Today was a transition into AMRAP sets and higher intensity. working on Pause Bench competition style. The focus was to maintain form and technical efficiency with every rep. Maintaining a straight line bar path and staying tight through proper IAP and rooting. 

​Pause Bench: 
work up set 1: 135x5
work up set 2: 190x3
work up set 3: 255x2
working set 1: 310x6
working set 2: 310x6 
AMRAP set: 310x6 

Incline DB Press: 
set 1: 80x9
set 2: 90x9
set 3: 100x9 

Cable Triceps Extension: 
set 1: 10
set 2 10
set 3: 10 

Superset 

Lat Pulldown:
set 1: 12
set 2: 12
set 3: 12
set 4: 12
set 5: 12

​Ruffin Upright Rows:
set 1: 15
set 2: 15
set 3: 15

With all of my accessory exercises my prime focus is stimulating the muscles needed to optimize the big three lifts in competition. So focusing on the intent is key and making sure the muscle is being worked entirely not just going through the movement. 

​In a sport with high amounts of external force and unorthodox movements there must be a course of action to mitigate unnecessary risk. there also needs to be a point of reference to initiate greater biomechanics response. Force output and torque through the transverse plain and from ground contact must be optimized to improve overall performance for the fighter. Most people let alone athletes really don’t know how to breath and brace the spine properly. This can be a major issue when you are involved in any type of high impact sport or moving your body under load. This is why one must learn the proper techniques to maximize their ability to brace and stabilize joints. 
Proximal stability with distal mobility is what the primary goal here is. We must stabilize joints that need to be stabilized and mobilize joints that need to be mobilized. Controlling your diaphragm and stabilizing the core will inhibit traction control enabling you to move freely with greater force. Through proper IAP you can inhibit the body's defense mechanism to tighten up. Think of it like this, if you ever stepped on an unstable surface like ice for example your body automatically tightens up and your movement becomes very rigid and stiff. This is because the body was not properly braced and rooted into the ground through proper forms of stabilization.

How does this affect a combat sport athlete?!?
In a fight most of the time you are trained to absorb force while being able to redirect it positively with a greater outcome. When a fighter is faced with external forces they must be able to have the ability to redirect force more efficiently through adequate means of core stabilization and global joint centration. Having this quality of bracing 360 degrees throughout the entire midsection this will allow you to have greater force output. With this trait you will be more powerful from the ground up leading into dominating results and a bad night for the opponent.

Learning to breathe diaphragmatically is a fairly simple process although for decades people have been breathing wrong. Most people breath up into their chest and into the upper traps, this is called stress breathing. Understanding how to properly breath throughout the diaphragm around the entire lumbar spine is key to proper IAP. Learning from methods of Dynamic Neuromuscular Systems, spine specialist Stuart McGill, and the Kabuki Movement Systems i've found it very simple and effective to teach to my athletes. First you must understand how to breath 360 degrees while maintaining a neutral spine. Breathing into the rectus abdominis or “belly breathing” won't do it, you must create pressure throughout your entire rib cage into the low back. Once this is accomplished and you are creating global pressure throughout the lumbar and TL junction you can begin to learn the bracong process.

Here are a few cues you can use to help initiate this process:

1: Diaphragm Breathing
2: Breath into your hips
3: Breath into the back of your throat
4: Clavicle touch

Once this is mastered then we can move on to the most important part of Intra Abdominal Pressure and that's BRACING. When bracong think of it like Chris Duffin would say act like your going to get punched in the stomach and brace as hard as you can. Breathing is the set so you don't pass out bracing is the icing on the cake. When you brace you create a sheet of armor around the midsection allowing you to produce force and withstand external load. If you are a fighter this is extremely important for performance and for overall health. In MMA , Wrestling, Judo, BJJ, and Sambo you must have to ability to create torque through the transverse plane for throws, sweeps, takedowns, etc. You must also have the ability to resist rotation for stopping shots, getting swept to your back, getting pinned, or getting hip tossed. This is why having solid IAP becomes crucial for these individuals. With Boxing, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, and Karate this is a major component as well. Having the ability to transfer force from the core to the end of a punch, kick, elbow, or knee is vital if you are looking to end the fight early and get a pretty solid payday. Another reason why fighters can benefit from integrating proper IAP is the ability to take blows to the midsection. Lets face it everyone like to head hunt but the true reality is that most fighters get dropped to the body or weaken in fights due to hard body shots. If you are able to efficiently brace the core upon impact this will be a non issue, and in fact a strength of yours to be able to take body shots (now all you would have to do is learn how to move your head).

