My 9 Problems With NCAA Strength & Conditioning Coaches

[@GarageStrength]

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[@Theplaymaker1271]

This video is like 50 years overdue

[@GarageStrength]

i like to be fashionably late 😉

[@jordansmith9947]

I like how he becomes visibly more irritated the farther he goes down the list.

[@GarageStrength]

😤😤😤

[@matthewsovine4430]

That's how you know he cares

[@jarredmalcolm638]

I played D3 football for 2 seasons at the age of 27 and 28 after getting out the army...when forced to do the “s&c coach’s blanket program” i would never make the gains(strength and speed wise) that i would when i would do “individualized” personal/positional programming...would come back after the summer with huge gains and theyd ask how i got them and id tell them “i threw away your program and got an individual one” haha they never enjoyed hearing that 💪🏻🏈🚒

[@Jonathanjurewicz]

So true. Off the shelf programs for athletes never work. It’s hard, but each athlete requires something different yet similar with each nuanced workout.

[@GarageStrength]

yeah. its hard to cater to everyone. Should be happy you took the initiative.

[@lachronic7821]

This is a question for the original poster, but did you ever feel or were made to feel odd about being possibly the oldest in the locker room, or did no one really care about your age?

[@Jonathanjurewicz]

@@nikolasmakarios904 I agree with you. At some point strength coaches have a scalability issue. But that’s Dane’s underlying point, college S&C coaches aren’t there for “everyone’s success” they are there for the teams success. Connect with me on IG @coachjj.495Strength and let’s chat more!

[@maximusdecimusmeridious3784]

I was the same way, my strength coach was awful and I had To rely on myself to get my workouts in at the nearest 24 before our “team sessions”. Felt like we got cheated out of a quality S&C program in college

[@Papa.BearOz]

#9. School schedule sets up the rest of the student athletes schedule. They have class during the day so it’s either before or after the school day. Sport coaches don’t want to practice before school so it’s the weight room at 5-7am

[@jimmypuchalski7755]

Dead on. Also they have to share the weightroom with other teams in Olympic sports. some sports take priority over others. Can only fit so many athletes in the weightroom at once

[@davidlaush180]

While that might be the case due to the demands of school, it doesn't change the science that athletes need sleep in order to perform at a higher level.

[@XxnkklllllxX]

@@davidlaush180 his point is it’s not the strength coach’s choice. They have to balance a couple hundred athletes, both in and out of season over the course of a week, their practice schedule, and their course load. It’s a result of them being student athletes that they have to have suboptimal practice schedules, not necessarily the fault of the strength coach

[@davidlaush180]

@@XxnkklllllxX Oh for sure, the blame isn't on the strength coach. I wasn't intending to imply it was. It's just the fact that school schedules affecting the day to day schedule have no bearing on what science says is best for 18-22 year olds. That is all. However as you stated, what is ideal is rarely realized because of the realities of being a student athlete.

[@dragonage200]

I went to a d2 school, and had no delusions about making an extended living off sports, so the student part of student-athlete always took priority over the athlete part. The first 2 semesters i had classes from around 9-noon, and then flight training in the evenings, and since i went to school in florida, there’s no way i’m running outside in the afternoons, so that left me with finishing workouts+recovery+breakfast before 9am. After that i switched to flying at 6am, followed by classes, then working out in the evening, which was definitely the way my body prefers it

[@rdog657]

This man is Joel Seedman’s worst nightmare...good job!

[@GarageStrength]

😂😂

[@mountainstomarshes8966]

lmfao, that guy is a complete fucking tool

[@turkeyhunter1972]

My kid was picked on a little about his weight lifting shoes by his buddies this year. They learned quick when they heard those shoes “clack” on the floor, he was probably doing more weight than any of them. They have since started asking where they can get some.

[@GarageStrength]

That's crazy! love hearing stories like this 👆

[@cartermoore58]

First one is so factual I’m a D3 swimmer I never had an injury until I started having 5am weights every morning, it’s just too early to get enough sleep and it leaves me taking naps all the time too

[@GarageStrength]

It's really unfortunate and needs to change. Thank you for sharing 👍

[@colemoos9787]

Dane, as a former power 5 football player(2016/2017), P5 S&C intern(2018), and now a HS strength coach in Oklahoma, I thought I'd share a few of my own thoughts and experiences on your list. Thankfully the staff I played and interned under had some great coaches that I was able to learn from, and continue to learn from now. First off, solid video, and I would agree as I've seen all of these issues in NCAA and even high school strength and conditioning. Number 6: I once heard a P5 football S&C coach tell his team that they weren't allowed to wear knee sleeves or weightlifting shoes because they aren't "weightlifters" and then go on to use many weightlifting movements in their training, which makes no sense at all to me. I also know for sure of two P5 football schools that perform all cleans, including max attempts, in straps. Mind boggling to me. Number 3: I see your point on the gadgets, but I also think if used correctly they can be very useful. I'm a big believer in tracking data(running speed/volume, bar velocity at times, force plates) and I believe that collegiate athletes are perfectly capable of benefiting from those tools. I believe that these tools can help the coach with programming, more so than the athlete knowing their bar velocity or what have you. Number 2 on your list drives me crazy as well, and I hate to admit it but I even have some close friends in the field that believe the olympic lifts are 'too hard to teach' and believe that sprints, jumps, or throws provide the EXACT SAME benefit. Number 1 just shows that it's often a 'who you know' field not 'what you know.' This can allow people who really don't know what their doing to get really high paying jobs at big school. Anyways, just my 2 cents. -Cole Moos

[@GarageStrength]

Thanks Cole! This is great insight. Thank you for sharing. it's awesome hearing stories from someone who lived it. Wish you the best 💪

[@zxsw85]

Wow legit answer thanks for sharing

[@johnledieff6878]

Oh man, I totally agree. We had to lift at 6:00 a.m. when I was in College. I lost strength, couldn’t figure out why.

