In the first part of Jim Wendler's UGSS Seminar, he discussed his general training philosophy, how to know when a youth athlete is ready to start using a barbell, and how to identify trends in training and nutrition. Following this first part of the presentation, Jim went on to share the specific standards he sets for his youth athletes and how he manages their performance and strength training when injuries occur.
WATCH: Jim Wendler's UGSS Introduction — Earn the Barbell, Training Philosophy, and Industry Trends
In this video, the second part of his presentation, Jim goes into detail about both the mental aspects of training kids (goal-setting, motivation, and the illusion of choice) and the physical aspects (how strong and fast do they need to be and how do you get them there?).
Some of the highlights:
- "Do you know how hard it is to coach 40 or 50 kids at one time who literally are dumber than shit? I give no one any choice anymore. There are no choices at all. You do it my way or the highway because what happens is, if you give an inch, they will take more than a mile. It will get worse and worse and worse."
- "I give them the illusion of choice on things that don't matter: you can do dips or you can do push-ups."
- "There's a difference between being hurt and injured. These kids need to realize that. I don't want to be a jerk about it, but if you're not playing you might as well go crazy a little bit."
- "If I can teach a kid to squat correctly, I can teach him anything."
- "Everything should be made as simple as possible but not simpler."
- "Every high school kid is weak and slow with no muscle."
- "Athlete the lower, bodybuild the upper."
By the minute:
- The illusion of choice in training large groups (0:40)
- Everyone needs the same thing (2:27)
- Buddy Ryan and coaching injured players (3:50)
- Teaching a kid how to squat is like teaching a kid how to read (6:15)
- Albert Einstein's rule of simplicity (7:25)
- Specific standards for youth training abilities (8:20)
- Goal setting (11:52)
- Athlete the lower, bodybuild the upper (13:10)
