Old Forum S&S, GPP, and High School Sports

[Jeff]

Pavel states in S&S that unless someone has a broad GPP base, and are competing at a high intermediate level in a particular sport, then they are better served by a good GPP program than by a sport specific program.  How would that be applied in the case of high school athletics?  If Joe Bob plays football, Cindy runs 400 meters, and George throws the shot, what would you have these athletes do?  I am speaking hypothetically here since I am not a coach and don't have the ability to change the way high school athletes are trained.  But, if a broad base of GPP should be established prior to sport specific training, does that mean it would be more beneficial for athletes playing these very different sports to complete some form of GPP such as S&S and then practice their sports with a minimum of other types of strength and conditioning?  How would you structure the programs for various types of athletes, and what would you cut out that you might typically see in the typical programs?

 

[Dan John]

Well, that's my life's dilemma in a question. Coaching HS with kids that are "concentrating" on a sport (single stupidest idea ever) with a kid who has a personal training next to a kid who does four sports next to a an exchange student that doesn't speak English and...

 

With HS kids it comes down to teaching. Think about what you learn in History class, for example. You might teach Anglo-Saxon England in a day or less and just sniff on a few topics. You might barely mention the  poetry, the riddles and Beowulf. But, the students were exposed and maybe a student or two a decade would go deeper.

So, you teach HS athletes how to do O lifts, powerlifts, the KB world, tumbling, sports and games. I was lucky to have a lot of kids go on to the next level where they could get deeper, but the majority just need enough information and training to maintain a level of lifelong fitness.

Teaching a class just the swing and the Get Up is sound, I did it for my all female class for 9th and 10th grade girls. But, between just boredom and the realities of the weightroom, I expanded this into a lot of different things....including some fun "fighting sessions" that include kicking, striking and attack.

As good as any program is on paper, you have to expand the tool kit. Now, we all know that greatness comes from the ability "not to get bored looking at the same play" over and over, but in the case of most kids, they need to taste more of strength and conditioning.

I write a lot on this topic. On my site, you can find past issues of Get Up! and my blog which discusses this in more depth.

My elite kids have always told me later that it was the boring and dirty work that makes the difference. That is great. 99% of the kids don't need four years of the same exact thing.

 

[Ace83]

Thanks John, your responses are helpful as always. Do you recommend just perusing the old issues or is there somewhere specific I should look?

Its hard to know at the time who is going to "get it" and who its going to wash off of. I have some of your other books, have you written a book just about training teens? Your insights would be very appreciated.

 

[crash123]

i have been working with my 9th grade daughter this winter on implementing a strength building program that she can do daily that won't interfere with whatever sport she happens to be playing in season. so i'm not looking to change what she's being taught by the h.s. coach , but adding a program that can be a daily practice she can take with her from season to season and beyond.  simple enough, right … S&S.  BUT … she's a 14 yr old and not really interested in those ridiculous cannonballs her dad swings around. plus with the warm up included, S&S when first teaching the progressions can take 30 mins.  and 30 mins is a LIFETIME.  so what's a poor guy to do? well, i discovered she doesn't mind the cannonballs, but the TIME was a major downer for her.  so, with a lot of help from Dan John's Intervention and the library of Pavel's books i put together a SHORT & SIMPLE (that's the S&S for teens when coached by their parents) program which she doesn't mind and i believe will deliver in the long run.  she starts with pelvic tilts as outlined in S&S, with the shoe between the knees (we use a stuffed animal) then she does 3x5 kb deadlift and 5TGUs per side and one short farmers walk.  that's the day.  it takes 7 minutes.  next day, pelvic tilts, goblet squats 3x5, 5 TGUs per side, one short farmers walk. another 7 minutes.  repeat those 2 days 3x then take a day off.  it doesn't seem like much, but i think thatcs the key.  her goal was to get stronger (her words) and be competitive in whatever sport she is playing.  my goal was to find something that would introduce her to kettle bells and start to build an appreciation for how "short and simple" can build lifelong conditioning. I will gradually have her increase the weight, but nothing crazy.  as Dan John states in Intervention, when a girl can deadlift 275, great things begin to happen on the playing field.  if she can maintain this daily routine for even a year (we set a goal for the year end 2014 to deadlift the beast and do her get-ups with a 30lb bell) then she will see great results and by the time she is a senior in high school, a 275 deadlift and a TGU with a 24kg kettle bell might just be in the cards.  Short & Simple - the early teens S&S!