Man of Steele Sports

"Z" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-07-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

In this final installment we will look at "Z" characteristics, and specifically the Z-Health movement system and how elite athletes move so well. So what is Z-Health? Z-Health is essentially a system of simple movement exercises devoted to helping you move better, which means with less pain, and more coordination, efficiency, power, strength, range of motion. Z-Health is the creation of Dr. Eric Cobb, a chiropractor, trainer and martial artist.
The foundation of Z-Health is subtle isolated joint movements done in a very precise, controlled and mindful manner. These exercises directly target the central nervous system, and the results are therefore often immediate and dramatic.
Elite athletes have the ability to make the the difficult look easy. I believe the Z system is basically the how elite athletes move fluidly, effortlessly and efficiently. If you want to move better, feel better and perform like an elite athlete check out Z-Health.
Well this is the end of the Elite Athlete series and its hard to believe that it has been over 6 months since this series started. But the timing seems to be good as we will launch a new website and blog in the next few weeks at www.manofsteelesports.com so come by and check out what new materiel we will have on board.

"Y" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-07-03T15:13:00.001-07:00

The Yearning for mastery of their skills is the main drive that motivates the elite athlete. That internal, indescribable, itch, urge or yearning to excel is the separation of the men from the boys. That indefinable power to go on longer, harder and faster than the competition is a mysterious phenomenon to some, but to the elite it is as natural as food, water or spirit, it is their makeup. The yearning to achieve goes on for years and years and years and if an athlete has found his purpose in sport it will last a lifetime.

"X" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-06-22T21:43:00.000-07:00

The "X" factor of elite athletes. Do the elite have an X factor that other athletes don't have? I think they do, if they didn't there would be a whole lot more athletes doing extraordinary things. What then is this X factor and how does one attain it. I believe that the X factor is not one single thing but a unique combination of characteristics that when put together bring about elite performances. What are some of the characteristics? At the top of the list I would put the ability to perform extremely difficult work more intensely and longer than others, another trait that seems to be evident across the board is the ability to be relaxed under the most intense pressure. It seems that the old saying about falling to our training or rising to our expectations seems right on. The elite seem to be able train at such a high level that when the pressure is at its highest they know that their training was enough to sustain their effort and allow them to be relaxed. The elite have the ability to make very difficult things look easy while lesser athletes can sometimes make easy things look very hard. So to recap, the X factor is not one single trait but different traits in differing proportions depending on the athlete, but one thing is for sure the elite most certainly have what it takes to be the best of the best.

"W" Characteristictics of Elite Athletes

2010-06-06T15:35:00.001-07:00

In this blog we have talked almost from the start about work and work ethic and how the elite have the ability to get an enormous of work done in a deliberate, concentrated, and disciplined fashion. And with all the topics discussed throughout the year, in all reality deliberate practice, the ability to do the work is the most important trait the elite possess. The quality and quantity of the work is what separates hard workers from the elite. In order to practice with the intensity that gives the elite the results that yield success it requires the athlete to endure frustration and pain that the average or even world class athlete is not capable of doing. The elite athlete leaves clues as to their success, unfortunately we don't get to see the day in day out work that the elite do, which sometimes misleads us into thinking that the elite are just more talented than the rest,while they really do possess traits that the average athlete does not, it really is the trait that allows them to do work in a very specific way.

"V" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-05-18T23:15:00.000-07:00

V for victorious, V for vicious, no, how about V for visual and vestibular? While those last two may not sound as sexy as victorious or vicious, the elite have better skills than most in the areas of visual and vestibular expertise. The amount of information that is gathered through the eyes is staggering, and what is even more amazing is how it all gets processed, organized and put to use to make the elite what they are. Most people assume that you are born with great visual skills or you are not. Science is now showing that not only don't you have to be born with great physical skills you don't have to be born with great visual skills either. Training is not just for the physical anymore. There are many different types of skills that relate to visual excellence. Most people just think of the obvious ones, eye or foot coordination or tracking, but there are a multitude of others, ranging from looming and peripheral awareness to vergence and dynamic visual acuity, all of which can be trained to the levels of the elite. What about the vestibular? What are vestibular skills anyway? Why balance of course. The elite all have an incredible ability to know which way they are going and which way is up. In the hierarchy of the nervous system the visual system reigns supreme followed by the vestibular system and then ultimately the proprioceptive system. The vestibular is really quite remarkable for it can detect the slightest amounts of movement in any direction and on any plane and have the body make an adjustment in order to maintain balance. Just like with the visual system most people think you must be born with great balance, not so, the vestibular system is capable of getting better and better with training. If you want to have more victories or seem a little more vicious on the field then you might want start training the V's, the visual and vestibular systems.

