It is not unusual lately to see various sized tires around gyms and athletic fields. Some coaches and fitness trainers swear by them. Personally, I don’t. Now, I am not entirely opposed to incorporating tires into some training, but at the expense of what training? (Remember: “opportunity costs”.)
The most common exercises one is likely to see being performed are flips, deadlifts, farmer carries, partner pushes, and sledgehammer work. None of these meet the criteria for specificity, in my humble opinion, but, if variety is of interest, and one is willing to sacrifice other potential aspects of training, there can be some (limited) value. So, I’ll consider each of the aforementioned variations.
Tire flips. Most common of the tire exercises, tire flips are frequently performed by athletes and non-athletes, alike. They are praised for building explosive power, but do they? Rarely have I seen someone flip a tire in a truly explosive fashion. Perhaps because the tendency is to “go big or go home.”
One very important consideration is the definition of power. Power is the product of force and velocity (P = F x V). Power is optimally trained between 200 and 300 degrees per second. Much slower, we are looking training strength only. Much faster, we are looking at speed. My preference is to train strength with conventional strength training—e.g., traditional squats and deadlifts. Gains require overload. Thus, for tire flipping to be effective, the exercise must be performed at an appropriate angular velocity (200-300 deg/s) and allow for incremental progression of resistance (i.e., tire size)—something that is not very likely at most gyms.
I would leave the tire flipping to Strongman competitions. Football players, wrestlers, et al.? First, consider specificity. A better use of tires might be partner pushes. Olympic cleans are likely a superior option. I also love the explosive potential of Bulgarian bag training.
Deadlifts. Deadlifts are a great exercise. I consider them among the “basic 5”. The downside of tire deadlifts is the challenge of progression. In the long-run, the traditional deadlift is likely more beneficial. This is not to say that tire deadlifts might not add some “fun” to conditioning exercise.
Farmer carries. Tires are one of many variations of this popular conditioning activity. There is not necessarily anything wrong with farmer carries. Indeed, they are great for core bracing and stabilization. These also build grip strength in the hands and forearms. These are a great component of a conditioning workout, but we keep coming back to opportunity costs. If you have time and it fits your goals, then why not?
Partner pushes. If you want to keep the tires on the football field, then these might be the best use of them. I like this for linemen in football or any athlete who must absorb force and explode through the legs to counter this force. To perform the partner push, the athletes oppose each other in an athletic stance. Keeping the elbows in, the athlete drives with the legs and arms to propel the tire toward the partner. The partner receives the tire and returns it explosively to the other. Performed with good technique and explosively, these have a place in conditioning drills.
Sledgehammer work. If you don’t have the good fortune of working a construction job that requires you swing a heavy sledgehammer, then you might want to do these for some “fun” conditioning. Like tire flips, these are intended to develop power—in the opposite direction. Unlike the heavy tire flip, the sledgehammer motion (or motions—the swing can be varied) is more likely to be performed with sufficient velocity. It also requires acceleration and deceleration of the core muscles (like the Bulgarian bag). On top of it all, it is great for releasing one’s frustrations.
Cardio workout? Tire circuits are often performed for cardiovascular benefits. (Need I address these so-called “Tabata” workouts, again?) These are certainly not going to greatly improve one’s maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max), but they are beneficial to general conditioning and fat loss. For athletes, they are also good team builders.
Overall, I would leave tires to be recycled, but, if you have them, use them for a bit of “fun”. Be cautious, though, in how and how often you use them. Consider your goals and the positive alternatives to achieving these goals. Choose wisely.
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