Speed, agility, and quickness training has become a popular way to train athletes. With the continually increasing need to promote athletic ability, this type of training has proven to enhance the practical field abilities of participants in a wide variety of sports. It is practiced in addition to conventional resistance training in the gym and serves to assist in the transfer of the strength gained there to performance in the arena of play. Nearly every sport requires fast movements of either the arms or legs, and speed, agility, and quickness training can improve skill in precisely these
areas. Hence, all athletes can benefit when speed, agility, and quickness training is integrated into their training program.
Although this type of training has been around for a number of years, many athletes have not practiced it. This is due primarily to a lack of education regarding both its specific benefits and how to integrate it into a complete training program. In particular, speed, agility, and quickness training is intended to increase the ability to exert maximal force during high-speed movements. It manipulates and capitalizes on the stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) while bridging the gap between traditional resistance training and functional-specific movements. Some benefits of speed,
agility, and quickness training include increased muscular power in all multiplanar movements, brain-signal efficiency, kinesthetic spatial awareness, motor skills, and reaction time. The acquisition of greater balance and reaction time will serve to allow the athlete to maintain proper body position during skill execution and react more proficiently to any change in the playing environment. Quick movements are useless if the athlete trips over his or her own feet.
Many athletes and coaches also do not realize that speed, agility, and quickness training can cover the complete spectrum of training intensity-from low to high. Each athlete will come into a training program at a different level, so the level of intensity must coincide with the athlete's abilities. For example, at the lower-intensity end of the spectrum, the assorted biomotor skills illustrated throughout this book can be used to teach movement, warm-up, or the basics of conditioning. No significant preparation is needed to participate at this level of speed, agility, and quickness
training. Higher-intensity drills require a significant level of preparation. A simple approach to safe participation and increased effectiveness is to start a concurrent strength-training program when beginning speed, agility, and quickness training.
Let's review how speed, agility, and quickness training works and how it can be implemented within workouts for complete conditioning.
Understanding the Muscles at Work
Understanding the basic physiology of muscular function is invaluable to understanding why this particular type of training is so effective. Within the body, each skeletal muscle is made up of connective tissue, muscle tissue, nerves, and blood vessels and is controlled by signals sent from the brain. These components work together in a coordinated fashion to cause bones and
therefore limbs to move in desired patterns. Muscle tissue is connected to a tendon, which is a noncontractile length of tissue that connects the muscle to a bone. Thus, tension developed within the muscle transfers to an adjoining tendon and then to a bone.
On an even more intimate level, within each muscle fiber there are hundreds or even thousands of thin longitudinal fibers. These fibers contain two opposing contractile and fingerlike proteins called actin and myosin that form attachments called cross-bridges and pull against one another to cause motion. Through a series of chemical reactions controlled via brain signals, these proteins work to repeatedly pull and release. This causes muscular work, or a contraction, to occur.
The SSC is at the heart of speed, agility, and quickness training. It works like a rubber band that is stretched and then snaps back together and involves a combination of eccentric (muscle-lengthening) and concentric (muscle-shortening) actions. An eccentric muscle action is performed when an athlete lowers a weight, such as during the downward movement in a biceps curl or a squat exercise. A concentric muscle action occurs during the upward, or opposite, movement in the above exercises. When an eccentric action precedes a concentric action, the resulting
force output of the concentric action is increased. This is the essence both of the SSC and speed, agility, and quickness training. Examples of SSC in sports occur with the swing of a baseball bat or a golf club, during which an individual precedes the intended motion with a wind-up or prestretch. Without this eccentric action, or if there is a pause between this action and the follow-through, the increased force output that is supposed to occur during the concentric phase of the exercise will not occur. The SSC also takes place during everyday activities, such as walking and
running, yet is greatly intensified during speed, agility, and quickness training.
Advantages derived from the SSC can be seen in both large and small ways at all levels of sporting competition. One example is with the vertical jump. When the jumper precedes his or her jump by bending at the knees and hips and then explodes upward, the resultant jump height will be greater than performing the same movement by stopping at the bottom of the knee bend for a few seconds before the explosion portion of the jump. Another example can be seen in the baseball pitch. If the pitcher does not complete a wind-up, he or she is unable to generate
as much force as would be possible by performing a prestretch motion.
SSC activities can be done for the upper body as well as for the lower body and can be implemented with external devices, such as free weights, rubber tubing, and medicine balls. Devices such as these assist the athlete in performing both the concentric and eccentric portions of the exercise insofar as they need either to be accelerated or decelerated. However, speed, agility, and quickness training may be performed without assistive devices by simply using one's own body mass as the weight or resistance.
