Designing_Strength_Training_Programs_and_Facilities

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Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 1 
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Acknowledgements 
 
In Functional Training for Sports I was able to acknowledge all of 
the people who have been so influential in my development as a 
coach. As I finish my second book I realize that some people are 
responsible for your development as a person. My family and I 
journeyed across the country to have what I have come to describe 
as “The Wizard of Oz’ experience. At the end of the movie Dorothy 
realizes that everything she wanted was right in her own backyard. 
My family and I now know the same thing. I want to thank all those 
who make it possible for me to think and write and speak. It is a joy 
to do something you love every day. 
 
I would also like to thank Laura Hambly, an intelligent and 
wonderful editor. 
 
Last, Cindy, Michaela and Mark who make me realize that it’s not 
about money or fame but about being with the ones you love. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 2 
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Introduction 
Chapter 1- Designing and Equipping Your Facility 
Chapter 2- Building a Strong Foundation 
Chapter 3- Designing the Perfect Program 
Chapter 4- Core Training 
Chapter 5- Explosive Training 
Chapter 6- Knee-Dominant Exercises 
Chapter 7- Hip-Dominant Exercises 
Chapter 8- Upper-Body Pulling and Pressing Exercises 
Chapter 9- Choosing a System of Training 
Chapter 10- Creating Effective Workouts 
Chapter 11- Conditioning 
Chapter 12- Computerizing Your Program 
Chapter 13- Designing Programs for Teams or Groups 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 3 
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Remember, you 
can’t believe 
everything you 
read, and you 
shouldn’t read 
only what you 
believe. 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 4 
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Preface 
 
 
This is the book I always wanted to write: A serious strength 
training manual for coaches who want to get the most out of their 
athletes. My previous book, Functional Training for Sports, was 
meant to be a more mainstream piece intended for athletes, 
coaches and trainers. Although I believe that I succeeded with 
Functional Training for Sports I wanted to write a book for those 
serious strength and conditioning professionals that I consider my 
peers. I will intentionally not go into great detail about areas that I 
feel I covered well in the first book. I do, however, update areas 
that I feel differently about now than I did 2 years ago when the 
majority of my first book was written. Instead the focus of this book 
is on how to put a program together. I hope that this book will be 
the type of book I coveted in my early years. The Charlie Francis 
Training System (now Training for Speed) and Bill Starr’s The 
Strong Shall Survive hold those places in my mind. I believe that 
those works formed the foundation of my thought process for 20 
plus years. I hope you enjoy. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Introduction 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 5 
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Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities is a “how to” 
book. The book moves from the task of equipping a weight room, 
through a discussion of programming concepts, and eventually into 
actual workouts with detailed explanation. I hope that this book will 
be what every aspiring, strength and conditioning coach is looking 
for. A basic primer on how to get things done and why. The 
concepts are meant to be simple and utilitarian. What equipment do 
I need? How many plates do I need? How much space do I need? 
How many sets and reps should I have my athletes do? What 
exercises work best? All of these questions will be answered in one 
place. 
 
The information in this book is one mans opinion. However, it is 
opinion based on over twenty years of working in rooms that were 
not perfect, with budgets that were small or nonexistent. I’m not 
trying to say this is the only way to do things, only to say that the 
advice in this book might be most efficient and effective way to do 
things. This book is perfect for the high school coach or small 
college coach who has to deal with the realities of time, space and 
money. When reading this book it is very important that you put 
aside any preconceived notions about the process of strength and 
conditioning. Think about practicing the art of common sense. 
While you read keep your mind open. Often good ideas seem so 
simple that we discount them based only on their simplicity. As 
coaches and as personal trainers we continue to jump on and off 
the latest bandwagons. Try to stay with ideas that work and, be 
wary of anything that seems too good to be true; it probably is. 
 
This book is based on the belief that athletes are not limited by 
genetics. Speed, movement ability, strength and power are all 
qualities that can and should be improved. Good strength and 
conditioning coaches are constantly scrutinizing their programs. 
Every day I learn something that makes me change the program. 
These are not knee jerk reactions but rather the acceptance that 
there are many coaches and therapists pushing the envelope and 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 6 
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developing better techniques. Although my previous book, 
Functional Training for Sports has been in print for less than two 
years, this book contains numerous updates. If an exercise appears 
in both books it is to provide new information or updates since 
Functional Training for Sports was written. The attempt is not to 
replace my previous book but, to update and expand on the ideas. 
 
No attempts are made to copy the programs of successful teams or 
athletes. Instead I evaluate each technique or concept for inclusion. 
Many coaches simply attempt to duplicate the program of the most 
successful team. Remember that much of that success may be due 
to recruiting, coaching or genetics. Instead of copying successful 
teams or individuals, seek out the techniques of those who 
consistently produce great results in less than great situations. 
 
Another warning. Don’t copy the muscle magazine routines. Often 
coaches make the mistake of trying to use workouts designed by 
people using performance-enhancing drugs for people using 
performance enhancing drugs. Usually this is based on the “So-
and-so does this exact same routine” Athletes using performance 
enhancing drugs can tolerate higher loads, higher volumes, and 
more frequent training. MORE IS NOT BETTER. Most young 
athletes and many young coaches feel that if two sets are good 
then four sets are obviously better. In truth you may be overtaxing 
the body and disrupting the recuperative process. When you think 
of a strength program try to remind yourself that strength training is 
a simple game of stimulus-response. The actual workout is a 
stimulus. The response occurs after the workout. The response is 
affected by the quality of the workout and by the quality of the 
recovery. Rest and nutrition have as much to do with your success 
as does the program. 
 
 
The real key to a successful strength program is injury reduction. I 
used to use the term “injury prevention” but, in reality only divine 
intervention can prevent injury. “Injury reduction” is a better 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 7 
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representation of the goal. Semantics aside, statistics don’t lie. If 
your injuries decrease and your wins increase you’re being 
successful. Wins can obviously be affected by talent and coaching 
but in general injury trends will not be as affected by these factors. 
Just remember your number one goal is injury reduction, and your 
number two goal is performance enhancement. 
 
During my 15 years of collegecoaching I noticed an interesting 
trend. As we evolved from a traditional power/ Olympic lifting based 
program to a more functionally-based program, our strength 
numbers stayed consistent but our injury incidence decreased 
drastically. Think about this fact as you read. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 8 
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Chapter 1- Designing and 
Equipping Your Facility 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 9 
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The first chapter is about 
equipping a facility because 
mistakes at this point will 
determine how well you will be 
able to design a program. Great 
ideas are simply great ideas if the 
logistics of the facility prevent them 
from being turned into great 
programs. Mistakes in choosing 
equipment are expensive to undo. 
In order to properly equip a facility 
a coach or athletic trainer needs to 
consider usage and subsequent 
traffic flow. It is clear that the self-
contained power area approach yields the greatest weight room 
usage per square foot. I don’t know any coach who thinks that he or 
she has enough space. With the emphasis on functional training, 
space has become more important than equipment. This means 
that equipment must in our current computer dominated 
language “multitask”. In simplest 
terms the self contained power 
area (SCPA) is a power rack 
(Figure 1.2), an adjustable flat to 
incline bench (Figure 1.1), and a 
set of Olympic lifting blocks 
(Figure 1.3). This combination 
when used properly can allow 
athletes to perform almost any 
exercise desired in a small 
area and, with proper planning 
makes for great use per square 
foot. Each SCPA takes up 
approximately 50 sq ft but, 
projections should be for 100 sq. ft 
per station (more on this later). 
Figure 1.1- Adjustable Flat to 
Incline Bench 
Figure 1.2- Power Rack 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 10 
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One important suggestion, don’t 
buy the currently popular half- racks 
(Figure 1.4). Half-racks have 
become increasingly popular over 
the past five years but, the truth is a 
half-rack is actually a half of a 
power rack that doesn’t cost half as 
much but is in fact half as useful. 
 
