In the high school space, coaches regularly debate the need to keep things simple in training our student-athletes. This is a concept I definitely support but with a caveat: I believe in keeping things simple for the athlete but not limiting the tools or protocols I use to prepare.

From the coaching side, the way I approach programming, technology use, professional development, and other parts of my career does not need to be simple—those just need to be actionable with realistic means. In my current role, we are blessed to have access to a large variety of performance technology. In fact, our student-athletes have the opportunity to use so much that we take week-long “technology breaks” a few times a year just to de-load. Consequently, I replace the word “simple” with “actionable” when it comes to my use of technology and data collection.

Over the last decade, I have tested and used more technology than I could possibly list: some never made it to the floor with our student-athletes; some became a daily staple. During that time, the one technology piece that did not appear simple for our athletes or me was force plates.

• Did we need that much information?
• How difficult would the process of set-up and collection be?
• Would we be swimming in so much data that taking action on it would be impossible?

Luckily for our program, I had the opportunity to get answers to those questions and more. Force plates were not only extremely simple and intuitive to use for all involved, but they also provided an insight that proved to be a force multiplier for our data collection and action protocols.

[bctt tweet="Force plates are not only extremely simple and intuitive to use, but they also provide an insight that proved to be a force multiplier for our data collection & action protocols, says @MarkHoover71."]

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Missteps and Course Corrections with Hawkin Dynamics Force Plates

Early last spring, I acquired a set of custom-made Hawkin Dynamics (HD) force plates, along with a Zeus isometric rig. Unpacking the equipment, I still had questions about the feasibility of using force plates in a high school setting. As with much of the current technology for athletic development, you have to be cautious about falling into the trap of data overload. In fact, this proved to be my initial misstep when getting started with the force plates.

Hawkin’s ease of use had me up and running at full speed in a day—to my personal detriment, unfortunately. That extreme ease of use and expansive list of tests and metrics at my fingertips really led to self-inflicted data overload syndrome. My first week or so was spent trying out every cool test I’d seen on social media. I spent hours looking at every possible metric for our athletes: unilateral breaking force percentage, breaking force RFD, all possible types of left versus right deficiencies…it was all fascinating and got my mind running over possibilities. I found myself wading so deep through the weeds of potential uses that I lost sight of my goal: collecting actionable data to guide training.

At that point, I reached out and had conversations with several people who had more extensive backgrounds training with force plates. I needed guidance to keep myself in check. I discovered that I needed to step out of the weeds and develop a plan that would allow me to unleash actionable metrics that could be collected organically within the normal context of a training session.

Best Advice: “First Inventory What You Do”

The advice I received was to perform an inventory of our training templates. We needed to pinpoint:

1. Where the use of force plates fit.
2. How often they could be utilized.
3. Exactly what tests would give us the actionable information we sought.

What could we realistically use in our setting and time frame? We have 800 square feet, five power racks, a room full of teenagers, and about 35 minutes to get the job done. The answer was in a protocol we had been using already, the performance circuit.

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Force Plates in Performance Circuits

Recently, I wrote an article about using performance circuits (inspired by Cal Dietz) and how that protocol solved many of the issues we faced at Metrolina Christian Academy. The same solution helped us fit the use of force plates into our training program.

Considering we had three days a week to train and the time and space limitations I previously described, it became apparent that we would be limited to no more than three tests per week (one per training session). The flow of the session and time restrictions we faced would not allow us to do multiple tests in a day (as I had originally intended). So, I narrowed it down to:

1. Isometric mid-thigh pull. We chose IMTP (despite a learning curve of proper technique) because we knew we wanted one test that would give us a look into peak force outputs. I wanted a true test of the strength levels of our athletes.
2. Step-off altitude drop with an immediate rebound jump (from a 24-inch box). The drop jump is important because I wanted to measure peak braking forces with an immediate re-acceleration. We wanted a way to look at deceleration abilities, but also if we were improving the power and speed that we were able to bounce from that sudden landing.
3. Three-rep countermovement pogo jump with hands on hips. The countermovement jump would give us a Reactive Strength Index metric to measure our in-season fatigue, among other things.

I sat down and selected seven basic metrics from those three tests that I felt would give me insight into how athletes were adapting to the stress of our training. Our final protocol looked like this:

• IMTP: max peak force and time to max peak force.
• DJ: max peak braking force, max jump height, and mean propulsive force.
• CMJ: average modified RSI and body weight.

For more on the difference between RSI and mRSI or any metrics/tests available from Hawkin Dynamics, please look here.

[bctt tweet="Within 2 weeks of beginning these protocols, the need for a coach to help the athletes use the technology was eliminated—the HD app is extremely user-friendly, and the athletes flew through the reps."]

Here is an example of our in-season performance circuits, which we used with our varsity football athletes this season. We programmed anywhere from three to five rounds of these circuits depending on in-season variables. Regardless, we only prescribed two sets of force plate testing. Within two weeks of beginning these protocols, the need for a coach to help the athletes use the technology was eliminated—the HD app is extremely user-friendly, and the athletes flew through the reps.

In the end, the force plates became the easiest and smoothest technology we had available at our disposal, surprisingly even faster than ShredMill or EnodePro, which the athletes also picked up in no time. Hawkin is intuitive and fast to use. We were able to teach the athletes the procedures, allowing them to create a student-athlete-led data collection process that gave us valuable and actionable information.

Here is an example report from RockDaisy (its API works with HD) that allowed us to review each athlete’s historical data.

Another custom report we used for quick reference in RockDaisy was the Daily Metric Report, which kept up with rolling averages and maxes over a sortable period. It also provided team and positional information with just a click of a tab.

Individualizing and Managing Training with Force Plate Data

Our experience with HD force plates has been smooth and successful. The data proved to be extremely valuable and actionable when it came to planning and monitoring our week-to-week adaptations.

[bctt tweet="We use Hawkin Dynamics force plates in coordination with our GPS data to give us a multi-layered platform to individualize practice and training plans, says @MarkHoover71."]

We used Hawkin in coordination with our GPS data to give us a multi-layered platform to individualize practice and training plans. We found that when we narrowed the focus of our testing, the data collection was fast, simple, and athlete-driven. Overall, I have discovered that force plates are not just a luxury; they are a practical asset to our athlete’s health and performance plans.

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The post Making Elite Tech Accessible: How to Use Force Plates at the High School Level appeared first on SimpliFaster.

While listening to Episode 4 of Season 4 of the Voodoo Strength podcast (featuring Brandon Herring), the versatility of Jim Wendler’s 5-3-1 program came up as a topic. It reminded me of an application I’ve used in recent training programs. Most readers of this blog will certainly recognize the 5-3-1 as a foundational program featuring a simple loading scheme aimed at developing strength in the weight room. For those who don’t know, I encourage them to read Jim’s work in its entertaining and elegant simplicity.

One facet of the 5-3-1 program I’ve delved deeper into this past year is the “First Set Last” concept. In FSL, the first working set (65%, 70%, or 75%) of the workout is repeated as supplemental work with the same or a slight variation of the main lift. Two typical applications of FSL outlined in Wendler’s 5-3-1 are:

1. The FSL 5x5.
2. The “Widowmaker” set.

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Applying 5-3-1 in Performance Training

For my programming, I’ve used the former a bit more than the latter. The 65%–75% zones work perfectly as a three-week wave for power applications. This is a bucket I fill with athletes who I know are doubling up with other programs (school) and seem to focus on the heavy end of the strength curve.

[bctt tweet="The ‘First Set Last’ 65%–75% zones work perfectly as a three-week wave for power applications."]

The lion’s share of Wendler’s FSL application is in the five sets of five following the main sets. The author states, “The biggest reason why I like using 5x5 FSL is bar speed is never compromised.”¹ In my experience, the FSL 5x5 performed after main work enhances the PAP effect from main sets, allowing further precise practice of the lift while simultaneously building power. I’ve also used FSL 5x5 as the main work of the day for a “dynamic effort” type of feel. This helps if you are a bit beat up or lacking that snap, as the moderate loads moved quickly aid in garnering the power response.

The second way to do this (FSL) is to perform a “Widowmaker set”—a term borrowed from Dante Trudel’s Doggcrapp program, where 15–20 reps are done for a single set.¹ This can work wonders for the newer athletes that need a shotgun response. With the main sets serving as high-quality practice, the FSL WM set of 15–20 hits everything from hypertrophy to work capacity to strain ability (much like the effect of 1x20), not to mention its mental kick in the butt.

The FSL 5x5 is easy to program and, if using an appropriate training max, helps athletes recover more easily. It does not interfere with on-field abilities, allowing your gym work to stay in line with all-around progress. This then makes the FSL 5x5 template sustainable over a longer period.¹ For athletes in our program, the FSL is a “fail-safe”: whether it’s programmed as added volume or done as main work, for sets of five or higher reps, we can use FSL loads for power or hypertrophy work at points in the training year when such effects are called for.

Why the 5-3-1 Works

As a coach who routinely ponders the why behind training effects, I often dip my feet into both practice and science in search of where best practices and examination overlap. This search led me to the work of Dr. Matt Rhea and his study of “Optimal Resistance Load for Peak Power in Various Exercises.” His findings revealed some eye-opening aspects of weight-room work in relation to power development in American football.

“We have significantly altered our training focus from strength to power over the past 10 years among football players. This change is due to: A) football is a speed/power sport; B) improvements in strength with a power-focused program were occurring simultaneous to power whereas power was not improving significantly with a strength-focused program. In an effort to maximize power development, we have been investigating different training loads and their impact on acute peak power. What is the best % of 1RM for eliciting peak power in a given lift?”

Rhea’s investigation tracked peak power outputs in the back squat, bench press, hang clean, split squat, rear elevated squat, power clean, incline bench press, and hang high pull over the course of a year and a half. No more than five reps per set were done (very 5-3-1-like). Rhea found that 63% of 1RM showed the highest peak power, with 60%–75% appearing to be a consistently high power range across the various exercises.

[bctt tweet="If success leaves clues, we can clearly see the ‘First Set Last’ ranges (65%/70%/75%, respectively) fit nicely into this peak power range."]

If success leaves clues, we can clearly see the FSL ranges (65%/70%/75%, respectively) fit nicely into this peak power range. Although each percentage is a precise piece of data collected from the most elite of elite athletes in Rhea’s findings, we can certainly distill the application down to using the FSL loading for developing athletes. Where Rhea’s studies reinforce the concept with precision, Jim’s coach’s eye led him to witness the positive effect on power.

Not one to leave personal interpretation and implementation on the table, I’ve recently employed two other ways to use the FSL to drive power adaptations. In using the traditional application, FSL 5x5, I simply track average velocity (using Flex Stronger units) across the whole set with the intent of moving the barbell as fast as possible. I’ll wave the percentages over three weeks, rinse, and repeat, aiming to set personal bests in velocity each session. As athletes grow stronger, you can even drop to five sets of three, which is also a great volume control when in camp or in season.

In my recent work with a female soccer team, I have been challenged by how to get enough high-quality work in a short amount of time—I’m given 15 minutes once a week for strength work (yes, 15 minutes is all I get). Much of this stems from the fear that:

• “Lifting will make them too sore to practice.”
• “Lifting is dangerous and will make them tight.”
• “We don’t want them to look like boys.”

Yes, we’re still battling this nonsense from a few naive parents and coaches, but we must press on!

Relative to an earlier point, these loads lend themselves to work along the power and hypertrophy spectrum. For the bulk of the team sport athletes I get who are in season or training in other activities, the 3–5-rep sets help preserve power quality; for the undersized athletes that need some muscle, the 10s are the spark for muscle building.

Given the constraint above, I thought, “Why not incorporate both?” What I mean here is if 10 reps at these percentages give us a structural response and 3–5 can keep power quality…why not use a cluster-style approach for 10(ish) total reps per set?

[bctt tweet="What I mean here is if 10 reps at these percentages give us a structural response and 3–5 can keep power quality…why not use a cluster-style approach for 10(ish) total reps per set?"]
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To accomplish this, we use a cluster approach in the hex bar deadlift and a squat variation affectionately dubbed “Rapid Fire.” We break up the set of 10 into three mini-sets of three (nine total reps) or five mini-sets of two reps. To create more training density, we have added 2–3 box or long jumps immediately afterward. Here, the athletes go in a “follow the leader” fashion, and if weights need to be adjusted, they work as a team to load and unload each other’s bar.

Typically, we have groups of 4–5, and they can whiz through a “Rapid Fire” set in about 90 seconds—during the rest period, they each perform one set of predetermined reps in an upper body push or pull and a trunk exercise. The total set takes 3–4 minutes—we rest for a little and then go again.

For us, attaching a number to the execution of bar speed is key in driving home intent and purpose with otherwise disregarded loads. The “Rapid Fire” approach has filled the buckets of providing a higher-quality volume of work while driving a team-building environment, given the constraint of time. From the coaching side, these applications have allowed my program to be science-guided, principles-based, and inventive simultaneously.

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References

1. 5-3-1 Forever: Simple & Effective Programming for Size, Speed, & Strength. Wendler, Jim. 2017. p. 59.

2. Rhea, Matt. “Optimal Resistance Load for Peak Power In Activity,” Linkedin.

The post The Versatility of 5-3-1: Applying the “First Set Last” Concept appeared first on SimpliFaster.

The hex bar deadlift is a primary strength exercise in athletic fitness programs from middle school to college, and hex bar jumps have become popular for improving explosiveness. The hex bar also has many advantages over dumbbells. That said, there are a few downsides to using this unique bar too often, particularly with maximum weights.

I have a unique perspective on the pros and cons of hex bar training because I worked at Bigger Faster Stronger (BFS). BFS introduced the hex bar to the strength coaching community and promoted the hex bar deadlift for nearly four decades through their magazine and clinics.

[bctt tweet="BFS introduced the hex bar to the strength coaching community and promoted the hex bar deadlift for nearly four decades through their magazine and clinics."]

Before the hex bar, BFS championed the straight bar deadlift as a core lower-body exercise for athletic performance. Their weekly program design for their core lifts was organized as follows:

Monday                                Wednesday                            Friday

Box Squat                             Power Clean                            Back Squat

Towel Bench Press               Deadlift                                   Bench Press

The downside of this program was that BFS found that athletes often rounded their lower back when deadlifting maximum loads, increasing the risk of injury. As a precaution, they said athletes should recruit a spotter during their heaviest sets to protect the spine (yes, you can spot a deadlift).

Spotting a deadlift involves having a spotter place one arm across the athlete’s chest and the other on the lower back. If the spotter felt the athlete's lower back rounding during the lift, they would tell them to drop the bar. BFS coaches demonstrated this spotting technique at their clinics, often with participants attempting maximal weights.

Of course, we're talking about 40+ years ago, and this hands-on spotting technique would not fly in today’s strength coaching environment. That is why BFS was excited to discover the trap bar in the early 80s.

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Enter the Trap Bar

The trap bar was introduced to the Iron Game in 1986 by Al Gerard, a powerlifter with a history of lower back pain. To continue training heavy, Gerard developed a four-sided barbell that looked like two triangles arranged base to base, which he called the trap bar. Gerard would step inside the bar, grasping the handles with his hands at his sides rather than in front. This design put the bar’s center of mass (COM) in line with his body's COM throughout the entire lift.

Gerard found that the triangle design of the trap bar enabled him to lift the bar with a more upright stance. This postural change shifted the stress away from his lower back and hamstring muscles and onto his quads. And unlike a sumo deadlift that requires a wide foot stance, a hip- or shoulder-width stance could be used with a trap bar.

It’s challenging for many beginners to assume the optimal starting position on a deadlift. At the start of a conventional deadlift, the lower back should have a slight arch to shift the stress from the disks to the muscles and connective tissues. With your hands at your sides, the shoulders are pulled back, making it easier to arch the lower back.

