Instilling the "win" factor

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Phys Ed Teachers/Coaches Chatboard

Instilling the "win" factor

by Sheila

Apr 19, 2008

/blockquote>

Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an
elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A
student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and
has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no tears,
breaks. How do I instill in him that he could have a great
track future with his running potential and his grades but
that sometimes he needs to run through pain and suck it up?
Thanks, Sheila

Comment

(5)

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Paco /blockquote>

On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote:
> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an
> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A
> student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and
> has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no
tears,
> breaks. How do I in...See More

Apr 20, 2008

report post

Cliff On 4/20/08, Paco wrote: > On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: >> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an >> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A >> student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and >> has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no > tears, >> breaks. How do...See MoreOn 4/20/08, Paco wrote: > On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: >> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an >> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A >> student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and >> has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no > tears, >> breaks. How do I instill in him that he could have a > great >> track future with his running potential and his grades but >> that sometimes he needs to run through pain and suck it up? >> Thanks, Sheila > > I think I know the attitude you're talking about and I > believe (as do most coaches I know) that you are born with > it. You can't make someone 'want it'. > > Also, playing through pain is somewhat of a myth, > perpetuated by what we see in big time sports on TV. They > risk everything, including their health, to get back on the > field and make the bucks. It is big business. Youngsters > must be very careful about playing through pain. They must > know the difference between injury and discomfort and > sometimes it is hard for them to know the difference. But > you can't know it for him. He could have a muscle imbalance > between the quad and thigh. Check with a PT. Don't push > him too hard, give him time to mature into an intense > competitor, if it is to be. Outside pressure can be a > negative and push him away from the sport. Most athletes > who rise to a higher level, love what they are doing. Don't > take that away. Sorry to be so long-winded.

I have been coaching XC and Track (distance runners) for 17 years. I have never subscribed to the "born with it" philosophy but for a while I did believe you could not make someone want to win. Now I believe with the proper support, modiviation, self-confidance, and perserverance anyone can be a top athlete. My most recent success is a boy who was running an 8 min mile in 6th grade, is now running 4:38 as an 8th grader, and is hoping to run under 4:10 by his senior year. He truely loves what he is doing, but started working with me because I did not cut anyone from the team. I focus on the intrinsic values gained from the hard work and efforts and believe this is why my athletes try so hard and love to compete. It sounds as if your son already has a leg up on the competition and could have a bright future as a runner. Find a coach who emphasizes improvement over winning and is very familiar with sport realted injuries and pain. Be sure to let the coach do his/her job, but ask questions and bring up concerns. Any coach who is not approachable or is unwilling to discuss things with parents is not worth having. As for the aches and pains. there are some aches and pains that are appropriate for this type of activity, but many need to be carefully scrutinized. The last 10 sentences from the previous reply are right on (except the last one.) I suggest you don't look for a coach who has the "best" athletes, look for one who's focus is on (all) the athletes and is happy to work with all levels of ability. I have only met a handful of these people in 17 years, so good luck.

Jun 25, 2008

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Paco -- Good advice, Cliff On 6/25/08, Cliff wrote: > On 4/20/08, Paco wrote: >> On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: >>> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an >>> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A >>> student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and >>> has tightness in right quad/hamstring...See MoreOn 6/25/08, Cliff wrote: > On 4/20/08, Paco wrote: >> On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: >>> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an >>> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A >>> student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and >>> has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no >> tears, >>> breaks. How do I instill in him that he could have a >> great >>> track future with his running potential and his grades but >>> that sometimes he needs to run through pain and suck it up? >>> Thanks, Sheila >> >> I think I know the attitude you're talking about and I >> believe (as do most coaches I know) that you are born with >> it. You can't make someone 'want it'. >> >> Also, playing through pain is somewhat of a myth, >> perpetuated by what we see in big time sports on TV. They >> risk everything, including their health, to get back on the >> field and make the bucks. It is big business. Youngsters >> must be very careful about playing through pain. They must >> know the difference between injury and discomfort and >> sometimes it is hard for them to know the difference. But >> you can't know it for him. He could have a muscle imbalance >> between the quad and thigh. Check with a PT. Don't push >> him too hard, give him time to mature into an intense >> competitor, if it is to be. Outside pressure can be a >> negative and push him away from the sport. Most athletes >> who rise to a higher level, love what they are doing. Don't >> take that away. Sorry to be so long-winded. > > I have been coaching XC and Track (distance runners) for 17 > years. I have never subscribed to the "born with it" > philosophy but for a while I did believe you could not make > someone want to win. Now I believe with the proper support, > modiviation, self-confidance, and perserverance anyone can be > a top athlete. My most recent success is a boy who was > running an 8 min mile in 6th grade, is now running 4:38 as an > 8th grader, and is hoping to run under 4:10 by his senior > year. He truely loves what he is doing, but started working > with me because I did not cut anyone from the team. I focus > on the intrinsic values gained from the hard work and efforts > and believe this is why my athletes try so hard and love to > compete. It sounds as if your son already has a leg up on the > competition and could have a bright future as a runner. Find > a coach who emphasizes improvement over winning and is very > familiar with sport realted injuries and pain. Be sure to let > the coach do his/her job, but ask questions and bring up > concerns. Any coach who is not approachable or is unwilling > to discuss things with parents is not worth having. As for > the aches and pains. there are some aches and pains that are > appropriate for this type of activity, but many need to be > carefully scrutinized. The last 10 sentences from the > previous reply are right on (except the last one.) I suggest > you don't look for a coach who has the "best" athletes, look > for one who's focus is on (all) the athletes and is happy to > work with all levels of ability. I have only met a handful of > these people in 17 years, so good luck.

I grew up going up to the schoolyard and playing all kinds of sports. You played for the intrinsic value. You are right that very few understand how important that is -- playing for the love of it instead of championships and trophies. Those should be a by-product, not the main focus. I applaud your focus on physical and emotional development. Kids are lucky to have you as a coach.

P.S. I also think it is easier to improve an athlete physically than mentally, because there are more variables to the mental part of participation. Your thoughts?

Jun 26, 2008

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Cliff On 6/26/08, Paco -- Good advice, Cliff wrote: > On 6/25/08, Cliff wrote: >> On 4/20/08, Paco wrote: >>> On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: >>>> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an >>>> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A >>>> student and a sophomore. He is not t...See MoreOn 6/26/08, Paco -- Good advice, Cliff wrote: > On 6/25/08, Cliff wrote: >> On 4/20/08, Paco wrote: >>> On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: >>>> Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an >>>> elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A >>>> student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and >>>> has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no >>> tears, >>>> breaks. How do I instill in him that he could have a >>> great >>>> track future with his running potential and his grades but >>>> that sometimes he needs to run through pain and suck it up? >>>> Thanks, Sheila >>> >>> I think I know the attitude you're talking about and I >>> believe (as do most coaches I know) that you are born with >>> it. You can't make someone 'want it'. >>> >>> Also, playing through pain is somewhat of a myth, >>> perpetuated by what we see in big time sports on TV. They >>> risk everything, including their health, to get back on the >>> field and make the bucks. It is big business. Youngsters >>> must be very careful about playing through pain. They must >>> know the difference between injury and discomfort and >>> sometimes it is hard for them to know the difference. But >>> you can't know it for him. He could have a muscle imbalance >>> between the quad and thigh. Check with a PT. Don't push >>> him too hard, give him time to mature into an intense >>> competitor, if it is to be. Outside pressure can be a >>> negative and push him away from the sport. Most athletes >>> who rise to a higher level, love what they are doing. Don't >>> take that away. Sorry to be so long-winded. >> >> I have been coaching XC and Track (distance runners) for 17 >> years. I have never subscribed to the "born with it" >> philosophy but for a while I did believe you could not make >> someone want to win. Now I believe with the proper support, >> modiviation, self-confidance, and perserverance anyone can be >> a top athlete. My most recent success is a boy who was >> running an 8 min mile in 6th grade, is now running 4:38 as an >> 8th grader, and is hoping to run under 4:10 by his senior >> year. He truely loves what he is doing, but started working >> with me because I did not cut anyone from the team. I focus >> on the intrinsic values gained from the hard work and efforts >> and believe this is why my athletes try so hard and love to >> compete. It sounds as if your son already has a leg up on the >> competition and could have a bright future as a runner. Find >> a coach who emphasizes improvement over winning and is very >> familiar with sport realted injuries and pain. Be sure to let >> the coach do his/her job, but ask questions and bring up >> concerns. Any coach who is not approachable or is unwilling >> to discuss things with parents is not worth having. As for >> the aches and pains. there are some aches and pains that are >> appropriate for this type of activity, but many need to be >> carefully scrutinized. The last 10 sentences from the >> previous reply are right on (except the last one.) I suggest >> you don't look for a coach who has the "best" athletes, look >> for one who's focus is on (all) the athletes and is happy to >> work with all levels of ability. I have only met a handful of >> these people in 17 years, so good luck. > > I grew up going up to the schoolyard and playing all kinds of > sports. You played for the intrinsic value. You are right that > very few understand how important that is -- playing for the > love of it instead of championships and trophies. Those should > be a by-product, not the main focus. I applaud your focus on > physical and emotional development. Kids are lucky to have you > as a coach. > > P.S. I also think it is easier to improve an athlete physically > than mentally, because there are more variables to the mental > part of participation. Your thoughts?

I agree! Physical training and improvement takes place on many levels, each of which require a different mental focus and effort. Getting an indiviaual to work and perform in some sports is easier than others (volleyball vs distance running) especially if there is glamour or popularity involved (football/cheer.) In my experience, kids with attainable goals are the ones who tend to mentally invest and become the most successful. It sounds like you have a great philosophy on sports Paco, I hope you are sharing it with kids...? There are not enough good coaches out there.

Jul 10, 2008

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Darrin Hammond On 4/19/08, Sheila wrote: > Hi - I have a 15 year old who has the potential to be an > elite runner ( cross country , 1 mile, ). He is also an A > student and a sophomore. He is not tolerable of pain and > has tightness in right quad/hamstring. MRI shows no tears, > breaks. How do I instill in him that he could have a great > trac...See More

Jul 23, 2008

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