ATG Youth Development System

My simplest and most effective youth development system.

This is the simplest and most effective way I’ve put together a youth development system so far.

GOAL 1 of 4: How easily can you handle your body’s weight on one leg? Being able to do this smoothly and pain-free for 10 reps is the baseline I’m looking for.

NOTE #1: The ATG Split Squat is a smooth progression and WARM-UP for the single-leg squat above. It also helps balance out hip flexibility.

NOTE #2: The single-leg squat is a simple 3-step progression. I suggest using a bench or mobility box to work on this:

-off-leg assistance down and up

-off-leg assistance up only

-no assistance!

NOTE #3: I’m using the single-leg squat once per week and a slant squat in a 2nd workout each week. The slant squat assists in developing the knees and surrounding muscles with great success relative to the load needed.

GOAL 2 of 4: How easily can you handle your body’s weight with the BACK of your legs? 5 reps lowering, levitating, and coming back up, is the baseline I’m looking for.

NOTE #1: This exercise scales by bench angle (shown above).

NOTE #2: Youth can usually start by fighting on the way down and pushing back up with their hands. You only need a parent and a pad for world-class results on this exercise. The bench above simply makes it commercial-grade in terms of user-friendliness and scalability.

GOAL 3 of 4: How easily can you hold your own legs off the ground? 20 seconds is the baseline I’m looking for.

NOTE 1: You can start with bent knees and progress to straighter legs over time (shown above).

NOTE 2: You don’t have to have parallettes to do this exercise. You can work straight off the ground with 3 levels:

-holding one leg off the ground

-holding one leg AND butt off the ground

-holding both legs and butt off the ground

GOAL 4 of 4: How easily can you pull your body’s weight? 10 reps is the baseline I’m looking for.

NOTE: This is a smooth 4-step scale:

-hang

-hold top

-lower slowly

-full reps!

These 4 basics IN would produce a youth athlete with potentials far greater than if not put in.

The natural “freak” athletes can often do these things without any training!

I was NOT one of those athletes.

I reached my 20s having never dunked.

Now at age 33 I dunk with ease, and with FAR GREATER joint protection than the norm.

I know what it’s like to live with “bad genetics” AND with “freak genetics.”

The fundamental thing I did was change how easy it is to lift my body.

AND THROUGH FULL RANGES.

The broad miseducation of “no knee over toes” in the majority of college exercise science graduates resulted in countless millions of athletes not finding out what they’re truly made of.

I’m lucky to have found out my true potential.

And I don’t think “no knees over toes” was intentional or unreasonable.

Nonetheless, it was a mistake to restrict the body, and that restriction leaves a giant hole in modern training, which can make it virtually impossible for someone lacking natural athleticism to break free of a cycle of failures and injuries.

I believe with this simple recipe above you can now help many more athletes find out that sports could be much more fun than imagined.

MUCH MORE TRAINING DETAIL CAN GO INTO THIS SYSTEM - AND WILL.

I am nearing 2 years straight of writing weekly articles for you.

My kids are only 2 and 4, so I’ve got a lot more writing ahead for you on this subject!

Further things I would add, which I can detail in upcoming articles:

1. Sled, for physical and mental toughness WHILE being rehabilitative and strengthening the body from the TOES on up

2. Wall calf and tibialis raises for lower leg development to keep up with more powerful legs as a result of the goals listed above

3. Back extensions and QL raises for balanced core development as the body goes through puberty

4. Bodyweight rows to balance out the pull-ups, since each hits the upper back muscles differently

5. Full range of motion push-ups and overhead dumbbell presses for a balance of chest and shoulder pressing

6. Flexibility routine of slant calf, elephant walk, couch stretch, piriformis push-up, and standing pancake, for balanced flexibility of the lower body forward, backward, and side to side

You can find this all laid out as two weekly workouts in ATG Zero > ATG Youth Development System.

Thank you for reading and entertaining my unusual concepts and systems!

Yours in Solutions,

Ben

ATG

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