Whatever you can do, they can do better...

We are now into the 3rd week of our Summer Speed, Strength and Power (SSP) Camps and a few things are very apparent.

1. The younger kids are, the quicker they seem to learn. In just two weeks of training, the camp we have been running for NOR has seen some amazing improvements! From running technique to deceleration to landing technique, these kids have improved by amounts I was not expecting! And this keeps them safer during play, as well as improves their running speed, lateral movement and overall fun!

2. The girls are just crushing the boys in each of our 3 camps. The average ratio of boys:girls in our camps are 2:1. Our NOR camp has just 1 girl out of 14 kids in the camp. Yet the girls CONSISTENTLY out-perform the boys in acceleration, agility, foot-speed and quickness. The only thing the boys have over the girls is strength. And even then if we measure strength relative to body weight, the girls are almost even with the boys.

3. We need to do more of these. Almost daily I hear from the parents how much their kids enjoy the program and they ask if we do this during the school year. We absolutely do these during the school year. But it seems that practice and games for 3 different baseball leagues that Junior is signed up for takes precedence over movement skill training. Remember, movement skills are the foundation for sports skills. If an athlete has poor movement skills, then sport skills are going to be more difficult to teach. If a child can control their body with precision, then teaching sport skills becomes infinitely easier. Heck, it'll make the most basic instruction have a major impact and sport coaches will think they are all of a sudden Vince Lombardi.

So we will be starting a second Summer SSP camp for the junior group. The new camp will start on July 12 and run through August 4th. Meeting times are Tues/Thurs from 1-2:30. Ages for this camp are from 8-12. We would love to have more baseball and soccer players showing up. Although this camp is open to athletes of all sports.

If you have any questions about the Speed, Strength and Power Camp or just general questions about speed, agility and quickness, feel free to send us an email at aaron@pairmarotta.com! We hope to see you on July 12th!

Should a 7 year-old be in a strength training program?

If you asked 50 people this question, I'd be willing to bet dollars-to-donuts you'd get 45 people to say "NO WAY!"

Is strength training bad for kids?

But far too often we get our terminology confused. "Strength Training" is not synonymous with "weight lifting." Another term that is grossly misunderstood is "resistance training." Think about these words and what they mean when we break them down.

Strength training - training the neuromuscular system in order to improve maximum force output or strength

Weight lifting - the act of lifting an external weight in an effort to overload the muscular system, and subsequently causing an adaptive response

Resistance Training - performing a series of movements using an implement to improve muscular force output

Don't be swayed by what most people think. Strength training can use any device, including the person's own body. If I asked a 7-year old to do a pushup is this wrong? If I asked him to do 2 sets of pushups doing as many as he can, would this be wrong?

Somewhere a sister is looking for her pants.

But this is what strength training for a 7-year old is! Teaching them how their body moves, how to control it and how to improve it. Otherwise we end up with kids that are either overweight or kids so weak they can't do a pullup so they start wearing their sister's pants.

So yes, 7-year old children should be in a structured training program if they are not playing sports. You are correct in saying that children of that age should not be lifting for maximum strength.

But training balance, coordination, rhythm and general body awareness and control is not something that needs to wait until he's "ready."

A good place to start training is our Junior Speed, Strength and Power (SSP) Camp. For ages 8-12, this is a 4-week summer training program that meets Tues/Thurs from 1-2:30pm. If you have any questions, feel free to send an email to aaron@pairmarotta.com and we'll be happy to answer any questions you may have!

The best way to train speed...

Many sports performance coaches, trainers and facilities say they are "research based." But often times their research consists of nothing more than a quick perusing of YouTube to see what the latest gadget is.

But we at Pair & Marotta do read A LOT of research. We understand how specific exercises train the muscular system and what techniques work the best. So today we'll cover a very HOT topic: Methods for Speed Training.

Everybody loves speed. They love to watch players literally move like electricity and yet do it so smoothly. But how do we train it? Should we use parachutes? Bands? Sleds? Hills?

In the most recent edition of the "Strength & Conditioning Journal" Matthew Behrens, MS and Shawn Simonson, EdD reviewed the options for improving sprint speed. Here is my brief summary.

The first point is that there are two parts to improving speed: Stride frequency and stride length. The authors state that assisted sprinting is used to improve stride rate. Stride rate is otherwise known as the speed that the legs are moving. The legs can move fast, but if they aren't taking long enough steps, then they're literally just "spinning their wheels."

Over speed training can be accomplished using various methods. The first is to be towed. To do this you'll need 2 people or a fixed anchor point. Generally an elastic band is hooked to 2 athletes and the person in the back runs at supra-maximal speeds. I generally describe it to athletes as "running faster than you ever have before." Obviously without the demand on the legs to push harder, they just have to keep up with the body being towed.

The second method the researchers discuss is high-speed treadmill sprinting. This has been demonstrated to be effective, but is usually cost-prohibited in addition to restricting training to 1 person at a time. 

Downhill training is also effective but only at specific angles. The problem with downhill training is that the slope should be a maximum of 2-3 degrees. Usually finding a slope long enough at this angle becomes a problem.

