Eat this after a wrestling tournament!!

I hope this week finds you well.

With the wrestling season just about here I wanted to share a recipe with you from my new 'Wrestling Performance Cookbook.'

The biggest problem I see with wrestlers after tournaments is that they don't eat a 'recovery meal.' If you don't eat the right food at the right time following an all-day tournament where you are expending a lot of energy, you will quickly overtrain and get weak (or hurt).

The key is to minimize muscular breakdown (catabolism) and replenish your muscle energy (glycogen).

Here is one of my favorite meals that you can eat shortly after a wrestling tournament to get yourself back to top condition for the following week:

Post-Tournament Recovery Chow:
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Ingredients:
1/2 cup whipped cottage cheese
2 cups Organic Banilla yogurt
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1 sliced banana
1/2 cup mixed frozen raspberries/blueberries/strawberries
1/2 cup Total cereal

Directions: An hour after finishing your recovery shake, you should consume a meal containing a 1:2 ratio of protein to carbs, with limited fat. This meal will help you replenish your muscle glycogen and assist with your recovery process. It is one of my favorites. You can also use it after strength training during the Offseason for recovery and to stunt the catabolic state that your body is in after you strength train.
This meal is really tasty too... enjoy!!

Eat this after you weigh in for recovery and energy!

I always get asked what the best foods are after you weigh in for wrestling...

Of course a lot depends on if you had to cut weight or not...

For those who have to cut weight, the first thing you want to do is get a recovery drink in you.  (I cover this on this blog)

After that you want to stick with food that will give you a ton of energy, without making you feel tired, bloated or sick to your stomach...

One of the best foods that I can recommend at this point, or for when you have a long tournament is the 'Chocolate Peanut Butter Sandwich.'  This isn't your usual peanut butter and jelly sandwich though...

It's a combination of whole wheat bread, natural peanut butter and whey protein powder.  The whole wheat bread is a slower digesting carbohydrate that will allow you to have energy without feeling sleepy.  The natural peanut butter serves a dual purpose of slowing down absorption of your carbohydrates to aid in energy production without slowing down towards the end of the match or tournament.  The whey protein keeps your body in a positive nitrogen balance and prevents muscle breakdown to keep you feeling strong.

Here's what you do:

Take 2 slices of whole wheat bread... and lay them on a plate.  Take 2 tablespoons of all-natural peanut butter and add 1 scoop (20-25 grams) of chocolate protein powder.  Mix the peanut butter and protein powder thoroughly with a spoon.  Spread the mix on your bread and you're all set.  

With this super sandwich you will feel full but not bloated, energetic without a 'crash' later and strong as a bull... TRY IT!!  (You can wash it down with a glass of milk if you don't have any intolerance to lactose)

A Perfect Weight-Cutting Food for Wrestling!

If you are a wrestler who cuts weight you must be extra careful to make sure you eat properly. One of the best foods you can eat when cutting weight is cottage cheese.

But I don't mean just eating cottage cheese.  I mean having it as your last meal of the day... right before you go to bed.  

Cottage cheese is a quality source of low-fat protein.

By having it as a pre-bedtime snack when cutting weight, it will give your muscles a steady stream of amino acids while you sleep.  This steady stream of amino acids will feed your muscles while you sleep, and prevent the muscle breakdown and weakness associated with traditional weight-cutting.

If you're not cutting weight, you can mix cottage cheese with yogurt before bed and it will be a complete meal.

If you're cutting weight, you won't want the yogurt due to the sugars in it... and that won't be advised right before bed.

The taste of cottage cheese (lowfat version) can get on your nerves, so I'd suggest adding salsa, or salt and pepper for taste. (sea salt and ground black pepper)

3 Great Exercises for Building Wrestling Strength Fast!

1. 'Negative-Only Reverse Close-Grip Chinups' - That's a mouthful. Let's break it down. You use a chinup bar. Take an underhand grip, with hands about 8-12 inches apart. Use a chair to boost yourself over the bar. Lower yourself in 10 seconds to a hanging stretch. Immediately step up on the chair and boost yourself to the top again. Repeat. Continue until you can't lower yourself in any more than 6 seconds. Use extra weight around your waist with a dipping belt if necessary. Watch your takedowns improve tremendously by getting stronger on this one!  

2. 'Negative-Only Dips' - Hold yourself at the top position on a dipping bar with arms straight. You should be hanging with arms locked straight. Lower yourself in 10 seconds. Immediately climb back to top and again lower in 10 seconds. Repeat. Continue until it becomes impossible to lower in any more than 6 seconds. The use of negative-only training will 'kick-start' some serious strength gains. Just make sure you use it sparingly. No more than 2 weeks straight, and only 4 times a year.  

