An Interview with Patrick Ward

1. Patrick thank for your time. Could you give my readers your background, and how you came to be a strength and conditioning coach, and a manual therapist?

Thanks for having me Robbie. I was always into exercise and working out (started at age 13). I played sports through my youth and high school, and then into my early twenties I did some competing in olympic weightlifting as well. So, being a strength coach/trainer was sort of a natural progression. I didn’t like working in an office and doing the 9-5 thing. I would rather do things that I enjoy doing everyday, and this is it.

2. What, in your opinion, is the biggest problem you see within the fitness industry today?

I think the biggest problem is how easy it is to become a trainer. Anyone can get a certification from weekend course, and start training people. Naturally, this floods the industry with a lot of unqualified individuals who really have no interest in advancing their knowledge/education and progressing this field. So many are really lazy and don’t read anything or do anything to get better. I am really interested in gaining as much knowledge as I can, and I want to get better everyday. I wish more people were interested in the same thing. There are many people in this profession that I have met, that I can’t even sit down and talk shop with. They just don’t get it!

3. You recently open up your own facility with Keats Sniderman (Congratulations by the way). How have you found this experience?

Yea, Keats and I decided to rent a facility together. We own separate companies and we split the rent, but we do a lot of things together as well. It has been great having my own place, although there are a lot of other things that you have to do when you own your own facility – little (and big) things that you don’t think about when you work for someone else. It has been a good deal though. We were both pretty miserable renting space at various massage therapy studios and small personal training gyms.

4. You are also a Licensed Massage Therapist. How do you integrate this with the training of your athletes and clients?

Yes, both Keats and I are licensed massage therapists (and certified in neuromuscular therapy through Judith DeLany’s American NMT group).

I integrate the soft tissue work with athletes or clients when I need to. Sometimes after my initial assessment, I may find some things that need some manual work, so I just work on them. Then we get off the table and try and move and create some strength, stability and understanding through that new range of motion. I’ll also use it sometimes if an athlete has been training hard for a few weeks, as a means of recovery (to help encourage a parasympathetic state).

Additionally, I get a number of referrals for soft tissue therapy from physical therapists and chiropractors, as they send over people who may need more work than they have time to give them, or people who are preparing to be discharged and need to start training a little more intensely as they get ready to move back into sports participation.

5. Who has had the biggest influence on you as a coach, and as a therapist?

I have been influenced by a lot of coaches. If you look at my program design manual, you will see pretty plainly who my influences are. Guys like Mike Boyle, Vern Gambetta, Al Vermeil, Louie Simmons, Mel Siff, and Gray Cook are all in there (as well as a number of others). Additionally, my peers and my clients, who are continually asking questions and challenging my thought process, influence me. This keeps me learning and seeking out more knowledge.

From a therapist standpoint, my first influence was a local massage therapist that taught some of my classes, Don Miller. My main influences are Judith Delany and Leon Chaitow. Their large neuromuscular therapy textbooks are full of great information. Also, physical therapist, Charlie Weingroff, has made a big impact on how I do things. He is a really smart guy and offers a lot of practical information.


6. What are you all-time favourite books in the following areas:

o Strength Training: Supertraining by Mel Siff
o Physical Therapy Rehabilitation: There are four titles I would put here – Shirley Sahrmann’s Diagnosis and Treatment of Movement Impairment Syndromes, Stuart McGill’s Low-Back Disorders, Chaitow and DeLany’s Clinical Application of Neuromuscular Techniques (Vol. 1 and 2) and Warren Hammer’s Functional Soft Tissue Examination and Treatment by Manual Methods. All good books!
o Nutrition: Anything by Lyle McDonald. That guy is incredibly smart.
o Business: Crush It by Gary Vaynerchuck
o Random: The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge, MD

7. What do you do to for your continuing education (Seminars attended etc)?

I try and attended as many seminars as I can. I purchase a lot of books and DVDs and I subscribe to a few journals (and try and get research from other journals that I don’t subscribe to when I think they will help me with something). I am always trying to advance my knowledge.
Some things that I have on the schedule for this year so far are:
- NSCA Arizona State Seminar (which I am also speaking at)
- Perform Better Clinic in Phoenix
- NSCA National Convention (I go every year)
- ACSM Convention
- Functional Movement Screen in Phoenix
I am also helping assist at the Neuromuscular Therapy courses being taught here in phoenix this year.
That is all that is on the schedule so far. But I am sure I will add more things as the year goes on. Between workshops, conferences, books, DVDs, and journal subscriptions, I spend a few thousand dollars on con ed every year.

