5.Myth: It's A Beauty Contest I know many of you have heard saying “all show and no go”. I am also sure that each and every one of you has observed this type of player. You know, body of Adonis coupled with performance of a 1981 Yugo. There are many factors that contribute to this phenomenon, but one of main ones is prevalence of athletes using bodybuilding training programs. Don’t get me wrong here. In some instances, muscle hypertrophy (growth) is very beneficial, but there is a distinct difference between effective sports conditioning programs and bodybuilding programs. The main difference is that strength and conditioning routines for sports are primarily focused on improving athlete’s performance in his/her chosen sport. Bodybuilding programs are designed to do just that – build body, primarily muscles. Now, let’s shift focus to footy. Some things required by a footy player are hip and leg strength and power and strength in trunk and upper body. Strength in hips and legs allows player to kick ball and move about ground at an effective pace. Strength in trunk and upper body gives player stability when confronted with an awkward body position and allows player to perform tackles and shepherds with brutal efficiency. Did you notice any mention of beautiful, bulging biceps and triceps or pumped up pecs? Nope. Nada. None. Not a single mention. Do you know why? Two reasons really: 1. Those areas get effective training from performing exercises such as squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, over-head presses, etc. As a matter of fact, above exercises provide more than enough of a training effect to keep those muscle groups plenty strong for demands placed on them during sport. 2. Performing specific exercises for those body parts falls lower on priority list than those exercises that are going to more readily assist you in becoming a better footy player. And that's what it's all about really -- becoming a better footy player, right? Which brings us to what may be biggest sports conditioning myth of all: Bruno Got Kick-Ass Results, So Will You. You know story. A friend of a friend's brother's sister's boyfriend Bruno did this particular program and got kick-ass results, so, of course, it will work same magic for you. The problems with these types of stories/myths are that they may or may not be true, people may be telling them simply to sell a particular program, and you don't personally know Bruno. For all you know, Bruno's kick-ass results may be due to fact that he was a stereotypical 90 lb weakling before starting program or maybe he was training to be Mr. Olympia. What is probably true is that Bruno is not a footy player, and despite results of mythological proportions, his program is totally inappropriate for footy conditioning. Truth: Bruno Got Kick-Ass Results, You Are Not Bruno. The first thing you must ask yourself before you start a sports conditioning program is whether or not this program will make you better at your sport, and if so, how. If answer is YES, then by all means proceed. If, however, answer is NO, then you should seriously assess why you would want to undertake such a program. The next question to ask is whether program is going to help you strengthen or eliminate weaknesses in your footy game or simply further develop areas in which you are already very proficient. Finally, you have to determine if you have resources available to accomplish your goals. Resources can be anything from training equipment to time to physical stature. They all play a role in how productive and successful a player you will become. If you are going to perform a strength and conditioning program to assist you in becoming a better footy player, why not perform it using most effective protocols and techniques available for your sport? Hopefully, this article has helped dispel some of more commonly held myths about strength and conditioning for sports and that you will soon be well on your way to your own kick-ass results as a footy player. For more articles and information about optimizing your training programs, be sure to head on over to Coach Anderson’s website www.integratedevolution.org and check out all FREE information available. Also, if you are interested in receiving monthly training and nutrition information, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter The Evolutionary at www.integratedevolution.org

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Troy M Anderson, US Revolution Strength and Conditioning Coach Integrated Evolution, LLC integratedevolution@cox.net www.integratedevolution.org

There are two universal kitesurfing hand signals to tell people to look at something. If you want other people to look at you, you will need to point two finger of one of your hands at your eyes. If you want other people to look in some specific direction, you will need to point a straight arm in this direction. Yes and No signals are very simple. To say “Yes”, you will need to nod your head up and down. To say “No”, you will need to move your head left and right.

When you are launching, you will need to show thumbs up (or head nod) to people around you and loudly say 'launch'. Another one of important universal kitesurfing hand signals is get ready to launch signal. You will need to put your arm above your head. Your arm should not be straight, but it should also be some distance above your head or helmet.