[@GarageStrength]

Hard part of the gig. No doubt.

[@martymorse2]

Excellent presentation. I worked for 25 years as the Head S&C Coach with elite wheelchair athletes at a Big Ten University. I was the first traumatic spinal cord injured paraplegic to become a certified NSCA S&C coach. Our athletes had the highest standards of biomechanical evaluation of each lift and they were supervised by two or three certified coaches at all times. We were light years ahead of any other program in the world for wheelchair athletes. We were also ahead of the D-1 able-bodied S&C program on our campus in technical sophistication. Tried to talk training theory with the head S&C coach in the 1990s and he had no idea what I was talking about. Thanks again for your honesty. You are on point with all nine issues, especially the early morning workouts, shoes and periodization. Enjoy your work.

[@WilliamsWrestlin]

I'll never forget when I asked my coach if I can wear my adi powers and he kept saying they were coming. They never came and I'm still scratching my head as to why he didn't just let me bring my own when my old strength coach allowed it

[@GarageStrength]

smh. It's amazing the things some people cling to as a rule.

[@michiel5160]

What about minimal shoes or barefoot? I prefer to let my feet do their job.

[@BC21beats]

​@@michiel5160weightlifting is not a "natural" movement just wear the right shoes

[@huihui7277]

"Don't start before 9am" As a swimmer in the ACC conference, I have already trained 3.5 hours by 9am...cheers to yall sleeping

[@GarageStrength]

Damn

[@jackinblack19]

Thats such an L lmao

[@BadWolfMMANashville]

As a wrestler we will spend 90 minutes of actual wrestling time. If you are training 3.5 hours how much time is really... really.. really spent swimming?

[@waynethompson9052]

@@BadWolfMMANashville ...all of it

[@dayman7061]

@@BadWolfMMANashville Just let him flex his “3.5 hour training”

[@jonjacobs6476]

I've had trouble with all of these problems, transitioning from 4 years as a pac-12 football player to a conference five one, I believe another problem that arrises especially with the periodization, is the fluctuation of coaching staffs. I went through 7 offensive line coaches in 5 years, 3 strength coaches and 3 different head coaches. Without consistency my teammates and I were constantly shuffled into new strength programs and it sucked.

[@austinmassengale5995]

I’m an aspiring strength and conditioning coach (currently 21 years old) and I’m so glad I saw this video because it gives me confidence in myself because I had a lot of these thoughts beforehand and now I know I’ll be ahead of the other coaches. I’ll never understand number one why on most programs you see 4x8 squats at 60% and absolutely no warm up whatsoever. Sure, if you’re the first guy at squats you might get some time to hit the bar or maybe a 135lbs weight. But if you’re 60% is in the 250lbs range it’s LUDICROUS that you would have an athlete come in and immediately start hitting that for 8 reps. It blows my mind. So my solution for that would be increase the sets to accommodate for 30, 40, 50 percent sets for warmups. Additionally this would require fewer exercises which is another point you made so that there is more focus on specific movements. Additionally if I’m gonna have an athlete squat 250lbs for 8 reps I want them in squat shoes or even better if they want to knee sleeves and a belt (I don’t like belts for less than 80% range but it’s debatable by some I’m sure). I also can’t stand the complication of exercises. I don’t care what anyone says Olympic weightlifters are the best squatters. And some of the best Olympic weightlifters are Chinese. I have yet to see them throw bands and chains and all other kinds of crazy stuff on the squat bar and “mix things up”. Are these training methods affective? I would say to a degree depending on the level of the athlete. But like you said, if these guys are high school or collegiate level they need to focus on the movement itself. Let the NFL or pro guys teach them how to increase their strength after they’ve already maxed out their bodies by adding different modalities but it’s ridiculous to take an athlete fresh out of high school and say “hey bud go immediately into squats without a warmup in running shoes and also there’s bands on each side”. I know I’m naive and young and have a lot to learn but just being observant and researching I’ve already seen a ton of mistakes

[@GarageStrength]

It sounds like you have a bright future ahead of you. Good luck to brother 👍 We will address accommodating resistance for sports in a future video too

[@maxgoldfield7790]

I'd recommend taking a look at Michael Yessis's books, along with "Supertraining" by Yuri Verkoshansky too.

[@austinmassengale5995]

@@maxgoldfield7790 I’ll definitely look into thank you! My dad who was a s&c coach had a lot of books too so I better get to reading as well haha

[@brewhaha515]

@@austinmassengale5995are you a coach yet? And do you recommend it. Where do you work and how is the income?

[@ryantennant1679]

I run track at the University of Oregon, so I had to watch when I saw coach Feld in the thumbnail! As a team we work primarily with coach Radcliffe for S&C. Legend of a coach, love working with him.

[@dustin9181]

Go Ducks!

[@existentialerasure]

A track and field/throws coach is usually the best strength coach IMHO. Great video!

