DGTT/Throwing: Struggle, Passion, and Commitment

Throwers! I have not directed a post toward you all in quite some time now. However, in all that I write, it can easily apply to you. This post is going to be specially directed toward the throwers, so gear yourself up and enjoy!

Throughout my seven years being a part of this awesome sport, I have unfortunately made plenty of mistakes. However, I don't think anyone could ever doubt the amount of effort that I have put into all of this time throwing. In high school, I would always be the last one throwing. I would throw until it was too dark to throw. I carried that same mentality into college as well. John Powell's logic of throwing 10,000 repetitions per year was not something that I took all that lightly. I never actually counted how many times I threw each year, but I always went into practice with a mindset of throwing until I could not physically throw anymore. Most people would think that it would be boring to do the same thing over and over again, day in and day out, night after night. For me, the emotion that I felt, and still do feel for throwing, is located on the complete opposite end of the spectrum of boring. It never failed to take me away from the daily struggles of life. I know the older population are probably saying, "Dude, you don't even know what struggle is!" I understand your point, but even as teenagers, the youngins get stressed every once in a while too. Throwing just has a way of relieving all of the stresses that you have in your life. Most of you reading this could probably agree with that statement. Even on a day where nothing seems to be going right, it just plants a seed of passion and excitement.




Last year during an outdoor season practice nothing seemed to be going right. Everything that was working for me in previous weeks was no longer working out for me. It started to pour down buckets of rain in a fast and explosive manner, kind of how I wished the shot put was flying out of my hand. It was freezing all at the same time. There I was in my shorts and my tee-shirt living it up! I refused to stop throwing until I got it right. Eventually, I did get it right. Everything started to click for me! The determination I had that night to get back on track is something that will stick with me for the rest of my life.

As I am spending this time to talk about my own experiences and the passion that I have for this sport, I want to diverge onto the real reason of why I am stating all of this in the first place. I was talking about how I have made plenty of mistakes throughout my throwing career. I have mentioned before that I always refused to lift when I was in high school. That would be one of my mistakes. As I have mentioned in previous posts, you need to lift. Most of the other mistakes involved my mindset of throwing until I could not throw anymore. You're probably saying to yourself, "What does that even mean?" Yea, I get it. I always talk about how much I believe in taking countless repetitions when throwing.

Here's the deal, there is a right way to train as a thrower, and a wrong way. Now, I don't claim to be an expert or anything, I am speaking purely from experience. The point that I am at now as thrower did not come easy and it was not a short fix. It was something that I struggled with, and something that took me a long time to get to where I am at now. I still believe whole-heartedly in the idea that repetition is key to the success of a thrower. I also want to back up the fact that transitioning into a successful thrower requires a lot of hard work and commitment. The bottom-line is this; I took the wrong path to get to where I am now. Obviously, I am out of commission right now due to this tendinitis injury in my right arm. That tells you I didn't do something right. Yet, it's not all about this injury in my arm. What I am talking about is the fact that I was not taught the "right way" when I first started throwing. I developed a lot of bad habits, and it took me a long time to break a lot of these bad habits. For instance:

• My left side carried me through the circle rather than my right side.

• I lead with my knee rather than the inside of my right thigh.

• My arms were all over the place.

• I never, ever turned my right foot.

These are just a few of the basics that I did not do as a high schooler. The list could become real nasty, real quick, if I spent the time really thinking about it. Yet, I was able to manage average numbers as a high school thrower. I honestly think that repetition, hard work and commitment had a lot to do with this. I became real good at what I did. Unfortunately, what I did was not real good. I also had more guidance than most high school throwers do around this area. I was fortunate in those regards. However, I lacked the basics needed to be the thrower that I always dreamed of being. Obviously, once this arm gets all doctored up, I'll be back at it again. Yet, I always wonder to myself what is it that I could have been? What could I have achieved as a thrower in high school if I had that basic guidance from the beginning? When I say basic guidance, I mean everything from training, mental preparation, and technique.

I really think that the struggles that I had to go through is one of the biggest driving factors for me wanting to help out throwers who may be in a similar position to that of what I went through. Since throwing is something that I am so passionate about and knowing that I put all of the hard work in that I did, to now being able to see a clear path that I could have taken if there was the opportunity of someone being there to direct me to that right path; really gives me no other choice but to reach out and help you guys and girls. I see myself work so hard at this for so long, and realize that I have been underachieving for all of these years, because I didn't have the proper guidance from the beginning. I am sitting here wondering what could have been, what could I have accomplished if I had that ever-so important guidance; the experience that is so vital to being the absolute best that you can be. 

I now have this mindset about life where I never want to open a new door to my life and wish that I would have done more. I didn't always have this mindset. I gained it through investing in others. Investing in others helped me realize who I really am, and I think that it is so important to find out who you really are. Some people spend their whole lives trying to figure out who they are. If you ask me, I think that is a waste of your life. Do not let yourself sink into the same hole that I did. The kind of hole where you sit all day and wonder what you could have been if you had the proper guidance. I am putting myself out there to provide that guidance to you high school throwers in the area. Before me, there was no one in the area who could provide what it is that I desire to provide.

I was watching an interview on Zach Even-Esh last night, and he asked the simple question along the lines of, "what is your purpose to be put on this Earth?"

I had a dream last night, where I was walking through a place where I used to hang out as a kid. As I was walking, I looked up and noticed my best friend walking by me. My friend went off to the military so it is always rare occasion when I do see him. It was an exciting moment to say the least. We ended up walking to the movie theatre. As I imagined him to be loaded with cash, he whipped out a hundred dollar bill and bought around 5 tickets for the surrounding people, including myself. We end up getting into the movie theatre, sit there for a little while, and the movie starts. Maybe five minutes into the movie, the movie suddenly stops. Someone starts typing on the screen, listing her accomplishments. Under this list she writes, "thank you Greg Pearson, you saved my life." If you could cry in your sleep, I think that would have been the moment for me. It is not because I am a cry-baby or anything like that. It is because I am so passionate about affecting other's lives in the utmost positive manner through what I do. I want to be the reason why a lost and befuddled teenager, finds their path to success. 

There are so many high schoolers these days who are athletes, that have tremendous abilities, but they don't know who they are. They run around to all of these different groups, they get caught up with drugs, and basically throw their lives out of the window. I see it time and time again. It is this reason why I want to create a family of training and success. A place where these teenagers can always fall back on and know that they always have a place of acceptance built around respect, hard work, and commitment. I feel that as I have grown, this is the major purpose to why I have been put on this Earth. To provide my experience in a way that allows the younger generation to find a successful path.

This is who I am. This is my purpose to live. You're either with me, or you're against me. If you're with me, great! Give me a call. If you're against me, even better. I only want to deal with those who have a desire to the best that they can be.

Before we close this down, I would like to mention that I am perfectly happy about where I am now. I know I spent a lot of time talking about how I wish this and how I wish that. The truth is that without the experiences that I went through, I wouldn't be the person I am today. I wouldn't be here looking to share my experiences with all of you.

Let's Make It Happen.

Learn From Those Who Have Already Experienced.

Save Yourself The Trouble.

Training: Like A Jog In The Park

As an athlete, you want to be explosive. If you are not explosive, you're probably not an athlete; or you're not all that good. You can be as strong as you dream to be, but if you're not explosive, that strength is useless. I have seen many powerlifter/bodybuilder types that are not athlete material. Yes, they are muscular. Yes, they are really strong. Unfortunately, they have trained their muscles to be slow. Not all, but most. Especially in today's day of age, it is rare to see a bodybuilder with the true, brute strength that it takes to be an athlete. I have seen powerlifters who are strong as hell, not be able to throw a shot put worth a damn. It's because they train their body's to be slow and non-explosive. As a shot putter you need to be explosive!


I am not a big believer in training anything that can be considered long distance and slow moving. I feel that it defeats the purpose of attaining utmost explosiveness as an athlete. You train your body to be explosive, but then you break down all that you've worked for to take a mile or two mile run? I find that silly.


You may question, "If you are telling me that running one, two or even more miles is silly, then how do I become enduranced for my sport?" It's simple. Running long and slow distances is not the only way to achieve muscular endurance. Have you ever done sprints and then you were gasping for air? Yea, that would be endurance. Those sprints will keep you fast and explosive, at the same time as increasing your endurance. Talk about killing two birds with one stone. Do beware though, doing these sprints will take a little more effort and stronger mentality. I don't know about you, but when I take a really slow run, I become extremely bored; really, really fast. You might be brutally exhausted after doing the sprints, but at least you won't fall into a pit of never-ending boredom. If prevention of boredom, increases in endurance, and increases in explosiveness are not enough to convince you, let me add that you will also be saving some time. It can take you anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes to run 2 miles. It may only take you 10 to 15 minutes for a good, explosive, muscular endurance workout. Time is a valuable thing!


Sprints are not the only workouts you can do either. You can do anything that is explosive! Make a circuit if you want too. Circuits can be a real good way to train, and have some fun all at the same time. You can flip tires, pull sleds, and jump everyway that you can think of. They are all explosive, and will build up your endurance mightily if you do it for an extended period of time.


Let's say you were on a basketball team, and your team didn't do any conditioning what-so-ever. You started the season, had your first game and your whole team was gasping for air. Each player had to be subbed in for every so often. You end up losing the game. You actually end up losing a lot of games. However, you start to get to the end of the season and you notice that your endurance is almost in tip-top shape. How can this be? We never did any conditioning work... The answer to this question is that playing basketball was actually your conditioning. There is nothing slow about basketball. It is one of the most explosive sports that you can play. Okay so, playing basketball is explosive and it is a type of conditioning? Get outta here! I hope you see where I am going with this. I am not telling you in order to increase your muscular endurance you need to play full court, 5-on-5 basketball. What I am telling you is that you can work on your muscular endurance by doing explosive activities for a certain period of time. As I said earlier, you can kill two birds with one stone; maintain your explosiveness, at the same time as increasing your muscular endurance.


I believe I have proved my point as to why I do not believe in doing anything slow and long distance.

Life: My Philosophy

One's life is nothing more than a timeline. I say timeline, but I don't mean the timeline on Facebook. Just want to clear that up first. The timeline of your life is a little more true. It's not something that you can fake or make look a certain way to leave an impression. Throughout your life, you have these periods of time that you venture through. You are born, you start school, you graduate from different levels of school, you're involved in sports, you go through puberty, you get your first job, you graduate from high school, you choose the college that you want to attend, you graduate from college, you start your career, you decide to start a family, etc ... all the way up until the day that you die. You are who you are.


As each period of time comes and goes, you open a door to a new period of your life, and close the door on another. The way I look at life, is that when I am opening a new door to my life, I don't want to be sitting there with any regrets of something that I did or did not do. I don't want to be saying to myself, "well, I wish I would have done things differently. I wish I would have taken available opportunities when they were there." Why do people think these things when they get ready to walk through a new door to their life? It's because they don't live. They don't live every day with a purpose. They don't attack what it is that they desire most. They see something they want, whether it be something physical or a dream, and they just sit back and hope that it comes to them. It is so easy to sit down on your ass, and watch your life flash before your eyes. Living an aggressive life takes effort. You cannot live your life expecting everything to just happen for you, because it will never happen. You have to live life aggressively and go get it. Go get what you desire most; attain your wildest dreams. Make it happen! Do not let it happen, but make it happen! In the end, your life is what you make of it. It doesn't matter how old you are either. It is never too late to start living the life that you want; the life that you desire most.


When I finish up my college throwing career, I don't want to look back and realize that I could have done more. I don't want to look back and see my life flash before my eyes. In fact, I won't let it happen. I have a mindset of making what I want, mine. Under no costs, will I let the things that I want most in my life slip out of my reach. The same holds true to any period of my life that I open. I don't want to open the door to starting a family, wishing I would have done more. Regretting that I didn't achieve what I wanted to achieve. Most importantly, I don't want to be in my death bed and wishing that I would have done things differently. Wishing that I would have went sky diving, bungee jumping or spending more time with my family, for example. You only have one life... why not make the most of it.


What's it going to be?

Training: Where to go?

Last night, I was doing a lot of thinking. While I was thinking, I decided to take a gander at the nearby training centers around my area. As an athlete, I have noticed that there is not really all that much to choose from as far as training centers are concerned. There are plenty of gyms in the area. However, the majority of these gyms either have a strong focus in powerlifting or they are "skinny gyms" (as I like to call them). My intent here is not to knock those who take part in either type of gym that is, if your passion matches up with the results that you will receive at these gyms.

 
Let's take a look at both types of gyms...


We'll go in order here and start with the gyms that focus on powerlifting first. These gyms are fantastic if your goals involve competing as a powerlifter. However, if you are an athlete whose goals resemble getting the most out of your athletic ability, then these powerlifting gyms are not what you want. As a powerlifter, you want to be able to move as much weight in the big 3 lifts that you can, no matter what path it takes to get there. These big 3 lifts include the bench, the squat, and the deadlift. Don't get me wrong, these people are real strong, but it is my belief that the strength that they maintain is not "true strength." Let me expand further on this thought.

 
Dan John likes to use the idea of Dads having "Dad strength." In more cases than not, no matter how much you lift, it always seems that your Dad has an edge on you in the strength department. This guy hasn't picked up a weight in like 20 years, yet he has no problem lifting that car engine up out of the vehicle. How can this happen? I'll tell you how... manual labor. Digging holes, moving rocks, cutting down trees and stacking them, carrying 80 pound pipes, cutting logs with an axe, hammering stakes in the ground, moving furniture, picking up tires, etc. You see big dudes doing this kind of stuff in strongman competitions. They are lifting atlas stones and carrying them for time, flipping logs end over end for time, pulling massive trucks for time, farmer walking a car for time, throwing kegs over a wall for time, etc. These are examples of "true strength." These people are straight up athletes! Put them in any sport and I guarantee you they can hold their own. You cannot take any ole' powerlifter or bodybuilder, and have them win a strongman competition, or compete in an athletic sport for that matter.


The athletic key in strongman competitions is that they move heavy stuff for time. Through doing this, you are exerting maximal force throughout your whole body. Is that not what you want to do as an athlete? You want your whole body working in congruency. This includes your muscles, joints, and even neural functioning. Most people forget about the importance of neural functioning as an athlete. When your focus is bench, squat, and deadlift, your body doesn't know how to react to anything other than bench, squat, and deadlift. In other words, your body cannot work in congruency; your body cannot work as one unit. By doing plyometrics, flexibility, speed work, olympic lifting, strongman training, bodyweight training, and powerlifting your body gets a little bit of everything. Your body is able to handle any situation that you put it through, due to training a variety of ways.


Let's move onto the second type of gym; the "skinny gym" or "bodybuilder's gym" ...


Again, I want to remind you that I am not knocking these gyms or the people who attend them, that is if the result that they are getting is what they truly want to get. It is not in the athlete's desire to attend these gyms. Why? Well because everything that takes place in these gyms are slow and drawn out. As an athlete, you want to be fast and explosive. These "skinny gyms" that I am talking about are filled with mostly machines, ellipticals, and maybe a rack of dumbbells. These gyms most likely have an insane number of rules including:

• do not use chalk
  

• do not make any loud noises
  

• do not drop weights
  

• no loud music
  

• please, do not sweat on the equipment, because then I have to clean it!
  

Do you catch my drift? You cannot attend these gyms as an athlete and expect to get athletic results. You may look good in the mirror, but if you try to exert yourself you will probably get banned. They would almost be doing you a favor by kicking you out. Anyway, my point is that these "skinny gyms" are not cut out for athletes. Isolation movements and aerobic exercise is not going to help you reach your full potential as an athlete.


