Measuring and Testing Results

Does the coach understand the technical, tactical and interpersonal skill sets for the sport? is the coaching staff fully on board, can they link the training program with the sport demands? The objective for measuring or testing is not to get the athlete ready for a fitness test but to get them fit to play the sport "Game Fit" or "Train for the Game". Are they healthy with the ability to prepare and train daily and compete optimally? are they improving? The goal is to coach the athlete for their respective sport train the athlete, not drain the athlete with more drills or how to lift heavier weight.

Questions and Quotes

What is the goal?

How long will it take to achieve?

What is needed?

"The future belongs to people who see possibilities before they become obvious" -Visionaries

"True success in life isn't rare because people are weak, lazy or lack willpower. True success in life is rare because too often people use flawed strategies for success"

Sport Demand Analysis

Coaching Fundamentals in Athletic Development

identify the functional demands of the sport identify positional core characteristics of the athlete identify the physiological demands for the sport(s) identify and apply age appropriate training assess the nutritional needs assess the common injuries that occur in the sport(s) assess the movement patterns of the athlete apply the principles that guide in the application of team tactics, systems and strategies for conditioning apply time sensitive concepts for performance and injury prevention create an optimal environment that focuses on mastery of sport movements apply long term athletic development and health education Each sport has different demands and each athlete has different characteristics. Understanding the importance of the SDA will provide the athletic coach with direction in how, why and when to design and apply age appropriate (on and off-field/ice/court)conditioning.

The Value of PAC Development

Professional Athletic Coaching Develompnet can be a great =teacher in overall sport skills that contribute to overall development when structured properly. The values learned are simple, character, discipline, team work, perseverance, health, with the responsible to help each other. The foundation is in the culture of one individual within one team. Doing the simple things really well everyone will get better. There is more work then one coach can handle.

The Motivational Speaker

The most critical category that underpins everything a coach does is his ability to communicate with his student athletes and coaching staff. Research shows"Coaching is a skill that can be developed and enhanced" but there are many skills and sets of skills the coach must develop, maintain and organize with a systematic approach to preparation, time management and programming, the motivational speaker is only one part of the coaches skill set. Think of Herb Brooks addressing his team before the 1980 game vs the Soviets, or Knute Rockne, "one man practicing sportsmanship is far better that fifty preaching it" These are the moments coaches strive and prepare for their whole coaching life.

Causal Knowledge

True or False

if we don't anchor ourselves down and build on fundamental principles we lose sight of the forest through the trees?

What is casual knowledge? Gravity, Ground Reaction, Mass and Momentum and how it applies to the Fundamental Movement Skills, Energy Systems and Injury Patterns. The need is to understand that causal knowledge is the foundation for The Sport Demand Analysis. As well as understanding the individual athlete and position.

With this Causal Knowledge we have Current Knowledge and in fact knowledge is actually what gives imagination it's power, the ability to connect the links between all sports, athlete's and coaches. Strength and Conditioning Coaches by their very nature say a lot of stuff that is based on their opinion in the gym environment while trying to sell or argue that opinion, which may or may not be true. If we go to the Causal Knowledge of the sport and athlete we will find lots of truth and eliminate the shifting common desires, perception and emotion driven by a single sport, coach or athlete.

Why Athletes go broke

Some stats on how athletes go broke. A recent article in SI shows the reason for the importance of developing the complete student/athlete.

• 78% of former NFL players have gone bankrupt or are under financial stress because of joblessness or divorce 2 yrs after retirement.
• an estimated 60% of former NBA players are broke within five yrs of retirement.

Not the Lifestyle kids dreams of on the streets, courts, sandlots and parks.

The do as I do program

Learning specific movements or applying pre-made programs for another coach or book with limited ability to assess, coach, train and teach, basically a cookie cutter method, the only way this method would work is if we were in the exact same state as the coach doing. Teaching expectations requires the coach to react in the situation, teaching the expectations over the rules while practicing what you expect of others in many different environments.

Basic Training or Boot Camp

We found a sports performance site that was promoting "basic training" makes sense.

The introduction of sport to school was to prepare boys to be men for the military way back when the country was drafting men into the armed forces, those days are over.

Today the main focus of youth, high school and college sports is to prepare boys and girls to become men and women of the future to be leaders, family memebers and overall good citizens of society.

Coaching Development

 "The  leader, the teacher, the project manager, the artist. You can have all the exercises to do in a gym or all the technical and tactical layouts to apply onto a playing and practice field or classroom setting in a well packaged model but if you don't know how, when and why, it won't work. Like a great painter knows how to apply the color. Or as we see in todays pop culture, anyone can be a celebrity, not just anyone can be a true actor.

There is science in what we do, also art, habit, intuition and sometime plan old' guessing. The gap between what we know and what we aim for persists today. It's that gap that complicates everything we do.

Experiences

goal

common good

empower the athlete

we all learn something-having fun

We are better at the end of the practice/workout than the beginning

Each individual works together ina team system to achieve a common goal

Every sport requires individuals to play a team system. Even individual sports i.e. golf, tennis, runners, tri's, etc.. require a coach, caddy, sports trainer to work together with the athlete. Of course the big team sports require multiple individual athletes/coaches and positions to work together for a common good which can be very, very challenging.

Supplying High Quality Fuel For Athlete's

Athlete's need to supplement their eating habit's with the following foods.

