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The Need For Speed

By Jason Zaretzky

The Need for Speed
What Every Athlete needs to apply to their training in order
To enhance their sport specific speed

By Jason Zaretzky
Sports Performance and Corrective Exercise Expert

I’ve got the need…The NEED FOR SPEED!!! And you should too. Every athlete needs to realize that they should always be searching for new ways to improve their speed. That’s because in sport speed kills.

You can never be fast enough. However, it’s not just how fast you can run from point A to point B. You have to be able to be as fast as possible while moving in various directions, starting and stopping constantly. After all, what sport do you know of where change of direction doesn’t happen? Not Many.

So let’s cut right to the chase… Here are the top ways to enhance your sport specific speed for any sport:

  1. Be specific – to the demands of what type of speed you need in order to excel at your respective sport. For example, the type of speed needed for a football defensive lineman are totally different than the speed needed for a midfielder in lacrosse, or a forward in basketball. So your speed training must reflect the demands of your specific sport

  2. You won’t get faster by simply running around a track - A major misconception to speed training has been to just run like a maniac around a track and expect to get faster. The problem here is that you may need other methods of training such as stretching, strength training, core training, balance and/or stability training in order for you to get faster.

  3. Stop training like a body builder – Instead of training on that hamstring curl machine, try some multi-muscle movements like squat, and dead-lifts. Not only are these exercises better than any kind of isolation based exercise (hamstring curls and leg extensions), they actually strengthen you leg muscles and train them to work together as a unit. While you’re at it incorporate some single leg exercises such as lunges, and single leg deadlifts. By doing so you will further mimic your body’s running actions.

  4. Find you weak links, and correct muscle imbalances – You are only as strong as your weakest link, and muscles imbalances will always lead to weak links in your body. Take 2 to athletes that are the same speed. Athlete 1 has poor hip flexibility and weak abdominals, while athlete 2 has weak hamstring muscles, and tight quads. If all these athletes did was work on hip flexibility and core strength, Athlete 1 may get faster, while athlete 2 may actually decrease performance.

There you have it, 4 easy ways to immediately increase you speed through proper training and smart programming. The only thing left to do is ‘Just Do It’! Yeah, Yeah, I know what you’re saying, “But how do I know what my weak links are, and what the best exercises for me to do?”

The easiest way is to seek the advice of a highly qualified professional who has experience assessing and training athletes. Visit, www.optcfitness.com, they have the information you need, they specialize in sport performance enhancement, and all of their programs are completely customized to the individual athlete.

About the Author:

Jason Zaretzky is Owner and Program Director of Optimal Performance Training. He specializes in athletic performance enhancement, corrective exercise, and physique alteration. Jason is committed to optimizing your results. He has helped a countless number of individuals and athletes look, feel, and perform at optimal levels, through his system of scientific results oriented programming.

Jason Zaretzky is Rockland County's go to fat loss expert and owner of Optimal Performance Training Center located in Rockland County NY. For a FREE 1-week trial to his Rockland County Bootcamps, to experience the best fat loss training in Rockland County please visit RocklandCountyBootCamps.com

For more information on the bootcamp solution, visit www.optimalfitnessexpress.com and see how a real results based bootcamp type workout is properly conducted. Jason Zaretzky has developed the fitness bootcamp antidote - the Optimal Fitness Express! The fastest, most efficient way to look, feel, and perform your best.