The Coretex Athletic Review

Evan Kurylo
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Sports
  • Updated Weekly

Host Evan Kurylo distills current sport science research it through the lens of modern athlete development, coaching methodology, and goaltender performance. The aim is to simplify complex research, highlight the key findings, and connect them to real-world coaching decisions — from anticipation and pattern recognition, to visual cognition, to the latest in coaching pedagogy. Short episodes. Strong insights. Better athletes.

  1. Aug 20

    30. The Yerkes-Dodson Law

    The Yerkes–Dodson law is usually presented as a simple inverted-U relationship: performance improves as arousal rises, reaches an optimal “sweet spot,” and then declines under excessive pressure. The original 1908 paper did not actually test that relationship. Robert Yerkes and John Dodson studied how electric-shock intensity affected the rate at which dancing mice learned a visual discrimination. Their results suggested that the most favorable shock intensity changed with the difficulty of the discrimination—but the study did not measure arousal, stress, anxiety, or the immediate performance of an established skill. In this episode, I trace how that narrow animal-learning experiment gradually became a general law of human performance. Karl Halvor Teigen’s 1994 paper, “Yerkes–Dodson: A Law for All Seasons,” documents how stimulus strength became punishment, motivation, drive, arousal, anxiety, and stress—while habit formation quietly became performance. I also look at Donald Hebb’s 1955 arousal model, which more closely resembles the inverted-U curve familiar today. Hebb proposed that arousal supplies the energy required for effective behavior, but excessive activation can disrupt the cue-guided organization needed to respond intelligently. For athletes and coaches, the most important distinction may be the one lost during this history: learning and performance are not the same thing. The conditions that help an athlete perform today are not necessarily the conditions that help that athlete develop for tomorrow. Papers discussed: Yerkes, R. M., & Dodson, J. D. (1908). The Relation of Strength of Stimulus to Rapidity of Habit-Formation. Hebb, D. O. (1955). Drives and the C.N.S. (Conceptual Nervous System). Teigen, K. H. (1994). Yerkes–Dodson: A Law for All Seasons. Music attribution: Backed Vibes Clean - Rollin at 5 by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1400029 Artist: http://incompetech.com/

  2. Aug 6

    29. Foundations Series: The 10,000 Hour "Rule" | Anders Ericsson

    The 10,000-hour rule has become one of the most recognizable ideas in sport, coaching, and skill development—but what did the original research actually say? In this episode of the Coretex Athletic Review, we examine the landmark 1993 paper by K. Anders Ericsson, Ralf Krampe, and Clemens Tesch-Römer that introduced the concept of deliberate practice. Rather than accepting the popular interpretation at face value, we trace the history of the idea from Simon & Chase's chess research, through Ericsson's theory of expertise, and finally to Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, where the 10,000-hour figure entered mainstream culture. Along the way, we explore what deliberate practice actually is, why experience is not the same as expertise, and why simply accumulating more hours may be an oversimplified solution to athlete development. This episode also offers a critical discussion of Ericsson's framework, questioning whether practice and competition can truly be separated as cleanly as proposed, particularly in team sports where meaningful learning often occurs under authentic competitive pressure. The origins of the 10,000-hour rule Simon & Chase's research on chess expertise Ericsson's theory of deliberate practice Why experience does not equal expertise The Berlin violin studies Deliberate practice vs. work vs. play Malcolm Gladwell's role in popularizing the 10,000-hour concept Why more hours isn't necessarily the answer Deliberate practice in coaching and athlete development Critiquing the separation of practice and competition Connections to Chambliss's The Mundanity of Excellence and Norway's athlete development model Ericsson, K. A., Krampe, R. T., & Tesch-Römer, C. (1993). The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance. Psychological Review, 100(3), 363–406. Simon, H. A., & Chase, W. G. (1973). Skill in Chess. Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The Story of Success. Chambliss, D. F. (1989). The Mundanity of Excellence. 🎙️ Coretex Athletic Review Each week I explore landmark and contemporary research in sport science, psychology, coaching, and motor learning—breaking down peer-reviewed literature into practical insights for coaches, athletes, and lifelong learners.