As you can see, there are "slim pickins" when it comes to training gyms for athletes in our area. If you are looking for one in the area, you're almost better off looking for ways to train at home. You can make yourself a sandbag, and mimic lifts that you do with barbells... squats, presses, cleans, carries for distance, etc. Find a place to pick up a big tractor tire... flip it, carry it, move it! Get a rope and pull the tire. Find a big rock and carry it for distance. Use the rock the same way you would a barbell or sandbag. Throw the rock. Find a tree and do pull-ups, chin-ups, leg raises, etc. Do sprints and jumps. Jump for distance, jump for height, continuously jump, jump laterally, jump over stuff, jump rope, etc. Do this stuff enough to push yourself to a point where you are really exerting yourself. Push yourself mentally, as well as physically.


A lot of times athletes get so caught up with not having any place to train that they forget that they have a pot of gold in their back yard. Just get out there and do it! Do not question it and talk about the Jones' having all of this workout equipment. The truth is, THEY PROBABLY DON'T EVEN USE IT! The key is to just do it.


Tim Tebow has this quote saying, "somewhere he is out there, training while I am not. One day when we meet, he will win." If you read Tebow's book, he talks about how he lived on a farm growing up. He was always doing that manual labor that you would expect a farmer to do. This stuff got him big and strong. He just did it! He just picked up that bale of hay and moved it. Obviously, there was a lot more to his success than that, but it created a foundation for him. He is a phenomenal athlete, and it wasn't just natural ability. It involved hard work and commitment.
As an athlete, you need to stop worrying about where you should go to train, and just do the work! Hard work and commitment... sounds like the key to success!


Let's Make It Happen!

Training/Throwing: There's More To It!

There was a time in my life where I played all of the normal sports such as football, basketball and baseball. In 7th grade, I came down with a really bad case of lymes disease in my spinal cord, and it stopped me dead in my tracks. Damn ticks!... Anyway, the lymes disease basically had me bed-ridden for months on end. I actually missed the majority of the school year because of it. Since I was no longer able to play the sports that I grew up and loved playing as a youngster, I was never really introduced to the whole theory of lifting and training that most high school athletes encounter.


In some sports such as football, you don't really have any other choice but to lift. Football players are taught that lifting is good and is actually essential in order to excel as an athlete. Rightly so! When I was in high school, I noticed that the large majority of throwers that I competed against played either football, basketball, or both. These athletes had a good idea of how to lift. It was almost in their nature to lift. It was obvious that they had a good grasp on lifting just by looking at them. You could see it in their muscle mass and size.

 
In high school, I had a "no lift/no train" mindset. The only lifting I ever did was overhead squats (Dan John's theory), dumbbell cheat curls (Al Oerter theory), dumbbell tricep extensions (without triceps you cannot throw), and every once in a while I would bench (honestly, who didn't bench?). I never did any other lift because I simply didn't know how. I thought that the only thing that truly mattered was technique.


Here is where this no lift/no train mindset came from:

 
I started competing in track meets, and I noticed that everybody was double my size. Unfortunately, their technique was horrendous. I started throwing further than a lot of these people, and so I was convinced that technique was the key. However, although technique is extremely important as a thrower, it is not everything. Without lifting, and without training, you cannot reach the highest levels of throwing that you are capable of. It is a pretty simple concept; as a thrower, you must lift!


I have heard stories of a high school coach in Pennsylvania, who doesn't even let their throwers pick up an implement until they have two years of lifting under their belt. My intent is not to agree or disagree with his method, but to give an example of how important lifting is as a thrower. This coach knows how important lifting is to the overall make up of a thrower. You cannot have a "no lift/no train" mindset and expect to achieve greatness. Unless of course, you are blessed with a inhumane natural ability to throw. Even so, the vast (and by vast, I mean VAST!) majority  of people reading this do not have these types of natural abilities. Even more so, if you were one of the really (and by really, I mean REALLY!) lucky ones with this natural ability, you would not be living up to your potential. You would be greatly underachieving. You would be basing your performance off of your opponent's performance.  As I said in my previous post, this type of action is a no-no!

 
Nuggets to take away:

• Although technique is important, it is not everything.
  

• Lifting/training is essential to a thrower.
  

• You need to have a good balance between learning the technique of throwing and getting stronger, more explosive, and athletic through lifting/training.
  

• ... Stay away from ticks!
  

Thanks for reading! Until next time, see ya!

Life/Throwing: Satisfied? I hope not.

Have you ever won anything? Whether it be as a team, or individually? I am sure you have won at least one thing in your life. It doesn't have to be magnificent such as a championship. It could be something as simple as winning a game. The majority of the people reading this have won before, and therefore know what it feels like to win. Winning feels good... Right? Winning is something you should be proud of... Right? It should make you feel happy... Right? However... NEVER, ever, EVER, should you EVER be satisfied with winning. At least this is my philosophy, and I will explain where I am coming from.

In my mind, the only true win involves accomplishing one's full potential. Have you accomplished your full potential in the sport that you have a passion for? ... I am going to answer this question for you... No you haven't.


