NSCA Endurance Clinic

NSCA Endurance Clinic Summary: Day 3

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David Barr: Nutritional Supplements & Ergogenic Aids

  • NSCA CSCS, USA Track & Field, Precision Nutrition Certified, participated in research with NASA
  • High Return On Investment Supplements
    • Caffeine
      • blocks adenosine which results in
      • less fatigue and
      • lower feeling of exertion during activity
      • concerns include GI distress and diuresis (exessive urination)
    • Carbs
      • type: glucose, fructose, maltodextrin
      • timing: during exercise
      • beneficial in events lasting >2.5 hrs
      • dosing by duration: 60g/hr for 2-3 hrs, 30g/hr if <2 hrs
    • Fish oil
      • effects
        • increased muscle anabolism
        • may enhance recovery
      • Don’t look at total Omega 3s
        • You want EPA = 180 and
        • DHA = 120
      • If eating a high-fat diet (me) then up the Omega 3s.
      • potential synergy with Vitamin E
    • Protein (He seems to be a big protein guy.)
      • Don’t use during exercise (but what about Accelerade?  No good?  Didn’t get a chance to ask.)
      • Consume up to 2 g per kg of body weight or 1 g per lb.
      • Whey post workout: 20-25 g is the limit
    • Nutrient timing:
      • Protein pulse feeding
        • multiple protein feedings per day of 20-30 g
        • ups protein storage
        • Seems the effect of this is separate from the training effects from the workout.
      • Take about 40 g of casein before sleep to help blunt catabolism
      • Carb timing:
      • If you need rapid glycogen replenishment then consume carbs soon.
      • If you have 24 hrs before the next workout then it’s not an issue.
      • Protein and the workout
        • If you’ve eaten soon before a workout then don’t worry.
        • If you haven’t eaten in a while then eat protein pre-workout.
    • Keys to hydration
      • specific prescription better than ad libitum or drinking at will.
      • (Dr. Tim Noakes disagrees and I side with Noakes.)
      • flavor enhances consumption
      • cold increases palatability
      • drink early/often
    • Building the optimal endurance drink
      • 200 ml water/15 minutes
      • sodium: 450 mg/L
      • Carbs: 8-10%, 90 g/hr: glucose and fructose
      • Protein (potentially): 7%
      • You must “train the gut” or use this stuff while training in order to condition the digestive system to put up with it.
    • Antioxidants
      • mitigate free radical damage and aid recovery
      • Don’t take directly after workouts.
      • May be a case for taking antioxidants during activity
    • Lactate
      • Lactate is used as energy.
      • Doesn’t cause burn/fatigue
      • Cytomax makes some sort of drink w/lactate in it.
    • Buffers
      • bicarbonate
        • 300 mg/kg
        • potential GI trouble
      • Beta alanine
      • Theoretically: use both for a systemic effect
    • Nitrates
      • may help power output
      • may mitigate effects of altitude
      • Improved time trial performance in cyclists
    • Immunity
      • CHO
      • Vit C
      • Vit D
      • Zinc
    • Common deficiencies
      • Vit D
        • No toxicity
        • 6000-10,000 IU/day
      • Iron: Test for it.
      • Magnesium
    • Experimental considerations
      • hyperhydration
      • “train low” (carbs): unclear if this benefits performance
      • echinacea: increases EPO
      • ketones: novel energy source
    • Future prospects
      • cobalt chloride
      • guanidinopropionic acid
    • Other resources

