Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Back Squat 3x5
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
20 Wall Ball @ 20/16 lbs
200m Run
Tabata: Double Unders
Better. Tennis. Faster. --- TennisWOD provides daily workouts designed specifically for tennis players. Workouts that will make you stronger, more explosive, and less prone to injury. If you want to take your game to the next level, trade some court time for some gym time and do TennisWOD!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Monday, June 27, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Is Your Nutrition in Line?
Rest Day
Take a look at these three sites and let them (not me) convince you to tighten up your diet if you haven't done so already:
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/
http://www.whole9life.com/
http://robbwolf.com/
Take a look at these three sites and let them (not me) convince you to tighten up your diet if you haven't done so already:
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/
http://www.whole9life.com/
http://robbwolf.com/
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Friday, June 24, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Clean Pulls 5x3
** Note: Goal of a clean pull is to practice full extension from calves to shoulder shrug, but with heavier weight than you can clean. Go heavy enough to where you are only able to pull the bar to the bottom of your rib cage. **
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
5 Power Clean @ 135/95 lbs
10 Box Jump @ 24/20"
15 Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
Tabata: Ring Pushups
Strength: Clean Pulls 5x3
** Note: Goal of a clean pull is to practice full extension from calves to shoulder shrug, but with heavier weight than you can clean. Go heavy enough to where you are only able to pull the bar to the bottom of your rib cage. **
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
5 Power Clean @ 135/95 lbs
10 Box Jump @ 24/20"
15 Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
Tabata: Ring Pushups
10 Most Unforgettable Wimbledon Matches
Tuesday: Rest Day
What's your favorite Wimbledon match? Do you prefer the 'new' grass or do you like the super fast grass of old? This website has a great list to get you remembering:
10 Most Unforgettable Wimbledon Matches
Any match they missed? I think two they could have added would have been Lindsay Davenport beating Steffi Graf in the 1999 final, and Pete Sampras being upset by Richard Krajicek in the Quarters.
What's your favorite Wimbledon match? Do you prefer the 'new' grass or do you like the super fast grass of old? This website has a great list to get you remembering:
10 Most Unforgettable Wimbledon Matches
Any match they missed? I think two they could have added would have been Lindsay Davenport beating Steffi Graf in the 1999 final, and Pete Sampras being upset by Richard Krajicek in the Quarters.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Friday, June 10, 2011
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
Why you should Change Your Diet
Rest Day
http://www.fitbomb.com/p/why-i-eat-paleo.html
Link worth reading. It's long, but says everything I would want to say only better.
http://www.fitbomb.com/p/why-i-eat-paleo.html
Link worth reading. It's long, but says everything I would want to say only better.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Friday, June 3, 2011
Thursday, June 2, 2011
How fit are your Hamstrings?
Rest Day
Chances are your hamstrings are weaker than your quads when they shouldn't be. Having quad-dominant legs will limit your athleticism and possibly make you more prone to injury if you hamstrings are not strong enough to provide proper counter-balance force for your knees.
Some simple exercises to start closing the gap are good-mornings, Romanian deadlifts, and if you're lucky, glute-ham raises via a GHD (Glute Ham Developer Machine).
Chances are your hamstrings are weaker than your quads when they shouldn't be. Having quad-dominant legs will limit your athleticism and possibly make you more prone to injury if you hamstrings are not strong enough to provide proper counter-balance force for your knees.
Some simple exercises to start closing the gap are good-mornings, Romanian deadlifts, and if you're lucky, glute-ham raises via a GHD (Glute Ham Developer Machine).
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Monday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Push Press 5-3-3-1-1
WOD: 10 minute AMRAP of:
20 Double Unders
5 Thrusters @ 95/65 lbs
Tabata: Pushups
Sunday: Rest Day
Saturday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Deadlift 5-3-3-1-1
WOD: 5 Rounds for Time of:
10 Box Jump @ 24/20"
10 Pullups
10 Push Press @ 115/85 lbs
Tabata: Air Squat
Friday, May 27, 2011
str: power clean 5x2 WOD: 4 rds - 25 Burpees, 50 DUs Tabata: Ring PUs
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Power Clean 5x2
WOD: 4 Rounds for time of:
25 Burpees
50 Double Unders
Tabata: Ring Pushups
Strength: Power Clean 5x2
WOD: 4 Rounds for time of:
25 Burpees
50 Double Unders
Tabata: Ring Pushups
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Monday, May 16, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Sorry everyone, blogspot has been acting weird, but it's back now so here are the workouts...
Wednesday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Clean and Jerk 5x1
WOD: 7 min AMRAP
5 Thruster @ 95/65 lbs
15 Double Under
Tabata: Deadlift @ 115/95 lbs
Thursday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Snatch 5x1
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
400m Run
40 Double Unders
4 Full Squat Cleans @ 135/105 lbs
Tabata: Pushups
Friday: Rest Day
Wednesday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Clean and Jerk 5x1
WOD: 7 min AMRAP
5 Thruster @ 95/65 lbs
15 Double Under
Tabata: Deadlift @ 115/95 lbs
Thursday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Snatch 5x1
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
400m Run
40 Double Unders
4 Full Squat Cleans @ 135/105 lbs
Tabata: Pushups
Friday: Rest Day
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Friday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Press 5x2
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
30 Box Jump 24/20"
15 Power Snatch 75/55 lbs
Tabata: Slam Ball 20/15 lbs
Saturday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Thruster 5x2
WOD: 5 Rounds for time of:
5 HSPU
5 Ring Dip
10 Deadlift 135/95 lbs
Tabata: Sumo DLHP 75/55 lbs
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Press 5x2
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
30 Box Jump 24/20"
15 Power Snatch 75/55 lbs
Tabata: Slam Ball 20/15 lbs
Saturday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Thruster 5x2
WOD: 5 Rounds for time of:
5 HSPU
5 Ring Dip
10 Deadlift 135/95 lbs
Tabata: Sumo DLHP 75/55 lbs
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Monday, May 2, 2011
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Keep Learning
Rest Day
Use this rest day to research something you've been meaning to learn more about. Do you want to learn more about how to properly perform the Olympic lifts? Have you researched diet supplementation and how it can benefit recovery time and muscle growth? Take 30 minutes to read up on something that someone else has spent a thousands of hours learning.
Use this rest day to research something you've been meaning to learn more about. Do you want to learn more about how to properly perform the Olympic lifts? Have you researched diet supplementation and how it can benefit recovery time and muscle growth? Take 30 minutes to read up on something that someone else has spent a thousands of hours learning.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
Will Nadal Win out Again?
Rest Day
The clay court season is upon us. Monte Carlo is first up and Nadal is looking to defend all 3 of his Masters' Series titles plus Roland Garros. We'll have to wait and see...
The clay court season is upon us. Monte Carlo is first up and Nadal is looking to defend all 3 of his Masters' Series titles plus Roland Garros. We'll have to wait and see...
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Saturday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Push Press 5x2
WOD: 10 min AMRAP of:
20 Pullup
20 Box Jump @ 24/20"
20 Pushup
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 75/55 lbs
Sunday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Front Squat 5x2
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
10 Power Clean @ 115/95 lbs
10 Push Press @ 115/95 lbs
2 Overhead Squats @ 115/95 lbs
(Note: Try to complete the entire round without dropping the bar)
Tabata: Kettlebell Swing @ 24/16 kg
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Push Press 5x2
WOD: 10 min AMRAP of:
20 Pullup
20 Box Jump @ 24/20"
20 Pushup
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 75/55 lbs
Sunday:
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Front Squat 5x2
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
10 Power Clean @ 115/95 lbs
10 Push Press @ 115/95 lbs
2 Overhead Squats @ 115/95 lbs
(Note: Try to complete the entire round without dropping the bar)
Tabata: Kettlebell Swing @ 24/16 kg
Friday, April 8, 2011
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Federer 2011 = Sampras 2000?
