Weightlifting Talk with Travis Mash
Just got off the phone with Travis Mash and Wil Fleming. People wonder why coaches are successful and why they have athletes consistently putting out big totals. They will sit there as the Monday morning quarterback and talk trash about their methods, accuse them of drug usage and come up with 30 other reasons as to why their lifters aren't as strong.
I fall into this same boat. Prior to the phone call, I felt that Nathan Damron squatting 300k was stupid. I have criticized other coaches and their training methods amongst my lifters without fully comprehending their system of training. After having a great discussion with Mash I learned a few things.
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Atmosphere is what matters most. Being positive and having a happy environment that focuses on positive improvements is what makes for a great lifting team. Speaking negatively about ANYTHING is pointless.
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Communication is king. Develop a healthy relationship with your lifters and gain their trust to ensure they continue communicating. The more lines of communication there are, the more developed the relationship will be between athlete and coach!
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Practice what you preach. I know everyone hears this all the time but they don't analyze it from different walks of life. Sure, Travis Mash was one of the best power lifters to walk the planet and he is still as strong as an ox...with that being said, he works his ass off and runs a successful business. His athletes see him not only as a great coach but also as a great business person that is motivated and willing to make sacrifices for his lifters. That generates a bond between he and his athletes that is hard to replicate.
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Learn outside the box. Read books and content from coaches that are not in your specific field of work. Something that a swimming coach does in training, can be something that a weightlifting applies and finds to be very successful in their own system!
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Take Earth Fed Muscle. Travis said it himself....Damron squatted 300k, solely because he takes EFM!!! Lol