Tim Crowley: Program Design: Strength Training for Endurance Athletes

  • CSCS, NASM-PES, USA Cycling Elite Level Coach, 2008 US Olympic Triathlon Coaching Staff, USAT Elite Coach of the Year and Development Coach of the Year, Owner TC2 Coaching, Head Strength Coach at Montverde Academy
  • Huge need for endurance strength & conditioning coach
  • “Great swimmers are great athletes that swim fast and great athletes are strong.” – Richard Shoulberg, Germantown Academy
  • STRENGTH MUST BE THERE FOR SPEED!
  • Program Goals
    • Reduce injury incidence
    • Reduce injury severity
    • Increase athletic performance
    • Improve athleticism
  • If you can read/learn 1 hr per day then you’re way ahead of the crowd.
  • Try stuff out before we give it to athletes: workouts, tools, food
  • Book: Endurance Training Science & Practice, Mujika
  • He covered various research evidence showing that strength training aids runners, cyclists and other endurance athletes
    • Reasons strength training works for endurance athletes:
      • conversion of type IIX fibers into fatigue resistant type IIA fibers
      • improves strength (like money in the bank)
      • rapid force production
      • improved neuromuscular function
      • tendon stiffness (essential for running)
      • improved max speed for fast starts or finishes
    • Common myths
      • Heavy weights make you big
      • Weight training hurts young athletes
      • Endurance athletes need light weight/high reps
      • Heavy weight training reduces ROM
      • Lifting equals bodybuilding
      • Squats hurt knees
      • Only for use in off-season
      • Endurance training will build strength
    • Important considerations
      • Strength work often isn’t to improve the engines of endurance (legs for running for example) but rather to address weaknesses, increase overall athleticism, and avoid injury
      • As pressure mounts on an athlete, find ways to coach less and simply get them to perform at their ability.
      • Time:
        • an obstacle for endurance athletes
        • goal is 30-40 min 2x per week
        • Try high-intensity/low-volume workout to increase muscle activation prior to a track workout
      • Energy
        • finite amount of energy for training
        • can’t interrupt endurance sport training
        • DOMS can be a problem
        • physical effects of high-vs low-volume
        • psychological effects
      • Reciprocal Inhibition
        • Reduced neural drive to opposing muscles
        • Areas of concern
          • scapula/thoracic spine
          • hip flexors/glutes
          • hip adductors/glute medius
          • anterior core/low back
      • Pattern Overload
        • Endurance sports are cyclical
        • high incidence of overuse injury
        • lots of “itises”
      • Force Couplings
        • Key body regions for multisport athletes
          • internal vs. external shoulder rotators
          • hips in saggital plane (flexors vs. extensors)
          • hips in frontal plane (glute medius and quadratus lumborum)
        • Eliminate power leaks
        • Improve movement economy = free speed
      • Masters athletes
        • strength development/maintenance is vital to success
        • loss of power declines faster than strength
        • mobility is crucial
        • compensation patterns
        • slower recovery from injuries
      • Program design
        • foam rolling/movement prep
        • mobility
        • corrective exercise
        • strength
        • keep it simple
        • less is more
        • quality over quantity
        • develop power
      • Self-myofacial release (SMR)
        • foam rollers
        • tennis/LAX balls
        • golf balls
        • the Stick
      • Mobility
        • May be the most important component in the beginning
        • a must for masters athletes
        • Vital concerns:
          • hip mobility
          • thoracic spine
          • ankles
          • 1-leg squat
          • split squat every workout
          • His ACL injury rate is almost 0.
      • Overuse injuries
        • Be proactive
        • shoulders
        • low back
        • glutes/glute medius
        • lower leg/ankle
      • His go-to exercises
        • inverted/TRX rowing
        • anterior core
        • core dynamic stabilization
        • single-leg squatting (priority goes to 1-leg over 2-leg work)
        • glute/hamstring and glutes
        • trap bar deadlifts
        • ankle band walking
        • eccentric calf raises
      • Mobility and Stability
        • Mobility is the combination of muscle flexibility, joint ROM, and the body segment’s freedom of movement
        • 2 types of stability
          • static 1-leg stance
          • dynamic core stabilization during athletic movement
        • Example: Hips are stiff so lumbar spine becomes too mobile/unstable and injury is incurred.
      • 10 exercises to include
        • Cook hip lift

      • Hip flexor stretch
        •  X Lat pull (couldn’t find a video)
        • Reverse cable fly

