Science for Sport Podcast - Episodes Tagged with “Speed Training”

300: Training Through Disruption: Managing Load, Time, and Performance in Winter with Michael Fennell

Science for Sport — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000

In this episode of the Science for Sport Podcast, host Richard Graves welcomes back Michael Fennell for a deep dive into one of the most misunderstood periods of the performance calendar: winter training.
With the competitive season behind us and Christmas disruptions in full swing, Michael shares a practical, experience-led perspective on how elite athletes and practitioners should approach December and the early winter months. From managing training load and avoiding premature peaks, to maintaining performance standards through smart programming, this episode is packed with real-world insight from the track, the runway, and the training ground.
Drawing on his work across elite athletics, football, rugby, and para sport, Michael breaks down how training priorities shift between individual and team sports, why fundamentals still matter in an age of performance technology, and how micro-sessions can be used to maintain progress when time and facilities are limited.
This is an honest, grounded conversation about perspective, planning, and patience, and why doing the basics exceptionally well still underpins elite performance.

In this episode you will learn:

How elite athletes should approach December training without peaking too early
Why maintaining performance is more important than chasing PBs in winter
How to structure micro-sessions when time, facilities, or routine are disrupted
The key differences in winter training for team sports vs athletics
How and when to prioritise plyometrics, speed, strength, and conditioning
Why fundamentals like ground contact time, elasticity, and movement quality still matter
How to balance data, technology, and coaching eye in modern performance environments
The importance of coach collaboration and open-minded learning
What elite preparation looks like heading into major championships and qualification periods

About Michael Fennell
Michael Fennell is an experienced performance coach working across elite athletics, team sports, and para sport. With close to two decades of coaching experience, he has supported athletes at national and international level, including British champions and elite performers progressing toward major championships.
Michael’s coaching philosophy blends technical excellence, physical fundamentals, and athlete-centred planning, with a strong emphasis on sprint mechanics, jumping performance, plyometrics, and long-term development. He is known for his collaborative approach, regularly working alongside other coaches, strength and conditioning practitioners, and support staff to ensure athletes are prepared for the demands of elite competition.

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190: How You Can Use Small-Sided Games To Optimise Football Fitness

Science for Sport — Mon, 20 Nov 2023 09:00:00 +0000

In episode 190, Joshua Smith, High-Performance Manager for AmaZulu Football Club, joins us.

Specifically Joshua will be looking at:

The physical demands of football
How to use Small-Sided Games to optimise football fitness

About Joshua:

"I am currently working as the High-Performance Manager for AmaZulu Football Club (South Africa); as an online tutor for the University of South Wales Sport and Exercise Medicine courses; and, as a contributing author for the International Soccer Science and Performance Federation (ISSPF). I have previous experience with Supersport United (South Africa), Gençlerbirliği S.K. (of Turkey - Super Lig), and Kaizer Chiefs Football Club (South Africa); as well as with the South African Men’s Senior National team as their Sports Scientist and Conditioning coach in the qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA World Cup; and the qualifiers for and at the AFCON 2019 tournament.

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-smith-msc-8262a625/
X - @josh_smith_RSA

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176: Women's World Cup Special: How And Why Women Footballers Train Differently To Men

Science for Sport — Mon, 14 Aug 2023 09:00:00 +0100

In episode 176 Jess Fassnidge, Exercise Physiologist at The University of Worcester, joins us.

Specifically Jess will be looking at:

How football differs for men and women
Key considerations for women footballers
How to train with these considerations in mind
Case study: How to train as a non-elite woman footballer

About Jess:

"Jess currently works as an Exercise Physiologist for the University of Worcester where she conducts all the fitness testing for the Hereford and Worcester Fire Service. Alongside this role she works as an Academy Manager for Science For Sport, is Club Captain for Worcester City Women FC as well as being the Head Coach for the Worcester Movers & Shakers which is an all Parkinson's Walking Football Team. She has a keen passion in promotion of women's sports as well as anything ACL rehabilitation related. Jess received a soccer scholarship to the US where she completed a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration and Marketing before completing a Post-Graduate Degree in Strength, Conditioning and Performance at University College Birmingham."

