Ronda Rousey: Who Am I?

We know what kind of fighter Ronda Rousey was, but the world is about to find out who Ronda Rousey, MMA Fighter, really is.

We're about to find out if her toughness is only skin deep.

Rousey has faced a surprisingly fierce backlash in the media-universe, receiving criticism for her comments and posts in the days leading up to the fight. Glass house owners and pundits everywhere who weigh-in on the fight game (but clearly have only an entertainment-level knowledge of the sport and the athlete) are calling her cocky, brash, arrogant, disrespectful, [insert negative character judgement here]. Many are saying she got what she deserved, while her defenders (many equally as green in the fight game) are taking the "she'll be back, better than ever, you just wait and see", line of defence.

Will she?

Those who are some how personally offended by her "arrogance" don't understand the psyche of a fighter. Period. If you are a professional fighter, and you don't honestly believe that you can beat anyone, at any time, anywhere; then you've already lost, and quite honestly you shouldn't be in the ring. Some fighters choose to publically convey their air of superiority (I AM THE GREATEST), while some choose silence, but this grandiose vision is universal in all champions.

A champion's psyche is a fragile thing.

This is Rousey's first taste of real adversity in the ring. Her first loss, and a knockout loss, to boot. To those saying, "no big deal, she will be back", I point to fighters like Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. Both of those boxers were absolutely dominant at the start of their professional careers, knocking out opponents at will, and often in the first and second rounds. In fact, they put together winning streaks that make Rousey's undefeated start look paltry in comparison. But for these fighters, their first losses signified the beginning of the end of their careers. The world had seen that they were beatable, but more importantly, they came to realize they were beatable, and they believed it. Neither fighter would return to form.

For those who say that this is the last we will hear from Rousey, I direct your attention to Ken Shamrock, Georges St. Pierre, and Randy Couture. These fighters all lost their titles (some multiple times) and fought back to win them. Their losses were learning opportunities which clearly never altered their self-belief, rather, inspired adaptation and self-improvement. It is interesting to note that these are three very different fighters, and significantly different from Tyson and Jones Jr.in the way they conducted themselves, both in the time leading up to a fight and within the fight itself.

Which kind of fighter is the new Rousey?

The reality is that retiring undefeated is incredibly rare. At least once in their careers, a fighter is going to lose a fight. From our small case study, it would appear that the fighters with less bravado, fighters that encompass that quite-confidence, are the ones who fight back to become champions once again. These are the fighters that use a loss as motivation to train harder so they never have to feel the sting of defeat again, or the cold, lonely feeling of waking up on a hard mat, staring up at the lights and in to the eyes of the ringside doctor. And so it would appear that the core question in our argument is, who is Ronda Rousey? I mean, who is she really? A fighter's promoter and trainer may sculpt their public image, but only Rousey and those closest to her really know what kind of fighter and person she is. Make no mistake, she will get her rematch. Did she underestimate Holm? Did she slide on her training? Did she just have an off-night?

The truth is, we're about to find out who Ronda Rousey, the fighter, the athlete, the psyche, really is.

@BrendanRolfe


Image Credit: http://www.wvtm13.com/image/view/-/36461046/medRes/2/-/maxh/460/maxw/620/-/bj8mj6/-/Rousey-Holm-fight-gif.jpg 

Stupid fans ruin sports

Throwing garbage on the field, endless selfies, talking on your cell phone, kicking the back of a chair, wearing a different sport jersey...give your head a shake.

Sporting events can bring intensity, emotion, and entertainment like no other spectacle. It can make you laugh, cry, jeer or cheer...hell, it can even gave you a grade one jammer and send you to the ICU. For the price of a ticket, you can be guided through an emotional rollercoaster that would otherwise have your treating physician put you on meds or send you to Riverside for psychiatric review. But for the love of all that is Holy and happenstance, don't conduct yourself at a game with people already questioning your sanity...or their own.

Projectile Anger
If your response to something happening on the field of play is every to throw an object in the direction of the players (unless it is a hat or an octopus), don't bother showing up. Not only can you hurt someone on the field or in the crowd if your pathetic noodle-arm can't throw a bottle that far (and go to jail for it), but the result could actually be forfeiture of the match by your team. As an embarrassing member of the home crowd, your team is ultimately responsible for your conduct, and if the environment is deemed dangerous as a result of your action, by the officiating crew, they can give an automatic win to the visitors. Don't be an idiot, if you're really that upset, crush a beer can on your forehead and call it a night. Or if you find you can't handle the emotions associated with disappointment, it's probably best if you stay home to watch it on TV, where you can punch corresponding holes in the drywall.

Selfie-thon
There's no quicker way to look like a space cadet then to take multiple selfies at a sporting event. A quick snap to mark the occasion and create jealously on social media is one thing; taking 5 or 6 selfies in a row, while trying to harness the magic of the smoky-eyes/duck face combo, tells me and everyone tuning in that a) You likely aren't a real fan b) You'll probably win the 50/50 draw. Since you're really only there for the booze and to be seen to be social anyways, why not save your pocket book and head to your local sports bar instead? It'll give you another hashtag or ten to add to your Instagram post(s).

Talking on your cell phone
A short call each half to check on your kid or to review your meeting schedule tomorrow is harmless. Blathering on about business, your exploits the Roxy the night before, or the shopping trip to the States you are going on this weekend, on your cell, phone during game play, is so far beyond irritating that it belongs up there with the guy who exhales loudly through his nose when he's eating. You're at a sporting event...talk about sports! I'm not saying you have to have been a fan for years or even that you must know everything about the sport and the game, but at least pretend to be interested! Any real sports fan can tell you that part of the fun of "having a team" is allowing yourself to be part of the team and allowing your emotions to become invested in them. How am I supposed to live and die with my team if you're talking to your business partner about how you're you going to buy low and sell high for 15 minutes of the second period and 4 minutes of the 3rd?!? Go in to the concourse if you need to have an important phone discussion during game play or make the call in between quarters. Or, by all means, call from your home office.

Kicking the back of the chair in front of you
Does this really need to be said? At 6'4, I have long legs and big feet, but somehow I manage not to tap the back of your chair with my toes, kick it when I'm moving around, or rest my feet on the side of your armrest. There are few things more egregious then chair kicking at a sporting match (or concert, for that matter). Every time you kick the back of my chair, I image myself head-butting you in the chest (a little reference for the real soccer fans out there ;) ), and while I have had remarkable self-restraint up until this point in my life, there's no telling how I or someone else my size will react, going forward. You know where there is lots of leg room AND great seats though? Your house...

Wearing an inappropriate jersey
No, I'm not talking about rocking number 69 or buying a Rusty Kuntz jersey. I'm all for supporting your team, but when you show up to a Toronto Blue Jays playoff baseball game wearing an Edmonton Oilers hockey jersey, I question everything, ranging from your knowledge of sports to your commitment to hygiene. Not only are you NOT wearing a jersey from either of the participating teams, but you're not even representing the right sport. Why are you here? Granted, I have seen some football jerseys at hockey games in the United States (the confusion is real), but Canadians are by far the worst offenders when it comes to this phenomenon. It doesn't seem to matter what the sport, but we feel compelled to reinforce the Canada = hockey stereotype at almost every other sporting event. Football, baseball, basketball, soccer...just stop it. If you don't have any attire that matches the sport you will be watching (at the very least), it's OK to just wear jeans and a t-shirt. Or, if you can't find anything else in your closet aside from a hockey jersey, when you're going to watch a baseball game, feel free to stay in the closet.

DO
Cheer your team on! As someone who has played in front of thousands of fans, I can tell you that crowd support and crowd noise does make a difference. It gives you that little bit extra that can be the decisive factor between winning and losing. Do trade comments with opposing fans. But keep it light; don't get offended about the things they say about your team. Witty banter is part of the fun of enjoying a sporting event and can make it that much more enjoyable. Don't be afraid to say good game to the other fans after the game, win or lose (nobody likes a sore loser, but even less a sore winner). We all have to start somewhere in our fandom, but avoiding some of these head-scratchers will help you enjoy the game more and incur my wrath less.

@BrendanRolfe


Image Credits: http://i1-news.softpedia-static.com/images/news2/How-to-Corner-an-Apple-Fanatic-Ask-How-Many-iPhone-Models-Are-Out-There-407205-2.png

How to control anxiety: Applications in athletics

Is anxiety a performance enhancer or suppressant? Is it common? Is it even manageable?

