The Throws Doc Podcast

The Throws Doc: Episode 26 - All-American at Alfred State

The Throws Doc: Episode 25 - Division III Outdoor Nationals Recap

The Throws Doc: Episode 24 - Throwing and The Transfer Portal

The Throws Doc: Episode 23 - What Makes You Happy?

The Throws Doc: Episode 22 - Your Ideal Situation

The Throws Doc Episode 21 - Competing in the Finals

The Throws Doc Episode 20 - Creating Confidence

The Throws Doc Episode 19 - Taking the Classroom to the Circle

The Throws Doc Episode 17 - Celebrations, Focus, and Lessons Learned

The Throws Doc: Episode 15 - Finding Your Rhythm

The Throws Doc: Episode 14 - The Double Decade of Dominance at SUNY Fredonia

The Throws Doc: Episode 13 - How to Make a College Selection

The Throws Doc: Episode 12 - Dreams Die in The Execution

The Throws Doc: Episode 11 - 2022 Reflections

The Throws Doc: Episode 10 - Revisiting Support Systems

The Throws Doc: Episode 9 - Motivation and Expectations

The Throws Doc: Episode 7 - I'm Working on a Book

The Throws Doc: Episode 6 - Lunch With Dan Chambliss

The Throws Doc: Episode 7 - I'm Writing A Book

Episode 5 of The Throws Doc Podcast

Episode 4 of The Throws Doc Podcast

Episode 3 of The Throws Doc Podcast

Episode 2 of The Throws Doc Podcast

Episode 1 of The Throws Doc Podcast

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share some ideas and thoughts about what Life Class 101 would be structured like in a high school and collegiate setting.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I'm your hype man!

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I reflect on the past six years of my life; what I've accomplished, what I'm working for, and what's up next.  These thoughts came to me after traveling to a wake over the weekend, which got me thinking about how precious life really is and who we should be hoping to accomplish our goals for.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share some thoughts about tolerance.  The tolerance I'm referring to is the tolerance athletes have towards themselves and their goals.  I believe that some, not most, but some athletes don't always put 100% into whatever they say they want to accomplish.  I think some athletes give 90%.  Maybe 85%.  But not always 100%.  I believe this because it gives athletes an out if they don't accomplish what they wanted to accomplish.  If they fail to reach their goal(s) they have a built in mechanism in place to possibly make themselves feel better about the fact that they didn't reach their aspiration.  

My questions to you are: if you say you are committed to accomplishing a goal, why wouldn't you put forth the necessary effort in accomplishing said goal?  What is it about life that would derail you from achieving that feat?

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I go into detail and discuss the four pillars of effective coaching, that once the strategies have been mastered, will enhance the quality of the relationships you have with your athletes.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share a few strategies, tips, and suggestions that will help you create an environment your athletes will thank you for!

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some thoughts about initiating conversations with your athletes about early season checkpoints; where are you, how did you get here, where do you want to go, and what needs to change in order to get there?

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some strategies that coaches can incorporate when discussing long-term training plans with their athletes.

A coach asked me how I would handle the situation that they are currently in right now.  They have a senior female multi athlete that is concerned that she isn't getting enough HJ training in during the week.  In our conversation, the coach said that the athlete wants to focus more time on the HJ because she is concerned she isn't going to make enough progress during the season to qualify for nationals (indoor or outdoor).  

I shared three strategies with the coach that they could implement with their athlete to better open up the lines of communication when discussing long-term planning for in this case would be the athlete's final collegiate track and field season.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share a few different strategies I've incorporated over my coaching career that are focused on how many training sessions to complete per week, per event.  In this episode I discuss the training breakdown Dylan and I incorporated last season that led him to finishing the season ranked 4th overall in the discus in Division III.  I also share thoughts about how Luis and I and Brandon and I planned out their training programs based on their unique goals.  In the 2015-16 season, Luis' goal was to be a double national champion in the 35lb. weight throw and hammer throw.  Brandon's goals were to also qualify for nationals in the discus or shot-put, while also qualifying for our regional meet in the discus, hammer, and shot-put.  Luis won the 2016 DIII 35lb. weight throw national championship and finished 3rd in the hammer throw during the same season.  Brandon is Nazareth College's school record holder in the discus and indoor/outdoor shot-put.  He was a 16m+ weight thrower, 50' shot-putter, and 44m discus thrower during the 2015-16 season.  At Fredonia, Julia won the 2009 DIII 20lb. weight throw national championship.  She was a 5x All-American in the weight throw and hammer throw.  Her training program was much different than Luis', but similar to the program that Monique Hardy followed as a high school thrower that won the 2019 New Balance Indoor National Championship in the 20lb. weight throw.  Monique is also ranked #2 all-time for high school female weight throwers with a personal best over 19m+.  All of these athletes had similar goals (compete at nationals), but their training programs reflected those goals.  

In my humble coaching opinion, I would recommend an indoor thrower to train their main event (weight or shot-put) 2x-3x per week with their second event another 1-2x's per week.  Again, this depends on the athlete's unique goals and what they want to accomplish.  Luis didn't throw the shot-put in 2015-16, so our focus was primarily on the weight.  Last outdoor season, Dylan trained the shot-put maybe 10x between March and May because his goal was to throw the discus and hammer at nationals.  He finished the season with a personal best discus throw of 52m+, 54m+ in the hammer, and 14.50m in the shot-put.

Training would be different during the outdoor season.  I would suggest 2x-3x a week for a thrower's main event followed by 1x-2x for their second and third events, respectively.  Dylan is coming back this season for a COVID 5th year with a focus on competing at nationals in the discus and hammer throw.  Dylan currently trains the hammer 2x per week and the discus 2x per week with our first meet coming up in early April, 2023.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share research based similarities between high performing and functioning preschool classrooms and collegiate throwing programs.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share 3 tips to help coaches better enhance and build up their culture; 1) your communication style with athletes, 2) how to develop positive routines and habits, and 3) when it's time to hold their hands.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share a 4th strategy coaches can implement to enhance relationships with their athletes - engagement within the decision making process.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss a couple of different coach-athlete dyad scenarios centered on coaching experience, coaching knowledge, and the credibility of the coach.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some stories focused on communication skills and how effective communication can enhance the bond between coach and athlete.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share 3 different strategies coaches can incorporate to enhance the relationships they have with their athletes; 1) taking the temperature of the room and what it means, 2) being flexible, and 3) how genuine you can be when communicating with your athletes.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share my thoughts about stratification in track and field-the clear distinction between performances and outcomes in competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some insights into the 2022-23 season, goal setting ideas, how to hold yourself accountability, and time management hacks to maximize efficiency.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share three different ways your can provide your athletes with explicit feedback; 1) constructive, 2) specific, and 3) evidence-based.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share some tips to help you piece together a path that will lead you towards accomplishing your goals.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share a few strategies that will help you establish realistic goals for your upcoming 2022-23 season.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I discuss some ideas and thoughts about selecting captains for your team.  Should your captains always be upperclassmen?

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share some ideas and strategies to assist athletes in setting realistic expectations for the upcoming season.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some ideas and thoughts about how our values help define our coaching philosophy.

In this week's bonus episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share my thoughts about my word of the year, Gratitude.

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I discuss ways a new or veteran coach can align their coaching philosophy to their values (what is important to them).

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I share my thoughts on taking the temperature of your team; what it means, what is the temperature, who you talk to and why it's important.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss research based best practices that you can reflect upon and be able to incorporate within your own coaching style.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I take a deeper more reflective look at my own previous life experiences when thinking about jobs and positions I've held as an educator since I graduated from college.  After 2010, life took a drastic right turn and put me on a path that at the time I couldn't appreciate until an opportunity presented itself to me last week.  I've shared in prior episodes that I wasn't always sure what I wanted to be when I grew up, but I'm 99.9% sure I found my calling.

In the episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share more thoughts about coaching experiences, differences between coaching youth sports, and when experience should matter (if at all) when coaching youth athletes.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share my thoughts and ideas about coaching youth athletes, the differences between coaching 11 - 14 and 15 - 18 year olds, and whether experience should really matter when coaching youth athletes.

On July 27, 2022 we held our first throws coaches roundtable.  In total 7 coaches spent time discussing coaching youth throwers ages 11 - 18.  We talked about:

1. Coaching philosophy 

2. Structuring practice for youth athletes

3. How coaches can engage large groups of throwers

4. Examples of games you can play in practice

5. Measuring throws in practice

6. Throwing volume in practice

7. Motivating youth athletes

8. Mindset strategies for youth athletes

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share more details about the 5 things you should consider when making the decision to come back and compete for your final gifted (COVID) season.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share talk about 5 things to think about when making the decision to come back for your gifted final (COVID) season - Part 1.

1. How many credit hours will you need to take in order to be eligible to compete

2. What is the financial burden of those courses

3. Will you have a place to compete

4. Have you discussed this with your coach

5. Why are you coming back

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some thoughts about what happened to me a couple of weeks ago-my first split with a post-collegiate thrower.  It's not a topic I've discussed before because it's the first time I've had a post-collegiate athlete decide they wanted to go in a different direction and hire another coach.  In total, our coach-athlete relationship lasted a total of 8ish weeks.  What I think went wrong, you'll have to listen to find out.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some thoughts about deliberate practice, throwing clubs, and Ashland Elite.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share championship data outcomes; what the numbers mean, who performed "well", how we define "well", why some athletes competed over their seed marks, and general thoughts about putting plans together for our athletes to be able to throw/perform well when it matters most.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I review some numbers from the 2022 Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships.  The specific numbers I discuss are setting personal bests and what coaches can do to better assist their athletes in setting personal best marks at the national championships.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I review some numbers from the 2022 Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships.  The specific numbers I discuss are setting personal bests and what coaches can do to better assist their athletes in setting personal best marks at the national championships.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I review our final two weeks of the season leading up to the 2022 Division III Outdoor National Track and Field Championships.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I provide some insight into the research behind deliberate practice; what it is, who coined the phrase, how it can be defined, the four stages of deliberate practice, mundanity, and the Olympic Games.

In Part 2 of my interview with Ryan Metzger, we discussed: 

1. External vs. Internal motivation for competition 

2. Wearing different hats while coaching athletes in the weight room 

3. Continuing her Olympic weightlifting career 

4. Making the transition to Tennessee 

5. Expectations about working with high profile student-athletes 

6. How one earns the distinction of being awarded NSCA Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year 

7. Ryan's advice for athletes

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I discuss coach-athlete relationships, speaking to coaches and athletes, and the research behind the coach-athlete dyad.

