increasing speed and agility

jamesh23 · 10-24-2009, 09:44 PM

So I couldnt play football this year due to grades, my fault, I ran a 5.2 40 yard dash and played LG, I am a senior this year and really missed football, so I wanna play for a small college, its a new d3 school that is accepting a lot of people, most of their running backs are 5'8" 165-180lbs, I am 5'9" 190lbs right now and run a 5.2, I have always wanted to play RB and am hard to take down and good at running the ball, I just need to be faster, So what can I do to drop .4 seconds off my forty? and increase my leg strength and stuff? id like to play FB or RB

Acal83 · 10-24-2009, 10:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jamesh23

So I couldnt play football this year due to grades, my fault, I ran a 5.2 40 yard dash and played LG, I am a senior this year and really missed football, so I wanna play for a small college, its a new d3 school that is accepting a lot of people, most of their running backs are 5'8" 165-180lbs, I am 5'9" 190lbs right now and run a 5.2, I have always wanted to play RB and am hard to take down and good at running the ball, I just need to be faster, So what can I do to drop .4 seconds off my forty? and increase my leg strength and stuff? id like to play FB or RB

you need to find someone to help you one on one with your running form. A 5.2 40 can most likely be helped with some technique work.

jamesh23 · 10-24-2009, 10:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acal83

you need to find someone to help you one on one with your running form. A 5.2 40 can most likely be helped with some technique work.

ya I heard you could take quite a bit off with just form, im mostly lookin for explosiveness and stuff, I'd wanna play FB or RB. do you know of any drills?

Quii · 10-26-2009, 05:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acal83

you need to find someone to help you one on one with your running form. A 5.2 40 can most likely be helped with some technique work.

Okay, Yes this could help you dramatically. Also there's sprinting techniques that could help you. I played OT. My 40 was 5.0 w/o pads now i run a 4.6-4.7. The techniques are fairly hard/simple if that totally makes sense. Ask coach or something. Explosion is what needs to be worked on. Your start has to be right. Form, Stride, and Burst. I could show you on video if you need me to. To help you.

W.Chapman · 10-26-2009, 11:53 AM

Also look into plyometrics, That will help as well

decafchicken · 10-26-2009, 02:23 PM

lots of plyos and form work. you can work on your form by sprinting up hills, it forces you naturally to run with your knees high and on the balls of feet.

TomMutaffis · 10-26-2009, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jamesh23

So I couldnt play football this year due to grades, my fault, I ran a 5.2 40 yard dash and played LG, I am a senior this year and really missed football, so I wanna play for a small college, its a new d3 school that is accepting a lot of people, most of their running backs are 5'8" 165-180lbs, I am 5'9" 190lbs right now and run a 5.2, I have always wanted to play RB and am hard to take down and good at running the ball, I just need to be faster, So what can I do to drop .4 seconds off my forty? and increase my leg strength and stuff? id like to play FB or RB

Your best bet is a dual-focus program because you will need to build strength in order to build speed.

Judging from your stats I would say that you definitely want to start hitting the gym hard and squatting frequently. Make sure that you have good technique and if you don't know how to squat properly then do box squats - they are much safer. You can also do trap bar deadlifts and sled drags to build leg power. If you can bring your squat from 1.5X bodyweight to 2X bodyweight then you will have the leg power needed to focus more on speed work.

For speed training you will definitely want to work on technique, and also incorporate some type of sprinting workouts to get better with your starts and also to build your conditioning. If there is any way for you to attend a speed camp or to train with a qualified coach this is going to be your best bet. Plyometrics can also be a good tool for building explosiveness and speed.

Depending on your body composition it may be in your best interest to drop some bodyfat as well, which will most likely come naturally through the increased training intensity.

Regarding supplements I would take creatine and utilize protein shakes to meet your daily requirement and increase recovery. Both are safe and effective. If you choose to you can also add in caffeine or other stimulants pre-workout but remember that many of those products are banned from NCAA athletics.

Ideally you will need to be in the 4.7-4.8 range to even be considered, even at the smaller schools. Perhaps set a goal for 6 weeks from now to bring yourself to the 5.0 range and then you can re-evaluate your training from there. With 10 months of training until the season starts you can definitely make some drastic improvements.

floridianwill · 10-26-2009, 04:40 PM

Not to hi-jack the thread. But how many days a week is good for 40 yrd speed training. Cause I read in another thread that you should only work your legs about 3 times a week, with long breaks during your workout otherwise your muscles will compensate for the endurance and recruit slow twitch muscles, which makes you slower, thats what I understood. I also read your total running per week with all your workouts shouldnt exceed 900m. So is it better to work out less for speed?

TwiceTheSpeed · 10-28-2009, 01:28 PM

You can start by video taping yourself and either posting on a forum like this one, or critiquing it compared to proper running techniques you can look up. As far as gaining strength goes, I would suggest plyo jumps and acceleration and decelleration drills to help you gain speed and make better cuts in open field.

tombingeman · 10-29-2009, 09:03 PM

Body positioning and Plyometrics are the key to success... I used Jumpsoles and did their workout and went from barely dunking a volleyball to EASILY dunking a basketball two handed and beyond. I also never tested my 40 time but my speed ENORMOUSLY improved!!! Just follow the workout they give you, they also show you what to do in regards to weight lifting while doing plyometrics.

Also Watch: J.R. Redmond Shows You How to Run a Fast 40 Yard Dash... On youtube... It will really help you with the 40 yard dash body positioning.

God Bless.