[quote author="David Woodhouse" date="1299021069"][quote author="Nick Newman" date="1298962954"][quote author="joe" date="1298951056"]Ok, did my second session of the singles. 150kg H.P.Clean and 210kg olympic squat. My only problem is already i can’t be bothered to max so much, feels like im competing twice a week and i barely compete in my own sport twice a year. Mentally tiring.
But if i get results thats all i care about.
Dude you listen to way too many people…
And people who have never developed anyone in your sport? why?[/quote]
I have spoken at length to Carl Johnson and actually referenced him in a recent article. Carl was WAY ahead of his time in T&F circles. However, Jon made most of his gains in strength (and distance!) after Norman Anderson took control of his weights. So Nick there is certainly a precedent for track athletes to turn to specialist strength coaches for their work in the gym.
It’s clear having a glance at your training log that you are a talented and explosive young athlete, but it’s also clear than much of the time you spend in the gym is wasted. Loadings below 80% are not even counted by most lifting coaches. Why do ‘dynamic’ squats or bench presses, you are getting sufficient stimulus to RFD from sprinting, plyos and OLs…[/quote]
Rarely do track coaches have a strength coach. When they do, the strength coach is typically implementing what the track coach tells him to do.
You are basing your points, i.e. loadings below 80%, not doing dynamic bench/squat, etc. on YOUR anecdotal evidence and what you have read from Charlie Francis. In your opinion you think it is a waste. There are more than a few track coaches who are equally as successful and in some cases more successful than Charlie who do use dynamic squats/bench and loading under 80% and short pyramid weights. Charlie was great but he isn’t the only intelligent and great track coach.
Here are some coaches who use below 80% loading. All have coached Oly and World Champ medalists:
Charlie Francis
Tom Tellez
Boo Schexnayder – uses dynamic squat and bench
Dan Pfaff – uses dynamic squat and bench
All wrote their own strength programs. Dan had a strength coach at Texas who implemented DAN’s program in the weight room.
Here are some coaches who use below 80% loading and may or may not have written the strength program. All have coached Oly and World Champ medalists:
John Smith
Stephen Francis
Glen Mills[/quote]
Charlie literally wrote the book on sprinting. He coached John Smith and Glenn Mils is (quietly) a big advocate of his training priciples. I believe Charlie was a genius and the greatest track coach in history. I believe all others are minnows in comparison… But I also appreciate that on a couple of points (e.g. core training) I have different ideas…
What you have to understand is that 99% of training beliefs are based on anecdotal evidence. There are simply too many variables to statistically support theories under experimental conditions. I base my ‘theories’ on over 10 years training and coaching. I base them on conversations/communication with some of the best English speaking athletes and coaches in the world.
I recognise that strength training is but one small component of an elite sprinters training program. I appreciate that strength improvements in the gym do not always translate on the track. But after spending extensive time at gyms in Bath, Brunel, St Marys, Gateshead, Crystal Palce etc, I truely believe that most track athletes are just wasting their time in the gym. THey’d be better off at home resting or simply doing some overhead medicine ball throws….