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In this episode of the Adaptable Athlete Podcast, Javi sits down with performance coach Sean Smith, who shares lessons from a unique career that’s spanned elite collegiate volleyball and the high-octane world of IndyCar racing.

They dive into what it takes to support athletes across vastly different sports, why curiosity and communication are non-negotiables for great coaching, and how to create high-performance environments without losing the human element. From letting athletes have a say in their training to managing in-season fatigue, Sean offers practical strategies rooted in trust, adaptability, and an ever-evolving coaching philosophy.

🔹 Key Topics Discussed:

 ✅ Lessons from coaching in motorsport and NCAA Division I athletics

 ✅ How to support athletes when you're unfamiliar with their sport

 ✅ Building autonomy and joy into elite sport environments

 ✅ What “true integration” looks like across performance departments

 ✅ Why athlete wellness data must be actionable—not performative

 ✅ A nuanced take on early specialization vs. multi-sport development

 ✅ Sean’s personal shift into ecological and context-driven coaching

🔹 Resources & Mentions:

 ✅ Emergence Website

 ✅ Challenge Point Framework

 ✅ Drive to Survive on Netflix

 ✅ 100 Days to Indy

Whether you're in strength and conditioning, sport science, or skill acquisition, this episode will challenge your assumptions and help you think differently about what high performance really means.

Don't forget to reserve your spot for the IN PERSON 2025 Sport Movement Skill Conference.

💡 Enjoyed this episode? Share it on social media or leave a review to help spread the word!

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 Six Minutes of Skill episode, Coach Jav explores the concept of the Challenge Point—both for athletes and coaches. He breaks down how finding the right level of difficulty in training can accelerate skill acquisition, improve decision-making, and better prepare athletes for real-game situations.

Key Topics Discussed:
✅ Understanding the Challenge Point and its role in learning
✅ Why failing too much or too little in practice can hinder development
✅ How to adjust practice complexity to match an athlete’s challenge point
✅ The misconception of equating practice performance with learning
✅ Why coaches must also challenge themselves to grow and evolve
✅ How constraints like defender numbers, time pressure, and fatigue impact skill acquisition
✅ The importance of embracing discomfort as a coach

📌 Resources & Mentions:
✅ The Challenge Point Framework – Research on optimizing learning through appropriate difficulty levels
✅ The Adaptable Athlete Podcast – Explore more episodes and topics
✅ Emergence Website – Advance your career, and learn more about a modern approach to skill acquisition. 

💡 Enjoyed this episode? Share it on social media or leave a review to help spread the word!

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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Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

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In this episode, Javi sits down with Jim Haverstrom to explore a fresh approach to youth hockey coaching. Jim explains how his game-based, small-area practices transform the way young players develop skills and decision-making. Rather than isolating techniques, his methods use purposeful, in-game scenarios to build hockey IQ and foster creativity on the ice. He also shares strategies for communicating these innovative methods to parents, emphasizing long-term growth over immediate wins.

Key Topics Discussed:

✅ Transitioning from traditional drills to game-based, small-area practices

✅ Using incentives in practice to promote passing, neutral zone play, and overall game sense

✅ Achieving lasting behavior change even when incentives are removed

✅ Communicating coaching methods effectively with parents to build patience and long-term vision

✅ Identifying an athlete’s challenge point through observation and guided discovery

✅ Fostering autonomy and adaptability in young hockey players

✅ Leveraging analogies from Nick Winkelman’s book, The Language of Coaching, to simplify coaching concepts

Resources & Mentions:

📌 Connect with Jim Haverstrom on Twitter: @JimHaverstrom

📌 Learn more about innovative coaching techniques with USA Hockey resources

📌 Recommended Book: The Language of Coaching by Nick Winkelman

📌 Explore additional insights at The Adaptable Athlete Podcast website

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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Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

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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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Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

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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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Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

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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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Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

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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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Twitter: @thecoachjav
IG: @thecoachjav

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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

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