Overspeed and Assisted Sprinting: How Coaches Are Getting Real Results

Overspeed sprinting has always sparked debate. Does it actually work? Is it safe? And what’s the real benefit besides just running faster? 

In a recent Coaches Corner roundtable (full video here), three coaches (Chris Korfist, Will Collins, and Jake Cohen) joined us to break down how they use overspeed and assisted sprinting as a powerful speed training tool across levels, from high school to NFL athletes. What followed was a practical, coach-to-coach discussion on how to use this tool to actually make athletes better.

Here are the highlights.

1. Overspeed Sprinting Works, But Why?

The consensus: assisted sprinting works, and not just for improving top speed.

“The coordination benefit is the biggest return on investment,” said Cohen. “Athletes just figure things out quicker.”

It’s not just for fast or advanced athletes either. In fact, slower or less technically-sound athletes often make the biggest improvements. Assistance forces athletes into more efficient postures, helping them find better shin angles, cleaner foot strikes, and better frontside mechanics.

Overspeed works to draw out intent, challenges coordination, and sharpens how athletes self-organize at high velocity.

2. Overspeed vs Assisted Sprinting: What’s the Difference?

While the terms are often used interchangeably, the key difference is in the intention behind programming and application. The coaches drew a clear distinction:

-Assisted sprinting helps athletes reach their top speed faster. It’s often used in-season, during sprint drills, or in return-to-play settings

-Overspeed sprinting pushes athletes beyond what they can do on their own, usually targeting speeds 5–10% faster than their max velocity

“Assistance is great for rhythm and reducing mechanical strain,” said Cohen. “Overspeed is about truly pushing the CNS to adapt to new velocity demands.”

3. How to: Practical Programming for Load, Distance, and Progressions

There’s no one-size-fits-all, and that’s the point. Coaches vary load, distance, and application based on the athlete and goal of the session.

Load (kg)

-Most coaches stay between 3–7kg, depending on the athlete’s strength, speed, and sprinting skill.

-Lighter loads (~3kg) for high-level sprinters to focus on clean mechanics

-Heavier loads (~6–7kg) for bigger athletes or when targeting acceleration

“One of the worst things to see is someone getting dragged,” said Collins. “We’re trying to elevate mechanics, not override them.”

Distance

-Shorter (10–30m) for acceleration or heavier athletes

-Longer (60–90m) for track athletes or when targeting upright top-end speed

When to Use It

-After a general prep or teaching phase (3–6 weeks)

-As early as day 1 with proper cueing and drill progressions

-In-season with lighter loads to maintain rhythm and exposure to speed

-Post-injury to gently reintroduce high-speed mechanics in a controlled way

4. Readiness, Risks, and Misconceptions

Overspeed isn’t plug-and-play, it has to make sense for the athlete and the training phase they’re in. If implemented too early or without context, “you're just sending a stronger signal to bad mechanics if they’re not ready,” warned Collins.

Red Flags Before Implementing

-Poor posture control

-Anterior pelvic tilt

-Inability to produce or maintain frontside mechanics

That said, there’s no need to be overly cautious either. “I don't think it's possible to tear your hamstring on overspeed,” said Cohen. “It forces down-strikes and vertical shin angles. That’s what we want.”

The group agreed: when readiness is there, overspeed is safe. But getting there requires building posterior strength, mobility, and positional awareness before layering on high-velocity pulling.

5. What Are Coaches Tracking?

Coaches aren’t just tracking top speed, they’re looking at patterns and progress over time to guide decision-making.

Key Metrics

-Velocity: top speed is the primary KPI

-Velocity-Distance Curve shape: smooth curves reflect clean mechanics, while sharp spikes suggest braking or poor mechanics

-0–5m splits: reveal how well athletes are projecting and accelerating

-Session-to-session change: relative trends are more important that chasing absolute numbers

Recovery time is also a non-negotiable. “This is a high neural demand,” said Korfist. “12 to 20 minutes between reps isn’t crazy if you’re doing it right.”

6. Final Takeaways

Overspeed sprinting is a stimulus, not a shortcut.

“It’s a tool,” said Korfist. “Like anything else, it supports what you’re doing, not something you do just because.”

It works because it forces better coordination and more efficient mechanics. When paired with intentional coaching, clear cues, and smart programming, that’s when athletes achieve speeds they may not have otherwise and do it safely.

Use assistance and overspeed as part of a plan to acceleration development, not just the athlete.

Watch the full 58-minute conversation here.

Learn more about the technology used by these coaches for their overspeed and assisted sprinting: the 1080 Sprint 2