The answer is YES.

Anxiety, of varying levels, is extremely common in every day life, and even more so in elite level athletics. The activation of your fight or flight complex can enhance your performance, or it can act as a barrier if it becomes overwhelming. There are a number of tried and true techniques recommended by professionals that you might want try, should you find yourself overcome by nerves.

First of all, it should be noted that your feeling of anxiety is how YOU interpret your state of arousal. Some athletes refer to this state as being "pumped up". It is when "pumped up" meets "self doubt" that arousal becomes anxiety. Techniques including visualization, establishing cue-words, and routine implementation, have all been proven to increase an athlete's performance, and decrease their anxiety levels. Here is a brief synopsis of what each method entails, they are simple, yet require absolute commitment and repetition:

Visualization - This method is one of the most well-known and incorrectly performed techniques in Sports Psychology. Rather than just sitting cross-legged in the middle of a quiet room with their eyes closed, the athlete actually needs to immerse themselves in the sounds, smells, and feelings of a game situation. For example, if you are a basketball player, take 10 minutes out of your day to sneak into the gym and turn up a recording of game sounds in your headphones. Hold a basketball in your hands, close your eyes, and start by just breathing deep, and inhaling the smells of the gym. From there, play a game in your mind, from start to finish. Imagine yourself succeeding in every facet of the game, over and over again. Enjoy your imagined successes and think about how it feels to perform at your peak. If negative thoughts creep in to your mind (and don't worry, at first, they often do), open your eyes, take a deep breath, and start again. Be conscious of your body and maintain relaxed muscles and a calm mind. It is always best to perform these visualizations on your field of play, and with the potential game sounds playing. Because you have practiced visualizing so much, you can do this mid-game, right before you perform a certain skill, and you can likely do it with your eyes open, as you are performing the visualization in your mind's eye.

Cue Words - DOMINATE. That is the word that was written on the palm of my baseball glove. Before every single pitch, I had to look in to my glove to get the grip for my pitch. I would see DOMINATE, and it would give me a mind-set to focus on. DOMINATE was the word I selected, because it made me pitch aggressively to hitters. Rather than chipping away for the perfect pitch in perfect spot, I challenged hitters. Consequently, I had my best season as a college baseball player. When selecting your word, make sure it is one that triggers an emotional rise within you. It should illicit a positive response, and should immediately snap you in to a "zone". If you are going to use cue-words, ensure that you put it in a place that you are certain to look. If you have to search for the word, chances are you are going to forget about it, and it will not be useful.

Routine - Two-time NBA MVP, Steve Nash, is a career 90.4% free throw shooter. This is good. This is VERY good. In fact, this is the best of all-time. And when he gets to the free-throw line, he performs the exact same physical routine, every time: He ghosts the motion of shooting a free throw, (with no ball) twice, he licks his fingers (gross), he bounces it three times, and then shoots without a pause. He made 3054 out of 3378 free-throws in his career...that is incredible. Nash's phantom free-throw shots (performed with no ball) are referred to as motor-imagery. You can incorporate this in to any sport where there is a stop in play, and you have a moment to visualize the next skill that is to take place. 

It is important to keep in mind that these techniques are not a one-off, fix-all, guarantee. To the contrary, you must practice them with regularity to achieve optimal results (sound familiar Mr. and Ms. Athlete? I'm talkin' bout PRACTICE). Remember, while emotions like stress and anxiety have physical manifestations, they are still emotionally controlled. Control your mind and you will control your body.

@BrendanRolfe

Anatomy of a Beast - Analyzing the bodies & minds of the world's best MMA fighters

"It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog." - Mark Twain

I would argue that not all minds are equal in professional sport. Not every athlete in the upper echelon of their craft believes that they are the best at what they do. And at some point, doubt creeps in to the mind of every champion. Whether just a flash, or for weeks on end, no mind is an island and no ego impenetrable...except for fighters.

