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If asked to describe a prototypical receiver, coaches will cite traits like speed, size, hand-eye coordination, foot speed, agility, and jumping ability. We essentially describe Julio Jones. The issue coaches all encounter is what to do when they aren’t blessed with a stable of Julios on their roster. The natural first step is to prioritize skills and play the kid who possesses the most crucial skills for the position.

For years, coaches, particularly at the high school level, have looked to their fastest athletes with decent hand-eye coordination to play wide receiver (WR). This seems to be common sense, as a coach should want their fastest kids on the perimeter to stretch defenses vertically and horizontally. But coach long enough and the inevitable question arises: Why can’t the all-conference track kid separate on the field?

I am a firm believer that the issue lies with traditional receiver development. Too often, coaches subscribe to the belief that many of those essential skills are fixed traits. We fail to develop the skills critical to be elite receivers.

Too often, coaches subscribe to the belief that many essential skills are fixed traits. We fail to develop the skills critical to be elite receivers, says @WLCCoachTreske. Share on X

This is more evident at each higher level of football. As the competition level rises, the margin for error becomes thinner. Players must master skills other than speed and hand-eye coordination. As coaches, we must then ask what skill(s) most drastically separates the good from the great receivers, and how do we develop that skill? The answer, like most answers in football and athletics, lies in the film.

Going Beyond Speed

If you analyze the film, the answer is not speed, it is movement efficiency. In fact, as the level of competition rises, the difference in speed is often minuscule. For example, in the 2013 NFL draft, the difference between the 10-yard times for the No. 1 and No. 100 WR prospects was .04. In fact, if you went through the top 100 prospects, you’d see a range of 1.5–1.61 seconds on their first 10 yards. This minor disparity carries over into the 20-yard times as well. If your passing offense is anything like ours—or any of the NFL teams, for that matter—that means that the speed difference is subtle in nearly 90% of your throws.

This limited speed disparity is not unique to the NFL and D1 programs; it is found at all levels of football. Our team, for example, just performed initial off-season testing, and the difference between our fastest wideout and our slowest was .15 seconds. In fact, we’ve had several of our team’s top receivers in the middle of the pack. Though any subtle difference is an advantage, this limited range in times suggests it’s something more than speed that results in on-field production—it’s movement efficiency and technique.

This limited range in times suggests it’s something more than speed that results in on-field production—it’s movement efficiency and technique, says @WLCCoachTreske. Share on X

I have been fortunate to work with some great WR coaches, and we’ve discussed and debated the subtleties of stance, stem, demeanor, leverage, release techniques, and catch point and their impact on WR development. All of these techniques are critical factors in becoming a complete WR, but in my experience, the film suggests that the X factor in performance is efficient breakpoint mechanics. The ability to decelerate into a break and reaccelerate out of a break is what divides the best receivers from the rest. The beauty is that this is a skill that can be learned and trained over time.

Breakpoint Mechanics

To develop breakpoint mechanics, we need our athletes to understand the ideal body position they must be in to change directions. In our program, we call this our “stick” position, since it serves as both a term and coaching cue to reinforce the need for the athlete to apply force (“stick” his foot) into the ground. This position is foundational in movement mechanics.

1. The ‘Stick’ position.

Coaching Cues: Shoulder over knee and ankle, neutral core, hips dropped, sprint action in arms, weight loaded on lead leg, drive through ball of foot.

By getting into the stick position and loading the lead leg, we give ourselves the ability to drive out of our break explosively at almost any angle. The impact of this is tremendous; if you master the stick, you can master any route in your offense. We teach this position, much like you’d teach any body movement, through a progression series.

‘Stick’ Progression

We begin by positioning the athletes along a line in their WR stance with their inside foot forward. We then demonstrate and describe the cues of the position and then cue them to get into a stick position. Check and correct the athletes as they hold the stick position, then rep the movement repeatedly on each side—occasionally asking them to hold and control the movement. Like all movements, repetition is crucial. Once they master the baseline position, we work using a triphasic approach to teach and strengthen the position.

Three Phases of the Break (and all movements)

1. Eccentric – Have athletes slowly descend (3–5 seconds) into the bottom portion of the movement.
2. Isometric – Have athletes quickly drop into the bottom portion of the movement and hold the bottom position (3–5 second hold).
3. Concentric – Have athletes quickly execute the movement and drive out explosively (we use jumps and sprints out of the position).

Once the athletes begin to execute from a stationary position, we have them walk the position out and stick on every third step. We gradually progress the tempo to 50%, 75%, and full speed between the stick step, always asking them to perform an isometric freeze and control the stick movement early on. Control is the key. Once we master the stick, we then teach them how to transfer and drive out of the position for the variety of routes we’ll run. We categorize routes into four categories by their angle of departure.

On the field, we rep all four of our techniques in a progression:

• Stationary breaks
• Controlled tempo breaks (walking, 50, 75, 100% with controlled holds)
• Cone drills with multiple reps for breaks (also with tempo—can be creative with patterns)
• Full routes

Three Essential Breakpoint Techniques

1. Stick and Snap 

Route Examples: Hitch, Curl, Comeback, Fade Stop, Perimeter Screens

This is one of the more challenging breakpoints, as athletes need to transition their body in almost the opposite direction. This requires precise technique on the upper and lower platforms, square shoulders, and eccentric strength to drop-sink the hips in position. We emphasize snapping the shoulders at the defender and staying square until AFTER the athlete drops his hips.

2. Stick and Roll

Route Examples: Speed Out, Deep Out, Speed Dig

This set of routes is the most varied in the way they are taught. Regardless of whether you teach a speed cut/square out, two-step, or four-step, the principle of the break is the same. We aim to have the athlete sink the hip and roll off the instep of the plant foot. Arm drive is key to rip to the outside explosively. In addition, teaching the athlete to turn their head out of the break is crucial to locate the ball.

We see two common mistakes on this one:

1. Athletes do not lead the shoulder over the hip and ankle and get overextended.
2. Athletes drag their opposite foot, which slows them down or causes a false step.

3. Stick and Lean

Route Examples: Slant, Post, Corner, Post Corner

This is the probably the most natural and most common breakpoint we see. Athletes execute the stick position with a slight outstep and shoulder lean opposite the break to: 1) load the outside leg to drive laterally; and 2) influence or “freeze” the defender opposite the break. The shoulder MUST follow the hip and ankle, or the athlete will false step (this is a common fault).

Progressing the Breakpoint

To challenge your athletes and help take the break mechanics to another level, there are a variety of tools and methods you can utilize, both on the field and in the weight room. In our program, we use three primary tools (bands, boxes, and medicine balls) and look to combine/progress them with this framework in mind: The athlete needs to be able to control the vertical force to stop before we focus on the rotational force required to transition horizontally.

Here is our foundational breakpoint progression:

1. Banded Stick

This an extension of our base stick drill, using the band as both resistance and sensory feedback. If the athlete does not drop the hips or keep the shoulders down, the band will pull back. We will also place the band laterally to work on getting an explosive drive out of the break.

2. Box Drop Progression

We use an elevated surface as a means to add resistance. The higher the box, the more force athletes are required to control. From the box, we work on dropping to a stick, sticking and popping off the floor, and ultimately sticking into our different route families.

3. Med Ball Rotation (from Stick)

Getting out of the stick position requires a strong push step and explosive rotational force. We love using med balls as a way to work the rotation. We begin with athletes in the stick position and work rotational throws into each route family. We then progress to catching the ball into a transition from different angles and then finally catching it mid-stick into the families.

4. Banded Stick Plus Med Ball Rotation

We now combine the two methods to work additional resistance. The combinations work from the easiest route families (stick and lean) and catch points (directly in front) to the more challenging positions.

5. Box Drop Plus Med Ball Rotation

The final combination of these methods and tools is dropping from the box to a med ball rotation/break. Like the other med ball methods, we add tosses from progressively varying positions to make it more difficult.

Taking It to the Next Level: Decelerating

Learning to break is the first step, and it will help your receivers be explosive in their routes, particularly the quick game. After we teach the essential breakpoints, we feel the next level is to teach our athletes how to get into those breaks at deeper levels by teaching deceleration mechanics.

