Virgen: ‘Total Athlete’ coming

It’s a highly competitive world when it comes to college recruiting and the high school athlete.

There are many who can be an athlete, but it’s an entirely different story regarding the elite athlete. And those select individuals then must take their game to a higher level to have any chance of advancing in their sport.

How do you do it? As a parent, how do you mold your child to be the best or among the best? As a coach, how you bring out the most out of your athlete?

Bill Morris, a fitness guru, has a strategy. He calls it, “The Total Athlete, the art and science of becoming an elite athlete.”

The one-day conference featuring special speakers and education on various topics is coming to Chapman University Jan. 25.

The event covers topics such as how to be successful on and off the field; why student-athletes are at risk when it comes to supplements; tips on learning the recruiting process; understanding an athlete’s proper diet; and how to improve athletic performance with proper alignment for motion, postural and spinal maximization.

Morris, who holds the world record for consecutive sit-ups, and his friend, Dr. Bill Beacham, had been wanting to produce something like “Total Athlete,” for a while. They are both part of the Irvine Prevention Coalition and had talked about conducting an event such as the one coming to Chapman.

Beacham is an expert on performance enhancing drugs and is a consultant to the U.S. Olympic committee.

“We’re trying to educate the athlete, the coaches and the parents,” Beacham said. “This is state-of-the-art, in terms of science and competitive discipline.”

The two Bills say Orange County is a hotbed when it comes to athleticism, as the area is loaded with travel teams in different sports, and includes specialty coaches and trainers.

The training takes place at a young age, much earlier than high school.

To get to the next level, “it’s going to take some major efforts, by coaches, parents and the athletes,” Morris said.

The two Bills say they want to help.

Information and registration, which is $99, can be found at https://www.billmorris.org.