Just Fly Performance Podcast

Today’s guest is Kathy Sierra. Kathy Sierra is a computer scientist, author, and horse-movement innovator who bridges neuroscience, learning psychology, and equine training. Co-creator of the award-winning Head First programming series and founder of the JavaRanch community, she later turned her expertise in intrinsic motivation toward her lifelong passion for horses. Through her Panther Flow approach, Kathy helps horses and riders unlock confident, curious, and expressive movement, sharing her work worldwide through courses, workshops, and writing.

In training and movement, drilling “perfect form” is standard practice. The more we get into how humans learn, the more we realize that “perfect form” is a myth, and learning is a far more complex venture. Using both differential learning (variety) and constraints helps athletes hone in on their own optimal (and robust) technique, without needing to constantly be looking for one “perfect” way to do things.

This is not only true in animals, but also in humans and in machine learning. On this week’s episode, Kathy covers aspects of training horses using the same motor learning concepts that work best in humans. She also goes into how and why robots learn to move better based on constraints, trial and error, versus a “perfect technique” type of programming. This is a fascinating and wide-ranging discussion on human movement, learning, and sport skill.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

0:06 – Introduction to Horse Training Insights

11:16 – Discovering the Community of Movement

21:40 – The Power of Natural Movement

32:19 – Emotions in Movement and Skill Acquisition

41:22 – The Impact of Coaching on Authenticity

53:51 – Techniques for Encouraging Movement Exploration

1:00:23 – The Power of Pattern Interrupts

1:11:34 – The Role of Exploration in Coaching

1:15:18 – Adapting Like Animals

1:22:42 – Embracing Novelty for Movement

1:29:25 – The Myth of Optimality

1:35:18 – Serendipity in Learning

Quotes

“If they don’t feel safe, they’re not going to move in a way that’s authentic or open.”

“Sometimes the best thing you can do as a coach is to wait and watch before you say anything.”

“You can’t cue someone into confidence—it has to be experienced.”

“When the environment invites them to explore, you don’t have to force the learning.”

“I’d rather see ten different solutions than one perfect one that only works in one situation.”

“Novelty wakes up the system. It changes the way they see and feel the task.”

“If all you ever give them is the ‘right way,’ you’re taking away their ability to problem-solve.”

“The emotions tied to the movement are as important as the mechanics.”

“Animals adapt because they have to. We can train people to do the same by giving them variety.”

“Sometimes the magic happens when the plan gets interrupted.”

“There’s no one optimal way—there’s only what works for that body in that moment.”

“When they discover it for themselves, it sticks in a way no amount of instruction can match.”

About Kathy Sierra

Kathy Sierra is a trailblazer who bridges technology, neuroscience, and horsemanship. Trained in exercise physiology at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and later in computer programming at UCLA, she built a remarkable career in tech as co-creator of the award-winning Head First programming book series, founder of the JavaRanch community, and instructor in interaction design for intrinsic motivation at UCLA Extension and Universal Studios. After years of shaping how people learn complex topics, Kathy turned her attention to her lifelong passion for horses, creating Intrinzen and later Panther Flow, an approach to equine movement and motivation rooted in neuroscience, learning psychology, and pain science. Inspired by her experience rehabilitating her own horse, Panther Flow emphasizes intrinsic motivation to help horses rediscover confidence, curiosity, and joy in movement. Today, Kathy shares her work through courses, workshops, and writing, helping both horses and humans move with more freedom, expression, and resilience.

Today’s guest is Tim Riley. Tim Riley is the Director of Sports Performance at Kollective in Austin, where he leads one of the nation’s top NFL off‑season training programs and works with elite athletes across the NFL, NBA, PLL, and AVP. He also serves as a Lead Performance Coach with C4 Energy and Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the University of Texas Men’s Lacrosse team. Beyond the weight room, Tim shares his knowledge through his podcast, Coach Em Up, and his social media platforms.

On today’s podcast, Tim speaks on how he synthesizes the complexities and possibilities of training into his intuitive process. On the show, we cover numerous items of speed and strength training, digging into the daily training process. We also cover the help and use of strength machines, conditioning, capacity, training stimulation, and much more.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

1:00 – The Need for Simplicity in a Complex Coaching World

6:08 – Is Complexity Distracting Us from What Actually Matters?

11:55 – What Are Athletes Actually Feeling During a Drill?

18:42 – How Do We Make Coaching Feel Less Robotic?

25:30 – What If the Goal Isn’t Perfection, But Exploration?

32:09 – Can We Trust Athletes to Self-Organize?

39:46 – When Do We Step In, and When Do We Step Back?

47:22 – How to Handle “Messy” Reps and Unscripted Movement

54:11 – Are You Coaching for Output or Adaptability?

1:01:18 – Letting Go of the Illusion of Total Control

Tim Riley Quotes

“I try to make our training something that gets them excited to walk into.”

“We’re not playing for points in a warm-up. It’s okay to do things that look a little messy.”

“The more you can create an environment where they’re not thinking about the constraints, they’re just immersed in it, the better the movement.”

“It doesn’t always need to be, ‘You did this wrong. Do it again.’ It can be, ‘What did you notice? What did you feel?’”

“You don’t always need to be the one solving the problem. Sometimes they’ll solve it better than you can.”

“The more we can back out and just watch, the more we start to learn about what the athlete actually needs.”

“We’ll run circuits that don’t have a ‘right way’—just a way that feels good and makes them think.”

“I’ve had athletes say, ‘That felt smooth,’ and that’s more important to me than what the data says.”

“I’d rather build something that sustains energy over time than something that just looks impressive on paper.”

“A lot of athletes don’t need more drills—they need more ways to engage with what they already know.”

“We’re not trying to fix people. We’re trying to help them organize themselves better.”

“When they start to ask their own questions about movement, that’s when I know something is clicking.”

About Tim Riley

Tim Riley is the Director of Sports Performance at Kollective in Austin, TX, where he leads one of the nation’s premier NFL off‑season training programs and works with athletes from the NFL, NBA, PLL, and AVP. He also serves as Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the University of Texas Men’s Lacrosse team and is a Lead Performance Coach with C4 Energy, designing strength and performance initiatives for athletes nationwide.

Launching his career in 2017 through NPTI under Professor Dave Boetcher, Tim has since built Tim Riley Training LLC and earned certifications including NASM, Precision Nutrition, and USAW. Mentored by leaders such as Mo Wells, Trey Hardee, and Dr. Pat Davidson, he has developed a reputation for precision in off‑season and in‑season regimens. His holistic philosophy blends physical preparation with mental resilience, and he extends his impact through his podcast, Coach Em Up, and his social media platform @timrileytraining.

Joel Smith speaks on 12 reasons why athletes and coaches may hit a plateau in their performance programs. These include:

1. Lack of stimulation in the training environment

2. Too much stimulation in the training environment

3. Not enough creativity or novelty

4. Lack of a clear plan

5. Too much weightlifting

6. Not enough weightlifting

7. Monotony from failing to wave training loads

8. A lack of representative play and exploration

9. Deficits in skill learning

10. Programs that feel too constricting

11. Athletes not feeling truly seen or heard

12.  Gaps in belief and motivation

In this episode, we’ll unpack these elements one by one, while also exploring practical methods coaches and athletes can use to break through these plateaus and unlock new levels of performance.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

1:10 – Lack of Stimulation in the Training Environment3:18 – Too Much Stimulation in the Training Environment6:00 – Not Enough Creativity or Novelty7:36 – Lack of a Clear Plan10:20 – Too Much Weightlifting12:12 – Not Enough Weightlifting13:44 – Monotony from Failing to Wave Training Loads16:00 – A Lack of Representative Play and Exploration18:25 – Deficits in Skill Learning20:47 – Programs That Feel Too Constricting23:00 – Athletes Not Feeling Truly Seen or Heard25:03 – Gaps in Belief and Motivation

Quotes

“Lack of this stimulation threshold can be the thing that's keeping an athlete from breaking through to the next level of their performance.”

“If you simply put a timer out, you’re timing your sprint now, maybe you’re still by yourself, but it’s actually timed. If I took an untimed sprint and a timed sprint and I put a GPS on that and you weren’t aware of it, but those timed sprints are typically, unless you’re overthinking, going to be faster than just running fast for the sake of running fast.”

“When I take competition as well as a task and a little bit of a problem to solve and I mix those together, I can get things that really can stimulate athletes almost beyond what the individual pieces can do.”

“The art of creating stimulus within a single training session is a very powerful thing.”

“One of the best ways to warm up to dunk a basketball is to play pickup basketball 20 or 30 minutes. You’re feeling more activated and ready to go than just about any traditional canned activation series.”

“I believe in those systems that actually are overly stimulating that a lot of that is also a coach is super intense, but can’t shut it off. You need to be stimulating, you just have to be able to shut it off and understand when and how to rest.”

“Creativity in coaching and training is simply the ability of a coach to reinvent themselves in their training program and to deliver the basics in a new and fresh way.”

“A lot of times those switches to another training group are met with instant gains and progress, and a lot of that instantaneous gain is just simply the novelty. It’s the change.”

“Before you can break the rules you have to know the rules.”

“Weightlifting itself initially is going to be a really powerful and good stimulus to the athlete, but you’re going to get to a point where the continued strength gains are more about squeezing and stiffness and compression than they are stimulating neuromuscular coordination.”

The goal is to rely on the sport itself, to rely on speed itself, to rely on jumping itself, primarily more than how can I lever this weightlifting exercise to get me a little bit more.”

One of the biggest deficits in ultimate athletic performance is how we learn, how we put together skills, and how we use things such as differential learning, constraints, analogies, and amplifying the error.”

About Joel Smith

Joel Smith is the founder of Just Fly Sports and is a sports performance and track coach in Cincinnati, Ohio. Joel hosts the Just Fly Performance Podcast and has authored several books and coaches in both the high school and private sectors.

Joel was a strength coach for 8 years at UC Berkeley, working with the Swim teams and post-graduate professional swimmers, as well as tennis, water polo, and track and field. A track coach of 17 years, Joel coached for the Diablo Valley Track and Field Club for 7 years and also has 6 years of experience coaching on the collegiate level, working at Wilmington College, and the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse. He is currently coaching high jump at Milford High School.

Joel has coached 4 national champions, multiple All-Americans, and NCAA record holders in track and field. In the realm of strength and conditioning, his programs have assisted 5 athletes to Olympic berths that produced 9 medals and a world record performance at Rio in 2016.

Today’s guest is Michael Zweifel. Michael is the Defensive Coordinator and Defensive Backs Coach at UW–La Crosse, now in his fourth season with the program. He previously founded Building Better Athletes (BBA Performance) in Dubuque, Iowa, training athletes from youth to pro levels. Michael also coached at Clarke College and the University of Dubuque. A former record-setting wide receiver, he won the 2011 Gagliardi Trophy and still holds the NCAA all-divisions career receptions record (463).

In athletic development, the “5 S’s of performance”: Strength, Speed, Stamina, Suppleness, and Skill are often brought up. What tends to be the case is that those 5 elements are weighted in that order, with skill mentioned, but rarely or ever studied in how to improve it.

On today’s show, Michael discusses his own creative approach to skill development in American football players with an emphasis on building artistry and adaptability in his players. He speaks on the nature of constraint-based coaching that helps athletes improve their arsenal of movements on the field, as well as their decision-making skills amid chaos. We also touch on the crossover between basketball and football, and ultimately, the art of long-term development of skill in one’s sport and as an athlete in general.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

0:12 – Programming for High School vs. College-Level Athletes

5:03 – Balancing Strength and Movement Skill in Team Settings

11:09 – Developing the Skill of Lifting in Young Athletes

15:34 – Rethinking Readiness: Performance vs. Output

19:43 – Using Split Squats and Progressions for Movement Quality

26:30 – Training the Foot and Ankle Without Overengineering It

31:58 – Prioritizing Play and Variability in Movement Prep

36:30 – Gaining Buy-In Through Fun, Autonomy, and Context

44:52 – Avoiding the Trap of Over-Cueing and Technical Obsession

50:33 – Defining Transfer: Performance, Practice, and Perception

55:51 – Evolving Coaching Philosophy with Experience

Quotes

“I think we overplay how technical we have to be early on with lifting. It’s not wrong to be technical, but it can almost create fragility in the way we approach training.”

“The lift is the skill. So when we coach that, it’s not just about strength—it’s about how you coordinate, how you stabilize, how you organize your body under load.”

“I think fun and autonomy are critical. If an athlete walks out of a session with a smile, I don’t care how perfect the sets and reps were—they’re going to come back and buy in again.”

“You can tell when someone’s trying to feel their way through a movement—that’s when you know you’re doing something valuable.”

About Michael Zweifel

Michael Zweifel is in his fourth season on the UW–La Crosse football staff in 2025, serving as the Eagles' Defensive Coordinator and Defensive Backs Coach  Prior to UW-La Crosse Michael founded and led Building Better Athletes (BBA Performance) in Dubuque, Iowa, coaching athletes across youth, high school, college, and professional levels.

From 2013 onward, Michael also contributed as the strength and conditioning coach for Clarke College baseball and as the wide receiver coach at the University of Dubuque (Iowa) beginning in 2022.

A standout athlete, Michael won the 2011 Gagliardi Trophy as the nation’s top NCAA Division III football player. He holds NCAA records—including 140 receptions in a season and a career-total 463 receptions across all divisions. He earned his bachelor’s degree—summa cum laude—in exercise science from Dubuque University in 2011 and completed his master’s in kinesiology at the University of Texas at Tyler in 2015.

Today’s guest is Will “Hoss” Ratelle, former All-Big Sky linebacker turned strength and conditioning coach, with experience at the University of North Dakota, the NFL, and the CFL. Known for his intense, results-driven training style, Hoss blends his pro football background with evidence-based methods to build size, speed, and resilience in athletes. He’s also the creator of popular programs like “Hoss Concurrent” and a respected voice in the online performance space.

