Your Meathead Training Tip of the Day: Slow Tempo Strength Training
Slow tempo strength training involves performing a compound lift (squat, pushup, row, etc.) at a 202 tempo. This means you'll take two seconds to execute the eccentric portion of the movement, and then two seconds on the concentric portion of the lift, too. There will also be no pause at the top or bottom.
So, for a pushup, you'd take two seconds to go down, and then immediately transition into the concentric and take two seconds to go back up. See the video on the right to see what I mean (or, you can view it HERE).
What does it do
- Increases the cross-sectional area (hypertrophy) of the slow twitch fibers.
- Improves oxygen utilization of the working muscles (both fast twitch and slow twitch).
- Improves static strength (think grappling, wrestling, etc.).
How to do it
- Each rep should be roughly 4 seconds in duration, with no pause at the top or bottom of the movement. Teaching someone to go up slowly can be very difficult (especially as they begin to fatigue), so be mindful of this.
- Perform for 40-60 seconds (so about 10-15 repetitions) and your rest period should match the duration of the working set.
- Perform for 3-5 sets, which constitutes a series. Perform 1-3 series per workout, with 5-8 minutes of active rest between series.
- Constant breathing throughout.
When to do it
- At the beginning of a training plan (or at the start of the off-season after you've recovered appropriately).
- During a "mini block" in a training plan in order to maintain the qualities you worked so hard to achieve during the first (larger) block of training.
Slow twitch fiber hypertrophy can be a very controversial topic among strength coaches. After all, why would you want to hypertrophy the slow twitch fibers?!
Well, you can utilize oxygen better for one thing, as the slow twitch fibers have the highest capacity for aerobic energy production. When we oxidize lactate - a byproduct of our glycolytic energy metabolism - roughly 80% of that lactate is metabolized in the slow twitch fibers. The larger our slow twitch fibers are, the more lactate we can oxidize (thus allowing us to generate more ATP to improve aerobic/anaerobic endurance).
And, no, your athletes won't lose explosive power and strength if you include slow tempo strength training. As long as you adjust the volume/intensity appropriately, and continue to include the bread and butter strength/power lifts, you have no need to fear them losing power and speed.
-Steve
40 Bench Press + 40 Push-up Variations
I wanted to get this list out and circulating before the next weekly celebration of National Bench Press Monday (please re-read the that one more time, but this time with a thick layer of sarcasm).
Anyway, I’ve actually got two lists today, the first one is a comprehensive list of bench press variations from Siff’s Supertraining. But, since we don’t do a heck of a lot of “bench pressing” with our SAPT athletes, I thought it made sense to come up with a complimentary list of Push-up variations like we use at SAPT. Enjoy.
40 Bench Press Variations to Spice Up Your Mondays:
- Snatch grip bench press (BB)
- Narrow grip bench press
- Jerk grip bench press
- Hands touching bench press
- Bench Press, starting at rest from chest (different grip spacings)
- Bench Press, with bounce at bottom, very lightly touching chest
- Bench Press, slow down, fast up
- Slow down, slow up Bench Press
- Fast down, fast up Bench Press
- Bench Press to lower part of chest
- Bench Press to mid chest
- Bench Press to clavicles
- Reverse grip Bench Press
- Thumbless grip Bench Press
- Bench Press, elbows close to body, arms rotated laterally (all variations)
- Bench Press, elbows rotated away from body, arms rotated medially (all variations)
- Bench Press, limited range between set points on power rack
- Bench Press, isometric, pressing against bar fixed at selected point
- Bench Press, driving up to stops on power rack, then pressing isometrically
- Bench Press, forced reps wit partner helping at sticking point
- Eccentric only Bench Press (raised by partner)
- Bench Press, continuous reps without rest at top or bottom
- Bench Press, replacing bar on rack between each repetition
- Concentric only Bench Press (lowered by partner)
- Bench Press, feet on bench (all variations)
- Bench Press, from different starting points off of boards
- Bench Press, load release at selected point
- Bench Press, plyometric thrust at given point against light load
- Conventional machine Bench Press (all variations)
- Bench Press, using variable resistance machine
- Bench Press, holding at different stages on way up or down or both
- Dumbbell Bench Press (above variations)
- DB Bench Press, rotating DB’s on the way up and down
- Seated Chest Press machine (all variations)
- Decline Bench Press (all variations)
- Incline Bench Press (all variations)
- Bench Press with firm sponge (foam) on chest
- Bench Press with attached chains or bands
- Oscillating Bench Press, elbows slightly bent
- Bench Press held at given level, partner pushes down with oscillating thrusts
From this list you can actually extract at least 160 total pressing variations. I’m not suggesting these are all “good” variations. But they are all variations!
