Strength And Conditioning

TigerBlog is looking pretty ripped these days.

Okay, maybe not ripped. How about more ripped than he was four months or so ago, when he started his new exercise regimen.

TigerBlog was forced to abandon squash awhile back because of a knee issue. After surgery and physical therapy, he found himself mostly walking last fall. Lots and lots of walking.

As it got into the heart of the brutal winter, he found taking walks around Princeton's campus less than appealing. So he started riding the exercise bike.

One day, he decided to add weights to the routine. This was in January, he thinks.

Since then, he's lifted three times a week and been on the bike six or seven times a week.

This is TigerBlog's second go-round with weightlifting. The first time was back in college - back when Ronald Reagan was President.

He began to lift with his friends Charlie Frohman and Paul Glazer. They were bigger and way, way stronger than TigerBlog, who was a tad scrawny back then.

At first, TB could hardly bench press the bar, which is just 45 pounds. Well, maybe not quite that weak, but you get the point.

One of the best parts about lifting weights is the ability to set goals and then achieve them, if you put in the work. TigerBlog's first goal was 135 pounds in the bench, which would be the bar and a 45-pound plate on each side. Then he wanted to get to 185 and eventually 225, which was his ultimate goal, two 45-pound plates on each side.

And then he got there. It took maybe two years or so, but he got there. And then he stopped.

Now, basically 30 years later, he's gotten back into it, repeating the same program that Charlie had taught him all those years ago.

When he first did the bench press again, he remembered back to what Charlie had taught him all those years ago. When he attempted to show TB how far apart he should put his hands on the bar, he put two fists together from the end and had TB put his hand next to that. TigerBlog can still hear him as he said the unit of measure he had invented - "two Frohman hands,"  he called them.

So there was TB, with his hands two Frohman hands in from the edge of the bar, or at least what he estimated Frohman hands would be. And off he went.

TigerBlog was actually better than he thought right off the bat. Now, four months later, he is proud to say that he was able to bench 200 pounds the other day.

His goal is to beat 225 pounds and set a personal best. And then? Who knows. He'll get there though.

TB's spot is the Princeton Varsity Club weightroom, on E level in Jadwin Gym. His preferred time to work out is first thing in the morning.

It's not always empty in the weight room then. In fact, he often finds himself there at the same time as Princeton's out-of-season teams are there.

When TB first started at Princeton, there was no strength and conditioning program. He remembers Princeton's first strength and conditioning coach, or at least his self-appointed nickname - "the difference maker."

Today there is a very coordinated, very involved program for strength and conditioning.

The head coach of strength and conditioning at Princeton is Jason Gallucci. His assistants are Angie Brambley, James DeVincenzi and Terry Joria.

Jason spends his time the varsity weight room in the football stadium. TB mostly sees JD and Terry in the PVC weight room.

Oh, and he also sees Jeff Milliron, the volunteer assistant track and field coach. Jeff basically takes all of the weights in the room, puts them on the bar at once, adds big straps and rubber bands to them to make it even more challenging and then then lifts them. 

Actually, he's seen JD and Terry lift too. They bring a certain intensity to the proceedings.

The first thing about the weight room is the music. It's always loud, and it's never TigerBlog's choosing. He's gotten used to the grungy/metal music that seems to be preferred, to the point where he hardly hears it.

The teams that come in are working hard in advance of next year. It is here, in the weightroom, that a huge part of the progress that individual athletes and teams make is done.

How many times have you heard a coach or a commentator remark that so-and-so "needs to get in the weight room?" Well here they are, and they are working hard.

This is far away from any cheering crowds. This is far away from any competition date. This is far away from nice Princeton uniforms. This is far away from any sort of glory.

This is where the work gets done though. JD and Terry are in total control in their weight room.

There's a great sign outside the weight room that says: "This weight room has trained National Champions, All-Ameicas, Ivy League Champions and Olympic Qualifiers. Do not disgrace their efforts by giving anything less 100% when you step through these doors."

Do the athletes take it seriously? Do they appreciate what happens in that room?

Well, TigerBlog was at the women's tennis match Sunday, when the Tigers defeated Cornell to wrap up the outright Ivy League championship. After being awarded the trophy, the Tigers were given their trophy, and now it was time for all of the celebratory pictures.

At this point, Terry was there, standing in the background. Until the players called to him, asking him to join them in the picture. TigerBlog was touched by it, by the way the players were basically saying "hey, you're a part of why we're here now, you helped us get here, come celebrate with us."

Reluctantly, he did.

He's used to being in the background, in a place that isn't about anything other than working hard. It's not a place to be intimidated. It's not a place to cut corners. It's not a place where you can get away with less than maximum effort, because the results will speak for themselves.

For the last few months, it's been one of TB's favorite places on campus.

And he's come to appreciate, like the women's tennis players, just how much the people who work there mean to Princeton's athletic success.