 "Photo: Seth Cook")
The press box casts a shadow across the western half of Mel Tjeerdsma Field as a group of freshmen football players stagger off and begin changing out of their cleats.
"It feels like dynamite is strapped to my legs," freshman running back Ben Pritchett said. "It's like I've got 10 pounds of C-4 strapped to them. I think my legs are going to explode."
For most of the freshmen, this was the first time training with Northwest strength and conditioning coach Joe Quinlin's signature addition to Bearcat athletics, giant rubber bands.
Athletes of nearly every sport and level have begun using the bands in one form or another. Their versatility allows for a variety of different lifts, stretches and other workouts to be derived from the simple design.
For the one described above Quinlin has each player grab a band from his office in the weight room and line up on the goal line on the football field.
Each participant ties their band to their partner's and runs repeated 10-yard sprints that include side shuffles, back-peddles and straight ahead sprints with their band strapped around their waists.
While one partner runs, the other applies resistance by leaning back on their end.
"It feels like you're doing an hour long running workout compressed into about five minutes," wide receiver Clark Snodgrass said. "It just puts so much more stress on your muscles and your breathing and everything like that, but in the end, it's going to make you a lot more explosive."
The rubber bands, or Flex Bands by Jump Stretch, are an addition to physical fitness that Youngstown State University's Dick Hartzell created in the early 1980s.
Hartzell set place-kicking records at Youngstown State in the early 1960s. He has since
coached athletes at every level of competition and currently resides as the strength consultant for all YSU athletics.
The Flex Band has gained tremendous popularity in the 25 years since its creation. Athletes at every level and all forms now use the giant rubber bands for a number of desired effects.
In the Northwest weight room, the football team can be seen using these bands to strengthen their calves, work on their squats, do some rows, etc.
Quinlin and the Bearcat football team seek increased muscle stamina as a primary benefit with the type of training they do with the bands.
"It builds up endurance in the muscles that will help them keep going late in games," Quinlin said. "It gets your heart rate up so high that it does a lot more than just going out and jogging or something."
Flex bands have value outside the world of football as well. The Northwest volleyball team trains with them also, but in a different way.
"We use them mainly for stretching," Northwest volleyball coach Anna Tool said. "It's just a really good way to increase flexibility, but over the summer they use it as part of their workout routine. You can do a full body workout with them. You can do lower body, and you can do upper body."
The volleyball team's use of the bands shows another aspect of the bands' versatility.
They stretch with them after every game to keep their muscles loose and flexible.
"It's nice for some sports where you're not necessarily looking to gain a lot of size," Quinlin said. "You know in football you're looking to bulk up, but in basketball, volleyball and even baseball where you want to keep that range of motion, they are very useful."
In addition to training college athletes, Quinlin also introduced several high school athletes to the bands in camps during the past five years. Maryville High School is among the schools he visits.
While there are definite benefits to the Jump Stretch Bands, some strength and conditioning coaches are more cautious when it comes to training with the bands, and don't subject their athletes to many of the more rigorous exercises.
"I think it definitely has application in the arena of sports from the acceleration standpoint," University of Missouri strength and conditioning coach Josh Stoner said. "It teaches the body how to resist and overcome. It's something that's really, really important to sports. From a usage standpoint though, we only use them on athletes who are ready. You have to be able to bench and squat a little bit before you're ready to use the bands."
The Tigers limit their usage of the bands primarily to stretching and increasing flexibility, Stoner said.
The 'Cats use a similar methodology when the season begins, because Quinlin recognizes the additional strain working out with the bands can have on an athlete's body.
"In the off-season, we do a lot of plyometrics with them, but during camps and the season, their bodies are so tore down we don't use them as much," Quinlin said.
Flex bands may have earned a permanent spot in the world of sports training. San Diego Chargers strength and conditioning coordinator Jeff Hurd has close ties with Quinlin and now uses Flex Bands with the Chargers, Quinlin said.
"A lot of guys kind of laugh at them at first," Quinlin said. "They kind of look at them and say 'How is that thing going to help me?'"
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