There’s a wide variety of factors that go into being able to decelerate quickly (ankle, hip mobility, hip/glute stability, quad/core strength, etc.), but we try to break it down to three critical elements for our athletes to focus on:

1. Remaining as level as possible in the route stem (showing vertical).
2. Keeping shoulders over knees on toes to get to a stick position.
3. Pushing down as hard as possible (feet, hips, and arms).

Key Drill: Drums to Stick

Route Examples: Curl, Comeback – Can also use for Dig or Deep Squared Out.

This is the most challenging breakpoint, as we need to transition our body in almost the opposite direction at depths of 10–15+ yards. We describe these as level 2 routes, and this technique is essential for them, especially curl and comeback variations. The nature of these routes requires us to decelerate using what my friend Brandon White calls “the drums technique,” to throttle down and decelerate to execute our stick technique.

To teach the drums, we use a completely new progression emphasizing arm drive, foot fire, and hip level to decelerate. To gain separation, our goal is to use this technique to throttle down in just 2–3 steps. This progression is critical to master as it must eventually lead us back into the foundational stick position to be efficient and explosive.

We use the following drill progression to improve our drums to stick:

1. Banded Stem

We use a partner to hold a band fixed around the WR’s waist to emphasize remaining level with shoulders over knees and toes. We will work all five stems we teach (vertical, inside, outside, radical inside, and radical outside).

2. Marching Drill Progression

This drill is the drums technique in action. Working on dropping our hips and breaking routes in three steps, we coach our athletes to push down as hard as possible as they march down the field. Many receivers will want to reach, so pausing on the final step is key to check if they get to the stick position. We use a band as a tool by holding it behind or from the side to cue the athlete to push their hips down to stabilize.

3. Angle Marching Drill

This is a progression of the marching drill that helps the athlete work on pushing hard and opening the hips out of the drums. We will progress our tempo and go from paused breaks to rapid fire.

4. Banded Drums Into Break

Now that we can better control force into our break, we work the break from our drums position with a band. The band forces us to learn to control our body by dropping and stabilizing with our hips, and it helps us really work an explosive drive out of our deceleration.

5. Cliff Drill Progression

This is a sprint to stick at a fixed point on the field. We like to use a line on the field as our imaginary “cliff” that the athlete can’t go over. We progress from 8–15 yards, depending on where the athletes are. We can add a band as well for athletes who are rising up or for athletes who need more resistance to challenge them. Once we have shown our technique is solid, we can also execute on a visual cue (coach drops or turns hips, etc.). This helps us work the read routes we use, such as a vertical or curl option.

The final progression of the cliff we use is a partner race to the football. We can do it where one partner is just beyond the top of the route, or we can have both partners work the route and break to a catch point.

Moving Forward

The wide receiver position is a position that is often under-coached, and because of this, we see dramatic results after working with athletes for only a few hours in our indy segments or at the summer camps we work with. To play at a high level, these athletes are required to possess a wide skill set, attention to detail, and incredible precision. What I hope excites you as much as it excites me is that all of these attributes can be developed and coached over time. The key to developing the fundamentals of movement is often stepping back and focusing on the basic elements to progress. Even speed, the elusive holy grail in sports, can be developed with proper coaching and programming.

The wide receiver position is often under-coached, and because of this, we see dramatic results after working with athletes for only a few hours, says @WLCCoachTreske. Share on X

Keep working and good luck this season! Thank you for this opportunity to share a little of what we do to develop our wide receivers. Please contact me at [email protected] if you or anyone on your staff has additional questions or would like to discuss wide receiver development further.

Since you’re here…
…we have a small favor to ask. More people are reading SimpliFaster than ever, and each week we bring you compelling content from coaches, sport scientists, and physiotherapists who are devoted to building better athletes. Please take a moment to share the articles on social media, engage the authors with questions and comments below, and link to articles when appropriate if you have a blog or participate on forums of related topics. — SF

Strength training programs for sprinters often focus on total body, multi-joint exercises such as squats and deadlifts. These powerful exercises usually take up the majority of an athlete’s workout, such that there is only time for a few sets of auxiliary exercises. One type of exercise we believe is worthy of a sprinter’s attention are single-leg squats.

One reason to consider performing single-leg squats is they improve pelvic stability. If there is pelvic instability, it will take longer to absorb, store, and release energy during sprinting. As such, a sprinter’s ground contact time will be longer, and their stride length will be shorter.

Pelvic instability leads to longer ground contact time and shorter stride length. Single-leg squats are worthy of a sprinter’s attention because they improve pelvic stability. Share on X

A coach may have some success giving their athletes instructions to avoid excessive rotational movements during sprinting, such as “cheek to cheek” for their arms or “knees up and forward” for their legs. However, if muscle weakness is the primary cause, coaching cues alone are not an efficient way to correct this problem. At least, not as efficiently as performing a few sets of corrective exercise. Let’s look at some numbers.

When you sprint, you are continually supporting your entire bodyweight on one leg and dealing with additional disruptive forces acting on the body. In his book, Running Rewired, Jay Dicharry estimates that the side-to-side forces your body has to deal with when you run equal 10-15 percent of your bodyweight, the acceleration/deceleration forces equal 40-50 percent of your bodyweight, and the vertical forces could be as much as 2.5 to 3 times your bodyweight! With such high levels of stress, it’s no wonder that Dicharry’s book focuses on resistance training to correct poor running mechanics, especially variations of single-leg squats.

Although single-leg squats obviously work the quads, sprinters and their coaches should consider that they also strengthen the glutes. As a review, the glutes consist of three muscles: the gluteus maximus, the gluteus medius, and the gluteus minimus.

The glute medius also has three subdivisions: anterior, middle, and posterior. Its functions include abducting the hip, stabilizing the pelvis, and eccentrically controlling internal rotation and hip adduction—as such, this muscle plays a major role in sprinting. Not only may a weakness in the glute medius cause excessive rotation of the pelvis, but it may also cause the knees to buckle inward, increasing the risk of knee ligament and overuse injuries.

With that background, let’s address the question, “What are the best exercises for the glute medius?”

The Science of Stability Training

In 2009, the Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy (JOSPT) published the results of a study that looked at the effectiveness of 12 popular glute exercises. One of these exercises was the forward lunge, which had significant activation of the glute medius.

Forward lunges have become a favorite of many sprint coaches, who believe that they are more sport-specific to sprinting than squats. Many other types of athletes perform them. In fact, in the early days of the sport of weightlifting, lifters often used the split-style snatch and the split-style clean rather than the squat style. The split-style receiving position resembles the low position of a forward lunge. Thus, as part of their training, some of these lifters often performed lunges to increase their strength and stability in the receiving position.

Although a weightlifter can potentially catch the bar in a lower position with the squat style, thus enabling them to lift more weight, many early lifters who practiced the split style could achieve extremely low receiving positions. Few lifters use the split style today, but some may perform lunges to prevent muscle imbalances developed by performing the jerk. In fact, Vasily Alexeev, a two-time Olympic champion from Russia who broke 80 world records and was the first to clean and jerk 500 pounds, performed front lunges with a barbell.

One of the exercises in the JOSPT study with the highest ranking for glute medius activation (ranked #2 behind the side-lying hip abduction) was the single-leg squat. It also beat out the single-limb deadlift for the highest activation of the gluteus maximus. Before taking a closer look at the single-leg squat, let’s examine some of the drawbacks of two of the most popular glute exercises: lateral band walks and hip thrusts.

Lateral band walks have become the “go to” exercise for the glute medius in physical therapy and “functional training” programs. This makes sense, as it ranked #3 for glute medius activation in the JOSPT study (but, interestingly, last in gluteus maximus activation!). As a plus, it’s performed from a standing position.

According to Canadian strength coach and posturologist Paul Gagné, the tendon signals that correlate to elastic strength storage and release are stronger with standing exercises. Unfortunately, when used with high levels of resistance, lateral band walks place considerable shearing stress on the knees. They also do little to develop body awareness, which is important because sprinters must deal with instability to run fast. Although lateral band walks strengthen the glute medius, exercises that improve body awareness should take precedence in a sprinter’s training.

Although lateral band walks strengthen the glute medius, exercises that improve body awareness should take precedence in a sprinter’s training. Share on X

Hip thrusts were not one of the exercises in this study, but consider that athletes perform these types of glute exercises supine and in a stable environment. Using the definitions developed by sports scientists Mel Siff and Yuri Verkhoshansky, the hip thrust should be classified as a structural or bodybuilding exercise, and as such has little carryover to athletic performance. That said, let’s look at some real-world research.

In an eight-week hip thrust study involving 21 college athletes (15 males, 6 females), researchers found that “…maximum hip thrust strength through use of the barbell hip thrust does not appear to transfer into improvements in sprint performance in the collegiate level athletes.” It’s certainly fine for sprinters to occasional use exercises such as the hip thrust, especially for glute activation before sprinting or lifting, but performing it on a regular basis with maximal weights may not be the most effective use of an athlete’s training time if the goal is to run as fast as humanly possible.

Getting back to single-leg squats, one variation we like for sprinters is called a “pistol squat,” so named because at the bottom of the exercise your body takes the shape of a hand pistol. Although our main focus here is on sprinting faster, consider that pelvic stability is also essential for moving laterally and changing directions because you must be able to control the high forces your body is exposed to while moving in this manner.

Think about it: When you plant one foot to change directions, you’re pretty much standing on one leg and performing a partial single-leg squat! With all the side-to-side movement that takes place in athletics, especially in sports such as soccer and basketball, those extra fractions of a second needed for an athlete with poor pelvic stability to maintain their balance can be the difference between making the play or being part of an “ankle breaker” highlight video.

When you plant one foot to change directions, you’re pretty much standing on one leg and performing a partial single-leg squat! Share on X

Another advantage of single-leg squats—at least all but one of the versions we will discuss here—is that they work the legs through a full range of motion. If an athlete focuses on partial range-of-motion leg exercises (such as the so-called Bulgarian split squat), not only are the muscles around the knee inadequately developed, the connective tissues may lose their elasticity and their ability to react to high stress.

Perhaps full-range leg exercises, even those such as the clean and snatch in which you bounce out of the bottom of the squat, are the future of pre-hab training? Share on X

If you follow the sport of weightlifting, you may have seen athletes dropping heavy barbells on their legs with their ankles and knees in awkward positions, but not suffering injuries. Further, hamstring, ACL, and ankle injuries are practically non-existent in this sport. Contrast that with sports such as soccer, volleyball, and football, where approximately 70% of injuries to these areas of the body are non-contact. Perhaps full-range leg exercises, even those such as the clean and snatch in which you bounce out of the bottom of the squat, are the future of pre-hab training?

The Workouts

Many strength coaches avoid single-leg squats because most athletes, due to flexibility or stability issues, cannot perform a full pistol squat the first time they try it. Rather than avoiding an exercise that can help correct these problems, how about trying a progressive system that enables athletes to not only to perform the exercise, but to do so with resistance!

Video 1. Marybeth Fitzsimmons, a multiple high school state champion sprinter from Rhode Island, demonstrates a progression to perform pistol squats using several of the exercises discussed in this article. Fitzsimmons earned a full athletic scholarship for track at Northeastern University, excelling in the long jump and the short sprints.

The program we will share with you contains four workouts, each building on the previous one. If an athlete can already do a pistol squat, they can jump to Workout 4. For everyone else, perform the workouts in the order presented. Some athletes will progress faster than others, which is fine—the goal is to master one sequence of exercise before proceeding to the next. Here are the workouts:

Workout 1

The first exercise requires little stability, but it works the legs through a full range of motion, even if the athlete has mobility restrictions. The second exercise, although performed through a partial range of motion, focuses on the glute medius and increases body awareness.

1. Pistol Squat, Assisted: 2 sets x 10 reps, each leg, rest 30 seconds
2. Single-Leg Squat with Lateral Press, Big Toe Up: 2 sets x 10 reps, rest 30 seconds

Workout 2

This workout increases the intensity of the first exercise performed in Workout 1, whereas the second is another, more stable version of the pistol squat.

1. Pistol Squat, Assisted, Eccentric Emphasis: 2 sets x 5 reps, rest 30 seconds
2. Single-Leg Friction Squat: 2 sets x 5 reps, rest 30 seconds

Workout 3

This workout introduces the full pistol squat, with the first exercise being a more stable version of the full movement. The second exercise is the full pistol squat, or at least as close as possible to a full pistol squat. The workout should continue until the athlete can perform five full repetitions of the pistol squat.

1. Pistol Squat Between Boxes: 2 sets x 10 reps, rest 30 seconds
2. Pistol Squat: 2 sets x 5 reps, rest 30 seconds

Workout 4

At this point, the athlete should be able to perform full pistol squats without any assistance. Thus, the first exercise is the pistol squat, whereas the second is the pistol squat performed with additional resistance.

1. Pistol Squat: 1 set x 10 reps, rest 30 seconds
2. Pistol Squat with Weights: 3 sets x 5 reps, rest 30 seconds

A few notes: The reps indicated are for each leg, not the total reps for a set. Next, these are stability exercises and, at first, should be performed at a relatively slow tempo—a good general guideline when you first try these exercises is that it should take twice as long to lower your body as it does to raise it. Also, as these are single-leg exercises, minimal rest is needed between sets because as one leg works, the other rests. This means each workout can be finished in about 6–8 minutes, depending on how long it takes to set up for each exercise.

The Exercises

Here are the details of the exercises, along with illustrations of each.

Pistol Squat, Assisted

One reason many athletes cannot perform a single-leg squat is that they lack the mobility in the ankles. An option is to perform partial single-leg squats and calf stretches, gradually increasing the depth of the exercise as their mobility improves. This exercise has more “bang for your buck,” as it enables you to perform a full range of motion of the legs from the first workout, increasing mobility in the lower extremities along the way.

The exercise is performed inside a power rack. You position a barbell at a height level of about the top of your pelvic bone. You need to set the bar so that when you perform the exercise, the bar pulls against the support (so that you don’t fall backward). Lift one leg and keep it off the floor throughout the exercise. Squat as low as possible, using your hands for support and leaning backward if necessary, then pull yourself upward. Check out the accompanying video to see exactly how this exercise should be performed.

During this workout, you should move slowly to ensure proper alignment. When you progress to Workouts 2–4, however, it may be okay to have a slight bounce out of the bottom, as these tissues have elastic properties.

Single-Leg Squat with Lateral Press, Big Toe Up

Coach Gagné created this unique exercise to strengthen the glute medius, help correct valgus feet (i.e., fallen arches), and improve body awareness. As an experiment, try performing this exercise before sprinting and then try performing lateral band walks before sprinting—you’ll find that Gagné’s exercise creates a better sense of stability. We should also mention that this exercise is especially valuable for hurdlers, as these events can lead to imbalances in the glutes.

Coach Gagné’s single-leg squat with lateral press and big toe up helps with stability and is especially valuable for hurdlers because it corrects imbalances in the glutes. Share on X

This exercise is performed barefoot alongside a high box (or another sturdy object). Stand on one foot with the other leg bent and behind you (forming a 45-degree angle). Lift the big toe of the foot on the floor. The primary muscle that lifts the big toe is the extensor hallucis longus, and it is important for correcting a valgus foot because it creates lateral tension on the foot. Press the rear foot alongside the box, which will increase the work of the glute medius. Now do quarter squats, maintaining the pressure on the box and keeping the big toe up.

Pistol Squat, Assisted, Eccentric Emphasis

This is the same setup as the assisted pistol squat, but with this version you challenge yourself on the lowering phase. From the start position, let go of the bar, keeping your hands about an inch away from it. Lower yourself slowly, but grasp the bar for support if you lose your balance. When you reach the bottom position, grasp the bar and use your arms to assist you on the way up.

Single-Leg Friction Squat

This exercise was created by physical education teacher Bob Rowbotham. You need a sturdy box that won’t tip if you stand on one side of it (and it’s a good idea to have someone brace the box to prevent it from tipping).

Stand on one edge of the box so that your outside leg is in free space. Press the side of the free foot against the edge and keep pressure on it as you slowly lower yourself. When you reach the bottom, use that free leg to push off the floor and help you return to the start.

Pistol Squat Between Boxes

This exercise is a full pistol squat, but it’s performed between two boxes so you can use your arms to assist you at the bottom of the movement. The boxes need to be about knee height, spread slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.

