Sunday, December 13, 2009
4 week results
The retest of the big three lifts (bench, clean and squat) were very encouraging. The younger kids (8th grade and up) showed great improvement. An average of 30 pounds on a bench, 20 pounds on a clean and close to 50 pounds on the back squat.
Our older athletes also showed great improvement, but with experience comes slower progress. Some elite litters go years with only a few pound improvement.
That being said, with the adults we showed an average of 15 pounds on the bench, 20 squat pounds, and 20 clean pounds. Over a four week period, that also includes some very tough conditioning routines, I am very happy with the results.
As far as the population that is working on my program, I don't discriminate for anything other than injury. By that I mean, everybody lifts, jumps and sprints regardless of background, soccer mom, to football player, to tennis player, to executive. The movements are taught in a safe manner, and we have demonstrated good results in all groups. That we work with.
I am looking forward to seeing what my high school football players can do with this the SAS program. They are presently starting on week 2, they have just finished there season, so I will keep you posted.
Sunday, December 06, 2009
Week 4 is upon us
Week four of the first cycle of the SAS program starts tommorow with a retest of the big three lifts. Regardless of result, the program will continue to be an ever improving entity. The program's main objective is to produce athletic excellence by constantly being open to necessary change, and adapting to an ever changing sports needs enviroment.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
Monday, November 09, 2009
Congrats Mike Overman
Congratulations to our own Mike Overman who scored the best time on the obstacle course at the 2009 Police and Fire Challenge held last week. He and his team mates also won the team event which was the combination of a 5k run and the obstacle course.
Sunday, November 08, 2009
Why?
This picture is taken from a gym blog that celebrates this kind of injury as accomplishment. This to me is not, in anyway accomplishment, this is a mistake. I will concede that with enough high intensity, sports performance based training, injuries are going to happen, no athlete stays 100% healthy 100% of the time. On the other hand I battle everyday to safeguard with every means possible, to prevent such injuries from happening. If your sport is fitness, then great, go ahead and hack up your hands. I work with athletes that train with my to improve their sport, not their "Fran" score. If this athlete plays golf, is a quarterback, plays tennis or baseball, and you have caused such an injury because you are doing workouts containing nine thousand swinging pullups, that athlete can no longer practice their sport, and you have failed as a coach.
We have experimented with many training protocols over the 15 years we have been in business, and I will admit, we have done workouts that result in this kind of stupidity. The only difference is we figured out these practices were stupid and ultimately unproductive and moved on to research more productive methods to produce athletic improvement, in as safe an environment as possible.
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Brochure is finally done
Here is the link to the brochure for the SAS (speed/agility/strength) program. We are happy to add Emily Hackert to our coaching staff. You will see from her biography that she is an accomplished coach, and we look forward to adding her skills to the mix.
Monday, November 02, 2009
series of jumping pictures
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
SAS (speed/agility/strength) program
The regiment is a 4 day a week commitment by the athlete, that will include all the necessary elements of athletic performance. This combination of speed, agility, strength results in fast paced highly intensive workouts, that will bring your best to the surface.
In order to produce the best results, we have creates an environment that is highly intense and competitive. If this scares you, don't apply, if you see this as a challenge to better yourself, you are who we are looking for
Call Paul at 937-436-2110
Monday, October 26, 2009
Our Boy Evan
Picture of Evan Wray walking into this weekend's game with the other Notre Dame football players. Very proud, as I am of all my athletes. Send pictures of you and your team, I'll post those too.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Interesting Thought on weight loss......
I just saw Valerie Burtinelli on Sunday Morning, she was talking about her weight loss, and her comment was, now that she lost the weight, she needs to figure out what things got her to that point (her high weight), so that she knows what situation in her life to avoid, so she doesn't get back to that point.
What's causing you to eat too much?
Friday, October 16, 2009
Friday, October 09, 2009
Speed and Agility Camps at Power Athlete
We are working on the concept of an all inclusive speed/agility/strength/injury prevention camps for athletes from all sports.
The curriculum will include sprinting, jumping, agility movements, as well as the associated exercises necessary to product power and strength while participating in their sport.
As a positive by product of this training, we can improve the athlete's ability to avoid injury by improving their ability to safely accelerate/decelerate and jump/land under control.
Workout options will be 2 x per week, 3x per week, 4x per week and an unlimited/month program
Any interest in this type of training should contact Paul at (937) 414-0362
Monday, September 21, 2009
Question of Intensity
Reading on the subject of fitness, athletic enhancement, and strength and conditioning, will exhibit to you how many new and innovative programs there are. Many are just fluffy, cookie cutter programs, but some are successful, very successful, and they all have one thing in common. Wether the program is a complex mash of Olympic lifts, sprints and standard lifts, or solely Kettlebell or Sandbag based, the successful programs all have intensity at their root.