Rest
Anyone else get that unfortunate feeling that Roger Federer has finally hit the point of no return? That time when he will try hard, but never get back to number 1? I think it may have happened. Similar to Pete Sampras in 2000 I think Federer will win Wimbledon this year (for the last time?), and maybe 1 or 2 more big tournaments and finish at #3 for the year (just like Sampras).
Anyone else get that unfortunate feeling that Roger Federer has finally hit the point of no return? That time when he will try hard, but never get back to number 1? I think it may have happened. Similar to Pete Sampras in 2000 I think Federer will win Wimbledon this year (for the last time?), and maybe 1 or 2 more big tournaments and finish at #3 for the year (just like Sampras).
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Sorry everyone, got sick and forgot to post yesterday. Here is the Double WOD:
Friday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Push Press 7x1
WOD: 8 Min AMRAP of:
10 Pushup
10 Box Jump @ 24/20"
10 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 95/75 lbs
Tabata: Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
Saturday:
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Push Jerk 7x1
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
10 Deadlift @ 275/225 lbs
10 Handstand Pushups
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 75/55 lbs
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Mardy Fish - Successful because of Diet
Workout: Rest Day
Mardy Fish has just become the #1 American tennis player. At 29 years old he has had an 'Agassi-like' renaissance late in his career. One of the primary reasons for this has been his food discipline. If you research this a little more you'll find that a little more than a year ago Mardy weighed around 190-195lbs. He consulted with a dietitian and dialed everything in. Within a few months he was down to almost 170lbs and had one of the best years of his career during 2010.
Well, it looks like he hasn't slowed down, reaching the semi-finals in Miami. Take a cue from Mardy and tighten up your own diet, and you may be surprised how much of a difference it makes.
Mardy Fish has just become the #1 American tennis player. At 29 years old he has had an 'Agassi-like' renaissance late in his career. One of the primary reasons for this has been his food discipline. If you research this a little more you'll find that a little more than a year ago Mardy weighed around 190-195lbs. He consulted with a dietitian and dialed everything in. Within a few months he was down to almost 170lbs and had one of the best years of his career during 2010.
Well, it looks like he hasn't slowed down, reaching the semi-finals in Miami. Take a cue from Mardy and tighten up your own diet, and you may be surprised how much of a difference it makes.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
Andy Roddick's Body Breaking Down?
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Front Squat 7x1
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
10 Ring Dip
25 Air Squat
Tabata: Pullup
I went and checked Andy Roddick's official website today to see if there was a specific reason he lost his opening match in Miami this past week. No details were given, only that he requested a trainer several times during the second set. Roddick isn't as young as he used to be and his training regimen may be letting him down. It would take a little time to research, but in the past Andy has said that he stays away from "strength training" because of the weight gain potential. Unfortunately, if he continues to neglect strength training he may face an increasing uphill battle attempting to stay healthy.
Strength: Front Squat 7x1
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
10 Ring Dip
25 Air Squat
Tabata: Pullup
I went and checked Andy Roddick's official website today to see if there was a specific reason he lost his opening match in Miami this past week. No details were given, only that he requested a trainer several times during the second set. Roddick isn't as young as he used to be and his training regimen may be letting him down. It would take a little time to research, but in the past Andy has said that he stays away from "strength training" because of the weight gain potential. Unfortunately, if he continues to neglect strength training he may face an increasing uphill battle attempting to stay healthy.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Predictions for the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami
Warmup: 5min Jump Rope
Strength: Front Squat 5x5
WOD: 5 Rounds for Time of:
4 Clean & Jerks (w/ Full Squat) @ 135/105 lbs
12 Box Jumps @ 24/20"
Tabata: Handstand Pushups
Djokovic has really come out of the gates this year. But did you notice the tape on his knee during the final? If his lower body were stronger and his glutes, hamstrings, and quads were more developed he might not have the possible knee issue. We'll see how long his body will hold up, he may have a great 2011, but hit a wall early in 2012. Are your knees bothering you? Make sure you are going through a full range of motion on your squats in order to activate both sides of your leg.
Strength: Front Squat 5x5
WOD: 5 Rounds for Time of:
4 Clean & Jerks (w/ Full Squat) @ 135/105 lbs
12 Box Jumps @ 24/20"
Tabata: Handstand Pushups
Djokovic has really come out of the gates this year. But did you notice the tape on his knee during the final? If his lower body were stronger and his glutes, hamstrings, and quads were more developed he might not have the possible knee issue. We'll see how long his body will hold up, he may have a great 2011, but hit a wall early in 2012. Are your knees bothering you? Make sure you are going through a full range of motion on your squats in order to activate both sides of your leg.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Clarifying Yesterday
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Power Clean 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 7 minutes of:
3 Power Snatch @ 95/75 lbs
5 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 95/75 lbs
7 Deadlift @ 95/75 lbs
Tabata: Pushup
I didn't mean for yesterday's post to come off as arrogant as it may have sounded. However, the only reasonably functional exercise mentioned in the article were 'squats while holding dumbells at your side'. The others included things like lying on a big ab ball and pulling a dumbell over your head to your chest, holding a dumbell overhead while lifting one foot off the ground, and jumping around a hexagon to each point and back to center.
Do that as opposed to nothing will marginally improve your game, but investing the same amount of time doing TennisWOD instead would exponentially increase your results. You don't need to jump around in a hexagon in an effort to improve your agility. You don't really even need to waste time with specific on court agility movements. What you need to do is get strong. Stronger muscles produce more force, faster. Therefore if you increase your strength you will increase your speed on court. You will also protect against injuries because there will literally be more muscular structure around vital joints, ligaments, and tendons.
Strength: Power Clean 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 7 minutes of:
3 Power Snatch @ 95/75 lbs
5 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 95/75 lbs
7 Deadlift @ 95/75 lbs
Tabata: Pushup
I didn't mean for yesterday's post to come off as arrogant as it may have sounded. However, the only reasonably functional exercise mentioned in the article were 'squats while holding dumbells at your side'. The others included things like lying on a big ab ball and pulling a dumbell over your head to your chest, holding a dumbell overhead while lifting one foot off the ground, and jumping around a hexagon to each point and back to center.
Do that as opposed to nothing will marginally improve your game, but investing the same amount of time doing TennisWOD instead would exponentially increase your results. You don't need to jump around in a hexagon in an effort to improve your agility. You don't really even need to waste time with specific on court agility movements. What you need to do is get strong. Stronger muscles produce more force, faster. Therefore if you increase your strength you will increase your speed on court. You will also protect against injuries because there will literally be more muscular structure around vital joints, ligaments, and tendons.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Tennis Magazine "Fitness" Issue
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Back Squat 5x3
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
15 Wall Ball 20/14 lbs
10 Thruster @ 95/75lbs
5 Handstand Push Ups
Tabata: Box Jump
If you haven't seen the new issue of Tennis Magazine (April 2011) you ought to pick it up. It's "The Fitness Issue". Look, I like the magazine, I've had a subscription for probably close to 10 years now. All I'm saying is, pick up the issue and turn to the feature article. Then ask yourself if doing what they suggest will give you better on court results than what I'm posting.
