Part 1 outlined the benefits of using a chest-width grip the bench press. Namely, the potential for higher bar speeds thanks to the biomechanical advantage of strong muscles coordinating long levers. Chest passes, jabs, blocking and shoving opponents are among the sports skills that rely on a horizontal pushing motion similar to the bench press. […]
Bench Press for Speed Part 2 Read More »
Optical timing gates are precise, accurate instruments. The design and manufacture of the technology is wonderful. They are simple, portable and reliable. They display results immediately. Researchers use them. Coaches use them. Teams, leagues and associations use them. But not everyone is using them as they should, and therein lies the problem with optical timing
The Problem With Optical Timing Gates Read More »
What is the best grip width for the bench press? The quick answer is chest-width. The long answer is it depends on your goals and anatomy… but will still probably be close to chest-width. Let’s look at why. The bench press is a basic exercise that has a place in most strength & conditioning programmes.
Bench Press for Speed Part 1 Read More »
If you answered to increase strength, that is a very good reason. Resistance training is the most effective way to increase strength. Strength improves performance1 and decreases injury risk.2 If you answered to increase lean muscle mass, that is also a good reason. Muscle mass is a pre-requisite for increasing strength in trained individuals. Muscle
Why Do You Even Lift, Bro? Read More »
Nik Krygios recently revealed that he had contemplated suicide in 2019. Naomi Osaka has taken extended breaks from competition citing her mental health. Mardy Fish twice withdrew from the US Open due to anxiety attacks. Mihaela Buzarnescu and Serena Williams have also talked about suffering from depression. The list goes on… These tennis stars are
Overtraining and Mental Health in Tennis Read More »
One of my earliest mentors passed away recently. Joe Glenn was a professor in the Kinesiology Faculty at the University of New Brunswick. He also served as the Athletic Therapist for the entire varsity sports system with particular care given to the (9-time national champions) men’s hockey team.1 I took all his classes and loved
In Memory of Joe Glenn: The Importance of Functional Anatomy Read More »
I read an article1 in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research today that shocked me. The first surprise was with the abstract, which implies play in the lower soccer league was faster, so checked the publication date. It was released last month, so it cannot be satire for April Fools’ Day. The full text
Is This an April Fools’ Joke? Read More »
The athletic component of agility is, both figuratively and literally, multi-dimensional. The uneducated coach spreads out a bunch of cones, hurdles or ladders and gets their players to move around/through/between/over them in some pattern that they saw on a video, or used to do when they were players. It often looks cool, and can be
Redirection vs. Change of Direction Read More »
Considering the disparity in rankings, roster value1, international experience, and historical success, Belgium should have dominated Canada. Instead they considered themselves lucky to come out one point victors after being outplayed in nearly every statistical category. They then lost 2-0 to Morocco and failed to make it out of the group stage. Both Germany and Spain
FIFA 2022 Upsets, or Why European Teams Underperform Against Non-UEFA Nations Read More »
In competition players don’t run 10 metres straight ahead, make a 90 degree cut and run exactly 5 metres before reversing direction back to the starting point. Instead, they must react to the actions and positions of opponents, teammates, and the ball. Consequently, preplanned agility training has received a bit of a bad wrap lately.