BFS found that the trap bar also helped athletes lift more weight in the squat, but not so much from a physical standpoint. Bob Rowbotham, the CEO of BFS, says lifting heavy loads with the trap bar gives athletes the confidence to try heavier weights in the back squat. For example, if an athlete can back squat 200 pounds and works up to a 300-pound trap bar deadlift, they will have more confidence when attempting a back squat of 205 pounds or more.

[caption id="attachment_14823" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 1. The spotted deadlift (left) helped athletes maintain the proper back angle during the exercise, whereas the triangular shape of the trap bar made spotting unnecessary. Eric Lechner (right) played eight seasons in the NBA and is shown performing a trap bar deadlift.  (Photos courtesy BFS magazine.)[/caption]
The trap bar was a great idea—the hex bar was even better.

BFS found that a trap bar easily tipped backward and forward and didn't provide enough legroom for larger athletes—note how cramped the basketball player is in Image 1. This later point was particularly important to BFS because, at the time, their coaches were working with the Utah Jazz.

One solution was a hexagonal (six-sided) design. This design didn’t tilt as easily and offered considerably more legroom. The hex bar was an immediate hit with athletes, especially football players at the high school level. Strength coaches and PE instructors preferred the hex bar deadlift over the straight bar deadlift because it was easier to master and students were less likely to round their lower back.

As more athletes used the hex bar, BFS saw a need to develop several other types of hex bars. One popular version was a “combo” hex bar with regular handles as well as high handles to accommodate taller athletes so they didn’t have to bend down so far. This bar was followed by a heavy duty, 75-pound “Mega” hex bar. This bar had thicker, raised handles and longer sleeves that could hold considerably more weight for stronger athletes. But the evolution of the hex bar didn’t stop there.

[caption id="attachment_14824" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 2. The hex bar (top) was followed by the development of a high-handled “combo” hex bar (middle) and a heavy duty “Mega” hex bar for stronger athletes (bottom). (Photos courtesy BFS magazine.)[/caption]
Other equipment manufacturers caught on and began producing unique hex bars, such as one with an open-back design. Several equipment companies designed hex bars with rotating handles that offer different grips, and now there are even larger units than the Mega hex bar. BFS also saw the need for a 15-pound aluminum bar, which was suitable for children and for beginners performing hex bar jumps.

[caption id="attachment_14825" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 3. A 15-pound aluminum bar is available for children and is often used for hex bar jumps. There are also hex bars with rotating handles that offer a variety of grips. (Jump photo courtesy BFS)[/caption]

Before going further, let's see if all this attention to the hex bar is deserved by reviewing some research.

The Science of Hex Bars

The increasing popularity of hex bars captured the attention of sports scientists who wanted to verify that the bar did what its proponents claimed. Let’s start with the belief that hex bar deadlifts produce less stress on the spine than straight bar deadlifts.

One study that compared the straight bar deadlift to the hex bar deadlift was published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. The authors found that the hex bar “significantly increased the peak movement at the knee and significantly decreased the peak movement at the lumbar spine and hip compared to the deadlifts performed with the straight barbell.” To use the popular terminology, the hex bar deadlift would be considered a “quad-dominant” exercise, and the straight bar deadlift would be a “hip-dominant” exercise.

[bctt tweet="To use the popular terminology, the hex bar deadlift would be considered a “quad-dominant” exercise, and the straight bar deadlift would be a “hip-dominant” exercise."]

[caption id="attachment_14826" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 4. The hex bar shifts the center of the bar closer to the athlete’s center of mass, increasing the work of the quads and decreasing the work of the lower back. (Photos courtesy BFS)[/caption]

As for the value of hex bar jumps for developing explosiveness, another JSCR study found that vertical jumps performed with a hex bar were superior to vertical jumping with a straight bar on your shoulders. The researchers concluded, “The results of the present study demonstrate that if the resistance is moved from the shoulder to arms’ length using a hexagonal barbell, the athlete can jump higher and generate greater force, power, velocity and rate of force development.”

One reason the hex bar may be superior to barbell squat jumps is that the upper body is more involved with a hex bar jump. The shoulders can shrug while jumping with a hex bar, whereas the shoulders are motionless during a barbell jump. (You can prove the contribution of the upper body by jumping off a contact mat with your hands on your hips and then using your arms—you should be able to jump several inches higher when using your arms.)

Moving on, the researchers said, “The continuous frame of the hexagonal barbell will provide several advantages over dumbbells, including improved stability and greater capacity to apply a wider range of loads.” I would add that jumping with dumbbells is an excellent way to develop nasty bruises on your thighs.

[caption id="attachment_14827" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 5. Research has shown that the hex bar jump is superior to the barbell squat jump. (Photos used with permission, Paul A. Swinton.)[/caption]

Hex bar deadlifts and hex bar jumps are two of the most popular exercises performed with hex bars, but there are many other uses for these bars. Here are six of them:

1. Shoulder Shrugs. Having your arms positioned at your sides enables you to raise them higher than with a straight bar. To save time, BFS recommends that after the last rep of a set of deadlifts, while still erect, finish off with a few shoulder shrugs.

Another shrug variation, made popular by Mr. America Steve “Hercules” Reeves, involves grasping the inside plates rather than the handles. This “pinch grip” technique would be valuable for wrestlers and other athletes who need a strong grip. For more on shoulder shrugs, check out Kelso’s Shrug Book, a classic by Paul Kelso published in 1992.

[bctt tweet="Hex bar shoulder shrugs with a “pinch grip” technique would be valuable for wrestlers and other athletes who need a strong grip."]

2. Push-ups. The push-up has been criticized for placing excessive stress on the wrists. This variation is performed with a high-handled hex bar. These handles allow the wrist to be aligned with the forearms, reducing the stress on the wrists; this is better than using many types of dumbbells, which can move. As a bonus, the high handles allow for a greater range of motion.

3. “W” Overhead Press. Paul Gagné, a Canadian strength coach and Posturologist, taught me this exercise. A neutral grip (palms facing each other) is considered easier on the shoulders than the pronated grip used in a military press. It is also more stable than dumbbells, increasing the amount of weight you can use. However, the setup is tricky with heavier weights; it’s best to rest the bar inside a power rack and step under it.

4. Split Squat. Open-back hex bars are ideal for split squats, including rear-leg-elevated split squats. It can be awkward to perform this exercise with dumbbells because you must bend down low to pick them up. The hex bar enables heavier weights to be used because it’s more stable than dumbbells and you can pick up the weights from a higher height. 

[caption id="attachment_14829" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 6. A hex bar with an open-back design enables athletes to perform more exercises, such as split squats. Shown is Daniel Sarisky, a sprinter majored in International Public Affairs and Economics at Brown University.[/caption]

5. Rear-Leg-Elevated Split Squats. I have issues with today’s strength coaching love affair with rear-leg elevated split squats (see my article on Bulgarian lunges). If you’re going to do them, an open-back hex bar is the way to go. As with the regular split squats, you can pick up the weight from a higher height than dumbbells and the hex bar is more stable.

6. Farmer’s Walk. For strength coaches on a budget, the parallel grips for the hex bar provide a suitable substitute for farmer’s walk devices. Yes, dumbbells can be used for the farmer’s walk and offer a parallel hand position, but there is a higher risk of dropping the weight plates on your toes if you lose your grip. There is also the issue of bruising, as the dumbbell plates can bang against the thighs.

[bctt tweet="For strength coaches on a budget, the parallel grips for the hex bar provide a suitable substitute for farmer’s walk devices."]

A high-handled hex bar is best for this exercise because these handles don’t require you to bend down as far to assume the starting position. However, the issue with conventional hex bars is that you must take relatively small steps; an open-back hex bar allows for a longer stride.

[caption id="attachment_14830" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 7. Several exercises possible with hex bars: shoulder shrugs, pinch-grip shoulder shrugs, and push-ups (top); “W” overhead press and split squats (middle); rear-leg-elevated split squats and the Farmer’s walk (bottom). (Drawings by Sylvain Lemaire, HexFit.com.)[/caption]

Those variations should add valuable tools to your weight training toolbox, and many other exercises can be performed with these bars.

Those are the pros of hex bars—let’s look at some cons.

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The Dark Side of Hex Bars

Now that I've got you excited about the versatility and benefits of the hex bar, let's look at seven special considerations to think about when using the hex bar.

1. Compressive Forces. I saw a relatively short male athlete using the high handles on a combo hex bar while standing on thick bumper plates. Perplexed, I asked him what he was doing. He told me that he wanted to perform the exercise through a greater range of motion. Although this athlete had performed hex bar deadlifts in high school, he didn’t realize he could flip the bar over and use the lower handles!

I share this story because high hex bar handles were originally designed for tall athletes to make hex bar deadlifts more comfortable. However, many strength coaches only have their athletes use the high handles because their athletes can lift more weight (and their video clips look cool on Instagram). I saw a female athlete doing a high hex bar deadlift for the first time a few years ago. Although her best squat was 160 pounds, she deadlifted 285 pounds!

The point is that using high hex bar handles rather than the standard handles enables athletes of average height to use significantly heavier weights, placing higher compressive forces on the spine. An occasional max-out day with a high hex bar may be fine, but you may be asking for trouble if you are of average height and max out too frequently. My colleague Paul Gagné shares my opinion.

[bctt tweet="An occasional max-out day with a high hex bar may be fine, but you may be asking for trouble if you are of average height and max out too frequently."]

Gagné has trained over 500 NHL players. For many of those athletes, he had to be conservative with the hex bar deadlift as he found these compressive forces often led to hip impingement. When you are coaching athletes competing on the professional level, you must take a serious look at the risks vs. rewards of any weight training exercise.

[caption id="attachment_14828" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 8. Coach Paul Gagné with Joe Rullier, who played for the Boston Bruins. Rullier could power clean 319 pounds, front squat 485, and bench press 450.[/caption]

2. Instability. Because the hands are held away from the body, the hex bar is less stable at the top of the lift compared to a conventional deadlift. This instability could cause adverse shearing forces on the spine. The problem is compounded because much heavier weights can be lifted than with a straight bar, and it’s worse when using bands.

Strength coaches often have their athletes use elastic bands when performing hex bar deadlifts. This is usually accomplished by attaching the ends of the bands to the outside sleeves, then having the athlete step on the band as they lift. The result is that as the athlete lifts the bar and the band stretches, the resistance curve increases to match the strength curve of the athlete. The issue is that bands further increase the instability of the exercise.

3. Specificity. The hex bar deadlift has little carryover to weightlifting pulling movements such as the clean, power clean, snatch, or power snatch. With the Olympic lifts, during the first part of the pull, the bar shifts from a position in front of the body’s COM to a position aligned with its COM. The hex bar starts with the resistance aligned with the COM and remains there throughout the entire lift. Besides the differences in muscle development, the pulling motion can adversely affect the biomechanics of the Olympic lifts.

[caption id="attachment_14831" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 9. With a hex bar deadlift, the hands are at your sides aligned with the body’s center of mass. With a straight bar deadlift or a clean, the hands are in front of the body, and the athlete must pull the bar towards their center of mass.[/caption]
4. Cheating. Bouncing the bar off the floor during hex bar deadlifts enables larger loads to be used but creates harmful stress on the spine, especially if the plates land unevenly. Instead, a relatively slow “touch-and-go” technique should be used.

[bctt tweet="Bouncing the bar off the floor during hex bar deadlifts enables larger loads to be used but creates harmful stress on the spine."]

5. ACL Stress. With normal-sized athletes, high hex bar handles reduce the range of motion of the legs, such that the knees are in a position that applies the highest stress to the ACL.

ACL injuries are among the most common and severe to female athletes, affecting them as much as five times more than male athletes in several sports. Athletes recovering from an ACL injury, or those involved in sports with a high risk of ACL injury, may need to take a more conservative approach to programming the high hex bar in their workouts.

6. Plyometric Effect. Because the hex bar deadlift does not begin with an eccentric contraction, there is no stretch-shortening cycle (i.e., plyometric effect) that helps develop explosiveness. Can this exercise make the athlete stronger? Sure, but it will do little to improve explosiveness. Hex bar jumps are a better alternative if explosiveness is a primary goal.

7. Flexibility Restrictions. The hex bar does not allow the legs to work through a full range of motion. Performing only partial-range leg exercises reduces the muscle-building effect and may increase an athlete’s susceptibility to knee, ankle, and Achilles injuries. (For more on this subject, see my article.)

The hex bar has many advantages over the straight bar and dumbbells for developing strength and explosiveness. But if the hex bar is misused or if maximal loads are used too frequently with high-handled hex bars, you may be doing more harm than good. The bottom line with the hex bar is that it’s not only a matter of training heavier but training smarter!

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References

Swinton, Paul A; Stewart, Arthur; Agouris, Ioannis; Keogh, Justin WL; and Lloyd, Ray. “A Biomechanical Analysis of Straight and Hexagonal Barbell Deadlifts Using Submaximal Loads.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 25(7); pp 2000-9, July 2011.

Swinton, Paul A; Stewart, Arthur D; Lloyd, Ray; Agouris, Ioannis; and Keogh, Justin WL. “Effect of Load Positioning on the Kinematics and Kinetics of Weighted Vertical Jumps.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 26(4); pp 906-913, April 2012.

Kelso, Paul. Kelso’s Shrug Book. Hats Off Books, Revised Edition, January 28, 2013.

The post The Use (and Abuse) of the Hex Bar: The Pros and Cons of This Versatile Training Tool appeared first on SimpliFaster.

One of the areas of nutrition that receives the most attention is the pre-workout timeframe—so much so that there’s an entire branch of supplements dedicated to the notion. However, just because it’s common knowledge to address pre-workout nutrition in some capacity doesn’t mean it’s done right. In fact, a lot of the traditional, commonplace advice either leaves large gaps or completely misses the mark. This may seem inconsequential, but the reality is that bad pre-workout or pregame nutritional strategies can rob you of your performance potential—and in some cases even be unsafe.

[bctt tweet="Bad pre-workout or pregame nutritional strategies can rob you of your performance potential—and in some cases even be unsafe, says @rewirehp."]

Before continuing, I’d like to throw out the necessary caveat that when it comes to nutrition: it’s quality – quantity – timing. Although I’m discussing the timing component of the equation, I’m in no way trying to make it sound like this is more important than what you take in over the totality of an entire day.

Caveats aside, to better grasp pregame nutrition, it’s first better to understand where athletes usually go wrong.

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Standard Advice and Where It Goes Wrong

Okay, time to help show you how not to screw in the lightbulb. The four most significant things people tend to get wrong are:

1. Undernourishment.
2. Excessive digestive obligation.
3. Harmful supplements.
4. Missing nutrients.

There are others, but generally speaking, these are the largest, most frequent blind spots I encounter. Let’s break down each one.

1. Undernourishment

We’ve all heard people who say they perform better on a light stomach, right? There's nothing wrong with that, but the reality is you’re still expected to perform at a high clip or match a certain level of intensity in training to get quality work in. A lot of people understandably eat lightly before games but inadvertently undernourish themselves.

This is similar to when people go on a diet. They aim to cut calories but inadvertently cut nutrition as well—often opting for foods based purely on macro and/or caloric metrics without paying attention to foods that net them the highest nutrient load at the same time. The pre-training or pre-competition window is essentially an extension of this. The way around this is to consume foods with a high nutritional yield and minimal digestive obligation.

[bctt tweet="Carbohydrate-wise, fruit juice is an ideal source as it contains vital nutrients (including electrolytes), takes minimal energy and time to be assimilated, and is put to use for glycogen loading."]

