What D1 Athletes Do

An effective strength & conditioning program can make you level up.

When done well, training can take you from riding the bench to a starter, from a starter to all-conference, maybe from a great high school player to a D1 college athlete, and in the most rare examples, from a college athlete to the top 1% of the world as a professional athlete.

The purpose behind a strength & conditioning program is to build your general athleticism and prepare your body to be able to excel at the sport you want to be great at. Practice on the field, court, or ice is where you become better at your sport.

You can start training at any point, but how you’re going to respond is going to depend on your biological age. Basically, how far along in puberty you are will determine how much you will respond to training. We’ll cover that topic in another video so you can assess where you’re at and gauge what your response to training will be like.

However, for now, let’s layout the groundwork that will make your body tremendously more prepared to be the athlete you desire to become. What does it take to be a D1 athlete?

Now, I’m going to tell you exactly like all of the kids at my gym here in Central, New York. In order for me, or any strength and conditioning coach to be able to do a great job, you have to take care of your end of the bargain.

Your end of this deal requires three general habits. And what these habits require are one, basic word: consistency. You need consistency in three areas of your life.

Training

You need to never miss training. Listen to that again: don’t miss. If you want to be great at football, baseball, basketball, lacrosse, hockey, or whatever sport you play, you need to practice a lot. Strength & Conditioning is a SPORT, it’s the sport that fuels sports. So you need to never miss “practice” which we just call training.

In training, you should be learning and doing the fundamentals, because you’re a beginner. Squats, bench press, deadlifts, overhead presses, power cleans and snatches, rows, push-ups, pull-ups, maybe some single leg work. You need to sprint, jump high, and condition your body in a manner that prepares you to excel in your sport.

Nutrition

You need to eat and hydrate for your goals. Somewhere over the last 100 years athletes have grown taller, leaner, and heavier. Essentially, they’re more jacked! Many young athletes need to gain muscle mass, that means eating more food in general. You need sufficient nutrients for whatever goals you have. Start with one meal, eat a hearty breakfast every day. Conquer that for a month, then move onto conquering a hearty lunch for the next month. You will build habits that help you fulfill your nutritional needs. These small changes can make a big difference for you.

Sleep

You need to sleep. Put your phone down 30 minutes before bed and get off of Fortnite, Call of Duty or YouTube and get to bed. Sleep is when your body and brain can recover from your training, practice, school, and all of the stresses and interactions you have on a daily basis. Lack of sleep may mean hindering mental and physical performance abilities. You need at least 7 hours, but 8-9 is better. Get to bed.

If you do these things, you will be instilling habits that will lay the foundation for you to realize your potential as an athlete. And like I tell the kids at my gym in the same way my father has told me my entire life, whatever you put into this is what you’re going to get out of this.

Learn to train effectively and never miss.
Eat for your goals.
Sleep 8 hours.