Holtrain - Science > Fitness > Performance in Houston

  • Training for Peak Power

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  • June 8th, 2009 - Posted by Administrator

  • Power is simply force / time. Basically how hard and fast can you accomplish your task whether striking with a punch or kicking the ball. Power and Power Endurance are usually what draw the line with two athletes with similiar levels of skill.

    The rate at which your muscles can produce force (rate of force development - rfd) is crucial factor to acheiving high amounts of power for a task. This measurement coupled with the amount of force your muscles can synchronously acheive are of great importance here.

    Strength training does have merit in that it allows your muscles to produce greater forces for a given movement. This type of training properly mixed with peak power training has been shown to increase power for a given movement or task.

    Moving from a strength phase to a peak power phase before an event or competition is an excellent way to fine tune your explosive ability when you will need it the most.

    Power Endurance cannot be over looked, as the main advantage of this type of training is being able to perform at a higher level for the full extent of your game or competition.

    Complex Training is a fusion of low rep strength training combined with super sets of high speed/power movements. The strength movements activate large amounts of motor units that can be transferred in the super set of plyometric movements, almost as if you are priming the pump.

    Normal lifts can be performed @ around 70% of Max, to allow for the speed of contraction to be increased. Remember in most competition the first force to overcome is your own, so the speed at which you can move your own bodyweight is crucial.

    This lifting cycle can be coupled with conditioning circuits, and sport skill pre-competition training to peak your power and explosive movements.

    Sample Peak Power Lifting Cycles:

    5 Sets +/- of Each Exercise:

      Complex Training (Push-Pull-Legs)

    Incline Bench x 5 (Heavy) s.s. Plyo Pushups x 5 (Max Power)
    Bent Row x 5 (Heavy) s.s. Pullups x 5 (Max Speed)
    Back Squat x 5 (Heavy) s.s. Depth Jumps x 5 (Max Power)

    5 Sets +/- of Each Exercise:

      Weightlifting (Push-Pull-Legs)

    Bench Press x 5 @ 70% of Max (Lift for Power) and/or Plyo Pushups w/ Weighted Vest
    Weighted Pullups (Max Power) and/or Barbell Rows @ 70% of Max
    Squats or Deadlifts @ 70% Max and/or Lunge Circuits w/ 40lb Vest (Light Plyo)
    Clean & Jerk / Snatch @ 70-80% (Speed and Execution)

    5 Rounds +/- :

      Power Conditioning Circuit w/ 40 lb Vest (Push-Pull-Legs-Core)

    Ring Pushups (Speed)
    Inverted Rows (Speed)
    Lunge Matrix (Light Plyo)
    Pullups (Speed)
    Dips (Speed)
    Squat Jumps (Height)
    Ab Exercise x 50 (Speed)

    Todd Holt B.S., C.S.C.S.
    www.holtrain.com
    Houston, TX
    holtrain@gmail.com

  • Low Impact Cardiovascular Conditioning

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  • May 24th, 2009 - Posted by Administrator

  • Use these methods for a low impact approach to specific body parts or for the body as a whole. This type of workout will ease the stress on the joints and still allow you to acheive high heart rates and put your cardiovascular system and major muscle groups to work. This is great for recovery workouts as it provides your body the circulation it needs to flush out immflamtion and allows you to get some good work in while you let your joints rest for competition and training.

    Good Times for this type of Training:
    - Peaking for a Performance or Competition
    - Use to Compliment High Impact training sessions to avoid overtraining and joint stress
    - Perform for Post Injury Conditioning
    - Use for Recovery Training Sessions

    Total Body Circuit:

    This sample circuit combines a total body movement (rowing), a lower body movement (cycling), and a upper body movement (arm-bike). During this circuit you are training the body both as a whole and isolating the lower body and upper body to complete the circuit.

    - Rowing (1000 meters)
    - Bike (1.5 Miles)
    - Upper Body Ergometer (5 minutes)

    Low Impact Conditioning Exercises Include:

    - Swimming (Total Body)
    - Elliptical Machine (Lower Body)
    - Cycling (Lower Body)
    - Upper Body Ergometer/Arm-Bike (Upper Body)
    - Rowing (Total Body)
    - Stair Climber (Lower Body)

  • Sports Psychology - Successful Return to Sport from Injury

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  • May 1st, 2009 - Posted by Administrator

  • Psychological Aspects of a Successful Return From Sport Injury: A Review of Current Perspectives

    Writer: Todd Holt, BS
    Leader: Jesse Hedrick, BS
    Researcher: Scott Zeitler, BS
    Researcher: Darren Frazier, BS

    University of Houston-Clear Lake, Human Performance

    Objective: To review current literature on the subject so we can identify what psychological factors have been found to both positively and negatively affect an athlete/subjects return to effective function from what is defined as a moderate/serious acute injury. By compiling existing data and ideas we can understand how to better facilitate an athletes successful return to their sport. This review will serve as a guide to help both coaches and athletes understand the importance of psychological recovery when coupled with a well structured physical rehabilitation program.

