Training Methods for the Development of Power

alan_ruddock — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:28:42 +0000

The other day I came across a presentation a friend and I did at university. Thought I'd share it with you all.

Youth development

alan_ruddock — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 17:10:53 +0000

I have a big problem in my practical sports lesson! But we have an even bigger problem in this county!

Too many kids lack the fundamental skills required to play sports.

Jones to admit steriod abuse

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:29:45 +0100

According to Amy Shipley writing for the Washington Post, Marion Jones will admit to using the infamous THG steriod in the lead up to the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

Jones who won 5 Olympic medals in 2000, is planning to plead guilty to lying to federal agents over the use of banned substances.

In December 2004, she sued BALCO founder Victor Conte, contending he falsely accused her of taking performance-enhancing drugs.

Peakspeed will bring you the latest when it happens.

Alan Ruddock CSCS, YCS

Cutting It

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:28:58 +0100

Many coaches, trainers and scientists assume that athletes know how to run correctly. WRONG! Many athletes don’t.

Many coaches, trainers and scientists also assume that athletes know how to change direction at speed (cutting) correctly. WRONG! Many athletes don’t.

It is often these assumptions that are the underlying cause of many non-contact injuries. Note the fact that between 50 – 80% of all injuries are non contact injuries!

Resistance Training for Speed Development

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:28:23 +0100

Let’s get straight to the point. Acceleration and top speed running are different for several reasons. One such difference is technique. During acceleration your body position is leaning forward, your stride length is shorter and ground contact time is longer than during top speed running.

The differences are visually obvious and many coaches and athletes will devote a lot of time and attention to coaching specific techniques related to acceleration or top speed running.

Carbohydrate Gels Enhance Intermittent Exercise Performance

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:26:34 +0100

If you haven’t heard of or seen carbohydrate gels before, they are small amounts of gel, about 60-ml, that contain complex and simple carbohydrates. They are widely used in endurance sports such as triathlon and cycling because they are small, compact and lightweight so offer an alternative to comparatively heavy, bulky sports drink bottles.

It is well known that carbohydrate-electrolyte beverages improve endurance and intermittent exercise performance. However, less is known about the consumption of carbohydrate gels during intermittent exercise.

Red Bull gives you wings!

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:23:49 +0100

Who drinks red bull or other caffeine beverages before they compete? I certainly do and I advise drinking or consuming in tablet form, caffeine, to those who compete in intermittent or endurance sports.

This is because time and time again caffeine supplementation has been proven to enhance performance, along with only a handful of other supplements/ergogenic aids (creatine, carbohydrate, caffeine and protein).

The Autonomic Nervous System and Repeated Sprints

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:23:06 +0100

The autonomic nervous system or ANS is made up of sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves. The sympathetic nerves speed up various physiological processes such as heart rate and the parasympathetic nervous system slows down physiological processes.

It is possible to measure sympathetic and parasympathetic responses to exercise using heart rate variability. Heart rate variability is the time interval between heart beats and is usually measured in ms.

Scientists use heart rate variability information to study what happens to the ANS during and after exercise.

Is this the fastest man in Rugby Union?

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:21:09 +0100

Bryan Habana is the winger for the South African national rugby team. In the current standings, after one game, he’s the top try scorer in the rugby world cup with four tries.

So just how fast can this guy run? I’ve been digging around for some official figures but can’t find any. There’s reports that Habana has run 10.4-s for the 100-m and others that say just under 11-s. I also found an article that said he can run 40-m in 4.63-s.

Powell Breaks 100-m World Record (again)

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:20:24 +0100

For those of you who are unaware, the world athletics championships bronze medallist, Asafa Powell, has smashed his own world 100-m record by 0.03-s!

I’m sure there’s a few sports scientists in the world, including me, interested in putting some force plates underneath Powell and recording the amount of force he puts into the ground!

Alan Ruddock CSCS, YCS

Can endurance training aid multiple sprint performance?

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:18:59 +0100

What are multiple sprints? Well, in team games players are required to sprint intermittently throughout the match and thus multiple times.

It is often the team who can compete at a high intensity for the longest period of time that wins the game. Specifically, the team that performs more high intensity sprints.

There are two key components required to be successful in multiple sprints. Firstly, the ability to run fast and secondly the ability to recover from high intensity sprints.

