LEO Training: Strength & Conditioning | Endurance | Health | Performance | Injury Prevention | Joe DeLeo

Episode 128 | Matt Fleekop Periodization in College Athletics

Matt Fleekop is a Strength & Conditioning Coach for Princeton University. Matt holds a  BS in Exercise Science and a Masters Degree in Applied Health Physiology. He has interned at Purdue University and EXOS and earned his masters degree while a  GA at Salisbury University. Matt provides great insight into what goes into training multiple sports during the academic calendar. In addition, he helps to touch on how his athletes have been effected by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Matt has worked with rowing, Men's Lacrosse, Women's Ice Hockey, Men's Soccer, Men's and Women's Tennis and Football.   Part 1 3-sport athlete (hockey, baseball, basketball) Undergrad – Rowan University, continued playing ice hockey for 2 years Interned at Purdue University after graduating After Purdue, came home and started working as a personal trainer and interning at Endeavor Sport’s Performance  Decided I wanted to keep pursuing a position in college; was offered a GA position at Salisbury University. Earned a masters in Applied Health Physiology, specializing in Strength and Conditioning.  Took another internship at EXOS in Frisco TX | 2015 I was the head strength coach at Rollins College. 1 assistant 1.5 years Responsible for 14 teams Relationship with coaches is critical. Listening to their communication and verbs, cues. Leads to building relationship, trust, and the team. Princeton University | 2017 Private vs. Collegiate/University People are paying to work with you vs. being assigned a coach   Schedule Private | 4-5 for 8-12 weeks University | 5-6 weeks at a time Maybe 2-3x a week and 1 hour at a time Holiday breaks, midterms and finals, travel How does training or training focus differ?  Part 2 What physiological qualities and skills do you prioritize for incoming freshmen? What are the fundamentals/basics every athlete should know and be able to do? How do you overcome or work with athletes who do not have the S&C experience compared to the rest of their teammates Challenges of NCAA calendar vs. EXOS environment? Training In-Season Athletes Work with Rowing Team; What did you prioritize for them? Show Notes: Matt Fleekop Princeton University Athletics Instagram

Episode 127 | Kellie Wilkie - Rib Stress Injuries in Rowing

In this interview I sit down with Kellie Wilkie and we discuss a research journal on rib stress injuries during the Rio Olympiad. Kellie has immense experience in the sport of rowing with massive contributions in both physiotherapy and research literature. Let me take a minute to tell you more about her background. Kellie graduated from the University of South Australia in 1998 with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Physiotherapy (Hons.) She established her own private sports based practice to be able to offer the best quality physiotherapy service to patients and to be able to structure a workplace that was optimal for her own health and wellbeing. In 2007 Kellie completed her post graduate clinical Masters degree in Sport Physiotherapy through the La Trobe University in Melbourne and shortly after, gained her Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) title of Sports Physiotherapist. Kellie is currently a member of the APA, Sports Physiotherapy Australia (SPA), Physiotherapy Business Australia (PBA) and Sports Medicine Australia (SMA). She is a Tasmanian Institute of Sport (TIS) consultant physiotherapist. Kellie provided physiotherapy services for the London 2012 Olympics as part of the Australian Rowing Team and was lead physiotherapist for the Australian Rowing Team for the 2016 Rio Olympics. Kellie has a special interest in the assessment and treatment of:   Rowers Shoulders Backs Part 1 Starting your own clinical practice and how you came to become physiotherapist for Rowing Australia. Where did your interest in rowing, shoulders, and backs stem from? As lead physiotherapist, share with us about the structure and management of the other physiotherapists across Australia who are working with high performance athletes. How does it work? How did you communicate? Physiotherapy in Australia vs. event/competition How does the interplay work on the sports medicine continuum….so between doctor, physiotherapist, S&C, and rowing coach? Rehabilitation and return to sport Identifying a pathway for the athlete to return Folding that information into future training programs to mitigate injury risks. Part 2 GrowingBodies Decent Rowing Part 3   Journals   Mythbusters Rib Stress injuries 2012-2016 Update on Low Back Pain Pathway?   Show Notes: Kellie’s Bio on Bodysystem Twitter GrowingBodies Getting to know the #ART support staff Mythbusters in rowing medicine and physiotherapy: nine experts tackle five clinical conundrums. Rib stress injuries in the 2012–2016 (Rio) Olympiad: a cohort study of 151 Australian Rowing Team athletes for 88 773 athlete days

Episode 126 | Giovanni Calabrese - Passion for Rowing

Subscribe & Review on : Apple Podcasts | Stitcher Giovanni Calabrese has a phenomenal background and story in rowing. He began competing as a lightweight - had great success at that weight class and transitioned to being a heavyweight. His career culminated in world championships in two different weight classes and an bronze medal at the Sydney Olympics. Giovanni continues to coach and develop young rowers. Enjoy the interview! Part 1 - Intro/Background How did you get started with rowing First success came as a lightweight How many years did you compete as a lightweight Won LM2x at World Championships in 1987 in Copenhagen, Denmark Moved to heavyweight and began competing in M1x and M4x Seoul Olympics in 1988 Achieved great result in m1x Raced in Lucerne in M4x Went with Agostino Abbagnale in m4x M1x finished 10th Won silver in M4x in 1989 Took  off 91 and 92? 1993 5th in m1x 1994 4th in m1x 1995 4th in m1x 1996 Olympics 10th in Atlanta Virus in spring of 1996; no training for 1 month Recovery took a very long time Won Worlds in M4x in 1997 1998 - Back in m1x; well prepared to train; raced waddell in heat; 4th position in final B 1999 - Moved to Sicily and began to coach In September 1999 came to return to rowing and go to olympic games Giovanni took the mindset to “Train for me and myself” and training like that everyday was the last day! Culmination in 2000 winning a bronze medal at Sydney in M2x 1st race in m2x was the heat at sydney Stay as close to Slovenia as possible Changed clubs in 2000 and started coaching there Part 2 - Coaching Teaching and developing the athletes National team - about results and winning 3 months stop because of COVID "they use the boat like they use the bike” ....Giovanni's philosophy on developing younger rowers and their skill set. Show Notes: World Rowing Profile Wikipedia Sydney 2000 Race