[@BenNBenInc]

Can you tell me why? I'm just curious - I would think that coaches in the track field are pretty specific like coaches for only sprinting, coaches for only javelin and all that.

[@crater3539]

@@BenNBenInc being good at track is in terms of sprints are form, technique and weightrrom

[@BenNBenInc]

@@crater3539 I'm guessing weightroom involves a tonne of Explosive movement work (plyometrics) with deadlifting and squatting being fundamental stuff? I'm curious to see how a 400/800m sprinter trains in comparison to a 100/200m sprinter.

[@GarageStrength]

Thank you. Your statement is hard to argue lol

[@docd2295]

@@BenNBenInc I think it’s because of the international focus on track and field historically with the Olympics. Way larger and longer body of detailed information and we also have the benefit of a lot of Soviet literature from decades past now, plus the person all relationships a lot of top American coaches have with too international coaches. None of this exists with sports like football and baseball and basketball that are either only American or only more recently international.

[@dsp5328]

Man I had clients in high school say yeh 9am was perfect ... still sleep so this number 9 is on point at 3-5pm they’re on time and ready to go

[@GarageStrength]

👆👆

[@genebaker5142]

Great video. Another topic to discuss is the effect of high school coaches using a college level S&C program with their teams. I think this multiples the problems you discuss about 10 fold. You can't train a high school athlete like a collegian. They need a strong base.

[@GarageStrength]

Good point!

[@brianfigg1177]

I've been a strength and conditioning coach for 15 years and I'm in love with this

[@GarageStrength]

That's awesome. Glad you liked it 👆

[@TeamTSP2020]

Agree with most of this video, Dane. Thanks for posting. However, I think you need to meet some different strength coaches! There are some of us in the collegiate setting who are doing it right (what I would consider "right" at least). Also, important to offer a point of caution: it is unfair to judge anyone's situation unless you have met them and been to their facility and seen their day to day operations. As a young strength coach, I used to pass judgement on lots of coaches I thought were "dumb" or who I "was better than." However, after a decade as a collegiate strength coach (for all sports, including football at the power 5 level), I understand that no situation is perfect. And many coaches do not have control over many aspects of what you discuss (scheduling, equipment purchasing, etc) EVEN if they are the "director." Just my opinion as someone who has been a NCAA strength coach for 10 years.

[@GarageStrength]

Completely agree. There are many great strength coaches in the NCAA and I understand budget varies between programs. I thought this would be a fun video to highlight problems I deal with my athletes. Glad you liked it and thank you for your story 💪

[@jarretthoogerhyde1633]

Lol I had literally 0 reason to watch this but it was still informative. Also I never knew that they make women's bars. I could see how it would easily help them!!

[@GarageStrength]

I really appreciate watching 👍

[@scottcollinssportsperforma5041]

Great video. The mention of exercise selection and not enough sets is something I see a lot. Young S&C coaches try and overcomplicate their programs.

[@GarageStrength]

👆👆👆

[@ChurchofGodBoys]

You referenced that Arkansas video when discussing early morning training-- I remember reading the comments on that video of ppl highlighting the lack of squat depth ( rightfully so) and people were essentially excusing the poor form - " tHeY aReN't pOwEr lIfTeRs" I am not a S&C Coach by any means but it seems like that proper mechanics should out weight the urge to hit a PR. Very good video Dane.

[@GarageStrength]

Thanks a lot. Yeah I try to get each of my athletes to squat below parallel and maximize the levers for the greatest use of high threshold motor units.

[@MyoFit]

#10 S&C coaches not listening to experienced "Olympic" sports coaches (swim, water polo, throwing, rowing, lax, etc.) who understand the needs of the sport better and probably had to develop their own strength programs early in their careers.

[@GarageStrength]

Very good point 👆

[@bluethunder90]

I have an issue with a sports coach coming into my weight room telling me how to program training for my athletes. That sports coach is no more an expert at developing athletes and I am an expert at the technical aspects of their sport. I can't come to your practice and tell you how to coach your team, but you can come to my weight room and tell me how to develop my athletes?

[@MyoFit]

@@bluethunder90 unless you’re coaching the collegiate weightlifting team they aren’t your athletes. You’re a specialty assistant to the head sport coach just like a goalie coach or pitching coach

[@bluethunder90]

@@MyoFit 1. That's how that works. I do not work for that head sport coach, I work for the head strength and conditioning coach or the director of sports performance. 2. Most of the time, while their sport coach maybe the subject matter expert on the technical aspects of the sport he or she coaches, they know little to nothing about developing athletes. They are such a matter of experts at their sport, and I am the subject matter I expected developing athletes. The sport coach should stay out of my lane and out of my profession, just as I should stay out of their lane and out of their possession. Start talking about VBT, or APRE, or the stretch shortening reflex, or how and when in the training cycle you should focus on training the anaerobic alactic energy system, and most sport coaches will look at you with a blank look because they have no clue what you are talking about.

[@MyoFit]

@@bluethunder90 If I walk into the room and my centers, defenders, sprinters, and goalies are all doing the same program we might have issues. I would attend some practices and talk to the coaches about specific requirements before building a program...

[@jamesromaniw3105]

Former D1 s&c coach (currently a high school s&c) #9. Student athletes are typically in class from 7:30/8am until 3-4ish, at which they go to practice. We train early do that we can get them done before breakfast hall closes. Not ideal but it's the way it is. #8-2: on freaking point #1. Take home packets typically don't reflect a program very well, most are written to be very basic as most kids don't follow it anyway, we just want them to do something. Always happy to see a guy or girl get a private coach during the summer, the packet is meant to be better-than-nothing

[@GarageStrength]

Love the perspective! Thank you for sharing Coach!

