You may have eyesight, but do you have vision?

Posted on February 9, 2012 by spartantraining Posted in Events, Exercise/Movement, General Health | Leave a comment


Wes Welker, Receiver for the New England Patriots,
after missing a tough catch in the Superbowl on Sunday

I had a completely different topic started for today’s blog and newsletter but I can’t pass on writing about Wes Welker’s almost-amazing, almost-game-winning miss in Sunday’s Superbowl game and the visual mechanisms involved in it.

Now, what does that have to do with YOUR health and fitness??

Well, actually more than you’d think.  Vision is the dominant sensory system in the human body and it could just be the cause of your lack of progress in fitness.  Read on to learn why, and see a couple amazing success stories at Athlon…

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There’s been a huge uproar of people on the internet blaming the Patriot’s loss last weekend to Welker’s missed catch.  And apparently a bunch of idiots sent Butterfingers to Copley Square to mock him… Come on people!!  Don’t you have anything else to worry about in this world???

However, even Welker put the blame on himself stating,

“It’s one of those plays I made 1,000 times,  the ball is right there. I’ve just got to make the play.”
“It comes to be the biggest moment of my life and I don’t come up with it. It’s discouraging.”

It’s very honorable of Welker to take the blame, but not right.  The complex physiology and neurology that allowed Welker to even get a hand on that ball in that situation is nothing short of amazing… and the topic of today’s article.

Whether you’re catching footballs or walking around your house, the role of vision in the body’s overall abilities, fitness and YES, Weight Loss is crucial.  It is the dominant sensory system in the human body and plays a key role in everything we do.  And Welker’s vision has been shown time and time again to be superior to most other human beings.  Unfortunately, not this last Sunday.  Personally, I feel it was a poorly thrown ball and the quarterback, Tom Brady, is just as much to blame if not more, but you decide for yourself below…

Welker is 5’9″, running at near top speed and the ball is thrown extremely hard and fast, four feet over his head and behind him.  Yet he still manages to leap a couple feet in the air off one leg, spin 180-degrees in mid-air and reach up and put his two hands in the exact location of the path of the ball.  That’s amazing athleticism.

Here’s the problem, he failed to “grasp” at just the right moment (when it hit his hands).  And trust me the way the ball was thrown, his “grasp” would have had to be perfect and defying of our natural human visual instincts explained below… (again much of the blame should be on the quarterback for throwing a ball that was almost uncatchable yet made to look good by an amazing athlete…)

Fact is, it’s very natural and actually instinctive to miss that ball in that situation.  We humans are very good at “predicting” where a projectile is going to be, then taking our eyes off of it and using our “muscle memory” to place our hands in just the right spot to catch it.  That’s how they’re designed to work.

The eyes only quickly look at a projectile to get a snap shot of where it’s going to be then they’re put onto the next task so we can already be predicting what’s going to happen next.  That’s how the human nervous system works.  We are great at prediction and ultimately built to focus on prediction.

You see, human beings aren’t built for performance… we’re built for survival.  And survival means prediction.  After millennia of survival we humans have become amazing “predictors.”  It’s extremely important that we “see” and “predict” what’s going to happen ahead of time (for instance, that we see the Saber-Toothed Tiger long before we “feel” it dragging us away, right?!).

If there is any reason Wes Welker could be blamed for missing that ball it’s simply that in such an awkward and dangerous position his instincts took over to look ahead for the impending danger coming, i.e., the fast approaching hard ground and avoiding being crushed by the two very large defenders that were closing in on him!  Usually he’s a good enough athlete to still “grasp” at the right moment.  Just not that one in a thousandth time on Sunday…

Yes, keeping your eyes on the projectile all the way into the hands and grasping at the perfect moment is very difficult to do, even unnatural, taking years of practice to break the desire of the nervous system to look ahead.  I’ll describe a good drill to work on this skill in a moment but first let’s discuss vision and movement a little more…

The body relies primarily on three sensory systems to program for and create movement.  Without any one of them we’re in a lot of trouble… (in order):

  1. VISION (eyesight and its processing in the brain)
  2. VESTIBULAR (the inner ear)
  3. PROPRIOCEPTION (the sensory system that tells the body where it’s parts are at and how fast they’re moving)

That order is important to understand.   The information coming in through your visual system dominates all other sensory systems for the reasons stated above, it’s key to survival.  And survival is what we’re built for, not performance.  You have a startle reflex, but you don’t have a dunk reflex… or a home run reflex!