Hal
f-
racks are designed with pull- up 
bars but, the reality is that you 
can’t simultaneously use the 
rack for squats and pull-ups 
because the squat bar is in 
the way. With a full power 
rack athletes can pair (more on 
this concept when we get to 
the actual workouts) a 
squatting movement with a 
chinning movement and 
actually use the front and 
back of the rack. Half racks 
look good but function poorly. 
Pay a few extra bucks and 
get full power racks. Figure 
1.5 clearly shows how 
utilitarian a weight room can be 
when properly designed. A 
room designed around the 
self-contained power area 
concept is literally made for 
team or group usage. This is in contrast to the weight rooms of the 
‘80s and ‘90s that were often designed in what I would call “Noah’s 
Figure1.4- Half Rack- Same 
price, half as useful 
Figure 1.3- Pulling blocks for 
performing Olympic lifts from 
Hang Positions
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 11 
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Ark” style. In the Noah’s Ark weight room, the coach simply ordered 
two of everything. The rooms often resembled Gold’s Gym more 
than a strength and conditioning facility. These types of facilities 
were not at all conducive to team or group training. In fact a facility 
designed with too much machinery actually causes bottlenecks as 
athletes wait for a particular piece of equipment that is in short 
supply. With a self contained power area and a large supply of 
dumbbells athletes will never wait for equipment. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 1.5- The picture of efficiency with 10 
SCPA’s
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 12 
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The next illustration ( figure 1.6) is potentially the most space 
efficient. The rack depicted can be combined with 2 adjustable 
benches and 2 sets of clean blocks to provide maximum usage per 
square foot. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The down side to this type of setup is that athletes will need 
to share a mirror. On the plus side, 6-8 athletes can perform 
their entire workout in this small space. The athletes working 
on the side closest to the mirror would Olympic lift from clean 
blocks while the athletes farthest from the mirror would 
Olympic lift from technique scoops. ( see Figure 1.7) 
 
 
 
Figure 1.6 – Custom designed two-sided rack from Pro 
Star Sports 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 13 
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Figure 1.7- Technique Scoops 
 
Think about equipping each side of the rack as a separate area. 
Two bars, a bench, a full set of dumbbells, and all of the little tools 
like balance pads and mini-slideboards should be purchased for 
each rack. 
 
Essential Equipment List 
 The following is a sample equipment list. I have included what I 
feel are the necessary items for a moderate budget facility. I have 
also included things like bands and medicine balls. These items 
should be included when you do your budget for one simple 
reason. You may not get a second chance. Purchasing is a funny 
thing. You seem to get one large shot. In university settings you 
don’t score any extra points for coming in under budget. The only 
thing coming in under budget ever gets you is a smaller budget. 
Spend every cent. In fact go over. Be a little extravagant. It will give 
you room if they ask you to cut the proposed budget. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Number Item Cost Total
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 14 
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4 Power Racks 600 2400
4 Adjustable Benches 400 1600
8 Olympic Sets 500 4000
9 Plate Trees 495 4455
1 Dumbbells 5-120(2.5 incr.) 4000 4000
4 Adjustable Cable Columns 1500 6000
8 Clean Blocks 100 800
4 Slideboards 400 1600
4 Double Dumbbell Racks 300 1200
16 20 K Bumpers 100 1600
8 10 K Bumpers 75 600
5 Airex Pads 45 225
10 Airex Mats 45 450
15 Flexbands 15 225
15 Lateral Resistors 15 225
20 Medicine Balls 30 600
3 DynaMax Medicine Balls 80 240
2 Med Ball Racks 200 400
5 Stability Balls 30 150
30 Foam Rollers 15 450
2 ABC Ladders 90 180
24 Flat Rings 4 96
2 Cat Overspeed 75 150
3 Sleds 150 450
1 Functional Training Grids 230 230
1 Pro BodyBlade 199 199
3 Calf Roller 50 150
5 30" Hurdles 80 400
10 12" Hurdles 10 100
10 6" Hurdles 10 100
10 Hurdle Extenders 7 70
6 Belts 15 90
6 Dip Belts 30 180
1 Extreme Balance Boards 100 100
2 Weight Vests 90 180
2 Sandbags 35 70
1 Scale 300 300
2 Back Extension Benches 600 1200
1 Set Plyo Boxes 500 500
1 Precor Elliptical 4000 4000
1 StepMill 2000 2000
3 Treadmills 6000 18000
 59965
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 15 
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Facility Design Guidelines 
Bill Kroll wrote an excellent series of articles for the NSCA journal in 
the 80’s on facility design that is still unmatched in my mind. The 
concepts Kroll advocated have dictated how I designed and 
redesigned weight rooms for the last 10 years. ( see recommended 
readings) 
 
In simple terms Kroll advocated the self contained power areas 
discussed previously and gave very specific guidelines for design of 
the room. 
 
100 square feet of space per person- This means if you have a 
team of 25 players that you would like to train at the same time, you 
would need a minimum of 2500 sq. ft. This is a minimum for a 
facility using the self-contained power area concept and minimal 
machines or cardiovascularpieces. This is the number one mistake 
that strength coaches, or anyone else planning a facility makes. 
One hundred square feet accounts for people plus essential 
equipment. Architects will often feel that the room size allotted is 
too large, but they are not thinking about the combination of people 
and equipment. This is a common mistake made in many arena 
weight rooms when architects become involved. Use 100 sq. ft per 
team member as a bare minimum. Use a larger number like 150 if 
you plan on having a large amount of single station equipment. If 
you would like a large open space for warm-up or post workout 
stretching, budget this in also. You will never get a second chance 
to add more space unless you move to a new facility. Get as much 
space as possible and don’t worry about equipping it. The old 
weight room philosophy was to set up a health club like 
environment. I previously referred to this as the Noah’s Ark weight 
room. In reality having one or two of any piece of equipment only 
creates problems and bottlenecks. My feeling is that you need to 
have at least four of something to use it in a team program, 
otherwise you create funnels. This is what makes the self-contained 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 16 
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power area so attractive. I would advocate having as many of these 
set-ups as you can fit and having little else. 
 
As Much Ceiling Height as Possible- Specify at least 12 feet. 10 
feet is the bare minimum for six foot tall athletes to perform 
overhead lifts. Remember that you have to factor in athlete height, 
athlete arm length, platform height and the diameter of a 20 
kilogram or 45 pound plate. Architects will not think about these 
factors. In addition a room with a lot of ceiling height is more 
aesthetically pleasing. 
 
Mirrors 24 inches off the floor- This means that no one will ever 
lean a plate and break a mirror. I know that athletes aren’t 
supposed to lean plates against the wall but, they always do and 
low mirrors get broken. 
 
Don’t let your architect fir out your walls- What does this mean? 
For aesthetic reasons architects will often want to cover a block 
wall with sheetrock. Don’t let them. With current trends in Medicine 
Ball training you can never have enough walls to throw against. 
Throwing a medicine ball with a partner does not compare to 
throwing against a wall. 
 
Equipment Guidelines 
 
10 ft per Olympic Bar- People will always counter with statements 
like “An Olympic bar is only 7 feet long” but again they are not 
thinking about having space between bars to load and unload 
plates. Allotting 10 feet per bar means that each bar will have a 
three foot space between the ends. This means that there will be 
no accidents loading and unloading bars. To make it simple you 
would need 40 feet of uninterrupted wall space for four self 
contained power areas. The only exception here is that you can 
have one-and-a half feet at the beginning or end of any row of 
racks and still have a safe environment. 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 17 
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1.5 7ft 3ft 7ft 3ft 7ft 3ft 7ft 1.5 ft 
 Bar Bar Bar Bar 
__ _______ ___ _______ ___ _______ ___ _______ __ 
 
This diagram shows how a four-rack layout would work on forty foot 
wall. One-and-a half feet is fine at either end of a run, but three feet 
is essential between bars. 
 
No 35 pound plates- This is a simple money saver. 35’s take up 
rack space, make your racks unorganized and provide no benefit. 
You just need 25’s and 10’s. Save your money, don’t buy 35’s. 
 
