Mechanic or Race Car Driver?
The way that athletes are taught in our sport expert education system is a problem for me. I feel this isn’t just a problem of the sport expert education system but is also common to other educational systems as well.
Forcing Our Minors to Major: Youth Athletic Specialization
For children living in the United States, sports are as common as television and snack time.
The High School Odyssey
About 12 weeks ago, I started training with a local football player, Caleb Sexton.
Blue Collar Strongman Training
What would be more effective is to change the dynamics of the lift slightly to stimulate new recruitment patterns and increase the use of often neglected muscles.
The Odyssey of a Collegiate Strength & Conditioning Coach
This article is designed to give future strength & conditioning coaches a better insight as to what it takes to get your “foot in the door”.
The Philosophy of Muscle: Examinations of the Big Questions
Spend a few minutes listening to people and gurus talk about speed training nowadays and it shouldn't be too hard to understand why the average person can leave a speed training conversation with a billion more questions then they had when they started.
The Magic of the Pin Pull
Recently I have been flooded with e-mails and questions on the EFS Q/A, and rather than answering them one by one, I decided to put them into an article form so that everyone has access to them. There is a lot of great information in these answers.
Maximum Effort Training for Strongman
As covered in my last article, the dynamic effort (DE) session is dedicated to speed. Max effort (ME) is dedicated to huge weights and re-writing the record books every session you train. My approach is a bit different from the traditional Westside approach.
What Makes Functional Training Functional?
One of my favorite things to do is to sit back and observe people. Sometimes I feel like I am a scientist looking at some weird experiment gone wrong.
I Thought It Was Pretty Simple
The handoff for the bench is very important but an often-overlooked skill. There are two major mistakes that are often made.
Transformation of a Young Athlete
Dan White had a lot of trouble gaining weight through his years of wrestling. As a freshman in high school he barely weighed 90 lbs and wrestled in the 103 lb weight class. As a sophomore he finally gained enough muscle and was able to wrestle at 103 lbs with no problems making weight.
How to Strengthen Rosie and Her Five Friends
One of the biggest things that I struggled with during my deadlift training was my grip. This was never a big deal when I was lighter (under 250lbs), but as I became bigger my grip began to suffer.
Bench Training with Ed Rectenwald
Coming up with new articles each month can be a challenging task and coming up with quality information can be even harder. After a couple hundred articles I find myself repeating myself time and time again.
Push/Pull
This article was inspired by Alwyn Cosgrove and something that he mentioned to me in passing.
3 Training Reasons Behind Baseball’s Steroid Problem
If those guys want to cheat the game and the fans while they destroy their health, then they can suffer the consequences.
Torso Training – Part 3: Advanced Training Exercises
In the past two articles, we have given you ideas and progressions for strengthening your torso. As you know by now, strong abs isn’t all that is needed.
The Individualization of Team Training
In many instances team weight training consists of athletes of varying levels of strength preparedness- all performing the same training parameters.
Field Day
Field day at elementary school means dunk tanks, water balloons, Italian ice, hanging with your friends, cool games and a bunch of other cool stuff.
Time Under Tension for Grapplers & MMA Fighters Part II
I still get goose bumps when I think of how John Smith, two time Olympic Gold Medalist was training when I attended his intensive wrestling camps.
Torso Training – Part 2: Basic Rotational Exercises
In this article, the second in our Torso Training series, we will cover rotational exercises that don’t specifically target the rectus ab.
Time Under Tension for MMA Fighters & Grapplers
There is a lot of confusion on how a fighter or grappler should train. Managing their time between training in the ring / mat and in the gym (or out of the gym) becomes important.
Torso Training for Athletes, Part 1: The Basics
What is torso training? Torso training is strengthening your body from just above the hips to just below the chest. Training your torso involves many movements, but can be done effectively in just a few minutes, 3-4 times per week.
Having a Blackberry Doesn’t Mean You're Mobile
This plan is not only mobility work but also includes some very basic pre-habitation work for many of the most common strength training injuries (pec tears, sore elbows, knees, lower back and shoulders).