IOL Strength and Conditioning

My trip to the Anaheim IDEA conference was geared around mental saturation of anatomy, physiology, biomechanics and corrective exercise (I really need to be immersed before this stuff begins to sink in), but it was spiced by a visit with Anthony Carey of Function First and a few minutes play on his core trainer, the Core-Tex.

My first introduction to Anthony was his book, The Pain-Free Program, which I bought a couple months into this corrective exercise side-trip that started nearly two years ago. Floundering a bit, heading off in the wrong direction by guessing wrong a couple of times, the book brought me back to the path, and I became intrigued as his techniques quickly began to work.

About six months later, IDEA 2008 rolled around, and I was excited to see him on the schedule teaching What the Hips Lack Hurts the Back. My bullet-point notes from the session are here, and cover the connections between hips and low back pain.

By this time, you know I’d become a fan and was an avid reader of his blog, so when I saw he had invented a new core training device, I was eager to try it. It looks like a blast, but would it be more than just a few minutes of fun, sort of fake surfing for landlubbers?

I knew Anthony was teaching at this year’s IDEA, because I was scheduled to hear him present Advanced Strategies for Correcting Kyphosis, which I’ll discuss next week. And I knew he was planning to show the Core-Tex, but several runs through the Expo hall left me still on dry land. I figured I was out of luck this trip, until on the last Expo visit (a quick jaunt through after Paul Chek’s session on posture to discover his recommended back strengthening book was actually a $250 seven-hour dvd correspondence course), heading toward the door, I see Anthony shifting around on a big red disk. I’m going to get to try it after all!

I shoved him off and gingerly climbed aboard, holding the handrail with all ten fingers. I’d like to tell you I jumped on and surfed away, but… no, that’s not how it went.

Still, it was AMAZING, and truly fun. The disk moves in all planes of motion, often at the same time. There’s technical information about translation versus a fixed axis, but you’ll have to read this page for those details, since physics makes my head hurt.

(This isn’t me; I’m not that young, not that thin, nor did I get that good on the Core-Tex.)

While sliding from fore to aft and round about, I asked Anthony if I’d get better at it, and if so, how long would that be expected to take. When he said ten minutes instead of the six weeks I was expecting, I released one of my gripping hands from the guide bar to make a move toward hands-free. A minute or so later, the second hand came off and it was pretty comfortable to go with the flow.

As I gained a little confidence, I got a little bolder; I began heading off for a full 360… and stumbled off in short order. Luckily, Anthony’s quick on his feet – or maybe he was just watching and saw the signs– and grabbed me before I took out a line of people shopping medicine balls at the Perform Better booth where the Core-Tex was on display.

Later, I got to wondering about the falling-off part, and how that related to neural reprogramming, because I’d been thinking the Core-Tex was mostly to wake up dormant or low-functioning muscles. I wrote to ask if my thinking was correct, if so, would my nervous system remember the new pathways, or would it only remember the falling-off part.

Anthony wrote back, “When standing on the Core-Tex, there is certainly an incredible amount of neural activity going on because the motions are so new and dynamic.  Because there are so many combinations of movements available as the dish moves, it’s not likely any reprogramming is actually happening.  This is because you may never repeat exactly the same combination of movement and muscle activity the entire time you are on it.

“Instead, the goal is to improve the user’s reactions. In other words, how quickly and efficiently does your nervous system react to the shift(s) in your base and communicate that to your our musculoskeletal system to act so that you don’t fall? That is why we encourage the user to keep moving with the Core-Tex and “pitch and catch” with it.  Just standing still on it, as is done with so many other pieces of equipment, doesn’t require the same continual up-regulation of new information from the proprioceptors.

“Positions other than standing on it certainly place a very unique musculoskeletal demand on the body.  The need to control the motion of the dish as you do, say, a push-up, fires additional stabilizers because the body is unable to predict how the dish will move next. It adds a lot of variety and fun to the workout.  That’s why we take so many exercises that are done on the floor and put them on the Core-Tex.”

