Rate of Force Production

Originally published on the USA Swimming website

This week’s Speedo Tip of the Week comes from Tom Palumbo, the assosciate strength and conditioning coach at The Ohio State University. Palumbo offers advice on increasing the rate of force production in the weight room.

When we think of attributes that we want to develop in athletes in the weight room, we often think of strength, and for swimmers we look to develop both general and local muscular endurance. Many times we are only concerned with whether each rep is made and not the speed of the movement. Another component that we want to focus on is rate of force production (RFP).

There are three basic ways to swim faster. One way is to increase the efficiency of each stroke (technique/skill). The second way is to apply a greater force against the water (strength). The third way is to decrease the time it takes to apply the force (RFP).

By increasing the RFP in our training we will also show strength gains at a quicker rate. There are some simple tips that can help with your strength training program to positively influence RFP and overall velocity of the movement. The first way to change your training is to move against the resistance in your exercise focusing on speed of movement while still maintaining perfect technique. This must become a habit for every rep of every set of every workout.

The second way is to handle heavy weight (> 90% of 1RM). The weight should still be moved through its path as quickly as possible. With the load being so great, the movement may not appear to be moving fast. This cannot be done in every workout. Following a carefully planned periodized program will allow lifting heavy weight at appropriate times during you training cycles.

The third way is through accommodative resistance. This refers most commonly to the use of bands and chains. These tools help increase the resistance when the lever angles of the body are at their greatest advantage mechanical advantage and reduce the resistance when joint level angles are at their weakest. Accommodative resistance forces the lifter to generate more velocity at the onset of the concentric part of the movement so that the lift can be completed.

A fourth way to increase RFP is by “overcoming a load concentrically after a static phase where some muscles can be relaxed” (Louie Simmons). Two examples are box squats and floor presses. In both these exercises, the load is lowered eccentrically. There is a pause during the amortization phase with some of the muscles relaxing. Then, from the semi-relaxed state, a strong concentric force must be applied to the load. Olympic lifts work in a similar fashion except there is no eccentric loading.

A final way to increase RFP is through plyometrics and jumping. Upper and lower body plyo’s and jumping can be introduced into your current strength program in various ways. Precautions before adding plyo’s and a jumping program would be that you have a good strength foundation, a coach that understands proper technique and that this addition makes sense within the cycle.

Although these suggestions are great ways to increase your rate of force production, there are other methods to accomplish the same goal. Both research and anecdotal literature can shed a more in-depth look on this topic. I wish you the best of luck in training to reach your goals.