Guest Post: How To Use Slideboards To Increase The Benefits Of Your Workout

 

 

 

Well I have another guest post for you......by Ken Campbell

 

You might find this  post very interesting I sure did, I like using different workout equipment just to mix things up. Enjoy!

 

 

How To Use Slideboards To Increase The Benefits Of Your Workout

 

Whether you're a professional boxer on your way to a title match, a tennis player amping up for Wimbledon, or a wide receiver warming up for a new season, slide-boards are a fantastic cross-training tool for working multiple muscle groups and fitness aspects.

 

Originally created as a tool for training cyclists, the slideboard quickly drew the attention of other athletes with its ability to incorporate lateral movement into an athlete's training. As most exercises are about pushing and pulling to or away from the body, the slideboard presents an entirely difference range of motion, used so often in sport performance, but so rarely found in the gym or other personal training routines.

 

The primary exercises used with the slideboard the back and forth "skating" motion targets quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes first and foremost, but is also a fantastic exercise for developing fine muscles and is great for joint and other connective tissue health. The slideboard also requires a fair amount of core control, thereby strengthening abdominals, obliques and lower lumbar muscles muscles used in everything from sitting down in a chair to juking a linebacker. The latter of these options is why so many professional football players have incorporated the slideboard into their workout regimes. The lateral movement translates very effectively to the field and the practice on the slippery surface gives athletes refined muscle coordination, making the same movements on the field that much easier.

 

Try a modified squat with the slideboard by having the athlete keep one foot on the slideboard and the other on solid ground, sliding laterally into the squat. Mike Green of the Washington Capitals uses this technique to train his muscles for the same movement on the ice. The reverse lunge is the slideboard cousin of the squat, positioning the athlete at the side of the slideboard with his or her chest facing away and gliding the leg backwards along the board. The range of motion with this exercise is great for football players and mimics the muscles used in tackling.

 

The fine lateral muscle stabilization has made the slideboard a great tool for rehabilitation for many professional athletes. Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints have taken it one step further and use the slideboard as a pre rehab exercise using the exercises as a means of conditioning the muscles to prevent injury. The quarterback slides back and forth on the slideboard while his trainer tosses balls for him to catch, doing sets of 44 tosses.

 

Slideboards can also be used for training the upper body with exercises such as wide-flys, staggered push-ups, or shoulder rotations accomplished by performing a series of small circles one shoulder at a time. You can also target the core directly with side-to-side extensions or controlled push-up piking.

 

About the author: Ken Campbell has covered the fitness industry as a freelance writer for many years. When he’s not writing, you can find him reviewing exercise slide boards or training for his upcoming triathlon.

He may be reached at kennith.m.campbell@gmail.com