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COACHING STAFF
Danny Wilkerson
USATF Level 2 National Certified Sprints, Hurdles, Jumps and Combined Events coach. Also certified with the US Track Coaches Association in the Jumps.
Spent 4 years (2000 to 2004) as a private coach helping some of the states top pole vaulters during that time working with Mitchel Vaulters. In 2004 my focus shifted to the training of all athletes rather they be track athletes or not in the areas of speed, strength and conditioning. It was in the summer of 2005 that I started ADTF Academy. That year, Spring of 2005, Grand Rapids Catholic Central contacted me to help with their track program. Once there my services where enhanced to helping out with all the event groups on both the Men's and Women's Track teams. Then during the summer of 2005 Tom Passinault the Varsity Football coach at Grand Rapids Catholic Central obtained my services to run their summer conditioning program. That following year they finished Runner-Up in the Division 4 state football finals. Our relationship was continued through the 2006 summer. Also during the fall of 2005 I was contacted by Bethel College in Mishawaka, IN to once again work with one of my past pole vaulters, Zach Burrington. As the season progressed my services were once again enhanced to the point that I am now overseeing the Jumpers at Bethel College. In 2007 I was brought on staff full time at Bethel College overseeing the Jumps and Combined Events. Over the years I have traveled around the country learning from some of the type athletic development based coaches in the country. I have taken the biomechanical and development training I received and started using it helping athletes from a wide variety of sports on improving basic athleticism. In the end every sport utilizes one or all of these principles; running, jumping and throwing. All of these have fundamentally correct ways to perform aspects of each of them. The background I have is based of training and teaching athletes how to perform these actions as fundamental sound as possible.
My main passion and focus is working with the youth and on the development of athletes. There is a tremendous amount of potential out there that goes unnoticed for the simple reason that no one is around to encourage them and to show athletes the correct path to follow. I work with hundreds of athletes a year on different training aspects. As time passes I hope to continue adding new programs, instructors and options for youth athletics. Quality is a major concern of ours. We want to maintain a high level of instruction first and increasing numbers is a secondary concern. It is amazing how many athletes are under performing simple because of a minor technical error they are doing that is effect speed and performance.
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ACADEMY INFORMATION
ADTF Academy is an all service athletic consulting company that deals with the coaching and training of athletes from a wide range of athletic activities. Our main focus is on the improvement of overall athleticism by focusing training on improvements to the fundamental biomotor abilities, coordination, flexibility, speed, endurance and strength. Our training programs are designed to make athletes better athletes first and then take that new found athleticism to their sport to excel. Every coach out there is looking for the next great athlete to come along that will propel his or her team to the next level. The question we raise is how many coaches out there are building the athleticism of the athletes they currently have. Though genetics and your anatomic structure play a huge role in how good a person can be there is a lot of improvements that can be made to reach that max. Countless times we have met young athletes that were simply underdeveloped and were passed over simply because they had never been trained correctly or developed the way they should of been. This is a sad state when this occurs and damages more than just their athletic dreams, but also their confidence. Participation in sports is an activity that should build confidence not hinder it. We believe that when an athlete is trained correctly they will begin to feel better about themselves and their abilities. Not only is this healthy, but makes a huge difference in some ones athletic performance. A confident athlete is a dangerous one for the opponent.
Overall, we take a systematic look at training and why each athlete does what they do. How an athlete trains affects how they perform. Telling an athlete what to do is only one aspect of coaching. Teaching them why is another. Our stance is to work with athletes so that they can understand what they are doing and why they are doing it. Everyone trains and runs and does similar drills the key is the structure and the way the drills are put together that makes the difference. On top of this comes efficiency. How efficient is the athlete at perform the given skill. The less energy it takes to perform any given skill the longer an athlete can last deep into a contest or event. Not enough times is spent on the fundamentals. One of the most overlooked fundamental skills is RUNNING. Yes running is a learned skill and can be improved. This will lead to faster times and the athlete lasting deeper into contests with less rest. Every skill works this way they are all learned behaviors and can be improved upon.
We never claim to have all the answers and are constantly searching and communicating with multiple sources to ensure that the information we present is the best available. If at any time we can not help an athlete we will direct them to someone who can. Our stance on this subject is simply that if we grow stagnate as coaches and instructors then our athletes grow stagnate as athletes.
The fundamental way we look at athleticism is simple. Draw a triangle on a piece of paper. Now draw two lines on the inside of the triangle so there is three sections in the triangle. The bottom section of the triangle is the basic athletic skills you possess, the middle section is the sport specific skills you possess and the top section is the game play abilities you have. Now the way we look at any sport and the athlete that takes part is that the bigger their base hence the wider the base of the triangle the greater the likelihood to have a greater top section of the triangle. The smaller the base or the less athleticism you possess the smaller the top section of the triangle will be. The more athletic you are the greater the chance for success in your sport.
Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids Programs
Intro Speed Clinic
Intro Jumping Clinic
Individual Programs
Sorry the site is still under Construction as we add more information and data. If you need immediate information feel free to contact Danny Wilkerson at danny@adtfacademy.com or by phone at 616-260-1406. We look forward to hearing from you and the potential of working with you or your loved one. Most of the general information is available at the links on the left or on the main section of the site in terms of the type of programs we offer and the mind set we use for training and development.
| ADTF ACADEMY INTRODUCTORY SPEED CLINIC
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WHAT TO EXPECT
The first question you must ask yourself is do you think running is a skill? If you answered yes to this question then what have you done to improve the skill that is the most basic one used in every sport done on land. Your Gait or running stride and frequency tells a lot about you and your potential. The way you run effects your speed, endurance, agility, mobility and overall athletic ability on the field of play. Your body posture and alignment greatly affect the speeds you can achieve and maintain as well as your ability to stop on a dime and make a quick cut. The mechanics used and the mind set used when you run will either be natural and explosive or jerky and forced. Running correctly is a matter of proper foot strikes and constant cyclical action of the limbs to produce optimal force levels to propel your body in the desired direction. Your efficiency to do this will greatly affect your athletic performance.
The main purpose of the introductory speed clinic is to teach the athletes that wish to work with us the fundamentals behind the system we use. It is also a way to weed out those athletes who are not serious about getting better from those who are. An athletes level of ability is not all we look at, we would rather work with athletes who are willing to listen and attempt to do everything asked of them to the best of their abilities rather than the pure stud who won't listen. This introductory clinic is mandatory for those athletes that wish to train with us. The clinic can also be attended by those that wish to simply learn proper running mechanics as well.
It is during the roughly 2 hours (depending on the numbers attending it could last longer to ensure we cover everything) you will spend with us that we will teach you the basics behind running more efficient. Our system uses key phrases and multiple one word statements to identify and coach multiple movements. This is done so that every time an athlete is working out we can use quick phrases to address a problem area instead of having to spend time explaining everything in length every time. It is during this time that we will address key concepts such as running efficiency, how to increase running speed, improving ground contact times, naturally increasing stride length, how to improve step patterns, functional strength concepts to increase pillar strength, how to start running smoother and with more power, plus plus plus. During this time we will also take a look at the mechanics of running and why we are performing the drills and activities from a bio-mechanical point of view. Finally we will address many of the common statements that are heard out there such as run on your toes and drive your knees.
Finally depending on the sport you take part in we take this new mind set of running and demonstrate how it can enhance your abilities on the field of play. |
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DATES AND LOCATIONS
Please Contact us to set up an individual time to meet.
Location To Be Determined
Additional Session may be added depending on demand. Coaches call for infomration on putting a speed clinic on at your school.
Location to be Determined
Typical Location: Cougar Athletic Trails
2770 Knapp NE
Grand Rapids, MI
Map this Location
Rain Location:
This Location has Indoor area as well.
We provide individual sessions as well as group sessions. At this time each session is limited to a maximum of 10 athletes to ensure plenty of one on one instruction. However, we are looking into putting on a larger sport based speed and acceleration clinics during the summer of 2009.
Larger clinics can be done. Contact us for more information on putting on a clinic for your sporting team.
Boys and Girls ages 13 and up are welcome from any sporting activity. In athletics on land speed wins, the team who has more overall speed usually wins.
All levels and abilities are welcome as long as you have some competitive athletic experience. Our motto is that every champion was a beginner at some point in time. The earlier an athlete learns how to do things correctly the better off they are. Most children run correct unless there are some strength deficiency that need to be overcome or if they are not taught bad habits. This usually occurs when people try to help them incorrectly. Remember anything that is not throughly explained to a young athlete will be left to the imagination of that athlete. This is a very dangerous situation especially when it comes to things we are programed to do automatically such as RUNNING.
