www.MichaelReid.ca

No Pull Up Bar? No Problem.

No pull up bar needed but you do need 2 of your mates to help you out. 

Very important for Water Polo players and other overhead throwing athletes, like Baseball & Handball, to include more pulling then pushing movements in their strength training programs. 

This will aid in keeping your shoulders healthy by promoting muscle balance between your anterior (front) and posterior (back) muscles groups.

You can rarely go wrong with doing more pulling then pushing; so when in doubt do more pulling.

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Watch the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4l8oJYNNAzA

"Complexity is a symptom of confusion, not a cause."

Jeff Hawkins - author of "On Intelligence"

Is your training program too complex? 

How about your teams playbook?

How many different plays do you run?

Is more better?

If more is better, do you become a "jack of all trades but a master of none"?  Is this good or bad?

When training, are you doing several different exercises for every different body part?

or

Just 2-4 big bang exercises? 

What is better?

How often do you change your program?

Be Well,
Mike Reid

ps I got this quote from strength coach Brett Jones blog at http://appliedstrength.blogspot.com/

How to Get Fat NOW!

One of my key points in a nutrition plan is to eat whole foods and limit processed foods to a minimum.

Processed foods = get fat now!

9 million children are obese in the USA.

The video below is a good example why the USA health system is so F**ked up!

The unfortunate thing is that with our great global economy and ease of movement we all can live a life like those 9 million children are with out even stepping foot in the USA.

Be Well,
Mike Reid

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtLFeH0W1x4

Just Kill it!

This was too good not to post.

a. it's funny
b. great message
c. only 15 minutes long

Be Well,
Mike Reid

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhqZ0RU95d4&feature=channel

I'm going to RKC!

Check it out, I am going to this in May 2009.

I have been training since July with kettlebells with a goal of being able to do 100 total Kettlebell Snatches in 5 minutes.

For the RKC course I will need to complete around 80-85 reps (my weight in kg, which is currently around 85kg) in 5 minutes in order to pass the course.

So far I am at 64 reps but I still want to be at 100 before I go there in May.

Be Well,
Mike Reid

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO61k3EODY4

12 Week Jumping Program - download the NEW program here

I have the NEW version of my "12 week stair jumping program" here for you to download. 

The actual program is the same but I have added way more meat to the manual.

There are now instructional videos on how to measure your vertical jump and all the stair jumping exercises.

You can download it here which is also where you will find all the resource videos.

If you want to use this program, all I have to say is please read the entire manual first.

When you are finished the 12 weeks drop me a line and let me know how it went.

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Video Demo of Stair Jumping Exercises

This is a video demo of all the stair jumping exercises in the "12 week stair jumping program" I wrote back in November, 2008.  I have actually taken the program off of my site and will be uploading a NEW version later this week.

The actual jumping exercises are still the same but I have added more content to the program which has grown from 3 pages to close to 20 pages!

All free for you to use.  I hope you enjoy it. 

Be Well,
Mike Reid

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iyk4VfiAXG4

How to Measure Your Vertical Jump

Short video on the "Jump and Reach Test", which is a test to measure your vertical jump. 

The vertical jump is a great measure of an athletes lower body power.

Here are some vertical jumps of some famous athletes to compare your score to.

athlete	Vertical jump
Kadour Ziani	61” / 155 cm
Michael Jordan	48" / 122 cm
Allen Iverson	41" / 104 cm
Leonel Marshall	50" / 127 cm

Reference: www.topendsports.com/testing/results-vertical-jump.htm

Or you can rate your vertical jump on population norms.

rating	female	male
excellent	>71 cm	>81 cm
very good	56 - 70 cm	66 - 80 cm
good	46 - 55 cm	56 - 65 cm
average	36 - 45 cm	46 - 55 cm
poor	<35 cm	<45 cm

Table adapted from: D.A. Chu; Explosive Power and Strength; Human Kinetics; 1996

Be Well,
Mike Reid

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L7kyxsppd4

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"The only certain means of success is to render more and better service than is expected of you, no matter what your task may be."

-- Og Mandino, author

comments:

I got this quote from a business newsletter and even though it is targeted at the businessman I see so many parallels to team sports.

How does this quote apply to your team sport?

Be Well,

Mike Reid

PS  you can now sign up to my website and receive all the latest news via email.  Just enter your email in the box in the upper left corner.

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My Current Favorite Salad

I love this salad.

It is so easy to make, loaded with nutrition and tastes great.

Ingredients:
Avocado
Tomato
Ground Meat (chicken, beef, lamb, pork or what ever you like)
Spices for meat (I usually use some kind of taco mix)
Garlic
Olive Oil
Salt

You can whip this meal up real fast too, under 15 minutes.

 Steps:

1. Mix the spices into the ground meat and place the meat into a covered frying pan on medium-high heat.
2. While the meat is cooking prepare all the vegetables.
3. Gently mix all the prepped vegetables into a serving bowl.
4. After meat is cook (10-15 minutes), place on top of the salad and drizzle with Olive Oil.
5. Eat and enjoy.

Be Well,
Mike Reid