For the purpose of this blog I’d like to highlight what I would consider a missing link within most people’s training plans, that being accessory work. Firstly, let’s define what accessory work actually is. To me it is supplemental work which aims to increase the strength of the supportive structures within the body. These supportive structures help to stabilise joints and improve strength and endurance when performing movements with the larger muscle groups.
Category: Open Access
Technique takes priority:
In order to fully grasp your potential within the weight room, you need to be relentless with your technique. Be critical of where you could be better and address the flaws within your program. Quite often people see programming as a chance to create an improved version of themselves with their strength or body image, but fail to use the gym as a way to improve the function or the body and minimise injury risk.
Empowered through data:
If we measure it, we can change it. It we monitor it, we can ensure we achieve it. Within this blog I am going to highlight meaningful measures which will keep you away from the reflection in the mirror, and persevering towards your goals with certainty.
Lockdown 2.0
In the blink of an eye, our freedom we have grown extremely comfortable with here in Western Australia was taken away at 6pm Sunday night. This hard 5 day lockdown was put into place in response to a community transmission recorded the day before, through a hotel quarantine incident. As a result, most businesses including gyms and fitness centres were instructed to close immediately. In light of this, myself, colleagues and fellow industry professionals have all been working from home as of Monday. I feel as though we are all a lot better prepared for this one, as most of the trainers around Perth have online offers, people have gym equipment at home and most importantly, this is only meant to last for 5 days. With this being said, I have seen some awesome but also some not so awesome approaches to training from home. I’d like to take this time to offer some practical advice in response to the gym from home situation and give you some frame work to structure the rest of your week around.
Injury series – lower back:
Recently I published a blog looking deep into the causes and potential treatment approaches for the shoulder. I was pleased with the response from that posting, and am here to now take a look at another problem area; the lower back.
Injury series – shoulders:
Within the blog post I am going to talk you through how I approach shoulder injuries and the best practice I have found to restore health and function of the shoulder joint. This is a step by step process which always begins with a thorough Initial Consultation.
Busting myths:
For the purpose of this blog post, I am going to drop a bit of heat on some myths and fiction surrounding training. There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding exercise, some are good and some are not so good; so without further adduce, I shall get right into a few of the biggest misconceptions I hear surrounding training.
Improving critical positions:
In order to make long term progress with our strength goals, we need to do the basics better and better over time. Simply lifting more weight on the bar is not going to cut it, especially if there are underlying factors that are constantly holding you back. Mobility and pain are 2 key areas that need constant reassessment and without doing this, you are setting yourself up for failure. Whether it be through video analysis or through a watchful coaching eye, you need to care about how you lift as eagerly as how much you lift.
Concurrent training:
A topic that has always been of interest to me is concurrent training. By definition, concurrent training is a training cycle where by both strength as well as endurance exercise is performed within the same training cycle. This is inevitable within both individual as well as team sports, but also popular with the everyday punter who knows it is important to be both fit as well as strong. The question is though, as an athlete or as a coach, how do you get the most out of your training cycle and be the most prepared for your sport?