New Thing For This off season

Sure - just lost 43 lbs. and feel awesome # 1= Replace all simple carbs(bread,pasta) w. veggies - buy the big 5-10lb bags of frozen medleys(I know you're a cheap bastard like me) and mix w. lean protein and microwave - get your mom or wife to introduce you to the big , new world of spices .           ;           ;           ;   # 2= NEVER eat any highsimplecarb stuff after 7 or 8pm - it will create an insulin response that will shut down your natural HGH production that happens from midnight to 2amish - which means getting to bed AND asleep by 11pm.         & nbsp;         & nbsp;         & nbsp; #3 =walk or ride a bike - jogging sucks and hurts big guys knees - for 30 minutes MOST days - split it up , push a stroller , whatever - just move.         & nbsp;        #4= the best natural weight loss supplement is green tea - drink it all day - I know it tastes like DBarron's jock - but that's what Splenda is for.         &n bsp;         &n bsp;         &n bsp;  #5 = NEVER get hungry - eat small meals ALL day.         &n bsp;       Larry - the key is consistency - not HUGE changes - if you can stay on track for 6 days - on Sunday go eat whatever you want as a break and then back on. Works.

Good advice. Back when I was on my feet all day and riding my bike and lifting and throwing and playing rugby or kickboxing all the time I couldn't get over 250 to save my life. Then I started living in front of a computer and lifting heavy and making enough money to buy lots of yummy food, and got up to my current manly proportions. Man boobs are manly, right?
Point being, this winter is all about the higher volume, getting healthy and lean and flexible (an issue for me for the first time, grrr).
And for what it's worth, my jock tastes like vanilla ice cream.

You guys are not alone in this...I am doing the same thing whenever the damn physical thearpist will let me get back to some real lifting for the upperbody(yes dave man boobs are manly!!)  I have planned this for a bit now.  I got heavier...not stronger just heavier and threw worse.  I preach to the athletes I train that whatever weight we put on it has to be used to make you better in sport...why can't I listen to my own advice???  I am doing db complex work (these will kick your a@%) too many core exercises to keep the heart rate up, medball throws and I am a little sick...I like doing sprints.....well okay I look like a fat kid chasing the ice cream truck on the last day of summer....my goal is to be back around 265-70

Notice how all the guys are talking about going back to the basics or back to what they did when they were younger? We all sprinted ,stretched , did cardio , lots of volume work and played sports OTHER than our main one. That's what made us - sometimes, that's how we REMAKE us. Rest up, lean down w. diet and cardio and go play some games that make you breath hard - be a youngster again. I played racquetball last week for the first time since I joined this sport and can't wait to do it again. Let's all get off the doubles for a bit and follow a long term track guy progression and get athletic and in shape first....and I bet we'll all throw better next year.

just a bit.......so we can do heavier doubles in the spring

Today's workout: 8 stiff leg deads, followed by 8 power cleans followed by 8 overhead presses, three times through with 135#. Nothing killer, but got the heartrate up. I also maxed out on the strict overhead press (225, take that Hadley!) Then went up to the gym with a 12# med ball and threw it against the wall like a braemar stone, hard as I could for 3 sets of ten.
Me likey.

Will - I did stationary rowing one off-season a million years ago(just 1000 meters 3x's a week) and many people made mention that I looked better - definitely felt better. I think our own Chief does it competitively at a very high world class level. Good thing to get obsessed on.

With respect to the rowing, I would say it hands down the best gym-based aerobic exercise there is (with swimming, cross-country skiing, and real rowing also being excellent choices outside the gym).  I was very heavy into "erg" training on and off for years right up until I got back into lifting and throwing.  My brother is one of the top Masters' in Canada.

While nothing we do at THIS time of year is really going to negatively affect our throwing next summer, as the off-season progresses you really want to be careful how much of this kind of thing you do at anything other than low intensity.  The reason for this is it is training your muscles in the exact opposite way that you want to be if your over-riding goal is to throw far.  However, if your goals include losing some weight or getting in "better shape", the Concept 2 erg (for "ergometer") is the way to go.  The only other caveat is that there is definitely some technique involved in rowing properly, which is essential both to avoid injury and to get the most out of the exercise.  What some people do on the rowing machine is downright scary and could easily lead to injury.  Learn how to do it correctly!

