Strength Training Articles

I was recently in Tokyo and was able to spend time with a colleague and friend Andrew Jackson, formerly of Christchurch, but now Head strength and conditioning coach of Ricoh rugby club, based in Setagaya, Tokyo. Ricoh is one of the 14 teams that make up the Top League competition within the Japan Rugby Union. I am very impressed with what Andrew has put together in his weight room to be able to train a squad of 50 players in just under 2 hours. The method he uses is both ingenious in both its … [Read more...] about Tokyo Training – Ricoh Rugby

I'm on a roll .... well I think so ... Might as well write the rest of them ... Using averages is not a great way to assess sport - As someone pointed out to me once you might win your last 3 games by an combined average of 3 points and think that they were similar or good steady performances. However the winning margins might have been 1, 2 & 6 ... this is very different than winning by 3, 3 & 3. Using averages or statistics can be tricky - if you want to read on it try anything by … [Read more...] about More Random Ideas and Thoughts – Fergus Strength Coach

As Thibadeau has been quoted as saying “complexity is the language of simple minds” this being a truism, I would like to believe that the reverse is also true that simplicity is the outcome of a complex questioning mind. I am a Physical Performance coach for rugby, so I have to juggle all the physical training elements to ensure that performance on the field each week is optimized. To allow one “fitness’ variable to excel at the detriment of another will at some stage have a negative … [Read more...] about Simplicity – Ashley Jones

Block work I believe is a much under used modality for training, often just the domain of Olympic lifters, it can add both variety and supplement your more traditional training elements. A good solid set of pulling blocks should form the cornerstone of every gym from the garage dwellers to Olympic training centres around the world. By performing your pulling/Olympic movements from different starting positions you train different portions of the kinetic chain and specifically … [Read more...] about Fun with Blocks

I am not a sports scientist; I am a strength and conditioning coach. One man’s opinion.No matter what else the person has if they can not communicate, empathise and organize then every other qualification they have is useless.Personally, I do not think you need a degree to do this job, it helps when things are not going right to have something to fall back upon to rationalize but it is not the be all and end all or the first thing I would look at if employing someone.I know of an excellent coach … [Read more...] about Building a Better Strength and Conditioning Coach – Ashley Jones

Many strength coaches have a well guarded secret. And that secret is this: strength exercises typically have boring and lackluster names. So to make them sound more interesting and exotic, the name of an Eastern Bloc country is added to the movement, transforming an ordinary squat into a Bulgarian Squat and the average deadlift into a Romanian deadlift! Clients are always far more impressed if they are performing a Hungarian Chin Up* rather than a plain old chin up! And it's now becoming very … [Read more...] about Advanced Exercises with Eastern European Names: Part I

Author Ashley Jones A few years ago I wrote an article for Milo on using three exercises of a similar theme in sequence, increasing load moving from one to the next. My rationale for the use of these triplets is that they cater for my needs of an intense short duration workout that I can do daily to ensure full body co-ordinated strength/power development. I have returned to the use of them as my time is limited but I still want to maximize my gains. I have always favoured the use of a … [Read more...] about Triple Treats Revisited – Ashley Jones