In the high school weight room, there are students from all walks of life. There are those kids that have the desire to play their sport at the next level. There are kids who only show up because their parents make them. Then, there are kids that show up because they truly love lifting weights and playing sports with their teammates. As the leader of the weight room, the focus should be to bring out the purpose, meaning, and reason that the student showed up in the first place. This comes easy for the person who has built relationships with their athletes.
With meaning comes purpose. When the athletes can give a reason as to why they are attending and making working out a priority, it is easy to see what they are hoping to gain from the entire experience. The willingness to go above and beyond their comfort zone, shows that they are striving to grow as an individual. The struggle that comes with working to be successful helps a person to achieve their goals.
A strength coach has the power to teach and allow athletes to understand that this dedication goes far beyond just working to be better at their sport(s). Sure, that is an added bonus, but there is more to it. The determination to be better physically fit becomes a part of life. Working hard and building resilience is a necessary process in order to be successful in anything. The passion exhibited in the weight room carries over into other aspects of life.
A strength coach is responsible for encouraging and pushing athletes to be the best they can be. Showing them adversity and brining the “fight versus flight” into the weight room is necessary to teach them that life after high school requires being able to live in the real world. Not every day is full of sunshine and rainbows. No one cares that you are in an adverse situation, everyone just wants to see how you respond and how you deal with what you are given. When adversity knocks on the door, do you bolt the door and hide or do you bust the hinges off fully prepared to handle the situation with great poise. Being an athlete means being able to handle the delayed gratification. It may take a while to see the purpose of the suffering. The bright lights only reveal your work in the dark. When adversity strikes, how will you respond?
Along with meaning, comes sacrifice. Sacrificing time to be present in the weight room is key to preparing for the physical demands of the sport. The athletes will turn into young men and women who will know the value of sacrifice. The fact is that for the rest of their lives, other people will count on them in one way or another. High school teammates count on each other to go through the pain and suffering of a tough workout. They work hard together and provide support to one another. When the whistle is blown, an athlete knows who to count on. Did that teammate put in the sacrifice to be successful?
I preach to our football guys all the time about sacrifice and comradery. I let them know we must be TOUGH and HANG TOGETHER because when we do these things, we’re a tough team to beat. Regardless of how tough we think we may be, we must remain together and continue to fight and get TOUGHER. The war doesn’t get any easier and neither does life itself.
The culture inside a weight room is the catalyst for a team’s success. As the leader, I get the opportunity to develop this and drive the ship. I am the person who determines the purpose and meaning behind each individual athletes intentions of showing up. I create the atmosphere and get to encourage and foster the love of working hard, physically and mentally. I create the positive vibes and the motivation that keeps them coming back for more. I take my job seriously and like to work out myself. It’s much deeper than just working out. It is a passion. It’s always deeper than the surface.
Culture drives expectations and beliefs. Expectations and beliefs drive behavior. Behavior drives habits. Habits create the future of the program. As the strength coach, I pride myself on my ability to establish solid relationships with all of the athletes. X’s and O’s can sometimes seem overrated in programs due to lack of trust and the buy-in that the coaches get from athletes. The strength coach must be the rose between two thorns and communicate the head coach’s vision for the program. When working with an athlete and coaching them up, there should be a 3 to 1 ratio of positive to negative. Attitude is key to a team’s success. In the real world, when a boss corrects an employee and gives them advice or direction, does the employee accept the constructive criticism or shut down and get angry? An athlete’s mindset must remain positive or it can affect the rest of the ship.
Expectations drive culture. The expectations within a strength coach program must be set high and always consistent. Every athlete should be treated the same. In turn, the standard will continue to rise. If the team is training and practicing every single day to these standards and expectation that have been established, success will prevail.
Logan Neff
Director of Strength and Conditioning
Beechwood High School (KY)