Today’s guest is Jay DeMayo, Jay is the longtime strength coach for men’s basketball at the University of Richmond and the founder of CVASPS—the Central Virginia Sport Performance Seminar. He’s known for connecting top minds in sport science and coaching, and for his practical, athlete-first approach to physical preparation.

Where the emphasis of an athletic performance program can easily be centered from a narrow perspective, Jay considers a wide variety of inputs, from an athlete’s underlying structure and positional abilities to their perception of workout adjustments, to specialized exercises and technical training elements.

In this episode, Jay digs into the principles he uses to prepare athletes for the demands of the game. From a foundational perspective, he discusses building work capacity and progressing split squats. On the power side, he shares his take on Olympic lifts and French Contrast training, while also addressing the role of autonomy and individualization in his approach. Throughout the show, Jay unpacks practical tools and coaching strategies that drive long-term athletic development.

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Timestamps

8:21- Tailoring Training Methods for Athlete Engagement

11:01- Unveiling Louis Simmons' Strength Training Insights

14:24- Enhancing Basketball Players' Performance Through Tailored Training

21:37- Personalized Exercise Selection for Enhanced Performance

27:55- Engaging Exercise Progressions for Effective Training

30:22- Mastery of Bottom Position for Exercise Gains

34:49- Empowering Athletes through Autonomy and Structure

40:02- Enhancing Lift Performance through Positioning Techniques

49:28- Maximal Expression Circuit Training with Olympic Lifts

59:19- Hormone Spikes in Squat Training

1:14:38- Tailored Stimuli for Optimal Physiological Response

1:17:31- Strength-Speed Emphasis in Athletic Training Program

Actionable Takeaways

Tailoring Training Methods for Athlete Engagement [8:21]

Let’s stop clinging to strict, textbook methods. Jay reflects on how older training styles—like Westside—can still have value when creatively repurposed. It’s not about mimicking those programs but about borrowing what drives athlete engagement and technical mastery today.

What to try:

Use methods like box squats to teach depth and posture before progressing to more dynamic movements.

Connect the dots for athletes: show how learning positions now sets them up for more “fun” or explosive lifts later.

Reinforce that mastering basic postures unlocks more advanced training, not just better numbers.

Unveiling Louis Simmons' Strength Training Insights [11:01]

Jay highlights lessons from studying Louie Simmons—not for copying his powerlifting templates, but to appreciate mastery and intention. Athletes need to understand why they’re training a certain way, not just how.

What to try:

Share stories or videos of experts from outside your sport to spark discussions about mastery and approach.

Ask athletes to reflect on what "winning" a lift means to them—focus, technique, or load?

Create reflective moments for athletes to assess their own intent during sessions.

Enhancing Basketball Players’ Performance Through Tailored Training

[14:24]

Forget rigid metrics for the sake of numbers. Jay focuses on using basic force plate data (jump height + contraction time) to guide individual exercise choices—not to chase numbers, but to fit each athlete’s needs.

What to try:

Test vertical jump and contraction time; use results to bucket athletes into fast/slow jumpers.

Prescribe exercises accordingly: