Periodization: The Key to an Effective Workout Program

Have you ever experienced stagnation or boredom with your workout routine? Have you hit a plateau where no matter what you do, you just feel like you’re not making progress? Have you experienced long term exhaustion physically, mentally, or even sickness? These are all symptoms of a manotineous workout program that is not well planned or a program that you have stuck to for too long. With strategic periodization, you can avoid training plateaus and overtraining. Here’s how to break free and take your training and your results to the next level.

What is periodization?

Strength and conditioning programs cause an alarm phase that provokes our bodies to respond to external stimulus (strength training or cardiovascular training). Our bodies responds by adapting the stimulus so the next time it encounters the same stressor, we will be able to better deal with the stress. This is referred to as general adaptation syndrome (GAS). Homeostasis is our bodies baseline or equilibrium, so anytime we encounter a stress whether physical or psychological we experience a physiological adaptation. This is why it is important to constantly adjust variables of stress (workout routine) through periodization.

To promote long term training and performance improvements, a good training program should include preplanned, systematic variations in training specificity, intensity, volume, and load organized in periods or cycles within the overall program. This allows you to optimize adaptations made from training either from strength training or cardiovascular training.

Periodization for Strength

So, you have to disrupt homeostasis with a progressive overload to cause the body to adapt. Here are three key training parameters that will drive gains in strength and muscle.

Mechanical tension: external forces put on the muscles by the weights, resulting in muscle contraction. Lifting a heavy load in big compound exercises (squats, chins, rows, bench presses etc.).
Metabolic stress: the accumulation of metabolic byproducts, referred to as metabolites (e.g., lactate, hydrogen ions, and inorganic phosphate) during and following resistance exercise, which indirectly mediate cell and muscle swelling. Using higher rep sets with shorter rest periods and intensification techniques such as, drop sets, supersets, rest pause and occlusion training.
Muscle damage: referring to micro tears accrued from deliberately lifting weights, usually accompanied by DOMS. Exercises which place a big stretch on the muscle like Romanian Deadlifts, are great at achieving this. Eccentric overload training is also excellent. So, using a weight heavier than you can lift and just doing the lowering phase (you will need a spotter for this).

Periodization for Cardio

You should also periodize your cardiovascular training for the same reasons—to further challenge your body while still allowing for adequate recovery time.

If, for example, you’re a recreational runner, running for fitness, fun and the occasional short race, you’ll want to allow for flat, easy runs, as well as some that incorporate hills and others that focus on speed and strength.

What you don’t want to do is complete the same run every time. If you run too easily, and don’t push yourself, you won’t progress. And chances are you’ll get bored. Conversely, too much speed or high-intensity training will lead to injury or burnout, and most likely, disappointing race results.

Training Variables to Consider

Here are 5 key variables to consider that will impact your workouts. Now that you know the importance of altering your training program, here is how periodization manipulates these variables. A change in your program doesn’t necessarily mean you have to change all of the exercises, sets, reps, and weight periodically. In some instances, that may be the case, but a change in your program can be as subtle as increasing or decreasing the volume. Or maybe you increase the weight in your strength training routine. Maybe, you increase the weight and decrease the volume respectively. There are many ways that you can alter a program, the most important thing is that your program is adjusted periodically with the end goal in mind so that you get results.

Here are 5 key training variables:

Volume: The number of repetitions per set, or the number of sets of each exercise

Load: The amount of resistance used and cumulative effective of stress from your workout physically and psychologically.

Frequency: How many days a week you train a muscle group, movement pattern, or energy system.

Intensity: Rest period between sets or bouts, exercise type, order of the exercises, types of exercises, weight used for the exercise, and speed at which you complete each exercise.

Specificity: exercise selection that is specific or non specific to your goals

How Frequently should you switch up workouts?