Please bring athletic shoes and a bottle of water to all sessions. |
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Topics of Clinic
Running Speed Concepts and Formulas
Concept behind Functional Training
Improving Ground Contact Times
Running Efficiency Drills
Toe up, Heel up, Knee up mechanics
Plyometric/Explosion work
General Testing and Filming
Cost of Clinic
$40.00 Per person
$35.00 2 to 4 Particapates Sign up Together cost is per Person
$30.00 5 or more Particapates Sign up together cost is per Person
Free per Coach
We can not be around all the time when you train at your school. Bring a coach with you so that you both can learn the same things. |
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| ADTF ACADEMY SUMMER CONDITIONING PROGRAM
Click Here For The Summer Speed Clinic Flyer |
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WHAT TO EXPECT
This is a summer program designed with one thing in mind; developing athleticism. The summer is the time to clean out the webs and injuries from the school year. During the summer the program works on each athletes capacity to handle work so that once in season they can take a lot of pounding and reduce the likelihood of injuries or fatigue. The program targets both endurance based work as well as speed based work. The endurance based work is developed with the athlete in mind and not just a generic program like go run 2 miles. Speed athletes do not need to spend any lengthy time on long distance running it is not in there sport. The typical speed type athlete rather it be football, basketball or track spends a small amount of time lightly jogging followed by small high intensity burst of speed. This pattern is constantly being performed and therefor the athlete needs to be trained to handle these types of demands. Simply building an aerobic base will not ensure the athlete can last late into a game unless they have been trained to handle the demands of the game. For a speed athlete work capacity is merely the amount of work your body can handle over the course of time. The key is all kinds of work rather it be slow jogging, sprinting, shuffling or cutting. The more volume your body is trained to handle the longer and harder you can work out and the deeper into games you can play without fatiguing. This is the key to speed athletes building work capacity not pounding mileage.
Work capacity is not the only thing that is covered. A good deal of time is spent of mobility, flexibility and overall range of motion. Athletic flexibility is different than yoga flexibility. Being able to touch your toes does not mean you have athletic flexibility. In athletics your body is put into highly stressful situations during straight ahead running or multi-directional running. Your bodies mobility and range of motion will determine if those situations can be handled by the body or not. Typical injuries we have seen come when the body is attempting to decelerate and thus increasing the force applied to the body. Its during these moments that the muscles are stretched similar to that of a rubberband and unless they have been put in situations to stretch in this manner during training they will begin to break down and eventually tear. You can train your body to handle these positions through specific mobility work as well as proper strength training to reduce the extend at which your muscles stretch.
Speed is also addressed both linearly and multi directional. In most speed sports except track very seldom do you only run straight forward. Most of the time there is cutting and stopping involved and the body must be trained to perform these activities as quickly and explosively as possible. This is why we take the time to increase both straight ahead speed as well as performing different multi directional drills to put the athlete into positions they will experience in a game. The more situations an athlete can be put in in practice the more it will become natural in a game. Additionally we take the time to teach how to perform the activities correctly not just tell them to go do them and hope they figure it out.
Finally we address speed and coordination. These two are linked because force and force application is a matter of your body being able to coordinate muscle groups and recruit them in such a manner to produce a great deal of force in a very quick time frame otherwise known as power. This is the key to any speed and power sport not how much you can lift but how quickly you can you can move. Obviously the more you can lift the likelihood is that you can move an object quicker but this is not always true. Many programs out there believe in a bulking manner to increase strength. They increase the size of the muscle fibers thus each fiber is able to move more weight on its own. However, this type of training does not take into account that muscle recruitment dictates speed of contraction not muscle size. The bulking effect usually slows the athlete down and does not make them more powerful just a bigger tree that can push things. This is the sad happening in a lot of football programs out there. They make there athletes bigger and they slow down and the next comment heard is well your big so your suppose to be slow. This is not true. If trained correctly and weight is put on correctly then a bigger athlete can also be explosive and fast. This should be the goal of any strength program is to gain weight as needed as long as speed of contraction is maintained and continuously improving. The speed at which you can perform an action will in the end produce the greatest results on the field of play. |
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The program is run over the course of the summer leading into the fall sport season. The timeframe for the 2008 Summer is let to be determined and more information will be provided as the year moves on. The cost of this program is $175.00 per athlete for roughly 2.5 months of training on average. |
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Interested Parents Should Download, Print, and Send the Following ADTF Academy Flyer.
Click Here For The SUMMER SPEED CLINIC Flyer |
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DATES AND LOCATIONS
Location 1: To Be Determined
To Be Determined
Location 2: To Be Determined
To Be Determined
Sessions go Monday through Thursday from (time to be determined).
Additional Session may be added depending on demand. Coaches call for information on putting a speed and conditioning clinic on at your school.
Typical Location: Cougar Athletic Trails
2770 Knapp NE
Grand Rapids, MI
Map this Location
Rain Location:
This Location has Indoor area as well.
