Tag: Cal Dietz

Developing Explosive Power

Emily and I just got back from an awesome road trip out west, where we spent Canada Day in Vancouver, drove down to Seattle, out to Cannon Beach, and then over to Portland. I left my laptop charger at home, which was a blessing in disguise! It was great to get away for 8 days and recharge a bit.

Right before we left, I wrote a post digging into the “Bilateral Deficit” idea a bit, and explaining some of the discrepancies we see between unilateral and bilateral lifts and how they may or may not be explained through a neural lens. This has a lot of application into how we design programs on a daily basis, so if you missed it be sure to check it out here: Understanding the Bilateral Deficit

One of the training goals a lot of players have for their off-season training is to improve their explosive power and speed. I hear words like “quicker first step” a lot. As I’ve mentioned in the past, there is A LOT of considerations in how to improve an on-ice ability such as acceleration, speed, or shooting power. From an off-ice perspective, understanding the underlying energy systems and physical qualities (e.g. strength, mobility, stability, etc.) that enable a player to develop or express a certain skill is important. We’re at a point in our off-season programs where many players have completed a couple of phases of strength work and are transitioning more into power training at various points on the high load/low velocity (think heavy hang cleans) to low load/high velocity spectrum (think med ball throws).

One method that can be effective in maintaining or continuing to improve maximum strength while also developing power is known as “contrast” training, where a heavy strength exercise is paired with a movement-specific power exercise. There are several examples of this, including:

  1. Squat -> Vertical Jump
  2. Deadlift -> Broad Jump
  3. Bench Press -> Explosive Push-Up or Med Ball Chest Pass
  4. Chin-Up -> Overhead Med Ball Slam

I talked about this concept in more detail in a previous post: Post-Activation Potentiation

Another application of this concept is known as “French Contrast Training”, which is a method I first learned about from University of Minnesota Strength & Conditioning Coach Cal Dietz. With this method, you pair 4 exercises, all performed continuously, followed by a 3-5 minute break. The exercises should be performed in this order:

  1. Compound Exercise: 1-3 reps at 80-90% load
  2. Plyometric: 3-5 reps
  3. Weighted Explosive Exercise: 3-5 reps
  4. Accelerated/Unloaded Plyometric: 4-6 reps

We’re currently using a few variations of this method in some of our players’ programs:

Lower Body French Contrast Circuit

  1. DB Reverse Lunge (Day 1), DB RFE Split Squat (Day 2): 2-3/side
  2. Lateral Bound (Continuous): 3/side
  3. Vertimax Jump (Continuous): 5x
  4. Unloaded Squat Jump: 5x

A video from a couple Summers ago of hometown hero Johnny Gaudreau doing Unloaded Squat Jumps

Apparently this exercise also gives you silky mitts!


And just for the USA Hockey fans out there…

Upper Body French Contrast Circuit

  1. Bench Press: 2-3
  2. Explosive Push-Up: 5x
  3. DB Push Press: 5x
  4. Unloaded Explosive Push-Up: 5x

Unloaded Explosive Push-Ups being demonstrated by future Maine Black Bear Andrew Tegeler

This is only one piece of the power development puzzle, but the players that have started this type of training have enjoyed the focus on being explosive and the variety in exercise selection. While I would never recommend doing something stupid in the interest of appeasing your clientele, finding effective exercises/methods that the athletes also enjoy is ideal. In this case, the unloaded exercises are a blast for the players, and they also help improve power and contraction velocity, all good stuff if the goal is to improve quickness, speed, shooting power, etc.

In a couple days, I’m going to post a video of one of my new favorite integrative core exercises, so be sure to check back soon!

To your success,

Kevin Neeld
UltimateHockeyTraining.com

P.S. The Ultimate Hockey Training Database will be updated soon with even MORE videos. If you’re interested in getting access to over 800+ videos of hockey training exercises, check out Ultimate Hockey Training for more information on becoming an Insider.

