Brennen Lee Taft Has Finally Arrived!

Monday morning at 7:48am Brennen Lee decided it was time to get on with his life and stop just laying around:). He was 7lb 2oz and 19 3/4 long. What a cute little guy- of course everyone says that- but he really is. Jenn is doing just great. Jae and Bailee absolutely love him. They both fight over who gets to hold him first and for how long. The first day Jae had me start the timer on my watch so Bailee didn't get to hold him any longer than her alloted time. OH BOY- it is going to be lot's of fun referring these two girls.

His first night he and I watch sports center at 3 in the morning. He starting crying when they were talking about the Patriots but got real calm and quiet when the Giants were being mentioned. Could that be a sign. Should the Las Vegas gambling organization be concerned...

The one bet I can gaurentee is that Brennen is a keeper!

That is all for today

I promise to have more in my next blog but I am kind of warn out between staying up with Brennen and taking the girls to practices, plus I am catching up on tons of work.

Yours in Speed,

Lee

They Can't Skip Any More!

Baby Update:

Nothing yet. We have had several false alarms but he obviously has his mothers stubbornness- or he hates the winter and wants to stay where it is warm. In any event he is holding fast to his due date of the 30th.

KIDS CAN'T SKIP:

Yesterday I did probably my 300th marketing clinic since I have been doing speed clinics. If you want to learn more about marketing clinic you can sign up for the speed clinic empire webinar coming this February http://www.speedclinicempire.com/.

But what I was going to say was that the marketing clinic I did was for a group of athletes and their parents in Indiana. The entire goal of the clinic was to help gain awareness for proper training. The purpose was to have fun yet share some important techniques that will serve the kids well as they grow in sports and general activity.

When I got to the dynamic warm up aspect and was teaching the kids skipping-I was completely amazed- KIDS CAN'T SKIP ANY MORE! Holy cow. I had roughly 20 kids and I don't think 3/4 could skip. My two daughters where in the clinic and are great at skipping because they practice it in all directions all the time, there were a couple more that were OK and maybe one or two more that kind of resembled a skip. The rest were so off in there form of skipping.

Here were some of the problems I saw. Kids didn't lift their knee hardly at all, they were raising the same side arm as the knee lifting up, some were not using their arms at all- I mean like Irish dancing style, and some of them raised their heels toward their butt and never raised their knees. WHAT! What happened? Why can't kids skip?

So needless to say we did some extra skipping and within 5 minutes all the kids could at least do a skipping pattern somewhat correctly. The thing is- it wasn't like they just had a brain cramp and got screwed up for a second- they didn't know how to skip. What a shame.

I hate to say this because I was a Physical Education Teacher- but, PE is letting our kids down. they are not teaching kids fundamental skills that will help build a big foundation of movement skills. I had one young man that was obviously a wt lifter. He spent some time in the wt room. But his overall movement ability was low. He is an example of coaches spending time on building strength on a weak foundation. He will end up with an injury surer than sure.

Let's not forget that movement is the basis freedom. Strength is definitely needed to allow us to move- but if our movement is so restricted we will have injuries, low performance, and frustration. Let's get back to the basics of movement so we can build off a good foundation.

Gotta Get Going

I need to get a few more things done before the day is done. I will be talking to you in a couple days. Have a great upcoming week!

Yours in Speed,

Lee

Good Thing She's Not a Domino's Delivery Person

If my wife were a Domino's Pizza Delivery Person she would be giving a lot of FREE pizza away. She still hasn't delivered! She is having these contractions in her back and her stomach - COME ON! Out with it already- I've got things to do and places to go. JUST KIDDING I don't actually tell her that (but I am thinking it:)

Any way, no baby boy yet. At her last doctors visit she was told she probably wouldn't have to make another appointment because it should happen any day now. Hey, as long as the baby is healthy, has a goatee, is wearing basketball shoes and can do the Ickey shuffle, then I will be happy.

Athletic Speed Formula In A Box

I have received many questions as to what exactly is Athletic Speed Formula in a Box. People want to know what is it going to do for them. This product is a spin off of the Athletic Speed Formula Seminar. It is quite in-depth on how I run my speed academy. I have gotten questions as to why is it so expensive. If you were to buy this product, regardless of if you were a PE teacher, youth coach, high school or college coach, strength coach or athletic development business owner, then you would basically have a progression of skills, teaching models, evaluation tools, the ability to break down any athletic speed skill, how to implement a strength training program, how to begin teaching a jump training program, a warm up system, and so much more.

