Mult-Directional Drill of the Day "Sprint, Shuffle, Shuffle, Sprint"

We are staying with the theme of the 10 yard with for this "Box" drill if needed put a smaller disc cone in the middle to represent the 5 yard marker in between each 10 yard distance. The athlete will start in an athletic position outside of cone #1. They towards the next cone, so they will always be sprinting forward. The athlete will begin by sprinting towards con #2 when they reach the midway point or the disc cone they are going to shuffle touch cone #5 and then shuffle back to the path between cone #1 and cone #2. Once arriving at cone #2 the athlete will decelerate and turn towards cone #3 and continue sprinting towards cone #3 at the midway point or disc cone shuffle to cone #5 and shuffle back to the path between cone #2 and cone #3. The athlete will continue that pattern for the entire length of the box until returning to cone #1. I have a diagram and video below. Work Smarter, Work Harder, ENJOY!

Introduction to Wall Drill

The more I search the Internet to find videos on Acceleration Wall Drill, the less I actually see it being coached. The only things I feel being stressed are rapid fire speed and move as quickly as possible. Do not get me wrong those are two key things in order to make an impact on the Nervous System and a key way to make a change on how their muscles fire. Athlete’s need to understand this, there is a lot more going on with the wall Drill, then that. A few things need to get done correctly prior to moving rapid fire, and moving like a crazy maniac.  

Stance:

1.  Hands are finger tips up, shoulder height, shoulder width apart on the wall, use something sturdy. It is very similar to a push up position.
2. Eyes are set in between the hands to aid in neutral spine.
3. Feet Hip width apart.
4. Feet are walked back so that the body is in a position approximately 45 degree angle.
5. Heels should be pressed down towards the floor creating our “Credit Card Rule” (Dorsiflexion)
6. Abdominals are Draw-in, which cause the hips to tilt slightly in a posterior direction.

Start by getting in this position and holding.

Ready Position: (Punch)

1. Repeat Stance protocol
2. Focus is Hip Flexion prior to Knee Flexion
3. Making sure that when 90 degrees of Hip Flexion is achieved stance position has not changed.
4. Tibia, both air and ground are parallel to each other, both at an approximate 45 degree angle.
5. Return to Stance.

Start slow with a longer isolated hold, use a 3 count to start and decrease as athlete’s show competence.

That is extremely basic, but extremely important. It is hard to believe that so many athletes are unable to “Punch” their knee up and maintain their Draw-in, and come to 90 degrees of Knee Flexion without a postural change. If you cannot do it stationary, you cannot do it moving. If you cannot do it slow, you will not do it fast. Start here and progress, for more STAY TUNED!

Credit Card Rule and the Good Ol’ Achilles Tendon

Let me give you the facts: For every step taken, I can reduce both the time spent on the ground and time it takes and athletes leg to travel through the air, making an athlete that much faster over any given distance.  I can shorten ground time and air time by five thousands of a second each, thereby gaining one hundredth of a second per step.
Every time I tell an athlete or his parents this number, they look at me like I am the one losing my mind. They give me the classic face, as if to say, “No way is that beneficial,” or “Like that’s really going to matter”. If you understand that the more efficient you are, the faster you will move, then this concept is simple.
Let’s use the analogy of entering a bike race with athletes of the same level.  Athlete A has flat tires.  Athletes B has half-filled tires.  Athlete C has tires filled to the optimal amount. Who wins?  While we cannot guarantee any outcome with 100% certainty, Athlete C has the best chance to win.  Why?  Because Athlete C has equipment calibrated to the most advantageous settings.

If an average track athlete was to race Usain Bolt in a 100m dash, odds are in favor of Bolt.  However, if he was forced to run on his heels, with his arms tied behind his back, the odds have shifted slightly in favor of the average athlete.  Obviously, Bolt still has an advantage based upon his Anthropometrics, but without the ability to run with proper technique, his capacity for maximum velocity has been greatly diminished. The fact of the matter is, an athlete does not get to an elite level of speed with poor technique.

The most efficient athlete wins the race.  We are talking about reducing the time on the ground, and reducing the amount of time the leg travels from toe off back to ground contact. Those are two things that can be practiced, can be taught, and can be learned. I use the ever so popular video game Guitar Hero as my next example. Guitar Hero 3 Starts you off on setting "Easy", first song and a classic at that is Slow Ride - Foghat You play through a list of progressively faster and more complicated songs. The game then brings you back to Slow Ride on a more challenging level. What does the game do, it adds in another button making the game a little more challenging. Your fingers are learning and practicing how to move faster, and you are becoming efficient. If you do not get a high enough score on a particular song you get kicked off stage, which means you retry. Eventually you are playing The Number of the Beast - Iron Maiden on "Expert".

