Our experience, however, tells us that many high school females would be better served by starting their weight training with the BFS readiness program. This is because fewer girls have a background in sport at a young age compared with boys, and they have not been introduced to the basics of sprinting and jumping. ■■ High school male athletes. If a male athlete cannot squat 145 pounds (66 kilograms) to parallel for 10 reps with good form, then we believe it’s best to start with the BFS readiness program.

We don’t want to maintain those lifts. To set up a maintenance program in high school is to set up a program of failure. The athletes will never reach their potential. Mike’s football coach did the BFS in-season program and followed the set–rep system. 3). Because the in-season program was the same for all sports, athletes could make smooth transitions from one sport season to the next. Mike stuck to his program faithfully all four years, broke an average of 400 personal records each year, and reached his potential.

BFS Readiness: Weight Training To minimize the risk of injury from any conditioning program, coaches must teach proper technique. During BFS clinics, our clinicians not only teach athletes how to lift and spot properly but also instruct coaches how to teach the proper lifting and spotting techniques. As the proverb goes, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. ” With that in mind, here are the details of the BFS readiness weight training program. 42 Bigger Faster Stronger Getting Started Start with just the 45-pound (20-kilogram) Olympic bar on each core lift, although for some athletes (especially girls), a lighter, 15-pound (7-kilogram) technique bar may be necessary.