Alex Calder is the Head of Sports Science with Houston Dynamo, competing in the Major League Soccer (MLS). He is an accredited Level 3-Elite Coach with the Australian Strength and Conditioning Association (ASCA), as well as holding accreditations through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association (CSCCa). Having worked in a variety of sports, he has coached at different levels of competition worldwide for the past decade. He has published several articles in relation to physical preparation and analysis.

QUOTES

“I’ve found my niche in helping to transition players form the treatment table to the field”

“Using a pain threshold approach is just as effective, if not more effective in certain parameters, when returning players to sport”

“I’d be more concerned if a player’s absolute outputs are low compared to what their asymmetries are doing”

“I have to be careful of what is coming in a week with RTP because the last thing I want to do is clear a player on one day and then pull them out the next day”

SHOWNOTES

1) Alex’s backstory from collegiate soccer player to becoming Head of Sport Science at an MLS club

2) Return to play and the controlled chaos continuum

3) The differences in rehabilitation/medical staffing structures across different countries

4) Hamstring rehab and using the pain threshold approach

5) The influence of Askling hamstring protocols (diver, glider and extender)

6) The use of technology and markers to help determine if players are ready to return to sport

7) Asymmetry and its relevance in rehabilitation and return to sport

8) A typical week for an athlete returning to sport at Houston Dynamo and matching the theme of the team

9) Gym and running markers for returning to play along with positional considerations

10) Tips for S&C coaches wanting to work overseas

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Matt Taberner

Jack Hickey

Carl Askling