The Science Of Strength: Part II

This is the second part of our two-part interview with Jeremy Herring, MS, CSCS, the owner and head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Power Sports Academy in Davie, Florida.

Herring's philosophy has been developed over 10 years of extensive research and also throughout his lifetime obsession with strength.  He earned a Master's degree in Exercise Physiology from FIU , is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, a Certified USA Track and Field Coach and a club level USA Weightlifting Coach.

 

He is also the American Powerlifting Association State record holder with a 585 pound bench press and was named the 2001 South Florida Strongest Man in the heavyweight division.

 

His philosophy is a simple one: "Train hard, train smart, and put the body under greater stress in training than it could ever face in competition. Competitions should be fun, the training up to the competition is where the work is done."

In this part of the interview Jeremy covers more ground on several different areas of a professional and successful S&C program.

Q: Diet and nutrition play an important role in the physical development and conditioning of athletes. Can you give us some more specific details of how a strength and conditioning coach could build diet and nutrition program and incorporate the use of nutritional and/or body building supplements that could be designed or tailored to specific athletes at different positions in football? Are the any specific dietary requirements (e.g. grams of protein) or restrictions (e.g. grams of fat or sodium) that would be part of that program?

A: Yes, we give nutritional guidance to all of our athletes. We don't go crazy counting calories or weighing our food, by any means. But when working with large groups with varying needs, we have some basic guidelines. We try to get .5g - 1g of protein per pound of body weight. We also try to limit sodium to less than 1000mg per day. During the season we suggest no added salt to any meals.

Our leaner athletes looking to gain weight, we suggest only 3 large meals, made of quality protein, at least 1 cup of a starch, and 2 servings of fruit or vegetables. We also suggest a high calorie protein based weight gainer, to follow each meal. So that's 3 shakes and 3 meals. These should be
consumed at the same time as to not further speed up an already fast metabolism.

For our bigger athletes looking to loose body fat we go with a low calorie protein shake only twice a day, and aim for 4-6 small meals made up of 1serving of lean protein and no starch. We try to get all of our carbohydrates from an unlimited supply of fruit and vegetables.

Q: What role does a strength and conditioning program play in the role of injury prevention? We often see shoulder, hamstring, ankle and knee injuries in football and the ever present "cramping". Can some injuries and more specifically cramping in general be prevented in athletes, and if so, how?

A: Yes, a huge role! A couple of specific things we do is we train the hamstrings hard all year. I haven't had one of my athletes pull a hamstring in 10 years. This is partly because we warm up thoroughly everyday, stress stretching and flexibility, but mainly because all of our athletes are freaking strong, especially in the hips and hamstrings.

Another thing we do is we train hard in-season. Lifting cannot be priority number 1 in-season, but we take care of that by programming short, dense, intense sessions in-season. Exercise selection is huge. We pick big movements, to get the most bang for our buck, then 1 or 2 accessory exercises, then we send them home. It’s easier to get a guy to lift hard in-season when he knows he isn't looking at a marathon session.

Also with exercise selection, we pick exercises that aren't going to aggravate already irritated areas. For example, we never straight bar squat in-season, ever. We use a safety squat bar. This takes a ton of stress off the shoulders, as they don't have to reach back and hold the bar. We also never do cleans or front squats in-season. Also because of the abuse the shoulders already take on the field. I think these things play just as big a role in preventing injury as the preventative exercise we prescribe.

But that being said, we use band traction for the shoulders and elbows twice a week in-season, strengthen the rotator cuff through a variety of exercises during our upper body warm-up, and use broom stick stretching. For the back and lower body, warm-up, stretching, foam rolling, maximal strength exercise, and many other preventative exercises reduce the likely hood of injury in the hamstrings, knees, and ankles.

Cramping should never occur with a fit player. The only time I can understand a player cramping is if they had an off-season injury that prevented them from properly preparing themselves for the season. A healthy player, following the same hydration requirements and dietary guidelines as everyone else shouldn't cramp. Ever. Period.

Q: I saw on your web site that you worked with current UM OL Jon Feliciano before he arrived at Miami. What can you tell us about Jon and how your work with him may have helped him see some serious playing time as a true freshman at UM in 2011?

A: Early on I realized that Jon was very athletic for his size. But he was weak. We started off addressing proper technique in the bench, squat, and dead-lift. He really liked dead-lifting and got pretty strong at them pretty fast. His squat lagged behind, but he was a deep squatter naturally, which I was pleased with, especially for a fairly tall guy. I continued to hammer him on his technique on all our big lifts and his pulling strength transferred into an elite high school power clean. By his junior year he was STRONG!!! He would run D-lineman off the screen on game films.

He continued to work with his position coach on his on field technique, which was at a high level by this time as well. Jon was also on the basketball team, which replaced most of his conditioning in the winter and early spring. Jon had a great summer going into his senior year. He showed up in great shape, sharp technique, and super strong. He was a dominate player that year.

Then he was off to The University of Miami. After a red shirt year, he sent me a text and told me he was going to start at right tackle against Ohio State. I was very excited for him and proud of him. He had worked very hard for this. The first offensive play was a run off tackle to Jon's side. Jon pancaked his man, and dominated all game.

All season long Jon impressed me most by never looking like a redshirt freshman. He looked and played stronger than all his opponents. I like to think my relationship with him had something to do with that. But I know his development is far from over, he will continue to improve every year.

