Athletic Performance Toolbox

Mental Training Enhances Strength Training

by

By Chris Beardsley

Chris Beardsley  graduated from Durham University with a Masters Degree in 2001. He since contributed to the fields of sports science and sports medicine by working alongside researchers from Team GB boxing, the School of Sport and Recreation at Auckland University of Technology, the Faculty of Sport at the University of Ljubljana, the Department of Sport at Staffordshire University, and the College of Health Solutions at Arizona State University. He is also a Director at Strength and Conditioning Research Limited 

For more great information regarding strength and conditioning follow Chris on Twitter ,Instagram, and Linkedin

Only a small amount of research has assessed how deliberate changes in psychological factors through “mental training” programs can affect force production, and thereby help prepare athletes for sport.

Mental training programs can involve either the development of valuable psychological skills, such as controlling self-talk, or the immediate application of simple methods, such as mental imagery and/or modelling.

Mental imagery is often (but not always) done by simply visualising performing an exercise in-between sets of normal strength training with the same exercise. In such training programs, adding mental imagery training on top of normal strength training produces superior results.

Recently, new research found that it was possible to produce strength gains in a multi-joint lower body exercise in a group of subjects who already had experience in performing that exercise, by using mental imagery training.

What is more, these strength gains occurred in just 3 days, in which the subjects did no strength training at all.

Interestingly, in many studies investigating mental imagery (like this one), the changes in strength seem to occur alongside increases in self-efficacy.

Self-efficacy is a key psychological quality that determines how confident an individual is at succeeding at a task or exercise. Mental imagery (visualization) training seems to be effective at improving self-efficacy, thereby changing the way in which athletes approach a task.

Mental toughness has also been identified as a key quality that determines strength, athletic performance, and even predicts success in the sport itself, among high-level athletes.

Although mental toughness is anecdotally believed to be either innate, or developed by gruelling workouts, the evidence suggests that even a very low volume of psychological skills training (including self-talk) can improve measures of mental toughness in high-level athletes.

This suggests that mental toughness is also trainable with the right approach, and does not require strength coaches to use otherwise unhelpful physical training methods in an attempt to encourage that psychological trait.

Overall, there seem to be very close relationships between key psychological qualities like self-efficacy and mental toughness, and athletic performance.

Given the evidence suggesting that these qualities can be enhanced by mental training, strength coaches will likely benefit from devoting time to understanding these methods and liaising with sports psychologists, so that they can be implemented with their athletes.

Explosive Strength

by

By Chris Beardsley

Chris Beardsley  graduated from Durham University with a Masters Degree in 2001. He since contributed to the fields of sports science and sports medicine by working alongside researchers from Team GB boxing, the School of Sport and Recreation at Auckland University of Technology, the Faculty of Sport at the University of Ljubljana, the Department of Sport at Staffordshire University, and the College of Health Solutions at Arizona State University. He is also a Director at Strength and Conditioning Research Limited 

For more great information regarding strength and conditioning follow Chris on Twitter and Instagram

Since strength training was first studied as a method for preparing strength and power athletes for competition, it has been recognized that peak force takes some time to reach.

And yet some athletic movements are completed in just 100 – 150ms.

Therefore, the rate at which force is developed is likely at least as important for athletes as maximum strength. The rate at which force is developed can most easily be expressed as force produced at certain time points (50ms, 100ms, etc.) after the onset of a contraction.

Training with maximal force isometric contractions is quite effective at increasing maximum strength, but it does not increase force by much in these early time windows. Maximal force isometric training is similar to conventional, heavy strength training, as both involve sustained contractions of 3 seconds or more.

Training with explosive isometric contractions is far more effective at increasing force in these early time windows. Explosive isometric contractions involve sudden, rapid force production followed immediately by relaxation. They are very similar to ballistic strength training.

Why do these different adaptations happen?

Neural adaptations after explosive isometric strength training are likely responsible for increasing force production in the early phase of the contraction. We can see this because:

1️⃣ The ratio of voluntary-to-involuntary force at the first time point (50ms) increases substantially after explosive isometric training; and

2️⃣ Muscle activation (as measured by EMG) also increases over the first time window (0 – 50ms) after explosive isometric training.

Importantly for strength coaches working with athletes, the ability to produce isometric force in the early time windows is related to sprinting ability.

