// Transition to Remote Coaching as an NAIA Strength Coach

For coaches, the squat rack is sacred. Coaches plan movements around how they can do their basic foundational movements in the rack. With weight rooms closed across the country, coaches must adapt to how they will be able to train their athletes for success in their sport. For most, a rack, barbell, dumbbells, and other luxuries college programs have in the weight room are not an option. 

Adapting a program with an emphasis on squat, bench, clean, and deadlifts is a challenge that all strength and conditioning coaches are facing. Finding ways to keep athletes engaged with maintaining strength levels is essential for when they return to campus. Whether the institution has the financial means to provide training sessions to their athletes or if the staff sends a Word document to each team providing workouts, the athletes must continue to train. Coaches need to keep their primary movements at the center of the program, but simply adapt what modalities they use.

Communication is key

With a focus on athletic development, keeping a connection to coaches and teammates may be more critical. Keeping athletes engaged with each other, and their coaches will keep cohesion between everyone. In a time where social distancing is necessary, and interaction with each other is limited, maintaining a sense of team comradery is a must. Text, GroupMe, FaceTime, Skype, and Zoom are a few examples of ways to say in touch and interact with athletes. Any form of communication can help keep the athlete feel as if they are still part of the team and provide them with a support system in a new way.

Keeping athletes engaged socially is essential and doing so can be challenging. After ensuring that the athletes are still engaging with teammates and coaches, the next priority is to make sure that athletes are training correctly. Creating a training environment for athletes is a difficult task. There are a variety of ways to help student-athletes while training from home.

Ways to increase the effectiveness of an at-home, minimal equipment session include:

These three ways of increasing training session effectiveness will change the amount of effort the athlete will need to give. There is only so much a coach can change when the athlete does not have access to a weight room. As painful as the reality it is to accept, athletes get bored fast. Giving athletes a program with minimal equipment and a small variety of movements at a coach’s disposal, coaches need to be creative. 

Creative ways to keep athletes engaged during home training sessions: