Every sport is going to face challenges when lockdown ends and athletes around the world are once again allowed to practice and compete. None more so than swimmers. Stripped of their normal diet of 20+ hours in the pool (somewhere between 40,000 to 60,000 metres) their training during lockdown has had to widely differ from its normal course.
How this has looked has varied amongst athletes: some have bought makeshift outdoor pools and tied themselves to the wall using a bungee; some have attempted to replicate swimming through the use of swim cords and ‘race simulations’; whilst others have looked to maintain an aerobic base through running. Regardless of choice (some seem better than others), none of the above are, unfortunately, truly preparing a swimmer for the demands they will face when pools are back open and typical training resumes.
Shoulders and adductors
I have written before about what a swim strength and conditioning/land training programme should look like. If you haven’t already, please click here to read. In that article, I detailed the common injury risks for swimmers. It is worth repeating some of this now as these injury risks will only increase once normal training resumes and there is a dramatic spike in the demand placed on these muscles (through a dramatic increase in training volume). The extant literature draws our attention to two main sites of injury for swimmers – shoulders and adductors (inner thigh muscles). Shoulder pain has been reported as the most common injury in competitive swimming [1]. This is not surprising given that every swimmer completes significant volumes of freestyle metres each week. Additionally, breaststroke swimmers are particularly susceptible to adductor injuries, with Grote et. al. finding that breaststroke swimmers put extensive stress on the adductor muscles due to repeated adduction with peak adduction velocity of the thigh in breaststroke swimmers averaging 245° per second [2].
The third component
Alongside mitigating the risk of injury to the adductors and shoulders, the third component of a well-rounded swim robustness programme is focused work on the ability to maintain aquatic posture. The concept of aquatic posture is one that I have borrowed from USA Olympic swim S&C coach Keenan Robinson – ‘the ability of the swimmer to stabilise their spine in the element of extremity movement or perturbation’ [3]. This is where Mike Boyle’s view of core training – that the primary purpose of the core musculature is the prevention of motion, not motion creation – plays a significant role [4]. Through the implementation of exercise progressions, starting with intrinsic stability focused exercises and moving to dynamic stability focused exercises, we can gradually increase the complexity of core training with no equipment [5].
What to do?
So what are some exercises that address these needs that a swimmer should be performing at home during lockdown?
When pools re-open there will be the tendency to quickly dive (pun intended) back into ‘normal’ training in order to make up for lost time. This will result in a dramatic spike in training volume, leading to a dramatic increase in injury risk, particularly amongst muscles that are currently being neglected in high volume circuit type training, which is, unfortunately, typical of most swimmers training during lockdown. By including some of the above exercises (please message me if you would like further details on any of them) we can hope to reduce the risk of injury once swimming training resumes.
References
[1] Bishop et. al., ‘Strength and Conditioning for Sprint Swimming’, Strength and Conditioning Journal 35 (6), pp. 1-6, 2013.
[2] Grote K., Lincoln T.L., and Gamble J.G., ‘Hip adductor injury in competitive swimmers’, American Journal of Sports Medicine 32: pp. 104-8, 2004.
[3] Robinson, K., ‘Athletes, Adaptation, Availability’, presentation given at CVASPS 2017.
[4] Boyle M., New Functional Training for Sports 2nd ed., 2016.
[5] Landow, L., Progressions of Isometric Core Training’, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5kbGUMwsWw (accessed 03/05/2020).
I started the first article of this mini at home mobility series by saying that many people are using this government enforced lockdown to focus on improving their mobility. After all, mobility is the component of fitness that often gets overlooked or neglected during a typical training week. The same is true for the athletic population, perhaps even truer. The typical athlete spends their entire week time-pressured, trying to combine elements of technical, tactical, physical and psychological training. Not to mention their work or school commitments (for the vast majority who are not professional). Lockdown has eliminated, or at least minimised, the number of these commitments, leaving the athlete free to spend more time focusing on their physical capacity. A focus on mobility, requiring little to no equipment, has been at the forefront of this.
Some Considerations
As mentioned in the previous article, the terms flexibility and mobility are often used interchangeably when they in fact mean different things. It is worth reminding ourselves of the differentiation:
Flexibility: the ability of muscles to lengthen to provide range of motion (ROM) at a joint
Mobility: the available range of motion through active movements
In essence, one is active (mobility) whilst the other is passive (flexibility). Flexibility targets muscles whereas mobility targets joints. An improvement in flexibility does not necessarily result in an improvement in mobility, which involves balance, co-ordination, postural control and perception [1]. As it relates to sport performance, it has been shown that the most flexible athlete is not always the most successful [2].
The main goal of mobility training for the athlete is therefore not simply maximising flexibility, but instead optimising mobility for specific sporting tasks. If flexibility is improved, we must ensure the athlete can make use of this greater ROM during active movements required in their sport. Ultimately, the athlete must be able to apply force and hold key technical positions in this new ROM. An athlete must therefore include mobility drills that actively move joints through ROMs encountered in sport in order to maximise their mobility training, alongside flexibility training incorporating static stretches.
Stability: the missing component
In order to apply force and hold key technical positions in a new ROM, an athlete must possess stability in this new range. Ultimately, as an athlete, you need strong and stable joints. Indeed, shortened/inflexible muscles may be providing the body with adaptive stability so if we lengthen these muscles, the adaptive stability has been removed [3]. We therefore need to ensure we provide these joints with some new forms of stability.
One way of training to provide the outer range of motion of a joint with stability is Controlled Articular Rotations (CARS). I was first made aware of this in a mobility guide I purchased last year from Sam Portland (Coach Sportland) and if you have been taking part in my recent Rigs Remote mobility classes, you will have seen me incorporate these into the routines. CARS involve moving isolated joints through your usable active ROM under muscular and neurological control, thereby incorporating a stability challenge. With each circle, you should be trying to create a larger ROM.
The Joint-by-Joint Approach and Injury Risk
The vast topic of injury risk and sport cannot possibly be covered by this article. It will not even attempt to do so; instead, it will provide a small glimpse into how limited mobility can potentially add to the risk of injury.
Part 1 of this article series highlighted the concept of the joint-by-joint approach to mobility, popularised by Gray Cook and Mike Boyle [4]. Each joint has specific needs; some require mobility, while others require stability. This is shown in the table below:
Joint
Need
Ankle
Mobility
Knee
Stability
Hip
Mobility
Lumbar Spine
Stability
Thoracic Spine
Mobility
Glenohumeral joint (shoulder)
Stability
As we work our way up the body, the joint requirements alternate between stability and mobility. Knowing that injuries relate closely to joint dysfunction it is important that we focus on mobility work, in those joints that require mobility, to prevent this from happening. Interestingly, however, the joint dysfunction usually shows up at the joint above or below the one that is the root of the problem. For example: if the hip joint becomes immobile, the lumbar spine compensates, therein becoming less stable, and subsequently painful.
Ultimately, athletes need to ensure that their joints are mobile otherwise there is a needless risk of injury due to joint dysfunction. This will likely not show up at the immobile joint, but rather further up or down the chain.
Free from the time-pressured constraints of needing to include technical, tactical, physical and psychological components of training into their weekly schedule, athletes are free to spend time looking at improving their mobility. When considering mobility improvements, athletes must ensure they are conscious of the need to control the ROM through active movements, rather than simply increasing their flexibility. After all, the most flexible athlete is not necessarily the most successful. One way of providing stability and neurological control under new ROM is the use of CARS. Additionally, it must be noted that there is a needless increase in injury risk through poor mobility though, interestingly, this will usually show up at the joint either above or below the joint with dysfunction.
References
[1] Cook, G., Movement: Functional Movement Systems: Screening Assessment and Corrective Strategies, 2010.
[2] Jeffreys I., ‘Warm-Up and Flexibility Training’ in G. Haff & N. Triplett, Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning 4th ed., 2016.
[3] Falsone, S., ‘Optimising Flexibility’ in D. Joyce & D. Lewindon, High-Performance Training for Sports, 2014.
[4] Boyle M., New Functional Training for Sports 2nd ed., 2016.
This video shows you how to wrap your hands for boxing. Sam shows you a quick, easy and effective method to wrap your hands with 4.5m wraps.
There are a couple of key points you need to know when wrapping your hands, including keeping you palm facing down at all times whilst your wrapping. Watch the rest of the video for all the tips you need.
Once you’ve practised this method a few times you will be good to go and train knowing your hand is in a safe position to train. It’s super important for beginners to make sure that your hands are safe when you start training (both in terms of alignment and protection), so make sure you take to the time to watch this video and learn exactly how to wrap your hands safely.
If you have any questions just drop a comment on the YouTube video and we’ll get back to you straight away.
The government enforced lockdown has left many gym-goers
having to change the emphasis of their fitness routine. Without access to a
barbell and plates, meaningful strength work has become much harder to indulge
in. Instead, many people are using this time to focus on improving their
mobility. After all, mobility is the component of fitness that often gets
overlooked or neglected during a typical training week. ‘I’ll do it at the end of
my session’ quickly turns into ‘I’ll do it as a mini session tomorrow’ and when
tomorrow comes, there is another ready-made excuse on the tip of the tongue.
With more time on our hands than ever before, the excuse well has now run dry.
But how should you go about improving your mobility? What
exactly do you need to be including in this new-found routine in order to
ensure you are optimising your time? Don’t worry, by the end of this article
you will know what three components to include in your comprehensive mobility
routine.
But first, let’s make sure we are on the same page with some
definitions, specifically, distinguishing between mobility and flexibility.
Flexibility: the ability of muscles to lengthen to provide range of motion (ROM) at a joint
Mobility: the available range of motion through active movements
In essence, one is active (mobility) whilst the other is
passive (flexibility). It’s all well and good having improved flexibility, but
if we lack the requisite control and co-ordination to access these greater
muscle lengths, it is of little use in our day-to-day lives.
