the Explosive Athlete Part 1: How to Jump Higher, Run Faster, and Perform better Today (2020)

By Farren Davis, MBA, CSCS,*D,RSCC and Jason Shea

As athletes or parents of athletes, how often have you asked this question: What are the best exercises to improve speed?

As coaches, how many times have you been asked for an explosive strength workout program?

It is safe to say that there is no definitive singular explosive exercise or explosive athlete workout program. Every athlete is different. Every day is a different day. Every athlete has different needs based on structural imbalances, elastic (springy) vs force dominant, neurotransmitter and muscle fiber dominance, daily nervous system readiness and recovery, sleep, nutrition, stress levels, and more.

For this reason the answer may be: the exercise prescription that best addresses the individual athlete’ s physical and mental readiness on that given day, under the umbrella goal of improving their performance based on their goals and physical needs analysis of their position and sport.

How do athletes become more explosive?

Here is a quick hint: The athletes who can either jump the highest in the vertical jump or the furthest in the standing broad jump, are often the best performers in acceleration and explosive speed tests. 

A closer look at elite high school and college athletes reveals that oftentimes the ones with the best pound for pound front squat (displaying relative strength to bodyweight) and power clean (or high pull) were nearly always the best performers in the 5-10-5 / pro-agility test. 

A common theme between these athletic abilities is the displacement and redirecting of forces and loads beyond the athlete’s bodyweight… Jumping high requires forces multiple times your bodyweight driving into the ground to project the body in space against gravity, either vertically or horizontally across the ground. That ability can be enhanced through appropriate squatting and Olympic lift variations supplemented with a contrasting effect using jumping, rapid plyometrics, and more complex agility drills.

Using specific strength training movements and jump variations that mimic sport activity is an effective method for improving the speed and power of sports movements. A 2015 study on professional league Rugby players found that dominant leg lateral jump performance was a major predictor in change of direction tests (9).

Correlations between Specific Sprints and Jumps?

A 2016 study on Division I college soccer players found significant relationships between specific jump tests and sprint distances (13):

• 0–5 m sprint:
  • Strong relationship with Vertical Jump, Unilateral and Bilateral Standing Broad Jump, and the left-leg Triple Hop test. 
  • Significant relationship with the right-leg Triple Hop.
• 0–10 m sprint:
  • Strong relationship between both left- and right-leg Standing Broad Jump
  • Stronger relationship with Vertical Jump, Standing Broad Jump, and left-leg Triple Hop.
  • Near-perfect relationship with right-leg Triple Hop.
• 0–30 m sprint:
  • Strong relationship between both left- and right-leg Standing Broad Jump
  • Stronger relationship between Vertical Jump, Standing Broad Jump, and both Left and Right Leg Triple Hop. were documented with VJ, SBJ and left- and right-leg TH. 

A more recent study tested 12 college basketball players in the vertical jump, standing broad jump, and 2-step approach jump while measuring average and peak power of each. The researchers then compared the results of these tests to a series of on-court sprint tests including 10 meter and ¾ court sprints, yo-yo intermittent recovery test, and pro-agility test.

They found a strong correlation between approach jump and pro-agility as well as ¾-court sprint performances, while the vertical, broad jump, and peak power correlated with 10 meter sprint performance (7).

What is Velocity Based Training (VBT)? VBT is a method of speed and strength training utilizing special equipment to monitor and track the speed in which an exercise is performed (usually recorded in meters per second(m/s)). Leading us to an easy answer to the timeless question of which exercises improve speed – the short answer is all of them will improve a specific type of speed, the type of speed and the movement trained will dictate the extent to which the training will transfer to sport performance.

When receiving feedback on the speed of each rep, you can find out exactly which area of the speed and strength continuum you are training in, and adjust your performance expectations from there. 

This type of training can specifically target the performance adaptation an athlete may need to train to, general recommendations look like this:

% of 1RM	10-25%	30-45%	50-65%	70-85%	90-100%
Performance Adaptation	Starting / ”twitch” strength	Speed-strength	Strength-Speed	Accelerative Strength	Absolute Strength
Velocity Range	>1.3 m/s	1.3 – 1 m/s	1 – .75 m/s	.75 – .5 m/s	<.5 m/s

Contrast training is a method of strength training when an athlete will use a strength-based exercise paired with a more explosive movement like a jump or sprint.

Some variation of the squat movement is common practice in strength and conditioning programs, being a fundamental movement for general strength development most people can reap benefits in athletic from simply maintaining and improving their ability to perform all the  variations of a squat. For further application or a squat to specific training needs, such as cutting, jumping or sprinting, this squat should be used as a primer in order to activate the body’s ability to control forces while the 2nd exercise in the circuit would be used to rapidly applying these forces.