        • single-leg squat

        • single-leg deadlift

        • stability ball pushup or TRX pushup (unstable surface)

        • lawnmower row

        • cable and tubing lifts and chops (and other similar exercises)

      • single-leg heel raise
  • Resources

Nick Clayton, Power Training for Endurance Athletes

  • Objectives
    • Explain how training with explosive movements benefits endurance performance
    • Correctly perform variations of the Olympic lifts and plyometrics specific to performance in endurance activities
    • Lecture
    • Practical
      • dynamic warm-up
      • Olympic lift variations
      • Plyometrics
    • Why train for power?
      • Rate of force development
      • eccentric strength
    • Non-barbell Olympic lifting
      • Clean, snatch, jerk variations
        • kettlebells
        • dumbbells
        • medicine balls
      • Plyometrics: various 1 and 2 leg jumps, hops, skips
      • Nick said he would create videos of all the exercises and post them.  When/if they’re available I plan to post them here.
      • This was a fantastic session from warm-up to all exercises.
      • It was very much in line with the idea of creating athleticism.
      • These drills exposed a lot of weaknesses and lack of athleticism in a lot of the participants.
      • Exposing these weaknesses could be a huge opportunity to improve athletic performance.

Conclusion:

This clinic was just excellent!  It far surpassed my high expectations and that’s a rare thing.  The combination of theoretical/academic/”sciencey-type” stuff, practical application of the science, and physical participation kept the whole thing extremely interesting.  I came away with my mind overflowing with ideas.

Several things are prominent in my mind right now:

  1. I was re-introduced to some of Gary Gray’s concepts.  I’ve returned to doing the 3D lunge matrix with much greater understanding of hip, spine and knee position, plus how to tweak the lunge matrix in all sorts of ways.  I’m doing it again and all my clients are doing it now.
  2. The concept of athleticism as a necessary foundation is a HUGE concept to me.  We tend to specialize too much.  We devote ourselves to endurance sports which go one direction (saggital plane) and we neglect 3D movement.  We avoid crawling, climbing, rolling, hopping, jumping and engaging in unpredictable movement situations.  Check out the people going into and out of Spinning classes and you’ll see a lot of broke-down people who can barely hobble.  They aren’t athletic.  And I have been one of those people–but not anymore! Every one of my workouts now has a dedicated 3D movement component, power component and I try to do something that I don’t typically do.  Athleticism deserves a blog post of its own.
  3. I’m going to contact Jay Johnson for some coaching.  He did such a fantastic job of distilling academic information into practical application.  I can only coach myself so far.  I need someone who’s been through the process both as a runner and a running coach.
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Summary of the NSCA Endurance Clinic: Day 2

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Day 2:

