Gymnastics recommended until age 9
Kula turns away athletes younger than 9 and recommends gymnastics first, believing it builds superior body awareness and movement quality before speed training.
Snapshot · Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth
2890: Speed Training for Athletes | How to Sprint Faster Without Getting Hurt w/ Brian Kula
Explore episode
Jun 28, 2026
Where this was said
Biggest mistakes young athletes and coaches make and the multi-sport debate
At 54:55 · chapter starts 51:00
The conversation shifts to business when Sal asks about ETS Performance, the Minneapolis-based company that acquired Kula Sports Performance. Kula describes ETS as a faith-based, corporately-owned performance company founded by Ryan Engelbert — who trained NFL receiver Adam Thielen — that has grown to over 80 locations and is targeting becoming the world's largest performance company. The acquisition model is intentional: no franchise, all corporate ownership, with every new coach brought to Minneapolis for three months of full immersion training before opening a location. Kula sold the company but retained an equity stake and an active role in thought leadership, speed development education, and growth strategy. He frames the sale not as a loss but as a multiplier — overnight access to 50,000 athletes he couldn't have reached alone. On the question of career paths for trainers wanting to enter sports performance, Kula is direct to the point of being blunt: personal trainers who dabble in sports performance are 'dangerous' — they have enough knowledge to cause problems but not enough to achieve results. His advice is to go entirely all-in, including through unpaid internships and deep coursework, because these are genuinely different disciplines. He acknowledges the financial difficulty of the sports performance path, which is part of why he sees ETS as valuable — it creates a viable salary trajectory for coaches who previously had little option beyond low-paying college staff positions.
The Multi-Sport Debate: Play Everything Until Freshman Year, Then Choose
Multi-sport development is ideal through childhood, but Kula acknowledges the real-world pressure of specialization by high school. His pragmatic advice: stay multi-sport through at least freshman year to avoid overuse injuries and build diverse movement patterns, then commit — because in precision sports like baseball, you can't catch up by jumping in late.
Multi-sport until high school / freshman year
Kula recommends multi-sport participation through at least the freshman year of high school to build diverse movement patterns and avoid overuse injuries before specializing.
Why Gymnastics Is the Best Base Sport for Young Kids
When 6-year-olds show up wanting speed training, Kula sends them to gymnastics instead. Body awareness, bodyweight strength, and quality movement patterns built in gymnastics make athletes far more coachable when they return at 9. It's not remedial — it's the fastest path to elite performance.
Genetics Are the Best Speed Coach — Everything Else Is Just Molding What You Have
When a Tennessee Titans player asked Kula who the best speed coach is, Kula pointed at his own parents. Genetics set the ceiling for athletic potential — coaches just help athletes reach it. The work matters, but the blueprint is largely inherited.
Genetics = best speed coach
When asked who the best speed coach is, Kula told a Tennessee Titans player 'it's your mom and dad' — genetics play a massive role in athletic potential.
Similar snapshots
Daycare costs $3,490/month for twins
Sarah in Charlotte faces a daycare bill of $3,490 per month for 15-month-old twins — nearly 50% of the family's $7,000 monthly take-home income.
Multi-sport until high school / freshman year
Kula recommends multi-sport participation through at least the freshman year of high school to build diverse movement patterns and avoid overuse injuries before specializing.
Josh's son obsessed with DHL vans
Josh Widdicombe's young son became so obsessed with DHL delivery vans that he watches YouTube videos about them and is saving pocket money to buy another toy DHL van.
Rob pumped frog sprinkler for 5 mins in 35°C
Rob Beckett spent 5 exhausting minutes manually pumping a frog-shaped garden sprinkler in 35-degree heat while his children sizzled waiting for him to finish.
Child learned 'mouth cream' as a snack
After a parent was caught squirting whipped cream directly into their mouth from the fridge, their 3-year-old now regularly asks for 'mouth cream' as a legitimate snack option.
$25K/month revenue
Avnish's solopreneur business reached $25,000 per month in revenue using a community-driven, zero-ad-spend marketing strategy.
15 months to $25K/month
Avnish scaled his business from zero to $25K/month in just 15 months using a single core marketing strategy.
Zero marketing spend
Avnish acquired thousands of users without spending any money on marketing, relying entirely on Reddit and Facebook groups.
Single thousands to tens of thousands of users
One specific Reddit or Facebook post was responsible for taking Avnish's user base from single thousands to tens of thousands.
