Speed vs. Strength | How to Increase Speed in the Weight Room (Part Three)

[@Asymmetrical.athlete_]

There is a point of diminishing returns HOWEVER if a kid is weak then getting him stronger will result in being faster

[@AnandaGarden]

I love these talks. They combine the wisdom of experience (born of years of meticulous record-keeping and observation) with a real caring for young people's success.

[@jfitness432]

Defranco has proven sleds work. It’s key to keep an open mind, so success leaves clues combine the feed the cats mentality with sled sprints and pushes it won’t hurt you if you don’t overtrain abs continue to progress. In addition I think Ben Patrick’s ATG system prioritizing thinks like step ups, hip flexor training and Nordics will help your speed potential

[@malachitisch7494]

Both the FTC and ATG system are built on the idea of reverse engineering what freaky athletic people can do naturally. Tony (Ben as well) sees that freak athletes can sprint fast, jump high, jump far, react quickly, and absorb force, and therefore implements his X-Factor days with certain plyos. Tony also has some bodyweight circuits to keep the hips mobile. Ben Patrick has measured that those same freak athletes have certain strength numbers on certain lifts (like nordics, hip flexor lifts, single leg back extensions, calf raises, tibialis raises), and those lifts (which coincidentally mimic more closely the motions of sprinting/jumping) are proportionately (to the athlete's weight) much stronger than even the big meatheads that Tony calls slow. Ben has numbers showing that freak athletes are pound for pound much stronger everywhere and in every muscle group than most people. Ben also has a system of proportionate strength from the ground up, meaning you aren't allowed to have a massive deadlift on top of super weak feet, shins, calves, and knees, otherwise knee injury could result. Ben also trains speed and jumping and sport through intense microdoses while fresh, but his business is more related to weight training, so he isn't as vocal about that as Tony is. Ben is chasing infinite RELATIVE strength, and in proportion from the ground up, alongside touching max speed and jumping about 1-2 times a week, which is why he continues to get faster, jump higher, and remain injury free. Still waiting on Tony to interview Ben! That would be an AMAZING convo! Would love to hear Tony and Ben discuss Stefan Holm's deep squats or Jonathan Edwards' Nordics, and the effects on their respective training.

[@jfitness432]

@@malachitisch7494 great post and insight, I feel like using bens system to address weak links will help so much while sprinting and jumping 1-2X per week especially for those who are over 30 and looking to improve athleticism and speed. I can attest that hip flexor work with cables and the monkey foot, Nordics, tib raises, KOT calf raises, straight leg calf raises, RFEE Bulgarian split squats, hill sprints, and step ups have been great while keeping hip mobility a priority with internal and external rotations, fire hydrants, frog pumps, pancakes and 90 90s have helped me at 37 get faster

[@coachtonyholler]

Just because I don't use sleds does not mean they are not of value. If I used them, I would do them in small doses on x-factor day. If anything, I have "proven" you can get fast WITHOUT sleds. The word "proven" is fascinating. I question if sleds have ever been "proven" to work. Nebraska once did nothing but lifting for eight weeks and said that their football team got faster. That really doesn't "prove" anything. I would never lift-only for eight weeks, I don't care what Nebraska "proved". I have tons of respect for those guys who promote sleds. I also know fantastic sprint coaches like Ernie Clark who never use them. Thanks for the post!

[@jfitness432]

@@coachtonyholler Tony please reach out to Ben Patrick I would love to hear you two chat!!

[@lowbackability]

@@malachitisch7494 incredible write up! Well said

[@cooper6sports]

This great info, I went through this personally as an elite college athlete.

[@user-bb1bu5gd9n]

Speed and Strength training are equally important and there should be a balanced mix...its as simple as that.

[@repent2jesus433]

Great video

[@dante_studio_]

9:30 Noah Lyles did the same jump pre 100m Gold

[@JohnTerrell10]

Your opinion on hill sprints and how many times a week should I do them?

[@coachtonyholler]

Once a week. Sprint up the hill 10-20m at full speed. Never long slow hills.

[@sergedupon7903]

⁠@@coachtonyhollerHow many times the 10-20m? How much rest in between, 20 meter = 2 minutes?

