Three short coaching manuals you can read this weekend (and some videos to watch).
Practical advice based on my coaching experience.
Most coaching books take too long to read. By the time you have waded through someone’s theoretical framework, your Saturday is gone, and your Sunday session plan still is not written.
These three are not like that.
I wrote *Get Stronger*, *Run Faster*, and *Jump Higher* to be read by coaches who have jobs, teams, and not enough time. Each is short, practical, and built around sessions you can run on a pitch, in a hall, or anywhere with a bit of flat ground. None of them assumes a gym, a force plate, or a sports science department.
They are based on 30 years of coaching young athletes — including athletes who went on to compete at two Olympic Games, represent their country in several different sports, and win British championships. They are filtered down to what actually matters when you are standing in front of a group of 13-year-olds with one hour to train.
**Get Stronger** — A 12-week strength programme for young athletes. Two-week preparation, three-week adaptation, two-week application. [Amazon link]
**Run Faster** — The speed training book I wish every team sport coach had when I was starting out. Pelvis control, pre-tension, and stride mechanics — the things that actually make athletes faster. [Amazon link]
**Jump Higher** — The shortest of the three. Landings first, then plyometrics, then sport application. [Amazon link]
Or read all three in the **Youth Athlete Trilogy** bundle — roughly 30,000 words of programming and coaching guidance for about the price of a coffee each: Bundle link
I’ve built a “Seminars for Coaches and Teachers” playlist on my YouTube channel.
It contains some long-form thought pieces on coaching philosophy, athletic development, antifragility, master’s weightlifting research, and what 'world-class actually looks like.
They are built for the substance-over-highlights audience. Pair with a notebook!
While I was at it, I tidied up the rest of the channel too. Playlists are sharper, descriptions are more accurate, and the older content is organised around what coaches and teachers actually search for.
There are no shortcuts in teaching and coaching, but I hope to have saved you some time in searching for quality content.
If you want to go deeper, my next online seminar — *Speed & Strength for Youth Athletes* — is on Wednesday, 17 June at 19:00 UK time. We have six spaces left.
Buy tickets – Speed and Strength for Youth Athletes: A Practical Framework – Zoom
— James