"U" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-05-01T13:21:00.000-07:00

The elite athlete is the is the ultimate competitor. And by ultimate I mean that they love being in the competitive arena, the rushes of adrenalin, the ups and downs of the battle, the challenge of testing their skills against another who is at their best and when the stakes are the highest. The elite have an unshakable belief in their own abilities and have an unfailing work ethic that allows them to perfect their craft as very few others can.

"T" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-04-15T22:34:00.000-07:00

Well coincidentally today is Tax day here in the USA, and while that is one thing that most elite athletes do have in common, that they pay alot in taxes, it is however not one of the characteristics I'm going to talk about. I'm going to talk about Talent, first and foremost. There is this presumption that all elite are elite only because of talent. While it is true that all of the elite are blessed with some rather freakish genetics athletically, it is not this talent that puts them in the stratosphere of athletics. There are plenty of very talented athletes who are bagging groceries rather than bagging gold medals or world championships. What makes the elite different is that they actually have the ability to withstand great amounts of pain and frustration in order to practice the necessary skills. Which puts that athletic talent to use to make them successful. That follows along right into the second trait which is toughness, it is not how tough you are, it is how long you can be tough that sets them apart. I know that mental toughness gets alot of play these days especially in the people who are looking for a short cut to the actual job of doing the work. It is really about physical toughness that is where you learn to become mentally tough. A great ball coach in the 60's had a great quote that went something like this " Fatigue makes cowards of us all" that says about all that is necessary about being tough, you become resilient and tough through the amount of hard physical training you can endure.

"S" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-03-27T16:53:00.000-07:00

The SAID principle is something the elite athlete does so well but may know nothing about. SAID stands for "specific adaptation to imposed demands." Dr.Eric Cobb, of Z-Health adds "exactly and always" to the meaning of the SAID principle. Our bodies will adapt to exactly and always to what we're doing. A huge part of that adaptation is the speed at which it happens in the nervous system. Signals are being sent at 300miles per hour. Giving almost immediate feedback to the brain. The elite athlete is able to take that information and use it to adapt to improving one's performance. Athletes earn the bodies and level of skill that they have because of the SAID principle, they get what they have because of what they repeatedly do. So if you want greatness you must practice greatness with precision and focus.

"R" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-03-14T20:40:00.000-07:00

Repetition repetition repetition did I say repetition? Once again it comes down to the elite having the ability to reliably repeat their motor patterns in practice so that under the pressure of competition the skill is performed properly. The 3 stages of motor learning are 1) cognitive, in which the skill must be thought out each repetition this phase takes anywhere from 1 to 1,000 repetitions. 2) associative. this stages starts to combine the elements of the cognitive stage with the more relaxed and less thought about parts of other skills, this phase is 1,000 to 10,000 repetitions in length. 3) Autonomous, this is the premiere stage where skills are performed in near automatic like fashion, this stage takes between 100,000 to 300,000 repetitions. The caveat to all this repetition is that they must be done exactly the same manner, precision is everything. The perfect rep principle states that you have earned the skill that you currently have by the precision of the practice you have previously done. Practice does not make perfect but a lot of precision practice can make you elite!

"Q" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-03-04T19:51:00.000-08:00

Quality or quantity? Paper or plastic? What to choose? Do the elite have better quality or more quantity? It's a bit of a trick question, elite athletes simply have more and better repetitions than do lesser athletes. The fact is that the elite have the ability to do more high quality repetitions than the rest is a huge part of why they can dominate and perform so well under immense pressure. It had been thought that purely getting 10 years or 10,000 repetitions in would be enough to make the grade. Now, however, it is not only is the number of repetitions but the quality of those repetitions. Most athletes cannot maintain focus or endure the pain both emotionally, mentally and physically that is required to make one perfect repetition after another. So next time you go to practice it's not paper or plastic, it's bring your own quality recyclable bag, so you can fill it over and over again!

"P" Charactersistics of Elite Athletes

2010-02-22T11:32:00.000-08:00

Under the heading of "P" there are so many characteristics that is will be hard to keep this post short enough, so lets get to it. Practice, practice, practice it takes 10 years of deliberate practice to acquire skill mastery. Deliberate practice is systematic, sustained, specific, and takes focused effort to improve your skills. The elite have the ability to practice in a way lesser competitors can't. A big reason the elite can practice in this way is that they have an incredible ability to work through pain. Often pain becomes a signal that most athletes see as a time to stop practice, now I'm not talking about pain from injury, I'm talking about the discomfort that comes from training at the highest intensity. This persistence to stay with the task at hand is what enables the elite to make practice deliberate, which is the key to successful skill acquisition. So if you want to improve your skill level, hundreds of thousands of repetitions are needed in a planned out, specific, intense manner. In order to do this you must be persistent enough to work through the pain and discomfort involved with the practice.