[@coachtonyholler]

@@sergedupon7903 3 1 min per 1 sec sprint

[@sergedupon7903]

@@coachtonyhollerThank you coach for your quick reaction. I am from the Netherlands and a 46 year old male. I was a middle distance runner and since 6 months switched to the 400 meters. I train by myself on the track. I now run 57 sec on the 400 meter. My goal is to improve to 55 sec and then compete in the masters. I find it realy difficult to program my strength, plyos and sprinting and not get injured. I think i am doing way to much at the moment. That is why i now want to follow your program/set up/ coaching. So i am watching and reading all your content. I realy think it makes sense and i think it would fit me well. Maybe you can tell me if am going the right direction with my 400m training in general: 2 days a week do your 10 sprint drills, followed by 3 sprints (40’s or 10 flys) @100% followed by strength and plyos (upperbody and 3x3 concentric deadlift superset with pogo or hurdle jumps). 1 day a week do your 10 sprint drills followed by 1 of your 3 lactate workouts followed by strength and plyos (upperbody, deadlift superset with plyos). The other days take rest or do 1 more lactate workout since i don’t run competition yet? Maybe do some more plyos? Is this the right way to go (in general) or am i missing out on something? My feeling says (because of all the Information and many opinions out there) that i need to do more strength and plyos….

[@coachtonyholler]

@@sergedupon7903 sprinting in small doses, plyos, and strength should be the focus. One lactate workout every 7-10 days.

[@jeremybockus7226]

Question regarding concentric and eccentric movements. When I lift should I try my best to eliminate eccentric movements entirely and do just concentric movements?

[@coachtonyholler]

No, don’t eliminate eccentric movements. But, in-season concentric and isometric do not produce soreness.

[@YagoAthletics]

Would completing the atomic workout days a week enough, or should I also incorporate X factor days and speed days?

[@coachtonyholler]

Atomic is atomic… not optimal. Of course it’s better to do more. Atomic creates the HABIT.

[@YagoAthletics]

@@coachtonyholler So atomic would be a starting template and then xfactor and speed days are the “main workouts”where everything would come together.

[@coachtonyholler]

@@YagoAthletics EXACTLY. Creating the HABIT comes first.

[@malachitisch7494]

Coach Tony, lets say you have complete training of one of your grandkids (lets pretend he's homeschooled or you're his sport coach year round), but his parents don't want him playing football, only basketball, track, or soccer. (Therefore less "armor building"/hypertrophy needed). Would you ever have this kid touch a weight in his middle to high school career? Or would you supplement sport play+sprinting+jumping with more just X-Factor bodyweight strength stuff?

[@coachtonyholler]

Prioritize movement (especially max velocity) and then get generally strong as hell.

[@coachojoi8]

@@coachtonyholler that's the secret

[@coachojoi8]

Coach Tony the fastest guy in my league wasnt the strongest sprinter in the weight room... I have taken my time to STUDY Usain bolt STRENGTH TRAINING in the gym he doesnt lift heavy as asafa Powell or Gatlin would. And I feel theres something deep to learn about that

[@Leonidas-eu9bb]

They all (elite sprinters) don't prioritize lifting. The did a lot is core work, because the core is a true priority not just assistance. And before someone says heavy barbell lifts train the core. No they don't train it the way sprinting does. Not even close.

[@coachojoi8]

@@Leonidas-eu9bb thanks for sharing

[@rishiramkissoon6976]

having done lifting and now sprinting exclusively..I agree. It shows all your weak points in your entire core..humbling@@Leonidas-eu9bb

[@dennisrobinson8008]

Good catch.

[@littlethuggie]

Same as the Soviets figured out in the 60s: there's a point of diminishing returns for everything. Jumpers lifted regularly, but didn't try to push numbers super far. Weightlifters jump, but after a certain point it doesn't add anything.

[@hunterfoster6]

Hey coach Holler. I am worried that when I go and run track in college, I will get a program that wants me to do stuff like this(not what your promoting) and make me slower. Not sure what to do

[@coachtonyholler]

Find a place that feeds the cats or similar. UWO or Madonna U in Michigan or South Dakota State or New Mexico.

[@NYCDurrani]

​@@coachtonyhollerhi coach, any options in the north east?

[@coachtonyholler]

@@NYCDurrani unaware of any

[@yale335]

So 3 reps of Deadlifts, 5 reps of box jumps of some sort and 5 reps of 10m flys will do?

[@coachtonyholler]

Do spreed drills first, then 3x 40 or 3x 10m fly (timed) then supersetted deadlifts.

