Sprint Training and Skating Starts

In order to improve performance. all athletes should be focusing their training to specifically enhance motions utilized in their sport or competition. With regards to Short Track Speed Skating, race times are heavily affected by a skaters start. Ice skating sprints starts have a similar motion and acceleration as dry land sprint starts. It is therefore surmised that training dry land starts will benefit on ice starts. Researchers from Australia worked with nine elite and trained short track speed skaters utilizing a four week dry land starts training program to test on ice start improvement.

Athletes completed both dry land and on ice sprints to gain a control number followed by specific sprint start training and then re-doing the dry land and on ice sprints. Figure 3 below shows a comparison of an athlete’s dry land sprint time, to on ice sprint time. Both sprints were measured at time to cross 14.43m. The open circles and dashed line show the results during the control period and the black circles and solid line show the results after specific training.
The results showed a 2.6% increase in on ice sprint time after specific dry land start training.


This information can be extrapolated to all athletes. The results show that targeted training of a specific sport mechanic improve results in a game setting. An argument can be made that on ice start training will have equal or better results than dry land start training. While this is likely the case, training in the sport environment, with the right equipment, or having the right number of other athletes is not always possible. In the example of short track speed skating, the athletes likely don’t have ice access during every training session.

The take away for you as an athlete it to work with your coach or personal trainer and determine specific movements and motions you want to improve. Create a training program that you can do anywhere, especially days you don’t have access to play simulation, to target your goals.



References

https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/Fulltext/2019/02000/The_Impact_of_Dry_Land_Sprint_Start_Training_on.30.aspx