the thinker sport training program managementthe criminal nature of its absence

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The Thinker: Sport Training Program ManagementThe Crimin

Nature of its Absence

Sport Training Program Management

The Criminal Nature of its Absence

The problem must be ident ified bef ore t he solution is drawn. If you are current ly employed in a capac

that is contributing to the problem it is your choice as to whether you will recognize and perpetuate the

problem or change your course in favor of long term athlete development and the improvement o f your

sport ing o rganization.

The Problem

The strength and conditioning prof ession has a brief hist ory in the United States. On a large scale, the te

sports industry didnt f ormally include its use unt il the early/mid 1980s.

Up until that t ime team sport athletes were largely lef t to t heir own instincts with respect to how to physica

prepare themselves f or t raining camps and competitions during the stages of the year in which they were n

under the supervision of their sport coaches. Others, were operat ing under the guidance of sport coaches

who possessed some experience in physical culture and the associated conf idence in instructing physical

preparatory measures.

The training load is, f rom a physical standpoint, const ituted by all physical loads undertaken by the athlete

This includes all technical-tactical, physical preparatory, and act ive recovery/regeneration modalities of trai

Prior to the existence of formal strength and conditioning,the t raining loads the athletes were req

to perform by their respective teams during the off-season were not formalized; as the physical preparato

element was no t f orced upon them nor f ormally present in the training. Not all, but many collegiate and

prof essional team sport athletes up until the 80s were using inst inct to regulate their physical preparation

during the of f -season.

The directive of st rength and conditioning, as the title implies to most, but only because of its f amiliarity,

develop t he strength and work capacity of the athlete; however, the two words are redundant. Conditioning

verb no dif f erent than preparation, training, or developing. The word conditioning alone does not provide a

particular spo rt scientif ic inf ormation s imilar to the word core which bears no clinical anatomical relevance

is used repeatedly amidst the f itness community. The quest ion is what quality is being conditioned, prepare

trained, developed, or what have you.

Furthermore, the curricula (exercise science/physiology) designed t o educated aspiring coaches i

physical preparation are fundamentally flawedprecisely because they do no t address the most import

scientif ic study- the science of sport. Any attempt t o prepare people f or careers in physically preparing

athletes via exercise science/physiology is backwards. By analogy, a NASCAR drivers support team must

tho roughly understand the nature of the race the driver his f aced with (distance, track geometry, climate,

number and skill of opponents, and etcetera)before any mechanical aspect of the car is addressed. If the

crew only understands the nature of the car, and not the nature of what the car is f aced with each race the

they are unf it f or the job.
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The same logic, or lack thereof , may be applied to wards sport/technical-t actical coaching. The technical-

tactical load, the most signif icant aspect o f physical loading due to its correlation to sport results , is

const ructed by individuals (sport coaches) who have litt le to no understanding of the physiological implicat

or the biodynamic/bioenergetic relevance of the practice drills themselves.

The biomechanics of movement are arguably the most significant aspect of technical preparation

Inef f icient mechanical execution of sport maneuvers not only limits specif ic movement outputs but also

drastically increases mechanical stress on joint and lever systems.

Thus, the intentions of the powers that be (sport coaches, deans o f academia, certifying organizations)

were/are presumably sincere; however, their unf it knowledge base has hindered their ability t o const ruct

appropriate curricula; and the subsequent training loads f or athletes. The result is what I have long since

cons idered to be a criminal environment in which athletes are experiencing far too many injuries, and

subsequent shortened careers, as a result o f over volumized/intensif ied training and sport practice loads.

The instance of documented connective t issue t rauma has escalated over the years.The reason, i

view, is an eventuality o f the f act that t he magnitude of mismanaged training load taxonomy has dramatica

increased since the addition of f ormalized strength and conditioning. The training load was already f lawe

so f ar as western sport coaches are not educated in the f ield of sport physiology and biomechanics; howeprior to the introduction of S&C the cumulative physical load was less than the current sum to tal in which

physical load volume/intensities are, in many cases, enormous. This comes as a consequence of sincerely

intentioned, yet uninformed, S&C coaches adding to the volume of technical-tactical work with potentially

huge volumes/intensities of misdirected physical preparato ry ef f ort s.

