Just about everyone can agree, we’re all super (DUPER) glad to be seeing 2016 in the rearview mirror. Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, you crazy year!

Nevertheless, there were a few good things to look back on. Perhaps you started playing roller derby this year – that’s pretty great! Or maybe you became an MVP Member here and started rocking your training with me? (High five!)

Here are my own highlights from the year…

• I sponsored and attended the Men’s Roller Derby World Cup in Calgary
• I tore the S%*t out of my ACL (boo), twice (double-boo!), and then had surgery to fix it (yay) in the fall!
• I coached at Camp Elite in Austin for a second year
• I created the first ever Sun’s Out Guns Out challenge this spring, and derby players everywhere loved getting pumped up and improving their push-ups and chin-ups :)
• I played at ECDX in Philly for the first time ever, and got to play against Charm City and Boston…
• I got to attend WFTDA Championships in Portland (wow!)
• My Facebook Page surpassed 36,000 fans
• I got to know and love so many great friends in Toronto…
• And just a few days ago, I moved back to Vancouver!

And through all of that, here at Roller Derby Athletics I kept pumping out free roller derby training tips, “Pre-Hab” injury avoidance exercises, at-home workouts, and training programs!

So as we give 2016 the old heave-ho and start looking forward to a fresh start with 2017, I wanted to share the absolute best of the blog from the last twelve months. These are the posts that got you talking, liking, sharing and – hopefully – getting a little better on your skates every single day.

These five articles had the most shares, likes and comments from my Facebook page this year – 2,626 between them, to be exact! (Just click the title or image to go straight to the article)

#5 Quicker Transitions & Faster Re-forming

I get into just a teensy bit of science in this one, and show why a strong, engaged core and a low stance can help you speed up your changes in direction, so you can reform a deadly-solid pack super quick!

#4 Do a Better Push-Up

In this post I debunked the two biggest mistakes I see most people making with their push-ups (mistakes that make them SO much harder!!), and gave you two great ways to modify push-ups so that improving is a breeze. Lemme see them guns!

#3 Build-a-Booty!

Not a Booty Quake… a Derby Booty! You know, the kind with super-strong glutes that will help power you through the pack, lean someone out of bounds, and give you explosive speed! In this Prehab post I give you all sorts of funky exercises to target your powerhouse muscles and get them working for you.

#2 My Quick & Dirty After-Derby Stretch

aka Flexibility Training with your skates on!

It’s great that this post was so popular, because anyone who’s going to roller derby practice should be doing some form of flexibility training! This little routine takes less than 10 minutes after scrimmage. It will result in a better night’s sleep, and better performance the next time you lace up.

And finally… drumroll please…

#1 The Secret of 1%: From Benchwarmer to MVP

This post shows how small, incremental, and consistent effort can have a massive effect. You don’t need to practice every day, or have natural born talent to improve at roller derby quickly. You just need to follow the Secret of 1%. And with a new year about to begin, it’s really a perfect place to start!

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Remember, you can find a ton of free prehab exercises, workouts, and articles on all aspects of roller derby training anytime on the Resources page, or by using the Search box at the top left of any page on this site. And you can check out my best work from 2015 in last year’s Top 7 post!