Intensity and Conservation

I had a training session today with a very special person, my daughter Mookie. We did some plyometrics, some technical speed work, and then settled in for the long version of the Red Fox Speed Ladder circuit. Because I wanted to learn some of the new (at least for me) techniques, I did the training with her. It was around 4:00 and we were training on new turf. The air temp was about 80 and the heat radiating off the rubber made it a bit warmer. We broke our training down into sets of exercises as follows:

Quick Feet
Icky Shuffle
In in out out

short rest

Lateral Quick Feet Front foot first - RS/LS
Lateral Quick Feet Back Foot First - RS/LS

short rest

Cross in Front
Cross Behind
Ali Shuffle
Cross Over Shuffle
Turn Out

The format we used is this: Perform each exercise 3 times, then perform a combination (giant set) 3 times - example - for the quick feet, icky shuffle, and in/in out/out we performed our sets were 3,3,3,(1+1+1), (1+1+1),(1+1+1) or a grand total of 18 reps per set with a short rest between combos. At the end of each rep perform a short 3 step sprint using proper technique - get low and go for a forward movement and speed skater start for lateral movement. Remembering to drive the arms and stay low. We walked back to start for the rest interval. Between the heat from the turf and fatigue from high reps, our training started to get a little sloppy. We stopped for a minute, took an drink and refocused. Our purpose was agility training. To be effective, every rep must be performed properly. Jogging back between reps, or rushing through the ladder to "get er done" is wasted time and energy. Focus and intensity is the key during the exercise, conservation is the key between reps.

After our training, we refueled with some low fat chocolate milk and headed home to watch LA take on San Jose. The parallel between intensity and conservation in training and during match play became very apparent as I watched Beckham on the pitch. He spent a lot of time conserving, but was always in position, and when it came time to hustle, he made the play.

Everything we do must be purposeful. Nothing good happens by accident. Our mind fatigues before our body. To be strong we must understand strength. To be effective we must understand what we are trying to accomplish. Train hard, Train Smart. Capt.