Weight Training for Roller Skaters
by Dave VanBelleghem
(aka Rollerskater Dave)

1. They are time consuming. While keeping in shape is an important part of our lives, it is just that, a PART of life. Almost all of us have responsibilities beyond skating and working out, and if you don't, then your life will get boring pretty fast.



2. They are inefficient. The vast majority of successful strength athletes keep their workouts hard and to the point. Overtraining is the surest way to halt progress.



3. They are boring. While your initial enthusiasm will keep you going for a while, as with anything it will fade if you get too much of a good thing.

1. Warm up well. Don't even touch anything heavier than an empty barbell or 10 pound dumbell until you've warmed up for at least 10 minutes. Get the blood flowing. Jogging on the spot or stationary biking for 5 minutes or so is good. Do some basic stretches, especially for the lower back, hamstrings, inner groin and neck. These areas have a tendency to be tight on most people and get pulled out of joint very easily.



2. Do a light warm up set for each exercise with a light weight for 15 repetitions. But I already warmed up you're saying. Yes you did a general warm up but when you progress to the stage where you're using a substantial amount of weight you'll find your technique is a lot better when you do a "practice set" first.



3. After the first month or so when you know how to do each exercise properly (don't worry, I'll tell you the proper form for each exercise) and you have an idea how much weight you can handle without undue strain, use a weight that allows you to do 10 to 15 repetitions each set. If you can't get 10 without being sloppy and cheating (ie. bad form), you're using too much weight. Take some off the bar so you can do it properly. Strength comes from consistent training. Don't try to rush it and get injured. Then you can't work out or skate, and where does that get you. On the other side of the coin if you can get 15 good form repetitions with a weight it's time to add another 5 pounds to the bar. Keep the increases in weight gradual so you don't get stuck at a certain poundage. That will sometimes cause you to start backsliding in strength a little bit and as you get more frustrated your exercise technique tends to get sloppy.



4. You only need one good hard set per exercise to strengthen and build a muscle. If you have pushed to your limit on a particular exercise, any more sets of that exercise are a waste of time.



5. A muscle only needs 2 good strength workouts a week to grow and get stronger. An occasional third one is fine but remember, the rest in between workouts is when the muscle does its growing and recuperating. When you fatigue a muscle with intense exercise the individual muscle cells produce a waste product called lactic acid inside themselves. This is what gives muscles that sore or "used" feeling the day or two after hard physical labor. While the muscle is recuperating (you can go on with your day, you don't have to laze around waiting for your muscles to grow), the lactic acid is flushed out of the muscle cells and replaced with fresh protoplasm, which is mostly water. The amount of protoplasm is a little bit more than the lactic acid that it replaced, so the muscle cell grows very slightly in size. Doing this process over and over for an extended period of time will result in a significant increase in the mass and strength of the muscle.



6. Don't hold your breath while lifting. Under heavy exertion it can make you pass out. Breathe out during the raising of the weight, breathe in during the lowering. A little grunt while breathing out is fine, but you don't need to do a martial arts yell.

  Place the barbell across the back of your shoulders. Not high up on your neck, but on the "meaty" part (trapezius muscle) just below. If you're using a substantial amount of weight use squat racks to hold the bar in the air for you while you get under it. Now with your feet about shoulder width apart and toes pointing out slightly, descend into a deep knee bend position. Don't look down at the floor during the movement or you'll lose your balance and fall forward. Look ahead or to the ceiling. Now stand up straight to your original starting position. You've completed one rep (repetition). Repeat the procedure until you've completed the required number of reps. A little foreword here. Squats get you breathing very heavily. If you find you need to take an extra breath or two between reps that's fine. Replace the bar on the squat racks when you've finished the set.

Dumbell Squats - Gluteus Maximus, Quadriceps, Hamstrings

  Same sort of movement here, only instead of a barbell across your shoulders hold two dumbells (one at each shoulder) and do the squat movement. This exercise is handy if you happen to have a lower back problem that could be aggravated by doing the typical barbell squat. You also don't have to worry about getting stuck under the bar if your legs happen to tire and give out at the bottom of the squat. You just have to flop the dumbells onto the floor in front of you. (Do keep control of them so they don't go bouncing across the room).

Leg Press - Gluteus Maximus, Quadriceps, Hamstrings

  Here's a good strength builder for the legs if you happen to have both a bad back and gimpy knees. With your back flat against the back rest and your feet about shoulder width apart push against the platform and extend your legs fully. When you get to using heavy weights you can use your hands on your knees to get it started. Then at a controlled speed lower the weight platform and bring your knees to your chest. Then extend your legs and do it again for the required number of reps. Breathe in while lowering the weight, breathe out while pushing it up.

Leg Extensions - Quadriceps

  This exercise isolates the teardrop shaped group of muscles on the front of your thighs and around your knees. The quadriceps are actually four distinct muscles, not a multi-headed single muscle like your biceps or triceps. From the starting position with your lower legs and thighs at 90 degrees to each other, extend your legs out straight. Hold them out straight for a second or two and flex your front thigh muscles hard, then lower the weight under control back to the starting position. This is an exercise that depends on strict technique. Don't go overboard with the amount of weight you use. If you can't stop and hold the position for a second or two you're using too much weight. Definitely don't fling the weight up. The sudden effect of gravity when the weight slows down can pop the ligaments in your knees badly. This exercise can also be done with a pair of "iron boots", which are similar to sandals you strap onto your feet. They have a hole running crossways through the sole that you put an empty dumbell bar in and load small plates on the sides.

Hamstring Curls - Hamstrings

  The hamstrings (actually about three distinct muscles on the back of your thighs) are an often neglected area. A weakness in these muscles will lead the knee and lower back problems as the quadriceps pull too heavily in relation to the hamstrings. Laying face down on the bench and your feet under the bar, curl your legs up behind you. You're basically trying to touch your feet to your hips. You can also do this move one leg at a time standing up while wearing "iron boots". Be sure to do your hamstring stretches first as you can cramp up very easily on this movement if the muscles are cold.

Groin Squeezes - Inner Thigh Muscles

  Here's another neglected muscle group. You see pulled groin muscles among athletes all the time. Wonder why? You'd think with all the pre-game stretching they do there wouldn't be a problem. True their groin muscles may be flexible, but that doesn't mean they have a proportionate amount of strength in that area. You can buy a $10,000 Nautilus machine designed specifically for this muscle group, or you can save your money and do this little exercise. Sit on a chair with your legs apart and put a ball, about the size of a basketball or soccer ball between your upper thighs. Then squeeze your thighs together against the resistance of the ball. Repeat a good 20 to 30 times. Doing this movement consistently every workout will strengthen those weak inner thighs and reduce the risk of groin pulls.

Exercises to avoid if you don't want knee problems. - Hack Squats, Lunges with extra weight

Calf Exercises

Standing Calf Raises - Gastrocnemius, Soleus, Feet

You don't need much equipment for this one. Stand on the balls of your feet on the edge of a step. Hold onto a wall or handrail for balance. Wear running shoes, it's a lot more comfortable. Lower your heels down until your calf muscles are fully stretched. Then stand up on your toes as high as you can. Lower back down to the stretch position and repeat. Go easy on the reps the first couple of workouts or you'll have difficulty walking the next couple of days. From then on do as many reps as you can. When you can get to doing 30 or so reps hold a dumbell in one hand in front of your lap while doing these for extra resistance. When you get really good you can do them one leg at a time. Remember to stretch right to the bottom.

Shin Flexes - Tibialis Anterior

Here again we have another ignored muscle. This is a stabilizing muscle. If you've been off the skates for a couple of months you've probably felt them getting sore on the front of your shins when you start up again. Stand with your HEELS on the step this time. Lower your toes and feet as far down as you can. Then raise the front of your feet as far up as you can. Lower and repeat till the muscle gives out.

Lower Back and Abdominal Exercises

Hyperextensions - Spinal Erectors

If you have access to one of these benches this is by far the best lower back builder there is. Do these consistently two or three times a week and you likely will never have a back problem again. With your feet securely anchored and your body straight out parallel to the floor lower your upper body down till you're hanging head down by the floor. Then raise your upper body up to the parallel to the floor position. Lower and repeat. Do as many reps as you can (after breaking in a few workouts of course). If you can get to fifty your lower back muscles are in incredible shape.

