I’m not impressed by the individual who is willing to exercise to the point of vomiting or a loss of bladder control—this is not that unusual. What I’m impressed by is the individual who shows up every day at the gym, does what is necessary, doesn’t complain, doesn’t look for recognition, does what’s necessary outside of the gym to support their training and goals, and continues this process consistently for years.
-Greg Everett, Catalyst Athletics
I have been working on this idea for quiet some time and am very excited to announce the launch of it! When I found out that the high school was losing their strength and conditioning resource, I started talking with some of my colleagues and clients nested in the community in order to see what Pure Health could do to help fill the gap.
Now, reading this, I am sure some are wondering what the difference between the coaches that perform a program and Pure Health making a program, so let me go ahead and dive a little into that (plus if I keep babbling, you might stop reading):
The goal:
The goal of this program is very simple: To create an affordable, customized, sport-specific program that not only helps the athletes get stronger, more explosive, and all around “athletic,” but also touches on commonly developed injuries in their individual sport (call it prehab, if you will).
Why “Prehab”?
For a couple of reasons:
- I can tell you that this is the way all strength and conditioning has been going, we are just a little behind in this area.
- Far too often do I hear the phrase “It just happens in this sport”, and while I agree that there are entirely too many degrees of freedom for which we cannot predict, to chalk every injury up to chance is, for a lack of a better term, irresponsible.
- Enter Prehab! In a nutshell, this would be 3-4 accessory exercises selected for each individual sport that touch on common injuries that are still too widely accepted as things that happen. In doing this “prehab” we can help prevent some of these common injuries and/or help get the athlete back to sport faster!
Why is a custom program necessary?
While I agree that it is awesome to get a hold of a major collegiate program or an NFL teams program (I have had a few pass through my fingers), you have to think about who you are giving this to. On one hand you have a program designed for top tier athletes in their sport, with access to round-the-clock medical, massage, chiropractic, and recovery aids. On the other hand, you give this program to a freshman on the team, who has been playing the sport for a fraction of the time as their professional counterpart (whose family may/may not have the money to access all the recovery modalities they need in order to keep up) and you might open that freshmen up to a greater risk of injury or limit their overall athletic career. Not to mention the fact that the intensity and volume progression would be rather aggressive for a pro vs. high school athlete.
Make sense?
You are giving a guitar to a kid that has played for two years and expecting to hear some Stevie Ray Vaughn.
And while you might have a kid or two that get amazingly strong from this program in the short term, in the long term you will have laid out many in hopes of finding the few that are able to recover from this program.
This is why a customized program is the best way to ensure that you get the most out of each and every athlete available, because if you want a great team you don’t just spend time on the all-star athlete, but you also develop the kids that have long term potential (they are usually the hardest working, because they don’t come by it naturally)
If you are still skeptical, you can read this little write up from Chad Englehart, coach of the P66 Splash Club and Bruins Swim Team:
The Bartlesville High School Swim Team started working exclusively with coach Daniel West in the winter of 2015. They continued to work with him that spring, summer and fall. In the winter of 2016 the Bruins won 14 of the 22 events at the 6A Oklahoma State Championships and set State Records in 7 of those events. In 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 the program had a combined zero National All-Americans. In 2016 the Bruins were honored with 10 National All-Americans. He was also instrumental in helping Haley Downey and Kyle Ward qualify for the 2016 US Olympic Trials. Four of his athletes graduated in 2016 with athletic scholarships to swim in college.
Daniel is an expert in his field. The greatest mark of an expert is their ability to adapt to situations and still maximize results. This was his first experience working with swimmers and he committed to their improvement as swimmers. He came to their competitions, watched their races and talked repeatedly with their coach to ensure that his strength program was meeting their specific needs.
I highly recommend serious athletes consider working with Daniel West. He is absolutely capable of helping you take your game to the next level.
Sincerely,
Chad Englehart
2015 Hall of Fame Coach Inductee
Who’s coaching my athletes/kids?
So glad you asked! I have tried to bring in some of the best, in my opinion, in order to make this program one of the best in the area for all around athletic development and injury prevention!
Michael Secora, MS, CPT
- Master’s in Kinesiology
- 3+ years training/coaching HS soccer
- 1+ Personal Trainer
When deciding on a coach to help me out with this endeavor, I could not think of a better one than Michael. With his coaching experience on and off the field with different soccer teams as well as his extensive background in Kinesiology (movement science), he was an easy choice to help program our sport specific movements!
Daniel West, BS, CPT
- Bachelors in Kinesiology from Texas A&M
- 6+ years personal training
- 3+ years sport performance coaching
- Coach of national and world level power lifters
While my knowledge in sport specific movement is not what Michael’s is (hence why I brought him on), I know how to program strength and explosive performance. Not only have I helped bring two very awesome female athletes to the top of level of their sport of power-lifting, but I’ve also succeeded in helping the local swim team achieve high levels of success and started working with the elite gymnasts in order to keep them in the game.
Jeremiah Williams, D.C and Heather Williams P.T
While they will not be coaching, having them as co-owner of Pure Health is invaluable. Having the ability to pick both the brains of a Chiropractor and Physical Therapist for our Prehab routines is what makes the difference in our program over others.
Kaleigh West, Certified Yoga Instructor
On top of all the other facets of the athletes training, the final brick in the wall is a our custom mobility/yoga program that focuses on the areas of contention for each sport (i.e hips, shoulders, lower back, etc..)!
What does the program look like?
- Options of Mon/Wed or Tues/Thurs
- Times are up for discussion as we figure the program out, but most likely right after school for 1 hour (Roughly 3 p.- 4 p.m)
- The two classes will be capped at 10-12 kids per group so as to make sure the coach-to-athlete ratio allows for every athlete to get individual attention!
- Cost: $100/month (Includes mobility program, 8 monthly sessions, Prehab program, and sports performance program)
And finally, a word to the athletes:
We cannot promise you that which you do not work for. What I can promise you is this: If you decide to join the Pure Health Athletics program you will get stronger, you will get faster, you will be less prone to repetitive injuries, and you will be a better athlete. Now to what extent, that is entirely up to you!
If this interests you and is something you or your athlete would like to be apart of contact us at:
Email: PureHealthPerformance918@gmail.com or Daniel.West.PT@gmail.com
Phone: (903) 521-6115
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liftingintheville
PURE HEALTH PERFORMANCE 