Sprinting is an athletic movement that is well-known to involve very short ground contact times of just 100 – 150ms.

It is therefore not surprising that the ability to produce force more quickly during the first half of these ground contact phases is a key determinant of sprinting ability, even over quite short distances.

On the other hand, vertical jumping ability is more closely related to force in the later phases of a contraction. Again, this makes sense, as countermovement jumps typically take 500ms for the eccentric phase and 300ms for the concentric phase.

Although these studies all involve isometric contractions, the wider literature (particularly in relation to the adaptations produced in rate coding by ballistic training) makes it clear that the findings can be extrapolated to dynamic training.

Conventional heavy strength training (even when pushing the bar “with maximal intent”) will likely not improve explosive force production in the early phases of a contraction. Ballistic strength training (e.g. jump squats) is likely essential for achieving increases in force production during the early phases that transfers most effectively to athletic performance.

Five Essential Exercises for All Athletes

by

This article was provided by Coaches Network

No matter what sport you coach, you are responsible for develop an offseason and in-season strength and conditioning for your team athletes. An article on the Ohio University Online Master of Coaching Education website lists five exercises that are essential for every coach’s strength and conditioning program regardless of the sport they coach.

Squats

Squats are a critical lower-body strength training experience because they focus on improving the quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes, as well as the core/trunk. The article provides the following tips to ensure that your athletes squat properly:

• Stand straight with feet hip width apart and a neutral spine

• Keep your core tight and engaged throughout the movement

• Lower down as though you’re sitting into a chair

• Make sure your knees stay in line with your feet; they should never go in front of your toes

• Focus on lowering until your thighs are parallel to the ground

• Once you reach the bottom of your squat, drive your body back upwards in a fluid motion until you reach the neutral standing position again

Planks

This is tremendous exercise to strengthen your abdominal muscles. Follow these steps to perform the perfect plank:

• Start in either straight arm plank position or the forearm plank position. For the straight arm position, your hands should be in line with your shoulders; For the forearm position, you will be on your forearms with your elbows in line with your shoulders and forearms out in front

• Keep your spine straight and neutral, so that your body forms a perfect line from head to toe

• Make sure your neck is also neutral and that you’re looking straight down, not up or side to side

• Keep your core tight and engaged, pulling your ab muscles back towards your spine instead of letting them push out and toward the ground

You can start by doing 30 second planks and then gradually increase the amount of time you hold the position. Once you’re comfortable with the standard plank, try adding in different variations, such as side planks to target your obliques or alternating from being on your hands to your forearms throughout the duration of your hold.

Burpees

This is an explosive full-body exercise.  Here are the instructions for proper execution:

• Start in a standing position with feet hip width apart, spine neutral and your arms at your sides

• Crouch down with your hands touching the ground, then jump back into a plank position

• Once in plank, perform a full push-up with your chest touching the ground, then immediately push back up into plank

• Jump your feet back up to your hands so you’re back in the crouching position

• Explode upward into a straight body jump

The burpee does a lot for the body—It targets both your upper and lower body while keeping the core fully engaged, and gets your heart rate up through its powerful explosiveness. It’s cardio and strength all rolled into one tight movement. Try adding in three sets of 15 to your next workout.

Thrusters

The major benefit of this exercise is that it teaches your muscle fibers to fire from start to finish, and your working both your upper and lower body.  You can perform Thrusters with a barbell or two dumbbells.  Here are the steps to follow:

• Begin by standing straight and tall with a neutral spine

• Keep the barbell or dumbbells at shoulder height, as though you were going to perform a shoulder press

• Drop into a squat, then immediately stand back up

• As soon as you’re back in standing position, take the barbell or dumbbells into a shoulder press

• Bring the barbell or dumbbells back down to starting position to complete the exercise

This is a great move for anyone wanting maximum results in minimal time.

Sprints

The article says that a recent study found that people who do sprints were able to burn fat for two hours longer after exercise completion than those who didn’t. Think that running isn’t for you? Don’t worry. The article suggests that athletes jump on the treadmill at the end of their workout and tack on an extra 10 minutes of sprinting, alternating 30 seconds of all out sprinting with 30 seconds of rest.

 

Common Weight Training Mistakes

by

 

This article was provided by Coaches Network

Strength training is one of the best ways for athletes to improve their performance, but simply lifting weights won’t cut it. To help your athletes get the most out of their time spent in the weightroom, it’s important to develop a well-rounded approach focused towards their sport. There are a number of weight-training mistakes that high school teams commonly make. Here is a list of what they are and how to avoid them as explained by Jace Derwin, CSCS, RSCC, in a blog at Volt Athletics.

1. Random Training

Doing random exercises with an arbitrary number of reps is not going to help athletes improve in their specific sport. Even further, allowing them to guess their way through a workout could be potentially dangerous, as they will most likely be using incorrect form. Establish clearly defined goals and structure time in the weightroom so that it is focused on sport-specific movements. Developing a training plan will help your athletes make gains safely and efficiently.

2. Bench Press and Biceps

Too much focus on training the biceps is especially a problem among male athletes. While the bench press and bicep curls are definitely important for building upper-body strength, these exercises alone will do little to improve athletic performance. What’s more important is a well-rounded program with a variety of different exercises.

3. Training Till You Puke

While developing mental toughness is a major part of strength training, be careful not to go overboard. It’s important for athletes to give maximum effort and show a strong work ethic, but it’s also essential that they are able to fully recover before the next practice or game. Try to find a balance with the intensity of your weightroom training.

“Having the passion and fortitude to give something your all is an important part of being an athlete, but when it comes to preparing for your game, you have to be careful that you don’t train SO hard that you limit what you can do tomorrow,” writes Derwin. “There will be moments in a planned training schedule when it’s appropriate and necessary to give it your all—but those should be properly spaced within a training program so their effect on performance is maximized and your ability to compete is improved.”

4. Training Everything but Athleticism

Also known as “Iron Addiction,” this a common mistake made by high school athletes. Strength alone should not be the end goal. The focus should be on a variety of movements that directly relate to the demands of the sport. As athletes increase their reps and weight in these movements (lifts, med ball throws, plyometric drills, cardio work, etc.), they will be more prepared to execute these motions during competition. Identify the physical demands of your sport and design a strength-training program that meets them.

5. Training Only Athleticism

On the flip side, it’s also important for high school athletes to understand why they are in the weight room in the first place. Simply practicing their sport over and over again will not give them the same power, speed, and explosiveness as weight training. Make sure they know that the best way to prepare for their sport, outside of playing it, is to train on a properly designed strength and conditioning program.

“A good strength training program exposes the body to progressively higher workloads, increasing the functional capacity of the body to work more efficiently with less risk of injury,” Derwin writes. “In other words, strength training will help make your movements safer and more efficient, allowing you to work harder with less effort. This is much harder to accomplish if athletes are functionally weak from lack of weight room preparation.”

Prehab Drills: Injury Prevention

by

We train our athletes to help them perform better. We try to make them stronger and faster. We strive to increase their explosiveness and improve their agility. Improvement in these areas will, without doubt, improve their performances. However, improving performance cannot be our only goal. The training that you provide should also help to reduce injuries. A good strength and conditioning coach designs his/her program with a good amount of prehab or injury prevention exercises included.

In the clip below former Maryland Strength and Conditioning Coach, Barry Kagan (C.S.C.S., L.M.T., R.N.) demonstrates 5 different exercises that he uses for prehab. Coach Kagan earned a Master’s Certification from the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association and has used his training to develop a DVD designed to prevent injuries. For more information about the DVD that this clip came from click the link Sport Performance Preparation: Injury Prevention – 100 Prehab Drills to Keep Athletes in the Game

The YouTube video below has sound, so please make sure that your sound is turned on and that you have access to the site. Some schools block access to YouTube.

The following is a brief recap of Coach Kagan’s exercises:

1. Pilates Style Crunch – Roll the tailbone up. Suck in the gut. Arms behind the neck. Abdomen should not move up and down when crunching up
2. Lateral Hip Drive – Starting in side plank position with l elbow on the ground, drive the hips up. Hold the position and move the free arm in all direction to force the core and shoulder to stabilize
3. Bicycle Crunch on a Stability Ball – Bring knees to opposite elbows. Go slow
4. Leg Throw Down – push the athletes legs down as the resist. Push in all directions. Be careful make sure the athlete can handle this exercise.
5. Leg Throw Down with a Hip Up – Same exercise, except when the athlete brings their legs up have them lift their hips up before pushing legs back down.