Why the Jefferson Curl?
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6 superset sessions for rugby-focused strength INTRO & T.O.C INTRODUCTION The following eBook contains training programs designed for rugby players to develop off-season strength. Each of these superset sessions is based on the principles of gymnastic strength and low-rep strength training protocols used by athletes like Charles Poliquin, Pavel Tsatsouline and Christopher Sommer. They are intended for experienced athletes with a moderate to advanced background in gym training and should not be attempted by novices or beginners. Audience: you want to get stronger during the rugby off-season Situation: you’ve been training pretty hard but you’ve hit a plateau Reason: you’re likely not doing enough quality reps Solution: low intensity, high volume, strength-focused training Degree of difficulty: 8/10 NOTE: if you are a less-experienced weight lifter who is considering taking on this program, please skip to page 21 for notes on adapting these sessions to your needs. 6 SUPERSET SESSIONS 1. RAW STRENGTH Bench + Farmers Walk 2. BODYWEIGHT Pull-ups + Jefferson Curls 3. EXPLOSIVE POWER Hang Clean + Hollow Holds 4. MOBILITY Cossack Squats + Crab Walks 5. SCRUM STRENGTH CT Squats + Loaded Crawls 6. LINEOUT SPEED Hang Clean and Press + Depth Jump 1. RAW STRENGTH Bench + Farmers Walk 90 min session - 30 sets of 2-3 every 3 mins Why the barbell Bench Press? Depending what online blog you’re reading, the barbell bench press is either the best or the worst exercise in the world. Some people will list the bench’s drawbacks by saying that it’s too linear because you’re laying flat on your back and not engaging supporting muscles. To that we say “great theory” but any exercise you could hope to substitute for the bench is going to have as many or more drawbacks. Dips are tough on your shoulders if you have a narrow frame, push-ups are fine, but you’re only moving 60% of your bodyweight and most rugby players don’t have the shoulder mobility for ring work (more on that later). So for developing upper-body strength, and preventing injury while training, the bench press has the most upside and the least downside. You could also substitute in dumb bells if you really want to. But understand that this will require using a lower total weight. Why the Farmer’s Walk? One of the most common strongman lifts, the farmer’s walk is an oldie but a goodie. Unlike the bench, which is push-specific and can be done quite quickly, the farmer’s walk uses a whole range of upper body muscles and should be performed for extended periods to get the most benefit. Your arms will be torched. Your core will be activated. Your back and shoulders will burn. In essence, everything that’s not your chest and anterior deltoids is fully activated during the farmer’s walk. This makes it the perfect partner exercise for supersetting with the barbell bench press when seeking to develop raw upper-body strength. 1. RAW STRENGTH Bench + Farmers Walk 90 min session - 30 sets of 2-3 every 3 mins Setup - do a couple of sets of bench to get limber. Your warm up should be at about 50-60% of your 1RM. Then stack on your weights up to 75-80% of your 1RM for your working sets. Find a space where you can comfortably walk 20-30m without bothering anyone. Place two 45lb plates at one end of that area. Start the Clock - this session is time-based. We are going to be restricting rest intervals so that each new set starts on 3mins. Set 1 starts at 0, set 2 starts at 3, set 3 starts at 6 and so on. Do not mess with these intervals. If you have not recovered sufficiently from the previous set to perform the upcoming set, reduce the weight you are working with or the distance of your farmer’s walk. Focus on Form - because we’re not working with 100% of our 1RM, we can focus on getting our technique right during lifts. For the bench, that means pinching your shoulder blades, moving the bar smoothly without a bounce and gripping as hard a possible. For the farmer’s walk, keep your head & eyes up, your shoulders down and take smaller steps than if you were walking normally. Rest Periods - your setup and working periods should max out at about 90 sec (if you have a lonnnnng farmer’s walk) which will leave you plenty of rest time. Breathe deeply and clear your head before your next set. Forearm Explosion - there’s a good chance