3. 'Bottom Squats' - Using an Olympic Barbell, perform a regular barbell full depth squat. As you rise up out of the bottom, stop when you are 1/2 way up. Lower yourself to the bottom squat position again, and repeat. These are incredible for working on the hip strength that is so vital in most every wrestling move you perform! Throw these exercises in the mix for about 3 weeks. I promise you your strength will jump up quickly if you're working hard, and using perfect form.

3 Training Tips to Prepare for Your Season FAST!

Wow... just like that the summer is just about gone and school is beginning everywhere...

But you know what that means... wrestling season is just around the corner!!

With that in mind, I wanted to give you 3 'immediately-usable' training tips that you can use to get 'functionally-strong' fast for the upcoming season:

Do 1-Leg Strength Exercises Whether you've been strength training this summer or not, you need to include some strength exercises that require 1 leg at a time. Wrestlers need to have adequate development in the Adductor/Abductor muscles in the legs. These muscles work to stabilize at the knee joint and help develop more mat speed. You can build a lot of 'wrestling-specific' leg strength between now and when the season begins by including exercises such as:

One Leg Pistol Squats
One Leg Pistol Box Squats
Reverse Dumbbell Lunge from 6" Box
Lunge onto 6" Box
One Leg 'Opposite Hand' RDL's

These are some of the best exercises for developing power on the mat as well... and that means faster takedown speed. Try to get stronger on each of these exercises for the next 6 weeks and you'll be amazed at the difference on the mat. The best part is that youth wrestlers, high school wrestlers, and college wrestlers can gain a lot of benefit from them! You can see how I incorporate these in programs for wrestlers in my Ultimate Wrestling Strength Program.

2. No Crunches or Situps That's right... I want you to stop doing crunches or situps for the next 6 weeks so you can work on core stability work that is more 'mat-specific.' In wrestling you need to have core stability before you learn how to incorporate the Internal Oblique muscles for fast wrestling on the mat. Every time you are tied-up on the mat and are going for points, trying to escape, or even reverse your opponent, you need to use the muscles in your core that allow for rotational movement. Try training the following types of core stability exercises 3 times per week for the next 6 weeks to get a jump-start on your competition:

Planks
1-Leg Planks
Bird-Dogs
Pallof Presses
Static Woodchop Holds
Static Reverse Woodchop Holds

Do the same thing here... Choose one or two of the exercises and do them 3 non-consecutive days per week for the next 6 weeks. The results on the mat will be impressive!


3. Do Myofascial Massage Every wrestler knows that in order to be successful on the wrestling mat you must have flexible muscles. You can out-muscle opponents who aren't very good wrestlers, but when the competition gets tougher, your flexibility becomes even more important. Every wrestler knows that your muscles have to be able to stretch. But few wrestlers realize that in order to have the most flexible, most-efficient muscles that allow you need to work on the quality of the muscle. This means that you should work on getting rid of those 'knots' in the muscle so that you can become stronger, more flexible, and reduce injuries.

How do you do it?

Simple... Use a Foam Roller!

I recently discovered these because I was trying to work through a couple of old powerlifting injuries. The roller allows you to give yourself 'the world's cheapest massage' and it takes about 5 minutes before you train. You put the roller on the floor and glide whatever muscle group you are working on over the roller for 20 seconds. After 5 minutes you'll be done and feel prepared for all-out training or practice. They are amazing! Just do a google search if you want to check them out.

That's all for now!

Eat junk food and still make weight for wrestling!

Many of my members at Wrestling Performance like the benefit of having me design meal programs for them so they can gain weight, cut weight or keep their weight the same for wrestling via the members forum...

The meals plans are usually based around whole, natural foods, combined in specific ratios to meet nutritional needs while fulfilling the body weight goals that are desired...

Let's face it... eating perfectly is difficult sometimes... in fact it can really suck to have to eat 'clean' while you watch your friends and family chow down on really tasty desserts, pizza, fast-food etc.

If you're one of those guys who hates to prepare meals and hates to eat like a bodybuilder I have a solution for you...

MEAL REPLACEMENT DRINKS!!

You can drink between 2-4 of these a day (depending on your body weight) and meet your nutritional needs with low calories... then you can eat whatever you want the rest of the day!!

The key is to make sure that whatever foods you consume the rest of the day don't put you over your caloric limit for the day...

For example, let's say I want to cut weight and can have up to 2800 calories per day to allow me to cut weight.  I would drink 3 meal replacement drinks in water for a total of 810 calories.  This would leave me with 1990 calories that I can eat from any source I want to, while still being able to cut the weight without losing strength or energy!  I could eat the pizza I love, and maybe a chocolate milk shake too... without guilt or remorse.

The first thing you'll need to do is find out how many calories you need, and then go from there...

It worked for me back in the early 90's when meal replacement drinks were first created, and it will work for you now!!

