The Bodybuilding Warm Up

Often overlooked or at best glanced over by most lifters, the warm-up is vitally important to not just injury prevention, but also performance, gauging progress, assessing tight or injured areas,  quick blood flow/cardio method . The method I use is thorough and specific. Lets assume its shoulder day.

I. The full-body warm up- this gets the overall temperature up which lubricates joints, opens vessels and gets the body primed. I perform a series of jumping jack like drills I got from Parisi Speed school because of the brevity and effectiveness. My clients can do them in their sleep. A treadmill or elliptical will also work with emphasis on the arm movement since its shoulder day. 3 minutes would do it.
 II. The antagonist warm-up: The antagonist is the muscles that directly opposes the muscle being worked, or basically the opposite movement of what is being worked. The purpose here is to warm up the entire joint complex and all muscles surrounding it also to get blood flow to the entire joint area(s) being worked.
 Since shoulder day consists of moving arms vertically upward during resistance, the antagonist warm-up is moving arms downward against resistance.
  Rep range- for the antagonist 20-40 reps easy all the way through the last one.

Exercise:                      Antagonist exercise
chest press                   rows
shoulder press              pulldowns (cable or machine)
pullups                         shoulder press
leg extensions               leg curls
tricep exercise              curls
crunches/ raises            hyperextensions
                              
III. Rotator cuff (pushing day) warmup- Inner and outer rotations with extremely light cable or resistance bands.
IV. The specific warm-up
Rep range of motion- starting with 20-30% of actual weight, start in what I call "pain and pop free reps". That means that the motion is performed in a range of motion where there is the minimum amount of pain or popping of joints, this could be a 3 inch range of motion. After 5 or 10 reps increase the range, repeat until full range of motion is achieved.
rep range- a minimum of 20 reps, the main rule is that the last rep be easy, it is just a warm-up. The minimum is 20 reps, with the goal of reaching 50-100 with the last rep being easy. For instance, on chest day if the  first exercise is dumbell incline press and the max weight being lifted is 100 pounds, then 30 pounders for 20-60 repetitions   The second set would be 50-60% of maximum weight, for 10-30 reps. Getting 20-30 reps with this percentage of weight is challenging to say the least, so it is important to remember that this is a warm up, so the last rep should always be easy. If you start at ten reps, try to add a rep every week or two, eventually your warm-ups will be impressive in themselves. One of my favorite things to to do in the gym is getting under 135 on the incline and knocking out 70 quick reps. A bonus is that this works the slow twitch fibers that are in every muscle, will help muscular endurance and deliver a pump thats mandatory to start the heavy workout ahead.
Gauging your progress and even how you feel that day is done during warm ups also. For a myriad of reasons you might not be at full strength, have a pinch or ache in the joint, or you might be feeling extra strong. In any case adjust your workout accordingly and take notes. Why did your shoulder have that twinge? Why was your endurance down? Why are feeling like you can lift the whole gym today? Take notes to avoid the bad and promote the good.
           

Chargers Curse

The "Real Charger Curse"

Being a Charger fan, I have heard many times over the years how the team is "cursed", always flirting with greatness but never reaching the pinnacle. The deterioration of Phillip Rivers sheds light on the fact that our team is no longer a Super Bowl contender and needs to start rebuilding. Disturbing for all the potential the team has had over the last 8 years or so... Well here is a story that is common among migrant farm workers and the people that work with them, it sheds light on the true Charger curse and even gives a time when the curse can be lifted. I will send this piece out to some local publications and see who has the balls to research or print it...

