🏃‍♀️ Resisted sprinting & why it matters, Coachable coaches, + more

What’s up y’all? Cici here.

Welcome back to More Her Speed, a weekly no-BS newsletter all about women in coaching.

Still Doesn’t Feel REAL

Last week was a big week for the More Her Speed community…

We finally launched our membership.

This is something the team has been working on for a while, and something I’m VERY excited to now be sharing with y’all.

The main focus is simple… I really want to build a community for coaches to be able to utilize.

• Young coaches can now interact and network with experienced coaches.

• Coaches in remote areas can have direct access to coaches in the training hotbeds.

• Coaches of any experience level can take advantage of the library of resources, the exclusive webinars, the free courses, and more.

For more information on the offerings, check out this twitter thread. To JOIN, tap in here. (USE CODE EARLYBIRD FOR 15% OFF).

Why Resisted Speed Training Matters

Recently, I read a great article on resisted speed training. If you’re not familiar with this topic, the article does a great job at explaining the basic application and prescription.

At Spellman Performance, we are big fans of resisted training. We use pull sleds in most of our acceleration sessions as a means of increased force production.

What are resisted runs?

Resisted runs entail the athlete sprinting for a set distance, with the use of external equipment to add a higher force component.

This can be done with sleds, 1080 motion, Run Rockets, bands, chains, etc. but the most accessible for our team is sleds and weight plates. The weight added onto the sled will be dependent on the athlete as well as focus for the day.

How do we use resisted runs for profiling & programming?

We use a method called Load Velocity Profiling (LVP).

LVP is (essentially) the sprint comparable to 1RM test (relationship between load and velocity and when plotted on a graph, has a visible linear regression; as the load increases, velocity decreases).

To complete a profile, we have an athlete complete 4 sprints:

1. Unresisted free sprint (30yds)

2. 25% Body weight resistance - sled load (25yds)

3. 50% Body weight resistance - sled load (20yds)

4. 75% Body weight resistance - sled load (15 yds)

It is important to note that these distances are dependent on velocity, meaning we want to give the athlete enough distance to reach their truest max velocity at each load.

This allows us to individualize our training prescription, and determine the appropriate load for a specific phase, or what an athlete is deficient in.

This article continues to outline the load-speed relationship, and Les Spellman goes into great detail about this in his course, Art of Acceleration.

If you have any questions on this, please feel free to reach out as profiling for individual athletes is a major driver of performance in every field!

Quote of the Week

I am really, really thankful for those of you who have joined the More Her Speed membership. If you’re thinking about joining, hit me on Instagram and I’ll gladly tell you all about it!

“To be vulnerable - to really put yourself out there, and lean into it - is to live courageously”

-Brene Brown

Shoot your shot this week.

Appreciate y’all,

Cici