SCIENCE OF SPEED!Mike Young, PhD!

Vancouver Whitecaps FC!Vancouver, BC!

HPC - Athletic Lab!Cary, NC!

!

@mikeyoung #speedscience

•Fundamental physics•General concepts•Sprint math•Secrets of the force

•Neuromechanical considerations•Optimizing mechanics•Basic training guidelines

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F=MA

NEWTON’S 4th LAWFat (or any excess body mass) don’t fly

• Force is a vector quantity!

• Magnitude !

• Direction

EXAMINING FORCE

Drag Increases

Exponentially

INERTIA It turns out Sir Isaac was right

GENERAL CONCEPTS OF

SPRINTING

by Hugo Faasta

BACK SIDE MECHANICS

Refers to the motions of the swing leg that occurs BEHIND the body

FRONT SIDE MECHANICS

Refers to the motions of the swing leg that occurs IN FRONT of the body

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SPRINT PERFORMANCE

• Sprint performance is the outcome of nature and nurture!

• There are reflexive and innate components as well as trainable components

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Loren Seagrave

Dr. Ralph Mann

Sprinting fast is an unnatural activity

You can’t polish a turd.

You can’t polish a turd.But you can roll it in glitter.

Sprint Math

*Maximal Velocity: ~12.8 m/s!

!

!

*Ground Contact Time: ~0.08 sec!

*40-45 steps for sub 9.80 100m

*Stride Frequency: ~5 Hz!

!

!

*Stride Velocity: ~300 deg / sec!

*Stride Lengths: 2.25-2.7m

MAXIMAL VELOCITY CHARACTERISTICS

It was Once Thought that Stride Length x Frequency = Speed

Because Athletes had higher stride lengths & frequencies at higher speeds, it was thought

that to improve speed, efforts should be focused on these two variables

BUT....

Correlation!D O E S N OT i m p l y !

Causat ion

now we are more enlightened...

• Stride length and frequency are linked...they are a consequence and not a cause of speed

• Speed of movement of limbs varies little and is not a primary determining factor

STRIDE LENGTH & FREQUENCY

To run faster there is only ONE solution

Apply More Mass Specific Force to

the Ground!

Max V Sprinting 101Small Mass

+ Big Force

+ Right Direction

+ Minimal Time

Run Faster

•Gravity....ugh•We work to overcome gravity•Excess mass hurts performance

•More force = more speed

•Air time is comparable across speeds

•Limb speed....meh

•Vertical force is KING

•Stride length correlates with speed

•Horizontal force is critically important

Insert research on French

•CL more effective at applying force•CL produces higher relative net horizontal force •CL velocity component of F-V is higher•CL has shorter contact times •CL has higher stride frequency

CL =

Chr

istop

he L

eMait

re

KINETIC PARAMETERS

• Ground reaction forces approaching 5x bodyweight!

• Muscle forces in excess of 7x bodyweight

• To increase running speed an athlete must increase force to the ground in the appropriate direction and do so over increasingly shorter periods of time!

• Minimize horizontal braking forces*!

• Increase propulsive forces

FORCE DEVELOPMENT & SPRINTING

Horizontal vs Vertical Propulsive Forces....!

Horizontal vs Vertical Propulsive Forces....!and why you don’t have to pick a side

VERTICAL FORCE MATTERS…

Rela%onships,among,jumping,performances,and,sprint,parameters,during,maximum,speed,phase,in,sprinters,,by,Kale,,Asci,,Bayrak,and,Acikada,,in,Journal,of,Strength,and,Condi%oning,Research,,2009!

• Increased vertical propulsive force produces:!

• Greater displacement!

• Stiffer spring!

• Better maintenance of momentum

VERTICAL PROPULSIVE FORCE

from Strength & Conditioning Research

…BUT SO DOES HORIZONTAL FORCE

THE LEG AS A SWINGING SPRING

• Refers of the ability of the leg to act as like a spring

• Momentum is developed during acceleration

• Body will move at same rate unless acted on by unbalanced forces

• Two external forces will cause deceleration

• Leg stiffness increases vertical impulse, shortens ground contact and increases elastic return

INCREASE LEG STIFFNESS

VS

Vertical Displacement?

The path of COM will follow a sinusoidal curve when viewed in the sagittal plane

COM reaches apex in flight

COM low point during support

Vertical force production is the key component of top-end

speed and that in turn influences the ability to

maintain a slight increase in stride length and stride

frequency

Dan Pfaff

Charlie Francis

To go faster, you need more force. The more force you apply, the

higher you will rise off the ground.

Better sprinters may appear to bounce

In reality, flight times are similar and ground contact times are shorter

• Stride frequency is comprised of two components: !

1. Ground contact time !

2. Flight time!

• The best sprinters spend less time on the ground !

◦ Greater frequency

MORE SPRINT MATH

The benefit of greater force application is two-fold:!• Increased stride length • Increased stride frequency

STRIDE LENGTH &

FREQUENCY

Neuromechanical Considerations

Sprinting is an extremely complex motor task involving repeated rapid ‘switching on and off’

of practically every muscle in the body

Hip extensors arecritically important during

late swing and stance

A,kine%c,analysis,of,the,ground,leg,during,running,,by,Mann,and,Sprague,,Research,Quarterly,for,Exercise,and,Sport,,1980!

Ac%vity,of,monoJ,and,biar%cular,leg,muscles,during,sprint,running,,by,Simonsen,,Thomsen,,and,Klausen,,in,European,Journal,of,Applied,Physiology,,1985!

Amplitude,and,%ming,of,electromyographic,ac%vity,during sprinting by Jonhagen, Ericson, and Eriksson,,Scandinavian,Journal,of,Science,in,Sports,,1996!

