Block 0 Program to Master Movement Patterns

Grant Stewart has been the Strength & Conditioning Coach and a Physical Education Teacher at Severance High School since the summer of 2020. Before starting at Severance, he worked in high school strength & conditioning for eight years, as a D1 strength & conditioning coach for three years, and as a strength & conditioning coach for the U.S. Army Special Forces for two years. 

Coach Stewart is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength & Conditioning Association and a Certified Sports Performance Coach through the United States Weightlifting Association. 

He was a former college football player and earned his Bachelor’s degree in Health & Exercise Science from Colorado State University and his Master’s in Kinesiology from the University of Wyoming.

Grant also serves as the Colorado State Director for the NHSSCA. He is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the NSCA and a Certified Sports Performance Coach through the U.S. Weightlifting Association. 

Coach Stewart discusses his lessons while working with the U.S. Special Forces and how they impacted his high school athletes’ training.

What are several training principles that you learned during your time training the U.S. Army for Special Forces that you currently use in training your student-athletes? 

“Programming with inconsistency in mind, the importance of mastering movement patterns, and developing buy-in.”

Can you provide tips to high school strength on how to learn best the exercises of training Special Forces that you are using at your school?

“We did not do any special training with Special Forces (SF) soldiers. Instead, we developed an organized strength & conditioning program. We implemented our THOR3 (Tactical Human Optimization, Rapid Rehabilitation, and Reconditioning) program in an environment where long-distance running, rucking, push-ups, and sit-ups were standard physical training (PT). Starting a scientifically sound strength & conditioning program dramatically reduced injuries, kept operators healthy, and increased their years of service. A well-designed, scientifically sound program will dramatically elevate teams, and an athletic department, at the high school level.”

What are ways to implement these training principles into a strength coach’s high school training program?

“Students not enrolled in weight training classes have the option to train before or after school. Often, these student-athletes can be very inconsistent in their training–similar to Special Forces soldiers being away while deployed–in schools or other types of training. A principle I’ve utilized at the HS level is similar to that with SF. My programming needs to be consistent, so student-athletes can pick up where they left off, even if they have been gone for weeks or months. If we are on week 10 of a training program, but an athlete completed week 5, they will pick up on week six instead of being with the group on week 10. This schedule ensures they aren’t performing weights or movements they are not ready for.”

How much non-weight strength training work do you do with your athletes after your experiences with the Special Forces?

“Like every High School S&C coach I’ve talked with, I’ve adopted a Block 0 program that fits my situation during the summer and classes. I believe that developing foundational movement patterns over a long period is essential for building strong, injury-resilient athletes. Many Special Forces soldiers had multiple injuries. We often had to regress movements to Block 0 movements to get them to start moving correctly instead of continually attempting an exercise they have been doing for years incorrectly. At the high school level, we must remember we have four years of training and do not need to rush through progressions. Taking time with the movement and slow-cooking the process will ensure the best movers and strongest athletes.” 

Were any challenges of working with Special Forces similar to those of working with high school athletes?

“One of the biggest challenges was getting Special Forces soldiers to buy into the idea of training for performance using a scientifically sound training system. We had to demonstrate that more weight, higher intensities, or more volume could have harmful effects. Often, this led to more overuse injuries, which we were trying to avoid. CrossFit was huge in the SF community 10 years ago due to high-intensity workouts in a short time. 

“At the HS level, Instagram, YouTube, and social media influencers have a lot of impact on how teenagers think working out should look. Having high school student-athletes buy into the idea of training like an athlete instead of working out has been a challenge. Once athletes start training like athletes, they feel better, have more energy, are stronger and quicker, and see better results in their sport.”