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Knee Protection- A Season Long Activity

By Aaron Thigpen

November, 2021

Performance Coach, Gamespeed

One of the most devastating injury’s an athlete can have is a knee injury. However, thanks to advances in medical science  what once was  career ending, most athletes now fully recover from. In addition to medical advances the strides made in performance training have helped to reduce the severity and number of knee injuries. Unfortunately, most training programs don’t apply this valuable knowledge into the daily regiments of athletes. Most are used post injury during rehab or as pre season prep work. Protecting your knees is a regular season long activity. Try supplementing your routines with some of these valuable exercises.

  • Lower leg/ foot exercises – Ankle walks, calf raises and the like provide the foot strength and ankle mobility that can absorb the forces that travel up the kinetic chain that can cause a knee injury.
  • Cutting, jumping exercises – Simple two footed and single footed jumping, cutting, starting, decelerating and stopping can provide the critical foot to ground contact awareness (proprioceptive) that can teach athletes how to move their bodies safely.
  • Stability exercises – Single and two footed exercises on unstable or uneven surfaces can strengthen the kinetic chains response to unpredictable movements.

Pepper […]

Knee Protection- A Season Long Activity2021-11-10T13:23:24-08:00

Duiker Jr Warriors – Exercise Videos

Walking Drills Ages 6-8 Ages 8-12 Ages 12-14 Image Video
Knee to Chest x x x https://youtu.be/XTZdwOySJX4
Knee to Shoulder x x x Same as above
Leg Kick x x x Same as above
Hip Twist x x x Same as above
Heel Grab x x x https://youtu.be/Uj2jviSYpkI
Stork – Toe Touch x x x https://youtu.be/_xB6pcTNEhI
Side Shuffle x x x https://youtu.be/WYG0n2YiB7k
Carioca x x x
Mobility Age 6-8 Age 8-12 Age 12-14 Image Video
Fwd Lunge- A,B,C x x x https://youtu.be/iSNHz_P6DcI
Backward Lunge- A, B, […]
Duiker Jr Warriors – Exercise Videos2021-10-30T12:33:43-07:00

Water Work Outs – Come On In the Water’s Fine

October 2021

By Aaron Thigpen, Gamespeed

You gotta be wondering, I play a land based sport, why would he be talking about pool workouts? Well pool workouts are valuable to all athletes.  For most athletes, you don’t even need to have an Olympic size pool. There are a variety of exercises that can be performed to give you the perfect workout for your sport.

Benefits of Pool Workouts

  • General overall conditioning – aerobic, anaerobic, strength.
  • Non weight bearing in nature reduces wear and tear on joints.
  • Water provides enough resistance for motor learning and patterning for those recovering from injury.
  • Builds connective tissue strength.
  • Active recovery & regeneration.
  • Variety- Can use implements such as dumbbells, resistance cords, medicine ball, kettlebells
  • Can apply some sport specific movements. (swinging a bat, throwing, dribbling).

Try this shallow water workout

Three minute easy swim mixed strokes or dog paddle (warmup)

3-4 Sets of:

Rest 30-60 sec between exercises and 2-3 min between sets.

30 sec Hi Knee Run

20 x Alt Arm Raise Side/Front

20 x Tuck Jump

30 sec Wall scissor kick

40 x Running Arm Swing

20 x Split Jumps

Three minute easy swim mixed strokes or dog paddle (warm down)

Not just for  H2O athletes, mix in some water workouts weekly to […]

Water Work Outs – Come On In the Water’s Fine2021-12-17T13:42:40-08:00

Want to get Fast? Jump to It with Plyometrics

Want to get Fast? Jump to It with Plyometrics

By Aaron Thigpen, Gamespeed Sports, August 2021

In an athletes pursuit of speed the one thing that brings the “speed -power” equation together is plyometrics (Plyo’s). Plyos can be defined as “exercise involving repeated rapid stretching and contracting of muscles (as by jumping and rebounding) to increase muscle power”. I encourage coaches to add these to an athletes training regiment. Below is a brief progression of how to introduce plyometrics to young athletes.

Jumps/Hops: Provide ability for vertical and horizontal projection. Two footed hops are the most basic form. When working with young athletes be sure to monitor proper take off and landing technique.  They require no equipment but coaches can advance athletes to jump over and onto obstacles such as cones or boxes. Once there is proficiency athletes should move onto single footed jumps and hops.

Skipping: Adds the aspect of rhythm and coordination and starts to mimic the running action. A  simple progression might be no arm skipping, arm drive skipping or skipping in place as well as directional skipping. Changes in height (amplitude) can teach athletes how to apply force to the ground and effect propulsion.

Bounding: In its simplist definition […]

Want to get Fast? Jump to It with Plyometrics2021-08-07T13:47:37-07:00

5 Reasons to Consider A Summer Lifting Program

Okay summers here. Time for sun, fun and weights? Yes I said weights. Summer is an optimum time to make strength gains. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking “bulking up”.  I mean developing and improving relative “strength to body weight ratio”. The type of strength work that can translate into power and explosiveness when you get back on the court or field.

Here’s some good reasons why:

More Available Training Hours – With no school you may have a few more available  hours to schedule gym time.  Now you can take your time and not just squeeze it in but quality time. Also with more time comes more consistency which is the foundation for developing strength.

