Strength or Speed?

[SyracuseLax517]

I'm just wondering what people think is more important: Strength or Speed? I know that you have to be somewhat strong to be a good player and I know that its really important to have a lot of speed and footwork. I was just wondering if everyone thought one was more important than the other or maybe just a balance between the two.

[Live4It]

I think they're pretty balanced, but if you have a tremendous amount of one, you can get away with less of the other....for example, if you're very fast, you can get away wiht not being very strung, since you can out run alot of guys, and are just quick, but it wouldn't be quiet as good if you're very strong, but have like a 15 minute mile.

So both are pretty equally important, but speed maybe a little more, if you have alot of it.

[HdGLaxWarrior]

i think it depends on the position. d men need more speed (in my opinion). i know i will get flamed for saying that but it's how i feel. when you play defense you shouldnt have to clean someones clock every play, you should be able to run with them and use your footwork to keep them from scoring.

[Eclipse]

I think speed is more important at every position. Thats pretty easy. Not to say strength isnt important, but in a game of lacrosse, Ill take flat out speed over just strength anyday.

[bigzoinka17]

yea im with eclipse i think you use your speed more often than strength. for me being a middie, im pretty quick, and it has helped me alot, because when im playing against guys twice my size, they cant hit me until they catch me.

[faceofflax15]

Speed, but a combination of both is deadly.

[Tool]

They are both important, a college will look at both. If you're tremendously fast yet get knocked down by a small push, chances are you won't make it. Lacrosse is a physical game and you need an equal balance of them both, one or the other won't cut it.

[BlakFate]

strength doesnt do anything if there isnt any speed
the strongest player cant touch someone that has lightning quick feet
and the strong kid can push through people but he will get stripped because hes not fast enough
i thing speed is far more important in lacrosse

[SyracuseLax517]

I always felt speed was the most important. If you quick enough you'll never be touched, but you won't be so great on groundballs.

[kevidinho]

I think speed is the more important, you could get away with it much more so than being slow and strong. Think about it - what good is all of the strength if you can't keep up with anyone?

But as faceofflax said a combination of both is perfect.

[GoBucks]

I gotta say speed. There's no substitute for it. Strength is great too, but in this sport speed helps you a lot more. If you're at least balanced, then you should be fine.

[robi]

two words: speed kills

[mvlax11]

Look at the best players in lacrosse, the best are usually combinations of the 2, a slow player with a very hard shot can be much more effective than a very fast player with a slow shot. Balance is key in almost everything, neither strength nor speed alone can make you into a good lacrosse player. Strength is more easily developed than speed though. Just play up your strengths but don't be one-dimensional, you should work all aspects of your game.

[ByrdDpole]

They go hand in hand. You have to have fairly strong legs and good mechanics to be fast, especially if you're on the heavier side.

To those that say "he can't beat me if he can't catch me", well, if he has good positioning, and good checks, yes he can. Positioning at the right angle and threading the needle, and anyone can beat you.

[Rosie411]

you gotta lift big and run far then you'll balance out perfectly--- i ran ALOT last summer and fall and work out not so much... but this summer im lifting ALOT and running ALOT so hopefully ill be big and fast the perfect combo!

[brainddeadjock]

two words: speed kills


I agree, with a caveat, must have good stick skills. Either speed or strength with out stick skills is useless. Having a lot of either with mediocre stick skills, you can be hidden on the field.

[BurnSomeRope]

I believe that speed is the more effective of the two, but you should have a balance of both. I've always been strong and over this season i lost 30 pounds, i got back into lifting, and i have conditioning for football all summer long and now im starting to become faster.

[singsingallstar]

personally i think defens you need a balance but more twords speed, and the other positions you need speed. If i was playing middie or attack i would rather burn my guy then run throught him.

[Tool]

you gotta lift big and run far then you'll balance out perfectly--- i ran ALOT last summer and fall and work out not so much... but this summer im lifting ALOT and running ALOT so hopefully ill be big and fast the perfect combo!

Umm, sorry, it doesn't work that way. In order to get big, you need excess calories and a lot of protein intake (calories build muscle tissue) and if you're running too much, you're burning off the calories therefor unless you're getting 4000 calories or more a day, there is not going to be the extra calories for building muscle tissue. I recommend 3000 calories a day and 1g of protein per body weight per day, and limit that cardio to two times a week if you plan on gaining any size.

[Diesel4958]

Both. Speed is a little more important.

[Rosie411]

I dont want to get HUGE simply strong-- but hey thanks for the advise i definitly could use a little size on my side

[boxpimp66]

id say speed is more important in every position except if you play on a offence defence style box team and your one of the two D-men on the crease

[fclax35]

I say speed alot because you can only teach/develop speed to a certain point. Some people are just faster than others no matter how hard the slower one works. Although some aslo may build muscles quicker than another person, in my opinion its easier to build up muscles then it is to get faster. Basically speed is something some have some may not, muscles are something anyone can get to an extent if they work hard enough.

[Laxattack05]

speed is important, but can be semi overrated. you need some speed, but i think it's more important to be able to be in the right place at the right time.

[Lax.53]

FASTest game on two feet.

[titans 43]

SPEED strength doesn't really do alot for you unless your slow to start with

[LiquidMercury16]

kind of like saying is it better to have a great right hand or a great left hand....need both to be the best.

[smmlax123]

they both need to be pretty even

[thebraincrane]

They are both important - I think everyone is in agreement. Here at Army, we have always been stronger than any opponent that we play but ususally we lack the speed. This did get us to numerous NCAA appearances but lost in the first round. Now, I am switching our training to incorporate more speed drills (i.e. various starts, plyometrics, agility drills, reactive agility and top speed exercises). We have a very young team so we have to make sure we are STRONGER and FASTER than everyone else!!!!
Good luck to everyone!
Go Army!

[D_Pole2010]

lacrosse is a running game. so i think endurance is slightly more important than speed. both speed and strength are key elements in lacrosse. bigger and stronger players tend to try to get faster over the off season, while smaller and faster players try to get stronger. its all about using YOUR strength or YOUR speed as an advantage, and making your opponents advantage, his weakness. some other key elements to never forget besides strength and speed, are: knowledge of the game and experience.

[atacklax]

Speed, of course. But you need a bit of size and strength. Coming from an attackman whose pretty light for his age, it sucks to be getting hammered and thrown around by defenders.

[LiquidMercury16]

lacrosse is a running game. so i think endurance is slightly more important than speed. both speed and strength are key elements in lacrosse. bigger and stronger players tend to try to get faster over the off season, while smaller and faster players try to get stronger. its all about using YOUR strength or YOUR speed as an advantage, and making your opponents advantage, his weakness. some other key elements to never forget besides strength and speed, are: knowledge of the game and experience.

Endurance is no way more important than speed. The only ones truly running longer distance and needing endurance are the middies. Attack and Dpoles need the speed. Middies the speed helps a heck of a lot too. Subs are there to take the place of endurance. That's not to say that endurance doesn't have it's place. But it cannot be considered more important than speed by any means.

[D4LIFE]

dont your coaches ever say that lacrosse is a speed sport? or a skill sport? cause both mean speed and skill and brains beat strength, otherwise are 220 pound goalie would be playing defense and not me.

[baseballsucks]

speed is more imortant on offense. you need some strength but for example, shot speed and accuracy has nothing to do with strength it is all form, which has nothing to do with foot speed but just an example where strength isnt important on the offensive side. If you can outrun that insanely strong, but slow d-man, then he doesnt have a chance, he wont even be able to use that strength on you. And on defense the need for strength and speed are pretty much equal, if you dont have any strength than you cannot push around the offense like a d-man is supposed to do, but if you cant keep up with the offense you have no chance either.