Unfortunately, we have limited control over the build of the athletes with whom we work, and chances are, our athletes do not match the body type of Usain Bolt.  However, we can still dramatically improve the performance of athletes of any age and skill level by teaching technique.  We can make any athlete more efficient, which translates into making any athlete faster. If you add Stability, Strength, and Power Development in there as well, you have a recipe for SUCCESS.
I mentioned earlier that by teaching proper ground contact techniques, an impact as little as 5 thousandths of a second in terms of ground contact time, and 5 thousandths of a second in terms of flight time, we can reduce each step by a hundredth of a second, which in a forty yard dash taking depending on skill level and age of the athlete could lead to a reduction of two tenths of a second. Think that is not a lot, check out this video of the same athlete initial and post testing blended on Dartfish after 24 sessions of training, showing a two tenths difference in speed.
3 month in during at 28 sessions in total

The efficiency I have been preaching about comes from the ankle being dorsiflexed prior to landing.  The Gastrocnemius and Soleus are now stretched, if a force is  applied in a backward direction and the  foot contacting with what I referred to in the title as a "Credit Card Rule" which allows enough room for only a credit card to fit under the heel under the hell of the foot,  the stretched muscle will not only produce a greater force, but shorten the amortization period and reduce the time spent on the ground. The less time an athlete spends on the ground the faster an athlete moves.

If you can’t do it STATIONARY, you shouldn't do it MOVING at full speed.

One of the biggest flaws I see when teaching speed, is that coaches are not using their Active Dynamic Warm-ups to teach athletes the skills you are going to demand/expect them to be able to accomplish in their technical movement section. This is the first post where we are going to be progress on how to teach athletes how to shuffle more efficiently. There should to be a few things covered and accomplished prior to performing the task of shuffling.


Squat Lateral is an exercise we use to start strengthening an athlete in the frontal plane for Acceleration and Deceleration Laterally. The term “Athletic Position” is pretty popular, we teach our athletes to make sure your knees are just outside their hips, and their feet are just outside of your knees, with the weight shift forward on the ball of the foot with a “Credit Card Rule”. That puts them in a place where the NSCA would arrange as Shoulder width apart. I line them up this way, because in my experience if you tell them shoulder width they will always fault and move wider. If you explain a little more in-depth where you want each individual joint it holds them accountable during training.













In the above picture you can see I set up the start point to run from where the head of the femur articulates with the acetabulum in the pelvic bone forming the hip joint, and ran the line down through the femur through the tibia to the floor to show the contact floor angle.


I explain to athletes that in architecture triangles are used in the design of buildings and other structures as they provide strength and stability. When building materials are used to form a triangle, the design has a heavy base and the pinnacle on the top is capable of handling weight because of how the energy is distributed throughout the triangle. The sturdiest of the triangles are equilateral and isosceles; their symmetry aids in distributing weight. (Read more: Triangles Used in Architecture | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8746538_triangles-used-architecture.html#ixzz2KbLuUNUH)

Once an athlete is able to perform this exercise and maintain proper hip, knee, and shin angle also while maintaining an upright torso we progress to a lateral lunge. The exercised has only progressed to stepping into the movement and pushing out of the movement.

Add these exercises in your Warm-up or movement to prepare your athletes for the demands of multi-directional movements. Stay Tuned for Part 2, where I will discuss Side Shuffle with Arm Swing, to Lateral Deceleration.






Work Harder, Work Smarter, Keep Coaching Speed


-Adam Szuch

Plyometrics and the Counter Movement, Yes or No?

By definition, Plyometrics are exercises which muscles exert maximum force in a short period of time.  This training focuses on learning to move from muscle extension to a contraction in a rapid or “explosive” manner. These exercises are designed to increase both speed and power. Plyometrics are an integral part of your training routine. Without these exercises, your program lacks structure and efficiency. The plyometric component completes everything I preach in the Big Four, (as noted in the “Combine Prep, 3 Point Star”), “Big Force, Short Time, Right Direction, and Optimal Range of Motion”.

However, should there be the addition of a counter movement to the plyometric or not??

