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One of the major challenges in being a strength coach at the college or professional level is time. Class schedules, practice, games, Dr. appointments, travel and just about any other event you can think of, often cuts into the time you can spend in the gym. Scheduling and being creative are invaluable tools to have if you have time constraints.
Combination lifts (combos) are a sound and simple way of getting quality work done in a short amount of time. The concept is simple, combine two or more movements into one exercise. Each individual lift is performed one right after another. Most of the combos we employ are related to Olympic movements.
These combos have several functions. First, as I stated before, they save time by creating one exercise out of several movements. Next, they utilize several muscle groups at one time. This gives you a total body workout in one shot. Also, because of the nature of these lifts, they are very strenuous and fatiguing. Finally, they can be designed to be very sport specific. You can adjust the sets, reps and weight to mimic the metabolic 'work : rest' ratio of your sport.
For example:
Hockey - work = 1 shift or 30 sec of movement: rest on the bench or 90-120 sec of rest. Metabolically, this is a 1:3-4 ratio identical to hockey.
Basketball - work = 20 sec of movement: rest 30-60 sec of rest.
Football - work = 1 play or 10 sec of movement: rest 20-40 sec of rest.
Here are some examples of the combos we use:
Combo #1
Hang clean, push press & front squat = 1 rep
Combo #2
Back squat, front lunge, lateral lunge (both legs) = 1 rep
Combo #3
Clean from floor, shoulder press, front squat, split jerk =1 rep
Combo #4
Back squat, push press, lateral squat (both legs) = 1 rep
Combo #5
Hang snatch, snatch squat, snatch balance = 1 rep
These are a few of the endless possibilities of combination lifts. The possibilities are also unlimited for individual sport needs. For hockey, soccer, swimming and basketball, I would recommend doing light to medium weight with higher reps 4x6-8. Football, sprints, field events, baseball and softball should increase the weight used and lower the reps. You can refine the sets, reps and weight used even more for specific positions in sport depending on their metabolic needs. (wide outs & DB's = speed and quickness vs. linemen = power and quickness).
As the case with all exercise, especially Olympic lifts, follow a proper warm up routine and always keep correct form. These lifts are demanding on the body. Don't flirt with injury. When you get tired, don't compromise your form! Lower the weight if you have too, but don't neglect your form.
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