From Practice to the Podium. You need a long term plan for success in the gymnastics world.
This is the powerpoint video of the lecture I will be giving at the NGA Conference in New Orleans June 2023.
WHY THEY CRUMBLE AT THE END OF THE SEASON
Picture yourself at a competition — Let’s say Level 10 Regionals or The US Secret Classic. Your team started off the season in great shape and won most of the competitions you went to. First event, they’re in the lead as usual and feeling confident, which seems to make them try even harder. They hold their frontrunner status into the third event, but then their motivation flags, they begin to underperform, and they run the risk of blowing their shot at JO Nationals or P&G Championships.
That’s a common mental sequence for competitors of all sorts, according to new research by Szu-chi Huang, an assistant professor of marketing at Stanford Graduate School of Business, and her collaborators Jordan Etkin of Duke University and Liyin Jin of Fudan University. The work, forthcoming in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, shows that in the early phase of competition, being in the lead boosts motivation by convincing the participant that winning is possible, while leading later in the contest actually decreases motivation by reducing the perceived amount of additional effort required to achieve victory.
“Sometimes being ahead boosts our motivation and performance and sometimes it actually hurts,” says Huang.
In the early phases of the competition season you’re uncertain about who you are competing against. You are unsure whether winning is actually a possibility. So when they jump out in the lead early on, their motivation spikes, since they believe winning is attainable. But as the competition season drags on, their motivation wanes, since they believe they need to expend less effort to win.
The best thing you can do to keep their motivation humming along is to get them to look away from themself in the lead, and instead focus on another high standard. Set performance goals at each competition. Have the gymnasts write them down so that they can keep track of their accomplishments.
That way, they’ll be prompted to give the task at hand more effort, since they haven’t yet reached the standards of what they’re comparing themselves to.
The other side of that is when your team doesn’t feel they could possibly win. I have seen many programs fill their gymnasts minds with false hope. Then they go to a competition and get crushed. Or the coach that goes “trophy shopping”. They pick the meets they go to by what meets they can win.
Take care in the planning of your season. Set goals at for each competition. You should have meets where the gymnasts leave hungry. Knowing that their best was ALMOST good enough. Pick a meet where they can throw their big skill routines knowing that they can still win with a mistake or 2. Make sure you schedule is some REST periods.
AND IF YOU ARE LIKE ME IN THE SNOWY NORTHEAST- PICK A WARM WEATHER MEET!
ADDITION
Think about how many football games end with scores pretty close. 1 team dominates the first half. The second 1/2 is much closer because the team in front is “playing not to lose” as opposed to “playing to win”. This years Super Bowl supports this theory,
Thoughts on GYMNASTICS Excellence
I was recently working with a group of gymnasts from Club de Gymnastique Gymini in Quebec. These young ladies were well trained, strong and flexible. It made my job very easy but It made me think: What goes into Athletic excellence and coaching excellence? Luckily I had a 6 hour drive home to ponder this.
It is a question that always fascinates me. I go into a gym and see some great gymnasts. Gymnasts with perceived “athletic talent” but who have not (or will not) have success. Every young coach wants to have successful gymnasts. During the course of my career I have been fortunate to train with, observe and coach some great gymnasts. I have also been able to work with and closely observe some great coaches.
There is some obvious overlap between gymnastics excellence and coaching excellence.
Talent and Ability – You can argue what talent and ability are but regardless of how you define them they are a must. The truly excellent athletes make the most of their ability. Sometimes they may not have the most ability but they find ways to exploit what they have to the maximum.
Mindset – “Mindset” is the current buzzword, when I started coaching I had no idea what it was called, but every great gymnast that I have seen has had that hunger for growth and were tough. They focused on the possibilities and were not usually afraid to make a change. (I am currently re-reading the book “Mindset” and would encourage you to pick it up)
Focus – Excellence in any sport or job demands a laser like focus on the task at hand. No distractions.
Dedication – This is a given and goes along with focus. They know what they have to do and are willing to make the sacrifices to achieve that.
Routine – The great ones have training and practice routines that border on ritual. (admittedly- some may take it a bit too far) I think this serves as a psychological anchor, a point of reference that gives them a sense a security. They come in everyday and start it the same. When they step into a gym for competition, they start that day the same way.
