Thread: Torso Training for Athletes

Torso Training – Part 2: Basic Rotational Exercises
By CJ Murphy

In this article, the second in our Torso Training series, we will cover rotational exercises that don’t specifically target the rectus ab. Our exercises will focus on the obliques (internal and external) and the quadratus lumborum.

Of course there are other muscles you might have never even heard of that are involved here, but these two are going to be our main focus. I won’t bore you with listing all of the names of the other ones (like many gurus do), just realize that rotation is very important and often a neglected aspect of training.

Some experts say rotational strength can be increased up to 300% by incorporating these types of exercises. Ok – that’s great, but the big picture is to strengthen these muscles so your athletes are more resistant to injury and better able to deliver and receive force in a game setting.

Many athletic injuries occur during transverse plane deceleration, which is a fancy way of saying twisting while slowing down. The inclusion of rotational exercises will help to prevent this.

The following is a series of exercises, listed from easiest to hardest, that you can include in training. It is by no means every choice you can make - it is a guideline to get you started. As you become comfortable with these basic rotational exercises, feel free to try and make up your own, but for now we will start with these and cover more advanced movements in later articles. Master the basics first!

Side Bends

To perform a side bend, assume a good athletic stance and hold a dumbbell in one hand. Bend down to one side as far as you can by lowering the weight slowly down the side of your leg (towards your ankle). When you have gone down as far as you can while maintaining proper posture, switch directions, and go down to the opposite side. Go equal distances on both sides. Avoid twisting and leaning forward on these. When you have completed the desired reps, switch the weight to the other hand.
Try to focus on pulling your ribs towards your hips as you perform side bends and don’t be afraid to go heavy! Our strongman athletes routinely do these with bodyweight, or more, in each hand

Rainbows

Lie on your back, arms out to the side, lift your legs up with your heels pointed to the ceiling. Keeping your legs together, lower your legs as far down to the left side as you can then reverse direction following through to the right side. Try and keep your upper body in contact with the floor, moving it as little as possible. It is important to make sure that you twist from your torso and not focus on moving your feet! The movement of the legs is a byproduct of the action taking place in your midsection.

Rockies

Why do we call them Rockies? Because Rocky did them in the first movie! I think the ‘gurus’ call them seated dynamic medicine ball transverse rotational twists but I like the name Rockies much better. To perform a Rocky, sit on the floor, legs out in front of you; keep your knees slightly bent and your chest up. Take a medicine ball and twist quickly to the left – put the ball down on the floor behind your back - then quickly twist to the right – and pick it up. Repeat doing an equal amount of reps in each direction.
Rockies not only build rotational strength but also increase trunk flexibility. At TPS, we prefer to use heavy, non-bouncing medicine balls for these. D-Balls (no not that kind) are perfect and they are available at this site as well. Don’t be afraid to go heavy on these!

Bicycle Crunch

Everyone should know this one. Lie on your back, hands behind your head, elbows out and in line with your ears. Bring your right knee and left shoulder towards each other. Then switch and bring your left knee to your right shoulder. The name implies you should move your legs as if pedaling a bicycle.

This is fine for beginners but more advanced athletes should us less leg drive and try to initiate the majority of the movement using just the torso muscles. You will also find that the bigger athletes get winded doing these, especially powerlifters with a bench belly. Keep them moving and they will adapt quickly.

And there you have it. These are four basic exercises to get you going on building up your rotational strength. In later articles, I’ll give you some training templates for application of these along with a few more advanced exercises as well.

Originally Posted by MyK

Torso Training – Part 2: Basic Rotational Exercises
By CJ Murphy

In this article, the second in our Torso Training series, we will cover rotational exercises that don’t specifically target the rectus ab. Our exercises will focus on the obliques (internal and external) and the quadratus lumborum.

Of course there are other muscles you might have never even heard of that are involved here, but these two are going to be our main focus. I won’t bore you with listing all of the names of the other ones (like many gurus do), just realize that rotation is very important and often a neglected aspect of training.

Some experts say rotational strength can be increased up to 300% by incorporating these types of exercises. Ok – that’s great, but the big picture is to strengthen these muscles so your athletes are more resistant to injury and better able to deliver and receive force in a game setting.

Many athletic injuries occur during transverse plane deceleration, which is a fancy way of saying twisting while slowing down. The inclusion of rotational exercises will help to prevent this.

The following is a series of exercises, listed from easiest to hardest, that you can include in training. It is by no means every choice you can make - it is a guideline to get you started. As you become comfortable with these basic rotational exercises, feel free to try and make up your own, but for now we will start with these and cover more advanced movements in later articles. Master the basics first!

Side Bends

To perform a side bend, assume a good athletic stance and hold a dumbbell in one hand. Bend down to one side as far as you can by lowering the weight slowly down the side of your leg (towards your ankle). When you have gone down as far as you can while maintaining proper posture, switch directions, and go down to the opposite side. Go equal distances on both sides. Avoid twisting and leaning forward on these. When you have completed the desired reps, switch the weight to the other hand.
Try to focus on pulling your ribs towards your hips as you perform side bends and don’t be afraid to go heavy! Our strongman athletes routinely do these with bodyweight, or more, in each hand

Rainbows

Lie on your back, arms out to the side, lift your legs up with your heels pointed to the ceiling. Keeping your legs together, lower your legs as far down to the left side as you can then reverse direction following through to the right side. Try and keep your upper body in contact with the floor, moving it as little as possible. It is important to make sure that you twist from your torso and not focus on moving your feet! The movement of the legs is a byproduct of the action taking place in your midsection.

Rockies

Why do we call them Rockies? Because Rocky did them in the first movie! I think the ‘gurus’ call them seated dynamic medicine ball transverse rotational twists but I like the name Rockies much better. To perform a Rocky, sit on the floor, legs out in front of you; keep your knees slightly bent and your chest up. Take a medicine ball and twist quickly to the left – put the ball down on the floor behind your back - then quickly twist to the right – and pick it up. Repeat doing an equal amount of reps in each direction.
Rockies not only build rotational strength but also increase trunk flexibility. At TPS, we prefer to use heavy, non-bouncing medicine balls for these. D-Balls (no not that kind) are perfect and they are available at this site as well. Don’t be afraid to go heavy on these!

Bicycle Crunch

Everyone should know this one. Lie on your back, hands behind your head, elbows out and in line with your ears. Bring your right knee and left shoulder towards each other. Then switch and bring your left knee to your right shoulder. The name implies you should move your legs as if pedaling a bicycle.

This is fine for beginners but more advanced athletes should us less leg drive and try to initiate the majority of the movement using just the torso muscles. You will also find that the bigger athletes get winded doing these, especially powerlifters with a bench belly. Keep them moving and they will adapt quickly.

And there you have it. These are four basic exercises to get you going on building up your rotational strength. In later articles, I’ll give you some training templates for application of these along with a few more advanced exercises as well.

you better check yourself:

click this

Originally Posted by P-funk

you better check yourself:

click this

P-funkowned x100,000,000,000,000,000

Torso Training – Part 3: Advanced Training Exercises
By CJ Murphy, MFS

In the past two articles, we have given you ideas and progressions for strengthening your torso. As you know by now, strong abs isn’t all that is needed. There are many more muscles at work in your mid-section. It doesn’t matter if you are squatting, playing golf, or carrying groceries out to the car, this area needs to be strong so that the rest of your body can get strong.
In this installment of our Torso Training Series, unorthodox exercises will be introduced. I will not list them in any particular order as these are advanced exercises.

In the past, some of these choices have been met with resistance by people saying that they don’t work the intended areas. Since there are no isolation exercises here, only compound movements that stress big areas of the body, I will add that any of our critics who have implemented our exercises into an integrated plan are no longer critics.

Remember what Teddy Roosevelt said, “It’s not the critic who counts!”
Let’s get to business….9 exercises off the top of my head:
• 1-Arm Farmers Walk
• 1-Arm Farmers Deadlift
• Keg Crunches
• Heavy Throws Backwards (keg, 56lb weight, medicine ball)
• Land Mines
• Hanging Bicycle
• Sledge Hammer
• Overhead Swings
• Spider Lifts

These are some of our favorites, and ones that provide results FAST! Of course there are many, many more but I think these will keep you busy for a while.

You might have seen some of these before or you might not have, or you might know them by different names so I’ll describe each one in the list for you.

1-Arm Farmers Walk

Nothing fancy here, take a Farmers Walk handle or a heavy dumbbell, and pick it up like a suitcase, keep your body straight and walk as fast as you can. Your distance will usually depend on your weight used. Heavy weight will usually be carried for shorter distances, 25-35 feet, while lighter weight will be for longer ones, 100-200 feet. The 1-Arm Farmers Walk not only hits the entire torso and grip, but it also hits the glute medius which is often neglected and under-trained. It has also helped Knee Valgus in many athletes.

1-Arm Farmers Deadlift (Suitcase Deadlift)

This is also known as a Suitcase Deadlift for obvious reasons. Stand next to a Farmers Walk Handle and pick it up like a suitcase. A key point to watch out for is to ensure that the body stays properly aligned, no tipping to one side. Keep the reps lower on these, 6 or less is best. Don’t be afraid to go heavy.

Keg Crunches

For these you’ll need a beer keg, which for many of you isn’t a problem. Once you get one, it needs to be emptied – also, not a huge problem. Once emptied, you need to do something to it that will allow you to fill/empty the keg as needed. We take ours to a welding shop and have them attach a threaded pipe and screw cap. It’s pretty cheap to do and they last forever, so go make one.

To do the Keg Crunch, start with a keg filled 25% with water. Lie on the floor as if doing a regular crunch and lift the keg to arms length. As you crunch up, drive the keg towards the ceiling. Work on adding water to the keg until its full. You can also add stone, sand, or anything else you want – be creative!

Heavy Throws Backwards

This is a pretty standard medicine ball exercise that many people do and it’s a good one. The difference with ours is that we go heavy!
Assume an athletic stance, holding a medicine ball by your knees, drive your hips back and swing the medicine ball violently upwards and release it as it passes your head. Remember to be sure of what’s behind you. Anything you have can be thrown! Kegs, medicine balls (the heavy D-Balls at EliteFTS are best), 56 lb weight (used in Highland Games), office interns, use whatever. Just throw something heavy.

Land Mines

The Land Mine is a piece of equipment you should all be familiar with. It looks like home plate with a sleeve attached to it. You slide a barbell in the sleeve and do about a thousand different exercises with it. The Land Mine is a very versatile piece and there are far too many exercises to describe with it but here’s one! (We just call this one the Land Mine).

Assume an athletic stance facing the equipment and hold the barbell at chest height. Begin by twisting your shoulders to the left and let your arms follow as you drop them and your right knee towards the floor; immediately reverse directions and keep going as you establish a good rhythm back and forth. Remember to initiate direction changes with your shoulders, then your torso then let the arms follow. Light weights are better for this, start with an empty bar and work up.

Hanging Bicycles

I know this one sounds foolish but it’s a killer! To do these, you’ll need some ab straps that attach to a chinning bar (available at EFS).
Hook your arm through the ab straps as if you were going to do a hanging leg raise. Once in position, pedal your legs up and down like you were pedaling a bike. Try to get your knees up by your chest each time you pedal, and crunch down from the shoulders as you lift your kness/hips up. It’s a lot harder than it sounds.

Sledge Hammer

Heavy sledge hammering is a brutal torso workout. We usually swing the hammer into a heavy (500lb.+) tractor tire. Swing the hammer in different directions violently fast into the top of the sidewall or against the treads of the tire. Exhale hard as you swing the hammer.
Sledge Hammer work is great because you really get a 2-for-1 here: Grip and Torso at the same time. This type of training works best for people with sedentary jobs during the day. A construction laborer probably won’t get as much out of it as an office worker.

Overhead Swings

To do these properly, you need a rope ball (medicine ball with a rope through the middle) but it can be done with home made equipment too. Assume an athletic stance, and take the ball by the end of the rope, swing the ball back and forth overhead in wide circles (like the blades of a helicopter), and use your hips like you were swinging a hula-hoop around your waist. Sure it looks and sounds foolish but it’s a great exercise. Your shoulders will also see some benefit from this as well.

Spider Lifts

Don’t ask me where the name form this one came from! This is a great exercise for your entire torso. You’ll need a pair of dumbbells to do it.
From an athletic stance, press a dumbbell overhead - if the dumbbell is in your left hand overhead, twist your hips so the right hip is back, and the left hip is forward. Reach for the floor, as if doing a side-bend with your right hand. When you get down as low as your flexibility allows, reach for the ceiling with your left hand. It helps to keep your head turned and your eyes focused on the dumbbell that is overhead. Do an equal amount of reps with both sides of your body.