Behrens and Simonson recommend that the best recommendation is assisted towing. This still allows the athlete an acceleration phase but with a much faster top end. One area of concern with over-speed assisted training is the risk of hamstring strains due to a braking effect. If the leg extends too far out during the pull-through of the running cycle, the hamstring attempts to slow the body down and often this is where we see a multitude of hamstring injuries.

Assisted sprinting is used to develop stride frequency. On the other end of the spectrum is resisted sprinting. Resisted sprinting is used to develop stride strength and length. The only 2 options the authors give for resisted training is resisted towing and uphill sprints. 

Resisted Sprinting

The concern regarding resisted sprinting is that if the resistance is too great, sprint mechanics will be altered and as a result the transfer over to normal sprinting will not be as great. As a result, parachutes have been developed as they provide resistance, but not so much that the mechanics are changed. Finding an appropriate hill is also problematic as too steep of an incline will surely change sprinting mechanics.

Although sprint training might seem simple, it is a highly complex topic that takes proper prescription of exercise and drills. Think of training like a prescription medicine. If the dosage is too high, there will be severe side effects and the medicine will be ineffective. If the dosage is too low, the medicine will have minimal effect. In order to train athletes to be their best, you must have the correct prescription.

Fortunately, Pair & Marotta Peak Performance training has the solution: Summer Speed, Strength & Power (SSP) Camp. By attending this 6-week camp, your athletes will get faster, stronger, more powerful, more resistant to injury and have a refined work ethic. We have 2 camps, one for junior athletes age 8-12, and a high school camp for athletes ages 13-18. Camps start June 6. For more information and costs, please contact Aaron@pairmarotta.com or call 661-912-9991 or visit www.pairmarotta.com/fitness.

What can bodybuilders teach high school athletes?

What NOT to do. 

Why? Body builders are professionals. It's their life, their dedication, their occupation often! Body builders often spend hours at the gym. Body building is a sport of it's own. And honestly, most body builders probably aren't the best basketball, soccer, baseball or football players. But they sure are great body builders!

Lunges and split squats are an athletes best friend!

Look at how bodybuilders lift. They usually have 3-4 exercises per body part, using 4-6 sets of 10-20 reps. Imagine how long this takes and the amount of stress on their bodies! 

But what does it take to be a high school all-star? Dedication to your sport and efficiency in the weight room. Sports are played using a single joint. Athletes don't do preacher curls, leg extensions, calf raises, tricep kickbacks or crunches during sports. They push, pull, rotate, squat and lunge. 

Also, we lift heavy. We keep it short and sweet. 4 sets of 6, 5 sets of 5, not much over 8 reps ever! And we use compound lifts that work 3-4 muscle groups per exercise!

The sad thing is that misguided coaches and parents often teach their young athletes to lift like this. Then when they see the way we lift, I always see the light go on followed by the words, "That makes a lot of sense!"

And these are things we do right now in our FAST Forward program. And they are the movements we'll train in our summer Speed, Strength and Power (SSP) Camp. Interested in learning more about either program?

Contact me at aaron@pairmarotta.com.

High school workouts

I remember being in high school. It was about 13 years ago that I was in the weight room. And honestly, I hated every second of it.

Why?

Because there was only guys who were heavy lifters. So imagine how self conscious you would be if you were only able to bench press 115 lbs (the bar + 35 lb plates on each side) once while everyone else is warming up with 135.

WASTE OF TIME.

Do you think I wanted to go back? 

What would have kept me more enthused and motivated? How about some direction? How about some variation? How about some of the more experienced guys helping the younger guys out? 

Then I would wander around looking for some piece of equipment that wasn't occupied and I would do that. Even if it meant doing wrist curls. I know what you're thinking - Wrist curls? What an absolute WASTE OF TIME! 

So now that I am the one running the show, designing the programs and overseeing the lifting, what am I doing differently? Everything.

The programs are setup in 4-week cycles. Everybody has a weight lifting record sheet. Absolute weight is not relevant. Instead we prioritize the following:

1. Technique - it's everything. If you can't lift cleanly, you can't lift.
2. Body weight - If you can't manage your own body weight, why the heck am I going to ADD more weight?
3. Compound lifts take priority. Squat variations, bench press, pullups, lunges and rotational power exercises.

BETTER USE OF TIME: Strength, Balance, Flexibility

You see everything is done with a purpose here. We stretch between working sets, we alternate speed and agility exercises with core training to maximize recovery without STANDING AROUND. Our kids are ALWAYS DOING SOMETHING. 

There is no wasted time here. We get more done in an hour than some high school programs get done in a week. And it shows. Our younger athletes are getting stronger, their technique is impeccable and they are LEARNING HOW TO LIFT. 

They are getting what you and I didn't get: guidance, motivation, encouragement and supervision. And as their parent, they'll like to hear that you struggled with this stuff too. That you wish you had this growing up. Because the kids that are coming in here? They love it.

Want more information on our speed and strength programs? Visit our website at www.pairmarotta.com/fitness or email me at aaron@pairmarotta.com

1 out of every 6 youth athletes will have this injury

The general population believes that injuries are part of the game. You get them, treat them and HOPEFULLY move onto play again. I think in contact sports, yes, injuries will happen. Bruises, contusions and other collision type injuries will probably happen and there isn't much we can do about it.

But non-contact overuse injuries should NOT happen. Plain and simple. Let me explain why.

A non-contact injury means that the athlete had as much control in preventing the injury as anybody. Aside from stepping in a hole or off the side of first base (even that can be prevented by stepping evenly on the base) the athlete is in complete control. But the athletes feedback mechanism in his body or his muscular system could not handle the stress of running. Can you believe it? Somebody can actually hurt themselves running!!

Today I'll explain one of the most common youth injuries, how it happens and what you can do to prevent it.

Knee pain is one of the most common overuse injuries that afflict young children. Slow developing, overuse knee pain can have a slew of causes. But with just a few quick exercises to add to your day, you can prevent knee pain from slowing you down!

First off lets take a look at the anatomy of the knee.

The upper leg bone (femur) ends in the shape of two big knobs. These are called condyle's with the one to the inside of your leg being medial and the one to the outside being lateral. On top of these sit the patella (knee cap). The knee cap slides up and down the groove as we flex and extend our knee. It helps to think of the knee cap as a train and the femoral groove as the tracks.

Usually the patella runs smoothly up and down the track. However, as is usually the case with overuse injury knee pain, the patella gets pulled to one side or the other.

As you can see in the picture, there are quite a few muscles that affect the knee. If one of these muscles begins to tighten up due to overuse, or if one becomes weak, the patella will be pulled to the side of the stronger muscle. As a result it is very important to keep the muscles that directly affect the patella flexible.

There are also indirect factors that can cause knee pain. The two most common are immobile ankles (tight calves) and immobile hips (tight/weak glutes).

I'll start with tight calves first. Basically the muscles of the calf regulate the ability of the ankle to move. If the ankle cannot move into a dorsiflexion position (foot comes up towards the shin) then during squatting the knees will suffer from an increase in shearing force. Shearing force occurs when one bone (the femur) has energy moving in a sliding force across an adjacent bone (tibia). As a result the knees will suffer a lot of pain as the passive tissues attempt to prevent the shearing force from actually causing movement. Tight calves are a hallmark of knee injuries in youth athletes.

The muscles at the hips on the other hand control the rotation of the femur. If the muscles at the hips get weak they will allow the femur to rotate internally. When this happens, again the patella will not track correctly in the femoral groove. As a result the patella will get irritated as the added friction will begin to wear on the back side of the patella. Also if the glutes are weak, then the quadriceps will begin to over develop and over-recruit. When this happens there becomes an increased risk of Osgood-Schlatter's disease which is a painful swelling of the tibial tubercle.

Soleus Stretch

So what can we do to keep these things from happening?

Beginning with the calves, simple calf stretching daily for a total of 60-90 seconds will help keep the calves flexible. Most important is stretching the lower calf. To do this we lean against a wall as if attempting to push it over. This will stretch the back leg. Then simply bend the back knee slightly while keeping the heel of the back foot on the ground. Hold this for :15-20 seconds and repeat 3 times on each leg.

To stretch the glutes you do a seated glute stretch by sitting in a chair and laying your ankle across the opposite knee, sit up with a tall posture and lean forward from the hip. You should feel a stretch in the hip of the leg that is off the ground.

Split Squats

For strengthening, simple hip bridges, single leg Romanian Dead Lift and split squats work well. Just be sure to push through the heel of the foot that is doing the work. 

Next week we will look at common back injuries in youth athletes and how they can be prevented.

Peak Performers

We have had quite a few great athletes come through Pair & Marotta Peak Performance over the past few years. And one thing that never fails is the outcome of the hard workers. Those that are the most consistent see the greatest results. The ones that are the first ones in, last ones out and always trying to get better will out perform those with raw talent.

But the really interesting thing is that the ones who are the most consistent, are the hard workers! Those who have a great work ethic won't be floating in and out, here for 3 weeks then out for 3 months. 

James Barragan pitches against Liberty.

And its tough to tell the talented ones that talent will only take you so far. It almost seems like talent can be a liability because it makes them think that their talent will steadily increase and their performance will improve because of it. But the less talented ones will always be the underdog that we at P&M love. These are the ones who we know that no matter where they go in life, they'll succeed because they won't give up.

Yes, some kids have greater potential because of their genetics, but natural talent has a ceiling - hard work doesn't. Natural talent will take you far, but hard work will take you further.


Another P&M athlete, James Barragan made the paper this past week as he had a stellar pitching performance against Liberty. James pitched a 3-hit complete game shutout the other night and gave Stockdale its first league win of the year.


Great job James!

What's the key to improved QUICKNESS and AGILITY?

Balance.

No, not stand on a single leg, close your eyes and touch your nose balance. But balance between strength and power training.

