Entries Tagged 'psychology' ↓

why we coach kids …

Seems Aunt Joyce, deep down, is a big softie.

I love this video he linked. The joy of first accompishment.

… Every gymnast and skater knows the feeling of struggling and struggling with a skill or a jump until one day something clicks and they randomly start making it. Elena Arenas, daughter of Gym Dog great Kim Arnold (video), is an adorable young gymnast. Here, her father captures her first full on video. It is wonderful to see the joy on her face and the confidence she exudes showing off her cool new move.

Elena and her older sister frequently perform exhibitions prior to Gym Dog meets. …

Click PLAY or watch Elena on YouTube.

Aunt Joyce – Heartwarming Moment

Now how do we keep more of this joy when they become angsty teenagers?

go SLOW to go FAST

… in order to go fast in the development of a gymnast, we need to go SLOW. Coaches need to make the athletes and parents understand that Gymnastics is a long term sport, especially if seeking to reach a high level of competition. Strong basics and fundamentals are key to the success of any athlete in any sport.

The tap swings(on Uneven Bars) are a perfect example of something we need to take a LONG time on. It doesn’t matter if a gymnast already has the correct body shape in the transfer between the hollow-arch-hollow….. it needs to be repeated many times so it can be strengthen and “recorded” in the brain. …

ET Gymnastics Coaching

Reading this post I was reminded of the philosophies of David Kenwright.

Click PLAY or watch the video on YouTube.

what’s important … aside from Olympic medals?

Clara Hughes is one of the greatest Olympic athletes of all time. She’s the only women to win multiple medals in both Summer and Winter Olympics.

Amazing.


Sport At Its Best posted an interview with Clara where she talks about “winning”.

Nor surprisingly, the most amazing performances she’s witnessed in a very long career did not involve winning medals.

It’s a great read for all coaches.

Sport At Its Best – Clara Hughes interview

Thanks Brett for linking to this on Facebook.

Dad supportive of youth sport?

Sports Girls Play linked to an amusing TV commercial:

… this PSA ad put out a few years ago spotlights the importance of Dad’s involvement in the development of their childrens’ self esteem. Enjoy….

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

(via Youth Sports Parents and Sports Girls Play)

Devon Kershaw – Own The Podium

Here’s a great example of why Canada’s “Own The Podium” is the right program, with the wrong name.

One of the great success stories is this guy …

Olympic News - February 28, 2010

He was shattered after finishing with a personal best, Canada’s best ever 5th place in the men’s 50KM Mass Start cross country ski race.

… “My goal was to stay with the leaders, conserve as much energy as I could,” Kershaw explained. “It’s a marathon. It takes over two hours. You have to be so calm and collected. I accomplished everything I hoped for, and more. But to be 1.5 seconds from the gold medal in a race so long …… when I see my technicians, it’s going to be really hard. It’s the best 50K of my life. But, at the same time, it’s really tough to place fifth.” …

Vancouver Sun

Devon Kershaw really believed he could beat Petter Northug of Norway, the reigning World Champion.

That’s the psychology you should have to compete at the Olympics.

Kershaw is pysically, technically and psychologically ready to win. That’s what Own The Podium is all about.

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That’s the same race, by the way, where coaches decided not to compete the alternate, blind skier Brian McKeever:

… Alex Harvey of St-Ferreol-les-Neiges, Que., and Ivan Babikov of Canmore, Alta., were the last skiers on the course to cross the finish line.

Harvey was 32nd and Babikov 33rd, which called into question the decision to sit alternate Brian McKeever, the legally blind skier who was seeking to become the first winter athlete to compete in both the Olympics and Paralympics.

Harvey and Babikov didn’t appear to have anything left in the tank after a series of earlier races, whereas McKeever was fresh. The 50-km race would have been his only Olympic event. …

introducing leap on beam

Posted by Al Fong.

… It’s all in how you raise them from the beginning. When it comes to controlling the fear factor as we teach the “scary” skills, progressions and the right training stations are critical. Our station for the split leap on balance beam is one such example.

Beam Doesn’t Have To Be Scary

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

gymnast Samantha Peszek interview

“I want to be known as the gymnast who always was a pleasant gymnast. Was a happy Elite gymnast and looked like she enjoyed what she did. I had a huge heart for it and I did it because I loved to do it, and not for any other reason. That’s what I try and portray every time I compete. I really enjoy doing gymnastics.”

I really enjoyed Sam’s interview. Click through to read it.

Inside Gymnastics is proud to feature Samantha Peszek as our January/February cover story and we’re sharing a bonus online feature with more of her words about coaches, champions and her idols. Read on to find out what college has in store and her thoughts on little sister, Jessica, following in her steps! …

IN HER OWN WORDS: SAMANTHA PESZEK

2009 Visa Championships Day 2

(via Gymnastics Examiner)

BEST of the Great West Gym Fest

Talking to kids at the big meet in Idaho this weekend, they like best two things:

1) March-in like a big College Meet.

Great West Gym Fest 2010

2) Meeting inspiring Olympians

Courtney Kupets at Great West Gym Fest 2010

The AWARDS are brilliant too. The best anywhere.

See more meet photos on flickr.

gymnastics – teaching Overshoot on Bars

Do you call it overshoot? Shootover? Shoot half? Bail to Handstand?

This skill has many different names.

Here’s a nice series of progressions posted by Bart on Gymnastics-Skills.com.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Next, this non-spotting set-up used by Coach Milo. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

The One Arm Drop drill only needs be used if a girl has problems with the system above.

Most coaches end up standing in on this skill in competition for a long, long time. It gives the kids confidence to go for handstand.

Pak is a better alternative, in my opinion.

how quick are you going to get up?

Superb Nike TV commercial: Human Chain.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

… Watching X Country skiing at the Olympics. Brutal tough.

gymnastics – The Secret of Deva

I finally saw this low budget Romanian documentary.

… famous for the legendary gymnast Nadia Comaneci, and its boarding school, which for decades has trained world class gymnasts.

Pitic and Malina might be two of its future stars, but the long road to the podium is full of deprivation. They are eight and nine years old and have been at the school in Deva since they were six. They train for four hours every day and spend the rest of their time in school.

This documentary follows the girls … leading up to their first and most important competition, capturing an intimate and moving insight into the contrast between their dreams, and the often harsh reality.

Teachers.tv

I’ve got mixed feelings. Perhaps that’s not surprising. I’ve got mixed feelings about Romanian gymnastics.

On the one hand, with a population only about as large as Texas, one of the poorest nations in Europe consistently bested Russia, China and the U.S.A.

Their girls were incredibly tough on Floor and Beam. For decades after Nadia.

On the other hand, I’ve heard more nonsense coaching theory from Romanians than any place else in the world. What kind of coach education system have they had there? None? I’m told there’s an intensive program. I’d love to see the curriculum.

The 3 coaches highlighted in this film are excellent examples of how not to coach.

Yes I realize I’m imposing Western values on Romania. Aside from ethics, what’s shown in the documentary is simply not the best way to develop elite gymnasts.

I do get the impression that things have improved there since Nicolae Forminte took over as National Coach.

Leave a comment if you know where people can download or stream The Secret of Deva.

Related posts:

• remember Adriana Giurca (1982-1993)

allegations of gymnast abuse in Romania

Romanian-Gymnastics.com posts a Wall of Shame naming coaches who have been accused of being abusive.

(via Stephthemagicdragon on IG forum)

gymnastics – introducing forward giants

Boys are always surprised when the girls in their gym tell them that forward giants are more difficult than backward. After all, most boys learn forward giants first.

Front giants should be less scary for the beginner. And technique is easier than backward giant.

On straps I always teach forward giant first, boys and girls. But on the rail I’ve only managed to get two or three girls to do forward giant first. A proud accomplishment, those times.

Coach Bart won’t have any problems. He introduces the long hang foward swing in under grip to very young kids. It’s like a game to them at this stage.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

The girls soon learn that it’s easy to hang on in under grip.

See more on his site – Gymnastics-Skills.com – Front Giant

NO DATING rule for gymnasts?

It’s one of the major plot lines in the TV show Make It or Break It.

But how many gyms, in reality, have such an unenforceable restriction?

A gymnast from Tennesse recently had that rule imposed. And started a thread on the Chalk Bucket forum.

In fact, at her gym the rule is in effect for competitive and non-competitive kids.

Like that’s going to work.