40 Push-up Variations to Spice Up Your Entire Week:
- Snatch grip Push-up (very wide hand placement)
- Narrow grip Push-up
- Jerk grip Push-up
- Hands touching Push-up
- Push-up, starting at rest from floor (different grip spacings)
- Push-up, with bounce off back & triceps at end of motion
- Push-up, slow down, fast up
- Slow down, slow up Push-up
- Fast down, fast up Push-up
- Push-up to very low part of chest (hands placed low)
- Push-up to mid chest
- Push-up to clavicles
- Push-up to sandbag or low box walkover
- Push-up with one hand on medicine ball
- Push-up, elbows close to body, arms rotated laterally (all variations)
- Push-up, elbows rotated away from body, arms rotated medially (all variations)
- Push-up with both hands on medicine ball
- Push-up, isometric, holding position at selected point
- Push-up, driving up to stop from partner, then pressing isometrically
- Push-up, forced reps wit partner helping at sticking point
- Eccentric only Push-up (SAPT uses these all the time)
- Push-up, continuous reps without rest at top or bottom (Steve just wrote a post about this)
- Push-up, resting briefly between each repetition (most likely with weight on back)
- Concentric only Push-up (start from laying on floor)
- Push-up, feet on bench (all variations)
- Push-up, from different starting points off of boards or sandbags
- Push-up with crawl variation between clusters of repetitions
- Push-up, plyometric thrust (clap variations, usually)
- Depletion Push-up, 3 sets max push-ups each followed by :90 rest
- Push-up, using chains laid over back
- Push-up, holding at different stages on way up or down or both
- Single arm Push-up (above variations)
- DB Bench Press, rotating DB’s on the way up and down
- Staggered hand position Push-up
- Hands elevated Push-up (all variations & can be weighted)
- Depth drop Push-up
- Push-up, plyometric effort to land on low sandbag or box
- Push-up with attached bands
- Oscillating Push-up, elbows slightly bent
- Push-up held at given level, partner pushes down with oscillating thrust
- Sarah
Sarah
Q & A: Sugar and Recovery
Q. Okay steve got a good one for you here. Im watching sunday night baseball and they are talking about how Ryan Howard dropped weight and is watching his sugar intake claiming it helps him recover from games faster. Is there any truth to this or is announcer bubkis?
A. The CliffsNotes answer to this question is "Yes, it should help him recover faster." However, the extent to which it will help him depends on many factors.
What does the REST of his recovery protocol look like??? Is he sleeping enough, training properly, keeping other (negative) stress factors at bay, and his sympathetic nervous system in check? (You'll see sympathetic overtraining in athletes who perform excessive amounts of strength training and compete in explosive power/anerobic dominant exercises - such as playing baseball - without giving their bodies a chance to recover).
What type of sugar did Howard cut out (ex. processed sugars, or sugars found in whole foods ex. fruits)?
What was his body composition before he began cutting out sugar from his diet? Ex. did he have a significant amount of fat mass on him, or was he already relatively lean?
I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that (hopefully) Ryan Howard cut out processed sugar from his diet. This alone will help anyone feel and perform better. Also, if he cut out processed sugar, I'm going to guess that he is now replacing that refined sugar with real, whole foods. So - instead of his daily sugar intake coming from cookies, bagels, and muffins - most of the sugar/starches/carbohydrates he intakes is now (hopefully) coming from whole foods like vegetables, berries, oats, legumes, potatoes, etc.
This shift in nutritional intake alone will help him recover by sending high-quality nutrients into his bloodstream to help repair damaged muscle tissue, restore cellular enzymes and substrates (essential to his performance as an athlete), rejuvenate the nervous system, and assist in a HOST of other favorable changes conducive to recovery.