So what do you need to be including in your overall mobility
routine?
Foam rolling (self-myofascial release)
Why?
‘Foam rollers are the poor man’s answer to a good massage
therapist, offering soft tissue work for the masses’ [1]
If you own one, the foam roller allows us to perform a
technique known as self-myofascial release. This is a technique that allows us
to inhibit overactive neuromyofascial tissue which may be responsible for
reduced range of motion at a joint [2]. One way in which it is thought to
achieve this is through a mechanism known as autogenic inhibition whereby the
muscle is inhibited by its own receptors. Regardless of exact mechanism, it is
widely accepted that foam rolling is an effective tool when it comes to
improving our body’s ability to move.
How?
There are a variety of tools that can be used to perform
self-myofascial release. The most common is a cylindrical foam roller, but handheld
rollers, lacrosse balls and golf balls have also been widely used. Some tools
are more suited to rolling out different muscles, but whilst in lockdown make
use of what you have. In general, foam rolling is best targeted on muscles that
restrict your movement, or muscles that you have trained earlier that day.
Some key muscles/areas to roll are:
Calf
Hamstring
Quad
Glute
Thoracic
Stretching
Why?
Stretching, specifically static stretching (a slow and
constant stretch held in the end position), enables us to successfully improve
range of motion at a joint through the lengthening of mechanically shortened
muscle and connective tissue. In short, this improves our flexibility. Though
the exact mechanisms behind this are not fully understood, it is believed that
there is both a mechanical and neural component [2].
How?
Requiring no equipment and no external assistance, static
stretching is ideal to perform during lockdown. Before following a static
stretching routine, it is advised to spend a few minutes increasing body
temperature as this increases the elastic properties of collagen within muscles
and tendons, thus allowing for a greater stretch magnitude [3]. Focus on your
breathing whilst you stretch; utilise a 3s:6s ratio of inhaling via the nose
and exhaling via pursed lips [1].
Hold the following stretches for 30-45s per stretch:
Calf
Hamstring
Adductor
Kneeling hip flexor
Glute
Thoracic
Pec
Neck
Mobilisation Exercises
Why?
Having extra flexibility via following a static stretching
routine is great. But if you don’t follow this up with some mobilisation
exercises, the new ROM you have access to will not be successfully utilised in
day-to-day active movements. Essentially, whilst your flexibility may have
improved, your mobility will not have. Ultimately, you need strong and stable
joints. Mobilisation exercises help us to achieve this by involving active
movement through the entire range of motion, therein including additional
factors such as balance, co-ordination and postural control that flexibility
does not address.
How?
When deciding which mobilisation exercises to include, the
joint-by-joint approach put forward by Mike Boyle and Gray Cook is a fantastic
starting point for considering the mobility demands of the body [1].
Essentially, some joints need mobility whilst others need stability. This is
shown in the table below:
Joint
Need
Ankle
Mobility
Knee
Stability
Hip
Mobility
Lumbar Spine
Stability
Thoracic Spine
Mobility
Glenohumeral joint (shoulder)
Stability
So what exercises can we perform to improve our mobility at
the joints that require mobility?
Ankle – calf pulses, ankle rocks
Hip – 90/90 hip rotations, spidermans
Thoracic spine – reach and rotate, side lying
rotations
With more time on your hands than ever before, use it to get
rolling, get stretching, and get mobilising in order to improve the quality of
your movement.
References
[1] Boyle M., New Functional Training for Sports 2nd
ed., 2016.
[2] Clark M. et al., NASM Essentials of Corrective
Exercise Training, 2014.
[3] Jeffreys I., ‘Warm-Up and Flexibility Training’ in G.
Haff & N. Triplett, Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning 4th
ed., 2016.
The top 5 stretches for tight hips. Increase your mobility and reduce back pain!
Sam shows you the best stretches you can do at home to reduce tightness, improve mobility and reduce pain around the hip complex.
What is the problem we are facing?
Sam explains the issue we’re having working from home at the moment and spending more time in a seated position. The longer your body is in a seated position the tighter your hips become. Specifically we’re talking about tightness in the anterior (front facing) part of the hips. Which in turn leads to weakness in the posterior areas (hamstrings and glutes). This can lead to a whole host of unwanted side effects including lower back pain.
How do we fix this?
Inhibit the right muscles (foam rolling etc)
Lengthen the tight muscles – this is stretching which is covered in the video
Strengthen the weak muscles. In this case we’d look at strengthening the glutes
Integrate this into a global movement. (Fully body movement like a bodyweight squat).
So watch this video and do these 5 best hip stretches on a daily basis to help reduce the impact of all this sitting down we’re doing!
