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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
BOBBY CLARKE

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who authored one of the greatest stories of perseverance and overcoming the odds in professional sports.

When Bobby Clarke was trying to break into the NHL in the early 1970s, teams were fearful of giving him a chance due to the fact that he suffered from diabetes. He had been told that, despite a legendary junior hockey career – he led the league in scoring in each of his final three seasons, totaling 488 points in 162 games – he would never be able to play in the pros.

Well, Bobby Clarke proved the medical advisers wrong and went on to a career that saw him inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and also saw him achieve pretty much everything that could possibly be done in the game.

Over a 15-year NHL career, Clarke scored 1210 points in 1144 games, and his career scoring and games marks still stand as Philadelphia Flyers records. The same goes for his 119 points in 136 playoff games.

Clarke accumulated more hardware than almost any hockey player before him, winning the Selke Trophy in 1983, as the league’s best defensive forward. This actually helped establish the creation of a new league role, in which an aging offensive superstar alters his approach and becomes one of the league’s best checkers.

Clarke also won the Hart Trophy as league MVP three times (1973, 1975, 1976), the Lester B. Pearson award as league MVP (voted by the players) and two Stanley Cups, among numerous other honors.

Perhaps most notably, Bobby Clarke was instrumental in Canada’s tournament victory over the Soviet Union in the legendary eight-game 1972 Summit Series.

TODAY: ABS and CARDIO

ABS
Crunches x 60
Supine Single Leg Raises x 60

CARDIO
5K Run (Outside): 24:27

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Abs): 2

Well, I found a way to outdo the uselessness of my previous ab workout! I honestly should have rounded this down to a day off but anyway.

I was feeling pretty sick all day and there wasn’t much to achieve. I ran the 5K in the morning before I ate anything to cut up a little extra but also just to see where I stand with my 5K since it’s been so long since I ran one. I didn’t push myself to the limit at all during this run, but it was pretty tiring nonetheless so even if I had gone balls to the ball, I really wouldn’t have taken too much time off. I’m certainly nowhere near my peak a few months ago in terms of time, but that’s no surprise as I’ve also packed back on a lot of the muscle that I had lost from the running.

INSPIRATIONAL CLIP

The following clip features some highlights from the Game 4 of the legendary eight-game 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the Soviet Union, a sporting event that took the Cold War and placed it on ice.

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
SHANE CARWIN

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who, with a professional MMA record of 11-0, has earned his current position as the UFC’s #1 heavyweight prospect.

Shane Carwin began his martial arts career as a two-time NCAA Division II national Runner-Up and the Division II champion once, to which he would also add two selections as an All-American in football. Perhaps as impressive as Carwin’s athletic prowess and versatility is his dedication to his studies, as he pursued an education in engineering and is certified in the field.

Carwin is an intensely trained athlete, having developed a powerful frame that flirts with the 265-pound upper limit for sanctioned MMA heavyweight matches. In eleven fights, nobody has ever made it out of the first round with Carwin. In fact, nobody has ever made it out of the third minute, and the only opponent to ever make it out of the second minute was in his first-ever pro fight, where Carlton Jones made it to the 2:11 mark of the first.

Needless to say, Carwin’s approach to training, competition, focus and development of the mind set a strong example for any and all of us in our own training, education and pursuit of our goals.

His greatest moment in the Octagon so far came in his most recent fight, against the imposing and talented Gabriel Gonzaga (who holds a crushing victory over Mirko Cro Cop). In a devastating performance, Shane Carwin overcame a badly broken nose to pound Gonzaga into a TKO stoppage just 1:09 into the fight.

