Injury Causes and Prevention: Programming

I wanted to write briefly on the accusation that improper programming leads to injury. I have heard critics over and over again lambast certain programs or certain styles of training with the accusation that the only measureable result produced is an injured athlete. Between the amount of lifting prescribed in Outlaw’s program and the American criticism of Ivan Abadjiev’s training program, the hate for success is unreal. Everyone wants to hate on the programs that take their athletes to a successful level, ESPECIALLY if the program is different than the rest.
A lot of times injury is attributed to certain programs and certain philosophies when the blame should rest on the coach. I know many gyms who have adopted certain training programs and seen widespread injuries from it so they blamed the program. However, when the coaches of that gym are asked to explain in detail the mechanics of the lifts or the proper mechanics to a gymnastic movement they are unable to do so. Yet they blame the program.
That being said I do believe there is something to be said about smart programming. Clearly a program that is designed without forethought and understanding of the human body can be detrimental to the growth of an athlete even injurious.
The bottomline is that you can’t blame a program as the root cause for injury if the coaches administering the program aren’t able to properly coach the movements. Furthermore, you should not design a program for your athletes if you don’t first have a base knowledge of the proper loading needed and anatomical impact the program will have on a specific athlete. A program can cause injury if these factors are not taken into consideration. However, even a general, high school strength plan can cause injury if the coach has no idea how to coach.
Be wary of programs that don’t have credible coaches behind them but also be weary of good programs being coached by ignorant coaches.