Strength

If you were coaching someone how to squat, what specific cues would you use?

Master the Squat: Grab, Spiral, Tuck, Pull

So when I'm coaching the squat, I try to start from the ground up and think about the feet, kind of grabbing the ground and then like turning kind of outward like you're turning the doorknob. So there's sending a spiral up your leg to drive your knees out and kind of keep your pelvis under. You don't think about spreading the floor too hard. Just think about grabbing the ground and kind of spiraling that energy from the ground all the way up to the knees and to the hips. And then from there, I Think about keeping the chin tucked. So you don't want to look up as you squat, you want to keep your chin tucked so we don't cut off the energy through your cervical spine. And then from there, once I get to the bottom of the squat, if I can keep that energy from my feet, to my hips, and keep my chin tucked. When I'm at the bottom, I try to think about pulling my torso into my thigh. So give me a little extra depth while keeping a neutral pelvis, and just try to get as deep as I can. While keeping good posture my feet and my Chin and my pelvis. Hope that helps.

Start from the ground up by "grabbing" and spiraling the energy from your feet to your knees and hips, tuck your chin, and pull your torso into your thigh while keeping a neutral pelvis at the bottom of the squat.

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When coaching someone on how to squat, I focus on specific cues to ensure proper form. Here are the cues I would use:

1. Start from the ground up: Begin by thinking about your feet. Imagine grabbing the ground and turning outward, as if you're turning a doorknob. This creates a spiral up your leg, helping to drive your knees out and maintain proper alignment of the pelvis.

2. Keep the chin tucked: Avoid looking up while squatting. Instead, keep your chin tucked to maintain proper alignment and prevent unnecessary strain on the cervical spine.

3. Maintain energy and posture: As you reach the bottom of the squat, aim to keep the energy from your feet to your hips and maintain a neutral pelvis. To achieve a little extra depth, think about pulling your torso into your thighs while still maintaining good posture.

By following these cues, you can ensure proper technique and form throughout the squat movement.

Do you believe in the maxim 'hard work beats talent, unless talent works hard, and if so, what's your secret to motivating the talented?

Hard Work Trumps Talent: The Secret to Motivating the Gifted

I've always been a hard worker. I've always had to get the most out of what I was given. So I believe hard work beats talent and nowadays, you do see lots of talent that works, hard being in Major League Baseball. As long as I was, you see a lot of gifted and talented athletes and most of them nowadays work hard because they want to be healthy. They want to perform well, they want to have a long career. So I've seen both sides of it. I've seen talented guys, that don't work hard. That might do well, short term but aren't going to be as healthy Iraq. I have as long of career. So I think that hard work is always a good thing. And always beats Talent, maybe not short term, but it definitely will long-term as for motivating. Talented athletes. That may not want to work hard metrics. I think numbers are good motivating factor if you pair them up against other guys and certain guys lift certain weights or certain guys run certain speeds or throw certain mph. I have a certain exit velocity when they see that they could competitive because even if they're not hard workers most talented athletes are very competitive so we try to use competition to help motivate those that don't work as hard but are very talented. So I think that is a big motivator. There's other things you can do but that's probably the main one that that I would use. But big believer in hard, work wins over town.

I believe hard work beats talent, especially in the long run. To motivate talented athletes who may not want to work hard, competition can be used to push them to perform better.

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I believe in the maxim hard work beats talent, unless talent works hard. Throughout my career, I have witnessed both sides of the spectrum. There are talented individuals who don't put in the necessary work, resulting in short-term success but potentially compromising their long-term health and career. On the other hand, I have seen talented athletes who work hard because they understand the importance of maintaining their health, performing well, and having a sustained career.

In the context of motivating talented individuals who may not have a strong inclination to work hard, I find that using numbers and competition can be effective. By comparing their performance metrics to those of other athletes, such as weights lifted, running speeds, throwing velocities, or exit velocities, they can see the competitive aspect and be motivated to improve. Most talented athletes are inherently competitive, so leveraging competition can be a powerful motivator.

While there are other strategies to motivate talented individuals, competition is a key factor that I would utilize. Overall, I firmly believe that hard work ultimately triumphs over talent, even if it may not be immediately evident.

Who are some athletes you’ve learned the most from in your coaching career?

