Jan 29, 2015Simplify For Success
By Vern Gambetta
Sport performance occurs in an information rich, dynamic environment that requires complex coordination patterns to produce optimum performance. Along with that we need to understand that the body is self-organizing–it will find a way to get the job done if we put it in position to do so.
That said, often times strength and conditioning coaches are better off employing more implicit teaching techniques and let the sport or athletic event be the teacher at certain phases of the process. We can do that in practice by not always trying to replicate the game but instead designing workouts so that the game is “easy.”
The following are some systematic athletic development concepts on which I base my training. They are very simple and straightforward and they can be made as complex as necessary.
- Dynamic postural alignment and dynamic balance are the foundation for all training
- Train movements, not muscles
- Train fundamental movement skills before sport-specific skills
- Train postural strength before extremity strength
- Train body weight before external resistance
- Train joint integrity before joint mobility
- Train strength before strength endurance and power before power endurance
- Train speed before speed endurance
- Train to build work capacity appropriate for your sport or event
- Train sport appropriate–you are what you train to be
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— If you are intrigued by the thoughts of veteran conditioning coach Vern Gambetta, you will want a copy of his exciting book, Following the Functional Path: Building and Rebuilding the Athlete. —
Vern Gambetta, MA, is President of Gambetta Sports Training Systems in Sarasota, Fla. The former Director of Conditioning for the Chicago White Sox, he has also worked extensively with basketball, soccer, and track and field athletes. He is a frequent contributor to Training & Conditioning. Vern also maintains his own blog.
