Functional Path Training

Ending the Decade – Some Basic Concepts to Guide Training

As an Athletic Development coach everything I do is driven and guided by principles. I thought the end of the first decade of the new millennium would be a good time to reinforce these concepts. These are the principles that are the basis of my system. These are not answers, but concepts.

Start with what we are trying to develop: Athleticism – The ability to perform athletic movements (Run, Jump, Throw) at optimum speed with precision, style and grace in the context of your sport.

The basic concepts I use to guide me in the development of Athleticism are:

Ø Have a Plan, Execute It, and Evaluate It

Have a clear vision of the end product plan and execute your training accordingly.

Be realistic.

Ø Build the Complete Athlete

The body is self-organizing and very smart; give it movement problems to solve.

All systems work together – You can’t separate or isolate, metabolic, endocrine hormonal, neural etc.

Train all components all the time - Use It or Lose It

Ø Fundamental Movement Skills Before Specific Sport Skills

Develop physical literacy to prepare the athlete to enter the competitive arena without any physical, psychological, technical, or tactical limitations.

Train fundamental movement skills everyday regardless of the level of athlete, they are the ABC’s and the multiplication tables of athletic development.

Ø Build the Athlete from the Ground Up

We are bipedal terrestrial animals; gait is the cornerstone of function for all sports.

Strong legs provide the foundation.

Ø Train the Core as the Center of the Action

Movement revolves around and through the core.

Train the core moving and standing.

Remember all training is core training.

Ø To Be Fast You Must Train Fast

You are what you train to be!

Everyone has potential for more speed, but we must train speed in, not train it out.

Ø Build a Work Capacity Base Appropriate For Your Sport

The key is “appropriate” for your sport, not just work, but work with a purpose.

Ø Train Toe Nails To Fingernails

Train movements not muscles using multi-joint & multi-plane movements

Ø Training is Cumulative

Win the Workout – You can’t win a game, match, or race without winning workouts.

Training accumulates day-to-day, week-to-week, month-to-month, and year-to-year.

Hopefully this will provide some food for thought going into the new year and the next decade. Good luck in your training and learning. Have a happy and healthy New Year.

Selecting & Using Training Tools

That drill really looks cool. That piece of equipment is really high tech,it has lots of lights, dials and printouts. I saw so and so do an exercise and they are winning. Yes, that is great, but? Are those good reasons for using a training tool? There are some questions you need to ask when considering new training tools or evaluating what you are currently using:

Are you doing it because everyone else is doing, because it is the exercise of the day or the drill of the month? Monkey see, monkey do?

Is the tool you are planning to use appropriate for the task at hand?

Do you know how to use the new tool? Have you done your homework? In essence have you read the instruction manual that came in the box?

Does the athlete understand what the training tool is and why they will be using it? This is important because the athlete is an active participant in the process. Coaching is working with the athlete to get them better; therefore their feedback in necessary and important.

Is the new tool really going to be better than what you are doing now?

Is the new tool replacing something in the training program or is it going to be added into the existing program?

Think, analyze – What are your objectives? What is your plan for achieving those objectives? The training tools represent the actual point of implementation of the training; therefore the selection and use of the tools must be more than just exercises and drills. They must serve a specific purpose.

Also consider that Training = Testing and Testing = Training. Can the training tool you are considering give you daily feedback?

All of us have our go to tools. Know what yours are. I have certain tools that I use across sports if they are appropriate. I use them because I know where they fit in my training system. They are reliable and provide me with accurate information regarding the athlete’s progress. I would need much convincing to eliminate those tools.

In today’s marketing driven environment it is often difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. Hopefully this is some food for thought that can help you make better choices in selecting training tools.

Five in Five

Last week I mentioned the Five in Five program. Here is a description of the program by Greg Thompson. (Greg is one of the GAIN Faculty member) Greg has done a great job of developing and refining this program. For further information please contact Greg at:

Greg Thompson
K-12 Physical Education Department Chair
Farmington Public Schools
Teacher, Longacre Elementary
34850 Arundel Street
Farmington, MI 48335-4003
(248) 426-4823
[email protected]

 

5 in 5 was designed to integrate the best information available into a short-exposure exercise program that can be used in single 5 exercise modules or combined into longer exercise sessions.  At its foundation is the idea that one should strengthen movements, not individual muscles.  Also imbedded in the program is the principle that various elements of physical fitness should be combined.  So, you will find exercises that create strength, balance and flexibility simultaneously.  This “organic” approach to fitness combines physical demands in ways the body will need to use them.  The modules were designed so that each five exercise cluster includes several elements that are essential to the development of athleticism:

First, multiple joint movements are the cornerstone of the program.  Athletes and people of all ages need muscles to work together as synergists.  Strength must be developed from toenails to fingernails along kinetic chains.  