Coaching Career: Lessons Learned from Pro Athletes

When I first started my coaching career with professional athletes, it was straight after being a college athlete. So I was 23 years old and I knew a bunch from what I've done in my high school and college training, career in the coaches, I've worked with up to that point and then my boss at the time with the Nationals, taught me a lot, but when you start working with professional athletes, that are veterans and have been in Major League Baseball for over a decade. You need to listen. To them and kind of see what's worked for them and what you can maybe do to help them. But Jason Marquis was the first athlete that I met that really helped me just kind of see things in a different light, and he taught me a lot about how training should be and how it is at this level and how it varies from young guys to veterans that have been around more. So he was very influential, he's still a good friend and we still talk regularly, so he has had a A big impact on my coaching career, other athletes that. I kind of grew up with, in the Nationals organization me as a coach them as athletes, Justin Maxwell, lived around the Maryland, DC area in the offseason. So I got to work with him during the season and kind of get to know his body and then I would also trained him in the offseason, so developed a good relationship there and kind of learn some things from him as he was a little older than me. But then, as I was developing as a professional strength ignition coach. I was able to teach him some things too, so it's kind of cool seeing how it works with veterans. And then guys that you come up with Ryan, Zimmerman taught me a lot about how to be professional and watched him grow up throughout his career from 2009 until he retired. So, that was awesome. He taught me a ton about how to work but how to be professional had to do things kind of on and off the field and also in that of the gym and then you work with other freak athletes like Max Scherzer who teach you how to work hard. Hard. But also you can kind of help them a little bit with them how to pull back when to pull back and kind of how to get the most out of their training and what they're doing, and to be ready for each start, whether it's beginning of the Season or in the postseason. So, lots of different things I've learned in my coaching career and tons of athletes, have influenced me as I've grown up.

I learned a lot from my first professional athlete, Jason Marquis. He taught me about how training is different for younger and veteran players. I also worked with Justin Maxwell, Ryan Zimmerman and Max Scherzer who all taught me about being professional and working hard. These athletes have been influential on my coaching career.

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In my coaching career, I have had the opportunity to learn from various athletes who have greatly influenced me. When I first started coaching professional athletes, I was 23 years old and fresh out of being a college athlete. While I had knowledge from my own training experiences and the coaches I had worked with, it was working with veteran professional athletes that taught me valuable lessons.

One athlete who had a significant impact on me was Jason Marquis. He helped me see training from a different perspective and taught me about the nuances of training at the professional level, especially the differences between younger players and veterans. Jason remains a good friend, and we still have regular conversations.

I also had the privilege of working with athletes like Justin Maxwell and Ryan Zimmerman during my time with the Nationals organization. Justin, being older than me, provided insights into his body and training, while I had the opportunity to teach him some things as well. Ryan Zimmerman taught me about professionalism and how to approach work on and off the field. It was incredible to witness his growth throughout his career.

Working with exceptional athletes like Max Scherzer also taught me valuable lessons. Max's work ethic and dedication were inspiring, and I learned how to push hard but also help athletes know when to pull back and optimize their training for peak performance, whether it was during the regular season or the postseason.

Throughout my coaching career, I have learned from numerous athletes who have influenced me as I continue to grow and develop as a professional strength and conditioning coach.

How have your coaching philosophy and training methods changed over the years?

Evolution of coaching: From generic to targeted training methods

My coaching philosophy and training methods. Over the years, have become more detailed more specific. So at first I just learned how to train hard and do things come to do them and you feel like you're working, you feel like you're getting stronger, you may not be moving. Well you may not be doing things. Exactly, right. But you're lifting and working hard and that's going to make you better, right? But over the years over the last decade in professional baseball and just in training athletes in general. I've learned more of the why behind training so I could go into lots of detail about it but getting your hips to work properly to help you move better, doing things to improve your running mechanics in the gym. Helping you get hip extension opening up ranges of motion so that you can use the appropriate muscles. Making sure we're targeting shoulder strengthening movements and specific muscles because that athlete needs to strengthen that muscle. Making sure we're getting core stability because they lack it for improving rib, cage, rage emotion. Instead of just adding more core stability to an already stable core that is missing ranges of motion that could improve more from getting better movement than just more strength and stability because we think it's good. So being more judicious, being more specific, trying to give the athletes or clients, exactly what they need to get the most out of their training. In to get transfer into their life or into their sport is kind of how my training and coaching philosophy has evolved over the years.

Over the years I have become more specific and detailed in my coaching and training methods. I focus on helping athletes with their running mechanics, hip extension, shoulder strengthening, core stability, and ranges of motion in order to get the most out of their training and improve their performance in life and sport.

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Over the years, my coaching philosophy and training methods have evolved to become more detailed and specific. Initially, I focused on training hard and working towards improvement without necessarily considering the exact movements or techniques. However, as I gained more experience in professional baseball and training athletes, I delved deeper into the why behind training.

