Most people assume genetics are the factor that determines sprinting. As the cliche goes: sprinters are born while marathoners are made. That may be accurate if your goal is to become a world-class sprinter. However, if you are an average human being and your goal is to run faster, then environment and coaching become important factors too. This is especially important with children.
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Look back in time and the everyday demands of the world automatically traditionally created a physically intelligent person. To be physically connected to the natural world through the body and culture used to be vital for survival. Then came industrialization and the information economy. Now we don’t have to be physically sophisticated to eat, survive, or earn a living. That’s great to some extent, but the byproduct is that most of us have become more alienated from our deconditioned and objectified bodies.
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Our focus in July has been physical education. Physical education has long defined society’s foundation of movement, and there is a lot that coaches in all areas can learn from it. Below is a summary of all the new resources we’ve put together on the topic, including 2 new videos, 2 new podcasts, and 7 new articles. Read more
Are you a teacher or are you a trainer? The difference might seem trivial, but it is fundamental in how you approach your athletes and sporting environment. Read more
The typical warm-up lasts around 10 minutes and starts most training sessions or classes. It is either a garden blooming with possibility or a wasteland of lost potential. Unfortunately, it usually the latter, a perfunctory prelude rather than training with specific long term adaptive and educational goals. Read more
The athletic development community has recently looked more at physical education and how it can assist athletes. Much of the discussion centers around the coordinative development of movement and how to develop higher levels of trainability/physical literacy/physical competency. But physical education is more than just doing, it is also understanding. This cognitive aspect of physical education is central in the reconditioning process. Athletes that are educated about the cause of injury, healing process, and training in general will generally have better outcomes. Read more
Children learn to walk and talk without a teacher. They understand the world through movement exploration. So, what is the problem with leaving movement training up to a natural process as well? Unfortunately, we don’t have to look far to see we have a problem. Children often can’t skip, roll, or throw. Adults struggle to get out of a chair and find no joy in physical activity. Read more
Different types of coaches frame training in different ways. Skills coaches often think in terms of time: a 20-minute block spent on passing and 10-minutes on defensive positioning. Strength coaches, on the other hand, tend to frame training in sets and reps. Each frame has its place in training, but depending on the task one can be better than the other. Read more
When it comes to player development, it can be surprisingly hard for a large federation to make an impact at the individual player level. At the USTA, Johnny Parkes has been trying to identify where they can make most impact with young players. Their conclusion: the warm up. As physical literacy declines in young athletes, a good warm up can help ensure players are prepared for the ever-increasing physical demands of the international game. On this week’s episode he joins us to discuss some of the strategies they are using to develop players. Read more
There is a lot that coaches can learn from physical education: how to teach, creating a fun environment, organize games, progressions, the value of movement variety, thinking beyond reps, and more. Jeremy Frisch put together a must-read article on the topic last year. But there is one area that is often overlooked: understanding and assessing movement. Read more
