Along with 18,000 other volleyball fans, I enjoyed watching the Division 1 Women’s National Championship match last Saturday night. I can’t imagine a match where two teams fought harder and gave all the effort they possessed each time the referee blew the whistle. Some fans felt it was the best national championship match in history.…
By no means would I consider myself a fan of figure skating. However, I am a fan of any sport that demonstrates athleticism, grace, and dedication to excellence. Recently, I watched a video of 15-year old figure skater Kamila Valieva. She displayed a remarkable skating performance that had the announcers gushing, “I’m speechless,” and established…
In a previous post titled Moneyball vs. Betterball, the idea of using statistics to improve skills instead of solely measuring outcomes is presented. In the post, I pointed out how the University of Virginia used the Noah Tracking System to provide feedback to the players as they worked on their shooting accuracy. A recent WSJ…
Club volleyball coaches significantly impact the volleyball futures of thousands of aspiring athletes. Like most professional endeavors, the quality of coaching depends on the training and preparation the coach receives. If a coach is prepared for success, the results will usually be positive. I read a recently concluded study with compelling conclusions about the effectiveness…
It is not unusual for a coach to react to an error by a player to passionately yell out, “you gotta think out there!!” In reality, thinking is not really what you want players to do during a rally. To think while the action is taking place is a paralyzer of movement that slows down…
A unique trait of good players is the ability to handle mistakes better than bad players. All players will make errors; however, the error by the better player, generally, will not negatively impact the next contact. Errors are an aspect of the game that is unavoidable for players of all levels. Skilled players make fewer…
“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training” ~Greek poet Archilochu Having played a little high school tennis, I know enough about the game to be interested in a good match and appreciate the quality of play. In the recent US Open tournament, I was engrossed…
Learning styles do exist, and they all have the potential to be effective. Unfortunately, there is no documentation of a singular “best” learning style or teaching style that is guaranteed to help all athletes. I’ve heard many athletes tell me that they are “visual” learners. The fact is that the athlete might enjoy learning visually,…
Incorrect throwing mechanics will impact a player’s ability to execute the skills of attacking and serving correctly. The absence of proper form will also impact the athlete’s long-term health by placing undue stress on the shoulder. In my book, A Game Plan for Better Practices, we explore the mechanics of throwing and teaching suggestions. It…
Plenty of data is available that indicates the ideal learning environment is when the current skill or knowledge boundaries are pushed to the edges. UCLA professor, Robert Bjork, termed the process of challenging the student “desirable difficulties.” According to Dr. Bjork, one of the keys to a productive learning environment is testing. The ability to…