Strength

What are your favorite exercises to build lateral core strength as it relates to change of direction ability?

Supercharge Your Change of Direction with These Lateral Core Exercises

So the question is, what are your favorite exercises to build lateral core strength as it relates to change of direction ability? So suitcase carries, upside down suitcase carries, kettlebell upside down carries, and the variations that you can do with those, well actually let's backtrack a little bit. Side planks and reactive side planks. So for example, you go into a regular linear plank and hold that. See how fast you can flop over to the right side and stick it and be nice and stiff like a board. Go back to the linear plank, the regular plank, and then quickly or have somebody say left and then rotate to your left side plank as fast as you can, so making it a little bit more reactive. So those loaded side planks, so if you're doing a side plank and you can dominate it for 30 to 45 seconds. I don't go above a minute. Can you do 20 seconds or 30 seconds with a 25 or 35 pound weight on your side? And see if you can do time under tension. I don't go up really above a minute and really I stick to like 30 seconds and then more of reactive type stuff. But the carries with the kettlebell and the suitcase variations are super, super great. Start light, start slow, and the longer stride you go, the harder it's going to be in that frontal plank. Hopefully those help and good luck carrying those suitcases.

Exercises to build lateral core strength include side planks and reactive side planks, as well as suitcase carries and kettlebell carries. Start with lighter weights and shorter strides, and do time under tension for 30 seconds or less.

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My favorite exercises for building lateral core strength and improving change of direction ability include suitcase carries, upside-down suitcase carries, and kettlebell upside-down carries. These exercises can be varied in different ways. Additionally, side planks and reactive side planks are effective. For example, transitioning quickly from a regular plank to a side plank or reacting to cues to switch sides. Loaded side planks can also be incorporated by adding weight while maintaining proper form for around 30 to 45 seconds. I don't recommend going above a minute for time under tension. The kettlebell and suitcase variations of carries are highly beneficial as well. It's important to start with light weights and gradual progression. The longer stride you take during these exercises, the more challenging it will be for your frontal plank stability. I hope these exercises help you in building lateral core strength, and best of luck with your training!

How often do you incorporate barefoot training into your programming and why?

Unlock the Benefits of Barefoot Training in Your Workout

All right, how often do you incorporate barefoot training into your program and why? So I think barefoot training, if you are wearing shoes, you're wearing, you know, your lace-up J's and stuff all the time and then you go to barefoot activity, you're going to be sore. You might have some issues up the chain and obviously in the foot and in the toe complex. So gradually, slowly implement those. It's kind of like if you just did, you know, two sets of 12 pull-ups and you've never done pull-ups before, you're probably going to be pretty sore the next day. So slowly integrating that and I think for almost everybody, some sort of warm-up with your shoes off, even if it's just five or ten minutes. So think about it like if you're wearing a glove all day, a mitten all day and your feet end up like that, it's going to be very hard for them to open up and being able, hard to utilize all those muscles in the foot. So slowly, even if it's just five, ten minutes of doing some sort of dynamic exercises and mobility type stuff with your feet off, just walking in grass before your workout and then come back in and put your shoes on. But I think every time you're in a session, no matter what the focus is, you should do something with your shoes off and the socks can also restrict you too. So thinking about those weird socks that have the toes in them or just take your stinky socks off and obviously just make sure that hygiene and it's okay to do in the gym, but just walking on your grass forward and backwards and to the side and getting those feet to move really helps. So every day, no matter the session, even if it's just five minutes and then you can dig into more exercises if you're lacking some strength or range of motion in certain toes and ankle stuff.

I recommend incorporating some barefoot training into your program, even if it's just 5-10 minutes of dynamic exercises and mobility work. This will help to open up the muscles in the foot and prevent soreness from wearing shoes all the time. It's also important to make sure hygiene is kept in mind when doing barefoot activities in the gym or elsewhere.

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I incorporate barefoot training into my programming gradually and slowly to avoid potential soreness or issues in the foot and toe complex. If someone is used to wearing shoes all the time and suddenly transitions to barefoot activity, it can cause discomfort. It's similar to doing a new exercise like pull-ups for the first time and experiencing soreness afterward. To address this, I recommend starting with a warm-up without shoes for about five or ten minutes. This allows the feet to open up and engage the muscles effectively. Walking on grass before a workout is a simple way to incorporate barefoot activity. Even during focused training sessions, I believe it's important to do something without shoes on. Socks can also restrict movement, so opting for socks with individual toe compartments or going completely barefoot can be beneficial. It's crucial to maintain proper hygiene and ensure that barefoot training is acceptable in the gym environment. Incorporating a few minutes of barefoot exercises every day, regardless of the session, helps improve foot strength and range of motion in toes and ankles if there are any limitations present.