Most fitness and training education tends to be rigid, centered around fixed sets, reps, heart rate zones, and prescribed loads and timing. While this structure has value, athletes eventually need to move beyond it and enter a more adaptive, natural rhythm of training. Sets and reps can serve as a starting point, but great coaching gives training a feel, one that fosters ownership, problem-solving, and deeper athlete engagement.

On today’s episode, Will Ratelle shares practical strategies for building training protocols that allow for flexibility and athlete autonomy. He discusses how to keep athletes dialed in during strength and power work, while also diving into topics like hamstring rehab, velocity-based training, and more.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

0:12 – Transitioning from College S&C to Academia and Private Sector

5:41 – Training Adjustments for Harsh Winter Environments

9:35 – The Role of Giant Sets in Strength Training

15:11 – Building Competition and Problem-Solving into Small Group Training

18:05 – Time-Based Plyometrics for Better Autoregulation

22:50 – Applying Time-Based Models to Jumps and Olympic Lifts

27:21 – Minimalist Approach to Accessory Work in Training

30:54 – Using Velocity-Based Training for Autoregulation

41:25 – Hamstring Rehab Strategies Using Sled Work and Sprint Progressions

44:37 – Perspectives on Nordics and Eccentric Hamstring Training

Quotes

[27:37] “I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong with accessory work. It’s just, do we need to be spending 45 minutes doing it after we’ve already done our main lifts and jumps and throws?”

[9:59] “I try to keep the training process as simple as possible because it’s really easy to complicate things.”

[11:40] “I’ve gravitated more toward giving people time constraints and letting them auto-regulate how much work they do within that time.”

[23:01] “I think jumps and Olympic lifts lend themselves well to time-based prescriptions because the output tends to fall off naturally as people fatigue.”

[15:42] “Competition tends to bring out the best in people. If you structure things in a way where it naturally encourages people to compete, it’s a win.”

[45:06] “I’ve started to care less and less about Nordics being the answer for hamstring health. I just think sprinting is the best thing we can do.”

[31:30] “Velocity-based training is helpful because it provides objective feedback—if you’re not hitting the numbers, there’s no argument to keep pushing.”

About Will Ratelle

Will “Hoss” Ratelle is a dedicated strength and conditioning coach with deep roots in collegiate athletics and professional football. Rising from a standout linebacker at the University of North Dakota, Ratelle earned All-Big Sky honors twice and set single-season tackle records before transitioning into a professional football career, with stints on special teams in the NFL (Atlanta Falcons and Kansas City Chiefs) and a return to linebacker with the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders

After earning his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from UND (2015), Ratelle moved into coaching, completing internships in the UND Strength & Conditioning Department (2015–2017). He played a pivotal role in developing the football program’s speed and agility systems during a historic 2016 Big Sky championship season. Fully integrating into the staff, Will served as Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach, supporting football, men’s and women’s tennis, basketball, and volleyball teams

Certified by the CSCS and CSCCA (2019), Ratelle combines elite athletic experience with practical training protocols. He is known for crafting holistic programs that fuse Olympic lifting, sprint/plyometric development, and fundamental athleticism, aimed at maximizing size, strength, speed, and resilience.

In addition to his coaching roles, Will actively shares his expertise through published articles (e.g., SimpliFaster), podcasts, and TrainHeroic programs such as “Hoss Concurrent” and “Hoss Project 2.0,” training countless athletes to build robust, multi-sport athleticism across platforms

Today’s guests are Cameron Josse and Joel Reinhardt. Cameron Josse is an Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach with the Detroit Lions. He’s previously led training at DeFranco’s and worked in college football at Auburn and Indiana, training athletes across the NFL, NHL, UFC, and WWE. Joel Reinhardt is the Director of Football Performance at Lafayette College. He’s coached at San José State, Stanford, UMass, and Nicholls State.

Both Cameron and Joel are field leaders in applied performance, data-driven programming, and athletic movement for physical preparation in American Football. Details in athletic preparation change from the level of high school to college to professional.

On today’s episode, Cameron and Joel speak on the nature of contact and collision preparation in their athlete populations, with a specific emphasis on the use of the ground and rolling patterns. They discuss the specific game demands of football, especially on the college and pro level, and how to prepare athletes for 25,000+ weekly yards of total on-field movement. They break down their approaches to speed, direction change, and capacity building work, with these ideas in mind. This was a show with lots of wisdom on helping players fully meet the needs of their sport.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength and LILA Exogen wearable resistance.

Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

1:57 – In-Season Program Differences: NFL vs. College Strength Cycles

4:48 – Navigating Player Relationships with Private Trainers

15:57 – Adapting Contact Prep and Agility for Different Levels

32:38 – Tempo Running as a Foundation for Training Camp Readiness

37:44 – Total Yardage and Conditioning Strategy in Football Preparation

50:16 – Designing Multi-Directional Conditioning Sessions That Mimic Football

58:28 – Integrating Multi-Directional Movements in Conditioning for Athleticism

1:03:46 – Reframing Speed Development Within Annual Training Cycles

1:10:04 – Shifting Focus: From Pure Speed to Building Complete Players

Quotes

"Some of the better athletes on the team are not necessarily the fastest, but they are the ones who seem to control their bodies the best." - Cameron Josse

"The ground is undefeated." - Cameron Josse

"It's not about making the strongest guy, the fastest guy, any of that. It's about helping foster the best player you can." - Cameron Josse

"If I have a wide receiver who adds half a mile an hour to his top speed over six months, sweet—that's a significant difference in a comeback route if he can push the guy off or have an extra half yard." - Joel Reinhardt

"If a player is telling me that there's someone that makes them feel their best, I personally feel as though I would want to get in touch with that person just to learn about what they're doing." - Cameron Josse

"Sometimes it's interesting to be like, oh, I wouldn't even think to do that because I'm doing it with 30 guys at one time." - Joel Reinhardt

"If you're not working backwards from the game, I just don't know what you're doing." - Cameron Josse

"When people say, 'How much should I run? How much should I sprint?' I always say it's based on whatever team you work with in the team setting." - Cameron Josse

"If I have a team that is able to maturely execute good extensive tempo, it just opens up more avenues from an overall training perspective." - Joel Reinhardt

"You're not just thinking about speed, power, strength, somebody that's isolated by motor abilities or qualities. You're thinking systemically, how am I creating the best integrated system of a player that I can?" - Cameron Josse

"Recognizing the time of year and educating the guys around like, 'Hey, we had 26,000 total yards this week and you hit 94% of your all-time best speed—you don't need to be disappointed by that.'" - Joel Reinhardt

"I always think it's funny when people try to decelerate on the balls of their feet like the same foot strike you'd have in acceleration. It's literally the opposite of accelerating—you need whole foot pressure." - Cameron Josse

About Cameron Josse

Cameron Josse is currently serving as an Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach with the Detroit Lions. Cameron brings a wealth of experience shaped across collegiate and professional domains. Following a successful seven-year tenure in the private sector as Director of Sports Performance at DeFranco’s Training Systems (2014–2020), he transitioned into collegiate football, first with Auburn and then Indiana University, where he shaped high-level training programs for athletes in the NFL, NHL, UFC, and WWE. His portfolio showcases expertise in sport‑specific speed development, neural training, and integrated performance planning, skills he continues to leverage on the Lions sideline.

A PhD candidate and specialist in athletic performance, Cameron’s methodology bridges scientific rigor and field-tested application. At Indiana, he spent three seasons refining football performance systems before his NFL appointment . Known for his insights on sprint mechanics and speed training, he regularly shares expertise through clinics and masterclasses. With the Detroit Lions, he works alongside a dynamic strength and conditioning staff—led by Mike Clark—bringing a modern, data-driven approach to athlete development and recovery.

About Joel Reinhardt

Joel Reinhardt is the Director of Football Performance at Lafayette College. Joel brings a wealth of experience in strength and conditioning, having coached at programs like San José State, Stanford, UMass, and Nicholls State. At San José State, he served as both Assistant Football Athletic Performance Coach and Sports Science Coordinator, where he led injury return-to-play efforts and helped shape comprehensive training plans. During his time at Stanford, he worked with some of the best collegiate athletes in the country, developing performance systems that translated all the way to the NFL—including for players like Rams kicker Josh Karty and Eagles quarterback Tanner McKee.

Joel’s coaching journey started after his playing days as a wide receiver and team captain at St. Olaf College, followed by a graduate assistantship at Springfield College, where he earned his master’s in strength and conditioning. He’s a coach who blends data-driven training with hands-on coaching, emphasizing injury resilience, individual development, and long-term performance. Joel is originally from Eagan, Minnesota, and now lives in Pennsylvania with his wife Lauren, their young son Lincoln, and their dog Boo. His background, from small-school football to cutting-edge performance science, makes for a unique and practical perspective on what it means to truly develop athletes.