When doing contrast sets, we want to develop strength and then speed in a similar movement pattern to support a specific goal, maybe a dunking a basketball, reaching a 40” vertical jump, or out running a defender to score a touchdown.

Training for Explosive strength using, both, VBT and Contrast-training methods – 2x/ week:

Example Circuit for Day 1:

Exercise	Sets x Reps	Tempo / Speed / Notes	Rest
A1 – Snatch Grip BB High Pull	4-6 x 2-3	FAST (>1.2 m/s)	<30s
A2 – Broad Jump	3-5 x 5	For distance	<30s
A3 – T Spine Mobility	3 x 60s ea	Breathe	<180s

Example Circuit for Day 2

Exercise	Sets x Reps	Tempo / Speed / Notes	Rest
A1 – Front Squat	3-5 x 5,4,3,2,1	@31X0 (>1 m/s)	<30s
A2 – Box Jump Variation	3-5 x 3-5	Fast for Height	<30s
A3 – Hip flexor stretch	3 x 60s ea	Breathe	<180s

A 2015 study looked at the EMG activity differences of front and back squat using heavy loads. On two separate testing sessions, one for front and one for back, the subjects worked their way up to their one rep max while the researchers tested which muscles are most active in both squats. Here is what they found (22):

• The Rectus Femoris was roughly 25% more active in the front squat.
• The Vastus Medialis was 13.5% more active in the front squat.
• The Vastus Lateralis was roughly 8% more active in the front squat.
• The Erector Spinae was nearly 7% more active in the front squat.
• The Glute Max was roughly the same in both squats.
• The Biceps Femoris was roughly 8% more active in the back squat.
• The Semitendinosus was nearly 35% more active in the back squat.

Interestingly, the study (22) also looked at the muscle activity during both the concentric and eccentric phases of the max rep for each squat. Below are a few of the more significant findings:

• The Vastus Medialis was nearly 11% more active during the concentric phase vs the eccentric phase of the front squat.
• The Vastus Lateralis was roughly 17% more active during the concentric phase vs eccentric phase of the front squat.
• The Gluteus Maximus was 64.24% more active during the concentric phase vs eccentric phase of the back squat. The Gluteus Max was also 55% more active during the concentric phase of the front squat as well.
• The Biceps Femoris was nearly 87% more active in the concentric phase vs eccentric phase of the back squat. It was also nearly 50% more active in the concentric phase vs eccentric phase of the front squat.
• Lastly, the Semitendinosus was roughly 93% more active in the concentric phase vs eccentric phase of the back squat (22).

From looking at the study results, as well as the results of a 2008 study from the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, front squats may be more impactful on change of direction, while back squats may be more impactful for linear speed and acceleration. The study looked at the correlation between front squat, power clean, linear speed, and change of direction. The researchers found that the athletes who front squatted (avg 230lbs vs 212lbs) and power cleaned (avg 176lbs vs 154lbs) more, performed better in the 5-5 change of direction.   

Hartmann H, Wirth K, Klusemann M. Analysis of the load on the knee joint and vertebral column with changes in depth and weight load. Journal of Sports Medicine. 43; Pp 993-1008. 2013.

Questions answered by the above meta-analysis:

Why squats to parallel can be bad for the knees: “Based on biomechanical calculations and measurements of cadaver knee joints, the highest retropatellar compressive forces and greatest compressive stresses are observed at 90 degrees”. In other words, if you stop the lowering phase and transition to the concentric phase at 90-degree knee bend, you are exposing your knees to the greatest compressive stresses (10)”

Why deep squats are good for the knees: “With increasing flexion, the additional contact between the quadriceps tendon and the intercondylar notch as the tendofemoral support surface (wrapping effect) contribute to an enhanced load distribution and enhanced force transfer. Because lower weights are used in the deep back squat and regular strength training practice leads to functional adaptations of passive tissue, concerns about degenerative changes of the tendofemoral complex are unfounded and unproven (10).”

Why squats to parallel can be bad for women: “Women need to be particularly careful during half and parallel squat as female cadaver knees have been shown to possess 33% lower contact areas of the patellofemoral joint than male samples at 120 and 90-degree knee flexion (10).”

More why parallel squats can be bad for the knees: “The execution of a half squat cannot be recommended because the turning point is initiated in a knee joint angle amplitude, where the highest patellofemoral compressive forces and greatest compressive stresses occur with only a minor tendofemoral support surface (10).”

