Training & Conditioning 13.8

&TRAINING CONDITIONING

A look at rehabbing in the NBAA look at rehabbing in the NBA

◆ Menstrual Pain◆ Communication Skills◆ Volleyball Conditioning

November 2003Vol. XIII, No. 8$5.00

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Circle No. 1

F EATURES

D EPARTMENTS

C ONTENTS

Training & Conditioning • November 2003 • Vol. XIII, No. 8

P.37

◆ Spec ia l Focus ◆

Painful Periods..........13Few subjects have been the butt of more jokes, but for some young women, menstrual pain is no laughing matter. The good news is that there are several ways you can help these athletes through their cycles.By Laura Smith

◆ Treat ing the Ath le te ◆

An NBA Knee.......... 21Rehabbing a knee injury often requires looking at much more than theknee. This case study examines the rehab protocol for an NBA veteran whosuffered pain and limited range of motion six years after his initial surgery.By Micheal A. Clark, Aaron Nelson, Tyler Wallace & Casey Smith

◆ Opt imum Per formance ◆

The Multi-Sport Challenge.........30Contrary to popular belief, it’s possible to design a safe and effectivestrength program for multi-sport athletes. The key is to find commonalitybetween the movements and pay attention to timing.By Vern Gambetta

◆ Management ◆

Tips for Talking..........37One of the most important skills a professional can have is the ability tocommunicate. But it’s also one of the most neglected. Here are ways to get better at getting your point across.By Shelly Wilson

◆ Sideline ◆

Protein Supplementation..........3

◆ Nutrition Roundup ◆

Amino Acids … Recovery Drinks … Alcohol ..........4

◆ ATC Award ◆

This Issue’s Winner..........8Nomination Form.........11

◆ Compet i t ive Edge ◆

Poised & Ready ..........45Getting volleyball athletes ready for competition involves focusing on their core, knees, and shoulders.By Jim Kramer

Advertising Directory.........58Scouting Report: Strength Training & Cardiovascular Products.........52Scouting Report: Arm & Shoulder Products.........64More Products.........63Catalog Showcase.........54Web Connections.........67

Cover photo: NBAEvia Getty Images©, Nathaniel S. Butler

P.30

P.45

P.13

Marjorie Albohm, MS, ATC/LDirector of Sports Medicine andOrthopaedic Research,Orthopaedics Indianapolis

Jon Almquist, ATCSpecialist,Fairfax County (Va.) Pub. SchoolsAthletic Training Program

Brian Awbrey, MDDept. of Orthopaedic Surgery,Massachusetts General Hospital,and Instructor in Orthopaedics,Harvard Medical School

Jim Berry, MEd, ATC,SCAT/EMT-BDirector of Sports Medicineand Head Athletic Trainer,Myrtle Beach (S.C.) High School

Leslie Bonci, MPH, RDDirector, Sports MedicineNutrition Program,University of PittsburghMedical Ctr. Health System

Christine Bonci, MS, ATCAsst. A.D. for Sports Medicine,Women’s Athletics,University of Texas

Cynthia “Sam” Booth, ATC, PhDManager, Outpatient Therapyand Sportsmedicine,MeritCare Health System

Debra Brooks, CNMT, LMT, PhDCEO, Iowa NeuroMuscularTherapy Center

Cindy Chang, MDHead Team Physician,University of California-Berkeley

Dan Cipriani, MEd, PTAssistant Professor,Dept. of Physical Therapy,Medical College of Ohio

Gray Cook, MSPT, OCS, CSCSClinic Director,Orthopedic & Sports Phys. Ther.,Dunn, Cook, and Assoc.

Bernie DePalma, MEd, PT, ATCHead Athl. Trainer/Phys. Therapist,Cornell University

Lori Dewald, EdD, ATC, CHESAthletic Training ProgramDirector and Associate Professorof Health Education, University of Minnesota-Duluth

Jeff DiltsDirector, Business Development& Marketing, National Academyof Sports Medicine

David Ellis, RD, LMNT, CSCSSports Alliance, Inc.

Boyd Epley, MEd, CSCSAsst. A.D. & Dir. of Athletic Perf.,University of Nebraska

Peter Friesen, ATC, NSCA-CPT,CSCS, CAT, Head Ath. Trainer/Cond. Coach, Carolina Hurricanes

Lance Fujiwara, MEd, ATC, EMTDirector of Sports Medicine,Virginia Military Institute

Vern Gambetta, MAPresident, Gambetta SportsTraining Systems

Joe Gieck, EdD, ATC, PTDirector of Sports Medicine andProf., Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery,University of Virginia

Brian Goodstein, MS, ATC,CSCS, Head Athletic Trainer, DC United

Gary Gray, PTPresident, CEO,Functional Design Systems

Maria Hutsick, MS, ATC/L, CSCSHead Athletic Trainer,Boston University

Christopher Ingersoll, PhD,ATC, FACSMDirector,Graduate Programs in SportsMedicine/Athletic TrainingUniversity of Virginia

Jeff Konin, MEd, ATC, MPTAssistant Professor of Athletic Training, James Madison University

Tim McClellan, MS, CSCSDirector of Perf. Enhancement,Makeplays.com Center forHuman Performance

Michael Merk, MEd, CSCSDirector of Health & Fitness,YMCA of Greater Cleveland

Jenny Moshak, MS, ATC, CSCSAsst. A.D. for Sports Medicine,University of Tennessee

Steve Myrland, CSCSOwner, Manager, Perf. Coach,Myrland Sports Training, LLCInstructor and Consultant,University of Wisconsin SportsMedicine

Mike Nitka, MS, CSCSDirector of Human Performance,Muskego (Wisc.) High School

Bruno Pauletto, MS, CSCSPresident,Power Systems, Inc.

Stephen Perle, DC, CCSPAssociate Prof. of Clin. Sciences,University of BridgeportCollege of Chiropractic

Brian Roberts, MS, ATCDirector,Sport Performance & Rehab. Ctr.

Ellyn Robinson, DPE, CSCS, CPTAssistant Professor,Exercise Science Program,Bridgewater State College

Kent Scriber, EdD, ATC, PTProfessor/Supervisor ofAthletic Training,Ithaca College

Chip Sigmon, CSCSStrength and Conditioning Coach,Carolina Medical Center

Bonnie J. Siple, MS, ATCCoordinator, Athletic TrainingEducation Program & Services,Slippery Rock University

Chad Starkey, PhD, ATCAssociate Professor,Athletic Training Educ. Program,Northeastern University

Ralph Stephens, LMT, NCTMBSports Massage Therapist,Ralph Stephens Seminars

Fred Tedeschi, ATCHead Athletic Trainer,Chicago Bulls

Terrence Todd, PhDCo-Director, Todd-McLeanPhysical Culture Collection,Dept. of Kinesiology & Health Ed.,University of Texas-Austin

2 ◆ T&C N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 3 ◆ A T H L E T I C B I D . C O M

Training & Conditioning (ISSN 1058-3548) is published monthly except inJanuary and February, May and June,and July and August, which are bimonthlyissues, for a total of nine times a year, byMAG, Inc., 2488 N. Triphammer Rd.,Ithaca, NY 14850. T&C is distributedwithout charge to qualified professionalsinvolved with competitive athletes. Thesubscription rate is $24 for one year and$48 for two years in the United States,and $30 for one year and $60 for twoyears in Canada. The single copy price is$5. Copyright© 2003 by MAG, Inc. Allrights reserved. Text may not bereproduced in any manner, in whole or inpart, without the permission of thepublisher. Unsolicited materials will notbe returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope.POSTMASTER: Send address changes toTraining & Conditioning, P.O. Box 4806,Ithaca, NY 14852-4806.

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Editorial BoardTRAINING & CONDITIONING • November 2003 • Vol. XIII, No. 8

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Circle No. 2

By Martin J.Gibala, Ph.D.

Do athletes really needmassive amounts of protein or amino acid supplements to maximize muscle growth?

Many believe the answeris yes, but experts fromleading organizationssuch as the AmericanCollege of SportsMedicine and theAmerican DieteticAssociation say athleteshave only slightly higherprotein requirements thansedentary individuals.

Athletes who follow soundnutritional practices and takein enough energy to maintaintheir body weight need onlyabout 15 percent of theirtotal energy intake from pro-tein (e.g., 450 kcals or —113g of protein for a 3,000-kcaldiet). They do not need tofortify their diets with expen-sive protein or amino acidsupplements.

That said, there is compelling scientific evidence to indicatethat the timing of protein ingestion can profoundly alter themuscle protein response to intense exercise. For example,an acute bout of weightlifting exercise increases the rates ofboth protein synthesis and protein breakdown in muscle formany hours following a workout. In the absence of foodintake, however, the rate of breakdown exceeds synthesis,and thus these athletes actually lose muscle protein if theydo not eat during recovery.

A surprisingly small doseof essential amino acidscan stimulate gains in leanmuscle following resist-ance exercise. Studiesshow that ingesting a solution containing 6 g ofessential amino acids pro-motes a small, transientnet increase in muscleprotein balance that persists for one to twohours following ingestion.Stimulation of muscl pro-tein synthesis by essentialamino acids is a saturableprocess, and thus ingest-ing a single massive doseof amino acids in hopes of

further promoting musclegrowth is futile.

This does not mean thatathletes need to consumeamino-acid solutions. High-quality proteins in “real”foods (e.g., skim milk,yogurt, fish, chicken) arelikely as effective for pro-moting muscle growth fol-lowing resistance exercise.

Athletes should consume about 0.1 g of essential aminoacids per kilogram of body weight, either immediately priorto heavy resistance exercise or during the first few hours ofrecovery. Given that the “anabolic boost” following aminoacid ingestion is transient and returns to basal levels within1 to 2 hours, ingesting repeated small doses of essentialamino acids during exercise and recovery may be an effective strategy to optimize muscle growth.

Do Extra Amino Acids and Protein Build Bigger Muscles?

For more information on amino acids, please visit the Sports Science Center at www.gssiweb.com.

Martin J. Gibala, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

The vast majority of athletes consume sufficient amounts of

dietary protein; however, the timing of protein ingestion during

and following exercise can profoundly alter the muscle

adaptive response.

With all the research being done in nutrition, it can be difficult toprovide athletes with the most up-to-date advice. Therefore, tohelp facilitate understanding of this constantly evolving subject,Nutrition Roundup will be presented three times a year, devoted toresearch studies of nutrition, dietary supplements, and athletic per-formance. References are provided for those who want to obtainmore information on specific studies.

Amino Acids & PerformanceThe first study we’ll look at examined the effects of amino acid supple-mentation on muscular strength, power, and high-intensity endurance.Seventeen previously trained subjects were randomly assigned to either aplacebo or amino acid supplement group. Subjects underwent four weeksof a periodized resistance training program specifically designed to allowthe researchers to effectively measure the outcomes of the study.

Subjects in the test group received an amino acid supplement thatprovided 0.4 grams of amino acids per kilogram of body weight dividedinto three daily doses. To reduce the confounding factor of energy differ-ences between groups, all subjects were instructed to follow a calculatedisocaloric diet throughout the study. However, the researchers noted thatsubjects in the amino acid supplement group consumed an additional 25to 55 grams of protein per day through the supplement.

There were no significant changes in any of the physiological vari-ables measured, such as weight. But there were some significant perfor-mance changes among the experimental group. For example, one-repeti-tion maximum squat and bench press increased significantly during thefinal three time points of the study. There were also trends towards signif-icance in improvement of other variables. The authors noted that thesegains may be attributed to the fact that amino acid supplementationincreases protein synthesis, enhances glycogen resynthesis, and reducesmuscle damage.

Take home message: While the results of this study demonstratethat supplementing with amino acids may benefit individuals in very spe-cific aspects of training, getting adequate amounts of protein should suf-fice. Remember, those in the amino acid group consumed an extra 25 to55 grams of protein per day. If individuals were to consume this addition-al protein without adding amino acids, more than likely they wouldreceive the same benefit as with a supplement. A study comparing theeffects of an amino acid supplement versus those consuming the sameamount of extra protein through foods would be interesting.

Study Specs: “The effects of amino acid supplementation on mus-cular performance during resistance training overreaching” in The Journalof Strength and Conditioning Research, 17(2), 250-258, 2003. ByNicholas A. Ratamess, William J. Kraemer, Jeff S. Volek, Martyn R. Rubin,

Ana L. Gomez, Duncan N. French, Matthew J. Sharman, Michael M.McGuigan, Timothy Scheett, Keijo Haakkinen, Robert U. Newton, andFrancesco Dioguardi.

Recovery Drinks Go Head to HeadCarbohydrate drinks are often recommended as a way for athletes toreplenish glycogen stores. The hope is that athletes will recover quickerand thus perform better at their next practice or competition. However,research is emerging that indicates carbohydrate isn’t the only nutrientnecessary during recovery and that protein may be just as important foroptimal results.

Researchers compared a carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage to a car-bohydrate-protein beverage. It was hypothesized that the addition of pro-tein would enhance the insulin response that occurs with the consumptionof carbohydrates, subsequently enhancing the restoration of muscle glyco-gen, since insulin helps facilitate the storage of glycogen.

The study was broken up into two segments. The first part, whichdetermined the actual outcome of supplementing with the two drinks, willbe covered here. The second part examined why this outcome happened.

Eight male cyclists were recruited for this study and after initial test-ing, were asked to cycle for two hours at 65 to 75 percent VO2max on acycle ergometer. This protocol was designed with the intention of deplet-ing muscle glycogen. Subjects consumed either 355 mL of the carbohy-drate-only beverage or 355 mL of the carbohydrate-protein beverageimmediately post-exercise and again two hours later. After the two-hourrest, each subject then completed another exercise bout and their time tofatigue was determined. Time to fatigue was significantly greater whensubjects consumed the carbohydrate-protein supplement versus the carbo-hydrate-only supplement (31.1 minutes and 20.0 minutes, respectively).

While I agree that protein should be added to post-workout recov-ery food or beverage, the results of this particular study are difficult tointerpret because the carbohydrate-protein drink also provided an addi-tional 205 calories and 32 grams of carbohydrate in each 355 mL por-tion. Considering the subjects ingested this twice before their performancetest, those in the carbohydrate-protein group each consumed an addition-al 64 grams of carbohydrate and 410 calories.

Take home message: Although the design of this study does notfully explain the mechanism, the results support the notion that proteinshould be added to recovery drinks. Future studies should use isocaloricbeverages to examine the mechanisms of the increased glycogen resyn-thesis.

Study Specs: “Effects of recovery beverages on glycogen restora-tion and endurance exercise performance” in The Journal of Strength andConditioning Research, 17(1), 12-19, 2003. By Michael B. Williams, PeterB. Raven, Donovan L. Fogt, and John L. Ivy.

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Circle No. 3


Nutrition Roundup (Continued)

Alcohol & Recovery The question at hand was to see if acute alcohol consumption, as mayoccur among athletes, particularly after a game or event, would affectglycogen storage. This is important because glycogen is the primary sourceof energy during exercise.

The 15 subjects in the 24-hour study (the researchers also conducteda similar, 8-hour study, but only results from the 24-hour study will bepresented here) were all trained cyclists. The participants first performedcycling bouts intended to deplete glycogen stores. They were then fed var-ious diets during the 24-hour recovery phase. The different diets were acontrol diet (which provided 60 percent of energy from carbohydrate), asecond diet with 37 percent of energy from carbohydrate and 22 percentfrom alcohol, and a third diet with 49 percent of energy from carbohy-drate and 18 percent from alcohol. Each subject performed the cyclingprocedure three times, so the researchers could determine the effects ofeach of the experimental diets. Each diet and exercise bout was separatedby one week to reduce potential carryover from the previous experimen-tal bout.

The researchers found that when alcohol was consumed, there was a

trend for lower glycogen storage despite equal dietary carbohydrate.While the exact mechanism is unclear, the researchers concluded that alco-hol can have an indirect effect on post-exercise glycogen resynthesis, if itdisplaces carbohydrate consumption.

Take home message: Emphasize the importance of consumingadequate post-exercise nutrients (carbohydrates and some protein) priorto consuming any alcohol, if at all. Alcohol should not be recommended toathletes in general, but on the practical side, athletes don’t always knowwhat’s best for them and sometimes partake in unhealthy activities.Providing scientific evidence that consuming alcohol may negatively affecttheir performance may sway them from these behaviors.

Study Specs: “Effect of alcohol intake on muscle glycogen storageafter prolonged exercise” in Journal of Applied Physiology 95, 983-990,2003. By Louise M. Burke, Greg R. Collier, Elizabeth M. Broad, Peter G.Davis, David T. Martin, Andrew J. Sanigorski, and Mark Hargreaves. ◆

Christopher Mohr, MS, RD, LDN, is a Graduate Research Assistant in the PhysicalActivity & Weight Management Research Center at the University of Pittsburgh.He previously was the Sports Nutritionist for the University of Massachusetts athletic department.

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Circle No. 4

thletes get plenty of jointstress from lifting, running,jumping and sprintingwithout adding more stressduring specific key Energy

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Circle No. 5


hen budget problemscame to Oregon in theearly 1990s, Portland’spublic school system

was hit particularly hard. Since then,some schools have shortened theiracademic calendars, trimmed extra-curricular activities, and in somecases, threatened to cut athletics outof their budgets entirely.

At inner-city Franklin HighSchool, administrators saved moneyby eliminating their part-time athlet-ic trainer position. Yet Dave Sher-den, ATC, ATR, remained active inthe profession even as his athletictraining duties at the school wereeliminated. He kept a hand in thefield as coordinator of medical cov-erage for the state wrestling tourna-ment. And while remaining ateacher and coach, Sherden servedas president of the Oregon AthleticTrainers’ Society (OATS) from 1996to 1999, helping write, lobby, andfund-raise for the passage of the

Oregon Athletic Trainers Act, whichgoverns the licensure of all thestate’s athletic trainers.

In addition, he’s the Chair of theOregon Board of Athletic Trainers,which oversees compliance with thenew statutes and licensing of all newathletic trainers. And Sherdenhelped found a local chapter ofOATS, called the Westside AthleticTrainers Society, where he hopes toprovide new opportunities for athlet-ic trainers who are just joining theprofession, and where he serves asinterim Secretary-Treasurer.

“The profession has grown somuch in Oregon since I becamepresident of OATS,” says Sherden,“and I saw a need to create a localgroup where new athletic trainerscould take positions of leadership oncommittees. My hope is that theorganization can encourage peopleto become more involved in the pro-fession, and help us develop moreleaders at the local level.”

Sherden has since returned toathletic training at Franklin, with apart-time position paid for by fundraising, in which he works solely forthe football program. Mondaythrough Friday, he spends an houreach afternoon in the athletic train-ing room, examining and rehabbinginjured student-athletes. On Thurs-days, he covers home games for thefreshman and j.v. teams, which alter-nate from one week to the next, andon Fridays, he covers home andaway games for the varsity team,where he is assisted by his squad ofathletic training student aides.

“It feels good to be back,” saysSherden. “I’m able to be involvedwith the student-athletes again,which is very satisfying, and I candevote my attention to being an ath-letic trainer, even if it’s only for afew hours a week.”

W

Kenny Berkowitz is an Assistant Editor atTraining & Conditioning.

Even after budget cutbacks eliminated his athletic training position, DaveSherden has kept his hand in the profession. Here, he works with a footballathlete at Franklin High School, in Portland, Ore.

By Kenny Berkowitz

A loss of district fundingdidn’t keep Dave Sherdenfrom contributing to thefield.

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Circle No. 6

“He makes sure that the kidshave somebody to turn to,” says TomMcCarthy, Head Football Coach.“With Dave there, we know our stu-dent-athletes are getting the best carepossible, from someone who reallycares a lot about them. He’s willingto go the extra mile to make sure ourplayers get what they deserve.”

“He’s very, very good at what hedoes,” agrees Scott Santangelo,Athletic Director at Franklin. “Atour level, it’s really hard to find acertified athletic trainer. Dave does itbecause he absolutely loves teach-ing, he loves working with kids, andhe loves football.”

Sherden started out at FranklinHigh School in 1987 as a student-teacher from Lewis and ClarkCollege. A couple of years earlier, asan undergraduate biology major,he’d been planning a career as ateacher and coach—until a course inthe prevention and care of athleticinjuries, taught by athletic trainerJerry Krummell, ATC, ATR, chang-ed his life.

“I had never met an athletictrainer before, because we didn’thave one at my high school [inRedwood City, Calif.], and I didn’teven know what one was,” saysSherden. “Then I met Jerry Krum-mell and realized athletic trainingwas completely up my alley, becauseit involved sports, science, biology,and medicine—all the things I wasinterested in. I started hanging out inthe athletic training room, and after ayear or two, Jerry encouraged me topursue the profession seriously. So Idid, and I ended up landing a teach-ing job in what was at the time avery tough market.”

Over the next decade, as Sher-den worked at Franklin as a part-time science teacher and part-timeathletic trainer, the market got eventougher. By the mid ’90s, his athlet-ic trainer position had been trimmed

to two seasons per year, and by thelate ’90s, it had been cut entirely.Without room in the budget for anathletic trainer, Sherden went towork as an assistant track coach inthe spring and assistant footballcoach in the fall, which allowed himto remain involved with the teamsand support his student-athletes.

Then in the 2002-03 schoolyear, Sherden got out of coachingentirely because of the time it tookaway from his newly expanded fam-ily life—he and his wife Paula hadtheir first child, daughter MaryCatherine—and resumed athletictraining in the new football-onlyrole.

“He’s wonderful with the kids,and they love him,” says Santangelo.“If they’ve got an injury, they knowhe’s going to tell them the truth, andthey’re very appreciative. It’s greatto watch him work, because hedoesn’t get stressed out. He’s anexpert, and that’s how they treathim.”

At his busiest, Sherden coveredmore than 40 teams a year atFranklin, and remembers a pair ofinjuries as his biggest rehab chal-

lenges. In the first, an athlete withsevere scarring from a dislocatedelbow was given a regimen ofstrengthening, stretches, joint mobi-lization exercises, and counseling torecover. In the second, an athletewith stenosis in his cervical spinewas experiencing stingers everytime he took to the football field;after a treatment of rotation, flexion,side-bending, and strengthening, hewas able to compete pain-free, fin-ishing the season as the team’s longsnapper and not suffering any lastingdamage.

