I started lifting weights for the same reasons that most young athletes do. I wanted to get stronger. I was lucky to have some mentors who shared some great weight-room knowledge with me. However, In Aroostook County and rural Maine, there is an overall lack of resources on strength training. You would think that the internet would provide all of the information you need on just about any topic right? This is where strength training gets interesting. The amount of misinformation that is shared every day on the internet is amazing. It is going to be really difficult for a 15-year-old kid to be able to identify what is quality information. Heck, 99% of people really can’t. My goal as a coach and trainer is to educate. I have been really lucky to have such great coaching mentors in my young life. These people have taught me how to identify quality information. Everything I do and teach in the weight room is stolen. I did not make any of it up. I hope you can steal something from this post.
What are your goals?
The first thing that must always be identified is what you are trying to achieve. Make your goals specific and set a date for when you are trying to achieve it by. Surround yourself with reminders of this goal. For example, I am currently training a high school baseball player who has a set a goal of gaining 20 pounds in a 6 month period. Every Friday, I have a highly anticipated weigh-in with this kid. Week-by-week the scale would go up until one week he did not gain a single pound. He admitted to me that he probably was not eating as much as he should be. Our solution to this problem was to take a picture of the scale and make it the background on his phone. By doing this, there is no way of hiding from his goal. Every time he opens his phone the scale will be looking at him right in the eye. The point I am trying to make is that you need to make specific goals and constantly remind yourself of these goals and why you are trying to accomplish these goals. Your goal should not be “I want to get stronger.” It should be, “I want to be able to do 10 pull-ups by the end of 2020.” Not “I want to get better at basketball,” but “I want to start on the varsity basketball team as a Sophomore.”
Investing In Yourself
I’m a big believer that the best thing you can invest in is yourself. I often see people are not willing to invest in themselves. What is investing in yourself as an athlete? It can be hiring a trainer, buying quality food and supplements, going to a clinic, camp, etc. Often, I’ll hear kids say, “It’s too much money.” These are often the kids who have a new vehicle, Jordan’s on their feet, and every new video game. There’s no doubt that all of these things are a lot of fun, but they all depreciate. The memories training hard with your friends and playing sports are some of the most precious memories you will make. There is a lot of sacrifices that have to be made to become the best version of yourself, but it is well worth it.
Why You Should Hire a Trainer
As I alluded to earlier, many people seem to think that paying for a trainer is too expensive. Being in the basketball community my entire life, I have seen all of these kids who play AAU basketball all around the country every weekend in hopes of catching the attention of college coaches. I am sorry, but if you are 6 feet tall, 170 pounds, and have a 25 inch vertical you are probably not going to draw a ton of interest. Yes, there are always anomalies and I am not telling you that you should not play AAU basketball. I did not have a bunch of colleges knocking on my door, but I have had education and experiences that help me analyze where myself and others have gone wrong. Take one weekend of your entry fee, travel costs, food, hotel room and get a month with a trainer. Every sport is getting more and more athletic. We are at the point where you have to train your body just as hard as your skills or you are going to get left behind. Find a qualified trainer who has had results with himself and other athletes. Most athletes wander around the weight room for years and live in the land of bicep curls and calf raises. That will not do anything. There are so many variables to designing a strength and conditioning program that are difficult to consider if you do not have the proper education and experience. These variables include a needs analysis, frequency, exercise selection, muscle weakness and imbalances, sets, reps, rest, injury history, etc.
My goal is to educate as many young athletes as possible. Growing up in Aroostook County, I always wondered why the star athletes in the area were not going to big programs to continue their athletic careers. I believe a big part of that is because we are behind in the area of strength training. We do not produce big, fast, and strong athletes like other areas do. I think if we get kids doing squats, deadlifts, presses, sprints, sled pushes, loaded carries, agility drills, and jumps we can change that narrative.
Andre Rossignol's Blog 