How do you think the trend towards specialization in youth sports affects the long-term health and development of athletes?

The potential harms of youth sports specialization

Another great question. How do you think trends towards specialization in youth sports affects the long-term health and development of athletes? So from a mental standpoint, I think it hinders their motor skills. I think it hinders their overall development as a person. And then if we're talking from a health standpoint, you know, more wear and tear on joints because they're fixated doing the same movement over and over and over again. I think, yes, you can slightly specialize the older you get, but I think the development overall, just as a person, joint integrity, motor program, motor skills, strength, and it just develops you as an overall person and an athlete much better. So I don't like the specialization at a young age. I do think that you can kind of have that 60, 40, you know, 70, 30, but I, you know, specialization slightly if that athlete really enjoys that and loves that. But I think it's the job of the parents and coaches to instill that. It's gonna help them in their sport if they really like that. So if they're a golfer and they really love golf, that, you know, cross training and playing soccer or, you know, playing an instrument. And I love youth kids to play an individual sport and a team or group sport. And if it's not a team or group sport, a individual instrument and then a group or chorus type thing. I love that.

Specialization in youth sports hinders an athletes overall development, motor skills and joint integrity. Parents and coaches should encourage a balance of individual and team sports, as well as individual activities such as playing an instrument or participating in a choir.

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The trend towards specialization in youth sports has several impacts on the long-term health and development of athletes. Mentally, it hinders motor skills and overall personal development. From a health standpoint, specializing at a young age can lead to increased wear and tear on joints due to repetitive movements. While some degree of specialization may be appropriate as athletes get older, overall development as a person, including joint integrity, motor skills, and strength, is better achieved through a well-rounded approach. Personally, I am not a fan of specialization at a young age. I believe there can be a balance, such as a 60-40 or 70-30 split between specialization and other activities that an athlete enjoys. It is the responsibility of parents and coaches to instill this balanced approach and emphasize the benefits it brings to their chosen sport. For example, if an athlete loves golf, cross-training with activities like soccer or playing an instrument can be beneficial. I also encourage youth athletes to engage in both individual sports and team or group sports, or alternatively participate in individual music or arts activities alongside group activities like chorus. This comprehensive approach helps foster holistic development in young athletes.

What topics do you have the most unique opinions, methods, or expertise around?

Expertise in Bridging the Gap: Unique Perspectives on Injury Recovery and Life Performance

Alright, the question is, what topics do you have the most unique opinions, methods, or expertise around? One is transitioning them back from injury and getting them back to a state where it's not just about life, but about being performant. So bridging that gap, I'm very good at. And I also think expertise is basically just being able to look at the person. You can do as many assessments as you want and test range of motion and test strength, but at the end of the day, you've got to look at load management, you've got to look at if they're a student, you've got to look at if they're a parent, if they're a professional athlete and they're dealing with multiple things throughout the day. And thinking about mentally what they go through to make that workout fit them. You may have a specific workout or what they need to do that day or your blueprint for the off season or in season, but sometimes you just have to throw that out the door and go by trying to get a little bit done and move in a positive direction, but think about everything else that's in their life. And that's also bridging that gap between reality and what you want to get done. So those are just things to think about and you don't really learn those in school or in certifications. It's just life experience and hanging around good coaches and people helps you learn that. I don't think that's something that you learn in school, you learn hands on.

My expertise lies in transitioning people back from injury and bridging the gap between reality and what needs to be done to get them back to a state of performance. This is something that is learned through hands-on life experience and hanging around good coaches and people, as opposed to school or certifications.

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Regarding unique opinions, methods, or expertise, there are a few areas where I excel. One is transitioning individuals back from injury and helping them regain their performance capabilities. I have a skill for bridging the gap between recovery and optimal function. Expertise, in my opinion, goes beyond assessments of range of motion and strength. It involves considering factors like load management, the individual's role as a student, parent, or professional athlete, and understanding the mental challenges they face in fitting workouts into their daily lives. Sometimes, it's necessary to deviate from a specific workout plan and focus on making small progress while considering the realities of their life. This ability to bridge the gap between expectations and reality comes from life experience and exposure to excellent coaches and mentors. It's not something that can be solely learned through formal education or certifications but requires hands-on learning and observation.