This week I had the chance to catch up the 2022 NSCA Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year Ryan Metzger.  Ryan is currently on staff at the University of Tennessee.  Before Tennessee she had stops at Clemson and VCU.  She began her strength and conditioning career at the University of Kentucky as an intern and then graduate assistant.  In Part I of our interview, Ryan and I discussed: 

1. Her start in Olympic Weightlifting 

2. Gymnastics (the start, the break, and high school) 

3. Competing at Wisconsin-Oshkosh 

4. Training at the collegiate level 

5. How mentors influenced her decision to complete an internship at the University of Kentucky 

6. A graduate assistant and Olympic weightlifter - yeah sure 

7. Qualifying for the American Open in her first weightlifting competition 

8. Ryan's mindset as she approaches Olympic weightlifting

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I discuss three strategies you can incorporate at your next meet to have more fun and enjoy the moment.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I discuss some strategies to help you overcome the feeling of pressure in high stress and high anxiety situations related to competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some insights into how we as coaches can better communicate competition expectations with our athletes before and during competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I give an overview of our meet from St. John Fisher College.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some insight and testimonials about the first few months of our Holistic Coaching consultation services and how they would work for you.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some strategies related to event selection for meets and competition.

In order to better prepare oneself for the rigors of training, research has reported that to persevere, gain perspective, and to engage in preparation, a sense of presentness was required to navigate times in which distractions may impede training on our journey (Wilson et. al., 2016).  What distinguishes those that achieve greatness from those that don’t satisfy their aspirations is the notion of being present and fully engaged without distraction with the task at hand (training, throwing, weightroom), rather than to simply be going through the proverbial motions (Kaiseler et. al., 2009; Nicholls et. al., 2008).

In order to sustain a perspective centered on preparedness and a willingness to overcome, another central tenet in the literature has been reported about gratitude and being grateful for opportunities and experiences that generate meaning and purpose in one’s life (Gucciardi, Jackson, Hanton, & Reid, 2015).  Athletes that value growth and development in their respective sports have higher perceived mental toughness compared to their peers not valuing the growth aspects of development within their respective sports (Dweck, 2015; Gucciardi et. al., 2015).  Practicing gratefulness is a topic that has been widely discussed across many genres of literature from such authors as; Jon Gordon (Energy Bus), Kate Leavell (Stick Together), Carol Dweck (Growth Mindset), Greg Everett (Tough; Olympic Weightlifting), Lou Holtz (former ND Football coach), Amber Selking (Selking Performance Group), and  Rick McGuire (former University of Missouri Track and Field Coach).

As a prompt for practicing gratefulness, a strategy you can incorporate is as follows.

Every morning upon waking up, write down 2-5 things you are grateful for.  I write mine down in a gratitude journal that I have with me all the time.  I usually write them down during breakfast.  The purpose behind the prompt is to think about your life and recognize the things you are appreciative of.  I usually write down 4 or 5 because I have two that are the same everyday.  The idea is to think about aspects of your life, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem, that you are truly appreciative of and why.  An important aspect in the development and continuation of this habit is to write down why you are grateful for those things in your life.  Why are you grateful for this part of your life?  What meaning or value does it bring to you?  If it wasn’t a part of your life how would it affect you?

Over the course of the past couple of months I have had the great pleasure to work with a wonderful, enthusiastic, and driven group of throwers through my Holistic Coaching program at Forza Athletics.  The feedback I have received from the athletes that are participating has been extremely helpful in ensuring that I am offering them the best mindset and mental preparation support possible.  To assist these athletes along their journeys, we have had some frank and delicate conversations.  One such topic that has come up with multiple throwers has been about engagement in competition.

As you might have guessed, I keep specific notes about each conversation I have with each thrower.  Since the outdoor season has started, a topic that has been repeated in conversation has been focused on engagement, or rather lack of engagement in competition.  This was not a topic that came up during the indoor season.

After four different athletes made reference to the topic, I engaged deeper, trying to discern what they meant by lack of engagement in competition.  The surrounding details are to be kept confidential, but hearing their stories makes me think that others might benefit from the strategies I shared with them in conversation.  It also leads me to believe that lack of engagement in competition is not something that only happens to elite level throwers, but to a majority of throwers with varying levels of ability.

Strategies to Combat Lack of Engagement During Competition

1.  Recognize Our Thoughts

I’ll be one of the first to admit that attending track meets can at times be quite boring if you let it.  There is so much happening around the track and in the field events that there is a lot to pay attention to.

When the initial thought(s) of boredom or lack of engagement begins to creep in, be able to recognize this is happening.  Then ask yourself why you might be feeling this way?  What is happening or not happening around you that has caused you to lose interest in what is happening?  It is ok to have this thought, we are human.

2.  Intentionality - You Give Power to What You Focus On

After you recognize this thought, bring yourself back to thoughts of purpose.  Why are you here competing?  What excites you most about competing?  Take two or three deep breaths and become more mindful in the present moment.  Take in the experience that is happening at that moment, not what has happened in the past or what you might be thinking about happening in the future, but what is happening in that moment.

Attentional control is all about being locked on to the right things at the right time.  It is a purposeful process.  When we think about performance and executing when it matters most, we have to bring our minds back to the current moment because this is where the performance is happening.

3.  Your Why

When you bring your mind back to the competition, think about your purpose and why you are competing.  Think about your aspirations and what you want to accomplish this season.  You may have a technical cue you are working on, bring your emphasis back to that specific objective for the meet.

Quite an interesting situation occurred this past weekend.  We were attending a meet, finished a couple of events, and then the weather hit.  Before our track meet really got started it was canceled due to the weather (high wind warnings, thunder, lightning).  Some were happy and relieved that the meet was canceled.  Early performances weren’t the best, especially in the discus where the wind wreaked havoc on everyone.  Then others were disappointed that they weren’t able to compete.  What’s there to do?

The only thing we could do in that particular situation is control what was in our immediate control.  We couldn’t control the weather or that our meet was canceled.  We could still control our attitude, preparation for the next meet, and our effort moving forward.

Refusing to focus our attention on external circumstances will reduce bouts with fear, anxiety, and frustration.  Dominating our attitude, preparation, and effort (APE; Kamphoff, 2018) is the key to reaching a greater level of performance.  Making sure we are prepared, going above and beyond to be ready for whatever heads our way will ensure that we are on the right path.  Putting in our best efforts everyday builds up our grit, a key trait that allows us to move forward on our journey, achieving our eventual successes (Duckworth, 2018).

A great activity for athletes to complete before the start of the season, in practice, or in competition is to take a mental inventory of what is within our direct control in competition and place our energies there.  Spending time on what is out of direct control can lead to a heightened level of stress, anxiety, and fear of what may or may not happen.

When we think about what is within our direct control in life and throwing, what comes to mind?

When our minds begin to fill with worry and doubt about things that are outside of our immediate control, think about what your attitude, preparation, and effort look and feel like.  Replace the negative thoughts with those positive thoughts about our attitude (embracing the competition, feeling grateful to be able to compete), preparation (using the competition as a reward for all the hard work you put into practice this week), and effort (how much you have to give in this competition).

Looking at the same situation with a different lens or perspective will help you become more mindful and present in the moment.  It will allow you to recognize what is happening inside your mind, your thoughts, your emotions, and replace your negative thoughts with more positive thoughts based on your attitude, preparation, and effort.

Most throwers are aware that there is a conversation going on in their heads in and out of the throwing circle or javelin runway.  These conversations might go in a variety of directions; either extremely positive, extremely negative, and of course somewhere in between.  What would you do if the other throwers that you are competing against that day started talking to you the way you talk to yourself?  The value in this activity is in recognizing this internal dialogue as a mechanism to separate ourselves from the undermining voice of self-doubt.  One of the characteristics of self-doubt is that it tends to strengthen as the challenge increases (attempting to hit a distance standard, competing at a small meet vs. competing at nationals, having to set a personal best or near personal best to qualify for finals) or as it represents an increasing risk (attempting a new technique during competition for the first time).

Training our mind takes a concerted daily effort.  Much like training to throw the shot-put or discus, it is not automatic.  We spend countless hours learning proper throwing technique, yet fail to practice mindset techniques that will help us overcome anxiety, fear, or the frustration of throwing.  A research based strategy to help us refocus when we sense self-doubt creeping in is to create power phrases for yourself.  Destructive power phrases associated with self-doubt might include “I won’t…,” “I can’t…,” or “I am not…”.  Redirected positive power phrases begin with “I will…,” “I can…,” or “I am…”  Following the examples below, you can create and develop your own positive power phrases to assist you in overcoming self-doubt when you feel it attempting to take up space in your mind at practice, before, and during competition.

When you think “I will…,” this is a statement about positive change or intention.  Our focus is directed towards what you want and what you intend to make happen.  When competing, what are one or two “I will…” statements that will help you stay focused on what you are going to do during the competition?

When you think  “I can…,” this is a statement about your potential.  It is a positive statement about your ability to accomplish your goals and dreams.  When you think “I can…” you focus on your belief in your ability to do something.  When competing, what are one or two “I can…” statements that will help you stay focused on your abilities to accomplish your goals?

When you think “I am…,” this is the most powerful power phrase because it is a statement about who you are.  Your reality and future can take shape from the phrase “I am…”  When you think “I am…” you focus on the traits that you already have inside you.  When competing, what are one or two “I am…” statements about who you are as a person and individual.

If you’ve been reading along the past few weeks, I hope you have noticed a theme focused on goal-setting, accountability, and choice.  The transition to outdoor track leaves us with about 10-11 weeks left of the spring semester.  Still plenty of time to address goals, decision-making, and time management strategies for our outdoor season.  Hold this thought for a moment.

Last week I purchased Getting to Neutral by Trevor Moawad.  A couple of years ago he released his best selling book It Takes What It Takes.  In Trevor’s new book, he shares stories of how coaches have implemented his teachings around the topic of remaining neutral in moments of stress, anxiety, happiness, and joy.  On page 30 of Getting to Neutral Trevor included a section about the illusion of choice.  Essentially we have choices and decisions to make all throughout the day.  In some instances, however, it seems as though we have the illusion of choice.

In any endeavor we find value in pursuing, there will be decisions to make along the way.  Decisions that on the surface may seem inconsequential in the moment, but that may lead us down a path away from the goal we ultimately aspire to achieve.  The illusion of choice.

