Today's podcast features a Q&A with Joel Smith. Questions this round revolve around facets of sprint complexes, jump training, reactive strength, youth sports, and much more. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr’s Gym Studio, and the Plyomat Use the code “justfly25” for 25% off of any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer head to: Lilateam.com The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers.  Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software. View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Timestamps 1:48- Optimal Squatting Form for Athletic Performance 8:13- Enhancing Sprint Acceleration with Shin Angles 13:38- Progressive Volume Approach in French Contrast Training 22:02- Enhancing Athlete Recovery Through Energetic Practices 30:29- Creative Development Through Imaginative Play in Youth Sports 40:17- Efficient Torque Transition with Power Cleans 47:14- Enhancing Speed and Recovery with Varied Movements 52:02- Optimizing Sprinting Technique Through Varied Drills 55:19- Enhancing Distance Running Efficiency with Elasticity 59:05- Enhancing Athlete Performance through Hurdles Training 1:03:45- Dynamic Athlete Engagement in Marinovich's Training Quotes (2:26) "My point for this, or the place of balance that I would lean towards is simply trying to help athletes have good general squatting mechanics and not so much squatting mechanics that force the ankle mobility or force the knees forward, but more a total body squat that helps the whole body to have this nice sequence of external to internal to external rotation that can line and stack the joints up well and then works with that." (18:13) "Take a step back and see what one set can do for you." (45:49) "The art of question asking, I think, is a really huge piece in finding understanding. It's been absolutely essential in my own development." (56:12) "Distance running, the more efficient every step, is ultimately less energy in each step. That's going to mean every. Every step. You're going to have less fatigue, you're going to have more energy at the end of the race, and it's a big deal." (1:02:59) "Ultimately, that true passion, that reason you got into this thing and the thing that you enjoy doing yourself, you love doing that movement, that style of training yourself, and you can intake that and run it through, you can embody it. That also helps your learning." About Joel Smith Joel Smith is the founder of Just Fly Sports and is a sports performance and track coach in Cincinnati, Ohio. Joel hosts the Just Fly Performance Podcast, has authored several books and coaches in both the high school and private sector. Joel was a strength coach for 8 years at UC Berkeley, working with the Swim teams and post-graduate professional swimmers, as well as tennis, water polo, and track and field. A track coach of 17 years, Joel coached for the Diablo Valley Track and Field Club for 7 years, and also has 6 years of experience coaching on the collegiate level, working at Wilmington College, and the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse. He is currently coaching high jump at Milford High School. Joel has coached 4 national champions, multiple All-Americans, and NCAA record holders in track and field. In the realm of strength and conditioning, his programs have assisted 5 athletes to Olympic berths that produced 9 medals and a world record performance at Rio in 2016.

Today's podcast features Chris Chamberlin and DJ Murakami. Chris Chamberlin is the Head Coach and Director of Education at Weckmethod and has over 15 years of coaching experience. He is a leader in innovative thought in the fitness industry, focusing on movement efficiency, and works with athletes and individuals of all levels. DJ Murakami is a coach with over 15 years of experience in various movement practices like bodybuilding, Olympic weightlifting, strongman, movement culture, rock climbing, and more. He has created training courses like Chi Torque and the Predator Protocol, and mentors coaches and fitness enthusiasts through his organization, Human Strong. Various methods exist to understand human body function, including respiration, joint position, and movement assessment. Julien Pineau's "Torque Chains" simplifies this process, focusing on muscle layout and sensation of movement. Chris and DJ, incorporating ideas from Julien and David Weck (coiling), created a course called "Torque Chains." This course explores movement using internal and external torques ("fire" and "ice"), variations of these torques, and transitions between modes during complex movements. In today's episode, Chris and DJ delve into "fire" (ET) and "ice" (IT) torque chains. They discuss their applications for different populations, exercise implications, strengths vs. weaknesses, muscle chains' relation to psychology, running applications, and more. These concepts offer a profound understanding of body function, presenting an effective approach to movement analysis. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr, the Plyomat, and LILA Exogen. Use the code “justfly25” for 25% off of any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer head to Lilateam.com TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers. Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software at teambuildr.com. The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive, and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Main Points 3:59- Enhancing Athletic Performance Through Torque Analysis 10:58- Enhancing Training Outcomes Through Torque Strategies 19:40- Optimizing Training Through Torque Chain Alignment 30:53- Transformation through Physical Activities: Athlete Perspectives 37:34- Stimulating Exercises for Enhanced Athletic Performance 44:36- Optimizing Movement with Internal Torque Cues 51:48- External Torque and Connective Tissue Dynamics in Athletes 55:56- Torque-Driven Running Styles and Mindsets 1:02:59- Maintaining Balance: Constraints in Training Programs 1:06:55- Exploring Movement Patterns for Athletic Performance 1:10:36- Optimizing Athletic Performance Through Torque Training 1:12:52- Improving Movement Efficiency Through Torque Exploration 1:20:59- Effective Muscle Targeting with Alternating Torque Patterns 1:27:30- Emoji-Based RMT Training Certifications Quotes (4:13) “We were primarily looking at the chains of muscles bilaterally, creating torque, internal and external. External. And then what I saw, Chris and David were really going, like, deep, like a PhD process into spiraling this torque as deep as they could through their body. And I'm like, oh, well, if you could. Well, you could mix and split the torque so you could do it the other way” DJ Murakami (00:10:28) "I tend to listen to what the body's already doing or what I'm seeing from somebody, and I'll amplify it if all feels good, or I'll try the opposition of it if it's not." - Chris Chamberlin (12:03) An easy one to visualize is like, for hinging, like a sumo powerlifting, sumo deadlift would be more toward the ET. So that's the fire. And then for ice, we could think like a hinge, or the first part of picking up a stone or sandbag. DJ Murakami

Today's podcast features Andrew Sheaff. Andrew is a swim coach, most recently working at the University of Virginia where the Cavaliers won multiple NCAA team championships.  He is also the author of ‘A Constraints-Led Approach to Swim Coaching’, a book that examines how to build skills organically during the training process.  He is currently consulting with clubs and coaches to help them improve their skill development strategies. On the last show Andrew spoke on empowering the technical development of the athlete, free from overcoaching, as well as how to create lasting change in technique and performance. On today’s episode, Andrew talks about timing and central motion factors in athletic movement, optimizing constraints for individual athletes, the art of scaling constraints up and down, aspects of over-speed and under-speed methods and much more. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr and Plyomat. TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers. Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software at teambuildr.com. The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive, and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Main Points 9:31- Optimizing Swimming Performance under Fatigue 14:06- Optimizing Performance Through Central Motion Perception 22:21- Enhancing Performance with Swimming Paddles 24:26- Cross-Sport Insights for Swim Skill Development 30:01- Purposeful Constraints for Athlete Development in Coaching 37:05- Tailored Coaching for Athlete Performance Optimization 40:09- Enhancing Swimming Performance with Training Gear 43:38- Enhancing Performance Through Varied Training Stimuli 46:15- Enhancing Swimmer Training with Strategic Tools 55:49- Progressive Resistance Training for Efficient Swimming Strokes 58:49- Enhanced Athletic Performance through Varied Challenges 1:02:18- Tailored Training for Enhanced Swimming Performance Quotes (00:06:39) "When something's working 15-20, 25% of the time, that's not good." - Andrew Sheaff (00:14:57) "Where that speed comes from is actually good timing around the center of the body." - Joel Smith (00:16:30) “In terms of helping them figure it out, what I do is I try to really challenge that rhythm in lots of different ways. So, like, you can have them go at really high rates, really low rates. You can alternate back and forth.” – Andrew Sheaff (00:22:00) Helping them perceive that rhythm is really important, and then they just need a general sense of it. And then it's like, then you can start challenging it and pushing it, and then they start to figure out how to do it in various contexts under pressure. And that's ultimately what's going to help them race successfully. ” – Andrew Sheaff (00:29:00) Because, you know, if I put a pair of fins on, you know, ten different swimmers, there's going to be a general impact of those fins, but there's also going to be a specific impact for each swimmer because the fin and the swimmer interaction, and those interactions are going to be a little bit different. – Andrew Sheaff (00:44:17) "If you're running like 6x200s with the wind at your back, you get the exposure of running a little. Feeling easier, feeling faster, feeling more elastic for that." - Joel Smith (00:49:00) “Another example would be with the paddles. That can help them feel like what it's like to hold water. But then you take the paddles off with some swimmers, and they hate the feeling of it because it feels like they're pulling with toothpicks. And then the other opposite extreme, sometimes you have swimmers use the tennis balls and you open them back up and they feel like their hands are gigantic and it feels awesome to them. But sometimes you open the hands back up and their hands feel gigantic and they feel like they can't control them like the...

