* When I first posted this- the last line was inadvertently left out after the photo. This was pointed out by a reader. SINCERE Thanks.

The last line  SHOULD HAVE read- THIS WAS A REPOST from Tom Burdorf’s great blog. If you do not follow his blog- you should. He has a lot of great things to say.

When I was in High School (a fairly long time ago) I was often frustrated by the learning process. Each teacher viewed their class as THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. They did not work together. I had a 10 page term paper due in History and a 10 page term paper due in English. Could I use the same paper in both? NOPE.

I never understood the reasoning behind this. Why not have one, 15 page paper due. With the History teacher working in conjunction with the English teacher.

I see many gyms that work like that. The Vault Coach has a certain set of drills and conditioning that they insist MUST be done. The Floor coach has a certain set they feel, of course, must be done. The same is true for every event.

The beauty of gymnastics is that certain movements are shared at each event. As coaches we need to consciously make connections to make training more effective and efficient. We need to understand that that although we may target a particular event or muscle group they  are all affected regardless of the emphasis. Ultimately the most important connection we must make is to connect the training to the competition. Never lose sight of the fact that the goal of training is to prepare the athlete for competition, therefore all training must connect to competition by thoroughly preparing the athlete for the demands of the competition.

Now although I am a HUGE advocate of working together. I also believe that there can only be one leader. Pick your cliche’

• a team with 2 starting quarterbacks is a team with out a quarterback. (ask the NY Jets)
• Too many cooks ruin the soup
• Too many Chiefs, not enough indians. 

Work as a TEAM to come up with THE PLAN. F

 

ollow through by Implementing the PLAN. There will be a time when you will be the leader. There will be a time for you follow.  When you lead- lead by example. When you follow, follow with gusto. I have seen too many gyms brought down by dissension. Work Together towards that common goal of gymnastics greatness.

 

THIS WAS A REPOST from Tom Burdorf’s  blog (on Facebook) . If you do not follow his blog- you should. He has a lot of great things to say.

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