All of our workout programs develop balance, acceleration, and ultimately power in motion increasing performance on the field.   Sports specific exercises target explosive impulses where they are most needed in any specific sport.   Performing these exercises requires attention to detail and adherence to technique.  The intent is developing excellent technique and acquiring the feel of the impulse (the sweet spot).   The development of technique is a highly individualized task which depends on close supervision between an experienced coach and each athlete. 
 
Defining the appropriate exercise for each sport activity is most important and designing specific exercises requires appropriate motion knowledge for the sport in question.  Regardless of the exercise, balance and equilibrium is more important than brute force.   Exercise for each set should be short in duration (10 ~ 15 seconds) with the athlete making subtle adjustments to stance, posture and head position with each repetition until just the right feel is acquired.   The power level initially should be 50% ~75% allowing for acquiring the right feel which can take several reps to find (5~15 reps or so).  Once feel is acquired, up the power gradually while maintaining technique for 10 to 20 additional reps.
 
These exercises can be either Tonic or Phasic, depending on the type of impulse in development.    The repetitions per second are determined by the specific activity trained.  With each exercise the stance is appropriate for each specific sport.  The following are a few examples:

Baseball Throwing >This exercise is performed with the tonic technique.  Initial execution is done with the hip, the shoulder following and then the elbow with the whip of the forearm. The head (targeting) is relatively still with the core rotating on the spine.  Performed properly, peak internal rotation forces are in the 100 ~150 foot pound range per rep.  This is performed typically with no weight on the sled.

Ball Release

Again the action is initiated by the hip with the shoulder following and then the elbow and external rotation of the shoulder on the forearm.  The strap is used here to place the forces on the extensors of the forearm.  The head (targeting) is relatively still with the core rotating on the spine.

Pictured is the tonic technique with peak external rotation forces in the 50 ~ 90 pound range per rep with no weight on the sled.

Ball Strike
This exercise is performed with the phasic technique.  Initial execution is done with the hip, arms following as the core rotates and then the wrists snap popping the rope at the position of ball contact.  The head (targeting) is relatively still with the core rotating on the spine.  Peak striking forces are in the 150 ~ 200 pound range per rep with no weight on the sled.

Football Hitting-

The exercise at right is performed with the tonic technique. The core of the body is floating in front of the feet at approximately 45 degrees.  The head is relatively stable and targeting with good back posture.  The athlete must produce sufficient force per rep to maintain the float by driving with the legs while extending the arms and protracting his scaps.  Peak forces per rep are in the 200 ~ 250 pound range with 7.5 pounds on the sled at the hands.

These exercises are performed with a Dual Impulse Inertial Exercise Training system.

The exercise at left is similar to the one above and performed with the Phasic technique.  Note, in the striking position, the hair lifting off the head.  Peak forces generated with this technique are in the 400 ~ 500 pound range per rep at the hands with 5 pounds on the sled.  Energy must come from the core to the feet and back through the core to the arms in order to generate these highly explosive acceleration forces at the very last instant.
The 7.5 pound sled weight is selected here as this weight provides for the maximum torque production in the body.  These exercises are much easier with heavier weight but will not produce the forces described here.

Golf Down Swing -

From the top position of the back swing perform the initial down swing with hip rotation having the core and arms moving with the hip.  With weight distribution primarily on the balls of the feet; perform core rotation about the spine with the head still and targeting the ball location.  A slight hyperextension of the hip will help with this motion.  During the back swing portion of this exercise open up the hips in rotation and allow the inertia of the sled to give a good stretch without losing head position and back posture.  This exercise is depicted with 7.5 pounds on the sled with peak forces in the 60 ~ 80 pound range per rep at the hands.

Golf Ball Strike
This exercise is done entirely with core rotation.   It is done with the phasic technique with no weight on the sled.  Hip rotation is done such that weight transfer goes from the training foot to the leading foot where just at the ball contact position weight is evenly distributed between both feet.  Keeping the head still and on target is most important in this drill as the shoulders and arms rotate with the trunk. The strike is done with the core and not the arms.   At the follow through position release tension on the rope by quickly returning to the initiation position for the next rep and strike.  Peak force per rep at the hands is in the 200 pound range.

Discussion: Training the athlete to create the high forces mentioned in all the above exercises is done through technique.   These forces are created by training the body to exert high energy levels reflexively in time periods of 30 thousands of a second and less. The human mind cannot consciously control the body in these time frames. This is why looking for the feel of motion (the impulse) is important.  In developing the motion technique for the impulse the athlete should not work to fatigue (sets should be short in duration). Perform enough excellent technique reps to remember the feel so that after some rest the exercise can be revisited with the same quality of work. In essence you are burning quality motion into the athlete’s neurological memory.  Adhering to the principles of STAR and designing exercises which focus on the impulse points of athleticism will pay off in competition.  

The athlete may not master proper technique in the first few sessions.  Adding weight to the sled and performing the exercise in slow motion can enhance the learning curve.   As technique is developed reduce the weight gradually until the athlete finds the groove.   If the athlete tries to produce these forces with mind control he will not be powerful.  Performance in a smooth graceful balanced flow will yield positive results and remarkable power.

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