Archive for April, 2014

Awesome Article on What D1 Lacrosse Coaches Do With Their Own Kids

Posted in Guest Authors, Injuries, StrengthCoach.com Updates, Training, Training Females, Youth Training with tags , , on April 30, 2014 by mboyle1959

Nothing is more telling than what we do as a parent. I have said this over and over. We need to lead our kids ( and maybe force them) in the right direction.

In my case my 14 year old daughter plays ice hockey at a national level but plays soccer, has competed in Judo ( Mass State Champ at age 10) as well as swimming and diving. I am just now letting her specialize in her chosen sport, ice hockey.

My 9 year old plays ice hockey, baseball, lacrosse and has done swimming, flag football and soccer.

Take a look at what Division 1 Lacrosse coaches do with their kids.

Thanks to Chris Leavy for this one.

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NHL Players Began Specializing Later Than You Think

Posted in StrengthCoach.com Updates, Training, Training Females, Youth Training with tags , on April 27, 2014 by mboyle1959

If you are a hockey parent with a 10 year old who played 80 games last year, take a look at this?

Age of Specialization Chart

Is Foam Rolling Bad for You?

Posted in Uncategorized on April 25, 2014 by mboyle1959

Just wanted to throw this one up again. Huffington Post had a few anti-rolling pieces so I thought this might be worthwhile to read again.

Michael Boyle's Strengthcoach.com Blog

Is Foam Rolling Bad for You? ( originally written for StrengthCoach.com )

As is always the case in life on the internet, someone has to decide to take the other side of an argument.

I often think that those who do so are simply looking for recognition in a crowded field.

Recently, we have had two widely distributed “articles” critical of foam rolling. ( Get Off the Foam Roller) . More recently Huffington Post even got into the act with some really bad information. (5 Foam Rolling Mistakes to Avoid)

I find it funny because it seems difficult to me to criticize something that universally makes people feel better.  In one article (which was actually written four years ago), the author makes the very basic case that pain is bad and the foam roller causes pain; therefore, the foam roller must be bad too.

I am not discounting…

View original post 873 more words

Just Because You Volunteer Doesn’t Mean You Have Any Less Responsibility

Posted in Guest Authors, Hockey, Training, Uncategorized, Youth Training with tags , on April 24, 2014 by mboyle1959

Great piece from my good friend Anthony Donskov

I write this article as a Coach, not as a niche strength and conditioning professional, but as a Coach. The word Coach has tremendous meaning and implication regardless of sport or activity, paid or unpaid. We are life changers! We have the ability to instill values, create work ethic, and provide a positive culture for young men and women. Ask any middle aged person and chances are some of the most important and influential people in their lives have been coaches. This is a responsibility, and with great responsibility comes accountability! Regardless if you are a paid professional or a volunteer, you have the ability to change lives! Just because you volunteer doesn’t mean you have any less responsibility!

Most (not all) volunteer coaches have their children actively participating in the respective sport/activity. I’m sure everyone’s heart is in the right place, but consider, youth coaching has a profound impact on overall athletic development. Here’s how:

Motor patterns are groomed
Neuro-muscular patterns are set
Habits (good or bad) are ingrained
EXPERIENCES are remembered! Did the kids have FUN?
coach22

I have witnessed youth hockey practices where young children spend 40 minutes of a 50-minute practice standing in line waiting for drills. Is this fun? Is this organized? Are kids developing? Full field youth soccer scrimmages where athletes never touch the ball. I have also seen 90-minute youth football practices where coaches are talking systems without developing any type of skill set (running, catching, throwing, changing direction). It’s great that young Tommy knows the fly right, catch 22 pattern, but he can’t run OR catch the ball so how the hell is he going to get there? Below are three things that need to be considered before you volunteer as a coach.

Make the Choice: I have tremendous respect for anyone who volunteers his/her time. Everyone has a schedule to keep and volunteer coaches are no different. Time is a huge factor. Having a full time job and family make it difficult to plan and organize practice. If your not organized, your players will take notice. Make the choice to be organized! Whether that’s learning from an experienced coach, stealing practice plans (there are great practice resources all over the internet), or going to a few lectures. This IMPACTS the environment and aids in development! Make the choice! You have a responsibility to do so! You’re a COACH!

