Interpreting Power-Force-Velocity Profiles for Individualized andSpecific Training

Our new Study published in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance

Pubmed citation here

After about 10 years of friendship and collaboration, Pierre Samozino and myself finally wrote a paper together. In this invited commentary, we detail how to use the "force-velocity-power" (FVP) methods we published for an individualized and optimized training process in sports that require maximal jumping and sprinting actions.

The following theoretical bases have been published :

Simple method for measuring F, V and P during jumping. J Biomech, 2008

Concept of optimal F-V profile to maximize jumping performance. J Theoretical Biol 2010; Med Sci Sport Exerc 2012; Int J Sports Med 2014

Simple method for measuring F, V and P during sprint acceleration. Scand J Med Sci Sport 2015

And we observed in our own consulting and research practice that even if these methods are considered "simple", details were still needed for many practitioners to use them on a regular basis. 
We teach the processing of data (jump, sprint analysis) to Masters students, or during workshops here and there, and applications for iPhone named "MyJump" and "MySprint" allow a very easy, direct and valid analysis of FVP profiles.

However, we wanted to have the detailed definitions and practical interpretations of the mechanical variables listed in a unique piece of work, a short, practical vade mecum. 

We also illustrate in this paper how to use the force-velocity imbalance to design training and improve performance in jumping, and how similar sprint performance (i.e. sprint time on a given distance) may result from very different FV profiles and technical abilities of ground force application.

The latter point is very important to understand, especially for colleagues who think that overall, short (e.g. 5-m) and long (e.g. 40-m) sprint times give the entire story. No. The typical example below shows two soccer players with the same 30-m time (so same 30-m sprint performance), yet their force-velocity profile and ratio of force-time relationship strongly differ. These are the integrative mechanical outputs that explain their performance, and the conclusion here, in our opinion, is that these two players, although displaying identical 30-m sprint times, have very different mechanical capabilities of force, velocity production, and ground force application effectiveness. Our approach suggests that these individuals should be trained (at least in part) differently. 

This is what "individualizing" and "optimizing" training means to us. We hope that our training studies in progress will clearly demonstrate the higher effectiveness of such an individualized approach aiming at compensating weaknesses in the FVP profile for each individual, compared to standard "one-size-fits-all" programs designed regardless of individuals characteristics... 

Acknowledgements: all these works would not have been possible without the trust and understanding of coaches and athletes who accepted to perform and use these approaches. Impossible to cite them all, but colleagues from Auckland University of Technology (Matt Cross, Matt Brughelli, Scott Brown) and Spanish colleagues Jurdan Mendiguchia and Pedro Jimenez-Reyes are the academics who first saw the interest of these approaches...