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Questions & Answers: 6-25-07

I am getting ready for my high school baseball season. I am going to be a freshman next year and read your web site and have a list of questions I hope you can help me out with. Being a baseball player, what are some exercises that would help me perform better? I want to increase my vertical jump and wanted to know what I can do to strengthen my legs? Will that help me from getting injured?

Thanks,

Mike V. from Keansburg, N.J.



Mike,

I think it's really awesome for an eighth grade kid to be thinking about what he can do to get ready for his high school baseball season. That in itself shows character! What is most impressive is the fact that you want to strengthen your lower body!!! Most kids your age can't get passed bench pressing and bicep curls. With that being said, I would focus on adding in a lower body day if you haven't already.

Make sure on your lower body day you focus on exercises that will increase your Posterior Chain strength (hamstrings, glutes, and spinal erectors). If you haven't learned how to squat and deadlift , I would suggest you do!! The squat and deadlift will do wonders for increasing your overall lower body strength and will definitely help toward increasing your vertical.

Regarding injury, if you properly execute the lifts and gradually increase the resistance (not being a hero in front of your friends) you will definitely increase range of motion in your joints as well as strengthen the tendons, ligaments and bones which will lead to injury reduction and greater performance gains in the gym and on the field.

Lets say your new leg day lands on Wednesday. I would have you perform a main lower body bi-lateral lift as in a (squat or deadlift variation), followed by a unilateral lift (lunge or step-up variation), a posterior chain movement (glute ham raise, back extension or reverse hyper extension), and end the training session with some abdominal and grip work. I would construct your lower body day like this:


1) Barbell Squat- start with the bar and warm up to a working weight that you will be able to handle for five sets of five reps. If you are a beginner, stick with the bar and practice good form. Don't be concerned with the weight! Develop a solid technique and gradually add weight each week breaking a record from the previous week. Training the squat in this fashion will not only help build technique, but will increase strength. Remember, if your form looks like crap, the weight is too heavy!

2) Dumbbell Lunge- 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps each leg. You can alternate or work one leg at a time.


3) Low Back Extensions- 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps.


4) Dumbbell Floor Crunches- 2-3 sets of 12- 25 reps.


5) Dumbbell Holds for Time- 2-3 sets of as long as you can hold a heavy pair of dumbbells until you have to let them go. If you can barely hold on to them for 2 seconds than it's probably too heavy!


Stick to this lower body day for 3-4 weeks at a time. Every Wednesday you should have the intent to be better than last week. Whether it's an extra couple of reps (within your rep range) or a five pound personal record, you should be able to do more every time. In about 3-4 weeks, change the exercises so you don't burn yourself out. When you start getting stronger, your rep range will have to change for that first exercise. Until then good luck and let me know how you make out kid.



A Side Note:

Flexibility is a part of training. There is not one strength training program that will give you the maximum benefits for performance if flexibility isn't part of the program. Remember that the weight training that is performed is increasing tension within the muscles and of the surrounding joints as well as increasing lean muscle tissue. During this process, it is vital to maintain flexibility in order to keep the body explosive, fast, and mobile. You want to train to be strong and fast, not strong and slow. The point of it all is to set a time to stretch the entire body out, not right before a training session.



Another Side Note:

Your hand is the first point of contact holding the bat, gripping the ball, or closing the mitt on a ball you just scooped out of the air. Increased strength in the wrist's, forearms, and grip will increase bat speed and control. If you want to have command on the bat, ball, and mitt then train the grip!




The only way to be great is to train for it!

Sacrifice for Reward: Armadillo

Barnegat High School 16
Manchester High School 1

YESS Training would like to congratulate Shannon C. of Barnegat High School for her "crushing" win over Manchester High.
Shannon aka "Armadillo" (an Armadillo is a burrowing mammal who's body is covered in hard plates) has proven that she is not afraid to get dirty on the field and there's nothing soft about her game! Pitching only five innings (mercy rule), Shannon let up only one run, but what's most impressive was her offense with 1 single, 1 double, 2 RBIs, with 2 stolen bases scoring twice!

Hmm. I wonder what kind of training helped prepare Armadillo for such an impressive outing? Were not going to take all the credit. What I can tell you is for a solid four months Shannon was in the gym sacrificing in order to prepare herself for High-School Softball. She obviously did a great job because she is a freshman starting on Junior Varsity (Yes a freshman)!!