Taking a Step Backwards to Move Forwards

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:18:29 +0100

Sometimes stepping backward to move forward isn’t totally bad. As a young soccer player, probably about 8 years a go, our coach brought in a “speed expert”.

He asked one of the players to perform a sprint and asked the rest of us “what did you notice about that sprint?” We came up with all sorts of answers except the one he was looking for.

The answer he gave us was that when the player reacted to the call to sprint, he took a small step back, and according to the coach this cost him time.

Speed Training for Young Athletes Part 2

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:17:08 +0100

The last entry introduced the topic of sensitive periods for speed development. Today I want to talk about when this period occurs and how to identify sensitive periods.

The graph below taken from the Canadian Long-Term Athlete Development website (http://www.ltad.ca) is an excellent resource.

We can see from the illustration that for the general youth population there are two speed “windows”.Sensitive Periods

For females between the ages 6 and 8, and then again between 11 and 13. For males, between 7 and 9 and then again between 13 and 16.

Speed Training for Young Athletes Part 1

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:15:00 +0100

Any training programme designed for young athletes should take into account speed development.

When designing programmes, good coaches will ask: When should I implement speed training during training sessions? and when should I schedule speed training in the context of long term athlete development?

The answer to the first question is, immediately after a dynamic warm-up.

The answer to the second question is slightly more complicated. Young athletes speed development is governed by their physical maturity.

Gay Takes World Title

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:14:13 +0100

Congratulations goes to Tyson Gay who yesterday won the IAAF World Athletics Championships 100-m in 9.85-s.

Sprint vs Plyometric Training

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:13:08 +0100

The buzz word within sports performance these days is “plyometric” training and the use plyometric training has become widespread in many sports performance programmes.

When implemented in the correct manner plyometric training is effective for improving explosive power (impulse is the correct term).

The aim of plyometric training is to reduce the time the foot is in contact with the ground which allows for a more efficient transfer of energy in the direction of movement.

How to Win the Rugby World Cup

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:11:57 +0100

Following on from England’s record 62 -5 win against Wales on Saturday I asked myself the broad question. What will win the world cup? Solid defence or Searing attack?

The answer is obvious!.............Attack!

Yes, we hear all the time that your game should be built on solid defence, but it’s the speed and agility of Robinson and Rockocoko that wins the game and excites the crowd.

So how can we develop speed and agility to win the world cup?

Speed and agility drills? Yes. Endless ladder drills? No. Game specific speed and agility drills. Yes. Straight line sprints? No.

Tyson Gay to make assault on 100-m world record

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:11:06 +0100

In the Norwich Union London Grand Prix tomorrow evening Tyson Gay will attempt to break the World 100-m record jointly held by Asafa Powell and Justin Gatlin of 9.77-s.

Certainly he has the ability, and the top speed and has already run faster than the world record this season, albeit a wind assisted 9.76-s.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=V5s8DgXRjGQ

But as the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Osaka draws closer what will limit Gay in achieving the WR?

Pre-Season Soccer Speed Training

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:10:34 +0100

Justin Gatlin

The joint world record holder for the men’s 100-m, Justin Gatlin, will begin the final day of a 2-day United States Drug Authority (USADA) hearing in Atlanta today, with the aim of clearing his name.

Testosterone

Despite failing and accepting both A and B samples contained testosterone or a pre-cursor in April last year, Gatlin is aiming to overturn the life ban imposed on him by USADA.

Pre-Season Soccer Speed Training

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:09:31 +0100

Kick-Off!

As pre-season for many soccer teams in Europe draws to a close and the 2007-2008 season kicks-off, coaches will be looking for players to “sharpen up” by emphasising speed and agility training. But what will the top teams such as Manchester Utd., Real Madrid and AC Milan be doing to prepare for the start of the season?

Soccer Sprints

Interview with Barry Ross

alan_ruddock — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 23:05:58 +0100

Barry Ross is the Author of “Underground Secrets to Running Faster” a book which has gained a lot of attention in coaching circles over the past few years. http://www.bearpowered.com. The book challenges several training theories regarding speed training and applies sound scientific research and principles of human locomotion to explain why there is a need to change the way we train athletes to improve speed. I for one love the book, the concept and the philosophies of Barry Ross so asked him to answer some questions for peakspeed.