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.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

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

Quotes

"If you can find a little bit more engagement with them, you get a little bit more effort. And again, if intent drives adaptation, they. Then that's what matters." - Jay DeMayo

"We probably don't want that the average for a 20 person basketball team to be what dictates the drill when one kid could run 0 meters and another kid could run a thousand meters." - Jay DeMayo

"I think, though, that the, you know, we talk about therapeutic things and all that all the time as well. And we talk about how motion is lotion. Right. Like, it helps you get things going and get things moving and this and that. So sometimes just getting out of their way and letting them kind of work their way through things is the best thing for them too." - Jay DeMayo

"We could talk about potentiation and this, that, and the third with it (with French Contrast) my favorite saying at the end of the bench is every time it works, it does. And the guys seem to love it. Yeah, I've never been yelled at about that day." - Jay DeMayo

(Speaking on the oxidative split squat method) "So we take a week to build to it. We start with two sets of 10 per leg. And it's just a two count up, two count down. So it's a 40 second set, 40 on, 40 off." - Jay DeMayo

"But I've got at least four guys that I know that when they get their plug and play for whatever that lunge strength exercise is on game day plus one are gonna pick oxidative split squats." - Jay DeMayo

About Jay DeMayo

Jay DeMayo is the founder of the Central Virginia Sport Performance Seminar (CVASPS) and a veteran strength and conditioning coach at the University of Richmond. With over two decades of collegiate coaching experience, Jay has become a respected voice in the field of physical preparation, known for his integrative and athlete-centered approach to training.

At Richmond, he works primarily with men’s basketball, guiding athletes through long-term development with a blend of performance science, coaching intuition, and practical innovation. Through CVASPS, Jay has built one of the premier sport performance events in the world, bringing together top coaches, scientists, and therapists to share cutting-edge insights and applied wisdom.

A passionate educator and connector, Jay is also the host of the CVASPS Podcast and author/editor of several eBooks on high-performance training. His work reflects a relentless pursuit of context, clarity, and continual improvement in sport preparation.

Today’s guest is Hunter Eisenhower, Associate Head Coach for Sports Performance at Arizona State Men’s Basketball. With experience in the NBA and NCAA, Hunter blends force production qualities, data analysis, and variability-driven human training methods to build explosive, adaptable athletes. He’s the creator of the “Force System” and a thought leader in modern athletic performance concepts.

Most athletic performance training is centered around outputs. Movement abilities and qualities are discussed, but there isn’t much quantification process that goes towards an athlete’s raw abilities, such as variable jump strategies alongside stiffness and compliance competencies.

On today’s episode, Hunter shares his approach to offseason prep using general physical means that build that “human strength”—developing capacity alongside movement variability. Hunter also breaks down how he quantifies an athlete’s movement capacities and library, their ability to, balance rigidity and compliance in line with force plate data. We wrap with ideas on foot training and using variable surfaces to meet the demands of dynamic sport. This is a great look at training beyond just big lifts—into the true movement needs of the game.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength and the Just Fly Sports Online Courses

Check out the newest mini-course, Sprint Drills Reloaded on how to maximize sprint drills, their specific strength development, building of major sprint actions, along with better integration of sprint drills into sprinting technique. The special intro sale ends July 1st. (https://justflysports.thinkific.com/courses/sprint-drills-reloaded)

Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Main Points

2:00- Sandbags, Suffering, and the Mental Edge

6:00- Let Hard and Fun Coexist in Your Program

10:19- The Importance of Variability in Program Design

12:53- Early Off-Season Program Design

19:27- Rewild Your Program: Crawl, Climb, Wrestle, Hang

23:28- Rethink GPP: Don’t Just Prep to Lift—Prep to Move

30:20- Break Barbell Monotony with Sandbags

34:49- Sleds Are a Movement Tool—Not Just a Finisher

41:03- Measure Movement Options—Not Just Output

48:39- Don’t Confuse Explosive with Efficient

54:31- Train Variability by Changing the Rules

58:05- Cue for Change: Let the Jump Reveal the Strategy

59:50- Start with the Foot—It Tells the Whole Story

1:05:07- Polish Boxes, Stall Bars, and DIY Creativity

Quotes

"The polarity in a training program I think is just like so powerful and so important." - Hunter Eisenhower

"You, like, learn to appreciate the fun whenever you have to do the suck." - Hunter Eisenhower

"And the way I structure (early off-season) is we go, we go a human force day, a slow force day, a human force day and a slow force day. And we just do that throughout a four day training schedule." - Hunter Eisenhower

"A lot of people consider GPP like high volume, squat, hinge, push pull; to me, I think GPP is like going back to the absolute ground level, like basics of just like children, what they would do, they're crawling, they're climbing, they're doing gymnastics and flips, they're, they're roughhousing." - Hunter Eisenhower

"It's like bigger, faster, stronger. It's like the, the old adage. Then I was thinking like, is that really the goal with elite athletes? Like, is the goal to increase outputs?." - Hunter Eisenhower

"If their only strategy that they can rely on is rigidity, maybe I can begin to infuse some of this compliance." - Hunter Eisenhower

"If your foot can't get into a position, the rest of your body won't be able to get into a variable position."- Hunter Eisenhower

"I love that with like lunge variations because it's like, no, don't just step in a different way. Like contort your body in a different position. And I think that that exposed them to positions they've probably never been in before." - Hunter Eisenhower

About Hunter Eisenhower

Hunter Eisenhower is the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for Arizona State Men’s Basketball, bringing a dynamic, force-based approach to athlete development. With experience in the NBA (Sacramento Kings), G League (Stockton Kings), and several NCAA programs, Hunter blends science, intent, and creativity to enhance performance. He played college basketball at Seattle Pacific University.