TODAY: CALVES (3-3-3 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

MAKESHIFT SEATED CALF RAISE (5 sets)
180 x 10
225 x 9
270 x 6
270 x 4
270 x 4 / 225 x 1 / 180 x 2 / 135 x 2

STRAIGHT LEG CALF PRESS (INCLINE MACHINE) (5 sets)
80 x 10
100 x 5
100 x 5
100 x 5
120 x 3 / 80 x 3

REVERSE CALF PRESS (INCLINE MACHINE) (5 sets)
80 x 10
100 x 5
100 x 5
100 x 5
120 x 3 / 80 x 3

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Calves): 15

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
JOHN TRAVOLTA c.1983

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who has established himself as one of the great actors of his generation, a talented dancer, and in 1983: one of the most physically trained and conditioned actors the big screen had seen.

John Travolta has gotten in and out of shape over the years, and I am most certainly not going to suggest you emulate his Royale-with-Cheese training program for Pulp Fiction. But what Travolta went through, and physically achieved, for his role in 1983’s Staying Alive has become the stuff of Hollywood legend.

When Travolta first created the character Tony Manero in the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever, he earned an Oscar nomination as Best Actor. The character was a slim and cocky 20ish Brooklyn hoodrat who, six years later, would cross paths with Sylvester Stallone and revamp his image, his aspirations and his physique.

Stallone, the creator of Rocky, took it upon himself to not only write, produce and direct Staying Alive, but he took Travolta and put him on his own grueling bodybuilding regimen for months. Diet, weights, everything. Travolta endured the process and both he and the Manero character were transformed.

In fact, when his training was complete, so strong was the resemblance in face and physique that a longstanding Hollywood rumor developed that Travolta was indeed Sylvester Stallone’s son. Given that there was only an 8-year age difference, Stallone’s nephew would have been a little more believable for the critical thinkers in the crowd. This was also fueled by the fact that Travolta’s character, Tony Manero, had a Rocky poster on his wall in Saturday Night Fever.

The 1983 version of Travolta still stands as one of the most highly conditioned film specimens of the era, not to mention the work he had to put into his dancing. And it made sense, because if you are going to make a movie about Broadway dancing, you’d better look like you can beat the living hell out of all the people who are going to make fun of you for making a movie about Broadway dancing.

Yeah I do ballet, bitch. You got something to say?

TODAY: CHEST (3-3-3 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

BENCH PRESS (6 sets)
- Fast Tempo, 90 Second Rests
135 x 12
205 x 9
205 x 5
205 x 3
205 x 3
135 x 15

FLAT DUMBBELL FLYES (5 sets)
- Fast Tempo, 90 Second Rests
40 x 10
70 x 2
70 x 2
70 x 2
55 x 7

FLAT DUMBBELL PRESS (3 sets)
30 x 7
40 x 5
50 x 4

INCLINE DUMBBELL PRESS (3 sets)
30 x 5
40 x 4
50 x 3

DECLINE DUMBBELL PRESS (1 set)
30 x 7

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Chest): 18

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
WILLIE O’REE

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who earned his status as the “Jackie Robinson of the NHL” when, for two seasons in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he became the first black player in NHL history.

Willie O’Ree laced up for two NHL games with the Boston Bruins in 1957-58 and came back for 43 more in 1960-61, at a time when people of color had few role models in the game of hockey to look to for inspiration. In the years since O’Ree opened the door, hockey fans have been treated to some stellar careers and inspiring moments from black players, including Jarome Iginla, Tony McKegney, Grant Fuhr and Dirk Graham.

O’Ree has always been modest about his accomplishment, downplaying any racial barriers that may have stood in his way.

And while his NHL career was relatively brief, he enjoyed a stellar junior and minor league career that saw him score 1,050 points in 1,283 games. To these numbers, he added 132 points in 144 playoff games.

And at 74 years old today, he still looks like he could lace them up and put a puck or two in the net.

