Author: Vernon Gambetta
Are You Ready?
Between the dawn of civilization and 2003 there was a total of five Exabyte’s of data collected (One Exabyte = One quintillion bytes). In 2012 five Exabyte’s of data was collected every two days! It is projected that in the very near future data will be collected at the rate of five Exabyte’s every few minutes!! (Source Don Tapscott – Designing Your Mind in This Will Make Your Smarter – New Scientific Concepts to Improve Your Thinking, edited by John Bockman) How are you preparing to handle this tsunami of information now? What is your plan for the future? How will you filter the need to know from the nice to know? There is an upside to this and a downside to this. In order to stay current and on the cutting demands an information management plan and strategy. I am working on mine now, what are you doing about this information explosion?
Timing Not Time
The whole process of adaptation to training takes time. Adaptation does not occur overnight. That being said it actually may be the timing of the application of the training stimulus that is more important than time to adaptation. It is timing – when the training stimulus is applied – both in terms of when in a career and when in a training year. Essentially it is when you do what you do that will ultimately determine the success of a training program. There is a time for everything and it all takes time. Slow down and give the body time to use it adaptabilities and inherent wisdom.
London 2012 – Global Coaching House
I am privileged to be in London to be part of the Global Coaching House http://www.globalcoacheshouse.net/ If you are going to be in London during the games stop by, it would be great to visit and share coaching ideas and experiences. I will be doing two presentations and moderating a panel as part of the program. It is a wonderful opportunity to interact with coaches from around the world and exchange ideas. It is a great program most of which is free. Hope to see you there. I will be in London from July 26 through to August 6.
One Leg At A Time
The cornerstone of function is the gait cycle. Movement occurs off one leg onto the other. Movement in sport and in life in general for that matter require the body to reduce and produce force in multiple planes in a myriad of permutations of the gait cycle. The commonalities are that movement is off one foot onto the other in one-foot landings and takeoffs based on the interplay of triple flexion and triple extension. The training implications should be quite obvious. Train on one leg, train off and on one leg, and train both legs. The proportion of which is determined by the demands of the sport and individual needs. The single leg squat both from a standing and seated position is the foundational exercise. That is the remedial movement. The lunge done in all three planes is the centerpiece. The step-up done on a lower box with alternating legs and high box with single leg is another essential movement. Finally the double leg squat, although less functional is another general strength exercise. Start with bodyweight at one rep per second rate of execution and progress from there. The single leg and reciprocal leg movements with appropriate resistance will bullet proof the athlete and build a great foundation for sprinting, landing, planting and cutting that is done off one leg onto the other.
3 P’s of Training
Any good productive training program meets what I call the 3P criteria. Is what you are planning to do practical, personal and proactive? Practical – Can you do it in the context of the time, facilities, equipment and personnel available? Does it fit within the context of the whole training program? Personal – Does the training fit the person or are you trying to make the person fit the training? Proactive – Do you have a plan and contingencies to fit situations you might encounter? Apply the 3P criteria to your training and 99.9% of the time you will be spot on.
Possibilities
When I hear people talk about problems and what can’t be done it turns me off. I prefer to focus on what can be done – possibilities. I am not naïve, I know there are problems and obstacles to change but over the years I have seen it where the focus was on the problems and the obstacles and where the focus was the possibility, the solution. The later approach works, the former approach makes the problem worse. If someone tells me it can’t be done, you better believe I will find a way to get it done. There are no limits to human performance beyond what is self-imposed. Look forward and upward, if you stumble and fall brush yourself off get up and keep going. You can do it if you move forward step by step. Sometimes the steps are so small that they are almost imperceptible, no matter progress is still moving forward. Look for opportunities, not limitations. Find someone to help you and support your endeavors. I used to think that if it was to be it was up to me. Now I understand that it is to be it up to WE. Roger Banister did not break the four-minute mile barrier by himself, he had help and support to do it. You can get it done, get going now, don’t wait. Tune out the naysayers, focus on the possibilities. You can find a way.
Athlete & Coaching Development Pathway
The past two days I was in meetings reviewing the USA Track & Coaching Education program. A discussion with my friend and mentor Dr. Joe Vigil got me thinking about the process of athlete and coach development. We often focus on the process of developing the athlete that we forget the role the coach plays in the process. Athletes and coach development are parallel pathways. Coaches grow and develop the same as athletes grow and develop. Coaching is the cornerstone of athlete development. The athlete grows and develops as they move forward on their pathway to high performance. It is imperative that the coaches grow and develop along with the athlete to lead the athlete. The model is not very complex Frank Dick outlined it in his book Sports Training Principles thirty years ago. Step One – Basic Conditioning and all that implies Step Two – Basic Technical Model Step Three – Appropriate Advanced Conditioning Step Four – Specific Advanced technical Model There is no definitive timeline to accomplish this. It is not about time; it is about timing, the mastery of various landmarks a long the path as stepping stones. The coach is the guide in the journey. At the beginning it is the coach who lights the spark that excites the athlete to begin the journey. The role of the coach changes in the process and eventually changes to the role of a mentor. As coaches we must challenge the athlete to grow and develop and eventually achieve independence. Systematic athlete development demands parallel coaching development. The coach must continually challenge themselves to be better the same way they challnge the athlete to be better.
Athletes Bad Behavior – No Excuses
It used to be I looked forward to reading the sports news as a break from the regular news. Today it seems every time I log onto ESPN.com or read a sports page it is about some athlete being arrested for some indiscretion. What is going on? I know sport is not independent of society and in many ways a reflection of society, but this is getting ridiculous. Are these athletes a product of the system that coddles and enables this aberrant behavior? In my opinion I do think so. It starts very young when a star is anointed and appointed and learns very quickly that they will not be held to the same standards of behavior and accountability as the kid sitting on the end of the bench. Lets wake up and reestablish behavioral standards starting out at the youth and high school level. Lets teach some values through sport and respect for authority. Oh and by the way some respect for women.