[@yale335]

@@coachtonyholler Thanks! I’m trying to find the video with all your speed drills. Do you mind sending it?

[@yale335]

Sorry one question. How many sets do you recommend when lifting?

[@coachtonyholler]

@@yale335 look up Atomic Speed Workout

[@coachtonyholler]

@@yale335 three

[@FulvioGa]

Nice, so I can ride my bicycle, because it is concentric work, even going uphill! I was so scared that I could not ride my bike any more to train for speed, because I do not own any motor vehicle.

[@FulvioGa]

But I have to go slow riding my bicycle, to not make it an endurance work!

[@gmaxsfoodfitness3035]

Riding my bike up a steep hill regularly as kid in elementary school built the strength in my legs to be able to jump high and run fast in middle school and high school (I grabbed a slightly bent rim at about 5'5 1/2" tall around my 15th birthday then grabbed a regular rim a few months later when I was probably 5'6").

[@gothops2632]

Tony "My son Alec" Holler 🤣

[@coachtonyholler]

Yes, Alec Holler is my son.

[@jameshegeman5660]

This isn’t important to this talk, but there’s no way that a 149 lb. kid who never lifts weights benched 265x6 on his first try. Sorry - It didn’t happen. Somebody got confused about what weight was on the bar… or just flat out made it up. (As an illustration of how this happens, people who are newbies in the weight room get confused about the weights of full-diameter bumper or Olympic weightlifting plates all the time. E.g. they think 25s are 45s, and then they go and think that 145 is actually 225. Etc. This kind of wishful thinking is unbelievably common…) P.S. The one and only time you’ll see a newbie walk in and bench press near double-bodyweight on their first day is if that person is an experienced gymnast.

[@coachtonyholler]

Not many people are world record holders in the 100m (Marcellus 10.40 age-14 world record). The point being… there are outliers. Unicorns. Just because YOU haven’t personally witnessed unique inexplicable athletic exploits doesn’t mean they don’t happen.

[@jameshegeman5660]

@@coachtonyholler I believe in your philosophies and I’m a big fan. But I have a lot of experience in the weight room and with strength sports. I know how often people end up fudging the truth about numbers. Especially when they are inexperienced.

[@coachtonyholler]

@@jameshegeman5660 no doubt

[@jameshegeman5660]

@@coachtonyholler To be clear - I think your lectures are outstanding and, like I said, I’m a big fan of yours.

[@coachtonyholler]

@@jameshegeman5660 Thank you!

[@itsjimmybuckets]

Respect your speed training! But there’s obviously not much studying about the weight room going on and to ignore it just leaves explosiveness and speed on the table. Size comes from repetitions, explosiveness comes from moving light and heavy shit rlly fast for low reps. There’s a difference in busting out a million push ups til you’re tired and doing a bench press for 3-4 reps of 40-50% of your 1 rep maximum with the intent to move it as fast as possible under control, and on another day busting out 1-2 reps at 90%+ of your 1 rep maximum. One trains speed and explosiveness, one gets you stupid sore and big and unathletic. Nick Chubb is massive, and fast. You can be both and in football there’s countless positions that need exactly that combo.

[@coachtonyholler]

No argument here (but the weight room doesn’t make people fast 🙂).

[@itsjimmybuckets]

@@coachtonyholler I may be speaking for the wrong point after some thought, the weight room alone doesn’t make people fast agreed there, but in conjunction with speed training, when done with specific intent (working with proper %’s and rep schemes as well as intent to move fast) plus proper recovery it escalates the speed and strength gains for sure. Again love you’re stuff coach I’ve learned a bunch about speed training and sprint technique from you🫡

[@dennisrobinson8008]

To keep body weight managed with heavy lifting manage your food intake. Your macros should be spot on. If you are already at your fighting weight for track getting bigger won't help. Feed your desired weight and account for the fuel required for training so there is little to no weight gain. Strength gains will come about thru nervous system improvements.

[@itsjimmybuckets]

@@dennisrobinson8008 Getting Stronger doesn’t mean getting bigger and running only gets you so strong is what I’m saying

[@dennisrobinson8008]

@@itsjimmybuckets A agree. Weights calisthenics core work are required to build the highest performance athlete.

[@nickbrown8485]

I see alot of videos of Usain Bolt, Asfa Powell, and the other Jamican sprinter squatting, power cleans, sleds, weight vest, etc. How can we explain their success cosidering the weight training?