Here are a few cues to help initiate the bracing process:

1:Pin the Sternum down
2: drive Sternum to your Belly Button
3: Act like your going to get punched
4: Project / pull Spine upward

How to put this into your program:
Start each session in a supine 90/90 position lay on your back with one hand on sternum and the other on the lower stomach. Begin the process with a few deep diaphragm breaths, holding the breath at the top for a second or two. Then completely exhale all of the air out like you are blowing through a straw. After a few deep breaths begin to integrate the bracing technique by using the cues I’ve laid out. Perform 2-3 sets for about 8-10 reps, rest for about 30 seconds between sets all while still breathing diaphragmatically. This can be done before every training session to prime your central nervous system and prep you for the work ahead. If you do it correctly you will already begin to sweat and get the HR elevated slightly.

As a physical preparations coach for some of the toughest individuals in the world I can tell you first hand that this is something completely overlooked in this field. Learning how to do this technique will set you up for all other movement parameters in the fight game. Proper Intra Abdominal Pressurization is the key component for optimizing proprioception, sport specific kinematics, and overall sport performance.

For more info on this topic check out Kabuki Movement Systems or email me at Phil@darustrong.com

​

Proper periodization phases to the physiological demands and neurological responses to strength training. Utilizing structured periodization to impose the greatest availability of performance. Each phase of training should have a specific goal to initiate a stimulus response. Working towards building solid inter and intramuscular coordination to cover all aspects of strength adaptation.

Here are the 7 phases each periodization model should have in order to reach the pinnacle of true strength and performance.
​

• 1) Anatomical Adaptation (work capacity): building a foundation of strength, joint integrity, and the biomechanics needed to withstand imposed demands.
• 2) Hypertrophy: the building of cross sectional area in the muscle. Intermuscular coordination through intensities of 70%-80% 1rm.
• 3) Maximizing strength: intramuscular coordination response by lifting loads higher than 85% 1rm.
• 4) Conversion: the ability to transfer modalities and acquired stimuluses into better performance.
• 5) Maintenance: deloading volume and intensity while moving towards full recovery.
• 6) Cessation: the end of the mesocycle transferring into the next phase.

• 7) Compensation: lending a new wave of improved performance through adaptation from prior training.

When developing a strength program you must coordinate muscular and neurological adaptations to impose progression. Each phase must potentiate the next helping to achieve the end goal at the climax of the macrocycle. Through these 7 phases you can implement proper volume, intensity, frequency, and exercise selection to enhance the overall performance and strength gains. Using predetermined deloads and autoregulation to minimize over training and maximize progression. And utilizing minimal effective volume in the beginning of the training cycle while working towards finding maximal recoverable volume to enhance the ability to train consistently with maximal effectiveness. Utilizing Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) Reps In Reserve (RIR) and Velocity Based Training (VBT) are good methods to autoregulate training to keep you from hitting a wall. By calculating your daily 1rm this will allow you to keep working towards the overall goal but maintaining total work capacity depicted on how your body is responding that day. With every training program just like in life there must sub goals in the pursuit to achieving the overall goal. With proper planning and scheduled practice to keep the progress on an incline each and every week. Utilize these guidelines to assist you in your training program.
 

Here is an excerpt from Periodization Training for Sports, Third Edition by Tudor Bompa, PhD and Carlo Buzzichelli
.http://www.humankinetics.com/excerpts/excerpts/neuromuscular-adaptations-to-strength-training ​