  • Dr. Carwyn Sharp – Role of Strength Training & the Endurance Athlete
    • Factors determining successful endurance performance
      • VO2Max – Not nearly as important as we’ve thought for years
      • Lactate/Anaerobic Threshold
      • Economy of Movement
      • Velocity at onset of blood lactate accumulation (vOBLA) – This may be the most important.
      • We need to think of ways to increase performance, not just measurements like VO2Max.
    • Improving Running Economy (RE)/Economy of Movement (EM):
      • strength
      • speed
      • power
      • More force into the ground/pedals/water = speed
      • More force comes from more strength
      • Heavy strength training and plyometrics are best
      • Both are shown to improve vOBLA
      • Plyometrics need to look like running: 1-leg hops, bounds, skipping.  This is SPORT SPECIFIC TRAINING.
    • Good idea to cut strength training during a taper.
    • Strength training guidelines
      • heavy weight training:
      • 3-5 sets of 3-6 RM
      • with 3-5 minutes rest between sets
    • Plyometrics: most convincing performance results.
      • varies depending on training status, mode and intensity
      • work: rest of 1:5 to 1:10
      • 80-140 foot contacts per session; fewer for beginners
        • 2-foot landing counts as 2 contacts
        • 1-foot landing is 1 contact
      • FIRST THERE MUST BE A SOLID STRENGTH BASE!
      • Donald Chu, Jumping Into Plyometrics
  • Coach Jay Johnson, MS – The Strength & Conditioning Coach Meets the Running Coach
    • former collegiate runner and running coach at CU Boulder
    • coached 3 U.S. Track & Field champions
    • 6 main points
      • Athleticism
      • Runners (and everyone else) need to first have a base of athleticism
      • good movement in 3 planes of movement
      • full ROM at the joints
      • strength
      • He builds aerobic metabolism on top of this foundation of athleticism.
      • The idea of athleticism is massively important!
    • Why did your athlete/client get better?
      • Did they simply go from being sedentary to being active?
      • Or did they get better because of the program you designed?
    • Understand the role of glycogen
      • The body must be trained to use lipids as fuel
      • This syncs with Seebohar’s discussion on glycogen.
    • Development of the aerobic metabolism is the most important factor for peak running performance.
    • Runners must  do non-running work to stay healthy.
      • GSM (General Strength & Mobility Work)
      • Gary Gray’s 3D lunge matrix.  I’ve played with this in the past.  I’ve returned to it.  Here’s a video

  • Keep the easy days easy and the hard days hard.
    • Do the intense strength/plyometric work on the hard running days.
    • Take it easy on the off days.
    • This is a key part of the periodized plan
    • His discussion on periodization was very helpful to me
    • Macrocycle
      • When it’s time to progress the runs, do so on the hard days.
      • Run easy or rest on the easy days.  Never up the intensity of easy days.
      • A complete day off every 14 days is a good idea
      • Take an active rest week after every 5k, 10k, and half-marathon
      • He takes three weeks after a marathon.
    • Microcycle
      • 4 days/week running
      • Monday – recovery day: Do strides on Monday; 4-5 x 20-30 seconds at 5k pace with 1 minute easy jogging between reps.
      • Tuesday – workout: High level aerobic workout or race pace workout.  Can include:
        • Threshold/tempo run or
        • Fartlek run or
        • Progression run or
        • Long repetitions or
        • Alternate the above with race pace workouts week to week
      • Wednesday – aerobic cross-training
      • Thursday – off or cross-training
      • Friday – easy run day w/strides
      • Saturday – long run
      • Sunday – brisk walk
    • The lunge matrix is done before every run
    • Runs follow with general strength and mobility work and Active Isolated Stretching
    • Here’s a link to Johnson’s 8-week strength progression.
    • This may have been my favorite lecture.  Johnson did a fantastic job of taking academic information (physiology, periodization, race pace training) and telling us in simple terms how he implements these things.  His point on athleticism was HUGE to me. I plan to contact him for coaching this coming season.
  • Nick Clayton, MS, MBA, CSCS,*D, RSCC – Functional Training for the Endurance Athlete
    • This was an active demonstration in the performance center, not a lecture.
    • Sport specific movement that mimics body position, speed of contraction contraction type of said sport
    • trains the body as an integrated unit
    • Primal movement patterns
      • squat
      • lunge
      • lift
      • push
      • pull
      • twist
      • Squat progression
        • 1-leg balance
        • 1-leg squat
        • 1-leg squat in multiple planes and with other body movement
        • 1-leg squat jump to deceleration
      • Lunge progression
        • stationary with narrow base
        • multi-planar
        • multi-planar with reaching
        • split squat jumps with focus on quiet deceleration
      • Lift (deadlift related movements)
        • hip hinge and balance progression
        • 1-leg Romanian deadlift/deadlift
        • kettlebell swings
      • Push/Press: Discussed mainly addressing the postural and scapular considerations of safe and effective pushing in sport training
      • Pull:
        • Shoulder stability patterns:
        • Y, T, I, W, stability ball roll-out
        • I liked these patterns.  I’m using them now as part of the warm-up or as correctives as needed.
      • split stance dumbbell row
      • cable “lawnmower”
        • It’s a single-leg cable row with a hip hinge.
        • This is a running pattern. Here’s a demo

Prior to the strength and plyo demos, we went through a really cool walking/lunging mobility process. Nick said he was going to email out videos of the warm-up and when/if he does, I’ll post them here.  I may video it myself.