Macrocycle: Traditional periodization models divide the overall program into specific time periods. The largest division is a macrocycle, typically (6-12 months)

Mesocycle: Within macrocycle are two or more mesocycles, each lasting several weeks to several months. The number depends on goal and peak time periods. (2 weeks – 6 months)

Microcycle: Each mesocycle is divided into two or more microcycles that are typically one week long but could last for up to four weeks, depending on the program. This short cycle focuses on daily and weekly training variations. (1-4 weeks)

With this in mind. It is recommended that you adjust your training program at least every 4 weeks to avoid plateaus and negative effects of overtraining.

Types of Periodization

Here are 3 types of periodization methods.

Linear: Most frequently used. Best for beginners. training plan that gradually increases volume, intensity, and work by mesocycles in an annual plan. Progressive overload is a major key to success here.

Non-Liner/Undulated: Relies on constant change in stimuli throughout training cycles. As opposed to a linear periodization that focuses on gradual increase of one variable, this style manipulates multiple variables like exercises, volume, intensity, and training adaptation on a frequent basis. The time frame for these manipulations can be daily, weekly, or even bi-weekly. Non-linear periodization is more advanced than linear and incorporates multiple types of stimuli into a training program.

Block Periodization: Block periodization is arguably the “newest” periodization style. The concept of block periodization focuses on breaking down specific training periods into 2-4 week periods. Each block encompasses three different stages: accumulation (50-75% intensity), transmutation (75-90% intensity), and realization (90%> intensity). The goal behind these smaller, specific blocks is to allow an athlete to stay at their peak level longer.

Periodized training will ensure that you continue to make measurable progress, which will keep you energized and interested in reaching your goals

As you incorporate periodization into your fitness program, keep in mind your body will need adequate rest as well. It’s important to track your workouts and record sets, reps along with the amount of resistance you used. This long-term plan will allow you to stay focused on different goals throughout the year and will support continued and measurable progress.

Sports Performance, Workouts

The World’s Best Vertical Jump Exercise

So, you have probably heard, the best way to improve your vertical jump is by doing plyometric training. This type of training includes ballistic hops, skips, and jumps that enhance the stretch shortening cycle (SSC) in your tendons, and in particular, your golgi tendon organ (GTO). The GTO is a proprioceptive sensory receptor organ that senses changes in muscle tension. It lies at the origin and insertion of skeletal muscle fibers into the tendonsof skeletal muscle. When there is tension placed on your muscles or tendons from lifting weights or landing from a jump, for example, the GTO sends signals to inhibit the muscle from exerting too much force as a safety mechanism. This is important as it ensures you don’t strain or tear a muscle. However, structured plyometric training can inhibit or desensitize the GTO to allow your muscles and tendons to harness more kinetic energy thus giving you the ability to produce more force and power in your jumps.

Depth Drop to Box Jump Trumps Them All

The depth drop to box jump is the most effective jump training that you can do because it inhibits the GTO with the deficit drop landing. The other mechanism that makes this drill effective is that it not only has a shock method but also effectively trains all three kinds of muscle contractions. These include eccentric, isometric, and concentric muscle contractions. Training all three phases will enhance intramuscular coordination which will allow you to jump higher and get off the ground faster.

How to Do This Drill

Landing– Reach out with one foot with your toes pointing up. This is calleddorsi flexion.Step off the box and land on both feet simultaneously applying pressure through the middle of your foot. You don’t want to land on your toes or your heels. Next, focus on sinking your hips back and positioning your chest over your thighs or knees while swinging both arms back. If you look at the video, notice that when I land, both arms are being pulled down and back so there is no wasted movement. This will make the transition faster so you can get off the ground quicker! For beginners, pause on the landing to ensure good mechanics and posture. As you progress, decrease ground contact time.

Transition– This phase of the jump is all about joint stiffness. As soon as your feet hit the ground, don’t allow your hips to continue dropping toward the ground. To avoid this, think about landing like a brick hitting the floor versus a slinky. This shock mechanism will help you improve the rate of force absorption allowing you to transition into your take off quicker.