Check out one of Shannon's lower body workouts:

• Dynamic Barbell Box Squats 8sets of 2 reps at 60%

• Dumb Bell Step-ups 3sets of 12 reps

• Reverse Hypers 4 sets of 12 reps

• Grips Training "Captains of Crush Gripper" 3 sets of max reps

A Side Note:

Shannon did not make it on this site just because of her outstanding performance on the field. It was mostly because of her performance off the field. When I wrote "Sacrifice for Reward" I meant it. She not only trained at the "Alpha Garage" for four solid months, but hardly ever missed a training session and trained her heart out every time!

Another Side Note:

There is a "No Show Tunes" rule at the Alpha Garage. This rule went into effect because of Shannon! Out of all the athletes I have ever trained, Shannon remains the only one who gets pumped up listening to Monty Python songs before training. She does make up for it when blasting Gun's N' Roses during her final sets!

Don't Stand On Balls!

It's always scary when a certain tool or exercise is marketed as the only way to train. This is one of the reasons why I believe in Conjugated training programs that we provide. All Conjugated means is "All Together" or training multiple aspects at the same time. We train our athletes with methods that use many tools to overcome whatever it is they are trying to achieve. We squat, deadlift, push, pull, lunge and twist everyday of our lives both in and out of the ring or the athletic field. These movements are known as the Primal Pattern Movements (PPM). The PPM's are engraved into every human beings nervous system and is a part of our genetic make up. Add resistance to these movements and the athletes strength and condition increases. Handling weight or resistance with these movements in and itself helps with balance and core strength. Take the Stability Ball for instance. I couldn't help myself. This is a perfect example of a good training tool gone wrong. There are many reasons why we implement Stability Balls in our training program, but this is not one of them. Notice how the dude in the video is already sporting a "Cast". You don't have to watch CSI or Cold Case Files to figure out that this is probably not his first attempt at abusing Stability Balls. Check this out:


Can you guess the picture below that represents proper usage of a Stability Ball?

We have all heard of "The Core" and how everyone needs to train "The Core". "The Core" has almost become a phenomenon in itself. It's pretty freaky. Whisper "The Core" to yourself. Freaky, right? When most people think of what "The Core" (you can stop whispering it) is they think of the abdominals (Ab's). To me "The Core" is not just the Ab's but the entire hip complex, abdominal content, spine, and shoulder girdle. These are the stabilizing muscles in the body's ability to control it's constant changing center of gravity. The theory behind the Stability Ball is that it offers an unstable training surface for the body's core to be challenged. This unstable training surface or environment demands "The Core" to stabilize itself by the body's ability to demonstrate postural control and muscular balance during movement. The funny thing is an athlete does just that when they are balancing a barbell in movements like the front or back squat or any of the PPM's. Are you telling me that this dude has no core strength because he does not stand or jump on a Stability Ball?

Is This Not "Core" Strength At It's Best?

Is the entire hip complex, abdominal content, spine, shoulder girdle, not being challenged with this athlete (Beside every other major and supporting muscle group)? Doesn't the bar count as an unstable surface that needs postural control to perform the squat(The Squat is one of the PPM's)? Last time I checked, the ring and athletic field did not move. It was the fighter pushing off the mat overcoming resistance (his/her opponent).

Now here's my "BEEF" with training on Stability Balls:

I am "all for" adding and do in fact have my fighters use Stability Balls in their training, but It's one of the many tools that we implement in our program. We do not get carried away to extremes with Stability Balls as in standing on top of them. It's not the primary focus and should not be in any one's training unless you are training for the circus. No thumbs up from me here. The benefit should always out weigh the risk. It is very dangerous standing on a Stability Ball. I train fighters (Boxing, MMA, Kick Boxing, Muay Thai, Jiu Jitsu, Etc). Every fighter that I have trained have become really strong and fast with out ever having to stand on one Stability Ball! Imagine that? What's the sense of training for a fight if you have a 99% chance of falling on your ass and busting it in the process! Makes absolutely no sense. Fighting does though!

Here is what you should have learned:

-Fighters should never stand on Stability Balls. The risk out weighs the benefit.

-Stability Balls can be used in a fighters training, just not for standing.

-Primal Pattern Movements, especially with added resistance build balance and postural control. Standing and Jumping on Stability Balls gets your head cracked open and a cast on your arm.

-The picture of the athlete performing Stability Ball weighted cable crunches represents one of the many ways a Stability Ball can be properly used. This happens to be one of the exercises we use to train "The Core".

-Whispering "The Core" to yourself can be freaky.

-"The Core" can be considered the entire hip complex, abdominal content, spine and shoulder girdle.

- Fighters and Athlete's in the traditional sports will benefit from dumbbell and barbell exercises where their center of gravity is challenged through movements such as the Squat. Like the ring and athletic playing field, the athlete has to use their entire body to push off the mat and control their center of gravity exhibiting postural control to perform the task at hand. The task in the Squat is the barbell weight and in the ring, your opponent trying to crush you to the ground.