Vision, for the point of survival, i.e., “prediction,” is always going to dominate, and based on that hierarchy absolutely key to all movement.

I was just talking to my friend and client, Dave Alles, about his golf swing and he stated that every time he’s having a bad day he discovers that he’s pulling his head (and vision) up off the ball early, which ruins his swing.  When he realizes it and consciously forces his vision to not look ahead his swing improves.   Essentially, he over-rides the natural instinctive movement of the eyes to look ahead and forces them to stay down on the ball.  Hence, performance is improved… but if there are any tigers on the course he’s is big trouble!

This visual dominance is very important to understand.  It could be the culprit when you’re not accomplishing something physically even though you’re working hard at it.  You could be being sabotaged by a visual issue… even in the case of building strength, flexibility or fat loss.  Let me give you an interesting example (and success story):

I recently worked with a high school basketball player that had pretty lousy flexibility.  She was concerned about it and felt it may be hurting her agility on the court (which it probably was).  I had her perform a forward bend (reach for your toes) to test her flexibility and she could barely reach mid-way down her shin bones.  I then did some drills “exercising” her left eye (which I had previously noticed didn’t track objects as smoothly as the right one).  After 45 seconds of left eye “exercises” I had her retest her forward bend.  She put both hands on the floor…

A dramatic improvement in hamstring and back flexibility in 45 seconds with NO stretching… How’s that possible?

Well, as I said above, the visual system is the dominant sensory system in the human body and will take precedence over all others (for survival purposes).  If your brain is not comfortable that the visual system is working optimally (e.g., one eye is sending slightly different signals than the other when tracking objects) it will use the proprioceptive system to “slow your muscles down.”  Or in this case, tighten them up for “safety.”  It wasn’t due to tissue changes in her muscles and joints, it was her visual system “putting the brakes on” for safety.  And you’d be really surprised at how many people are affected by this…

Remember, our bodies are built to survive.  And if there’s any threat, (real or just perceived), we’ll tighten up and put the brakes on for safety.  You can imagine what this will do to your athleticism.  The goal of all athletics (and life for that matter) is to move quickly and efficiently.  This won’t happen if the visual system is even the least bit “unsure” of itself.

Now think about your golf swing, your free throw shooting or just your navigating around the garden… can you see how important your vision is to not only being able to “see” where you’re going but for how well your muscles work and allow you to move when you go there?  Can you see how you could be prevented from expressing as much strength or flexibility or speed as you’d like in the gym and hence not get the progress that you think you should???  Vision is absolutely critical.

Now, at this juncture, there’s an important point that needs to be understood… “eyesight” is not “vision.”  Eyesight merely refers to the ability to see something clearly like the so-called 20/20 or 20/30 eyesight, meaning if you stand 20 feet away from a snellen chart (see above) and can only read a line that “most” other people can read standing 30 feet away, you have “20/30 eyesight.”  This is static visual acuity, and simply refers to your ability to “see” standing still.  But how often in real life are you just standing still?

That’s not “vision.”

Vision involves the ability to take the incoming information, process it and obtain meaning from it.  This involves multiple areas of skill and is absolutely critical in not only sport but all aspects of your life.

Static visual acuity (eyesight) is a very small part of “vision.”  Eye movements, rapidly changing your focus from near to far and back again, converging and diverging on objects, etc. Those are a eye skills that are crucial to what we really do in life:  move, intake information, process it, derive meaning from it and then act accordingly.  That’s what you’re doing at all times of the day, and especially when you’re driving…  Yet, to get a license you just have to stand still and read a non-moving chart 20 feet away.  Something’s not quite right about that I think…

I like to work with my athletes on four other very important visual drills to enhance those life skills above…

(which by the way, ALL my clients are athletes, from my 16 year old basketball players to my 90 year old librarians… everyone is an athlete in my eyes)

One of those four drills is an eye tracking drill where you practice tracking objects with your eye(s) all the way to your hands.  We call it “Letter-ball.”  I toss them a tennis ball with letters painted on it and they call out the letter that is visible just before it hits their hand and they catch it.  This forces the eye(s) to track it right into the hand (rather than the instinctual “glance at it” and then move the vision off of it relying only on muscle memory to place the hands correctly and catch it, which sometimes fails, e.g., Welker’s case).

Here’s a quick video of us doing it:

(By the way, the toughest part of getting this drill is often learning how to “knuckleball” it to your partner so that it doesn’t spin in the air so they can get a read on it.)