Are Box Squats Hurting Your Wrestling Performance?

Before I tell you why I NEVER include Box Squats in the programs I design for wrestlers I want to start with something else...

Be careful who you take advice from...  Just because a guy was a good wrestler doesn't mean he's necessarily a good Strength and Conditioning Coach.  He might have bragging rights to winning a lot of matches, but if he's lacking knowledge and experience in how to train wrestlers correctly he may just be giving you the same inefficient program that he used to do.  Egos are sometimes the biggest obstacle to a guy becoming a great Strength Coach!

Ok... on to the Box Squats...

Box Squats are a method of performing a Barbell Squat and actually sitting down on to a box or bench, and then blasting back up to a  standing position.

Powerlifters have used them for years... in fact, we used to include them in our training as far back as the early 90's...  Box Squats are good for Powerlifters who need to develop strength 'out of the hole.'  

But Box Squats have now made a re-emergence into the Sports world as the 'new' secret exercise for strength, power and speed.  

Unfortunately for those that blindly follow this assumption, this couldn't be further from the truth as it applies to wrestling...

Wrestlers need to have a lot of strength development throughout the core and posterior chain area.  This means that the hamstrings MUST be developed in a functional fashion.  The Box Squat does just the opposite.  When you sit down on a box with a loaded barbell you are actually 'de-activating' the hamstrings, resulting in an 'extension' when rising up from the box.  It becomes a quadriceps-dominated exercise when the hamstrings are negated...

Another thing that concerns me is when Box Squats are performed by Youth wrestlers.  The Box Squat adds pressure when most youth wrestlers are not strong enough in the core.  This can lead to pressure on the spine and injury as well.  Youth wrestlers should definitely avoid them.

Now, you could still do Box Squats and then simply perform more isolated resistance exercise for your hamstrings, but then you start working out like a bodybuilder instead of strength training for wrestling.

Another issue I have with using Box Squats for wrestlers is that the cervical vertebrae in the lower back are in a disadvantageous position when you are sitting down into a full squat.  This is when they are vulnerable to injury.  By resting a weighted load on a bench you are causing undue stress in this Lumbar area.

My answer?

Simple... Do Pause Squats where instead of sitting down on to a box, you simply squat down and hold in the bottom position for 3 full seconds before rising up to a standing position.  This requires you to use a lot more muscle than you would during a box squat too.

The other favorite of mine for wrestlers who want to generate more hip, and posterior chain power is to use a Sumo-Style Deadlift.

Sumo Deadlifts require you to pull with the hands inside the legs which are wider than shoulder width.  The back is kept flat, while looking straight ahead.  The key to this is to think about tightening up your hamstrings and glutes while lowering yourself to grab the bar.  This 'coiling' effect should feel as if you're compressing a spring and getting ready to release it.

My Protein Pancakes recipe

Ok... if you ever get a chance to come over to my house for dinner and my wife Michelle is cooking, you're in for a treat!  She can cook up some excellent meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks...

One of my favorite meals that we eat for breakfast (or better yet DINNER) is Protein Pancakes...

Traditional pancakes contain a lot of carbohydrates from processed sources, leaving little in the way of quality nutrition...

Protein Pancakes are LOADED with protein, complex carbohydrates from natural sources and vitamins...

Here is our recipe that tastes amazing and is easy for any wrestler to prepare...

Protein Pancakes Ingredients:

• 6 egg whites
• 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
• 1 cup oatmeal (whole natural oats... not prepackaged crap)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp raw honey
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Place egg whites, cottage cheese, oatmeal, cinnamon and honey in a blender, and blend until smooth.

Heat a griddle to roughly 400 degrees.

Use non-stick spray on the griddle... then add contents from blender.  When done cooking both sides, place on plate.  Use a bit of 'natural' maple syrup to taste.

This is a great meal that you can use during wrestling season to help with repair of lean tissue as well as keep your muscles loaded with glycogen.

Jump-Start Your Takedown Speed!

If you've read my stuff or been a member of Wrestling Performance 

then you know I'm a big fan of using the Reverse Hyperextension with wrestlers and combat athletes in order to develop mat speed.

The Reverse Hyperextension is unique in that it works the posterior chain area without putting the lower back in a dangerous, compromising situation...

However... not all gyms are equipped with a Reverse Hyperextension machine.  Therefore, you can make your own to use anywhere...

All you need is a Stability Ball... Check it out below:

Hyper on Ball

Low back

Exercise Description: Hyper on Ball Classification: Low back Instructions: 1. Start by placing the ball on a small ledge or on the floor if the height is comfortable. 2. Lean over the ball and secure yourself to an object with your hands. 3. Slowly lift your legs up and back until your body is parallel. 4. Return to the starting position and repeat for the desired repetitions.

I was in a deep sleep...