What is the difference? Well if I asked you to describe strength training, how would you describe it? Most have the picture to the left in their mind. Lift as much weight as you can, regardless of speed. Actually the heavier you lift, the slower the movement.

Now what is power training? Power the same but has a time component. Power is the amount of weight lifted x distance divided by the time taken to lift it, or (force x distance)/time.

Some people claim that if you lift heavy, you lift slow and as a result you won't get any faster or more powerful. This group tends to stay away from heavy lifting and focuses strictly on plyometrics, agility training and reaction time training. These are all good attributes to have in a sports training program.

But by leaving the heavy lifting out, they are missing a very crucial component to their programs!!

Which component?? STRENGTH!

See strength (or in other terms work) is simply a force x distance. So it is in itself a component of power! If you have no strength, then this will directly influence your ability to move fast. After all, its not simply how fast you can move nothing, but instead its how fast can you move your body weight (most sports aren't played wearing a weighted vest).

If an athlete weighs 180 lbs, well he better be able to move and control not only his own weight, but also the added force from the momentum/inertia created by his 180 lbs moving quickly.

Heavy resistance training is a key component to being able to prevent injuries because most non-contact injuries occur during the eccentric or deceleration part of sports. Strength training improves the ability of muscle to control weight external to a players own body weight. 

Look at the video below, as quick as he is, he's also amazingly strong for his size!

Do you think he was able to change direction multiple time by working on speed and agility alone? No. Strength training plays a huge role!!

Then there are some who say that strength is all that matters. This can be countered with the principle of specificity. Specificity states that a person will adapt specifically to the demands placed on the body. So if you teach the muscle to contract with high amounts of force, but it contracts slowly, you'll see a person who is slow, but strong. So you really have to find the balance. 

In sports, especially baseball, we need to find the balance between the two.

At Pair & Marotta Peak Performance do just this! During our FAST Forward workouts, we spend the first 45 minutes of our workout on speed and agility training and the final 45 minutes on strength and flexibility training. And we see some amazing results! Want to come take a look?

Send me an email and let me know you'll be coming by! We would love to see you.

1 Surprising muscle building trick for your YOUNG ATHLETE

There are many things that I have told you about on how to build muscle. First, you've got to eat enough. If you aren't eating enough, nothing else you do will matter. You'll just be a really STRONG skinny kid.

Dead lifts are a MUST for muscle building!

The second thing is you've got to lift heavy. Heavy lifting uses lots of muscle which increases growth hormones and testosterone, both of which are necessary for muscle gain. So skip the body part splits and start doing squats, bench press, deadlifts, cleans, pullups, rows.

And building on the second point, you've got to keep the reps under 8. Anything more and you're wasting energy with reps 1-4, because those first few aren't nearly as difficult as the last 4. So make it work. A great starting point is 5 reps for 5 sets. This keeps you lifting heavy and keeps the total workload low so that you're stimulating type II muscle fibers to grow (which by the way grow the biggest).

Then you've got to sleep and allow your body to recover. This includes drinking plenty of water and sleeping 8-10 hours a day.

But there is another little trick that has been discovered to indirectly increase muscle building: Fat.

A study done by Dorgan, et al. (1996) found that those who had a fat intake of between 20-40% of their total calories had elevated testosterone levels. They also found that higher cholesterol levels were associated with higher testosterone levels. Granted this study had a pretty small sample (10 people) the outcome can still be used, but with caution. 

So how do you increase fat intake? Start eating more tree nuts, avocados, and eggs. Heck that could make a pretty good omelet right there! Grate some cheese and throw it over the top and you've got a muscle building breakfast that is high in protein, moderate in fat and low in carbohydrates!

The take away from today's lesson??

Don't be afraid of fat. Instead embrace it. But not the kind on your hips or around your belly. But rather the kind you eat. Because by boosting fat intake, you boost testosterone, and testosterone builds muscle!!

_____________________________________________

Dorgan J. F., Judd J. T, Longcope C.C,, Brown C.C., Schatzkin A.A., Clevidence B.A., Campbell W.S., Nair P.P., Franz C.C., Kahle L.L., Taylor P.R. (1996). Effects of dietary fat and fiber on plasma and urine androgens and estrogens in men: a controlled feeding study. The American journal of clinical nutrition. 64, 850-855.

The Forgotten Part 4: The WORST thing for gaining muscle

If there is one thing that skinny guys are almost instantaneously afraid of when they start trying to gain weight, its gaining fat. 

At the first sign of their skinny guy 6-pack disappearing, they make a mad dash for the treadmill. But this is THE WORST THING they could do.

Go back to the first part of this series and see how many calories you've got to eat in order to gain muscle. What do you think happens when you hit the treadmill after a workout? Or if you spend 2-3 hours a day playing basketball with friends?

Using even more calories is counterproductive to muscle gain.

You have to eat that many MORE calories! 3 hours of basketball can burn up to 2000 calories. So now not only do you have to eat 4500 calories just to gain weight, but now you have to eat an additional 2000 calories because of what you burned playing basketball!