 
And here’s a more advanced version…

 
Any athlete that works on this drill 2-3 times per week will really improve in their sport as a result.  But not only is it good for athletes it’s good for everyone!  Who doesn’t need their eyes to improve and work optimally all the time?  (I wish some of the people driving around here did this drill more often that’s for sure!)

It forces your eyes to exercise… yes, it’s weightlifting for the eyes.  And that’s a good thing.

Your eyes are moved and controlled by muscles, six little extra-ocular muscles that surround it.  The more in shape they are the more “clarity” your nervous system will be getting every second.  And, as demonstrated above with the basketball player and the golf example, the more clarity your nervous system is getting about its environment the more it will take the brakes off your muscles and joints and allow you to move as an athlete… no matter what your age!

Don’t believe me?  I have another client that’s been doing his eye exercises that I showed him daily and he just reported to me last week that at his latest optometrist appointment he decreased his eye glasses prescription by two factors and the previous discrepancy between his left and right eye has all but disappeared.  That’s awesome and shows the power of exercise (once again).

Now, guess what else is going to happen soon??

He’s going to get stronger… a LOT stronger… burn more body fat… become more flexible (already has done that)… become more agile and athletic… and more… as a result of having good, quality information coming into his nervous system through his now “strong” eyes!!

Here’s to taking the brakes off,

Ryan

P.S. if you’re not making fitness gains like you think you should come into Athlon and fix that problem.  We’ve got quite a track record for that, whether it be your eyes not working correctly or your exercise program just not the right one for you!  Click here to sign up for your FREE consultation and learn how we can help you get the specific improvements you’re looking for!

 

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“Move It Or Lose It.”

Posted on January 24, 2012 by spartantraining Posted in Exercise/Movement, General Health | Leave a comment

Reflect for a moment on the importance of your body – how it feels and how it moves.

While we can certainly all have a rich inner life mentally and spiritually, ultimately we translate our ideas, thoughts and spirit into reality through the vehicle of our body.

Isn’t it fair then to say that one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves is a strong, healthy, coordinated, and pain-free physical structure?

In today’s health and fitness world, new trends come and go. Fads in the fitness world are like negative campaign ads in politics… you just can’t seem to get away from them. And every new fad is trying to set that person or gym apart from the rest… show that they’re somehow special above the others.

However, we mustn’t forget what these fitness facilities are tying to do in the first place; our goal, no-matter what the means, is improved human function through an improved human structure.

Though, many personal trainers forget this, it is still at the heart of what they’re trying to achieve.

Sure, it’s nice to be admired for having a nice looking body, but it’s even nicer to get out of the bed in the morning without pain, and with the boundless energy and vibrancy of childhood, right?!

This is possible despite what you’ve been told…

You see, YOUR BODY came fully equipped with EVERYTHING IT NEEDS to be continually operating at its best… perfectly designed to adapt to the challenges you place on it. This phenomenon, called the S.A.I.D. principle, is a very well understood fact of human physiology. Its an acronym that stands for Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demand.

Let me explain…

If you carry 10 pounds of extra weight every day on only your right arm, soon your right arm muscles will adapt (grow larger) to more efficiently carry that weight… If you sit 13 hours a day you’ll fairly quickly adapt to becoming a “good sitter” (forward head, rounded shoulders and back, etc.).

This physiological principle, this adaptability, remains an over-riding phenomenon throughout our entire life. It does not go away with age.

And at ALL ages, the human body (with its ~300 joints and ~639 muscles) is beautifully designed to move in any and all directions fluidly, powerfully, and gracefully. You have these muscles and joints as a child and you still have these muscles and joints when you die. Unfortunately, once our childhood is over we typically stop moving fluidly, powerfully and gracefully and instead begin to develop unique patterns of dysfunction according to our lifestyle.

The SAID principle states that if you fail to periodically challenge your body to move in every direction (like a child at play does), you will lose the ability to do so. In other words, you will adapt to becoming stiff, immobile, and inefficient. There is a great deal of truth in the phrase, “Move it or lose it.” That is the SAID principle in a nutshell. It’s not age that causes the loss in function, it’s our lifestyles.

Here’s a beautiful picture illustrating the SAID principle at all ages. These are MRI images of thigh muscles in various men:

At the top, thighs that have adapted to their “imposed demand” -triathlons. In the middle, thighs that have adapted to their “imposed demand” -sitting. And on the bottom, despite being 70 years old, thighs that have adapted just like the 40 year-old triathletes thighs. Lean and muscular.

