manual personal trainer

1 arm swings
Stand straight with your arms by your sides. Swing one arm straight back over your head and the other back behind your hip. Alternate for 20 repetitions. The target: chest, shoulders and biceps. The big picture: good for coordination and gets you in the right posture for standing exercises. Best for: basketball, cricket, swimming, volleyball, skiing.

High-low

Static vs Dynamic
Static stretching hasnt been given the red card; it now just comes on from the bench. The problem with static stretching is that it can reduce your agility, speed, power and coordination for up to 30 minutes after you do it. Another reason its not great in the warm-up is that while it stretches the length of the muscles, it doesnt increase blood flow to them dynamic stretching does. On the other hand, static stretching is still considered superior for developing overall flexibility and muscle endurance when the stretches are held for 20-30 seconds (no longer; the benefits decrease). Try static stretching for five minutes after training. Although, if your muscles are too tired or tense, dont push it cool-down cardio would be better. For best results, give stretching its own 15- to 20-minute session after some light cardio.

2009 Workout Series

Stretch Yourself
Limber up to boost your power and injury-proof your training for the year ahead
B y D o m i n i c C a dd e n

Set a bar at about waist level. Lie under it and hold it just outside shoulder width, with arms straight and heels on the floor. Relax your back muscles, then contract them to bring your shoulderblades together and shrug your body up the arms dont move. Relax and return to the back-stretch position. Do 10-15 reps. The target: trapezoids, rhomboids and lats. The big picture: gets you in the habit of activating your back muscles first on back exercises instead of using your arms. Best for: rowing, kayaking, swimming, surfing.

Bar stretch

At some point weve all warmed up with a bit of cardio and then some static stretching thats the old stretch a muscle to the max and then hold. But thats now old hat. These days, the king of the warm-up is dynamic stretching its safer, more effective and helps you develop balance, coordination, mobility and strength. In fact, its so good, it has benefits even if you dont follow it with a killer training session.
Dynamic stretching uses momentum and muscle to move individual body parts, gradually increasing the range of movement or speed or both. Theres no holding at the end of a motion, no forcing a muscle or joint and no bouncing or jerky movements its a controlled swinging motion. The advantage of dynamic stretching over static stretching is that it increases the stretched muscles temperature, resulting in greater elasticity, coordination and muscle awareness. Like an F1 driver weaving across the track on the warm-up lap, dynamic stretching prepares you for actions where you need force, power and speed in a full range of motion, as well as helping stabilise your muscles at speed. There are three huge benefits to this. First, it leads to a better quality of training because youll be able to produce greater power, speed and force. Second, it reduces your chance of injury you can be flexible and have a big range of motion, but if you cant stabilise and control that range of motion at the speed you need for your sport then you cant use it safely. Third, itll reduce the muscle soreness that rips you up a day or two later. In a study at Southern Cross University in Lismore, researchers tested 13 athletes to find what factor was most responsible for muscle stiffness after bench-press training. The result? The initial rate of force that the muscles were worked at in training was too slow. This has since been used as an argument to switch to the quick, fluid motions of dynamic stretching. You can do a warm-up thats more specific to your activity in less time, moving quickly from one stretch to the next.

B A

Dynamic stretching should always be specific to the activity youre about to do. That means a footballers routine would have a lot of leg swings and exaggerated running movements, all of which would be pretty useless to a swimmer, whod do more movements that rotate the shoulders. The stretches here are designed with an all-over weights program in mind. If youre not quite ready for weights, the routine alone will still be good preparation, training the proper postures, range of motion and stabiliser muscles youll need when its time to hit the iron. This type of stretching also helps increase stretch tolerance, which means it can reduce muscle soreness after training. If youve had muscle/ligament tears or a joint dislocation, check with a physio before using this routine. And as for any type of stretching, do a general cardio warm-up first for at least five minutes.

Place your palms on either side of a doorway, the vertical uprights of a weights machine or the handles of dips bars. Step back so your body makes a steep angle with the floor (about 60). Lower your chest through the doorway/bars as the reps increase, aim to stretch your chest forward, in front of your hands. Extend your arms to push back up. Do 10-15 reps. The target: chest, front of the shoulders and triceps. The big picture: trains you to keep your body straight and use full range of motion for pressing exercises. Best for: rugby, cricket (bowling and throwing), boxing, volleyball.

Doorway press

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manual personal trainer

Extend your arms above your head. Take a long step forward and sink your buttocks down towards the heel of your front foot. Keep your body and arms at right angles to the floor. Step back to the starting position, then do the same with the other leg. Lengthen your stride and/or sink lower as you warm up. Do 10-15 reps with each leg. The target: quads, hamstrings and glutes. The big picture: warms up the small stabiliser muscles you use for balance and good back/hip alignment. Also good prep for anything that requires sprints and changes of direction. Best for: martial arts, skiing, cycling, all footy codes.

Overhead lunges

Stand with your arms extended straight out from your shoulders. Swing your arms forward in front of your chest. As they cross your chest, let your elbows flop in so you give yourself a big hug. Swing the arms back, straightening them out and pushing them behind the line of your back. Alternate which arm crosses over on top of the other. Do 10-15 reps. The target: chest, lats and rear deltoids. The big picture: gets you to open up your chest for back and chest exercises. Best for: golf, tennis, boxing.

Crossovers

A B

Lie on your back with a right-angle bend at the knees and your palms flat on the floor by your bum. Start with your knees above your hips, then breathe out as you swing your knees back towards your chin. Breathe in as your legs go back to the starting position. On the return, tense your abs to press your lower back into the floor. Do 10-15 reps.

Rollbacks

Hold one arm straight out from your shoulder. Make a 90 bend at the elbow and turn just your forearm up and back, aiming past your shoulder. Swing down and back past your shoulder. The upper arm shouldnt move. Do 10-15 reps with each arm. The target: rotator cuffs the little muscles that are hammered and tightened by shoulder and chest presses. The big picture: helps prevent typical shoulder injuries from lifting weights or throwing. Best for: any bowling or throwing action, boxing, AFL, swimming, surfing, paddling, basketball, tennis.

Rotators

The target: bum, lower back and abs. The big picture: trains you to use your abs as a bridge between your legs and lower back to support you during squats and leg presses. Best for: martial arts, rugby, skiing, paddling sports.

B A C

Stand in front of a mirror if possible. With your right arm raised, bend at the waist to lower your torso to the left, extending your arm over your head. Watch the mirror to make sure your right hip doesnt pop out. Come up, swapping arms, and then go over to your right side. Alternate, doing 10 reps on each side. The target: obliques, lats and triceps. The big picture: stretches the adductors and abductors in your legs, trains your core stability for lifting. Best for: golf, tennis, surfing, basketball, paddling, skiing, martial arts, sailing.

Side bends

Kneel and extend your arms straight up overhead. Bend at the elbows to try to get both hands back between your shoulderblades tense your abs and legs to stop your back bending. Extend your arms and throw them forward, like you are throwing a football. Do 10-15 reps. The target: triceps, chest and shoulders. The big picture: stretches the abdominal wall and hip flexors. Trains balance and posture for any standing weights exercise. Best for: basketball, tennis, any sport with throwing, football.

Overhead throw

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