The Progress Theory

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode, we have Pro MMA fighter and S&C coach Chris Miah. Chris has fought professionally throughout Europe in promotions including Cage Warriors, Akhmat, BAMMA and ACB, and if you want to watch his fights I have included online links below.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lw5rnCCQkcIn this episode, Chris shares his experiences in MMA and how he’s used these experiences to form his coaching of the next generation of fighters. There are a lot of factors to consider when preparing a fighter from the grassroots level to the professional level, and Chris really shows his experience when rationalising his approach to coaching. This includes the importance of communication, how consistency is key, and how fighters should spend more time developing their skill set. If you want to compete in MMA or want to coach MMA, this is the episode for you.In this episode, we discuss:2:20 - An introduction to Chris Miah6:04 - Is Chris Looking to fight again? Choosing fights to help develop coaching skills13:13 - How Chris started MMA and how it changed him as a person16:45 - Biggest lesson from his MMA career22:22 - Developing skills in MMA26:45 - The 4 key areas of MMA28:03 - How Chris started his MMA club as a response to fighters rushing their technical development29:50 - Training differences between the off-season and preparing for a fight.34:45 - do S&C MMA coaches make the mistake of going too specific too soon?38:10 - Do some pro fighters make similar mistakes as amateur athletes?45:11 - Communication between coaches and athletes the most essential factor in the success of a fighter49:16 - How MMA will change as the sport becomes more global and professional51:57 - How to contact ChrisFinal ThoughtsI loved hearing about Chris' background and how he got into the sport. It’s one of those stories you love to hear where someone has used sport to shape them as a person and has led them to great successes. After this episode I watched the youtube links Chris sent me of his fights and the guy is a machine, so check them out too. I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas of the chat with Chris which really resonated with me.Firstly, his message of mastering the basics. People in many different areas of life try to get ahead by trying to copy the professionals or accelerating their development too quickly without putting in the time to master the basics. In fact, many of the stories I read from professionals all say that mastering the basics is the key to success. Chris really emphasises how important this is in MMA as whatever happens in a fight you’ll always have your mastered skill set to fall back on. If this isn’t developed and you fatigue heavily during a fight, you can be in serious trouble. This message seems even more important when ignoring this could result in your getting knocked out.And secondly, what I think makes Chris stand out is his ability to learn what is missing throughout his fighting career and try to solve this during his coaching career. Fighters accelerating their development too quickly? He started Combat Sports Centre which has a philosophy of working on the basics. Communication between coaches is poor? Chris has enhanced his coaching in overseeing the skill and physical development of the athlete while bringing in experts in other areas. He’s the coordinator, which will help make sure all coaches are working in unison towards the same goal. He’s providing the expertise, culture and management skills that are essential for success in MMA. I'm looking forward to what Chris does next. Check out his Instagram to see if he does fight in the near future.Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode. To find more of our episodes please head to our website theprogresstheory.com where you can download our podcasts or watch the full episode via our youtube link. We’ll see you in the next one.FOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricep@chrismiahcoachinghttps://www.chrismiah.com/Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowSt Mary’s S&C MScCombat Sports Centre, SolihullFearless, MMARenegade, MMAKhabib NurmagomedovUFC S&C handbookUFCOlympics@TheRock

Hello and welcome to the Progress Theory where we discuss scientific principles to optimise human performance. It did it, I completed my first half iron. It was certainly an experience as it is still a new sport to me and I am unaccustomed to the high volumes of training associated with this length of event, but I felt I held my own, learned so much about myself and am looking forward to what the future brings on this new path to hybrid style training. So I thought it best to do another performance review episode to reflect on the event, the training that preceded it, and briefly touch where my goals will be set next. Anyways, let’s give a recap of the event. It was the gauntlet race held by Castle Triathlon, which was a half iron distance (1.9km swim, 90km bike, and a half marathon run, so 21.1km). I was particularly nervous about the bike as I feel that is my weakest section and takes up the most time. However, I surprised myself in that section, and managed to complete the whole race in 7 hours, 29 minutes and 15s. To be honest, as this was my first ever half iron I was happy with anything under 8 hours, so beating that expectation by roughly 30 minutes is a great personal result and certainly something to build on.In this episode, I cover: The swim – 47:092:02 pace, did over 400m extraGoogles, poor at spotting. Open water skills needs work.Swimming has improved. Focused on 2-3 cues from my wifeGoing forward – work on drills (legs) The bike – 4:11:0321.8kph pace – wanted 22.5 but still happyPosition is still a problem. Becoming more tolerant of the bike position but 90km is still a lot.Gear change, hill workGoing forward – work on position, work on hipThe run – 2:18:45No expectations as it was a boggy hilly trail run. Hadn’t really prepared for thatFelt ok for 12km, post 16km my hips really started to hurt. Back was seizing up on the hills post bike.Strategy could have been better – walk hill, faster on flats and downhillsDepends on length of distances in the future. What went well with the training and event? · Nutrition – Did not feel like I lacked energy from lack of fuel. Bike nutrition was fine (sweets, gels in water), the event did a good job of providing food/water so there was no excuse.· Swim – only focusing on 2-3 cues meant I had time to practise and work on them· Bike – doing the racecourse the week before. Selecting training runs that were worse than the actual event· Reaching a period of overreaching at the end of week 6 then beginning the deload· Making compromises on the training runs to ensure my calf did not get injured prior to the event. What could have been improved? · The ITERA walk· More time outside on the bike. Other than that, to be honest, I wouldn’t have changed anything. My weight training supported my strength and was more specific to running (in my case trying to be springy). By the final 4 weeks I was only doing what was necessary, no additional fluff that could fatigue me and affect my swim, cycle and run sessions. So that worked well as I felt good going into the event. And using RPE to track the majority of my progression week to week allowed me to see how I was progressing. For example, certain speeds by the end of the programme had a reduced rpe associated with them i.e I found them easier, (5m/km pace example). It was the optimal beginner’s programme. It was uber easy and particularly pushed me to ensure I adapted and improved, but it was also easy to auto-regulate when necessary, as a lot of what was governing the session was subjective i.e the use of rating of perceived exertion. Check my Instagram posts on the @drphilrpice account so you can see what training I did each week. Hopefully, this will give you some ideas for when planning your own training programme for a similar event. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the performance review for the Progress Theory. My next challenge will be a little heavier, so make sure you follow us on Instagram and subscribe to The Progress Theory on youtube or your podcast app of choice. It would be amazing if you could also leave us a review. We’re always looking to improve the podcast and make sure our listeners are getting content they can use to help with their own training. We’ll see you in the next episode

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In today’s episode, we have Steph Lazarczuk, Researcher and lecturer in sports rehab, with her area of expertise being hamstring injury and return to sport. Hamstrings injuries are one of the most frustrating injuries for athletes because if they are not treated with the appropriate exercise protocols and progressions they’re likely to reoccur. This is particularly relevant for athletes whose sports require high levels of hamstring strength and contraction velocities, such as sprinting. In this episode, Steph discusses the role of the hamstring muscle, determines how it can be susceptible to injury, and how strength, range and high speed running are all components of an effective hamstring rehab protocol. In short, if you work with or compete in a sport that involves running you need to listen to this episode.In this episode, we discuss:1:08 - An introduction to Steph Lazarzcuk3:22 - What lead Steph towards Hamstring research5:19 - What is the function of the Hamstrings and why are they susceptible to injury8:14 - The most common hamstring injuries and where they occur15:05 - The hamstring in a lengthened state is when it is most susceptible to injury16:07 - Determining if someone is at risk of a hamstring injury24:55 - Long-term programming for hamstrings post-injury32:57 - Common mistakes coaches make during hamstring RTP programming37:22 - 3 key points for improving your hamstring training40:37 - How to contact StephFinal ThoughtsIt was great to have the role of the hamstring fully described so you could understand how they can be susceptible to injury when exposed to sudden high forces when in a lengthened position. Hamstring strength is important, but the hamstrings are involved with so many human functions that rehabbing the hamstrings or preparing them for peak sporting performance is not as simple as just ‘do a load of nordic curls’.Here are some final thoughts I had on the episode:Firstly, it was really interesting to hear where hamstring injuries occur. Sprinting related hamstring injuries generally occur around the knee, whereas the hamstring injuries which occur more towards the hip are caused by a sudden slip or reach. Understanding how the hamstrings tend to get injured is vital when planning training programmes for the hamstrings as then it can focus on developing the physical qualities needed to ensure that when the hamstring is exposed to a situation that could injure it, it has the capacity to deal with the forces and the situation.Secondly, I loved hearing her ideas around working on many physical qualities simultaneously post hamstring injury, and making training decisions based on how the athlete is tolerating the discomfort. Only focusing on one physical quality in training, such as isometric strength, before moving onto the next physical quality might mean the athlete misses an opportunity for development, or at least certainly delayed. More of a conjugate approach, so working on multiple physical qualities simultaneously, is really growing in popularity in the S&C and rehab space.Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode. Follow The Progress Theory on Instagram, Youtube, and your podcast app. We’ll see you in the next one.FOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@drphilprice@stephlazarczukExplore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowIn this episode, we mentioned the following resources:Major league baseballSteph’s research