Over the course of the footballseason, Sherden usually treats fouror five injured athletes at any giventime. In this year’s first two games,he’s already treated a forearm frac-ture, thigh contusions, a subluxatingrib, and a set of hip pointers.Meanwhile, he’s continued his fullload of classes, teaching courses inLife Science, Human Anatomy andPhysiology, and Athletic Training,which has more than 30 students thisyear—the largest enrollment theclass has had in all his years atFranklin. The course provides abroad-based curriculum for his stu-dents, who can earn communityservice credit for work as Sherden’sstudent training aides.

“A lot of the students in the classare athletes, so I want to teach themabout the nature of injuries, treat-ment, and recovery,” says Sherden.“I want them to learn about termi-nology, tissues, the physiology ofinjury and healing. They all comeout with some basic treatment skills,and even if they’re basic skills, likestrapping an ice pack to a sprainedankle, it gives them a sense of theirvalue to the program.

“The best part of this job is tak-ing students who are emerging fromchildhood, and putting them in aposition where they realize whatthey’re capable of doing,” he contin-


Award Winner

Dave SherdenFranklin High School,

Portland, Ore.

Above The Call Award

ues. “They learn to set high stan-dards for themselves, and to get apositive experience out of settinggoals. They get some knowledgethat the general public doesn’thave, and if they can use that toexplain something to someone else,that’s going to help their self-esteem. And from talking to theirparents, I know the students areshowing off at home, watching‘ER’ on television and explainingthe terminology.”

When school is out, Sherdenspends as much time as he can tak-ing care of his 18-month-olddaughter, fixing her meals, andplaying together in the backyard.Finding a healthy balance betweenwork and family has been veryimportant to him, even though it’sforced him to cut back on the timehe spends as an athletic trainer.

“The set-up at Franklin allowsme to keep a hand in athletic train-ing and still have a good familylife,” says Sherden. “It allows meto get home at a decent hour threedays a week, see my daughter, seemy wife, and still stay involved inathletics and sports medicine.

“Even if it’s only for an hour, Iget to keep in touch with the teamand the profession,” he continues.“I love studying medicine, I lovekeeping up with the profession as itchanges and evolves, and I loveworking with kids—especially stu-dent-athletes.”

According to Santangelo,Franklin’s athletic departmentappreciates Sherden just as much as he enjoys being involved.“We’re really lucky to have Davehere at Franklin,” he says. “Hecomes and talks with the athleticteams about safety, just because hefeels it’s important. He talks to thecoaches, and makes sure that all theteams are being taken care of. If heweren’t here, it would put a lotmore stress on all of us.” ◆

he “Above The Call” AwardsProgram serves to honor out-standing athletic trainers forwork not otherwise recog-

nized. This may include someonewho has shown exemplary dedica-tion and devotion to his or her jobor outstanding work outside of theeveryday ATC duties. The goal isto honor those athletic trainers whogo above and beyond the alreadyextraordinary demands placed onanyone in the profession.

Examples include:◆ Someone who is doing some-

thing different and exciting inthe profession.

◆ Someone who serves as a rolemodel and mentor to others.

◆ Someone who has taken on

additional significant duties inthe field.

◆ Someone who gives 110 per-cent in all that he or she does.

◆ Someone who has a specialway with athletes.

TO NOMINATE ANATHLETIC TRAINER:Please fill in the form below, andattach a 500- to 1,000-worddescription of the athletic trainer’sachievements, including:◆ Why you think this athletic

trainer stands out from thecrowd.

◆ Where he or she is currentlyworking and any pertinent aca-demic or work history.

◆ Testimony and/or quotes fromthose he or she works with.

Nomination Criteria and Procedures


T

NOMINATION FORM

Name of Athletic Trainer:___________________________

His or Her Phone No.:______________________________

Your Name:______________________________________

Your Affiliation:___________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

Your Phone No.:___________________________________

Your Address:_____________________________________

________________________________________________

Send nominations to:Above The Call AwardTraining & Conditioning2488 N. Triphammer Road Ithaca, NY 14850

If you have any questions, feel free to call us at (607) 257-6970, x. 18,or e-mail us at [email protected].

✁


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n April 1996, Uta Pippig toedthe line looking for her thirdBoston Marathon victory. Witha 2:21:45 personal best—almost six minutes faster than

her closest rival—Pippig wasn’texpected to have much difficultyachieving her goal.

From the very start, however, itwas clear that she was struggling. Bymile four, she was considering drop-ping out of the race. The reason?

Excruciating menstrual cramps. WhenPippig came back late in the race towin, every media outlet covering themarathon marveled that she had runthrough the agonizing menstrual painfor a victory.

Winning the Boston Marathonwas a highly visible feat, but manyfemale student-athletes who will never


◆ S P E C I A L F O C U S ◆

ILaura Smith is an Assistant Editor atTraining & Conditioning.

Illustration: Naomi Shea

Painful Periods

Few subjects have been

the butt of more jokes, but

for some young women,

menstrual pain is no laughing

matter. The good news is

that there are several ways

you can help these athletes

through their cycles.

BY LAURA SMITH



reach Pippig’s elite status also fight amonthly battle when they get theirperiod. Whether they’re facing a majorcompetition or simply trying to traineffectively, menstrual problems caninterfere with athletes’ aspirations atany level.

Individual experiences vary great-ly. For some female athletes, the phys-ical and emotional changes duringtheir menstrual cycles are a minorinconvenience, while for others, theycause major disruption. The good newsis, athletes don’t have to simply livewith it. There are a variety of ways tomanage the symptoms, starting withsolutions as simple as anti-inflam-matories, all the way to a hormonaloption called tri-cycling.

TABOO TOPIC

As many as 25 percent of high schooland college female student-athletesexperience menstrual cycle-relatedproblems severe enough to disrupttheir training or competition and war-rant a doctor’s help, according toTerrill Bravender, MD, MPH, Directorof Adolescent Medicine at Duke

University. But the vast majority ofthem don’t seek help, either becausethey don’t know it’s available orbecause menstruation is a taboo topicthat can be difficult to bring up.

“The biggest mistake female stu-dent-athletes make is thinking theyhave to suffer in silence,” Bravendersays.

“Athletes who are proactive andforthcoming about menstrual cycleproblems are few and far between,”agrees Kris Ring, LAT, ATC, HeadAthletic Trainer at Texas Woman’sUniversity. “Unfortunately, a lot ofthem still see it as an off-limits topicwith a stigma attached.”

“Since athletes are reluctant tobring the issue up, it’s important forathletic trainers to address it,” saysBravender. “If an athlete is suffering insilence, it’s going to affect her per-formance and her well being.”

Ann Grooms, MD, Team Phy-sician at the University of Florida,finds that team talks can provide aforum for breaking the silence aboutmenstrual difficulties. “It’s an issuethat we’re very proactive about,”

Grooms says. “I do a series of meet-ings with every women’s team, and wetalk about a variety of women’s healthissues. I take that opportunity to bringup menstrual concerns. I tell them,‘Almost 100 percent of the time, wecan find something that will help you.There are lots of options—but first,you have to let us know you’re havingtrouble.’”

Preparticipation physical evalua-tions are another good time to broachthe subject, according to Randa Ryan,PhD, Associate Athletic Director forStudent Affairs at the University ofTexas. Most PPE history forms includequestions about amenorrhea, but fewquery athletes about issues such ascramps, fatigue, and emotional ups anddowns. “We find it’s helpful to askthose questions and get them into themix right away,” Ryan says. “Thatway, we can make sure we catch ath-letes who are having problems but whoare unlikely to bring up the issue ontheir own.”

If male athletic trainers feel awk-ward addressing the topic, Bravendersuggests they acknowledge the male-female gulf up front. “One approach Irecommend is using some self-referen-tial humor to ease the situation,” hesays. “If you say, ‘I can’t exactly sayI’ve experienced this firsthand, butI’ve heard it can be a real problem,’you can often get a smile and the ath-lete will let down her guard.”

Regardless of their gender, athlet-ic trainers need to remember just howmuch menstruation can affect someathletes. “Be sensitive and listen care-fully,” advises Rebecca Morgan, MD,Team Physician at the University ofTennessee. “A lot of people, evenother women who don’t experiencesevere symptoms with their periods,lack empathy in dealing with thisissue. If an athlete comes to you, thebest thing you can do is take her seriously.”

PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS

For most student-athletes, symptomsthat disrupt training and competitionappear during the latter half of theircycle and are most intense during theperimenstrual period—the days just

he normal menstrual cycle is divided into three phases: the follicularphase, ovulation, and the luteal phase. Two areas of the brain, the

hypothalamus and the pituitary gland, control the hormonal changes thatdrive the cycle. The cycle begins when the hypothalamus sendsgonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) to the pituitary gland. GnRH tellsthe pituitary to release luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulatinghormone (FSH). LH and FSH target the ovaries, where they stimulate thedevelopment of follicles. Each follicle contains an ovum, or egg. As theygrow, developing follicles release estrogen, which rises gradually andpeaks just before ovulation.

Mid-cycle, around day 14, ovulation occurs when one of the growingfollicles bursts, sending an egg through the fallopian tubes on its way tothe uterus. After ovulation, the luteal phase begins. The outer walls of theburst follicle form a structure called a corpus luteum within the ovary. Thecorpus luteum produces progesterone that causes the lining of the uterusto proliferate.

“The progesterone acts like mortar in a brick wall, to maintain the uter-ine lining,” explains Michael Randell, MD, FACOG, an Atlanta-based physi-cian specializing in women’s health. “If pregnancy occurs, the proges-terone level remains high to maintain the pregnancy. But if pregnancy doesnot occur, the corpus luteum begins to break down after about 14 daysand progesterone falls. That has the effect of pulling the mortar out of theuterine wall—the lining is shed through menstruation, and the cycle beginsall over again.”

THOW THE CYCLE WORKS

before and the first few days of men-struation. Perhaps the most commonphysical complaint is of cramps.

“When student-athletes come tome with problems related to their men-strual cycles, it’s usually because theyhave dysmennorhea, or painful peri-ods,” says Morgan. “And the pain isnot just abdominal—they often com-plain of pain radiating into their legsand lower back. They’ll tell me, ‘I’m inso much pain that I can’t train effec-tively for the first few days of my period.’”

Menstrual cramps are caused bycontractions of the uterine muscles inresponse to molecular compoundscalled prostaglandins, designed to con-strict the blood supply to the uterinelining so that the tissue dies and can beshed. Studies have shown that womenwho experience menstrual cramps haveprostaglandin blood levels severaltimes higher than women who don’t.Other commonly reported symptomsthat affect athletic performance include

fatigue, headache, and breast tender-ness.

Iron deficiency, which occursmore in athletes with lengthy or heavymenstrual periods, is another concern.“About one out of five teenaged girlswill become iron deficient at somepoint during their teenaged years,”Bravender says. “The normal amountof blood loss per menstrual period is

less than 80 milliliters. That’s consid-ered a normal period, because that’s theamount of blood the average personcan replace each month. But if awoman loses more than that, and doesn’t eat an adequate amount of iron,she’ll become iron deficient. An athletewho is anemic will not be able to per-form as well, because of the decreasedoxygen-carrying capacity of herblood.”

When a student-athlete experi-ences problems related to her menstru-al cycle, the first step should be toencourage her to see a physician. Notonly can the doctor discuss options formanaging the symptoms, but an exammay be needed to rule out an underly-ing pathology.

“There are several serious condi-tions that can lead to dysmennorhea,”Morgan says. “While they’re rare inwomen in this age group, no pain man-agement strategy is going to be effec-tive if the student-athlete is sufferingfrom one of them.”



“Be sensitive and listen

carefully. A lot of

people … lack empathy

in dealing with this

issue. If an athlete

comes to you, the best

thing you can do is

take her seriously.”

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Circle No. 8

Once serious health conditionshave been ruled out, there are two gen-eral strategies physicians typically rec-ommend for dealing with menstrualsymptoms. One involves the use ofanti-inflammatory drugs to control paincombined with nutritional and otherlifestyle modifications that may allevi-ate symptoms. The other involves theuse of oral contraceptives or anotherform of hormonal birth control.

NSAIDS & NUTRITION

Prescription or over-the-counter pain

relievers are a simple solution whencramps get in the way of training.However, it’s important to choose theright type of medication. “One verycommon mistake student-athletesmake is using acetaminophen for men-strual pain,” Bravender says. “Remindthem to use non-steroidal anti-inflam-matory drugs (NSAIDS) like ibupro-fen and naproxen instead. Aceta-minophen works to block pain in thebrain, but NSAIDs work directly at thesite of the pain, and can also help todecrease the actual amount of cramp-

ing. And if you treat the cramping andthe pain that goes with it, you’ll oftentreat the fatigue, breast tenderness, andother symptoms as well.”

Using the medication correctly isequally important. “The key is for thestudent-athlete to begin taking themedication the day before she expectsher period to begin, and to take it on ascheduled basis, whether or not she’sexperiencing pain,” Bravender says.“It’s much easier to prevent the painfrom starting than to stop it once it’sstarted, so if she waits until she’s hav-



or some student-athletes, adverse physicalsymptoms during their menstrual cycles take a

backseat to psychological side effects. “I have somestudent-athletes who are very concerned aboutchanges in their mood and how that is going to affecttheir competition,” says Kris Ring, LAT, ATC, HeadAthletic Trainer at Texas Woman’s University. “Theycan battle through the cramps, but if they’re feelingdepressed, anxious, easily frustrated, or extra sensi-tive to criticism, they’re going to have a harder timeperforming at their best.”

“The transitional stress of being away from home,the academic stress, new teammates and coachesbring a huge amount of pressure, and that can causea worsening of premenstrual emotional symptoms fora student-athlete,” agrees Randa Ryan, PhD,Associate Athletic Director at the University of Texas.

Taking birth control pills can help some student-athletes, but it’s not a surefire solution. “Some womenwith premenstrual depression respond the opposite ofthe way we’d expect when they start to take birth con-trol pills,” says Rebecca Morgan, MD, Team Physicianat the University of Tennessee. “They become evenmore depressed.” Studies suggest that calcium andmagnesium supplements, and a carefully managedcarbohydrate intake offer help for premenstrual emo-tional difficulties.

Teaching student-athletes coping strategies fordealing with premenstrual emotional symptoms canhelp, Ryan believes. “A female student-athlete who’ssuffering from premenstrual depression is likely toengage in a lot of negative self-talk,” she says. “Oneof the biggest things we work on with female student-athletes is their confidence and self-esteem, so theycan silence that negative self-talk.”

“When a student-athlete is suffering from PMSand facing a big competition,” says Ring, “I get her tofocus on all of the work she’s done to prepare. Getting

her to focus on something she can control—the skillsshe’s developed and how well she uses them—goes along way toward restoring her confidence.”

However, an athlete whose emotional symptomsare very severe may be suffering from PremenstrualDysphoric Disorder (PMDD). Its symptoms are similarto PMS, but much more pervasive. The Diagnostic andStatistical Manual of Mental Disorders outlines the fol-lowing criteria for a diagnosis of PMDD:

• Depressed mood or dysphoria• Anxiety or tension• Unstable, rapidly changing emotions• Irritability• Decreased interest in usual activities• Concentration difficulties• Marked lack of energy• Marked change in appetite (overeating or food

cravings)• Hypersomnia or insomnia• Feeling overwhelmed“The biggest difference between garden variety

PMS and PMDD is how much it affects the student-athlete’s day to day life,” says Morgan. “Ask her howshe is getting along with her roommate, herboyfriend, her teammates. Is it affecting her schoolperformance? If her symptoms are causing trouble inall aspects of her life, she could be suffering fromPMDD.”

A major part of the PMDD diagnosis is determin-ing whether symptoms have occurred during mostcycles of the past year and are clearly documented forat least two consecutive menstrual cycles. The use ofa class of antidepressant drugs called serotonin reup-take inhibitors (SRIs) is becoming increasingly com-mon for the treatment of depression related to themenstrual cycle. According to Morgan, a student-ath-lete who may be suffering from PMDD needs to see adoctor who can provide a diagnosis.

FPMS OR PMDD?

ing severe cramps, she’s already lostthe opportunity for good pain control.”Ibuprofen should be taken every eighthours, and naproxen every 12 hours,through the third or fourth day of themenstrual cycle.

A student-athlete’s diet is anotherrelatively simple place to look for solu-tions. “For an athlete who experiencesfatigue and mood swings around herperiod, it’s very important to make sureshe’s getting adequate carbohydrate inher diet to support serotonin and bloodglucose levels,” says Leslie Beck, RD,a Toronto-based dietician and author ofLeslie Beck’s Nutrition Guide forWomen. “Advise her to eat five or sixtimes a day, and make sure each mealor snack contains some carbs. Focus onchoosing carbs that get digested andconverted to blood sugar slowly, likefruits and whole grains, because theylast longer and keep blood sugar morestable.”

Calcium is also vital. “Studieshave shown that women who are given1,200 mg of calcium a day have as

much as a 50-percent reduction inmenstrual cramps, back pain, moodswings, fatigue, and food cravings,”Beck says. “Women need 1,000 mg ofcalcium every day, and most student-athletes don’t come close to that. Eachserving of milk or soy milk has about300 mg, so for every serving a student-athlete isn’t getting, I recommend asupplement.”

Studies have also shown that mag-nesium helps reduce menstrual-relateddepression, anxiety, fluid retention,and breast tenderness. A daily dose of200-360 mg is recommended. “Get acalcium supplement with magnesiumin it,” Beck says.

Vitamin B6, at 50-100 mg per day,has also been shown to significantlyreduce menstrual symptoms. However,it’s important not to exceed 100 mg per day, to avoid vitamin toxicity.“Student-athletes who are taking amultivitamin or a B complex vitaminshould check before they add more,”Beck cautions.

Beck also recommends that men-

struating athletes take a daily iron sup-plement. “They need 18 mg every day,and that’s virtually impossible toachieve through diet,” she says. “Mostmulti-vitamins with minerals will pro-vide 18 mg of iron, and I advise everywoman to take one.”

Herbal supplements can also offerhelp. “One remedy that has beenshown to be very effective, especiallyfor athletes who find that breast tender-ness gets in the way of their training, isevening primrose oil,” Beck says. Atypical dose is 2-3 grams per day. Aswith all herbal supplements, it isimportant to look for a product that isstandardized. Beck advises using aproduct that is standardized to ninepercent of the active ingredient,gamma-linolenic acid (GLA).

Beck recommends avoiding caf-feine, alcohol, and foods high in sodi-um during the perimenstrual period, asthey can worsen symptoms. Stayingwell-hydrated can also help ease symp-toms.

When a student-athlete opts for a



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TOPICAL SKIN REFRIGERANT

Circle No. 9

nutritional approach to managing men-strual symptoms, it’s important not tolook for instant results. “Tell her not totry something for a month and decideit’s not working,” Beck says. “Mod-ifying the diet is effective, but it takesat least three cycles before she’ll seethe full effect.”

HORMONAL OPTIONS

When NSAIDs and nutritional strate-gies fail to help, birth control pills canoften lessen menstrual symptoms,

according to Grooms. “If an athlete isreally struggling, I recommend she trybirth control pills,” she says. “Theyoften lessen cramps and lessen flow,making periods lighter, shorter, andmore predictable.”

“Birth control pills contain bothestrogen and progesterone in higheramounts than would normally be pres-ent in the body,” explains MichaelRandell, MD, FACOG, an Atlanta-based physician specializing inwomen’s health. “The pills feed infor-

mation back to the brain and the brainshuts down the normal cycling andrelease of hormones. That prevents theovary from ovulating. A typical pre-scription for birth control contains 21days of combined estrogen/proges-terone pills, followed by seven days ofplacebo pills that contain no hormones.During the week of placebo pills, with-drawal from progesterone causes men-strual bleeding, and then a new pillpacket is started.”

The amount of estrogen and prog-esterone, as well as the form of proges-terone, vary depending on the type ofpill, so it’s important to find the one thatworks best for each individual athlete.“Some people have significant menstru-al symptoms on one pill that resolvecompletely on another pill,” Groomssays. “I tell my student-athletes thatthey need to tell me how it’s going. Ialways see them within a few months ofstarting the pill, and I tell them to keeptrack of the symptoms they have thatthey don’t like. That will help us choosethe pill that’s going to work.”

For student-athletes who want tohave fewer periods, physicians recom-mend using a hormonal contraceptivemethod continuously for three months,without taking the traditional week-long break each month. This method isknown as continuous use or tri-cyclingand results in the athlete having onlyfour menstrual periods each year.

Although it’s a relatively newidea, most physicians believe that tri-cycling is a healthy practice. “Studieshave shown that it’s quite safe,”Randell says. “There is nothing physi-ologically beneficial about having aperiod every month. In fact, having aperiod every month is really somethingthat’s unique to modern women. Goingback in the history of our species,women spent much of their reproduc-tive years either pregnant or breastfeeding, and they weren’t having peri-ods during that time. Nowadays,women are having more periods intheir lifetimes than we’ve ever had as aspecies.”

Morgan agrees. “As long as awoman cycles every three months,there really are no negative sideeffects,” she says. “Going longer than



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three months can lead to irregularbleeding for some women, because ofthe build up of endometrium. Other-wise, it appears to be a very safe thingto do. Gynecologists have been doingthis for years to treat women with con-ditions like endometriosis, and wehaven’t seen any adverse effects.

“I’ve used this method very suc-cessfully with my swimmers for a longtime,” she continues. “They can look attheir meet schedule and manipulatetheir pills so they don’t have a periodin the middle of NCAAs, for example.It’s very helpful from that respect.”

Eliminating periods may evenbring some health benefits. “It’s partic-ularly helpful for student-athletes whohave heavy periods and bad cramps,”Grooms says. “If you do the tri-cycles,she has to deal with those bad times awhole lot less frequently. And fewerperiods means less risk of anemia.”

Morgan advises her student-ath-letes interested in tri-cycling to beginby using birth control pills the tradi-

tional way first. “Particularly withthose who have never been on birthcontrol before, I find it’s important tosee how they do for a couple ofmonths,” she says. “Once we knowthey’re going to tolerate it and they’renot going to have any mid-cycle bleed-ing, I will teach them how to use it sothey can cycle every three months.”

