One Thing All Accomplished Youth Sports Coaches Do

Almost every practice I watch involving youth sports teams, I notice players warm up with little or no teaching being done. The first 10 to 20 minutes of practice is usually spent performing the basics of sport without any teaching, making this warm up time a waste of time. During warm-ups, players may have performed the fundamentals incorrectly numerous times. With players reinforcing motor skills that many times incorrectly, it becomes very hard to ever change those habits. Additionally, it is important to realize that those initial repetitions are often the most times players will perform a skill in the course of a practice. Multiply those repetitions by the number of practice warm-ups, over the course of the season, and a case can be made that many athletes are reinforcing bad habits a majority of the time.

Good coaches realize that performance, repetition and maintenance of the fundamentals are the keys to team and individual improvement. One of my favorite sayings from an unknown author is, "Doing something right and doing something almost right is the difference between success and failure." Coaches who do not teach during warm-ups, which as mentioned are when the fundamentals are being formed, are letting their players down. Simply put, there is no more important time for coaches to coach then during warm-up time. It is easy for coaches to "coach" during games but what separates good coaches from average coaches is the ability to concentrate on the fundamentals during warm-ups. It always amazes me to see coaches get upset at players for mistakes when the coach is not teaching players at this crucial time.

It is paramount that youth sport coaches observe and coach during their team's warm-up period. By the time players reach advanced levels of sport they usually can perform the basic fundamentals, so strict observation of their warm-ups are not as mandatory. For levels below that, coaches should be alert to players' actions during these times. With this in mind, following are some tips for doing this:



1. Youth coaches should be at practice early enough to have all the set-up work done so they can be ready to coach from the beginning. Expressing to parents the importance of getting players to practice on time is important. Let parents know that players who miss out on the fundamental, warm-up period are at a disadvantage for that day's practice.

2. Coaches should focus on the basics at this time and not allow incorrect or lazy habits to be done.

3. Inexperienced players may need more watching at this time but try to devote equal time to all.

4. Coaches can make warm-up time the most important time of practice by emphasizing it through attention to detail and with the most "praise" of correct fundamentals at this time.

5. Have players perform fundamentals slowly at first, until they are done correctly, then proceed to work on doing them faster.

6. Coaches may have to repeat themselves constantly, but good coaches do not allow players to get away with incorrect habits in any of the fundamental areas.

7. Patience and persistence by the coach will be necessary. Use of a positive voice tone with statements like, "Remember, how I showed you to do it," or 'Don't forget what we are working on" is important.

8. Many kids are more visual learners, so coaches should either demonstrate or have other players, who are doing it correctly, demonstrate the skills.

9. Recognition of players who warm up correctly is always necessary. Praise, said with enthusiasm, will lift players' enthusiasm and self-confidence and spur others to work for that praise.

10. Handing out little rewards for players who work the hardest in warm-ups, as opposed to the star of the games, can help stress the importance of warming up correctly.

In conclusion, good youth sport coaches do not waste any of their practice time to teach, and especially during warmups. Eventually, coaches will notice greater improvement from players with this focus on warm-up time and usually more team wins.


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"Playing major league baseball - cool; helping kids - priceless."
Jack Perconte helps kids and their parents get through the complicated world of youth sports. He shares his playing, coaching and parenting experiences in his books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete: How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport. Read more at:
http://jackperconte.com