Bar Patterns: Good Mornings Part 7 in the series Grasp the bar with a clean grip. Your hands should be just a little wider apart than shoulder-width. You do not want to hold the bar with a wide grip, this will cause an internal rotation of your shoulders and loss of an upright posture as you stand in a position that resembles the back squat. Place the bar on your upper back so it is resting on your trapezius muscles as they are retracted back very tightly. You should not have the bar in contact with any vertebrae as it rests on your upper back. The shoulder retraction contracts your trapezius...

Bar Patterns Part 6 – Bent Over Row Grasp the bar with a clean grip. This is determined by having your fingers just outside of your shoulders while the bar is resting on the front of your shoulders, like you are setting up for a front squat (this is also called the “rack position”). Begin with the bar hanging in front of your hips and standing with your feet hip width apart. This next piece might sound like an optional step, but it is paramount when it comes to performing the Olympic Lifts properly as we progress into explosive lifting. Hold the bar with a ”hook grip”....

Bar Patterns: Romanian Deadlift Part 5 in the series Grasp the bar with a clean grip. This is determined by having your fingers just outside of your shoulders while the bar is resting on the front of your shoulders like you are setting up for a front squat (this is also called the “rack position”). Begin with the bar hanging in front of your hips and standing with your feet hip-width apart. This next piece might sound like an optional step, but it is paramount when it comes to performing the Olympic Lifts properly as we progress into explosive lifting. Hold the bar with a ”hook...

Bar Patterns Part 4 – Overhead Squat Grasp the bar with a snatch grip. To find your snatch grip hold the bar at waist level with locked-out elbows. Slowly adjust your grip in or out, while still maintaining straight arms, until the bar hangs at the height of your crease (The crease is the point where your upper leg joins together with your torso. The line that is formed here in your hips is the crease). Be sure you have an even grip on the bar, you do not want the bar either off to the left nor the right. With this grip, press the bar overhead and balance it over your ears. It is very...

Bar Patterns Part 3, Front Squat Grasp the bar with a clean grip. This is determined by having your fingers just outside of your shoulders while the bar is resting in the “rack position”. The rack position creates a stable platform for the bar to sit on the front of your shoulders while not loading your wrists too much. Here your elbows should be directed inwards and upwards so your upper arm is parallel to the floor. Keep your hands lightly holding the bar and all of your fingers under the bar (your thumbs should be over the bar). Keep your upper back tight and extended, visualize...

Bar Patterns: Back Squat Grasp the bar about 3-4 inches wider than you use in your clean grip. Your hands should be just a little wider apart than your shoulder width. You do not want to hold the bar with a wide grip, this will cause an internal rotation of your shoulders and loss of an upright posture as you lower into the squat. Place the bar on your upper back so it is resting on your trapezius muscles as they are retracted back very tightly. You should not have the bar in contact with any vertebrae as it rests on your upper back. The shoulder retraction contracts your trapezius muscles...

Bar Patterns in Strength Training Part 1 in the series   Establishing proper movement patterns in our sports is one of the keys to success in reaching our goals. The human body has seven primary movement patterns that are refined throughout life: gait (walking or running), squatting, lunging, pulling, pushing, pressing (overhead) and twisting. Your brain is very efficient and one of its objectives is to record and recall movement patterns that make life easier, allowing it more capacity to handle anomalies in movement such as speed, rate of force production, and forces moving through...

10 Easy Things You Can Do To Improve Performance Here we are on snow and getting really close to the season’s first competitions for many of you. We have seen a lot of great work throughout the summer and during the Fall strength and conditioning sessions. I know it’s difficult to have your most productive training day on-hill every single time you put on your skis or board, but here are 10 simple things you can address every time you train, to help you improve through the season. Be On-Time Plan a little extra time to get to the hill every day so you are not in a rush when...

Maintaining Strength & Fitness Levels during the In-Season All of you Team Summit athletes have put in a lot of time in the off-season, as well as the pre-season, getting ready to put down some personal best performances. You have been diligent in your strength training, focused on flexibility/mobility and have put together solid pre-activity warm-ups and post-activity cooldowns. Don’t forget about your conditioning during the in-season.   Be sure to assign some training time in your busy schedules to address conditioning protocols. You should have at least two conditioning...

The Next Step in Preparation for Being on Snow By Chris Hughes Pre-season strength and conditioning are now entering the final phase!  It's time for unilateral loading exercises.  We are all very familiar with bilateral strength training.  Simply put, it means you are working both limbs and sides simultaneously.  Either both legs or both arms share the responsibility to work together to move a load; think a two-leg squat or Romanian deadlift.  These are all great exercises to build strength and power, but we also need to address the ability to handle rotational...

FALL STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING Fall strength and conditioning are in full swing. Starting just after the start of the school year, Athletes and Coaches have been busy at the Copper Mountain Clubhouse.  Academy Athletes have occupied the Team Summit gym at Copper Mountain for strength training, mobility and power work. They are also working with their head coaches on aerobic fitness and team building. Thursdays have proven to be an excellent opportunity to get all Academy Athletes together in one location for fieldwork, sprint drills and games.  The larger groups ensure Team Summit...