Tuesday With DJ - PT

Training Bodybuilding
21

Coach John,

Stupid question for you, will there be a section on your new DVD devoted to overhead/front squatting as well? If not, I would like to put in a request for one along with suggestions for improving wrist/shoulder flexibility.

Thanks again for sending me the link to order your current DVD last week!

[quote]Danny John wrote:
This is a totally nonselfserving answer: I’m making a DVD this month on the topic of O lifting and correct squatting for the home gym guy…I just talked with Kelly, my film guy and we are going to make it next week. I’m taking all my "rules’ and hints…and making it into a gym rat DVD. I have some other ideas, too…I will zip them up here as the day goes on…[/quote]

22

Here are two tips/techniques for increasing wrist/shoulder flexibility that Keith Wassung PM’d to me awhile ago:

"It sounds like you have two issues going on-Both shoulder and wrist/finger flexibility and both are easy to fix. For the shoulders- do dislocates with a broomstick or piece of rope-hold the bar with a wide grip at arms length and raise it with straight arms in front of you as high as possible over and behind your head-the goal is to get it completely behind your back-initially goes as far as possible-at least to the point of tolerance. I would work up to 50 reps per day until you are comfortable with the front squats-then you do not have to do as many, but you can still do it as part of your workouts.

When doing the front squats, remember that you are only using the tips of 2-3 fingers to balance the bar-not the entire hand. Just work on doing this and practice it over and over with light weight-their will be discomfort at first, but you will eventually find your groove. You can also spend some time each day bending your wrists and fingers backwards and hold the stretch-do this at “odd times” ie, waiting in line at the restaurant, sitting in traffic, ie, you get the idea. Repetition will fix just about anything. Try this for 30 days and see how it works and let me know how it goes." Keith Wassung

23

Dan,

I have two questions for you today:

  1. When introducing OHS to a newbie to weight training, do you recommend holding off until they generate some sort of a strength base with a standard introductory program, or are they an exercise you throw in right from the start? Are there any flexibility issues that need to get sorted out first before you allow someone to do them?

  2. In the Pacifica Barbell program on your website you mentioned that a when not training for a competition you included a lot of “bodybuilding” exercises to complement the main program. On average, how many of these exercises were done per session and was there a typical set/rep range that was used? I’m assuming that they they were thrown in after all the O-lifts as well.

Cheers,

Ben

24

Dan,

I don’t have a question, I just wanted to thank you for your contributions. Your book From the Ground Up should be required reading for anyone that steps in a gym, IMO.

Re: the front squat/wrist flexibility issue. I’m a former competitive gymnast who always had bad wrists, and they only got worse through my gymnastics career. Since I started lifting I’m feeling the old injuries again, so it took me a while to be able to do front squats with much weight. What I found worked for me was to just do a few light sets of front squats as part of my warmup each time I went to the gym until it became comfortable. After a few weeks my wrist flexibility had improved dramatically, more than I had thought was possible for my wrists. I’m currently doing the same thing now for OH squats with my shoulders (I’ve got bad flexibility everywhere LOL).

Looking forward to the DVD!

25

[quote]Danny John wrote:
I would love to see people follow up on this point…it is quite a question, really…

Minotaur wrote:
Say Hey Coach,

What would you say the main variables are when training athletes vs. Average Janes and Joes?

Meaning, if I had identical twins, and one played a sport, and the other didn’t, would their training programs be vastly different in terms of what they do (exercises, sets, reps, whatnot)? I imagine the “intensity”/focus/motivation of the athlete would be stronger, and that would carryover into the weight room, but would you expect other differences?

Is it simply a case of “treating all people equally, regardless of race, creed, color, or training goals”? Thanks. [/quote]

Thanks Coach. Well, if no one else is up for it…
What I think I meant was, the average gym-crowd who goes to the “health club” to “get some exercise” may think themselves a different breed of animal than those who have to lift with the knowledge that they have a uniform to put on, and a game to win (or a kilt to put on, and something heavy to throw, whatever floats your boat).

However, the more I learn, and the more I open my eyes and broaden my horizons, I’m more apt to see people in the same light. As you quoted Maffetone (whom, I admit, I had to Google) ‘Everyone is an athlete.’ (An excellent mantra, if ever there was one.) Even if it’s the occasional golf game, tennis game, or playing tag with the kids, everyone deserves to be trained like an athlete.

A 42-year old homemaker carrying two paper bags full of groceries from the car to the front door can find some benefit from sandbag cleans. And so can a 17-year old field hockey player. A 30-year old accountant who golfs with the boss twice a month can benefit from a peaking phase of training. And so can a Highland competitor with a meet 9 weeks away.

After mulling it over for a few hours, I think a Human body is a Human body is a Human body, and they all want, and deserve, to perform at 100% (maybe 106% sometimes).

Second opinions?

26

Day one, workout one: overhead squats. Don’t wait until you get everything sorted out…it will NEVER happen!!!

The BB stuff was mostly a lot of fun. I am not sure I ever gave it a ton of thought…of course, we thought it was easy and delightful…like a lovely spring morning when the bluebirds are chirping and the bees are buzzing…then, we would start snatching and cleaning again.

[quote]bg100 wrote:
Dan,

I have two questions for you today:

  1. When introducing OHS to a newbie to weight training, do you recommend holding off until they generate some sort of a strength base with a standard introductory program, or are they an exercise you throw in right from the start? Are there any flexibility issues that need to get sorted out first before you allow someone to do them?

  2. In the Pacifica Barbell program on your website you mentioned that a when not training for a competition you included a lot of “bodybuilding” exercises to complement the main program. On average, how many of these exercises were done per session and was there a typical set/rep range that was used? I’m assuming that they they were thrown in after all the O-lifts as well.

Cheers,

Ben[/quote]

27

On the DVD, Kelly is coming over right now and we will “resketch” it out. I had planned to do some of the stuff, but I guess I have to add more…

[quote]OneEye wrote:
Dan,

I don’t have a question, I just wanted to thank you for your contributions. Your book From the Ground Up should be required reading for anyone that steps in a gym, IMO.

Re: the front squat/wrist flexibility issue. I’m a former competitive gymnast who always had bad wrists, and they only got worse through my gymnastics career. Since I started lifting I’m feeling the old injuries again, so it took me a while to be able to do front squats with much weight. What I found worked for me was to just do a few light sets of front squats as part of my warmup each time I went to the gym until it became comfortable. After a few weeks my wrist flexibility had improved dramatically, more than I had thought was possible for my wrists. I’m currently doing the same thing now for OH squats with my shoulders (I’ve got bad flexibility everywhere LOL).

Looking forward to the DVD![/quote]

28

I think that I think that I think the exact same thing!!!

[quote]Minotaur wrote:
Danny John wrote:
I would love to see people follow up on this point…it is quite a question, really…

Minotaur wrote:
Say Hey Coach,

What would you say the main variables are when training athletes vs. Average Janes and Joes?

Meaning, if I had identical twins, and one played a sport, and the other didn’t, would their training programs be vastly different in terms of what they do (exercises, sets, reps, whatnot)? I imagine the “intensity”/focus/motivation of the athlete would be stronger, and that would carryover into the weight room, but would you expect other differences?

Is it simply a case of “treating all people equally, regardless of race, creed, color, or training goals”? Thanks.

Thanks Coach. Well, if no one else is up for it…
What I think I meant was, the average gym-crowd who goes to the “health club” to “get some exercise” may think themselves a different breed of animal than those who have to lift with the knowledge that they have a uniform to put on, and a game to win (or a kilt to put on, and something heavy to throw, whatever floats your boat).

However, the more I learn, and the more I open my eyes and broaden my horizons, I’m more apt to see people in the same light. As you quoted Maffetone (whom, I admit, I had to Google) ‘Everyone is an athlete.’ (An excellent mantra, if ever there was one.) Even if it’s the occasional golf game, tennis game, or playing tag with the kids, everyone deserves to be trained like an athlete.

A 42-year old homemaker carrying two paper bags full of groceries from the car to the front door can find some benefit from sandbag cleans. And so can a 17-year old field hockey player. A 30-year old accountant who golfs with the boss twice a month can benefit from a peaking phase of training. And so can a Highland competitor with a meet 9 weeks away.

After mulling it over for a few hours, I think a Human body is a Human body is a Human body, and they all want, and deserve, to perform at 100% (maybe 106% sometimes).

Second opinions?[/quote]

29

[quote]Danny John wrote:
I think that I think that I think the exact same thing!!! [/quote]

…And Minotaur crawls into the proverbial corner to die happy now!! Thanks again. :smiley:

30

[quote]Danny John wrote:
Day one, workout one: overhead squats. Don’t wait until you get everything sorted out…it will NEVER happen!!!

[/quote]

Thanks Dan, I’m sure my wife (the newbie in question) will thank you for all the pain and suffering she is about to experience…

She saw me doing them the other day with about 55kg for 3x8 and I could tell I was getting a funny look, so when I break the news that I would like for her to try OHS I’m sure I will get an “Are you crazy?!!” response. Come to think of it the response will probably be a lot stronger than that but I guess I’d better get used to it when personal training somebody.

Cheers,

Ben

31

Thanks for the reply. I’ll just ice, suck it up, and, if need be, use straps or take time off the pulls.

[quote]Danny John wrote:
Well, wrists bring with them a lot of oddness. They are complex (with the hand et al) and don’t seem to like to be nice to O lifters.

I got nothing for you here, Ross. When stuff bugs me, I back off and play with some new toy, like Front Squats with chains or something…

Ross Hunt wrote:
Coach,

Speaking of accumulation injuries (at least I didn’t get them curling…):

I have recently acquired some wierd pain in my second-to-last finger that flared up when I did snatch pulls today. I think this may just be a consequence of all the snatch pulls that I’ve done over the past two weeks.

I also have wrist pain that is a limiting factor in my ability to do repetitions in the overhead squat. This probably has something to do with the fact that I’ve only been overhead squatting once a week for the past several weeks, and haven’t been going heavy (although I have been snatching more frequently). However, this wrist thing has always been rearing its ugly head, even when I was overhead squatting twice, snatch balancing once, and snatching twice a week.

Do you have any idea why these injuries like me so much, and I what I could to do to shoo them away?

[/quote]