TODAY: LEGS (3-3-3 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

SEATED LEG PRESS MACHINE (4 sets)
200 x 10
300 x 8
360 x 4
420 x 2

SINGLE LEG SQUATS (per leg) (2 sets)
- Fast Tempo, 60 Second Rests
Body x 10
Body x 10

SEATED QUAD EXTENSIONS (5 sets)
120 x 7
150 x 5
180 x 5
210 x 4
240 x 3

SEATED HAMSTRING CURLS (3 sets)
120 x 10
150 x 5
180 x 4

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Legs): 14

Well, I would call a relatively brief leg workout like this unsatisfactory, but under the circumstances it was almost O’Ree-worthy.

I tweaked my knee on the way to the gym but worked through that. At the start of quad extensions, however, the back pinched and it was a struggle from then on. I held it together for the rest of quads and some hamstrings but had to pull the plug once I had done enough to call it a workout.

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
STEFAN STRUVE

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who, like Terry Etim, gave an inspiring comeback performance at UFC 99 in Cologne, Germany.

Mixed martial artist Stefan Struve suffered a deep gash in his forehead, resulting in one of the bloodiest fights in recent UFC history, the type of cut that can be panic inducing for the afflicted fighter, fight-stopping material for the ringside doctors, or inspiring for a bloodthirsty opponent.

Struve was bleeding heavily and taking punches on the ground from Denis Stojnic, and appeared very close to a TKO loss before turning the tables and coming from behind to sink in a rear naked choke and secure the victory in the second round.

The fight left Struve with a long and deep lightning-shaped laceration on his forehead, guaranteeing him a strong resemblance to Harry Potter for the rest of his life.

For spirit in the face of adversity and fighting through the pain barrier, Struve is today’s training inspiration.

The victory raised Struve’s record to an impressive 17-3 and maintaining his status as one of the UFC’s most notable heavyweight prospects.

TODAY: BICEPS (Fast Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

STANDING DUMBBELL CURL (per arm) (5 sets)
50 x 8
50 x 7
50 x 6
50 x 6
50 x 5

STANDING DUMBBELL HAMMER CURL (per arm) (5 sets)
50 x 8
50 x 7
50 x 7
50 x 7
50 x 6

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Biceps): 10

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
JEREMY ROENICK

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who yesterday announced his retirement from the National Hockey League and, in all likelihood, began the countdown to his Hall of Fame induction.

Much like Joe Mullen, Ken Morrow, Brian Leetch, Neal Broten and Mike Modano, Jeremy Roenick played an instrumental role in inspiring a new generation of young Americans to participate and excel in hockey.

In 1,363 career games, Jeremy Roenick scored 513 goals and 1216 points, making him one of the league’s all-time scoring leaders. After Modano and Mullen, he became only the third American player in league history to score 500 goals.

He also added an impressive 122 points in 154 career playoff games. Roenick played in nine All-Star Games, two Olympics (winning two silver medals), and one Canada Cup.

Perhaps one of his most impressive accomplishments was adding two more seasons to his career as he approached 40 and was written off by the league. In the face of age, Roenick altered his training, focusing his regimen on speed rather than the size and strength that had served him well mid-career. This innovation earned Roenick a second shot and a noteworthy stint with the San Jose Sharks.

TODAY: ABS

Crunches x 60
Crunches x 50

Supine Single Leg Raises x 50
Supine Single Leg Raises x 50

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Abs): 4

This was about as cursory and quick as an abs workout can get without just calling it a day off…

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
TEPPO NUMMINEN

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who yesterday announced his retirement from the NHL, ending a career that saw him play more games than any other European-born hockey player in league history.

Finland’s Teppo Numminen broke into the NHL in 1988, when foreign players not only had great difficulty gaining entry into both the NHL and North American life, but also when stereotypes of Scandinavian players portrayed them as soft, fragile and weak.

With 637 career points, Numminen retired as one of the better scoring defensemen in league history, highlighted by a 54-point campaign in 1995-96 with the Winnipeg Jets.

Along with the likes of Jari Kurri, Borje Salming and Peter Stastny, Numminen helped establish an undeniable reputation of excellence for European players, and eventually surpassed all of them in terms of games played and longevity.

