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| Junior setter, Hallie Christopher performing a front squat |
Strong athletes jump higher.
Strong athletes get injured less often.
Mostly, strong people are better able to meet the demands of the world. So it makes sense that we have a test that requires our athletes to be strong when they come in for preseason.
Our choice is the "rear-foot elevated split squat". Junior Rachel Poirier demonstrates:
We don't use it because it's the best exercise, but because it's the easiest to learn. If we tried to use a front squat (pictured above) our freshmen would have all kinds of problems learning it. They might not even have access to that kind of equipment.
The "RFESS" is simple. Last year Rachel got innovative and used water jugs:
I'd tell you how much weight our athletes use, but it wouldn't be relevant to your situation. The main point is that there's a standard, and that it's difficult to achieve.