Strength: Back Squat 5x3
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
15 Wall Ball 20/14 lbs
10 Thruster @ 95/75lbs
5 Handstand Push Ups
Tabata: Box Jump
If you haven't seen the new issue of Tennis Magazine (April 2011) you ought to pick it up. It's "The Fitness Issue". Look, I like the magazine, I've had a subscription for probably close to 10 years now. All I'm saying is, pick up the issue and turn to the feature article. Then ask yourself if doing what they suggest will give you better on court results than what I'm posting.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Monday, March 14, 2011
Has Anyone Given TennisWOD a shot? Let me Know!
Rest Day
Thanks to everyone that has seen my post on the CrossFit main site message board. Extra thanks to those that questioned the methodology. I'm still confident that TennisWOD has the capability of producing better fitness, with less injury, than traditional tennis conditioning. But I'll never know unless I hear some testimonials from people describing the good (and the bad) of their experience with the program.
Thanks to everyone that has seen my post on the CrossFit main site message board. Extra thanks to those that questioned the methodology. I'm still confident that TennisWOD has the capability of producing better fitness, with less injury, than traditional tennis conditioning. But I'll never know unless I hear some testimonials from people describing the good (and the bad) of their experience with the program.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Post Workout (PWO) Experimentation
Warmup: 5min Jump Rope
Strength: Power Snatch 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 7min of:
10 Wall Ball
10 Situp
3 Hang Power Snatch @ 75/55 lbs
Tabata: Air Squat
Don't be afraid to experiment on yourself with your PWO. You'll never really learn anything if you don't try right? I started my foray into PWO with whole milk. It felt a lot better than nothing at all, and I stuck with it for about 2 months. Two weeks ago I cut all (or almost all) dairy from my diet just to see what would happen. I replaced my whole milk PWO with a 1 scoop shake of Optimum Nutrition 2:1:1 Recovery. In 8 days I went from 185lbs to 180lbs, I feel leaner, and I feel like I'm recovering a little better. Tomorrow I'm going to start adding in 5g of creatine monohydrate. Will I turn in to the hulk? Will a throw up 1 hour later? Will I put on 20 pounds of water weight? I don't know, but I'm going to give it a shot after the reading this article from the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
http://www.jissn.com/content/4/1/6
Strength: Power Snatch 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 7min of:
10 Wall Ball
10 Situp
3 Hang Power Snatch @ 75/55 lbs
Tabata: Air Squat
Don't be afraid to experiment on yourself with your PWO. You'll never really learn anything if you don't try right? I started my foray into PWO with whole milk. It felt a lot better than nothing at all, and I stuck with it for about 2 months. Two weeks ago I cut all (or almost all) dairy from my diet just to see what would happen. I replaced my whole milk PWO with a 1 scoop shake of Optimum Nutrition 2:1:1 Recovery. In 8 days I went from 185lbs to 180lbs, I feel leaner, and I feel like I'm recovering a little better. Tomorrow I'm going to start adding in 5g of creatine monohydrate. Will I turn in to the hulk? Will a throw up 1 hour later? Will I put on 20 pounds of water weight? I don't know, but I'm going to give it a shot after the reading this article from the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
http://www.jissn.com/content/4/1/6
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Everyone Makes Mistakes
Warmup: 5min Jump Rope
Strength: Overhead Squat 5x5
WOD: 5 Rounds for Time of:
20 Pushups
10 Pullups
Tabata: Air Squats
I apologize for not posting yesterday (at least it was a rest day!). Everyone makes mistakes, it's not learning from them that's the problem. Training sub-adequately is something that you can choose to change right now. If you're serious about your goals and aspirations you need to look at your fitness and strength program and decide if you need to improve it.
Strength: Overhead Squat 5x5
WOD: 5 Rounds for Time of:
20 Pushups
10 Pullups
Tabata: Air Squats
I apologize for not posting yesterday (at least it was a rest day!). Everyone makes mistakes, it's not learning from them that's the problem. Training sub-adequately is something that you can choose to change right now. If you're serious about your goals and aspirations you need to look at your fitness and strength program and decide if you need to improve it.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Improvement - You Can Always Find it Somewhere
Warmup: Jump Rope 5min
Strength: 5x3 Deadlift
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
5 Overhead Squats @ 115/95 lbs
10 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 115/95 lbs
Tabata: Ring Dips
Scaling can go both ways. If the workouts are starting to get too easy do this one at 135 instead of 115. But the point is you can always find ways to improve. If you can't do ring dips then do regular dips, or pushups. If you don't know what to do then research it. You can also see if you can do the rep schemes unbroken. If you need ideas or suggestions don't be afraid to email or comment.
Strength: 5x3 Deadlift
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
5 Overhead Squats @ 115/95 lbs
10 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 115/95 lbs
Tabata: Ring Dips
Scaling can go both ways. If the workouts are starting to get too easy do this one at 135 instead of 115. But the point is you can always find ways to improve. If you can't do ring dips then do regular dips, or pushups. If you don't know what to do then research it. You can also see if you can do the rep schemes unbroken. If you need ideas or suggestions don't be afraid to email or comment.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Post 36 - Can't Be Original Every Day...
Warmup: Jump Rope 5min
Strength: Power Clean 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 8min of:
2 Power Snatch
4 Push Press
6 Back Squat
All at 95/65 lbs
Tabata: Box Jump
Strength: Power Clean 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 8min of:
2 Power Snatch
4 Push Press
6 Back Squat
All at 95/65 lbs
Tabata: Box Jump
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Sleep - Envy Those Who Get It
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x5 Press
WOD: For Time:
50 Pullups
50 Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
50 Situps (Ab-mat)
50 Air Squats
Tabata: Kettlebell Swings @ 24/16 kg
If you want to get strong you need to sleep. You can have the best, tightest, strictest diet in the whole world, workout 6 days a week, take your post workout nutrition seriously, but if you're not sleeping you might as well go back to eating bread. Your body rebuilds, recovers, and re-invents itself while you sleep. If you don't give your body enough time to do this, then you're short changing yourself. If you know you're not getting enough sleep (and you know who you are) try and get more. If it's an impossibility can you take naps during the weekend? Can you nap for 30 minutes of your 1 hour lunch break? If you're serious about your training (college people I'll speak to you now) don't go crazy every night of the week. If you want to win tennis matches you need 8+ hours of sleep a night. Then when you have a two year old who keeps you up from midnight to 3am you'll appreciate your younger days.... Sleep!
Strength: 5x5 Press
WOD: For Time:
50 Pullups
50 Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
50 Situps (Ab-mat)
50 Air Squats
Tabata: Kettlebell Swings @ 24/16 kg
If you want to get strong you need to sleep. You can have the best, tightest, strictest diet in the whole world, workout 6 days a week, take your post workout nutrition seriously, but if you're not sleeping you might as well go back to eating bread. Your body rebuilds, recovers, and re-invents itself while you sleep. If you don't give your body enough time to do this, then you're short changing yourself. If you know you're not getting enough sleep (and you know who you are) try and get more. If it's an impossibility can you take naps during the weekend? Can you nap for 30 minutes of your 1 hour lunch break? If you're serious about your training (college people I'll speak to you now) don't go crazy every night of the week. If you want to win tennis matches you need 8+ hours of sleep a night. Then when you have a two year old who keeps you up from midnight to 3am you'll appreciate your younger days.... Sleep!
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Watch the Best - Learn from the Best
Rest Day
If you haven't youtube'd some videos of these workout movements you should. Especially for things like Olympic lifts. It's amazing how coordinated and talented professional lifters are. And just like watching Pete Sampras or Roger Federer to learn how to serve or hit a forehand, watch some of the best Olympic lifters in the world and your brain can't help but pick up some of the subtle physical cues to help you out the next time you try and power clean your bodyweight.
If you haven't youtube'd some videos of these workout movements you should. Especially for things like Olympic lifts. It's amazing how coordinated and talented professional lifters are. And just like watching Pete Sampras or Roger Federer to learn how to serve or hit a forehand, watch some of the best Olympic lifters in the world and your brain can't help but pick up some of the subtle physical cues to help you out the next time you try and power clean your bodyweight.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Sore versus Injured
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x5 Back Squat
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
12 Thruster @ 115/95 lbs
12 Box Jump @ 24/20"
Tabata: Knees to Elbow
There's a difference between being sore and being injured. If you've been following the workouts and after a deadlift strength workout your lower back feels like it's on fire that is soreness. Soreness is not something to ignore. Take a day off, do some mobility work and come back the next day ready to go. If you feel any intense sharp pain during a workout, stop immediately and go see a doctor. Injury can be prevented by scaling. Be humble enough to perform the workouts at a level that will allow you to make progress and you'll be doing them as prescribed much faster than you realize.
Strength: 5x5 Back Squat
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
12 Thruster @ 115/95 lbs
12 Box Jump @ 24/20"
Tabata: Knees to Elbow
There's a difference between being sore and being injured. If you've been following the workouts and after a deadlift strength workout your lower back feels like it's on fire that is soreness. Soreness is not something to ignore. Take a day off, do some mobility work and come back the next day ready to go. If you feel any intense sharp pain during a workout, stop immediately and go see a doctor. Injury can be prevented by scaling. Be humble enough to perform the workouts at a level that will allow you to make progress and you'll be doing them as prescribed much faster than you realize.
Monday, February 28, 2011
It's Your Choice - Eat What You Want
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Push Jerk 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 7 Minutes of:
15 Double Unders
10 Wall Ball
5 Deadlift @ 155/135 lbs
Tabata: Power Snatch @ 65/45 lbs
Your diet is a powerful thing. Changing it can be one of the hardest decisions you follow through on in your entire life. Melo-drama aside, the food you eat affects every part of your life - mood, memory, physical performance. If you want to feel better stop making excuses and put some broccoli in your mouth.
Strength: Push Jerk 5x3
WOD: AMRAP in 7 Minutes of:
15 Double Unders
10 Wall Ball
5 Deadlift @ 155/135 lbs
Tabata: Power Snatch @ 65/45 lbs
Your diet is a powerful thing. Changing it can be one of the hardest decisions you follow through on in your entire life. Melo-drama aside, the food you eat affects every part of your life - mood, memory, physical performance. If you want to feel better stop making excuses and put some broccoli in your mouth.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Don't Under-Estimate the WOD
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Weighted Pullups 7x1 (1-1-1-1-1-1-1)
WOD: 5 rounds for time of:
20 Pushups
20 Kettlebell Swings @ 24/16 kg
Tabata: Thruster @ 65/45 lbs
Most of the time if a WOD looks easy you're probably underestimating it. That's the funny thing about these workouts, you may look at them and say, "Hey, that's only two movements; all I have to do is do that five times?" Well, if they're programmed the right way you should be eating your words about round 3. But if you're not let me know! You're either really fit, or I really do need to fine tune my programming. Feedback is always appreciated.
Strength: Weighted Pullups 7x1 (1-1-1-1-1-1-1)
WOD: 5 rounds for time of:
20 Pushups
20 Kettlebell Swings @ 24/16 kg
Tabata: Thruster @ 65/45 lbs
Most of the time if a WOD looks easy you're probably underestimating it. That's the funny thing about these workouts, you may look at them and say, "Hey, that's only two movements; all I have to do is do that five times?" Well, if they're programmed the right way you should be eating your words about round 3. But if you're not let me know! You're either really fit, or I really do need to fine tune my programming. Feedback is always appreciated.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Active Rest Days
Rest Day
This may sound repetitive, but instead of doing absolutely nothing on your rest days, you should at least take the time to stretch out really well. Dig into your problem areas. Tight hamstrings? Sore IT band? Burnt out shoulder? Use your rest days to address your issues so they don't turn into bigger problems.
This may sound repetitive, but instead of doing absolutely nothing on your rest days, you should at least take the time to stretch out really well. Dig into your problem areas. Tight hamstrings? Sore IT band? Burnt out shoulder? Use your rest days to address your issues so they don't turn into bigger problems.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Heavy Workouts Build Mental Toughness
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x3 Power Snatch
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
2 Deadlift at @ 275/225 lbs
4 Strict Pullups
6 Kettlebell Swing 36/24 kg
8 Handstand Pushups
Tabata: Air Squat
This should be a challenging workout. If it's not, well congratulations because you're probably a fit tennis player! Heavy workouts (done safely) will train you to push aside physical discomfort, focus on the task at hand, and perform the necessary movement with full range of motion. I'll write more on this tomorrow, but it is highly discouraged to "cherry pick" workouts. In other words, try your best to complete each workout in order because that is the way they are specifically programmed. If you intentionally skip some workouts, you'll be missing out on specific goals planned for during that week.
Strength: 5x3 Power Snatch
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
2 Deadlift at @ 275/225 lbs
4 Strict Pullups
6 Kettlebell Swing 36/24 kg
8 Handstand Pushups
Tabata: Air Squat
This should be a challenging workout. If it's not, well congratulations because you're probably a fit tennis player! Heavy workouts (done safely) will train you to push aside physical discomfort, focus on the task at hand, and perform the necessary movement with full range of motion. I'll write more on this tomorrow, but it is highly discouraged to "cherry pick" workouts. In other words, try your best to complete each workout in order because that is the way they are specifically programmed. If you intentionally skip some workouts, you'll be missing out on specific goals planned for during that week.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
It's Worth Investing in Shoes
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Power Clean 5x3
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
30 Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
20 Box Jump @ 24"
10 Ring Dips
Tabata: Burpees
As tennis players we understand the importance of shoes. It's not even safe to play competitive tennis in non-tennis shoes because they do not provide enough lateral stability. Training in the gym is no different. If you're serious about your fitness training then invest in your shoes. Most workouts you could do in your tennis shoes, however when lifting heavy weights during things like deadlifts, back squats, cleans, etc you will want an actual weightlifting shoe. Weightlifting shoes have a non-compressible sole creating stability so that all of your power is transferred into the ground allowing you to lift more weight safer.
Strength: Power Clean 5x3
WOD: 3 Rounds for Time of:
30 Wall Ball @ 20/14 lbs
20 Box Jump @ 24"
10 Ring Dips
Tabata: Burpees
As tennis players we understand the importance of shoes. It's not even safe to play competitive tennis in non-tennis shoes because they do not provide enough lateral stability. Training in the gym is no different. If you're serious about your fitness training then invest in your shoes. Most workouts you could do in your tennis shoes, however when lifting heavy weights during things like deadlifts, back squats, cleans, etc you will want an actual weightlifting shoe. Weightlifting shoes have a non-compressible sole creating stability so that all of your power is transferred into the ground allowing you to lift more weight safer.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Power Snatch - Power Tennis
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 minutes
Strength - Power Snatch 5x3
WOD: 50-40-30-20-10 Reps of:
Double Unders
Air Squats
Tabata: Pullups
The power snatch is another great total body exercise. For tennis players the snatch will work on explosive strength, shoulder strength/stability, a mid-line stabilization (ie: core strength).
Strength - Power Snatch 5x3
WOD: 50-40-30-20-10 Reps of:
Double Unders
Air Squats
Tabata: Pullups
The power snatch is another great total body exercise. For tennis players the snatch will work on explosive strength, shoulder strength/stability, a mid-line stabilization (ie: core strength).