Simple weekly shopping list or (eating out menu selection for those that don't know how to cook) ;

Protein - whole eggs, lean meats, wild game, poultry and fish

Carbohydrates - fresh or frozen fruits, beans
starchy vegetables, such as sweet potato, yams, potato, carrots,
beets turnips etc... and above ground starchy vegetables

Fats- saturated fat from lean meats and poultry,
cheese, raw butter, nuts, coconut oil, avocados, avocado oil, olives, olive oil.

Liquids- clean water, fresh or frozen 100% fruit juice, coffee + green tea decaffeinated and caffeinated, sports shake, drink.

time, type, sport, athlete are all factors to take into consideration.

High school and college student athlete's want to be-aware of their eating habit's especially during the school/game season.

Harmony

Movements working in harmony.

Muscles in the gym should sing

not scream.

Coaching Labels

What's in a label?

Assessment coach

Flexibility coach

Movement coach

Speed coach

Strength coach

Core coach

Performance coach

Power coach

Nutrition Coach

What is the common thread?

What are the fundamental principles for coaching sports and athletes?

Fundamental principles are generally accepted truths.

Listen to the expert coaches but always trust your own judgement.

Question the Coach

Do athletes learn a sport with a piece of equipment?

Do athletes increase performance with apparatus/fitness tools used in the weight room?

Do athletes decrease the chance of injury with an assessment grid?

Do athletes enhance endurance on a bike, treadmill?

Or do athletes learn, decrease risk of injury and optimize skill/ performance through play, continuous practice and great athletic coaching?

Physical Language And Your Sport {PLAYS}

The fundamental development process of coaching movement skills and sport skills, being aware with the components in your sports environment and the tools.

Sport is an activity that is governed by a set of man made rules, customs and fundamental laws, often engaged in competitively. Object to establish and maintain a competitive positive safe environment that allows the athlete to maximize their growth. To that we recognize that all members of the athletic community are to be treated with respect.

Environment

On ground

In water

On snow

On ice

Standing

Sitting

In the air

Tools/Equipment

Balls

Sticks

Bat

Protective gear (knee, hip, shoulder, elbow, hand, head)

Gloves

Gun

Bow

Reel

Car's

Horses

Skates

Shoes/Spikes

Boot
ViPR

Sneakers

Boards

Bikes

Hurdles

Discus

Poll

Weights

Components

Gravity

Mass

Time

Space

Momentum

Position

Speed

Awareness

Spatial

Body

Directional

Natural skills learned 

Roll, Crawl, Balance, Pull, Push, Squat, Stand, Walk, Run, Jump, Skip, Jerk,Shuffle, Step, Hit, Check, Shoot, Pass, Skate, Ski, Swim, Surf, Slide,Paddle, Row, Cycle, Throw, Strike, Catch, Dive, Ride, Drive, Climb, Kick, Punch, Swing, Lift

Leadership

"Quality leadership means knowing when it's time to guide your athletes and when it's time to allow your athletes to guide you"

Coaching and Performance Indicators

Basic guidelines to achieve the goal.

Skill Sets

• Recognize the unique physiological demands of your sport(s)
• Recognize the individual athlete and position
• Understand the 24 hour rule
• Identify key growth and development markers during adolescence
• Develop a season long training program
• Understand the importance of pre and post game warm up's and cool down
• Identify the critical training factors related to injury prevention
• Provide a safe environment
• Minimize the chance of injury
• Optimize physical development
• Understand the fundamental concepts of your sport movement
• Apply training method
• How and when to replenish energy systems

Coaches sometimes tend to be one sided in terms of knowing sport skill and performance science.

We either excel at the technical and tactical demands but lack the basic understanding for sports science. The other side of the coin is the conditioning coach is so well versed in gym science they fail to understand the coaching demands for the athlete in their respective sport.

As we can see coaching demands a wide variety of skill sets, it also demands that coaches get out of the comfort zone and learn to converse with each other. It also demands trust and respect of each others craft, checking the ego, with the main focus to be on long term athletic development in sports and building relationships.

Water Breaks

Signs of dehydration

• Headaches
• Weakness
• Premature Fatigue
• Nausea
• Thirst
• Irritability
• Cramping
• Goose bumps

Some coaches still use water breaks as a way to punish or reward their athletes

The coach should have the basic education on the amount, time and type of fluid needed and lost during their respective sport.

Hydration should take place two hrs before competition or a workout. Fluid is lost primarily thought sweat and breathing.

The athlete should drink 20 to 24 ounces of fluid for each pound lost.

The coach should be educated and educate the athlete on these basic hydration guidelines.

Principles of coaching athletes' in team settings

#1 Environment- what type of environment are you creating to help the athlete focus on the task while increasing effective and efficient performance?

#2 Consequences- are you strengthening or weakening the athletes physical and mental ability to maintain a high rate of performance and self confidence with positive feed back and smart training, or are you guessing and making them afraid to make a mistake in the result of negative feed back and lost performance?

#3 Responds- do you think the athlete will respond to positive or negative consequences?

#4 Reinforce- are your actions physical punishment i.e. push ups, running, wall sits etc... or reinforcement? are the same athletes making the same mistakes? "no matter how many times I tell him, he keeps making the same mistake"... this is only known by the course of that action.