that this session is going to destroy your forearms. When that happens, feel free to break up the Farmer’s Walk with another static strength movement like the Hollow Hold. Try the variation below when you hit your forearm limit. Superset Variation BLOCK 1 Barbell Bench + Farmer’s Walk 10 sets of 2-3 every 3 mins BLOCK 2 Barbell Bench + Hollow Holds 10 sets of 2-3 every 3 mins BLOCK 3 Barbell Bench + Farmer’s Walk 10 sets of 2-3 every 3 mins 2. BODY WEIGHT Pull-Ups + Jefferson Curls 90 min session - 30 sets of 3 every 3 mins Why the pull-up? There isn’t a better exercise for improving your power-to-weight ratio than the pull-up. Pull-ups are recommended by almost every S&C coach in the business because they provide an equipment-free way to train the entire posterior chain, forearms, shoulders and core. Powerlifters have long known that improving your lat strength using pull-ups has a positive effect on your bench, squats and deadlifts as well. It’s also an excellent test of your power to weight ratio. While strength is the ultimate goal of the programs in this eBook, adding superficial bulk is not. If you’ve been training for 3 months say and you’ve put on 10lbs of muscle, but you can still only do a set of 4 pull-ups, there’s a good chance you’ve been wasting your time. Having enough mass is important for rugby players, but our power to weight ratio is a much better test of a rugby player’s strength and conditioning. Why the Jefferson Curl? We’ve spoken in several blog posts about why the jefferson curl is one of the best exercises for rugby players, especially when used prior to rugby training to help prevent hamstring injuries. But it’s also the perfect exercise to pair with pull-ups when you’re looking to develop posterior chain strength and flexibility. J-Curls are useful because they are a weighted stretch. Stretching generally is something most rugby players don’t do enough of. The J-Curl is a very simple way to increase hamstring flexibility, core strength (especially in the mid back) and grip strength. When supersetted with the pull-up, this movement provides a complete posterior chain workout at low intensity and using very little weight. 2. BODY WEIGHT Pull-Ups + Jefferson Curls 90 min session - 30 sets of 3 every 3 mins Setup - do a couple of sets of J Curls to get warm. Start with the same weight as you would during a working set. But because you’re cold, you naturally won’t have the same range of motion as during the rest of the workout. Hold your warm up sets for slightly longer at the bottom of the movement. Start the Clock - this session is also time-based. Start each new set of pull-ups on the 3min. A set of 3 J-Curls should take between 50-60 seconds. So if your pull-ups start on the top of the minute, start your J Curls after 30 seconds. If it takes you 60 seconds to complete, your working time will be 90 seconds and your rest time will be 90 seconds. Focus on Form - if you haven’t done a lot of pull-ups before, don’t worry. The goal is not to crank out 30 max sets. That would be crazy talk. If your max set is say 6 reps, try to do 30 sets of 2 during the course of the 90 min superset session. If your max reps set is 15, maybe go as high as 4. But whatever you do, don’t give up after 20 sets. If the last 10 sets need to be single rep sets, that’s totally fine. Keep at it! Rest Periods - ideally you want to be working and resting for about the same period, 90 seconds and 90 seconds. Forearm Explosion - as with the first superset session, your forearms are going to be burning. When (not if) this happens, try the variation below to help you get through the 90 mins. Superset Variation BLOCK 1 Pullups + Jefferson Curls 10 sets of 3 every 3 mins BLOCK 2 Jefferson Curls + Hollow Holds 10 sets of 3 every 3 mins BLOCK 3 Pullups + Hollow Holds 10 sets of 3 every 3 mins 3. EXPLOSIVE POWER Hang Clean + Hollow Hold 90 min session - 30 sets of 1-2 every 3 mins Photo by: stackhealthy.com Why the Hang Clean? For explosiveness and gains in athletic performance, hang cleans bridge the gap between strength and speed better than any other weight room exercise. The hang clean, performed at a submaximal level is one of the most effective tools for developing speed-strength and strength-speed. We recommend the hang clean over the full clean for its simplicity. Movement from the floor is fantastic for developing raw strength.