[@jeffreyhuet5709]

I couldn’t love this video more. High school coaches need to watch this. Thanks!

[@stevespyder]

my routine is usually cardio/warm-ups/yoga in the morn. weights or hard runs afternoon. easier run and drills in evening.

[@GarageStrength]

Looks good 💪

[@carljohnson2700]

I’m at a high school and I have 9 women’s bars 9 men’s weightlifting bars and 9 power bars. Ridiculous

[@GarageStrength]

Wow. There's no excuse for wealthy college programs

[@baezatensaie4389]

Same here!

[@XxBonzeD4Kill4xX]

Same man lmao and couple dumbbells

[@brianclemons3979]

Great video! This explains a lot to people I’m only a 16 year old sophomore in high school and I can say a lot of strength coaches that I see or watch have these problems and it takes a lot of time, effort and patience to be a strength coach and everything has got be right if you want your athletes to be better stronger faster bigger you name it everything has to go right.

[@GarageStrength]

Thanks for sharing!!

[@jhawksrule75]

Watched every second of this video and I couldn’t agree more with all the points. The last few in particular are very important. In my opinion, they set kids back a ton. The funniest part of the whole charade is coaches will spend 10-15 minutes every session explaining complicated cone drills that you only do 4 reps of and having kids go from the weight room to the indoor and back twice but then miraculously there’s never a spare second in the whole year to talk technique. Coaches with big budgets are the worst. They’ll have guys maxing out on hammer strength single arm machines with tendo units attached but only squat the kids once a month

[@GarageStrength]

sad isn't it?

[@JacksonRich69]

I’m not sure how the majority of NCAA weight rooms operate. I wrestled in college and Jim Kiritsy (now of Kennesaw) was my strength coach. Honestly, the only one on this list that was violated was the 5am workouts. I never felt 100% at that time and it interfered with rest of course. It was justified because it was a military school so getting the ideal time slots was harder than at a usual school. Otherwise, I feel we did it right. 2. We spent weeks learning the clean and the snatch instead of loading it up early. 4. We did use chalk though not straps As for the girl’s bar...I can’t speak for that nor did I know there was a difference. All in all, I feel like you would have approved We put great emphasis on mobility and correct movement which has stayed with me for life

[@GarageStrength]

Love the story. Sounds like you guys did great 👍

[@thomashoran3073]

I had at internship at a power 5 school (not going to name) and there was lifter shoes, but ZERO periodization... I was fresh off my masters in strength and conditioning and everything I studied and experienced up to that point was thrown out the door.. I was truly baffled, great motivating coach.. but I didn’t agree with his philosophy on training at all.

[@GarageStrength]

It's amazing how common it is.

[@TheWebaa]

I loved this video. As someone that's about to get into this field I didn't even know these were such prevalent issues. I feel like most coaches just do whatever because "it's what they know works". They just avoid the plethora of science that's out there.

[@GarageStrength]

Good luck Coach 👍

[@Youbenosybro]

As a division 1 football player this makes so much sense. And it was always weird how coaches wonder why we have better days when our sessions are later or when our practices are later. It’s because we get more rest. Which I thought was common sense. And we never play games that early in the morning. And the workouts always somewhat feel random as well.

[@Crimsoncrush11]

Ran D1 @ Indiana State the year we got a new AT, it led to the most hamstring pulls in school history just within a few months of her starting. We would lift and THEN go run somedays, did no power cleans, snatches, pulls, etc. Instead were busy..quarter squatting........ I want my experience back.

[@nathanyoung9357]

as a D3 strength coach, I agree with about 90% of this....I have seen/heard some awful stuff coming from Power 5/Division 1 programs

[@VocalBeast]

Shit man. I'm 18 and being a S & C coach is literally my dream job but where I'm from there really isn't much work and I'm so conflicted on what I should do in terms of what I study further on. Time shall tell I guess. Amazing content btw, earned a sub:)

[@GarageStrength]

Thanks man! Let us know how you do. Good luck, it is really worth while

[@bcspride]

As a highschool S&C I could not agree more.

[@jimhealis]

As a new strength coach it's easy to doubt your own conclusions when you see more experienced coaches putting out confusing guidelines. But, as I watched this video, with each point I thought, "duh, that just makes sense. How can people not do this?" Seeing you make these points boosted my confidence just a bit, and will help me be more assertive when the time comes.

[@jaimefernandezolivas9544]

Great video and great insights. I agree with some of the points made. On the other hand many strength coaches at the collegiate level don't have the backing of administration which doesn't allow for full autonomy of their own job. Scheduling being one of them. Unfortunately, I've also seen sport coaches put pressure on the S&C staff to quickly produce results which leads to a sense of urgency in the weight room not allowing the S&C coach to properly apply progressions. Additionally, the "gadgets" issue many times is also pushed down from the sport coach or administration itself. They'll buy the tech and expect the S&C staff to "figure it out." Many of the fundamental issues with college S&C begin at the NCAA level. Going from 8 hours to 20 hours in a week is more than doubling the workload on these athletes. We know and understand that a drastic increase in work usually leads to injuries. To conclude, I agree with many of the talking points. However, for this industry to grow changes have to come down from the NCAA. If they truly have the athletes best interest in mind you would have institutions where one S&C coach is responsible for 5-6 teams, and would be taking steps towards requiring institutions to move towards a High Performance Model.