I spent about 5 hours a couple of Sunday's ago going through each of the exercises for my new book Ultimate Wrestling Strength...  Anyway, we took over 250 exercises pics that afternoon.  Now I don't know about you but this was a lot of work for me.  In fact, I slept harder than I have in years... for about 11 straight hours (I'm normally up at 5 am every day and never sleep beyond 6-7 hours)...

It was all worth it!  The book has every exercise listed for Youth, High School, College Wrestlers as well as MMA Fighters.  The programs include Offseason, Preseason and Inseason...

It's amazing how quickly you can overtrain the body... especially wrestlers.  If you're burning the candle at both ends with not a lot of rest, long practices, matches etc you're going to reach a point of burnout and injury...

Get your rest... and be sure to eat clean, and often..

How To Develop Blazing-Fast Takedowns!

Check out this video clip to see how you can do 2 exercises back-to-back to increase your mat takedown speed and power!

Let me know how you do... Remember function follows form... Always use good form and a full range of motion when possible.

How To Improve Your Standups for Wrestling

Click on the video below to learn my 2 exercise combination that will really improve your standups and wrestling from the bottom!

Ok... imagine for a second that you're in a wrestling match....

You're wrestling from the bottom of your 'referee's position.'

The ref waits for the top wrestler to get ready and then blows the whistle.

What do you do?

Do you try to do a standup?

How about a switch?

Perhaps a granby roll?

No matter what moves you like to do when wrestling from the bottom, you will benefit from the 2-exercise workout in the video above...  I guarantee it!

In fact, try it out for 4 weeks, then let me know how much stronger and more explosive you are from the bottom.

3 Supplements Wrestlers Should Consider If Cutting Weight!

Before I begin with today's tip on supplements for wrestlers
who cut weight, I'd like to say that if it were up to me nobody would cut weight...

...then we would see a whole, new-level of peak performance wrestling!

But since it's not up to me, I want to help you do it  correctly if you so choose...

Here goes...

----------

Supplements for Wrestlers

----------

Maybe one of the biggest reasons wrestlers fail to 
perform at their best is because they don't ever recover from wrestling and training.

Most wrestlers that I know get over-trained half-way through the season.

You simply cannot go to school all day, wrestle at practice, wrestle at club, wrestle 
at tournaments, dual meets, workout, do homework, family commitments, cut weight, etc. without 
burning out...

There has to be a balance.

The previous sections in this ecourse have addressed some things that will help...

Sometimes, you have to look at your nutrition in order to prevent burn-out and over-training.

Since many wrestlers cut weight, it's even harder to get the nutrition your body needs to wrestle at 
its best.

This is where supplementation can be a good thing.

*** Always get your doctor's advise before 
taking any supplements***

There are a lot of bogus supplements and companies out there.

I've made myself a guinea pig over the years in order to find out what supplements will give wrestlers 
an advantage...

Here are the supplements that I find most helpful in preventing overtraining and burnout in wrestlers:

---------- 
The Post-Workout Recovery Drink 
----------

What you consume immediately following a grueling practice or workout is the most important thing 
you can do to recover, and continue wrestling well.

Post-workout recovery drinks should be consumed immediately following practice or working out.

If you are on a tight budget, I'd recommend that you drink 16 oz. of chocolate milk within 20 minutes 
of practice or a workout.

Chocolate milk contains protein and simple sugars in the correct amounts to aid in recovery.

You can even make your own drink by mixing: 

o Apple or grape juice (60-80 grams of sugar) 
o 1 scoop whey protein (about 22 grams)

This is a step up from chocolate milk...

 

---------- 
L-glutamine 
----------

L-glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in the 
body. It is the key to preventing muscle breakdown 
when your body is working too hard.

L-glutamine can help you keep muscle on your body 
when you are cutting weight.

It spares the muscle when you aren't eating enough 
calories and allows the body to use fat for energy 
instead.

It is found in many whey protein powders, so you 
might not need to look further than your protein 
forumula.

 

---------- 
Branched Chain Amino Acids 
----------

Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA's) are Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine.

These amino acids also help the body spare muscle in times of stress and low calories.

They can be very helpful in allowing a wrestler to make it through the demands of the season, and 
still stay strong.

----------

How To Get a Wrestling Scholarship!

You may or may not be looking for a college wrestling
scholarship... I don't know.

But even if you're not, you might know someone who is.

Today I'm going to deviate a little bit and give you 3 
incredible tips you can use when looking for a wrestling
scholarship to college...

How do I know?

Because I had the opportunity to interview one of the 
nation's most knowledgeable guys on the subject of getting
scholarships... and I picked his brain for an hour, getting
a ton of great tips and strategies to wrestle at the college
of your dreams!

