Wrestling Program....

[Jared Enderton]

Wrestling starts in about a week and a half... I was wondering what you guys would recommend doing during wrestling... Because I want to keep my lifts up.. I will have to drop quite a bit of weight to get to 189, but I want my lifts to stay up... I plan on lifting 2x a week all throughout season... But, I want to add some stuff in... maybe get me some sandbags and stuff? I have a little sled I could pull(saw it on ufc, they were doing it)... that u can put weights right on....I guess, just what stuff should I put in my training, and how often should I do it on top of my 2 times a week olympic lifting? Anything helpful is appreciated. Thanks.

[NickBrugal]

When I was wrestling I continued to lift like I always had except I didn't train legs because I felt that it slowed down my shots and I couldn't recover fast enough. That could explain why me legs suck now! I continue to do stones, log, and farmers. All of this will carry over to wrestling just time it so you have time to recover before turnaments.

[Elliot_Storey]

I wasn't a wrestler, but I did pin the 215 state champ a couple times, so my opinion is important :EP: The strongman events that will have the most carry-over to wrestling are cardio, grip, and events that involve quickness (power vs. just static strength). With that in mind, I would do farmers (light for speed, heavy for grip), sled drag (a weight you can drag for an entire round), tire flip (again, flip it for an entire round), and stones. Any other events along these lines are good too. Conditioning is paramount in wrestling. You'll get a lot of conditioning in practice, but so will every other wrestler in the country, so it's up to you to take your game to the next level. Good luck!

[Wes Peart]

Quickness and conditioning are where it's at. Stuff like cleans give you explosiveness for shots and lunges are great for general leg strength (IMHO they are more useful than squats). Stadiums are my favorite conditioning exercise, when I was feeling decent, I would do them with a partner on my back :BL: 4-5 miles of running a day was also the norm. We did a lot of buddy carries and bear crawling style stuff as well. Grip is also extremely important, things like thickbar and all kinds of wrist work have the best carry over. Good luck with your wrestling!

[Brandon Campbell]

Lots of running and lots of neck and back work. Thats all a wrestler ever needs.

[NickBrugal]

Lots of running and lots of neck and back work. Thats all a wrestler ever needs.
I disagree that strong neck wouldn't do crap if I smash your(not you personally, the genreal form of your) nose with a whicked good cross-face. There were alot of guys whose necks I couldn't push down but they got pinned with a cork-screw because they were to damn stupid and keept there head up.

[Barney Shannon]

Keep it short and simple. My son's wrestling team would go for a 20 min run and then spend another 20 min in the weightroom 3x a week before school. Worked out pretty good for them since they were ranked #16 in NJ last year. With 3 plus hour wrestling practices, lifting can eat into your recovery big time. Good luck.

[Jared Enderton]

Thanks for the advice... I will definately use that... I like the idea of the tire flip for a period and drag the sled for a period... I will just try about everything here in this week to see what I will focus on more during season... or, maybe I will just try to use it all in season. The buddy carries are grueling, I have done those before... but had almost forgot about them.. One of the best workouts there is... All is useful. thanks. :mag:

[rod johnson]

don't forget to work the grip. Grip is also a big key in wrestling.

[Brandon Campbell]

I disagree that strong neck wouldn't do crap if I smash your(not you personally, the genreal form of your) nose with a whicked good cross-face. There were alot of guys whose necks I couldn't push down but they got pinned with a cork-screw because they were to damn stupid and keept there head up.


well thats not because they had a strong neck thats cause they sucked at technique now isnt it.

A strong neck is more importnat to not recieve injuries then for preventing a move done on you. lol

I know from experience on that one. I broke a kids neck by putting him in a cow catcher and rolling him over. He was weak and frail and frankly should not have been wrestling. Luckily i jsut crushed his trachea and he recieved no spinal nerve injury, just a fractured c5.

This was at a torunament, the next day i broke another kids leg on a hip toss. Both were weak frail 189lbers. So moral of my story is. Build up your neck and joints and back. Or suffer the consequences when someone who did is across from you on the mat.


Also, i had a massive bench in highschool when i wrestled, 405lbs at 189lbs, I would press alot of the smaller 189's off my chest if they got me down and i had to bridge. LOL. It helped Tons for when they tried to chop at my elbows to get me down too.

[Kevin McNease]

well thats not because they had a strong neck thats cause they sucked at technique now isnt it.

A strong neck is more importnat to not recieve injuries then for preventing a move done on you. lol

I know from experience on that one. I broke a kids neck by putting him in a cow catcher and rolling him over. He was weak and frail and frankly should not have been wrestling. Luckily i jsut crushed his trachea and he recieved no spinal nerve injury, just a fractured c5.

