Hey everyone!
I have been a rec coach for quite some time but have recently been moved into coaching team. I love it but I need some advice because I am starting to spot higher level skills. I am getting trained but I want to have some knowledge going into training. I would be training to coach optionals (6-10) plus xcel P and D.
Thanks in advance!
Welcome to the nuthouse! Here's some general advice for coaching team:
1) Look two levels ahead. If you want to know what your level 6's should be doing, look at your level 8s. Especially look at what they're struggling on; is there any way you can preemptively avoid those issues with your level 6's?
2) I'm a big believer in the 5% rule; that is, whatever skill you're trying to work on, the athletes should be spending at most 5% of their time actually doing that skill, and the rest of their time breaking it down into components. For example, say you want to improve their roundoffs; they should be spending roughly 95% of their time doing snapdown drills and entry drills and shaping drills and cartwheel step-ins and so on, and only 5% of their time actually doing roundoffs. Speaking of which.....
3) Any skill can be broken down into components. Those components can usually be broken down into components. And so on. What you'll almost always find is that if you keep breaking a skill down enough, it turns into strength, shaping, handstand basics, trampoline basics, and occasionally flexibility.
Now, as for spotting, here's the best advice I can give:
1) Your number one priority at all times is to protect the athlete's head and neck
2) Ask another coach to show you how to spot any specific skills you want to learn, and then spend a lot of time practicing with kids who don't really need the spot before you start spotting kids who actually need it. You want to develop the muscle memory to get where you need to be.
3) Make sure you're staying in shape. Core strength is the most important part, but lower body strength and shoulder and bicep strength will also be important.
4) Make sure you're keeping the athlete about as close to you as you can possibly get without taking a knee to the face; if the athlete is going down, you want to be in a position where you can get a shoulder or a hip under them.
5) Your number one priority at all times is to protect the athlete's head and neck.