With the FDA’s September ap-

proval of Seasonale, an oral contracep-tive manufactured by Barr Labora-tories of Pomona, N.Y., doctors willsoon be able to prescribe a birth controlpill designed specifically for tri-cycling. Seasonale contains threemonths worth of tablets, with 84 activepills followed by seven placebo pills.

Bravender adds one cautionarynote for student-athletes who use hor-monal contraception and the athletictrainers who advise them. “The use ofbirth control pills, traditionally or fortri-cycling, can mask amenorrhea,because you eliminate the warningsign of a missed period,” he says.“When a woman is suffering from thefemale athlete triad, birth control pillsmay help slow the bone loss, but theydon’t stop it. When a student-athlete ison birth control, it’s critically impor-tant to pay close attention to her weightand monitor her body composition toensure that she isn’t suffering from aneating disorder or inadequate energyintake.” ◆



Although it’s a relativelynew idea, most

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WWW.CORMAXSTRENGTHPOWERSYSTEMS.COMCircle No. 12

ometimes it seems that bas-ketball and knee injuries gotogether like high-flyingdunks and the NBA. Fromrecreational players to world-class all-stars, the jumpingand twisting in the sport often

wreaks havoc on the vulnerable knee.The good news for basketball playersis that, with proper treatment, mostought to be able to return to their pre-injury levels.

Some injuries, however, are so

deeply rooted in larger neuro-physio-anatomical problems that traditionalrehab protocols only touch the surface.Athletes with these injuries return totheir sport but don’t recover fully. Theyrequire a more in-depth assessmentand whole-body rehabilitation.

Early this summer, an 11-yearNBA veteran came to our performanceacademy with just that problem. (Wewill refer to him as LK, left knee, toprotect his privacy.) LK had suffered acontact injury to the posterior-lateral

compartment of his left knee in 1997.The injury resulted in damage to thelateral meniscus, and he underwent asubsequent lateral menisectomy. Hethen underwent a micro-fracture proce-dure on the same knee in 2000 and alateral compartment debridement in2001.

The athlete was able to return tothe court and perform at a high level,but continued to complain of posteriorknee pain, and decreased range ofmotion (ROM) (primarily flexion),strength, and power. These led todecreased performance and playingtime. He said he had posterior-lateralknee pain for approximately five years.

LK had undergone a traditionalsports medicine rehabilitation follow-ing damage to his lateral meniscus, butdid not return to his previous level offunctional ability. Therefore, when hecame to us, we knew we wanted tolook at more than just his left knee.

We took the approach that LK mayhave had a complex dysfunction result-ing from an imbalance in a kinetic-chain component. A tight muscle stuckin a shortened state may have alteredjoint position, setting off a propriocep-tive chain reaction that worsened theimbalance and left him functionallyweak. Therefore, we began by lookingat the entire kinetic chain.

A WHOLE-BODY APPROACH

The kinetic chain is made up of themuscular, skeletal, and nervous sys-tems, which work together to allowoptimum function. If any component


Micheal A. Clark, MS, PT, NASM-PES,CSCS, is President and Physical Therapistand Tyler Wallace, NASM-PES, isPerformance Enhancement Specialist at theNational Academy of Sports Medicine.Aaron Nelson, ATC, NASM-PES, CSCS, isHead Athletic Trainer and Casey Smith, MS,ATC, NASM-PES, is Assistant AthleticTrainer and Head Performance Enhance-ment Specialist for the Phoenix Suns.

BY MICHEAL A. CLARK,

AARON NELSON, TYLER

WALLACE & CASEY SMITH

© G

etty

Imag

es

KNEEKNEERehabbing a knee injury often requires looking at much more than the knee.

This case study examines the rehab protocol for an NBA veteran who suffered

pain and limited range of motion six years after his initial surgery.

◆ T R E A T I N G T H E A T H L E T E ◆

S

NBAAn

of the system is out of balance, it leadsto a complex dysfunction.

Muscles work most efficiently inspecific positions. They have an ideallength-tension point or position fromwhich they can produce the most force.If a muscle is “stuck” in a lengthenedor shortened position, then force pro-duction decreases.

Likewise, joints also function inan ideal position. During movement,two joint surfaces roll, glide, or spin onone another. The path of instantaneous

center of rotation is the path that onejoint takes on another during motion—think of the head of the humerus mov-ing on the glenoid fossa of the scapulaas you lift your arm over your head.

Muscles and joints have sensoryreceptors that are constantly sendingproprioceptive feedback to the centralnervous system. When the muscles arethe right length and the joints are mov-ing correctly, the central nervous sys-tem receives the correct information toallow optimum performance.

However, if muscles are too shortor too long, they change the position ofthe joints to which they attach. Bothmuscle length and altered joint posi-tion change proprioception to the central nervous system. This altered kinesthetic awareness leads to syner-gistic dominance, reciprocal inhibition,athrokinetic inhibition, and decreasedflexibility.

Muscles work in synergy to pro-duce force, reduce force, and dynami-cally stabilize the kinetic chain duringfunction. If one muscle is too long(underactive) or too short (overactive),then other muscles in the chain becomeover-dominant. This is called synergis-tic dominance. An example might bethe hamstrings becoming synergistical-ly dominant during hip extension if thegluteus maximus is underactive orweak.

ASSESSMENT

In assessing LK, we used a team thatincluded a physical therapist, athletictrainer, and performance enhancementspecialist. We conducted several static,transitional, and dynamic tests togauge underlying muscle imbalances,joint dysfunctions, and neuromuscularinefficiencies that could be leading tothe lack of progress and persistentpain.

The first test we conducted was aSquat Print™ (developed by theNational Academy of Sports Medicineand Biotonix), which allows assess-ment of integrated kinetic chain move-ments. For the test, LK performedoverhead squats and we examined hismovements by following a kineticchain checkpoint list. This involvessystematically looking at each func-tional segment of the movement todetermine efficiency.

If the athlete has proper flexibility,balance, core strength, functional seg-ment strength, and neuromuscular effi-ciency, then he or she should be able tosquat to parallel or below without com-pensating at the foot/ankle, knee, lumbar spine, or upper extremity.However, if he or she has alteredlength-tension relationships (muscletightness), altered force-couple rela-tionships (weakness of a primary mus-



ovement deficiencies can have a wide range of causes dependingon where they are located. This chart explains some common

causes of typical deficiencies.

FOOT/ANKLEEversionMuscles: tightness in the peroneals and lateral gastrocnemius; weakness

in the posterior tibialis, anterior tibialis, and medial gastrocnemiusJoints: decreased mobility of the talus

External RotationMuscles: tightness in the soleus and lateral gastrocnemius; weakness in

the medial gastrocnemius, medial hamstring complex, gracilis, and sartorius

Joints: decreased mobility of the talus and proximal tibio-femoral joint

KNEEAbduction/External RotationMuscles: tightness in piriformis, gluteus medius, and biceps femoris;

weakness in the adductor complex and medial hamstring complexJoints: decreased mobility in the hip joint (iliofemoral joint)

Adduction/Internal RotationMuscles: tightness in the adductor complex, medial hamstring complex,

gluteus minimus, and the tensor fascia latae; weakness in the gluteus medius and maximus

Joints: decreased mobility in the hip joint (iliofemoral joint)

LUMBO-PELVIC-HIP COMPLEXExtensionMuscles: tightness in the erector spinae, latissimus dorsi, and psoas;

weakness in the rectus abdominus, external oblique, and intrinsic spinal stabilizers

Joints: decreased mobility in the lumbar facet joints

FlexionMuscles: tightness in the rectus abdominus, external obliques, ham-

strings, and gluteus maximus; weakness in the erector spinae, psoas, latissimus dorsi, and intrinsic spinal stabilizers

Joints: decreased mobility in the SI joint and illiofemoral joint

Assessing Movements

M

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cle with compensation from a second-ary synergist), or joint hypomobility,then you will see abnormal move-ments. These are easily picked up dur-ing the movement pattern.

From there, we did more testing.To test range of motion, we usedgoniometric assessment using AAOScriteria. We conducted manual muscletesting and positional kinematics. Wealso asked the athlete to do two per-formance tests: a vertical jump test andshark skill test, which assesses single-leg balance, eccentric deceleration, andstabilization.

OVERVIEW OF IMBALANCES

The results of this athlete’s assessmentrevealed several movement dysfunc-tions. During the overhead squat testwe noted bilateral external rotation ofthe feet and eversion of the left foot.This demonstrates tightness in the lat-eral gastrocnemius, soleus, peroneals,and short of the biceps femoris, whichwas confirmed with the goniometricassessment. We also found weakness

in the anterior tibialis, posterior tib-ialis, medial gastrocnemius, popliteus,and gracilis, which was confirmed withmuscle testing.

Another problem we uncoveredduring the overhead squat was that theathlete’s left knee adducted and inter-nally rotated. This suggested a tight-ness in the adductor complex, whichwas confirmed in the goniometric test-ing. It also points to a weakness in thegluteus medius, and we confirmed thiswith muscle testing. Weakness in thegluteus medius leads to dominance ofthe adductor complex, tensor fascialatae (TFL), and piriformis. Over-activity in the piriformis causes thesacrum to rotate into extension. Thiswas confirmed in LK with positionalkinematic testing.

Functionally, these combineddeficits cause several problems. Lackof dorsiflexion (tight lateral gastrocne-mius, soleus, and peroneals, withdecreased posterior glide of the talus)during running, cutting, jumping, andlanding causes the foot to externally

rotate and evert. This causes the femurto adduct and internally rotate over afixed tibia, creating tremendous com-pressive forces on the lateral tibio-femoral joint. When the femur adductsand internally rotates, the gluteusmedius and maximus are not as effi-cient in controlling deceleration offemoral adduction and internal rota-tion. This also leads to increased com-pressive forces at the knee.

Weakness and underactivity of thegluteus medius also causes synergisticdominance of the TFL. The TFLattaches to the IT band, which attachesto the distal tibia and the lateral patella(fascial slips). Tightness in the IT bandforces the tibia to externally rotate.During closed-chain movements, if thetibia is restricted from internally rotat-ing during knee flexion, then the femuris forced to internally rotate and adductover the fixed tibia. This again causesexcessive compressive forces at thetibio-femoral joint.

Clearly, the above biomechanicaland neuromuscular deficits were caus-

Circle No. 14

ing repetitive stress to the entire kinet-ic chain, with the greatest damage tothe lateral tibio-femoral joint. There-fore, it is very probable that LK’schronic knee pain had been causedfrom decreased ROM and strength inthe ankle and the hip.

Focusing solely on the knee wouldlead to only partial recovery. Fullyalleviating this athlete’s complexkinetic chain imbalances required anintegrated approach. Our integratedapproach included manual therapy tocorrect joint and muscle imbalances,exercises to correct flexibility andstrength deficits, and an integratedstrength and conditioning program.

REHAB SPECS

The manual therapy we used with LKincluded positional release therapy,soft tissue release therapy, activerelease therapy, and joint mobilization.

The goal of the positional releasetherapy was to decrease hypertonicity in

overactive muscles. Positional releasetechniques were used on all musclesheld in a lengthened position. Musclestreated included: bilateral medial gas-trocnemius, bilateral anterior tibialis,bilateral posterior tibialis, left distal gra-cilis, and left gluteus medius.

To increase soft tissue extensibili-ty, we initiated soft tissue release ther-apy on muscles that were in a short-ened position. The muscles we treatedwere the bilateral soleus, lateral gas-trocnemius, peroneals, short head ofbiceps femoris, vastus lateralis, adduc-tor magnus, left adductor complex,tensor fascia latae, piriformis, andbiceps femoris.

Active release therapy was used toincrease soft tissue extensibility andantagonist activation. We treated thesame muscles as we did during soft tis-sue release.

The one addition to our activerelease therapy was using the athlete’svoluntary contraction of the antagonist



he following tables show some of the athlete’s test results beforeand after the integrated rehab program. Initial scores are listed

first. Post rehab scores are listed second. Percent improvement is inparentheses.

RANGE OF MOTION:Normal Left * Right

Dorsiflexion 20 9 15 (40%) 10 14 (29%)Knee Flexion 135 90 125 (28%) 140 140 (0%)Knee Extension 0 10 3 (70%) -5 -5 (0%)Hamstring 90/90 10 50 30 (40%) 45 35 (23%)Hip Internal Rotation 45 25 35 (29%) 30 35 (15%)Hip External Rotation 45 30 35 (15%) 30 35 (15%)Hip Adduction 45 31 35 (12%) 33 35 (6%)Hip Extension -5 0 0 (0%) 10 2 (80%)Shoulder Internal Rotation 70 30 60 (100%) 30 60 (100%)*=injured knee

PERFORMANCE PROFILE:Vertical JumpBilateral = 27, 30.5 (12% or 3.5" increase)Left = 17, 19.5 (13% or 2.5" increase)Right = 18, 20 (10% or 2" increase)

Shark Skill Test (single-leg neuromuscular control test)Left = 6.42, 4.85 (25% improvement)Right = 5.94, 5.01 (19% improvement)

TThe Results

Circle No. 15



to stretch tight muscles. For example,we had the athlete contract the anteriortibialis while performing active releaseon the lateral gastrocnemius andsoleus. This allowed us to developimproved neuromuscular control in theantagonist muscles.

To improve joint mobility in seg-ments with limited mobility, we usedjoint mobilization techniques. Theseincluded: bilateral talus posteriormobilization, left tibio-femoral jointinternal rotation, left iliofemoral joint

inferior glide, right iliosacral joint pos-terior rotation, left iliosacral joint ante-rior rotation, and left sacroiliac jointflexion/rotation.

LK was also given a comprehen-sive corrective flexibility exercise pro-gram. He started by using self-myofas-cial release (with foam roll) on the fol-lowing areas: bilateral soleus, lateralgastrocnemius, peroneals, left adductorcomplex, left IT band/tensor fascialatae, left piriformis, and bilateral shoul-der posterior rotator cuff and capsule.

Static stretching was then done onthe following: bilateral soleus, lateralgastrocnemius, left peroneals, leftadductor complex, right psoas, left rec-tus femoris, left biceps femoris, left pir-iformis, and bilateral pectorals, latis-simus dorsi, and posterior rotator cuff.

Neuromuscular stretching wasaccomplished on the same areas withthe assistance of the physical therapistor athletic trainer.

Immediately after the manual ther-apy and flexibility exercises, we had LKdo isolated corrective strengthening,consisting of multi-planar isometricsand controlled isotonics. This sequencehelps improve neuromuscular efficien-cy by focusing on intra-muscular coor-dination. Specific contraction of eachmuscle in the synergy helps preventsynergistic dominance from a strongermuscle in the synergy. This also servesas a form of active isolated flexibilityand preparation for the integratedstrength exercises that will follow.

Isolated strengthening exerciseswere each performed in two sets of 20repetitions. For the bilateral anteriortibialis, posterior tibialis, and medialgastrocnemius we used an ankle isola-tor to make sure that we were able tofocus the force specifically to eachmuscle. We also worked on the leftpopliteus, left gracilis and pectineus,and left gluteus medius.

Next up was integrated correctivestrengthening. We started with two setsof an iso-abdominal series made up ofthe following 30-second holds: pronewith isometric, prone with hip exten-sion, and prone with hip abduction.Second were two sets of 15 reps of astability-ball core series consisting ofbridges, crunches, and prone cobra.

Neuromuscular stabilization exer-cises were third. We did these as posi-tional isometrics in a closed-chainposition to facilitate total kinetic stabil-ity prior to transitional and dynamicmovements. We started with single-legstability (3x30), then did single-leg sta-bility with multi-planar reaching (3x10each plane of motion). This was fol-lowed by single-leg stability withupper-extremity activity. We accom-plished this through a cable/tubingseries—chest press, row, rotation,

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Circle No. 16

The LatestReference fromthe AmericanCollege ofSports Medicine

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Straightforward, how-to writing style and organization guide readers in the practice of performing assessments across fivemajor health-related physical fitness components: cardiorespira-tory fitness, body composition, muscular strength, muscularendurance, and flexibility.

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chops, lifts—at 2x10 and a medicineball series of throw and catch (2x10).

The above exercises were per-formed on progressively less stable sur-faces (foam roll, Airex pad, Reebok coreboard, and pivot plate) to facilitateincreased proprioceptive activity. Theseexercises themselves are not functionalbut they do prepare the athlete for tran-sitional and dynamic movements.

The fourth part of our integratedcorrective strengthening consisted of atube walking series. To conduct theseexercises, we placed tubing around theankles, and had the athlete twice walk10 steps. We did side-to-side walkingin an athletic stance using perfect formand front-to-back walking both straightand diagonally.

LK eventually progressed to anintegrated strength and conditioningprogram. We use what we callOptimum Performance Training™(OPT), which incorporates flexibility,core training, balance training, reactivetraining, speed/agility/quickness train-ing, integrated strength training, meta-

bolic conditioning, and skill training.The program has seven phases, eachwith specific acute variables that aremodified in an innovative periodiza-tion strategy to develop optimum per-formance. The phases of training workthrough stability, strength, and powerand include the following:

1. Corrective exercise training tocorrect muscle and joint imbalances

2. Integrated stabilization trainingfor neuromuscular efficiency

3. Stabilization equivalent trainingfor stability and strength

4. Muscular development training5. Maximum strength training6. Elastic equivalent training7. Maximum power training

A BETTER ATHLETE

LK progressed very well using theindividualized OPT program (see “TheResults” on page 25 for his specificnumbers). He reports 90 percent func-tional capacity compared to 60 percentfunctional capacity prior to training.He played six weeks in a summer

league without any complaints of kneepain or decreased function, and his per-formance levels have improved to pre-injury levels.

This athlete will continue to fol-low the OPT program during the com-petitive season. During the next off-season, LK will be able to train at a sig-nificantly higher level because we tookthe time to identify and correct theimbalances that were causing him painand hindering his performance foralmost five years.

This case study illustrates a prob-lem that is all too common. Many ath-letes “recover” from surgery, showingthe classic signs of decreased pain,swelling, and restored ROM, but areleft with poor neuromuscular control,muscle and joint imbalances, and poormovement patterns that may have pre-disposed them to an injury in the firstplace. By performing a comprehensivekinetic chain assessment, we can pin-point exactly what to do with each ath-lete to ensure he or she returns to opti-mum performance. ◆

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Circle No. 18

any people believe thatthose who try to serve twomasters usually end uppleasing neither. Butstrength and conditioningcoaches are often requiredto serve two masters when

they work with athletes who competein more than one sport. And both thesemasters must somehow be satisfied.

Training multi-sport athletes cer-tainly presents some challenges, sincepreparation for a future season must fit

around the demands of an active sea-son. But it’s far from impossible.Contrary to popular belief, the demandsof most sports are usually not that dif-ferent, so it’s actually not that hard todesign a program to benefit an athleteinvolved in more than one sport.

Often, the biggest issue is time,since in-season athletes have limitedtime available for strength trainingwork. Another concern is overloadingthe body. But by taking advantage ofthe common demands of different

sports, you can design an efficient pro-gram that does not result in overtrain-ing, no matter how many sports theathlete plays.

CONSTANT BUILDING

A common misconception is that oncethe playing season begins, strengthtraining should go into a maintenancemode. Let’s dispel that myth early onbecause this is an outdated concept thatneeds to be reconsidered. (For a look atother myths, see “Debunking Myths”on page 32.)

It is imperative for athletes to con-tinue to build strength within a playingseason, especially high school athletes,who are still very much in a develop-mental stage. These athletes benefit somuch from strength training that evena limited strength program is benefi-

Contrary to popular belief, it’s possible to design a safeand effective strength program for multi-sport athletes.The key is to find commonality between the movementsand pay attention to timing.

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The Multi-Sport

Jennifer Stone, Lafayette College

BJ Szymanski, Princeton University

cial. And the length of playing seasonsat the high school level means athleteswill actually regress if their in-seasontraining goes into a maintenance mode.

It is also important to keep build-ing strength throughout the playingseason so that the athlete can begin thesecond season at a higher level than heor she began the first. This does notrequire huge amounts of time, just con-sistency of effort. Even 20 minutes ofstrength training a couple of times aweek can do the trick. Think build, notmaintain.

Planning a program that will keepbuilding strength requires careful pro-gram design based on each athlete’sstage of physical maturation and theamount of playing time he or she willreceive within a season. For example, a

backup sweeper on the soccer team cando more strength training during theseason than a starting midfielder. Inorder to properly design a program fora multi-sport athlete, you must first talkwith all of his or her coaches to under-stand his or her role on each team. Youshould check in regularly with the off-season coaches to see if anything haschanged in their plans that would affecta player’s expected role.

COMMON GROUND

When training multi-sport athletes,many people focus on the differencesbetween the sports. But most sports aremore alike biomechanically than theyare different. For example, in terms of

body movements, basketball is verysimilar to soccer with the use of hands,while soccer is a form of basketballplayed with the feet. Yes, there are cer-tainly specific skills unique to anysport, but these skills usually make upa small part of the sport’s physicalactivity. Too many people focus on the20 percent of activity that is unique toa sport and forget that 80 percent is notunique.

Thus, the best place to start whenfaced with training an athlete who


CHALLENGE


Vern Gambetta, MA, is the President ofGambetta Sports Training Systems inSarasota, Fla., and the former Director ofConditioning for the Chicago White Sox.He is a frequent contributor to Training &Conditioning and can be reached atwww.gambetta.com.BY VERN GAMBETTA

Senterrio Landrum, Duke University

plays two or more sports is to look atcompatibility of the sports. Carefullyassess each sport’s strength and powerdemands and look for commonalitiesin strength and power that you can cap-italize on. Use those commonalities tobuild as unified a program as possible.For example, a basketball player and afootball player will both need explo-sive power from their lower body, soexercises that work the core and legsshould be emphasized.

Even at a casual glance, you willsee that strength programs designed forspecific sports are already similar instructure. Every strength training pro-gram should have a remedial injuryprevention component. There mustalso be core strength, leg strength, andexplosive power components to everyprogram regardless of the sport. Upper

body strength requirements vary bysport, but there will almost always bean element of upper body trainingrequired. By tweaking programs totake advantage of commonalitiesbetween sports, you can create effec-tive programs for the multi-sport ath-lete without straying far from the sin-gle-sport programs.