[@coachtonyholler]

Jamaica, with only 3 million people, has produced as many elite sprinters as the US with over 100x the population (332M). To attribute Jamaican success to their weight lifting is, IMO, not seeing the big picture. Read “The Sports Gene” by Epstein. I promise you that Jamaican sprinters don’t outlift American sprinters. The opposite is true. If you want an Olympian, find the fastest 15 year olds in the world, grow their skills and teach them hydration, nutrition, and sleep. Get them strong without chasing hypertrophy and infinite strength. trackfootballconsortium.com/strength-vs-speed/

[@littlethuggie]

Everything is genetics first. Usain would be fast no matter what he did. The number one modality will always be *practicing your sport.* Lifting helps, but it's not going to make some massive difference. You're playing margins.

[@Bcuuu]

So would I do this workout 3 times a week?

[@coachtonyholler]

Or four.

[@Bcuuu]

@@coachtonyholler thanks for the reply! I also have another question, could I swap out conventional deadlift for TrapBar?

[@coachtonyholler]

@@Bcuuu Hard to do concentric-only with a conventional deadlift. ???

[@Bcuuu]

@@coachtonyholler convential strains my back and my neck due to injurys from football so I try to focus more on trap bar

[@robo_goat69]

Turning thoroughbreds into plow horses

[@donnelleeustache4549]

I feel just work what's best for you

[@860hurdles2]

Yeah I agree with a lot of what this guy says but he’s a bit too dogmatic. Plenty of research and evidence has shown resistance training is helpful not only for relative strength but also for tendon health, muscle durability, etc. Different coaches see different things though 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@donnelleeustache4549]

Your right....sadly I never really tried resistance training....my coach just said do cross country.....I did it once....never did it again....slow training makes slow running.....I also believe soccer is a good sport....I knew a hand few of soccer players that where silly fast on the track

[@itsinthetreesitscoming7431]

Christian McCaffrey seems to get a mention in every one of these videos I've seen. Tyreek Hill I'd get it, but a 4.5 guy? Good but not great by any means...

[@coachtonyholler]

Legit sprinter.

[@Leonidas-eu9bb]

peter weyand doens't know shit by the way. A guy who misdirect so many coaches nd athletes with his poor study. Just to make one thing clear: vertical force is NOT what makes people run faster. It's horizontal force obviously. Jumping = vertical. Running = horizontal. The physics are quiet simple. But the implementation aren't!

[@coachtonyholler]

One of the dumbest statements ever made. Peter Weyand is brilliant, and you… 🥴 Gravity is, BY FAR, the biggest enemy of speed. Max velocity sprinting is almost ALL vertical force (acceleration is mostly horizontal).

[@Leonidas-eu9bb]

So you really think vertical force and gravity are more important than horizontal force and inertia. Explain why wind has such a huge influence on running speed although it's horizontal resistance/asistane! On the other side bodyweight has very little to no influence on running speed. Some athletes even gain weight and still run faster!! Just because there are high vertical forces does NOT mean they are the cause of faster speeds. For example I can produce huge vertical forces and also huge spikes just by doing pogojumps in place. That's basically what jumping is all about (arge vertical impulse). But sprinting is mostly about horizontal impulse. The inability to further apply enough horizontal impulse results in no more acceleration aka hitting topspeed. So to run faster we must continue applying horizontal impulse to accelerate and finally achieve a higher topspeed. Vertical impulse is only needed to stay in the air just long enough to reposition our limbs. Indeed too much vertical impulse can be very bad if the COM get raised so much that it will fall down again to achieve proper position wich leads to lots of energy loss (bouncing up and down). I really thought you know this already. You should read the work of JB Morin instead of Weyand. But from what i read i think you are not the person who is open for new things or will ever admit a mistake. @@coachtonyholler

[@coachtonyholler]

@@Leonidas-eu9bb At max velocity sprinters are putting 5x body weight of vertical force into the ground with only a .08 sec ground contact time. Wind is a BS argument. Gravity is not variable… it’s ever-present. Wind is variable, so we are far more aware of it. Acceleration is mostly horizontal, max velocity is mostly vertical. This argument has little to do with the coaching of sprinters because we must work on both forces. We jump high AND jump far. Most important, we sprint.

[@jeffmax2941]

This guy doesnt say anything about what to do

[@coachtonyholler]

Sometimes we must change the way people think. Everyone wants a recipe, this wasn’t a recipe presentation.