Who's on Second?

So here I go, Here I go, Here I go Again. Hope my First blog didn't cut too deep or make any new enemies. On to the Next. 

Quote of the week:

"Get to know Jesus, he will keep you safe when 95mph baseballs hit you in the face."

 -Kristin Humber on Facebook reacting to her husband (my friend/athlete) Philip Humber getting laid out by a line drive to the head while pitching to the Cleveland Indians. 

No doubt get to know Jesus. Here is a fact for you. That is the second time Philip has been hit in the head in 2 years.... unscathed each time. He had a greater chance of getting hit by lightning. YO!

More ON Baseball:

First of all congrats to my little men that made it to a game from World Series Champions. Spitzer, Bandel, Dorsey, Reed and co. It was beautiful to see a team from East Texas beat teams like Italy. 

These kids and their parents are certainly the exception to the rant I am about to start...

 

Little league baseball is ruining America. These kids need not be treated like stars when they are 8-14. Truth is even the best have a long way to go. These kids are way too young to play that much baseball. Want to look at some research? The numbers are staggering when you look at the amount of players that play in the Little League World Series and then never play High School(varsity), College, and pro. I think it goes deeper than that. Here are the reasons..

1. They will never hit that psychological high again. Not in high school and maybe never even in college. It's like a child TV star. It usually doesn't work out.
2. Kids practice way too much baseball and play entirely too many games in the course of a year. They need 6 months off of baseball. According to Dr. Andrews (World Renown Surgeon for Sports injuries)kids that play year round improve their chances of shoulder and elbow surgery by over 35%. Check out his new S.T.O.P program. It will frighten you if you have young kids specializing in baseball too young. 
3. When you play on that kind of level.. Its not fun. Its high pressure. The kids need to have fun. Things get serious in High School ready or not.
4. Not all.. but some parents are crazy. You know the one. The guy that played minor league baseball for like 7 minutes and knows what to do to make sure his son really makes it. He is certain his kid won't make the mistakes he did because he will fix them. That guy is ruining his kid and it's hard to watch.
5. Kids start hating baseball and most of them don't even play of a varsity level. Too much too soon.

For what it's worth that's my rant. I feel kids should do sports that promote general athletic development until the 7th grade at minimum. Sports such as: gymnastics, martial arts, track and field, soccer, swimming, touch rugby(you run, kick, pass, pursue). Develop team work ability by volunteering at shelters or church activities. Don't get me started on Pee Wee football. 98% of the time its a bad deal. I know adults that still are not right because of what pee wee football made them believe about them self.

Conan is a Barbarian...

Before I go too deep in this movie review I feel like the bigger story is being missed. Micheal Bolton has proven that HGH and joining up with Satan is a pretty good combination for becoming Conan the Barbarian.

   

In all fairness I knew what I was getting into with this one. I did not, however, expect to see a C section performed on the battlefield in the first 5 minutes of the movie. Kudos to the young actor that plays Conan as a kid.. he was awesome. More blood/gore than any movie I have seen lately. Love the Conan dialogue and attitude it just didn't stack up with 300, Braveheart, Troy, Gladiator. Conan the Barbarian gets a C plus.

On that note I leave you the best fight scene between two warriors of this era. Hector Vs Achillies

TV New Seasons are coming.

 I am deeply saddened that the acclaimed Friday Night Lights TV Series has come to an end. No more Riggins or Coach Taylor. That was the best directed TV series to date. If you have the time I suggest getting all the seasons and checking it out. Great perspective on a coaches life in Texas. I will admit it has a soft spot with me.. Yours Truly plays in the final episode of season 1. 

All that said a new show has taken the top spot as TV Best. Justified. Season 1 & 2 were loaded with crooks turned preachers, law men breaking laws, and bold Kentucky women. Here is one of my favorite clips of villian Boyd Crowder. 

Fashion Tip of the week:

Can't have facial hair at work? Stick it to the man with this mustache tie clip.

 Two For the Road:
Almost through august and look how good you did. These folks didn't fair so well. Enjoy the best fails of August 2011. I do not support the accident language.

"Look at what we have here" Self defense bible: Don't take this too seriously.

Until next week: Love Jesus, take care of your woman, and watch some rugby.

Bobby Stroupe

First Blood

So here I go into the world of Blogging. I have undoubtedly bagged on this national pass time of interweb expressionisms. My views have suddenly changed. I have started to realize that I wear a lot of hats in this world and I have become aware that maybe I present myself differently at times. In some settings friends think I'm a joker that loves to keep things light and can't quit laughing. As a trainer I feel like some of my athletes may think I may have never laughed in my life and that I perch on a stump at night sharpening knives or something. Some acquaintances think I am Mr. Sports guy and I have to eat, drink, live it 24/7. If fact they feel the need to bring up awkward sports stories like that is the only way I can relate to a conversation with them. Apparently sometimes I have a scowl on my face that echos an unreasonable amount of intensity mixed with some kind of a mercenary vibe. Pretty sure that has gotten me off on the wrong foot with some people.  The truth about me is I am not a simple man.. I love research, sports, laughing, animals, family/friends, sarcastic humor, Jesus, and winning anything.