Episode 125 | Ed McNeely - Strength Standards in Rowing

Subscribe & Review on : Apple Podcasts | Stitcher Ed McNeely received his Masters Degree in Exercise Physiology from the University of Ottawa in 1994 and has been involved in the strength and conditioning industry for 30 years. He has been a consultant to twenty one Canadian national and professional sports teams and is currently the Strength and Conditioning Lead at the Canadian Sport Institute Ontario.  Ed served as a physiology and strength consultant to Rowing Canada for 24 years - through the Rio 2016 Olympics. He is the author of five books: Power Plyometrics, The Resistance Band Workout Book, One Hundred Strength Exercises, Training for Rowing, and Skillful Rowing. He has published over 100 articles on training and athlete conditioning covering topics such as strength training, plyometrics, making weight, assessing fitness, speed and power development, planning and periodization, and aerobic fitness. He is a frequent resource for other writers, acting as an expert for articles in Muscle & Fitness, Outside Magazine, the Georgia Tech Sports Medicine Newsletter, the Rowing News, the Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen and the Discovery Channel. Ed and I discuss rowing at the elite and masters levels. In addition, he shares how he was able to establish benchmarks for rowing high performance athletes and research using isometrics. Enjoy the show! Part 1 - Ed's  background and bio  What’s the backstory of how you came to work with and be the lead for  the Canadian Rowing Team?  24:00 patience 4-5 exercises for strength Part 2 - Strength Standards for Rowing You were one of the first to research and publish strength and conditioning standards for rowers from the junior through masters levels in both Rowing Faster and Strength and Power Goals for Rowers How did you go about identifying the strength to bodyweight factors for each age group? Did you test each age group? How did you standardize squat depth, bench pull and deadlift for athletes/age groups of various weights and heights? Absolute Strength vs. Relative Strength and why relative strength is more important to a rower. How much strength is too much? Once your athletes hit the standards in the chart outlined in the journal what qualities do you begin to focus on to continue their development? Do you have concerns about mass impeding their ability to row technically or move well? Would you continue to emphasize the back squat, deadlift, and bench pull or is there another skill/lift you would focus on given your experiences at this point? When I attended your lecture at Joy of Sculling you mentioned you have athletes deadlift 1x a week, and squat 3x a week. Why do you feel there should be greater emphasis placed on the squat? Peak Power is the limiting factor of performance Most rowers are pretty equally trained when it comes to aerobic capacity. Peak power is often a key differentiator in rowing performance. Do you think this applies to all rowers or more mature rowers (college, U23, Elite, Masters) vs. juniors and novices? When following the protocol for peak power improvement, power output (strokes) must be 90% of greater. Why? What exercises in S&C do you feel are more transferable to improving power in the rowing stroke? Plyometrics / Jump Training for Rowers “Plyometrics is the link between strength and power” The athlete should be able to squat at least their bodyweight for lower body plyometrics and bench press 0.75 times bodyweight for upper body plyometrics. Why do we need this foundation of strength before we start introducing plyometric work and how were you able to determine this for the rowing population?   Into catch position and accelerate out of catch position      Masters rowers Benefits of strength training for the aging athlete Osteoporosis, dynapenia, sarcopenia, combat loss of power/strength Why masters rowers may need to place greater emphasis on strength training for age and health related factors? What would you prioritize more for this population vs. college/elite? Why you are not a fan of machines vs. free weights. Show Notes: Original Research: Isometric Force Time Characterstics and Test-Retest Reliability of A Rowing Specific Isometric Assessment Strength Goals for Rowers How Hard is Hard Enough Strength Goals for Masters Rowers Peak Power: The Limiting Factor to Rowing Performance Jump Training for Rowers Part I Jump Training for Rowers Part II Breathing Stronger Balance and Stability for Rowing NSCA 2017 S&C Journal Excellence Award

Episode 124 | Theo Pickles - Velocity Based Training in Rowing

Subscribe & Review on : Apple Podcasts | Stitcher Theo Pickles is the High Performance Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Netherlands Rowing Team. You may recognize Theo as he was a guest on the podcast way back at the beginning, Episode 30 to be exact. In this interview, Theo and I catch up after our last interview which was four years ago! We discuss how he has implemented velocity based training for the Netherlands Rowing Team and how this allows him to implement autoregulation with these athletes. In addition, we also discuss educational opportunities for strength and conditioning coaches through the Australian Strength and Conditioning Association and how he has fine tuned the warm up for his athletes. Enjoy the show! Part 1 Updates from 1st Interview Any solid program has these three lifts! Power sessions structure: 2 power exercises, 2 strength (1 push, 1 pull); 45 minutes or so Training in afternoons, rowing in AM. Sync up intensity based on rowing session. Revisiting the interference effect. Why power/strength training alters motor patterns the following day? Part 2 Model for return to sport from injury. Exercise selection. VBT - why have you gone to this and how has it helped? Are you also tracking RPE and RIR? Fascicle length and pennation angles Individualization of programs by decreasing structure and having an ongoing conversation with the athlete,  changes in emphasis on coaching cues to come more into line with what the coaches want in the boat.  Men's team's periodization strategy Bosco strength continuum, force velocity profile, Gym Aware DL not a good choice Integrated over a year  Reactive Strength Index Athletes must be very proficient in movement; not for novice athlete Use mean velocity not peak velocity Show Notes: Moving the Bar Fast! Theo's Instagram Theo's Twitter