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. On today’s episode, we have Adam Mattiussi, S&C coach and researcher for the Royal Ballet where we find out just how the greatest ballet dancers in the world physically prepare for their performances.People don’t normally associate strength and conditioning and ballet. However, elite ballet dancers have an intense rehearsal and performance schedule, which can consist of 6-8 hours per day of training and practising. That is a serious number of jumps and landings, and if the dancers are not physically prepared, the risk of injury or poor performance increases. In this episode, Adam gives us an insight into how elite ballet dancers train, what the common injuries are, and how he physically prepares all the dancers to ensure peak performance.1:08 - Introduction to the podcast2:20 - An introduction to Adam Mattiussi and his journey to delivering S&C to the Royal Ballet12:30 - A typical week of training and rehearsing for a ballet dancer (all depending on their role)19:22 - How S&C support is structured at the royal ballet24:23 - An individualised approach to Ballet S&C delivery26:31 - Types of S&C training used at the Royal Ballet32:34 - Common injuries in Ballet35:17 - Does the artistic nature of jumping and landing in ballet derive specific injuries?37:40 - Changing S&C support due to injury40:22 - Career advice to those wishing to get into S&C delivery for Ballet42:50 - Questions from the listeners.(42:59- 46:09) - How do you optimise recovery when you have so little time for recovery?(47:11 - 48:55) - Is there any targeted additional conditioning alongside performing?Final Thoughts It was great to truly understand the commitment and how much training an elite Ballet Dancer does for their art, and even more interesting to see how the set-up at the Royal Ballet works in order to provide them with the support they need to ensure peak performance.I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.Firstly, just how much training the elite ballet dancers do, especially if they are a principal dancer, often doing multiple rehearsals for multiple shows throughout the week. On top of that, the principal dancers may have performances that consist of sequences involving an intense number of technical jumps in a short space of time. This just makes you appreciate how elite these athletes are and how robust they need to be to tolerate that volume of jumping and landing.Secondly, because of differences in the schedule between dancer rank, every dancer needs their own individualized approach to support coming from the staff. This seems like a difficult balancing act but I love how Adam has categorised the different approaches each dancer takes for S&C support. He clearly knows his athletes, knows when to provide support and when to try and help work with the team to change a dancer’s schedule to ensure they get enough recovery.And finally, Adam’s research into an injury at the Royal Ballet has been incredible and I highly recommend checking out his research which I have linked in the show notes. I find it fascinating how certain injuries appear to be more common and can be influenced by the role of the performer and possibly due to the technical demand of the artistic style of jumping. This highlights how important it is to understand your sport and its culture if you provide rehab or S&C support as this knowledge is essential for bringing dancers back to full fitness after injury.Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and if ballet performance is a career you wish to pursue, there is plenty of information here to help you head in that direction and achieve your goals. As always, please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube and. It would be awesome if you could also leave us a review and share this episode on your insta story to help the show grow. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you at the next one.FOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricep@adammattiussiExplore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowOrganisationsThe Royal BalletSt Mary’s UniversitySt Mary’s S&C BScSt Mary’s Sports rehab MScHarlequins RFCLondon broncosLondon WelshGB WeightliftingAcademics and academic workAdam’s researchAlex Wolf trunk training paperJon GoodwinDan CleatherGregg Retter

Hello and welcome to the Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. I am Dr Phil Price and here is another episode of the performance review.I wanted to go over a few more aspects of my training which I feel need to be discussed and which I feel has greatly helped me over the last 7 weeks. Just to re-cap, I will be attempting my first half iron triathlon at Hever castle at the festival of endurance hosted by Castle triathlon. That’s a 1.9km swim, 90km bike and a half marathon run. I am relatively new to the sport of Triathlon and don’t have a huge endurance background, but this is a great start into what will be learning the science behind being a hybrid athlete i.e developing strength and endurance simultaneously.So for this performance review episode I wanted to focus on a few programming decisions. This isn’t just the rationale behind why I have included something, but why I didn’t do a certain test but