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Top Resources/Product Reviews of 2012

Today, we’ll wrap up the “Best of 2012” series with the Top Resources/Product Reviews of 2012. If you’ve missed any of the previous articles in this series, you can check them out at the links below:

  1. Top Hockey Training and Development Posts of 2012
  2. Top Performance Training and Injury Prevention Posts of 2012
  3. Top Hockey Nutrition Posts of 2012
  4. Top Hockey Training Videos of 2012

Without futher adieu…

  1. Body By Boyle Online from Michael Boyle and MBSC
  2. Functional Strength Coach 4 (Also see: Functional Strength Coach 4 Videos) from Michael Boyle
  3. BioForce HRV from Joel Jamieson
  4. Zeo Sleep Manager
  5. Strength in Motion DVDs from Patrick Ward, Joel Jamieson, and Charlie Weingroff
  6. Triphasic Training from Cal Dietz
  7. Elite Training Mentorship from Eric Cressey, Mike Robertson, Dave Schmitz and BJ Gaddour
  8. Exercises for the Landmine from Shawn Windle
  9. Slideboard Training for Hockey and Kettlebell Lifting for Hockey from Sean Skahan
  10. Earthing Products
  11. Bioletics

That’s a wrap for the “Best of 2012” series. Thanks again for your continued support! http://www.kevinneeld.com/2012/recovery-week-monitoring-nutrient-and-hormone-status

To your success,

Kevin Neeld
UltimateHockeyTraining.com

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Improving Shot Power Through Rotational Power Training

As has been the theme this Summer, the last several weeks have been exceptionally busy. I was in Blaine, MN for 10 days with the US Women’s National Team, which was an awesome experience. Anthony Donskov and Sarah Cahill were out there with me, both of which are awesome coaches that I always learn a lot from. The three of us have become affectionately known as “The Unit”. While I was out there, Sarah and I had an opportunity to meet and talk shop with Mike T Nelson and Cal Dietz (separately), which was great. I binge read Cal’s 350+ page book over the weekend so I’ll share some of the things I learned in the near future.

The Unit Locker

As a quick aside, last night I confirmed that I’ll be speaking at the USA Hockey Level 4 Clinic in New Jersey in a couple weeks. Let me know if you’ll be there!

Last night I also worked with David Lasnier to test the U-18 team we work with. It was interesting to see how all of their hard work paid off over the Summer. The team tested exceptionally well, but some of the highlights included the goalie knocking out 17 chin-ups (perfect form; team average was over 10), and one of the players doing DB Reverse Lunges w/ 90lb dumbbells for 20 on each leg, at which point I stopped him. Unfortunately, 90s were the heaviest dumbbells we had at the rink so that was where the majority of the team rep-tested (intended to do a 5-RM). Overall I was really impressed, and am looking forward to how the two U-16 teams do over the next couple of weeks and how everyone does with the few on-ice tests we’ll be doing soon.

Rotational Power Training

I’ve written in the past about the role that off-ice rotational power development plays in improving shooting power and other aspects of hockey performance. Today I just wanted to post a video of one of my favorite exercises: Side Standing Rotational Med Ball Shotput with Rapid Cross-Under and Partner Pass

There’s a lot to take in with this, but the idea is that it:

  1. Integrates a dynamic start and change in foot position
  2. Drives rotational power from the ground-up, very similar to the strategy most commonly used on the ice
  3. Utilizes rotational hip torque to generate power
  4. Integrates a rapid adjustment in eye position, both to track the ball into the hands, and to turn to pick a spot on the wall to throw the ball at (we coach our players to pick a spot and throw the ball through that spot…quickly) which happens constantly on the ice

Tough day to be the wall
This is a great exercise for a lot of reasons, but it’s also relatively simple to teach. I get questions a lot from people running youth off-ice programs that don’t have a lot of equipment or time; I think this is a good fit for those situations (starting without the foot movement and without the partner toss). That said, we wrap up our rotational med ball work at the end of the off-season and almost never come back to it until the end of the season because the players undergo so much rotational stress on the ice.

Aside from being a beast, I chose to gave Eric some press here to return the favor, as I found out early this week that my name ended up in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in an interview he did about his role with the Penguins next season.

Now he can tell his friends that he was featured at KevinNeeld.com, which is basically the same thing (no?).

Give this exercise a try and please post any questions you have about how or when to do it below!

To your success,

Kevin Neeld

P.S. Get an inside look at how I design year-round comprehensive hockey training programs here: Ultimate Hockey Training

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Programming for an Advanced Hockey Athlete

At the end of last week I got an email from Cal Dietz, the Strength and Conditioning Coach of the University of Minnesota Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey Teams (among other sports), with several sample programs that fit within his “Triphasic Training” paradigm. I met Cal in person for the first time at the BSMPG seminar a couple years back. Aside from Cal being a great guy, I enjoy talking shop with him because he has a significantly different approach to how he tackles training program design for his athletes. I’ve learned a great deal from hearing him speak and from the conversations he and I have shared about some of his methods and the rationale for them.

