Author: Vernon Gambetta
Youth Sports – The Profit Motive
There is a lot of money to be made in youth sports. Do the math – A soccer club with 1,000 members that charges $500.00 per player a year – is not unusual. On top of that you have transportation to “Showcase” elite tournaments, possibly private lessons at $50.00 an hour, it quickly adds up. The directors of these clubs have a vested in playing more games or matches and encouraging private lessons. AAU Basketball is big time business with shoe contracts and huge travel budgets. Folks this is no longer a bake sale operation. The “coaches” make much more that the average high school coach or teacher and they are really not accountable to anyone. This might be the root of the whole problem. The coaches of these teams dangle the carrot of wining college scholarships as the incentive. In reality they are holding out false promises, misleading the parents and children. There are just not that many scholarships. The parents would be better off saving and investing their money for their child’s education. I understand we all need to make a living, but doing so at the expense of youth bothers me. Not sure what the solution is except to get the sports back into the schools as I suggested the other day. There is no doubt in my mind that this problem will get much worse before it gets better.
The Gambetta Leg Circuit
The Leg Circuit is a tool I devised out of need around twenty-five years ago. It is placed in a training following the Foundational Leg phase. I have used it in many sports. It is a versatile tool if used properly. The Leg Circuit is the foundation for more specific work to follow in terms of absolute strength and plyometrics. This is a program to pu the finishing touches on a foundational strength and power endurance base. It is also a very useful tool to use in lower extremity injury rehabilitation to rebuild work capacity in preparation for return to play. The basic prerequisite for progressing to heavier lifting and high level plyometrics is the ability to perform five full leg circuits without stopping. When an athlete has progressed to this point they are ready! The key to the effectiveness of the circuit is the speed of the repetitions. The goal is one rep per second. This fast eccentric work results in extreme soreness ( Soreness is not the goal, that is the feedback that you have executed the reps at proper tempo). It is best to do some striding and hurdle walkover drills after the Leg Circuit to stretch out. One rep per second is not possible on the lunge and jump squat because of the amplitude of the movements, but with those exercises it should be as close as possible to that rate. In the squat you should break parallel. The lunge length should be as long as the athlete’s leg. The step-up is an alternating step up on a low box – 14 inches. On the jump squat the arm are held at the waist to accentuate the work of the legs. The ciruit is: Bodyweight Squat 20 Reps Lunge 10 Reps Each Leg Step-up 10 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 10 Reps Leg Circuit Progression – Twice a week Mon/Thu or Tue/Sat. The eventual goal is to go through the circuits continuously without a rest. For an athlete who does not have a good training base this is the progression that you should be use: Week # 1 3 circuits with 30 seconds rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Bodyweight Squat 10 Reps Lunge 5 Reps Each Leg Step-up 5 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 5 Reps Week # 2 5 circuits with 30 seconds rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Bodyweight Squat 10 Reps Lunge 5 Reps Each Leg Step-up 5 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 5 Reps Week # 3 3 circuits with no rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Bodyweight Squat 10 Reps Lunge 5 Reps Each Leg Step-up 5 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 5 Reps Week # 4 5 circuits with no rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Bodyweight Squat 10 Reps Lunge 5 Reps Each Leg Step-up 5 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 5 Reps Week # 5 Session One – 5 circuits with 30 seconds rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Session Two – 5 circuits with no rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Bodyweight Squat 15 Reps Lunge 8 Reps Each Leg Step-up 8 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 8 Reps Week # 6 Session One – 5 circuits with 30 seconds rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Session Two - 5 circuits with no rest between exercises and 1 min rest between circuits Bodyweight Squat 20 Reps Lunge 10 Reps Each Leg Step-up 10 Reps Each Leg Jump Squat 10 Reps Thfolllowing is a six-week progression for an athlete who has a good base of training. The total volume in reps for each workout is in parenthesis. Week 1 – 3 circuits with 45 Sec between exercises 3 Min between circuits (210) Weeks 2 – 4 circuits with 45 Sec between exercises 2 Min between circuits (280) Weeks 3 – 5 circuits with 30 Sec between exercises 90 Sec between circuits (350) Weeks 4 – 5 circuits with 30 Sec between exercises 60 Sec between circuits (350) Week 5 – 5 circuits with 30 Sec between exercises, No rest between circuits (350) Week 6 – 5 circuits with no rest between exercises or between circuits (350) Depending on the athletes training age the Leg Circuit can be cycled in twice during a training year. There are many progressions and variations off of this depending on the sport and athlete.
