We, here at TREO Sports, have seen it time and time again
with the athletes we work with. It’s usually evident by the
athlete gaining a burst of energy and sort of bouncing with
a mild and cool, of course, excitement after they successfully
nailed a much faster movement.

This immediate increase in speed comes from more efficient
and effective movement by way of better mechanics. Although
specific mechanics such as shin and trunk angle upon ground
contact during movement stays about the same with nearly any
acceleration there are differences in the set up.

A volleyball and tennis athlete are similar in that they both are
in a static position prior to reacting to the ball but how they get
to the ball in terms of set up is entirely different in most situations.
The set up for field and other court athletes that are typically in a jog
prior to a sudden burst of acceleration is completely different from a
static start but also very different based on the subsequent movement
the athlete needs to make. A linear burst forward is much different
than an acceleration at a 45 degree angle and much different still
when a change of direction and re-acceleration is required.

So, with all that said one thing should be clear…the setup matters and
can significantly add to the speed and acceleration an athlete can make.

Although there are many different things that influence and dictate solid
mechanics I am going to mention just two because if you can apply these
two changes to your acceleration work on the court or field you will feel
an immediate difference and if you don’t, well, your not doing it right.

They are a positive shin angle and a 45 degree trunk angle.
A lot of athletes overreach on their 1st step and as a result create a
negative shin angle which essentially slows them down because the foot
is striking the ground in front of their body.

Take a second and stand up tall, lift your knee so your thigh is parallel
to the ground and now bring your heel towards your thigh (hamstrings).
That is a positive shin angle.

Now, while your standing tall, push your heel forward so it is in front of
your knee. That is a negative shin angle.

Now imagine maintainng the position of that negative shin angle at a 45
degree body angle, which is the angle you should maintain during the
first phase of acceleration. With your foot forward you will strike the ground
in front of your body or center of mass which will undoubtedly slow you
down.

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction (Newton’s third
law of motion). Stand tall and push your heel into the ground in front of
your body. Did you go anywhere? If anything you pushed yourself backwards because
the angle of your force into the ground created an equal and opposite force
towards you.

As you sprint from a static position or from a jog, assuming you are at
a 45 degree body angle to the ground, drive your knee forward but keep
your heel tucked to your thigh with the intention of driving the ball of your
foot into the ground behind your center of mass in order to quickly
propel your body forward.

If you do this correctly you will immediately feel a burst of speed forward.
The best part is, once you add in other essential mechanics you’ll be even faster.

Play around with this for a bit and you’ll feel a great difference.

-Riley Moll, Age 14
Immaculata, Volleyball

My wife Emily has been making regular blog post to our boot camp website for several months now and we’ve had a positive response so, needless to say, I will be adding several post each month as well with topics ranging from nutrition, explosiveness, speed, agility, motivation, and almost any other sports and fitness related category that will ultimately help you and/or your children learn and achieve more.

Through the course I attended over this past weekend I’ve come to a further appreciation for the nervous system and how it ultimately governs everything we do. It can either facilitate performance or inhibit it.

Most conventional training systems focus on getting more horsepower out of each and every athlete; some by solely focusing on improving strength, others on explosiveness, and still others a combination of the two.

While this is well and good, if the primary objective is to improve strength and explosiveness, maybe we should not just look at what methods can be employed to generate more horsepower and facilitate performance but also at the factors that may inhibit performance and put the brakes on the nervous system from further improving strength and explosiveness.

Think of it this way.

Your body is the corvette and the brakes and accelerator is your nervous system. If you slammed your foot on the gas pedal you would be moving extremely fast. That gas pedal has the ability to facilitate performance and make you faster when the right methods are applied. The reality is that most athletes may be pushing on the gas pedal but, whether they like it or not, the brakes are applied as well.

In some, the nervous system is significantly inhibiting performance and putting a lid on an athlete’s potential because the brakes are almost fully applied. The reason this happens is for another blog post. The important thing to realize is that no matter how much you may push on the accelerator (get stronger, more explosive) there will always be a limit to how fast you can go or how much better you can perform UNTIL the brakes are removed.

Brakes to the nervous system can be applied by means of the visual system, vestibular, neuromuscular system, skeletal system and more. Scars, broken bones that are now healed and a host of other things can be enough to hold you back.
For months now we have been improving dozens of athlete’s vertical jump ½ – 4” in just several minutes of 1 Movement Efficiency Assessment session while also immediately improving their strength, range of motion and even speed by simply removing the brakes.

