By Alex Conti, Head Sports Performance & Fitness Coach
It seems too often these days that teams are a collection of individuals instead of a single unit. I’ve heard about and seen incidents with teammates both on and off the field that cause a breakdown in team chemistry and performance. Individuals start thinking about their own personal accomplishments, accolades and experience without thinking about the most important aspect about team sports…..THE TEAM!!
Unfortunately our young athletes don’t have many good role models to look up to. The professional ranks are littered with self centered athletes seeking the biggest contract on the biggest stage with every light shining on them and them only. Sure, most of the great sports teams have their stars but those individuals knew that at the end of the day the only important thing was the team. So what does it take to be a great teammate? One of the best coaches the sporting world has seen is coach John Wooden. He was a firm believer of the team. The secret behind his success at UCLA wasn’t really a secret. He put together teams with people that only cared about what the group accomplished collectively and made sure that environment never changed while he was there. So what does it take to be a great teammate? Here are some things to study and practice:
1.) Work Ethic: Success always follows those who work hard at their craft. There are never any short cuts.
2.) Respect: For your teammates, for your coaches, for your opponents. Despite winning or losing your character is what will be remembered. Make sure it’s a good one.
3.) Enthusiasm: Take pride in what you do and always come with a high level of energy. Not only will it benefit your performance but will encourage others to do the same
4.) Discipline: Be able to control yourself in stressful situations. Sometimes things will not be going your way or your team’s way. Figure out the solution and attack the problem.
5.) Selflessness: Always be willing to help others and remember that “we always supersedes me”
Focus on these key points and become a great teammate. Make sure that your character is up to par so when others are in need, you can assist them to grow as you have. If you build camaraderie with your teammate and everyone shares a like mind, you’ll be successful as a team.
Posted by Administrator on Fri, 3 May 2013
tags:
By Alex Conti, Head Sports Performance & Fitness Coach
Recently I wrote an article on how "Adversity is Your Asset". Fittingly I read an article soon after that was titled "How to Overcome the Fear of Mistakes" and thought this is a great topic to move to from my adversity article. I recommend checking out the article at the link here but also wanted to give my take on the subject and what I’ve seen as a coach at SuperKick.
From my experiences at SuperKick as a coach and from my playing experiences as an athlete I think there’s certainly a misconception on what acceptable failures are and what are not. When I was 8 years old and playing soccer I used to think that kicking the ball out of bounce and giving the other team a throw in was the worst thing in the world, no matter where it occurred on the field. I honestly believed it was a huge mistake and should avoid kicking it out of bounds at all costs. After some coaching and more experience over the years, you realize as a player how valuable sometimes purposely kicking the ball out of bounce can be. It can give your team an opportunity to recover if the other team was on a quick counter attack, it can give you valuable seconds to set your defense, and it can even lead to the stoppage of play for substitutions.
A few years later I used to be told that playing good defense (I was a defender) was to steal the ball and kick it down the field as far as possible. Often playing out of the back was not what we were told to do and sometimes we were discouraged to do it. Luckily I had some great coaches as I grew older and was beginning to play the game the right way and learned that even as a defender you can keep ball possession by playing out of the back and even get involved with the attack. It made the game a lot more fun for me and soon one of my best assets and strengths I had as a defender was my ability to be heavily involved in the attacking third of the field as someone who could travel up and down the flanks.
In the sports performance and fitness realm I see athletes that are sometimes hesitant to progress themselves and try more difficult drills and activities. I, as a coach, know they have the ability but the athlete often doesn’t want to deal with the humiliation of messing up or feeling inadequate because they aren’t as good at the more advanced drills as they are with the drills they have currently mastered. As stated in the article I believe it’s highly important for coaches and parents to help today’s young athletes understand that making mistakes doesn’t make you a bad player. We need to enforce them to try new things, be aggressive and eliminate the fear of mistakes. This is truly how athletes of all sports truly grow and enjoy the game they play!
Posted by Administrator on Thu, 18 Apr 2013
tags:
By Alex Conti, Head Sports Performance & Fitness Coach
Adversity is a noun meaning difficulties or misfortune. Synonyms include: misfortune, disaster, calamity, distress and hardship. Everyone will face it, no one enjoys it but everyone must embrace it. We’ve all encountered struggles in life from the playing field to the class room; from teammate to family member, we have all had to deal with a difficult situation. There’s two ways to go about adversity and only one of them is the right way. You can let it overcome you and deter you from achieving your goal and traveling down the right path or you can treat it as an asset to make you stronger, wiser and improved.
The idea of writing about adversity was sparked by the fact that several athletes I know have had to deal with injuries recently. Torn muscles, stress fractured bones and concussions just to name a few. It’s safe to say that injuries would fall under the category of adversity. Watching the way someone reacts to adversity from a coach’s perspective sheds a great deal of light on that individual’s character. Does the individual shut down or embrace the opportunity to focus on improving an area they can work on? Do they continue to be present within the team by helping their teammates and coaches achieve the team’s goals? I’m proud to say that the individuals who sparked the idea of this article have done these things and their quality of character is to be commended.
Always keep in mind that individual adversity might keep you out of the game but it doesn’t limit the impact on your character or your value to your team. In fact, I say that adversity improves your character and improves your value to your team. Your experiences and how you dealt with them are invaluable when the team as a whole might face adversity in the future. Use your wisdom to help guide others and step up as a leader when things become difficult. As the great coach and mentor John Wooden said in his 12 lessons in leadership: “Adversity is your asset”
Posted by Administrator on Sat, 16 Mar 2013
tags:
By Alex Conti, Head Sports Performance & Fitness Coach
What is strength? Is it the ability to squat 500 pounds or is it the ability to run 26.2 miles? Which of those people would you consider and call fit? Perhaps it’s one or the other, or perhaps it’s both. The perception of fitness is widely disputed and everyone has their own opinion. When it comes down to it we are all different and the progress that we make on our own fitness levels can greatly vary. Whether you’re training for a marathon or training for a power lifting competition it’s easy to start comparing yourself to others in the field and measuring up your own fitness. I’m as guilty of it as anyone. Is this an adequate way to progress our own fitness level though?
I’ve grown up playing sports, much like you have. Playing sports develops a competitive spirit within you and usually is present throughout your life. Even if you have never played sports, it’s likely you’ve developed a competitive nature through school or work. Competition with other individuals, teams or rival businesses is usually the first few things that come to mind when contemplating the subject. The focus is on them and how to be better than them. Is this the same way we should approach our fitness goals and progress ourselves? I say no. Why? There are a few reasons….
1.) Focusing your competitive nature on beating someone else isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I think, however, it puts limitations on you. There’s a ceiling that’s put on what you can really achieve. Let’s say I have a friend who does 100 push ups and I can can only do 50. Since we’ve grown up we have always been competitive with one another. I decide, secretively, my goal is to beat him. I train hard and finally the day arrives when I beat his 100 push up mark. Great! Now what? What happens after you conquer the individual, team or business you set your sights on?
2.) Achieve your own pinnacle of fitness. Don’t limit yourself to someone else’s. Just because a family member, friend or rival achieves something great doesn’t mean you can’t achieve something greater. What could I have been able to achieve if I just keep plugging away and improving my push ups to the best of my ability instead of focusing on someone else’s pinnacle? That 100 repetition mark that I beat could have just as easily been 150 repetitions.
3.) If you want to achieve fitness and live a healthy lifestyle for the rest of your days, you need to understand that training never ends. There should never be a time when you say “I’m fit, I’m done now”. I get questions asked all the time about “When will this be easy?” or “Why am I still sore?” The answer isn’t that you aren’t improving. It’s likely that because of your improvement you are probably running faster or lifting more weight or completing more repetitions. Again, always climb that ladder, always improve, training never ends!
It’s very easy to get caught up in the hype and excitement of someone else’s achievements and think about how you could do better. It’s important to stay focused on you and what you are able to achieve. Always push to test your own limits and to see how far you can go. There is absolutely no substitute for hard work and focus and the consequence will be a better you.
Posted by Administrator on Fri, 8 Mar 2013
tags:
By Alex Conti, Head Sports Performance & Fitness Coach
Practicing balance and being able to control the body on one leg or the other is a huge asset to athletes. Being able to understand where your body is in space (a.k.a. proprioception) helps an athlete to make faster, more explosive movements and react quickly. With our Sports Performance classes we work on this aspect of athleticism on a daily basis not only through our ladder patterns, cone drills, form and technique training but specifically with the use of our BOSU balls. Working on balance and proprioception is quite easy, even without a BOSU ball. Whenever you are watching TV or need a quick study/work break try this exercise….
Stand on one leg and balance without putting your other foot down. For most kids this isn’t a problem so you need to make it more difficult. Try doing ten toe touches making sure to lean the entire upper body forward to touch your toes and stand all the way back up. To add another level of difficulty try doing it with your eyes closed!
Make sure that your team is prepared for this spring season. Continually working on a team’s strength and conditioning not only during the off season but in season will make a difference between you and the competition! Contact Alex Conti at aconti@superkickcolumbus.com for more details!
Are you an individual looking to improve your athletic abilities? We offer speed and strength clinics weekly. Check out our “Specialized Sports Performance Clinic” tab for more details!
Posted by Administrator on Fri, 1 Mar 2013
tags:
