In the quest for increasing muscular power, athletes and coaches are constantly exploring various training strategies that revolve around enhancing peak instantaneous power (Ppeak) or the maximum attainable power output regardless of the contraction time (Pmax). The ability to express mechanical power plays a pivotal role in sports, particularly during discrete muscle actions where power often determines performance outcomes.

Numerous approaches to power training have emerged, including plyometrics, heavy-resistance training, explosive-strength training, and exercises such as jumps, throws, strikes, and bounds. However, with any form of physical training, there’s a risk of adaptation to the same stimuli over time, leading to reduced effectiveness. This adaptation is especially common among experienced athletes who already possess high levels of muscular strength. Both heavy-resistance training and high-velocity training can influence the force-velocity relationship, resulting in changes to the characteristics of the force-velocity curve. These changes, whether due to morphological alterations in muscle and tendon structure or neural adaptations, can lead to shifts in the force-velocity relationship and, consequently, in the mechanical power output.

While studies have demonstrated the benefits of traditional heavy strength training and high-velocity training in improving maximal power output, there is the risk of reduced training adaptation and potential staleness. To continue improving performance, athletes must adapt their training strategies to meet the specific power requirements of their sport. This may necessitate the introduction of more advanced training methods. Advanced power training methods aim to provide a novel stimulus, thereby breaking through training plateaus and promoting further adaptation. When transitioning to advanced methods, it is essential to consider the three Ts: tools, techniques, and tactics.

Tools: These refer to the equipment or environmental choices used to optimize the training stimulus. Tools can significantly affect biomechanical characteristics, motor unit recruitment, and the force-velocity relationship. For instance, choosing between a barbell and dumbbells for a specific exercise can have a substantial impact on the training effect.

Techniques: Training techniques are philosophies and methodologies applied within a training session to enhance muscular power. Techniques can be classified into specific approaches, such as eccentric strength training or plyometrics, and understanding the characteristics and adaptations associated with these techniques is crucial for effective implementation.

Tactics: Tactics involve planning and programming strategies that encompass training methods. Effective programming is essential to manage the fitness-fatigue relationship, especially when implementing advanced training methods. Optimizing the training stimulus and adaptation is critical when traditional approaches fail to yield the desired effects.

The advancement of power training methods involves a strategic manipulation of acute training variables. Strength and conditioning professionals utilize various tools, techniques, and tactics (the three T’s) to significantly impact performance outcomes. Here, we’ll delve deeper into the concept of advanced power training, particularly focusing on advanced training tools.

Force-Velocity Characteristics: To comprehend how tools or environmental constraints contribute to advanced power training, it’s essential to consider force-velocity characteristics. Resistance training methods with external loads can be categorized as constant resistance, accommodating resistance (isokinetic resistance), or variable resistance, which aligns with the muscle’s force-producing capabilities throughout a range of motion. This classification is especially important when examining torque characteristics within the human strength curve, which can be ascending, descending, or bell-shaped, depending on the type of muscle action.

Elastic Bands: One of the tools commonly used for advanced power training is elastic resistance. The viscoelastic properties of elastic bands cause tension to progressively and sometimes exponentially increase as the band stretches. Elastic bands can challenge or assist the human strength curve by varying the tensile load placed on a muscle complex. Research suggests that variable resistance training (VRT) with elastic bands is superior to conventional resistance training in terms of increasing strength, power, and electromyography activity.

Elastic bands predominantly challenge ascending strength curves, providing the highest resistance when the elastic is fully stretched. This aligns with the point of highest force production in the range of motion. Importantly, elastic bands adapt their resistance throughout the range of motion, promoting a progressive recruitment of high-threshold motor units and increasing muscle activation. This neuromuscular stimulus is a result of the viscoelastic properties of elastic resistance bands.

Using elastic bands allows athletes to accelerate a load over a more extended range of motion, enhancing the force-velocity capabilities necessary for power expression. Unlike free weights, which become easier to move with increased momentum, elastic bands require consistent effort to accelerate the load over the entire range of motion, thus demanding higher contraction speeds and motor unit recruitment.

