Move Like an Athlete: Fast Arms, Fast Legs
In the quest for speed, your arms must not be overlooked. Our bodies have wiring that best functions when it is sequencing and firing in a similar pattern. Try sprinting as fast as possible but move your arms slowly. It does not work very well. Although there are some complex patterns that can be trained to work well, such as drumming, when we’re talking about building blazing speed, we need to keep it simple. Fast arms equal fast legs. If you think about aggressive arm action, your legs will keep up and move faster with them. When learning how to develop arm swing technique, we strip down parts and simplify. A drill you can incorporate to work on this is the seated arm swing.
SEATED ARM SWINGS:
• Sit on the floor with your legs extended out in front of you
• If you have tight hamstrings you may bend your knees to stay more upright
• The arm action should move from the shoulders not the biceps
• Hands should drive from the cheek of your face to the cheep on your butt
• Aggressively think of throwing your arms back behind you. A cue we use is to think of your hand as the hammer and drive the nail that is behind you
• Perform 3 sets x :10 seconds on/:20 seconds rest x 4 rounds
A variation on this exercise is the split stance arm swing. Stand in a narrow split stance, with a 45 degree forward lean
• The arm action should move from the shoulders not the biceps
• Hands should drive from the cheek of your face to the cheep on your butt
• Aggressively think of throwing your arms back behind you. A cue we use is to think of your hand as the hammer and drive the nail that is behind you
• Perform 10 seconds on/10 seconds rest, doing backward posture shoulder rolls during the rest period. Switch split stance lead leg and repeat with the opposite lead leg, then repeat the entire sequence one more time. 1 set = 4 x 10 sec work (2 sets leading on each leg)
• Perform 3 sets total
Either Arm swing drill is a great complimentary drill to your speed development program. Include this drill 2x/week for 3-4 weeks. When you perform your sprint drills, think about using the same arm action you have developed. Learn to do the simple things savagely well.
For our “older” athletes who can’t full body sprint safely at 100% top speed anymore, the split stance drill can still be great for teaching the body to move fast and maintain core control. “Sprinting” of any type has longevity boosting benefits.
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