Stand between the two boxes with hands at your side. Lift one leg high enough so that it doesn’t touch the floor during the exercise. Bend your leg, but catch yourself with your arms as you near the bottom position to slow yourself down and increase your stability; then use your arms to help push yourself up to the start.

Pistol Squat

This is the full pistol squat. However, it’s not expected that you’ll be able to perform all the recommended reps for the sets prescribed at first. As such, you should perform as many full reps as possible for each set, then do the remaining as partial reps.

Pistol Squat with Weights

After you’ve mastered the pistol squat, it’s time to increase the intensity of the exercise by holding weights. Dumbbells and kettlebells are ideal ways to increase resistance. Perform the exercise just like a pistol squat, but with weights held at your sides.

A Simple Solution as the Best Solution

Applying the principle of Occam’s Razor to athletics, the simplest solution to a sprinting problem is often the best solution. The single-leg squat is one simple solution to helping sprinters maintain optimal pelvic alignment to achieve the fastest times. Give the workouts presented here a try and see what this remarkable exercise can do for you!

Since you’re here…
…we have a small favor to ask. More people are reading SimpliFaster than ever, and each week we bring you compelling content from coaches, sport scientists, and physiotherapists who are devoted to building better athletes. Please take a moment to share the articles on social media, engage the authors with questions and comments below, and link to articles when appropriate if you have a blog or participate on forums of related topics. — SF

References

Anderson, Frank C. and Pandy, Marcus G., “Storage and Utilization of Elastic Strain Energy During Jumping.” Journal of Biomechanics. 1993; 26(12):1413–1427.

Bishop, C., et al. “Heavy Barbell Hip Thrusts Do Not Effect Sprint Performance: An 8-Week Randomized–Controlled Study.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2019; 33:S78–S84.

Dicharry, Jay. Running Rewired, 2017, VeloPress, pp. 2-3.

Distefano, L.J., et al. “Gluteal Muscle Activation During Common Therapeutic Exercises, Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy.” 2009; 39(7):532–40.

Goss, K. “The Case Against Stability Training.” Bigger Faster Stronger, March/April 2007, pp. 70–72.

Siff, M. and Verkhoshansky, Y. Supertraining, 1999, 4th Edition, Supertraining International, Denver USA 1999,pp. 7–8. (1st edition, 1993)

Kim Goss was a strength coach for the U.S. Air Force Academy and has a master’s degree in human movement.

Experimenting with isoinertial training during the last year has led us to seven methods that are useful for coaches, and are not just new or different for Instagram. Changing everything you do every time you leave a seminar or buy a product is a sign of a poor system. Evolution, however, is a must. After a great summer, we found our flywheel training start to grow and advance as we’ve practiced and learned from others in our field.

We’ve created a simple continuum, from basic concepts to very advanced techniques that are not for everyone. If you’re interested in flywheel training, the information below is compelling, at the least. If you’re a coach in the right environment wanting to push the limits and depend on flywheels, this article will be valuable as well. Whatever the case, this review covers methods that span from the most basic fundamentals to the elite.

The Spectrum of Techniques

While we wanted to show incremental progressions of flywheel techniques, we realize no continuum is perfect. Ideally, each method moves in a linear fashion, so coaches can safely ramp up the demand on their athletes. The science of strength and conditioning is far from perfect, so there’s enough art left to give coaches plenty to play with.

Flywheels can be used by new trainees as well as the most elite athletes. It may seem that experimenting with elite and pro-level athletes is a huge risk, but if we’re going to make progress, we will continue to progress. There are times when unconventional and new is just what a top-level athlete needs to improve their performance.

The spectrum of flywheel techniques ranges from secondary strength exercises to accentuated eccentric overload, the most extreme form of strength training. This list is the first crack at ways to progress training methods, not just progressions of exercise. Down the road, I’m sure additional ideas will become part of this continuum, but for now, this is will make a dent in flywheel programming.

Below are the seven primary methods we’re using at our facility. We hope other coaches experiment with them and share their practices in the future.

Supplemental Ancillary Training

If you’re new to flywheel training and don’t want to take a leap of faith, this method is perfect. Take any basic secondary exercise, which is usually placed at the end of workouts because they’re important enough to include but not a priority, and use a flywheel option. Ancillary exercises let athletes experience flywheels without shocking their system. In our experience, it’s best to take time to become familiar with both the resistance of flywheels and the exercises themselves. Remember, most youth athletes are new to training properly, and basic exercises with flywheels are rather demanding, so be patient.

We have both the kPulley and the kBox and like to mix and match the training just enough to give our athletes enough exposure so they understand the concept of flywheels before we start advancing. Progressing slowly leads to the fastest changes and adaptations by letting you avoid having to take a few steps back from errors or miscalculations. Slow and steady wins the race.

Video 1. Using a kPulley makes sense for arm assistance exercises. Elbow health and extension strength is vital for all athletes, not just those in throwing sports.

We know that some athletes will never use flywheels and others not for a year or so, and that’s not a problem. We have progression in mind from the jump because we tend to train athletes for long periods and built our business model on full-year clients. Also, waiting for an extended time before progressing to our more advanced equipment reinforces that the basics are a priority. Being disciplined and integrating flywheels slowly is not a punishment for athletes; it’s a way to make them earn their right to use the fancy stuff and progress.

With a few sets of 1-2 exercises, athletes can grasp flywheel training fundamentals & get hypertrophy & strength benefits without wasting time. Share on X

For coaches looking to enter the flywheel arena, we suggest arm exercises, single-leg training, single-joint training, and finishing sets of compound squats or deadlifts. With a few sets of 1-2 exercises, athletes will grasp the fundamentals of flywheel training and get solid hypertrophy and strength benefits without wasting time. I’m not promoting an overly cautious approach to flywheel training, but I also don’t recommend swapping all the ingredients out of your recipe as soon as you get a new mixing bowl.

Conventional Replacements for Main Exercises

In many circumstances, the next logical step is to swap primary barbell or machine exercises with the flywheel options. Depending on the athlete’s recovery ability and the program as a whole, coaches can swap out one day, one week, or one phase entirely and use flywheels. While this sounds bold, some teams spend entire training phases using isoinertial methods. We have not gone “all flywheel” yet, but find it a viable option for someone with a large arsenal of equipment.

Sequencing from single sessions or even parts of sessions before going all flywheel is the sensible way to progress, in theory. We’ve used the kBox as a belt squat for countless athletes, and some of our athletes find it’s a nice break from squatting when they’re in heavy training phases. We usually do this to bypass an issue like a shoulder or spine injury, though we’ve also had our heavy athletes do it with similar success.

Video 2. Calf raises are great with flywheels and take a few sets to learn due to the timing of the eccentric pull. Experiment with tempos and rhythms based on what you feel you need with your athletes.

It is not, however, a 1-for-1 trade. I recommend increasing the rep range a bit when switching from standard barbell movements to flywheels. One consideration is that the increase in sets and reps will be more volume than some athletes are used to. Similar to any long term periodization, the key to success with isoinertial volume or loading is steady and manageable progression.

Steady, manageable progression is the key to success with isoinertial volume or loading, says @ExceedSPF. #FlywheelTraining Share on X

Regardless of whether we include flywheels or not, we tend to reduce volumes in certain areas when we increase volumes in another. Before pre-season, we increase fieldwork and our time in the weight room drops off. We do the same for flywheel replacement. When we increase heavy kBox squatting for an athlete, we reduce their jumping or change of direction work on the field that week to allow for “fair trade.” Or we might simply reduce the amount of other eccentric work in the weight room.

There's no point in doing #FlywheelTraining in a vacuum. kMeter readings help us quantify the training, and our force plates quantify the results. Share on X

Other times, we do the opposite and complement heavy flywheel use with other eccentric and deceleration methods. Instead of having a pretty workout on paper and hope it works in a few months, we jump-test athletes and look at eccentric measurements as best we can. There’s no point in doing flywheel training in a vacuum. Our kMeter readings help us quantify the training, and our force plates quantify the results of all of the work done during each week or month.

Isometric Enhancement Techniques

There are two significant challenges with isometric work in team or group settings:

• creating an environment with an immovable object that works universally for all the athletes
• getting information regarding the effort of the contraction

We’re lucky to have tools for assessing force and effort as well as the kBox, which creates a unique and interchangeable immovable object very nicely. Whether you’re using the belt, harness, or an attachment for the upper body, you can adjust the length of the drive belt to have a custom-sized apparatus that works for all heights and strengths.

We can also add force plates to the ground or the flywheel’s platform to quantify the force or rate of force. This information shows us whether an athlete exerts sufficient effort early enough in the movement. One hard effort makes a difference and can be followed up with kMeter-guided feedback on the non-isometric repetitions that follow.

Video 3. You can add isometric benchmarks with load cells or force plates, but a good honest effort is all you need to get started. Athletes can use various leg angles to get started, but the most common is a deep squat.

Potentiation, like flywheel work, is a continuum. (I’ll cover potentiation later in this post). You can use potentiation to spark a workout, break through career plateaus, or increase an effort for a single set or movement. For the sake of this post, we use a few sets of hard, overcoming isometric efforts to ensure the work is performed with real effort. You’ll appreciate real effort after a single bout with an immovable object if you’ve never done so.

As a side benefit, we’ve found that people with tendinopathy often experience pain at specific joint angles, which makes training hard a difficult task in logistics alone. With the kBox, we can adjust the belt length to circumvent the provocative range of motion and get some serious training stimulus without causing the athlete further anguish.

Ultra-High-Speed Flywheel Training

The highest velocity bouts on a flywheel require a little skill and experience, and decent athletes can grasp adding the extra spin after a few sessions. High-speed movements, especially squats, not only provide a great change of pace for athletes who train consistently at high levels but also are an excellent tool for athletes struggling to acquire deceleration skills.

The flywheel can get the athlete off the court or turf and minimize the typical stress of these activities, mentally and physically. The speed is fast enough to be realistic, slow enough to be safe, and the load realistic enough to make a difference. High-speed flywheel training is learning without teaching, and we love that.

#HighSpeedFlywheel training offers speed that's fast enough to be realistic, slow enough to be safe, & the load realistic enough to make a difference. Share on X

Similar to deceleration work, jumping can be too much for athletes during certain parts of the training block. Adding high-speed flywheel work can reduce a bit of the impact without compromising the eccentric forces we want on the tendons and musculature.

#HighSpeedFlywheel work reduces some of the impact without compromising the eccentric forces on the tendons and musculature, says @ExceedSPF. Share on X

Depending on what part of the squat or jump you focus on, you can manipulate your equipment to modify how the movement is executed. Setting up the drive belt at standing height emphasizes the turnover and change of direction as the primary focus. By simply extending the length of the drive belt, you give the athlete the ability to drive past the standing position and incorporate a much more extension-based exercise that even involves the ankle.

Video 4. Athletes can perform faster-than-normal squatting patterns with flywheel training without risk. As athletes practice the movement and advance, the speed can reach some impressive levels.

Similar to manipulating stresses with the flywheel, we sometimes switch out traditional jump work for high-speed flywheel squats. And we’ve even swapped elastic jump work for high-speed flywheel work. Moving fast in the weight room doesn’t necessarily translate to faster sprinting, but the emphasis on decelerating and accelerating the wheel with great intent is something not to overlook. Because speed and power work is neuromuscular in nature, you can consider this type of work learning rather than loading.

Potentiation Techniques

Potentiation is a lot trickier than social media would have us believe. If you’ve done it for some time and used measurement tools, you know that nothing works for everyone and everything works for some people. Consider this important question when implementing potentiation: Do you want to potentiate the main movement, the secondary movement, or both? So far, the research is clear that heavy or intense training temporarily primes the muscles used in these exercises. This makes flywheels an obvious candidate for potentiation.

The major flaw I see is the setup. Some people use so many movements, they look like they’re doing an obstacle course. And the setup is often far from practical or sensible. If the goal is to potentiate, spend time finding combinations of movements, reps, sets, and rest periods that allow the athlete to improve. Potentiation isn’t about trying to add more output following an exercise. It’s making sure the entire session will improve the athlete down the road.

Video 5A. A good deal of new research is out on flywheels and potentiation. Make sure you read the protocols and repeat the specific loading and timing details in order to take advantage of the theoretical benefits.

Video 5B. After flywheel training, you can potentiate resisted sprints. Most coaches prefer more contrasting styles of pairings, but tinker with exercises to see what works best for you.

When looking at the research, it’s easy to assume that if you do heavy stuff and then jump, you’ll improve. But realistically, you have to see the improvement in performance. We’ve all seen a spike in social media posts about French Contrast training, and it shows great potential. But what we know about Cometti’s method is that it’s possible to prescribe more than just squats and jumps.

We’ve used both upper and lower body potentiation methods for a long time now but only recently incorporated the flywheel in the plan. We use the flywheel for both heavy and isometric contractions paired with loaded and unloaded jumping or plyometric movements with promising results.

We've used the flywheel for both heavy & isometric contractions paired with loaded & unloaded jumping or plyometric movements with promising results. Share on X

One thing I like about the flywheel in terms of potentiation is the setup, as discussed in the isometric section above. Taking that a step further, you can use the same tool for an overcoming isometric, followed by ultra-high-speed squats and then to jumps without any crazy setups or playing Frogger through a crowded gym. Set up the flywheel with low inertia, move the drive belt to the isometric height, perform the iso, do the fast squats, and then unclip the belt and jump (on the ground).

Regardless of how you incorporate flywheels in your potentiation protocols, do so with purpose and results in mind. As cool and trendy as some of this stuff is, most of us are writing programs to improve our athletes rather than our following.

Contrast and Complex Training

Following a potentiation section, one might be fully aware of how to use contrast or complex training, and I’ll spare you the repetitive explanation. Contrast and complex methods with the flywheel don’t need to be complicated. Though we use some methods with more novice athletes, we gear most of our contrast or complex training toward our higher-level client who has a considerable amount of training time under their belt. At some point, athletes will approach their genetic ceiling and slow down. Sometimes a little change of pace using complex training can help these athletes make the minor gains they need at this level.

Video 6. After conventional squats, athletes can employ rebound jumps immediately after their strength work. After the inertia and speed are refined on the lift portion, coaches can see a better jump profile over time.

Although it’s great to feel fast, it’s better to be fast. With contrast training, your athletes may feel fast after doing slower and heavier work. Having your athletes perform slow or isometric holds to contrast into sprints is excellent if it actually creates a faster sprint time or velocity. Flywheels have a role to play whether you use heavy-slow to fast-light or use fast exercises to improve firing rates in your slow, heavy work. When we do complex training with flywheels, we simply replace conventional exercises with flywheel or isoinertial exercises. Simple as that.

Accentuated Eccentric Overload

The most demanding of all eccentric overload methods are the accentuated options—any methods that go beyond 100% maximal effort. As soon as an athlete hits a load they can’t perform concentrically, they’ve entered extreme territory, even if it’s with only one kilo. The million-dollar question is how much overload past 100% of concentric ability is necessary to get a greatly accentuated overload. I have seen theoretical numbers like 10-20%, but so far we’ve experienced benefits from 5-10%.

Video 7. Adding a shrug and your hips through the RDL will add more vertical force than the conventional exercise. Following the concentric motion with a bracing pattern does increase the eccentric contraction if timed right.

The biggest challenge in training is knowing how much overload is enough to make a difference. Since accentuated eccentric overload (AEC) is on the far side of the spectrum, it’s difficult to prescribe the perfect effort. In addition to the difficulties with selecting the right overload, flywheels are very dependent on feedback beyond the selected flywheel disc; you need to use the kMeter or you’re just guessing. AEC is no joke. If you choose to use it, you must be careful and have a solid understanding of an athlete’s past efforts and abilities.

I recommend sticking with the very familiar and primary movements when using AEC with the flywheel. Squatting and such make the most sense to me, as they’re the most familiar and are patterns people are used to loading heavily. If you’re not sure where to start in terms of loading, you can use traditional flywheel squats and look at the kMeter data to determine the athlete’s eccentric abilities. I’m sure you could also use force plate data or traditional squat information to create a map for your athletes.

It’s important to note, as most will understand, that AEC methods will bring along a considerable amount of soreness for some athletes. I’m not aware of much research that’s gone beyond short studies, but it seems like off-season training would be the time to incorporate these methods and save the athlete some in-season pain. It might also make sense to allow the athlete to auto-regulate the remainder of the session or even the training week in response to what happens after AEC training.

