Here are a few considerations for Ball Sport Athlete Speed Development:
“Ball sport athletes are either:
-Being dictated by an opposition/boundary.
-Having to change directions before reaching top speed.
-Sprinting after or with a ball/stick in their hands.
Your track mechanics videos look cute on IG, but that stuff doesn’t transfer to sport.”
-Ray Zingler on X
I love track.
Especially at the highest levels.
To witness the speed capabilities of some of the world’s most elite athletes is a spectacle I will watch 100 times out of 100.
As a Strength & Speed coach who knows that speed is the name of the game in my predominant realm (field, court, pool, sport performance) I take most of my speed training principles from the track world.
But there is a caveat.
Track speed and Traditional sport speed are two ENTIRLEY different things.
Sure, there is some carryover, but when you look at the two types of sport side by side, you can quickly distinguish the stark differences between the two.
What defenders do you have to worry about in track? None.
Do you know what would happen if you didn’t worry about defenders in football?
A Middle Linebacker would separate your head from your neck.
So there’s one difference. A defense/opposition.
Also, in track, you know the end point. It’s a fixed distance.
The same cannot be said about traditional sport where a ‘play’ can last 2 seconds or 90 seconds. You must adapt. All the time.
And because traditional sports largely take place in a “box” (despite being played on large surfaces) you have to be willing and able to change directions rapidly, long before you reach top speeds in most cases.
Again, not the case in track.
Lastly, (and I could go on until Christmas) Have you ever seen a track athlete running in a meet with a lacrosse stick in her hands?
How about a Tennis racquet?
Was Usain Bolt dribbling a soccer ball when he broke the 100m World Record?
Was Michael Johnson carrying a football with 3 points of contact?
Of course not.
So, while Track is most definitely a great sport and valuable to take principles from to apply to team sport, spending a bunch of time developing track mechanics, when ball sport athletes are going to revert back almost ALWAYS to normal motor patterns is a grand misuse of time.
Stop beating the hell out of knee up, toe up and arm swing drills.
Spend more time making micro changes & maximizing the output potential of their natural tendencies.
You’ll get a lot further, bro.
