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!