Getting out on the floor to play with these exercises was a lot of fun.  I really liked the 1-leg plyo work.  I definitely got some valuable ideas that I’ll implement in my own training and with my clients. I also liked the shoulder patterns a lot.  I’ve seen the Y, T, I, W patterns before but I understand them better now.  I think it’s key to KEEP THE SHOULDERS AWAY FROM THE EARS WHILE YOU DO THESE.

  • Randall Wilber – Training and Competing in a Hot and Humid Environment
    • Dr. Wilber discussed in great detail how he helped Deena Castor (bronze) and Meb Keflezighi (silver)  prepare for the Athens Olympic marathons in 2004.
    • While not terribly important to my goals, some of this information was new and very interesting.
    • 2 ways to prepare for heat/humidity:
      • Natural acclimatization
      • Arrive 10 days to two weeks out
      • Gradually adjust timing of high-intensity and low-intensity workouts (two-a-days)
      • Gradually creep the workouts towards the heat of the day such that the final day has a HI workout near noon and a LI intensity workout in the evening.
      • Pre-acclimatization (Deena and Meb both did this prior to Athens.)
        • Very simple: Train in more clothing to make the body hot and thus approximate the hot conditions in which you’re to compete.
        • Arrive a few days ahead of the event and do your final workouts.
      • Cooling strategies
      • clothing
        • no cotton
        • lightweight and light color
      • sunscreen: avoid it as much as possible as it clogs pores and inhibits sweating
      • ice packs/towels
      • ice vest
      • Apply cold/ice to hands and feet: I’ve noticed on my own how  in cold weather, I can put on gloves or take off gloves and experience a significant change in my overall temperature.
      • whole body immersion: showers, tubs
      • ice drinks (like Slurpees)
      • Stay as cool as possible right up to the event.
      • Consume more sodium while training in the heat.
  • David Bertrand – Managing the Endurance Athlete
    • MS, USA Triathlon Level II Coach, lectures at SMU in the Applied Physiology Dept, head of DFI Tri Club, Dallas
    • Athlete selection:
      • Very important to coach people with whom you mesh
      • You may not be the best coach for everyone
      • Curiosity: He needs to feel curious about his clients and their goals.
      • “Training with David” document: This was very insightful
        • What does training with David bring…
        • coaching philosophy
        • requirements
        • rates
        • weekly training availability
        • how training is delivered
        • training jargon and abbreviations
        • I need to develop a document like this w/my name in place of David’s
    • Coaching styles and methodologies
      • autocratic: best for groups with both high and low cohesion
      • democratic: best for groups with moderate cohesion
      • Display a vision.  Express belief in the athlete
      • Buy-in: “Here’s how were going to do it.”
    • Communication
      • How am I most effective?  1-on-1?  Small groups?  Big groups?  Ask my clients.
      • LISTENING IS VITAL!
    • Training intensities
      • Most people go too hard.
      • This is in sync with Wilber’s advice that a little undertrained is far better than a little overtrained.
      • HR monitor can help keep athletes in check.
    • Writing and adjusting the plan
      • Adjusting the plan: This is your greatest value to them.  This separates you from the cookie cutter programs.
      • Most people need MORE RECOVERY, not more work.
    • Best practices
      • Don’t over-coach: Take 1 or 2 things and ask, “What did we focus on today?”  Less is more
      • Strive to learn.  Stay curious.  He told a great story about Jon Wooden.
      • Select days of the week for specific tasks.  Get organized.
      • Help athletes with something beyond just training.  Can you inspire them?
    • David gave a really superb lecture on what I call “filling in the cracks.”  That is, he spoke to issues beyond just physiology, heart rate, strength programs and other science. He talked about his time in the trade and how to actually work with human beings. I got a lot out of the lecture even though I’m not a tri coach nor do I plan on becoming one.