  3. Jul 23

    28. Foundations 1: Schmidt's Schema Theory

    In 1975, Richard Schmidt proposed a new way to explain how we learn, adapt, and evaluate movement. Rather than storing a separate motor program for every action we might perform, Schmidt argued that we develop generalized rules—or schemas—connecting the situation we encounter, the movement we produce, what that movement feels like, and its eventual outcome. In this episode, I explore: The storage and novelty problems that challenged earlier motor-learning theories Generalized motor programs and adjustable movement parameters Schmidt’s recall and recognition schemas How unsuccessful attempts can still contribute to learning Why variable practice may improve adaptability to unfamiliar situations The difference between producing a movement and recognizing whether it was correct The limitations, unanswered questions, and lasting influence of Schmidt’s theory Schema theory did not definitively reveal how the nervous system stores movement—and Schmidt was candid about the limited evidence available in 1975. Its importance lies in providing a testable framework for understanding how previous experience can become adaptable movement. Article discussed: Schmidt, R. A. (1975). A schema theory of discrete motor skill learning. Psychological Review, 82(4), 225–260. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0076770

  4. Jul 9

    27. Social Media & Athletic Performance

    Elite athletes often speak openly about the psychological toll of social media. From abusive comments to relentless criticism, online negativity has become an unavoidable part of professional sport. But does that criticism actually show up on the field? In this episode, we examine a newly published study analyzing more than 1.2 million Instagram comments directed at English Premier League defenders during the 2022–23 season. Using sentiment analysis, machine learning, and player-level statistical models, the researchers asked a simple but important question: Can what fans say online predict how athletes perform in their next game? The answer is more nuanced than you might expect. We discuss: How social media has fundamentally changed the relationship between athletes and fans The psychological theories behind "choking under pressure" How researchers analyzed over one million Instagram comments using AI language models Why the study focused exclusively on Premier League defenders What an R² value actually tells us (and why it matters) Why general online negativity wasn't associated with poorer technical performance The surprising relationship between critical comments and disciplinary actions like yellow and red cards The difference between statistical significance and practical significance What this means for coaches, parents, and developing athletes The study suggests that elite technical performance may be remarkably resilient to online criticism, while emotional regulation may be more vulnerable. It's an important reminder that the effects of social media may be more selective—and more complex—than headlines often suggest. Winchester, S., & Chang, H.-C. H. (2026). Does online negativity influence performance? Investigating the impact of social media on male professional soccer players. Online Social Networks and Media, 54, 100353. 🎥 YouTube: https://youtube.com/@CoretexAthletics 🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com 📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/coretexathletics If you enjoyed the episode, consider subscribing and leaving a review—it helps more coaches, athletes, and parents discover the science behind high performance.

  5. Jun 25

    26. Sleep Strategies for Traveling

    Returning for season 2: In this episode, I dive into the science behind athlete travel and explore why crossing time zones, long flights, poor sleep, dehydration, and disrupted routines can affect everything from reaction time and decision-making to recovery and injury risk. Drawing from the latest sports medicine research, we separate common travel fatigue from true jet lag, explain why eastward travel is generally more challenging than westward travel, and discuss the concept of circadian advantage—the hidden edge teams gain when their internal clocks are better aligned with game time. I also break down practical, evidence-based strategies that athletes, coaches, and parents can implement immediately, including sleep scheduling, hydration, meal timing, strategic light exposure, caffeine use, napping, and recovery planning. Whether you're flying across the country for nationals or driving across the province for a weekend tournament, optimizing travel may be one of the easiest ways to gain a competitive advantage. In this episode I discuss: The difference between travel fatigue and jet lag Why your biological clock matters for athletic performance Why traveling east is usually more difficult than traveling west Circadian rhythms and their impact on strength, reaction time, and decision-making How sleep disruption affects recovery, performance, and injury risk The relationship between travel and illness Hydration challenges during air travel The role of nutrition and gut health while traveling Chronotypes: are some athletes naturally better travelers? Evidence-based travel strategies used by elite performance staff Hatamiya, N., Holmes, K. E., Grosicki, G. J., et al. (2026). Optimizing Athlete Travel for Performance: A Scientific Blueprint for Athletes, Coaches, and Sports Medicine Staff. Sports Medicine, 56, 1381–1403. Follow Coretex Athletics 🎙 Podcast: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, and wherever you listen. 📺 YouTube: Coretex Athletics 📧 Email: coretexathletics@gmail.com 💻 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CoretexAthletics If you're enjoying the podcast... Leaving a five-star rating, following the show, and sharing episodes with coaches, athletes, and hockey families helps us continue bringing high-quality, evidence-based sport science to the hockey community. As always, thanks for listening.

  6. May 21

    25. Athletes and their Music...

    This week we explore the dissertation Music to Move You: Comparing Effects of Music Genre on Subjective Performance of Football Players in a Practice Setting by Devin DeTurk. Music is built into sport almost everywhere: bus rides, dressing rooms, warmups, training sessions, and competition environments. But does music simply get athletes "fired up," or can different types of music create different performance states? In this episode: • A theory on why NHL powerplay and penalty-kill music may have the intensity backwards• Why previous music studies often relied on laboratory settings• Rap vs EDM vs Alternative vs Classical vs No Music• Why athletes' favorite music didn't automatically produce the strongest outcomes• How different genres influenced motivation, mood, fatigue, competence, and perceived performance• The strange EDM finding that produced both higher fatigue and greater calmness• Why "what I like" and "what helps me" may not always be the same thing• Whether music may be shaping athlete state rather than simply increasing arousal Main takeaway: "What's my favorite music?" may not be the same question as: "What state am I trying to create?" Questions, feedback, article suggestions, or discussion: 📧 ek.coretexgoaltending@gmail.com Support the show / help keep independent research content going: Patreon - Coretex Athletic Review

  7. May 14

    24. Sleeping to Perform

    Episode 24 dives into the strange and often overlooked relationship between sleep and athletic performance. This week’s paper explored whether a simple 14-day sleep hygiene intervention could measurably influence recovery, performance, and physiological stress responses in university soccer players. The findings were more nuanced than “better sleep = better everything.” Topics explored in this episode include: Sleep as part of training rather than post-training downtime Why sleep quality and sleep duration are not the same thing Dual-career athletes and modern recovery challenges Aerobic vs anaerobic performance responses Fatigue resistance and autonomic regulation Cortisol and anticipatory stress responses before exercise Sympathetic vs parasympathetic nervous system balance Why improved recovery may not always mean maximal explosiveness Environmental and behavioral factors influencing recovery The broader idea that adaptation occurs during recovery, not just during training Article:Broodryk, A. & Broodryk, R. (2026). A 14-Day Sleep Hygiene Intervention Improves Aerobic Performance and Reduces Anticipatory Cortisol in University Soccer Players. Sports, 14(179). Coretex Athletic Review Podcast explores academic research through the lens of athlete development, performance, coaching, physiology, cognition, and complex sport systems.

  8. May 7

    23. What Is Norway Doing So Well? | Athlete Development

    Episode 23 examines a comparative analysis of elite sport systems in four Nordic countries: Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Despite sharing many similarities including strong grassroots participation, publicly supported sport infrastructure, welfare-state models, and broad access to sport, these countries have increasingly diverged in international elite sport performance and organizational structure over recent decades. This episode explores: Why similar countries can produce very different elite sport outcomes Centralized vs decentralized athlete development systems Olympiatoppen and the Norwegian high-performance model Fragmentation, coordination, and “path dependence” in sport systems Why organization itself may function as a performance variable The tension between egalitarian values and elite sport prioritization Athlete welfare, dual-career support, and legitimacy in Nordic sport culture Why Sweden and Finland are beginning to reform aspects of their systems Cross-sport learning, knowledge transfer, and performance environments The episode also discusses broader ideas around systems design, coaching alignment, organizational friction, and whether elite performance is driven less by “secret sauce” and more by how efficiently systems communicate, coordinate, and learn over time. Article Reviewed:Nielsen, K. & Storm, R. K. (2026). Elite Sport in the Nordic Countries: A Comparative Analysis of Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. In Toppidrett i Skandinavia: En samfunnsvitenskapelig forskningsantologi om utviklings- og prestasjonsmiljø. Cappelen Damm Akademisk.

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Host Evan Kurylo distills current sport science research it through the lens of modern athlete development, coaching methodology, and goaltender performance. The aim is to simplify complex research, highlight the key findings, and connect them to real-world coaching decisions — from anticipation and pattern recognition, to visual cognition, to the latest in coaching pedagogy. Short episodes. Strong insights. Better athletes.

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