Today's podcast features Liz Gleadle. Liz is a three-time Olympian, high-performance consultant, and TEDx speaker. After retiring in 2022, Liz had a transformative epiphany, recognizing the profound impact of emotions on posture, movement quality, and power production. At that moment, she decided to "un-retire" and train with a whole new approach to rewire her mind and movement patterns for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. There is a wealth of material in training and coaching on exercises, sets, reps, parameters, and "positions" athletes should be in. In general, much of movement training is based on static ideas, positions, or black-and-white constructions. The reality of movement, training, and performance runs much deeper, is more connected, and has a far greater richness to it. On today's podcast, Liz speaks on her process of infusing dance, flow, and connection into the throwing javelin while also leveling up athletically. Liz digs into key aspects of training: "training side-quests," connectivity, overcoming fear in movement, and facilitating a dynamic ecosystem of training, learning, and growth. Liz has an expansive perspective on the deeper process of athletic movement, and this episode pushes into a new and powerful space of human performance. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr and Plyomat. TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers. Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software at teambuildr.com. The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive, and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Liz Gleadle Main Points 6:12- Enhancing Athletic Performance through Dynamic Choreography 14:03- Choreographic Approach Enhances Javelin Precision 22:39- Dynamic Preparatory Routine for Javelin Practice 28:43- Enhancing Athletic Performance Through Foot Proprioception 32:49- Building Confidence to Overcome Hurdle Fear 40:14- Precision Development Through Varied Javelin Weights 42:10- Discover Technique through Varied Javelin Weights 50:34- Enhancing Athletic Performance Through Dance and Connection 53:03- The Intricate Connection of Successful Jumping 58:07- Sensory Communication Through Hands and Feet 1:06:49- Embodiment of Rhythmic Self-Expression through Dance 1:10:41- Enhancing Athletic Performance Through Rhythmic Movement 1:12:48- Gratitude-Driven Precision in Javelin Throwing Quotes 2:55 "I started diving into all the different ways that I had been holding myself back due to my thoughts about my lack of athleticism, my lack of being able to jump, my lack of explosiveness, my klutziness, and I realized that it had completely dictated the way I moved as a thrower and as an athlete, and it had completely held me back from reaching my peak." Liz Gleadle 7:25 “I think it's almost like sometimes coaches crave static for certainty. Oh, we're certain about this static thing, and that's how we can measure progress. But in reality, the actual being in the movement and embodying it, there's certainly. Yeah, it's definitely. You're getting into dancing territory now” Liz Gleadle 17:20 “When I say dance, I don't mean choreographed dance or having to follow a specific way of moving. I mean exploring in time relative to music and really simple movements, but feeling a connection to your body” Liz Gleadle 17:40 “When we hit that beat, we get dopamine. When we feel a connection from one side of our body to the other, we get another huge hit of dopamine. If we do it in conjunction with other people, even something as simply as bouncing in time, we get a massive hit of oxytocin. And all these things make us learn faster” Liz Gleadle 24:50 “I'm constantly asking myself, where do I feel like? Do I have the connection line all the way from fingertip to toe across my body, on the same sides of my body, between my legs,

Strength coach Justin Lima discusses balancing speed programs with sport, in-game speed nature, 1x20 strength programming, alternative power training methods, and collaboration importance between coaches. Offers practical and comprehensive insights into athlete development and training process.

NBA performance coach Andrew Paul discusses the differences between muscular and elastic movers in basketball, individualized training based on athlete archetypes, connective tissue health, foot training, and more. He shares insights on propulsive and absorption exercises, range of motion concepts, and tailoring training programs to meet the needs of NBA athletes.

Tim Anderson, co-founder of Original Strength, discusses the importance of fluidity in movement, body tension, and utilizing a variety of speeds in training. He emphasizes the benefits of slow movements and how they can enhance higher velocity motions. Tim's message focuses on feeling good and being strong throughout life, challenging the notion of starting with clients feeling broken. He highlights the power of embracing movement limitations for strength improvement and the significance of body awareness and self-perception in training.