    Introduction: It is well known how detrimental a serious injury can be for a competitive athlete’s psyche. Not only are there physical limitations that take him out of the “team” environments such as practice and game situations, but he can also be alienated from his peers by missing other events due to rehabilitation, surgery, or even worse extended hospitalization. This not only applies to team sports but also to individual sports such as tennis, martial arts, and track and field where their interaction with coaches and training partners help to keep them psychologically sound. The psychological problems from these social limitations have studied for some time now, and our community doesn’t seem to have a finite solution for preventive techniques, or a definitive set of guidelines to follow once athletes start to show signs of having a problem.
    Large studies have shown that 47% of injured athletes have experienced psychological problems, and roughly half of those were referred for counseling (1). These same studies have also shown that only 25% of teams have ready access to a sports psychologist (1). This leaves a large gap in the possibility of having the most effective treatment for a recovering athlete. These are very crucial findings considering that comparisons of injured and non-injured athletes have found a greater negative affect for those injured including, lower self-esteem, and higher levels of depression and anxiety (2). Similar comparisons were done with both pre- and post-injury subjects and greater mood disturbances, increased depression and lower self-esteem were all noted (2). In many instances these psychological problems are brought back into the competitive environment and make a huge difference in how these athletes perform even at full function. In a positive light there is research showing these negative tendencies shift back towards the positive over time (2). Stress associated with these injuries may be come from 2 factors: the stress of being unable to perform and the stress associated with coming back from the injury (4). Many of these problems have been found to stem from heightened competitive anxiety, focus on the injured area while competing, and struggle to regain technical skills and abilities, as well as thoughts associated with re-injury (4).

    Athletic trainers/rehabilitation specialists, sport psychologists/counselors, the mindset of the athlete, support from significant others and social groups all play a role in both cause and prevention. There are many factors to consider which can be dealt with in a large number of ways. This may in fact be the major problem in itself being that overall structure is lacking. Communication between these parties to reach a common goal can make a huge difference with problems that plague current rehabilitation programs as well as the psyche of the recovering athlete.

    Materials and Methods: Research was gathered from variety of sources. Online searches were conducted through PubMed for abstracts containing pertinent information; although no resources were used directly from this resource, the abstracts were reviewed to help increase our general knowledge of the subject. A total of four research articles were ordered through our school’s library system from different universities library resources. Multiple articles were gathered from both the Journal of Athletic Training, and the Journal of Sports Rehabilitation dealing with a variety of topics with our main interest. Finally, open searches were done on the World Wide Web through Google to help give us background on relevant injuries associated with our topic. Our research was focused, but did cover a wide range of topics.

    Results:
    The Injury: The first step was to answer the question of what an injury is. Research offered many interpretations of the term injury, but most seemed to follow a time ordinance rather than a classical definition. Even more specific the actual injuries themselves didn’t even seem to be of much importance, because regardless of the type of problem most studies were looking for a systematic way to handle them all. Time frames ranged from one week all the way to two months away from competition which was referred to as the time-loss criterion (4). Two months was considered to be the standard as to what is defined as a “serious injury”, and it was also around this time standard where psychological issues seemed to have more of an impact.

    The Psychological Recovery Process: Many factors come into play during the recovery process of an injured athlete. A solid plan for the physical aspect of the recovery process is the basic groundwork, because without this in place there is definitely no room for an injured athlete to cope psychologically. A few of the main facets of the psychological recovery spectrum include:

    Program Adherence: This big responsibility is placed on the shoulders of the person in charge of the rehabilitation process (i.e. ATC, Physical Therapist etc.). Educating the athlete on their situation is the first step in this process; with this knowledge the athlete can then set realistic expectations for themselves, which will help to prevent any early disappointments (7). Studies also suggest that information needs to be more tailored to the rehabilitation process as opposed to only focusing on the extent of their particular injury (7). Suggested topics of discussion include:
     Athlete’s previous injury history
     Role on the team
     Athlete’s motivation level
     Personal reaction to the injury
     Effects of the injury on athlete
     Treatment rationale
     Comparisons to other athletes with similar condition

    It is also suggested that these topics be used in a manner that takes into consideration the athlete’s personality (7).