Q: Tell us more about Power Sports Academy and what you do there that helps athletes in various sports prepare for their events? Are there any specific theories or philosophies that you follow in your work as a strength and conditioning coach?

A: To be blunt, we try to avoid the gimmicks and concentrate on tried and true training. We train hard, but more importantly we train smart. People come to us in pretty bad shape sometimes, and while there is always a time frame we emphasize that it cannot happen in one session. When people try to over do it, we must step in and keep them healthy. Otherwise they push to hard to soon and then we won't see them for a week or two.

Sports specific training has gone too far, people spend too much time trying to mimic their sport with weights attached to them. Instead they should focus on building true strength in areas important for their sport/position/event and develop fitness according to the energy system their sport falls under. That is what we do.

People always ask about speed training and camps, but we push them towards our strength and conditioning program. Like I said before, it concentrates on running/sprint mechanics, strength development, explosive power and endurance, mobility, flexibility, agility, and speed training each and every workout.

We all have been running our whole lives, running only makes you so fast. Louie Simmons calls it "The Speed Barrier". At some point you have to increase horse power. You do that in the gym.

Q: What type of specific services and supports do you provide to athletes at Power Sports Academy?

A: We offer professional strength and conditioning. We are experts in this area. We try to focus on our expertise.

If you are an athlete living in South Florida and want to reach your true potential then contact Jeremy Herring, MS, CSCS, at: www.PowerSports-Academy.com or 954-829-4144.

Comments

[galagos]

It depends on what his body does. His uncle (Jevon Kearse) went from a safety in High School, to a LB In College, and a DE in the pros.

Jayron played QB/RB at Cypress Lake, but he could switch to WR now that he is at South Fort Myers. He was by far the best athlete on his team at Cypress Lake the past few years.

[j.w.]

I read somewhere that Kearse is a DB- don't remember where, though

[Felipe.]

Rivals also suggested that FSU/UF were interested in Collins, and Bama in Bryant. Sounds like a great day for Miami's future.

[Tallycane]

Went to the ladies basketball game today Miami against fsu up here in tallatrashee. Great game Miami was winning by 20 and fsu came back to tie it and then Miami hit a three with 17 seconds left..first win for them in Tallahassee in 25 years! That's crazy.

[UMike]

Papa Cane @SaveUMFootball
Remember The Name: 2013 Safety Ahmad Thomas, 6-Foot and 190 lbs, out of Miami Central. If offered, most likely Cane.

[UMike]

Papa Cane @SaveUMFootball
Recruiting Update: Miami has offered 2013 RB Kelvin Taylor, 5'10" and 190 lbs, out of Belle Glade. Son of NFL'er Fred Taylor.

[UMike]

allCanesBlog.com @allCanesBlog
It's quite clear that @GoldenAl and this staff mean business on the recruiting trail. Trying to curb enthusiasm on the juniors but DAMN !!

[UMike]

Alex Collins, a 5-11, 180-pound junior RB from Plantation, Fla, orally committed to coach Al Golden and the 'Canes at Miami's Junior Day on Sunday. The South Plantation High School back rushed for 1,786 yards and 28 TDs last season, his first season playing high school football. Collins chose Miami over Boston College and Bowling Green.

[UMike]

Papa Cane @SaveUMFootball
This is why Coach Golden has 3-4 spots reserved for a couple of 5 and 4-Star recruits including Eddie Goldman and others. The U = NFLU.

[UMike]

Papa Cane @SaveUMFootball

ProCane Kenny Phillips just won the game for the Giants. Another Hurricane shows the world why winners go to The U. Go Canes!

[Montreal_Cane]

MIAMI 60 FLORIDA STATE 57

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Stefanie Yderstrom's 3-pointer from deep in the corner with 17 seconds remaining gave 13th-ranked Miami a 60-57 win Sunday over Florida State.

Miami (15-3, 4-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) led 41-22 a minute into the second half, but Florida State rallied to tie the game at 57 on Cierra Bravard's free throw with 37 seconds left.

Shenise Johnson led Miami with 24 points. Johnson's final basket of the half gave her 2,000 in her career. Morgan Stroman and Riquna Williams added 11 for the Canes. Yderstrom finished with 9.

[Six]

Kelvin Taylor going to Miami would be beyond blasphemy

2013? NSDay for 2012 hasn't even happened yet, still a long way away in recruiting time

What's the over/under on how many schools these 2013 kids will decide to put as their "leader" .. who knows how many visits to the mall they'll make from here to now, seeing different hats at Champs/Lids/Sports Authority/Sports Fanattic/etc. of the different college teams recruiting them - they'll see a hat that matches their new shoes and put that college as their leader

[Montreal_Cane]

Urban Meyer on it's way to beat his own record of arrested players (35 with the Gators at Florida). Nice way to start at Ohio State...Way to go Urban.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)—New Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer has dismissed two players for off-the-field problems.

Ohio State spokesman Jerry Emig confirmed Sunday that defensive backs Dominic Clarke and DerJuan Gambrell have been released from their scholarships.

Clarke, a redshirt sophomore from Frederick, Md., has been charged with drunken driving and also had been arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct after allegedly discharging a BB gun on campus. No one was hurt in the latter incident.

Gambrell, a freshman from Toledo, was also discharged for a “violation of team rules,” but Ohio State did not specify what that violation was.