Verkhoshansky Peaking Program

In yesterday’s blog post, I introduced some of my thoughts regarding the current launch of the NFL UP! Video series. Today, I plan to throw down the gauntlet yet even furtherUnfulfilled Sport Mastery PotentialAs I said in Part 1, I will be the first to admit that there is no way to get an accurate representation of what an athlete is doing in order to prepare for the NFL season based on watching a 5 minute video of him performing drills or hearing his training specialist discussing the objectives of that athlete’s personal physical preparation plan. However, if these videos are really depicting what the majority of players are doing to prepare AND these athletes are supposed to be at the highest levels of their individual mastery, I am sincerely frightened by what breeds of athletes we would see on Sundays if they were being prepared in what would be the most highly efficacious manners.Watching athletes of the highest level, wouldn’t you think we would witness some of these guys at least participating in more than some simply designed speed training methods or some ridiculous ‘agility’ ladder work?

Sure; some of them were actually performing exercises which could be considered ‘Special Physical Preparation’ nature. However, when it comes to the selection of exercises for development of elite football mastery, my purpose has always been to match the athlete’s level of qualification (i.e. The level of football they play at; NFL in this case) with their specific levels of mastery (i.e. Specialized characteristics they display on-field in movement) with their individual levels of preparedness (i.e.

How well their body is able to function based on training means/methods they are executing).The problem that exists though is that most coaches don’t understand how the athlete’s body, adaptation expectations, and the conditions of his current state, will change over time enough to accurately manipulate the variables of the training and development process. The fact of the matter though is that correlation between a mean/method of development and the performance on the field will be constantly changing as mastery increases. For example, the attainment of maximum strength will typically be highly correlated to on-field movement performance early on in the process of attaining sports mastery but will start to greatly lose its effect as time accumulates. In addition, at these lower levels of mastery, even the attainment of one general motor ability (such as strength) could positively impact the display of another typically-independent motor ability (such as speed). In contrast, a particular mean/method, or the physical quality that it is aimed at developing, may have very little correlation when the athlete is at lower levels of mastery but become increasingly imperative for further specialization of the athlete at the higher levels. This is because the lower level athlete still needs to attain higher levels of other general motor abilities but the higher level athlete needs a more specialized direction.Unfortunately, because the coaches once saw a certain degree of transfer from acquiring some general motor ability or through the use of a given exercise, they become married to its use at all times in the future hoping to rekindle those same old sparks.

But at no time in the future does that same level of adaptation and corresponding results ever come. The physical stress elicited for that athlete is no longer what he needs in order to thrive and grow in his own personal process of attaining sports mastery.This common trend though has led to the overreliance on means and methods typically deemed as those geared towards General Physical Preparation. It’s like a dog chasing its own tail. Our athletes are consistently reestablishing physical qualities that they have already attained and exhausted throughout their training process.

All the while the only thing they are doing is constantly placing further limitation on their ultimate mastery potential. Because of this overreliance there is very little long-term specialization potential for the high-level football player even if he happens to play at the uppermost echelon and compares well against his peers (i.e. He is a Pro Bowl-level player).What we have to realize is that as both mastery and trainability increase, the degree of transfer from general exercises and drills decrease. The entire central nervous system needs further specialization of the athlete’s physiology specifically directed to peculiarities of the movements performed. On that note, the biodynamic structure of most movements will also be significantly changed for the athlete who has moved up in levels of mastery (that is if we have prepared him sufficiently). In addition, these patterns will become more solidified which means that it will require more intensive stimuli in order to change them. This point in time usually equates to further improvement being dependent on a switch to more specific training directives and will be very individual-specific based on an athlete’s genetic make-up, maturation, motivation, etc.It is at these times where means used to target the specific motor potential will become more important as increases in technical proficiency will go hand-in-hand with the acquisition of it (the specific motor potential).

In fact, when we begin to see a negative transfer of training (measured only in the context of the particular sport movement action) from a given training mean or method, this could be our first indication that the athlete is increasing in his level of sport mastery and a change in training focus needs to occur to more special physical preparedness or special strength training orientation. To take this a step further, any work for the high mastery performer that does not lead to an increase in performance needs to be eliminated because it will detract from the improvement of the qualities important for the development needed for the main aim.When observing the umbrella view of a training program some of the exercises selected may not really change all that much from General Physical Preparation to Special Physical Preparation to Special Strength Training/Specialized Development (at least in some cases). In fact, at latter stages in the process of attaining sports mastery, any exercise can be considered specific as it all depends on exactly how it is being used and executed. This is what will actually determine its relevance for the athlete’s mastery potential as well as eventual correlation to training transfer. To the naked eye, the outside appearance of an exercise may not actually appear to be any different. However, slight variations and modifications in the athlete’s intention must occur to their execution specific to what characteristics we are looking to change in the movement.

