The Secret To Being Fast

The sports world is abuzz about speed, speed, speed.  In almost no major sport is a prospect looked at without the factor of speed for consideration.  40 yard dash times are the standard in football.  The 100 meter dash is the premier event in track and field.  Soccer is defined by speed as well.  It is an inevitability that as a sports prowess grows, the demands of training and potential grow as well.

As coaches, talent identification and training modalities are the crux of athletic improvement.  We have to maximize the potential of an athlete while minimizing injuries and working on the strengths and weaknesses of the individual.  Speed is going to be a big cross section of many sports and properly training it will pay larger dividends than almost anything else worth training.

So what is the secret to training speed?  Well, obviously if you came here to find a quick solution or a special product I have news for you.  It doesn't work that way.  The good news is that there are some training protocols that, if followed properly, will yield results quicker than in many "old school" coaching methods.  Here is a quick guide to obtaining speed in less time.

Tenths of second make the difference in millions of dollars

1) Without recovery, training is pointless.  If you are doing 40 yard dashes, or any speed work designed to target adaptations for short bursts of speed and you are giving your body full recovery you will not improve your speed.  The body takes up to 4 minutes to recover from a true sprint depending on the distance.  You will never see Usain Bolt doing suicides if he is training his speed work.  You also won't see him doing tons of strides and calling it a "workout."

2) Form is crucial.  I've heard coaches say not to try and change a kids form if he is fast because it may slow him down.  That is insane.  Form is about power production.  Without proper form your power production will be limited.  Your body takes advantage of stretch reflexes during running which can only be achieved with proper foot falls and proper leg cycling.

3) If you can't properly execute a drive phase, your 100 dash will suffer and you might as well not even show up to do a 40.  Top end speed is not really calculated in an effort as short as a 40 so if you aren't pushing out properly, you are limiting your time.

4) Being over or under flexible is going to limit you as well.  While not usually as big of an issue, athletes that are overly flexible will lose some ability to use the stretch reflex during sprinting.  Usually the issue is an athlete not being flexible enough to move through the full range of motion needed to get the most power out of a stride.  Not being flexible enough to get height in knee lift will hamper a sprinter.

There are other factors as well, but the majority come down to these points.  If an athlete wants to improve, start here first.