With fall sports coming to a conclusion, the ETHS weight room has begun to see an increase in numbers, especially for the Winter Strength and Speed program. Located near Door 3, the room is usually in use all hours of the day, whether it’s for training-specific gym classes, before-school sports practices, or after-school sessions. No matter the time of day, the weightroom poses numerous opportunities for in-season and off-season athletes alike.
Strength Coach Mark Feldner has been working with ETHS since 2019 and has never seen this many athletes show up for the Strength and Speed program.
“We have 165 kids registered right now, which is awesome,” he says. “I expect that number to go up, and the thing that is really cool is our female athlete numbers, they are higher than ever.”
Junior Simone Llanes joins this female number, taking advantage of what the weight room has to offer. As an athlete in gymnastics and track at ETHS, the off-season training has proven beneficial.
“I signed up for SST this year, and I’ve loved it. I noticed that they were doing this female after-school weightlifting club, and it was really fun because I’ve gotten to lift with my friends,” Llanes explains. “I think it is helping me, because in gymnastics, you have to have a lot of strength and power to do these crazy skills”.
This is what the Winter Strength and Speed program is all about. Most ETHS sports meet close to six times a week, making athletes very busy. Feldner recognizes this and wants the weightroom to be a place that’s efficient and serves to enhance athlete’s performance.
“The lifting that takes place usually doesn’t mean super heavy weights. It means treating it like a practice, being focused, and really working on the technical skills. I think this has created a great atmosphere in the weightroom,” Felder explains.
The after-school sessions take participants and split them into designated beginner and advanced groups upon joining. Both groups work to combine speed, plyometrics and Olympic lifts in the weightroom. Although the groups are working on similar long-term goals for their sport, Feldner explains how the immediate focuses are different.
“For beginners, the focus is making them comfortable. Sometimes this [the weightroom] can be an intimidating space, which is why separating male and female athletes represents a long term goal – for everyone to walk out of here comfortable in any gym they go to,” he says.
The program has dedicated Mondays and Wednesdays to the female-specific lifts, while Tuesday and Thursdays are for the male-specific lift. Fridays serve as an all-gender, multi-level day and this represents the longstanding goal.
“We want an SST class where everybody’s integrated together. Beginners basically master the basics, learn how to clean, learn how to snatch, learn how to press, learn how to squat and learn how to do it really well” Feldner explains.
Whether athletes are focused on preparing for their upcoming spring season or just getting into the first part of their long off-season there is a plan for them with ETHS strength.
“The two coaches have really specific training. Coach OC does speed training that I joined with my friend and it was really fun. I think it was worth it because it helped me with my speed a lot. We did a forty yard dash on the football field and I’ve started to see differences” Llanes says.
