MR Prime Time

Training Bodybuilding
41

Flynnie,

If the regular hip mobility drills aren’t getting it done, chances are you have some scar tissue built up in there. Have you tried foam rolling or getting a massage? I know that once I started doing both of these, my mobility went through the roof.

As well, adding some static stretching in at night can help as well. Good luck!

Stay strong
MR

[quote]flynniec6 wrote:
Mike,

I’ve enjoyed all your articles and a lot of your advice still underpins what I do in the gym daily.

I especially like the hip mobility stuff, it worked wonders for just about everything physical I do. Thanks.

Now, to the question: any suggestions for increasing ROM in hip rotation? When I turn my knees outward, the ROM is pretty poor. I mostly notice this doing the “fire hydrant” drills, in that I can’t lift the knee that far up and out. It tends to drop back in as I move the knee to hip level and beyond. I’ve noticed over the years in various martial arts and other stuff that when a stance calls for roughly 90 degrees of angle between my feet, I under-rotate my knees and over-rotate my feet to compensate.

Any tips or suggestions?

Thanks.[/quote]

42

Mike, thanks for the answers. I think I am going to take the the ab work and move it to the end of my workouts when I am doing my heavy squats and replace it in my preworkout with some more dynamic flexibility stuff to see if that helps.

I did think of one more question (last one, I promise), though. I have been using the CFTS system for my running (2 accel days with full recovery between sprints, 2 tempo days), but after I read Defranco’s article it got me thinking about how I do my running. The agility/linear/strongman conditioning days seemed to reflect the metabolic demands of football players better than what I have been doing.

Do you think that it would be more effective to do the running that Joe prescribes or the tempos? Also do you think that I could go a little with both, by doing 6-8 10’s or 20’s with neural recovery and then precedding to the energy systems work? If I do adopt the Defranco running program should I still do tempo runs on my off days, for recovery (I would likley cut the volume from 1000 yds to around 700 or less)?

Sorry for these long/numours questions. I just want to make sure I am training the most effective way to get ready for football.

43
  • VMO activation exercises pre-workout
  • Single leg stuff
  • Deep squats (below parallel)

If you’re doing this to protect their knees, by all means get their posterior chains/glutes as strong as possible as well!

Stay strong
MR

BTW, leg extensions blow

[quote]bigpump23 wrote:
Mike, I’m interested in developing the VMO in the women I train. Any tips for how to develop it in them, i don’t really like the leg extension and we already do plenty of squats, maybe I’ll be daring and make them split squat[/quote]

44

Hi quick question, my friend when he does squats, his knees buckle inwards. He also complains about his knees being “tight.” I asked him what it feels like he says they just feel tight, but his main concern is why his knees keep buckling in on the concentric portion of the lift. I know i’ve seen the answer somewhere but cant find it. Do you possibly know any reason why this might be happening.

45

Buckeye,

Either program, on its own, is very good. However, trying to mix them into one could get you into trouble.

Don’t get so caught up into putting everything into one single cycle; instead, focus more on bringing certain properties up in a cycle, while maintaining the others.

You could do a little of both, but I like to err on the side of caution when it comes to speed work; too much can simply fry you. Why not alternate between phases of CFTS and Joe D.'s stuff? As well, you need to take into account what your specific weaknesses are and address them. If you need more pure speed stuff, CFTS may be the better bet.

If you need more “movement” training like you’d get in football, Joe D.'s program would probably be better. Each has their own pros and cons, you just need to figure out which better suits you. Finally, don’t over-analyze too much; make a decision, train your ass off, and be proud of what you accomplish!

Good luck and no problem answering questions; that’s what I’m here for!

Stay strong
MR

46

He’s a weak ass…literally!

He probably needs to work on his hip abductors, specifically glute medius. I believe EC and I covered this in our “Get Your Butt in Gear” series, but he needs to do mini-band side steps and body weight squats with the bands around his knees. Once he gets those stronger, he should be fine.

Another reason could be that he’s over-pronating his feet (flattening them out) as he goes down; this is somewhat related, but a whole 'nother issue in itself. Have him try the band walks/squats first and let us know if it doesn’t clean up!

Stay strong
MR

[quote]jreed212 wrote:
Hi quick question, my friend when he does squats, his knees buckle inwards. He also complains about his knees being “tight.” I asked him what it feels like he says they just feel tight, but his main concern is why his knees keep buckling in on the concentric portion of the lift. I know i’ve seen the answer somewhere but cant find it. Do you possibly know any reason why this might be happening.[/quote]

47

What would you suggest for a competitive (or at least attempting to) Olympic Lifter who has to now take a long lay off from any lower body compound exercises due to an anterior tilting left inominate? I am trying to maintain strength without disrupting the limited rehab.