Take Off– This is the part of the drill that everyone emphasizes. However, if the landing and transition are not efficient or done properly, the opportunity for an explosive take off will be minimized. To decrease your take off time and increase your jump height, push through the ground swinging your arms forward and upward. Think about driving through your big toe and rapidly extending your hips to get triple extension.

If you emphasize each aspect of the depth drop (landing, transition, and take off), you will notice more pop off the ground and increase your vertical jump height.

Program Implementation

After doing a proper warm up, you can include the depth drop to box jump drill before your strength training routine or superset with a compound lower body exercise like squats. When doing plyometrics drills, you want to focus on quality not quantity so keep the reps low and gradually increase the volume by adding more sets as your training progresses.

Week 1-2: 2×5

Week 3-4: 3×4

Week 5-6: 4×4

Fitness, Sports Performance, Workouts

Aerobic Training For Athletes

What is aerobic training

Aerobic training, also known as cardio, improves an athlete’s ability to use oxygen to sustain activity for periods of time. The aerobic energy system utilizes fats, carbohydrates and sometimes proteins for re-synthesizing of Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) for energy use. ATP is the primary energy carrier in all living organisms. The aerobic system produces far more ATP than either of the other energy systems but it produces the ATP much more slowly, therefore it cannot fuel intense exercise that demands the fast production of ATP. However, aerobic training for athletes is key to optimizing performance.

Why aerobic training is good for athletes

The aerobic system is the dominant source of energy in sport and activities lasting longer than 3 minutes of continuous activity. Here are a few examples: endurance runners, cyclists, and distance swimmers, etc. All athletes can benefit from aerobic training even if they rely on quick short bursts of energy. Building a larger aerobic base will help increase anaerobic thresholds and improve energy efficiency.

Effects of aerobic training for athletes

Our bodies adapt to low to moderate-intensity activities that last for more than just a few minutes. Sustained workouts improve your body’s ability to breathe in and use oxygen. Here are the types of adjustments our bodies make internally to make these improvements:

Increases in the number of mitochondria (small structures known as the powerhouses) inside muscle cells that produce energy from oxygen,
Increases in the muscle’s ability to use fat as fuel,
Greater lung capacity,
Improved heart stroke volume (the amount of blood pumped with each beat),
Changes in hormones (epinephrine) that break down and move fat through the body for use as a fuel,
Increased lean body mass.

What are the best Aerobic Training Workouts

Intensity (how hard), duration (how long), and frequency (how often) are key ways to improve your ability to maintain aerobic activity. Fitness improves when intensity is between 70-80% of maximum heart rate, but this may not be adequate for endurance athletes in some sports and events.

Elite endurance athletes often utilize high-intensity interval (HIIT) exercise in their training regimens. Recent studies indicate that HIIT is a time-efficient strategy to stimulate a number of muscle adaptations that are comparable to traditional endurance training. Athletes may include other sport-specific activities in interval training workouts.

The aerobic energy system can be developed with various types of training.

Interval training– Interval training for the long term aerobic energy system would have a work-rest ratio of 1:1 or 1:2. The work periods would usually exceed several minutes and the rest periods would be active but at a lower intensity that could be sustained.
Continuous training– Training that maintains a constant intensity and lasts for a prolonged period of time (usually longer than 15 minutes)
‘Fartlek’ training– A type of interval training whereby the exerciser varies the speed and effort throughout the training session according to how they feel ensuring that they can continue to exercise at all times (i.e. no rest intervals).

Workout Examples

Run for two minutes at mod/high intensity, followed by two minutes at low intensity (active recovery) repeated for 30 minutes.
30 minutes low/moderate intensity cycling, swimming or jogging without change in intensity.
30 minute jog over hills requiring bursts of extra effort every now and then but never stopping throughout the jog.

Process and rate of recovery

Recovery for the aerobic system is about restoring fuel stores to their pre-exercise levels. This requires the ingestion, digestion and transportation of the fuel and can take between 12 and 48 hours depending on the intensity and duration of the aerobic training for the athlete’s performance.

