Video For Gymchat 199 - Stretching & Warming Up (with Conor Doherty)

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Gymchats (formerly twitterchats)
Tags : stretch

Thanks again to everyone who watched and took part in the discussion Gymchat 199 - Stretching & Warming Up (with Conor Doherty) - much appreciated. If you haven't seen it yet (or simply want to go over a particular point again), here's the entire video. Look forward to hearing your comments.

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Gymchat 199 - Stretching & Warming Up (with Conor Doherty)

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Gymchats (formerly twitterchats)
Tags : stretch

Stretching and Warming Up. We all know we should be doing some, but when? How? And perhaps most important : does it actually help?
This week we're going to discuss the various ways to get your stretch on, how to warm up and why you might want to do a little of both. Helping us explore this fascinating topic is none other than Certified Athletic Trainer Conor Doherty. Fantastic.

NB : I'm very keen to hear both Conor's thinking on these areas, and yours. If you've got questions or opinions on stretching or warming up, join us on the Hangout. Here's how.

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Gymchat 197 - Stretching & Warming Up (with Conor Doherty)

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Gymchats (formerly twitterchats)
Tags : stretch

Stretching and Warming Up. We all know we should be doing some, but when? How? And perhaps most important : does it actually help?
This week we're going to discuss the various ways to get your stretch on, how to warm up and why you might want to do a little of both. Helping us explore this fascinating topic is none other than Certified Athletic Trainer Conor Doherty. Fantastic.

NB : I'm very keen to hear both Conor's thinking on these areas, and yours. If you've got questions or opinions on stretching or warming up, join us on the Hangout. Here's how.

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Video for Gymchat 193 - Training Athletes II (with Kyle Bohannon)

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Gymchats (formerly twitterchats)
Tags : conditioning, photography, sports psychology, stretch, studies & trials, supplementation

Thanks again to everyone who watched and took part in the discussion Training Athletes II (with Kyle Bohannon) - much appreciated.

If you haven't seen it yet (or simply want to go over a particular point again), here's the entire video. Look forward to hearing your comments.

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Gymchat 193 - Training Athletes II (with Kyle Bohannon)

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Gymchats (formerly twitterchats)
Tags : conditioning, photography, sports psychology, stretch, studies & trials

Been looking forward to this one for a while now (a certain storm unfortunately arrived last time) - the second part of the fascinating 'Training Athletes' discussion. Very interesting ideas.

If you'd like to join us for the hangout and ask a question or two, the details are below. And if it's your first time, welcome aboard. They're a lot of fun.

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Gymchat 175 - Stretching

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Articles
Tags : injury prevention, mobility, photography, stretch

Quick reminder : this week we're discussing a common dilemma - should we stretch at all, when and how?

Is it something you feel you should be doing, but aren't exactly sure what it's all about?

Here's the perfect opportunity to find out what's what. Join John and I for Gymchat 175 - Stretching. Fantastic.

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Stretching. We all feel as though we should do some, but we're not quite sure when. Or how.

How do you get started? Before or after your workout? Is it really worth the effort?

This week we're going to discuss the various ways to get your stretch on, when to do it and the benefits of doing so. Helping us explore this fascinating topic is none other than Great Weight Lifting's John Cammidge.

Join John and I for Gymchat 175 - Stretching. Fantastic.

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Are You Stretching Enough?

by John Cammidge
Filed in : workouts
Tags : back pain, injury prevention, muscle gain, pain, stretch

I recently visited the chiropractor's office because I had lower back pain, which I thought was brought on from sitting in my office chair 8 hours a day. Well, after the chiropractor analysed what was wrong she noticed my hips were slightly misaligned, she said it could be due to a tight muscle, which was probably in my legs, boy was she right!


She said the most common area for tightness is the hamstrings, so she started stretching and massaging mine. She started with the left hamstring, which was fine, then moved to the right, at that point I almost jumped from the mat. It was so painful and she informed me it was very tight, when she asked do you stretch I said yes, of course.

What I didn't realise is that I don't stretch enough, so I decided to create this post to help others understand the importance of stretching.