You could open up a business or implement this into your existing business and be way ahead of the game. It is not just a product of information. It is the system I use at Lee Taft Speed Academy to improve athletic performance and run my business.

I think the most important tool I have shared is the ability to look at "Linking Skills" or "Sub-skills" to be able to evaluate mistakes an athlete may have made when going from one athletic speed skill to another. I want coaches to be able to develop a keen eye and know what to look for when athletes make movement mistakes.

If you study the product and listen closely to the CD's you will become very good at teaching athletic speed skills. This will be worth a lot of money to you as you become known as the expert in your area.

Anyway-I have only skimmed over what Athletic Speed Formula in a Box is all about. It is a product you will develop your program around. Go to http://www.athleticspeedformula.com/ to learn more.

Jump Training

I think jump training might be one of the most over used training methods there is. When I see a program that is only about Jump Training I get real nervous.

Jumping is a skill like any other athletic speed skill. It must be taught properly and progressed with caution. But first- landing must be taught. If the athlete can jump through the roof but can land well an injury is waiting to happen.

First of all, pure plyometric or jump training needs to be introduced after a foundation of strength and correct mechanics are set. How often do you see complete plyometrics program introduced the first day of high school practice- way too often.

Begin by teaching how the ankles, knees, hips, and back should be positioned to absorb force properly. How the arms should be and where the head and eyes are. The arms and head and eyes can vary depending on a particular goal. One the landing foundation is set then start to introduce the propulsion techniques with landing. Sometimes having the athlete land on a box is safer and easier to get a great push off effort but still minimize the landing forces. From here you can gradually build in different kinds of jumps and landings to challenge the athletes body awareness and stability concerns.

I am a firm believer in doing low volume jumping with high concentration on detail and when ready high intensity on the push off phase and occasionally high intensity on landing.

Don't look at jump training as a program in itself but as a part of the overall athletic development program. Be aware of ability level, training age, biological age, and the purpose of jump training for the population you are working with.

I hope this gives you some basic ideas and encourages you to look further into how to implement a jump training program.

Time to get to work

I have some up and coming projects in progress. Coming in the next couple months I will be a part of two Webinars/on-line seminars, a pre-NFL Combine cCinic, a speed clinic at my NY speed academy, and a some smaller speed clinics locally.

Yours in Speed,

Lee

Thought it might be TODAY!

Jenn was feeling something different. We thought maybe it might be time to add to the family this morning, but nope- false alarm. So now she is at Wal-Mart with her mom and Jae. I'm sticking close to the phone though- I will keep you posted- cuz I know your dying to hear:)

Bailee and I spent most of the morning making a thing that you hang from the crib and the baby can reach for or just watch it- not sure what they are called. It is an octopus with strings hanging from its legs with smaller fish on the string- it's not that we are too cheap to buy one (what ever you call it) we are just being creative.

Consistent philosophies rise to the top

Have you noticed that all the professional sport organizations that build for the future, draft to fill a need, not to just fill seats. They also keep players around. They build leadership from within. It is obvious the owners, presidents/GMs, and coaches are leaders- but they let the build leadership in the locker room. Jordan, Brady, Magic, Bird, Gretzky. Manning, Duncan, and Jeter just to name a few all lead and take care of business in house.

The reason this is so important is because they learn to take on any issues as a team. They don't let one member hang out to dry. They build confidence within. When games are on the line the leaders step up and take over. They take pressure off the other players, or at least lessen it, and give confidence that they can pull it out.

There were several games that the Patriots should have lost this year, but they always made the big plays when it counted most to pull it out. Now why is it that other teams presented with the same opportunities to win a game in the clutch fail to do so? I think it comes down to confidence, players doing their jobs well, and putting the team first.

When you look back several years to the Lakers when they had Shaq and Kobe they were pretty dominate- but mainly because they had better talent in key positions than everyone else. yet they still had some key role players with championship confidence and leadership that helped to push them over the top (Robert Horry, Ron Harper, AC Green, John Salley).

I guess my point is that when you look at the big franchises they will have maybe one or two big time stars, but most of the players are solid role players that play for the team. If you look at the Spurs- other than Duncan and possibly Tony Parker you would not consider many of their players great players. They all fit a system and play hard for the team.