Perhaps most impressively, Numminen returned to the NHL at the age of 40 for the 2008-09 season, after missing all but one game the previous season due to open heart surgery. This is a man who loved the game and would not step off the ice until he was ready, due to an immeasurable degree of dedication and competitive spirit.

Numminen played in three All-Star Games and retires in 38th spot on the league’s all-time games played list (and was 8th among active NHL players). He also won three Olympic medals (two silvers and a bronze), making him one of the most successful players in international competition.

TODAY: BICEPS (3-3-3 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

SEATED PREACHER BARBELL CURL (3 sets)
65 x 6
65 x 5
85 x 3

SEATED PREACHER HAMMER DUMBBELL CURLS (3 sets)
30 x 5
40 x 3
40 x 3

SEATED PREACHER MACHINE CURLS (3 sets)
60 x 6
80 x 4
100 x 3

OVERHAND BARBELL CURLS (3 sets)
- Fast Tempo, 60 Second Rests
45 x 20
45 x 20
45 x 20

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Biceps): 12

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
CHRIS BELL

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man who is the author of one of the more informative and entertaining documentaries of recent years: Bigger, Stronger, Faster: The Side-Effects of Being American.

Chris Bell is not being chosen as an inspiration so much for his training habits or level of fitness. It is true, he overcame challenging genetics to become a respectable power lifter. But by the time he became a successful filmmaker, his level of training had tapered off some. He admits to having used steroids in the past, though he quickly stopped due to guilt and stigma, and speaks openly about steroid use among his siblings while also lampooning several of the training inspirations we have already looked to on this very site!

In the case of Chris Bell, despite some impressive work in the gym, we look to his mental approach to fitness as an inspiration because, well, he thinks for himself.

There is an enormous fitness industry that has developed and thrives year-in-and-year-out because too many people don’t want to take responsibility for their own health and ask questions or think critically. In his documentary, Chris Bell takes some time to approach issues like health and steroids with an open mind rather than reactionary knee-jerk approach.

Does this mean I am espousing steroid use, or that Chris Bell is? Absolutely not. But I can speak for myself, and I honestly think both of us would advise you that in the case of any activity or substance that can affect your appearance, physique, or long-term health: to ask questions and do some research.

If everybody invested the time and brain power that Chris Bell has invested into researching and contemplating health, fitness, pharmaceuticals and the like, we would without question be a healthier species. We would also trim the “fitness industry” down to products and services that actually add value.

TODAY: SHOULDERS (3-3-3 Tempo, 90 Second Rests)

ARNOLD DUMBBELL PRESS (3 sets)
30 x 8
40 x 5
50 x 3

MACHINE SHOULDER PRESS (per arm) (3 sets)
60 x 5
80 x 4
100 x 3

DUMBBELL LATERAL RAISE (3 sets)
- 3-3-3 Tempo, 60 Second Rests
15 x 7
20 x 4
20 x 3

DUMBBELL FORWARD RAISE (3 sets)
- 3-3-3 Tempo, 60 Second Rests
10 x 7
15 x 4
15 x 3

BACK FLYES (PEC DECK) (HORIZONTAL GRIP) (3 sets)
- 3-3-3 Tempo, 60 Second Rests
85 x 8
115 x 5
145 x 4

HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING (10.0 mph / 5.0 Incline)
- 30 Seconds Running / 30 Seconds Rest
6 Rounds

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Shoulders): 15

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
PAT VERBEEK

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a man whose fierce drive to compete earned him the nickname “Little Ball of Hate” in his NHL playing days.

And as impressive as his competitive fire and career accomplishments were, the fact that Pat Verbeek achieved them after a horrific and potentially career-ending farm accident makes them all the more unlikely and the stuff of hockey legend.

Only two years into his NHL career, Pat Verbeek was working on the family farm in the offseason, when a mishap with the equipment severed his thumb. So early into his promising NHL run, it appeared that it might all be over as he was being rushed to the hospital with only one functional hand.

