Why Ruben travels with our tool everywhere he goes, and loves the variety of it? We let Ruben talk about us for a change instead of doing it ourselves. Read how he started using the Ledsreact basic, and how he would describe it in 3 words.
Testimonial Ruben Neyens
We love to talk about ourselves, but this time, we’re letting Ruben do it for a change. As well for us, as you as a (potential) user, it’s good to have an outsider’s perspective on the use of the Ledsreact basic. Not only do we receive useful feedback, but we also gain insights in how you use our product, and how we can meet requirements that you have, that we might not have known about.
Who is Ruben Neyens?
Ruben Neyens, not an unknown name in the tennis world. He was (is) a tennis player himself and started coaching without a specific goal or purpose with his coaching skills. It soon became clear that Ruben was a magnificent coach, fascinated by tennis, but also into duathlon, triathlon, trail running, and sports all around. He works for Tennis Vlaanderen and manages trainees within the organisation.
He went from being a player, coach, educating coaches to educating the coach who educates the coaches. Are you still following? No worries, all you need to know is that Ruben is an awesome tennis coach, who not only knows what he’s doing but shares that knowledge with a lot of young talent.
Here we go…
How did you get in touch with Ledsreact?
That’s a good question, I actually can’t remember (laughs). I think Koen probably called me and asked if I wanted to try the product. It happened pretty naturally, I just tested it and so it began basically.
Why did, or would you choose the Ledsreact Basic?
Overall, for maneuverability and agility. With the Basic it’s all about color and direction, and there is so much you can do with that, but you have to be creative. For example working with kids, they each have different exercises for different colours. So when blue pops up, they know which exercise to do, when red lights up, it’s a different one. Playing with the Ledsreact Basic is about a lot more than ‘just’ agility or reaction speed.
“ I use Ledsreact as an assistant-coach, basically”
Also, I love using it for group training. You have a couple of players using the Ledsreact, while I can focus on one player in particular. Especially for top sport, each athlete is doing their thing, while they have the Ledsreact as assistant-coach and of course the ‘real’ coach is walking around and helping them as well. As a start-stop signal, it’s also such a great help.
Is there something different about our tool than other training techniques?
The principles are usually the same, but the product is obviously different. Considering the price, the Ledsreact basic is just very good. There are such big differences in price range when it comes to agility training products. Compared to other ones, this tool just goes so high up my ranking when it comes to quality.
“ I’ve had the Ledsreact Basic for so long, and it just doesn’t break (laughs)”
I travel with it, take it everywhere I go… Very handy to put in a travel bag!
If you would describe our tool in 3 words, what would they be?
- Handy: it’s no rocket science, but just easy to use.
- Reliable: you put it there, and it works: period. No complicated upgrades or technical issues, just a product that I can count on.
- Multifunctional: You have to be creative, but there is so much more than meets the eye when it comes to the Ledsreact basic.
What would you improve, or is there something you miss about the Ledsreact Basic?
Uhm... It would be useful if there was a possibility of reaching for something in the air. I know that’s a lot to ask, but as a tennis coach, grabbing something and measuring that ‘grabbing speed’ would be such an awesome feature to have. Agility in the air is so important.
What is your athletes' feedback, are they happy using the tool?
We are modernizing the training, so athletes are more than happy about that. They can see the use of it, and are eager to try it… ‘Oh cool, I want to train with Ledsreact, can I try?’ The exercises we do with Ledsreact bring added value. Instead of me shouting out the signal, the Ledsreact basic gives the signal. That’s an upgrade for their training, because the athletes can continue their training whilst the coach is talking or focussing on someone else.
You said one of the 3 things that is typical about our tool is that it’s multifunctional. How many times do you upgrade your exercises or switch things up?
Obviously I work in the same playing field a lot. Using it as a start-stop signal, for direction use… But it’s how I use the signal that varies. Pure direction: start-stop, or cognitive drills or… But the tool stays the same, so the variety has to come from the coach. In the demo for the new product (spoiler alert!) I saw that performance and feedback for coach and player is next level interesting. So I am so excited to see more, and work with the new product as soon as it launches…