RichRuff Training Exercise of the Week: Chin up

I'm probably boring you with this Exercise of the Week. Well, too bad. If I saw more people doing chin-ups or working on their chin-ups, I wouldn't need to include this exercise. I ranted about this a couple of weeks ago. Then it happened again. Before I rant again, let me say that the lat pulldown machine has a purpose. It's for those who can be classified as beginners. Beyond that group, I do not know who else should be using that machine.
The other day I overheard a guy talking about how much weight he uses on the lat pulldown machine. Being the non-confrontational guy that I am, I didn't have the guts to ask him how many chin-ups he could do. I do not want to hear how strong you are, unless you can prove to me you can do chin-ups or even one chin-up. I do not want to hear about your arm training if chin-ups are not part of your overall training program. I do not want to hear about how weak your grip is, if chin-ups are not part of your program. And I especially do not want to hear about how many lat pulldowns you can do if you claim to have been training for years. But what I do want to hear is someone say, "Hey Rich, I want to be able to a chin-up". I'd be more than happy to help. May be even for free!!
I was hoping that I wouldn't have to include a picture for this exercise of the week. But since I see this exercise being performed so infrequently, I figured I ought to.

"Come on Rich, 1 more to 100"

Curtain Call Crazy

Enough with the curtain calls Yankee fans. You're making a mockery out of something that used to have some sort of meaning. Take last night for instance. Johnny Damon hits a ball 315 feet in the 7th inning that barely makes it out of the ballpark. So what does he get for giving his team a two run lead? A curtain call. You've got to be kidding me. Did you forget how an inning earlier he mistimed his jump on a ball that he probably should have caught? Instead it wound up in the front row of the left field bleachers and allowed the Sox to tie the game up. It's not like it was Damon's third home run of the game or a milestone home run in his career. It was his 8th home run of the season (By the way, aren't Sox fans happy that management didn't sign him up for another four years?). But you're guilty of this all the time. I think Yankee Stadium has set a record this year for the number of curtain calls given over the course of a season. Why don't you just ask for a curtain call every time a Yankee hits the ball out of the infield? Or what about every time ARod catches a ball in foul territory? Maybe it's not even the Yankees fans who are asking for the curtain call. May be it's the players who just feel like they should give one. It wouldn't surprise me considering you have three of the largest egos in the game in ARod, Clemens and Damon.
Give it up Yankees fans and players. Because not only is it annoying, but you've taken away the significance of a tradition that used to mean something.

Congratulations Massachusetts....I Think.

In a study done by Trust for America's Health, Massachusetts was found to have the second lowest obesity rate , 19.8%. The state with the highest percentage of obesity was no surprise, Mississippi. But even though we can pat ourselves on the back for finishing second, there are some concerns. No state showed a decline in obesity rates from the previous year. As a nation, we are becoming fatter. Some people tend to laugh it off and say it's a personal choice. I know. I have friends who joke about their keg bellies and how many buffalo wings they can eat in one sitting. And the worst part is, these are friends who are in their 20's and 30's. They have a lot more living to do. I hope. This personal choice can lead to increased risk of diabetes, heart problems and other issues as a result of being overweight. As a trainer, I see numerous clients who have knee and hip issues. Most, not all, of these issues are a result of being overweight. A study done by Georgia Tech University showed that losing 10 pounds can reduces pressure on the knee by amazing 40 pounds.
So do not get all fat and happy, literally, Massachusetts. There is still some concern and work to be done.

Good Night New York

career just The Red Sox gave the Yankees and their obnoxious fans a bit of hope when they crawled within four games of the division lead. And there was a bit of panic in Red Sox Nation. Where are all those obnoxious, pinstripe wearing, Derek Jeter loving, Roger Clemens worshipping fans now? At home licking their wounds from a 16-0 pounding by the Detroit Tigers. Not only is Mike Mussina's career just about over, but so is the fantasy of the Yankees catching the Red Sox.
This goes out to Beckett, Schilling and Dice-K (I will not even try to spell his first or last name). Put the Yankees away the next three days. Stomp on their chests, dig their graves, buy them a one way ticket out of town. Do whatever you have to do....just so I can keep talking trash.