It is, theref ore, my contention thatthe industry of Strength and Conditioning is the mos t damaging sp

training component to have emerged in the last 30 years.

The product of t his damaging situation yields a distorted scenario:

A physical preparat ion coach who is able to develop competence in spite of an exercise science/phys iology

degree is f aced with the dilemma of having to prepare their athletes f or wildly of f - base pre-seaso n trainin

camp loads that place unrelated st ress o n the athletes than the actual games themselves.

The situat ion may be described in geometric terms:

The logical solution to so lving the problem of how to most ef f ectively prepare athletes during the non-

competitive stage of the year is to work backwards from the specific nature of the competition demands (a

process that requires spo rt physiological knowledge). This is ef f icient and analogous to minimizing the

distance between two po ints on a graph by drawing a straight line (short of being able to curve space:time)

Unfortunately, this is not t he case because of the wildly misdirected nature of mos t pre-season training ca

that add an additional point to the system which drastically changes the geometry.



The geometrical detour is an eventuality of the f act that the corporate population of team sport and S&C

coaches f all prey to t he misnomer that mental toughness (a grossly inadequate term used to characterize

complex aggregate o f psycho-behavioral components) must be developed via measures t hat wildly exceed

dif f er f rom the sport demands themselves.

The analogies are abound. One identif ies his destination and maps out a set of directions that provide a dpath; however, the traveler is f orced to take a substantial detour which yields greater f uel consumption,

mileage, mechanical stress, and general wear and tear on the vehicle.

The most glaring problem associated with this approach isthe physical degradation that is experience

speed-power athletes. This comes as a consequence of the inevitable long durations and low power outpu

associated with mos t conditioning activities which ultimately result in lactic workloads due to their challeng

nature .

A working knowledge of muscle physiology revealsthat t he intramuscular biochemical changes associ

with lactic loads destroys skeletal muscle mitochondria (the molecules which generate the primary muscle

contractile f uel- ATP). The stress placed upon the lactate buf f er mechanisms causes detrimental changes type II f ibers which diminish t heir cont ractile velocity. It is f or this reason, as Charlie Francis pointed out , wh

T&F thrower will always out jump a sprinter; t he throwers training is entirely alactic while the sprinter, due to

lactic nature o f speed endurance and special endurance training, is no t limited t o purely alactic loads and th

their explos ive power potential is no t as great as t he thrower whose event duration is f ractions of even the

shortest indoor sprint.

Thus, the legions of speed-power team sport athletes who are subject to lactic mental toughening

conditioning drills during their pre-season stages of training are, ironically, being de-conditioned f or t heir s

requirements.

The predominance of team sport disciplines are alactic/aerobic (with the primary bioenergetic dif f erencescoming in the f orm of the proportionality between the two systems). Thus, the only rationalization f or lacti

loads, if they are to be used at all, is to systematically introduce them f ar away from technical-tact ical

stages/camp periods f or the purpose of developing the aerobic capacity of the myocardium. This provides

enough time to shift the adaptations in f avor of the aerobic development of the skeletal f iber which is mos

closely related to biodynamic aerobic work capacity due to the f act that the oxidative potent ial is developed

the muscles involved in the competition exercise.

Problematically, however, a great deal of lactic workloads are placed upon team sport athletes immediately

to their competition calendar during training camps (which, ironically, are intended to most specif ically prepa

the athletes f or competition).



On the whole, team sport athletes are no longer provided the opportunity to address their physical prepara

needs via their own auto-regulatory eff ort s. Idealist ically, it is the aggregate of of intelligent supervision an

guidance that is combined with athlete auto-regulatory input that contributes to the highest attainable resu

Instead, f ormalized programs are headed by individuals who are products of academic myopia (credit to Bu

Morris f or this term) and their sport practices are const ructed by individuals who are not specialists in spor

biomechanics or physiology. As a result, the sum total training load is of ten one that is not only far too larg

but also misdirected in its taxonomy.

There are, on the whole, 3 broad groups of team sport athlet es in terms of the ir talent level for sp

1. So gif ted that if all they did was show up on game day they would st ill outperf orm the majority of their

teammates and competito rs

2. Recruiting mistakes in so f ar as their lack of physical ability; yet their *neurophysiological ability is high an

this combined with incredible work ethic allows them to overcome their physical short comings and keep the

head above water and contribute in some way

3. Somewhere in between the two po ints already listed. Good physical and neurophysiological talent t hat is

combined with hard work.

*In the context of sport, one may cons ider neurophysiology to characterize the speed at which an athlete i

capable of process ing visual input and responding to it with physical acuity. (This ability is o f ten ref erred to

coaches in layperson slang such as vision or the ability to slow the game down). Problematically, it is a lac

neurophysiological ability that is o f ten mistaken as a an athlete playing stif f . The coach sees an athlete

moving upright, rigidly, and slower and says that guy cant bend or he plays st if f . When in reality, the issue

of ten has nothing to do with f lexibility or mobility about a joint. Its s imply a function of that athletes inabili

process information as fast as necessary to respond to an opponents movement with physical precision.

result of this lack of ability appears as stif f ness o f movement because of the lag time the athlete is dealin

with and corresponding impaired movement. We see this over and over again f rom American f oo tball player

who perf orm extremely well in the pure output tests at the Scout ing Combine and Pro Timing Day (sprints,

umps, agility drills) yet appear awkward when perf orming specif ic posit ion drills.

If you have been coaching or competing long enough you have encountered all three categories of team sp

athletes and are well aware of the f act t hat most o f these athletes (at least at t he larger school and

prof essional levels) f all under the 3rd category.

In order to attain the highest level of team sport competition results , the reality is that an individual approa

must be taken to physical AND technical-t actical preparation.

Category 1,the most gif ted, are athletes whose output potential is so great t hat the physical nature of

technical-tactical practice alone is t remendously stress f ul. These athletes are the high perf ormance race c

of the team. While they are capable of producing the highest outputs they are also the most suscept ible toinjury and require the most maintenance (therapy). It is f or t his reason why the practice of sport and minima

physical preparato ry training is enough s timulus f or them to develop impressive physical characteristics.

Category 2,the least gif ted (physically), possess output levels so low that they project the illusion of grea

durability because they are incapable of generating the same type of outputs as category 1. Their

neurophysiological skill and work ethic, however, allows them to perform at a technical-t actical level that is

sufficient enough to contribute. Their work ethic is directly proportional to their playing potential and off-

seaso n training is their life bloo d.

Category 3,the general population of Division I and prof essional sports, cannot af f ord to miss



practice/training weeks like category 1; however, they are gift ed enough t o not require the same magnitude

training load as category 2.

These are sweeping generalizations; yet they are accurate and sufficient enough for one to accept the fac

that neither the physical or technical-tactical preparation can be administered in a one s ize f its all approach

is the case in many programs) if the objective is to at tain the highest poss ible performance results. The

highest possible abso lute, not relative, results cannot be attained when technical-t actical and physical

preparatory loads are constructed void of sport biodynamic/bioenergetic knowledge.

The Solution

A program managerwhose skill in programming and organizing all technical, physical, and active

recovery/regeneration workloads is necessary in order to ensure congruency between all f acets o f prepara

that are currently, and have been historically, largely incompatible with one another and damage no populat

greater than the athletes themselves.