Fitness, Gym, Sports Performance, Workouts

The Number One Exercise to Increase Your Upper Body Strength

Are you looking to increase your upper body strength? There are tons of exercises out there that can help improve your strength. But there is one that is above the rest. That is, the bench press. This is the number one exercise to increase your upper body strength. You can spend hours in the gym doing countless reps of push-ups, pull-ups, shoulder presses, and bicep curls, but none of these single exercises will have as much of a positive effect on your upper body strength than the bench press. Let’s dive in to see why the bench press is the best exercise for building strength!

Bench Press for Gains

The bench press is the number one exercise to increase your upper body strength because it gives you the most bang for your buck. It allows you to recruit more muscle fibers than any other upper body exercise out there. When it comes to building strength, you want to stick to exercises that use major muscle groups when exerting sub-maximal and maximal effort to get the gains you are looking for.

The bench press is a compound exercise, meaning it utilizes multiple joints and muscle groups to help you develop functional strength by following your body’s natural movement patterns. Compound movements are among the best exercises to gain total upper body strength because they help you develop the greatest amount of muscle tissue possible. Compound lifts create the greatest change in body composition in the shortest time and also have the added benefit of helping develop the body proportionately.

Heavy Weight Champ

Gaining upper body strength requires exercises that stimulate muscular growth by imposing enough stress on your muscles. The bench press is the number one exercise to increase your upper body strength because it allows you to contract your muscles against heavier loads, which exhaust your muscles with fewer repetitions. The bench press maximizes damage to contractile proteins in your muscles. Your muscles adapt by repairing the damage and synthesizing more proteins, which effectively increases the contractile strength of your muscles.

Is the Bench Press Right for You?

If you’re looking to increase your upper body strength while improving muscle definition and posture, the bench press is the way to go. However, if you have shoulder issues or any other pain in your back, elbows, or wrist, you may want to stick to exercises that work on stability and control to help strengthen that area or prevent further injury. A great alternative to the bench press is the dumbbell bench press or push-up. These upper body exercises have great benefits but do not put as much stress on your joints. Remember to train mobility and stability, then endurance, then build strength. Failure to follow this progression will result in injury. Also, be sure to incorporate these warm-up exercises before doing any upper body strength routine.

1×10 Each

Fitness, Gym, Sports Performance, Workouts

What’s Better, High Intensity or Low Intensity Training?

What type of exercise is better for your body—high intensity or low intensity training? The answer is not that simple. It comes down to individual goals and how your body responds to exercise on a given day. Is your goal to decrease your body fat percentage, increase your VO2 max, recover faster, or have more power for anaerobic work? Different energy systems are used when performing high and low intensity workouts as well as a different ratio of carbs vs. fats burned within the body.

Low intensity exercise is aerobic work where your heart rate stays within 60-80% of your max heart rate. Working on your endurance boosts your heart’s left ventricle that pushes blood out to the rest of the body to increase in capacity. That means that more oxygen gets delivered to nourish crucial tissues and organs which support better overall health. Not only does more oxygen reach crucial parts of the body, but your circulatory system gets better at transferring it from blood to tissue. That’s because low intensity exercise increases capillary density, so more channels are on hand to deliver oxygen to the tissue’s cells. This in turn increases base oxygen intake leading to enhanced endurance.

High intensity exercise, often referred to as HIIT (high intensity interval training) or SIT (sprint interval training), burns more calories in a shorter period of time compared to the time put in for low intensity training. However, high intensity exercise escalates your resting metabolism so you burn more calories post exercise. The high intensity nature provides improved athletic capacity and condition as well as improved glucose metabolism. High intensity may not be as effective for treating hyperlipidemia and obesity, but has been shown to build more lean body mass and increase recovery time which is more applicable to sports performance athletes.

