Back to Reality

I just figured out I have been away from home on the road traveling 19 out of the last 21 days. (Not sure if I am getting too old for this or if it is making me old) Excluding the travel days, those are very draining and stressful, the trip to Trinidad, then California and ending in Colorado Springs was a great learning experience. I realized as I was Chilin yesterday how blessed I am to have the family I have, and the friends and professional colleagues that I can learn from. Over the next weeks I will post on my experiences, the things that I saw and observed and the people that I met. It is going to take me a few days, some long bike rides and swims to absorb it all. If anything became clear to me on the trip, it is that the field of Athletic Development is crying put for definition. I learned that personal trainers are not the answer; they are a big part of the problem. It was also reaffirmed time and again that everything old is new again. Talking to Bob Ward at the Dartfish Conference only underscored that. He was doing things thirty-five years ago in training that are considered cutting edge today. I implore all of you, no matter what your experience level, to explore where the ideas and methods have come from. Study the history of training (For that matter history – Training and sport do not exist independent of society), it will give you a context and above all you will not repeat the mistakes of others, you will learn from them and grow. Find someone with gray hair who has made a ton of mistakes and hang out with them, you will be surprised at what you will learn.