Twice as many 10 pound plates as 25’s, 5’s and 2.5’s- Why you 
ask? Simple. Many weight combinations will require two ten pound 
plates on each end of the bar. This is never the case with twenty 
five pound plates, five pound plates or 2.5 pound plates. Two 10s 
make a 20, not a 25. As result you always need twice as many 10s 
as 25’s,5’s or 2.5’s. 
 
Compressed and welded dumbbells in 2.5 lb increments 
or PowerBlock dumbbells- Dumbbells are normally sold in 
five pound increments. This seems standard. However, a few 
companies notably Samson Equipment and Sorinex, 
manufacture their own dumbbells in 2.5 - pound increments. 
Why is this such a big deal you ask? Custom-manufactured 
dumbbells in 2.5-pound increments are ideal. Five-pound 
increments do not allow younger or less-trained athletes to 
progress at reasonable rates. For example when less-
experienced athletes advance from two 15-pound dumbbells 
to two 20-pound dumbbells, they are progressing from 30 
pounds to 40 pounds, an increase of 33 percent. Would you 
ask a stronger athlete to go from 60-pound dumbbells to 80-
pound dumbbells in one week? My experience with Athletes’ 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 18 
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Performance has made me a fan of the PowerBlock and 
SportBlock systems. Although potentially more expensive 
than conventional dumbbells PowerBlocks and SportBlocks 
save space and eliminate the problem of “who’s using the 
tens?”. With the adjustable dumbbell system every set has 
the capacity to provide an interchangeable weight. For 
anyone contemplating outfitting a home gym this is clearly the 
route to go. 
 
15-, 25-, and 35-pound Olympic Bars—Many young and or 
female athletes have little or no strength training background 
and may need lighter bars to begin with. Buy Olympic bars 
that take Olympic plates. Many companies now stock these 
new bars. Don’t use conventional bars and one-inch-hole 
plates. Younger athletes should look like everyone else in the 
weight room. Why is this important? In the psychology of a 
strength training facility younger or weaker athletes are often 
intimidated just by being in the facility. Providing them with 
equipment that allows them to “fit in” drastically increase 
enjoyment and compliance. 
1.25-pound PlateMates®—If you have only five-pound-
increment dumbbells, Plate-Mates are the solution. 
PlateMates are simply 1.25-pound magnets that allow you to 
increase a dumbbell’s weight by 2.5 pounds (one PlateMate 
on each side). Make sure to purchase the proper PlateMates 
for your style of dumbbell, hexagonal or round. Round 
PlateMates do not work well on hexagonal dumbbells and 
could pose a safety hazard 
1.25-pound Olympic plates—1.25-pound Olympic plates are 
not common but can be purchased. The same logic described 
earlier applies. Moving from 45 pounds to 50 pounds is only a 
5-pound jump, but it is also a 10 percent jump. Many female 
athletes will not be able to make this type of progression. The 
male example again illustrates this point. Ask a male athlete 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 19 
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to jump from 300 to 330 on the bench press in one week. This 
is only a 10 percent jump, but would be impossible for any 
athlete. 
 
 
The key to designing and equipping a facility is to think about who 
you are going to train. How many people will use the facility and at 
what times? You need to look at age, gender and level of 
experience. You need to design the facility with success in mind. 
When designing think about multi-purpose, user-friendly equipment 
and lots of space. Those are the keys. Success is not about fancy 
equipment but, about facility function. Think of your facility as a 
factory to produce strength, speed, and power. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 20 
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Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 21 
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Chapter 2 – Building a Strong Foundation 
 
A strong foundationis not only the key to building a home, but a 
successful strength and conditioning program as well. The old 
adage about not building a house on sand could not be truer. A 
good program, like a good house needs a strong foundation. 
However, the converse can also be true. The foundation should be 
the underpinnings on which the program is based, but the 
foundation should not completely determine the function of the 
house. In our modern world we still want modern kitchens and 
baths and wiring for the internet to go with our strong foundation. 
What does all this have to do with strength and conditioning? I 
believe that too many coaches never build past the foundation. 
Olympic lifting, and powerlifting are excellent systems that teach a 
strong technical background and emphasize multi-joint lifts. 
However, much like the invention of modern plumbing and the 
internet, strength and conditioning is constantly advancing. To be 
successful we need to advance with it. 
 
Functional training, core training and the proper use of unstable 
surfaces are only a few of the examples of advances that should be 
embraced and incorporated into a sound program. We have far too 
many ostriches in our profession, content to coach with their head 
in the sand (or possibly someplace else). 
 
I trace my foundation back through Al Vermeil ( 8 World 
Championships) and Mike Woicek (Four Super Bowl wins) to Ken 
Leistner ( The Steel Tip) and Bill Starr ( The Strong Shall Survive). I 
have listened to and read the works of all these men and, have 
never moved away from the basic concepts they taught. However, I 
have also incorporated the work of great minds in rehab like Mike 
Clark, Gray Cook and Kevin Wilk. Remember the most frightening 
person in the world is the one who believes he has all the answers. 
I spend countless hours reading and listening to people in the field 
of strength and conditioning, rehab, psychology and business. The 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 22 
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more research and reading you do, the more you realize how little 
you really know. 
 
 When starting a strength and conditioning program coaches 
frequently try to do too much too soon. The real key to developing a 
successful program is to decide what you want your athletes to 
learn and focus on one lift per day. At clinics I often speak with 
coaches who are interested in starting or improving the strength 
and conditioning program at their schools. Most often they are 
looking for guidance in setting up the program and, almost always 
want to talk sets and reps. Coaches ask “Should I do BFS?” 
“Should I use the Husker Program?” etc. Much to their dismay, I 
generally want to discuss organization and administrative concepts 
because, in my experience, these are the real keys to a successful 
program. Setup and execution make the program run not sets and 
reps. 
 
If you get one thing out of this book remember this quote. 
 
 “A bad program done well is better than a good program done 
poorly”. 
 
A bad program done with consistency and effort will be more 
beneficial than a great program done inconsistently and with little 
effort. 
 
Keep it simple, and adhere strictly to the following guidelines: 
 
