FINDING WAYS TO INCORPORATE COMPETITION IN THE WEIGHT ROOM

BY CALL FLORENCE, PERFORMANCE COURSE

We all know the saying that competition breeds excellence, but incorporating that into a weight room setting can be difficult at times. As coaches we don’t think about incorporating competition into the weight room, because we are worried about making sure our athletes are getting all their sets and reps in a safe and efficient manner. We leave so much off the table if we don’t add in some type of competition. Also, athletes love it when they get to compete. Here are some simple ways to add incorporation into the weight room.

ONE ON ONE COMPETITION AT THE END OF A SESSION.

A thing I do to incorporate competition into the weight room is to put it in at the end of the session. Everyone thinks they have the right to compete, but it is a privilege to be able to compete. At the end of a weight room session I will call out two athletes that have separated themselves from the team that day. From there I will have them do some sort of competition one on one. Some examples of competition I like to use are chin-up ISO, Trap Bar/ DB hold, or a weighted plank. After a while of doing this athletes want to be picked at the end for a chance to compete against someone. As a coach you get more effort provided during the session, and you get to reward your athletes at the end for the effort they put forward by rewarding them with the opportunity to compete.

INCORPORATING COMPETITION WITHIN THE WEIGHT-ROOM SESSION.

Another way to add competition into a weight room session is to literally put it in the middle of the session. A way I do this is by incorporating “money sets” or “go for broke sets”. For example let’s say you have your athletes doing 4x6 on chin-ups with a :03 second eccentric. On that 5th set that’s when I incorporate that “money set” by telling my athletes to get as many reps as they can on that get. I also tell my athletes to compete within their group and try to be the one that has the most reps out of their group. I’ve seen athletes break rep PR’s just by incorporating this method. Most athletes don’t want to lose, and when that pressure of losing is presented to them; it produces results they didn’t know they had in them.

Competition Days

Competition days are beneficial in many ways. I like to incorporate competition days in the off season as it can be pretty taxing on the athlete’s body. On competition days I will split the team into 4-5 smaller teams, depending on the size of the team you are working with. Then I will have them go through a series of events such as Chin-Up ISO relay, Trap Bar Hold, DB Goblet Squat to a medicine ball for reps, Bench Press for reps. I even incorporate some speed and agility on competition days such as Cone Stack Relay, Sprint Relay, Medicine Ball Sprint Relay. Competition days break up the monotony of the everyday grind in the off-season. Also, competition days are a way of forming team chemistry. When grouping your athletes into teams, I try to group the teams evenly as far as upperclassmen and underclassmen. This way the older athletes and younger teammates can compete together.

Don’t just let game days be the only days your athletes are exposed to competition. Use the weight room to your advantage by incorporating competition within the session. At the end of the day “Competition Breeds Greatness.”

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