From the study (referenced below) the older triathletes had a greater number of motor units compared to their age-matched controls (sedentary older adults) and a similar number compared to the young. The authors concluded that lifelong high-intensity physical activity has the potential to limit the loss of motor units associated with natural aging well into the 7th decade of life.

So what needs to be done? Quit your job and go do triathlons or play like child all day long???

No, probably not the best idea. But, a focused daily exercise session trageting each and every joint, and especially your problem areas, e.g., the areas that don’t move fluidly, powerfully and gracefully, is a great start and just what you need to begin the process of rehabilitating poor posture, poor movement patterns and areas of pain, and get that boundless energy of a child back in your life.

At Athlon we start every session, no matter what your age, with sound mobility training for every joint and muscle, sound movement pattern training for every joint and muscle and then do some good exercise for your specific need.

This is the key, and to date, the only true fountain of youth that has been discovered. So be sure you’re including sound movement training into not only every exercise session but throughout your whole day every chance you get. Your body and life will be much better.

Now, actually DOING what you know you need to do and doing it correctly – well that’s the hard part.

That’s why if you think you need a little help in the “doing” department, I highly suggest you take advantage of your FREE Fitness Consultation (an $85 value).

During this consult, you’ll receive detailed information on how to get fit and trim that’s tailored to YOUR body.

There’s no obligation and it’s totally and completely free. To sign up, click here

Until next time,

Ryan

 

References:

McCrory JL, Salacinski AJ, Hunt SE, Greenspan SL. Thigh Muscle Strength in Senior Athletes and Healthy Controls. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2009;23(9);2430-2436.

Baker AB, Tang YQ. Aging Performance for Masters Records in Athletics, Swimming, Rowing, Cycling, Triathlon, and Weightlifting. Experimental Aging Research. 2010;36(4):453-477.

Booth FW, Zwetsloot KA. Basic concepts about genes, inactivity and aging. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2010;20(1):1-4.

Faulkner JA, Davis CS, Mendias CL, Brooks SV. The Aging of Elite Male Athletes: Age-Related Changes in Performance and Skeletal Muscle Structure and Function. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine. 2008;18(6):501-507.

Foster C, Wright G, Battista RA, Porcari JP. Training in the Aging Athlete. Current Sports Medicine Reports. 2007;6(3):200-206.

Mayer F, Scharhag-Rosenberger F, Carlsohn A, Cassel M, Muller S, Scharhag J.The Intensity and Effects of Strength Training in the Elderly. Deutsches Arzteblatt International. 2011;108(21):359-364.

 

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I.F.

Posted on January 17, 2012 by spartantraining Posted in General Health, Nutrition | Leave a comment

Posted by Haley Daniel, CSCS

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Here at Athlon, we follow the nutritional strategies of the very well respected Dr. John Berardi, creator of Precision Nutrition. One of the latest subjects his team has investigated is intermittent fasting (IF). From his book, here is a cheat sheet outlining two of their favorite protocols:

1. The Trial Fast

What It Is:

Simple, you try it out. The Trial Fast is what we have our own Lean Eating clients do: try going without food for 24 hours.

Why Do It:

To experience hunger intentionally in order to get accustomed to the feeling, and, well… not freak out. The ability to manage hunger is essential to fitness and good health, and this is a great way to get better at it. (Check out more benefits of the trial fast in the Introduction.)

Who It’s For:

The Trial Fast if for anyone who wants to try fasting without committing to it full-time. It’s also an excellent way to see if more advanced forms of fasting will be right for you.

Get a little spacey during your trial fast? A little irritated at people? Well, those are actually common responses. Nothing to worry about. Want to put your head through a wall or yell at everyone who enters the room? That could be a problem. But you’ll never know until you try.

