@keithjferrara: We follow a simple lifting out...

We follow a simple lifting outline to build strength with our athletes:

1) Olympic Lift
2) Lower + Jump
3) Upper Push + Pull
4) Needs Area
5) Core

Here’s a quick thread on how we implement our lifting program to improve strength in the weight room (continue ⬇️)

In order to build a program, we need to know where our athletes start.

We perform 1 RM testing of the following lifts:

1) Clean
2) Squat
3) Bench

1 RM testing is safe to perform with experienced athletes.

With freshman we want to be smart.

Unless they have experience, we don’t test them & get right to teaching.

The other main test we use with ALL of our athletes:

Isometric Belt Pull

Athletes can do this from day 1, whether they have experience or not.

This is a great test to measure positional strength that correlates strongly to sprinting.

The goal with testing isn’t to measure the absolute load lifted.

We want to measure the RELATIVE strength of every athletes.

Simple formula

Load lifted / Body Weight

Now that we know our starting points, let’s dive into the lift.

1. Olympic Lifts

I use these with EVERY athlete.

The 2 we use here:

1) Power Clean
2) Power Snatch

Great exercises for:

✅ Vertical force development
✅ Vertical power development
✅ Posterior chain development

Better relative Olympic lift maxes correlate HIGHLY to better speed.

1-3 reps is the main range I use with our athletes.

2a) Lower Body

The squat is king for force development in the weight room.

2 main variations we use:

1) Back Squat
2) Front Squat

We will work up to relative 1 RM’s each day doing different variations of the squat:

1) Eccentrics
2) Isometrics

These potentiate the body well for the plyometrics.

2b) Plyometric

We group our plyometrics in 3 categories:

1) Vertical
2) Horizontal
3) Non-Linear

Jumping in different planes of motion will build power & improve resiliency throughout the body.

Variation is key to keeping the body healthy.

3a) Upper Push

This is the main experience we use to develop the upper body.

We categorize our push exercises into 2 categories:

1) Vertical
2) Horizontal

My 3 favorite variations:

1) Jerks
2) Bench
3) Shoulder Press

Press HEAVY to build strength through the chest, shoulders & triceps.

1-3 reps under heavy load is where we settle in for our pressing reps.

3b) Upper Pull

For every push we do, we also do a pull.

Same categories as the pushing exercises:

1) Vertical
2) Horizontal

Our favorite variations here:

1) Chin-Ups
2) Pull-Ups
3) Lat Pulldown
4) Rowing Variations

Heavy load here as well in the 3-5 rep range.

4. Needs Area

These are key areas to target for the holistic development of the athlete:

1) Hamstrings
2) Single leg
3) Lower Back
4) Calf (gastroc & soleus)

Some of our favorite variations:

1) RDL
2) Step Ups
3) Split Squats
4) Back Extensions
5) Seated Calf Raise

Lift these with heavy loads as well.

5. Core

We categorize our core into 3 main categories:

1) Anti-Extension
2) Anti-Rotation
3) Carries

Favorite variations:

1) KB Drags
2) Paloff Press
3) Farmers Walks

This is a great way to build strength throughout the core in addition to compound lifts, sprints & jumps.

TL;DR

5 Tier Lifting Outline To Build Strength

1) Olympic Lifts
2) Lower Body + Plyometrics
3) Upper Body Push + Pull
4) Needs Area
5) Core

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