intend to in the future. Ultimately, this isn’t an 8 week training programme and then i’m finished. I want to continue to push and develop as a hybrid athlete for years to come so decisions I make here early on are really quite important.So, the 3 topics I will cover in the performance review are:The 3-minute all out test and why I’m saving that for laterPorgramming volume and intensity for 8 weeksAnd why performing is a skill and should be included in your programme. Why I didn’t do the 3-minute all-out testOn one of our recent Progress Theory podcasts, we chatted with S&C coach Christian Vassallo and his work and research on the 3-minute all-out test and its use in programming. It’s an awesome episode and I’d recommend all of our listeners to check it out as the 3-minute all-out test is horrible to do, but it is easy to implement and gain information about your current physical capabilities. As a short overview, the 3-minute all-out test provides you with your critical speed (if running), or critical power if cycling or rowing etc. This is the speed or power you theoretically can maintain for a long duration based on your aerobic and anaerobic capacity. You can train above this speed, however, you have a limited resource to be able to maintain that speed. Think of it as the battery life on your phone. The higher you venture above this speed, the more limited your capacity is to maintain that speed. With this knowledge, you can programme training at different intensities because you know how much battery life you have at certain speeds and power outputs. You can also use this information to predict race performance.So if this test provides you with so much valuable information, why haven’t I done it for my training leading up to the half iron. Put simply, I'm working my way up to it. The 3-minute all-out test is still a maximal intensity effort, and due to entering a new sport, I felt I was not ready and in the right physical condition to do it. Firstly, this is from an injury perspective. After injuring my soleus during the marathon just before Christmas in 2020, the muscle tissue does have a tendency to restrain itself (the biggest predictor of injury being previous injury and all that). I still have work to do on this issue, and appropriately increasing the volume running along with an appropriate strength programme will help. However, doing a test where I have to maximally sprint when the muscle tissue isn’t ready to handle that load is not smart. Think about it this way - if someone was new in the weight room would you get them doing a 1RM squat? If you’re smart, you wouldn’t. If they’re new to training or are coming back from injury they’re likely going to improve in the squat if the programme is appropriate, regardless of what their 1RM squat is. This is the same situation with my running. Now you could also argue why I didn't do the 3-minute all-out test for my cycling. That decision was based on knowing what the main focus of the training was - the efficiency of the skill. I am new to road bikes and I am still learning how to perform the skill, especially on the hills. It is so easy for me to revert back to just pushing on the pedal rather than producing force throughout the whole cycle. Therefore, if I had done a 3-minute all-out test at the beginning of the 8 weeks I would have done it with shoddy technique. How valuable do you think that data would be for me? If my skill improves a lot in 3 weeks, all of a sudden I'm programming training based on numbers achieved during a test when my technique was considerably worse.These are all decisions a lot of coaches have to make when working with a new client or working with someone that is working with a new goal. Testing is great when applied appropriately, and this time for me I thought it was better to work with RPE’s (rating of perceived exertions), as I can subjectively judge intensity for sessions and give me time to perfect the skills I’m working on. It would be harder for me to eliminate junk miles if I’m so focused on hitting certain speeds and power outputs.However, once I’m more proficient at the skill of cycling and running, which I am hoping is after this half iron man, then I will definitely be doing the 3-minute all-out test. With a more proficient skill base, I’ll be able to push myself to hit certain intensities based on my current physiological capabilities and hopefully use more precise training to improve physiologically. Managing volume and intensity. 8 weeks vs longerI wanted to discuss the how volume and intensity of training changes over the 8-week programme. 8 weeks is an interesting length of time because it is short enough to have it as 1 mesocycle if programmed slowly and appropriately. People often see a mesocycle as a block of training usually with the training load or intensity increasing, followed by a deload. The bog-standard approach to this when displayed in textbooks is 3 weeks of increasing intensity followed by 1 week of deload. This approach is fine if you have a good duration of time because you can structure many of these mesocycles one after the other, which is common in the off-season for rugby. However, mesocycles don’t have to be 4 weeks long, and 8 weeks is short enough to maintain an increase in volume or intensity over 5-7 weeks before tapering off. Any longer, like 12 weeks, you run the risk of injury because you’ve pushed for too long with deloading and allowing the body to recover. This was shown quite well by the work of Professor Robert Hickson, whose seminal work on concurrent training showed both strength and endurance could be improved together. However, at the 7-week mark, participants reached a peak of performance and then started to decrease in subsequent weeks. This is clearly the time when you add in a deload week to aid recovery and avoid this dip in performance, or your start tapering off with the aim to peak at around 8 weeks. It is this strategy that I have taken with my programming for this half iron man. If I had longer, 12 weeks or 16 weeks, I would have definitely deloaded earlier.To conclude this section on programming I just want to highlight the importance of knowing how long you’re programming for. You’ll be able to push and programme for certain adaptations differently depends on the length of the programme. An 8-week programme or a 12-week programme may have the same goal, but how you get there will be different, and a common error is pushing too much for too long. You can get away with it with an 8-week programme. A 12-week programme? Not so much.So, with this in mind, volume and intensity are structured as follows. Let's start with volume. The volume of training increased slowly, with its peak reached at the weekend of week 5. On this particular weekend, the swim, cycle and run distances covered are similar to the event itself (except we covered them over the entire weekend rather than one after the other). From here, the volume started to go down but slowly, and this was to accommodate more of the brick sessions being performed at and around ‘Race pace’ i.e the amount of higher intensity work was increasing.The intensity slowly increased from the start all the way to around week 7, a very linear progression. This is mostly because running, cycling and swimming were becoming easier as I was becoming more efficient, so by week 7, I was performing at higher speeds at similar RPE’s to week 1 (and for a recap on RPE - please see performance review 1). The weekend of week 7 includes a recce of the racecourse and a brick session. The bike and run legs of the half iron will consist of 2 laps each, so for the bike, it’s 45km loop and the run is a 10.6km loop. The aim of the end of week 7 is to perform 1 loop of each as a brick session at our estimated race pace, so we can get a proper feel of the course and see where we are at before we taper for the week leading up to the event.Performing is a skill. Practise it.This neatly segues into my final point which discusses performance practise as a skill. For someone that is new to a sport, there are a lot of new skills which need practising. It isn’t all about how cardiovascularly fit and efficient you can get at all 3 disciplines. Sure, they’re likely the most important components, but competing consists of a number of logistical and mental skills which you need to get more comfortable with. Because of this, the following was included in the 8-week programme:A competitive Olympic distance triathlon on the weekend of week 4. A perfect opportunity to be more comfortable competing alongside others, finding your food and water strategies, making sure everything is set up correctly to ensure a quick transitionA brick session on the weekend of week 7 using the actual course. It gives you a chance to practice and become familiar with the course, determine your RPE for race pace on the actual course, and just see how far you’ve come along during the past 7 weeks.People often only want to compete if they’re in their best shape or have trained for it, but competing can be used as part of the training programme. Use competitions effectively by specifically outlining which goals you personally want to achieve or what you want to find out about yourself. During the Olympic distance triathlon, my focus was on getting used to the new bike set up (it was all wrong - best I find that out early), determine an RPE for the run at a specific pace post swim and bike, and plan out my transition strategy (which, again, needed a lot of work). Without competition, I would not be able to find this information out. It made me a better athlete. I learnt more than if I had just gone through the miles out of competition over the weekend. So stop comparing yourself to others, list what you need to know about yourself and see if you can utilise a competition effectively to find the information to help you train and become a better athlete.Just to summarise: I will be doing the 3 minute all-out test in the near future and using it to make programming decisions. However, as I’m new to the sport and coming back from a calf injury, it is best to leave more intense forms of testing for when I am ready. An 8 weeks training programme can be seen as its own mesocycle. You can push the volume and intensity for longer than 3 weeks before deloading. However, if you're programming for longer than 8 weeks, this may not be appropriate. The length of the programme will hugely determine how you structure your programme. And finally, practise competing. Structure it into your training. Make specific goals so you can learn about yourself. Training competitions are a great opportunity for this. Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and found this information helpful for your own training. I plan on doing many more of these so please subscribe to the Progress theory so you get all our episodes downloaded straight to your phone when they’re released. Please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube, leave a comment or share us on your story. We really appreciate the help as we grow the channel. You can also find me on Instagram @drphilprice as I document all my training. Also, head to our website www.theprogresstheory.com where you can find all of our content. We’ll see you ln the next episode

