Can You GIT Faster?

Currently we see so much new information about how to run or increase your speed. Speed is important but you must be able to control that speed and transfer your energy in whatever activity you are performing. Let’s say you are a track and field star that has awesome straight ahead speed but your event is the broad jump or the hurdles. Just because you can run fast straight ahead doesn’t mean that you will clear the hurdles or jump the furthest in the broad jump. You must be able to control that power, harness that energy, and time each move correctly to maximize your performance. We teach you to run fast straight ahead and depending on your sport we make sure you can move laterally, at angles, and backwards under control. We make sure you can decelerate and transition to the next move fluidly. Today, we will share a few straight ahead drills. Check back for more drills on lateral, backwards, and angled movements.

So, what activities train speed? The following running drills have a guaranteed, 100% success rate. We use them with our athletes, and they have increased their running speed tremendously.
Keep in mind that some of these drills have a high risk of injury. Be sure you understand how to perform them before you attempt the drills. Any questions, call 855-734-4878 because we take the time to teach each part of the movement since our goal is for you to get faster but not injured. Technique is everything with us.

Quick Feet/Quick High Knees are two drills that increase stride frequency. The key is to decrease the amount of ground contact time.

Quick Feet – 3 x 20-yards
Begin moving in place, lifting your feet off the ground to ankle height. As you begin to move forward, place your feet on and off the ground as fast as you can with great technique for 20- yards. Jog back to the starting position then repeat the drill for another 20-yards. Keep your posture upright throughout the drill. Make sure that your arm swing is tracking with your legs.

Quick High-Knees – 3 x 20-yards
Begin in place with high knees for speed. As you begin to move forward, place your feet on and off the ground as fast as you can with great technique for 20- yards. Jog back to the starting position then repeat the drill for another 20-yards. We want your knee and hip to be at a 90-degree angle. When we look at you from the side, we should see an L-shape. We want your toes up so that when you land on the ground, you are on the ball of your foot which is the exact place you land when sprinting full speed. Make sure that your arm swing is tracking with your legs.

Combination
Once you have done 3 sets of both, combine the two into a sprint. Start with Quick Feet, transition into Quick High Knees, then sprint for 40 yards. Remember, the focus of this drill is stride frequency, so do not slow the movement of your feet in the transitions. Keep your posture upright throughout the drill.

Sled Sprints
The sled sprint is one of the best ways to develop speed using resistance. Start light, going against 5 to 10 percent of your squat max. Too much weight turns this speed drill into a strength drill. Remember, short and fast is the proper way to develop speed. The key is to produce a high rate of force into the ground while staying low and accelerating.

Get into a two or three-point stance with the weighted sled behind you. Explosively fire out and sprint full speed for 20-yards. Rest 30 seconds between sets. Start with 3 sets. As training progresses, increase to 5 sets and then to 7 sets, with the same amount of rest time. Train for 3 weeks, then increase the distance to 30-yards. With 30-yard sled sprints, rest up to 60 seconds between sets and bring your set range back to 3. Gradually increase the number of sets to 5 and then to 7 sets. This is a progression that will safely allow you to transition to a greater distance without sacrificing form. Your anaerobic conditioning will increase during this training phase.

Another key guideline to remember is to get faster, you must train faster. This is the specific adaption to the imposed demand or SAID principle at its finest. In addition, when performing the sled drills make sure you do not place too much weight on the sled. When you are training for speed you must keep in mind the force-velocity curve. Force production is inversely related to velocity of shortening during faster concentric movements. Therefore, during faster concentric movements, less force production is possible due to a smaller number of cross-bridge contacts on actin filaments at any instant as the velocity of shortening increases. When you place too much weight on the sled you are now working against yourself in relation to speed. You slow down because the load is so great it now becomes a strength exercise. You can move a heavy sled slowly, but in the sprint you want to move a medium weighted sled as fast as possible. Back off the weight and focus on form. You want more details call us at 855-734-4878 and we will drill it into your muscle memory and make you faster!

Reference:

4 Drills to Increase Your Speed by Giavonni Grassi

Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, NSCA, Thomas Baechle and Roger Earle