Those of you who are familiar with Louie Simmons, Dave Tate, Jim Wendler, and Jason Ferruggia are familiar with the concept of dynamic effort, many athletes are even more familiar with it - at least in the context of their sport.
For those of you who may not be familiar with the term, dynamic effort refers to moving a non maximal load at the highest attainable speed - according to Vladamir Zatsiorsky in Science And Practice Of Strength Training.
It would seem that this is something that athletes would practice often. After all, most running and jumping activities would fall into this category if done at max speed or effort.
However, unlike powerlifters or Olympic lifters, lifting weights at max speed is not often practiced by athletes. By adding this system into your training, you can really gain some incredible explosiveness in your jumping and running.
Dynamic Effort
Even if you are a powerlifter and need a change of pace on your dynamic day, this is an option to use - at least for a short period of time.
Before I actually outline the program, let me say that I did not come up with it. I got the idea from a book Louie Simmons recommended to me a year or so ago titled Explosive Power And Jumping Ability For All Sports, from Stadion publishing.
Dynamic Squat Example
Using a dynamic squat as an example, here is how it works:
After a warm up, place 50% of your max on the bar. Have a buddy time you in 5 reps to the nearest 0.1 of a second (hundredths are overkill with this method). Be sure and perform the reps as fast as possible - this is key.
Add 1 second to the time - that is your time limit for subsequent sets.
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For Example
If your max is 400 pounds, then put 200 pounds on the bar and time 5 reps. If the time is 6.5 seconds, then add 1 second to the time. This makes 7.5 seconds your time limit for all subsequent sets.
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After a 2 minute rest break, add 10 to 20 pounds to the bar (about 7.5 % of your max) and do a second set for 5 reps as fast as possible and time it. As long as you did all five in under 7.5 seconds, rest 2 minutes, add 10 to 20 pounds and do a third set.
Once again, do all sets as fast as possible for 5 reps. Continue this pattern until you can no longer complete 5 reps in 7.5 seconds.
Be careful here. 7.5 seconds is an example. If you complete your initial 5 reps with 50% in 6.2 seconds, then your time limit for that day is 7.2 seconds.
