Off
Thank goodness my off day has finally arrived. I’m not doing any training at all today, just a walk. I think I am still having residual effects from last Friday. I was definitely walking the road to overtrainsville. Little nagging owwiiees were building up. Today is R & R.
Anvil or Hammer 
on February 22, 2007 on 5:13 pm
hey mike,
do you have a set distance/time that you push a car? i’m not sure what i should be aiming for… some old articles that are Westside BB related mention that a sled should be dragged for “200 feet or 2 minutes” but i’m not sure if a car would translate into the same volume …..
on February 22, 2007 on 9:22 pm
Car pushing is tricky, It’s a bit like odd object lifting, you don’t get to rely on well balanced and measured weight and controlled conditions. You pretty much have to rely on the system of finding a regular location to do it and then push for more the next time. Remember all your variables, speed, distance, weight, resistance. the amount of uniformity and the variations are all at your disposl. That’s what makes odd objects and similar Dinosaur Training so valuable.
Do the same thing you did last time for a couple more goes, it’ll be a good chance for your body to get down the neurological basics of the exercise. Then have the person at the wheel just touch the breaks a little bit (you do have a driver for safety, right?) You could also go for quicker push or even wear a vest or drag your sled along with you next time. throw and hundred or two hundred pounds in the back.
The distance only becomes relevant when you are preparing for a competition that has this event in it. Time is a good tool to work with, focus it towards your overall goals. If you want to up your max squat, lots of stops and starts are more valuable than time or distance. If you want to increase your speed over a certain distance, then work that distance or work the time it takes you to cover it.
Not trying to answer your question with more questions or anything so I hope that was at least a little helpful.
For anyone wanting to catch up on where Brent is coming from:
http://asecondchance.wordpress.com/
on February 22, 2007 on 9:38 pm
very helpful
you’re point about making the method of pushing specific to my goals makes a lot of sense, i never realized that i could break it down into specific motor patterns
do you ever squat and drag/push in the same day?
on February 22, 2007 on 10:26 pm
Mike,
I’ll be joining you for a week of R & R as I’ve got some nagging owies as well. Mostly my back, which gets inflamed and throbs throughout the day if I don’t rub A535 (muscle relaxant) on it. It flared up against yesterday after some heavy squats.
on February 23, 2007 on 6:49 am
Brent,
I have taken the pleasure of mixing the two yet. I might consider putting a little sled dragging at the end of a squat day but by the time I am done, I am DONE. 🙂 I save it for the next day. I don’t know that I would do the car push on the same day unless you had been doing it for quite a while and had one heck of a squat. It wouldn’t take a lot to overwork the muscles in your midsection or around your spine. You pull one of those and you won’t be squatting or pushing for a while.
Stew,
I hate when those start to build up. I have consistently not listened to my body and gotten over trained. So far I have been fortunate enough to avoid real injuries, I hope to keep it that way. I only hoep that as time passes I get a little wisdom and learn how to do it all a little better.
That back thing sounds nasty, take care of it. Consider some strength and flexibility work (yoga, tai chi, z health, even the pavel book I don;t recall the name of). Rest up but stay moving, you’ll heal up in no time.