If you were to take Tony Parker off the Spurs and put him on the Minnesota Timberwolves he would probably get lost in the crowd. On the Spurs his talent shins because he plays well within the system and knows his role.

Championship teams are built by finding the unselfish players that will play for the team first and are willing to stick around. They take care of issues in the locker room and not in the news. They are lead by great leaders and respect each other.

Because I am such a fan of athletics I like to look at what makes great teams so great. Just my two cents.

The warm up before the warm up

I can't tell you how sold I am on the importance of Foam Rolling, using a stick, or using some other form of myofascial release before beginning the active warm ups.

Personally when I use the stick or foam before I actively warm up or stretch I immediately have better posture and alignment. I see it with the athletes (at least those that do it well). You can see the mobility immediately improve.

My daughter Jae is playing basketball now at a church league and does other active things. She is starting to develop some knots in her thighs and it will effect how her knees feel at times. She has other issues with her feet that need to be dealt with but that's something to deal with later. When I have her do the stick for a few minutes before and after she always feels better and have greater motion with less or no discomfort.

If you are not using some form of myofascial release now you need to get on it. It will make a huge difference.

WAIT! The phone- that could be Jenn in aisle 9 at Wal-Mart giving me the news that it is time to go get child number 3. Talk to you later....

Yours in Speed,

Lee

Net Yet

Jenn is still holding on to our baby boy. Between us, I think she would gladly like to have him anytime now. She has had some small contractions every now and again but nothing big enough to get him moving south:).

The baby's room is all set. Everything is organized ready for him to sleep, rock, watch things around him, and of course we have all the supplies ready to change him after he works on his first two numbers- Number 1 and Number 2.

My girls are going to love him so much. They are going to love to play with him and make him smile. It can't wait to see their reaction the first time his number 2 smells like Poo.

When you think you can't get any more distractions

Jenn and I have been working feverishly on our businesses and making huge strides- but I must admit at times it is extremely busy and difficult to keep focused. So, wouldn't you know we had to have some pipes that go to our bathrooms and sinks completely dug up and replaced the last two days. That was 2 days without a bathroom most of the time. We now have a huge 30 foot filled in trench right outside our back door- can you say MUD! Our dog long jumps this pile every time he goes in the backyard. What a distraction this has been- but we keep trudging along.

The Speed of the Crossover

Recently I had an interview for a soon to be released basketball product. I was asked many questions about my "Basketball Success Pyramid" and the steps I use. One of the questions I was asked referred to what I call the King of Athletic Movement- The Crossover. The question started out by mentioning how so many coaches preach never to cross the feet. They are partly right- but mostly missing the point.

The crossover is used to gain speed laterally without losing orientation or good positioning on an offensive player or the situation in the game. If a basketball player on offense makes an aggressive hard move toward the hoop the defender has to match the intensity and speed. The hierarchy in of laterally movement will be; first- Lateral shuffle. If you do not have to turn and run, or crossover because the you can maintain positioning with the shuffle that is best. Secondly- crossover. If the speed is too great to stay in a shuffle but not enough to turn and run use the crossover. Lastly- turn and run. When you are beat you must turn and run to get back in position.

Why do I call the crossover the "King". It allows so much versatility for the defensive player. The defender can quickly match the initial first step of the offensive player, he/she can stay with the offensive player for a great distance at higher speeds, and he/she can stop and change directions quickly to match the offensive move.

The physical look of the crossover is like this; The lower body will turn so the legs can preform pretty close to a normal stride- the key is to turn the hips so the legs are free to move. The upper body/head and shoulders will stay mostly squared up to the play or player. This separation of the two body segments allows the defender to accomplish speed of movement and great defensive positioning.

To Learn more about the crossover and an entire teaching strategy of athletic speed click on over to http://www.athleticspeedformula.com/

Certification

I am continuously asked if I have a certification to certify others on teaching my techniques. I have never really put much stock in it in the past- BUT now I am starting to think more about it. Not because I think a lot of certifications, but because I feel if parents, coaches, and athletes knew the facility they were going to be involved with or the coach they are training with had a specific certification that addressed multi-directional speed training, then maybe it would help increase awareness. I am still thinking about it but it might possible be in the "plans".

Busy Day, got go

I hope you have a great weekend. Stay safe and healthy, I will be chatting again shortly.

Yours in speed,

Lee

UPSET CITY- or was it...

Wow. Did you watch this Sundays NFL playoff games? As you know, I live in Indiana as well as in NY. I watched my home town Colts play a poor game and handed the Chargers the game. I also watched my other home town team, the Giants, take one from the Cowboys. What a great couple of efforts by the underdog teams. It just goes to show you that when you are dealing with athletes as talented as these guys any team can win at any time.

I certainly would love to see the Giants pull it out and go all the way- but if they don't I have to say I am rooting for the packers and the rejuvinated career of Brett Farve. He is amazing. He plays the game with such enthusiasm and love it is refreshing to see.

Do you think the Pats have an easier road now that the Colts are out? I think the Colts style was tough for the Pats to deal with and I bet they are relieved. It will be fun to watch the rest of the playoffs play out.

Busy Week

This is my first full week back in Indiana and things are really heat up. I have several coaching calls, meetings for a potential smaller version of my speed academy in Indiana, new product creations, a couple interviews, several articles to write, mind mapping of a new product that I am super thrilled about, basketball practice with my girls, shipping of many LTSA Gold Memberhip packages to the New LTSA Gold Members, and a few organization items- and that is Monday (Ahh- just kidding). I do have a tremendous amount to accomplish this week, but that is my typical schedule every week.

I have taken on a philosophy I learned from many of the top marketers and business people in the industry- work fast and do a lot. Last year I purchased the DVD "The Phenomenom" by Dan kennedy. It is the way I now run my business. I do more in a day than I use to do in week. Dan has a saying something like this "Good things come from a Messy Kitchen". Basically he is saying get working on many projects and keep them moving along until complettion. When I use to concentrate on one thing at a time it drove me nuts and I never seemed to get anything done. I would always be thinking about something else I had to do. So now I do those other things at the same time.

Let me give you an idea of what I am talking about. I start out by working on a new product for a couple hours and then move on to writing an article for my newsletter. Next, I work on items related to my speed academy, and at the same time I am planning a new project. What The Phenomenom has done for me is comparable to exercising. When I first start training hard it is difficult to finish or I am completely warn out. But after a couple weeks it is no longer difficult for me to do the same amount of exercising- so I do a little more. Eventually, I adapt and keep progressing. My business is now run the same way. Several years ago it took me 2 days to write an article and another 3 days to outline a new product or business idea. That same amount of work now is now done before I finish my breakfast. It is all about working at a faster pace with attention to getting things done. I don't worry about the fine details. You have read my writing- does it look to you like I pay attention to details :)

I have set some huge personal, business, finacial, and family goals for 2008 and I know I will attain most if not all of them becasue I am working at a super fast pace. I owe much of it to my coaches that guide me week to week, but I also owe a bunch to Jenn (my wife) for helping me get things done. We have tag teamed our business for many years and through all the hills and valleys we have learned to do a pretty good job. We both work FAST- I am known as "the speed guy" you know...

Time to hit the hay

It is 10:40pm and I need to finish up and get ready for bed. I like to read just a little before I go to bed becasue it feeds my mind with positive messages- of course I read positve books. Catch you later.

Yours in speed,

Lee

PS: Click on over to http://www.athleticspeedformula.com/ to learn more about a system of training that has changed the way coaches and athletes train.

Mean Mom

I have to applaud the actions of this mother- read http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080109/ap_on_fe_st/odd_car_ad. She took action that should send a message to her son that she truly cares about his life and won't tolerate him playing Russian Roulette with his life.

Because I am such a big advocate for kids I have no tolerance for them risking their futures by participating in drugs and alcohol. As a head coach I have had the displeasure of dismissing kids from my team because they choose to cheat themselves and their team by participating in illegal use of alcohol. I am not preaching to you I am stating my opinion. I have had friends, students, and athletes killed because they choose wrongly. I do not accept the excuse that many parents and coaches make for their children/athletes "Well, they made a mistake." No they didn't- they made a choice and need to learn that their are strict consequences that go along with that choice.

I remember parents pleading with me when their child was dismissed from the team and saying "we all did it when we were kids"- wrong! I never tasted alcohol until I was 22 years old. I made a conscience decision to stay away from it. I mention this because I lived in the same town, had the same friends, had the same social gatherings, had the same environment but made a different choice.

This mother took action to make her son realize his actions could have killed him and many others and it will not be tolerated. He may find other ways to use alcohol but there is no doubt he now knows his mother cares enough to make a strong statement. YESSS- finally a positive spin on what could have been another tragedy.

