Posts by Team
Free the children
Have you been to a zoo recently? You might see a collection of animals behind bars. They have some space to roam but, for the likes of the speedy cheetahs, not enough to get up to full speed and hunt. They were born to do this. I have written previously about the stunted development of…
Read MoreBook review: How the World Really Works by Vaclav Smil.
It’s rare nowadays that I add a book to my recommended reading list. Not because I don’t read much, it’s mainly because of a lot of rehashed ideas that are repackaged and branded as new. Not this one. Subtitled, ‘A Scientist’s Guide to Our Past, Present and Future,’ Smil does an excellent job of covering…
Read MoreImprove your coaching through storytelling.
Ever wondered why you aren’t getting through to your athletes or peers? You have listed the references, provided the data, and shown a few charts, just like your undergraduate lecturers told you to. They would be proud. Professor Bill McGuire, of UCL, said this, ‘Scientific papers, however well-written, rarely carry the emotional weight of a…
Read MoreWhy movement is important for your child’s brain development
In his book, Livewired, neuroscientist David Eagleman illustrates how the neurons in our brains look similar to plants with roots. Like plants (or kittens), those that are enriched grow more than those that are deprived. Children who are exposed to a limited form of movement, such as treadmills, exercise bikes and machine weights, will develop…
Read MoreHow I read: a personal guide
I was asked last week, ‘What’s your process for choosing books?‘ I was flattered that someone thought I had an organised decision-making process rather than the random choices that catch my eye. But, on reflection, I do have a process and when I shared it, my colleague said it was worth sharing. So here you…
Read MoreBest books of 2021
It’s the time of year where I reflect on what I have read so far and share my best books of 2021. These have included some stone-cold classics, some long-forgotten gems, some new thinking and only a few duds. I am selective in what I read: time, like The One Ring, is precious. I have…
Read MoreWalking for fitness
Walking for fitness is an underrated (except for those who know) way of staying healthy. Not the pottering around the mall, staring at a screen, type of walking. Nor the frantic accumulation of ‘steps’ in a desperate effort to meet a nonsensical ’10,000’ number. I am talking about brisk walking that takes you out of…
Read MoreCoaching the coaching continuum
I had the pleasure of coaching sports coaches at the Heinrich-Heine Gymnasium in Kaiserslautern, Germany this weekend. The focus was on the coaching continuum. Many of us rely on just a few methods of coaching, according to our personal bias or habit but there are many ways that range from Direct, controlling to free play.…
Read MoreTwo good books for the sports scientist/ sports coach/ interested reader.
Good books about sports science and statistics are as rare as rocking horse dung. I have read two, back to back, that were both readable and informative: ‘Everest’ by Harriet Tuckey and ‘How to Read Numbers’ by Tom Chivers and David Chivers. One of the problems with sports science is that it has disappeared down…
Read MoreDon’t be cruel to kittens…or children
An experiment involving two kittens took place in a lab in the early 1960s (1). The kittens were put on a small carousel that rotated with a view of the lab. Kitten A could move its feet and the carousel spun as it walked. Kitten B was suspended in a box that rotated to give…
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