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Steve Griffiths who has taken his experiences from a career in banking and trading and applied them to his ideas on developing mindset, which he now teaches to developing and elite level athletes. Steve has a 10+ year career working on the trading desks at international Investment Banks and has a degree in Maths with Economics from Royal Holloway, University of London and a Masters from Imperial Business School.Steve comes highly recommended to me by close personal friends, all of which have said working with Steve has completely changed their ideas around self-belief, intentions, trust and worthiness. In this episode, we touch upon how our beliefs determine our intentions, and we have the ability and free will and choose what our beliefs are and how to act on them. I loved this episode as it allowed me to realise just how much control we have in shaping our future. If you enjoy learning about mindset this is the perfect episode for you. In this episode, we discuss:2:46 - An introduction to Steve Griffiths4:36 - How Steve’s background has led to his career as a mindset coach7:40 - The importance of setting your intentions early11:32 - Is going off-track from the direction of your goals a good or bad thing?15:25 - constructive vs destructive beliefs19:19 - Should we view our beliefs regularly and objectively?23:20 - Using perceived ‘negative’ emotions may not be such a bad idea: Tennis example28:41 - Sport is chaotic. Practise harnessing your emotions in training to improve how you react to your emotions in competition 30:31 - Trust and worthiness34:06 - Do you need to feel worthy in order to trust yourself?37:06 - How to distinguish between facts and beliefs40:33 - Allowing deconstructive beliefs to limit your potential44:03 - 3 pieces of advice for anyone struggling with deconstructive beliefs49:03 - Steve’s choice of progress theory guestMindset is a topic that is incredibly popular at the moment and can often feel diluted. However, when Steve talks about his ideas around beliefs, worthiness and self-reflection, everything becomes clear and just feels so simple.I love the idea of having a reference point. It is the perfect opportunity to self-reflect on your beliefs and provide clarity around what your beliefs are and how you have the choice to impose your beliefs onto your experience. I also liked how Steve provided clarity around how we have a tendency to see deconstructive beliefs as facts, which stops us from acting on them appropriately. It’s crazy to think of all the untapped potential in the world just because people saw deconstructive beliefs as fact when in reality it is just their perception. And perceptions can change, but it is up to you.And finally, how asking and telling are the same thing. I’ve never heard it framed that way before, and when you do it just highlights just how much free will you have. So use it wisely.Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it has sparked some creativity around your own ideas on mindset. We’ll see you in the next one. FOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricep@s.x.griff Explore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowIn this episode, we mentioned the following resources:The nature of your personal Environment

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Dr Luke Hughes, a Post-Doctoral research fellow in applied Exercise Physiology at St Mary’s University, and an expert on blood flow restriction training. I’ve noticed blood flow restriction training is getting more popular in the training space and on social media. More blood flow restriction products are available to buy and people are starting to utilise this method to enhance their training. But is it worth the hype? What are the mechanisms behind blood flow restriction training, how does it work? Can anyone use it and is it possible for it to be dangerous if used inappropriately? Well, Luke provides all the answers to these questions so every listener will have information to help decide whether blood flow restriction training is right for them and how to use it.In this episode, we discuss:1:10 - An introduction to Dr Luke Hughes6:27 - What is blood flow restriction training?8:24 - The mechanisms behind blood flow restriction training10:28 - Low loads used during BRF training = quicker recovery?12:21 - Which populations can use BRF training?14:13 - Using BRF training to help laid and fatigue management for sports performance17:23 - Using BRF training to stop muscle wastage for astronauts in space23:06 - How do we programme BRF training?26:45 - BFR training after ACL reconstructive surgery29:00 - Common mistakes using BFR32:36 - The right pressure to use with your BFR cuffs36:28 - What to look for when buying a BFR cuff39:55 - Questions from viewers40:04 - Question 1 - BFR training and pain reduction? By @cmvincentandi44:03 - Question 2 - Can BFR training increase capillarization in muscles with a big cross-sectional area? By @kemperman_human_movement47:32 - Question 3 - What are your thoughts on cuffs that autoregulate occlusion pressure such as the air bands by Vald and Suji? By @adammattiussi50:29 - How to contact Luke and learn about the courses he’s leading in BFR trainingAn amazing episode, which really answered my original questions around whether blood flow restriction training is worth the hype. The benefits of using blood flow restriction training can’t be denied as it's been heavily supported by the research, and it seems like its benefits would be huge if used appropriately with the right patient or athlete at the right time.I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.Firstly, just how useful blood flow restriction training can be during early rehab. We know after serious surgery we go through a phase of muscle weakness and a reduction in size. However, BFR training can be used almost immediately after surgery (3 days post) during bed exercises and walking