A substantial body of literature has focused on weightlifting derivative lifts, primarily emphasizing the second pull phase because of its greater expression of force, velocity, and power output. The biomechanical resemblance of this phase to various athletic movements underscores the relevance of these derivatives in physical preparation across multiple sports. However, although the findings of these studies greatly enhance our understanding of their effectiveness in enhancing neuromuscular qualities, there remains a noticeable gap in the literature regarding the importance of the first pull phase, specifically within the sport of weightlifting. The aim of this review was to elucidate the relative importance of the first pull phase in snatch and clean & jerk performance and to explore the selection of specific pull derivative exercises that target the strength development of this phase of the lifts.

In this practical session from the 2015 NSCA National Conference, Jimmy Radcliffe explains how to integrate strength and speed complexes and plyometric progressions into periodic progressions. Radcliffe is well-known for authoring “Functional Training for Athletes at all Levels” and “High-Powered Plyometrics.”

Should personal trainers include the crunch exercise in an exercise program? The answer should always be, “it depends;” however, arriving at the best answer requires a process.

Jeff Connors, Assistant Athletic Director for Strength and Conditioning at East Carolina University, shares insights regarding a successful and comprehensive training program that places emphasis on speed development. Originally presented at the NSCA 2016 Coaches Conference.

When considering applying advanced methods to affect and augment maximal power output, this excerpt from Developing Power explains three key points to consider.

This article covers commonly used terminology from United States of America Weightlifting (USAW), plus it contains illustrations of the basic positions for weightlifting exercises.

For many athletes, being agile is the end goal of physical performance training. It represents their capacity to change velocity and direction in response to the actions of their opponent and the opportunities and constraints of their environment. The aim of this article was to describe the pitch-based development of agility, focusing on 60–1808 turns. This ensures all turns have the demand of deceleration, turning, and reacceleration, requiring both outside leg turns (608) and inside leg turns (1808). To enable the effective coaching of these, coaches must understand movement mechanics and thus the fundamental principles that underpin good technique. Within agility training, a detailed appreciation of how the center of mass and base of support interact to affect the direction of force is fundamental to this. This understanding and the ensuing technical models ensure athletes have the best chance of executing the task optimally and ensure coaches can effectively instruct athletes and adapt drills accordingly.

Sprinting is a key component for many individual and team sports. Therefore, to enhance sprint performance, various training methods are widely used by coaches and practitioners, including maximum sprint speed and resisted sprint training. Resisted sprinting with sled towing is a method that has recently received considerable attention from the sport science community. However, to date, no consensus exists regarding its acute and chronic effects in team sport athletes. This narrative review aimed to (a) review and analyze the mechanics of sprinting under unresisted and resisted conditions with a specific focus on team sport disciplines; (b) provide a thorough and applied discussion on the importance of considering acute and chronic effects of sled loading on technique, electromyographic activity, and force production, as well as on the role of muscle architecture and neural factors in sled training; (c) analyze the effects of increasing sled loads during acceleration and maximum velocity phases on contact and flight phases, while concomitantly examining kinetic, kinematic, and neuromuscular aspects, because all these factors affect each other and cannot be properly understood in isolation.

Acceleration and maximal velocity are two factors that are key for any position in football and can determine success in many situations out on the field. This article will review several aspects of sprint mechanics and training to enhance linear (straight-ahead) speed for football players.

From the 2021 NSCA Coaches Conference, the University of Indiana, Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach, William Alli, provides his approach to the relationship between power and skill to help coaches understand the nuances in their athletes and how they can better communicate with them to achieve their performance goals.