At ASU, Hunter applies his “Force System” methodology—a framework combining data analytics, plyometrics, strength training, and play-based movement to build powerful, adaptable athletes. His work emphasizes not just raw output, but how athletes express force in real-game contexts. A frequent podcast guest and educator, Hunter continues to push the field forward while living in Tempe with his wife Leah, and daughter Elsie.

Today’s guest is running and movement coach, Lawrence Van Lingen, a world-renowned movement coach known for helping athletes move better by blending scientific principles, psychology, biomechanics, and intuitive coaching methods. He’s worked with a range of athletes, from Olympians and elite runners, to everyday movers to unlock efficiency, fluidity, and performance.

Running and what we would refer to as “functional strength” are closely related. Strength-based movements that train the gait cycle are amongst the most natural and effective versions available. In working the keys that make for better propulsion and effectiveness in locomotion, we can get insight into better strength practices in general.

In this episode, Lawrence van Lingen shares how crawling, backward movement, foot training, and resisted walking can strengthen critical elements of the gait cycle. He explores the connection between natural rhythmic movement and running performance, the ways fear can disrupt quality motion, and how play and curiosity drive better movement learning. From syncing strides to music to mobilizing the feet, Lawrence offers a range of practical, creative methods to enhance coordination and speed.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength.

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Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

3:30- Barefoot Origins: Impact on Human Movement

9:40- The Impact of Fear on Athletic Performance

20:55- Enhancing Running Performance Through Rhythmic Variation

29:00- Syncing Music Tempo with Physical Movements

37:38- Optimizing Athletic Abilities through Strong Hips

40:08- Enhancing Running Mechanics Through Resisted Walking Exercises

42:19- Enhancing Movement Quality through Central Patterns

45:51- Enhancing Ankle Mechanics Through Foot Mobility

52:35- Enhancing Mobility Through Unique Movement Practices

59:06- Enhancing Muscle Activation and Injury Prevention

1:12:02- Enhancing Running Mechanics Through Foot Mobilization

Quotes

(12:55) "If you cut a chicken's head off, it still runs around, you know. So those are your central pattern generators…. a lot of running or bipedal movement is just totally ingrained in us and you know, and our heritage from anthropology." - Lawrence van Lingen

(14:47) "Trust your movement better...that sort of deep, unshakable trust in your movement patterns that you really want on big occasions, that's what the big athletes have got." - Lawrence van Lingen

(19:28) "When I was in South Africa with African runners, these guys, there was no coaching, no drills, and it was very, very organic and it was just amazing. I mean, money can't buy the beauty and, and the elegance and the grace that they moved with." - Lawrence van Lingen

(27:37) "You have to relax into competence and let go to express yourself. And when you're forcing and trying too hard, it just doesn't work." - Lawrence van Lingen

(32:10) "I like to say curiosity and play and neuroplasticity requires play and curiosity. And you, when you're in a parasympathetic mode, you tend to be curious." - Lawrence van Lingen

(42:36) "Solve movement patterns as high upstream as possible because the consequences downstream tend to fall into place." - Lawrence van Lingen

(1:17:23) "The line of force production is big toe, VMO, glute, max. And if you've got VMO issues, your first met head's not finding the ground." - Lawrence van Lingen

About Lawrence van Lingen

Lawrence van Lingen is a globally recognized movement coach known for his unique ability to blend biomechanics, biology, mental states, and intuitive coaching into transformative movement practices. With over two decades of experience working with elite athletes, high performers, and everyday movers, Lawrence helps people move with greater ease, efficiency, and purpose.

Drawing on his background in sports science and chiropractic care, Lawrence developed a distinctive approach that focuses on restoring natural movement patterns, improving structural integrity, and enhancing overall body awareness. He is the founder of the Anatomy of Movement series, which breaks down complex concepts into accessible, actionable insights for coaches, therapists, and athletes alike.

Lawrence’s work has taken him around the world, collaborating with Olympic teams, professional cyclists, runners, and top-tier fitness organizations. His coaching style is intuitive, precise, and deeply rooted in the belief that how we move reflects how we live.