I wrote this blog because I stand firm that we have to get control of our young people and make sure they know it is acceptable NOT to use drugs and alcohol. There are alternatives to that form of behavior. We as parents need to provide atmospheres that show the spirit of good fun living without risking our health and lives.

Thank you for allowing me to voice my opinion.

By-the-way, checkout my new book for developing a championship attitude
Lee

Great Trip Out West

What a busy time it has been. I just returned back from the NSCA Sport Specific seminar in California. I spoke for the baseball specific on baseball speed and in particular base stealing technique. It was a lot of fun sharing with so many wonderful people. There are always people that don't agree with my philosophy but that is ok. It makes for good discussion and I always welcome that.

I had to the chance to meet with some of the NSCA board officials and other professionals that have great insight into our profession of strength and conditioning. In the near future you will be hearing about some of the people I met with- I was so impressed and real lucky to have met them.

A different point of view

Not only did I enjoy presenting I really enjoyed attending the other presentations. In each presentation that I attended I would hear speed techniques that I totally agreed with, some I wasn't totally on the same page with, and others that I disagree with. But they all make me think and re-think my concepts, and approach.

The one topic that comes up often now is deceleration and in particular, lateral deceleration. The discussion always comes down to if the inside leg or outside leg is a decelerator. THEY BOTH ARE. What most coaches mis-understand from me is that I don't dispel that the inside leg aids in deceleration, in some cases more than other times, but the inside leg is not something that generally needs to be taught. It is usually a result of a stride pattern. So when turning to change direction the inside leg will plant to decelerate because it is the next stride. The outside leg on the other hand needs to be position to not only stop the body but also accelerate the body. If there is a mistake with the outside leg the change of direction will be hindered.

When most people show the inside leg as the decelerator it is usually with a drill that is pre-determined or rehearsed. So they will have them do a 5 yard run/shuttle and change direction. The athlete can set their steps up and lean into the turn. We all know this is not the case in most situations in live sport. When I watched one of the presenters speak on the deceleration techniques of the inside leg, most of the drills were similar to a shuttle- easy for an athlete to lean in and get into a patterns, but these presenters showed live random reaction drills they athletes almost always relied on the outside leg to quickly stop them and to restart them. The inside leg in most cases didn't touch down until the outside leg did its job.

In any case- it is all a matter of point of view. You can emphasis what ever leg you want but the athlete must be able to be corrected when they make a mistake in movement. Great discussion on this topic though.

Getting ready to travel

Well, I am getting ready to travel home tomorrow to Indiana for a long stay. I can't wait to spend some quality time with my girls, wife and soon to be little boy. I will be coaching my girls teams when I get back and I can't wait! I also look forward to working hard with my wife and my staff to keep building our new systems in all our businesses. It will be a challenge but it will be worth it in the end.

My staff at the LTSA is ready to take on the challenge of handling business while I am gone. Both Kyle and Jon are great workers and love working with the athletes (and the athletes love working with them).

At the Speed academy we have started some new classes and will be looking forward to getting the athletes involved. I will look forward to coming back to the speed academy and doing some speed camps for the athletes. should be a blast!

A little concerned

There are so many new "Athletic Development" facilities opening up it is hard to tell which ones are for real or just trying to jump on the band wagon of the youth explosion.

Recently in this area a new facility is offering youth development. I am all for helping the kids but I take youth development seriously and I have a feeling it is a case of another person trying to jump into the youth market. Working with kids is a special thing. It takes an understanding of their needs and how to progress kids along. Many trainers will do what they have read or what they personally do. I want better for the kids and hope that cautions is used when parents search out a program for the kids. I spent 20 years working with kids in this field- even before it was popular to have youth development centers. I had many changes to work with the professional athlete and could have made a big living off them- my heart has been with kids and I take that seriously. Please make good decisions when searching out a program for you kids.

I am actually speaking tonight to a group of parents on just this topic. They want to know more about what to look for in a program. obviously I want them to know about the Lee Taft Speed Academy, but many of these parents do live a long ways from us and it would be easier if they had a program near them. I will offer what I think to be key things to look for when searching for a qualified trainer. I hope many of them will be able to travel to us, but I will help them make the best decision for them.

Time to get heading

Well, I need to be going to talk to some parents and get ready to travel to IN. See you soon!

Yours In Speed

Lee