2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies!!!!!!

I purposely haven't written anything about the World Series until now. I didn't want to jinx anything. I have felt good about this team ever since the playoffs started. I knew I would be happy if they won, but I didn't know how happy and emotional I would get.



My hands started tingling and my heart beat was twice as fast as normal starting in the seventh inning last night. My eyes started watering going into the bottom of the eighth and I really started crying after Lidge got the last out. When they did the montage of each players reaction to the last out there was some definite waterworks for me. Even just watching this highlight video I started tearing a little. You follow a team for years and years, you follow players throughout their careers, you experience joy, frustration, connection and you always do it because you hope that one day this can happen. There is a lot of baggage being a sports fan and following a team. You see players come and go. Some you like, some not as much. Some you're sure will be the next Mike Schmidt or Steve Carlton and things happen and time moves on. You see decent teams that don't quite get there and they eventually disperse throughout the league or out of the game and sometimes it's easy to forget what the ultimate goal of it all really is. Especially when it seems like you never have a shot to get it. This is what it's all about.



In 20 or 30 years I will remember this and I will tear up as I think about wherever my life has taken me from now till then. I will remember hugging Robbie and him smiling even though he really didn't care. I'll remember talking to my Dad with my voice cracking. I think that's why I love sports most of all. The memories that mark times in your life. I remember where and who I was when Randall Cunningham made that play against Buffalo. I remember where and who I was when the Phillies beat Atlanta in '93. I remember where and who I was when the Phillies won it in '80. I remember where and who I was when I saw Dickie Thon get a walkoff hit in extra innings at some random game at the Vet one summer night. These moments and therefore these teams become a part of who you are. They are a connecting force to other people and to yourself.



I will always have this moment to look back on and I know that wherever I am at that time I will be following my team, the Philadelphia Phillies.



Mitch Rothbardt

www.mitchrothbardttraining.com

(coming soon)

Funny

This could be one of the funniest things I've ever seen.



You'll notice that each turn of events is perfectly timed and executed to deliver the highest possible amount of pain. The slo-mo breakdown is the best thing of all.

Mitch Rothbardt
www.mitchrothbardttraining.com
(coming soon)

Great article

Hello. I just read this on T-Nation and I wanted to share it. It's a quick article that just asks why we train. You should read it if you train or not just to get to see what drives people in the gym or in whatever you do. In the spirit of this, please check out this week's poll.


http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sex_news_sports_funny/pushing_back

Mitch Rothbardt
www.mitchrothbardttraining.com
(coming soon)

Thoughts and Injuries

Last Thursday I decided to try for a PR at cleans, going for 205. I had done 195 a little while ago and I felt, especially with how good I felt doing a 185 lb. clean and jerk with good form a week prior, that I had a good chance at 205. Well, unfortunately I was wrong. Double unfortunately I got hurt. I tried for one at 205, couldn't get it and then decided to try for 195. I got that one, but with very poor form and I tweaked my back nice and good. The wierd thing (and the not-so-good thing) is that the pain started out in my back and has since moved to my left leg. It has gotten better, but it really feels like a pinched nerve or something like that. It's different than my usual low back soreness. The frustrating thing is that, in general, my workouts lately have been really good and now I have to take time off. I hope to get back to it, at least with upper body stuff, Thursday or Friday. We'll see how it goes.

Anyway, this got me to thinking a little bit. I have been looking at some things on imbalances and compensation lately as I was trying trying to get a handle on my back stuff and I read a lot about people with shoulder problems and elbow problems along with the usual low-back problems. I have been lucky enough to have never had much of an issue with anything but my low back (except a minor left knee soreness from time to time) and I was thinking why that might be. I came to the conclusion that I have always done a good amount of unilateral (one-arm) upper training, but hardly any unilateral (one-leg) training. In other words I have always done dumbell military presses, dumbell bench presses, one arm rows, etc along with barbell work, but before a year ago I have rarely, if ever, done single leg squats, one leg deadlifts, lunges, etc. I think that this has allowed my lower body imbalances and compensations to continue while my upper body has been forced to correct itself. I think what I need to do once I start up again is really focus on unilateral lower body movements. I also just purchased Gray Cook's "An Athletic Body In Balance" book which is a book that focuses on helping people overcome their imbalances and compensations. Hopefully this will help not only me, but anyone else that I hope to train in the future.



I find this whole thing really amazing as I learn things and think about things. The thing about the human body is that it all makes perfect sense. Everything. The trick is going through all of the logical steps to find the answers.

Mitchell Rothbardt
www.mitchrothbardttraining.com
(coming soon)

You're A Winner!

Just thought that if you haven't seen this yet you must see it now.
Also, I have set as a goal to get my certification by Christmas. I just wanted to put it down in writing.
Watch and enjoy and remember:
You're A Winner!!!



Mitch Rothbardt
www.mitchrothbardttraining.com
(coming soon)

New Training Schedule and Jerking It Hard

Hello all you little five pound plates. How are you? I'm doing well. Actually I'm pretty excited right now. This morning I had an outstanding jerk. I hadn't jerked in a little while, about 6 weeks, then last week I did and this morning I had a really outstanding jerk. Man, it feels so good to get a good jerk going. What? I mean a clean and jerk in the gym! The exercise with a barbell! Man, you're sick! Anyway. My previous PR was a 195 lb. clean and jerk. This morning I did a 185 lb. one with good form and really no problem, so the good news appears to be that even not doing them for a little while, it doesn't look like I've lost any strength there.



I've also made a few changes in my training. I was getting a little tired of getting up at 4:00am to get to the gym all the time, so I made a change. I'm doing my olympic lifts, lower body and metabolic work in the morning and my upper body and abs in the afternoon during lunch. I just started this on Monday and it's been great. It gives me another 30-45 minutes of sleep a night and when you're only getting 5 or so hours some nights that makes a big difference. The biggest leak in my training is my sleep. It probably still is, but this does help a little.

I've also started on a new/old program. Old in that I'm going back to the Dos Remedios's Power Training book for the moment, but new because I am basing everything on volume-centered workouts. In other words, if you bench 100 pounds for 10 reps your volume on that set is 1000 lbs. I am trying to increase my volume on each exercise each workout. You can do that by adding weight or reps. I am trying to keep everything around the 4 sets of 10 with a 60 second rest protocol, but I will make adjustments as needed.

Also, need I mention my Philadelphia Phillies. I don't want to jinx anything, but last nights game was outstanding. Hopefully, things will continue in that vein.



Well that's all for now. Talk to you soon.

Mitch Rothbardt
www.mitchrothbardttraining.com
(coming soon)

Squat! Now!!

Hello. As I'm sure you know, or maybe not, I am working with my wife, Kristi, on a program, and many issues she has can be helped by doing squats. I was having a little trouble teaching her the basics of the movement, so I was looking around and I came across this outstanding article on Dave Draper's website. I don't want to just paste it here because I want his site to get the hits it deserves for it. Here's the link:

http://www.davedraper.com/how-to-squat.html

He basically breaks the movement down to a few very simple steps. Very good. As I'm sure you know squats can help your knees, back, glutes, hamstrings, hips, calves and spinal erectors, making it one of, if not the very best overall exercise for everything from muscle building to fat loss. Enjoy!



Mitchell Rothbardt
www.mitchrothbardttraining.com
(coming soon)

P.S. Only one more day to vote in this weeks poll!