These variations and modifications can come from numerous directions including the fashion the exercise is being executed (complexity of the exercises, changes to the muscular work regime), the intensity of the exercise (load used or speed of action), and the volume of its use at that time of the training cycle (the sets, reps, or frequency it is performed). All of these variations collectively will greatly change how the Central Nervous System will adapt to the stress of the loading.Siff and Verkhoshansky once stated that the increase in, or production of, any type of strength quality is highly dependent on the neuromuscular process it requires (Supertraining 2009). What this all-important idea speaks to is the point made above; every modification made to a training protocol will alter the way that the CNS controls movement (the balance between mobility and stability), displays movement (reactions between the internal and external environment), and performs movement (what speeds and forces). Essentially then, the training protocol is largely responsible for the biodynamic structure of the on-field sport movement that we witness.It is for this reason that, at higher levels of sport mastery (arguably at every level actually), we must take the degree of neuromuscular efficiency transfer from the exercise to the movement application in mind to match the two up as closely as possible. This is the only way to ensure that that the athlete and his work capacity become more specialized. This is also why phases of Special Physical Preparation or Special Strength Training/Special Development exercises become the backbone of training application for those who have achieved higher trainability. Through these types of exercises, the neuromuscular efficiency and its associated coordination will be able to connect to the athlete’s displayed biomechanical characteristics in movement actions out on the field.Unfortunately, if coaches want to implement exercises that are more specific to the sport and the corresponding level of sport mastery (those means of SPP, SDE, or SST designation) it’s unlikely that many would be able to accurately do so; this is proven in the videos on the page.

This stems again from the lack of understanding of what is occurring during the execution of the sport movement task to begin with. It then results in the inability to properly modify exercises to target specific weaknesses in the displayed movement dynamics of the athlete. I realize I sound like a broken record right now.

However, the level of mastery fulfillment can all be traced back to this necessity to more fully understand movement dynamics.ConclusionYou may think I am making more out of this seemingly-harmless, little video series that the NFL is putting out to entertain as well as potentially assist its viewers in feeling more connected with what the League’s athletes are doing. I obviously don’t quite see it this way. I believe both the League as well as anyone involved with the sport deserves to be more enlightened and educated regarding the better ways for our athletes at all levels of qualification and mastery to be developing their potential. In today’s NFL there is a coach or at least a staffer in charge of everything (well; nearly everything). As you come off the field there is someone to tell you what you did wrong (actually more like four people who will do that), one person who gives you a tidbit about what you did right, a person to check if you are feeling OK, one to give you water, one to tell you what media members you have to talk with after the game, one who will get you hooked up with any gear you need, and so-on and so-forth.

However, I think they are missing one very integral support person; someone who has the sole purpose to analyze and then subsequently perfect movement among the players on the team.Think about it: all success on the field is premised around if the player is in the right place at the right time. And IF the person is in position or not is largely dependent on how efficiently he has moved. You can have the best hands in the league but if you can’t get open you’re not gonna catch many balls. Introduction to Special Strength TrainingThe idea of sport-specific training has gained great popularity over the years. Inevitably, every coach wants to ensure that he/she is attaining maximal transfer with the strength training programming that is being advocated among the athletes in his/her weight room. There is some proven truth to this thought and approach. First of all, the all-too-familiar SAID Principle (Specific-Adaptations-to-Imposed-Demands), has been proven time and time again in both research and training.

