Why do practitioners need a qualitative movement screening tool to assess sprint running mechanics? The ability to perform repeat maximal effort sprint running actions is a key performance requirement in both team and individual sports. However, sprint running exposure is also associated with injury risk, with more than 50% of hamstring strain injuries in football…
Presentation description Jean-Benoit (JB) Morin and his colleagues are at the forefront of research and practice when it comes to the development of an athletes sprint mechanics to reduce the risk of hamstring injury. This presentation details the research that is currently available on this topic and takes you through recommended exercises and interventions to…
Many sports techniques have evolved for the better. Changing from the scissor technique to the Fosbury flop led to a 2.45 meter high jump for a man and a 2.09 m jump for a woman. Adopting the squat technique over the split style enabled a man to snatch 225 kilograms and a woman to snatch…
Why is training deceleration important from both performance and injury risk reduction perspectives? Alistair: Understanding the significance of training deceleration is paramount in sports performance and injury prevention strategies. Horizontal deceleration, the process of slowing down before a sprint or a precursor to changes in direction, is a critical component of athletic movement in team…
Do we focus too much on strength when trying to develop an athlete’s speed? No, I don’t believe so. The issue lies in the type of strength we emphasize. According to the Bondarchuk pyramid, strength ranges from general to competition event specific. Both general and specific strengths are crucial for building foundational physical qualities and…
Presentation description The search for the enhancement of linear speed has grown exponentially over the last few years. Elite coaches from track and field have influenced what many in team sports do, which isn’t a bad thing. Those at the elite end coach the fastest people on the planet. But do those practices translate straight…
“The knee is the servant of the foot and the hip.” In episode #292 of the Pacey Performance Podcast, Loren Landow shares his insights into athletic performance enhancement. Drawing from his rich experience, including his tenure with the Denver Broncos, Loren delves into the nuances of agility, biomechanics, and effective training methodologies. His holistic approach…
In your recent paper, you talk about the influence of lumbo-pelvic control as a mechanism for hamstring injury. Do you have any recommendations for coaches to mitigate this risk? The term “lumbo-pelvic control” is often criticised for its ambiguity. For me, a loss of lumbo-pelvic control refers to the inability to control trunk and pelvis rotation across…
Presentation description Deceleration is THE most overlooked aspect of athletic movement speed. We all know about the extensive research that has gone into acceleration and its affect on performance. But what about deceleration? We have great knowledge on how to enhance acceleration and top speed, but not how to slow athletes down! In this presentation,…
Why should practitioners use qualitative methods to understand cutting movement quality? Many team sports are characterized by a high frequency of high intensity actions such as sprinting, jumping, tackling, dribbling, kicking or turning. These occur during key moments of the game: goal scoring, assists, defensive interceptions, blocks. Among these high intensity actions, change of direction…
“Movement wins the matches, not your strength capacity. To score goals, to break away from opponents, requires significant acceleration or deceleration, or change of direction.” In episode 380 of the Pacey Performance Podcast, host Rob Pacey delves into the intricacies of deceleration and change of direction with sports science analysts Alistair McBurnie and Tom Dos’Santos.…
Teaching team sport athletes good mechanics and teaching to a technical model is really important for a couple of reasons. One, decreasing the risk of soft tissue injury during high-speed sprinting in training… And two, if improving mechanics can enhance speed in training from that improvement in technique, that’s going to allow for a greater…
What are the physical qualities that underpin better deceleration performances amongst your athletes? In the context of our approach, the foundation lies in various capacities. I’m essentially drawing upon insights from experts and aiming to integrate their knowledge into our program cohesively. The core focus revolves around eccentric peak force, a pivotal factor. It’s comparable…
Presentation description One of America’s elite speed performance coaches. Les has trained several Olympians as well as athletes in the NFL, NCAA, and USA rugby. Most notably, however, he has guided a large percentage of youth athletes to college scholarships. In this presentation, Les takes us through his journey with data, detailing how he assesses…
What lessons do you draw from track and field, and how have you chosen to integrate them into team sports while also maintaining a distinct approach? One of the key insights I’ve gained, influenced by several outstanding mentors including Fergus Connolly, with whom I co-authored a book series, is the idea that we shouldn’t aim…