What does this look like in practice? Protein-wise, it is something akin to collagen or gelatin powder. If you need something more solid, try eggs, a tin of wild-caught oysters, or shredded or ground meat. Carbohydrate-wise, fruit juice is an ideal source as it contains vital nutrients (including electrolytes), takes minimal energy and time to be assimilated, and is put to use for glycogen loading. Orange juice, watermelon water, and grape juice are all excellent options.

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2. Excessive Digestive Obligations

The flip side to the previous point is that it is also true most athletes won’t do well on a “heavier stomach,” performance-wise. Why is this? Well, think about the slang terms for your autonomic nervous system. The sympathetic branch is known for its role in the “fight, flight, or freeze” response. And the opposite? The parasympathetic branch, which is better known for its “rest and digest” roles. This isn’t merely a rhyme—it’s quite literally a state in which we rest and DIGEST.

Where we run into problems is that training and competition necessitate a certain level of sympathetic arousal. If we eat a meal with a heavy digestive obligation too close to this window, we’re probably making it more difficult for our digestive system to do its job from a neurological perspective. Keep in mind that our guts—and our digestive systems—are intimately intertwined with our nervous systems. This is why certain conditions, disease states, and symptoms are referred to as neuroimmune disorders.

This should make sense at some level, as stress is frequently observed to cause digestive problems and vice versa—it’s a two-way street. So, by the same token, gut dysfunction can hypothetically limit neurological efficiency downstream. This means it can potentially limit performance.

Thankfully, the recommendation here would be to piggyback on the last point and opt for foods with a high nutritional yield relative to the work required to digest them.

Those who’ve followed my work know that I generally recommend choosing foods based on the digestion > absorption > utilization model. In other words, if a food can be easily digested, it can be better absorbed by the digestive system. Once assimilated, it can be better utilized in the system for whatever biochemical chain reactions are necessary after that. This pre-workout digestion consideration is definitely an extension of these ideas (originally coined by nutritionist Ronnie Smith of Energy Concepts).

3. Harmful Supplements

This one is pretty straightforward but may be the most frequently made mistake of the four. Most supplements have some combination of poor ingredient sourcing, limited bioavailability, and/or potentially harmful ingredients.

Often, athletes opt for pre-workout supplements that contain non-efficacious doses of the ingredients that actually could do something and rely on strange stimulants that trick you into thinking they’re doing something. Historically, some of these have even been amphetamine derivatives.

[bctt tweet="Almost every marketed “pre-workout” formula is probably underdosed in the good ingredients and overdosed in the stimulant department. An effective pre-workout is best done as a DIY cocktail."]

Other harmful ingredients can include sweeteners, food dyes, excipients, citric acid, and the like. I do realize there is some debate about these ingredients and to what extent they’re problematic. That said, additives and their potential downstream consequences could be an entire article unto itself. My general rule of thumb is to evaluate each one on its own merits and make an individual judgment call.

Personally, I don’t recommend being a total hypochondriac if something sneaks in once in a blue moon. That said, I do advocate controlling what variables you can, and if you’re going to take (or eat) something on a near-daily or weekly basis, it probably should be pretty damn clean. I don’t recommend purchasing supplements with artificial sweeteners, most natural sweeteners, food dyes, citric acid, gums, stabilizers, fibers, excipients, and beyond.

Now, I’m not saying don’t take anything pre-workout. I’m merely saying that almost every “pre-workout” formula on the market is probably underdosed in the good ingredients and overdosed in the stimulant department. That doesn’t mean there aren’t helpful things to take. It’s just that an effective pre-workout is best done as a DIY cocktail. The good news is that this probably makes it more cost-effective in the long run than many of these “hypebeast” products—more on specific options later.

4. Missing Nutrients

This one is also pretty simple. Most athletes have biological blind spots when it comes to pre-workout nutrition because they’re unaware of certain nutrients or supplemental ergogenics that can be of huge value to them.

For example, most have no idea a common household item they likely already have—baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)—has been shown to noticeably improve performance in explosive activities, like sprinting. Rinse and repeat for nutrient or supplement X, Y, or Z.

This can also be thought of in a more basic sense. Many people believe they lack cardiovascular conditioning or endurance capacity, but in reality, they’re just incredibly underdosed on carbohydrates.

[bctt tweet="Most athletes have biological blind spots when it comes to pre-workout nutrition because they’re unaware of certain nutrients or supplemental ergogenics that can be of huge value to them."]

When striving for high performance, we often overfocus on the training end of the equation while neglecting the adaptive side of the equation (diet, sleep, light). However, optimizing our performance physiology that underpins these athletic outputs can be worth its weight in gold in the long run.

What to Do: Pre-Workout Considerations

Although I go into more detail in my book, Adaptive Nutrition, consider the following an incredibly basic, pared-down starting point.

Pregame Protein: As mentioned before, protein consumed relatively close to game time or pre-workout (immediately to an hour out) may look something like collagen or gelatin protein (bone broth works, too), a tin of wild-caught oysters or shellfish, eggs, or a not ultra-filling amount of ground or shredded meat (e.g., ground beef or shredded chicken).

My recommendation for most people is to opt for the collagen, gelatin, or bone broth. I go into how to identify quality sources in the book’s guide, but essentially, you’ll want to look for a supplement without artificial sweeteners and most natural sweeteners. You won’t want other ingredients in it for the most part (these are usually just marketing hype), and you’ll want to look for some type of stamp of regulation on the package (NSF Certified for Sport®, for example). That doesn’t mean all NSF or accreditation X supplements are well-engineered, but it’s a helpful starting point for the sake of this article.

Fueling-Friendly Carbs: Ideal carbohydrates may look something like a spoon or two of raw honey, fruit juice (e.g., orange, watermelon, grape, mango), or fruit (e.g., banana, blueberries, strawberries, dried fruit). Vegetables should mostly be avoided during this window because they come with a greater digestive obligation and minimal performance benefit as they usually contain less glucose.

Fat in Focus: Whatever fat comes along for the ride on your protein source is fine, but we’re not intentionally trying to add fat during this window. This is because it’s not a readily available energy source, and high amounts of it may prolong the collective digestion of the food we eat. That doesn’t mean you should fear it during the rest of your day, though.

Focused Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids: I go into more baseline pre-workout supplements as well as more advanced considerations in my book and recommendations on my site, but the following represents a solid start.

• Creatine: In addition to collagen or gelatin, creatine is a tried-and-true pre-workout ergogenic. While most pre-workout supplements have a non-efficacious (underdosed) amount, taking a full serving (usually 5g) of creatine with sugar can help support strength outputs, endurance, explosiveness, and recovery.
• Sodium Bicarbonate: CO2 is actually highly protective, promotes cell stability, and shouldn’t be feared. Pregame baking soda is a remarkably cheap way to improve performance and recovery and prevent pH perturbations in tissues.
• Electrolytes: Although you should primarily be getting your electrolytes from food, electrolyte supplementation may be useful in some cases to match depletions caused by the stress of training. Electrolyte supplements vary wildly in their formulations, so consult a professional to ensure you’re not throwing off your mineral patterns. I have a few recommendations on my site that match ideal mineral ratios.
• Coffee/Caffeine: Although I may have shot down most pre-workout supplements earlier, that was not meant to be a shot at stimulants. (There are just more ideal sources.) Pregame coffee with the aforementioned glucose from carbs and a splash of cream or milk can be an excellent natural ergogenic aid. Caffeine essentially acts as a surrogate for thyroid hormone, providing us with a ton of clean energy.

Caffeine is also a great CNS energetic and has been shown to improve cognitive fitness during tasks as well as physical outputs. Moreover, it may help us more effectively utilize carbohydrates as fuel. Coffee is also a phenomenal source of nutrients, including magnesium. Just don’t be the person who gets their caffeine from energy drinks, as these usually contain poorly sourced ingredients and/or potentially harmful additives.

[bctt tweet="Don’t be the person who gets their caffeine from energy drinks, as these usually contain poorly sourced ingredients and/or potentially harmful additives, says @rewirehp."]

There are certainly other options, but these represent an excellent starting point.

Please keep in mind that these considerations don’t include supplements that may be more foundational (like vitamin D) but are just not commonly used around training windows. They are also nonspecific, meaning they aren’t meant to be prescriptive and may vary depending on the individual.

Timing: Let me start by saying that doing what makes you feel best is the right call. If you’re someone who feels best eating a regular-sized meal further away from your game (say 1–2 hours) and being a minimalist around your training/game—that’s totally cool. I would just qualify that by encouraging you to experiment during non-critical times (training, practice, preseason games, scrimmages) to also see if some of these recommendations move the needle in a positive direction for you.

The research hasn’t quite settled on an exact time here—likely due to different sporting demands, gut-brain (neuroimmune) differences between athletes, and more—but these light pre-training meals can be consumed anywhere between 15 minutes and one hour out from competition. Additional carbohydrate load in the form of fruit juice (possibly mixed with electrolytes) may improve performance in-game and/or at halftime.

Quantity: This may be the trickiest of all recommendations due to variables in muscle mass, body weight, sporting demands, training/competition duration, current metabolic status (e.g., “fast” or “slow”), and more. In the context of the above examples, approximately 25g–40g of protein from one of the above lighter sources is likely sufficient. Fat is whatever comes along for the ride on your protein source, but to be clear, there aren’t any fat goals you need to hit. (I just wouldn’t be adding additional fat sources like nuts, seeds, oils, or avocado during this time.)

Carbs can have the largest functional range. You’ll likely want at least 30g–50g, possibly upwards of 100g, starting pregame all the way through intra-workout. As I mentioned, this is context-dependent, and the more muscle mass you have, the longer training/playing is, the more explosive the task demands—the more you’ll be on the higher side of that range.

A good rule of thumb is paying attention to how you feel pre-, during, and post-workout to gauge whether you should increase or decrease your carbohydrate load. Consistent patterns of fatigue, inability to turn on and change gears, weakness, and cognitive sluggishness would indicate potentially higher needs (or perhaps a nutrient deficiency elsewhere). Feeling bloated when performing could indicate a need to lower your intake and/or choose a more agreeable food source, potentially with a lighter food volume.

Keep in mind that pregame coffee also helps you better metabolize your carb sources. Even just that combo of coffee and sugar from fruit juice can be a huge win for many athletes.
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Parting Shots

Hopefully, this mini guide has helped demonstrate the main ways athletes tend to go wrong when deciding what to supplement with before training or competition while also helping to progress the way we think about pre-workout nutrition.

The reality is we can learn a lot from the fundamentals—what not to do as well as what low-hanging fruit (no pun intended) we can easily course-correct for a high return on investment.

I also acknowledge that because of cost and logistical reasons (e.g., collegiate meal plans), athletes may be limited in what they can pull off in the nutrition department. In such a case, remember that doing something is always better than doing nothing. Do what you can with what you have.

[bctt tweet="Remember that doing something is always better than doing nothing. Do what you can with what you have, says @rewirehp."]

Thankfully, pregame nutrition can be fairly simple and straightforward with easily implemented habits you can get started with right away.

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Abbreviated References/Further Reading

Coffee Supporting Exercise or Sports Performance

1. Grgic J, Trexler ET, Lazinica B, and Pedisic Z. “Effects of caffeine intake on muscle strength and power: a systematic review and meta-analysis.” Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2018;15(1):11.
2. Pickering C and Grgic J. “Caffeine and Exercise: What Next?” Sports Medicine. 2019;49(7):1007–1030.
3. Hodgson AB, Randell RK, and Jeukendrup AE. “The metabolic and performance effects of caffeine compared to coffee during endurance exercise.” PLoS ONE. 2013;8(4):e59561.

Creatine Improving Performance

1. Hultman E, Söderlund K, Timmons JA, Cederblad G, and Greenhaff PL. “Muscle creatine loading in men.” Journal of Applied Physiology. 1996;81(1):232–237.
2. Rawson ES and Volek JS. “Effects of creatine supplementation and resistance training on muscle strength and weightlifting performance.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2003;17(4):822–831.
3. Kreider RB. “Effects of creatine supplementation on performance and training adaptations.” Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry. 2003;244(1–2):89–94.

Baking Soda Improving Exercise Performance

1. McNaughton L and Cedaro R. “Sodium bicarbonate ingestion and its effects on anaerobic exercise of various durations.” The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness. 1992;32(3):240–245.
2. Carr AJ, Slater GJ, and Gore CJ. “Effect of sodium bicarbonate on [HCO3−], pH, and gastrointestinal symptoms.” International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 2011;21(3):189–194.
3. Siegler JC, Marshall PW, and Bray J. “Tolerance to sodium bicarbonate ingestion: a review.” International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2015;10(1):28–34.

Electrolytes Improving Performance

1. Shirreffs SM, Taylor AJ, Leiper JB, and Maughan RJ. “Post-exercise rehydration in man: effects of electrolyte addition to ingested fluids.” European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology. 1996;73(3–4):317–325.
2. Maughan RJ, Leiper JB, and Shirreffs SM. “Restoration of fluid balance after exercise-induced dehydration: effects of alcohol consumption.” Journal of Applied Physiology. 1997;83(4):1152–1158.
3. Casa DJ, Clarkson PM, and Roberts WO. “American College of Sports Medicine roundtable on hydration and physical activity: consensus statements.” Current Sports Medicine Reports. 2005;4(3):115–127.

Collagen Protein Improving Tendon Health

1. Shaw G and Lee-Barthel A. “Ross M. Purves lecture: therapeutic targeting of the athlete's tendon.” Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology. 2016;94(10):1085–1091.
2. Dressler P, Gehring D, Zdzieblik D, Oesser S, and Gollhofer A. “Acute effects of collagen peptides on blood pressure and arterial function in young healthy subjects.” Amino Acids. 2018;50(8):1015–1025.
3. Zdzieblik D, Oesser S, Baumstark MW, Gollhofer A, and König D. “Collagen peptide supplementation in combination with resistance training improves body composition and increases muscle strength in elderly sarcopenic men: a randomised controlled trial.” British Journal of Nutrition. 2015;114(8):1237–1245.

Pre-workout Carbohydrate Intake and Sports Performance

1. Hawley JA and Burke LM. “Carbohydrate availability and training adaptation: effects on cell metabolism.” Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews. 1995; 25(1):1–29.
2. Nicholas CW, Green PA, Hawkins RD, and Williams C. “Carbohydrate intake and recovery of intermittent running capacity.” International Journal of Sport Nutrition. 1997;7(4):251–260.
3. Krustrup P and Ortenblad N. “Metabolic support of exercise training in humans: potential impact on performance in competitive sports.” The Journal of Physiology. 2015;593(20):4643–4659.

Pre-workout Nutrition Improves Sports Performance or Exercise Output

1. Cermak NM, van Loon LJ, and Gibala MJ. “Timing of amino acid-carbohydrate ingestion alters anabolic response of muscle to resistance exercise.” American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism. 2012;302(12):E1527–E1535.
2. Stellingwerff T and Cox GR. “Systematic review: Carbohydrate supplementation on exercise performance or capacity of varying durations.” Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism. 2014;39(9):998–1011.
3. Burke LM and Deakin V. Clinical Sports Nutrition (4th ed.). 2010: McGraw-Hill.

Fruit Juice or Fruit and Its Impact on Exercise Performance

1. Karp JR, Johnston JD, Tecklenburg S, Mickleborough TD, Fly AD, and Stager JM. “Chocolate milk as a post-exercise recovery aid.” International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 2006;16(1):78–91.
2. McAnulty SR et al. “Consumption of blueberry polyphenols reduces exercise-induced oxidative stress compared to vitamin C.” Nutrition Research. 2011;31(11):161–168.
3. Davison G and Gleeson M. “The Effect of 14 Days of Fasting and Different Recoveries on Body Composition, Performance, and Hormonal Responses in CrossFit-Trained Men.” International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 2019;29(1):1–10.

