(Wrote this one as the final issue of The Speed and Strength Newsletter…but if you’re interested in where I was going, let me know in the comments and I’ll pick it back up! – Coach Dunte)
Do you want a quicker first step?
I love to ask players what, exactly, they want to improve in the offseason.
Some reply that they are tired of getting beaten when the disc goes deep. For them, top speed is a priority. Ultimately, top speed determines their overall speed in a lot of other ways.
Who wins on the track?
If you watch a 100-meter race, you’ll notice that there are a few people who explode out of the blocks. They are really moving at 10, 15, or 20 yards. You will also notice, in the second half of a 100-meter race, which is an incredibly short event, that there are some people who look like they keep accelerating. They blow past those explosive athletes and run away from them, from 60 meters all the way to the finish line.
When we talk about top speed, that’s really what we are referring to. But a lot of the players I’ve spoken with in the last several months are interested in that incredible first step and creating space in the first 5 yards. First step quickness and initial acceleration are the aspects that, especially as a handler, determine how well you can get open to catch quick discs.
If improving your first step is what interests you about training for speed, then the next 4 weeks of the Speed & Strength Weekly are for you.
Is the first step your problem?
Our first task is being certain that first step quickness is your problem. For a lot of people, when they talk about the first step, their actual concern is that the person they are defending is getting a step on them, before they have an opportunity to react. If that is your problem, no matter how much we improve first step quickness, it is not going to fix it.
If the person you are defending is getting away from you on the very first step, is not your first step that limits your performance. Your awareness of what they are doing and where they are going limits your performance.
What can you do about it?
A lot of this is solved by doing defensive drills at 100% intensity. The trouble with most defensive drills is that you already know where the person you are defending is going to go. Instead of relying on drills, when you scrimmage, play 3v3, or play full field pick up, you need to set a simple objective as a defender.
Decide before each point how much space you are going to allow someone to get from you. Then, evaluate that entire game of play based on how effective it was to leave that much space. Sometimes, you are going to be in a great position to disrupt their movement or get a D. Sometimes, you are going to be in an “almost there” position and get beaten. That’s okay. Use the recreational play that you will have during the off season to test ideas.
Be a scientist!
You are a scientist of your own performance. If you test specific things and evaluate every day of play, you will discover an optimal amount of space to leave against a certain type of players. When you play in the deep field, especially when you are fronting as a defender, you may be best 5 or 6 yards from your match-up. When you play in the short field, especially if you are a shorter player, you may find that you have to be elbow-to-elbow and hip-to-hip with the person you are defending in order to disrupt their play.
Before we can go deep into addressing first step quickness, you need to determine why the first step feels important to you. If it’s because you are getting beaten when you defend, then you may have a different issue and you need to evaluate how you defend. However, if, when you are trying to get open, you want to feel more explosive on that very first step and you want to create space before your defender knows you’ve moved, stay tuned for next week. That’s exactly what we are going to get into.