From my latest cbathletics.com newsletter:
3 – How to Train Young Athletes for Sports Speed
This article marks a return to my series on “How Young Athletes Should Train”. Email me if you missed my first two articles.
In this 2-part interview, speed expert Lee Taft details his year-round plan to helping kids get faster. Lee Taft earned his MS in Sports Science from the United States Sports Academy in Daphne, Alabama. Lee has spent several years as a Physical Education teacher in the New York Public Schools System working with the youth population.
Lee is known as one of the top athletic movement specialists in the industry. He frequently lectures and performs clinics for athletes, coaches and trainers on the subject of speed and quickness technique in all directions. Lee is also part of the International Youth Conditioning Association (
www.iyca.org).
CBAthletics.com: Can you outline your approach to training young athletes?
Lee Taft:
I would love to. I developed a youth sports performance program several years ago that allowed me to work with groups of athletes. I find that most kids are not as intimidated if they have a friend or two to train with.
My group format is designed to teach athletes to deal with several fitness components in one workout. It is much like the actions of a game or activity in which the athletes have to use several bio-motor abilities. Plus, the goals of my workouts are lots of fun and high energy. My program is extremely versatile. It can meet the demands of the older, more advanced athlete, as well as, the youngster just getting started. It looks something like this:
1. Dynamic warm and mobility phase to start out the workout
2. Lift mechanic drills to emphasis the proper arm and leg action, as well as, posture. This goes for linear, lateral and angular speed.
3. Fast feet drills are done to excite the nervous system and teach the kids controlled speed.
4. Athletic Movement skills will be the core of the workout. There is always a focus of the day and for the 17-18 year olds needing more specialization I will work on movement techniques to improve their specific needs. An example of movement technique for any age or ability might be lateral speed to change of direction ability. Great stuff and it is fun!
5. Strength training will follow the athletic movement skills. This is when athletes will learn proper technique of executing a movement. It may be with body weight for the little squirts or it may be an Olympic Lift for the more advanced and prepared athletes. In any situation, all athletes will learn to control their bodies with great confidence.
6. Cool down and flexibility (more static is emphasized now, not in the beginning, and only with athletes in the 14 year old range and up).
It may seem like a lot of things to cover, but I spend quality time on skills not quantity. If the athletes are good at a skill, then we move on to the next phase. This keeps the kids fresh and excited to learn more.
CB: What is missing from youth athlete training programs?
LT:
Thanks to Brain Grasso and the IYCA, there will soon be a certification and association geared toward the improvement of youth athletics and training. There are too many coaches and trainers’ saying they train young athletes and have little if any background in the developmental stages of children. It is sad, but we are going to change this soon!
CB: What is overemphasized in youth athlete programs?
LT:
I truly believe there are several things; however, I am only going to mention just a couple big ones that really bother me.
The first is the overemphasis on volume. I mean everything to do with volume. Too much weight, too much conditioning, too much practice time on the field or gym, too much speed work at the wrong distances, just too much. They are kids for crying out loud. Teach them well and let them enjoy the experience.
The second thing that is overemphasized in the youth programs is specialization. There is a time for specialization, but unfortunately in our society the attitude is get them while there young. More kids have left the sporting world due to injury and burnout because they have specialized since they were 7 and 8 years old. Kids should learn to enjoy all sports and fitness activities while they are young. It will allow them more successes in their chosen sport when they are ready to specialize.
CB: How do you teach speed to youngsters?
LT:
I teach speed in all directions with every athlete in the early years. When they become 16, 17 and 18 years old I will begin to specialize their speed training to their sport.
I am a huge believer in teaching the first three phases of speed. The phases are reaction speed, staring speed, and acceleration speed. I will only teach top end speed later in an athlete’s development. I personally feel top end speed is extremely difficult for young athletes to maintain posture and proper leg, pelvis, and arm action for the length of time needed to be at top speed.
Once again, I will spend equally as much time with lateral and angular reaction, starting, and acceleration speed. Most court and field sports rely so much on the ability to get started and accelerate quickly in the lateral and angular directions I believe it is my obligation to teach this facet of speed. The athletes love it because it is different and it gets results quickly.
No matter what form of speed I teach, it is always broken down into controlled technique to gain a complete understanding by the athletes. As soon as it is understood by the athletes, I make the training random and reactive, as in any sport.
CB: What common drills and tips work wonders?
LT:
Getting athletes to understand where the force is going into the ground when teaching starting and acceleration. I will teach them to “push the ground away”. This cue seems to work really well.
When teaching linear acceleration to athletes that I would like to see more knee drive and power into the ground, I simply tell those athletes to throw their hands back aggressively. This cue tends to help them take more advantage of their arm drive. I do not want the arm action to be hammering.
First have the athletes start their arms at 90 degrees in the front side. Next, have them throw their hands back. As their arms travel past their hips, their arms will naturally open to about 120 degrees. This will allow for a more forceful leg action. It really works well!
CB: What are common errors in most young athletes programs?
LT:
The most common errors are not teaching proper technique at an early stage in development when dealing with movement patterns. It gets more and more difficult to teach proper movement skills to athletes as they get older.
Teaching athletes to use static stretches in the beginning of a workout is a common error, especially when the athletes are under the age of 13 to 14 years old. They do not have the mental concentration to be able to feel the proper sensations of the stretch to make sure it is correct. They also have a greater chance of damaging and over stretching soft tissue due to continued growth of these tissues and bone.
CB: What length of sprints do you use?
LT:
As I mentioned earlier, I don’t use top end speed or sprints too often. When I do use sprints I usually will keep them less than 40 meters for most athletes.
When I do have the young kids sprint, I like to make relays and obstacle races to increase the excitability of the athletes and therefore get them to run with good effort. If I have an older athlete needing to improve top end speed, I will train speed endurance slightly above the desired distance.
For example; if the athlete needed to be timed in the 60 yard dash, I would train at a distance of 10 to 20 yards beyond the distance early in the training phase and at distances much shorter later in the training phase to increase overall speed. My philosophy on speed for court and field sports is accelerate to get in position.
Lee Taft
Owner of Sports Speed, Etc
www.sportsspeedetc.com
www.sportmovement.com
www.laserlikespeed.com
CB: In Part 2, Lee will discuss the role of strength training, as well as specific recommendations for hockey, soccer, and female athletes.
The information on cbathletics.com is for education purposes only. It is not medical advice and is not intended to replace the advice or attention of health-care professionals. Consult your physician before beginning or making changes in your diet or exercise program, for diagnosis and treatment of illness and injuries, and for advice regarding medications.
CB Athletic Consulting, Inc.
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