"O" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-02-06T10:34:00.000-08:00

This topic is sometimes considered unhealthy and unnatural but to the elite athlete it is as normal as taking a breath. I am talking about being obsessed with performance, the greatest have an obsession to make themselves better. They take every opportunity to take chance out of they picture. They want to be able to control all of the variables that they can. Another characteristic that people miss is that the elite are not like the ordinary. Ordinary people don't have the same thought processes, same discipline, same energy, or else they would be elite. The elite are not just ordinary people who do great things, they possess skills that are extraordinary and obsessive.

"N" Charateristices of Elite Athletes

2010-01-22T15:41:00.000-08:00

Neuroplasticity...what the heck is that? And what does it have to do with elite athletes? Well as you may know neuroplasticity refers to the ability of our brains to change. The ability for the brain to reorganize itself by making new neural connections. Elite athletes are constantly developing and learning within their sport which keeps their brain working on making new connections. These new connections increase the likelihood that the athlete can associate one event to another thus having more experiences to draw from thereby increasing performance. It was always thought that our brains were hardwired and couldn't change. We are finding out that our brains can change and grow with each new experience. Which is what the Elite do better than most, which is to use the past to better the present.

"M" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2010-01-01T20:27:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone! We are at the half way point in the characteristics series and find our selves on New Years day with the letter "M". On this day of resolutions, the word that first comes to mind is motivation. While the word conjures up all kinds of images of goal sheets and to do lists, it is really not any of these that the elite have in terms of motivation. I am sure that the elite do use some of these items in some form or another, but, what I believe the elite have is the ability to take actions that move them closer to the outcomes they are looking for, be it improvement of a skill or the analysis of a competitors game. In short they work toward their goals when others don't. As some marketing guru at Nike said "Just Do It" and that is what the elite certainly do!

"L" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-12-10T22:31:00.000-08:00

In this edition of characteristics of the elite athlete, we look at the letter "L". The first thing that comes to mind for most people is that the elite have a love for their sport, I have never really bought into that idea that you must love your sport in order to excel in it and obviously after reading Andre Agassi's book and the comments of many other elite athletes that a love for the game is not a prerequisite for excellence. One characteristic that I know is a factor in creating excellence is that other "L" word Labor. As has been said and will be said many times in the weeks ahead hard work is required across the board for high achievement. The elite are in no way shape or form lazy and if during any time in their careers they seem to get a little lazy their performance suffers. From all the labor that these athletes do they seem to create another word that gets thrown around a lot and that is luck. When opportunity and preparation collide in the battleground one athlete is deemed to be lucky to have gotten a break, when in fact had the athlete not learned the value of laboring in his craft the opportunity for success would have merely floated by.

"K" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-11-30T11:31:00.000-08:00

Probably the most notable trait that the average sportsman attributes to the elite is, that of possessing a so called killer instinct. While there may be something in our genetic make up that would enable some to kill their prey without any hesitation, in athletics I'm not sure that this scenario would fully apply. The elite all have a great sense of competition and knowing when their opponent is weakening or doubting ones abilities. In this way the so called killer instinct would be very prevalent, but the elite don't want to kill their opponents they want to have a good competitive effort, so that they may test their own skills under the toughest conditions. They also have a keen knowledge of their opponents weakness's and strengths and try to minimize their own inadequacies and capitalize on their opponents thus defeating them and reaching the goal of the elite which is to compete.

"J" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-11-16T14:12:00.000-08:00

Job noun 1. An action requiring some exertion; an undertaking. If we look at this definition of a job rather than the usual definition of an activity performed for a fee, it fits the elite athlete in a much different way. We have all seen athletes who treat their sport in a very job like manner. Punching in punching out. While putting in time is an essential part of becoming an elite athlete, just putting in time is no guarantee of success. The elite know that the key word in the definition of a job is exertion. There must be an extreme amount of exertion in the time that is being put into the job.

"I" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-11-01T21:12:00.001-08:00

Just like a Hollywood real estate agent talking about location, location, location as the most important thing to selling a home. Elite athletes are all about intensity, intensity, intensity. Intensity is important for a few reasons. First being, that in order to create top level motor patterns the intensity of the sequential firing of motor neurons must be intense. The harder,the more repetitive the firing of the electrical impulses the more mylenization occurs, which in turn makes the impulse less susceptible to interference. That means that under pressure the elite are more likely to still perform to the highest levels. Second, the elite know that the more game like that they can make practice the less the big stage will seem out of the ordinary to them. So if you want to improve your performance start by trying to be as game like in terms of intensity as you can, it will not only improve your skill set it will improve your ability to control yourself in competition as well.

