We need to train. Just get out there now - run, jump, throw, lift, push, pull, twist, and turn and get tired with a purpose. Have something to eat, take a nap, get some rest and go out and get after it again. Does it really have to be more complicated than that? Do we need training Taj Mahals filled with machines that flash and generate random numbers, where you are afraid to grunt, get chalk dust on the floor or drop a weight? Give me the basics and I will more than make do. The basics will produce champion’s consistently, no frills, just results.
Forget prehab, just train! Any training program worth it’s salt will have a transparent injury prevention component. Today we do more prehab than training and have more injuries than ever. That should give us a clue. We may be causing injuries rather preventing them because we are not preparing the athletes for the demands of their sport because our focus is in the wrong place. Get them ready for the game. Make sure the training programs address all components of physical literacy, all the time.
Stop looking for dysfunctions and imbalances. Look for functionality and train propriability. Athletes are not normal by the very nature of what they are trying to do; they are constantly operating at the edge of the performance envelope. We need to bulletproof them by leaving no stone unturned in their training programs. Give them the where with all to operate at the edge.
Recovery? Recovery from what? First you have appropriately stress the body with directed training. Eat food, sleep, stretch, learn your body and listen to it. Train hard, train a little harder, go easy and then rest. Don’t take an ice bath or get a massage every time you break a sweat, instead learn how your body responds to various training stressors and learn what you need to do to recover from those.
I know this sounds old school and it is. Open you eyes and tune your ears and you will see more voodoo and hear more pseudo science passed off as the things to do in training. We need to pause, take a step back and assess where we have been, where we are and where we are going. We need to cut out the marketing and hype and apply a heavy dose of common sense to our analysis. We can’t, nor should we turn back the back the clock, instead we need to open our eyes.
Why? Very simply I am concerned. I am concerned about the direction athletic development is taking in building and rebuilding the athlete. We are trivializing the role of the coach. We are on a path to making the coach irrelevant in the process. We must address the previously mentioned concerns and address them now. Coaching is leading, constantly learning in order to better guide the athlete on their journey toward excellence. We need to get back to basics, take command of our ship, clearly define what we do and do it without hesitation or reservation.
