State of the Union: The Present State of the Strength and Conditioning Profession with Keir Wenham-Flatt

The High Performance Hockey Podcast

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

How we can evaluate what makes a great strength and performance coach.

Who should be able to determine who’s qualified to be a coach?

Does the field of Strength & Conditioning cause more injuries than it prevents?

Resources + Links:

Connect with Keir Wenham-Flatt on Instagram | @call.me.kier

Learn more from the Strength Coach Network:

https://strengthcoachnetwork.com/

Check out Anthony’s Masterclass -

The High Performance Hockey Masterclass

Follow Anthony on Instagram | @anthonydonskov

Follow Anthony on Twitter | Anthony Donskov, PhD

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel | The HPH Podcast with Anthony Donskov

Follow HPH Podcast on Instagram | @hph_podcast

Follow HPH Podcast on Twitter | @TheHPH_Podcast

Learn more on our Website | https://www.donskovsc.com/

Check out Anthony’s Books

Physical Preparations for Ice Hockey: Biological Principles and Practical Solutions

The Gain, Go, and Grow Manual: Programming for High Performance Hockey Players

Show Notes:

Does the field of Strength & Conditioning cause more injuries than it prevents? We’re diving in with Keir Wenham-Flatt, the founder of the Strength Coach Network and someone who has worked with elite-level athletes all over the globe. With no shortage of controversial opinions, we talk more about what’s wrong with the current accreditation model, why schools are setting up most people for failure, what makes a great coach, and whether players need to spend more time in their sport or the weight room.

03:00 - What is the state of Performance in North America?

06:18 - How can we evaluate what makes a good coach?

09:30 - How can programs evaluate a strength coach’s effectiveness?

14:00 - Advice to anyone who wants to become a strength & performance coach.

18:25 - Why Kier believes school is a Ponzi Scheme.

26:00 - Who should be able to determine who’s qualified to be a coach?

28:27 - Why the accreditation process has a huge conflict of interest.

34:13 - What’s the biggest lesson of your career, so far?

37:20 - Why the biggest opportunity of his career actually turned out to be the worst decision of his life.

41:30 - What countries has he worked in?

44:30 - Why did Kier Wenham-Flatt walk away from coaching?

52:11 - Should critical thinking be taught as a prerequisite for higher learning?

54:31 - Why those who are best at pattern recognition will win.

56:54 - Why heuristics still hold just as much value as technology.

59:30 - When is it worth getting into a debate on Twitter?

1:02:05 - Does the field of Strength & Conditioning cause more injuries than it prevents?

1:06:39 - Should players spend more time in their sport than in the weight room?

1:08:40 - Are tests good indicators of who will have success?

1:12:10 - Why do we look at the outliers?

1:14:00 - Are Strength & Performance coaches just observational researchers?

1:15:08 - What is the Strength Coach Network?

1:17:31 - What can people expect in The Fundamentals course from The Strength Coach Network?

1:18:45 - How can you work with Kier Wenham-Flatt?

1:22:30 - What is the legacy you want to leave?