Chapter 16: Exercise Technique for Alternative Modes and Nontraditional Implement Training

Core Stability and Balance Training Methods

•Anatomical focus -Anatomical core: The axial skeleton and all of the soft tissues with proximal attachments that originate on the axial skeleton, attach to the vertebral column -It is suggested that increasing an athlete's core stability will result in a better foundation for force production in the upper and lower extremities, builds strength within •Isolation exercises -Typically involve dynamic or isometric muscle actions designed to isolate specific core musculature without the contribution of the lower and upper extremities -Planks, bridges are typical examples These are good, help create stability, but not activating core as much as with traditional exercises using barbells or dumbbells, progressing, these can be taken out if short on time, squats or Olympic lifts are more important for the core

Core Stability and Balance Training Methods: Machines Versus Free Weight Exercises

•Machines offer greater stability and may result in a better ability to target specific muscle groups, if they can't do body weight exercises, machines have a place for them •Free weights cause greater activation of stabilizer muscles and offer the ideal combination of specificity and instability, co-activation, balance •Pros/Cons of both?

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods: Farmer's Walk(Waiter's Carry, Bottoms Up Carry, Combination Carries)

•Athlete holds a load in each hand while walking forward •Offers a unique activation pattern for the core and may help to increase grip strength, back endurance, and total body anaerobic endurance -Helps with core stability, strength, Can do one-sided for the other side to be stabilizing, or other variations •Should be used only with athletes possessing high levels of strength •Videos -Barbell farmer carries, involves wrist stabilization too to balance the barbells in place -Waiter carry, should be able to do overhead squats, shoulder presses, and front squats before they try these, may be dangerous if otherwise

Variable Resistance Training Methods: Variable Resistance

•Attempts to alter resistance so the muscle maximizes force throughout the full ROM •Usually involves the use of chains or resistance bands, they change the amount of resistance through the ROM -For bands, need same tension in both, newer ones vs. ripped, ones, don't want it to drastic or can be dangerous, Chains can be very expensive, almost $2 a pound, typically get chains 80 pounds or more for high strength athletes -Squatting with chains, they deload at the bottom and load back up at the top when the chains lift off of the floor, this uses more stability work compared to Bands, which have lots of tension, don't want them to slack, become harder during up movement, more tension

Bodyweight Training Methods

•Benefits of bodyweight training -Specific to each individual's anthropometrics -Often includes close chain-based exercises -Strengthens several muscle groups at once -Develops relative strength -Improves body control -Is a low-cost training alternative -Cons? These are good if just starting to workout, helps you learn to control your body, Bodyweight with gravity makes a workout difficult, this may be a challenge, it is not easy, especially if at the end of a workout, most people wouldn't be able to do much, especially if overweight and sedentary

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods: Kettlebell Training

•Can have a positive impact on cardiovascular fitness, though not as much as traditional aerobic exercise •Can offer strength gains, but typically much lower than those seen with traditional resistance training, bottoms up carry or normal carry, once again, many variations, We should also consider the size of our client's hands and the handle size of the kettlebell they will be using •Figure 16.5 and 16.6(next slide), look at images in notes -Cast iron class kettlebells -Competition kettlebells

Variable Resistance Training Methods: Chain-supplemented Exercises

•Determining resistance with chains -Determined by the structure, density, length, and diameter of the chain used -Must determine the absolute chain resistance at the top and bottom of the movement, summate, and then average -Should be used only with experienced athletes who have stable exercise technique, usually they do lower reps for strength building, may have problems with having too much plate weight or too much chain weight, trouble getting the weight and resistance you want -Table on top of page 414 described how to determine load on bar based on chain weight •Applying chains to free weight exercises -Chains can be allowed to touch the floor from a fully extended position or hung from a lighter chain, This allows for the chain to touch the floor only at the lowest portion of the lift -In turn, this can help to increase neuromuscular activation or cause a more rapid stretch-shortening cycle

Variable Resistance Training Methods: Resistance Band Exercises

•Determining resistance with resistance bands -Based on Hooke's Law(tension = stiffness X deformation), we can't really measure the resistance we're getting from the tension of the bands in the weight room, need to do outside calculations -Must be aware that two supposedly equal resistance bands may have 3.2% to 5.2% difference, which could lead to an 8% to 19% difference in mean tension between the bands -Highest load experienced at the top position, difficult at different points than with chains, but same force and mechanics behind them, these alternate methods are good for a change of pace, different stimulus or tool to use for our muscles

General Guidlines

•Ensure proper body alignment via selection of a stable body position, we still use the same guidelines, whether barbells, kettle bells, tires, bands, chains, etc. •If the exercise is a free-standing ground-based exercise, the athlete's feet should be placed slightly wider than shoulder-width and remain flat on the ground •Use the appropriate grip for the exercise based on the type of exercise performed •Athletes should exhale during the concentric portion of the exercise and inhale during the eccentric phase •With heavy loads(80% of maximal voluntary contraction or greater) or with lighter loads performed to failure, the Valsalva maneuver may be a useful technique for maintaining spinal stability

Core Stability and Balance Training Methods: Instability Devices

•Exercises performed on unstable surfaces of devices, whose usage stems from use in physiotherapy settings, such as stability balls, bosu balls(shouldn't stand on black, flat part, not what it is meant for), dyno discs •May increase core muscle activation, but can lower force output of an exercise by 30% or more, these are for more activation and core stability, not for a high force production •May be better in the rehab setting than in the performance setting -Standing on one leg can do the same as these methods, more glute, core activation, etc. but no need for special equipment

Key Point: Core Stability and Balance Training Methods

•Ground-based free weight activities appear to offer similar or, in most cases, greater activation of the core musculature when compared to traditional isolation exercises designed to engage the core

