Speed Recovery

Response to your question stated in your last sentence of post = ABSOLUTELY NOT, imo. I work my team in the off season, just completed our 16th week of off season preparation, 4 nights a week on these drills.
Coach Easton

CUI,

Glad to see that you are reading up on Charlie Francis...he is one of, if not THE, best sprint/track coach there is. Good thing about him is that he knows American Football as well.

Here is what I do...I train for speed and strength on the same day. 3 days strength (MWF) and 2 days speed (MF). Tempos are done 2 or 3 days per week (TR ). I have pretty much dropped agility work with the exception of position specific metabolic work. I'm not big on running around cones or touching lines or whatever. I don't wan't the guys looking down at them all the time. I also don't use speed ladders (your guys will run very tight) or the dot drill. Thats just my way.

The CNS does need a break, which is why I only perform speed work 2 times weekly with 2 or 3 days in between. I only use approximately 200-300 yards total volume on speed day as well.

As for agility work, I am more for taking a break from football specific work to give the joints a break and focus on straight ahead short distance speed as well longer distance tempo work. Other than that, our focus is on building strength in the weightroom that should contribute to the increase in COD ability anyway.

As the season nears, we will pick up more position specific conditiong work as well as plyos, etc.

Just one guy's way.

Jimbo

Jimbo
The system that we have been applying appears to be very similar to your ideas and descriptions of your program. Once the students come back from break, we go from lifting 4 days/running 1, to doing WSB three days a week (rotating the four days through a MWF routine), doing speed (running) work m/f, and a tempo run one other day. Our program is new and I believe in WSB as a means to getting stronger above all other methods. Needless to say, the first half of this year has been to get the players to commit and educate them about the conjugate method. But the transition (better yet transformation has been amazing) ...I can't wait to see what the results of the next step will be.
I'm so glad I was introduced to this website...Keep up the GREAT posts regarding the advancements in training and how SCIENCE applies to creating better student/athletes....
THANKS!!
BJ

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Originally posted by: Buckeye75
On the other hand however, I wonder how it would increase the endurance of a football player. Football players go full go for a few seconds (typically less than 6 sec.) then have about 35 seconds to recover. With this, wouldn't it make sense to run sprints, COD drills, different postion drills (pulling, running a route etc.) then to take about 20-30 seconds rest in order to train the energy systems to better recover from full speed actions?

I'm not doubting the effectivness of tempo's for endurance (they have worked well for Charlie and Buddy Morris) but I would just like to know the why behind it all. Also, what do you think of full speed drills (sprints, COD, postion drills) in order to increase a players endurance?

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Buckeye,

Tempos are ran mostly for recovery on non-lifting days, but I have found that over time, they also develop the endurance it takes to finish a long drive, late in a game. The short distances (30-60 yards) followed by a short rest interval (10-60s) will definitely increase endurance for the game of football and will also work on taking away excess bodyfat if necessary. Like I said though, they are mainly done for recovery in my program.

I do like to keep a metabolic conditioning plan handy and will go mostly with that prior a season or a spring practice. You are right that the only way to really "PREPARE" for the demands of football is to actually play football itself. Its just that I don't agree with "playing" football 12 months of the year. The metabolics are great for increasing the level of conditioning for football players, but it also puts alot of stress on the joints from the constant change of direction, plus it just gets old to do the same thing all year. So the tempos are great, in my opinion, to keep a good level of conditioning and just build on that with your position specific work as the season nears. Plus, when you do begin the metabolic position specific work it will be fresh to them, not the daily grind.

As for agility, I have found that athletes lacking strength cannot really perform agility work as it should be done (same goes for speed), so I emphasize weightroom work over agility work because a certain level of relative strength is needed to properly perform the drills. In other words, stronger ham/glute and trunk strength with decent levels of bodyfat will lead to better COD ability (and SPEED!).

Hope this helps a little.

Jimbo

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Originally posted by: CUI
When you cycle the WS4SB lifts through the 4 days of the week, you are lifting heavy on consecutive days (M/T and Tr/F) if I understand correctly? Is this OK for the CNS? What about for athletes that are in season? Do they follow the same schedule?