I shared this concept with one of my throwers this week.  Along with a couple of snippets from Trevor’s Instagram page where he discusses this illusion of choice with Division I football and basketball players.  The response I received back from my athlete was, “Coach, I’ve never thought about it that way before.”

Autonomy is something I share quite a bit of with the throwers I coach.  We have a specific schedule in place with regards to throwing and weight room times.  The events we emphasize during each throwing session might vary based on the physical and mental condition the throwers come to practice in.  I believe that flexibility is very important.  It allows each thrower to be accountable for their session based on how they feel, whether they will be late because they are coming from a class, leaving early to go to class, etc.

Autonomy, in essence, is about choice.  Allowing others to dictate the direction (in this case throwing) they want to head down.  But sometimes there is the illusion of choice.  Something I’ve never really discussed with all my athletes before, but with a few that had higher aspirations of throwing compared to their peers.

In the goal-setting process, when thinking about outcome and process goals, process goals offer a great deal of autonomy to our athletes.  Winning those individual moments (process goal items) will give us a better opportunity towards ultimately achieving our outcome goal.  There is a choice.  But the illusion of choice.

Oftentimes in order to achieve our goals we really aren’t afforded many choices.  You aren’t going to throw far (your definition of far) by not throwing.  It’ll be much more difficult to finish an Ironman Triathlon race if we just show up one day without having trained to swim for 2.1 miles, ride our bikes for 116 miles, and run 26.2 miles all in the same day with time limits.  We can say to ourselves that everything will be ok and work out alright, but will it?

Getting back to our throwing example, there are certain habits and routines that the very best of the best throwers prioritize in their day-to-day lives.  They have a choice to either complete them or not, but not doing so would put them behind their competitors who are going above and beyond to be the best, too!  So, when you say you want to be the best, the choice is yours.  Or is it.

This week on the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I had the chance to catch up with Kate Leavell.  Kate is a best selling author, former Lacrosse coach and trainer, and a member of Jon Gordon's team.

Kate and I first spoke about five years ago when I reached out to her about the podcast I had heard her on.  In this episode, Kate and I discussed:

1. Her start in coaching

2. Writing her first book

3. Success at what cost

4. Meeting Jon Gordon

5. Engaging families and athletes before the season starts

6. Stats homework

7. Stick Together

8. Superpower

9. Engaging athletes today

10. Show them you care

11. It's ok to say I love you

This week I had the chance to catch up with Highland Games World Record Holder and Powerlifter Felicia Baker Baltren.  Felicia and I discussed: 

1. How she got started with Highland games 

2. Her first competition in 2013 

3. Competing pre-COVID and post-COVID 

4. Behind the scenes strategy conversations about events 

5. When to throw hard and when to take it easy 

6. How to mix powerlifting training with Highland training 

7. Hormonal imbalances 

8. The structure behind a competition season 

9. Training for the World Championships and beyond

When you think about the goals/aspirations you laid out for yourself back in July/August/September, were those goals process focused or outcome focused?

Outcome goals are just that, outcome based with an emphasis placed on a specific performance.  These are goals that are focused on the outcome, distance, place, or victory that create pressure, anxiety, and heaviness.  An outcome goal might be to throw the weight 15m or to throw the shot-put 12m.

Process goals place an emphasis on daily habits, routines, and rituals.  Process goals are about the process and not the end result.  These thoughts are focused on the present moment and the things you need to do to be at your very best.  Did I complete my training session today?  Did I monitor my nutritional intake?  How was my recovery?  Did I get enough rest?

To give ourselves a better opportunity to achieve our outcome goals, they need to be intrinsically motivated.  Essentially they are goals we want to achieve or accomplish because we are passionate about doing so without outside factors dictating our interest in doing so.  If our outcome goals are extrinsically motivated, we might be compelled to want to achieve this goal because of outside factors (respect garnered from others, to win something, etc.).  In essence, athletic scholarships can be viewed as extrinsic motivators for athletes.  If you do this (throw far) then our college will give you that (money to attend our college).  That is a totally different bridge to cross at another time.  But I think you get the idea.

With the Division III indoor track and field qualified lists set for 2022, more than 99% of Division III athletes have begun preparing for the outdoor season.  Now would be a good time to re-evaluate your goals from the indoor season.

This week I had the chance to catch up with 2021 Olympic Trials Discus thrower Micaela Hazlewood.  In our conversation, Micaela and I discussed:

1. Her introduction to the discus

2. Throwing in high school

3. The collegiate recruiting process

4. The expectations vs. realities of being a Division I thrower

5. Experiences throwing the discus, shot-put, and hammer at the collegiate level

6. Making the decision to be a one event thrower

7. The Big 10 and SEC competition

8. Competing as a post-collegiate thrower

9. Experiences at US Outdoor Nationals

10. The Olympic Trials

11. Chasing the standard

12. Advice for throwers

13. 2022 and beyond

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I continue the conversation about body language and the research behind the topic focused on athletes and competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I talk about body language, the research, and how your body language can help or hinder your athletic performances.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I continue the discussion about taking advantage of opportunities during competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss different strategies and ways for throwers to be able to take advantage of opportunities presented to them in competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some tips and suggestions for throwers as they look back on their indoor seasons.  

This week I had the chance to speak with Lara Boman.  Lara is a post-collegiate weight/hammer thrower coming off a 3rd place finish at the 2022 USATF indoor national championships.  Unlike most post-collegiate throwers, Lara got her start in college.  During the 2016-17 season, Lara made the transition from Division I soccer player to thrower.  Under the tutelage of 3x USA hammer Olympian AG Kruger, Lara became a very successful Division I thrower.  In her first year of throwing, Lara hit personal best throws of 52' in the weight and 178' in the hammer.  In her 2017-18 campaign, Lara increased her personal best in the weight to 63'7" and 213'9" in the hammer.  In her final season as a collegiate thrower, Lara increased her weight throw best to 72'6".  She also threw the hammer 211'8".  

In this interview, Lara and I discussed: 

1. Her transition to throwing from playing soccer 

2. Her initial meeting with AG Kruger 

3. Learning how to throw the hammer 

4. Finding her groove as a collegiate hammer thrower 

5. The importance of mental preparation and how it has supported her throwing career 

6. Competing at Division I indoor and outdoor nationals 

7. Her first USATF indoor national championships 

8. Competing at the 2021 Olympic Trials 

9. Setting a personal best at 2022 USATF indoor nationals 

10. Balancing a full-time teaching career with the rigors of throwing 

11. How working with a sport psychologist helped her during the 2021-22 indoor track and field season

12. The importance of goal setting on how she creates goals for her individual seasons

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss some things for high school throwers to think about when making the decision to select a college/university to attend in which they will also be throwing.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I answer a specific question from a listener asking about making a successful transition to outdoor track and field after the indoor season has come to a close.

The conversation stemmed from a post an alum made in a Facebook alumni post about the college’s facilities.  It got our group in the chat going about how the recruitment process would be made easier if we had facilities that were upgraded and that would allow us (SUNY Fredonia) the chance to host meets again.

Well, things got really exciting because there were two schools of thought.  First, upgrading the indoor facilities would assist coaches in the recruiting process of student-athletes.  A second camp thinks that upgrading our facility wouldn’t make that much of a difference.  I am in the latter.

As difficult as it might be for me to say, I really don’t believe that upgrading our indoor facility at SUNY Fredonia would make that much of a difference in attracting recruits who apply, are accepted, and eventually enroll.  I don’t believe it because I’ve seen it from both perspectives.  I was an athlete and coach at SUNY Fredonia.  The condition of the indoor facility back in the spring of 2000 when I first visited was good, but not great.  The facility was built in 1983 and had not been upgraded at all.  It wasn’t upgraded in the 17 years between being built and when I arrived, and hasn’t been upgraded in the past 18 years since I graduated.  It made training easier because we didn’t have to throw the weight/shot outside in the winter, but we did throw the weight outdoors in competition.

During my time spent at Nazareth College, we didn’t have an indoor fieldhouse.  A new one has been recently built, but we’ll get into that later.  At Nazareth, we first began practicing in an auxiliary gym.  We outgrew that gym in two years.  We were then granted access to throw in a racquetball court.  That was our home for five years.  That racquetball court produced school record holders in the shot-put, weight, discus, and hammer for both the men’s and women’s programs.

At Alfred State, we borrow space from Alfred University two days a week.  No indoor fieldhouse at Alfred State.

So, where do we go from here?

In my humble opinion, there are many more factors that contribute to an athlete making a college selection besides the quality/existence of facilities for track and field.  In no particular order, we have, a) intended major, b) financial aid/assistance, c) proximity to home, d) comfort level with current coaching staff, e) facilities, and f) recent team successes.

Our initial conversations early in the week were about his goals and how he wanted to wrap up this season.  I suggested that he had probably maxed out his Highland Games technique, and that a 44’ throw would not secure him a spot in the top 16 of the region in 3 weeks.  Rather than give it a shot in round 3, a safety throw was taken to ensure that he would at least finish 2nd in this meet and score points for his team.  The thrower that won went over 57’.  It was unlikely that he would throw a 4m PR to win, and 2nd was all but assured because he was the only other thrower over 40’.

From my perspective, he wanted to accelerate the learning process.  He expected that everything would instantaneously click and that he would automatically throw much farther.  Derek’s words ring true in this situation.

I see it often.  When making minor technical changes, throwers might assume that the fix will cure what ails them in the circle.  It is not always the case.  Sometimes it is never the case.

The notion to reap immediate outcomes without putting in solid work still boggles my mind.  Patience as a virtue (or skill to be mastered) seems to have fallen by the wayside and replaced with immediate or instant gratification of a job well done.

Now, mastering a two or three turn weight/hammer throw at the high-school level might not necessarily take four or five years (if you start throwing as an 8th grader).  The comparison to others is what I feel sets an internal clock.  The thrower that won the boys shot-put and weight throw doesn’t have a high school throwing coach.  He doesn’t have a private coach.  I know this because I asked him after I congratulated him.  He told me he watches YouTube videos and that is how he learned how to throw.

When other throwers (with coaches, too) see and hear about this, instincts might tell us to begin pushing the glacier back up the mountain.

Moving Glaciers

“When significant changes are needed, we often assume a cataclysmic event is necessary to achieve them.  Which typically fails through the actions of impatience.  It takes glaciers a millennium to find the ocean, don’t assume you can push them back up the mountain in an afternoon.”

