What Shamu taught me

We've all seen it. We've all been amazed by it.

Admit it; the first time you saw it, you were slack-jawed.

The pool is relatively calm, water swirling softly, when 11,000 pounds of sleek, deadly power explodes out of the pool, passes over a bar set ridiculously high above it, and slides back into the water. Gone!

If you're a thinking person, you asked yourself "How do they get a 5 ton Killer Whale to do that?" Or perhaps, "Why doesn't that killing machine just eat the trainer already?"

I know how they do it, and it doesn't really surprise me.

The trainers at Sea World use a training "process" that begins with spending time getting to know the whale. From there they spend time in and around the water, letting the whales get used to them and lose their fear of the trainers.

You read that right; the whales have fear of the trainers. But once that fear is gone, the positive vibes between trainer and whale create an environment for learning and improvement like no other!

The trainers have developed trust, good will and love with the whales.

This can take several weeks. After this, the bar the whales will jump over is placed at the bottom of the pool. That's right; the bottom of the pool!

Slowly, over time, the bar is raised off the bottom. As the whales continue to swim over it, they are praised and rewarded by the trainers. These rewards include pats on the head and flippers, fin rubs, fish treats and even a simple spray with a cold water hose.

If the whales swim under the bar during training, that behavior is ignored! The trainers, you see, always want to accentuate the positive!

As the bar is raised to the top of the water level, what do you think happens? That's right; the whales swim or slide over the top of the bar!

Guess what the trainers do. They praise and reward the whales with gusto! And the whales respond! They seem to feel excited, happy and fulfilled at the reaction of the trainers!


When the bar is raised to 6 or 8 feet above the pool, well...you know what happens then. That's showtime!

So let's review how you can get 11,000 lbs of the deadliest predator in the ocean to jump out of a pool and over a bar for you:

1. Develop trust, good will and love with them.


2. Start at the bottom of the pool.


3. Raise the bar steadily and consistently, until you reach the level at which you want them to "swim."


4. Accentuate the positive, de-emphasize or ignore the negative (behaviors.)


5. Praise and reward with gusto! Make sure they know you mean it! Celebrate every small progression like a victory along the way!

Now, would you like to know a secret? Training youth athletes and working with kids in fitness programs is exactly the same!!

They have to know you love and respect them!

They have to understand that progress is made from a definable starting point (bottom of the pool!)

They need to have the bar raised steadily and consistently, and they have to have an idea of where it's going!

They crave structure, discipline, direction and accentuation of the positives!

They live for praise, recognition, celebration of progress and reward! Just like the rest of us!

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, that's why we spend so much time talking about the journey, instead of the destination.

The process instead of the product.

The path to the goal instead of reaching it "by any means necessary."

All-Star Sports Academy builds better athletes and better people.

Find out why and how today! Call us at 732-597-3725 or email allstarsportsacademy @ gmail.com!

We'll see YOU at All-Star Sports Academy!