Roger Clemens’ training has achieved legendary status. Roger Clemens has not only managed to stay fit for over 15 years, but he has also remained injury free for most of it. Look, it wasn’t that long ago that he was skinny and short, and regardless of the drug problems surrounding his training, there’s still a lot we can learn from Roger Clemens’ training.
Most people have seen the replayed clips of Roger and his trainer performing sit-ups, Smith machine squats, and agility drills, but I bet there was a lot more involved than just those few moves. I’d be willing to be that Roger Clemens workout focused on a few principles, like rotator cuff and shoulder health, upper body strength, and lower body explosive power and agility. So what could Roger have done?
Well, for starters, chances are you’ve squatted or deadlifted quite often, as those moves are absolutely the best for building explosive power in your lower body. Any pitcher would be smart to pick one of those lifts and train at least twice a week in an effort to improve those areas. They really should be the foundation of any lower body program. You can lunge and do single leg swings all you want, but without a squat or deadlift, your lower body workout will lag behind everyone else.
Roger Clemens’ training should also include a heavy upper body movement. Too many people think throwing is all about lower body strength and that’s wrong. While the lower body is important without the strength and flexibility of the upper body, then you’re done. Throwing comes down to shoulder health, so if Roger did some lower-body-only training and then tried throwing with his legs, the ball would have been hit out of the park every time.
Your upper body routine should consist of both chest press and cable press and cut moves. In this way you can work both functionally and strength. Making him trust one or the other wouldn’t necessarily make him strong enough. Another important aspect of Roger Clemons’ training is the health of the rotator cuff. You should warm up with various shoulder external rotation movements and mid-back strengthening exercises like rows and single-arm rows.
There should also have been a fair amount of stretching of the shoulders, upper pecs, neck and back involved as well. Throwing the way Roger did would surely have toughened up those areas, so to keep him healthy, all of those components should have been part of Roger Clemons’ training.
