LOCATION: WHEN: August 3, 2013
START TIME: 9 AM

The ULTIMATE ATHLETE' CHALLENGE will be comprised of  6 events- 2 strong man events, 2 power lifting events, and 2 Crossfit events. Open to both men and women.

More details to follow

Eric Angevine
Apr 6, 2013, 8:27 PM EDT

I originally ran this article on December 1, 2012, when we barely knew who Cleanthony Early was. The story happened to run on the same day that coaching legend Rick Majerus passed away, so it was understandably overshadowed. Now that Cle is playing on college basketball's biggest stage, it's worth a second look.

Anthony came out of Pine Bush, NY as a slender, lightly recruited kid, blossomed in junior college, and is now starring in the Final Four as a 683, 215-lb. junior for Wichita State. I spoke with Rick Scarpulla, a trainer and Power Lifting coach at West Point, about how he helped build Early into a DI athlete.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

Here's A few of our most recent athletes for those who care to look. No current HS athletes are mentioned. Only college and up! 

CrossFit is a strength sport that requires endurance, not an endurance sport that requires strength. Read that line again. The way you approach that statement and the sport will clearly dictate how much success you will have.

Lets face it: CrossFitters claim to be the fittest people on earth  not the strongest people on earth  yet the top upper echelon sure are strong as well as fit. That is because they are working onabsolute strengthmore then worrying about met-con ability.

Click here to read the rest of this article: http://www.tabatatimes.com/rick-scarpulla-reorder-your-priorities-strength-first-then-cardio/  

When it comes to combine training, the three big questions people ask are: (1) What can I do to get a faster 40? (2) How can I add more reps to my Bench? and (3) What is the secret to a higher vertical jump? Regardless of what any coach or fitness guru might be selling you, the answer is the same in each case. Speed, strength and leaping ability do not result from a six-week package for a certain dollar amount. They are achieved only through a long and arduous process.

Click here to read the full article: http://www.stack.com/2013/02/05/combine-training/

Rick Scarpulla knows a thing or two about strength training. He is currently the head strength and conditioning coach for the United States Military Academy at West Point's powerlifting team, and is the creator of the Ultimate Athlete Training Program. He has also trained numerous high school, college, and professional athletes and conducts CrossFit seminars all over the world.

He's here now to share his knowledge about getting strong with all of you. So go ahead and ask him whatever questions you've got about fitness and strength training. He's here to help.

Click http://deadspin.com/5972857/4 to view the CHAT

I feel like Ive hit a plateau in all of my lifting  especially my bench press. I cant get past certain weights and Ive tried everything. Is it possible that I just cant get any stronger?  Tim, 23, Fresno, California

Everyone, regardless of age or gender, can ALWAYS get stronger. So get the plateau idea right out of your head. In most cases, the issue is a weakness in one or more of the supporting muscle groups. Here are a few quick tips that will help immediately:

First, constantly rotate your exercises. For example, if start with an incline bench this workout, next workout begin with a flat bench or decline. Next, focus on the supporting muscle groups and work those with heavy volume. In this instance, since your example was bench press, this would mean working the triceps, upper back, lats and shoulders. Notice I didnt say work the chest because it is not a primary muscle group in the bench press. Put your hand on your chest and do a bench press motion and you will notice your pecs dont move at all. The primary function of the chest involves a horizontal movement of the arms across the body  not pushing things away from the body.

Click here to view the entire article: http://guyspeed.com/why-cant-i-get-any-stronger-ask-coach-rick-scarpulla/

Many people ask me what it takes to reach the top levels in any given sport, and they all want silver bullet answers. While there are many factors contributing to an athletes success, the main one is quite simple: hard work.

Thats what it takes if you want to succeed in sports or life or love or anything else. It seems that point has gotten lost or forgotten or just plain ignored.

