“The less effort, the faster and more powerful you will be”.
-Bruce Lee-
i can agree to an extent. in the book “mental game of baseball” it recommends about 80% effort. id say relaxation is more important at top speed than at other stages
june 27
microstretching
Relaxation is greatly important in all parts. The more muscle relaxed, the higher contraction.
The thing with Bruce Lee was that his core was so highly developed, his spine so stabilized, it related to amazing contraction of the extremities at 100% relaxation.
for me at least, relaxation at the start is especially difficult because i often end up not moving full speed if i try to relax too much.
can u explain the bruce lee core thing a little more, im not sure what u mean?
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ok, yeah, makes sense. ive always heard “power comes from the core”
“My Strength comes from the Abdomen. It’s the centre of gravity and the source of real power” - Bruce Lee –
mon june 28
warm up jog
stretch checks
3 build ups
body kinesthetics
2:30 erg warm up
a. high pulls 5x8,6,4,4,4@170,180,185#
a. bench 5x8,6,4,3,4@155,165,165/160
a. lat pull down (wide grip) 5x10,8,6,6,6@100,110,115
b. squat 5x8,6,4,4,4@260,270,275
b. rdl 3x10,8,8@135,135#
b. 2 min abs (split)
light stretch
notes:
-body was very off today in the kinesthetic stuff. in the spirit of world cup i practiced flip throw ins yesterday and maybe that just wiped out my coordination for today… weightroom went fine however
tues june 29
jump rope 2 min
stretch checks
4 warm up runs
1x10 depth jumps onto box
1x10 broad jump
a. sit-ups 5x15,10,8,8,8@60,65,70
a. high cable twists 5x15,10,8,8,8@30,35,40
a. side bends 5x15,10,8,8,8@70,75,80#
a. stomach vacuum holds 3x5
pick up soccer
wed june 30
5 min erg warm up
stretch checks
3 warm up runs
sled runs:
2x6x30
r: 90", 4’
a. leg curls 3x10,8,8@120,130#
a. bb biceps curls 3x10,8,8@65,65
a. skull crushers 3x10,8,8@60,60
b. pogo jumps 3x12,10,10@80,85 each hand
b. bentover raise 3x12,10,10@15,17.5#
b. medball throws 2x100@10
light stretch
thurs july 1
weigh in ->143
4 min jog
stretch checks
3 build ups
body kinesthetics
marching a’s 3x1min r: wb
1 min jump rope
a. clean 5x7,5,3,3,3@155,165,170/175/185
a. incline bench 5x10,8,6,6,6@130,140,145
a. seated high row 5x10,8,6,6,6@105,115,120/125/130
b. reverse hyper 3x8,6,6@50,55
b. side cable pull downs 3x12,10,10@25,30#
b. medball thows 2x100@12*
light stretch
notes:
-saw some noticeable improvements in strength today. im not sure whether to contribute that to the fact that i lifted more midday, just a good day or whether something finally clicked, but regardless i was happy
-i was very dehydrated this morning when i weighed myself so that number might be a couple pounds lower than a normal morning wake-up weigh in would. it is summer which means i will be sweating more than normal so the fact that i am not really gaining too much weight isnt worrying me because i am getting stronger
fri july 2
4 min jog
stretch checks
3 build ups
various plyos 34 contacts
grass tempo:
1,1,1
1,2,1
1,1,1
various plyos 33 contacts
grass tempo:
1,1,1
1,2,1
1,1,1
various plyos 33 contacts
2:30 erg warm up
a. high cable twists 5x12,10,8,8,8 each@30,35,40#
a. sit-ups 5x12,10,8,8,8@60,65,70#
a. side bends 5x12,10,10,10 each@75,80,85#
a. stomach vacuum holds 3x5
light stretch
sat july 3
2 min jump rope
stretch checks
3 warm up runs
sleds:
2x4x30 r: wb,2’
r: 4’
1x5x30 r:wb
a. single leg curls (alt) 3x12,10,10 each@60,70
a. decline biceps curls (alt) 3x12,10,10 each@25,27.5#
a. overhead tri ext 3x12,10,10@50,55#
b. single leg ledge calf raises 3x10,8,8 each@85,90#
b. side shoulder raise 3x12,10,10@20,20/22.5
b. 6 min abs (split)
light stretch
sun july 4
4 min jog
stretch checks
3 build ups
body kinesthetics
marching a’s 2x60s
1 min jump rope
a. high pulls 5x8,6,4,4,4@175,185,190
a. bench 5x8,6,4,4,4@155,165,170
a. lat pull down (wide grip) 5x10,8,6,6,6@100,110,115
b. squat 4x8,6,4,4@260,270,275
b. rdl 3x10,8,8@135,145#
b. med ball throws 1x100@10
light stretch
notes:
-because of time constraints i had to cut my workout a couple sets short
but you have to be selective. bruce lee was not a sprinter. the hips are every bit of a part of the core as the abdominals are. Hips/low back/every layer of the abdominals/shoulders are all intricately involved in sprinting. (As are many other muscles that also need to be adressed in training)
It would be foolish to neglect training the core muscles. But, RaceRadio, i am confused at what you consider “core”. I feel like you are calling “core” just the abdominals and low back.
Like others have said, those areas definitely need to be adressed, but be careful with exercise selection. A sit up is an abdominal lift. As is a hanging leg raise or a crunch or a V-up or planche push ups. But what about maximal ab strength? Like a squat or deadlift? Or hip stability training? Or hip explosiveness … training with plyometrics?
I would consider all of that core training. Much more than developing the muscles of the abdomen.
I personally consider the core to be inner/outer abdominals, lower back & hip flexors. I don’t do crunches or sit-ups, I think there pretty useless.
McBride et al. 2006 found through a AVG IEMG (mV) study that bodyweight push-ups activated the RECTUS ABDOMINIS over 5x more than than a squat or deadlift @90% 1RM. (A basic push-up). It also activated the obliques more so too.
I have seen a lot of EMG studies concerning many different exercises for activating the abs/obliques & squats & deadlifts don’t come close to cutting it. Take for example the stomach vacuum. That exercise activated the transverse abdominis & multifidus (co-contraction) 8 fold over the squat for someones 1RM. Basic push-ups, basic planks, supermans etc all rated higher. Planche push ups, superman push-ups, L-sits are on the extreme end of activating the inner/outer core.
The core (specifically inner) is the generator to all powerful movements.
but how do they utilize the hips? (“Hips” as in: all of the muscles that attach the femur to the pelvis. ie: the upper muscles of the legs.)
I would consider them twice as important as the abdominals to sprint speed. They should be strengthened, conditioned and stretched. Exercises that develop these muscles: sprints, hills, squats, deadlifts, plyo metric jumping and bounding… as well as stretching and various sprint distances.
How do push up variations and relative strength for the abdominals correlate to the fastest sprinters? Bruce lee: strong core… speed? How about the track guys… do most all of them express strength in any areas of abdominal work? Is there any correlational study proving effectiveness of core training to improve sprint speed?
personally i look at core training for reps like cf likes for simply work volume purposes
but as far as strengthening the core it seems to me that its better to think of the body divided into the posterior chain, the anterior chain and the sides. the anterior chain is very important for front side mechanics, which many lower level athletes (eg. me) dont have very good of
much ab work can be made to activate the psoas and other hip muscles, and abs are definitely important, but like tempo they are really “chicken soup” work