General

1. Jones AM and Burnley M. “Oxygen uptake kinetics: an underappreciated determinant of exercise performance.” International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2009;4(4):524–532.
2. Noakes TD. “Physiological models to understand exercise fatigue and the adaptations that predict or enhance athletic performance.” Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2009;10(3):123–145.
3. Brooks GA. “Mammalian fuel utilization during sustained exercise.” Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part B: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. 1998;120(1):89–107.
4. Robergs RA, Ghiasvand F, and Parker D. “Biochemistry of exercise-induced metabolic acidosis.” American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology. 2004;287(3):R502–R516.
5. Gastin PB and Lawson DL. “Influence of training status on maximal oxygen uptake response to ramp and square wave work load changes in trained cyclists.” European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology. 1994;68(1):33–41.

The post Pregame Nutrition: What Should Your Pre-Workout Routine Really Look Like? appeared first on SimpliFaster.

Basketball is a sport that demands a unique blend of athleticism—including strength, power, speed, mobility, and agility, among other attributes. To excel on the court, athletes must continually seek ways to enhance their physical capabilities through training and then translate that into the skill of basketball.

Basketball is also a sport that features some of the most unique body types, frames, and movers you’ll ever see. In the NBA, it’s not uncommon in 2023 to see a seven-foot athlete doing the same thing as a six-foot athlete—from how they move to the skills they master, it’s made the game almost position-less at the pro level.

One innovative approach gaining popularity in the realm of sports performance is velocity-based training (VBT). VBT is a method of training that focuses on monitoring the velocity, or speed of movement, during resistance-training exercises. It involves using specialized equipment, like Vitruve, to measure how quickly—or slowly—an athlete moves a load during exercises.

VBT leverages real-time data on movement velocity, power output, and range of motion measurements to tailor training programs and optimize an athlete’s performance by helping coaches manage stress, develop athletic qualities, increase athlete buy-in, and maximize training adaptability.

But outside of those general benefits, there are some very specific benefits that I’ve been able to capitalize on when using VBT with my basketball population. In this article, I’ll outline three of the most outside-the-box ways VBT has positively impacted my basketball players in training and on the court.

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1. Utilizing ROM as a Metric

If you’re a seasoned VBT coach, you need no introduction to the standard use of VBT practices or the main metrics it can track, like velocity, power, and force. All of those are excellent metrics and ones that we should continue to master; however, I’ve found that with the basketball population, using range of motion (ROM) as a bonus KPI metric has helped our athletes tremendously.

Most VBT units should have the capability to track ROM in real time. I am a long-time user of Vitruve, so I’ll speak on my experiences with Vitruve linear encoder units and software throughout this article.

When people think of ROM, they tend to immediately consider the two drastically different (and extreme) trains of thought that surround this topic. I’m not here to debate whether “knees over toes” is the best way to train or if you should perform “90-degree eccentric-isometrics” for every lift.

[bctt tweet="Use ROM as a metric: apply the same principles to ROM as you would velocity, power, or force. Prescribe it, monitor it, adjust it, and most of all, use it to help guide your coaching."]

When I say to use ROM as a metric, what I mean is to apply the same principles to ROM as you would velocity, power, or force. Prescribe it, monitor it, adjust it, and most of all, use it to help guide your coaching.

As it relates to basketball, I mentioned that hoops has some very unique body types—and with unique bodies come unique lift executions. Not every squat, deadlift, or bench press variation will look like the textbook technical model. We’re dealing with insane levers, crazy lengths, and bodies that have been conditioned to excel at everything that looks like basketball for years of single-sport development.

“Good” form may look different. And that’s okay.

With the ROM metric, you can quantify this and start to create standards for your athletes based on their limb length and lever angles as it relates to a particular lift and what “good” reps look like for them.

For example, I’ve seen two athletes in a trap bar deadlift have the same ROM despite being 5 inches different in height. One was 6’5, and the other was 6’; however, the 6’ athlete’s arms were so disproportionately long that it caused the bar to have to move less to the lockout of the lift, making it the same ROM as the taller athlete (as opposed to the taller athletes having more concentric ROM).

This is an advantage for the deadlift, but the same blessing is a curse for other lifts—like the bench press. Instead of taking ROM away, those long arms add ROM to the lift in a bench press, which equals more total work. This can impact the volume, the intensity, and our expectations for these athletes in this lift with a disadvantageous setup. This could also alter your exercise selection for the athlete.

Establishing a foundation of ROM metrics is a great way to autoregulate that aspect of training, just as we would with a velocity or power loss in a set. If we know an athlete’s usual ROM in a lift and see them falling short, we can make an intervention effort if needed. This could be as simple as instructing them to finish the rep better or involve a more complicated issue like an inhibited muscle or joint.

[bctt tweet="Another excellent way to use ROM metrics in training is purposeful partial ranges on specific exercises. This is when those baselines of ROM for each athlete in each lift can come in very handy."]

Another excellent way to use ROM metrics in training is purposeful partial ranges on specific exercises. This is when those baselines of ROM for each athlete in each lift can come in very handy. If we have an athlete’s full range of motion documented, it is easier to prescribe the proper partial range of motion.

[vimeo 885849286 w=800]
Video 1. Pin squats with Vitruve.

Some research suggests that it is beneficial to incorporate partial range squats in a comprehensive program as a way to load “sprint-and-jump-specific” joint angles. The quarter- and half-squats are usually done by the eyeball test, but with a ROM metric, we can:

• First, pinpoint an exact range of motion to target.
• Then, walk the athlete through that range with the VBT unit and an empty bar to let them feel where they should be on each rep before going live with higher loads.

For basketball players, obviously, this is crucial because jumping is such an important factor in their sport. If coaches dedicate time and effort to training to maximize jump outputs, this can be a very fruitful rabbit hole to dive down.

A final core use of ROM metrics in VBT is with loaded jumps. Again, in the basketball population, athletes, parents, and coaches are obsessed with vertical jump height. So jump training is a critical element of the process, and loaded jumps are one of my favorite—and most effective—methods to help athletes add inches to their vertical.

[vimeo 885849595 w=800]
Video 2. Trap bar jump with Vitruve.

I love trap bar jumps. We do them in a myriad of ways with different bar speed or power output targets, but we also do them for maximal ROM. In a countermovement jump test, we want maximal height—so why not aim for the same in our loaded jump training?

In this case, ROM can be considered vertical displacement, or jump height. So, whether it’s an empty trap bar or a specific amount of load on the bar, you can also count on ROM to be a valuable driver of intent and effort as basketball players aim to jump out of the gym.

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2. Stimulus Stacking

I am a huge proponent of making a hard day a hard day and a light day a light day, especially in the middle of the grueling basketball season. Velocity-based training is a great way to manage this process because you can quantify the stress quality and the overall volume.

If a day is planned to be high-stress, I would rather get all planned work in on that day and let the following day be a low-stress or no-stress day. I refer to this as “stimulus stacking.”

[bctt tweet="If a day is planned to be high-stress, I’d rather get all planned work in on that day and let the following day be a low-stress or no-stress day. I refer to this as ‘stimulus stacking.’"]

For example, let’s look at the topic of lifting on game day. What do I think? Yes. Do it—every single time. I’ve even become a fan of lifting after the game.

Many athletes will opt to skip their lift on game day and do it the next day. Many coaches will also give their team the day off after a game. But if you think about it, lifting on that off day kind of defeats the purpose of having an off day. You now had two high-stress days in a row (maybe more) when it could have been one high-stress day followed by a low-stress day, with true rest and recovery.

In-season, rest and recovery are immensely important. These true off days are hard to come by. They should be valued and honored. If we “stimulus stack,” we can help athletes get the most out of the hard days and the most out of the light days. But if we let the hard days bleed into the light days, then we really don’t have light days.

With VBT, we know that bar speeds will tell us the story on intensity levels. It doesn’t matter what weight is on the bar, what percentage of 1RM is being used, or what the athlete did last week. The bar speed is the bar speed; that is the energy and effort the athlete has to give on that given day.

By using target bar speeds in training, we can help our athletes aim for the desired athletic quality or adaptation we want to get from the lift. So, if an athlete does want to get their strength work in post-game, a heavy rep is still .30 m/s.

Maybe on a fresh day, the athlete can trap bar deadlift 400 pounds at .30 m/s, and after a game, they can only move 335 pounds at .30 m/s. That’s fine. We know why that is. But that’s a high-stress rep giving a good strength stimulus, and that’s what we’re after. We’re not after arbitrary goals like “go up 5 pounds each week” or lift “90% of your one rep max.” It’s about maximizing each training opportunity so they can earn their off days.

For hoopers, this element of stress management has been huge for our program. It’s a bit untraditional, but it’s becoming the norm at the highest levels. Each year in the NBA and WNBA, we see post-game lifts becoming increasingly popular. Colleges have started to implement them as well.

[bctt tweet="Post-game lifts are a bit untraditional but are becoming the norm at the highest levels. This element of stress management has been huge for our programs, says @JustinOchoa317."]

Of course, college and pro ranks have far greater travel and logistical demands than a high school basketball player, but I still think this method is valid and useful for high school athletes as well. In the high school setting, I think it’s probably more challenging to implement due to:

• Limitations of a high school facility schedule and budget.
• Athletes still relying on their parents for travel.
• Time management in a school week.

But it’s still worth considering for high school coaches.

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3. Imbalance and Deficiency Trends

Lastly, this is a much more experimental and anecdotal method, but one that I believe is very powerful: using VBT to identify imbalances and deficiencies in your basketball players to potentially reduce the risk of injury.

I live by the 70/20/10 rule:

• For 70% of what we do in training, I am absolutely, positively certain it will work exactly how I plan.
• For 20% of what we do in training, I am fairly sure it will work exactly how I plan.
• For 10% of what we do in training, I’m experimenting but hopeful it will work how I plan.

This section is about that 10%.

Can we use VBT to identify muscle or coordination imbalances? I believe so.

In our unilateral strength or power exercises, VBT feedback can help us find trends or red flags during training that can at least start to get some wheels turning.

We can look for things like significant discrepancies between the left and right sides—a 10% difference or more, anecdotally.

That could mean there’s a strength imbalance that we may need to address. It may also mean there’s a fatigue or overuse factor that we need to address.

The answers would not be directly in the VBT data, but the data could help us ask the right questions to start to probe for more information. Specifically in basketball, where so much repetition is involved in many common moves, VBT can help athletes develop an awareness of how important it is to train for general health and wellness versus always being so focused on the performance side.

With advanced analytics, we can see data and trends in basketball actions that could lead to conversations about overuse or potential injury risk. In conjunction with the VBT data, that could be a beneficial tool for enhancing athlete health and safety on the court and in training.

Nuances Matter

VBT has been one of our program’s most helpful and impactful additions over the years. Tracking, storing, and managing athlete data with Vitruve has been crucial to our consistent results and track record of basketball performance.

Again, the general benefits of real-time data on velocity, power, and force are great, but it’s these nuanced uses for our basketball players that have helped us shape our program into what it is today.

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Bill Miller is a certified strength and conditioning specialist based out of the Chicagoland area. He’s trained mostly baseball players, from the youth ages all the way to the MLB level. He’s also written three books: Swing Fast, Throw Fast, and, most recently, Testing Is Training. The books cover power development for rotational power and much more!

Freelap USA: Previously, you’ve mentioned that every pro athlete you see on TV is a product of 5–12 years of work. What’s the key to longevity in a coach-athlete training relationship in the private sector, where training isn’t mandatory, and what makes the athlete want to come back so they can achieve the results they want?

Bill Miller: Easily, the number one biggest key is having fun on a daily basis. “Fun“ might mean slightly different things to different athletes, however. For example, a very serious professional player will find training to be fun when they are consistently competing or trying to beat their numbers, etc.. In contrast, a younger athlete may find training to be much more enjoyable if they laugh or joke around once or twice per session.

Environment plays a big role in how the athlete will improve, but also being sure they want to come back; they want to hold themselves accountable and make as much progress as possible. It takes so many reps, workouts, etc., to be great—they need to really want to come back.

On the contrary, I’ve been a part of gyms where the atmosphere is just dull and lifeless. They may have been doing all the “right“ exercises straight out of the handbook, but there was no real juice that got things going. I take a lot of pride in knowing that I typically don’t lose too many athletes over the years. Maybe one or two once in a while will leave to go elsewhere, but I know their reasons are never environmental issues.

Aside from that, something else I take a lot of pride in is being able to pivot an athlete’s program toward something that we both agree will work better. If you work with an athlete long enough, you will find that the training they did three or four years ago doesn’t really produce the same results as it once did. Three or four years later, the kid who was a scrawny 150-pound junior in high school is now a 185-pound college starting shortstop. His needs have changed. No longer does he need to pack lots of bodybuilding into his program; instead, he needs to pivot toward speed, joint stability, sport-specific work, etc.

We constantly measure key performance indicators but also talk consistently about what things the athlete feels they’d like to address. After all, they are paying me to help them get the results they want to see.

A few years ago, I started training a Major League Baseball player who came to me at age 28. He was always big into lifting: Westside Barbell, conjugate method, everything you can imagine in that realm, he was all about it…but he started shifting his mind toward something else. The thought of loading 400–500 pounds onto his back started to become less and less appealing. “Why would I do that? I see my friends and teammates do that at age 30, and they constantly say they feel like crap and get hurt.”

By no means is this an indictment of those exercises, but a realization that pivoting toward dumbbell reverse lunges and sleds, etc. lowered his barrier of entry to coming in to hit an intense leg day. He still runs just as fast as he did when he was younger. He’s healthy and enjoys training legs hard, but we don’t do anything with a bar on his back. I guarantee if I was stubborn and told him to keep squatting, he would have packed up and left right away.

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Freelap USA: How do you balance training your athletes at a high level as well as experimenting and being innovative in pursuing more knowledge/refining your craft?

Bill Miller: My big thing lately has just been measuring performance with whatever exercises we choose to do in a program. (Obviously, not every single thing can be measured, but we try to do as much as we can.) I think a lot of the innovation comes from finding ways to measure and then pivoting the exercises toward a certain adaptation, depending on what the measurements show us.

[bctt tweet="A lot of the innovation comes from finding ways to measure and then pivoting the exercises toward a certain adaptation, depending on what the measurements show us, says @billmills."]

If an athlete is elite with light loads but struggles with slightly heavier loads when we measure in the exercise, then I make sure that we steadily load the exercise more over time and improve output. For example, an athlete might be elite with a very light dumbbell jump but struggle once the weight gets heavier. So we slowly and steadily progress them to be able to perform better at that heavier load as the program goes on.

On the other hand, I would also say that we might emphasize the stretch-shortening cycle more with some athletes than others. Those who really struggle from more of a dead start and are elite with the “bouncy” stretch-shortening cycle could greatly benefit from starting the movement from more of a dead start. Measuring the two different variations gives us that information.

Something I’ve fallen a little bit off the wagon with is finding new exercises all the time. A few years ago, it started to feel like I was grasping at everything and anything new to fit into the program. The reality is that every time we add a new exercise, there’s going to be that learning curve involved. So, when we get better at the new exercise, there may be some benefit, but there will also be a lot of mystery to see if improvement in that exercise will actually translate to becoming a more powerful, robust athlete on the field.

Therefore, a lot of the exercises I do now are the same ones we’ve always been doing but just with a different emphasis. I know that the improvements they make are real—not beginner gains.

Freelap USA: Having your own space is nice, but it has a huge overhead cost. In your experience, as you’ve always rented space, what’s the key to being a good tenant/renter, and what’s your thought process on renting versus owning?

Bill Miller: Sharing space is way more challenging than it sounds. In my experience, just being nice and respectful to everyone seems to be the best way to do it. If I walked around like, “Look at all the big pro athletes I train. I’m a hot shot; nobody can talk to me,” that would ruffle a lot of feathers and rub people the wrong way. So then, if I have a bunch of crazy high school and college athletes in making a lot of noise and playing loud music, those people who would get mad at me would then file a complaint to somebody else, and I would get yelled at by management.

I’ve been booted from two places now, mainly because the organizations as a whole were failing. But many times in those cases of failure, I was purely involved in myself, not involved with how they wanted to improve the company's outlook in the future as a whole. Something that I try to do more of now is be more at the forefront of where the business as a whole is headed.

[bctt tweet="Before, I’d look at training methods I disliked and shun those types of coaches. But at the end of the day, they’re human beings, too, says @billmills."]

The pro/MLB guys I train are slotted to do events here at the facility, and I’m much more comfortable talking to other trainers—even if I think the agility ladders and long distance running they do is garbage. Before, I would look at training methods I disliked and shun those types of coaches. At the end of the day, they’re human beings, too, just trying to make a living and not work a 9–5 desk job. I can get down with that. I think the biggest key to sharing space is to look past our differences and always try to be a better tenant overall. I view it as more of a privilege than a right to work in the private sector.

Freelap USA: After publishing two books and continuing to work on a third, as those are huge undertakings, can you describe the process of going from an idea to a finished product and share any advice for those thinking about writing a book?

Bill Miller: I have two big tips for anyone writing a book:

1. Keep your writing cap on. If you told me to sit down for five hours straight and crank out a paper in college, I couldn’t ever do it (or I’d just haphazardly slop something together in 45 minutes). What I did for all three books was use speech to text, the Notes app, and anything else to continue to jot down ideas throughout the day.

If you’re passionate enough about something to write a whole book on it, it’ll be on your mind all day long. You don’t want any good thoughts to go to waste! I’d say that a majority of the rough drafts were written via speech-to-text, stuck in Chicago traffic on my way home from training that day. I’d have so many ideas buzzing through my mind that it just felt right to get them “written” down somewhere as soon as possible.

2. Make sure each chapter answers a question. It might not be worth its own chapter if the one you’re working on doesn’t offer new information or clarification on something for the reader. In fact, all the chapters I wrote in my first couple of books were questions I made up or had gotten through social media. I typically get 5–10 questions from different people about training throughout the week, so it was pretty easy to see what people were most interested in, needed clarification on, etc.

Finally, if you’re going to do it…just let it rip. Don’t let perfectionism ruin your ability to create! I come across very smart people from time to time who say that they would like to write a book eventually but don’t feel ready to do so yet. There’s a lot of that “If this isn’t an A+, I don’t want my name attached to it” mentality.

[bctt tweet="You can’t live in fear of what people (many of whom you will never meet in real life) might say, says @billmills."]

For one reason or another, there’s a little bit of fear in their mind that they won’t make a product people would get something out of. I definitely had to overcome that fear and just do it. I literally had to say to myself, “If people like it, great. If not, oh well, at least I gave it my best effort.” You can’t live in fear of what people (many of whom you will never meet in real life) might say. Every comment section everywhere online has at least one jerk who goes out of their way to say something rude. If they don’t like my book, my life will go on just the same.

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Freelap USA: Technology is a big part of your training (and training in general). A unique piece of yours is the Proteus. In general, or using the Proteus as an example, what’s your vetting process for deciding whether to invest in technology?

Bill Miller: This is probably not the best advice I can give a reader—so take my words lightly! I look at training in a very unique way: “What is this athlete missing that they need to play Major League Baseball someday?”

That is my mindset with every athlete I come across. It’s a very “Pull out all the stops to get results” approach, not a “This makes sense for my bottom line” approach. Starting with that mindset—with a very unrealistically high expectation of the type of progress I hope to see with them—I’ll then hold myself to a very high standard as well.

So, if there is technology out there that I feel could be beneficial and give us incredible data and feedback, much like the Proteus does, then I will go all in and make it happen. Things like ROI and making money off the Proteus all came as an afterthought. As long as the athletes I train day in and day out—my crew—are all feasting, getting better, climbing toward that goal, that’s what drives my decisions.

All that being said, I knew that we would use the Proteus a lot on an everyday basis. It wouldn’t just be something we used once and then collected dust. As long as I know that athletes will accumulate thousands upon thousands of reps with the machine and see a benefit from doing so, I have no problem spending the money on it.

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One of the most frequent questions asked in job interviews or at conferences is, “How did you get to (insert whatever school you are currently at)?” This simple question warrants extreme depth when you truly sit down and rehash your journey.

Every young coach wants directions on how to climb the proverbial professional ladder. We act like there is a cookie-cutter plan that will guarantee success at an extremely fast rate. The secret is…there isn’t, and every route is different. There are ways to help cultivate the type of development that leads to career advancement, and that is through the environment you put yourself in and the amount of personal development you invest in yourself after these extremely demanding days end. This profession is about growth and advancement.

[bctt tweet="Every young coach wants directions on how to climb the proverbial professional ladder. There’s no cookie-cutter plan to guarantee success quickly; every route is different, says @CoachJoeyG."]

The reality of a Group of Five school is that we cannot pay the same as, nor have the budget of, a Power Five school. Because of this fact and our popularity on social media, we have a lot of coaches call about current staff members. During my tenure at FAU, I have seen over 15 staff members leave for new roles with pay raises and increased responsibilities. It is up to the director to promote and push assistants toward greater opportunities, even if that is not on your current staff and doesn’t directly benefit you.

Some of our former assistants have risen to director roles or top assistant spots nationwide. After a few of these staff rehauls, you realize that the growth maturation process and education system of your program are crucial to the successful execution of high training standards. It is up to the director to produce an environment that pushes growth.

The motivation for the self-education process is driven by the climate in the staff room and how determined the staff is for self-improvement. I have been extremely blessed to witness some elite staff members who have directly influenced how I shaped my philosophy as a head strength coach. Young coaches—look for opportunities to see what the job’s supposed to look like, which happened for me in 2011 when I went to observe Coach Moffitt and the LSU Tigers. Looking back, this moment forever changed how I viewed the profession. The amount of intensity, detail, knowledge, and care the entire staff showed during an hour-long session blew my mind and made me realize how far off I personally was from this performance.

This article reflects on some of the contributing factors behind my personal growth and advancement, along with some contributors I’ve worked with or who have been part of my staff. Every staff has a life of its own, but all successful staff I have worked with or watched up close share common foundations. By drawing on different experiences, I hope to illuminate some of the driving factors behind the development of a strength and conditioning coach.

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“You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know”: Tommy Moffitt, Creator and Operator of the Moffitt Method (3x National Champion)

Coach Tommy Moffitt’s resume speaks for itself, as he’s had three national championships with three different head coaches. Coach Moffitt’s tree of assistants is vast and extremely successful, and more than 10 of his former staff members have moved on to become head strength coaches at Division 1 universities. I had the opportunity to intern for Coach Moffitt (although for an extremely brief period), and three things stood out about how he operated.

1. Details were everything, and no job was to be performed without them. Whether it was tying the rotator cuff bands to the racks or restocking the fridge, details mattered and were evaluated. Jeff Dillman had a quote where he asked a group of people simple questions that drove home this point. “How many of y’all have ever been bitten by a lion? None? What about being stung by a bee? If you were to get stung 100 times, you die—see, it’s the little things that kill you!”
2. Competition is everything. It could be the un-talked-about competition of trying to become the next coach called up to run a program or a staff lift where you tried to out-snatch a co-worker. When you walked into the building, you knew you were competing; you craved it or didn’t survive. It drove your growth because there was the feeling that you didn’t want to fall behind.
3. Alignment was demanded and taught. This alignment was not just centered around daily procedures but also training philosophy and leadership philosophy. Every staff member was expected to understand and emulate the department’s philosophy. Although there was rigidity in how we did things, new ideas were encouraged, and growth was pushed.

These three main components of Coach Moffitt’s program have also been a point of emphasis, directly or indirectly, on every successful staff I’ve been involved with. Since witnessing the staff at LSU, I have made this a foundation for how my staff must operate, and these principles are reflected in my staff today.

[bctt tweet="You’re only as good as the people who work with you. Staff development is key to fostering a productive culture, says @CoachJoeyG."]

You’re only as good as the people who work with you. Staff development is key to fostering a productive culture. There are too many tasks in a day for one person to handle—the ability to delegate specific responsibilities increases the production and development of the people around you. Staff dynamics are not neutral and need to be guided to be successful. I have been part of very good staff and others that were very unproductive.

It is a coach’s job to teach and encourage growth, and through my experiences and some people whom I have worked with or have been on my staff, I want to paint a picture of what it takes to develop as a strength and conditioning coach. Young coaches are most impressionable earlier in their careers, which is why I hope this collection of shared experiences takes hold and helps shape younger coaches to success.

Taking a Role as an Assistant: Paul Jackson, Director of Athletic Development for Football, USU

In January 2014, I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to work under Paul Jackson at the University of Mississippi. Coach Jackson, a former LSU assistant coach known for putting out some of the best training videos in the YouTube era, was on a meteoric rise. The amount of growth that I experienced in the next four years was career-altering. On my first day on the job, Coach Jackson had Lee Taft come in for an in-service on COD and speed training.

This example of knowledge-seeking was not limited to a one-off scenario but was pushed upon us daily. To this day, one of the worst feelings I have felt as a professional was having Coach Jackson walk by my office and see me not reading. The environment was set for us to seek further understanding of training in all areas.

Another priority was the relationships fostered with players. Coach Jackson never let us forget that this field depends on interpersonal skills, and players should be able to trust us. Trust is built on your personal character and connection with those players. It takes time, and it is an investment.

I was extremely fortunate to be on a staff with several assistants who aspired to be head strength coaches and worked toward it daily: Dom Studzinski, Lanier Coleman, and Anthony Crosby were three of the assistants who molded me the most. From the minute I arrived on campus, I had no choice but to follow their lead. We worked as a team in every aspect but also competed as individuals. It was always a competition for who could get to work the earliest or read the most books in a year. The feeling was you never wanted to be the weak link, and you wanted to contribute more to the program than what you were doing.

Coach Jackson believed in autonomy and prescribed each assistant a role within the department for which they were directly acc. The level and impact these sub-departments had was directly up to the manager of those departments. There was a minimum standard each department was expected to uphold, but our staff as a whole wanted more than the minimum.

These managerial experiences gave us opportunities to expand our roles and develop skill sets in a specific discipline. This gave me the feeling of more buy-in and pride, as I was contributing to the success of the athletes and program. Many of the issues that arose were handled among the assistants, and we all tried to predict any potential problems and prevent them from reaching Coach Jackson. Coach Jackson had a clear view of how we would operate, which was taught and reinforced throughout my tenure.

Every training period started with a staff in-service where we were taught exactly how to implement his program and the processes that accompanied it. No detail was left untouched, and standards never faltered. It’s no surprise that Coach Jackson has had several assistants move on to higher positions, as it was impossible not to get better under his tutelage.

Roundtable Contributors

Eric Donoval: Director of Sports Performance (FB), Wyoming

I was fortunate to work for Coach Tommy Moffitt for nearly eight years as an intern, graduate assistant, and full-time assistant.

From the first day stepping onto campus and into that weight room, Coach Moffitt made it very clear how things would operate. There were clear and concise standards that were to be implemented, not only on a daily basis but on a moment-by-moment basis. We were going to speak the same language, “The LSU Way.” There may be different dialects, but as a staff, we would do things one way. If it wasn’t done that way, you were going to hear about it. The consistency in coaching was what led to consistency in our athletes.

Athletes crave structure (despite what they sometimes think or feel in the moment), and structure comes down to well-defined standards, high expectations, clear boundaries, and consistency in accountability. Coach Moffitt applied to the coaching staff the same standards and concepts that we applied to athletes.

[bctt tweet="Athletes crave structure (despite what they may think in the moment), and structure comes down to well-defined standards, high expectations, clear boundaries, and consistency in accountability."]

1. Developing Future Head Strength Coaches

Coach Moffitt would not allow assistant coaches to get complacent in their current role, regardless of how well they coached. He wanted coaches who were driven to improve, brought continued and evolving value to the program, and hoped to run their own programs someday. He wanted to develop bosses, not just assistants. He gave autonomy to the staff, delegated large responsibilities to assistants, and put pressure on us to find solutions and get the job done right—all while allowing us to fail and grow.

He challenged and pushed coaches to be their best daily, just as we do with our athletes, because he saw potential in them and wanted to prepare them. He would tell us daily to “be the coach you want to be someday and be him today”—and then gave us opportunities to do so. We lived by this and had a staff that acted like head strength coaches within their roles.

Whether it was coaching your athletes on the platform, additional programming or modifications for your group, GPS analysis, researching and bringing new ideas to the table, or administrative duties, we had a staff that viewed each responsibility, big or small, as the most important part of the program and took pride in them. Ultimately, if something was not up to standard within your responsibilities, you were held accountable for it. During my time at LSU, there were 10 future FBS head strength coaches working on staff under Coach Moffitt at some point. His development of assistant coaches, in addition to his athletes, is unrivaled in college football.

2. Being Proactive, Not Reactive

“If someone notices, it’s too late” was a phrase we lived by as a staff. Whether it was correcting a detail of a lift, spinning a crooked bumper in the weight room, having reports ready before being asked, or knowing exactly the number of protein drinks we went through for the week, we always tried to be proactive in getting things done before they were needed. If he gave us a standard of how something needed to be done, we made sure it never got off track; if it did, we had all assistants constantly on alert in all aspects of the program to make sure it got back in line before anyone noticed.

3. No Detail Too Small, No Job Too Small

There was no detail too small in the program. Small things turn into big things. Therefore, there are no small things. From how the weight room or field was set up and how we stocked the fridge to athletes lining up behind the line and their lifting and running form, every detail was discussed, understood, and executed at an extremely high level.

There was also no job too small. After all, if we don’t do it, who will? Whether it was taking the garbage out if it got too full in the weight room, making sure the windowsills didn’t have dust on them, or bagging fruit for our athletes before nutritionists were even hired, the details that were demanded and adhered to in every aspect of the program was what made this program so special and successful.

Coach Moffitt's pride in the program permeated throughout his staff, and because of that pride, each assistant took extreme ownership of everything. If something was not up to standard, every assistant automatically looked at himself in the mirror and took ownership of it, regardless of what it was. While each assistant had their delegated responsibilities, the staff acted as a team, understood the standard in all facets of the program, and looked out for anything and everything: five sets of eyes are always better than one. Although responsibilities evolve as you progress to different positions in this field, keeping an “intern mindset” was important as full-time assistants because we are never too big for any job—it’s got to get done.

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Jake Beckett: Assistant Football Strength and Conditioning Coach WSU

The short time at Florida Atlantic University was nothing short of metamorphic. On every level and in every way, my personal life, professional life, and life as a human being have changed. Joey Guarascio was one of the best directors I have ever worked for. Joey demands competency, diligence, attentiveness, zealousness, and fortitude. And if you lack or have an issue with any of those, buckle up because you’re going to develop them in one capacity or another, or you’ll crash and burn.

A couple of the most advantageous qualities I developed at FAU were:

1. Working within a structured system.
2. Building relationships with some of the most insane players/coaches in the country.
3. Learning how to manage my personal life.

1. The System

Joey’s system for his staff, players, and football coaches is the most detailed structure I’ve ever been a part of. You know exactly what your role is on staff, what is expected of you, and how you’re expected to do it. If you do something wrong, you’ll know about it—you’ll never be in the dark, wondering what’s going on.