Just this past weekend I witnessed similar performance improvements through a very effective, unique and innovative way to address scars, bones, and a host of other things.

If you think you have reached your peak I can guarantee you your probably not even close. The human body is capable of incredible things and will perform greatly when all the right tools are implemented. Continue to train hard but begin asking yourself how you might be able to train smarter.

Jason

So, has your energy ever been in the dumps during a workout, practice or competition?

Maybe your energy levels and workout intensity are good, just not great.

If so then I’m sure your nutrition needs similar work to a few of the clients I mentioned above.

Whether the goal is to burn as much body fat as possible or take your performance to the next level one thing is certain – either goal cannot be achieved with mediocre effort and less than optimal intensity.

Most folks have a hard time realizing and understanding the importance of actually eating a fair quantity of calories (i.e. fuel) each day when they are trying to lose body fat and get leaner which is why a couple of my clients I mentioned above practically starved themselves prior to their workout.  As far as our high school and college athletes are concerned I’m certain they just don’t realize that the more fuel they have in their tank, through better and more frequent eating, means not only a more intense workout overall but also an improved ability to sustain a higher intensity for a longer period of time.

If you eat correctly YOU WILL have significantly more energy during your workouts, recover faster between workouts, and ultimately get better results in the end.

The solution:

• Eat frequently, about every 2-3 hours.  This will help maintain your blood sugar levels and contribute to a more consistent level of energy throughout the day.
• Treat each workout and/or practice as game day.  Meaning you need to be at your best.  If you place that level of importance with your workouts and/or practices you will then give it the necessary planning and preparation required TO be at your best.
• Time your meals and snacks better.  That means if you know you are working out at 9:00 am and it personally takes you at least a solid hour to digest your food then make sure you’re done with breakfast by 8:00am.  If your an athlete who won’t be working out until 4pm then make sure you have a decent sized snack after your lunch (i.e. 12pm).  If the workout won’t finish until after 5pm and you won’t be home until 5:30 then you have a lot more planning because you need to fuel your tank every 2-3 hours.  Check out the example below.
• >  Lunch at 12pm.  Around 2:30 consume a sandwich or another starch/protein that has a decent amount of calories.  At 3:30 have a piece of fruit, Kashi TLC bar or another small snack.
• Give your body enough fuel (calories).  Instead of just a granola bar for breakfast before your workout and only adding about an 1/16 of fuel to your tank try actually filling your tank up.  You can better do that with a couple eggs and a bowl of oatmeal.  To better ensure you don’t gag on the whole rolled oats try adding some sliced banana and a little fruit.

All of the things mentioned above can have a huge change on the quality, effectiveness and overall results achieved from your workouts and training sessions.  Be sure to take a few minutes and think about your past workouts and how they felt.

Was it really the exercises that were not intense OR was it the effort exerted during them that wasn’t intense enough?

Prepare whatever food you need to make it happen.

In another future post I’ll get more specific with pre/post-workout nutrition and the best carbohydrate to protein ratio to further improve your workout time before you fatigue, improve recovery, tissue repair and growth.

To your health and performance,

Jason

p.s. If you want to significantly improve your performance and have not yet registered for one of our Summer Performance Camps check out the link on our homepage at www.TREOSportsFitness.com.  The early bird special ends May 31st.  We GUARANTEE you WILL improve your performance and take your game to the next level.

I began to notice improvements in my sports performance about one month into the program, when I played basketball. I noticed that I was running faster with better stamina, less fatigue, and more endurance. I also felt that I had more upper body strength, and as a result, I was able to shoot the basketball better, because I had more control of the ball. Jason also helped relieve chronic pain in the elbow of my throwing arm, by showing me an efficient way to throw. I am very thankful for this, because it is very difficult to perform well in sports when pain is being endured.

Training at Treo Sports and Fitness has been a tremendous experience for me. I not only learned fun resourceful exercises, but I have learned that anything worth having in life is earned by working hard for it. Although I am small as an individual, I can achieve most anything in life because I know how to work for it. Since working with Jason and the others, I have earned a spot on my school’s varsity softball team as a sophomore. I am very thankful for all the patience and encouragement provided by the trainers at Treo Sports and Fitness.

Mary Kate Dougerty, 15 years old

Mount St. Mary’s Academy

Softball

Eric Moscato

Hamburg High School

Volleyball and Basketball

James Moscato

Hamburg High School

Volleyball ad Basketball

-Kiersten Krolikowski, 17 years old

Hamburg High School

Volleyball and Lacrosse