Today’s episode is a Q&A with Joel Smith.  Joel Smith is the founder of Just Fly Sports and is a sports performance/track coach in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Joel hosts the Just Fly Performance Podcast, has authored several books on athletic performance, and in 2021, released the integrative training course, “Elastic Essentials”.

Questions for this podcast revolved around maximal strength training needs in jumping and sprinting, testing protocols for youth athletes, speed training setups, sprint hardware vs. software, and much more.

Today’s episode is brought to you by SimpliFaster, and Lost Empire Herbs

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View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage.



Timestamps and Main Points:

2:49 – How to approach jump training when one already has an extremely high squat to bodyweight level

15:27 – What I would use in the realm of testing for youth performance training

32:23 – How much strength is really needed in sprinting and sprint training

38:06 – What to notice and feel when in top-flight sprinting

43:47 – What my winter training would look like for sprint track season in high school

49:03 – How to balance drills and sprinting in one’s practice

53:26 – Looking at shin drop vs. shin collapse in sprinting

59:01 – Principles of how I lay out my warmups in training

1:03:36 – My experience with skateboarding and scootering to improve jump let dynamics

1:06:01 – Thoughts on Jefferson curls

1:06:37 – Thoughts on using conditioning as punishment in training

1:12:00 – The biggest thing I’ve been learning in my last few years of coaching



About Joel Smith

Joel Smith is the founder of Just Fly Sports and is a sports performance/track coach in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Joel hosts the Just Fly Performance Podcast, has authored several books on athletic performance, and in 2021, released the integrative training course, “Elastic Essentials”.  He currently trains clients in the in-person and online space.

Joel was formerly a strength coach for 8 years at UC Berkeley, working with the Swim teams and professional swimmers, as well as tennis, water polo, and track and field.  A track coach of 15 years, Joel coached for the Diablo Valley Track and Field Club for 7 years, and also has 6 years of experience coaching sprints, jumps, hurdles, pole vault and multi-events on the collegiate level, working at Wilmington College, and the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse, along with his current work with master’s, high school and collegiate individuals.

Joel has had the honor of working with a number of elite athletes, but also takes great joy in helping amateur athletes and individuals reach their training goals through an integrative training approach with a heavy emphasis on biomechanics, motor learning, mental preparation, and physiological adaptation.  His mission through Just Fly Sports is: “Empowering the Evolution of Sport and Human Movement”.  As a former NAIA All-American track athlete, Joel enjoys all aspects of human movement and performance, from rock climbing, to track events and weightlifting, to throwing the frisbee with his young children and playing in nature.