Robert McAdams' Home Page
Who is Coach McAdams?
Football
Robert McAdams has played football at the Junior High, High
School, Amateur Marine Corps, and College levels.  He has
played on a Championship Team in the Marine Corps as a
Linebacker and Fullback.  McAdams has coached 7 different
football teams.  He has head-coached 3 teams, 2 of which
were Championship Teams.  He is very familiar with
unorthodox offensive and defensive strategies from extensive
research and experience.
Weight Training
Robert McAdams has 15 years experience in weight training.  
He has increased his bodyweight and strength consistently
over this time.  He has gone from a 125lb 8th grader, who
could clean 95lb, to a 227lb college linebacker and
weightlifter that could clean over 400lb.  He was invited to
compete at the 2004 Olympic Trials for Weightlifting, and
was ranked in overall men at #21 that same year.  He has
competed in Olympic weightlifting in the 85k, 94k, and 105k
weight classes over his 5 year career.  He has also coached
both small-group junior weightlifters and large-group high
school & junior high football players.
Education
Robert McAdams has a Masters degree in Kinesiology from
Midwestern State University.  His degree was coupled with
invaluable experience as an intern coach and competitive
weightlifter for Wichita Falls Weightlifting Club.  This club
has been a perennial power in the Olympic weightlifting
world in recent years.  His coaches and mentors, Glenn
Pendlay and Mark Rippetoe, have many years of collective
experience and education.  Both have done extensive research
into the realm of strength, power, physiology and
performance.  McAdams’ thesis covered the topic of strength
and power training for optimal results.
What Are The Books About?
Strength & Conditioning
Most coaches in general don’t have the type strength and
conditioning program that “produces” players.  I have been around
some different programs and seen a lot of weirdness in their weight
rooms.  I have seen coaches yelling and blowing whistles, oblivious
to weight on the bar or form in the lifts.  I have seen kids sprinting
from station to station more worried about not getting yelled at then
performing the exercise correctly.  Some kids in my current strength
program have bragged about the “old” days when they did power
cleans as fast as possible for 1 minute in a circuit.  Then I ask,
“How much stronger did it get you?”  Then they stop, think, and
reply, “We didn’t get any stronger…”  Then I remind them that
their old clean max was nearly 100lbs LESS a few months ago…  I
can understand kids taking pride in “puke” circuit routines because
they are young, but why do coaches?  I have trained myself and
various levels of kids and adults for many years.  And I have never
seen a person that cannot double his or her strength in a reasonable
amount of time.  Most coaches would be glad to get a kid to
increase 25-50% in a year or so, much less 100% in 4-6 months—
as I have produced.
Football Strategy
The football books are focused on matching correct athletic ability
with correct scheme.  Obviously, if you have lots of athletes, you
can run what you want to and win games, but maybe not
championships.  But if you aren’t matching up athletically with your
opponents, you maybe “searching” for a scheme that fits your kids
better on offense and/or defense.  I have been on both sides of the
road, athletically speaking.  I head coached a team with great
athletic ability and won many games.  But, when I was matched
against a team of greater ability in the Championship, I found
myself chasing my tail on the sidelines.  My players needed a coach
with more knowledge than I to better 1) use their ability or 2)
negate the opponents’ ability.  I was no slouch, don’t get me
wrong.  I was good enough to squeak out a victory in the last
seconds against a superior team for the Championship.  But I think
a great coach should not have to put himself through that type of
heart attack ending.  I have also had a Varsity Schedule with a JV
Roster.  This doesn't work out too well.  I know the pain of telling
kids where their opponents are going to hit and still watching
running backs get winded by long touchdown runs.  I have seen
why “normal” defensive schemes break down and “sound”
offenses get stopped cold.  This leads to my belief that all coaches
need to have a smart, effective, “player-producing” strength and
conditioning program.  Furthermore, coaches of un-athletic teams
need a “right now” scheme they can expect success with besides
the normal schemes that most schools run.  My books are written
to give those coaches some answers besides, “more coaches, more
drills, better scout team, blah, blah…..”  I don’t mean to say that
those are not good things.  But I have seen more than one example
of kids failing due to inferior scheme, not coaching.  My football
books offer unorthodox schemes that may supply part of that
formula for success to coaches and their kids.
Olympic Weightlifting
Olympic weightlifting is the best way to train for power.  This is
another issue that most schools are in serious need of knowledge
and experience in.  I have competed and coached in Olympic
weightlifting for many years now.  This type lifting is NOT USED
in most high schools.  Many coaches write “Power Clean 5x5” (or
some such) on the board, but this does not mean they are using this
type lifting.  I could write “Rocket Science” outside my P.E. class,
but I highly doubt I could teach my students to get rockets
airborne.  The kids are not going to just do it right on their own.  
Therefore, without correct training, they are not doing power
training at all.  Please understand that doing the Olympic lifts
(power cleans, etc.) “kind-of wrong” is like a woman getting “kind-
of pregnant”.  If they do the lifts wrong, they DO NOT GET ANY
POWER BENEFITS from them.  How do you know if they are or
aren’t doing them right?  Easy, if 220-240lb is a BIG LIFT for your
team that everyone gets hyped up for, you are doing it wrong.  
Even on a weak, young team I’ve had 3 (out of 30) kids at or near
300lb power clean and 225lb power snatch.  Those are respectable,
but not extremely strong.  Most programs I’ve seen have everyone
clapping and yelling for their 330lb tackle who “hoists” 225lb up to
his shoulders while lying back to catch it.  Not only is this type
nonsense not productive, but it is downright DANGEROUS.  If not
from me, from someone, learn better, please.
Weight Training
I have been a personal trainer prior to becoming a graduate and
coach.  I have seen more than my share or “normal” people who
need advice for their weight training.  Regardless of their goal,
losing fat or gaining muscle, they are not very knowledgeable about
how to do it.  I was once the same way.  Early on in my life, I beat
myself up in the gym, spinning my wheels for minimal gains.  This
was due to my ignorance about correct exercise, diet, and
supplementation to achieve my goals.  My non-progress was also
aided by magazines and other resources providing misconceptions
about a great many things.  Fortunately, I came around.  I learned
from all those mistakes.  I researched far more in-depth than my
degree required in the field of weight training.
Self Publishing
I have lots of down time after and before football season.  I
continually research every way to better compete also.  In the
Summer of 2005, I decided to purchase a book on how to self
publish and write.  First and foremost I wanted to get my defenses,
offenses, and strength programs on paper.  Before I knew it, I had
written the majority of three books.  I enjoyed it, and finished them
one at a time.  I continued doing it with two more football books.  
Unfortunately, the book I purchased didn't tell me a lot of what I
had to go through to finish up, sell books, advertise, set up website,
and many other issues.  Since the book I read and used wasn't
complete, I wrote my own "how to" book on how to write "how to"
books to help others.  Say that really fast 3 times...  Since then, I've
finished a fat loss training book, a football offense book, and
football defense book. I think everyone with any special or even
common knowledge that can help others can and should publish
their own book.. I think it's very productive way to spend your
time, sharing information to help people succeed.  Stop by the
publishing page and look it over if you think you have knowledge
that others may need or want to understand self publishing better.