Category Archives: lacrosse

80/20 Fitness Top Three

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So everyone out there is applying the 80/20 principle to their lives.  You know where you focus on doing the 20 percent of things that produce 80 percent of the outcome.  Simple idea and honestly I think I agree with it.  So to apply that to fitness you just need to look at modern science behind exercise.  You will find tons of information online that basically says in a nutshell that you don’t have to spend hours working out.  Simply put in the 20 percent of the workout that produces 80 percent of the result.  Translated this means- work out really hard for a short period of time.  It’s an idea built around other modern exercise ideas like interval training.  So if you want to give it a try it’s not that hard.  To make it easier here is my top 3 equipment picks for delivering exercise in an 80/20 format.  Don’t forget though that you’re the one that’s going to have to push yourself hard enough with these tools to produce the result. 

Kettlebells

You can use kettlebells in tons of ways making it possible to work most if not all muscle groups.   My favorite use for kettlebells, and what works for me and my minimalist approach is the kettlebell swing.  The basic idea is you stand with your legs apart and swing your kettlebell straight in front of you the trick being that you’re not going to use your arm muscles but rather a hip thrust motion that will make muscles throughout your body lift the kettlebell and swing it in front of you.

Now it sounds easy but once you reach your maximum weight it won’t take many reps to get your heart rate up, the sweat flowing and your muscles fatigued.  I use kettlebells as a major part of my fitness routine.  It saves me a ton of time that I would normally have to spend doing several different exercises with higher reps and sets, to meet the same workout level.

Power Conditioning Ropes

Power Conditioning ropes are similar to what tug-of-war ropes or climbing ropes are made of.  You take this 1-1/2″, 40 foot long rope, thread it through a metal loop anchor bracket that has been attached to the wall so that you now have two 20′ long ropes.  Grab one with your left hand, one with your right hand and whip them up and down in a wave motion.  Sounds easy but it’s quite a workout.  This one will really get your heart pumping and gives your core a great workout in a short time.

Jump Ropes

The Super Speed Rope is extremely fast, easy to use and perfectly balanced.  The coated stainless steel cable is attached to metal ball bearings inside of the durable plastic handles.  This is a serious piece of work out equipment.  Once a customer uses the super speed rope they will never go back to those flimsy alternatives.  This rope lets you really push yourself.  My jump rope routine is an interval type with ten 30 second intervals where I push as hard as I can and ten 30 second intervals where I slow it down so I can catch my breath.  Some days I don’t even finish the set and I’ll keep sweating for about 30 to 45 minutes after I finish.

So that’s my top three.  Give them a try and you will like the results.  Remember you don’t need to spend hours or even a half an hour on any of these.  All of the above can be used to work up a sweat fast while you increase cardiovascular health, endurance and power.  You can buy all three at www.morleyathletic.com where you’ll find over 10,000 items online.

Quality Fund Raiser Item

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Are you looking for an item you can sell as a fundraiser but you are sick of selling junk food and items that are tacky.  Then you should look into the custom logo locker room stools.  

Custom logo locker room stools are not only classy but will last for a long time.  These stools are compact and comfortable.  They have a padded seat top that features a durable vinyl cover. The stools frame is made of heavy duty steel for long lasting value.  The stools also fold compact for easy storage.  They are available in 11 frame colors and 9 vinyl colors giving you a wide variety of color combinations to create any combination you like.

Since these are custom stools you can get your school logo or mascot printed on them. If you have a club or some other logo you want to use no problem.  You can do up to a four color logo on these stools so pick whatever you want the sky is the limit.  The custom stools will make a great souvenir that can be used in the homes of the people that buy them.  These locker rooms stools would make a great addition to a fathers garage or a grandmothers sewing room.  They will remind buyers of their family member who was in a specific sports program or a club for years to come. Chess club could do a fund raiser with these awesome stools.  I can see a nice black knight chess club logo in my head already. Just think of all the different areas these stools could be used.  I think people would rather get something useful and memorable when purchasing a fund raiser item,don’t you?  These stools are just that item.  They look awesome and are durable as well.

Before you sign up with some people that tell you to sell junk food to raise funds look into the custom locker room stools to sell.  Go to morleyathletic.com and check out the stools and the helpful video that is offered.  Why sell people who are donating to your program junk food, when you can sell them a high quality memorable custom stool that instills pride in your organization.

Practice Like a Warrior

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Soldiers in every country train for battles.  Sports players practice for games.  What they do is very different but the reason they do it is not.  There are psychological and physical benefits to practicing for situations of high stress like battles and games.  Psychologically we train to build confidence under pressure.  We also train so that we become offensive and head into battle rather than shrink from it.  While sports are less life threatening than battles the same principles apply.  A football scrimmage with other team mates will help you mentally prepare for a game with an opposing team. 