Instagram: jess_fasss
Twitter: jess_fass
LinkedIn: Jessica Fassnidge (Link: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-fassnidge-9867a110a/ )

Worcester City Women FC: https://www.wcwfc.co.uk/

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164: Can Velocity Based Training Stop You From Over-Working In The Gym?

Science for Sport — Mon, 22 May 2023 02:00:00 +0100

In episode 164 Chris Tombs, Performance Coach, joins us.

Specifically Chris will be looking at:

What VBT is & types available
Why athletes should use it
How to implement it for performance optimisation

About Chris:

"Chris Tombs is a performance coach and VBT educator. Having coached for 28 years, 21 of them in professional sport, Chris has a wealth of knowledge and experience across strength and conditioning, as well as coach education. He predominantly worked in collision sport (rugby union) and is perhaps best known for his role at Cardiff Blues, developing players who then went on to represent the British and Irish Lions. One such player being Sam Warburton. Chris now leads SW7 Academy, as head of performance and spends his time consulting and educating in the application of VBT."

Twitter & Instagram: @christombs71

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155: How To Design A World-Class Performance Gym From Scratch

Science for Sport — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 02:00:00 +0000

In episode 155, Adam Parr, Head of Performance at Charlotte FC, joins us.

Specifically Adam will be looking at:

How to build a performance team
How to plan a performance gym
How the gym will help his players perform optimally

About Adam:

"Adam C. Parr is currently the Head of Performance for Charlotte FC, in Major League Soccer (MLS). Before joining Charlotte FC for their inaugural season in 2022, he recently had been the Head of Strength & Conditioning for Minnesota United FC for 2 seasons, as well as the Head of S&C and Data Analytics at Reno 1868 FC for 2 seasons. Before getting back into the professional team setting again in 2018, he previously owned his own fitness & performance company in Beverly Hills for 6 years where he worked with professional, college & youth athletes, along with celebrities and general population. Along with an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology from San Diego State Universities, Adam also has a Master of High Performance Sport from Australian Catholic University"

Social Media:
-Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aparrfitness/
-LindedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamcparr/

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153: Gym-Based Activation Sessions: Football's Best Kept Secret For Improving On-Field Performance

Science for Sport — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 02:00:00 +0000

In episode 153, Terry Peters, Performance Coach, joins us.

Specifically Terry will be looking at:

Why footballers should train in the gym
How the gym impacts field based performance
How to use activation sessions to improve football performance

About Terry:

"I worked with the Olympic Committee in Holland, I worked with a variety of sports including Table Tennis, Track Cycling and Volleyball, and I realised I would prefer to work in an environment where I would get to work every day with the same athletes, to get a become more process oriented, rather than being focused on tasks. Then Vitesse Arnhem was at the same location as the Olympic Committee, so I moved there for around 7 years, and met some really good coaches over there. One of them took me to Dubai to work with a team there as a Strength & Conditioning coach, and then I came back to work with Heerenveen in the same role. Then Peter Bosz, who I worked with at Vitesse called me, and asked whether I wanted to come and work at Bayer Leverkusen. I worked at Bayer 04 Leverkusen for 2 seasons before moving for just over a season to Olympique Lyon. Currently i’ve my got own company, TP Performance Coaching, and recently did consultancy work for Jumbo-Visma Roadcycling and a Premier League team. I'm currently waiting for the next big project."

Instagram: @terry_pe86
LinkedIn: https://nl.linkedin.com/in/terry-peters-a60b0026

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110: Play More, Win More, Earn More: Reducing Injury Risk In Sport

Science for Sport — Mon, 09 May 2022 02:00:00 +0100

In episode 110, Christian Woodford, Strength and Conditioning Coach at Woodford SSC, joins us.

Specifically you will learn:

The importance of reducing injury risk
How to train to reduce injury risk
What NOT to do in the gym
How Christian programs for his athletes

About Christian

"Christian Woodford’s name is the biggest in sports performance, injury prevention and rehab – return to perform in Australia (while pioneering the growth, development and understanding of applied sport science/athletic development in The Australian private sector). Over the last 8 years (est. 2012) Christian & WSSC have become world renowned and some of the best coaches in the world such as Joe Defranco giving their tick of approval to WSSC & Christian.