Here goes:

Tip #1 -  Don't Send a Highlight Video

A lot of guys who want to wrestle in college send highlight
videos of themselves to every school they are interested in.

These videos showcase their best wins, pins, takedowns,
escapes, reversals etc...

But there's a problem...  They never show you lose, or how
you take a loss, or what you do when you're struggling.

Coaches know that 'most' guys, no matter how good they are, 
will lose matches here and there... even the guys looking
for scholarships.

Guess what?  Coaches want to see that!  They want to get 
to know you... not some highlight film that everyone sends.

 

Tip #2 -   The ONLY Word That MUST Be On Your Video

There's a word that will help you get your wrestling
videos looked at by college coaches...

This word makes the difference between you getting a shot
at getting looked at and your video getting put in some dusty
closet, or worse... the garbage can!

That word is 'unedited'!

It's really refreshing for a coach to see that you didn't
use some Hollywood production company to show who you want
them to see... not the real you.

When you put the word 'unedited' on the envelope you instill
a sense of comfort, and curiosity to the addressee.

It's simply human nature... It's one of those 'buzz' words
that people are interested in. 

Let's face it, trying to get a wrestling scholarship is a
business for schools and a job for you... do it right!

 

Tip #3 -    Always Use a Big Envelope

If you want to make sure you get your video and letters
opened, you have to stand out.

If you send a letter in a business envelope, typed nicely,
with intentions of impressing the coaches with your
professionalism, you're screwed!

You're more likely to get coaches to open your mail if
you send it in a bigger manilla envelope.

This always gets people more curious...

Oh yeah, people love bulky things too... So if you aren't
sending your dvd or video, try attaching your school's 
wrestling pin on the top of the letter.  This will make your
envelope more bulky... and much more likely to be opened!!

I just wanted to pass these tips to you... stay tuned for 
mental conditioning tips next week!

Steve Preston

PS.  If you would like a step-by-step blue-print on exactly
how to get a wrestling scholarship, check out my detailed interview with one of the nations leading scholarship specialists.  This interview will teach you everything you need to get a wrestling scholarship.... and can only be found on the Wrestling Performance website.

How To Get Stronger, Faster and Better Conditioned For Wrestling With 1 Kettlebell!

Here is a cool exercise combination if you want something different to try. It can be done with any age wrestler...

I like it because when you use 1 Kettlebell at a time you force your body to involve the Internal Obliques... and that means more speed and power on the mat!

Let me know if you have any questions...

Oh yeah, I almost forgot... I just released the Advanced 6 Minute Conditioning Program yesterday. If you want a program that can get wrestlers into total condition with little to no equipment, and in only 6 minutes a day, check it out :)

Another MUST for offseason high school wrestling training

Here's another clip from the NEW 'High School Wrestling Performance DVD's':

When you properly train the 'Rotator Cuff' area, you will gain a tremendous amount of 'functional strength' for your next wrestling season.  Check out this video clip to see how to implement this exercise in your high school 'offseason...

The Perfect Workout for Wrestlers!

I get asked frequently at my Wrestling Performance about workouts. I love creating workouts and training systems to help wrestlers become better than ever...

Recently I received an email from a high school wrestler who wanted to know the best workout to help him become a better leg wrestler...

Then it dawned on me... I need to explain the 'system' vs. the 'quick fix.'

In wrestling, or any other sport, we want success. Success in wrestling is defined by winning matches. The kind of success that makes a wrestler a tournament, state, even national or world champion comes from hard work, day after day, year after year.

Many guys want to have me write them a workout to 'increase mat speed', 'improve takedowns', improve their wrestling off the bottom etc... and it IS something I do for wrestlers, coaches and parents.

BUT... before you can 'specialize' with workouts to turn your weaknesses into strengths, you must first have an overall system of training that works to improve your entire strength and speed levels, as well as your overall conditioning.

This means you need to do strength training year round with an Offseason, Preseason and Inseason.  After you have your yearly training system in place, you keep this base of training and specialize with workouts that address your weaknesses afterwards.

Your offseason is where you want to develop more strength and density to your muscles. This is the time of year a wrestler can benefit from doing multi-joint, compound exercises such as:

• squats
• reverse hyperextensions
• weighted dips
• close grip incline barbell presses
• trap bar deadlifts

During the offseason is also when we want to develop the 'little muscles' that benefit a wrestler by making them stronger 'on the mat.  This is when we train the adductor and abductor muscles in the thighs as well as the rotator cuff muscles.  

Preseason training is when we make the switch to 'power and speed exercises' such as:

• Snatch (and variations of it)
• Powercleans (and variations of it)
• Plyometrics
• Isolateral Training (training one side of the body at a time)
• Hybrid Exercises (exercises that are combinations of single exercises)

Inseason training is when we reduce the frequency of training to 1 or 2 days per week.  We reduce the number of exercises to no more than 6 per workout.  Try to include exercises that require strength and speed but are easy on the joints.  The inseason is no time to get yourself injured.

The other key to Inseason training for wrestlers is to purposely reduce the amount of weight that you would normally use on an exercise during the preseason when you are just training and eating well.  I recommend that you reduce weights to no less than 80% of the weight used during the preseason, and stick with this weight.  This will allow you to recover and still keep strength loss to a minimum (especially when you factor in weight cutting)

Once you mastered year-round training, then you can decide where you are weak.  If you have difficulty on the mat and get muscled by your opponents, you will spend more time on offseason training.  

If you are strong enough, but lack enough speed and explosive power off the bottom, you will spend more time on preseason training.

If you want to be a stronger leg wrestler you will add more hip abductor, adductor work etc.

The bottom line is that you have to lay the foundation for wrestling-specific training results, and then concentrate on any weaknesses that you may have...

I look forward to working with you..

Steve

Another video for high school wrestling training...

Here's a new sample clip from my upcoming 'High School Wrestling Performance Kit' - the Ultimate Strength, Speed and Power Resource for High School Wrestling Coaches and Parents...

It works best during the Preseason after you do a thorough Offseason training program first...

Let me know how you do...

Here's a Preseason Exercise for High School Wrestlers!

I just finished filming for my new 'High School Wrestling Performance Kit'...

The 'Kit' contains a preseason, offseason and inseason training dvd program, plus a ton of bonuses...

It will be available May 1sr..

In the meantime, here's a clip from the Preseason program that every high school wrestler who's serious about winning should do:

A 'Must-Do' Exercise For High School Wrestlers!

If you're a high school wrestler, or coach high school wrestlers, you need to pay attention to the needs that are specific to a wrestler between 14 and 17...

As I've written about in the past, wrestlers in this age group need to work on their flexibility and core strength while strength training...

One of the best exercises you can do in your Offseason as a high school age wrestler is the Half Kneeling Chop. It's a MUST in the programs I design for my wrestlers...

Check it out in the video below (Hey... I don't claim to be a Hollywood actor, but the info's good)

I hope you've enjoyed the Holiday week... I know I have. My wife and I are headed to the Outer Banks of North Carolina this morning for her birthday...

Before I give you today's tips I wanted to let you know that I'm pulling ALL of my products from the shelves this Sunday... If you want to get a hold of any of our DVD's, CD's, or software as 'stand-alone' products then get over to the site before this Sunday:

Wrestling Performance Products


4 Tips for Offseason High School Wrestling Training!
---------------------------------------------------------------------

1. Work the Rotator Cuff - One of the most neglected areas in a high school wrestler's strength training program is the rotator cuff. The rotator cuff is a group of 4 muscles that work together to allow you to move your upper arm in all directions.

This is so important on the wrestling mat... for injury prevention as well as high-performance wrestling.

By working the rotator cuff with simple exercises such as Internal and External Rotations with a band, you will help prevent injuries and will notice a dramatic strength increase while 'cranking half's' on your opponents.


2. Split Your Routine - I've found that at the high school level it is best to perform a 3 day split routine during the offseason for ultimate strength. I like to have the split look something like this:

Day 1: Hips, Legs, Neck, and Core
Day 2: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps, Forearms
Day 3: Upper Back, Lower Back, Neck, Core

By splitting up your offseason training like this you will be able to get just the right amount of work on each area, while preventing burnout.


3. Work the Abductors/Adductors - Another crucial area to train during your high school offseason are the Abductors and Adductors. These are the muscle groups on the inside and outside of your legs that allows you to extend your legs and move them out to the side and back.

This is so important for defensive wrestling when you sprawl, as well as leg wrestling (scissors, figure 4's etc)...

You can work your Abductors and Adductors with Bands, Cables or on a bench. Standing upright with a band around your foot is my favorite...


4. Work the Internal Obliques - I refer to this muscle as the 'Tornado Muscle.' The internal obliques will turn on the switch for your power and speed on the mat.

The best way to work the Internal Obliques is to use core exercises that force the resistance of the exercise across your body... My favorite way to do this is the Woodchop, Reverse Woodchop or Half-Kneeling Chop.


Steve Preston

PS. If you want to see exactly how I train High School Wrestlers, you'll want to get my High School Wrestling Training Kit... Coming May 1st!... Stay tuned!

5 Ways To Lose Fat Fast!

Since wrestling season is over, it's time to breathe, relax, and then get ready for next season.

It's time to train hard, eat right, rest and improve your technique...

It's also time for wrestlers (even coaches and parents) to get an education on nutrition... since 'how you eat' will make all the difference for 'how you wrestle.'

In the past I've written little 5-7 day ecourses for wrestlers, coaches and parents on how to strength train, condition and cut weight for wrestling...

Recently, I wrote a short 5 day ecourse called '5 Ways To Lose Fat Fast!' This ecourse is for anyone who wants to finally get in control of their body and lose fat easily and quickly...

It's free too!

Sign up for it here:

5 Ways To Lose Fat Fast!
www.simplefatburning.com

How to train after the season...

If you won States this season, let me say congratulations!...

But, if you didn't... take a week or so to goof off, and then it's
time to get into some wrestling-specific training to make next year
'YOUR' year!

I often get asked what type of training I recommend for the
offseason...

Although we have tons and tons of 'wrestling-specific' workouts at
Wrestling Performance the one I would recommend any high school
wrestler do to gain the most muscle, strength, power and speed this
season is HIT training.

H.I.T. means 'High Intensity Training' and is an old form of
training that really means picking certain strength exercises and
doing one or two all-out sets to failure in absolutely perfect
form. This type of training is incredibly effective for wrestlers
because it stimulates the metabolism, gets you into anaerobic
condition, and gets you stronger in less time than any other
training system!

If you have the guts to train this way, here are a few tips for you:

1. Do No More Than 12 Exercises In A Workout: 12 seems to be the
maximum number of exercises that you can perform in a HIT workout
without burning out. In fact, I've gotten more recent success by
taking 12 exercises and splitting it into 2 workouts so that I have
guys do 6 of the exercises in the first workout and the other 6
exercises in the second workout. You alternate them each time you
train. It would look like this:

Monday - Workout 'A'
Wednesday - Workout 'B'
Friday - Workout 'A'
Monday - Workout 'B'
Wednesday - Workout 'A'
Friday - Workout 'B'
etc...



2. Perform 1 or 2 Sets To Failure: If you do all 12 exercises in
a full body workout, be sure to perform 1 set to failure (after a
warmup). If you split your workouts as described above, you can do
1 or 2 sets to failure.

If you do 2 sets to failure, reduce the weight by 20% for your
second set to compensate for your increased muscle fatigue.



3. Perform Perfect Repetitions: So often I see wrestlers want to
train fast in the gym as they do in practice. With H.I.T. you need
to slow down... You would lift the weight in 2 seconds, and lower
the weight in 4 seconds...

Slowing your reps down like this forces you to recruit more
fast-twitch muscle fibers... the same one's you use on the mat.



4. Use The Right Exercises: With H.I.T. you can't use Olympic
lifts such as Power Clean, Hang Cleans, or Snatches because these
exercises require you to move the bar fast. There is nothing wrong
with these exercises, and some of my programs at Wrestling
Performance include them. But the best exercises for wrestlers
using HIT are Trap Bar Deadlifts, Reverse Hyperextensions,
Glute-Ham Exercise, Dips, Close Grip Incline Presses etc. These
exercises allow you to work a lot of muscle at one time while
adhering to HIT principles.



The offseason is your time to make a difference... make it YOUR
time!

Best,

Steve
http://www.wrestlingperformance.com


P.S. If you need to see exactly how to do a HIT for Wrestlers
workout, you can view my Champion Strength Training for Wrestlers
DVD. It is a no B.S. program and includes a 12 week program you
can follow for best results!

5 Weight Cutting Tips

Hey All

I just finished creating a 5 day ecourse called,"How To Cut 10lbs In 3 Days." It's a free 5 day email course, where you'll get a daily tip for 5 days... It really works too!

Sign up for it here:

FREE 5 Day 'How To Cut 10 lbs In 3 Days!' ecourse!

What is 6 Minute conditioning?

Every day I get asked about conditioning for wrestlers.

Wrestlers, coaches and parents want to know:

• How to get into condition for wrestling
• How to get stronger for wrestling
• How to get faster for wrestling

I often get asked how to get wrestlers stronger, faster and better conditioned with just bodyweight too.

So... I created this system I call '6 minute conditioning.' Here's what it's all about...

In order to increase your strength for wrestling you must consider these factors:

1. There must be progressive resistance, demanding more stimulus from the muscles with successive workouts.

2. Multi-joint exercises are best when trying to increase overall body strength.
Wrestlers should have some component of 'static contraction' training in order to get strong for the mat. This means they should have exercises where the muscle is 'held still' while contracting. This is often what occurs during a match.

3. Muscular strength is developed quickly by occasionally training a muscle to momentary muscular failure.

In order to increase your speed/power for wrestling you must consider these factors:

1. Plyometric exercises are great for speed but only when used on muscle that you've already gotten stronger.

2. Jumping exercise is crucial to increasing takedown and foot speed.

3. Frequent low-repetition sets of low intensity/high velocity exercise increase speed.

In order to increase conditioning for wrestling you must consider these factors:

1. Wrestling is anaerobic, not aerobic, so low intensity distance jogs will not get you in shape overall.

2. Circuit training relies on using short bursts of cardio followed by numerous different strength training exercises for a certain amount of time. This is inefficient both for strength AND for wrestling conditioning.

3. The best ways to condition for wrestling are wrestling itself, and anaerobic training that is similiar in terms of duration and intensity to a wrestling match.

With this in mind, I created a 6 Minute Conditioning (TM) that will take all of these factors into account, and help any aged wrestler develop these wrestling MUSTS at the same time.
Here's an example of what you do:

Use a stopwatch or a wristwatch with a second hand. Set the time for 6 minutes.
Use a multi-joint bodyweight exercise AND a static contraction exercise for the workout. In this example I'll use a Pushup and a Lunge.
Start the stopwatch and immediately crank out 5 perfect pushups.
With no rest, go immediately into a Plank for 20 seconds.
After 20 seconds, immediately perform 5 more perfect pushups.
Follow this with the Plank for 20 more seconds... etc.

This is done until 6 minutes are up, or you can no longer finish the workout.

Make sure that you do the entire workout for longer time the next time (if you failed before the time was up) or add a second combination of exercises for an increased workout.

This workout is going to get you stronger because you train until failure (cripes... I see 400lb bench pressers struggling to squeeze out another pushup after only 4 minutes on this one).

It gets you more powerful and faster because of the frequent 5 rep sets before fatigue sets in. Your power is developed first, followed by strength in this workout... but they work in combination.

It gets you in ultimate condition because you are on a 6 minute schedule (similiar to a wrestling match). The static contraction exercise is brutal because it forces you to really work the core as you are really starting to breathe heavy.

Give this sample program a try with a Pushup and Plank. I've created a 7 day program with some very unique and effective bodyweight exercises to get the most out of your wrestling this season.

More to come...

PS. You can access the entire 6 Minute Conditioning Program when you're a member of Wrestling Performance - The World's #1 Resource for Wrestlers, Coaches and Parents Seeking Cutting Edge Strength, Conditioning and Nutrition Information For Improved Mat Performance!

Fat Fighting Kung Fu Pills

So another new year is upon us. Untold numbers of people are "resolving" to win the battle of the bulge this year.

Some people are actually laying out a solid plan based on exercise and nutrition.

Others are going to go on yet another fad diet.

Even worse, lots and lots of soon to be disheartened folks will be turning to the latest miracle pill they've seen on TV or the Internet.

It's sad really.

The marketing for these pills gets cranked up to full blast now that it's January. These far less than reputable companies know how desperate people are. And they certainly know how much greater that desperation becomes in January.

Look, you and I know better. We know that the only way you're going to Kung Fu that fat off your belly, butt, hips and thighs is to eat right and exercise.

Know what else is sad?

Once people come to grips with the fact they've been ripped off over and over by these "miracle" diet pill companies, oftentimes they'll refuse to listen to reason about nutritional products that have actual benefits.

For instance, did you know that Essential Fatty Acid products help promote fat loss through the stabilization of blood sugar levels?

And that they may also help regulate mood, improve heart health and decrease joint pain?

If people are looking for a pill to take - one that is actually based on research - they should strongly consider adding an Essential Fatty Acids product to their diet.

I'm asked all the time what I use and it's Prograde's EFA Icon
Again, I know you're to smart to fall for the gimmicks, but if you know of anyone trying a diet pill this January, please tell them to get real. They'll be better off for it.

Yours in health,

Steve Preston

PS - Again, if you're looking to add a great Essential Fatty Acid product to your diet be sure to check out Prograde's EFA Icon. It's the best out there.

How to lose 10lbs in 3 days!

I hope all is well with you...

I have some great news for you today... but first I want to mention something I feel strongly about...

If I had it my way, wrestlers would never cut weight. I would love to see all wrestlers eat well, train hard, and wrestle their best 'always!!'

However... we all know that as long as wrestling is a sport, there will be an urgent temptation to cut weight.

As a Sports Performance Specialist who works with wrestlers, it is my job to make sure you guys get good information on nutrition as well as training to be your best.

I just released a f.r.e.e. 5 day email ecourse called 'How To Lose 10lbs In 3 Days!' .

It is my basic plan that I've been using with athletes for years who needed to cut weight fast but didn't want to starve or dehydrate.

But I'm not going to offer it for long... in fact, I may pull the information down soon.

Get it at:

==>> http://www.weightcuttingforwrestling.com/lose10lbsin3days.html

You'll receive a quick tip each day for the next 5 days which will help you cut weight without losing strength.

Let me know if you have any questions...

Steve

PS. I have only 16 copies left of the 'How To Cut Weight for Wrestling' DVD. I'm not sure if I'm going to make more copies... You can still get a copy today though.