This is an introduction to a three-part series on Speed Development. Read…Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.
The ability to take advantage of the potential of one’s body, and do so consistently over time, is a highly technical skill. As coaches and athletes we often forget this concept when talking about speed development, but rarely do we discuss how important this statement is and what effects it has on training and performance.
When watching top athletes run at full speed, you can see how fluid and powerful these athlete are. The runs are smooth, effortless and the same way every time. It’s a skill of consistency in the patterns of their movements, the skill of running fast. Depending on your level of experience with speed development, you may or may not know what these athletes are doing in their training to get that certain skill level. AND even though we can’t just bring athletes to that top elite level, we sure can help teach them the skills they need to run fast, and apply it to their own sport.
There is a progression of development required to run fast and run fast consistently to the point where its effortless and smooth. I find it to be a simply matter of common sense, but we have made something so simple turn out to be something complicated. One cannot run fast consistently, say over 100 metres, if they have not developed the ability and strength to run fast over 80 meters. One cannot run fast consistently over 80 metres, if they have not developed the ability and strength to run fast over 60 meters consistently. So the procedure we take for developing an athletes speed must be a ‘short to long’ approach.
With this kind of approach, we start developing the athlete’s speed over short distances and then start progressing to longer distances. Once he or she has shown they have the ability to perform at a specific distance, then longer distances can be administered into the program. A very important reason on why it is a must to have a coach watching you at all times. The coach must look for the strengths and weaknesses, and cue the athlete to effectively perform the movement patterns or fix any technical problems. (This is the case regardless of any sport.)
There are three major areas that we will discuss for ‘speed development’ in this series:
- Acceleration – the ability to quickly and efficiently get to full speed
- Maximum Velocity (VMax) – the ability to maintain top and near top speeds
- Speed Endurance – the ability to slow the rate of deceleration while running at full intensity
(original image by kipsnaps)