Keep Moving: When in doubt, keep kids moving. Jumping, running, throwing, catching, skating, stick handling, shooting, passing are all fundamental movements/skills that must be mastered before any system work commences. It’s also FUN! I call this camouflage work. Kids are having so much fun they don’t even know their working.

FUN: Kids want to have fun! Waiting in line isn’t fun, nor is a 2-1-2 fore-check system for a nine year old or playing soccer without touching the ball. Divide the field/ice. Allow kids to play small area games with the ball/puck. This promotes fast decision-making, running, skating, passing, stick handling, teamwork; ball/puck touches and is a ton of FUN!

Being a Coach is an honor and privilege. It holds more validity than we may ever know to the young men and women that we come in contact with. Just because you’re not getting paid doesn’t mean this doesn’t apply to you. Make the choice, keep moving and have Fun! In twenty years you may have changed more lives than you possibly could have imagined. This is worth more than money can buy!

Anthony Donskov, MS, CSCS, PES, is a former collegiate and professional hockey player, founder of Donskov Strength and Conditioning Inc., (www.donskovsc.com) and Head Instructor/Director of Off-Ice Strength and Conditioning for Donskov Hockey Development (www.donskovhockey.com). He can be reached at info@donskovsc.com .

Ten Things That Truly Passionate People Do Differently

Posted in Guest Authors, MBSC News, Media, Random Thoughts, Uncategorized on April 22, 2014 by mboyle1959

This is a great post from a site called EliteDaily.com that might make some of you feel better about your behavior.

http://elitedaily.com/money/entrepreneurship/10-things-that-truly-passionate-people-do-differently/

Functional Strength Coach 5 is Out

Posted in Uncategorized on April 21, 2014 by mboyle1959

I’m a little late to my own party. You might have gotten this a few times today but just in case you didn’t

http://functionalstrengthcoach5.com

Tracy Anderson?

Posted in MBSC News, Media, Random Thoughts, Strength Coach Podcast, Training, Training Females, Uncategorized with tags , on April 17, 2014 by mboyle1959

I love this blog post. A little honesty never hurts. One of my favorite pieces of BS ( maybe not specifically uttered by Tracy) is the “this workout will give you long, lean, dancers muscles”. Guess what. The only way to get longer muscles it to get longer bones. Bones determine muscle length, period. Read this, please

My Beef With Tracy Anderson

http://www.bowflexinsider.com/my-beef-with-tracy-anderson/

 

Working the Floor?

Posted in Guest Authors, Random Thoughts, StrengthCoach.com Updates, Training, Training Females, Uncategorized with tags , on April 16, 2014 by mboyle1959

This was a great article for any personal trainer from our Strengthcoach.com site

I just read a thread in the Business Forum that had advice that blew me away. I’m not sure how many readers visit the Business Forum so I’d thought I summarize some of our readers’ thoughts on working the floor in a commercial gym. The value in this advice is tremendous and the reality is, this is where many of us start our careers. If I’m guessing your are getting the benefit of 70-80 years of experience here.

Steve Head- Sport and Health Inc Master Trainer

Before you “correct” someone (assuming not in eminent danger), introduce yourself. Learn their name, and use it every chance you get for a couple weeks, then after you’ve built a bit of rapport, they are far more likely to be open, receptive as oppposed to closed and defensve, which is a far more typical reaction. ?Make it a point, everyday to meet and learn the names of 5 members. I have picked up numerous clients with whom I did this, even if it was several months later. If, when they decide on training, guess who they are going to hire? You!

T o read the rest go to http://www.strengthcoach.com/members/Working-the-Floor.cfm

12 Empowering Lessons from Warren Buffet

Posted in Uncategorized on April 15, 2014 by mboyle1959

PLEASE NOTE, I DIDN’T WRITE THIS  it was written by Vishnu Verma on April 3, 2014 at http://www.addicted2success.com

Warren Buffett Billionaire
An Entrepreneur, a philanthropist, a billionaire and an extra ordinary genius investor, Warren Buffett is the fourth richest man in the world and the second richest man in the United States after Bill Gates.

Warren Buffett began investing at the ripe young age of 11 and by the age of 13 he was into his own business as a paper-boy, selling his own horse racing tip sheets. Nowadays, Buffett is the Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a multinational Corporation with a net worth of $162 Billion in revenues, as of 2012. But the better part of him, apart from his money and businesses, is his ethics and moral values. He is truly a philanthropist who has vowed to give away his entire wealth of $58.5 Billion to Charity.

Throughout his life, Warren Buffett has shared some worthwhile thoughts on life, generosity, money and investments.

Here are the top 12 Empowering Lessons from Business Magnate Warren Buffett.

1. Value Your Reputation
It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently. ~ Warren Buffett

Value your own self and your company’s reputation the most. As he says, it may take plenty of time to build a reputation but only a single deed to lose it in a puff. So build your reputation and never do anything that could compromise it.

2. Work For a Better Future
Someone’s sitting under the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. ~ Warren Buffett

If you aspire for a better future, then you must sow the seeds accordingly. What you enjoy now is the result of your previous efforts. You have to put all your sweat in what you do and make the most now, to lead a better future.

3. Bring Value
Price is what you pay. Value is what you get. ~ Warren Buffett

You value any brand because of its services, it’s the same thing which is applicable to you when you provide your own service. Your brand’s value is determined by the service you offer.

4. Be Around Better Company
It’s better to hang out with people better than you. Pick out associates whose behaviour is better than yours and you’ll drift in that direction. ~ Warren Buffett

If you want to be successful than you must be surround yourself with successful people, you tend to become that with whom you spend your time most. So choose wisely the people you spend your time with.

5. Patience Is The Key
NO matter how great the talents or efforts, some things just take time. You can’t produce a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant. ~ Warren Buffett

Apart from the talent and all the persistent efforts you make, what matters the most is patience. You need to have patience to achieve success in any endeavour you take.

6. Take Calculated Risks
Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing. ~ Warren Buffett

You must take risk but it should be a calculated risk. Calculated risks are the risks which you take after considering a lot and you know exactly what you’re doing. It is better to take calculated risks rather than running from facing risks.

7. Do What You Love
There comes the time when you ought to start doing what you want. Take a job that you love. You will jump out of bed in the morning. I think you are out of your mind if you keep taking jobs that you don’t like because you think it will look good on your resume. Isn’t that a little like saving up sex for your old age? ~ Warren Buffett

Simply, do what you love. Most of the people are just ruining their lives by living on other’s interest. Follow your passion; find that job in which you find leisure. The day when you don’t feel your work as a job anymore that is the day you’ll taste the satisfaction of a success.

8. Know Your Competition
In the business world, the rear-view mirror is always clearer than the windshield. ~Warren Buffett

Knowing your competition is always better than knowing yourself. To keep a track on your competition is a must for any business. Successful businessmen always see how their competitors have performed in the past and measure where they may need to head in the future if they want to take edge over others.

9. One Step At A Time
I don’t look to jump over 7-foot bars: I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over. ~ Warren Buffett

No one is really an overnight success; you’ve got to take baby steps towards your success. Always take small and sustained leaps to your end goal and aim for efficiency by knocking each talent down 1 at a time.

10. Learn To Say “No”
The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything. ~ Warren Buffett

You have to pick the your ventures carefully and start saying “no” to the nuisance ideas around you, by doing this you would definitely become a winner. Too many eggs in the basket can burden the load.

11. Honesty Is A Rare Policy
Honesty is a very expensive gift, don’t expect it from cheap people. ~ Warren Buffett

Don’t expect everyone around you to be straight forward with you. Stay close to those who are loyal, honest and true. Keep safe people around you.

12. Take Control
You’ve gotta keep control of your time and you can’t unless you say no. You can’t let people set your agenda in life. ~ Warren Buffett

You are the master of your life and you should never give the steering wheel of life to any other. You must take control and sail your self, don’t get carried away by the tides. Time is your most valuable asset, so use your time very wisely.

Be Thankful Every Day

Posted in MBSC News, Media, Random Thoughts, StrengthCoach.com Updates with tags , , on April 13, 2014 by mboyle1959

My family and I have had the best weekend. My daughters National Camp hockey tryouts coincided with the US Championships in Sled Hockey.  We got to meet Jen Li the US Paralympic Sled Hockey Goalie and as well as Team USA star Rico Roman. Inspiring really doesn’t do justice to these men. In addition we met our new friend Shane, a 13 year old sled hockey player from Minnesota who might be a bigger inspiration than the first two. We sometimes need these reminders about just how lucky we are. Thanks to all of the players we got to watch and meet for some invaluable life lessons for me and for my family.

 

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