Author: Vernon Gambetta
Pretty Simple Stuff
The purpose of strength training is to prepare the body to resist or overcome gravity as demanded by the sport or activity and to use the ground effectively to reduce and produce force. There are many means and methods to achieve this with the key choosing a method or means that is appropriate for the sport and the athlete. Conceptually this is quite simple, but complex in application. Don’t try to make it more complex, make simple incorporate the fundamental movements of pulling, pushing, squatting and all it’s derivatives, rotating, reaching, bending, and bracing. Allow time for adaptation and you will have strength you can use in your sport. What more can you ask?
Cross Training – Method or Madness
Every time I hear the term cross training I just shake my head in wonder. What are you talking about? Doesn’t good training involve utilize a variety of methods to elicit adaptation? Lets look at cross training and see if there is any method or if it is just madness. Hawley & Burke (P. 31) define Cross Training as: “… is when an athlete undertakes training in a discipline other than their main sport for the sole purpose of enhancing performance in their primary event.” It has been primarily used as a method for retaining training adaptations. What we are really talking about here is transfer of training effect. It has been my experience that those who utilize cross training the most are those who already have a tendency to chronically overwork and are looking for another way to punish themselves. I feel that this is another training myth that has actually detracted from sound training. It certainly has very little foundation is sports science research. For a runner to get in the pool for anything more than a recovery session is time ill spent? The same is true for biking, that time would be better-spent strength training or working on flexibility, both areas that tend to be ignored. Most of the time they are ignored because the runner feels they do not have enough time to fit it in. Yet those same runners can find the time to swim for thirty minutes or bike for an hour. It is all a matter of priorities. Cross training may be OK for the recreational athlete seeking to relive the boredom of training, but for the high level athlete it is virtually useless. “Specific exercise elicits specific adaptations, creating specific training effects.” (McArdle, Katch & Katch P.394) McArdle, William D. Katch, Frank I. & Katch, Victor L. Fourth Edition. Exercise Physiology – Energy, Nutrition, And Human Performance. Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore. 1996 Hawley, John and Burke, Louise. Peak Performance – Training and Nutritional Strategies for Sport. Allen & Unwin, St Leonards, NSW Australia. 1998
Running Mechanics
Running Mechanics are a key aspect of running performance. It seems like everyone pays close attention to correct mechanics up to the 400 meters and then it is as if it does not matter anymore, when in fact it actually could be as important. Good sound running mechanics can go a long way toward preventing injuries, optimizing stride length and stride rate for more efficient utilization of energy stores. Improving running mechanics involves specific strengthening of the involved muscles, the postural muscles as well as the legs. Technique practice in the form of specifically prescribed drills should be part of daily training. Constant awareness of good running mechanics must be stressed during each run. What does good running mechanics consist of? It consists of good posture, which is erect carriage of the trunk. Then good arm action. The arm carriage should be low so as not to cause undue fatigue, the shorter the race the greater the amplitude of the arm action. The leg action should be short and controlled. High knee lift and excessively long strides are not rewarded. Efficiency is the end result of good distribution of effort and sound running mechanics.
Speed First
Most people agree that speed wins, then why if that is the case isn’t it made a priority. You must work on speed first and foremost. You must incorporate some elements of speed from the first training cycle through to the peak competition. That is true if you are training for a marathon or 100 meters, basketball or rugby. It must be part of every training cycle. I find it quite amusing when I hear a coach say that we have been working on base work, but I have not started speed work yet. What are you waiting for? The problem with that approach is that they are not training to be fast, they are training to endure, and then magically they hope that the fast will come. They are essentially training speed out that is easy. The inevitable result is undue soreness and greater risk of injury because of the abrupt change in the training program when they do start to emphasize anything fast. The key is to never get too far away from running fast. Always train speed in. It should be part of the first training cycle of the year and be a part of each subsequent training cycle. Speed development work can be as simple as sprint drills, light acceleration drills, or for a distance runner simply finishing each run with 8 –10 x 100 meter fast strides, but it must be there all the time. Speed first to be first.
