CPI's Youth

I just wanted to share a little bit about one of CPI's youngest athletes. Luke Ramsey is a nephew of one of our clients and has been visiting from Texas for the past month. Luke competes in powerlifting, plays baseball, and runs track as a sophomore in high school. While visiting he wanted to get some insight on his training, especially for powerlifting. Over the past month we have been working with him for 3 days per week. A lot of our focus was on form and identifying weak points in his movement and body. From day one we noticed a big lack in core strength and have really pushed him to strengthen that as well as learn how to activate that area when needed. It was mostly noticeable in his deadlifts where his core would just give out and his back would round like crazy. Taking his weight down and getting him to focus on activating the core and keeping it rigid, he has improved immensely and keeping a tighter core and better posture throughout his pull. Still not perfect but getting to where it needs to be so that he can really start to move some weight.



Another factor limiting some of his strength are his hips during his squat. He has a hard time keeping the knees from caving in, so we got him working on his abduction with band walks and seated band abduction. Again, for many younger trainees, it is all about correct activation and coordination. Movement is a huge factor during all of training, but especially during the first years of training. A foundation must be built throughout a full range of motion. It's not just about the amount of weight you lift, you have to move good weight through a full range of motion with correct form. This will create a healthy, balanced body for more strength to be built upon.



Luke has been great to work with. It is always fun to work with younger athletes because there is so much potential for growth both physically as well as mentally. At a young age and being an athlete, too many times the focus of training is put on the wrong things. Year-round leagues of the same sports and strength coaches just trying to get bigger numbers really puts these kids at risk of burnout and injury. At a younger age the keys need to be movement quality, athleticism as a whole, and then on top of these we can start looking at strength and specialization. Don't risk your kids health down the road and get a qualified specialist like CPI to help with the development of great movement patterns and a solid foundation of athleticism.

Core to the Core

I recently posted about core training and the way to get more out of your workout than just doing crunches. I wanted to follow up with some exercises that can be done instead of your basic "ab" workouts you are used to. These can be done daily to help strengthen your core and protect your spine. Not to mention, strengthening your core will help all of your other lifts increase. Try out a couple of these exercises next time you hit the gym.










The four examples I have given cover the different movements the core is capable of. The first is a simple plank which is an anti-extension exercise. The core muscles need to contract to prevent gravity from pushing down on the center of the body. The second exercise is a more dynamic example of this same movement. As the bar rolls out the core has to activate to maintain a straight line. The third is an anti-rotation exercise. Just like the plank, the core is working to prevent the movement the band is forcing. And the final exercise is a more encompassing exercise. There is an imbalance of weight from side to side, so as you squat down the core is working to prevent a side bend. So not only are you working the legs with a squat, but also the core.

It's Not Just About Crunches...

Too often we simply go through the motions when working our abdominals.

Many times the focus is on the quantity of repetitions rather than the quality of the

exercises. Why do we need to do all those crunches, when we can achieve much

greater benefits by choosing different exercises? Use the following methods to tweak

your abdominal workout and see what it can do for your core.

What is it that keeps crunches and sit-ups from being beneficial to shaping our core? The answer is found in the “psoas paradox.” Basically, the psoas major is a hip flexor muscle, which together with the other two hip flexors, pulls your thigh bone up toward your torso. When you perform crunches or sit-ups, the psoas major does most of the necessary work. Thus, the abdominals do not get the workout you intended. Furthermore, crunches and sit-ups can put a lot of strain on the spine. Over time, this repetition could cause chronic lower back pain. There are many other exercises to strengthen the entire core with greater efficiency and without causing

back problems.

In order to fine tune your abdominal workout and get the desired results, you must understand the machine that we refer to as the “core.” We must resist thinking of core muscle actions in terms of straight lines. Most of the core muscle movement patterns are diagonal or rotational. Therefore, we should keep this concept in mind when choosing abdominal

exercises.

First, let’s consider static exercises. This type of exercise requires you to control your limbs in space in a wide variety of movement planes and ranges of motion. An example is the plank exercise. Begin by getting into a bridge position (face down). Now, raise one leg and hold it out to the side. Repeat on the other side.

Next, let’s consider movement-based exercises. This form of exercise forces muscles to work together in multiple planes and various degrees of rotation. A great example is a standing wood-chop exercise using a medicine ball. You can chop in vertical, horizontal, or diagonal patterns.

The speed at which an exercise is performed is vitally important as well. Too often people fall into a controlled tempo and do not stray from that pattern. Try accelerating and decelerating. Accelerate from a stopped position to full speed for the first half of the movement then start to decelerate to a complete stop on the second half of the movement. This requires the core to stabilize the entire body throughout the motion.

Another important concept to understand is progression. If you repeat the same abdominal workout time after time, you will limit its benefits. There are a few easy ways to vary your workout. First, work to increase the speed at which you perform the exercise. After you increase your speed, work to increase the range of motion for which you can perform the exercise. Once you have successfully accomplished increased speed and increased range of motion, you can move to heavier weights.

Don't get caught up in the crunch hype. You don't have to keep flexing your spine to get a six pack. Make sure the core is strong and can stabilize your body during movement instead. Keep the core strong and focus on the rest of your training and nutrition and the flat toned stomach will come. We can't just train the core and get the stomach we want. We have to burn the fat off the top and we do that by burning calories and eating the right calories. Focus on everything and the stomach will come.

Welcome

Welcome to the Complete Performance Institute. We are here to help with your training needs. From athletics to weight loss we can help you achieve your goals. Training out of the Basketball Academy in Middletown, we cover everything from strength training to movement quality to speed and agility training. We are also available for corporate bootcamps, weekend workshops, and fitness consulting. Stay tuned to meet our staff as well as see our latest work at Woodhaven Country Club.