Terminal City Training Vancouver Personal Trainer Strength & Conditioning

Q: Hi Al. Sorry to bug you, but I’m thinking of getting some gloves for wrist support and I noticed that people also wear them during lifting sometimes. Do you think they could be dual purpose or are lifting gloves doing something different?
                                            -N.
A:  Hi N. Lifting gloves are generally used to prevent calluses and are usually a bad idea. They make lifting harder as it becomes more difficult to hold on to the bar. And, small well-maintained calluses are important to lifting.

Sometimes when doing high rep pinch work for grip strength work gloves are worn to spare the skin from too much wear and tear.
Wrist wraps are used for wrist support, especially in benching. They do provide support but have a negative aspect as well in that they don’t really contribute to the wrists getting stronger. They are useful when used judiciously.

Question: In order coach push-ups correctly with elbows somewhat tucked in, is it okay to place something under someone's chest if they're unable to go all the way to the floor? I can't think of another way to each the push-up, which I like to use as an accessory for people learning the bench press.

Answer: I think that's fine as one approach to use. 

An option that I would also use and would generally prioritize would be barbell push-ups. To do this, place a bar on the pins (safety bars) of the power rack and braced against the uprights. Have your trainee perform push-ups against the elevated barbell. The barbell can be set at various heights simply by adjusting the height of the pins. The lower the pins are set the more difficult the exercise.

The benefit of doing barbell push-ups instead of doing push-ups to a block under the chest is that they will allow a greater range of motion while still allowing the difficulty to be adapted to your trainee's current abilities.

                                                           report by Christina Matheson
                                                                  photos by Scott Robarts
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On Friday September 20th I completed the Whistler Alpine Meadows Ascent Race. Looking at the stats you think, “a race under 6km? I got this! Easy peasey”. Then you look at the ascent. 1,200m, that’s 3,938ft up Blackcomb Mountain. Gulp. 

RACE ROUTE & STRATEGY
Distance: ~6km
Ascent: ~1,200m
The race starts at Merlin's at the base of the Blackcomb Gondola in beautiful Whistler, BC. It then follows the Blackcomb Ascent Trail straight up the mountain to the Rendezvous Lodge at  an elevation of 1,860m.

I had mentally broken down the race into two sections
1. Base to mid-station (2.9km and ~550m elevation gain)
2. Mid-station to Rendezvous Lodge  (3.0km and ~610m elevation gain) 

I’d only done the first half of this race course back in June and it took me 50 minutes. My goal for this race was to keep chill on the first half, take 50 minutes to get to mid-station and then an additional 1hr 10 minutes to get from mid-station to the top (based on my best Grouse Grind time of the season). Goal time 2 hours total for the race. 

PRE RACE
The morning of the race I was very pleased at the 12pm start time. It gave me lots of time to get up, eat a leisurely breakfast and calmly prepare for the task ahead.  Or so I thought. I was about to leave for the start line when I realized: 

1. There was mould growing in the tube of my hydration vest and 
2. The zipper wouldn't zip up on my hydration vest

Okay people, this is where we say “don’t try anything new on race day” and “part of training is training with all the gear & food you’ll use on race day”. These are things I know, yet, I thought they were not applicable to me. I had decided at the last minute to pack my winter hydration vest which I hadn’t used since, well, winter and therefore, I ended up with a few problems. 

No matter.

Solution to #1 - My trusty mate lent me his 2L bladder from his mountain biking kit. It didn’t fit my pack well but at least I wouldn’t get dehydrated during the race.

Solution to #2 - Body glide to the rescue!  My hydration vest is old and I refuse to retire it since I wore it during a marathon in Antarctica. I’ve been using lead from a lead pencil to lubricate the zipper so it will zip. Since I had not packed a pencil up to Whistler, I used body glide to lubricate the zipper and then hoped I wouldn’t have to take the pack off during the race. 

I’m all set, but now I might be late for the race so I jog to the start line of the race. 

3, 2, 1 AND THEY ARE OFF…

Within a minute of starting we’re on a path in the forest heading up Blackcomb Mountain. It’s a beautiful trail, hard packed and non-technical, that takes us up the mountain. 