More On Functional Assessment
Sport is a fluid, dynamic, challenging, unpredictable combination of movements all taking place in a chaotic environment. A sound functional assessment looks at the key elements that we can identify and measure and then matches those up with the physical competencies. Determine where each individual stands and design an appropriate training program that prepares for the demands of the sport. Not everyone is created equal, not everyone will start at the same place on the exercise progression continuum. That is where the assessment is most valuable, it helps to place the individual at the appropriate starting point based on their physical competencies. Use this as an advantage to meet individual needs. There should be little or no need for so called “corrective exercise” because the training is designed to take advantage of the individual’s strengths and minimize their weaknesses. The actual assessment should not be sterile and artificial. It should incorporate a variety of movements in multiple planes that will give a clear picture of the athlete’s physical literacy. It is not designed to generate random numbers with no context and therefore no meaning. Count what counts and then make it count with appropriate training that provides measurable and visible results. Don't get caught up in nuance, cut to the chase. Determine key performance indicators. Assess exactly what needs to be assessed to determine the status of the individual relative to the key performance indicators. Periodically reassess to determine progress and gains in functional movement literacy. Modify training to reflect adaptation. At the conclusion of the training program based on the functional assessment you should have a highly adaptable athlete completely prepared to perform in the competition arena.
Happy Easter
Happy Easter to all regardless of your faith and beliefs. Please take a minute and pray in your own way for an end to war, hatred, prejudice and intolerance. Let all be thankful for each other and world we live in imperfect as it may, it is ours.
Take A Different Look – Skill & Athleticism
In order to effectively train athletes for a sport or to rehab them from an injury demands a thorough and complete understanding of the demands of the sport. Each sport demands a certain amount of athleticism and a certain degree of skill. Athleticism is defined as the ability to perform athletic movements (run, jump, throw, push, pull, bend, extend etc.) with precision style and grace at optimum speed in the context of the sport. Skill is the ability to execute the movements of the sport with a high degree of proficiency. As we look at sports and the various positions and events in the sports require different degrees of athleticism and skill. In order to further classify and hone in on the sport and position demands I have come up with a rating on a continuum. I call it the SA Rating. The continuum is a 1 – 10 scale for athleticism and skill on two different parallel lines. 1 on the left of the continuum indicates a low level of either athleticism or skill and 10 the highest rating. S 1 S 2 S 3 S 4 S 5 S 6 S 7 S 8 S 9 S 10 S = Skill A 1 A 2 A 3 A 4 A 5 A 6 A 7 A 8 A 9 A 10 A = Athleticism Use American football as an example, overall the game rates around a 6 – 7 for athleticism and about the same for skill. (My opinion based on my analysis, but subject to debate) Then break it down by position to get a clearer picture of what the sport is about. As an example lets look at the positions in American football. For example a quarterback is a high skill demand position so he would rate a 10 in skill demand and a 7 in athleticism. So for a quarterback the SA Rating is S10 – A7. An offensive lineman on the other hand would rate a 5 – 6 on skill and possibly a 6-7 on athleticism for an overall SA Rating of S5 – A6. Eventually it would be valuable to have a Skill/Athleticism (SA) rating for each position or event in each sport. The athleticism rating should correlate to the physical performance indicator testing battery that is used. The Skill rating should be determined by the commonly accepted parameters of good skill for the respective position or event. This is not just an exercise in intellectual gymnastics, the SA Rating will help to determine the direction and emphasis in training. It has profound implications for test selection and skill evaluation. This should be part of the overall athletic development process to determine training direction and purpose.
Moneybull Nonsense
Just because you measure or can measure something does that mean it matters? Is the measure meaningful or is it a random number? Sport is real; it is real people playing the game and real people making decisions on the coaching side. It is not a fantasy. Certainly there are measureable patterns and tendencies but the most important factor to consider is HU, the human element. HU is what makes coaching fun and challenging. HU is predictably unpredictable. It is so much more than numbers. It doesn’t matter if it is game stats, GPS measurements, heart rate variability, lactate measurement, angular velocities and torques, it is how the numbers are generated that counts. What is the context of those numbers? It is the human element that is performing and the human element coaching and preparing the athlete that give the numbers meaning. Fantasy sports are an interesting phenomenon that has fed this interest in stats and numbers, but the actionable word is fantasy. It not real, it is inanimate. They are no more real than chess pieces on a chessboard. Coaching and performing in the competitive arena is real, three dimensional, beautifully random and chaotic. Numbers by themselves are one-dimensional and without context. High performance demands a delicate balance between the qualitative and the quantitative. Don’t believe the moneybull.