This week’s guest on the Pacey Performance Podcast is sports psychologist Dan Abrahams. Dan became a psychologist following a stint as a professional golfer with an interest in the mental side of the sport. After calling time on his playing career, he became a coach and followed that up by gaining a master’s degree in sports psychology. He’s been working in this capacity for 16 years now, including for England Rugby, England Golf, and numerous Premier League football clubs.
Following the recent Olympic and Paralympic Games, sports psychology has been in the spotlight more than ever. Dan discusses the impact this has had on the subject, including how an athlete’s mental state can be rated on a three-stage ‘traffic light’ system depending on their current needs. He also addresses the theory that you cannot coach attitude, effort and energy - although the athlete is responsible for their own attitude, Dan explains how coaches and sports psychologists can create an environment that engages athletes and helps them maintain all-important intensity when training. If you’re interested in the mental side of coaching and sports science, then this week’s podcast is for you.
This week’s topics:
How to develop some of the Premier League‘s most promising young talent with Matt Allen (Head of Academy Physical Development at Tottenham Hotspur)
Harnessing ego to increase player and coach performance with Martin Buchheit (Head of Performance Research at Kitman Labs) and George Perry (athletics coach and sports writer)
Jumping and plyometrics; testing options, the importance of jump strategy and its link to speed with Joseph Coyne (Director of High Performance at Lindisfarne Anglican College)
Why speed should be at the top of the decision making tree in a performance based approach to rehab with Jonas Dodoo (Speedworks) & Alan Murdoch (Speedworks - Bath)
Reducing and rehabilitating hip and groin injuries, monitoring readiness in team sports & isometric training with Ed Gannon (Head of S&C at Buffalo Sabres)
Training tendons; implications for sprinting, jumping and rehabilitation with Keith Baar (Professor of Molecular Exercise Physiology at University of California, Davis)
EPL > NHL > NFL; lessons from working in three of the biggest sports in the world with Jo Clubb (Sports Performance Consultant)
Contextual strength & coordination training, traditional strength training and intelligent science with John Pryor (Senior S&C Coach at Rugby Australia [Wallabies])
Programming for early and late maturing athletes, athlete case studies, and identifying gaps in development with James Baker (Senior S&C Coach at Aspire Academy)
Assessing growth and maturation, developing an LTAD framework, and talent identification with James Baker (Senior S&C Coach at Aspire Academy)
Murderball & training intensity; creating the fittest team in the Premier League with Benoit Delaval (1st Team Fitness Coach at Leeds United FC)
Eccentric training; the why, when and how with Angus Ross (Senior Strength & Conditioning Specialist at High Performance Sport New Zealand)
Developing some of the most impressive young athletes in the world at Duke University with Aaron Getz (Associate Director for Performance [Football] at Duke University)
From Olympic hockey gold to European football: what we can learn from other sports with Rick Cost (Head of Performance at Feyenoord)
What is data science (and what isn't), data informed decision making, and the gamification of coaching with Sudarshan Gopaladesikan (Head of Sports Data Science at S.L. Benfica)
Winning the Rugby World Cup, alcohol periodisation, and conditioning rugby players with Aled Walters (Head of Physical Preparation at Leicester Tigers)
The future of fitness qualifications in football, 24/7 support staff and what happened to the 'fitness coach' (?) with Paul Balsom (Fitness Coach for the Swedish National Football Team)
From NFL > esports: working in esports as a performance coach, what coaches can bring, and how can you pivot into this area with Taylor Johnson (Chief Performance Engineer at Statspace)
Expectations of sports science, the rise of the PhD, and the 'problem' with research with Barry Drust (Industrial Professorial Fellow at University of Birmingham)
Performance recovery, working with Olympic sprinters, and growing industry trends with Robin Thorpe (Sports Performance Scientist)
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