"H" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-10-16T14:41:00.000-07:00

The head and the heart are two very different parts of the body in terms of performance in athletics, and there are no elite level athletes that are weak in the use of the head and the use of the heart. I'm not sure who to credit for this quote but it is quite true "Talent is a cheap commodity. What really matters is what goes on between your ears and in the middle of your chest" Elite athletes seem on the outside to be regular people who just happen to be great at whatever sport they are doing. But the more you get to know and talk with the elite athletes you start to see how very different they view competition and all the variables that go along with their sport. The more in depth you look the more you realize that their perspective is anything but normal or average. While the heart is sometimes a much easier thing to see outwardly than the head, it is by no means more or less important. The elites have an unbelievable ability to dig into their own will and summon strength enough to go through situations that most athletes cant even comprehend. On the outside there are a lot of athletes that look like they are fighting and trying but in reality it is just a bluff so that it appears that they gave a good effort. The elite care only about getting the best out of the ability they have and not what others may think of their performance.

"G" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-09-27T19:49:00.000-07:00

Goal driven... that's it that is possibly the most defining characteristic of the elite. They take on many different forms and types. Some write them down, some just in their head. Some long term, some just short. Some very detailed, some very simple. Some put them where they can see them all the time, some in a place that is seldom looked at. Some make them public for all to see, some keep them to themselves. Some have help doing them, some do them alone. Some don't even know that they are doing them, but all elite level athletes are driven to succeed by their goals!

"F" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-09-13T15:49:00.000-07:00

One great characteristic of the best, is their ability to finish. Not only do they finish in games and matches, they finish when no one else is around, whether it is in the gym or on the practice field. Which I believe comes from their ability to be farsighted, to know that they are working for something in the future, while also being able to focus on the present and finish the job right now. Because the elite have a great perspective on things they are very factual about what the state of their performance is or what their place in the game may be they don't fool themselves. Possibly the most obvious trait of the elite is that they are fighters, they have the uncanny ability to work through situations that lesser competitors simply cant handle, the ability to push through pain and continue to fight 'till the end.

"E" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-08-16T20:08:00.000-07:00

This weeks post brings on a hot topic word, Expectation. Is it better to have high or low expectations? Most elite level athletes seem to have very real expectations about themselves and their performances. They know what their training has been like they know what they can and cannot do and then have the confidence or humility to judge how well they might do in competition. How about excellence? Because most of the greats don't base their performance on others but on their ability to live up to their own version of self imposed excellence. One trait that you might not think of as readily, is that the best are efficient and make it look easy. The hours and hours of practice honing their skills makes the best become very efficient in their movement and mechanics. The last trait in the "E" post is that the best make no excuses for a loss or poor performance, they take complete responsibility for for their actions.

"D" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-08-04T22:18:00.000-07:00

In thinking about "D" words to describe elite athletes many come to mind, determined, detail oriented, diligent, decisive but three really stand out for me. Deliberate, now some might think of some athletes that seem to be the lackadaisical, free wheeler type who just seems to have natural talent and doesn't have to work for it, this is really not the case. If you look at how motor learning works, deliberate practice is one of the cornerstones of all skill acquisition. Great performers have deliberately practiced their skills. In order to be so deliberate in practice an athlete must be disciplined or each movement or skill would be different and thus no real motor pattern would develop. Having the discipline to do each movement requires the elite athlete to be exceedingly driven. There must be a hunger a burning desire in order to continue on in the face of extraordinary pain and frustration. If you really want to be an elite athlete you might want to spend some time with the characteristics that start with the letter "D".

"C" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-07-18T17:19:00.000-07:00

In this section of "characteristics" it is obvious the best are first and foremost great competitors. To compete against oneself , to become the best possible in ones field of endeavour is what elite athletes all do. Competition for elite athletes is the testing ground and culmination of all the hard work and sacrifice that they have been through. The bigger the stage the better they like it, competition brings out the best in the best. The elite are also in the best condition not only or always physically but mentally and emotionally as well. Conditioning comes from the preparation and work that all the elite do. As the result of the conditioning and competition the elite are also supremely confident in their abilities. Their confidence is not merely a wishful thought or fantasy but a deep understanding of the work and preparation that has come before.

"B" Characteristics of Elite Athletes

2009-06-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

In this second blog on characteristics of elite athletes we look at the letter B. The trait that sticks out the most to me is that elite performers have been battle tested, they have been forged and hardened by the battle. The best seem to relish in loving the battle and all the stress and pressure that goes along with it. You cannot be sufficiently toughened with out going through the trials and tribulations of the battle. The second thing that is quite apparent is that the elite believe in their abilities. I didn't say they believe they can win, although most do believe that as well. I said I thought they believed that they possess the ability to win, which is far different from the statement about believing they can win. When you believe you possess the ability to win you fight scratch and claw to win. So believe in your ability and then go test it every chance you can under the heat of competition.