[@aaronwilmes]

I just did a year in a NAIA school (Keiser University) in the swim team and coming from europe the stregth training was pretty nice although I absolutly agree, that seldom it loked like the excersices were a little radom, but in most sessions the structure were clear and there was a clear periodization. Something that blow me away, was the equipment, that we had. It was all basic, so no chains or something similar, but bars that were super grippy and chalk and dumbells that were heavy enough. This made a huge difference too me. Unfortunutaly the swimming practise were the exact oppposite, but the stregth training was great. Now I am going to a D1 P5 school (TCU) and on the recruiting trip I saw all the gadgets you metioned. We will see how that is going🙂. Thank you for the video

[@mooresportsperformance4979]

Hey Dane, my number 1 is watching these college athletes be celebrated for hitting half and quarter squats! Room full of football players going nuts over a no rep. Drives me nuts when I’m teaching how to do a squat correctly in high school.

[@kinglowe358]

Ayeee Wuz up coach herb… I played at arkansas… that guy knows what he’s talking about… he taught me a lot

[@zacharyschenk9]

At most schools, especially a lot of mid majors, the 6am lifts are due to the students class schedule, on field practice times, and sharing of the weight room with other teams. And it’s definitely possible to have deadlifts, hang cleans and bench press on the same day. If coaches are doing daily undulating periodization, you might see a barbell clean deadlift as a warm up for the hang clean working sets, and the bench press could be power emphasis where they are moving the bar fast like .8-1.0m/s. You’ll often see hang clean pulls and rdl complexes together

[@julianescobar-rubio34]

So true, I specifically remember high school football and track. During football coaches would write down the program out of their butt every session and no one would get stronger. Then I went over to track where we actually had structure and a program specific to throwing and everyone in football would ask how I got so strong while they were barely making any gainz during off season. Even during football season I would sneak off to the track weight room to actually get good work in.

[@GarageStrength]

Crazy story 👆👆

[@eitonaraoka6213]

It’s because the nature of running workouts have to be very well thought out

[@GarageStrength]

@@eitonaraoka6213 👆👆

[@matthewbyers2539]

'Too many gadgets' you have no idea how much this one annoys me. Develop a strong coaching eye first. Less sizzle more steak!

[@GarageStrength]

👆👆👆

[@bluethunder90]

In that case, how do you explain what Alabama was able to do this year with BBT and using tendo units? Do you call having all of their position groups constantly and consistently increase power output from August to January with no decreases in the graph at any point in that line, sizzle or steak? I ask because they used those "gadgets" along with some solid science to do it.

[@matthewbyers2539]

@@bluethunder90 my man: 1- I don't have a clue what Alabama did this year, so don't have a clue what graphs or power outputs you are going on about. Feel free to share sources. 2- I didn't say that these gadgets and new technologies don't have useful practical applications. They absolutely can. 3- That comment wasn't a personal attack on you or your methods, it was an observation that a lot of people try to go onto their 'D, E & F's' before having gone through their 'A, B, & C's' so to speak. 4- Getting triggered at throwaway youtube comments is probably not ideal. Hope your team has continued success.

[@bluethunder90]

@@matthewbyers2539 Coach Ballou and Dr. Rhea use VBT using Tendo units, If I am correct, in training Alabama's football team this past year and the results were absolutely mind-blowing. These are not my methods because my school does not have the resources in order for me to coach my athletes using those methods, So I am still using the old traditional methods to coach my athletes. However, I think that what is currently going on at Alabama football, hyper optimizing each individual athletes training using VBT, technology, and science is the direction that the strength and conditioning field is going in, and I think it is a superior, more efficient way to train athletes than what we are currently doing, and I always, for my entire career, want to be on the bleeding edge of where the strength and conditioning profession is going. The continuous increase in power output and the huge decrease in non-contact injuries were the biggest factors for me. And for the record, I take the position that the technology probably needs to be a part of a, b, and c, rather than wait for d, e, and f, and then have to try to teach an athlete who has spent all of his time moving slow to now move fast. I would rather take and athlet e near the beginning of block zero and hyper optimize his training from the very beginning and teach him how to be fast and explosive under the bar from the beginning So that being explosive is ingrained in the foundation of his training. I did not get "triggered" I simply ask you a question about a position that you took. If you take someone questioning a statement that you make as getting triggered, then that's on you.

[@hunterholistichealth]

Thank you coach! Would you consider publishing some videos on ‘models’ for typical exercises e.g. squat, DL, clean etc?

[@GarageStrength]

Great suggestion!

[@fiveo9127]

I was taught to clean using straps. The man who taught me was a Olympic hammer thrower/ power lifter. Never hurt myself. I always thought if you're concentrating on your grip you're not concentrating on your form. The bars are designed to roll freely as you move.

[@FlynnAndThaneShow]

A teardrop strap is 100% safe if used correctly for olympic lifts. You shouldn't be using a deadlift strap for cleans, but the teardrop strap is used by many olympic lifters.

[@fiveo9127]

@@FlynnAndThaneShow my first set of straps were cut from car seat belts. 12-14" long. Lasted me for years. Can't see why one wouldn't use them. Sweaty hands slip even with chalk.