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Good Morning Progressions and Complementary Stretches

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : video
Tags : stretch

I've been a fan of the Good Morning for almost as long as I've been lifting weights - great exercise. Here are a few basic progressions, as well as some stretches that work extremely well with these.

Incidentally, the band stretches he demonstrates are fantastic. Give them a shot.

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The Right Way to Stretch the Pecs

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : stretch

Looking for a simple way to keep the chest and shoulders healthy? Eric Cressey updates the doorway stretch.

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Stretch Sport

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Sites
Tags : stretch

Via Anta's Fitness and Self Defense : ready to find out more about the many varieties of stretching? Head over to Stretch Sport.

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Stretching: The Truth

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : stretch

Via Fight Geek : the New York Times takes an interesting look at stretching, particularly the negative effect of doing it before a workout. A good read.

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Levator Scapulae Stretch

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : exercises
Tags : stretch

Stiff neck? Sore shoulders? Try this Levator Scapulae stretch, courtesy Eric Cressey.

Love the description :

To stretch the right levator scapulae, put your right hand behind your back as if you're getting handcuffed, then look down toward your left foot while pulling your head in that same direction with the left hand. You'll feel a stretch along the right side of the back of your neck.

And yes, it works.

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Stretching May Increase Strength

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : stretch

Via FitSugar : MSNBC notes another study on the positive aspects of regular stretching - possible strength gains. It's all good.

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Videos of 'The Band Man'

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : video
Tags : bands, injury prevention, stretch

EliteFTS has several great videos of strength coach - and head of JumpStretch - Dick 'The Band Man' Hartzell. Enjoy.

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Training Athletes Who Throw Overhead

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : stretch

Eric Cressey raises a few interesting points in relation to shoulder strengthening for baseball. If you play sports which involve overhead throwing (or train those who do), read on.

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Healthy Hips - Self Assessment

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : injury prevention, mobility, pain, stretch

Keith Scott takes a brief look at three quick checks you can do to see if you fall into the 'common hip problem' category. Unfortunately I do; time for a little stretching.

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Stretch to Win

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Sites
Tags : stretch

Via Styles Develops : Scott points to a great book (and accompanying podcast) on stretching - Stretch to Win. The site has a couple of sample chapters; the entire book is for sale via Amazon. Based on the sample, it looks like a great read.

Scott - as a long-time fan of Thomas Kurz's Stretching Scientifically I'm very interested to hear your thoughts on this book. Let me know when you've had a chance to really put it through its paces.

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Practical Application of Principles of Training

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : stretch

Thomas Kurz continues (part 1, part 2) his 'Principles of Training' series in his regular column on Stadion.com. Great reading.

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Self-Defense tips

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : elsewhere
Tags : stretch

If you've ever been mugged, these self defense tips by Stadion's Thomas Kurz may just be what you're after.

If you've ever read Stretching Scientifically (a great book) you'll know just how thorough Kurz can be.

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The Lost Art of Overhead Pressing

by Scott Andrew Bird
Filed in : Favourites
Tags : grip, home gym, shoulders, stretch

Charles Poliquin takes a quick look at Overhead Pressing and suggests a 12 week program for its use. Having only recently tried a couple of sets myself, I personally can see a bit more overhead work going on. Unfortunately the low roof means that this will be seated only, but that's still a good start.
There were a couple of ratios mentioned in the article, and after Alberto got everyone going with the Achieving Structural Balance piece, I can see a similar thing happening here. They are :

1. The ratio between seated dumbbell overhead presses and the bench press

It should be that the weight done for 8 reps on each dumbbell represents 29% of the close-grip bench press measure. In other words, a man able to close-grip bench about 220 pounds for a single would use a pair of 65's for 8 reps in the seated dumbbell overhead presses.

2. The ratio between the behind-the-neck press and the bench press

The weight for a 1 RM behind-the-neck press from a seated position should represent 66% of the weight used for a 1 RM in the close-grip bench press. That load is lifted from a dead-stop position with the bar resting on the traps, not from a weight handed off in the lock-out position.

Time for a quick test.

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