Systematic Athletic Development Principle Five – Train bodyweight before external resistance
Basically this entails is being able to handle bodyweight against gravity. The starting point is traditional bodyweight exercises like the push-up, pull-up, rope climb, step-ups, bodyweight squat etc. This type of work will help to strengthen the tendons and ligaments as well as the muscles in preparation for external loading to follow in whatever form that is appropriare for the athletes stage of development and the sport. It will also ensure good joint stability and body awareness. I call this foundational strength; in essence you are building a strong solid foundation for heavier loading to follow. Loading is progressive using percentage of bodyweight in incremental changes. Starting with a weight vest and then adding a sandbag. When I first started coaching this was referred to as ”farm boy strong.” The farm boys never lifted weights in a traditional sense, but they were very functionally strong in their ability to handle their bodyweight and odd sized objects. They had developed strength they could apply in any situation.
It is important to stress that during this foundational strength phase that external resistance is appropriate as long as it is expressed in a percent of bodyweight. For examples Olympic lifting movements with dumbbells serve to build a great foundation in technique to lead into heavier work with the bar. It also must be stressed that that this is a means to end, not an end unto itself. It is preparation for appropriate loads to follow. The foundational strength phase can be as short as three weeks for a mature athlete with an advanced training age to 18 weeks for a young beginning athlete. I have found that even as the athlete advances in training age that some bodyweight work is appropriate. Ioften use a bodyweight exercise as a warm-up to wake-up and connect in preparatiuion for a traditional weight training exercise to follow. It also serves as a good bridge between training cycles.