Strength Conditioning and Weight Training for Sprinters Jumpers

Coach Huyton [email protected]

Coach Huyton speed & conditioning

STRENGTH, CONDITIONING &

WEIGHT TRAINING

FOR sprinters & jumpers

Things you should know about training…


STRENGTH

WHAT IS Strength? Strength is defined as “the ability to exert a force against an object.” For sprinters and jumpers, this object is simple- the track! There are lots of different kinds of strength, so it is essential that you chose the right type of strength training to ensure that you are strong enough to run and jump! Below are some basic principles which will help you to understand what types of strength sprinters and jumpers need and how you can improve your strength to help you become more powerful.

Types of Strength There is more than just one type of strength, in fact, there are quite a few! The table below explains some of the types of strength sprinters and jumpers need and which exercises are involved:

Type of Strength Explanation Exercise / Example

Speed Strength Being able to move a light object quickly again and again

Light medicine ball work i.e. fast chest press,

Explosive Strength / Power

Being able to move a heavy object with a lot of speed

Sprint start Take off in Long Jump Olympic Lifting

Maximum Strength Lifting as heavy a weight as possible in a slow and controlled way

Anything that is 1 Rep Max. i.e. squat so heavy that you cant do it again!

Strength Endurance Ability of the athlete to keep moving repeatedly

Circuit Training, running

Eccentric Strength Ability of the athlete to stop in a controlled way. This type of training works on the muscles lengthening

Static Plyometric (jump & stick) Downward phase of the bicep curl (bicep lengthens)

Reactive Strength Ability of the athlete to land on the ground and power back off the ground

Reactive Plyometrics (jump, land, jump) , sprinting


CONDITIONING

Staying ‘conditioned’ is one of the most important things that an athlete can do. It means that the body is conditioned to cope with the demands of training and that your body will adapt the best it can to develop you as an athlete. Conditioning exercises should underline every aspect of your sprints, jumps and weight training programme. Being in poor condition will result in injuries, poor performance, lack of strength development, poor biomechanics and running technique- all of which are essential in becoming a fast and powerful athlete! These types of sessions can be done as part of your warm-ups and cool downs around your running, jumping or weights sessions. They are also a great session to do if you are unable to get to the track or the gym. Conditioning exercises include:

- stretching (both dynamic & static) - myofascial release (foam roller, massage etc) - keeping body aligned (your coach or physio can check this!) - use of resistance bands - mobility exercises around the hips and glutes - core training; situp - ability to do body weight exercises such as press ups, sit ups etc.

Myofascial Release Myofascial release is the posh term for a technique that is used to relax the muscles, increase blood circulation and increase lymphatic drainage (getting rid of lactic!!). Without myofascial release, athletes will experience pain and a restriction of movement in their muscles and joints. This means that they cannot apply enough force to the blocks or the ground, do not get the ‘feedback’ from the track as your nerves are blocked from sending the signals to your muscles and ultimately, you cannot run as fast! Myofacial release techniques include:

- massage from coach / physio - use of foam roller - use of a tennis ball


WEIGHT TRAINING

WHAT IS WEIGHT TRAINING? Weight training refers to any exercise in which you ‘load’ the body with weights. Training with weights forces the body to adapt to this new demand of the heavy weight, therefore allowing the body to become stronger. Weights include:

- medicine balls - dumbbells - barbells - kettle bells - sand bags - weighted vests - weighted sledge - cable pulley machines - resistance machines

TYPES OF WEIGHT TRAINING FOR SPRINTERS & Jumpers The aim of any sprinters or jumpers weight programme is to develop SPEED & POWER. There are 4 main categories of weight training exercises that can be used in order to become stronger and more powerful. The table below explains the 4 categories and how they are needed for power athletes:

Type of Weight Training Explanation Exercise Example Why Sprinters & jumpers need them

Olympic Lifts These are the names of 2 lifting techniques which are used in competitive weight lifting.

Clean & Jerk and the Snatch

These 2 lifts develop coordination, flexibility, speed and strength. They also teach the nerves to ‘fire’ quicker which makes the muscles move faster.

