Checking In With Sean Smith
April 03, 2020 | Women's Volleyball
Athletic Performance Coach keeps the Cards in shape from afar
"My workout, which to be honest, is going to look a little funny to the 'naked eye' since there is a ton of flexibility involved with it, said Smith. "The girls have modifications to fit their specific needs so this is essentially just a template that they can use to 'build' their own workout."Â
BACKGROUND
Sean Smith came to the University of Louisville in 2016 and serves as a Performance Coach overseeing the training for volleyball and track and field, while also assisting with baseball. He contributes to the mentorship program and Strength & Power team, adding insights into athlete profiling and speed/agility development. Prior to his hiring as a Performance Coach, he served as a fellow at Louisville and previously worked as a volunteer intern at the University of Michigan and a weightlifting coach in the Louisville area.Sean earned his master's degree in Strength and Conditioning from Edith Cowan University and a bachelor's degree in Health & Human Performance from the University of Louisville. He is certified with the NSCA, CSCCA, and ASCA.
A: "One challenge is to provide a workout that is both scalable to athletes with different levels of strength and fitness, while also being flexible to accommodate different equipment needs
Q: Will you be monitoring them?"
A: These workouts will be voluntary for the athletes, although I am available for athletes to check in with to ask questions and to provide support to help them adjust workouts according to their needs
Q: How do you hold them accountable?
A: I am fortunate that our volleyball team doesn't require much hand-holding in terms of accountability. They all have a strong desire to improve and be ready whenever they leave for a break, whether holiday or quarantine. We have an exceptional group with great leadership, which makes my job significantly easier. The autonomy provided within the program also helps with accountability because the athlete gets to have a say in what exercise they do, to an extent.
Q: What are some of the fun things you have tried to do to communicate and motivate since they aren't in the weight room together?Â
A: We try to create accountability more through communciation. Sometimes they send a "fun" picture/video of their workout, or a workout fail for comic relief and by checking in with teammates via FaceTime, Zoom and GroupMe, or something as simple as texting or taking a picture of a "healthy" meal they've eaten/cooked, focusing on sleep, using certain apps for mindfulness/meditation, etc. It's always fun to see the creativity the athletes have when presented with opportunities and challenges such as these.
Check out the workout sheet here.