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

As in any good training program, thestrength and power needs of eachmulti-sport athlete must be reconciledwith the in-season sport demands. Inaddition, careful consideration must begiven to the developmental level andtraining ages of the athletes involved.Older players who have already donestrength training will be able to domore than those just beginning.

How much time is needed tostrength train? Start with 30 to 40minute sessions in the early season.After two or three weeks, this shoulddrop to 25 to 30 minutes. The assump-tion is that the athletes know all theexercises from participating in an off-season program. If not, then you muststart with a very remedial program forany athletes new to strength training.The goal is to gradually get them up tothe level of the athletes who participat-ed in the offseason program. The timedemands will drop to 20 to 25 minutesin midseason. At the very end of theseason, when the game demands on theathletes are the highest, it’s safe to gointo a maintenance mode of 15 to 20minutes per session once a week.

Each strength training sessionshould have a specific emphasis. Forsimplicity, I divide the training into atotal-body emphasis, a lower-bodyemphasis, circuit emphasis, and anupper-body emphasis. Core training isincluded in every strength training ses-sion and also should be part of thedaily warm-up. Endurance training isusually not an issue, since that is typi-cally covered through work in the in-season sport. Excluding core exercises,the maximum number of exercises in asession is six, unless it is a circuit train-ing session.

In selecting the emphasis for aparticular session, make sure that it iscoordinated with what the coach isdoing in the team’s practice session onthat day and fits into the game sched-ule. This, of course, requires constantcommunication with the sport coach,in addition to the usual preseasonmeeting where you discuss goals,directions, and schedules.

When choosing specific exercises,a good rule of thumb is to always buildfrom the ground up. Start with the legs!Emphasize total body movements andcompound movements that allow forefficiency as well as variability. Narrowthe menu of exercises and build theprogram around variations of thoseexercises. Remember that the adaptivestimulus in-season is intensity. An opti-mum goal to shoot for is three to fivesets with three to five reps per set.



thletes and sport coaches often carry a lot of misinformation whenit comes to strength training. This misinformation can be multi-

plied when athletes play more than one sport. Here are some commonmyths that coaches and athletes sometimes believe about strength train-ing during the season, and the truth hiding behind those myths.

Myth: I will get tired. Truth: Fatigue will not be a problem if the program is appropriate for

the sport and the athlete’s development level. A properly designedstrength training session should be energizing, not fatiguing. Remember,an in-season program is not a body building program where multiple setsare devoted to developing an individual muscle, which would be fatigu-ing and counter productive.

Myth: If I put that much time in, I will burn out. Truth: Burn out comes from monotony, not from directed work with

built-in variability. It is important to have as much variation as is reason-able in the strength training program. As a matter of fact, many of theathletes I work with look forward to the variation their strength work pro-vides from the demands of their playing season.

Myth: The sports are too different. Truth: They may look different to the sport coach, but you can point

out similarities between the sports. Use video to show common move-ments and areas that must be strengthened to succeed in both sports.

Myth: Strength training will hurt skill level. Truth: When placed in proper relation to skill work, strength training

will not hurt skill work. Stronger, better conditioned athletes are usuallybetter able to develop their skills. But the strength work must be coordi-nated with skill work. Do not target the upper body if the team practicethat day focuses on skills involving the upper body. Also, strength workmust be related very closely to strength training done in the off seasonand the preseason. A playing season is not the time to begin a strengthtraining program.

ADebunking Myths

Once you’ve got the basics inplace, you can think about how toaddress the parts of the sports that dif-fer from each other. The most commonexample of divergent demands is theneed to improve power (such as jump-ing ability) while still working onendurance, as with a basketball playerwho runs cross country. The best way toaddress this is to set priorities based onwhich quality is most important duringthat particular playing season. In thiscase, you could emphasize enduranceearly, with more strength and powerwork phased in later in the season.

In some cases, one sport willclearly be more important to the athletethan another. At early training ages anddevelopmental levels, general strengthwork should predominate, so there islittle need to prioritize sports since thiswork will not vary by sport. Withadvancing training age and develop-ment levels, strength training can bemore closely tailored to the individualand increased emphasis can be placedon the needs of one sport over another.

SAMPLE PLANS

There are two distinct scenarios you’llencounter when implementing compre-hensive strength training programs thatspan two sports. The first is the con-secutive-season scenario where theathlete goes immediately from onesport to the next without a break. Thisrequires an unloading period to easethe transition between the sports and totake full advantage of the strengthtraining program. This unloading willtake the form of a taper at the end ofthe first sport season, which is often

needed for performance reasons any-way. Following the late-season taper,the first phase in the second sport takeson more of a general strength emphasisand should look like the off-seasonprogram for up to six workouts. Thisstructure will also work well for three-sport athletes who have no breakbetween their seasons.

In general, the training weeksshould be something like this:

Off-season3 or 4 strength training sessions a

week rotating between total body,upper body, lower body, and circuittraining.

In-season I Early season: 3 sessions per week

rotating between total body, upperbody, and lower body.

Midseason: 2 total body sessionsper week with a slight alternatingemphasis on upper body and lowerbody.

Late season: 1 total body sessionper week, with lower number of reps,emphasizing intensity over volume and



Following the late-seasontaper, the first phase in

the second sport takes onmore of a general

strength emphasis andshould look like the off-season program.

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tapering to the end of the season.In-season IIEarly season: 3 or 4 sessions per week rotating between

total body, upper body, lower body, and circuit training, similarto a preseason program.

Mid season: 2 sessions per week with a slight alternatingemphasis on upper body and lower body.

Late season: 1 or 2 sessions per week emphasizing inten-

sity over volume, with a taper toward the end of the season,if needed for performance reasons.

The second scenario is a split-season schedule wherethere is a distinct break between the seasons, such as a fallsport and a spring sport. The key here is the break betweenseasons. This period of time offers a chance to tap back intothe work done in the previous offseason and make substantialgains. The distribution of workouts per training week in asplit-season scenario will look something like this:

Off-season I3 or 4 strength training sessions a week rotating between

total body, upper body, and lower body.In-season I Early season: 3 sessions per week rotating between total

body, upper body, and lower body.Midseason: 2 total body sessions per week with a slight

alternating emphasis on upper body and lower body. Late season: 1 or 2 sessions per week emphasizing inten-

sity over volume, with a taper toward the end of the season,if needed for performance reasons.

Off-season II 3 or 4 strength training sessions a week rotating between

total body, upper body, and lower body.In-season IIEarly season: 3 or 4 sessions per week rotating between

total body, upper body, lower body, and circuit training, sim-ilar to a preseason program.

Midseason: 2 sessions per week in mid season with aslight alternating emphasis on upper body and lower body.

Late season: 1 or 2 sessions per week emphasizing inten-sity over volume, with a taper toward the end of the season,if needed for performance reasons.

Remember that training is cumulative. Plan ahead anddivide the competitive season into distinct blocks with a spe-cific emphasis for each block. Look for opportunities to makeremedial strength movements part of the warm-up or thecooldown. ◆



The second scenario is a split-seasonschedule where there is a distinct breakbetween the seasons ... The key here isthe break … This period of time offers achance to tap back into the work done in the previous offseason and make substantial gains.

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ProBodX dispels fitness fallacies andcontradictions such as heavy weight lift-ing and static stretching found in yoga,as well as dietary myths such as carbo-hydrate loading and sugar-laden sportsdrinks. Coaches have maintained foryears that athletes are born not made.ProBodX proves this belief to be erro-neous. Rapid improvements are made

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Circle No. 21

nyone who has spenttime around infants andtoddlers knows that oneof the most amazingthings about them is

their ability to effectively communi-cate their wants, needs, and expecta-tions without saying a word. If theyneed a nap, the head goes down andthumb goes in. When they want a story,they give you the book and force theirway onto your lap. They are direct,concise, and somehow manage to leavelittle room for misinterpretation with-out ever uttering a syllable.

Unfortunately, most of us adults

bear a striking contrast to this. We havedecades of learned vocabulary at ourcommand, yet few of us are able to beas concise as our diapered counter-parts. We have mastered the mechani-cal ability to form words and constructsentences, but are we as effective atcommunicating as we could be? And ifnot, what can we do to improve?

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

Poor verbal communication can be aproblem in any profession, but for ath-letic trainers, particularly so. Athletictraining is extremely detail-oriented aswell as responsibility-intensive. You

can’t afford vague communicationwhen the care for hundreds of student-athletes, the performance of dozens ofteams and staff, and the education ofimpressionable student athletic trainersare in your hands.

One reason is that good verbalcommunication is vital to the depart-ment’s effectiveness. “Any time youwork with people, good communica-tion is the key to success,” says ChuckKimmel, MA, ATC, Assistant AthleticDirector and Head Athletic Trainer atAustin Peay State University. “Withoutit, you won’t achieve the goals youseek.”

Donna Wisely, MA, LATC, ATC,Athletic Trainer at Hoffman Estates(Ill.) High School and Vice President


Shelly Wilson is a former Assistant Editorat Training & Conditioning.

BY SHELLY WILSON

Illustration: Chris Murphy

Tips for TalkingOne of the most important skills a professional can have

is communication. But it’s also one of the most neglected.

Here are ways to get better at getting your point across.

◆ M A N A G E M E N T ◆

A

of the Illinois Athletic TrainersAssociation, is also discovering theimportance of verbal communicationin her department. “For the past 15years, there have been just two of us onstaff,” she says. “In that time, wereached the point where we were verynon-verbal in our communication. Wecould finish each other’s sentences andthoughts, and if he left an injury reportblank, I could usually figure out whatneeded to be filled in. But we justadded a third person to the staff, andshe’s looking at the two of us saying, ‘Ihave no clue what you’re talkingabout. How did you know that? Whydid you know that? I don’t understandwhat you want me to do.’ And it hasbecome very apparent that we need to

change our communication style inorder to help her help us.”

Poor verbal communication canalso lead people to conclude thatyou’re less competent than you are. Infact, research shows that patients judgethe quality of a healthcare provider’swork more according to that provider’sinterpersonal skills than by his or hertechnical competence.

“If I hear you speak slang all thetime, talk down to student-athletes, andnot use the proper terminology, I’mgoing to think you’re unprofessional,”says Vince O’Brien, LATC, ATC,Athletic Trainer for Men’s Basketballat Ohio State University and the OhioAthletic Trainers Association’s 2003Athletic Trainer of the Year. “You

could know everything in the worldabout athletic training, but I’m notgoing to trust you or really believeyou.”

And maybe the most persuasivefact: “Poor communication createsproblems and more work daily,” saysRobb Williams, MEd, ATC, CSCS,Head Athletic Trainer at the Universityof Wyoming. “And the person whowon’t admit it is not evaluating his orher communication. I recently used thephrase ‘Get in the whirlpool’ to an ath-lete. I didn’t, however, specify the coldwhirlpool, and the athlete ended up inthe hot whirlpool because the hotwhirlpool is the one that feels good.And to him, a whirlpool is a whirl-pool.”

So what exactly characterizesgreat verbal communication? Accord-ing to the experts, it’s precision, confi-dence, and top-notch listening skills.

PRECISELY PUT

Your boss tells you the injury reportsare due Friday. He means he wantsthem Friday morning so he can reviewthem before the weekend. You think aslong as they’re in before the end of theday on Friday, you’ve met his dead-line. He hasn’t been precise in hisrequest. And what results from theminor misunderstanding is frustration,resentment, maybe a little temporaryhostility between the two of you, andone person’s work schedule beingthrown off. Now, how many timestoday have you been as imprecise withothers? It’s easy to see how quicklyimprecision in verbal communicationcan disrupt rehab timelines, cama-raderie, and administration in the train-ing room.

“We make vague statements allthe time and then wonder why theother person didn’t understand us,”says Meryl Runion, a corporate speak-er and trainer on verbal communica-tion based in Cascade, Colo., andauthor of Power Phrases! The PerfectWords to Say It Right and Get theResults You Want. “The more specificyou can be, the better the result.”

Kimmel agrees. “If staff, coaches,or student-athletes are given the oppor-



robably one of the most overlooked characteristics of good verbalcommunication isn’t verbal at all. It’s silence.

Silence in conversation is generally regarded as wholly undesirable andexcruciatingly uncomfortable. And even though many of us do our best tofill those gaps with something, anything, the most confident and effectiveverbal communicators regard silence as purposeful, and with a host ofbenefits. Below are just a few of them:

Power and Insight. “When people are not afraid of silence, that givesthem a lot of power,” says Meryl Runion, a corporate speaker and traineron verbal communication. “And many times, when you are silent, the otherperson will show their hand. That gives you tools and information to workwith.”

Creation of Emphasis. “Critical pauses are important,” says VinceO’Brien, ATC/L, Athletic Trainer for Men’s Basketball at Ohio StateUniversity. “If there is an important point I need to make, I like to pausejust before or just after, so the other party is waiting to hear what else Ihave to say.”

Digestion. “In my work, I use silence to help the athlete ‘catch up’ andmake cognitive connections about the message,” says Patrick Cohn, PhD,a mental game coach and Owner of Peak Performance Sports. “This mightbe at a time when I have hit upon an important association the athlete isdiscovering and needs time to process.” Silence can also benefit thespeaker by providing a few moments to refocus on the message’s topic orgoal.

Formulation Time. “If a coach or the director of athletics hits me witha question, I want to make sure I give an accurate answer. So I’m going tothink about it and measure my words before I respond,” says ChuckKimmel, MA, ATC, Assistant Athletic Director and Head Athletic Trainer atAustin Peay State University.

Inclusion. “Some people need to be encouraged into a conversation,”says Donna Wisely, MA, ATC/L, Athletic Trainer at Hoffman Estates (Ill.)High School. “Sometimes, allowing a silence gives them what they need tospeak up.”

PZip It!

tunity to interpret my words or mean-ing loosely, then that’s what they’regoing to do,” he says.

One way to improve your verbalprecision is through accurate and spe-cific word choice. “One day I askedmy friend Barbara how she was,” saysRunion. “She said, ‘Grumpy!’ Shecould have said, ‘I’m angry. I’m irritat-ed. I’m annoyed.’ But each of thesecarries its own meaning that is slightlydifferent from the nuances of grumpy.Grumpy suggests no blame and takesfull responsibility for the mood. WhenBarbara said she was grumpy, I did notimmediately assume I had done some-thing wrong. Had she said angry, irri-tated, or annoyed, I might have won-dered if I had caused her mood in someway.”

Remember, however, that when itcomes to medical terminology and jar-gon, it’s important to be precise with-out being overly technical. With stu-dent-athletes, Wisely does this by part-nering concise verbal communicationwith visual aids.

“I try to break information downinto terms that they can relate to,” shesays. “And because it is sometimeshard to put all of the message intoterms they understand, we use a lot ofpictures in books to illustrate whatwe’re saying as we say it.”

“If you are too technical and talkdown to people, then you’ve lostthem,” adds O’Brien. “Then theythink, ‘I can’t communicate with thisperson, so why would I bother going tothem for treatment?’”

While using medical jargon canimpede communication with coachesand athletes, knowing the lingo of theparticular sport or culture can substan-tially enhance the verbal communica-tion process. “Our men’s ice hockeyteam works out in our athletic trainingroom,” O’Brien says, “and if I say, ‘Putan Ace bandage on that,’ they look atme like I’m crazy, because these ath-letes are mainly from Canada and theyknow it as a tensor bandage.

“So I’ve made a point of sayingtensor bandage with them, and theynow smile and laugh when I do,”O’Brien continues. “It helps my com-

munication with them, because theythink, ‘This guy knows where I’mfrom.’ That increases trust, and if theycan trust me, they’re going to hear mea little bit better when I ask things ofthem.”

Another way to improve verbalprecision is to eliminate waffling andmuttering. “It happens more thanyou’d think,” says O’Brien. “I hear it alot from our physicians. They’ll beconversing with an athlete and say, ‘Ididn’t see anything on the x-ray, so Idoubt it’s bone. We’re going to treat itlike a soft tissue injury. Though some-times it shows up as bone later. But Ithink we’re okay.’ And the athleteleaves thinking, ‘So, is it the bone ornot?’”

Thinking out loud can also lead toproblems. “For instance, we had a staffmeeting today,” says O’Brien, “andsomeone said, ‘Why don’t we pick aday and time to meet every week?’One of the supervisors said, ‘That’s areally good idea. Tuesdays mightwork.’ Now I heard ‘He’s consideringdoing this on Tuesdays. He’s going tolet us know.’ Another staff memberheard, ‘Next Tuesday, we’re meeting.’So you have to really avoid thinkingout loud or muttering under yourbreath, because a lot of people willtake what you say in those momentsliterally.”

CONFIDENCE COUNTS

Effective verbal communication alsorequires self-assurance, because a lis-tener is not going to follow your direc-tion or take your message seriously ifyou don’t appear to trust your ownjudgement. The most important tech-nique for developing confidence ispreparation, and the best way to start isby defining your communication goal.

“Most of us start conversationswithout considering the results weseek,” says Runion. “But if your con-scious mind doesn’t choose goals forthe conversation, then your uncon-scious mind will, and most times thoseunconscious goals are misdirected.The most common unconscious goalsare proving ourselves right and otherswrong, getting even, and showing the



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Circle No. 22

other person how smart we are. Thesegoals are counter-productive.”

O’Brien has found goal-settinguseful in athletic training both for theconfidence it creates and the clarity itprovides the listener. For example,when an athlete gets hurt in a game,O’Brien sets his communication goalsaccording to what information is going to be most immediately important tothe coach.

“If an athlete suffers a knee injury

in the game’s first half, and you evalu-ate him in the training room, there arekey facts you need to discern,” he says.“You need to diagnose the injury, fig-ure out what the game plan is for thenext hour or two, and then what yourgame plan is for the next day. So thoseare the three things I want to tell thecoach in about 30 seconds. And I needto sound sure and definitive.

“If I can say, ‘Brandon has a medi-al meniscus tear in his left knee, he’sout for the rest of the day, we’ll re-evaluate him tomorrow, and I’ll let youknow his status by noon,’ the coach hassound knowledge to act upon. Thecoach can easily translate that to hisneeds: ‘So Brandon’s not a factor inmy substitutions for the rest of thisgame. They have a plan for treatmenttonight, and they’ll let me know tomor-row if he’s going on the road trip.’”

For Wisely, preparation alsoincludes note taking. “I gather all mythoughts in writing,” she says. “Then Itake those notes with me to the discus-sion, so I don’t eliminate key pieces ofinformation.”

Planning your communication canhelp avoid poor word choice and usingtoo many non-essential words thatmake you seem unsure of your mes-sage. “For example, sometimes peoplewill say, ‘I just have one little ques-tion,’” says Runion. “But ‘one littlequestion’ makes it sound insignificant.

Just go ahead and ask the question.“Avoid fillers like, ‘Ugh, Um, I

think I’m going to try to,’” she contin-ues. “They take away from the pointyou’re making. When we speak morestrongly, people take our recommenda-tions more seriously.”

TUNING IN

The final talent upon which the mostexceptional verbal communicators relyis listening, and there is a definite dif-

ference between hearing and listening.For verbal communication to be mosteffective, listening has to be aboutunderstanding both the words, and thenon-verbal cues that go with them.

But being a good listener is a chal-lenge for almost everyone. “It’s mucheasier to talk than to listen,” saysKimmel. “But listening is a skill thateveryone should work at, because ifyou don’t hear what the coach, patient,or supervisor is saying, then you getsidetracked and you won’t achieve thegoals both parties want to worktowards.”

Athletic trainers face special chal-lenges when it comes to effective lis-tening. “ATCs are constantly multi-tasking,” Wisely explains. “Whetherit’s supervising 12 kids while talking toanother athlete or listening to kidswalk by while trying to get the scoopon someone else, there’s constantlysomething else going on in our brains,and that makes it hard to listen well.”

In addition, your multi-tasking canaffect how well others perceive you arelistening to them. “I feel very comfort-able taping an ankle and holding twoconversations at once,” says O’Brien.“But I think sometimes if you aren’ttalking only to the athlete or only to thecoach, then they don’t hear you.”

To combat this, Kimmel tries tolook people in the eye. “I find evenwhen I’m in a room of people, if I lock

eyes with the person, I’m not as easilydistracted,” he says. “Also, if I standclose to them, it sends signals that I’mlistening.”

O’Brien asks himself whether he’sin the right environment before startinga conversation. “When needed, I bringthe person into a different area withinthe training room, into the doctor’soffice, or out in the hallway, just tomake sure they can hear what I’m say-ing,” he explains.

Experts also recommend a com-munication technique called “activelistening.” It comprises four parts andfacilitates deeper understanding ofboth spoken and unspoken messages.

“The first active listening skill isparaphrasing,” says Patrick Cohn,PhD, mental game coach and Owner ofPeak Performance Sports, in Orlando,Fla. “This is an excellent technique tomake sure you are both talking aboutthe same thing. You paraphrase bytelling the person what he or she said inyour own words. The second [skill] isreflection. Here, you simply restatewhat the person has said [using] theirwords. Use this skill when you are notsure what the person meant, almostwith a questioning tone to your voice.

“The third skill is summarizing,”continues Cohn. “You summarize bygiving the key points the person hassaid to you in the conversation. This isused for long conversations to help tiemany ideas together. The fourth skill isempathy. This is an advanced listeningskill because it requires that you pickup on what the person is feeling at thatmoment and reflect it back to him orher. This is a good technique for devel-oping trust and bonding with your[speaker].”

“Active listening can seem likeoverkill, and like you’re really overex-tending the conversation,” saysWilliams. “But if the communicationreally needs to be crisp, clear, andshared, then you have to use thosetechniques.”

Runion points out, though, thatwhen it comes to the empathy aspect ofactive listening, the information isn’tgoing to be verbal, but non-verbal.People rarely say outright, “I’m angry.



“I feel very comfortable taping an ankle and holding two

conversations at once … But I think sometimes if you aren’t

talking only to the athlete or only to the coach, then they

don’t hear you.”

I’m frustrated. I’m upset.”Another component of listening

entails understanding that differentpeople respond to different styles. “Tobe most successful, you have to roleplay to some degree and meet the otherperson’s communication standards,preferences, and experience,” saysWilliams.

“You can pay attention to thewords they use as clues to what com-munication type they are,” saysRunion. “For example, if they say, ‘Idon’t get the picture,’ then they areprobably a visual type. Draw a dia-gram and use imagery for this type ofperson.”

If they use a lot of pauses in theirown speech, then slow down your endof the conversation, too. If they easilyget distracted, consider jotting downan agenda you both can see to stay oncourse. If they are smiling but describ-ing something negative, ask questionsto find out how they are truly feeling.

BRUSHING UP

So how do you determine how strongor weak your verbal communicationskills are? One way is to simply meas-ure your results. “Either people dowhat I ask them, or they don’t,” saysKimmel.

“If a day later, someone doesn’tremember an instruction or request Igave them, then I put the onus on me,”adds O’Brien. “Even if I’m sure I saidit, if they didn’t hear it, maybe I didn’tcommunicate it correctly or in a waythat was understandable to them.”

More difficult is determining whatspecific areas of your communicationneed improvement. Athletic trainerscan actually help each other with this.

“Ask colleagues to help you cri-tique your communication skills, espe-cially after you’ve made a presenta-tion,” says Wisely. “Or say, ‘I’m aboutto call a parent. Listen to my end of theconversation.’ Or, ‘Can you come lis-ten to me while I have this conversa-tion with the doctor?’”

Cohn suggests the observer lookfor listening skills, clarity of the mes-sage, eye contact, posture, tone, inflec-tion, agenda, manner, pace, attitude



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Circle No. 23

and confidence, and concentration. Ifyou’re a one-person athletic trainingdepartment, remembering these com-ponents can help you evaluate yourown communication throughout theday.

“Reflecting back on a conversa-tion that just occurred is one way Iimprove my communication skills,”says Wisely. “Part of that comes fromnoting what questions I was asked afterI presented my information. Was I notclear? Did I cover that area, but notclearly enough? Did I omit the infor-mation completely? And since most ofthe time we’re not in a position to pullout a Palm Pilot or piece of paper towrite it down, I make a mental noteand store it so I can process it later.”

“I call them THPs, Take HomePoints,” explains Williams. “You sitback at night and say, ‘I was clearlymisunderstood at this meeting, and thisis what I didn’t understand from them.’And I’ll write them down in my diaryor daily planner, because you have toseek to understand those instances.

Then I’ll go back, revisit those issues,and say, ‘Per our conversation yester-day, this is what I was led to believe.Am I off base here?’ And you take thetime to go back and be both the speak-er and receiver, assess the task, and getback to specifics.”

Also consider taking advantage oftechnology to help you analyze andimprove your verbal communication.By videotaping and reviewing presen-

tations, meetings, or rehab sessions,you have the opportunity to both hearwhat you say and how you say it aswell as observe the messages you aresending non-verbally. If you don’thave access to video equipment, con-sider using a simple cassette recorderto study how you come across.

TOUGH TALKS

The true test of any speaker’s verbalcommunication skills is listening andmaking themselves heard in difficultsituations. It’s one thing to deliver ashort, precise, targeted, and empatheticmessage over lunch with a friend in anempty cafeteria. It’s another to stick tothe rules of good verbal communica-tion when the situation is contentious,emotional, or heated. Here, athletictrainers and experts provide tips onhow to communicate well in tough sit-uations.

Dealing with a hostile party. Thefirst rule is to remain calm. “You needto avoid matching their intensity,” saysO’Brien. “Just because he or she is



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Circle No. 24

being loud doesn’t mean you need tobe.”

Second, work to diffuse the inten-sity. “When someone is hostile orangry, there’s usually a lot of frustra-tion about not being heard,” saysRunion. “So your best approach is tofirst listen and let them vent. If theydon’t meet with resistance while theyvent, the hostility usually windsdown.”

O’Brien also emphasizes theimportance of moving these situationsto somewhere private. “I’ll deal with itin a relatively private area, becausewhat you don’t want is for others to seethat person yelling at you, and you notyelling back,” he says. “You might beperceived as weak, or a doormat.”

Delivering bad news. When anathletic trainer faces the painful task oftelling an athlete that he or she has suf-fered a serious injury, it’s important toremain calm and confident, saysWisely. “Whether I am actually confi-dent or not is not the issue,” she says,“but I have to appear that way.”

To this end, Kimmel finds silenceuseful on two fronts. “I don’t talk morethan I need to,” he says, “and when Ido, my message is clear and concise, soI don’t overwhelm them. Also, whenan athlete is told they need surgery, orthat it’s serious, it’s important to givethem a few minutes to process that sothey can then ask questions and getanswers.”

When relaying a painful message,your non-verbal signals are just asimportant. “The tone of your voice hasto soften,” says O’Brien. “And ifsomeone is lying down on the table, Iwill bend down to get to their eyelevel, because it’s much more comfort-ing for them. In fact, I’ve seen physi-cians sit patients up before they begintalking to them, and the doctor will sitdown on a stool so the athlete is actu-ally sitting higher than the doctor. Thatgives the athlete a feeling of muchmore control of the situation. Also,something as simple as placing yourhand on their shoulder or hand pro-vides comfort.”

Communicating Displeasure.“Take a step back,” suggests Wisely.

“First, evaluate what your message is,the exact words you’re going to use,the tone it’s going to need, and how tophrase the message so it’s not accusa-tory or aggressive. Then take that per-son aside—don’t put on a big show infront of others—and state your case.

“But I also feel I have to takeresponsibility as well,” she continues.“I’ll say, ‘These are my feelings. Howare we going to work together toresolve this now and prevent it frombecoming an issue next time?’”

“You also want to speak moreabout what you want than what youdon’t want,” adds Runion. “Instead ofsaying, ‘Stop coming late,’ say, ‘I needyou to be on time.’ Then state what youwill do if they don’t meet your expec-tation.”

Saying No. For most people, hear-ing “no” is like a slap on the face, saysRunion. But it doesn’t have to be thatway.

“Instead of saying ‘No,’ begin byacknowledging the request, and then



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Circle No. 25

briefly explain your situation,” saysRunion. “Saying something like,‘That’s an interesting project. I haveother priorities, so I won’t be able tohelp you out with it,’ is short, but it’s alittle more sensitive than a straight‘No.’”

Runion also has advice for thosewho find telling others ‘No’ particular-ly difficult. “For chronic yes sayers, Irecommend you use the phrase, ‘Letme get back to you on that,’” she says.“Because for people who chronicallysay ‘Yes,’ it’s a big jump to say ‘No,no, no.’ This buys them time to thinkabout what they really want to do andthen get back to the person.”

ARE WE FINISHED?

If you’ve ever been talking and had theother party suddenly walk off on you—or wondered why an assistant remainsat your office door when you consid-ered the conversation finished—youknow that concluding a discussion cansometimes be awkward. So, it’s fitting

that the final hallmark of good verbalcommunication is knowing how to enda conversation.

A good indicator that both partiesare finished discussing an issue iswhen they have asked their last ques-tion and had it answered, or you haveasked your final question and had itanswered. But if you are unsure youjust heard the listener’s last question,Wisely recommends employing thesame principle that 911 uses. “I letthem ‘hang up the phone’ first,” shesays. “I let them be the one to walkaway first, say thank you, or give aclosing statement. I find it works well.It shows I’m still available and open tocontinuing the conversation, if that’swhat they want.”

When you and another party are indisagreement over an issue, havereached an impasse, or you’ve madeyour decision and they want to keepchallenging it, ending the conversationcan be harder. But relying on good ver-bal techniques will get the job done.

“I like hearing from people whodisagree with me,” says Kimmel,“because it makes me really re-exam-ine my opinion. But when I need towrap up with someone I don’t agreewith, I try to be empathetic and say, ‘Iunderstand where you are comingfrom, and I’m sorry you feel thatway,’” Kimmel says. “But I can’t agreewith you. I’m glad we talked about it,but I have to go now.’ And oftentimesphrasing the closing like that will endit without demeaning or embarrassingthe other party.”

In a busy working environmentlike the athletic training room, adopt-ing sound communication principlesand putting new techniques to practicemay seem too time consuming. But ifyou remember to formulate all com-munication with precision, set goals,speak with confidence, and listen toothers carefully, it will begin to comenaturally. And the misunderstandings,frustration, and work it alleviates willbe worth the effort. ◆



Circle No. 26

C O M P E T I T I V E E D G E

▼

hroughout my career as astrength and conditioningcoach, I have been fortu-nate enough to work withsome of the top volleyball

players in the country, including thoseon the U.S. National Team. Thesehighly talented athletes have reachedthe pinnacle of their sport through end-less hours of practice, meticulousdevelopment of specific skills, andincredible physical ability. These play-ers, and their skilled coaches, have

shown me what qualities are needed tosucceed in the competitive volleyballworld.

Yet, accomplished as they are,even these athletes need strength train-ing. The most gifted athletes can berendered helpless by injury, and well-schooled players can always benefitfrom added strength and endurance.

Fortunately, volleyball playershave shown some of the highest levelsof dedication to strength and condition-ing among all the athletes I have

worked with. When combined with theright attitude from participants, a prop-erly designed strength and conditioningprogram can work wonders. In this arti-cle, I explain the approach I have usedwith the national team and also in myprevious work at the collegiate level,including injury prevention, perform-ance enhancement, and conditioning.

The overriding rule is to keep itsimple. There are no magic exercises,no mystical schemes of sets and reps.The keys to a successful strength train-ing program are having a dedicated andconsistent effort from the athletes and asound physiological basis for what youhave them do.


Jim Kramer, MS, CSCS, is Coordinator ofStrength and Conditioning at the UnitedStates Olympic Training Center in Colora-do Springs, Colo., where he works withseveral teams, including women’s volley-ball. He was previously a strength and con-ditioning coach at the University ofNorthern Iowa and Georgia Tech.

Getting volleyball athletes

ready for competition

involves focusing on their

core, knees, and shoulders.

&Poised

Ready

TBY JIM KRAMER



▼Always keep in mind the two

basic purposes of strength and condi-tioning programs: to aid in the preven-tion of injuries and to help improveathletic performance. Often, the twopurposes overlap. For example, weregularly use the squat to develop hipand leg strength for improved jumpingand defensive play, but it is also aneffective way to help reduce injuries inthe lower extremities.

INJURY PREVENTION

Unfortunately, strength training cannotprevent all injuries from occurring. Butit can decrease their frequency, lessentheir severity, and shorten recoverytime. For a non-contact sport, volley-ball puts a tremendous amount of stresson certain areas of a player’s body.Areas especially prone to injury are theshoulders, knees, and abdominals.

Over-use shoulder injuries arecommon in volleyball, and much canbe done through strength training toprevent them. Rotator cuff and smallershoulder muscle exercises are main-stays of most volleyball strength train-ing programs, including ours. Tostrengthen the smaller shoulder mus-cles, we use a series of exercises calledthe Super 8 that Jay Omer introducedto me when he was the Strength andConditioning Coach at Georgia Tech.The series consists of standard flexion,standing supraspinatus, scaption withexternal rotation, external rotation/prone abduction, prone saws, decelera-tion, seated dumbbell military press-up, and internal and external rotationwith tubing.

The athlete performs one set ofeach exercise in a slow, controlledmanner, then immediately moves tothe next with no rest. The key to theseexercises is proper technique and con-trolled movement during each exer-cise, not the amount of weight lifted.Athletes typically start with 2.5 to fivepounds, which should be taxingenough if the exercises are performedcorrectly. Some athletes eventuallywork up to eight to 10 pounds, but ifthey go any heavier, technique and

control may begin to suffer.Don’t forget, however, that every

movement used to strengthen the frontof the shoulder must be balanced withwork for the opposite side of the joint.Thus, we also focus on strengtheningthe upper back musculature and therear deltoid, the muscles responsiblefor arm deceleration. We accomplishthis through rows of any nature, latpulldowns, and rear-deltoid work likerear flys or raises.

Working with female athletes involleyball, we must also address theknee, including prevention of ACLinjuries. This means strengthening themusculature around the knee and hipjoint. We have found that nothingworks this area better than the simplesquat (which is a cornerstone of othersegments of the program as well).Supplementary to squats, we use single-leg movements, especially sidelunges.

The hamstrings are critical for sta-bility of the knee joint and are workedconstantly in our program. We do thiswith a combination of Romanian dead-lifts, glute ham raises, single-leg curlson a machine, and physio-ball exercises.

Another frequent region for injuryis the abdominal muscles. To help pre-vent injuries here, we focus onstrengthening movements rather thanmuscles.

If we look at the mechanism forabdominal strains in volleyball, wefind the injury, whether acute or chron-ic, usually stems from the hittingaction. The attack phase of the volley-ball spike consists of two distinctmovement patterns often referred to as

“cocking-the-hammer” (see lead photoon page 45 for an example) and theactual hit. These movements place dis-tinct and considerable demands on theabdominal musculature.

To address this area, we firstdevelop a base of strength with coretraining and general abdominal exer-cises, such as crunches, extendedphysio-ball crunches, and physio-balltwist crunches. Once this base corestrength is established, we focusspecifically on building strength forthe hitting action by using more speedand sport-specific movements likephysio-ball La Ducs (see Figure One,above) and overhead medicine-ballthrows, with special attention paid toworking the abdominal muscles andnot relying on only the arms for force.

IMPROVING PERFORMANCE

Athletes often feel they’re invincible,so they’re typically less concernedabout injury prevention than they areabout performance improvement. Ifthere’s a chance an exercise will helpthem win a point, they’ll give it every-thing they have.

One obvious area for physicalimprovement in volleyball has longbeen jumping ability. We address thisarea by having our athletes start withthe back squat and front squat, andonce they have developed a base levelof strength, we begin work on improv-ing explosiveness.

Much research and empirical evi-dence exists to support the relationshipbetween proficiency in the Olympic-style lifts and jumping ability, makingthem excellent tools to help improvevertical jump. As always, rememberwe are training athletic movements,not necessarily muscles. Therefore, itis the pulling movement of theOlympic-style lifts (see Figure Two, onpage 47) that correlate well to volley-ball movements.

I will often start our off-seasonprogram by having the athletes per-form only the pull portion of theOlympic lifts then progress to perform-ing the full lifts. During the season, if

Figure One: Physio-ball La Ducs helpbuild strength needed for powerful hits.



▼athletes have difficulty finishing fulllifts due to injury, I will also limit themto the pulling motions.

When coaching volleyball playerson the Olympic-style lifts, I will lookmore for speed of movement than howmuch weight is on the bar. I emphasizethe power snatch more than otherOlympic lifts and use it as a speed and

explosive-power exercise, not as anexercise where we will attempt to usemaximal weights.

Along with jumping ability, vol-leyball players need to be able to bendand lunge to a ball efficiently and withsplit-second quickness. To make greatplays in volleyball, the athlete needs tohave the ability to drop her hips, bendher knees, and get low to the ground.This requires flexibility as well asagility and quickness.

Many people overlook the role ofstrength in flexibility. Strength trainingcan increase both explosive power andflexibility. The key is to make sureexercises are performed through a full,safe range of motion. Lunges and sidelunges are excellent complementarystrength exercises that help improveflexibility when performed through thefull range of motion.

Once a good lateral strength baseis attained, the slideboard is an excel-

lent tool for developing additionalexplosiveness and power in the lateralmovement since it emphasizes lateralreactive strength. When using theslideboard for power development, weperform only 10- to 15-second bouts,attempting to get as many contactswith the ends of the board in thatamount of time. After athletes become

proficient at it, they should be able toexceed one contact per second.

Angle boards (See Figures Threeand Four, above) are another excellenttool for the development of lateralquickness. This plyometric exercise isperformed with the athlete standingthree to four feet away from an angleboard. The athlete begins by pushingoff the outside leg (the leg away fromthe board) and hops over to the angleboard. Both feet must be brought to theboard with only the inside foot (whichstarted nearer to the board) touching(Figure Three).

Upon landing on the angle board,the athlete immediately explodes offthe board (Figure Four) back out to thestart. The athlete then takes her timeand repositions for the next rep.

I use several variations of thisdrill. One is to have athletes see howfar they can propel themselves awayfrom the board. However, they should

be cautious not to sacrifice quicknessfor distance. Another favorite variationis to have players, after five repeti-tions, explode off the board, turn, andrun into a sprint.

Whenever you are attempting toincrease speed, agility, and quickness,remember to allow your athletes fullrecovery between repetitions. When

trying to build speed and agility, youare training not only the muscular sys-tem, but the entire neuromuscular sys-tem. For increases in speed and agili-ty to occur, most experts believe thatthe athlete must train at or near 100percent. A fatigued athlete cannotmove at or near these levels. So, startyour athletes slowly with low weightsand fewer repetitions and allow themto fully recover between reps.

CONDITIONING

Most volleyball coaches understandthat aerobic training can have a nega-tive effect on vertical jump and is notthe type of conditioning that winsmatches in the fifth game. The mostbeneficial way we have found toincrease conditioning for volleyball isthrough metabolic training, in whichwe integrate agility and jumpingmovements with short sprints. Unlikespeed and agility training, we want to

Figure Two: For volleyball players, thepulling movements are the most importantpart of Olympic lifts, such as the clean.

Figures Three & Four: To best develop lateral quickness, make sure athletes bring both legs over the angle board … before exploding back to the start position.

Promote Hydration -- “The 3 Pointer”

A common cause of early fatigue during exercise is dehydration. Each athlete should have his or her own individual sports bottle. Cool, flavored fluids, like sportsdrinks, encourage drinking and help athletes replenishfluid losses. Dehydration can be prevented by using theseguidelines from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association:

Pre-Court Fuel

Basketball players need guidance on what to eat before theytrain or compete. The pre-event meal is important because itkeeps the athletes from feeling hungry, helps the athleteprepare mentally for competition and provides fuel and fluids to the muscles. Each athlete needs to experiment to identify what foods feel best, both physiologically and psychologically. Here are a few tips to consider when planning a pre-event meal:

✓ Eat familiar foods. Never try a new food on a game day. Experiment with foods only on practice days.

✓ Athletes should try to eat 2 to 4 hours before the game to give their body enough time to digest the food. The closer the athlete eats to a game or practice, the smaller the meal should be.

✓ Consume high-carbohydrate foods. Good choicesinclude whole-grain bagels, breads, fruits and energybars, like the Gatorade Energy Bar. These foods tend tobe easily digested by most athletes.

✓ If an athlete tends to experience stomach problems, eating smaller, more frequent meals will help. Some athletes tolerate liquid meals, such as nutrition shakes,better than solid foods.

✓ For staying power, include some protein-containing foods with the high-carbohydrate foods at the pre-eventmeal. Examples include slices of turkey, chicken, lean beef, fish, yogurt, beef or turkey jerky or nuts.

Once the athlete has finished their pre-game meal, theyshould sip fluids during the period leading up to the gameto help ensure they begin play well hydrated.

Recovering From The Court

High-carbohydrate foods are essential for replenishing muscleenergy stores after practice or a game. Carbohydrate-richfoods along with some protein must be consumed within 30minutes after a practice or a game.

Along with fuel, fluids must also be replaced post-exercise.Ideally, athletes will weigh in and out pre- and post-exercise.Research suggests that 20 oz of fluids per 1 pound of weight lost due to sweat needs to be consumed to get theplayer back to baseline. Adopting these two simple post-exercise recovery strategies will help maximize the ability for the athlete to train and compete at his or her best.

www.gssiweb.comdddddclipboardTHE

Basketball: Better Nutrition = Better HoopsBy JULIE BURNS, M.S., R.D.Founder of SportFuel, Inc. and sports nutrition consultant for the Chicago Bears, Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Bulls andNorthwestern University athletes

Hydration Guidelines

Point 1: Pre-Court

✓ Drink 17 to 20 oz of fluid 2 to 3 hours prior to playing

✓ Drink another 7 to 10 oz fluid 10 to 20 minutes before playing

✓ Record baseline weight to assess fluid losses

Point 2: On the Court

✓ Drink at least 7 to 10 oz of fluid every 10 to 15 minutes

Point 3: Post-Court

✓ Record post-exercise weight to assess fluid losses

✓ Within 2 hours of finishing training or competition,drink at least 20 oz for every 1lb. of weight loss

Basketball is a highly intense sport that requires its players to have speed, agility and power throughout the game. The peak energy level needed for basketball can bemaximized with good hydration and nutrition pre- and post-court.



▼decrease our rest periods between rep-etitions and not allow full recovery.However, we must remember to bemindful of over-use injuries, especiallywith the jumping movements.

Below is one example of a meta-bolic conditioning workout we do onceour athletes have a good base. Athletesare divided into three groups of four,and we use a three-station circuit withathletes going directly from one stationto the next. The times and distances aredesigned to mimic the demands of vol-leyball. The stations include:

Hurdle Hops to Lateral Sprint:We place three sets of three six-inchhurdles five yards apart. Athletes sprintout to the first set of hurdles and beginhopping back and forth, mostly side-ways, but occasionally front to back,across the hurdle for four to six sec-onds. On command, the athletes thenturn and sprint to the next hurdle andthe next three athletes sprint to the first

set of hurdles. We do three reps total.Wave Drill: Three athletes sprint

about 15 feet to a line on the court infront of the coach. The coach thengives these three athletes directionalcommands by pointing. During thefirst two reps, the athletes shuffle to theright or left as the coach directs.During the third and fourth reps, theathletes turn and run a varied distanceto the right or left, but no more than afew steps. The coach can also givedirectional commands for a forwardsprint, a backpedal, and a verticaljump. Each repetition should last nolonger than six to eight seconds.

60-Yard Shuffle: The athletesform three lines. On command, thefirst three athletes sprint five yards tothe first line and back, then 10 yards tothe next line and back, and finally 15yards to the next line and back to thefinish. The command is then given tostart the next group.

This example provides a 3:1 rest-to-work ratio, but the exact number ofrepetitions per drill, rest periods (orgroup size), and number of sets canvary based on how the athletes are han-dling the session and how they adaptover several training sessions. The ratiocan also be tweaked to provide morework for athletes who are able to han-dle it or less for those who need morerecovery time.

One final word regarding strengthtraining for volleyball. A basic pro-gram for developing general strengthshould not be neglected for the sake ofsport-specific exercises. During theseason, it is important to emphasizegeneral strength over power or SAQtraining, since players typically trainthese aspects during their sport prac-tice. If you maintain strength, you willincrease performance, since strength isa function of power, endurance, speed,and agility. ◆

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Circle No. 27

PERFORMANCE POINTS brought to you byHAMMER STRENGTH

Strength Training For The Multi-Sport AthleteBy Mike Shinbski, M.S. CSCS, Assistant Football Coach/Head Strength Coach, Princeton High School, Cincinnati, Ohio


Deion Sanders, Bo Jackson, Charlie Ward, Quinn Buckner, Jim Thorpe,Michael Jordan: all great athletes. All multi-sport athletes. They are theexception rather than the rule for college and professional sports. But forthe high school coach having the multi-sport athlete on your team is therule rather than the exception. On most athletic teams 65-80% of highschool athletes play two or more sports during the high school calendaryear. Then on top of that throw in summer leagues, recreational leagues,and it becomes very common for the high school athlete to be going from afall sport, to a winter sport, to a spring sport.

Hopefully at your school, your entire athletic program works togetherand encourages every athlete to participate on as many athletic teams andextra curricular events as possible. Hopefully, you do not have to work withcoaches who try to keep “their” athletes involved only in their sport. Thehigh school athlete should not have to choose their “best” sport to competeon. That will be handled at the next level by college coaches where they willnaturally weed themselves out due to size, strength, speed and abilityrestraints.

Problems do arise for most multi-sport athletes when it comes to beinginvolved in a strength training program. Most coaches still do not do theirteams justice when it comes to their strength training programs. How dothey juggle the teams practice time, which is so precious and limited tobegin with, with film review, new plays, old plays, play review, special teamsituations, study table and drills? Usually one of the first areas to be thrownout is strength training. Or, the multi-sport athlete plays football and basket-ball hears from his football coach “...you need to lift weights and gain 10-15lbs. of muscle so you can play varsity next year”. Then he hears the basket-ball coach tell him “...you should not lift anything heavier than a basketballthis summer, anything heavier will throw your shoot off.”

What is the athlete to do? Naturally he wants to please and believeeach coach that he plays for. The following are some suggestions that mighthelp your athletes and athletic program reach it’s true potential:

1. Persuade your school to hire a strength coach. Someone who likes andwants to work with athletes in your school’s weight room, not just the foot-ball players. Someone who believes in what he is doing for your athletic pro-gram and athletes.

2. Convince your athletic department that your school should be usingjust one strength training program for the entire athletic department. Yourathletes will only have to learn one system or method of training, not two orthree.

3. Your strength training program should promote injury prevention—slow, steady increases in strength, improvement in deficient strength areas,and safety! Too many of your athletes will get hurt or injured during compe-tition—you do not want or need to get anyone hurt in the weight room.

4. Increase the training time availability of the weight room. Not onlyshould you establish set training times for teams to use the weight roomduring the season and off-season as well. The weight room can and shouldbe accessible during physical education classes, before school with earlybird workouts, and after practice.

5. In-season strength training should be a priority with your coaches.The majority of your injuries are going to occur during the season—not theoff-season. This is where you also lose games, so your athletes need to bestrong during the season. You also have complete control over your athletesat this time.

6. If you are training a multi-sport athlete who cannot get to the weightroom on a regular basis, teach them how to strength train with manualresistance strength training exercises. These can be done anywhere andanytime.

7. Most athletes will have some type of barbell set at home. With properinstruction, this could be another training site for your athletes when theycannot get to the school weight room. Cincinnati legendary high schoolfootball coach Gerry Faust started Moeller High School’s first weight roomin the basement of one of his assistant coaches. Make good use of what youhave available and build your program from there.

8. It is best to train three days per week rather than zero. It is best totrain two days per week rather than zero. It is still better to train one dayper week rather than zero. “Seven days without strength training makes

one weak.”

9. A leg press done for a football player will have the same training effectas one done for a basketball player. Remember that strength training exer-cises are a general application to sport.

Strength training exercises are just that—strength training exercises. It isup to the athlete and the coach to take that strength developed from doingthat exercise and develop it into a skill through the daily use of drills andpractice.

Basic StrengthTraining Exercise

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR A PURPOSE

A) Hip and Back

B) Leg Press Buttocks, quadricepsQuadricepsHamstringsDeltoidsDeltoids, tricepsLatissimus dorsiLatissimus dorsiPectorals, triceps

Pectorals

Biceps

C) Leg ExtensionD) Leg CurlE) Side Lateral RaiseF) Seated PressG) PulloverH) Lat PulldownI) Bench Press

J) Bent Arm Fly

K) Biceps Curl

Buttocks, lowerback, hamstrings

Running, hitting,throwing, jumping

Throwing, hitting

Throwing, hitting,pulling

Tackling, blocking,throwing

Running, hitting,throwing, jumping

Pulling

Football, baseball,basketball, track,

volleyball

Football, baseball,wrestling, boxingFootball, baseball,

swimming, wrestling,boxing

Swimming, wrestling,football

TricepsL) Triceps Extension Throwing, blocking Football, baseball,basketball, swim-ming, wrestling,track, volleyball

Forearm flexorsM) Wrist andForearm Curls

Grip, wrist control,passing, dribbling,throwing, shooting

Football, baseball,basketball, wrestling,volleyball, swimming

Neck flexors andextensors

N) 4-Way Neck Tackling, blocking

TrapeziusO) Shoulder Shrug Swimming, tackling,blocking

Protect againstinjuries in a variety

of sports

Primary MusclesDeveloped

Specific SkillsInvolved Sport

50 WAYS TO BUILD CHAMPIONS.Exhausting double sessions. Countless hours of game tape. Grueling workoutsin the gym. It takes drive and dedication to build your next team of champions. At Hammer Strength, we’re constantly reviewing our game plan so your athletes outsmart the competition. This continuous quest now exceeds 50 different plate-loaded choices. No other name has a line-up this deep. So buildyour team with the brand that builds more champions…Hammer Strength.

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BALL DYNAMICS INTERNATIONAL(800) 752-2255, www.balldynamics.com

Ball Dynamics' colorful weighted medi-cine balls allow for more ergonomicallycorrect strength training and toning than

old-fashioneddumbbells.The balls arewater-filled,but have thestability of agel-filled ball.Each

HeavyMed ball is color-coded for weight(1.1 lbs up to 11 lbs) and has an easy-griptexture. HeavyMeds are excellent forstrengthening, toning and sport-specifictraining, especially when used with theFitBALL® exercise ball.

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CASTLE STRENGTH & FITNESS(816) 517-2872,www.thepowerstep.com

Castle Strength & Fitness offers thePowerStep. Use the same platform that28 professional sports teams and 32 major

colleges are nowusing. ThePowerStep is rev-olutionizinglower leg train-ing, while provid-ing a base/plat-form for several

other exercises. Several coaches are nowrealizing the advantages of concentricmotion lifts (step-ups) as opposed toeccentric motion lifts (squats). The step-upis an in-season exercise that works thehips, thighs, and glutes without unduestress to joints and ligaments. Go to thecompany’s Web site for more informationor call for a free instructional video.


CORMAX(701) 845-3986, www.cormaxstrengthpowersystems.com

Increase your athlete’s power and mini-mize the risk of injury with the CormaxStrength Power Systems. Cormax systems

control the eccentricload to a safe level elim-inating the need forspotters. This system’sability to train theStretch-Shortening Cycle{SSC} allows your ath-letes to focus on rate ofForce Development—the key to converting

strength to power. To see the system inaction please visit the company's Web site.


Has the risk of injury stopped you fromperforming squat jumps, cleans, explosivepressing movements or overhead press?Cormax Strength Power Systems offers 4

machines that cantrain your athleteswith more intensityand more safetythan you thoughtpossible. The Cormax

Systems control the eccentric load to a safelevel of your choosing eliminating theneed for spotters. Please visit the compa-ny's Web site to see this system in action.


EFI SPORTS MEDICINE(800) 541-4900, www.efisportsmedicine.com

Total Gym 24000, from efi SportsMedicine, allows your clients to train, con-dition and rehabilitate in a functionalenvironment working against gravity, lift-

ing and moving a per-centage of their bodyweight. Total Gymexercises use multi-plane motions andrecruit stabilizers, sim-ulating the body’s nat-ural synergistic use ofmuscles during move-

ments. Its low-impact, non-compressivenature allows patients to experience suc-cess quickly and safely while stretchingand flexing to regain strength andenhance performance.


The MFT® Multi-Function Disc (medium)is exclusively distributed in the UnitedStates by efi Sports Medicine. This premierseven-in-one package consists of a disc(19.67”) with pivot bearing, ball, stand-ing/roller board (15.75”x 23.62”), two see-

saw boards andexercise posters.Because of its mod-ular structure, theMulti-Function Disccan be configured

for: spinning and heel-to-toe movements,a seesaw board, a balance board (fixed orrotating), a tilting seesaw board (withvariable widths for foot placement), stablerotation without seesaw, and multi-func-tion spinning. MFT’s Multi-Function Disc isideal for sport-specific and proprioceptivetraining and increasing overall stabilityand coordination.


EXERTOOLS(800) 235-1559, www.exertools.com

Exertools has introduced the COMBOFOLLER™ as the latest addition to the

foam roller family of products. TheCOMBO FOLLER is a unique delivery of a4" by 36" foam roller inside a 6" by 36"outer wrap, allowing a clinician or trainer

to offer twice the phys-iologic versatility andcapabilities. Instead ofbuying the two sepa-rate follers, a clinic cannow get both in onepackage for less than

the cost of the two. Simply slide the 4"FOLLER out of the sleeve when you needit and slide it back in when a 6" FOLLERwill do the trick. The COMBO FOLLER alsofits inside the multi colored Foller Coversavailable from Exertools. Spend less, savespace and increase training options withone simple device.


Exertools, the originator of medicine ballrebounding systems, is now shipping thenew and improved Plyoback™Rebounder. Time tested and clinically

proven, the new unitcomes with animproved doubleclamping unit withhardened bolts, andtightened angles,heavy duty multiplezigzag stitching on

doubled tramp material, and a hefty vinylspring cover that protects the ball anduser from errant throws. Recognized bymany as the most durable rebounder, thePLYOBACK has a single weld 14 gaugesteel base that holds the largest squaretramp surface available on the markettoday. The tramp can be adjusted fromparallel as a jogging tramp all the way upto a sixty-degree angle. The full-lengthstabilization bar allows for a quick heightadjustment and comes with steel pins foradded clamp support. The Plyoback isnow available for under $500.00.


FITTER(800) fitter-1, www.fitter1.com

For nearly two decades, Pro Fitter hashelped patients rebuild their confidenceto overcome physical and emotional barri-

ers associatedwith injury. Itis a dynamicmodality thatoffers thebenefits of a

complete “Integrated and FUNctional”rehab program for ankle, knee, hip, back& shoulder injuries. From a weight-bear-ing position, the SRF Board develops rota-tional stability in the ankles, knees, hips,



Strength Training & Cardiovascular Products

shoulder joints, spine and elbows. Call foryour free 24-page color catalog.


FUNCTIONAL DESIGN(866) 230-8300, www.functionaldesign.com

Functional Design offers 3D Walk/Jog byGary Gray. This functional training video is

an ideal program to facili-tate rehabilitation, pre-vent injury, and conditionthe athlete’s biomechani-cal technique for perfor-mance enhancement. Thecomprehensive programprovides a great proprio-ceptive warm-up regimen,balance training, and ben-

efits overall cardio-vascular health.Circle No. 59 on Reader Inquiry Card

THE GATORADE COMPANY(800) 88-GATOR, www.gatorade.com

Training for athletic competition requiresgiving it all you’ve got. Achieving yourpeak performance is easier if you’re prop-erly hydrated. Gatorade® ThirstQuencher, from The Gatorade Company,

has an optimal formulathat contains electrolytesand carbohydrates. It isbased on more than 30years of scientific researchand testing. Nothing rehy-drates, replenishes andrefuels better thanGatorade® Thirst

Quencher—not even water. The GatoradePerformance Series is a proven line ofsports nutrition products that gives ath-letes what they need to maximize theirathletic performance. The line includesthe Gatorade Energy Drink (grape,orange, and wild berry) and the GatoradeNutrition Shake (chocolate, vanilla, andstrawberry). Gatorade Energy Drink deliv-ers effective levels of carbohydrate fuelfor pre-competition or post-exercise. TheGatorade Nutrition Shake is designed toprovide balanced sports nutrition forrecovery, pre-competition meals, andtraining. The Gatorade Nutrition Shakewas recently reformulated to improve itstaste and give athletes what sports nutri-tionists and strength coaches tell usthey’re seeking: the right kinds of calorieswhen it counts most.


The Gatorade Company has introducedGatorade Ice, with a clear and light cleantaste that leaves your mouth quickly. It'savailable in strawberry, lime and orangeflavors. Gatorade is the most researchedsports drink on the planet, which might

explain why nothing rehy-drates, replenishes andrefuels better—not evenwater. It's scientifically for-mulated to have the righttaste, the right amount ofcarbs, and no carbonation.Only Gatorade has a com-plete laboratory and staffdevoted to testing andevaluating its products'

effectiveness on athletes.Circle No. 61 on Reader Inquiry Card

HAMMER STRENGTH(800) 634-8637, www.hammerstrength.com

Based on customer demand, HammerStrength recently introduced a new plate-loaded Linear Hack unit. The machine is amodern design of a traditional Hack

Squat and elimi-nates spinal com-pression by load-ing the resistancethrough the hips.The footboard,which is posi-

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tioned to remove unwanted forces in theknees, also is ideal for performing calfextensions.


THE HYGENIC CORPORATION/THERA-BAND

(800) 321-2135, www.Thera-Band.comEach of the two new Thera-Band® SoftWeights Racks holds a complete set of 6Soft Weights balls. The two-tier rack (6”W

x 18”L x 12”H)holds 3 balls oneach tier, whilethe one-tier rack(6”W x 31”L x5.25”H) stores 6balls side by side.

The Racks, made of heavy-duty PVC pipe,are designed to keep Soft Weights cleanand conveniently stored for ready use atfitness clubs, clinics and at home.


The Thera-Band® Sports Handle is a newand versatile attachment system for Thera-Band resistive bands and tubing. The 12-inch handle has three attachment points,allowing for a variety of force applications.It is ideal for patients who are rehabilitat-

ing handsand wrists,and for ath-letes in train-ing tostrengthen

and enhance their performance. The han-dle also comes with an exercise instructionmanual with 16 exercises covering handand wrist rehabilitation, fitness training,sports enhancement, and work simulation.


JUMP STRETCH, INC.(800) 344-3539, www.jumpstretch.com

Jump Stretch, Inc., offers six sizes ofheavy-duty continuous-loop rubberbands(Flex Bands®) for strength training, flexi-bility work, rehab, and even powerlifting.

By combin-ing thebands withthe compa-ny’s cus-tomized pipe

arrangements (for resisted walking/run-ning and weighted abdominal exercises)and patented tubular steel bases (forsquats and squat thrusts), Jump Stretch

can help you make the most of any avail-able space in your workout area.


KYTEC ATHLETIC SPEEDEQUIPMENT

(800) 732-4883, www.kytec.usKytec is the manufacturer and distributorof the ultimate multi-sport Power FitnessChute that was invented by Ky

Michaelson. It hasan innovative wayof adjusting theresistance by slidingthe patented cordlock up the shroudlines to change the

shape of the chute. The Power FitnessChute uses only four lines, compared toother chutes on the market that use eightlines that can easily become tangled.Another innovative addition to the PowerFitness Chute is the “parabolic cup”canopy. Most sports chutes rely on thewind to develop the shape of the chute.The “parabolic cup” design is sewn intothe chute and gives the chute instant lifeand stability. Because of its quick openingand stability characteristics, it is the ideal


Catalog ShowcasePOWER SYSTEMS, INC.

(800) 321-6975, www.power-systems.comSince 1986 Power Systems has been a leading supplier of sporttraining, health and fitness products. The company prides itselfin being the one resource for all of your training needs. Itsnew 2004 catalog has a new look with better graphics andphotos. Included areas are core strength, medicine balls, speed,plyometrics, agility, strength equipment, strength accessoriesand flooring. You will find the catalog full of hundreds of newproducts and dozens of products available exclusively fromPower Systems. The company has also lowered some prices toenable the customer to get premium products at great prices.

Go online or call Power Systems to request a free 2004 catalog today.Circle No. 102 on Reader Inquiry Card

Perform Better(800) 556-7464, www.performbetter.com

Now increased to 60 pages, the 2003 edition of thePerform Better catalog includes a wide array of high-quali-ty products for training, coordination, and rehab. Theitems selected focus on speed and agility, plyometric,strength, and weight training, as well as balance and sta-bilization application to both training and rehab of theindividual. The focus of the entire presentation is on func-tional training and rehab.


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chute for sprinters’ speed development.The Power Fitness Chute comes with aquick-release belt and instructions.


Innovative rust proof stainless steel orpainted Super Power Sled, from Kytec,pulls smooth and straight for high-speed

resistance sprint-ing. At the sametime you aredevelopingsprintingstrength, you canalso develop cor-

rect and powerful arm swing, a criticalcomponent of increased speed. Use theoptional quick-release harness so you canrelease the sled while sprinting, you willfeel like you were shot out of a cannon.


LIFE FITNESS(800) 634-8637, www.lifefitness.com

Life Fitness’ 9500XXL Lifecycle exercisebike is ideal for amateur athletes and ath-letic fitness facilities. The bike, which isthe first Lifecycle exercise bike designedfor taller athletes, accommodates athletes

ranging in height from 5feet 6 inches to 7 feettall, which is 7 inchesmore than the currentLifecycle upright exercisebikes. It is equipped with25 levels of resistance anda wide variety of pro-gramming options to

challenge even the fittest athletes.Circle No. 68 on Reader Inquiry Card

LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS(800) 638-3030, www.lww.com

Sports Supplements, by Jose Antonio,PhD, FACSM, CSCS and Jeffrey R. Stout,PhD, FSCMS, CSCS*D, from Lippincott

Williams & Wilkins, pro-vides an in-depth treat-ment on the dynamicfield of nutritionalergogenic aids. Thebook covers the entirespectrum of supple-ments and their effec-tiveness (or lack there-

of), including proper dosages and applica-tions to specific goals. The 14 chaptersinclude discussions of cellular hydration,

anti-catabolic agents, anti-oxidants, aminoacids, protein, and nutrients that affectthe immune system. September 2001/350pages/100 illustrations/ISBN: 0-7817-2241-1/$34.95.


ACSM’s Health-Related Physical FitnessAssessment Manual, the newest bookfrom the American College of Sports

Medicine (ACSM), is apractical guide forassessing individuals’physical fitness levelseffectively and efficient-ly and serves as anauthoritative referencefor theory and practice.Straightforward, how-

to writing style and organization guidereaders in the practice of performingassessments across five major health-relat-ed physical fitness components: cardiores-piratory fitness, body composition, muscu-lar strength, muscular endurance, andflexibility.



Stabilize Chronic ShoulderDislocators, Separators,

and SubluxatorsWith over a decade of experience in shoulder bracedesign the MAXTM Shoulder Brace by BraceInternational, Inc. is an evolution in shoulder girdlesupport. The snug-fitting, lightweight material(under 2 pounds) allows for comfort with movementwhile its strap design system allows for many optionsto help protect the glenohumeral joint.

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800-545-1161 Toll Free - www.braceint.comCircle No. 32

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MED-FIT SYSTEMS, INC(800) 831-7665,www.Medfitsystems.com

The Nautilus STEEL line is now availablefrom Med-Fit Systems, Inc. The STEEL linefeatures Kevlar belt drive, fully enclosed

weight stacks,light startingweights, magne-tized and tetheredselector pins,Nautilus cams andfour-bar linkagevariable resis-tance, with most

machines priced under $2,000. The newNautilus STEEL line offers a viable alterna-tive to other less featured, budget drivenbrands. With the STEEL line, Nautilus nowoffers three distinct lines of commercialweight equipment, one sure to meet theprice and performance criteria for anyfacility. A CD rom catalog, featuring all ofMed-Fit’s product offerings, is availablewith no obligation, or you may visit itsWeb site.


Med-Fit’s HUR line of air resistancemachines is ideal for rehabilitation andsports specific fitness application. The HUR

line features 30machines—all designedin conjunction withleading experts in therehabilitation and fit-ness arena. HUR hasbeen a leading fitnessmanufacturer in Europesince 1987. The HUR

mechanism is completely enclosed, offer-ing a level of safety and appearance notseen in prior machines. Two-tone uphol-stery with built in lumbar supports cradlesclients in the exercise position.Strategically placed easy access hand gripsallow easy ingress and egress into theexercise position. A CD ROM catalogue,featuring video presentation on the HURand other Med-Fit rehabilitation andsenior training stations is available free ofcharge.


NASM(800) 460-NASM, www.nasm.org

Fire up your clients withnew training techniquesthat will keep them com-ing back for more. “PowerTraining” (0.3 CEU’s) givesyou all the tools you needto bring excitement toyour programs. It enhancesyour clients’ workouts withincreased strength, tone,

and the ability to function more efficient-ly and also increases your program designpossibilities. The program provides opti-mum performance and transforms thehuman body into the “ultimate hi-techmachine”.


Stay on the forefront of training with“Core Stabilization” (0.3 CEUs) by NASM.Discover how to design and implement

hundreds of core-stabi-lization exercises forimproved health andperformance. You willlearn progressionsusing stability balls,tubing, cables, foamrolls, medicine balls,and more. Health andfitness professionals will

achieve a total understanding of the sci-ence behind integrated core stabilizationand come away with the skills necessaryto design, implement and progress pro-grams for clients of all levels.


NSCA CERTIFICATION COMMISSION

(888) 746-2378, www.nsca-cc.orgThe NSCA Certification Commission’s FreeWeight and Machine Exercise Techniquesvideo cassette is now available as a DVD.

Just like the VHSversion, this 82-minute DVD showsthe proper tech-nique for 38 com-mon weight train-ing exercises. Thenarration describes

the 10 machine and 28 free weight exer-cises. It also identifies the primary musclegroups involved, including the correct gripwidth, stance, body position, range ofmotion, and provides tips for correctingerrors and avoiding injury. ($40.95 forNSCA members). The DVD may also bepurchased as a set with the 68-page FreeWeight and Machine Exercise TechniquesManual. (The set is $59.95 for NSCA mem-bers.)


