Strength & Conditioning For Cricket

Here is a basic guide on how I would go about strength and conditioning for cricket.

Firstly, I would have someone do S&C work 3x a week, whilst training for cricket 3x a week, with a cricket match 1x a week (most clubs operate similarly to this). Cricket really isn't a sport that depends largely on strength or conditioning (unlike rugby, for example), so I would have a cricket player spend more of their week training the actual sport rather than in the weight room.

Secondly, exercise selection. I like olympic lifts and I like unweighted jumps. I would probably include power or hang versions of the olympic lifts for cricket players since teaching the full clean/snatch is probably not worth it for the specific sport (this applies to most sports). Also, I really wouldn't spend too much time working on plyometrics for a cricket player. I would much rather allocate training economy to strengthening the shoulders, core and hips since these areas are common injury points. Plyometrics would be more valuable for field sport athletes, basketball or volleyball players.

So I would probably stick to the back squat, power clean, strict press and romanian deadlift for the majority of the strength work. For conditioning, this is very simple. For cricket, bowling run-ups and runs are all around 20m long. So acceleration work of 20-40m done once a week is plenty for conditioning when paired with some low intensity steady state work.

 Here is a sample program for 3x a week S&C training:

	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3
1	Power Clean - 5 x 3 @ 60% of max clean	Strict Press - 4 x 12 @ 40% of max strict press	Behind The Neck Push Press - 6 x 6 @ 85% of strict press max
2	Back Squat - 4 x 10 @ 55% of max squat	Romanian Deadlift - 4 x 8 @ 45% of max deadlift	Power Clean - 5 x 3 @ 70%
3	Bench Press - 5 x 8 @ 65% of max bench press	Barbell Row - 6 x 6 @ 40% BW	Back Squat - 5 x 8 @ 60%
4	Weighted Chinup - 4 x 4 with 5% BW	Lu Raise - 5 x 10 with 5% BW per hand	Tricep Extension - 4 x 12 @ 10% BW
5	Hanging Leg Raise - 4 x 10 BW	Superman Plank - 4 x 30 secs BW	Barbell Curl - 6 x 10 with empty barbell
6	20m Sprint - 7 total sprints, 2 mins rest between sprints	30 mins stationary bike - Zone 2	30 mins stationary bike - Zone 2

Notes:

• The sets and reps here are just a guide that you could use for the first week of your training; I may release a full program later
• Bench press can be replaced with floor press, another good option
• Back squats should be done to full depth
• Some work like the chinups and rows are programmed as a percentage of your bodyweight (BW)
• Sprints should be done on a field/track with cleats/spikes on
• the 30 mins cardio should be done at a relatively easy pace for at least 25 mins to work on aerobic capacity. I chose stationary bike here since it is less stressful on the knees

~ Prem

Training While Sick

I just contracted the common cold. It made me wonder how many people train whilst they are sick. Here are some general tips to maintain progress whilst you are sick.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical professional. This is NOT medical advice. If you have any symptoms that extend beyond the common cold, consult a medical professional.

1. Don't train. This is a pretty big mistake people make. Just don't train when you are sick. It'll take longer to fully recover and the quality of the session will not be high anyways. Just take a few days off: it's fine not to train during those days.

2. Recover. A large portion of sickness comes from stress and/or sleep deficiency. My No. 1 tip for anyone recovering from sickness is just to sleep. Plus, taking paracetamol and drinking lots of water also helps.

3. Load management. Whilst coming back to training after the sickness becomes to disappear, it's fine to skip accessories. Reducing the number of sets you do could also be a good idea.

TLDR: Don't train when sick, just sleep/

~ Prem

Stoicism and Training

Stoicism is incredibly valuable for training for athletics. The core principles of stoicism include disconnection from emotion and the acceptance that life is difficult and problems will always rear their heads, but that ultimately the individual can triumph. In a sense, it takes an objective approach into accomplishing tasks, and also physical training.

The essence of physical training is that you never win. Training is mundane, and at the elite level, you are constantly feeling aches, getting injured, and having suboptimal training sessions. Stoicism provides a way to approach these tasks, even when they seem boring or hard.

The times where I have stayed most consistent with my diet, mobility, and sleep as been when I've taken an almost disconnected approach to training. Disconnected from emotions or how I feel on any specific day. I recognized I had responsibilities, and shit had to be done, so I did it. Some may call it harsh, but they're not breaking records anytime soon. I believe all elite athletes (if not, most), use the philosophy of stoicism in some way or another as part of their lifestyle.

TLDR: Don't think, just do. That is the only way to stay consistent.

~ Prem

Is hypertrophy work necessary for weightlifting?

Nah. It can be helpful, and I often program hypertrophy work, but not a lot of it. Just to keep a baseline level of muscle. Most olympic weightlifters are only jacked because they are on unholy amounts of PEDs. Olympic weightlifting is not a sport akin to muscle growth (unlike powerlifting, for example), and very few weightlifters focus a lot on hypertrophy work.