    It is also widely accepted that the rehabilitation process be an on-going process, as oppose to an all-or-none approach. Setting these standards early will aid in keeping a level base of expectations for the athlete.

    Other major factors that contribute to program adherence include the rapport between the specialist and the athlete. The significance of positive communication has been noted to be a major staple in keeping the athlete motivated to adhere (3,7). A comprehensive list of important strategies for the specialist to follow to increase adherence include:
     Good rapport between and communication between specialist and athlete
     Explanation of rehabilitation
     Convenience and accessibility of the rehabilitation facility
     Rehabilitation sessions scheduled around the athletes busy schedules
     Athlete’s beliefs that the programs are worth pursuing
     Personal supervision and regular monitoring
     Need for injured athletes to see immediate results
     Support from significant other

    There are also other methods that one can use to contribute to the adherence process including such methods as personalized treatment, the effective use of goal setting, monitoring athlete’s progress carefully, making athletes responsible for their actions, and even such things as using threats or scare tactics (7). Program adherence is absolutely crucial in the psychological process of recovery because it directly leads to other issues; this process is a challenge for not only the athlete but also the specialist in charge of implementing the program.

    Psychological Models: Several psychological models have been proposed to conduct empirical investigations. These models fall into two categories: stage and cognitive (5). A stage model is described a process where the athlete/subject goes through a series of sequential steps until positive adjustments occur. These sequential stages include:
     Denial
     Anger
     Bargaining
     Depression
     Acceptance

    This model has seen much scrutiny as of late due to its stereotypical nature, and the fact that the psychological reactions are more varied across individuals than what could be accurately predicted for (5).

    The cognitive model was developed in order to combat these individual differences (7). This model is mostly based on the athlete’s perceptions to their injury as opposed to predetermined steps as discussed in the stage model. A visual representation of this model below gives an idea of its path of flow.

    A breakdown of this chart includes:
     Personal factors refer to trait anxiety, self-esteem/motivation, coping skills, extroversion/introversion, psychological investment in the sport, and injury history (5).
     Situational factors entail the personal control of the injury, time of season, point in athletic career, pain, social pressures, type of sport, life-stress, duration of injury, and degree of impairment (5).
     Cognitive appraisal deals with what the athlete is thinking in regards to their injury.
     Emotional response is what the athlete is feeling in regards to their injury.
     Behavioral response is what the athlete is going to do in regards to their injury.
    Research to date has found that models that take both personal and situational factors into consideration have promise, but are still lacking because they do not account for the stress response to rehabilitation (5).

    The following ten questions have been compiled to determine whether psychological intervention is required (5).
    These questions include:
     Do fear and anxiety prevent the patient from following the prescribed rehab regimen?
     Is the patient depressed beyond what seems reasonable for the type of injury sustained?
     Is the patient lacking a support system; e.g. is the patient experiencing feelings of isolation?
     Is the reality of the injury, course of rehab, and return to sport clouded?
     Although all physical indications are such, is the patient not recovering as expected?
     Does the patient choose to not adhere to the rehab procedures?
     Does the patient express a desire to return to practice before the sports medicine team gives their o.k.?
     Does the patient not believe that they are able to recover fully?
     Is the patient “addicted to exercise and unable to slow down as required?
     Does the patient’s self-worth seem injured as well?

    Intervention by a sports psychologist/counselor should be seriously considered when one or more of these questions bring about an appropriate response.

    Therapeutic Imagery: Imagery is defined as a mental technique that allows a person to focus on a particular physical behavior or skill and to mentally practice that task or skill (6). This is a technique that was in the past used primarily for performance purposes, but lately have been applied to the rehabilitation process. During imagery all the senses are used to create or recreate an experience in the mind, without the use of the external environment (6). Recently, similar neurophysiological responses have been have been documented by both imagery and actual experiences (6), and it is proposed that responses can be successfully applied to expedite an athletes recovery from injury. Literature also suggests that a mind-body connection helps the bodies healing process which makes this technique even more useful in the recovery process. This connection has been used with athletes in particular to visualize certain movements and skills while injured. During this imagery session athletes have shown increase circulation to areas of the body that they specifically concentrating on (6). The following are a brief set of guidelines that outline the imagery process.

