Today’s podcast is a Q&A episode with Joel Smith. Topics include the role of roughhousing games for individual sport athletes, sandbag training, and rhythm-cadence in movement. Joel explores youth sports trends, breaking jump plateaus, and the benefits of flywheel loading. He also covers infrasternal angle training, rotating speed and plyometric days, and integrating team play with weekly speed work. This, plus, a discussion on the value of band resistance in sports training rounds out this comprehensive conversation on optimizing athletic performance.Today’s episode is brought to you by TeamBuildr’s Gym Studio.Use the code “justfly25” for 25% off any Lila Exogen wearable resistance training, including the popular Exogen Calf Sleeves. For this offer, head to: Lilateam.comFor a Gym Studio 14-day free trial, head to gymstudio.comView more podcast episodes at the podcast homepage.Main Points00:14- Roughhousing games for non-team sport athletes08:42- Training Changes Over the Year33:23- Observations on Youth Sports36:44- The Role of Fun in Training40:37- Jump Imbalances and Breaking Jump Plateaus44:53- Flywheel Loading46:37- Infrasternal Angle Concepts and Training over Time53:36- Sprint and Jump Training Programming59:14- Utilizing Exergeny in Training1:00:43- Games as Speed Training1:05:37- Basketball vs. Plyometrics1:08:24- Band Resistance in Sport TrainingAbout Joel SmithJoel Smith is the founder of Just Fly Sports and is a sports performance and track coach in Cincinnati, Ohio. Joel hosts the Just Fly Performance Podcast and has authored several books and coaches in both the high school and private sectors.Joel was a strength coach for 8 years at UC Berkeley, working with the Swim teams and post-graduate professional swimmers, as well as tennis, water polo, and track and field. A track coach of 17 years, Joel coached for the Diablo Valley Track and Field Club for 7 years and also has 6 years of experience coaching on the collegiate level, working at Wilmington College, and the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse. He is currently coaching high jump at Milford High School.Joel has coached 4 national champions, multiple All-Americans, and NCAA record holders in track and field. In the realm of strength and conditioning, his programs have assisted 5 athletes to Olympic berths that produced 9 medals and a world record performance at Rio in 2016.