Dear Valentin Uzunov,

1. I want to get a copy of your book "specific Strength Training. Practical Manual for Coaches" however i read you have a 2nd Ed coming out. Should i wait for that...will the amendments be that much different? What do you recommend.

We are working on the second edition of “Special Strength Training: Practical Manual for Coach”, we are in the state of translation of the new text and new programs. We are facing the difficulties of the double translation, Russian – Italian – English and also the “translation” of concepts in another mentality. So, it needs more time that we thought at the beginning.

If you know Russian, I suggest you to read my book “Fondamentals of Specal Physical Preparation” that include more ample material than my “Manual for coach”. I am sure you will find in it all the answers to your questions.

If you know Russian and you are interested, let me know.

2.  What is your opinion on gymnastics training...? Do you think that gymnastics leg training should be different? How.

I never worked with gymnasts, but I think that the methodological approach of special physical and special strength preparation in this sport discipline must be different from Track&Field and sport games. What are the differences? I think that the elements of the gymnastic competition exercises are the best training means for SST. So, to elaborate a good SST gymnastic program it needs to be a good expert in gymnastic. This could sound obvious, but it’s very important.

Regards the training of child – athletes, I think that their training must be general, not very specific. This is the base rule of sport training.

3. What would you recommend training wise for female gymnasts (ages 10-11yrs old), non elite, train 3 days a week (Monday, Tuesday, Friday), with a relatively weak leg strength base level (due to lack of training).

Your jump program is quite good.

I think that it’s difficult to do something wrong coaching the 10 – 11 years old athletes.

The methods could be exactly opposed to those I suggest for high level athletes, in this case the method must be more complex as possible.

If you want to enforce the legs the athletes could perform the abdominal and upper body exercises during the intervals between jumps sets (this will be like the circuit training) or they could have an active rest as adult athletes - it’s not very important.

If you want to increase power it’s better use more short jump exercises performed with a concrete aim (longer, faster, higher). In this case it’s better to have an active rest between the jump sets.

Yuri Verkhoshansky  

Dear Valentin Uzunov,

it’s always pleasure for me to exchange ideas with a coach. Your arguments about the importance of the  specific physiological capabilities for the improvement of the gymnasts sport results is  the same argument that I usually discuss with coaches.
I think that it was only a misunderstanding in what you and I mean with the item “specific training”.
In your precedent question you asked me about the methods to use the jump exercises. For adult and high level athletes, these methods must be very detailed because the organism of high level adult athlete is sensitive to any little variation of the method. For this reason, every minimal variation of the training exercises can influence their training effect.
The human body in the phase of development is not much sensible to the variations of training methods as the case of high level adult athletes. For this reason the training methods for child athletes could be more complex/holistic (more general) and not so elaborated or “specialized” as in the case of adult athletes.
Talking about the “specific training” I mean a different level of “specialty” of Special Physical Preparation that include Special Strength Training, SST.
So, I didn’t mean that the child athletes should not engage in regular specific training. 
SST is the part of the training process that regards the use of strength exercises and it’s finalized to increase the athlete’s sport result. This characteristic does SST different from the General Strength Preparation that is finalized to an harmonious development of the athlete’s organism. 

The theoretic aspects of the SST will be described in the second edition of “Special Strength Training: Practical Manual for Coaches”. 

 Yuri Verkhoshansky