IMG Academy isn’t just raising the bar in the weight room, it’s altering how student-athletes train for their respective sports.
The Bradenton, Fla.-based boarding school is one of the only high schools in the country using EliteForm, a next-generation technology platform that aids in athletic performance, strength training and sports science. The integration complements an existing workout regiment for players.
The weight rack system, which is integrated into all 24 racks at the Performance and Sports Science Center, captures various data points surrounding a player’s workout. With power and speed measurements, Football Physical Conditioning Coach Dave Ballou and Head of Sport Science Matt Rhea can tailor a player’s weight for optimal reps.
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“The EliteForm technology allows us to look at the speed during each rep, and it gives us a graph looking at it by tenths of a second. … That’s some amazing information and allows us to differentiate between athletes when they squat,” Rhea said. “We see distinct differences in those speed curves for different athletes. We then take that information and compare it to what we’d consider an optimal speed.
“Look at game film and game data. And we know ranges of how long an athlete has to exert force when he’s about to jump, when he’s running or when he’s about to engage an opponent. So, we can look at the speed graphs in different exercises, determine if a player is exerting force at the speed he’s going to have to while he’s out on the field. Or we can identify players perhaps who are lagging behind in that optimal speed.”
As a player approaches the rack, he enters in a PIN and a display shows his workout regimen. Based on data throughout the workout, routines will be customized for each player. The EliteForm system also includes a multitude of cameras which additionally capture an athlete’s workout movement within the weight rack. Following a review of the footage, Ballou and Rhea can make adjustments and enhance athlete performance on the gridiron.
“What this system does is give you the 3D camera system and video for our student-athletes to look at from a technique perspective but it also gives you immediate data collection to where you don’t have to write each number down and try to keep up with the pace,” Ballou said.
“We want to be cutting edge in everything that we do. When you’re talking about bringing in a system like EliteForm and what it brings to the table — and you look across the country at some of the schools who have it — it’s certainly cutting edge.”
@Dylan1Moses_ fresh off a 20 tackle game, Getting in his speed squats. @Elite_Form system great for VBT tracking. pic.twitter.com/g0xilhU0vn
— David Ballou (@IMG_CoachBallou) September 5, 2016