8. What resources that are out there, would you recommend to young up and coming coaches (Podcasts, Websites, Blogs, Products)?

Mike Boyle’s www.strengthcoach.com website has a lot of great information. I also just became a member of Joe Heiler’s www.sportsrehabexpert.com and it is very good as well. I really like Lyle McDonald’s website, www.bodyrecomposition.com. He has a ton of great articles and research reviews. I also will read Charlie Francis’s website from time to time.
I listen to the Strength Coach Podcast and Mike Robertson has a podcast that is really good too. Those are the main ones I check out (as well as the one from www.sportsrehabexpert.com). Keats and I have a podcast also, although with the holiday and then some of the things we are trying to do with the facility, we have not had time to update it. But, that is one of the goals of this year – to do more podcasts. The website is www.realitybasedfitnesspodcast.com.

9. Could you give my readers a basic summary of what your methodology on training is (eg. how do you assess, and design, and periodize programs)?

Sure. I use the Functional Movement Screen, developed by Gray Cook, for my initial assessment. Depending on what I am seeing with that, I will then move to various other tests to get a full understanding of the individual in front of me and the best way that I can help them, based on their limitations or inabilities. I also do a palpatory assessment, to see what the tissue feels like, so that I have an idea of the general tone of their tissue. If the athlete plays a particular sport, I also try and key in on range of motion assessments particular to that sport (IE lead hip internal rotation for a golfer or throwing athlete, etc.). After that, we can do more sport specific tests or strength/power tests, depending on the individual and what we are training for.

After my assessment is completed, I write the program. The design is pretty simple – the warm up keys in on any mobility restrictions that showed up in the assessment or any special needs that they individual may have (some times the warm up may also include some soft tissue work). After our warm up, we train power (depending on the individuals abilities), then strength and then our energy system work (intervals, tempo work, medicine ball work, etc.). What goes on in each of those sections of the workout will be dependant on the individual and what their needs are and also will depend on the frequency of training (how many times a week they are coming in).

In the first phase of training, it is very general, and we work on improving work capacity and getting in high quality work (learning proper exercise technique, improving deficits, etc.). We do a little bit of work in each of the three energy systems – power, strength, anaerobic/aerobic (aerobic mainly by way of tempo runs or just recovery training done with either low intensity body weight circuits or easy recovery walks outside. Anaerobic work is in the form on sprints and/or interval training).

After that first phase, we start to prioritize what we need based on the time we have to prepare. I keep all three energy systems in the program, but I try and increase the volume of one of them, and slightly lower the volume of the other two, in order to emphasize/focus on one to a greater extent. I don’t get very mathematical like some do with this stuff. I try and keep it simple and just know that in a power phase we may be doing slightly more plyos or Olympic lifts and in a strength phase we may be doing less volume of that stuff, and more volume of strength work. If it is inseason, then trying to keep the athlete healthy is paramount, and trying not to destroy them in the weight room (during a time when they are competing frequently) – just get in as much high quality work as they will be able to tolerate.

10. Last question, what advice would you give to young coaches, like myself getting into the field?

Read everything and read often. Read things that you like and agree with and things that you don’t like and don’t agree with. The later is important, as it will make you ask some questions, give you some cognitive dissonance, and either challenge you to think a different way, or reaffirm your beliefs in what you already know/do. Talk to ask many people as possible – coaches, therapists, doctors, etc. – to gain as much knowledge as you can.
Be an infovore!

Patrick, thank you so much for your time. Where can my readers find out more about you, and any projects that you may have coming up?

Thanks for having me Robbie. It has been great. I don’t have any upcoming projects at this time (other than trying to get better at what I do).

Readers can find me at my main website – www.optimumsportsperformance.com - where I have a blog that I update pretty regularly with my thoughts and ideas on training and soft tissue therapy. I also am on twitter - http://twitter.com/OSPpatrick - and facebook - http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/patrickward2?ref=profile - and our podcast is – www.realitybasedfitnesspodcast.com.