But the real benefit of practicing is the physical side.  You can have all the confidence in the world but if you can’t get the ball in the goal you do not have a chance.  Muscle memory is where the big advantages come in.  Doing a task a few thousand times will help get it ingrained into your muscle and into your brain. Shoot a layup 2000 times and you will be able to do it like clockwork.  The greats of the greats like Michael Jordan spent a lot of extra time on the basketball court practicing.  He was out on the court after everybody left and this simple fact made him possibly the greatest basketball player of all time.  Once you do something enough it almost becomes an instinct.  Soldiers practice shooting, rushing bunkers, and jumping out of planes.  They do this so that when they go to battle they will have that instinct and the edge over the enemy.

The more you practice the better off you will be.  You do want to make sure that you train or practice the correct way as well because if you do it wrong 2000 times you will not have the advantage but a great disadvantage.

I would suggest checking out some coaching videos that will help you learn how to practice the right way.  You can find hundreds of them at www.morleyathletic.com.  There are videos on baseball, basketball, field hockey, football, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field, volleyball, water polo and wrestling.

Morelyathletic.com also has the equipment you need to practice with.  Get the gear and the info and start practicing like a warrior today.

The Ultimate Coaching Tool

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There is a coaching tool that not many people think about yet is very useful.  That item is the coaching tower.  A coaching tower is pretty much a tower that a coach stands on so he can view the complete field.  This is a great tool for schools that can afford it and want to get the most out of their practice time.  The advantages of having a coaching tower are many. 

It allows the coach to view the entire field at once giving him the ability to view everybody while each practice play is going on.  This advantage point lets coaches pin point details for which players need to improve the way they play.  This can be very useful in football, soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, rugby, or any field sport.  Just think of all the little details that are visible on the field when you have a higher viewing point.  When the little details are fixed they turn into huge advantages for the team.

A great coaching tower is The Ultimate Observation Stand.  It is very stable and portable.  It has an attached handle which makes it easy to move.  It is made with 1 ¼” galvanized steel tubing making it very sturdy.  The base of the tower measures 6’ x 8’ giving it a wide base for stability.  The platform you stand on measures 4’ x 4’ and has carpeted ¾” plywood with side railings for safety.  The tower height is 10’ giving you a good height to view the entire field.  The ladder is permanently attached and folds up when not in use.  If need be you could attach a simple chain and lock to keep people from folding the ladder back down and climbing up the tower.  The heavy duty construction allows it to hold up to 300 lbs.

Another great note is that The Ultimate Observation Stand is multipurpose.  Coaches can use it but so can band directors, teachers, and photographers.  This great coaching tool is often overlooked.  Use your practice time to its fullest with The Ultimate Observation Stand, you will be surprised by the difference it makes in your coaching.

For more information on this item and other coaching tools go to www.morleyathletic.com.

Get In Shape For Summer Sports!

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If you play sports all year long you may be in pretty good shape but you may not be in shirtless shape.  Are you in shape for the shirts against skins games?  Who knows who will be watching from the sidelines!  If not it’s time to start working on that as the summer is about to heat up. 

When it comes to finding the right ways to lose that extra chub all it takes is a little extra effort.  An effective way of exercising is interval training.  This is pretty much a period of hard exercise followed by a period of rest.  There are many other articles out there that will get you the specifics on interval training.  I just want to give you some ideas on the exercise equipment that will help you get it done.

A basic item that has been used for years in training boxers and martial artists is the jump rope.  You’re laughing…?  When was the last time you tried jumping rope?  It is a simple cheap device that can get your heart pumping to the max.  Do a 5-10 minute interval training exercise with the jump rope and you will begin to respect it.  You can also get weighted jump ropes to help work out your arms.

Another basic item for interval training and working abs is the medicine ball.  The medicine ball has many variations these days but they all serve the same purpose.  They allow you to use a lot of the small stabilizer muscles in your body.  This will help tighten your abs and the rest of your body while making you more agile on the field.  Medicine balls are also great to use with a partner!

You can also use an agility ladder in your interval training program.  Your sports program may already use this but working it into an interval training program will get you results.  It will help your agility and increase your fat burning capacity.

One item that is required with any interval training is a stopwatch.  You can get a regular stopwatch, a table timer, or the jumbo wrist stopwatch.  The jumbo wrist stopwatch comes with a wrist strap, a lanyard, and a clipboard clip.  I would recommend the jumbo wrist stopwatch just because of its versatility.

So whether your in shape for the shirtless games or not it would be a good idea to try some interval training.  Summer is right around the corner and you don’t want to be one of the players with a shirt on when its 100 degrees out.

For more information and pricing on fitness items that will help you lose some flab go to www.morelyathletic.com.