‘Sport-specific’ is an oft misused term used to describe the training of athletes outside of playing their chosen sport. Far too frequently we see misguided training methodologies passed off as ‘sport-specific’ under the guise that if you are not performing these exercises your training will hold little to no transfer to performance. As a result, too many athletes, coaches and parents have a misguided notion of what ‘sport-specific’ training should really look like. With the onset of an enforced lockdown it appears that many athletes have gone way off course in their attempt to maintain training regimes that will lead to improved sporting performance. This article intends to give you a workable definition of sport-specific training and a blueprint for what you’re current training should include, if you are an athlete.
What is sports specific training?
The topic of sports specific training is such a multi-faceted topic that we could spend thousands of words going down that rabbit hole. This article simply does not have the scope to do that, so I will try to be succinct in defining it. Ultimately, what distinguishes sport-specific training from other styles of training is that sport performance is the ultimate goal and so the style of training utilised is specific to this goal.
Knowledge of the SAID (Specific Adaptation to Imposed
Demand) principle makes us aware that our body adapts to the specific demand
imposed upon it. To use a simplistic example, if our goal was to improve upper
body pushing strength then the bench press would be a better exercise selection
than a calf raise. Carefully selecting training variables that elicit adaptions
that transfer to improved performance in the athlete’s sport is therefore the
ultimate goal of the strength and conditioning coach. With this in mind, let’s consider
what sort of training does not fulfil these requirements.
What is NOT sports specific training?
Knowing that we need to stimulate the body with specific
training to elicit certain adaptations we appreciate that sport-specific training is not high volume circuit
classes. Whilst circuit classes may be fantastic for general population
clients, who are looking for something to keep them ticking over with minimal
equipment during this lockdown period, they are not what is required for the
athlete in lockdown. Busy work is not always smart work.
Nor is Crossfit sport-specific training. Before anyone
starts having a go at me, I’m by no means a Crossfit hater. I actually think it
has many good qualities and have personally been training for Crossfit since
the back end of last year. As good as it may be, however, it is not suitable
training for an athlete looking to improve their sporting performance (unless
their sport is Crossfit of course!). The high volume, medium intensity (and
often times high intensity) nature of Crossfit runs counter to the low volume,
high intensity doses of training we know athletes need to puncture their technical
training with.
The method of training being propagated at the moment that annoys me the most, given the allure it has to athletes, parents and coaches who do not know better, is what I call ‘simulation equals specificity’ training. By that I mean, the training that claims to mimic the demands of your chosen sport. Could someone please tell me how lying on your back and getting up simulates, much less improves, the ability to perform a turn in swimming? I have particular sympathy for swimmers out there who are trying their best to train whilst unable to access a pool but please don’t be fooled into thinking that you need to perform ‘race simulations’ in your back garden to do some meaningful training. If this sort of training worked then wouldn’t you be doing it year round anyway, regardless of if we were in lockdown or not? If you would like to read how to actually utilise land training to improve your performance in the pool click here to read an article I’ve previously written, or please don’t hesitate to get in contact with me directly.
What should sport-specific training look like during lockdown?
During lockdown, we are faced with a number of different issues
when determining how best to train in order to keep our training aligned with
the adaptations we want to elicit.
A lack of equipment (most people it seems have
access to the odd dumbbell or kettlebell, but very few have access to a power
rack with barbells and bumper plates).
All technical training has ceased meaning we do
not have to factor in fatigue from this training (likewise, it means that
training adaptations usually derived from sport practice must know be sought
from alternative means).
An uncertain return date to competition.
As strength and conditioning coaches, we are taught to make
Plan B as close to Plan A as possible. Oftentimes, this takes the format of
slightly adjusting the programme in front of us based off how the athlete is
feeling on a given day. Obviously, in lockdown, Plan B will need to be a little
further from Plan A than normal given the lack of training equipment available.
Nevertheless, although we may have limited, or very little, equipment, we can formulate
a training plan that addresses the movements that we would normally train. Is
the plan you are currently following addressing the following movement
patterns?
Squat
Hinge
Single leg
Upper push (vertical and horizontal)
Upper pull (vertical and horizontal)
Core
Throw
Jump
Energy system development
With minimal equipment (an odd dumbbell or kettlebell, or
even a resistance band) it is possible to greatly enhance the intensity across
all of these movement patterns. Do jumps require any equipment? No. Not got a
medicine ball? Find a rock to throw instead.
With all technical training unable to take place, this
leaves a huge void in our weekly training routine. In terms of skill
development, there’s little you can do to replicate the demands of training
and/or competition. But this is going to be the same for everyone. What you can
do, alongside strength and power work, is focus on developing your energy
systems so that once you return to training you are fitter than before. With
extra time on your hands, now is the time to be developing your aerobic
fitness, your ‘engine work’. Not to mention that now is not the time to be
hammering your immune system with highly glycolytic sessions. Suppressed immune
system function = increased chance of catching a virus and not being able to
fight it off. Access to an exercise bike? Fantastic, an ideal low impact method
of developing the aerobic system. No exercise bike? Use your daily exercise
allowance to get outside and run.
An uncertain return date to competition means that
implementing a vertical integration method of periodisation is likely most
suitable. This is where we are training all components of athletic performance
(strength, power, endurance etc.) but with a differing emphasis. With limited
equipment now is a great time to focus on muscular endurance but whilst still
maintaining an element of speed and power. Train extensive qualities so that
you are well prepared for a return to normal training and the re-introduction
of intensive training means.
Conclusion
In conclusion, how an athlete trains during lockdown should
be as close as possible to how they would normally train. Pause for a moment
and consider if this is what you are currently doing – or is your lockdown
training devoid of any of the physical stimulus your normal training would
include? Whilst we must accept that although general in nature, we can still
move the needle forward by making Plan B as close to Plan A as possible. Even
with limited or no equipment we can still train the physical attributes required
to excel in your chosen sport, in a manner which will at least maintain, or
more than likely improve, their capacity so that once normality resumes, you
are ahead of the competition who have been following a diet of high volume
circuits, Crossfit, or sport simulation exercises that more closely resemble
circus tricks.
Swimming is a sport which is late to the strength and conditioning party. By that I mean, many coaches and athletes within the swimming world have for too long neglected the importance that strength and conditioning training can have on a swimmer’s performance in the pool.
There is, understandably, scepticism as to how training within the gym environment can benefit an athlete who is pool-based; however, just as standing on one leg on a bosu ball swinging a golf club does little to improve golf performance (William Wayland has written extensively on this subject [1]), the typical land-based training a swimmer is exposed to (performing endless medicine ball circuits and static stretching) does little to improve race performance in the pool. This article will highlight the importance of strength and conditioning training in making a swimmer resilient to injury in addition to improving their performance at the moments in the race when the swimmer has access to ground reaction forces – the race start and turns. It will then go into a case study with one of the swimmers I work with (Charlotte Rigg) who has seen a significant improvement in her race times since beginning formal strength and conditioning training.
Injury Resilience
‘The biggest ability is availability’
This phrase is often used in
the strength and conditioning world as a justification for much of the work we
do. After all, who cares how much an athlete can lift, or even how high they
jump, if they are not available when it matters most. As such, a significant
portion of our training time each week needs to be dedicated to making athletes
resilient against injuries they will likely encounter given the repetitive
nature of their chosen sport.
Within swimming, the extant literature draws our attention to the fact that breaststroke swimmers are particularly susceptible to adductor injuries (the adductors are a group of muscles located on the inner thigh primarily responsible for hip adduction – bringing the legs together.
This should come as no surprise with Grote et. al. finding that breaststroke swimmers put extensive stress on the adductor muscles due to repeated adduction with peak adduction velocity of the thigh in breaststroke swimmers averaging 245° per second. In their study, 42.7% of respondents had been unable to complete all breaststroke training during their practices in the prior 12 months due to a hip adductor injury [2]. With this in mind, enabling the adductor muscles to work dynamically through a full range of motion is paramount in a strength and conditioning programme for a breaststroke swimmer.
Shoulder pain has been
reported as the most common injury in competitive swimming [3]. For a swimmer
who’s competitive stroke is not breaststroke, they are unlikely to swim
significant volumes of breaststroke each week and so the risk of developing an
adductor injury can be mitigated by simply not performing this high risk stroke
(obviously if your competitive stroke is breaststroke this doesn’t hold true).
However, every swimmer completes significant volumes of freestyle metres each
week and so mitigating against potential injury risks becomes significantly
more challenging. It is thought that training the adductors and internal
rotators of the shoulder assists in preventing a swimmer ‘dropping’ their
elbows when fatigued, through providing more shoulder strength and stability [3].
Ground Reaction Forces
During the dive and turn, a
swimmer has access to ground reaction forces. It is thought that it is these
two moments where the S&C coach can have most impact in a swimmer’s
performance. In a 50m race, the dive start can account for up to 30% of total
race time. For a 200m race, the dive start can account for up to 7.5% of total
race time [4]. Studies
have shown that time spent on the blocks to produce that level of force was
0.79 seconds [5] . This emphasises the need for both strength and power
training, including training to develop rate of force development, to optimise
this key component of the race.
Strength and power training,
incorporating plyometric training, has been widely shown to improve start
performance with significant correlations found between 1RM squat, peak power
and jump height (3 factors all specific to producing high ground reaction
forces) to start performance. A study
conducted by Bishop et. al. on the influence of a plyometric training
intervention on start performance found that over an 8 week period such
training resulted in a mean reduction of 0.59 seconds in start time [4]. In addition to a reduction
in start time, these swimmers also managed to increase the distance covered
from when the head contacted the water.
The other occasion during a
swim race when the swimmer has access to ground reaction forces is during the
turns. More turns = more ground reaction forces. This is why short course races
are quicker than long course races. During a short course 50m race, it has been
found that swimmers spend between 0.3 to 0.5 seconds on the wall, representing
1.5% of the total race time [6].
