One of my adult clients told me when her son was younger, he wanted to play soccer so she needed to volunteer coach in order to field a team, she had no idea how to play soccer. So, she put on her coaching sneakers, went on-line and learned how to play soccer.
She teaches junior high school, she had to use a teaching model, to 'coach' a youth soccer team. As she's telling me her brief story I'm thinking about the last blog I wrote and how she did what we try to get most coaches to do, teach.
What got me even more excited about what she did naturally, was incorporate playground like games,"just to mix it up". Awesome. Part of our program here is to incorporate a conditioning game in every session. I have had some stellar tag games this week. Shark in the tank, Tail tag, Obstacle tag
Games allow athletes to move, think, rehearse, and most of all HAVE FUN! It keeps the mood light, puts smiles on faces, and I get to participate more:)
Keep in mind that athletes of all ages need to take a break from the grind in workouts and practices. Incorporate simple, active games, even they don't have specific relation to the particular sport, it keeps the practices and workouts fresh. Your athletes will appreciate it and so will you.
'Till next year.
In Sport and Health,
Len
Pioneer Valley Youth Sport and Fitness Institute
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
Youth Fitness Education for Parents
I get the enjoyment of working with kids (6-18yo) everyday. It allows me to get into the fun of playing, working out, making weird jokes, learning about technology (the kids know way more than I do), and learning what the 'in' music of the times are.
My passion is to educate/teach kids about how fitness can be fun. Its not about running them through drills and drills and drills, then tell them to go faster, do them right. My math teacher didn't to that to me, heck, no teacher ever did that to me, why should I do that to the kids I teach.
Parents, we can't expect our kids and athletes to be more healthy, be faster and stronger without teaching them WHY and how.
The more kids understand WHY they are being asked to perform a movement, a drill, WHY it may help to do a drill slower or at top speed, the more their going to be into it. The more we tell them, show them, HOW to perform the drill the more likely they are to do it right, at top speed, and with good technique.
There are coaches and there are teachers. When I see parents having their kids work with coaches who 'just don't get it', I get angry. I have had many conversations in the past two weeks with other youth fitness specialists and coaches who DO get it, and the common theme, we need to educate the parents.
Parents please do your homework. What is the style of "coaching"? How are progressions made? What should be expected from the athlete? How does the "coach" work with kids depending on their biological age? These are the questions you should be thinking about when your allowing your son or daughter to be in the care of someone else, for sometimes up to 6 to 10 hours a week.
This doesn't mean just with a strength coach, fitness trainer. I mean with all sports kids play. Now, I know many youth coaches are volunteers, without them teams may not even be formed, they should not be expected to know this, well, there are many resources that offer this know how, and I don't mean its necessarily with your local rec department.
Locally, in the Pioneer Valley, checkout STRIDES Human Performance Institute ( I know I'm biased), they are only one of a couple places that understand, have experience, and want others to understand how to teach kids in sport and fitness correctly.
I hope this finds you well and gearing up for a new year. As teachers, coaches, and parents embark on another year of sport and fitness, lets make the most of what we can offer our kids in sport and fitness.
In Sport and Health,
Len Haggerty,MA, CSCS, YFS
Pioneer Valley Youth Sport and Fitness Institute
My passion is to educate/teach kids about how fitness can be fun. Its not about running them through drills and drills and drills, then tell them to go faster, do them right. My math teacher didn't to that to me, heck, no teacher ever did that to me, why should I do that to the kids I teach.
Parents, we can't expect our kids and athletes to be more healthy, be faster and stronger without teaching them WHY and how.
The more kids understand WHY they are being asked to perform a movement, a drill, WHY it may help to do a drill slower or at top speed, the more their going to be into it. The more we tell them, show them, HOW to perform the drill the more likely they are to do it right, at top speed, and with good technique.
There are coaches and there are teachers. When I see parents having their kids work with coaches who 'just don't get it', I get angry. I have had many conversations in the past two weeks with other youth fitness specialists and coaches who DO get it, and the common theme, we need to educate the parents.
Parents please do your homework. What is the style of "coaching"? How are progressions made? What should be expected from the athlete? How does the "coach" work with kids depending on their biological age? These are the questions you should be thinking about when your allowing your son or daughter to be in the care of someone else, for sometimes up to 6 to 10 hours a week.
This doesn't mean just with a strength coach, fitness trainer. I mean with all sports kids play. Now, I know many youth coaches are volunteers, without them teams may not even be formed, they should not be expected to know this, well, there are many resources that offer this know how, and I don't mean its necessarily with your local rec department.
Locally, in the Pioneer Valley, checkout STRIDES Human Performance Institute ( I know I'm biased), they are only one of a couple places that understand, have experience, and want others to understand how to teach kids in sport and fitness correctly.
I hope this finds you well and gearing up for a new year. As teachers, coaches, and parents embark on another year of sport and fitness, lets make the most of what we can offer our kids in sport and fitness.
In Sport and Health,
Len Haggerty,MA, CSCS, YFS
Pioneer Valley Youth Sport and Fitness Institute
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