Theory & practical use of Velocity Based Training

A conversation with No Weak Links covering the theory and the practical use of velocity-based training — how it works, where it shines, and how to get a Metric-style smartphone-camera workflow into your gym.

The episode is structured the way I think coaches should actually learn VBT: theory first, but only as much as you need. The load–velocity relationship, why velocity falls as fatigue accumulates, and why maximal intent is the non-negotiable that makes all the data meaningful. Then the useful part — turning that into floor decisions. Which exercises are worth tracking (the big compound lifts, where velocity is reliable), what to do when the numbers and the athlete’s feel disagree, and how real-time feedback changes the energy of a session even before you use the data for anything analytical.

The workflow section addresses the objection every coach raises: “I don’t have time for this mid-session.” Fair — against 2022-era hardware. With a phone camera doing the measurement, the setup cost drops to propping a phone up, which is what finally makes VBT viable in a team-training environment.

Start with the velocity-based training guide for the theory, and real-time feedback with VBT for what feedback alone does to performance.