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In this episode, Javi sits down with Marianne Davies to explore a fascinating blend of topics, from adventure sports and ecological coaching to the power of language and learning. They dive into how language shapes perception, the unique relationship between teaching and learning, and the role of affordance perception in high-risk environments.

Marianne shares her experiences in equestrian sports, adventure coaching, and expedition leadership, emphasizing how outdoor challenges can reshape the way we think, learn, and coach—not just in sports, but in life. They discuss the importance of exploration for both kids and adults, the evolving landscape of coach education, and why less structure in training could unlock greater potential in athletes.

Key Topics Discussed:

✅ How language serves as a constraint and shapes perception

 ✅ The Welsh concept of “dusky” and how it connects teaching and learning

 ✅ How adventure sports develop skill and decision-making under real consequences

 ✅ The unstructured nature of adventure sports vs. traditional coaching

 ✅ Why adults need adventure experiences just as much as kids

 ✅ The role of affordance perception and risk in skill acquisition

 ✅ The future of coach development and shifting from assessment-based coaching

 ✅ The power of movement and perception beyond traditional sports

Resources & Mentions:

📌 Marianne’s Podcast: River Tiger Podcast

 📌 Marianne’s Website: Dynamics Coaching

 📌 Follow Marianne on X (Twitter): @marianne_D1

 📌 Follow Marianne on Instagram: @river.tiger

 📌 Recommended Films: Valley Uprising (climbing culture) & Riding Giants (big wave surfing)

 📌 The Cynefin Framework (for understanding complex problems)

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Stay connected at The Adaptable Athlete for more great conversations.

Want to take your coaching to the next level?...check our our courses at Emergence.

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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In this episode, we dive deep into the transcendent movement skill of Lamar Jackson with special guest Shawn Myszka!

In addition to having partnered with 139 NFL athletes and many pro bowlers, Shawn also has been deeply investigating and writing about movement on his website Football Beyond The Stats for over a decade. 

Every year Shawn names "Mover of the Year", and this year it was none other than Lamar Jackson! As a two-time Mover of the Year, Jackson’s ability to adapt, create, and solve problems on the field is unmatched.

We explore what makes his movement so special, how he perceives the game at an elite level, and what coaches can learn from how he problem solves. Plus, we break down how weather, and pressure can impact performance at the highest level.

Whether you coach football, basketball, soccer, or any other sport, this conversation will reshape how you think about skill development, movement, and coaching in complex environments.

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Wanna be able to analyze film through an ecological lens? Check out our Skilled Movement Analysis Course.

Episode Resources:

• 2024 Mover of the Year - Lamar 
• 2019 Mover of the Year - Lamar 
• Shawn's twitter 
• Shawn's paper on "(Re)conceptualizing Sport Movement"
• Shawn's American Football Paper 
• Twitter video of Lamar 
• Episode Webpage 

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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Welcome to today's show!

Today I'm joined by Brian Neff of US Ski and Snowboard!

Brian is an athletic development coach for US Ski and snowboard and specifically works with US Paralympic, Alpine and snowboard athletes.

Prior to his current position, Brian has had roles in athletic medicine, strength and conditioning, and sports science across many different universities in the collegiate sector, such as Big Ten, Pac12 and Summit League colleges such as University of Minnesota, University of Denver, University of Utah, University of Colorado, and University of Southern California.

 He's also had mentorship positions under Cal Dietz, Matt Shaw, Adam Ringler, and is currently being mentored through Emergence Specific with Tyler and Shawn through his participation in the Movement Academy.
 
In addition to his coaching, Brian is also an avid snowboarder himself.] So he lives and breathes his practice .  He's also a classically trained guitarist with a niche for Nuevo flamenco music, which is shaped by Brian's unique experiences.

Today, Brian brings his unique background and perspective to this episode. Enjoy!


 If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode resources

• Brian on Instagram 
• The Practitioner's  Bundle 

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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Welcome to today's show!

Today we are going to be doing another installment of our "6 Minutes of Skill" series.  A series where we dive into a topic related to skill acquisition, in under 6 minutes.  To catch the last installment of this series, click here.

Today, we are going to be discussing information. Specifically, what information is present in your training environments. Hope you enjoy the show!

Right now, we offering an After Christmas Sale.  It ends on 1/1, so be sure to take advantage of it!

 If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode resources

• Why we don't do drills 
• How real does training need to be?

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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Welcome to today’s episode! My guest today is Brian Gilliam

Brian works in hockey and has been working in player development for 39 years. He's the owner of Brian Gillum Hockey, which specializes in player and coach development. He is a Hockey Canada skills coach, coach development coordinator with Hockey Eastern Ontario and a Hockey Canada coach developer.

n addition to that, Brian was a presenter at the most recent Sports Women's Skill Conference which is available for purchase. I really enjoyed his presentation here. I like how he had a framework for some of these concepts which can be a little complicated in ecological dynamics and applied it in a very actionable way.