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Overhead Squats - A Full Body Test
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min (Do you have double unders yet?)
Strength: Hang Power Clean 5x3
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
6 Reps of Overhead Squat @ yesterday's Snatch Balance PR
9 Ring Dip
12 Box Jump @ 24"
Tabata: Pushups
The Overhead Squat is a great test of total body fitness. It is also the true litmus test of your squat technique. If anything is incorrect in your squat technique you will fail on your overhead squats. So keep your knees out, your butt back, and your shoulders engaged and have fun!
Strength: Hang Power Clean 5x3
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time of:
6 Reps of Overhead Squat @ yesterday's Snatch Balance PR
9 Ring Dip
12 Box Jump @ 24"
Tabata: Pushups
The Overhead Squat is a great test of total body fitness. It is also the true litmus test of your squat technique. If anything is incorrect in your squat technique you will fail on your overhead squats. So keep your knees out, your butt back, and your shoulders engaged and have fun!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Snatch Balance 5x3 (If you don't know what this is 'youtube' it)
WOD: AMRAP in 10min of:
10 Hang Power Clean @ 95/65 lbs
10 Push Press @ 95/65 lbs
10 Back Squat @ 95/65 lbs
This WOD is done the fastest if you are able to not drop the bar once it's picked up. Go straight from the cleans to the press to the back squats, rinse and repeat.
Tabata: Wall Ball
This week's strength work is being devoted to Olympic lift progressions. The Olympic lifts are more beneficial than almost any other lift for your tennis development because they increase your fitness in so many different areas. The most important thing they development is explosiveness. The Olympic lifts are supposed to be (controlled) violence, there is no other way to successfully perform them. Likewise, your serve will not be effective unless it is a controlled violent action repeated almost identically every single time. If you don't focus each time you lift you increase your chance to get injured, much less miss the lift. Training to concentrate before each lift should translate easily to focusing before each serve. You may not get injured if you hit a lazy serve, but you probably won't win your match either.
Strength: Snatch Balance 5x3 (If you don't know what this is 'youtube' it)
WOD: AMRAP in 10min of:
10 Hang Power Clean @ 95/65 lbs
10 Push Press @ 95/65 lbs
10 Back Squat @ 95/65 lbs
This WOD is done the fastest if you are able to not drop the bar once it's picked up. Go straight from the cleans to the press to the back squats, rinse and repeat.
Tabata: Wall Ball
This week's strength work is being devoted to Olympic lift progressions. The Olympic lifts are more beneficial than almost any other lift for your tennis development because they increase your fitness in so many different areas. The most important thing they development is explosiveness. The Olympic lifts are supposed to be (controlled) violence, there is no other way to successfully perform them. Likewise, your serve will not be effective unless it is a controlled violent action repeated almost identically every single time. If you don't focus each time you lift you increase your chance to get injured, much less miss the lift. Training to concentrate before each lift should translate easily to focusing before each serve. You may not get injured if you hit a lazy serve, but you probably won't win your match either.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Excuses Don't Fly
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x5 Deadlift
WOD: 21-15-9 Reps of:
Box Jump (24")
Burpees
Tabata: Hang Power Clean @ 95/65 lbs
I think the single most appealing aspect of tennis to me is the fact that it is a one-on-one sport. You take the court in competition and pit your physical and mental grit against your opponents. And at the end of the match if you've given your best you have no excuses and can walk away feeling satisfied (win or lose). However, tennis also has the ability to crush your spirit if you let yourself mentally break down and give up before the match is over. Then you not only lose the match, but you disappoint yourself and likely your coach, parents, etc.
Don't make excuses. If you performed poorly do your best to understand why and focus on that in practice until it's not an issue anymore. If you lack mental toughness TennisWOD may be the best thing that will ever happen to your tennis game. Pushing yourself through the stress and discomfort of these workouts will make you a better tennis player, and a better person. If you hit these WODs the way you're supposed to then you will push yourself harder in the gym than you ever will on court. You'll find yourself in the tiebreak of the third set staring down your opponent knowing that you've worked harder than them, are fitter than them, and will grind out every single point until you win and they lose.
Strength: 5x5 Deadlift
WOD: 21-15-9 Reps of:
Box Jump (24")
Burpees
Tabata: Hang Power Clean @ 95/65 lbs
I think the single most appealing aspect of tennis to me is the fact that it is a one-on-one sport. You take the court in competition and pit your physical and mental grit against your opponents. And at the end of the match if you've given your best you have no excuses and can walk away feeling satisfied (win or lose). However, tennis also has the ability to crush your spirit if you let yourself mentally break down and give up before the match is over. Then you not only lose the match, but you disappoint yourself and likely your coach, parents, etc.
Don't make excuses. If you performed poorly do your best to understand why and focus on that in practice until it's not an issue anymore. If you lack mental toughness TennisWOD may be the best thing that will ever happen to your tennis game. Pushing yourself through the stress and discomfort of these workouts will make you a better tennis player, and a better person. If you hit these WODs the way you're supposed to then you will push yourself harder in the gym than you ever will on court. You'll find yourself in the tiebreak of the third set staring down your opponent knowing that you've worked harder than them, are fitter than them, and will grind out every single point until you win and they lose.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Learn to Mobilize Yourself
Rest Day
Take the time today to visit mobilitywod.blogspot.com it is a fantastic resource - especially as a tennis player. Your body is an amazing machine, but it needs routine maintenance just like any other machine. mobilitywod is not your average "reach down and touch your toes, now bring your arm across your chest" type of mobility. Kelly Starrett is a PhD physical therapist and he is generous enough to show you how to take care of yourself for free! You can do a lot of what he suggests without any equipment, but it is worth going out and buying
1 pair of lacrosse balls (sacrilege I know, but they're much firmer/solid than tennis balls)
25lbs (blue) resistance bands like the ones from www.roguefitness.com
1 foam roller - you can get these almost anywhere.
These three things will take you a long way in making yourself feel better for matches, practice, and workouts. It only takes 10 minutes a day!
Take the time today to visit mobilitywod.blogspot.com it is a fantastic resource - especially as a tennis player. Your body is an amazing machine, but it needs routine maintenance just like any other machine. mobilitywod is not your average "reach down and touch your toes, now bring your arm across your chest" type of mobility. Kelly Starrett is a PhD physical therapist and he is generous enough to show you how to take care of yourself for free! You can do a lot of what he suggests without any equipment, but it is worth going out and buying
1 pair of lacrosse balls (sacrilege I know, but they're much firmer/solid than tennis balls)
25lbs (blue) resistance bands like the ones from www.roguefitness.com
1 foam roller - you can get these almost anywhere.
These three things will take you a long way in making yourself feel better for matches, practice, and workouts. It only takes 10 minutes a day!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Food = Religion
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Front Squat 5x5
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time:
7 Hand Stand Push Ups (Do these with your stomach facing the wall)
14 Deadlift @ 185/155 lbs
Tabata: Wall Ball 20/14 lbs
I should have started all of my food posts with this one. If you've never talked to someone about changing their diet then I suggest doing it at least once - it'll be quite an experience. Just like religion and politics the food people eat is deeply important to them. And it's understandable, food connects us to our past. We eat the food our grandparents taught us to make because even after their gone it makes us feel close to them. So when someone comes along and suggests we shouldn't eat grandma's famous bread, or spaghetti, or cake we get angry.
