take 5 breaths and then start a new round. Having not had anyone there to push me through a workout in a long time, I couldn’t believe how much it helped. I listened to him, and definitely pushed harder than I would have had I been alone.
It really meant a lot to me that he did that, and as much as I blast CrossFit in some of my posts, as far as I have seen supporting your fellow exercisers during workouts is commonplace in CrossFit. I finished the workout surpassing the goal I had set for myself (scored 220 for those of you know know the workout), and I know Tony was a large part of that.
The whole ordeal just reminded me how important good training partners are. They will push you further, help you to correct things, and keep you motivated. We should all go into our workouts with the “all go” philosophy in mind, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t all benefit from some encouragement.
I guess this post is ultimately a love letter to training parters. If you are part of a team or training group, don’t underestimate how much your encouragement and kind words help your teammates. On the other side of the coin, realize that your success is due in part to their presence. Take care of your training partners, and be a good training partner yourself. Even if your sport, like mine, is an individual competition rather than a team one, your training partners do a lot more than you might realize to help you succeed. #allgo
Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that your conditioning programming (as opposed to strength/power programming) has to be super fancy. Especially if you are focusing on energy systems rather than muscular endurance, you don’t need to have a workout containing 12 different complicated movements. In fact, having too many complex movements in a workout where you will be trying to complete them while extremely fatigued can be a recipe for an injury. Keep it simple. Focus on a small number of movements in a workout, and try to choose options where either a) form breakdown is not extreme (ie box jumps), or b) form breakdown will not result in a huge potential for injury (ie burpees). #allgo
I got some feedback on my most recent post from another trainer friend of mine. He suggested that I might have left out a couple of mobility issues which might cause heavy torso inclination during overhead squats (or front squats, or back squats for that matter).
The first thing he noted is that tightness in the hip flexors (especially the iliopsoas) can pull the torso forward. If you do a lot of sitting during the day, this means you. Fix this problem by doing a Bulgarian split squat-style stretch with your knee on the floor (or a mat) and your glute on the same side engaged.
The second thing he noted is that poor hip internal rotation can cause forward torso inclination. This problem can result in you having to sit back in your squat rather than straight down, thus requiring you to lean forward to prevent yourself from falling over. If you are like me, and internal rotation of the femur is somewhat uncomfortable, try simply doing some bodyweight squats in a wider than average stance without letting your toes point out too far. #allgo
The overhead squat is, in my opinion, one of the most challenging non-Olympic lifting barbell lifts which you can do. It requires a ton of mobility in several different regions of the body, as well as a ton of core strength and overhead stability. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the overhead squat, check out this video below.
Perhaps the first question which needs answering is: do you even need to overhead squat? I had this debate with an Olympic lifter friend of mine. His argument was that overhead squatting is unnecessary because the movement is covered when you snatch. I still felt the overhead squat was an important exercise to help create core and overhead stability. It took my thick head a couple of days to realize why we had differing viewpoints: he squat snatches, while I mostly power snatch. As a result, he gets a lot of full range overhead squatting in from his snatching, whereas I do not. This would explain in part why I struggle with the overhead squat: I haven’t really done it much.
Long story short, if you do a lot of squat snatching, you probably don’t need to program heavy overhead squats into your routine. If you mostly power snatch, I’d recommend programming in overhead squats to get you comfortable in the bottom position. And just to throw a little common sense at you: unless you are a CrossFitter training the overhead squat for its own sake, or an Olympic lifter training the overhead squat for snatching with a belt on, ditch the weight belt. Doing an exercise like this which demands a lot of your core with a belt on doesn’t make much sense.
What Does The Overhead Squat Do?
Believe it or not, the overhead squat, for most people, is not going to do a ton to build up lower body strength/power. Think of it this way. Let’s say you can back squat 300# for 3 reps, and overhead squat 250# for 3 reps. In both movements, your legs are displacing the same amount of weight. Since you can presumably overhead squat less than you can back or front squat, your legs will not be challenged in the same way that they would be if you back or front squatted.
The overhead squat is GREAT for core stability, upper back strengthing, mobility (especially when done lightly with an emphasis on perfect technique), and assessment purposes. If you want to see what’s wrong with a person’s body mobility-wise, watch them overhead squat.
As a bit of an aside, if you have never done the overhead squat, it may look like it requires a lot of tricep strength. While the triceps might be needed to press the weight into an overhead position, your elbows should be locked out when overhead squatting. There should be NO bend. If you find your triceps working a lot, you are probably doing the movement wrong.
Am I Ready To Overhead Squat?
Here is a guideline which I would suggest. Ever heard of the behind-the-neck Sots press? See the video below. If you can do this exercise properly and pain free with an empty Olympic bar, you PROBABLY (and remember, I’m not a doctor) have the mobility and shoulder health required to overhead squat.
My Sots Press Was Laughable. How Can I Get To The Point Of Overhead Squatting?