The individual(s) charged with managing the program must have the most comprehensive knowledge of all

aspects of sport and t he training load (technical-t actical, physical, recovery/regeneration). Logic dictates t h

is this individual who must program and organize all technical-tactical, physical, and recovery/regeneration

workloads and allow the respective specialists to supervise their individual areas o f expertise. In this way, taccountability is ensured along with t wo probabilities:

Drastic reduct ion in non-contact injuries

Signif icant improvement in competit ive results.

The concept o f program management is a logical and intuitive one; however, the capacity to perform such a

prof essional task is well beyond the scope of any detailed set of instructions. Coaching, in any realm, at a

level of high mastery requires an aptitude that supersedes what any potent ial curriculum can provide to a

student. In this way, the ability to coach at a true level of high mastery is dependent upon, f irst and f oremo

pre-existing level of creative thinking and critical/complex problem so lving ability. By association, true coachexcellence and world class athletes have much in common-you either have this potential or you dont. Only

af ter recognizing that one has this po tent ial may any particular curriculum/training program serve to f urther

develop ones skill.

Likewise, while a certain amount o f physical or technical-t actical development is attainable by copying and

past ing the popular set x rep programs that are commonly found in training manuals that are f or sale or the

latest schemes that are discussed at the coaching clinics; as Charlie Francis s tated the more you repeat t

same program, youre room f or improvement becomes less and less. Thus, the objective of coaches must

to identify the mechanisms o f sport biodynamic/bioenergetic advancement in order that they might liberate

themselves f rom the conf ining borders of f ixed programs which, as previous ly explained, cannot possibly

provide cont inued support f or various populations of athletes who require individualized loads t o reach thehighest potential.

The Paradox

One may question howit is possible that such a f lawed system could continue to produce high level spor

achievements by so many teams o f athletes. The answer lies in the athletes themselves. The unique nature

the human organism sees to it that those who received the mos t athletically relevant genetic material f rom

parents possess t he greatest capacity to attain high perf ormance results regardless o f how mistreated th

are by their coaches.



About James The Thinker Smith

*Elitef ts Distinguished 5-star Trainer

James f irst jo ined team elitef ts in 2005 and has grown into what I consider the best physical preparatory

program specialist in the world. I have seen, spoke to, worked with and seen many of the best coaches in t

world and not o ne of them come clos e to the programing skills o f James The Thinker Smith. I cant count

number of times he has sent me an email af ter seeing something that was a bit o f f in my training log. Thes

emails no t o nly explained what was o f f but why and how to f ix it. In every single case it worked. The most

recent dealt with coming back f rom to tal hip replacement. I hit a s ticking point and couldnt over come it. Ou

all the people I asked not one expert had t he right answer. James no ticed the f rustration in my log and sent

an email with the answer and within one week the issue was resolved and I was back on track.

Years ago James asked me a very prof ound quest ion that changed the way I look at strength coaches and

trainers. He asked me who I would trust to train my kids. Many years and surgeries later I discovered an eve

more prof ound quest ion to ask. Who would I trust to help me when I get into a bind?

The answer is simple James Smith

- Dave Tate f ounder Elitef ts .com Inc

To contact Jamesclick HERE and select T he Thinker on the Author drop- down. Let him know you are

interested in his online training service and he will get back to you with his availability and details.

As a f inal note I will say if you are not serious about your t raining and willing to do what you are inst ructed

do t han do no t contact James. He puts a T ON of work into his specialized and individualized program

development (up to 20 hours f or one training block) and expects the same commitment on your part.

If you are serious you will not f ind a better coach in the world.

Serious inquires only

Services Offered

Presentations / Lectures

Coaching/Consulting Retainer

Prof ess ional/Olympic Sports/Military Special Operations Only

On-line Programming (Distance Coaching)

Skype Consults

More from The Thinker

More art icles click HERE

Ask T he T hinker a question on the elitef ts Q&A HERE
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The Thinkers Web Site HERE

Programing and Consulting Se rvices HERE

Full Bio HERE
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