1) Make sure all your athletes are on board. If you are 
starting a high school program or taking over a collegiate 
program forget uncooperative seniors. The major source of 
frustration in starting a high school or college program is 
dealing with seniors who already “know how to lift”. Separate 
these guys out right away. If they don’t cooperate, get rid of 
them. They’ll be gone soon anyway. 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 23 
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2) Perform one coaching- intensive lift per day. What do I 
mean by a coaching-intensive lift? Exercises like front squats 
or any Olympic movement are coaching-intensive. Coaches 
must watch every possible set to help ingrain into their 
athletes the correct motor pattern. If athletes are doing front 
squats and hang cleans the same day, which do you watch- 
the platforms or the squats racks? Don’t force yourself to 
make this decision. For example do split squats instead of 
front squats on the day that you clean and do push-ups 
instead of bench press on the day you front squat. On front 
squat day, don’t do an Olympic movement, do box jumps as 
your explosive exercise. This process of doing one coaching 
intensive lift per day may only last a year, but it insures that 
your athletes won’t be practicing poor patterns with no 
supervision. 
3) Get all your administrative work done prior to the start 
of sessions. The biggest failure in strength and conditioning 
is coaches sitting at computers instead of coaching. If you 
need workouts done on computer, do them during non-
training time. The job is strength and conditioning coach. 
Don’t get caught up, as many coaches do, in having great 
programs on paper and, lousy lifters. Let the paperwork 
suffer and do the coaching. 
4) Coach. This is what it is all about. Coach like this is your 
sport. So many coaches ask, “Can you give me a program? I 
always give the same answer. “I could but it wouldn’t work”. 
Our programs are not appropriate for beginners. Beginners 
need teaching, not programs. The program begins and ends 
with technical proficiency. Coaches must realize that their 
athletes are the window through which others see them. If 
another college coach came into your weight room would 
you be proud or ashamed? Would you make excuses for the 
poor technique or, accept the pats on the back for what great 
lifters your athletes are? The other factor, even more 
important than your athletes being the window through which 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 24 
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others see you, is that your athletes are the mirror in which 
you see yourself. Your lifters are a direct reflection of you. 
When you watch your athletes are you happy with yourself 
as a teacher and coach. 
5) Technique, Technique, Technique. Never compromise. 
Perform parallel squats all the time. Our athletes do nothing 
but front squats to a top of the thigh parallel position. In fact 
we will use 12” plyo boxes to guarantee depth. We ask 
athletes to squat to a box that places the femur parallel to 
the floor. Although we may need different size boxes for 
different size athletes we will arrive at a point for each 
athlete that defines parallel for that athlete. Keep in mind that 
these are not West Side Barbell box squats. The athlete 
touches the box to insure depth. 
If you bench press, no bounce, no arch. Never compromise. 
As soon as you allow one athlete to cheat or to not adhere to 
the program others will follow immediately. Remember why 
athletes cheat. They cheat to lift more weight. Lifting more 
weight feeds their ego. If you allow it to happen, cheating is 
very difficult to stop. To make your point use exercises like 
pause bench and pause front squats. These exercises can 
be very humbling. Canadian Strength Coach Charles 
Poliquin has a principle he calls Technical Failure that I love. 
Technical failure means that you never count a rep that was 
completed after technique broke down. This principle will 
encourage your athletes to lift properly. I consistently tell my 
athletes that I don’t care how many reps they do, I care you 
many good reps they do. 
6) Use bodyweight when possible and practical. Always 
teach body-weight squats first. If athletes can’t bodyweight 
squat, they can’t squat. Period. They must be able to get 
through the range of motion. It is normal to be able to squat 
to a parallel position. Athletes who cannot may need work on 
hip mobility, ankle mobility or lateral hamstring stretching. In 
addition do lots of push-ups, feet-elevated push-ups, one-leg 
Designing Strength TrainingPrograms and Facilities 25 
 25
squats, chin-ups and dips. Body-weight exercise is humbling. 
Use it early and often with beginners. Not only will athletes 
learn to respect their body weight, but they will see the value 
of these “simple” exercises. 
7) If you test, test super strict. Testing is when things really 
deteriorate. In a testing situation the coach should see every 
lift, and the coach should select every weight. Don’t reward 
strength, reward improvement. Rewarding strength is a huge 
mistake that I believe encourages drug use. Reward 
improvement, make athletes compete with themselves, not 
others. Don’t use t-shirts or record boards for rewards unless 
they reward improvement over personal bests. If you feel 
you must test strength, also test performance indicators like 
Vertical Jump and 10-yard dash. If athletes are improving 
strength without changing performance factors the program 
is only marginally effective 
8) Have appropriate equipment. This was covered in the 
previous chapter but, bears repeating. Many companies now 
sell 15 and 25 lb Olympic bars. These are critical to a good 
program. Platemates allow athletes to make reasonable 
jumps with dumbbells. Spend money to encourage success. 
Success is what sells the program. 
 
Strength and conditioning coaching may seem easy in principle, 
but difficult in practice. The key to a successful program is to try 
to see every set and, coach every athlete. This is difficult, time 
consuming, and repetitive. In fact it is impossible. At the end of 
a good day in the weight room you should be hoarse and tired. 
A good strength coach will have sore legs and knees from 
squatting down to see squat depth all day. 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 26 
 26
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 27 
 27
 
Chapter 3-Designing the Perfect Program 
 
 
Program design and exercise selection are simple concepts that we 
make much more complex than necessary. You don’t need to be 
trendy or cute in your exercise selection. In fact in my thirty years of 
training and coaching the basics have not changed much. What 
has changed is that we now have a better understanding of why 
exercises have stood the test of time. Concepts like closed kinetic 
chain exercise and functional training only serve to validate what 
some of the early geniuses of strength and conditioning like Bill 
Starr, Fred Hatfield and Ken Leistner, already knew. 
 
One of the funniest things I encounter as I travel and write are 
people who assume things about the way I coach (we know what 
they say about assuming). Because of the success of Functional 
Training for Sports many people expect to find my athletes doing all 
sorts of outlandish exercises. Most coaches who actually take the 
time to visit are shocked to see our athletes performing front 
squats, hang cleans, and bench presses. The reality is that our 
athletes don’t stray far from the basics and usually when they do it 
is for good reason. We will always make changes that we think will 
result in improvement. Our job as strength and conditioning 
coaches is to reduce the incidence of injury and to enhance 
performance. Without some element of change, you simply accept 
the status quo. Remember the old cliché, “ If you do what you 
always did, you will get what you always got”. 
 
In the simplest terms, utilize the lifts that teach (or force) your 
athletes or clients to do what you want them to do. Personal 
trainers and coaches need to look at what they feel are the 
common errors of his clients or athletes and then design a program 
that includes exercises that will correct those errors. Much of this 
has been alluded to previously but bears repeating. 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 28 
 28
 
 For example, consider this list of exercises: 
 1) Bodyweight lower body exercises 
 2) Front squats 
 3) “Box” front squats- not the “sit down” variety 
 4) Pause or slow eccentric bench 
 
Why are these exercises important? Because they all represent an 
exercise variation that corrects a critical flaw. 
• Body-weight lower-body exercises get people on their feet. 
That’s where life is. 
• Front squats virtually eliminate the back stress and 
technique flaws of squatting. 
• Box squats force depth and create hip mobility and actually 
reduce the load on the spine in terms of compression and 
torque ( forward lean). 
• Pause bench presses or eccentric emphasis bench presses 
eliminates bouncing and arching. 
 
Good exercise selection is purposeful and is designed to eliminate 
mistakes and correct errors. Obviously there are other criteria for 
exercise selection. I like Coach Mike Burgener’s ( Rancho Buena 
Vista HS, CA) Yes to the 4th Power idea: 
• Is it done standing? 
• Is it multi-joint? 
• Is it done with free weights? 
• Is it characteristic of explosive sports 
 
You can’t always adhere to Coach Burgener’s philosophy but, 
it’s a great place to start. 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 29 
 29
 
Program Design Basics 
 
It is amazing how often coaches and trainers violate what I consider 
to be the most basic rules of program design. The information that 
follows is not just my opinion: it represents a consensus of most 
successful strength coaches. In program design, certain rules must 
be followed to achieve success. 
 
 
Explosive Movements First. If you are using Olympic lifts they 
should always be done first in the program. I will discuss Olympic 
lifting in greater detail in chapter 5, but I must emphasize here that 
exercises with high technical and neural demand must be done at 
the beginning of a strength training session. I generally judge 
programs initially based on this one point. If an athlete asks me to 
look at a program and I see that the program calls for them to 
perform an Olympic lift after they bench or squat I automatically 
disregard the rest of the program and usually the writer. This may 
be an overreaction on my part, but I feel strongly about the basics. 
Exercises that stress the nervous system, like the Olympic lifts, 
must be done when both the muscular and nervous systems are 
fresh. This not only insures the effectiveness of the lifts but makes 
them much safer. The Olympic lifts require a high degree of skill 
and coordination and athletes must be as fresh as possible prior to 
performing these types of exercises. 
 
Multi-joint exercises second. This concept has been stated over 
and over and will be stated one more time for emphasis. Most 
coaches get this part right. Very rarely will you see a program that 
prioritizes single joint exercise over multi-joint exercise. 
 
Forget single-joint exercise. Most single-joint exercise is a waste 
of time! I am shocked when I see programs that are still performing 
single joint exercise. There are some exceptions, like hip abduction 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 30 
 30
and adduction and scapulo-thoracic work. However, exercises like 
leg extensions, leg curls and tricep pressdowns have little value to 
athletes. The time spent, or wasted, on these exercises can be 
utilized to add exercises that have the same goal but, far greater 
benefit. 
 
Single joint exercise for hinge joints like the knee and the elbow are 
a waste of time. Don’t let anyone sell you on the “injury prevention” 
angle. A good single leg progression and some bridging will prevent 
or reduce injury incidence far better than single joint machines. 
 
