Strength and Power Notes May 2010

Long-time friend and former technical director of Canadian Weightlifting, Richard Campion, has just come through his second hip replacement surgery in good form. He’s rehabbing for the next month or so, but promises to be back in the squat rack next January, when he and wife, Charlotte, spend their winter months here in Ormond Beach.

Here’s to his speedy recovery.

I stopped by the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches’ Association annual meeting in Orlando recently, mostly to visit the trade show. I picked up some gear from Bud Charniga and Todd Lyons of Dynamic Fitness. Newton Sports will soon feature an expanded selection of lifting equipment online.

I had hoped to see Jay Vollmer, of PowerBlock, at the same show, but we failed to connect. I did see their new PowerBell, a selectorized kettlebell, along the lines of PowerBlock dumbbells, and was impressed. Check them out here.

The recent weightlifting meet in Jacksonville provided me a good chance to capture video images of developing lifters. I plan to start featuring Dartfish video analysis on the Newton Sports home page in the very near future.

Next stop for me is the USA Weightlifting Level I Coaches’ Course, May 22-23, in Fort Vancouver, WA. I’ll have a report in next month’s column.

Got the word that Robert Brown (“Mr. Volleyball Strength & Conditioning”) (www.rbrownsports.com) cancelled his planned June 10-11 volleyball strength and conditioning workshop in Dallas. Robert had some speaker schedule conflicts and the turnout was not what he had expected.

Shortly I’ll be off to England to address the UKSCA on the use of explosive lifts by athletes of various sports. Check this link for more information: www.uksca.org.uk/uksca). I’ll have photos and a follow-up story next month.

I’ll cover three topics at the Dowd YMCA’s (Charlotte, NC) Expo 2010 on June 18-19. Explosive Cycling Power will show cyclists and triathletes the keys to training off-bike power, even in-season, using advanced exercises and plyometrics. Coaching the Power Clean for Athletic Performance gives trainers theoretical and hands-on experience learning this popular explosive lift. I’ll partner with Gina Josey on Research Review: Is It True? We’ll look at popular, perhaps faddish, training methods and/or equipment promoted so much in today’s fitness market, and what research has to say about it.

I hope to see plenty of my Strength Training for Cyclists friends and recently minted USAW coaches from the surrounding areas in the audience. For information and to register, contact Kim Kotz at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

A reminder: my two-week junior training camp is set for July 5-16, in Daytona Beach. Check here for more details.