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Technical Exploration – The Horizontal Jump Approach

THE TRANSITION PHASE The final four steps of the approach comprise the transition phase. Purposes of the Transition Phase The transition phase of the horizontal jump approach has three purposes. They are: PreservationFacilitating the Steering ProcessAllowing Preparation and Positioning of the Body for Preparation and Takeoff Preservation While, the penultimate and takeoff steps in the horizontal jumps show subtle deviations...
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Play the Game FASTER

“How do I make my players faster?” As a coach, this seems like an important question to ask yourself, right?  It is! But not the most important question.  The most important question is, “how do I make my players faster in the game?”  Let’s say you train a group of twenty 15-year-old football players for 12 weeks.  Like any good...
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ENERGETIC DEMANDS OF MIDDLE DISTANCE / LONG DISTANCE

How does a knowledge of the energy systems help us understand performance in middle and long-distance events?  Up until now, we have considered the energy systems in isolation, but during a race they operate in a coordinated manner to supply the energy required. As race distance increases, fuel stores deplete and waste products build-up, these can slow the rate of...
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The Rules of Good Running

When you watch an athlete run, where do your eyes go?What are you looking for?Do you have a consistent pattern of analysis?Where do you stand? What plane do you observe most? Where do you start looking? The feet, the hips, the shoulders?  What are you most comfortable watching?   One part of our system of observation includes the identification of the non-negotiable shapes and...
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The Rules of Good Running: Rule #4 – Flexed Ankles

As the first point of contact between the body and the ground, the importance of the feet and ankles cannot be overstated, and we will, therefore, spend some time going over this rule in more detail. Perhaps the easiest way to envision the importance of flexed ankles is to ask how effective you would be at squatting 1.5-2.5x your body...
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Structural Integrity / Tolerance

'Structural integrity' refers to the synergistic capacity of musculoskeletal (MSK) chains to operate in balance for effective force transfer and movement efficiency. 'Structural tolerance' refers to the capacity of tendons, ligaments and joints to withstand a progressive increase in physical training and muscle work. It is the ability of these tissues to resist fatigue and injury. This capacity is essential...
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The Need for Progressions

Carefully considered training progressions underpin long term planning strategies, and are a requisite for improvement over time; but what does ‘progression’ really mean? ‘Progression’ or ‘progressions’ is often labelled synonymously as ‘Long Term Athlete Development’ (LTAD) in the literature. However, in our opinion, the term ‘LTAD’ has become a bastardized one. In some people’s minds it means something very specific,...
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