Limit machine use. This is another statement that I didn’t think I 
would haveto make. Sometimes you can overestimate how far the 
field has come. The only machines that are necessary in an athletic 
strength and conditioning program are adjustable cable columns or 
the new functional trainers. Adjustable cable columns allow rotary 
training ( chopping and lifting actions) as well as standing row 
movements. Every other exercise can be done better with a weight 
than with a machine. The silliest trend in machines is machines that 
now mimic conventional free weight exercises. There is a reason 
that most machine companies have begun to manufacture benches 
and squat racks in addition to their machines. The machine 
companies see the handwriting on the wall. The best thing to have 
for a great program is space. Machines rob you of space. 
Whenever I look at a machine I ask myself how much use I could 
get out of that square footage. 
 
Never more than 10 reps unless you want endurance. Eight 
reps may even be better. One mistake I have made over my career 
is probably spending too much time on foundational, hypertrophy 
type exercise. I think, in reality, athletes need to lift heavy weights 
and have great variety in programming. However if the objective is 
strength they need to lift heavy. My proposed solution is to do 
hypertrophy type work, but in a 5-10-20 type format to get some low 
rep emphasis (This is a variation of Charles Poliquin’s 6-12-24 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 31 
 31
program). This means that even in the high rep phases the athlete 
is still doing a heavy set of five reps. 
We generally do: 
5 reps at 82 percent 
10 reps at 70 percent 
20 reps at 58 percent. 
 
These sets are done in descending order. This means that the 
heavy set is done first. Do I break my own rule in this phase? Yes. 
The twenty rep set is for endurance and targets a different type of 
muscle fiber. The important part of this sequence is that it hits all 
ends of the spectrum. Strength is maintained with the five rep set 
and endurance and hypertrophy addressed with the ten and twenty. 
Do this for one multi-joint exercise per day or you will overtrain your 
clients or athletes. How can you select the weights? Simply 
subtract 12% from the five set for the ten and again for the 20. 
 
Ex Bench 200 x5 (- 24) = 175x10 ( -21 lbs) = 155x20 
 ( weights rounded to the lower number) 
 
Perform low reps with heavier weights if you do not want to 
develop size. This is not a misprint. The idea of light weights and 
lots of reps for athletes that don’t want to build size is one of the 
biggest lies in the training and coaching world. Just do less weight 
and more reps so you won’t get big? Bodybuilders have been doing 
the exact opposite for years with great success. Volume builds 
hypertrophy. Remember volume not weight builds size. 
 
 Know how long the workout takes! Be realistic. I can’t tell you 
the number of programs that I have read that don’t add up. Look at 
the time that each set will take and look at the rest time allotted. Do 
the math. I’ve seen programs that if done as indicated would have 
taken three hours. 20 sets is a good guideline for an hour workout. 
When you design a program, take the time to do the math and then 
to try out the program to make sure that your estimates are 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 32 
 32
accurate. Allot 1 minute for each set and at least one minute 
between sets. Even this is fast. At this pace you could get in 20 
sets in forty minutes. 
 
Understand and use tempo. Tempo is often talked about but, 
rarely used. Jay Schroeder has begun to re-popularize isometric 
exercise with his “holds” and the excellent work of Canadian 
strength coach Christian Thibedeau has really made eccentric 
training much easier to implement. Both of these systems rely 
heavily on tempo. Tempo is simply a measure of the time that a 
repetition takes. Tempo is usually described with three numbers, 
the first indicating the eccentric portion of the lift, the second 
indicating the time to pause at the midpoint (zero indicates a touch 
and go rep) and the last number is the concentric phase. In other 
words, if I did a normal rep I would exhibit a 1-0-1 tempo. I have a 
few opinions on tempo: 
• Normal tempo is 1-0-1. I have watched and timed lots of 
lifters recently and was surprised that even a normal 
controlled rep was clearly 1-0-1. 
• I don’t love pauses because most athletes have difficulty 
holding a tight position during the pause. 
• I don’t like slow concentric movements. 
• I guess this means that for me tempo variation would mean 
lengthening the eccentric contraction 
• 
Christian Thibedeau has come up with some excellent guidelines 
for eccentric training. I will confess that I tried eccentric training in 
the past with little success and the primary reason was that I 
believed what I read. Research tells us that a lifter should be able 
to handle more weight eccentrically, than concentrically. Some 
estimates have run up to 120% of concentric max. If you believe 
this, you are doomed to failure. If you can bench 300 pounds try 
lowering 360 pounds under control. I don’t believe that most 
athletes could do an actual controlled eccentric with even 100 
percent of their max. What you would actually see is a yielding 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 33 
 33
isometric where the athlete just attempts to control the descent. An 
athlete may eventually be able to lower more weight than they can 
raise but, the athletes that I coach are not even close. I don’t know 
where the studies were done that imply that athletes can lower 
more weight than they can raise but, it doesn’t appear to be true. 
Most athletes are not used to lowering the bar with control and 
actually lift via elasticity. As a result, they are not able to lower the 
bar with control. To develop eccentric strength ( which will enhance 
concentric strength), Thibedeau recommends the following: 
 
75% 8 sec lowering 2 reps per set 
80% 6 sec lowering 1 rep per set 
85% 4 sec lowering 1 rep per set (2004,p40) 
 
One way to look at eccentric training is to think that the number of 
seconds of controlled eccentric contraction should be roughly equal 
to the number of concentric reps you can do. In other words if you 
bench press 225 for 5 reps, you should be able to lower 225 for 5 
seconds. Interestingly enough, Charles Poliquin another Canadian 
Strength coach recommends 30-70 seconds of time under tension 
for hypertrophy so the concept of tempo follows closely into the 
concept of time under tension. 
 
Time under tension. Time under tension is simply the total amount 
of time that a set takes from start to finish. In other words 10 reps at 
a 1-0-1 tempo would yield 20 seconds of time under tension. The 
interesting thing about this is that most hypertrophy workouts don’t 
include enough time under tension to truly stimulate hypertrophy. 
For hypertrophy, sets need to last at least 30 seconds so a ten rep 
set would need to be done at a 2-0-1 tempo at the bare minimum to 
produce significant hypertrophy. An 8 rep set would need to be 
done at 3-0-1. 
 
The Essential Components of a Sound Program 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 34 
 34
In my mind, a sound strength program must contain all of the 
qualities that follow. Omission of any one component sets the 
athlete up for imbalances and may eventually lead to injury or to 
increased risk of injury. 
• Pillar Strength. You can call it core strength or anything 
else you want but, understand it and do it. 
 
• Power Exercises- this means Olympic lifts (Figure 3.1) if 
you are comfortable with them, but pieces like the 
Vertimax, exercises like jump squats or medicine balls can 
also develop total body powerFigure 3.1 Two time Olympian Tricia Dunn 
performing a close grip snatch 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 35 
 35
• Knee Dominant Exercise- basically single and double-leg 
squats (Figure 3.2). These can also be classified as lower-
body pushing exercises 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Figure 3.2 Chris Drury of the Buffalo Sabres 
performing a front squat. This is the classic knee 
dominant exercise 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 36 
 36
• Hip Dominant Exercise- Straight leg deadlifts and single 
leg variations(Figure 3.3). Hip dominant also includes 
bridging type movements. The difference between hip 
dominant and knee dominant is best illustrated by the 
difference between the front squat and straight leg deadlift. 
Darryl Eto and Craig Freidman of Athletes’ Performance 
would prefer to call these types of exercises lower body 
pulling exercises. Whatever we call them, we need to do 
them. 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 3.3 Olympic Gold and Si1ver Medalist Tricia Dunn performing a 1 leg 
straight leg deadlift. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 37 
 37
 
 
Horizontal Pressing Movements – bench press and 
Variations ( figure 3.4) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 3.4 Richard Park of the Minnesota Wild performing alternating 
dumbbell bench presses 
 
 
• Vertical Pressing Movements- overhead presses 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 38 
 38
 
 
 
• Horizontal Pulling Movements- rowing motions (figure 3.5) 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 3.5 Reebok Master Trainer Rico Wesley performing a dumbbell row 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 39 
 39
 
 
• Vertical Pulling Movements- chin-ups (figure 3.6) 
 
 
 
Figure 3.6 Chin-up ( pronated grip) 
 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 40 
 40
Ignoring the above information is one of the great failings of 
strength and conditioning coaches across the country. 
To evaluate whether your current program is hitting all of these 
critical areas: 
 
1) Take your first phase of training and write next to each exercise 
what category it would fall into. 
2) See if you have covered all of the categories at least once 
during the week and preferably twice. 
3) Look at the ratio of horizontal presses to vertical or horizontal 
pulls and the ratio of knee dominant exercises to hip dominant 
exercises. If these are not in a one to one ratio you have an 
unbalanced program that can potentially set your athletes up for 
injury. An imbalance of horizontal presses to horizontal/ vertical 
pulls will almost always lead to rotator cuff problems. An 
imbalance of knee dominant exercises to hip dominant 
exercises will lead to hamstring problems. Try this evaluation 
and then compare it to your injury stats. 
 