Why parallel squats can be bad for the low back: “The restriction of the forward knee placement will result in changes to the knee hip coordination with greater forward leaning and ventral flexion of the thoracic and lumbar spine. This evasive movement elicits greater anterior shear forces on intervertebral discs and causes tensile forces on intervertebral ligaments. For that reason, instructions about a restriction of the forward knee displacement must be strictly avoided. This recommendation is based on a misinterpretation of existing data and should be removed in future practical literature (10).”

Why you should deep squat with a controlled eccentric tempo: “The higher the lowering speed in the descent phase, the higher the developing deceleration phase to avoid a dipping movement and hence a rising increase of tibiofemoral shear and compressive forces in the turning point of the squat. For that reason, care should be taken to complete a slow and controlled execution comprising a descent phase of 3 to 4 seconds in the deep squat corresponding to an average angular velocity in the knee joint of 46.66 and 35 degrees/sec respectively (10).”

Another reason parallel squats may be bad for women: “Females possess significant lower compressive strength of vertebral bodies because of their significantly lower end plate cross sectional area than their male counterparts. This means that the female lumbar vertebral is exposed to higher axial compressive stress than a male spine when subjected to equivalent load (10).”

And finally, why deep squats may be better for your ACL: “In the deep squat loads of 1.16- and 2.27-times body weight accounted for 11.62% and 28.9% of the tensile strength of an ACL in 16 to 35 year olds. The calculated anterior shear forces in the half squat with a load of 1.16 times bodyweight accounts for between 33.29 and 41.56%. Based on these calculations, in deep squats, neither posterior nor anterior shear forces may reach magnitudes that could harm an intact PCL or ACL (10).”

                A 1987 study from the Canadian Journal of Sport Sciences looked at the different contributions of the hips, knees, and ankles in the standing broad vs vertical jump. Below are some of the findings (19):

A 2018 meta-analysis of 13 studies found resisted sprint training to be an effective method for improving acceleration (1).  A separate review study from the 2016 Sports Medicine journal found speed could be improved when loads of 30% body mass or less were used in resisted sprints (18).

A systematic review looked at the effect different sprint training methods had on sprint performance and found resisted sprinting to be at or near the top when it came to improving short sprints and acceleration (21).

                Don’t trade your barbell in for a sled just yet, though, as a 2016 study found sets of 4-8 reps at 40-60% in the deep back squat was more effective than multiple sets of 20m resisted sprints at 12.6% BM at improving 20 and 50m sprint performance (8)

                One idea might be to tap into Postactivation Potentiation and combine the two. 2019 research found squats at 80% combined with resisted sprints at 12.5% BM were more effective at improving 30m sprint, countermovement jump, and change of direction, than resisted sprinting or squatting by themselves. (17). For more on Postactivation Potentiation stay tuned for part 2 of this blog article series or pick up a copy of Explosive Athlete today.

How much resistance should I use in resisted sprints and sled pushes?

Sled Push Studies

A recent study from the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports recruited 50 high school athletes to figure out which sled resistance led to better improvements in sprint and vertical jump after 8 weeks of training. They assigned the athletes to one of 4 groups: control, light resistance, moderate resistance, and heavy resistance. Light resistance led to a 25% decrease in speed, moderate a 50% decrease, and heavy a 75% decrease and tested vert, sprint, hex bar deadlift, and standing long jump.

The Light group did 22.5m per sprint for total of 270 to 405m total per workout. The Moderate group did 15m per sprint for a total of 180-270m per workout.  The Heavy group did 7.5m per sprint and 90-135m total per workout. All workouts had 3 minutes of rest between sprints (4).

Here are the before and after results for vert and sprint (4):

We have seen resisted sled pushes at different loads can positively impact sprinting performance after 8 weeks of training. Now, how to determine the correct load.

Using something called Vdec, basically the decrease in maximal velocity, the same research team (but in a separate 2020 study (5)) was able to determine optimal load for 3 different strength qualities:

Speed strength = roughly 0-40%BM

Power = roughly 40-80%BM

Strength Speed = roughly 80% plus

According to the researchers “adopting the Vdec method will allow practitioners to identify different training zones during resisted sled pushing, such as speed-strength, power, and strength-speed. Matching the training zone to the athlete’s force-velocity characteristic could potentially yield better training results than simply applying the same resistive load for all athletes (5).”

Compared to the one size fits all sled push approach, this Vdec individualized resistance approach to sled pushing allows for both stronger and weaker athletes to optimize specific strength qualities.

Resisted Sprint Study

In a similar study to the sled push study, a 2019 study on Rugby and Lacrosse players used roughly the same methods to determine optimal resisted sprint loads.

The researchers found the average resistance sprint loads that corresponded to a Vdec were:

25% Vdec = 33% BM (Speed Strength)

50% Vdec = 66% BM (Power)

75% Vdec = 100% BM (Strength Speed)

The study authors viewed heavier sled pulls as horizontal resistance training, to be included and periodized throughout the overall strength and conditioning program.   

