Competition steels the mind, narrows the focus, and allows us to reach our true potential. Going to the gym everyday for the sole purpose of "staying fit" or "getting in shape" with no other firm goal, typically results in us getting into a rut. You tell yourself, that, "at least I'm here". And while this is true, how often do you look back over time and realize that you are just going through the motions, your progress has stalled, and you have reached plateaus that become less over time as you age, as the responsibilities of home and work press upon you and take precedence. Having a competition in our future, gives you a psychological advantage; puts you in a mental state of mind that can allow you to kick your workouts into another gear that you probably had forgotten you had. So compete in something; anything if you really want to be serious about your workouts.
The Speed Strength Combine is that: a competition. Your goal is to score more points than the next guy. To do that, you have to put forth the effort, have the mental toughness, and the durability of a competitive athlete.
The events include two required strength lifts (Bench and Dead Lift) and one optional lift (Squat or Standing military press). The Speed events include two required running events (40 yd dash and 400m run) and one optional event (either the broad jump or the 5-10-5 shuttle).
The strength events are scored against standards and is computed by a computer score sheet. The standard used is somewhat unimportant, since it is the same for all competitors. However, I have chosen to use published standards for weightlifting to put into context the score achieved. The source for the strength events can be found here. I recommend going over to the link to understand the standards and the classifications. This classification system is what is used in the competition to classify each competitor not only in each event, but overall. Using the grid, the standard for all of the strength competitions is the weight that can be lifted by a man weighing 180 lbs who is in the intermediate classification. As example, for the bench press, an male weighing 180 lbs who is intermediate in his training can lift 200 lbs as a 1 rep max.
The score achieved in a particular strength event is based on the percentage difference from the standard. Therefore, if the standard is 200 lbs, and a competitor lifts 200 lbs, they would score 0 points for this event. If the competitor benched 10% more than this weight (for a 1 rep max), then they would gain ten points in this event.
It should be noted that a competitors weight does not enter into the calculation of their score, however, when determining a classification, it does matter. The classifications include: Untrained, Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, and Elite.
The scores in each of three strength events are tallied. The same strategy is utilized in the Speed (conditioning) events. A standard is determined for each of the required and elective (optional) events, and the percent deviation from this standard determines the competitors score. In the running events (40 yard dash, 400m run, and shuttle run), there is a moving standard. The standard times are incrementally increased to compensate for age. In this way, a 45 year old can compete head to head with a 35 year old and have a score that is representative of their fitness level accounting for age. This allows a 35 year old to compete head to head with a 50 year old using the same scoring tool.
At the end of the competition, 6 events have been completed (2 required in both the strength and speed and 1 optional event in the strength and speed category). A total score is tallied using the above described method, and the competitor with the most points wins.
The competition then allows the strong man to compete against the swift man head to head. A very strong competitor who gains strength at the expense of flexibility and speed, may lose out to a weaker individual who can demonstrate superior speed.
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