Rugby challenge 3 increase speed driver#
Neglecting the skill of running is like building a Formula 1 car and putting a Sunday-afternoon driver behind the wheel. Though it is a natural human movement, sprinting is a skill like any other. The final reason is that sprint work provides opportunity to learn and refine the technique required to run as fast as possible. This improves not only sprinting speed but all other fast, powerful actions on the pitch like rucking, tackling, mauling and changing direction. Sprint work is without question the fastest, highest force training activity we are capable of performing which makes it the most effective tool we have for increasing the power of our “battery”. The higher the forces and speeds we expose the CNS to, the more it improves its power output. The CNS is the source of all power in sporting movement, like a battery in an electric car. Well, there is nothing more sprinting specific than sprinting itself! Sprinting provides a fantastic opportunity to train the muscle and strength qualities needed to run fast.Īn additional reason for the inclusion of sprint work in the speed training programme is the powerful effect it exerts on the central nervous system (CNS). The principle of specificity tells us that the more closely a training activity resembles a sporting action in its movement and force characteristics, the greater the expected performance improvement on the field.
The most obvious of these is specificity. There are a number of reasons why sprint work is an absolute necessity for getting fast. This may seem redundant but if you want to get better at sprinting, you must sprint. A more detailed breakdown of these concepts can be found on my website, Rugby Strength Coach. How you train is just as important as what you train. But remember that the devil is in the detail. They represent the big building blocks – without them you’ll never fulfil your speed potential. In the list below I am going to share with you the three key training activities that need to be present within a rugby speed training programme.
As an added bonus you can also expect to see an improvement in gym strength (as speed presents a powerful stimulus to the central nervous system which governs strength) and your on-field endurance (by reducing the speed of the game relative to your maximum running speed). If however you can train sprinting and acceleration speed in a deliberate manner with high quality methods, you can expect to see drastic improvement on the pitch and fewer muscle strains and tears. This counts even more when you consider that the vast majority of hamstring, calf and quadricep strains and tears on the field occur during sprinting. These two factors – the importance of speed, and its resistance to improvement – mean that the price of inaccuracy in speed training is a costly one. A gain in speed of a few percent per year is high-five time. With a good programme and several years of dedication is it possible to double your strength, or make similar improvements in some measures of aerobic fitness. Unfortunately speed is also the hardest ability of all to develop through training (and coincidentally the least well understood by players and coaches). To me it’s clear: if you want to be a great player, you have to be fast. The biggest difference I’ve noticed between coaching international players and regular pros is their speed.
There are strong players at every level of rugby.
Strength may get all the accolades but in my experience speed is the true physical ability that separates great players from average players.Ī coach I’m fond of quoting frequently says “getting strong is like falling out a boat and hitting water”, and he is right. If you remember one thing about this article make it this: speed is the most important physical quality you need to succeed in rugby.