You get more bang for the buck when muscles burn fat because fat has more than twice the number of calories (nine calories vs. four calories per gram from carbs). Fat is the high-test fuel. Less oxygen reaches the muscle when you exercise hard, or fast, and get out of breath. The term “sucking wind” means that you are working hard to get more oxygen in. When less oxygen reaches the muscles, known as oxygen debt, carbohydrates become the preferred fuel because they burn completely with less oxygen.

With the information above, can we now narrow down what type of exercise is right for you? The simple answer is to combine both high and low intensity exercise into your routine. Where it gets confusing is when we ask ourselves, “what ratio of each should I do? 50/50?”. This is where it becomes individualized. The most popular ratio, and what I use for metabolic workouts, is based on Olympic programming. This breaks down low, moderate, and high intensity workouts into a ratio of 80% low, 12% moderate, and 8% high intensity throughout the week. After looking at these numbers, doesn’t the ratio of high intensity workouts seem very low?

The reason is that low intensity exercise promotes longevity and muscle recovery when done correctly. An overdose of high intensity exercise has its downsides. Although it is a great way to increase resting metabolism, crush carb stores in the body, and increase VO2 max, it is a sympathetic stressor and can lead to adrenal fatigue. In large doses, high intensity puts an incredible strain on your nervous system, joints and muscles; especially if you are overweight and unfit. It also puts you at a high risk of overtraining, which is a real danger as it can ruin your immune system, cause insomnia, affect your appetite, and release cortisol, which in turn can make you more likely to put on fat.

I would love to see more individuals build an excellent oxidative system base through low intensity exercise while slowly adding in high intensity training one day per week so their bodies can adapt appropriately. Work your way up to the 80%, 12%, and 8% and then get creative with your workouts. So long as you’re in the correct energy system, you may do CrossFit, Tabata, 5K’s, marathons, sprints, lifting—take your pick!

Fitness, Nutrition, Sports Performance, Workouts

3 Tips for Maximum Recovery

As an athlete or gym warrior, it’s easy to get caught up in the barbells, sleds, and plyo boxes. While what you do in the gym is unbelievably important, taking care of your body when you’re not at the gym is equally as important. I have put together a list of 4 tips for maximum recovery to keep you at the top of your game.

Get Moving

One of the worst things that you can do on your recovery days is to be a couch potato. When we workout, our body produces byproducts like lactic acid, pyruvate, and NADH+. These byproducts pool up and cause our muscles to be sluggish, slow and sore. In order for our body to get rid of these byproducts, it requires blood flow to carry them out of our muscles. A blood flow elevated above resting will help to drain these byproducts from our muscles and speed up recovery.

Tips for moving during a recovery day:

Go for a light jog/walk
- Just get your heart rate up, don’t push it
Foam roll
- Spend 20-30 seconds on each of the major muscles
- Glutes/Hamstrings/Calves/Quads
- Lats/Upper back/Pecs
Lacrosse ball
- Spend some time isolating specific knots or trigger points
- Place the lacrosse ball on the knot and slowly grind into it
Stretch
- Stretch the major muscles. If you neglect mobility, over time you will develop pain and injuries because the muscles aren’t functioning the way they should.
- Spend 20-30 seconds on each muscle
- Dynamic stretching combined with a light jog/walk is a great combo

Eat Right

Proper fuel is absolutely essential for competitive athletes. In order for our bodies to function properly at competition, they need fuel. Not only do they need fuel, they need the right fuel. Think of your body like a car. You could fill your car up with bleach and it would run … but not for long. If you’re filling your body up with junk food and missing out on the right nutrients, your body won’t perform the way you want it to for very long.