Integrating Speed, Agility, and Quickness Training
It is very important to remember that speed, agility, and quickness training is designed to supplement traditional resistance training. In other words, it should be conducted in addition to and not instead of lifting weights. Speed, agility, and quickness training at higher intensities should begin after a solid foundation of general conditioning has been established. This could mean six months to a year of foundational training for a beginner. The main point is to have enough of a strength base to adequately complete each speed, agility, and quickness exercise without undue strain. In addition, high-intensity speed, agility, and quickness training should normally be undertaken during the month or two just prior to the season and should include no more than 2 days per week and 30 to 45 minutes per session of total activity.
When writing an exercise program for any athlete, you need to take many parameters into consideration. First, consider years of training, level of fitness, and how often the athlete will be performing speed, agility, and quickness training. In addition to these considerations, three important training variables need to be discussed. They are frequency, intensity, and volume.
Frequency, Intensity, and Volume
Training frequency refers to the number of training sessions completed in a given amount of time, usually per week. Intensity applies to the quality of work performed during muscular activity and is measured in terms of power output (that is, work performed per unit of time). Training intensity may also be defined as how easy or difficult a particular activity is. Finally, volume describes the quantity or the total number of sets and repetitions completed in a training session. These three factors, combined with the number of years an athlete has trained and his or her fitness
level, all go into making up the training plan for the athlete.
We can divide athletes into three major categories: novice, experienced, and advanced. The novice athlete is just beginning to exercise for sport. He or she might be an adolescent athlete or even an adult who chooses to take up sport later in life. The novice athlete's potential for improvement is great. The experienced athlete has been training for one to five years and is involved in a regular program of exercise and sport. Although competing at a higher level, he or she still has great opportunity for improvement. The advanced athlete competes at the national or international level at which events are decided by inches or hundredths of a second. These athletes are near their genetic limits; therefore their potential for improvement is small and the details of their program must be precise. Training age (number of years training for a sport) is more meaningful than chronological age in categorizing the athlete.
For the novice athlete planning an integrated program, begin by adding one to two basic speed, agility, and quickness training exercises into the current training schedule. In particular, it is important that athletes begin with the basic techniques of each exercise before advancing to their more technical aspects. Furthermore, learning the proper mechanics of more basic exercises will allow the athlete to progress to advanced exercises in a timelier manner. As the novice athlete becomes more advanced, his or her frequency of training also will increase: from two to three
times per week. Remember that as the athlete progresses, there still must be rest days to allow for the muscles to recover. Coaches may employ different programs that allow for 2 or 3 days off per week. As the athlete gets closer to competition, however, that number is likely to decrease.
The athlete should always begin each exercise at a low to moderate intensity and progress slowly while learning new movements, decreasing the total number of repetitions as intensity level is increased. Progression from low to super-high intensity may depend on which part of the training year the athlete is in. The intensity level is generally lower at some times during the year to make sure that the athlete is able to perform the prescribed exercise correctly while also avoiding injury. Low intensity may consist of performing the exercises at 40 to 50 percent of maximal exertion. Moderate intensity would constitute an increase to between 50 and 80 percent, and high intensity to between 80 and 100 percent, of maximal exertion.
Intensity and volume directly influence one another in that as intensity increases volume must decrease. Early in the program volume is high while intensity is low. As the athlete nears competition, volume is decreased as intensity increases. Measuring training volume (number of sets x number of repetitions) is vital for assessing training progression. How great a volume of training is performed within a given training session is based on the athlete's level of fitness. The proper interaction of the number of sets and repetitions with variation in training intensity may also help augment training adaptations. These adaptations become evident through repeated training sessions. Upon progressing to a desired fitness level, always allow the athlete to adequately recover.
Periodization
One way to design a program that maximizes the components of frequency, intensity, and volume is through periodization. Periodization involves the gradual cyclical alteration of frequency, intensity, and volume of training throughout the year to achieve peak levels of fitness for the most important competitions. It organizes the annual training program into specific phases during which the athlete trains in varying ways to meet objectives particular to each phase. Thus, all the phases of a periodized program together constitute a macrocycle. On its own, in turn, each
phase constitutes a mesocycle, which may stretch over several weeks or months, depending on the goals set by the athlete and coach. The mesocycle may be further separated into even smaller sections called microcycles, which are generally periods of training that last around one week, depending on the type of event for which the athlete is preparing.
