Functional Path Training

Possibilities

Think about and focus on possibilities – what you can do, not what you can’t do. Use obstacles as opportunities. Take changes, risk, get out of your comfort zone, fail forward. Without risk there is no reward. If you do what you have always done, you will get what you always got. Refuse to take no for an answer – test the limits, if you stumble get up and try again. What did not work last year may well be this year’s solution. Do the possible and soon the impossible will follow.

Change

You must change to stay the same. Change is a constant. You can control change by carefully manipulating the variables and being the change you want to be. Embrace change; lead it because coaches are agents of change. Make change purposeful and directed toward a logical goal.

Olympic Year Syndrome – Five Ring Fever

It is always interesting to watch coaches and athletes in an Olympic year. To see what they do and what they don’t do. I first became aware of this in 1968 and have seen it in each subsequent Olympic year. Training in the Olympic year should be the culmination of the quadrennial cycle. It should be a logical extension of what you have done the previous three years, in fact what you have done throughout your career to get to that point. There is no need for radical changes in changes in training or to change coaches. Training accumulates from year to year, so the fourth year in a quadrennial cycle is when you reap what you have sown. No need to experiment or make radical changes like changing coaches or completely altering your diet. There is an old cowboy saying: ”Dance the last dance who brought you to the dance.”

Training is a process of continual adaptation. The Olympic year is a logical extension of the process of adaptation of the previous years of training. It should be a time of fine-tuning, sharpening and refinement all pointed toward excellence in competition. Never lose sight of the fact that training is a means to an end, not an end to itself.  It is difficult to resist the temptation to do more, when in fact it is probably beneficial to do less. To be an Olympian in any sport represents the pinnacle of athletic excellence. Many are called and few chose to achieve because of poor choices during the Olympic year. It has been interesting to see whom has succumbed to five ring fever this and who in the short time between now and the Olympic games.

GAIN V Summary – Part Two

Each year we pick a theme for GAIN, this year’s theme was Coaching that Matters. Regardless of everyone’s job we all coaching the people we work with to get better, in order to do that we must focus on what matters most. My biggest take message from GAIN V was to focus on what you can do, not what you can't do and go out and get after it and get it done. No obstacle is too big and adversity is an opportunity.

This year I wanted to make the GAIN Coaching Resource manual more of a focus to guide our early morning learning session. I think this enabled the attendees to leave with a rich resource of exercises, but with more of the how and why. I also wanted to incorporate more active learning opportunities and demonstrations than we had in the past in order to make the lectures come alive. 

I can’t say enough about the instructors. The quality of the presentations was the highest level. They were practical yet challenging to force us to stretch our thinking. Over the next few weeks I plan on talking about each of the presentations and the take home messages from each.

I want to thank the sponsors whose generosity helped make GAIN V a success - Perform Better, ASICS, PolyMem (Ferris Industries), Alta Innovations (Optojump), KinesioCapture, Lane Gainer, and Hexlite Training Bar. I also want to thank my wife Melissa whose tireless work behind the scenes helped make GAIN a success and last but least Ed Ryan ATC whose superb organizational and management skills made the schedule work.

If you interested in attending GAIN IV drop me an email and I will send you information. We will have the 2013 dates set by the end of July. I can’t wait for next year!

Be sure to like us on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/6t3ggss

This is a gallery of our active learning sessions:

GAIN V Summary – Part One

I am not sure where to start. For me it was one of the best educational experiences of my career, bar none. I am not saying that because I organized it, but because for first time I was able to sit back, enjoy it and absorb it. Words cannot do justice to the experience at this year’s GAIN. From the start with introductions the first evening during a torrential downpour (As it can only rain in Texas) to the finish Sunday morning the bar was raised. A combination of the faculty who raised the level of expectation through the quality of their presentations and willingness to share and the delegates who came to learn and share, it was special. It was everything I had dreamed it would be when I started GAIN five years ago. Just like any project growth is a process and it takes time, the GAIN V crew has set a very high standard for all subsequent GAIN’s to reach and exceed.

GAIN is an acronym for Gambetta Athletic Improvement Network. GAIN Apprentorship = Apprenticeship + Mentorship. Everyone who attends applies, not everyone who applied is selected. The goal is define the field of athletic development. There are three thrusts in GAIN: 1) Athletic Development or what some people still prefer to call Strength and Conditioning, 2) Sports Medicine, and 3) Physical Education. The three areas have more in common that they do difference. The mission is to provide a learning environment where professionals can share ideas across disciples and learn from each other and the instructors. The network emphasis provides a vehicle to continue to share and exchange ideas when they leave the five day coaching course through a secure website that has a forum to exchange ideas and a library of educational resources. The mentorship is something that I provide as well as various members of the faculty and delegates. Over the five years of GAIN it has been wonderful to see people grow as professionals through the mentorship and learning.

