D1 Gives Young
Athletes the Edge in Performance and Attitude
By Hugh G. Willett
In July 2002 former Denver Broncos football
player Will Bartholomew opened the first D1 Sports Training
Facility in Nashville.
From the very beginning Bartholomew had an idea
for a training facility that would provide not only the latest
in performance training techniques, but also an environment
that would teach core values and accountability.
By 2004 Bartholomew’s ideas had led him
into a partnership with NBA player Shane Battier and NFL star
Peyton Manning. Manning is especially interested in helping
young athletes achieve their goals.
Within a year, D1 facilities had been opened
in Memphis and Knoxville.
As a former professional athlete, Bartholomew
had other unique ideas to contribute to the business plan.
He began to incorporate into the D1 model the idea of conducting
performance training and rehabilitative therapy in the same
facility.
Several years later, the D1 team included the
names of other prominent athletes and a new 25,000 square
foot facility opened in Nashville. In 2007 another facility
opened in Chattanooga.
As the D1 concept grew into areas such as corporate
wellness, the organization began to attract corporate customers.
Averitt Express opened an in-house corporate wellness center
in their Cookeville offices.
Despite the expansion into corporate wellness
and other areas of health and fitness, it’s clear from
watching the young athletes at the Knoxville facility that
one of D1’s core strengths is its youth training programs.
After winning the Knox County Youth Football
championship last season, Coach Steve Brewer knew his players
would be facing an even greater challenge when they moved
up to play in a tougher division this season.
Pre-season conditioning made a big difference
in the early part of last season when the Brewer’s “Blue
Machine” roared out to go undefeated in all its pre-season
and first five regular season games.
It was the decision to take pre-seasoning conditioning
to the next level that prompted Brewer to look into D1 Sports
Training.
Many of the 10 to 11 year old boys on the team
participated in basketball, hockey, baseball and other sports
when not playing football, but the individual level of fitness
generally varied among players at the start of the season.
One of the goals of pre-season conditioning
during June and July is to prepare the young athletes for
grueling 2-hour, three times a week full pad practice sessions
beginning the first week of August.
“Young players can’t learn if they’re
too tired to keep up with the instructional part of training,”
Brewer said.
Players who are not properly conditioned will
not be paying as close attention during drills and instruction
as those who are in good shape. If young athletes are all
at the same level of conditioning, it’s easier to get
them to work as a team, Brewer said.
“We need the players to be in excellent
physical shape at the start of the season so they are ready
and able to give 100% during practice,” he added.
Pre-season conditioning at the team level also
builds team spirit. New players joining the team and the players
who haven’t practiced together for more than six months
get the chance to work out together, building camaraderie
and cohesiveness.
The instructors at D1 are particularly attuned
to the needs of young players, especially when it comes to
attitude and performance. Each player is encouraged to give
100% during practice sessions that include a variety of conditioning
and agility drills.
Players are also encouraged to take responsibility
for keeping the team spirit alive by encouraging others on
the team to perform at the highest level possible.
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