Let's try and put this in perspective. Did your grandparents stay physically active into their 70s, 80s, 90s? Did they eat lots of grain based products? Did they have any diseases like osteoporosis, diabetes, heart disease? Well, chances are the two main reasons they had (or have) those types of problems is due to diet (first), and lack of exercise second. What's my point? Try to view food as fuel for one month. Food as fuel means it's not entertainment when you're bored, it's not a social activity, it's fuel. If you think this way you will start to make better choices and eat for performance - because the whole point of this blog is to play better tennis right?
Strength: Front Squat 5x5
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time:
7 Hand Stand Push Ups (Do these with your stomach facing the wall)
14 Deadlift @ 185/155 lbs
Tabata: Wall Ball 20/14 lbs
I should have started all of my food posts with this one. If you've never talked to someone about changing their diet then I suggest doing it at least once - it'll be quite an experience. Just like religion and politics the food people eat is deeply important to them. And it's understandable, food connects us to our past. We eat the food our grandparents taught us to make because even after their gone it makes us feel close to them. So when someone comes along and suggests we shouldn't eat grandma's famous bread, or spaghetti, or cake we get angry.
Let's try and put this in perspective. Did your grandparents stay physically active into their 70s, 80s, 90s? Did they eat lots of grain based products? Did they have any diseases like osteoporosis, diabetes, heart disease? Well, chances are the two main reasons they had (or have) those types of problems is due to diet (first), and lack of exercise second. What's my point? Try to view food as fuel for one month. Food as fuel means it's not entertainment when you're bored, it's not a social activity, it's fuel. If you think this way you will start to make better choices and eat for performance - because the whole point of this blog is to play better tennis right?
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Want to Improve? Improve Your Diet!
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
WOD: TennisWOD Benchmark Workout:
3 rounds for time:
5 Pullups
10 Box Jumps @ 20"
15 Pushups
20 Air Squats
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pulls @ 115/95 lbs
Note: This is the "official" TennisWOD Benchmark workout. You should really try and do this workout within your first week or two of TennisWOD so you can get a really good idea of how quickly you improve. You'll know you're starting to become really fit if you can do this workout in under 5 minutes. Although if you really want a challenge, the best of you will be able to do this in under 3 minutes!
On to the topic of the day. I'll probably write something about diet at least once a week - it's that important. If you want a really simple way to think about the food you should eat versus the food you shouldn't try this: If you can eat it raw, or by adding just a little bit of heat it's ok to put it in your body. If it requires any more work than that then it's not doing you any favors.
What does that mean? Yes it means no bread, no rice, no pasta, no grains, no cereal. You can't walk out into a wheat field and start munching on it, and you can't "roast" it over a fire and eat it. You have to get a whole bunch of it together, grind the living crap out of it, dry it, process it, and it to other ingredients, and bake it at 300+ degrees for over 30 minutes. Is it edible, sure - is it healthy? Absolutely not. I can't spend the whole night detailing why, so if you're still curious google Robb Wolf's website, or "diet induced arterial inflammation", or "science behind paleo diet". It may be difficult to do at first, but I guarantee that you'll feel better if you eliminate all of the grains from your diet.
WOD: TennisWOD Benchmark Workout:
3 rounds for time:
5 Pullups
10 Box Jumps @ 20"
15 Pushups
20 Air Squats
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pulls @ 115/95 lbs
Note: This is the "official" TennisWOD Benchmark workout. You should really try and do this workout within your first week or two of TennisWOD so you can get a really good idea of how quickly you improve. You'll know you're starting to become really fit if you can do this workout in under 5 minutes. Although if you really want a challenge, the best of you will be able to do this in under 3 minutes!
On to the topic of the day. I'll probably write something about diet at least once a week - it's that important. If you want a really simple way to think about the food you should eat versus the food you shouldn't try this: If you can eat it raw, or by adding just a little bit of heat it's ok to put it in your body. If it requires any more work than that then it's not doing you any favors.
What does that mean? Yes it means no bread, no rice, no pasta, no grains, no cereal. You can't walk out into a wheat field and start munching on it, and you can't "roast" it over a fire and eat it. You have to get a whole bunch of it together, grind the living crap out of it, dry it, process it, and it to other ingredients, and bake it at 300+ degrees for over 30 minutes. Is it edible, sure - is it healthy? Absolutely not. I can't spend the whole night detailing why, so if you're still curious google Robb Wolf's website, or "diet induced arterial inflammation", or "science behind paleo diet". It may be difficult to do at first, but I guarantee that you'll feel better if you eliminate all of the grains from your diet.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Debut of the TennisWOD Total
Warmup: 5min Jump Rope
WOD: TennisWOD Total - 5 attempts to find your 1 rep max in each lift. Not all 5 are necessary.
Power Clean
Thruster
Back Squat
This is the first prescribed instance of the TennisWOD Total. Use this workout as a milestone to measure future progress against. This workout will come up about once every three months or so. Building off of yesterday's post set a good 12 month goal, and use the 3, 6, and 9 month TennisWOD Totals to set good short-term goals.
WOD: TennisWOD Total - 5 attempts to find your 1 rep max in each lift. Not all 5 are necessary.
Power Clean
Thruster
Back Squat
This is the first prescribed instance of the TennisWOD Total. Use this workout as a milestone to measure future progress against. This workout will come up about once every three months or so. Building off of yesterday's post set a good 12 month goal, and use the 3, 6, and 9 month TennisWOD Totals to set good short-term goals.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Being Realistic
Rest Day
Setting realistic goals is a skill that you have to develop. Often it will take trial and error of setting goals that are too lofty or too easy. That's not to say you shouldn't set large goals for yourself, but if you're 16 years old playing high school tennis a realistic goal isn't winning the US Open when you're 18. However, if you want to truly commit yourself to the task of achieving greatness then setting high, but achievable goals for several years is the right thing to do. Something like practice at least five days a week, become one of the best players on my high school team, work hard enough to get a college scholarship, work hard enough in college to attempt to play professionally, etc.
TennisWOD is no different. If you can Squat 100lbs today, don't expect to Squat 200lbs next week. It is remarkable how quickly the human body can adapt and become stronger, but it is adaptation to repeated stress over time that will make you stronger, faster, more explosive. So appreciate yourself for the gains you do make, and don't get too disappointed if you only improve in small increments. Because soon you'll look back and realize that when you started you couldn't do a pullup, but now you're upset that you couldn't do 15 in a row.
Setting realistic goals is a skill that you have to develop. Often it will take trial and error of setting goals that are too lofty or too easy. That's not to say you shouldn't set large goals for yourself, but if you're 16 years old playing high school tennis a realistic goal isn't winning the US Open when you're 18. However, if you want to truly commit yourself to the task of achieving greatness then setting high, but achievable goals for several years is the right thing to do. Something like practice at least five days a week, become one of the best players on my high school team, work hard enough to get a college scholarship, work hard enough in college to attempt to play professionally, etc.
TennisWOD is no different. If you can Squat 100lbs today, don't expect to Squat 200lbs next week. It is remarkable how quickly the human body can adapt and become stronger, but it is adaptation to repeated stress over time that will make you stronger, faster, more explosive. So appreciate yourself for the gains you do make, and don't get too disappointed if you only improve in small increments. Because soon you'll look back and realize that when you started you couldn't do a pullup, but now you're upset that you couldn't do 15 in a row.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Post Workout (PWO) Nutrition
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Press 5x5
WOD: 5 rounds for time of:
10 Overhead Squats @ 95/65 lbs
20 Kettle Bell Swing @ 24/16 kg
Tabata: Pullups
Do you PWO? If you don't then you should. You should try and eat something almost immediately after your on court or in the gym workouts. You've just put your body through a lot and you need to give it the building blocks it needs to rebuild what you just tore down. PWO research is just heating up and if you google it you'll find a lot to read. Personally, I prefer about 24oz of whole milk right after a workout. Paleo diet purists may recommend a chicken breast and some sweet potato. Whatever you decide do your best to have it include some ratio of all three macro-nutrients (protein, carbs, fat). Another good option would be a fruit smoothie made from frozen berries, protein powder, coconut milk, and enough ice or water to make it drinkable.
Strength: Press 5x5
WOD: 5 rounds for time of:
10 Overhead Squats @ 95/65 lbs
20 Kettle Bell Swing @ 24/16 kg
Tabata: Pullups
Do you PWO? If you don't then you should. You should try and eat something almost immediately after your on court or in the gym workouts. You've just put your body through a lot and you need to give it the building blocks it needs to rebuild what you just tore down. PWO research is just heating up and if you google it you'll find a lot to read. Personally, I prefer about 24oz of whole milk right after a workout. Paleo diet purists may recommend a chicken breast and some sweet potato. Whatever you decide do your best to have it include some ratio of all three macro-nutrients (protein, carbs, fat). Another good option would be a fruit smoothie made from frozen berries, protein powder, coconut milk, and enough ice or water to make it drinkable.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Bad Day? - Doesn't Matter
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x5 Snatch Balance
WOD: AMRAP in 8 minutes of:
5 Pullups
10 Push Press @ 75lbs
Tabata: Deadlift @ 135/95lbs
Having an off day? Don't feel good? Train through it anyway. Rarely will you feel 100% on match day. Something will always be off. You may not feel 100% physically, or you may be thinking about an upcoming exam, or you may not have gotten enough sleep. Whatever it is, try and forget about it and enjoy being in the moment. You're playing tennis, or pushing through your TennisWOD and you'll deal with whatever your problem is afterwards, but you're damn well going to enjoy what you're doing right now :)
Strength: 5x5 Snatch Balance
WOD: AMRAP in 8 minutes of:
5 Pullups
10 Push Press @ 75lbs
Tabata: Deadlift @ 135/95lbs
Having an off day? Don't feel good? Train through it anyway. Rarely will you feel 100% on match day. Something will always be off. You may not feel 100% physically, or you may be thinking about an upcoming exam, or you may not have gotten enough sleep. Whatever it is, try and forget about it and enjoy being in the moment. You're playing tennis, or pushing through your TennisWOD and you'll deal with whatever your problem is afterwards, but you're damn well going to enjoy what you're doing right now :)
Friday, February 11, 2011
Day 14
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x3 Hang Power Clean
WOD: 21-15-9 Reps of:
Kettlebell Swing @ 24kg
Push Jerk @ 95/65lbs
Tabata: Air Squats
Strength: 5x3 Hang Power Clean
WOD: 21-15-9 Reps of:
Kettlebell Swing @ 24kg
Push Jerk @ 95/65lbs
Tabata: Air Squats
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Rest... Don't forget to Rest!
Rest Day
Do you ever take a break? Are you the kind of tennis player that is on court 6 or 7 days out of the week? You might be surprised at how much better you would play if you forced yourself to take at least two days off every week. Your body needs rest. Playing tennis and working out in the gym are things you have to do if you want to improve, but the body rebuilds itself on rest days. If you never take a rest day you are not giving your body the opportunity to completely heal.
Look forward to your rest days. If you really can't bear not practicing watch film, read up on tennis strategy in a book or on the web, or catch up with tennis news. To completely maximize your rest day try and get at least 8 hours of sleep the night before (which you should be striving to do every day anyways) and try to go to bed early the day of. You'll feel like a million dollars when you wake up and be able to put forth 110% effort.
Do you ever take a break? Are you the kind of tennis player that is on court 6 or 7 days out of the week? You might be surprised at how much better you would play if you forced yourself to take at least two days off every week. Your body needs rest. Playing tennis and working out in the gym are things you have to do if you want to improve, but the body rebuilds itself on rest days. If you never take a rest day you are not giving your body the opportunity to completely heal.
Look forward to your rest days. If you really can't bear not practicing watch film, read up on tennis strategy in a book or on the web, or catch up with tennis news. To completely maximize your rest day try and get at least 8 hours of sleep the night before (which you should be striving to do every day anyways) and try to go to bed early the day of. You'll feel like a million dollars when you wake up and be able to put forth 110% effort.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Consistency - It's Important
Warmup: 5min Jump Rope
Strength: 5x5 Back Squat
WOD: AMRAP in 8 minutes of:
5 Ring Dips
10 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 115lbs
Tabata: Knees to Elbow
Consistency wins tennis matches, it also makes you fitter. See 90% of the battle is just showing up and getting the work done. Think about it, how long have you been playing tennis? Two years, four years, ten years? That's a lot of time, and you're probably pretty good. Now imagine spending the same amount of time dedicated to a specifically geared fitness program like TennisWOD. Find the right balance of work in the gym and time on court and you won't be disappointed with the results. But you have to be consistent.
Strength: 5x5 Back Squat
WOD: AMRAP in 8 minutes of:
5 Ring Dips
10 Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 115lbs
Tabata: Knees to Elbow
Consistency wins tennis matches, it also makes you fitter. See 90% of the battle is just showing up and getting the work done. Think about it, how long have you been playing tennis? Two years, four years, ten years? That's a lot of time, and you're probably pretty good. Now imagine spending the same amount of time dedicated to a specifically geared fitness program like TennisWOD. Find the right balance of work in the gym and time on court and you won't be disappointed with the results. But you have to be consistent.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
Learn to Love Cleaning
Warmup: 5 min Jump Rope
Strength: Full Squat Clean 5x3
WOD: 6 Rounds for time of...
6 Hang Power Clean @ 80% of your last Full Squat Clean set
6 Jerks @ Same weight
Tabata: Box Jumps (24in)
If the squat is the most important lift for overall athletic development the Clean is right behind. For a tennis player, the kind of work and physical adaptation the clean provides is rivaled only by its sister lift - the snatch. Cleaning a barbell is an explosive total body movement that requires power, balance, coordination, and strength (sound like qualities you want to have on court?) So youtube some videos of weightlifters at the Olympics and think about the explosiveness, grip strength, and jumping ability you'll be improving when you do it yourself!
Strength: Full Squat Clean 5x3
WOD: 6 Rounds for time of...
6 Hang Power Clean @ 80% of your last Full Squat Clean set
6 Jerks @ Same weight
Tabata: Box Jumps (24in)
If the squat is the most important lift for overall athletic development the Clean is right behind. For a tennis player, the kind of work and physical adaptation the clean provides is rivaled only by its sister lift - the snatch. Cleaning a barbell is an explosive total body movement that requires power, balance, coordination, and strength (sound like qualities you want to have on court?) So youtube some videos of weightlifters at the Olympics and think about the explosiveness, grip strength, and jumping ability you'll be improving when you do it yourself!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
The Importance of Nutrition
Rest Day
Do you know everything about the food you eat? Do you know how much food you're consuming and in what macro-nutrient ratios? Do you know what a macro-nutrient is? Take this rest day to learn a little more about what you're putting in your body to fuel your workouts and your tennis matches. I have personally experienced the benefits of implementing many of the concepts found in the paleo diet. You might be amazed at how much better you feel and perform after removing all grains (wheat, cereal, rice, flour, pasta, bread, etc) from your diet. I'll let you do the research yourself to find out why.
