FEATURE STORY

Pro Football Training with

Mike Bystol
Bystol (right) is owner of a state-of-the
A look at the real world of a strength coach for pro art gym called the Poliquin Performance
football players Center – Chicago, located in Chicago,
Illinois. He is shown here with Dr. Stuart
Yoss, a soft-tissue specialist who is cur-
rently employed by the Chicago Bears,
Chicago Blackhawks, and the Chicago
White Sox.
BY KIM GOSS, MS

t’s always been a bit of a mystery professional football players, and his cli- The point is he became a better football

I what pro football players actually

do to strength train. An occasional
demo from a strength coach showing
ent base of over 20 athletes and a format
of one-on-one training keeps him busy
year-round. In this exclusive interview,
player because he practiced against the
best. Would he have been better if he’d
had a better strength program? Of
some unique exercise that he or she used Bystol describes what it takes to succeed course. Although he has been a starter
in training a pro doesn’t provide much in working with these elite athletes. His in the NFL for two years, he is now
evidence. Is the current training of these answers may surprise you. plagued with injuries. Do I believe the
athletes simply a continuation of what training he had in college contributed
they were doing in college? Do NFL BFS: Generally speaking, are the play- to the current long list of injuries he is
linemen bench press 100 pounds more ers you see coming out of college in great battling now? Absolutely. On the other
than their college counterparts? Do they shape? hand, I have had several college drafts
still squat and power clean? Do running MB: A lot depends on the col- who are really strong, but way out of
backs and corners still do ladder drills lege they go to and the quality of their structural balance. So they are not quick
and continue to shave fractions of a sec- strength and conditioning program in or explosive and are at a high risk for
ond off their 40? Or are they content to high school. I have coached athletes who injury.
do only what it takes to stay healthy for had a better vertical jump, bench, squat
Sundays? Mike Bystol can answer these and clean in high school than they did BFS: Do you have to address a lot of
questions. later when they graduated college. A chronic injuries with the players drafted
A former defensive tackle at East few years ago a guy from one of the top out of college?
Carolina, where he obtained a degree schools in the nation came to me for MB: Basically every athlete I see is
in exercise physiology, Bystol is owner training for the combine. He’d had a like a Lamborghini with its front wheels
of the Poliquin Performance Center great strength and conditioning program out of alignment and running on only
– Chicago (PPC-C). Working with in high school, but after five years of col- two cylinders. These athletes are still fast,
Bystol is Dr. Stuart Yoss, who special- lege his squat, bench and vertical jump but they have the potential to be much
izes in sport injuries. PPC-C can best be were much lower than in his senior year faster. However, because everything is
described as a strength coach’s dream. of high school. This guy still went first out of balance, they are wearing through
It offers 13,000 square feet devoted to round in the draft. parts really fast and shortening their
providing the best training programs for The difference is that for five years careers.
athletes of all levels, along with many this kid practiced six days a week, three
supporting functions such as nutrition, hours a day, against the best players in BFS: From a strength and condition-
massage, physical therapy and other college football. Four of his teammates ing standpoint, what is lacking in many
sports medicine services. that he practiced with, day in, day out, college strength training programs?
Bystol’s specialty is training went in the first and second rounds. MB: It’s surprising, but many of

36 | BIGGER FASTER STRONGER MARCH/APRIL 2010

the college programs in this country still BFS: Do you put your athletes on a balls and rocker boards?
won’t have their players do squats or general workout program, or do you get MB: It keeps me busy as a strength
deadlifts or cleans – in fact, a guy I’m very specific with each position? coach! I know of one pro football team
training now who is from a Big Ten MB: We usually have to start off that has bought into that type of train-
school says they trained legs only once a our new athletes with a program of ing, and we’ve picked up a lot of athletes
week! I’ve also found that many of the structural balance training because they as a result because they come to us with
college players who do these basic lifts were using poorly designed programs. so many injuries. This type of training
have poor form, and it’s difficult to cor- But after that, we do have specific has no scientific basis, and its main pur-
rect these bad habits. exercises for each position. As a general pose is financial gain for those who sell
guideline, the more movement a posi- this type of equipment and give courses
BFS: Do you find that most of the tion entails, such as a lineman versus a and seminars. The fact is that coaches
athletes coming out of college are fairly cornerback, the more exercise variety who adopt this training philosophy have
knowledgeable about how to eat well? that is needed. no idea how to get their athletes strong
MB: No, not at all. Maybe five without injuring them. They adopt this
percent of the people we see at our facil- BFS: Who is your most physically “low risk, no gain” training program and
ity know how to eat well. Mostly these impressive player? point fingers at others when an athlete
guys have been living on cafeteria food, MB: One of my stronger athletes get injured or underperforms on the
and often what they know about supple- is Roberto Garza. A previous knee field. As long as no one gets injured in
ments is what they’ve been reading in injury almost ended his career. Doctors the weightroom, they think their job is
muscle magazines. I have tested dozens and trainers told him to avoid squats, secure. Believe me, these guys can only
of athletes who are gluten intolerant. For deadlifts, and so on. Although we never hide for so long.
years they have had chronic injuries and max out Roberto, he can full squat over
inflammation caused by the high-carb 700 pounds. His deadlift and cleans are BFS: Who are the ones continually
diet their strength coach told them to equally impressive. For a guy who was looking out for the best training informa-
eat. The fact is some athletes can tolerate told never to perform these lifts again, he tion—is it mostly pro athletes or is it the
carbs and some can’t. Before you tell sure impresses me. coaches who are producing results?
your athletes what to eat, you’d better MB: The guys looking for the most
know what you are talking about or BFS: What is your take on the func- training info are the veterans. These guys
else you can cause serious damage to an tional training methods that are popular have seen it all, and they know what’s
athlete’s health and performance. now, such as strength training with Swiss nonsense. Many times they buy into

Roberto Garza
Corey Wooton

Robbie Olin Kreutz

Gould
A few of Bystol’s elite athletes: Roberto
Garza, nine-year NFL veteran; Tony
Pashos, eight-year NFL veteran; Robbie
Gould, third most accurate kicker in
NFL history; Corey Wooton, projected
first-day NFL draft pick; and Olin Kreutz,
Tony Pashos a 12-year veteran and a six-time Pro
Bowler.

www.biggerfasterstronger.com 1-800-628-9737 | 37
FEATURE STORY
the initial concept of functional training they would not be here. It’s a huge
workouts. But after one or two years commitment for them.
of this type of training they get more BFS: What is a common misconcep-
injuries and the field goal kicker starts tion about how pro football players train?
throwing them around on the field. MB: I think the biggest misconcep-
The smart guys are back in the weight- tion is that we think the NFL guys have
room a few weeks after season and access to all the greatest training and
train hard 11 months out of the year. medical equipment. I have learned in
this industry that the grass is very rarely
BFS: How often do the players train greener on the other side. Some of the
in-season? rehab is very primitive. Cold lasers, Bystol met up with two of his colleagues
at a recent seminar at the Poliquin
MB: Training hard in-season is frequency-specific microcurrent, hyper- Strength Institute in East Greenwich,
the only way a player can maintain baric chambers, nutritional supplements Rhode Island. Here is Bystol with Ben
their strength and muscle mass over are things I see as standard for rehab. It’s Prentiss (center), who works with many
NHL players, and Keith Albert (right),
a season that may last 20 weeks. My amazing how very few teams know about who trains professional basketball
guys will work out four times a week these. It’s also amazing that some teams players.
during in-season training. I find this don’t have squat racks in their weight-
works better than just two total-body room anymore. impossible. NFL guys need specific
workouts. workouts designed for them. Every min-
BFS: It seems a lot of strength train- ute of that 16-20 weeks has to be about
BFS: Are the workouts shorter ers are claiming that they train a lot them getting better.
in-season? of pro football players. Are these claims
MB: I do drop the volume of exaggerated? BFS: What advice would you give
training in-season, so during a work- MB: For sure. If a guy has 10 strength coaches who work with high school
out in the off-season I may do 20-24 professional athletes that he is working football coaches?
sets, but during the season I might with, then he is going to be working 12 MB: Learn how to teach proper
drop that to 12-16 sets. to 14 hours a day, unless he trains them form. Learn how to squat and deadlift,
in groups. Any pro guy who does all and train more posterior chain. Very few
BFS: When do you do your heaviest group training in my opinion is wasting weightrooms that I’ve seen will have a
workouts during the season? their time, as these guys only have 16-20 back extension or glute-ham or a reverse
MB: I do a very heavy leg work- weeks out of the year away from their hyper machine. If you’re going to invest
out Monday following the game so team. They all have individual issues the time to take on the role of a strength
that they are completely recovered they need to address, such as injuries. coach, get outside help from experts in
by Sunday. A lot of guys will say to If they’re working in groups, that’s that field. So, for example, take a course
me, “Oh, my legs are sore – I had 72 in Olympic lifting from an Olympic
plays.” I tell them that the option is to lifting coach.
do that workout today or do it a day
closer to the game and risk it affect- BFS: Here’s a loaded question. What
ing their ability to play. It’s a very do you think about the BFS program?
easy concept for the body to adapt MB: It’s very good. They focus on
to. Players are amazed how well they the basics. I think they are goal-oriented
feel after they train like this for a few as far as teaching those lifts that are very
weeks. I would 100 percent guaran- important to kids. They are not into the
tee the workouts my guys do during hocus-pocus circus training with func-
season are tougher than most off- tional types of training. I think BFS is a
season workouts. Working out with Bystol with two of the top coaches in very strong company for not going the
their respective fields, weightlifting
me is extra work and costs them extra coach Pierre Roy (center) and strength
easy way with training – they are not just
money. If they weren’t getting results, coach Charles Poliquin. selling what everyone wants to hear.

38 | BIGGER FASTER STRONGER MARCH/APRIL 2010

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