Burn Fat Fast: The Key to Effective Exercise

So the question is what exercises burn the most fat? And those are going to be multi-joint exercises, multi-joint movements, and exercises that get your heart rate up, and then recover, and then do it again. So if you're just trying to burn a bunch of calories, yeah, getting on the treadmill and walking, probably not going to do it. And I always say if you look at the people that walk on the treadmill, and if you go to a gym or whatnot, and you've been going to that gym for two, three years, look at the people that walk on the treadmill, and then look at the people that are doing some sort of interval training, some sort of weight training, multi-joint exercises, and look at the difference between their body types, and you will definitely see a difference between the people that are walking on the treadmill at a steady pace, and the people that are doing intervals, multi-joint exercises, trying to push their self. And again, pushing yourself to your outside, your comfort zone, is up to you. It's not somebody else. So I always say be uncomfortable, but not too uncomfortable. And that's just for general pop. So multi-joint exercises and trying to get the heart rate up, recover, heart rate up, recover, and whatever that heart rate is, being slightly uncomfortable and always being safe. Hopefully that helps.

Multi-joint exercises, such as weight training and interval training, that get your heart rate up and then recover are the most effective at burning fat. Be uncomfortable but not too uncomfortable and always be safe when doing these exercises.

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The exercises that burn the most fat are multi-joint movements and exercises that elevate your heart rate and then allow for recovery before repeating. Simply walking on a treadmill may not be as effective for burning calories. If you observe the difference between individuals who walk on a treadmill versus those who engage in interval training or weight training with multi-joint exercises, you'll likely notice variations in their body types.

To maximize fat burning, it's important to push yourself outside of your comfort zone, but within safe limits. Multi-joint exercises and maintaining an elevated heart rate followed by recovery intervals are key. Remember to find a level of discomfort that challenges you personally.

By incorporating these principles into your workout routine, you can optimize fat burning and achieve your fitness goals.

Do You Really Need Extreme Ranges of Motion?

So the question is, do you need extreme ranges of motion? So my simple answer is, for what? If you are a gymnast, if you're a figure skater, whatever you need for that sport or for that event, you need to have range of motion and you need to have control in that range of motion. Now, you can go down the rabbit hole of excessive range of motion or being pushed to certain joint positions is unhealthy. 100% agree with that. There's a lot of sports and most sports are unhealthy for your joints, especially in the long term. But again, that's not what we're going to talk about. We're going to talk about do you need extreme ranges of motion. So if it's specific to what sport you need, then you need to get to those ranges of motion. But for a general population, in general, you don't need to have excessive ranges of motion. I'm kind of big on like 90 degree angles, not going past and bouncing out of the bottom of squats or bouncing out of positions because you're not in control during that time and it's actually weightless. And then you'll have a very extreme torque in certain positions when you actually have to catch the weight or slow it down. So no, stick to ranges that feel good. And if you don't need it for a sport or an event, why do it? If it's for everyday life, make sure you have those ranges of motion to get up, sit down, pick up stuff and all that. But excessive ranges of motion, definitely not overall.

No, you don't need extreme ranges of motion for everyday life. If you are an athlete or doing a specific sport, however, then you may need to work on and increase your range of motion.

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Do we need extreme ranges of motion? Well, it depends on what we're talking about. If you're involved in sports like gymnastics or figure skating, having specific ranges of motion and control is essential. However, it's important to acknowledge that excessive range of motion or being pushed into certain joint positions can be unhealthy. In the long term, many sports can be detrimental to joint health. But let's focus on whether extreme ranges of motion are necessary. For the general population, overall, you don't need to have excessive ranges of motion. I personally believe in sticking to comfortable ranges, avoiding going past 90-degree angles and bouncing out of positions where you lack control and the weight becomes weightless. Extreme torque can occur when catching or slowing down weights in certain positions. So no, unless it's required for a specific sport or event, there's no need to pursue extreme ranges of motion. Instead, aim for ranges of motion that feel good and are functional for everyday activities like sitting, standing, and lifting objects. Excessive ranges of motion are not necessary in most cases.

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Bryan Meyer answers your Strength questions. See all the advice Bryan Meyer has and get answers to your own Strength questions.

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Bryan Meyer is a leading expert in athletic performance coaching and the founder of B Meyer Training in Orlando. His client list includes Olympic medalist and goes beyond just NBA all-stars. Meyer and his training methods have been featured in ESPN, Sports Illustrated and Men’s Health. Meyer was an instrumental in getting Dwight Howard back from a potential ending injury and this exercise was used in his rehab and strength program. His brand has spread to China and he has plans to continue to help educate Chinese athletes and coaches on better training.  His passion lies in education and not only helping build better athletes, but better people.