Strength Report – Creating an Edge in the Off-Season

Football players are getting faster. The process of increasing speed is two-fold. You must perform sprints as you would on game day, but you also have to increase lower-body strength and power.   

If you are looking for an edge this off-season, or just trying to add a new dynamic to the predictable programming, maybe it is time to revisit what you are doing in the weight room and during your conditioning sessions. Many programs across the country base their strength program on percentages. With multiple reps and set schemes that are touted as the “best”, one must question if any are really better than the other.

When you look at your program, why do you have a separate plan for the “core lifts”, but expect the muscles that are trained during the “auxiliary lifts” to respond any differently to strength training? Do these muscles need any less attention?

Here are questions you may want to consider when developing your program:

 #1 – Which muscles and joints are used to enhance speed?

#2 – Which muscles and joints are susceptible to injury throughout the season?

#3 – Which muscles and joints are used while playing football?

The answer needs to be “all of them.” Your strength program needs to address the entire body. Football players are neither bodybuilders nor weight lifters. If your team doesn’t address strengthening the head, neck, and upper back, rotator cuff, grip and forearms, groin and ankles, is it truly a “comprehensive program?” Each coach, parent, and player needs to ask, “Why doesn’t our plan address these areas 2-3 times per week?” Would you skip game planning for special teams? Then why would you not prepare the entire body for the violence of this collision sport?

Here are a few protocols that you can use to help your team develop competition:

Focus on proper technique and strengthen the weak links of the body. Be sure to choose an appropriate weight for your players’ fitness level. Remember that they can always place the resistance on the floor or rack and complete the following protocols with their body weight as their resistance to promote a safe and effective training environment. Novice trainees can use these dumbbell exercises as a workout, and advanced athletes may even use these as intense finishing touches to a great training session.

Add these strength training protocols to your weekly schedule to strengthen the muscles used when playing. By utilizing single-joint and multi-joint exercises, players can effectively overload the muscles involved in developing their strength and speed by encouraging muscular growth, stamina, and power through consistent training. Use these three protocols to enhance their strength, practice honing their running skills, and continue to develop on a consistent basis.

DB Strength Circuit

Execute this circuit two to three times with minimal rest between exercises. Discipline your players to maintain good form, adhere to each protocol’s expectations, and accept the mental and physical challenge.

Lunge Pauses

By focusing on the muscles of the upper leg and hips, players will be able to develop strength, power, and provide more force back and down into the ground which will drive their body forward at a faster rate while sprinting, blocking, or jumping.

Description:

Hold a dumbbell in each hand at their side while facing a wall. Slide the right foot toward the base of the wall. Then bend the right knee so that the knee is now touching the wall. With the left leg, have them step back and align their left knee under their left hip with their shoulders above their hip, maintaining a good spine position. Lower the back knee until it is just one inch off the ground. Pause in this position for 30 seconds. As soon as the time is up, have them complete as many full range reps up and down in a controlled manner while maintaining contact with the knee and wall until fatigue sets in. Keep track of the number of proper repetitions they can complete successfully. When they can achieve more than ten reps, plan to use a heavier dumbbell for the next workout.

Power Zone Squats

Not all athletic movements come from the same starting stance. Strengthening the entire range of motion is important for optimal speed gains.

Description:

Have players stand with feet shoulder width apart and dumbbells at their side. Complete a full, deep squat. Then a three-quarter squat. Next a half-squat. And finally a quarter-squat. All in a controlled manner. This is one rep. Hold them accountable and maintain good technique. When more than ten reps can be completed, increase the resistance or slow down the speed of each rep.

5-5-5 Calf Raises

Strengthen the foot and ankle to allow more transfer of energy from the “powerhouse” muscle groups to the ground.

Description:

When your athletes have tapped out of the squat protocol, and while still holding the dumbbells by their side, have them stand in a comfortable position with their back toward the wall. Now, think calf raise. This protocol has a five-second up phase, five-second isometric phase or “hold” at the top, and a five-second down phase. Balance and motor control will be tested, too. But strong feet and ankles are what separate the best sprinters from the average runner.

The closer you can match your training with the intensity, duration and recovery of a football game, the better your athletes will perform late in games when your opponents are running out of gas. Have them meet with their position coach to establish a list of routes for their position. Run these routes as agility drills one day a week. Then, on non- consecutive days, perform sprints with changes of direction, resisted sprints, jumps into sprints and reaction drills. Feel free to get creative with your drills, but remember, the closer these drills mirror specific positions, the more effective they will be.

Use this six-week game template as a starting point to time your drills:

Six weeks before camp: Two quarters of 20 minutes, 17 and 18 reps per quarter and 2 ½ minutes between quarters (35 plays with 40 seconds rest between plays/drills).

Five weeks before camp: Two quarters of 20 minutes, 20 reps per quarter and 2 ½ minutes between quarters (40 plays with 38 seconds rest between plays/drills).

Four weeks before camp: Three quarters of 15 minutes, 15 reps per quarter and 2 ¼ minutes between quarters (45 plays with 36 seconds rest between plays/drills).

Three weeks before camp: Three quarters of 20 minutes, 17, 17 and 16 reps per quarter, and 2 ¼ minutes between quarters (50 plays with 34 seconds rest between plays).

Two weeks before camp: Four quarters of 15 minutes, 15, 15 and 10 reps per quarter, and two minutes between quarters (55 plays with 32 seconds rest between plays).

One week before camp: Four quarters of 15 minutes, 15 reps per quarter and two minutes between quarters (60 plays with 30 seconds rest between plays).

If your players can’t meet with your coaches, try some of the suggested routes. Remember to work on improving your footwork on both offense and defense, and practice each pattern on both sides of the formation. For best results, combine conditioning on the field with a strength-training program in the gym.

About the Author: Rob Taylor is the founder and owner of Smarter Team Training. You can reach him at his email – coachtaylor@smarterteamtraining or his web site – www.smarterteamtraining.com. A regular contributor to AFM, Coach Taylor’s latest blog is at AmericanFootballMonthly.com.