In the following clip, you’ll seen some of the many ways the Core-Tex can be used in a personal training or coaching setting. Pretty much anything you can do on the floor can be done on the disc, feet on, hands on..  standing, kneeling… half-kneeling… planking… with or without the handle guide, and with or without training tools such as medicine balls and tubing. In another clip, Anthony uses a pair of ski pools to demonstrate pre-season ski training, which I guess would start right about now, wouldn’t it?

One of the clips on the Core-Tex website shows Gary Gray, certainly one of the primary forces behind today’s study of functional movement, discussing balance and stability while using the unit. When Gary Gray says something really makes a difference, personal trainers and coaches should stop and listen.

I’ve been around people who’ve designed new inventions and brought them to market, and what’s even more remarkable than the initial idea is the perseverance it takes to get a prototype made, make the changes and find a suitable manufacturer. And this unit, because of the infinite variety of movements, must have been a real bear to figure out. That someone was able to stick to the project from start to finish is truly impressive, quite hard to fathom, really.

I’ll tell you one more thing: In addition to adding a fun variety to your personal training studio or athletic training facility, this gem will make your clients and athletes perform better, and isn’t that the bottom line?

Facility owners and mobile trainers, get one of these in your winter budget, $499-575. You know it would be on my list if I trained clients. Hey! I wonder if it’s a suitable anniversary present.

In pondering an overview of my days at IDEA last week, one thing really jumps out that I need to clear up before I delve into 57 pages of notes, and a pile of scribble-covered presenter handouts: I owe Todd Durkin an apology.

You see, I’d judged him; I made and held an impression of him based on a film clip, and on what he does. I thought a guy who taught instructors to drill others in bootcamp group exercise classes and who trains pro athletes would have to have an ego the size of Texas. Only… it turns out Todd’s a Jersey boy, just like Dave.

Instead of Mr. Ego yelling his opinions, the participants in the class I attended, Optimal Performance Bodywork and Flexibility, were treated to the rare experience of a guy truly giving his all. You know it when it happens — you can feel it. The energy in the room was different than the other 20-some presentations I enjoyed over the course of four-and-a-half days. He brought the energy to change it from an instructor and his students and transformed it into a meshed unit. Everyone was in that room. There were none thinking about what to eat for dinner, not for a fleeting thought during the two hours we spent with him.

His IDEA presentations were filmed, and are available online now. Here’s the link to the class I enjoyed so much, the one on bodywork that I can’t recommend enough for massage therapists and personal trainers who do any hands-on work (as an un-certified non-trainer, scope of practice is out of my territory, but during the class Todd was careful to point out the differences in a group of mixed professions); it’ll be available as an online seminar and dvd shortly. He also taught a class on growing a fitness business, which I’m sure was fabulous and will be useful to many, and, of course, his Bootcamp class is legendary, and will also be online in a week or two.

I was — I am — most impressed. I almost wish I was a personal trainer or a massage therapist (almost) so I could practice his teachings. The trainers and therapists left that room different, I just know it.

From Todd’s Flexibility DVD, here’s a list of his preferred stretches for all-purpose performance, along with his choices for self-myofascial work. This routine is a combination of active isolated stretching, self-myofascial release and neuromuscular re-education techniques.

Here, look, this is an example of his flexibility options:

Todd’s teleseminars on cd, now here’s one I would have rolled my eyes at before seeing him in action last week, but today I tell a different story: Creating Positive Energy, $10. Honestly, I think this guy can pull it off.

Todd, please accept my sincere apology. You’re terrific! The rest of you I leave with this:

Get after it.

The first of the four DVDs filmed during our June 2009 IronOnline weekend in Draper, Utah, this two-dvd lecture (2 hrs, 18 min) covers what Dan considers the most important aspects of strength training for the athlete, as well as the general fitness enthusiast.