Counter Movement in jumping is a worthy topic for debate. Most studies will explore that the addition of arm swing and eccentric loading of the hip and knee joint (while forcing the natural adaptation of the body to use the stretch shortening cycle), enhances Vertical Jump between two to five centimeters. In America, where we decide to boycott the metric system, that translates to between one to two inches.
During sports performance training, you have to prepare for the various situations you may face and sharp movements your body may be required to perform. I use non-counter movement plyo’s as well as non-counter movement lifts to train muscles to contract faster without the aid of the Stretch Shortening Cycle. Here are two examples you can add to your training to initiate power from a completely de-loaded position.


The Squat Jump is one of the simple most commonly used plyometric exercises used today. In my opinion, this exercise is a vital starting point and foundation for plyometric training. First, I evaluate an athlete’s squat pattern. I look for proper hip/knee/ankle alignment on the eccentric phase of the Squat prior to the jump. This is an assessment I make during the Active Dynamic Warm-up Squat. If there are flaws in their movements during a Squat, then the exercise needs to be corrected before the athlete should perform the plyometric movement. The squat can be regressed and modified for quicker learning and adaptation.

For more information on teaching the Squat, see my [post on SQUAT PROGRESSION.

In the meantime, lets get back to our topic of discussion. Let’s say the athlete can perform the appropriate squat progressions and can execute the proper squat pattern. Now, the athlete is ready to progress and turn this into a plyometric exercise.

Pin Front Squat:

While performing the Pin Front Squat, make sure the catch bars have been raised on the side of the rack to the appropriate height. (When training our Combine Athlete’s I use a height that is slightly higher then a parallel Squat.) The athlete then positions the bar appropriately for a front squat. Eccentrically lower the bar to the pins, hold that position, and then explode back to the starting position. The load should be on the lighter side, approximately 20-30%,  experienced athletes can work up to 50%  of Front Squat load only if the exercise can be perform with ‘Big Force’ in ‘Short Time’.

Seated Box Jump:

I use this exercise for training out of the 3-point start position. Find a box that is appropriate to position under the athlete’s glutes with a knee angle greater then 90 degrees. The athlete should not be sitting on the box but instead low enough that the glutes touch the box. The athlete should then execute the jump with a little bit of horizontal displacement so he or she does not smash back into the box during landing.

For more specifics about Plyometrics and the Counter Movement, Hit up the ‘Contact’ Tab or Check Out Velocitysp.com/Mahwah for more information.

Work harder, Work Smarter, Keep Coaching Speed.
-Adam

Prowler Push How?Why?What!?

The prowler is a piece of equipment that is definitely one of my favorites! With a catchy title and its challenging reputation, this sled portrays the epitome of a ‘meat-head’ in terms of teaching movement. Despite this one-dimensional image, the Prowler has an overwhelming variety of uses. I specifically use the Prowler while teaching the acceleration component of speed.
I found a ton of videos in which people are attempting to show correct technique with the Prowler and I could not find a single one I liked. Therefore, I was inspired to share my instructions on Prowler Acceleration. Now, I am sure there are people out there reading this and thinking, “everyone thinks their way is the right way so of course this guy thinks his way is better”. Well, I was prepared for that so I put it to the test!
First, I took one of my athletes to accelerate the Prowler. He has a basic knowledge and understanding of the concepts of acceleration, as well as correct form using my checklist:

• Power Line Position
• Knee Punch to hip height (without initiating with knee flexion first, parallel shins)
• Drive the ball of the foot backwards behind the hip and center of mass, etc.

What I had him do next was watch some of these videos and try to demonstrate what he saw, I forced him to perform each a few times. When he was finished, I asked him to explain what he felt during the movements. This is demonstrated below by the bottom illustration. If you look at the joint angles you can immediately determine that the quadriceps are going to load the brunt of the force, which limits activation for the Glutes and Hamstring.

I took a picture of the Prowler with my phone, transformed it into a sketch, and then printed.

After comparing the results, there are noticeable differences and in using my checklist my athlete was much more effective and able to push more weight faster with less fatigue. He uses a better combination of power and in a better direction. The top picture demonstrates my checklist. My way the athlete will get a better combination of quadriceps activation as well as total Glute and Hamstring extension. These movement skills will carry over to free running and make any athlete more efficient.
Not convinced? Check out the videos…

Prowler Push (Not my version to increase Acceleration technique)

Prowler Push (Acceleration Technique)

Would you want to train with you?!

I have been observing new and incoming coaches for a long time now and I wanted to give a few tips and advice for those coaches who are new to the field. After working with a new coach and shadowing the class, I sat down with the coach to provide some feedback on the lesson. The first reflective question I asked the coach was,

"If you were just in that class, would you come back to workout with you again?"

Basically, I’m encouraging the coach to reflect…

·         Did I have fun?

·         Did the athletes have fun?

·         Did I meet my objectives?

·         Did the athlete progress?

As a director, I am evaluating my coaches from a number of different perspectives. First, from a business standpoint I am looking for professionals who can master the entire realm of this industry. I am looking for coaches who have credibility, knowledge and the ability to effectively relay that knowledge to others. I am also looking for coaches with energy and personality to keep the athletes engaged. Lastly, I am looking for the coach that can recognize when a lesson is not meeting the objectives effectively and can adapt to fix it to make it better.

Let’s start with energy and personality. As new coaches come in and shadow my classes, sometimes I will go into an acting mode. I will show them how my demeanor, attitude, and energy can change the atmosphere of the class and how it can impact the effort and attitude of the athletes. For example, if my attitude is lazy and paltry then the effort my athletes will give me will match that ‘bare minimum’ request. I have a personal philosophy that I take from coaching sports, which is, if I need my athletes to meet my expectations, I need to meet theirs and that starts with motivation. Energy is what keeps the class going and that needs to start with the coach. Stirring up motivation and maintaining energy in the class are two extremely basic components necessary for a successful class atmosphere. Let me keep it simple and remind you of Newton’s First Law of Motion:

An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion unless acted upon by another force.

Therefore, if my athletes are constantly stopping or bringing down their energy level, I then need to double my energy to be the force to get them moving again. Constantly having to re-gain the momentum of the class will be exhausting! Instead, I have my athletes jog everywhere. It might sound over-the-top but body language, discipline, and momentum as a competitor is crucial. Whether my athletes are getting equipment, water, changing location, etc., they are jogging and moving quickly to where they need to be. Keeping the class moving and engaged makes for more effective learning and progress. I’m sure many of you can relate that in school there were always ‘favorite’ teachers, and it was not always based on subject matter but more on teaching style, effort, and energy. I don’t always remember what I learned but I certainly remember how I felt in the class. A high-energy atmosphere will give my athletes momentum to progress through the daily objectives. Also, from a personality standpoint, I expect coaches to be able to look at our daily schedule, recognize each athlete and know what sports they play, where they are from, and something interesting about them without looking at their file. Having a little bit of personal knowledge about each athlete helps strengthen the relationship. People feel special and important when they walk through a door and are greeted by others who are excited to see them and know a little bit about them.

     Finally, from every class that is coached, the coach is also learning. If the coach isn’t learning too, they aren’t doing a very good job. I know this is starting to sound uber-philosophical, but bear with me for a moment. If a class isn’t going the right way, fix it!!! If you don’t know how…ASK! The biggest key to teaching is progression and regression. If you are not ready to take an exercise and modify it so that your athletes have success, that means they will fail more times then not.

            I explain to my coaches, its important to be able to ‘wear different hats’ while out on the floor. Athletes and students alike may not always be able to learn the way we teach, so instead we need to be able to teach in a way they can learn! For example, you cannot train an eighteen-year-old middle linebacker the same way you would train an eight-year-old middle linebacker.

I believe all the things we spoke about above hold true, at the end of the day we are teaching more than Sports Performance. Our athletes learn how to train and improve, they learn how to spot other athletes and train safely and they learn how to lift properly. Every athlete should leave your class better then when they walked in. Coaches are expected to monitor the class and recognize when progressions or regressions need to take place. It makes me sick when I see a video online of some "Coaching Guru" who is lifting a young athlete and filming it to put on their website, and it is such poor form you just want to vomit. I saw a video like this last week and I was appalled. This “Coach” proudly displays a video of a young athlete lifting and all I saw were the detrimental flaws: knees are valgus, spine is flexed, depth is inadequate, load is too heavy, etc. This coach is clearly doing more harm then good for this athlete and unfortunately someone with little experience will watch it and try to learn from it. Fortunately, as I read the comments below, someone else had already commented on what my frustration was about to spill on the board. There is a difference between right and wrong, and if you are getting away with wrong lifting technique you are increasing the likelihood to get hurt.

I wrote this after I read Eric Cressey's Article, but I wanted to take more of a philosophical approach. I like his ideas and concepts and I highly recommend you take a look

http://www.ericcressey.com/5-coaching-tips-for-up-and-coming-fitness-professionals

Be a coach you would want to train with!