The famous quote about fitness programs is that everything works for a while, and I believe that is true. To add to this, in order to make any program work well it must make your body adapt to a new stimulus. This stimulus must be a higher level of ability that will therefore show improvement in body composition, oxygen consumption and maximal strength levels.
So what ever it is you do for fitness, doing "it" intensely is much more important than duration, or style. Definitely error on the side of intensity with good movement form, it will get you where you need to be.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
My new favorite fitness quote from coach Rip
Women who claim to be afraid to train hard because
they “always bulk up too much” are often already pretty bulky,
or “skinny fat” (thin but weak and deconditioned)
and have found another excuse to
continue life sitting on their butts.
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Mike Overman's Firefighter Combat Challenge Workout
Here is one of five rounds that we recorded last Saturday of Mike's preparation workout
Combat Challenge Training from paul manfre on Vimeo.
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Evan Wray is a Notre Dame Football Athlete
Our own Evan Wray informed me this afternoon that he made the squad at Notre Dame! All this accomplished within months of some very serious personal tragedy. Fantastic effort on his part from a great kid.
Evan and his family
Monday, August 31, 2009
Consuming Protein/Carb Pre Workout Aids Recovery
Recent work performed at the University of Texas Medical School in Galveston found that consuming a small preworkout protein-carb meal may help with recovery and muscle building.
The study focused on a small liquid meal taken before weight training. The researchers found that consuming a protein/carb drink before a workout can significantly increase the amount of muscle-building amino acids your muscles suck up during the workout and over the next few hours. The increase in amino retention amounted to roughly 150% more than when the same drink was consumed immediately after a severe one-hour leg thrashing. This is significant because amino acid retention is a major step in creating or enhancing the anabolic environment in muscle and in promoting better and faster recovery and growth.
The researchers used a drink composed of 6 g of essential amino acids and 35 g of sucrose, plus a small amount of artificial sweetener (containing aspartame), dissolved in a half-liter of distilled water. The same scientists had used this drink formulation in previous studies that demonstrated its significant anabolic effects on muscle protein synthesis when consumed one or even three hours after a hard training session.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Spinning Wheels
I was talking to one of my clients this morning, and he was recounting a story about how he used to go to a big open gym here in town, and "spin his wheels?"
I asked what he meant, and I was told that he would get dressed drive to the gym, and basically wander around the expanse of shiny chrome machines, occasionally sitting and doing a few reps at a random weight that "sounded doable"
I think more often than not, most people with gym memberships buy them with the intent to use them to their full potential, but then life gets in the way and allows for excuses. Then, you keep paying the membership, telling yourself you will EVENTUALLY get back to your routine, that just happened to suck even when you were doing it.
Learn from someone who is passionate about the subject that you seek to be better at. Open gyms aren't for searchers, those looking for the best way to get fit, and maintain it, push its limits, those who look outside the box. Open gyms teach us that if you are a mother of two, all you can do is stroll on a treadmill, or ride a bike while you watch the jumbo-tron TV or lift little pink dumbbells. Our mothers, female executives, we all, train in as athletic a way as possible, jumping lifting, twisting, exploding, trying to produce the best "you" that you can.
Consider what you are trying to accomplish, just showing up, or improving everytime you show up?
Firefighter workout
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Cover girl
Technique for Show or Technique for Functionality
Over the last few months, teaching the Olympic lifts to executives, soccer moms and teen age athletes alike, it has come to my attention that the necessity of a full squat clean, or snatch, is mostly unnecessary. In fact, I will go one step further, a traditional grip snatch, with a wide hand spacing, is also more of a hazard than a necessity.
With the athletes we train, we are looking to enhance physical and psychological performance, while minimizing the chance of injury.
I don't agree with the non-Olympic training crowd, that says you can get the same effect with just plyometrics, or weighted jump squats. The Olympic lifts are great, because as a coach, they have a finite end point to show success with the lift. A jump squat can be 1 inch off the floor or 8 inches off the floor according to intensity of the athlete, but there is no finite end point.
Secondly, I have issues with the squat clean, and in some cases the power/hang clean in general, because of the racking or catching of the weight. Even with talented athletes, this position can be a challenge, and thus takes away from the effort or intensity that the individual is putting into the explosive elements of the lift because of fear of the catch.
Are these lifts impressive and complex, teaching massive amounts of power, coordination and athleticism? Absolutely, are there other ways to do the same thing? Absolutely. Dodging someone shoot arrows at you will teach you the same coordination, speed and athleticism, but should you do that just because that's one way to accomplish your goals?
Introducing the clean or narrow grip hang snatch. Grip width is safer on the shoulder girdle, hang position allows for maximum power output from the hips and lower body. Catch is in a natural and safe position. It can be taught in 15 min to a novice, and has a finite end point. Problem solved
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Congrats to our own Eric Limekmann
Eric Limekmann had a great race finish this weekend and qualified for world championships, more info and pictures to follow
Friday, August 14, 2009
Heart disease and cholesterol, no connection!
From a poorly structured study came the famous, mythical connection between cholesterol and heart disease mortality….
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Training athletes according to energy system needs
From the chart above we can accurately predict the energy needs of athletes from many different sports, and train them according to those needs. The goal of training within a target energy system is to make the athlete's body more efficient at using the fuel, and more efficient at getting rid of waste products left behind from burning that fuel, namely the H+ (hydrogen) that increase acidity in the muscles, that decrease performance.
For example a 50m freestyle swimmer should train a majority of his or her time within the ATP/PC and Glycolysis energy systems to make themselves as effiencent as possible in using these fuels. That would mean a majority of the training would be work sets of between 0-2 min at high intensity, with low intensity work in between to flush acid out of the muscles, and allow the respitory system (lungs) to exhale as much of the acid as possible. If these energy systems are not trained, when the athlete tries to engage them in a race, their inability to process acid out of the muscles impairs muscular performance, as well as causing breathing issues due to accumulation of acid in the lungs, which is the burning athletes feel in their chest when working at high intensity.
As the ability to flush the acid out of the body improves, rest periods can be decreased in order to continue to improve the body's ability to speed the waste products (acid) out of the body.
I hope this basic overview allows the athlete a glimpse in to how their body's energy is used .
Stronger Legs, Bigger Jumps-Jumping out of a Pool
Build strength first, then worry about sprint/jumping technique. Without the strength it is like a hybrid car racing a nascar, all the driving technique in the world isn't going to make up for the lack of engine power output.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
If your in an exercise rut, your doing it wrong….
An exercise rut is like any other phase of your life that become monotonous.
The same distance and pace on the treadmill, the same walking route, the same routine of weight machines at the same weights.
The instant fix to an exercise rut is to change how you look at exercise. If your view of the time in which you sweat everyday is that it is your sport, not just an activity, your perspective changes immediately.
A sport by definition is a competition of skills, that’s how you need to look at your exercise program. Are there any skilled movements in your program that could use tweaking? Are you just going through the steps of the workout blindly, or are you trying to perfect every aspect of every skilled movement?
We at Crossfit Powerathlete teach many skill based exercises, the Olympic lifts are a great example. These movements are highly skilled, and never really mastered, much like a golf swing.
If you are in a rut, take down the intensity at which you are working at for 1-2 days, and spend some time working to improve your squat technique, your power clean or even your technique on the rower ergometer. All of these skill practices will show positive results on future workouts, and remind you why you enjoy your sport so much.
Sunday, August 09, 2009
French frys
At one time French fries where a special occasion food, there was no where you could buy them, so you made them at home. This undertaking meant prep time, mess, and generally a pain in the butt.
Ice cream had to be churned by hand at home, and was a multiple hour process.
Fast forward to today, and all these special occasion foods are readily avaliable 24/7. If you can't get behind a dietary system like the zone or paleo, at the very least try to minimize special occasion foods, cakes, pies, fried foods, ice cream to special occasions
Monday, August 03, 2009
Sunday, August 02, 2009
First Responders and Physical Preparedness
5'8 300#, unbelievable that this guy is going to protect anyone. The original CNN video shows him unable to get up from a kneeling position, or exit the driver's side of the car with any kind of dexterity. I don't think that all first responders should be supermen or women, but I do think they should be physically able to do the jobs the tax payers are paying them to do. Prepare for the worse case scenario, so you don't become a casualty of that situation.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Evolving Fitness
As I work everyday with our own crossfit community, it always amazes me the compleities within the seemingly basic concept of fitness. This is only made more complicated when you speak to other "searchers" ( a term I have give to all if us who are looking for the holy Grail of fitness), troops in afganistan, fire fighters, and executives. I talk to as many people, as often as I can about their needs and perspectives about fitness. Crossfit answers many questions in it's present for, but it is the community's aknowledgement that it is an evolving model that is it's true gift
Monday, July 27, 2009
Public Apology
Just wanted to publicly apology to a certain Navy troop in Afghanistan. Without thinking I used a non blacked out picture without his permission, and that was stupid.
so in his honor
"EOD Sacrifice"
45s side plank right side
continuous with 15 burpees
45s side plank left side
x4
increasing dumbbells: start at 25's to 6rm for the complex then do 2 more sets at that weight
single upright row 1 of each plus 1 double x 6
front lunges 6ea
reverse lunges 6ea
curl+press 6
squats 6
At the start of each min run 30 yards down and back + 12 jump lunges with 20# db's x 10
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Squat technique
Friday, July 10, 2009
Why I love the deadlift
The deadlift perfectly personifies my method of sports conditioning. There is no gimmicks, you can’t do it half way, you make the lift or you don’t.
In the age of agility ladders, and endless sprint drills, the fact still remains that without proper strength, there isn’t enough power to move the athlete faster.
I am aware this isn’t sexy, strength takes hard work and effort, not just hopping around some cones, and running ridiculously complex patterns in agility ladders. Blood sweat and tears in most cases.
This is why most young athletes, that are exposed to gimmick filled programs, never get faster, or better at their sport, because they never build the base of strength to support the sprinting
Sunday, July 05, 2009
10th Cav
From an email from Todd, a soilder in the 10th cav, we write this little gem
Section 1:
3 way plank 30 s (side front side)
Overhead walking lunges 45# plate 20 steps
X4
Section 2
Burpee broad jumps 10
L sit pull ups x 5
X 5 for time
Section 3
Deadlift bw x 12
Chest slap push ups x 12
X 4 for time
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Had to share this article
This article: http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/slim-down-tone-up-quick-tips-that-really-work-477521/ is the reason I will always have clients coming in the door. As I have said in the past, whatever mode of exercise you choose to do, intensity is the key, not duration. If the body is not stressed outside of its comfort zone, it has no reason to adapt to the new stimulus. That being said, the fitness industry keeps pumping out bullshit like this article, doing bent rows with a 1 liter water bottle, and people believe they are going to change their shape following such crap advise.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
WOD 6.24.09
200m run
10 burpees
200m run
12 Thrusters 1/2 bodyweight
200m run
14 lunges 1/2 bodyweight
200m run
18 squats 1/2 bodyweight
200m run
20 jump squats 1/2 bodyweight
200m run
Saturday, June 20, 2009
What we do
Explanation of Services
Our basic philosophy is just that, basic. We believe that every athlete regardless of of sport or position should be trained as an athlete.
All athletes of any designation should have some basic skills:
-
running/sprinting
-
jumping
-
pushing
-
pulling
-
lifting
Our basic skill set is:
-
increase strength
-
increase endurance
-
increase power
-
increase flexibility
-
increase coordination
Any athlete proficient in these movements and skills will succeed in there sporting endeavors, with minimal exposure to injury.
Specific training to a sporting position seems to be the road to which you would build the optimal player. The problem with this approach is that it leaves the athlete open to issues if for instance as so often happens, the individual changes field position (defense to offense for instance). A trained athlete makes these adjustments much quicker than a single faceted player.
Our pricing is structured in such a way that the individual can visit the facility as often as their schedule allows. This gives the athlete the ability to be exposed to as many skills and movements, as often as possible, maximizing their adaption to these elements.
By continually varying the combination of skills within a workout, the dangers of stagnation and over training are over come.