This was at a torunament, the next day i broke another kids leg on a hip toss. Both were weak frail 189lbers. So moral of my story is. Build up your neck and joints and back. Or suffer the consequences when someone who did is across from you on the mat.

Bully! haha

Kevin

[Adam Keep]

well thats not because they had a strong neck thats cause they sucked at technique now isnt it.

A strong neck is more importnat to not recieve injuries then for preventing a move done on you. lol

I know from experience on that one. I broke a kids neck by putting him in a cow catcher and rolling him over. He was weak and frail and frankly should not have been wrestling. Luckily i jsut crushed his trachea and he recieved no spinal nerve injury, just a fractured c5.

This was at a torunament, the next day i broke another kids leg on a hip toss. Both were weak frail 189lbers. So moral of my story is. Build up your neck and joints and back. Or suffer the consequences when someone who did is across from you on the mat.


Also, i had a massive bench in highschool when i wrestled, 405lbs at 189lbs, I would press alot of the smaller 189's off my chest if they got me down and i had to bridge. LOL. It helped Tons for when they tried to chop at my elbows to get me down too.

You wrestled in Az. though. No offence to you because I've never seen you wrestle, but some of the worst wrestlers, or state champs I should say, I've ever seen came out of Az and most of the southern parts of the country which is weird because of Sunkist Kids wrestling club is right there near you. I went to a freestyle tourny in Australia in 2001 and wrestled people from all over our country and theirs. The best were from the Northeast and the Northwest. What they did different was that they were explosive. I wrestled and beat 7 state champs at that tourny, two of which were 2 time state champs one was from Az. and the other from N.C., and I beat all of them with explosiveness. Strength is good to have, but that only helps when you're tying up, and if you are tying up with someone, you don't know what you're doing. So what I'm saying for Jared is that lifting is good so don't stop, but do more things like plyos, sprints, and explosive type stuff like oly lifting. Hope it helps. I forgot to mention the midwest also has a sturdy wrestling program.

[Bob Toth]

Also, i had a massive bench in highschool when i wrestled, 405lbs at 189lbs, I would press alot of the smaller 189's off my chest if they got me down and i had to bridge. LOL. It helped Tons for when they tried to chop at my elbows to get me down too.
Freak!! Man, I'm glad I didn't meet you in HS! LOL
Lots of running and lots of neck and back work. Thats all a wrestler ever needs.
I guess from your previous post Brandon you should BP too!

Any of the OLs are going to help with your ability to explode into your opponent.
Sprints and stairs.. sled work.. should keep you from getting gassed.
Running too much is not beneficial.. afterall, your match doesn't last 20 minutes..
Your Cardio should be more HIIT style.. tabata or crossfit will much better..

[NickBrugal]

You wrestled in Az. though. No offence to you because I've never seen you wrestle, but some of the worst wrestlers, or state champs I should say, I've ever seen came out of Az and most of the southern parts of the country which is weird because of Sunkist Kids wrestling club is right there near you. I went to a freestyle tourny in Australia in 2001 and wrestled people from all over our country and theirs. The best were from the Northeast and the Northwest. What they did different was that they were explosive. I wrestled and beat 7 state champs at that tourny, two of which were 2 time state champs one was from Az. and the other from N.C., and I beat all of them with explosiveness. Strength is good to have, but that only helps when you're tying up, and if you are tying up with someone, you don't know what you're doing. So what I'm saying for Jared is that lifting is good so don't stop, but do more things like plyos, sprints, and explosive type stuff like oly lifting. Hope it helps. I forgot to mention the midwest also has a sturdy wrestling program.
I think one of the reasons that AZ might have had weak State champs is becasue they something like 5 diffrent divisions so thats 5 state champs per weight class. That sorta waters things down. We had a guy on our college team that was a 4 time AZ state champ and absolutly got his ass handed to him everyday in practice. When he showed us his highlight film from highschool hew was owning kids left and right, its kinds weird. On the college level most southern state champs get little if any respect untill they prove themselves.

[tackle78]

Jared, you 're from Iowa. If your high school coach is worth anything he should have a pretty solid program for you. If not transfer to Linn-Mar! lol. Streicher was a three time All-American at U of Iowa and he always got me in the best shape of my life.

[Eric Jett]

AZ wrestling is actually coming along. I mean, we had the Cejudo brothers get their start here, and same with the Gallick brothers. Plus, we have an Olympic-level coach in the state in DeBerry down in Tucson. The Sunnysude teams he makes are top-notch, winning tournaments across the nation and they haven't lost a state title in something like 10 years, any division. Then there's Anthony Robles, who won the 119 or 125 NATIONAl title with one leg(which makes him stronger comparitively).

[Jared Enderton]

Jared, you 're from Iowa. If your high school coach is worth anything he should have a pretty solid program for you. If not transfer to Linn-Mar! lol. Streicher was a three time All-American at U of Iowa and he always got me in the best shape of my life.


You wrestled at Linn-Mar? My first thought was Jay Borschel when I thought of Linn-Mar... I was a sophomore when he was a senior... I placed 3rd at the states at 171, and of course he won it for the 4th time that year.. I Was 1a and he was 3a, though... Man, I was lucky.. aha.... I've made it to state 3 times now, and have got 3rd twice... got beat in Overtime last year in the Semi's...It still burns to think about it.. but.. There is no way I can lose again this year or I will literally just go crazy.... as for a good coach.. he is a really good coach, great technical wrestler himself....but.. he only requires that we go to practice everyday basically... I have always just done stuff on my own... last year our team made it to State Duals for the first time in team history though, and got WHOOPED by Don Bosco(go fig) first round........

Brandon, I must be pretty similar in strength to you.. without pausing I have done 460 on the bench... and I will be wrestling 189 this year... But, I have shifted a lot of my emphasis on olympic lifting(should have done it a while ago)....
All of this is very good, I would love to keep hearing everyones input.. I am pumped right now with so many people replying. This site rocks.

[Jared Enderton]

Brandon, I meant similar in strength to you when you were in high school... haha not referring to right now!

[Tony Moses]

I am not a wrestling expert or anything, but with all sport-specific training the explosion vs. strength debate comes up. I think both are important. A 215lb kid with a 400lbs bench press that is slow and not a very good athlete will only get so far (not very far) on strength......a freaky fast and explosive 215lber with a 200 bench will only get so far too, and most likely at the state level or in off-season tournaments will more than likely get seriously injured.........those are extreme cases and using the bench press is just an example.

I think you should work what needs work. If an NCAA heavyweight can bench 475, then I really don't think working to get that to 495 is gonna make him better......if the same kid benches 315, then taking that to 405 will make him much better.

[Elliot_Storey]

I'd just like to add that Scotty "Too Hotty" Taylor is from my hometown. haha. He's a good guy though, he's been known to shop at our family greenhouse.

[Brandon Campbell]

haha yea Az has like 5 or six different divisions for Highschools thats alot of state champs! At the tourneys i wreslted at i went up against people from all over the US some beign state champs and they were no different then others states. Except i think idaho and wisconsin had some of hte worst smelling wrestters LOL :FF: They must do the whole not showering for a week before a match to get your pits smelling like ass approach!!!

Tony hit it on the head though, gotta train both. I never said not to train for explosiveness, to me strength and explosiveness go hand in hand. Just if your 189 and you can lift like a bull. its going make a HUGE DIFFERENCE on the mat. My first year ever wrestling i was 171 with a 365 bench, 225 clean, and i think 420 squat or something My frosh year. Went to a tourney and went 3 periods with the California state champ. i only knew one move at the time. i was turned into a pretzal many many times but since i was stronger then him i held my own and made alot of my points on escapes.

Same guy pinned everyone else that day in 50seconds. I felt proud.

Moral of this story is kick ass get stronger, dont get turned into a pretzal on the mat. Cause trust me sometimes it hurts bad.... (Ball and chain is one exmaple lol) :FF:

[tackle78]

[QUOTE=Jared Enderton]You wrestled at Linn-Mar? My first thought was Jay Borschel when I thought of Linn-Mar... I was a sophomore when he was a senior... I placed 3rd at the states at 171, and of course he won it for the 4th time that year.. I Was 1a and he was 3a, though... Man, I was lucky.. aha.... I've made it to state 3 times now, and have got 3rd twice... got beat in Overtime last year in the Semi's...It still burns to think about it.. but.. There is no way I can lose again this year or I will literally just go crazy.... as for a good coach.. he is a really good coach, great technical wrestler himself....but.. he only requires that we go to practice everyday basically... I have always just done stuff on my own... last year our team made it to State Duals for the first time in team history though, and got WHOOPED by Don Bosco(go fig) first round........

QUOTE]


YupI was at Linn-Mar. My Junior year was Jay's first championship at 103. I was in state at 215. We placed third in team duals that year. My senior year I was unable to wrestle due to my first shoulder surgery. Then my backup, (Kevin Englekin) ended up getting third at state as a heavy. He is wrestling at ISU now as a practice guy. Always have been pissed about having that dumb surgery when my back up ends up at a D1 school lol. Don Bosco is crazy good program though, especially at 1a. We wrestled them in a dual my junior year and barely beat em, and we were one of the top five 3a teams in the state. We beat apple valley that year in a dual and they won that bullshit so called national title for folkstyle. But you can't beat Iowa wrestling. Since living out here in Michigan a lot of my friends wrestled and they just don't get Iowa high school wrestling. Our center was a two time Division 1 in Michigan state champ at heavyweight, and let me tell you, I don't see him placing in Iowa.

[Jared Enderton]

Tackle78, that would really be a bummer to be out your senior year... especially after high expectations after qualifying your JR. year... Could you beat your backup pretty handily? ISU, is now, one of the top wrestling schools in the nation, as you know... that'd be pretty cool to be there, even if it was just a practice partner. Especially for a guy that was a backup his JR year... You are right, Iowa Wrestling is pretty well-known for producing great wrestlers year in and year out.

[Tony Moses]

With the strength of a wrestling program, do you guys find that stronger states, and regions, come down to priorities?? I am in Northeast, PA, and a good deal of the kids who wrestle do it do for fun after football ends to pass the Winter. Within the state, the more competitive areas like Northampton (near Allentown), Wyalusing, a lot of the schools in the Western part of the state neat Pittsburgh, etc, make a committment to wrestling and focus on it year-round, and they always produce the better wrestlers at state meets and the ones who go on to college and wrestle. Most of the state champs from this region (we only have 2 classes for wrestling in PA, 2A and 3A) are the kids who go to offseason tournaments and 'work' at it, while the ones who do it to pass the Winter months are the ones who typically get their asses handed to them as the competition gets better (regionals/districts).

[barrettmil]

Jared,
I know this is not what you were really looking for but I posted an exerpt from kurt angle's book about his training when he wrestled in college and for the olympics......I know there is no set program there but very motivational (IMO)......also I am not sure if anyone here has every read "wrestling tough" but there are a bunch of cool stories about how guys like karelin, gable, blubaugh, brands, ect. used to train. Here is a link to the angle exerpt, it is down near the bottom of the page.

http://www.marunde-muscle.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3683&highlight=Angle%27s+training

[Jared Enderton]

Jared,
I know this is not what you were really looking for but I posted an exerpt from kurt angle's book about his training when he wrestled in college and for the olympics......I know there is no set program there but very motivational (IMO)......also I am not sure if anyone here has every read "wrestling tough" but there are a bunch of cool stories about how guys like karelin, gable, blubaugh, brands, ect. used to train. Here is a link to the angle exerpt, it is down near the bottom of the page.

http://www.marunde-muscle.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3683&highlight=Angle%27s+training


That is exactly what I am looking for... that was intense... I know I can take my training to a new level... thanks a ton for that, and thanks for the recommendation to "wrestling tough", I will be sure to get that... I love to read anything motivational and defying odds.

[barrettmil]

No problem, glad I can help you out a bit. Here is a cool video that has been getting posted a lot on some sites......
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XktMrVQbWqY

[tackle78]

With the strength of a wrestling program, do you guys find that stronger states, and regions, come down to priorities?? I am in Northeast, PA, and a good deal of the kids who wrestle do it do for fun after football ends to pass the Winter. Within the state, the more competitive areas like Northampton (near Allentown), Wyalusing, a lot of the schools in the Western part of the state neat Pittsburgh, etc, make a committment to wrestling and focus on it year-round, and they always produce the better wrestlers at state meets and the ones who go on to college and wrestle. Most of the state champs from this region (we only have 2 classes for wrestling in PA, 2A and 3A) are the kids who go to offseason tournaments and 'work' at it, while the ones who do it to pass the Winter months are the ones who typically get their asses handed to them as the competition gets better (regionals/districts).


I think regionally it makes a huge difference. If you took your average varsity kid from PA and walked him into an average wrestling room in Iowa he would be destroyed, not because of PA being bad, but because Iowa is wrestling crazy. 10,000 people watching one match at state tournament is pretty damn crazy.

Jared-

Yeah I could beat him pretty easily, I still can actually last time we wrestled last May. He is no where near to wrestling on varsity at ISU, but he went to Loras first out of high school and placed 6th nationally DIII. He for sure is proud to simply be on the team, but it's funny in private he still wishes he could wrestle for Iowa. He has always had really good technique but he lacks the quickness and strength to really dominate. Had I wrestled he would have cut to 215 senior year so he might still have done alright, but I had him mentally. You know one of those things where I'd beaten him since 7th grade and he didn't believe he could beat me. I wanted to play football in college anyway so I never was as focused solely on wrestling, but I for sure felt I would have made a run at the title had it not been for a serious shoulder injury. Most likely the biggest regret of my life was thinking I was better at basketball then wrestling until my freshman year when I finally woke up.

[Jared Enderton]

basketball? that is a sport? haha just kidding, I actually played basketball and wrestled up until freshman year... of course they were at different times... but I still like basketball... That definately does stink for ya, but live and learn I guess... Go Hawkeyes! haha