Thoughts on Progression – Building a Stonewall
One of the fundamental principles of training is progression. It is very important but often overlooked in our haste to get the athlete to the final destination. Traditionally we have thought of progression as moving from slow to fast, simple to complex, from easy to hard, and controlled to chaotic. In teaching I have portrayed progression as building blocks, fitting the pieces together until you reach the desired objective. I have also used the metaphor of climbing a staircase, taking progressive steps towards the ultimate goal of the training program. Certainly all those metaphors are valid, but I have been thinking that they do not convey the reality of the process of progression. In progression we fit a variety of pieces of pieces together depending on the athlete and the sport. Some of those pieces are large and obviously important, others are small and seemingly less important, but both are necessary. Based on reality constructing a stonewall is a better metaphor for progression. We start construction with a pile of stones, big and small, and we have mortar to mix to hold the stones together as we build the wall to the desired height. To build a wall that is structurally sound we have to carefully fit the small pieces in and around the big pieces and then fill in the spaces with mortar to hold the stones together. If we do not get the fit right the wall will not have structural integrity and it will crumble under stress. This is precisely how we design progressions to get our athletes to the desired goal injury free. The big stones are the general biomotor qualities that must be there, the smaller stones are the components of those biomotor qualities and the mortar is the nuance, the connections that add meaning and purpose to the training. Progression is not linear or blocked; it is random and somewhat chaotic because the body is constantly self-organizing. That does not mean we do not guide it, we do, that is our job as coaches. We study, plan, observe and monitor so that we can determine optimum placement of the big stones, versus the small stones and the correct amount of mortar. We know where we started and where we want to finish, the final construction of the wall is an ongoing process that blends the art and science of coaching. It is highly individual and specific to each sport.
Focus On Solutions, Not Problems
In course of numerous conversations over the past several days at the track coach’s convention the conversation inevitably turned to the problems in the sport of Track & Field and sport in general. Invariably for those of us who have been coaching over thirty-five years it then turned to the “good old days” and what made them special. No question the good old days in Track & Field were special, seeing 75,000 people in the stands at the LA coliseum for the Coliseum Relays was special, Ryan versus Snell on the front page of the sports page and on and on. Some of us were very fortunate to have experienced that, but and it is very big but, those days are over and will never be back. Literally and figuratively we are in a new century. As coaches young and old, experienced and inexperienced we must turn our full attention to contemporary challenges and orient ourselves to finding solutions. Problems are very clear, we know them, but we need to focus on finding and implementing solutions, we must do it with a laser like focus and a great sense of urgency. Some solutions are simple and relatively easy to implement and other are uncomfortable. I believe in starting with small steps, achieving little wins and the big wins will fall into place. We need to reverse the trends of declining physical fitness and the alarming rise in obesity across all ages. Start simple, motivate yourself and those around you to start with vigorous physical activity for fifteen minutes a day. If you are a school teacher institute the “Five in Five” program originated by Greg Thompson in the Farmington school district in Michigan, five exercises in five minutes to start the class, each class history, math, and english not just physical education. If you own a business get your employees doing “Five in Five in the morning and mid afternoon, you will see productivity rise and medical expense reduced. The positive benefits will be quickly evident. As coaches we have to set the example. How can you lead if you don’t lead by example? Get out and get yourself fit! “Five in Five” should be a relatively simple win, and then we have to start a massive effort to reinstitute mandatory daily physical education in the schools. That is going to take a massive reallocation of resources. It will force colleges and universities to train teachers again, not pseudo sport scientists that have no jobs upon graduation. It demands an effort like the President Kennedy’s mandate for the Peace Corps in the1960’s. Everyone must get behind this. When I say everyone I mean big business, intellectual thought leaders, politicians, the medical industrial complex, the military, all concerned with the future health and well being of the nation. The curriculum must be physical and educational. We will have to unclog those unused showers in the schools because the kids will actually sweat. It can be done; I hope to see this in my lifetime. We need to get elementary, middle school and high school sports back under the control of the schools. Youth sport should be an educational experience not trophy hunting expeditions to satisfy adult egos or mini farm teams for colleges and pro’s. This solution might be tougher than reinstituting mandatory physical education, but it must be done. It is going to be tough because youth sport is a big money industry. We need trained coaches teaching and coaching our youth, coaches who understand growth and development, sportsmanship, skill teaching and training progressions. Certainly as professionals we can focus our efforts and we can get it done. I am a realist; I have seen things in my 63 years that no one would ever have believed would happen. We need to rededicate and reenergize ourselves and focus on solutions. Join my colleagues and me, lets go out and get it done. Look for smal wins in your community. The “good old days” are past; it is up to each and every one of us involved in sport to do our part to reverse the alarming trends that are occurring. I am going to do my part will you do yours?
Science behind this?
How much of what you do in training is experience and how much is science? I am always trying to figure out why things work. I know some training methods work and produce results but I always want to know why it works. That does not mean I don’t do it until I find out why. If we waited for scientific validation especially peer-reviewed articles we would never get anything done. If we had listened to the scientists we would not be using the flop technique in the high jump. My experience has shown me that coaches lead and scientists follow. Coaches innovate and the scientist validates. It is our job as coaches to know the science and be systematic and methodical enough in our approach to challenge the scientists to work with us to help validate or invalidate training methods and techniques. We need to give the scientists direction, to frame accurate intelligent questions to allow them to guide and direct us. It must be a dialog where the input from both the scientist and coach are valued. The process and the dialog must be coach driven, because ultimately it is the coach that is responsible for producing results. In the world of sport there is art and science as well as nature and nurture, they all play a part.
Injuries in Sport – Soccer & Beyond
It seems that when you read the sport page today it is a medical report rather than a report of game or match performance. It seems paradoxical that with all the advances in athletic development, sports medicine, and sport science that we are seeing the type of injuries, number of injuries and the severity of the injures that are occurring. Certainly it is a great concern to all involved. The human and economic costs are astronomical. Let start with a couple of problems where there is universal agreement: 1) The extended competitive season that does not allow for an off-season where training can done to both build and rebuild the athlete as well as recharge the batteries. Top players in some sports have gone as long as three years without more than a three-week break from competition in their sport! 2) We are now bearing the fruit of down side of early specialization and the lack of physical education at younger ages. These athletes are a product of their background. They arrive at the highest levels of their sport with poor general athletic skills but finely honed sport skills. It is a house made of cards. They have the sport skill but not the fundamental movement skill base to stand the test of the competitive cauldron. The strong and gifted sometimes survive and the weak are cast by the wayside The solutions are rather simple, but certainly uncomfortable, there will have to be some radical changes. There is no quick fix. Realistically the extended competitive schedule will not change, we can not turn back the clock. Money is the driving factor here. That being the case then all those in athletic development, sports medicine and sport science need to unify our efforts, in essence get on the same page (or at least in one room) and come to some consensus regarding logical solutions to the problem. Because the problems are systemic the solutions must be systemic. It certainly is not more hamstring prevention or rehabilitation programs, or more or less small-sided games. Rather we need to look at the whole performance team, including the composition and structure of that team as well as the development pathways and see what can be done in the short term, medium term and long term to develop and implement a bottom up systematic development approach. The goal at the end of the development journey is simple: When the athletes arrive at the elite level all physical limitations are eradicated, fundamental movement skills are thoroughly developed and they are ready physically, psychologically, technically and tactically to thrive in order to compete to win in the competitive arena. The task is to turn those words into action.
Soccer Small Sided Games – The problem, not the solution!
