The Team Behind the Team

Host Donnie Maib discusses coaching technique and theory with fellow coaches around the country.

The Team Behind the Team

performance

E49 | Sam Contorno: Making Sport Science Simple

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E49 | Sam Contorno: Making Sport Science Simple
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In this week’s episode, Sam Contorno walked over to the Olympic side from football to discuss her career and thoughts on Sport Science. We discuss the Sport Science industry today and what are some of the tools that really matter. With all of the access she has to the latest testing technology, Sam also covers how she communicates an endless amount of data to coaches and athletes. Lastly, Sam discusses how lasers and a scale can probably accomplish 90% of what you need to do in Sport Science. Sometimes less is more, so we do not get consumed by our technology available to us. Sam provided us with great insight this week and a valuable episode for Sport Scientists and Strength coaches alike. 

Sam Contorno currently works at the University of Texas at Austin as the Associate Director of Applied Sports Science for Texas Football. Previously, she was the Coordinator of Sports Science at the University of Maryland. She also spent five years at Stanford Universityfrom 2017 to 2022. Sam graduated with a BS in Molecular Integrative Neuroscience and a minor in Health & Wellness Studies from Binghamton University in 2012, and a MS in Human Nutrition from University of Bridgeport in 2018. You can reach Sam Contorno on Instagram @samcontorno and Twitter @sam_contorno.

E46 | Samantha Partida: Fueling to Win

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E46 | Samantha Partida: Fueling to Win
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Sam Partida joins us in the booth to talk about some of the most critical topics within sports nutrition and athletic performance. Sam shares some of her strategies in myth busting diet fads and understanding where and why athletes found them. One of the most critical challenges today is eating disorders. How to identify which athletes are going through it and communicating with the athlete about their eating disorder are two examples of what Sam work through and discusses with us. Lastly, Sam shares some of her tactics in prescribing meals for different athletes in different situations.

Samantha Partida joined the Texas Performance Nutrition staff in 2020. Prior to her time at Texas, she worked as a sports dietitian at North Carolina State University. Sam earned a Bachelor of Science in nutrition in 2013 at the University of Texas and worked as a clinical dietitian for people with disabilities after college before realizing her passion for sports nutrition. Sam is a registered and licensed dietitian in Texas and is a certified specialist in sports dietetics. You can reach Sam Partida on Twitter and Instagram @sampartidard.

E45 | Molly McCage: Find Your Voice

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E45 | Molly McCage: Find Your Voice
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Former Texas Volleyball star Molly McCage and Donnie hit the booth to discuss a variety of topics, but none more important than the impact of sports on her life. Molly and Donnie touch on how sports can help athletes find themselves as individuals and even find their voice as leaders. Additionally, the ongoing concern of mental health in sports continues to be at the forefront of concerns in athletic performance. Molly and Donnie discuss how a communal approach through former athletes, current teammates or professionals are some of the best people to lean on to support mental health. Tune in this month to listen to one of the all-time Longhorn greats.

Molly McCage currently plays for Athletes Unlimited and is the manager of Player Care and Coordination. From 2021-2022, Molly was the Director of Volleyball Operations at Pepperdine University. Molly played for the Allianz MTV Stuttgart Pro Team in Germany as well as being a member of the USA National Team from 2017-2019. You can reach Molly on Instagram or Twitter: @mollymccage. “

E44 | Christie Aschwanden: Debunking Recovery Trends

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E44 | Christie Aschwanden: Debunking Recovery Trends
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From Ice Baths to Gatorade, this week’s guest Christie Aschwanden joins us from her home in Colorado to discuss her book, GOOD TO GO. Christie covers multiple modalities we use today for recovery, but also debunks some of these methods as well. Is beer hindering or helping your recovery? Is Gatorade the best product for performance hydration? Are ice baths and cryotherapy really beneficial to recovery? In today’s world of fitness, we follow lot of misleading protocols for recovery and things we think will enhance our athletic performance. Tune in and listen to Christie break down these methods and whether or not they are really helping you.

Christie Aschwanden is the author of Good To Go: What the Athlete in All of Us Can Learn from the Strange Science of Recovery and co-host of Emerging Form, a podcast about the creative process. She’s the former lead science writer at FiveThirtyEight and was previously a health columnist for The Washington Post. Christie was a National Magazine Award finalist in 2011. Other honors she’s received include a Best Article Award (2005) and Outstanding Essay Award (2007) from the American Society of Journalists and Authors. A frequent speaker at writer’s workshops and journalism conferences, Christie is the founder of the Creative Convergence freelance writing workshops. You can reach Christie Aschwanden at her website: christieaschwanden.com, on Instagram @cragcrest, and her podcast Emerging Form.

E43 | Martin Rooney: Into the Roar

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E43 | Martin Rooney: Into the Roar
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Whenever there’s a group of people, there’s a culture” -Martin Rooney. This month we were lucky to catch Coach Martin Rooney while he was in town for a presentation. Coach Rooney discussed how we as leaders can inspire our athletes, but need to inspire ourselves as well. He and Donnie explored going “into the roar” and how the analogy applies to training not only his Mixed Martial Artists, but athletes and business professionals alike. Lastly, he covers not only pursuing and accomplishing your dreams, but addressing what we should do once that dream has been accomplished. If you ever run into coach Rooney, maybe you’ll be lucky enough to watch him tear a deck of cards with his bare hands, but for now, tune in to some of the most inspiring career advice we’ve had on the show.

