Weight Room: Safe Haven
I have a theory. It is untested, unproven. There’s no research backing it and there are no sources. But it is a theory, nonetheless.
I theorize that the great strength and conditioning coaches that I have had the honor of coaching with, or have been coached by, fell in love with the weight room years ago. At first, they were probably very similar to myself and many other strength coaches. They were young athletes that wanted to get better at their sport by any means necessary. Initially, the weight room started as a means to an end. But eventually, the weight room turned into a happy place — a place of therapy. A place for peace.
A safe haven.
Athletes: Fall in Love
Whenever an athlete asks me, “Coach, what can I do to get better?” the first thing I answer is, “Fall in love with the weight room.” I’ve never heard an athlete say they were bad at their sport because they were too strong. I’ve never heard an athlete say I wish I would’ve worked less hard.
The benefits of the weight room and of weight training are infinite, but falling in love with the weight room is more than that.
Life can be tough sometimes. There will be days when school is hard, maybe you just lost a game — but you can always rely on the weight room to be the same every single day. Every day the weights will be there for you and they will always be heavy. It is trustworthy. The weights don’t care who you are or how much money you have or where you come from.
The weight room only rewards those that work for it.
It is fair. Some athletes are bigger than others and some athletes will lift more than you. But everybody can become stronger than they were yesterday. But if you haven’t put in the work and you are not getting stronger, the weight room will expose you. It is honest. Trustworthy, fair, and honest. Kind of sounds like a friend? Fall in love with the weight room and make it your best friend.
Coaches: Foster the Environment
As coaches it is our responsibility, and our duty, to foster an environment in the weight room that is worth falling in love with. That is impossible if we don’t start with programming and training our athletes as best as possible. At Performance Course, we gather our staff together for weeks to create and design the best possible programs we can for all of our athletes in every sport and of all ages.
We cannot expect our athletes to love the weight room if they are not being trained correctly, but that is only half of what it takes to instill the environment we are trying to accomplish. We should always love and encourage our athletes in the weight room.
Positive vibes only.
The weight room should not be the place to enforce punishment. You can use the sport for that. It should be fun and positive. Let the athletes sometimes play their music. Let the athletes challenge each other and support one another. Program in curls and bench maxes for your athletes. Our goal should be for every athlete to look forward to that one hour every day that they get to train in the weight room.
Opportunity
Now, this theory needs work. It needs to be tested and conducted through a scientific method. But one thing that is already fact, is that the weight room presents opportunity. I once coached an athlete that played on the defensive line in football. In practice, this same athlete had to play on the offensive line rather than play his actual position because there were not enough offensive lineman to be able to run a practice. That day, that athlete probably did not get any better at becoming a defensive lineman. There will be practices like this for many athletes in many sports. The weight room is different.
Every time you train in the weight room is an opportunity to get better at your sport. Every time athletes train in the weight room is an opportunity to create buy-in. Every time they train is another opportunity to establish culture.
The weight room is a place of opportunity.
It is more than just getting stronger.
The weight room is a safe haven.
Fall in love with it.
