I was getting a lot of push back from a couple of my football position coaches to do distance running and I needed proof as to why that was hurting the players' development and not helping as they believed. I asked the strength coach to pre-test his athletes then have them lift for six weeks with no running and follow up with posttesting to show just how much his athletes could improve their speed and agility. I knew they would get stronger and more powerful but how much faster could they get? His test scores showed as much improvement in six weeks as some athletes in other programs were making in four years. An important part of what a strength coach brings to the table is the improvement of speed and agility for football. Strength coaches would be wise to focus on building lean body mass which will improve speed and agility. I'm afraid we will see the opposite this summer. Coaches may step in and pressure strength coaches to do a lot of running, believing that is the solution to " getting them in shape " . That would be a mistake. Distance running and drills that require a lot of endurance will hamper the strength gains which means it will hamper the speed and agility development. Not only will that kill the development it will also hamper success well into the new season. Football is played with 360 degrees of movement. Much of the time, players don't even run forward. They move laterally to flow with a play or backwards to drop into coverage. It only makes sense that a conditioning program should incorporate gamelike movements so they can transfer easily to the field. Allow your focus to be on getting strong without any distance running to interfere with the recovery. Once the strength is gained it is easy to maintain. Programs that start with running will never allow athletes to build as much lean body mass. Therefore they won't have the leg strength to put force into the ground to accelerate or decelerate to change directions. Strength training is magical, and it is a great way to prepare your athletes returning from this pandemic. Recovery is a very important part of this process so you will want to eliminate all endurance activities during this time - no running except for some agility drills, no basketball no wrestling and NO MISSED workouts. The athletes need to commit to every workout. They need to be motivated so challenge them. One missed workout could alter the results. Get 100% attendance and you'll be amazed at the results! Testing can serve as a great motivator. Once the athlete begins achieving goals they will be eager to set higher goals. Coaches that make the effort to test, evaluate, and set goals, have results that can be documented. Boyd Epley was the Head Strength Coach for the University of Nebraska for 35 years with 356 wins including five national championships for football. NOMINATE AN EMERGING LEADER Coach & A.D. and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association have joined forces to transition the Sports 40 Under 40 Awards to a monthly honor in an effort to recognize emerging industry leaders year-round. Nominate a rising star today from any segment of the industry who is: * Under the age of 40 * Currently employed within the sports industry * Demonstrating strong leadership qualities * Striving to propel the industry forward through innovation and/or involvement Monthly honorees will be recognized in each print issue and on Coach & A.D.'s social media channels. NOMINATE TODAY coachad.com COACHAD.COM 11http://www.coachad.com http://www.COACHAD.COM