YES, YES, and YES!!!
Every spring we start gearing up for football season. Football in our house is definitely a family commitment. My husband coaches and we’re both on the youth football board.
Spring time means training and getting ready for the football season ahead. Through the years we have trained with a few individuals that truly move our children in a positive direction on and off the the field. If you read my I Never Wanted To Be a Football Mom post you will see that the game of football has so much to offer.
Finding people who can push our children physically and mentally in a positive way has been one of the greatest joys as a parent of an athlete. Our children look forward to meeting with their trainers and have learned so many life lessons.
Derek Ward has certainly touched our children’s live and we are grateful. No matter what sport your athlete is passionate about, it’s trainers like him who will help them grow not just as athletes but as people too.
Regardless of where you live, find someone like him. Find someone who will encourage your children on and off the field.
Here is a little bit more from Derek himself……….
I grow up in a predominately white neighborhood, as an African American in a town where going to big time colleges, let alone playing a sport at one of them, was benign. I got bullied for believing in my dreams and being different. I was told I would never play collegiate football, I wasn’t smart enough, wasn’t talented enough. But that only fueled me to work THAT much harder. I had faith that my life had greater purpose through the grace of God. I was also blessed with an All American older brother to look up to, that taught me to truly be successful in this life, you need to make sure you are NEVER outworked.
Training was never easy, especially when I was alone doing it, as a young kid with a dream of playing college football as some of my peers picked on me and laughed. I remember during high-school I chose to rest on the weekends, staying home to eat healthy, study, and dream of playing collegiate football even though others were partying and living it up “yolo!” You truly do only live once, and I chose to do it by grinding my butt off to get where I wanted to be in life.
I received the opportunity to complete a postgraduate year at Choate Rosemary Hall, and that experience opened the doors to all my dreams. Through that experience I got the opportunity to play collegiate football at Amherst College, but even more, get an education at the 2nd ranked liberal arts school in the country. To be surrounded by like-minded people with similar goals and passions felt like home. At Amherst we won three championships and went on a 19 win streak with back to back undefeated seasons and my teammates quickly became family, for once I felt accepted. Although I never got the playing time I thought I worked for, the humbling experience taught me to be selfless and gave me an even greater appreciation for performance training because I still made sure I was never outworked.
Performance training has the power to change lives. Physically, Mentally, and Spiritually. The incredible amount of training I have done over the last 12 years has shaped me to being the person I am. Many love to talk about sports, watch sports, play sports, and even criticize sports on their negative effects, but there are a special group of people who do the excruciating work behind the scenes to become better athletes. The blood, sweat, and tears when no one is watching, where there is no trophy on the line, where the only thing motivating you is to become a better version of yourself, that is where the champions are made.
All the training I have done for the sport of football is so much bigger than trying to become a better athlete. It taught me dedication, sacrifice, embracing difficulty, modesty, respect, responsibility, and the list can go on infinitely. Choosing to complete each sprint with 200% effort although my body felt like giving up, doing extra sets and reps in the gym although coach wasn’t watching. This passion for training, the character that’s built from it, led me to building my own business and training youth athletes to become better versions of themselves. I always make sure I provide the BEST performance training I can, paying attention to every detail on every rep to ensure my athletes gain value and not just someone pulling them through drills. More so than that, I want to provide value to kids on believing in their dreams, embracing sacrifice, and respecting elders and education. ENSURING that all my athletes embrace who they are and while others doubt or mock who they are, teach them it will only make them stronger and better people. With those tools youth athletes can do anything they set their mind to, and that is why I follow my passion and dream in building a valuable brand dedicated to peak performance training and educational enrichment in our youth.
A Message for my current and future bright athletes
No matter if you’ve never made an athletic movement in your life or you have 20 Division 1 offers, I am fueled by the same thing I established at 14 years old, the thought of someone outworking me, and I will forever provide that same attitude for all of you. I make a promise to continue perfecting my craft through research and application to provide the best training you can get while continuing to have fun.
“Dream Big, Work Hard, Have Faith”
-Derek Ward “The Bright Athlete”
Follow Derek on Instagram