I learned the importance of proper hip function for improved movement, incorporating exercises to enhance running mechanics, and targeting specific muscles for shoulder strengthening based on individual needs. I also recognized the significance of core stability in relation to rib cage motion and the importance of addressing range of motion rather than solely focusing on strength and stability.

My approach has become more judicious and specific, aiming to provide athletes and clients with precisely what they need to maximize their training and achieve transferable results in their sport or daily life. This evolution in my coaching philosophy and training methods has allowed me to better tailor my approach to meet the unique needs of each individual.

As an expert, why are you interested in using AnyQuestion?

Expert thrilled to access world-class knowledge and help others on AnyQuestion!

I'm excited as an expert on any questions to use the community. That is at my disposal on this app. Anything that I might be wondering about, I can just click on different things and get answers right away from world-class experts in their field. But also I am excited to help the community. If I had access to something like this, when I was younger it would have helped me be a lot more productive as a middle schooler in high school athlete. I did a lot of things that we're not very productive and might have made me worse as an athlete. So, if I had something like this, when I was starting as an athlete and performance, I think it would have been very beneficial. So I'm looking forward to sharing some opinions and some things I've learned to hopefully help the community.

I'm excited to use this app as an expert on any questions and also be part of helping the community by sharing my knowledge.

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As an expert, I am interested in using AnyQuestion because it provides me with access to a community of knowledgeable individuals. I can easily find answers to any questions I may have by connecting with world-class experts in various fields. Additionally, I am excited about the opportunity to contribute and help others within the community. If I had access to a platform like this when I was younger, it would have greatly enhanced my productivity and performance as a middle school and high school athlete. I made some unproductive choices back then that may have hindered my progress. Having a resource like AnyQuestion would have been incredibly beneficial. Therefore, I am eager to share my insights and experiences to assist and support the community.

Can you discuss some specific strategies you have used to help prevent and manage injuries for the athletes you work with?

Build Strength and Work Capacity: Key Strategies for Injury Prevention

When thinking about preventing and managing injuries, the first thing you can do is build strength, especially eccentric, strength, and your hamstrings or whatever it is that you're trying to prevent strength goes a long way. And then once you have that you want to build work capacity aerobic and anaerobic base, so they have something to build on. But if you want them to run at full speed and not get hurt, or be able to play a whole game or throw a lot of pitches or take a lot of swings. You have to build capacity at that full speed so that when they play in the game, it's almost easy to them. So properly, progressing, their offseason their preseason, they're in season so that they can do everything you require. Whether it's running at full speed or running, a full speed for a long time, make sure you have built that into their training so that the game is almost easier and it's not something new, where they're not going to be able to manage that workload, or that top speed running.

To prevent and manage injuries, build strength and work capacity at full speed so that the game is easier and the workload can be managed.

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When it comes to preventing and managing injuries for athletes, I have implemented specific strategies that have proven effective. One key strategy is focusing on building strength, particularly eccentric strength in areas such as the hamstrings, to help prevent injuries. Strengthening these specific muscle groups can go a long way in injury prevention.

Another important aspect is developing work capacity, both aerobic and anaerobic, to provide a solid foundation for athletes to build upon. This ensures that they have the endurance and stamina required to perform at their best without risking injury. For example, if you want athletes to run at full speed without getting hurt or play a whole game without fatigue, it's crucial to build their capacity to sustain that level of performance.

Properly progressing their training throughout the offseason, preseason, and in-season is essential. This means gradually increasing the intensity and workload so that athletes can handle the demands of their sport. By incorporating training that replicates the specific movements and intensity required in the game, athletes become accustomed to performing at their peak without it feeling overwhelming or unfamiliar.

Overall, the key is to focus on building strength, developing work capacity, and properly progressing training to ensure that athletes can meet the demands of their sport without succumbing to injuries.

Neither AnyQuestion nor its Experts provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment or otherwise provide professional healthcare services.

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Matt Eiden answers your Strength questions. See all the advice Matt Eiden has and get answers to your own Strength questions.

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Matt Eiden is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and Registered Strength and Conditioning Coach (RSCC) with 14 years of experience. He was a strength coach for the Washington Nationals from 2009 to 2022. He is also Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) certified. After graduating from St. Mary's with a BS degree in Sports Management in 2008, he played two professional seasons of independent baseball before joining the Nationals as an intern in 2009. In 2016, he was promoted to Head MLB Strength and Conditioning Coach. During the off-season, he resides in Hilton Head, SC with his wife, Ashley. His hobbies include golf, basketball, reading, and spending time with his wife and family. Matt believes that moving well is essential and coaches must be able to connect with athletes to help them work toward the greater goals of the player and team.