Derek Woodske

I was speaking to Luis this past weekend about the opportunity I had to work with some high school throwers at the school I visit a couple of days a week.  In our conversation I shared that all but one of the five throwers took standing throws in competition.  The lone turner taking a modified Highland Games approach to throwing.  In two sessions with the kids, as I shared with Luis, they began taking multiple turn throws with the weight.  I pride myself and my coaching ability on being able to teach someone how to throw the weight/hammer in one session while being able to finish the session with two winds and three turns with the implement.  Now I’m not saying that the throws are perfect.  Oftentimes far from it, but the athlete is able to stay in the circle after three turns and a finish.  That’s a win in how I perceive myself to coach throwers.

In a meet on Saturday, the one of the throwers I worked with was able to set a personal best in the shot-put, placing 5th after being seeded 12th of 16.  He was really excited and pumped up about having set a new personal best in the shot, especially since he told me it had been since before Christmas that he had done so.  Now onto the weight throw.

As an aside, this high school track and field meet was run exceptionally well.  Warm-ups went well, and the officials moved through the flight in about 25 minutes or so.  In total, 16 male throwers each took 4 throws.  Immediately after they were finished, they were ushered off to the weight.  After another 15 minute warm-up, they were done in about 30 minutes.  Warm-ups and competition done in about 1hr. 30 minutes.

I had a sense that the excitement of the shot-put personal best was going to take its toll on the weight because of body language and aside conversation with the other throwers within earshot of where I was sitting.  Warm-ups went pretty well, with the focus of feeling comfortable taking a one wind and two turn throw in competition.  His first “real” weight/hammer throws.

His first throw in competition was a sector foul due to releasing the weight a little early.  He was still pumped up about his opportunity to throw farther, and went for it again in round 2.  This time it was a foul down the opposite sector line.  Now I could see a sense of apprehension and fear come over his face.  On his 3rd throw he reverted back to his old throwing style, good enough for a 41’2”.  His 4th throw was also a foul down the left sector.

After the meet we had a brief conversation about feeling comfortable in the circle, giving the technique a chance, and how to move forward during the next couple of weeks before Sectionals.  I asked him what happened there in round 3, and he told me that he didn’t want to foul out so he reverted back to his old style of throwing.  He also told me that he thought he would have figured it out after two sessions.

In the two sessions prior to this meet, he took a total of 20 throws with weight/hammer technique.  Maybe a little bit of impatience.  Certainly fear.  A little desperation.

How Do You Know When You Are Ready to Compete?

Yesterday I was on a coaching call with one of my holistic coaching clients.  We were having a great conversation about competing, competition, and when to open up the season.  This particular thrower has international experience, is a national record holder, and is on the cusp of hitting the 2024 Olympic Games mark in the hammer.

They have the opportunity to open the season at an international competition in Europe in early March.  Our conversation went something like this:

Athlete:  Yeah, I can open up in early March.  It’d be a long flight with the prospects of only taking three throws.

Me:  It sounds like a great opportunity to open the season in an early major competition.

Athlete:  I’ll go compete if I feel excited enough and I’m ready to compete.

Me:  How do you gauge your excitement and readiness to compete in terms of preparing for this competition?

Athlete:  Umm….

As we continued our conversation, I asked what type of markers or data points they tracked in regards to being ready to compete.  We discussed some items that most would suggest, such as; throwing distances in practice with the competition hammer, throwing distances in practice with hammers of varying weights, and weight room numbers.

I shared a story of hearing Lance Deal speak in Ohio back in December 2015.  He shared that he expected himself to be able to walk off a plane after an international flight and be able to throw at least 90% of his personal best within an hour or two of landing and competing.

My One Word: Focus

A few years ago I was reading an article on Jon Gordon’s (one of my favorite authors) website about how each year he selects a word for himself to emphasize for the upcoming year.  Of course I thought that was a fantastic idea and quickly decided to begin a similar tradition of selecting my own word for the year.

My word for 2022 is Focus.

I’ve written about the skill and concept of Focus for quite some time.  If you have followed along over the course of the past few months, I’ve written extensively on the topic.  I won’t go into that much detail about the five specific aspects of teaching someone the skill of focus.  This year, however, I feel it is a good time to select Focus as my word.  I’ve selected it for a multitude of reasons.

First, with so much on my plate this year (professionally and personally) I feel it is most important to concentrate on what is most important to me this year.  On a more personal note, I had three goals I wanted to accomplish in 2021; 1) complete a Half-Ironman race, 2) finish two other shorter Triathlon races, and 3) compete at a body weight under 260lbs.  Needless to say I didn’t come close to achieving my body weight goal.  I got close at 267lbs., but definitely not close enough.  The Half-Ironman race I was registered for was canceled due to COVID-19 (out of my control), as were the shorter races I had on my calendar.

Second, and most important on a professional level, is to concentrate and emphasize more time with Forza Athletics.  Similar to my personal goals, I also have professional goals that I try to accomplish each year.  I’ve had some relative success writing and publishing peer-reviewed research papers.  Since I graduated from St. John Fisher College in May 2017, I have had a peer-reviewed research paper accepted for publication.  I had two accepted in 2020 that were published in 2021.  I had one accepted in 2021 that will be published in 2022.  This is one I’m really proud of and I hope it will assist coaches in further developing and understanding how important it is to have a sound coaching philosophy and is based on your values and what is most important to you.

With Forza Athletics, I’m going to Focus more time and energy on helping support high-school, collegiate, and post-collegiate throwers.  I’m going to do this by providing more relevant content that will assist throwers in achieving their own unique and specific goals.  Everyone is different, has different ideas, and a different path on how to get there.  I want to illuminate that path for those throwers.  I want to help them realize their dreams.  Identifying a goal is great, sharing that goal with others holds us accountable, and having someone illuminate the path towards achievement is powerful.

Since launching my Holistic Coaching program, I’ve had athletes from all over the world reach out to schedule a consultation to discuss their goals.  I want to continue to assist those that are looking for something a little different, that doesn’t quite fit a “box”.  When all things are equal during a competition, it is the athlete that is more mentally prepared that has the edge on their competitors.  I want to provide that edge to new, aspiring, and seasoned throwers.

Those are the aspects of my life that I’m going to emphasize in 2022.

What is your one word for 2022?

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share some ideas and strategies that will help you maximize your winter training before you return for the spring semester of collegiate competition.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I provide some insight into our Utica College meet from last week.

This week I had the chance to catch up with Angelo State Throwing Coach Tim Miller.  Tim was one in the first group of athletes I coaches at SUNY Fredonia.  I was Tim's throwing coach for the 04-05 and 05-06 seasons.  In our conversation this week, we discussed: 

1. Our time together at SUNY Fredonia 

2. How to establish expectations with athletes 

3. Differences between the JUCO, Division III, and Division II levels 

4. The difference between scholarship and non-scholarship athletes 

5. Wrestlemania and our coaching careers 

6. What it is like to coach an Olympian 

7. Coaching athletes of various ability levels 

8. Teaching throwers how to throw 

9. Mistakes we've made in coaching 

10. How to discuss goals with athletes

Confidence

You have invested an enormous amount of time preparing for your competition.  Use the meet as a reward to yourself for all the hard-work you have put into your training, throwing, nutrition, rest, recovery, and weight lifting sessions. This is the time to believe that our best effort will come out now!  This is the time to believe and trust in yourself that you have prepared to the very best of your ability for this upcoming competition.

Composure

Finding your optimal level of arousal takes time and deliberate practice.  As an athlete and high-level thrower, this is another key element in finding your desired level of success.  Maintaining a state of equilibrium is very necessary in throwing.  Having emotional outbursts on every throw during warm-ups may not physically prepare your body to compete when necessary, when the competition actually starts.  As an athlete, you can experiment in practice.  Be aware of your thoughts before you step into the circle.  Do you feel nervous?  Can you see your heart racing through your shirt?  Are you sweating profusely?  What I mention are all signs of composure.  Finding the right level of composure or arousal will give you a better opportunity to be successful when the competition begins.

Composure

Finding your optimal level of arousal takes time and deliberate practice.  As an athlete and high-level thrower, this is another key element in finding your desired level of success.  Maintaining a state of equilibrium is very necessary in throwing.  Having emotional outbursts on every throw during warm-ups may not physically prepare your body to compete when necessary, when the competition actually starts.  As an athlete, you can experiment in practice.  Be aware of your thoughts before you step into the circle.  Do you feel nervous?  Can you see your heart racing through your shirt?  Are you sweating profusely?  What I mention are all signs of composure.  Finding the right level of composure or arousal will give you a better opportunity to be successful when the competition begins.

The Skill of Focus

In order to prepare our physical and mental states for throwing, it is vital for us to be ready and prepared.  Our mindset and emotions control our physical states. There are five steps to creating a clearer focus for ourselves as throwers and what we want to accomplish. Incorporating the five steps to prepare ourselves and be ready to compete are critical components to your success as a thrower.

1. Be in the Present Moment

Distraction is our enemy.  When you are physically at a track meet, are you mentally present?  Are you engaged in your surroundings and what is going on around you?  Are you aware of what you may be feeling an hour before you throw, 30 minutes before you throw, during warm-ups, and during the competition.  Thinking about your homework, a conversation you may have had with someone that upset you, finishing a project, your significant other, or what you plan on doing after the competition with your friends will not prepare to compete well!  Distraction is the enemy!

2. Positive Strong Thoughts

I am a strong thrower.  I am fearless.  Be smooth. I’m ready.  I look good in the circle.  I feel good in the circle.  These are examples of positive strong thoughts that you can think before you step in the circle, while you are in the circle, or when you begin warming up for competition.  Having a positive belief statement is key in achieving optimal performance as an elite level thrower.  Remember, our thoughts control our physical responses to situations.  Having a positive belief statement will increase the likelihood of finding success in throwing.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share 3 strategies coaches and throwers can incorporate into their meet preparation for a 4 throw meet.

1. Encourage round 1 technique that helps make the thrower as comfortable as possible 

2. Only focus on 1 to 2 technical cues through the competition

3. View the competition from the mindset of round 1 encompasses the first 3 throws of a regular competition and that rounds 2 - 4 are similar to those if you made the finals

I'd like to take the time to express my gratitude to my current throwers and coaching staff at Alfred State for allowing me the opportunity to be your throwing coach.

As you have probably read or listened, the past couple of weeks I’ve shared a lot of strategies, suggestions, and tips for coaches and throwers when thinking about goals and the goal-setting process.  A central tenet of this process is establishing open lines of communication in sharing expectations with athletes, and in turn athletes sharing their expectations for themselves and their teammates.  Taking everything into consideration, a lot of this can be summed up with one word.

Reflective

Over the summer I shared a lot of thoughts about the importance of journaling and how keeping notes on training and throwing would serve as the ultimate accountability partner.  Taking the time to journal and write really causes someone to be reflective and think about what they want to accomplish.

To accomplish this one needs to think about where they came from, where they currently are, and where they want to go.

It might seem more difficult than it actually sounds, but broken down into small segments one can be honest with themselves about where they currently are and where they want to go.  Much of this comes from where they were.

An example might look like this.  Let’s say we have a senior thrower on our team.  As a junior they ranked in the top 50 nationally in the discus and competed in their last chance qualifier meet in both the discus and hammer.  Removing those that graduated, they return as a senior with a top 35 ranked discus throw and top 60 in the hammer.  Their aspirations for their senior year are to become an All-American in both the discus and hammer.

They came off a relatively successful junior campaign in which they improved their best discus mark by 6m, while also improving their hammer mark by 8m.  They made significant improvement from their sophomore year (COVID year) to their junior year (still under COVID restrictions, no indoor season).  The 2021-22 season will seem to allow more opportunity to throw with fewer travel and competitive restrictions in the North East.

Our current (November, 2021) indicators suggest that this thrower is on a positive trajectory towards accomplishing their two goals for the season.  Earlier in the fall this thrower hit discus marks over 50m in training, which lets us know that his aspiration of getting to nationals and earning an All-American award is fairly realistic.  To qualify for nationals, one needs to finish the season ranked in the top 24 in their respective event.  Hitting a mark to get there is obviously the first step, but what happens once at nationals is a completely different story.  

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss strategies you as a coach can easily incorporate in your conversations with athletes that help establish realistic expectations and goals with your athletes.

In my last post I shared some thoughts about early season training, the complexities of how our season is structured, and the processes we implement as the season rolls on.  All of those topics are centered around one core item, Time.

In total, 26 weeks may seem like a long season.  However, with the intermittent breaks along the way, some of the training time falls independently on each individual thrower.  We have 26 training weeks for our season, but with our scheduled breaks along the way, there is some time that is spent away from our facility.  It is what happens during that time that will either propel a thrower towards achieving their goals, maintain their technique without a fear of loss, or fall behind because the thrower didn’t train over their breaks.

You see, everyone has the same amount of time.  No college is granted more training weeks than others.  It is how the training weeks are utilized that ultimately makes a substantial difference in athlete successes.

How we spend our time is critical to ensure athlete success.  How that success is manifested is dependent on a few factors.  First, are athlete aspirations realistic to their current technical prowess or their future technical prowess?  Second, are athlete goals process based or outcome based?  Third, does the athlete have a specific technical focus they are working on in practice, or are they simply getting reps in for the sake of getting reps in?

This week begins our third week of practice for our throwers.  I’m writing this before our training session today, in which I am introducing a time management/goal setting activity with everyone.  This activity has a central focus of sharing the importance of time, to think about what we want to accomplish over the course of the season, and how our daily/weekly actions impact whether we move closer or farther away from our yearly aspirations.

Another central tenet of the activity is to think about team based expectations and how those expectations will be integrated into our daily practice sessions.  You learn a lot from individuals after having worked with them for a couple of weeks.  Our march towards our first meet begins to reveal certain personality traits of individuals, the eye of the tiger if you will.

Practice officially began a couple of weeks ago for our Alfred State throwers.  In the time we have had, everyone has worked diligently in honing their throwing craft or learning how to throw the various implements.  Efficient time management has been the conduit that has held things together.

We have 11 total throwers (4 women, 7 men).  Some of which are returning (7) and some are new (4).  Others have also never thrown before (2).  It is a great mix of personalities that has kept practice fun and interesting.

One thing that always creeps into my mind at roughly the same time every year is the amount of time (or lack thereof) we have before our first meet of the season.  Essentially, our throwers this year have 4 weeks of training before our first meet.  We lose a week for Thanksgiving, and when we return we have a day or two to train before a Friday meet.

When taking the whole indoor/outdoor season as a whole, we have roughly 26 training weeks allotted to us.  That takes into consideration the Thanksgiving break, winter recess, and spring break.  It really doesn’t leave that much time to train.

On the surface a 26 week season seems long.  Depending on your perspective you may think that you have plenty of time to achieve your goals.  From a different perspective it isn’t quite enough time.  As a former collegiate athlete, I had the former perspective.  As a coach, I tend to lean more towards the latter and think that we don’t have enough time.

A strategy that has assisted me and my athletes over the past few seasons has been to have a plan for each successive week based on aspects of their technique they (the athlete) wants to improve.  The emphasis leading up to the first meet is to ensure each athlete has the skills necessary to compete in a manner that shouldn’t lead to an injury.  What I mean by that is that each thrower should have mastered basic technique in order to compete in such a way that is healthiest for them.  I’ve been to plenty of high school meets over the years in which athletes are asked to throw (or maybe they want to) without proper form or technique that could lead to an injury.  You may be able to muscle around a 25# weight as a male thrower, but eventually bad form/technique might lead to an increased chance of injury.

For now, we are on the clock.  With roughly six practice sessions left until our first meet, our goals are to continue building upon the technical foundations we have already established while focusing on specific aspects of the throw that will provide the best opportunities for success.

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss ways in which you as a coach can begin to have a conversation with your athletes about goals/expectations/aspirations for the upcoming season.  

This season at Alfred State I have 6 returning throwers and 5 new throwers.  As a group we have a wide range of ability levels with regard to the individual throwing events.  It is my job as a coach to maximize the time we have together in practice, along with maximizing the expectations of each thrower in order to assist them in achieving their goal(s).  

This episode shares insight into how you as a coach can begin the conversation with your athletes, how to ask questions, how to provide autonomy, and ways to have your athletes think about their own goals and expectations for the upcoming season.

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I discuss our first training session as a group at Alfred State.  Our first training session as a group took place on Tuesday, November 2nd, 2021.  In total we have 6 returning throwers and 5 new throwers.  Some of our new throwers threw in high school and some did not, which made for some interesting dynamics at practice yesterday.  

This episode was recorded on November 3rd, 2021.  

First , when reflecting back on your season, it’s important to consider if you met and achieved the goals you set out to accomplish this season.  Nobody could have predicted the number of restrictions we would have faced and encountered this season.  With all the trials and obstacles in your way, how well do you think your season went?  

Did you accomplish your goal(s) (yes, no, both)?    Second, when reflecting back on your goals and if you accomplished them or not, another idea to consider is did you live up to your standards?  Did you hold yourself accountable to your goals, and did you spend purposeful time during the season on completing the mundane tasks that may have been required to achieve your goal(s)?  When you look back and think about the intermediate goals (microscope goals) you set for yourself, did you do what it would take to accomplish them?  

A microscope goal may have been to get at least 8 hours of sleep per night, go to the trainers room when I needed to, did I ensure I completed 3 or 4 weight room sessions a week, did I watch film of my throws, etc.  Finally, I ask you to consider two final thoughts.  First, how did you expect your season to go?  What were you expecting was going to happen?  In September or October what would your ideal season look like?  How did you expect it would end?  Why did you expect it to go that way?  Second, how do you feel your season went?  Did your early season expectations manifest themselves?  Did you envision yourself standing on the first place podium at the end of the season?  Did you expect your bench press or squat numbers to increase by 10% or 15%?    

Over the course of the past couple of weeks, I have written a lot about your window of excellence.  In essence, we only have a short amount of time to achieve greatness.  In this sense, the greatness I’m talking about is on the track, runway, and circle.    When you take the time to answer the questions above, I want you to be honest with yourself.  Did you achieve what you set out to do?  If you did, that is amazing and I applaud you for it.  When you think about all that you accomplished this year, what made that possible?  Now, on the flip side, if you didn’t achieve your goals, why do you think you didn’t?  What stood in your way from achieving your goals?  If you can answer these questions honestly and truthfully, you will better prepare yourself for the 2021-22 season.

The suggestions I’ve shared in the past are quite universal.  Get sufficient sleep (7-9hrs a night) instead of staying up playing video games or scrolling through social media until 4am.  Take advantage of the recovery protocols offered to you (especially at the collegiate level and maybe as a post-collegiate athlete as well) by visiting the athletic trainer if something doesn’t feel right, speaking to a nutritionist to discuss eating habits and proper fueling, and meeting with your strength and conditioning coach to discuss efficient recovery methods post weight room training.  Maybe sacrifice isn’t the right word in this instance.  Maybe the term sacrifice sends more negative vibes than positive ones.  If you have been watching some of the swimming and track and field Olympic Trials and listening to athlete post race interviews, you will see that they have dedicated their lives to their sport-which is why they are competing at the Olympic Trials.  Even take a listen to some of the interviews and sound bytes given by the high school age swimmers that have made the Olympic team in their respective events.  Even at the age of 15-18 they understand that they should and shouldn’t do certain things to give themselves the best chance to realize their goals.  I revisit the story I shared in the last article everyday.  At sometime during each day I’m reminded of what might have been, what could have been for the thrower I was coaching.  When athletes suggest to me they want to be an All-American or national champion I think about what the past All-Americans and national champions have sacrificed in order to achieve their unique goals.  Their individual journeys are no more unique to them than they are to those that win national titles in their respective events.  I believe that those athletes understand that they will need to do things others won’t do to achieve what others talk about but are unwilling to fully commit to.

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I share my end of year thoughts about our awesome 2020-21 season.  I also share a little bit about our summer programming and the importance of training while off for 3 months.

In Episode 12 of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I discuss a wide range of topics, such as;

1. Why I started this podcast three years ago

2. How to gauge your effort in competition

3. Do you compete like you practice

4. How my coaching philosophy has evolved over the past 16 years

5. Are you all gas no brakes or do you have a rhyme and reason for each throw in practice

In this week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I give a very detailed overview of our 2020-21 season at Alfred State.  We all overcame a lot of adversity as we traversed through this season.  I go into some detail about what that adversity was, how we overcame it, and what we will be working on as we prepare for the 2021-22 season.

Welcome back to another edition of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast.  I'm your host Charles Infurna.  Episode 10 was recorded on Tuesday, May 11th, 2021.  In this episode I provide a brief recap of our 2020-21 track and field season.  We still have a few more athletes competing over the course of the next couple of weeks in the hopes of moving up the national's list, so this episode provides a brief look behind the curtain.

