Aretas Connects Vol. 16 | Building Power & Explosive Movement

Hey Aretas Performance Community,

You've put in the hard work to build a strong foundation. You've lifted heavy, you've mastered proper form, and you've consistently shown up. This week, we're diving into the key to unlocking true athletic potential: Power and Explosive Movement. This is a foundational concept that builds the critical difference between being strong and being dynamic, which is what separates a good athlete from a great one.

Power: The Intersection of Strength and Speed

You may have heard the term "power" used in the gym, but what does it really mean? From a scientific standpoint, power is defined by the equation:

P=F×V

Or, Power equals Force multiplied by Velocity.

In simple terms, power is your ability to generate maximum force in the shortest amount of time. It’s what allows you to sprint faster, jump higher, change direction quicker, and hit a ball with more force. While strength training builds the force component, power training focuses on accelerating that force to produce explosive movement.

Why It's Crucial for Athletic Development

Building power is essential for any athlete, because it directly translates to on-field performance.

• Improved Agility & Speed: Training for power helps your nervous system fire faster, enabling quicker bursts of acceleration and deceleration.

• Enhanced Jumping & Landing: Whether it's a box jump or a basketball rebound, explosive lower body power is the key to both height and safe landing.

• Injury Prevention: A powerful body is a resilient body. Training for power strengthens your muscles' ability to absorb and re-apply force, which protects your joints and tissues from the rapid, unpredictable movements that often lead to injury.

This is why we incorporate evidence-based, effective principles at Aretas Performance. We don't just teach you how to lift; we teach you how to move a load with intent and speed, building the kind of functional, explosive power that matters most.

Coaching for Explosive Power

So, how would we actually coach power? It starts with one simple yet crucial concept: intent.

We don't just tell you what to lift when we’re coaching for explosive power, we also put an emphasis on how to lift with explosive intent, even if the weight is light. This trains your nervous system to be faster, more efficient, and more responsive.

Here's an example of how we apply this principle with a common explosive movement: the Broad Jump.

The Broad Jump: An At-Home Exercise for Explosive Power

The broad jump is a fantastic way to develop lower-body power without any equipment. A coach would break it down like this:

1. The "Why": We broad jump to teach your lower body to rapidly absorb and produce force—just like you would when sprinting, jumping for a rebound, or changing direction on the field.

2. The Coaching Cues:

   • Load with Purpose: Start in an athletic stance, hips back, chest up. Think of a spring loading.

   • "Triple Extension": Explode forward and up, extending your ankles, knees, and hips all at once. The goal is to be as fast as possible.

   • Absorb the Landing: Land softly, absorbing the force by "sticking" the landing in a controlled athletic position. This eccentric strength (the ability to slow down a movement) is key to injury prevention.

What to Do:

• Try it yourself: Find a clear, open space. Perform 5 broad jumps, focusing on exploding with maximum speed and then sticking the landing. Rest for 30-60 seconds between each jump.

• The Power Test: Can you make the same distance on your fifth jump as you did on your first? If you can't, it means you’re losing power due to fatigue. This is a sign you need to build more explosive strength endurance.

This is just a small peek into the intentionality behind power training. We teach you to be explosive, controlled, and resilient in every movement, setting the stage for peak performance.

Other Aretas Updates & Community News

Women's Performance: New Community Class!

We've been hard at work building new connections and expanding our offerings to better support women at every stage of their lives. We're excited to announce that we'll be starting a free Bump to Baby community class on the first Saturday of each month! This is a perfect opportunity to experience our specialized training and connect with other women on a similar journey. Our first class will be on September 6th and is designed to build a strong, supportive community. We're also collaborating with local healthcare providers to share our programs with their clients who are interested in our Bump to Baby and Osteoporosis offerings.

Off-Season Golf Fitness

As the summer season begins to wind down, now is the perfect time to start thinking about off-season golf fitness. Our specialized training is designed to improve your club head speed, enhance your power, and increase your mobility to help you stay strong and resilient on the course. Interested in improving your golf game this off-season? Book an assessment with Mitch to learn how.

Movember at Aretas

Join us on November 15th from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for an amazing day dedicated to men's health. The event will feature a workout and golf circuit, a raffle, a long drive competition, a men’s health talk, delicious food, and more! All proceeds will benefit the Movember Foundation. You can learn more and RSVP on the official event page here: https://us.movember.com/events/view/id/M36W

The 12-Week Performance Nutrition Challenge

Don't miss your chance to take control of your nutrition! Our 12-Week Performance Nutrition Challenge is designed to give you a personalized roadmap, so you never have to guess again. We'll work together to build a sustainable system that gets you feeling good in your body and performing in your life. The challenge officially kicks off with our seminar on September 20th, but August Rate pricing is still available!

Learn more & enroll here: Enroll in the 12-Week Performance Nutrition Challenge Here! 

Book a free Nutrition Discovery Session with Laura: Book a Free Nutrition Discovery Session with Laura!

We're passionate about helping every athlete reach their peak performance, and every individual thrive. Thank you for being a valued part of the Aretas Performance community.

In Excellence,

The Aretas Performance Team

Need to book with your coach? Find their direct link below for seamless scheduling:

• Click here to book with Mitch Sadowsky, Head Performance Coach & Golf Fitness Specialist.

• Click here to book with Laura Sadowky, Director of Women’s Performance & Nutrition Coach.

• Click here to book with Drake Sutton, Head Performance Coach & Athletic Development Expert.