Trust your Coach...or find a new one

I am sorry for the delay I have three entries primed and waiting to be published but the old interweb was down at the house and quite frankly I was so annoyed at the router company that I was on my way to Pet Smart in search of a few carrier pigeons in order to spread the word out. I am now posting from the Toronto Airport on my way home to see my brothers graduate. I would like to quickly congratulate them on their accomplishment. I remember myself at my high school graduation, not realizing how big of a milestone it was. Bigger and better things are waiting for both of them as they move forward but ONLY if they work for it. As Abe Lincoln said, "Good things come to those who wait but only the things left over by those that hustle."  Without any further digression my post,

TRUST YOUR (STRENGTH) COACH

Trust your (strength) coach or get a new one. If you are trying to make a jump to the next level in a sport or in life you have to trust your coach one hundred and forty percent or else find a new one. You are wasting energy if you are constantly second guessing their decisions. No one has ever made it to the top without support and it is crucial that you trust your coach and their judgement. If they are the right coach for you they will have your best interests in mind and likely are able to perceive many of the things that you are unable to see. Let us be honest with ourselves and acknowledge that we have a pretty biased opinion in relation to our own performance. Our brains are biologically created to shelter our ego and protect it, which is sometimes a good thing, but other times it is merely a detriment.

This idea of highlighting trust came to me two days ago when we "caught" one of our players creating his own workout. The player's evaluation showed that he was super tight in his mid/upper back and hips as well as a exhibiting a pretty bad case of upper trap dominance (Spoiler Alert: upcoming post). The player was coming in 'on and off' but regardless I was a bit confused as to why he was not exhibiting any increased mobility in his lifts (a lot of mobility work was in his program). Two days ago after his workout he walked over to the YMCA that we share the building with for what I assumed was a bike ride or run on the treadmill after his lift. Walking over 15 minutes later I discovered our player in the corner supersetting barbells curls and shrugs. Two things that we had previously discussed NOT doing. In that one instant he had just make a bold statement that said, "I don't trust your opinion and think that I know better" 

The  relationship between a player and (strength) coach is deeply connected. The coaches ideals are often reflected in the player and the player's wants and desire are absorbed by the coach. If you come to me with the desire to make the starting line up on the football team that just became one of my goals too. I value your goal every bit as much as my own personal goals because it has become mine. On the flip side when you go out to tryouts and perform you are not only representing yourself but also me. The player repping curls is likely going to look back on his summer in 3 months and say that he didn't get stronger or faster on the ice and is just as tight as before. This means that we as strength coaches didn't do our job which is a pretty unfair assessment, but you and the player may be the only two people who truly know that. Results do not come easily or quickly, you have to work at it and TRUST in the program you are on, not for a week or two but 3, 4, 5, 6 months. If you can't make this commitment and place trust in your coach then don't start.

"You don't set out to build a wall, I am going to build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall that has ever been built. You don't start there. You say, I am going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid and you do that every single day, and soon you have a wall." - Will Smith