Improve Sport Performance With An Integrative Neuromuscular Training Program
A good strength and conditioning program should strive to meet all the physical demands required of an athlete. These demands are specific to the sport and the player position. Boosting performance while keeping our athletes competing at their best is always the goal. An integrative neuromuscular training program is a great strategy to implement.
Athletic performance metrics
Strength
Power
Balance
Speed
Change of Direction
Agility
Integrative Neuromuscular Training (INT)
INT programs help an athlete build upon all the performance metrics listed above in each session. This varies from the traditional blocked programs that may only focus on one metric such as strength or speed. An INT program is not only performance enhancing, it is also beneficial toward injury prevention. By targeting balance, agility, and motor skills, an INT can address possible biomechanical deficiencies in an athlete. These programs can take place at any time during the sport calendar: off-season, preseason, and in-season. By adjusting volume and load, athletes can stay engaged in an INT program throughout the year.
“Integrative Neuromuscular Training is a holistic training approach that integrates basic movements in addition to specific strength and and physical conditioning exercises with or without external resistance, may be effective in decreasing injury incidence in youth athletes.” (2,3)
A recent study published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research titled “Preseason Integrative Neuromuscular Training Improves Selected Measures of Physical Fitness in Highly Trained, Youth, Male Soccer Players” demonstrates the effectiveness of an 8-week preseason training program that targets all components of athletic fitness.(1) The authors of this article provide this descriptive table of the exercises included in their INT program. (1)
The Trade-Off
The INT program style can help address the multidimensional components with sport participation. It is a great tool to implement during times of the year when sport participation is high such as in-season or preseason. However, the block style training approach still has its place. During the off-season, individual metrics should be targeted for greater improvements than allowed for in an INT program. During times when sport participation is less frequent, an athlete can devote more energy expenditure on increasing a specific metric such as strength or speed for a period of time. A 6 or 8 week block training program is a great tool to implement during this time in the sport calendar.
Knowing when to implement the appropriate program style is the job of the sport performance coach. Programming should always meet the volume, load, and intensity that matches with the sport participation demands. An INT is a great option to continue making improvements in sport performance and injury prevention during times of high sport participation.
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References:
Hammami, Raouf1,2; Negra, Yassine2; Nebigh, Amar1,2; Ramirez-Campillo, Rodrigo3; Moran, Jason4; Chaabene, Helmi5,6. Preseason Integrative Neuromuscular Training Improves Selected Measures of Physical Fitness in Highly Trained, Youth, Male Soccer Players. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 37(6):p e384-e390, June 2023.
Fort-Vanmeerhaeghe A, Romero-Rodriguez D, Lloyd RS, Kushner A, Myer GD. Integrative neuromuscular training in youth athletes. Part II: Strategies to prevent injuries and improve performance. Strength Cond J 38: 9–27, 2016.
Herrington L. The effects of 4 weeks of jump training on landing knee valgus and crossover hop performance in female basketball players. J Strength Cond Res 24: 3427–3432, 2010.
Disclaimer: This SciSport blog post is a summary of an article printed in an academic research journal. The purpose of this blog post is to provide readers with academic and educational content in an easy-to-understand format. We take no credit for the material and knowledge presented, and we encourage readers to take a look at the original source provided in the References section
