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  The 1-Arm Dumbbell Hang Snatch is a variation of one of the lifts used in Olympic competition. The emphasis here is on generating power in the hips, transferring it through the core, and finishing with the upper body. This is the same power development pattern used in most athletic movements (e.g. shooting in lacrosse and hockey, the golf swing, hitting/throwing in baseball, blocking in football, etc.). Athletes such learn proper technique in exercises like this at a relatively young age to build a foundation for power development in the future. However, it's important that they have the proper body awareness (notably that the back is flat throughout the movement) before they start doing explosive movements like this. Check out the video below. 1-Arm DB Hang Snatch -Kevin Neeld
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Last week I was talking to a group of high school athletes that were all struggling to add muscle mass. Whether or not weight gain is a goal of yours (or your son, daughter or team’s), you’ll want to read this email. This really applies to every athlete. As is typically the case with athletes at this age, the problem was in their diet. The first question I always ask in this scenario is, “What do you eat for breakfast?”. When the answer invariably comes back as a bowl of cereal (or a pop tart), I point out that this relatively nutrient-less meal also only provides about 175 calories, setting them up for about a 1,500 calorie/day diet (less than half of what most high school aged males should be taking in). When I make other suggestions (e.g. steel cut oatmeal with peanut butter and a scoop of chocolate protein powder and a banana; a 4-egg WITH EGG YOLKS meat, vegetable, and/or cheese omelette), I get the same response EVERY time: “I don’t have time” The Truth About “Time” I love hearing this. The truth is that we all have 24 hours in our day; what we decide to spend them on is a matter of priorities. Time is not to be found; it’s to be made. If you need to improve your skill work, MAKE 30 minutes every day to work on skills. 30 minutes a day for 4 days per week (NOT a huge commitment) means you’d get an extra 26 hours (over 1 day!) in the first 3 months and an extra 104 hours (~4.3 days) in the first year. Do you think that would help you catch up to your competition that isn’t doing that? Of course it would. If you need to put on muscle (or clean up your diet in general), MAKE time to prepare quality food. It takes 30 minutes to prepare enough steel cut oatmeal to last 2 people a week. It takes less than 2 minutes to reheat it in the morning. It takes about 8 minutes to prepare a multi-ingredient omelette (e.g. more than just cheese). It takes about 2 hours on a Sunday to prepare enough food for most meals for the week, package (e.g. Ziploc bags and Tupperware) it up and clean the dishes. Brian Tracy (high school dropout turned self-made millionaire, best-selling author and international expert on goal setting) points out that whatever you’re doing at this very moment is a conscious decision you’ve made that the activity (or lack thereof) is more important than everything else you’re not doing. Relevant to our previous examples, if kids have time to play Playstation for an hour every night, but “don’t have time” to prepare a quality meal or practice their sport-specific skills, they’re DECIDING that Playstation is a bigger priority to them than their athletic development. I’m not suggesting that every second of every day be dedicated to athletic betterment; that would be mentally and socially unhealthy. I am saying that most people are AMAZED at how much time they can free up for things of ACTUAL importance when they view their daily activity as a choice of priorities. If it’s important to you, MAKE time for it. The results will be worth your dedication. Remember, we all have 24 hours in our day. It’s your choice what you do with it. To your continued success, Kevin Neeld P.S. Summer is here. Now is the time where most athletes are putting the energy into their training to completely transform themselves for next season. If you haven't yet, call me today at (856) 269-4148 or send me an email to get signed up for our Summer training programs. Remember, we offer special rates for athletes signing up with their teammates!
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A great post on quinoa from my friend Brian St. Pierre: Quinoa is considered by many to be the greatest grain on earth. Though botanically it is a seed, it is much more similar to a grain, and so is placed into that category along with better known wheat and rice. Pronounced keenwa, it was known as “chisiya mama”, or the mother of grains by the Incas, who greatly treasured this tremendous food. There are legends of Incan armies marching for days eating nothing but “war balls”, quinoa packed with fat. One of the greatest aspects of quinoa is the fact that it is rarest of all creatures, a grain or seed that contains all of the essential amino acids, making it a complete high-quality protein. Most grains and plant foods in general lack an amino acid called lysine, which quinoa is naturally high in. High-quality protein is especially important for hard-training athletes for recovery and growth. Quinoa is also incredibly nutrient dense. It is high in fiber, with roughly 5 grams per serving, and it boasts a very low glycemic index score, meaning it has a minimal impact on blood sugar levels. Compared to other grains like wheat and corn (yes corn is really more grain than vegetable) it is higher in many minerals including calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, and iron, of which it is a good source. It is also a good source of zinc, copper and folate along with several B vitamins. Another benefit of quinoa is that though it is used much the same as rice, it cooks in about the same time as pasta, taking roughly 12-15 minutes. It is a versatile and easily prepared food that can be used in a variety of recipes. Since quinoa is technically a leafy seed, and not a grassy grain, it does not contain any of the allergens common to wheat, rye, barley, oats or corn. It is gluten free and so can be enjoyed by those with gluten sensitivies (such as celiac’s disease). Quinoa is an amazing little food that is incredibly nutritionally dense, is a complete protein, is hypo-allergenic, is high in fiber and has minimal impact on blood sugar. Nothing more could be asked of a grain. Quinoa & Coconut Chicken Ingredients
Directions Whip eggs together in a large bowl. Mix quinoa flakes and shredded coconut into a separate large bowl. Dip each piece of chicken into the eggs, then take the lightly egg-covered chicken and press into the bowl of quinoa and coconut, thoroughly covering each piece. Bake chicken in a large pyrex dish at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes, or until done. Serves 4.
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Like many strength and conditioning coaches out there, I am all for a stimulating training environment. The facility or the gym where you train will be responsible for a lot of the progress you can make on a training program. You may be thinking, “I am motivated enough and I can train anywhere and probably get optimal results”. You couldn’t be further from the truth my friend! No matter how motivated you think you, a results-driven training environment will have an incredibly positive impact on your progress. Do you think that things like training next to a lady doing dumbbell curls with 5 pounds, trying to lift heavy weights listening to Lady Gaga, getting weird looks every time you drop your weights on the floor and standing next to Johnny Baloney who poses and flexes in front of the mirror are all factors that help you focus on what you have to do? Unfortunately, that’s the scenario in most gyms. If you are looking to improve your performance, increase your strength or any other serious goal you might have, you need to do yourself a favor and find a training environment that will stimulate you and challenge you at the same time. Here’s what you should be looking for in a good training environment: music that makes your blood boil, a gym/facility that allows chalk, people who are training for the same goals as you do and, of course, appropriate equipment. My personal experience: I have been training to increase my strength levels for the past 4-5 years. The time when I was the strongest was when I interned at Robert Morris University under Todd Hamer, where I was surrounded with very strong people. Since then, I had been working as a personal trainer in a commercial gym for 3 years where I was also doing my own training. Even if I was motivated and knew how to program in a smart way, I had a hard time getting my strength up for these past 3 years because my training environment sucked and I was not surrounded by strong people. This past winter, I made the move to Endeavor where I was back in a good training environment and surrounded by strong people who have the same goals as me. The result? In less than 6 weeks I broke my previous deadlift personal record and I just bench pressed my previous PR for 2 reps a few days ago. And all of this in less than 3 months! And I’m not the only one. I’ve heard dozens of stories of people who got stronger and improved their performances by switching to a good training environment. If you’re serious about your training, you owe it to yourself to find a facility/gym that will help you progress toward your goals in an optimal way. I may be biased, but Endeavor is a great choice! -David Lasnier
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As I’ve mentioned in the past, speed is hands down the most highly sought after athletic ability. As such, we’re constantly bombarded by so-called “speed training experts” about the best ways to develop speed. Before we jump into the essential speed training elements, it’s important that we understand what factors into speed. Athletic speed is determined by: 1) Movement pattern/technique quality 2) Core stability and energy transfer 3) Full body strength and power 4) Reactive ability Of these, a high quality sports training program can really make drastic improvements on the first three. Reactive ability is inherently improved by increasing your body’s capacity to decelerate and change directions more quickly, but is also dependent on the athletes’ ability to read the play and make the best movement decision. The Fatal Speed Training Mistake One of the biggest mistakes the sports world (parents, coaches, athletes) make is assuming that the above factors work in isolation. For example, I had a parent email me recently about his daughter that runs with a bit of an awkward swagger that looks unnatural and is slowing her down. She was told that she needed to work on her running technique. While I won’t argue that her technique wasn’t perfect (that was the whole reason I received the email in the first place!), I will argue that technique work isn’t the best place to start. The truth is that she wasn’t STRONG enough to run with the right technique. In the first three works I worked with her, she made good strength gains, and her running technique improved without me ever addressing it. Technique and strength go hand in hand. Strength Training for Speed Development With that in mind, building speed-enhancing strength isn’t as simple as doing a machine circuit to “strengthen all the major muscle groups”. First, I haven’t had a single person use a fixed range of motion machine since I started with Endeavor, but I’ll save that rant for a different day. Second, research has shown that speed correlates highly with hamstring strength. This makes sense since the hamstrings are one of the most powerful hip extensors (this is what happens after your foot hits the ground while running and throughout the entire push-off during skating). In general, most athletes are very “quad dominant” and don’t have good hip strength/control. Combining these two things leads us to the conclusion that training to improve speed should include a greater proportion of exercises to strengthen the glutes and hamstrings. One of my favorite ways to train this complex is using a Slideboard Hamstring Curl Progression. Check out this link for videos and instruction on how to perform this exercise progression: Posterior Chain Exercises for Speed Development To your success, Kevin Neeld P.S. If you haven't yet (I know most of you have!), you REALLY need to call me today at (856) 269-4148 or send me an email to get signed up for our Summer training programs. Many of our "optimal" time slots are already filling up!
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