Block 6 Power 2.0

This weeks begins the first of my new block with the primary focus being power. Also the energy system of primary focus is alactic power. This is a very CNS intensive block which will require me to maintain an extensive regimen of regeneration and recovery. First few days have proven that already but are going great otherwise.

Day 1
Alactic Power/Lower Body
AM Session (10:45)
30 YD Sprint (2X2)x2
6 sec Multi Directional (2x3)x2
3-fold Jumps (2x2)x2
5 min between sets 8 min between series

PM Session (5:30)
1A)1 Arm DB Snatch-3x3@95, 105, 110
2A)Squat-3x5 @ 405, 415, 430
3A)BB Step UP-2x6 @185
4A)Good Morning- 3x6@225
4B)BB Anti Rotation-3x12
5A-C)Band aBduction 2x12@ Mini
TKE 2x20 @ Green Band
Heavy Clam Shell 2x12
Regeneration-Cold Plunge, PNF Stretch

Day 2
Tempo Runs
Epsom Bath

Day 3 Upper Body (3:30PM)
1A)High Pulls-3x5@135,155,175
2A)Bench Press-3x5@300,315,325x2
3A)BB Row-3x6@205
3B)Rear Delt-3x8@20
3C)Core Roll Progression 3x6
4A-D)Ext Rotation 2x12 all
ITY
Core Rollouts
Curls
Regeneration-Contrast Shower 4 rounds

So far so good. Got another sprint session tomorrow followed by weights and plenty of regeneration. Overall Sleep Quality is great and Heart Rate is at 59 this morning so recovery is going well. As of now squat is still feeling very strong even after a morning sprint session and overall power and jumping is getting very explosive compared to previous blocks. As I stated in a previous post when I began my first power block was I missed being able to dunk the ball and since my injury it has been a far cry. But I am still chasing it as my goal by the end of the block and I am getting pretty close. Will post video when it is a reality.

Block 5: Power

So begins the next block in my physical preparation. As you can tell by the title the main focus will be power, force production, and continuing to expand certain energy systems. Expectations are extremely high for this block and the first two days have already provided promising results. Max strength is put back toward maintenance and for my primary strength lifts, squat, bench, and hang cleans, I am still seeing increases from the previous blocks. I am looking forward to the explosive work and can't wait to get my cleans up to par!

Day 1
Plyo progression
1ACG BB Snatch 4x3 @ 155
2ASquat 3x5 @395, 405, 425 RPE=8, 8, 9
3AExplosive RDL 3x5 @275 3BBB Anti Rotation
4circuit 2x10
TKE
Front Plank
BW 1 legged Hip thrust
Band Abduction

Day 2
Plyo Progression
1A1 arm DBn Snatch 3x3 @ 85#
1BCable lift 3x8
2ABench 3x5@ 295, 305, 320
3A1 arm unsupported Row 3x8 @85#
3B Face pulls 3x8
4Circuit 2x10
ITY
External Rotation
Core Roll Progression
Curl variation

Day 3
FT Capacity Work. (sled sprints)

I was very excited to see my squat number where it was. According to rep max chart it is just below 500 which is getting to pre-ankle injury numbers. Bench max chart says ~360 but I feel like when the reps drop to 3 it will be better. But, power is the name of the game and one of the things I miss most as a side effect of the injury is throwing down the b-ball. So, i guess that would be my goal for the end of the power blocks in 8 weeks. Video to come!!!...(hopefully).

Power Clean Progression

One of the most important aspects of football is of course power and explosiveness. There are so many ways to develop this quality ranging from plyometrics, dynamic effort method, and Olympic lifts.
For our Olympic lift for football I have utilized the power clean. One of the first things I did was find a method to get them to be able to perform this complex lift with out having to "think" about too many little details in regards to form. This past Summer I attended a Conference at the University of Louisville. Here Strength Coach Joe Kenn demonstrated a very smooth progression he used to get his athletes to clean with decent form using three simple cues: Push, Jump, Punch.
The Push cue would be telling your legs to "push" through the floor to bring the weight off the ground. This motion is identical to a deadlift so many of the same rules apply in regards to feet placement and technique (neutral spine, suction cup feet, stay tight...).
The Jump is about as simple as it gets. As the bar approaches the knee caps all that should be going through your head is trying to jump through the roof. In this action your body should achieve triple extension. This meaning hips, knees, and ankles fully extended which would be very similar to a max vertical jump.
The punch is the indicator reminding the athlete to punch through the bar when ready to catch. This should be quick so that you can focus immediately on absorbing the force of the weight with your legs as quickly as possible.
To progress the team I used a sequence of lifts to gradually teach them portion of the power clean. I took a bottom up approach unlike the Olympic style top down mainly because that's how I learned it. The first lift was a simple explosive hip extension exercise, a explosive RDL to shrug. This is a great way to teach basic hip extension in the same explosive manner used in the power clean but in a much more controllable manner. Then I moved them to a Jump shrug from the ground. Constantly reinforcing the push and jump portion of the lift as well as triple extension. I followed that with a high pull from the floor then brought it to a full clean. This was 6 week process. Here are a few videos of one of the athletes going from the jump shrug, to the high pull, and then into a full clean. Sorry for the formatting they are sideways...


Above is the second progression to the Power Clean the Jump Shrug. Emphasizing "PUSH" and as the weight gets to the knees "JUMP".

Here is the third progression the High Pull. The arm action is unloaded and sets them up for the catch phase.


Here is the finished product. In terms of position of the body when in the catch phase preferably I would like them in sort of a quarter squat wanting them to work on absorbing force as much as possible.

Break it down then build em' up!

When I introduced my program to the football team the firs thing I did was tell them to forget everything they knew about the power clean. "We are starting from scratch!" In there previous program the coach had them "Power cleaning" which involved bouncing weights, multiple jerking movements, and a hand full of back problems.
So starting from the beginning I have introduced basic hip extension exercises trying to groove the movement pattern in the same fashion that you would want to develop triple extension on a clean. I have taken a progression from Coach Joe Kenn and altered it to fit our resources and time circumstances. 2 days they work out in season in which they begin with what ever progression of the clean we are currently utilizing. I utilized basic extension exercises like RDL to shrug, Power shrug from floor, and now moving on to high pull from floor. Already everyone is showing vast improvements in form.
Keeping it simple all you have to cue them on is getting a tight set up then PUSH(pertaining to legs push through floor) JUMP(when bar meet knees) PULL(almost immediatley after the jump) then making sure they attain triple extension and obsorb the force to finish. I will try and get some video up when they are in the final progression and let you know any changes I have made.