What are the two things we should practice the most in roller derby?

Jam starts (cause they are guaranteed to happen every single jam), and… plow stops! You can use stronger plow stops about a hundred times per jam so it’s a solid strategy to make sure yours are sharp as f*ck.

You need three main ingredients to have stronger plow stops:

1. Internal hip rotation. 
2. A strong hip and knee position (stability)
3. Adductor strength.

Plow stops put your body in an odd position, and then ask you to be really strong in that weird position. It’s a move rarely seen in any sport except for roller derby, where we use it a ton. So, as usual, we need to take some time to train smart off-skates to prepare our bodies for this weird-o movement, and facilitate success on skates.

In today’s quick video, I’ve got six simple moves that you can add to your training routines to start crushing your stops quickly.

[Apologies: the sound is not great in this video! There was a barking dog for, like, ever and about a hundred trucks drove by while I was filming. Bear with me! I think it’s time to invest in a better mic!]

You can add any of the exercises shown in the video as a warm-up or finisher to another workout, or you can choose three to four to do all in a row as part of your main workout for the day.  I don’t recommend maxing out sets and reps for moves #3 through #6 all in the same session, as you might not walk for a few days after :)

The Moves: 

I’ve listed suggested sets and reps both as a warmup option (WU) or as part of a workout (WO). 

1. 2-Way Hip Stretch – WU: 8-10 leans each side. Hold 2-3 seconds in each forward lean. WO: n/a
2. Weird Nameless Hip Stretch – WU: 8-10 per side. WO: n/a
3. Banded Squats – WU: 10-20 squats WO: up to 4x 20  
4. Banded Side Steps – WU: 8-10 steps in each direction, x2. WO: up to 3x 15 steps both ways
5. Monster Walks – WU:8-10 steps in each direction, x2. WO: up to 3x 15 steps forward and back
6. Banded Plow Step – WU: 5-8 each side WO:  3 sets of 10-15 per side.

Remember: You don’t need to do ALL of these exercises in a warm-up or finisher, if you’re just looking to get stronger plow stops by training regularly. Pick and choose a few different ones to try each time you work out.  

Hot Tip: Check out the Fix Your Squats video to make sure you’re using the correct body position for all the banded moves!!

Now go forth and plow like a badass!

xo Booty Quake

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PPS: Help me to name the Weird Nameless Hip Stretch – taking suggestions in the comments!