This week's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast speaks about life, regrets, and windows of excellence.  This episode was recorded on Friday, April 30th, 2021.

As I reflect upon my time as a coach, I often think about the what if's that are associated with life in general.  As the athletes I coach approach graduation, I offer some type of life experiences and some suggestions about navigating life in the post-collegiate world.  For a majority of the athletes I've coached, the last time they compete in a track meet is the last competition of their collegiate careers.  I can only count on one hand how many athletes I've coached in college that went on to compete as post-collegiate throwers.  But the suggestions about life I give I think are universal to the fact that while they (my athletes) are still young and able, they should try to get as much out of their life before they think that they need to "settle down".  Now, settling down has different meanings for everyone, however the nuggets of advice I give are based on the missed experiences of my own life.

Like I tell my athletes, we make thousands of tiny decisions every day that often times will determine the outcomes of competitions later on down the road.  The little things we do or don't do today will catch up to us tomorrow, and those tiny decisions begin to compound.  As a post-collegiate student-athlete, the decisions we make might impact our lives immediately or later on down the road.  What job to accept, to buy a house or rent, buy a car or lease, etc. are some of decisions I talk to my athletes about.  I also talk about thinking about the future with retirement etc.  At the time these conversations may seem harmless or meaningless, I share my own experiences with my athletes because there may come a time when they make a decision because they feel as though they have to or because someone else thinks they have to make that decision.  

I've made a lot of decisions in life because I felt I had to or because other people expected me to.  They aren't always easy decisions to make, but then again you don't realize how impactful they are until it's too late.  

In this episode I discuss some of those decisions, how they impacted my life, and how they could have impacted others that have come into my life.  One of my favorite quotes from Jud Logan that compliments this episode nicely is, "Never take for granted your window of excellence."  I guess we never truly know how long our window in life will be open.  From my perspective, my window was closed before I even realized it was open.

In today's episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching podcast I spent some time discussing the idea that pressure is a privilege.  I first heard this expression at a sports coaching conference in June 2018.  It was mentioned in a discussion about peak performance, mindset and how athletes' thoughts control their emotions.  These positive or negative emotions would in turn cause our bodies to have a physiological response which would ultimately determine our performance(s) for that situation we would be in (sports, business, medical, etc.).

What’s the Difference?

If you’ve attended enough track meets in your career much like I have, you may have heard coaches and athletes or coaches and coaches discussing the topic of improvement and proficiency.  I overheard the conversation take place at the lone indoor meet we had.  The conversation wasn’t between coach and athlete, but rather between two coaches from two different teams.  To paraphrase, the conversation went something like this:

Coach 1:  This is our only indoor meet of the year.  I was hoping our athletes would have consistent performances in their events.

Coach 2:  Yeah, I was hoping our athletes would have improved their times from last week.

Coach 1:  How many meets have you had?

Coach 2:  This is our 3rd meet of the year.  With such a short season, I was hoping our athletes would make significant improvements in their main events from week to week.

Coach 1:  We wanted to have more consistent performances.

This conversation may sound far-fetched, but I’ve heard stuff like this a lot.  More often I’ve heard this conversation take place at either indoor or outdoor nationals.  The end goal there is to have a performance that is good enough to win, earn All-American status, and make the finals.  Not necessarily to have the best-looking technique or form.

So, what’s the difference?

Webster’s dictionary defines ‘improvement’ as the process of improving, having a performance that was better than your previous outcome.  ‘Proficiency’ is defined as the advancement in knowledge or a skill.  For this blog post, we want to improve upon our distance, height, or time from week to week.  We may not always set a personal best, but we want to improve upon those factors.  In the same sense, we want our technique to “look” better or become more “efficient”, thus removing some technical errors that may have existed in the past.  Essentially, we want our physical form to look better.  But an improvement in physical form may not necessarily equate to a better performance.  I use both terms quite often in practice.  Our goal there (in practice) is to improve our proficiency (technical form) because in the long-run better technique in the circle will in fact cause our distances (performances) to improve.  Does that make sense?

On Sunday our team competed at the Brockport Invitational meet.  Yes, the meet was held on a Sunday.  The week of practice and preparation leading up to the meet went pretty well.  Lots of good throws in practice, the throwers’ technical efficiency improved, and we had some strong performances in the weight room.  Then the competition began.

As a whole, the competition went fairly well.  We had lots of personal best and season best performances.  It was the distance of those performances that I think most of our throwers didn’t like.  

In my experiences as a throwing coach, I’ve come to learn, understand and accept the fact that the best week or weeks of practice does not always necessarily translate into a great or even good performance on meet day.  Ah, why is that you may be asking.  Well, here is a conversation I had with my athletes today about just that.

Coach (me): We won’t have practice today.  We’ll get back to it tomorrow.  
Thrower 1:  Are we still lifting today?
Coach (me):  Yes, you are still lifting, but no throwing.
Thrower 2:  Thank you coach.
Thrower 3:  Does anyone else feel tired, or is it just me?
Coach (me):  Although the actual volume of work conducted yesterday was relatively low, the intensity was very high-hence your fatigue today.
Thrower 3:  Oh, you’re a lot smarter than me coach.
Coach (me):  Well, let’s not get carried away here.  I think it’s important to take into consideration that a lot of factors play a role in fatigue.  Yesterday definitely plays a huge role.  Other factors like CNS, rest, recovery, and nutrition are also critical.
Thrower 3:  I just thought I didn’t sleep enough.  My brain lacks the wrinkles yours possesses.

Yes, that is the actual text exchange from earlier this afternoon.  And yes, that is how I respond to my athletes in our group chat.  And even further, those factors listed above do indeed play a role in fatigue and to a greater extent, performance.  So what’s the catch???

There isn’t one really.  Our performances as athletes, and in this case throwers, is often pre-determined by the factors above.  That isn’t 100% always the case, but in my experiences the few days and certainly weeks leading up to a meet determine the likelihood of perceived athlete success or less success (failure).

Welcome back to another episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast.  In this week's episode I spend some time providing a recap of our first outdoor meet of the season.  I also spend some time discussing the process of picking events moving forward throughout the remainder of the season. 

This past Friday our Alfred State throwers competed in their first meet of the 2020-21 season.  It was also the first time in many years that Alfred State had hosted a meet.  We had great weather, great competition, and exciting performances.

The meet began at 3:30pm, and all throwers were given 4 attempts per event.  We just finished up the men’s discus before dusk.

The men’s competition started off with the hammer.  Overall, we had our two best performances in the hammer throw.  Freshman Nate Chambers won the competition with a throw of 48.03m.  Directly on his heels was sophomore Dylan Perlino.  Dylan threw 47.88m.  Both of those performances qualify these two athletes for our regional championships in mid-May.  These two performances also rank Nate 3rd and Dylan 4th all-time in the hammer throw at Alfred State.  Also having strong performances were freshmen Joe Hammer, Devin Gross, and Wilfredo Rodriguez.  Joe finished with a personal best of 24.05m, Devin hit 21.51m, and Wilfredo threw 17.90m.

After the hammer, we transitioned to the shot-put event on the other side of the track and field complex.  As with the hammer, we had great performances here as well.  Dylan led our group with a toss of 11.17m.  Joe and Nate were right behind with tosses of 10.45m and 10.26m, respectively.  Wilfredo (9.57m), Jamison Pomroy (8.68m), and Devin (8.28m) all had personal marks.

Lastly, we wrapped up with the discus portion of the competition.  Beginning right around 6:45pm, we were able to get 44 discus tosses in before dusk.  Dylan led our throwers with a mark of 37.97m.  Nate and Wilfredo were right behind with throws of 36.70m and 26.52m.  Jamison, Joe, and Devin also had solid marks of 25.29m, 24.00m, and 23.99m respectively.

We began this spring semester with many unknowns.  We weren’t sure if we would have an indoor season, an outdoor season, or any seasons at all.  Beginning in January, we started having practices 2x per week from 8:30pm-10:30pm.  We made it through those late evening practice sessions and successfully transitioned to outdoor training outdoors.  There are still many unknowns left this season.  What we may have taken for granted in the past with Friday or Saturday track meets may go by the wayside.  We sit on the edge of our seats waiting for correspondence from other coaches and universities with updates about meet schedules, dates, and times.

In this episode I share some strategies for coaches who are practicing with their athletes later in the evening.  At Alfred State, for the time being we are practicing from 8:30pm-10:30pm three nights per week.  We'll be indoors through February and probably into the middle of March.  Without an indoor season to train for, a lot of our training time is going to be spent focusing on technique and the establishment of a throwing foundation for when we are able to transition outdoors with warmer weather.

One night a week my oldest son plays recreation soccer through our parks and rec department.  The age group he plays with is 7-10.  He is one of the youngest (7) on the team, but physically stands head and shoulders over most of the other kids.  There are two teams of 7 kids and each coach on the indoor field at the same time.  They begin with about 15 minutes of drill work, and then play short games (basically until one team scores).  After a goal the kids take a water break and then continue playing.

I enjoy watching my son play soccer for a multitude of reasons.  It gives us a chance to get out of the house together one night a week and talk about how things are going in his 2nd grade world.  I played soccer through high school, so I have a bit of an emotional attachment to the sport and think it’s wonderful that our two oldest enjoy playing it thus far.  Plus, I just enjoy watching him participate in things he enjoys doing.  He asked to play indoor soccer, and is just finishing up his second winter session of the year.  He asked to be signed up for another indoor session which begins in early March.

As the teams began playing, it was clearly evident that the other team had a couple of much more gifted soccer players on their team than our team.  If you have ever watched 7 and 8 year olds play indoor soccer you know what I’m talking about.  Most of the kids chase the ball around similar to a school of minnows swimming in the water.  But every once in a while there are a couple of really good kids that play as well, that don’t always chase the ball around the field.

Tonight one young man had five opportunities to score on our team, but the combination of our goalie and defensive players caused him much frustration.  Each time he got within 10’ of the goal he would either be met with a fury of defensive players or the goalie would be quick to capitalize on the loose ball and quickly scoop it up.  Each time he didn’t score he grew more frustrated.  His body language told me that he felt defeated in the fact that he couldn’t score or get a shot off because of the defense.  He kept trying until his 6th opportunity.

