Build Strength with the Farmer’s Walk

Farmer’s Walk

Most of us are fairly traditional when it comes to working out at the gym.  We don’t stray far from exercises like the bench press and squat (nothing wrong with that… they’re beneficial exercises).  And, of course, if you’re a guy you spend way too much time working on your arms.

The farmer’s walk is a weighted carry exercise that’s terrific for building functional strength.  This exercise will not only challenge your core, it will also strengthen it, making you stronger in everything you do.

At our facility, our athletes also perform other variations of weighted carry exercises, including:

• Suitcase Carry (same as farmer’s walk, carrying weight on one side instead of both)
• Overhead Carry (hold weight overhead with both arms)
• Waiter’s Walk (same as Overhead Carry, using one arm instead of both)
• Weight cradled in arms against chest
• Weight carried at shoulders with elbows tucked and facing down, and palms facing each other

Here’s How to Do the Farmer’s Walk

Grab a pair of dumbbells (you can also use kettlebells or weight plates), each weighing about a half your body weight (1/3 for females), and let them hang at your sides.  If you have to, you can use lighter weights.  Try to maintain perfect posture — head and chest up, shoulders back, core tight.  Walk 60 feet with perfect form.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Speed Development Starts in the Weight Room

Every summer, I get scores of calls and emails from athletes (and parents of athletes) asking me if I can help with speed development in preparation for fall and winter sports.  Invariably, they all want me to focus on the same thing — running form, mechanics, and technique.  They feel that if I can correct and improve mechanical shortcomings, speed will improve.

I don’t dispute that running form is important, but it should be viewed as the “fine-tuning” and not the main area of focus.  I train some very fast athletes whose technique isn’t exactly “textbook” perfect.  Same goes for my highest vertical jumpers and quickest, most agile athletes.  But all the fastest athletes I train have something in common: Strong, powerful hips and legs.  They all have the ability to generate a lot of force against the ground to propel themselves forward (upward, laterally, etc.).

In his article, Why Power Development Must Come Before Speed Work, strength coach Rick Scarpulla asserts that “Power can overcome a lack of technique to an extent, but technique cannot overcome a lack of power.”

If you want to lay the groundwork for speed development, start in the weight room.  Once you have built a solid foundation of functional strength and power with exercises like squats, deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, glute-ham raises, and plyometrics, then it’s time to break out the cones, hurdles, and ladders, and hit the track or turf for your field work.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Build Strength with the Farmer’s Walk

Most of us are fairly traditional when it comes to working out at the gym.  We don’t stray far from exercises like the bench press and squat (nothing wrong with that… they’re useful exercises).  And, of course, if you’re a guy you spend way too much time working on your arms.

The farmer’s walk is a terrific exercise for building functional strength.  This exercise will not only challenge your core, it will also strengthen it, making you stronger in everything you do.

Here’s How to Do the Farmer’s Walk

Grab a pair of dumbbells, each weighing about half your body weight, and let them hang at your sides.  If you have to, you can use lighter weights.  Try to maintain perfect posture — head and chest up, shoulders back, core tight.  Walk 60 feet with perfect form.

For an added challenge, try one of these two farmer’s walk variations:

1. Instead of carrying the dumbbells at your sides, carry them at your shoulders with elbows tucked and facing down, and palms facing each other.
2. Instead of carrying two dumbbells, carry just one, letting it hang at your side.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Speed Development Starts in the Weight Room

Every summer, I get scores of calls and emails from athletes (and parents of athletes) asking me if I can help with speed development in preparation for fall and winter sports.  Invariably, they all want me to focus on the same thing — running form, mechanics, and technique.  They feel that if I can correct and improve mechanical shortcomings, speed will improve.

I don’t dispute that running form is important, but it should be viewed as the “fine-tuning” and not the main area of focus.  I train some very fast athletes whose technique isn’t exactly “textbook” perfect.  Same goes for my highest vertical jumpers and quickest, most agile athletes.  But all the fastest athletes I train have something in common: Strong, powerful hips and legs.  They all have the ability to generate a lot of force against the ground to propel themselves forward (upward, laterally, etc.).

In his article, Why Power Development Must Come Before Speed Work, strength coach Rick Scarpulla asserts that “Power can overcome a lack of technique to an extent, but technique cannot overcome a lack of power.”

If you want to lay the groundwork for speed development, start in the weight room.  Once you have built a solid foundation of functional strength and power with exercises like squats, deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, glute-ham raises, and plyometrics, then it’s time to break out the cones, hurdles, and ladders, and hit the track or turf for your field work.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?