At the conclusion of every season I would do just what I am asking 
you to do. I would look at the number and type of injuries and ask 
myself if I did everything possible to reduce the incidence of injury. 
This is how I came to many of the above conclusions. I can still 
remember a year in the early ‘90s when we had 20 football players 
with some level of rotator cuff tendonitis. When I looked at our 
program, I saw a typical strength program, lots of pushing, very little 
pulling. Most of my linemen could easily bench press their bodyweight, 
but few could do even one chin-up. It wasn’t hard to come to the 
obvious conclusion. After forcing our athletes to perform chin-ups and 
assisted chin-ups, our upper back strength increased and our rotator 
cuff problems disappeared. 
 
Program design is simple if you follow the rules. Coaches get into 
trouble when they program to their own likes or bias. Remember the 
purpose of the program is to reduce injuries and improve 
performance. As coaches we are not trying to create powerlifters, 
Olympic lifters, bodybuilders or strongmen. We are trying to create 
athletes. Strength training is simply a means to an end.
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 41 
 41
Chapter 4 Core Training 
 
Simply defined, core stability is “the ability to create extremity 
movement without compensatory movement of the spine or pelvis” 
and in the broadest sense is “the ability to produce and transmit 
force from the ground without energy leaks at the hips, spine or 
scapulo-thoracic joints”. Energy leaks are defined as points at 
which energy is lost during the transfer of force from the ground. 
Energy leaks are a result of the bodies’ inability to stabilize a 
particular joint. Torso strength encompasses core stability, hip 
stability and shoulder stability and most importantly the ability to 
move force from the ground to the extremities while maintaining 
stability in the aforementioned areas. 
 
Setting the Stage for Stability: Training the Deep Abdominal 
Muscles 
 
As the study of the interrelationship of low back pain and the 
training of the abdominal muscles continues it is obvious that the 
paradigms will continue to shift. One such shift is occurring 
currently. Previously I have written and spoken extensively about 
the Australian methods of training the deep abdominal muscles. 
The work of Richardson, Hodges, and Jull, through their landmark 
work Therapeutic Exercise for Spinal Segmental Stabilization in 
Low Back Pain, has significantly advanced our knowledge of core 
anatomy and muscle function. In actuality, that book and the 
research that preceded it have forever changed the way that 
training is performed. Interestingly enough, some practitioners in 
the field have rejected the Australian concepts for a broad range of 
reasons. The most notable and credible among these critics is 
Canadian Dr. Stuart McGill. McGill provides a sound biomechanical 
rationale for why “hollowing” as he refers to the “draw-in” maneuver 
will actually decrease stability. McGill advocates a technique he 
refers to as “bracing” in place of “hollowing” or “drawing-in”. 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 42 
 42
Although I understand Dr. McGill’s premise, I still believe that 
learning to hollow or draw-in still is a necessary skill for our athletes 
to achieve. 
 
 
Terminology 
Drawing in – the action of bringing the rectus abdominus toward the 
spinal column. Ideally this is done by contracting the transverse 
abdominus and internal oblique muscles 
 
Hollowing- Another description of a drawing-in action that assumes 
that the action results in a decrease of waist diameter. 
 
Bracing- The technique taught and favored by McGill that involves 
a simultaneous co-activation of both the transverse abdominus, 
internal oblique, external oblique and rectus abdominus. In bracing 
there is no attempt to decrease the diameter at the waist only to 
activate the muscles. 
 
Although I am clearly not qualified to dispute Dr. McGill’s research, 
I have a point of theoretical disagreement. McGill’s research clearly 
shows that drawing-in or hollowing can decrease base of support 
and stability of the spine. However, we are teaching drawing-in as a 
neuromuscular awareness exercise, not as the primary vehicle for 
stability. McGill himself states that “hollowing may act as a motor 
re-education exercise”. In addition, most of our athletes are the 
classic “Janda lower crossed body” with an almost protruding 
abdominal wall and a significant lumbar lordosis. (Vladimir Janda, 
was one of the pioneers of manual medicine in Europe. He 
introduced many of the concepts of muscle imbalance on which 
many of the concepts of core training and functional training are 
now based.) In theseathletes I believe that teaching drawing-in 
simply brings the rectus into normal alignment from a position of 
concavity. In reality the athlete is not hollowing but simply bringing 
the abdominal wall back to its intended position of stability. In other 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 43 
 43
words, the goal is to simply to bring the abdomen back to its normal 
anatomical position. The key here is that drawing in for a lordotic 
athlete would not in fact decrease the base of support as McGill 
suggests. 
 
In my opinion performing “draw-in” exercises literally sets the table 
for all other stability exercises. We are teaching athletes to contract 
a muscle that they may not be capable of contracting voluntarily. 
Athletes or clients unable to “draw-in” will not be able to properly 
stabilize in any other movement pattern. In fact, I don’t believe that 
an athlete who cannot “draw-in” would be able to “brace” as 
effectively. The purpose of the “draw-in” exercises is not really to be 
exercises in themselves but to allow clients to learn to properly set 
the core musculature in all activities. Initially the draw-in concept is 
applied in quadruped or bridging exercises. The draw-in is in my 
opinion the foundation on which all other stability exercise is built. 
Whether you choose to draw-in or brace, the execution of 
quadruped or bridging exercises remain the same. The difference is 
not in how you do the exercises, but in how you choose to set the 
table. The end result remains the same. 
 
The Science Behind Core Training 
 
Torso strength could be a book in and of itself. The training of the 
torso, core, or pillar, depending on your descriptive term of choice 
is filled with controversy and confusion. Advocates of powerlifting or 
Olympic lifting seem to feel that most of the scientific advances 
made in the areas of medicine and physical therapy do not apply to 
strength sports. As with many points made by those who 
consistently lift weights with two feet on the ground I respectfully 
disagree. I think that our influences in the area of injury prevention 
should be the physical therapists who deal with injured athletes not 
people from the sports of powerlifting or Olympic lifting. 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 44 
 44
It is very easy for those who never have to worry about athletes 
running or jumping to tell us how to train those who do. 
Unfortunately when powerlifting or Olympic lifting coaches begin to 
move from strength and power development into performance 
enhancement problems arise. I believe that you cannot deny 
science. Science tells us that the deep abdominal muscles (internal 
oblique, transverse abdominus, and multifidus) play a key role in 
the stability of the lumbar spine. Many in the strength community 
disagree. I believe that disagreement is healthy, but I have seen far 
too many strength athletes with problems in the lumbo-pelvic hip 
complex (hip and low back) to think that exercises like squats 
provide enough stability training. 
 
Athletes and clients must learn to move from the hips, not 
from the lumbar spine. 
I believe that most athletes with lower back pain or hamstring 
strains have poor hip and/or lumbo-pelvic mechanics and as a 
result must extend or flex the lumbar spine to make up for 
movement unavailable through the hip. 
 