Everyone on staff has their own pillar they are responsible for, whether the intern coordinator, nutritionist, mobility and corrective exercise programmer, technology/sports scientist, academics and athletic trainer liaison, return to play coordinator, facilities and maintenance specialist, or accountability/consequence manager. You’re responsible for one or two sectors and have the autonomy to run them as you’d like. One rule, though: you have to be the best in the country at it—no exceptions.

As a strength staff, we meet constantly. Every morning before the day starts, typically at 5 a.m., we go over setup, position run and lift expectations, injured athlete schedule, timing, and pairing of particular constructs. We are given weekly readings and homework assignments—usually, we go over them once or twice per week—and that work is done after your work is done for the day. At the end of the day, we go over how the day went, what we could improve on, what athletes need more or less attention, and how we feel about the culture of the team. Once meetings were done, as a staff, we worked out together or worked on personal projects.

2. Relationships

FAU is flooded with some of the most spectacular human beings in the country: kids from inner-city Miami, downtown Atlanta, New Jersey, and more. Every kid had a story; something was fueled inside them, and they all had something to prove. The best part was hearing their stories and working with them daily—seeing their emotions fluctuate and pierce your soul with every conversation. And if you can’t explain exercise prescriptions to them in a general way or relate to them in a personal way, they will never trust you.

FAU kids are very socially proficient—they know when you’re having a bad day, they know how to piss you off, they know how to manipulate and deceive. They don’t know how to trust someone who isn’t built on the same characteristics they are. Want to know how to gain their trust? Show them your love, show them direction, and show them you can help them reach their goals. Once they feel and know that you, as a coach, want to be the best in the country, they will do absolutely anything for you and go to war for you any day.

3. Personal Life Management

Time management is everything. You are going to work 10- to 12-hour days. You’re going to work on the weekends. You’re expected to be on time. You’re going to have to find a way to manage your work and home life. FAU is not a Power 5 school. Joey has five assistants on staff, meaning you’re not going to be paid a whole lot. Therefore, you need to find a way to sacrifice all the fat in your life and focus on what is really needed.

[bctt tweet="You’re not going to be paid a whole lot as an assistant. Therefore, you need to find a way to sacrifice all the fat in your life and focus on what is really needed."]

My significant other and I were able to develop a system of prioritizing our needs, not our wants. We found out what needed to get paid every month, when we could have a special occasion, and when we needed to buckle down and eat ramen noodles and chocolate milk for dinner. There was no room for weekly splurges and luxurious purchases. This comes with a price; if you’re single, it’s much easier, but if you’re in a relationship, your significant other must understand the end goal.

The goal isn’t to live in an apartment in Boca Raton, Florida. The goal is to get a better job, learn from one of the best in the country, and develop habits you can maintain throughout life. As a couple, we learned so much about managing money and valuing time spent together.

David Ventress: Director of Olympic Athletic Performance, South Alabama

I wouldn’t be in the position I’m currently in without my experience at FAU under Coach Joey and his staff. Having a competitive work environment really helped shape me into the coach I am now. Every day was a constant battle to improve myself. I thrived on the challenge of being the best coach on our staff, even though I was far from it. Working with these guys pushed me to be a better person every day.

During my time as an assistant, I learned new skills every day from the other coaches on staff. Coach Jaylon Watson taught me how to keep guys accountable. Being accountable for your own actions is important. Mistakes are going to be made, and you should own up to them. As a coach, this is how I was able to grow and learn from my previous errors.

Coach Jake Beckett taught me how to build relationships with my athletes. I made it a personal goal to try and get as many athletes as possible in my office after sessions. You can’t coach people you don’t know. Earn the right to coach them hard by first getting to know them as people.

[bctt tweet="Earn the right to coach athletes hard by first getting to know them as people."]

Coach Robert Marco taught me how important attention to detail is. Carrying out tasks accurately and thoroughly helps to eliminate careless mistakes. As assistants, we were given complete autonomy over departments. My area was sports science and data integration. I was responsible for sending daily practice reports to our athletes and coaches. This prepared me for presenting a near-perfect end result.

In my current coaching role, I am constantly updating my coaches on GPS data and performance numbers, so it’s very important to present high-quality work. Coach Guarascio taught me to invest in the athletes and coach them hard every day. Learning how to coach and communicate with athletes was one of the most important skills I learned. This is one of those skills that’s often overlooked by fancy programming and data. I learned how to coach by leading team warm-ups and instructing my own position group during lifts and speed sessions. This taught me how to command a room and be a presence on the floor.

Jaylon Watson: Director of Football Sports Performance, Jackson State

My time at FAU under Joey G was an experience that every young, green, and hungry coach needs to have to earn an early edge within this field. A huge aspect that helped me was coming to work every day and taking pride in my craft, knowing there is no such thing as a small detail.

I was challenged daily from a practical and scientific perspective of why we do what. Throughout my journey as a young strength and conditioning coach, I have had the pleasure of learning from some of the best coaches in the game, like Eric Donoval, Joey Guarascio, and Lance Barilow. Each has his own beliefs when it comes to training, but I have truly understood the importance of these three specific pillars:

1. Relationships

Forming genuine and honest relationships with the young men you will be mentoring is by far the most important piece for my development as a coach. At the end of the day, it’s not just a business of S&C; it is a business of people. If we are not genuinely tuned into the young men we are trying to build up, how can we expect them to buy into any plan we establish?

2. ABCs

I was first introduced to the term “ABCs” during my time in Wyoming with Coach Donoval: Always Be Coaching. Every Set—Every Rep—Every Second. There is always something that needs to be coached, no matter how small of a detail there is, and once I arrived at FAU, it really helped me grow to truly see how detail-oriented you have to be in order to be dominant with your “ABCs.”

3. Be Where Your Feet Are

Never think ahead of what you are currently doing or to the next possible opportunity—be in tune with the people you are working with and the people you are coaching. If this is not important, you will catch yourself chasing ghosts instead of GROWING and being the best version of yourself for your staff and the team.

[bctt tweet="Never think ahead of what you’re currently doing or to the next possible opportunity—be in tune with the people you’re working with and the people you’re coaching."]

Chula Loomis: Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach (Football), Kansas

When you think about the job we have, the most integral part is the ability to coach—it’s in the title. To begin any time of year (e.g., summer, winter), the entire staff is taken through an in-service to review any and all movements included in the program both on and off the field. These days serve as a means to ensure the entire staff knows what we are doing, when we’re doing it, and how we’re getting it done.

For any successful staff, this is the base for success. As time goes on, the amount of coaching and “people reps” is exponential. I say “people reps” due to the fact that day in and day out, we are training the team, and depending on the time of year, there will be other groups: Pro Day Prep, pros, or camps.

Continuing education is an integral piece of the puzzle for every coach and helps drive Coach Guarascio’s staff forward—he recommends we invest in ourselves, pushing us toward different courses and learning opportunities. Over the summer, we had several speaking clinics and hosted a USAW clinic. During the fall of 2022, we met weekly to review articles and read through different books, and we had a number of Zoom calls with high-level coaches and staff to exchange ideas, methods, and practices. This is a place where you are challenged constantly to add tools to your game.

The room and environment created is another layer that goes into pushing athletes and coaches, preparing them for the next job to come. The goal is to create competitors across the board: pushing athletes to be where their feet are and compete against their teammates and their best daily while driving coaches to produce results, sharpen the sword that is our athletes, and get our guys to commit to doing extra work.

We commonly heard and used the term “elite is not just a word; it’s the standard.” This put much-needed pressure on us to course correct and move in a way to keep the program on the right path. With all of this, you are growing and developing right now, which will impact the value you bring down the road. If you listen closely, there are lessons on how to be a great director/leader/coach everywhere.

Marcus Brock: Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach, Director of Basketball S&C, Missouri State

When you first start your pursuit in this field, from the outside looking in, it appears simple enough: you train athletes to grow stronger, get faster, jump higher, be more resilient, and, ultimately, increase their performance. In most ways, this is true, but what you don’t realize when you first start out is how to achieve those qualities and what it takes to get there.

I was fortunate enough to start my career working under Joey Guarascio as an intern, eventually becoming an assistant on his staff. My time working with him at FAU not only set me up for success but prepared me for future opportunities. I can say without a doubt that every day, stepping into that facility, I was challenged to be my best while also being put into a position to learn and continue my growth as a professional.

As an intern, I was introduced to programming, Olympic lifts, GPS data, and other methods to continue my education in this field, which carried me into the assistant role. Joey did an incredible job developing a great staff that was able to project what it took to be at that elite level; guys like David Ventress, Jake Beckett, Robert Marco, and Jaylon Watson all had a hand in making that happen as well.

My time as an assistant on his staff was spent being put into a position to grow and step outside my comfort zone. Coach Guarascio taught me how to control a weight room, be a problem-solver, and invest in the players. There was one thing that I noticed every day, and that was athletes sticking around just to talk to Joey, have a normal conversation, get his insight on things, ask weight room-related questions, or just crack a couple of jokes.

I take that with me to this day because he’s able to develop a certain level of trust with the guys to where they’re willing to follow what he says because they know he has their best interest in mind. I believe that’s true with not only athletes but also with the staff. It is a true testament to what he does and what developing a staff takes, and that’s the level of trust.

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Bob Marco: Associate Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, FAU

My time at FAU has shown me more than I could have imagined about myself. How to work, be punctual, and be efficient in both my work and personal life. It’s also taught me how to create relationships, how to learn, and how to be coachable. I’ll just talk about a couple of these examples here.

Those examples probably seem obvious to most. These are all things we’ve learned growing up, playing sports, interning, and working…but something seems different about my development here versus other points in my life.

1. How to Work

This was the first thing that I learned when I arrived at FAU in 2021. A lot of us work hard in this business—this area of work isn’t meant for everyone, and we know that. Explaining my hours and work schedule to my friends and family sends their heads spinning, and a part of me enjoys those discussions just to see the reactions. Outside looking in, it seems like insanity to some, but the beauty of it is when you’re on the inside, it doesn’t seem so insane.

The key to the insanity not being so insane is the people around you. A productive, cohesive, fun-ass staff that holds each other accountable is essential. Co-workers who hold themselves and you to a high standard allow for minimal drop-off in production while avoiding the animosity that builds with staff members being weak links and not pulling their weight. It forces you to be self-aware and ask yourself, “Am I doing enough?” “How can I be more helpful?” “How can I make co-workers’ lives easier?” and “How can I make my life easier?”

This helps create the “cover and move” mentality. Whatever needs to get done will get done without question or complaint. Another key component is having fun doing it. The more ridiculous and last-second the task, the more fun you need to have. We’ve built 30 yards of a football field with 30 minutes’ notice in a warehouse on a 90-degree Florida morning using a 100-foot tape measure and 20 rolls of athletic tape. We had a damn blast doing it, and you’re damn right we never even used it. You have two options: bitch about it or have a good time getting it done.

[bctt tweet="You have two options: bitch about it or do it and have a good time getting it done."]

2. Being Coachable

We ask our athletes to be coachable and execute everything we ask without question, but I’ve noticed that some of us don’t even do that. Pride gets in the way, and too many things get taken personally. I’ve seen this with staff members and interns alike. I’ve been guilty of it before myself, and luckily, I was part of a staff that had a great support system and experience under their belt that could set it straight for me.

I’ve been blessed to be a part of the staff that coaches me and helps me grow, and I try to return the favor the best I can. Passing that way of operating on to new staff members and interns is paramount, especially with the amount of staff turnover we have had here at FAU. To be a good assistant coach, be 100% open to being coached, and coached hard. It’s what we demand of our players and what we need to be open to ourselves.

Lead Image by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire.

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Based on their chaotic job demands, law enforcement officers today must be physically well-rounded. It’s impossible to replicate an officer’s exact physical duties, yet having physical standards holds officers accountable for their health and physical capabilities—both of which aid job performance and improve quality of life.

When training and assessing an officer’s physical abilities, it is important to understand much of what we do as strength and conditioning coaches is a small piece of the larger puzzle. They also must train in operational, control tactics, shooting, and a heap of other skills to strengthen their job performance. It may sound similar to your former athletes working on skill development or the game plan, but this holds superior importance due to the potential consequences.

[bctt tweet="I can confidently say that a fitter law enforcement officer has an increased likelihood of managing stress, reducing overuse injuries, and having an overall positive outlook on their work and life."]

We want our officers to be durable and fit when working the job. I can confidently say that a fitter officer has an increased likelihood of managing stress, reducing overuse injuries, and having an overall positive outlook on their work and life.

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Training

Assessments and standards vary from department to department, so there is no universal method for this preparation. This article is also not meant to say what assessments are better than others but rather to look into the preparation for common physical assessments throughout law enforcement.

Officers should follow a balanced strength and conditioning program regardless of the standards. Assessments should be kept in mind and performed in some capacity, but they shouldn’t make up the entire program. Prepare to be ready for a broad base of physical abilities—then, officers will be able to achieve the standards as well as increase their potential to deal with challenges.

A training program should focus on the major movement patterns:

• Push
• Pull
• Squat
• Hinge
• Single leg exercises
• Carries

Performing exercises from these patterns, in some capacity, will help prepare officers for any of the assessments listed below. When paired with consistency—staying ready year-round—there will be little doubt of passing physical standards.

Training officers for their standards isn’t inherently different than training other individuals for their goals. Work backward from the assessment date and establish training markers along the way to monitor progress and adjust when needed. The major difference is creating a program flexible enough to accommodate an officer’s schedule. It’s safe to say the typical shift schedule and lifestyle demands are not optimal for the textbook training program.

Assessments and standards also vary during the stages of an officer’s career. For example, an up-and-coming officer in the police academy will usually have a more structured day, allowing for a better training schedule suited to tracking standards.

Meanwhile, patrol officers working shifts will have more difficulty with routine. Some are not even required to meet any physical standards from their department, a common trend across police departments for multiple reasons. Officers involved in specialty units, such as K-9, SWAT, medics, etc., may have different or additional standards to meet—these units can require specific physical assessments due to the job requirements.

Power Assessments

Law enforcement officers must be prepared for anything and everything. Being capable in one quality—such as being hugely strong—does them no good if they cannot use that due to a mobility or conditioning restriction. This is why there is an array of assessments. 

Having the ability to execute power is significant for police officers and could be the deciding factor in a dangerous scenario. A word of caution before you go prescribing intense plyometrics to an unprepared officer—there should be appropriate exercise prescription and implementation. Power has one of the shortest training residual effects, and many officers are not prepared to just “jump” back into an intense program.

Considering the assessments, work them into the training program—perform broad jumps in training if they must perform broad jumps in the assessment. These movements have a technical component, so we want the officer to be comfortable. However, they should still perform various additional jumps and exercises in all planes of movement.

Implementing 10–20 total reps of power-based exercises 2–3 times per week to conclude a warm-up will be sufficient to develop and see progress. The closer you get to the date of the assessment, the more specific the exercise can be to ensure the highest transferability.

Some sample power assessments include:

Broad Jump

The broad jump is a simple power assessment an agency could use. Requiring only a tape measure, it is a low means method to assess for power in the horizontal plane.

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Vertical Jump

The vertical jump is the current gold standard exercise for the lower body. A Vertec is commonly used, but I prefer a jump mat or alternative such as the Skyhook Contact Mat, to simplify the testing procedure.

Medicine Ball Throw

An overhead medicine ball throw for distance is a great alternative option if space and equipment allow. The throw requires total body power and is relatively easy to teach.

Muscular Endurance

Assessments for muscular endurance have been performed throughout the years within police agencies. Many of them require no equipment and are a good gauge of relative body strength and fitness levels.

When training for these assessments, the last thing you want to do is perform maximum reps of the exercise every day. These movements should be trained in a structured manner.

Some sample muscular endurance assessments include push-ups, pull-ups, and the elbow plank hold.