Reaching one's full potential in my mind is something that I believe to be impossible. Yes, I said it. The word impossible. The one word that as an athlete, and as a person, should be thrown out of the human vocabulary. I believe that reaching one's full potential is the only thing in an individual's life that is actually impossible (except for a few laws of nature).


Let me indulge further into this impossible concept. You might say, "Why is it impossible to reach my full potential?" Here is the reason. As a human being, up until the day that you die, you have the ability to become better. If you were to reach your full potential, that pretty much means you have no room for improvement. My belief is that there is always room for improvement. Therefore, it is impossible to reach one's full potential.


Then you might say, "Well what about aging? I know as a thrower, eventually my muscle mass will start to deteriorate. Naturally, I will not be able to throw as far." ...You are missing the whole point! There is more to reaching your full potential than throwing a personal record. It is about getting the most out of what you are given. Your right though, naturally your body will start to go downhill with age, but that doesn't mean you stop trying to be the best that you can possibly be! If anything, it should mean that you try harder. Just take a gander at Dan John!


You're probably wondering to yourself, "well, if reaching my full potential is impossible, what is the point in trying?" The answer to this question is that the attempt to reach your full potential is a way to live. Actually, it is the ONLY way to live. Let me put it this way... If you are living a life that does not include making every last attempt to reach your full potential, you are not truly living. Period. End of story. You are merely a tree stump waiting to deteriorate. It is something that will take a good long while, but before you know it your gone. POOF! Then your sitting there wondering what the hell happened to your life. Do not let this happen to you.


Pretty blunt, right? ... Good.


Speaking of impossible... The name of this whole shah-bang I got going here, "Defying Gravity," is also an impossible concept. No matter how hard you try, gravity will always overcome. Gravity will always win. Sucks, huh? But it is the fight to continuously try to defy gravity that will in the end prevail you to being the best that you can be. It will unleash you from the life of underachieving into a new world of achieving greatness. This is exactly the meaning of attempting to reach your full potential, it gives you a reason to fight day in and day out. Although you will never reach it, you will always have something to fight for. It's like adrenaline, the fight-or-flight response. Pretty simple, you're either in or you're out. What's it going to be?


Here's the deal. Winning involves beating an opponent. Your opponent could be really, really good; or your opponent could be really, really bad. Either way, if you are basing your satisfaction off of a win, you are actually basing your satisfaction on the skill level of your opponent. You are basing your LIFE off of other people's lives! This is a problem people! Let's say your opponent is really, really bad. You then beat your opponent, and you are satisfied with the win. What more do you have to live for after this? Even so, we could say that your opponent is really, really good. You then beat your opponent. Who says that your performance couldn't be better? It is my belief that as a person, you can always continue to get better one way or another.

I also believe that never should you ever compare yourself to other people. I know back in high school everybody wanted to be normal, myself included. If you are in high school, I am sure you are going through this same kind of thing. The truth is that those who are normal never do anything with their lives. Obviously they do something, but it is not extraordinary. From my viewpoint, if you don't have the mindset of wanting to do something extraordinary, then what's the point? I don't know. We'll leave that topic for another time. Anyway, why would you want to be normal? Live life to be different! Stop trying to fit in with the crew. I have mentioned this in one of my previous posts that only 5% of the world's population is successful. That leaves 95% of the world's population that are unsuccessful. Guess what? You can call those 95% the crew. What will it be? Do you want to be different or do you want to be part of the crew? It's your decision.


My goal in writing this little rant is to try to prevent you from falling victim to becoming satisfied with winning against an opponent. Unfortunately, I see this situation happen in more cases than I would like to see it. I challenge you to always strive to be the best that you can be. Live your life in a way that you are always trying to reach your full potential. It's actually magnificent how many connections you can make with life and throwing. You can actually make these same connections with life and any other sport for that matter. Anyway, be different. Being part of the crew is a waste of your time and your life. You only have one life, so make it count!


As always, I am open to any thoughts and opinions that you may have. Later!

Training/Throwing: Listen!

It is truly amazing how athletes, and anyone involved in fitness for that matter, get so caught up in only training areas that give you those visible results. As a thrower, this so happens to be a HUGE problem. You hear all of these promotions including "call now and get six-pack abs in four weeks," or "order now, and see your biceps and chest blow up ten times larger." The way the fitness world attacks consumers, is simply idiotic. It really is sad, because so many of these fitness gurus do not care. All they care about is the money in their back pocket. Many people forget how important the tricep and back muscles are when throwing (I am not even going to get started on the legs). Why work the triceps, when you can do a million bicep curls and flash those so-called "guns" off at the beach? You laugh, but this concept is so true.


Many people, including myself, put tricep extensions and dumbbell rows on the back burner simply because you do not see those visible results. Now, don't get me wrong. I am not the type of person who sits in the gym and attempts to find every muscle that I can possibly isolate. I am a big believer in performing lifts that get the whole body involved, and that test your mind. Let's be honest, anyone can do tricep extensions or dumbbell rows. You actually have to maintain a passion to lift in order to do whole body lifts. But that is not my point. The point is that there are two areas that are highly overlooked; triceps and back.


Okay. Let's get to where your back/shoulders come into play as a thrower. The continuous throwing motion that a thrower frequently endures throughout the season will cause the shoulders to almost slouch inward. You can see this pattern in the majority of throwers. The constant contraction of the chest area and extension of the back area is what causes this inward slouch. Ideally, you would want an equal stretch between the two muscles. This is why any kind of rows are so important as a supplemental exercise in any throwers workout. Rows allow the muscles to get back to a normal anatomical position. You want to counteract the contraction of the chest area when throwing, with the contraction of the back area when doing rows.