This is the second year we have had GAIN at Rice University. The Rice athletic department and especially the men’s track team and Assistant coach Casey Thom has bent over backwards to help us. We use the Rice facilities and stay in the dorms so that is it is 24/7 total immersion five days.

The following is our schedule; it is a busy and demanding schedule. Tomorrow I will highlight each of the instructors and show some pictures.

Tuesday June 12
1:00 to 3:00	Time with Vern (For anyone arriving early – Informal discussion)
2:30 to 5:30	Registration & Check into Rooms at Rice College Commons Area
5:30 to 7:00	Dinner
7:00 to 7:30	Introduction and Structure of GAIN Apprentorship
7:30 to 8:30	Introductions
8:30 to 9:00	Meet with Discussion Groups
9:00 -	Social Interaction – Informal at Valhalla pub on campus

 

Wednesday June 13
6:30 to 7:45	Morning Active Learning Sessions (Stations) Theme: Coordination & Body Awareness
7:45 – 9:15	Breakfast
9:15 to 10:00	Foundations of Physical Literacy – Movement ABC’s (Gambetta)
10:00 to 11:00	Physical Education – Why We Are Where We Are (Thomas)
11:00 to 12:15	A Leg to Stand, A Leg to Land On (Fober)
12:15 to 1:30	Lunch
1:30 to 3:30	Return to Play Strategies (Knowles)
3:30 to 3:45	Break
3:45 to 5:30	Planned Performance Reconditioning (Knowles)
5:30 to 7:00	Dinner
6:30 to 7:00	Newbies Only - Orientation to GAIN Web Site and Forum (Joe P. & VG)
7:00 to 8:00	Interest Groups (Athletic Development, Physical Education, Sports Med)
8:00 to 9:00	Discussion Groups
9:00 -	Social Interaction – Informal at Valhalla pub on campus

 

Thursday June 14
6:30 to 7:45	Morning Active Learning (Stations) Theme: Strength & Plyo’s Newbies – Foundations of Olympic Lifting Technique (Fober)
7:45 – 9:15	Breakfast
9:15 to 10:30	The Oregon System – Play the Way You Train (Radcliffe)
10:30 to 11:15	Physical Competency Assessment - Concepts (Gambetta)
11:15 to 12:15	Numbers In to Action - PCA Case Study Illinois Volleyball (Ballard)
12:15 to 1:30	Lunch
1:30 to 3:00	The Oregon System – Play the Way You Train (Radcliffe)
3:00 to 3:15	Break
3:15 to 4:30	PCA Practical (Ballard, Przytula, Ryan)
4:30 to 5:30	Agility – Practical (Radcliffe)
5:30 to 6:30	Dinner
6:30 to 7:00	Optojump Presentation
7:00 to 7:15	Planned Performance Training – Intro for Discussion (Gambetta)
7:15 to 8:00	Discussion Groups - Planned Performance Training
8:00 to 9:00	Interest Groups (Athletic Development, Physical Education, Sports Med)
9:00 -	Social Interaction – Informal at Valhalla pub on campus

 

Friday June 15
6:30 to 7:45	Morning Active Learning (Stations) Theme: Flexibility
7:45 – 9:15	Breakfast
9:15 to 10:15	Fueling (Ellis)
10:15 to 12:15	Sprint Mechanics – Concepts (Bosch)
12:15 to 1:30	Lunch
1:30 to 2:30	Sprint Mechanics – Application (Bosch)
2:30 to 4:00	Recovery (Benton)
4:00 to 5:00	Supplementation (Ellis)
5:00 to 5:30	Newbies – Wound Healing (Ryan)
5:30 to 7:00	Dinner
6:30 to 7:00	ASICS Presentation
7:00 to 8:00	Interest Groups (Athletic Development, Physical Education, Sports Med)
7:30 to 9:00	Discussion Groups
9:00 -	Social Interaction – Informal

 

 

 

Saturday June 16
6:30 to 7:45	Morning Active Learning (Stations) Theme: Core Exercise
7:45 – 9:15	Breakfast
9:15 to 10:30	Skill Acquisition (Bosch)
10:30 to 11:45	Reflex Strength Training (Bosch)
11:45 to 12:15	Assembling & Managing a Performance Team (Benton)
12:15 to 1:30	Lunch
1:30 to 2:30	Reflex Strength Training – Practical (Bosch)
2:30 to 3:30	Making PE Physical and Educational (Thomas)
3:30 to 5:00	Training in Extreme Environments and Conditions (Lockette)
5:00 to 5:30	Kinesio Capture Presentation
5:30 to 6:00	Discussion and Q & A
6:00 to 7:00	Dinner
7:00	Free Evening – On Your Own to Enjoy Houston or Visit with Instructors