Today's podcast features coach Bobby Whyte. Bobby is an athletic performance and basketball skill enhancement trainer in northern New Jersey. He trains players from multiple sides of the athletic equation (strength, speed, skill, general physical development) and has been known for the "good drill" ideology and training system. In the world of modern sports performance, coach Bobby Whyte's approach stands out for its comprehensive nature. It's not just about 'speed' or 'skill ', but a balanced integration of all aspects of athleticism. This approach reassures athletes that their training is not one-dimensional, but a wide-spanning pyramid of development. In today's episode, Bobby speaks on his process to help take basketball players to the edge of their ability, speaking from his perspective as both a basketball skills coach and athletic development coach. This show hits on filling the right bucket an athlete needs, at the right time, taking an integrated view on transference to the game itself, versus a more compartmentalized view. He also keys into the 7 first principles he uses, and refers to, to help push athletes to the overall edge of their ability. Also discussed are the importance of unstructured play, creativity and fun in the development process. I love these conversations because they help to push the envelope of how the entire athlete training process unfolds, not only on a singular skill or strength side of things. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr, the Plyomat, and LILA Exogen. Use the code “justfly25” for 25% off of any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer head to Lilateam.com TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers. Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software at teambuildr.com. The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive, and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Main Points 2:36- Biomechanical and Mental Focus in Athletics 8:22- Exploring Athletes' Mental Edge in Sports 13:15- Skill Progression and Creative Athletic Training Approach 14:59- Game-Specific Skill Development in Athletic Training 16:52- Dynamic Drills for Creative Basketball Training 25:55- Enhancing Basketball Performance through Comprehensive Strength Training 32:00- Unstructured Play for Skill Development in Sports 42:25- Ball Handling Impact on Basketball Speed 46:35- Enhancing Basketball Skills Through Dunking Drills 52:17- Creative Skill Development Through Low Rim Dunking 53:42- Fun Training Activities Boost Skill Development Naturally 1:04:20- Optimizing Player Development through Training Principles 1:13:27- Mastery through Obsession: Training Hunting Dogs & Basketball Bobby Whyte Quotes (8:40) "The top performing athletes are willing to go into the unknown, right? They don't have fear of the unknown." - Bobby Whyte" (12:33) "The more I'm willing to step into this kind of experimental role of guidance with these athletes, I start to see it doesn't matter as much about what I'm doing, but the intention behind what I'm doing. And that's bringing them to the edge of their ability in the direct line of what their goals and dreams are." - Bobby Whyte (35:03) "Kids that couldn't do something, now they can do something. All right, now they can do that. Let's raise the bar a little bit higher. Let's make it a little bit more complex. What else can they do? What else can they do? What else can they do? And that's what I'm. That's it." - Bobby Whyte (44:00) “My guess would be that the best athletes, right, their time (sprinting while dribbling) a ball is a lot closer to their time without a ball than, than the lesser basketball players” - Bobby Whyte (46:39) "That is normal. That is right now what happens everywhere,

Today's podcast features sprint coach Jack Edwards. Jack is the coach and company co-founder with Track Speed Development and is experienced in club and high school track coaching. He runs the "Metamorphosis Track Project" page on social media, is the creator of the "Acceleration Monster" training manual, and can often be found at the Bankstown athletics track in Sydney. Jack works closely with individuals from diverse backgrounds and age groups, ranging from national-level competitors to newcomers in track and field. Jack's coaching approach underscores the significance of individual observation, athlete identity, and tailored strategies to optimize each athlete's s movement and performance. It is easy in sprint training (or general athletic performance) to focus on the "micro" or isolated aspects of athletic performance training. It is easy to treat all athletes the same in programming and cueing. Although a general structure must exist in training groups, it must also be understood what drives each athlete's performance engine, their ideal cues and communication strategies, and related training constraints and exercises. In today's episode, we delve into the unique coaching approach of Jack Edwards. He shares insights on painting a comprehensive picture of the athlete, considering the driving mechanisms of their movement, psychological factors, and adaptation in sprint training. Jack also discusses the importance of developing an athlete based on their needs, their "superpower ", and "identity", bringing the power of story into the sprint training equation. We also explore the concept of coaching based on big picture elements, versus a "micro" approach. Tune in to gain a deeper understanding of these topics and more in today's episode. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr, the Plyomat, and LILA Exogen. Use the code “justfly25” for 25% off of any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer head to Lilateam.com TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers. Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software at teambuildr.com. The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive, and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Main Points 2:20- Jack’s Take on “Classical Ab Training” for Sprinting and Athletics 13:02- Natural Movement Evaluation for Optimal Coaching Success 20:51- Athletic Identity Development through Varied Training Programs 22:19- Optimizing Speed Coaching Strategies for Individual Athletes 29:05- Training with Imaginative Superheroes: Inspiring Athletes 39:20- Enhancing Sprint Performance through Strategic Training Approaches 44:29- Enhancing Performance Through Sensation and Awareness 54:49- A Holistic Viewpoint of Speed Training Jack Edwards Quotes "I would have just probably reading some old Charlie Francis stuff, and I just started banging out just classic crunches and leg raises for time push-ups, all those sort of body weight calisthenic exercises on off days, and I don't think it was useless whatsoever. I think that the demands of sprinting and lifting weights and, and getting jacked is such a stressor on the posterior chain, and as someone who has some anterior hip issues historically, I almost felt like the ab circuits were my postural restoration, as silly as that sounds- Jack Edwards "I think that my goal when I first start working with someone, I guess, is to try and paint a picture as to who the athlete is." - Jack Edwards "I think that there are probably common factors which need to be included in the program and the sort of movement styles that athletes probably need to move towards to become faster runners."  - Jack Edwards "I was working with at a all boys school, and we're coaching a variety of different athletes. And, like,