Recent news in the arena of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) has been focused on Women's Bantamweight Champion, Ronda Rousey, after her 14 second dismantling of the latest fodder to step in the ring with her. Following the fight, discussion swayed to how Rousey felt she would do competing against men in her weight class, to which she replied, "I would have to say if you're just talking about what's in the realm of possibility of what's possible of who I could beat, well I could beat 100 percent of them." This response raised some eyebrows, and ridiculously, drew the ire of some of the more insecure carriers of the "Y" chromosome. But the reality is, in a fighting sport of any kind, if you don't believe you are the best at what you do, you've already lost.

Anderson Silva, before he broke his tibia, was widely regarded as the best fighter, pound for pound, in Mixed Martial Arts. Silva, while outwardly more humble than some of his counterparts, carries an air of superiority and an unflappable confidence. Accepting the vocal bravado of pre-fight interviews as fact; that every fighter believes they are the best at what they do, let's examine the bodies of Rousey and Silva, and the moethods that makes them the GOATs that they have become today.

"Rowdy"Ronda Rousey
5'7     135 lbs
Reach: 68"
Style: Judo, Boxing

Anderson "The Spider" Silva
6'2     185 lbs
Reach: 77.5"
Style: Boxing, Muay Thai, Brazilian
Jiu-jitsue, wrestling, judo, taekwando,
Capoeira
 



Rowdy Ronda's Body
Rousey is a mesomorph with wide shoulders, powerful arms, and dense muscle bellies. She is 67" tall and has a 68" reach. Her arms are long, but not abnormally so (like Jon Jones). While her opponents enter fights at roughly the same measurements, it is clear that she overwhelms them with not only her skills, but her superior strength.

Spider Silva's Body
At 6'2, 185 lbs, Silva is a meso-endomorph. He has long limbs and lean muscle. A height of 74" and a reach of 77.5" gives him a significant advantage to strike at distance. Because he is so diverse in his attack, and uses his length extremely well, Anderson Silva is widely regarded is one of the best, if not THE best pound for pound fighter of all time.

The Skinny
For their respective weight-classes, both Rousey and Silva's height and reach are pretty average. Their spirit and confidence is indomitable, but most fighter's have these same traits...so what makes them so good? It's the size of the fight in the dog...or rather, the ability of the dog to recognize their strengths and to make their opponents fight their fight. Rousey has not lost in the UFC, and 9 of her 11 wins are by Arm-bar submission. You think she has a plan going in to her fights? You bet she does, and part of that plan is centred on how to get her opponent onto the ground, and in a position where she can apply that arm-bar. Silva finishes fights, often by knockout. Out of his 40 fights, he has 34 wins, 20 by knockout and only 6 by submission. Silva is known for his Muay Thai style which harnesses the power of knees, kicks and elbows. He strikes at a distance but finishes in close. While Silva has submission skills, he prefers to keep the fight on its feet.

The Anatomy of a Beast
So with two of the top fighters in the world weighing in with average bodies, and adopting the typical fighter mentality of "unbeatable", it would appear that a true beast is someone who can make others play in to their strengths. You wouldn't fight a snake in the grass or a shark in the water, just like you shouldn't fight Rousey on the ground or Silva in the clinch. If you want to be a beast in every day life, bring the "fight" in on your terms...where is your advantage?

@BrendanRolfe

Image credits
[1]http://cdn2.hubspot.net/hub/405149/file-2323911186-png/Ronda-Rousey_241883_right70-3.png?t=1429706674717
[2]http://media.ufc.tv/generated_images_sorted/Fighter/Anderson-Silva/Anderson-Silva_753_LeftFullBodyImage.png

Training for Aesthetics vs Training for Performance

Some of the best athletes in the world often do not resemble the chiseled stone from the fires that forged them.

The difference between training to look good and training for peak athletic performance illustrates a cataclysmic dichotomy in physical training. While many elite level athletes do display washboard abdominals and striated muscles, the shape, volume, and ratios of these muscles are varied; certain body types hold more potential for greater success in certain sports.

Let's look at the athletes who embody the big 4 sports in North America: American Football, Baseball, Basketball, and Hockey. There are 3 industry agreed upon body types, and everyone's body falls somewhere on the scale: Ectomorph, Mesomorph, and Endomorph.