-It's very dangerous standing on a Stability Ball.

-99% of all athletes who attempt standing on Stability Balls usually fall even under supervision.

-Standing on Stability Balls for most fighters makes absolutely no sense!

A Side Note:

The Stability Ball does in fact create a training surface that challenges the body to stabilize itself. Dumbbell chest presses, weighted abdominal crunches, and hamstring pull-ins are just a few movements we use the Stability Ball for. Another safe and effective way the Stability ball can be used to help further "Core" development is through body weight "Reverse Hypers". Just choose a big enough stability ball.

Body Weight Reverse Hypers:

In a push-up position, align stability ball under the lower portion of your abdominals and hips. In the start position toes should remain just off the floor, keeping the legs straight. Start the movement by squeezing your glutes (rear) and extending your "straight legs" away from the floor. Return to the start position in a controlled manner. This is a basic body weight exercise that strengthens the glutes, lower back, and hamstrings. This movement can be supplemented into your training program as a low back warm-up. If you do not have access to a reverse hyper machine, add some ankle weights and make sure you crank the reps up. 2-3 sets of 10-25 reps should get you started!

GloBo Gyms, Fighters, and the High School Athlete

GloBo Gym. That is what most of these new sport performance facilities remind me of. Their claim to fame is the indoor turf field that can house all the agility ladders ever made. Seriously! The real problem I have with the fighters and athletes (especially at the high school level) joining these types of places is the programs that they are selling. As a parent, coach, fighter, or athlete you have to understand the main quality that needs to be developed at this level (high-school) should be Strength Training and not S.A.Q. (Speed Agility Quickness) Training. Why? It is very simple, but I’m not going to tell you the answer just yet. Here is a quick story so bear with me.










When I was a head trainer for a SAQ center, our youth programs were based on multi-planar movement skills and plyometric type training. The thought process behind this type of program was basically thinking "if we teach a kid to become more efficient at running, jumping, and changing direction, through proper mechanics these kids will “save time” and run faster, jump higher, and change direction quicker". There were Pro’s and Con’s to the outcomes of the training we were supplying.

The Pro’s: All our athlete's running mechanics looked amazing. Through the SAQ training they became aerobic and anaerobically conditioned (stamina). The really weak kids became a bit stronger from some of the body weight stabilization exercises that we included (Planks, Wall Squats, Body Weight Lunges, Animal Drills, Etc). Most of these kid’s techniques became so efficient that they looked like they were training for track and field.

The Con’s: They Were Not Training For Track & Field. I was mostly Training Fighters and Wrestlers and the other trainers were training football, basket ball, and base ball players. Although some of the really weak kids became a bit stronger from some of the body weight stabilization exercises, the average high school athlete’s sprinting times and jumping heights did not improve. Basically we turned these athletes into "all show and no go". They looked like track athletes, but performed below average (Maybe we should of called ourselves Below Average Joe's? It could work).

What was really sad about this whole process was that these kids were not track athletes but athletes who played baseball, softball, football, and other traditional sports who were looking to become fast. Man, all the fighters and wrestlers just wanted better starting strength and stamina. They didn't. Why? Because they all lacked strength especially Relative Body Strength (strength in relations to ones body). What was our program providing these kids? It certainly wasn't the strength training needed.

There is a time and place (in an overall training program) for speed, agility, and quickness training for athletes, but last time I checked muscle is responsible for movement. If we did not possess muscles on our bones, we would not move (I told you it was simple). Muscle is not only responsible for movement, but a stronger muscle becomes a faster muscle through proper strength training (it's still simple). Stronger and faster contracting muscles lead to a stronger and faster athlete (I can not make it any more simple than that!). The question I really want to propose to these GloBo Gyms is how can an athlete propel themselves forward with a perfect body angle and spike their feet into the ground covering as much distance as possible (acceleration) with a positive shin angel when they are weak as hell! The answer is they can't. The SAQ training is more of a compliment to the strength gains that the athlete's are achieving in the gym. Not the other way around. Again, they weren't even track athletes!!! Unbelievable.

