Elevated Sports Performance/Bend Broadband Cycling Team to Co-Sponsor Movie Night at McMenamins March 20th

As part of COTA's efforts to raise funds and awareness for the Central Oregon Trail Alliance, they frequently present Movie Night's at McMenamins here in Bend, OR.

On March 20, Pine Mountain Sports and the Elevated Sports Performance/BendBroadband Team will be sponsoring the film "Half the Road", a documentary about the passion, pitfalls, and power of women's professional cycling.  The film will air at 9pm in the Old St. Francis School Theater in McMenamins.  The cost to get in is $5, a very non-expensive price to pay to support a great cause.


                                          Trailer from Kevin Tokstad

The Elevated Sports Performance/BendBroadband Team will be in attendance during the film for a"meet and greet", so stop by and meet the only all-women's mountain bike team in Central Oregon.  There are several members of the team with high hopes of turning professional within a year or two.

I started the Elevated Sports Performance Women's Mountain Bike Team to bring more awareness to women's cycling and try to bridge the gap of equality between men's and women's cycling.

Look for the team to be hitting the local races starting in April.

Sample workout

A few days ago I asked the question which type of workout you like most.  I also mentioned that I would post a sample workout of the type of workouts I like to do.  Keeping workouts creative while strength training can be the secret for some to keeping them on path of reaching their goal/s.  No matter your goal, have a purpose each time you go to the gym.  My goal is training for obstacle races.

Here is a sample workout that you can try on your own, just be warned that it is not going to be easy.    

Make sure to get in a good warm up of at least 10-15 min. of dynamic stretching and some light thera-band exercises for the shoulder (internal/external rotation, flexion/extension).

Workout:

5 sets of the following, without any rest between exercises:

x5 Pushups

x10 Squats

REST 1 min.

3 sets of the following, with 15-30 sec rest between exercises:

x20-sec Sprint

x8 Barbell Bent-Over Row

x8 Barbell Overhead Press

REST 1 min.

3 sets of the following, 15-30 sec rest between exercises:

25-sec Sprint

Barbell Curls

DB Triceps Press

REST 1 min.

3 sets of the following with 15-30 sec rest between exercises:

30-sec Sprint

Barbell Power Cleans

Barbell Upright Rows

REST 1 min.

2 sets of the following with 1-2 min. rest between sets:

x30 Burpees

                                                                                       

Which workout do you like better?

Everyone, or I should say most everyone, has some sort of goal when going to the gym or out their door to do an exercise routine.  Working out doesn't mean that you have to go to a gym to pump iron, or run on the elliptical machine.  There are plenty of things you can do using mother nature's equipment...hills, rocks, logs, etc.

So when you DO workout, what type of workout do you enjoy most?
a.  Heavy weights, strength workout
OR
b.  High-Intensity cardio/strength workout

This may be a trick question for some of you.  If you are like me, I like a and b; a little bit of both mixed together.  I enjoy turning up the volume on the stereo and listening to some heavy metal (Iron Maiden, old Mettalica) and lifting some heavy weights, then going immediately to a high intensity movement (ie:  a 20-sec sprint, Swiss Ball mountain climber, split lunge jumps, box jumps, or battling rope slams.

Swiss Ball Mountain Climber

I don't particularly like just doing one or the other, even though each has it's benefits depending on your specific goal.  However, my philosophy on training is that you mix in a little (4-8 weeks) of each type of workout.

Periodization training will accomplish this goal of training all aspects of strength, power, and muscular endurance.  If you are an endurance athlete you will want to spend more time in the muscular endurance phase of training, however if you are a football athlete, spending a good amount of time in strength and power phase will benefit you most.

Because I am no longer training as a professional athlete to compete in cycling, I enjoy doing a combination of training like a football player and also like a soccer/basketball player.  Mixing strength with powerful anaerobic moves, and having the endurance to do that for a long period of time is a great feeling.  There's nothing better than pushing around some good weight working full body movements and doing this for 1-1.5 hours, either in a gym or outside in the elements.

In a few days I will post a sample workout of what I like to do during my time at the gym.

So, what kind of workout do you like?  

2 great strength workouts for runners

Are you a runner struggling with running hills or lack that burst of power needed to stick with the pack?  If so, try incorporating these workouts into your off-season strength training to build strength and power.

Make sure with both of these workouts that you warm up for 10-15 min. with 5 min. of easy jogging, then some dynamic movements such as the following:

Warmup:  10 min.
lunge with a twist
jumping jacks
inverted hamstring stretch
knee hugs
med ball good mornings
planks with alt. arm lifts

Allow 1-2 days of rest between these workouts.  If you have been running regularly, you can include one of these workouts the day before your Tempo run and one workout the day before your Long run.

Workout #1:  45-60 min
Complete all strength exercises one after the other in a circuit format.  Perform 4 sets of 8-10 reps with 20-30 sec rest between exercises and 1-2 min rest between sets.  Complete only 2-3 sets of the two core exercises.
All exercises should be performed with slow controlled movements, however, for the DB side lunge/Clean and Press make sure to make the Clean and Press a little explosive.

Bulgarian Lunge
DB RDL to Bent-Over Row
Alt. 1-Arm DB Bench Press
Alt. DB Hammer Curls
TRX Triceps Press
DB Side Lunge to Clean to 1-Arm Press (the side yo lunge to is the arm you press overhead)
Bicycle Crunches
Plank with Alt. Opposite Leg/Arm Lifts

Workout #2:  45 min
2 sets of each superset.  Rest 30 sec between each set and 60 sec between each pair of exercises.  For all others perform in circuit format (one after the other with minimal rest).  Perform 15-20 reps for all exercises except the X-Band Walks (8 reps)  and Suitcase Deadlift (10 reps).  Allow 30-60 sec between sets
For all core exercises (#6,7,8) perform 3 sets of 10 reps each.

1a. TRX 1-Leg Squats
1b. Split Lunge Jumps
REST 1 min
2a. KB RDL
2b. Back Extensions
REST 1 min
3. X-Band Lateral Walks (using a superband (.5" - 1")
4. Stiff-Arm Pulldowns (using a straight bar)
5. DB Suitcase Deadlift (like a regular deadlift, but only lifting 1 DB)
6. Hanging Knee Raises
7. Med Ball Chops
8. Anti-Rotation Crunches

Make sure to cool down with an easy jog or spin on the bike for 5- 10 min.  Then mix in some foam rolling and stretching. Try these workouts and watch your 10k time improve.

Healthy breakfast smoothie

I wanted to share a simple yet healthy smoothie recipe.   You will want to include some protein (eggs, bacon, sausage) along with this to make it a complete meal.

Fig and Banana Protein Shake

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 1 banana
• 6-8 dried figs
• 8-12 ounces carton coconut milk (or almond milk)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 large scoop Whey Protein Powder

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender.
2. Puree until completely broken down and mixed together.
3. Drink.
4. Enjoy!

photo from Tasty-Yummies.com

Great workout for endurance athletes

If you are an endurance athlete looking for a good mix of high intensity cardio and strength training, give this workout a try.  I designed this workout for 2 of my running clients to help build their anaerobic capacity.  By keeping rest periods to a minute, they are not able to fully recover between each set, therefore challenging their cardiovascular system much like a track or bike interval workout.

Warm up - 10-15 min.
5 min. easy jog
30 Jumping Jacks
5 Alt Forward Lunges with Twist (rotate towards front leg)
8 Push ups
8 TRX Rows
5 Knee Hugs each leg
5 Forward Lunge/Elbow to Instep Stretch each side


Workout - 30-40 min.
3 sets of the following with no rest between exercises, 30-60 sec rest between sets and 2 min rest between the next group
Group 1
x30 Jump Rope
x30 KB Swings (25-40 lbs)
x30 Med Ball Tosses (10-14 lbs

1 set of the each of the following Groups with no rest between exercises, 60 sec rest between each Group 

Group 1
x10 1-Arm DB Snatch (R) (15-25 lbs)
x10 Burpees
x10 TRX Rip Trainer 90 Degree Jump Press (L)
REST 60 SEC.
Group 2
x10 1-Arm DB Snatch (L) (15-25 lbs)
x10 Burpees
x10 TRX Rip Trainer 90 Degree Jump Press (R)
REST 60 SEC
Group 3
x5 1-Arm DB Snatch (R) (15-25 lbs)
x5 1-Arm DB Snatch (L) (15-25 lbs)
x10 Burpees
x5 TRX Rip Trainer 90 Degree Jump Press (L)
x5 TRX Rip Trainer 90 Degree Jump Press (R)
REST 2 MIN
Complete 2 sets of the following with no rest between exercises and 1 min rest between sets
Group 3
500 m Row Machine
x10 1-Arm DB Squat Press (R) 15-20 lbs)
x10 1-Arm DB Squat Press (L) (15-20 lbs)
x10 Lat Pulldowns
REST 60 SEC AND REPEAT
Cool Down -10 min.
5 min easy spin on the bike
Foam Roll
Stretch

Preparing for a "power" workout

No matter which sport you play, producing power; the ability to store and release energy quickly and efficiently, will be required.

Think of a tennis player's forehand swing.  In order to generate power from the racquet to the ball when hitting it, the player will bring the racquet backwards (storing energy) and then swing forward (releasing the energy) to hit the ball.  The faster that player can do this with accuracy, the harder he/she will hit the ball.

Same thing goes for a baseball pitcher.  His arm will cock back (store energy) and use as much acceleration/velocity moving towards home plate (releasing energy) to throw the ball hard.

I am currently training my women's cycling team in the Power Phase of strength training periodization .  The goal for them is to perform movements with quick, explosive movements followed by rest.

The purpose of this post is to talk about how to "prepare" the body for such movements during a workout.  I like to follow the principles of Athletes' Performance whereas we begin each workout with 2 simple dynamic warm ups.

After the riders have spun for a few minutes on the bike we'll perform some movement prep exercises. These exercises are designed to increase core temperature, elongate muscles actively and symmetrically, improve balance and proprioception, and prepare them for the demands of certain explosive movements.  The primary focus is on balance, stability and mobility.

Here are some examples of these types of movements with links to videos from the Athletes' Performance website:
     Inverted Hamstring Stretch
     Forward Lunge, Elbow to Instep
     Backward Lunge with Lateral Flexion
     Knee Hug
     Forward Marching and Skipping
   
Next I like to do what Athletes' Performance calls prehab exercises, strengthening and stabilizing the hips, torso, and shoulders.

Some examples of these types of exercises include:
     Planks
     Glute Bridge w/ Marching
     Shoulder Y, I, and T's
     Mini-Band Walks

After completing these exercises; which takes between 10-15 min. we move into our workout routine.  Since our primary goal is to build power, we focus on the first part of the workout doing explosive movements.

Some of the movements we do that will help them apply more power to the pedals and eventually go faster on the bike include the following:
     TRX Sprinter Starts (with hop)
     TRX Suspended Lunge (with hop)
     Box Jumps (2 and 1 leg)
     Explosive Step Ups (1-leg)
     KB Swings

Because we are trying to exert as much quickness/explosiveness as possible during these movements, I give them a 1-2 min. recovery between each set.  I don't want them to feel fatigued during these first few exercises.  I choose 2-3 of these to include during each of our 2x week training.