Safety Considerations and Injury Prevention
An appropriate warm-up session should precede every exercise session. Warm-up routines should begin with a low-intensity whole-body activity, such as jogging. This will increase heart rate and blood flow to the muscles and tendons, thereby preparing the athlete for the higher-intensity workout to come. This general warmup should be followed by a specific warm-up that consists of performing some of the session's exercises at a low intensity.
Injury prevention is a major part of any training program. It is imperative that every athlete advance in a progressive and systematic manner when embarking on such a program, including speed, agility, and quickness training. A properly conducted strength-training program that emphasizes knee, hip, back, and ankle strength will reduce the possibility of injury when speed, agility, and quickness training is first introduced. Training should progress from simple to complex movements, from low to high intensity, and from general to sport-specific motor patterns. Moreover, factors such as frequency, intensity, volume, body structure, sport specificity, training age, and phase of periodization should always be considered when designing speed, agility, and quickness training.
Here are a few more recommendations for injury prevention: Follow the proper progression of exercises, and wear proper clothing and shoes.
Remember, proper safety procedures must be observed while learning and mastering the speed, agility, and quickness activities included in this book. Make certain all equipment is in correct working order before use. If exercising outdoors, make sure the area is free of any hazardous objects, such as rocks or trees. Be sure to understand each new exercise completely prior to attempting it for the first time.
It is also important to make mention of a common occurrence experienced by athletes. When one first attempts a new exercise, there is likely to be muscle soreness. This soreness, called delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), usually peaks between 24 and 72 hours after the exercise bout. The eccentric portion of the exercise (described earlier) is the primary cause of DOMS, and the prevailing explanation for DOMS is micromuscle tears. This has been observed in studies utilizing an electron microscope to reveal tissue damage in the fibers. The only way to reduce
the development of DOMS is to adapt to the exercise stress. This requires repeating exercise bouts over several weeks with sufficient rest between sessions. Since all speed, agility, and quickness training involves eccentric exercise utilizing the SSC, it is recommended that novice athletes perform no more than two exercise sessions per week separated by 2 or 3 days. Experienced and advanced athletes may perform up to 3 days per week.
In summary, speed, agility, and quickness training is high-intensity work that requires a foundation of strength before implementation. It may result in mild muscle soreness until the athlete adapts to prescribed exercises. Therefore, these exercises should be introduced slowly before progressing to higher intensity and greater complexity. In the coming chapters, we will describe the drills that make up speed, agility, and quickness training and show how to integrate them into a complete training plan. But first we will discuss methods for assessing athletes' fitness levels and skills.
areas. Hence, all athletes can benefit when speed, agility, and quickness training is integrated into their training program.
Although this type of training has been around for a number of years, many athletes have not practiced it. This is due primarily to a lack of education regarding both its specific benefits and how to integrate it into a complete training program. In particular, speed, agility, and quickness training is intended to increase the ability to exert maximal force during high-speed movements. It manipulates and capitalizes on the stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) while bridging the gap between traditional resistance training and functional-specific movements. Some benefits of speed,
agility, and quickness training include increased muscular power in all multiplanar movements, brain-signal efficiency, kinesthetic spatial awareness, motor skills, and reaction time. The acquisition of greater balance and reaction time will serve to allow the athlete to maintain proper body position during skill execution and react more proficiently to any change in the playing environment. Quick movements are useless if the athlete trips over his or her own feet.
Many athletes and coaches also do not realize that speed, agility, and quickness training can cover the complete spectrum of training intensity-from low to high. Each athlete will come into a training program at a different level, so the level of intensity must coincide with the athlete's abilities. For example, at the lower-intensity end of the spectrum, the assorted biomotor skills illustrated throughout this book can be used to teach movement, warm-up, or the basics of conditioning. No significant preparation is needed to participate at this level of speed, agility, and quickness
training. Higher-intensity drills require a significant level of preparation. A simple approach to safe participation and increased effectiveness is to start a concurrent strength-training program when beginning speed, agility, and quickness training.
Let's review how speed, agility, and quickness training works and how it can be implemented within workouts for complete conditioning.
Understanding the Muscles at Work
Understanding the basic physiology of muscular function is invaluable to understanding why this particular type of training is so effective. Within the body, each skeletal muscle is made up of connective tissue, muscle tissue, nerves, and blood vessels and is controlled by signals sent from the brain. These components work together in a coordinated fashion to cause bones and
therefore limbs to move in desired patterns. Muscle tissue is connected to a tendon, which is a noncontractile length of tissue that connects the muscle to a bone. Thus, tension developed within the muscle transfers to an adjoining tendon and then to a bone.