To view this full article click the following link: http://www.tabatatimes.com/rick-scarpulla-are-you-working-hard-enough/  

Coach Rick Scarpulla of Ultimate Advantage has established why its important to build a strong foundation in absolute strength. This week he gives us insight into what accessory work is and why it matters if you really want to improve your numbers and your WOD times alike. If you have your eye on achieving elite fitness, accessory work is a must.

Read the full article here: http://www.tabatatimes.com/accessory-work/

Before Rick Scarpulla showed up and turned the Army team around, West Point wasn't known for churning out champion powerlifters. Scarpulla's own team demolished West Point at a meet in 2002, and one of the Army freshman approached him after the competition, hoping he could teach the cadets a few things.

"Not long after, I came home and my wife said, 'Honey, West Point called,'" Scarpulla says. "I had no idea why they'd be calling, but turns out they wanted me to be their permanent coach."

Read the full article here: http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/training-day/201211/rick-scarpulla-west-point-strength-powerlifting 

In our Coach's Corner this week, we have renowned
coach Rick Scarpulla of Ultimate Advantage to answer your training questions. Here he explains why the name of the game regardless of your sport of choice is absolute strength, especially for CrossFitters who are looking to lower their WOD times.

Be forewarned: Coach Rick keeps it real, so gird your proverbial loins. Whos up for his challenge?

http://www.tabatatimes.com/absolute-strength-is-the-key/  

Coach Rick Scarpulla, creator of the Ultimate Athlete Training Program, is a highly sought after and hugely successful coach working with and training top athletes on a daily basis. He is considered by many as one of the nations best in the field. As both athlete and coach, Coach Scarpulla has studied under and is affiliated with some of the worlds top speed and strength coaches and athletes  from the youngest athletes all the way up to Olympians and NFL professionals and more  for over 30 years. He still studies daily to continue to improve his education and is always striving to improve his knowledge and skills.

Read more at: http://www.tabatatimes.com/ultimate-athlete-rick-scarpulla/

CONGRATULATIONS go out to Shawn Flannigan who became a WORLD CHAMPION in Vegas this past weekend Big Guns won the 220 bench press open and set the police/fire world record with a 445lb raw bench. Congratulations to UA's Golden Empire Training and Coach Tim Nakiahima Great job really proud of you boys!!!

We Are Ultimate Advantage!!!

Gotta throw a special shout out to Bryce Gioia who is simply tearing it up in football at Our Lady of Lordes H.S. He is a machine.

Anyone who knows him knows how hard he works and it is showing bigtime. He is rushing for 3 or 4 TD's and 275 yards a game plus a stud on defense. ALL-STATE coming up. He is one of our studs.You Just Can't Stop Him- We Are Ultimate Advantage!!!

This has been a great summer at U.A. We have been doing a lot of athlete training at our facility and also released the first wave of The Ultimate Athlete Training Program seminars. We have been having a blast teaching everyone about our new program... 

Army Powerlifting was glad to hold the annual Special Olympic powerlifting meet last weekend at West Point. 20+ lifters all competed and did great! All great lifters and all with great nicknames Some had nicknames like "Sugarbear" and the "Captain" ,"Blacksmith" and Happy.

 Now that spring is here it is baseball season again here are a few simple tips and drills to easily do to increase your speed on the base path. No matter what level of baseball or softball you play stealing bases is a fun and exciting part of the game. Her's a few simple drills to help you get faster!

Cleanthony Early is one of the top junior college basketball players in the country.

And next year, Early a sophomore at SUNY Sullivan, plans on making an impact on an even bigger stage. He is set to play at Wichita State, a perennial top 25 team in the Missouri Valley Conference.

Early, an explosive 6-foot-8 power forward, will converge on Wichita State faster and stronger, thanks to Rick Scarpulla and Ultimate Advantage Training Facility. In preparation for big-time basketball and, perhaps, March Madness, Early worked out with Scarpulla.

ULTIMATE ADVANTAGE TRAINING CENTER is now on facebook.