The triceps are a whole different story altogether. The amount of force that the triceps have to go through when throwing the shot put or discus is tremendous. It is actually amazing that our bodies are able to handle all the stress caused by throwing. If you are not aware, I ran into an injury this season which involves that wonderful little beast called tendonitis. It is one of those things that just sticks around and never wants to go away. I have been dealing with it for a little over 5 months now, and it has kept me from throwing over that period of time. Here's the deal. I was talking about how it is amazing that our bodies are able to handle the stress and the force that is put on it with throwing. Just like anything else though, our bodies have a threshold. A threshold where it can only take so much microscopic tearing until injury starts to set in and symptoms start to occur. As you throw over and over and over again, your arm starts to break down. It does heal, but it heals as scar tissue. This scar tissue is much weaker, and is layed in a scattered, unorganized fashion. Eventually this scar tissue builds up, and the muscle becomes weaker; weak to the point where it cannot be used anymore. So how do you fix this? Well, you need to break up this scar tissue, and allow it to re-lay in an organized fashion to form new tissue. This can be done through massage therapy.


The real question is, how do you prevent an injury like this from happening? Basically, it requires the right training and proper precaution. Quality over quantity. I am a HUGE believer in repetition when it comes to learning the rotational technique in throwing. I have always been one to throw countless number of throws per day, day in and day out. I have never dealt with any problems from this method, until this year. Unfortunately, my arm reached a threshold of how much stress it could take. As a thrower, I am still a HUGE believer in repetition. I think repetition is key, but I think there are other ways of getting that repetition. Instead of using a discus, throw a little ball into the cage. Not only will it save you some stress on your arm, but you will be able to get even more repetition since you do not have to chase the implements. Instead of using a shot put, maybe use a softball and throw it into a wall. I have found that this also saves the arm a lot of stress. Also, sometimes when you are throwing and you have an actual implement in the hand, you tend to disregard the technique and key in on how far the implement is going. When using a softball or just a ball, it doesn't matter how far it goes. It allows you to focus solely on the technique. This is probably my favorite perk of throwing these alternative implements. Smart training, rather than dumb training. Let's do it!


One last very important concept on preventing these overuse injuries, is that you have to learn how to listen to your body. When the tendonitis slowly started to build, I could feel quite a bit of discomfort. However, this discomfort was minor enough that it allowed me to continue throwing. Due to my stubbornness, the discomfort that I was feeling was not enough to make me stop doing the one thing that I loved to do. Slowly enough, my arm started to get weaker. I started to get greatly irritated because the distance continued to decrease. This only made me want to throw more. My body was telling me to stop, but my mind told me to suck it up and keep going. The moral of the story is that you have to listen to your body and trust what it tells you. It could save you months of agitation. TRUST ME! I know.


My brother is actually suffering from the same tendonitis issue right now. Fortunately, he caught it before it reached my level of not being able to do anything. He is going through that same mind-body battle that I went through. His body is telling him he needs to stop, but his mind is telling him to suck it up and throw. Luckily, through my experience, I can help guide him to take the path that I wish I would have taken. I hope as you are reading this, my experience has also helped you find the right path. Listen to your body! Overuse injuries are no joke!


Comments? Questions? Hit me up!

DGTT: Summer Ending Concerns

I have been hearing concerns regarding what is going to happen when I go back to college in the Fall.


First of all, I would like everyone to know that my goal is to provide the basic information needed in order to succeed in the rotational technique. This basic information is exactly what most high school throwers are missing. However, with this knowledge that I provide to you, it will be sufficient enough to help you find the trail of success in throwing throughout the school year and track season. I will also provide you with key details that will help you improve personally as a thrower, based on your strengths and weaknesses as an athlete. I would like to remind you that when I am away, I will always be open to video analysis to help keep you on track.


Those who want to continue receiving one-on-one guidance, can always call up coach Glenn Thompson in Carlisle and see if he has any space for you. It would be an excellent opportunity for anyone to receive coaching services from him. He will offer a different perspective, and maybe help piece together some loose ties. However, I know coach Glenn has many people coming to him for help, so there is a possibility that he may not have room for you. Either way, the pieces that I provide to you will help you dramatically improve as a thrower, and will be sufficient enough to allow you to be successful.


As a college student, I also have long holiday/school breaks such as winter and spring break. If needed, we could always meet up during that time span.


One final reminder; the throwing services provided during this summer, will also be provided next summer. Eventually, I would like to open a business that incorporates strength training for all athletes in the area, but specializing in throwers. If all works out as planned, my services will be provided for years and years to come!


Any further questions? Be sure to drop me a message! I hope this has cleared up any concerns that you may have had.

DGTT: Breaking Through the Fog

If you do not know, my whole mindset for starting "Defying Gravity Thrower's Training" is so that I can live my passion. Which involves two different aspects: throwing and helping the younger generation succeed.


