"On the field, out on the grass, my most important role as a coach is teaching players how to use freedom. Fly-soar-create-connect-combine-learn rules break rules-be brave-get knocked down-get back up-discover an all new magic-CHOOSE."
📖 New long read⤵️
https://t.co/QWkAkxjLAa
Trump’s “weaponization fund” and ban on future IRS audits is his latest impeachable offense: using the machinery of government and billions in taxpayer dollars to reward allies, pay off insurrectionists, and shield himself, his family, and associates from accountability. This is exactly the kind of corruption and abuse of public trust the Framers feared most. Impeach now.
Just remember that there’s no level of popularity, social media clout, followers, or performance knowledge that outweighs not being a good person.
In youth sports, the people who last the longest and make the biggest impact are usually just good people first.
@Toohey_sp Best youth ⚽️ players are fast, powerful & coordinated but lack technical skill b/c they never play on their own
So they train & train technical skills w/ private coaches b/c they never play on their own
& then neglect physical qualities in HS b/c habit is team practice + skill
Do hard things is an Adult thing:
Despite what you see online…
Telling kids to “do hard things” isn’t how you build resilient athletes.
It’s how you make them hate movement.
Because most of the time, “hard” just means
being forced onto kids.
Kids don’t experience “hard” the way adults do.
To them, it feels like pressure… stress… failure.
And when movement feels like that early on—
they start to avoid it.
And just because your kid doesn’t want to do your
burpee broad jump challenge…
doesn’t mean they’re soft.
It means they’re a child
not ready for adult-defined standards in any sense of the word.
What actually builds resilient athletes?
Not forced intensity.
It’s fun… variety… and freedom to explore.
Games… competition… racing… chasing… challenges… exploration.
Because when kids enjoy moving, they move more.
And when they move more
they naturally run faster, jump higher, and build real skill.
Here’s the key:
Challenge should be discovered… not imposed.
The best environments don’t force kids to be tough—
they make kids want to try hard.
Forced effort builds compliance.
Chosen effort builds resilience.
#LTAD
@Tyry202 My HS athletes have to learn to set boundaries & put their energy/passion towards the priorities that matter most to them...
Which is sometimes not the sport I'm coaching & that's not easy to deal with
Adding a team of younger kids w/ fewer stresses has been rejuvenating for me
It should be a much bigger story that JD Vance flew to Hungary, stood on a campaign stage, and told voters to return a head of government widely documented for human rights abuses and democratic backsliding.
Then, after his candidate lost, Vance said what had happened during the Hungarian campaign was “one of the worst examples of foreign election interference that I’ve ever seen or ever even read about.”
Was he describing himself?
The Hungarian people rejected it all. Democracy held, despite America’s intervention, not because of American leadership.
The United States has long argued that elections should be free from outside influence.
That standard should apply to everyone, including us.
https://t.co/Yv2XHGTAOU
New: World Cup ticket buyers accuse FIFA of “misleading” them.
Altered categories, seat maps that failed to disclose hospitality sections — "it's hard not to feel scammed," one fan told me.
Full story free to read @TheAthletic:
https://t.co/b9ptCgKAYo
Hegseth fired the Army Chief of Staff Gen Randy George. Immediately.
Gen George probably the best leader I’ve encountered in uniform. Integrity. Experienced combat leader. Solid judgement. Courage. Modesty. Takes care of soldiers. A war going on.
Hegseth purge of Black and women officers larger than previously reported
"Hegseth has taken steps to block or delay promotions for MORE THAN A DOZEN Black and female senior officers across all four branches of the military."
https://t.co/F9aTG61gzz
Speed is relative.
Training/timing youth & team sport athletes?
They will often sprint as fast as needed to execute a task. Want them to sprint FASTER?
📈 Make the task more challenging—add a competitor/pacer on an inside lane for them to race while their rep is being timed.
How do you train collective behaviors in transitions?
→ By recognizing cues that help every player respond collectively. If the player who wins the ball is facing forward and has space, we counterattack.
The European Parliament approves the trade deal with the US but includes provisions for its immediate suspension of the U.S. imposes new tariffs or threatens a member state. That’s all you need to know about how far we have fallen: our allies are writing policies predicated on America being a threat to them.
“Mirrored Reciprocation”
Send a thank-you note, and you will get one back.
Smile sincerely at someone, and they will smile back at you.
Offer information to someone in a conversation, and they will tend to share information with you in return.
In one experiment investigating the principle of mirrored reciprocation, a researcher sent handwritten Christmas cards to almost six hundred complete strangers. Each card included a note and a photograph of his family. It didn’t take long before these complete strangers started sending responses. In all he received close to two hundred cards in reply.
(From “Effortless” by @GregoryMcKeown)
The “Endless Feedback Loop” of FTC is mirrored reciprocation. ⚡️⚡️⚡️
Coaches will reciprocate enthusiastic athletes (and vice versa).
Can’t be a happy coach with miserable athletes.
This is an affront to the rule of law and everything decent in American society. The Justice Department lawyers should be ashamed of themselves.
https://t.co/RqUTJkuRBi
I find purpose in coaching on a deeper level than it being a “job.” It’s more than just training. It’s a year-round process of growth. We’re pushing, straining, and overcoming obstacles together. Coaching youth athletes is about the journey and the relationships.
@Tyry202 Because I can't leave well enough alone, for GU12 soccer last night adapted this to:
⚽️ Replace cone w/ ball & 1st to ball playing 1v1 vs opponent to opposite line
➡️ COD sprint starts from drop-step each way, push-up forward & reverse, cross leg forward/reverse
Kids loved it
This is great. Now I know icebreaker/speed warm-up game I'll play on Day 1 of the new season w/ rambunctious U12 ⚽️ girls.
Will throw in variation of backward-facing crossleg sit, my personal favorite to see how kids organize & burst out of familiar but disadvantageous position.
Prone start. Pop up. Full sprint. Redirect. Steal the cone before your partner does. They think it’s a game. I’m watching who organizes first, who stays low in the cut, who panics, who finishes through the line. Fun? Yep. Serious transfer? Also yep. Until next time, doggies.