Second, each module has exercises that elicit improvement in balance.  Athletic development coaches have long understood the importance of developing balance at the same time as strength.  One without the other is of limited use.

Third, each module has exercises that move the body in multiple directions.  As people move through their daily lives, whether athletes or not, the world throws movement challenges that include bracing, bending, pushing, pulling and twisting.  The modules are designed to emulate life’s movements, whether you are an aspiring athlete or office worker.

Fourth, each module is designed to improve dynamic flexibility. Regardless of ones age, diminished flexibility can predispose a person to injury.  You will find the exercises included in the program will gradually revitalize range of motion.

The exercises are simple and progressive and can be ‘turned up’ (made more difficult) or ‘turned down’ (made easier) to suit any level of attainment and learning.  They can be expanded to form parts of a warm-up for sporting environments or can simply play their part in the daily activity requirements of the growing child.

Training Tools

We have all heard the aphorism that if the only tool you have is a hammer then everything becomes a nail. Truer words have never been spoken, so why do so many coaches use a hammer as their primary training tool? As a coach you are a skilled craftsman. You have an array of training tools at your disposal and you should  know when and how to use tools that are appropriate for the task at hand. We constantly work to build the complete athlete and if injury occurs to rebuilt the complete athlete. The key here is complete athlete. To build or rebuild the complete athlete you need more tools than a hammer. You need a toolbox with tools appropriate for the task at hand. You need to know when to select what tool. You cannot fit the athlete to the tools you know how to use or are comfortable with; you must fit the tools to the athlete. To accomplish this you need a broad knowledge of training means and methods as  they apply to the sport you are preparing the athlete for. You need a clear blueprint to guide you toward the finished product. In addition you need to know when to call upon other specialists to supplement your knowledge and skill set. To be effective as a coach be a generalist, a student of training and all it’s permutations and manifestations. As a generalist you will be able to make connections and links that enhance overall athleticism, not just one athletic quality like speed or strength. At the culmination of the process the generalist (skilled craftsman) will be able to use all the tools necessary to build the complete athlete including the hammer when needed.

Training Insanity

Insanity is doing the same training year after year with the same people and expecting different results. Look around and you will see how prevalent this is. There is no thought to progression, advancing training age, and accumulation of training effects. Each training year, for that matter each training cycle, should be a logical extension of the previous cycle and lead seamlessly into the next cycle. Progression is only linear on paper, in reality different qualities adapt at different rates as do different athletes, this must be taken into account in planning the progression of training. The genesis of many of the injuries you see in sports today is a lack of progression. The programs NEVER change and one program is expected to fit all athletes.

Happy Holidays

Wanted to wish all of you a happy holiday season, a merry Christmas and a healthy and happy new year. This is truly a special time of year. A time for sharing and hope for peace and harmony in the world.

My List

This post was inspired Seth Godin’s December 21^st  post “Who’s on your list?” It got me thinking about who would be on my list of people I would like to meet and have an extended conversation with. The first people on my list are deceased, so obviously there is no chance in this life. So with these people I have tried to read what their writings, what has been written about them and in some cases viewed documentaries about them.

Richard Feynman – Noble prizewinner in physics for his pioneering work in Quantum physics

Thomas Merton – Trappist Monk and author

John Steinbeck - Author

Brutus Hamilton – Track Coach University of California, Berkeley

Doc Councilman – Swim Coach Indiana University

Those who are living that I hope to meet with are:

Ric Charlesworth – Coach of the Australian men’s field hockey team. Former international cricket and field hockey player for Australia. Coached Australian women to two Olympic Gold medals. A medical doctor as well as a member of parliament.

Seth Godin – Blogger, author and wise man

E.O. Wilson – Scientist, Harvard University. Made his reputation as an expert on ants. Now a leader in the field of biodiversity.

There are so many more, but these are the ones that come to mind, this would be a good start.

Streaks & Comparisons

Congratulations to Geno Auriemma, his staff and the UConn women. To win 89 straight games anywhere, anytime, against anyone, is a remarkable accomplishment. I just wish we were not into comparing. Their perfromance stands alone. Auriemma summed it up quite well after yesterdays game: "I don't want my team to compare themselves to anyone," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said afterward. "I'm not John Wooden and this isn't UCLA. This is Connecticut and that's good enough."  UCLA men’s win streak stands alone, it was a different era and in many ways a different game than today’s game. Saturday I watched the last quarter of the California State high school football championships open division. De La Sale High School from Concord California won, in a dominating win over Servite High School. They are as well coached as any football team at any level that I have ever seen. De La Sale has the distinction of winning 156 straight games! A remarkable accomplishment, that did not occur by chance or by playing weak competition. But I heard a coach here in Florida denigrate their streak saying that if they played in Florida they would never have even had an undefeated season. How stupid!

Why can’t we just honor and recognize the accomplishments for what they are – excellent performances that demand commitment, dedication and focus. Great teams and great athletes are great because they play the best, you can't be the best by playing weak schedules and inferior opponents. If you look at winning streaks and great champions over time you will see that they did play the best competition available, that is a mark of the champion. UConn has sought and played the best, as did UCLA and De La Sale. Remember the essence of competition is to strive together with.

As an endnote:  A remarkable feat that has been overlooked in the all the conversation about streaks is Jim Steen's Kenyon College men's swim team that has won 31 straight NCAA Division III National Championships!

Winning by design, not by chance

I love to read about winners. I love being around winners. Obviously I love to win. Winners are comfortable with being uncomfortable all the time.  They are always working to find an edge, something they can do to get better. Winners don’t always win, but they learn from their loses, so that  those loses can result in later success. A great example is Lindsey Vonn, she has every reason to be satisfied, yet she continues to strive for competitive excellence. Here are some quotes her that affirm what a winner must do:

In the meantime, Vonn has not followed the familiar course that led her to three previous Olympics and three successive World Cup overall titles. Last summer, she instead overhauled her training regimen and diet.

“We went back to the drawing board and asked how I could improve on last year,” Vonn said.

While she dominated the downhill, super-G and super-combined events last season, she ranked 14th worldwide in slalom and was 28th in the giant slalom. So Vonn adjusted her training to focus on getting better in the two events in which she failed to win a race. In 2009, she sequestered herself in an Austrian gym working out eight hours a day. Last summer, she was outside working on explosiveness, quickness and agility.

“I still lifted weights inside and rode a billion miles on a bike in the gym,” said Vonn, who has won an American-record 33 World Cup races. “But I added drills to improve my foot speed. I’d say half my time was outside working on my footwork and getting my feet quicker. It’s worked.”

As an example, Vonn cited last month’s first slalom race in Levi, Finland, where an off-balance turn nearly sent her to the snow. Instead, she made a spectacular recovery to finish sixth.

“Last year, there’s no way I finish that race — I’m off the course,” she said. “But I had the agility to save it. You can say that’s no big deal, but a sixth place is 40 points in the overall standings. Last year, I would have got zero points. So that’s a huge difference.”

Winners are winners because they choose a path less traveled. It is not a path of comfort and complacency. The challenge to all of us is make the choice to pursue the journey to excellence. It is a journey that never ends. Enjoy the journey, it is journey filled with adventure and surprises.

Coaching Matters

Coaching and coaches make a difference.  The coach is at the hub the athletic experience. As a coach your primary mission is to provide a positive experience and create an atmosphere where success is possible in both sport and life.

Good coaches foster independence not dependence on the part of your athletes. It is not about you, it is about the athlete. As a coach you start out as a guiding light or a beacon and evolve into a mirror for the athlete to reflect off of s their career progresses.

Sport is a vehicle for self-growth.  It provides the opportunity to learn about self-expression, self-control, and commitment.  Strengths and weaknesses are soon discovered. Sport allows the coach and athlete to increase self-awareness.  Coaching requires conscious thought, sensitivity, willingness, an openness to receive cues, and honest detached objectivity.

A coach is a teacher.  Unlike the teacher you get immediate feedback as to your effectiveness.  Your work is on display for everyone to see in every game, match, or meet. You can’t hide.

Coaches choose the level of achievement of their athletes by setting their level of expectations.  There must be a willingness to do whatever is necessary within ethical bounds to get the job done. No day is too long, no task too unpleasant, you have go the extra mile, lead by example.

Coaches and athletes become excellent by doing ordinary things consistently and with care. 

A coach learns from EXPERIENCES, good and bad, wins and losses.  Too much is made of experience.  It is possible to have one experience many times or to have many experiences.  Experience is not what happens to a man, but rather what he does with what happens to him.