Elastic Bands – Resisted and Assisted: Elastic bands can be used in two ways: resisted or assisted training. In resisted VRT, bands provide the least resistance at the lowest point of bar displacement, allowing faster acceleration and progressive recruitment of high-order motor units as the bands stretch. In assisted training, bands support the ascent of a bar against gravity, particularly during the descent phase of exercises like squats. The assistance decreases as the athlete ascends, requiring more force generation from the musculature. Assisted VRT methods result in greater power and velocity output, making them valuable for various training objectives, including overspeed training.

Programming VRT Techniques: To effectively implement VRT techniques, it’s crucial to consider the physiological stimulus they provide. Resisted elastic band setups complement the length-tension relationship, promote the recruitment of high-order motor units, and enhance rate of force development (RFD). In contrast, assisted VRT exercises are beneficial for specific scenarios, such as periods of heavy competition or overspeed training phases, where speed of movement is the primary focus. These training methods allow athletes to produce explosive force, promoting high power outputs and translating to various sport-specific movements like jumping and throwing.

Chains in Advanced Power Training

The incorporation of heavy metal chains in resistance training serves as another valuable method to influence the force-velocity characteristics of exercises. This approach has gained popularity within strength and power training, and it’s increasingly utilized in the field of strength and conditioning for sport performance.

One of the notable characteristics of this training modality is its ability to vary the resistance across the range of athletic movements, similar to variable resistance training (VRT) with elastic bands. Heavy resistance plays a vital role in developing muscular power because strength is closely related to power output. However, working with heavy resistance often results in slower lifting velocities, which may hinder the expression of muscular power. Exercises that promote higher contractile velocities throughout the range of motion are preferred for advanced power training methods.

Strength curves approximate the torque production capabilities within a given movement. In exercises with ascending strength curves, maximum torque production occurs near the apex of the movement. The addition of metal chains that unfurl from the floor as a barbell rises theoretically provides increasing resistance to match the changing torque capabilities of the neuromuscular system. At the start of the ascending strength curve (e.g., at the bottom of a squat, shoulder press, or bench press), the additional load provided by chains is relatively small because much of the chain weight remains coiled on the floor. This allows athletes to explode out of the bottom portion of an exercise, imparting greater bar velocity and momentum. As the range of motion increases, the chains unfurl, adding additional load and, as a result, augmented muscle stimulation, greater motor unit recruitment, and increased firing frequencies. The combination of increased velocity and momentum at the start of the strength curve, along with progressive loading, results in higher peak power (Ppeak) outputs within a given exercise.

Optimizing the Stimulus with Chains: Research and anecdotal evidence suggest that the setup of VRT with metal chains plays a crucial role in affecting the loading characteristics throughout the ascending strength curve. Traditionally, a linear hanging technique has been used, in which chains are directly attached to a barbell and allowed to hang to the ground. However, the majority of the chain’s weight hangs as static weight in this setup. In contrast, some practitioners are experimenting with a double-looped approach, where smaller chains are attached to the barbell, and heavier chains are looped through the smaller ones. This method unloads 80%-90% of the chain weight at the bottom of a squat and progressively adds this weight to the system as the chain unfurls during the ascent. In the linear hanging method, only 35%-45% of the total chain weight is added to the ascending strength curve. This demonstrates a nearly twofold difference in variable resistance between the double-looped and linear hanging methods. Consequently, the setup of VRT exercises with chains is essential to achieve the desired stimulus.

Choosing Between Bands and Chains: Both elastic bands and chains offer unique characteristics that should guide strength and conditioning practitioners in their choice of advanced power training methodology. Elastic bands exhibit a curvilinear tension-deformation relationship, while chains exhibit a linear mass-displacement relationship. As a result, the choice between them should consider the specific force-velocity characteristics required for a given sport or activity. For muscle actions with force characteristics accumulating towards the end of a movement, elastic band VRT might be more suitable. In contrast, sporting actions requiring a consistent application of force may benefit more from chain VRT. By selecting the appropriate methodology, intermuscular specificity can more closely resemble the force-velocity characteristics experienced during sport performance.

