GPP ALTERNATIVES by Coach Jim Massaro
As strength coach I am always looking for new ways to improve not only the performance of my athletes but also their general conditioning. My main concern is to keep it fresh, but most of all, make it the most effective training for the sport that I am working with. Breaking down the components of football is simple: physical power combined with agility, balance, and speed. As I tell our team day in and day out, the game is won or lost at the line of scrimmage. Most of our work is done in the weight room by concentrating on the old staples: squats, power cleans, dead lifts, hang-cleans, hamstrings and abs, with a vast amount of assistance-work added into the program. This is the traditional approach to a football strength program. Sure you will be able to increase their strength, but we also need to address their GPP. This is an area that is almost always neglected.
As I was trying to come up with a plan that would enhance power, agility, and speed and balance, I thought back to my earlier days when I worked construction. Talk about physical labor! I dug ditches, ran jackhammers, and filled and pushed wheelbarrows around all day. Hmmm.so there was my answer: the wheelbarrow push. This was a very simple solution as all the work I needed to get done could be performed with one simple movement. And as I said before: keep it fresh and keep it fun, but most of all, get a tremendous amount of work accomplished. Think of the impact on the body while performing the push. Grip strength increases. Back and leg strength will also be effected. The whole general work threshold will be increased. How many times in your life have you heard the saying, Strong as a construction worker. Or, He was big as a construction worker?
The first series of wheelbarrow pushes we did were very simple. First, load the wheelbarrow with plates. Don't load the plates in the front of the wheelbarrow as this would make it too easy. If the plates are in the front of the wheelbarrow, it will be too balanced. We want to create instability in the wheelbarrow so the athlete has to work harder to control it. This way they will receive a higher proprioreceptive demand. If you have a younger, less experienced athlete, you can adjust the plates differently to help at the beginning. Here is a sample of a good beginning series:
This first series is a great starting point. It will establish leg and back strength as well as grip strength. But an area still not fully addressed is balance and agility. Now let's add in a little instability: an old fashion MUD PIT. Oh yeah! What boy doesn't want to play in the mud? The pit we use is about 50 feet x 50 feet. All you need is an area without grass. Just wet it down good and let the fun begin. This I found works better on a running time. Have the athlete enter the pit and start to push for two minutes. Have him do five sets for two minutes per set. Just walk all around the pit or wherever the mud takes him. This is great for power, balance and agility. You have the mud taking the wheelbarrow one way and the athlete's feet the other. The proprioception is absolutely incredible. And when one of the boys hits the deck, the rest of the team gets a good laugh.
I have used these pushes in my own power-lifting training. Movements like wheelbarrow pushes help to put your body in harmony. It calls on your ability to stabilize and to produce power to control the wheelbarrow, and it will also build your work threshold. As you are pushing that wheelbarrow and your back, hands and legs begin to burn, your mental toughness will also be tested. I am sure if you begin to add the wheelbarrow pushes to your GPP you will begin to see great results in the conditioning of your athletes. Always remember the Renegade way: don't be afraid to push the envelope (or wheelbarrow!).