Secret of Atheleticism

migangelo

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Jun 5, 2010
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portland, or
does anyone own this book? is it worth it? anyone else heard of it? i've been looking at the authors videos but he doesn't reveal much. he wants you to buy the book and it's pricy. $50. $100 with the video and from looking at his youtube videos it may not be great quality.


that's just one of his videos. he has quite a few.
 
I know the author of this book. He reckons he has scientifically discovered and proven a way to 'engage the glutes which greatly improves performance.' I have always been curious about what he is suggesting, but I have always been put off by the cost of his (e)book. He could really do with some people to read his theory, try it, and then tell the world what an incredible difference it makes. Hint, Hint Chiong Xi ;)
 
Sorry shower curtain background and conversational pitch failed to keep my attention after a minute. Chances for internet gurudom seem slim.

But, all athletes know that power comes from the hips/glutes and bent knees. All my coaches and martial arts instructors told me that. Watch a crappy action film and watch the pretty boy actors punch with their arms. Then watch Iron Mike twist his lower body powerfully to deliver a crushing blow. Deadlifts and squats, deadlifts and squats. Do what the pros do and forget the rest. I never golf, but I have a pretty good drive. Why? Because the mechanics are exactly the same as throwing a punch, or hitting a baseball. And since I've taken my deadlifts and squats seriously, my running feels a lot more solid. I'm pretty sure I have an engaging butt.
 
I've been doing bridges, side clams and squats every day for a few weeks now, since it was pointed out to me that my glutes were not engaged and my quads were doing all the work when I run. I've also been doing calf and quad/hip flexor stretches
 
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I agree with Lee, he showed me the wisdom of strength training. I do not powere lift but more light weights and focussing on squats and I can feel the differences, even in my other sport activities.
To give credit where credit is due, it was Abide and his thread "Optimal Strength Training for Runners" that got me thinking seriously about how my lifting could support my running. Before that, I had treated them as two separate activities, and kinda figured that running took care of the lower body for the most part. But for the last year or so I've been doing more lower body and back exercises, and it's really helped my running, both in terms of form and technique, and also in staying injury-free. Overall, I think a strong back and butt are key to just about any activity, and I have a pretty good mix of exercises to address those areas now. Also, as Dutchie and Paul have said, mobility and plyometrics are very important too, and I've been trying to get more serious about those lately too.

In case it's of interest and hasn't been seen on Abide's thread, I've uploaded the latest version of my routine. Note that I don't usually get through all the exercises on the lists, and have bold-faced the one's I always try to hit. The second and third columns are my goal maxes for this year, at the six-month mark, and at the end of the year, respectively. My idealized schedule is to run at least 30 minutes every morning, lift 20-40 minutes weekday afternoons, and get in two 20-30 minute plyo/mobility session per week as well. The whole thing is organized around having two lower body workouts per week, spaced out 3-4 days apart, one centering on deadlifts, and the other on squats, with the squat day coming two days before my long run on Saturday, and the deadlifts two afterwards. I've been getting really good results so far.
 

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Paul, i started this thread to get your attention specifically. i saw you're a friend of Chiong's. i wondered if you had his book. oh well. i thought about sending him an email but i watched him attack quite a few people on fb. i am trying to figure out a way to engage him in a conversation w/out devolving into an argument.

Sid, those were some good articles. i recommend clicking the link with the bushman.

BL, i had read about using glutes for running and squatting but didn't quite understand it. i felt it all in my quads. i learned how to box and some martial arts but didn't know how to translate that hip drive to my running or lifting. i don't believe it's common knowledge. look around when you see people run. quad dominant. bad form everywhere. i'm sure you can recall being in the gym watching people lift wrong. common sense isn't that common. what we think to be common knowledge also isn't that common.

i am trying to open discussion not just to help others but to help me. i want to learn to explain quickly and powerfully. people will always disagree especially when you tell them their wrong. worse is when you say to someone "you're wrong", they won't listen to a word that you say. even if you're giving good info. this here is a learning experience for me and i hope for others.

when i complained about back pain from lifting it was to see if anyone would tell me i was doing it wrong or just did too much. i don't remember anyone telling me anything. from reading all the links i can see i was doing it wrong. i ran this morning using various techniques. i could def feel my glutes. a little change and i felt it in my quads. a little change and i felt in my hip flexors and extensors. it made running so much easier. my hr couldn't keep up with it. too bad. felt like i was doing sub 8m/m.

discussion is good for getting ideas out in the open. we may not always agree and don't need to. i'm sure we will see though we have more in common than what appears on the surface. short posts don't allow us to get everything out and no one enjoys, at least me, reading a long post and this one has gone on too long.

i'm hoping to get good info out. Tj started this site so we could disseminate good info. i saw someone new here in the last week or so talk about strengthening his quads so he could run better. no one corrected him including me. i don't know how to describe good form. i'm hoping with this discussion among others to get better at that.
 
Hi Migangelo.

Yes, Chiong is very passionate about his discovery and does tend to let everyone know that he thinks he is doing it right and others are doing it wrong.

I too tried to learn more about his 'discovery' without buying the book, but he doesn't let anything slip. If his book had been in hard copy I might have talked myself into buying it, but I have a strong aversion for paying anything for digital information.

On the subject of engaging glutes however, I had a running gait analysis done by a professional lower body biomechanic. He pointed out that my glutes were weak and not doing anything, and that I was tensing my quads and they were doing all the work (and failing, hence my stamina problems)

His recommendation was to do glute strengthening exercises and calf and quad stretches, and said that when my glutes get stronger, they would engage naturally.

I have been following his advice for a number of weeks now, and my legs and lower body do feel like they are much stronger, my quads no longer hurt or give up, and I have broken my PB record twice recently! (Though there were other changes in my medical conditions around the same time, so there are other factors involved in my recent performance improvements.)

I read an interesting article about the loss of use of our glutes recently. I will have to go and find it and get back to you.

I hope this helps

Good luck!
 
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Just realised the link I meant is already posted above (The Bushman's Buttocks.) I've also been trying to activate my glutes when I walk as suggested in this article
 
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BL, . . .
Yah, sorry Mike, for the sarcastic tone. I needed to look past the intent of the author, which seems to be selling old wine in a new bottle, and see your intent as a poster, which is to let everyone know about this valuable tip. As you can see in my second post, I'm mostly interested in sharing knowledge too. I blame the tone on giving up coffee this week. I guess after spending a year or two getting caught up on all the putatively new fitness trends, I've grown weary of all the snake oil. Apologies for taking it out on you. And there are some genuinely newish ideas out there. I think the recent emphasis on plyometrics, in addition to running and weights, in particular is new for recreational folks, but of course, it's really old school conditioning drills. It's just that I guess it hadn't occurred to any post-sports people like me to keep doing them as part of a general fitness routine.

Anyhow, in the interest of adding constructively to this thread, let me recommend sprints or intervals as another great way to engage the glutes. Most of the pro-style trainer sites I've come across recommend sprints for neuromuscular training in addition to cardiovascular training. The idea is that when you run fast, you're forced to run efficiently, and thus engage the muscles properly, which can then be translated into slower paces. I've certainly found this to be the case in my case. I can really feel how the form is supposed to be when I go fast. Then going slower, the only difference should be a smaller range of motion and less of a forefoot landing.

And Paul, just to confirm the point you just made: I too have noticed that simply strengthening the glutes through strength training tends to allow one to engage them more fully without really having to think about it. And I'm all about running mindlessly. I hate having to think about form or numbers.
 
BL, thanks. i know i've given sarcastic tones as well and am trying to change that. i've read about sprints too and question that advice. i noticed while i ran today i kept extending my back. doing that cuts off the hips and forces the legs to take over. if someone runs with bad form they're likely to continue that when they speed up. good thing for me is i read about extending the back and how you don't want to do it. i would do it to speed up. many people do. now i know better and am conscious about it.

Paul, keep it up and let us know how it goes. good or bad.
 
BL, thanks. i know i've given sarcastic tones as well and am trying to change that. i've read about sprints too and question that advice.
Probably one of those things, like MAF training, that works better for some than for others. Worth giving a try, which you did.

I also don't understand what you mean by extending the back. When I sprint, my torso is erect and stable, kinda gliding on top of my legs. But I also have more of a sprinter's build than a distance runner's, and was one of the faster kids in my school, so perhaps that factors into it too?
 
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extending your low back. instead of leaning back you tilt your hip forward which extends the back and cuts off the hip muscles. the need to keep the back straight is more important than i knew.

side note. while walking after, and before running, i was engaging my glutes. makes them pop out. kinda feel like i should throw on a skirt and heels and charge admission for watching. :mooning:
 
I'm still not following that description. I've heard this before but have never understood what people were saying. Nearest thing I can figure about tilting hips is either sticking butt out or kinda sucking it in. Is this what you are referencing Mike?
 
yes. when you stick your butt out you put your hips forward. or you extend your low back. you can say it either way and it's correct. engaging your trunk muscles to keep the back straight is whats best.

does that help?

do you mean suck in the stomach? suck in the glutes? trying it pulls my hips back or puts my low back into flexion.

damn. i remember things i want to type when i'm offline and forget them when i'm back on. oh well.