While research has compared the effects of VRT using bands or chains on maximal strength, a comprehensive analysis of maximal power adaptations hasn’t been conducted. However, it’s evident that VRT is recommended as an advanced power training method, particularly for trained athletes who experience improved force-velocity characteristics beyond those of traditional training methods. 

Ballistic Training in Advanced Power Training

Ballistic training is an advanced power training technique that plays a crucial role in the day-to-day training environment, focusing on specific biomotor characteristics that are essential for achieving high power outputs. It distinguishes itself from traditional strength training by emphasizing the acceleration of a load throughout the majority of the range of motion (ROM). This emphasis on acceleration results in faster movement speeds and, subsequently, higher power outputs.

Power exercises are defined by high-velocity movements that maintain acceleration throughout the ROM, with limited braking phases and minimal reduction in contractile velocity. Traditional resistance training techniques often involve deceleration in the latter part of a repetition to control the bar and prevent it from reaching zero velocity, allowing the athlete to maintain control. However, this deceleration phase accounts for a significant portion of the movement, reducing power output and electromyogram (EMG) activity of the primary agonist muscles recruited in the movement.

In contrast, ballistic training involves accelerating a weight throughout the entire ROM, often leading to the weight being released or moving freely into space with momentum. Ballistic exercises aim to maximize power by focusing on explosive movements using lighter relative loads. Even under heavier loading conditions, the intent to propel a load into the air is shown to be superior to traditional resistance training methods for the development of maximal power output. Ballistic training is a fundamental aspect of advanced training, aiming to incorporate both slower, heavy-resistance exercises for strength development and high-velocity ballistic exercises that promote acceleration throughout the entire ROM. Common ballistic exercises include the loaded countermovement jump (CMJ) for the lower body, such as the jump squat, and the Smith machine bench throw for the upper body. Additionally, plyometrics and Olympic weightlifting exercises can be considered ballistic due to their emphasis on full acceleration.

Olympic weightlifting movements, such as the snatch or the clean, are particularly notable for their ballistic nature. They involve accelerating a barbell for up to 96% of the movement, focusing on imparting momentum into the bar before dropping under it as it continues to rise in free space. This allows athletes to transition into the catch or receiving position. Ballistic exercises exhibit significantly higher mean velocities than non-ballistic exercises because they lack a deceleration or braking phase. The result is higher power output due to the greater mean velocity. While there may be debates about the effects of ballistic training on different aspects of power development, it’s evident that ballistic training methods are particularly suited for advanced athletes who require complexity and variation within their training programs to augment the desired adaptation in force-velocity characteristics.

Velocity-Based Training in Advanced Power Training

Velocity-based training (VBT) is a crucial aspect of advanced power training techniques that focuses on the real-time monitoring of repetition velocity to optimize resistance training loads. Unlike traditional methods that prescribe training loads based on a percentage of one’s one-repetition maximum (1RM), VBT provides immediate biometric feedback that helps athletes and coaches adjust their training to target specific velocities during exercise repetitions.

The primary reason for incorporating VBT into advanced training strategies is to address the temporal demands of peak force production during athletic movements. In most sports, there’s limited time available to generate maximal force, and the occurrence of instantaneous peak force (Fpeak) typically falls within a narrow window, usually between 0.101 seconds and 0.300 seconds. Hence, it is crucial to train at velocities that align with the force-velocity characteristics of sport-specific actions. VBT leverages recent technological advancements and diagnostic techniques to gain insights into the force-velocity profiles of different exercises and movement patterns. Through real-time monitoring, athletes and coaches can make informed decisions about the velocity at which a training exercise should be executed. This approach combines moderate to high external loads with the intent to perform repetitions at high speeds, promoting both relative and absolute power output in the concentric phase of muscle actions.