#AECflywheel workouts reset what is possible for less demanding training & raise the ceiling for resilience and athlete durability, says @ExceedSPF. Share on X

AEC workouts reset what is possible for less demanding training and raise the ceiling for resilience and athlete durability. You only need a few sessions to make real progress, so be cautious when first prescribing volume.

Advanced Training Is for Advanced Trainees

Just because an athlete is elite on the field doesn’t mean they’re an advanced athlete in the weight room. Of course, you should consider their level of ability. If an athlete has a low training age, you need to train them based on what they can do in training—not how good they are in their sport. Most of the exercises and training methods in this post will come in handy years from now if an athlete is new to flywheel training and for programming for experienced athletes. Experiment and see what works for you, as every training program is unique and must make sense for the athlete and the coach.

Since you’re here…
…we have a small favor to ask. More people are reading SimpliFaster than ever, and each week we bring you compelling content from coaches, sport scientists, and physiotherapists who are devoted to building better athletes. Please take a moment to share the articles on social media, engage the authors with questions and comments below, and link to articles when appropriate if you have a blog or participate on forums of related topics. — SF

There are so many more reasons to love and appreciate working at the high school level and, in particular, on a high school campus, but the one that I feel is often overlooked is the colleagues we work with. I’m lucky not only to work on a collaborative campus with some of the brightest teachers in Florida, but I have numerous teachers in close quarters who I call family. Working in near proximity to teachers has not only changed my outlook on the “how’s” of coaching, but also the “why’s” of doing it. There is so much we can learn from teachers and the principles of education; admittedly, they are resources that I ignored for far too long in my own coaching experience.

Working in near proximity to teachers has not only changed my outlook on the “how’s” of coaching, but also the “why’s of doing it, says @John_Garrish. Share on X

As the saying goes, coaching is teaching, and teaching is coaching. Although some of these principles directly apply to programming strategies—i.e., an emphasis on motor learning and teaching movement patterns—the more important ideas run a little bit deeper than that. It’s important to note that although not all of these ideas are universally accepted, they are principles that I’ve absorbed and practice as a result of learning from the teachers around me.

The Student Comes First

This isn’t to say that we shouldn’t look out for ourselves and each other as professionals, but as educators, we’ve agreed to an unwritten oath of unconditionally putting our students and their growth first. As a result of this idea, we’ve adapted our training program to a more autoregulative and autonomous approach. Readiness reports and surveys let the students know we care about how they feel and value their feedback. Accepting their feedback to adjust their training creates a sense of identity and ownership in the program, just the way it does in the classroom.

Every Student Matters

In the team setting, sometimes we get lost in the sauce of wins and losses, trends and standards. I love working in a group setting because I get to see a large number of young people come together around a common goal. However, when we’re caught up in “getting with the program,” we can sometimes outcast the outliers.

I think it goes without saying that it doesn’t matter how much a young person contributes on the field; they should still be coached with the same attention given to a future Division 1 All-American. I suppose the more controversial thought would be that this is especially true for us as high school coaches because we are not hired or employed for the sole purpose of bringing more wins. I could be nearsighted, but I have yet to hear of an administration-hired high school strength and conditioning coach being fired for losing games.

We encourage every student to participate in our S&C program, and I think the diversity of participants is the most enjoyable part of being a high school strength coach, says @John_Garrish. Share on X

We encourage every student to participate in our strength and conditioning program, especially those who are resistant at first. I think the diversity of participants is the most enjoyable part about being a high school strength coach. There’ll be times in our room when we have kids from every sport and non-sport, with different abilities and individualized learning plans on campus. The differentiated progressions and regressions they find in the weight room are similar to what they experience in their classrooms.

Parents Are the Ultimate Support Staff

Most strength and conditioning coaches, and coaches in general, considering a start or move to the high school level have concerns with eventual parent interaction. One of my unfortunate thoughts was that I didn’t want anything to do with parents because all I read were the headlines and all I heard were the horror stories. This led me to avoid parents like the plague during my first couple years working at the high school level. As a result, any time I heard from a parent it was because of a concern they had or bad news. Full disclosure: It was usually a failure on my part to communicate with them!

Midway through year three, I decided that I would over-communicate with parents, and instead of being reactive, I’d be proactive and include parents in as much as possible. What I found was parents who wanted to participate and contribute, and students who heard echoes of what they heard on the weight room floor at their dinner table. If you want the ultimate “buy-in,” start with the parents—the students will follow.

Never, Ever Give Up on a Child

Children are not miniature adults and, thankfully, are still growing and changing. One of my greatest regrets as a high school coach is holding on to a first, second, or even third impression of a few students for too long and allowing that impression to get in the way of instructing and mentoring them. I think it’s a standard rallying point for strength coaches, especially in a college environment, to form a “get with it or get lost” mentality, and that was something I clung to for my first few years.

What I’ve realized now, after a few years of experience, is that some of the most strongly forged mentorships with young people start with or include some form of early conflict. If you write off a high school student every time they act up or fail to follow orders, you’ll be left with nobody to coach. In a voluntary training environment like ours, my hot-headed self was not nearly as productive in building a program as I am now, coming from a position of patience and understanding.

Stress Is Stress

 One of the great things about being a high school performance coach is being able to be around 14- to 18-year-old kids all day. On one hand, some of their “problems” are laughable—the relationship stress, the worry of getting a B+ instead of an A on a test, Instagram shutting down, etc. On the other hand, some of our students have faced circumstances and seen things that I couldn’t fathom, putting some of my own “problems” into perspective.

From a training standpoint, it’s important to realize that any stress we might add to a young person’s plate is likely magnified because of their emotional state, says @John_Garrish. Share on X

These stressors, no matter how big or small, captivate the young high schooler’s mind and are often all they can think about. From a training standpoint, it’s important to realize that any stress we might add to a young person’s plate is likely magnified because of their emotional state.

Inspiration Is the Most Potent and Contagious Tool

We’ve all seen the movies that depict two types of classrooms: one that’s lifeless and unmotivated, with an uninterested teacher; and one that’s vibrant and full of passion, with students from similar walks of life who are lucky enough to have a teacher who’s optimistic enough about young people that they create a classroom climate and culture of positivity. One story comes from a place of pessimism, of “the teacher’s always right,” of disregarding circumstances and faulting “kids these days.” The other features a teacher who sees the classroom as a student-centered place of growth and problem-solving, not just for the students but for themselves.

Walk down any high school hallway and you’ll see classrooms just like each of these, side by side, with the exact same students at different times. It isn’t the room number or the decorations on the wall; it isn’t even the subject matter that’s inspiring or failing to inspire the students—it’s the teacher. Similarly, walk by the sport practices after school and you’ll find similar contradictions in inspiration, fire, and excitement. We challenge kids to never take the easy way out and tell them there’s no easy button in life, yet as coaches, we hit the easiest easy button of them all by using the “kids these days don’t care” excuse as cover for our own lethargic programming.

Some of the Most Successful People Were the Worst Students. Some of the Best Athletes Are the Worst ‘Workers.’

More likely than not, a main reason we get into teaching and/or coaching is because we’ve been personally influenced by a teacher or coach in the past. I can say with even more certainty that we serve in the role that we do because we believe in the value of the classroom and/or the weight room and probably worked hard in them when we were our students’ ages. Not all of our students will become teachers, just as not all of our athletes will become strength coaches, and that’s all okay.

Everyone’s interests will be about as different as their genetic gifts, and although once in a while the highest performers are the hardest workers, this is far from always the case. Just because a young person doesn’t “get it,” it doesn’t mean they lack drive or motivation; it doesn’t mean the child doesn’t want to succeed. Albert Einstein dropped out of school at 15, and I haven’t read too much about his “laziness.” I’d be equally surprised to find that the 20 American dropouts who became billionaires did so without some semblance of motivation.

There are plenty of athletes, especially young athletes, who have excelled without the weight room or with minimal work in the weight room. That’s not to say that their luck won’t run out or that others won’t eventually catch up as a result of their own hard work, nor is it to say that the weight room and the classroom are unimportant. Instead, I mean to bring perspective to a young person’s beliefs for why they might (wrongly) think the classroom or weight room is “not for them,” because they’ve had success without it.

The weight room needs high performers as much as high performers need the weight room, so it’s necessary to inspire both the student and the team to see the direct benefit. I’ve found many of the students who’ve outperformed their weight room work ethic have done so due to a motivation on the field/court that’s not lacking. The student has it in them, and nine times out of 10 wants to succeed in their sport; their means of doing so is what’s misconstrued.

Students will undoubtedly see the benefit of a long-term S&C program, but to get there it takes a passionate, understanding educator to turn on the switch for them, says @John_Garrish. Share on X

The fulfillment and direct mark of improvement with a ball in their hands or on their field of play seems closer than the gains made in the weight room that are just one step away from what they feel on the court. With time and experience, students will undoubtedly see the benefit of a long-term strength and conditioning program, but to get there it takes a passionate, understanding educator to turn on the switch for them.

Failure Is a Necessity

In my competitive years, I had frustrating tendencies that didn’t bode well for my “bad” practices. Whenever I had a practice that didn’t run without a hiccup, I’d get frustrated and, in the words of Tony Holler, I’d (mentally) “let today ruin tomorrow.” That meant not only would I be frustrated and mentally captured for the rest of practice, I’d try harder the next day and think somehow that would fix things.

One of the benefits of studying sports psychology in graduate school was being around classmates who were smarter and a lot more level-headed than me. A classmate of mine pointed me toward a better approach to practice; what he called a “no bad practices” approach. If you had said this to me before that day, I would’ve assumed it was a rally cry from my high school coach demanding perfection at every practice. Instead, it was an ideological outlook and approach to practice that would change my own perspective when things didn’t go “right.”

Instead of thinking “I did something wrong” at practice, I began to think “I found something I can improve on” instead. When all of our practices go so well that there’s nothing to improve on, I’d hope our team is winning because the ceiling is a bad place to be in a losing locker room.

If You Don’t Enjoy It, They Don’t Enjoy It

Children are really good at sensing and modeling energy. Weight rooms often reflect the energy of the coach just as a team usually takes on the mentality of their coach. That mentality could be reflected and presented in many different ways, and no two people have the same demeanor. However, one absolute non-negotiable is that, as educators, we see the value in what we do and there is enjoyment in what we do. Not every atmosphere is easygoing—that’s not the point—there are programs that are successful on both sides of the coin. The enjoyment is found in the outcome.

Weight rooms often reflect the energy of the coach just as a team usually takes on the mentality of their coach, says @John_Garrish. Share on X

In education, students (and teachers) usually find joy in the acquisition of new information. In training, athletes (and coaches) usually find the joy in acquiring new skills or bettering old ones to aid development on the field of play. If teachers/coaches and students/athletes don’t share this joy, then there is a very low likelihood for success in their arena. For coaches, it doesn’t matter where the lack of enjoyment stems from, the kids will sense it and mirror it. Much like some of the previous points on inspiration, this is largely the responsibility of the teacher or coach.

Teachers Benefit Us All

The benefits of working on a high school campus are endless and, of course, begin and end with the kids. However, working alongside teachers has been a tremendously rewarding experience not only for me personally, but for how I coach, interact, and program for our students. There are thousands of ways the teachers of our community have helped our strength and conditioning program; unfortunately, I couldn’t list all of them in the confines of this article. Teachers are generally loyal, honest, and goodhearted people who make great colleagues, but their greatest quality of all is their absolute selflessness and sacrifice for the betterment of our children.

Since you’re here…
…we have a small favor to ask. More people are reading SimpliFaster than ever, and each week we bring you compelling content from coaches, sport scientists, and physiotherapists who are devoted to building better athletes. Please take a moment to share the articles on social media, engage the authors with questions and comments below, and link to articles when appropriate if you have a blog or participate on forums of related topics. — SF

By Jason Feairheller

In any sport, players and coaches are always looking to improve speed. Training solely in the weight room, however, will not result in anywhere near the same improvements in speed as participating in a well-thought-out speed and change of direction program. As coaches, we always hear about good speed programs, but what does that mean? What are the main components?

Throughout my years of coaching, I’ve created and modified my speed program to help my athletes gain speed as quickly as possible. One of the reasons I’m writing this article is because there are many resources to find good strength programs and progressions, but there are not nearly as many speed programs available. Just as different athletes need different strength programs, there are also different needs for speed training based on the athlete and the sport. This article will go in-depth with each component that a comprehensive speed and change of direction program should include.

Three Types of Speed Training

Athletes need to develop speed in all directions, not just linearly. This is especially true of field athletes. Since speed is the most sought-after element of sports, at Function and Strength we make sure our athletes get a half hour of focused speed training every time they come into the gym. We separate our speed training into three different categories:

• Multidirectional
• Acceleration
• Max speed

Throughout the month, we set up a schedule to make sure all of our athletes get a variety of speed training. The first day has a multidirectional focus, which may include any type of change of direction, lateral movements, and backpedaling. The emphasis is on efficiently stopping or changing direction, as well as learning how to accelerate out of any turn or change of direction.

Our second component is an acceleration day, which includes linear running with a change from a slower speed to a faster speed. This may include static starts, walking-to-sprint transitions, or even a light jog to a sprint.

Because of low temperatures, we can’t train outside in the winter. A non-motorized treadmill has been a game changer for developing top speed year-round with our athletes. Share on X

The last type of speed training we do is our max speed day, which focuses on front-side mechanics and sprints reaching top end speed. We do this by using a non-motorized treadmill. Training in the winter can be tough because low temperatures don’t permit us to go outside. This treadmill has been a game changer with our athletes, as it has allowed us to develop top end speed year-round.

Warm-Up: General to Speed-Specific

As we prepare the athletes for the training session, we begin with a dynamic warm-up that goes from general to specific. The warm-up is specific to the type of speed training taking place that day. A multidirectional day should have a different warm-up than an acceleration or max speed day. Just like you warm up for squats by squatting, we should do specific speed drills as part of the warm-up. A max speed warm-up consists of more hamstring work than a multidirectional day, which has more lateral movements.

Sample General Warm-Up:

• Banded shoulder dislocate – 10x
• Heel walk – 10 yards
• Toe walk – 10 yards
• Spiderman stretch with rotation – 10x each side
• Narrow stance squat – 10x
• Lateral lunge + crossover lunge – 6x each side
• Banded adductor walk out and back – :20 each side

Video 1. This is a demonstration of the last two exercises of the general warm-up. Specifically, the adductors are often overlooked, so I like to do an exercise targeting the adductors during the general warm-up.

Following the general warm-up, we get into specific warm-ups for the type of speed work we will perform that day.

Sample Multidirectional Warm-Up:

• Side to side line hops (over, back, and stick) – 5x each side
• Lateral skip – 10 yards each direction
• Crossover skip – 10 yards each direction
• Side to side line jumps (rapid fire) – 2x :03–:05

Video 2. After the general warm-up, athletes perform specific warm-ups based on that day’s type of speed work. These include side to side line hops, side to side line jumps, and lateral skips.

Sample Acceleration Warm-Up:

• Front to back line hops (over, back, and stick) – 5x each side
• A-skip – 10 yards
• Fast feet – 2x :03–:05
• Falling starts – 2–3x 5 yards

Video 3. Front to back line hops, fast feet, and falling starts are three acceleration warm-ups our athletes perform on days we’re training acceleration.

Sample Max Speed Warm-Up:

• Snap skip – 10 yards
• High knees (progressively faster) – 10 yards
• Single leg buttkicker (progressively faster) – 10x each side
• Fast claw wall drill – 10x each side

Address Strengthening the Feet in Every Workout

At our facility, drills promoting ankle stiffness and strong feet are one component all athletes do every day—regardless of the speed work. Marv Marinovich, a pioneer in the strength and conditioning field, began to understand early on the role that strengthening the foot played in improving performance. In his book, ProBodX, he writes, “When you exercise barefooted, the nervous system and musculoskeletal systems are more likely to be engaged than if your feet were sleeping comfortably in high-tech shoes.” He continues, “Working out barefooted will improve your abilities in sports, such as running faster, jumping higher…or changing direction.”

