Q&A: Cybernetic Periodization

Mike,

Love the blog!

Can you talk a little bit more about what you mean by 'cybernetic programming', and give us some examples of how you use that?

Thanks!

Yudi Kerbel, NASM-CPT

First off, thanks for the question Yudi! If anyone else has questions they want me to cover, please leave them in the "Comments" section.

The term cybernetic periodization was first coined (as far as I'm aware of) by Mel Siff in his textbook Supertraining. The essence of the concept is that you need to be able to adjust your training on the fly dependent upon how you're feeling. Here's an example:

My MMA fighter Dan came in for his workouts this week looking beat up. Now, this is to be expected - he's training at a new facility with better fighters, AND he's peaking for a fight next weekend. While I still would've liked for him to get a few heavy/explosive lifts in this week, it wasn't really in the cards as I had originally programmed.

If I were a slave to the program as originally written, he would've lifted heavy regardless - but in all honesty, that would've been stupid. I would've beaten him up worse, his lifts would probably have looked terrible, and I'd risk getting him injured. Also, in case I didn't mention it before, Dan is an MMA fighter - I have no desire to be arm-barred or choked out in my own gym!

Instead, we focused on getting a good lift or two in each day and then really geared back his assistance lifts. This gives him extra recovery time and, in the long run, will allow him to be at his best come next weekend.

That's the essence of cybernetic periodization - lift hard/heavy/fast on the days you feel really good. On the days you don't, gear things back so that the next time you hit the gym you're ready to go. It really comes down to listening to your body and doing what it's capable of on any given day.

I hope that helps - good luck!

Stay strong
MR

Remembering September 11th

The blog is going to be a little bit more somber today, and for good reason.

I think every one of us remembers September 11th, 2001 a little differently. I was a young Masters student, and I found out about the terrorist attacks while heading into the BSU athletic weight room. We couldn't peel our eyes away from the TV, watching something that none of us could imagine unfold before our very eyes.

But after last year, I have another reason to remember September 11th. One of my best friends, Ryan, took his own life. I can't put into words how it made me feel, when I first heard the news for myself. I mean, how do you respond? What's a normal reaction?

Ryan and I weren't "best-friends" close, but we were close enough. We lived together for a year in college. We enjoyed each other's company, and he was someone I could always talk to with ease and candor. Quite simply, he was a good friend and someone that I think fondly of all the time. He will always be missed.

Whether it's due to the 9/11 attacks, because a friend or loved one is down, or simply because it's long overdue, take the time to tell you friends and loved-ones how much you care about them. In this day and age it's very easy to get caught up in your work, your life, whatever - but at the end of the day, there's no worse feeling than knowing you didn't get to say goodbye to someone you love.

Stay strong
MR

MMA Training

As promised, I'm working on making the blog a little bit more oganized. You'll see some housekeeping on the right side (at least half of the other blog links didn't work!), and hopefully the content will be a little bit more streamlined as well.

Today, I'd like to discuss the training of MMA athletes. As many of you already know I've been working with Dan New here at I-FAST, and Dan has a huge fight coming up in two weeks against Jason "The Human Weapon" Chambers.

One of the primary reasons I took up Krav Maga a while back was to better understand what it's like to actually train for MMA. I've played nearly every sport imaginable in my life, and I feel that makes me a better coach when working with those athletes. You don't have to be an all-star, mind you - rather, it puts you in your athletes shoes so you have a better idea of how to program for them. I wanted to have a better idea of Dan's training so that I could be a better coach for him.

I quickly learned that when training for MMA, you need a lot of different physical qualities:

- Flexibility/mobility
- Endurance
- Strength
- Power
- Agility

And beyond these separate physical qualities, you also need a blending of them as well! In other words, you not only need power and endurance, but you also need power-endurance if you want to knock someone out in the 3rd or 5th round. Therefore, writing programming for an MMA athlete can be very challenging.