Lining up after Training
Resilience – They have the ability to bounce back from failure or setbacks, learn from it and internalize the lesson to get better. This cannot be overstated. In gymnastics, as in life, there are going be injuries, frustration and setbacks. Those who have the tools to deal with these setbacks are the ones I have seen as the most successful.
Lifestyle – If you are an athlete you are an athlete for 24 hours a day. In gymnastics there is no off season or off time. You are always preparing for the next competition whether it is this Saturday or in 6 months. LIFE OF AN ATHLETE is something that you want to look up.
Consistency – The great gymnast is consistent, the lows are not too low and the highs are not too high. Everyday they move forward. If only a little. They operate on an even keel. As a coach you know what you are going to get. They show up everyday. The spectacular comes from the consistency in training and competition.
They know what they want – Focus on the goal at all times. The goals guide them like a beacon in a storm. The goals keep them on course. These goals are measurable and attainable but NOT easy.
Know Their Strengths – They are acutely aware of their strengths and train and compete to their strength. Over time they have the ability to bring their weaknesses up to the level of their strengths.
Risk – Nothing worthwhile is easy and by and large nothing easy is worthwhile. Great gymnasts are willing to take calculated risks and occasionally push the envelope. There is always risk intruding to be the best. This demands that they are comfortable with being uncomfortable all the time.
Athletic Intelligence – The great athlete possess an high athletic IQ. They know their bodies; they know when to push and when to back off. They understand their sport. They may not be able to articulate it but they show it in everything they do in training and competition.
I am sure there are more. But this is all I could write down as I was driving home!
Training Plan For The Season
Your seasons training plan
By the time you get this, your gymnasts will be back in school. Some of your lower levels may already be preparing for their first competition. It’s going to be a long seasons and you need be be prepared. You know all the basics. You know about about how many routines you would like them to do each week. You have your conditioning plan.
BUT WHAT ELSE DO YOU NEED TO PUT INTO YOUR PLAN?
Start with the basics and never stray far from the basics.
No matter how many routines you need to do, hit basics every day.
Don’t try to replicate the stress of the sport in training, instead prepare for the stress of the sport.
Gymnastics takes a toll on the body and the mind. If everyday you go in and beat up the body and the mind, how long do you think the gymnasts are going to last?
Have a plan, execute it and constantly evaluate the plan.
Even the BEST plan needs to be tweaked as the season goes on. Have some TEST events. Pick a competition and a goal. evaluate your plan, tweak what is necessary and move on to the next test.
Coach the person not the athlete.
Each gymnast you work with is going to be a little different. You are coaching gymnasts, not robots. Along the same line, it doesn’t matter if a 10 year old is a level 5 or a level 10. What matters is that they are a 10 year old! Coach their age, not their level!
Teach skills not drills.
When you break down a skill into its smaller parts make sure YOU and the gymnast know each part. Make sure the gymnasts know what skills the drills are for.
Build on strengths and minimize weaknesses. (Favorite quote from Dr. George, “Take your worst event, make it your best, then take your worst event, make IT your best…”)
Train fast to be fast. You are what you train to be.
Adaptation is not just about time; it is the timing of the appropriate training stimulus to achieve the desired training response.
You compete the way you train. Understand the demands of the sport and train to exceed those demands.
Don’t try to replicate competitions in training, distort it.
Never allow equipment or facilities to dictate your training.
As you are coming up with YOUR Plan, here are some thoughts that make a difference.
– It’s not good enough to just show up you must be there in mind, body and spirit. Be PRESENT.
– Just talking about commitment is not enough; be committed through your actions.
– This year, try to Communicate by listening more and talking less.
– Take responsibility and use it to grow and expand your abilities.No excuses.
– Failure and adversity represent an opportunity to grow and learn. Failure is a prerequisite to success.
– Define yourself constantly don’t let others define you.
You want to really be the best? Don’t just Be the first there and the last to leave. Make the most of every minute.
Good luck with your season
Tony
Planning for Gymnastics Success
We are at the point in the season where many coaches have expressed their frustration to me. The season is almost over and things aren’t going the way they want it to. They feel they have put in the time, they have worked hard and still they fall short at competitions. With many of these coaches what I have seen is a failure to come up with a comprehensive plan OR failing to plan at all!
When I was a rookie coach I was told to practice the “6 P’s” Precise Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. It took me a few years to understand everything that must go into a plan and to this day I always feel that I am adding small categories of things that need to go into my plan. I am adamant that my plan must be written down. That way if something works- I don’t have to remember it! If something doesn’t work I have a reference to go back to.