[Irishlax22]

You could make a strong case for speed or strength, but i will have to say speed. If your fast you can avoid being hit by the stronger kids. And every position(even goalies) need Speed. If its clearing the ball as a D Pole, going coast to coast as a middie, beating and burning your man as an attackmen, or beating an attackmen to the line as an goalie. Speed comes in handy.

[aps11691]

u cant teach speed. if there is an incredibly fast kid and a slow one, no matter how hard the slow kid works, he wont be as fast. Lifting for strength is completely the opposite, everyone has the potential to have good strength. Speed is far harder to gain and maintain then strength is

[Sardo]

it's definitaly good to balance the two but when it really comes down to it college scouts or even high school scouts look for the speed in a guy because lacrosse has evolved into a game of faness not hits every five seconds like it used to be though hits do add an excitement to the game

[navylax161]

speed, because they didnt name it the strongest game on two feet

[lacrosseman192]

obv both is the best answer but if you hafta choose id say

attack: speed
middie: speed
defense: strength
goalie: speed

[LiquidMercury16]

u cant teach speed. if there is an incredibly fast kid and a slow one, no matter how hard the slow kid works, he wont be as fast. Lifting for strength is completely the opposite, everyone has the potential to have good strength. Speed is far harder to gain and maintain then strength is


Actually you can teach speed. It's called speed training. I've seen kids who were 5.0 second+ for their 40 get to a 4.5-4.6 range with training, some faster. Just like strength training, speed training can be helped or hindered by genetics. If you have someone who has the potential to build muscle and have great strength than chances are they will also be fast but they also have an easier time with that than someone who is an ectomorph and has a miserable time putting on strength or size. So no, speed training and weight training aren't completely opposite at all. They are actually very similiar. And I guarantee if I stop lifting for a month and all my strength goes down, it would be a much greater decrease %-wise than if my speed went slower. Personally I'd say it's much harder to gain and maintain strength (I'm not talking about 225 lb bench strength, that really isn't strength, More along the lines of 315+ so on so forth). It takes people years of training sometimes to get above a 315 bench or a huge squat or deadlift and yet you can train speed so that they are well above the curve in the better part of a year.

[D4LIFE]

u cant teach speed. if there is an incredibly fast kid and a slow one, no matter how hard the slow kid works, he wont be as fast. Lifting for strength is completely the opposite, everyone has the potential to have good strength. Speed is far harder to gain and maintain then strength is

thats not so rite either... strength is also genetic somewhat. u can work towards either but u will see faster improvement with weightlifting, but not necisarly useful gain... for all those people that havent started weightlifting yet, bicep curls are useless in sports, try pushing and pulling lifts so u can beat smiley's senseless (and attackmen) :chair: :chair: . and all leg lifts are good for strength and agility.

[LiquidMercury16]

actually leg lifts don't activate nearly the muscle fiber that full body movements do involving legs (trap bar deadlift, back squats, front squats, power cleans) It'd be better off doing any of those over leg extentions

[Cburylax]

You guys need to cite your sources here, I'm talking to LM and D4LIFE. Do a simple google search and post some related links to websites or articles. Follow the rules.

[LiquidMercury16]

I figured most everyone knew that speed could be trained....and I figured everyone new isolation exercises i.e. leg lifts don't activate as much muscle fiber as compound lifts, I was just throwin it out there for emphasis....

http://www.brianmac.co.uk/speed.htm a site on speed training

http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/magazine/musclefiberspart2.htm and a site on muscle fiber activation.

cb, do I truly need to site everything even things I consider common knowledge?

[Cburylax]

I figured most everyone knew that speed could be trained....and I figured everyone new isolation exercises i.e. leg lifts don't activate as much muscle fiber as compound lifts, I was just throwin it out there for emphasis....

http://www.brianmac.co.uk/speed.htm a site on speed training

http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/magazine/musclefiberspart2.htm and a site on muscle fiber activation.

cb, do I truly need to site everything even things I consider common knowledge?

Its obviously not common knowledge here. If we were on a fitness forum things might be different. Just cite your sources once, thats all thats important. It doesn't take that long.

The rule is there so that everyone can post as much accurate information as possible and to discourage people from making a thoughtless post that will lead to flaming, trolling, and makes no contribution.

[LiquidMercury16]

I got ya, I'm used to people knowing more than this I suppose. I'll truly make efforts to cite anything that a highschool student wouldn't know.

[cchslaxman]

i'd say speed. but if u have one and not the other, the deadliest way to make up for the missing one is to completely out hustle all others until they pro becomes their con. out hustle them until on ur next water break you puke. (dont think i made this up. it has happened to me in a championship game. i said i "need to go to the bathroom in the woods." and blahhhh, my purple gatorade and peanut butter peanut butter sandwhich. mm mm mmm yummmyyy)

i think anyone who can out hustle everyone and is driven enough can lack speed or strength and do well

[westsidebeefer]

i think it depends on the position. d men need more speed (in my opinion). i know i will get flamed for saying that but it's how i feel. when you play defense you shouldnt have to clean someones clock every play, you should be able to run with them and use your footwork to keep them from scoring.


i agree, d men need strength, but you cant hit ur man unless u run with him

[MaroonLax]

speed just by a little. there have been people that started lacrosse this year (on my schools freshman team) who are really fast and have a fair amount of strength and got to start mainly because of that. but having just speed isnt going to get u far because lax is contact sport and contact sports require strength.speed is a good start but when players get into a hgiher level of play they're going to find that strength is very important too

[-HSKR-]

Umm, sorry, it doesn't work that way. In order to get big, you need excess calories and a lot of protein intake (calories build muscle tissue) and if you're running too much, you're burning off the calories therefor unless you're getting 4000 calories or more a day, there is not going to be the extra calories for building muscle tissue. I recommend 3000 calories a day and 1g of protein per body weight per day, and limit that cardio to two times a week if you plan on gaining any size.

I'm sorry, but I don't agree that eating calories builds muscle. If you meant to say that eating calories and then lifting is good , then I agree with that. But eating tons of calories does nothing but make you gain fat unless burned off properly.

And to answer the question, I say speed is more important.

[titans 43]

fat and muscle coems from the calories so it does...

[LiquidMercury16]

I'm sorry, but I don't agree that eating calories builds muscle. If you meant to say that eating calories and then lifting is good , then I agree with that. But eating tons of calories does nothing but make you gain fat unless burned off properly.

And to answer the question, I say speed is more important.


Technically you don't have to be lifting to make muscle. Why do you think younger soccer players that do not lift have pretty built legs? Because they are using them constantly with a calorie surplus. Yes lifting is going to make more muscle than if you're just doing bodyweight type exercises with a calorie surplus but so long as you're not too far out of your maintenance phase you shouldn't be putting on too much fat. Either way I say lift big, eat big, get big.

[swrlax55]

i think its just based on what position you play...
(my opinion)
MIDDIE: speed over strength
DEFENSE: even
ATTACK: strength is important to run through D, but what good is strength when you have no momentum?
BENCHWARMER: you gotta get the players some water quick, but all the strength required is enough to push down the button on that gatorade jug and carry up to 6 WHOLE WATER BOTTLES!!! to the players

[SyracuseLax517]

i think its just based on what position you play...
(my opinion)
MIDDIE: speed over strength
DEFENSE: even
ATTACK: strength is important to run through D, but what good is strength when you have no momentum?
BENCHWARMER: you gotta get the players some water quick, but all the strength required is enough to push down the button on that gatorade jug and carry up to 6 WHOLE WATER BOTTLES!!! to the players

So what you have to be quick and strong swrlax55???

jkjk just playin' with you