So what should a skinny guy be doing when he's not working out?? 

Stretch, sleep, eat. That's right. Until you start gaining weight, you need to back off all that extra curricular activity that is chewing up calories you COULD be using to gain muscle.

So unless you enjoy going crazy because you aren't gaining weight despite the dump truck worth of food you're eating, then you need to BACK OFF the extra curricular activity.

But at that point, the question becomes which do you want more: muscle, or the extra activity?

The Forgotten Part 3: Build muscle WHILE YOU SLEEP!

During your gut busting, avalanche of testosterone causing, muscle building workout, your body is going through a lot. You are breaking down muscle so your body can rebuild it in a stronger form. This is called adaptation. 

However, there is something that all young athletes and even coaches think when they are working out. And it's completely backwards. The idea that more is better or that muscle is built DURING the workout is the greatest fallacy in the weightlifting world! Muscle is not built during the workout. Muscle is built while you rest. 

So to go to school, practice for sport and then lift weights only to stay up until 11pm is the golden road to frustration. You see after you workout, you need to recover. You need nutrients, minerals and vitamins to fuel and speed up recovery. Because the faster you recover, the sooner you can lift heavy again!!

So here is what needs to happen in order for skinny kids to recovery quickly so they can get back to their muscle building workouts.

Sleep. Preferably at home.

• Sleep. A lot. You need to get AT LEAST 8 hours a night, and more is better, if you want to build muscle. Which means if you wake up at 6am, the latest you need to be crawling into bed is 10. Your body can't rebuild if you are still breaking down.

• Vegetables. Your body needs more than just protein to rebuild. Vegetables provide a lot of the smaller nutrients that allow your body to recover faster! So every meal should have at LEAST 1 handful of vegetables AND 1 handful of fruit.

• Fat. Your body needs fat. Certain fats, such as those found in fish, seeds and nuts help prevent and minimize inflammation of muscle, which occurs after a hard workout. However, these fats should not be eaten immediately after the workout. Instead its best to have them right before bed so your body can put them to use. So eating fish oil capsules, up to 6 per day, as well as having almonds, walnuts and cashews over the course of the day will speed up recovery as well.

Muscle is 70% water. More water = more muscle.

• Water. Muscle is about 70% water. Plus water is necessary to flush waste products out of your system so repair can happen quicker. In addition, water is necessary for certain vitamins to be absorbed. These are called water soluble vitamins. So drinking up to a gallon of water over the course of a day, is certainly NECESSARY if you're looking to add muscle.

Recovery is often the MOST OVERLOOKED aspect of building muscle. But look around at the meatheads who are walking around with slabs of muscle. They're usually carrying a jug or bottle of water of some kind.

Stay tuned tomorrow as we wrap up "The Forgotten" series on building muscle for skinny athletes!!

The Forgotten Part 2: Turning your twiggy legs into tree trunks...

Yesterday I discussed the need to eat with the intention of gaining weight. Basically what that boiled down to is that if your kids aren't gaining muscle, but they want to, they need to eat more. Now granted eating enough is THE most important aspect of gaining muscle.

Lets get Anabolic!!

But all of that food won't do much if you're spending hours on end in the weight room. The reason for this is that after about 45 minutes of some heavy lifting, your body will begin to run out of carbohydrates for energy and instead will begin to break down muscle for energy. This is called catabolism. The buildup of muscle tissue is called anabolism.

So how long should you workout then? Well to prevent this muscle breakdown, workout should be kept to right around 45 minutes. Much longer and you run the risk of catabolism. Now a lot of you are thinking, "Dude, i'm just getting warmed up after 45 minutes!!"

Well start warming up quicker. Say in about 5 minutes. Do some body weight calisthenics such as pushups, body weight squats or lunges and about 20 arm circles in each direction.

No need for calf raises here!

And you don't need 4 different exercises for each body part. Instead stick with the biggest "Bang-4-your-Buck" exercises like squats, bench press, chin-ups, standing military press and deadlifts. Basically make sure your hands have to hold onto something or pick up weight on each lift. So skip the calf raises, the leg extension, the 3 different types of curls and the wrist curls.

The next point is to keep the weight heavy. None of this 3 sets of 10 reps junk. Keep it short and HEAVY! 4 sets of 6 or 5 sets of 5 is sufficient. Do 4 exercises, 4 sets of 4 reps with 1-2 minutes between sets should get the testosterone flowing and the growth hormone pumping!!

But why not those typical body builder schemes of 3 sets of 10-12 doing 3 different exercises for your arms? Well as I discussed above, was that workout will take WAY TOO LONG. In addition, it won't stimulate the proper muscle fibers!

See there are 3 types of fibers. Type 1 are slow twitch, and don't grow much. Type 2a are the middle fibers, and they grow some. But the type 2b are the ones that are begging to grow. And its only through heavy lifting that we'll hit those fibers without burning up the calories. So again, heavy weights, old fashioned tough guy weight lifting and only a handful of repetitions are your best bet.

