💪 You down with RFD?

I hate mediocrity and for today’s quick thought I want to dive a bit deeper into that. 

I don’t understand the point of just going through the motions. We have a short time on earth, so why would you waste time doing things that don’t produce meaning or satisfaction?

Bill Gurley noticed some common themes among fulfilled high achievers (Bobby Knight, Bob Dylan, and Danny Meyer). He built an outline on how you can chase down your dreams and have a career you love. You can watch it here, but I’ve got the cliff notes for you. 

1. Find your passion. 

“Pick a profession in which you have a deep, personal interest. There’s nothing that’s going to make you be more successful than if you love doing what you’re doing because you’re going to work harder than anybody else because it’s (not) going to feel like work. It’s going to feel like fun.”

2. Hone your craft constantly. 

“It’s extremely important to be obsessive about understanding everything you possibly can about your craft. Consider it an obligation. Hold yourself accountable. That requires you to keep learning over time. Study the history, know the pioneers.”

3. Develop mentors in your field.

“Take every chance you can to find somebody who can teach you about the field you want to excel in. You can work your way up the stack. You don’t have to jump straight to the top on day one. Treat them with respect. Debate things, learn from them. Document what you hear, share it with others. Try to get these mentors interested in you and your own development.”

4. Embrace peers in your field.

“Develop a relationship with them. Have discussions. Have arguments. This is a way you learn. This is a way that ideas get shared. This is a way you hone and innovate ideas.”

5. Always be gracious and humble.

“Send letters, send gifts, anytime you accomplish something in your career take the time to send messages back to the people that helped you.”

I think it’s great that some people are okay with work just being work.

That’s not me, though. I’m obsessed with my craft and I get out of bed every morning fired up to get better- just like Bob Dylan.

What’s easier to lose: my keys or my RFD?

Title: Resistance Training–Induced Gains in Rate of Force Development Are Maintained During Training Cessation: A Meta-Analysis Authors: Grgic, Jozo; Grgic, Ivana

What is it?

A meta-analysis (talk nerdy to me 😍) of what happens to rate of force development (RFD) during a resistance training period and after that training stops.

Why does it matter?

Athletic movements on the field/court happen fast.

Being strong is massively important- being able to use that strength in a short window of time is just as important.

Sometimes people have to stop training for a variety of reasons. We know that muscular strength drops significantly when training stops. Does that same phenomenon occur with RFD?

What did they find?

• Resistance training improved RFD, but only by a little.
• There was no significant difference in post-intervention and post-detraining RFD.
  • This applied to shorter detraining periods (up to 4 weeks) and longer detraining periods (from 7 to 16 weeks).
  • This applied to both untrained and trained participants.

What was the process?

Inclusion criteria:

• Included human study subjects (take that, lab rats)
• Explored the effects of resistance training on RFD
• Incorporated a detraining phase where exercise was ceased
• Evaluated RFD after the detraining phase

A total of 7 studies (with 11 different study groups) were analyzed.

My thoughts.

I like these authors. They conducted a study with the best information at their disposal and didn’t jump to any conclusions to stroke their own ego.

For example, the main findings of the study showed no significant difference in RFD following detraining. However, they acknowledge that these findings may be misleading: “(it) might be that RFD was not substantially reduced after detraining, given that its increase after resistance training was not as large.”

Most studies included were not solely designed to analyze RFD. So, the training programs were not designed to maximize RFD development.

If you maximize RFD development during training, then I’d bet you would see larger drop offs in RFD during the detraining period. Similar to how other research shows a massive drop in muscular strength during times of detraining.

How can you use it?

1. Prioritize maintaining maximal strength through the in-season, as this study suggests that will deteriorate quicker than RFD does.

Is a post-workout rollout helpful? (Not the Ludacris version.)

Title: Effectiveness of Foam Rolling vs. Manual Therapy in Postexercise Recovery Interventions for Athletes: A Randomized Controlled Trial Authors: Espí-López, Gemma V.; Ruescas-Nicolau, Maria-Arantzazu; Castellet-García, María; Suso-Martí, Luis; Cuenca-Martínez, Ferran; Marques-Sule, Elena

What is it?

A randomized controlled trial looking at how foam rolling and manual therapy after training impacted dynamic balance, lumbar and hip flexibility, and leg dynamic force (which is an interesting phrase to use when referring to broad jumps).

The study subjects were 47 healthy amateur athletes from Espana between 19-29 years old (53.2% dudes, 46.8% dudettes).

Why does it matter?

One of my personal mantras that my athletes get sick of hearing is- “The two most important variables for success are consistency and intensity. Do you show up on a regular basis and do you work your tail off when you get there?”

If foam rolling or manual therapy after training can help athletes show up more regularly and work harder (due to less impairment) in their next session, then we should get better outcomes. 

What did they find?

Neither manual therapy nor foam rolling had any meaningful impact on lumbar flexibility, hip flexibility, or broad jumping immediately after the intervention or a week later.

The authors discussion reports that the “most significant finding of our study is that the FRT group had better dynamic balance immediately after the intervention when compared to the MT group.”

Not stated so clearly in the discussion, though? There was no difference between the FR and control group and the control was actually significantly better than the MT group as well (they also differed at baseline).

Maybe blaring some Ludacris in the background would have yielded better outcomes (that’s the last early 2000s hip hop reference, I swear).

What was the process?

Athletes were split into three groups: manual therapy (MT), foam rolling (FR), and a control group (CG).

All three groups underwent the same training and testing.

Training session:

• 8 minute warm-up run at 50% max HR
• Four 4-minute interval runs at 90-95% max HR with 4-minutes rest between each set
• 3-minute walk at 5 km per hour (which is 3.1 mph in units that I can actually comprehend) to cool down

Testing:

• Athletes were tested immediately before the intervention (MT, FR, or none) and immediately after. Testing was then followed up again one-week later.
• Dynamic balance was tested using the modified Star Excursion Balance Test
• Lumbar flexibility was measured using the modified Schober Test
• Hip flexibility was measured via Passive Straight Leg Test
• Leg dynamic force was measured with a standing broad jump.
• Perception of change in muscle fatigue was measured subjectively.

Intervention:

• Manual therapy
  • Lumbopelvic thrust manip
  • Anterior to posterior nonthrust hip mob
  • Lateral to medial nonthrust hip mob
  • Proximal tibiofibular joint P to A mob
  • Rearfoot distraction thrust manip
  • Three 30-second reps of hip external rotator stretching
  • 5-minutes of fascial manip of patellofemoral region

• Foam rolling
  • Hamstrings and erector spinae for 7 minutes and 30 seconds each
  • 1 minute on followed by 30 seconds off, repeated for 15 minutes
  • Pressure intensity was targeted at 7/10 (0 = no discomfort, 10 = max discomfort)

• Control group
  • Sat and twiddled thumbs for 15 minutes.

My thoughts.

I don’t think anyone chooses a recovery tool in hopes that they’ll feel better immediately or a week after. The important time frame is to be ready to train and perform the next day, so it would’ve been dope if they could have had an earlier follow-up.

My stance on manual therapy and its derivatives (like foam rolling) is usually that it’s up to each athlete. Do you feel better and perform better with it? 

If yes, cool! Go for it. 

If no, also cool! Don’t go for it.

How can you use it?

1. Don’t mandate manual therapy or foam rolling post-exercise for everyone, but don’t prevent it either.

That’s a wrap! If you found this helpful, I’d appreciate you sharing this newsletter with anyone that you think could also benefit from it.

Best,

Zach

Dr. Zach Guiser, PT, DPT, CSCS