Blog

Welcome to the Excelsior blog. It is a mix of current research and thoughts on Athlete and Coach Development, Strength and Conditioning and personal reflections.

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Thanks for taking the time to read it.

James Marshall

1. Steve Magness on the Volume Trap

   6th July 2017 11:15 am

   “How many miles should I run”? Is the question that endurance coach Steve Magness gets asked the most when presenting at workshops.  His seminar at this year’s GAIN covered volume and other training parameters which apply to many different sports. “There is no difference between 99 miles and 100 miles, but people want to get […]

   0 Comments | Read More | endurance, GAIN, GAIN2017

2. Steve Myrland: “Coaching better every day”

   4th July 2017 12:27 pm

   “I thought I was a good coach because I had a good job” said Steve Myrland in the opening part of his presentation at GAIN. “By that logic if we put on snowshoes and walk outside it will start snowing”! This very experienced and enlightened coach gave his thoughts on creating meaningful athletic development rather […]

   4 Comments | Read More | GAIN, GAIN2017

3. 7 Sports Science Myths: Dr Michael Joyner (Mayo clinic)

   30th June 2017 9:02 am

   GAIN reflections Dr Mike Joyner is a faculty member of the Mayo clinic specialising in human performance physiology. I met him early on the Wednesday morning when he was attempting to roll around on the floor and get up despite his very long levers.  What impressed me was his effort and concentration in attempting a […]

   0 Comments | Read More | GAIN, GAIN2017, sports science

4. GAIN 2017: Coaching reflections

   29th June 2017 10:39 am

   I recently spent 5 days in Houston, Texas at Vern Gambetta’s GAIN conference. In this post, and those to follow, I shall attempt to share some of the main ideas and reflections gained whilst there. This should be of interest to fellow coaches and some to parents of athletes too. Opening address and overview by […]

   0 Comments | Read More | GAIN, GAIN2017, reflective practice

5. Summer Reading for Sports Coaches

   23rd June 2017 11:59 am

   Book recommendations for sports coaches Summer is here and I have just returned from the GAIN conference in Houston where fellow sports coaches and bibliophiles shared book ideas and recommendations. Here are some of mine from this year, plus a full list of what I have read with a brief summary. Best coaching book I […]

   0 Comments | Read More | book review

6. Does sleep affect sporting performance?

   20th June 2017 9:26 am

   A recent BBC article highlighted the variations in sporting performance for individuals at different times of the day (1). These differences are down to biological processes which change throughout the day.

   0 Comments | Read More | sleep

7. What the academics are keeping from the public

   13th June 2017 9:43 am

   “The average number of readers of a scientific paper is…”

   Sir Martin Rees in his book “Before the beginning: our universe and others” discusses science, evidence and why information fails to get through to the public (Answer at the bottom of the page).

   0 Comments | Read More | book review, sports science

8. Getting to grips with infographics and data visualisation.

   10th June 2017 3:07 pm

   After many hours of staring at screens and wrestling with Excel, I have finished my final work on the “Introduction to Infographics and Data Visualization” course.
   What started as interest in infographics turned into an understanding of how data should be presented in order to clarify and educate, rather than to obfuscate.

   4 Comments | Read More | cpd, fitness testing, infographic

9. Coaching book reviews

   29th May 2017 3:40 pm

   Book Reviews Whenever I work with other coaches and discuss how they develop their own practice, reading books is always high as a favourite.  Unfortunately, a lot of them seem to be “sciencey” such as Syed’s bounce, but actually add to misinformation, rather than informing our practice Here are a few that I have read […]

   0 Comments | Read More | book review

10. Fitness training for Field Hockey: Part 2

    24th May 2017 3:11 pm

    When looking to improve speed and agility we first need to look at what areas contribute towards them. Other than technique which is essential we can also work on:

    force production
    movement efficiency
    decision making

    2 Comments | Read More | hockey