This principle states that training is most effective when resistance exercises prescribed are similar to the target activity. Furthermore, every training method will elicit a different (and specific) adaptation response in the body. Essentially, we must train the way that we want to play.Second, research has shown us that exercises that once worked to improve performance when an athlete was at a lower state will eventually lose its training efficacy at some point as the athlete gains mastery. For example; measures of maximum strength (such as a squat 1RM) often represent direct correlation in low level athletes but non-significant correlations with enhancing movement speed in higher level athletes.Third, movement abilities like sprinting, jumping, and change-of-direction are all separate motor tasks with very specific motor ability contributions. It’s intuitively obvious to state then that all sport actions are specific and goal-directed meaning that the enhancement of each should be treated as such in training. For example; the enhancement of straight-ahead speed and change-of-direction ability have limited transfer to one another and this degree of transfer becomes even smaller as an athlete progresses.Thus, if we truly want to enhance the on-field movement performance ability of our highest level of athletes (keeping in mind these are the ones this blog is focused on), there comes a time when we must get more detailed than simply chasing a greater squat or clean one-rep max increase.

There is no other way around it. Because of this, many of the world’s most famous Sports Scientists in history understood and proved that we must also go beyond many of the traditional training schools of thought if we were to enhance athletes’ performance as they moved up in levels of mastery. This is where the concept of Special Strength Training (SST) was introduced.Though SST can have its limitations (see below), if incorporated correctly (both with the most optimal means/methods as well at the right time of the year for the right athlete), SST can serve the athlete as the ultimate level of physical preparation. SST has actually been incorporated for decades in athletes in other countries but this has occurred mostly in Olympic sports. It is of my personal belief that SST has only been used on a limited basis by a few practitioners in the football world and can open up Pandora’s Box as it pertains to the degree of training transfer. Because of this belief, I have compiled this article to briefly reintroduce the idea of SST directly to the football coaching community in hopes of imploring all readers to investigate this power-packed training philosophy to a greater degree. Later in the article, I will use the running back position to illustrate how SST could be used in a practical way to directly enhance a number of commonly-executed movement tasks found on the field.Notes of CautionA caveat will be brought to light right from the start: Just like with specialization in sport, specialization in training methodology can occur too soon.

Research has proven that athletes of low levels of training and physical mastery may benefit from nearly any training modality so they are likely to attain simultaneous increases in strength, speed, balance, core stability, proprioception, and injury prevention. Athletes in these early stages need to focus on increasing general physical qualities such as strength and this will carry over greatly to the increase in movement speeds.

Verkhoshansky Peaking Program Reviews

As noted above though, this level of transfer becomes limited awfully quickly because of the specificity of each movement task. In addition, if you are unclear as to how to properly utilize the training means and methods of SST, one should not simply do so blindly as you would be likely to negatively affect the neuromuscular motor programming involved in sport movement by the incorrect usage of the ideas.Advantages to SSTThere are a number of benefits that we find with the use of SST. Arguably, the biggest reasoning for using SST means and methods is that we can require our athletes to develop strength in the exact same fashion as it will be displayed in their sport movement actions. This advantage cannot be overstated as very few methods will combine motor potential (strength, work capacity, etc) and technical mastery attainment in quite the same way. Ultimately, we as strength professionals are hired for one reason and one reason only: to help our athletes attain greater performance in the execution of their sport demands. I know this seems like an obvious statement to make. However, many coaches get caught chasing quantitative numbers (increases in squat strength or decreases in 40 yard dash time) that represent the attainment of general motor abilities (basic strength or speed) that may not have direct carryover for that specific athlete group.

SST will ensure that we never separate the strength from technique as the two will always go hand-in-hand in movement execution on the field.Task-SpecificityIf we are going to accurately and efficiently prescribe exercises with a SST methodology, it is important for us to thoroughly understand what the given player is being asked on to perform on the field. Obviously, these requirements change on a position-by-position basis. For our purposes in this article, when looking at RB task-specificity, we find that the athlete will be required to not only attain fast straight-ahead linear speed but more importantly, he will be asked to start, stop, and change direction at varying speeds with great frequency and fluidity of movement. The RB (of course depending on the style of the back) will have to possess high relative strength levels but even greater eccentric force control (i.e.

Deceleration) and stability mechanisms along with proficient stretch-shortening cycle ability. In addition, he must have phenomenal body control so the balance between stability and mobility in all movement planes is a must.Objectives in TrainingBecause of the unique nature of the RB’s training objectives, our approach must directly reflect our acknowledgement of these aims. The following Complexes, put together in a Conjugate Sequence System fashion, are designed for the enhancement of the specific strength qualities needed for the execution of a specific movement task (as this is the whole point of SST methodology).

Granted, this increase (of these physical qualities) will also transfer to the improvement in other movement tasks as well (dependent on the athlete’s level of mastery and specific weakness), but the majority of their impact will be found in the movement tasks outlined below.It bears noting that the sequences listed are samples for illustration only and does not represent a do-all and end-all to this type of methodology implementation. There are countless different training means combinations (i.e. Exercises or drills) that could be incorporated and/or cycled through in a sequential fashion over the ones suggested.

When selecting any exercises to utilize in this particular population (i.e. This was an interesting article about Triphasic Training by Cal Dietz. One of my favorite reads regarding strength and conditioning.The article was written by Dennis AdsitWhen I was a teenager, my father frequently reminded me that I didn’t know shit-from-Shinola. (Thanks to the Google, I finally know what Shinola is.) In retrospect, he was generally correct.As a new strength coach with only three years of experience, were my father still alive, he could say the same thing and be right again. There is so much I don’t know, which is why Mike’s know-it-all vs. Learn-it-all article made me chuckle. I’m not worried about being a know-it-all.

In fact, I look forward to the day when I can be a know-a-hundredth-of-it-all.To fix these yawning gaps in my knowledge base, I have to read constantly. This can be a bit of a crap shoot: some of the books you pick up really open your eyes and some end up being rather vacuous and you feel like the author just wanted to say s/he wrote a book.Of everything I have read over the last year, the book that I feel expanded how I think about strength training the most was Triphasic Training, a relatively new book written by Cal Dietz and Ben Peterson, a strength and conditioning coach at the University of Minnesota and a former strength and conditioning coach and current Ph.D.

Candidate at the UofM.In my limited experience, Cal seems to have one of the most unique approaches to strength and conditioning that I have encountered. I liked the book because it really made me think and forced me to look at what I was doing and most important, why I was doing it.Before I highlight what stood out for me, I want to put out two disclaimers. First, I think their approach is different from typical programming approaches discussed on the StrengthCoach.com site and other places. However, because I am a new strength coach, maybe a lot of coaches have been doing what they recommend for a long time and it is just a matter of my lack of exposure.Second, I want to be clear that I am not advocating for their approachI am just saying it made me thinkand I am not saying the Triphasic Training method is better.

“Better” is an empirical question that can be challenging to research. I will say a little more about the empirical nature of this “better” question at the end.Here is what stood out for me:1) Their primary goal is to create more powerful, faster athletesThat’s not unique, you say, we’re all trying to create more powerful athletes. However, it is interesting to me that many coaches don’t say they have that as they primary goal. I have more often seen that coaches have three goals: eliminate weight room injuries, reduce on-field injuries, and improve athletic performance in that order. Dietz and Peterson say their goal is to create more powerful, faster athletes. It is not that they ignore mobility/prehab work and weight room safety.

But their primary objective is to create more powerful athletes.I am thinking about this because I know that how you state your goals can have a big effect on your approach and your outcomes.Here is one particular way that plays out. I have read in multiple places that the ideal plyometric progression is from double leg to single leg.

In other words, the athlete goes through a double leg progression from jump-stick, to jump-hop, to continuous jumping and then onto roughly the same progression on one leg. This is seen as ideal to prevent injuries.The Triphasic approach turns this typical progression around and advocates for moving from single leg plyometrics to double leg plyometrics because they feel the double leg plyometrics are better for power development and on-field performance, which is what they are primarily solving for.2) Though we all want to create more powerful athletes, many aspects of the Triphasic approach are different from approaches I have read about on this forum and other places.I will give several examples in this article but here is one example to illustrate the point. In a 12 week off-season, they will spend half the time working heavy loads (above 80%) and the other half of the time, dramatically de-loading the athletes. By the last 3 weeks of training, their athletes are lifting between 25 and 50% of their 1 RMs.I know many coaches deload as they get closer to season, but I have never seen this dramatic of a drop off in load in other off-season programs. Dietz and Peterson strongly believe that the last phase with the dramatically reduced loads is absolutely key to developing power that translates into athletic performance.Here is another, perhaps more minor but nonetheless significant example of a difference in their approach.3) Olympic Lifts might not be the best way to develop power.Triphasic Training rarely programs Olympic Lifts.