So after hearing that and learning a little bit more about him, I knew I wanted to have him on the show in this conversation. As all of our conversations on this podcast, it's wide ranging, but we dive into some skill acquisition topics in hockey, some of the infrastructure that has been traditional in hockey, and what Brian is doing to change that.

Really enjoyed this conversation with Brian. Even if you don't coach hockey or work with hockey athletes, this is something that you're going to want to definitely listen to before we get to the episode.

Right now, our new course Boing Playventure is on SALE.  Check it out here if to invest into your coaching.

 If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

 Episode Resources:

• Brian on X – @briangillam66
• Brian on IG – @brianhockey66
• Brian Website: www.briangillamhockey.com
• The Coaches Site – www.thecoachessite.com

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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On this episode I'm joined by Dr. Rob Gray!

Rob is a multi-time guest on this podcast and is always a fan favorite.  He is truly a giant in the movement community and one of the most knowledgable people around.

In this convo, we discuss his latest book Learning to Be an Ecological Coach and what readers can expect to get out of it. 

He also answers several  your questions from social media, including:

• What's the role of memory in EcoD?
• Explain the myth of "muscle memory"

and of course, much much more!..I always enjoy convos with Rob and I'm certain you will too! 

Don't to catch our BLACK FRIDAY SALE going on from Friday 11/29- Sunday 12/1. We are offering 2 of our best courses, Underpinnings and The Practitioners Bundle for 50% off!

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode Resources:

• Rob's new book 
• Emergence Black Friday Sale
• Rob on X
• Rob on IG

Rob's Episodes mentioned in the episode 

• Episode on Memory in EcoD
• Episode on Muscle Memory in EcoD

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

Let's Chat!
Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

Let's Chat!
Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

Send us a text

Welcome to today's episode!

Today we are kicking off a brand new segment called, "6 minutes of skill" where we dive into a skill related topic in under 6 minutes. These are meant to be very practically driven 

This constraint serves 2 purposes:  To challenge me to be concise yet descriptive in my language, and to give you (the listener) a quick and actionable episode.

Today we are going address "Why we don't do drill" ...stay tuned and find out why 

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode Resources:

• Emergence Website 
• The Movement Academy: Intro 

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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On this episode, I'll and we answer your skill acquisition questions!

We asked you  on social media  to post any burning questions you had and you delivered!  Today, we answer those questions.  Some of the topics we covered include:

• Affordances - Can 2 athletes need unique solutions to solve the same problem?
• What about the phrase "let the environment speak first" - How can we use this framework?
• Stealing a pass in basketball -  What to look for?  How to anticipate?

A HUGE thank you to everyone who participated! We really enjoy the interaction, and are always looking to create content that helps your craft!

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode Resources:

• Emergence Website 
• My episode w/ Andrew Wilson
• Skill Acquisition Specialist Paper 

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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Welcome to today's show!

On this episode, we announce our Movement & Skill Acquisition Award Winner! 

This is something, we started last year, where we get to honor the best and brightest on the skill acquisition community.  We have categories:  Lifetime achievement award,  practitioner of the year award, and researcher of the year award.   Last year Kieth Davids, Alex Sarama, and Rob Gray won the awards respectively. 

This year Shawn and Tyler got the privilege of honoring the 2024 award winner!

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode Resources:

• Emergence Website 
• Duarte on X 
• Fabian on X
• Carl on X 
• Skill Acquisition Specialist Paper 

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

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Welcome to today's episode!...My guest today is Stuart Armstrong!

Stu is speaker, coach developer, and host of of our favorite podcast, the talent equation Stu has worked as a head of coaching for sport England and , the player development manager for rugby football union and is one of the top experts on skill acquisition.

As you could expect with Stu and I, today’s conversation is emergent and wide ranging. We discussed everything from Stu's coaching journey, which is so great to hear considering the impact he’s had on my coaching journey in the journey of so many others.

We also discuss coach education and coaching belief systems, which is a topic that is under discussed highly important to our field. We also go down the rabbit hole of ethics in coaching. Which was also very interesting.

I should also mention that what Stu will be presenting at the upcoming Sport Movement Skill Conference going down on October 4 and 5th. We give you a quick sneak peek during the episode about what he will be discussing. Stu is an absolute killer represent and worth the price of admission himself. You do not want to miss it!

If you want to learn more about this year's conference, check out this podcast episode!

If you like today's episode, leave a review here....If you want to reach me directly, contact me on social media or shoot me @[email protected].

Episode Resources:

• Stu on Twitter 
• The Talent Equation Podcast 
• Conference Link 
• Emergence Website 

Credits: Song- "Starstruck" by Freebeats.io

Let's Chat!
Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav