Deadlifting for Performance. Hex-Bar or Straight-Bar?

The Deadlift is one of the most important exercises any athlete can perform in order to improve their performances.

It requires the use of coordination, lower body, core, grip and upper body strength and is excellent for improving athletes overall strength, power production and speed.

The two variations we'll be looking at in this post are the hex bar and straight bar deadlifts. .
The hex bar has been shown to require greater flexion (bending) of the knees and a greater usage of the quad muscles, unlike the straight bar technique which uses more hamstring, hip and lower back (Swinton et al, 2011).


So which technique is more beneficial for a GAA player?

Well let's look at what the research tells us.
A study done by Lake et al,. 2017 reported that the hex bar allows for ~6% heavier weights to be lifted for an athletes 1 rep max and also a massive 28% more power is produced during lighter lifts when compared to the straight bar technique at the same weight.

So what this tells us is that not only are we reportedly stronger using the hex bar, but we also get more power from our muscles at the exact same weight.

But how does any of that improve Gaa performance?

Simply put, training at a higher power production from our lower body has a significant cross over effect to improve sprint speed, agility, jumping ability and overall strength. All leading to overall performance improvements on the pitch (Beardsley et al., 2014).

So from the research, the hex bar technique may be best for optimising Gaa performance, however we must note that since the hex bar is more quad dominant, it's extremely important to include hamstring work to maximise leg power and avoid imbalances.

Protein: How much is enough?

If you're not eating enough protein, but you are training frequently, lifting weights you will see very little progress in performance or body composition.

Protein is used in the body for the growth and repair of muscle, body tissue, hair and nails.

Protein plays a huge role in both muscle growth and fat loss.

Eat enough protein each day is essentially one of the main factors that determine you achieving your goal or not.

If you're on a weightloss journey protein is even more important to you than ever.

To lose weight, the body needs to be in a calorie deficit.

How to be in a Calorie deficit = (increased energy expenditure through exercise/ decreased calorie intake)

When in a calorie deficit the body is in a catabolic state.

This means our body will metabolise body fat and muscle tissue as a source of energy to fuel the workings of the body.

Eating enough protein to meet your individual requirements is key to sustaining our beloved muscle.

To shorten things up if you don't eat enough protein whilst dieting you will lose alot of good quality muscle.
You won't have the toned, fit look.
That nice ass will leave you and it will look more like a pancake. .
Lads losing those arms, chest or back you worked to get.

Also the more muscle you have the more calories you burn at rest. From talking to new clients here in the gym they have a very strange understanding of protein.

Lets put a few bull s*** myths to bed:

1. Whey protein is not steroids.

2. Protein will not make you massive or bulky.

3. Eating too much protein is not toxic.

If you are really serious about reaching your goal or maximising performance, but you're not eating enough protein or tracking calories consumed you're basically pissing against the wind.

A good gauge:
Try to take in 1.5/ 2.2g of protein per kg of bodyweight each day!

Strength Training & Mental Health:

A few weeks ago The New York Times published an article on the benefits of weightlifting for preventing and decreasing depression. .
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The article presented data gathered from over 30 different studies that researchers analyzed.
Their findings showed clearly that consistent resistance training, whether heavy or light, anywhere from two to five days per week, helped men and women, young and old alike, to stave off depression and decrease its symptoms.
Additionally, weight training was reported to make participants feel immediately better after completing a workout.

The study demonstrated that strength training:
• Improved memory
• Improved executive control
• May lessen depression

A link to the article has been included below:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/06/well/weight-training-may-help-to-ease-or-prevent-depression.html

Best exercises to burn fat?

Exercises for specific areas will NOT burn fat in that area.

For example:
Doing hundreds of sit-ups and other ab related exercises will not burn fat from your stomach.

It doesn't work like that I'm afraid.

By doing lots of ab work you will increase the strength and grow muscle in the core area. But to reviel a six pack you must lower your Bodyfat %.

HOW CAN THIS BE DONE?

Exercising and moving more will create a deficit as will restricting calories.
Combining the two will give you a recipe for success if you stay consistent, patient and adhere to the process.

IF LOSING FAT AT A PARTICULAR AREA IN THE BODY IS BOTHERING YOU?

Concentrate on Correct nutrition for fat loss (deficit)

Exercise regularly and move more.

Be patient - Fatloss takes time don't believe the bullshit stories of losing a stone in 2 weeks.

THINK FAT LOSS NOT WEIGHT LOSS.

While in a calorie deficit, it is important that we do perform resistance exercises and make sure we consume enough protein in order to maintain our muscle mass while we burn fat instead (Mettler et al., 2010).

Key: Patience and adherence to the correct process.

Intercounty Level Recovery Strategies:

Recovery must start immediately with some light jogging and stretches for 5-10mins after exercise. This helps ease our heart rate and breathing back to normal and removes lactic acid from our muscles reducing soreness and the chances of cramping. .
Sports drinks a handy way of getting necessary carbs, sugar and salt into our bodies immediately after intense exercise (Campbell et al., 2013).

Levers et al., 2015 and many more studies have shown that consuming supplements high in antioxidant properties such as 'Cherry active' can help reduce the loss of muscular strength and lower muscle soreness

After matches we need to replace all lost fluids from sweat by rehydrating properly. A helpful trick to know how much you should drink is to weigh yourself before and after exercise, for every kg you've lost due to sweating, you should drink 1.5 litres of water spread out over 2-4hrs.

After a match or training we should refuel with high carb and protein meals to help muscle recovery and replenish our energy levels. Foods like chicken, lean meat, potato, rice and pasta are ideal. Aim to eat as soon as possible after training or matches as within roughly the first hour after exercise our muscles can absorb the nutrients faster and accelerate their recovery (Millard-Stafford et al., 2009).

A popular recovery method nowadays is cold treatment such as cryotherapy or else just swimming in the sea after exercise. While the research is debatable as to the effectiveness of athlete recovery, there is certainly no down side to cold treatment as many athletes report feeling 'fresher' afterwards and feel ready to return to train sooner.

A good night's sleep of between 8-10 after intense exercise can help our muscles recover quicker and also have us feeling well rested to carry out all the other jobs we do in our lives. .
Our muscles react best to active recovery rather than doing nothing at all. Steady state walking or swimming and dynamic stretching the day after a match or a hard training has been shown to help quicker muscle recovery and aid in lactic acid removal. Allowing us to return to train sooner (Ezequiel et al., 2013).