How Athletes Can Avoid Ruining Their Two-A-Days or Three-A-Days

Hello Everyone!

I have the privilege of working with some very driven and focused athletes. These athletes are far from you average athlete that barely does the little that is asked of them, instead these athletes that I am coaching do more than their share and more than is expected of them.

Recently I had an athlete come in for her one-hour speed and agility session. This workout was her third workout of the day, she had already conditioned with her high school team and lifted with her strength coach (did I mention it wasn't even lunchtime yet?). When she arrived she made the mistake that most athletes make when doing multiple workouts in a day - she showed up looking tired and fatigued with her body language. 

Did she have every right to be tired and fatigued? Most people would say "yes" and I am here to tell you that if you think it is your right to look tired and fatigued than you are ruining your two-a-days or three-a-days. 

Looking tired and fatigued is not some badge of honor that you wear, it is a sign that says you're actually a pretender, not a contender. Simple said, great athletes never look tired.

Even at the end of hard fought games, great athletes never look tired.

Looking tired is a waste of your energy and a waste of your coaches' time. As the third coach to work with her that day I didn't spend time planning and organizing her speed and agility work to have her walk in looking tired. If she is trying to be great, which would be the point of her doing multiple training sessions in one day, then I expect her to walk in looking like a great athlete. (Note: As a responsible coach I obviously take into consideration the training she has already done when it comes to the drills and training I will put her through.)

You might be thinking that I am being selfish when I say I don't want her looking tired, but I'm actually doing my job which is to coach her into being the best version of herself she can be. If she wants to be great then I need her to look great, even when she is not feeling great.

Athletes at all levels, collegiate, high school, and middle school ruin their two-a-days and three-a-days with poor, weak body language. If you want to avoid ruining your multi-workout days than start holding yourself to a higher standard when it comes to your body language, even if you have to fake it until you make it.

Great athletes never look tired.

Keep Training!
Coach Amanda Kephart 

The #1 Way to Become A Better Defender

Hello Everyone!

There are countless articles and drills out there for how to become a better defender, increase your defensive speed, or how to become a defensive stopper, but all of those drills and articles will fall short of your goal if you fail to get into the right athletic stance.

In this short video I show you how to maximize your defensive speed by getting into the right athletic stance.
Many athletes struggle to get into this proper stance because they lack flexibility in their low back and hamstrings. If your low back and/or hamstrings are tight you won't be able to lift your hips. Lifting your hips not only points your shoulders into a better, more horizontal position, but lifting your hips also loads your hamstrings and glutes into a more powerful firing position. Having your hamstrings and glutes loaded and ready primes your body to make the quickest, most powerful movements possible!

Keep Training!
Coach Amanda Kephart

When Your Best Isn't Good Enough

Hello Everyone!

I recently had a rare event in my life. Prior to this recent experience I had conquered almost any dream or goal I had set out to do. From working my first dream job as a Division One Strength and Conditioning Coach, to running my own department, to achieving a fitness goal... my drive, passion, and work ethic have allowed me to get most of my goals.

Recently this was not the case, and while I want to be professional and keep the details personal, I will say that in regarded my future with a company. And even though I hit all my assigned targets, went above and beyond where I could, and was highly rated by my superiors, I did not get what I had set out to do. My superiors sadly informed me there wasn't capacity to award me my goal.

It made me think of all the athletes that have set out to accomplish a personal goal. They worked hard for their goal, and in the process, they put in the extra time, did everything that was asked of them, and were well received by the coaching staff, only to be told that "there wasn't capacity for their goal." (Example: not making the team, not getting playing time, etc.) 

How does this happen? What can we do about it?

First, let's address how does this happen? Especially when the athlete or individual does everything within their control to accomplish his/her goal? The first point I want to make is sadly, even though we can control our personal actions, when our personal goal includes working with a team, whether a sports team or a corporate team, decisions are affected and made with factors that are not in our control.

This was initially the hardest part for me with my recent experience. Knowing I had done everything within my power, but my best wasn't good enough to sway the other factors that were not in my control. After a brief time a grieving (this may be a strong word to use here, but when you want something bad enough I believe it is normal and healthy to acknowledge the grief of a lost goal), I soon found comfort and strength knowing I had given it my all and had no regrets when it came to my actions and efforts.

TIP: When your best isn't good enough, make sure you can rest easy knowing you gave it everything you had. Don't couple a lost goal with the regret of not doing all that you were capable of. 

Second, what do we do about it? While the next action we take largely varies on what are goal was, don't underestimate the power of using the loss as fuel for an even greater future. (The popular concept of failing forward rings true here.) I've avoided dwelling on what could have been and instead have focused on the belief that something even greater than my goal is out there for me. But what is it? This required me to sit down and reevaluate what I wanted out of life. What was most important to me? If I could have anything, what would it be? Once I wrote these down for my professional and personal life I then wrote down my non-negotiables. The things that were not up for discussion and that I did not want in my future.

TIP: Knowing, acknowledging, and writing down your non-negotiables makes knowing what you do want much clearer.

Having my non-negotiables laid out helped me focus on opportunities and goals that are in-line with my dream life. And isn't that why we have goals to begin with? To help us create our dream life?

