Alright team, just finished sweating buckets practicing those army QB stiff arm drills. Man, it was something else. Wanna share the whole ugly-beautiful mess step by step like I always do. No sugarcoating!
First Attempt: Total Clown Show
Jumped into it way too eager this morning. Grabbed my old football, walked over to the open patch of grass near the parking lot. Thought, “How hard can pushing an imaginary defender be?” HA. Famous last words. Tried running while stiff-arming my water bottle taped to a chair leg. Looked like a toddler learning to run. My feet got tangled, stumbled forward, nearly ate dirt. Water bottle went flying. Absolutely embarrassing.
Switching Gears: Watching & Grinding
Okay, humble pie eaten. Pulled out my phone, found a quick clip of a college QB drill session – nothing fancy, just guys doing it plain and simple. Key things I spotted:
- Low center, legs wide: Crouched down lower than I thought.
- Arm like a freakin’ steel rod: Straight out, not floppy chicken wing.
- Push THROUGH, not tap: This ain’t polite shoving.
Back to the taped-up water bottle victim. Stood really low, felt kinda stupid. Held my right arm straight out, locked the elbow. Big breath. Ran at the bottle and shoved like I hated its guts. CRUNCH. Not the bottle, thankfully, but that sound it made hitting the ground? Oh yeah. Felt way better. Arms felt like Jell-O after ten reps though. Wobbly city.
The Muscle Murder Phase
Switched arms for the left side. Disaster. My left arm might as well be a wet noodle. Couldn’t hold it straight while running. Kept bending the elbow. Bottle barely moved. Got mad. Shouted a bit (sorry neighbors). Focused only on keeping that left arm dead straight like a tree branch. Push through, push through, push through. Think I got maybe five decent pushes out before my shoulder started screaming. Felt like carrying bricks.
Lightbulb Moment… And Lunch
Stepped back, gasping. Realized I was stiff arming at the wrong spot. Kept hitting high on the “defender” – like pushing their shoulder. Saw in the video again: they hit lower, around the chest plate or upper arm pad. Aim lower! Next attempt, I shoved that bottle right where its “chest” would be. Boom! It went down way faster, much easier to control my body after. Finally got it around lunch time.
Putting It Slightly Together (For Now)
After scarfing down lunch, tried putting a tiny jog together with the arm motion. Not running full speed, just a slow jog. Right arm still felt solid. Left arm… let’s not talk about it. Managed to keep the motion cleaner as long as I remembered:
- Stay LOW (legs burn reminders)
- Arm STRAIGHT (left elbow is the enemy)
- Aim LOWER (chest level, not head high)
- Push PAST (commit to the shove)
Messed up maybe half the time. Dropped the ball twice. But felt it clicking sometimes! Biggest win? Didn’t trip over my own feet again.
Leaving the Field
Packed up, arms like lead pipes, sweat dripping everywhere. Feel like I wrestled a bear, not a water bottle. It ain’t perfect, especially the weak left side. Gotta build that arm/shoulder strength slowly. But hey, got the basic feel down after hours of being terrible at it. Grit beats pretty form any day. Back at it tomorrow. Probably whining just as much.