The is written by my colleague Kelvin Giles based on some of our conversations when we were together in England at UKSEM Conference and his everyday work with Al Ain Football club in Abu Dhabi, UAE where he is Performance Director. In soccer today at all levels there are tremendous injury issues. One soccer guru has proposed that the solution is to use more small sided games and to get rid of the conditioning coaches and give the responsibility for conditioning back to the soccer coaches.Throughout our careers (VG & KG) the starting point has always been to TRAIN TO PLAY BY PREPARING THEATHLETES FOR THE DEMANDS OF THE GAME. The world of Soccer is currently in the midst of a serious debate on the role of small-sided games as the sole ingredient in the preparation of players. The key arguments include (a) players spend more time ‘on the ball’ thus adding to technical and tactical development (b) the process is specific to the metabolic requirements of the game. As sound as these arguments may be the current dialogue from the ‘experts’ also contains such statements as, “Soccer Coaches make the best Fitness trainers”; “Strength and Conditioning should stand aside”; “Soccer is so unique it can’t follow normal preparation systems”; “Don’t call Soccer players athletes – it has caused us immense problems.” It seems that these extreme views are following the ‘guru’ pathway (and there are plenty of them to be sure) that prevails in our present day sports environment. Add to this the current research that pronounces that metabolic training with the ball produces less injuries than conventional conditioning activities and you have another training puzzle for unprepared to worry about. Just when you thought that the commonsense approach that you had spent 40 years working towards was working along came the ‘new’ potion. STOP! The guru’s and the scientists are missing the point. There is an order of things that you simply can’t ‘guru’ your way out of. All sports-specific postures and actions (techniques) require that the body is efficient and resilient enough to carry them out effectively. By thinking that this is all about the metabolic preparation is a ‘fool’s errand’. Of course one must be specific metabolically – there is no use in doing five mile runs slowly if the endurance requirement of the game is for endured speed, agility, acceleration and deceleration at relatively high speeds. What MUST be understood is the mechanical load that is placed upon the body while these small-sided games are being endured. Just look at the typical journey that the soft tissue injury has: Poor movement exposed to training / game load = compensatory movements to survive. Continue the training / game load = micro-trauma. Continue the training / game load = more compensatory movements, macro-trauma. Continued training / game load = catastrophic tissue failure. The argument from the pro-SSG camp is that the SSG process is progressive and that vulnerable players can be treated individually within this load development for their long-term safety. Volume and intensity can be reduced for certain players or for the whole group if the fixture list demands it. Still missing the point! The only tool the SSG guys have in their toolbox is ‘load reduction’. Remember that the SSG environment is an uncontrolled, reactive one – not a good place for the ‘mechanically challenged’ player (most of them) so what about the demand for mechanical efficiency and mechanical resilience? Improve these by a systematic, progressive process and you are half-way there. The metabolic requirements will be enhanced simple by moving more efficiently. The mechanical load will be tolerated more due to a body that has high quality neural efficiency and motor control. The process is like this – build movement and mechanical efficiency and add an appropriate SSG and conventional metabolic training pathway that is within the scope of the mechanical ability of the individual player. Let the player’s mechanical ability dictate the ‘game’ load they are exposed to. The ‘conventional’ training processes are easier to control in terms of speed, load and recovery and are ideal processes for the ‘mechanically challenged’ while they develop their mechanical efficiency and resilience. The ability to make these decisions is the key issue for all the staff in the player’s performance pathway. Head Coaches are the final decision-makers – do they understand all this?
Knowing & Learning Stuff
There is stuff you know. There is stuff you think you know. There is stuff you know you don’t know. Then there is stuff you don’t know, you don’t know. It seems to me one of the biggest challenges is moving stuff from the category of you don’t know you don’t know it, to knowing you don’t know it. I know, as I get older I realize that the stuff I know and the stuff I think I know pales in significance in relation to the stuff I know I don’t know. I just want to keep learning, challenging myself and exploring the mysteries of human movement and performance by getting more stuff into the category of stuff I know. I do know it is a process.