 
I believe that learning to stabilize either via a bracing maneuver as 
described by McGill (simultaneous use of the rectus abdominus, 
and the deep abdominal musculature) or by executing a “drawing-
in” maneuver is key to being able to strength train and remain 
healthy. Many who have read my previous work might consider this 
a departure from my previous thoughts. In fact it is only the 
continuation of my education. Six years ago I did not even 
understand the anatomy of the deep abdominal musculature. Now I 
am well-versed, but continue to study and learn. McGill’s work has 
continued to advance our knowledge of the workings of the 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 45 
 45
abdominal musculature, and I must admit that his evidence is 
compelling. Dr. McGill’s Low Back Disorders is the latest landmark 
work for any strength and conditioning professional. I think that the 
disagreements as to how to stabilize between people like McGill 
and Paul Hodges are primarily disagreements of semantics as they 
relate to strength training and not really of science. I believe that 
the Australian research in the area of drawing-in is still applicable to 
athletes because as I stated previously, most athletic bodies are 
lordotic. 
 
As I have continued to read the work of physical therapist Shirley 
Sahrmann, I have also changed my ideas on the ideas of training 
“local muscles” versus “global muscles”. Sahrmann makes some 
interesting comments relative to core training as it relates to the 
larger muscles, like the external oblique and internal oblique. 
Sahrmann has isolated the essence of any exercise but, most 
importantly core exercise. 
 
Sahrmann states: “Motion is restricted to the segment that is 
supposed to move”. (2002, p ) 
 
Sahrmann, like McGill relies heavily on EMG data to prescribe 
exercise but, her prescriptions run away from the norm. Sahrmann 
recommends a “curl up” (figure 4.1 ), as a segmental movement 
not directed primarily at the rectus but, directed at the internal 
oblique. 
 
 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 46 
 46
 
Figure 4.1 Curl Up 
In fact Sahrmann states “the primary disadvantage of improving the 
rectus abdominus is that the rectus cannot produce or prevent 
rotation, and shortness or stiffness contributes to thoracic 
kyphosis”(2002, p 69). However, the data Sahrmann cites shows 
that the highest internal oblique activity is actually when a curl-up or 
segmental crunch is progressed into a full sit-up. Sahrmann makes 
clear distinctions as to how this should be performed and makes a 
wonderful case for including an “old school” exercise in the torso 
strength program. Sahrmann also cites the reverse crunch (figure 
4.2) as a key external oblique exercise. This is a hips-to-shoulders 
flexion exercise that elicits high external oblique activity. (2002, p 
69) 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 47 
 47
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Glute Activation and Injury Prevention 
 
To really understand core training we need to look at the key 
compensation patterns that occur when someone attempts to train 
the core. As I stated previously, substituting lumbar extension for 
hip extension is the major culprit in many of the problems that we 
see. This is one of the primary problems in lower back pain and 
may be one of the key areas we attempt to improve over the next 
few years. McGill uses the term “gluteal amnesia”. Mike Clark might 
Figure 4.2 Stabilized Reverse Crunch- a key exercise 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 48 
 48
call it a problem of reciprocal inhibition or synergistic dominance. 
Both are “Jandaists” if I can be so bold as to make up a word. Both 
McGill and Clark identify the same problem. The problem is: Are 
the glutes weak because the psoas is tight or, is the psoas tight 
because the glutes are weak? It may be a classic interdependent, 
chicken and egg, scenario. Either way, proper strengthening of the 
glutes will be the best cure. In fact we may not even be 
strengthening but just reeducating the neuromuscular system. In 
reality most early strength gains are in more neural than contractile. 
 
In order to do this the athlete needs to be able to set the core and 
fire the glutes. Initially this is best done in quadruped to eliminate 
hamstring contribution. Sahrmannnpresents another series of 
thoughts in her book. Sahrmann believes that anterior hip pain can 
be the result of poor glute function and the resultant synergistic 
dominance of the hamstrings. (2002, p. 15). Sahrmann discusses 
the simple biomechanical explanation by citing the lower insertion 
point of the hamstrings on the femur. If the hamstrings are 
consistently called upon to be the primary hip extensor, the result 
will be anterior hip pain in addition to hamstring strains. The 
anterior hip pain is a result of the poor angle of pull of the 
hamstrings when used as a hip extensor. 
 
The key to the future of torso or core training will be in combining all 
of the movements necessary without overemphasizing or 
underemphasizing a particular muscle or movement. If I look at my 
failings over the last five years, I would say that it would be in not 
training the larger global muscles. So much emphasis was placed 
on draw-in exercises and on stability that many of athletes could 
not perform sit-up or curl-up type exercises. 
 
If I can make one clear statement of what I believe now about 
training, particularly as it applies to the core: 
 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 49 
 49
Glute activation or more importantly, lack of glute activation, 
may be the root of many of our evils. 
 
As we look at more and more athletes, both injured and healthy, the 
inability to activate the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius stands 
out as the root cause of at least four major injury syndromes: 
 
1) Low back pain relates strongly to poor glute max activation 
(Poor glute function will cause excessive lumbar 
compensation) 
2) Hamstring strains relate strongly to poor glute max activation 
(Think about synergistic dominance) 
3) Anterior hip pain relates strongly to poor glute max 
activation. (This relates to the poor biomechanics of 
hamstrings a hip extensors) 
4) Anterior knee pain relates strongly to poor glute medius 
strength or activation. 
 
Sahrmann makes one of her many lucid points “when assessing 
the factors that contribute to an overuse syndrome, one of the rules 
is to determine whether one or more of the synergists of the 
strained muscle are also weak. When the synergist is weak, the 
muscle strain is probably the result of excessive demands” (2002, 
p.37) 
 
I call this looking on the roof. If you see water leaking into your 
house, you don’t simply try to plug the hole or paint over the water 
stain. You look for the source of the water. You look on the roof for 
the problem. The same applies to injuries. Don’t focus on pain site; 
focus on the pain source. In our case, the source keeps coming 
back to the glutes. In the bigger picture, coaches should look at 
every non-traumatic (non-contact) injury as having a root cause in 
either poor program design or, weakness of synergists. 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 50 
 50
 
We will perform glute 
activation at the beginning of 
every workout to attempt to 
develop better conscious 
awareness of the function of 
the glutes and to hopefully 
“wake them up” so that they 
will be greater contributors to 
the workout. This whole 
“glute activation” thing can 
become a problem as you 
will be asking your athletes 
or clients to continually touch 
their rear ends. In addition, 
you will be continually 
touching people’s rear ends. 
A word to the wise, in our 
litigious society sexual 
harassment is a problem, be 
careful we are treading in 
dangerous but necessary 
water. 
 
One small problem. When 
does glute activation become 
resistance training versus 
core training? I must confess 
to being unsure at this point. 
There is a thin line between 
hip dominant exercise and 
core training. The solution 
may be to do your core work 
(quadruped and bridging) on 
the days you are doing your 
Figure 4.3- X Superband for Glute 
Medius 
Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities 51 
 51
hip dominant lower body exercises or perhaps to perform some 
type of hip dominant exercise every day. 
 
Glute Activation Keys 
• Perform glute activation as the first thing in your warm-up 
• Straight leg mini-band or Super Band X walks ( Figure 4.3)is 
great for glute medius ( posterior fibers) 
• For glute max use either quadruped hip extension or Cook 
hip lift 
 
 
Let me be clear. Perform glute activation prior to every workout. 
 
 
Core Stability Exercises 
Bridging and quadruped exercises are designed to promote glute 
function and stability. Gray Cook classifies these exercises as “core 
stability” because there is no movement of the spine. Exercises like 
crunches and reverse crunches are better classified as “core 
strength” because the spine is moving. Cook states the concept 
simply. In order to be doing core stability exercise there must be no 
movement of the core. Exercises that incorporate core movement 
are core strength exercises. 
Quadruped Progression 
Although I discussed Quadruped exercise in detail in Functional 
Training for Sports, this information clearly needs to be revisited. 
McGill’s research has validated my thoughts relative to quadruped 
exercise and, it is essential that all athletes work through this 
progression. 
 
