Let it resonate...
We as coaches spend a lot of time trying to find a way to coax peak performance out of our athletes, making them stronger, making them faster, better technique, more of everything. However I find that often we forget the most basic part of training: the strongest lift the most the fastest move the fastest.
I've just started with a group of young softball and baseball players, strength training to gain strength and speed, the two most important elements in the game of softball. I am first instructing them on the proper way to do the lifts, for obvious reasons. The next thing I tell them is "go fast!" Lift the weight like you're trying to throw it through the ceiling, or pull it through the floor.
We have 6 core lifts: power clean, dead lift, bench, pull-up, squat, push press. These lifts, or some variation, are the core to most workouts that train strength, and all can be done with an emphasis on speed. And we emphasize speed. This week I am merely introducing the lifts with proper form and giving them a light workout after with a METCON. But in the weeks to come, I will report on their transformation through numbers and try to illustrate what speed and strength is supposed to look like. Stay tuned!