Fortunately, his brother had great presence of mind and diligently searched for the thumb, eventually finding it and rushing it to the hospital as well (while keeping it on ice). The thumb was reattached, but it was only through extensive rehabilitation and great determination that Verbeek was able to pick up a hockey stick and play again at a competitive level.

Well, “competitive level” is a bit of an understatement. After his thumb was surgically reattached, he went on to play 18 more seasons and score nearly an additional 500 goals.

Verbeek was also a noteworthy contributor to the playoff run in which the Dallas Stars won the 1999 Stanley Cup and was a model of consistency, scoring 20 or more goals in 13 seasons (and 40 goals on four separate occasions). He also did this playing most of his career with determined but bottom-dwelling teams, such as the New Jersey Devils of the 1980s and the Hartford Whalers.

By the time the book was closed on Verbeek’s career, he had accumulated 522 goals and 1063 points in 1424 games, placing him among the league’s notable achievers in all three categories. As of today, he also stands 11th in career penalty minutes with 2905. His 3283 shots on goal also place him in the top 50 of all time.

TODAY: BACK (Fast Tempo, 60 Second Rests)

CLOSE GRIP MACHINE PULLDOWNS (3 sets)
- 3-3-3 Tempo, 90 Second Rests
150 x 8
220 x 4
300 x 2

SUPINE ROWS (3 sets)
Body x 12
Body x 10
Body x 10

SEATED CLOSE GRIP SHRUGGING CABLE ROWS (3 sets)
100 x 15
130 x 10
160 x 8

BENT OVER BARBELL ROWS (3 sets)
135 x 10
135 x 10
135 x 8

WIDE GRIP FRONT PULL-UPS (3 sets)
Body x 5
Body x 6
Body x 6

BACK EXTENSIONS (1 set)
- 3-3-3 Tempo
Torso x 10

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Back): 16

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TODAY’S TRAINING INSPIRATION:
ANNIE PELLETIER

Today’s Colin Timberlake Training Inspiration is a woman who was one of Canada’s premier divers in the mid-1990s, but who was somewhat lightly regarded in international competition when she arrived at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.

Annie Pelletier was not lightly regarded, however, when she left Atlanta, as she far surpassed international expectations and secured herself a place on the podium with a bronze medal in the 3m Springboard event.

Pelletier had shown a strong measure of talent and the ability to perform under pressure, as well as versatility in diving events. In the 3m Springboard event, she had earned gold medals at both the 1995 Pan America Games and the 1994 Commonwealth Games.

Her expertise also extended to the 1m Springboard, where she had earned a bronze at the 1994 World Championships, a silver at the 1995 Pan Am, and her second gold medal of the 1994 Commonwealth Games.

Her Olympic performance was particularly inspiring, however, in that she continually elevated her game throughout the event, climbing her way to the podium from the depths of the standings in the early going. At the end of the qualifying round of dives, she sat at 17th place, and only managed to rise to 12th by the end of the semi-finals.

As a result, predictions for a podium finish were not optimistic when the final round began. But she finished first or second in the field on three of her five dives in the final round, with four of her five dives scoring above 60 points (67.50 for her second dive). The end result was a podium finish and a just reward for preparation and a performance whose quality rose with the stakes and the pressure.

TODAY: TRICEPS (5-5-5 Tempo, 60 Second Rests)
and ABS

DUMBBELL SKULL CRUSHERS (OVERHAND GRIP) (5 sets)
20 x 5
20 x 5
20 x 4
20 x 4
20 x 3

DUMBBELL SKULL CRUSHERS (HAMMER GRIP) (5 sets)
20 x 4
20 x 4
20 x 4
20 x 3
20 x 3

ABS
Crunches x 70
Supine Single Leg Raises x 50

TRAINING NOTES

Total Sets (Triceps): 10
Total Sets (Abs): 2

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