The quadruped exercises are frequently viewed as 
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rehabilitation exercises and have largely been ignored by 
strength and conditioning coaches and athletic trainers. I think 
many coaches view quadruped exercise as simple and a 
waste of time. The quadruped exercises may not make sense 
at first glance, but only because these exercises are often 
performed incorrectly. In many cases the results of these 
exercises become the opposite of what was intended. 
Quadruped exercises should teach athletes how to recruit the 
glutes while maintaining a stable torso. Instead, athletes often 
learn that they can mimic hip extension by extending (or 
hyper-extending) the lumbar spine. The purpose of this 
quadruped progression is to teach the athlete to stabilize the 
torso with the deep abdominals and multifidus muscles and to 
simultaneously use the hip extensors to extend the hip. A 
great deal of low back pain is related to poor range of motion 
and function of the hip that must be compensated for by 
lumbar extension or rotation. 
 
Obviously the multifidus component is not present until the hip 
or arm is extended. The multifidus is incorporated when the 
athlete or client has to stabilize against a rotational 
component produced by a three-point stance. Quadruped 
actually refers to the starting position. Most of the exercises 
are actually done from a three-point stance. 
 
Pelvic Floor- the pelvic floor component is another component that 
was not addressed in Functional Training for Sports. Pelvic floor is 
a sensitive issue because coaches are dealing with discussions of 
body areas and body functions with athletes who may not be 
mature enough to understand the essential nature of engaging the 
muscles of the pelvic floor. When dealing with adult athletes or 
clients, core training will be drastically improved by asking the 
athlete or client to engage the pelvic floor while performing any 
stabilization exercise in quadruped or in a bridge position. It is 
simple enough to tell athletes or client’s to mimic the action they 
would employ if they realized that they had to use a bathroom, but 
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the line was very long. This usually is enough to get the message 
across. 
 
 
Quadruped Draw-In 
 
Level 1 This has become the position of choice for teaching 
athletes and clients how to fire the deep abdominal musculature. 
Although in the past I have recommended a supine positionwith 
visual feedback, the weight of the internal organs makes working in 
quadruped very neuromuscularly efficient. Athletes and clients tend 
to feel this exercise more than any of the other positions previously 
advocated. Start on all fours (figure 4.4) and relax, allowing the 
weight of the internal organs to distend the abdominal wall. 
Kneeling next to the client, place one hand on the client’s back and 
the other hand on the now relaxed and distended abdomen. Ask 
the client to lift the abdominal wall off of your hand without moving 
the spine. Have the client hold this position for five seconds and 
then allow the abdominal wall to again drop into your hand. The key 
is to be able to lift the abdominal wall without moving the spine. 
 
Repeat for five contractions lasting five seconds each. 
 
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Figure 4.4 Quadruped Draw-In 
 
After the athlete or client has developed this skill ask them to 
exhale as they draw in the abdomen. It is not necessary to actually 
“hollow”, but athletes or clients must learn to feel this “draw-in” or 
more appropriately “draw-up” action. This exercise teaches the 
athlete the stable position that will be necessary to perform any of 
the exercises that follow. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Quadruped Hip Extension Over Bench 
 
 
Figure 4.5 Quadruped hip extension over bench 
 
 
Level 1 This exercise is done to attempt to eliminate any lumbar 
movement by blocking pelvic movement with a bench. This is not 
the least bit “real world” but will force the athlete to begin to 
understand glute isolation and therefore glute firing. Do not use a 
stability ball for this exercise, as the ball will deflect. The surface 
needs to be rigid. To perform the exercise, begin with the hip bones 
in contact with the bench. Draw-in as in the quadruped draw-in 
described previously and then extend the hip with a bent leg. 
(figure 4.5) The bent leg eliminates the contribution of the 
hamstring and forces more glute activation. The bending of the leg 
shortens the hamstring making it a less effective hip extensor and 
placing more emphasis on the glute. 
 
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Use the same sequence as above with 5 reps held at the top for 5 
seconds. 
 
It is critical that the athlete consciously concentrates on squeezing 
with the glutes for the entire 5 seconds. The coach or trainer should 
see no pelvic movement whatsoever. Movement should be limited 
to the hip. Any lumbar extension is compensation for poor glute 
function. 
 
Quadruped Hip Extension: Bent Leg, Dowel Parallel 
 
The quadruped hip extension progression is simple. We have 
made one significant change to improve the effectiveness of 
this movement. The non-working leg is placed on an Airex or 
Theraband pad. (figure 4.6)This allows the hip to be extended 
without having to produce the small amount of rotation 
necessary to actually get the knee off the ground while in a 
quadruped position. Extend the hip and hold the position for 
five seconds before alternating sides. 
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Figure 4.6 Quadruped w/ knee on Airex pad 
 
 
 
 
Level 1- this is done while balancing a dowel or stick along 
the spine. The objective sounds simple, but it is actually 
difficult to accomplish. Extend the hip without disturbing the 
dowel or allowing the lumbar spine to move away from the 
dowel. Any change in lumbar curve can easily be seen as an 
increase in the space between the dowel and the lumbar 
spine. With proper control of the lumbar spine via the deep 
abdominals and multifidus muscles, the hip should extend 
without extension of the lumbar spine. 
 
 
 
 
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Progress from 5 to 8 and then to 10 five-second holds. Again 
the leg is bent to deliberately shorten the hamstring and make 
the glute the primary hip extensor. 
 
Level 2- add 2.5 pound ankle weights 
Quadruped Hip Extension: Bent Leg, Dowel Perpendicular 
Level 2 After you master the bent leg version of the 
quadruped hip extension with the dowel parallel to the spine, 
the dowel is shifted to a position perpendicular to the spine, 
over the hip bones. The same hip extension is performed, but 
now the objective is to eliminate any rotational compensation 
in the lumbar spine. 
 
Level 3 add 2.5 lb ankle weights. 
 
Quadruped Alternating Arm and Leg 
 
Level 4- The last and most difficult step in the progression is an 
alternate arm and leg action from the quadruped hip position. This 
is an advanced exercise that is often used far too often and far too 
early with beginners. All the preceding exercises are held for five 
seconds and progress using a 5-8-10 rep progression. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Supine Progression 
The supine progression may be the most important part of the 
overall torso training program. The supine or bridging 
progression teaches athletes or clients to fire both the glutes 
and the hamstrings while maintaining core position with the 
deep abdominal muscles. In addition the progression now 
moves to a position with the feet in contact with the ground, a 
more real-life motor pattern than quadruped. The supine 
progression also targets the back from the multifidus. 
 
The supine exercises train or retrain the multifidus while 
improving glute function. The multifidus, along with the 
transversus abdominis, has received much attention recently 
due to research being conducted in Australia. This research 
has shown that the multifidus and transverse abdominis 
experience rapid atrophy after back injury and must be 
retrained by any athlete who has experienced back pain. 
(Richardson, Jull and Hodges 1999 P94) The multifidus 
muscles are the deepest of the spinal erector group and act to 
resist flexion and anterior shear during forward bending 
(Sahrmann 2002 p 67). In addition the multifidi are also 
responsible for rotational stability between individual 
vertebrae. One possible way to exercise the multifidus 
muscles may be to apply a rotational stress to the spine. By 
simply resisting this rotary force, the multifidus may be 
stimulated. Training or retraining the multifidus muscles is 
often neglected in many torso and low-back rehabilitation 
programs. Although great attention has been lavished on the 
deep abdominal musculature, the ability to stabilize the spinal 
column itself is potentially more important. The supine 
progression teaches the movement patterns necessary to 
safely and correctly perform supine exercises, facilitates the 
glutes and targets the multifidus. In addition the supine 
progression begins to transfer the improved glute function 
achieved through the quadruped exercises into the slightly 
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more specific bridge position. 
Cook Hip Lift 
Level 1- This is an invaluable exercise that provides a triple 
emphasis on the glutes, hamstrings and on the torso. The 
Cook hip lift (figure 4.7) develops glute and hamstring 
strength and function and also teaches the critical difference 
between hip range of motion and lumbar spine range of 
motion. The ability to distinguish between hip motion and 
lumbar spine motion is one of the most important goals of the 
supine exercise progression. In many exercises that target 
the hamstrings and glutes, it is easy to mistakenly use more 
range of motion at the lumbar spine than at the hip. In 
addition it is easy to extend the hips with the hamstrings 
versus the glutes. The Cook hip