Rink Warriors

Rink Warriors Roller Derby Training

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What is the PA Test? The PA test is the Physical Assessment Test or the PAT Test as some students call it. it is designed to see how strong and fit you are and what you need to work on. To prepare for the test you should be running, swimming, & skating and working on your push-ups, pull-ups, flutter kicks, and squats. The PA Test is for amateur skaters and is not the same as selection for those who want to play professionally.

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Don’t make excuses this weekend to lay around the house, Get out and work your ass off!

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Getting in shape for selection

After having a nice conversation with a speedskater preparing to train with us, I thought it would be good to make a post here for others to reference when preparing for selection. Selection is a 2-week course designed to weed out the weak, uncommitted, and unprepared and keep only the strongest skaters who are then paid to play with the National Roller Derby League. You should be in shape and be able to meet these minimums before ever attempting to train with us.

Swim: You should be able to swim a minimum of 1-mile (1650 Meters) in less than 40-minutes Run: You should be able to run a minimum of 6 miles (9.65km) with at least an 8 minute mile pace. Skate: You should be able to skate 26 miles (42km) in less than 85 minutes. Push-Ups: You should be able to do a bare minimum of 50 push-ups in 2 minutes Pull-Ups: You should be able to do a bare minimum of 15 strict dead hang pull ups Flutter Kicks: You should be able to do a minimum of 65 4-count flutter kicks. We will be releasing a video program shortly to guide you through exercises to build yourself up to reach these numbers for each event. They are all easily achievable with hard work & commitment. Our program is designed to be tough & uncomfortable but with a positive mindset and never quit attitude, you will complete the course and be stronger than ever and ready to begin a professional career as a roller derby skater.

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5k a day challenge

For those looking to add some variety to their routines, try doing a 5k run every morning for a week or two. I do at least 3-5 miles every morning to keep the cardio up and maintain my fitness levels and now with the nice summer mornings coming up there is no excuse, so get out there and have fun! Note: If you’re not a strong runner yet, then run every other day to avoid injury. Also I highly recommend performing the “couch to 5k” program if you’re new to running.

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Is there any worse feeling than this?

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Lake Orion Roller Derby Recruiting

The Lake Orion Mudpuppies are recruiting skaters in and around the Lake Orion, MI area. As a Rink Warriors sponsored league all training & equipment is provided free of charge. Must be able to meet minimal fitness levels to be accepted. Feel free to contact [email protected] for more information.

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How close were you to your goals before you gave up? Never quit!

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Eating Healthy Cheaply

The biggest excuse we always here is that it is cheaper to eat junk food and it is the biggest lie ever told. below are just some of many cheap and healthy foods. Tuna Fish - you can get cans of tuna fish for 70-80 cents a can and they are packed with nutrients and omega-3 fatty acids. Peanut Butter - Peanut butter is another protein rich food and typically cost around $8 at Costco for two 40-oz jars. You can also buy bulk peanuts and use some to make your own peanut butter and keep some for snacks. Rice - Around $4-$5 for a 5lbs bag and $8-$9 for a 25lbs bag. That’s A LOT of rice! Bananas - a mere few dollars for a bunch of Bananas , they go great with other foods like peanut butter & banana sandwiches, thrown into your blender for  your protein shake, or just eaten alone as a snack. Water - often seen in memes perpetuating the lie that eating healthy is expensive is comparing a can of soda vs a water bottle. This is only true if you buy your water in singles at a gas station. Buy in 40 bottle packs, they cost $3-$4 dollars and provide 5.3 gallons of water or roughly 75 cents per gallon. If you have good water out of the tap (please verify) buy a water filter and drink straight out of the tap. Salad - Another often used cliche is showing a burger vs a salad. A resturaunt prepared salad can be costly but you’re paying for service, a head of lettuce is cheap usually 99 cents or less, carrots and onions, etc are also cheap. Not only healthier but due to the sheer amount of meals that can be created from a single head of lettuce is cheaper than a fast food burger. Potatoes - Another cheap nutrient dense food. these can be baked, grilled, mashed, made into pancakes, fries (baked), hashbrowns, and incorporated into many dishes. Yams - A cheap nutritious snack, pop in the microwave and enjoy, add a smidge of butter and it’s absolutely delicious! Corn - Another cheap veggie and a great food for dinner & BBQ’s. You can buy ears of corn cheap year round. Eggs - Best to buy these in bulk, bought in the dozens the are not  as cost effective and you’ll go through eggs quickly 3-4 eggs a day only gives you a 3-4 day supply, so buy the big square cartons of eggs and they’ll last longer and come out cheaper. Meat - There’s all kinds of meat available cheaply, Most grocery stores these days even have whole chickens already cooked, ready to eat for $5! Chicken will be your best bet for meat other than tuna, Chickens are cheaper to raise & breed and therefore the price of meat is cheaper than say Beef or Seafood. Frozen chicken is typically cheaper than refrigerated and fresh cuts, but the nutritional value is just as good and you’ll save money in the process. Ask anyone who packs a lunch of sandwhiches everyday and someone who eats out everyday how much they spend on food a day or week and you’ll see the person eating the “cheaper” fast food spends $200+ more on food a month on average. So if a skater or teammate or even a family member or friend says they can’t afford to eat healthier because of cost you can tell them, B.S.! For more information please visit our site at http://www.rinkwarriors.com

