Triphasic Training 2 is an applied performance book showing coaches how to build strength, speed, and power by targeting the eccentric, isometric, and concentric phases of training.
Your Hamstrings Aren't Tight — They're Working Overtime
|
"My athletes always complain about tight hamstrings. We stretch them every day and nothing changes. What are we missing?" Here's the thing — you're probably not missing a stretch. You're missing the real problem entirely. It's Not a Flexibility Problem Tight hamstrings are almost never about the hamstring being too short. They're tight because they're doing a job that isn't theirs. When the glutes aren't firing first during hip extension, the hamstring picks up the slack. It becomes the primary driver of a movement it was designed to assist. And then you stretch it. You're literally loosening the one muscle that's holding the whole pattern together. The Firing Order That Changes Everything In the TP2 book, we lay out the correct hip extension sequence based on years of EMG testing:
When this order is reversed — hamstring first, then QL, then glute — you get chronic tightness, slower times, and a hamstring injury waiting to happen. Cal's data from World and Olympic champions all showed the same thing: "The best athletes I've ever seen had a great hip extension pattern with minimal compensations." Here's the part that really got me though — to quote the legendary coach Henk Kraaijenhof: "Your hamstrings are made for running, not walking." Think about that. If the hamstring is doing the glute's job during every single walking step — that's 20,000 bad reps a day before your athlete even sets foot in your gym. The Fix Isn't a Stretch Use RPR to reset the pattern. Get the glute firing first. Then reinforce it through your training with exercises that demand the correct sequence. Cal found that when he corrected the pattern in his track athletes, "their quads got smaller, but they ran faster and jumped higher." And if you're training yourself — same deal. Test your own firing order before you blame your hamstrings for being "tight." Stop stretching the muscle that's covering for the one that's asleep. The complete breakdown of all three compensation patterns, how to spot them in seconds, and the RPR drills that fix them is in TP2 — starting on page 22. https://triphasic2.com << order here All the best, PS - Here is what Steve had to say: "I picked up the book and began using drills and cues with my athletes immediately. Great information and looking forward to implementing more." https://triphasic2.com << order here Coach Cal Dietz, U of MN If you do not want to get this newsletter, we will miss you, sniff sniff, but you can unsubscribe by clicking the link below and -poof- we are gone. . |
Triphasic II
Triphasic Training 2 is an applied performance book showing coaches how to build strength, speed, and power by targeting the eccentric, isometric, and concentric phases of training.
Here is a great way to change up your programming a bit and get more transfer on to the field where it counts. Most coaches adjust loads by phase — heavy in strength blocks, lighter as they move toward speed work. But since you are reading his, you know you can also adjust foot position to match. What Elite Sprinters Are Actually Doing Here's what Cal noticed watching the best sprinters in the world: foot position isn't random. Coming out of a stance, feet are wide. As athletes accelerate and...
Most coaches think isometrics are a strength tool. A joint-angle hold, maybe some prehab work. That's about it. ..but you can use them for aerobic conditioning — and gets a soft tissue remodeling bonus that nobody in the field is talking about. The Method Pick an isometric hold at about 30% of 1RM. A wall sit, a split squat hold, a push-up position just off the floor, a bench press held just above the chest. Hold for up to five minutes. The mechanism is blood flow restriction. At 30% of 1RM,...
Here's something that came up when Cal and I were putting TP2 together. We were going through his Triblock system — the one that sequences strength, speed, and power specifically for fast-twitch fiber adaptation. I understood the blocks. ...But then Cal said something that stopped me cold about how it all went together. "Even just sitting with him on just some aspects of something I've been doing a while and tested. And I'm like, Mike, this is what it does. He's like, I get it. We got to...