Here are the exercises you should be doing to gain muscle:

• Squats
• Deadlift
• Bench press
• Chinups
• Push press
• Hang cleans
• Lunges
• Dips

These are the only exercises skinny guys need until they start actually gaining weight.

Now, stay tuned because next week, I'll tell you what you should be doing on the days between your lifting days to keep your physique from being confused with a 12-year old girl.

The Forgotten

In the age of childhood obesity their is a group of boys that are invisible. Invisible to football coaches, invisible to the eye of girls, invisible, not because they are gone. But because they are SKINNY and UNDERWEIGHT!

I’m not going to drag this out because it doesn’t need to be too incredibly complicated or over analyzed. But I’m just going to list the things you NEED to do if you want to gain muscle as a skinny kid. Because face it, nobody cares that you've got a 6-pack if you get blown around like a leaf in a light breeze.

1. Look at what overweight people are doing and do it. Except add in some weight lifting to it.
2. Speaking of weight lifting, don’t spend all day in the gym. 45 minutes…TOPS!!
3. Because you’re on a time crunch in the gym, you’d better be doing exercises that use most or all of your muscles. More muscle usage = more testosterone and growth hormone
4. If you play a high activity sport such as basketball, soccer or swimming, gaining weight will be even TOUGHER. So if you aren’t practicing or lifting weight, you need to be eating. 
5. SLEEP... a lot.
   

Today I will just discuss the first point and I will address the others in future blog posts.

Step 1: try to become overweight.

            Granted we don’t want you to be obese and slothful, but we do want you to gain weight. And there is no better person to look at for gaining weight, than somebody who has…gained a lot of weight. What is it they do? Well, they eat a lot. They eat frequently. And they eat a lot of carbohydrates; which is what you need. But you also need to make sure you’re building muscle instead of adding fat to your belly.

            And the thing with most skinny kids is when they think they are eating a lot of food, they usually AREN'T eating enough. Put it this way, if you aren’t gaining weight, you need to eat more. 

Here is what a skinny guy’s day should look like if he works out in the morning

Wake up (0 hours) – eat 1 measured cup of oatmeal (300 calories), 2 cups of milk (244 calories) Total = 544 cal

Workout – have a protein shake (130 calories)

After workout ( + 1.5 hours after wakeup) – 2 pancakes (350 calories), 1 cup cottage cheese (204 calories), ½ cup orange juice (56 calories) Total= 600

Snack ( + 2.5 hours) – 1 bagel (270 calories), 3 tbsp peanut butter (300 calories) Total = 570

Lunch ( + 4.5 hours) – 1 can tuna (150 cal), 2 tbsp mayonnaise (200 cal), ¼” slice of cheese from block (200 cal), 2 slices of bread (140 cal), a salad the size of a boat (60 cal), balsamic dressing (enough, but less than you think)(150 cal) Total = 900 cal

Is this what you see in the mirror??

Snack ( + 7.5 hours) – 2 cups yogurt (200 calories), ¼ cup peanuts (300 cal), ½ cup granola (180 cal) Total = 680 cal

Dinner (+ 10.5 hours) – Meat the size of your hand (300 cal), [broccoli + raisins] the size of your hand (150 cal), glass of milk (200 cal) Total = 650 cal

Before bed meal ( + 12.5 hrs) – 2 Scrambled eggs or protein powder (150 cal) + spoonful of peanut butter (200 cal), apple (75 cal) Total = 425 cal

Total calories = 4500 calories*

For most kids this is going to seem insurmountable. But it can be done. And with a quality lifting program, it can add a significant amount of muscle to ANY kids frame.

No plyometrics until you squat THIS much...

The world of exercise science and program design is constantly changing. Not because the ideals, principles and philosophies are wrong, but because we really are beginning to learn so much about the body and how it responds to exercise.

One of the hotter topics is that of plyometrics. Most people "know" what plyometrics is. They may have the textbook definition of "a rapid eccentric muscle action followed by an immediate concentric muscle action resulting in increased power," but they have an image in their head of what plyometrics is. And it usually looks something like the picture to the right.

But there are different levels of plyometrics and the truth is most people begin a plyometric training program at far too high of an intensity. But there really isn't a set standard that a person must meet prior to beginning a plyometric program. 

There used to be a "generally accepted" formula for plyometrics and it was that you had to be able to back squat twice your body weight. However this immediately labeled plyometrics as a VERY exclusive type of training program. After all, how many people can actually back squat twice their body weight? If I were to do that I would have to be able to squat 410 lbs!! 

So where did this formula come from? Well it was grounded in science but wasn't necessarily thought about completely. You see when a person is coming down from the peak of a jump their are accelerating at 9.8 meters per second squared. So until the person hits the ground, they are accelerating, or picking up speed, until they land. And for most people the range of their jump has them hitting the ground at a fairly high rate of speed. So much that research has shown the amount of force a person lands with is equivalent to roughly twice their body weight. This we know is true.

However, it must be considered that A) on a squat jump landing the person usually does not land in a full squat position, and B) not all plyometrics involve such extreme landings. The video below gives some plyometric exercises that we use on a regular basis.