Told with humor and great insight, you’ll learn:

• ~ The Role of the Strength Coach
• ~ Levels of Strength Coaching
• ~ How a Home Trainer Becomes His Own Coach
• ~ The Influence of Strength Coaching on Performance
• ~ Strength and Athletic Performance
• ~ How to Narrow Your Training Focus
• ~ Systematic vs Systemic Learning
• ~ Setting a Non-Competitive Training Goal
• ~ Phasic vs Tonic Muscles
• ~ How to Stay Youthful while Aging
• ~ Movements, Not Muscles
• ~ Dan’s Hip Displacement Continuum

Find out why Coach John is considered the go-to guy by top fitness professionals when they want to know what really works in strength and conditioning: It’s because he knows, and he teaches it well.

Also on this dvd, you’ll find his chalkboard slides and seminar handouts via pdf files accessible from your computer. The other DVDs from the workshops, Olympic Lifting Basics, Perfecting Your Kettlebell Form, and Warm-ups, Workouts and Barbell Complexes, will be available this fall.

Click here to order your copy of A Philosophy of Strength Training with Coach Dan John, a two-DVD set for $39.95.

Broken up into part lecture and part hands-on practical workshop, John Izzo’s educational dvd, Shatterproof Spine, How to Build an Athletic Low Back, is geared toward personal trainers, but will also be quite useful to individuals who have the occasional or recurring twinges of back pain. 90 minutes spent attentively with this DVD will give you the tools to reverse that increasing back pain — why your back hurts and what to do about it — for life.

In this easy-to-follow DVD, John pulls together his in-the-trenches experience with his clients and athletes (with a particular focus on golfers), and his understanding of the latest research on back pain by industry greats Dr. Stuart McGill, physical therapist and educator Shirley Sahrmann and Dr. Larry Foster. The lingo of these experts is often hard to follow, and in this DVD John makes this material accessible to the rest of us.

Part one covers an introduction to low back pain, the various types of back pain, the function of the spine and stresses on the low back, muscular imbalances and exercises and drills to reverse them, and what actions to avoid.

In the discussion of muscular imbalances, you’ll hear about short muscles vs tight muscles, long vs weak and short and weak — overactive, lengthened, inactive. These are terms we read often these days. Do you understand the differences and how to fix the problems you find? John explains this in simple language, and once you get it, more of those articles you’re reading on the net will make sense.

You’ve heard about Gray Cook and Lee Burton’s Functional Movement Screen, but do you understand it? While the Screen is not covered in full, you’ll see a few comparison videos of poor mobility and good mobility, discover the subtle things to look for in poor mobility, learn how to tell the difference between good and lousy movement, and ideas of how to fix poor movement.

There’s a brilliant visual of how hip mobility affects the golf swing, and of course, that’s going to translate to all implement sports with a club or racket, and with a little imagination, you’ll be able to project this into your own sport or activity.

You’ll also learn:

• Unusual stretches with a twist, including thoracic mobility needed but not normally done
• Why to wait 1-2 hours upon rising before forward bending — avoid flexing the spine — and why Dr. McGill suggests waiting 2-3 hours before heavy bending
• How to understand spinal rotation and anti-rotation

In the practical portion, the attendees are talked through a variety of exercises to strengthen the muscles that support the spine. Many of these are unique, and John’s outstanding guidance presents the tips for perfection in technique of:

• Reverse deadbug with med ball (you’ll never guess what this looks like)
• Pelvis disassociation drill
• T-spine disassociation drill
• Plank with row
• Med ball extension drop
• Single leg RDL
• Med ball shoulder exchange
• Coil/Recoil with a band
• Hip hinge with a band
• Dumbbell side bend

Dumbbell side bend? Hey, I think we know that one! Only guess what: We’ve probably been doing them wrong from day one. Hint: The movement is much smaller than what you remember.

The final section of the DVD consists of a live workshop during which the camera follows John as he demonstrates and corrects individuals performing these exercises. This will be useful both to personal trainers who need to know what to look in error control and how to explain the fixes, as well as individuals interested in corrective spinal exercises for personal use.

Those who aren’t well versed in the new sciences of movement and back pain will be well served by this material. Here’s where to get your copy of Shatterproof Spine.

