The Lost Art of Speed

Photo couresty of Sundaune

The art of speed training is very tricky, as the Sports Performance Coach and/or Sprint Coach need to assess many variables from breaking down the phases of linear sprint mechanics, shin angles, general power output, strength, and much more.These are typical aspects most people look for when focused on training for speed. Take a look at a typical high school football off-season, it’s sprint work, gassers, some variation of change of direction/lateral movement drills, weights, and plyos.

The lost art of speed, in my opinion is DECELERATION. If you play a sport that require change of direction, it’s not just about running from side to side or back pedaling, it’s about how fast you can decelerate and then accelerate in the given direction. While some coaches do have their athletes go through various change of direction movements, they needs to be cued correctly and the athlete needs to conceptualize the purpose of the drill. Once this is accomplished then this should have a high carry over to their given sport.

We all know that in most sports you’re not running in a linear line, excluding track. This is why it’s so crucial to be able to maintain your speed through a mix of change of direction, acceleration, and deceleration drills. I remember a few years back talking to Drew Carter (OSU/Panthers WR) who was actually much faster than Steve Smith (Panthers WR) in a linear sprint, but when it comes to speed on the field, it was Steve Smith that excelled. While it’s part to do with position skills, it also has to do with the fact that Steve has an exceptional amount of acceleration power and deceleration strength!

Another badass example of an athlete that has ALL aspects of on field speed (change of direction, linear, deceleration) is the great Barry Sanders. He was one of the most prolific running backs in NFL history not just because of his vision but because he was able to decelerate and than accelerate through when need be.

http://youtu.be/UUVFZYYzHPU

2 Simple Drills

Ball Drill:

Set up cones in a zig zag pattern about 5-10 yards apart. At each cone you’ll either pick up a ball or drop off a ball on the cone.

This simple drills teaches the athlete body control and to keep a low center of gravity. This is VERY important for an athlete to do when doing any change of direction or deceleration work.

Stops:

You’ll set up two markers at the end of a sprint, one signifying the end sprint and the other where the athlete needs to be at a complete stop.

Initially I’d have the athletes sprint at around 75% give them a buffer of 8 yards. As they obtain more body awareness the speed will increase and distance to stop will shorten.

You can also add in different variations to these drills too such as:

Movement to the end- (i.e. for the stop, instead of stopping they can back pedal).
Reaction- (i.e. for the zig zag cones they coach will point at the last minute which direction to run to).
Tools- For the advanced athlete you can add in cat bands or shaw 360 or other tools that can increase demand on the athlete.

As with any new movement, make sure to be progressive with any deceleration movement at first, once they understand the mechanics of the drill than you can start to increase the difficulty.

Stay strong,

Team Fusion