Functional Path Training

Smart Body or Dumb Body

How you view and perceive the body will have a significant effect on your training outcomes. You can view the body as either dumb or smart. Here are some comparisons:

 

Dumb Body – Looks for dysfunction

 

Smart Body – Looks for function

 

Dumb Body – Looks at the body as highly adapted

 

Smart Body – Looks at the body as adaptable

 

Dumb Body – Looks for disconnects

 

Smart Body – Looks for connections

 

Dumb Body – Looks for disabilities

 

Smart Body – Looks for abilities

 

Dumb Body – Looks for what cannot be done

 

Smart Body – Looks for what can be done

 

Dumb Body – Looks at body as highly mechanistic

 

Smart Body – Looks at body as organic

 

Dumb Body – Looks at body as static

 

Smart Body – Looks at body as dynamic

 

Dumb Body – Looks at body from reductionist viewpoint

 

Smart Body – Looks at body from a quantum viewpoint

 

Dumb Body – Looks at muscles

 

Smart Body – Looks at movements

How do you view the body? I obviously view the body as smart. I believe in giving the body credit for it’s inherent wisdom and ability to solve the complex movements presented to in a myriad of ways. Hopefully this will get you thinking about how you look at the body.

 

More on Work Versus Training

Ask yourself is what you are doing busy work or best work? Best work is training and that will get you better, busy work will just get you tired. There is a huge difference between getting tired and getting better. Training recognizes that there is a time to be tired and a time to be fresh. Knowing the difference is a key to adaptation. Beware and be aware of the activity trap. Just doing stuff is not training. Know you goals and make sure everything is in pursuit of those goals. Make sure the training reflects the demands of competition because that is what you training for.

Work Versus Training

Work is hard and the harder the work the better the work is. No, absolutely wrong - STOP - that is not training. That approach will work for a while before the inevitable crash occurs. Certainly training is work, but the key distinction is that training is work with a specific direction and purpose. Sometimes training is very hard and other times it is very easy. This variation is necessary to allow the body to adapt to the stress of training. In training there are no quick fixes, adaptation takes time and not all physical qualities adapt at the same rate. Training is mindful and meaningful. It involves progression from easy to hard and simple to complex. It also involves a sensible application of work that is appropriate for the developmental age and training age of the athletes. The goal of training is the development of an adaptable athlete that is thoroughly prepared for the chaos of the competitive arena. Work on the other hand is an end to itself. Training is a means to an end. In summary I am reminded of the words of a popular country western song from my college days: “Work your fingers to the bone. What do you get? Boney fingers.”

Good, Better, Best

It may be trite to say, but good is the enemy of great. After workout this morning I was reflecting on what it takes to be the best. It is easy to talk about and intellectualize about being the best, but actually taking the actions necessary to be the best is another thing. Start with talent and ability (I know I did not define them, that is a topic for another post I am working on). But I have seen many talented athletes who never took that last step to greatness; it is a big step into unknown and sometimes uncharted territory. It is a step filled with uncertainty and risk.

Dedication and commitment are prime ingredients. Proper guidance in the form of coaching and support personnel will go a long way toward making dedication and commitment meaningful. Certainly ability to have a laser like focus on the task at hand is important. Along with focus the ability to maintain perspective is important – the ability to balance wins and loses, successes and failures as well as maintain some semblance of a normal life outside sport are important.

Lest we forget this is a process that takes time. It is a growth process. Not very many people wake up one morning and are great. That’s make perseverance, the ability to stay the course in spite of obstacles a huge component of being great.

In my experience after all that is said and done it simply comes down to choices. It is as simple as choosing to stay in bed and sleep in or go to the morning workout – the athlete makes conscious choices to be the great or merely be good, sometimes on a daily basis. The great ones make the choice to be outside their comfort zone all the time! Frankly I think this is the reason there are few truly great ones, it is rather simple, many are called but few choose. It is easier to just be good.

The Coaching Process

Coaching is a process that has a deep foundation in pedagogy (Science of teaching), supported by science, forged in experience, proven and tested in the competitive arena. At its essence coaching is teaching and the coach’s classroom is the track, the pool or the gym. To be truly effective as a coach it is important to remember it is not something you do for a couple of hours a day, it is something you are. To be a great coach demands that you be all in with a total commitment to being the best you can be. After all how can we ask the athlete for commitment if we are not? Immerse yourself in the process and the outcomes will take care of themselves.

Strength and Conditioning International Online Conference

Take advantage of this special opportunity for learning & professional development. Brendan Chaplin of Leeds Metropolitan University in England has organized an all-star line-up of leaders in the field of athletic development for a unique online seminar. It is a terrific learning opportunity and you never have to leave home. I am excited to be part of this. It is flattering to part of this lineup of great minds in the field. My topic will be 45 Years of Coaching- Mistakes Made and Lessons Learned.  In my presentation I will focus on my approach as a generalist who has deep roots in Track & Field but has worked with a myriad of other sports at all levels and how I evolved the Gambetta Method. I plan on covering all areas of athletic development to share with what and why I have seen has worked and what hasn’t worked. I am looking forward to the opportunity to share my experiences.

Use this referral code VG10 and you will get a 10% discount on any of the packages. (Enter this code VG10 in the box at the checkout area of the website. The price will automatically be reduced.) Checkout the conference web page to learn about all the presenters’ http://www.strengthandconditioningeducationonline.com/home/sc-conference/  You bet I will be tuning to this when I am not presenting.

The Secret

Always have to chuckle when I see a new article or a post on the unveiling of the latest secret training method. I will let you in on a little secret there are no secrets. There are no shortcuts to the podium. You can keep looking if you want but you are wasting your time. Know the basics, master the basics repeat them until they are flawless. Individualize the training to fit the athlete and adapt the technique so it fits the athlete; don’t try to fit the athlete to the event. Practice with purpose and direction and realize that it will take time. A little talent helps, but a little talent can go a long way if it is maximized.

Reflections & Expectations

These are a few reflections, lessons, random thoughts and some expectations for the New Year. 2013 was a great year of learning and sharing for me; I am looking forward to an even better year in 2014. This next year marks 50 years since graduating from high school, hardly seems like that long, it certainly has been an adventurous journey. It just reminds how fortunate I have been to have a loving supportive family, great mentors to learn from and special friends.  Some of them are no longer with us but they are in my thoughts everyday.

Every year that passes just keeps reaffirming that everything that is old is new again.

Just because something did not work in the past does not mean it won’t work now - different time, different people, different place and different circumstances.

Calling something “functional” does not make it functional.

The better you get at learning the more you learn, the key is learning how to learn.

Master the basics and never abandon the basics. Everything is built on basics.

Long-term athlete development is one of the most misunderstood areas in sport today. No further comment necessary.

No shades of gray regarding drugs, you cannot walk the line. You either are on the side of drugs or opposed to it. For me there is no place for performance-enhancing drugs in sport or anything that remotely resembles them.

Five years of success does not a career make. It takes twenty years to be an overnight success.

I want to wish all of you a very happy and healthy new year.