Importance of fitness

It's a good point.

I am overweight, been known to drink a beer and smoke a stogie or two upon occasion (not in public though).

Have undertaken a regular diet and exercise regimen in last year mostly to improve my health. Being a "role model" is ancillary benefit.

I do my lifting before kids come into weight room - I feel guilty exercising while I'm supposed to be supervising, so they don't actually see me working out. Not to say others shouldn't do it.

I definitely think it helps with perception, I know it affected me as a player, and I have to assume it still holds.

When I played high school, we had the biggest coaching staff in the conference by far. Not in terms of number of coaches either, if you know what I mean! But, I never looked at their "shape" and thought what they made me do in terms of conditioning was a contradiction.

Being in decent shape rather than morbidly obese is obviously good for a variety of health related reasons. But given that none of us coaches (or at least most of us) are competitive athletes any more, there's really no reason that our fitness be a reflection of our coaching ability. I think the kids understand why we ask them to do what they do in the weight room.

That said, I've found that working out with the kids is a great way to build relationships in the off-season. And I'm able to help our strength coach when I'm not lifting, so it's a bonus for him as well.

I'm a fat guy and we have a lot of fat guys on our staff. We're fat guys with six rings, though, so we have that going for us, which is nice. Being competent at your job is a lot more important than being in good shape.

I do think that coaches should try to stay in shape but that's more for themselves than for image purposes. We do not need to be in competetive condition to do our job.

In "coaching terms", you need to be "fit enough" to demonstrate the skills you are teaching. And, yes, that includes OL coaches. When I demonstrate a pull and lead technique, I don't need to be able to do it at "game speed", but I'd better be in good enough shape so that I can do it correctly and consistently.

Obviously, it's a good idea to exercise and eat right but I don't think that it can make or break you as a coach. I've dropped 60lbs over the past year and I'm the same coach now that I was back then. The only real difference now is that I can play a full game of "potato ball" with the boys when we decide to end practice on a lighter note.

I work pretty hard to stay fit as best I can because I like to be able to physically move around and perform the things I'm trying to coach. That's not to say I couldn't do it if I weighed a bit more, but I can do things much easier if I've been lifting/training.

I like looking like I could still play a few downs, I like feeling strong and well-conditioned, but I don't think it affects me all that much as a coach. I think I get a little bit of respect/credibility from my athletes because I'm in good shape and I still look the bit, but I'm not going to say that it's vital.

Almost all of our coaches on our staff are in good to decent shape for the age they are (I'm 26, eldest is like 62 ish). I've coached with a man who was so obese (400 lbs, easy) and out of shape that he smelled bad, couldn't get around without a talking pole (stick doesn't do the thing justice), and he couldn't demonstrate much at all. I don't want guys like that because he had serious respect/credibility issues with the kids. He was a great guy with a wonderful heart, but it just wasn't a good situation to coach with him.


At the end of the day, be in healthy shape and capable physique, but don't stress being Mr. Universe.

I do not lift with the kids and don't allow my assistants to do it either. Our job is to coach and teach in the weight room. Work out on your own time. Every once in a while I'll make sure the kids see my do a bench set or two so they know I can still throw the weights around.

Sure lifting and eating healthy isn't required to be a great coach BUT at the high school level it 100% makes your job easier if you do it. If you have the look and lifting numbers to back up what you preach then kids are way more likely to buy in.

I think that it's hypocritical of us to expect our players to lead by example but not our coaches. I'm not saying you have to be a weight room warrior, but your health should be a priority at every stage of your life (even after you're married with kids).

I'm also guilty of this, but it's funny how many of us that claim to "have no time to workout" also have hundreds or even thousands of posts on coachhuey.com.

That's the great thing about having a paid strength and conditioning coach. My time in the weight room is my own time, the other coaches don't have to be there...

Second note; you shouldn't be lifting with the kids but you need to be in good enough shape to demonstrate the lifts properly. I've coached with guys that couldn't demonstrate a squat or a clean to save their lives. And, it wasn't that they didn't understand the lift; they couldn't physically do a proper squat or a clean.

It's like taking diet advice from Dr. Phil, you just aren't going to get the same buy-in from everyone. It doesn't change the message, but it makes it tougher.

If you look like a professional strongman, you are going to get some instant-respect, the same way that former players get a degree of instant-respect. Over time you can lose that if you prove to be a dumb ass, and you can obviously earn respect without it. But there is a positive impact to being in shape.

modeling a healthy lifestyle, or other positive behavior is great. but, that is more along the lines of character development than the "if i'm gonna make them do it, then i should do it" rhetoric. they are training for a competition in a football game. any "training" I do is simply to give me a better way of life - a healthier, more 'enjoyable' life. it's not for competition. so, not sure how my riding the exercise bike in the mornings has any impact on if our qb is going to hit the weights harder because he saw me "working out".

coaching is about coaching the kids ... getting them trained physically and mentally to compete at the highest levels they can. my physical fitness goals aren't going to be as such - i'm through competing and my team isn't counting on me to carry the ball or make a tackle. i'm pretty sure most of our players understand that what they are doing is for them - and the fact that i'm not training on the same routine as them as any bearing on their determination to win. we do plyometrics, box jumps, bounding, etc. I don't. there is no reason for me to do that. it doesn't take away from our kids. they know that all of our coaches have been there, done that back when we played. it is part of the players "job". the coaches "jobs" are much different in reference to winning games.

our kids don't need to see me repping heavy squats or cleaning big weight to swing their minds in any fashion towards working harder. it won't help us win games. modeling a healthy lifestyle, though, will go a lot longer in shaping their character (if we are going to discuss any impact my "training" my have) and how they live their life after football.

when seniors choose a college, how many picked college A over college B because college A's coach could bench press 350 lbs?

i'm not downplaying a coach working out - i work out. however, it isn't to impress our players. it isn't to motivate our players. it isn't to show the players how to work, blah, blah. it is strictly for my personal health.

I am a position coach at my school. I am not the strength coach and I am not the head coach.

Most of our coaches have great weight room attendance but, up until recently, most of them sat together in the weight room and talked with each other during workouts- not coaching or spotting or doing anything productive.

I decided that I would lift with my offensive linemen this year because I tried to be a facilitator/supervisor last year and it was not effective. In the past month, most of the other coaches have also started working out- they do a circuit workout of their own.

My point is, I don't know if working out with the kids is the best philosophy, but I know it is much better than anything I've been a part of for the past five or six years. At the very least, I can be sure that 2 or 3 kids have a great workout everyday and I can model the techniques (both lifting and spotting) and the pace/intensity that we want to have. That has to be better than trying to coach the whole room by yourself or sitting and BS'ing with other coaches or doing my own personal fitness workout.