[@FlynnAndThaneShow]

@@fiveo9127 I can see how seat belts would last forever,lol. Common deadlift straps would definitely bind the wrists if strapped tight. I think that is what the guy in the video is referring to.

[@cam21prater]

I am currently a college football strength coach working at a Power 5 school. I agree with some of the points you make but you must realize that every situation is different. I played D3 football and have worked at multiple schools at the FCS and FBS levels. AT THE PLACES I HAVE WORKED AT Training times are usually dictated by class and practice schedules Chalk has always been available for use Straps have only been used to help athletes get into a better front rack position on front squat I have worked at multiple schools with oly lifting shoes for athletes We do not just slap exercises in a program for the sake of doing them We methodically structure sets, reps and intensities based on the sport, time of year and needs of the individual athlete The "fancy" tools are used on more advance/mature athletes and are as recruiting tools to bring in highly recruited players

[@coachbobkapustka4803]

promote this message more often. its crazy how much bs skates by

[@GarageStrength]

👆👆👆

[@joeydebellis7115]

Good stuff. I a get athletes coming home or new athletes in summer where we train and I'm blown away with lack of technical work #1. Also random lifts and conditioning which looks beyond what they need and more likely breaks down the body. Also agree on sets. I ALWAYS make my athletes do 40 to 50% of their max of chosen lift of that session and do warmup of 2 sets of 5 to 8 reps. Then we do 5 to 10 more sets depending on goal that day. Keep it up. Love the info

[@victorcastillo-dx9vh]

We've got the same problems in Mexico city. Thanks to remind it. I hope some coaches and athletic directors keep in mind it.

[@BC-jc4ot]

I ran track at the NAIA level and we had 6 AM workouts my freshman year. We didn't have them my sophomore year and my performance improved significantly.

[@GarageStrength]

crazy how that works lol

[@stevespyder]

could you do a video on support belts like lumbar and so on. I had a double hernia 10 years ago, got mesh implanted but I still want to lift safely.

[@GarageStrength]

I can look into it. Thank you for the suggestion 👍

[@JoshdaKnight]

Been a CSCS for 5 years now and my school did a very bad job of teaching me oly lifting. I fortunately learned it from professional oly lifting coaches because the place I worked at wanted its coaches trained by the real deal.

[@griffinsimpson5381]

let’s be honest, creating your own science based routine makes more gains than your school program will.

[@michaelgerber4026]

I’m a retired D1 strength coach. Spent 40 professional years watching S&C go slowly down the shitter. It’s one guy after the other that thinks it’s about style rather than substance. They are predominantly self-aggrandizing circus acts pandering to the head football coaches and any media that want to hear what revolutionary content they have. A cursory search on social media makes it evident that these coaches are content being caricatures of themselves.

[@MosesCorrea]

I have found the same problem a lot of times with my collegiate athletes.

[@RHSTRENGTH]

I’m an S&C GA right now and this is spot on! A couple notes: I still think VBT can be valuable for younger athletes, but not so much for programming purposes. I think ANY athlete can benefit from instant, objective feedback because it drives competition and (hopefully) max intent. But overall, I think it makes sense to separate kids by level. Maybe the “top” level gets to utilize some of the fun gadgets while the weaker kids just focus on getting stronger and mastering technique. If they want to use the fun gadgets, they better get strong quick!

[@GarageStrength]

That's definitely fair if you have good data and baseline strength to use them effectively 👍

[@garyaldrich7804]

Great job Dane love the list is there a good time to talk to you about a couple of things would love to hear your thoughts

[@GarageStrength]

Yes you can email me at [e-mail]

[@scottfranson4215]

Good Video to Start out with Oversight so I don`t have to Make The Mistakes. Takes too long to Heal

[@andrewhardwick8515]

Man our highschool coaches we are there 6:20 and do high pulls, power cleans, squat and bench in a workout and do that 3x a week. Doesn’t make sense to me at all. When we went to quarantine I was lifting a lot more and I was doing one compound lift a day and I was isolating muscle groups more.

[@GarageStrength]

Glad you liked it!

[@valentinepanayotov8616]

Absolutely straight to the point. Congratulations

[@viator22]

Thought about this video today. Guy in the next rack is high hang powercleaning like 225 with the usually splitting tendancies and a lot of swing, moves on to squat. I was talking to a guy who had asked me to spot his squat, reasonably strong dude doing like 455 x2 but cutting it really high, way above parallel, pretty much a quarter squat. He mentioned fighting the urge to go higher and I said I wasn't sure since he was pretty high and I felt full depth squatting had a lot of benefits to work in. He says that he's playing college football and that when he started he squatted ass to grass and his coachs had actively discouraged this because they want them to "get out of the hole" faster. All I'm thinking is it's easy to get out if you're never in it. Nice dude but it did make me wonder about training habits at a lot of schools and things that went against what I've picked up about sports performance as an interested amateur.

[@christophertarullo258]

The biggest issue at the collegiate level is time. You are restricted by the academic schedule, practice hours, ncaa legislation, and the sport coach. These restrictions lead strength coaches to not teaching Olympic lifts or other movements that require a great deal of practice so they can perform them with technical proficiency.