Migrant Workers Curse on Spanos

     Growing up around the produce industry I've heard this story a few times. I can give first names of sources but for obvious reasons they dont want to be named. Maybe the reader can send a crack reporter to investigate this in detail.
    Back when Alex Spanos was  starting to build his empire he owned some farms. He would hire undocumented workers to work the fields of his farms like as did  many others. Except Spanos would have the workers toil all week, but when payday came he would call INS on his workers and get them deported, avoiding having to pay them. This happened many times with different groups of workers, but eventually word spread among the migrant workers, who understandably began to despise Spanos. They got together with some "brujas" and cursed Spanos. When asked about the Chargers, older migrant workers will say they will never win a Super Bowl as long as Spanos is the owner, as he is cursed, this is common knowledge among them. Now with my limited understanding of curses, I believe that it is handed down from generation to generation, so giving the team to his son would not break the curse. So we know now not to expect a Super Bowl Victory until the Spanos' no longer own the team.
     I do not have the time or wherewithal to properly research this piece, but have heard from more than one person about the calling the INS on payday and I may not believe in this curse but the publication of this piece would at least shed some light on the true character of the Chargers owner.

Fountain of Youth Blog Confirmed

A while back i wrote a blog entitled, "The Real Fountain of Youth" , which explains why resistance training should be the primary training method for those starting an exercise or fitness program. Recently I have ran across a couple of articles that support the premise of that blog. 

The first, 

http://www.examiner.com/article/93-year-old-bodybuilder-defies-aging-a-walking-fountain-of-youth

Tells the story of an 87 year old who took up bodybuilding to improve his quality of life, the title looks familiar no? This is very similar to the title of my blog. My question to you, the rational reader, is this: Would he have gotten the same results if he decided to take up running, cycling or attempted to run a marathon? Would he look and feel as healthy and strong if he went the cardio route? 

The answer is hell no. The adjectives in the various articles about him: amazing, muscular, youthful and miraculous. I am here to tell you that they need not be miraculous or amazing if more people would follow his lead. If cardio-vascular training is your only form of exercise then you should immediately redesign your program to make resistance training primary.

Another article seems to have made just to validate my "Real Fountain of Youth" blog.

 http://www.examiner.com/article/health-and-fitness-experts-do-not-yet-understand-adult-exercise

Quotes for this article that support the blog and also the "Absurdity of Bench Press in Football" blog are numerous. Here are a few gems:

"Today's health and fitness experts do not understand adult exercise". Amen brother

""The short term effects of exercise are temporary. If doctors would trace the long term (permanent) effects on average adults who run, for their cardio exercise (10-30 minutes per session), they could watch skeletal damage accumulate, and sooner then later, if they continue, this damage is going to harm their skeletal health and fitness". HMM I said same in my blog!

"Because fitness experts have never differentiated between how hard any exercise method stresses the skeleton, compared to muscles, they are cutting years off of pro athlete careers. They are also keeping the vast majority of adults and seniors, who cannot push their skeletons 20 times harder than their muscles, from even knowing it is possible for them to do extreme muscle exertion exercises, that do not deeply stress their joints and spinal discs."   Slow controlled resistance training is the safest form of effective exercise there is...

Absurdity of Athletic Training Today

Overtraining in team weightrooms is epidemic. Indiana Jones once said, when defending his rundown and haggard looking condition, " Its not my age, its the mileage." Many of us can relate because its very true. Weightlifters and athletes that have been around for a while have a litany of injuries cataloged on their frame over the years. They appear in the form of nagging aches, weakened joints and sudden debilitating injuries that seemingly occur during everyday activities. 

So what happens when a person is both a weightlifter and an athlete? Why thats common sense right? You have double the mileage hence double the injuries. So why in the world do strength and conditioning coaches, trainers and the like subject their athletes to unnecassary mileage? Seems like common sense but the routines I have seen for athletes prescribed by coaches are absurd. If you take anything from this article heed the following warning: 

If your trainer or coach has you working a bodypart or exercise more than once a week, then you are sabotaging your results  and musculo-skeletal health. Seek a different program. People dont realize the toll high intensity sports take on your body. Football requires recovery more than most workouts. The same with the weight room- when someone is sore there are microtears, exploded and leaking cells, massive hormone and vitamin depletion etc. 

Unfortunately the common and agreed upon theory all the way to late 20th century was that muscle breaks down after 48 hours if you dont work out. Hence some of the M,W,F routines that are still being practiced. Intense resistance training workouts require at least 7 days rest for the average human. Thats right, If I have a client whos progress slows down while coming once a week, Ill prescribe they come once every 8 days and it works 90% of the time. Why subject an athlete (especially football) to on or more unecessary workouts per week? Couldnt that time be better spent recovering or practicing skills for their specific sport? 

Ask yourself that next time you subject an athlete, child or yourself to a similiar workout schedule.

The Absurdity of the Bench Press in Football 2012: update for 2016

I wrote this in 2012, sent it to owners, players, head coaches, media people, insurance agents and of course it fell on deaf ears. Here is an update, and for all those that have read this and didn't heed it, blame yourself. I must try again again because your destroying your athletes and having college and high school programs do the same. Here is a quick update and confirmation of everything I have presented in 2012. The NFL, for all the money they throw around these guys have not a clue!  The story that prompted me to update this piece is after the 2012 piece,  a confirmation of the truth.

    The Absurdity of the Bench Press in Football

Whose idea was it to include the most damaging and injury prone exercise as a prerequisite test to get into the NFL? The above statement alone should raise red flags and set off alarms in every player, coach, GM, owner and fan. Yet the exercise has become such myth that it escapes the scrutiny of the ones who utilize it most often and also suffer the consequences for their blind faith in this exercise. I can go on disparaging strength and conditioning coaches, athletic trainers and sports doctors who should know better. Instead of offending a lot of people lets try to move forward, examine and fix this travesty, because its not only destroying the shoulder joints and pectoral muscles of NFL athletes, but also collegiate, high school and even younger athletes, who mimic the pros trying to obtain a higher level of performance. Lets start examining why this horrible trend started and the flawed logic behind it.

Sometime ago a weight training movement achieved an almost mythical status and became the layman’s barometer of a persons strength. That exercise of course is the bench press.   Gyms across the country paid worship to this exercise by placing its importance above all else. “How much do you bench?” became all that really mattered.  Football players and athletes frequent gyms-so do coaches. They adopt the gym logic. Reading this you are probably also guilty of worshipping this false idol. We all were, so the powers that are in the NFL can be given a reprieve for initially using the bench as a test. Yet to continue after the huge injury increase in anterior shoulders, pec tears and even injuries during benching, is unacceptable, cost prohibitive and plain dumb.

     As a consequence of gym logic, some football or strength and conditioning coach decided to use this as a measure to determine who would be strong on the field. They wrongfully reasoned that if this was the true test of a mans’ strength, than to maximize the bench would maximize the players dominance on the field.

     Lets examine why this premise is not only flawed, but unnecessarily harmful, and the worst kind of harmful.

Gym strength vs football strength- the bench press is a fixed, stable, supported exercise where the lifter is able to set up, adjust grip perfectly, using a perfectly balanced barbell, performed at a pre planned and rhythmic tempo.  The combine bench press has duration much longer than that of the average football play, measuring muscular endurance rather than true strength. As any exercise physiologist will tell you.

    Who in their right mind would compare that to what goes on in the trenches of a football field!? Maybe someone watched the lineman at point of impact and what stood out was the horizontal pushing motion with the arms, completely ignoring the incredible leg drive, the back strength required, or strength of their core. If the goal is to measure pushing strength, then there are many improvements that can be made on the exercise and the testing procedure. Dumbells for instance would be better choice or even standing sled pushes would provide a better indication of on field, practical strength.  MMA  has a much stronger case for using the bench for these purposes. You will eventually find yourself on your back having to press a weight horizontally from your torso with your back being supported (floor).

     When there is millions of dollars, future success and time invested in an individual player, you would think that there would have been someone who made this connection. As a trainer with over 20 years experience I do not have ANY clients do flat barbell bench press for risk of injury. They get hurt, they can’t train and I don’t get paid. Any trainer or gym rat with similar experience will tell you the same.

     Even with the high incidence of injuries caused by the bench press, professional trainers, exercise physiologists, phd’s blame the injuries on bad technique or fail to make the connection between the bench and the plague of pec tears in the NFL. (http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ycn-10186507) The proof is there, the flat bench press is a bad exercise. It’s amazing how none have made the connection. Many players are injured on the bench press itself, a fact that should scare the hell out of most coaches, GMs, fans and owners. I’m flabbergasted it’s been allowed to go on for so long.

