Iron Sharpens Iron

 

I am part of a group called The ICCUS Society.  ICCUS is a group of sports physical therapists that come from around the world to meet every summer and argue for two days. Really.

It’s an iron sharpens iron thing. More on that in a bit.

All physical therapists graduate from physical therapy school with a doctoral degree, and all are considered generalists until they pursue advanced competencies. That can be in pediatrics, neurology, lymphedema, wound care, pelvic health, and others. Most of these are under the umbrella of the American Board of Physical Therapist Specialties.

There are a several avenues that a physical therapist can take to become a specialist.  For me, I became an Athletic Trainer and then a Sports Clinical Specialist (SCS). To become certified as a Sports Clinical Specialist, you must have post-graduate coursework in things like Emergency Care, years of experience working with athletes, and pass a rigorous examination.

For clarity, Athletic Trainers are a separate profession, today requiring a Masters Degree in Athletic Training.  Athletic Trainers are most often found on the sidelines of games and sporting events, but can be found in a variety of settings including clinics, schools, and industries.

There are other avenues to become a Sports Physical Therapist, most notably by completing a Sports Residency or Sports Fellowship, programs that require 1-2 years in a combined academic/athletic setting.

Back to ICCUS—there are 56 members, from around the globe.  Those members include international speakers, authors, and many that serve professional athletes and teams at the highest level. And when I say that we close the doors and argue for two days, it really is true. It can be daunting.

That’s where the iron sharpens iron comes in. Every three years, each member has to provide a presentation that is then critiqued by the whole group. To say that this group can be brutal is an understatement.  Either you know what you’re talking about or you get embarrassed in a hurry. Not everyone is up for it.

Iron sharpens iron.

That’s why you want to play the best competition. Sure, everyone likes to win, but champions want to get better.  So, you play the best.

That’s why you want coaches that will push you.  That’s how you find out how good you can be.

That’s why we keep the score in games. That’s why we crown champions. That’s why we keep won/loss records.

If you want to be the best version of yourself, regardless of the arena, you seek out the best of the best and challenge yourself to compete in that arena. 

That’s how you get to be the best.

Coaches Care

 

Most youth leagues could not function without parents that volunteer as coaches.  It’s almost rare to find a team of youngsters where the coach isn’t also a parent of one of the players.

I did it.  The first sport for my kids was T-Ball and that first year, I was determined to allow someone else to coach my kids.  It worked well—they both had really great coaches.  I still appreciate them for taking on six year old kids. 

But the need was so desperate over the next few years that I started coaching. And, before you could turn around, I was coaching everything that they did.

One year, I agreed to help coach a youth soccer team.  The head coach was “the only certified youth soccer coach” in the area.  I have no doubt that he knew a lot about the game of soccer but I have to tell you that he struggled in coaching 7 and 8 year old boys and girls.

So the next year, a friend and I decided we would take a Parks & Rec soccer team.  Go back a year and I will tell you that the first soccer game that I ever saw, I coached. If you could call it that. 

About all I knew about the game was that if we kicked it in their goal more than they kicked it in our goal, that we would win.  I also knew enough about sports to know that we didn’t need everybody to always run to the ball.  That second year, we did quite well with those basic principles.

Years ago, Charlie Finley and Tom Ware had started an AAU basketball program here called Blount Stars.  When my kids got old enough for that, I restarted their program then ran it and coached a couple of the teams for the next few years.

But that’s it.  After that, I put away my coaching hat. So, I’ve put in my time.  Been there.  Done that. And probably made every mistake in the book.

As an Athletic Trainer, I have had pleasure of being on the sidelines for literally hundreds of games that my kids and now my grandkids participate in. Keep in mind, though, that I was on the sidelines of Maryville High School football long before my son was on the team and was there for many years after he graduated.

With all that being said, I believe I can make this statement without prejudice and with a great deal of credibility--coaches will be better for an athletic career than parents.  Sound strange?

Here’s the thing—parents never want you to fail while coaches will push you to failure so you can discover what you’re capable of.  It’s really that simple.

In 45 years of doing this stuff, I can tell you that almost every coach I’ve ever encountered had the best interest of your child at heart. They my push and may coach hard, but they want the best for your kid.

And there’s something pretty special about somebody that will invest themselves in a kid that isn’t even theirs.

Be Safe

I was on my way to work recently. That’s not unusual—despite rumors to the contrary, I have not retired.  I still go in to work 5 days a week. Monday through Friday. Weekends too, from time to time.

It was quite early in the morning, which is also common for me.  I’m an early riser. I was on the road when I came around a corner, maybe a bit too fast and came upon a line of vehicles stopped at a red light.

No problem. I braked, maybe a bit too hard, but I had no trouble stopping in time.

But my mind got kicked into high gear at that point.  What if my brakes failed?  What if I had been texting at the same time?  What if I just wasn’t paying attention?

I would have plowed into that pickup truck at the back of the line. And that truck would likely have been pushed into the vehicle in front of it and so on and so on. 

Catastrophe averted because I was awake, paying attention, and not on my phone.

My daughter-in-law got T-boned a few years ago by a teenager who ran a red light, likely because she was texting with her friends.  Both drivers walked away but it could have been bad.

Statistics tell us that a huge portion of automobile accidents are due to distracted driving, and that the chief culprit there is texting while driving. (It is against the law, by the way.)  I think the statistics could be deceiving—I think the number could be higher than current estimates.

Anyway, the admonition to focus on driving when you’re behind the wheel is only part of the story today.

Oh sure, it’s the main point.  I’ve got three teenage drivers in the family, one more almost there, and a fifth not far behind.  I want them to be safe drivers. I want them to arrive alive.

It is a bit of a dark thought, but while attending a high school graduation recently, I thought about the fact that somewhere, some high school senior didn’t make it to their graduation.  They were killed in a car wreck. 

I still worry about my own children, now in their 40’s—still wanting to know when they arrive at their destination should they be making a long drive.  Always have. Always will.

The other part of the story is a simple bit of advice:  Focus on what you’re doing. Give the task at hand your full attention, whether it be your studies, your job, your sport…really anything you might be doing.

If you are true to yourself, you want to give the best of yourself at all times.  The world needs…the world deserves, your best effort.  In everything you do.

Be safe.