Now you have it….9 more exercises for your toolbox. I know some sound ridiculous, but give them a chance before you condemn them. Remember, athletes move in many directions and need to train that way.
Putting It All Together

So how do you use these exercises during your training? Below are several basic templates for beginners, intermediate and advanced athletes. We suggest doing torso training at the end of you workout.

ALL SPORTS

Beginners 3-Day Torso Training Template – 3 Day:

Day 1: Basic Crunches 3 sets, 15-20 reps
Side Bends 3 sets, 8-10 reps

Day 2: Sit-Ups 3 sets, 15-20 reps
Bicycle Crunch 3 sets, 15-20 reps

Day 3: Stability Ball Crunch 3 sets, 15-20 reps
Rainbows 3 sets, 8-12 reps

Intermediate Torso Training Template – 3 Day:

Day 1: Roman Chair Crunch 3 sets, 20-25 reps
Rockies 3-4 sets, 12-15 reps

Day 2: Wood Chops 4 sets, 6-8 reps
Basic Crunch 3 sets, 25-30 reps
Side Bends 3 sets, 10-12 reps

Day 3: Sit-Ups with Weight 4 sets, 15-20 reps
Rainbows 3 sets, 12-15 reps
Bicycle Crunch 3 sets, 20-25 reps


Advanced Torso Training Template – 4 Day

Day 1: Sledge Hammer Workout 2 sets, 1-2 minutes each
Keg Crunches 3 sets, 15-20 reps
Rainbows 3 sets, 15-20 reps

Day 2: Land Mines 3 sets, 15-20 reps
Sit-Ups with Weight 4 sets, 15-20 reps
Overhead Swings 2-3 sets, 15-20 reps

Day 3: Hanging Bicycles 3 sets, 15-20 reps
1-Arm Farmers Deadlift 4 sets, 6 reps each side
Stability Ball Crunch 3 sets, 25-30 reps

Day 4: Spider Lift 3 sets, 12-15 reps each side
Wood Chops 4 sets, 6-8 reps
Roman Chair Crunch 4 sets, 15-20 reps


As you can see, a variety of weighted and non-weighted exercises are incorporated. There are different rep schemes to vary the intensity. Rotational exercises are also varied as primary and secondary exercises on different days to ensure nothing is neglected.

As always, remember, these are sample templates only. I encourage you to design your own based on your athletes’ needs.

Originally Posted by P-funk

you better check yourself:

click this

You are not logged in or you do not have permission to access this page. This could be due to one of several reasons:

Originally Posted by MyK

that happens to me sometimes too??

anyway, log back in when you click the link. if you can't get it I will cut and paste.

Originally Posted by P-funk

that happens to me sometimes too??

anyway, log back in when you click the link. if you can't get it I will cut and paste.

soory, It wont let me in!

Originally Posted by MyK

soory, It wont let me in!

A Close Look at Rotation Training
by Mike Boyle (FunctionalStrengthCoach.com)

Over the past decade training has clearly moved from a sagittal plane orientation to an emphasis on unilateral training and multi-planar training. Part of this process, particularly for athletes, has been a push toward developing flexibility in rotation. Any athlete competing in a sport that required rotation, like baseball, hockey or golf, was blindly urged to develop more flexibility in rotation. Like many performance coaches, I fell victim to this same flawed concept. I was one of the lemmings that I dislike so much, blindly following the recommendations of others and using exercises that I would now consider questionable or dangerous. Interestingly enough, as a back pain sufferer, I simply wrote off my discomfort as age-related and continued to perform rotary stretches and dynamic warm-up exercises.

Reading the work of physical therapist Shirley Sahrmann made me reconsider my position and eventually eliminate a whole group of stretches and dynamic warm-up exercises that were once staples of our programs. Sahrmann in her book Diagnosis and Treatment of Movement Impairment Syndromes, states “during most daily activities, the primary role of the abdominal muscles is to provide isometric support and limit the degree of rotation of the trunk…A large percentage of low back problems occur because the abdominal muscles are not maintaining tight control over the rotation between the pelvis and the spine at the L5- S1 level. “ (2002 p.71) The lumbar range of motion that many personal trainers and coaches have attempted to create may not even be desirable and is probably potentially injurious.

