Author: Larry Jusdanis

Are You Explosive Enough In Your Sport?

One of the most important aspects of training an athlete is plyometrics. It is crucial in making an athlete more explosive. Here is the key piece with Plyo’s with young kids. They are great but an athlete needs to be assessed before to correct all of their deficiencies. If an athlete is not strong it is very hard to make them explosive. It’s a very simple equation, you must be strong before you can be explosives. Here are my three favorite plyometric exercises!

Box Jump:

Everyone does this! It’s a great way to train jumping! Here is my biggest tips with regards to box jumps. The landing is the most important part. The landing needs to be soft and you shouldn’t hear it. If you can hear the landing make the box smaller and land soft. One way to spice up box jumps is too jump out of a seated position! My personal favorite way to take this drill to the nest level is to make the athlete jump on que, that’s the way sport is played; very rarely do you get to pick and choose when you want to react!

Depth Jump:

This is an awesome one for young athletes but also older athletes. This is so important on training not only plyometric strength and isometric strength. This exercise allows you not only to learn how to land which is so important, but it teaches your body how to take a load through the ground which is important. One cool way to do a depth jump is to add a box jump too it. Have a player jump off a box take the load thru the ground, then jump up into the air!

4 Dot Drill:

My personal favorite! This drill is basically 4 dots on a mat, and the athletes will jump in different directions from dot to dot. The best way to do this drill is in short bursts, 5-10 seconds. You can make this drill harder by changing the way the athletes faces during the drill, flipping his hips during the drill. My biggest tip for this drill is to make sure the athletes keeps his or her eyes up. You can make them focus on some sort of visual cue!

Plyo’s are so important to creating an all around great athlete. But like I previously stated, young athletes need to be “strong” before we worry about Plyo’s!

Email Bskinner@sstcanada.com to schedule a free demo session or to ask about out vertical jump program or our strength and conditioning programs.

Why Men Need To Strength Train As They Age!

Strength training is not just for the young guys and I would argue that as men age, strength training becomes more and more important to maintain muscle function and quality of life.

Due to the natural loss of testosterone with aging, it becomes more difficult to maintain and build muscle mass. Furthermore, in those who don’t strength train to combat this, we generally see a loss of muscle mass as we age, along with a loss of muscle function and decreased quality of life. Easy tasks of daily living such as getting up from a chair, playing with the grandkids at the park, or working on some of our favourite outdoors hobbies such as woodworking or playing in our recreational hockey league become difficult.

While some men tend to do endless amounts of cardio as exercise as they age, I would argue that strength training is just as important if not more important, as muscle mass helps to maintain and increase our slowing metabolism as we age that helps to combat fat mass gain. Furthermore, strength training also helps to maintain our cardiovascular health and can be as effective as pure cardiovascular exercise to prevent heart attack and stroke. 

When combined with a die that includes adequate dietary protein, resistance training in the older years can still promote muscle gain, so even if you are starting to resistance train later in life it still has tremendous benefits.

Here at SST we have a program designed specifically for men over the age of 44 (MAXFITT FOR MEN 44), come in for a free demo class to see how we train our guys to maximize the benefits of strength training as they age.

Using The Gym To Mentally Prepare For Competition.

One the biggest problems with young athletes today is that they don’t know how to completely focus all the time. You can also see it during their competitions. Athletes get out of place or don’t react fast enough because they didn’t see something or couldn’t see something because it was happening to fast for them. Here are three tips to use to increase an athlete’s focus!

Eliminate Technology In the Gym; Athletes and people are way too reliant on technology. When athletes lift, they should not be on their phones. It should not be used in between sets. They do not have cases to their phones during their competition, so don’t let them use a phone during training. When athletes are resting during sets, I teach them how to breath and give them a skill they can us on the field of competition. This is a learned skill set that can be practiced instead of being on a phone.

Quiz Them In States Of Exhaustion; This could be my favorite of all time. When I work with my Offensive Lineman, I often ask them question right when they finish working. They are tired and this is when their brains sometimes don’t want to work. I try and mimic this so that when they are tired they are used to thinking, and it’s not new to them. Something as simple as asking them what 8×7 is when they are huffing and puffing. It’s really simple yet so darn effective.

Simulate Game Situation In Group Training; Make your athletes work as a team when they train as a group. For example when doing the fictional training with hockey players I like to make one athlete of “off” and have one athlete run “on” to start and finish their set. This simulates a shift change. You can also do to with 5 players at a time if you are working as a big group. Something as simple as that will help them get used to stay mentally focused during their competition.

Come in to SST Burlington to put these and more training tips into your training routine!

In Season Training Tips To Prevent Injury

In season training is so important to on field performance, we all know that. One of the most overlooked aspects of training hard during the season is it recoups the muscle fibers you break down during competition. Athletes who do not take in season training seriously are subject to an increase of one thing, injury!

There is a direct correlation between athletes who don’t train hard during the season and their increase risk of injury! Football being a collision sport, injuries are very common. Below are three ideas to keep you off the training table and on the field.

Split Squats ;The most important lift in the book. At SST this is a day one deal, we’ve been doing this with our athletes for over 20 years and for good reason. One of the most common injuries in football is a knee injury, most commonly an ACL tear. Doing split squats all year will improve your range of motion and will allow you to be strong in the knee over toe position. Performing the split squat is also a very effective way to train the VMO, which is a very important muscle to have a strong health knee.

Pulling Lifts; I’ve been around football so long and later in the season  athletes start to get banged up backs and shoulders, because of all the collisions that happen on a daily basis. This happens very easily because, young athletes that don’t have proper training knowledge think that they need to be benching and pressing to stay strong in the upper body. There is some merit to this being that football is a sport where a lot of “press action” happens but, to stay strong and healthy the posterior chain in the upper body needs to be taken care of. My favorite one would be a simple as a chin up or any type of row. This will keep your back strong and your spine protected!

Conditioning;  Football is a multi direction sport! Way to often we condition just going straight! IT IS MADNESS!!!! When conditioning athletes make sure that you are doing different things, such as shuffles, cross overs and change of direction. For example, a running back (RB) in football spend most of his time going forward in a game, rarely does he go back wards. During the season condition him going backwards so when it happens during a game, his body is used to it! BIGGEST CONDITIONING TIP! Make your guys back pedal, it’s way harder to pull something going backwards in a back pedal than it is going forwards!

Hopefully these three tips help you stay strong during the season, but more importantly help you stay on the field!

Email us at SST@SSTCANADA.COM to schedule your free demo today!

Three Tips To In-Season Training – Football

In season training is a must for ALL sports! One of my biggest pet peeves is when athletes train SO HARD during the off-season but then they do nothing to maintain their hard work during the season! You are wasting all the hard work you’ve put in! Listen I get it…. lifting during the season is a very tough task both mentally and physically but it needs to be done so you can maintain your strength and speed that was developed during the course of the past off season. Most people do not understand how to properly train during the season, here at SST we can help guide you through the course of the off-season and your in season maintenance!

Here are my three biggest inseason traning tips that will definitley help your performance!!!

Lift The Heavy Barbell

Don’t be afraid to lift heavy during your athlete work week. This will keep you strong! Ever notice why muscle pulls and joint tweaks happen in the later parts of your season??? Its because most athletes are not keep their bodies strong! In the football season most high school and university players are playing on Friday or Saturday. There is no reason why early in the week, Monday and Tuesday you cannot be lifting in the 80% max load range.

Active Recovery Day –  Post Game

THIS IS SO IMPORTANT!!! If you play your game on Friday night, there is no doubt that you are going to wake up Saturday sore as heck. The worst thing you can do is just sit around on the couch feeling sorry for your body. My suggestion is you do something active to get the lactic acid out of your body. What I like to do with my football guys is the day after the game we get out on the field and run 10 fifty yard tempos at half speed, just enough to get the blood moving. After that is complete I make them walk for 15 minutes. This works perfect, and you wake up Sunday feeling 10 times better.

Streching – Hip Flexors and Glutes

Football is played in a low crouched position a lot of the time. The first thing that usually goes on Football athletes are their backs from the constant collisions and the positions they are always in. I highly suggest that you take 15 minutes out of your day, every day to give your Hip Flexors and Glutes some love. There are 1000’s of different stretches that can be performed depending on your flexibility.

Give these three tips a try when thinking about your in season training, they will definitely help you. All athletes out there that feel they need a little more direction in their training swing by SST Burlington and let us help you. We have been in this business for 20 year and have help 1000’s of athletes!

Maxfit 44 program

Get lean and fit or face accelerated aging, weight gain, diminished sex drive, declining energy, chronic diseases like osteoarthritis, chronic low back pain, diabetes, and other problems.

If you’re a man over the age of 40, your body is issuing you an ultimatum:

Get lean and fit or face accelerated aging, weight gain, diminished sex drive, declining energy, chronic diseases like osteoarthritis, chronic low back pain, diabetes, and other problems.

Ever notice that most elite athletes retire from competitive sports in their late 30s? There’s a reason for this, the male body starts to age more quickly. But you can reverse the aging process with nutrition and strength training.

Part of the reason for this accelerated process is the diminished production of our hormones Testosterone and Growth hormone. Testosterone is the hormone that makes us men. It gives us our strength, our drive, and our character.

However testosterone production declines with age in men. This results in decreased serum levels of total and bioavailable testosterone, leading to a decrease in energy, muscle mass, and bone mass. This also leads to an increase in body fat levels, depression, and a variety of disease. Growth Hormone is the hormone that stimulates growth and cell division. The average bodily decline in growth hormone production is 1.25% per year, or 14% per decade for a man of normal body weight. If we add in the elevated body fat levels the growth hormone production is further compounded because body fat itself tends to decrease HGH secretion.

However it does not have to be this way, with a properly designed strength and nutrition program we can halt or even reverse this process, to become the strong virile man we used to be.

MaxFit 44 offers you an opportunity to answer the ultimatum your body is issuing.

We provide a customized nutrition plan and strength training program that will allow you to meet your fitness goals. Based on cutting edge scientific research and accurate assessment of your body composition we will design a program for weight loss, improved vitality, and enhanced sports performance (other goals?).

This is not your normal group exercise program. There are no dance moves to learn, no irritating music and no endless boring cardio exercises.

We offer low instructor, client ratios and select only exercises that will make you stronger and more powerful.

Why would you choose a group exercise program vs. individualized training or working out in isolation? Cost and results. Working out in a group setting is less expensive than working out with a trainer in a one on one basis but with the shared benefits of group accountability. Studies indicate that people work harder when they believe that others are watching them. This increase of intensity when paired with proper exercise selection and movement form will yield results that are up to 80% better in half the time.

When you factor in the nutritional program, you have an unbeatable approach that is going to make you look and feel better than you ever have in your life. Better yet is that by learning WHAT and HOW to eat, you will be able to stay lean and keep your muscular appearance while the rest of your friends continue their age related decline. Discover the benefits of MY BLUEPRINT NUTRITION

You can’t stop your body from aging but you can control how it looks as it ages. Get back in the drivers seat and recapture the vitality of your youth.

MaxFit 44 will change the way you look, feel and think about your health for the rest of your life. You deserve to be the best you can be.

ACT NOW!

JOIN OUR NEXT 12 WEEK PROGRAM!

Come in for a free demo class.

Why Increase Your Omega 3 Intake?

I keep hearing about good fats and why I should be taking them. If I took good fats wouldn’t I just become fatter and what are the true benefits? Also, what are Omega 3 fats?

Grant N.

 

Hey Grant, that’s a great question and one that I hear regularly. First let’s get an understanding of fats. Fatty acids can be broken down into two main categories- Saturated and Unsaturated. These two can be broken down into sub-categories as well, such as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Fatty acids are made up of the number of carbon atoms and hydrogen molecules they can hold. All fats have a combination of these with one being predominant.

Fat is necessary for good health. Deficiencies of the so called “Good Fats” can cause health consequences. Good Fats can be described as Omega 6 or Omega 3. Omega 6 fats are highly consumed in our diet relative to Omega 3. The ratio is up to 20:1 whereas it should be more of a 1:1 ratio. Here at SST, we like to put our athletes on higher dosages of Omega 3 fats. There are 3 types of Omega 3- ALA (found in flaxseed oil, hemp seed oil and walnuts) Docosahaexaenoic (DHA) and Eicosapentaenoic (EPA) which are found in fish and fish oils. ALA is essential but does not convert well so I like to recommend fish oils to our athletes. Our brains are made up of 60% fat. DHA is one of the most important fats for the brain and it is sometimes called “brain food”. All omega 3 fats also help with the anti-inflammatory process of the body as well. As well, a higher intake of Omega 3 leads to fat loss. This is usually the first supplement I add to our athletes’ diets when they come into the SST Centre.

Fish Oil can have benefits for the body with the following medical problems:

Cancer

Arthritis

Stroke

Colitis

Chronic fatigue syndrome

As mentioned I prefer a high dose of fish oils for my athletes depending upon their body fat levels – from 9-15 grams per day! I like to use reputable companies that use higher grade fish oil such as Metagenics, Genestra, Organika, Life Extension and my good friend Charles Poliquin’s in-house brand. I instruct my athletes to take their fish oils with every meal. A good trick to help avoid burping up fish a taste is to keep them in your freezer.

Grant I hope this helps you understand Omega 3 oils a bit better!

Good luck with your training and nutrition! If you want more info regarding all Women’s Fit and Lean Program or Men’s Maxfit please contact your community SST

Preseason Football Conditioning

This is a touchy subject were the old school meets the new school! Football is a sport where you play 4-6 seconds at a time, yet strength coaches sometimes see the need for athletes to only “condition” doing 100 yard sprints and gassers! This really doesn’t make sense at all! Conditioning for Football should be done anaerobically, meaning; short fast bursts. Below I will list some of my personal favorites that we have used over the years!

Competitive Sprints  – 10 YARDS ONLY. Make the athlete get from one spot to another as fast as they can, then give 25 seconds of rest. My favorite is to use a football fields, every other 10 yards we work. So we get five sprints for the length of the field, this mimics a drive and wont kills your guys.

Wave Drill – (Forward/Lateral/Backward) This one is old school, but it works! Make your athletes work for 5-6 seconds. Give them three different commands then make them burst for 2 steps on the way out of the drill.

Back Pedal + Turn – One of my personal favorites! Starts all your athletes in a back pedal then use a visual key to make them turn 180 degrees and sprint for 5 yards! This is great for DB’s and OL’s, I use this every chance I get.

Mirror Drill – Another old school throw back. This is great when you’re working with the whole team at once. Have two athletes work in a five yards box, one in the rabbit the other one is chasing try to stay in front. Only make them go about five seconds!

The most important part of conditioning in my opinion is to get your athletes the stamina experience in the type of job they are ask to do when the lights are on. There is no point asking an OL to do 100 yards sprints, because he would never do that in a game. Athletes need to be trained smart, not for your EGO!