So then what are we to do? Do we simply focus on kids getting better at their back squat so they can FINALLY do plyometrics with them? That is obviously not going to happen. Instead what we at Pair & Marotta Physical Therapy do is have them work through a progression. Obviously not every plyometric involves a depth jump from a great range of motion. 

In addition, the thing to consider is that in sport, most plyometric type of contractions involve vertical jumps. Most require movement in multiple planes of motion.So instead we can and occasionally do have our athletes perform box drop jumps. But most often we use lower level, more laterally stressful plyometric exercises.


As a coach, you too must decide the cost to benefit factor and determine what type of plyometric exercises are going to be best for your athletes. Have a system. Or better yet, give us a call to help design and implement a plyometric training program with your athletes or team!

The Core 4

When people ask me about my top core exercise I always have this little debate in my head. As I have stated in previous posts, there really needs to be a progression of exercises. So what I am going to do is give the top exercise in each of the 4 progressions: (1) postural control, (2) stabilization, (3) strength, 4 (power/reactive).

Pelvic Tilting

1. The first exercise that should be done is simply Pelvic Tilts. The reason for this is that many people, in particular youth athletes have are not able to change the position of their hips on command. This is a fundamental skill that ALL athletes should possess. If an athlete is unable to do this, generally every other functional exercise is going to suffer.

To do a pelvic tilt exercise, have the athlete lie on their back with their knees bent. Have them place one hand under their back and simply alternate between lifting their back off their hand and putting pressure down on their hand. Hold each position for 2-5 seconds.

Full Side Plank

2. The second stage of core training is stabilization/endurance. Athletes need to be able to maintain a stable spine for a prolonged period of time. The side plank does just this. It activates obliques, transverse abdominus, multifidus, low back extensors and the rectus abdominus. Its a grand slam of a core exercise.

To do the side plank support yourself on one arm with your feet stacked and hold that posture for between 20-45 seconds

Hand Walkout

3. The best strength exercise is the Hand Walkout. Why? Well it trains the body in the sagittal plan, so it uses the rectus abdominus "six pack" muscle. But it also engages the obliques and transverse abdominus. The hand walkout is an "anti-extension" exercise that uses the postural control and strength of the prior to phases. 

To do the hand walkout, simply start from a push-up position and take small steps forward with your hands, keeping your feet where they are. Walkout until you feel tension in your abdominals and then walk your hands back in.

4. The best plyometric/reactive exercise is Medicine Ball Shakers. This exercise requires the spinal stabilization muscles and the hip rotators to contract and relax rapidly. The ability to turn a muscle on and off quickly is crucial for sports performance and everyday living. And because most motion takes place in the rotational/transverse plane, this exercise is our champion. 

Simply hold a medicine ball in front of you and quickly shake it side to side. Don't attempt to use a "full range of motion" because most people will end up over torquing the muscles of the lower back. Instead focus on short rotations that allow the ball to travel a maximum of 12" before you bring the ball back the other way. Perform 10 repetitions as fast as possible - shoot for under 6 seconds.

And there you have it. Our Core Top 4!.

How much core training is REALLY necessary?

Postural endurance is foundational at Pair & Marotta.

Many coaches will ask, how much core training do I really need? Often times its completely dependent upon the moaning and groaning of their team. But at that point, you're letting the team run the practice. And that's just your first worry. 

In addition to that, consistency will lack and so will results. But if you have a plan that is scheduled and gradually progresses the exercises, then you can guarantee that your team is all meeting a minimum level of performance. So once the plan is established all you have to do is keep raising the bar!

So how much is really necessary?

Well Dr. Stuart McGill talks about this in his book, "Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance," he states that the core muscles that stabilize the back are type-I, slow twitch muscles that are meant to make small, adjustments to keep the spine steady instead of making large range of motion adjustments. So core stabilizing muscles should be trained for muscular endurance. And as the coaches who attend our "On-Field Core Training" workshop last weekend saw, there are many ways that we can do this. But think about how the abdominals are used during throwing and swinging a bat. They act like any other muscle does, requiring a strong, fast contraction to allow the larger muscles of the hips and shoulders to pull from. Basically they have to act like an anchor. So those muscles need to be trained to react quickly to a stimulus. 

Think about how the core must contract at the moment that the baseball hits a bat? The core must contract and stiffen the spine to prevent any absorbing of force. If this is done correctly, the batter will be able to transfer up to 90% of his power back into the ball to create a hard hit.

So in prescribing exercises for this type of contraction, you can prescribe it just like you would any other plyometric exercise, intensity of the exercises will play a large role. For our capability of using only body weight, a partner or a bat,  2-3 sets of 8-20 repetitions per exercise is optimal. A good method would be to operate in phases. 

Cable lifting is near the top of the core training pyramid.