 Biomechanics nightmare

     Without getting too technical the pectoral muscle cannot even halfway contract when the bars touching the chest or just above it. You see a bencher drop the bar under control then the weights descent accelerates an inch or two above the chest an inch or two before its hits the chest. All of the pressure from the weight is transferred to the shoulder capsule which slowly deteriorates over time.(For a video on this check https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmgXWHZeS-8)

The stretched position causes tearing in the pec, diminishing the integrity of the muscle over time if its not allowed to heal.  This leads to a weak shoulder and pectoral muscle which shows up in the form of anterior shoulder pain and partially or fully torn pecs. A partial tear in the pec can turn into full ones in a game real easily- as seen by the rash of pec injuries in sports today(LINK), even basketball.( http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7455838/kwame-brown-golden-state-warriors-three-months-chest-injury Very telling is Van Gundy’s quote,” "Those are strange (injuries) in basketball. You just don't see that. Those are football and weightlifting injuries," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said before his team faced the Warriors. "You see a lot of defensive linemen, offensive linemen and weightlifters get those injuries. The time I've been in the league, I can't remember another guy with a torn pec, it's a strange injury for our league.")

     Bending the Hanger

     If you bend a hanger once it wont break, maybe not even on the 5, 20^th or 50^th time. But its going to break. The same is happening to shoulder joints and pec muscles across weight rooms around the world, just head to any power lifting gym and ask around about injuries, go to any bench press contest and look at the contestants, you wouldn’t call them athletic or even functional looking. Now because of the NFL combine tests, athletes are doing set after set of this exercise two to three times a week! With all you know now about the bench press, do you think that this might have a detrimental effect on an athlete

    

Overuse and Unnecessary Mileage

     The worse part of all is that 99.9% of all football resistance training programs over-train their athletes. (That another travesty and story) Imagine which exercise their getting over-trained on the most? It starts sometimes as young as junior high, oftentimes voluntarily, trying to emulate the pros. The NFL will correct this mistake soon or inevitably look back ashamed for how many youthful shoulders it ruined, for millions of dollars of playing time it lost and for careers shortened or never started. For a league whose wear and tear on its athletes is legend, this is inexcusable.

If your kids are in sports they are getting their shoulders damaged from 9^th grade on, if you have been around a gym or worked out on the bench this will ring true, lets hope the NFL gets some of this truth.

Not enough? How about this list of players who suffered pec tears in major sports programs

Phil Taylor- Cleveland browns (just recovered)

Chris Norman (MSU team captain, hurt while benching! 2012)

Johnny Troutman (As a Bolt fan I this injury inspired this piece 2012)

Jared Crick (Neb. 2012 )  

Bryan Orakbo  (Redskins stud linebacker)

Loaf Tutupo  (Another stud linebacker injured on bench! 2012)

Elvis Dumerville  9

Dqwell Jackson  

Josh Mauga  

Matt Patchum (LSU) 

Jackson Jeffcoat (Texas)

Rodger Saffold (Rams 2011 While  benching!) 

 Kwame Brown (non-contact, basketball) see link

Mario Williams

Steve smith 2010 NYG

Odwyer Bucs (While benching!)

Darryl Tapp Eagles 2011

Jyles Tucker 2010 Chargers

Scott Fujita 2011

Michael Orr 2010

Kevin Booth NYG Lineman 2010

That was 2012, here is the update August, 2015

The Minnesota Vikings have had a rash of pec tears, these fucking experts can seem to figure out the obvious. Look at this:                                                                                                                 Bykowski, a backup on the offensive line, is the fifth Vikings player to suffer a pectoral injury in the past year. When training camp opened at the end of July, coach Mike Zimmer said the team was trying to examine why so many players have suffered the same injury.

“It’s a combination of things, really,” Zimmer said on Thursday. “It’s dehydrated muscles. It’s getting in the position. Sometimes it’s over-strengthening. Sometimes it’s fatigue. Still, we’re calling around to every expert that we can find and keep digging.”

