The in season strength training dilemma for the high school athlete
For high school athletes the in season training period pretty much never ends. Most are either playing three or four sports or play the same sport all year round (I have found this to be especially true in the case with basketball and tennis).
This presents quite a challenge especially during the introductory process of a high quality strength and conditioning program. The last thing any athlete wants is to start feeling sore, fatigued, or just not like themselves at the beginning of a season. At the same time, getting stronger is going to be critical in their development early on and lead to a reduced risk of injury and improved on field performance.'
Going into a strength and conditioning program without a plan is ill advised to say at the least.
Here are a few things to keep in mind early on:
• Initial strength gains are going to be due to improvements and efficiency in the nervous system. Small incremental gains are certainly possible for beginners and are much more challenging for those with a higher training age (4+ years).
• As a result a simple approach of just adding 2.5 lbs during the course of each training session would be a great way to help increase strength once an athlete has learned to train properly, reduced asymmetries, and improved lagging muscle groups.
• When it comes to exercise selection, less is more. Focus on getting really good at exercises that are going to give you the most bang for your buck. Think ground-based, three-dimensional, and multi-joint movements (again this is after an athlete has learned to train properly and completed other necessary prerequisites).
Here are some exercises that have been really effective for me when working with beginners in this situation:
Seated Dumbell Overhead Press
Flat Barbell Bench Press
Incline 30° Barbell Bench Press
Dip - V Bar
Neutral Grip Chin-up
Free Hand Front Squat
Barbell RDL
Trap Bar Deadlift
Small adjustments can be made from training block to training block (changing hand position, foot position, range of motion, tempo, barbell thickness, etc.) with close attention to increases in weight.
Initially, I strongly recommend using longer training blocks to allow for increases in the amount of weight used to occur.
For example, lets say you want to alternate between two different types of standard set training programs (this means keeping the number of reps the same for each set performed):
Program A:
Day 1:
Bench Press
Supinated Grip Chin-up
Trap Bar Deadlift
Day 2:
Overhead Press
Neutral Grip Chinup
Free Hand Front Squat
Program B:
Day 1:
Incline 30° Barbell Bench Press
Neutral Grip Chin-up
Front Squat
Day 2:
Dip - V Bar
Pullup
RDL
Each program could be performed for 4 weeks with a 5x8 set rep scheme. After the completion of this 8 week period a slight change in exercise selection could be made and the number of repetitions per set could be dropped down.
The estimated 1 RM would still be monitored to ensure that weight strength gains were being made. With lower reps the athlete should be able to handle more load on the bar.
Let’s say for example the new set rep scheme was 5x6. Rinse and repeat for 8 weeks alternating between subtle variations of program A and program B. Continue to monitor and increase strength.
Over the course of the first year of in season strength training, rapid gains will be made!! Repeating program A & B (16 weeks) three times throughout the year, would result in massive gains! This would also account for a 1 week recovery period after each 16 week training block.
Not only would this allow you to get stronger, but it would also reduce initial soreness and provide slow and consistent adaptations.
If you start off front squatting 50 kilos on your first true training day and increase 1 kilo each week that is going to be an increase of 48 kilos or 105 lbs over the course of the first year. Keep in mind this is also a very conservative number. At 2 kilos per week the athlete is at an increase of 96 kilos for the year.
Simple, not easy.