Good Morning Exercise - Spinal Erectors, Hamstrings

When it comes to keeping your lower back muscles in shape you don't need a lot of weight. In fact the weight of your upper body is sufficient. Take an empty broomstick (with the broom part removed) and put it across the back of your shoulders as in the barbell squat. Then with feet shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent bend forward at the waist till your upper body is parallel to the floor. Go down no further than this. Then stand erect. Repeat. Work your way up to 50 reps. This is plenty. For keeping your balance it helps to look upwards as you bend over.

Twists - Spinal Erectors, Obliques

This is an excellent warmup exercise for your lower back. Place an empty broomstick across the back of your shoulders. Hold onto both ends with your hands. With feet shoulder width apart first twist at the waist and point your right arm forward. Then twist and point your left arm forward. Then right, left, right, left. You get the picture. Resist the temptation to move the hips. Keep it all in the waist. Gradually work your way up over a few workouts until your doing 100 reps each side. This is a good movement to do before doing any lifting as it takes the kinks out of your back.

Side Bends - Obliques

Grab that handy broomstick again. Same place, back of your shoulders. Feet shoulder width. Now bend to your right side, no front or back movement, just to the side. Stand up straight, then bend to the left. Keep it up for 50 reps each side. This works the oblique muscles on the sides of your waist.

Crunches - Upper and Lower Abdominals

Remember how your dreaded high school gym teacher used to make you do situps with someone holding down your feet. Little did they realize that not only were you not working your abs very effectively, they were also setting you up for back problems. Once your lower back lifts off the floor, the abs stop working and other muscles in your hip and front thigh take over. Not only that but certain parts of your lower back are pulled on in a manner not in their best interest. Crunches are a much safer and effective ab exercise. Start by laying flat on your back. Then without raising your lower back from the floor, raise your upper torso and your bent legs toward each other. Squeeze your ab muscles in a hard flex, then lower yourself back to the floor. Repeat for as many reps as you can. You'll feel the burn in this movement. Bringing the torso and legs toward each other works both the upper and lower rows of abdominal muscles at the same time.

Quicky Upper Body Workout

While some of you may wonder the relevance of upper body exercise when it comes to skating, remember a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Without some strength in your upper body it will start to sag and tire when you get into a long skate, causing your skating technique to suffer. These four movements will give you all around strength and muscle tone in your upper body.

Shoulder Press - Deltoids, Trapezius, Triceps

With the barbell in front of you bend your knees and grasp it with a just wider than shoulder width grip, knuckles facing up. Lift the bar up to your shoulders in the position shown. Keeping your back nice and straight push the bar overhead to arms length. Lower it back to your shoulders under control. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Pulls - Upper Back

Ok. Knees bent. Grasp the bar with a little bit narrower than shoulder width grip, knuckles up. Stand erect with the bar in front of your lap. Now pull the bar upwards with just your arms towards your shoulders to the upper chest. Keep the bar close to your body. Your elbows will be pointed out to the sides. Lower under control and repeat.

Bench Press - Pectorals, Deltoids, Triceps

While laying face up on the exercise bench grasp the bar a little wider than your shoulders. Lift it from the uprights and lower it to the middle of your chest, under control. Do not bounce the bar off your chest. Press the weight to arms length then lower and repeat. If you don't have someone to spot you, stop just short of burning yourself out so you don't get stuck under the bar. You can also do this movement with dumbells so you don't have to worry about getting stuck. You just flop them to the sides down to the floor.

Bicep Curl - Biceps, Forearms

This time pick up the barbell, slightly wider than shoulder width, palms facing up. Stand erect. Using just your arms, curl the bar up to under your chin. Lower under control, and repeat. Let your elbows rise a little bit as you curl to prevent strain on the ligaments in your elbow. Don't use so much weight that you have to put your back and legs into it. You want your arms to do the work. You can also use dumbells for this movement.