Today I was at the District XI Track & Field meet. As I was watching the AAA men's shot put, I noticed only one person used the rotational technique. Most know him as Bryan Pearson. I know him as my brother. Just like myself, Bryan has been blessed with sources of information and coaching on the rotational technique of which most High School throwers have unfortunately not received. What is most unfortunate, is that the rotational technique (varying by opinion) has much greater benefits than does the glide technique. To back this statement up, I have heard both Glenn Thompson and John Godina describe the rotation as being superior to the glide. With which, I agree with their assessments.


Now, it is not the athlete's fault that they do not have the same guidance that Bryan and myself have had over the years; nor, is it the coach's fault. Really, it is nobody's fault. The fact of the matter is that the information on the rotational technique does not exactly exist in "our neck of the woods." This reason is the exact reason as to why I am putting myself out there. I want to share my passion for throwing to an area that is trying to get out of a determinant fog, if you will. I hope that one day the passion that I have for throwing, will eventually become contagious to this area. Obviously, in order to make this happen, I need to find self-motivated throwers. Now, this is where you come in... help make this happen by spreading the word!


Peace!


...Let's Make It Happen!

DGTT: Contract

I _______________________________, hereby agree to the following terms of contract. Defying Gravity Thrower’s Training is not responsible for any terms that may be broken, and I am wholly responsible for any broken terms that may or may not take place.

·       Defying Gravity Thrower’s Training strongly recommends arriving 15 minutes prior to your scheduled session. As the athlete, I understand that my scheduled session does not include the warm up period. If I must warm up during my allocated time slot, I understand that this time will not be added onto the end of the session.

·         As the athlete, I understand that all payments are due before the session takes place. I also understand that the only payment transactions accepted will be due in cash.

·         As the athlete, I agree that I do have the money to pay for the services provided.

·         As the athlete, I understand that any cancelations are expected with a minimum of 1 hour in advance of my session (preferably 24 hours in advance). I am in agreement that failing to do so will result in a charged session, and that the payment will be handed over before any other session takes place.

·         As the athlete, I understand that I am expected to be self-motivated and maintain a high quality of listening capabilities. I also agree to present myself respectfully, and be accountable for any actions of disrespect that may or may not take place. I am in complete agreement that any actions of disrespect or lack of motivation, can lead to a termination of service.

·         Most importantly, Greg Pearson personally wants to remind you that although these terms of contract are very straight forward, he is not a military lieutenant. These terms of contract are only to prevent any misunderstandings that may or may not occur. Let’s make it happen!

·         As the athlete, I understand the previous statement.

Signature of the Athlete: ______________________________________              

Date: ______________

(If under the age of 18)

Signature of the Parent: _______________________________________ 

Date: ______________

Life/Training: Shorts and a T

There is this expression that I continually keep hearing. I'll let you in on it soon, but first I am going to explain how its meaning has become a part of me.


If you know me personally at all, you know that I am a short and tee-shirt kind of guy, regardless of the weather. I wear shorts and a tee-shirt throughout the whole winter season, and I always get looks of "what the hell is wrong with this kid, it is freezing outside." I got into this whole shorts and tee-shirt phase for a couple of different reasons. One, buying shorts and a tee-shirt is so much cheaper than buying jeans and button-down shirt. Two, I think wearing shorts and a tee-shirt is the mother of all comfortable clothes. I have always been all about being comfortable!


As United States citizens, we have grown up in a land that allows us to be comfortable all of the time. For most of us, there never really is a struggle to find food. All you have to do is walk yourself to the nearest closet and find something to eat. In the summer seasons, we don't have to worry about becoming too hot because we have this wonderful invention called air conditioning! Same with the winter; we never have to worry about being too cold because we have sources of heat. We thrive on being comfortable! I think this is one of the biggest reasons why the United States has this huge obesity scare. I know you all know what I am talking about, because they talk about it on your local news just about every day. It is because we were raised in an age where we do not have to exert ourselves in order to survive. We don't know how to exert ourselves to an area of discomfort, and it is because we do not need to. With training, I think it is an absolute must to be able to exert yourself to an area of discomfort. If you don't, you will never progress. You will never reach your full potential.


WE NEED TO LEARN TO BE COMFORTABLE BEING UNCOMFORTABLE! It is imperative for the success of an athlete. I think this holds true to life as well. Only 5% of the U.S. population can be considered as successful. That leaves 95% of the rest of the population who are unsuccessful. I think this can be accredited to the fact that we are so comfortable that we have no need to continually progress. We go to work every day in a nice cozy job working on a computer, and get paid enough to survive. There is no will to be the best that an individual can possibly be. There have been a lot of stories about Navy Seals who have finished their service and became millionaires, because they have mastered the ability to be comfortable being uncomfortable.


The reason why I wear shorts and a tee-shirt during the freezing cold weather is not only because I find the clothing comfortable or that I am saving money. It is because I am trying to push my body to an area of discomfort. I feel that it will help me overcome a lot of different obstacles in my life. I have this mindset that has abruptly came into my life, where everything I do, I try to push myself to a level of discomfort. In training, if I start to feel uncomfortable, I keep going! I am trying to push myself to success and reach a new personal level of potential.


Let's make it happen!


Learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable and watch as your life does a complete 180.


Be sure to let me know what you think. Would be ecstatic to hear your thoughts! Also, check out the video that I added to the page. This man knows what it means to be comfortable being uncomfortable.

