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The Importance Of A Long-Term Training Plan
by Chuck Debus
Whenever I have a young athlete come to train with me, I always ask their age. Instantly, I calculate how long I have to train them until they go to college to train under another coach. For example, perhaps they’ll respond “12 years old” and I’ll say, “Great, I have 6 years to train you.” Understanding the time frame I have to train an athlete gives me an accurate picture of what that athlete’s potential could be with the proper training plan in place. It’s important that young athletes and parents understand from the beginning that training and subsequent development is an ongoing, long-term process. To approach training as a short-term project is the equivalent of putting a band-aid on a person with multiple injuries.
We have all seen photos in magazines, like National Geographic, of aberrant physical adaptations to the human body. For example, plates in stretched lips or rings around unbelievable long necks. These people are no more genetically predisposed to these seeming abnormalities than you or I. It’s simply a specific adaptation to a specific activity over a consistent time frame.
Training for sports is exactly the same. The body is in a constant state of either regression or progression. Every 48 to 72 hours one or the other is happening. It is critical that we train with a specific and consistent training plan that takes into account rest, to prevent overtraining. More training is not necessarily better. Overtraining often leads to diminished returns, including injury. I’ve been fortunate to have trained many world-class athletes. Often I would hear comments that I must be a tough coach and that my athletes must have worked very hard. Although that may be true, I have never looked at it that way. I have always believed that the key to our success was that we trained intelligently. That instead of pushing through pain, we listened to our bodies and we did what our bodies allowed us to do. I taught that rest and recovery was just as important as training and stressed that mathematical progressive workouts done consistently cause the body to continually improve and improve and improve!
Many times athletes training with other coaches would be way ahead us in the beginning, but over time we would catch and surpass them. Yes, I’ve coached some genetic freaks but often, we had athletes that were 7’s and 8’s in physical talent yet through continuous repetition of technical training were able to beat the gifted 9’s and 10’s athletes.
The ability to train intelligently is a great part of the plan to succeed. I’ve always valued mental talent as high as physical talent. They are two of the key ingredients of success, the other two ingredients are program and the ability to stay injury free. All these ingredients when mixed together form the complete package needed to develop and succeed maximally.
• Physical talent (25%): Speed, strength, endurance, agility, balance, coordination, flexibility, etc.
• Mental Talent (25%): persistence, concentration or focus, ability to learn, ability to execute under pressure, ability to make good decisions, imagination, etc.
• Program (25%): good coaching, good parenting, facilities, equipment, competition, funding, etc.
• Ability to stay injury free (25%): we have all known an athlete who was very talented but for some unforeseen reason could never seem to stay injury free even with careful training and good doctors and therapists.
But, if a long-term plan is put into play with our young athletes, their chances of continuing to develop their potential are greatly increased. The attrition rate of young athletes from age 12-18 years old is around 80%. There are so many reasons for this, but the main reason is a poor training plan or a lack of a plan all together. The coaches, athletes, parents, and medical specialists are all part of the plan. A good coach will serve as the chairman of the committee and will always have the long-term welfare of the young athlete at the core of that plan.
About the author: Chuck Debus is the owner and Sports Performance Director of Velocity Sports Performance in West Los Angeles.
About Velocity Sports Performance:
Velocity Sports Performance is a national network of training centers where athletes of all sports, ages and skill levels go to improve their core athletic skills - speed, power and agility. Athletes train in small groups with degreed and certified performance coaches. Velocity Sports Performance is the Official Performance Training Partner of Cal South Soccer. Players who train with Velocity Sports Performance can expect to get to the ball quicker, cover more of the field faster, increase their shot power and reduce their chances of injury. Velocity Sports Performance has training centers throughout Southern California including Irvine, Redondo Beach, Anaheim, Carlsbad, West LA and Santa Clarita.