Piping up with a hot dvd review today, I’m here to tell you this in no uncertain terms: There’s no doubt if you enjoyed Dan John’s 3-part dvd set, Everything’s Over My Head, you’ll be crazy jazzed by Chip Conrad’s Strength Rituals dvd set ($45). This is a two-dvd set, running over three hours, filmed at Chip’s BodyTribe Fitness and at Midtown Strength in Sacramento, California, and shot in a forest, on a dock, at a warehouse location, on a rooftop and on a beach, and is amazingly athletic, completely accessible to all of us, and very sharp.

Providing license to move from traditional weighted sets and reps to playful creativity, Chip then helps us figure out how to get started in this currently abnormal, but growing form of training. They’re working very hard showing us passion for movement and exercise, and having a blast in the process. His is a new definition of fitness, and it’s so much more.

A few ideas, exceptionally well covered:

• Program design basics
• Movement basics
• Sample workouts
• Basic traditional and unusual exercises and variations of each
• Mobility work
• Rings
• Ropes
• Combinations
• Sandbags
• Kettlebells
• Olympic lifting
• Bodyweight exercises
• Tire flipping and slamming
• Sled pulling
• Clubbells

All of these implements and styles were demonstrated, usually a number of times in various angles and speeds, and explained in Chip’s narrated overlay. I’ve never  seen such variety, nor such explanation, in another training dvd. Where else can you get a taste of it all? And yet, this is more than an appetizer; it’s the entire meal!

There’s a very nice demonstration and instruction of the bent press, including slow-motion action that’s really helpful. This is one many of us won’t see ourselves doing, but one we’ll enjoy a lot if we’re receptive enough to give it a try. And that’s true with much of the Rituals; it’s going to take an open mind if you’re an average gymrat. But gymrats are an exceptional bunch, as we all know, so go with your instincts and be bold. No doubt that’s one of the main points Chip hopes to make in his efforts: Be Bold.

(Much of this is shot from a distance; the dvd footage is mostly close-up).

In the kettlebell work, in addition to the more common moves, you’ll find lateral swings – NICE! – halo swings, band swings and, oh my, double-band swings, swing into lunge (triple wow)… really, some wild kettlebell work, so wild some of these may have been made up on the spot.

Chip also attends to Dan John’s 10 Commandments of Lifting, and in a tribute to him, the BodyTribe Dan John Workout boils down to the essentials, Commandment # 9: Put the bar on the ground and pick it up a bunch of different ways.

I got a kick out of watching Josh Vert in his training; everyone in the video was terrific, but I enjoyed some time talking with Josh at the IronOnline weekend at Dan’s in Utah in June (the first of four dvds will be released in a couple of weeks), and the personal angle made watching the dvd even more special.

The dvd ends with a section summarizing all that came before, and then slides in a very nice mobility section of warmups and winddowns that Chip made look easy but which are in fact very difficult to make so smooth. The practice is the point, and that’s where the relaxing and the releasing comes in.

If you’re traveling from San Francisco toward Tahoe, you’ll pass by Chip’s Sacramento gym. Carve out an afternoon to spend visiting! Your summer vacation will set you in motion with everything you need to train ingeniously through the winter.

A music guy at heart, whereas most dvd editors in our field (including me) give the production music short shrift, Chip did a remarkable job in the finale giving tribute to the artists and documenting the songs used as background to the workouts. I could live without a couple of the screamer songs, but that’s just my age sneaking out at you. The rest of the music was great fun and, Chip, you have my compliments for tracking down use of all that original music. I’m sure that added a month to your production time; hats off for going the extra mile for the sounds.

Throughout the dvd, the mix of exercise combinations will keep even the most flaky of trainees interested, and they and the dedicated will all become very strong and fit. Bring your most playful self and let ‘er rip. Great video, great narration. FABULOUS to watch, it’s everything but routine. Very motivational, both fists up!

Go order one now while there’s still summer left for you to get out and play with your toys.