Functional Path Training

The GAINcast Podcast

Join us on the new GAIN cast podcast

• Website for GAINcast: http://www.hmmrmedia.com/gaincast/
• Subscribe on iTunes link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-gaincast/id1076641143
• Subscribe with other apps link: http://gaincast.libsyn.com/rss

Thanks to Martin Bingisser at HMMR Media for hosting the podcast. Over the next weeks I will have some of the GAIN faculty members on as guests. I would like to hear from you about topics of interest to you.

My Blog

This week is the seventh anniversary of this blog. I think the past year has been the most prolific in terms of number of posts. The blog is a labor of love for me. Seven years ago it started as a daily warm-up to get me writing in order to finish my book, Athletic Development – The Art and Science of Functional Sports Training and I have not stopped. I find it a great way to start my days, to organize my thoughts. It is not a business for me and except for mentions of my GAIN Apprentorship I studiously avoid promoting anything relating to my business. Notice that when I recommend a book I do not hyperlink to Amazon affiliates to get a percentage. I recommend books, people and seminars because I think they have value or something to offer, not to make a few bucks. I am not independently wealthy, I need to make a living like the next guy, but if you are interested you will will go to the website. I write the blog because I enjoy writing, it really does not matter to me if there is one reader or one thousand. It is a vehicle for sharing my ideas for anyone who cares to tune in. Hopefully I will make a small contribution to the coaching profession and defining the field of athletic development. It would be good to hear from on things you would like me to post in the next year.

A Thought

I was talking to someone in Trinidad that made me think of this. The last thing you do or say will be how people will remember you. I was thinking of this in terms of posts on this blog. I try to write very post as if it will be my last. I am a realist, not overly optimistic or pessimistic. I try to teach and live what I believe. I have strong beliefs forged in the fire of experiences good and bad, negative and positive. Everything I do I try to put an exclamation point on it.

This is Cool!

I saw this on http://cathexis.posterous.com/ March 15, 2010

the real enemy.

The exact point of contact, physical and psychological, between man and his sport. That is where the game is. In the bleeding, broken hands refusing to let go because there's still time on the clock, time for one more play.  That is the test.  This measure of commitment and wherewithal of mind and body.  It is not on the scoreboard or in the victory lane.  Those illustrations exist only to make the game easier to understand from the bleachers, from living rooms, from the outside looking in. Only when we get close do we learn where the the game is truly played.  It is in this intimacy that takes us past the mano a mano, through the obvious battles with gravity, speed, and the elements, to expose the vulnerabilities alongside the victories.  And it is here that we discover one simple truth about competition:  In sport as in life, the real opponent, the only real enemy, is within. "don't let your fears stand in the ways of your dreams"  rick bolton and jim hancock. No Fear, 1995

Odds and Ends - Catching Up

Just finished my second straight week on the road, one to go. Next week is just a short drive up the interstate to Orlando (No frequent flier miles on this one) to the US Track and Cross Country Coaches Association Convention. Really looking forward to it, the highlight will be my good friend, Gary Winckler's induction into the Hall of Fame on Wednesday night. I will be doing two presentations and moderating one panel. It is always great when you can hang out with track and swim coaches.

Then later in the week I will be presenting to the Throws group at the USA Track & Field Podium Project. I plan on attending presentations in as many other event groups as possible. Also a chance to catch up with my mentor Joe Vigil and visit with an old friend Greg Brock.

You will notice that I have added an RSS feed for the blog. It has been a long time coming. Took a little time to unhitch the horse from the buggy and move slowly into the 21st century. Actually your patience will be rewarded. We now are posting video, considering moving to You Tube. Will be on Facebook, Linkedin and have a Twitter account after the first of the year. (Not sure where I will find the time to manage all this - That is another issue) This is all pretty daunting for me, I am trying to prove that old horses can learn new tricks. I will try to do some short interview in Orlando using my Flip HD camera, an amazing tool by the way.

This Week

Posts might not be as prolific this week. I will be working with Carmel Swim Team in Indianapolis Indiana and then onto University of Michigan to work with Women's Swimming. Can't believe this is my 8th year working with Jim Richardson at Michigan. This is always a high point of my year. Jim is a great coach who always teaches my something new. Can't wait.