On an even more intimate level, within each muscle fiber there are hundreds or even thousands of thin longitudinal fibers. These fibers contain two opposing contractile and fingerlike proteins called actin and myosin that form attachments called cross-bridges and pull against one another to cause motion. Through a series of chemical reactions controlled via brain signals, these proteins work to repeatedly pull and release. This causes muscular work, or a contraction, to occur.
The SSC is at the heart of speed, agility, and quickness training. It works like a rubber band that is stretched and then snaps back together and involves a combination of eccentric (muscle-lengthening) and concentric (muscle-shortening) actions. An eccentric muscle action is performed when an athlete lowers a weight, such as during the downward movement in a biceps curl or a squat exercise. A concentric muscle action occurs during the upward, or opposite, movement in the above exercises. When an eccentric action precedes a concentric action, the resulting
force output of the concentric action is increased. This is the essence both of the SSC and speed, agility, and quickness training. Examples of SSC in sports occur with the swing of a baseball bat or a golf club, during which an individual precedes the intended motion with a wind-up or prestretch. Without this eccentric action, or if there is a pause between this action and the follow-through, the increased force output that is supposed to occur during the concentric phase of the exercise will not occur. The SSC also takes place during everyday activities, such as walking and
running, yet is greatly intensified during speed, agility, and quickness training.
Advantages derived from the SSC can be seen in both large and small ways at all levels of sporting competition. One example is with the vertical jump. When the jumper precedes his or her jump by bending at the knees and hips and then explodes upward, the resultant jump height will be greater than performing the same movement by stopping at the bottom of the knee bend for a few seconds before the explosion portion of the jump. Another example can be seen in the baseball pitch. If the pitcher does not complete a wind-up, he or she is unable to generate
as much force as would be possible by performing a prestretch motion.
SSC activities can be done for the upper body as well as for the lower body and can be implemented with external devices, such as free weights, rubber tubing, and medicine balls. Devices such as these assist the athlete in performing both the concentric and eccentric portions of the exercise insofar as they need either to be accelerated or decelerated. However, speed, agility, and quickness training may be performed without assistive devices by simply using one's own body mass as the weight or resistance.
Integrating Speed, Agility, and Quickness Training
It is very important to remember that speed, agility, and quickness training is designed to supplement traditional resistance training. In other words, it should be conducted in addition to and not instead of lifting weights. Speed, agility, and quickness training at higher intensities should begin after a solid foundation of general conditioning has been established. This could mean six months to a year of foundational training for a beginner. The main point is to have enough of a strength base to adequately complete each speed, agility, and quickness exercise without undue strain. In addition, high-intensity speed, agility, and quickness training should normally be undertaken during the month or two just prior to the season and should include no more than 2 days per week and 30 to 45 minutes per session of total activity.
When writing an exercise program for any athlete, you need to take many parameters into consideration. First, consider years of training, level of fitness, and how often the athlete will be performing speed, agility, and quickness training. In addition to these considerations, three important training variables need to be discussed. They are frequency, intensity, and volume.
Frequency, Intensity, and Volume
Training frequency refers to the number of training sessions completed in a given amount of time, usually per week. Intensity applies to the quality of work performed during muscular activity and is measured in terms of power output (that is, work performed per unit of time). Training intensity may also be defined as how easy or difficult a particular activity is. Finally, volume describes the quantity or the total number of sets and repetitions completed in a training session. These three factors, combined with the number of years an athlete has trained and his or her fitness
level, all go into making up the training plan for the athlete.
We can divide athletes into three major categories: novice, experienced, and advanced. The novice athlete is just beginning to exercise for sport. He or she might be an adolescent athlete or even an adult who chooses to take up sport later in life. The novice athlete's potential for improvement is great. The experienced athlete has been training for one to five years and is involved in a regular program of exercise and sport. Although competing at a higher level, he or she still has great opportunity for improvement. The advanced athlete competes at the national or international level at which events are decided by inches or hundredths of a second. These athletes are near their genetic limits; therefore their potential for improvement is small and the details of their program must be precise. Training age (number of years training for a sport) is more meaningful than chronological age in categorizing the athlete.
For the novice athlete planning an integrated program, begin by adding one to two basic speed, agility, and quickness training exercises into the current training schedule. In particular, it is important that athletes begin with the basic techniques of each exercise before advancing to their more technical aspects. Furthermore, learning the proper mechanics of more basic exercises will allow the athlete to progress to advanced exercises in a timelier manner. As the novice athlete becomes more advanced, his or her frequency of training also will increase: from two to three
times per week. Remember that as the athlete progresses, there still must be rest days to allow for the muscles to recover. Coaches may employ different programs that allow for 2 or 3 days off per week. As the athlete gets closer to competition, however, that number is likely to decrease.