There are a number of things which can cause a poor Sots press. If you are an athlete and have been training using even moderately good programming and full range of motion, I’m going to go ahead and assume core stability and upper back/shoulder strength are likely not the reason your Sots press looks like you are bowing. Chances are the culprit is poor mobility.
If your torso inclines forward, you may have poor ankle mobility (focus on soleus and heel cord) or poor hip mobility (focus on piriformis, glutes, hams, etc.).
If you have pain in the knees or hips you probably have poor mobility in the knees or hips. Pretty self explanatory.
If you cannot push the bar straight up overhead, chances are one or several of the following areas need mobility work: upper traps, lats, pec minor, thoracic.
While I’m not going to go into how to fix all of those problems, check out the video below from Kelly Starrett which has some good overhead squat warm-up/solution info.
I’m Good To Start Overhead Squatting. How Do I Incorporate It Into My Programming?
Since this movement demands a lot of the core and a little bit less of the legs, I would definitely suggest doing it closer to the end of your workout. You definitely want to get your Olympic lifting and heavy squatting in first. Essentially, I would categorize this lift as an accessory movement. Don’t make it the focus of a workout.
I would not suggest going much above 6 reps per set on this exercise. It is a very complex movement that requires a lot of neural drive. High rep it, and small muscles like the ones in the upper back will start to fail, thus causing poor mechanics and increasing risk of injury.
The overhead squat is also a great warm-up for snatching. As well, as I mentioned earlier, it is a great assessment tool.
In Closing…
The overhead squat is an excellent exercise for any athlete who is not squat snatching. However, if you don’t respect how difficult and demanding it is and just try to jump into it, you are likely to hurt yourself. Check out your Sots press, and if you have issues which need some attention, fix them. Once you are ready to overhead squat, definitely consider making it a regular part of your routine. #allgo
Had a bit of a challenge programming conditioning today for myself. My legs were dead from a thruster conditioning session yesterday and heavy power cleans and front squats the day before. I don’t like upper-body focused conditioning sessions because they are just plain easier than ones which use the lower body, especially when it comes to aerobic demand. Worked out this little number.
7 rounds for time (no breaks) of:
row 500 meters,
6 barbell push press at 135
Once all rounds have been completed, immediately do 30 box jump burpees with no rest.
This conditioning session was a little longer and a little easier than the ones which I ususally do, but it was a good way to give my legs a bit of a break while still getting in a decent workout. For the record, next time I think I might try 165 on the PP. Felt like I could have pushed a bit harder there. Enjoy! #allgo
…when training for strength and power. Too often I hear about people switching from Anderson Front Squats one week to Front Box Squats with chains another week. Take it from someone who made that mistake. It’s not necessary and can even slow your progress. Focus on the basics: power Olympic lifts, front and back squats, deadlifts, bench and row, and overhead press and pull-up. If you mix up your rep count and sets effectively and add in the proper remedial work, you don’t need a ton of exercise variation. #allgo
This is a really cool article which demonstrates some positives and negatives about CrossFit as displayed in a controlled study. Coach Greg Glassman has been very negative about sports science in the past, which is one of the reasons why CrossFit has alienated some individuals in the fitness industry. The bottom line is, to know whether or not a system of exercise is effective, measurable and repeatable results must be produced. This article is the first attempt I have seen (no doubt similar studies have been done) at trying to objectively assess what CrossFit does in regards to fitness.
I think it was mobility guru Kelly Starrett who suggested that localized stretching is to movement as practice is to the game. If you are a hero in practice but can’t produce in the game, to heck with you. Who cares if you can touch your forehead to your knee in a hurdlers stretch if you can’t ass-to-grass squat? Okay, granted, some sports that type of mobility is important (gymnastics, etc.), but for most athletes, mobility is a means to the end of proper movement and injury prevention. For example, I’m guessing most football players are only concerned about having enough mobility to squat properly and make sure they don’t get injured.
We all understand that isolation movements are far less important (and I’m making a generalization here) to athletes than compound movements. This is because your body goes not typically use muscles in isolation. In an athletic setting, it’s very unlikely you will use your biceps without also using your lats, upper back, etc. Similarly, it’s very unlikely that you will require extremely hamstring mobility in an athletic situation without similar requirements in the hip. Instead of spending your time stretching all your muscles individually, think about what this article suggests. Use lifting and natural movements to help with mobility! #allgo
I’m going to start this post with what I’m sure will be a very polarizing statement: in regards to nutrition and exercise, whenever humans try to improve on what nature has created, we generally screw things up. Nothing makes me shake my head more than the thought of a person who is trying to drop body fat by doing a workout full of lateral raises (a ‘gym’ movement which hardly resembles anything we do in real life) and going home to eat pasta topped with low fat alfredo sauce composed of ingredients which would baffle most people without a science degree. Long story short, nature is smarter than us.