Push-Ups 

Push-ups are the first exercise that comes to mind with police physical assessments. Some may find them outdated, but there is no denying that they are great screens for relative body strength.

[bctt tweet="Some may find them to be outdated for physical assessments, but there is no denying that push-ups are a great screen for relative body strength."]

Training for these assessments should be as individualized as possible: an officer who can perform 20–30 push-ups should train differently than an officer who can perform 50+ or even zero push-ups.

• Novice (0–10 reps)

When training individuals who struggle to perform any push-ups, you should take a step back and regress the exercise. Movements such as eccentric-only push-ups, hand-release push-ups, and assisted push-ups will begin to strengthen the exercise pattern and build confidence.

• Intermediate (11–30 reps)

Cluster sets can be used to train the intermediate officer. These sets break up a larger rep range within smaller groups, allowing for a more efficient workload. This could be done in countless ways, but an example could appear as the following.

A set of 30 reps broken into three cluster sets of 10, with 20 seconds of rest between each cluster.

Perform 10 push-ups, rest for 20 seconds, perform 10 push-ups, rest for 20 seconds, and then finish the set with 10 push-ups, totaling 30 repetitions.

All reps are not equal, and the 30 clustered reps are performed with higher quality than if I told the same officer just to perform 30 push-ups straight.

• Advanced (>30)

The advanced individual may think they are too strong for push-ups, but they are just not progressing them correctly. Like any exercise, we can progress the push-up by increasing the load.

Working in sets of weighted push-ups within the 5–8 rep range to strengthen the exercise will help build a bigger reserve to perform push-ups for additional reps. Especially since many standards must be done within a particular time limit, there’s only so far they’ll go with continuing to just max out their push-ups in a time frame.

There is, of course, a lot of carryover between these three strategies, and they can all be used, depending on the situation.

[vimeo 883827548 w=800]

Pull-Ups

The pull-up, or chin-up, requires a tremendous amount of upper body strength. Pull-ups can follow similar training guidelines as push-ups but be even more flexible, as this exercise is often dreaded in assessments.

• Novice (0–2 )

These individuals often lack the confidence even to attempt a pull-up; having them fail time after time will do no good. Introducing exercises such as dead hangs, flexed arm hangs, and eccentric focused pull-ups will begin to build the confidence and strength required to progress.

• Intermediate (3–9)

I prefer adding assistance to pull-ups with the intermediate group. I’ve found individuals become too comfortable relying on assistance and are slow to attempt improvement if allowed assistance early on.

When using assistance, ensure officers use the minimum amount required to complete the repetitions.

Cluster sets can also be used to improve pull-ups. Like the push-up example, cluster sets will break up higher rep schemes, so instead of a seemingly impossible set of 10, a cluster set can create a more manageable set of 5/3/2 or even 10x1.

• Advanced ( > 10 )

If able to perform 10+ pull-ups, begin adding load. Even if it is just 5 pounds at first, that is a 5-pound increase. Along with the weighted pull-ups, mixing the modalities listed can keep training fresh and engaging.

[vimeo 883826619 w=800]

Elbow Plank Hold

The elbow plank hold is a good indicator of trunk stability and endurance. Train the elbow plank 1–2 times per week.

If you are starting from ground zero, begin with 2–4 sets of 10-second holds focused on perfect positioning. Each week, gradually increase the time held by 5–10 seconds, working toward the standard time. Some additional exercises that you should include throughout the week are various weighted carries, side planks, and RKC planks to supplement the training.

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Strength

Few assessments test for maximal strength in law enforcement physical standards. This is due to the risk versus reward of maxing out an exercise in relation to the average officer, who is in a less-than-ideal situation to do so.

With all that in mind, we don’t see this across many agencies—but that is not to say it is not of value. The hex bar deadlift, which is a total-body exercise, a safer alternative, and graded in relation to the officer’s body weight, is a solid solution and is becoming increasingly more common.

Hex Bar Deadlift (1–3 Rep Max) 

When preparing for this assessment, it’s essential to perform and practice the exercise to become technically proficient. I recommend training it once per week, along with supplemental exercises.

It’s essential to train the entire spectrum of reps and loads. Do not just load it up as heavy as possible each week and hope for the best. Work rep ranges from 3–10, being cautious of technical breakdown when you start to creep up on that scale's higher or lower ranges.

Aerobic

Aerobic capacity may come last, considering job demands, though this quality is necessary for an officer’s physical abilities, general health, and wellness.

Cardiovascular disease and stress are more prevalent in officers in comparison to the average person. Preparing officers for standards is important, but working to combat current health trends with a positive physical culture should be the larger picture.

Increasing aerobic abilities allows officers to better mitigate stress, improve recoverability, and increase cognitive functioning in high-pressure situations.

[bctt tweet="Increasing aerobic abilities allows officers to better mitigate stress, improve recoverability, and increase cognitive functioning in high-pressure situations."]

Some sample aerobic assessments include:

1.5 Mile Run

The mile and a half (or any distanced run, for that matter) must be performed within a specific time frame set by the agency. The first on-track training session doesn’t have to be a test or a timed trial.

It goes for all these assessments, but regardless of how you feel about running, you will have to implement running to prepare for a running assessment. For the sake of exposure and training transferability alone, it is necessary—but it is our job as coaches to ensure sound training principles to limit overuse injuries and aid progress.

If the officer preparing for the assessment is just getting into running, alternating between running and walking is recommended. An example layout would be the following.

Week 1:  Run 1/4 mile, walk 1/4 mile x 4.

Week 2:  Run 1/2 mile, walk 1/4 mile x 3.

Week 3:  Run 3/4 mile, walk 1/4 mile x 2.

Week 4:  Run 1 mile, walk 1/2 mile x 1.

Week 5:  Run 1 1/2 mile for the assessment marker.

Begin with less and build up to the distance required. You can alter these prescribed distances or the pace of the run for the more seasoned runner. Incorporating shorter, more intense interval sessions in the form of hill sprints, short flat land sprints, or exercise performed on a bike, rower, or ski erg can also aid in training.

Cooper Test

The Cooper Test is an aerobic capacity test in which you run as far as possible within 12 minutes. The assessment can be graded by the total distance covered or by calculating a V0₂ max off that number. Again, agencies will typically set their own scores, but a standard example would be the following.

When preparing for the assessment, increase distance or time gradually, working as small as 5%–10% increases per week, depending on the length of time until the assessment.

Officers will follow a similar progression as listed above and still incorporate some longer steady-state sessions, whether on the track or on an off-foot option, once per week at minimum.

With the time component, though, they want to be prepared for sustaining work for the entire period. An example of time progression appears as the following:

Week 1: 4 x 3 minutes, full recovery between sets.

Week 2: 3 x 4 minutes, full recovery between sets.

Week 3: 2 x 6 minutes, full recovery between sets.

Week 4: 1 x 12 minutes, full recovery between sets.

The runs should be performed all out, recording the distances achieved, and you can continue to build volume from these four weeks.

PACER

The Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) may bring back memories from childhood gym class. The PACER is another great assessment of aerobic capacity.

Officers should perform the test earlier to not only find a starting score but, more importantly, become familiar with the assessment, listening to commands, the change of direction, etc.

The PACER is different from some of the other aerobic assessments in that the test is concluded when the individual can no longer make it to the 20-meter line in time. So, it prevents the individual from going past the point of no return.

We use the PACER with our police academy and our specialty units. It helps with logistics and not having a track. If performed consistently over time, you can begin to build out your own standards from trends you see with your officers.

Anaerobic

More commonly than not, officers’ job duties will fall under the anaerobic energy system: short bursts of sprinting, jumping, climbing, and other dynamic actions.

Some sample anaerobic assessments include:

300-Meter Shuttle

The 300-meter shuttle is an exhausting test involving a series of sprints intermingled with changes of direction. Preparing for the 300-meter shuttle is of great importance to begin building the officer’s sprinting preparation. Performing repeated sprints in shorter distances of 5–10 yards is a safe introduction and continues building up as time goes on.

There is little need to perform the sprints farther than the test marks, and doing so may even be harmful. If the assessment is performed in 25-yard increments, do not prepare by running 100-yard repeat sprints.

Incorporating at least one session or block per week focusing on the shuttle run should be sufficient in conjunction with the additional training.

Keep in mind that officers will have to pass several of these assessments with conflicting energy systems during the same hour of the day.

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Fit for Life

Physical assessments are created to hold law enforcement officers to a higher standard and emphasize the importance of physical readiness for their job. While assessments, standards, and situations may vary throughout the world of policing, a flexible program to accommodate officers is a common requirement.

[bctt tweet="Educate and train officers to focus on lifestyle and cultural changes in physical and mental wellness rather than becoming fixated on the assessments themselves."]

Another thing that doesn’t vary is educating and training officers to focus on lifestyle and cultural changes in physical and mental wellness rather than becoming fixated on the assessments themselves. It is our job as strength and conditioning professionals to hammer this message home and work to create rational training plans for officers to meet standards as well as build upon the larger picture during and post-career.

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Bob Rowbotham is a former physical education teacher who coached football and wrestling. He is the CEO of Bigger Faster Stronger, running the company with his son John, who serves as the president and director of education. For nearly a half-century, BFS has been one of the most influential forces in athletic fitness training for young athletes. Working with athletic and physical education departments, BFS coaches have given over 10,000 hands-on clinics for athletes and their coaches. It was also known for its print magazine, BFS, which was published bimonthly for nearly four decades and distributed to over 17,000 high school, college, and professional sports programs.

Freelap USA: BFS promotes the unification of athletic programs in high schools. How do you define unification, and why do you think it’s important?

Bob Rowbotham: Unification is the belief that all sports and physical education classes should teach the same weight training techniques and follow the same program design structure. Unification enhances sports performance and ensures total physical development in the general student population.

Rather than having a stretching program for football, one for wrestling, one for baseball, and one for PE classes, all students follow the same stretching program year-round. Rather than having separate weight training programs, there would be one program that focused on the same core lifts year-round. The result is that a unification program reduces the amount of coaching needed to get athletes and the general student population ready to work hard in the weight room.

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Freelap USA: How was the BFS program created?

Bob Rowbotham: The inspiration for the BFS program came from the workouts of elite track and field throwers, including George Frenn (hammer throw), Stefan Fernholm (discus), and Jon Cole (discus and shot put). Frenn squatted a world record, Fernholm could power clean 476 pounds and vertical jump over 40 inches, and Cole was the first man to squat 900 pounds officially. Brigham Young University was the first college team to use the BFS workout, and the Utah Jazz was the first professional team.

Consider that when BFS started, most athletes who lifted weights were football players. Following the workouts of these powerful track and field athletes made sense. That environment has changed, with most sports wanting to enjoy the benefits of pumping iron. However, we found that the training methods used by those elite track and field athletes could benefit all athletes, even athletes in distance events.

[caption id="attachment_14786" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 1. BFS magazine was published for nearly four decades and was distributed to over 17,000 athletic programs.[/caption]

Freelap USA: BFS has a reputation for turning around sports teams, frequently featuring these teams in your magazine. What advice would you give to other coaches who want to get their athletes back on the winning track?

Bob Rowbotham: One way to turn around weak sports programs is to focus on breaking personal records in the weight room. With our set/rep system, it’s common for an athlete to break a dozen personal records a week, year-round. This positive reinforcement gives athletes confidence, and good things happen when you believe in yourself.

[bctt tweet="One way to turn around weak sports programs is to focus on breaking personal records in the weight room. This positive reinforcement gives athletes confidence, which leads to good things happening."]

In team sports at the high school level, talented athletes tend to cancel each other out. Rather than focusing on turning great athletes into superstars, making good athletes better can help elevate the overall talent of a sports team. Let me give you an example. It’s a daunting task for an undersized high school football lineman to face off against a 250-pound lineman. But if that undersized athlete can parallel squat 300 pounds and deadlift 400 pounds, he will have the mentality that he can do something against that opponent.

Another way to get an edge over schools is by starting athletes in strength and conditioning in feeder middle schools with a teaching system we call the BFS Readiness Program. This program teaches the basic lifts, how to spot, and how to properly stretch, jump, and sprint—heavy lifting isn’t emphasized, just technique. When these athletes move on to high school and have the physical maturity to lift heavy, they can get going from day 1 rather than going through a long introductory period.

[caption id="attachment_14787" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Image 2. BFS has given over 10,000 clinics on athletic fitness and character education. Here is Coach Jeff Scurran, a BFS clinician who has given over 400 BFS clinics and has a reputation for turning around struggling athletic programs.[/caption]

Freelap USA: What are the physical and mental differences that coaches and PE instructors should be aware of in kids now versus when you started teaching?

Bob Rowbotham: Physically, there’s little difference. That said, in the past, with PE classes, kids had to master one fundamental skill before moving on to another—that’s not the case now in many PE programs. Also, one of the worst things happening in the country is PE being taken off the required curriculum list, so kids never find out how much potential they have in sports.

Mentally, many young athletes today display a negative work ethic. Coaches I’ve talked to agree, saying that many kids today expect to be good without paying the price of hard work, and this attitude is difficult for a coach to deal with because there is so much influence by society. This challenge inspired us to develop a character education program called “Be an 11.”

[bctt tweet="The feedback we get from school administrators is that when athletes behave like role models, there’s a positive trickle-down effect on the entire student population."]

The “Be an 11" program focuses on working with athletes rather than the general population. A coach works with a team where everyone is focused on winning and achieving the same goals. The feedback we get from school administrators is that when athletes behave like role models, there is a positive, trickle-down effect on the entire student population.

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Freelap USA: BFS believes high school athletes should play multiple sports. Wouldn’t it be better for athletes to focus on a single sport to increase their chances for a scholarship? 

Bob Rowbotham: The highest level of sports competition for more than 90% of athletes is high school. It would be a shame for the less physically gifted athletes to focus on just one sport and miss out on the total high school sports experience. Also, the risk of injury, particularly overuse injuries, is much higher in athletes who play only one sport.

Next, having athletes play only one sport affects the success of the overall athletic program and can devastate smaller schools. That starting quarterback could be a point guard for the basketball team and a pitcher for the baseball team. That star volleyball player could be a center on the basketball team and a high jumper in track. Let me finish with one more point.

For athletes seeking a scholarship in team sports, consider that the success of an athlete in a team sport is influenced by the talent surrounding them. A less-talented running back with a strong offensive line may put up more impressive numbers than a more-talented running back with a weak offensive line. Seeing how this athlete performs in other sports, particularly track and field, gives college scouts a better understanding of an athlete’s athletic potential.

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By Steve Haggerty and Alex Roberts

If there is one thing an athlete is looking to improve, it’s to become more powerful. Having the necessary size for their sport is good. Strength is needed for the demands of their position and sport as well, but power is the game changer. It’s nice to be the bigger and stronger athlete in a football game, but who can produce their strength quicker? If both linemen can push 500 pounds, the person who can utilize that strength the quickest will win the battle at the line of scrimmage. In baseball and softball, it’s nice to be strong, but how fast can they swing the bat? Lots of force produced too slowly does no good.

Sports all have time constraints—the tennis ball is approaching quickly and the player does not have much time to get set up and produce a big swing. The volleyball gets set in the air and the hitter needs to get off the ground quickly and swing their arm as hard as possible to hit the ball and score. Again, strength and size are prerequisites to even get on the court or field, but power is what separates athletes from the competition.

So…how do we get our athletes more explosive and powerful?

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What is Power?

First, we need to understand what power is. Power is defined by Human Kinetics as “a great force production over a short period of time, such as in fast leg kicks and explosive jumping.” In most research, rate of force development is studied instead of power.

