National high school signing day was February 4, 2009 and after listening to all the “gurus” discuss recruiting one thing stood out…SPEED.
Every high school coach in America is looking for the edge in developing speed this off-season, and I hate to say it but most are missing the boat. A lot of money is being spent on stupid gadgets that won’t do anything more than exacerbate an already existing problem. This article will address two of the four fundamental qualities that need to be improved in order to maximize the development of your high school athlete.
Relative Body Strength
Everything and I mean everything is dependent on maximum force development. However, your maximum must be in excess of your current body weight. If you can’t develop enough force to rapidly overcome your body weight, you are in serious trouble. You will never be able to express speed-strength to your maximum capability without a higher degree of relative body strength. In addition, it is impossible to quickly achieve hip hyperextension without appropriate force production.
The following are relative strength norms for the squat exercise. Notice that these numbers are position specific.
Lineman: 2 x body weight
Mid Skill (linebackers, tight ends, fullbacks): 2 – 2.25 x body weight
Skill (wide receivers, defensive backs, running backs, quarter backs): 2.25 x body
In addition, it is absolutely vital to train unilaterally. Force is applied one limb at a time during most movements, thus we should also train unilaterally. Closed-chain activities such as step ups and reverse lunges are great for developing strength that improves acceleration mechanics. However, I believe that Prowler pushes are even more effective at developing unilateral strength. The following pictures demonstrate a type of prowler push that I use when working on acceleration mechanics. The key is to hyperextend the hip before allowing the next foot to contact the ground. This is also a great exercise for developing hip stability.
Hip stability determines how you control your center of gravity. Run in a straight line for 40 yards. Video tape yourself from the front and the back. You’ll be shocked at how much time you lose due to excessive rotation in the hips. Not only are your hips rotating in the transverse plane but they are also rotating in the sagittal plane. Picture a plate that is rotating on a table on its bottom edges…right before it stabilizes. These rotary actions are constantly destabilizing your center of gravity and preventing you from maximizing force application. As a result, you are not moving in a straight line. Instead you are deviating side/side or up/down instead of moving in a straight line.
Isometrics and what I call dynamic isometrics is the key to developing hip stability. Start by holding an isometric lunge position for an extended period of time. Once you can hold an isometric lunge for over a minute, its time to progress to a dynamic isometric. A dynamic isometric lunge is performed by either dropping into the lunge or jumping into the lunge and holding the position. In addition, you can perform dynamic upper body movements while maintaining an isometric position with the hips (great tip I picked up from Jeff Howser).
By developing hip stability you will be able to apply maximum force application into the ground without loosing force production due to excessive rotation. In addition, you will have much greater control of your center of gravity when moving in multiple planes.
Every high school coach in America is looking for the edge in developing speed this off-season, and I hate to say it but most are missing the boat. A lot of money is being spent on stupid gadgets that won’t do anything more than exacerbate an already existing problem. This article will address two of the four fundamental qualities that need to be improved in order to maximize the development of your high school athlete.
Relative Body Strength
Everything and I mean everything is dependent on maximum force development. However, your maximum must be in excess of your current body weight. If you can’t develop enough force to rapidly overcome your body weight, you are in serious trouble. You will never be able to express speed-strength to your maximum capability without a higher degree of relative body strength. In addition, it is impossible to quickly achieve hip hyperextension without appropriate force production.
The following are relative strength norms for the squat exercise. Notice that these numbers are position specific.
Lineman: 2 x body weight
Mid Skill (linebackers, tight ends, fullbacks): 2 – 2.25 x body weight
Skill (wide receivers, defensive backs, running backs, quarter backs): 2.25 x body
In addition, it is absolutely vital to train unilaterally. Force is applied one limb at a time during most movements, thus we should also train unilaterally. Closed-chain activities such as step ups and reverse lunges are great for developing strength that improves acceleration mechanics. However, I believe that Prowler pushes are even more effective at developing unilateral strength. The following pictures demonstrate a type of prowler push that I use when working on acceleration mechanics. The key is to hyperextend the hip before allowing the next foot to contact the ground. This is also a great exercise for developing hip stability.
HIP STABILITY
Hip stability determines how you control your center of gravity. Run in a straight line for 40 yards. Video tape yourself from the front and the back. You’ll be shocked at how much time you lose due to excessive rotation in the hips. Not only are your hips rotating in the transverse plane but they are also rotating in the sagittal plane. Picture a plate that is rotating on a table on its bottom edges…right before it stabilizes. These rotary actions are constantly destabilizing your center of gravity and preventing you from maximizing force application. As a result, you are not moving in a straight line. Instead you are deviating side/side or up/down instead of moving in a straight line.
Isometrics and what I call dynamic isometrics is the key to developing hip stability. Start by holding an isometric lunge position for an extended period of time. Once you can hold an isometric lunge for over a minute, its time to progress to a dynamic isometric. A dynamic isometric lunge is performed by either dropping into the lunge or jumping into the lunge and holding the position. In addition, you can perform dynamic upper body movements while maintaining an isometric position with the hips (great tip I picked up from Jeff Howser).
By developing hip stability you will be able to apply maximum force application into the ground without loosing force production due to excessive rotation. In addition, you will have much greater control of your center of gravity when moving in multiple planes.
Starting position before drop
Isometric lunge position (post drop)
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