In this post, I will be taking issue with most modern running shoes and orthotics. Does your current running shoe look like this?
If so, read on my friend…
Up until a few years ago, before the popularization of Nike Frees and Vibrams, what was the main selling point of most running shoes? I think it’s fair to say padding and support. When shopping for runners, we were all interested in having our feet supported by air pockets and foam to cushion our heels while we ran, and strong arch support to encourage ‘proper’ foot mechanics. Soooo, why do we need padding on our feet exactly? Because we don’t want to injure our foot of course.
Human beings were designed to stand upright. To move from place to place, we walk or run. Our feet were designed to keep us balanced during these activities. Let me reiterate that. Our feet are designed to help us walk and run. Does it really make sense, given how our feet are designed by nature, that they need to be protected by a bunch of padding? The answer is no.
If I don’t wear padding running shoes, aren’t I going to get a stress fracture in my foot? The answer is yes, if you continue to run in minimalist shoes the way you ran in the padded disasters which you call your old running shoes. The padding in most modern running shoes encourages us to heel strike when we run. Heel striking is hard on the knees, hips, and lower back, but it’s an easy habit to fall into when you’re tired. Simply put, proper running technique does not involve heel striking. It’s just plain wrong to run that way. The foot and the rest of the lower body aren’t designed to run that way. If you heel strike with padded runners, you’ll probably get hurt. If you heel strike with minimalist shoes, you’ll definitely get hurt. If you are going to switch to a minimalist shoe to run in, you have to learn how to run by striking with your midfoot. I’m not going to go into complicated gait recommendations here, but an easy way to start transitioning from heel striking to midfoot striking is to think about running quietly, or running on a flat surface much the same way you would run up a hill.
If you have been wearing padded runners for a while, don’t try to run 10k the first day you slap on your new pair of Vibrams. Your feet are likely extremely weak, and will be unable to handle the new demands. Yes, you will have to get used to sore feet as you develop the muscles in that area. Sore feet do not necessarily mean that there is a problem. After all, you get sore after doing heavy squats because you’re demanding a lot of your body. When your feet are not used to working to stabilize themselves properly, they will get sore. When they get strong enough to work properly, they will stop getting sore.
For those of you who lift in running shoes, I want you to consider this little thought experiment. Imagine driving your car through a forest. Bumpy ride sure, but probably not too bad with all the modern shock technology that cars have these days. Imagine driving the same road in a car without shocks. Not the most pleasant of rides. Shocks help to absorb some of the force from the bumpy ride so that we can remain relatively comfortable when we drive. Padded running shoes are like shocks for your feet. As discussed earlier, the padding in running shoes is designed to absorb some of the force of our heels striking when we run. When you are at the bottom of a squat, and you start to drive you feet hard into the ground to begin your ascent, what do you think happens when you are wearing running shoes? The force which you are trying to generate is at least partially dispersed. Not good! When you are squatting heavy, you want to be able to use as much force as possible!
Padded running shoes alienate our feet from the surface of the ground with which they were built to connect. Yes, that sounds like I’ve been to one too many hippie prayer circles, but it’s true. When we throw a bunch of padding under our feet, they become weak and lazy, and it becomes more difficult for us to generate force.
About four months after making the switch over to minimalist shoes, I tried running in my old padded runners just to see. It felt like I was running through sand! So unnatural. It was a crazy feeling!
Some of you may be asking, will my orthotics fit in minimalist shoes? Probably not. But why exactly do you need orthotics. Oh, you have flat feet? Same here. Let me ask you this. How strong do you think your ankles would be if after an ankle sprain you just kept using your crutches for the rest of your life? Not very. In many (certainly not all) cases, orthotics are a band-aid solution for dealing with foot problems. Instead of using hard plastic to hold up your weak foot, perhaps you should think about strengthening your weak foot!
There are lots of great barefoot-style shoes which you can pick up. Nike, Adidas, and other popular shoe companies are coming out with minimalist runners. Vibram 5 finger shoes are getting extremely popular, especially within the CrossFit community. Personally, I do my Olympic lifting and squatting in Adidas Adipower Olympic lifting shoes, and my upper body lifting, conditioning, and running in a pair of Converse all-stars (which do the job fine and can be found in stores for around 65$ Canadian).
I can’t stress this final point enough. You cannot just switch from padded runners and think your job is done! You have to work to correct years of poor foot mechanics in locomotive activities and strength up those weak muscles! Failure to do so will more than likely result in, if you’re lucky, a minor foot, knee, or ankle injury.
If this post was totally mind-blowing for you and you want some more information, “Born To Run” by Christopher McDougall gets a little more into the science of why modern running shoes suck. So, throw your padded runners in the garbage, slap on some Converse all-stars, and start using your feet the way they were designed to be used. #allgo
![overhead-squat[1]](https://allgofitnessblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/overhead-squat1.jpg)
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