Tales from the Gym

I'm usually not one to bust on people, but in this industry there is a lot of it. If I do not believe in other trainer's concepts, most likely I'm going to get ripped for it. I see a lot things done in the gym by other trainers and I just keep my mouth shut. But sometimes I have to vent. And I have to vent when someone else tells me what I should be doing and what works.
I went to the gym this morning for a little upper body workout. My goal was to be in and out of the gym in one hour, give or take 10-15 minutes. I had my routine already made up. I knew what I was going to do. I knew how hard I was going to train. So after loosening up my upper body and getting it ready for my routine here's what I did:
A)Bench Press: warm-up for of 5,3,3,2, 1 reps , then 3 sets of 3 reps with about 3min. of rest between sets.
B1)Close Grip Low Row: 4 sets of 8 reps, 2 min rest
B2)DB Incline Press: 3 sets of 10 reps, 2min rest
C1)Standing Plate Raise: 2 sets of 12 reps, 1 min rest
C2)Seated DB Cuban Press: 2 sets of 12 reps, 1 min rest
D)Hanging Leg Raise: 3 sets of 5 reps, 2 min rest
So that's it. Your average upper body workout. Got some chest, back, shoulders, external rotation and abdominal work in. 17 sets in about 65 minutes, including warm up. Yeah, I know. Who cares? Where am I going with this. Well, this is about the guy who was yapping in my ear the whole time about his biceps routine. I showed up, he was already there. I left, he was still there. I saw him do preacher curls, standing Db curls, seated DB curls, seated cable curls, some funky version of a concentration curl and I think that's it. Five bicep exercises in the 65 minutes I had been there. And who knows what he was doing before and after I was there. If I had to guess it might be... BICEPS!!! And it wasn't just the insane training that I saw. He was telling me about his forearm training and telling me what muscles I was working, all the while wearing his lifting belt that was at least 30 years old!! A lifting belt for biceps!!! And if he wasn't telling me, he was telling someone else. And these people buy his crap, because he looks like he's in pretty good shape. And you know what else? He's about 60 years old, at least!!!
W here am I going with this? I really don't know. May be it's about the efficiency of your training routine. May be it's about not believing every word that's coming out of the local gym rat's mouth. And if I"m offending any one out there who follows the same type of routine, I'm not sorry. Unless, your goal is to be the next Mr. or Mrs. Revere Beach, there is no need for this type of absurd training. It's not as much about the quantity of your training as it is the quality. Get to the gym with your workout already planned. Choose 1-3 compound lifts and 1-2 accessory lifts and throw in some core work. Limit the chit chatting. Train with some sort of intensity and get out.

RichRuff Training Exercise of the Week: Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch

The previous exercises of the week have been upper, lower or core strength training exercises. What I've failed to do, is provide some stretching exercises. Stretching is the one aspect of training that is ignored by most people. But it is just as important as any other aspect of training. You can not expect to stay injury free over the long term if some form of stretching is not done.
The kneeling hip flexor stretch addresses what are most likely the tightest group of muscles in the body, the hip flexors. A large part of the population works at a desk or commutes to and from work each day. What happens when you're seated at a desk or cramped up in a car on the Expressway for 2 hours each day? You're hip flexors are in a shortened position for an extended period of time and become increasingly tight. If your hip flexors become increasingly tight, a whole lot of problems can occur. Your pelvis gets pulled into an excessive anterior tilt and problems will occur up and down the entire body including poor posture and risk of straining your hamstrings. Tight hip flexors will also have an affect on performance. They will cause you to fall forward when squatting or prevent you from getting full extension at the hip when sprinting.
Below is a picture of the kneeling hip flexor stretch. It can be performed many ways, but this is the most basic.

Think about pressing that front knee as far forward as possible, allowing your hips to drop down and forward. Hold for 10-15 seconds in the bottom position, come back and repeat 2-3 times.
This is also one of the few static stretches I'll have a client perform before a lower body workout. By stretching out the hip flexors, you are almost turning these muscles off. If these muscles are turned off, you'll find you'll be able to get deeper and prevent yourself from falling forward when performing a squat.
Remember, stretching isn't just something done by those cute girls in yoga class. It's essential to keeping you injury free and performing up to your abilities.

Get a Grip

How many times have you ended a set of chin-ups prematurely because you could no longer hold on to the bar? You feel like you're hanging on for dear life with your fingertips. Or may be the same thing has happened when doing deadlifts. Your grip becomes the limiting factor. Yet most training programs ignore the importance of grip strength and endurance. Not only will it help with lifts such as chin-ups and deadlifts, it will help with sport performance and with everyday activities. And for you weak college freshman, it will help you lug that keg up three flights of stairs. Grip strength can be trained in a number of ways. Here are some options:
1) Do not use straps. They only serve as a crutch for your weak grip.
2)Fatten up the bar. Some gyms may have fat bars. If not, you can fatten up the grip yourself by using a towel or a great training implement called Lynx Grips.
3)Work on isometric grip strength at the end of your workout out. Some suggestions are: bar hangs, weighted bar holds, hex dumbbell holds and plate pinches. Hold for as long as you can, rest for two minutes, then perform another set.
You're only as strong as your weakest link, or in this case your weak grip.

