KGB Vol 18: High Performance & Getting Old
“Getting old is no fun!” I hear it nearly every day from some of my aging athletes. While they are certainly right, it is no reason to go down without a fight. In the modern era, athletes no longer hang up their gear after a certain birthday. The distinction between high performance and anti-aging is […]
KGB VOL 17: Leadership Longevity -The health grind for coaches
With a new season not too far out on the horizon, the last month of training can set players and coaches up for success or failure. I recall realizing the difference in prepping college and professional players when I was in my first season with the Iowa Wild. Our young players had come from a […]
KGB VOL 16: Using biomechanics for exercise selection
Muscles are not the smartest tissues in the human body. They pretty much just do as they are told. The complexity of muscles resides in the message they are being sent through the nerves and nervous system. In the world of muscle contraction, there are terms that are commonly used to describe what is happening […]
KGB Vol 15: Work smart and hard
Learning to be highly effective in any pursuit is about learning to deal with competing demands. Ben Franklin said, “For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned,” and, given all his life’s accomplishments, we can definitely improve ourselves by internalizing his motto. Last month we discussed how to get the most out of […]
KGB VOL 14: How to take full advantage of the off season I speak ad nauseum about mastering the basics. In my role as a performance consultant, I can have a conversation about this several times each day. Such repetition can be monotonous and, for some people, it is not their cup of tea. I […]
KGB Vol 13: A hockey player’s guide to supplementation
The world of performance supplementation is difficult to navigate. The game of hockey is unique in that it relies on short sprints repeatedly performed over a long period of time. Add body contact to that mix and we have an environment that requires a detailed nutritional approach. In this issue of KGB, I will attempt […]
KGB Vol 12: Strength is the game
At almost all levels, the hockey season is long and the off-season is short. It is no secret that top strength coaches in the industry look at in-season strength and conditioning programs as an opportunity to get players stronger as well as improve on other athletic qualities. While this approach is not brand new, there […]
KGB Vol 11: Preventing illness in a team setting
Maybe it’s just me, but it always seemed like the stretch of hockey from January through February felt the most challenging. These are the “hard yards” of the hockey season. This is the time of year when the weather can be unforgiving, you wake up in the dark and often get home in the dark. […]
KGB Vol 10 : Advanced Tissue Healing Reconsidering cortisone
If you are a high level athlete or someone who is looking out for the best interest of an athlete, it is good to be in the know. In the world of sports, overcoming pain is a normal topic of conversation and many times that conversation focuses on what can we do now. Several common […]
KGB Vol 9: Fear & Concern; Two very different emotions on the way back from an injury
“Rub some dirt on it.” This seems to be one of the all-time great sports cliches. The phrase really is just a metaphor for the fact that toughness is a part of all sports whether it be mental, physical or both. There is, however, a legitimate performance concern when fear creeps into the mind of […]