FYI : I am doing a motion in which my right hip goes into extension and my left leg is straightened while flexing the hip all against resistance in a Contract-Relax-Contract pattern to get my hip bones back into a functional alignment. The acute trauma occurred about a month ago. No swelling or anything now, just pain when I sit for long periods.

(I was thrown on my hip in Judo while previously having a chiropractor adjust my hip)

[On a side note, the hip didn’t need to be cracked over and over, I just needed new insoles…damned piece o’…I’m still steamed about the whole thing]

48

Hmmm…that’s tough, considering the O-lifts are primarily low-body. Here are some thoughts, in no particular order:

  • Can you do single-leg stuff? If so, it’s better than nothing
  • Get your core strong as all get-out
  • Do some upper body stuff you might not be able to do while training specifically for O-lifting
  • Work on improving flexibility and doing prehab

What I’m getting at here is don’t focus on what you CAN’T do, but rather what you CAN do. I’m in the same boat myself; sometimes I’ll catch myself thinking “Damnit, I just wanna squat heavy!,”, but that doesn’t do anything for me. Instead, I’m focusing on getting some flexibility imbalances ironed out, strengthening my core, and trying to get my bench up to an acceptable level on par w/my squat and pull.

Injuries suck, but they are part of the game. Figure out what you can do and make the best of it; good luck!

Stay strong
MR

[quote]the MaxX wrote:
What would you suggest for a competitive (or at least attempting to) Olympic Lifter who has to now take a long lay off from any lower body compound exercises due to an anterior tilting left inominate? I am trying to maintain strength without disrupting the limited rehab.

FYI : I am doing a motion in which my right hip goes into extension and my left leg is straightened while flexing the hip all against resistance in a Contract-Relax-Contract pattern to get my hip bones back into a functional alignment. The acute trauma occurred about a month ago. No swelling or anything now, just pain when I sit for long periods.

(I was thrown on my hip in Judo while previously having a chiropractor adjust my hip)

[On a side note, the hip didn’t need to be cracked over and over, I just needed new insoles…damned piece o’…I’m still steamed about the whole thing]
[/quote]

49

LOL I thought that WAS you in your avatar!

Maybe that’s just how you’re feeling… how’s the knee? Can you move around by yourself now?

[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
Must admit, I’m a huge Scarface fan. Do you want me to put a pic of myself in as my Avatar? I thought only cool people like Dave Barr could do that… ;)[/quote]

50

Doing pretty well; I think my trainer (see: me) is doing a good job w/the rehab. Swelling is going down and the ROM is coming back quicker than expected.

It’s funny, I was actually walking around pretty well the next day. Between your knees and my shoulders, I swear we could make ONE healthy body!

Stay strong
MR

BTW, when are we gonna get that Anabolic piece of yours?

[quote]David Barr wrote:
LOL I thought that WAS you in your avatar!

Maybe that’s just how you’re feeling… how’s the knee? Can you move around by yourself now?

Mike Robertson wrote:
Must admit, I’m a huge Scarface fan. Do you want me to put a pic of myself in as my Avatar? I thought only cool people like Dave Barr could do that… :wink:

[/quote]

51

Wow dude, I can’t believe you just asked me that! Leave my shoulders and Anabolic piece out of your twisted Frankenstein game.

Oh… you meant the article. Sorry.

I’m hoping to talk to JB about it next week, and LL as well. It’s pretty huge, so if I can drive half a continent in 2 days I should submit it the Monday after next.

Sorry for the misunderstanding earlier, and I’m glad you’re improving.

Cheers

[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
Between your knees and my shoulders, I swear we could make ONE healthy body!

Stay strong
MR

BTW, when are we gonna get that Anabolic piece of yours?[/quote]

52

Thanks. I can’t imagine what scar tissue would be in there but I can certainly give it a go. I’ve also decided (based on your posts) that I should do some static stretching before bed.

Cheers.

53

Mike,

Basically I love to “hoop” 2 times per week just playground style for fun. I also want to get really strong and fast.

What are your opinions of this comment by Scott Sonnon: "You aren’t going to become graceful by benching more, deadlifting heavier, or squatting more explosively. The inter-muscular coordination gained through these lifts only increase your ability to do those gross, isolated movements. It may or may not have a positive effect on your other activities. The honest trainers will admit that the academic jury still sits behind closed doors deciding the fate of whether that type of training transfers into other activities even at all.

The reason that many lack grace and lack the ability to produce consistent and comprehensive graceful clients is simple. It is because they only think in terms of inter-muscular coordination. They only know this because it is quantifiable. However, QUALITY of movement, ?Biomechanical Efficiency? and ?Neuomuscular Efficiency? (discussed in Body-Flow) remains the elusive element which shackles them to robotic, low-quality movement.

Besides inter-muscular coordination, there is also Neural Drive (in old strongman speak known as ?nerve force?), Intra-Muscular Coordination (known as ?muscle control? in the Golden Age of true strongmen), and Disinhibition (basically getting out of the way of your unlimited capabilities."

Scott often states that lifting heavy and pursuing maximal strength is not the panacea of training. Obviously, he’s training for martial arts and you are a powerlifter so that’s different. However, my experience in martial arts and sports in general is that strength helps tremendously in addition to speed, range of motion ,etc.

Do you think it basically comes down to: get as strong/explosive in the weightroom as you can and perfect your skill of choice (in my case hoops) on the court? Is sport specific stuff overrated? Is there even such a thing as developing “general” athleticism as Scott says? Perfect example of what I mean is that last week I rollerskated for the first time in like 15 years and had a hard time (plus the fact that I’m 6’2 tall) but I can play basketball fine.

54

hi mike.
im on a cycle of tren masteron and winstrol. i wanted to now if there is any pills that i can take that will help the insomnia and mode swings.
i have made an amazing gains but the mode swings and the insomnia are kiling me. i cant add test to the cycle becuse it makes me put on water like crazy and i need to keep aweight class.

i have tried sleeping pills and its doesent help. any kind of pills that can help?

ps-sorry on my english

55

You’d be amazed at how much scar tissue and adhesions can build up in the glutes just from squatting and deadlifting. I wouldn’t have believed it myself, until a masseur damn near had me in tears working on it!

Stay strong
MR

[quote]flynniec6 wrote:
Thanks. I can’t imagine what scar tissue would be in there but I can certainly give it a go. I’ve also decided (based on your posts) that I should do some static stretching before bed.

Cheers.[/quote]

56

BPC,

I think you are right on with your assertions; get strong/powerful in the weight room, work on sport specific stuff when you practice! The sport-specific stuff has gone far enough, people…let it go.

Now, as far as building “general” athleticism, sure you can do it…when kids are kids! You’re not going to develop a 40 year old couch potato into an athlete. “General” athleticism is built by making your kids play sports, getting out and running, and just being kids in general. Kids who spend all day playing Sega and sitting on their ass will never be good athletes.

Stay strong
MR

[quote]BPC wrote:
Mike,

Basically I love to “hoop” 2 times per week just playground style for fun. I also want to get really strong and fast.

What are your opinions of this comment by Scott Sonnon: "You aren’t going to become graceful by benching more, deadlifting heavier, or squatting more explosively. The inter-muscular coordination gained through these lifts only increase your ability to do those gross, isolated movements. It may or may not have a positive effect on your other activities. The honest trainers will admit that the academic jury still sits behind closed doors deciding the fate of whether that type of training transfers into other activities even at all.

The reason that many lack grace and lack the ability to produce consistent and comprehensive graceful clients is simple. It is because they only think in terms of inter-muscular coordination. They only know this because it is quantifiable. However, QUALITY of movement, ?Biomechanical Efficiency? and ?Neuomuscular Efficiency? (discussed in Body-Flow) remains the elusive element which shackles them to robotic, low-quality movement.

Besides inter-muscular coordination, there is also Neural Drive (in old strongman speak known as ?nerve force?), Intra-Muscular Coordination (known as ?muscle control? in the Golden Age of true strongmen), and Disinhibition (basically getting out of the way of your unlimited capabilities."

Scott often states that lifting heavy and pursuing maximal strength is not the panacea of training. Obviously, he’s training for martial arts and you are a powerlifter so that’s different. However, my experience in martial arts and sports in general is that strength helps tremendously in addition to speed, range of motion ,etc.

Do you think it basically comes down to: get as strong/explosive in the weightroom as you can and perfect your skill of choice (in my case hoops) on the court? Is sport specific stuff overrated? Is there even such a thing as developing “general” athleticism as Scott says? Perfect example of what I mean is that last week I rollerskated for the first time in like 15 years and had a hard time (plus the fact that I’m 6’2 tall) but I can play basketball fine.
[/quote]

57

I have no idea. In fact, I know so little about steroids you could probably teach me a thing or two.

Maybe you could ask Cy or someone a little more knowledgeable on the subject?

Stay strong
MR

[quote]amitsapir wrote:
hi mike.
im on a cycle of tren masteron and winstrol. i wanted to now if there is any pills that i can take that will help the insomnia and mode swings.
i have made an amazing gains but the mode swings and the insomnia are kiling me. i cant add test to the cycle becuse it makes me put on water like crazy and i need to keep aweight class.

i have tried sleeping pills and its doesent help. any kind of pills that can help?

ps-sorry on my english[/quote]