The benefits of VBT over traditional percentage-based training methods are significant. Historically, training loads were determined as a percentage of 1RM, requiring periodic and time-consuming 1RM testing, which may not always be accurate due to fluctuations in motivation and changes in performance over time. VBT, in contrast, relies on the instantaneous feedback related to the velocity of the barbell or weight. This allows for variation in training loads as long as the athlete consistently maintains a specified bar speed threshold. This approach is highly flexible and eliminates the need for frequent 1RM testing.

Research indicates a nearly perfect linear relationship between the percentage of 1RM and corresponding bar velocity. By continuously monitoring bar velocity and adjusting training loads accordingly, VBT enables the precise periodization of training and facilitates specific neuromuscular adaptations related to power expression. For example, VBT allows coaches and athletes to distinguish between strength-speed (moderate loads at moderate velocities) and speed-strength (lighter loads at high velocities) qualities based on the velocity of repetitions. Studies have shown the effectiveness of VBT in enhancing athletic performance. For instance, research conducted on professional rugby players using VBT feedback over six weeks demonstrated significant improvements in sport-specific tests compared to those who didn’t receive VBT feedback. These improvements included vertical jump height, sprint times, and other performance metrics. The use of velocity-based targets and thresholds during training substantially enhanced the athletes’ performance, highlighting the impact of VBT on sport-specific standards.

Advanced Power Training Tactics

Optimizing power production through advanced training tactics requires careful consideration of various factors, including the quality of each repetition and the ability to introduce training variation systematically. Power development depends on efficient neuromuscular processes, and the effectiveness of power training is closely tied to how each repetition is executed and the impact of fatigue on contractile characteristics. An important principle in maximizing power output is to avoid excessive fatigue, often achieved by performing a low number of repetitions with adequate rest intervals.

Periodized advanced power training programs provide the framework for introducing variation at multiple levels, such as manipulating training loads, sets and repetitions, exercise selection, order of exercises, training focus, and rest intervals. These elements must be carefully planned and programmed to influence adaptive processes significantly.

Cluster-Set Training

To achieve beneficial stimulus for the development of maximal muscular power output, it’s essential that repetitions in an exercise reach or exceed 90% of maximal power output and velocity. However, traditional continuous sets lead to a decrease in bar velocity, peak power output, and bar displacement with each subsequent repetition due to accumulating fatigue. This decline in performance makes it necessary to implement alternative methods that can help maintain high-intensity thresholds for each repetition.

Cluster-set training is a valuable strategy in advanced power training. It focuses on maintaining a nonfatigued state during power training to optimize neural adaptations. By modifying the structure of cluster sets, strength and conditioning professionals can target specific physiological and performance characteristics. Cluster sets allow athletes to achieve high-intensity repetitions with less accumulated fatigue, ensuring that each repetition remains effective in stimulating power development.

Postactivation Potentiation (PAP)

Skeletal muscle’s performance characteristics are transient and can be influenced by contractile history. Postactivation potentiation (PAP) refers to the temporary enhancement of strength and power characteristics in subsequent muscle actions due to an increased central nervous system excitability after heavy loading. This phenomenon has wide acceptance in strength and conditioning literature, and it is used as an advanced training method to maximize power expression.

PAP is attributed to an acute physiological adjustment that increases neural stimulation, resulting in greater motor unit recruitment and high-frequency rate coding. This heightened neural excitation is linked to the phosphorylation of myosin regulatory light chains, making muscle fibers more sensitive to calcium, a central regulator of neural activity. The application of PAP is common in advanced training programs and can enhance the training stimulus for other explosive movements.

The balance between PAP and fatigue is crucial when incorporating PAP into training. Optimal recovery times are needed to realize PAP while reducing fatigue. The magnitude and decay characteristics of PAP and fatigue influence performance and are sensitive to the intensity and duration of conditioning precontractions.

