With the start of the 2025-26 school year, campus PE and athletic programs are entering a new era of high-tech training. The new velocity training program, funded by Lynbrook Excellence in Education, helps students track their strength and speed to allow for optimized training. Adapted from St. Francis High School, this program was introduced to the weight training PE class in August. The athletics department hopes to eventually make it available to all student athletes as part of Lynbrook’s push to modernize athletic performance.
Velocity-based training is a workout method that measures how fast an athlete moves a weight, rather than how heavy the weight is. Using a system called Output Capture, students can view their movement velocity, peak wattage and power output through a wearable sensor and app which tracks their performance. The data is displayed on iPads, allowing students to adjust their workouts based on real-time feedback. These adjustments ensure safety, minimal fatigue and efficient exercise.
“We noticed other schools like St. Francis using Output Capture and saw how beneficial it was for their students,” weight training teacher and JV football coach Joseph Luo said. “Being able to get real-time data and make adjustments off of that was really beneficial for keeping kids safe, learning about fatigue, learning about effort and keeping them accountable.”
The PE department began setting up the system in August after receiving new Output Capture sensors, iPads and mounting hardware with funding from LEXE. The program monitors the athletic progress of individual students throughout their time in high school. Currently, the weight training class is the first to use the system, though the PE department hopes to expand it to after-school sports teams.
Output Capture also helps reduce the risk of injury by monitoring fatigue and helping students improve technique. As they receive precise, individualized feedback from the system, students can identify where they are overexerting themselves and adjust workouts to prevent injuries. For example, if a student’s barbell velocity slows down significantly, it is a sign to lower reps or weight. By tracking these patterns, students can identify which training loads, rest periods and techniques help them perform best, allowing them to tailor their workouts to their needs.
“It records your speed and requires you to give 100 percent on every rep,” sophomore and JV football player Nathan Kim said. “It helps me understand my workouts better.”
As Lynbrook continues to integrate data-based training into its athletic curriculum, staff see it as more than just a tool for building physical strength, but a way to encourage motivation and discipline beyond the gym.
“Studies have shown that the better the fitness and the better the overall health, the better the academic performance,” Wright said. “This is an opportunity for everybody.”