When your best isn't good enough, remember:

• Give your dreams and goals everything that you have, but understand that sometimes your best won't be enough. 

• While you can't control every outcome, you can control how much regret you have.

• When failing forward, know both the things you want AND the things you don't want in your future to have the clearest picture on what to do next.

Keep Training!
Coach Amanda Kephart 

PGC/Glazier Coaches Clinic Detroit 2016

Hello Everyone!

PGC Basketball and Glazier work together to create some amazing opportunities for coaches to get together with like-minded (or should I say, growth-minded) coaches to help grow their game, network, and share.

Although I was looking forward to speaking on my 3 Strength and Conditioning topics, I was equally looking forward to meeting and learning from others.

My 3 Strength and Conditioning Presentations from #PGCDetroit

During the Clinic Tip-Off my fellow PGC Directors TJ Rosene and Duez Henderson shared some quick hitters for how to maximize your clinic experience and how the same quick hitters can also help your basketball players maximize their game performances. TJ shared the importance of "locking in" and remembering that the "why" of what you do should come from your heart. Were we willing to "lock in" to this unique and fleeting experience at #PGCDetroit ?

PGC's Duez Henderson (front) and TJ Rosene (back) kicked off the clinic with some great quick hitters and reminders!

 Throughout the weekend I was blessed to meet, listen, and learn from some great coaches and speakers. I was also impressed with the distance some coaches travelled like Coach Christopher Woodside from Maine. I couldn't help but wonder, how many coaches were less than a 2 hour drive from #PGCDetroit and chose to miss out on something that will not happen again for a year (or longer)? As coaches we ask our players to take the actions of great leaders: show up early, stay late, put in extra work, but how many coaches practice what they preach? I am thankful I was surrounded by coaches that did!

Reed Maltbie (TedX Speaker), Coach Christopher Woodside, and myself at #PGCDetroit

I could write in length about all the great speakers I heard over the weekend, but I would like to highlight Canadian Coach Chantal Vallee, who currently is the Head Coach of the 5-peat National Champion Windsor Lancers Women's Basketball Team. My pen never stopped taking notes during her amazing talks at #PGCDetroit. Here is a 2 minute video to give you a taste of how she used her hours of sports psychology research and study of success to turn a non-winning team into a 5-time Champion in only a few years!

Besides having an impressive resume and being a dynamic speaker, she is also a phenomenal person who openly shares her learnings and love of the game with others!

Thank you Coach Vallee!

One of the best parts of PGC/Glazier Coaches Clinics is being around coaches of all levels and all backgrounds that are passionate about the game of basketball and how it can #SCHAPE lives. It's a handful of days that can accelerate your growth as a coach, and as a person!

One of my favorite parts, meeting awesome coaches!

Visit www.pgcglazier.com to see the full list of PGC/Glazier Coaches Clinics.

Keep Training!
Coach Amanda Kephart

2 Myths My 4th Graders Busted About AAU

Hello Everyone!

I am coaching the 4th Grade Akron Bobcats this Spring and as much as I hope I am teaching my players skills and lessons that will make them better basketball players on the court and better people off the court I have quickly realized that my players are also teaching me lessons and improving my skill set as a coach and as a person.

They’ve already busted 2 myths that I long held about AAU/Travel Basketball…

Sports should be fun and provide opportunities to learn and grow (both on and off the court)!

Myth #1 Playing AAU/Travel diminishes the desire to win because “there’s always another game” 

I have long been under the assumption that playing multiple tournament games on the weekends made athletes less competitive because they know there will be another game in the very near future. In one hour, my 4th Graders quickly put that assumption to rest as I witnessed the devastated looks on their faces after we lost a game.

They absolutely wanted to win every single game and they were heartbroken from losing. Their hunger and competitiveness to win was immense. To the point where I became genuinely concerned about their ability to bounce back (one of many life lessons they are learning).

They wanted to do a "no-smile" selfie after a loss.

I used to think that AAU/Travel hurt an athlete’s competitive drive, but now I believe it can actually help strengthen a passionate player’s hunger and competitiveness to win. Competing may in fact be a skill, and like any skill, the more it is practiced and trained the more improvements that can be made. AAU/Travel gives athletes more practice at competing and more exposure to game-environments that are hard to match in a practice setting.

Myth #2 Players don’t improve their skills because they are busy playing games and not developing skills 

I can only speak from my experience with the Akron Bobcats, so this may not be true with all programs, but the 4th Grade Bobcats train as a team twice a week in intentional, skill-oriented practices that focus on development. The purposeful practices we go through are designed to teach them skills, to learn how to use them, and to compete with them. (Learn more about the TLC method here.) With games on the weekends, there is quick feedback on whether what we are trying to develop in them is transferring and what other areas need to be addressed.

Win or lose I am proud of these guys!

Additionally, the life lessons and real-world situations they are exposed to in the tournaments is even greater than what I had anticipated. One game alone has had more learning points and character developing moments than I ever could have imagined.

I wonder what other myths and long-held beliefs I will question thanks to my 4th Graders?

Keep Training!
Coach Amanda Kephart