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Muscles and Management
Over the last near decade, Gerry DeFilippo has trained THOUSANDS of athletes from the youth to pro level across all major team-sports.
Gerry started his gym and brand, Challenger Strength, as an ambitious 22 year old still finishing his college degree.
In the time since, he has built his facility and following into a nationally recognized performance company training thousands of athletes both in-person and online.
Gerry brings guests across all areas of sports and performance training, giving the listener inside access to his rolodex of collegiate, world renowned private and professional performance and sports coaches.
If you are looking to improve your own performance OR knowledge of performance/sports training (and learn how to shape your career), Muscles and Management is for you!
Muscles and Management
Episode #232 Sprint Mechanics, Speed Trends, and Building Better Athletes with Justin Wickard
Send us your questions, or thoughts on today's episode!
In this episode of Muscles and Management, Gerry sits down with Justin Wickard—track and field coach, speed expert, and founder of Tier One Athlete—to break down what it really takes to get athletes faster.
With nearly two decades of experience across Division I programs like TCU and Air Force, Justin shares his journey from intern to elite sprint coach, and how his philosophy has evolved from traditional volume-heavy training to a precision-based approach rooted in movement quality, recovery, and intent.
- The conversation dives deep into:
- Why mechanics matter more than gimmicks
- The misunderstood role of sleds and resistance sprinting
- Why posture and pelvic positioning are crucial for top-end speed
- How to avoid “speed lock” and overstimulating the CNS
- Why submaximal sprinting may be a missing piece
- The limits of strength and when it stops translating to speed
They also take aim at the overhyped obsession with 40-yard dash times, dissect the pros and cons of modern speed trends on social media, and explore how team sport coaches can better integrate proven track and field methods.
If you're a coach or athlete looking to cut through the noise and learn how to actually improve speed—without sacrificing movement, health, or long-term development—this one’s a must-listen.
All that and more on this episode of Muscles and Management!
Timestamps:
0:00 – Introduction to the Episode and Guest, Justin Wickard
3:16 – Coaching Journey: 14 Years in College Track & Field
7:50 – The Power of Mentorship and Learning from Elite Coaches
10:43 – Evolving as a Coach: From Volume to Recovery-Based Programming
17:06 – The 40-Yard Dash: Misconceptions, Realistic Standards, and NFL Combine Talk
23:37 – Building Acceleration: Coordination, Strength, and Common Mistakes
27:52 – The Sled Debate: How It’s Misused and When to Avoid It
29:18 – Max Velocity: Mechanics, Posture, and Injury Prevention
34:25 – Submaximal Sprinting: Slowing Down to Speed Up
38:02 – Less vs. More: Finding the Right Sprint Volume for Each Athlete
41:08 – Avoiding the Trap of “Speed Branding” on Social Media
44:11 – How Much Speed Work is Enough (or Too Much)?
47:10 – Agility, Change of Direction, and Being an All-Around Athlete
48:15 – Bridging Track and Team Sports: What Coaches Can Learn From Each Other
52:00 – Wickets, Programming Nuance, and Final Thoughts
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