#103 Mike Boyle: Strength Coaching the Aging Athlete

Strength and conditioning for young pro athletes isn’t easy, but because they’re bouncy and resilient, you can experiment more to find a line of best fit. But what about when you’re training older athletes aged 35 and up, either in the general population or a pro sports setting? That’s the question legendary strength coach answers in this podcast. In this part 2, he and former Lakers S&C coach Tim DiFrancesco discuss:

• Why you should make a “who’s smarter than me?” list and then seek those people out to learn from them
•  How he approached coaching veteran athletes with the Boston Red Sox
• Why the most important question to ask is “Does this hurt” and any answer other than “no” means “yes”
• What the number one reason is for older athletes getting hurt and how to avoid it
• Why over-valuing your own knowledge leads to under-networking
•  Which exercises he typically avoids with veteran athletes
• Why a coach needs to be an effective face reader and active listener
• How being a bouncer and bartender gave him the soft skills needed for coaching
• Which coaches and PTs he sought out for mentoring and who he recommends today

Read Mike’s new book, Designing Strength Training Programs and Facilities (2nd edition), check out his articles at strengthcoach.com, and follow him at @mboyle1959 on Twitter and @michael_boyle1959 on Instagram