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Coaching Young Athletes

Coaching Young Athletes

By Darren Wensor

Thoughts, ideas, tips and tricks to help you become a better coach, instructor or sports parent.
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This Strategy That Just Might Save Your Coaching Session

Coaching Young AthletesMay 26, 2021

00:00
05:37
This Strategy That Just Might Save Your Coaching Session

This Strategy That Just Might Save Your Coaching Session

How do you salvage a coaching session that is slowly slipping away from you? Here are some strategies that may just work.

May 26, 202105:37
10 Things I Am Doing When I Am At My Best As A Coach

10 Things I Am Doing When I Am At My Best As A Coach

Have you ever considered the type of things you are doing when you are at your happiest and performing your best as a coach? Here is a list of actions and habits that enable effective coaching.

May 11, 202111:32
How To Serve Up An ACE Warm-Up For Kids

How To Serve Up An ACE Warm-Up For Kids

The choice of possible warm up activities that can be used when working with kids is huge. So how do you choose what to use? This episode of the Coaching Young Athletes podcast discusses three key considerations to help coaches plan a warm up for young athletes.

May 04, 202110:28
5 Unexpected Things That Can Enhance Your Journey As A Youth Sports Coach

5 Unexpected Things That Can Enhance Your Journey As A Youth Sports Coach

Learning can sometimes come from the most unexpected sources.

Many of these are not what we would usually consider as conventional coach development opportunities. Some we might prefer to avoid and some we may even fear.

This episode of the Coaching Young Athletes podcast discusses 5 unexpected sources of learning that can ultimately enhance your coaching journey.

Apr 25, 202108:13
The Art of Skill Progression And Regression When Coaching Kids

The Art of Skill Progression And Regression When Coaching Kids

Particularly when coaching kids, the skill level within a group can vary considerably. The larger the group, the more levels of capability you are likely to encounter. This episode discusses how youth sports coaches can cater for different capabilities within a group of young athletes.

Apr 16, 202105:44
Why Youth Sports Coaches Should Not Focus On The Fixture

Why Youth Sports Coaches Should Not Focus On The Fixture

It takes a courageous youth sports coach to maintain a development focus with an "important" competition pending. Learn about how development can be delayed when a focus on the fixture is favoured.

Jul 09, 201906:33
How Can Kids Get Good At Sports Without Burning Out?

How Can Kids Get Good At Sports Without Burning Out?

 How To Build Up Hours Without Breaking Down Kids.  7 tips to give kids a greater exposure to sports practice without putting them into a specialised formal single sport program. 

Jul 02, 201911:08
How To Motivate Kids To Try Difficult Tasks

How To Motivate Kids To Try Difficult Tasks

How can we facilitate a learning environment that encourages young athletes to have a go and persevere? If the factors that contribute to positive experiences for children can be identified, the challenge for youth sports coaches is to deliberately attempt to replicate these factors within a coaching session. This podcast identifies eight ways to deliberately create an environment that will encourage kids to try and persist.

Jun 25, 201912:31
3 Unusual Items In My Coaching Kit That I Absolutely Love

3 Unusual Items In My Coaching Kit That I Absolutely Love

I've purchased a range of fancy coaching aids over the years - some quite expensive. Funnily enough, some of my favourites are the most basic and inexpensive of these - and probably those that you would least expect.  Check out these inexpensive coaching aids that every coach of kids should carry.

Jun 18, 201909:12
This Is What You Need To Know About External Coaching Cues

This Is What You Need To Know About External Coaching Cues

Research indicates that external cues are better than internal cues for learning and performance. Knowing this and being able to apply this knowledge can be a game-changer in coaching. From playground swings to sport, learn about the power of external coaching cues and some tips about how to apply them most effectively.

Jun 11, 201908:21
How To Select The Best Coaching Session Content For Young Athletes

How To Select The Best Coaching Session Content For Young Athletes

The best coaches of kids are are discerning about what they include in their program. Any activity that appears within a session should have passed through several filters prior to being delivered to the kids. Learn about the 3 questions that you need to ask about your coaching content.

Jun 04, 201907:44
How To Use The Power Of Language In Coaching

How To Use The Power Of Language In Coaching

One word can make a big difference. Taking time to craft your language to resonate with your audience will make you a better coach. Learn about 5 C's of great coaching cues and how to use them.

May 28, 201908:36
What is the Ultimate Key to Effective Youth Sports Coaching?

What is the Ultimate Key to Effective Youth Sports Coaching?

What would you say is the most important ability that a youth sports coach needs to possess in order to be effective? I will let you know my thoughts and also discuss three broad categories in which I classify coaches according to their ability in this area.
Mar 17, 201808:11
The Fundamentals That Will Make Kids Faster

The Fundamentals That Will Make Kids Faster

I am regularly asked what type of training kids should do for a particular sprint or running event. Here I discuss my "running coaching curriculum". In other words - how I coach kids to run.
Mar 17, 201816:38
Bad Youth Sports Coaching

Bad Youth Sports Coaching

8 warning signs of really bad youth sports coaching. What NOT to do when coaching kids.
Aug 26, 201704:55
Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 5

Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 5

Five of the top things that I have learnt on my coaching journey so far. Part 5 of a 5-part series.
Aug 22, 201704:07
Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 4

Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 4

Five of the top things that I have learnt on my coaching journey so far. Part 4 of a 5-part series.
Aug 21, 201704:01
Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 3

Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 3

Five of the top things that I have learnt on my coaching journey so far. Part 3 in a 5-part series.
Aug 20, 201704:18
Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 2

Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 2

Five of the top things that I have learnt on my coaching journey so far. Part 2 in a 5-part series.
Aug 19, 201704:24
Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 1

Tips For Coaching Kids: Part 1

Five of the top things that I have learnt on my coaching journey so far. Part 1 in a 5-part series.
Aug 18, 201704:41
Youth Sports Specialisation

Youth Sports Specialisation

When should young athletes specialise?
Aug 11, 201704:55
Youth Coaching Success

Youth Coaching Success

How to measure your success when coaching young athletes.
Aug 04, 201703:18
Fun Tops The Charts When Coaching Young Athletes

Fun Tops The Charts When Coaching Young Athletes

Learn how to develop a "Top Ten Fun Chart" by finding out what "fun" means to your athletes.
Jul 28, 201703:26
3 Great Sports Coaching Reads

3 Great Sports Coaching Reads

3 of the Best Sports Coaching Articles I Have Read This Year
Jul 22, 201704:38