Do you know everything about the food you eat? Do you know how much food you're consuming and in what macro-nutrient ratios? Do you know what a macro-nutrient is? Take this rest day to learn a little more about what you're putting in your body to fuel your workouts and your tennis matches. I have personally experienced the benefits of implementing many of the concepts found in the paleo diet. You might be amazed at how much better you feel and perform after removing all grains (wheat, cereal, rice, flour, pasta, bread, etc) from your diet. I'll let you do the research yourself to find out why.
Training your Hips
Warm Up: 5min Jump Rope
WOD: 50 Pullups
50 Power Cleans @ 95/65
50 Overhead Squats @ 95/65
50 Pushups
Tabata: Jump Rope Double Unders
Every TennisWOD attempts to train the explosiveness of your hips. This is one way TennisWOD may be different from any other conditioning work you have done in the past. Slow isolated movements on machines in the gym will not make you better on court and may cause injury. Your body is designed to move as a whole. Having hips that can continue to produce powerful shots over the course of a 3 hour match will make you a formidable opponent.
WOD: 50 Pullups
50 Power Cleans @ 95/65
50 Overhead Squats @ 95/65
50 Pushups
Tabata: Jump Rope Double Unders
Every TennisWOD attempts to train the explosiveness of your hips. This is one way TennisWOD may be different from any other conditioning work you have done in the past. Slow isolated movements on machines in the gym will not make you better on court and may cause injury. Your body is designed to move as a whole. Having hips that can continue to produce powerful shots over the course of a 3 hour match will make you a formidable opponent.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Day 7 - Why Squatting is Important
Warm Up: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: 5x5 Push Press
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time
10 Pullups
10 GHD Situps
5 Squat Cleans @ 115/85 lbs
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 75lbs
The Squat: Probably the single most important movement for overall physical development as a tennis player. Squatting is a genetically ingrained essential human movement (babies do it perfectly - watch one next time). People or coaches who tell you that squatting will hurt your knees do not know how to squat properly. Incorrectly performing the squat under heavy loads will injure your knees or your lower back, just like using incorrect biomechanics in your serve will destroy your shoulder.
Performed correctly the squat develops muscles in the entire body. Squatting will make your legs strong, but your core stronger. Squatting will improve every part of your tennis game. When squatting is prescribed in a workout you should attempt to squat more weight every time - even if it's only 5 more pounds. Just like tennis, the squat has several components and a lot of technique. Many books, articles, and videos have been made giving instruction on proper squat technique. I encourage you to research every movement (not just the squat) before performing them if they are unfamiliar.
Strength: 5x5 Push Press
WOD: 4 Rounds for Time
10 Pullups
10 GHD Situps
5 Squat Cleans @ 115/85 lbs
Tabata: Sumo Deadlift High Pull @ 75lbs
The Squat: Probably the single most important movement for overall physical development as a tennis player. Squatting is a genetically ingrained essential human movement (babies do it perfectly - watch one next time). People or coaches who tell you that squatting will hurt your knees do not know how to squat properly. Incorrectly performing the squat under heavy loads will injure your knees or your lower back, just like using incorrect biomechanics in your serve will destroy your shoulder.
Performed correctly the squat develops muscles in the entire body. Squatting will make your legs strong, but your core stronger. Squatting will improve every part of your tennis game. When squatting is prescribed in a workout you should attempt to squat more weight every time - even if it's only 5 more pounds. Just like tennis, the squat has several components and a lot of technique. Many books, articles, and videos have been made giving instruction on proper squat technique. I encourage you to research every movement (not just the squat) before performing them if they are unfamiliar.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Day 6
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 min
Strength: Overhead Squat 5x5
WOD: AMRAP in 8 min of:
10 Burpees
5 Deadlifts @ 225
Tabata: Pushups
Strength: Overhead Squat 5x5
WOD: AMRAP in 8 min of:
10 Burpees
5 Deadlifts @ 225
Tabata: Pushups
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Day 5 - Athleticism vs. Fitness
Rest Day
There is a difference between being an athlete and being fit. Being athletic means being able to hit, throw, or apply physical precision with accuracy and skill. Fitness is defined as work capacity over broad time and modal domains (ie: being able to move heavy stuff in any direction over both short and long distances). Tennis players are some of the best athletes in the world, but many lack fitness and their bodies suffer because of it.
If you are a talented tennis player wanting to reach the next level do not neglect your fitness and do not neglect the power of eating properly. "Paleo Diet" - if you haven't heard of it yet - google it. Many tennis players have a bad habit of "carbing up" before matches or long days of practice. If you spend 30 minutes learning about what the Paleo Diet is all about you'll start to understand exactly why the large bowls of pasta, or heaping mounds of rice are your worst enemy for long term health and on-court performance.
There is a difference between being an athlete and being fit. Being athletic means being able to hit, throw, or apply physical precision with accuracy and skill. Fitness is defined as work capacity over broad time and modal domains (ie: being able to move heavy stuff in any direction over both short and long distances). Tennis players are some of the best athletes in the world, but many lack fitness and their bodies suffer because of it.
If you are a talented tennis player wanting to reach the next level do not neglect your fitness and do not neglect the power of eating properly. "Paleo Diet" - if you haven't heard of it yet - google it. Many tennis players have a bad habit of "carbing up" before matches or long days of practice. If you spend 30 minutes learning about what the Paleo Diet is all about you'll start to understand exactly why the large bowls of pasta, or heaping mounds of rice are your worst enemy for long term health and on-court performance.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Day 2 - Watching the Final
Watching the final now since I was too lazy to get up extra early and see it live. I wonder how long I'll be sitting here since the second game of the match took 10 minutes by itself.
Warmup: Jump Rope 5min
Strength: Deadlift 3x5
WOD: AMRAP in 7min of
5 Push Press @ 115/85lbs
10 Kettlebell Swings @ 24kg
Tabata: 100m sprints or 20sec Rows on Rowing machine
Note: As your fitness level increases the margins between your first two and last two tabata intervals should shrink.
Warmup: Jump Rope 5min
Strength: Deadlift 3x5
WOD: AMRAP in 7min of
5 Push Press @ 115/85lbs
10 Kettlebell Swings @ 24kg
Tabata: 100m sprints or 20sec Rows on Rowing machine
Note: As your fitness level increases the margins between your first two and last two tabata intervals should shrink.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
TennisWOD - Day 1
Hello tennis world! I'm going to do my best to stay motivated and post a workout of the day (WOD) every day. So without further delay here is your first TennisWOD...
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 minutes - work on jump rope proficiency. Can you alternate feet, do jumping jacks, cross country ski, perform double unders (having the rope pass twice underneath before landing again)?
Strength: Back Squat 3x5 (Three sets of Five reps each) - Work up to a weight that's challenging and then keep that weight for all three sets.
WOD: Tabata Power Cleans (95/65) and Pushups - Men do 95lbs Women do 65lbs
Tabata - 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest - rinse and repeat for 8 rounds each. Alternate the exercises so do power cleans, then rest, then pushups, rest, etc. 16 total rounds or 8 minutes.
Don't forget to watch the Australian Open Final. I hope Murray wins it in 5.
Warmup: Jump Rope 5 minutes - work on jump rope proficiency. Can you alternate feet, do jumping jacks, cross country ski, perform double unders (having the rope pass twice underneath before landing again)?
Strength: Back Squat 3x5 (Three sets of Five reps each) - Work up to a weight that's challenging and then keep that weight for all three sets.
WOD: Tabata Power Cleans (95/65) and Pushups - Men do 95lbs Women do 65lbs
Tabata - 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest - rinse and repeat for 8 rounds each. Alternate the exercises so do power cleans, then rest, then pushups, rest, etc. 16 total rounds or 8 minutes.
Don't forget to watch the Australian Open Final. I hope Murray wins it in 5.
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