Use the Difficulty

This from Scott Berkun’s bog post on August 14 http://www.scottberkun.com/blog/ This really resonated with me.

“I was rehearsing a play, and there was a scene that went on before me, then I had to come in the door. They rehearsed the scene, and one of the actors had thrown a chair at the other one. It landed right in front of the door where I came in. I opened the door and then rather lamely, I said to the producer who was sitting out in the stalls, “Well, look, I can’t get in. There’s a chair in my way.” He said, “Well, use the difficulty.” So I said “What do you mean, use the difficulty?” He said “Well, if it’s a drama, pick it up and smash it. If it’s a comedy, fall over it.” This was a line for me for life: Always use the difficulty.”

Michael Caine, interviewed by NPR’s Terry Gross, from her book All I did was ask

Fourth Anniversary

This week marks the fourth anniversary of this blog. I have no idea how many posts there have been, since we migrated from blogger to typepad I have lost count. All I know is that this has been fun. I am very selfish; I write this blog for myself. I use it to kick start my day, to get me focused on my mission to define the field of Athletic Development. I sincerely hope that the ideas, opinions and thoughts that I share stimulate you to think.

For you new readers I started writing this blog in August of 2005 as a daily exercise to help me focus on writing and completing my Athletic Development book published by Human Kinetics. I enjoyed it so much that I kept writing after the book was finished that December. I will keep writing as long as I enjoy it. I have tried to keep it as non-commercial as possible, balancing this with the consideration that I still need to make a living. We certainly live in a time of profound change and challenge in sport and in everyday life. I hope to keep sharing my thoughts and ideas as long as I can keep my enthusiasm. I am doing everything in my power to define the field of Athletic development, to get away from guruism and fads, to focus on knowledge and sound training principles. Gandhi said “We must become the change we want to see,” that is what I am trying to do.

Taking a Break

I am going to take a break from the blog for a couple of weeks. I plan to use the time to recharge the batteries and work on some projects that were delayed because of my travel schedule. Meanwhile look at this very provocative and thought provoking article by Michael Pollan from yesterday New York Times magazine. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?th&emc=th Sometimes progress is not all it is cracked up to be. See you all in a couple of weeks.

Seth Godin's Post Today

This post from Seth Godin reminds of the guy at the NSCA Convention - What my favorite lower trap exercise was? Does it matter? Hopefully this will make those of you that are still hung up on tools and exercises think!

I need to build a house, what kind of hammer should I buy?

I want to write a novel. What word processor do you recommend?

Yesterday on the radio, Jimmy Wales was talking about the Wikipedia movement. A caller who identified himself as a strategist at Amnesty International asked: We're going to build a website to promote freedom and democracy and human rights. What software should we use?

Really.

If you want to do something worth doing, you'll need two things: passion and architecture. The tools will take care of themselves. (Knowledge of tools matters, of course, but it pales in comparison to the other two.)

Sure, picking the wrong tools will really cripple your launch. Picking the wrong software (or the wrong hammer) is a hassle. But nothing great gets built just because you have the right tools.

My approach is to make an assertion about tools early in the process, and then move on to a solid draft of the good stuff. "Given: that we can make a computer do what xyz.com makes it do. Or, given: we can make a piece of titanium do what Frank Gehry makes it do." Then, go design something, imagine it, spec it, flesh it out and fall in love with it. Now you can ask Jimmy Wales what sort of software to use.

I want to write a novel. What word processor do you recommend?

Yesterday on the radio, Jimmy Wales was talking about the Wikipedia movement. A caller who identified himself as a strategist at Amnesty International asked: We're going to build a website to promote freedom and democracy and human rights. What software should we use?

Really.

If you want to do something worth doing, you'll need two things: passion and architecture. The tools will take care of themselves. (Knowledge of tools matters, of course, but it pales in comparison to the other two.)

Sure, picking the wrong tools will really cripple your launch. Picking the wrong software (or the wrong hammer) is a hassle. But nothing great gets built just because you have the right tools.

My approach is to make an assertion about tools early in the process, and then move on to a solid draft of the good stuff. "Given: that we can make a computer do what xyz.com makes it do. Or, given: we can make a piece of titanium do what Frank Gehry makes it do." Then, go design something, imagine it, spec it, flesh it out and fall in love with it. Now you can ask Jimmy Wales what sort of software to use.