Submitted by Kate Samsot, Director of Travel Soccer
The audience was a mix of DC Stoddert’s recreational and travel coaches and staff, along with a visiting coach from Arlington, VA. Dr. Dan presented general information on player psychology, keeping the format informal so coaches could interject questions relevant to their teams.
Freigang’s first segment covered effective team building. He said that players of all ages sought group identity, embodied in a team walk or a team cheer. He talked about players buying into team rituals, perhaps going through an “induction process” by juggling 20 times to “earn a team jersey.” Freigang added that symbols associated with a team gave it meaning and importance. If a coach asked players, “What three things characterize this team?” players’ answers could shape a team mission statement or symbol, ultimately helping to motivate the individuals. (For young players, the team might develop a secret roar or handshake if their symbol was a lion.)
The conversation flowed to how athletes improve, physically. Dr. Dan described homeostasis, when the body’s internal functions are in a state of equilibrium. He said that exercise shifts the body from this state, causing cells and energy to degenerate. The body responds to this stress using its “general adaptation syndrome” in an attempt to return to equilibrium. The body grows stronger over time. Water and rest both help the body to regenerate, but the process is aided when athletes employ “periodization,” or progressive cycles of training.
A coach needs to take into account that recovery rates within the body vary. For instance, a player may feel physically and mentally rested after some down time, but his touch on the ball may still be “off”. Why? Nerves recover at a slower rate than muscles.
Freigang stressed that rest is just as important as training, when building endurance. This is also important in avoiding player burnout. A coach must vary his training so it does not get stale, but he must also keep an eye on his players to make sure they are not just going through the motions.
Most club coaches only work with their athletes two or three times a week. On the other days, athletes are likely to be training with other coaches, risking overtraining and burnout. In addition to his observations, the club coach must rely on players’ verbal feedback to gauge where they are in the recovery process. Players may be asked to rate themselves on a scale of 1-100 – on everything from mood to muscles to sleep patterns to nutrition. The coach learns about individual recovery times, and the players build trust with their coach by taking active roles in assessing themselves.
Freigang said that coaches should be cognizant of players’ learning styles, and tailor instruction accordingly. Some players may need a walk-through of a drill to “feel” it before understanding it; other players may simply need to hear the explanation or see a demonstration to replicate it. However players learn, they need to feel a sense of “competence” vs. “helplessness” at practice.
Practices place high demands on “learning,” whereas game environments place high demands on “performance”. Since players initially learn skills better without the pressure of performance (i.e., wins & losses), logic dictates that the ratio of practices to games should be high, rather than the other way around.
A coach can foster players’ feelings of competence by controlling the learning environment and making sure the elements of control, coping skills, and optimism are present. The best practices are efficiently-run, allowing players input and providing tools for success. Freigang gave the example of a 5-year-old being told he could kick the ball “like a hurricane.” From that time forward, the 5-year-old would have a positive mental image of a hurricane every time he approached the ball, and would be excited to return to practice and repeat the technique. Repetition would breed skill competency, and therefore, success.
Freigang finished the discussion by saying that a coach has enormous ability to influence his players in changing their “concepts of “self,” giving them confidence to try new things, repeat them successfully, and eventually develop stability of behavior. Positive coaching can make a huge impact on a player’s personality – both on and off the field.
