Bok Athletic Development

About the Product

Athletic Development offers a rare opportunity to learn and apply a career full of knowledge from the best. World-renowned strength and conditioning coach Vern Gambetta condenses the wisdom he’s gained through more than 40 years of experience of working with athletes across sports, age groups, and levels of competition, including members of the Chicago White Sox, New York Mets, and U.S. men’s 1998 World Cup soccer team.

The result is an information-packed, myth-busting explanation of the most effective methods and prescriptions in each facet of an athlete’s physical preparation. Gambetta includes never-before-published and ready-to-use training approaches in

• sport-specific demands analysis,
• work capacity enhancements,
• movement skills development,
• long- and short-term training program progressions, and
• rest and regeneration techniques.

Athletic Development explains what works, what doesn’t, and why. Gambetta’s no-nonsense approach emphasizes results that pay off in the competitive season and reflect his work at the highest echelons of sport. Merging principles of anatomy, biomechanics, and exercise physiology with sports conditioning applications and four decades of professional practice, this is the definitive guide to performance-enhancing training.

About the Author

Vern Gambetta is currently the director of Gambetta Sports Training Systems. He served as the director of athletic development for the New York Mets (2004-2005), speed and conditioning coach for the Tampa Bay Mutiny major league soccer team (1996, 1997, and 1999), conditioning consultant to the U.S. men’s 1998 World Cup soccer team and the New England Revolution (1998), and director of conditioning for the Chicago White Sox. Gambetta has also worked with the Canadian men’s and women’s national basketball teams and the Chicago Bulls. Recognized internationally as an expert in training and conditioning for sport, Gambetta has lectured extensively and conducted clinics in Canada, Japan, Australia, and Europe. For more information, visit www.gambetta.com.

Table of Contents

Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgments

Part I Elements of a Training System
Chapter 1. A Functional Conditioning Framework
Chapter 2. Factors Affecting Athletic Movement
Chapter 3. Sport-Specific Demands Analysis
Chapter 4. Options and Methods of Testing
Chapter 5. Strategies for Performance Training
Chapter 6. Program Planning and Fine-Tuning

Part II Physical Contributors to Performance
Chapter 7. Energy and Work Capacity
Chapter 8. Movement Aptitude and Balance
Chapter 9. The Critical Body Core
Chapter 10. Full-Spectrum Strength
Chapter 11. Integrated Power Training
Chapter 12. Linear and Multidimensional Speed
Chapter 13. Multi-Phase Performance Preparation
Chapter 14. Recovery and Regeneration

The Future of Functional Conditioning
References
Index
About the Author

Words of Praise

“What a thrill it is to gain easy access to Vern Gambetta’s years of research, experience, and expertise! The detailed descriptions and photos in Athletic Development show exactly how to apply the conditioning drills and exercises to your own training program. Use this book to train your athletes to their maximum potential.”

Anson Dorrance
Women’s Head Soccer Coach
University of North Carolina
18 National Championships

“Vern Gambetta’s new book is his magnum opus of sport training. This book takes on the most difficult task of blending state-of-the-art science with practical application. The effort is both elegant and easily usable. This book will be a classic among top coaches.”

William A. Sands, PhD
Head – Sport Biomechanics and Engineering
U.S. Olympic Committee, Sport Science

“Work capacity, strength, speed, agility, quickness, plyometrics, coordination, skill, and program design have never been presented in a more intelligent and useable manner. Vern Gambetta has written the blueprint to creating successful athletes.”

Tim Lang
Strength & Conditioning Coach
DePaul University

“Athletic Development is an excellent presentation of Vern Gambetta’s time-tested methods. It will help coaches design sport-specific programs that get results. Apply the information in this book and watch your athletes succeed!”

Jose Vazquez
Head Strength Coach
Texas Rangers