PAP responses can vary among individuals and are influenced by factors such as muscular strength, fiber-type distribution, training history, and power-strength ratios. Stronger athletes, those with predominantly fast-twitch muscle fibers, and individuals with a long training history are more likely to benefit from PAP techniques. However, the effects of PAP can be inconsistent and vary from athlete to athlete. Effectively implementing PAP techniques requires individualized considerations, and athletes and coaches can use these techniques in training and precompetition settings. The potential performance enhancement with PAP warrants acknowledgment, with results showing a 2%-10% increase in performance following these strategies.

Complex Training and Contrast Training: Advanced Power Training Tactics

Complex Training and Contrast Training are two advanced power training tactics that aim to enhance neuromuscular performance through various training strategies.

Complex Training: Complex Training is a method designed to intensify neuromuscular stimulation by harnessing postactivation potentiation (PAP) within a training environment. This approach involves alternating high-load weight training exercises with plyometric-type exercises. Typically, it starts with the completion of all the heavy sets, followed by lighter power and plyometric exercises. The concept behind complex training is that resistance exercise enhances performance in plyometric activities by increasing power output and improving the efficiency of the stretch-shortening cycle.

For example, in a complex training strategy, athletes might begin with 3 sets of 5 heavy back squats at 87.5% of their 1RM, followed by 3 sets of 6 jump squats at body weight. The structure of complex training sets is designed to potentiate the neuromuscular system, enhancing explosive muscle actions following preconditioning contractile activity. Complex training has demonstrated positive training responses in studies, particularly in enhancing motor performance during plyometric training. Elite youth soccer players, for instance, have experienced increased sprint times and jump heights after six weeks of complex training. Designing a complex training program requires careful consideration of variables like exercise selection, load, and rest intervals.

While the effectiveness of complex training is well-established in some populations, research indicates that specific population groups, particularly those lacking the prerequisite strength, might experience limited benefits from this approach.

Contrast Training: Contrast Training is another strategy aimed at optimizing PAP and enhancing power output. In contrast training, sets of biomechanically similar movements are performed with very different loads, creating a substantial contrast in contractile velocities. This approach alternates between heavy-resistance exercises and lighter, high-velocity movements.

For example, a contrast training session might include 1 set of 5 back squats at 87% 1RM followed by 1 set of 6 jump squats at 30% 1RM, repeated for 3 sets. The alternating heavy and light exercises are designed to maximize activation and preparation for maximal effort in explosive movements.

Research suggests that combining high-resistance loads with lighter, high-velocity exercises produces optimal gains in power output. Contrary to complex training, which uses heavy-resistance exercises to potentiate plyometric activity, contrast training focuses on alternating heavy and light exercises. Recent studies have shown that contrast-trained athletes experienced better effects in both strength and power parameters compared to complex-trained athletes. The training effect was seen in vertical and horizontal jump performances.

However, it’s important to note that the most effective methodology for optimizing PAP in both complex and contrast training remains a topic of ongoing research. While the exact mechanisms supporting PAP during these training methods have yet to be fully elucidated, coaches and athletes continue to observe performance benefits when using these advanced training strategies.

Implementation of Advanced Training Methods: The implementation of advanced power training methods should be tailored to an individual athlete’s specific needs. In the early stages of power training, gains in basic muscular strength are likely responsible for changes in the force-velocity relationship. As athletes gain more training experience, they can leverage adaptations in neuromuscular synchronization and an increase in Type IIa muscle fibers. To further enhance power expression, advanced athletes should incorporate training methods that align with their newfound physiological attributes.

For stronger athletes with higher levels of basic strength, it is essential to increase the complexity of the training stimulus, which may involve the addition of velocity-based exercises. These exercises target the maximal shortening properties of muscle, which ultimately alters the neuromuscular characteristics and the profile of the force-velocity curve, affecting the muscular power product. The inclusion of advanced power training principles in the training program of well-trained athletes has the potential to continue promoting gains in maximal power output.