Liz Woodgate
Liz Woodgate (47...... Sorry Liz) is not your ‘normal’ client. She is one of those people that spend their weekends (and some days throughout the week) running or cycling though mountains and scrambling up and down rocky unstable surfaces....... for hours and hours on end. She loves it and is, what I term, an endurance junkie. She is also a very experienced one. Last year she entered into her ninth Oxfam Trailwalker http://trailwalker.oxfam.org.au/ ('Take on the Ultimate team challenge - Tackle 100km of Australian bush within 48 hours as a team of four, and make a difference by raising funds to help overcome poverty and injustice around the world.') However, her ninth Trailwalker was a self confessed ‘nightmare’ that saw Liz retiring at 89kms. She attributes this to lack of strength training and poor nutrition.
When Liz started strength training with us she told me she had ‘unfinished business’ and was determined to go to Trailwalker number 10 and get the job done Liz Woodgate style. We stuck to the basic lifts of Barbell Back Squat, Barbell Dead Lift, Barbell Bench Press and Wide Grip Chins. 6 reps x 4 sets (3 sec lowering phase and 1 sec lifting phase).
Liz and Team Ongoing Concern finished 12th out of 550 teams in a time of 17 hours and 45 minutes. Liz says, “I felt so strong because of the strength training I had been dong with Innervate, I did not look at any of the hills and think - Oh shit!, I pulled up better after the race and felt really solid throughout the event."
Liz also runs a mean bookkeeping business check her out at http://www.ongoingconcern.com.au/
Martin Quax
Martin hits his Personal Best on the Sumo Dead lift!
Martin was another endurance junkie that had never done any strength training before or any of the major lifts. He had very little musculature and was experiencing lower back pain during long runs.
We did a few weeks of Movement Pattern Base Training using Squats, Lunges, Bends, Pushes, Pulls and Twists. This was with body weight and lighter loads. We ironed out any imbalances, we used SMR (Self Myofascial Release using the foam roller) and stretches, we mobilised his ankles and thoracic spine and fired up his neural pathways so he was able to move effectively. Once I was happy that, he was ready to start lifting heavier loads. We worked together on Bar Bell Back Squats, Front Squats, Lunges, Dead lifts (sumo and normal), Bench Presses and Chin Ups.
Martin was able to run for longer without pain, he has added muscle mass to his frame, he is stronger in all lifts, his posture has dramatically improved. In March 2011 he completed the Six Foot Track Marathon in the Blue Mountains well within his target time. (http://www.sixfoot.com/).
“Training with Innervate has complemented my running and I have become a stronger, more balanced runner, with less injuries. In the second half of the race I kept on overtaking other runners. Recovery after the Six Foot was also shorter than I was used to.”
Finally, Martin was doing some home maintenance recently and fell off a ladder and directly onto it landing on his ribs and back. He says, ‘I am certain that I would have suffered more serious injuries had this occurred prior to strength training with Innervate. As it was I walked away with bruising and got back on track remarkably quickly.’
Get in touch if you want us to prepare you for any type of challenge event. We'd love to blog about your progress and goals.
Contact Lisa Brown at info@innervate.net.au
No comments:
Post a Comment