Move the Needle: The Human Performance Podcast

Les Spellman: Unlocking Speed & Performance

68 snips
Sep 24, 2025
Les Spellman, founder of Spellman Performance, is a leading speed-development coach known for working with NFL athletes and elite soccer players. In this episode, he shares his unexpected journey into coaching and discusses his innovative approach to speed training, including the Universal Speed Rating and the unique training strategies used for athletes like Kat Macario. Spellman also delves into the significance of deceleration training and the evolution of speed science, emphasizing the balance between strength and speed training for optimal performance.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
ANECDOTE

Accidental Coach Built A Performance Empire

  • Les started coaching accidentally to stay in sports and found teaching came naturally from his parents' influence.
  • He built Spellman Performance by persistence, cold-emailing agents, and growing from unpaid clients to NFL credibility.
ADVICE

Structure Your Time By Priorities

  • Prioritize coaching first, research/data second, then business tasks to protect athlete outcomes.
  • Hire specialists for business and ops because vision and coaching alone won't run a growing company.
INSIGHT

Productize Speed To Scale A Business

  • Universal Speed Rating became the revenue engine that funds other projects and scales speed services.
  • Speed Labs franchise that system into 225 locations and powers education and growth.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app