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Thought I would share one of our strength exercises with you guys... This guy has done 8 in a row fresh. Check it out, and obviously I am not serious that he is the strongest Pole vaulter in the world, but he is freakishly strong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9gBNQV_O_o

KYLE ELLIS wrote:Thought I would share one of our strength exercises with you guys... This guy has done 8 in a row fresh. Check it out, and obviously I am not serious that he is the strongest Pole vaulter in the world, but he is freakishly strong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9gBNQV_O_o

Not bad! I can only do these resting on my knees (8-10). Tried doing them like this, only to crash and burn

I did 5 in a row, not fresh, and strained my ab muscles for a good week or so. I wont try it again.... It just put way more strain on my core than i was used to and actually injured me for a week or so lol.

You guys need some work. Going flat is required!

Rick Baggett
WSTC

I've been told those are really bad for your back. I wish vaultmd would chime in on this one. You guys know more than I do but I'll stay away from them for me or any of my kids. Especially this time of year with the indoor season pretty much in full swing and outdoors right around the corner. Later..........Mike

souleman wrote:I've been told those are really bad for your back.

I think it all depends on how strong of a back you have ... to begin with. If you get any twinge at all from over-stressing your back or abs doing these, then you need to stop doing them.

But for someone with a strong core that can easily handle the stress ... like Kyle's athlete ... should be able to continue doing them no problem. Just make sure you're well-warmed up before you attempt these ... and stop the minute you feel anything "bad".

Kirk

I have all my athletes, including myself, do a slightly different version of these as part of our warm-up. These are actually excellent for strengthening your core AND lower back. The key is not to go too far out until you have the actual strength to go that far. It's very easy to go too far out and your back gives way instantly in some pain. Using a wheel is alot more advanced, especially since you need to "back up" to the starting position. That change in direction is where you get killed if you've gone to far forward for your strength level. Here's a video of what I do. The guy in the video doesn't actually go that far out. I can get damn close to parallel for a bunch of reps. These are easier than the wheel since you don't have to "back up" and your hands provide some nice friction with the ground. Anyway, it's a awesome exercise for strengthening the core, lower back and stretching the hamstrings. This exercise alone has done wonders for my lower back.

It's called the "Hand Walk" and it's the 4th video in the list.
http://www.mansfieldathletics.com/pole_ ... armup.html

superpipe wrote: It's called the "Hand Walk" and it's the 4th video in the list.
http://www.mansfieldathletics.com/pole_vaulting/dynamic_warmup/dynamic_warmup.html

Click the ">" to the right of the "Calf Stretch" drill.

Nice drill ... and safer, I would say!

Kirk

KirkB wrote:

superpipe wrote: It's called the "Hand Walk" and it's the 4th video in the list.
http://www.mansfieldathletics.com/pole_vaulting/dynamic_warmup/dynamic_warmup.html

Click the ">" to the right of the "Calf Stretch" drill.

Nice drill ... and safer, I would say!

Kirk

We did hand walks this evening. My group consists of kids age 13-17 (boys and girls). Everyone was able to do this flawlessly (though some lack some general flexibility). They also walk sideways with hands on one side of a mat, and feets on the other. Mat is so wide they have to stretch a bit for it.
Some of the stronger ones do a drill we call spiderman. Split hands and feet until it forms an X. The object is to have your body as close to the ground without touching. Hold for +10 secs. It's a tough drill on a slippery surface with sweaty palms.