A lot of people ask me what my job is like and I usually give short and simple answers; write programs and coach athletes in their workouts. I’ve come to realize that this just scratches the surface of what my job entails. Very few people out there understand the nuances of the job and the lifestyle that accompanies it. So I decided to jot down what a typical day is like for me. I wish I was creative enough to make this stuff up and I assure you the following account is completely true.
4:27 AM: First alarm goes off. I immediately chug 32 oz of water. Not only will I rehydrate from sleeping but I will soon have to pee so bad that even the warmest, most comfortable bed would not contain me.
4:31 AM: Second alarm goes off. This alarm means go time, literally. I place my feet on the floor and make a quick evaluation of my joints and muscles. Soreness is never a huge issue for me but most of the time my lumbar spine feels as if it’s frozen in carbonite like Han Solo.
4:45 AM: Dressing for the day. I was given 4 t-shirts to wear and have acquired a few others from my school so my work wardrobe is simple. Gym shorts (usually worn above the knee), sneakers, a hoodie, and I am good to go.
4:50 AM: Making breakfast. I have found that making a fresh breakfast shake is much better than having one sit overnight, so I pull out my blender. This particular day I had no more Greek yogurt, so I substituted ice cream, with it goes a banana, frozen berries, milk, protein powder and some creatine. As I’m blending I can’t help but think if I am bothering any of my neighbors.
5:00 AM: Out the door. My work bag and lunch were packed the night before so I just grab my fish oils and Rockstars and head to my car.
5:05 AM: Usually listen to talk radio in the morning unless I can find some music right away. I got into this habit because I’ve found that hearing people who sound intelligent keeps me awake.
5:12 AM: Show up at my boss’ house. The strength staff carpools to work every day; its more eco-friendly and we were only given one parking pass for the three of us. I usually show up a few minutes early, text the other coaches (they live next to each other) and then read Twitter or the news.
5:15 AM: First energy drink of the day. I (we) usually crack our first energy drinks in the car on the way to our office. This usually provides for interesting car ride banter; today we debated the utility of stop lights at this hour, discussed the pros and cons of seafood and the terrible driving habits of the other assistant coach. None of us will be speaking in a tone softer than a shout from this point on for the rest of the day.
5:20 AM: Open the office. Our first team rolls in at 5:45 so we get in a little early to get settled and get ready, or to just argue about the taste differences between diet and regular versions of sodas. The funniest part is that none of us can even remember the last time we had a soda. More yelling ensues, until we settle things by listening to “Blame It on the Boogie” by Michael Jackson.
5:50 AM: A few of our baseball guys are sleeping in the hallway instead of foam rolling, so we call our first audible of the day. The warm-up becomes sandbag sprints, broad jumps, and bear crawls. I usually use this time to set up the weight room for their lift but on this particular day I stick around to witness the “lesson.” The lift is pretty energized, they had hang cleans and our freshmen are doing really well with the movement. I’ll probably say “hips” and “elbows” over a hundred times in the next hour.
8:00 AM: After two groups of baseball guys, the water polo team comes in to lift. I warm them up in an auxiliary basketball court while the baseball guys finish up. This is a fun group to warm up, they always have energy. It’s also fun to watch the “sea animals,” (our term for water athletes) move about and look athletic on land.
8:35 AM: Water polo guys are gutting out slow eccentric squats; the scene is absolutely awesome. Unfortunately, I am asked to grab the head strength coach’s water bottle from our office downstairs. I’m not too upset because I forgot mine down there and I am already dehydrated from yelling all morning. I also use this time to finish energy drink #1.
9:00 AM: Men’s soccer. Men’s soccer presents a bit of a logistical nightmare for us. This is a large group with a lot of class conflicts so a few guys will show up late. This is a dense lift, meaning they will always have correctives or other things to do between sets to keep them moving and focused. We see a lot of quad- dominant deadlifts with them so most of my attention is spent adjusting our deadlifts and preventing “log jams.”