Characteristics of Elite Athletes A-Z

2009-06-17T20:46:00.000-07:00

Over the next year I will be writing about what I believe are some of the outstanding characteristics of elite athletes and elite performance. This will be by no means a definitive list, just a starting point of comment and conversation. I hope to do a new topic, 26 in all, about every other week. So let's get started!
If you were to ask most coaches today what attribute they thought should top this list a fair share would undoubtedly say attitude, it seems to be almost politically correct to say that having a positive attitude is a prerequisite for elite performance. Upon further inspection I am not sure that being positive is all that important and here is why. I think that what matters the most is action. Actions taken with a positive attitude or good motive don't make any difference to the action. What matters is that you take the action. Many athletes who run around trying to be positive are really just lying to themselves about what they have actually done in practice or in game situations. Elite athletes have ambition and want to achieve and no amount of positive attitude will help you to achieve dreams and goals without action. And like the old saying goes "Goals without actions are fantasies" Please leave your comments or questions.

Best laid plans.......

2009-06-16T19:59:00.000-07:00

I had planned on writing this post nearly three weeks ago but as the saying goes "life happens" The short version of the last few weeks is this, I signed up for the Z health r phase cert in San Diego and was pumped to get down there. My wife and kids were going to be going to Houston to visit friends and it seemed like it would all work out. On the way to LAX to bring the family to the flight and then off to the cert, we were oh so close then while sitting at a left turn light we were rear ended, the wife and kids seemed to be OK, just scared the paramedics looked them over they hopped into a cab and managed to safely make their flight. I was not quite so lucky I was looking to the left during impact and after a trip to the hospital my back and neck has been tweaked and looks like I will need some PT and chiro. In the mean time no training, practice or coaching for a while. However it will give me some time to start to write my blog posts on Characteristics of elite athletes from A-Z. Look for it in the next few days.

Texas

2009-05-23T20:17:00.000-07:00

Just returned from texas and the national open 14s in frisco. My student had a pretty good tournament losing to the 5 seed in the main draw 2nd round and then went on to win 4 matches in the back. Didnt get any training done just spent hour after hour watching matches. Got back to training last night did a full med day of ETK with pullups and getups didnt feel to well but got it done back to a heavy day tomorrow.

Rolling Along

2009-05-11T13:49:00.000-07:00

Things have been pretty smooth as of late,training going well doing my ETK routine and have been on Mondays doing snatches. Did 100 with a 30lb bell in a about 4 and half minutes, trying to work up weight wise to see if i can do the RKC probably in'10 unless the lottery comes through for me. I am going to do the Z cert in San Diego in June depending on housing so doesn't leave much cash for RKC. Practicing a little more going to play Nat 45s in doubles in June and maybe Nat 50s in a year we will see so far thank god for ZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Z Health Workshop

2009-05-03T11:02:00.000-07:00

Many many thanks to level IV Z health practitioner Leslie Cordova of xplosivestrength.com for the great Z workshop she put on at Sunset Hills Country Club. We had a mix of athletes from world class triathletes to out of shape business men and she did a wonderful job assessing everyone and giving them their own drills to do to help them to move better and feel better. If you haven't tried Z health you owe it to yourself to check it out you can contact me or contact Leslie through her website directly. Training has been plodding along about the same, and starting to train for tennis a bit more, going to play national 45s this year and then train for a year for the national 50s if I can keep my body holding up. Keep checking back new project coming June 1st.

Another month gone by!

2009-04-27T15:40:00.000-07:00

It has been a whole month since my last post and things have been busier than ever. The Family returned from grandma's and all the free time I had to do extra training and writing went right out the window. My training has slowed to usually 3 days a week and if I get a fourth day in I usually do deadlifts and some interval work, the rest of the days look like this, light day- 5 ladders of 3 rungs bottoms up kb clean and press 15 kb snatches turkish get up and pullups.
medium day- 5 ladders 4 rungs kb clean and press 20 swings turkish getup and pullups. heavy day-5 ladders of 5 rungs manmakers turkish getups and pullups. Seems to be working well right now, diet has been off the chart poor, way to much sugar but somehow body comp hasn't gone completely haywire though it has made workout days feel more difficult. Have a few new projects in the works my posts will be much more regular so stay tuned in.

OMG a New Post

2009-03-29T17:54:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since posting here got out of the habit and have been teaching, training, researching, writing and working a ton. That being said I have found that the learning curve of things goes in cycles. Sometimes I just don't feel like I am going anywhere and other times it is full speed ahead. I have read some terrific books lately which I will write about more in the coming weeks and have been doing some fun consulting with some great athletes which I will follow up on later as well. Training has been going well back into a rhythm with ETK 3 days and deadlifts on the variety days. Need to do more interval work for body comp though. Look forward to sharing some new insights soon.

Pro of the Year!

