This final week focuses on mastering safe, effective deceleration techniques alongside planning for your future development.Complete your program while preparing for long-term success.
Congratulations on reaching the final week of your Performance Program! Over the past seven weeks, you've systematically rebuilt your running mechanics, enhanced your speed and agility, and developed a stronger, more resilient body. The skills and movement patterns you've established will serve you well throughout your athletic career.
Our final week addresses one of the most overlooked yet critical aspects of athletic movement: deceleration. While we've spent weeks developing your ability to accelerate and move efficiently, the ability to safely and effectively slow down is equally important for both performance and injury prevention.
In team sports, athletes spend nearly as much time decelerating as accelerating. Every cut, stop, landing, and direction change requires controlled deceleration. Yet most athletes receive little to no training in proper braking techniques. This creates several problems:
By developing proper deceleration technique, you'll not only protect your joints but also enhance your overall athletic performance.
Effective deceleration distributes force throughout your entire kinetic chain rather than concentrating it in vulnerable joints. The key principles include:
This week, you'll add controlled deceleration phases to all sprint efforts. After each sprint, focus on gradually slowing down using proper technique:
Deceleration can be quite intense, so use distances to gradually increase the effort on these, starting with a comfortable 50-75% of the sprint distance (20m sprint, another 15m to decelerate) and gradually reduce the distance 1 meter at a time each week. Focus on quality of movement and feeling in control rather than how aggressively you can stop.
Watch for these common errors when practicing deceleration:
The video demonstration will provide a visual guide to proper technique. Review it carefully and focus on implementing these principles in all your deceleration efforts.
Beyond isolated practice, consider how improved deceleration applies to your sport:
By adding deliberate deceleration practice to your training, you're addressing a crucial aspect of athletic movement that many athletes neglect.
As you complete the Performance Program, you have several options for continued development:
Athletic development is never truly "finished" – it's an ongoing process that evolves with your needs and goals. The Forever Program included in your workbook provides a streamlined maintenance plan that preserves your technical improvements while requiring less time commitment.
The simplest approach is to transition directly to the Forever Program after week 7. This maintenance plan keeps your movement skills sharp while requiring minimal time commitment – perfect for busy athletes with demanding competition schedules.
The Forever Program is ideal for in-season maintenance or as a foundation for more specialized training phases. It preserves the essential movement patterns while leaving energy for sport-specific work.
Many athletes benefit from repeating the full program, starting again at week 1 only going through on a higher intensity and quality. The first time through, much of your focus was on learning new movement patterns. A second cycle allows you to push performance boundaries while refining technique.
If choosing this option, consider:
Remember that these movement skills are most valuable when applied consistently in game situations. During practice and competition:
Initially, this may require conscious focus. Over time, these patterns will become your default movement style, requiring less deliberate attention.
You retain permanent access to all Performance Program resources, including:
These resources remain valuable references as you continue your athletic journey. Revisit them periodically to refresh your understanding and maintain technical focus.
Athletic development is never complete – it's an ongoing process of refinement and growth. The movement skills you've developed over these seven weeks provide a foundation that will serve you throughout your athletic career and beyond.
The greatest athletes continuously return to fundamental movement patterns, even as they reach elite levels. By establishing these patterns early, you've created a significant competitive advantage that will compound over time.
We're proud of the work you've put in and the progress you've made. Your commitment to technical development demonstrates the mindset that separates great athletes from good ones. Carry this attention to detail forward in all your athletic endeavors.
Your experience with this program helps us continue improving our resources for athletes. We'd love to hear about your journey: