Latest Developments in Freestyle Wrestling & Year-Round Strength Training for Wrestling

with Bill Zadick,
US National Freestyle Head Coach;
2018 UWW World Cup Champions (Freestyle);
2017 World Team Champions (Men's Freestyle);
2006 Freestyle World Champion, 1996 NCAA Division I National Champion (University of Iowa)

and Jon Pfeifer,
University of Nebraska Wrestling Strength Coach; NSCA-Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

Ever wonder what the difference is between the American freestyle and what's happening on the international scene? In this video, USA Men's National Freestyle Coach Bill Zadick breaks down the major trends in international wrestling that allowed the Men's National Freestyle team to capture their first team World Championship since 1995.

Additionally, Jon Pfeifer breaks down the approach he has used at the University of Nebraska to produce of one of the toughest, best-conditioned teams in the NCAA. He walks you through their approach for each phase of the year and how he works with different weight classes and builds specific lifting programs for them during the season to help build or maintain strength.

On the Mat: Trends in International Wrestling

Bill Zadick has been through it all, from winning a National Title to winning a World Championship. He has coached the best in the world and now brings his insight to you. Coach Zadick has broken down international freestyle wrestling to see what other countries are doing to gain the advantage.

Head Positioning

Too often, coaches focus simply on maintaining a good stance, when in fact the most important thing to do is to control the head position battle. Using the example of Iranian wrestlers, Zadick breaks down an approach that will allow wrestlers to keep opponents off their legs while creating their own angles. He also shows a variety of drills and hand fighting methods that will create angles that allow for leg attacks against the fastest and most disciplined opponents.

Underhook Defense

The underhook is the most advantageous control tie in the current world of freestyle wrestling, as it allows the underhooking wrestler to push forward, scoring push outs and controlling the center of the mat for shot clock purposes. Zadick breaks down the drills being used by national team wrestlers to prevent leg attacks and clear the tie quickly. He puts special emphasis on the current methodology being used by the national team to prevent push outs.

Par Terre Defense

Par Terre is an area of freestyle wrestling where Americans have traditionally struggled - it's completely different from the mat wrestling found in folkstyle. Zadick breaks down the finer details of hip movement and scooting that are necessary to prevent an experienced and skilled opponent from completing a gut wrench turn.

Coach Zadick breaks down the trends in the modern freestyle world, with many ideas into how one can incorporate this into developing your program and athletes for both the short and long term. He also provides many cutting edge insights into the techniques, approaches and styles of the current national team members, and many other international competitors.

Lecture: Year-Round Strength Training for Wrestling

Managing Different Phases in a Yearly Cycle

Too often, coaches and wrestlers make the mistake of trying to tackle everything at once: strength, size, explosiveness, conditioning and wrestling skill. University of Nebraska Wrestling's Strength Coach, Jon Pfeifer, explains that this is impossible, and that these skills need to be emphasized during different parts of the year. Breaking the year down into four seasons - pre-season, in-season, post-season, and off-season - he explains how to tackle weight training and conditioning during each phase, and how to balance time on the wrestling mat and in the weight room during each season.

Wrestling Specific Training

Frequently, strength programs are adopted from templates designed for football or power lifting. They don't account for the unique demands of wrestling, specifically the overwhelming importance of training grip and neck strength. Pfeifer explains how they approach training these muscles, which frequently require a different approach than lifts like squats or deadlifts. He delves further into how they have programmed other wrestling-specific workouts, like banded resistance shots, weighted stance and motion drills, and footwork drills.

Coach Pfeifer details a specific approach to training wrestlers year-round (in fact, over multiple years), to get the most out of time spent in the weight room. Additionally, he gives you the tools to make your own decisions and adjustments in order to fulfill your program's needs.

Produced at the 2017 USA Wrestling Silver Coaches Clinic in Lincoln (NE).

163 minutes (2 DVDs). 2018.