 For example phase 1 would be 2 sets of 8. Phase 2 would be 2 sets of 12-15. Phase 3 would be 2 sets of 15-20. Phase 4 would be to add another set and decreasing repetitions. So 3 sets of 10-15 would be optimal and then finally phase 5 would be to have 3 sets of 15-20. But as a coach you CANNOT let form and technique deteriorate. Remember, you play how you practice. This goes with core training too!

3 things to save your player's shoulders...

Shoulder injuries are the most common injuries in baseball and softball players. A study in 1999 surveyed 500 youth pitchers and found that over half of them sustained some time of shoulder or elbow pain during the course of the season. The study found that the more pitches thrown correlated with an increase in elbow and shoulder pain. 

On first thought it would seem that we simply need to strengthen the shoulders and elbows of these pitchers. But lets look at things a little deeper and connect the chain and see where it ends up:

Muscles that comprise the Rotator Cuff

• The Glenohumeral (shoulder ball and socket) joint has muscles (rotator cuff) that attach it to the scapula

• Scapula is a "floating bone" which is anchored to the rib cage by the anterior serratus  

• The scapula to the spine by the rhomboids and the levator scapulae.

• The spine is stabilized by the core muscles  

If any muscle along that chain is weak, the unit will only function as well as the weakest muscle can tolerate. In other words, the chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

Fortunately, there are many core exercises that can be used to strengthen all of the muscles together as a unit, thereby increasing the ability of the ENTIRE chain.

So here are 3 exercises that you can do to train the kinetic chain of an overhead thrower.

1. Side planks - Side planks train the muscles of the Glenohumeral joint, scapulothoracic joint as well as the lumbar stabilizers in the frontal (lateral) plane. This is one of the best exercises for improving core stability and is a necessity for ANY overhead throwing athlete.
 

2. Supine opposites/ Deadbug - the deadbug trains the muscles of each side of the body to operate independently. This trains the body to prevent rotation and stabilize the core - a REAL strength and control exercise 

Med Ball Shakers

3. Med ball shakers - Using a medicine ball, take an athletic stance and quickly shake the ball back and forth for 6-10 seconds. You'll know if you are doing it correctly because your abdominals will be on fire. If you're arms are burning then there is a good chance that you are having issues using your abs to initiate motion and instead are using your arms.

These arejust three of the exercises that we have used in our the baseball players we train for speed, agility and quickness here at Pair & Marotta Peak Performance!

To learn more about core training for Baseball and Softball using just your body weight and a bat, get registered for our "On-Field Core Training for Baseball/Softball" workshop on Saturday January 22 from 10am-noon. You'll leave with a TON of valuable tools that you can use on field with your team!!

Email aaron@pairmarotta.com for more information!

3 Things you NEED to know about core training...

Often times we read things and get so excited about them that we forget where we are reading them. We forget that Men's Health needs to ultimately sell magazines to stay in business. So they are going to print things that people like.

I used to subscribe to Men's Health. But then I started noticing a lot of similar articles popping up and also a lot of filler and fluff.

In each issue they do have a few well put together articles. Many having to do with grooming, sex and then of course getting ripped in 15 minutes a day. In fact I remember one issue had what was called the "Ripped in the Shower." It consisted of stretching your chest, some body weight squats, calf stretching and some isometrics for the biceps and triceps.

One of the guys that Men's Health looks to for information on back fitness is Dr. Stuart McGill. We at Pair & Marotta Physical Therapy also look to him (and a few others) when we want to see what the newest research in back health is saying.

Dr. McGill has a book out titled "Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance." I've been using the information provided in it with clients and patients for a little over a year now and the results are amazing!

So here are 3 things that we've gotten from "Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance":

1. You have to control the spine before you can hope to unleash its ability. Too many coaches are busy doing exercises that create motion at the lower spine instead of teaching athletes how to control the spine. Without control, power is useless!
2. The spine is not meant to bend and twist. Yes it can bend and twist. But look at its anatomy and you see that the joints of the spine are not like any other joint in the body. They are not a ball and socket, not a hinge, not a saddle, and not condylar. If anything it is a gliding joint. However the muscles connecting each joint are very intricate and stiff. The spine is there as a center stabilizing column for the rest of the body to move around, rather than itself moving in all directions.
3. Shoulder and knee injuries are highly correlated with poor spine health and stability. We see a lot of baseball pitchers who have shoulder injuries and basketball players who have knee injuries and time and time again the same trend is seen: poor postural control and stabilization. As I stated in the point above the spine is meant to be stable. If the spine is not stable then the arms and legs have nothing to anchor too. If there is nothing to anchor too its like hitching your horse to a log lying on the ground: sure its attached, but there is not security/stability.

Lucky for the baseball and softball coaches here in Bakersfield, Pair & Marotta Peak Performance is hosting a 2-hour workshop titled "On-Field Core Training for Baseball/Softball" where we will discuss how to implement a core training program into your practices. The workshop will demonstrate field tests to use, core training sequencing and ultimately power training for the core using just a baseball bat and a partner.

This is a free workshop that will take place on Saturday January 22nd from 10am-noon at our Peak Performance facility at 5337 Truxtun Ave. 

For more information or to register contact Aaron@pairmarotta.com