Category: training programs

“You’ve made my kids great competitors. My daughter said on the way home today that she didn’t think she’d ever have been chosen to play at one of the top indoor teams in the state if she hadn’t played sand.” Jane, mom of a young athlete

“Thank you for putting on the event, my daughter mentioned that this clinic was one of the best she has ever attended.” Brenda K, mom of a young athlete

“Just wanted to thank you for the clinic/showcase in KC. We’ve been to the big ones in CA and they were okay but felt like a needle in a hay stack. Hard to get noticed because there are so many plus they were mostly big schools- not everyone is a D1 player or wants to go to a large D1 school.” Sarah S, mom of a young athlete

“Hands down the BEST coaching experience my daughter has ever had!! Stephen is amazingly gifted in interacting with both the player & the parent…. smart,kind & fun! Better experience than any Junior Olympic or school coach than we have encountered.” Betsy, mom of a young athlete

“I also wanted to say thank you for how you interact with the girls. They are having so much fun with you at practice and the two tourneys. It makes me happy to see them learning and having fun.” Tina B, mom of a young athlete

“We want to thank you for all of your hard work and commitment to the team this year. Despite the adversity, you stuck with us and continued to make us better players, teammates, and people. For this we cannot thank you enough.” St. Johns University Men’s Club Volleyball Team

“After 1 session with Stephen my daughters confidence grew. We will definitely do more sessions with him.” Mike, dad of young athlete

“Thanks again for all your help, we will be keeping your number handy for when this season is done. The girls still talk about your recommendations after practice. They listened.” Brad, dad of two young athletes

“Coaches helped solidify love of volleyball and were so encouraging! There were small groups given individualized attention and great feedback at the end of camp.” Julia, high school athlete

“I just wanted to say thank you so much for believing in me and for training me this summer you made me remember how much I loved volleyball.” Niki K, high school athlete

” Stephen McCarthy is unlike any other coach I have previously experienced. His approach to coaching is very different from other trainers. Most coaches believe in the perfectionist approach, whereas Stephen McCarthy believes in “playing dirty”. This type of training prepares me for the unpredictable nature of volleyball on the court. Not only that, but I came to Stephen with a shoulder injury. After watching me play during our first session he was able to identify the origin of the pain in my shoulder, a feat that three months of physical therapy was unable to accomplish. Stephen McCarthy also has a terrific personality that makes our training sessions even more enjoyable.” Morgan S., athlete

” Hey coach, I just wanted to say thank you for everything.  If it wasn’t for the coaches believing in me and staying patient, I don’t think I would have the same hunger for the game that I have now.  Thank you for sticking with me. ” Raa, athlete

” My daughter is really enjoying the camp. She mentioned that there’s team-building and that she appreciates that the training seems to be centered around having fun vs doing endless drills.” Susan T., mom of a young athlete

“My previous coaches have been ok, but I was looking for someone who was as committed to my goal as much as I. Stephen is that coach and he has taken my game to a level that I never thought possible. He is flexible, smart, and patient. I would recommend him to any athlete.” Aaron O, athlete

“Stephen’s dedication to athletes of all ages and sport is unquestioned. He uses programs that benefit the athlete no matter the sport. I witnessed his work, not only did the kids improve from the conditioning and strength, they looked forward to doing them again and again.” -Colby Fuller, youth coach

“Stephen worked with my daughter after a high ankle sprain. He did more in 3 days then any other trainer had done for her in 10 days. The methods he used to get her walking again were awesome. Stephen is one who thinks outside the box and gets his kids back to the sports they love quickly and stronger. ” Marit L., mom of a young athlete.

“I highly recommend taking your team out to The McCarthy Project.  It’s an opportunity to be mentally and physically challenged to move outside the box to see life and the situation differently.  Your team will know each other better and trust one another more.” Tess Cruse of DIVI

“I wanted to drop a note with my recommendation of Stephen McCarthy and his athletic training program. I have coached for 22 yrs at all levels and have witnessed multiple training programs throughout those years. After tracking the success of several players Stephen trained and the results have been excellent. The strength and endurance of these players that have trained with Stephen has increased their overall effectiveness as a complete athlete. They have increased their speed and overall quickness. Stephen’s training has been an overall success and I would recommend him to all players looking to achieve a higher level of play and athleticism.” Derek P., Pro, College and High School Coach

By Jeffrey Jaxon, Infowars April 20th, 2015

Due to massive government subsidies given to farmers to grow genetically engineered crops in the past, U.S. food manufacturers and farmers are now being caught blindsided by the sweeping demand for non-gmo and organic crops. In a twist of irony, this is driving a massive increase of organic crop imports from nations that are largely free of bioengineering.

Bloomberg news recently reported that:

“Most of the corn and soybean shipments become feed for chickens and cows so they can be certified organic under U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines. Organic poultry and dairy operators shun feed made with seeds from Monsanto Co. and other domestic suppliers in favor of foreign products even as the U.S. remains the world’s top grower of corn and soybeans. As a result, imports to the United States of Romanian corn rose to $11.6 million in 2014 from $545,000 the year before. Soybean imports from India more than doubled to $73.8 million.”

