HMMR Podcast Recap: Leveraging Strength Training Software

Elite coach and BridgeAthletic’s co-founder, Nick Folker, joined HMMR for a podcast episode discussing how coaches can leverage strength and conditioning technology to be better at their jobs. Technology is a controversial topic in sports training and is oftentimes frowned upon by coaches in the weight room or on the field. Nick talks about these common misconceptions, benefits of incorporating technology, and the future of sports and technology in strength and conditioning programs. Here is the HMMR episode and a recap of the discussion.

Resistance to Technology in Training

Staying present in today’s training world enables coaches to be more efficient and give their team an advantage on the field, court, or pool. Coaches oftentimes are resistant to the thought of incorporating technology into their training program. If a coach doesn’t want to have technology in the weight room, they will always find an excuse not to have it. Nick explains, “It’s not a one or the other situation. Technology is not going to replace coaches it’s just going to put them in a situation to help them make decisions.” In remote situations specifically, implementing strength and conditioning technology allows coaches to understand athlete readiness and the value of their program, which is something they might not have been able to access before.

Common Misconceptions of Technology in Training

Technology creates major advantages to a training program, but resistant coaches have difficulty getting over a negative misconception: athlete distraction. Nick starts by saying, “Distractions are not sport related problems.” Whether its academically, socially, athletically, or emotionally, it is essential for coaches to learn how to manage any form of distraction and help athletes stay motivated on the task at hand. Technology in training might be seen as the distraction now, but 5 years ago it was an athlete punching holes in their printed cardstock or grabbing a teammate’s program and drawing on it. Regardless of the training situation, distractions are always going to occur. It is easy to point fingers at technology, but it is up to a coach to see past this misconception especially if it is going to improve player performances. 

Benefits of Technology in Training

The benefits of technology allow coaches to improve their athletes’ performances. The key to building high-performance training programs is to leverage the power of technology to build, deliver, and track performance. In order to create a positive and beneficial training community, coaches must first figure out how to understand their athletes. Efficiency, personalization, communication, and data tracking are just a few benefits that a coach will have when incorporating technology into their athletes’ strength and conditioning programs. To learn more about the benefits of integrating technology into strength and conditioning programs, check out this blog.

Handling Trends of Technology

Coaches are being negligent if they choose to ignore technology trends in society. Coaching is teaching, and if teaching is moving towards technology, then coaches should be following the same path. Revolutionizing programs to the new ways of training will keep coaches and teams relevant and ahead of competition. The best gauge for judging effective technology trends is seeing what sticks around. Technology should save a coach time, not take it. While finding the best solution for a program seems overwhelming, the key to narrowing down the answers is to first identify the problem that’s trying to be solved. It is important to personally try out different forms of technology because what might work for one team may not be the best solution for your program. 

Recap

Technology is often presented as a way to make coaching more efficient. Coaches can easily minimize the downsides of technology when they are able to overcome resistances and misconceptions revolving around technology in training. Our goal at BridgeAthletic is to empower a coach to design, deliver, and track their athletes’ training. For a coach, staying ahead of the technology trend will help them stay ahead of their competition.