Static Lifts Refer to exercises done at slowly and controlled

Squats, bench press, shoulder press etc

The exercises work on the major muscles groups (glutes, chest, shoulders) and allow the exercise to be done in a slow and controlled way, allowing the athlete to learn parts of the Olympic Lifting

Ballistic Lifts These exercises can be done at high speeds

Weighted vest drills / jumps, medicine ball

Help develop elastic / explosive strength


work

‘Bodybuilding Lifts’ These exercises focus on the small muscle groups by isolating them in a particular exercise

Bicep Curl, Calf Raises,

Allows athlete to work on their weaknesses, build overall strength

REPS and Sets How do you know that your weight training is developing the right kind of strength thing? The answer is to look at the repetitions and sets you are doing. The table below shows you that in order to train for certain types of strength, you have to stick to certain ranges of reps and sets- and take a certain amount of rest in between the sets!

THE IMPORTANCE OF REST AND RECOVERY WHILST WEIGHT TRAINING When the body takes part in weight training, it learns to adapt to the weight, therefore becoming stronger and building more dense muscles to overcome the weight. The aim of weight training is to break down and tear the muscle fibres so that they grow back bigger and stronger. Without enough rest between your training sessions, your muscles do not have time to repair and grow stronger, instead your muscles become weaker, tired and prone to injury! It takes 48-72 hours for muscles to recover from a tough session- therefore, you should not be training the same muscles within that time period. Let them rest!!!

Which strength are you developing? How many reps How many sets How much recovery

Maximum Strength 1-5 3-4 3-10 minutes

Power 2-5 3- 5 3-10 minutes

Strength Endurance 5-8 4-5 30-60secs

Hypertrophy (building bigger muscles) 8-12 4 30-60 secs

General Strength / Fitness 30-90 secs per set 1- 4 Few seconds


How do I design my own weight training Your weight training programme depends on the following factors:

- what you are training for - how much time you have- how many sessions per week - your current condition

As a relative beginner to weight training, you want to ensure that:

- you have a basic understanding into the correct techniques. You can ask your local Gym Instructor, or why not invite your coach along to a weights sessions

- you follow a Weight Training Progression Plan which can be set out by your Coach.

The diagram below is a chart explaining how all 4 weight training programmes can be used to complement each other and used to help the athlete learn the different lifting techniques involved. The green arrow represents the athletes Learning Progression- and how a beginner athlete should approach learning the techniques of weight training, only move on until the Coach is happy that the athlete has grasp the techniques of the category. The red arrow represents how an athlete could progress through the categories as the training season progresses.


Weight Training Progression Plan

For 1 season

BODY BUILDING LIFTS

STATIC LIFTS

BALLASTIC LIFTS

OLYMPIC LIFTS CONDITIONING


EXAMPLES OF SESSIONS

Body Building Session for a Sprinter/ Jumper to develop Strength Endurance

(these sessions are usually split over 2-5 sessions so that you can work on different body parts within each session i.e. Chest, Shoulders, Back, Legs etc)

Exercise Sets Reps

Lateral Pull Down 4 8

Bicep Curl 4 8

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

4 8

Dumbell Chest Flys 4 8

Cable Cross Overs 4 8

Leg Press Machine 4 8

Ballistic Lifts Session for a Sprinter / Jumper (The weight used for this should be between 10-30% of the athletes

body weight)

Exercise Sets Reps

Sledge Pulling 3-5 5-10

Drills in a weighted jacket

3-5 5-10

MB Chest Throw 3-5 5-10

MB Overhead Throw 3-5 5-10

Static Lifts Session for a Sprinter to develop Maximum Strength

(These should be completed with a weight in which the athlete can lift in a controlled manner)

Exercise Sets Reps

Squats 3 3

Bench Press 3 3

Shoulder Press 3 3

Deadlift 3 3


OLYMPIC LIFTS These are very specialised lifting techniques and should only be undertaken once the athlete has a good level of general strength and has a basic understanding into the technique (after following the Weight Training Progression Plan). Here are the 2 Olympic Lifts:

The Snatch

The Clean & Jerk


In order to perfect these two lifts, the following session is recommended: DEADLIFT FRONT SQUAT

WEIGHTED LUNGES SHOULDER PRESS

OVERHEAD SQUAT THE PULL

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Strength Conditioning and Weight Training for Sprinters Jumpers