I get asked many of questions about training, nutrition and sports performance in general. We are now in the football season and I get to speak with many kids from all over the Island from different schools and programs because they are in the facility training in my program to get ready for the upcoming season. Why do I always seem to fall off my chair every time one of my kids tells me what physical tests they must perform for their coaches in order to make the team or even wear the uniform for that matter? I know by now I must sound like an arrogant idiot because it seems as if I am always questioning what would seem to be common sense to others but not so for me.

Here is my point. One of my high school football players informed me that his football coach has implemented the following criteria for his players by August.

Bench Press 135, 185, or 225lbs for max reps.
Squat 1.5 times their bodyweight for max reps.
Run 1 mile in under 7 minutes.

Understand my position. These kids come to me for my help and professional advice. I am being paid to help them succeed and enhance their athletic ability. So the goal is to give them the best programming and training methods to get them to achieve peak performance. How can you ask a kid to max bench anything for that matter when he cannot do one pull-up or perform 10 strict push-ups without falling on his face? Then you’re asking a kid to squat 1.5 times his bodyweight when he can barely bend over and tie his shoes because he has absolutely no flexibility in his hamstrings and low back. Then to top it off they are asked to perform well in an AEROBIC TEST for an ANAEROBIC sport. So basically if the kid trains for the 1 mile run he becomes more aerobically fit at the cost of diminishing his speed which is what he truly needs to improve on to excel in the sport to begin with. I guess it's just me.


PS

Think about this: One of my college offensive lineman is being asked to perform 18 110 yard sprints with a predetermined rest period, each sprint is to be done in  under 15 seconds. Where are the flaws in this training method? I will let you problem solve this one on your own. E-mail me the correct answer and I will answer back.
John Furia is the owner of Furia’s Xceleration Strength & Conditioning located in Deer Park, New York.  John is a highly sought-after Strength & Conditioning coach for healthy and injured athletes alike, he has helped athletes at all levels - from youth sports to the professional and Olympic Levels - achieve peak performance in a variety of sports.


www.xcelerationstrength.com
www.johnfuria.com