At our facility, drills promoting ankle stiffness and strong feet are one component all athletes do every day—regardless of the speed work. Share on X

For this reason, we always do some component of our warm-up with shoes off. This may include slant-board holds, rolling on PVC, or some low-level jumping or hopping drills. The goal of all of these drills is to get athletes to minimize ground contact time when jumping or running.

Faster athletes produce greater forces into the ground over a shorter duration of time compared to slower athletes. The importance of strength and stiffness of the feet cannot be understated: Take a video of the feet of a few athletes accelerating and look at the differences in ground contact. When an athlete has a stiff foot, you’ll notice there is less movement of the heel toward the ground when they strike the ground as compared to a slower athlete.

Video 4. Pogo jumps with bare feet challenge the nervous system and musculature of the feet more than wearing shoes does.

Improve the Quality of Movement

As a coach, my No. 1 goal is to improve the quality of movement of my athletes. Simply improving mechanics is one of the easiest ways to improve speed. I want my athletes to understand how they should be moving when doing every type of speed drill. Just like any other movement or exercise, I first look to eliminate the gross faults of the athlete and then fine-tune their mechanics to get them moving as efficiently as possible. Improved efficiency means improving speed.

A good quality of movement means the athlete has proper posture as well as an effective position of the hips and a good shin angle. When performing any drill, think about the purpose of the drill and how to perform it as efficiently as possible. For example, if I have an athlete performing a side shuffle, there are a few things I’ll look at before the athlete even starts the movement. Do they have proper posture, or are they overly rounded in their back? Are they in an “athletic stance”? By that, I mean are they low enough with their hips, and do they have a positive shin angle to keep pressure through the ball of the foot?

A good quality of movement means the athlete has proper posture as well as an effective position of the hips and a good shin angle. Share on X

If the setup is not correct, I cannot expect the athlete to do the drill properly. Then I’ll have the athlete perform the exercise, and I’ll continue to look for quality positions and mechanics. This whole time I’m educating the athlete on what I want to see and how it can help them become a better athlete. If I just have my athletes go through drills without actually teaching them, then I cannot expect them to get better.

For acceleration training, I want athletes to master proper posture and focus on producing horizontal force to build up speed. Athletes who are too upright have a more vertical shin angle. This is not conducive to efficient acceleration. When the shin is vertical, the force into the ground is more vertical, which forces the athlete to stand upright instead of keeping a good lean for acceleration. To become more efficient at accelerating, I utilize a variety of drills, which may include:

• A-skips
• Starts from various positions
• Resisted sprints with a harness

I’m personally partial to using a shoulder harness because I’ve seen too many athletes lose posture and bend too much at the hips with a waist harness. Our maximum speed training still stresses good posture as well as proper front-side positioning of the hip, knee, and ankle. Backside mechanics include an emphasis on quick turnover by focusing on hamstring activation. Building a solid foundation of mechanics from the start sets the athlete up for success as they continue to train. If you don’t address mechanics, an athlete will quickly top out their ability to improve speed in all directions and distances.

Field Athletes vs. Track Athletes

Field sport athletes and track athletes have different needs when it comes to improving speed, due to the primarily linear nature of track sprints. Field sport athletes are constantly stopping, starting, cutting, and changing direction. Rarely in sport will you see an athlete sprint in a straight line without having to change direction or slow down at some point. This is the reason acceleration plays a more important role for field sport athletes.

Let’s look at basketball players, for example. If they can’t stop, start, and accelerate quickly, they’ll easily become exposed on defense and will have a hard time creating offense. At no point in a basketball game will an athlete reach top speed—the court is not long enough. All field athletes still need to train top end speed, but it should not be the only focus of their speed training. Their training should primarily emphasize acceleration and deceleration of movements. I’m a big proponent of the resistance drills Lee Taft uses with the band.

You can use the band as resistance to promote more strength through the movement, or you can use the athlete to pull the athlete into a change of direction, which will focus more on deceleration. You can do a number of variations of sprints, backpedals, side shuffles, and lateral runs with the band. Track athletes, on the other hand, still need to work on acceleration, but top end speed is more important due to the distances of the events.

Rehearsed vs. Reactive Speed Drills

A popular topic in articles and podcasts is transitioning from rehearsed drills to more reactive- based speed drills. In the book, Training for Sports Speed and Agility, Paul Gamble writes: “Alongside the acquisition of component movement skills there is a need for the athlete to be progressively exposed to an unpredictable environment to allow them to develop the ability to execute these movement skills under reactive conditions.”  

Reactive drills can include reacting to another athlete or a tennis ball, or even sprinting to a specific colored cone. There is good reason to make sure both of these elements are part of a speed program. Just like hitting a baseball or kicking a soccer ball, running is a skill. If we think of running and changing direction as a skill, we need to make sure the athlete can perform the skill properly before transitioning them into a completely reactive-based program. If you have someone who wants to play ice hockey but has never skated before, will you have them just play games and expect them to reach their potential? No, you will go over all of the fundamentals to teach them how to stop, turn, cut, and transition from different positions, along with playing games to maximize performance.

The same principle should be applied to any type of speed drill. When looking at how skill acquisition occurs, it first begins with a conscious thought of how we want to move. As more practice of the skill takes place, execution becomes a subconscious thought until it happens without consciously thinking about it.

In our typical speed session, we cover the technique and mechanics of different movements, and then we utilize those movements in reactive-based drills toward the end of our speed work. Since sports involve the cognitive component of the athlete reacting to other players, the ball, and the speed of play, we make sure to get in some type of reactive speed work every session. While an athlete is focused on the cognitive components mentioned, they will not be able to think about any of the mechanics of sprinting such as posture, leg drive, or shin angles. This is why we reinforce good technique and eventually look for some carryover in the reactive-based drills.

Don’t Mistake Speed Training for Conditioning

A mistake many coaches make when it comes to speed development is not allowing ample rest between speed drills. This will compromise the quality of the speed work you are trying to do and will turn the session into conditioning.

Strength coaches need to do their homework on understanding energy systems and the rest periods needed when the goal is improving sport-related speed. Share on X

If you truly want your athletes to get faster, you need to focus on the quality of work you are doing. This means allowing time for the athletes’ ATP as well as CP (creatine phosphate) to be restored. Strength coaches need to do their homework on understanding energy systems and the rest periods needed when the goal is improving sport-related speed.

• When doing speed drills, an easy rule of thumb is to allow one minute of rest for every second of max effort work for complete recovery.
• For technique drills or drills done at submax speeds, you do not have to rest as long before starting the next drill.
• If the athlete starts to look slower or the mechanics get worse, allow them more rest.
• The time between drills is a great time to review a video of the athlete performing the drills.

How to Utilize Speed Drills for Conditioning

Conditioning for most sports should look to improve the repeated sprint ability (RSA) of the athlete. Very few sports require a steady state of output; instead, you may see the athlete walk, sprint, walk, jog, and sprint. This is typical as an athlete assesses the play and picks and chooses when to make a play and sprint. For this reason, athletes need to get used to doing lots of short sprints and recovering between them. Improving this quality is known as improving RSA. As an athlete gets closer to season, we like to use different drills as conditioning to help prepare them for the demands they will face once the season starts.

Conditioning for most sports should look to improve the repeated sprint ability of the athlete. Share on X

Let’s use a basketball player as an example, again. Instead of having them do repeat 60-meter sprints, I may have them do a multidirectional drill that is the same duration as their 60-meter sprint. This way I still work the energy systems the same way I would, but it’s more specific to the sport of basketball where they’ll have to change direction a lot more. This is a time coaches can get creative and pick conditioning drills based on the athlete and the sport.  

Choose Drills That Address Deficiencies

The purpose of this article wasn’t to tell you what drills to do, but to provide a template of how to develop an effective speed and agility program for athletes. Look for the positions and mechanics you want your athletes to achieve during drills and pick drills to address the deficiencies. More challenging drills are typically longer in duration, include a form of resistance, or involve more acceleration and deceleration by adding in more changes of direction. Be sure to take these factors into account when developing a speed and agility program for your athletes.

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References

Gamble, Paul. (2012) Training for Sports Speed and Agility: An evidence-based approach. New York, NY: Routledge. p. 151.

Marinovich, Marv and Heus, Edith. (2003). ProBodX. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers Inc. p. 23.