Until recently, when my lifters addressed me as Coach, I would look around confused, wondering who they might be talking to. I’m getting over that one now and beginning (slowly) to fill out this new role in my life. In some ways I suppose this means I have earned the name Coach, but it’s not in my nature to feel comfortable with my latest achievement for long before I am compelled to strive for more. So with this drive for continual development in mind, I wanted to review and explore some of the key areas of development for me as a weightlifting coach.

These specific development issues are the ones that I feel are key not only to my successes when coaching but also at the heart of the moments when my Coaching is at its weakest. These are the seven deadline coaching sins.

False flattery

I’m a nice guy. I like to make people laugh and feel good; I know how important it is to build confidence in the athletes I train. However, there are occasions when I overdo it. As my mentor Jon White puts it, “Phil, you need to not praise someone’s lift if it looks like a car crash”

In my haste to develop an athlete’s love of the sport and their personal confidence, I have occasionally done them a disservice. I’m beginning to understand that positive reinforcement is what is paramount and that if I praise poor technique I am encouraging the athlete to develop bad habits. This issue seems simple on the surface, but is actually quite complex. There’s a fine line between being honest by criticizing technique and destroying somebody’s enjoyment of the sport. Ultimately I don’t think it’s about praising or not praising; it’s a case of building a trusting and respectful relationship with athletes so that whatever the feedback is, it is honest and they can rely on you to have the best intentions for them.

Over-coaching

I am a big talker. I love to chat and so consequently am rarely quiet. This right here is probably my most frequent offense. Because I think and talk quickly, I tend to voice ideas as they come to me. This tendency manifests itself as over-coaching. My conversational approach works quite well with some of my lifters; generally the ones who like to do ask me questions back. But for most, over-coaching hinders them in their ability to respond to the critical cues. I am a big believer in the principle of ‘if it aint broke, don’t fix it,’ and so I’m working really hard to follow the received wisdom of using concise cues.

Repeating failed cues

In the world of formal education, there is the story of the apocryphal teacher who creates his lesson plans in the first year of his career and then teaches the same material for the rest of his working life. As frustrating as it is to find that one athlete who confounds all my well-established cues, tricks, and techniques, it is fundamental to my altruistic motivation for coaching that I find a way through the confusion and assist in the development of that athlete. Individuals are unique and deserve singular attention. I have learned to accept that sometimes I’m the one who needs to change what he’s doing.

Expecting too much

I am sure I am not the only coach out there who does this. It’s natural to want to get the most out of someone. Helping someone achieve their potential is a real buzz. However, I sometimes forget that my lifters are all human and have real world distractions that affect their training. Many are also already Master’s age and often late starters. There have been sessions where I feel disappointed or frustrated with an athlete because they’re not living up to their usual standards. I have learned that I might need to give them a break and accept that very few athletes are ‘never miss a beat’ consistent at whatever level of the sport.

Not demanding enough

Some Olympic Weightlifters get lazy, myself included. This is a complex issue because it can be a physical thing or a psychological barrier or even an attitude problem. Getting the best out of someone is tricky and I am finding that the approach is not only different for every individual, but what works for lifter ‘A’ on Monday may be useless for the same lifter by Friday. And this is where I differ from some coaches: I don’t believe you can be one ‘type’ of coach (i.e. tough uncompromising silent type, charismatic jovial type, etc.), I firmly believe you need to be adaptable and build a relationship with your lifters. It’s a tricky, dynamic approach that I am working hard on developing.

Neglecting your own development

I talked a lot in my previous article about the challenges of keeping up your own training commitments when you’re a coach. Needless to say, it’s not easy. I do know some coaches who have become a little shy about lifting around their students. Personally, I think this is a bullshit attitude. I am just as happy to get pointers from the athletes I coach as I am from anyone else. I think it’s fair to say that they are just as likely to be able to contribute something valid to me as I am to them. So I always listen. If you think someone is wrong, you can always ignore their advice. After all, whether you like it or not, they are free to behave in the same way when the roles are reversed.

Not appreciating the name Coach

It’s easy to wonder what you’re doing it all for when you’re training late at night alone because that’s the only time you could fit in your own session. And not every session is filled with progress and excitement; sometimes it’s about pushing your lifters through the grind. But as I’m finding out, the great sessions where everything is on point and everyone is buzzing…those sessions make it all worth it. That’s not the whole story for me, though. A huge reason I coach is because I get to give people a gift. I am privileged enough to bless other people’s lives with this amazing sport. Coaching makes me feel content on a very deep level.
So that is where I’m at after my first few months of coaching, still learning hard lessons and still earning the name Coach. Although I may still not feel I have earned the name entirely. I am glad I am known as Coach. Being addressed as Coach by a lifter reminds me of my responsibilities and gives me something to live up to…and if I’m totally honest, it also makes me feel a little bit proud!