How To Do It:

Essentially, you pick any 24-hour period, and don’t eat during it. But we like to add a few things to make it easier. Here, we’ll assume a Sunday fast:

10 PM Saturday:

  • Eat your last meal of the day
  • Drink 500 mL (2 cups) of water

10 AM Sunday:

  • Drink 1 L (4 cups) of water + 1 serving greens powder
  • Drink 250 mL (1 cup) of green tea
  • Take 5 grams BCAA (branched chain amino acids) powder (or take 5 capsules)

3 PM Sunday:

  • Drink 1 L (4 cups) of water + 1 serving greens powder
  • Drink 250 mL (1 cup) green tea
  • Take 5 grams BCAA (branched chain amino acids) powder (or take 5 capsules)

10 PM Sunday:

  • Eat a small snack before bed
  • Drink 500 mL (2 cups) of water

Monday:

  • Eat normally

Tips and Strategies for the Trial Fast:

  • The tea, greens, and BCAAs aren’t essential to fasting, but in our experience, they make it a lot easier.
  • Drinking water in particular helps to mitigate feelings of hunger.
  • Be aware of your body cues. Feeling stressed out or “upset” during your fast? Relax. Take a few deep breaths, and pay close attention — this is what hunger can feel like. The more you know about the feeling, the easier it is to manage in the future.
  • Have healthy food (lean meats, veggies, etc.) in the house and ready to go when you “break” the fast on Sunday night with a small meal. We suggest a tablespoon of almond butter and some celery. Also, having healthy food in the house is good insurance that you won’t binge on Monday when you return to normal eating.

2. The Periodic Fast

What It Is:

The Periodic Fast is exactly what it sounds like: you fast periodically. So while you should still eat well (high protein, lots of veggies, a balance of fats, and a moderate intake of minimally processed carbohydrates) you’d periodically take a full day to fast (just like the Trial Fast).

You can do this once a year, once a month, once a week — whatever works for you. But we recommend no more frequently than once a week; as you can read in Chapter 5, twice a week proved disastrous. Fair warning.

Why Do It:

To further practice hunger management and experience more of the potential health and fat loss benefits of intermittent fasting.

Who It’s For:

The Periodic Fast is for anyone who responded well to the Trial Fast.

How To Do It:

The Periodic Fast is flexible: you can choose whichever 24 hours you want. Want to fast from breakfast to breakfast? That’s cool. Just eat breakfast on Monday, and don’t eat again until breakfast on Tuesday. Want to fast dinner to dinner? That’s cool too. Eat dinner on Wednesday, and don’t eat again until dinner on Thursday.

To do it, simply follow the rules above from the “Trial Fast”.

Tips and Strategies:

  • I like to do the Periodic Fast when traveling. When I’m in and out of airports and good food is hard to come by, I’ll throw in a full-day fast when it makes sense. Other people find that travel stresses them out, and fasting may exacerbate that feeling. You may prefer to pick the least stressful day in your week or month and start with that.

But ultimately, fasting is a “nice-to-have.” It’s unnecessary to get in shape, and alone it’s insufficient.

You know what’s both necessary and sufficient? Things like eating good quality food in the right amounts at the right times. Things like learning to prepare healthy food in the first place. Those things are enough for most people to get in the best shape of their lives. I know, because my team and I have helped thousands of clients get there; none of them did any more than the Trial Fast, but all of them are taught those essentials.

So if you’re looking at all this intermittent fasting stuff and aren’t sure where it fits in for you, what should you do?

Learn the essentials of good nutrition. It’s by far the best thing you can do for your health and fitness.

Let the professionals at Athlon help guide you into superb nutrition and ultimately outstanding mental and physical wellness. All you have to do is CLICK HERE and ask!

‘Til next time!

Haley

P.S. We’re serious about helping people achieve what they want out of their bodies (and lives). We’re here for you. Just click the link above and request a free consultation to learn exactly what we do and how we do it. It could be the best decision you’ve ever made!

 

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The Holiday Weight-Gain Myth

Posted on December 20, 2011 by spartantraining Posted in General Health | Leave a comment

You want in on a dirty little secret around that 5-10 pound holiday weight gain?  It’s a myth! It’s not true!

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What is true, however, is that most people put on 1-2 pounds – that they never lose.  (Unless you are already significantly overweight, in which case you are likely to gain 5-7 pounds.)

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So, it’s not the weight gain that is the problem, it’s the lack of weight loss. Over 5 years that’s 10 pounds – which looks remarkably like the middle-aged spread phenomenon we see, right?

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How to Have a Scale-Friendly Holidays

Keep Your Stress Down. Stress causes inflammation, generates a hormone cascade that causes us to stop metabolizing fat, and make food decisions we wouldn’t normally make.

No one will remember if you are 10 minutes late to the party, didn’t get the holiday cards out, or forgot the cranberries for the Turkey dinner (though my family might). Swap it all for a deep breath, a smile, and a laugh – that’s really what you want people to remember about you isn’t it?