[@ChumblesMumbles]

on the early morning workouts - it's a simple consequence of maintaining the illusion that they're students, and trying to squeeze them into a normal first year student's schedule. Those first year mandatory class schedules are usually very inflexible and most run 9-3 every day. The ball coach sure as hell isn't going to wake up and run a 5am game practice, so he gets the afternoon, and the students can't lift when they're in class, so S&C gets squeezed into the early morning. Even if Juniors and Seniors have more flexible schedules, you need the whole team to practice together, so everyone is fixed to the freshman/sophomore schedule constraints. Makes sense, except that it makes no sense.

[@TrainAllSports]

I think the main problem is that there are so many athletes that need to get into the weight room every day. 30+ at a time every hour. Then adjust for school and practice schedules which are not consistent and you get early lifting times, lack of specialization, and inconsistent routines.

[@Crisp-259]

The thing is if you are playing a D1 sport you have been lifting since 15 or 16 I’ve been lifting since 14 so 18 or 19 year olds have been lifting for years

[@GarageStrength]

yep

[@su_Spence_iskillingme]

I love Dane, but he has contradicted himself. He says here that power cleans, bench press, and deadlifts shouldn't be in the same training session, but I've heard him say multiple times that a power clean and bench press can be in the same training session, especially in-season. I know he's not a huge fan of deadlifts.

[@johnjustice8478]

"It's about equality," says he talking about different bars

[@mattchandler9323]

Coach...great video!! I have been a strength & conditioning coach for 20 years or so now. I have been at the Youth Level, HS, Power 5, Military, and OTC and I must say, you hit on so many great points. In regards to straps with snatch variations, am I correct in saying you "do" recommend them? I ask because I don't utilize them in the case a rep is missed. Student athletes are taught how to "miss" a rep, but I'd rather not risk it. Could you share with me your thoughts please. Thank you!! Glad I came across your video/channel.

[@GarageStrength]

No problem! Thanks for the interest. I think straps are fine for snatches and deadlift variations, but they limit the mobility in the wrist in cleans and I think athletes shouldn't use them for full rack cleans, especially because a lot of athletes have poor wrist, lat, and shoulder mobility which a non-strapped clean can help improve

[@mattchandler9323]

@@GarageStrength coach thank you for your fast response!! I appreciate your feedback. I agree in regards to the limitation of mobility especially when it comes to athletes that have limited mobility to begin with. I may have phrased my main question wrong, so I'll take another shot haha!! Do you get concerned with an athlete missing a snatch over/behind the head (especially one with limited mobility) and not be able to "miss" the rep properly because they are "locked in" with their straps? Why or why not? Thanks again!!

[@GarageStrength]

@@mattchandler9323 If the athlete can snatch without straps and train hookgrip, I think that is best, but I'm not a BIG stickler on athletes using straps if they have quality technique and mobility. O Lifters should rarely use straps and primarily use them on Hang variations

[@mattchandler9323]

@@GarageStrength Excellent!! Those were my thoughts as well!!

[@GarageStrength]

@@mattchandler9323 💪

[@johnmitchell8487]

Holy shit I’ve found my spirit animal.

[@GarageStrength]

😂😂😂

[@authentichealthcoach4142]

Agree with all 9. My goal is to make the athletes better athletes. If we are throwing exercises together thats called a work out. Any one can do that. You need to teach motor skills that ladder up to sport skills and in between there are biomotor abilities that enhance sport skills. The number one thought should be whats the end goal in mind. Start there- work back to where they are now. Coaching and training is an investment - an investment in development.

[@fazedoge3824]

About the starting to early thing, what if your getting adequate sleep like 8-5am or 9-6am?

[@GarageStrength]

not bad, but the expectation is they are training at 6 so they are likely getting 5 hrs of sleep

[@MaxGalofre]

Even if you get 8 hours of sleep, there's a difference between being in the gym doing power cleans 45-60 minutes after waking up, and doing those power cleans having had breakfast digested, a few classes to wake up the brain, and having had a little of Sun hit your system. Being ready physically and mentally is a massive part of training if you want to avoid injury and get the most out of every session.

[@SoundintheBackground]

Dane, what do you think about strength/weight room training for kids under middle school (9 years or so). Curious as I’ve got young shot putters and I’d love to get them ready for middle school football/track. Love these videos!!!

[@GuidedHealthandPerformance]

Dane, great video, I think I might be able to provide some nuance to the topics. Most of your issues are related to football S&C and I'd agree with you in a lot of these areas for the football community. As far as equipment and scheduling, those are big issues we are constantly battling admin and coaches with. I think the only thing I've ever told athletes not to wear are lifting gloves. I don't think the "gadgets" typically dictate training at the college level, my own experience has seen them used as tools for readiness measures and for adherence to the training goal. If you've experienced a lot of these same issues outside of football S&C I'd love to discuss.

[@Crave_Train]

Too many gadgets - couldn't agree more. Either it's fancy tech that just interferes with the flow of a training session or it's an attraction to every new certification to put more letters behind your name on linkedin. I work for a pro sports organization and we have a lot of gadgets. Are some of them nice to have? Sure. Are they essential? Absolutely not. When I use some of this stuff, my reaction is always "ok, now what?". Most teams get the gadgets to "keep up with the Joneses" and convince management their jobs are valuable.

[@nicholaslewis7148]

Rules 8 and 3 I think require a lot more elaboration and definition. There would be some realistic times where if you a run a high volume model you would want those high exercise count depending on the sport, athletes and other constraints. As for rule 3 I think you should clarify that significantly because sometimes those gadgets are incredibly helpful and powerful especially during peaking for performance or if you are dealing with over trained athletes. Also curious if you have some research you are referring to that would support your claim because velocity is velocity no matter when velocity occurs throughout the life time.

