Friday, October 23, 2009

Why Train Slow to Move Slow?

(STARTING POSITION)
(ENDING POSITION AFTER PUSHING HARD OFF RIGHT FOOT)

I had a good chat this week with a colleague about the SPEED at which people train. Specifically, we were talking about how quickly the concentric phase of a repetition should be performed. I was reviewing a bench step-up exercise with him (see pics above). He pointed out something to me that I sometimes fail to emphasize with clients: there is NO REASON why you should be training slow. Training slowly yields moving slowly.

The exercise above is a bodyweight bench step-up performed by Boston University Asst. Coach of Strength & Conditioning, Darcy Gould (learn more about Coach Gould here: http://pcconditioning.com/newsletters/2009Oct.pdf). Her goal is to push through the heel/mid-foot of the foot that is on the bench as hard as she can. She brings her leg that starts on the ground in the air as quickly (powerfully) as possible, as long as she displays perfect technique. She recruits what we call “fast twitch” muscle fibers. These are the fibers that diminish with age. Their decrease in quantity is often the chief reason elderly persons experience falls. Their presence correlates with adequate reaction timing.

Moral of the story: when performing an exercise, make sure the concentric phase is performed explosively. Never sacrifice good technique at the same time. Leave a comment if you have any questions so others can see as well.

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