Inform Performance

Episode 24: Andy McDonald  chats to Dr Matt Tuttle a Physical Therapist working at NBA team the Denver Nuggets as Lead Sport Scientist / Physical Therapist. We spoke to Matt in episode 11 about pain science and the realities of managing pain within an elite athletic population.  In this second episode with Matt we discuss The relationship between single vs multipart athletes in the NBA and 3 key i...

Episode 23:  Andy McDonald speaks to Per Lundstam the Director Of Performance at Redbull. Per previously enjoyed roles at both the US Ski & Snowboard association and the Swedish Ski Federation perviously. In this episode Andy and Per discuss:   Redbull High Performance Program  Redbulls performance values and ‘pillars’  The process for Redbull athletes to access performance services  Program devel...

Episode 22:  Andy McDonald speaks to Tom Batchelor  the Head of Sport Science at Harlequins Rugby.   In this episode Andy and Tom discuss:  Tom’s background Working within the City in Equity Derivatives   Surrey Sports Park - Internship  Harlequins  GPS In Rugby: Benefits and weaknesses of GPS in Rugby Overlaying technical and tactical information on top of physical data How Harlequins define and...

Episode 21: Andy McDonald speaks to Matt Jordan PHD CSCS, Strength Coach & Director of Sports Science at the Canadian Sports Institute, Calgary. Over his career, Matt was the personal strength coach to 30 World and Olympic medalists, and has worked with elite athletes in many sports including speed skating, cross country skiing, alpine skiing, snowboarding, biathlon, hockey, football, volleyball a...

Episode 20: I speak to Mike Reinold  the co-founder and president of Champion Physical Therapy and Performance , a PT and performance training facility just outside Boston. He is also currently the Senior Medical Advisor for the Chicago White Sox and the Director of Baseball Performance at Northeastern University, where he has been instrumental in the restructuring and building of the high perform...

Episode 19: I speak to Dr Ebonie Rio a Sports Physiotherapist who consults at The Victorian Institute of Sport, who is also a Senior Research Fellow at La Trobe University completing her Phd in tendon pain. Ebonies current research focuses on combining neuroscience with rehabilitation to bring innovative approaches to pain rehabilitation. In this conversation Ebonie brings us up-to-date on the fun...

Episode 18: I speak to Dr Heather Linden the Director of Physical Therapy for the UFC. Heather is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with a background working for the USA Olympic Committee in Colorado Springs before heading up PT for the UFC at the Las Vegas Performance Institute. In this episode we'll discuss her professional role and approach to athlete care, rehab / return-to-fighting and the value o...

Episode 17: I speak to Dr Fergus Connolly a sports performance expert, consultant, speaker and author. Fergus has worked in professional football, rugby, the NFL, NBA and with elite military units to name a few. In this episode we dive deep into his philosophies around data collection, interpretation and meaning as well as how he strategically guides teams to identify performance problems and solu...

Episode 16: Host Andy McDonald speaks to Dr Sherylle Calder to receive a unique insight into her expertise assessing & coaching visual performance skills. Dr Calder has worked with both England & South Africa towards Rugby World Cup victory, The All Blacks, The Miami Dolphins, Formula-1 driver Valtteri Bottas and Golfer Ernie Els to name a few! In this episode we'll discuss Dr Calder's approach to...

Episode 15: I speak to Dr. Christopher Dodson, M.D a board certified Sports Medicine surgeon and an Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University. He serves as Head Team Physician for the Philadelphia 76ers and is Head Orthopaedic Surgeon for the Philadelphia Eagles. In this episode we discuss his role as a surgeon/physician in pro sports, Injury trends, ACL and Shoulde...

Episode 14: I chat to Daniel Martinez the Head S&C Coach and Sports Performance Coordinator at Trinity University. In this episode we discuss. Jump performance testing, jump programming, force time asymmetry verses limb asymmetry, velocity based training, generating "bad date" and focussing coaching strategy from a foundation of emotions, character and behaviour. 

