Interesting read on college and pro S&C
I know offseason is over, but I think this is relevant enough since it deals with college strength and conditioning. Good article on the short falls of modern S&C focusing too much on supplemental exercises and not enough on developing strength.
http://www.t-nation.com/training/current-state-of-sc-coaching
The author is a huge proponent of focusing mainly on basic barbell lifts done right before considering any other training and this article clearly reflects that philosophy.
September 5th, 2014 at 8:05 PM ^
Bench Press is all you need.
Signed,
Late 80's
September 5th, 2014 at 8:18 PM ^
Article by Rippetoe that's 10x longer than it needs to be for the message that he's trying to get across (that is that strength >>> anything else); aka everything he's ever written.
September 5th, 2014 at 8:22 PM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
September 5th, 2014 at 11:18 PM ^
September 5th, 2014 at 10:04 PM ^
That GIF+Your Signature is so, so perfect together.
September 5th, 2014 at 8:38 PM ^
I've never understood sites like T-nation commenting on other sports. Weightlifting requires different workouts like any other sport/recreation, and yet you read this stuff and it is the same 2-3 arguments about how everyone is doing it wrong except the author, how they are not "maximizing gains", and all this crap about "natural strength" vs. "gym strength." If S&C programs in multi-billion dollar sports are so bad, then why is it the guys running them are making 6 figures a year and the average T-nation zealot is sitting at the front desk of a Powerhouse Gym.
I'm not knocking Rippetoe, who is a trailblazer in strength training and deserves credit for some of the standardizations we see in conditioning, but this article simply argues that being "strong" and "powerful" is more important than anything else, which I guess is true but only in the most generalized of terms. It also has the usual dismissive tone of a guy who thinks living in the gym is the best way to succeed, even though he tries to couch it in "training" as some universal term that applies equally to all disciplines.
September 5th, 2014 at 9:07 PM ^
Weightlifting is one of those areas where it is very hard to say for sure who is right or the best. The research in that field seems to be very inconclusive and hard to interpret, hence the perpetual disagreement about the ideal way to train. So it makes perfect sense that strength coaches can be making 6 figures without actually knowing what they are doing. Not saying that is for sure what is happening, but seems like a very real possibility to me.
Rippetoe is for sure abbrasive and dismissive of other methods, but to me he generally has far better logic behind his methods compared to most of the "experts" out there.
September 5th, 2014 at 9:23 PM ^
I agree, but I have to think most high-profile S&C positions would hire guys that are beyond mere weightlighting mythos and instead focus on cutting-edge training methods. I'm sure Rippetoe has a solid take on the field and I'm sure there are failings in the methods being used in some programs, but it reads like a gym guy talking down to everyone else because they don't follow a method he recognizes as appropriate for (mostly) non-competitive sports clients.
I saw him go off on a CrossFit guy on TV some time ago, and while I generally think CrossFit is a decent workout wrapped up in a mountain of hype, Rippetoe's tone and general inability to make his point in less than 3-minute spiels made me kinda side with the CrossFit guy who could at least respond in a timely manner with thoughtful ideas.
September 5th, 2014 at 10:36 PM ^
Yeah I started reading the linked article and then there's a disclaimer about the future, about himself, etc., and I saw the length of the piece and said screw that.
I would bet most S&C coaches are pretty damn good. It's hard to imagine they'd be employed otherwise. I don't think there's some great secret to weighlifting. Guys could get big on their own obviously. Probably the main asset of an S&C coach is organization and planning and making sure you're really crossing your t's and dotting your...lower case j's when it comes to lifting and dieting. People are claiming all athletes are genetic freaks because...they're athletes. Slightly circular there. Of course athletes in general have very good genes, but surely there are plenty of guys who aren't as genetically gifted and just work their asses off in a good S&C program.
Having said that, it is true that there's not a lot of research on weightlifting. That's because there isn't the funding for research just to see what's the best way to get huge. A lot of research you do see is treating some problem or disease or coming back from injury.
I HIGHLY recommend www.bodyrecomposition.com run by Lyle MacDonald. The forums there are great too. He tries to base everything on scientific findings as much as he can. He's ripped guys like Rippetoe, and including Rippetoe, before for saying there's his way to do things and everything else is stupid. I made some very nice gains with Lyle's beginner routine without killing myself in the gym.
September 5th, 2014 at 9:08 PM ^
oops.
September 5th, 2014 at 8:54 PM ^
September 5th, 2014 at 11:14 PM ^
September 5th, 2014 at 10:12 PM ^
Strength train with barbells and practice your sport, everything else reduces the effectiveness of athletic gains. D1 S&C coaches get good results with other methods because they have freak natural athletes whose bodies are already filling out into adulthood and would show mad gains under any system.
I dunno, I guess to some extent but since most athletes can't practice their sport everyday some supplimental excersises would increase gains (which he acknowledges).
When I was doing P90x, I got really good at doing P90x, though I made hella quicker gains doing Ripatoe's starting strength. But since tennis is my main sport, P90x was better for increasing on court performance. Though I suppose playing tennis 6 days a week would give me better performance than P90x, which I guess is his point.
September 6th, 2014 at 8:03 AM ^
I have no idea what it looks like in a D1 S&C program but what Rippetoe is describing is ignoring the fact that conditioning time is limited and the game has changed from the 80s and 90s. Solely focusing on packing 30-50 lbs of muscle onto a guy's frame without working on speed and endurance will give you a blocky Andy Katzenmoyer-type guy who has no place on the field vs teams like Oregon, Texas A&M, or even Indiana.
Some guys need to eat everything in sight and gain weight to compete, and lifting heavy is the best way to do this, no doubt. At a certain point, Raymon Taylor or Devin Funchess doesn't need to focus on being able to squat 600 lbs. They need to refine their technique and optimize their ability to play in the fourth quarter. Some of this happens through strength training but there comes a point where a 6'5" receiver or 6' CB becomes inefficient as a runner when carrying an extra 5 or 10 lbs of anything, fat or muscle.
I think the genetic thing he describes is fairly true however in my own experience of the past 5 years of HIIT, plyometric, and strength training, I can confidently say I am stronger now than when I solely trained for strength and I have improved my SVJ by more than 20%.