Warm Up

Jimbo, thanks alot for all the information.

Can you give a few more examples of the exercises you do for the dynamic warm-up?

buckeye,

I am still researching better dynamic warm up techniques, as mine are somewhat primitive. However we currently go with simple form running and hurdle mobility drills to excite the nervous system and get the muscles going. It can really include anything such as carioca, the hurdle step overs and unders, tapioca, high knees, quick feet, ect. Nothing to strenuous, however, b/c we don't want to compromise the upcoming strength or speed session.


blackjm75,

I appreciate the advice, however we have been performing resisted abdominal exercises prior to our strength sessions for around one year now, and have had zero injuries. I too, have read where some strength coaches are against ab work before lifting, but I am firm believer in going with what works for us, rather than reading something and accepting it as is. In fact, I personally have gotten better results in the squat/deadlift after peforming abdominal work than before when we performed it at the end of a session.

I do appreciate the heads up, though.

Jimbo

We do the exact same. Sometimes we mix in a simple set of form running drills. Usually this is over the summer of it we are timing 40s etc.

Groundchuck -

Good points. I agree that BFS has its' shortcomings. However, our kids have really bought into it, so I'm not going to screw around with a good thing!

BFS Stretching routine: It is commonly refered to as the "1-2-3-4" routine.

1) Hamstrings: Our guys stretch them on the bench. It is like the traditional hurdler's stretch except we DO NOT bring the other foot behind. We either just keep it on the floor or if we are sitting on the field bend the knee so the heel comes into the knee.

2) Hands overhead then hands behind the back

3) On the wall: Stretch the calf with the back leg straight, the achillies tendon with the back leg slighly bent, and then the quads

4) On the floor: Adduction and abduction, hip flexors, and back

I hope this explaination makes sense. Another great resourse on this would be www.biggerfasterstronger.com I think they have the routine posted somewhere. We do this after we warm up with the dot drill. Hope this helps.

Coaches,

Here is some info on static stretching prior to activity. Very interesting info on how our bodies are affected by static and dynamic warm ups.

JD


The stretching performed is usually that of static stretching, with most stretches performed slowlyand with the athletes either standing still or sitting on the ground. This method of stretching has beenshown to be beneficial for the increase in limb range of motion (Beaulieu 1981, Sapega et al 1981,Shellock & Prentice 1985, Taylor et al 1990), and aims to relax the muscles so that they are lessresistant to passive stress for stretching. But this type of stretching does not prepare the muscle andconnective tissue for the active contraction - relaxation process that will occur with any running,jumping or kicking movements as required in a dynamic sport training or game situation.

During this stretching period (typically from 5 — 20 minutes), the body is very efficient in removingexcess body heat, so the small increase in body temperature from the initial jog is quickly lost if the athlete does nothing but statically stretch for this time. This is even more prevalent in cold climates or cold seasons (Autumn & Winter) which is when many team sport competitions are held. Many injuries occur at the beginning of a competition due largely to an inadequate preparation for the activity(Lehmann et al 1970, Sapega et al 1981). A poor warm-up can be one factor to be blamed for such injuries occurring, and can easily be corrected with a modification to warm-up procedures by theathletes involved. Inadequate warming up can lead to less than optimal speed and skill levels that could result inquick scoring by the opposing team or individual early in the game leading then to athletes having tocatch up placing more pressure on the player(s) involved. To make changes to the way a warm-up is performed, the aim of the warm-up for a dynamic sport should be altered, such that the warm-up should be; The complete physical and mental preparation for the dynamic actions to follow. The athlete should be able to begin the game or training session totally ready to perform at maximal intensity if required.The alternative warm-up procedures that I am suggesting is a variation of the above traditional method. With more active jogging and dynamic stretching techniques, the athlete will be betterprepared for the ensuring session or game. In training situations the athlete will spend less time in the warm-up phase therefore allowing more time for the main body of the session where all the learning takes place.The initial jog is now replaced with a more dynamic series of running exercises that include regular alternation of running forwards, backwards, sideways, high knee drills, butt flicks, crossovers, bounding, jumps and progressive sprints. This component will only take 2-4 minutes depending on the climate. It is expected that the athletes are breathing quite heavily at the end of this short series ofexercises.With the stretching component, static stretching can still be included in the program, as many athletes still feel they need some static stretching to really prepare themselves (with time it would beideal to phase static stretching out of the warm up routine and place it only in the warm down period). One muscle group is stretched between each run or drill, Eg. the hamstring group, and the athletes aregiven approximately 30 seconds to stretch both hamstrings statically (this also has the affect ofdecreasing talk time between athletes which can be a major time waster, especially with youngerathletes). The athletes are then directed to perform another dynamic activity, either an easyrun-through or if running drills have been taught, they perform variations of skipping and running drillsand butt kick drills.A warmup sequence for athletes who feel they need to statically stretch could be as follows:Jog forward, backwards, sideways, etcBounds and jumpsStatic stretch of hamstring group (30 seconds)Run-through (forwards and backwards) or running drills (A's, B's etc)Static stretch of quadriceps group (30 seconds)Run-throughs/drills (higher intensity)Stretch adductors (groin) (30 seconds)Run-throughs/drills (higher intensity)Stretch calves (30 seconds)Run throughs/drills (near maximal)Stretch (athletes' choice)100% intensity sprint** Start of training session.Once the athlete has attained a mild sweat in normal ambient conditions, and is able to performspeed runs and drills at maximum (this process is progressive), the athlete should now be consideredwarmed up for the ensuring training session or game.The dynamic stretching component is very important for the specific preparation of the musculatureto dynamic movements. Dynamic stretching is defined as repetitive contractions of an agonist muscleto produce quick stretches of the antagonistic muscle (Kurz 1990), so any active callisthenic movementcan be classified as dynamic stretching (jumping, body rotations, bending, etc).This method very specifically prepares the muscle tissue for active muscle contraction andrelaxation as required in a sporting situation. There is limited ability by this method to cause long termincreases in range of motion due to the limited time that a muscle is held in a stretch. This shortstretching time is not long enough to allow time dependant stress relaxation to occur, leading tominimal flexibility improvements (Taylor et al 1990). Therefore it is important to include some staticstretching in the warm down to continue to improve; joint range of motion (Beaulieu 198 1, Sapega etal 198 1, Shellock and Prentice 1985, Taylor et al 1990); removal waste products such as lactic acid(Bale and James 1991, deVrivs 1980); and to increase the athlete's rate of recovery (Mickelson andHagerman 1978, Hagerman 198 1, Kamen 1984, Bale and James 1991).

The total time for this type of warm up routine is approximately 5 - 15 minutes, with the athletesfully ready to perform as required by the coach at the end of this time. If compared to the many sportsthat have athletes warm up for 25+ minutes, this is a saving of approximately 5-20 minutes everysession that could then be used for more work in the main body of the session. Assuming that due toan inadequate warm up the athlete takes another 10- 15 minutes to warm up properly during the mainbody of the training session there could be a saving of up to 25+ minutes per session. If the athletetrains 3 times per week for 40 weeks (a year of training) this could be a total increase in qualitytraining time of 50-60 hours per year. Since one of the biggest limitations in coaching is the lack oftime to develop all the attributes in the athletes you work with, to be able to add an extra 50-60 hoursper year to the training program without adding any more sessions, may make the difference betweenyour athletes achieving or not achieving the level of excellence that they and you as the coach arestriving for.The key to this type of warm up is to make the dynamic portion of the warm UP progressive andensure that the limbs are taken through at least the ranges of motion that will be required in the gamesituation. The time for static stretching is after the game or training situation as this leads to morerapid recovery for ensuing sessions

Its crazy. I have seen all the research regarding dynamic warm-up and implemented good programs and found them to be less superior to the old jog-n-stretch routine. My kids are looser after jogging and stretching than they ever were with a dynamic warmup. This was not based on feedback but based on my visual assessment of their technique. I know people are raving about the dynamic warmup stuff, but I think there is a place for static stretching before the main activity. I know most people will disagree, but based off my experience this is what works.

