Speed  endurance  is the  ability  to  maintain  speed in the presence of fatigue  without decelerating.  Therefore,  athletes   must   train  the  ability   to   maintain  high  levels  of speed, even when tired. As you can imagine, making improvements in this area can have profound effects on success and performance late in competitions when every athlete is tired, but the most critical moves and decisions are made and games are won and lost.

Because speed endurance work is based around the idea of athletes competing in a state of physical fatigue, these workouts also have a useful mental component as well. When athletes get tired, they have a tendency to revert back to what is easy for them, which is usually poor form and technique. Therefore when performing this type of workout, it is important to focus on efficiency and form, even when it feels slower. Make the commitment to perfection in practice so that during competition you can focus solely on competing and performing your best. By improving the ability to stay mentally focused on a physically demanding and exhausting workout, athletes improve their ability to execute during the most important moments of their game or competition.

Primarily we use two types of workout to develop speed endurance

Short distance, short rest : Run for a short distance (10 – 35 yards) while only getting a short rest period (10 – 30 seconds) between repetitions.

Example :
2 sets of 7 x 25 yards with 25 seconds rest between reps and 3 minutes between sets

Longer Distance, Longer Rest : Run a longer distance (8 – 20 seconds, or 60 – 150 yards) at full or near full intensity (90% – 100%) with full or near full recovery (5 – 15 minutes) between each repetition.

Example :
3 x 80y at full speed with 7 minutes rest between each repetition
2 x 120y @ 90% with 10 minutes rest between each repetition

The type of workout that will reap the greatest benefits depends on the demands of the sport that the athletes compete in and can be modified, adjusted or adapted to suit those particular needs. For some sports, such as football, soccer, field hockey and lacrosse, where the majority of the demand of the sport consists of short bursts of acceleration followed by low intensity movements, the greatest benefits may be from running workouts of short duration with short recoveries. On the other hand, athletes competing in sports requiring continuous high intensity runs, such as track and field sprinters, may find greater benefit in runs of longer distance and greater recovery times. Both types of workouts allow athletes to compete longer into their competitions without showing high degrees of fatigue, increasing the likelihood of success.

By  integrating  all  the  training  modalities,  concepts,  exercises,  drills  and   workouts presented   in   the  Complete  Speed  Training  System©   you   have  begun  the  rapid transformation toward maximizing your speed potential, and therefore a whole new level of athletic success. Continue to work hard, train smart and you will stay A Step Ahead ™  of the competition.
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Speed  Endurance
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We would like to thank Patrick and AthletesAcceleration.com for allowing us to publish this article on the  BarrieSpiritSoccer.com  website.