November/December 2022 - 48

STRENGTH & CONDITIONING
HOW TO GAIN BUY-IN &
SUPPORT FOR YOUR STRENGTH
& CONDITIONING PROGRAM
By Micah Kurtz, Director of Sports Performance, Windermere Prep (FL)
B
eing a high school strength & conditioning
coach is one of the most rewarding
careers a person can have. We have
the opportunity to not only make young people
healthier, stronger, and faster but also can instill
lifelong values of hard work, overcoming adversity,
teamwork, perseverance, and the ability to become
the best at getting better in everyone we can coach
and connect with.
Even with all those intrinsic benefits, we get as
coaches at the high school level, many coaches in
this profession still have issues they often have to
deal with. These issues range from:
* Sport coaches not trusting their strength coach
and wanting to run their own strength program
for their team.
* Parents of student-athletes not believing in the
strength coach and wanting to tell them how
best
to do their job.
* Student-Athletes not wanting to train at their
school, believe that more is better, and want
personal training from a private sector coach.
In this article, I will outline ideas and principles
I have used to not have to face these common issues
as regularly.
Have Core Values & A Philosophy For Your Program
- Be Ready & Able To Explain It
When meeting with the head sport coach, I wanted
to convey how I can best help their team be successful.
When meeting with the parents of student-athletes, I had
to convey how I can help maximize the potential of their
son or daughter in their sport
and life.
I came to my current school after being awarded the
National High School Strength Coach of the Year in 2016
and being named a state coach of the year twice. This
held some weight, but I still had to prove to everyone
that I would be best for their team, their child, and them
personally. Some coaches may shy away from these
conversations, but if we can embrace them, the support
will come much quicker.
48 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2022
Photo courtesy Micah Kurtz
I continue these conversations with our head sport
coaches today, as well as the parents and my studentathletes.
I want them to always understand the why
behind my programming.
We base our training around our five core values.
Those values are:
* Protect - Every movement in the weight room is
designed to protect the student from being injured in
sports, the weight room, and in everyday life
* Move Well - Students will be able to perform
fundamental movement patterns with adequate
mobility and stability that will lead to a healthy, wellrounded
lifestyle.
* Move Strong - Students will perform multi-joint
weight training exercises to develop a foundational
strength base needed for optimal performance in all
areas of life. Movements will progress and regress
according to a variety of factors including age,
movement competency, and trust level.
* Move Fast - Our linear speed, reactive agility, and
deceleration training will enable the student to move
November/December 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November/December 2022