Planning: the preparatory work the coach must do to structure training systematically in alignment with the themes and objectives of training and the athlete’s level of conditioning.
The process is the result of the experience of the coach coupled with applicable sport science concepts.
Jan Olbrecht, Belgian sport scientist, likens the training plan to a table of contents in a book. It should be comprehensive, covering all aspects of the athlete’s performance.
The training plan (Table of contents) should include:
- The competition – classified as to their relative importance
Crucial
Important
Developmental - The specific training goals
- The specific competitive goals
- A broad overview of the means and methods of training.
- A projection of the number of training sessions, as well as volume and intensity of the main training components.
- The dates of in gym tests and the actual test to be used. (Physical abilities, 1/2 routines, stuck dismount day, etc.)
- Non-training commitments (school holidays, vacations, Exams)
- Contingency Plans. EVERYONE needs a back up plan.
- Some related Posts
I also know that we will have a session on planning at Gym Momentum Training Camp.
Do you have a gymnastics PROGRAM? Part 3
I just finished a pretty busy spring where I have been coaching at The International Challenge part of Gym Nix International. A Training Camp in Whitehorse in the Yukon, The University of Calgary International Cup and most recently in Iceland.
At Gymnix there were teams from Canada, US, Sweden, France, Belgium, and Wales.
Some pretty fantastic gymnastics. What was apparent with these gyms was that they a program and a system to become successful. Whether it was Liukin and WOGA or the Team from Manitoba. They had a plan and a system. They nurtured the gymnasts, taught them gymnastics, taught them how to compete. They new where they were and they knew where they were going.
One of the clubs I consult with KIDSPORT from Minnesota was there. It was their gymnast (Lexy) first International competition. Rob knew what Lexy’s basic bar routine was going to be years ago. There were adjustments (A Comenecci as opposed to a Gienger. A full out as opposed to double lay out) but he had a plan. Watching his videos of 5 kids in a row NAIL triple fulls, and 3 kids in a row do a full in or full out, he obviously has a plan and knows not only what he wants from the group but he also makes wise skill selection for the individuals.
Any one can get lucky with a talented kid walking into their gym. BUT- what are you going to do with it? How many kids in a population show above average talent? 1 in 10? 1 in 20? 1 in 100?
How many kids show that SPECIAL thing to bring them to the top? 1 in 1000? 1 in 10,000?
You need to make your gym a magnet for talent. The only way to do that is to:
- take the mediocre kid and make them AVERAGE
- The average kid and make them GOOD
- The good kid and make them GREAT
- And the Great kid and make the AMAZING.
Talk is Cheap
It is so easy to talk about excellence, winning, commitment and leadership but what actions are you actually taking to achieve those things? What is your specific action plan? Who is going to help and guide you? What changes do you need to make to be the best you can be? What are you willing to sacrifice? Stop talking about it and do something now.
The path to EXCELLENCE is paved with good intentions – turn the intentions into action!
Characteristics of a Sound Training Program
In all my travels I have been getting requests to evaluate their training programs. Rather than specifically evaluate any program I think it is better to describe the characteristics of a sound program and you can use this to evaluate and draw your own conclusions.
Technique- You can not argue with physics and mechanics. Our bodies and the equipment react to certain constants and constraints. As I have said before- the technique you teach needs to become your religion.
Progression – You should be able to see clear definitive progression both inter and intra workout. In addition the progression should take into account training age.
Clearly Defined Goals – A sound program starts with the end in mind and clearly works toward that end.
Training is a means to an end – Training should not be an end unto itself.
Individual – A sound training program fits the individual and takes into account trainability and recoverability. Not Every drill is going to work with every gymnast. Not every skill is appropriate for every gymnast.
Beyond the Exercise – It is always more than an exercise or a drill. The drill or exercise is a means to an end.
Can Do – A sound program will focus on what the athlete can do, not what they can’t do. Optimize the strengths and minimize the weaknesses.
Risk – Manage risk by weighing the risk:return ratio of the training methods.
Variation – Incorporate programmed systematic variations to insure continual adaptation.
Spectrum – Incorporate a spectrum of methods that insure all systems are trained all the time.
Basics – Never stray far from the basics, no gimmicks, no fads and no quick fixes.
Do you have a gymnastics PROGRAM? Part 2
Read PROGRAM PART 1.