Additionally, biomechanical analysis has shown that the positions swimmers find
themselves in during the turn, that is, as they are applying ground reaction
forces, are very similar to those found in a Countermovement Jump [4]. It would therefore stand
to reason that improving a swimmer’s countermovement jump would transfer into
improved performance during race turns.
Case Study – Charlotte Rigg
Following a physio referral
from Rickie Lovell, I started working with Charlotte at the end of September
2018 with the goal of providing her with strength and conditioning support to
aid her swim performance.
The initial goal was to
provide strength and conditioning support in the build up to short course
Winter Nationals. Following a successful first cycle with PB’s across the board
we continued working together in the build-up to the British Championships in
April and, following yet another successful meet, Charlotte has been selected
to represent Great Britain at the World Junior Championships at the end of
August. Preparation is well underway for this.
From day one, Charlotte has
bought into the strength and conditioning programme I have put in place for her
and has been a pleasure to coach. She comes to the gym eager to train, fully
appreciating the important role strength and conditioning can have on improving
her performance whilst keeping her injury free.
In her own words:
‘After a year of basic land training at my home swimming club, this season I wanted to try something different outside the pool which would be a new experience and help improve my overall strength and movement.
I feel so much stronger which has resulted in improved performances and personal bests in my key events.’
Please don’t misinterpret the
intention of this case study. By no means am I trying to take sole credit for
Charlotte’s improvements since she has started working with me. She spends 20+
hours with her swim coach per week training and 2 with me. Nevertheless, I do
believe there is a correlation between improved performances in the pool since
she has undertaken formal strength and conditioning with personal bests in key
events, but also in events she hardly trains. I think her results speak for
themselves:
Short Course
Event
Personal Best Time Before S&C
Current Personal Best Time
100 Freestyle
1.00.75
59.20
200 Freestyle
2.10.47
2.06.45
50 Breaststroke
34.79
34.34
100 Breaststroke
1.12.44
1.09.21
200 Breaststroke
2.29.98
2.26.25
200 Individual Medley
2.22.64
2.19.74
400 Individual Medley
5.03.07
4.54.76
Long Course
Event
Personal Best Time Before S&C
Current Personal Best Time
400 Freestyle
4.50.14
4.37.44
50 Breaststroke
33.86
33.75
100 Breaststroke
1.11.87
1.11.30
200 Breaststroke
2.31.60
2.29.73
200 Butterfly
2.27.57
2.24.66
200 Individual Medley
2.22.82
2.21.42
400 Individual Medley
5.02.00
4.57.98
The purpose of this article
was to highlight the importance of strength and conditioning training for
swimmers. Through a three-pronged approach to strength and conditioning for
swimmers, addressing injury resilience, the dive start and turns (through strength
and power training), I believe strength and conditioning can play a key role in
improved swim performance. Using the case study of Charlotte Rigg, I hope to
have provided real life context as to how one swimmer’s personal best times
have improved across the board since undertaking formal strength and
conditioning. Whilst ostensibly it may seem that the S&C coach is not able
to play as large a role as in some sports, there is still significant scope for
the S&C coach to influence a swimmer’s performance in the pool and their
ability to train year round injury free.
References
[1] Wayland W., ‘Strength and
Conditioning Advice When Training Golfers’, https://simplifaster.com/articles/golf-strength-conditioning/ [accessed 23rd May 2019].
[2] Grote K., Lincoln T.L.,
and Gamble J.G., ‘Hip adductor injury in competitive swimmers’, American Journal of Sports Medicine 32:
pp. 104-8, 2004.
[3] Richardson A.B., Jobe
F.W., and Collins H.R., ‘The shoulder in competitive swimming’, American Journal of Sports Medicine 8:
pp.159-63, 1980.
[4] Bishop et. al., ‘Strength
and Conditioning for Sprint Swimming’, Strength and Conditioning Journal 35
(6), pp. 1-6, 2013.
[5] Lee C-Y, Huang C-F, and
Lee C-W, ‘Biomechanical of the grab and track swimming starts’, available at https://ojs.ub.uni-konstanz.de/cpa/article/view/5337/4908 [accessed 23rd May 2019].
[6] Potdevin et. al.,
‘Effects of a 6-week plyometric training program on performance in pubescent
swimmers’, Journal of Strength and
Conditioning Research 25: pp. 80-6, 2011.
Rigs Fitness were shortlisted for the ‘Best Regional Gym, Midlands & Wales’ at the National Fitness Awards 2018, at The Athena, Leicester. This was the 5th time in 6 years we’d been shortlisted for an awards at the NFA’s (winning a different award on 3 of the previous 4 years). This was the third time we’d been shortlisted for ‘Best Regional Gym, Midlands & Wales’ and we were reigning champions having won in 2017. This year we won it again, but that wasn’t all…
…Rigs Fitness also won ‘National Gym of the Year’ at the National Fitness Awards 2018. This is a huge accolade for us and something that has been 6 years in the making. So this post is all about the Rigs Fitness timeline and why we’re so proud to be named as The Best Gym in the UK!