 

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Summary of the NSCA Endurance Clinic: Day 1

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Part of what I love about the Denver area is that it’s home to numerous very good athletes and coaches–particularly of the endurance variety. We’re also not far from Colorado Springs which is home to both the Olympic Training Center and the headquarters for the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA), one of the top certification bodies in the world of health, fitness and sports conditioning.

I was at the NSCA from last Friday to Sunday attending an endurance clinic. It was SUPERB! It far exceeded my already high expectations. All the speakers had volumes of valuable information. Not only did they present valuable academic information, they also told us how they applied this information in the trenches with their athletes. These guys weren’t just born as successful coaches. They’ve gone through a lot of trial, error and very hard work to get where they are. It’s very helpful to hear that type of information.

We didn’t just sit and listen though. Saturday and Sunday had us getting out on the field and into the performance center to learn about strength exercises, mobility drills, and plyometric drills. I got to meet a lot of my very capable peers and I got to work out in what is likely one of the top lifting facilities on earth. It was a fantastic weekend.

I’m going to give a rundown of some of the pearls of wisdom I collected on Day 1. I can’t do each presentation thorough justice, but I’ll try to highlight some of the most important things that I heard.  I’ll follow up with days 2 and 3 as soon as I can.

Day 1:
Dr. Carwyn Sharp – Intro to Endurance Training

  • Exercise scientist, triathlete and ultra-runner who’s worked with NASA and has 14 years coaching experience.
  • Endurance athletes are often averse to resistance training thinking it will bulk them up.
  • He presented several studies which demonstrate that strength training enhances speed and endurance performance.
  • Sand, snow, wind, and hills can all contribute to the athlete’s resistance training.
  • On recovery from intervals: if you feel the effects of previous interval → you didn’t recover sufficiently.
  • The basis of speed is strength. Several studies demonstrate that heavy resistance training and explosive training improves performance.
  • 1-leg training is very important.
  • Progression
    • Move well on 2 legs (squat, deadlift) and get strong.
    • transition to split squat
    • then to 1 leg stability
    • 1 leg squat and deadlift
    • 2 leg plyos
    • 1 leg plyos

Bob Seebohar: – Nutrition for the Endurance Athlete

  • Registered Dietitian and USAT coach who has coached and advised Olympic triathletes
  • Metabolic efficiency – use more lipids/less carb/preserve glycogen
  • Nutrition periodization – “Eat to train. Don’t train to eat.”
  • Food First – Don’t use supplements to make up for poor eating.
  • moderate supplement use; only part of the season
  • prevent weight gain in off-season – no sport supplements during
  • He supports the lower-carb/higher-fat approach. I was very happy to see that.
  • Food log
    • Doesn’t as about amount of food eaten but rather…
    • What?
    • When?
    • Why? I love that he asks “why” someone ate something.

Dr. Randall Wilber – Overtraining: Causes, Recognition, Prevention & Illness

  • Physiologist to the US Olympic team.
  • Overtraining–or “underperformance” as he calls it–often isn’t due to too much training.
  • nutrition
  • blood work
    • Iron is often low in women.
    • Vitamin D deficiency is common
  • endocrine panel
  • urinalysis
  • Physiological and psychological metrics for tracking fatigue/recovery
    • overnight heart rate
    • blood chemistry
    • sleep quality
    • Salimetrics – He said look for the price to come down on this.
  • Take the athlete back to active recovery. Progress very gradually back to regular workouts.
  • If they perform well and feel good at their first LT workout then they’re on the right road back.
  • Coach Bobby McGee: “More performances are spoiled by slight overtraining than by slight lack of fitness. An athlete who is 90% conditioned for an event will do better than an athlete who is 0.5% overtrained.”
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