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Acceleration

  • 13-04-2008 10:49pm
    #1
    theprizelamb
    Closed Accounts Posts: 37 ✭


    Hi All

    Have recently started playing football again (GAA). While my fitness is generally pretty good and my general pace isn’t too bad I’m finding that my speed over the first (crucial!) 5 meters isn’t great. Are there any specific exercises/drills I can do on the pitch or in the gym that will help me be a bit more explosive getting away?


Comments

  • #2
    Size=everything
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,473 ✭✭✭Size=everything


    Heavy squats within 3-4 rep range and box jumps is what we were told to do for rugby


  • #3
    RSHC
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13 ✭RSHC


    Do some Plyometric training. This trains explosiveness in your muscles... look it up lots of info on the net about it.
    Look here for example: http://www.runningplanet.com/training/plyometrics.html


  • #4
    siochain
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,548 ✭✭✭siochain


    RSHC wrote: »
    Do some Plyometric training. This trains explosiveness in your muscles... look it up lots of info on the net about it.
    Look here for example: http://www.runningplanet.com/training/plyometrics.html

    +1
    but get someone who knows what they are talking about to show you the drills


  • #5
    thirtyfoot
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,912 ✭✭✭thirtyfoot


    Also ensure you are strong enough to do plyos/bounds/jumps. Being able to squat 1.5 your bodyweight is a good benchmark. The power clean is a great exercise for improving explosiveness but again doing it correctly is important.

    Also, 3 point starts (two feet, one hand) where you are balanced with shoulders almost directly over your resting hand and free hand cocked in air behind shoulder. Focus on driving out with high knee with the back foot on the first stride and drive, drive, drive as hard as you can for the first few strides, gradually rising to fully upright position. While this is a position you are unlikely ever to replicate in a GAA match exactly its teaching the body and the brain to be explosive. You'd probably need someone to talk and walk you through this if never done before.


  • #6
    Hanley
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 21,981 ✭✭✭✭Hanley


    Tingle wrote: »
    Also ensure you are strong enough to do plyos/bounds/jumps. Being able to squat 1.5 your bodyweight is a good benchmark. The power clean is a great exercise for improving explosiveness but again doing it correctly is important.

    Also, 3 point starts (two feet, one hand) where you are balanced with shoulders almost directly over your resting hand and free hand cocked in air behind shoulder. Focus on driving out with high knee with the back foot on the first stride and drive, drive, drive as hard as you can for the first few strides, gradually rising to fully upright position. While this is a position you are unlikely ever to replicate in a GAA match exactly its teaching the body and the brain to be explosive. You'd probably need someone to talk and walk you through this if never done before.

    I was just about to say that.

    Also, make sure you're not taking a step back before you start your movement forward. Sounds silly I know but you wouldnt believe the amount of people I used to see do it when I played GAA.


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  • #7
    Hail 2 Da Chimp
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,589 ✭✭✭Hail 2 Da Chimp


    Hill sprints are great for acceleration, you could also try some High Intensity Interval Training.
    Mixing this in with the squats and box jumps will really increase your speed.


  • #8
    thirtyfoot
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,912 ✭✭✭thirtyfoot


    Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »
    Hill sprints are great for acceleration, you could also try some High Intensity Interval Training.

    Hill sprints are great but maybe not soley for acceleration as they are essentially underspeed and more a strength/resistance exercise to be used in a conditioning phase instead of a peaking phase. If anything over speed or downhill sprints could serve you better for acceleration but they too have their issues in that you need to be pretty experienced to do them without a) doing damage and b) doing them incorrectly by overstriding/dropping hips/rotating hips etc. Trying under or overspeed without a coach who knows their stuff and their athlete can be dangerous and counter-productive.

    Also HIIT would mean you are not working on pure speed (full recoveries/max effort) and so you are not working on your acceleration to the max.


  • #9
    aye
    Closed Accounts Posts: 991 ✭✭✭aye


    Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote: »
    Hill sprints are great for acceleration, you could also try some High Intensity Interval Training.

    Hill sprints or hill runs are supposed to be good.
    i'm not 100% sure on this, but i think a lot of acceleration comes from the hip flexors, which would be getting a good workout while running uphill.


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