 

I'm a big fan of kettlebells...went from 290 down to 250 in a little more than 6 months...did not lose much strength either...still pulling low-6's...the KB's are great for maintaining the core strength for throwing, great for keeping the hip structure mobile, and it'll work up a sweat. Lots of great routines out there...check out the Art of Strength website. http://www.artofstrength.com Try doing KB snatches for 5 minutes straight and I promise you, you'll be sucking wind!

Erik

 I talked to Ryan at Loon about the same thing and when you haven't done cardio for awhile - start sloow -just stroll for 15 minutes and slowly pick it up - soon you'll be marching 30 minutes -  just like lifting again after a break - ease into it and be consistent. The older you get in extreme sports/training like this(and 30 is old - how many 30 year old guys still crank it?) - my research has shown that longevity/productivity./avoiding injury is REALLY tied to plain ole being in shape -ie: Leffler and Alexander.

Peter Ingleton wrote: With respect to the rowing, I would say it hands down the best gym-based aerobic exercise there is (with swimming, cross-country skiing, and real rowing also being excellent choices outside the gym).

I can agree with that. I come from the rowing world and its great all around. I travel with a team that competes all summer in different cities. The only thing is that we dont row skulls or sweeps, we row traditional Irish fishing boats called currachs. It makes me feels a bit more manlier to be rowing a 200lb oak boat with 2X4's rather than a 20lb boat with sleek oars. Heres a video of us in Columbus, Im in the white T shirt.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl1wwEqjlVo

 

i kinda equate it to doing 60lb stiffy deadlifts for 15 minutes straight.

i'm a bloody pig right now and i feel like all the crap that i eat and drink! so i am joining in and going to shed some LBS. and come in next season looking svelte and handsome as ever!

 okay,okay, looking better

I dropped 10 since the end of my season by doing a high intensity preparation phase in my training schedule. I did a lot of high rep tempo work (4010 for example) and tripling the amount of HI cardio (stadium stair sprints have been a favorite of mine). The nice thing about HIT is that I've lost no strength, but significantly decreased my bodyweight. In fact, I think this is the strongest I've ever been at this point in my offseason training schedule.

Here's a sample from my preparation phase (I've since moved onto my next training phase)

DB Peterson Step-Ups 3x12 (2010)

Supersetted with lying hammy curls 3x8 (3020)

DB Split Squat 3x12 (2020) - an absolute killer

Supersetted with explosive good mornings

Burpee Hip Snatch

Supersetted with moderate core work

I'd then do stadium stair sprints - I worked up to 12 sets

I did that from late September until late last week. It was a BIG change of pace from my usual training but I feel very good now.

My goal is to drop 20 pounds of body fat and then add as much quality muscle as possible before jan. I started the better eating habits mon and am starting a new hypertrophy phase for 4 weeks.  I am only doing cardio at the beginning of my workout and it consists of jump rope and a javoreck complex of some sort  .  Hadley has a good metabolic curcuit  going there. the burpee hip snatch is a mofo.  After the first 4 weeks i am going to start lowering my rep range for  a lil more strength but keeping my rest intervals short.  good luck to everyone .

See how Sean eliminates the carbs later in the day? All the stuff I've read says that is a key - it's all about hormone stimulation - natural HGH production occurs somewhere from midnight to 2 or 3am - so get to bed and asleep by 11am if at all possible . I suggest melatonin before bed to sleep deeper.And don't watch stressful things on TV/play violent computer games before bed - you'll get an adrenalin response that will keep you from deep, restful sleep and your HGH squirt(and no caffiene late ) ............................stadium/uphill  sprints/stationary bike sprints/ real bike sprints (blast it , cruise till ready to blast again ) and bar/dbell/medball complexes stimulate HGH - short all -out bursts for a minute max spaced b/n a "moving rest" - walk across the gym and get a drink of water , look at the aerobic girls and stroll back and hit it again, repeat maybe 10 x's. If you can't stand regular cardio ,this is gonna lean you out like cardio and keep you strong and moving fast.