A former US bobsledder and two-time Guinness World Record holder, Coach Rooney is the creator of the Training for Warriors system and former COO of the Parisi Speed School national franchise. Martin has presented to Fortune 500 companies, Military Organizations, and consulted numerous professional NFL teams. Martin has trained athletes from the NFL, MLB, UFC, NBA, WNBA and multiple top Division I collegiate programs. Martin has written five best-selling books for Harper Collins and Wiley publishers which have sold over a combined 200,000 copies. You can reach Coach Rooney on Instagram @themartinrooney and on Facebook @Martin Rooney.

E41 | Dr. Jan Todd: A Giant Amongst Men

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E41 | Dr. Jan Todd: A Giant Amongst Men
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This week’s special guest is local to Austin, Texas and is a legend in the field of strength training. Dr. Jan Todd, the Director of the Stark Center at The University of Texas and former powerlifter shares her story as a pioneer for women in the sport. Throughout the podcast, she dives into her extraordinary journey and experiences with some of the strongest humans the planet has ever seen. We also touch on her life in academia and the critical role she has played in breaking barriers and stigmas for women and weightlifting.

Dr. Jan Todd is a Roy McLean Centennial Fellow in Sports History, and the Interim Chair of the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Todd is also the executive editor of Iron Game History: The Journal of Physical Culture, that she and her husband Terry Todd founded in 1990. During her career, Sports Illustrated often described her as the “strongest woman in the world”. As a powerlifter, she set more than 60 national and world records (in five weight classes) and was included in the Guinness Book of Records for over a decade. Jan Todd was the first woman inducted into the International Powerlifting Hall of Fame and was in the first class of the USA-PL Women’s Powerlifting Hall of Fame. You can reach Jan Todd at her email: j.todd@austin.utexas.edu  Additionally, you can get ticket information for the Arnold Strongman Classic at: https://www.arnoldsports.com/sports-and-events/strongman/arnold-strongman-classic/

E40 | Bonus Episode: Through the Looking Glass

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E40 | Bonus Episode: Through the Looking Glass
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David Joyce is back for a bonus episode! This episode is a speaking engagement he did while here in Austin. Coach Joyce speaks about how WHAT we are doing in the future will not change, but HOW we do it will change. In what way do we bring the future forward? Additionally, he addresses 8 complex issues that should be considered moving forward in our careers. One example is the economy, and understanding the stability and allocation of funds from your respective athletic departments. This is an amazing episode and will force you to consider issues you wouldn’t normally associate with athletic performance. Enjoy!

David Joyce is the Founder of Synapsing, a global strategy and decision-making consultancy linking the boardroom to the front line in complex environments. He has extensive experience leading elite sports around the world, stretching from Premier League and European Football, to the Olympics, from international Rugby o the NFL. You can reach Coach Joyce on Twitter: @DavidGJoyce, Email: David.joyce@synapsing.com and Linkedin: David Joyce.

E39 | Breaking out of your “In-Group”

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E39 | Breaking out of your “In-Group”
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David Joyce joins us on a special visit all the way from Australia! Coach Joyce lays down a great deal of knowledge on improving integration amongst the separate positions in our field i.e. athletic trainers, strength coaches, etc. We discuss two of his books (titles in bio) and what his purpose was behind each one. The most critical piece in our conversation was addressing “in-groups” and “out-groups”. Lastly, we cover the importance of time management and learning when to say “NO”. Grab a note pad, this is an episode you’ll want to take notes on!

David Joyce is the Founder of Synapsing, a global strategy and decision-making consultancy linking the boardroom to the front line in complex environments. He has extensive experience leading elite sports around the world, stretching from Premier League and European Football, to the Olympics, from international Rugby to the NFL.

You can reach Coach Joyce on Twitter: @DavidGJoyce, Email: David.joyce@synapsing.com and Linkedin: David Joyce.

E38 | Dr Jacked and Mr Caulfield

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E38 | Dr Jacked and Mr Caulfield
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Coach Scott Caulfield joined us over Zoom from The Green Mountain State to discuss his great career. Coach Caulfield has done it all from his service in the United States Navy to being the head coach at the NSCA headquarters. We talk about his unorthodox coaching philosophy and some of the research he conducted at the University of Denver on The Social Construction of Strength and Conditioning. (Also see the Dr. Gearity interview, Episode 34) Coach Caulfield also catches us up on the life of a strength coach in division 3 collegiate athletics. Lastly, we cover his time in the military and how that helped shape his career.

E37 | Coach Ryan Davis: Learning from Mistakes and Coming Out on Top

The Team Behind the Team
The Team Behind the Team
E37 | Coach Ryan Davis: Learning from Mistakes and Coming Out on Top
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Coach Ryan Davis flew in from Maryland and took the time to discuss his career with Coach Donnie Maib and guest host Kylie Lahey. Coach Davis really explained the importance of family, and ways we as coaches can maintain a work/life balance with such a demanding position. Mistakes early in our careers is something we simply cannot avoid. Coach Davis talked about mistakes he made as a young coach and how that helped shape his career. Finally, Coach Davis dives into the process of working with Rogue Fitness to build a new weight room for Maryland Football. This is a great quick episode you’ll definitely want to listen to.