and has been effective at reducing this muscle loss and aid recovery. Secondly, I was amazed by the potential BFR training can have for athletes. As low loads are used the recovery is much quicker, meaning we could reduce the fatigue from strength training but still get similar adaptations. This could lead to an increase in other training, or the reduction in fatigue will mean the athlete is more fresh for sports training and competition.And finally, the pressure created by the cuff should be specific to the individual and consistent over multiple training sessions. We currently don’t know enough about the cuffs you can buy which don’t measure pressure. Do they work or is their effect limited? More research over the coming years will hopefully explain thisAnyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and have enough information to allow yourself to make the decision if blood flow restriction training is right for your goals. Please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and Youtube and share this episode on your insta stories. Also, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one.FOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricepExplore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowIn this episode, we mentioned the following resources:Owens recovery course Vald Airbands Suji Device

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. In this episode, we have Rob Anderson, Strength & Conditioning coach for the Scottish Rugby Academy and director of Athletic Evolution, a podcast that focuses on youth athlete development. Rob and I discuss the current misconceptions surrounding strength training for youth development, including why strength training does not stunt your growth, and why we shouldn’t just focus on aerobic conditioning at young ages. We also hear how Rob’s wealth of experience has developed his approach to coaching youth athletes. So if you coach youth athletes, work in schools, or are currently a developing athlete yourself, this episode gives plenty of take-home messages for you to implement into your own coaching and training.In this episode, we discuss:1:13 - An introduction to Rob Anderson5:34 - Where Rob’s Interest in youth strength coaching came from9:53 - Is there a culture change happening for youth coaching?12:54 - Misconceptions surrounding youth strength training18:52 - Why bone needs strength training23:42 - Misconceptions around aerobic conditioning for youth athletes26:51 - Is past research on youth strength training out of date?30:54 - The aim behind the Athletic Evolution podcast36:18 - What key performance indicators to focus on during talent ID to avoid the ‘early maturer trap’.50:05 - Rob’s philosophy for youth coaching and training1:00:15 - The LTAD Network1:06:22 - How to get in contact with RobFinal ThoughtsSo many take away messages from this episode, and it is amazing to see just how far the area of youth training has come in the last 10 years. Not only do I think this is great, but I think it is so necessary that youth coaching is seen as a specialist area. That way it can attract the best coaches for the job who have the right training, experience and skill set. I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.Firstly, just how much of a minefield youth talent ID is, and it is crazy that some still fall into the trap of selecting athletes based on their current performance, rather than actually looking deeper into how much potential that athlete has. It was great to have the relative age effect explained in detail to fully understand how it may influence the selection process. It’s great to hear of strategies such as bio-banding, getting players to compete against those of a similar biological age, are being employed to allow both early and late maturers to develop the skills that they need. An early maturer getting selected when they shouldn’t and a late maturer getting overlooked are definitely outcomes that will be less common if we provide better environments for youth athletes to develop.And finally, how ‘windows of opportunity have been so prevalent on youth athlete development models, despite scarce support from the research, and that using a more concurrent approach to training may be necessary for optimal youth development.Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and it has piqued your interest in getting involved with youth coaching. For more youth development content check out Rob’s work with the LTAD Network. However, for now, please follow and share @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next oneFOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricepExplore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowIn this episode, we mentioned the following resources:LTAD Network Athletic Evolution If you would like to give us a review on Podchaser, please click HERE.It can really help others discover the podcast.