Doing speed and strength training together on the same day will not optimize your speed and power and make you slower. However, there are strategic ways to combine them. But first, understand the process.
If you want to get faster, you need to reduce the weight you are moving. As resistance and force go up, speed goes down. Therefore, speed requires a reduction in resistance in order to move fast. You can simply see this by doing a 1-rep max in comparison to an 8-rep max. Just training strength and heavy all the time will slow you down. Strength training, lifting heavy is good. It has a place and time. Lifting heavy, using 5 reps, for a 4-week training cycle is a perfect start before implementing speed training because it increases the rate of force. However, there has to be a crossover, a transfer.
Strength training is required to increase the amount of force you can sustain. For example, strength training blocks are done to develop as much strength as you can before or incorporated with speed. For instance, speed training requires you to cut your max strength 30 to 70%. Let’s just use 50%, for now, to be simple for the equation. If your strength index is 50, then your speed training would be 25.
Now, if your strength index increases to 80 after 4-weeks, the amount of force you can move for speed training is 40. You have to understand the trade-off if you want to develop speed. It is essential to back away from heavyweights in exchange for lighter weights to develop speed effectively.
Your technique is what is most important and should be done before your speed training or drills. Speed drills should always be done second and strength last. So, doing strength before technique and speed will diminish the result. If you do strength training before speed, you will be cheating on your speed development.
The Best Strength Training Method for Speed
In order to develop and maximize your strength and speed ability, you must optimize your potential. Slow Eccentric Training (SET) does this the best. To make a long, well not so long, but scientific story short, there are two proprioceptors that need to coordinate and synchronize force that is only accomplished through slow eccentric training. Resistance training does not really maximize strength potential and the difference in strength development is big! SET enhances strength instantly.
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