WARNING
All this being said, the glue that sticks all of these skills together is hard work, we are not a babysitting service, or a place for young athletes to hang out. We work with individuals that are driven to improve. The workouts themselves are structured to be very strict on exercise form, they are fast passed, and relatively difficult according to the present ability level of the individual athlete. What this means is all the weights and sprint times assigned to the individual will be made to be difficult to obtain, according to each athlete's present fitness
Thursday, June 18, 2009
"WTF"
we did this workout yesterday, it started out being called "House on the Water". Somewhere along the line, someone changed it to WTF, you decide
5 min warm up (bike, stretch, etc)
run lengths of gym (90 feet) for 60s record total lengths
10 burpees
10 back extensions
keep repeating circuit till you reach 50 total lengths of the gym
push ups for 60s
40-# of push ups each set = # of 50# db swings
3 rounds
versa climber 60s count strides (substitute mountain climbers /1.5)
200-# of strides = sit ups with a 35# plate on chest
Monday, June 08, 2009
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Mental disorder
Run 400m
30m walking lunges
X3
Sit ups x 25 +25# plate on chest
Db swings 15 x 30/50#
squat+push press 15x20/30#
x5
30m broad jumps
Pullups 10
X 4
-- In Strength
Monday, May 25, 2009
WOD 5.25.09
Run 400m
Burpee pullups for the time it took to run each 400m
Rest 2 min
4 rounds
-- In Strength
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
One of the most impressive performances I have seen with Crossfit
Unlike the super fast Fran times, Grace can't be half assed with butterfly kipped pullups or any other technique modification. It is deceptively simple in design, but an incredible test of anaerobic endurance and mental fortitude. This video is from Crossfit Dixie, my hat is off to you Tycen
Monday, May 18, 2009
WOD 5.18.09
6 rounds:
10 push ups
10 squats
10 sit ups
400 m walking lunges (1 lunge each leg + 2 broad jumps)
Rest 60s
Repeat
-- In Strength
Saturday, May 16, 2009
WOD 5.15.09
10-1 ladder:
135# hang cleans
100 yd shuttle lengths
First set looks like 10 hang cleans 10 lengths of shuttles
-- In Strength
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
WOD 5.13.09
5 burpees
5 each arm renegade rows without the push up 65# db
5 deadlifts 315#
8:23 to finish
-- In Strength
Monday, May 11, 2009
WOD 5.11.09
Metabolic set
5 rounds:
Dolly pike ups x 15
Push press 95# x 15
Jump lunges x 10 ea leg
-- In Strength
Sunday, May 10, 2009
WOD "baracuda nipples"
50-40-30-20-10
Walking lunges total steps (20/30)
Renegade rows (no push up) (20/30)
Db high pulls (20/30)
-- In Strength
Saturday, May 09, 2009
WOD 5.9.09
10 bodyweight back squats
10 burpees
5 rounds for time
-- In Strength
Thursday, May 07, 2009
WOD 5.7.09
12 back extensions
12 push ups
X5
Deadlift 3 rm + 6 x 1 @ 3 rm
Push press 5 rm + 4 @ 5 rm
Deadlifted well today 435 x 3
-- In Strength
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
WOD 5.6.09
Warm ups + strength set
1000m row
Run 400m
Airdyne bike hard 5 min
Back squat 3rm + 6x1@3rm
Pullups 5x5
-- In Strength
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
WOD 5.5.09
Main Set
4 lengths (about 80 feet a length)
of "tight ass"
lunge on each leg + 3 RDL 20#/30#
AFAP
Monday, May 04, 2009
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Use what works....but keep looking
-- In Strength
WOD 5.3.09
5 rounds:
Front loaded walking lunge 1 on each leg plus 3 push presses 80 feet. 95/65
-- In Strength
Saturday, May 02, 2009
WOD 5.2.09
5 rounds:
20 squats
20 lunges
20 box jumps
10 jump squats
60s rest between sets
-- In Strength
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Not bad for a soccer mom with two kids
This is the last of 5 rounds of 10 jump squats and 10 dolly piked push ups for time. This circuit was the finisher on an already tough main set yesterday, thought I would give Deb some props for the effort.
Abby Golden Action Shot
Alli, eat well or shit yourself
I just saw the commercial for the diet drug Alli,and basically it removed fat from your colon and you crap it out, the idea is that if you eat less fat, you won't shit yourself! It's a reward system
-- In Strength
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
WOD 4.29.09
Sit ups 10
Jump lunges 5ea
Db push press 10 20/30#
50-40-30-20-10
Jump squats
Dolly pike push ups
Lying pullups (inverted rows)
-- Post From My iPhone
Monday, April 27, 2009
Nasty little sequence we call “Dolly Hell”
Watch the video, do each movement for 20 reps (the video shows sets of 5), and do the sequence 5 times without rest, killer core work.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
WOD 4.23.09
50-40-30-20-10
sit ups
lateral bounds
mountain climbers
3 min as many 24" box jumps as possible
5 rounds
hang clean 135 x 6
push press 135 x 6
front loaded lunges 135 x 6ea
sprint 30 m x 5 on 45 seconds
Monday, April 20, 2009
WOD 4.20.09
5 min AMRAP:
burpees x 5
front lunges 5 ea
push ups x 5
10 min AMRAP:
Lateral bounds x 10ea side
Jump squats x 10
Broad Jumps x 10
10 min AMRAP:
Step Ups (tallest box you can manage) x 10ea (20#/30# db)
Push Press x 12 (20#/30# db)
Half Moons x 10 (20#/30# db)
Airdyne sprints 4 x 30s 60s recovery