Training/Throwing: The Perfect Workout

I was reading an article today, written by the man of strength training himself (Zach Even-Esh), describing how weightlifters these days are always reading up and looking for the perfect workout. I know I happen to fall into this category too every once in a while.


Newsflash! There is no such thing as a perfect workout.


Stop worrying about what you keep reading in all those ridiculous muscle magazines. The bottom-line is that you need to get out there and do the work.


There is powerlifting, olympic lifting, bodyweight lifting, strongman training, etc! Which one will work the best? Who cares!


The key is to mix it up, because they are all important. One way or another, these variations of lifting are all significant to your growth as an athlete and as a thrower.


Powerlifting and strongman training can be useful for getting you as strong as an ox, olympic lifting can be used for increasing one's athleticism, and bodyweight training can be used for strength gains as well as stability.


As a thrower, all of these categories are important. Stop wasting your time reading, get out there and just do it!


Drop a comment. Feel free to discuss your thoughts on the topic!

DGTT: Contact Info

You can contact Greg Pearson by E-mail and/or by Phone if you have any questions...

• Phone: (570) 369-9787
• E-mail: gp0161@ship.edu

Also, if you have not yet liked Defying Gravity Thrower's Training on Facebook, you can click on the following link and show your support!

• http://www.facebook.com/DgtShotDiscLvMp

DGTT: Expectations

What do I have to offer?

• 2 Years finished with my Undergraduate Degree at Shippensburg University
  • Major – Exercise Science
  • Minor – Coaching, Business
• I have been involved in throwing for about 7 years. Current thrower at Shippensburg University.
• Throughout this time, I have been to a total of 4 camps and clinics.
  • East Stroudsburg University Throws Camp (1 year)
  • Shippensburg University Throws Camp (1 year), Counselor/Coach (1 year)
  • Cocalico High School Throws Camp (3 years)
  • John Powell Camp in Ohio (1 year)
• I have been to John Godina’s Coaches Certification, where I was certified to coach at his camps and clinics around the nation.
• I am a follower of throws coach Matt Ellis (Rhode Island) and strength trainer Zach Even-Esh (New Jersey)
• I have worked with Joey Kovacs who is the region record holder in the discus (184’) and shot put (65’), and current thrower at Penn State University. I have had the pleasure to be coached in high school by his mother; coach Joanna Kovacs, now throws coach at Moravian University.
• Throughout the college year, I spend 2 days every week with one of the, if not the best throws coach in Pennsylvania, coach Glenn Thompson.
• Most importantly, I have this fire burning inside me wanting to coach high school athletes who are looking to be the best throwers they can possibly be (potential). This fire burning inside me is what I like to call passion. I have significant passion for throwing, and an even bigger passion helping high school athletes succeed.

What am I looking for?

• I am looking for high school athletes who have a strong passion for throwing, but need hard-found guidance on learning the technique.
• Athletes who are committed and self-motivated.
• Athletes who are accountable for their actions.
• Athletes who want to get the most out of their life, and their throwing career.
• Basically, if you are willing to put in the work, I am willing to work with you sharing the knowledge and experience I have gathered over the years.

What is the cost?

• FREE – The first session will be free, so that the athlete/parent/coach can see what it is I have to offer.
• Any following session will cost $15.00 per hour session.

When are the sessions?

• Weekends

Where are the sessions?

• East Stroudsburg University (200 Prospect Street, East Stroudsburg, PA)
• Lafayette University - Metzgar Athletic Complex (3412 Sullivan Trail, Easton, PA)

Any other questions, be sure to contact Greg by either e-mail, phone, or leave a message below.

DGTT: What Glenn Thompson has to say...

"I have the utmost respect for Greg's technical knowledge, perspectives and teaching ability. So much so that I often asked him this year to work with SHIP athletes on the side who were struggling with aspects of their technique. He always got results, sometimes where I struggled to convey concepts."

"I've been blessed to work with exceptional high school athletes like Jeremy Silverman, Ryan Whiting, Joe Kovacs and more recently Kyle Long and Kyle Felpel. Greg understands my teaching methods as well as anyone I know. He also has his own thoughts and opinions on technique and training. I would trust Greg to coach my own son or daughter and have full confidence he would maximize their abilities. I can offer no stronger endorsement."


As I a little side note, I would like to send a big thank you to coach Glenn and all of his support!

DGTT: Benefits

As I was progressing as a thrower throughout high school, I really had no true guidance with the rotational technique. That is until a new coach came to my high school during my junior season. Her name was coach Joanna Kovacs. She really was one of the main reasons I was able to reach a level that allowed me to get accepted into a Division II program. However, I knew a lot of other throwers in the area were not as fortunate as I was. Yet, the level that I was able to reach was not particularly what I had dreamt of. I mean, who would not want to get a full ride scholarship to a Division I school such as Penn State, University of Virginia, or Arizona State, to name a few? These experiences that I have endured throughout my life is what inspired me to want to give back to an area that I feel is losing its passion for throwing. Your benefit in trusting in me, is that you will receive guidance that most throwers are not able to find. This guidance will help you create your own path to success in life and in throwing.

DGTT: Mission Statement

To allow high school track & field athletes of the area the opportunity to find guidance regarding the rotational technique of the shot put and discus.

To support the rise of competition in the Lehigh Valley/Mount Pocono region of the state in the shot put and discus events.