Key Point: Instability Devices

•Ground-based free weight exercises(e.g., squats, deadlifts, Olympic lifts) involve a degree of instability that allows for simultaneous development of all links of the kinetic chain, offering a much better training stimulus for the development of core stability and the enhancement of athletic performance than do instability device-based exercises -It's just another tool in the toolbox, we need to learn to manipulate exercises, there may also be cheaper alternatives for similar stimuli

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods: Log Lifting

•Logs are typically designed to have weight added to their end while offering a midrange grip support to accommodate a pronated grip position •Very little research has explored the effectiveness of or the best way to use this type of loading A similar method is using kegs, half or full barrels, these are new ways to train, different stimuli you've never had before

Variable Resistance Training Methods: Accommodating Resistance

•May also be called semi-isokinetic resistance, it stays the same speed no matter how hard you push it(changes resistance to keep same speed throughout the exercise), no matter the force being applied, these machines are very expensive, not how our muscles accelerate in the real-world, more for a rehab setting, almost useless compared to traditional resistance methods, but if never done before, you will be sore the next day, because it is something we are not used to •Allows for the speed of movement or the isokinetic resistance to be controlled throughout the full ROM •May not provide adequate training stimulus when compared to traditional resistance methods •Examples -Image of machine in notes -Adaptive resistance exercising, AirX, it stores the data on it, lots of information it can get, usually only do a set of 8, the eccentric portion is very hard, lots of time under tension, it is pushing back and you have to try and stop it and give as much force as you can as it is returning, so much harder than a normal eccentric portion of a lift, they are very expensive, upwards of $25,000 per machine, not very common, Only one place in Wisconsin has it, the entire facility is based around them

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods: Kettlebell Training - Selecting Kettlebells

•Must choose either fixed- or adjustable-load kettlebells -Fixed load requires multiple kettlebells across a range of loads to provide training variety •Must also consider the handle of the kettlebell, as it is the major interface between the athlete and the kettlebell -Diameter of the handle -Handle surface

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods: Tire Flipping

•Must select appropriate tire for an athlete based on body dimensions •Can use sumo, backlift, and shoulders-against-the-tire technique for completing the lift •Common technical flaws and corrections -Flaw: Placing the feet to close to the tire when initiating the movement, When this occurs, athletes often have to round their back and position their knees close to their chest in order to initiate the movement -Correction: Have the athlete move the feet away from the tire and instruct him or her to raise the chest while contracting the musculature of the lower back, it should be all in one motion at the same time, not choppy, It should not just be upper body, it is a total body workout •Common technical flaws and corrections -Flaw: Hips rise faster than the shoulders during the initial pushing motion, This flaw is very similar to what can be seen during traditional deadlifting with incorrect technique -Correction: Instruct athletes to keep their hips low and drive the tire forward rather than lifting it, Additionally, coaches should encourage the athlete to keep the hips slightly below the shoulders during this movement •Common technical flaws and corrections -Flaw: A lifting motion is used instead of a pushing motion, With heavier tires, this motion reduces the lifting speed as the tire will lose momentum, forcing the athlete to "muscle" the tire over, This is extremely dangerous and should be corrected immediately -Correction: Drive the tire forward and move forward with the tire as it is elevated

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods

•Nontraditional implement training is increasing in popularity •There is currently relatively little research directly exploring the efficacy of these types of training methods -Example: Kettlebells, they've actually been used longer than lots of resistance exercise equipment, they just changed a bit, used to throw them as far as possible for max power output, but we have changed their usage as of recently, Kettlebell swings are common, triple-extension movements, but many may do it the wrong way, no deceleration phase can cause injuries, we can use dumbbells for a lot of these movement as well, just changing it up

Unilateral Training

•Often used to reduce bilateral symptoms or as a rehabilitation tool -Bilateral deficit: asymmetries in force production between unilateral and bilateral movements -Bilateral facilitation: an increase in voluntary activation of the agonist muscle group during bilateral movements, when trained, using both arms together produces maximal force, compared to one by themselves, this is the opposite of bilateral deficit, which occurs in untrained clients -Examples: Bulgarian split squats, pistol squats, these are helpful, body parts need to be worked on by themselves, this is how we move, this is obviously not for maximum force production

Other Nontraditional Implement Training Methods

•TRX bands, for core, used for back and biceps as well •Crossfit gyms, etc.

Variable Resistance Training Methods: Constant External Resistance

•The most common method for applying resistance, represented by traditional methods such as free weights, i.e., dumbbell, it doesn't change resistance as we move it •The external load remains constant throughout the full ROM and better represents real-life activities

Nontraditional Implement Training Methods: Strongman Training

•Tire flipping -low explosive movement, drive through hips, good form, triple-extension •Log lifting •Farmer's walk We can implement some of these in training, but need a why, a reason, they are not for everyone, especially those with back pain, weakness, etc.

Key Point: Unilateral Training

•Trained or stronger individuals have been theorized to exhibit a bilateral facilitation, while untrained, injured, or weaker athletes exhibit a bilateral deficit, We mentioned this before with newer or weaker clients can produce more force with one arm(dumbbell) compared to both together(barbell), not seen in well-trained athletes

Chapter Objectives

•Understand the basic guidelines for performing resistance exercise with alternative modes and nontraditional implements •Describe the benefits and limitations of bodyweight training activities •Identify the benefits and limitations associated with core training •Identify the appropriate technique and key technical flaws associated with the alternative mode exercises •Appropriately determine how to apply resistance bands and chains to traditional ground-based free weight exercise •Determine the appropriate use of alternative methods and nontraditional implement exercises In the last 20 years, nontraditional methods have become popular, some gyms contain only them and are primarily based on alternative training methods