~ Prem

Reworking My Warmups and Rehab work!

So I was going to change my warmup and rehab protocols because of new problems I would like to address. So I thought I would take you through the process of redesigning your supplemental work.

Firstly, here is my new warmup:

1. Steady State Cardio: 5 mins max, stationary bike: I used to do cardio as a warmup on the treadmill, only to later realize this likely contributed to the knee pain I have in my right knee (likely patellar). So I switched over to the stationary bike. The stationary bike is also really good for specifically warming up the quads, which is necessary for any weightlifter.

2. Foam Rolling: I've always done foam rolling, and I stand by the fact that it is an easy way to get in some soft tissue work and boost recovery a bit.

3. Leg Extension isometric: I hold my leg at a 45 degree isometric on the leg extension with some moderate weight for at least 45 seconds (several studies support this, including this study). This is to address my knee pain and warm up the quads and knees as well. I used to do isometric lunge holds, but I find these just more convenient and effective. 

4. Front Rack stretch: This is basically when I hold a barbell in the front rack position and flex and extend my upper back (the first exercise in this video). Good for warming up the wrists and the front rack position, as well as the T spine and lats.

5. Lu Raise complex: I hold some light plates out for an isometric and then perform some Lu raises with lighter weights. These warmup the shoulders for the overhead position. I used to do facepulls here, but my rotator cuff has become less of an issue now. Now, I prefer to focus on a strong overhead position with strong scapula. 

6. 3rd world squat: 2-3 mins with some weight: I sit in the bottom of a 3rd world squat for 2-3 mins. I've said this before a lot, but this is just a super specific way to warmup for weightlifting. I put the barbell on my knees for extra resistance. I've always done these as well, and I recommend them to every strength athlete.

Next, here is my revised rehab protocol that I do separately from my workouts at the end of the day:

1. Couch Stretch: I've moved these from my workouts into the rehab slot. I find that when I put these as a warmup, I do not spend enough time in the stretch. To actually make this stretch effective on the hip flexors, you have to sit in it for around 2 minutes or more.

2. Pancakes: This is to address my adductor mobility. I used to do a ton of mobility stretches for the glutes and hamstrings, but I've removed them since my mobility in these areas is already good. My adductors, on the other hand, have always been (and still are) constantly tight.

3. Single Leg Touchdown: Hands down, these are the single best exercise for knee rehab. I felt a difference after a few weeks of doing these on my right knee.

4. Lat Stretch: I do the second set of stretches presented in this  video. I started doing these to help my overhead position in the bottom of the snatch, which requires to hand to go behind the ears (ie. a large degree of lat mobility).

5. Overhead walks: I do these with a relatively heavier dumbbell to get stronger shoulders and to reinforce my overhead position. I also want to keep my elbow healthy as I have had some minor elbow issues in the past.

6. 3rd world squat (bodyweight) - 5 mins total: I do these for squat mobility. I used to do them banded, with a band around my knees. However, this really fatigued by adductors in about 1 minute, which meant I skipped the other 4 minutes of this movement. This movement needs to be done for a longer period of time to actually be effected, so I ditched the band and just do these bodyweight now.

~ Prem

Training Is Mundane

Training is mundane. Training is boring. Workouts are typically the same in structure, and if you do them long enough, they do tend to get boring. However, this is normal, and this is required. Anyone who became successful at any sport did it by working really, really hard at the basics. Every good weightlifter got good at weightlifting by doing the snatch, the clean and jerk, the squat, the pull, and some press. Any they did this day, after day, after day. That is what is required to be the best.

Learn to enjoy mundane-ness. Enjoy the work. Enjoy sleeping consistently, doing your mobility work, getting your meals in, no matter how boring. That is the only way you get through boring training.

~ Prem

No, Bosu Balls Are Not Effective

Bosu balls are not useful for any purpose. Whether that be 'stability training' or rehab work. 

First of all, specificity is king. If your sport requires 'stability', then the best way you can train is is just by playing your sport more. When surfers want to be more stable surfing, they train by surfing more. Sports are not played on bosu balls. Sports are played on fields, or in the water, or on ice. It would be much better off to allocate time and resources to training your actual sport rather than wasting time on a bosu ball.

Secondly, I have never heard of ANY rehabilitation work that requires a bosu ball. I've reviewed material from Dr Aaron Horschig, Dr Stephane Gregory and Dr Stuart McGill, and I have never seen ant of them use a bosu ball in practice. Even for knee stability issues (like caving in the squat etc.), these can often be screened by doing pistol squats, hip tests and jumps. Rehabing the knees can also be done with basic exercises like tibialis squats, knee extensions, lunge isometrics, 3rd world squats etc.

Finally, I would like to make a point on credentials. Just because someone has a Masters or a PhD does NOT mean they are even moderately intelligent. Joel Seedman and Mike Israetel both have PhDs and are still retards and not highly respected in the serious strength community. Keep this in mind.

~ Prem