Team Rigs Fitness on stage collecting their ‘National Gym of the Year, 2018’ Award at the NFAs
August 2012 – Rigs Fitness opened it’s doors to the public, we had one full time member of staff, owner Sam Smith, who along with co-founder Paul Gilmore, brother Ben Smith a handful of coaches and family members launched Rigs Fitness with the goal of being a successful functional fitness centre in Birmingham.
We had our mantra of ‘Train Like An Athlete’ and prided ourselves on the quality of our coaching and friendly environment that genuinely allows people from all backgrounds, all ages, and all levels of fitness, to come and train in an approachable atmosphere and achieve their fitness goals
Owner Sam Starting Work at Rigs in 2012
Rigs Fitness Grand Opening, 12.08.12
The Mayor with Owner Sam and Co-Founder Paul
December 2013 – Rigs Fitness wins Newcomer of the Year at the National Fitness Awards
December 2014 – Rigs Fitness was shortlisted for Regional Gym of the Year, Midlands & Wales and came runner up
December 2016 – Rigs Fitness wins Functional Training Gym of the Year at the National Fitness Awards
December 2017 – Rigs Fitness won Regional Gym of the Year, Midlands & Wales at the National Fitness Awards
December 2018 – Rigs Fitness won Regional Gym of the Year, Midlands & Wales and National Gym of the Year at the National Fitness Awards
December 2018 – Rigs Fitness has been open for almost 6 and a half years. We have had 6 and a half years of continuous growth in all aspects of the business. Owner Sam Smith is now one of 15 fitness staff, we’ve developed and opened our very own Performance arm of the gym, athlete development programme, Youth Athlete Academy – have in house physiotherapists, sports massage therapists and nutritionists and have had sports stars from all over the world come and train with us.
We also now promote a number of successful sporting events around the Midlands, work with over 20 local schools and businesses, and have helped over 1500 members work towards their fitness goals and ultimately become fitter, healthier and happier
BUT… we still have our mantra of #TrainLikeAnAthlete and pride ourselves on the quality of our coaching and friendly environment that genuinely allows people from all backgrounds, all ages, and all levels of fitness, to come and train in an approachable atmosphere and achieve their fitness goals.
Rigs Fitness Team on stage at the NFAs
Rigs Fitness after ‘The Next Level’ upgrade 2016
45 Rigs Members take on Rough Runner 2017
Rigs has developed and adapted in so many ways, but our core business model has stayed true throughout the years. We’ve always had an unwavering dedication to functional fitness, and created an approachable atmosphere to allow anyone and everyone to come and realise their potential in the gym environment.
Winning ‘National Gym of the Year 2018’ is an amazing achievement for our Fitness Team that we’re all super proud of, but we’re equally as proud of the environment, atmosphere and fitness family we’ve created at our facility here in Birmingham.
If you’re interested in coming down and seeing what all the fuss is about then don’t hesitate. Our door is always open to new members who want to come down and achieve their fitness goals, whatever they are.
2018 has been another successful year for our ever-growing Athlete Development Programme. As the year draws to a close, we would like to take this opportunity to share some of the highlights of the year with you.
The year got off to a great start with the addition of Sean McDermotts Gaelic Football Club to our Team Athlete Development Programme. The team had a successful season winning the Warwickshire County Championship and falling just short in the All Britain series, losing in the semi-finals to the eventual winners.
A special mention must go to one of our youth athletes, Bailey Saunders. Bailey joined the ADP in January 2017 as a 13 year old lad looking to take his rugby to the next level. Fast forward 18 months, Bailey has ticked off all of these goals:
Greater Birmingham (represented 2017/18 season)
North Midlands (representing 2018/19 season)
Hartpury College (place offered to start September 2019)
Worcester Warriors Academy (representing 2018/19 season)
Bailey’s success story shows how formal strength and conditioning from a young age can accelerate development and help young athletes to realise their athletic potential. But, of course, this would not have been the case had Bailey’s commitment and attitude to training not been second to none.
Head of Performance, Josh Bridgeman training youth athlete Bailey Saunders
Longstanding ADP athlete Alex Edmonstone has enjoyed another successful year as Captain of Olton and West Warwickshire 1st XI. At the start of the year, he led the team to the indoor National Division 2 title and as we head towards Christmas, the team is sitting pretty at the top of National League Conference West looking to continue their Premiership promotion push in 2019.
Head of Performance Josh Bridgeman with Alex Edmonstone
This year has seen a successful year for the group of fighters we have had on the ADP. Thai boxer Louis Evans has won both of his fights this year alongside raising a new born baby! 2019 promises to be another exciting year for him with training already started for his next bout in March.