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Areas of Focus
Improving Work Capacity
Improving Speed; linearally and multi directionally
Improving Mobility, flexibility and range of motion
Improving Strength and coordination
Improving Overall Speed, Strength and Fitness
Plyometric/Explosion work
Learning proper training techniques
Cost of Clinic
$175.00 Per Session
We can not be around all the time when you train at your school. Bring a coach with you so that you both can learn the same things. |
| Personally Designed Training Programs
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Athletes, Parents and Coaches:
Have you ever wondered if you have been training for optimal performance. Have you ever thought that you have be missing out on key concepts and principles that could be costing you from performing at a higher level. Are you in a situation where you feel like you are not receiving the attention and instruction you deserve. Are you the type of person that is always seeking more information and knowledge to get better. Do you feel like your in a rut and not improving?
If any of the statements above sum up your situation we may be an option. During the year we put on different programs for athletes that are seeking to improve their abilities for their upcoming sport. Rather it be a program designed for power and explosion athletes getting ready for basketball/volleyball or a program designed more for speed/acceleration abilities for football, track and baseball/softball players. We also have programs for other athletes as well. You name it we can help. We offer either individual or group programs that aim at improving the area of your sport you feel needs improvement. Feel free to contact us to talk about your needs and design a program to meet them.
It is important that every athlete takes part in our introductory speed. This clinic is the foundation to our programs. During this clinic you learn the basics skills needed to improve. Like any new skill once you acquire the skills learned and begin to perfect them your performances and results will increase dramatically. How long will that take, it will depend on your work ethic, initial athletic level and the length of time you are willing to focus on the fundamentals. The only way a skill can be improved is through repetitive practice. How does a basketball player become a better shooter, they shoot baskets all the time. How can you improve your speed, strength, etc. By sticking with the fundamentals and performing them all the time. The best part of the programs we offer is rather you continue with us beyond the time determined you will have all the information you need to continue on your own if you so chose.
The cost of our programs varies. If your seeking a general program to follow with little to no contact to get you ready for the upcoming season than the cost will be less. If you're seeking a more indepth program and constant consulting over a longer period of time than the cost will increase.
On numerous occasion entire sport teams have contacted us to provide them with both in season and out of season training programs for their sport. This has occurred for programs as diverse in training as Football teams to Cheerleading squads. We also have options for families who need assistance. Contact us with your needs and desires and we can work something out.
| ADTF ACADEMY FALL TRAINING GROUP
Click Here For The Fall Training Group Flyer |
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WHAT TO EXPECT
Are you a basketball, baseball, softball, track or any other athlete that does not have a fall sport, but want to stay in shape and improve a certain technical aspect of your sport. This fall we are provided athletes in the area a chance to train and workout under our guidance. Depending on your sport and the area you wish to improve rather it be speed, acceleration, jumping ability or general conditioning and strength we will set up an 8 week program that starts September 14 and will take you into your winter sport season that starts the week of November 13. Biomotor skill acquisition must occur during the offseason. If you're searching for a way to improve your a specific skill we are giving you an option. The program is designed whereby an initial clinic is set up to go over the entire program, workouts, lifts and anything else that you may encounter. It is also during this time that the majority of teaching is done. Each biomotor skill can be improved if you work on it. The first thing you need to do is learn how to improve it and secondly how to train it. With training and mental awareness the skill will improve. Over the course of the program we will meet with you periodically for observation and to ensure that you are doing the program correctly. The remaining time you perform the program at your own school. For more information on the areas we cover check out the Summer Program page. It has a more indepth explanation of the programs we offer and the approach we take. |
This fall training group is for any athlete from any sport that is looking for a place to train under guidance.
Individuals or large groups may use our services. Contact us for more options.
High School Boys and Girls from any school district are invited to take part.
All levels and abilities are welcome. We will suite the program to your abilities.
We will always ben available if you have additional questions or concerns.
Must attend initial clinic in its entirety. |
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Interested Parents Should Download, Print, and Send the Following ADTF Academy Flyer.
Click Here For ADTF Academy Fall Training Group Flyer |
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Time Frame of Program
Start Date will be September, 2007
End Date will be November, 2007
Initial Clinic Dates and Locations
Location:
To Be Determined
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Program Setup
Address the 3 main energy systems
How to train each energy system
The importance of rest and recovery
Speed, Strength and Conditioning all addressed
Address the 4 aspects of strength
How to train strength systematically
The importance of pillar/core strength
Concepts behind Periodization.
Cost of Clinic
$200.00 per Athlete
$50.00 discount on 2nd Child
We can not be around all the time when you train at your school. Bring a coach with you so that you both can learn the same things.
We also have programs available that we have written out for you to follow if you choose not to design your own. |
| ADTF ACADEMY FALL TRAINING GROUP
Click Here For The Fall Training Group Flyer |
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Winter Speed/Running Clinic
For more information of the speed clinics being performed in Grand Rapids over the Christmas Break period check out the Introductory Speed Clinic page or contact Danny Wilkerson for more information.
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