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Progress Theory. In today’s episode, we’ve brought on Christian Vassallo, S&C coach and researcher, to discuss the 3 minute all-out test. The use of the 3 minute all-out test is becoming more popular as coaches are finding it is easy to use and provides them with the perfect information about their athletes to aid their programming. But what is this information? How can it be so easily obtained and then used to make training programming decisions? In this episode, Christian breaks down how you perform the 3 minute all-out test, the physiology behind the information it gives you, and how it can be used in a training programme.As always, please follow and share The Progress Theory on Instagram and Youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com, and check out all of our other episodes. But now, here is Christian VassalloIn this episode, we discuss:1:38 - An introduction to Christian Vassallo3:50 - His work setting up Traainer5:54 - What is the 3-minute all-out test9:31 - Can you use the 3-minute test on other equipment, such as a bike or rower?13:12 - The shuttle run version of the 3 minute all-out test14:33 - Variables of interest from the 3-minute all-out test18:10 - What is critical speed?23:42 - How can you predict your battery (D’)26:05 - How to use D’ and critical speed to make programming decisions: 32:57 - Eliud Kipchoge and his critical speed35:52 - Using power for running programming36:31 - Can the 3-minute all-out test predict the performance of both short and long-distance races?42:50 - How you can Use D’ and critical speed to determine race strategies45:43 - Questions from Instagram46:11-50:04 - How to use the 3-Minute test for improving field-based sports51:00 - How to contact ChristianFinal ThoughtsThis was a great episode, it provided some great information about a test that seems so simple but can give you so much valuable information for your training. I love that you can use it for pretty much any sport. Whether you’re a runner, rower, cyclist, or play an intermittent sport like rugby or netball, the 3-minute all-out test can be easily implemented into your training. I just wanted to provide some final thoughts on some key areas which really stood out to me.Firstly, that the critical speed is faster than you think. I can imagine most people new to this test must think that everyone slows down almost to a crawl during the final minute of the 3-minute all-out test, just because it’s so hard to maintain that all-out intensity for that long. However, you’d be surprised how fast the default speed you resort to is. It just feels slow because of how fast you were going at the start.And finally, I thought it was just incredible that Eliud Kipchoge maintained 97% of critical speed throughout his 2-hour marathon, which means his critical speed is greater than 21 kilometres per hour. I don’t even know if I can sprint that speed. His physiology is incredible.Anyways I hope you enjoyed this episode and have learnt a lot from it because I certainly did. All of Christian’s details can be found in the show notes. For now, please follow and share @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube, head to our website theprogresstheory.com and listen to our other episodes. We’ll see you in the next one FOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricep@cvassallocv @traainerExplore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowTraainerGarminMyzone

Hello and welcome to The Progress Theory where we discuss how to implement scientific principles to optimise human performance. We’ve started a new series of episodes. These Progress Theory episodes aim to discuss how I (@thepricep) am putting Science into practice into my own physical challenges, as the best way to learn about human performance and sport science is to put it into practice, see what works and what didn’t work, reflect on the results, review and repeat the process. What is important about these Progress theory Episodes is how they’re going to focus on how I am making my programming decisions. What information am I using? How am I determining what is important for me and my training for a particular event at that given time? It is these decision-making skills that I hope will help our listeners make their own programming decisions. Making a training programme that is both specific to you as an athlete and your goal is difficult and requires a lot of thought as to what to include in your programme, what not to include in your programme, and decide where the right level of training is for you. For example, working on too many things at once may appear specific to your goals, but may accumulate too much fatigue which actually decreases performance or even increases the risk of injury. It is these types of issues that this podcast will discuss. I won’t just list through my programme as that would be dull. However, I will go through key decisions and scientific principles that I think make up the important components of my programming, explaining my rationale behind them. So, the first challenge is The Gauntlet at the festival of endurance at Hever Castle hosted by Castle Triathlon. 1.9km swim, 90km bike, finished with a half marathon run. Only 8 weeks to prepare, which isn’t much considering the poor training state at the beginning of the year.In this episode, we discuss:0:00 - Introduction2:30 - The Gauntlet4:10 - My training history6:00 - The specific components of the programme covered in this episode7:14 - Efficiency is key and the driver of decision making in this programme10:07 - Rate of Perceived exertion15:01 - Exercise focus16:38 - Poor motion around the C7/T1 junction22:00 - Left hip impingement25:28 - Left foot being a poor shock absorber28:52 - Contrast sets34:25 - Episode summaryThere are plenty more things to talk about, including the programming over the 8 weeks, which I will definitely cover in the next few episodes. I hope you enjoyed the episode and that it sparked some ideas in your own training. Please follow @theprogresstheory on Instagram and youtube, leave a comment or share us on your story. We really appreciate the help as we grow the channel. Also, head to our website www.theprogresstheory.com where you can find all of our content. We’ll see you in the next episodeFOLLOW OUR PODCASTFollow our Host / Guest@theprogresstheory@thepricepExplore these Resources or Items Mentioned in the ShowCastle TriathlonRich Blagrove The Progress Theory episodeDG coachingWattHealthGoogle ScholarRatings of Perceived exertionBands Toe spacers Garmin Wedges