 It was on his 6th opportunity to score that if he would have continued with the same intensity as his first opportunity that he would have blown past the goalie and scored a goal.  On this attempt however, as soon as he kicked the ball towards the goalie, he put his head down and started running back on defense.  Well, as fate would have it, the ball rolled through our goalie’s outstretched arms and into perfect position for one of his teammates to kick the ball into the goal.  If this little man would have continued pursuing the ball after it left his right foot, he would have scored.

If you have read this far, you probably can guess what I’m going to wrap-up with.  Just don’t give up on what you are doing.  Keep moving forward towards whatever goal you want to accomplish and achieve.  I think at some point in everyone’s life they wake up one day and think to themselves that this day is the day to stop because continuing towards {insert goal here} is difficult and they think they haven’t made much progress.  It’s when we reach that point that we should double down and keep moving.  Sure, failure might be part of our journey, but it doesn’t have to end our progress.  Maybe we need to take a brief pause and find peace and gratitude in the current moment.  We can think of failure as a conditioning point that strengthens our resiliency.  How we respond to failure and disappointments as we are moving towards our goal(s) is important because it is in those moments that we ultimately create the outcome(s) we are competing for.

This week I got the chance to catch up with Kona and 70.3 World Championships Ginny Cataldi. By day Ginny is a middle school Art teacher. You can also say by day Ginny is a world class Triathlete. In this episode, Ginny and I discuss:

1. Her introduction to Triathlon

2. When Ginny realized she would have a bright future in Triathlon

3. Qualifying for her first Kona World Championships

4. Relationships and Triathlon

5. Balancing teaching and training

6. How to plan out a season

7. Training through a pandemic

8. Next steps into 2021

This week I had to catch up with world class Triathlete and super mom Kristen Lipscomb.  Kristen and I were teammates in high school (track and field).  We both competed in the throwing events, with some shorter races sprinkled in.  Since graduating from high school, Kristen has become a world class Triathlete, having qualified for the 70.3 world championships in 2020.  Besides being a world class athlete, Kristen is a wife and mom of two little ones.  Even after our interview, I still struggle with figuring out how she is able to balance a career, family, and training all through a world-wide pandemic.

In this episode, Kristen and I discussed:

1. All things Webster

2. Competing in high school track and field

3. Overcoming injuries in high school

4. Making the transition to Triathlon

5. When she realized she might be a "good" Triathlete

6. Racing for two

7. Managing a work-life balance

8. The mental conditioning required to race longer distances (half and full Ironman races)

9. What goes into the physical preparation of competing in longer distances

10. Advice for those interested in competing in Triathlon

This week I got the chance to catch up with Pan American Games Gold Medalist Olympic Weightlifter Alyssa Ritchey.  I was so pumped to conduct this interview that we just kept on talking!  Alyssa's weightlifting credentials are amazing:  

2019 Pan American Championship 2019; 1st for snatch, Clean & jerk, and total  

Strongest athlete pound for pound in the history of the USA for the clean and jerk at 107kg made at Pan Americans in 2019  

Pan American record holder for clean & jerk  

12th at World Championships in 2018  

4th at the Pan American Championships in 2018  

7th at World Championship in 2017  

Medalist at the 2017 Pan American Championships

3rd in total & 2nd in snatch  

5th USA woman to ever clean & jerk double bodyweight in the history of the USA made Pan Americans in 2017  

Alyssa is also a 4x Regional Crossfit Games competitor.  In this interview Alyssa and I discussed:  

1. Her childhood and how she got her start in athletics 

2. Her introduction to Olympic Weightlifting  

3. Competing in Crossfit 

4. Qualifying for Crossfit Regionals 

5. Making the transition to only Olympic Weightlifting 

6. Qualifying for her first international Olympic Weightlifting Team 

7. Traveling 

8. Cutting weight 

9. The USA Olympic Weightlifting International Team selection process

This week I got the chance to catch up with USC graduate and all-round badass thrower Nick Ponzio.  It was great conversation, one in which I realized that we have more in common besides throwing.  Nick's family came to the United States from Italy shortly after the conclusion to World War I, settled on the East Coast before finally settling in Southern California.  

In this episode, Nick and I discussed: 

1. Growing up Italian-American 

2. Picking up the shot as a junior in high school 

3. Selecting Florida 

4. Making the transition to USC 

5. How his family encouraged him to continue throwing post-collegiately 

6. Training in Arizona with Ryan Whiting 

7. Competing on the international stage 

8. Finishing 4th in the world 

9. Training for the 2021 season and Olympic Trials 

10. Advice for others stuck at a crossroads in their lives

This week I got the chance to catch up with master's world champion Olympic weightlifter Kristi Brewer. Besides being a world champion lifter, Kristi is also a world record holder and all world wife and mom. In this episode Kristi and I discussed:

1. Her introduction to Olympic weightlifting

2. When she realized she could be a "good" lifter

3. Qualifying for USA Nationals in her first competition

4. Competing internationally

5. Managing a home/training balance with her family 

6. Advice for new Olympic weightlifters

7. Making the decision to train full-time and get away from the corporate world

8. Next competition steps

In this episode I answered questions I received on Instagram.  

1.  How did you end up at Alfred St.?

2.  How do you set up your practice schedule through COVID restrictions?

3.  Best ways to keep kids engaged

4.  Thoughts on missing the indoor season

5.  Keeping athletes motivated with the potential loss of the indoor and outdoor season

In this episode I discuss how I got back into collegiate coaching by becoming the throwing coach of the Alfred State Pioneers.  I also share my thoughts about coaching through restrictions, quarantine, and limited schedules.

This week I got the chance to catch up with All American thrower Megan Tomei. Megan is the current throwing coach at YSU. In her brief stint as throwing coach, Megan has already led one YSU thrower to compete on the international stage. Megan is a graduate of Ashland University where she threw under the watchful eye of Jud Logan.

In this episode, Megan and I discussed:

1. How she first got involved in throwing

2. Why she decided to take her throwing talents to Ashland University

3. Overcoming injury and adversity at Ashland

4. The transition to a new coach and post-collegiate throwing

5. Maintaining a successful throwing/coach/life balance at YSU

6. Taking advantage of opportunities presented

7. What to make of training towards the 2020 Olympic Trials, now the 2021 Olympic Trials

8. Finding purpose in throwing

9. Establishing buy in with her athletes at YSU

It took us about five years, but we finally scheduled this interview and got it recorded.  I've known Dom for over 10 years.  We competed against each other.  We also coached against each other.  

In this episode, Dom and I discussed:  

1. Competing at the collegiate level 

2. Throwing in the SUNY Brockport system 

3. Post-collegiate throwing 

4. Coaching at the collegiate level 

5. Starting a business 

6. Training philosophies 

7. Training with a family 

8. Putting together a garage (barn) gym

This week I got the chance to catch up with Olympic Weightlifter Noel Leka.  Noel is a certified USAW-Level 2 coach as well as a CrossFit L1 coach.  He is also one of the top Olympic weightlifters in the United States, having competed at the previous two Arnold Classics.  In 2019, Noel earned the silver medal in the Snatch at the US Championships.  

In this episode, Noel and I discussed:  

1. His introduction to Olympic Weightlifting 

2. Moving to the United States at an early age 

3. Playing high school sports 

4. When he began taking Olympic Weightlifting seriously 

5. How coaching has helped him become a better lifter 

6. Competing at the Arnold Classic 

7. Expectations vs. the realities of Olympic Weightlifting 

8. Advice for new lifters and coaches 

9. The goal-setting process for each competition 

10. How to pick the right competition for you 

11. What he is focused on for the remainder of 2020

This week I got the chance to catch up with Hillsdale College throwing coach Jessica Bridenthal.  Jessica competed at Ashland University during her throwing career, racking up an incredible 12 All-American awards and a National Championship in the 20lb. weight throw.  After her collegiate throwing career ended, Jess set her sights on the Highland Games.  During her career as a Highland athlete, Jess won multiple world championships.  

In this interview, Jess and I discussed;  

1. How she got into throwing at Ashland 

2. Her transition from Basketball to thrower 

3. Competing for Ashland University 

4. Calling Adriane Blewitt Wilson 

5. Taking advantage of opportunities 

6. Throwing in the Highland Games 

7. Coaching and throwing 

8. Traveling around the world 

9. How Highland Games competition have helped with coaching throwers 

10. Coaching at the collegiate level 

11. Next endeavors

This week I had the chance to catch up with multiple time Highland Games World Champion Daniel McKim.  In this candid and humorous interview, Dan and I spoke at great length about:  

1. How he began throwing in high school 

2. Making the transition to collegiate thrower 

3. Not living up to expectations as a collegiate thrower (multiple nationals trips with one All-American award earned) 

4. Transitioning to Highland Games 

5. Realizing I might be good at this 

6. How an injury helped him focus more on competition 

7. What it is like to trade world championships with Matt Vincent 

8. Throwing with ghosts 

9. His last season as a thrower 

10. Advice for new Highland Games athletes 

11. Sorinex

In this episode of the Forza Athletics Life and Coaching Podcast I got the chance to catch up with my long time friend and new Director of Track & Field and Head S & C Coach at Alfred State Tim Giagios.  I've known Tim for 20 years, dating back to our high school days in Rochester, NY.  Tim and I also competed against each other in college, Tim as an athlete at Buffalo State and myself a member of the Fredonia State Blue Devils.    

In this episode Tim discusses the crazy path he has taken to secure his first head coaching position, first full time strength and conditioning position, what he has learned on the job the past couple of months, how to communicate with athletes, and what he has taken from his competing career and applied to his coaching one.  Tim joined Alfred State last January, 2019 as an assistant strength and conditioning coach.  In January, 2020 he was hired as Alfred State's director of track & field and head strength and conditioning coach.  Before joining Alfred State Tim and I were both assistant coaches at Nazareth College.  Tim began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant at Gates-Chili High School and as a member of the SUNY Brockport track & field coaching staff.  Tim has over 15 years of coaching and strength and conditioning experience, has coached multiple conference champions, All-Americans, and one National Champion.

Adriane (Blewitt) Wilson graduated from Ashland University (Ashland, Ohio) in 2004 with a degree in Physical Education and Health. As an NCAA Division II track and field athlete, she is a 13 time All-American in the shot put, discus, hammer and 20lb. weight throw. Adriane earned 7 NCAA Div II National titles and 6 Runner Up honors. She is the former NCAA Division II record holder in the discus and still owns the national indoor and outdoor shot put NCAA Div II records. As a professional track and field thrower, Adriane competed in three US Olympic Trials (’04, ’08, ’12) in the shot put. She is the 13th American woman to throw over 60’ in the shot put.

