Speed training has taken many twists and turns throughout the years. Some people might have asked how did we get to this point where we are at in speed development. Meaning, how did all the trial and error come about so that we knew what was the best way to squeeze every ounce of fast speed out of each and every individual? Luckily, a lot of the speed training techniques have been documented on video so today I will be explaining all the major highlights I’ve discovered, that you too can look up probably on Youtube, to learn the origins of some of my favorite speed training exercises.

  • One of the best sources of speed training is Jerry Seinfeld. Jerry has shown on his show several great speed training techniques that help you get faster. One technique is towing or assistance running. Jerry’s parents hired Izzy Mandelbaum, an old dude who looks a lot like Lloyd Bridges, who ties Jerry to his car and drives off forcing Jerry to try and run fast to keep up. There is a high injury risk to this type of training so I would only utilize it with a professional speed coach.
  • Also, when Jerry’s buddy George plowed over Bette Midler in a softball game, they used what is called the “scared as he!!” technique. This is when you have an angry mob chasing you wanting to do bodily harm. If you really want to develop speed rather quickly, this is an awesome technique.
  • Finally, Jerry used a trick that really takes lots of practice to perfect. To shave a few tenths of a second off your time in a race, try to start the race just before the gun goes off. Jerry raced a high school rival, Duncan, and unwittingly used this technique to beat him twice.
  • Early on in speed history, there was a technique called the “slow and steady” approach. A maniacal killer named Michael Myers really made famous this technique. The guy was able to attack his victims, usually by keeping after them with a slow methodical walk. Luckily, his victims were usually idiots who would only use running every so often to get away from this guy. We’ve learned that if you have some brains, can run, you can put some good distance between yourself and Mr. Myers. Maybe you can run to a police station and have a whole squad of officers blow this guy to bits. This approach will usually not work for you in most sports that involve fast speed.
  • Downhill running is a type of assistance run that I try to use with my clients. It develops an overspeed effect that trains the body to run faster. This is a technique our military uses a lot with our cadets to develop their speed. While watching a military documentary called Stripes, I witnessed this firsthand. Though, if not done properly there is the potential to hurt yourself as I witnessed in this film. One of the cadets, Dewey Oxberger (they call him Ox), was running downhill and could not stop himself as he crashed into trees below. So make sure your decline is good enough to improve speed, but not steep enough to cause you to lose control. And try not to have any trees around.
  • Similar to the “scared as he!!” approach is the “chased by a monster” approach. This technique was popularized by a dog named Scooby Doo and some meddling kids. Somehow, these kids find these scary monsters that chase them all over the place. Adrenalin is a great enhancer of speed, so if you know of some scary monsters this can help with the speed development. Turns out most of the time these monsters were just regular people in some disguise. Oh well.
  • Now there are a couple of speed techniques that we’ve learned are technically cheating. The first is bionics. Colonel Steve Austin was an air force pilot that had a bad crash landing. The government fixed him with 6 million dollars worth of bionics in his legs, right arm, and right eye. The guy could run up to 60 mph and could jump onto the roof of small buildings. Needless to say, if you have bionics in your legs it is illegal and you won’t be able to race in most races held throughout the world.
  • Finally, there was a guy named Andy Jacobs who lived in Smallville, Kansas. He was constantly getting second place in his races to someone named Clark Kent. This ticked him off to all end. It seemed like Kent would continually be trailing then clip him right at the end of the race. It was later discovered that Kent was not of Earth, but came from some planet called Krypton. So, if you are an alien that lives among us and has superpowers beyond what we can comprehend, you will be banned from participating in our races.

These are a good example of the trial and error speed coaches have used throughout time to find out the real good techniques that help develop speed training. If you can recall a few more that weren’t mentioned above, please share them in the blog below. And as a final note, for the few people that might not be able to figure this post out, this was all tongue and cheek.