Last night I had to pleasure of going out to dinner with the coaches from Club De Gymnastique Gymini after a long day in the gym. We spoke about the The process of creative coaching. There are many coaches smarter than me. What I think makes be an “above average coach” is the ability to see the same skill, the same movement and see something different than everyone else is seeing or has seen. That could be just experience (having made many misses before!). Coaching is constant iteration, prototyping, tinkering to get it right for that athlete and team. Coaching is not a reductionist paint by numbers algorithm. Each gymnast is a case study of one. The creative process recognizes that the body is smart and that when given challenging movement problems to solve it will soon “figure it out” without step-by-step mechanistic instruction. The solution may not meet the criteria of perfect technique or ideal training but it works. Getting “it” to work is the measure of good coaching. Use all your senses; follow your instincts to put the athlete in a position to succeed.
Though the years I have found that I do a few things better than most.
I get the gymnasts to believe in themselves. To believe in their ability. To do this they must know that I believe in them and their ability.
I also believe that I prepare the gymnasts for competitions and the competition season. I have a plan both for the TEAM and the INDIVIDUAL. Not only for the season but for their career.
Just some thoughts from last night.