[4]



[2]

[3]

You have probably already begun to place the athletes in the big 4 sports in to certain categories. But wait a minute...the Mesomorph is widely regarded as the optimal physique. You know the Mesomorph: the friend who eats what they want, when they want. They have abs all year long, and hit the gym once per month, where their muscles explode with growth. These are the people you both love and hate, all at the same time. And these are the people who make the best bodybuilders. They grow muscle easily, maintain a small waist and joints, and are irritatingly symmetrical.

You can't change your body-type, but you can maximize it's potential. The real point of interest, is that when you examine both the average body type for each sport, and the peak performers, you rarely find a true mesomorph. This is because the extremes, (Ecto- & Endo-) provide distinct advantages when maximally potentiated, while true mesomorphs...are nice to look at.

Football (M)/Rugby (W)
Football and rugby (women's equivalent, given there is no professional women's football league) are difficult to establish a prototypical athlete body type. Unlike the other sports, the demands of each position differ greatly. For instance a defensive lineman may be a 6'6, 290 lb Endomorph, a halfback might be a 6'2, 230 lb Meso-endo, and a quarterback may be a 6'4, 220 lb Meso-ecto. Conversely, a 5'5, 190 lb Endomorph prop, a 6'0, 160 lb Ecto-meso hooker, and a 5'8, 155 lb Meso-endo inside-centre are ideal for women's rugby. For our purposes, I will highlight the bodies of the 2 more athletic positions: Line-backer and Flanker.

[10]

Football

Average body:
Linebacker - 6'2, 240 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Ray Lewis - 6'1, 240 lbs

Ray Lewis is a football legend.
Ray Lewis has a thick neck & waist and
broad muscle bellies.
Ray Lewis is most certainly an Endomorph.





[11]

Rugby

Average body:
Flanker - 5'5, 155 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Marlie Packer - 5'5, 161 lbs

Marlie Packer is the starting Flank for England.
Marlie Packer has broad shoulders & joints
& also has broad muscle bellies.
Marlie Packer is an Endomorph.








In games like American Football and Rugby, speed and power are valued, but given that they are both games which revolve around physical contact, the athlete's body must be built to absorb punishment. Thus, thick joints and a robust torso are ideal, most closely reflected by the Endomorph body-type.

Baseball (M)/Softball (W)
Baseball and softball are also sports where position dictates stature. For instance, pitchers are generally taller and leaner (so their stride takes them closer to the plate, giving the batter less reaction time), middle infielders (SS & 2B) are smaller because they need to be agile, and catchers and first basemen are often the biggest. Outfielders, often present the best combination of power, speed and athleticism, and so we will examine the bodies of Centre-Fielder, Ken Griffey Jr. and Outfielder Jessica Mendoza.



[1]

Baseball

Average body:
Outfielder - 6'2, 220 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Ken Griffey Jr. - 6'3, 215 lbs

Ken Griffey Jr is a baseball legend.
Ken Griffey Jr has a narrow waist, broad shoulders,
tall, and is lean.
Ken Griffey Jr is a Meso-ecto.









[5]

Softball

Average body:
Outfielder - 5'7, 145 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Jessica Mendoza - 5'9, 146 lbs

Jessica Mendoza is a softball star.
Jessica Mendoza has broad shoulders, small joints, is tall, but
well muscled.
Jessica Mendoza is a Mesomorph.








Baseball and Softball are non-contact sports that require the ability to go from zero to maximal effort in the blink of an eye. They require speed and reflexes and cater more to the Mesomorphic body-type.

Basketball
In Basketball, height and quickness are king. While there have been those that have had successful careers, while maintaining mass (Shaquille O'Neal, at 7'0, 300lbs comes to mind), the majority of the All-Stars, Hall of Famers, and GOAT's are tall, lean, and quick. We can't examine basketball bodies without Michael Jordan and Tamika Catchings.



[6]

Basketball (M)

Average body:
Shooting Guard - 6'6, 211 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Michael Jordan - 6'6, 200 lbs

Michael Jordan is the greatest
basketball player of all time.
OF ALL TIME.
Michael Jordan is tall, has long arms, lean muscle bellies & a rectangular frame.
Michael Jordan is an Ectomorph.

[7]

Basketball (W)

Average body:
Small Forward - 5'11, 165 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Tamika Catchings - 6'1, 167 lbs

Tamika Catchings is widely regarded as one of the greatest female basketball players of all time.
Tamika Catchings is tall, has long arms, but exhibits more muscle tone that Jordan.
Tamika Catchings is an Ecto-meso







A basketball hoop measures 10 feet off the ground. The closer you are to the hoop, the easier it is to score (#becausescience). Basketball players need to be tall, and they need to be quick, while maintaining the endurance capacity to sprint the floor many times. Basketball players are, with very minor exceptions, Ectomorphs.

Hockey
Hockey requires lower body and trunk-related power, endurance, and the ability to deliver and endure contact. What makes it so unique from the other big 4 sports is that it does not require the primal motion of running, rather, the skating motion, and overall posture, requires development of muscles that are much different from field sports. For example, developing power from a "splay-foot" (toe turned out) position will tend to over develop external rotators like the glut med and vastus medialis while under-developing lateral hamstring muscles. While on the topic of "greatest of all time", we cannot ignore the body of work by Wayne Gretzky and Hayley Wickenheiser, however for relevance to today's audience (and for more access to body-revealing pictures (the old generation just doesn't do mirror selfies...), let us examine current greats, Sydney Crosby and Hailey Knight.



[8]

Hockey (M)

Average body:
Forward - 5'11, 180 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Sydney Crosby - 5'11, 200lbs

Sydney Crosiby is widely regarded as one of the best players in the game, if not the best.
Sydney Crosby is not tall, but possesses strong legs and core.
Sydney Crosby is a Mesomorph.









[9]

Hockey (W)
Average body:
Forward - 5'7, 155 lbs

Peak Performer's body:
Hilary Knight - 5'11, 172 lbs

Hilary Knight the top forward
for the US women's Olympic
hockey team, and is a consensus top 5 player in the world.
Hilary Knight is tall but has muscle mass and muscle definition
Hilary Knight is a true Mesomorph.

Hockey is one of the sports where your body is trained to fit the sport. Not even in the sense that certain muscles grow more than others, but there is a posture that is typical of hockey players: feet turned out, big bum, rounded shoulders, head in forward position. In addition, due to the demands of the sport, the athlete's legs are usually more developed than their upper body, and visible abdominals and muscle striations are not as common-place, given a greater demand for energy stores (60 minute games in conjuncture with 3 or 4 games per week is common).

Across all sports, modern athletes are bigger, faster, and stronger than they once were. The average skill-level is higher, and because the athletes can now make a living playing their sport, they adapt their bodies specifically to its demands and train for maximal performance. However, one can also make the determination that certain body types are more likely to excel in certain sports, and that while our body can always be maximized for performance, in the end, you cannot escape the fact you are an Ectomorph, a Mesomorph, or an Endomorph.

*General Disclaimer: Steroids and Human Growth Hormone

@BrendanRolfe




Image credits
[1]http://cf067b.medialib.glogster.com/media/c4/c4517c3d1adb44bcbe989d8d6babeb81a70bb69bdac4eb1a3f70e563467ffa6e/ken-griffey-jr-mariners-jpg.jpg
[2]http://content.doyoueven.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/tumblr_muoal3AQzJ1sl9vjho1_1280-461x600.jpg
[3]http://www.bodybuilding.tv/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/ava-cowan-2011-figure-olympia.jpg
[4]http://www.trainerjack.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/body-types-male-and-female.jpg
[5]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/2b/80/08/2b800853d5af7860e04159662f8e34f5.jpg
[6]http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattoo/images/celeb-jordan_michael/jordan_large/jordan_001.jpg
[7]http://imavex.vo.llnwd.net/o18/clients/activelife/images/Cover_Models/Tamika_Catchings_pic1.jpg
[8]http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/EXID14380/images/Sidney_Crosby_shirt_off_shirtless_pictures.jpg
[9]http://cdn.nextimpulsesports.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Screen-Shot-2014-07-08-at-10.14.10-AM.png
[10]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/50/35/3f/50353f8af27fc780ec2b04fa50268b8a.jpg
[11]http://www2.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Marlie+Packer+New+Zealand+v+England+Game+3+lvRalqMqjkkl.jpg

5 exercises no real athlete will touch

When I go to the gym, I can instantly separate athletes from exercisers, both in the quality of their movement, and by the exercises they choose to fill their programs with. Here are 5 exercises you won't catch any real athlete doing at the gym.