Among other things, Cal taught me that it’s okay to eat raw red meat for breakfast (don’t try this at home)

When he fired over the email with a number of sample programs for an advanced level hockey player, I thought it would be a great idea to share these with you (with this permission of course). As a reminder, it’s generally not appropriate to take a program off the internet and start using it yourself without any context. Instead of taking it for face value and diving in, I’d encourage you to break down the program and see if you can infer Cal’s rationale for structuring things the way he did. In my opinion, once you understand another coach’s rationale and philosophy, it’s infinitely easier to understand how their methods fit into your paradigm appropriately.

Programming for an Advanced Hockey Athlete, 6 week Triphasic Training protocol

All Names Underlined in Blue are hyperlinked in to PDF the names on PDF’s are hyperlinked to video’s.

Click here to learn how to read sheets – http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Reading%20the%20Training%20Sheet%202012.pdf

In Block one of training The focus is Eccentric strength/withstanding force and Tissue remodeling with the heavy loaded eccentric training for two weeks to cause actin and myosin damage so the immune system cleans it out and then it gets rebuilt stronger.

Block 1 – 2 Weeks  Possible Leg Programs

The leg training for the first two weeks, Block 1 Eccentric Above 80 Triphasic Training Back Squat  is those athletes whose spine and physical fitness levels are acceptable to perform squatting 3 days a week. 95 percent of my athletes fall into this category. the second possible program during this Block is for this athletes that can’t due Spinal loading for any reason, Block 1 Eccentric Above 80 Triphasic Training Single Leg Strength. The third, possible is a little load single leg work, non of my athlete completed this because of the focus of remolding. Block 1 Eccentric below 80 Triphasic Training Single Legs Speed

Block 1 Eccentric above 80 percent, the eccentric focus, is a very intense nature,

Block 1 Eccentric Above 80 Triphasic Training Back Squat

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%201%20Eccentric%20Above%2080%20Triphasic%20Training%20Back%20Squat.pdf

The heavy Squats with 6 second eccentrics have to help

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Block 1 Eccentric Above 80 Triphasic Training Single Leg Strength

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%201%20Eccentric%20Above%2080%20Triphasic%20Training%20Single%20Leg%20Strength.pdf

———————————-

Block 1 Eccentric below 80 Triphasic Training Single Legs Speed

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%201%20Eccentric%20below%2080%20Triphasic%20Training%20Single%20Legs%20Speed.pdf

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Block 1 Eccentric Above 80 Triphasic Training upper

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%201%20Eccentric%20Above%2080%20Triphasic%20Training%20upper.pdf

Block 2 – 2 weeks

Block 2 Isometric Above 80 Back Squat

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%202%20Isometric%20Above%2080%20Back%20Squat.pdf

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Block 2 Isometric Above 80 Single leg Squat

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%202%20Isometric%20Above%2080%20Single%20leg%20Squat.pdf

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Block 2 Isometric Above 80 Upper Body

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%202%20Isometric%20Above%2080%20Upper%20Body.pdf

Block 3 – 2 Weeks

Block 3 concentric Above 80 Back Squat Heavy

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%203%20concentric%20Above%2080%20Back%20Squat%20Heavy.pdf

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Block 3 concentric Above 80 Single Leg Work

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%203%20concentric%20Above%2080%20Single%20Leg%20Work.pdf

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Block 3 concentric below 80 Single Leg Work

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%203%20concentric%20Above%2080%20Single%20Leg%20Work.pdf

—————————–

Block 3 concentric Above 80 upper body

http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%203%20concentric%20Above%2080%20upper%20body.pdf

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Block 3 concentric below 80 upper body –  http://www.xlathlete.com/xl/events/Block%203%20concentric%20below%2080%20upper%20body.pdf

To your success,

Kevin Neeld

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Random Hockey Training Thoughts

I hope you had a great weekend. This was the first weekend in a month that I’ve been home so it was nice to spend some time with Emily and relax a bit. On Saturday, Emily and I “doubled” with David Lasnier and his ladyfriend at Raw, my favorite sushi place in Philadelphia. Because of the company, David refrained from rolling all of the wasabi into one big clump and eating it whole.