Tips for improving your nutrition:

Portion size properly
Hydrate properly
Balance it out
Check out this Simply Nutrition Guide

Sleep

One of the biggest factors that significantly influences your body’s performance is sleep. Proper sleep has been shown to increase performance, motivation, concentration, and improve cognitive performance. While we are sleeping, our bodies go to work. During sleep, your body increases the hormone productions that lead to rebuilding muscles, increasing the tensile strength of your actin and myosin within the muscle fibers. It is recommended for athletes to get anywhere from 7-9 hours of sleep each night. If you are in the middle of pre-season or heavy training times, an extra hour is typically recommended. If you can’t manage to get that much sleep at night, naps can be a way to add up to that sleep total.

Tips for getting good sleep:

Get in a rhythm and stick to it! Plan ahead, finish homework/work in time that you can get to bed at a consistent time
Avoid being on your phone in bed, the stimulus will fight your body wanting to sleep
Avoid caffeine in the second half of the day

Fitness, Nutrition, Sports Performance

Simple Nutrition Guide to Launch into a Healthy Lifestyle

A sound nutrition plan is all about energy balance. This is the relationship between calories in and calories out. Other key factors that contribute to launching a healthy lifestyle include macro and micro nutrients. These play a key role in your metabolism and hormones which contributes to how your body processes food for energy. This nutrition guide will help you launch into a healthy lifestyle whether your looking to lose weight, increase lean body mass, or just looking to improve your eating habits.

Purpose of Each Nutrient

Carbohydrates for energy, cognitive function at work, primary fuel source, transports protein
Fat for anti-inflammation, cell structure, brain development and nerve function
Protein for recovery and repair of muscle tissue and cells, meal satiety
- Distribution/Timing of protein throughout the day is essential.

Fiber for healthy digestive system, positive mood, efficient metabolism
Establish balance with proper caloric deficit to have fueling that supports energy needed for workouts while making progress towards body composition

Hydration

Proper hydration is critical for energy, nutrient absorption/digestion and mental clarity
~1 cup of fluids 15-20 minutes before exercise
~1 cup every 15-20 minutes during exercise

Identify Your Energy Needs

Breakfast Example

2 different servings of fruit.
- For example – 1 whole orange and 1 cup raspberries. It must be fresh or frozen.

With 1/4 cup raw walnuts or 20 raw almonds.
Plus 6 oz. plain Greek yogurt or 1/3 cup chickpeas or ½ cup quinoa.
Drink 16 oz. of water or hot or iced tea or coffee.

Lunch Example

Prepare a large salad with variety of veggies (aim for minimum of 3 different colors)
- (Combining bag salads works well. Be sure to include a dark green)

Top with ¼ cup chopped walnuts, or 20 almonds or ¼ cup sunflower seeds
Rebuild lean muscle w/ 1/3 cup beans (pinto, kidney, chickpea, black (rinse if canned)).
Add 1 apple, diced with skin (or 1 serving any other fruit.)
Have with 1 tablespoon of any salad dressing that you like – vinegar and olive oil or salsa are two options. Drink water or alternative beverage such as tea.

MOVE today!

Get as much exercise as you can, preferably 1 hour of movement–walking, swimming, stationary bike, etc.

*If you get snackie during the afternoon, have 1 serving fresh fruit or more veggies.

Dinner Example

Prepare stir fried vegetables (minimum of 3 colors and use a little olive oil)
Top with ¼ cup sliced almonds, walnuts or sunflower seeds
Power up with protein from 1/3 cup beans, rinsed (red, pinto, kidney, black.)
Flavor the stir fry with fresh herbs and spices or spice mixes.

PM Snack

Thaw ¾ cup berries and drizzle 1 small square melted dark chocolate on top.
Key is having casein protein: cottage cheese, frozen Greek yogurt, protein shake, milk

Meal Guide

Breakfast – Pick from each category:
- Energizing carb: black beans – whole wheat toast – sweet potato hash – oatmeal
- Lean protein: Greek yogurt – eggs – hemp seeds – turkey – protein powder
- Antioxidant fruits: blackberries – strawberries – blueberries – pineapple

Lunch – Pick from each category:
- Lean meat: chicken – ground turkey – white fish
- Complex carb: quinoa – brown rice – sweet potato – whole wheat pasta – WG bread
- Vegetable: asparagus – broccoli – peppers – zucchini/squash – kale – and many more!