Christian is known for his athlete centred and RESULTS driven approach to his coaching. Athletes from professional, semi professional, amateur to weekend warrior (both here and abroad) have all hire Christian to prepare them for sporting performance, injury reduction & rehab -return to perform coaching.

Christian’s passion for applied sport science, coaching and the industry has developed him into the coach that is #changingthegame in the private sector not just in Australia but around the world.

Christian offers consultancy for teams, individual athletes, coaches, students and upskill for other personal training, coaching companies."

Instagram/Twitter: @coachwoodford @WoodfordSSC

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70: Get Next Level Explosive Power Using One Simple Test

Science for Sport — Mon, 02 Aug 2021 01:00:00 +0100

In episode 70 JB Morin, Professor University of Saint-Etienne University, joins us.

Specifically JB will be looking at:

Importance of F-V Profiling
How to profile
Using the data
Profiling on a budget

About JB

"Jean-Benoit (JB) Morin is Full Professor at the University of Saint-Etienne (France), Director of the Sports Science Department, and a member of the Interuniversity Laboratory of Human Movement Biology (LIBM). He is also associate researcher with the Sports Research Institute New-Zealand (SPRINZ) at Auckland University of Technology, and visiting Professor in Locomotion Biomechanics at the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Science at Loughborough University. He obtained a Track & Field Coach National Diploma in 1998 and a Ph.D. in Human Locomotion and Performance in 2004 under the joint supervision of Pr Alain Belli (University of Saint-Etienne, France) and Pr Pietro di Prampero (University of Udine, Italy). JB’s field of research is mainly human locomotion and performance, with specific interest in running biomechanics and maximal power movements (sprint, jumps). He has edited a textbook (Biomechanics of Training and Testing, Springer, 2018) and published over 150 peer-reviewed scientific papers. He is also a consultant for professional sports groups in soccer, rugby, sprint, and other power-speed sports. He practiced soccer for 10 years, practiced and coached track and field (middle distance and 400m hurdles) for eight years, and he now enjoys trail running and triathlon."

Twitter: @jb_morin
Instagram: @jb.morin.1

Link to episode 55 with Carlos Balsalobre, discussing the MyJump app: http://scienceforsport.fireside.fm/55

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54: Explosive Performance Gains From Foot Training

Science for Sport — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 05:00:00 +0100

In episode 54 Joel Smith, Strength & Conditioning Coach, joins us.

Specifically Joel will be looking at:

Importance of feet in performance
Movements of the feet
Training the feet
Case Study

About Joel

"Joel Smith is the founder of Just Fly Sports and trains athletes and clients in partnership with Evolutionary Fitness in Cincinnati, Ohio. Joel hosts the Just Fly Performance Podcast, has authored several books on athletic performance, and trains numerous clients in the in-person and online space. Joel was formerly a strength coach for 8 years at UC Berkeley, working with the Swim teams and post-graduate professional swimmers, as well as tennis, water polo, and track and field. A track coach of 11 years, Joel coached for the Diablo Valley Track and Field Club for 7 years, and also has 6 years of experience coaching sprints, jumps, hurdles, pole vault and multi-events on the collegiate level, working at Wilmington College, and the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse.

Joel has coached 2 national champions, multiple All-Americans and school record holders in his time as a track coach. In the realm of strength and conditioning, his programs have assisted 5 athletes to Olympic berths that produced 9 medals and a world record performance at Rio in 2016.

In 2011, Joel began Just Fly Sports with Jake Clark as a central platform to promote information for athletes and coaches to reach their highest potential. In 2016 the first episode of the “Just Fly Performance Podcast” was released, now a leading source of education in the sports performance field. The evolving mission of Just Fly Sports is focused on teaching athletes to realize their true, innate power, and achieve the highest joy in their training, competition, and in the community.

Joel has also spent several years in the realms of college lecturing, personal training, and thesis research. Joel’s certifications include Neurological and Physical Typing from BATI, CSCS, MAT Jumpstart, and NKT level 1, as well as USA Track and Field credentials. Joel is also well-versed in the Be-Activated protocols as taught by Douglas Heel, Foot training and biomechanical concepts from Gary Ward, and has been extensively mentored by sprint and sport movement coach Adarian Barr."

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JustFlySports
Instagram: @justflysports
Twitter: @justflysports

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