If Howard did need to lose some weight, then this will undoubtedly improve his insulin sensitivity. Basically this means that his body will be able to shuttle glucose from the bloodstream into cells (primarily muscle and liver) more efficiently and effectively. This will be stored as glycogen, which a critical energy source for anerobic activities (ex. baseball).
The bottom line is ANYONE will benefit from replacing intake of refined/processed sugars (read: garbage) with foods of higher nutrient density. Whether you're an athlete or not, this will help you feel better, think more clearly, and perform better - whether you're a professional baseball player or a corporate CEO.
-Steve
The time to prepare is now…and a quick reminder…
Did you make the team you were hoping for? Was your season marred with injury? Were you dissatisfied with your performance? Did you feel over matched? Spring sport athletes, the time to prepare for next season begins now!!! With easily customizable training packages of 3-month, 6-month, and 9-months, SAPT training programs will provide you the framework and guidance to help you safely, and efficiently, achieve your goals! And here’s how we plan to do it:
Phase 1: Allow the body to recover from a long, arduous spring season. Implementing various soft tissue techniques, activation, mobility and flexibility drills will be imperative at this time to begin reducing mechanical asymmetries that develop from competing in asymmetrical (one-side dominant) sports.
Phase 2: Begin to impose a more aggressive training stimulus, and acquire increased volume on the body to improve work capacities and allow for growth and development to occur.
Phase 3: Impose a more concentrated block of training aimed at improving the athletes maximal strength and power output. The result being, a serious force to be reckoned with.
Phase 4: Peak the athlete appropriately as they head into next year’s spring tryouts as we wean training intensities, and allow for the acquisition of sport specific skill to become the primary focus during this time.
A summer filled with fun and self-improvement begins by clicking here…
Fellas…this Sunday is Mother’s Day…don’t screw it up…Chris
Tap into the Animal Kingdom with Crawl Variations
Below is a video I recently put together in which I demo various crawl variations we use at SAPT. We originally began using them with the MMA fighters and wrestlers we train, but we quickly realized that quite a few of the variations are useful for other sports/populations, as well. Check out the video , and then I'll explain a few things.
You can see the video on the right, or view it here.
Why I like Crawls
- You can do them almost ANYWHERE. This alone makes them an extremely versatile training tool. No gym membership or fancy equipment required.
- They increase strength, endurance, core control, and overall body awareness (qualities that seem to be disappearing at an alarming rate among people).
- Crawls are a fantastic way to get in some GPP (general physical preparedness), either on your off days or at the end of a training session. They are low impact and relatively easy to recover from.
- For MMA fighters and wrestlers, crawls are awesome for learning a few of the ground movements in sport.
- For overhead athletes, the crawls (particularly the side crawl, bear, and tiger) create a fantastic way to train their upper body musculature and promote shoulder health, even in-season.
- They're fun. 'Nuff said. I mean, how cool is it that you have an excuse to pretend you're a monkey??
How to Do Them
- Perform each variation for 20-40 yards. You can pick just a couple crawls, and perform multiple sets with 2-4 variations. Or, you can perform 1-2 sets of all of the different types of crawls.
- One of the beauties of these is they're so versatile in terms of when you perform them. You can do them at the end of a training session, on off days, as part of a circuit, or (if you're in pretty good shape) include them in your warm-up.
- As for the technical components, if you follow the instructions in the video you'll be good for the most part.
For me personally, I've recently loved them for getting in some low-intensity aerobic training on off days. I'll throw them as part of a circuit (again, low-intensity) with some other exercises that are around 30% and below my 1-rep max. The crawls - along with a few other drills - help me work in the 130-150bpm heart rate range. I'll discuss this in further detail in a future post, but this helps to stimulate what we strength coach geeks call "eccentric cardiac hypertrophy," which is basically increasing the size of the left ventricle of the heart. For now, just trust this is a good thing.
Now go get your animal crawl on...
Steve
Iso-Dynamic Squat
Check out the video to the right (or here) to see an unsual way to overcome a sticking point in your squat: the ISO-DYNAMIC Squat. Set up the pins at your trouble spot and do several sets of 3-6 repetitions with :02-:06 holds. Be sure to attempt to fully exhaust yourself driving into the pins.
I'm in the middle of 5x2 back squat right now. - Sarah