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Maintain Your Dietary Restrictions. If you are gluten-free, lactose intolerant, grain-free, or adhere to any of the other numerous dietary restrictions that are common in today’s society, the holidays are not a time to give them up.  If your body is intolerant, you’ll just be adding fuel to the fire by indulging. One option? Find an awesome dietary-compliant treat that fits your specific food criteria, and bring that to the party. Your body – and the other guests – will thank you.

Choose Wisely. It’s true that variety is the spice of life.  However, during the holiday season of festivities, it can also be a recipe for overeating.  With all the amazing variety of good, fun food during the season, one option may be to simply choose your foods wisely.  Pick one to three foods during a get-together that you are most likely to enjoy, and enjoy them.  A second option: get your plate, put the food on it you’re going to eat during that party, eat it and then be done. The reasons are simple – if you fill your plate once, you can see and know your calories more easily and because you are still eating with the group, you won’t feel deprived of the joy that we get when we enjoy good food and good friends.

Use Caloric Averaging. One bad meal isn’t the end of the world, I promise.  Our body isn’t like a cash register that cashes out at the end of every day. We can look at our caloric intake over longer periods of time, giving ourselves permission to average over a weekend, a week, or several weeks. Some days we intake more calories, and some days less.

Be Active, Stay Active. Activity levels matter.  Studies show that those who become active or stay active during the holidays are less likely to gain that one to two pounds.  As you relax and enjoy your family and friends, make a plan to keep moving (like coming into Athlon and training).  And if you need help with that plan we’re here for you!  Just ask.  And if you’re not already a member sign up for your free consult today and learn how we can help you get the body and performance that you want and deserve!

www.SLOPersonalTraining.com

Don’t skip it or put it off!  You’ll burn calories, reduce stress, and improve brain function – the trifecta of wellness for a healthy and happy holiday season.

Happy Holidays to You and Your Loved Ones

23 1/2 Hours per Day

Posted on December 16, 2011 by spartantraining Posted in Exercise/Movement, General Health | Leave a comment

“Can you limit your sitting and sleeping to just 23 and a half hours per day?”

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Great video by Dr. Mike Evans.  Check it out.

 

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26 . 2

Posted on November 29, 2011 by spartantraining Posted in Events, Exercise/Movement, General Health | Leave a comment

  Posted by Haley Daniel, ATC, CSCS

Attention runners and non-runners. I have a challenge for you (and myself)…

The first annual SLO Marathon will be held on April 22nd, 2012. I would like to invite any other first time marathoners to join me in participating and COMPLETING our very first marathon.  That’s right, I have never done a marathon, but damnit, it’s about time!

Let’s help support a great local activity and a worthy charity, and be a part of something that’s going to be huge someday right from the beginning?

Why am I deciding to do my first marathon now?

I recently took a few days off to participate in a yoga and meditation retreat. Having a lot of time to reflect, I realized I am in need of a new challenge… A new perspective.  And a new goal. I want to put myself in a new mindset.

During this time of reflection, I’ve noted the times I’ve been most happy with myself (my accomplishments, my capacity for love and growth, overall confidence and body image) is when I was running.

I’ve done a lot of running in my life, including many half marathons. Being a lifelong competitive soccer player, running was always the next logical step in terms of training and challenges. But since my diagnosis of Ankylosing Spondylitis about 18 months ago, I haven’t run more than a handful of times. Since the very first symptom, my running regimen had been almost immediately haulted. I’ve been doing a lot more high intensity strength training to fill the running gaps, which has greatly increased my strength, but running is no longer easy for me. It was once my go-to exercise for stress relief; a simple no-brainer, just put on my headphones and cruise my way to bliss.

Running just like any other exercise, is a drug for me.  And I must admit, I’m totally addicted…

I love that “high” you get from a hard, sweaty workout, as anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I’m a little crazy when it comes to exercise. Granted I’ve toned it down A LOT, but my workouts are the one thing, the one drug, that I cannot live without. As painful as it sometimes is, as much as I sometimes don’t want to do it, I still cannot, and will not, give it up.

To quote one of my favorite musical groups NeedtoBreathe:

“Though I feel like I’m just as strong, as any man I know, I’m not able. I’m not able. I’m not able…on my own.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself… I am strong. Sometimes I don’t feel strong. I am able. Sometimes I don’t feel able. But together, united, we are stronger, we are able.

So as I challenge myself to this feat, I also challenge YOU to accomplish something different. Perhaps you’ve never given a thought to completing a marathon, perhaps you’ve never believed you could do it. But together, we are able. It’s time to get out of our comfort zones and force a little self-growth.

As a bonus, I am also going to hold weekly running sessions in which you can choose to attend. Typically this will be held Sunday mornings on the beach. If you do not already have a running buddy, I will put myself “on lease” through this journey.  :)   This will help everyone stay on track, stay focused and stay motivated.

Who’s with me?!

Call Athlon and ask for me, or leave me a message, if you have any questions about getting started or want to confirm the weekend’s run.  I look forward to running with you.

Here’s to 26.2,

Haley

P.S. Of course I’m not just limiting my challenge to first timers.  Anyone who needs a little something to work towards, this is your chance!

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The Turkey Payment

Posted on November 23, 2011 by spartantraining Posted in Exercise/Movement, General Health, Workout of the Week | Leave a comment

It’s that time of year again . . .

The Annual Procession of All Things “Carb”… potatoes, bread rolls, chips & crackers, candied yams, cranberry spreads & sauces full of sugar, and all manner of desserts.

You know that we typically frown on the heavy carb eating here at Athlon; so here’s your solution to get through the Thanksgiving Holiday without cutting out too much of those yummy carbs:

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1. Thursday morning wake-up, have a cup of coffee and then go for a 30+ minute run; or hike Bishops Peak or Cerro San Luis (Madonna mtn).  This will create the right hormonal environment in your body so it will know exactly what to do with all those carbs.  Now go ahead and enjoy the rest of your day and eat what you want (what the heck, it’s Thanksgiving)…

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2. Then, Friday or Saturday, come into Athlon and do your

**Turkey Payment Workout**

Start with 2 Rounds of front and side planks: 30 seconds each .

Then do 3 rounds of:

  • 10 Kettlebell/Dumbbell Swings
  • 10 Push-ups (or Incline Push Ups)
  • 10 Jumping pullups (or Lat Pulldown)
  • 10 Walkouts
  • 10 Walking Lunges (or Split Squats)
  • 10 Ring Rows

Finish with 15 minutes of Cardio: preferably a run outside if the weather’s nice, otherwise use the Bike or Stairclimber.

**Bonus**

**10 extra minutes of Cardio for every extra serving you ate on Thursday
**10 extra Jumping pullups or Lunges for every alcoholic beverage consumed on Thursday

 

Happy Turkey Day!

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Specialize in 1 sport. . .NO. . . Just Go Play!

Posted on November 16, 2011 by spartantraining Posted in Exercise/Movement, General Health, Workout of the Week | Leave a comment

 
Who do you think is becoming the better athlete to eventually get the college scholarship and make it to the pro’s: the kid on the right, completely free to do some running, jumping, and learning many athletic body positions in many different environments, or the kid on the left, standing in line waiting to play “real” sports???

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I was recently reminded of an article I read this summer when I met with the parents of an 11 year-old boy last night.  They came to me to get a second opinion on whether their son should not play basketball and baseball this year so he could instead focus on speed training and play only football (the advice given to them by a “speed coach”).  Let me tell you… thank god they had the wisdom to “feel” that this didn’t make sense.

This article by Max Prokopy sums it up perfectly.  Read on and learn…

1997 was a landmark year for young athletes, burgeoning internet gurus, and helicopter parents. As Tiger Woods drained the final putt of a record-setting performance at the Masters, millions of parents, coaches, and educators watched in awe. Tiger’s first TV golf appearance was at age 2(!). By age 21 he was the most formidable force in the sporting world. Either conscious or sub-conscious, these well-documented facts galvanized the early specialization movement. Best-selling books such as Outliers, The Talent Code, and Bounce are wonderful accounts of the grueling ascent to expertise. However, they might create as much trouble as inspiration. The message received by parents and coaches often places early specialization into one sport above the value of diverse movement. More importantly, it’s held high above “play.” While there may be more Tigers-in-progress than ever before, we’ve also seen a rapid rise in youth sport overuse injuries.

