Form Fix of the Week: Box Jump

Ah, the wonderful world of plyometrics. They take any athlete up a notch in performance and can give them a huge jump (pun intended) on the competition. Today’s form fix is on the box jump. A very powerful plyometric exercise and if done correctly will take any athlete to new heights (more puns!).

When choosing the right box height, one should select a box that can be 1.) landed on with both feet firmly on the box and 2.) landed on in a standard squat position (a.k.a. an “athletic” position), NOT a deep squat. If you find yourself landing in a deep squat it means the box is too high. In relation to sports performance, you won’t find yourself very useful in this position as you will always need to be in the “ready” position to react quickly for your next move. Like you would with any other exercise, be patient and build up to the different heights as you would with weight in your resistance training. The stronger you become, the higher you will be able to jump.

Also, a good rule of thumb for plyometrics is that you are using power and explosiveness for the way up, not down. If you are jumping down with the same force, you are at risk for placing unnecessary force on your achilles tendon and causing serious injury. So when you are performing your box jumps, it is better to use the jump up-step down method.

Now, jump to it! (Last pun, I swear.)

So You Think You Can Run

proof that i'm pounding the pavement.

After retiring from derby, I said I would concentrate on speed skating. But I have put off recreational sports until I am back on my feet after moving halfway across the country. To replace my cardio conditioning, I started running.

If you’ve known me for years or known me for five minutes, you would know that I actually hate running. It is not my cup of tea. I don’t like the high impact. I don’t know how to breathe properly. I get really bored if I have to run longer than 20 minutes. If I were an Olympian, I would rather sprint like Usain Bolt than run a marathon. You get the point. But now that I am in foreign territory and there is a whole lot more to look at here in the PNW with such a mild winter, I had no excuses.

the view on my running route. in the middle of winter. say what?

When I first started running 4 weeks ago, I could barely make it a mile. I was frequently losing my will to live and awkward pains shot up my legs. And that old Joanie Utah knee? The one that cries in agony all the time? Not happy. My boyfriend would constantly remind me that I was a trainer and assumed that all trainers enjoy doing every type of workout. Wrong. Like normal human beings, trainers also have preferences for workouts. I have a preference for cardio conditioning that involves being on wheels. Skating, biking and spinning. If I knew how to swim, I would probably do that too. But you can’t tie a rope around my waist and throw me in the pool, can you? So how did I manage to stick to it for 4 weeks?

I had wrote out a simple plan. It started extremely light. 30 minutes of light jogging on day one, then having a goal of 2 miles on day two, then switching it up on day three with stair climbing (272 of them). From there I would slowly pick up the pace or add intensity/mileage depending on the day and monitor how I felt after each run. My pace has picked up, which I am very proud of and I need less breaks. My longest run so far has been 4.5 miles and I’d like to think that when I get to 5 miles, I won’t have the desire to run any further.

you want me to do how many sets? 

I don’t have a goal of running a marathon or becoming a distance runner. The goal for starting running was keep up my cardio conditioning. That was a good enough goal for me. As I wrap up my 4 weeks, I plan on taking a nice recovery week from running all together, then seeing if I can translate that work into getting back on my bike and tackling these mighty hills that were non-existent in my 15 years as a midwest biker. 60 miles was no problem in Chicago. But let’s see how far I can get here in Seattle and how long it takes before either my quads or my bike explodes.

Lesson of the Day

Even if you know you hate a particular type of training, give it a try. Mixing up your training will challenge you in different ways and keep you intrigued while making physical gains. When in new territory, always start smart and ease into it. Then, after you’ve gotten the hang of it, mastered it and realize you still hate it, you have now earned the right to loathe it with your own two feet.

Agility Drill of the Week: Weave N' Sprint

There is a scene I always think of in the Bourne Supremacy when I am running. In the beginning of the movie, Matt Damon is running on the beach and then all of a sudden, he kicks it into high gear and turns into a sprinting machine. I started running recently and am doing my best to stick to it, but I know in my heart that I will always loathe distance running. I’ve always been a sprinter and will always be a sprinter. So in my head, I am Jason Bourne-ing my runs just in case I ever need to go fight bad guys and uncover conspiracies.

This week’s drill is a one built to work both agility and speed. Adding this drill to your weekly practice can improve your footwork in multiple directions and then kick you into high gear in a forward action. Below are the steps to execute along with some tips!

Pro Tips

- Use your whole body to perform the drill: swing your arms and drive the actions with both your hips and legs.

- Look up! Train as if you were training for your sport, so don’t be caught looking at your feet when you could be focusing your eyes on what is happening around you.

- Form over speed: do a run through once or twice at a slower pace to get the rhythm and form right. Speed in these drills won’t benefit you if you are running through them like a wacky waving inflatable tube man. Once you’ve gotten a handle on technique, go for speed.

Weave N’ Sprint

You will need 10 cones. Set the first 5 cones about a foot apart, then the other five 50 yards away in a straight line in the same manner. Start at one end and while facing forward the entire drill, weave quickly through the first 5 cones then sprint to the end of the last cone set. Turn around and repeat from the other side so that you end where you began. That is 1 rep. Repeat this drill 6 to 8 times total.

Got it? Good. Let's go Jason Bourne-ing.

Agility Drill of the Week: 1-Foot Lateral Hop

I’ve been having a little bit of fun with agility drills lately, and I wanted to share them in a fun way. So today I present ADOTW—animated for your enjoyment!

Agility drills have some great benefits. Not only can you train all 3 planes of motion:

• Sagittal = forward or backward

• Frontal = side to side

• Transverse = rotational

you can increase your body/mind awareness, coordination and speed. I like to add 3 to 4 agility drills to the end of each workout to keep agility fine-tuned. They are also great metabolic finishers, which burn the last bit of energy you have to increase endurance and keep calories burning off long after you’ve finished.

Pro Tips

- Use your whole body to perform the drill: swing your arms and drive the actions with both your hips and legs.

- Look up! Train as if you were training for your sport, so don’t be caught looking at your feet when you could be focusing your eyes on what is happening around you.

- Form over speed: do a run through once or twice at a slower pace to get the rhythm and form right. Speed in these drills won’t benefit you if you are running through them like a wacky waving inflatable tube man. Once you’ve gotten a handle on technique, go for speed.

1-Foot Lateral Ladder Drill

Increase your lateral power and speed with this drill. The fun and not-so-fun part about this drill is that you are training single leg stability as well, so you will find your lower leg on fire by the end. The stronger your lower leg muscles are, the faster you can react.

Start with both feet to the side of the agility ladder, a few feet away. Then, loading your right foot, hop laterally to the outside of the ladder with your left. From there you will quickly hop to the inside of the ladder and back out with the same foot. Load your left foot, then hop back out to the side but forward to the next starting position. Repeat on both sides.

And don’t forget, have fun!

Quote of the Week: Don't Quit

“I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion'.”

― Muhammad Ali