Coaches,

I, too, was very,very skeptical of doing away with conventional stretching! After a life time of having had my athletes stretch like anyone else, I began to really listen what was being said about the DYNAMIC WARM UP method. As my athletes are men who have always stretched, I envisioned a lot of resistance to changing up. I held a special meeting to discuss the change, and as I suspected there was some pretty skeptical looks all 'round. I let the ones who wanted to continue to stretch in the conventional manner do so, if they saw fit. But, the very next day in practice everyone was willing to give it a try and did so. THEY LOVE IT! At this point, 11 weeks into our off season regimen we have not had a single pull!
I continue to keep a close eye on the new methodology and it is working great! Jimbo Hale and Bill lovejoy were paramount in our making this move, and my guys and myself are tickled pink. One question Jimbo, how does stretching at the end of practice get rid of keytones??? I'm not quite understanding that as yet. Looking forward to your reply.

Coach Easton

Jimbo,

Was referring to the ketones that accumulate during exercise and are ultimately passed in the urine, yes.
My training from sports medicine people has always been that the "cool down" period after practice, slow jogging, etc. forces the ketones from the blood and are passed as urine. My understanding of the new DYNAMIC method is that it incorporates some conventional stretching AT THE END OF PRACTICE, is this not correct? if it is, my question is how does this precipitate the rapid disbursement of the ketones? As you say you don't know at present, think you could check with some of your colleagues as certainly those who came up with this method have taken this into consideration, imo.

Coach Easton

Hi Coaches,

Below is the abstract of a paper - yes, real science and stretching.

Of particular note to me is the length of time this response lasts for - 2 HOURS!

If anyone would like the full paper, please contact me at mikesea@optushome.com.au.

Coach Sea #11


"ABSTRACT
POWER, K., D. BEHM, F. CAHILL, M. CARROLL, and W. YOUNG. An Acute Bout of Static Stretching: Effects on Force and Jumping Performance. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 36, No. 8, pp. 1389—1396, 2004.
Introduction/Purpose: The objectives of this study were to examine whether a static stretching (SS) routine decreased isometric force, muscle activation, and jump power while improving range of motion (ROM). Second, the study attempted to compare the duration of the dependent variable changes with the duration of the change in ROM.
Methods: Twelve participants were tested pre- and post- (POST, 30, 60, 90, and 120 min) SS of the quadriceps and plantar flexors (PF) or a similar period of no stretch (control). Measurements during isometric contractions included maximal voluntary force (MVC), evoked contractile properties (peak twitch and tetanus), surface integrated electromyographic (iEMG) activity of the agonist and antagonistic muscle groups, and muscle inactivation as measured by the interpolated twitch technique (ITT). Vertical jump (VJ) measurements included unilateral concentric-only (no countermovement) jump height as well as drop jump height and contact time. ROM associated with seated hip flexion, prone hip extension, and plantar flexion-dorsiflexion was also recorded.
Results: After SS, there were significant overall 9.5% and 5.4% decrements in the torque or force of the quadriceps for MVC and ITT, respectively. Force remained significantly decreased for 120 min (10.4%), paralleling significant percentage increases (6%) in sit and reach ROM (120 min). After SS, there were no significant changes in jump performance or PF measures.
Conclusion: The parallel duration of changes in ROM and quadriceps isometric force might suggest an association between stretch-induced changes in muscle compliance and isometric force output."

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Originally posted by: TIGER ONE

As you say you don't know at present, think you could check with some of your colleagues as certainly those who came up with this method have taken this into consideration, imo.

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Coach Easton,

I know just the person to ask. I'll get back to you on this one.

Thanks again for helping me out as well!


Coach Dertz,

Wow, if you are reading Mel Siff then you are well on your way to being a top notch strength coach.
Excellent Work!

Jimbo

We use a the Dynamic Warm-up Method that was created by Martin Rooney @ the Parisi Speed School. It has been a HUGE asset to all the high-school players and the fighters I work with. I highly recommend using it...
this is a link that can give you more info on the school...

www.parisischool.com

I trained with Bill Parisi for a couple of years while in college. I also was a college strength coach and interned with Bill. I am a big fan of his warm up and use it with my high school team. We warm up with the 15-20 minute dynamic warm up, lift (Olympic lifts, core train, strength, dynamic strength, functional strength, & injury prevention), speed train (Mon: Acceleration & first step, Wed: COD, Fri: Top Speed & Mechanics) we also finish with a toughness drill.