I just assume this is common behavior in Canada

Last weekend I had an opportunity to attend an invite-only symposium on USA Hockey’s American Development Model. They did a great job bringing in speakers from different sports, countries, and disciplines, and I couldn’t say enough good things about the direction USA Hockey is going in general. In a few upcoming posts, I’ll explain more about the state of youth hockey, what USA Hockey is hoping to do, and what you can do to help. In the meantime, it’s been a while since I’ve done a “random thoughts” post and there are a lot of little things I want to share with you.

  1. I get questions about supplements ALL the time, usually from kids that eat like crap and have been “educated” (I use that term VERY loosely) by fellow high school students. Supplements can be very beneficial, but as an athletic society, we need to do a better job of educating our youth on the performance enhancing benefits of proper eating. I think kids view supplements as the key to performance enhancement, and eating a quality diet just as a means of improving general health, which they have no utility for as they’ve never suffered any consequences of impaired health (these things come much later in life). Often times, the best strategies for building muscle, facilitating recovery, and ensuring adequate energy to train and perform at a high intensity are found in pretty basic eating and hydration strategies that don’t require supplements.
  2. If you’re a high school player, it’s safe to say that EVERYTHING you’ve been told from your buddies about supplements is wrong.
  3. Speaking of misinformation, I’m amazed at the amount of garbage that is perpetrated as “goalie-specific training” for hockey goalies. Luckily, Maria Mountain has really stepped up as a CREDIBLE expert in this area and has done an outstanding job of providing goalies with training advice that will actually make them better. If you’re a goalie and haven’t heard of Maria, you’re spending more time pulling pucks out of your net than you should be. Check out her site here: Hockey Training Pro
  4. Citrulline Malate may be the most effective supplement you’ve never heard of. Dr. Mike Roussell first brought this to my attention at a seminar over the Summer and it’s definitely worth looking into. He recently wrote a great review of it on Joel Jamieson’s site here: Citrulline Malate – Your Key to Winning In the Last Round?
  5. Dave Ritter and Anne Davis, two presenters at USA Hockey’s ADM Symposium from the US Tennis Association recommended two NY Times articles that I had an opportunity to read through last week. They were just long enough to test my attention span, but I’m glad I worked my way through to the end. Both question current trends/thoughts in our country in the areas of athletic development and success. Check them out here: What if the Secret to Success is Failure?, How to Grow a Super-Athlete
  6. I’m always on the prowl for new resources. Recently I’ve found myself looking to these 4 guys more and more for new information or a different look at program design/implementation: Joel Jamieson’s 8 Weeks Out, Cal Dietz’s XL Athlete, Jim Snider’s Neuro Explosion, and Kyle Bangen’s Bangen Athletic Development
  7. Have you ever watched a mite or squirt hockey practice and noticed that the coach seems to be yelling more than teaching? Those kids should be having fun the ENTIRE time they’re on the ice. Similarly, the COACH should be having fun the entire time. If you don’t like kids, don’t coach them!
  8. With the popularity Facebook has enjoyed, it seems like every industry is trying to develop their own social media site. I can’t tell you how many requests I’ve received to join DIFFERENT business referral sites! Do we really need a social media site for people to say, “I think you should go train with Kevin at Endeavor”? Inevitably, the industry will overgrow before dying back down to a few reasonable, valuable resources. A local group has started a sports-driven site called UR Sports Page that I think may survive the process. Great idea to provide an exclusive site just for athletes.
  9. Core training continues to be a hot topic in athletic development and fitness crowds alike. Naturally, this means that a lot of people will fall victim (e.g. waste their time and money) to unscrupulous marketers making amazing claims about the crap they peddle. It’s great to see that Mike Robertson has spent the time and energy to put together a quality core training resource. If you haven’t been following Mike’s work over the last week, check out these posts: Should You Crunch?, Should You Crunch? Part 2, My Core Training Story. I know he has some other great posts planned for this week too. Click any of the links above to head over to his site now, read through the content and sign up for his webinar “Complete Core Training”. It’s free!

That’s a wrap for today. Check back in a couple days for a few interesting insights into the chicken and egg cycle with postural adaptations and goalie-specific performance.

To your success,

Kevin Neeld

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