Power is often tested with vertical and broad jumps, while rate of force development is measured with isokinetic dynamometers and EMG equipment1. In physics, power is work divided by time (p=w/t) or force multiplied by velocity (p=f*v)—us coaches often think of force as strength and velocity as speed.

In strength and conditioning, power is often found in the middle of the force velocity curve—a combination of both qualities.

[caption id="attachment_14778" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure 1. The force-velocity curve.[/caption]

For performance coaches, power is best assessed by measuring standing vertical and standing broad jumps and bar speed or medicine ball throwing speed. Getting an athlete to jump higher and farther while they maintain the same bodyweight means they became more powerful. The same can be said for an athlete that put on 10 pounds during the off-season but still jumps the same distance as before. More weight at the same distance means increased power output.

[bctt tweet=" Getting an athlete to jump higher and farther while they maintain the same bodyweight means they became more powerful, says @Steve20Haggerty."]

Using something like a Tendo Unit, GymAware, or any other technology that measures bar speed can be a great tool to assess the speed of barbell movements to determine power output. These devices typically indicate how fast a barbell was moving in meters per second (m/s). Any speed between 0.75 and 1 m/s is working directly on power development. Bar speeds faster than that are developing more velocity, and slower bar speeds build more strength. Even utilizing the more affordable velocity-based training method of timing a set can be a useful way to track power improvements (more on this later). If your athlete can bench press 100 pounds at 0.8 m/s and 8 weeks later this athlete can bench press either 120 pounds at 0.8 m/s or 100 pounds at 0.9 m/s, they became more powerful.

How Do Athletes Get More Powerful?

As with any desired adaptation, you must place the athlete's body under a stress that signals to the body that it must change. Power, by definition, is moving explosively or moving a load as quickly as possible; this explosive movement puts stress on the athlete and, over time, pushes the athlete to improve their power levels. How?

Along with the neurological adaptations that we discussed in our previous article on strength adaptations, the main process for improving power output is improving the firing rate of the muscle fibers. The central nervous system improves the ability to rapidly activate muscle fibers. When it comes to sprinting, jumping, and changing direction on the field and court, the average ground contact time in field sports is 200 milliseconds. That means they do not have a long time to generate force, so their brains need to be very efficient in sending activation messages to their muscles.

Power Adaptations for Beginner Athletes

An athlete is more explosive and powerful if they can move the same weight at a faster speed or if they can move a heavier weight at the same speed. Understanding that power is the combination of strength and speed can easily guide what we need to do with our beginner level athletes. Getting an athlete to produce more force and utilize that force quickly is the goal. They need to get stronger and move faster. Beginner athletes are most often at the middle school and high school levels. The two focuses for these athletes should be:

1. Get stronger—power is dependent on force, and you can’t move something quickly if you can’t move it at all. The bar speed of a weight that is too heavy to even lift is 0 m/s—no power output. Since power is dependent on force output, getting stronger is the lowest hanging fruit. If your athlete stays the same bodyweight but can produce more force by using heavier weights, then they are more explosive.

Getting stronger is the easiest way to get more powerful as a beginner, but it does not last forever. At a certain point, being able to produce more force does not improve their ability to produce more force at faster rates. Dr. Matt Rhea found that, in football athletes, one-rep maxes for back squats weighing over 1.7 times the athlete’s bodyweight have very little influence on sprinting speed, and even being able to squat 1.7 times bodyweight only accounts for 24% of the variance. Strength sets the base for power development especially in a beginner athlete—don't worry, there are more advanced methods to come.

[bctt tweet="Strength sets the base for power development especially in a beginner athlete."]

2. Explosive movements. For a beginner athlete, this is not the time for WestSide Barbell’s dynamic effort method with speed bench using chains and bands. Not yet. Getting younger, newer athletes to understand how to move objects quickly, including their bodyweight, is important. Utilizing medicine balls and jumps/plyometrics is a great place to begin.

No need for advanced methods with these tools just yet: a variety of hops, jumps, bounds, and skips is not only working the central nervous system’s ability to produce force quickly, but also improving the elastic qualities of the tendons to be able to transfer force efficiently. Yes, the brain tells the muscles to contract, but the muscles of course pull on the tendons which pull on the bones and make the body move. Not only do we want our athletes to be able to activate their muscles quickly, but for that force to be transferred effectively through their tendons. Plyometrics help with both. This is their opportunity to learn how to move their bodies—and other implements like light medicine balls—effectively.

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Power Adaptations for Intermediate Athletes

As a coach, once you feel comfortable with an athlete’s relative strength levels, it’s time to start to up the intensity as far as bar speed—utilizing methods such as Olympic lifts and weighted jumps, dynamic effort lifting, lower reps, and bringing in competition. Methods such as these helped two of our college basketball players hit 40-inch vertical jumps this summer.

1. Olympic lifts or weighted jumps. This is a step up from medicine ball throws. The goal is still to move a weighted implement as fast as possible with proper technique. Before you get on social media and make your case for which is better—Olympic lifts or weighted jumps—first remember that no one cares. These are tools to use: pick whichever you like best or use both. Olympic lifts and weighted jumps typically have bar speeds of 1.2 to 1.8 m/s, depending on the movement (from the floor, hang, blocks, and snatch versus clean). Hard to find another way to move loads of this weight at those types of speeds.
2. Dynamic effort lifting. Similar to using Olympic lifts and weighted jumps, dynamic effort lifting is a great method to move heavier weights explosively. This is an intermediate tool because the athlete first needs good technique and a good foundation of strength for this to be effective. With all of the tools in this intermediate category, the goal is really intent: teaching the athlete the intent to move something as fast and explosively as possible.

[bctt tweet="Similar to using Olympic lifts and weighted jumps, dynamic effort lifting is a great method to move heavier weights explosively, says @Steve20Haggerty."]

The main difference between dynamic effort squatting and doing a power clean is of course that they are different exercises, but squats (and bench presses and deadlifts) are easier movements to implement accommodating resistance. This is important because, when creating a movement (let’s think of a triceps pushdown), the brain has to activate the agonist muscles (triceps) and inhibit the antagonist muscles (biceps). One side of the joint needs to contract, while the other needs to relax to allow the movement to occur. This is still true when moving explosively, but the antagonist muscles get activated towards the end of the movement to keep the joint safe. When doing a triceps pushdown as powerfully as possible, if the biceps do not act as a brake towards the end of the movement, the elbow could hyperextend (or even worse). This is the body’s natural way to keep the joint safe, but it slows down the movement and inhibits the force of the agonist muscle—this is especially true with traditional lifting movements. In exercises where the implement being moved can be released (medicine ball or weighted baseball), this occurs to a much lesser extent.

Utilizing accommodating resistance leads to the weight of the bar getting heavier towards the end range of motion, allowing the agonist muscles to contract closer to the full range of motion before the brain begins to inhibit it and activate the antagonist. So, not only does accommodating resistance force the athlete to push more forcefully throughout the movement, but this tool also allows this to happen from a neurological standpoint.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfR7IglXHsM[/embed]
Video 1. An athlete utilizing accommodating resistance on speed squats.

3. Improving power output is about quality repetitions. Just going through the motions of doing trap bar jumps and banded bench presses will not improve explosiveness. Again, it is about intent and getting maximum effort from your athletes. Autoregulation is the method of allowing bar speed to determine the number of sets or repetitions. As a coach, you can prescribe six sets of three repetitions of speed squats at 1 m/s—using technology that actually tracks bar speed would be necessary here.

Athletes all have their good days and days where the weight just feels heavy. Autoregulation is about tracking the bar speed to determine if they should add weight, drop weight, continue to do more sets, or do fewer sets. While I was an intern, Coach Joe Connolly at Arizona State told me to “strike while the iron is hot.” If an athlete is having a good day and the bar speed reflects that, add weight or sets. On the other hand, if their central nervous system is a bit down and the weight is not moving how it should, then it could be a good time to cut the lift and move on to accessories. If the bar speed is not there, they are no longer training the desired adaptation.

[bctt tweet="Athletes all have their good days and days where the weight just feels heavy, says @Steve20Haggerty."]

4. Competition and goals. We should understand the importance of moving as explosively as possible for the improvement of power output. The intermediate athlete is learning all about this. To maintain or even enhance that intent using resources or creativity to create competitions and goals is extremely useful. Since we have written a good amount about using bar speed in this article, just using a bar speed tracking device will create competition on its own—athletes will want to beat their speeds and beat the speeds of those around them, which will lead to greater power adaptations.

Even without the resources to obtain a bar speed tracking device, the the poor man’s velocity-based training can work as well: time the athlete’s set. Have an athlete get ready to do two squat repetitions as fast as they can: start the timer as soon as you see them initiate the first repetition and stop the timer as soon as they complete the second repetition. No, it’s not as accurate as GymAware, but it is still a useful way to get your athletes to compete against the clock. When working with groups all beginning their set at the same time, you can prescribe an amount of time to complete a set and have them try to get as many repetitions as possible in that set. This is an easy way to get athletes to compete against their own previous times as well as their teammates. This can be done for med ball throws by using a radar gun for speed, using a tape measure from throwing distance, or objects overhead for throwing height. Your creativity as a coach allows for endless variations.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCtfHg4ToFs[/embed]
Video 2. An athlete using the walkway above as a goal to throw the medicine ball over. Look at the genuine excitement.

Power Adaptations for Advanced Athletes

While preparing football players for the NFL combine or their respective pro days, one of our main goals is power output. Running faster, jumping higher, and jumping farther are all about being explosive and producing force as quickly as possible. To increase power outputs in football players for the combine, and even in professional MMA fighters leading up to a bout, we have used methods like fast overcoming isometrics, contrast training, overspeed eccentrics, drops, oscillating isometrics, and advanced plyometric training.

1. Fast overcoming isometric. We discussed this method for improving strength, but this can also be a useful tool for improving power if used in a slightly different manner. Again, an overcoming isometric is pushing or pulling a bar into an unmovable object. This is an amazing way to maximize motor unit recruitment for strength. Using this same technique, but for 2- to 3-second isometrics where the initiation of the exercise is done as fast as possible, is better for training power. Being able to produce a lot of force relative to the athlete’s bodyweight is needed, but typically this is not the limiting factor after the beginner stages.

Advanced athletes typically need to maximize how much force they can produce rapidly. Ground contact time in the 40-yard dash is about 0.1 second and the amount of time an athlete produces force during the vertical and broad jump is around 0.6 second—meaning they do not allow much time to express force. It needs to be done as quickly as possible. This method improves the speed at which the athlete produces force—rate of force development. One caveat is that this needs to be executed safely. If doing a fast-overcoming isometric by pulling a trap bar into pins, make sure the trap bar is already against the pins before maximally pulling. Same for any exercise using this method. If the trap bar is on the ground and the pins are six inches above it, and the athlete rips the 45-pound trap bar from the floor and slams it into unmovable pins, you could be looking at a serious back injury.

2. Contrast training. I have heard this method referred to as contrast, French contrast, Canadian ascending/descending, or even simply as a superset. In this method, we want our athletes to perform an exercise that is heavy and forces high motor unit recruitment and then go to an exercise that forces high speed of recruitment.

For this application, it is best to use two similar exercises. Since we are working with elite athletes in this method, we would want to use exercises that are relatively specific to their sport. Power is specific to speed, plane, and coordination, especially with this level of athlete. An example of this method would be a heavy squat for two to three repetitions and then going into band assisted vertical jumps. The recommended rest time between one exercise and the next actually varies quite a bit in the research—some suggest going directly into the next movement and others recommending five minutes of rest.

[bctt tweet="Power is specific to speed, plane, and coordination, especially with advanced athletes, says @Steve20Haggerty."]

3. Overspeed eccentrics. We have looked at different variations of utilizing eccentrics for specific adaptations in previous articles—targeting improvements in power production, overspeed eccentrics are great for advanced athletes because they force the athlete to absorb and redirect the load faster. This is a method of applying more speed or load in the eccentric phase to create more stored elastic energy and challenge the body’s ability to stop and redirect the force. Overspeed eccentrics is a method of making the eccentric portion of a movement faster than normal, or faster than the concentric portion can be. Examples of this could be as simple as doing a dynamic effort squat and squatting down as fast as possible, having the athlete almost pull themself down into a squat. Another way would be letting go of a weight and catching and reversing its momentum rapidly—I have personally done this with RDL variations (that comes with risk to the spine) by holding the weight at the top position and quickly letting go of the bar, catching, and reversing it back up.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26ZBnzrqo3c[/embed]
Video 3. Overspeed eccentric RDL.

Another example of overspeed eccentrics we like to use is tossing a medicine ball with a partner. One athlete starts by laying on a bench, the ground, or a foam roller and the standing partner holds a medicine ball several feet above their chest. When the standing partner drops the ball, the working athlete will have to catch and reverse the ball as rapidly as possible.

The last way we have utilized this method is by using more weight on the eccentric than on the concentric. This can be done with weight releasers, although I have never used these (and when I have seen them used, it is typically not done in a rapid eccentric movement). We’ve applied this method by using bands on the eccentric end of a depth jump, releasing the bands at ground contact, and immediately performing a vertical jump. Overspeed eccentrics are used to improve stored elastic energy, particularly of the tendons, and increase speed of the amortization phase of the stretch shortening cycle (the split-second isometric between an eccentric and concentric action).

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUXpIXji0T4[/embed]
Video 4. An athlete using bands to pull him into the jump and releasing the bands well before takeoff (the bands are pulling him down eccentrically more than gravity alone).

4. Oscillating isometrics. Oscillating isometrics are not truly isometric, but small, rapid pulses done over a small and specific range of motion. These rapid pulsating movements look to increase the firing rate of the muscles as they quickly contract and relax. Both the fast contraction as well as the fast relaxation of muscles is needed to maximize power expression in dynamic movements in sport such as sprinting, jumping, and throwing. This can be done with low loads (10-25% one-rep max), bodyweight, and even band assistance.

5. Advanced plyometric techniques. The beginner section of this article looked at explosive movements like medicine ball throws and jumping, bounding, hopping, etc. Common jumps, bounds, and hops are low-level plyometrics, which are one of the best tools a coach can use for improving power in a developing athlete. With advanced athletes, we can up the intensity. Plyometrics like depth jumps, intense bounds, hurdle hops, depth push-ups, and band-assisted push-ups or vertical jumps are some of our favorites. By definition, plyometrics look to improve the amortization phase of a movement. Advanced plyometrics do the same, but in a more intense fashion. At a certain point, there is only so much force that is needed to jump into the air. The goal of these is to do it while spending less time on the ground. Again, its power—applying force quickly.

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Final Takeaways

We have utilized all of these training methods with a variety of different athletes over the years. Power is simple—force and velocity or strength and speed. With the beginner athlete, do not complicate things—get them stronger and moving quickly. As the athlete’s training level improves over the years, you must continue to utilize different and more complex methods to allow the athlete to keep adapting.

Athletes will find out about the more advanced methods on TikTok and Instagram, leading them to beg you to do these exercises. Keeping the ace up your sleeve and waiting to apply the more advanced methods for when they need it will ensure the longevity of your athlete’s development.

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Alex Roberts is the Strength and Conditioning Coach at R. Nelson Snider High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In this role, he’s responsible for the year-round athletic development of all student-athletes. Coach Roberts’ main responsibilities are teaching strength training classes during the school day, leading after-school training sessions, and running the summer strength and conditioning program. He holds a Master of Science in Kinesiology and is CSCS certified through the NSCA.

References

1. Aagaard P, Simonsen EB, Andersen JL, Magnusson P, Dyhre-Poulsen P. 2002. “Increased rate of force development and neural drive of human skeletal muscle following resistance training.” J Appl Physiol. 93(4):1318-26. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00283.2002. PMID: 12235031.

2. Output Sports. Undated. Guide to Velocity Based Training.

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