The ability to resist or to prevent rotation may in fact be more important than the ability to create it. Clients or athletes must be able to prevent rotation before we should allow them to produce it. Porterfield and DeRosa in another excellent book, Mechanical Low Back Pain, come to the same conclusion as Sahrmann. Porterfield and DeRosa state “Rather than considering the abdominals as flexors and rotators of the trunk- for which they certainly have the capacity- their function might be better viewed as antirotators and antilateral flexors of the trunk.” (Porterfield and Derosa, WB Saunders 1998, p99)

Sahrmann goes on to note a key fact that I believe has been overlooked in the performance field. “The overall range of lumbar rotation is ...approx 13 degrees. The rotation between each segment from T10 to L5 is 2 degrees. The greatest rotational range is between L5 and S1, which is 5 degrees…The thoracic spine, not the lumbar spine should be the site of greatest amount of rotation of the trunk… when an individual practices rotational exercises, he or she should be instructed to “think about the motion occurring in the area of the chest” “ (Sahrmann, p61-62)

Sahrmann places the final icing on the cake with these statements; “Rotation of the lumbar spine is more dangerous than beneficial and rotation of the pelvis and lower extremities to one side while the trunk remains stable or is rotated to the other side is particularly dangerous.” (see figures 1+2) (Sahrmann p. 72)

Interestingly enough Sahrmann agrees with the conclusions of Barry Ross. Ross recommended primarily isometric abdominal training for his sprinters. Sahrmann concurs; “During most activities, the primary role of the abdominal muscles is to provide isometric support and limit the degree of rotation of the trunk which, as discussed, is limited in the lumbar spine.” (Sahrmann p 70)

Most importantly, what does all this mean? For me it means that I have eliminated the following stretches that attempt to increase lumbar range of motion. This includes Seated Trunk Rotational Stretches (Fig 1) and Lying Trunk Rotational Stretches (Fig 2).



I have also eliminated dynamic exercises designed to increase trunk range of motion such as Dynamic Bent Leg Trunk Twists (Fig 3), Dynamic Straight Leg Truck Twist (Fig 4), and Scorpion (Fig 5).

My conclusion. Most people don’t need additional trunk range of motion. The evidence from the experts seems to be clear that what we really need is to be able to control the range that we have. Although this may seem extreme to some, I have seen a significant decrease in the complaints of low back pain since eliminating these exercises. In fact, a great deal of our emphasis is now placed on developing hip range of motion in both internal and external rotation. I think the future will see coaches working on core stability and hip mobility instead of working against themselves by simultaneously trying to develop core range of motion and core stability.

Porterfield and DeRosa- Mechanical Low Back Pain, WB Saunders 1998,

Sahrmann, Diagnosis and Treatment of Movement Impairment Syndromes, Mosby 2002

Michael Boyle is one of the most respected professional strength coach's in the world. Check out his revolutionary Functional Strength Coach 10-DVD Series here

My conclusion. Most people don’t need additional trunk range of motion. The evidence from the experts seems to be clear that what we really need is to be able to control the range that we have. Although this may seem extreme to some, I have seen a significant decrease in the complaints of low back pain since eliminating these exercises. In fact, a great deal of our emphasis is now placed on developing hip range of motion in both internal and external rotation. I think the future will see coaches working on core stability and hip mobility instead of working against themselves by simultaneously trying to develop core range of motion and core stability.

so basically the article I posted is outdated according to your article?

Originally Posted by MyK

so basically the article I posted is outdated according to your article?

It is a differnet view. Boyle did write that article about 4 months ago though and i recall seeing CJ Murphy's article about a year ago so it is more up to date.

Boyle will tell you that this is his personal opinion based on the reseach he has found and the discussions he has had with therapists. You can take what you want from it. A lot of people still do torso training though. The article Boyle wrote makes a pretty good case for not doing it though and he does provide references. I have talked with him in personaly about it and he explains it in a way that you just want to believe him (lol).

Originally Posted by P-funk

It is a differnet view. Boyle did write that article about 4 months ago though and i recall seeing CJ Murphy's article about a year ago so it is more up to date.

Boyle will tell you that this is his personal opinion based on the reseach he has found and the discussions he has had with therapists. You can take what you want from it. A lot of people still do torso training though. The article Boyle wrote makes a pretty good case for not doing it though and he does provide references. I have talked with him in personaly about it and he explains it in a way that you just want to believe him (lol).

well thanks for posting Boyle's article in the thread, now everyone who reads it will hear an opposing view point!