The Functional Path is a path that had been traveled many times before but had fallen out of use in favor of smoother paved roads that promised faster and easier results. Seeking to follow and better define the functional path is a continuing journey, fortunately it is a journey that many have traveled before. Functional Path training is getting back to the basics of movement. It is learning to tune into the body and it’s inherent wisdom to produce rhythmic flowing movement.
Last night my daughter’s best friend got married, it was really fun. At the reception dinner there was a lady sitting next to my wife who had just retired after thirty years of being a middle school PE teacher here is
posted by Vern Gambetta @ 5/02/2007 08:50:00 AM
6 comments
Vern is currently is the Director of Gambetta Sports Training Systems. He has been the a conditioning coach for several teams in Major League Soccer as well as the conditioning consultant to the US Men’s World Cup Soccer team. Vern is the former Director of Conditioning for the Chicago White Sox and Director of Athletic Development for the New York Mets. Vern is recognized internationally as an expert in training and conditioning for sport having worked with world class athletes and teams in a wide variety of sports. He is a popular speaker and writer on conditioning topics having lectured and conducted clinics in Canada, Japan, Australia and Europe. Vern's coaching experience spans 36 years at all levels of competition. Vern has authored six books and over one hundred articles related to coaching and sport performance in a variety of sports. He received his BA from Fresno State University and his teaching credential with a coaching minor from University of California Santa Barbara. Vern obtained his MA in Education with an emphasis in physical education from Stanford University.
6 Comments:
Mr. Gambetta
I am a Physical Education teacher and I know exactly what she is talking about. I am in my 12th year teaching and have seen what I consider to be really good Pe and I have seen really bad PE. I am in the process of trying to educate my adminastration as to what to look for. Coach, can you post what an average days PE class in your opinion would look like if you were teaching it in a 85 minute block???
Vern,
It's WAY BEYOND PE...my wife is a special needs educator and her co-teachers complain that the kids have special needs or in other words a child with autism is seen as a nuisance. What’s frightening is the birth rate of autism is rising, children fitness is dropping, and the Powers That Be are using stopgap tactics and not overhauling the entire healthcare/educational systems. Not to sound like an alarmist, but most family pets are even out of shape!!!!
Todd Langer
www.balance2posture.com
Look, I'm tiring of the attacks against the young. Sure, there are problems. However, there are some 50 year old, 20 year PE veterans who suck. It's not just the newbies. There are old grizzled veteran trainers who can't coach , teach or train.
Experience and age ain't everything. I'm sick of the good old days mentality. When I was a kid, the coaches didn't know a quarter of what I know about communication, learning styles, movement, etc. They knew jack. Most everything they taught was fundamentally incorrect. My "genius" strength coach, by now a grizzled vet with 25 years experience, saw my friend and I squatting, laughed at our technique and called us unathletic. No instruction. No stretches or foam rolls to attack calf tightness. No promps. No examples. We were just idiots who didn't know how to squat properly so we were lost causes.
So, excuse my skepticism that everything old is good and everything new and young is bad.
b, seems like there is so much info. in today's world of PE that we are getting stuffed. So much great info. that obesity seems to be on the rise people are getting hurt and everyone wants to be the expert.
"To foam roll or not to foam roll, that is a question?"
Don't forget you old school teachers don't have to deal with half the issues we have today. Kids back then were kicking, punching, running to get outside and play.
Vern what age did you talk about in teaching skill and organization? 6, 10 14, 18? What is effective?
Todd, you are right about "Way beyond PE".
B, you are also right about the dinosaur coach(es) who riden you off as a lost cause. They are out there.
This goes back to the topic of coaches...PE teachers...
conditioning coaches who do not want to teach or coach. If you aren't athletic, then don't bother coaching or teaching you. No one wants to work.
People talk about how hard they work, but no one knows how to work hard...whether young or old. For example, I have four assistants who are in the mid 20's. They talk about working hard and taking pride in their weight room. When it was time to clean the weight room, no one was around to sweep, to vacuum, to re-rack the weights etc. So the perception of the young'uns being lazy...yes. The next day, the topic wasn't about any special training session, it was about being accountable...being professional. Of the 2 hours cleaning the weight room, we spent an hour on cleaning the mirrors.
When we were done, I asked them, who did they think would come and clean the weight room. They all looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. I had to tell them that the weight room need to be clean daily.
It's about being professional!!!
Yup, being professional and accountable go a long way. Also, admitting you don't know everything and ALWAYS being open minded to learning. It's why I visit this blog; basically, Vern is a true pioneer. Doesn't mean I always agree with him, but it's important to listen and pay respect to someone who's been there and done that. As far as age, it's only a number, but the longer you're around, the more you have a chance to see...in the end wisdom can be found anywhere, but it's more often seen in people with real experience.
Todd Langer
www.balance2posture.com
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