Author: Vernon Gambetta
How good are you?
What are you doing to get better? Are you the best at what you do? How do you know how good you are – How do you measure your performance? What do you do? Are you doing what you do because everyone else is doing it or are your forging your own path? Are you a coach or a supervisor/administrator counting reps and working on budgets? Are you a good coach when you have talent and average coach when you don’t or are you the same coach regardless of talent level of your athletes? Do you know what you know? Conversely do you know what you don’t know? How good you are is all up to you – now do something about it!
Movement Screening
How can you call something a functional movement screen when most of the movements are in positions that are at low levels of function for any athletic body? We need to always keep in mind that we have three movement constants the body, the ground, and gravity. In movement assessment we want to see the effect of gravity on the body and how the body effectively uses the ground to be able to stabilize, produce, and reduce force. Screening using artificial movements in a sterile environment is of little or no value. As a coach I want to know what an athlete can do, where I can start them on a progression on a continuum of function in their training. Every athlete at every level has “deficiencies,” are those really deficiencies or are they in the eye of the beholder. The perceived deficiencies must be evaluated in the context of the athletes training background, development age and the actual sport. Each athlete has a movement signature, a fingerprint that defines him or her as an individual in regard to their movement patterns, to change that is very difficult and of questionable necessity. We also need to remember when we are screening movement that the body is asymmetrical, to seek symmetry is unrealistic. Proportionality right to left and front to back is a more realistic and practical goal. I have different movements that I use to evaluate my athletes depending on the sport and their developmental age. No seven tests will fit all athletes; one size does not fit all. Also remember that Testing = Training and Training = Testing. Every training session includes fundamental movements that I use for ongoing evaluation against a baseline. The bottom line is to develop a screen that works for you in your situation that gives you actionable information that you can translate into an improved training program.
Trainability
How well can you train? That is trainability. Great athletes have a high level of trainability. They thrive on the work, while an athlete with lesser trainability just barely survives. Your ability to train effectively enough to stimulate the appropriate adaptation is a key ability. Well you might say that is obvious, if it so obvious then why do I see this factor ignored everywhere I go. There is this prevalent trend that you must always push the envelope, if it is not hard it is not good. Certainly to force adaptation and achieve a positive training response it is necessary to overload. That overload though must be related to the athlete’s trainability, their ability to handle the work with sufficient intensity, with a volume that is commensurate with their level of development both from a physical perspective and within their sport. The more effectively you train the better the adaptive response and an improved level of trainability will result in a chance to compete at a higher level.
Connect The Dots
Given that the body is a kinetic chain and all systems of the body work synergistically to produce efficient movement then training is all about connections. Biomechanically think toenails to fingernails, everything is connected. The better and more effective the training the more effective the connections between body parts and the various systems of the body. We can isolate in theory and for mental convenience but that is not the way the body works in real life. As coaches we need to consciously make connections to make training more effective and efficient. We need to understand that that although we may target a particular system i.e. neural, cardio vascular, endocrine hormonal that they all affected regardless of the emphasis. Ultimately the most important connection we must make is to connect the training to the competition. Never lose sight of the fact that the goal of training is to prepare the athlete for competition, therefore all training must connect to competition by thoroughly preparing the athlete for the demands of the competition.
Some Notes/Thoughts from “The Generals”
Just finished reading Thomas Ricks latest book "The Generals" – American Military Command from WW II to Today. I found it very interesting reading in that it explained much of our military success and failure over the past eighty years. But as a coach interested in leadership, organizational behavior and excellence I found it rich in ideas and thoughts. Here are a few thoughts that I found particularly relevant: Art of strategy is foremost not about how to do something but about what to do. In other words, the first problem is to determine what the real problem is." P.47 Do away with "mind-numbing" time based training and replace it with competence a based system. P.338 Motto of the German general staff: "be more than you appear to be." P.357 "Not trusting people is an invitation to organizational disaster>" LT General Walter Ulmer Jr. P.360 "… commanders need to be educated less on what to think and more on how to think – and also on how to adapt. They need to learn how to learn. P.458
Your Brand
I have been hearing a lot about brands and branding lately. In a traditional sense a brand is a name or a symbol. In coaching and teaching it represents more, it is you and what you stand for. You are your brand. Who you are? You actions and your words will define who you are to others. How honest you are with yourself will clearly define you. Be yourself and true to yourself. Be the brand you want to be. A good place to start is genuine concern for others through your actions and words.
Practice – Getting Better at Getting Better
I just finished a book that is a must for every coach’s library, Practice Perfect – 42 Rules for Getting Better at Getting Better by Doug Lemov, Erica, Woolway and Katie Yezi. I have added this book to the reading list for my GAIN Apprentorship program. It is a very good blend of the science behind practice and the author’s practical experience. Obviously the cornerstone for effective athlete development is practice, but too often it is just about putting in the time. Now with the 10,000 hour figure looming out there everyone is even more concerned with putting in the time. It is not the time in practice, it what you put into the time. Practice must be deliberate, focused and connected to the desired end result – performance in competition. In an article in the January 19 New York Times on 49ers offensive coordinator Greg Roman says it quite well: “ Every game is different,” Roman said this week. “No matter how you look at it, you have to pay homage to the football gods every week in practice, in meetings, in your preparation. Then you have to go out and perform on game day.” What are you doing in practice? Do you know why? Are the practices appropriate for the people you are coaching? Are you paying homage to the gods of your sport? Read Practice Perfect for answers to these questions and many more to help your athletes be better at getting better.
Following the Flock – Sheepwalking To Mediocrity
I learned a long time ago that if you follow the flock of sheep for too long eventually you would step in shit. Just doing something because everybody else is doing is not a good reason for continuing to do it. You must think for yourself, look for a better way. Thirty years ago when everyone was wearing polo shirts with an alligator on them I found a company that sold shirts with a rat on them. Not to be contrarian, but to make a statement. Be independent, think for yourself, analyze. Innovate don’t imitate. Get beyond peer-reviewed research, so-called best practice and find out what works. Open your eyes and what happening right in front of you every day at training. Follow your instincts; chances are that if it looks artificial and segmented then it is artificial and segmented. Always remember that the competitive environment is not controlled and sterile it is wild and chaotic, so prepare the way you want to compete. If you do what you have always done you will get what have always got. Not good English but words to guide your training.