Maybe it's the brand new strength and conditioning program you have just implemented? Designed by the bench press loving old school coach? NOOO, that must be a coincidence. "Over strengthening?" no such fucking thing. Dehydration? A professional team cannot keep their players hydrated? Fatigue? Fuck yea, from set after set of bench press and I can't say for sure but I bet it's more than once a week, which is exponentially more dangerous. Then while researching I find this: 

Pectoral Tears Prompt Vikings' Workout Changes

I was thinking, "Finally some common sense! A team is finally going to address how fucked up bench pressing is and do something about it! Then I read the article and see:

''We're going to work on strengthening the rotator cuffs much more than we have," he said. "We're going to warm up better than we have. So we've addressed that. Always, when you get more than one type of injury, and especially pectoral, it's more of an unusual injury, you have to figure it out."

WHAT THE FUCK MINNESOTA!!! Somebody please get this essay into the proper hands!!

How about these two statements confirming what I have said about the bench and then think to yourself, why is this still a test in the combine?!

Junior Gallette injured himself WHILE BENCHING, here is how he adjusted.

" Galette was so upset with how he was injured, he’s gone away from the bench press with a full bar. He uses dumbbells now."

Sounds like something I said in 2012 huh?

"He also mentioned that the Redskins place a block on the chest of the bencher so the bar does not descend all the way to the chest, theoretically protecting a player from the sort of pectoral tear that befell Galette".

So the Redskins realize the exercise is dangerous, but instead of replacing it they put a block on your chest. At least they doing something. If I had time I'm sure I could compile a huge list of pec tears again. I'm afraid no one will listens why bother. Ill send another update out in a couple of years, until then-dumbells people! 

what part of "Asshole statist" dont you understand

This one is in response to the inevitable, "What part of illegal dont you understand?" argument when an illegal immigration debate starts. As a believer in "Rule according to higher law" and the American spirit of trailblazing and land of opportunity I welcome the Illegal immigrants especially. The last thing we need in this country is more brainwashed Americans and the legal immigrant, once legal, seems to loathe their brethren who dont have the time to wait or are put in situations where a a dangerous trek hundreds of miles with the risk of death or worse is the best option.
It is these very people that most resemble the american values we brag about today. The "WPOIYDU" argument conjures up images of crotchety old people yelling about balls in the yard. The idea that any law in the books is holy scripture and must be obeyed while regularly driving 70 on a 65 mile zone doesnt even get a thought. I want the individual who is willing to risk through so much to provide a better life for themselves or their family. They are the people that will bust their ass to provide and will become a productive member of society and truly love this country.  On a hot one today!

Red X-ing part II

So its been a while since I last wrote and even longer since my first red x-ing post. Well the technique definitely works and will for me again starting today. Unfortunately in my 2nd week of consistent writing I was literally thrown out on the street (front yard) and have been basically homeless(not quite, couch-surfing and staying with my bro) so I had lost my Muse. During this time however I found her again with tons of subject material, so lets gets this shit rollin again! Anyone lucky enough to participate will be along for a hell of a ride, or at least a good story. I changed the name of this blog from the previous 'welfare dad' because I want the blog browser to know what their getting into. The next few weeks I will be covering my homeless transition and the many experiences and adventures that happened along the way.

     If you- are a single parent, a parent, want to add muscle, are into politics, is into sports (especially football) or want to improve performance and most importantly are interested in hearing logic and truth, then you will not be disappointed with this blog. I will offend some sensibilities for sure, but you shouldnt  be so fucking sensible anyway. Here's to moving forward, everyone

how to grow, simple or teen version

The most important factor in resistance training is the bodies ability to recover after workouts. There are three factors that are responsible for recovery (2 essential)
I. nutrition
II. rest
III. supplementation
For teens or beginners-

Nutrition is simple when broken down-eat every three hours, make sure there is some protien each meal and drink plenty of h2o. If your trying to lose fat also then eliminate starches at night (meat and veggies only)

Rest- 8 hours sleep with nap if possible, meal should eaten right before to facilitate recovery

Supplementation- a multivitamin and mineral everyday and a protein powder as a meal substitute for those inevitable times you cant get to a meal on time.

Next in depth advanced supplementation for the serious muscle gainer

Red x 2! Enemies of Consistency part 1

An excerpt for my upcoming book, consistency is the common ingredient in mostly all successful difficult endeavors. For bodybuilding, essential of course. We all know and want to be consistent, so it is important to identify the main villains that interrupt, postpone or even terminate our ideal routine and then deal with them accordingly. below are valuable tips on avoiding to of the most notorious, injury and illness, may it prove as useful to you as it is to me and my clients.

THE ENEMIES OF CONSISTENCY

The most profound element of any training program or worthwhile endeavor is consistency. consistency though, has many enemies: illness, injury, lack of motivation, lack of results, boredom and prioritizing.

A. Illness can be prevented in many cases. It does take diligence though. To prevent catching a bug, or to kick its ass once you get it, follow the advice given here. The effectiveness of the immune system and following the bodybuilding menu and supplementation recommendations are directly proportional. That means the better bodybuilding diet and supplementation, the better the immune system. It is basically this: eat small balanced meals every 3 hours, take a multivitamin and mineral, take additional anti-oxidant vitamins, drink 1 oz. Of water per pound of body-weight, supplement with amino acids and l-glutamine between meals. Following this protocol will have you working or working out while everyone else is out from the latest bug to go around. In the past decade glutamine has become a proven supplement that boosts immune system and recovery. It should be priority right after the multivitamin. 3-5 grams of glutamine 2-4 times a day and the recommended dose of aminos with it will do the job.

B. injury- for a person just trying to get in shape and not participating in any sports, stay Away from sports. Yes it sounds counter-intuitive to avoid sports when pursuing health and fitness. A very high ranking physical therapist and trainer defined sports like this: any activity that challenges the bodies ability to hold itself together. If you play sports, its inevitable that your injured. The absolute safest method for improving health and fitness would be controlled, brief resistance training combined with brisk walking. Performing lifts slowly and controlled is the safest form of exercise there is, the problem with lifting injuries comes from poor form, ill advised movements, not paying attention to existing injuries.

Proper form is something that cannot be learned by reading the machine or exercise instructions. It will show you the start and finish but it will not talk about rep speed, body alignment, joint position, arc of movement or even seat position. So find a quality trainer, (half wont know) to just show you the basic settings of your most used machines or check out my channel on youtube as video is better than print for exercising.

Some movements should not be done by certain individuals, due to body structure, past injuries, goals and flexibility issues (which can be corrected) . A great example of this is the bench press. The most over rated and joint destroying exercise in existence (another story) If your trying to look good for the summer, why are you performing power cleans and handstand pushups? A certain training method has been a boon for physical therapists and orthopedic surgeons everywhere.

If you listen to your body, it has a lot to say. Say its shoulder day, you slept in bad position, shoulder is tweaked, your workout should be adjusted or even postponed. If you come into the gym with an injury incurred while playing a sport, being clumsy, acting stupidly etc. , adjust your workout. There is a saying that tell my clients, if it hurts don’t do it. Also, “work around it, not through it” That means if your elbow hurts on certain triceps movements Dont do them. If you do it you must work in the range of motion that doesnt hurt the joint At ALL, even if its a 2 inch movement. So pay attention to any nagging aches or pains that are normally not there. If you are playing a sport pay particular attention to any unusual pain or restricted  motion. Restricted motion is good sign that that spot is a potential injury site.

Red Xing

Trying the jerry seifield writing technique today, thats when you post up a big yearlong calender. When you write, you can put a big red x on that day. The goal is to build a huge unbroken chain. this is my first red x. among the projects i will be working on are Lanksystem: a comprehensive book on my training system that emphasizes resistance training and brief intense workouts. The difference with this program is its amazing effectiveness for the time investred.  Year of the Bull headed: A documentary about my sons journey to college through D1 college football. A play on the documentary "Year of the Bull"  which followed a high school, academically challenged athlete in Florida. Started this project to show him where he's fucking up. Third is a video log of the progress of young athletes and there improvement over 6 weeks.  Lastly is this blog where i will be required to write a minimum of a paragraph on my progress and ramble on current events.