Read in the gatlin powell training methods thread that steven francis’s group in GENERAL does split squats and front squats at the most, couple year old article I think but any new comments or anything that he does do the regular squat? Also how can one develop so much power not squatting heavy? I mean GHR/Reverse hypers, split/front squats all good, but can they replace squats for such a powerful and tall sprinter.
On the film last year, he was doing step-ups
Ya but can anything really sub for a regular
squat?
I don’t know if he squats or not- but if he doesn’t, then apparently something can!
squatting can be replaced… i think
Stephen Francis said he has a group upwards of 50 people who all go to the gym at the same time (must be a big gym) and he says he cannot keep an eye on all of them. He said because guys tend to put too much weight on the bar doing back squats and because they can get into bad posture, they don’t do back-squats at all.
He said they do front squats. And Franno says they “tend to de-emphasise squats”. Asafa’s PB single front is 250 lbs - His best bench press for a single is 295 lbs. He said he has been frustrated that Asafa’s “relaxed” approach to training in general plus the injuries etc have meant he has plateaued for the last couple of years at least in the bench press.
He said they do other things carrying dumbells.
The nearest thing to any Olympic lift is they do “hang-cleans”.
I’d love to see that 295lb bench consider the film last year he didn’t get 245 for 1 (without some significant help!). Just goes to show that strength isn’t everything.
I think that squats can be replaced.
Recently, my perception of strength has changed a little.
I ve strated viewing strength as something more general and abstract like “total CNS output” of the athlete.
Now, my abstract definition of “CNS output” is the neural resources ,which can be expanded through training(!), and are distributed and/or relocated between the various (or maybe the one and only) high intensity stimuli ( be it sprinting, throws, jumping, plyos, weightlifting etc).
Since every high intesity stimulus has the potential to strengthen the organism , it can also deplete the neural resources! (fitness/fatigue).
So the total CNS output/or the total neural resources of an athlete can be expanded through training,but his ability to expose the organism to a progressive greater intensity stimuli, brings him almost to square no1. (so you may sort of gain in work capacity, but the intensity rises and nullifies most of this expansiob, because the depletion with each effort is now greater)
Its, the athlete with the more expandable CNS output, that i consider the strongest (and this strength can be manifested through ANY high stimulus).
So you have to keep your priorities as a sprinter straight, and view strength training more as an expression of your power. I believe sprinting alone (as any high intensity stimulus) can strengthen the human body (you work against gravity!), and by distributing the rest of your CNS output in other dissimilar high intensity stimuli, just prevents stragnation down the road. If you start viewing strength as a more abstract concept, many of these questions are instantly answered, imo
ps. as you ve guessed, enlgish is not my native language, hence the lack of conherence of my message:D
are you saying that strength is a manifestation of how much muscle you can recruit? And power is a manifestation of how much muscle you can recruit rapidly? 
Strength EXPRESSION= muscle hypertrophy + CNS efficiency (recruitment, discharge rate etc) + anthropometric variables (levers).
But if you view strength more abstractly as the total finite neural energy of an athlete, that can be put into any high intensity stimulus then most of such questions (like are squats necessary etc) are answered. Any high intensity stimulus, STRENGTHENS the organism.
So i think Powell, if he wanted to and relocated his neural energy into weightlifting instead of sprinting, he would be extremely strong within reason depending on his long levers, and total mass
bravo! then it becomes a question of directin the strength toward a specific activity. being an explosive high jumper won’t make you a great 60m sprinter, although there may be some common elements in the general training. ie, both athletes may opt to do squats, box hops etc.
Yes, exactly.
I consider an athlete gifted the one with the most EXPANDABLE neural resources/energy(!!), because such an athlete will be able to adapt and make incredible progress in any high stimulus he decides to devote himself into. Yeah, he may be VERY good in some high intensity stimuli (eg long jump or Olympic weightlifting, or Hammer throw, and EXCEPTIONAL to another (eg. sprinting or high jump) (depending on his physiology and really difficult to predict).
All this is related to neurology (and the dopaminergic system certainly plays a role)
ps. Good coaching constitutes the process of continually expanding the athlete’s NEURAL OUTPUT without burning him out or injuring him, and then relocating his TOTAL neural output (through a taper) in the high intensity stimulus of his event for peak performance.
I guess results is what matters at the end, you got michael johnson or jeremy wariner doing train slow to race fast, you got john smith doing fast dumbell curls to “recreate” the drive phase doing curls and you got no squats in an incredibly powerful sprinter at 6’3.
I would love to see a comprehensive documentary on how Asafa trains. Seems so laid back. So he can’t lift more than a girl, does long to short and can’t break 48, his coach bitches because he is too lazy. What does he do other than dominate then blow up in championships?
Takes Nutrilite 
Helps him recover from the hard training, Mon.
You can vary dramatically in lifting capacity depending on what you’ve got left after the track.
His leverage is probably fairly poor so his bench may be fairly good in comparison. I would have thought injuries would have lead to IMPROVEMENTS in the gym because he couldn’t do anything else!
You know he is reputed to have a somewhat casual attitude to training.
Of that knee injury when Asafa fell on the stairs, putting him out of the first Australian meet, Coach Franno said: “He would not have been on the steps to fall down had he been at practice!”
It is an interesting dilemma for the coach.
Does he sack the most gifted sprinter in the world just to make a point about discipline?
Or does he tear his hair out as he (im)patiently waits for Asafa to wake up to himself?
Perhaps if Asafa did train more he would over-train and his performance suffer as a consequence.
I think he has a good balance at the moment and should stick with exactly as he his doing now.
I would take the big talent anyday and forget whatever discipline there is… also dont believe the media word by word about this guy being lazy… you dont break world records on talent alone…