Articles
Coaching Chat #2: Damien Inocencio – Olympic Gold for France to Head Coach for China
Welcome to Coaching Chat, an ALTIS vodcast series where Education Director – Ellie Kormis – chats with coaches, coach educators, and teachers who coach – from High School coaches, to Pro coaches, to new coaches, to the seasoned warhorses of our profession. https://youtu.be/ErxR8oeSGBg SPecific discussion points: In this 15-minute chat with Ellie Kormis, the former Coach to Olympic Champion and...
We’re Moving!
After 8 great years in Phoenix, we are excited to announce that we are moving our center of operations to Atlanta, Georgia. Phoenix has been a wonderful home for us, and we have really loved being there. We will forever cherish the friendships we have made with the great folks at Paradise Valley Community College, Movement Restoration, and especially,...
Bandwagon-Jumping and Virtue-Signaling
When a reply to a recent email simply read “BANDWAGON JUMPER!” (yes - in all caps), I wasn’t surprised - but, as someone who values complexity and nuance - I was disappointed. In the last couple of weeks, we have received a ton of positive feedback on our latest efforts to support women and minority coaches. In addition, we have...
Old Books
I have a rule: if someone I trust recommends a book, I buy it. Immediately. I may not read it right away (heck, I may not EVER read it), but at least I know it's there - ready to be read when the time is right. The trouble with this method is that most people recommend a book they just...
Jamaican Swagger
Dive into the vibrant heart of Jamaican sprinting with an insightful article that takes you behind the scenes of one of the world's most dominant sprinting powerhouses. Written by Coach Stu McMillan during a memorable stay in Jamaica alongside Olympic Champion - Donovan Bailey, this piece explores the unique blend of culture, training, and competitive spirit that propels Jamaican athletes...
Perfection
I have made a lot of mistakes in my career; as a person, a coach, and a business owner. I'm not proud of those mistakes - but without them, I am not the person, coach, or business-owner that I am today. There is an honesty in making mistakes - a necessary confrontation with reality. People seem proud of their perfectionism,...
Elevator Philosophy
As coaches, we are faced with multiple questions every day, and having a framework to guide us in answering these questions is essential. It is an obvious statement - but one that is surprisingly often overlooked. Rather than writing programs based upon educated personal beliefs (or a 'training philosophy'), many of us mindlessly prescribe what was given to us when...
Sport Science – what is the point?
This is a guest-post by Canadian Strength Coach and Sport Scientist, Dr. Matt Jordan. Back in 2014, while we were coaching our respective athletes at the Sochi Winter Olympic Games, we sat down and discussed quite a few topics in depth. This post was the result of one of these discussions - and was based on a question I had...
Just a Dumb Coach
Jodie Williams is smarter than me. As hard as it is for me to admit that, it is true. Anaso Jobodwana is also smarter than me. So is Lolo Jones. And Kaillie Humphries. And Ameer Webb. Andre De Grasse. Steve Mesler. Christian Malcolm. Glenn Smith. And a few hundred other folk who have had the (dis?)pleasure of my...
THE DRUNK, THE POLICEMAN, AND THE PRIEST
None of us learn something new, and hold it entirely independent of what we already know. We incorporate it into the history of personal knowledge we have been creating our entire lives. This is how knowledge works, and it often throws up challenges in how we appreciate the things that are not happening outside of our brains, our worlds, our existences. It is so easy to...