The traditional strength/power circuit is made up of a series of exercises designed for the specific needs of athletes. It is generally done on the spot with volume intensity and density appropriate to the group. Circuit training allows for a variety of methods to be used to develop muscular strength of most types (strength endurance, power). An added benefit of circuit training is its effect on cardiovascular fitness (aerobic:VO2 Max, anaerobic: local muscular acidity buffering tolerance).

Example eight exercise circuit
After a postural strengthening period and dynamic mobility exercises, try this exercise circuit. Each exercise should be performed for 30 seconds without stopping, adding a 30 second rest before moving to the next exercise. Perform six circuits in all, followed by static stretching.

1. Total-body exercise: Dumbbell Push Press
Develops strength and mobility in your knee, hip and shoulders – important for high-speed movement. Develops stability and strength in the upper trunk, abdominal, and pelvic regions, strength that is necessary to control torso movements. Greatly increases your cardiac demand, improving scapular stabilization and deltoid strength.

• Using Dumbbells, squat (heels on the floor, Neutral Spine!) until the weights reach a height just above your ankles. Then explode upwards into a jump. Hold dumbbells with your palms facing back (like the finish of a curl), squat (using aforementioned technique) until your elbows touch your knees. Squat upward powerfully and press the weights over your head.

2. Upper-body exercise: Push-ups
Increases upper-body strength, developing abdominal and hip-flexor stability. Improves stability, helps to control hip, trunk, and shoulder movements as you move quickly. Also promotes balance between the upper and lower body.

• Need to perform “Core Lock”. While standing, squeeze your butt muscles – like pinching a coin between cheeks, then, squeeze abdominal muscles – akin to pointing your sternum towards your pelvis. This is the position you want to maintain during push-ups – no sway back!!!

3. Lower-body exercise: Hamstring Extension
Develops heel hook strength, power, and dynamic-balance control (coordination), needed for moving the hips higher to gain reach. Enhances leg-muscle power and improves mobility of the hip and knee joints.

• Lying on your back, place one foot on a physioball with the other leg at a 15 degree angle off the floor. Raise the hips sp that the body is plank-like (straight from shoulders through feet), and pull the foot on the ball toward your hips without letting your hips sag.

4. Core/trunk exercise: Abdominal sit-backs
Increases abdominal stability, which carries over to improved posture and better core stability as you run. A strong pelvic girdle and trunk provide the anchor point for a strong pair of legs, allowing you to use your legs in a maximally powerful manner.

• Seated on the floor, with feet flat on the ground, sit back (with a straight back) until you feel like you will fall to the ground. Before falling, sit back up.

5. Total-body exercise: Reverse lunge and curl
Increases strength and power in your legs, hips, low back, abdominals and arms. Note that the whole-body involvement of this exercise increases your cardiorespiratory requirements, compared to the more commonly used, isolated curling exercises such as a preacher curl.

• Holding dumbbells, reverse lunge at an angle so that the front knee is in-line with the front foot and the rear foot is straight and on the toes. In the down position, the arms are down – as you come up to a standing position, curl the dumbbells. Alternate legs for each repetition.

6. Upper-body exercise: Body-weight rows
Improves pulling strength of the upper-back, shoulder, and arm muscles, and does for the back side of the body what the push-up does for the front side. Also serves to increase stabilizing strength in the low back, gluteals, and hamstrings, all of which are critically important for quick movement. You'll achieve a balance between lower and upper body strength by performing this exercise.

• Holding a horizontal bar or rock rings/handles, place your feet so that your complete body is horizontal facing the ceiling. Pull up mimicking a rowing motion.

7. Lower-body exercise: One-leg squats
Develops muscle strength in the quads, hamstrings, and gluteals, the muscles which provide much of your power while running. By strengthening your hip and knee joints in a coordinated and integrated fashion, your high step should improve tremendously.

• Stand with one foot straight out (that includes straight legs/knees), and holding a weighted object in your straightened arms – squat down (with heel still firmly planted) as far as you can go.

8. Core/trunk exercise: Low-back stabilizers
Heightens low-back strength providing for proper posture while climbing and also provides excellent ‘motion control' of the torso and hips throughout the step.

• Back extensions while prone (belly down) on a FitBall. Relax your torso until your face comes close to the ball, then explode upwards until your spine is in a NEUTRAL position – not hyper-flexed. 3 sets of 5 repetitions.

Remember that improvements in how your body functions can occur whenever you overload your body's systems. It provides an overload of your cardiorespiratory system (especially the hard circuits), taxes your muscular system by forcing it to work against increased resistance, and forces the key joints involved in moving your body to go through a wider range of motion than they commonly encounter.