Oliver JonesJuly 27, 2015

Internship Experience

1. I feel that I have exceeded the expectations that I set for the overall internship experience. I have indeed gained a better understanding for the field of athletic performance training, through my time with trainers and clients alike. Acceleration Sports Institute has a very knowledgeable staff and competent clients that were able to give me feedback throughout my experience. I prepared and implemented training programs for both seasoned athletes and members of the general population. Also, ASI has summer athlete training programs, which are different from the training programs for members of the general population. This difference has allowed me to develop a greater understanding of the needs of the clients. I learned how to properly gather base measurements and use the information to develop a program for an individual or a specific group. The block training method at ASI required testing every month, which required me to learn how to frequently do base measurements.

2. I gained a better understanding for the field of athletic training through my daily practices as a member of the Acceleration Sports Institute staff. Additionally, the staff played a huge role in my success. As a member of the team, I was constantly around learning opportunities. This allowed me to get to know my clients on a personal basis, which taught me the need for a variety of training methods. Next, I was able to observe the staff interacting with their clients, so I was able to learn by just simply watching the staff, but also through the staff explaining the best way to do certain things. One of the most beneficial ways I learned about athletic training was through the articles and research documents provided to me by the ASI staff. With their help, I was able to understand the importance of new research in the field and the importance of learning from set examples.

3. I was given the task to write programs for clients. These programs possessed multiple workouts and exercises.a. I accomplished this task very well. The staff members implemented my programs for multiple clients and even used it for general workout plans throughout several weeks. I dealt with the experience/task fairly well, yet in the beginning, it was difficult because I had to make sure that the workouts fit the skill level of the clients. I had trouble ensuring the workout was right on target and not to hard or too easy. I also needed to focus on making the language clear. b. I used multiple skills while completing this task. I had to write and develop the program, ensuring my language was clear and concise. I had to verbally explain the exercises to the clients using the same type of language as well as explain to the staff while I chose these particular exercises. Before hand, I had to research the effects of different lifts and the combinations of lifts, ensuring that the organization of the programs were applicable. Finally, I had to help guide the clients through the programs. I learned to be understanding and adaptable to the needs of the clients. The fact that I have an athletic background was an extremely beneficial skill as it allowed me to relate the clients, the workouts and exercises.c. While my weakness was my lack of experience in creating programs, my greatest strength was my background as an athlete. Although I had no idea the amount of work and complexities that went into creating training programs, my experience in personally executing programs as an athlete proved itself to be very helpful. Additionally, I work very well with people, thus I easily gained the trust of the staff and the clients.

4. I played a beneficial role at Acceleration Sports Institute. On a daily basis, when the staff was overwhelmed, I would pick up groups of athletes, when all other members were busy. Additionally, I would do daily housekeeping items like putting the weights back on the shelf in order, organize equipment, put out towels, fill up the cooler with wet towels, fill up the cups, and take out the trash. Like previously mentioned, my greatest contribution would be the programs I provided for the staff and the clients. My role was absolutely appreciated at ASI.

5. Before going into this opportunity, I wasnt exactly sure what I wanted to do with my careerI still dont. However, this opportunity knocked out the possibility of being an athletic trainer, yet reinforced the fact that I am happy with my degree choice. After this internship, I know for sure that I want to be in the healthcare field and I know my future career will involve helping people. I loved my internship, but just realized that I dont want to spend the rest of my life as an athletic trainer.

6. Although I would argue that all the classes I have taken at Clemson were applicable to my internship this summer, there are some topics that were more helpful than other during my time at ASI: Health Care Systems (Health 2030), Health and Fitness (Health 2500), Obesity & Eating Disorders (Health 4150), Health Science Internship Prep (Health 419), Principles of Management (Management 2010), and Principles of Coaching (Athletic Leadership 3490).a. Health Care Systems (Health 2030): This class helped me to understand the complexity of ASI and its importance as a health care program. The Health Care Systems Class discussed the need and demand for programs like ASI.b. Health and Fitness (Health 2500): ASI focuses not only on fitness and exercise, but also all components of fitness. The 10 components of fitness were stressed not only during this class, but also during my internship. They include: cardiovascular/respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy. c. Obesity & Eating Disorders (Health 4150): This class talks about the prevalence, risk factors, consequence, and treatments of obesity and eating disorders. Programs such as LoseWell, which is located at ASI and sponsored by the Greenville Health System, are one of these treatment methods.d. Introduction to Human Communication (Communication 150): This class taught the best ways to communicate with individuals and groups of all kinds including interpersonal, small group, intercultural, and public communication. The methods of communication I learned in this class helped me to convey my programs, workouts, and exercises to the clients, but also helped me communicate properly with my superiors.e. Principles of Coaching (Athletic Leadership 3490): ASI has a very important and established philosophy--just like the philosophies stressed during the Principles of Coaching. Principles of Coaching helped me face challenges during my internship by covering topics such as sports psychology.

7. At ASI, we provided clients with different fitness models, so that they could then make the best decision for their workouts. Everyday there are 3 different types of sheets: Blue for Muscle Strength, Green for Muscle Endurance, and Yellow for Flexibility. If an individual wanted to gain a lot of muscle mass (a.k.a bulk up), they would choose the Blue Sheet, the program that focuses on muscle strength. These sheets provided make it easy for all people to understand the important health information.