Ice Runner Strength Has Moved!

Big changes have been happening in the Ice Runner Strength world, y’all! One of those being that I’ve moved the site from WordPress.com hosting to my own hosting. This was a much needed move in order to better optimize and customize the site for the direction I want Ice Runner Strength to take in the future.  It’s now 10 times easier to sign up for the newsletter, the site has a slightly new-and-improved look, and there’s a billion more things I can now do with the site that I couldn’t do before with my old hosting solution, which will benefit everyone as we move forward.

FYI, the website address is still the same: you can still find Ice Runner Strength @ www.icerunnerblog.com. So if you now find yourself here at icerunnerblog.wordpress.com, just head on over to the new site. It’s still the same great Ice Runner Strength content you’ve come to know and love but at a newer, hipper place! If you’re a follower of the blog, no action is required as your subscription has been transferred over to the new site. 

Thanks for your patience and thank you all for your support as we take Ice Runner Strength to the next level!

Visit the new location of Ice Runner Strength for your strength training tips

Top 5 Gear Every Lifter Should Own

Lifting gear is personal; everyone has their own stash of must-have items and sometimes it differs from one lifter to the next.  However, there are some basic items that every lifter- regardless of where they stand in strength development- should own.  Although beginning lifters always want to know what the latest and greatest gear is and what helps put more pounds on the bar (answer: quit looking for a get-strong-quick solution, there ain’t none), you need to first start with the basics.  Ladies and gentleman, I will introduce to you today the top 5 pieces of gear that you should have if you want to take your lifting to the next level. There are certainly other important pieces that I have not added to this list but these are the basics. If you do not have what is listed here, make sure to fix that ASAP or your training will not be as effective as it could be.  Which means performance left on the table. And that’s just not cool.

Note: I do not include obvious stuff like “barbell” or “weight plates”. You’re a lifter- I assume you have access to this gear already through your gym. If you don’t, umm yeah…you may want to get on that first…

The Definitive Top 5 Lifting Gear List

Powerlifting Belt

I’m not talking about a crappy bodybuilding belt that’s tapered in the front and falling apart everywhere (can you feel my frustration? Can you REALLY?). Nor am I talking about a velcro belt, although they certainly have their place, especially with the olympic lifts. I’m talking about a nice, thick, amazingly tight powerlifting style belt. These belts come in both 10mm and 13mm thicknesses, are the same width and thickness all the way around the belt, and they cinch quite tightly. The buckling system of these weight belts usually comes in

Sunday Funday 5: Sports Training & Burnout, Westside Barbell, Powerlifting Grandmother, & Mobility

Okay, so I cheated and changed the name of the Friday Five. Since Friday was a crazy day this week, I still wanted to get some great links in this week. And boy, did I come across some good stuff. Hope y’all enjoy!

3 Bad Consequences of Playing a Sport Too Much

This excellent article on Stack Magazine from my coach & mentor Rick Scarpulla talks about the disadvantages of constantly training either yourself or your kids in their sports year round while neglecting strength training and power development. Rick is addressing a fairly common occurrence by parents of athletic kids of pushing them way too hard in developing skills in their sport to the detriment of building strength and muscle in the off-season. A must read!

Louie Simmons: Westside Barbell Training Methods, Part I

I’m obviously a big fan of the Westside Barbell method and this article explains why. Louie goes into why variation of exercises, reps, sets, and everything, is more important than following a rigid program that’s not really tailored to you  (i.e. the antiquated 3×5 rep scheme). This crystal clear, no-nonsense article is an interesting read for anyone interested in strength & power development.

Illinois Grandmother Sets Powerlifting Record

I saw this article late in the summer and kept it bookmarked because I thought it was awesome. This is the story of a 73 year old grandmother who set a state Powerlifting record in her age group by deadlifting 181.5 pounds. She started lifting to improve her health AFTER she got a serious illness. This kind of story is uplifting & inspiring- especially since most of society seems to think that we’re just supposed to wither away and die past the age of 40. Well, this news story just screams BS at all of that (which I r-e-a-l-l-y enjoy doing, in case you couldn’t tell).

9 Stretches You Should Know

Building on my mobility post, this is a good quick blog post that links to 9 great Kelly Starrett mobility movements from Mobility WOD, all the way from the heel cords and calves to the neck and traps. This is a good, quick introductory place to start.

Workouts That Don’t Work (And One That Does)

Another great article by Rick Scarpulla, this one delves into the common misconceptions of sports and workout training, debunks them, and then tells you what does work. Worth the read.  FYI, Rick Scarpulla will be guest posting on my blog in the next couple of weeks so be on the look out!

And that wraps it up for this week folks! Enjoy the great information and tomorrow I’ll get into the Top 5 Pieces of Gear Every Lifter Needs.

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Mobility for Lifters: An Introduction

Surprisingly enough, mobility work- not merely stretching, but real work on soft tissues and joints to keep them healthy- seems to still be largely undervalued (or even unknown) in the larger fitness community.  Lifters especially seem to implement it the least, from what I’ve seen. There still seems to be a widespread attitude of “just suck it up and take Ibuprofen”…until you pull a muscle which leaves you out of the lifting game for weeks.  Then all you hear is “well, it’s just the nature of the game.” I call BS. It doesn’t have to be that way. And the way to fix that is through 1) the correction of muscular imbalances, and 2) consistent mobility work. This post will introduce the concept of the latter- mobility for those who may be unfamiliar.

Mobility: the word tends to conjure images of functionality in old age (i.e. scooters) and physical therapy. While no scooters are involved (sorry to disappoint), mobility is a kind of physical therapy, though a preventive form of it that everyone can benefit from. But what is

7 Ways to Improve Your Bench Press Technique

The Bench Press- it’s the one strength training exercise everyone thinks they know (“it’s easy, just lay on the bench and move the bar up and down, right?” Short answer: no), but many a person royally screws it up. There is an art and technique to mastering bench press form and you won’t intuitively know it unless someone shows you how. Implementing these 7 technique cues will improve not only the safety of the bench press (no, the bench press does NOT destroy shoulders, it’s your crappy form that destroyed your shoulders), but you’ll also lift more weight. And who doesn’t

Spartan Race Newsletter Giveaway: Update

Hey everyone, just wanted to keep you all updated. Earlier this week, I announced a free entry ticket into any continental-US Spartan Race for the 2013-14 season to help promote the airing of the Spartan Race World Championships on NBC Sports. Unfortunately, the airing has been postponed until December 7th. I’m not gonna keep you all waiting till December 7th but I will extend the entry into the giveaway till early November. I apologize for the delay, but you know, stuff happens some times.

To Enter

For those of you who are new, this newsletter giveaway will include all those who have signed up for the bi-weekly Newsletter. To enter, simply sign up for the Newsletter at the top of the sidebar to the right. The giveaway will be a random drawing of newsletter subscribers and will be awarded on Saturday, November 9th. I will provide more details as we get closer to that date. ALL newsletter subscribers will receive a 15% discount to any Spartan Race, even if you don’t win.

Here’s a quick introduction to the Spartan Race for the uninitiated:

Sign-up today to ensure your spot!

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13 Competitions & Sports You Should Try

In 5 Ways Everyone Can Benefit From Competing, I gave you 5 reasons how your life can be positively enhanced from regular competitive experiences. Today, I’ll provide you specific examples of a variety of sports and competitive events in which pretty much anyone can compete in. All of the sports below contain women’s divisions, have weight classes, and many hold Master’s competitions for athletes over 50.  For the disabled, there are also many organizations for adaptive sports in some of the sports below.  For the ultra-competitive, opportunities exist in most sports listed below to go Pro or to reach a highly competitive level (with some awesome prize money).  There truly is something for everyone.

The categories below include strength sports, endurance, hybrid, and physique.  Many of the events listed require and develop many aspects of athleticism and fitness: stamina, balance, coordination, endurance (depending on the sport), and of course, in keeping with the spirit of the blog, strength is integral to all those listed below. Let’s get to it!

Strength

Strongman/Strongwoman

   

This amazing sport is

5 Ways Everyone Can Benefit from Competing (& Newsletter Giveaway)

Competition: for athletes, this word triggers excitement and anticipation. We love to compete and really feel alive during these moments. We seek out these moments. For those of you who may be non-athletes (or former athletes from once upon a time), I’m sure you’re thinking “why do I need to compete in anything? I’m just content to workout on my own.” Oh, but you should, my friend, you should. And it doesn’t have to be in a sport that you would see in college or high school (though it could be), nor does it need to be at the highest level (although your ambitions could eventually take you there, if you allow it). There are numerous benefits that you can gain from even lower levels of competition that not just translate to fitness, but to increasing your quality of life in numerous ways.

Without further delay, here are the

4 Weeks to Your First Pull-Up

In 3 Steps to Your First Pull-up, we covered three key areas that need developing in order to get that first pull-up. Today, I will go into more specifics and give you a sample 4-week plan that you can follow. Although I’m a strong believer in tailored programs for maximum effectiveness, I realize that not everyone has the access or know-how. This plan serves as best of a happy medium that can be provided short of a tailored program.

The Plan: 4 Weeks to Your First Pull-up

Guidelines:

This program can be followed in addition to

3 Steps to Your First Pull-Up

The Pull-up!  That terrible exercise that once humiliated you in middle school when you couldn’t do any- it just won’t seem to go away in your mind.  You want to conquer this sucker once and for all.  Not to mention, take advantage of the strength benefits it offers in developing the upper back and biceps.  This blog post will go into detail on just how you can get that first pull-up.  And once you get one, I will have future posts on how to progress to 3, 5 and onward.  And yes ladies, you too