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Walking off the fat

It’s still early into the New Year and every quack is offering some useless overpriced device or program for fat loss that is just repackaged from the previous year, but here is a NO B.S. way to lose fat, especially belly fat. Walk 1 hour a day, every day. try to keep a 3 mph pace for a 21-mile a week walking schedule.

Workout - Continue your skating, weight lifting, and other drills and training as normal.

Remove all sugars from diet, and that includes all fruits. Load up on more veggies and meat and eat more than just green veggies, eat reds, purples, yellows, etc add variety.

Run at a caloric deficit - losing and gaining weight is simple, consume more calories than you burn to gain weight (caloric surplus) or burn more calories than you consume to lose weight (caloric deficit). You will want to watch what you eat and pay attention to how many calories you take in a day. if your diet is clean already you can continue your regular eating habits and just increase your workouts to burn off excess calories.

Drink water - we will discuss proper hydration in another post but you should drink nothing but water, that means no soda, energy drinks, coffee, tea, gatorade, powerade, flavored water, kool-aid, vitamin water, etc pure H20 and nothing else. Do this and you’ll lose fat and gain muscle.

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Strength Building Tip #1

We will often get asked about how hard one should train each day and the simple answer is as hard as possible. However one should not go overboard. If you’re not a big runner do not shoot for 6-mile runs within a month. If you can’t swim don’t try 2500+ meter swims, if you’re new to skating do not try 20+ mile skates. You should be in a comfortable range you can handle even if it’s only a 1/4 mile run, 50 meter swim, and 1 mile skate. Add 10% to your distance each week and build slowly towards your goals. The same goes for regular PT sessions, do not go from zero push ups to trying to do 500 a day. Tendinitis will rear its ugly head if you do that. Instead do your max then multiply it by 5. For example, if your max is 10 push ups, 3 pull ups, 20 sit-ups, & 50 Squats, then you should do 5 sets of that for a total of 50 push ups, 15 pull ups, 100 sit-ups, & 250 squats. The key is to progressively add intensity over time. There is nothing cool or fun about being injured. Push yourself but don’t be stupid about it.

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Roller Derby Exercises #3 Lower Body

We don't know of any skater who skips leg day so below we will outline some basic exercises and some lesser utilized exercises that will work your legs and put different stresses on them to build more strength and endurance.

Bodyweight Squats - A staple during selection, you'll be doing many thousands of squats during the course. There are two variations a deep squat and a shallow squat (lower yourself 45 degrees)

Weighted Squats - using a squat rack perform various squats like deep squats & box squats.

Calf Raises - Calf raises are extremely important and as your calves strengthen you reduce the chances of shin splints.

Quadruped Hip Extension - One of the best exercises to target the glutes, train both with and without skates on.

Pendulum Quadruped Hip Extension - Same as above but with weighted resistance from a machine. resistance bands can also be used when a machine is not available.

Weighted walks/runs - With a cheap backpack and some sand you can add some extra stress on your legs. Choose a weight you can handle and build progressively. During training you'll be carrying up to anywhere from 60-100lbs.

Farmers carry - Farmers carry's will blast your legs like no other, while typically a specialized tool is used for farmers carry's, you can train at home with dumbbells or water jugs.

Swimming - Not only a great cardio builder but swimming with fins will challenge even the strongest legs. We have had many students who have strong skating legs but are jelly legged and look like newborn bambi after getting out of the pool. There's many types of fins available but we suggest a stiff fin that while not ideal for long distance swimming is perfect for short distance torture for your legs! This will also help build ankle flexibility and strength which is important for skaters everywhere. Always swim with a swim buddy and/or lifeguard present.

No matter what your goals are, always mix it up with your legs. There are many more leg exercises than shown here, but the point is to add new stresses to create new growth in your legs or any other body part you're targeting. For more information please visit our site at http://www.rinkwarriors.com