Braden Goimarac, a strength and conditioning coach at BYU with a master's in Sports Performance, shares his insights alongside Olympians Clayton Young and Connor Mantz. They explore tailored strength strategies for endurance athletes, emphasizing the Dynamic Strength Index's role in optimizing performance. The discussion highlights the importance of plyometrics and varied strength workouts to enhance durability and prevent injuries. As they dissect the balance between training and life, the conversation advocates for smart, intuitive training approaches for peak athletic success.
Braden Goimarac emphasizes the importance of balancing strength training with endurance running to optimize athletic performance and prevent injuries.
Utilizing the Dynamic Strength Index allows Braden to customize training regimens based on individual athlete needs, enhancing their explosive capabilities.
The incorporation of plyometric training fosters both elasticity and injury resilience, critical for improving overall performance in endurance events.
Deep dives
Introduction to Braden Gomerick's Coaching Background
Braden Gomerick, a strength and conditioning coach at BYU, specializes in track and field, focusing on distance groups and working with professional athletes who have progressed through the university's program. His journey began with an internship at BYU during his college years, which solidified his desire to return to the institution. Gomerick emphasizes his role as supporting the natural talent of the athletes he trains, noting that his contributions are a small part of their overall success, yet he appreciates the family-oriented culture at BYU, allowing him to maintain work-life balance.
Training for Olympic Qualification
Gomerick recently celebrated the success of athletes Connor and Clayton, who qualified for the Olympics. He describes his involvement in their training as largely supplementary to their primary running coaches, where his focus has been on weight training, plyometrics, and mobility work tailored to enhance their performance. He has a well-defined understanding of the athletes' training schedules leading up to significant events, such as the marathon trials, which allows him to optimize their strength training while ensuring they do not compromise their peak running abilities. Gomerick highlights the importance of a holistic approach, integrating his insights with the broader training strategies employed by the running coaches.
Dynamic Strength Index (DSI) for Performance Optimization
A key aspect of Gomerick's training methodology involves the Dynamic Strength Index (DSI), which quantifies the relationship between an athlete's ballistic force production and their maximum strength output. Utilizing force plates, he measures how well athletes can recruit force during explosive movements, helping him tailor their strength training programs effectively. By regularly assessing DSI scores, Gomerick can determine whether an athlete needs more explosive training or focus on increasing their maximal strength. The DSI not only aids in tracking progress but also helps Gomerick customize training regimens based on individual needs, ensuring each athlete reaches their peak potential at competition time.
Strength Training Essentials for Endurance Athletes
Gomerick emphasizes that endurance athletes should consistently incorporate proper strength training into their routines to enhance their performance and overall resilience. He advises that effective strength training should not be limited to light weights; rather, athletes should engage in heavier lifting while maintaining proper form and technique. He discourages the mindset that endurance training alone suffices, highlighting research that shows how resilience in an endurance athlete's muscles can help absorb and redirect force, ultimately leading to injury prevention. Gomerick's approach encourages athletes to be proactive in their strength training by finding movements they enjoy, which helps foster consistency and motivation.
Plyometrics: Enhancing Performance through Explosive Training
Plyometric training is a significant component of Gomerick's regimen, aimed at improving athletes' elasticity and overall explosiveness. He explains that plyometrics focus on the stretch-shortening cycle of muscles, enhancing the ability to produce force quickly, which is essential for both sprinting and endurance running. Gomerick argues that plyometric exercises not only improve power output but also play a critical role in injury prevention, as they condition tendons to handle the forces of repeated impacts. By integrating tailored plyometric workouts into the training schedule, Gomerick ensures that his athletes develop the necessary explosiveness to excel in their events while remaining injury-resilient.
Braden Goimarac is a Strength and Conditioning Coach for Track & Field / XC at BYU in Provo, Utah. Braden has a masters in Sports Performance and Conditioning. On this episode we talk about what strength and conditioning programming looks like for endurance athletes at a Professional Level. Among the athletes Braden coaches are 2024 Olympians Clayton Young & Connor Mantz, Steeplechase legend Kenneth Rooks, and USA T&F Trail Team Athlete Christian Allen. Listen to our conversation to learn a little bit more about how to program strength and conditioning for endurance athletes !!
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