Coaching Newsletter #3 – Merging repetition & game-realism together

There's often a conflict between the old-school coaches who design "drills" focused on repetition, and the new-school coaches who provide actual education toward what players will encounter in a game. But in reality, the two can easily be merged together. You see, game-realistic activities around a specific session topic naturally allow for repetition toward the patterns our players will encounter in the game. In this coaching newsletter, I use my personal experiences as a part-time professional athlete in the sport of trail running to detail how game-realism and repetition can be easily combined together.

Attention to detail when coaching at the elite level

While coaching ideologies can generally apply across a myriad of ages and abilities, there are a few distinct differences. This includes: a greater attention to detail at the high-performance level; a greater attention to position-specific training; and more complexity when adapting activities to add challenge/intensity. I break this down in Coaching Craft – Newsletter #2 – Coaching high-performance athletes. Here is a preview of how you can focus on the finer details in high-performance environments.

Why games-based learning leads to more long-term gains

As coaches, the vast majority of us want what is best for our athletes. But there still exists a never-ending divide between what is deemed more valuable by the standards of today, as opposed to the ways coaches learned in the past. Modern-day coaches will emphasize fun and enjoyment through games, and old-school coaches will … Continue reading Why games-based learning leads to more long-term gains