Adriane also trains for the Scottish Highland Games. She is a five-time Women’s World Champion and previously owned two world records in the 28lb. weight for height (19’ spinning) and 28lb. weight for distance (53’4”). Adriane is a PICP Level 1 coach and a certified Poliquin BioSignature practitioner. She is a Level 1 Sports Performance coach for USA Weightlifting and also a Level 1 Coach for USATF and USA Paralympics. In the past, Adriane was an Assistant Track and Field coach for the multi-events and throws and concurrently served as the Head Strength and Conditioning Coordinator at Tiffin University.

Most recently, Adriane has been chosen to coach adapted sport for our wounded, ill, and injured soldiers with Team Army at the Warrior Games (’16, ’17, ’18) and Team USA for the Invictus Games (’17, ’18). She has traveled all over the United States and internationally coaching Track and Field and Para Powerlifting.

This week I got the chance to catch up with fellow SUNY Fredonia alum Kelly Vincent.  Kelly was a standout distance runner as a student-athlete at SUNY Fredonia.  She is on multiple all-time top 10 lists across the many distance events she competed in.  After a brief stint as the recruiting coordinator at St. John Fisher College, Kelly returned to Fredonia as a full-time assistant coach in the summer of 2019.    

In this episode Kelly and I talked about:  

1.  Competing at SUNY Fredonia 

2.  Making the transition to coaching 

3.  The dynamics between her former coach with whom she is now on the same staff with 

4.  Recruiting 

5.  The relationship between COVID-19 and recruiting 

6.  The differences between recruiting at state schools vs. private schools 

7.  Steele Hall 

8.  Sunny's

This week I caught up with Wisconsin-Oshkosh throwing coach Mary Theisen-Lappen.    

In our interview this week, Mary and I discussed: 

1.  Her high school throwing career 

2.  Making the decision to throw in college 

3.  Why she choose one college over another 

4.  Post-collegiate throwing 

5.  The importance of making connections in the throwing world 

6.  Taking advantage of opportunities when they present themselves 

7.  The positive turn her weightlifting career has taken 

8.  Competing at the 2020 Arnold Classic 

9.  Her outlook/philosophy on coaching 

10.  Advice for new throwing coaches 

11.  Advice for individuals interested in taking up the sport of Olympic Weightlifting

This week I got the chance to catch up with 2x IPF World Powerlifting Champion Jen Millican.

In this episode Jen and I discuss how:

1. She manages a work/life balance between training

2. Working from home due to the COVID-19 virus

3. The importance of having a support system

4. Her approach to competing at the world championships

5. How visualization has positively impacted her powerlifting performances

6. The influence of social media on the world of powerlifting

7. How life changed after coming home a world champion, and;

8. Advice she has for today's powerlifters.

In this week's Forza Athletics Life & Coaching Podcast I spent some time catching up with National Champion and 4x All-American thrower Luis Rivera.    

I've known Luis for over 8 years and even I learned some new things about Luis from our chat.  In this video we discussed his story on first coming to the United States in 9th grade, how he made the decision to attend Nazareth College, being discovered, dropping a class, his collegiate career, graduate school, and finally making the decision to move to Ashland to train with Jud Logan.

We came back for a second interview with Highland Games professional thrower Matt Hand.  Matt is a graduate of SUNY Brockport that has made a successful transition to the world of Highland Games.  

In this episode Matt and I discuss:

This past weekend I attended a Division III track & field meet at Nazareth College.  While I was sitting in the bleachers, two coaches standing in front of me had this conversation:  

Coach 1-How was conference last week?  

Coach 2-Not that good.  We should have won, but didn't.  

Coach 1-What happened?  

Coach 2-Our best athlete didn't perform as well as he should have.  His girlfriend of 7 years broke up with him the week before and he didn't compete well.  

Coach 1-Really?  

Coach 2-Yeah, he competed really (insert four letter word here).  I didn't find out about his girlfriend breaking up with him until after the meet.  

For all the coaches out there, should this particular athlete's heartache affect his athletic performance?  If you were his coach, how would you have handled this.  First, as this athlete's coach, do you think you should have been aware of this situation ahead of time?  Second, how would you have handled the situation if you learned about it before the conference championships?  Learning about this after the conference meet was over, would you approach the athlete and engage him in a conversation about this situation?

In this episode I continue to conversation from last week about re-evaluating expectations and the work it truly takes in order to move forward in a positive manner throughout your throwing journey.

I do want to revisit this topic again because I think it is important to provide coaches out there with some strategies and tools they can implement when encountering situations like this.  First off, I’d like to share some feedback I received when I was working on a project a couple of years ago.

The scope of my project was to ask post-collegiate throwers why they continued throwing after graduating from college.  I was really fortunate to interview three American Olympians for the project.  I cannot share their names or the events they competed in because it would give away their anonymity (and would show poor ethics on my part).  

While I was conducting the interviews, I asked everyone the same follow-up question about how much time each individual spent training per week and season.  When I interviewed the Olympians, I asked them how much time they spent training for the respective event per Olympic quad.

I asked our social media friends on Tuesday if they had any ideas about podcast episodes.  I received two great ideas from a graduate assistant throwing coach in the Mid-West.  Her first question was about making the transition to post-collegiate throwing.  In this episode, I discuss three facets I think are important when making a successful transition to post-collegiate throwing.

1.  Why do you want to continue throwing post-collegiately

2.  What sacrifices are you willing to make in order to achieve your goal(s)

3.  Do you have a support system that is as enthusiastic about you achieving your goal(s) as you are

We began this season by looking at our vision as a coach, why we coach, and how we want to be remembered.  Looking at Episode 3, the focus was on the end of our career's.  In this episode, I wanted to spend some time discussing how to develop your coaching philosophy.  Our philosophy will change a little bit as we move along with our coaching journey, but some of our core values will remain the same.

My philosophy is to illuminate a path for my athlete's that helps them achieve their goals.  I'm ashamed to say that it wasn't always as such.  When I first began coaching my philosophy was "coach-centered".  I was more concerned with what my peers would think of me and how far my athletes threw.  That was pretty much it.  As I have traveled along in my coaching journey, I've had a paradigm shift in the way I coach.  My focus is now "athlete-centered".  I provide my athletes a lot of autonomy in regards to their training, goals, meet selection, etc.  When I first began coaching, I didn't feel comfortable with athlete input.  Now I thrive upon learning more about myself as a coach and most importantly what my athletes think and how I can better coach my athletes throughout the course of a season and their careers!

What is your coaching philosophy?  Has it changed since you began coaching?  Why or why not?

It probably isn't something we think about often, but do you ever wonder what people will say about you at your 80th birthday party?  Or, has the thought of what will people say about me at my funeral come across your mind?  If you answered no, you are probably in the majority.  I'm not sure how many people think about these two questions on a daily or even regular basis, but I think about it quite often.

In one of my doctorate courses we were asked to present our future legacy to the class.  We were instructed to think about the two questions above, and to provide examples of how we think we had left or would leave our legacy.  We had 30 minutes to give our presentation.  It was a surreal presentation to say the least.  My presentation was filled with tears.  Not of sadness, but of joy.  I asked four former athletes to send me a 30 second video explaining to the class the legacy they think I left upon them.  I didn't watch the video's until class that night.  It was a big chance, but I wanted my expression to be genuine.  I think we all do, don't we?

My homework for those of you that listened to this episode.  On a 3x5 index card, write down what you think your coaching legacy will be.  Be as detailed as possible.  Second, after you have written down your legacy thoughts, under each one provide an example or two that suggests you might really be left with this legacy.  This is your opportunity to share all the good things you perceive to have done during your time as a coach.  You don't need to show anyone anything, but be honest with yourself.  How do you think people will remember you?  They may forget all about the awards and championships, but I'm positive they won't forget how you made them feel.

In our first episode of Season 2020 I discussed what it means to find your purpose, North Star, or why.  There are many terms used by many different social influencers out there, so you can decipher for yourself which term you most prefer.

When you understand your purpose for doing what you do, it'll make doing your What so much more rewarding for you.  In my example, my purpose is to propel athletes into leaving their positive mark on the world.  I am able to guide and mentor athletes by meeting them at speaking engagements, via social media (on-line coaching), and in person coaching.  

My what is the coaching itself!  It is one of the most rewarding experiences I get to enjoy everyday.  I don't consider coaching a job.  It is a passion of mine that I have had for a very long time.  In some cases, the two hours I spend coaching my collegiate and high school athletes is the best part of my day (on-top of the time I get to spend with my family at home).  

Now the question is up to you, how does your passion and why fuel your what?  If those two elements don't line up, what can you do about that?  In this episode I provide some tips and suggestions for you that are easily transferable to other parts of your life besides just coaching and working with high school, collegiate, and post-collegiate athletes.

Mel Herl is a 2x Division II National Champion and multiple time All-American.  Not only is she a decorated thrower, but an exceptional Olympic weightlifter as well.  In our 3rd interview, Mel discussed;  

1. Her late start to throwing at the high school level 

2. The transition to collegiate throwing at the Division II level 

3. How the relationship with her coach played a role in her throwing performance(s) 

4. Graduating from college and figuring out what to do next 

5. Throwing at the USA Indoor and Outdoor National Championships 

6. Making the transition to post-collegiate throwing 

7. Finding a new coach 

8. Trying Olympic weightlifting 

9. Moving across the country multiple times 

10. Making the transition to coaching, and; 

11. Advice for post-collegiate athletes

I had the honor to spend some time discussing throwing, training, and the work/life balance with Highland Games Professional Thrower Matt Hand.  Matt has been involved with the Highland Games for over 15 years.  In this episode he discusses how he got into throwing, training at two different colleges, making the transition to the Highland Games, turning pro, competing around the world, while balancing everything will a full-time job.    Matt lives in Corning, NY, and offers coaching and clinics throughout the year.  You can contact Matt directly through social media on Twitter and Instagram @MattHandThrows.    Even though I've known Matt for a very long time, I learned some new things today about him, how he plans his programming, and what he 5-15 year plan is for growing the Highland Games.

I had the great pleasure and honor to spend some time speaking with Sean Foulkes.  He is an amazing throwing coach at Portage Northern High School located in Michigan.  In his brief time there, he has coached a multitude of great shot-put, discus, hammer, and weight throwers.  

In this episode we spend some time discussing how he got into coaching, what it's like to coach 30-40 throwers in one session, bringing kids together, culture, buy-in, and his coaching philosophy.  I learned a lot from Sean.  I know you will as well!