2009-02-03T15:00:00.001-08:00

At the USPTA California convention over the the weekend I was awarded the 2008 Professional of the Year for the California division of the USPTA. It was an unexpected honor and I was very humbled with the nomination and to actually win the award was one of the highlights of my career. Many thanks to Mike Gennette of district one and to all of the pros on the California convention committee for the recognition, it is much appreciated.

Busy Two Weeks

2009-01-27T21:09:00.000-08:00

Well its been a couple of weeks since ive written anything but I have been really busy with players and trying to prepare for a couple of presentations I have coming up. Last saturday I did a presentation on strength and conditioning for tennis players at the California USPTA convention. It all went off very well with a lot of attendees that had great questions and some good insights with their own training. My personal training although a little inconsistent has been progressing well. Still doing the ETK ROP with added pullups and core work and on variety days getting in some intervals and deadlifts. Still loving the Z health, some how making my body feel better and better.

Moving along

2009-01-17T22:12:00.000-08:00

Second week of workouts since surgery and things are feeling much better. I have been very good (unlike me) and have been slowly building back up in weights as not to get injured or overwork and lose motivation. This week was all ETK ROP with a light bell 30lbs with pull ups and core work, planks, bridges and did a full compliment of get ups, still a little rough getting up with the left wrist on the ground don't quite have the range of motion or strength yet. On the variety days doing ( no laughing) dead lifts at 150 lbs in 5x5s with pistols mixed in and intervals on the bike. Been also doing alot more Z work and the body is feeling better and better. Reading Mike Nelsons blog and MCs geekfit blog both have great stuff to say.

First Post of 09

2009-01-08T20:53:00.000-08:00

Hope every ones New Years and holidays were great, the family and I had a terrific time. After some time to get my workouts straitened out I feel like I am back on track getting back to doing ETK ROP on a regular basis, and started doing deadlifts and pistols again on the variety days. Along with that I have been getting back into doing some Z-health exercises. Many thanks to MC from England who is a RKC Z practitioner and a PH.D (geekfit.com) for her great insight into my glute medius problem. She turned me on to Leslie Cordova who is a Z -health practitioner in Long Beach who did an assessment with me and gave me some high payoff drills to do and has really made a difference. If you haven't had the chance to check out Z -health I strongly recommend it.

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-27T21:31:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone is having a great holiday, Christmas with my family was out of this world. Last weeks workouts have been getting better, starting to feel better, more balanced now that I can do pull ups and modified push ups. Have a great New Year!

First work out back

2008-12-15T15:06:00.000-08:00

Today was the first work out after the last(hopefully) of the wrist surgeries and man am I weak. I did 5 ladders of 20 lb KB presses of 3 rungs. Can't clean them yet on the left side so just pressing. Did the same with planks ,side planks,bridges and get ups. I forgot how much I like doing getups and how good it feels to do them. I finished up with 4 sets of two handed swings 30 seconds work 30 seconds rest, again i forgot how good swings make you feel. Not much overall work but wanted to go easy starting back at it.

Wrist Surgery #2

2008-12-11T20:28:00.000-08:00

Got through surgery number two without much pain or getting sick from the anesthesia which was a blessing. Cant wait to start training again. Here is a new student Alexander Solonin with a video of his forehand, he has some work to do on it but is pretty good in the strike zone.

Nick Baez Backhand

2008-12-04T21:04:00.000-08:00

Nick Baez's backhand was quite a mess when we first got to it but he put in as the song says "A hard days night" and now his backhand is a reliable weapon for him. On a personal note wrist surgery number two is set for Tuesday the 9th. I haven't been training at all, I became so imbalanced my back started bothering me. Cant wait to get back to it.

McMorrow's Serve

2008-11-24T19:53:00.000-08:00

Short clip of Kyle's flat first serve. All the kids are ramping up for the national open, Denis Lin, Frank Carleton and JT Sundling are in Mexico playing an ITF tournament and then Kyle will join the boys for Eddie Herr and Orange Bowl in Florida later this month. Training for me has slowed to a crawl, only ten more days until wrist surgery #2 and then I should be able to get back to doing some balanced training. Right now my back is botched from not doing enough on my left side, very frustrating.

Wednesday Fitness

2008-11-19T23:56:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to post a short video of some of the things we do at our wednesday at 4 o'clock footwork and conditioning class. Thank you to all the guys and girls who show up week after week, rain or shine, hot or cold, you all make it fun!