Today's podcast features Kevin Mulcahy. Kevin is an experienced sports and S&C coach and owner-operator of the Design the Game Project. He has worked with various sports teams, athletes, professionals, and clubs across three continents, for over 30 years. Kevin takes a multi-lateral focus on human movement, skill development, and S&C, led by a deep interest in ecological dynamics and the constraints led approach to coaching and motor learning. Sport and the process of athlete development has undergone a major shift in the last 3-4 decades. Where free play used to be a hallmark of young athletes, the majority of athletic development now happens in the realm of supervised, cognitively overloaded, and hyper-accelerated practices and games. This aspect of sport (and sports performance) does get talked about, but the nuances of how things should actually change from both a developmental aspect are rarely discussed. On today’s show, Kevin gives his perspective on ideal athlete development from an ecological and environmental point of view. He lays out the difference between the dominant “cognitive” approach to coaching and training, relative to an ecological approach. Kevin also gets into skill development, game-play and the importance of motor learning, and an overall athlete-centered, approach to training. Kevin’s experience crosses many of the traditional lines drawn in athletics, and as such, helps us to form new connections and understand the athlete development process on a deeper level. Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr, the Plyomat, and LILA Exogen. Use the code “justfly25” for 25% off of any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer head to Lilateam.com TeamBuildr is an online software for coaches and trainers. Use the code “JUSTFLY” for a free 30 day trial of the TeamBuildr software at teambuildr.com. The Plyomat is a functional, intuitive, and affordable contact mat for jump and plyometric training and testing.  Check out the Plyomat at plyomat.net View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. Main Points 3:44- Kevin’s Evolution of Movement and Strength Coaching 10:32- Gaelic Football's Impact on Soccer Development 13:45- Nurturing Creativity in Gaelic Games Athletes 29:45- Balanced Development Through a Free Play Approach 33:16- Small-Sided Games for Tactical Coaching Success 47:10- Athletic Success: The Genetic Advantage Perspective 54:02- Optimizing Training Schedules for Performance Enhancement 59:21- Irish Sports Clubs: Community Support and Culture 1:02:46- Enhancing Sports Performance Through Soft Coaching 1:07:29- Tactical Deficit-Focused Conditioning in Team Sports 1:12:06- Enhancing Sports Performance Through Motor Learning Principles 1:18:23- Engaging Sports Coaching and Skill Development Initiative Kevin Mulcahy Quotes "I'm not sure we all know how deep the science of sports goes yet." - Kevin Mulcahy “How do we learn skills? How are they connected to skill as we see it? Because we see the action of a player throwing a basket, pulling a dummy solo, dribbling through a player in soccer, whatever and we see that as a fixed skill and that's something they did and they must practice that a thousand times. But versus the more ecological way looking at it like, you know, they saw an opportunity to act, they saw a gap, they saw space, they got free at the corner for a three point shot, whatever it is. And they just took it” - Kevin Mulcahy “But traditionally, I would have struggled to get soccer and basketball players to engage in strength and conditioning more than any other sport, right. I don't know if that related to the street element where they have so much exposure, they have so much play, they feel good from it, they look good. I don't need (S&C). Why would I need that? You know, I'm well built. - Kevin Mulcahy "I believe it was Steffan Jones,