[@GarageStrength]

Honestly we could make individual videos out of each of these topics. It's hard to capture nuance in a Top 9 list. I definitely think you're right and something like gadgets can be used when used in a mindful way.

[@johnmitchell8487]

Deadlifts, kettlebell swings, and tingle arm bent over rows. If you build your posterior chain, you will dominate your competition.

[@jackinblack19]

Im far from a D1 athlete but if college is anything like highschool football half of it is to kick your ass and increase mental and physical "toughness." There's certainly a sense that the more it sucks the better it makes even if its far from efficient or on paper beneficial training.

[@GarageStrength]

This is a mentality I would like to change in the sport.

[@bluethunder90]

As a college strength and conditioning coach with about 14 years of experience, including a short stint (cut short thanks to covid) strength coaching with the Chinese Olympic Team, I'll tell you that the point IS NOT just kick your ass. The point is to help your athletes develop their God given talent and potential to it's highest possible point.

[@centralparkjoe1290]

Well done🤙💪

[@GarageStrength]

Thank you. Much appreciated 👊

[@patdesavino3444]

2:34 I could’ve swore that was Elliot Hulse at first lol

[@MATTSCOTTR]

So would you disagree with Joe Kenn's Tier System? He talks about Having a Total, Lower, Upper approach embedded in each day of training with tier 1 being the focus while still training different movements after.

[@sscswimmer1]

Awesome video, love the passion expressed here.

[@nomad155]

That passion got me subscribed

[@GarageStrength]

Much love man ✌

[@CurtisDuro]

#8 Fucking right, couldn't`agree more Dane

[@GarageStrength]

Thanks Curtis 😂😂

[@RO-LDSLNGR]

Great stuff coach! Can you shed some more insight on the whys for tru use of woman’s bars

[@GarageStrength]

Women generally have smaller hands and weaker grips. Women's bars will allow them to improve technique easier in barbell movements and have less issue lifting the barbell

[@StrengthCoachNetwork]

Have you ever worked in college athletics? It doesn’t seem like it based on your issues. Also it doesn’t seem that way cuz of how much you love Olympic lifting for athletes. Athletes who Play team sports don’t need to Olympic lift.

[@vanessaherrmann252]

This is a great video! I’m currently going into my fifth year at a power 5 school. I have been doing strength training since I was about sophomore in high school. I found this video extremely interesting! I could relate to some points in a positive aspect and then I was furious at others! Like no women’s bars?? The weight room I get to lift in was specifically built for women’s athletic. I understand that not every school has that kind of facility, but you could simply change out the bars when needed! My team got a new strength coach last year and she is awesome. I took a strength and conditioning course as one of my final electives. I was able to ask my coach exactly what we were doing and where this was taking us in the program. She and I would have conversations about the time of periodization and my team mates thought we were talking in code until she broke it down for them. I really hope that more people see this video and reevaluate their coaching style to ensure that they are training effectively and benefiting their athletes!

[@iothecableguy]

I think some coaches get so wrapped up whats next that they fail at the basics. A 'needs analysis' would clear up the issue with exercise selection and sets. Early morning training is a mental game to push the athletes but that isnt the job of a S&C coach . The ultimate goal is to help them reach their full potential in sport performance while designing a program that will reduce the chance of injury. There is no excuse for lack of periodization. A needs analysis by position and competition period tells the coach what needs to be accomplished and when.

[@osamanahlawi4386]

Amazing video Although I have a none related question I Iive in the uae and idk what creatine is the best what should I do about it

[@GarageStrength]

Try to find powder form of straight creatine monohydrate

[@stevewonderlin5892]

Great video can you do one for high school S&C

[@Eagle_data]

Excuse me coach, i have an unrelated question to the video.What are the best exrecises i can use to get stronger at pummeling?

[@GarageStrength]

We will make a video on that eventually. Some good ones are alternating DB presses (incline and flat) and sled pulls are good

[@Eagle_data]

@@GarageStrength Thank you!

[@GarageStrength]

@@Eagle_data Happy to help 👍

[@Ethan-xx5qt]

Thoughts on lifting barefoot for hexbar deadlifts, squats, cleans all those types of movements?

[@kallenglawe]

Great stuff man, awesome vid!

[@therealdoy99]

Hey Coach Dane, 6am is the most convenient time for my schedule, I take naps after school to catch up on sleep, does this still violate the rule for 9am? I still get like 9 hours total of sleep per day, but I'm curious if you would advise against this

[@nakaitheqb]

this is facts get rid of the gadgets

[@GarageStrength]

👆👆

[@ISTsports]

What types of bars are the Olympic Women's Weightlifting using?

[@GarageStrength]

15 kg 25 mm bars, not 20kg standard mens bars

[@coachvas27]

I agree completely I have been training high school since 2008 in Florida I have to correct them

[@GarageStrength]

You hate to see it

[@coachvas27]

I keep helping the player's to meet their goals

[@coachvas27]

Let's keep in contact

[@GarageStrength]

@@coachvas27 That's awesome dude. Keep helping the kids. You're truly making a difference 👍

[@coachvas27]

@@GarageStrength thanks man it's so fun helping the kids get better

[@plikkkk]

Great video, but why you gotta put Ben Herbert on blast? That’s one dude who truly knows what he’s doing (yes, I know you were probably just looking for public domain video clips, but still…)