Performance Strategies & Stumbles

In this episode of Performance Strategies and Stumbles, I’m joined by Michael Gerhardy, a sports scientist specialising in neuromuscular fatigue and applied workload monitoring. Michael holds a PhD in Applied Sport Science, where his research focused on neuromuscular fatigue and concurrent training. It was during this PhD work that a key idea emerged — the value of running-specific testing to bett...

In this Stumbles episode of Performance Strategies and Stumbles, I’m joined by Warren Bradley, founder of Hytro, to explore the mistakes and lessons that shaped his journey from working in professional sport to becoming an entrepreneur. Warren reflects on his early career as a performance nutritionist, where not fully understanding hierarchy and environment led to avoidable challenges. He shares h...

In this strategy-focused episode of Performance Strategies and Stumbles, I am joined by Dr Warren Bradley, founder of Hytro and a leading specialist in Blood Flow Restriction (BFR). Warren has worked across professional sport, including roles with England teams, Munster Rugby, and football clubs such as Hull City and Derby County, and now combines applied practice with research and innovation thro...

In this Stumbles episode of Performance Strategies and Stumbles, Dan sits down once again with Pete McKnight, one of the most respected performance consultants and strategists in elite sport. This time, the conversation shifts from strategy to the mistakes that have shaped Pete’s leadership journey — the moments that taught him the most about people, communication, and team culture. Dan and Pete e...

In this strategy-focused episode of Performance Strategies and Stumbles, Dan sits down with Pete McKnight - one of the most respected performance consultants and strategists in elite sport. With nearly 25 years of experience across Olympic programmes, football, rugby, and motorsport, Pete is known for transforming how organisations structure their performance systems. Together, Dan and Pete explor...

In this episode of Performance Strategies and Stumbles, we are again joined by Liam Connor, Head of Performance at Newcastle United Women’s Football Team. Together, we explore the importance of answering performance questions deliberately and accurately int his performance strategy episode. When we recorded this episode, Liam. was working with England Badminton. From his time there, he breaks down...

Welcome back to the podcast! In this episode, Paul Talty joins us again and shares his experiences and reflections on the mistakes he has made throughout his coaching career. He emphasises the importance of balancing strength and conditioning training, the necessity of reflective practice, and the value of communication in program design. Paul discusses recent stumbles in his coaching, particularl...

Listen time - 29mins In this episode, Alan shares his stumbles and mistakes as a strength and conditioning coach. He discusses a hamstring strain injury and the lessons he learned from it. He reflects on the importance of preparing the nervous system and understanding that not all speed is equal. He also talks about programming mistakes, including a focus on linear periodization and force generati...

Listen Time: 33mins In this conversation, I welcome Andrew Usher to discuss the importance of understanding oxygen utilization in sports performance. We challenge the traditional focus on VO2 max as a measure of aerobic capacity and highlight the significance of muscle extraction and utilisation of oxygen. We dig into the benefits of extracting oxygen quickly and efficiently and it being more impo...

Listen Time 28mins Richard Husseiny shares his journey from the UK Sports Institute to working with Chinese diving teams in this Performance Strategies and Stumbles podcast episode. He reflects on the cultural differences, initial mistakes, and the importance of building relationships over making immediate impacts. Richard discusses the pressures of performance, the challenges of communication in...

Listen Time - 30mins In this episode, I interview Paul Talty about strength and power development for swimming. Paul was Head of Performance for Swim Ireland leading into Paris 2024 where they delivered medal-winning performances. We discuss Strength & Power development in swimmers and Paul emphasises that swimming is different from other sports due to the unique environment it takes place in....

Listen Time - 27mins In this episode, I welcome Liam Connor to the podcast. Liam has a background in S&C and professional football, as well as his most recent roles at the UK Sports Institute.  Liam shares his experience of letting his ego get in the way and clashing with others, leading to conflicts and disputes. We also discuss the importance of respect, listening, and learning in resolving...

Listen time 29mins I welcome Alan Murdoch to the podcast to discuss his strategies towards rehab called Fast to Fit, which focuses on the underpinning physical qualities and coordination required for high-intensity actions in team sports. I have been a huge advocate of Alan's work for some time so it was great to finally get some time to hone in on his core principles! Some key takeaways from the...

Listen time 54mins Welcome back to another episode of the podcast. A huge thanks to Gemini Sports who have sponsored this episode. Please check out www.geminisports.ai to see more about how they can help your organisation. In this conversation, Paul shares his journey from athlete to academic and coach, discussing the importance of individualisation in training and the lessons learned from his coa...

This week we welcome back Shaun McLaren for his episode reflecting on mistakes and lessons learned in his career! In this conversation, Shaun shares two pivotal coaching mistakes. The first mistake was testing a player on day one of preseason with a repeated sprint test, which resulted in a severe hamstring injury. The second mistake was using high-speed running and sprinting exposure as risk fact...

This week we welcome back Ivi for her strategy segment of the podcast. Our conversation discusses the importance of high-performance reflection processes for practitioners. Ivi shares her experience of using journaling and reflection to enhance her coaching effectiveness. She emphasises the need for practitioners to be present and aware of what is happening in their environment. She explains how s...

In this conversation, Ivi shares her experiences and lessons learned in her career as a strength and conditioning coach. She discusses the mistakes she made and the challenges she faced, including perfectionism, lack of confidence, and overanalysing everything. Ivi emphasises the importance of being authentic, listening to players, and finding a balance between meeting their needs and asserting wh...

Listen Time -31mins In this episode, Sponsored by Gemini Sports Analytics, Dr Shaun McLaren joins us to talk about data skills. Shaun is an S&C coach and sports scientist at Newcastle Falcons, and mentors on the Collaborate Sports Data Skills Group Mentorships! Knowing how phenomenal he is with this work, I had to get him on the pod! Shaun emphasises the importance of data in measuring and imp...

Listen Time: 29mins In this episode, we welcome back Craig Turner to share two key reflections on mistakes made in his career and how they helped him to develop. The first lesson is about the importance of authentic communication, honesty, and punctuality. Craig recalls a time when he was late for practice and didn't communicate properly with his coach....listen to the outcome of that event! The s...

Listen Time: 30mins - Sponsored by FK Pro (www.fkpro.co.uk) This week's episode features Dr Craig Turner who is the current Head of Basketball Performance at the University of Pennsylvania. Before this, he worked with the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers as a Sports Science/Strength & Conditioning Associate. Craig has also held additional roles as the Director of Sport Science and Associate Strength &...

Listen Time: 30mins Andrew Lockwood rejoins me this week for his stumbles episode and how his mistakes have helped him in his work. Check back to last weeks episode to hear more about Andy's background in the military. In this episode, one of his major mistakes was believing that leaders needed to maintain a certain distance from their team, which he later realised was not authentic to him. Anothe...

Listen Time: 30mins This week I welcome Andrew Lockwood to the Podcast. With 20 years of experience in the British Army, Andy has Leadership development experience within the military and with civilian organisations (Sacramento Kings, Inter Miami, professional coaches). Andrew also runs a rugby/S&C-related charity delivering to teams around the world from international to grassroots. He is als...

Listen Time: 29mins Ben joins us this week for part 2 of his Strategies and Stumbles appearance on the podcast! In this conversation, Ben shares some of the stumbles, mistakes, and lessons he has learned in his career. He discusses his willingness to make mistakes and take risks, as well as the importance of taking ownership and learning from negative impacts on others. Ben reflects on his experie...

Listen Time 30mins - Sponsored by Remaker ( www.remaker.co.uk ) This week we welcome Dr Ben Rosenblatt to the podcast. Bens career spans time spent in the English Institute of Sport, Birmingham City FC, the Intensive Rehab Unit, a Gold Medal with GB Womens Hockey and multiple European and World Cups with the England Football Team!!   Ben now focuses his time on elite support services to profession...

Listen time 27mins In this episode, we welcome back Rob for part 2 of his series, where he delves into his various mistakes in his career path and how they have brought the best out of him. Rob shares his interesting career path which has exposed him to a wide array of different populations, from personal training to youth coaching, to gen pop and teaching in schools, before specialising in elite...