Dr. Michael Joyner has been writing about the limits of human performance for decades and back in 1991 was one of the first to analyze the possibility of a sub 2-hour marathon. On this episode of the GAINcast, Joyner breaks down recent two hour attempts, the role of technology in pushing performance forward, and what trends he sees on the horizon for endurance athletes.
Range of motion is a critical element of movement. If you can’t get into a position, it will be difficult or impossible to incorporate that into a movement. Tom Barton has worked as a physiotherapist with some of the world’s top swimmers. He joins this week’s GAINcast to look at how the brain and body interact to reach positions, training range of motion, and other related topics. Read more
After two decades of coaching Olympic champions and world record holders in Australia, Stephan Widmer took a new job in Singapore as the national head coach and performance director at Singapore Swimming Association. Recently Vern signed on to help him and was out in Singapore this month to start off the collaboration. In this week’s GAINcast Widmer joins us to talk about about setting up a high performance framework, coaching excellence, the role of athletic development in swimming, preparing for competition, and more. Read more
In nearly 30 years as head swim coach at the University of Michigan, Jim Richardson develop a powerhouse. Much of that success came from one thing: asking questions. On this week GAINcast we sit down with coach Richardson and hear how asking question led him to become a better coach, to rethink the athletic development of his athletes, to reduce injuries, and more. Read more
Coaching Athletic Development for Swimming From Design to Implementation
The GAIN swimming network is part of the GAIN network whose goal is to provide an experience that will significantly enhance participant’s expertise by sharing information with other professionals in a setting that encourages an open exchange of ideas. GAIN Swimming follows a workshop format consisting of lecture, discussions, hot topic panels, team spotlight presentations, practical learn by doing participation and demonstration. If you are sincerely interested in advancing your professional development as a swim coach apply now. Read more
To get athletes to be champions, we have to get them to think like champions. This requires a team culture where athletes are given space to independently choose to do what it takes to win. This is exactly the environment swim coach Chris Webb has set up with several clubs. On this week’s podcast Webb joins us to talk about the steps he is taking to install cultural change at his new job with T2 Aquatics in Florida. Read more
Suburban Carmel, Indiana might seem like an unlikely spot to find one of the nation’s top swimming clubs, but year in and year out it continues to produce champions. The Carmel Swim Club and Carmel High School have put together a winning culture that has produced a national record 31 straight high school state championships. On a recent visit to the club, Vern sat down with Carmel coaches Chris Plumb and Ian Murray to discuss how they helped grow the culture and what role athletic development plays in their team’s success. Read more
For the past year Vern has been working with University of Tennessee swim team to create integrated dry land training program. On this week’s episode Tennessee head coach Matt Kredich joins us to discuss his own training philosophy and how they are putting the pieces together in Knoxville. He provides unique insight on how head coaches and strength coaches can get on the same page to get team buy in to achieve results together. Read more
As opposed to many ground based sports, the search for transfer from strength training for swimmers can be difficult. But that makes the process more interested. On this episode we talk with preeminent swimming strength coach and Bridge Athletic co-founder Nick Folker about the search for transfer as well as the role of technology in training. Read more
Stephan Widmer is the Head Coach Queensland State Swimming Centre. I first met Stephan in 1999 at training camp in Australia. I was able to visit with him again this past spring and catch up. The opportunity to watch him coach a session last May was one of the highlights of the last year for me. He was trained in Switzerland in a classical physical/coaching curriculum with a great blend of practical exposure to teaching methodology and sport science. You certainly see this reflected in his coaching. Read more
