Keir Wenham-Flatt on How to Build an Elite Rugby Athlete

Subscribe:

Keir Wenham-Flatt is a rugby strength & conditioning specialist and founder of www.rugbystrengthcoach.com, the web’s #1 resource for rugby strength & conditioning information.

Currently the Head of Strength & Conditioning for Toshiba Brave Lupus in the Japanese Top League, Keir has worked with seven professional rugby teams on four different continents. This includes Los Pumas Argentina who finished 4th at the 2015 Rugby World Cup, 2014 World Club Challenge Champions Sydney Roosters, and two-time European Cup Champions London Wasps.

In this show, Keir and I talk about the world tour he’s taken as a physical preparation coach, the sacrifices he’s made to be successful, and a ton of specifics when it comes to building an elite rugby player.

This is a great discussion, and Keir is a pretty funny guy, so I really hope you enjoy the show.

Show Outline

Here’s a brief overview of what we covered in this week’s show:

  • MR Monologue: The Myth of Balance in Life
  • The long and winding road Keir’s followed in physical preparation, and the sacrifices he’s made along the way.
  • An overview on the sport of rugby, as well as the physical qualities necessary to be successful.
  • His overarching philosophy for building elite rugby players.
  • A breakdown of his 5 Phases of agility drills, along with examples and how he layers them for maximum effect.
  • Keir’s thoughts on max effort lifting for athletes, and why he prefers to blend strength training with a mix of plyos, med ball work, and sprints.
  • MAS Running: What it is, why he’s not a fan, and what he uses instead to build aerobic capacity.
  • What he means when he says, “Get the most from the least” with regards to in-season training.
  • The bank account analogy he uses with athletes to help them understand the impact of recovery.
  • Our BIG question (and a truly awesome answer – young coaches, listen to this one!)
  • The lightning round where we discuss freaky athletes, his favorite books, and how on Earth he gets everything done.

Related Links

Connect with Keir

Books Mentioned

 

Get 3 days of my best coaching materials — for free.

3 DAY COACH'S CAMP:

Notebook with pencil icon Write better programs
Trophy icon Learn how to motivate clients outside the gym
Meditation icon My most popular resets for instantly improving movement quality

Back to All Posts