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AFM Subscribers Ask with Mike Golden Director of Sports Performance, University of Massachusetts (Part II)

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Mike Golden is the Director of Sport Performance at the University of Massachusetts. Golden has 18 years of collegiate strength and conditioning experience. Prior to UMass, he coached for two seasons at the University of South Florida. He also coached at East Carolina, helping build the Pirates into one of the top programs in Conference USA, winning back-to- back conference championships with Head Coach Skip Holtz.  While at ECU, he also trained first round draft pick Chris Johnson who recorded the fastest 40-yard dash time in NFL Combine history. Golden has also coached at the University of South Carolina, Connecticut, and his alma mater, Central Connecticut State.  He answers your questions:

We work out four times a week during the summer. When/how much speed development work do you recommend during that time. Also, what are the most important lifts in your view for football players? Nathan Blankenship, Head Football Coach, West Point Beemer High School (NE).

Different aspects of speed development can be worked every day – strength, flexibility, form running, etc. As far as actual sprint work, I would go twice a week. That will give those sprinting muscles time to recover and not place undue stress on them. Longer conditioning such as 100’s, gassers, etc. can be done on the other days. I think the most important lifts for football are squats (at least to parallel), cleans done the right way (no reverse curls) deadlifts and close grip incline bench. 
   
There is a lot of conversation about how up-tempo teams should be training in the weight room, How should we accommodate our training as an up-tempo team and during what time of year should we be doing this? Justin Penner, Head Coach, Western Dubuque High School (IA).

One of the best ways to incorporate up-tempo training in the weight room is to cut down on rest periods, and make players do a ‘you go, I go’ workout where one guy is done, the next guy is up and repeat. I would stay away from this on big lifts like the squat, but everything else should be a go. You will notice the weight they are lifting will go down at first, but once they get in better shape they will meet and exceed where they were before. This type of training for an up-tempo team should be done year round. 

With all of the programs like BFS, cross-fit, and every other coach charging for their program, which program would you recommend that challenges the football player year round?
Derrick Minor, Head Coach, Rockingham County High School (NC).

Finding a workout that you, your staff and your players believe in is the best one. It does not have to have a fancy name or pitch – just one that works. If you contact me I can help you put together a plan to fit your needs.
Do you believe in individualized programs for your players? That is, a program just for quarterbacks, skilled players, and linemen. Or is a skilled vs. unskilled program work better? Or, can one program fit all positions? Anthony Earl Walker, Head Coach, Waverly High School (MI).

We do use different workouts for different positions, but it is all frosting on the cake. Everyone except our quarterbacks have the same base level strength program (the cake) and then we add position specific/individual movements to that plan (the frosting). Everyone can get better using the same fundamentally sound program. Just add things that you think will fit and benefit those positions. It may only be one exercise. The only group that does not do the same base workout is our QBs. They are on a totally separate plan.

What is your stance on a specific off-season conditioning program? Which would athletes benefit more from – a general all-purpose off-season or an off-season that incorporates specific training? Ector Lopez, Running Backs Coach, Midland High School (TX).

I think you can benefit from both actually. I would split your off season in half. If you have 8 weeks, I would take the first four weeks and do a general all-purpose workout. Then for the following four weeks I would start making it more specific for football. This will keep the players fresher, and the workouts more exciting. 

A lot of high schools in our area do a series of mat drills in the off-season, particularly during the winter. Would it be more beneficial to perform these team workouts in the summer since it will lead right into fall camp? Aaron Cavin, Quarterbacks Coach, Clarke Central High School (GA).

There is no real right or wrong answer here. Most schools do mat drills in the winter because they are a good way to get in shape indoors due to weather concerns. You can do a lot more conditioning in the summer when the weather is better, but some mat room drills during the summer would be great too. There’s not a bad time for those!

What is the best method of training for athletes that are always “in season” and still give them time to recover and relax? We’re at a small school and many of our athletes play multiple sports. Scott Pethtel, Assistant Football Coach and Strength and Conditioning Coach, Brookstone School, Columbus (GA).

The best time for a multi-sport athlete to workout would be after a game or the day after a game. Even getting in two workouts a week would help, especially because of the extra conditioning they are getting.  Some pro hockey and baseball players lift right after their games because they play so many and know they have to get one in.
 
What is the best way to implement weight training to enhance an athlete’s speed, quickness, and change of direction acceleration? Fred Moncloa, Assistant Coach, San Elizario High School (TX).

The best way for weight training to enhance a players speed, quickness and change of direction is to make sure all lifts are done in a full range of motion, with perfect form adding weight to get them stronger. Remember, weight training helps with speed because athletes can produce more force on ground contact if they get stronger, and with full range of motion, it will help their flexibility. Everything else has to be done with agility drills, sprint drills, conditioning drills, etc.






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