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December 06, 2004
Not The Whole Truth On Steroids
During an AOL chat session this weekend, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman fielded a couple of questions about steroids: Bettman said the NHL has "been fortunate that it hasn't been a problem for us as it may have been for other sports" and said the sport's medical experts believe steroids aren't as much of a booster in hockey "because what it does to your body is inconsistent with what your body has to do to be a successful hockey player." While I don't have any information at all regarding steroid use in the NHL (though abuse of stimulants is pretty much acknowledged openly), Bettman seems to be relying on the old saw that weight training will only make athletes slow and muscle bound -- and that's simply not true. As for the benefits of weight training, Jaromor Jagr attributes his skating explosiveness to hundreds of thousands of squats he did as a child growing up in the Czech Republic. How do steroids fit into the mix? Use steroids, and you can work out longer, and recover more quickly -- allowing you to return to the gym more often. For more on the benefits of weight training in hockey, click here. For more on lower body training, click here. And thanks to Dave Pinto for some link help.
Eric
01:10 PM
Trackback PingsTrackBack URL for this entry: CommentsThis is more proof that the NHL is more ass-backwards than MLB... Sadly. Teams go bankrupt, the commish doesn't know the game that well and the the Players Union is less of a Union and more of a spoiled-rich-boy club... I doubt that Gary or anyone else in the Owners circle decides to negotiate mandetory drug testing into the new CBA.... It's sorta like Selig passing on dealing with the DH or other game-related issues to deal with the financial workings of baseball, which has sullie dthe reputation of the sport. Posted by: at December 6, 2004 05:08 PM Before dissing Bettman, it might be worthwhile examining steroids effectiveness in various sports. For instance, creatine, according to Dr. John Hathcock, vice president of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, is essential for providing that extra thrust of power, critical to hitting a baseball with an added jolt, short distance track events and weightlifting. However, it provides little benefit to "a sport where the athlete is in constant motion," such as soccer, basketball or hockey. It begs the question, what effect do steroids have on the game of ' jumping to conclusions'. ;) Posted by: at December 7, 2004 12:52 AM Post a commentThanks for signing in, . (If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.) |