Within the Rigs coaching team, Callum Hawthorne undertook formal S&C for the first time in the build-up to his pro-K1 debut, which he went on to win. And, of course, Rigs’ owner Sam Smith returned to the ring for the final time winning with a comprehensive second round stoppage after following our holistic approach to his S&C (more details of the approach we took with Sam can be found on our Instagram page).
Fellow Rigs coach Rob Stevens, formerWorld Kickboxing Champion, has seen the success of these fighters and started on the ADP ahead of his fight in April 2019. So has Hamzah Muhammed as he returns to the ring in the next Strictly Business show
iADP Rob Stevens
iADP Boxer Sam Smith
iADP Callum Hawthorne
Anya Bates is another youth athlete who has achieved success on the ADP, with the highlight of her season winning her first ever English Schools medal in 2018, placing third in the Senior Girls100m hurdles.
Rigs Fitness Youth Athlete Anya Bates
Whilst many are winding down for a well-deserved Christmas break, some of our ADP athletes are still training hard in preparation for upcoming trial dates. Having competed for Great Britain in the European Junior Championships earlier on this year, Charlotte Rigg has been in the last stages of her preparation for Winter Nationals as she looks to end the year in style.
She performed exceptionally well in this National event, managing to get PB times in both of her events, and breaking a 20 year old West Midlands record, at the age of only 16! Her City of Birmingham teammate, Aimee Hood, has just begun preparation for the 2019 season where she will look to put in a strong showing at National competitions.
Harry Miles has started formal S&C as he looks to become a much more robust athlete in2019, with the added bonus of recent trials for both the men’s and mixed GreatBritain u24 Ultimate Frisbee teams.
Claire Rylance is training extremely hard as she looks to go into the England Women’s Touch Rugby selection camp at the start of January fitter and faster than ever before…just don’t mention the words Watt Bike to her!
iADP Athlete Charlotte Rigg
iADP Athlete Claire Rylance
This year has seen us develop closer links with Rickie Lovell and the team at Achieve Physiotherapy as we strive to provide the most comprehensive athlete support package that we can to our athletes. This means many of our athletes are able to benefit from the multi-disciplinary team approach we can take to their training and athletic performance.
One of our athletes who has benefitted hugely from this approach is Simon Ryder. When Simon first came to me, he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to lift properly again due to his injury history. Working closely with Rickie, Simon is able to lift heavy on a weekly basis chasing down numbers in the gym and making progress week to week.
Members of Rigs – keep your eyes peeled for information releasing soon about an upcoming injury workshop atRigs in January.
A 2018 year review of the ADP would not be complete without mention of the launch of our very own Youth Athlete Academy. After an extremely successful taster session at our Open Weekend in June, we went from strength-to-strength with a successful SummerSeries during the school summer holidays before our main launch in September.In our weekly sessions, we provide a general physical preparation programme for youth athletes looking to optimise their athletic potential. We do this in a safe, fun and structured manner with DBS checked coaches.
If you like what you have read and want to find out any more information about our Athlete Development Programme then CLICK HERE FOR MORE
A few weeks ago I wrote an article about plyometrics, with Dr Yessis claiming that ‘plyometrics is the most misused term in our vocabulary’ [1]. At the time I contended that, in the world of strength and conditioning, it was hard to disagree. The word ‘agility’, however, provides a strong contender. The aim of this article is to first define agility, and then, with this definition in mind, discuss how best to assess agility, and train for it (hint – don’t use the agility ladder).
Defining Agility
Typically, athletes and coaches alike confuse change of direction speed with agility and so the two terms are used interchangeably when in fact they are quite different. It is therefore pertinent to first define the two terms before we delve any deeper:
Change of direction speed (CODS): the ability to change direction to a predetermined location and space on the field or court [2].
Agility: takes into account both the physical change of direction and includes perceptual and decision-making domains [2].
It is, therefore, the perceptual-cognitive ability to react to a stimulus, such as an opponent, that distinguishes the two.
Testing Agility
Bearing the above definitions in mind, tests that have typically been used to test for agility ability, such as the traditional 5-0-5 test, in fact test for change of direction speed, due to the fact that the assessed change of direction is pre-planned. Additionally, there can be considerable discrepancy between tests that assess change of direction as some demand a rapid change of direction from the athlete whereas others require multiple change of directions, and thus might be better described as manoeuvrability tests. This is not to mention the metabolic demand of some tests due to their relatively long duration.
As such, to truly assess agility the test used needs to contain a reactive component. Traditionally, the original reactive agility test (RAT) has been used to do this. What distinguishes this test from the change of direction tests mentioned above is the demand on the athlete to respond to a stimulus on a screen, which may take the form of an arrow or light, a video or a human stimulus. A high-speed camera is used during the test to measure the decision-making time from when the stimulus initiates movement to when the athletes initiates movement in the intended direction i.e. it assesses the perceptual-cognitive ability of the athlete [2].
Training Agility
In order to develop an athlete’s agility performance, a three-pronged approach often works best [3].
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