10:00 AM: Women’s soccer. This is a very coachable group and they get it done today. Also it’s our last team of the morning. With a nice break to look forward to we are a little more relaxed and at ease with them. I lock up our equipment cabinet only to find that a single band has been left out and have to unlock the cabinet and put it back. One more look over of the weight room and find everything has been put away.
11:05 AM: Pre-workout meditation. More Michael is being played in the office; I’m sitting and annihilating a jar of peanut butter. I also crack open energy drink #2. I look up what my lift is for today, 4 sets of 3 at 85% 1RM clean and jerks, followed by some front squats. I’ve been on my feet for the last 5 and a half hours… its fine.
11:22 AM: We leave our office to head to the other weight room for our staff lift. We probably spend most of the walk practicing our Wookie calls and complaining about the stadium steps we’re about to climb.
11:40 AM: After applying some Tiger Balm, doing some soft tissue and mobility work, I pick up the bar and begin warming up. The heavy triples for clean and jerk are absolutely brutal; I question ever writing them into an athlete’s program again.
12:20 PM: Somehow I find myself conditioning with a Prowler. I thought the clean and jerks were conditioning for today. We start experimenting with a negative rest protocol for Prowler sprints. In four minutes my heart rate will be 180 beats per minute. The experiment yields reliable data.
12:40 PM: We flag down the track coach in his golf cart to drive us back to our main athletic building. It’s an 8 minute walk that would have taken us at least 15 on this particular day.
12:57 PM: Lunch. We all grab our lunches, pop them in the microwave and chat with our equipment manager. Lunch for me is a pound of ribs I made a few days earlier and a green pepper I’ll eat like an apple because I was too lazy to cut it. Pretty soon I’ll be finished with energy drink #2.
2:00 PM: Men’s and Women’s Swimming. They jump rope during their warmup so trying to set up their lift can be like moving through a field of lasers.
3:00 PM: Women’s Basketball comes in. Their lift goes smoothly and their focus is evident which makes my job easy and to me easy is boring.
4:05 PM: Men’s Basketball is warming up and I’m grilling the freshman about what they had for breakfast. I tend to ask our freshman about their breakfast habits and slowly but surely we’re starting to make better decisions.
5:20 PM: Finally finish up with teams for the day. The basketball redshirts and freshman stayed after their lift for a little “beach work,” so we designed a nice little circuit for them and stayed to watch.
5:30 PM: Last Youtube session of the day. We all head down to our office, sink into our chairs, and start conjuring up some of our favorite Youtube videos. The “Pepe Silvia” scene from Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and a hilarious video about Snapple Cap Facts are played and quoted tirelessly. I experience some shortness of breath climbing the stairs for the thousandth time today as I leave.
6:15 PM: Sitting in traffic I realize I naturally hook grip my steering wheel. Not sure if this is cool or not. Also thanks to rush hour traffic, the drive that took me 10 minutes this morning is now half an hour.
6:20 PM: I get home and immediately pull out a package of frozen meat and start defrosting it. While it defrosts I read a little of Essentials of Strength and Conditioning or catch up on some strength and conditioning blogs.
8:20 PM: My girlfriend comes over with some items for dinner. We’re having taco salad and I’m already excited about having leftovers for lunch tomorrow. After dinner I’ll do the dishes, foam roll, stretch and get ready for bed.
9:30 PM: Pre-bed routine. Get my clothes ready for tomorrow, get lunch ready for tomorrow, double check both my alarms, and pack my bag; despite my best efforts I can’t seem to be in bed before 10 which is very frustrating.
10:13 PM: Lights out and usually asleep in a few minutes. I never seem to have trouble falling asleep at night, 4:30 comes quickly.
Well, there you go, a day in my life. It may sound crazy and hectic and you might question how I do it everyday. I’ve learned from my mentors early on that success in this industry is very dependent on your own passion for doing it. I can’t remember a day where I didn’t fall asleep excited about work, or the last time I wanted to stay in bed because I didn’t feel like working. I assure you this account is not very different from other strength coach’s lives, and that speaks volumes to the passion and character of a collegiate strength coach.