NSCA Certification Commission offersEssentials of Strength Training and

Conditioning, 2ndEdition. Writtenand edited by lead-ing exercise scienceprofessionals, thebook offers 664pages and 26 chap-ters of the mostcomprehensive

strength training and conditioning infor-mation available. It also includes 300 full-color photographs, which provide a clearillustration of proper flexibility, plyomet-ric, and resistance training exercise tech-niques.


OPTP (800) 367-7393, www.optp.com

The BOSU™ Balance Trainer has twofunctional surfaces. The burst resistantdome can be used for balance, core stabil-

ity, cardio, andproprioceptiontraining. It can beused platformside up for push-ups or seatedexercises. OPTPoffers the BOSUBalance Trainer

and a variety of BOSU training videos.These videos are geared toward thehealth care provider and offer an excel-lent source of training ideas for totalsports conditioning, strength and athleticconditioning, equilibrium, cardio fusion,reactive strength and power, and coresynergy.


The Thera-Band® Soft Weights, also fromOPTP, were developed as a soft, grip-freeweight system. The Soft Weights have a

uniform 4.5” diameterand range from .5 kgto 3.0 kg in weight. Sixlevels of progressiveweights are color-coded and support abroad range of patientskill levels. The soft, pli-able surface providesan easy hold and pro-

motes functional grip strength develop-ment. The small diameter works well forone hand or two hand activities. Use theSoft Weights singly or in pairs instead ofdumbbells for strengthening, balancetraining, mobilization, and functional gripstrength development. Use in conjunctionwith a rebounder for plyometrics. Eachweight includes a professional instructionmanual.


PERFORM BETTER(800) 556-7464,www.performbetter.com

New in the Perform Better2003 catalog, the OmniResistance Ball combinesstability ball training withband training. The balland the tubing can be



used separately or together. Theadjustable tubing easily connects to theball to create 20-120 lbs. progressive resis-tance allowing you to do shoulder andbench presses, resisted crunches, lunges,and more. Great for a functional multi-plane workout.


Perform Better offers its new Uni-Vestwith a stretchable neoprene strapping sys-tem that provides a tight, secure fit.Choose from two models-short, with 18

adjustable 1/2 lb.weights, or long,with 38 adjustable1/2 lb. weights.Please note that theshort model holdsup to 20 lbs., long

model holds up to 40 lbs. the flexible rub-ber weights contour to the body's shapeto provide comfort and safety.


POWERBAR(800) 58-POWER, www.powerbar.com

PowerBar® PowerGel is a high-energy,fast fuel concentrated carbohydrate gel

(80% complex, 20% sim-ple) that delivers immedi-ate energy during intenseathletic activity. So when-ever you need that extraedge to blow throughthe last mile, the last lap,the last push, you can besure that PowerBar®

PowerGel will deliver the healthy edgeyou need.


PowerBar® Performance, the number oneenergy bar, is a low-fat, highly nutritiousenergy bar specially formulated to deliver

long-lastingenergy. Since1986,PowerBar®

Performance has been dedicated to help-ing athletes and active people achievepeak performance and has become the“fuel of choice” for top athletes aroundthe world.


POWER LIFT(800) 872-1543, www.power-lift.com

Power Lift has successfully introduced a

new and uniquemethod of doingthe Glute/Hamexercise with itsRotating Glute-Ham Bench. Thismachine more

effectively works the hamstrings, gluteusmaximus, gastrocnemius, and erector sta-bilizers for pelvic stability, than the tradi-tional method. The large rotating padsgreatly reduce any discomfort on thethighs and allow for a complete stretchand contraction of the hamstrings. AnEasy Glide sliding mechanism very effort-lessly adjusts the footplate assembly hori-zontally, eliminating the difficulty of tube-in-tube adjustment. Lower kneepads sup-port the body to allow for proper posi-tioning of the footplate assembly with thebody in position for the exercise.


Power Lift has successfully engineered theComboPower Rack,a dual pur-pose liftingstation that


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FitBALL USA (Ball Dynamics) . . . . . . . . .42 . . . . . . . .63

FLA Orthopedics/Night Splint . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . . . 6

Functional Design Systems . . . . . . . .24 . . . . . . . .42

Game Ready . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 . . . . . . . .25

Gebauer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . .17

Hammer Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 . . . . . . . .51

Jump Stretch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 . . . . . . . .67

Kelly Kinetics (Pivot Plate/Ankle Isolator) .14 . . . . . . . .24

Kytec Athletic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 . . . . . . . .41

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins . . . . . .17 . . . . . . . .27

Med-Fit Systems (Nautilus) . . . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . .12

Mueller Sports Medicine . . . . . . . . . . 8 . . . . . . . .15

NASM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 . . . . . . . .43

NSCA Certification Commission . . . . .46 . . . . . IBC

Oakworks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 . . . . . . . .BC

OPTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 . . . . . . . .29

Perform Better . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 . . . . . . . .33

PowerBar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . IFC

PowerLung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 . . . . . . . .57

PowerStep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 . . . . . . . .63

PrePak Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 . . . . . . . .26

PRO Orthopedic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 . . . . . . . .61

PROTEAM by Hausmann . . . . . . . . .35 . . . . . . . .57

Samson Weight Equipment . . . . . . . .29 . . . . . . . .53

Scandinavian Consulting . . . . . . . . .32 . . . . . . . .55

Thera-Band/Hygenic Corporation . . .10 . . . . . . . .18

Total Gym/efi Sports Medicine . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . 9

TurfCordz/NZ Manufacturing . . . . . .38 . . . . . . . .59

VersaClimber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . . . . 7

Vertec (Sports Imports) . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 . . . . . . . .39

VertiMax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 . . . . . . . .58

Woodway USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 . . . . . . . .34

Xvest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 . . . . . . . .49

Circle No. 36

Patented Hip Trackers move laterally with theathlete to sustain a proper gravity vector and

preserve balance and form during lungesand other sports specific exercises.

IS THE ANSWER!Adding VertiMax to your arsenal will give you a whole new training dimension, expand yourclient base, and increase your revenue.

NO trainer–anywhere, at any price,will increase an athlete’s verticaljump and first-step-quicknesslike VertiMax. Rapid, largegains are guaranteed! Yourathletes will feel and seetheir improvementsimmediately!

VertiMax has beenfeatured in SportsIllustrated andseen onESPN,HBO, andFox SportsNetworks.

Engineering under the platform applies a nonvarying level of resistance through the complete

concentric and eccentric movements, opti-mizing the proprioceptive response.

Individually tailored resistancescan be set in seconds!

•

•

•

•

1-800-699-5867www.vertimax.com

•

DON’T WAIT FOR YOUR CLIENTS TO ASK FOR IT. HAVE IT!

IF YOU WANT TO SEE SOME REAL EXCITEMENT AND PRODUCE NEW PERSONAL BESTS FOR YOUR ATHLETES

COMPANY CIRCLE NO. PAGE NO.COMPANY CIRCLE NO. PAGE NO. COMPANY CIRCLE NO. PAGE NO.

3-Point Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 . . . . . . .64

Athletics Plus (Springco) . . . . . . . . . . . 93 . . . . . . . .60

Ball Dynamics International . . . . . . . 50 . . . . . . . .52

BioMedical Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105 . . . . . . . .63

Brace International . . . . . . . . . . . . .109 . . . . . . . .64

Cadlow Shoulder Stabilizer (DM Systems)113 . . . . . . . .64

Castle Strength & Fitness/PowerStep . 51 . . . . . . . .52

Cho-Pat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112 . . . . . . . .64

CorMax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 . . . . . . . .52

CorMax (4 machines) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 . . . . . . . .52

Creative Health Products . . . . . . . . .110 . . . . . . . .64

Exertools (COMBO FOLLER) . . . . . . . . . . 56 . . . . . . . .52

Exertools (Plyoback Rebounder) . . . . . . . 57 . . . . . . . .52

Ferno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106 . . . . . . . .63

Fitter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 . . . . . . . .52

FLA Orthopedics (Cub) . . . . . . . . . . . .107 . . . . . . . .63

FLA Orthopedics (Safe-T-Sport) . . . . . . .108 . . . . . . . .63

Functional Design (3D Walk/Jog) . . . . . 59 . . . . . . . .53

Functional Design (Basketball) . . . . . . .116 . . . . . . . .65

Gatorade (Gatorade Ice) . . . . . . . . . . . 61 . . . . . . . .53

Gatorade (Thirst Quencher) . . . . . . . . . . 60 . . . . . . . .53

Gebauer (Ethyl Chloride) . . . . . . . . . . .114 . . . . . . . .64

Gebauer (Instant Ice) . . . . . . . . . . . . .115 . . . . . . . .64

Hammer Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 . . . . . . . .53

Jump Stretch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 . . . . . . . .54

Kelly Kinetics (CryoThermal Massage Tool) .117 . . . . . . . .65

Kelly Kinetics (GlidePoint Ultra) . . . . . . .118 . . . . . . . .65

Kytec Athletic (Power Fitness Chute) . . . . 66 . . . . . . . .54

Kytec (Super Power Sled) . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 . . . . . . . .55

Life Fitness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 . . . . . . . .55

LW&W (ACSM Manual) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 . . . . . . . .55

LW&W (Sports Supplements) . . . . . . . . . . 69 . . . . . . . .55

Med-Fit Systems (HUR line) . . . . . . . . . 72 . . . . . . . .56

Med-Fit Systems (Nautilus STEEL line) . . . 71 . . . . . . . .56

NASM (Core Stabilization) . . . . . . . . . . . 74 . . . . . . . .56

NASM (Power Training) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 . . . . . . . .56

NSCA Certification Commission (book) . 76 . . . . . . . .56

NSCA Certification Commission (video) . 75 . . . . . . . .56

Oakworks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 . . . . . . . .65

OPTP (BOSU Balance Trainer) . . . . . . . . . 77 . . . . . . . .56

OPTP (Soft Weights) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 . . . . . . . .56

Perform Better (Omni Resistance Ball) . . . . 79 . . . . . . . .56

Perform Better (Uni-Vest) . . . . . . . . . . 80 . . . . . . . .57

Power Lift (Combo Power Rack) . . . . . . . 84 . . . . . . . .57

Power Lift (Glute-Ham Bench) . . . . . . . . 83 . . . . . . . .57

Power Systems (Squat/Lunge Bar) . . . . . 86 . . . . . . . .60

Power Systems (Super Deadlift Bar) . . . . 87 . . . . . . . .60

PowerBar (Performance) . . . . . . . . . . . 82 . . . . . . . .57

PowerBar (PowerGel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 . . . . . . . .57

PowerLung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 . . . . . . . .60

PrePak Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 . . . . . . . .60

Samson (Power Stand) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 . . . . . . . .60

Samson (Twist Lock Step-Up) . . . . . . . . . 90 . . . . . . . .60

Scandinavian Consulting . . . . . . . . . 91 . . . . . . . .60

Sports Imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 . . . . . . . .60

Thera-Band/Hygenic (Soft Weights Racks) . 63 . . . . . . . .54

Thera-Band/Hygenic (Sports Handle) . . . 64 . . . . . . . .54

Total Gym/efi Sports Medicine (24000) 54 . . . . . . . .52

Total Gym/efi Sports Medicine (MFT) . 55 . . . . . . . .52

VersaClimber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 . . . . . . . .61

VersaPulley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 . . . . . . . .61

VertiMax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 . . . . . . . .61

Woodway (Pro Lift 360) . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 . . . . . . . .62

Woodway (The Force) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 . . . . . . . .61

Xvest (Don Chu) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 . . . . . . . .62

Xvest (Fire Fighter model) . . . . . . . . . . .100 . . . . . . . .62

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

TurfCordz Safety Cord Gives You...• Explosive Starts! • Increased Power!• Quicker Footwork! • The Safety and

Reliability Professionals Demand!• Call 800-556-7464 or visit us online

at www.performbetter.comTurfCordz are distributed by M-F Athletic Company

© 2003 NZ MFG LLC, Tallmadge, Ohio

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Circle No. 38Circle No. 37


combines two lifting stations into onespace saving rack. Each Combo PowerRack, available in 8’ or 9’ heights, comeswith 2 pair safety spot bars, 2 pair patent-ed “Rhino Hook” bar catches, bar storage,weight storage, 2 dual grip chin up bars,and bumper plate storage. The inside por-tion of the rack will accommodate twopeople for spotting two bench press sta-tions at once. Also the Combo Power Rackcan be customized with Power Lift’spatented “Lever Action” Benchs andOlympic lifting platforms.


POWERLUNG(800) 903-3087, www.powerlung.com

At 80 percent VO2 max, and up, breath-ing requires 15 percent of the total O2used by the body. To reach maximum per-

formance, everyathlete must beable to rely ontheir breathingto be as condi-

tioned as the rest of the muscles in theirbody. PowerLung trains and strengthensall the muscles involved in breathing tohelp insure a peak performance. If you'renot breathing with PowerLung, you'reonly competing with half your power.


POWER SYSTEMS, INC.(800) 321-6975, www.power-systems.com

Power Systems’ new, versatile Squat andLunge Bar is ideal for squats, step-ups andlunges. Its unique cambered designinsures proper form. It has a heavily

padded shoulderharness with builtin hand grips forcomfort.Constructed of 7gauge tubularsteel with Olympicsize chrome platedbarrels. 700 pound

weight capacity. Overall bar length 81”;inside bar length 54”. The Squat andLunge Bar will fit most standard Olympicsquat racks.


The Super Deadlift Bar from PowerSystems puts your athlete in the optimal

power position tolift more weightwhile reducingstress on the lowerback. Great fordead lifts andshrugs. The newwider insidedimension mea-

sures 25” to accommodate larger athletes.A two-handle option accommodates ath-letes of all sizes, high grip for taller ath-letes and low grip for shorter athletes.Overall Bar dimensions: 66”L.


PREPAK PRODUCTS, INC.(800) 544-7257, dept. TC01,www.prepakproducts.com

Make training and conditioning sessionsmore productive with the Web-SlideExercise Rail System from PrePak

Products. Regular usersof low-cost, high useexercise devices such astubing, bands, and pul-leys benefit from thegreater organization,increased versatility, andstreamlined efficiency ofthis space saving exer-

cise station. The Web-Slide Exercise Railprovides 15 anchor points over a range ofseven feet for quick and easy attachmentof web-strap exercise devices. Or installthe 28-inch rail sections separately forindividual workstations. A free productoffer is included with the full-color cata-log.


SAMSON WEIGHT TRAININGEQUIPMENT

(800) 472-6766,www.SamsonEquipment.com

The Samson Power Stand combines thefeatures of conventional half racks at afraction of the price. This compact design

is complete withplate storage,bar holders,adjustable cupsand safetycatches. TheSamson PowerStand is ideal

for most straight bar exercises while tak-ing up a minimal amount of space.


Samson’s new Twist Lock Step-Up. Thisnew product has all the benefits of com-mon step up boxes with the convenience

of attaching toyour existingequipmentwithout the costof buying a sep-

arate piece of equipment. Designed toattach to all Samson Power Racks. TheTwist Lock Step-Up can also be custombuilt to fit any rack on the market.


SCANDINAVIAN CONSULTING, INC.(602) 442-2088, www.scipulleys.com

The Lojer Plyo Jumper provides all thebenefits of plyometric training withouttaking up a lot of space. Due to its height,

it is easy to trans-fer on and off.R.O.M, circulationand soft tissueendurance areobtained with thesled at 10degrees. As soft

tissues are oxygenated the Plyo Jumperchallenges them by allowing for increasedspeed of movement. Subsequently thePlyo Jumper continues to challenge thesoft tissues by increasing the force anglecreated by gravity or by attaching the sledto low inertia pulleys that dose in one-pound increments.


SPORTS IMPORTS(800) 556-3198, www.sportsimports.com

Virtually all professional and collegesports teams, including the NFL ScoutingCombine, use the VERTEC jump training

system, distributed bySports Imports. It is thebest way to evaluate andimprove jump reach andlower body explosivepower. The Vertec jumptraining system chal-lenges athletes toimprove their verticalleap through instanta-

neous feedback and recognition. Theprocess is simple, offering a true verticaltarget, visual motivation and an immedi-ate, accurate measure of success andgrowth. Wall mount version is now avail-able.


SPRINGCO ATHLETICS(800) 383-0305, www.springcoathletics.com

The Winged Water Walker, offered exclu-sively by Springco Athletics, is a necessarycomponent of any serious track and field

training program. Itbenefits throwers,sprinters, jumpers,and distance warriors.Coaches from acrossthe country havebegun using thisdevice with great suc-cess. Once you try a

pair, you will realize how much time youhave been “wasting” in the pool trainingwithout the Winged Water Walker. Youwill also realize that you can do many ofthe same drills and exercises you normally



perform on the field, but with greaterrange of motion and loading if desired.


VERSACLIMBER(800) 237-2271,www.versaclimber.com

VersaClimber SportsMed is a tri-levelrehab system that pro-vides non, partial and fullweight bearing rehabili-tation exercise in onemachine. Excellent forpost op, amputees, obesepatients, spinal cordinjuries, stroke patients,and the neurologicallyimpaired, plus it’s easyfor geriatric patients touse. Features include:adjustable seat, ROM lim-

iters, lower limb isolators, cross crawl pat-tern, heart rate control, and more.


VERSAPULLEY(800) 237-2271, versapulley.com

Ideal for diagonal/rotational training, theVersaPulley can perform up to 100 sportspecific routines at full speed, with full

range of motion of upto 10’ without the fearof flying weights orplates. More effectivethan bands, the VPuses patented 100%compliant resistance,providing critical explo-sive acceleration &

deceleration training, while keeping themuscles maximally loaded during theeccentric and concentric phases.


VERTIMAX(800) 699-5867, www.vertimax.com

The VertiMax low-load,velocity-specificplatform trainer, from Genetic Potential,is the unchallenged best device ever

designed toincrease lowerbody reactivepower. It providesunique kineticsand eliminates theshortcomings ofall previous plat-

form trainers. (1) An unlimited number ofresistances can be set in seconds. (2) The

athlete is fully loaded in the low squatposition. (3) The resistance level set doesnot vary through the complete concentricand eccentric movement. (4) During later-al movement the applied overload main-tains a true “center of the earth” gravityvector. Stand by for huge gains in verticaljump and first-step-quickness.


WOODWAY(800) 966-3929, www.woodway.com

Woodway has introduced a way to trainfor sports-specific speed and power. “TheForce” couples the low friction design ofthe Woodway treadmill with a variable

resistance brak-ing system (0-150 lbs), forprogrammable“sport load-ing”. Any ath-lete whoemphasizes

speed and power for optimal play willbenefit from the training. The Force isdestined to become a staple in the train-ing centers of both professional and ama-teur athletes and teams.



To order or request a

free catalog, call

888-378-7763

Visit our on-line catalog at:www.3pointproducts.com

onefingersplint

treats MalletFingers,

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FingerSplints

Oval-8 fingersplints are a

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Strength Training & Cardiovascular

Woodway has also introduced the Pro Lift360 to its line of quality Performance

Training products.Utilizing incrementalbody weight support(BWS) and the versa-tile and reliableWoodway Desmomodel treadmill, thisintegrated system pro-vides unweighting upto 360 lbs, with a full

360 degrees of rotation available to theuser. BWS, or unweighting, is a provenmodality for early rehabilitation by pro-viding pain-free exercise. Additionally,high intensity training can be accom-plished with less stress and impact on theathlete.


X VEST(800) 697-5658, www.THExVest.com

“I have found the X Vest to be an excel-lent tool for providing overloads in bothplyometric and strength training, condi-

tioning and rehabilita-tion programs. The fitand adaptability areexcellent. The X Vestallows for freedom ofmovement and doesn’tinterfere with any ofthe agility, bounding orrunning programs thatI write for a wide vari-

ety of athletes, both collegiate and pro-fessional. The X Vest has proven itself inmy programs! Thank you for all yourefforts and help in improving my capabili-ty as a strength & conditioning special-ist.”—Donald A. Chu Ph.D., PT, ATC, CSCSand author of Jumping into Plyometrics.


X Vest has a new weight configurationand it’s heavy—84 pounds of heavy. Thenew X Vest, known as the Fire Fighter

model, was devel-oped strictly for fire-fighters and their rig-orous training. It hasthe basic design asthe original X Vest,but internally it has anew weight configu-ration allowing for 84pounds. Because of itsability to adjust

weight like the original X Vest numerousindividuals from bodybuilders to the mili-tary are buying them.


The Functional Video Digest Seriesencompasses the most up-to-dateand proven information for functionalanalysis, injury prevention, physicalrehabilitation, training and condition-ing, and performance enhancement.

“Thank you for enhancing our pro-fessional abilities with the FunctionalVideo Digest Series. We not only haveviewed them in the clubhouse, butthe convenience of taking them onthe road with us has been a valuableeducational tool. They have enhancedour ability to evaluate and treat injurypatterns in many of our athletes in amuch more functional approach. Theinvestment we made in furthering ourlearning has paid off with our abilityto gain valuable CEU's as well as giv-ing us a portable resource library. Werecommend the Functional VideoDigest Series for anyone serious aboutincreasing their understanding offunction in order to effectively treatand prevent injuries as well as designprograms to properly train and condi-tion. Your clients/athletes will benefitgreatly from Gary's teachings.”

Barry Weinberg, Head Athletic Trainerand Mark O’Neal, Assistant

Trainer/Medical Coordinator, St. Louis Cardinals, LP

Functional DesignSystems, LLC

1042 Sutton Road, Suite 1 Adrian, MI 49221

Toll free 866.230.8300www.functionaldesign.com

CUSTOMERTESTIMONIAL

CUSTOMERTESTIMONIAL�

“Shin Splints have caused me pain for manyyears. The Shin Splints Compression Wrap,from Pro-Tec Athletics, is the only brace I haveever worn that really works. Thank you, Pro-Tec.”

Lisa Duke26-year old Ballerina and Runner

“I strongly recommend the Elbow PowerStrap and Knee Pro-Tec, by Pro-Tec Athletics,above any other similar products on the mar-ket.”

Gary SatoGold Medal U.S. Volleyball Team Trainer

“I have tried many knee supports in thepast, but never have I experienced the positiveresults that The Lift knee support provides. Ihave recommended it to my workout bud-dies.”

Mark Rennison 40-year old Basketball Weekend Warrior

“As an avid walker and tennis player, I washaving problems with Plantar Fasciitis. I amthrilled with the relief I have felt with the ArchPro-Tec and I want to thank you so much.”

