Championship results require championship behaviors from both athletes and coaches. Having guided multiple men’s and women’s teams at the highest levels, volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon knows a thing or two about what championships behaviors are. On this week’s GAINcast he joins us to share his input on finding intention, putting skill acquisition into practice, coaching, and more.
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We live in the age of polarization. We get into long debates about whether things are black or white, but when it comes to topics like training and motor learning, the reality is often a shade of grey. Professor Kevin Becker is looking to create a conversation beyond dichotomies. On this week’s GAINcast he shares some ideas around motor learning and attentional focus that attempt to color in the areas in between.
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Throughout the month we are sharing different viewpoints on mental training, but it can often be difficult to see how the theory translates into practice in this area. Last December we brought world class hammer thrower Sergej Litvinov to Zurich for a workshop. I’ve already written about his technical philosophy and how he rethinks drills for the hammer. But he also gave us a look inside his mental preparation and how an elite athlete integrates into physical training. Below are a few lessons he taught us. Read more
Just doing it may work for Nike selling shoes but in no way does it represent what needs to be done to grow and develop an athlete. Read more
Coaches need a lot of tools in their toolbox. If all the strength coach knows is the barbell, then they are limiting their ability to solve more complex problems. Therefore for the site theme in April we chose going beyond the barbell, bringing together 3 new videos, 2 podcasts, and 5 articles to look at different ways coaches can solve problems with other training methods. All the links are below, but first I wanted to share a few ideas that crystallized in my mind this month. Read more
This article was originally posted on High Performance West. Jonathan Marcus is building a great platform over there, so check it out.
When I was first handed a medicine ball in training, the first thought that came to mind was “the grind.” I had a preconceived notion of the medicine ball as an arcane training tool used exclusively in vintage newsreels of calisthenics. Individuals would pick up a heavy leather ball and grind through exercises with a partner. The public image of medicine balls has change a lot in the decades since, but often the intent in medicine ball training – the grind – remains. That’s unfortunate as it keeps us from getting the most out of a great training tool. Read more
In some ways, training is about the constant pursuit of staying focused. Coaches can help in this regard. It isn’t just about telling athletes to focus; it’s also about what exercises you choose, how training is structured, and what tools are used. On this episode of the podcast Steve Myrland joins us to discuss mindfulness in training, finding focus, and rethinking the barbell. Read more
Focus clearly only on what needs to be done to get training results that translate into competition performance. This demands a laser focus on the training tasks that are meaningful. Eliminate the nice to do activities that make you tired but don’t make you better. Never forget that less is more. Find out what works for your athletes and keep fine-tuning and tweaking that to achieve continual adaptation. Beware of variety and variation for the sake of variety as that is often a slippery slope. Read more
Everyone talks about staying in the moment, but few people say how easy it is to fall out of it. Recently the HMMR Podcast discussed how athletes can avoid distractions in training. Coaches can face even more distractions and, as they are not playing the game, it can be even harder to stay present. On this episode of the GAINcast we look at how coaches can help stay present. Read more