The athlete should always begin each exercise at a low to moderate intensity and progress slowly while learning new movements, decreasing the total number of repetitions as intensity level is increased. Progression from low to super-high intensity may depend on which part of the training year the athlete is in. The intensity level is generally lower at some times during the year to make sure that the athlete is able to perform the prescribed exercise correctly while also avoiding injury. Low intensity may consist of performing the exercises at 40 to 50 percent of maximal exertion. Moderate intensity would constitute an increase to between 50 and 80 percent, and high intensity to between 80 and 100 percent, of maximal exertion.
Intensity and volume directly influence one another in that as intensity increases volume must decrease. Early in the program volume is high while intensity is low. As the athlete nears competition, volume is decreased as intensity increases. Measuring training volume (number of sets x number of repetitions) is vital for assessing training progression. How great a volume of training is performed within a given training session is based on the athlete's level of fitness. The proper interaction of the number of sets and repetitions with variation in training intensity may also help augment training adaptations. These adaptations become evident through repeated training sessions. Upon progressing to a desired fitness level, always allow the athlete to adequately recover.
Periodization
One way to design a program that maximizes the components of frequency, intensity, and volume is through periodization. Periodization involves the gradual cyclical alteration of frequency, intensity, and volume of training throughout the year to achieve peak levels of fitness for the most important competitions. It organizes the annual training program into specific phases during which the athlete trains in varying ways to meet objectives particular to each phase. Thus, all the phases of a periodized program together constitute a macrocycle. On its own, in turn, each
phase constitutes a mesocycle, which may stretch over several weeks or months, depending on the goals set by the athlete and coach. The mesocycle may be further separated into even smaller sections called microcycles, which are generally periods of training that last around one week, depending on the type of event for which the athlete is preparing.
Safety Considerations and Injury Prevention
An appropriate warm-up session should precede every exercise session. Warm-up routines should begin with a low-intensity whole-body activity, such as jogging. This will increase heart rate and blood flow to the muscles and tendons, thereby preparing the athlete for the higher-intensity workout to come. This general warmup should be followed by a specific warm-up that consists of performing some of the session's exercises at a low intensity.
Injury prevention is a major part of any training program. It is imperative that every athlete advance in a progressive and systematic manner when embarking on such a program, including speed, agility, and quickness training. A properly conducted strength-training program that emphasizes knee, hip, back, and ankle strength will reduce the possibility of injury when speed, agility, and quickness training is first introduced. Training should progress from simple to complex movements, from low to high intensity, and from general to sport-specific motor patterns. Moreover, factors such as frequency, intensity, volume, body structure, sport specificity, training age, and phase of periodization should always be considered when designing speed, agility, and quickness training.
Here are a few more recommendations for injury prevention: Follow the proper progression of exercises, and wear proper clothing and shoes.
Remember, proper safety procedures must be observed while learning and mastering the speed, agility, and quickness activities included in this book. Make certain all equipment is in correct working order before use. If exercising outdoors, make sure the area is free of any hazardous objects, such as rocks or trees. Be sure to understand each new exercise completely prior to attempting it for the first time.
It is also important to make mention of a common occurrence experienced by athletes. When one first attempts a new exercise, there is likely to be muscle soreness. This soreness, called delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), usually peaks between 24 and 72 hours after the exercise bout. The eccentric portion of the exercise (described earlier) is the primary cause of DOMS, and the prevailing explanation for DOMS is micromuscle tears. This has been observed in studies utilizing an electron microscope to reveal tissue damage in the fibers. The only way to reduce
the development of DOMS is to adapt to the exercise stress. This requires repeating exercise bouts over several weeks with sufficient rest between sessions. Since all speed, agility, and quickness training involves eccentric exercise utilizing the SSC, it is recommended that novice athletes perform no more than two exercise sessions per week separated by 2 or 3 days. Experienced and advanced athletes may perform up to 3 days per week.
In summary, speed, agility, and quickness training is high-intensity work that requires a foundation of strength before implementation. It may result in mild muscle soreness until the athlete adapts to prescribed exercises. Therefore, these exercises should be introduced slowly before progressing to higher intensity and greater complexity. In the coming chapters, we will describe the drills that make up speed, agility, and quickness training and show how to integrate them into a complete training plan. But first we will discuss methods for assessing athletes' fitness levels and skills.
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