What's Ahead
Parents:
   Coaching Conflicts
Coaches:
   When What Parents Say Isn’t What     They Want
Players:
  Handling a Loss

Maine Youth Sports
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P.O. Box 442
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(207) 415-6321

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Just like children bring home homework that is beyond what a parent can help with, young athletes often progress beyond the abilities of a parent. If the problem is not addressed, young players’ frustration at their own lack of progress may increase until the solution is to quit sports altogether. Fortunately, like in school, there are a variety of experts to help with almost every aspect of physical, skill and strategy development.

Though parents may not be able to help directly, parents still have a large role to play in selecting and overseeing these experts. Whether a player is 5 or even 15 years old, parents should:

1. Ask if their child wants help. Kids will apply themselves only if they are motivated to learn. Forcing instruction on a child with limited interest will have little benefit.
2. Locate instructors who like instructing. Not all instructors have the same passion for teaching the same subject over and over. Only instructors who enjoy seeing another’s progress can teach enthusiastically.
3. Watch to determine if the instruction is organized. Spending time with a student is not the same as instructing. Parents should notice how the practice is organized and if the practice builds on previous lessons.
4. Remain open to all areas of instruction. Sometimes, a problem is caused by a breakdown in a more fundamental area and won’t improve until the fundamental issue is resolved.
5. Expect results over time. One lesson is not going to make a major impact on a child’s performance. If a child wants and enjoys the instruction and the instructor is enthusiastic and organized, then lessons will help over time though it may be weeks or months before results can be observed.

It is never too early or too late to consider expert help. Lessons, early on, can provide a level of confidence that lasts over a long period. In addition to helping the player, private instruction can also give parents valuable one-on-one feedback about their child’s progress and insights into drills and activities that would be helpful at home. Teaching, whether in school or in sports, works best when parents respect the role of the educator but stay involved with monitoring progress and results.

Setting Goals

Good performance starts with good goals. Lou Holtz, one the of nation’s most successful college football coaches, once said that “Of all my experiences in managing people, the power of goal setting is the most incredible.” He carried with him a book identifying personal, player and team goals and used these to motivate himself and his team.

In Dr. Kenneth Blanchard’s book, the One Minute Manager, he identifies three steps toward getting the most out of a group of people. While written for a business audience, its lessons also apply to sports teams. The book’s three recommendations are:

• One Minute Goals - Goals are agreements between the coach and the individual players or the coach and the team on the desired accomplishments. Three to five goals should be the limit with a good understanding of current and expected performance.
• One Minute Praisings - Immediate and specific positive feedback helps players know when they are doing something right and encourages them to keep doing it.
• One Minute Reprimands - If goals aren’t being met, then players need quick corrections followed by a reaffirmation of the player’s value and potential.

Goal setting works at any age level although the goals and the methods of communication may be very different. Clear goals keep everyone focused and reviewing their progress. If players can know they are improving, then they will continue working to accomplish their goals.

Identifying Your Special Talent

Everyone would like to be the fastest or strongest player on the team. However, there can only be one “fastest” and one “strongest” player. For teams, this is actually a good thing because teams need different skills to be successful. There are many areas in which players can excel and contribute to a team’s efforts. Players can aspire to be the player who is the:

• Best at playing a position
• Leader in team spirit and attitude
• Hardest working
• Most helpful and encouraging to other players
• Least selfish in scoring situations
• Best at a particular skill
• Most knowledgeable about game situations
• Most consistent from game to game
• Best at defensive play
• Best at scrambling for goals or points

These are just a few of the many different needs that teams have. Teams need players to fill a variety of roles in order to win games. Just because a player isn’t the fastest or strongest player on the team, doesn’t mean that a player won’t have plenty of opportunity to become one of the most valuable.

Is Your Hamstring Strength Limiting Your Performance?

Leg Presses, Leg Enxtensions, high knee lifts, jogging, and sprinting are just some of the exercises that are aimed at strengthening your quadricep muscles (the top of your thigh). Very few, such as leg curls, target the lower part of your thigh, the hamstrings. This can be the single most limiting factor to overall performance - by limiting your running speed, jumping ability, and even causing painful pulls that can put you out of commission for weeks.

Ideally you want your leg extension (quadriceps) and your leg curl (hamstrings) scores to be the same, but a test score of 1625 middle and high school level athletes showed their leg curl scores were less than 50% of their leg extensionscores! Experts say you need a minimum of 75% to prevent injury and 80% to 100% is recommended for you to reach your full potential.

How do I test my Leg Extension/Leg Curl Ratio?

For Leg Extensions, sit and grasp the handles on each side, and test each leg separately. You are trying to find your max, or the largest amount you can extend for one rep. Take the scores for each leg. For Leg Curls, lie on your stomach, connect your heel to the pad, and curl your leg towards your buttocks. Now, divide the right curl strength (say, 30 lbs.) by your right extension strength (say, 60 lbs.) and you get your ratio (30 / 60 = 50%). If your score was not at least 80%, you have some hamstring strength work to do. You may find your right is stronger than your left, or vice versa, in which case you must target the weaker leg specifically.

Info provided by Sports Speed by Dintiman, Ward, and Tellez:

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