Hip extensors arecritically important during

late swing and stance

Knee extensors help keepthe spring stiff during

support

A,kine%c,analysis,of,the,ground,leg,during,running,,by,Mann,and,Sprague,,Research,Quarterly,for,Exercise,and,Sport,,1980!

Ac%vity,of,monoJ,and,biar%cular,leg,muscles,during,sprint,running,,by,Simonsen,,Thomsen,,and,Klausen,,in,European,Journal,of,Applied,Physiology,,1985!

Amplitude,and,%ming,of,electromyographic,ac%vity,during sprinting by Jonhagen, Ericson, and Eriksson,,Scandinavian,Journal,of,Science,in,Sports,,1996!

Allow the body to take advantage of its own performance enhancers

Crossed-Extensor Reflexes

Stretch Shortening CyclesReciprocal Inhibition

and facilitate V

Optimizing

Mechanics

•Better sprinters are front-side

dominant

•Better sprinters have shorter

contact times

•Full extension neither needed

nor beneficial

•Ideal touchdown characterized

by swing knee even with

support knee

POS TU URE

The first most important

aspect of speed is posture.

Tom Tellez

Posture is like the mast and rudder for the limbs

Posture

Trunk Erect

Head Level

Hips Tall

Posture

• Movements of the limbs originate from the core of the body!

• Proper stabilization and alignment of the core ensures appropriate movements of the limbs

POSTURE

• Postural Stabilization!

• Postural Alignment!

• Relaxation!

• Freedom of movement!

• Elastic energy production

POSTURE

• The pelvis should rotate in all three planes

PELVIC MOTION

Postural Test!

PELVIC TILT

Posterior Tilt = less hamstring tension, more QFM tension!

Anterior Tilt = more hamstring tension, less QFM tension

EFFECT OF POSTURE ON SPEED

EFFECTIVE GROUND CONTACT POSITION

• Decreases horizontal velocity!

• Caused by excessive step length and positive foot and leg speed at ground contact

MINIMIZE BRAKING FORCES

Vertical Stack

High Knee Recovery

Neutral Ankle

Congruent ContralateralJoint Angles

Fix posture Emphasize vertical pushes

“Push up” High hips

“Run tall” Step over and down

Max Velocity Technical Points

Basic Training Guidelines for Developing Speed

Building a Bigger Engine

THE REAL REASON WE TRAIN

Almost every physical quality relevant to speed & power falls under the umbrella of (neuromuscular)

coordination

!

By considering physical qualities as outcomes of inter & intramuscular coordination we simplify the training method and place stimuli on a continuum

rather than in different bubbles

To Sprint Faster.... Sprint!

Maximum Velocity Sprinting•Means:

•Flying Sprints

•Variable Speed Sprints

•Short Speed Endurance

•Length (in MaxV): 10-40m / rep

•Rest: 20-60 sec / 10m

•Volume: 200-300m

DOWNHILL RUNNINGminimal grade. overspeed. supra-maximal eccentric.

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RESISTANCE TRAINING

Strength ≠ Speed

“...there is sufficient evidence for strength training programs to

continue to be an integral part of athletic preparation.”

“Do I really need to lift?”

OLYMPIC LIFTS1-4 reps / set. 5-10 sets.

Exercise Absolute Power (Watts)100kg Male 75kg Female

Bench Press 300

Back Squat 1100

Deadlift 1100

Snatch 3000 1750

Snatch 2nd Pull 5500 2900

Clean 2950 1750

Clean 2nd Pull 5500 2650

Jerk 5400 2600

POWER DEVELOPMENT

*Total pull: Lift-off until maximal vertical velocity

**2nd pull: Transition until maximal vertical barbell velocity

Exercise Absolute Power (Watts)100kg Male 75kg Female

Bench Press 300

Back Squat 1100

Deadlift 1100

Snatch 3000 1750

Snatch 2nd Pull 5500 2900

Clean 2950 1750

Clean 2nd Pull 5500 2650

Jerk 5400 2600

POWER DEVELOPMENT

*Total pull: Lift-off until maximal vertical velocity

**2nd pull: Transition until maximal vertical barbell velocity

Even if use of Olympic lifts are inappropriate due to lack of equipment, low teaching expertise, or athlete inexperience; the basic principals should still be incorporated (externally

loaded, multi-joint, lower body explosive movement)

SQUATSall variants. full depth. 2-6 reps / set. 4-7 sets.

I like STRONG butts and I can not lie....

TRAIN THE CHAIN (THE POSTERIOR CHAIN)

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ECCENTRIC OVERLOAD110-120% MAXIMAL LOAD. NOT FOR NOVICES.

COMPLEXESwork downstream on F-V curve. rest between sets. low volumes

PLYOS

DEPTH DROPSlow drops. minimize amortization. low volumes.

DEPTH JUMPSextreme heights unnecessary. low volumes.

VERTICAL EMPHASIS PLYOSemphasize vertical displacement of the COM not the feet

STIFFNESS JUMPSminimal amortization. short contact.

MECHANICS & PHYSICAL CAPACITY ARE INTIMATELY INTERTWINED

SPRINTING FASTER IS ALL ABOUT PUTTING AS MUCH FORCE IN TO THE GROUND AT AS LITTLE BODY MASS AS POSSIBLE

OPTIMIZING MECHANICS ENSURES MAXIMAL GENERATION OF FORCE IN THE DESIRED DIRECTION

POSTURE IS THE CORNERSTONE FOR OPTIMAL MOVEMENT

HIP EXTENSORS PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN SPRINT SPEED

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