VBT for team sports.

For a powerlifter, more strength is always better. For a team-sport athlete, more strength is useful only when it improves performance in the specific velocity range the sport demands. A rugby prop and a hockey winger both squat, but they need very different points on the force-velocity curve.

VBT gives you the tool to see where each athlete lives on that curve, and where they need to move.

Take four to six loads across a wide range - from 30 percent to 90 percent of 1RM - and record mean concentric velocity at each. Plot force (load × g) against velocity. The result is a line with two useful properties:

• F0 - the theoretical force at zero velocity. Approximates maximal strength.
• V0 - the theoretical velocity at zero load. Approximates pure movement speed capacity.

Every athlete has a slope. The slope tells you what kind of stimulus will make them better at their sport.

Compare the athlete's F0 and V0 to the population norms for their sport and position:

• Force deficit - F0 is low relative to peers. They need heavier training, more time under load, absolute-strength blocks.
• Velocity deficit - V0 is low. They need speed-strength work, plyometrics, ballistic loading, jump squats.
• Well balanced - both are appropriate for their sport. Maintain, and program for the sport itself.

Once the deficit is identified, the training block writes itself:

1. Force-deficit athlete - 6 – 10 weeks of loading in the 0.30 – 0.55 m/s zone, moderate reps, high total tonnage.
2. Velocity-deficit athlete - 6 – 10 weeks emphasizing 0.85 – 1.30 m/s work with lighter loads, plus plyometric progression.
3. Balanced athlete - mixed model, low volume, focus on the sport's technical demand.

In-season, the goal changes from adaptation to preservation. Use a single reference load per lift and monitor bar velocity weekly. Falling velocity at a fixed load signals accumulating game and travel fatigue. Rising velocity is a green light to push in a mid-week session.

• Football / rugby - usually force-deficient at younger levels, velocity-deficient at elite. Squat and trap-bar pull are the main measurement lifts.
• Hockey - velocity deficit is common; skate mechanics reward rate of force development. Prioritize the 0.90 – 1.30 m/s zone.
• Cycling (track / sprint) - force-velocity profile lines up almost directly with sprint capacity. Squat V0 is a strong predictor of standing-start power.