The field of Strength and Conditioning is seemingly limitless in depth, so understanding and organizing the vast possibilities can feel daunting. One coach is expanding his horizons to see the full picture more clearly. At Mallard Creek High School, Coach William Fly is a figure of Strength and Conditioning who has transformed the school’s athletic programs through his dedication and open outlook on fitness.
With a career spanning over a decade in both the public and private sector, Fly’s role as Strength and Conditioning Coach has significantly impacted the lives of countless people in his community, preparing them not just for the rigors of sport, but for the trials and tribulations of life.
“All these people would help me along the way and I just feel like I would be ruining their wisdom if I didn’t find ways to give back for everything that I’ve gotten.” Fly says. “And just to help people, you know, big help, small help, whatever it is. I just try to find a way to give back.”
William Fly currently serves as the Director of Athletic Performance at Mallard Creek High School in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2020, he was named NHSSCA State Strength Coach of the Year for the state of North Carolina and now serves as the North Carolina State Director for the NHSSCA. Beyond his role in High School athletics, he also runs his own online coaching program, Fly Performance, and works as the Youth Athlete Head Coach at Discover Fitness, a private fitness center for people seeking personal training.
“I was really against the private side of stuff,” Coach Fly says. “And when I joined Discover, I understood it’s not the devil. It’s also helped me just with communication skills. It’s different. That is, communicating with 90 kids at one time is tremendously different than communicating with one kid for an hour.”
Fly’s Role as a High School Strength and Conditioning Coach
Coach Fly’s day begins early at Mallard Creek High School and is filled with planning and executing training sessions for various sports teams. Despite extensive planning, Coach Fly still faces numerous challenges throughout the day. Due to limited space and large student groups, he has developed a structured program schedule and utilizes every inch of available space efficiently. He uses innovative techniques and technology, like TeamBuildr, to track progress and ensure all of his athletes are getting the attention they need.
“When I got here at Mallard Creek, TeamBuildr was a non-negotiable,” Coach Fly says. “To where, like, I’m not coming if I don’t have TeamBuilder. So, fortunately they already had it. But it just makes, especially with the volume of kids that we have, it just makes everything so easy in terms of issuing programming.”
Translating Personal Training to a High School setting
Coach Fly’s dual experience in both the private sector and public education setting provides him with insights that enrich his coaching in each. The less structured style of coaching offered at his role at Discover Fitness gives him the opportunity to test new technologies, like VBT or TeamBuildr, in a less demanding environment.
“Discover allows me to experiment a little bit,” says Coach Fly. “There’s things that I can do at Discover that I can’t do here at Mallard Creek. It’s kind of like a testing ground like, ‘Hey, exercise with this, this, and that.’ And then I can bring it to Mallard Creek, and see how I can do this concept with a whole gaggle of kids. And then the same thing at Mallard Creek. Okay, we did this at Mallard Creek, how can I make it better if it was just a one on one?”
Experience in the private sector has also helped Coach Fly get more involved in his community. His time spent outside of the High School environment gives him a wider perspective on the world and coaching, allowing him to work better in both areas. By experiencing both sides of the coaching world, Coach Fly understands his role more clearly.
“It’s making me up-to-date on current event type stuff, understanding what’s going on in the world and having those conversations,” Fly Says. “Because sometimes that’s why they come. Obviously, they’re coming for a high quality training experience and they want to socialize. With me, socializing with them means they come back. And from the business standpoint that’s what we’re looking for.”
Juggling multiple tasks at once is a skill many strength coaches develop through experience. Coach Fly found a way to manage the multifaceted nature of his career by developing strategies and schedules that help keep him on track. The golden rule he follows is not letting anything get between him and his family.
“I just I have systems in place that allowed me to stay organized and there’s some things I say no to,” Fly says. “If my wife isn’t down with it. I don’t do it. I have a 2 year old, daughter. She’s about to be 3 in May. Whatever gets in the way of being a dad or being a husband, I just don’t do it.”
Strength and Conditioning Coaches like William Fly illustrate the profound benefits of broadening your horizons and trying something new. The insights shared by Coach Fly offer a well-rounded approach coaches can follow to prepare themselves for their own careers. Through individualized training, technological integration, and strategic implementation, coaches can equip themselves with the tools they need to foster both athletic and personal success.
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Whether you are programming phys ed, weights classes, or sport-specific workouts, students and athletes can input workout data via their mobile devices or by using our weight room view tablet feature. This feature allows 4-8 athletes to receive their individualized workouts, including prescribed loads and intensities, using tablets in the weight room. Our reporting features help coaches view student progress over time, identify strengths and weaknesses, and visualize the effectiveness of the strength and conditioning program.