[1]

Seated Hamstring Curls - There are only 2 occasions that call for leg isolation exercises: 1) Recovering from an injury 2) Body building...and when was the last time you saw a body builder do something athletic?


[2]

INSTEAD
try Deadlifts




[3]

Pulldowns - Studies have shown that doing pull ups will increase the amount of weight you can use while performing a pulldown, conversely, increased pulldown capacity has not been shown to do the same for pullups. 'Nuff said.

[4]

INSTEAD try Eccentric Pullups

[5]

Tricep Kickbacks - The body positioning required by kickbacks cuts off potential range of motion and opens up more opportunities to cheat. 


[6]


INSTEAD try a Sphynx Pushup

[7]

Concentration Curls - Single arm isolation exercises are great...if you have 4 hours per day to spend at the gym. Not only do you get secondary bicep activation when you do real exercises like pullups and rows, but there are about a million more effective bicep exercises that don't make you look like a tool.



[8]

 INSTEAD try a Zottman Curl



[9]








Machine back extensions - I have tried this one at different stages of my fitness journey, and every time it feels awkward, uncomfortable and unnatural. That is because your lower back is not built to move independently of the rest of your posterior chain. Because it is easy to grip tight and cheat, people load up the weight on this exercise and risk injury for very little benefit.




[10]

 INSTEAD try Scorpion Extensions



@BrendanRolfe

Image Credits
[1]http://buffblogger.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/VR1-Seated-Leg-Curl_13060.jpg
[2]http://www.menshealth.com/mhlists/cms/uploads/1/barbell-deadlift_1.jpg
[3]http://www.carrienyden.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/lat-pulldown-start.jpg
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The Shermanation of Sport

                                          Image courtesy Richard Sherman/Instagram

In case you have been under a rock for the last week or are unfamiliar with the NFL world, Seattle Seahawks Pro-Bowl cornerback, Richard Sherman, had a post-game rant for the ages. In a nutshell, he questioned the talent of Michael Crabtree (a wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers, whom he was covering) and called himself the best in the game. In fairness, this rant is in response to a feud between the two players, likely in-game trash talking, and post game antics which featured a stiff-arm to the face of Sherman when he attempted to shake hands with Crabtree following the final whistle of the game where Sherman's Seahawks defeated the 49ers to advance to the Superbowl.

It is distracting, sends out negative vibes in the clubhouse, it is damaging to team moral, and worst of all...it sells tickets

My knee-jerk reaction, like most of North America, was to condemn the actions of an athlete who was clearly an egotistical, self-centred pre-madonna. Having played elite level sports of various kinds, I have had the pleasure (?) of playing with athletes who thought they were the second coming of Jesus, and let me tell you, it's not fun. It is distracting, sends out negative vibes in the clubhouse, it is damaging to team moral, and worst of all...it sells tickets. Who wants to see a self-rightous, cocky bully get smashed in the mouth with Karma? I do. And very likely, so do you.

Sport is war

Before delving deeper into what I will call the Shermanation of sport (for current relevance - though others of much greater stature have come before; Muhammed Ali, Gary Peyton, even Ty Cobb), I want to illustrate what kind of people both Michael Crabtree and Richard Sherman are: they are both educated, hard-working (you can't be a top athlete at the professional ranks without hard work), well-liked by teammates, active in their communities (both have charities in their names), and both give 100% on the field. By all accounts, they are stand-up human-beings, phenomenal athletes, and role-model material. But nobody wants to see nice-guys be nice. Sport is war. More specifically, football is war; quite literally. Two sides, wearing different uniforms, generals on the sidelines, plans of attack, hell, there's even trenches (the offensive and defensive lines). As an observer, it is not only incumbent upon you to pick a side, it's engrained in you. We are, in the end, pack animals that want to win, because our survival depends on it; thus, we follow the strongest leaders - who we hope is our home team! And if there is anything we have learned from being animals (or more likely from watching the nature channel, now that we are all soft and dulled of sense from centuries of loafing), it is that the biggest, baddest, loudest and most robust alpha usually wins.