On the one hand you say, so what, there are many coaches who don’t program Olympic Lifts and they still improve athletic power.On the other hand, you scratch your head and say, wait a minute, one of the guys is in a collegiate setting and he has his athletes for 4-5 years. He clearly knows how to do the Olympic lifts and knows how to teach them. Many other strength coaches say Olympic lifts are one of the single best methods for developing power. Why then wouldn’t they be using them if they say they are focused on developing powerful, reactive athletes?Here is the reason: They don’t like to program Olympic lifts because Olympic lifts don’t support the physiological adaptations they are trying to drive in their multi-phased approach.I am guessing many strength coaches think of cleans/snatches as the rapid acceleration of load and I am also guessing that is part of the reason they like and use them. Olympic lifts are the epitome of power!The characteristic of Olympic lifts that make them not work in Dietz and Peterson’s Triphasic approach is that the time between reps is too slow.

They want their athletes to develop a powerful, repetitive hip extension and they believe they can develop that more effectively by taking a squat through their five phases.The Clean and Snatch are too slow? Now you might not agree with that, but I had never even factored the time between reps for those exercises into my thinking about their value.4) They don’t organize their workouts into exercises focused on Power (like Olympic Lifts, plyos, and med ball throws) and strength (knee/hip dominant, vertical/horizontal pushing and pulling)Every workout is built around two main liftssquats and bench. They take typical, easy to teach, lifts and uses them to develop power.They do this by working each lift through their five phases.

(Yes, go figure, the Triphasic Method has five phases.) The five phases are eccentric, isometric, concentric (all above 80% of 1RM), a 55-80% phases with the lower weight complimented by the use of chains and bands, and a 25-55% phase focused on as many reps as possible (AMRAP) in a fixed amount of time. (The times are aimed at optimizing for the sport you are training forlonger for, say, hockey or lacrosse, shorter for football). I will say more on these phases in a moment.Around those two main lifts, they program assistance lifts as recovery from the main lift, thus creating program density and also to ensure they are hitting prehab movements for reducing injury. More on these assistance exercises in a moment as well.The simplicity of the two-big-lifts approach appeals to me. If they are right, I may not have to teach all my athletes to clean. I can teach them to squat and then take multiple approaches to that squatisometric, rapid contractions for time, high and low loadsand develop power that way. That is appealing when you work by yourself with groups of 16 or more, which is what I do.5) Power increases by “narrowing the V”the time it takes to move from eccentric through the isometric “pause” to concentric contraction stages of muscular action.Muscular action has three stages: eccentric, isometric, and concentric.

They feel the key to power is “narrowing the V”the time it takes to move from eccentric through the isometric pause to the concentric muscle action. And the key to narrowing that V is training, for extended periods of time, in all three phases.Everyone knows the three phases of muscle action. And everyone, of course, does concentric training. Many also work eccentrically on a regular basis. But I don’t see much isometric work (do a search on the SC.com Forums).

Peaking Powerlifting Program SpreadsheetsPeaking powerlifting programs are designed to help 'peak' an athlete's one rep max (1RM) in preparation for a powerlifting meet. Peaking programs can also be known as tapering programs because the amount of volume is tapered down as the programs progresses.Below you will find peaking routines for individual lifts as well as for all three powerlifting competition lifts. Popular peaking powerlifting programs:.Want more? Search the Lift Vault Program Library!to find the exact program you're looking for based on many criteria (e.g.

Experience level, days per week, and much more).The latest programs are also available below.Last updated September 22, 2019Experience level:Weeks:Periodization:Powerlifting meet prep program:Program goal. 2.6 / 5 ( 33 votes )This is a no nonsense 6 week bench press peaking program styled after the infamous. It is a 3 day bench press program that accumulates volume around 80% to 85% of a lifter’s 1 rep max before tapering down volume and increasing intensity.

Verkhoshansky Peaking Program Online

It ends with completing two singles at 105% of the lifter’s beginning 1 rep max.Filed Under:,Bench press frequency:Last updated September 22, 2019Experience level:Weeks:Periodization:Powerlifting meet prep program:Program goal. 3.8 / 5 ( 6 votes )Here are three different versions of the Drop Bear program: junior (beginner), intermediate, and senior (advanced). The beginner version is a 12 week powerlifting program, the intermediate version is a 13 week powerlifting program, and the advanced version is a 19 week powerlifting program. The intermediate program could be used to peak for a powerlifting competition.Filed Under:,Last updated September 23, 2019Experience level:,Weeks:Periodization:Powerlifting meet prep program:Program goal.