I’m taking it easy and conserving my energy for the second half of the race. I get to mid-station in 53 minutes. I’m a little disappointed that it’s 3 minutes past my goal time. But there’s nothing I can do about that. I focus on the second half and keep telling myself I’m going to finish the second half in 1:10. (Note: I later check my stats from training and it had taken me 58 minutes to complete the first section in June, not 50 minutes, so a time of 53 minutes ain’t that bad).

Every once in a while the trail leaves the forest and we get a beautiful view of the valley below and Whistler Mountain on our right. It’s exciting to see how high we’ve climbed. 

On one clear section above mid-station, I look back and see a racer in a pickle costume emerging from the forest. I think it’s the race sweep.  A pickle is chasing me up the mountain. 

This question comes from Casey, who does weekly strength coaching in between his jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai, and strength practice.

Q: What is your approach to a trainee who's coming back after a long hiatus? Are there certain exercises you like or any you try to avoid?

A: Was there an injury?

Q:General aches and pains from lack of activity and being a construction worker.

A: My general approach would be to reintroduce them to a linear progression. Day 1 - work them up to 3 sets of 5 in bench and squat. Day 2- week up same way in overhead press and deadlift.

Over the coming weeks drop deadlift to 2 work sets and then 1 work set as it gets heavy.  This will allow them enough repetitions to regain some proficiency without getting into excessive strain.

Introduce rows and chins when there is time left in the session.

Maybe get them on the rower for very easy mileage. Encourage walking or very light running if appropriate.

This is more or less the same approach I tend to use when a lifter is brand new.

Choosing a linear progression model with a self-correcting mechanism such as the Greyskull LP will allow the proper intensity to get sorted quickly enough.

Residual strength will bring the numbers up more quickly than in a true newbie.

Q: Thanks!

Passive Legs
   The importance of the leg drive seems counter-intuitive in the bench press. When setting up we start with planting the heels, pushing out the knees , and then take tension all the way up through the body to the hands. We are trying to make the longest kinetic chain possible, working against the positional shortcomings of the movement. If we keep in mind the primary importance of tension, then we can see how pre-tensing the largest and most powerful muscles of the body, those of the legs and hips, can contribute a great deal to the irradiation effect. Every part of the body needs to be tight and the lower body is very significant to this.


Overly-wide Grip
   During competition it makes sense to use the most advantageous grip allowed within the rules. During the bulk of training, however, we want to use grip widths that promote strength development in the triceps and the health of the shoulders. For these purposes a moderate to narrowish grip is preferred. 

Lack of Tension 
   Before the bar is unracked, the body is already tightened and prepared from the feet all the way up the body through to the hands. Be methodical by starting with how you plant your feet and then work step by step upwards through the body: knees pushed out, glutes engaged, belly full and hard, lats engaged, squeeze a fist between the shoulder blades, and finally crush the bar with the hands.

As the bar is lowered, think to yourself: “break the bar in half” or “pull.” Though you start off the set-up being as tight as possible, there is always room for more tension.

As the bar is pushed off the chest it is important to keep tightness in the rear shoulders and upper back.


Bent Arms While Unracking and Re-racking

   Safety while benching is of the utmost importance. When unracking the bar, after getting tight keep the arms completely locked out while moving the bar over the face and throat to your starting position. When finishing your last repetition it is very important to lock it out to completion and then, with arms still locked out, return the bar to the rack. The general rule: the arms should be locked out anytime that the bar is passing over the face and throat.

Terminal City gym has helped me get stronger and feel more energetic.  I am a 60 year old female who has been active my whole life.  I have commuted by bicycle and practised yoga in Vancouver for over 30 years.  The weight lifting at Terminal City has improved my yoga practise by having much more upper body strength and cycling is easier through increased leg strength from doing squats.  The comfortable atmosphere at Terminal City is relaxed, yet focused and fun with no pressure.  I feel a lot more confident in my body and moving the couch when vacuuming is a breeze!
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