If you're working with an MMA fighter, the first thing you need to do is assess them. This could be a static assessment, a dynamic assessment, or simply watching them spar or fight. From there, you need to talk to the athlete and determine what he/she feels their weaknesses are. Obviously conditioning is always going to be important, but if they're weak as a kitten for their bodyweight/class, you need to improve upon that. Bill talks a great deal about assessments in our Indy Seminar Series.

With Dan, we've put a real premium on improving his strength and power while maintaining, or even improving slightly, his conditioning. This would be easy if I only had him training in the weight room, but when you add in specific training for Muay Thai, BJJ and just general mat/conditioning work, that's a lot of hours in the gym! The best thing you can do is try and learn about your athletes - how they're feeling on any given day, what kind of loading they'll respond best to, etc. This is cybernetic periodization at its finest.

The bottom line is preparing someone for MMA is not an easy gig - at the very least start with a needs analysis to determine strengths/weaknesses and begin your journey there. As training progresses, don't forget to re-evaluate and determine how physical qualities have changed, and how the training regimen should change to help them be at their best on fight night.

Stay strong
MR

How do you train minus two knee ligaments?

For those of you who follow professional football you've no doubt heard about Shawne Merriman; he's quite possibly one of the most dynamic defensive players in the league. (Just understand that it pains me to say that considering he plays for the Chargers, but I digress).

In case you've missed it, Shawne had off-season surgery to repair torn cartilage in his knee, but hadn't felt good in camp. He recently had 4 surgeons evaluate him and tell him that he needs reconstructive surgery because he has torn the PCL and LCL ligaments in his knee. Obviously, this would effectively end his season.

However, no one said that young men think about the long-term; Shawn has gone against the docs recommendations and decided against surgery even though he risks a "career-ending injury." So how could he possibly play in this state? Let's take a quick step back to examine how we create stability around our joints.

In your joints, you have what are called active and passive stabilizers. The passive stabilizers include cartilage structures (menisci in your knee, labrum in your shoulder, etc.), ligaments, and joint capsules. They are passive in nature because they don't contract and relax like muscles do. In essence, they just kind of keep things in place.

In contrast, your muscles are active stabilizers - you can use them to contract and improve stability around a joint. In the case of your knee the primary active stabilizers include the hamstrings, adductors, gluteals, and quadriceps.

So what happens when you tear two of the four ligaments in your knee? First off, you become very unstable - you've essentially lost half of your passive stability. If you asked for my opinion, I would tell you that he's assinine for trying to play. I have an infininte amount of respect for playing through the pain and giving yourself to your team, but I definitely worry about the long-term ramifications of doing so. With that being said, however, what could he do from a training standpoint to make it through the season?

The answer, my friends, is to get his active stabilizers as strong as possible. The stronger he gets his glutes and hamstrings to help him declerate, the better off he'll be. He still may not make it through the season, but it will at least give him a fighting chance. Another option would be a serious sized brace to help re-create some of the lost stability. Now keep in mind we don't know the severity of his tears, but I would assume you're looking at least grade 2 (partial thickness) if not grade 3 (full thickness) tears if all 4 docs want him to have surgery.

If you're interested in learning more about the anatomy and function of your knees, along with how to keep them healthy, be sure to pick up a copy of my Bulletproof Knees manual. Your knees will thank you.

Stay strong

MR

BTW - Can I give myself a virtual high-five for coming up with an entire blog post that consists of one single thought? Gooooooooooooooooo me!

More random thoughts...

This should be the title of EVERY blog post! But in all seriousness, look out for a more organized blog in the near future.

Regardless, here's some more miscellaneous thoughts - enjoy!

- Comments are on - if you like the blog, hate the blog, or simply have something to say, let me know!

- Bored at work? Want some kick-ass music? Check out the following station on iTunes:

Radio-->Rock--> Big R Radio: 80's Metal FM

If you grew up to the sounds of Whitesnake, Bon Jovi, Poison, Ozzy Osbourne, Guns 'n' Roses, Motely Crue and the like, you'll love this station. It's getting rocked almost daily at home and in the gym.

- Football season starts today! And just to prove to you that it doesn't pay to hate on the Colts, Eric Cressey (the most loyal NE fan I know) drafted Joseph Addai, Reggie Wayne and Adam Vinatieri in his fantasy draft. The football gods are looking down on you EC!!!

- I had a new article go up at Figure Athlete.com - while it's geared towards women, a lot of men would see good progress on this program as well:

Vixen Liftin' - The Comprehensive Program

- What's that? You want to know what's playing on Big R Radio right now? Can you say GREAT WHITE? I suddenly feel the need to grow my hair out, tease it, and blow it up with some serious hairspray.

I think that's enough rambling for today - if I don't get a post up tomorrow, have a great weekend!

Stay strong
MR

Life, updates, and more randomness

Wow has this blog taken a turn for the worst! Things are pretty sporadic in my head, and so they shall stay the same in my blog (for now).

- In case, for some totally uncomprehensible reason, you aren't signed up for my newsletter, you missed out on a big week this week. Eric and I are having a sale on the BTEA DVD series, and I released a free soft-tissue e-manual for you to peruse. You can find it here:

http://www.robertsontrainingsystems.com/newsletter/september12008.htm

- Following up on that e-manual, I think Leigh Peele likes it:

http://avidityfitness.net/2008/09/01/mike-robertson-self-myofascial-release-aka-he-gave-away-a-whole-freaking-ebook/

Yes, I have a disease - it's called sexy.

- I-FAST is continuing it's rapid growth. We've had new clients joining every week, with no end in sight! I can honestly say this is the most fun I've ever had training (i.e. torturing) people in my life.

- You think life is good now? Just wait 'til tomorrow - football season is about to begin!

- There's no better way to learn how to train a client for their sport than to do it yourself. For instance, I've been playing a little golf lately, and you learn really quickly how important it is to have good stability around the core/lumbar spine, good hip rotation (especially internal rotation), and good thoracic mobility to boot. If you're unsure about the best way to train a client, try training for their sport a bit - it should make a huge difference in your outlook.

That's it for now - I'll be back again soon (I hope!)

Stay strong
MR

Eating healthy while eating out

This past weekend I had the chance to catch up with some old friends in Chicago. One thing I always come back to when traveling is trying to make solid food choices while "on the road."

Luckily, if you arm yourself with a little knowledge it's generally pretty easy to be successful. Here are some things I try and do to eat well on the road, regardless of the situation:

- Pack small snacks. My wife and I are really good about packing mixed nuts, water, protein bars, protein shakes, etc. If you're in a pinch, these items can substitute for a meal. Along those same lines, it will curb your appetite so you don't binge on the 8 lb. burger (yes, one of the restaurants we ate it really did offer it up!)

- Always order a sald and/or extra fruit. If your only goal is to consume copious amounts of calories, then by all means forget about this tip and get that fried appetizer sampler platter and double dessert. If you are in the least bit concerned about your health (not to mention your waistline), adding a sald or fruit to your order helps ensure that you get more nutrients and fiber from your food.

- Opt for extra virgin olive oil or vinagrettes instead of "traditional" salad dressings. Not only do they taste better (assuming your palette isn't dead), but they typically have better fatty acid profiles.

A few more quick hits, without all the explanations:

- If you are looking to shed pounds or body fat, say no to the pre-meal bread and get double-veggies for your sides.

- Drink water vs. calorie-laden beverages.

- Be reasonable with your meat selections. I'm all for a huge slab of beef from time-to-time, but eating a 10 or 12 ounce steak every night probably isn't necessary.

- Whenever possible sub a salad, veggie or even a soup instead of fried side items. They may taste good but there's minimal nutritional value in fried foods.

- I won't ever tell you that beer is bad - at the very least, drink light vs. normal beers.

While eating out or on the road may never be optimal, performing some damage control can go a long way to helping you achieve your health and fitness related goals.

Stay strong
MR