Good week of Practice

2008-11-13T21:16:00.000-08:00

We had a really good weeks worth of work with the boys this week. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we had Kyle Mcmorrow (U of Washington) Jt Sundling (USC) Dennis Lin (Stanford) and Frank Carlton (unsigned) out doing some great drilling. They were able to push each other to practice at a pretty high level of intensity, which for my money is where it is all at, the higher the intensity the better. It is really interesting to see how each of the players have differing game styles and strengths Kyle's got a big forehand, Dennis' backhand is just awesome, Jt's all around game and lefty serve really cause some problems and Frank's consistency and work ethic are great. It is also interesting to see how much better they all could be with some work on their weakness'. Kyle's backhand is much improved but he could be a much stronger volleyer, Dennis could also use a lot of work at the net along with some better footwork on his forehand, Jt has great talent but could use some discipline and concentration work and Frank needs to ramp it up quite a bit on the serve. All in all not bad for four guys all in the top 10 in the US. I think college ball will really help make these guys into some really, really good players. As for my training, took last week off after the little back problem which proved to be a very tight piraformis, from getting to one sided on the one arm swings. Need to probably go lighter until the left arm is able to do some work as not to unbalance my body so much.

Ouch bad back

2008-11-08T21:24:00.000-08:00

Well after finally making some progress with pistols and one arm push ups, my back finally didn't like all the right sided workouts and the imbalance popped up in my back. So I've been on the dl for the week no workouts now with either side. My frustration with my wrist and now back has not made my diet any good which is a bad combo for body comp, but I guess I will look toward the long term and start over again with the etk rop when I all healed up.

My Friend

2008-11-01T04:47:00.000-07:00

About seven years ago I hired a guy for the Head Tennis Pro position at the club where I am the tennis director. I didn't know it then but this guy would have a tremendous effect on my life. Over the course of time we became great friends and peers in the tennis world, learning much from each other about life and other pursuits. I saw him get married, buy a home and thought we would end up doing something in tennis or business together. Seven months ago we had a talk in the office and Jay told me of his plans to try his hand at the Ventura County Sheriffs Academy. I was shocked that he was going down that career path with all his other talents I didn't see this one coming. He got through the academy, which was one of the toughest things he has ever done, and yesterday on Halloween , his favorite day, he graduated! It was a little bittersweet knowing our paths may not cross much any more, and that I will miss my friend, but I am so proud to see what he has become and wish him all the good fortune in the world. Godspeed to you Jay Havelka.

Motivation Gone!

2008-10-29T22:07:00.001-07:00

Since my injury my motivation has slowly been sliding away. I have been able to up to this point to get workouts in at least three days a week but find it harder and harder, with being so limited as what i can and cannot do. I have started do some ladders of pistols along with my etk rop but find them difficult, thus not very easy to get excited about, but shall persevere as best as possible. On a good note one of my best friends and former tennis pro Jay Havelka is graduating from the Ventura County Sheriffs Academy on Friday i am really happy for him and his wife Gina. He is one of the best!

Slow week

2008-10-22T19:46:00.000-07:00

Had a slow week after surgery worked out on Monday doing a modified light day etk. Not really to into it arm hurts and i don't want to go to hard to get to one sided, but want to have some strength left. I have post op appt tomorrow to get stitches out and see how things are healing. I will give an update tomorrow.

Surgery kicks my butt!!

2008-10-16T15:21:00.000-07:00

Wrist surgery on Tuesday brought me to my knees. I had shoulder arthroscopy 20 years ago and the anesthesia made me really sick, I told the doctors this time and they said things are much better now I shouldn't feel it to much. Ha Ha I spent the last two days curled up on my couch trying not to puke. The surgery didn't go quite as expected, a little more damage than anticipated. Lots of screws and pins. I feel much better today, though now my hand is starting to hurt a whole lot more. Looking forward to getting back to normal, its amazing what you take for granted, like being able to type with two hands!

Last two workouts

2008-10-13T21:59:00.000-07:00

Finished the last two workouts before wrist surgery tomorrow. Did 5 sets of 5 clean and presses, assisted pullups, one arm push ups, 95lb deadlift(all the weight my wrist can handle) bridges and planks finish it off, after 4 sets of 30 second 35lb swings, my last set of push ups I managed to do 5 reps of the one arm one legged variety. Pretty good for me. Today just a lighter version of yesterdays workout just 3 reps of the same things and 4 30 sec intervals of right arm snatches. Surgery has me a bit nervous but im anxious to get back on the road to healing.

Busy Week

2008-10-10T17:13:00.000-07:00

Whew! What a busy week. All the preop appointments had me running around all week and work was busy with a big ITF tournament in Tulsa coming up, the kids needed to get some good work in before leaving. Started working with Dennis Lin these last couple of weeks, very good player, top 5 last year in the 16s. Kyle McMorrow top 5 last year in the 16s as well has committed to University of Washington, JT Sundling another one of our players also in the top 5 in the 16s just committed to USC and Dennis Lin is going on his recruiting trip to Stanford this month. Great group of kids, lucky to have them all in our stable. Training this week has been pretty good I have gone back to a modified version of my ETK program, with clean and presses, one arm push ups, one arm assisted pull ups, and some deadlifts, along with the usual planks and bridges. Looking forward to spending a nice weekend with my wife and kids.

