by BJ Maack 10-18-2009 03:33 PM
In the business of training athletes, I am often approached with this general line of question: "Can you help me (or my child) get faster/stronger/better?" This general question is easily answered with a general answer of "Yes." But if you really want to help someone who asks you a question, sometimes it is better to answer a question with a question. So, I usually avoid the general "Yes" answer and replace it with a question back to them. Something along the lines of: "What exactly do you do and want to improve?"
The point of this is to get the athlete to focus on exactly what the goals are. One of the best quotes that is relevant here goes like this:
"If you don't know where you are going, you will never get there."
If you want to improve your game, it is vital that you look at yourself and ask: "What am I NOT good at?" Be honest. What areas do you feel are not your strengths? What are your weaknesses? By starting here, you then can get a better handle on how to improve. A baseball player may have outstanding speed running the bases, but they have a poor first-step getting out of the box. He needs to focus on making his feet quicker and more reactive. A basketball player may be able to shoot the ball lights-out, but she isn't effective going to her left while dribbling. So, she needs to spend more time on her ball-handling skills.
Are you training to get better at one sport, or just a better overall fitness standard? Is your goal to make the varsity next year, or just to enjoy the sport? Do you want to drop your running time? If so, have a goal in mind—BE SPECIFIC WITH YOUR GOALS!! Write them down where you can see them. Make them a part of your everyday routine.
So, for performance training, when meeting an athlete for the first time, we try to drill down the most appropriate physical skills needed. We do an initial assessment and test session to see where they are, then we look at the areas where we can make the most improvement. This way, we maximize our time and energy with the athlete. If they have blazing, God-given speed, then we want to focus more on their first-step or start...or train them to be more explosive with their hips. The point is that the athlete needs to be doing a training program that fits them and their unique set of physical ability, not a general training program that only gets a little bit of improvement out of them.
Remember, one size does not fit all in this business...it fits ONE.
Published 10-18-2009 © 2026 Access Athletes, LLC
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