After countless years of the public voting with their dollars against GMO food and its associated toxins, the impact is now measurable on every level of the supply chain. At the top, Monsanto is sustaining continual financial loss, major chains like whole foods are being forced to go GMO free, and product manufacturers unwilling to switch are instantly losing market share.

A quick look at the trend confirms the sustained strength of growth in organic food sales is real:

2011: Americans spent $29.2 billion on organic foods
2012: Americans spent $31.5 billion on organic foods
2013: Americans spent $35 billion on organic foods
2014: Americans spent $39.1 billion on organic foods

For entire post, click here.

Our Sunday night training sessions are designed to elevate performance through training, nutrition,  and education. Each 90 minute session’s goal is to develop full spectrum athleticism, while addressing ways to prevent repetitive movement injuries.

Time and Location:
Sunday, May 17th at 6:30pm
Northdale Middle School.
11301 Dogwood St NW
Coon Rapids, MN 55448

Cost is $25.00 per person.

Call Stephen McCarthy at 612-741-0982 for more information.

The physio or iso ball or the Swiss ball has made inroads into almost every strength training program in every sport. While the concept of the ball training has the benefit of increased balance, improved core strength at a lower intensity. For the untrained person just starting, these are all true. For the more seasoned athlete, the benefits are gained in 2-3 weeks of training, learned and do not produce a higher level of performance.

Check out this post by Paul Rogers, a former Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Australian National Sprint Cycling Team. For his team, he did not see any benefits of the Swiss ball during the time his team used the ball training method.

So what does this mean, If you are looking to improve your performance on the bike, simply add other training methods to supplement the swiss ball. Do not make it the only method of training used during off-bike workouts over a long period of time.

Some examples of other training methods include:

1. Dumbbell training on two feet
2. Dumbbell training on one foot
3. Bodyweight training
4. Olympic lifts

Realize that when looking to increase your performance, you must increase the stress you are placing on the body. The ball does not provide enough stress to gain the benefits you desire. Therefore, supplement your training with the mentioned methods and you will see better numbers from your investment.

In our continual search for ways to improve our athlete’s performance, we came across the method of multi-tasking or coordination training. If an athlete did not know specifically where they were in space or had to stop and think before acting, they are not able to complete the task quickly and efficiently. By developing coordinated effort, an ability to see and do movements at precisely the time the athlete wanted to produce the action, each athlete’s performance had the potential of improving.

The goal is for the athlete to understand where all of their body parts are during a movement. Enclosed is a set of drills that can be used to develop coordination or the ability to multi-task in space. First of all, find an agility ladder, a couple balls and a helper.   Most athletes have completed agility ladder drills, but here is the catch. Add random math problems to the mix while doing the drill in reverse. This causes the athlete to take their attention off what their body is doing and start to think. Instantly, the athlete is multi-tasking.

Here is how the coordination training drills progress:

1. Learn a step on the agility ladder and do it as fast as possible.
2. Add to the step, the athlete doing it in reverse.
3. Add to the step in reverse, the athlete juggling two balls.
4. Add to those three, the athlete doing simple adding and subtracting verbally.

Coordination training can provide a big upside. Athletes enjoy the challenging drills and will master them quicker than you think. And best of all, each athlete will have a better understanding of where they are in space, an ability to focus on an object while moving, and complete the desired movement more efficiently.

For more information on coordination training drills, contact Stephen McCarthy.

Post by Author of Deep Nutrition, nutritional consultant to the Los Angeles Lakers and Physician, Dr Cate Shanahan

Milk contains bone building protein and minerals and has been previously shown to slow the process of osteoporosis, a bone-thinning process that renders us prone to fractures and loss of height as we age. Now there is reason to believe it also helps our joints.

Daily Milk Drinkers Found to Have the Healthiest Joints (Widest joint spaces)

The Harvard group studied the diet and supplement history of over 2000 men and women between 45 and 79 years old over a 4 year period while also taking X-Rays of their knee joints and measuring the amount of cartilage, which is a reflection of joint health. More cartilage, as reflected in a wider joint space on XRay, means healthier joints. During the 4 year study everyone’s joints deteriorated, as measured by a narrowing joint space (and therefore loss of cartilage).

The study authors note that for women, benefits were graded whereas for men no benefits were seen until they drank 7 or more glasses per week (Table 3). My thoughts on the reason for this difference include the fact that women had lower calcium intake in general and so every additional input of calcium from milk made an impact. Men, on the other hand, had significantly better calcium intake and only by drinking 7 plus glasses per week did the additional nutrients from milk seem to protect their joint spaces. Also, women typically consume less protein than men, and so the same line of reasoning likely applies. Full article

By Stephen McCarthy, The McCarthy Project

The following is a short video from Kelly Starret from Mobility WOD.  I personally used this protocol to solve pain in my foot, ankle and right below my knee.

Enjoy and finally solve the nagging pains in your lower leg.