Deflated!

2008-10-01T21:05:00.000-07:00

I knew it was coming but it seemed pretty final when the surgeon explained the procedure for my wrist. Three screws, artificial ligaments, 6 weeks in a halo cast then 6-8 weeks of rehab man I am bummed. The good news is I can do 3 one arm and one leg push ups with my right arm, still doing some c&p with the kettlebells need to go on dd forum get some advice on creating an imbalance only doing one side of the upper body.

Great Birthday!

2008-09-29T20:44:00.000-07:00

I had a great birthday today, my 47th. First I got to take my 2 year old son Harris and my 4 year old daughter Magdelena to the gym where they got to go to the kids club which they love. I managed to get a little work in with sets of bridges, planks and t-stabilizers. I have been reading Pavels Naked Warrior and tried doing a few one arm one leg push ups I could do a few but they are tough. I also did some asissted one arm pullups 3 sets of 5, and finished with 5 sets of 5 35lb kettlebell clean and presses. My daughter went with me to get the arthrogram and MRI on my left wrist she was such a big girl and didnt cry when i had to get the shots and all the rest of the stuff. Turns out just what was expected torn ligaments in the scapholunate, surgery needed to repair,cant wait. My wife Terrymarie got me a nice backpack for my laptop and videocam so I can take it all together on the court for lessons. We all had a nice dinner and we had a cake that Maggie helped make with mom, it was a blessed day I am a lucky man.

Family returns!!!

2008-09-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

My wife and kids returned late thursday night from a 6 week trip visiting grandpa in NY. It is great to have them home. My wrist is still botched and i will have an arthrogram and mri on monday the 29th which just also happens to be my 47th birthday, so training has been very slow not doing a whole lot and trying not to get frustrated. It hurts to type as well so keeping up with the blog has been slow as well, but as someone said on the DD forum look at the big picture and be patient. Bought two new books by Pavel Power to the People and Naked Warrior both really good so far, Pavel sure knows his stuff.

What a week

2008-09-19T19:02:00.000-07:00

Well tuesday we did 21-15-9 of 95lb thrusters, pullups, box jumps 24inch, 40lb two anded swings followed by 100 yd sprints and walk back for active recovery. Wednesday was my etk medium day felt tired toughed through it though. Thursday played in our men's b-ball league and we actual won the game, hurt my wrist near half time going for a ball and decided i better go to the doc first thing fri morning, after 8 hours of primary doctors, insurance, specialists, and x-rays the verdict is mri on monday and reconstructive surgery later in the week. not sure what to do for training now.

Mondays ETK

2008-09-16T19:03:00.001-07:00

Monday is usually my light etk work out. 5 ladders of three rungs 40lb clean and presses and pullups along with 5 sets of tgu's planks,bridges and t-stabilizers rolled the dice came up double 6's 12 minutes of snatches oh well it was my light day so it wasnt bad, actually didnt feel like i did enough work but i guess i'll take it 'cause there are alot of days it feels like to much. sold my van got to go looking for a new car yeah.

Sunday's work out

2008-09-14T23:07:00.000-07:00

Another fun sunday in the park. Michelle a local HS volleyball star who will be playing at UCLA next year joined me for a modified "fight gone bad" 1.5 mile run followed by 5 rounds of 1 minute each of four exercises- wall ball toss 10lb 10ft high, two handed swings 35lb, sumo high pulls 35lb, 24 inch box jumps then a 100yd sprint, walk back for active recovery, finish it all off with another 1.5 mile run. all in all a fun day nice weather.

BYU Wins

2008-09-13T21:40:00.000-07:00

My alma mater won against UCLA today 59-0 hard to believe the cougars could dominate the bruins like that. Did my usual ETK work out for the day 5 ladders x 5 reps clean and presses with a 40lb 5x5 pullups 5x5 tgu planks, bridges and t-stabilizers, rolled the dice came up with a 5 (seeing a pattern here) did 5 minutes of two handed swings with 30 sec rest between each minute.

Thursdays Workout

2008-09-11T21:48:00.000-07:00

Did a modified "Linda" descending reps 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 of four exercises 24inch box jumps,burpees,40lb kettlebell swings and 40lb kettlebell clean and presses, after each set of reps 1 one hundred yd sprint, walk back to start for recovery and start next set. 5 sets of planks, bridges and t-stabilizers followed by 5 sets of 4 reps of body weight pull ups. Brought a young body builder friend along who has been wanting to do some crossfit type workouts, it almost killed him. Big difference in looking fit and being fit I guess.

First Posting

2008-09-09T22:48:00.000-07:00

Very excited to have this blog up and running and look forward to comments and future posts. Congrats to Kyle McMorrow for qualifying for the USTA Pro Circuit Futures event in Claremont, Ca.