Building The Foundation To Athleticism

Developing an athlete to reach their potential is much like building a house. First you must determine what kind of house, or athlete, you are building. Once this is determined, the builder or coach has to look at the materials, or athletic qualities, required for the finished product. You will need bricks, mortar, shingles, sheet rock, ect, or in an athletes case strength, power, speed, agility and so on.

LAYING THE FOUNDATION

Whether you are building the Taj Mahal or a successful athlete you must start with a solid foundation. The foundation of an athlete can be expressed as their ability to control and stabilize the spine and must be established before any additional qualities can be addressed. When most people think of core training they think solely of crunches and developing the abdominals first. The core actually consists of several muscle groups surrounding the entire midsection including the low back, obliques, abdominals, and all of the musculature surrounding your hips. These muscles connect the lower and upper body and act as a central link or energy transfer for any athletic movement. This is commonly referred to as the Power Zone.

TRAINING PROGRESSIONS

STEP ONE: DEVELOP STABILITY

The key to developing athleticism starts with the ability to control ones spine in a sustained static position. This is the precursor to any athletic movement and has popularly been coined core stability. Proficiency at stabilizing one’s spine in a horizontal position with the force of gravity is what we call static core stability. Any plank variation, glute bridge, or hip lift would all be considered exercises that develop core stability.

STEP TWO: GET STRONG

Once an athlete has become capable of stabilizing their trunk we can now start to train for core strength. External resistance can now be added to enhance or reinforce the movements used to create core stability. This can be as simple as adding a plate or sand bell to the athletes back while performing a plank or changing the angle of the movement.

STEP THREE: MAKE IT FUNCTIONAL

After the athlete has developed a strong core we can begin to train the power zone dynamically. Dynamic core strength can be developed through multi-joint movements that allow the core musculature to work together while maintaining core stability. This will add movement into our power zone training and force the athlete to maintain a stable spine while simultaneously moving the arms and legs. Simple body weight movements such as inchworms, bear crawls, hand walkouts, ect. can all make up this portion of training.

 

STEP FOUR: DYNAMIC STRENGTH

We can now incorporate explosive movements with added resistance into the program to prepare the athlete for their individual sport. These movements will be ground based and use the entire kinetic chain to develop power. This can consist of sand bell throws, slams, lateral tosses etc. working in all 3 planes of motion.

The saying “you can’t fire a cannon from a canoe” dates back to the 1800’s and early naval warfare but has been popularized by many strength coaches to describe the importance of core stability. Whether you are building a big squat or an explosive vertical jump, core stability must be established before anything else. Using the progressions above you will not only reduce the chance of injury but also establish core strength that will allow you to maximize you capabilities.

Fall-Inspired Chicken Walnut Salad with Gorgonzola, Red Onion, and Dried Cranberries

Ingredients:

2 lbs Chicken

10 oz Mixed Field greens

3/4 cup Dried cranberries  

4 oz Gorgonzola

1 Small Red onion

1 cup Chopped walnuts

Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing 

Balsamic Vinaigrette: A Versatile Dressing

This is our households go-to salad dressing. It pairs perfectly with a Fall-inspired Chicken Walnut Salad with Gorgonzola, Red Onion and Dried Cranberries or as a simple marinade for beef or chicken.

Ingredients:
1 cup EVOO

1 cup Balsamic vinegar 

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp Non-parteil capers

1 small Garlic clove minced (or 1 Tbsp dried minced garlic)

Salt and pepper to taste 

Variations: Add a Tbsp of honey for sweeter dressing.

Directions:

Use a magic bullet or Vitamix to blend the ingredients for about 30 seconds or until dressing is smooth.

Note:

This is a very concentrated dressing and a little goes a long way. For a large salad, I would use approximately 2 Tbsp of dressing.

Improving Game Speed with the Hyperwear Vest Pro

It is undeniable that speed is extremely important in sports. It can be the difference in scoring the game winning touchdown, getting to a rebound, or determining whether you win a 50/50 ball in soccer. Regardless of the sport, speed is a vital component to achieving success on the field/court, and as the saying goes “speed kills.”

Speed can be interpreted many ways, so before we begin our discussion we must first understand what speed is, how it relates to sports, and how it can be improved.

Squats: So Easy a Baby Can do it?

Seeing my one year old daughter in a perfect squat position sparked my thought: is it true that if we don’t use it we lose it? How is it that an infant that lacks the cognitive ability to recognize form and has had no instruction on technique is able to execute a deep squat position so effortlessly? Somewhere between diapers and drivers licenses, the ability to squat has been lost.