avoiding heavy weight training?

Do any of you train for sprinting without using heavy weights i.e. >80% 1rm, or perhaps without using weights at all? If so, how have your results been? I was thinking of dropping heavy weight training from my program in favour of more explosive work, around the 30-60% 1rm region. What do you think? Recipe for disaster?

See Charlie’s posts on the F-V curve.

It sounds like you are training heavy all the time. If you do so you will negate the benefits gained from heavy wts. You should train heavy (>90%) at three to four week stretches no more. As Brian said refer to CF’s diagrams.

Thanks fellas, my plans may need a re-think…

Do you have a link to the fv-curve you talk of? Is it the Weightlifter Vs Sprinters thread?

so when using Max Strength weights you should go 3 weeks hard and 1 week unloading then move onto something easier like Max Power lifting (50-60%) before entering a new max strength phase?

After a MxS phase you can switch in a maintenance phase (you can drop volume and intensity)
Of course, power lifts (such as squat/bench 50- 60%1RM or OLs) can be done in every phase

I´m doing power lifts for about 1 1/2 months and i became stronger now.
I´m doing something like this;
in a 3 sets exercise for example:
1st set few reps, 5 or 6, with about 60% of 1rm at controled speed;
2nd set, 7 to 8 reps, weights at 50% little fast than 1st set;
3rd set, 8, 9 to 10 reps, weights between 30% and 50%, fast as i can.
It´s early to talk about positives or negatives but what i can say is that you need a good warm-up before power lift sessions.
An interesting fact is;
when i was doing heavy weights the soreness was always present the day after work, hindering my track works…now, with the power lifts, i don´t feel it anymore.
The results at track ? Well, as i said, it´s hard to tell if it´s working or not.

Over reaching in limit strength exercises will manifest itself first in exercises with a high speed component (e.g. sprinting!).

This thread I believe highlights why a Westside type ME day is less than optimal for athletes strength training for sport. My athletes rarely lift at an absolute intensity greater than 90%, or at a relative intensity reater than 95%.

Along the same lines, I have recently quit football to focus on track and I am in the process of losing some weight down to ~175. I am currently 5’10, 185 w/ arount 5% bodyfat, (down from 205 , 5%bf) and I feel that everytime I do any heavy lifting the weight just wants to come back on, and fast. I decided to drop lifting weights altogether and I am just doing plyos and other bodyweight exercises. I know that it would be good for me to supplement that stuff with some weight training, but it makes losing weight very difficult.
What do you all think? Any suggestions?

<<< Ergo, would a modified ME day - based on Priplen’s chart be a way to get the best of both worlds? currently, that is how I incorporate “heavy weights.”

What I was alluding to, and you can also see David’s article on strength training, is that b/c the Velocity of sprinting is much greater than anything you can replicate in the weight room, the Force part of the curve is more suited to strength training.
Additionally, all strengths are based in limit strength, therefore, regardless of the training goals, strength training centered around limit training would be beneficial.