 

 

 

Sunday June 17
7:00 to 8:00	Breakfast
8:00 to 9:30	Hip to Shoulder- Theory and Practice (Przytula)
9:30 to 10:00	Testing (Benton)
10:00 to 11:30	Coaching the Intangibles (Shere)
11:30 to 12:00	Coaching Excellence & Summary (Gambetta)
12:15 to 1:30	Lunch & Checkout

 

Lack of Posts

Finished GAIN V (Gambetta Athletic Improvement Network Apprentorship program) on Sunday. An amazing five days of great learning opportunities, inspiration and sharing. I am now driving home to Sarasota. (17 hours driving - Great way to celebrate your forty first wedding anniversary) I plan on posting several posts summarizing the GAIN experience when I get settled back in at home and resume regular posts. Thanks for reading this blog.

GAIN Apprentorship Day One & Two

Outstanding first two day here at Rice University in Houston Texas. Some great teaching resulting in an atmosphere of learning and sharing. Outstanding presentations yesterday by Ed Thomas on historical background and evolution to our current state of physical ecucatios. Tracy (AKA Ironmaven) on developing lower extremity strength with some case studies of the athletes she works with and the the afternoon was Bill Knowles presenting on Return to Competition Strategies. Great information, much food for thought. Looking forward to today with Jim Radcliffe from University of Oregon and Randy Ballard from Univesity of Illinois.

A Few Random Thoughts

In my travels and I get the opportunity to observe a lot of different things. Here are some random thoughts based on things that I have seen over the past few months.

Rethink the use and role of strength coaches – Ultimately the responsibility lies with the sport coach for the athlete’s performance. The strength coach does not have that same responsibility or stake in the athlete’s performance. Often they are chasing numbers with no connection to performance. I think sport coaches should take command of Strength & Conditioning/Athletic development. They need to know what is going on, everything MUST be integrated to achieve optimum performance.

Heart rate by itself is not a very meaningful measure. It must be in context with other measures. Impossible to base training on heart rate, too many variables affect it. 99% of the time RPE is a great window into stress and adaptation.

Olympic euphoria sometimes blinds us. Look into the medals, how were they achieved? Who achieved them? Who were the coaches? What kind of support was necessary? Was it the product of a system?

Strength Training – Don’t try to fit it into a program – build around it. Use it for a foundation.

It is much more important to know how to think than it is to know what to think.

Focus on what you can do, not what you can’t do. Think about what is probable and possible, not what is impossible and improbable.

Connections

One of the key aspects of a good training or rehab programs is the ability to make connections. Recognizing that the body is a kinetic chain we need to always be aware of how we are making connections between all the links in the chain. Are we in fact connecting or are we disconnecting? Remember that the core is the relay center; it is the center of the action, but not the originator of the action. We need to understand the end result we desire, how the links in the chain are connected and timed up? We must always take into consideration that we are bipedal land animals so to insure that all connections are made we must build from the ground up based on the gait cycle. It may seem basic but we need to know what we are connecting. Why are we connecting them? How are we connecting them? Then we need to understand how the exercises we use in training are connecting to the skill required in the movement or the sport. Is the movement similar or same? Does the athlete make the connection? When all connections are made then the result is flowing, efficient, rhythmic movement that allows the athlete to lawless execution.

Phenology

Yesterday when I was going through some files in preparation for GAIN and I found this article from the New York Times science section in 2008. The article was “Weather History” by Anthony DePalma. http://tinyurl.com/7xjrlzz There is a field of science called Phenology, the study of the timing of natural events. The premise is that natural events carefully and consistently recorded have scientific value for understanding the interactions between organisms and their environment. Naturally I immediately thought about coaching, teaching and rehab. The same is true. The more detailed the records that we keep, the more valuable that those records become as the years pass. I started thinking about a way to access the records of workouts, lesson plans and treatment notes of great practitioners, what a wealth of information that would provide. I know I have training plans and sessions from my first years of coaching buried somewhere, it would be very interesting to see the patterns, to see if the structure and content of the workouts has changed or the same threads are present. I am convinced that as we have become dependent on technology and “scientific analysis” that we have lost our power of observation. In essence we cannot see the forest for the trees. We are missing patterns that develop over time. Looking at training programs over the long term will give a window into the timing and application of the training stimulus and the subsequent adaptive response. It would even be valuable to be able to access the training logs of athletes, what an insight that would provide.

I am going to take it upon myself to contact the coaches that I know that have kept records throughout their careers to see if they would be willing to share. I believe the principles and concepts of Phenology apply in coaching as well. Any ideas and input would be appreciated