So how do athletes achieve Relative Body Strength? Hopefully at this point you know where this is going. The answer to this question is through a properly planned strength training program that emphasizes building a base of Maximal & Sub-Maximal Strength (Both, a superior way to develop the highest level of force possible by training against maximal & sub-maximal resistance) from the initial stages in the off- season all the way through the pre-season. For Fighters, all year long! When maximal strength is increased in relation to the athlete's body weight, performance is enhanced. This is why really strong and fat athletes are not fast too (there is a body fat/lean muscle component to being fast so stay lean and around your fight weight). Maximal & Sub-Maximal Strength training also increases intermuscular and intramuscular coordination (simply put, increased muscle coordination for performance). Through this increase a fighter and athlete's speed and power is enhanced. Their body just builds a strength base for power and speed to be built off of.

Now that we have learned about GloBo Gyms, Below Average Joe's, and the science of strength training for speed, you might be wondering how we train our fighters. Remember, it's simple. We get them maximally and sub-maximally strong. This is the base that is built which gets them fast. Through Barbell Training (Squats, Deads, Bench, O-Press), our fighters gain their new acquired strength. They work on this all year long with bouts of time where strength and training in the gym is put on maintenance ( Because Of Scheduled Fights & The Hard Conditioning Needed). We gradually implement SAQ type training and other methods for aerobic/anaerobic conditioning as we approach a fight. SAQ for Conditioning. That's It! Not To Become A Track Athlete! Once we draw close enough to a tournament or fight, we lower the training volume and intensity of our program so our fighters can maintain most of the strength gains they have worked so hard for. The moral to the story is for parents, coaches, fighters and other athletes to stay far away from GloBo Gyms and the Bull-Shit they are selling. If you are contemplating using agility ladders, make sure you are strength training first. Make sure you know why you are using the ladder and for what reason. Don't be skinny and weak. Raise your expectations and get strong. Be the most physical fighter you can be.

References:

1. Bompa, PhD, Tudor O. "Periodization Training For Sports" Second Edition


2. DeFranco, Joe. "The 40-Yard Dash Advanced Speed & Strength Methods" 2nd Edition


3. Zatsiorsky, Vladimir M. "Science and Practice of Strength Training" Second Edition


4. Gyms, GloBo. "Ways to Make Money Off of Parents, Coaches, and Athletes Who Don't Know Any Better"56th Edition

A Side Note:

The really weak kids who became stronger from some of the body weight exercises that were incorporated did in fact improve in their sprinting times and jumping heights. The minor improvements was due to the fact that they increased their body strength with exercises mentioned above, as well as with such exercise as Prisoner Squats(body weight squat), Prone Floor Cobras(hips, spinal erectors, shoulder girdle movement), and floor bridges(hips and hamstring movement). Notice what the focus of most of these exercises that were responsible for increasing the weaker athletes times (Posterior Chain: Hamstrings, glutes, spinal erectors). The reason why the stronger athletes did not increase their sprinting times and jumping heights was because they were stronger!! Their current strength levels were beyond the remedial exercises. Learn The Lesson Here.

Another Side Note:

I would like to thank Mike T. for our conversation that "fueled" this recent post. Thanks Mike.

Last but not least, Rocky Balboa comes out on DVD today. I highly suggest you head out and support the "Italian Stallion". Watch and see how Rocky builds some "Hurten Bombs" one last time.

Enter The YESS Training Blog

Joe Rossi’s passion is to spread strength and condition training to Fighters. His company,

YESS Training, is dedicated in putting the "Hustle Behind the Muscle" for Combat Competitors and Fighting Athletes at the Amateur, High School, College, and Professional level. Whether you are a Boxer, Wrestler, Mixed Martial Artist, or a Weekend Warrior, our proven methods of Strength & Conditioning will get you in (Peak) physical shape and prepare you to Climb your own personal (Mountain). Sacrifice For Reward is YESS Training.

As a Professional Strength and Condition Trainer/Coach for over 10 years working with Male and Female High-School Athletes, Joe has also been an Okinawian Goju-Ryu practitioner for over 19 years earning himself a 1st Kyu ranking. With an Amateur Boxing Background, Joe has also trained and continues to work with competitive fighters in the sport of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Muay Thai, Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), Golden Gloves Boxing Champions in the Novice and Open Divisions, as well with fighters at the amateur and professional level. He has, and continues to serve as an assistant corner man and is a USA Boxing member. Joe is a published author and has written numerous articles on the topic of strength and condition training for GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, BoxingPerformance.com and Alive Magazine. He holds a B.S. in Sports Management/Exercise Science and is certified with the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) as a Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) and as a Performance Enhancement Specialist (PES). He is owner of the YESS Training Barbell Club located in Dumont, New Jersey. At the end of the day, the Integrity, Honor, Loyalty, Respect, and Success of Joe's Athletes is what truly matters. Sacrifice For Reward Is YESS Training.

To Learn More About Joe Rossi And His YESS Training Barbell Club: www.YESSTraining.com