As in the sled push study, the researchers found three different training zones (speed strength, power, strength speed) that can be used to optimize sled loads based on training goals throughout the season (3).

A similar study, this one from the 2018 European Journal of Applied Physiology, found a Vdec of 50% in loads ranging from 69-96% BM (6).

                Here is an example of a once-a-day, 3X/week strength/power training + 3 speed/accelerations sessions for an optimally recovered and physically/mentally ready (nervous system/HRV/emotional state) off-season athlete.

Monday: Olympic Lift/Lower Body

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Tempo	Rest
A1: Power Clean from hang above knee	3-5	5	X0X0	45-60s
A2: Broad Jump	2-3	5	NA	90s
B1: Paused Back Squat w/chains	4-6	4	31X1	45-60s
B2: Barbell Jump Squats w/dorsiflexion in air	2-4	4	NA	90s
C1: Glute Ham Raise	4-6	4	4010	60s
C2: Alternating Leg Step Forward Lunges	12-16 (total)	4	2010	60s

Tuesday: Acceleration or Hill Sprints

Sprint Type	Reps	Rest Period
15yd Sprint (use farmers carry for PAP augmentation)	6-10 (autoregulated at 5% best time drop off)	60s
30yd Sprint	4-10 (autoregulated at 5% best time drop off)	90s
Hill Sprint (20-40yds)	2-6 (autoregulated at 5-10% best time drop off)	90-120s

Wednesday: Upper Body

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Tempo	Rest
A1: Push Press	3-5	5	21X1	120s
B1: Flat Fat Grip Barbell Bench Press w/chains	3-5	4	31X1	45-60s
B2: Kneeling Chest Pass Med Ball Throw	3	4	NA	60s
B3: Weighted Chin Ups	3-5	4	3111	45-60s
B4: Rotational Med Ball Slamdowns (w/slamball)	4-6	4	NA	90s
C1: V Bar Dips	6-8	3	3112	60s
C2: Seated Cable Rows	6-8	3	4011	60s
C3: Fat Grip Farmer Carry	20-40ft	3	NA	90s

Thursday: Max Linear Speed

Sprint Type	Reps	Rest Period
40yd Sprint	4-8 (autoregulated at 5% best time drop off)	120s
60yd Sprint	2-6 (autoregulated at 5-10% best time drop off)	120s
80yd Sprint	1-2	120s

Friday: Total Body Weights

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Tempo	Rest
A1: Hex Bar Deadlift	3-5	5	31X1	45-60s
A2: Overhead Med Ball or Kettlebell Throws	2-4	5	NA	60s
B1: Incline Semi-Pronated Grip DB Bench Press	4-6	4	3010	45-60s
B2: Jump Pushups	2-5	4	42X1	60s
B3: Pull-Ups	4-6	4	3010	45-60s
B4: Slamdowns	4-5	4	NA	90s
C1: Seated DB External Rotator	8-10	3	4010	45s
C2: Single Arm DB Trap-3 Lift	8-10	3	4010	45s

Saturday: Sled Pushing or Resisted Sprinting

Sled Push Option

Sprint Type	Reps	Rest Period
10yd Sled Push @ 40-60%BM	6-10	90-120s
20yd Sled Push @10-40%BM	2-8	90-120s

Resisted Sprint Option

Sprint Type	Reps	Rest Period
15yd Resisted Sprint @ 60-70%BM	6-10	90-120s
30yd Resisted Sprint @20-40%BM	2-8	90-120s

Sunday: Off

If you prefer to do all your plyo and jump training in the beginning of your leg workout prior to hitting the weights here is an example:

Monday: Olympic Lift/Lower Body

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Tempo	Rest
A: Resisted Broad Jump (after last set rest 30s and perform 3-4 consecutive non-resisted broad jumps)	1	5	NA	60s
B: Single Leg Resisted Broad Jump	1/leg	4	NA	30s
C: Resisted Power Skips (after last set rest 30s and perform 4-6 non-resisted power skips)	4-6	4	NA	60s
D1: Power Clean from Hang above knee	3-5	5	X0X0	120s
E1: Paused Back Squat w/chains	4-6	4	31X1	45-60s
F1: Glute Ham Raise	4-6	4	4010	60s
F2: Alternating Leg Step Forward Lunges	12-16 (total)	4	2010	60s

Stay tuned for part 2 of The Explosive Athlete where we will talk about the most explosive athletes and how they train. If you would like to learn much more about developing explosive athletes for sports, pick up a copy of Explosive Athlete on amazon kindle or paperback today.

Thanks for reading!

References

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