Hows Your Mobility - Part 1

Ankle Mobility

The joint by joint approach formulated by Mike Boyle and Gray Cook is something that has had a huge positive impact on the strength and conditioning industry.Its impact is also being strongly felt in the rehabilitation field among some physiothearpists, and many other manual therapists.

I for one use the joint by joint approach to drive all my training with my athletes. It is so brilliant and yet so simple at the same time. As I once heard Tim Vagen say about the joint by joint approach " I wish I had thought it up first". Me too Tim, me too.

The following outline is adapted for Boyle/Cook:

The Joint by Joint Approach:

Mobility:

Ankle

Hips

Thoracic Spine (Mid Back)

Gleno-Humeral (Shoulder) Joint

Stability:

Foot

Knee

Lumbar Spine

Scapulae (Shoulder Blades)

As you can see from the outline above the joint by joint approach shows us that are joints alternate between mobility and stability. Now what do you think happens if we lose our mobility in one of our mobile segments? Well..........

Ok, I'll just tell you then. Keep your underwear on!!

Lets use the hips as an example. If I start to lose my hip mobility, my body will start tocompensate with motion at the LUMBAR SPINE, or the KNEE. Now according to joint by joint chart above the lumbar spine and knee are meant to be stable. So, do you think that it is a good idea for stable segments to begin to become mobile segments? Well..........

Thats right! Hell No!

So when someone comes to me with pain in their knee, I want to look at their ankle, and hip mobility. When someone comes to me with pain in their low back, I want to look at their hip, and thoracic spine mobility. When someone comes to me with pain in their shoulder, I want to look at their thoracic spine mobility, and how their scapulae sit on their thorax.

As we age we start to lose our mobility in our mobile joints, and to compensate for this we start to give up stability in our stable joints to be able to move.

The following outline shows what can happen to our joints as we age:

Adapted from Mike Boyle:

Mobile Segments:

Ankle -

Hips -

Thoracic Spine -

Gleno-Humeral Joint -

Stable Segments:

Foot +

Knee +

Lumbar Spine +

Scapulae +

Note:

Less range of motion = -

Increased range of motion = +

So as you can see, mobility, and stability work is vital for your health and longevity.Below are two sample ankle mobility exercises that I use with my athletes. I have to give credit here to Mike Boyle (once again), as I got these mobility exercises from him.

Ankle Mobility 1:

The key with this exercise is to keep your heel of your front foot down. It cannot raise off the ground. All you simply do is drive your knee straight over your toes as far forward as possible, while keeping your heel down. Lightly touch your knee off the wall. When you feel that you can comfortablely touch your knee off the wall while keeping the heel down, move your foot back slightly and challenge yourself to get an extra bit of motion.

Ankle Mobilty 2:

With this exercise for the ankle you are achieving mobility in a more frontal and transverse (side to side, and rotation motion) plane of motion. The first mobility exercise we did above, mobilised the ankle in the sagittal (straight forward motion) plane. The key to this exercise is to keep the toes of the foot on the ground pointed forward toward the wall.

Give these a try,

Until next time,

Stay Strong,

RB

Pictures From Boston!

Boston University

Cressey Performance

Crashboard

MBSC

Me and the MBSC Staff

I almost look like a professional!!

Me and the great JP (John Pallof)

Me with some guy Boyle??

Me with the great Steve "Bunkie" Bunker - Legend

35 Things I learned in 2009!

1. The Sleeper stretch is over prescribed – Mike Reinold:
When looking at the ROM of the shoulder, don’t just look at internal ROM, look at total ROM.

2. Overhead Press in the Scapula Plane – Rob Panariello:
When overhead pressing, keep your arm in the scapula plane. Think of bringing your upper arm beside your ear.

3. Make sure you have adequate upward rotation to overhead press – Rob Panariello/ Eric Cressey:
To continue on from point 2, if you are going overhead press your athletes or clients make sure they have adequate upward rotation.

4. Keep a vertical shin if you have patella-femoral pathology – Charlie Weingroff:
Keeping a vertical shin can allow athletes/client with patella-femoral pathology to effectively train their lower body in a lot of cases.

5. The hip Flexors are huge in Low Back Pain – NMT course:
This is where Positional Releases Techniques can be ideally used.

6. Mobility before Stability – Charlie Weingroff/ Gray Cook:
It is very important that all joints know their full ROM of motion. You need full joint mobility to be able to have sufficient stability. This is how we came into the world as babies. First we had mobility, and then we had to earn our stability.

7. Lumbar Flexion is NOT bad – Charlie Weingroff/ Nick Tumminello:
Lumbar flexion is not bad as a MOVEMENT, but it is still bad as an EXERCISE

8. The government don’t give a shit about what is been put into our food!

9. Muscle and Fascia are inseparable – Leon Chaitow/Judith DeLany.

10. TRX’s are well worth the investment

11. Nobody cares how you know, until they know how much you care – Mike Boyle

12. Three things to look at when someone has pain – Biomechanical, Biochemical, or Psychosocial – Chaitow/DeLany

13. The body really is one piece – Don Kelley:
I know we all know this, but this point was really driven home, when Don Kelley showed a study that showed when something is struck in between your teeth this can lead to SIJ dysfunction!!

14. Conjugate Periodization (Is it the Best Method?)

15. Nutrition drives fat loss, not exercise:
You will never work off a bad diet.

16. Grip strength is crucial to shoulder stability – Gray Cook/Brett Jones

17. Intermitted Fasting is not a bad thing – Brad Pilon

18. The Bench Press is a total Body Lift – Jim ‘Smithy’ Smith

19. Tear the floor apart with your feet when deadlifting – I can’t remember?

20. Watch out for cervical hyperextension when performing certain exercises – Eric Cressey

21. Never extend your elbow on an anterior tilted scapula – Eric Cressey

22. Pec Minors are the devil – Me!!

23. Have a system in place – Nick Winkleman

24. Kettlebells are vastly different than dumbbells and are far superior for some exercises – Me

25. Hip Lifts – Bret Contreras

26. Some people are just not built to squat – Dr. Stuart McGill

27. Shirley Sahrmann is a legend – Me
Even though I still think you need to perform soft tissue work, and other therapies (ie. Muscle Energy, Positional Release, and Myofascial Release Techniques , as well as the movement therapy that Sahrmann prescribes too.

28. Drawing in might be needed for some:
For some patients with chronic back pain, drawing in may be still very important in the early stages of rehab. Then after this initial stage you can teach them to brace (or not? Depending on who’s opinion you believe).

29. McGills 5 stages - Dr. Stuart McGill:
1. Corrective perturbed motions
2. Build Endurance
3. Build total body stability
4. Build strength
5. Build Power and agility

30. The first 30m of a 100m sprint relies on max strength, and the strength of your glutes , and your vastus group of your quads. After 30m your performance relies on the elasticity of your bi-articular muscles (hamstrings, rectus femoris, and gastrocmienus) to produce and re –use elastic energy – Klomp/Bosch.

31. Grass feed beef has just as much omega 3 content as cold water fish – Dr. Loren Cordain

32. Vitamin D is important

33. Fish Oil is important

34. Breathing dysfunctions are very common and can cause a lot of problems if left unresolved (e.g depressed immune system) – Leon Chaitow

35. High Fructose Corn Syrup is poison

RB

Would you try to fix the Kitchen Sink?

This blog post is going to be a rant, but feck it, its my blog! I love Strength and Conditioning and all other things that go with. I love all types of therapies and rehab. I love nutrition, even though this along with business are my weakest areas,but my knowledge getting better. Sometimes though it can be so frustrating. It is so hard to get the respect that we deserve as Strength and Conditioning Coaches. Take for example a meeting I had during the week with two members of a GAA club. I gave them a presentation, and we discussed about setting up and putting in place Strength and Conditioning System within the club. Now all that’s fine but what really pissed me off was the two guys who frankly have not got a clue about Strength and Conditioning or the role of a Strength Coach, or who are not Manual Therapists, and know nothing of functional anatomy, started telling me that they designed and implemented strength workouts (not a programme) for the players last year!!

OK, so you might be like so what? Will let me ask you a question. If your kitchen sink was badly leaking water, would you try to fix your sink? No. You would get a Plummer in to fix it, because 1). You are not a Plummer, and 2). It is his JOB. This is the exact same thing. The two guys that I was talking too, thought just because they had attended something shitty workshop on weight training for their players put on by the county board that they didn’t need to get someone in to work with their players. No they decided that they knew enough after that workshop (heavy sarcasm here), to design a Strength workout (they didn’t design a programme, because a programme to me means that there some sort of periodization involved)! Instead they should have got a Strength Coach in to work with their players because 1). They are not Strength Coaches, and 2). It the Strength Coaches JOB!!!!

Who the hell do they think they are? YOU ARE NOT STRENGTH COACHES!! What will you do if Johnny cant squat, and you cant figure out why he cant squat, because you don’t realise that his ankle mobility is shit! What about when Brian does a chin up and his scapula keep going into anterior tilt, but all you see is him getting his hyperextended cervical spine over the bar. Not knowing the damage he is doing to himself ever time he does a chin up. What about Joe’s push up form? What are you going to do to fix that? What cues will give him? There are so many examples that I could use! But do you want to know why you have no answers to these questions - BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT STRENGTH COACHES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You DO NOT spend EVERYDAY reading, watching, listening, e-mailing other coaches, therapists, etc, being on well respected forums, visiting other coaches, therapists, doctors, and nutritionists. As well as spending all your hard earned money on more books, dvds, seminars, courses, and internships to further better yourself to be the best you can be. Plus you have never trained yourself, and DO NOT know what it feels like to be under the BAR! So Please I am asking you, at very least give us the same respect you would give the Plummer that fixed your sink. Let us do are jobs.

One day, one day, we will get the respect we deserve. But for now we will just keep fighting the good fight! Rant over!

Stay Strong,

RB

A Weekend with Don Kelley

Well I am officially back in cold, wet, depressing, and miserable Ireland! Ah, its good to be home! I had been really looking forward to this weekend for a while, not because I was coming home, but because I had a 2 ½ day seminar with Don Kelley on the cervical spine, and the cranium. Don is an outstanding LMT for Tennessee, who has been teaching with NMT centre in Florida for the past 19 years. Dons excellent teaching style and sense of humour made the weekend not only extremely informative, but also extremely enjoyable.

As I stated above I was really looking forward to this seminar, but at the same time, a bit cautious as I knew that I was going to be a bit out of my comfort zone with some of the work that we were going to be doing. But everyone else in the class were in the same boat. Plus if you want to be the best got gota learn from (in my opinion Don Kelley is) the best.

Don was extremely trough with all of his presentations, and demonstrations. This made the work of the cervical and cranium far less daunting.

Friday 7-10

Don give his usually (as I have had Don as a tutor before) Friday night presentation on what we could expect for the weekend, before getting into the Anatomy of the cervical spine, and cranium. Hi give a great example of how poor posture can play a role in Tempomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction. Try this. Sit really tall on a chair and clench your teeth together and try to remember where your top and bottom teeth are in relation to one another. Got it. Then slightly open your so your teeth aren’t touching anymore, and allow yourself to slump forward into a forward head posture, and re-clench your teeth. If you did that right you will notice that your teeth were in a different position to one another.

Saturday 9-6

We started Saturday off with treatment of the lamina groove of the cervical spine, which we did both supine and prone. Then we moved onto the subsoccipitals. Here we concentrated on rectus capitis posterior major, minor, and obliquus capitis superior, and inferior. Again we treated these muscles in supine and prone. These muscles are highly rich with proproiceptors as the give constant feedback on the position on the head in space. Rectus capitis posterior minor actually has a connection with the dural of the spinal cord. Next up was Sternocleidomastoid (SCM). You gota love that name.

Finally we ended the with some anterior work. Up until this everything had been pretty routine, but now came the ‘out of my comfort zone part’. We treated all the muscles attachments to the hyoid bone, before moving on to longus colli and capitis. Martina if you are reading this you would have love this!! For the treatment of the longus colli and capitis you have to displace the hyoid bone, thyroid cartilage, esophagus, and your trachea laterally to make room for your one of your fingers to treat the anterior surface of you cervical vertebra. We were told repeatedly be extremely careful of the carotid artery.



Sunday 9-6

We began with treatment of the scalenes. Treating all 3 heads (posterior, middle, and anterior). We were told to be cautious of strumming from anterior to posterior (which was not advised) over the tubercles of the transverse process of the cervical when treating the scalenes as you may rub the brachial plexus against the tubercles of the transverse process.

Then we finally moved onto the cranium. Here we treated the external muscles of the TMJ, as well as treating them internally. I don’t think I will get in dept about the techniques here as I could spend all day writing about them. But we treated the superficial cranium, external aspects of the temporalis, masseter, and the pteryoids (silent p). We then went on to the styloid and mastoid processes, treating the muscles attaching to those sites, before moving onto the internal work.

This was the part of the weekend that I was looking forward to the most. Getting to stick my finger into someones mouth!!!! We treated the intraoral temporalis tendon, masseter, medial, lateral pteryoids, soft palate, and finally the tongue!

So you might be asking why would you be treating any of all the muscles I have just talked about. Well you would treat these muscles if someone has the following. Chronic headaches, blurred vision, constant sore throat, thoracic outlet syndrome symptoms, chronic tooth aches, back pain (yes even back pain) and many other symptoms that I have to go back and check my notes for.

If you feel confused by any of this imagine how I was by the end of the weekend. Even though the weekend was very intense it was also very enjoyable, thanks mainly to Don’s excellent teaching skills. I learn a hell of a lot, and takes exactly what I wanted.

I would just once again like to thank Don, and Kevin (who is our course director) for all their great work the past weekend.

Until next time folks, stay strong,

RB

The Push Up - Lets Get It Right

Lets get one thing straight, if you cannot do at least 20 strict push ups then get away from the bench! Some exceptions would be an obese client, and maybe some female clients, but other than that I am sticking to my opening line. Every single time I see someone attempt the Push Up they, as Eric Cressey would say, butcher it! In this short post I will give you the most common mistakes with the Push Up, show you proper set up, the proper way it should be preformed, regressions, progressions, and why you should perform push ups. I have no video unfortunately as the digital camera is back home in Ireland.
Common Mistakes with the Push Up:

1). Hands not under the shoulders, for some reason they out in front on the face

2). Elbows flaring out to the sides. Not very healthy for the shoulders

3). Elevation on Scapula instead of Retraction on the eccentric (downward) phase of the push up

4). Chin Poking forward instead of been tucked

5). Low back and hips sinking towards the ground due to a weak anterior core, and not squeezing glutes

The Proper way to perform a Push Up:
(Note: I like to teach a bottoms up approach)

The Set Up - Getting into Position:

1). Lie flat on the ground. Bring your thumbs to your nipple line, and from there slight,y move your hands out. Your wrist should be directly under your elbow. Your upper arm should be at a 45 degree angle to your upper body. So DO NOT have the elbows flaring out to the sides.

2). Tuck your chin. Think of making a double chin. DO NOT flex the neck.

3). Brace your core (like you were going to be punched in the stomach), and squeeze your glutes. When you do this, it will prevent your hips from going into an anterior tilt and prevent you low back from sinking, as the anterior core and the glutes perform a force couple that posteriorly tilt the pelvis.

4). Push yourself to the top position. Hold your form (Chin tucked, core braced etc)

Performing the entire Push Up:

Descent:

1). Now you are at the top position. As you begin to descend, retract your scapula forceful. Think about actively pulling yourself toward the ground, so that when you are at the bottom position your shoulder blades are together.

2). Keep your Chin tucked.

3). Keep your elbows tight. Keep that 45 degree angle throughout the entire set.

4). Keep your core braced, and glutes tight (squeeze that ass :-)

5). Your chest should touch the ground, NOT you chin, head, of face!

Ascent:

1). Push mainly with the thenar eminence (outside part of your hands)

2). Keep your Chin tucked.

3). Keep your elbows tight. Keep that 45 degree angle throughout the entire set.

4). Keep your core braced, and glutes tight (keep squeezing that ass ;-)

5). Protract your scapula at the top position. Push out of your shoulder blades, so your shoulder blades move away from one another as you ascend.

6). Keep going until you perform the desired amount of reps.

Regressions for the Push Up:

- Wall Push Up if extremely weak!

- Elevate the hands on a bench or a barbell in a rack

- Assist with a band around the hips.

Progressions for the Push Up:

- Feet Elevated

- Weighted – vest, chains, or bands

- Unstables – Stability ball, Bosu, dyna disc


Why Should You Do Push Ups:

Push Ups are a great exercise for shoulder health and core stability. You get Serratus Anterior activation, which is a very important muscle in shoulder stability, and if you think about the push up is a dynamic plank, great for your anterior core.

Thats all for now folks,

Peace,
RB