Coaching Young Athletes – Teaching Again
The funniest thing happened 3 weeks ago…
I decided to go back to the grassroots of where I started
Now make no mistake, although my ‘full time’ coaching days are about 7 years in the rearview mirror, I’ve maintained a coaching schedule through the entire thick and thin of both developing and running the IYCA.
I’ve worked with volleyball clubs, high school football, soccer, track and baseball teams and even moonlighted occasionally as a guest speed and agility instructor for local youth sporting associations.
But this summer, I’m heading back to the trenches.
I met a very young (23), ambitious and capable Coach who owns his own facility not more than 15 minutes from my house – we started chatting and 3 weeks ago, I agreed to take a position as a ‘Coach’ at his up and coming training center.
No pay.
This time, ‘In the Trenches’ is because I love it, feel obligated (in a good way) to give back and don’t need the money in order to pay my bills.
So the summer of 2011 for me, will be back doing what I love most every day:
Making young athletes better people.
Job #1 has been to review this facility’s current training system and attend live sessions as an observer.
To see if there are holes.
To understand what is expected of the athletes and staff in this facility.
To appreciate what will be expected of me.
My first inspected conclusion was simple… For a 23 year old Coach, this guy has got his stuff together very well!
In fact, the experience of ‘watching to determine’ got me thinking that I should chronicle to you what this 23 year old does so well… Because most of it is inherent to his personality and not something he’s learned from a textbook, conference or DVD.
So consider these heartily as potential inclusions for yourself and your own coaching young athletes habits…
(1) Specific Instruction Time
Although not IYCA certified when we met, this particular 23 year already understood, embraced and implemented perhaps the most critical of all IYCA Tenants:
Don’t Train… Teach.
By simply feelings his way through the coaching process, this young man knew instinctively that young athletes are ‘works in progress’ and that the urge to ‘make tired through hard work’ must be tempered by the undeniable need to teach proper execution.
His facility is not ‘numbers’ oriented.
He does not appease the symptomotolgy requirements for what most consider the hallmarks of quality training with respect to young people (breathless, sweaty, can’t walk the next day).
Every one of his training sessions is methodical in the way he teaches complexity through simplicity, prior to implementing an exercise into a given routine.
I’ve been very heartened watching this and believe fully that more Coaches need to take an honest look at there programming methods with respect to proper instruction.
Come back tomorrow for ‘Part 2’…
Everything I Learned in 15 Years In the Trenches… Working With More Than 20,000 Young Athletes:
Click Here: http://completeathletedevelopment.com/
– Brian
Great work Brian, another shining example of what the IYCA stands for – giving back to the community rather than the greed that can so often creep into our industry.
Keep it up