PLANNING is the key to have a true PROGRAM. When I was still a very inexperienced coach who happened to be working with a group of incredibly talented gymnasts who were having a great deal of success on bars I was asked by a colleague what was my plan. I had a daily routine and a competition plan, but I realized that I did not really have a PLAN on bars. So I spent a few weeks writing down my plan for each event.
- What skills at what age.
- What technique I wanted and WHY.
- What conditioning skills to include to facilitate the skills
- What Progressions for common skill
- What was I looking for in Skill selection
- Expectations at each event for each level.
- Skills for now and skills for the future
For the last 25 years this plan has changed VERY little. It has served as my road map. Yes, different kids visited different towns on that map. Some took some side roads instead of the highway but very few have gotten lost.
I can spot a gym with a PLAN in about 2 minutes watching them train or compete. If I see 4 different techniques with 4 different kids, I am pretty sure that is a gym without a plan. If I see kids wandering around the gym waiting for practice to start and not sure what to do, that is a gym with out a plan. There will always be slight variations in technique depending on certain anthropomorphic factors but when I see completely different technique, I know that is not a road to success.
There will be always be exceptions, but you cannot make the exceptions the rule.
Variety may be the spice of life but it is also true that too many chefs ruin the soup. Each group you coach (and each individual you coach) will be different. Different coaches within a program will take a slightly different approach. In order for a program to work, all parts need to be be organized. Following the same path with accepted techniques and progressions. Like a marriage they need to share the same core values.
Technique and progressions need to be your Religion. You need to believe in them to your core. You can be a convert- (I have been converted with certain techniques) but it should not be easy. You need to stick with it for a while.
Drills are the variety. The Spice. But not the substitute for consistent technique and sound progressions.
The MOST consistently successful programs through out the USA are pretty tight and Top down.
- These are our expectations.
- These are the progressions we will follow from skill A to Skill B
- Here is the map you will follow, you can get off the main road, but do not stray too far
Think of your Program.
Is there just an overall plan with individual coaches free to bring kids up any way they want with any technique?
- Do you have a plan for what skills and progressions need to be taught
- What are the expectations and demands you want?
- What is the technique you want taught for skills?
Do you have a gymnastics PROGRAM? Part 1.
pro·gram
ˈprōˌgram,-grəm/
noun
noun: programme; plural noun: programmes; noun: program; plural noun: programs
1. a planned series of future events, items, or performances.
2. a plan of action to accomplish a specified end.
3. a plan or schedule of activities, procedures, etc., to be followed.
verb
verb: program; 3rd person present: programs; past tense: programmed; past participle: programmed; gerund or present participle: programming; past tense: programed; past participle: programed; gerund or present participle: programing
1. arrange according to a plan or schedule.“we learn how to program our own lives consciously”
Is your Team a PROGRAM or is it a series of loosely related events?
If you THINK you have a program- how tight is it?
As I spend an increasing amount of time in other peoples gyms I am impressed by the planning of some and concerned over the lack of planning by others. I am a firm believer that you need to have a plan to serve as a map for your program. With out it you do not really have any idea of where you are going or what is next.
Early in my career as a coach I was given the advice that to be successful I needed to use the 6 P’s of COACHING (Thank you Kip Reed and Don Tonry)
Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance
Using the same alliteration Here the the 6 P’s of Essential Training.
Progression – It is a building process where each step is dependent on the step before. Learn it RIGHT the first time
Practical – Get training and preparation done within the context of the time, personnel and facilities available.
Personal – The training must fit the individual; one size does not fit all. Above all make the training yours, own it.
Practice – This is where the rubber meets the road; it is where the plan is put into action on a daily basis. Without purposeful directed practice it is impossible to improve.
Planning – Be proactive, planning allows you to bring the future into the present so you can do something about it.Successful coaches have a daily detailed plan for their journey with built in landmarks to frequently assess their progress to goals.
and above all
Patience – It takes time to grow as an athlete and as a coach. Allow for adaptation and growth. It just takes time.
Patience
Learning How To Train
The other day I was able to step out of the gym and take a look as the Level 9s and 10s trained. It reminded of how important it is to learn how to train. It also reminded what a big step this is in the development of the athlete. The group ranged from first year Level 9s to some 10s who have competed at Nationals a number of times. The contrast in the workout was amazing to watch. Everyone did the workout. [Read more…]