Some History

The speed sled is such a great tool, yet very few people take advantage of all it has to offer.  With a little creativity and some “outside the box” thinking, coaches and athletes can experience a completely new world full of great training opportunity.

 

I was introduced to the idea of using the sled by the guys at Westside Barbell in the late 90’s.  I am not sure where the idea originated, but they said that they were having a lot of success using it. 

 

Shortly thereafter I started using it as a recovery tool.  I would put it in a day or two after a heavy workout to get increased vascular activity in the fatigued muscles.  I started to notice that my recover rate was increased and I was getting in some valuable GPP to boot.

 

It took me some time to narrow down what was going on.  At first, I questioned whether it would push me over the edge since I was already training 4 days a week.  Two of those days were dedicated to max-effort training, which are not exactly the easiest workouts you can do.  The other two day were dedicated to speed strength, and bringing up the weak links.  Although speed strength days use lighter poundage, the neurological strain was still substantial. 

 

I further questioned if the fact that I was a clean lifter would cause problems with the added work.  The body can only recover from so much so quickly when not living through better chemistry.  Would this break me down even further, would I get weaker, would I get injured?

 

To my surprise none of these things happened.  I made greater gains than ever before and I felt better.  My shoulders felt better and I noticed an increase in my GPP.

 

Some Theories

I think the magic of the sled is its unique properties. 

 

When an individual trains with weights, they have to fight the vertical effects of gravity.  Gravity makes that 10-pound dumbbell weigh 10 lbs, and it is constantly trying to pull that thing down in a straight line to the ground. 

 

However, with the sled, its less about the vertical effects of gravity and more about horizontal and rotation loading.  These forces are very similar to many of the forces that we see in sport.

 

There is absolute freedom of movement.  When training with the sled, you have total control of movement. 

 

• You can vary the movement pattern rep-to-rep, set-to-set, or even within each movement. 
• You can vary the load of the movement just by increasing or decreasing the speed. 
• You can combine extremely explosive movements with slower more controlled movements, without changing implements or loads. 
• You can perform exact movements of sport, such as throwing, kicking, punching, and, swinging. 
• You can perform abdominal movements, squatting, lunging, pressing, twisting, or any other configuration you can think of.

 

Perhaps the most unique property of the sled is that you can eliminate the eccentric loading properties of the movement. 

 

Numerous studies have indicated that it is the eccentric portion of the movement that causes the majority of muscle damage and soreness.  As eccentrics potentiate the possibility of fibril damage, activities using loaded eccentrics may not serve as the most optimal means of recovery. 

 

The sled however, allows you to perform concentrics only under a load.  This provides a means to directly affect specific tissues by increasing tissue temperature thus increasing pliability and vascular flow without the potential damaging effects of loaded eccentric contractions.  This makes sled training an invaluable tool for recovery work and rehabilitation.

 

For The Throwing Athlete

Noticing the value of sled training for myself got me thinking about the many potential applications it could have for other athletes.

 

At the time (2000 if memory serves), I had just started working with the Rose Hulman baseball team.  They had dealt with an unusually high number of shoulder injuries the season before I started, and were looking for some answers.  I thought that this type of training might prove to be an extremely valuable asset for them. 

 

That following season served to be a good test for the program.  They had a long hard schedule, yet manage to have nothing more than a few sore shoulders.  I don’t claim that training with the sled was the sole reason for this remarkable change, but I believe that it had a large impact.

 

The Set Up

Attach a ten-foot rope with a loop tied on its free end (or use a light chain with a large adjustable link attached to its distal end).  Take a second rope and tie a loop at each end that you can use for handles.  Run the second rope through the loop tied on the free end of the sled rope (or chain.).  The rope with the handles should slide back and forth freely.

 

The Exercises

Here are some basic exercises I utilized during their program.  I want to note that this is not the entire list.  However, it will provide you with a good start.

 

 

Movements A-D: I-Y-T-A

All four of these exercises have the same starting position.  Begin with your arms raised to the front at shoulder width.  Walk back until the slack is removed from the towline.  You can continue to either walk backwards or stop prior to the arm movement. Once the towline is tight, you can perform one of the above movements, which terminate in either an I Y T or A position.  Walk back until the ropes are tight again and perform another repetition of the chosen exercise.

                                 

Movement E: Lunge and Twist

Hold the rope to your side with both hands and walk forward until the slack is gone.  Lunge forward, dragging the sled, and twist to the front.  Stand up and repeat on the same side.  Perform a given number of reps and switch sides.

 

Movement F: Lunge and Press

Hold a handle in each hand and walk forward until the slack is removed from the towline.  Lunge forward, dragging the sled, and press to full extension. Stand up and repeat lunging on the opposite leg.

 

Movement G: Lateral Step and Twist

Facing laterally, hold the towrope with both hands on the sled side of the body.  Laterally shuffle until the slack is gone.  Perform a full twist.  Repeat.

 

Movement H: Forward Twist

Same as Lateral Step and Twist except you face forward.

 

 

Movement I: Front Raise

Hold a handle in each hand and walk forward until the slack is removed from the towline.  Perform a standard front raise motion utilizing any hand position you want (change the hand position from rep to rep or set to set).  Repeat.

 

Movement J: Rear Fly

Face laterally and hold both handles in the hand that is furthest from the sled.  Walk laterally until the slack is removed from the towline.  Perform a rear fly.  Repeat.

 

Movement K: Triceps Extension

Hold a handle in each hand over your head.  Walk forward until the slack is removed from the towline. Perform an overhead triceps extension.  Repeat.

 

Movement L: Face Pull

Face the sled and grasp a handle in each hand.  Walk back until all of the slack is removed from the towline.  Pull the handles toward your face with the elbows held high.  You can pull toward your face, your forehead, chin, or throat.  Walk backward and repeat

 

 

Movement M: Chest Fly

Face laterally and grasp the handles in the hand that is closest to the sled.  Perform a chest fly (do not rotate your body).

 

Movement N: Row Externally Rotate

Face the sled and grasp a handle in each hand.  Raise the arms up to the front and walk backwards until the slack is removed from the towline. Perform a rowing motion until the arms are bent to 90 degrees at the elbow.  At this point externally rotate at the shoulder.  Repeat

 

Next time I will provide you with a couple of the actual protocols I use with my teams.

 

Until then

Achieve

Tony

All images are courtesy of Trainer Clipart- http://www.trainerclipart.com