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CUI,

When I use WSB on a 4 day split, I will go like this:

Mon - DE Upper (or in your case RE Upper)
Tue - ME Lower
Wed - off
Thur - ME Upper
Fri - DE Lower (or RE Lower)

That gives you a day in between ME days.

Hope this helps.

Jimbo

CIU,
Right now, we are ME on m/t, off wed, DE th/fr...but the ME days are really being used as teaching days to get them familiar with the process of working up to a max, technique, etc...essentially, ME days are not really ME days...more educating to get them to the point were we can rotate the WSB cycle through a MWF process...again, this is new, so there's alot of teaching going on...I hope that makes sense...
...as far as too much in the CNS, it would be too much if we crammed all four days in a m-f cycle...
...with the in-season kids, wow, that's a whole other story...I'm still trying to get people to see that lifting during the season is beneficial...

Coach Dertz - Do you have a copy of what you are posting in the weight room? That's a great idea.
Thanks everyone for your input. Would you have a footballer or bballer lift 4 days in season? What about on game day? This could really be a problem with basketball with 2 or three games a week.

Jimbo, thanks for the help with the issue.

Let me just see if I understand what you are saying.

1- Tempos do help increase conditioning, and they are done farther out from the season.

2- As the season approaches you employ a metabolic conditioning plan to help get in "game shape"

How many weeks away from either fall camp or spring ball do you begin the metabolic plan?

Would you be willing to share an example of one of you metabolic conditioning plans or possibly outline some the principles that you use to put these together?

My email is Buckeye7525@yahoo.com if you would email it to me. Or you could post it on the forum if you would like.


govertical, I would love to see a copy of those posters as well.

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Originally posted by: Buckeye75
Jimbo, thanks for the help with the issue.

Let me just see if I understand what you are saying.

1- Tempos do help increase conditioning, and they are done farther out from the season.

2- As the season approaches you employ a metabolic conditioning plan to help get in "game shape"

How many weeks away from either fall camp or spring ball do you begin the metabolic plan?

Would you be willing to share an example of one of you metabolic conditioning plans or possibly outline some the principles that you use to put these together?

My email is Buckeye7525@yahoo.com if you would email it to me. Or you could post it on the forum if you would like.

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1 - Yes, but they are done year round with me. Even inseason. However, the volume is on the low end. Remember, they are a huge recovery tool, if ran properly. I will run tempos after a metabolic session as well. Maybe 5 or 6 "drives" on a metabolic session followed by 300-600 yards of tempos if neccessary.

2 - Yes.

Usually, at the start of preseason (about 12-15 weeks out) or a few weeks out from spring ball is when I begin to focus heavily on the metabolic sessions.

Here is an example of a WR/DB metabolic session-

WR/DB metabolic session: WRs run routes, DB's work on coverage skills/footwork/backpedal, etc.
If possible, have a ball thrown. After the catch, turn upfield just as you would in a game/practice.
Jog back to huddle and sprint out to LOS.

1. 5 yard stop (30 sec. rest)
2. 12 yard curl (30 sec rest)
3. 3 yard quick slant (30 sec rest)
4. 15 yard post (30 sec rest)
5. 10 yard in (30 sec rest)
6. 40 yard fade - end of drive-
**3 min rest**
1. 12 yard out (30s rest)
2. 10 - 18 yard post-flag (30s rest)
3. 3 yard quick slant (30s rest)
4. 5 yard quick out (30s rest)
5. 12 yard curl (30s rest)
6. 5 yard stop & go - end of drive-
**3 min rest**

OL/DL would work on footwork/pulling/techniques etc.
RB/FB would work on pass routes as well as footwork for the running game
QBs work on footwork and throwing to WR/ mesh with RB/FB
LB would work backpedal/ coverage of RB/TE and reads
TE would work on pass routes/footwork/technique

You can set up your own metabolic session, just remember to do everything as you would in a game.

Jimbo

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Originally posted by: CUI
Coach Dertz - Do you have a copy of what you are posting in the weight room? That's a great idea.

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CUI & Buckeye75 -

I have them in Microsoft Word. Send me your email address and I will get them to you. Here's mine:

cdertz@eastland308.com

No problem, Buckeye.

Jimbo

Coach Dertz, I got the files. Thank you.