Richard McAfee's table tennis training manual hits store shelves

My old table tennis coach, Richard McAfee, has a new book out named Table Tennis: Steps to Success. You can get it on Amazon and I also saw it on the shelf at Barnes & Noble. In it, you'll find "a unique 11-step approach designed to maximize table tennis instruction," stroke and footwork direction, and photos of Aurora Table Tennis Club regulars. McAfee is an amazing coach, so please check his book out.

Shoulder training for swimmers

I own a few books about competitive swimming. Nearly all of them point out the stress that the sport puts on your shoulders and recommend a weightlifting routine to strengthen the joint. So far, so good. The suggested routines are almost always designed to hit the front, medial and side delts, along with the traps and internal and external rotators. This is where I have questions. If you're a serious swimmer, your internal rotators are almost surely overdeveloped and there may be all sorts of other nasty problems lurking in there that you could make worse if you launch into a heavy lifting program.

I think training with Olympic moves is the right move for sprinters, but your body has to be balanced and injury-free first. Here are some places to start:

• Shoulder Savers: Part I


• Out of Kilter IV

DeQuervain's syndrome exercise

Made this for a family member and decided to share it with the world. Maybe it'll give a doctor or therapist some ideas for treatment. I actually had the problem more than two years ago. I think it was more like four. But the description of the exercise protocol I followed is accuarate.

Swimming is exactly like life

When you get in the pool, you sink. So you start beating your arms and legs around like crazy, inching forward and trying like hell not to drown. The guy in the next lane is going much faster than you, so you assume that he's just a lot better at beating his arms and legs around than you are. But one day, you realize that he's not beating his arms and legs around at all. He's found a different way to play the game. A way to work with an element that should by all rights kill him. A way to stay balanced and graceful after fatigue and panic set in. A way to enter an alien environment and instantly become a native. The day you realize these things may be the most important day of your life.

[Ed. - Crossposted at Ingwalson.]

Can clean athletes compete?

"[W]orld-renowned anti-doping expert" Werner Franke not mincing words:

Q: Can clean athletes ever compete against doped ones?

A: It varies from discipline to discipline, but in many disciplines they have no chance.

The biggest laugh I ever got was when someone asked me what percentage of Mr. Olympia competitors take steroids.

28-minute bodyweight workout

I remember when I used to be a personal trainer. People would complain about not having time to train and I'd pretend to be sympathetic. But inside, I was just thinking they didn't have enough willpower. Now I know better. A 60 to 65-hour a week job and a couple kids that need parenting will leave you busy from six in the morning until midnight, seven days a week. A couple of months ago, I created a workout that I could do in my basement in less than half an hour. It requires nothing but bodyweight, a good pair of shoes, and a stopwatch.

00:00 to 03:00
Warm up
Jumping jacks and shadow boxing

03:00 to 06:00
Burpees
From a push-up position, jump your feet up next to your hands and then jump into the air. Land and explode back to the push-up position. Repeat. Three sets. 30 seconds each. 30 seconds of rest between sets.

06:00 to to 09:00
Split squat jumps
From a lunge position, explode into the air, switch your feet and land. Repeat, switching legs in the air every time. Three sets. 30 seconds each. 30 seconds of rest between sets.

09:00 to 13:00
Push ups compound-set
Start by doing as many push-ups as you can with your feet up on a chair or bench. When you're exhausted, drop your feet to the floor and immediately continue the set until positive failure. Three sets. One minute rest in between.

13:00 to 20:30
Ab giant-set (Crunch and plank series)
Start with crunches. Then roll into the left plank position. Hold. Then roll into the right plank position. Hold. And then finish in the full plank. Three sets. 30 seconds of each exercise. Then 30 seconds of rest.

20:30 to 23:30
Wall sit
Assume a position with your back against the wall and your hips and legs at 90 degree angles. Hold still. Three sets. 45 seconds each. 15 seconds of rest in between.

23:30 to 27:30
Close grip push ups
Put your hands next to each other and perform pushups, keeping your elbows close to your sides. Three sets. As many reps as possible. 45 seconds rest in between.

27:30 to 28:00
Feel just a bit better about yourself.

Courage

When Nike named it's new spot Courage, the brand had no idea that it would soon need some of its own.

A few months ago, Speedo built a better swimsuit. A seamless, pricey, high-tech marvel named the Lzr. Nike swimmers put up a brave front. But as world records fell, it became pretty clear that any athlete not wearing Speedo or Tyr will be at a major disadvantage in Beijing.

So Nike finally did what it had to do. It told its swimmers they could switch suits for the Olympics.

It wasn't a move Nike had to make. Few would have noticed if Nike's swimmers had failed to medal. (It's not like they sponsor Michael Phelps, Natalie Coughlin or Ryan Lochte.) But Nike had the courage to admit it was marketing an inferior product. And the beneficiary is the USA and our Olympic team.

It's not the sort of courage showed by, say, a firefighter. But for a brand that makes a living selling stuff to athletes, Nike showed some guts.

Cross-posted at Ingwalson.