Dinner – Pick from each category:
- Lean meat (5-6 days/wk): chicken – ground turkey – white fish
- High fat (omega) meat (1-2 days/wk): salmon – quality steak – tuna

Foods Supporting Digestive Health

Ground flaxseed
Kiwi
Oatmeal
Beans
Kombucha or other fermented food (sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, kefir)

Anti-Inflamtory Foods

Salmon
Tuna
Walnuts
Pineapple
Watermelon
Tumeric
Tart Cherry concentrate

Foods that Boost Fat Metabolism

Red grapefruit
Coffee (black)
Lentils
Water
Whole grains high in B vitamins

Foods that Increase Endurance

Spinach
Beets
Arugula
Celery
Potato starch

Foods that Support Immune Function

Tomatoes
Red Bell Pepper
Citrus (oranges, lemons)
Yogurt
Green tea
Ginger

Fitness, Sports Performance, Workouts

Prime Your Body For Results with This Short Stationary Dynamic Warm Up

Are you doing a dynamic warm up before your workout routine? If you’re not, you could be leaving performance benefits on the table and potentially putting yourself at risk for injury. I know it may not always be practical to spend 15 minutes going through a dynamic warm up, but it is important that you elevate your heart rate, take your body through full range of motion, and activation your muscles before doing any workout routine.

5 benefits of a dynamic warm up

Increase core body temperature
Increase blood flow
Lubricate joints
Enhance joint mobility/flexibility
Muscle activation

If you’re short on time and have limited space, this is the perfect warm up routine for you. Perform this short stationary dynamic warm up prior to your workout to prime your body for max results!

Exercises

Jumping Jacks (30 reps)

Split Jacks (30 reps)

Cross Jacks (30 reps)

Knee Hug w/ Ankle Circle (6 reps each)

Quad Stretch w/ Forward Lean (6 reps each)

Inverted Toe Reach (6 reps each)

T-Spine Lunge w/ Rotation (6 reps each)

Infant Squats (8 reps)

Fitness, Sports Performance, Workouts

Which is Better, Dynamic or Static Stretching?

Dynamic and static stretching has been a discussion topic in the fitness industry for quite some time. The main thing to keep in mind is that everyone’s body is different as well as their perception of“fitness” and “mobility.” We all have some form of compensation or tightness within our muscular system. Again, this is where an individual may apply static and dynamic stretching differently. It is very important to be open minded and pay attention to your body specifically. Even the best fitness
professional in the world doesn’t know your body as well as you do.

What is dynamic stretching?

This form of stretching is defined on www.dictionary.com as: “A type of sports fitness routine in which momentum and active muscular effort are used to stretch and the end position is not held.” The high knee movement is an example of dynamic stretching because it is constantly changing while stretching and activating your muscles. The key word here is “activating.”

What is static stretching?

Defined by http://www.humankinetics.com, “static stretching means a stretch is held in a challenging but comfortable position for a period of time, usually somewhere between 10 to 30 seconds. Static stretching is the most common form of stretching found in general fitness and is considered safe and effective for improving overall flexibility.” Holding the stretching position in this fashion inhibits muscle activation and puts your body in a relaxed, parasympathetic, recovery state. Foam rolling is another way to get the same response as static stretching.

Which is better, static or dynamic stretching?

Now that we have defined the two different types of stretching, when is the optimal time to incorporate each type around your workout? We know that dynamic stretching is a form of muscle activation, while static stretching inhibits muscle activation, therefore making your workout more productive from the start when we dynamically stretch the body. On the other hand, if you are a person with muscle tightness and lack functionality because of this, you may benefit more from static stretching before exercise. If your mobility is sub-par and you can’t get into a good position during an exercise, itdoesn’t matter how much activation you have done beforehand because your body is compensating with some other muscle that shouldn’t be the prime mover for the exercise.

So how do I know if my body needs static or dynamic stretching before exercise? This is where I have found a way to get the most out of your workout. For the clear majority of people, we incorporate foam rolling and static stretching, as well as dynamic stretching, before the workout—in that order.

Foam rolling should be the first thing you do when you are preparing to exercise. It aids in priming the muscles for stretching by increasing blood flow and releasing the muscle fibers and tightness. Now you can incorporate light static stretching that is specific to your workout. If you are doing overhead pressing movements, target your shoulder, chest, and latissimus dorsi muscles to reach the range of motion needed for the correct position in that exercise. Following light static stretching is then metabolic warm up and dynamic stretching. The metabolic warm up helps prime the body with oxygen and creates blood flow to the muscles to make them more elastic and less prone to injury. Incorporating the dynamic warm up will activate your muscles for optimal strength and power so you can accomplish more during your workout! It’s that easy folks.

Keep in mind that people who may be hypermobile in certain areas should not partake in static stretching before or after exercise, as it may be harmful to your body. I didn’t spend much time going over the type of stretching that should be done post-workout because it is apparent. We want to recover after a workout to make our transition from a sympathetic state to a parasympathetic state so we can promote recovery faster and feel better overall. This means static stretching and foam rolling. For a recap, I made a list below of the optimal stretching order to incorporate around your workout.

-Foam Roll
-Light Static Stretching
-Metabolic Warm Up
-Dynamic Stretching

-Workout
-Foam Roll
-Static Stretching

Sports Performance

5 Best Exercises to Increase Your Speed

I often get the question, “which is more important for speed, mechanics or strength?” I think it’s important to understand that speed is not a one or the other concept. In order to move fast, you need to have proper mechanics, AND you need to be able to put a lot of force into the ground.

Think of it like a car—if you put a set of racing tires on a Prius, it’s going to control the power extremely well, but that’s not going to make it fast. Alternatively, if you put a Lamborghini’s engine on a lawn mower, there’s not a chance you will be able to control that power. Speed is the same thing. We must have the knowledge and practice of how to move our bodies properly and efficiently, but we need to be building a bigger engine to produce more power through our efficient mechanics. I have compiled what I think to be the 5 best exercises to help you harness that power and increase your speed.

Squat

The squat is absolutely essential for any speed training program. Squats target many of the important muscles related to sprinting including the glutes, hamstrings, quads, and calves.

Squats have a unique versatility to them. With numerous variations, they have the ability to strengthen the muscles necessary for sprinting in different ways.

Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift (RDL)

The RDL is another very important exercise if your intentions are to increase your speed. The RDL is designed to target your Posterior Chain, specifically your glutes and hamstrings.

These muscles are the ones responsible for your top speed. The ability to produce a lot of force horizontally is what keeps you ahead of your opponent.

Sled Push

Sled pushes are an awesome blend of strength training and biomechanics training. They can be done with varying amount of weight to increase or decrease difficulty. Sled pushes give you the ability to focus on sprinting mechanics while building the strength necessary to maximize your speed.

Depth-Drop Jumps

Depth-drop jumps utilize our Stretch-Shortening Cycle (SSC) through means of Plyometric forces. This means that dropping from a height requires your muscles/ligaments to stretch and absorb energy, then rapidly contract and release that energy by jumping immediately after contacting the ground. This exercise gets your lower body producing a lot of powerful force, and when used right, gets you sprinting very fast (and jumping higher too).

Three-Way Plank

A list of exercises to improve speed would be amiss if it did not include something for the core. Having a strong core is essential for speed. Force cannot adequately transfer from your foot to your head if there is a weak spot in-between.

The three-way plank is great because it forces you to strengthen the muscles in your core that you utilize while sprinting.

This is, of course, not an exhaustive list of exercises that improve speed. And by no means should your training program only comprise of these exercises, but this is a great place to start. What is your favorite exercise for improving speed?

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