In my last post I discussed the importance of overload in the training plan. Another important variable in the training of athletes is variance. If you do too much variance athletes the athletes won’t achieve optimal adaptations. If you don’t incorporate enough variance, athletes may get stale and stagnant in their adaptations. While this is absolutely critical for the speed, fitness and strength aspects of training it’s also important to incorporate variance in the warmup. Not only does this prevent boredom and predictability but it keeps the athletes mentally and physically engaged while providing an opportunity to address a variety of different physical elements that might otherwise go overlooked in the already jam-packed training calendar. Don’t overlook the warmup as an opportunity to ‘check boxes’ for balanced athletic development.

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Mike Young

Director of Performance at Athletic Lab

Mike is the Head Fitness Coach for the North Carolina Courage and North Carolina FC. He is also the owner and Director of Performance at Athletic Lab sports performance training center. He previously served as the fitness coach for the Vancouver Whitecaps and Carolina Railhawks. He has a PhD in Biomechanics, an MS in Coaching Science, and a BSS in Exercise Physiology and has coached Olympic and professional athletes in Skeleton, Track & Field, MLS and NASL Soccer, PGA Golf, NFL Football, MLB Baseball and Olympic Weightlifting. He has lectured around the world and authored 2 books and dozens of research and coaching articles.

Latest posts by Mike Young (see all)

• Brilliant Hamstring Injury Observations from Dave Joyce - September 26, 2018
• Sprint exposure for speed enhancement AND injury reduction - April 4, 2018
• Variance in the Soccer Warmup - April 3, 2018