Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/665755
C h e c k o u t A B M P 's l a t e s t n e w s a n d b l o g p o s t s . Av a i l a b l e a t w w w. a b m p . c o m . 61 If you're interested in the July 2016 CORE Sports Bodywork Certification and Clinical Mentorship Program sponsored by the CORE Institute and XPE Sports, visit www.xpecoresportsbodywork.com. as they saw fit. While effective, Stanley knew they could do even better. "When you put these different styles together, the results are not always predictable, and it hasn't always turned out well for the athletes," he says. Stanley wanted to bring an increased consistency to the camp this year. "This concept, with everybody on the same team, doing the same protocols, has produced a consistency of results. Just like when you do scientific studies, you try to remove as many variables as possible to get a predictable outcome." Working in a support role with clearly defined goals is something that appealed to Pegan. "I'm a big advocate of working in a team. I'm not a physician, or a chiropractor, or a physical trainer," he says. "Here, we're working directly with chiropractors, strength trainers, and massage instructors, so we have a lot of support and direction in what we're doing." THE FUTURE Kousaleos's long-term goals for the program include a national sports bodywork team that will be made available to every sports medicine department and every strength and conditioning department of Division I universities and every professional sport— from baseball, basketball, and football to soccer and volleyball—men's and women's. "We're trying to create a team we can promote not only to sports medicine departments, but also to individual professional athletes, because we believe the future of this level of bodywork is working one-on- one with athletes throughout both the season and the off-season," Kousaleos says. The vision of a national team is another reason Kousaleos picked a diverse group of therapists for the certification training. "Having new therapists working side-by-side with more experienced therapists is a plus." An important part of the program is providing the therapists with the practical business tools they need to effectively incorporate their new training into their practices. Christie, XPE's sports chiropractor, speaks to the therapists on Wednesday mornings about how to create or join an integrated sports medicine team. The idea is to help the therapists create a referral system that supports their athletic clients, athletic teams, and already existing sports medicine departments. Stanley, who is an entrepreneur and successful business owner as well as a massage therapist, sees a wealth of exciting opportunities for the now-certified CORE therapists to expand their practices in their local community. "Everybody wants to work on the professional football players, but there are only 32 NFL teams across the country, so there are a lot more therapists than there are athletes," he says. "But there's a real opportunity for therapists to duplicate this model in their local demographic at the college level. If they can go into a local college or university and develop a contract, hire a team of therapists, and develop a business model where they are the lead therapists bringing other therapists into that environment, they can make money organizing that. They've seen that same model work here at XPE, and it's something they can potentially duplicate and be very successful at." The program's success has led Kousaleos and Villani to offer the same mentorship program again in July of this year, this time working with NFL athletes during their off-season training. "Approximately 150 NFL athletes will be there, training full-bore, getting their legs, upper body, agility, and speed ready for preseason camp, which starts the first week of August," Kousaleos says. "We'll be doing that for the next five years." ACHIE VING PE AK PERFORMANCE THROUGH SPORTS MASSAGE Villani has worked with an impressive roster of professional athletes in his career, including NFL veterans Cris Carter, Anquan Boldin, and Osi Umenyiora. Carter, Boldin, and Umenyiora often come by the XPE training facility to speak to the college athletes about the realities of life as an NFL player. "My pro athletes come in and see the access to bodywork these college athletes are getting, and they're just amazed," Villani says. "So I think this is going to be the norm for our pro athletes as well, almost year-round. It's been great. It's actually been a better experience than I ever thought it would be." "That's because you've gotten more massage than ever this year," says Welle, XPE's Master Trainer. Villani smiles. "I've gotten a lot of massages." Considering Villani routinely works 10-, 12-, or 15-hour days getting his athletes ready for the Combine, he clearly deserves it. Note 1. Jake Pfeil, Training & Conditioning, "Recovered and Ready," accessed March 2016, www.training- conditioning.com/2013/05/19/ recovered_and_ready/index.php. Brandon Twyford is associate editor for Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals. Contact him at brandon@abmp.com.