LAT UPDATE

I received a few questions on the lats and thought I would write some additional information on the subject. The initial article "Training the Lats" appeared on July 18th.
Relative strength is the ability to do an exercise as compared to your bodyweight. For example, a chin up (palms facing away from your face) for 15 or more reps is very good. It is also a good point of reference to the future athletic ability of an athlete. As I previously mentioned, fat kids who can't do a chin-up or a pull-up (palms facing the face) are usually out of shape for any sport. Other examples of relative strength would include pushups, knee-ups, bodyweight squats, standing long jump, vertical jump, etc.
A progression is the ability to perform a very easy task and when mastered, build on it. A simple progression for the chin-up (palms away) would be to lower yourself for 5 seconds and have a training partner push you back up to the top via the waist or you feet pushing off of his hands. Do this for 5 reps and two sets. When you are able to do 5 reps and three sets for 10 second lowering, you should be able to bang out a couple of reps. Make sure you have a training partner you will work you intelligently. What I mean by that is provides no assistance when you go back up to the bar, and provides a positive atmosphere to train in. This same idea can be used by females and males alike.
If you get the book "The Poliquin Principles" by Charles Poliquin, there is an entire chapter dedicated to Lat development and importance. Just look at Mike Dayton!

AUTO REGULATION OR DROP OFF'S

I did running in high school, as a form of conditioning for various sports, but did not understand much. Later on, I attended the University of Arizona, I was lucky to be around a couple of good track and field athletes. I got to know them via the weight room. One was a 400 meter runner who taught some of the basics of the sport. He knew a lot, but always went out way to fast, and would pull up with the dreaded "Hamstring tightness". He was simply outclassed. Nevertheless, I thank him for what I learned. He used to run sprints with very long rest periods, and would continue until his time or form dropped off. It was interesting, but my head was into the weightroom so much, I didn't appreciate the value of that statement.
When I was older, it was accepted to listen to your body when training, and listen to what it says. That was such a vague term. I was into cookie cutter programs then, and had to do what my program said. It led to overtraining many times, and probably undertraining a few times. I remember meeting a guy in 1995 or 1996 who trained people and frequently used a stop watch to time things. I had wondered how my track experiences and what I read could some how tie in together?
In 2002 I started reading articles by DB Hammer about Auto Regulation. I never heard this term before, but he also referred to it as "the drop off method". I made the tie in and was thinking , that is interesting. In DB Hammer's book "The Best Sports Training Book Ever" he talks about AutoReg and related subjects in Chapter 5. I'm not joking about that title. When I saw that I initially went, another self promoter.
Well, I just got bounced off my computer and lost my train of thought. That sucks! Back to the article. Time to retype something the second time.
Anyway, on page 59, he states "the best way to regulate volume is at the individual level. Lower down the page he states the three major reasons AutoReg or AREG is successful. They are:
1) Increase your ability to manage an increased degree of frequency with the same measure of fatigue inducement. That means I can do more and experience the same amount of fatigue. Hey, I like that one.
2) Increase your ability to tolerate an increased degree of fatigue without a change in the training frequency. That would include lactic acid tolerance, mental toughness, and many others.
3) Increase you ability to tolerate a greater than degree of fatigue even though the training frequency is also enhanced. This is hard to do with young athletes. They usually bury themselves and possibly get injured. Only well versed coaches are capable of doing this.
Well what is AREG?
If I can paraphrase Kelly Baggett, an excellent sports performance coach from the midwest, it is the individual differences in work capacity that everyone experiences in every workout. This can be adjusted up, or adjusted down. An example of this could be used in the glute/ham exercise. I tell the athlete to start off with bodyweight only for ten reps. If successful, add 5 pounds. If successful with 5 pounds for 10 reps, then go to ten pounds. Continue adding 5 pounds until they are no longer capable of doing 10 reps. There are many examples of this. I have mentioned speed lifts in other articles. That is another example. A third example is work up to a maximum in a particular lift. Lets say you box squat 225 for 5. You can subtract 6% from either number and continue to do that until longer possible. 6% of 225 is roughly 15 pounds. You can do 210 for 5 reps, with the same rest period in between each, until you can no longer do that. You stop and move onto the next exercise. You could do 225 for 4 reps until you are unable to do 4. Stop and move on to the next exercise. This is only the tip of the iceberg. There are many more variations to lengthly to mention here. Track and field athletes can immediately see the tie in to drop offs as used for some time on the track. The super 7 touches a ridiculous amount of combos.
By the way, the book is available at inno-sport.net.
Any questions? acudave@yahoo.com. Thanks!!

WESTSIDE-BARBELL.COM

If you want a list of many of the articles Louie Simmons has written over the years they are listed under articles at westside-barbell.com. The article section goes back to November of 2000. I actually have articles back to September of 1997. All are interesting. You may want to look at the "wanted serious powerlifters" on the top of the main page. They are looking for serious individuals who want to achieve world record status. I wish I was 20 years younger.

SAFETY SQUAT BAR

I originally became familiar with the safety squat bar (SSQB) via some articles written by its developer Fred "Dr. Squat" Hatfield. I was fortunate enough to meet Dr. Squat on a few occasions, but one will always stand out in my mind. I was at the Police Academy adjacent to Dodger Stadium in the mid 1980's. A friend at the time, Ron Fernando, was a writer for the magazine Powerlifting USA and I were at a Powerlifting meet at the academy. I was in the back of the room when Ron asked if I could spot Fred on his last warm-up. Seven hundred pounds was on the bar. Yes, that is correct seven hundred pounds! I spotted Fred on his right and almost got hit in the jaw. His explosiveness was amazing! I had never seen a squat attempt that heavy go so fast. Little did I know that was one of the earliest examples of a dynamic effort lift that Louie Simmons has researched and written so much about.
Anyway, the SSQB is a product that Dr. Squat developed and popularized. The bar is counter balanced so that when you place the bar on your shoulders, you can stand up without it falling off. Look ma no hands! There are two pads that rest on the athlete's traps. The traps are the muscles in between your neck and your shoulder.
When the SSQB was initially used, it came under unfair criticism for supposedly creating injuries to the knees. Lifters were either grabbing the squat cage or using hooks to pull themselves up if they were unable to complete a lift. Self spotting as it were. To much overload on the knees is the concept flaw here, not the product flaw. To much weight was the culprit.
The SSQB has some great uses for many different types of athletes. Training young athletes like young girls, or underdeveloped athletes with little muscle in the the upper back and shoulder area, can be improved with the use of the SSQB. The uncomfortable feeling that these athletes experience could cause them to quit very early on in the development of strength and explosiveness. Athletes with a history of injuries in the neck and shoulders find the SSQB very helpful. I have a right shoulder, that was hurt in a car accident ions ago, (coupled with many years of lifting) that reacts favorably to the position I maintain when using the SSQB. If you think about it, the elbows are closer to the body and this position is much more favorable toward maintaining healthy shoulders. Please refer to my article "The Impingement Zone" dated 5/25/05 which better explains this matter. If you happen to be a baseball, lacrosse, ice hockey, field hockey, quarterback, or what I call a stick or throwing athlete, the SSQB is something you should look into to maintain the aforementioned healthy shoulders. An athlete with wrist, elbow, bicep, tricep or hand injuries could also be included into this entire discussion.
Another point important is the angle of the back when using a regular bar versus the SSQB. The SSQB promotes a more upright back, versus a more parallel back when using a regular squat bar while placement of the bar is in a more powerlifting position on the back. Please refer to my article "The Squat" dated 5/16/05 for more information on the subject of bar placement. If you want to squat olympic style, with the bar high on the traps, remember the stress that is placed on the 7th cervical disc. This and other neck upper back problems can be minimized.
Glad to be back, and thanks for those questions at acudave@yahoo.com.

CREATINE UPDATES

There is an excellent article at t-nation.com about the 2005 NSCA meeting in Las Vegas. The author Chris Shugart is an excellent writer and coach. Here is a synopsis on the portion he wrote about creatine. NSCA stands for National Strength Coaches Association.
*Creatine results are not just water weight. Creatine can improve muscular endurance and can help enhance performance (anaerobic power)
*Creatine doesn't cause cramps, as some once believed. It will not harm the kidneys, even at large dosages for extended periods of time.
*Creatine can actually help you perform better in the heat due to its hyperhydration effects.
*Creatine is safe for kids. They eat meat and fish after all, which naturally contain creatine. Studies have been done on infants (4-8 grams per day) with inborn error of Creatine metabolism. There were no adverse effects.
*Athletes with a lot of fast twitch fibers of type II respond better to creatine than others.
To read the rest of this article please go to the website. He also summarizes an interesting speech he attended by the strength coach for the Air Force. I use chains in the Olympic lifts. You will know what I'm talking about when you read it. Thanks acudave@yahoo.com

TRAINING THE LATS

I remember watching the movie "Pumping Iron" and the scene when a bodybuilder is posing. Arnold is in the audience and making comments about the competitors. One competitor (Franco Columbo?) had such huge lats the Arnold and Robbie Robinson made jokes about him looking like a bat. All jokes aside, the lats don't have as much popularity anymore.
I think the reason for that is the obesity that we see in more and more kids today. The lats are a good measuring stick of relative strength, and the fatter an individual is, the harder it is to do just one chin. I emphasize lat strength to players and athletes I train as soon as I start working with them. If a kid is unable to do one chin-up, the day they can do one is an amazing event.
In Charles Poliquin's book "The Poliquin Principles", he has Chapter 11 dedicated to the Lats. He mentions the gymnast Yuri Chechi of Italy. If you watched the 2004 summer Olympics, you would have seen this amazing athlete in action. He is a ring specialist. That is the event that everyone goes wow at, when seeing it for the first time. The iron-cross is when the gymnast holds his arms straight out to his sides while holding the crucifix position. Adding weight while doing variations of chins while give you this look. I remember Yuri Chechi carrying the flag out for Italy in the opening ceremonies. That was with one hand. Very impressive. By the way, he finished third in an extremely closely contested event. But the major questions are why do I want to do these exercise?, and how do I do these exercises?
The lats are important in maintaining posture. I see my fair share of athletes that have shoulders that are forward with a rounded upper back. When you pull weights off the floor, they assist in maintaining the starting position. This would apply to the power clean and deadlift. For that matter, the position of the back in the squat is also assisted by lat strength and thickness. As I mentioned in my May 16th article "The Squat" the bar sits in a valley or gulley that is partially developed by the lats.
The lats also provide support to the shoulders in various pressing movements. The bench press is obvious, but the seated military press also. If you have ever experienced soreness in the lats after a heavy military press workout, you know what I am talking about.
So what can I do if I am unable to do one chin-up? If you have a lat pulldown machine that would be very helpful. I do think that chins and their variations are superior to the lat pulldown machine. So if you need assistance a partner is helpful. The downfall of a partner is how much assistance do they provide, and can this be measured? Well, an alternative to this is the flex bands I've spoken about previously. If you attach the band to the top of a power rack, and then loop your foot through it, the band will assist you in the chin-ups. There is a variety of bands, so you need to find which one will help you correctly. I like to think that once you have achieved 3 sets of 12 then you can make it slightly harder. You can then place 5 pounds or slightly more on a belt and continue to progress onward and upward. An alternative would be doing static holds at various positions within an entire chin up. A slow lowering of 10 to 12 seconds for a few sets can also add strength gains.
It seems that as we get bigger, certain exercise go by the way side. Some exercise are discarded because they are not good, but others should be maintained. The lats need chin ups and there variations, and you do to! acudave@yahoo.com

FLEXIBILITY SERIES HIP ROTATION

I apologize for the printing of these articles. I had a cold/sore throat that hit a lot harder than I thought it would. I even missed a day of practice. If you know me, it takes a lot to do that. The last time I missed a practice in 2002, I had my appendix removed. Priorities!
Rotation of the hip occurs internally and externally. If you stand facing a fence and lift one leg so that the femur, or bone that runs from your hip to your knee, is parallel to the ground, you can perform this test. Watch the leg from the knee to the foot. When the foot moves toward the opposite side of the body, that is internal rotation, and when the foot rotates away from the body that is external rotation. If you have a light weight at the end of a string, and watch it swing left to right you will see a similarity. There should be a 90 degree ankle maintained at the knee joint and hip joint when performing these two tests.
The tests are done with the tester placing one hand on the knee to eliminate any movement, and the other knee at the ankle. The movement is at the ankle only. There should be a 40-50 degree movement in both tests. There should be slightly more flexibility on the internal rotation form of the test. There a lot of variables involved in this test like the sport, position, sex, body mass. A gymnast or hockey goalie will probably be hyper mobile, while a nose guard will not.
One of my favorite books that covers a lot of these tests is orthopedic Physical Assessment by David J. Magee (3rd edition).
Next week is the shoulders. Thanks! acudave@yahoo.com!