Episode 13: I chat to Lauren Johnson the NY Yankees Mental Conditioning Coach. In this episode we discuss how Lauren and the New York Yankees organisation approach their players psychological wellbeing, enhance mental preparation and help players transition from rookie to pro or prepare for retirement.  

Episode 12: I chat to Ed Lea the Harlequins Rugby Rehab and Strength & Conditioning Coach. In this episode Ed provides an incredibly transparent insight into how both he and Harlequins Rugby approach physical preparation, rehab for the long term injured platers, return to play and more!    

Episode 11: I chat to Dr Matt Tuttle a Physical Therapist working at NBA team the Denver Nuggets as Lead Sport Scientist / Physical Therapist. In this episode Matt explains modern pain science and how he / the Nuggets manage pain in an elite athlete population. Matt pragmatically shares the current evidence on this topic combined with his clinical experience and the reality of managing pain in a p...

Episode 10: I chat to Dave Alred a Performance Coach specialising in performing skills under pressure. We discuss his work in both rugby and golf with high profile athletes including Jonny Wilkinson, Johnny Sexton, George Ford, Luke Donald and Francesco Molinari. Dave shares his views on coaching, skill learning and performing under pressure in the competitive arena.  

Episode 9: I chat to Chris Tombs, Strength & Conditioning Coach and Educator. Chris has just taken on a new role at Seattle Seawolves, but has extensive experience with previous roles at Leicester Tigers, Cardiff Blues, Northamptonshire County Cricket and Cardiff Met University. In this episode Chris provides us with a masterclass in his special interest - Velocity Based Training! 

Episode 8: I chat with Les Spellman the Owner of Spellman Performance. Les is a speed Specialist & Consultant for the NFL, Olympic, Collegiate, and youth athletes. We discuss his inspiring background, philosophy on speed training, working with pro football players, his Spellman Performance app, the S3 Diagnostic Test and more. 

Episode 7: I chat with Sue Falsone owner of Structure and Function Education and author of Bridging The Gap. Sue has worked for the LA Dodgers, the US Mens National team and was Vice President of Performance Therapy and Team Sport at Athletes performance. Sue now currently offers consulting for a variety of organizations in the NBA, MLB and NFL, and continues to work one-on-one with athletes.

Episode 6: I chat with Bill Burgos - Head of Strength & Conditioning for NBA team the Minnesota Timberwolves. Bill shares insights into his role at the Timberwolves, how to look after yourself and perform as a coach and we discuss his book which he has just released! 

Episode 5: I chat with Dr Luke Hughes a post-doctoral research fellow in applied physiology at St Marys university. Luke is an expert in Blood Flow Restriction training (BFR) and in this episode Luke provides a highly educational master class in all things BFR. Get your pen and paper ready! 

Episode: 4 I talk to Tim Gabbett a Performance Consultant with over 20 years of experience working as an applied Sport Scientist with elite athletes, coaches and teams around the world. In this episode we discuss both the art and science of workload monitoring, the acute chronic workload ratio and Tims wider perspective on being effective in a performance environment. 

#3: I chat to Rachel Balkovec  from Driveline Baseball who has worked in pro baseball for 7 years as an S&C coach. Rachel has worked for the Houston Astros, St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Whitesox, LSU, ASU and EXOS! We discuss her research on gaze tracking, lower limb biomechanics, working globally and her plans to become a GM  

Episode 2: I chat to Rob Madden about Performance coaching, life on the road, athlete data & coaching health. Rob is a chartered physiotherapist and certified strength and conditioning specialist. With over a decade of experience in high level sport - he currently works for Hintsa performance where he is placed as a performance coach with an F1 driver. On top of this he continues his work with pro...

Episode 1: I chat to Head of Strength & Conditioning for Orlando Pride, Ivi Casagrande . In this episode we discuss her role, how she approaches training the girls at the Pride, barefoot gym training, Cognitive warm up drills and more. We hope you enjoy this first episode!