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Training for Power Development

By Richard C. Lansky, CSCS
Clinic Director - OPTI Sports & Fitness Clinic

The topic of developing power is of primary concern to most athletes and their respective coaches. Power can be thought of as a combination of the biomotor qualities of speed and strength. Many sports involve some movements or skills that rely on the athlete's ability to produce force in an explosive, or ballistic, manner.

American football, baseball, basketball, hockey, soccer, volleyball and lacrosse are just a few of the team sports that rely on sudden bursts of activity. Individual sports like boxing and wrestling, gymnastics, speed skating, swimming, and the throws, jumps and sprint events of track and field also rely on the ability to produce power to varying degrees.

For the purposes of this column, we can use a working definition of power as the greatest amount of force that can be produced in the shortest amount of time. Thus, there is a time component to the activity of expressing strength.

In the arena of sport, strength is useless unless it can be expressed in a sport specific manner within a very specific frame of time. It does no good for a football player to be able to press 400 lbs if he cannot generate that kind of strength quickly enough to knock an opposing player off the line of scrimmage. All the strength in the world is useless if it cannot be expressed in a functional manner at the right time in the game or event.

Similarly, possessing great speed without a base of strength can also pose problems for that same football player. He may be fast enough to burst forward and reach the opposing lineman, but without a base requisite of strength, he may not be able to overcome the opposing player and drive forward. As such, he will find himself knocked off the line of scrimmage, instead of vice versa.

So, now that we are convinced of the importance of this blending of speed and strength we call power, how do we go about developing this quality?

DEVELOPING EXPLOSIVE STRENGTH

Olympic Weightlifting and its Variations
The classical lifts of the clean and jerk and the snatch have been used for years to develop ballistic strength. These lifts and such variations as the push jerk, push press, split snatch, drop snatch, snatch pull and clean pull, the power clean, power snatch, and the dumbbell versions of these lifts are reported to have greater power outputs than any other type of resistance training exercise.

The dynamic speeds of muscle contraction, movement pattern sequencing and reaction ability have been associated with improvements in explosive strength or power. The high rate of force development required during the execution of these lifts also aids in the development of power.

Of course, as with any training stress, the lifts must be executed properly and within the framework of a progressive, periodized plan.

Proper coaching and supervision is a key to both safety and effectiveness when using these exercises to develop power. Make sure your coach is certified by USA Weightlifting.

Correct loading is essential as well...too heavy a weight will impact negatively on the speed of muscle contraction and too light of a load will hamper the development of optimal strength levels.

For more information on Olympic weightlifting, click on our link to TEAM OPTI and our link at Florida Weightlifting. Further information can be gathered at USA Weightlifting and the NSCA home pages.

Ballistic Throwing Activity
The throwing of various weighted implements such as medicine balls, bumper plates, shots, and even dumbbells can be an effective method of developing an athlete's ability to produce power. These activities have an advantage over conventional resistance training due to the fact that there is no significant deceleration phase during the performance of these exercises. In addition, a high RFD is also present in the performance of these exercises.

As with Olympic Lifting, proper mechanics and loading is crucial to the success of this type of training. Periodization and a sequenced, logical progression in terms of volume and loading intensities must be adhered to for successful and injury free carry-over to occur.

Concentrate on total body throws, puts and pull motions with these implements, accelerating through the entire range of motion and releasing the implement with maximum speed. Mimic the motions and movement patterns of the sport for which you are training to compete.

For more information on ballistic throwing activities, check on last month's conditioning tip on Medicine Ball Training or click on the links to The Thrower's Page or M-F Athletic

Plyometrics
Plyometric training is a form of training that concentrates on using the Stretch Shortening Cycle (SSC). This involves a rapid turnover from concentric strength to eccentric strength (deceleration) and the sudden reversal back to concentric strength to produce an explosive activity that generates greater power than that same activity without the pre-loading factor. For example, a sudden countermovement vertical jump compared to a vertical jump from a static position will have a greater power output.

The stretch shortening cycle can be trained via a system of jumping, bounding, hopping, twisting and catching/throwing activities.

Once again, and perhaps even more so in the case of plyometric training, the proper mechanics of each activity is crucial to the success and safety of the training plan. Progression must be adhered to in all aspects of training, from volume (number of foot contacts, jumps, etc.) to intensity (i.e. the height of the jump, amplitude of movement, single leg vs. bilateral stance or contacts, surface consideration, etc).

In addition, the Central Nervous System (CNS) is highly stressed during such activity and proper recuperation between sets and reps, training session and the interaction with other forms of training (i.e. Olympic lifting) must all be considered during this type of training.

For more information on plyometrics, you can click on the NSCA website or on Vern Gambetta's website. Both offer informative videotapes on the subject. You can also contact M-F Athletic.

The above are only a few options available to athletes in their quest to improve their ability to produce power within the context of their individual sports. Next month, we will explore more sport specific applications to power development for a variety of sports, including wrestling, judo, football, basketball and volleyball.

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NOTICE: THE RECOMMENDATIONS MADE IN THIS COLUMN ARE NOT MEANT AS MEDICAL ADVICE.

YOU ARE URGED TO CONSULT A PHYSICIAN OR THE APPROPRIATE MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL BEFORE ATTEMPTING ANY OF THE ACTIVITIES, DRILLS OR EXERCISES DESCRIBED IN THIS OR ANY OTHER PART OF THE O.P.T.I. SPORTS & FITNESS CLINIC WEBSITE.

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO PERFORM ANY OF THESE ACTIVITIES WITHOUT QUALIFIED SUPERVISION, SUCH AS THAT PROVIDED BY A LICENSED HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL OR CERTIFIED STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING SPECIALIST

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