I need a way to connect all the people in my life that feel like they might know me. I need for everyone to be on the same page. I want to bring a little knowledge and humor to your week.. You Down?

What's in it for you: My purpose in this effort is to give training advice, laughs, and some useless facts you might like to throw at people. I will follow a fairly consistent format everyweek. I hope you enjoy!

•  What everyone is talking about.
  Football Season

This is the time of year that everyone gets excited about football. New possibilities for all football teams on all levels. Let the overreactions, surprises, and disappointment begin. Let me give you a couple of examples of what I'm talking about.

1. Tebow. So here is the deal. Heisman-Check, 2 National Championships-Check, Jesus-Check, Work ethic-Check. It looks ugly but he wins and he gets the most from his team. What gives? Quit hating this kid because you are going to have to eat crow sooner or later. Career Highlights by Jesus favorite player. Nice music too..
   
2. Texas A&M will disappoint you more than the movie Eat, Pray, Love. Have the Aggies ever delivered on hype? Texas A&M is the only team I have ever known that gets so much national respect but can't consistently beat anyone from any conference. Maybe drop a game to Arkansas State. Have an All American that gets worse.. again. Freshman always start and then get phased out. The Aggies have loyal fans but are not deserving of all the football respect. Mizzou, Kansas State beat them unmercifully ever chance they get. I grew up an Aggie fan and would love for them to be great. Bottom line.. they are not yet. They repeatedly miss on recruits in East Texas and they try to act like they are Texas Equal.. which they are not. They need to recruit kids that fit A&M. That is small town ball players that dream of being there. Be what you are and you are not Texas. Not even talking SEC.. that would be a tough transition but I know one recruit you would flip. Clip below is a not appropriate for kids but a pretty funny conversation between Aggie fan and Texas Tech fan.
   
   
   
   
3. REL football (Tyler TX) new era. Can't wait to see what Coach Huffstickler is going to do with REL. Huff is an ex All American Option QB that is one of the best defensive coaches in the state. He should shake things up a bit. I am so glad the Owens era is over. Let me make something clear: he and I were not friends. First interaction I had with him was in response to him calling me Martha Stewart and threatening kids from training a high level away from REL. He knows how I feel about him and I am aware that he doesn't send me a Christmas card either. I am pretty sure all the opposing football coaches are not as excited about his leaving as I am.  I bet it was fun to not have to scout an offense. Yeah Yeah he won a state championship. That is a big deal. He seemed to think he didn't need to get any better at his craft after that win. My feeling is that his supporting staff was pretty good and with the influx of D1 players compared to wins... I would say he did a poor job. Not knowing your players names and having the personality of a Brahma bull doesn't make you a favorite. Not to mention all the negative things I heard about Owens from college recruiters. Some said they refused to recruit Lee because of the way Owens acted. These kids deserve better than that and they will get it with Huff. I am sure Owens did great things for some kids and really coached well at times. I just never saw it. Good luck to Huff and Co. I will miss the quote in the paper after ever loss though.. "We are gonna get back to basics this week." Really because you can only run the stretch two directions right and left. haha
   
4. Last and Most Appropriate: DALLAS COWBOYS.
   They will disappoint you more than the Aggies and people all over the nation will throw fits of frustration every Sunday. See below.

Training Tip of the week: Stay Strong In-season.
There is a right and wrong way to train while your season in going on. You can overdo your training and hit a wall half way in or not do anything and become a portion of your self when you reported.. So what to do?

1. Fuel Up. Fuel the engine with the highest octane during racing season. Eat Right. Sleep. Drink water and get Electrolytes. A banana a day works well. remember hydration is not what you had today but your total diet from the last 10 days will effect your Hydration. Check it: Hydration can effect performance up to 25% without you even noticing. Think that late night Wednesday wont affect your game on Friday night. Wrong. Sleep, Eating, Drinking- all matter with Hydration.
2. Strength train. Reduce Volume (total workout reps). Train for stability in all joints. Keep your strength levels up. 2 times per week is a good practice if you hit every joint twice. Don't think it has to be light. It needs to push you. Short workouts.
3. Limit plyometrics but integrate once a week at minimum.
4. Do injury prevention training. We like to have our athletes do the "rehab circuit" with MFR, stretching, band work, and core.
   

 Two laughs for the Road

1. Think you have done something dumb this week. This should make you feel better.
   

   

   
   

   
   

2. Best Manager tirade Ever. Wish this guy was was with me next time I see a call blown.
   

Until nest week- Love Jesus, Press on, and laugh when life doesn't. 

Best.


Bobby Stroupe