Testing for Success

As I have journeyed thought my career as a pole vaulter and coach, I wondered if there was a simple test that any coach in any sport could use to assess the progress of their athletes. This testing procedure should evaluate the main muscle groups for strength, power, and speed (and endurance if endurance is necessary for that sport).

Back in 1988 I first attended Jan Johnson’s Sky Jumpers Pole Vault Camp at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CA. At this camp I was exposed to Jan’s Five Guy (Sorry ladies, only guys pole vaulted in those days) Test. What Coach Johnson did was test the vaulters in four lifts. He then divided their body weight into the total weight lifted in those four lifts. Jan discovered that if total weight lifted divided by their body weight equated five or greater the pole vaulter could vault at least 17 feet.

At the USATF Level III Sprint School in July 2002 we were taught the relationship of speed testing to fitness and meet performance. During that school I began to formulate a method of incorporating the testing of strength, power, and speed into a Microsoft Excel spread sheet that can easily be used by a coach.

I started by choosing the following five lifts: Bench Press, Military Press, Curl, Dead Lift or Squat, and Clean or Snatch. These lifts test all the main muscle groups for strength, power, and speed. I left the option of choosing the Dead Lift or Squat and the Clean or Snatch to the coach based on the facilities and equipment available to them.

Next, I chose the 30 meter sprint for the running distance because I was coaching pole vaulters. This distance can be whatever a coach decides it needs to be depending on what type of athlete they are coaching.

The pull up does not figure into any of the equations but the pull up has always been one way of testing the arm strength of pole vaulters. Since I am a traditional kind of guy I figured I would leave it on the spread sheet since there was room for it. The coach can substitute any activity they choose for the pull up if they so desire.

As shown on the spread sheet a coach will test their athletes in the Bench Press, Military Press, Curl, Dead Lift or Squat, and Clean or Snatch. The spread sheet will automatically calculate what I have called the Strength Factor. The Strength Factor is calculated by taking the total of the five lifts and divide that by the athletes body weight. The Strength Factor basically tells the coach how strong the athlete is relative to their own body weight.

Next, the coach will test their athlete in whatever running distance they find appropriate for the type of athlete they coach. For pole vaulters, I tested them for a 30 meters sprint from a standing start. I chose a standing start because I wanted to assess reaction time and acceleration as well as how fast the athlete could cover the distance. The coach could just as well do this running test as a flying 30 meter sprint if they so desire.

To calculate the Fitness Factor you take the Strength Factor and divide it by the time achieved in the distance selected by the coach. As you can see, the Fitness Factor yields a number which relates strength, speed, and power.

I suggest that a coach test their athletes every 30 to 45 days. In this way they can assess if the athletes training program is achieving the desired results. The more the amount weight lifted, at a lower body weight, and a faster time in the run will yield the highest Fitness Factor. Typically, the higher the Fitness Factor the better the competition results. The coach will find out that this may not be true for all athletes. The secret is to find out what is the best Fitness Factor for each individual athlete. Example: Losing too much weight can yield a weak athlete!

I would like to thank Jan Johnson of Sky Jumpers for his Five Guy Concept and the USATF Level III Sprint Coaching Staff for the inspiration and help developing this testing concept. We all stand on others shoulders!

About the author: Eddie Seese is a USATF Level I, Level II Certified Coach and a Level III Sprints and Jumps School graduate, a Sky Jumpers Certified Coach, on the Board of Directors of the Pole Vault Safety Certification Board, and a member of the USATF National Pole Vault Development Staff. He has been an average pole vaulter for 42 years. He can be reached at prsport4@aol.com or by calling (707) 645-8555