Replenish Strength Stores– Summer is a great time to replenish strength stores that are depleted from the rigors of the past competitive season. Reload!

Opportunity to Correct Imbalances – Summer provides an opportunity to get the body centered. Playing sports creates imbalances that need to be corrected in the off season. For those whose competitive seasons were more demanding you can recover from injuries and trauma and reset the body  for the next season.

Do Things The Right Way – Time to cross the T’s and dot […]

5 Reasons to Consider A Summer Lifting Program2023-06-01T10:44:14-07:00

The “Training Effect” – How long does it take?

“The Training Effect”- How long does it take?

By Aaron Thigpen, May 2020 

How long will it take me to get faster? how long will it take me to get stronger? The most common questions asked by parents and athletes.  There are a lot of factors that can determine that time frame. However, there must be a clear understanding of the training process so as to have the right expectations and most importantly adherence to the training program.

Understanding the training process, I break it down into these FIVE phases:

  • Initial learning– Learning the exercises, the athletes introduction from a physical, technical and mental standpoint.
  • Early Physical Adaptation – The process of progressing through the workout routines, the athlete’s physical ability to complete the training, the ramping up. Initially  high levels of soreness, completing partial reps or sets of the activity.
  • Major Adaptation – The program is in full flight, adjustments where intensity and volume are modulated for desired effect, body’s training IQ goes up.
  • Application – Transferring the attributes of the training to sport specific activities. (throwing harder, running faster)
  • Performance – Executing the attributes on command under pressure in a competitive setting.

You may notice the absence of a time […]

The “Training Effect” – How long does it take?2021-05-21T11:30:40-07:00

The Awkward Athlete

THE AWKWARD ATHLETE
by Aaron Thigpen, Gamespeed Sports
May 2021
A few years ago I was approached by two parents. They had a thirteen year old son who had dreams of playing varsity baseball. They were actually apologetic about their sons athletic abilities. I asked them to bring him in for an Evaluation. Turns out they were right. The lanky, awkward kid was uncoordinated, clumsy and off balance in every thing he did. The most basic movements were a struggle and he looked on the verge of injury in most cases.
After the evaluation I informed them of my thoughts and suggested they bring him in twice a week, commit fully to the process and lets see where it goes over the next four years.
Fast forward four years later, my baby giraffe had become a strapping 6ft 200lb athlete. I had the joy of watching this young man pitch a complete game in the finals of the NCS Championships (90mph fastball) and hit the game winning RBI off the center field wall (400ft) of the Oakland A’s stadium.
My baby giraffe […]
The Awkward Athlete2021-05-13T11:18:01-07:00

Speed Development- Hill Running, for more than the obvious reasons.

By Aaron Thigpen, Gamespeed

April 2021

Hills are a tremendous way of developing speed. Other than the obvious strength component, there are other important reasons athletes should have hills in their training program.

Hill running is the cheapest form of resistance training. Unlike sleds, bands, or parachutes there’s….No purchase required!

Hills come in a variety of grades ie..resistance levels.  Athletes can use “steep” hills for power oriented runs, moderate hills for strength development and shallow hills for speed endurance. If you run “downgrade” and you have a speed assistance activity.

Hills come in a variety of surfaces- asphalt, dirt, grass, sand. Different surfaces introduce a different dynamic to challenge or even accommodate an athletes needs.

Hill running develops leg strength and power….simple.

Hill running teaches the ability to produce horizontal force.  Hill running provides the athlete with real-time feedback of their movements and how they  are producing force, this teaches efficiency.

Hills slow the athlete down so that sprint coordination can take place. It provides enough resistance to ‘mute” an athletes “noisy” movements so they can organize those movements into the proper sequences for proper speed mechanics.

Find a hill, a great change of pace in your speed development program and they have a lot to offer. […]

Speed Development- Hill Running, for more than the obvious reasons.2021-05-11T12:12:49-07:00

Single Leg Deceleration

Single & Double Legged Deceleration Exercises

In field and court sports the ability to decelerate is crucial to play at the highest levels.  Starting, stopping, speeding up and slowing down, cutting and jumping all require acute awareness and body control. The legs must be able to execute singular and multiple movements in split seconds. This requires great strength. All athletes should have a training component that addresses it.

When performing the various exercises incorporate:

  • Forward
  • Backward
  • Lateral
  • Elevation changes
  • Angle changes
  • Variations in speed

Some examples include;

  • Pistols
  • Box jumps (up)
  • Depth Jumps (down)
  • Speed Skaters
  • Single and Double leg multi directional hopping
Single Leg Deceleration2021-04-14T13:19:23-07:00

Ankle/Foot Mobility Drills

Ankle/Foot Mobility Drills

by Aaron Thigpen, Gamespeed March 2021

  • Ankle mobility and strength can prevent injuries to joints higher up the kinetic chain like the knees and hips.
  • Heel walks stretch & strengthen the bottom of the foot, achilles and calves.
  • Edge Walks work the exterior lateral aspects of the foot and lower leg.
  • Front-Crossover Foot Rolls work a greater surface area of the foot to strengthen it.
  • Want to protect your knees and hips? Start with healthy feet and ankles.
Ankle/Foot Mobility Drills2021-03-26T13:30:53-07:00
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