Today’s guest is Rett Larson, strength coach for the German Women’s Volleyball Team and creator of the "No Zombies" training philosophy. Rett coached Olympic medalists with China and the Netherlands, blending energy, rhythm, and purposeful movement into world-class performance.

As sport expands into an increasingly more high-pressure, early specialization event that can easily suck fun and joy away, there grows a need for a "counter-culture" within athletic performance. Not only does a "physical preparation" process for athletes that is joyful and gamified lead to more fun within a training session, but it also develops important athletic qualities, within that umbrella of "fun" that may not be possible in more "traditional" sessions.

Rett Larson is spearheading an active, engaging approach to the physical preparation process for athletes with warmups designed for joy, engagement, and a comprehensive stimulation of athletic qualities along the way. On today’s episode, Rett speaks on a variety of engaging tools and gamifications in the warmup process for both thermogenic and neurological preparation. He goes into his take on partner exercises and isometrics, and the process of using a physical challenge to "sneak" strength and skill elements in the program.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Hammer Strength and LILA Wearable Resistance Gear.

Use the code "justfly25" for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to Lilateam.com

View more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage. (https://www.just-fly-sports.com/podcast-home/)

Timestamps

6:12- Enhancing Athlete Performance through Innovative Training

20:06- Rope Flow in the Warmup Process

25:19- Team Bonding through Partner Exercises and Gamification

29:39- Athletic Development through Diverse Warm-Ups

31:24- Engaging Training Games for Athletic Development

38:00- Enhancing Motor Learning Through Novel Activities

48:14- Isometric and "Sneaky Strength" Exercises

54:50- Tennis Balls as a Powerful Warmup Tool

1:05:36- Animal-Inspired Safari Warmup Routine

1:14:35- Dynamic Movement Enhancement with Wearable Resistance Gear

Rett Larson Quotes

(5:30) "I like this idea of breaking the script of what athletes expect." - Rett Larson

(8:59) "Are we not trying to get to a place in team sports, at least where we have vulnerability? Are we not learning that vulnerability and looking like a little bit of an idiot in front of your teammates and, and knowing that everybody gets theirs at some point? And that is, that's, that's also something we should be striving for." - Rett Larson

(20:06) "In the thermogenic bucket goes a lot of almost like movement puzzles to steal some Ido Portal: if it's the tennis ball on a string, a stick in their hand." - Rett Larson

(21:00) "Similarly, the rope flow stuff fits really nicely in that bucket because it is really challenging to unlock some of these very difficult movements that get your body rotating, certainly get you hot and sweaty, but it also feels like you are leveling up every time you actually conquer it." - Rett Larson

(29:45) "The great thing about warmup is you get to be competitive in a, in an extremely low stakes environment; when I'm programming the weight room well, it's not just my twitchy, 23-year-old phenom whose parents both played volleyball that wins every event. There should be enough variety in the weight room that we're getting winners all over the place, that we're manufacturing celebrations from every single person on my team in a given week or a couple of weeks or month." - Rett Larson

(31:16) "I'm manufacturing smiles, I'm manufacturing the joy that I think you and I understand can come out of the weight room." - Rett Larson

(51:20) "I'm trying to hide grinding strength within either other fun games or, you know, include like having it be a part of the fun as much as possible." - Rett Larson

(54:30) "The great thing about tennis balls is that there's, they can be used for all of it is they can be movement puzzles, they can be balance challenges, anything that you need them to be." - Rett Larson

(1:00:38) "There's no reason that coaches shouldn't be actually actively trying to find more moments, more memorable things that stick with athletes, that make you a remarkable coach, that not for nothing, like, why not be original?" - Rett Larson

(1:13:10) "I don't have five favorite shoulder exercises. I have 50 favorite shoulder exercises. I believe in throwing a bunch of different challenges at the shoulder and making that shoulder adaptable and good at all of them." - Rett Larson

About Rett Larson

Rett Larson is the strength and performance coach for the German Women’s National Volleyball Team, where he brings his trademark "No Zombies" philosophy—emphasizing purposeful movement, emotional engagement, and dynamic energy to every training session.

Before joining Team Germany, Rett spent seven years in China, first as Project Manager for EXOS-China, supporting Olympic teams preparing for the 2012 London Games. He then joined the Chinese National Women’s Volleyball Team, helping guide them to victory at the 2015 World Cup and a gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. He later served as strength coach for the Netherlands Women’s National Team, contributing to multiple podium finishes.

Prior to his international coaching career, Rett spent a decade with Velocity Sports Performance, eventually becoming Director of Coaching at their U.S. headquarters. Known globally for his innovative, rhythm-based warmups and blend of Eastern and Western methods, Rett is also a sought-after speaker and consultant for high-performance teams worldwide.