Roz BerkWalker and Tennis Player

“I have tried many different styles of patellartendon straps available and not one comesclose to the comfort and effectiveness of theKnee Pro-Tec.”

Rachael Sporn, WNBAAustralian National Team Silver Medalist

“I have found the Achilles Tendon Strap tobe the most effective Achilles tendon strap Ihave ever worn.”

Clint RogersCollegiate Volleyball Player

Pro-Tec Athletics2743 152nd Ave., NE Redmond, WA 89052 800.779.3372

www.injurybegone.com

CUSTOMERTESTIMONIAL

CUSTOMERTESTIMONIAL�

Shin SplintsCompression

Wrap


ScoutingReport More Products

BIOMEDICAL LIFE SYSTEMS, INC. (800) 726-8367, www.bmls.com

BioMedical Life Systems has introduced itsnew generation in electrotherapy devices,the QuadStar® four channel NMS Muscle

Stimulator Device. Its com-pact size and user friendlyprogramming featuresmake the QuadStar’s®design unique among elec-trotherapy devices. The unitmeasures 6.75” by 2.75” by1.25” and has an easy toread LCD screen and a digi-tal keypad. Simple to

understand instructions guide the userthrough nine pre-programmed protocols;two types of waveforms; symmetrical orasymmetrical biphasic square, continuous,cycled or reciprocating stimulation,adjustable pulse rate and pulse width. Thedevice has a patient lock system that, whenactivated prevents the patient from chang-ing any of the set parameters. The devicefeatures a graphic representation of thetiming parameters directly on the screen.When the Patient Lock Systems is turnedoff, a patient compliance meter is dis-played showing how long the device was

used. A timer allows the patient to use thedevice for a specified period of time.


FERNO(888) 206-7802, www.fernoperformancepools.com

Transform a traditional swimming or lappool into an aquatic exercise environmentwith the Ferno AquaGaiter® UnderwaterTreadmill. Combining traditional treadmill

training with thenatural propertiesof water such asbuoyancy, resis-tance and heat,the AquaGaiter isperfect for a lowimpact workout.

The Ferno AquaGaiter features variablespeed adjustments that range from .5 to 8mph for any level of conditioning.


FLA ORTHOPEDICS, INC.(800) 327-4110, www.HealWellinfo.com

The patented Cub™, from FLAOrthopedics, comfortably positions thefoot in a controlled amount of dorsiflex-ion to gently stretch the plantar fascia,

Achilles Tendon,and calf muscles.Clinically proven toreduce symptoms ofplantar fasciitis. TheCub™ can also beused to treat otherlower extremity

conditions. Soft, lightweight materials forhalf the bulk and twice the comfort ofconventional night splint devices.


The Safe-T-Sport® Lateral Knee Stabilizerprovides excellent side-to-side support ofthe knee and is ideal for treatment of

Chondromalacia, painfrom lateral pressure syn-drome, patella instabilities,lateral patellofemoralmalalignment and lateralpatella dislocations.Features include: sportsneoprene, tubular “J” but-tress for lateral support,adjustable support straps,

flexible stays, tapered sleeve design, and alow profile, slip-on style.



Used for step-ups, box squats, plyometrics, stiff-leg dead lifts, and mili-tary presses Light enough to be moved easily, yet strong enough to support 2,000 pounds and plyometric jump-ing.

Upgrade your PowerStep with side rails for knee and hip rehabilitation exercises

www.thepowerstep.com (816) 517-2872

The PowerStep

A six level platform: 6”, 9”, 12”, 15”, 18”, 21”

$29900

Available packaged with pump and poster!

03-TC11

When the future of your business is balancing on a ball — make sure it’s a FitBALL®! The only burst-resistant exercise ball with dynamic

elasticity — firm yet always flexible. Perfect for all ages and ability levels. Available in a full range

of sizes and colors and backed byunconditional 30-day guarantee.

14215 Mead Street • Longmont, Colorado 80504

1-800-752-2255 or www.fitball.com

Quality MattersQuality Matters


ScoutingReport Arm & Shoulder

“I have always been drawn to qual-ity, and quality products which bringthe best out in people. Woodway hasset a standard for innovation anddurability in striving to create solu-tions which help practitioners andathletes attain their goals in a safeand effective way.

“The Force Project was no differ-ent. We wanted to create a solutionwhich evaluated, and developed anathlete’s ability to improve on fieldacceleration through absolute speed.This would only be accomplished bycreating a device which put the ath-lete in a situation to achieve successthrough kinesthetic learning byrewarding for the qualitative aspectsof improved recruitment patterns andforce application through proper bio-mechanics in Acceleration, Transition,and Absolute Speeds. The Forceallows this interactive feedback whichis incredibly effective, and motivating,drawing their best effort with eachrepetition.

“The Force is a very valuable tool,and I see it as the next evolution tothe treadmill.”

Mark VerstegenAthletes Performance

Woodway USAW229 N591 Foster Court

Waukesha, WI 53186 800.966.3929

www.woodway.com

CUSTOMERTESTIMONIAL

CUSTOMERTESTIMONIAL�BRACE INTERNATIONAL, INC.

(800) 545-1161, www.braceint.comBrace International offers the MAX™, amajor advancement in the design ofshoulder girdle support. The snug-fitting,

lightweight materialallows for comfortwith movement, yetat the same timehelps protect theglenohumeral jointfrom subluxationsand dislocations. Its

strap design system allows many optionsfor maximal stability where needed whilegiving the required range of motion.


CREATIVE HEALTH PRODUCTS(800) 742-4478, www.chponline.com

Creative Health Products, a leading dis-count supplier of rehabilitation, fitness,exercise and athletic testing and measuring

products, offers theHudson UBE, aportable, lightweighttabletop upper bodyand arm ergometerwith pulse monitor.The belt-driven electro-magnetic resistance

system has 8 different loading levels anduses precision sealed bearings, making theunit both quiet and smooth. Displays heartrate, speed, distance, time, odometer andestimated number of calories burned.


3-POINT PRODUCTS(888) 378-7763, www.3pointproducts.com

Reflex® Putty with Memoryflex® increasesresistance the more it’s pulled. Reflex®Putty can be pulled and stretched like exer-

cise bands but, unlikebands, it providesconsistent resistancethroughout the

range of stretch. Muscles receive resistancethroughout their contraction for a moreeffective strengthening regime. Available inthree resistance levels and in the new ProSeries for athletes and others requiring ahigher resistance level for rehabilitation.


CHO-PAT, INC.(800) 221-1601, www.cho-pat.com

Cho-Pat’s Forearm Support secures andsupports forearm muscles that are over-exercised or strained during athletic activ-

ities such as baseball ortennis, activities whereone repeatedly extendsthe arm and appliesforce. The strap applies

compression at the forearm to absorb

and dispense pain-causing forces, easingstress on the forearm muscles and theirattachments and reducing inflammation.


DM SYSTEMS(800) 254-5438, www.dmsystems.com

Cadlow™ Shoulder Stabilizer, the multi-sport, dynamic shoulder stabilizing brace, is

now available from DMSystems, producers of woundcare and orthopedic rehabproducts. Specifically forchronic subluxations and spo-radic dislocations of the shoul-der, Cadlow ShoulderStabilizer allows the athlete tofully function in his or her

sport without fear of shoulder pain or re-injury. It provides glenohumeral stabilitywhile maintaining the athlete’s full range ofmotion (ROM). This stabilizer’s uniquepatented pull system strengthens the shoul-der by providing graduated resistancethrough the full ROM. The variable resistancecan be increased as the athlete’s strengthincreases. Cadlow protects the athlete byhelping to prevent recurrent shoulder sublux-ations and dislocations without restrictingmotion/movement. It can also be used forpost-operative protection and strengthening.


THE GEBAUER COMPANY(800) 321-9348, www.gebauerco.com

Gebauer’s Ethyl Chloride® is now availablein two easy-to-carry spray candelivery systems: Pain-Ease®Stream Spray and Pain-Ease®Mist Spray. Athletic trainerscan choose the spray can thatworks best for them to relieveminor sports injuries such asbruising, contusions, swellingand minor sprains. It works asfast as ice without the mess—in seconds—so athletes can

get back in the game faster.Circle No. 114 on Reader Inquiry Card

Gebauer’s Instant Ice™ is a non-prescrip-tion, nonflammable topical skin refriger-

ant. Gebauer’s InstantIce comes in either mistor stream spray cans.Both are ideal for thetemporary relief ofminor pain and swellingfrom sprains, strains,bruising, contusions, andminor sports injuries.

Stream spray is also used for the tempo-rary relief of muscle spasms.



FUNCTIONAL DESIGN(866) 230-8300, www.functionaldesign.com

Functional Design offers Basketball–Lower Extremity Performance andPrevention with Gary Gray & Vern

Gambetta. This function-al Basketball Questvideo builds upon theLower ExtremityPerformance andPrevention video bydemonstrating howthree dimensional, func-tional biomechanicalprinciples of perfor-mance and prevention

can be integrated into a BASKETBALL set-ting. Beginning with an active warm-up,this video takes you through a progres-sion of various two-player, three-player,and five-player weaves that are tweakedin the three planes (3D) of motion, manywith the use of medicine ball.


KELLY KINETICS(888) 645-3559,www.kellykinetics.com

Kelly Kinetics offers the CryoThermalMassage Tool. Weighing 2-1/2 pounds,this soft grip, solid stainless steel toolallows the user to easily apply the appro-

priate

amount of pressure, while deliveringsoothing heat and/or the cool sensation ofcryo-therapy. Designed with two remov-able massage heads, the tool allows formultiple massage techniques while reduc-ing stress on the clinician's hands.


The GlidePoint Ultra, from Kelly Kinetics,features a removable2 1/8 inch solid stain-less steel ball, whichrolls effortlessly acrossthe skin, delivering asmooth, deep pene-trating hot or coldmassage to the soft

tissue site. The Ultra is quick, more effec-tive, and eliminates the mess of meltingice or wet hot packs.

Circle No. 118 Reader Inquiry Card

OAKWORKS(800) 558-8850,www.oakworks.com

The Portable Taping Table Carry Case,from Oakworks, is the perfect teammatewith the portable taping table. This heavy

duty ballistic nyloncarrying case, spe-cially designed to fitOakworks’ portabletaping table, fea-tures dual side zip-pers, a non-slipshoulder strap andincludes a conve-nient outside pocket

for field feet. Completely padded this casewill protect your table through many sea-sons both at home and on the road.


ScoutingReport More Products

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thleticBid.com is a freeservice to help buyers at schoolsand athletic organizationsresearch and contact companies

in the most efficient fashion.AthleticBid.com offers the follow-ing services.

Online Buyer’s GuideUsing AthleticBid.com’s on-

line Buyer’s Guide, youare able to:

• View the complete prod-uct line of companies.

• View catalog pages or specsheets from many of the top compa-nies. Click on the “View CompanyBrochures” button for these compa-nies, and you will find PDF files titledby product or category. Print themout for easy reference.

• Read a profile or description of selectcompanies by clicking on the “Aboutthe Company” button.

• Request to be contacted by a companyrepresentative.

• Request catalog and sales literaturefrom companies. Simplyclick on a button and fillin your address and ane-mail with your requestis sent directly to thesupplier.

Place an RFP• You can use this service to request

and receive information from numer-ous suppliers by providing your prod-uct specs only once and lettingAthleticBid.com do the rest.

Dealer Locator• Locate your nearest deal-

er for many leading man-ufacturers and suppliers.

The Market Place• Purchase inventory close-outs, discon-

tinued items and products on salefrom national suppliers. The productsfeatured in this section are being soldat significant savings.

The Product Connection• Products for your team or organiza-

tion are highlighted through bothdescriptions and photos. You canrequest sales literature onproducts you’re interestedin with just a click.

INTERNET?INTERNET?Looking for companies and products via the AtleticBid.com gives you the tools to research products

AJersey Field ProductsPark City, NJ 08832Phone: (800) 275-8000; (973) 222-3300 | Fax: (973) 222-3333Contact Name: John JamesEmail address: [email protected] Description: Your “One-Stop Source” for America’s Leading Sport Surfaces andSupplies! Special mixes for infields, pitcher’s mounds, home plate areas and warning tracks. Usedby over 100 pro teams and 5000 colleges, with 200 products from more than 20 distribution centersand bulk plants across the country. Call 1-800-275-8000 for more information.View Product Line

SPORTTAPES

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Assport

Part 1 of the interview with Rob Gar-cia emphasizes the training of profes-sional boxers. In an upcoming issue ofTraining & Conditioning, Garciaanswers questions related to othersports in addition to boxing, and theworld champion athletes he trains.

(Note: We recognize that athletes ofgreat accomplishment can be female ormale. For the sake of brevity only, in thefollowing interview we are referring tothe athlete as “he.”)

Q. How do you choose qualityequipment? There are so manychoices in equipment and trainingstrategies.

A. You need training gear that coversand improves coordination, balance,timing, rhythm and speed. Total Gymmeets these requirements. It is true thatprofessional athletes have all day totrain. However, to be considered aworld-class athlete – that takes you toan even higher level of expectation. Youmust train smarter than the competitionand use your time more wisely.

Q. You prepared Oscar de la Hoya forhis WBC Jr. Middleweight World titlefight with archrival Fernando Vargas.What were some of the key ingredi-ents in the training approach for thatgreat victory?

A. In events of this magnitude, there isonly so much preparation time. We usesports specific training such as theboxing drills that have become main-stream at many gyms around the coun-try. And there is no one better thanFloyd Mayweather Sr. when it comes toboxing. In the conditioning department,we use Total Gym for many of his upperbody strength, stamina and flexibilitytraining schemes. For those of you whodon’t have all day to train and wantversatile, multipurpose training gear,Total Gym is the way to go.

Q. Can you give an example?

A. de la Hoya is a natural who worksextremely hard at being a world-classathlete. Flexibility is an area where hescores at the low end of the intake.With Total Gym, we can train himthrough a full range of motion, address-ing flexibility and strength.

Q. What role does explosive powerplay in boxing? How do you trainfighters to be explosive?

A. Some say punching is something afighter is born with. That may be trueto a certain degree. You can supercharge your explosive power withActive Medicine Ball tosses, TornadoBall speed drills and wood chopping.

Q. What about quick reflexes,speed, and agility training?

A. Track workouts designed by RahnSheffield at SDSU are what I use topotentialize foot speed. Reflexes andagility are sharpened with sparring inthe ring.

Q. Tell us about intensity and focus.

A. Training with intensity means keep-ing your attention 100 percent on thetask at hand. Do not let yourself bedistracted when you are in the gym.Your focus should be drills that requireyour full concentration of speed, timingand balance.

Q. What about the future? Is thereanyone new you are working with?

A. Yes. About every ten years, a greatone comes along. I’m training a youngfighter named Francisco “Panchito”Bojado and I’m very pleased with hispotential. You can watch him this Novem-ber 22, 2003, televised on Showtime. Youcan bet he will be well-prepared andexciting to watch, so don’t miss it.

For information about Total Gym andthe full line of efi Sports Medicine prod-ucts, visit efisportsmedicine.com or callefi Sports Medicine: 800-541-4900.

More about Rob Garcia and his use ofefi Sports Medicine products will soonbe available at his Web site: innova-tivesportsgear.com.

Q A&COMPANYTraining for Peak Performance: An Interview with Rob Garcia, Part 1

As the training and conditioning coach who in recent years has brought some of theworld’s best-known athletes to peak performance in competition, Rob Garcia has aunique perspective. He has trained champions in varied sports, and the one constant hementions for all, including boxing legend Oscar de la Hoya, is Total Gym. Training &Conditioning recently asked Garcia to share his views on his choice of equipment.

efi Sports Medicine (800) 541-4900

7755 Arjons DriveSan Diego, CA 92126 www.efisportsmedicine.com

Rob Garcia, Oscar de la Hoya

Floyd Mayweather Sr., Francisco Bojado,Rob Garcia, Frank Acosta. Pechanga Casino, San Diego, California, 2003.


WebConnectionsWWW.BALLDYNAMICS.COMThe ball experts. Burst-resistant FitBALL® andGymnic® exercise balls. Comprehensive line ofexercise books, videos, and ball accessories.Balance, strength, and resistance training prod-ucts for fitness and sports rehab professionals.

WWW.CHO-PAT.COMCho-Pat’s effective, dependable, and durablesports-medical devices help alleviate leg, foot,arm, and back pain. Highly recommended byphysicians, trainers, therapists, and active indi-viduals.

WWW.CARLSURF.COMProviding the finest in shock and soundabsorbing surfacing made from recycled rub-ber, CSSI is the exclusive supplier of PlayGuardULTRA, Traditional PlayGuard, SoftPaveULTRA, Traditional SoftPave, and SoftRollresilient surfacing systems.

WWW.REGUPOL.COMDodge-Regupol’s EVERLAST® PerformanceFlooring is the highest quality, most durable,and consistent speckled rubber product in theindustry. It includes the most color choices inthe industry and the best warranty amongspeckled rubber products.

WWW.EFISPORTSMEDICINE.COMAfter more than a quarter century at the fore-front of innovation in athletic training, physicaltherapy and home fitness, efi Sports Medicine,originator of the commercial grade Total Gym

and developer of the GRAVITYSystem™, hasbecome the leading manufacturer of functionalrehabilitation and sports conditioning equip-ment.

WWW.JUMPSTRETCH.COMJump Stretch, Inc. features the complete lineof flex band exercise equipment, including sixsizes of heavy-duty, continuous-loop bandsthat provide 25-200 lbs. of resistance per band.

WWW.KYTEC.USKytec Athletic Speed Equipment offers over300 training and conditioning products that willincrease speed, strength, agility, quickness,and rehabilitation at factory-direct prices for allathletes.

WWW.MEDFITSYSTEMS.COMMed-Fit Systems, Inc., has been supplying thecapital equipment needs of the rehabilitationcommunity for the past 15 years. Med-Fit fea-tures a nearly 600-page Web site, and offers afree CD ROM catalog, including video demon-strations of many products.

NATIONAL MEDICAL ALLIANCEWWW.NMADIRECT.COMThe National Medical Alliance is a professionalcoalition of the best PT equipment and supplydealers in America. It consistently meets thehighest industry standards for the best quality,service, and pricing. NMA’s Web site featuresits catalog and highlights items such as theWall Crawler.

WWW.NSCA-CC.ORGLearn more about the Certified Strength andConditioning Specialist® (CSCS®) and NSCA-Certified Personal Trainer® (NSCA-CPT®) cre-dentials. As the ONLY nationally-accredited fit-ness related credentials, they are truly the“Credentials of Distinction” in the fitness indus-try.

WWW.POWER-SYSTEMS.COMPower Systems, Inc., is an international distribu-tor of sport performance, health and fitnessproducts. With over 800 products and instruc-tional programs, it is the one resource for allyour training needs. Its Web site features over75 new innovative products for 2004 anddozens of exclusive Power Systems products.

WWW.RICHMARWEB.COMThis site is full of detailed information on allRich-Mar’s ultrasound, stimulation, and combi-nation products complete with photos,descriptions, spec sheets, and contact informa-tion, including a dealer locator. You can alsodownload manuals, service information, andMSDS sheets.

WWW.WOODWAY.COMWoodway is happy to announce the launch ofits new Web site. Please visit the site and seewhat the company has added. You will be ableto custom build your own treadmill at“Woodway Café”, or get online and exchangetraining ideas and ask questions on the“Coaches Corner.”

What can you really DOwith giant rubber bands?!What can you really DO

with giant rubber bands?!Run Faster Jump Higher Play Lower

Reduce Injuries Add Resistance to Machine Lifts

Improve Endurance Increase Flexibility

The Best-Kept Secret in Pro SportsUsed by the Patriots, Cowboys, Yankees, Indians, Red Sox,

Mariners, Hornets, Heat and many more!

Flex Bands have been improving athletic performance since 1980.

Jump Stretch, Inc.1230 N. Meridian Rd. Youngstown, OH 44509www.jumpstretch.com 1-800-344-3539 Fax: 1-330-793-8719

Stay Ahead of Your Competitionwith Flex Bands!

Stay Ahead of Your Competitionwith Flex Bands!

The Best-Kept Secret in Pro Sports

Circle No. 45

Association CornerThe following associations offer services of interest to our T&C readers.

The Voice of the Doctors who care for the Pros

The PTP provides resources and services for allsports medicine professionals.

Visit www.proteamphysicians.com to find a PTP doctor, ask a question of a PTP doctor, orexplore the educational materials from PTP regarding

prevention, treatment and performance.

SPECIALIST IN SPORTS CONDITIONINGISSA Certification Program

• Be the conditioning coach for your team.• Expand strength & conditioning programs.• Maximize earning potential as a coach.• Learn to enhance athletic performance.

CALL FOR FREE INFO: 1.800.892.4772www.FitnessEducation.com

International Sports Sciences Association

Athletic Therapy. Rapid return to work and play.

Athletic Therapists are dedicated to the promotion and delivery of qualitycare through injury prevention and rehabilitation and emergency services.

In collaboration with other health care professionals, athletic therapistswork to create a healthier environment that encompasses the needs of the

active community, including the high-performance athlete.

For more information please visit us online at www.athletictherapy.org

Take Your Career to New Heights

P E R F O R M A N C E E N H A N C E M E N T

CONTINUING EDUCATION ● CERTIFICATION

• Earn CEUs for NASM, NATA, NSCA

• Live workshops, home-study and online courses

• Flexibility, core, balance, power, speed and strengthtraining

• Clinical applications

• Proven methods

ECA/MIAMI NOV. 14-16, 2003Sports Training & Fitness Conference

ECA/MIAMI NOV. 14-16, 2003Sports Training & Fitness Conference

Don’t miss ourSports TrainingMini-Camp!

Call: 800-322-3976 or516-432-6877 for a FREE brochure

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All NATA certified athletictrainers are eligible to receive a

free subscription to T&C.


Circle No. 46

800.558.8850www.oakworks.com

Because the game isn’t played in the locker room ...

... there’s OAKWORKS®.

PortableAdjustable

Treatment Tables

PortableAdjustable

Taping Tables

© 2002 OAKWORKS®, Inc.Circle No. 47

Documents

Training & Conditioning 13.8