    Step 1: Introduce imagery to the athlete; explain what it is, and how it can be helpful to speed recovery.

    Step 2: Evaluate your athletes imaging ability, have them describe how or what was imaged using great detail. Have them practice their skills, and give them more instruction.
    o Make sure your athlete is relaxed before imaging.
    o Make sure that the athlete is in a quiet setting.
    o The athlete should image themselves going through movements or plays.
    o The athlete should always have realistic expectations about outcomes.

    Step 3: Assist the athlete in developing basic imagery skills.
    o Vividness (5 minutes)-pick a basic skill, feel the muscles work, contractions, stretches, and all sensations normally associated with performing that function.

    o Controllability (5 minutes)- Take the skill you performed during the previous exercise and now imagine yourself with your teammates or against opponents completing entire plays.

    o Self-Perception (5 minutes)- Pick a positive past performance and replay that seen using all your senses. Think about attitude and characteristics that caused the great performance and identify them.

    Step 4: Provide tips on adjunctive use of imagery in rehabilitation programs.
    o Injury Imagery-Explain the injury in great detail to the athlete, t them create an image, then have them visualize the injuries healing process step by step.

    o Skill Imagery- Have the athlete attend all meetings, practices, and games. Tell them to pay special attention to all play and strategies around their position. Have them visualize the new plays and situations being successfully played out in there mind.

    o Injury Rehabilitation Protocol- After a week of injury and skill imaging, have them know visualize themselves with their injury healed, as well as visualize success in therapy exercises. After this process do whatever exercises the athlete worked on in visualization.

    This process of imagery has been helpful for a number of athletes including Troy Aikman, Bo Jackson, and Jack Nicklaus. That being said it may not be the best practice for everyone. It takes a high level of concentration, as well as an open mind to be able to get success from this method, but it is one of the few approaches that have been validated from numerous sources.

    Discussion: Taking a step back there seems to be an overwhelming amount of information on keeping an athletes psyche in check when they are coming back from a major injury, but in reality it mostly comes down to just a few major factors. Program adherence, psychological observation, and imagery have all been very successful in dealing with the side of recovery that is intangible. With these factors proven to work in numerous situations and studies, it seems that the problem doesn’t lie with how to approach the problem; it is more concerned on how to put these mechanisms to use on a grand scale. We also seem to need everyone contributing to the process. Rehab specialists need to educate the athletes, as well as communicate with the athlete’s coaches, sport psychologist/counselors, and family about progress and possible problems. The athlete also has many responsibilities, and must be proactive in the communication process as well. Without this constant communication something in the process will breakdown, and cause a psychological setback. These setbacks are crucial, and can cause a downward spiral in the rehabilitation program as a whole, which will in turn delay an athlete’s successful return to competition. These tools are accessible to everyone in the recovery picture, and by better understanding these applications they will be more beneficial in the recovery process as a whole. Coaches and athletes especially need to apply these strategies, they will not only help themselves by becoming more knowledgeable about a subject that they encounter frequently, but they can also apply this knowledge to help others in similar situations succeed as well. Many athletes that have had successful return to their sport have looked back at their rehabilitation process as a time of self-growth. This is the proper attitude, and needs to be applied to every injury situation. This is only a basic set of guidelines, future studies need to try and push these ideas into the framework of every rehabilitation process. To many individuals today focus purely on the physical, when the mental could possibly be what is holding us back.

  • Recovery Crosstraining for Grapplers

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  • April 2nd, 2009 - Posted by Administrator

  • Swimming can be used for Anaerobic (short/fast) or Aerobic Recovery (long/slow).

    Swimming is great for recovery becuase it’s ability to increase blood flow to all of the major groups.

    You can do anything in the pool that you do in the field or on the mat, so think about your movements only now you are doing them with resistance and very little impact on the joints.

    I.E. jog/sprint, skips, kicks, punches, shots, etc…

    Swimming works every muscle in the body and would be good to do at least 1x/2x per week for low impact conditioning and active rest.

    Pair this with the row machine for great total body cardio.

    !Swimming is draining on the muscles so keep it light around heavy training sessions or competitions.!

    Sample Training Schedule

    Sunday - Movement/Speed/Agility/Quickness (Outdoors)
    Monday - Yoga/Grappling
    Tuesday - Active Rest
    Wednesday - Yoga/Grappling
    Thursday - Active Rest or Strength Progression
    Friday - Yoga or Inactive Rest
    Saturday - Olympic Lifts

    Possible Days to Swim? On Active Rest/Conditioning Days
    Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday

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