Tiger joined a list of young phenoms like Mozart and Bobby Fischer; people who got in their 10,000 hours at a remarkably young age. The message is loud and clear to many parents and sport coaches: start your kids young. However, I think the real lessons are distorted. When I think of starting young, the intent should always be developing the fundamentals that can apply to all branches of a discipline. For Mozart, that’s developing pitch and scales; for Bobby Fischer it’s reading people and strategies; for athletes, it’s the fundamental patterns of movement. To borrow a phrase from my colleague Dewey Nielsen, getting in your 10,000 hours should have this goal: “Be brilliant at the basics.” It’s not about sending your kid to pitching camp at age 9. It is about playing football or soccer in the fall, basketball or wrestling in winter, and track or baseball in spring. It is about playing with your neighbors until dark during the summer. It is about learning how to run, rotate, lu nge, skip, and pivot. One day it’s kickball, another day street hockey. What can be developed is fundamental to athleticism: acceleration, deceleration, rotational power, read and react, etc. No one sport corners the market on these skills. Likewise, no one sport should dominate the lives of children or even young adults.

This theory was given weight when I recently read The Boys of Winter. In reconstructing the personalities of the 1980 US Olympic ice hockey team, I began to realize a common thread of diversity amongst the players. Be they from Minnesota or Massachusetts, everything from stickball to fishing was enjoyed. What came out of these circumstances was deep passion for hockey but this was allowed to grow over time. Motivation, just like movement, was not funneled into one all-encompassing sport. Kids who got to play 7 sports with the neighbors eventually found one they loved. This lies in stark contrast with the evolution of Tiger Woods and those who wish to emulate his life. It’s unfair to draw from a sample of one but we can look deeper into the early phenom phenomenon and find more clues. Athletes like Tracy Austin, Jennifer Capriati and Ty Tryon (there are many more) all reached notoriety at a very young age — and subsequently slipped due to injury and burnout. How about young e ntertainment stars who regularly collapse into a life of chaos? I hope most people realize the miniscule chances of turning little Suzy into the next sensation. In doing some research, I found there are about 546,000 male high school basketball players. The NCAA hands out 7177 scholarships over Divisions I and II. That means about 1.3% of varsity players will have access to scholarship money over a four-year cycle. For many parents and coaches these statistics suggest that camps and single-sport focus is the way to maximize the chance of being in that 1.3%. While I am all for dedication to a personal passion, I have to respectfully disagree. This comes after years of watching coaches do things like mimic a golf swing with a 15-pound dumbbell or having throwers only do ¼ squats for legs. Collegiate sport coaches look as much for athleticism as anything else. They want their players to be athletes first and it is best developed by a wide range of sports. Early specialization can accomplish this but it carries the likely prices of burnout and overuse injuries.

Research has clearly shown that the body will accomplish an assigned task with little regard to correct movement mechanics. So if a 12-year old is pitching 8 months a year, the task remains the same but the movements will change due to fatigue. This is the platform for developing an overuse injury. Statistics show these are on the rise. The same holds true for any posture specific to a single sport. It’s why swimmers have a hard time with good shoulder mechanics and tennis players struggle to hip hinge. It’s precisely why baseballers should pick up a soccer ball. (It’s also why desk jockeys should favor rows and deadlifts over biking and benching.) Some sports are less skill specific and thus seem to produce more well-rounded athletes. Funny, that.

Let’s be clear: there is nothing wrong with sending a child to soccer camp over the summer. Problems occur when a child plays the same sport year-round. There is no suggestion to drop the concept of hard work or “deliberate practice.” Simply put, a child’s 10,000 hours should be spent moving in all kinds of environments and being a part of different sport cultures; aka playing. What comes of this is a group of athletes who are (a) less likely to burn out; (b) more capable of adapting to a new coaching style (a highly underrated piece of the puzzle); and (c) less likely to be hurt. These players will look like athletes and work in whatever sport they end up loving. So feel free to work on those 10,000 hours. But don’t drive by the playground on your way to Jimmy’s “elite” summer hockey league. Stop the car and let him go play.

To Your Athletic Success (no matter how old you are),

Ryan

P.S., I wrote the ultimate “off-season” training program and revealed it in today’s newsletter.  If you don’t get our newsletter you better get signed up right here:  www.AthlonSLO.com/newsletter

P.P.S., High quality strength and conditioning can also be a great “off-season” activity for developing a better athlete.  At Athlon it involves: running, jumping, lifting, carrying, twisting, turning, pulling, pushing, visual training, and good body positioning practice.  It definitely comes second to “play” for a child, but it’s better than playing the sport year-round.  Learn more and sign-up for a free consult at:  www.SLOSportsPerformance.com

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