Start off w/ some foam rolling and hip mobility drills.
Next:
10 Walk outs or Inch Worms
10 Burpees
1 hand high pull (dumbbell or kettlebell) 3 x 8-12 reps w/ each arm
1 hand overhead squat (dumbbell or kettlebell) 3 x 8-12 reps w/ each arm
1 leg 2 hand dumbbell or kettlebell over head press. 3 x 8-12 reps w/ each leg
3 X 20 walking lunges
80 pushups in as many rounds as it takes.
Caterpillar or Walkouts: 10 X 1
Burpees: 10 X 2
Figure 8 to a hold: 20 X 2
Swings (1 arm kettlebell) 20 X 3
Bent over Rows 10 X 3
Bodyweight squats 20 X 3
Push ups 15 X 3
Overhead Press 15 X 3
The R.I.C.E. principle is one of the first things you learn in the athletic training room. Limit your down time with these principles and aggressively treat your injury, and get back in the game sooner. I recently rolled an ankle and got to put this into practice once again. Within an hour, I was able to get the ankle iced, wrapped, and elevated. I was able to reduce my down time, embarrassment, and pain.
The severity of injury and your commitment to following these principles w/ heavy emphasis on rest and ice will determine the success of the healing process. Treatment is the first step and rehab is next. This treatment strategy will be the first step in the healing process, followed by rehab that will get you back to full speed sooner.
Rest- sleep and staying off injured bodypart
Ice- Reduces swelling and pain by constricting blood vessels and helps the healing begin by pushing damaged blood out of the injured area.
Compression- bandage or compression sleeve helps reduce swelling.
Elevation- when possible keep the injured body part above the heart to reduce swelling and pain.
From a question the other day on how to perform a proper one-arm kettlebell front squat. The video above is a good example of the proper technique.
In any squat movement hip and hamstring flexibility along with trunk strength are important and weaknesses will be exposed.
The technique for a one armed kettlebell squat begins with the above and moves to the rack of the kettlebell. The grip is like an ok sign w/ the thumb against the sternum. Elbow will be resting on the iliac crest of the hip. Next, unlock hips and proceed through a proper squat.
Spring is here and it’s a great time to get outside and exercise. This video gives you some great bodyweight exercise ideas that wil jump start your day or throw a wrinkle into your training. The kangaroo workout in the video shows several plyometric moves and multi joint exercises that will improve strength, cardio vascular fitness, and flexibility. Get outside, enjoy the weather, and try a few or all of these.
Back problems, joint pain, lack of flexibility, and poor excuses are too often reasons for not squatting. The truth is squatting is not bad for your back or knees. The facts are it can do wonders for curing these ailments.
Lack of depth and an inability to squat properly is often the result of any one or more of the following: improper technique, lack of hip flexibility, and or lack of core stability. In some cases there maybe be some structural imbalances, but in most cases practice and time will improve. Hip mobility, foam rolling, and dynamic flexibility exercises are great places to start. Variations of the squat (front, single leg, bulgarian, and overhead squats) will expose and develop weakness and imbalances in technique. Take the time to squat at a proper depth with little or no weight. Put the misinformation you’ve been told aside and stop worrying about how much weight is on the bar. In a short amount of time you’ll feel better, be stronger, more mobile/flexible, and more fit.
Make sure your approach to training and exercise are aligned w/ your goals. What are your goals? Do you want to improve your health and fitness, or are you training for a specific sport/ competition? How long has it been since you set goals? Do you have a clear picture of what you are trying to achieve?
Assess your priorities regularly. Through a lifetime your goals change, and so should your exercise and nutrition plan. Take a step back, look at what you are trying to accomplish. Make sure that how you are training and eating is going to get you there. If what you are doing isn’t helping you achieve your goal, it’s time to make a change.
Regular exercise boosts your ability to fight illness through reduced stress and improved immune system. Stress reduction improves sleeping patterns and mental health keeping your nervous system and immune system in top shape to fight off infection. Additionally, regular exercise increases your body’s circulation of macrophages that kill bacteria, protozoa, and other foreign cells.
Good stuff from a 50 year old that can still go. God bless Herschel. Unfortunately, I don’t think a few jumping jacks, push ups, jump rope, and some high knees are going to render the same results for the rest of us non- genetic wonders.
It’s never too late to work on your throwing motion. Well in Charlie Crist’s case, it may be. Throwing mechanics is a skill that should be taught early in order to avoid bad habits and embarrassing situations. You never know when you are going to be called up.
Thanks to Tee Ball Coaching Clinic for the below excerpt:
1. Grip on the Ball: Remember that the child’s hand will be small when in Tee-Ball. So all we can do with the grip is to make sure the fingers are on top and the hand is behind the ball. Also, watch to make sure that when the ball is released, the hand and fingers stay behind the ball.
We will discuss this further in the “Release” section below.
2. Front Shoulder & Elbow: Make sure the front shoulder closes down and points directly at the intended target. As this is done, the front arm comes up and points the elbow directly at the target also. If the player does not do this step correctly, there is ZERO power or accuracy on the throw.
3. Make the Circle: The actual throwing motion should be a circle. The throwing hand should be brought down by the hip (we actually teach players to brush the hip as they start the circle) and travel to the power position, which is at the top of the circle. (see photo below) As the hand is traveling towards the top of the circle, the ball and palm should be pointed AWAY from your body as seen in photo. The circle is completed by bringing the ball forward while keeping the arm at 90 degrees. Make sure the elbow is above the shoulder during the actual throwing motion. This will help avoid elbow and shoulder injury in years to come.
4. Step & Throw: Make sure that the player steps directly at the target. This step is just a comfortable step. Nothing big that will make a player become off-balance. Just a smooth comfortable step towards the target.
5. Release: The release of the ball should be out in front and the hand and fingers should be on top and behind the ball as mentioned in the “Grip” section above. Make sure the throw has backspin on it. As players get older, that backspin should get tighter and tighter. If the throw has sidespin of some sort on it, the player does not have their hand behind the ball upon release.
Also, make sure that upon release, the players arm is fully extended out front. A “long arm” circle with good extension is ESSENTIAL to proper throwing mechanics.
6. Follow Through: As I mentioned, make sure the arm is fully extended at the release point. As you release the ball, let the back leg and back side come through to create a good follow through. The back leg and foot should end up in front of the stride foot when the whole throwing motion is complete. Without a good follow through, there will be no power on the throw.