RichRuff Training Exercise of the Week: Dumbbell External Rotation

Suffering from shoulder impingement? Shoulders are fairly healthy and you want to keep them injury free? Want to drive up the poundage of your bench press? This week's exercise, the dumbbell external rotation, can help with all those problems.
Most training programs have a ton of internal rotation work (bench presses, pull-ups, pulldowns) and very little external rotation work. The pecs and lats, which work as internal rotators, tend to dominate the small external rotators of your shoulders. And what happens when programs are not some what balanced? Injury occurs or performance suffers. So if you're not already including some external rotation work in your program, do it now.
There are a couple of different versions, but I think this version is a great one. One, it only requires a dumbbell. And two, it provides a great stretch of the posterior joint capsule when the dumbbell is in the down position. To perform:
1)Take a seat on the end of a bench, with your foot up on the bench so that the knee is bent.
2)Press the elbow of working arm directly into the knee that is up. This is your fulcrum.
3)Rotate forearm down towards the bench.
4)After a slight pause in the bottom position, rotate your forearm back up so that it's
perpendicular to the floor.
A couple of key points. One, try to keep the knee fixed the entire time by pressing the elbow and knee right into one another. Two, keep your chest up as much as possible. Three, try to keep your wrist straight so that tension is kept on the external rotators.
GET EXTERNALLY ROTATING!!!NOW!!!

Tiger Power

Remember when golfers were afraid to lift weights because they thought it would make them all big and bulky and they would no longer be flexible. They thought their swing would go to hell and they'd be posting scores in the 100's (I'll take a 100 any day). Well, has anyone seen Tiger Woods physique lately. I've heard he works out regularly, but not until I saw him at the British Open a couple of months back did I realize how hard he must be working in the weight room. Then I saw him this past week at the PGA Championship. Same thing. Here's a guy who's the best golfer in the world, may be of all time. It sure doesn't look like lifting weights has hindered his game. In fact, he has put on 30lbs from the time he turned pro and is stronger than he's even been.
I remember when Annika Sorenstam was dominating the LPGA a few years back. There were stories about her strength routines that would make most guys look silly. This added strength didn't seem to bother her game.
Now do you want to take your game to the next level? Do you want to stay injury free over the course of a season? Do you want to be able to finish a round without feeling completely exhausted? It's not just about going to the driving range and hitting a bucket of balls. It's also about getting into the gym, getting on a well designed program and improving your strength and flexibility levels. Golf isn't just an outdoor game.

Apologies

I was on a roll. I had the RichRuff Exercise of the Week going for four or five straight weeks and last week I let it all fall apart. I got lazy. It's named the exercise of the week for a reason. It's supposed to be updated every week. And I let it slip (just like the 14.5 game lead the Red Sox had over the Yankees), so I'm sorry. I'll get it back up this week for my faithful readers, if there are any. Sometimes I feel like I'm writing to myself, but that's alright. I enjoy posting. May be one day this blog will be a "hot" read. Whether it is or not, I plan on being around for a long time. I love training. I love helping others. I love reading about training. And one day when I get to the top, it's going to be because of all of you who are reading this and who supported me along the way.

Overweight and out of work

Why do most people work out? For most people it's aesthetic purposes. They want to look good or lose weight, which in turn makes them feel good. For others it's health purposes such as: preventing injury, slowing down osteoporosis or strengthening weak joints or muscles. There may be another good reason to make exercise part of your lifestyle, finding a job. Yesterday's Boston Globe magazine told about the struggles of overweight job seekers and how they were being passed over for thinner job seekers. Also, the article stated that a thin employee is likely to have a salary that is one to six percent higher than an overweight employee. So, it's not just your job related skills an employer is looking at when you are brought an for an intereview. They're also looking at your waistline.

RichRuff Training Exercise of the Week: Swiss Ball Hamstring Curl

What function do the hamstrings perform? Most people would say knee flexion, and they would be correct. But they also perform one other function that many trainees ignore, hip extension. In fact their role as hip extensors may be more important than knee flexors. A lot of training programs, especially those for new trainees, ignore the hip extension function of the hamstrings. The hamstring exercises are usually made up of every variation of the leg curl: lying, seated, kneeling, toes in, toes out, etc.. But you are doing yourself a disservice if you're not including some form of hip extension in your workout.
One exercise that I've used for years is the Swiss Ball Hamstring Curl. I like this exercise for a couple of reasons. One, the only equipment required is a Swiss Ball, so it can be done anywhere. Two, it trains both functions of the hamstrings, hip extension and knee flexion at once.

Lie flat on your back with your arms out to the side (t-shape) and palms facing up. Place both feet up on Swiss Ball with your legs straight. Press your hips up towards the ceiling (hip extension), creating a straight line. From this position, flex your knees (knee flexion) bringing the ball in towards your glutes. After a slight pause, roll the ball out (keeping hips up) and then repeat.