                                                       Image courtesy twinking.net
My initial reaction to Richard Sherman was dislike. I didn't know much about the man, other than he was a good cornerback in the NFL (the greatest, actually, so he tells me) and that he played for as close to a home team as we can get in the NFL, living in Vancouver, Canada . I was even cheering for his team to win, so one would think my first reaction would be to defend his actions. After thinking before writing (this blog is 5 days after the fact), I have come to the conclusion that Richard Sherman is not to blame. He is a victim of emotion and circumstance, and while he makes no apologies for his actions, I have since forgiven him (I'm sure that will come as a great relief to Richard). The truth is that I am Richard Sherman and so are you. As fans, we have shaped these players over decades of competition to entertain us. Sure, they entertain us with astonishing feats of physicality, but also entertain us with character and the antics that are sure to follow. Boxers and mixed martial artists often get paid a percentage of gate (attendance) sales as part of their compensation, thus, it has always been a prerogative to "sell the fight", ie. create speculative interest in the event with the intent of driving ticket sales. Muhammed Ali was one of the pioneers (and the most poetic and impressive on this writers list). At the time, he was the target of ample amounts of ire; not only was he a black athlete in a time of serious racial tension, but he was confident, strong, good-looking, and eloquent. He was everything white America feared and easy to dislike if you weren't in his corner. He refused to back down and refused to apologize for who he was (sound familiar?). In the beginning, while Ali had fans who bought tickets to support him, even more people bought tickets to root against him. It didn't even matter who he was fighting, he was the rival and it was worth the price of admission if one got the chance to see him lose.

Rivalries permeate today's games as well. But how does a rivalry form? They say familiarity breeds contempt. I would argue that familiarity builds fondness and that contempt is manufactured.

All the world's a stage,

       And all the men and women merely players;         

They have their exits and their entrances,

And one man in his time plays many parts

                              - William Shakespeare

To source past "trash talkers"of recent memory, one need not look outside the scope of NFL football. Receivers Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco would both be described by most fans (who aren't Dallas Cowboys fans) as entertaining and talented. Both are known for extravagant touchdown celebrations that are fun to watch, fine worthy, and, if you are cheering for the team opposing theirs, infuriating. Let's be perfectly honest, if the NFL wanted to stop this excessive celebrating, they would have given him more than a $7,500 fine and a 15 yard penalty (0.09% of his $8,000,000 salary for the year), but they didn't. Why? Because it is entertaining and it sells tickets. So does Richard Sherman. So when these athletes present a larger than life on-field persona, it is all too easy to get caught up in the hype of professional sports and cast judgement in the hopes of making your enemy a pariah.

If you don't like the man he is on the field and in interviews, that's too bad, because it is your fault that he is that guy

There have been reports of public and social media name calling, a myriad of judgement being passed and overt racism in reference to Sherman (let's be honest, the racists will always find an excuse). My initial response was to jump on the judgement jeep and criticize Sherman like I was appalled at the person he is, or thought he was. But in truth, Richard Sherman isn't even Richard Sherman. Richard Sherman the Seahawk is a brash, cocky, antagonist. He's good and he knows it. Moreover, he knows that you know it, and if you don't, he'll tell you. The reality is that only his friends and family know the real Richard Sherman, and it is only those who know him best who can be the real judge of his character. If you don't like the man he is on the field and in interviews, that's too bad, because it is your fault that he is that guy. You buy the tickets to yell at him, to see him lose and watch him fail, but you are still buying the ticket that is the foundation of his paycheque. 

Society needs to understand that everything presented to them is to be taken with a grain of salt. Medical advice, TV news, the radio, advertising, sports are all there for three things 1) To entertain you, 2) To get your money, and 3) To get your money. Sports is entertainment. The reason professional athletes get away with taking performance enhancing drugs (and they do on a mass scale), the reason trash talking goes unpunished, and the reason they are paid millions of dollars to play a game is because you support them by watching games on TV, buying tickets and buying merchandise. So before you judge the next athlete who goes on a rant about being the greatest, know that you made them that way. And before you send a hate-tweet or slam them at the office water cooler, ask yourself if you have been entertained. If the answer is yes (and it is yes, because you are still talking about it), then know that he has done his job and that it doesn't concern him one bit what you think...because it's your problem, not his.