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Building Better Athletes

Blog

The Myth of Triple Extension?

9/28/2016

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There is a fascination in the Strength and Conditioning world with triple extension.  For those not familiar - triple extension is extension of 3 joints - ankle, knee, and hip.

In fact, achieving triple extension has become, in many cases, the main priority in exercise selection.

Why has triple extension become a prized possession when training athletes?

Well it has been proposed as a key in athlete performance, mainly imho, because when you look at still pictures of jumping or accelerating or sprinting coaches perceive the key performance indicator behind these movements is triple extension.

Go into Google and type in Triple Extension and here are some of the top images...
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As you can see, Olympic lifting is very closely associated with triple extension and hence why it is thought to be a valuable training tool. 

BUT, BUT what if I told you triple extension is far overrated?  What if triple extension occurs FAR FAR LESS than what you've been told?  What if I told you triple extension has only a small amount to do with athletic success?

For many it would be blasphmaomy, but let's take a deeper look at triple extension.

First, let's take a look at these picture and tell me if triple extension is occurring…
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See Triple Extension?
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How About During Acceleration?
When it comes to sprinting, triple extension does NOT occur.  During top-end sprinting neither full hip, knee, or ankle extension occurs. 

In fact, the more extension one gets, the slower they will run.  In order to maximize speed, less active ankle, knee, and hip extension occurs, and the sooner flexion in these joints occur during and immediately after Ground Contact, the better.

Understand this, during top-end speed, the athlete is only on the ground for .07-.13seconds, this is no where near enough time for someone to fully extend each joint, and the more they try to, the slower they would run.  The best sprinters have less hip and knee extension at toe-off

If an athlete tried to triple extend, they would create excessive backside mechanics which leads to long, inefficient GCT, and further lead to poor flight positioning of the swing leg which would finally result of the swing leg contacting the ground out in front of the body, rather than closer to the COM.  

​It's a deadly cycle.

During acceleration, athletes MAY triple extend during their first 1-2 steps, but after that - triple extension DOES NOT occur.  Same as top-end speed, their simply isn't enough time on the ground, and extension power should be put forth during ground preparation and during the 1st half of GCT - the goal during ground contact is to get off the ground as quickly as possible.

Let's take a look at some great charts by James Wild (@wildy_jj)

The below chart shows that full hip extension doesn't occur during the 1st 3-steps, and this is amplified in team sport athletes - who are less technically proficient as sprinters.
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This chart shows knee extension during the 1st 3-steps, again full knee extension is no where to be found.
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This chart shows ankle extension, again the less ankle extension, the better the performance.  ​
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When it comes to the vertical jump, Chang et al. (2015) demonstrated that vertical jump performance was not dictated by triple extension.  Instead, successful performance in the vertical jump could be described by knee and ankle extension, not hip extension.

In fact, I think triple flexion is on the same level of triple extension.  Flexion angles of the hip, knee, and ankle are vitally important for sprinting speed.  Ankle dorsiflexion is a must during sprinting, COD, and braking actions.  Hip flexion is a must to allow the body to produce maximal forces during sprinting, acceleration, and jumping.  Triple flexion allows the body to create a ton of stored elastic energy to be reproduced during extension phases.  Triple flexion is the loading, coiling, and absorbing - extension is uncoiling and expression.

This chart shows the LESS ankle dorsiflexion range equals faster speeds… in normal english, this means the less the ankle deforms at GCT the better - so coming into GCT with MORE FLEXION can help allow less deformation, better utilization of stored elastic energy, and shorter GCTs.
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At the end of the day, triple extension plays a role in athletic performance, but let's be clear - it's a lot less important than most claim. 

Being able to produce extension forces IS very important, but they are not necessarily end range of motion extension forces. 

So the moral of the story is this - if you're choosing your exercises/programming based on achieving triple extension, take another look because that is a poor reason to include or exclude certain exercises. 


Got Get 'Em!



References

Chang, E., Norcross, M. F., Johnson, S. T., Kitagawa, T., & Hoffman, M. (2015). Relationships between explosive and maximal triple extensor muscle performance and vertical jump height. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 29(2), 545-551.
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5 Ways to Finish Your Day Strong

9/6/2016

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Our last article - 5 Way To Start Every Morning - was a big hit, I've decided to now attack the back end and give you some tips on how to finish every day.


1. Read for 20-Minutes

Keep a book by your bedside, and try to hit 20-minutes of reading every night.  This works on two fronts - reading is awesome and it may even be associated with longer life expectancies.  An interesting study done at Yale University, showed that those who read for 30-minutes of day, lived on average 23-months longer than those who didn't read (1).

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The second reason reading before bed is great is because it helps get your body into a routine.   Reading before bed will help your body "realize" this routine and start to learn that when you open a book to read, it's time to shut-down and prepare for sleep.

Here are some of my past and current books that I've read in the past 6-months


Grit - Angela Duckworth
The 4-Hour Work Week - Timothy Ferriss
Ego Is The Enemy - Ryan Holiday
The Champion's Mind - Jim Afremow
The Champion's Comeback - Jim Afremow
The Science of Running - Steve Magness
The Talent Code - Dan Coyle
Practice Perfect - Doug Lemov
Legacy - James Kerr
CEO Strength Coach - Ron McKeefery
The Obstacle Is The Way - Ryan Holiday
A Guide To Better Movement - Todd Hargrove
Antifragile - Nassim Taleb


2. Stretch, Mobility, Massage, Down Regulate

Stretching or mobility or self massage before bed is a great way to drive a parasympathetic nervous system response and help the body down regulate to prepare for sleep.  Stretching/mobility work can work on two fronts… 1. stretching before bed may help prevent cramping, restless leg syndrome, and increase sleep comfort (2.4).  2. This is an opportunity to get some specific body care in areas you need.  Whether certain joints/muscles need extra TLC or to help work on certain postural/lifestyle issues. 

Everybody should seek to spend 15-minutes a day, addressing their body's unique demands/needs, and this is a great opportunity to do so.


3. Drink A Glass of Water

In the morning article, we suggested starting everyday with 2-3 glasses of water - well ending each day with a glass is another good step. 

Let's remind you, you'll be asleep for 6-10 hours, with NO water.  Putting back a glass before bed is a good way to stay hydrated.  Don't drink much more than 1 glass, as more may lead to a bathroom break in the middle of the night - which we'd like to avoid to ensure sleep quality.


4. Avoid The 2-E's = Eating and Electronics

Simple - Avoid eating within 2-hours and avoid electronics within 30-minutes of bed.

Electronics produce blue light which reduces melotonin production (our sleep hormone) and can alter our ability to fall asleep and throw off circadian rhythms (3). 

A great tip you can do is turn off the blue light of your phone after 8pm.  You can do this on iPhones (turn phone onto night mode; see below) and this reduces the amount of blue light the phone emits and is easier on your eyes and nervous system, which will allow you to sleep smoother.
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Eating, especially certain types of food, can alter sleep.  Foods containing caffeine, high in sugar, high in fat, spicy foods, fried foods, and alcohol can all affect digestion, stimulate the nervous system, upset your stomach, and take the bodies focus off other functions and instead focus on digestion (the body has many jobs to do at night, staying away from digestion is beneficial). 

Now certain foods, especially for athletes, can be very beneficial and NEEDED given nutritional or hypertrophic goals.  Things like casein protein (from milk or cottage cheese), low sugar foods (avoid insulin kick), and a little fat (peanut butter, nuts/seeds) are all good choices for athletes looking to take advantage of this time for additional calories.


5. Write

Keep a note pad by the bedside for you to write down thoughts, notes on that day, and/or notes for tomorrow. 

Many find a problem falling asleep because their mind is running crazy or they're thinking about that day's or tomorrows events.  Get these things on paper, so your mind can relax and prepare for sleep.  It also works for when ideas for work, training, business, etc come up - having that paper right there ensures you won't forget something.


Go Get 'Em!


References:


1.  Bavishi, A., Slade, M. D., & Levy, B. R. (2016). A chapter a day: Association of book reading with longevity. Social Science & Medicine, 164, 44-48.

2.  Hallegraeff, J. M., van der Schans, C. P., de Ruiter, R., & de Greef, M. H. (2012). Stretching before sleep reduces the frequency and severity of nocturnal leg cramps in older adults: a randomised trial. Journal of physiotherapy, 58(1), 17-22.

3.  Kimberly, B., & James R, P. (2009). Amber lenses to block blue light and improve sleep: a randomized trial. Chronobiology international, 26(8), 1602-1612.

4.  Silber, M. H. (1997, March). Restless legs syndrome. In Mayo Clinic Proceedings (Vol. 72, No. 3, pp. 261-264). Elsevier.
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    Michael Zweifel CSCS-

    Owner and Head of Sports Performance. National Player of the Year in Division 3 football. Works with athletes including NFL, NHL, and Olympic athletes.

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